#just figured out it was World Turtle Day 20 minutes ago

[doodlingbiscuit]

Happy World Turtle Day!

[queenxxxsupreme]

Hi babe 🥰

Happy Valentine’s Day! 💕

Si, i gotta ask. How do you think Dettlaff would celebrate Valentine’s Day with his SO/reader?

A/N: I saw my chance to answer another ask so I took it!

***

You gently tugged at the blankets that covered Dettlaff’s sleeping form. 

“Dettlaff.” You sing-songed his name, a little smile tugging at the corners of your lips. 

The Higher Vampire groaned, readjusting the pillows that he had stuffed beneath his head, and tucked his nose into their warmth. 

You pulled away three different blankets from him, pulling them down to expose his bare shoulders to the cold air of the room. You moved from the foot of the bed to his side, your fingers trailing like feathers along his spine. 

“Come on, darling. You’ve been sleeping for three hours.”

 He shivered beneath your touch, your warm fingers a stark contrast to his chilly skin. 

“Lay down with me for just a moment, my love.” His words were muffled by the pillows but you could understand him just fine. 

“Now you know that isn’t a good idea.” You propped one knee up on the edge of the bed and leaned down to kiss the space behind his ear. “Then we’d never get out of bed.”

“That doesn’t sound so bad, does it?”

“No, but everyone will be here shortly for dinner.”

Finally understanding that he couldn’t stay in bed with you for the rest of the night, Dettlaff let out a heavy sigh and rolled over onto his back. He looked up at you for a few moments, icy blue eyes inspecting your features. 

“How many of them are coming? Just Regis and Orianna, I hope.”

“Well, they are coming. But so is Geralt and Yennefer, and Lambert and Aiden. Eskel is bringing someone too, though I haven’t met them yet.”

“You know, I think it would’ve been lovely if we had just made plans for ourselves and no one else.” His hand came up to cup your face.

“We can make plans for ourselves any other night of the year. Tonight, we can spend time with friends.” You leaned down to kiss his chest just above his heart. 

“We can make plans for friends any other night of the year.” He muttered. His hand trailed around to the back of your head, long and slender fingers carding through your hair. 

“Dettlaff.” You sighed softly. “You were excited about it when we put the plans together two weeks ago.”

“That was two weeks ago.”

“I should know better by now. My lovely introvert.” You teased as you leaned forward once more to kiss him. 

“You really should. You’d think you’d learn your lesson after spending half a decade with me.”

You were glad to see he was in a good mood. Hopefully that meant this evening would go over smoothly. 

“Come on.” You patted his chest and slipped out of the bed. “We’re going to go for a little walk before anyone gets here just so we can have some time to ourselves. I’ll be leaving a note on the table should anyone arrive early.”

“Regis.” Dettlaff grumbled as he sat up.

“He does like being punctual.”

***

The moon hung high in the sky, shining down through the thick tree canopies. 

Dettlaff walked alongside you, your arms woven together as you leaned into him. 

“I think it will be fun.” You thought out loud.

“What will?” He turned his head to look at you.

“Spending the night with friends. Well, they’re practically family, aren’t they?”

“You could say that.” Dettlaff nodded. “Though I think it would’ve been wiser to spend Valentine’s night with you alone in our home than crowded around a table with a bunch of loud dogs.”

“Hindsight is 20/20.” You giggled. “Don’t worry, darling. You’ll have plenty of time after they leave to spend alone with me.”

He grumbled something incoherent under his breath. 

“I do appreciate you agreeing to this, Dettlaff.” You came to a stop and turned to face him. “I know crowds aren’t your favorite and you aren’t one for socializing. It means a lot to me that you suggested we do something like this tonight.”

His blue eyes stayed on you as his hand came up to brush a stray piece of hair behind your ear. 

“I know how much you enjoy their company. And I’m willing to sacrifice my sanity for a few hours to see you happy.”

You smiled.

“But that isn’t my only gift for you. I do have something else.” He dug his hand into the pocket of his coat. “Can I see your wrist please?”

“Which one?”

“Either one.”

You gave him your left, watching as he clasped a silver bracelet around your wrist. Before letting you go, he brought your wrist to his mouth, pressing a tender kiss to the veins on the underside of your wrist. 

“It isn’t much, but it made me think of you when I saw it.” He explained, nervously shifting his weight from one foot to the other. “Well, not exactly you. I-I thought that it would remind you of me. I know I’m not always around. Sometimes I’m gone with Regis and other times I’m just…. So I wanted you to have something that reminded you of me.”

You turned your wrist around, examining the piece of jewelry. There was a little bat charm on it that made you smile. 

“Dettlaff, it’s beautiful.”

“You like it?”

“I do.” You nodded, wrapping your arms around his broad shoulders and squeezing him tightly. “Thank you.”

He hugged you back, tucking his nose into your shoulder. 

“I have something for you too.” You pulled away, keeping one hand on his shoulder. “But it’s back home.”

“Let’s finish our walk and we can go back.” 

***

You led the way down the hall towards your shared bedroom with Dettlaff. 

He listened to the way your heart picked up pace, the way it changed from that of the flap of a butterflies wings to something more akin to a hummingbird. You were excited. 

You guided him over to the bed and gestured for him to sit.

“Stay here and close your eyes. I’ll go grab it. It’s in my study.”

He sat down on the edge of the bed, eyes following you as you left the room. 

“Are your eyes shut, Dettlaff?”

“Of course, my heart.” He answered, closing his eyes.

“Will you keep them shut?”

“Do you not trust me?” He teased.

“Don’t use any of your vampiric magic either.”

He grinned a little. Though his eyes were shut, he could still tell exactly where you were in the house. You were in the closet in your study, moving things around. You cursed a little and muttered under your breath about how cluttered things were. After a few moments, however, you were making your way back towards the bedroom. 

Dettlaff couldn’t figure out what it was that you were gifting him. It had no smell, no taste that tainted the air. It emitted no sound. He listened more carefully, but was dumbfounded. All the ideas that had been forming in his head were disappearing. 

“Darling, can I open-,”

“No.” You answered quickly, your voice sounding strained. “Keep them shut just-just a moment longer.”

It took all of the Higher Vampire’s self control to not open his eyes and see what it was that you had. But he didn’t want to upset you. He didn’t want to ruin your surprise. 

You grunted a little and there was a deep thunk. 

“Damn.” You cursed quietly.

“Is all well, my love?”

“Yes, yes. Just fine. You can open your eyes now.”

Dettlaff opened his eyes and instantly found you standing in front of him with a wide smile on your lips. Your hands were clasped together in front of you and you were messing with your fingers. 

“I know how frustrated you get when you can’t find a mirror that works for you.” Your voice was quiet and timid. You stepped aside to reveal a large square mirror leaning against the dresser behind you. “The ones I have here, they are made with silver. So I had one specially made for you.”

Dettlaff’s lips parted as he looked at the mirror, seeing his own reflection in the surface. He couldn’t find the words to express what was going through his head. 

Being that you weren’t sure how to take his silence, you continued to talk, your nervous ramblings getting the best of you.

“I know you like to get ready in the mornings with me and it puts quite a damper on the mood when you can’t see yourself. And-And you do take pride in your looks. You’re a dashing man-,”

“My heart?”

“Yes?”

“Come here.” He held his hand out for you.

You moved towards him, settling between his parted knees with your hands in his. 

“Thank you.” He kissed your knuckles. “That was very kind of you. And very expensive, I presume.”

“That doesn’t matter.” You shook your head, reaching one hand around to place it on the back of Dettlaff’s head. You pulled his head into your chest and kissed his hair. “I wanted to do something for you.”

“And all I got you was a little bracelet.”

“It isn’t a competition of who gave the most expensive gift, Dettlaff.” You reminded him, pulling away so you could get a better look at him. “I’ve been planning this for a while, and it just happened that I had the means for now.”

His eyes lingered on you, a little smile on his lips. 

“I am the luckiest creature alive, you know that right?”

“Oh, perhaps.” You grinned, giving him a chaste kiss. “I should go start dinner. I’m surprised Regis and Orianna-,”

A knock from the other room cut you off.

“You spoke too soon.” Dettlaff sighed. “It’s only Regis and Orianna. Hopefully the wolves are late.”

“Knowing them, they probably will be.” You moved towards the bedroom door. But at the last minute, you turned to look back at him. “I love you, Dettlaff.”

“I love you more, my heart.” 

Taglist: @pressedinthepages @mishafaye @whitewolfandthefox @wolfyland07 @belalugosisdead @persephonehemingway @keira-hulmaster @dinonuggs69 @greatestauthorofmygeneration @shadow-hunters-lover @dancingwith-thesunflowers @tedi-fach-las @thecomfortofoldstorries @raspberrydreamclouds @natkowaa @disasteren @weathervanes-my-oneandlonely @onlyhenrys @wackylurker @criminaly-supernatural @magpie343 @permanently-exhausted-witcher @hina-chans-stuff @the-space-between-heartbeats @havenoffandoms @carriebee1 @ger-bearofrivia @naominami @writingawaymylife @reaganjenelle @theawkwardpedestrian @scarlettwitcher @badassspaceprincess @just-a-sad-donut @summersong69 @an--actual--human--disaster @rubyqueen819 @omgkatinka @c-a-v-a-l-r-y @vonxcon @mazakeen @bravelittlesunflower @thereagles @awkward-turtles-world @menalliha @cotton_mo @maan24 @thefirelordm @monkeymo @krenee1drful @nympha-door-a @unadulteratedtreecrusade @Aquarius-pisces-rose @mentallyscreamingsincebirth @fl0ating @sometimesiwrite @you-fxcking-wish-bish @thanks-bruh-for-nothing @maan2442 @thegaydeath @creatingstuffinpeace @wellthisstinks @andyrazzledazzle @ameliasmistake @winterwolf @caraqas @bluscryn

If your name is in italics, it wouldn’t let me tag you :(

[ateezmakemeweep]

you’re the one that i want (part 20)

word count: 7k

angst, fluff (tw: anxiety attack)

(part 19) (series masterlist)

“is there a reason you don’t wanna go home? are you not safe there?”

“it’s...fine,” you say quietly. “they just say a lot of things that hurt my feelings and yell. but who’s parents don’t? it’s just....normal family problems,” you tell seonghwa quietly, blinking back the tears threatning to fall because you don’t think being smacked and kicked and fearing for your life is considered normal family problems.

“whatever they say, know it’s not true,” you hear him mumble against your head. “they don’t know how lucky they are to be able to see you everyday.”

those words leaving his mouth catch you off guard, any time he says something sweet like that making your heart flutter and tears prick your eyes. and he knows it too because he looks down at you and smiles, shaking his head before placing another peck on your nose and lips.

“please, no more crying tonight.”

and you try for him again but it proves to be a failure, burying your face in his neck and allowing your wet, salty tears to fall on his skin. you try to control your breathing and sobs threatening to leave, neither of you commenting on the death grip you have on him.

“i’m gonna miss you,” you whimper out quietly.

“i’m gonna miss you too, baby,” he says, “but i’m here now. and i’ll be here when you wake up.”

your eyes shoot open as you’re ripped from the dream of memories, tears blurring your vision and a pit in your stomach because you can remember that night so well.

your last night with seonghwa when he calmed all your worries with his sweet words and soft spoken tone. told you he loved you and that you guys would figure everything out, no matter what was gonna happen.

it was the last night you thought you’d wake up with him, the last time you thought you’d feel truly safe and protected after months of experiencing happiness you’d never felt before.

but now here you are months later, unable to move because of the heavy arm wrapped around your waist and his warm breath on your neck; but there’s also a horrible pit forming in your stomach as you quickly recall last night’s events.

remember how you finally told someone about the years of abuse and hostility you’ve dealt with, reluctantly opening up to the boy who, for the past few months, has also been hurting you.

and with his calming breaths against your skin, his warmth and scent surrounding you, it’d be too easy to transmit yourself right back to that happy place you were in in your dream.

pretend that just for a moment, as you welcome seonghwa’s touch and closeness, that things are normal. expect him to roll over and give you a kiss good morning like he always did, whine to him that you wanna stay in bed with him all day and watch movies and giggle when he kisses your nose and insists that’s what you’ll do then.

pretend that these past few months didn’t happen and that if he woke up now, he wouldn’t be reminded of the fact he hadn’t wanted you up until a few hours ago. that he told you before the summer ended he’d be there for you and then proved time and time again that he wasn’t.

but you wanna trust him so badly. let him help you and hold you and be like the person he was during that good time. but how are you supposed to really trust him now? how do you know he’s not just gonna freak out again and leave you alone?

because after what you went through and told him last night, you don’t think you’ll be able to handle it.

so it’s why you take a few minutes to breathe, now faintly aware of the rising sun and knowledge that you probably have school in an hour or two. you rest your tired eyes and allow him to hold you for just a little longer, feeling so at ease and relaxed despite your racing mind.

you hear your phone vibrate against the table next to you and pop an eye open, stiffening slightly as you try to rip yourself away from seonghwa. you work slowly to lift his arm, hearing his quiet groan as he tightens his hold on you.

“y/n...” you hear his sleepy voice mumble and you think for a second that he’s awake, about to close your eyes and pretend to be sleeping until you hear the familiar sound of his steady breathing.

you let out a sigh, moving even slower before you eventually get out of his grasp. you can’t even say you’re surprised to see no missed calls from your parents and three messages from san, his frantic questions and crying emojis bringing a sad smile to your face.

your eyes filter over to the desk where that purple turtle lie, narrowing your eyes at the overpriced figurine that served as the catalyst to your breakdown last night.

but it all had just been too much, everything had been too much. seonghwa’s presence and your exhausted body and mind. the voice in your head going back and forth about what to do and if you can trust him before you all but passed out.

it’s still too much right now and if seonghwa wakes up and looks at you a certain way, wonders why you’re still here or thinks you expect to go to school together today with a sneer on his face, there’s a good chance you’ll break down again.

so with one final look, a sad smile quirking at your lips as you watch his handsome, sleeping form, you quietly sneak out of the house to start the journey to school.

the cool morning air sends a chill down your spine and you can just feel how puffy your face is, your confessions having been as exhausting as you thought. you felt slightly better today after your good sleep (the best sleep you’ve gotten in months actually) but you were still haunted.

you’ll be haunted long after just telling someone, riddled with the effects of your parents treatment for quite some time after probably.

and who’s to even say, now that you told someone, that it’s gonna stop. you don’t even know if seonghwa’s gonna help in any way, the vulnerable state you were in last night easily putting all of your faith in him.

because despite everything, despite the way he’s treated you, a part of you still believes he’s good.

but now, with a somewhat level head, you’re also feeling hesitant and confused but mostly scared. what’s gonna happen later today when your parents confront you? how is seonghwa gonna act in homeroom or at lunch? what is san gonna ask you about-

your phone vibrating in your pocket makes your eyes grow wide, your stomach twisting at the idea of seeing seonghwa’s name on the screen. but then you relax slightly and smile, seeing san’s name and it appears he has not a care in the world that it’s only 6:30 a.m.

“hi,” you answer softly, your expression softening when you hear his sigh of relief.

“you took at least five years off my life, i hope you know this.”

your eyebrows pull together at his words, watching the cracks in the sidewalk as you walk down the pavement slowly.

“what do you mean?”

“what do i mean?” he parrots, his voice raising. “what i mean is that i, reluctantly, send you home with seonghwa and then never hear from you again! on top of the fact that wooyoung came in 20 minutes after you left but that’s a whole other story in it self. are you okay? please tell me you are. i’m gonna seriously have a-”

“san,” you say, amusement in your voice because you don’t think you’ve ever heard him so panicked before; he’s usually so sweet and calm and soft spoken. “i’m okay. i...fell asleep at his house.”

“oooop,” san says lowly and you narrow your eyes because you can just picture his facial expression right now. “are you still there?” 

“no. i snuck out while he was sleeping.”

san hums lowly and you resist the urge to scoff, wanting to ask what that noise was for when he talks again.

“and everything was..okay? i didn’t know if you were gonna be mad at me but i don’t know... you didn’t seem right yesterday, y/n.” 

you swallow the lump in your throat as tears prick your eyes, biting on your lip as you try to control your breathing; but this isn’t going away, you told your story once and you have a feeling you’re gonna have to again and again and again.

“i wasn’t,” you admit quietly, not wanting to drop that kind of bomb over the phone. “but i’m a little bit better today. and i’m not mad, san. i...we needed that, i think. i needed that. it was hard but i think we’re kind of...” you try to find the words but realize you don’t even know what you could possibly say about you and seonghwa right now. ”...actually i don’t even know,” you laugh out quietly. 

because you don’t know, you ran out before you could know anything.

“well if i know seonghwa at all, he’s probably gonna wake up and frantically search for you.”

and it appears the blonde still knows his ex-friend quite well because the second seonghwa woke to an empty bed, he became panicked. heart racing and eyes wide as he looked around his room, knowing that just a few hours ago you were wrapped up under his arm because he had watched you sleep until he passed out.

it reminded him of the night after your first time, when he watched you sleep for what felt like hours before coming to the conclusion he’d fallen in love with you. that he was deep and thriving in something as tragic as a summer romance.

he told himself he wasn’t gonna sleep at all that night because he didn’t wana forget the moment; and it’s, ironialy, the same thing he said to himself last night. 

that he had to be up when you awoke so he could tell you again that he’s gonna be there for you. that even though he hasn’t proved it much these past few months, you mean more to him than anything else and he’s gonna help you through this.

so a low curse leaves his mouth as he jumps up and searches for his car key, knowing that it’s probably a little fucking crazy to drive around and look for you but his body just acting on instinct at this point.

because he knows you’re probably thinking a million different thoughts right now, none of which are true. that he plans on ignoring you again and has no intentions of helping, that last night he was just so overwhelmed by your closeness and his desire for you so he acted as if things were like before.

but that couldn’t be further from the truth; things had always been like before and he was too stupid and insecure to realize that. 

he cared too much about what his friends thought and doubted himself and even though he still doesn’t think he’s deserving of you, his need to help and protect you is overpowering everything.

it’s why he speeds through the streets of his neighborhood and sighs in relief when he sees your familiar frame walking, phone held to your ear as he immediately pulls up to the curb.

“he really said that?” you softly ask san who was only starting to explain his drama with wooyoung from yesterday. “how would that even-”

the sound of a car behind you makes you tense and turn around fearfully, relaxing and letting out a quiet, strangled gasp when you see seonghwa through the window.

“y/n? what happened?” san asked, immediately hearing your harsh intake of air. 

“you were right,” you mumble under your breath, san letting out a scoff when he hears seonghwa’s voice calling your name. 

you watch with wide eyes as the dirty blonde walks over to you, looking down at you with a soft, almost guarded look and you hate that your first instinct is to hide away from him.

“i should go, i’ll see you at lunch, okay?” you mumble into the phone, the boy humming his response before you reluctantly hang up and look at seonghwa. his gaze feels more penetrative than usual, your lips pressing together nervously.

“why’d you leave?” he asks you quietly. his tone isn’t accusatory or upset, just genuinely curious and maybe even a little hurt which makes it worse.

“i...we have school,” you lamely say, seonghwa eyes narrowing as he looks at you. 

“and? we have an hour left till then. and i have a car.”

your eyebrows raise in surprise at him saying that, never having expected he’d be giving you a ride; because that would definitely indicate you guys know each other. 

“i just wasn’t sure if you...wanted me there still. i didn’t mean to fall asleep and i was-”

“you weren’t going home,” he says firmly, the low growl in his voice immediately  shutting you down. “you’re not going home.”

“where else am i supposed to go? i live there, seonghwa,” you say, fully ready to accept going back there tonight. 

because what else can you do? as tragic and as toxic as it is, that’s your home. that’s where your stuff is and where there’s a roof over your head. if you could just not go home, you would’ve done that many nights. 

“and i told you we’re gonna figure it out,” he says, walking closer to you and taking your face in his hand. you let out a shaky breath at the feeling, your eyes meeting his and tearing at the look in them.

that familiar soft but blazing look that never failed to make you feel safe.

and right now, not only are you confused by all of this, you’re scared, terrified really, of what’s gonna happen now that it’s out in the universe and scared that you’re gonna have to go through all of this alone.

“you told me a lot of things,” you mumble quietly, hating that you couldn’t stop the words from leaving your mouth. but you think you hate even more the way seonghwa’s face falls, his eyes looking over you before he lets out a sigh.

“i know,” he says, the hurt and distrust in your gaze breaking his heart while also reminding him of the fact that he was a fucking asshole. “but you can’t go back there, baby. i know it’s scary and that your shit is there and that you might not trust me right now but i...you just can’t, okay?”

and then when he tugs you into him, almost like he couldn’t even stop himself, and rests his lips on your head, you think you’re about to crack again. 

so even though you’re still not 100% sure on what the hell you’re supposed to do right now, trust him or not, you accept his comfort and nod against him. he breathes out a sigh of relief at the way you melt into him, his hand on the back of your head as his fingers thread through your hair gently.

“we’ll go to school together, yeah?”

you pull back upon hearing that, your eyes watery and wide and the shock in them makes him heart drop in his stomach; because it doesn’t take a genius to figure out why you’re so surprised by the offer.

“i...are you sure?” you ask him quietly, biting down on your lip nervously in a way that makes his eyes narrow. makes him take your hand in his and walk you toward the passenger seat, gently guiding you in as he buckles you in like a child who can’t do it herself.

“i don’t know if i’ll ever be able to let you out of my sight again,” he says quietly, voice so low and whispered you’re not even sure if you were supposed to hear that. but that doesn’t stop you from raising an eyebrow at him, cocking your head to the side as you peer up at him curiously. 

it’s a look that causes him to touch your cheek again, running his thumb along your warm skin as his eyes roam your face. he hates that it took something as tragic as this to snap him out of his stupid shit, finally make him step up and be there for you in the way he should’ve been from the start.

“i’m sure,” he says, voice back to a normal volume, saying words you were meant to hear. “so please, let me help you.”

you can also hear the soft desperation in his voice and it only reflects in his eyes as he looks at you, reluctantly pulling away after a few seconds and it’s then you let out the breath you were holding in.

his eyes are always gonna be what get to you. the way they hold so much emotion and fondness and really make you believe, even after everything he’s done, that he really does wanna help.

that maybe you both are just young and confused, dealing with too much heaviness and tragedy that two teens trying to be in love need. that even though what he did was wrong, it could mean something that he’s here now when you most need someone. 

but you can’t push down the feelings of doubt and nervousness, even as you look up at him and nod. he bites the inside of his cheek, eyes roaming your face once more before he lets out a quiet sigh and closes the passenger side door.

“so...you finally getting over yourself?” 

it’s the first thing yeosang says when he sits down at lunch, the other two boys still on the line trying to convince the lunch lady to give them triple servings of chicken nuggets. 

but it’s like his words fall on deaf ears, seonghwa’s eyes trained on you and san just a few tables away. 

he had asked you multiple times to sit with him but you rejected each and every request, not wanting to deal with the questioning eyes or snide comments from his friends; you also knew san wouldn’t be comfortable with that, with the way his voice was tight and thick with emotion this morning talking about wooyoung’s surprise visit to the cafe last night.

“hey, asshole,” yeosang repeats, voice brash and abrupt as he waves his hand in seonghwa’s face. it snaps the dirty blonde out of his staring, looking over at his friend with an unamused expression.

“hi?” 

“did you not hear me?” yeosang asks, looking between his friend to follow where his eyes were just planted on. and he’s not surprised to see you, smiling softly at something san said, your small shoulders shrugging before you peek over at their table. 

“what’d you say?” seonghwa asks lowly, doing everything in his power to control the deep, guttural growl threatening to leave his throat. 

yeosang meets his friend’s gaze, eyes narrowing when he sees how tight and tense he’s been. he looked like that the second he got to homeroom, all of their eyes widening when he walked in guiding you by the small of your back. 

he had hovered and acted as if you were gonna disappear if he wasn’t by your side, the brown-haired boy hearing your quiet voice mumble “it’s fine,” when he continued to linger at your desk. 

him and mingi shared a look because something had to have happened yesterday. neither of them had ever seen seonghwa that angry before, pushing wooyoung against the desk and lowly cursing at him like he was his worst enemy and not one of his best friends.

and now here he is today, his eyes never leaving you with a soft intensity he’s also never seen before.

“i said have you finally gotten over yourself?” 

and when seonghwa only narrows his eyes in confusion even more, yeosang nods his head toward you. 

“her. are you two a thing again? finally gonna admit all your shit?”

“what does it matter to you?” seonghwa snaps, yeosang rolling his eyes before letting out a huff. 

“because you’re my fucking friend, hwa.”

seonghwa bites the inside of his cheek before he looks at you again, a hint of a smile quirking at his lips watching you giggle at something san says. it’s the happiest he’s seen you in the past 24 hours and it makes him relax despite the nervous energy coursing through his body. 

because showing up to school, everyone seeing you guys together and his friends hounding him with questions, is the least of his concerns now; he can’t believe for the past two and half months, those have been his concerns. 

“what happened?” yeosang asks, seonghwa looking at him and it only further assures the boy that something had to have. the look in his friend’s eyes wasn’t right, pent up with such emotion and frustration and desperation. 

“nothing,” seonghwa says but his voice is making it very clear that that’s a lie. “i just...i’ve been fucking up with her. really bad.” 

he looks over at you and feels his leg start to bounce, fear tightening his chest because now, instead of being concerned about people finding out he was capable of having feelings, like a normal human being, he was scared of the danger you were in. 

of you going back to your house with him later and being subjected to more pain and suffering from your parents. watching as he loses his shit and fights violence with violence because the idea of someone putting their hands on you makes his blood boil to a level he’s never felt before. 

of you somehow being ripped away from him again or not trusting him after the way he’s acted; because while he knows it’s warranted, he’s gonna do everything he can to prove himself to you.

“i love her and i fucked up and now she’s...” seonghwa swallows the lump in his throat and shakes his head, running a hand through his hair so he doesn’t scream. yeosang feels his heart soften seeing his friend in obvious distress, putting his hand on his shoulder in an uncharacteristic display of affection. 

“i know,” yeosang says. “we knew this whole time to be quite fucking honest. so we didn’t get why you were fighting it so much.”

seonghwa lets out a humorless laugh, shaking his head because how stupid. how completely fucking stupid was he? caring about that when, from the beginning, it was obvious he had feelings for you. that his friends knew the second they saw him return back that he was different. 

“i know. so now i... i don’t know if she’s ever gonna trust me again,” seonghwa says reluctantly, feeling slightly awkward and uncomfortable talking about this with someone. but he saw it in your eyes this morning, how unsure you were even though you looked up at him with such fond softness.

and yeosang doesn’t miss a beat, shrugging as he squeezes the boy’s shoulder reassuringly. 

“how ‘bout just don’t be a dick this time and actually love her,” his friend says, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “you don’t have to proclaim it to the whole fucking school but make sure she knows. show her instead of saying it a thousand times in secret.”

seonghwa’s shocked by his friend’s helpful words but they also pull at something in his chest, secretly warmed and happy by the fact they really do just want him to be happy with someone.

“i thought i was gonna get you that time in the hallway,” he then says and anyone could just hear the smirk in the boy’s voice.

“wait, so you’re not in love?” yeosang asks suddenly, eyebrow quirked challengingly. and when seonghwa doesn’t answer, making your stomach twist and heart drop a little bit, he continues. 

“because you know, it’d be a little crazy to fall for someone in just one summer. but you two are kind of giving me hope since it seems to be working so well.”

seonghwa scoffs before shaking the boy’s hand off him, a smirk pulling on his friend’s lips that causes him to shake his head. 

“knew you were up to some shit that day you dick,” seonghwa mumbles lowly, his eyes moving to you because he can’t look away from you for more than two minutes today. doesn’t know how he went as long as he did not talking to you for days on end and just watching from afar.

“she really threatened to call my mommy, what a dirty move,” mingi says, his tray piled up with chicken as him and wooyoung join the two boys at the table. 

“to be fair, you really are fuckin’ annoying,” wooyoung counters, the taller boy narrowing his eyes at his friend before looking to seonghwa.

“can you choke-slam him again? 

seonghwa and yeosang can’t help but chuckle, wooyoung rolling his eyes before looking at the dirty blonde. 

they all saw this morning how he was different with you but a part of him specfically couldn’t help but feel jealous, watching as the boy so freely touched you and watched you and showed everyone you were his. 

because while a part of it was with a sense of possession, most of it was completely pure. the love and affection and care oozing from the both of you, even as guarded and unsure as your gaze was. 

and he can’t help but feel like he wants that too, looking over at you and san where the blonde is teasing you with a french fry. you catch it and throw it back at the boy, his tiny squeal filling the cafeteria as he laughs with you. 

and it’s with that he quickly turns away, feeling something pulling in his chest that he just can’t face right now; seonghwa catches his gaze and gives him a look that he just knows is gonna result in a conversation later. 

“only if he deserves it,” seonghwa says lowly, wooyoung letting out a snort as his friend’s crypticness before he throws a piece of chicken at the boy. 

“hey, fuck off! i worked hard for all of those!” mingi whines.

“oh, you didn’t do shit!” wooyoung spits, leaning back in his chair as he pops a piece of chicken in his mouth.

“i didn’t do shit?” mingi yelps, “i did all the talking and persuading! you just stood like there like a fucking idiot!”`

“he keeps looking over here,” san says quietly, feeling the boy’s gaze on their table before he looks back at you. “so i guess this morning went...well.”

you shrug slightly as you nod, remembering the way you walked back into seonghwa’s house and plopped down on his couch together. neither of you said anything and yet, somehow, just a few moments later, you were fast asleep on his shoulder again.

you woke to a gentle kiss on your head and his hand on your cheek, asking you quietly if you wanted to miss school today. but that seemed to rip you right from your drowsiness, wanting and needing the normalcy that comes with the school day. 

it would’ve been too easy to say yes and stay wrapped up in his arms until three, bask in his comfort and familiar warmth and remember just why you two fell in love in the first place. 

but that would’ve been too painful and too fast and too much, especially given the way your heart is extremely fragile right now. 

“yeah, i fell back asleep and then we came,” you tell san quietly who just nods in understanding. 

and with the silence that follows, you know he wants to ask. 

ask what happened after you guys left and if something changed within that time. ask why seonghwa was so adamant about you lying about your injuries and the desperation he’s been seeing in his eyes lately regarding them.

but you know you’re not ready to tell him yet.

that even though you trust san more than anyone in your life right now, you can’t have him knowing this part of you yet. you can’t delve back into right now and cry in the lunchroom and risk anyone else finding out about your tragic home life. 

“i...i promise i’ll tell you everything,” you say to him, his eyes softening the second you start to speak. “i...trust you more than anyone so please don’t think it’s that. i just...i don’t wanna get into it again after last night and-”

“love, love, love,” san repeats sweetly, cutting your words off as he shakes his head and takes your hand in his. “same thing applies like before. you tell me if you want to and when you’re ready,” he says simply, a small smile brightening his face and making your body warm. 

“i just wanted to make sure you were safe and okay.”

you want to say that you are now. that, at least, you think you are now and you’re gonna try really hard to be strong during this. 

“thank you,” you say, tears pricking your eyes and a sad smile immediately covers his face. 

“you’re welcome, babe. but if you start crying, i’m gonna start crying and then thou shalt not be named are gonna come over and try to beat both of us up.”

a wet giggle leaves your mouth as you shake your head, wiping at the tiny, stray tear that managed to escape your eye. 

“i already fought with wooyoung and i’d gladly do it again,” you tease, the words leaving your mouth before you even realize that san doesn’t know about your little homeroom spat yesterday morning. 

your eyes widen and you’re about to explain yourself when san’s phone starts vibrating, looking down to see it’s his mom. he holds up a finger with an amused look in his eye, his voice raising cutely the way it always does when he talks to his parents.

you look over to see seonghwa and his friends laughing at the table, a piece of chicken being thrown through the air that hits the tallest boy square in the face. you smile softly seeing seonghwa look so carefree and happy, your chest tightening and hoping that, finally, he’s gonna let people see how sweet he is.

how sweet and good and kind he really is. 

your eyes meet and you can’t even stop the way your cheeks flush, seonghwa’s smile softening and eyes brightening before he takes out his phone. just a few seconds later, you hear your own vibrate against the table and pull your gaze away, looking down to see his name on the screen.

it makes your heart race despite seeing him just a few feet away, not used to his name there.

seonghwa [12:03] you okay?

you look over and nod your head, his eyes narrowing at you ever so slightly before san’s loud, excitable voice rips your attention away. 

“yay! guess what!”

you look across the table to see san bouncing with excitement, a wide, dimply smile on his face. 

“what?”

“we have off today! my parents are staying because a health inspector is coming and apparently, us sitting on the counters and eating all the cookies made them wary.”

and you truly wish you could match the boy’s excitement. clap or smile or kindly remind him that you rarely are the one eating cookies.

but your mind immediately thinks that, now, you have to go straight home. you don’t have the safe haven that’s been the cafe to destress from school and mentally prepare for the few hours with your parents.

and especially after not coming home last night? not answering your dad’s call you actually saw you missed or just talking to them at all? 

you were done. you were absolutely done.

you were gonna hear the front door slam against the wall and hear their feet stomping down the hallway to your door. you were gonna hear their fists pounding until they either got the lock open or scared you enough to open it. 

they were gonna scream and yell insults at you until those weren’t enough and they had to put their hands on you and-

“y/n?” san asks softly, your chest heaving and eyes staring down as you struggle to catch your breath. you don’t even realize you’re shaking until you feel like you’re about to fall off the chair, your hand gripping the edge of the table before you jump to your feet. 

“i...” you swallow down the lump in your throat, eyes frantically searching the room before the doorway catches your eye. and you know you just need to get out once you see that exit, suddenly hyper aware of loud chatter of voices and books being thrown on the table in the bustling cafeteria. 

“i’ll be right back.”

“y/n, wait,” san says, standing up to follow you before you rush out the door with your head down. he snaps his head to the side when he hears a chair scuff against the floor, seonghwa ignoring the voices of his friends as he quickly jumps up follows behind you. 

he watches the dirty blonde run off and call your name, the pout on san’s face making one boy across the room wish he could be like seonghwa and console the person he cares about most. 

you were headed straight for your designated bathroom stall when you felt a gentle tug on your hand, being spun around to see the eyes you know so well. staring down at you with such concern, reminding you of that familiar calming presence that helped you some nights on your balcony.

“what happened?” he asks calmly, his voice low but serious as he resists the urge to pull you into his arms; he needs to hear you talk first, make sure you trust him enough to really tell him what’s going on.

and at first, he sees the fear and apprehension in your panicked eyes. sees that you might wanna find comfort in him but you’re still scared. so he gently reaches out and takes your hand in his, intertwining your fingers and allowing his thumb to slowly caress your clammy skin. 

“i need you to breathe, okay?” he says quietly, throat tightening because it’s obvious you’re struggling. he doesn’t know why or what happened within the five minues he looked away from you but he can tell you really need to breathe. 

so he lets you decide the next move, whether you wanna do this on your own or fall into him and allow him to comfort you. 

and he can’t even pretend to feel relieved when you fall into his body a few seconds later, breathe against his chest as his calming, familiar scent surrounds you. he immediately wraps his arms around you, his hand running through your hair and voice cooing lowly in your ear.

cooing the phrase that got you through those the last few weeks of summer, the softly spoken “i’m here,” that you clung onto with such hope. hope that he crushed on your first day here but think, and hope, he’s trying to repair. 

it’s hope that you really need right now because without it, you don’t know what you’re gonna do. you don’t know if you can survive this life alone.

“i...i don’t have work.”

he didn’t expect those to be the ones that leave your mouth but he’s sure that’s what your shaky, sweet voice says. 

“i don’t have work and now i have to go home and i’m gonna- they’re gonna come home and go crazy and i don’t think i can handle it, hwa. i know they’re gonna be so mad and they won’t even-”

“you don’t have to,” his deep voice says simply, low in your ear as he tries to hold his shit together seeing you like this. “i told you you’re not going back there.”

“where-where am i supposed to go?” you whimper, looking up at him with tears in your eyes. “i have nowhere else to go. i-i can’t and won’t intrude on my aunt with this. i can’t bother her like that.”

and because you’re so out of it, you miss the way seonghwa’s face twists suspiciously. 

“baby, you need to listen to me,” he says, his hands cupping your cheeks so he can wipe your face. “it’s friday, right? we’ll go to your house, get your stuff and you can stay with me, if you want. or...san, if you’d feel better with that. i don’t think he’d mind, but you’re not fucking staying-”

“i wanna stay with you.”

and he thinks it’s just because you’re in the state that you’re in right now that you blurt it out so fast, looking up at him like you’re terrified he’s gonna leave you again; but that couldn’t be further from what’s gonna happen. 

“then you’ll stay with me.”

you let out a shaky breath as you nod your head, burying your face back in his shirt. you inhale his scent and relax against him, his hand running through your hair as he repeats himself again and again.

he doesn’t know if later tonight you’re gonna feel the same way. wanna be comforted by him so closely and tightly when, really, you should be rebuilding your relationship. proving himself to you in a way that you deserve, not that you guys just keep living through the memories and love from summer. 

because he doesn’t care what he has to do, he’s gonna prove it to you in any way he can. 

but then when you’re standing outside of your house with him, your body rigid and eyes wandering, you feel yourself ready to crumble again. your hand reaching for his as you stare at the house, the walls already managing to be filled with such pain and suffering and dread. 

“let’s go in and pack you a bag, yeah?”

you look up at seonghwa and he can see the anxiety in your eyes still, his heart squeezing painfully in his chest at the sight. his hand not holding yours reaches out to cup your cheek, wanting so badly to peck your lips and assure you everything’s gonna be okay. 

“they’re not home, baby. you said they won’t be home for an hour, right?”

you nod your head, irrational thoughts flooding your mind the more you start to worry. 

what if they can just sense you’re up to something and left work early? what if there’s miraculously no traffic on the parkway and they get here quicker than usual? what if they never went to work at all and are in there right now?

“what if they...come home early? what if they find us? my mom is usually the first one to come home but my dad isn’t far behind. he’s- he’s the one i’m scared for.”

and seonghwa almost hopes that that man walks through the door and says something, feeling his fists ball and veins course with anger.

“then i’ll fucking kill him.”

your eyes widen at the growl in his voice, stomach twisting in fear because that’s even more of a reason you don’t want him coming home early. 

“seonghwa! you- you can’t say stuff like that.”

but he only shrugs his shoulders and tightens his hold on your hand, nodding his head toward the house. 

“then we better get in and out.”

the next five minutes are full of panic and chaos for you, running around your room and the bathroom across the hall for all of your essentials. and it’s after you’re almost done packing your bag that you hear a car door slam outside, your head snapping to seonghwa who’s standing by the window.

“seonghwa...” you whisper, the fear in your shaky voice immediately causing him to peek out the blinds. but when he doesn’t see a car in the driveway, he assures you everything is okay. 

but that’s hard to do when you hear the familiar clicking coming from the front door a few moments later, the sweatpants in your hand dropping to the floor when full fledged panic runs through you again.

“seonghwa, they’re here, oh my god, what are we gonna-”

his hand wraps around you waist and he pulls you behind him, turning around to cup your face in his hands. 

“shhh. you need to breathe for me, baby, okay? i know you’re scared but it’ll be fine. i’m here.”

you bite the inside of your cheek as tears well up, the fact that he’s here almost making this worse because he can get hurt now. your dad could take his anger and frustration out on him and then you’ll really never forgive yourself. 

“don’t go out there.” 

seonghwa’s eyes narrow as he peers down at you, a look of ‘you know that’s not happening’ that makes your lips fall into a frown.

“please, seonghwa, we can just jump out the-”

but then the door squeaking open makes the words die in your throat, chest heaving up and down because your bedroom door is open and frantic footsteps are coming down the hall.

your grip on seonghwa is painfully tight as you try to pull him behind you but his feet are planted right on the ground, firm and towering and you don’t know if you’ve ever felt someone so stiff in their life. 

but all of that fades, your own anxiety included, when you hear a familiar voice that always served to calm you; ever since you were a scared child and first heard her outside her beach house.

“y/n? seonghwa? where are you t-” but then she stops in the doorway and her heart breaks at the sight, seonghwa standing protectively in front of you while you peek around his body, tears streaming down your red, puffy face now twisted into shock.

nobody says anything until the woman makes her way over, grabbing your hand gently before pulling your body into her. you don’t know if you start crying first or if her crying starts yours again but you listen in tears as your aunt mumbles apologies into the room. 

says how sorry she is that you’ve been living like this and that she had no idea. that she didn’t see the signs or keep you safe and can’t believe it’s been happening for as long as it has.

but you can only shake your head and mumble “no,” over and over again.

because this wasn’t anyone’s fault. it wasn’t her’s, or seonghwa’s for telling her or even yours, but your parents who never should’ve had you in the first place. should’ve never brought someone into the universe who they didn’t plan on loving and caring for.

but the older woman and boy sharing looks right now have had those exacts plans since the moment they met you, the former mouthing “thank you,” to seonghwa who only smiles and nods, watching the woman pull your face back and wipe at your tears.

her eyes travel to the small bag on your bed, her head shaking before she picks up the sweatpants on the floor and throws them onto your bed.

“you’re gonna need to pack a lot more than that.”

(part 21)

tag list: @chogiout ; @psshwa ; @yeocult ; @seongghwaa ; @cherryeonii ; @chaoticbanqtan ; @8teenee ; @nczenniez ; @atinyarmyx1 ; @mingtopiaa ; @chubsluda ; @joongiebug ; @mochibabycakes ; @jisungity ; @skz-on-my-mind ; @nlost21 ; @myonlyaurora ; @closer-stars ; @kuaenam3g ; @byungaji ; @floweryjh ; @joeycheungg ; @lostscenarios ; @atinyxtopia ; @sanisms ; @kpopnightingale ; @simpforhyunjin ; @89staytinyzen21 ; @lokicaramel ; @hwaxbum ; @sakura-uji ; @songsoomin ; @toffee-hwa ; @deobitiful ; @hyunjeansuniverse ; @clown-teez ; @i-know-you-know-lee-know ; @tiny-whatsername ; @fairieofeternity ; @yixing-jaehyun ; @sleepyseonghwa ; @revehosh ; @atletino ; 

[country-club]

Games #3

#1 / #2

*gif not mine* Warnings: mentions of puke and embarassment Wordcount: 1.959

> Remember Rafe owing you a tour?

Yesterday you hung out with Sarah and her friends. It was fun, though you were left with a headache. Thanks to JJ. The day went by rather quickly and around 8pm you called your friends to play a game of skribbl, an online drawing game. They updated you on what’s going on at home and your ‘ex’. Were you technically dating? You can’t say for sure. But it felt like you did. He quit talking to you a week before you left. In return, you told your friends about your newly made friends and Rafe. Do you like him? It’s too early to say. Is he cute? Yes. Picture? Haven’t got one. How old is he? He looks 18/19. Does he have any cute friends? Well, there’s Topper.

“Oooh, I can be his bottom!” One of your friends cheered.

“I’ll let him know, hon.” You replied.

“Yall I’m beating your asses. Do you want to play or talk about y/n’s boyhunt?” One of the guys asks. You finished the game and continued talking. One of your friends sent you a link over chat.

“Is this him, y/n?” She asks. You clicked it and found Rafe’s Instagram page. It only had a few pictures, the latest being one of him, Topper and another boy, tagged as Kelce.

“Yep, that’s him.” You scrolled through his pictures. Sarah had commented on one of his pictures. You tapped her name and looked through her feed as well. Not much here either. What about the other Pogues? Kiara was the only one you could find. The boys probably didn’t care much about social media. Kiara had some photos of baby turtles on the beach, a few of her looking stunning in every outfit she wore and 2 pictures with the boys. You sent the pictures to your friends.

“Ok, so Kiara is the girl, the boy on her left is John B, the one behind her is Pope and the blonde one is JJ.”

“Y/n, you have been blessed, you know that?”

“Are all the boys in Outer Banks this attractive?” Your friends asked. You nodded.

“Most of them are.”

“So, will you leave any for us?”

“I think John B and Sarah are dating, and Pope looked like he has a thing for Kiara. But I’ll introduce you for sure.”

“What’s JJ short for?”

“Yeah, and why is it John B? How many John’s can there be on an island?” You weren’t sure. You discussed possible names and theories. It was about 11pm when you said goodbye and hung up.

You walked downstairs to stretch your legs, debating whether or not you should go for a walk. Hmm, yes. You grabbed a hoodie, put on some sneakers and out you went. Putting on some music and shuffling through your playlist. The sky was clear, and you could see the moon and stars above you. Your guilty pleasure started playing and you almost bumped into a lamppost, trying not to make dance moves whilst walking. You walked past Sarah’s house and got caught in the headlights of a car on their driveway. You almost had a heart attack. Taking out the earpiece your shyly waved at whoever was inside. They turned the lights off. You saw a tall figure getting out of the car. Rafe.

“Hey, y/n. What are you doing out?”

“Hey, Rafe. What are you doing alone inside your car, on the driveway, at 11:30 at night?”

“I asked you first.” He said playfully.

“Just taking a walk.”

“I was about to head over to Kelce.” Kelce was the guy from his Instagram picture.

“Was?” Rafe laughed. You walked closer to him, so you could actually see his face and stop talking loudly outside.

“Didn’t think I would run into you.” What did he mean by that? Is he not going to go to Kelce because of you or does he-. Your thoughts were interrupted by Rafe’s voice. He must have noticed your confusion. “I believe I promised you a tour.” It took you a second to realize what he was talking about. You had asked him to show you around Outer Banks yesterday.

“Right, you owed me one.” Rafe nodded to his car and opened the door for you. You got in and pulled the door close. Rafe got in behind the wheel. He looked extremely good tonight. His hair wasn’t as slicked back as usual. It made him look softer. It wasn’t hot at all outside, yet he was still wearing shorts. What is it with boys and shorts even though it’s cold?

The two of you drove around Figure 8 for a while and continued on The Cut. Rafe didn’t talk much, so it was up to you. “Do you want to play 20 questions?” Rafe looked over to you.

“Only if we can take turns.” He said. Alright now you just had to think of a question. You still wanted to know what happened two nights ago. Who he had fought and why. It’s too forward.

“What was your favorite dinosaur as a child?” Rafe didn’t have to think about it.

“Triceratops.” He said.

“Still is, am I right?” You didn’t really ask. They are simply the best. Rafe took his time to come up with a question.

“Alright, if you could find out how you were going to die, would you want to know?” Well goodbye dinosaur talk.

“I don’t think I would. No matter how much I hate surprises, I’d rather not be scared of cars or bathrooms for the rest of my life, you know?”

“Why would you be scared of bathrooms?”

“I don’t know I once read that a ton of people have died in bathrooms. It’s where a lot of accidents happen you know.” He looked at you, a bit confused, amused and impressed.

“If you could go back in time to change something, what would it be?” Rafe sighed.

“Not using my dad’s money to buy a bike.” You wanted to ask more questions, but he wouldn’t let you. “I don’t want to talk about that.” Rafe added. He stopped the car. “Can I show the around the boneyard?” This is starting to sound like The Lion King. Elephant graveyard? You opened the car door and got outside, as did Rafe. Rafe locked the car and led you to the beach. There were tree trucks and branches around the beach. It does kind of look like a boneyard.

“What do you think is the ugliest animal in the world?” Rafe asked. Right 20 questions. Truth or dare, without the dare part. You had to think for a minute. What is the ugliest animal?

“Those birds from the Jungle Book. They scream so loud.”

“Vultures?” Yep those, you nodded. You were walking on the boneyard and couldn’t see much. You tried to be careful enough to not trip and make yourself look like a fool. The stars were still very pretty. You could see the Little Bear, it kind of looks like a saucepan. And there you go. Your foot got stuck on a tree branch. However, before you could hit the ground you could feel two arms holding you up. You stood up straight again.

“You alright?” He asked. To which you nodded.

“Yeah, just got distracted for a second. Can we sit down for a minute?” You asked. Rafe dusted away some sand off a trunk and sat down. You sat down next to him. “What is something you wish you were better at?”

Rafe looked up at the night sky. “Making my dad proud.” Why wouldn’t Ward be proud of him? “I just feel like sometimes I can’t do anything right, you know?” You nodded. Was this his soft spot, his dad? You didn’t ask any further questions, seeing as you barely knew him and the subject sounds personal. You looked up again as well. Seeing his face turning your way in the corner of your eye. You could feel his eyes on you. The moonlight was bright enough for him to see your features.

“Is there any memory you would like to erase from your mind?” You couldn’t help but laugh nervously and feel embarrassed already. “What’s so funny?” You looked at him and your eyes met. His blonde hair was getting slightly pushed around by the wind.

“What I’m about to tell you. Promise to keep it between us?” He promised. “Okay, so before moving to Outer Banks I had a boyfriend situation going on. And we were at my place after a party, where he had maybe a drink or two too many.” You sighed, feeling the redness on your face appear. “And we were about to..you know. But he couldn’t, because of the alcohol and then he threw up in my bed.” Rafe tried his best not to burst out in laughter, instead he put an arm around you. “He left after that. So, there I was, cleaning my barf-covered bed and desperately spraying deodorant through my room. We haven’t talked since and I’m not counting on it anymore either.” Rafe started rubbing your back.

“That really sucks man, I’m sorry that happened.” Did he just call you ‘man’? “It wasn’t supposed to be your first time, right?” You must look like a tomato right now.

“I believe it is my turn.” You switched the conversation. “What was your first crush like?” When the word left your mouth you felt like a 12 year old again. Rafe blew out some air.

“I think it was the babysitter we had as kids. She was really sweet and artsy, and stuff. Also really pretty, like you.” You couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah, I invited her into my pillow fort to eat Cheez-its with me.”

“And?”

“She friendly declined my offer.” You burst out in laughing. “Hey, I didn’t laugh at your story.” He angrily joked, punching your arm.

“Mine was worse.”

“True.”

You softly punched him back. “Hey!” Rafe fake moaned, pretending you had hurt him.

“Aw, I’m sorry. Kiss to make it better?” Rafe pouted and nodded to you. As you were debating whether or not to kiss his arm, your phone started vibrating. It was your stepdad. “Shit.” It was already 12:30. He must’ve realized you weren’t home and you didn’t leave a note.

“What’s up?”

“It’s my stepdad, I really have to go home like right now.” You mumbled as you got up and started heading to the car.

“You gonna get into trouble?” He sounded the tiniest bit worried. Maybe you would. You had been staying out late the past three days and didn’t pick up the phone when your stepdad called. As Rafe pulled up a couple of houses before yours, you thanked him and got out. “I should walk with you, so your dad knows you weren’t out alone.” That somehow makes sense. He got out of the car as well and you speed walked to the front door. You unlocked it and walked inside. As if shot for a horror movie, your stepdad put on the living room lights.

“Y/n? Where have you been and why didn’t you answer my calls?”

“Steve, I’m sorry if I made you worry. I was taking a walk and bumped into Rafe, Ward Cameron’s son-“

“I remember who Rafe is. So, he just left you to walk home on your own? Do you know what time-”

This time it was Rafe who cut your stepfather short. He had waited outside and stepped in. “I would never let y/n walk alone, sir.” Your stepdad nodded.

“Bedtime, y/n. Goodnight Rafe.”

“Goodnight.” You gave Rafe a hug, to which he wrapped his arms around your middle.

“Goodnight, y/n.”

You walked up the stairs and called it a day.

#4

~Taglist~

@emmalvei-blog​

[lavendersoft]

My Soulmate’s Soulmate.

Part six

Soulmate! AU

Synopsis: Before you meet your soulmate your world is black and white, without color. When soulmates meet, their world glows with vibrancy. The reality, however, as harsh and uncommon as it is, is that you are not always your soulmate’s soulmate.

Pairings: Jungkook x Reader, Taehyung x Reader, Jungkook x Taehyung (poly!au)

Warnings: N/A.

Author’s Notes: N/A.

--

The rain that taps outside your window is the only thing keeping you calm.

It’s currently 5:47 pm and you just finished getting ready for your date with Tae. You really don’t know what to expect besides the dinner part, I mean you’ve only known him for a few weeks and you’ve spoken to him but a handful of times. What kind of person is he? Is he the serious type? Or maybe he’s more carefree? Is he spontaneous? Is he planning on taking you somewhere that’s not the decided restaurant?

The anxiety erodes at your confidence as you touch up your already perfect makeup yet again. You’ve opted for a more casual look, being that the restaurant is a pretty low key place. A simple white turtle neck sweater with black skinny jeans and black ankle boots. You peer outside the foggy window again,

“I should check the weather,” you mumble to yourself, knowing the temperature keeps dropping by the day. Turning the TV to the weather channel, you find there’s a high chance of the first snowfall tonight. Better bring that trench coat just in case.

“You look beautiful.” Jungkook’s voice calls from behind you. He can be so light-footed an sneaky sometimes, like a cat.

“Thanks, baby.” You turn to face him with a worried look,

“I’m nervous.”

He wraps an arm around you and grins.

“Don’t be, Angel. He’s really nice. If anyone is nervous, it’s probably him.”

You nod, knowing how nerve-wracking first dates are- especially with your soulmate.

“Can’t you tell me just a little about him?”

He pulls a strand of hair out of your face while he grins down at you.

“Nope.”

“Why?” It made no sense to you. He’s been refusing you even the slightest hints as to what kind of person Taehyung is.

“Because you have to get to know him the way I did. By talking to him.”

He giggles when you grunt in displeasure.

The chime of the doorbell brings you out of your pout.

“Ah! He’s here! Go and have a good time. Call me if you need anything, especially if he gets too handsy. He’s my soulmate but I won’t hesitate to kick his ass, let him know that,“ He rants as get guides you to the door, “Oh, and don’t forget your jacket! It’s gonna be really cold tonight.”

You’re face to face with the front door now. The doorknob feels almost hot to the touch.

Inhale. Exhale.

The old wooden door reveals a man that looks almost out of place in the slightly dingy hallway of your apartment building.

God, he looks like a prince. How does a person look like that?

He’s dressed in a simple white dress shirt and black leather jacket with ripped jeans. But what really catches your eye is the small silver chain that connects from one belt loop to the next on the side of his pants. It matches perfectly with the dainty chain that hangs from his neck. So simple yet so effective. How fashionable.

“Hi.”

“Hey.”

He smiles so warmly at you, you feel a rush of adrenaline.

Oh. Oh, he smells good.

A gasp escapes your mouth as the lingering scent of his cologne reminds you that you forgot to put on your own perfume.

“Sorry, I forgot something. I’ll be right back.”

You hurry off leaving Taehyung and Jungkook alone.

You return in a haste to the pair of men staring at each other for whatever reason. The atmosphere seems almost stiff.

“Okay, I’m ready.”

“Great. You said the reservation’s at 6:20, right?”

“Yep. And it’s about 15 minutes away so we should probably get going.”

“Okay,” Taehyung places a hand lightly to the small of your back while he turns his head to Jungkook, “I’ll have her back by eleven.”

“Ten.”

The older chuckles at the younger in response.

“Yes, Sir.”

-

You fidget with the promise ring Jungkook gave you some time ago. Taehyung looks almost intimidatingly handsome under the dim, soft light of the restaurant. The light catches on his earrings every time he moves and you have the hardest time prying your eyes away from his chest since the top buttons of his shirt are open, revealing just a bit of his collar bone.

God, it’s like he gets prettier with every passing second.

“So, have you been here before?”

“Nope. First time. Any recommendations?” he prompts.

“Well, it’s a bulgogi house so maybe start with bulgogi.” You quip.

A smirk crosses your face when he blushes. Taehyung didn’t seem like the type to blush over just anything so this was cute. You’d never tell him but you kind of like the power you have, making such a beautiful man blush so easily. However, remembering how nervous you were on your first date with Jungkook, you cut Tae some slack.

“I’m kidding. The galbi here is really tasty too.”

“Mm, that sounds good. I think I’ll try that.” He relaxes.

As if on queue, the waitress comes by and takes your orders. After, Taehyung turns to you, “On a serious note. Is this really okay? I mean, us meeting here. Is Jungkook angry? He seemed a bit... off I guess.”

“Oh, no it’s okay. Don’t worry about that. We’ve already talked about it.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. I mean,” You pause to collect your thoughts, “It’s only natural, right? You’re my boyfriend’s soulmate and I’m...”

“My soulmate.” He finishes the sentence when you trailed off.

“Yes. I’m your soulmate.”

Something flashes in his eyes that you couldn’t quite decipher.

“You’re right. It’s only natural all see each other more often.”

You hum is response.

There is a short, yet comfortable, silence between you two before he speaks again,

“Do you believe in destiny, Y/n?”

You can’t help but chuckle at the cheesy question. Definitely the romantic type.

“Hm. I don’t know if I did before but... this whole situation may have just turned me into a believer.”

The rest of the date was pretty standard. Simple, shallow ‘first date’ questions ensue.

“Where are you from?”

“What do you do?”

“What are your hobbies?”

“How many siblings?”

“What are your goals?”

By the time your meals are finished, you feel like you’ve made a good start in getting to know him. One of the most interesting answers you received was in response to the question about his hobbies. He loves motorcycles and has three of them.

Very interesting.

I’ll have to ask him to elaborate on that one.

“Okay, last question.”

“Go for it.” He seems much more confident than he was an hour and a half ago.

“Do you have a sweet tooth?” You grin brightly down at the variety of desserts on the menu.

His eyes never leave your face,

“Definitely.”

A sudden realization comes over you,

“Sorry. It kind of seems like I’m interviewing you or something. Any questions for me?”

He bites his lip as he ponders for a moment.

“How long have you known Jungkook? Oh, and how did you meet? And please don’t leave out any of the details, I’m a hopeless romantic.”

“Well, we met when we were still teenagers. He was still an intern for the record label he works for now and I... well I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life whatsoever. It was like he had everything figured out, you know? He knew exactly what he wanted and how to get it. He knew where he was going. I’d never met someone so sure of themselves. That’s one of the things that drew me to him, besides the obvious reasons. Anyway, I was working in a flower shop at the time. I didn’t even see him walk up to me, I was too busy trying not to get pricked by the roses. He tapped me on the shoulder to ask me a question, I don’t even remember what he asked. All I remember was him introducing himself, and then everything around me coming to life. Stupid me, I didn’t even realize he wasn’t experiencing what I was, I was just so overwhelmed with all the colors. It never occurred to me that-“

You pause when you catch Taehyung’s face fall a bit.

“So, yeah, that’s how we met.” You finish your embarrassing monologue, picking up a spoon and shoveling in the ice cream you don’t remember ordering.

“Your eyes light up when you talk about him. It’s cute.”

If you weren’t cherry red before, you definitely are now.

-

The ice-cold air feels like a slap to the face when you step into the night, and the wind doesn’t help either. Your breath falls from your mouth like smoke as you wrap yourself tighter in your coat.

Where did we park again?

Tae steps beside you, jogging in place to stay warm.

“Hey, where did we-“

Something catches your eye when you peer up at him. Your mind goes blank when you reach up to glide your fingertips down his cheek.

“A snowflake? Is it-?”

Sure enough, you look up to the black sky to see small specks of white falling lightly. Tae doesn’t seem to care in the slightest, the warmth of your fingers still lingering on his skin.

“The car’s this way.” He takes the first move and you follow in suit. At least, you tried to.

The magical moment is ended when your back hits the cold, wet ground. You daze up for a moment, trying to process how the hell you ended up in an ice bath.

“Oh my God, are you okay? You didn’t hit your head, right?” Tae was by your side immediately, helping you up and inspecting the damage. He even slid a bit on the icy pavement.

“Damn, you’re all wet. You can’t wear this, you’ll catch a cold.” He gestures to your now soaking wet jacket. He helps you out of the garment and replaces it with his own.

“Hey, my studio isn’t far from here. I keep it pretty warm in there, let’s go there to dry you up.” It didn’t seem like a suggestion, more like a statement. You don’t care at the moment, though. It’s like the air around you gets colder by the second.

“Let’s do it.”

-

It feels like instant heaven when you enter the toasty building.

Taehyung flips several switches on revealing a huge, beautiful art studio. It was filled with unfinished paintings, sketches, and sculptures. You can’t remember the last time you’ve seen so many vibrant colors. Maybe the day you met Jungkook. Memories of all different types of flowers pass by your mind. This definitely reminds you of that day.

“Your sweater is still wet. Hold on.” He rummages through a tiny closet next to the entrance. He pulls out a crisp, white v-neck shirt. “Here. I keep extra clothes here just in case I get messy while painting. Um, there’s a bathroom down the hall on the left.”

You return in his shirt. It’s so loose it reaches your mid-thigh. Even despite wearing his shirt, you decide to keep his jacket on because it’s just so cozy.

“This is my main studio, where I keep all the unfinished projects.” He begins when he notices you. Then he places a hand on the small of your back, leading you to a door in the corner of the room witch you assume is another studio.

“And this-” He opens the door to a room about half the size of the first, but has a huge window that lets in the light of the city. The space is filled with painted portraits of people. All sorts of people, elderly, young, and everything in between. It also showcases statues, photography, and sketches. The experience felt as if you were stepping into a museum. The whole room looks like a collage of color.

“-Is the gallery.”

“You like to people watch, don’t you? Very observ...” You trail off when you look closer at a specific section of the back wall.

Sketches and paintings of all styles. All of you.

--

Taglist: @ourwhispersbecomeouranthems @fantasyjoon @ally22042000 @ireadfanficsonthisleavemealone @embrace-themagic @lexi-tries-art @ccmemoirs @just-call-me-trash-can @karlykim92 @omg-sol-s-dreamland @ironically-indifferent96 @namjoonsslutakakoreanmanswhore @bumblekey93​

[scaredofheroin]

Captain N - Chapter 1: Who Are You?

School.

The highlight of no teenager's day.

Peter Lavancha was no different.

Another day in English 12, another day in Midnight Lights High School, another day in America, another day on Earth.

As Peter idly twiddled his pencil in his hand, deliberately ignoring the research assignment currently assigned to him, his eyes glanced around the classroom. Sitting to his right was Jeremiah Coleman, one of the star football players who carried the Midnight Lights High Phantoms to state victory last year. To his left was Kimberly Sparks, one of the most talented artists in the school, whose still-life of a potted plant and car gears won the gold ribbon at the county fair. In front of Peter was Scott Hudson, who won third place at the school's science fair a month ago. Behind him was a bookshelf containing a uniform row of well-worn English textbooks, each uniquely damaged and vandalized from each other. Ms. Kirk's aged, exhausted visage accompanied the slouched-over form currently occupying the large desk at the other end of the classroom, switching from eyeing the students to make sure they're working on the assignment, and reviewing emails or other faculty-only forms. But the Word document occupied only by Peter's name, Ms. Kirk's name, the class and today's date: March 12, 2019.

The assignment was simple: research and write about your college and career path. The problem was: Peter had no idea. After graduation, a whole new world opens up. Infinite possibilities make themselves present to him, both good and bad. Sure, he could major in Business and see where that gets him, or he could go into an apprenticeship as an electrician. Or he could burn out. Peter heaved a heavy sigh, hanging his head. His mind wandered to the exciting, escapist worlds contained within the books published by DC Comics. For all that they had going against them, at least Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent knew what they were going to do with their life. And it certainly wasn't working 9 to 5 as an accountant. They would don their specially-made suits and use their unique powers and abilities to defend the innocent and save lives as Batman and Superman, the greatest superheroes ever put to paper. Peter knew his path wouldn't be as exciting. He knew he'll never get bitten by a radioactive spider, or take part in a super-soldier experiment, or be revealed to be the last son of planet Krypton. Peter would always be Peter.

The final bell of the day snapped Peter out of his self-pity, bringing a mixture of relief to finally be going home, and disappointment that he wasted essentially the entire class period daydreaming. The other students showed no such emotion, and hastily darted out from their desk to escape school. "Be sure to return your Chromebooks to the appropriate slot on the cart." Ms. Kirk sighed, knowing there would be at least three students that would misplace the cheaply-produced laptops. Peter gathered his bag, carefully put his Chromebook back in the cart and exited the classroom. The commotion of students small and tall hurriedly making their way to one of the building's three exits. Finding a spot to slip into the current of trendy clothes and hormones, Peter quickly made his way through the familiar halls and out the familiar front doors. The fresh air and warm sunlight were as great an antidote to the stress of classwork as ever. Taking a deep, appreciative breath, Peter walked over to the school parking lot, where the 18th birthday gift that is his car sits, as intact as it was this morning. Normally, that wouldn't be worth mentioning, but certain football players have made themselves enemies of the school's punks, and commonly find their car windows broken and their car bodies dented. Something about a party in September that Peter was, of course, not invited to. Peter dusted off his red varsity jacket and slipped his phone in his pocket before continuing his walk.

Peter threw his backpack in the back seat of his well-worn sedan, started the engine, and after buckling his seat belt like a responsible driver, began his daily drive home. The town of Midnight Lights was bustling with both teenagers and adults, but the foot and road traffic thinned the further Peter drove away from town. His home was about 20 minutes away from school, and while it was nice to live in a more peaceful neighborhood, Peter often envied how busy his colleague's social lives were. The further he drove, the more he fell into his pit. Jeremiah, Kimberly, Scott and many, many more students distinguished themselves with their own circle of friends, their own after-school schedules, their own talents and achievements. Surely they would have no trouble researching and writing about what they're gonna do after high school. Sure, Peter had some friends, but his hobbies could be summarized with "movies and comic books". He wasted his previous three years in high school alone in his room, catching up on what his preferred superheroes had been up to. He didn't think much of it at the time, but looking back, he's filled with immense regret.

Oh well, can't change the past.

The more Peter drove, the more he felt... different. The road and trees remained the same, but he and the car he was driving felt light. Almost as if he's floating.

Then, in the blink of an eye, the car was engulfed in a brilliant white light, and both Peter and the car vanished without a trace.

ELSEWHERE...

Two figures shot across the sky. A young, winged young man armed with a bow, followed by a white and blue, single-occupant spaceship were rapidly approaching a heavily-armored Airship. As soon as the two were visible to the Airship's occupants, the ship's commander gave the order to open fire. The cannons beneath deck charged power and took aim at the two. The winged one quickly banked out of the way, but the spaceship was only barely able to avoid the particle beam that shot out of the cannon. Once the winged one flew over the deck, he quickly pulled back the string, and a magic arrow materialized in the bow. A blink of an eye later, he shot the arrow at the commander, but the commander was too quick, and used his own magic to deflect the arrow. The spaceship shot into the distance, making a turn around to shoot back at the airship. This time, the spaceship's pilot was more prepared, and swiftly dodged the following particle beams shooting from the airship's cannons. As it drew close enough to return fire, the pilot of the spaceship found that his energy shots were absorbed by the airship's energy shields. Despite the effectiveness of the airship's protection, the commander inside had concern painted across his face. Making his way below deck, he quickly made his way to the communications room. The particle cannons made the airship tremble with each shot, but the commander was able to open a channel to his superior. The large screen in the dark room lit up, and was immediately filled with the visage of a large, stern turtle-like creature.

"What is it, Kamek?" The creature on the screen asked, anger seeping from the corners of its mouth. Kamek gulped before answering. "W-Well, I'm just not sure this airship can handle much more of this. The particle cannons are causing extreme stress to the ship, and we fear continued use will end up doing more damage than those Mushroom Kingdom stooges could!" Kamek answered. The creature roared in anger, unsatisfied with the answer given. "We did not come this far to retreat because you're too cowardly to do what needs to be done!" The creature's anger made the camera on the other end shake, making Kamek intimidated further. "B-B-But Lord Bowser, sir, if we end up damaging the-" "SILENCE! Do as you're ordered! Continue the assault, wipe out those two imbecils in the sky and join K. Rool and Dedede's airships!" Bowser ordered, cutting the video before Kamek could respond again. Hearing the spaceship zoom over head once more, Kamek steeled his nerve and returned topside, confronting the two flying assailants.

Not too far away, a white castle with red roofing was facing an assault from two other airships. The two attempted to use their particle cannons to attack the castle, but the castle was protected by a magic shield. Two figures atop the roof stood, using their staffs to concentrate protection to where the particle cannons were being aimed. The male figure attempted to use his staff to direct lightning back at the airships, but to little avail. The female figure cast a spell around the castle, reinforcing the shield. Smaller castle-goers ran around the roof, distinguished by their mushroom-like head wear, desperately trying to maintain structural integrity in any way they can. One of the smaller ones ran up to the male with the staff, desperate for help. "Lord Raiden, how much longer do we have?" The small helper asked. "At this rate, not much longer." Raiden informed the little one, helping very little. "Get back inside and ensure the Princesses are safe!" The female one instructed the mushroom people. "Listen to Palutena, there is nothing more you can help with here." Raiden added. The mushroom people quickly obliged, disappearing back inside the castle, leaving Palutena and Raiden alone to face the airships. Not a word more was exchanged as the two continued their defense. The airships drew closer, their particle cannons causing more intense reverberations with each shot. With Raiden's lightning and Palutena's light barriers, it started to seem that defeat was inevitable.

Then, a flash of light suddenly erupted, and a wave of energy soon followed.

When the light dissipated, Palutena and Raiden saw that the airship's cannons were catastrophically damaged, and the ships themselves could only barely manage to stay in the air. Realizing their situation, the airships hastily made their retreat, disappearing into the clouds. The airship that troubled the spaceship and flying young man retreated as well, leaving them confused, but relieved. Out of the corner of his eyes, the flying young man noticed a car crashed against a stray tree. This was like no car he'd ever seen, so he got the attention of the spaceship's pilot, and the two quickly flew down to investigate.

The car's driver door opened, and Peter awkwardly staggered out. He hit his head pretty hard on impact, but he's dealt with worse. Assessing the damage, Peter groaned upon seeing how badly the tree damaged the front. The body's dented, the headlights are smashed, the grill's twisted out of shape, there's no way this is salvageable. "Great, dad's gonna kill... me..?" Peter sighed to himself, his frustration turning to confusion upon further looking around. Everything around him was a bit... off. The air tasted a bit different, the tree is colored a bit different, the grass is textured a bit different. It's as if Peter got stranded in the Uncanny Valley.

"Hey, are you okay?" Came a voice from behind Peter. "Yeah, my car's pretty much ruined, but I'm fine-" Peter answered, freezing in place upon seeing who he was talking to. One was a winged young man with short brown hair and adorned in white robes, and the other was an anthropomorphic blue falcon with a silver jacket and robot legs. Peter felt frozen in place, unable to respond. Did he die? Is he hallucinating? Is he in a coma? Why are these two strange people talking with him?

"Well, that's a relief! My name's Pit, and this is Falco Lombardi!" The young man beamed, introducing himself and motioning to the anthropomorphic bird beside him. Falco peered at Peter suspiciously, taking note of his unusual nature.

"...Who are you?" Falco asked, drawing closer to Peter.

[chroniclesofcake]

TMNT- Element Collision

*Yes, this is my story that I had gotten from my dA account, written a while ago in 2014*

I’ll be posting more of this story, dw :)

In this AU, they are not related whatsoever!!!

Chapter 1: Hot leather whips the backs of the innocent men, as they are forced into cage trolleys. Cackles from the abductors ring out to the rest of the small indian huts. Children sobbed their hearts out as they saw their fathers being snatched away like animals. Mothers would plead by the captors’ waists and beg for the return of their husbands, but in return had received lashings from their superiors. All but a little sea green turtle on the dirt road. Blood ran down his face, like water from a leaf. Alas, he wouldn't move, for he believed that someone would take him home. To take him away from the dangers of the world. His eyes revealed the brightest sapphires, shaken from fear. To his beliefs, he didn’t know why would he be left behind. Every moon, since he was isolated, he wouldn't think about food, water, and any type of necessities. All he could think about was a home. A place where the bed wasn’t the road. Years later~ At the central market place, there were a variety of stores and stands. They included a variety from fruits and vegetables, to clothing, and everything in between. Standing at one of the fruit stands, was an old balding cat. He was feverishly attempting to sell day old oranges. He was even resorting to bargaining for them. But he would never just give them away, not without payment. Lurking from the shadow, was a steel blue eyed terrapin. “What’s for lunch today, old cat,” the terrapin murmured. The old cat, oblivious to the blue eyed terrapin, was darting over to get more supplies from the sack to put on display. With a fatal swoop of his hand, the terrapin dashed and grabbed all the oranges he could get in the worn down satchel. The terrapin heard from behind, a very red in the face cat hissing profanities for the stolen goods. “Sucker,” the orange thief snickered away. While running on the dirt ground, he ran past some of marble pillars which lead to the lush courtyard garden. Hiding by the marble door arc, he saw a cluster of small animal children. They were clothed in rags, barely nourished by the small amount of greens that the caretaker had given. Not being able to hide his excitement, the turtle emerged from the shadows. “Mikey!!! You’re here,” the little children squealed with excitement. “Hey my little munchkins! How are you guys doing,” Mikey quickly hugged each and every one of the 20 kids. “We’re doing ok, just hungry,” a little girl kitten whimpered. Just by looking at these kids, it made Mikey remember how tough it was on the streets without a family. It was as if he were looking into a mirror. “Well you’re in luck, because I bare gifts for everyone,” Mikey chirped with glee, revealing the satchel full of oranges. The caretaker and children went ballistic, cheering for day old fruits. Completely unaware of his surroundings, Mikey didn’t sense the looming shadow from the distance. As the children and caretaker dined on the stolen fruits, they saw a huge figure appear behind the teen turtle. The little girl kitten screamed, making Mikey turn around to see his stalker. Behind him was a taller forest green turtle, with blue warrior markings near the eyes. Noticing all of the markings on the larger turtle; the younger terrapin could tell he was little older than him. “I saw what you did back there,” the forest green terrapin remarked. Mikey felt shudders as the larger terrapin spoke. He had a deep sensual voice, as if he could make anyone fall to their knees upon hearing him speak. The feature on him that stood out the most were his eyes. They looked as if they were murky gray blue. So cold of a stare, yet a playful feeling laced around them. The younger turtle glanced down at the larger terrapin, to find two twin warrior katanas, and a forearm guard with the symbol of the imperial army. “No. Not this again,” Mikey felt a deathly chill run up his spin, suddenly remembering that horrid night. In sudden remembrance, the little turtle took a step back. This man resembled the men that took the innocent village men away. To battle. Shaken with fear, the little terrapin fled away from the courtyard. He was not going to be taken away to a torcherous fate. “Wait! Come back kid,” The older terrapin commanded, the authority not mistaken in his voice. With the speed of a tiger, the older terrapin chased after the younger terrapin. Being light on his feet, Mikey was much faster than his chaser. Jumping from stand to stand, as he tried to escape his imperial stalker. Feeling his endorphins kick in, Mikey did a backflip off of one of the vegetable carts, thus causing the cart to tip over. Creating a block in the path, enabling the larger terrapin from crossing. “Not today old man,” Mikey shouted, feeling the burn in his calves. “Who are you calling old, I’m twenty-one,” the forest green terrapin spat back in disbelief. The nerve of this boy was unpredictable. He couldn't believe the agility that the sea green turtle possessed. “Even though he has agility, doesn't mean he doesn’t have stupidity,” the older terrapin smirked. Mikey reached the end of the market. “Shit,” he groaned as he looked for a quick way to create a diversion. The only distractions Mikey had left were a few food vendors. Searching left and right he saw a table that looked like it would create plenty of chaos to allow him an escape. He ran to the table. Feeling the burn in his legs as he ran, he knew it was an all or nothing shot. As he went to knock the table over, he felt his legs buckle. He fell to the ground, up setting the table as he used it to try to catch his fall. “You’re not getting away this time,” the older terrapin stated as he drew one of his swords. He came closer to the the younger turtle. “Shit shit shit,” Mikey scrambled to get up from the dusty ground. But it was too late for him. The larger turtle grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him up. The moment Mikey felt the forest green terrapin touch him, he felt a spark on his shoulder. “What the hell was that,” Both turtles questioned. “Listen old man, get your pedofile hands off of me,” Mikey growled, feeling threatened. “Wouldn’t dream of it toddler,” the older terrapin proclaimed “What the hell do you mean by toddler, I’m eighteen, asshole,” Mikey threatened, trying to kick the terrapin in the balls. “Yeah, not going to kick me there, are you,” The terrapin stopped Mikey’s foot from kicking him. “Was trying to, but you’re too fat to get my foot across,” Mikey grumbled “Listen I’m not going to fight you, but you need to stop trying to assault me,” The older terrapin smirked. “Oh, you out of your god damned mind?! You were trying to assault me with your pedo self,” The younger terrapin snapped back. “I’m twenty-one, for your information! Do I look like I’m forty,” the unknown turtle questioned. “Well-” Mikey considered. “Don’t even answer that,” the large terrapin was getting annoyed. “Who the hell are you, and what do you want with me,” Mikey retorted as he was getting up from the ground. “Listen pipsqueak, my name is Leonardo, but you may call me Leo,” Leo responded calmly as if he did not experience the chase of his life. “Ok Leo, well first of my name is not pipsqueak, shorty, or anything stupid like that,” Mikey rambled on. “My name is Michelangelo. But, you will call me Mikey, or I’ll kick your ass,” Mikey attempted to act tough towards a guy way stronger than him. Both turtles felt something in the air that wasn’t normal. It was as if the air was suffocating them; bringing them close together. “Ok Leo, you have to back up cuz you’re taking all the air in my bubble,” Mikey unconsciously took a step back. Leo didn’t seem phased with this, considering that this turtle was still young. That didn’t mean that he couldn’t tease the younger terrapin a little more. “Well I think most of the air is going to your brain, but it’s alright,” Leo saying it as nonchalantly as possible. “Hey! Watch your mouth,” Mikey was getting steamed by this. “Well I’m sorry if I offended you in any way Mikey,” Leo giving a signature smirk. Mikey felt in somewhat of a daze at the sound of Leo’s voice. “Wow, he’s sounds kinda...nice saying my name,” Mikey wondered. “Let’s get back to matters of business. Why did you steal oranges from Mr. Neko,” Leo interrogated, no mercy to give. “Listen here, Imperial guard, I did what I had to do to get food for my little ones,” Mikey felt the urge to kick Leo in the gut. “Wait a minute, little ones? Does this guy have kids? He seems unbelievably young to be a dad,” Leo questioned in his mind. Mikey saw Leo’s questioning stare, until it clicked to him. “Dude, they aren’t my kids, they are like my family,” Mikey quickly covered up the matter. “That now makes a lot of sense,” Leo feeling relieved. Why was he relieved? “Ok Mikey, just don’t do that again, and you won’t have to deal with me,” Leo looked down at Mikey, with a small laugh trying to escape. “Alright Pedo,” Mikey scampered away laughing. “I’m not a Pedo, you brat,” Leo yelled, then received complaints from the nearby vendors. Sunset was just dimming down, raising the moon up in it’s place. “I have to make it before the fire starts, otherwise I’m not going to get a good seat,” Mikey grumbled as he sprinted off to the beach to find his village mates. “Mikey! Michelangelo,” The villagers cheered. This was truly Mikey’s domain. “Ok people, I told you I wasn’t going to sing tonight,” Mikey replied in a raspy voice. It took him the whole week to practice that voice. Standing from a distance, once again was Leonardo, wondering where the racket was coming from. To his surprise, he saw the younger sea green turtle sitting in the circle of villagers. One of the villagers saw Leo from a distance, and dragged him into the group. To Mikey’s surprise, the older terrapin came forth. “Leo? What are you doing here,” Mikey questioned, shocked to see him at the bonfire. Leo’s initial reaction was seeing Mikey, with the glowing embers lighting his face. It was a sight for sore eyes. Shaking his head from the ridiculous thoughts, he proudly responded, “Well the rest of the village wanted me to sing, saying I looked like I had the vocals.” With a cocky smile, Mikey retorted, “oh yeah, why don't you put your money where your mouth is?” “You’re on, Mikey,” Leo’s smile broadened. He picked up the guitar one of the villagers brought along, getting ready for his performance. (play song link from the bottom) Jao Na Don’t go Tum Jo Ho Toh Gaa Rahi Hai Yeh Hawa… As You’re there the winds are singing Tum Jo Ho To Reshmi Si Hai Fiza… As You’re there the breeze has a silken touch Jao Na Don’t go Tum Jo Ho Toh Gaa Rahi Hai Yeh Hawa… As You’re there the winds are singing Tum Jo Ho To Reshmi Si Hai Fiza… As You’re there the breeze has a silken touch Jao Na Don’t go Ho… Phir Na Yeh Raat Aayegi This night won’t come again Phir Na Yeh Rut Chhayegi This atmosphere won’t be cast again Phir Na Yun Milna Hoga We won’t meet like this again Phir Na Jaane Kya Hoga… Who knows what will happen later Jao Na Don’t go This had the whole village standing up, swaying with the lyrics of the music, dancing with each other. Somehow Mikey felt drawn to Leo at that very moment. It wasn’t the fumes of the bonfire, or the way people were dancing. It was Leo’s own voice, so hypnotic yet soothing. It made the young terrapin sing along with Leo. The way both voices combined, it was like two star cross lovers hoping to come in contact. Mikey was taken aback; Leo was giving him a very airy feeling inside his heart. Leo at the same time, felt like his veins were pumping so much energy, that he was getting drunk off the lyrics of the song. By the time the song ended, Mikey was right next to Leo on the log. While everyone danced, Leo felt something very warm on his hand. Getting wide eyed, he looked down to find Mikey’s petite hand was on his own hand. Then a swirling feeling began in both of their souls, feeling energy clawing at their insides, begging for a way out. Before they could let go of each other’s hands, Mikey’s eyes turned white, making his eyes glow like the sun. A little girl saw what was taking place, and screamed on the top of her lungs. The villagers came into panic, screaming, “Bala! Bala! Cursed one, cursed one!” Bodies pushed each other, getting away from the beach, leaving just Leo and Mikey at the beach. Leo didn’t seem worried, but amused. He couldn’t believe what had just taken place. Mikey was reverting back to normal, feeling his own spirit come back. When he finally awoken, he saw Leo looking at him straight in the eyes. And, the one word that scared Mikey the most came from Leo. “My equal,” Leo looked at Mikey with affection in his eyes. Feeling his knees buckle, Mikey fell to the ground, tears dripping down his cheeks. “Why does this happen to me!” Mikey screamed to the world. His soul felt broken and without repair.

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Link to the song for the story: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cmd2Un… I dont own the song, belongs to the movie What's your Raashee?

[consavanarola]

Beauty and the bigfoot

Across the north American continent span the great majestic Canadian Rocky mountains. A primordial structure that came from deep within our planet’s body. Imperial and proud yet largely untouched these mountains have been here from our planet’s beginning. It is precisely there that Stephanie chose to escape to for a two year break from life.

This life of: year in, year out, work work work, summer in – summer out, annual performance review, meetings, stress for bank accounts and an endless line of people she would – out of respect for the human race – prefer to not categorize. “Well paid plebs” is what she would call them. Day in – day out they followed orders from their manager-master and then go home to drink wine while once a week they had the chance to watch a bloody spectacle on the Colosseum Version 2019, known also as Netflix. The entire process subsidised by one of the central banks.

This life was not for her and rebellion needed to be much more than simply hunching a hoody and running around a park listening to rap music. Which of course she would never do as Stephanie was above all a well fashioned elegant life-perfectionist.

University had been a great time for Stephanie as it was then that she discovered music and her love for nature but that next step into the so called “corporate world” led her straight to the development of intellectual disgust for modern living. Her reaction was so natural that to her this was part of her thought structure. It started from her inability to adequately answer simple questions like “what is this all about?” or “why is this person  on this planet?”

She wanted more. But the instructions manual didn’t have a section on “more”. It surely had 20 pages about “more wine” and 50 about “more work” but nothing about “more life”. Love, or at least what the terms & conditions of app called love, popped in every now and then but she never loved the person love proposed. She loved “love” as a verb and human activity and did believe truly in its greater purpose but the person, the man was never what she loved. Most men seemed to be the packaging of love and no matter how many layers she hurriedly  unwrap, no matter how many weekends in Barcelona she’d spend with a man … she never found love. Stephanie was wholeheartedly in great need to both escape from this world and also to find greatness, two distinct needs with overlapping purpose.

An eye-catching Lufthansa magazine article during one of her business trips to Frankfurt, laced with German pragmatism, explained it all to her. The title was “Banff – escape inside the natural you” ‘their translation department needs some help’ she told herself. Capital of Alberta Canada, according to the article Banff was a paradise nested within the Canadian Rockies, a place of beauty, nature and free spirit. Before the air-waiters could serve those chemically grown jam filled plum cakes, Stephanie was already well into her feasibility analysis. ‘It’s either this or getting a large dog and naming it Lucifer, so it’s this, so Yes my dearest you can do this, do it’ she negotiated internally. Three months and a resignation letter later there she was in Banff Alberta Canada modern living’s latest self-exile.

She had a great set-up for this new life of hers. Work four days a week at the local Hilton as a restaurant connoisseur cause per local standards she knew everything about European wines and then for three days she was free to go on trekking trips. An endlessness of green and imposing natural structures all there for her mind and body to indulge in. She believed that, as for people, so also for trees there exists a sense of uniqueness. As if each tree somehow knows that it is one and different to the others, it was this concept that drove her at times to simply stand next to a tree and observe its every detail in search of what makes it different to the others. She spent full minutes standing next to trees comparing their dimensions versus her own body, moving in strange ways to better gauge the trunk’s diameter or form. She would whisper “spectacular” to herself at least three times a week and truly meaning it.

I was June, the greatest of all months for women and something inside Stephanie knew this. Was it Juno’s hand reaching down from Olympus or simply the army of wild flowers all cheerful to see her as chance would take her path by them? When close to nature  many random events at a microbial level all accumulate and trigger the various biologies of our inner workings. Stephanie was unknowingly June’s hostage and one Friday, her yes day, she set off for her trek. Local fashion implied jean shorts, white knee socks, strong trekking boots and a red Abercrombie $15 t-shirt. She decided to leave the town from the side where the river passes nearest and where the caves are. Off she went.

At some point after one of her tree merging sessions she walked onto a wild flowered knoll with no shade where she heard a whistle. There a tuned whistle with detailed sonority stopped her. Startled she stood to observe and grasp what was happening ‘just another trekker’ she reassured herself but her answered did not suffice. ‘right here, right now? To me in these mountains? What are the odds that I hear such a strange tune?’ … she stood for 30 seconds and heard the tune take distance. ‘I came here for the mountains and the trees, not some whistle’ she shrugged this disruption away and disregard this intrusion. She was here for herself and for nature … no distractions. Her trek went on as planned.

Monday soon came and it was dinner time at the hotel restaurant where nothing out of the ordinary was happening until from the lobby came that whistle once again. This was her work place so Stephanie’s personal standards could take second stage, ‘disruption at work is a job issue’ she told herself and raced to see what had tickled her ear three days ago on that flowery hill. Through the disdain hotel lobby ornaments she safaried and pushed aside the Drömsk Ikea floor lamb to uncover the last thing she would ever expect to see in the Canadian mountains, a pirate. Not a real pirate on a ship in the Caribbean but a man who at first glanced could not be called anything but a pirate. His hair was scruffy brown and so was his skin which, beyond being mildly done by the sun, also had that veneer of adventurous dryness that prolonged exposure to the sun and sea salt leaves behind. Above all his eyes had a deep middle-eastern look with carbon powdered eyes. She kept her hand on the Drömsk and told herself to turn away as he was beginning to turn his head in her direction and a man was not this evening’s menu.

That was something unexpected she said to herself as she marched back to her post at the restaurant where customers sat expecting her to treat them with that safe and reliable Trustpilot verified Hilton love they paid $200 a night for. Stephanie naturally made people smile, it was part of her instinctive blueprint. She had short brown hair which defused any fear of aggression or over sexuality and this made everyone want to be her friend immediately. After 19 responsibly sourced rump steaks with farm grown fries things started to die down as it was nearly one hour to midnight. Suddenly the pirate came inside and went straight to the bar. Dark jeans and a light red turtle neck he walked slowly but with firm steps. ‘who wears a turtle neck in June?’ she perplexed.

“Hey Tom, could you go do a turn in the cellar for me, I’ll take over here” she told the bartender who with a half-smile and look went off. Manning the bar herself she was there standing face to face with this … cold mountain pirate. He was jittery and started fidgeting with the menu while examining the bottles behind Stephanie. One of his eyes was also looking at her body, mid height between the bottles and she was asking herself why? ‘I’m not on the menu mate’ she confirmed to herself. She took a glass and in pure bartender fashion started polishing it with a white cotton hand towel, to which he reacted by jumping five centimetres up and glimpsing at the bottles with overstatement then sat back down and sunk his nose back into the menu. She was formulating a plan to say something but before she could enact he spoke.

“you’re the bartender aren’t you? You’re here right?” he said with a fidgety tone.

“I am certainly here” she smiled back while inside she said ‘I know this man, he is lost, he came here to escape the world where he was successful but couldn’t find something truly worthwhile, now he is here at the edge of the world seeking refuge, yes, I know this man perfectly’

He looked at her directly, stopped moving about and smiled. He held the smile for a full three seconds then leaned deeply into the bar towards her saying “Are you a good bartender?”

“what?” she choked

“well you say you’re here and … well so am I but should we be here? I mean I know I’m a great customer but are you a good bartender?” he asked with a slow confident tone that she found basically inappropriate.

After two seconds of cold silence and a dry stare in his face she said, “What’ll it be partner?” trying to establish some ground rules and place this whole scenario where it belonged the standard saloon of a frontier outpost town where she was the boss.

He had failed at something, this was clear to her but she would never find out what. He stopped looking at her and went back into the menu, “I think every drink is perfect for the right occasion and I’m trying to figure out what this occasion is … I … I … I guess I’m kinda lost” …

Inside herself was triumph ‘I knew it, I know this man, he IS lost, weird, a bit too weird but weird with great eyes is actually great and … well either way I knew he was lost, I rock’ she declared.

… “What would you recommend?” he asked her.

“I’d say you’re a whiskey man, we’ve got some great Canadians, aged of course” She proudly sold.

“makes you fat” he snapped back.

‘he cares about his weight, I can’t tell what his body is like while he is sitting down but this is a good sign’ she debated internally as she smiled in agreement with his comment and found his eyes asking her to look a bit deeper. She wanted to of course and then nearly roused on herself with ‘wake up Stephanie, leave the eyes cause you are not ��falling for this guy. You came to Banff for you not some fidgety arrogant pirate’. She had to reply fast or else he’d notice something was going on and plus an answer would help her better manage the temptation to look at her eyes. What should she say? She opted for all-out attack, the only good defence:

“Hey, there’s a great wine bar two blocks down the road with a great collection of Bordeaux” she said firmly and with a simile of victory.

He looked at her and smiled, then looked out the window.

‘this guy’s good’ she thought.

He replied with “It’s never nice to drink far from home when you’re drinking alone, so I’ll stay here and … do what you tell me to” launching a deeper than manageable stare into her eyes.

Emotionally perilous music now sounded in her brain which was packing up and getting ready to check out for the evening. Yes, that’s what brains do, they leave you along just before midnight in outpost towns just after you meet a pirate with deep brown eyes. Juno wasn’t helping either as every time the lobby door opened the early summer night breeze sent aromas to her nose.

‘do your job’ she slapped herself and asked him “Whiskey it is then, on the rocks?”

“I thought you said it was good whiskey”,

“The best”,

“Then why would I dilute it with water? You see water is a universal constant of sorts, it turns everything back into the original essence of life, I want some whiskey, if it’s good then bring it to me straight up” he explained

‘a brain too’ she told herself feeling now that this was actually becoming a thing. ‘If he smiles to me one more time I’m leaving with Brain’ she promised herself as she prepared his drink. His New York accent was reassuring and added only to what she was finding great about this guy, eyes above all and now a brain. Yet still this man uncalled for in this exotic mountain paradise Stephanie had chosen to escape to. She was trying to condemn this act of piracy into her world but wanted more and more to keep the sails full canvased. She poured his 24 years old Canadian whiskey and tried to tell him she was not available with a simple and firm “Enjoy” as she looked away.

“Oh I’m enjoying it already, listen since we’re going to be friends you might as well tell me your name. I’m David, I’m from New Jersey. What’s your name?” he said with happiness and accomplishment in his voice.

‘to be a woman or not to be’ she asked herself and thus decided ‘ok, let’s see where these eyes will take me. Brain has left so there won’t be any witnesses tonight’.

“I’m Stephanie, I’m from London, here on a … kind of a gap year, pleased to meet you” she curtsied.

He sipped the whiskey with savour and went on “Gap year? That sounds great, so what? you work all day and then go mountain hiking or bear hunting or something?” laughing mildly to continue this connection.

Stephanie regrouped inside herself for an emergency all directors meeting: how can he know so much? Am I that obvious? Perhaps I am just that but then he is the lost one who needs my guidance not the other way around, didn’t this man get the e-mail?. Am I just here for his eyes and smart cracks? Oh my god I need to tell this guy to “f” off cause this is my place and out here I am not only the queen I’m the king, the bishop, the aristocracy and three witches hiding in the swamp. There are no more openings. Sure I will one day fall in love with my dream man but I haven’t started this project yet. I need to shut him up once and for all.

So she opted to change the topic from them to something neutral, and said “I guess you could say that but … Banff is very beautiful, and the weather this time is great, have you done any trekking?”

He showed irritation to her manoeuvre and she loved that. This stranger here in front of her at a bar was actually dictating terms on her emotions. On top of all that he was beautiful and in a way that only an ocean and the sun could be. With brain checked out she feared that soon her heartbeat would be out of her control. ‘this is supposed to be just another Monday’ she screamed to herself.

He sipped more of the whiskey and … suddenly Tom came back from the cellar, it felt to her like he had gone a month ago. Tom, who knew Stephanie well, looked at her. She looked back with a straight square and intent face and he smiled back and left. She did think for an eternity whether to send him off or have him take over at the bar thus allowing an escape from this captive pirate. An eternity for Stephanie lasts precisely one tenth of a second. ‘Leave us Tom, it’s late and well … David needs to drink some whiskey, I won’t tell you anything about it in the morning’ she told herself.

“Actually, I have a confession to make”, Davide replied and her heart winked upwards to where brain should have been, “I have been doing some trekking but not for the beauty of the mountains …”

“Oh?”

“… yeah well, and here comes the confession, I believe in bigfoot and well I’m here to see if I can find one, there now you think I’m crazy” ending with a small nod and smile as he looked sideward then stared right at her.

Stephanie sends out a square smile that initially wanted to pop and said “That’s … that’s the cutest thing I’ve heard anybody say in months” she said with positivity.

“You don’t think that sounds crazy? I mean too crazy?” David said like a six year-old.

“No!” she said with a triple o “I mean it, that’s super cute, I wish more people would follow their dreams and do what they really want every now and then. This is exactly what the world needs”

“You know I couldn’t agree more, the world is filled with people who are boring and that’s not the problem but the result, the problem is that they want to be boring. It’s over for 99% of them, just going from one step to the next, just like their parent said they would …”

“Yeah ... “ concurred Stephanie

“… I mean I get that there are some standard things we human beings simply must do like sell something to make money, eat, sleep although even sleeping isn’t as necessary as people think … but anyway … I mean in the end once every six months you need to go do something totally unexpected, something that only your heart would ever think of doing” David concluded.

They looked at each other with two smiles and two prolonged nods between them. “Yeah” said Stephanie to break the silence which wasn’t a problem but she just wanted to reaffirm her consent to his thesis one more time.

“I’m gonna –pause– get another whiskey here” said David. She paused too and looked at him on purpose for the 100th time in the last hour, now she looked at herself and asked: is this person in front of me part the wild and natural landscape I escaped to? Am I in control or not of what is going on here? Why is this man with these deep brown eyes confessing to me, why is he feeling like a schoolboy and showing it? What card have I picked up from the board game?

She had so many questions in her mind all of which could wait for this one mega question - “how long will he be staying in Banff?” A question of pivotal importance and probably the most difficult question ever but not because it’s hard to answer rather … because it’s impossible to ask.

She snapped out of it and ask him “Another whiskey? Sure. Where? Here you said? Of course sure, ha ha where else?”

David crossed his eyebrows as if he was thinking but all she could see was a new version of his dark smuggling eyes. This man was doing something to her no one had ever done before, he was creating questions about existence and self-nature for her to answer rather than overflow her with tangible constructions about the world she so easily left behind. She wanted some whiskey too but couldn’t drink there as she was on duty. She wanted to know this guy, she wanted to meet him, she wanted. It was worthwhile and this was her escape year. This could be one small step for her but one giant leap for her womanhood so she did it. She proposed to him.

“Hey I should be getting off here about now, it’s midnight and we’re actually closed, we could go to that wine bar down I told you about and get a last drink”

Wow, she has been upfront with men before but never when the man was so sober. This was it, her river card, her final bet, her last fig leaf. After tonight it would be a triumph and a series on Netflix about how cool she is or Stephanie would become the first person to escape to the mountains to then get so embarrassed that she needed to escape even further.

“Stephanie I’m just gonna say one thing: I like how you tick and I certainly like how you think. I’ll let you wrap up here and meet you there, alright?” He pronounced with a smile.

Wow again she thought to herself, he not only didn’t over indulge and invite me to his room he actually gave me some space and time to put some make up on. This guy is either good or he is god and only one “o” is going to make that difference. “Sure thing, see you there” she replied and started closing up the bar as he went off.

It was past midnight now and Banff was well asleep, even the wind was slumbering. Her plan was simple, close the bar, lock up the fridges then go to the hotel employee bathroom where, she had been told by one the female staff that the girls kept a “just in case” kit which should have everything a girl needs in an emergency like this. Stephanie was confident that she would find Gucci mascara, Dior eyeliners, a set of Victoria’s Secret lingerie – not too forthcoming but enough to make a bang – and of course the essential Channel Number 5. She opened it like the pit of a nuclear test site and was confronted by a “no means yes” red lipstick, an eyeliner gifted in some magazine and a six year old of pack of ribbed condoms. Hesitation didn’t stand a chance as the eyeliner was drier than death and the condoms had both expired a year ago and well, using ribbed in her mind was basically like saying “I’m gonna need all the help I can get” which was, luckily, the farthest from where she was. So she muttered “fcuk” then “great” and then picked up the lipstick as her contribution to one stand history. All this for this man she’d just met.

The longest walk ensued to the wine bar during which Stephanie successfully figured out everything about her life. Yes, it was all so simple, you see up until now everything was just a test to see if she could survive and endure it all, now was when real life actually starts. Now when she was destined to meet Davide. A man who like her was subconsciously seeking her out, sure she wasn’t bigfoot but she was definitely worthy of being called a mythical creature, so that is that. From now on everything was going to be about accomplishment, kids, a house and a summer house.

She arrived in 15 minutes and found him standing outside with a bottle in one hand two wine glasses in the other and his back leaning against the dark windows of the wine bar.

Only one thought was allowed into her mind as she saw him for the first time fully standing ‘now that is a body’.

He leaned forward after his eyes did and said “Great to see you”

“yeah, thanks, it’s closed” she replied.

“yeah when I got here a guy called Mario was locking up, said it was Monday and this is Banff” said David

“sounds about right” smiled Stephanie who was wondering if aliens could right about now come and abduct them both to their planet where they would subdue the two of them through some mating regime until they could breed the perfect human.

Davide jumped in “I tried to bribe him to stay open for another hour but no luck, I told him I met you and really wanted to get to know you better and … well I told him about you, in the end I thought I’d take a chance and buy a bottle … ”

They both smiled for 2 seconds, David continued “… and I got two great wine glasses cause good wine in the wrong glass is … unacceptable … anyway I thought I’d take the change to ask you to continue our evening somewhere … anywhere your place, my room …”

They both smiled again for 2 seconds, she looked upwards to the stars “… or even the hills out here, somewhere you know. I thought … if she says no at least I end up with a great bottle of red”

Stephanie knew she had to say something but she couldn’t stop feeling good about the fact that he had already spoken about her to other people, ‘he is already talking about me to people’ she kept telling herself. But what was to come next? Her house was out of the question cause a woman’s house is like the bat cave to Batman, Transylvania to Dracula and the Library of congress all rolled into one – there is only one way to get in and that’s with a one way ticket.

She walked closely to him, well in range of a kiss and paused. He didn’t, so she did the next best thing – while maintaining pornographic eye contact she slowly extended her hand to his waist and in her hands firmly grasped … the bottle to examine it.

“Chateau Gazin Pomerol 2011?” she whispered to this pirate who in the mountain night and summer breeze was nearly trembling in awe and emotion from her movements, “wow, this is a great wine you know?, way too great to let a whiskey man enjoy alone. – pause – ok David … let’s go to your room”

He laughed just to get out of the risk of a too early kiss or even worse some surprise erection and followed her lead as she smiled and turned away to walk back to the hotel.

‘why did he not take this chance to kiss me’ Stephanie pleaded to herself. ‘I was there, he was there, I had just told him I’d go to his room, I mean what does this guy need? An email from his boss? Com’on David, lips speak louder than eyes’

But for now that was fine as she knew that in reality so much progress had been made for the cause of love and in such little time. Stephanie knew she already deserved a medal or at least an honorary mention in the next romantic comedy to hit the screen. Now she had much bigger things to worry about like this high-risk long walk back to the room not to mention the imminent moment of truth to come – her denudation. That moment where every woman puts everything at risk, lights a fire in her hand, detonates the nuclear weapon in her brain and as Juno would say – transforms her physical body into a temple for fanatical and unpredictable religious practices.

‘Get your ass to his room before worrying about how it will get to Mars’ she boldly told herself and turned to follow Davide.

If sex is a crucifixion, and it is for the messiah inside all of us, then getting to the bedroom is the procession to Calvary. The short yet endless path through the holy city to where flesh is to be thrashed, sins forgiven and gods created. For Stephanie this was going to be here, through downtown Banff in the middle of the summer night.

Stephanie always believed that the way a man walks next to a woman is the most telling sign of his true feelings for her. All she could remember from “When Harry met Sally” was the walk scenes she would see and re-see over and over again, observing and interrupting each motion to see what it tells or tries to hide. Here she was walking with a man to a room.

She ensured that Davide was at least one metre ahead so she could look at his body from safety and while it seemed to work at first, slowly she noticed that he was not maintaining a stable speed. Perhaps he too wanted to check her out, as they say. They were competing for the view of each other.

‘Our first fight’ she smiled to herself, ‘game on, I’ll beat a pirate on a mountain any day’

“So tell me about bigfoot, I mean …” she started a fresh new conversation while discovering her competitive side and engaging in a prancing game. For ten seconds she would increase her speed and then miss a step in alternation. While keeping one eye and half a smile on him and other on his body when he was comfortably in front of her.

Davide laughed mechanically “it’s a thing, it’s a real thing. I mean I guess this has to do with who I am deep down, you see I don’t believe in anything except that believing in things is good. So I don’t believe in god but I want there to be a bigfoot … and a giant squid … and vampires too. Tell me when I’ve freaked you out enough”

“No no, please go on” – she was loving this so much. In her mind prancing in the Canadian Rockies whilst listening to a pirate she was planning to sleep with was talk about bigfoot was the epitome of her existence on this planet so far.

“you’re not making fun of me?” he asked

“Do you think I would make fun of a man holding a bottle of wine that was leading me to his hotel room?” she replied with indulging irony.

David didn’t know what she was doing but it was working like a witchcraft. The motility in her feet was driving him crazy and he want to it stop like an itch but couldn’t due to the fact that he was holding the wine and of course was still in the oat zone. Stephanie had defined oat zone as Only Accidentally Touching which she invented in a meeting once when a colleague of hers was trying to touch her using accidental trips and imaginary obstacles that would push his body briefly onto hers.

He went on “Well that it surely a logical explanation, but the fact that you’re still here is proof enough for me”

Feeling on top of everything she provoked with “maybe I’m just here for the wine”

“you’re not here for the wine” he said with a dry tone of conviction.

“I’m not? How do you know?”

“cause if you were you’d know enough about wine to know that this wine will need at least 5 hours to breath” he replied proudly.

“Whoa ! you know about wine now? I thought you were a whiskey man.” She had to snap back

“Do you wanna find out about bigfoot or do you want to talk about the wine we’re going to drink” he replied with calm.

She stopped herself and him, turned to him and put her hands on the sides of his shoulders. She looked at him straight and said “I want to hear so much about bigfoot that I’m seriously thinking of adopting one” and laughed. She did this for two main reasons firstly to steer clear from any confrontation but mainly to declare that touching is now officially an option.

‘when will he realise that we’ve left the oat zone?’ was now her question.

He laughed through retracting lips and said “I try to avoid absolute affirmations but can say something here to you?” he stopped and looked at her. She paused and gasped “sss- yeah”

“You are a special human being Stephanie from London … in several ways”

She wasn’t officially in love but the e-mail confirmation was by now surely in the server’s outbox. Should be in her inbox in a minute. She needed to hide this as much as possible but she couldn’t so instead she thought to transform it into something official. She looked at him again and simply said “That’s so nice, I really appreciate it.”

Smile from David.

Smile back and “Now tell me about bigfoot, com’on you’ve got less than 5 minutes, the hotel is on the next block”

He continues “well like I was saying I want to believe in things so I chose the things to believe in and I do it, I believe in them, bigfoot is one of my choices, that’s basically it”

Stephanie – “So you’ve never seen one or something it’s just a choice?”

“Yeah, I mean there is some science behind bigfoots that they are some primate that evolved on its own in high altitude environments around the world. It’s a highly plausible possibility, it’s not like unicorns or ..”

“Keep unicorns out this ok” she said with a childish seriousness

He laughed strongly “That’s so cute”

“No really I love unicorns and I won’t mess with your bigfoots if you don’t touch my unicorns” maintaining her tone to that of a concerned three year old girl at the zoo.

“ok ok hey that sounds fair to me” he went on “So that I mean I don’t so much about actually finding one cause if I did I may even contribute to their extinction, I don’t think society is capable of finding any hidden treasure and keeping it as such, we’d find it cage it and make an Instagram account for it. But the idea that it is there or … here in these mountains … is important to me, I need this idea I enjoy it, it makes me feel better” continued David.

Stephanie needed to touch him again so in her prance she skimmed her arm against his ‘wow, skin’ she thought to herself cautious only to not make him drop the wine. He glanced with surprise to her and their two smiles met once more. They were close to the hotel now and she knew it was time to start thinking about what was coming next. She put accidental touching aside for a moment to talk again.

“I like how you think David, I mean people generally should follow more of the dreams and beliefs, that’s why I came to Banff”

He joked in “to find bigfoot?” with a laugh.

“No I would never dream of steeling your glory” she joked back and went on “… I came to find … I don’t know what i came to find but I knew that it was missing and I knew that I would find it here”

“that’s deep” acclaimed David as they went through the side door of the lobby. The main revolving doors were switched off as it was one a.m. “That sounds like a bottle-of-wine conversation to me”

“Well that’s exactly what we have here isn’t it, what’s your floor?” she asked in front of the elevators. “6” he sparked and in they went … into that room called an elevator but for two people in their state leads straight down into the depths of hell.

Alone, a man with pirate eyes and a girl that escaped from London, in a confined room, with a bottle of French wine, both feeling the subtle upward thrust of the elevator which after the fourth floor can provoke a tingle in certain body parts and all around them … mirrors. They both fell into that devilish elevator trap of looking up in search of help to battle awkwardness instead they got … a ceiling mirror. The scripture was on their faces, blushing near their timid lips, they both knew that this was a love-test for them. Will they reach the sixth floor before they gasp out laughing and thus making a sexual confession unavoidable or not?

Ding, saved by the bell, they had made it.

David had taken a small room, not a suite, which Stephanie did notice. Of all the aspects of life Stephanie did not rank the concept of “enough money” as being number one in importance but she did firmly place it at number two, just after “more money”.

‘fine, he didn’t get the suite, so what? More money for all the gifts he is going to buy for me’ she told herself to shut up. But she did walk into the room to the tune of Material World sung by Madonna, original version of course cause well … it’s Madonna. She wanted to speed things up a bit it was already 1:30 and they hadn’t even kissed yet. They needed to kiss as soon as possible and with Victorian elegance.

David walked in and put the wine and glasses on the small coffee table. “Well here we are, there is a bathroom if you need there and a bed here … not if you need it I mean it’s just here as you can see … I better open the wine make yourself at home” he said clumsily.

‘He is funny’ she laughed inside and couldn’t restrain from saying “If I need the bed i can use it?” while laughing.

Davide laughed back and for now didn’t want to give too much breathing room to that chain of joking.

Stephanie placed her hand bag on the bed, this was her levee in case things flooded too soon. A woman in a hotel room with a man is better than a well-trained Mossad agent. She’ll put the condoms in the right place, order them as per favourite flavour, cork screw the wine, hide the man’s underwear, ensure he doesn’t steal hers and do the bed all in 10 minutes flat while the man hasn’t even found out how to unclip her bra.

She sat down and wanted some silence. It was time for him to go through his year 6 med-school advanced brain surgery exam …  with no time to study. Easy, for the man that Stephanie was going to fall in love with. She leaned forward with her elbows on the table while watching him open the bottle and hopefully … set the perfect scene. David was walking around the room with the bottle.

“wow, this is luck!” proclaimed David with a whisper.

“what?”

“there is a cork screw in the room, they don’t always put them in the minibars”

‘A - Ha’ said Stephanie to herself ‘so, Mr pirate eyes, trying to find a corkscrew in hotel rooms is a common problem for you is it now? What am I, number 87? You just lost 10 points here brother and you haven’t even poured the wine ‘ she decreed.

“you do this often?” she bit while finishing her sentence in her mind with ‘if he doesn’t answer in 5 nanoseconds it means I caught him and then me, my cheap lipstick together with my bag and jogging underwear are out of here’

Luckily it was a false alarm as David did reply with sincerity and rapidly “well I travel a lot and I generally like good wine plus I like to work from my hotel room so I’ll often order dinner to my room, the common hotel room service guy will simply forget to bring the opener and I’ll have to call them back, in good hotels they remember or they have a corkscrew in the room”.

‘phew! you are back in the game, I really want you to win this, now I’m ready for you to score a touchdown on my 5 yard line’ She wanted to get physical.

Davide poured the wine and brought the glasses to the table, he set them down and began to sit but stopped half way. He bounced back up and looked around.

“What’s wrong” she said, ‘will you get with the program boy? Let’s get the wine on’ she thought.

He crossed his arms and scraped his chin while turning left and right observantly.

“the lighting is terrible in this room” pausing to think while turn eighteen times.

‘he’s thinking about how to make my working-girl body look like a Canova statue, I love this man’ thought Stephanie.

“Let me … prefect – verb if you allow – as much as I can” said David and set to the task of lighting. He tried multiple combinations of the infinite room light options. After five minutes of the cheapest lighting show in the history of light Stephanie was about to start biting her lips. “Hey, I think it’s ok David let’s try this wine” she commanded.

Blackout. Suddenly it was pitch dark as David had hit the master switch turning all the lights off.

‘What’s this?’ she squeaked inside when the bathroom light turned on giving the room the aura of a cloudy summer night with the last effect of dusk fighting to hold on. ‘perfect’ she thought as David emerged and finally sat down.

‘I made it through the wilderness, Somehow I made it through

Didn’t know how lost I was, until I found you’

Stephanie was now listening to “Like a Virgin”

He lifted his glass, closed his eyes and pushed his nose deep inside with fragile care taking a deep nose breathe.

“ahhhh this does smell great, it will be perfect in 6 to 7 hours but it’s great even now” said the pirate to his wine glass and his eyes came back into play. It was too dark outside while they were walking to see their full effect but now, here, in silence and under this perfect light it was open season on his eyes for Stephanie. She simply stopped controlling where she looked.

“Cheers” he said and lifted his glass to her.

“Cheers” she replied.

Crystals struck and their lips were wet at last. He took a second sip, swirled the glass and falling back into his chair smiling to her, he said “I’m going to ask your permission to give you a compliment right now, I have to, I need to, please let me tell you something that right now … I really need to say”

“I didn’t stop your bigfoot discourse how could I say no to this?” she said in the most bashful way. She did not want to stop him but at the same time didn’t what to give him full control at least not until they were horizontal.

“Well here goes, I … I think you’re beautiful”

Stephanie smiled with a “humph”

“no no … let me put it into perspective here for you” … takes another sip … Stephanie takes two … “This may sound strange but I have to tell all about it, hear me out, I was walking across the most majestic mountain range in the world the other day looking for my mythical being. I had shut the whole smoggy and high speed world out for the whole day. It was going to be about me and this dream, this myth, this thing I consciously choose to believe in. I was out there. Fully immersed and totally dedicated, nothing else was with me. At last I had achieved a life goal – to start a journey of discovery of something I believe in with all my heart. So there I was” … two sips for him and three for Stephanie who realised this wasn’t going to be another simple pick-up line … “So I’m going through a small forest patch and then I cross a river, and walk some more. I was loving every minute of this. So, I go on some more and then from atop a hill covered with wild flowers and the aroma of honey from a primordial habitat I saw not far away the outline of something standing” … he paused and looked at Stephanie. She was to overtaken by his nonstop narrative and his eyes that alternated focal point from glass to her and to her hair at times. Dazzled, she simply wanted to hear more. He paused for five seconds then said “… we need a wine break, our glasses are already empty, let me pour some more”

Stephanie showed relief with a shrugging shoulder movement and a deep smile “ha yeah I was so taken by your story I mean I can’t wait to hear about your bigfoot experience” she jokingly recessed from the captivating tension of the moment. David poured another third of the bottle into their wide slim necked glasses, took two sips and continued.

“so where was i? ah the first encounter. This figure I saw standing was drenched in the shadow of these ancient trembling aspens and was clearly a humanoid in my view. Even at that distance in the darkness of the forest shade I could tell it was no plant. I didn’t want to risk going closer at this point cause I was sure it hadn’t seen me while I had seen it, so I decided to stop and observe any intellectual should”

“and …?” asked Stephanie between three sips of the Pomerol which was choking much faster than it could breathe. Davide too was drinking.

“So I’m looking at what my heart was calling the being I’ve dreamt of finding all my life and what was it doing?”

“… what?” whispered Stephanie over the same uttering from Davide “what ? hehe there … you too ask what, I’ll tell you what, standing near a tree, standing and looking at the tree as if to see what the tree looked like … it … you were doing something with the tree … I can only guess you were comparing it to your body dimensions, at least that’s what I think” David said.

‘I’m going to cry’

Stephanie looked ready to cry

“don’t say anything yet at least, let me finish. What I saw you do, and I didn’t know who you are, was the most beautiful thing I’ve seen a person do on this planet so far in my life time”

Her eyes were ready to shed the first tear in her life that had this a mild temperature, neither cold from a tear of pain nor warm as tears from sorrow have. But she also wanted to laugh from joy as the cynical Stephanie knew that such a sight could be classified as simply silly.

David went on “I watched you for 10 full minutes Stephanie and I didn’t want to disturb the meditating state you were clearly in with nature, at some point you turned in my direction and I panicked. I started whistling in the other direction. I didn’t want you to think I was some mad man stalking women in the forest. So I left”

‘kill me now but only after making pure love to me please’ she begged inside but outside she had to find a practical solution to this emotional traffic jam.

She constructed a mild umfy laugh with lots of “he he” and said “wow, you saw me there? What a coincidence, I must have looked ridiculous”

“no … you looked and are … a myth” he whispered with full eye contact.

‘gulp’

“shhhh” he hushed.

David knew any hint or attempt at courtship in the conventional sense was now an option long gone for them. Their Titanic had made contact with the iceberg and there were no lifeboats for the last passengers. He proposed a toast again to her where crystals kissed this time and finished his wine as did she, he stood up and lowered his hands to her.

“give me your hands” he asked, she did and he pulled her up. Face to face he lifted their arms to the sky, Stephanie knew a kiss would be perfect right about now and David did deliver.

The lips had more to say than the eyes and what mattered most was also the more surprising, that this man knew the concept of acceleration. Taking every step with the right speed, not too slow to stop the flooding nor to fast to drown the princess.

Their union of lips lit chain fires and her bag went flying as he moved her body for her. His hair filled her fingers as his body filled her arms, both were playing the part they’d rehearsed for so many years. Now on centre stage. He was proving with heart, soul and above all his hands the existence of the mythical being he’d been seeking and known to be our Stephanie while she finally permitted full and total loss of control.

Who was this man? A pirate who has known me longer than I know him, a believer and a shy adventurer with taste for wine. Definitely not in the article she had read on that Lufthansa flight but … so very worth a book.

[ichigopanhpff]

BNHA Fic: Blink! Ch. 20

We’ve reach chapter 20! Does anyone really read this thing though? lol

SPOILER ALERT: This is leading up to the Redemption Arc, so there’s a bit of spoiler to the main story here. This one is a much shorter chapter compared to the last one.

Read. Ch. 19 | Masterlist

With November coming to a close, winter was in full swing. There was always something about the cold in Japan that made Ren want to bury her body under a kotatsu and hibernate. She lethargically emerged from the her warm cocoon of her bed to get ready for class. The chill of the air made her shudder aloud and rubbed her arms furiously to stay warm. Putting on her designated “home hoodie,” she grabbed her belongings to wash up downstairs. Even after fully clothed, 1-A’s resident advisor found herself moving much slower than she liked. And her monthly visitor’s cramps did little to help. She saw Asui coming down with half-lidded eyes and yawned aloud.

“I’m sorry, ribbit,” the amphibian girl apologized and rubbed one of her eyes. “Winter is always hard for me.”

“You’re preaching to the choir, Tsuyu-chan,” Ren agreed and proceeded to boil water for some tea. “Would you like some? Maybe it’ll help wake you up.”

Asui slowly nodded and let out another yawn.

Leaning her head on the refrigerator door, the pink-haired girl found herself drifting asleep, only to be rudely woken up by Bakugou.

“If you’re gonna sleep, don’t do it somewhere where people need to grab stuff,” he exasperatingly refuted and pinched her cheek hard to get her to move.

The stinging from the pinch woke her up halfway as the electric kettle turned off automatically. Heaving a heavy sigh, she wobbled over to the other counter and made English Breakfast tea for herself and Asui. Adding a splash of milk and half a spoon of sugar, she stifled a yawn before sipping the hot beverage. She then handed the second cup to the napping frog girl, to which she thanked her for. Heaving a long sigh, she grabbed two pieces of toast and munched on it like a turtle.

Class went by in a blur and Ren managed to halfway wake up just as the day ended. The classroom door to 2-A suddenly slid open and revealed a very excited Ito with something in his hand.

“Everyone! The photos from the festival have been printed!” her classmate announced.

“About time!” one student chimed.

The class crowded over Ito as he opened the album and flipped through until they found the group shot of their class.

“Whoa! We look out of this world!” Tomoe exclaimed.

“I do have to say, the costume team did a wonderful job,” Seri commended. “My dress was so comfortable to move around.”

“And thanks for adding that last minute train to mine,” Ren sighed out. “It was much appreciated.”

“You’re still sensitive ‘bout that?” Tomoe asked with a tone of surprise. “Dude, let it go. Flaunt it.”

“I absolutely refuse to,” the pink-haired girl deadpanned and blushed. “I don’t want it to be bodysuit-gate all over again.”

“Speaking of your costume, Takahiro,” Ito interjected with a sly smile. “Your photo was one of the top three most requested for reprints next to Hadou-senpai’s.”

She blinked stupidly.

“I’m sorry, what now?”

“This one.” He flipped to the page where her photo had the full page spread of a mid-action shot from when she jumped off of the swing. She let out a panicked scream.

“It seems the audience was quite entranced by your wisp character,” Hayasaka remarked, staring at the photo. “Maybe it was a blessing in disguise I injured my ankle and helped backstage instead.”

“Your quirk would’ve made the wisp freakin’ legendary!” she reasoned. “I did what I could while running on 3 hours of sleep and barely remembered half the shit I did!”

“So?”  Akiyama huffed. “ I was on energy drinks and was awake for nearly 36 hours making all the costume adjustments.”

“Well no matter,” Miyake disregarded. “What’s important is the festival was a huge success and we were able to pull off the performance thanks to your help, Takahiro.”

Heading back to 1-A, she found Aizawa with the Big Three and Eri-chan sitting on the couch. She overheard Aizawa saying U.A. was now in charge of her well-being. Before Ren was able to go over to say hi, Togata and Aizawa waved her, Uraraka, Midoriya, Asui and Kirishima out the door to talk.

“It seems like Eri-chan’s parents abandoned her,” their homeroom teacher revealed. “And her closest blood relative is the boss of the Hassaikai, who is currently in a coma. So she has no where to go.”

“You may have heard this from sensei, but her horn is the source of her quirk,” Togata chimed in and tapped the left part of his forehead.

“We heard it shrunk and everything was good though...” Kirishima replied.

“The horn seems to have grown a bit recently,” the third year blond revealed.

“So… we need to make sure “that” doesn’t happen again?” Ochaco asked, thinking back to what happened to Midoriya after Overhaul was taken down with Eri’s quirk.

“That’s why her transfer was U.A. rather than a foster home,” Aizawa summarized. “I’ll be watching over her in the teacher’s lounge to monitor her situation. Hopefully, we can find a way to work out her power.”

“Aizawa-sensei, it seems like you’re taking on a lot of work,” Asui said with a tone of worry.

“This is where, I, friend of Eri-chan and student-on-hiatus, come in!” Togata shouted happily with both hands on hips hero pose.

“We’ll be busy but you can visit her every once in a while,” Aizawa finalized to which those present agreed to.

“If Eri-chan’s mind and body are stable then maybe...” Amajiki clasped a hand on Togata’s shoulder. “The return of the fearless hero could be soon.”

“That’d be nice,” Togata replied with a dry laugh.

“Third years, this is sudden, but can I leave Eri with you for a bit? I have something do.”

“Of course!” Togata enthusiastically agreed.

The first years were asked to return to their dorms to receive some guests. Ren followed them back in and saw the Wild Wild Pussycats talking with the class. She remembered from the report Aizawa gave her they were there at the training camp when the villains attacked. The resident advisor politely greeted and introduced herself to the idol heroes, noticing a small boy bashfully standing with Midoriya.

Talks of their return to the spotlight and the JP Hero Billboard Chart came about; the list of heroes aggregated twice a year based on their level of contribution to society, approval ratings, popularity, etc.

The following night, everyone tuned into the official announcement of the top 10 heroes. As expected, Endeavor was in the number one spot, with Hawks moving up to second. The R.A. glanced over at the bi-hair coloured boy, unflinching and expressionless watching the ceremony. His back almost felt distant from everyone. She wanted to ask how he was feeling about all this, but didn’t want to pry into something that’s not her business.

The next day, everyone was doing their own thing in the dorms. The TV could be heard in the background as several 1-A students hung out in the common area; Ren was huddled on the corner of a couch knitting. Some of the guys were talking and joking around with a few of the girls.

Kirishima, however, was entranced and emotionally invested with how fast their R.A. was going through the yarn, trying to figure out how she was creating something tangible from a thread like magic. Stopping momentarily, she counted her stitches and clicked her tongue. Muttering under her breath, she immediately removed the needle and unraveled a row. The spiky redhead exclaimed loudly as she did it, catching her attention.

“Did something happen?” she looked up and blinked in surprise.

“Gah, you worked so hard at it and you’re taking it apart?!” Kirishima groaned out. “Just leave it!”

“It’ll be uneven if I did. Besides,” she looked down to smooth out the yarn thread before starting again. “One row is nothing. I can remake it in my sleep.”

“What are you making anyway?”

“Something for Eri-chan,” she answered mid-stitch and picked up the rhythm after figuring out where she went wrong. “Christmas is coming up and I figured I’d give this to her as a present.”

“Oh that’s right!” Ashido chimed in. “We should all do something as a class!”

“We can’t exactly go off campus to have a party,” Kaminari lamented and leaned back on the couch across. “Kacchan and Todoroki still have their provisional lessons too.”

“How about we throw a party here after those two take their licensing exam?” Ren suggested and looked up. “As for presents...”

“We can do a Secret Santa!” the pink-skinned girl excitedly proposed.

“Oh, that’s a great idea!” Hagakure agreed and clapped her hands together.

“Looks like we got a plan!” Uraraka eagerly said. “I’m getting excited!”

“Mina-chan, I’ll let you take care of the Secret Santa details then, budget and everything,” Ren directed.

“Roger!” The alien queen saluted with a wink and toothy grin before heading up to her room.

The TV suddenly turned to a breaking news screen, showing part of a city in ruins somewhere in Kyushu with the headline “Endeavor, Number One Hero, Fighting Engineered Nomu.” The camera then pans into a bloodied Endeavor laying on top of rubble. The once vibrant common room fell silent with shocked eyes on the screen. Midoriya grabbed the remote and turned up the volume to hear the newscast. Ren dropped her knitting needles and clasped her hands to her mouth.

Feeling a new presence, those sitting on the couch turned to see a shocked Todoroki staring at the TV. It was like time suddenly slowed down and all the noise faded away from the loud beating of his pulse in his ear. Ren could only look on at the boy with extreme worry.

“Todoroki!” Kirishima called, with Midoriya following right after.

“The scene here, is sadly reminiscent of the nightmare from three months ago...” the caster presented.

The camera zoomed in at the Nomu beginning to walk away, with Endeavor immediately getting back up and rushed the monster with his flames. The scene then cuts to civilians panicking and screaming as they’re trying to escape from the disaster.

“This is society without a symbol of peace!” the live voice over strongly stated.

The main entrance of the dorm bursted open, revealing Aizawa running to them.

“Todoroki...” he panted. “You already saw what’s going on?”

“You’ve got to be kidding me...” the red and white colored haired boy uttered out nervously.

“Stop saying that crap already!” A voice from the TV abruptly shouted, revealing an angry young boy on camera. “Open your eyes before you say that crap! Especially at a time like this! You still see those flames up, right?! Endeavor’s still alive and fighting! So don’t give up just cus the other guy’s gone!”

Panicked pedestrians were still pushing the boy, but he wasn’t giving up.

“He’s still out there risking it for all of us! Can’t you see?!”

The camera changed back to the aerial view they have of the fight. As the broadcast continued on, everyone watched on with bated breath, hoping for a good outcome for Todoroki’s sake. Endeavor’s flames discharged with intensity out of his body and at the Nomu. Hawks then came from behind to assist him with his feathers. By now, the newscaster had changed her tone.

“Dad...” Todoroki’s voice quivered out with strength. “I’m watching!”

All they could see on the screen was a blinding exploding supernova in the sky on the screen and in that instant, two falling figures dropped from the sky at an alarming rate. After the smoke cleared, the victor was clear.

There he was, Endeavor bloodied and beaten up holding a victorious pose with his right fist up in the air and a super crispy Nomu on the ground.

“It’s Endeavor! He’s standing tall in victory, no! Standing tall for his beginning!” the newscaster shouted in elation. The once panicking crowd then erupted into screams and cheers. The other students jumped off of their seats and ran to over to him. Any energy Todoroki had was completely zapped when he squatted down and breathed a sigh of relief and placed his hands together over his forehead. But that peace didn’t last long as the surrounding area was engulfed with blue flames.

“It’s him!” Aizawa stated. “What’s he thinking being out in the open like that?!”

“The League of Villains is here! It’s league member Dabi!” the newscaster announced. “He’s surrounded Endeavor and Hawks with a wall of flames!”

The three got into a confrontation and a fight started breaking out, but was soon broken up by Mirko’s powerful kick.

“You’re one of those League of Villains bastards ain’tcha?!” she proclaimed. “I’ll kick your ass till kingdom come!”

As fast as Dabi came, he disappeared with a black essence coming out of his mouth. And moment of silence filled the void, with only the TV caster announcing the fight was won. Heaving another soul-leaving sigh, Todoroki gathered the strength in his legs and slowly stood back up. Aizawa took him to the side to talk one-on-one. All Ren could do was look on like an outsider.

After a quick discussion, 1-A’s homeroom teacher gave special permission for him to go home for a few days. With the rest of the students retreating back to their respective rooms, Ren decided to stop by Tororoki’s to check on him. She stood in front of his room door and swallowed hard, her right hand freezing mid-air.

What kind of face would he show her?

Would he even want to talk?

Was she here as his friend, the R.A. or something else?

Gathering what courage she had, the door opened just as she was about to knock. She met his hetero-chromatic eyes expressing surprise. All she could do was stand there in stupor, unable to move.

“Ren-senpai...” he softly greeted. “Did you need something?”

“Huh? I, er, uh…” she stammered out at a higher pitch than she liked, feeling her cheeks get warm and looked down at her now fumbling hands. “I-I just wanted to see how you were d-doing and–”

She cleared her throat and calmed herself from her botched words.

“I came by to see how you were doing, that’s all,” she managed to get out and looked away.

Todoroki merely blinked at her slowly. It took him all of his willpower to not pull her into his room and embrace her. He wanted to feel her warmth to comfort him, but he had to hold back. Anyone could come out of their rooms at any moment and would misunderstand their relationship.

But… what was their relationship exactly?

He wanted to say more, but all he could default to was, “I’m fine. Aizawa-sensei’s letting me go home tomorrow to see my siblings and my dad.”

“Oh, right. I’ll… leave you to it then,” she said with a look of distance in her eyes.

Watching her small form walk away from his door, Todoroki felt that sensation bubbling up again. The tinge of pain in his chest she’ll disappear if he dared look away for one second. His hand instinctively grabbed a hold of her wrist, jolting her muscles and turned her head. He looked at her with loneliness reflecting off of his glassy gaze.

“Todo-kun?” she questioned.

Realizing what he’d done, he immediately released his hold.

“I-I’m sorry...” he whispered and grabbed his hair by the roots, looking away with shame. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

Ren slowly walked back and stood in front of him with a softened gaze.

“Just remember it’s okay to not be okay,” she gently spoke with an encouraging smile, making sure to keep a moderate distance from physical contact in case anyone saw. “You have people on your side to help.”

[the-archetype-of-civilization]

I saw a Kingdom Hearts concert today.  It’s funny, because I wasn’t expecting to go to it at all.  My friends had asked me many months back if I could, but I didn’t have money at the time because I was low in funds and I refused to let them buy it for me so I could pay them back later (which wasn’t foreseeable to me).  Apparently my friend’s brother couldn’t make it, so he asked me last minute today if I wanted to see it.  I did.  And so I went into the city and watched it with my good friends.

It was breathtaking.  Yoko never ceases to amaze me with her beautiful music and KH is truly her tour de force.  I was spoiled on KH3, but I didn’t have enough investment to really care all that much anymore.  The series burned me out a long time ago when they refused to make the third game for all of these damn spin-offs that you HAVE to play.  Either way, I enjoyed it and loved the whole symphony.

I hated when it was over.  Because then I returned to the real world.  My reality.  My awful and garbage rock bottom that I’ve found myself in these past few months.  Actually, that’s not true.  I’ve felt worse now than I have months before.  I’m just...there.  I feel so hollow and emotionless now.  I’m like a zombie.  The concert was enough to make me feel again, but after that I just flat-lined.

My friend asked me what I’ve been up to, since I haven’t been in contact with them all that much and haven’t seen them in a while.  He’s really one of the few friends that actually cares and asks if people are all right.  He truly is my best friend and I wouldn’t change him for anything else.  I don’t talk to them because I didn’t want them knowing about my situations these past few months.  Although, I did tell them that my relationship is gone now and they were (more or less) supportive...marginally (understandably so considering how I treated her, though).  I did tell him that these last few months were pretty shit, especially after the break-up.  He said that if I needed to talk to him, I could.  His Uber, as if right on time after he said that, came by and picked him up.  We parted ways and I walked to the subway.

Waiting for the A train was hell...three trains came by going uptown, the exact opposite of where I needed to go.  I think I waited about 15-20 minutes for my downtown train to come, listening to some Led Zeppelin on the way with my Turtle Beach headphones because I need something to drown out my inner thoughts and think about anything else but her and how awful I was to her.

Needless to say, it didn’t help.

After a long train ride, I made it to Times Square hoping that the shuttles were still active.  They weren’t.  So, I walked out to Times Square and decided to walk back to Grand Central.  I walked out and saw a family doing the Orange Justice dance.  A part of me felt disgusted (I hate Fortnite), but my hollow nature simply acknowledged it and walked off.  I saw a bunch of posters for the show “Euphoria” starring Zendaya.  I remember seeing a bunch of commercials for it and it looked depressing but real as hell.  Considering that the posters showed Zendaya looking off in the distance, with a purple hue over her face, and a sparkled trail of a tear going down the side of her cheek, I assumed it was about wanting to feel something, to be loved.  I couldn’t help but understand that all too well, considering the present circumstances.

The tag line?  “Feel something.”

On my way down to Grand Central, blasting “I Want To Break Free” by Queen, I saw a huge group of girls (I mean like school field trip huge, like two whole classrooms worth) walking down the street cheering at anything and everything.  High school age, most of them appeared to be.  I couldn’t tell because I was behind the band of them, and I didn’t care.  I figured that since I had time to kill, I decided to stop by McDonald’s and have some food.

I didn’t get to eat anything for most of the day leading from the time I left the house and to where I was now (about 7 hours).  Two homeless men were standing outside the McDonald’s, one on each side of the double doors.  One of them opened the door for me.  I was feeling depressed and I thought that maybe by trying to make myself feel better or less of a shitty person, I gave some loose change that was in my pocket to the man that opened the door for me.  It was a bunch of pennies and a dime, I think.  After I went in, though, I felt bad for the other guy that was standing opposite to him (though I wasn’t sure if maybe he was talking to the guy as a normal person or he really was homeless, but looking at his Dunkin’ Donuts cup, he most likely was to me at that point).  I looked back at him and pointed at my wallet and then at him.  He nods.  I go back outside and give him the rest of my loose change.  I gave him a few pennies and several quarters.  It was imbalanced charity and I felt worse that I gave one guy more money than the other, the one that was nice enough to hold the door open for me.  But, I didn’t care anymore.  The damage was done.

As I was standing on the line, mistakenly blasting “Lovers Rock” by Sade and trying so hard not to think, I saw a group of people being drunk as shit talking and laughing loudly with each other.  That’s what the headphones were for, as far as I’m concerned.  Besides, I had my own problems going on.  They took a while to get their orders in, but I managed to get mine and waited as the drunk people left and it was just the other people that were quietly waiting on line or at the food pickup like me, and my music.  I picked up my food and walked back to Grand Central.

Once I got inside, I was walking through to the center (where the giant star map is on the roof) and saw a few people calling to a guy named “Francisco” and (most likely) wanted him to come with them to get tickets at the ticket machine.  He turns and looks at them, having glasses, long black hair, and I believe a Filipino look to him (I’m not good with physical looks by nationality) and points up to the star map.  Didn’t even say a word and they said “Oh, okay.”  I guess he liked looking at the star map?  I don’t know.  I walked past the information booth smack dab in the center of the terminal, a group of black women asking for information on their tickets I assumed.  I walked past a couple of MTA workers hanging outside the entrances to the Metro North platforms, one of them saying to the other “keep that shit out of” something.  I assumed the work place, I wasn’t sure.

After taking my seat, I thought about writing this.  I thought why I should, what the point of it was.  Was it supposed to have some great meaning to it?  Was it trying to paint myself as this tortured soul that couldn’t find emotion or “feel something?”  Was I just people watching and realizing just how kooky this city can be?  I wasn’t sure, but I felt like writing it anyway because I felt like it.  Maybe it was all of it.  

As I started to eat my McDonald’s, two men (who I had assumed were a bit drunk or at least were mildly obnoxious like my friends are) took a few seats nearby and were chatting.  One of them said “[blank], welcome to the Metro North.” First time going on, surprisingly.  He asked the other what he should text to his friend, whom I assumed was trying to check in on them.  The other said “I ain’t no bitch walking,” his friend repeating the line and sending it on his phone.

The man that sent the text pulls something out of his bag, looking like a bagel or something (I wasn’t spying, I just caught them doing stuff every time that I looked up).  He said that he was afraid that the bagel or baked thing was “upselled” to him, like he was cheated with a cheap piece of food.  It did look cheap, honestly.  He takes a bite and it takes him a moment and he says it “tastes exactly like what he ordered.”

After I finished eating, I pulled out my Switch and started playing Smash to avoid wasting battery life on my phone.  I played until I got off the train.  The two men were pretty passed out, but one of them woke up as I made my way down the car and to the train door.  He asked if I dropped some sunglasses, where I turned and looked to see a pair of sunglasses on the floor near where I was sitting.  I didn’t bring any, so I said “No.  Thanks.”  I got off, drove home, and ended up here.

I don’t know why I wrote this.  I’m not trying to put meaning behind this.  Maybe I’m writing it to show how empty I felt the whole time, how emotionless I’ve become.  Maybe I’m writing it because, in some ways, I do love this city.  It can be crazy and with its quirks, but it’s enjoyable.  And I might not see it again if I land a job in California.  Or, like I said, maybe it’s both.  Maybe I just enjoy writing and describing the lives of others, lives that seem much more interesting and worth while than mine.

I don’t know.

I don’t know anymore.

[rosegardentwilight]

Sweet Dreams Chapter 4

Summary:  The sleep dust affects the miraculous holders differently, and it lulls Ladybug into a deep slumber. Now it’s up to Chat to travel inside her dreams and convince her that reality is better than her wildest dreams. Alternate version of Sandboy.

Pairings: Marichat, Adrienette

Chapter 4/5

Word count: 3.1k

A.n.- Hey ya'll. Here's the next chapter. I'll be at Disney this weekend so I figured why not post early.

“You call yourself a model? Looks like you’re just sanding there to me.” Sandboy’s eyes snapped to his balcony where Chat perched on the handrail. “You have interfered for the last time.” A sudden blast of sand shot towards him which Chat dodged easily. “Something wrong Sandy? You seem tired, maybe you should sleep it off.” He allowed the witty comment to roll off his tongue. Being able to spit off puns was potentially almost too much of a guilty pleasure for him, the ability to say whatever he wanted without being restricted by a list of do’s and don’ts by his father. “Is that all you got? I don’t know what I was so worried about,” one day Chat knew his taunts would get him in trouble, but today couldn’t be that day. Ladybug was out of commission, and he had no clue how to beat this guy. First, he had to lure him away from Mari. “If you want me, you gotta come get me sandpoke.” He jumped from the balcony avoiding yet another blast and made his way towards the guest house in the back. The location was picked more out of strategy than anything else. Not to mention, it would give Adrien peace of mind if he could lure Sandboy further away but here he had home field advantage. After he slipped away from his conversation with Marinette that morning in the gazebo, he went to work gathering the supplies he would need to lay his trap. “Here kitty, kitty, kitty, it’s time for your cat nap.” Adrien hid behind some crates stacked to the ceiling. “That wasn’t original at all, I’m disappointed in you.” Good thing he learned how to throw his voice a year ago. Otherwise, he would have given away his position. His throat constricted as he watched some boxes get demolished. “What’s stopping me from filling this whole room and having you suffocate slowly?” “If that’s your idea of romance, I’m questioning why she ever picked you in the first place, to each their own. Who am I to judge?” He used his staff and tripped him from behind. It seemed like the angrier he got, the worse his accuracy got. Bingo. “How you managed to woo her, I’m curious.” “She loves me,” he growled. It only a split second, but he saw it, he was getting slower with throwing punches and labored breaths. He had to jump into action quickly. “She loves all of Paris, not the best reason to start a marriage if you ask me. If it were, I would have married her a long time ago.” He leaned in and took a running start, he used the force to slam his body shoving Sandboy just enough to hit the bookshelf containing numerous containers of tar that he had set up.  In efforts to stabilize himself he grabbed the only thing he could, the bookcase trapped him to the floor and the tar pooled beneath him oozing through every sand grain it came in contact with. “Looks like you’re tarred up. Now if you excuse me, I have a bride to see about a wedding; seems like she’s marrying the wrong man.” Chat smirked watching as Sandboy jerked up to find the bookcase only sunk him further into the tar. Maybe his last jab took it too far, but the thought of anyone using Adrien Agreste to trick his lady caused his blood burn. Marinette. He needed to check on her, after all, she thought she was marrying the man of her dreams (a thought he didn’t linger on too long just enough to stroke his ego). Maybe this time he would convince her to get as far away from this place as they could. Only then would they be able to figure out how to be free of this dream.

“What is this place?” Nino couldn’t help the comment as it tumbled from his mouth. When the Kwami dude led him through alleyways until they reach a door, for a second Nino thought he might die. The second he walked in all of his anxiety stripped away like he took off a coat. The smell spices and herbs greeted his senses full force, but he welcomed it as peace flooded his system. He didn’t know how to describe it, he felt safe. “Nino, I’ve been expecting you.” The man’s voice caught him by surprise. Despite the greeting, the man didn’t turn from his workstation. “No offense Dude, but who are you?” He took a step forward, but the turtle flew into his face sporting a grin. “This is Master Fu, he’s the guardian of the miraculous.” “Miraculous?” He parroted softly, the information soaking in. His gaze turned until he saw the bodies lying on the table. “Are they?” Nino couldn’t even voice the thought for fear it might be true. What would Paris do if their beloved superheroes were dead? Hawkmoth would have control and- His thought process halted when Ladybug started thrashing around, and an echo of no’s chorused her lips. Nino’s body tensed as he looked on in terror. Master Fu rushed to her side with a cold cloth and began to dab her forehead gently. Ladybug’s movement subsided despite how shallow and uneven her breaths became. “They are in trouble and need your help.” “My help?” He couldn’t have heard correctly. Fighting an Akuma once with the two at his side, but right now they looked indisposed which meant he was fighting alone. “I think you have the wrong guy.” “We are running out of time. What was going on in your dream?” “What does that have to do with anything.” “It’s everything.” Master Fu pushed. “What happened?” “Well I arrived at Adrien’s house with Alya for Marinette’s wedding, but something with Adrien was off. I thought I was paranoid, but it only grew. Then I-“ he paused as the memory flashed before him. “Marinette and Alya are in trouble, it’s not Adrien.” “There will be time to help Marinette. Did she seem distant or give any signs that she knew it wasn’t Adrien?” “I-I don’t know. It went by so fast, and I only saw her for a second.” “There’s hope yet, but for you to help your friends. If you help me and follow my instructions exactly.”

Marinette barely was able to grasp her best friend’s hand with the amount of shaking and yet, she couldn’t will her feet to move out of danger. This couldn’t be happening, Adrien couldn’t be the monster she witnessed. The guy she was in love with emulated kindness and goodness, not whatever stone hearted act she witnessed. “You call yourself a model? Looks like you’re just sanding there to me.” Even though she couldn’t see inside the room, the insult belonged to Chat. And a series of emotions flooded her system. First, relief, if he was here, it meant he would do everything to protect them. She hadn’t been sure if he would come back given their fight the previous night. It was one thing to need shelter from the outside, another to be willing to talk again, let alone go to battle. Then Plagg’s words echoed through her mind with the second wave of emotion, worry.  He tacked on another battle where he fought without her putting his life in danger once again. Even if Tikki were in 100% health, she doubted that she could escape or even fight properly with her head spinning. If she went now, she might be putting him in more danger. Alya managed to move first and dragged her back to the bridal suite and locked the door swiftly. "What just happened?" Alya had found her voice first, shaky, but still breathed undertones of strength. "I don't know,” Marinette replied still at a loss for words. She couldn’t even begin to describe what they saw. “Marinette!” Alya called for answers a second-time urgency dripping. “I said I don’t know!” She hushed whispered not to draw attention. Her head pounded, and her legs caved causing her to collide to the bed. Was Nino dead? It would be easier if she didn’t she wiped the whole encounter from her mind, but it wasn’t that easy. His screams filled the house and would haunt her nightmares for months to come. The only thing that brought her out of her mind was Alya throwing a suitcase on the bed next to her. “What are you doing?” She stuttered bewildered at her actions. “We can’t stay here. It’s not safe.” “But”- “No buts! Did you not see what he did to Nino?” She couldn’t imagine a situation where Adrien would hurt her, but then again, Nino was his best friend. “Where would we even go?” She had no contacts outside the city, and if he were as dangerous as he appeared, then she wouldn’t want to put anyone she loved in harm’s way. “We can figure it out after we leave, but we need to get out of here as soon as possible before“- A sudden knock on the door struck the wind out of her lungs to the point where she needed to gasp to regain oxygen. The two girls looked to each other for cues of how to proceed, but Marinette took a couple steps towards the door. “Who is it?” Her voice wavered in fear, who can blame her after what she saw? “It’s me, Princess,” Marinette never felt relief flood her system faster as she jerked open the door and pulled him inside. Her arms immediately wrapped her arms around his torso and breathed in his scent. Nothing could go wrong, he was here.  Her lips kept mumbling an apology again and again, but that it made her feel any better. “You don’t have to apologize.” He murmured back into her ear. It didn’t take much for him to melt into the embrace and hold her tighter. His Lady, Marinette, needed him and he was too eager to oblige. “I’m here, everything will be ok,” He cooed. Marinette pushed against him abruptly the color draining from her face. He must not know- “Chat,” even saying his name brought forth the courage she needed. “You were right about Adrien. He’s under Hawkmoth’s control and- something happened to Nino!” Normally her Ladybug instincts would have kicked into overdrive by now, her world landed on its head not even 20 minutes ago. “Bugaboo,” the second he said her nickname her eyes snapped to his green ones. “Breathe.” She followed orders even though her head raced a mile a minute. He knew. With no shred of spandex appeared on her body, but somehow, he knew. “Alya?” Marinette tore away from his touch to face her best friend. “Could you give us a moment?” As much as Marinette wanted to keep her here, there were conversations that she wasn’t privileged to yet. “But what if Adrien returns?” Alya objected. Marinette had to see her point, they were weaker apart, but before she could reply, Chat stepped in. “I wouldn’t worry about him,” he cleared his throat. “I made sure he was tied up. I think I bought us at least 20 minutes.” Alya nodded but stopped short of the doorway. “If you hear my screams, I expect you to be at my room in no less than 30 seconds.” “Chat’s honor,” he crossed his heart. The promise was enough to ease her through the door towards her room. When he turned he was instantly captivated by the searching blue-bell eyes he had fallen in love with. “How long?” Her question caused his heart to drum inside his chest. In reality, he had the knowledge for all of a day, but it felt like he had known for subconsciously for years. “A day,” the whisper barely made a dent in the tense room. “How?” He closed his eyes and braces himself because she wouldn’t like his answer. “When you shoved me into the closet I gained suspicions when I saw Tikki. But you confirmed it when you said that I was jealous of you and Adrien.” If he was truly honest that whole night was a blur, but his answer lined up enough in the truth for it not to matter. He closed his eyes and let out an exhale of his own, it didn’t feel right holding back from her. “But you also confessed your secret to me this morning.” “Chat, What are you”- No time to be a coward, he reminded himself. “Claws in.”

Marinette was sure that all the air got sucked out of her lungs watching the green light engulf his body. The only thing keeping her standing had to be the softness in his eyes. It had to be him, out of everyone in Paris, her partner was Adrien Agreste. Adrien, the selfless, kind, caring man that sat in front of her every day at school.  The guy who had launched hundreds of ads campaigns with grace and composure, but despite the fame he was given, he still valued his friends and family more. Adrien only got more impressive when she thought about his actions both in battle. He laid down his life for her so many times without a second’s hesitation. He was so far out of her league even with the cat puns in consideration. “Milady?” His voice cut through her thoughts. “I know I wasn’t the person you pictured behind the mask, and I understand. I wouldn’t have been who I picked-“ Marinette closed the gap between them grasping either side of his face and crashed her lips on his. He froze mostly out of shock but then melted into her touch. Her hands inched up into his blonde locks and tugged earning a grunt. When the need for oxygen became more of a need than continuing Marinette pulled back. “I wouldn’t have any other person be my partner,” she whispered. This whole time she had made the excuse that she was going to marry Adrien- “Wait, if your Adrien, then how?” Her voice faded out not sure how else to ask the question. “He’s an imposter.” It made more sense than she was going insane. What other explanation was there to the vast difference in reaction to the same man. “While he’s gone I need to as far from here as possible.” Marinette’s eyes glanced over to the open suitcase and clothes sprawled over her bed. A pit in her stomach twisted, everyone wanted her to run away, but Ladybug wouldn’t. Even if she was scared out of her mind, standing her ground was her only option. “No.” Her answer hung in the air. Hawkmoth couldn’t be allowed to win. “I’m staying, I’m not letting you fight this battle alone.” “But what about Tikki-if she’s not fit for fighting-“ he was shushed instantly when her hand cupped his face. “Then I guess we’ll figure it out together. We talk with Tikki and Plagg and see what our options are, but you need to trust me.” Adrien guided her hand down to leave a ghost of a kiss in the inside of her palm. “I do.” “Marinette, I have everything we need-get away from her!” Alya’s voice rang out through the room. The two froze in their intimate moment, and Adrien’s face drained as he realized exactly who she thought he was. “What did you do with Chat Noir?” Venom laced with her voice and for a moment Adrien was convinced that she scared him more than Hawkmoth himself. Thankfully, Marinette stepped in for him. “Alya, it’s ok. He’s on our side.” Despite her best efforts, her best friend didn’t seem convinced. New plan, catch Alya up to speed, create a plan, defeat Sandboy.

Marinette tucked her legs under her while her wedding dress took up the rest of the bench. How she managed to convince Chat that she could do this part of the plan alone was beyond her, but she could still feel his presence near in case she needed him. Adrien. The whole time it had been Adrien. He had been there flirting, cracking jokes, and risking his life for her on a daily basis. Anger rose throughout her chest, but not towards him, but rather at herself. The only reason Chat dove head first into dangerous situations was because she let him. Because he loves you, her mind added. She always knew that he loved her, she wished she realized how much sooner, it would have saved them both heartaches. Maybe that’s their luck came into play, they tiptoed around each other for years, but in the end, they would always have each other. Even though time was wasted, they would have enough because when she was around him time slowed to compensate. “What are you doing here, my love? The wedding is about to start.” Her gaze flickered up until they met a pair of green eyes. Her body tended out of gut instinct, the knowledge that someone used Adrien’s image to trick her caused her blood to boil. She may have fallen for the warm green eyes in the past, but no more. “Is something wrong?” He reached out, and his fingertips brushed the edges of her arm; nothing, she felt nothing. “I can’t marry you.” She forced herself to match his gaze. “But sweetie, it’s our wedding day. Don’t you remember, you wanted to stay with me forever? Come on,” his hand sought hers, but she jerked it away before he formed his grip. “I don’t love you.” The words stifled the air between the two and Adrien’s eyes widened. “I love someone else. He goes by the name Chat Noir, he is the kindest, most self-sacrificing, loving partner I know and more of a man than you will ever be.” Marinette stood up allowing the anger to flow through her, “I see right through your game, and I will never love you.” She slammed her heel to the ground with the last word, and the ground began to shake. “What have you done?” Adrien stumbled a couple steps, and his appearance started to shift. Gone was the perfect copycat of Adrien Agreste, instead now fused with another face; Marinette could only guess it had to be the victim of the Akuma attack. His features hardened as he narrowed his focus. “Fine,” he sneered. “If I can’t have you, no one can. I’ll find that cat and skin it alive.” Marinette’s ticked up into a smirk, undaunted. She knew this was coming, she couldn’t back down or let fear invade her. “Over my dead body. Tikki, spots on.”

[trekwiz]

Why Love, Simon is so Meaningful

I don't talk about this much anymore, but seeing Love, Simon has bubbled it all up. Growing up in this culture was really difficult, in a way that non-gays really don't have a frame to understand; it stole a lot of my life from me. Love, Simon left out some of the toughest parts--the ever-present evil people like Billy Graham, Pat Robertson, and Matthew Shepard's killers making every day that much harder--but there's a wider culture that just made everything extremely difficult. Love, Simon does an exceptional job of showing those things, in a way that's easy for a non-gay audience to understand. There are parts of life that I'll never be able to experience because the wider culture took it away from me. It was somewhere around 2nd grade that I realized the world was hostile towards normal people for no good reason--it wasn't a particular news story, or something that happened to me. It was just something present in everything at all times. Some of it is tangible--hearing "that's so gay," or "fag" as an insult, or hearing classmates brag about beating up the one out gay kid--while other stuff is more abstract, like the complete absence of people like me on the screen. Or worse, (later) the token representations of people like me that were either poorly written, the butt of jokes, or just irrelevant props. There are more gay characters today, but often it's still superficial--or in the case of companies like Bioware, disrespectful and offensive "representation" as a money making strategy. Love, Simon was written from a place of respect, and showed the same due care as any film, and that means everything to me. At that time, I closed myself off. I became a "turtle"--I hid both from my toxic family and the anti-gay world behind the locked door of my bedroom. After school I had Star Trek, Legos, and videogames, alone. I stepped away from my friendships in 2nd grade--I didn't stop talking with classmates, I just didn't let them get close; I didn't hang out after school; I kept those relationships superficial. I didn't get the option to be a mall rat. I didn't go see movies with other kids. I didn't get to hang out at the arcade. I didn't have friends to go on bike rides with. I didn't have an SNES player 2 outside of my sister. I was afraid that if I had friends, they'd catch me checking out another guy and either attack me, or out me. I tried to convince myself that I was "alone but not lonely," but I wasn't. The only thing that kept me going was the belief that if I worked hard, I could get away from the toxic family and the toxic culture, making my own life. Struggling to find work in my 20's really killed that one hope that kept me alive. Can you imagine how isolating that is for an 8 year old to know the world hates them, with no where to turn to for safety? To know that there's no one in the world that they can ever trust? I was terrified: there was no way to know who was an enemy. People who otherwise pass as nice can still be homophobic; they pretend to be good people, but even that sweet teacher could be a fatal liability. Complain about the slurs and risk the real, well-meaning teacher telling my parents; at around 14 I became aware of groups like NARTH and Exodus International and was terrified that I could be forced into one of those torture camps. When I finally wanted to take baby steps out of my bubble, I didn't really have the social skills to do it. I remember a classmate in 8th grade who tried to be my friend, but I no longer knew how how to go from daily chatting, to actually hanging out away from school. I never got to have a best friend, and I was terrified of going to school dances, so I didn't--not that there'd have been a reason to, there was no way to find a dance partner anyway. One of the most obvious differences between Simon in Love, Simon and me is that I never did go to any high school parties--I was never invited, and I probably would have been afraid to go if I had been.  Smart camp was certainly a lot better--it was an oasis in many ways. I had friends--who are still important to me today--and I was able to go to the dances; mostly, I played cards with my friends because it wasn't just a dance. But even that didn't offer me a reprieve from the toxic culture around me. Friends kept pushing me to dance with girls, and it was too dangerous to say why I didn't want to. I completely embarrassed myself when they setup a dance for me, after being pressured to name a crush. In my last year at camp, a girl asked me to dance. I had said no--after repeating that about a dozen times, I left to take cover in the movie room. She followed and kept asking; when everyone stared at me from the disruption, I left, again. I had nowhere else to go, since we weren't allowed to go back to the dorms until later, so I actually hid in the bathroom. I don't think I can convey how frustrating that is--I literally hid in the bathroom because it was too dangerous to say, "please stop, I'm gay." (Needless to say, the bathroom scene after the dance in Love, Simon really hit home.) That story doesn't even end there. She must have asked an instructor for help because he came in a few minutes later to badger me, too. I was backed in a corner with no place to escape, and the authority figure, the one who's job was to protect me, insisted that I should dance with her. I was practically dragged out onto the dance floor, powerless, disgusted, and terrified. Knowing my safety was on the line, I became her default dance partner for a couple weeks. Until she asked for a kiss. I was "lucky" that I only had to say no once before she moved on. Meanwhile, there was a guy in my group who, thanks to the benefit of hindsight, I know was interested--I missed it at the time, and lost the only opportunity I had for any kind of dating life in my teen years. Love, Simon really nailed the little things that convey that being out isn't safe. It's still hard today, but I don't want to be in that position again. I don't want to be the kid hiding in the bathroom at the dance--but sometimes, he's still present. When people defend Billy Graham's evil life. When (mostly) Christians complain that we've "gone too far" with "that whole equality thing." When gay couples are still assaulted today. (https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/anti-lgbtq-attacks-leave-four-victims-injured-new-york-city-n676941) After Pulse. When gay people can still be fired without cause. When gay people can be turned down for renting or buying a home so long as the owner doesn't say why. I don't think I'll ever not be anxious when I come out, even in places that I know are relatively safe. Love, Simon gives me hope that there really is a different future ahead. Seeing a character experience these struggles without making it disaster-porn was refreshing. Seeing him able to experience life, when that was denied to me, is incredible. Seeing a mainstream movie with such an authentic, honest representation of someone like me is unimaginably meaningful. This movie showed the universal aspects of the gay experience, without resorting to tropes and trivialization; without getting too caught up in any niche subsets. I needed this movie 20 years ago. This movie truly could have changed my life if it had existed then. And even in this block of text, I still don't think I've conveyed just how important Love, Simon is to me.

[thelostandforgottenangel]

Okay there is something that’s been weighing on my heart for a while now

I come from a family who is against a lot – they don’t believe in marrying outside your own race, are against same sex relationships, some think bad of you if you’re depressed when you have absolutely no right to be, are very judgmental, the list goes on but that’s just a few… so I keep many secrets from them. I come from that yet I’m one of the black sheep’s and you don’t tell anyone anything unless you are full ready to be judged for the rest of your life by everyone.       I think you should marry anyone you wish whether it’s a person of a different race or sex if that person makes you happy that is all that matters because Love is uncontrollable, people who of different color are beautiful and were created special and so unique, I judge nobody unless I’m playing with them but never in a serious manner and I make sure I tell them that, If you are depressed I will sit up all night and talk to you until you either feel better or are so tired you pass out on me I’ll still be there when you come back the next day, every body type is beautiful - skinny, curvy, or fabulously plump it don’t matter to me you are fucking gorgeous to me just the way you are

That is just who I am by nature

 A while back; months ago, I bumped into an old acquaintance I used to work with at my first job haven’t seen her in years and we started talking, I proudly announced I had made my first best friend out of the many new friends I have made over the past couple months and I had to pull up a picture of her to show this woman just how beautiful she is

I said she was the most beautiful person I had ever met because in my eyes she is, inside and out she is perfect to me praising her for all the amazing qualities that make her who she is – I even made an unthought-of comment about this girl and in doing so this woman read between the lines (And probably could see it on my face) figuring out I am bi. I have always liked girls just as much as guys yet I have more male friends… but because of my family I have never revealed that I’m not straight

I’m in no way ashamed of it but there are something’s I would prefer nobody but people who I know won’t judge me to actually know

She looked at me in shock because she knows I’m married with 2 kids and knows my man well asking if I had feelings for my friend before placing her hand on my shoulder when I didn’t answer her, she told me she would be praying for my soul so maybe I wouldn’t burn in hell, that she know knew why I had cut my hair off and colored it in such flamboyant colors (It fell out I didn’t chose to look like a guy) before walking off looking disgusted

Since then I have seen her several times each time she asks if I have changed my heathen ways – then will tell me she’s just joking (You can tell she’s not because she will touch her cross necklace until she walks off) and me being me I just held my tongue because I’m a nice person and you are free to your own opinion but the last time she saw me she asked if my husband knew about my sins and that I was lusting over a woman, how would he react if he were to find out that I was sexually attracted to somebody but him, what would my poor parents say… and after so long (20 agonizingly long minutes of not punching her in the mouth) I was sick of it

I stood up for myself. I told her I was proud of whom I was, I can’t help who I see as attractive and that as a woman of understanding god she shouldn’t be so judgmental of a lifestyle that is different than her own. I married a man because I loved him and thought it was the right thing to do

I’m a Christian yet I don’t go to church or pray every day, that just means when I do he will listen because I’m a rare visitor and he might just answer if I call. I cuss and have no filter whatsoever. I HAVE NO SHAME! I don’t see the world as black and white, I come from judgment that don’t give me the right to tell anyone they are right or wrong for what they do or say

That’s when I let her have it and told her I didn’t need her approval for anything and that if she ever knew the real me her eyes would probably burn out of her skull and today I got curious

She unfriended then blocked me on social media along with everyone who she knows who was on my page including her daughter and three other women I used to work with. Blocked my number. If she sees me in public she avoids me

And I don’t give two shits because I am who I am I will never apologize for being me

That being said if you’re a girl and you love a man - high five baby girl!  You’re a man who loves another wonderful man who makes your world turn - you go get it dude! You’re a girl who loves a beautiful woman who makes you feel like you are their universe – whoo work it sista! You’re a man or woman who loves more than one person you are balling and just that amazing more than one person can love you.  

And if you are one of my wonderful followers who’s heart and body belongs to one or all of those tall dark muscled up sexy Ninja Turtle’s – shit enough said

 Sorry for the rant guys

[yujachachacha]

Get to know me

Tagged by @symphonyalpha​ (I forgot the URL for a second and was like, “Why isn’t Jaewhy showing up when I type it in the user mention???” lol).

Rules: Answer these 92 statements and tag 20 people.

Last: 1. Drink: Barley water, because that’s what my family drinks ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 2. Phone call: My grandma, telling me what time she needed me to drive her to her doctor’s appointment. 3. Text message: To my little brother, telling him to STFU because he kept sending me dumb shit on iMessage. 4. Song you listened to: Does SIF count? If so, “Sore wa Bokutachi no Kiseki”. If not, I was headbanging to “Paradise Lost” by Chihara Minori after dropping my grandma off at her friend’s place the other day, lol. 5. Time you cried: tbh I probably teared up a little when I was watching the footage from the Lantis preview of the Aqours 1st Live BD/DVDs ｡ﾟ( ﾟஇωஇﾟ)ﾟ｡

Have you: 6. Dated someone twice: I haven’t even dated someone once :’))) 7. Kissed someone and regretted it: I’ve kissed exactly one person, so...hm. There was a period of time when I had conflicting emotions over what happened, but in the end, I don’t think I regret it. 8. Been cheated on: See #6. 9. Lost someone special: I’ve had a grandfather pass away, and this is probably going to sound bad, but...I really appreciated him, and he was nothing but kind to me. However, since I’d only seen him about three times in my life, the biggest way his death affected me was through my mother. It took her a while to get over my grandfather’s death, so it changed the way I behaved around her during that time. 10. Been depressed: Yes. 11. Gotten drunk and thrown up: Exactly once, because I made the mistake of keeping pace with my uncle in Korea who takes soju shots like a champ. This also happened to be the night before Lunar New Year, so I got chewed out by my aunt (older sister of my uncle) once she realized why I was so lethargic during the festivities. _(:3 」∠)_ I don’t regret it though, because before that I had never been hungover before and was wondering what my limit was, haha.

List 3 favorite colors: 12-14. Red, blue, and...uh...other than those two I don’t have any definite faves. I guess the third would be either yellow or purple...? I’ll just go with purple for the sake of completion.

In the last year have you: 15. Made new friends: #TeamONIBE 16. Fallen out of love: That would require me to fall in love with someone first. 17. Laughed until you cried: I think it might have been when Mayushii and King did that disastrous cooking niconama. Like...what the actual fuck, do they seriously not know anything about basic kitchen safety and hygiene??? 18. Found out someone was talking about you: The number of times I’ve gone on to Discord and found out that someone in ONIBE was talkin’ smack about me... (｡･ˇ_ˇ･｡) It’s all in good fun though, haha. 19. Met someone who changed you: See #15. 20. Found out who your friends are: Nothing says "friendship” like screaming your heart out at an anisong concert, eating McNuggets while insanely drunk, sleeping while squished together in a seedy neighborhood, wotaing loudly in a moving vehicle, and other various activities I did with people I had never met in real life. ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ AX 2017 was hella great for ONIBE bonding. 21. Kissed someone on your Facebook list: I don’t think I’ve even used FB for non-work stuff since 2016 lol

General: 22. How many of your Facebook friends do you know in real life: If this means “I’ve actually met them in person and have had a decent conversation with them”, then maybe a few hundred? But if this means that I actually talk to them on a semi-regular basis, then, like...10, maybe. :’) 23. Do you have any pets: See my answer in the previous chain post I did. tl;dr I had a turtle and a dog in elementary school, but after that, no pets. I’d like to have a dog when I get a place of my own, though. 24. Do you want to change your name: Nope. 25. What did you do for your last birthday: Watched LLS Episode 13 in the morning and ate Korean BBQ in the evening. 26. What time did you wake up: Today? I honestly don’t remember. Sometime before 9? 27. What were you doing at midnight last night: Laughing at dumb shit on Twitter and Discord, probably. 28. Name something you can’t wait for: The Delayed Viewing for the 2nd Live for the US! I’m making plans to meet up with ONIBE folks again and it’s gonna be ~L I T~ 29. When was the last time you saw your mom: Early in the morning. She was like “lol get up and lose some weight” while I was still in bed so I groaned back, “You’re one to talk,” and went back to sleep. 30. What is one thing you wish you could change in your life: I was gonna say “how about eliminating my student loans haha” but I suppose this is supposed to be a more serious question. I guess it’d be nice if I was a neater person. Like, my room is a total mess right now and I’m terrible at keeping track of things I should be working on... 31. Listening right now: Fun fact - I actually only listen to music while I’m driving. Otherwise, it distracts me from what I should be doing. 32. Have you ever talked to a person named Tom: Yup, that was the name of my debate coach when I was in junior high. 33. Something that is getting on your nerves: People who hate on LL seiyuu. Like, they’re actual human beings who are working really hard to live up to the expectations of thousands - no, millions of people worldwide. To be quite honest, I invite you to tell me if you legitimately want to shit on any one of them (both µ’s and Aqours), because I have yet to see a single person who has had a good justification for doing so. 34. Most visited website: Probably Tumblr/YouTube/Twitter/Reddit, too lazy to figure out which one of those it is.

Jaewhy put in random questions here because they were missing for some reason, so I guess I’ll continue those: 35. Mole(s): I have a few around my face, but other than the one on my right cheek I don’t think they’re that noticeable? I don’t spend a lot of time in the sun like other Californians. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 36. Mark(s): I have a birthmark on the backside of my right shoulder that I’m sort of self-conscious about. It’s the perfect shape for getting a tattoo of a sunflower around it, so maybe I’ll do that some time in the future? 37. Childhood dream: Lawyer. 38. Hair color: I feel like I’ve answered this in a previous chain post, but it’s black. Duh. Though if you hold it up to the sun, some of the ends are more like dark brown. 39. Long or short: Long. 40. Do you have a crush on someone: See #16. Nope. 41. What do you like about yourself: I’ve spent an unhealthy amount of time staring at computers/video games and I still don’t need glasses. :D 42. Piercings: No, but I should probably get my ears pierced at some point? 43. Blood type: O. 44. Nickname: Yujacha, but a lot of people shorten it to “Yuja”. 45. Relationship status: Single. 46. Zodiac: Libra, Dog. 47. Pronouns: I feel like it’s obvious what gender I am, so just go with those. 48. Favorite TV show: I don’t really watch TV these days, but if I’m kicking back with some hot cocoa at like 2am I might watch Criminal Minds or something. 49. Tattoos: Nope, but like I said in #36 I’ve been thinking about it. 50. Right or left hand: Right. 51. Surgery: Wisdom teeth removal is technically dental surgery. 52. Hair dyed in different color: I had highlights in my hair a few years ago, but they faded real quick. I’m vaguely considering dyeing it brown in the distant future...? 53. Sport: It’s fun to watch the occasional match when there’s a World Cup or Olympic thing going on, but otherwise I have no interest. 54. (A question I came up with since #54 was missing) Extracurricular activities: I was a debate kid for most of my school life, and in college I was in the Korean Club and Student Union. 55. Vacation: Does the 2nd Live DV later this year count? 56. Pair of trainers sneakers *American anthem plays in the distance*: I actually need new ones because I’ve tripped while hiking on at least two separate occasions due to my shitty old sneakers.

More general: 57. Eating: Haven’t yet. 58. Drinking: Wasn’t this literally the first question? 59. I’m about to: Eat. 60. (This question was missing so I'll make one up again) Thinking about: What to eat lol 61. Waiting for: 2nd Live DV~ 62. Want: Money tbh 63. Get married: I’d like to at some point, but at the moment I’m kinda tired of hearing about it from every middle-aged woman who talks to me (including my own mother). 64. Career: Working on it.

Which is better: 65. Hugs or kisses: Hugs, because they’re warm and comfy and can be shared by complete strangers. 66. Lips or eyes: I was gonna repeat a previous answer and say “eyesmiles” but since this is “lips or eyes” rather than “smiles or eyes”, I guess my answer would fall more under “eyes”. 67. Shorter or taller: Bruh, if someone’s shorter than me then I’d need to check their ID to make sure they’re not jailbait. Taller. 68. Older or younger: I’ve never dated anyone so I honestly wouldn’t know, but I’d probably look for someone close to my age first? 69. (Lmao why was 69 missing :3c I’ll just make something up again) Outgoing or shy: The former, since I’m lazy. If someone doesn’t drag me to places I’ll just lay in bed all day. 70. Nice arms or stomach: It’s actually really hard for females to have a toned stomach, so any gals with abs are like ooh~ 👀 But I actually like hands! I have smol stubby fingers so I really dig people with nice hands. 71. Sensitive or loud: The former, because I don’t need the entire neighborhood to know when I’m gettin’ laid kthnx 72. Hook up or relationship: Relationship, because sure why not? 73. Troublemaker or hesitant: Maybe the former, but if they’re being too much of a lil’ shit then I’d go for the latter instead. I’ve dealt with friends who take like 20 minutes to decide what to order from a menu so I know that feel. :’)

Have you ever: 74. Kissed a stranger: Nope. 75. Drank hard liquor: Yup. 76. Lost glasses/contact lenses: I’m pretty sure I annoyed half of ONIBE during AX when I went “haha y’all are blind af” after I found out I was pretty much the only one who didn’t have corrected vision. 77. Turned someone down: I was about to say “no” and then I got a sudden flashback to a certain incident in college, wow thanks for making me remember something I had tried to forget...sooo, uh, yup. 78. Sex on the first date: See #6. 79. Broken someone’s heart: IDK if turning someone down counts as breaking their heart. 80. Had your heart broken: ...yes. I think? 81. Been arrested: Nope. 82. Cried when someone died: Do fictional characters count? 83. Fallen for a friend: Uhhhhh...kind of? It was complicated.

Do you believe in: 84. Yourself: I’d like to think that I do. 85. Miracles: KISEKI DA YO~ ...sorry, I had to. Yeah. 86. Love at first sight: Shukashuu is living proof of this. 87. Santa Claus: Nope, sorry Maki!!! 88. Kiss on the first date: Sure.

Other: 90. Current best friend(s) name: IDK if I have one. :’) 91. Eye color: I’m Asian, take a wild guess. 92. Favorite movie: I don’t really have a favorite, but I did like “Kimi no Na wa.” (Your name.) so much that I made it my phone’s lock screen.

Tagging: I've only tagged people the first time I did one of these and I’m gonna try to keep it that way. If anyone who reads this wants to give it a go, feel free~

[farklelucas]

my bitch @thealaskazamo tagged me in this forever ago lol whoops. under the cut bc it’s so fracking long

Your Last:

1. Drink: i drank a water earlier

2. Phone Call: i called my mom the other day to see if she was okay being caught out in the storm

3. Text message: my main dinosaur aka dirty diana

4. Song I listened to: shut up and drive!!!!!!!!!!!!!

5.Time I cried: probably last week about something insignificant

Have You Ever:

6. Dated someone twice: HA ur funny

7. Kissed someone and regretted it: HA ur funny

8. Been cheated on: HA ur funny

9. Lost someone special: yep. both in death and just losing touch.

10. Been depressed: i am always depressed tbh lol.

11. Gotten drunk and thrown up: nah.

3 favorite colors: pink, black, mint green

In the last year have you:

12. Made new friends: @ my boy pat!!! and more probably.

13.Fallen out of love: all the time lol

14.Laughed until you cried: yeah

15.Found out someone was talking about you: yup (also julie yes u did @ hannah lol)

16. Met someone who changed you: yeah of course!! a lot of my friends have changed me.

17. Found out who your friends are: yes fuck these fake ass hoes

18. Kissed someone on your Facebook list: HA ur funny

General:

22. How many of your Facebook friends do you know in real life: most?

23. Do you have any pets: speedy (turtle) and napoleon (dog)!!!!!

24. Do you want to change your name: always thinking about it

25. What did you do for your last birthday: also had a murder mystery party lol

26. What time did you wake up: [redacted]

27: What were you doing at midnight last night: playing sims i think

28. Name something you can’t wait for: i get to leave my house tomorrow!!!

29. When was the last time you saw your mom: like 20 minutes ago.

30. What are you listening to right now: everybody wants to be a cat!

31. Have you ever talked to a guy named Tom: yep

32. Something that gets on your nerves: lack of representation is really bugging me, really everyday but im thinking about it a lot today lol idk why

33. Most visited website: probably tumblr and ao3… yikes

34.Hair Color: chestnut into pink!

35. Long or short hair: long

36.Do you have a crush on someone: on and off

37. What do you like about yourself: lmao…. like myself? sorry i don’t know her. my lips are nice i guess.

38. Piercings: none yikes

39. Blood type: who am i, carl landister, discoverer of blood types?

40. Nickname: katie is technically a nickname. sofia calls me her wife i guess, and a lot of people on here call me scisaacs bc they don’t know my name lmao

41. Relationship Status: desperate

42. Zodiac: scorpio

43. Pronouns: she/her

44. Favorite TV Show: probably rupaul’s drag race tied with teen wolf and girl meets world.

45. Right or left handed: right

46: Surgery: on my ears but nothing else.

47: Sport: HA ur funny. (soccer’s a’ight tho.)

48: Vacation: oooh i love disney and i wanna go to paris.

49. Pair of sneakers: i love my converse sorry if that makes me trash!!!

50. Eating: i mean i’m not hungry rn but maybe ice cream later

51. Drinking: probably water

52. I’m about to: try and write this stupid fic for tw gen 2 fuck. probably will end up writing briam instead.

53. Waiting for: inspiration to hit me (keeping this)

54.Want: someone to date. and to figure out what the fuck to do with my life would be gr9 too.

55. Get married: literally cannot wait.

56.Career: right now im going for teaching but… idk. maybe makeup artist?

Which is better:

57. Hugs or kisses: hugs!!

58. Lips or eyes: eyes

59.Shorter or Taller: either man idc

60. Older or younger: ideally older but it depends on the person

61.Nice arms or a nice stomach: yeah idgaf about this so

62. Hook up or relationship: relationship

63. Troublemaker or hesitant: some? weird combo of both idk.

Have You Ever:

64. Kissed a stranger: no

65. Drank Hard liquor: no

66. Lost glasses/contacts: lmao all the fucking time

67. Turned someone down: yes

68. Sex on the first date: HA ur funny

69. Broken someone’s heart: don’t think so lol

70. Had your heart broken: i mean yeah

71. Been arrested: nah

72.Cried when someone died: yeah

73. Fallen for a friend: LMAO yep

Do you believe in:

74. Yourself: nope

75. Miracles: sometimes

76. Love at first sight: indeed

77.Santa Claus: not anymore

78. Kiss on the first date: to each their own

79. Angels: lmao no. unless u mean an angel without wings. so like a person.

Other:

80. Current best friends name: julie & sofia (& more but im lazy)

81. Eye color: hazel

82. Favorite movie: lmao i love movies but my current fave is probably the way he looks

anyways i tag @magnaflourious-nerdity (i miss this bitch), @allisonsyukimura (my home girl), @soft-ravenclaw-apollo (hello again old friend), & @profesional-fanboy (my new best friend and this is what comes with friendship for me so get used to it lmao) only do it if u want idc

[dontshootmespence]

Awestruck

A/N: A request from @peytonnation for a Spencer x Reader where he asks her to hang out with him at an aquarium because he knows she’s fascinated by marine life. During the day, he admits to her what she means to him. @coveofmemories

                                                              ----

“What’re you up to this weekend, kid?” Morgan asked from across the room. He’d invite him out with the rest of the team, but almost every week, Reid decided to go home and Reid. He was the definition of an introvert.

Still in a daze, his head snapped toward Morgan after he called for him the second time. “What’re you doing this weekend?”

“Nothing much. Probably just reading.” 

And there it was. He was so predictable. “Well, if you change your mind, Emily, JJ, Penelope, Hotch, Rossi and I are going to bar tomorrow night. Y/N, you coming?”

“I’m not sure,” you said, walking back to your desk to grab your things for the weekend. “I’ll text you and let you know.”

He gave you a look that said your loss and walked away, leaving you and Spencer alone in the bullpen. “I was actually thinking of going to that new aquarium that opened up a few months ago,” Spencer said without looking up from his desk. He was fiddling with his thumbs. It was like he’d been dying to say that he had other plans but he didn’t want to get talked into doing something else.

“Oh, I’ve been wanting to go there!” you cried. As a kid, you’d always loved marine life and had even thought of becoming a marine biologist. Eventually, you decided on law enforcement, but your love of marine life had never faded.

With a twitch of his head, he looked up, opening his mouth to speak and then hesitating. “You wanna come with me?” he asked.

“Yea,” you said with a smile. “I’d like that. When tomorrow? Noon?”

He nodded and walked with you to the elevator, eventually going your separate ways at the parking garage to grab your cars and head home. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think that Spencer had just asked you out on a date. He was blushing...wasn’t he?

                                                             ----

“We meeting there?” you asked, having called him that morning. You’d agreed on a time, but hadn’t actually said where you were meeting.

Spencer cleared his throat. “If you want, I could come pick you up. I heard the parking over there is horrible, so it doesn’t really make sense to take two cars.” 

“Cool, see you in 15?”

Not even 10 minutes later, Spencer was at your door, ready to go. When he looked at you in your dolphin shirt, which you’d picked out specifically for the occasion, he smiled that little smile he got when people told him he was cute and he didn’t know how to react. “So what are you looking forward to seeing the most?” he asked, driving the 20 minutes to the aquarium.

Hmmm....that was a good question. You’d always loved sharks and dolphins and sting rays, but recently, you’d become really fascinated by jellyfish. “I love dolphins, obviously,” you laughed, pointing at your shirt. “But I also like sharks and rays and jellyfish. I heard they have ones called moon jellys. I just like the sound of that.”

“Moon jelly or aurelia aurita feed on zooplankton mostly and the top part, the bell, can grow to be about 12 inches wide, or the size of a dinner plate. When deprived of food, they can shrink to one-tenth their size to save energy and will regrow when food is available. On top of that, their population used to be kept in check by predators like sea turtles, tuna, and sunfish, but because of the rise in water-based pollution, their predators are starting to die, so jellyfish populations are growing at an alarming rate.” As he rambled on about moon jellys while he drove, you smiled, turning in your seat to watch the expressions play across his face. You’d always thought Spencer was cute - had even thought about kissing him on more than one occasion, but there was something about his face when he spoke about something he knew a lot about (which was most things) that made you exceedingly happy. 

He got off the exit for the aquarium, which was the first time he’d seen your face on the ride there. “I’m rambling, aren’t I?” he asked, quickly stifling himself. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry, Spence,” you laughed. “I love all this stuff. So by all means, ramble away.”

The corners of his lips turned up as he pulled into the parking lot. “Thanks,” he said softly. “It’s nice to not annoy someone with my ramblings.” 

It was a good thing he’d turned his head away from you to park the car, because your face dropped. He couldn’t help how excited he got about things, and although everyone on the team tended to be polite and hear him out, occasionally they’d make a comment. At the very least, he could tell that they didn’t want to listen but were just being polite. That was all well and good, but it was nice to have someone actually be interested in what you were saying. “Ready?” he asked. The sound of his voice brought you out of feeling bad for him. Today, you were going to let him tell you all about the exhibits you passed. He’d probably know more about them than the employees would anyway.

After you walked inside, you skipped toward the directory. You needed to figure out where to go first. “Blue blubber jellies,” you said. You imagined your wide eyes made you look like a crazy person. But saying blue blubber jellies was really fun. 

                                                            ----

She really was like a kid in a candy store in here. Spencer walked slowly behind Y/N as she looked from the floor to the ceiling and taking in everything the aquarium had to offer. “This is definitely the best aquarium in the area now,” she said, coming to stop in front of the jellyfish exhibit.

For a few moments, he just stared at her awe-struck face. The jellyfish in front of her actually went from white to light blue to dark purple in color despite their name. The reflection of color in her eyes did nothing to lessen how amazed she looked. If anything, they made her eyes sparkle even more than they did naturally. On the way in, he’d promised to tell her all about all of the creatures they’d pass during the day, but he found himself unable to speak. With all of the sea life around him, one would think he’d be fascinated, but he was more than content taking in the joy on her face.

                                                           ----

“Spence?” you said. He blinked, coming back to you after being in a far away land or something like that. “Tell me about these jellies.” Again, you turned to stare at the blobs of light. They were purple when you’d turned to grab Spencer’s attention, but now they were light blue. 

Spencer stuttered as he started, but as he got into telling you all about the jellyfish, he fell into a confident rhythm. “Well, just like the moon jellyfish, these guys feed on zooplankton. They do grow a little bigger. About 16 inches. And they’re found in the coastal waters of eastern and northern Australia. Fun fact,” he said, his fingers fidgeting at the speed of light, “In Asia, they are considered a delicacy, which is somewhat dangerous because if they aren’t prepared properly, they can be deadly. They’re very poisonous.”

After staring at the jellyfish for another 10 or 15 minutes, you began walking toward another area of the aquarium. At first you didn’t notice, but by the time you’d reached the bottlenose dolphins, you were leaning against his arm with your arm looped through his. “You want me to tell you about the dolphins, now?” he asked happily. He was really enjoying telling you all about these creatures.

“Can I tell you about the dolphins even though you probably know all about them already? Because I did a project on them when I was in elementary school and I was obsessed with them. I memorized everything I could.” Now you were rambling. 

“Sure. Go ahead.” He smirked. 

You turned toward the tank, your hands spread wide across the glass as you put your nose up to it to get the best look you could. “So, adult dolphins can get anywhere from 6-12 feet in length and weigh between 400 and 800 pounds. Males are slightly larger than females. Meh. They feed on fish, squid and crustaceans which can be found through cooperative hunting with other dolphins, feeding in association with fishing boats and even digging in the sand to uncover food.” Spencer had been so quiet you weren’t sure whether or not he was paying attention - but he was, he was staring right at you with a soft smile, so you kept going. “They are found in tropical and temperate waters all over the world, but unfortunately, because people suck and don’t recycle or anything, a lot of populations are being depleted. Thankfully, they aren’t endangered yet. But they could be soon, and that makes me so sad. I mean-” 

All of a sudden, you felt his lips on yours before he pulled away again. “I’m sorry,” he said, seeing the stunned look on your face. “I couldn’t help it.”

“You...like me?” you asked in amazement. You could feel your lips curling up into a smile. You’d never expected him to like you. He never really expressed an interest in anybody.

At your question, his own eyes mirrored your look of confusion. “Of course I do,” he said softly. “Why wouldn’t I? You’re smart, and pretty. Funny, and nice. And when it comes to certain things like this, you get like me. Plus, you always seem genuinely interested in what I have to say.” He trailed off, blushing at how much he was gushing over you. 

“Come here,” you said, taking him by the collar and pulling him into you. “Kiss me again.” As you closed your eyes, you felt the softness of his lips again. You could get used to this. “We should do more of this later when there aren’t so many kids around.” 

“Definitely.” His forehead rested against yours for a few moments before he suggested walking over to the giant pacific octopus tank.

You shuddered at the thought. “They’re so cool, but also really unsettling. Good thing I have someone here I can cling to.”

As you walked over, you felt him gather you to his side. You were sure the rest of the team was having a great time together, and maybe one day soon, you and Spencer would join them together, but for now, you were ecstatic you’d decided to ditch them.