#let me make more gifts... i like having prompts for things that I wouldn't normally do...

[leenfiend]

my secret santa gift for @witchy-boba !! and my first foray into a college au

[yurislotusgarden]

Dazai and Chuuya separated with prompt 11*

ʚїɞ Separate! Dazai Osamu, Nakahara Chuuya x Gn!Reader

ʚїɞ Keep in mind English is not my first language, so you may find mistakes!

ʚїɞ word count: 1975

ʚїɞ The event

ʚїɞ Tw’s: None! Just pure fluff, is not specified

ʚїɞ Hope you two won't mind me merging these two asks <3

ʚїɞ Prompt 11: "I never really celebrated Christmas before"

ʚїɞ This took way too long ;-; It's also the longest thing I have written I think, we're also gonna ignore that Christmas in Japan is like valentines for the sake of this post

ཐིཋྀ He doesn't know whether telling you he never really celebrated Christmas was a good idea or not

ཐིཋྀ On one side, he doesn't mind the fact that he did not since he never really saw anything special about it, but on another hand, you're excited about it and he doesn't wanna make you sad by saying he won't celebrate.

ཐིཋྀ Well, he did make you kind of sad when he told you he never really celebrated it, and that the closest he has been to that were the times when he and Chuuya would give each other gifts under a small Christmas tree that wasn't bigger only because they didn't feel like taking it out of Chuuya's apartment in a month.

ཐིཋྀ You managed to get Fukuzawa to make the annual Christmas party the agency has every year a non-skippable event, so Dazai had to come to it this year (The agency has a Christmas party every year but it's more of a ‘you come if you want’, and Dazai didn't bother showing up on any social event that wasn't mandatory)

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

Dazai didn't know what to think when he got told that he had to come to the Christmas party this year.

”Alright guys, see ya next week!”

“What do you mean? We're seeing each other on Saturday.”

“Huh? Kunikida-kun, you know I won't be at the party as per usual so-”

“Yes, you will be there this year.”

“And how are you so sure of that?”

“Don't think you won, it's mandatory this year, so yes, I will see you on Saturday, Dazai.”

“HUH?!”

He was happy that he at least didn't need to really improvise with the present. Every year there's a lottery on who buys who a present, Dazai was in it every year even if he wasn't at the parties. The presents were mandatory unlike the party, you just needed to leave the present under the tree so it could be given to the person you got, Dazai always found his present in front of his door on that day he will deny the smile he gets at that for the rest of his life.

He got Ranpo this year, and as classic as that was, sweets were the best present for that guy's sweet tooth, and he knew the shorter detective wouldn't complain. What he didn’t know was why Fukuzawa made the social event a must-attend this year. At the past parties, he was perfectly fine not to show up as long as he left the present before the gathering, which he did every year, so why was this year any different?

He got to the agency building shortly after and walked up the stairs, wanting to get the whole socializing thing over with for the day already. He normally wouldn’t mind being at the party that much, but it was a problem this year since it meant he couldn’t be spending the time with you until he was let out. He tried to get Fukuzawa to agree to let you come since you don’t work at the agency and the whole event is for the workers (and otherwise you're gonna be alone until he comes back), but surprisingly for the brunette, the older man didn’t agree to it as the younger one expected, he did agree to let Dazai leave earlier than the rest though.

Naturally, he was the last person to arrive.

“You sorry-waste of good bandages! Where the hell have you been?!”

“Oh? I was just spending my time with my sweet s/o! Something you don’t have at the moment, ku-ni-ki-da-kun~”

“That’s it! You’re going out the window!”

“Already?!”

“Kunikida-san no!”

Atsushi tried to save him and for once succeeded, he’s gotta buy the younger boy some tea on rice soon with his partner's money but who’s to say that?

When he first opened the door to the office, everything looked the same as it did every other year for the most part, and as expected, that’s why he absolutely did not expect the door to the agency to open half an hour into the party. He knew that everyone who was meant to be there was present already, from the main agency members to clerks who didn’t have anyone to spend Christmas with.

So he couldn’t exactly comprehend what was happening when his dear Belladonna appeared at the agency’s entrance.

“Bella! What are you doing here? Not that I’m complaining at seeing your pretty face but I got told you can’t come.”

“And you believed that Fukuzawa-san wouldn’t let me come?”

“...Now that you mention it… it was dumb of me to think that Boss wouldn’t let you come here...”

“At least the surprise was a success.”

“What?!”

That’s when he realized everything. The party being mandatory? You got Fukuzawa to do that. The fact that he couldn’t stay home even tho he has a significant other? Your fault. The party having more decorations done than in other years? You, once again.

“You’re cruel, bella.”

“Why?”

“I thought I wouldn’t be able to spend the day with you :(“

“Oh, love, I’m sorry for that.”

“You’re gonna have to make up for it.”

“Is getting you 5 presents not enough?”

“Not at all! I’m demanding you to add cuddles and kisses to the present bundle, darlin’.”

Why were you laughing when he was serious!? He wanted his daily kisses and the whole affection package! The brunette also had to figure out why you bought five presents for him instead of one, but that’s for later.

“Hey, lovebirds! It’s time to open the presents!”

“Yeah! Ranpo-san is, quite literally, being physically restrained from opening his present…”

On second thought, maybe he actually had missed out on some fun opportunities to tease his friends by not attending the previous parties.

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

His question on whether telling you about everything was a good idea or not? Let's just say he got his answer to his questions after that day ;)

ཐིཋྀ He didn't realize that telling you about how he never celebrated not only because of his past before the sheep, then the whole sheep organization where they just had no way of celebrating it in the slums with their situation, so the only times he did were those few with Dazai under a small Christmas tree, would make you sad😭

ཐིཋྀ Of course, there was the Christmas party that the Port Mafia throws a few days before Christmas every year, but it isn’t really celebrating it in Chuuya’s eyes.

ཐིཋྀ Since Dazai left the only Christmas thing he did (besides the PM party) was exchange presents with Kouyou and the Akutagawa’s with a small dinner at someone’s place, even though none of them decorated their place for that.

ཐིཋྀ He thought it’s gonna stay at that, the only difference being that you joined them this year… turned out he was wrong. Very wrong.

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

His place was decorated all over once December came (you did way more than you normally do for Christmas just to make his place colorful), but he didn't regret saying yes when you asked if you could do that, because for once his home gave the vibes of Christmas.

Christmas lights, an actual Christmas tree, not like the one he had till 18, small decorations around the house like some garden dwarfs or gnomes that had Christmas outfits, table or dresser decorations (was that a miniature reindeer on the table in front of the TV?) or other small decorations. It brought a smile to the ginger’s face every time he came home for the whole month. 

His plans went downhill when he asked others about the annual dinner. Kouyou was being sent to Europe for a few days, to maybe even 2 weeks, and the Akutagawa siblings had things to do as well. Gin has been assigned multiple missions close to each other and in different cities, making it so she wouldn't be able to be at home for the entirety of Christmas, while Ryuunosuke had not only missions but his training intensified for some reason. Chuuya was sure that something happened to Mori lately and now he’s taking it out on his subordinates.

That’s exactly why he didn’t expect to come back home just to see the trio he always spends Christmas with at his house. All three of them, Kouyou, Ryuu, and Gin told him that they were assigned missions on Christmas and unfortunately wouldn't be able to have dinner that day, that the nearest date they could, would be a few days after Christmas. Yet, they were at his house, the siblings sitting at his kitchen island-

“Do you think that my idea was good?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Ryuu I’m asking for an actual answer.”

“And I’m answering honestly.”

-while his sister figure and his beloved s/o were making goddamn cookies he’s ignoring they were his favourites.

“I’m really not sure about that last ingredient, dear.”

“Trust me Kouyou-san, I always add it.”

“And it tastes good?”

“You always compliment my cookies, no?”

“Very well, I shall allow my worries to fade away.”

“What’s with the sudden Shakespearean wording?”

“I just felt like it.”

As if he wasn’t surprised enough, there were more people. Tachihara whom he wasn’t the closest with, only exchanged some words here and there, could be seen trying to eat one of the cookies fresh out of the oven (Chuuya tried not to laugh when he let out a silent scream due to his tongue being burnt).

“Are you alright?”

“No, it hurts :(“

“You kill people and you want to cry over a slightly burnt tongue?”

“Shut up Gin, it really hurts!”

He has absolutely no idea how you got Elise in here without Mori in the house he was like 95% sure the older man was hiding somewhere in a closet.

“What is it, Elise?”

“I was about to steal a cookie but then I saw Tachihara and decided I won’t.”

“Good decision.”

He could see Hirotsu making tea on the side, the man had been at one of the trio’s dinners before so the old man wasn’t a big surprise-

“May I ask if you guys have any green tea?”

“Yeah, we have some in the cabinet on the far left, middle shelf.” “Thank you- Oh it’s my favorite brand of green tea.”

-And WAS THAT VERLAINE?! He was so confused about how you got the guy out of the PM basement

“Is the tea that good if it’s your favorite?”

“Yes, I have tried many brands yet none of them have come even close to beating this one.” “Hmm… could you make me one cup of it? I would like to try it.” “Of course, no problem.”

“CHUUYA!”

And then he was noticed.

He really didn’t mind the surprise as much as the others thought, it was a nice one. 

–

“We’re sorry for lying Chuuya-san!”

“I was forced into it.”

“No, you were not.”

“I really don’t mind, you two.”

–

“I hope the cookies came out well, [Name] had let me do most of the baking so I’m hoping that I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“It was your first time baking this recipe, it’s normal to do something wrong, Ane-san.”

–

“How’s the tongue?”

“You saw that?!”

“Yeah… So?”

“... It still hurts.”

–

“What are you doing here, midget?”

“I made a deal with [Name]. They let me be here with all of you and in exchange I get Rintaro to give you a day off.”

“Oh.”

He was already making plans in his head for that.

–

“You like green tea?”

“Yes, I do, Hirotsu-san”

“We shall have tea-drinking meetings.”

“I already have them with Ane-san.”

“I don’t care, Chuuya-san”

–

“Didn’t know you knew that world outside of the basement existed.”

“Shut, you little shit.”

–

“Chuu, you’re smiling.”

“No, I’m not!”

And yes, he’s gonna deny the smile that appeared on his face forever.

Notes, comments, and reblogs are greatly appreciated

Masterlist

@sukiischaotic

[the-cookie-of-doom]

hmm here's a prompt -- and no pressure to do this one if you don't want to!

porsche enlisting kim's help to find a gift for kinn. that's what porsche tells kim, anyway (he just wants to get to know kim a little better).

Anything for you, my friend! I have clinical in like an hour so I'm not going to finish this, so here's part 1 of Five Things Porsche Learns About Kim (bc ofc this is going to be a whole Thing)

When Porsche puts his mind to something, nothing can stop him. He's stubborn that way. Him and Porchay wouldn't have survived if he wasn't. Life has been throwing cheap shots at Porsche for his entire life; he's learned to roll with the punches and come up swinging, grinning all the while.

All that to say, he gets what he wants. And right now, he's decided what he wants, is a relationship with his little brother's boyfriend. Because there's nothing Porsche is more stubborn about than family, and that's what they are, now, whether he likes it or not.

Kimhan Theerapanyakul is about to learn the hard way that the Kittisawats are a package deal.

The first thing Porsche learns about Kim is that he's a squirrely little bastard. He weasels his phone number out of Chay - after finding out that Kinn didn't have it saved in his own phone, which will be a conversation for later - but Kim doesn't any answer any of the flurry of phone calls and texts that Porsche hurls his own way. Apparently, according to Porchay, Kim has memorized all the numbers of everyone important enough to be worth his time, and doesn't bother with anyone else.

What if someone has to borrow a phone? Porsche had asked.

Sucks to be them, Chay replied, with a silly smile that might mean he's kidding, or it might mean he knows exactly how ridiculous Kim is being, but still somehow likes him anyway. Porsche would prefer the former but he's almost certain it's the latter, and he's trying to figure out exactly why Chay would like him so much.

Because as far as Porsche can tell? Kim is more akin to a feral cat than anything else. Keeps his distance, sullenly watches Porsche anytime they happen to be in the same room, looking away only to scan for the nearest exit - which he takes at the earliest opportunity - and Porsche is certain Kim has actually hissed at him once. Probably not.

Since Kim won't answer unknown numbers, Porsche is forced to stoop to his level. Kinn's phone is of course out of the question, which only leaves one other person, at least only one Porsche can easily access, guaranteed to have it.

He's holding a struggling Porchay in a headlock while the phone dials. It only rings once.

"Hello, love," Kim greets, his voice warm and syrupy and so, so fond that Porsche has to gag, just to see the way his brother flushes.

"I'm sorry, Kim!" Porchay shouts. He's still struggling, digging his hands into Porsche's sides. "I tried to stop him!"

"Porsche." And there it is, that flat tone Porsche is used to.

"Hi, Kim, how's it going?" he asks casually.

"Goodbye.

"Wait, wait, wait!" It's no use. The line is already dead. Porsche releases his brother with a groan, and doesn't fight it when Chay snatches back his phone. "Why does he have to be so difficult?"

"Kim doesn't like being cornered, hia," Chay scolds him. "If you just talked to him like a normal person-"

"He won't let me! He keeps running!"

"You're intimidating!" Porsche doesn't believe that for a second. If Kinn wasn't intimated by him, no way his murderous little brother way. "Maybe you're coming on too strong? He probably think you're gonna kill him for, y'know..."

"No, I don't know." Porsche side-eyes Chay, who's no longer making eye contact. "Do I need to kill him?"

"No!"

"Should I want to?"

"Hia, No!" Chay throws his hands up. "See! This is why he won't talk to you! You're embarrassing."

"Good. Also, I don't care. I want to talk to him, and unless he wants me to lock you in your room and forbit you from seeing each other for the rest of your life, he better cooperate."

Chay lets out a sigh like the weight of all the world is bearing down on him. "I'll talk to him," he mumbles, sullen.

[feeblescholarmyass]

Returning the Favor

In which Alhaitham decides to spoil you on White Day

written for the Genshin Impact White Day event as a gift for @dustofthedailylife

pairings: Alhaitham x GN!reader

notes: sfw, fluff, Alhaitham being a romantic, established relationship, established friendships, blindfold, not beta read

It hadn't technically been a lie when he'd told you that he had work to do that morning. At face value, it was true. He did have work to do, just not at his job. He had made sure to get the day off. Instead, he was planning on spoiling you rotten.

What had prompted this intense desire to prove how much he cared? Valentine's Day. You, the supreme gift giver and most thoughtful romantic, had made his day one of the best in recent memory. He had always believed in fair exchange, so it was only natural that he tried to return the favor to the best of his ability.

He woke up at the same time as always, making sure not to wake you as he snuck out of your shared bed. He placed a kiss on your forehead before leaving, feeling particularly affectionate.

The first thing to do was go shopping. If he had gone any day before, he knew you would have somehow managed to find what he had bought and figure out his plans. Why did I have to fall in love with someone so good at reading me? He thought, even then knowing he wouldn't give up you or any of your qualities for the world. Even if it would make surprises a lot easier.

While out on errands, he called in a favor from Layla, your old roommate and his confidante in all matters that related to you. She promised to keep you busy until the afternoon, when everything would be ready for you.

As soon as he received the text saying you were out of the house, he returned and got to work preparing everything.

*****

You sipped at your tea, watching Layla gush about whatever astrology related project she had been working on as of late. You tried your hardest to listen, but your mind was occupied with other things.

"You know, the more you think about it, the more disappointing any results will be. Let the day be a surprise. Don't let your brain spoil things for you." Layla shook her head, playing with the twists in her hair.

"Who says I'm thinking about anything?" You replied, making her laugh.

"You should probably head home. I think Alhaitham normally gets home soon, yes?" She stood, holding out a hand for you.

She was right. As fun as the afternoon together had been, you were anxious to see your boyfriend again. You wanted to be there right when he got home so you wouldn't waste a second of your time together.

When you arrived home, you noticed that the house smelled different than normal. Nothing too out of the ordinary, but still different. You wondered briefly if Alhaitham had come home for lunch, which would explain the smell, but not the neatly organized look of the kitchen. As far as you could tell, he hadn't been home all day.

You wandered around, still searching for hints of his whereabouts when you opened your bedroom door. There he stood, messing with the fringe of the scarf he was wearing.

"So you are home," you smiled, leaning against the doorframe.

"Ah, you're back." He glanced at you, a small smile pulling at his lips. "Just in time, too. Everything has been prepared. If you would like to get changed, we're going outside."

"Oh?" You stepped past him, reaching your closet. "Alright then. Nice or cozy?"

"Either. It will only be the two of us." He took your hand and pressed a kiss to the back of your palm. "I'll be waiting outside, habibti."

You smiled and disappeared into your closet.

*****

"Almost there, habibti." Alhaitham guided you down the path, and you were nice enough to pretend like you didn't know where he was taking you already. The smell of padisarahs and the sound of the small man-made stream made guesswork easy.

"I can't believe you actually blindfolded me," you teased, squeezing his hand.

"Maybe I enjoy seeing your complete trust in me. If I wanted, I could push you into the screen and you would be soaked and then I would laugh at you."

"Ha ha, you're so funny." You stumbled, grabbing onto his arm. "Are we almost there? Much more of this and I am going to fall on my face."

"I would worry too much, I'm here to catch you if you fall."

Both of you paused. He awkwardly cleared his throat while you tried not to laugh at him.

"Alhaitham the silver tongued scholar, putting moves on his partner. Imagine what Kaveh would say." You laughed. He sighed, reaching up to remove your blindfold.

"Let's not talk about him. I want to focus on you and you alone right now." He said. Color exploded into your vision as the cloth of the blindfold fell away from your eyes.

"Alhaitham," you muttered, bringing a hand to your lips. The picture perfect picnic scene before you nearly brought tears to your eyes. "Did you do all of this?"

"Yes. I made everything myself. I tried to get all of your favorites." He led you to the blanket and sat down next to you. There had once been a day where you'd thought Alhaitham was self-centered, arrogant, and cold. You would have laughed if someone had explained this exact situation to you. Oh, how things have changed.

"Thank you, habibi. Thank you so much."

He pressed kiss to your temple, not even hiding that adorable smile he reserved for when the two of you were together. "Anything for you, my love."

divider by animatedglittergraphics-n-more

hope you enjoyed!

[raaorqtpbpdy]

Five-and-a-Half

Based on the Phic Phight prompt: Danny gets de-aged and Sam and Tucker have to take care of him til he's back to normal without anyone noticing. (from @yellow-rhymes-with-dna)

AO3 Link

[Warnings for mentions of past trauma]

Tucker had gotten used to a lot of strange things over the years, especially with a best friend like Danny. Giant robots controlled by a technologically controlled ghost he could deal with. A blob ghost hunter in a heavily armed mech suit was a piece of cake. An evil ghost king sucking their town into another dimension was more than Tucker alone could take care of, but he could at least keep his cool. Sam Manson showing up at their apartment with a five-year-old Danny was a bit much, even for him.

"Sam, I love you, but what the hell?"

"For the record, this was not my fault," Sam said immediately. "Danny was the one who pissed off Clockwork and got himself kidified. I told him to shut up twice, and we've both told him that the clock tower is not the place to hide from his royal duties."

"Who's this, Miss Sam?" Danny asked, looking up at the goth girl with wide, curious blue eyes. He was so small now that he had to reach his arm almost above his head in order to hold her hand.

"God, your cute," Sam said through gritted teeth, then sighed. "This is Tucker. You remember him, don't you?"

"Tucker?" Danny looked back at his oldest friend, shock written all over his baby-face. The two of them had met in preschool when they were three, and had been together ever since, first as best friends, and now in their little triad with Sam, So even de-aged as he was, Danny should know Tucker. "No way! He's way too big to be Tucker! He's old!" 

"I'm not old! I'm only eighteen!"

"That's so old!"

"How come he calls you 'Miss Sam', all polite like, and he calls me old?" Tucker demanded with a pout. 

"Can you let us in already?" Sam said, rolling her eyes at the question as she pushed past Tucker into the apartment the three of them got together when they started at the local community college. Sam and Danny had both desperately wanted to move out of their parents' houses, and Tucker wasn't about to be left out.

Danny had been so understanding and kind, insisting that they not hold themselves back just because he had to stay near the portal after high school. Of course, Sam and Tucker had completely ignored him and applied to Amity Park community anyway, even though either of them could've gone to a much better college.

"I take it he doesn't have his memories?" Tucker asked, closing the door behind them and going to sit on the couch.

"Nope," Sam confirmed. "He doesn't have his powers either. His body and mind have been completely reverted to his five-year-old self."

"I'm five-and-a-half!" Danny piped up.

"Right," Sam obliged, "his five-and-a-half-year-old self. I figure we'll wait for Clockwork to cool off, finish whatever work Danny interrupted, and then bring him a gift basket of time-pieces or something to butter him up and ask him to put Danny back to normal."

"I'm normal!" little Danny insisted. "I'm totally normal! My sister says so!"

"Of course you are Danny," Tucker agreed. "She didn't mean it like that."

"Until then, we have to make sure nobody sees him like this," Sam continued, "which means we have to keep him here and watch over him, at least for a few hours."

"Do you have any crayons?" Danny asked. "I wanna draw."

"Uh... I think Sam has some markers she might let you use if you ask really nicely," Tucker said, and Sam immediately gave him that look she gave him when she wanted to punch him but wouldn't because she loved him even if he was an idiot.

"Miss Sam, can I pretty please use your markers to draw?" Danny asked, very sweetly, batting his eyelashes the way Jazz used to to get whatever she wanted from grown ups when she was a kid. Sam clenched her fists and her jaw, but, much to Tucker's amusement, she seemed incapable of saying no.

"How did you live like this?" she shouted. Her combat boots pounded on the floor as she trudged to the studio/lab they'd converted the spare bedroom into. "Thank the Ancients I didn't meet him until we were in middle school. He's too damn cute—it's unbearable!"

"Is Miss Sam always such a pushover?" Danny whispered to Tucker.

"Believe it or not, she's usually pretty strict and bossy," Tucker whispered back. "She's just soft on little kids."

"Oh." Danny looked up at him, blue eyes strangely piercing, as if looking right through him.

It was strange. These days, Danny had gotten very good at masking his expressions to hide how he was really fearing. It was a skill he'd learned to hide his fear, to reassure civilians, and to show his enemies he wasn't intimidated, no matter the danger. But over time, that mask had edged into his personal life too. Danny put on a brave face, a reassuring smile, a too-wide grin, but his partners could never be certain what he was truly feeling. It sent a pang through Tucker's heart to see Danny's feelings so openly in his expression.

"Are you really Tucker?" the kid asked. "My best friend Tucker?"

"Yeah," Tucker confirmed. "Actually, I'm your boyfriend Tucker, and Sam's your girlfriend. A few hours ago, you were the same age as us, and then you got turned into a little kid."

"So I get a girlfriend and a boyfriend when I grow up?" Danny asked excitedly. "That's so cool! I must be pretty awesome to get both of them!"

"Tucker!" Sam chided as she came back into the room with her box of expensive, artsy markers. "Don't tell him that!"

"Why not?" Tucker asked. "What's it gonna hurt? It's not like this is his past self, it's his age regressed present self. I'm not changing the past, and if we lie, he'll be upset at us when he turns back." Sam's lips pressed together in a thin line as she considered his argument.

"Fine, I guess it won't do any harm," she relented after a moment. She put a stack of papers on the coffee table, but before she put down the markers she knelt down to look Danny sternly in the eyes. "Now Danny, these are very expensive, and very special markers, and they were a gift from my grandmother. You have to be careful with them and use them gently so you don't mess up the tips because if you do, I'll be sad. Do you understand?"

Danny nodded, brows set in determination. "I got it, Miss Sam! I'll be very careful with your special markers so I don't make you sad, I promise!"

Tucker could almost see Sam biting her tongue to stop from cooing as she put the box of markers on the coffee table and opened it up. She plopped down in front of the couch while Danny knelt next to the coffee table and uncapped a blue marker. "He's... such an earnest kid," she muttered as she leaned into Tucker's side. "It's different."

"Yeah," Tucker agreed softly. "He used to wear his heart on his sleeve. I never thought about it much, but it sucks that he can't really do that anymore."

"We've been by his side for so long, sometimes I forget how much more he's been through than we have." Her brows pulled together in a frown. "Why does he always go where we can't follow?"

For a long moment, Tucker didn't respond. He felt the same way she did. As much as they'd all gone through together, as much as they tried to stay by Danny's side, there always came a point where Danny had to forge ahead without them. "Because somebody has to."

Sam sighed and slipped a little further into Tucker's body, letting him wrap an arm around her. She was undoubtedly thinking of something melancholy that she'd eventually share at a goth poetry slam, but didn't want to talk about with him. Aside from physical reassurance, there wasn't much he could to about it, but he could do that much, and maybe offer a distraction.

"What are you drawing, Danny?" he asked the kid.

"I'm drawing a rocket ship!" Danny chirped, turning his head to grin at Tucker. Then he scrunched up his face. "You can't look yet! It's not done!"

"A rocket ship, huh?" Tucker asked. "Are you gonna draw yourself on the rocket ship?"

"Duh! I'm gonna be an astronaut!" Sam and Tucker wore the same sad smiles when he said that, both remembering the time they had to console him in the aftermath of his first physical exam after the portal accident. He'd discovered that because of his altered physiology, he would never be accepted into any space program, and he'd been utterly distraught. Now he was studying engineering, because he said if he couldn't go to space, at least something he'd built could.

"Can me and Sam be on the space ship with you?" Tucker asked.

"Sure!" Danny agreed cheerfully, his expression back to that beaming smile. "You guys can come with me!"

Tucker's heart ached. How many times had they heard Danny say, "You guys can't come with me. It's too dangerous for you." A dozen times? A hundred? Easily too many to bear, but they bore it anyway.

"Where are we going?" Sam asked. "Is the rocket going to the moon?"

"Nuh-uh," Danny shook his head. "We're going to 51 Pegasi b! They just discovered it a little while ago and it was super exciting! I read in my mom's science magazine that the guys who discovered it got nominated for a Nobel Prize because it's the first planet anyone's found orbiting a star like our sun! Its orbit is just four days long, and they think it might be the core of a decomposed star!"

"That's so interesting, Danny, tell me more," Sam encouraged, and Danny gasped in excitement at the invitation. He hunched over his drawing as he continued enthusiastically babbling about the planet his imaginary rocket was going to. Sam lifted her head to ask quietly in Tucker's ear, "Did he do this a lot as a kid?"

"Yeah," Tucker confirmed. "It's kinda why we got along so well. He would talk a lot about space, and I would talk a lot about computers, and we would go back and forth like it was a conversation, except we were just taking turns talking about completely different topics. Children of STEM parents with highly specific interests gotta stick together, y'know." 

After a while, Danny interrupted his rant about space to show them that he'd finished his drawing. Despite being drawn by the unsteady hands of a five-year-old, they could tell clearly enough what it was. The rocket was gray, and each one of their faces smiled out from one of the three round windows.

"Look, that's me at the front because I'm the one flying the rocket, and Tucker in the middle, and Miss Sam in the back!" he said.

"Wow, Danny, that looks great!" Sam complimented.

"Yeah, I think this one goes up on the fridge," Tucker suggested, eyeing Sam with a devious look. "What do you think, Sam?" She looked back at him with a matching expression.

"Oh definitely," she agreed. Danny was going to be so embarrassed when he was back to normal, and the two of them could practically see their boyfriend's tomato-red face already. Danny grinned and let Sam take the picture from him to stick up on their fridge with one of the little ghost-shaped magnets Sam had bought for them. "Since we're in the kitchen, are you hungry, Danny?"

"I'm hungry!" Tucker said.

"How about some sandwiches," Sam suggested. "What kind do you want, Danny?" She already knew Tucker's favorite sandwich, Turkey, roast beef, and Swiss on rye bread. Since they'd all started dating, she'd even coaxed him into liking some vegetables, though she'd given up on convincing him or Danny to go vegan like her. Her own preferred sandwich was all vegetables, of course. Tucker liked to call it a salad on toast.

"Peanut butter and blackberry jam please!" he asked.

It was kind of funny. The Danny they now knew was so different from the five-year-old awkwardly climbing up onto one of the kitchen stools, but despite all that he'd been through and all that he'd changed, he still liked space and blackberry jam.

"Do you want the crusts cut off?"

"Yes, please!" 

Tucker handed her three plates and cleared his half-finished homework off the kitchen island for them to eat at. He'd been working on it when Sam knocked—she'd forgotten her key and Danny couldn't phase them through the door—and then the situation with Danny had distracted him from going back to it. It was just calculus; he'd finish it later.

Sitting around the island, eating sandwiches, Danny asked them questions about his future.

"Are you guys astronauts?"

"No," Tucker said. "We're in college now. We'd have to finish to become astronauts. I'm studying computer programming."

"That makes sense." Danny nodded. "I remember you like computers and stuff. I'm studying to be an astronaut, right? What's Miss Sam studying?"

"Actually, you're studying engineering," Sam corrected, but when she saw the confusion on Danny's face she backtracked, not wanting to tell the child that he'd never achieve his dream. Once was more than enough. "But engineering is one path to becoming an astronaut." It wasn't a lie, even though she wasn't telling the whole truth. She changed the subject. "I'm studying ecology, with a minor in political science." 

"And we all go to the same school?" Danny asked.

"Yup!" Tucker said. "We go to Amity Park Community College."

"A community college?" Danny frowned. He'd heard enough about college from his parents to know that a community college was not as good as a university, even if he didn't know the difference between the two. "We couldn't get into a University? Mom and Dad went to University of Wisconsin."

"It's not that we couldn't get it," Sam assured him. "We could have gone to much more prestigious—er fancy schools, but we wanted to stay in Amity Park. We have obligations here, at least for the time being."

"What kind of obligations?"

"We hunt ghosts," Sam said, trying to make it sound exciting instead of annoying. Tucker made a cutting motion to stop her from saying it, but it was too late. Danny's expression immediately fell into disappointment and he looked moments away from crying.

"But... but I don't wanna fight ghosts," he said. "Ghosts are stupid!" Sam blinked in surprise and looked to Tucker, only then seeing in his expression that she shouldn't have said that.

"Uh..." she cringed, visibly trying to find a way out of this. She liked kids, but she had no idea how to handle a crying child. Thankfully, Tucker chose that moment to step in.

"Danny, you have to know, that even though we hunt ghosts, none of us are anything like your parents, okay?" Tucker promised, his voice very gentle and earnest, in contrast to his usual sarcasm, a tone which all three of them shared. "Sometimes it's scary, but we would never hurt the ghosts, and we would never try to experiment on them. If they cause trouble, we make them stop, and send them home, safe and sound, okay?"

Danny started to cry, and reached out for Tucker, who picked him up and held him close to his chest, rubbing soothing circles into his back. "I d-don't like ghosts! I d-don't ever w-want to see a ghost!" Danny bawled.

"It's okay, Danny, you're not gonna see any ghosts," Tucker said. "We'll keep you far away from them."

"Y-you promise?"

"I promise."

Slowly, the tears subsided. Danny had tuckered himself out from crying and drawing, and fallen asleep.

"I'm sorry, I thought he'd think it was cool," Sam whispered, so as not to wake the sleeping child in Tucker's arms. "Why'd he react like that?"

"His parents have always been overzealous about ghosts," Tucker responded. "When he was really little, his parents rants scared him a lot. They talked about finding ghosts and running tests, and experiments. Most of their science talk didn't get to him, and he even thought it was cool, but something about ghosts got under his skin, even back then, you know?"

"I wonder why?" Sam said thoughtfully.

"I dunno," Tucker said. He started to shrug, but aborted the action when Danny hummed and shifted in his sleep. "Do you think Clockwork's calmed down yet?"

"It's been two hours for us," Sam said, looking at the clock on the wall. "So probably a year-and-a-half for him? Yeah, probably. The trick is getting him through the Fenton Portal into the Realms without his parents seeing."

"Yeah, and we don't have his invisibility and intangibility to help us out like we usually do," Tucker said. "So what? False tip?"

"Already on it." Sam's phone was already in her hand and she hit the contact for Fenton Works. When she spoke into the phone it was with a low, nasally voice that sounded nothing at all like her own. "Hello, am I speaking to the Fentons, the ghost hunters? Yes, this is Audrey Goldberg, and I have a ghost problem I hoped you could help me with. It's haunting my bathroom. Twelve-nineteen Pine Road. Yes, come as quickly as possible. Thank you." She hung up. "You got Danny?"

"Yup," Tucker confirmed. "Don't forget the key to Fenton Works."

"Right." They headed downstairs and out of their apartment building, walking to Fenton Works since Sam insisted none of them needed to get a car. It wasn't far, even carrying a kid. All the ghost fighting they did had eventually whipped even Tucker into shape. When he first realized he was getting some actual muscle, Tucker had worn sleeveless shirts for weeks. Neither of his partners said anything positive about it, but he knew they secretly love his muscles.

The GAV was long gone when they got there and Fenton Works was empty, allowing them to go in without any resistance. With Danny fully human, thanks to being de-aged, they didn't even set off the ghost sensors. They headed down to the lab and borrowed the Specter Speeder to go to the clock tower.

Navigating the Ghost Zone was a tricky thing, especially since everything within it was constantly in motion, but they'd figured it out, more or less. To be perfectly honest, even they didn't know exactly how they did it, but as long as they got where they needed to go, it didn't matter.

The door to the clock tower swung open when Sam knocked on it and they climbed up to the top, where Clockwork would be.

"Clockwork, buddy, how've you been?" Sam greeted.

"Samantha, Tucker," Clockwork said blandly. "I assume you've come to ask that I revert young Daniel back to his proper age."

"Yes please," Tucker requested. "I don't know exactly what he did to piss you off, but we really can't have our boyfriend as a five-and-a-half-year-old anymore. Humans have laws about that kind of thing."

"Very well, I suppose the Infinite Realms can't have a king so young either, or so human." Clockwork waved his staff and Danny rapidly aged back to his nineteen-year-old self. Tucker's knees buckled under the sudden increase in weight and the pair of them collapsed onto the ground. Danny woke up to sore knees and Sam hunched over laughing at them.

"Thanks so much," Tucker grumbled, trying and failing to sound sincere. "Now that we've got our boyfriend back, we'll get out of your beard."

"From now on, perhaps you'll think twice before coming to bother me just because you're bored, won't you Daniel?" Clockwork asked pointedly.

Danny blushed, and put a hand over his mouth before nodding. "Yeah, yup! Lesson learned."

"You're ears are steaming," Sam teased, even as she offered a hand to help each of the boys up.

"Shut up!" Danny said as she pulled him to his feet before helping Tucker. "Bye, Clockwork. Thanks for not making me go through puberty again."

"And if you don't disturb my work, I never will," the old ghost warned.

The trio headed back down the stairs and to the Specter Speeder. "You guys are gonna take that awful drawing off the fridge, right?" Danny asked.

"Not a chance in all the Realms," Sam said.

"Yeah, no," Tucker agreed. "If you even try to get rid of it, we'll make you regret it." Danny groaned and buried his face in his hand.

"I can't believe I did all that," he mumbled. "I cried like a baby and then fell asleep."

"In fairness, you were five," Sam said.

"I was five-and-a-half!" Danny snapped, put his face in his hands again. "Why did I say that?" His partners just laughed as they climbed into the speeder and flew home.

[rinphoria]

kai congratulations on your milestone! so proud of you and i'm looking forward to seeing so much more of you :> can i please request the prompt "oh stop pouting, i'm coming" with sakusa?

𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐍' — a milestone event

დ ft. sakusa kiyoomi & gn!reader

დ wc: 1k

დ warnings: alcohol consumption

thank you, ren! you're so so kind <3 here's some sakusa for you, enjoy!

sakusa wasn't fond of publicity.

making appearances at the events that he and his team were invited to was a drag—he hated crowds and meaningless conversation, both of which were practically the highlight of said events. he couldn't even rely on his teammates to lessen his annoyance. it was more than likely that a good bunch of them would only end up making his impending headaches approach much sooner.

he just wanted to play volleyball—were all of these extra occasions that came along with it really necessary?

necessary or not, the invites continued to pour in. earlier in the week, the team's manager had informed everyone of another function they'd be attending; some charity banquet. he had no qualms donating to the cause but that didn't mean he was looking forward to having to socialize and mingle all night. though, the invitation had a saving grace; the gathering allowed each attendee a plus one.

only one person ever came to mind when he read the relief-inducing words—you. you had a way of making even the most insufferable events more tolerable. something about your presence was grounding. during those moments when he could feel the irritation and discomfort beginning to seep in, all it took to calm him down was a comforting squeeze from you. he figured having you by his side meant that the night wouldn't be so bad.

and, he was right. not that he liked to brag, but he usually was. your arm linked with his meant that he was much calmer than he typically was in these sorts of environments—so much so that he was able to loosen up and enjoy a couple of drinks.

one thing you'd come to notice during your time together with sakusa was that he wasn't much of a drinker. he didn't get drunk often and you'd even go as far as saying that it was a rare occurrence. maybe it was the fact that he didn't drink frequently as a whole or maybe it had to do with his high tolerance to alcohol, but you had never witnessed the man exceed anything but tipsy. in your experience with him in said state, there was one thing you honed in on—his clinginess. it was as if any regard for the eyes watching him vanished when enough alcohol entered his system. and that was no different now.

"i'm ready to go," sakusa whispered into your ear.

with a smile still lingering on your face from your conversation with atsumu, you slowly turned to face your boyfriend. there was a peaceful glimmer in his eyes as he stared down at you, his loose, dark curls nearly obstructing his vision. it was a look you weren't normally gifted anywhere but at home which made his tipsiness all the more telling. most people wouldn't describe sakusa as cute, but that was the only word fitting for this moment. a quick glance at one of the many clocks in the venue told you that he had fulfilled his promised hour and a half stay.

"okay." you nodded, not wanting to keep him longer than he was comfortable. "let me just get my bag."

before you set off, sakusa let you know that he was going to head to the bathroom. he wasn't driving home, but he didn't want to fall asleep on the ride there. splashing a bit of cold water on his face would be sure to wake him up.

any hopes of muttering a quick goodbye and parting ways with everyone disappeared upon seeing you sitting in your chair, engaged in an exchange with hinata. you were different than him in that sense—maybe not a social butterfly but definitely more capable of holding conversations than he was. it made you the perfect companion for events. but, at the moment, your friendliness felt like more of a hindrance than the blessing it usually was.

he was honestly happy to know that you and his teammates got along well. despite the fact that he didn't outwardly express it, they were important to him and you were, too. it was nice to see you speaking so easily with one of his friends but couldn't the two of you bond another time?

sakusa blew out a breath of mild exasperation as he approached the table. it looked like he'd be standing by a little longer. he was direct, maybe even blunt, but he wasn't rude. so, even though he was itching to go home, he'd wait until you were done talking to steal you away.

you could feel eyes on you as you listened to hinata excitedly go on about how he was looking forward to their next game. you hummed along, turning your head to find out who was staring a hole into the side of your head. to your right and only a couple feet away stood sakusa with his arms crossed and his lip slightly jutted out in a petulant pout. the sight made you giggle.

"oh stop pouting, i'm coming." you shared a few more words with hinata before rising from your seat and smoothing any wrinkles out of your clothes. your departure caused the redhead to look up to the taller man. he figured you both were readying to take your leave.

"have a nice night, sakusa-san."

he raised a hand in a lazy wave. "tell everyone i say bye."

you took sakusa's hand in yours, sending hinata a smile and wave of your own before heading to the exit. sakusa's head came to rest on top of yours as the two of you made your way outside. you had given the valet your keys so that they could fetch your car, leaving you to patiently wait with an exhausted sakusa who was using you as a headrest. you ran your thumbs across his knuckles before bringing his hand to your lips and pressing a kiss to the back of it.

"you can be such a cutie sometimes."

his words were jumbled since his cheek was smooshed against your hair but you understood him regardless, "no, you're cute."

thanks for reading! comments and reblogs appreciated <3

[nuggets-and-french-fries]

Note: I apologize for taking so long (much longer than I wanted to take) to get this out for you to read; but I want to thank you for your immense patience and I hope that the quality of this imagine makes up for having to wait.

Also, I used a couple prompts you sent me which are highlighted in bold. Thank you for sending me the prompts.

Last note, I did try my best to edit the imagine but I'm not sure if I missed anything. If I did, please excuse the mistakes etc.

That about covers it. Please feel free to request again and feel free to be as details as you like, the more details the better.

Enjoy and Happy December 1st!

P.S: Please let me know your thoughts on this imagine❤️

---

Being an only child was one thing, but when you pair that with your father being high up in the echelon of the FBI, you have a recipe for disaster. Especially if you are anything like Y/N and the only way you could cope with your father's job was by falling in with the wrong crowd, eventually getting yourself arrested and charged with minor offenses. 

Sure, they weren't near as severe as former convicted criminal turned FBI operative James Keene's were, but they were still enough to make her father disappointed and feel as though he had to work harder to prove to his bosses that he was an upstanding and law-abiding citizen.

Y/N knew how much the FBI meant to her father, which is why she made it her mission to rewrite the wrongs she had done in her past. She wanted to make her parents proud and the best way she knew to do that was to follow in one of her parents' footsteps. In this case, it was her father's footsteps.

She had gone to her father one rainy afternoon, begging him to let her help with a recent case that was in jeopardy of going cold. She was good with problem-solving and she was amazing at investigating things. She had been since she was a small child. It's why her parents could never hide her Christmas gifts at their house and always hid them at Y/N's grandparents' house. 

Robert was reluctant but knew that Y/N wouldn't let it go until he accepted her pleas. He allowed her to look over the case files, and ever since that afternoon, Y/N began her job as an FBI operative. 

This takes us to today. Y/N sat in the passenger seat of an old beat-up truck with broken air conditioning, whilst the sweltering heat made beads of sweat cling to her brow. She wiped the sweat away and tied her hair up into a high messy bun in the hopes that it would help with the heat. It didn't. It only made things worse if you asked her. The baby hairs at the nape of her neck were forced into little ringlets, refusing to be tamed. She growled in annoyance and returned to the open map on her lap.

"This is ridiculous. Are we there yet?" Y/N groaned, hoping her partner on this case would tell her they were.

He turned his head to face her and looked at her over the rim of his dark sunglasses while his hair flopped in his face, clearly not appreciating the heat either.

"Why are you asking me that again?" Jimmy asked with a slightly annoyed tone.

Y/N continued looking at the map even though she could feel his lingering gaze on her.

"Is the pretty boy losing his marbles?" Y/N cooed sarcastically, smirking at him afterwards.

Jimmy rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the road ahead of him.

"You're the one with the map, so if anyone knows how close we are to the town, it's you." He remarked, making Y/N roll her eyes this time.

She was about to reply when a large sign saying 'Welcome to Arizona' passed by them in a flash.

"Well, now we both know we are close." She said with sarcasm. 

Jimmy refused to say anything else. Normally he wouldn't mind working with others on a case but Y/N was starting to feel like a thorn in his side. She would sass him when he asked her a question, or she would remain silent and stare out her window and God forbid he ask her to look at a map. Oh and another thing, when he said he was driving and she wasn't, she scoffed and pouted.

He wasn't entirely sure if he wanted to yell at her or kiss that put off her face. He decided against both choices though as he knew he'd probably have ever loving shit out of him. Something told him that the woman beside him was a tough one and was a force to be reckoned with, especially with how well-known her father was. Jimmy was sure that Y/N could make his death look like an accident if she wanted to.

=

After another couple of hours of driving and bickering back and forth, Jimmy and Y/N arrived at their motel.

"Uh, are you sure this is it? It looks so-" Y/N started before Jimmy chimed in.

"Charming, American, yadda yadda." He said, listing off words, waving his hand in the air.

"No, I was going to say gross, dingy, dilapidated, and damn near abandoned." She answered, feeling nervous about what awaited them in the small office building with dirt and cobweb-covered windows.

"Oh come on, it's not that bad." Jimmy said confidently but Y/N could see through that confident facade. She knew he felt the same.

"Are you fucking blind Keene, it's beyond a shit hole and if we're the next victims of murder, I'm blaming you." Y/N said through gritted teeth as she followed him to the office.

Once they reached the tiny box that was the office, they stepped inside and instantly Y/N's hand flew up to cover her mouth as she attempted and failed at suppressing a gag. The smell of old urine, old smoke, musty carpets, mold, and other odors embraced every nook and cranny with their vile scents. Even Jimmy wanted to puke and he had seen and smelled some pretty intense things in his lifetime.

Jimmy looked behind him to make sure that Y/N was ok but by the fact that her complexion had turned white with a hint of green, he knew she needed air, however hot and suffocating it was outside.

He was about to tell Y/N to wait outside when a man resembling hamburglar walked out of what appeared to be a small room. He was covered in sweat and dirt. He smelt of old cigarettes and stale beer. His hair wet with sweat, stuck out at odd ends as it curled from the heat.

"She good?" The man asked through a mumble as he pointed at Y/N, clocking the way she was acting.

She looked at Jimmy and silently begged him to make something up or was it to let her wait outside, he couldn’t tell.

When she tried to hold another gag, he knew it was to let her wait outside, so he took the keys out of his pocket.

"Car sick. Takes her a while to get over it." Jimmy said, handing Y/N the keys, fully trusting her to not drive off without him.

She snatched the keys from him and hurried outside just in time.

The men watched the woman for a minute before they went on with the business of sorting out a room.

Thankfully It didn’t take too long to check in before Jimmy could rejoin the outside world. He was glad for that fact as the extremely pungent smell in the office was starting to get to him and turn his gills green.

Y/N watched the man breathing deeply and dramatically from where she was in the truck and chuckled to herself. He looked absolutely ridiculous huffing and puffing in his now off white tank top and blue Levi jeans. Why he chose to wear jeans in a hot climate was beyond her, especially since he opted to wear boots on his feet. Ones that didn’t look like they were made for the desert.

“Are you just going to stand there or can we actually go to our room?” Y/N asked as she pooped her head out of the passenger side window.

Jimmy ignored her but made his way over to the truck. He was eager to get to the room and see if it looked better or worse then the front of this so called establishment.

=

“Are you fucking kidding me, Keene?! I am not sharing a bed with you!” Y/N exclaimed as she and Jimmy stood in front of the only bed in the room. The bed that looked like no one had washed its sheets in decades…no, make that in centuries. 

“Sleep in the truck then.” Jimmy said as he put his bag on the bed. 

Y/N gasped and picked his bag back up. SHe was appalled that he wasn’t even questioning what the hell was going on here.

“Don’t do that, you don’t know what diseases are hiding there.” She told him. 

“I’m almost touched that you care about me.” He said.

“I care about the bag. Do you know how long bacteria can stay on something like your bag.” She shrieked, making Jimmy roll his eyes.

“Why don’t we drive around looking for another place to stay because I’m telling you right now, the FBI hates us.” Y/N said.

“Why don’t you just stop bitching about this place. It may not be ideal but it’s a place to rest and work.” Jimmy warned her.

“I am not bitching. This place is vile and I really don’t want to stay here.” Y/N replied.

“At least it’s not a prison.” He said. He had her there.

“With a choice between this place and prison, I choose prison.” Y/N said, looking at the man square on.

“You aren’t going to budge on this are you?” Jimmy asked.

“Not a chance in fucking hell. I’d rather lick Satan’s asshole than stay here.” Y/N said, making Jimmy chuckle.

“Alright, fine. Put the bags back in the truck. I’ll tell him we had family members insist we stay with them.”  Jimmy said, giving in.

Y/N threw her arms around him in a tight hug.

“Thank you!” Y/N said as she took their bags to the truck while Jimmy locked their room door.

=

25 minutes later, Jimmy and Y/N had found an even better motel. It was one that actually looked inviting and not like something straight out of a horror movie. The reception smelled clean, looked clean and the staff were so nice and less fat and sweaty. 

Unfortunately for Y/N, the only room they had available had one bed. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to share a bed because she hated Jimmy, rather it was the idea that if she was to sleep next to him, she may do things that were…unbecoming of a respectable woman shall we say and completely unprofessional. 

“Still?” Jimmy sighed, noticing the look on her face at the mention of their room only having one bed…again.

“You know what, no. Because you were my knight in shining armor back there and saved me from a night of horrors, I’ll keep my thoughts on sharing a bed quiet.” Y/N said, patting Jimmy on the shoulder.

Jimmy raised his brow at her and decided against replying. He’d save his remark for later.

“Come on Keene, I’m tired.” Y/N called over her shoulder as she walked toward the door. Jimmy shook his head and followed suit.

=

Finally settled in their room, Y/N sat on her side of the bed looking over a case file while Jimmy showered and rinsed off the last few hours. Y/N had previously done the same and boy, what a world of good that did her. She felt refreshed and happier.

“Did you know that this motel is closer to the prep’s house and to the route he took.” Y/N called as she heard the water shut off.

“We should scout it out.” Jimmy suggested as he walked out of the bathroom with a towel hanging loosely around his waist.

Y/N pretended not to notice how fit the man in front of her was but with how quiet Y/N became, Jimmy smirked to himself.

“What’s so funny?” Y/N asked, trying not to look up at him.

So many replies were flying around Jimmy’s mind but he didn’t want to embarrass Y/N or give her a reason to get all pissy with him.

“I spotted a burger king down the street.” He said as he slipped his clothes on back in the bathroom.

“And?” Y/N asked, refocusing on re-reading the paragraphs on the paperwork.

“Are you hungry?” Jimmy questioned as he padded back to the room and plopped on the bed next to Y/N.

Y/N stopped reading and looked at the tv on the wall, deciding if she was hungry or not.

“I could eat.” Y/N said after a minute. Jimmy nodded and stood up.

“Let’s go then.” He said as he got his things together.

“Oh, I thought you were going to get it and come back.” Y/N admitted, feeling dejected. She loved the idea of getting fast food and eating it in the motel bed while watching cartoons.

“I could do that or we could get it and eat in the restaurant and then go for a drive.” He suggested, loving the idea of seeing what else this town had to offer and maybe scouting out where the crimes took place.

“You go enjoy, I’ll just order a pizza or something.” Y/N said, putting her head back down.

“Suit yourself.” Jimmy said, shrugging his shoulders.

Y/N would be lying if she said she wasn’t disappointed and a little hurt that he would leave her alone on their first night here in favor of going for a  drive.

Jimmy walked out the door and got into the truck and felt a pang of guilt hit him in the chest. There was something about Y/N’s demeanor that told him she was excited at the possibility of a motel room picnic, if that’s what you want to call it that.

Taking a deep breath, Jimmy got out of the truck and unlocked the room door.

“Change your mind?” Y/N asked, now flipping through the tv for something to watch.

“What burger do you want?” Jimmy asked. 

Y/N’s gaze  shot to Jimmy and he could see a spark of joy shine in her eyes. 

“What about your drive?” She questioned. 

“Just answer the question before I change my mind Y/N.” Jimmy said and for the first time since meeting her, Y/N gave him a genuine smile and he’d be lying if he said his heart didn’t skip a beat. 

“You got a pen?” She asked, knowing that she wanted a few things.

Jimmy grabbed a pen from the small desk in the room and a piece of paper. 

“Hit me with it.” He told her.

“Ok, I want an extra large whopper meal, a large order of onion rings, an extra large chicken nugget meal and a chocolate sundae. I also want two cheeseburgers and a chicken burger.” She said, making Jimmy’s eyes bug out of his head.

“Damn.” Jimmy remarked.

“What? I’m thinking of breakfast tomorrow and if I know anything from traveling as a kid, it’s that burger king always tastes better cold and for breakfast the next morning.” She explained.

“Never thought of that.” Jimmy said as he finished writing her order. “Anything else or is that all?” He asked.

Y/N thought for a minute.

“One more thing?” She questioned.

“Fuck me, ok.” He said as he put pen to paper again.

“A caramel sundae as well as the chocolate one.” She said, remembering her mother’s tradition of mixing the caramel and chocolate sundaes together.

“To confirm, you want an extra large whopper meal, an extra large chicken nugget meal, a large order of onion rings, a chicken burger, two cheeseburgers, a chocolate sundae and a caramel sundae.” Jimmy said, reading the list carefully.

“Yup, that should do it.” She said proudly. She was excited for cartoons while she ate. It was going to be just as fun as when she was a kid and on holiday with her mom when her dad was away working.

“Awesome.” Jimmy said as he headed toward the door.

He barely had his hand on the doorknob when Y/N spoke up again.

“Jimmy?” Y/N asked. He turned to face her, waiting for her response.

“Thanks for getting all that.” She said, genuinely.

“You’re welcome.” He muttered, opening the door, heading to get their food.

=

While Jimmy was out getting their food and some other treats he wanted from the store, Y/N got the room ready for the night and for their fast food feast.

She untucked the blankets on the bed and set up a partition in the middle of the bed so their sides were clearly marked, she turned on the nickelodeon channel ready for the cartoon binge fest and she had changed into her cozy pj’s. She didn’t care that they were oversized and granny looking. The point was that she was comfortable and had room for all her food.

When she was done with all of that, Y/N sat back on the bed and watched spongebob. It was one of her favorite cartoons to watch while she was traveling. It gave her a sense of nostalgia.

This particular episode, spongebob and Patrick were up to their usual chaotic mischief and every moment of the episode, Y/N was in a fit of giggles so loud Jimmy could hear them as he came back with the mass amount of food.

“Uh, a little help.” Jimmy said as he struggled to balance the items in his hands.

“Oh my god Jimmy, that’s way more than what I asked for.” Y/N told him.

“Thank you captain obvious, I hadn’t noticed.” He sassed her.

“Ok, Ok, no need to snap.” She said.

Y/N set the burger king bags etc. on the bed and the rest of the things she placed on the small desk.

“That’s everything.” Jimmy said as he entered the room with four six packs of beer.

“Beer?” Y/N asked, surprised that Jimmy drank beer. She took him as a wine guy after all.

“It goes with the chips I got.” He said.

Y/N squinted at him.

“What kind of chips?” She questioned.

“Salt n vinegar and bbq.” He replied.

“I approve.” She said.

“Good to know.” He said. 

“So is it a split situation?” She asked.

“For what?” He asked in reply.

“For the beer.” She responded.

“Uh, yeah. 12 for me, 12 for you.” He said.

“Thank you.” Y/N said as she sat down to eat her melting ice creams.

Jimmy soon joined her in eating his food and the both of them laughed and reminisced while they watched cartoon after cartoon.

In fact, they’d go as far as saying they bonded over their festivities. Jimmy learned things no one knew about Y/N and Y/N learned things no one knew about Jimmy.

=

At 2am, Jimmy woke up with a start. It wasn’t a new thing. He had been having nightmares ever since he had left Springfield and as much as he tried to rid those thoughts and memories from his mind, it never seemed to do much good.

“What’s wrong?” Y/N muttered lowly, feeling Jimmy stir beside her.

He didn’t want Y/N to know the truth so he came up with a quick lie, hoping it would appease her.

“You were snoring.” He said hurriedly.

Y/N knew that she didn’t snore but she had to give him kudos for all the lies he was able to think up on the spot. It took some real talent to do that.

“I do not snore. You liar.” She scoffed.

Jimmy sighed.

“You don’t have to tell me but you don’t have to lie either.” Y/N said.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Jimmy replied, turning over to face her so that he could see her better.

“Don’t let this get in your head but you’re a good guy Jimmy and whatever is bothering you, you shouldn’t let it overtake the goodness you have.” Y/N said.

Jimmy smiled. He knew that she was right and it made him feel good to know that someone saw that he wasn’t just a pretty face like so many women had told him. Y/N could see something in him that held promise and that made his heart happy.

“Is there anything I can do that will help you go back to sleep?” Y/N asked, not knowing that Jimmy had already fallen asleep again. His body feeling exhausted from the day’s events.

“Rest easy Jimmy and don’t worry, I’m right here.” She whispered, kissing his cheek gently.

-Fin-

---

Tag List:

@geo-winchester

@elizami11s

@stilesbansheequeen

**And anyone else who wants to be tagged in anything I write whether imagines or original work, let me know.**

[theartoflovingthomashunt]

New Traditions

[All Thomas Hunt x Alex Spencer Masterlists] [Baby Hunt]

Pairing: Thomas Hunt x Alex Spencer (F!OC) Book: Red Carpet Diaries (Post Series) Word Count: <;600 Rating: General: no warnings (slightly angsty?) Prompts: @choicesjanuarychallenge: night

Synopsis: Thomas and Alex try to enjoy some lights at a holiday festival. (a late Christmas fic... whoops... better late than never?)

Art by the lovely LizByArt on Instagram

The warmth of his arms around her shielded her from the cool night's breeze. This had always been her favorite time of year. There was just something about the magic of the season. The colors. The lights. The joy. The hope. It reminded her that everything was possible, even something as simple as a quiet moment in the arms of the man she loved.

The twins had changed their lives in so many ways. Life with two infants wasn't always (or ever) easy, but Thomas and Alex wouldn't have it any other way. They enjoyed every second of their parenthood journey. Nothing in the world compared to holding their children in their arms. Felicity and Vincent were their parents' whole world.

Still, celebrating Christmas with nine-month-old twins wasn't the same. Many places and events Alex liked to attend weren't fitting for infants, especially now that they seemed to enter a new screaming stage. Things at home were different too. They wouldn't remember all the outfits and photoshoots Alex had arranged for them or the presents and gifts under the tree. The decorations and lights brought momentary intrigue but were soon overshadowed by something else. Felicity and Vincent were too young to appreciate the same magic of the season Alex saw.

Alex rested her head on his shoulder, staring at the colorful lights and brilliant display surrounding them. Her lips pulled up at the enchanting sight, but her smile didn't seem to reach her eyes. What once had filled her with the wonder of the season seemed dimmer now.

"Are you okay?" He whispered, brushing his lips along her forehead.

Alex tipped her head up toward him. Her eyes glistened, reflecting the lights on the tree. "I thought I wanted this." Her gaze shifted once more around the beautifully illuminated decorations and festivities. "I thought I needed just one night—a reminder of the Christmas I loved, but—"

A slow smile spread on his lips. "But you miss the twins?"

"Is that crazy?" She chuckled into a sniffle. 

"No, my love. I do as well."

"Am I selfish for thinking I needed a break from them?" Alex looked into the night, shaking her head, trying to hide the tears pooling in her eyes. "I must be a horrible mom for choosing this over them."

"Oh, my Alex." He curled his finger beneath her chin, urging her back to him. His thumb grazed over her cheek, drying her silent cry. "You are the most amazing mother and wife for which the children and I could ever ask. It's okay to need a moment for yourself. You can't carry the world on your shoulders without rest. There is no shame in wanting a night away. I wanted it too."

"Really?"

"Yes. I love Felicity and Vincent with all that I am and all that I have; however, I miss sharing moments solely with you, my first love, my heart."

Alex wrapped her arms around him, letting him hold her for a few minutes longer, her heart lighter, no longer overshadowed with guilt. Rocking up on her toes, she pressed a soft kiss on his cheek while guiding the large red scarf that had adjoined them off his neck. "Thank you for indulging me."

"Every time, my love." He laced his fingers with hers, his thumb running gently over hers. "Let's go home."

Alex smiled, leaning into him. "Let's get our babies. It's time to make some new traditions."

Alex absolutely loves all things Christmas! I imagine her first year as a mom was challenging with her being torn between wanting to spend time with her babies and wanting to do all her normal Christmas things. In the end, she'd learn to make new memories and traditions and I sense she'll love them even more.

Thank you so much for reading. I hope you enjoyed this extremely late Christmas drabble. 💛 💛 💛

[cloudpools]

🍨Trying unique ice cream flavors at a local parlor. [get adventurous, nara- wylan will accept no less (main verse)]

Emoji RP Prompts ||  ⚜Accepting⚜

🍨Trying unique ice cream flavors at a local parlor.

"You.... bought me an ice cream parlor?"

"Yes I did!" Well. He'd borrowed it. It was November and they were on the off season. But it's fine. She didn't need to know the details.

"And.... you made all of the flavors yourself...?"

He nods enthusiastically.

Dear god.

Nara stands befuddled in the lobby of the establishment lovingly rebranded Nylon Niceties (He'd tried to explain to her the concept of ship names before and apparently 'Nylon' was theirs??? But it didn't really click with her...). It was her birthday, and Wylan had promised a "big surprise".... which- could really mean anything. He was anything, but predictable, despite Nara's best efforts. She'd come to expect the unexpected, but this was a little too unexpected.

Of course, to Wylan, this was obviously the best gift EVER. Their hobbies and the things they liked didn't always overlap. Yes, their personalities were compatible, and yes they accepted each other for who they both were, flaws and all, but Nara liked ice cream. Scratch that. Nara LOVED ice cream. And so did he. But who doesn't like ice cream? And who didn't love homemade gifts? (Even if this wasn't home.)

The elephant in the room here was that Wylan wasn't exactly a chef.... Nara had taken over that role very quickly in their relationship, his apartment now carefully stocked with all the implements and instruments she needed to craft some semblance of a meal. She preferred cooking at home, her kitchen, for one, being much larger and much more well stocked, but it was a small price to pay to see him and ensure he was taking care of himself.

But again. He made all of the flavors himself???????? She's skeptical.... Yet she couldn't help but admit he did look very cute in the stripped apron, bowtie and little paper hat.

"Let me know if you'd like to try anything!" He's playing the part of shopkeeper well, but Wylan was always good at that sort of thing. He's grinning ear to ear like the idiot he was, and that can only mean two things. One, her reaction was exactly what he'd hopped for, or, two, he still had more tricks up his sleeve... Which was a definite because he always had something more. Nara decides to humor him, walking up to the case of frozen delights(?), bending down to read the hand written cards that were haphazardly tapped over the originals.

'Buffalo Chicken'

'Pickles and Cheez Wiz'?

Was that one just called 'TV Dinner'?

It was no secret that Wylan's palate was.... questionable, but in all the years they'd been together, all of the fine dining restaurants they'd visited and home cooked meals she'd prepared for him, she'd thought that at least SOME of it would have rubbed off on him. Where had she gone wrong?

Nara stands up, attempting to flee before she's guilted into trying any of these bachelor pad monstrosities, but Wylan is there in a flash. She opens her mouth to protest and! Oops! In pops a testing spoon!

"This one's `Mustard and Pretzels`! It's kind of like sea salt caramel." Nara freezes, mind racing. She- she couldn't say she didn't like it right? He'd gone through all this trouble and it really was sweet if not dangerous. Would he be offended if she spit it out?! This was Wylan, so probably not... But-

Wait.

In the moments it took her mind to have one thousand thoughts, she'd had time to really taste it and... Actually??? It wasn't that bad. Definitely not something she would have tried under normal circumstances and she most certainly wouldn't be caught dead pairing the original ingredients together, but all in all? It was edible and didn't make her immediately want to vomit.

"Soooo? What do you think?"

"I can't say it's something I'd ever like to have again, but it's.... actually, okay?"

"There's one more secret flavor."

"Oh?" Nara braces herself. Prepared for his worst, yet in classic Wylan fashion, he hops the counter (couldn't he just go around like a normal person?!) startling her. Again, she's about to flee, but he grabs her pressing a kiss to her lips. She melts, eyes lidding, and after a few moments, he pulls away slightly.

"Happy birthday, Doe."

She's flushed, heart racing. The fact that he still got this kind of rise out of her after all this time was telling of how much she loved him.

"Th- thank you. I... I'd like to try the rest. If you don't mind?"

[drgnrder82]

Fictober22: Do you remember?

Fanfiction

Fandom: Danny Phantom

Warnings: None (surprising even me!)

Word count: 1304

Prompt: Do you remember?

A/N: I thought about this story for a long time... and I thought maybe I've posted something similar before but eh... here it is.

~*~*~*~*~

The note fell out of his locker, landing on his shoes. 

“A-hem!” Sam coughed. “Danny?” 

Danny bent to pick up the note, narrowly avoiding a swing from Dash. 

“OOOOOOH,” Tucker sang. “Danny’s got a secret admirer!” 

Danny spotted Sam swing at Tucker's chest from the corner of his eye. The note felt thick but oddly weightless. No name was written on any of the sides. The only way to know who this was for was to read it. It might not even be for Danny. 

Daniel…

“OOOOOH,” Tucker sang again, not learning his lesson from the first time. “Danny’s really got a…” 

“Don’t. Finish. That. Sentence.” Sam growled. 

Quietly Danny kept reading, and… if this was a love declaration, it would've been channeling ancient times. 

Or, well… it certainly sounded several decades out of fashion. 

“Sooooo? Who’s the lucky girl?” Tucker slid next to Danny. “Who’s Annabeth? There’s no Annabeth in Casper High.” 

“See, someone’s playing a prank. Let’s get to first period!” Without waiting for an answer, Sam stalked down the hall. 

***

The note was only the first strange thing that day. Before lunch, when Danny opened his locker, flowers fell out. Not a bouquet, just loose flowers of all varieties. Then after school, while waiting for their orders at Nasty Burger, Danny found a snack at their table labeled 'for Daniel.' 

After stealing a bit of the cake, Tucker said, "Dude, I like this 'Annabeth' secret admirer. Can we keep her around a couple more days before Danny tells her he's not interested? Unless…" 

"I'm not interested!" Danny screeched. Glancing at Sam, a hot blush filled his face. "But I need to find out what's going on. These things are all just appearing, but…" 

Danny's ghost breath activated, and his heart skipped a beat (hilarious, of course, because if he transformed, he wouldn't have a heartbeat). But before transforming, Danny scanned the area. There was nothing out of the ordinary at Nasty Burger. No one screaming. Nothing that told them, 'hey, ghost over here,' and that was saying something in Amity Park. 

“Today is full of strange stuff, that’s for sure,” Danny said and tried to enjoy his burger. 

***

As Danny stepped out the front door, he realized he couldn't place the feeling until finally, he felt the presence before the gift was placed. "Ah ha! Oh." 

Floating behind Danny on his parents' doorstep, holding a transparent box of chocolate, was a young woman… ghost. There were many ghosts Danny fought. Maniacal, psychotic, eternally loud and boisterous and evil… 

Some looked normal enough until they'd been pushed over a metaphorical edge. But this girl looked like nothing more than a girl. Granted, her dress was about 5 decades or more out of date. And her long, straight hair was pulled into a low ponytail. 

The poor girl-ghost yelped and dropped the ghostly chocolates. 

Before Danny could get another word out, the ghost girl (presumably, Annabeth) squeaked again, turned invisible, scooped up the chocolates, and flew off. 

"Hey, wait!" An alarm went off on Danny's phone. "Oh, man! I can be late and get written up or follow you?"

“Danny!” His father, Jack Fenton, cried from inside their house. “Where is that boy?” 

“At school, honey!” Danny’s mother called back. “Cause if he isn’t, he’s grounded until he graduates!” 

"Guess that answers that question," Danny complained and stomped off.

***

“So?” Tucker, somehow, cornered Danny at his locker. Actually making Danny feel trapped against his will even though he could turn ghost and leave if he wanted. 

“So, what?” Danny asked. 

“Was she pretty?” 

“She’s a ghost, Tucker. Probably mistook me for someone else named Daniel.” 

"Sure, another Daniel who is also a ghost. Come on, man! She's got a hardcore crush on you!" 

Somehow, Sam's books slipped from her hand and fell directly onto Tucker's foot. 

"Look, after school, I'll find her and talk to her. I'm sure it's just a misunderstanding.” 

“You might not have to wait long!” Sam smirked as some screams came from up the hall. 

Then quickly faded. Sure, down the hallway floated Annabeth the ghost, muttering to herself and rearranging the box of ghostly chocolates in neat rows within their box again. As a ghost not trying to scare people, she was mostly garnering strange looks and more than a few snide comments from Paulina about her dress. 

“Yeah… I’ll be right back.” Danny stepped into his locker, letting Tucker and Sam cover his hiding spot as he transformed. 

Danny went invisible and sailed down the hallway, grabbing hold of Annabeth and taking her with him through the closest classroom wall. 

“Oh. OH!” Annabeth squealed, dropping the ghostly chocolates and covering her face. “Daniel! What are you doing?” 

"Name's not 'Daniel,'" Danny said, letting go of Annabeth outside the school in the quiet courtyard. "Actually, it is," he continued, turning visible again. "But only my parents call me Daniel, and that's only when I'm in trouble. I'm Danny." 

"Oooooh," Annabeth sighed, then went to work fixing her mussed-up dress. Though, as a ghost, it was hardly necessary. She even tugged at her hair. "I must be an awful mess." 

“Annabeth?” Danny pulled her hands from her hair. They both hovered just off the ground, but Danny landed and brought her with him. “Who is Daniel?” 

“You…” 

“No… who is the Daniel you’re looking for? Do you remember?” 

Annabeth stumbled back. “You’re Daniel… you’re… oh. You’re not my Daniel?” She moved closer, studying Danny so closely that if he currently had a heartbeat, it would be erratic as all get out. 

Gently, Danny reached out, gripping Annabeth's shoulders and keeping her at arm's length. "What happened? Do you remember?" he repeated. 

“I… no, we were supposed to meet for our anniversary. But… well…” 

"I swear if you tell me his last name was 'Fenton,' I will lose it." 

"No. Not Fen-ton? But his home… his parents… they lived just there," Annabeth said and pointed at the Fenton home. "… and this school… it's the same…" 

Danny chuckled. “That does not surprise me. This school feels ancient!” 

Annabeth's eyes cast down, stifling a sob. Danny had met so many terrifying ghosts (and maybe a few that were not so terrifying **cough cough** Box Ghost **cough cough**), but this girl was not like any of them. Plus, Annabeth was a ghost for a reason… but why? 

“Were you and Daniel together when…” 

She couldn’t hold back the sob any longer. “No. I’ve been looking for him for decades and then you…” 

“How about this?” Danny asked quickly, trying to stem the flood of tears. “We’ll help you look for your Daniel?”

Sam and Tucker, out of breath, came running up to Danny. “We need to hustle to class!” 

“Mr. Lancer is on the warpath,” Tucker added. 

"Ah! If I get written up one more time…!" Danny glanced at Annabeth. "Here," Danny said, pulling out a notebook and pen from his backpack in Tucker's grasp. "We'll figure out where Daniel is together. Write down what you remember about Daniel, about where you lived… about everything, and we'll find him. When not under the impending doom of detention." 

Danny started to change back to his human form when Annabeth jumped into him for a hug. 

“Thank you,” she whispered. 

“Heh, heh, heh. Yeah.” Danny quickly pried the girl ghost off him as Sam seemed to be near fuming again. “Whoa.” A sudden wave of dizziness took hold of Danny. 

“Danny?” Sam asked as she rushed to his side. “Danny, say something!” 

"Excellent work, little one! This new trap works perfectly!" Vlad materialized behind Annabeth, who still appeared stricken by the sight of Danny's sudden illness. 

“It’s a Tuesday, isn’t it?” Tucker asked, tossing the Geometry homework in the air. “This stuff always happens on a Tuesday.” 

TO BE CONTINUED (on another fictober prompt)

[invisibleraven]

Gotta be larger than life

Written for the Year of the OTP challenge prompt: fairy tale

Pairing: Reggie/Carrie

On AO3!

Definitely stretching the prompt fill on this one, but I got the idea and it wouldn't let go. I am just so fascinated by Carrie Wilson, and this just came to me as a interesting character study with some Sweet Tarts slipped in. Hope you enjoy!

All her life, all Carrie Wilson wanted to be was a princess. Every Halloween or chance to dress up, she demanded a poofy pink dress and a crown from her father who always agreed. Called her princess as a term of endearment and ruffled her honey blonde hair when he did.

Thankfully no one questions little girls about why they wanted to be a princess.

It wasn’t the power, no. Even if Carrie got a strange delight in people listening to her, a nice little feeling when she got her own way. But she didn’t need a crown for that.

It wasn’t the riches either. Her dad was a millionaire musician with his face on his very own helicopter. Carrie was dripping in designer fashion and jewels after every gift giving holiday. She literally wanted for nothing.

It wasn’t even because she longed for some handsome prince, even if she did want to be saved occasionally. Swooning over the pictures in her books over the hero pressing tender kisses to the princess’ hand.

But none of those were the real reason Carrie longed to be a princess.

Princesses didn’t have mothers who left you on a doorstep at three days old with a note not to bother to find them. And no amount of wasted birthday wishes or pleas to Santa was bringing Paige Shepard back.

Princesses had fathers who were busy ruling kingdoms but were still there. Not off touring the country or off on some meditation retreat, leaving her to be raised by nannies and maids. Living off tofu and kale in a tasteless, sugarless existence because her father got hung up on eating healthy as a teen.

Princesses didn’t grow up lonely, unloved, and feeling like they were never enough. So Carrie dreamed of a life where she was royalty, pushed down all those bad feelings, and kept her head up high, wearing her imaginary crown to keep going.

Because maybe she didn’t live in a fairy tale, but Carrie was still gonna damn well try for that happy ending.

As she grew, Carrie still wanted to be a princess. Only a pop princess who ruled the stage with her killer lyrics and well choreographed dance moves. Poofy dresses got traded in for hot pink sparkly jackets and a matching wig replaced her tiara.

Now when people called her princess, it wasn’t said lovingly with a gentle smile and a pat to the head (her dad was the only one allowed to touch her hair like that to this day, anyone else who even tried got cut down by her killer glare). Now it was said with derision, like she was some prissy stuck up brat, who thought herself better than anyone.

Well she was, but she never tried to act like it… well not that much.

But at night, when she stripped off the Pink Candi costume, hung up her wig, and snuggled under her covers-Carrie sometimes cried, because words hurt, and she hated that they twisted her dream into something ugly, something to be mocked. Her security became a wound more than armour.

That was, until she met Reggie Peters.

Reggie was a year above her, but after Thomas Jefferson High burned down, their students got shoved into Los Feliz, and so Reggie had to finish out his senior year at a new school. She ran into him on the first day, wandering the halls, looking confused and alone, and completely out of place in his ripped jeans and leather jacket.

“Hi there, I was wondering if you could help me?” he asked as Carrie’s eyes met his. They were a light green, making Carrie think of a springtime meadow.

“I can try,” she said. Normally she wouldn’t be one to help anyone-had to look out for number one after all. But he had this sad, lost puppy quality to him, so Carrie offered up her services. She had always had a thing for pathetic animals, even if she hid how often she volunteered at the animal shelter because it didn’t fit the persona she wanted to give off. Those who had been abandoned had to stick together though, right? Plus at the shelter she could be-and was-loved with no reservations or pretense, something that Carrie desperately needed after long days pretending to be above it all.

Anyways, there was still a lost puppy looking at her, so Carrie shook herself from her melancholy thoughts and faced him, prepared to help one more soul who needed her.

It didn’t hurt that up close she could see the tiny golden freckles that bridged across his face, or the slightly crooked grin that burst forth when she agreed. “Thanks so much,” he said, showing her his schedule. “I’m supposed to report to Mr. Johnson for homeroom, and then someone is supposed to show me around, but I have no clue where his room is.”

“I have Johnson too, so you can just follow me,” Carrie replied. Reggie grinned once more and she tried to ignore how much she liked his smile, the way he ran his fingers through his dark hair with effortless ease, the way he almost bounced as he walked.

They made small talk on the way to class, and Carrie found out that Reggie was a musician, his three best friends and band mates had been transferred here too, but Alex was dating a student here, so they were probably in some broom closet of another, Luke probably skipped, and Bobby was home sick after catching a cold at his lifeguarding job. Thus him being alone today, but he blushed when he glanced at her and admitted he didn’t mind so much right now.

Carrie treasured that blush, the petal soft pink that mimicked the colour of every beloved childhood gown that lived on in her heart. She smiled back, a rare genuine one, pulling on a strand of hair to hide her own matching blush, but from the twinkle in Reggie’s eyes and the small bump to her shoulder, she doubted she succeeded.

“Get a new peon princess?” Kyle Baxter sneered as she passed, and Carrie stiffened, but didn’t even deign to look his way in response.

“Hey dude, lay off, she’s being nice enough to help the new kid out!,” Reggie shot back and then steered them further up the hall. His hand was warm and large at the small of her back, and Carrie felt herself blush even further, but the reasons were muddled. “Ugh, I hate jerks like that.”

“Me too, but I’m used to it by now,” Carrie replied.

“You shouldn’t have to be,” Reggie replied. “You let me know if he tries it again, I have a mean left hook.”

“I don’t think that’s how you want to start out your time here,” Carrie cautioned. “Getting into stupid fights to defend my honour. I can take care of myself, you know.”

“Of that I have no doubt,” Reggie replied, winking at her. “But what kind of knight would I be if I didn’t stand up for my princess?”

Carrie’s heart fluttered at that, at the sincerity in his voice, the way he said princess like it was a title given with honour instead of derision. From him, it sounded sweet, like honey on her tongue while Kyle and everyone else had inspired a bitter taste that had almost ruined the word for her. Yet she couldn’t let Reggie know that, instead keeping her shields up, just in case.

“You’re a knight now?” Carrie asked with an eye roll.

“Technically I’m a half elf paladin,” Reggie amended with a shrug. “Sorry, I like D&D. Kind of a code to stick up for the nobility. Lawful good and all.”

“And I’m a princess?” Carrie asked, a small blossom of hope trying to bloom inside of her.

“Yeah, you’ve got that regal quality about you,” Reggie replied. “Plus I bet you would rock a tiara.”

“Sadly none of them seem to fit anymore,” Carrie said. At Reggie’s questioning glance, she shook her head and waved at the door before them. “Here we are. Home room.”

“Well Your Highness, thank you for escorting this humble knight to the start of his quest,” Reggie said with a deep bow, pressing a tiny feather light kiss to her knuckles that made Carrie blush right to the roots of her hair. “Lemme know if you wanna play D&D sometime, I think you’d like it. You could wear the tiara there.”

“Could my character be a real princess?” Carrie asked, the words slipping out, almost tumbling off her tongue. But she didn’t take them back, just looked at Reggie expectantly.

“I’d expect nothing less,’ Reggie said before entering the room to talk to the teacher.

Carrie wasn’t sure if she walked or floated to her desk, but she definitely knew she spent half of the period staring at Reggie across the room and not being one scrap of attention to anything said. For one moment, she had felt like a princess, and she wasn’t giving that feeling up for anyone, not even if others jeered when they addressed her.

And if she ended up getting a new tiara just so she could play Princess Alaria, her druid princess along with Sir Elton of Suffolk, well, no one could say she wasn’t dressed appropriately. Reggie told her that Luke brought a honest to goodness lute one session, so she’d fit right in.

Sure, Carrie knew she would never be a real princess. Maybe not even a pop one, even if Dirty Candi was in talks with an up and coming manager after their last performance.

But come Homecoming, with Reggie on her arm? She felt like a queen, tiara and all, and he promised that from here on out, their fairy tale would be one beautiful story, with a guaranteed happy ending.

And somehow? Carrie believed him. Fairy tales might not be real, but the prince of a man on her arm who treated her like royalty certainly was, and that was good enough for her.

[danpuff-ao3]

The Making of: Obscene

For something that is only 1,864 words, Obscene was hell to write.

2022 Kinkuary. Day 23: A/B/O.

After my great accomplishment during 2021 Kinktober (7 works in one month, not bad!!) I was determined to write for Kinkuary. (Spoiler: I only managed 2 works that month.) (Still not too shabby, tbf.)

I had a handful of ideas, all jotted down in a notebook. Of them all, the 2 I completed were my top priorities. The first was The Alchymist II....which is a story in of itself. But that work was a rewrite and repost of a previously deleted fic.

Obscene was new. And while I retain complicated feelings towards The Alchymist series, Obscene is...special.

For one, I really love a/b/o stories, and I'd been wanting to write one. I was also, oddly, scared to write one.

There is a lot of great commentary on the potential of a/b/o stories, with a lot of worldbuilding and as a statement of real life issues. It's valid commentary, and I do love a good a/b/o story that delves into all of that juicy potential.

But I'm not gonna lie to you. I really love the smut.

I love the animalistic urges. I love the dubcon (if not outright noncon) vibe of it. I love the weird biology. I love the built in excuse for mpreg.

And I'm really, really, really into...well...bodily fluids.

I looooove me some bodily fluids in stories. I love the grossness. I love a good mess. I was drooling at the thought of just fully leaning into all the fun bits of a/b/o, or what I really enjoy in them. But let me not get too explicit here. You can read the fic itself for that.

But that drive is what really drove the whole story. And it really gave me my opening:

Never has Severus been so wet outside of heat. 

It’s humiliating; obscene.

There were a few pressures at play. For one, never really having written a/b/o and feeling that people would have expectations of it. How many times I reminded myself it's a fictional construct in a fictional story and I could do whatever the heck I wanted! Secondly, the worry of writing "yet another a/b/o porn." Again: reminder to self, you can write whatever you want. If people want an in-depth exploration of society and biology and blah blah they can do it themselves. Three: the "deadline."

For reference, daily prompt events don't usually have a hard rule about posting on the prompt day. That is primarily my OCD brain being ultra particular and restrictive. I did, in fact, miss the prompt day. Day 23 was a/b/o day. This fic went up on Day 28. But since Day 28 was "free day", I didn't beat myself up too hard over it!

Lastly...I decided to gift this fic to LilaDiurne.

Which presented a whole host of other concerns. Gifting fics can be so scary! Especially when you're gifting works to such a gifted writer. Even more so because Lila has a fabulous a/b/o of her own, Brighter Than Bright. I know Lila enjoys a/b/o, and I knew she wouldn't mind some good a/b/o smut, but...well. I was still daunted.

There were aspects of the story I worried wouldn't be to her liking. I worried the end product wouldn't be good enough. Endless worries and second guessing. But it mattered to me to write this story. And it mattered to me to gift it to a friend.

Every word was hard won. Stress, I find, is very detrimental to my creative process.

And...well...I can admit one last issue. Aside from the stress, when I'm personally...well...into smut, it becomes a challenge to write. Normally because I'm overheated and panting at the screen. How embarrassing!

So...stress + breaks to be horny. A winning combination for the Struggle Bus.

Eventually I completed the dang thing. And edited it to death. And posted it and crossed my fingers that Lila wouldn't hate me or judge me for it. (Silly of me, really. I'm sure she'd have appreciated it even if she hadn't liked the story.)

That Lila did like it was a huge relief to me!

That so many other people liked it, well...that was a shock. A very happy one!

Any fic doing well is great, but especially one you've pulled hair out over! Makes the whole ordeal feel like it was worth it all, in the end.

[the-fangirls-desk]

Summer Daze (Usnavi x F!Reader)

Summary: When Usnavi's allergies start acting up, he tries taking something for it; unfortunately, he ends up taking the wrong stuff.

A/N: This is a mini fic as part of my limited time "Sleepy Intimacy Requests" from the list here (x)

Prompt Request: #11 with Usnavi "I took NyQuil instead of DayQuil on accident and now I'm about to pass out."

Requested by: @feathersandfoxtails

(Threw in a custom moodboard for you!)

The first thing you could feel when coming to your senses, was the warm embrace of your smooth sheets and big fluffy duvet. The bedding felt so comforting as it kept yours and Usnavi's body heat locked in from all last night, and into the morning. Even though the month was already four days into summer, the waking hours in your apartment still seemed a bit cool. Probably only because the summer heat hasn't had a chance to settle in yet.

By some miracle this morning, you woke up before your alarm. Not to say you normally jumped out of bed or anything like that---couldn't have been more of the opposite, especially since you weren't a morning person. Usnavi, on the other hand, pretty much had his internal clock locked into a solid routine of rising earlier than the birds. Your routine was a completely different story.

You needed time to slowly rise and ease into your morning; it seemed to be the only proven method that could make dealing with the rest of the day easier. On normal occasions, since he slept on the side of the bed closest to the clock, Usnavi would hit the alarm as quickly as his reflexes would allow him to. That way you could take your time, and wouldn't have to suffer through all that buzzing.

Yes, buzzing. The bedside alarm clock you two used was a completely outdated model all the way back from the year of 2004, so it had that really loud obnoxious buzzing alarm sound. It also happened to be a Christmas gift to Usnavi from the now late Abuela Claudia.

That year he complained non-stop about how his previous one was acting up in the form of going off when it wasn't supposed to, as well as not doing a thing when a time had been set on it.

He could've bought that for himself a long time ago, but was usually kept on his toes by the store, as well as making sure Sonny was taken care of.

Now that exact clock that was the godsend he needed continued to faithfully go off on the dot every morning. Even though it got the job done, you wished for a more modern, "sleek" alarm; kinda like the default ones you could find on your phone. Sure those alerts were annoying too, but at least they didn't sound like someone was using an electric pencil sharpener right over your head.

However, the conversation about that closed long ago. You basically asked Usnavi if you could just use your phones to wake you up but he really didn't want to do that. It took a bit of poking and probing, but he eventually came clean to you about why he kept the crappy thing around.

It was about a year ago, on a warm day. You two were having this discussion while doing some spring cleaning and Usnavi found the clock in a box he kept under the bed. He was supposed to have this set up months ago, but he let it get away from him due to trying to handle all the daily responsiblilites of an adult, per the norm:

"Why are yout tastes so old?" You chuckled, while dusting.

"Hey, they ain't old, they're retro. Classy, some might say. Matter a fact, you may as well call me Richie Valens."

"Yeah, Classy alright. Class of 1950."

"I know, I know, I'm just messing with you. But seriously, why keep that old one when we can just use the built in alarms on our phones? Saves space on the nightstand and we can even make our own custom ones. The sounds on that thing would be like a police siren going off every morning.

"You know it wasn't made that long ago."

"Yeah, Babe, I know. It's just that..."

His trailing off told you that he really didn't wanna finish his admission. Damn near impossible to overlook his lips tightening as if trying to keep his voice from having the slightest crack in it.

"Usnavi, what?" you asked, voice becoming softer.

"Abuela. She gave this to me, you were there 'member?"

"Yeah. Handful of years ago."

You could still remember how proud she was to give that to Usnavi. Abuela was practically beaming at seeing him open his gift and smile. Why shouldn't she smile with him? Although jobless, she managed to scrape together enough money to get something he both needed and wanted. Knowing her, she probably sold something of hers or maybe even did some cleaning, sewing work etc. to afford it.

When you asked her later in the kitchen how she got it, she simply gave you a warm smile, and went about her business cleaning everything up. Not the clearest response, but it told you she proudly earned the money.

Honestly, Abuela was sweetest lady on earth and it still hurt to this day that she was gone.

"I know it's been a while since she passed, but...tossin' it aside would feel like I'm tossin' her aside. Yeah yeah, I think of her every day and kept all her things, tell her legacy. I just can't abandon her, so I really want us to use this to get us up every morning. Could be like she's starti' the day for us."

Abuela was always super gentle when waking Usnavi, but you understood his sentiment.

He was looking at the clock the entire time his heart was being poured out; it wasn't until he finished speaking that he looked up from where he was sitting on the floor and made eye contact again.

"I'm sorry, is that weird?"

"No! no no no, Usnavi."

You settled yourself next to him.

"I completely understand. She was like my Abuela too, you know?"

"Yeah. It's a big fuss to make about a clock, but---"

"Really?"

"No buts. The sentimental value behind an ordinary item can be a very powerful thing. If it really means that much to you, then we'll plug it in right next to our bed immediately if you want."

"Really."

BZZT BZZT BZZ

You were still so caught in between awake and asleep, that it might have given you a frickin' mini heart attack when the alarm went off for real this time, pulling you foggy mind away from its thoughts. As per usual, you continued to lay there, waiting for Usnavi to sit up and hit the snooze.

Normally it buzzed about four times before he reacted, but this time he seemed to just be letting go off. Maybe he was just in an extra deep sleep this time. Heaven knows how much rest he really needed to catch up on.

"Mmmnngg...Usnavi..."

No response.

"Usnavi..." you groaned.

Still not a peep out of him.

Confusion hit, and you flipped over on your other side, only to be greeted with his back to you.

BZZT BZZT BZZT

Ugh that damn noise! How could he not hear that? It would have been more trouble to reach across him and do it yourself. Finally taking control of the situation your hand grabbed his shoulder and firmly shook it.

"Usnavi!"

He finally stirred a bit, barely lifting his head but somehow still unaware of the audible assault still going on.

"Hmm?"

"The alarm's going off!" you whined, trying to block the noise by pulling your pillow over your head.

"Th-the alarm, wha--?"

"Ugh, I'll do it myself!"

His head dropped back down to the pillow, complete dead weight.

Despite the rude awakening, your body still felt like a cinder block as you forced yourself to scoot closer and reach over his form only for your index and middle finger to barely hit the button since the clock sat on the farther side of his nightstand.

By some miracle, it worked.

Ahhh...golden silence.

Still leaning over Usnavi, you looked down and noticed he seemed to already be fading back to sleep.

"Usnavi." Shook him again.

"What?" he moaned.

"Didn't you hear the alarm go off? It's time to get up."

"It's morning already?" he almost sounded like a kid when they wake up with a cold.

"Yes. Are you okay? You seem off."

"Ugh my allergies, they started back up again yesterday and kept me awake all night. Just kept sneezing and couldn't breathe through one nostril. I just got back to sleep like a couple of hours ago."

"Two hours?! Why didn't you take something for it? Or least wake me up?"

"I thought it would go away on its own. They're usually not this bad, plus I didn't wanna wake you up."

Sigh, this stupidly sweet man. Like a lot of people, Usnavi was known to suffer from hay fever every year when spring transitioned into summer. Yours tended to kick in around early spring and it was a bitch to deal with. Seems like his returned with a vengeance this time around.

"Here, turn over and lemme see."

He did as he was told, and upon seeing each other face to face, it's clear he wasn't kidding. The tip of his nose and rims of his eyes were reddened; and the breath coming from both his nose and slightly parted lips sounded a bit congested.

Yeah, this was a familiar sight.

"Do I look as bad as I feel?"

"Yeah, you really do. Maybe the store should stay closed today?"

He was bad at pretending to consider it and it was annoying to no end, but that was Usnavi for you; a complete workaholic. Unless he literally couldn't drag himself out of bed, the day was going to go as planned.

"Well--"

"Don't. I can see you're gonna go to work any way, but at least take some of that DayQuil we have in the bathroom."

"Good idea. Here, I'll get your coffee first."

"No that's alright. You go on and take that medicine so you can at least function today. I'll make the coffee for us this morning."

"Aw, I don't deserve you (Y/N). Dame un beso."

Your hand kept him pushed back a bit.

"Ah. Maybe after the DayQuil."

"Right. I'll go take care of that; see you in the kitchen?"

"It's a date."

After he disappeared to the bathroom, you could hear him rummaging in the medicine cabinet for the DayQuil. When he didn't return after you assumed he completed the ten second task of measuring the right amount and downing it, the sound of running water could be heard.

It was coming from the sink. He was probably getting ready for the day---washing his face, brushing his teeth and whatnot.

Ugh, better get up and start the coffee before he was done. Being his girl meant you had the honor of learning how to remake the special blend he gave the customers every morning.

Something seemed to be telling you it was going to be quite a bit of an off day, so not really caring about looking perfect right now, you grabbed the first shirt and pair of pants from your half of the bedroom closet.

Usnavi came out of the bathroom a few minutes later, and into the kitchen while buttoning up his favorite red overshirt with the little twisty white pattern on the front.

"Hey, right on time. Feeling any better?"

You were just finishing up pouring coffee for the two of you.

"Not yet," he sighed, congestion still very audible. "I guess it needs a bit of time to work."

"Are you sure you wanna run the store today? You've been getting a bit behind in having any decent sleep."

He took the little carton of milk off the counter and poured a generous amount into his mug.

"I'll be fine. It'll pass, it always does."

There was just no stopping him no matter what you tried when it came to work.

"If you say so..."

As you were finishing up, he took a look at his watch.

"Gotta get going. The doors are supposed to open in about twenty minutes."

"Alright."

He leaned in for a kiss, but then stopped himself and relocated it from your lips to your forehead instead. With the symptoms he had at the moment, he knew the kiss wouldn't be that great for the either of you.

It made you laugh.

"I'll see you later, I love you."

"Love you too."

Usnavi was only a foot out the door when he rushed back in.

"Hey (Y/N) have you seen my---?"

"It's on the coffee table." You said, back turned towards him as you tried to enjoy the morning sun in your kitchen.

His hat. He never left anywhere without it.

"Got it. Thanks."

May as well enjoy the peace while it was there. Today was definitely going to be odd, you could feel it.

LATER THAT AFTERNOON...

"Wow, all this pollen is kicking my ass." Usnavi muttered to himself.

He was wiping down the counter for about the tenth time that day when he felt yet another wave of fatigue make him wobble where he stood. Still wasn't feeling great; the symptoms eased a bit, but he was so tired and couldn't figure out why.

Honestly, he would've dropped like a sack of potatoes if he didn't have the counter to lean against. Surprised he was even able to hold himself up by sheer willpower since gravity certainly wasn't going to help.

The only thing he wanted to do was lock up and go sleep at home. the very thought caused him to bury his face in his hands as he miserably groaned. Whhyyy why couldn't he shake this drowsiness?

More than once, the coffee machine called to him like a siren as it gave him the idea of using caffeine to wake him up. But he didn't wanna risk burning himself in this drunk-like state.

If only Sonny was here to pick up the slack; normally he was, but him and his mom were currently out of town spending some quality time off the grid.

Half comatose and it was only noon. Hurry up, five 'o clock...

Just then the little bell at the entrance rang, bringing him back somewhat.

"Hey, Lil Homie!"

Uh oh.

"Benny, hi." Usnavi did his best to steady himself and stand up straight but he couldn't keep from sniffling at the irritation in his nose.

"I just came to get---woah, what happened to you?"

Great.

"What do you mean?" he feigned, taking out a Milky Way from one of the candy shelves nearby since Benny always dropped in for a little pick me up this time of day.

"Don't try that. You're not drunk, are you?"

"Benny, come on, you know I don't drink during the day."

"Then why are your eyes all red and glassy?"

Oh shut up, why was he grilling him so badly? He really wasn't in the mood for it right now.

"It's just my allergies. They kept me up all night, so I didn't get any sleep, that's all."

As Usnavi rang up the candy bar, Benny looked relieved at the statement. He knew Usnavi wasn't one to get drunk during work hours, but it wasn't like him to be so 'unprofessional looking' while he worked.

"Oh. Well why don't you take something for it? You literally got shelves and shelves for this kinda issue."

"I did. I took some DayQuil this morning, and it hasn't done anything so far. Been using all my strength just to stay standing and I can't stop feelin' so sleepy."

"Sit down for a minute, then. Business seems slow today."

Oh if only he could. He really wanted to lie down, but it wasn't worth the risk of getting robbed.

"If I sit, I'll zonk out. I just want this stuff to do its job."

Benny handed over his due amount and began to unwrap the Milky Way, taking a generous bite once the wrapper was off.

"So take another dose."

"I would, but the instructions said clear as day not to take more until six hours have passed."

Usnavi felt it again; that dizzying head rush. He firmly planted his palm on the register to steady himself.

"Are you sure that's what the instructions said? The way you are right now, it couldn't hurt to try again."

"Benny, the instructions said six hours, so if the little blue bottle tells me to wait that long, I'm gonna wait that long!"

The taxi dispatcher rolled his eyes. Usnavi was always one to take rules too seriously. After taking another bite, his mind rewound something he just heard.

"Hold on, blue bottle?"

"Yeah, why?"

"I thought you said you took DayQuil."

"I did."

Something wasn't adding up here.

"Bro, DayQuil doesn't come in blue bottles, it comes in orange bottles."

"No no wait, because---"

He was right. Oh no, he was right. That wasn't DayQuil he took this morning! No wonder he couldn't wake up. His head fell into his hands again.

"Oh no, Bennyyyy. I think I took NyQuil instead!"

"Yeah, ya think so?? Sit down right now before you fall and crack your head open. Honestly, how could you do something so dumb?"

"I don't know, I was feeling awful, trying to get ready in a hurry, and when I caught a glance of the word 'quil' on the closest bottle, I just thought it---oh Benny, why me?"

Back at the apartment, you were currently kicked back on the couch. With it being your day off and all, the only thing you'd been doing since Usnavi went to work was watching Netflix and drinking coffee while giving social media a bit too much attention since you had your laptop out.

It was a not so guilty pleasure.

You had absolutely no idea how many episodes of Golden Girls you sat through by this point, but nothing was gonna stop you from watching another ten episodes.

Maybe nothing except a bathroom trip. Didn't even realize how many cups of coffee and how many hours you spent sitting on the couch without a bathroom break.

You groaned in annoyance since your lazy day persona didn't wanna get up. Obviously it was a necessary trip, though.

With much reluctance, you moved the laptop aside and went down the hall.

It wasn't until after you washed your hands and dried them off that you noticed Usnavi left the sink in a bit of a state. Nothing terrible, and it wasn't worth scolding him over since he wasn't the sharpest this morning.

Again, nothing terrible; toothpaste still laying out, face wash without the lid put back on, bottle of NyQuil---wait, what?

NyQuil? Didn't you tell him to take the day stuff? Did he--? Nah, he wouldn't. Before leaving the bathroom, your gut told you to be more thorough. So after digging through the storage under the sink, sure enough, in the third drawer, you found a completely sealed bottle of DayQuil.

Oh, Usnavi. Yep you called it; weird day.

You were rushing through the bodega doors within under ten minutes. Thankfully the apartment was next door to the business.

"Usnavi! Usnavi! You didn't take DayQuil this morning, you---"

He was sitting behind the register, a bit slumped over in his seat with his head on Benny's shoulder, who was sitting by his side. Probably to keep him from crashing to the floor.

His speech was practically slurring by now.

"Yeah, Benny here explained everything to me. I took NyQuil instead of DayQuil on accident and now I'm about to pass out."

"Alright that's it, we're going home because you are in no condition to work and you're not fighting me on this."

"Pfft. Couldn't fight you on it if I tried."

"Benny, would you please walk him over to the apartment, and I'll lock up?"

"Sure. Better yet, I'll do ya one better."

With one fell swoop, Benny scooped up his little friend into his arms. Had he been more lucid, Usnavi would've been kicking and fighting, saying he could walk perfectly fine.

Benny could be trusted. He was Usnavi's best friend and practically a big brother to you.

Once everyone was outside, you promptly locked the door behind and turned to see Benny already heading up the building stairs. Even though you'd known him for quite some time now, it never ceased to amaze you what a good friend he was to you and Usnavi.

Now there was a guy you could trust with your life.

Only minutes later, you were unlocking the apartment door and letting the guys in.

"On the couch?" He asked.

"No, put him in the bedroom. He'll be more comfortable."

You and Benny made sure to get Usnavi as comfortable as possible. Taking off his shoes and putting his hat to the side should make a world of difference. By the time you were done, he was only in those oversized pants he wore and undershirt. Whatever strength he had left, he used to adjust the pillow and roll over on his side.

He looked like he was drowning under that big duvet.

What a relief. While the bodega had yet to befall any kind of victimhood to robbery, just imagine what could have happened if he were in this state at the same time a couple of punks came in...

"Here, you gimme the keys and I'll take care of pulling down the grate and lock it up."

"Thanks, you're a lifesaver."

Handing him the keys, you noticed a humble smile.

"Ah, nah it's not a big deal."

"Really Benny, we owe you one."

"Hey, that's my best friend in the whole world, and you're like the little sister I never wanted."

"Ha ha." You flatly responded.

Benny chuckled and ruffled your hair.

"Alright, call if you need anything. I'll just give these back tomorrow."

"Sounds good. I know you'll take care of them."

"Well, I'll leave you two to relax now."

"Thanks Benny.

Tending to Usnavi in this state was like taking care of a sleepy drunk while he was under the NyQuil's influence. Thankfully this drunk didn't have any more will to even try to stand.

Honestly you were still feeling sleepy yourself from this morning, so the only logical thing to do was to go ahead and slide under the covers with him.

It wasn't crazy to think the medicine would keep him completely out, but apparently your own attempts to adjust and get comfortable made him realize you were in bed too. Instinctively, he ended up scooting as close as possible and slung a heavy arm over your stomach.

Almost like a kid sleepily reaching for a teddy bear at bedtime.

His eyes were locked shut, but he was definitely somewhat awake.

"Usnavi? I thought you were asleep already."

"Mmm...wanna hol' you firs..."

"Yeah? You like cuddling with me?"

"Mhmm. You're warm...smell good."

Oh he was too cute. So sappy.

"That's a relief. I thought I needed a shower today."

His arm slid back over you and found its way to your hand where his fingers intertwined with yours. He was so cute when he was sleepy; it wasn't even the NyQuil talking, because this is normally what he did when he was tired and wanted to cuddle.

"No...don' go."

You kissed the tip of his reddened nose, feeling the slight warmth it radiating from the slight ailment it was going through. To hopefully soothe him a bit more, you took your hand back and gently stroked his hair.

"It's okay, Mi Amor. I'm not going anywhere."

His eyebrows furrowed, making sure he heard that correctly.

"No?"

"No. Now go to sleep. You need some rest."

"I love you." He mumbled, finally drifting off. He wanted to say more, but his mind and mouth just couldn't seem to form the words through all the fog in his brain.

Finally, he gave in and let go. Allowing himself to succumb to the heaviness in his mind and body. And it was for real this time, because the most peaceful light snore came out of him. Hopefully he'd feel better when he woke. Those allergies were being merciless.

There was something perfect about this moment. The simplest parts of seemed to completely capture your attention in the best ways.

By now it was only one in the afternoon, but the peacefulness of it would have you believe it was closer to five in the evening.

As you soaked in the ambience, you noticed the bedroom was cloaked in this relaxed grey lighting. Only a bit of sunlight peeked its way through the partially opened blinds, creating this sleepy aesthetic you could take a picture of. Unfortunately, this Dominican koala wrapped around you wouldn't have liked it, as he was snoring away so peacefully.

Oh well, maybe another time. His scent was so comforting and you wished you were able to describe it. It wasn't like anything in particular. Not fruity, not spicy, he was just...Usnavi. And the scent of Usnavi combined with the bedding was so heavenly.

The covers had been recently laundered, so they still had that fresh cotton-y smell. Why couldn't this day last forever? Sure it may have been weird like you predicted, but it ended on a pretty good note.

Your body seemed to understand everything was okay now. At last, you closed your eyes and drifted off to the sound of the fan blowing and Usnavi snoring on you.

Six hours later, you woke to the warm lighting of Usnavi's bedside lamp glowing over your back. No telling how late it was, but your little nap lasted longer than expected. Ugh, probably be best to wake Usnavi up and get him to eat something.

But when you looked over to his side of the bed, he was gone. The spot he slept in earlier was cold now. How long had he been awake? You must have rolled away from him while sleeping.

He must've somehow heard your thoughts, because a few moments later, Usnavi entered the bedroom with a pizza box in hand. It was just delievered judging by the way the aroma wafted all over the room.

"Hey Sleepin' Beauty." he teased, absolutely loving how you looked just waking up; so sleepy and dazed.

"Sure that's not what I should start calling you?"

"Okay hardy-har, punches thrown."

He placed the pizza box down on the bed, opening it up and allowing you to take first pick. It smelled so good! All your favorite toppings and everything.

"So, feeling any better?" you asked.

He took a bite of his slice, shrugging a bit.

"Still kinda groggy but my allergies feel better. Still can't believe I took the wrong stuff."

"It's one for the scrapbook for sure."

"You're not wrong. What about you? Feeling rested?"

You nodded, trying to quickly chew your pizza to give a clearer answer.

"I guess so. Our sleep schedule was all kinds of messed up from today."

He couldn't argue with that one.

On the bright side, the bodega wouldn't be open tomorrow due to the weekend.

"Well I don't have to work tomorrow. How 'bout we eat pizza and watch Netflix till we pass out again?"

"Sounds good to me. What should we watch?"

"Actually, I was hoping we could do Hulu instead? I was having a Golden Girls marathon today."

"That the one with the old ladies?" He eyed suspiciously.

"Yeah...?"

"Sure, why not? I haven't even watched it yet."

"Oh it's so funny! Trust me, you're gonna love it."

He sat on the bed next you, grabbing another slice of pizza to enjoy as you fired up the TV. Once the theme song began to play, Usnavi leaned back, putting his arms around you and enjoying the moment.

Yeah, this was a pretty good day.

THE END

[moominnyu]

oblivious [kevin moon]

🧸🎀 — pairings: kevin moon (the boyz) x gender neutral reader

🧸🎀 — tw: none.

🧸🎀 — wc: 3751

anyone who knows kevin to a personal level would be sorry for the guy, frustrated in his behalf even.

now, don't get me wrong, he's a handsome young man with a sweet personality, a nice car and good friends. he's a member of one of the hottest, on the rise k-pop boy groups, with a honeyed voice and great dance skills. he could probably bag anyone he wanted with minimal effort on his part, whether they work or not for the same industry as him. but the problem for kevin moon starts around someone who has little to nothing to do with the idol world.

you're kevin's friend, his little childhood friend from back when he was in america, and current best friend even here in korea. kevin's childhood friend who's only an university student, and knows as much about idols as you know about calculus— that is, nothing—, kevin's childhood friend who works part time in café, and still gets allowance from your parents, kevin's childhood friend who lives just three blocks from his dorm, who is so used to be by his side that you practically live at his dorm alongside his members. kevin's childhood friend who is... just his childhood friend and nothing more.

he's been on the unrequited love side of the spectrum for too long that his problem no longer relies on the fact that you guys are friends probably since you were both fetuses inside your mothers' wombs. he already felt this way about you when you lost your first tooth when you were six, even when you smiled at him with an incisor missing. he already felt this way about you when he taught you how to ride a bike at the park when you both were nine, even when you fell on your face and had a big bruise on your left cheek that remained on your skin for two weeks after that. he already felt this way about you when you turned fourteen and you stopped being a tiny shrimp and started looking more like what would later become his ideal type. he already felt this way about you when you guys were seventeen and he was starting his little youtube channel with one of his friends, and you would watch his videos with a genuine excitement that matched his. he already felt this way about you when you moved to korea together, not even knowing what was ahead of you but knowing that you had each other whatever happened.

he's been in love with you for way too long, so long that he already had every single inner monologue, argument, discussion and debate he could possibly have with himself about how absolutely wrong and criminal it is to have a crush, or rather, be in love with your best friend.  

he won in absolutely zero of these arguments against himself, as he always came to the conclusion that it was wrong, you two were friends and that's it, that you probably saw him only as a brother, if anything. but he had received his very needed push in the back by his members, now close friends of both of you, that insisted that it was normal: you were attractive, funny, sweet and a perfectly viable choice for him due to your closeness, anyone in his situation would probably be the same, and he would be a fool if he let go of the opportunity. with your looks and personality, you could get a partner anytime you wanted, and time was ticking for kevin, which, in turn, prompted him to act with you in mind, courtesy of sunwoo who mentioned he'd be the one making the moves if kevin didn't do it first.

and, so, it started, the tortuous process of courting.  

he didn't outright tell you he liked you, as he wanted to test the waters first, so he started with simple and minimal things, things that would go completely unnoticed by you unless you saw him as something more than a simple friend, unless you saw him in the same light as he saw you.  

hugging you a tad bit tighter and longer when he greeted you, getting leaves out of your hair or clothes for you, tentatively holding your hand when he wanted to guide you somewhere, placing his hands on your waist on hips when he walked past you; all little things that made his pale cheeks burn up a crimson color and his stupid, traitor heart beat uncontrollably against his ribcage... all little things that you remained completely apathetic to.  

“don't be afraid to up your game, hyung,” haknyeon had offered some advice, and as if it served as comfort to kevin, he had friendly palmed his back to show empathy for him, who sat with his head down, face hidden in his hands, “i think y/n is great! they definitely haven't noticed yet, and that's why they haven't said anything!”

it was another one of those nights where he was overcome with feelings, when the tug on his chest became too heavy and when the feeling of urgency became desperation. none of what he did was working out the way he wanted it to, and everytime he was left with more questions that answers: did you really blush when you brushed hands while reaching for the salt, or was it his mind playing tricks on him? were you really staring at him with such dreamy eyes when he was sketching or were you just spaced out? he could never tell.  

“well, that's obvious,” sunwoo retorted, plump lips on a straight line. he scratched his head and nudged kevin on the ribs, “you're the one who knows them best, you should that y/n had never had a partner before, it's likely they're just oblivious to your advances,”

an imaginary lightbulb flicked on on top of kevin's head at that moment when he realized sunwoo was right.

in all the years he's known you, you've never showed any kind of romantic interest in any person. it wasn't that you were short of suitors or admirers, quite the contrary, actually, you've had that sweet tendency to smile at everyone that happened to make eye contact with you since little, offer your help whenever needed and an ability to make friends with anyone in a matter of seconds. kevin was sure, during all his high school years, that the reason why he was liked was because of the halo effect, produced by the fact that he was always by your side.  

but, you, even with many suitors and secret admirers, never once brought up the topic of dating and crushes in front of kevin. he thought it was better that way, honestly, he's a bit more mature now but back when he was still a teenager, he was sure he wouldn't be able to take it if he heard you talking about another guy, all starry eyed and blushing. but that didn't mean he didn't feel curious about it.  

one time, against his own mental advices to just mind his business in case he ended up with a broken heart, kevin asked you about a guy in your class who he overheard your classmates teasing you about.

“oh, yeah, you mean james, right?” you sat on the floor of his bedroom, copying the answers from his textbook onto yours. you had bit your pencil and narrowed your eyes, thoughtfully, “i tutor him on sundays. nice guy.”

“i know who he is,” kevin answered, matter of factly, as he reclined back on his desk chair. he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose as some form of idle distraction from the unsteadiness of his heart, “i'm asking you why were your friends making kissy faces at you when he was talking to you.”

he had sounded more stern than he intended, but, then again, that moment was the very first time he ever saw you blush and fix your hair in front of a dude, the first time he saw you act shy around someone.  

“he invited me to prom last week,” you answered, continuing to write down on your notebook with your cute, pink gel pen, “and my friends think he likes me because of that.”

“how are you so sure that he doesn't like you?,” it's obvious he does, kevin thought, otherwise he wouldn't look like such a fool, stuttering and scratching his nape like an idiot everytime you two interacted. not that he's one to talk, though.  

“because he's just being nice to me,” you frowned, “he always is. he walks me home when you can't, invites me to get coffee after tutoring, he saves me a spot next to him when i'm late for class,” you didn't lift your head from your notes or ever stopped writing, that's how trivial james's acts of ‘kindness’ were for you, “he even gifted me chocolates last valentine's.”

that's crush behavior, kevin wanted to say, but he didn't. he didn't want to implant the idea in your mind, making you overly conscious about it and forcing you to end up confused about your own feelings. if you liked him back or not, he decided, was for you to find out on your own, unprovoked.  

“do you like him?,” but there he was, having to open his big mouth out of morbid, masochistic curiosity.  

you lifted your head, finally looking up at him with a raised eyebrow, “no?”

“then why were you blushing when he was talking to you?”

“because julia was making a big deal out of it,” you said, frowning with certain annoyance and embarrassment, “and because noah kept telling him we look so cute together.”

“no, you don't.” kevin chimed in, perhaps too fast for his liking.  

“that's what i'm saying! we're just friends!” you sounded a bit exasperated, probably tired from all the teasing, “just like you and me.”

thanks to sunwoo, remembering that useful, albeit painful, conversation served kevin to switch his approach around you. thinking about it, back then, it should have been his first clue about your lack of awareness. he discarded as simple, intentional obliviousness— he thought that james was so obvious about his crush, you might as well were just trying to ignore it and not acknowledge it to avoid having to awkwardly reject him; but this obliviousness of yours lasted even much, much after that, when you guys moved to korea together and the people you met there were equally interested in you but ended up receiving the same treatment of complete lack of interest. even eric had, at some point of your early friendship, when he had a pitiful crush on you that lasted a couple of months.  

with a new, more direct approach in mind, kevin moon hadn't given up yet.  

he began to make his hints a bit more obvious so that the wouldn't fly over your pretty, little head like the ones before did, and he was pleasantly surprised to find out that it worked with great efficiency.  

complimenting you every chance he could, both looks and personality wise, often mentioning how you're the only person to make him this happy, how his day gets better when he sees you.  

and alongside the not so subtle flirting, your reactions began to grow in intensity as well. instead of the usual, coy nudge you'd give him when he complimented your appearance, you'd purse your lips and look down when he'd say that he thinks you're absolutely stunning. you'd bite a smile, cheeks heating up, when he'd, purposely on accident, casually sit close to you while watching movies, both of your sides pressed against each other. when he'd press an unassuming kiss to your temple after dropping you back at your place, you'd lean into his touch for a bit longer than usual, and you'd look a blushy mess of shaky eyes and pursed lips once he did pull away. even when he wasn't trying, even when his focus was on something else entirely, the amount of times he'd catch you staring at him and then move your eyes away as soon as he noticed were too many for them to be a simple coincidence.  

all of these interactions made him hopeful, made him think that he did the right thing by slowly approaching you in a way that you felt comfortable with. by the time he decided to finally confess to you, he was so sure you were, at least, confused about it, that you were seeing him in a new light now and that you weren't sure how to act around it, and that was enough for kevin, he just needed to go past that friendship relationship and then he'd work the rest, with you.  

and with this realization came yet multiple other inner debates about how to go around the confession. should he prepare for it? invite you to a picnic at the beach and confess to you when you both are enjoying the sunset? or should he just be spontaneous? you've never liked anything too flashy, after all, and you valued honesty over anything else.  

he chose to just do it one day, chose a time when you two are alone and tell you normally like he would do with any other thing. after all, you two were best friends who could tell absolutely anything to each other with no shame, and his feelings for you didn't change this.

but, whenever he thought about finally doing it, whenever he practiced his exact words in his mind over and over again until he was confident enough he wouldn't stutter, the moment would get interrupted by outside forces. like younghoon deciding to watch a movie in the living room where you guys were at, just in time when kevin had said he had something to tell you, like sunwoo coming uninvited into his room when you two were finally alone, saying that he was bored and asking if you wanted to play mario kart together. or that one time when kevin had managed to build momentum in his favor, mentioning how much he appreciates you and how lucky he is to have you by his side unconditionally, and just as he was about to utter the three important words, your mom had the inopportune need to call you, at three a.m. in the morning, because she had a nightmare about you being swallowed by the kraken.  

being stuck in this predicament didn't dishearten kevin, though. he's wanted to tell you how he feels since forever, he wasn't gonna give up over a few unfortunate interruptions.  

the perfect time to do it comes spontaneously, unprepared, just like most of those peaks of inspiration he feels out of the blue somedays.  

tonight, you're staying the night at his. you had went grocery shopping earlier in the afternoon, and kevin bought the ingredients to bake you some brownies after your insistence and pleads, clinging to his arm and pointing at the deliciously looking pictures of them in the premade mixture boxes, so now you're sitting on the counter of his kitchen while looks for the ingredients in the frige, reading the recipe out loud for him from your phone while swinging your legs up and down.  

“a double boiler?”, kevin leaves the fridge door open when he walks up to you and leans in so that he can get a look at your screen, “what the heck's that?”

“it says here that it's a fancy term for a... small saucepan filled with an inch of two of water set over low heat,” you read out loud, then lifting your head with a confused grimace, “huh?”

“i don't know,” kevin kicks the door closed after retrieving the butter, shrugging and trying to pretend he didn't notice how you stared at his lips just a second ago, “i'm just gonna make that one old recipe, the one we know and adore.”

“yeah, i don't know why you felt the need to change it,” you set your phone down and hop down the counter to give him more space, “you know i just eat whatever you make.”

“you like your brownies a bit more fudgy, don't you?” he takes a bowl out of the cabinet, and places it right beside where you're standing. he offers you a smile, a bit shy but genuine, “and i like to spoil you.”

at that moment, sunwoo walks into the kitchen. he makes a small gesture of acknowledgement to you and walks past kevin to get to the fridge. you follow him with your eyes.  

“hyung, i'm heading out,” sunwoo grabs a water bottle and closes the fridge again. he stands by kevin and points at the bowl where he's wisking the eggs, taking a short sip of his water, “can you save me some brownies?”

“i'm not making these for you, you know,” kevin sighs.  

“just one, then,” sunwoo insists, eyebrows up and pout on his lips, “you know i love brownies.”

“i'll save you some,” you smile at the younger guy lightly, “where are you heading?”

sunwoo shrugs and scratches his nape, “had the sudden urge to go to the movies.”

“alone?” you inquire, trying to supress a laugh.  

“don't judge a man for his hobbies, y/n,” sunwoo flicks your forehead with little force, and kevin hates that ugly feeling in his gut when you giggle and poke your tongue at him, “gotta go now, i've already purchased my ticket.”

and with sunwoo leaving, everyone else out on individual schedules and chanhee dead asleep on his room, you both are, technically, left alone in the dorm for once and for all.  

kevin pretends to be too preoccupied with spreading the thick batter in the baking pan to notice that the perfect opportunity to do it is just unfolding in front of him. he knows that the reason why he keeps getting interrupted is because he likes to take his sweet time with it, dragging it out as much as he can so he can prepare his heart for it. he decides he's not gonna do that tonight.  

just as he opens his mouth, your phone dings on the counter. kevin busies himself with putting the baking pan in the oven while you reach for your phone with the spatula he used in your mouth.  

“who are you texting?” he asks once he notices your wide smile and soft giggles.  

“yurina, one of my uni classmates,” you lick your lips after you're done licking the batter off, tossing the spatula into the sink, “she's happy because she asked her crush to be her girlfriend,”

“and did she say yes?”

“well, she wouldn't be happy otherwise, don't you think?”

there's an one-sided awkward silence when kevin rests against the counter while staring at you intently texting back and forth with this girl from uni.  

a moment of doubt crosses his mind. should he really do it? something tells him he shouldn't, that he should just keep quiet, but he's been walking through this desert for so long ago that stopping now feels wrong when he can practically see water in front of him.

love gives him a push in the back.  

“what about you?” he asks, and he internally cringes at the way his voice cracks a little at the end. he clears his throat, “i mean, are you interested in anyone?”

your thumbs stop typing suddenly, and you remain frozen for a moment, staring at your screen. you're blushing a little when you slowly lift your eyes towards him, and he mirrors such expression when his hopeful heart does a little flip.  

“why—why are you asking all of a sudden?”, your voice sounds tiny and you look a bit doubtful of him.  

“well, you never tell me about stuff like this,” he scratches his eyelid as he looks down at his shoes. the awkwardness is almost painful, and he's sure he isn't the only one feeling it right now, “is it someone you can't tell me?,” he makes a small pause in which he lifts his eyes from the ground and looks at you, “a close friend, maybe?”

silence fills the kitchen. the hen shaped cooking timer clicks as it counts down the minutes for the brownies to be ready, hour phone pings with new upcoming messages, the tv in chanhee's room makes deaf noise in the backround, yet, none of you talk.

when you refuse to meet his eyes that come looking for you, biting the inside of your cheek and looking down, kevin realizes he's going to be the one who breaks it, unfortunately.

“did i hit the jackpot?,” perhaps he sounds hopeful, or perhaps the silence was too loud that his voice now seems to over-volume it.  

you finally look up from the floor, “why am i the only one being interrogated?,” you sound a little more like yourself when you block your phone and cross your arms on your chest, lips pouty and the tip of your ears a little bit red, “you also never tell me anything about stuff like that!”

“i'll tell you if you want,” he murmurs, trying to analize your reaction, “if you tell me first.”

in the heart fluttering moment, odds are in his favor, he knows. it's on the way you look at him through your eyelashes, shy and maybe even a bit flustered, the sugar rush on his veins at the sight of your blush, ever telling of your feelings. because he knows you so well he knows that his hunch is right, it's because of your connection that he can feel that it's no longer one-sided, that, as much as he feels for you, you feel for him.  

“why don't you,” you make a small pause to press the back of your hands to your hot cheeks, “why don't you say it first, then?”

“how about we say it at the same time?,” even in his certainty there's still cautiousness, as if he needs confirmation even if he can read your heart, “at the count of three.”

“okay,” you smile at him with warmth, gentle, still laced with a shyness that makes your eyes a bit glossy, and it's the prettiest thing kevin has ever seen, “one.”

“two.” he says, his heart on a frenzy, mind a bit hazy with quiet excitement for what's about to come.  

“three!” you both say, and there's a small pause before any of you continue:

“you!”

“sunwoo!”

[ofpineapplesanddawns]

Prompt Sentences 2 & 19 for 10th doc/Malcolm (whether to go maximum angst potential of that combo up to you)?

2: “I just want to let you know that I love you. A lot. Never forget that.”

19: “What? No, I never said that…”

Hoo boy, what can I make outta these two!

On with the fic!

--

Visiting has become a bit less frequent over the years, not because the Doctor was avoiding Malcolm, it was just the TARDIS seemed wary about stopping on the island. She kept sending him back further and further into Malcolm's past on the island, as if she were avoiding keeping him closer to...

Well, to when the timeline of the prophet could go from bad to worst with one simple thing going wrong.

Still, she was kind enough to let him land now, it had to be a few years before hand, from what he could tell. 1902, yes, it seemed to be the year when he stepped out.

There was time, always time, to tell Malcolm to be careful. He'd probably wouldn't listen, that was normal, the basic song and dance of them and their complicated relationship.

The Doctor walked through the woods, before coming to the hidden trap door, to the barn.

Blood was in the air, old and fresh. It made the Doctor's stomach turn, made him sick. He heard voices from the barn, loud ones, shouts in Welsh. He slipped away, behind a tree, out of sight just as the doors opened to the bar and someone stormed out.

It was Malcolm, and he was clearly furious. He shouted at someone in the barn, the words fast, slurred in anger, the Doctor almost didn't catch them.

"It's better than what you're doing! It's better than what you suggested! I am Her voice! I do what I can in exchange for Her gift!"

He slammed the doors shut and limped towards the trap door. The Doctor watched him come to a stop a few feet from it before pinching the bridge of his nose, sighing loudly. "Damnit..." He said to nothing before looking up, in the direction of the Doctor.

The Doctor hadn't noticed he had slipped out from his small hiding spot. "Uh... hey, everything alright?"

Malcolm stared before shaking his head. "No, not at all. I'm sure you heard enough."

"Not really, just you being mad at someone. And talking about the goddess." The Doctor shrugged, stepping out completely, shuffling through the fallen leaves on the ground. "What's going on?"

The prophet looked like he wanted to talk about anything other than this topic. But he replied anyway. "My brothers and I are having... trouble communicating over what is proper when it comes to providing for Her."

"Blood letting not enough anymore?"

Malcolm's mouth was a thin line. That was enough of an answer for the Doctor. "Have you spoken with her?"

"She is vague on what She wants." Malcolm admitted. "And it's annoying, and worrisome. “

Then he glared at the Doctor, which caught the taller man off-guard. “Aren’t you going to tell me off? Tell me that I should find a better way of going about feeding the Goddess, about how it’s vitally important that I do something soon or else... some vague horror will fall upon me?”

“What? No, I never said that…” The Doctor frowned, taking a step back on instinct, why was the anger directed at him now. “Well, I mean, I’ve said things like that in the past, but I don’t think this has anything to do with that...”

It probably did, but best not to anger Malcolm more.

The human’s eyes were hard, but then he seemed to realize what he had said and he sighed, his expression softer, sadder. “I’m terribly sorry, Doctor, I... I’ve been having a rather difficult time lately.”

“Do you... want talk about it?”

“In private, I fear we are not quite alone out here.”

The Doctor looked towards the barn, there was a stronger sent of fresh blood in the air. His jaw tightened and he nodded, turning to help Malcolm down into the tunnel under their feet.

He slipped down after, following after the prophet. “When was I last here?”

“Four months ago, I believe.”

“You lot were doing fine, last I checked. Crops were good, animals were fine. Was the harvest well? It’s clearly getting closer to winter now.”

“It was a good harvest, but not nearly as much as we had in past years.” Malcolm sighed. “We lost a few goats, we still have no clue what killed them. I suspect... She might have done something, in a moment of clarity and freedom. She can do it, sometimes, but not often. My brothers and I have done our best to keep Her from doing that again.”

The Doctor frowned deeply, that’s probably making things worse, but he kept that to himself. “We’re thinking of taking more offerings from the people.” Malcolm spoke up, and the Doctor’s eyes widened.

“Have they...?”

“A few have willingly offered Her blood, knowing I’ve been doing it. Quinn and Frank are not keen on it, but She seems to be fine with it. We never take them to Her, we just get a bowl or a jar, an offering from a few people, once in a while, not daily or weekly.”

The Doctor cursed under his breath. “You’re thinking of increasing the donations.”

“It’s... an option. We have other ways of feeding Her.” The way Malcolm said it filled the Doctor with a cold dread, but he didn’t press. He didn’t... he knew what it could be, he was sure he knew.

“Just... keep your options open, more humane.”

“I think it is better that they are.” Malcolm replied as they got back to the church. “For mine and my people’s sake.”

They stood in the empty building now, with the Doctor looking at Malcolm. He looked tired, older than he should be. Every visit was bringing them closer to those events in 1905, where Malcolm would either die or live, or... there was the option of both at once.

There was so much the Doctor wanted to say, it was getting harder and harder not to just take his hands and beg him to join him on the TARDIS, to run away with him, off to the stars. But the Doctor knew better, he knew that Malcolm was a devoted leader to his people, that he did care deeply for his community.

And... it was better that the Doctor traveled alone, it might hurt worse if Malcolm traveled with him and something happened.

He stepped closer, about to say something, when he could hear it. It was faint, off in the distance, muffled by the walls of the church, but he knew that sound anywhere.

The cloister bell.

Damnit, he was needed, the TARDIS was warning him of something, he needed to go see what it was about.

“Is something wrong?” Malcolm asked. He stopped, frowning curiously. “I sense... that the Goddess is trying to alert me to something. A sound of distress?”

“It’s my TARDIS, she’s calling out to me, I need to return. The... she’s letting off the cloister bell, so something is happening that requires my attention.” He took Malcolm’s hand. “I’m sorry my visit is so short, and not at the best of times, but I’ll try to be back as soon as possible, if I can.”

“Then I best be patient for your arrival.” Malcolm replied, his smile small, sad, but knowing. This has been how it always been between them, the Doctor could never stay, Malcolm could never leave.

Still... 

The Doctor gave him a small kiss, he was torturing himself at this point, but he had been doing that for so long now, with so many people, Malcolm was just another ache in his chest that he could live with, just like Rose, Martha, Donna, so many others...

“I just want to let you know that I love you. A lot. Never forget that.” He said softly, then turned, taking his leave for the doors.

Maybe the cloister bell wasn’t for an emergency somewhere in the universe, maybe it was for him, for taking too many risks with this man.

[moon-stars01]

First Impressions

Mingyu x Reader

Author:Deko

Summary:In which Mingyu is a regular and your positive your into him.

Gene:fluff,Swearing,Romance

Rating:General Audiences

~First Impressions~

You'd developed a crush.

One, which you'd hoped was fleeting because you only ever saw him around once a week whenever he'd come into your shop.

He was peculiar in the way he carried himself, he'd nestle himself in a corner and play with a trinket he found interesting and made himself laugh on plenty of occasions.

To others, you guessed, he might look half insane laughing to himself like that – but to you, you found it rather sweet.

Sweet, because he indulged in the company of himself. So few are lucky to have enough confidence to carry themselves freely without reserve or judgement, so while he struck you as peculiar, you also found him irresistibly charming for this fact alone.

He came up to you one day and completely shocked you out of your daydream – and you shuffled to hide your book to make it look like you were actually working.

He met your eyes, "Do you make this stuff?"

He pointed around the shop, and you tried to focus on the question but your mind was more drawn to the fact that his voice did not match his pretty face. You'd always imagined him more soft spoken.

"Y-yeah. Well, no" You exhaled slowly, calming yourself down. "Some. My dad makes most of it."

Ahh, wonderfully spoken. Beautifully enunciated.

He hummed in wonder, and you saw a faint smile trace his lips for a moment, before it disappeared.

He said nothing more and began to walk out of the shop.

You gasped, not wanting him to leave. He'd finally talked to you and that's all he'd had to say? The shop was empty so now was your chance to... say something, anything!

You leaned over the wooden counter, "My name's Y/N!" you half shouted, grasping onto the edge.

Really? Your name? That was the best you could do?

He turned around, eyes wide in wonderment, before they softened at the sight of you. "I'm Mingyu. See ya."

He shoved his hands in his pockets, walking away. He used his shoulder to push open the door and left the shop without another word.

You slumped back in your chair and took your book back out from its hiding spot, and tried to focus on the words. You were sour upon him leaving, his presence alone had always made you feel giddy, and the shop suddenly felt colder without him there.

—0–0–0–0–

The next day, Mingyu came in.

This shocked you because he never came in more than once a week; you wondered what must have been so important.

Shock was evident on your face, and when your eyes locked as he walked in the door he wore an unreadable expression.

You watched him out of the corner of your eye as you were stacking wooden toys and trinkets onto the shelves, and noticed that he wasn't acting the way he usually did. He seemed off.

You bit your lip and approached him quietly; he didn't look at you though, as you spoke into the air – only able to admire his side profile.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" You treaded carefully, sounding a little too meek for your liking. You didn't like the effect he had on you.

He looked to be lost in thought for a moment, before turning to look at you. "What kind of gifts do girls like?"

Your heart sank into the floor.

As your eyes trailed his face, gaze sweeping over his perfectly symmetrical features from his soft brown eyes to his pretty pink mouth you realised the insanity of your previous sentiments.

Of course he had a girlfriend, look at him for gods' sake.

You masked your sadness aptly, not wanting to make him uncomfortable. It wasn't as if he'd lead you on or anything, you'd just been living in your own delusions for far too long, allowing them to manifest into actual feelings.

"The things my father makes..." You walked ahead of him around the corner and through shelves, using your index finger to indicate you wanted to be followed, "Are good for tourists, and gifts for old people."

You lead him to a little corner of the shop, one that only stocked the things that you yourself had made. It was your father's idea.

"As for me, I like to make prettier things. Things other girls might enjoy." You used your hand to gesture up and down the shelf.

Mingyu looked at you for a moment with a quirked brow, and then set his gaze to the shelf.

You watched on as he reached out to touch the eclectic weeping willow you'd made. It had taken you forever to create, hence the maybe a little outrageous price tag. You'd had many customers grumpily try to haggle the price with you, but you were fond of it, maybe you didn't really want to let it go.

"You made this?" He questioned, gaze still on it. His long fingers were delicately tracing the decorative beading on it.

"Yes." You murmured shyly, clasping your hands behind your back.

"It must've taken you a long time." He noted.

"It did." You couldn't really think of much else to say, so you continued to watch his form.

He finally leaned up, as if breaking away from his transfixed state. You'd be lying if you said you weren't flattered.

"I'll take it, then."

You blinked up at him, "Are you sure?"

He raised his eyebrow at you, small smile playing on his lips.

He picked up the tree and set off towards the direction of the counter without another word, prompting you to follow.

You rushed ahead, pushing the small wooden entryway to go behind the counter, before meeting his eyes again.

He placed the item down and you looked back up at him, searching his face for any uncertainty.

"Can I ask you a question?" You murmured, avoiding his eyes.

He put his elbows on the counter and sat his head in his palms, watching you expectantly. "Sure."

Too close, he was too close!

You stepped back a fraction, hopefully to an unnoticeable degree. "Is the person this gift is for...special?"

The prying question left your mouth with little hesitation, and he too answered without it.

"Yes."

You watched as he pulled out his wallet and started fishing out notes, but you stopped him with your hand, lowering his gently.

"Then it's on me."

He looked at you, "Huh? No, I couldn't." He ignored you and set the money on the counter anyway.

"I made this a long time ago" You whispered gently, scanning the item to let the system know it was no longer in the store, "It's collecting dust here. You've also given us more business than I care to admit." Your tone was teasing when you looked up at him.

Again, his expression was unreadable.

"Would you like me to wrap it?" You asked, fighting down a sigh.

"Yes, please." His nice voice sent your heart into mini palpitations, and turned your stomach into a fluttering mess.

Stupid, traitorous body.

"Just a moment then." You took the item and walked into the back, exhaling deeply when you were out of ear shot.

You carefully wrapped the tree in bubble wrap, before setting it onto some pink wrapping paper and folding it all together nicely. You sealed it with tape before you heard the entry way doorbell ring.

You left the item in the back and wiped your dewy hands on your pinafore. Stepping out, you looked at the older woman who'd stepped into the store.

"Welcome!" You smiled at her, not familiar with her face. It was always customary to welcome newer customers, the regulars never cared quite so much.

She smiled back and set about the store, and you turned back around to go and retrieve the wrapped gift.

You brought it back out and noticed the money was still sitting on the counter, so while his attention was diverted in his zoned out state, you sneakily placed the money in the bottom of the paper bag, and put the wrapped gift on top of it – effectively hiding it.

"Here you go." You set the paper bag in front of him, and he took the handle and let it fall to his side.

"Thank you." He gave you a quick smile before heading out, and this time instead of using his hands like a normal person, or even his shoulder like he had the day before – he used his foot to push the door open and set out.

You watched his hair fly around in the wind as he stepped outside. The door shut and the bell jingled – leaving you to watch his figure through the glass doors.

His hair was so fluffy. You sighed, putting your elbow on the counter and resting your head in your palm. You wondered what it might be like to run your hands through it.

Sadly, though – that wouldn't happen any time soon. Any girl worth spending 89 dollars on an artisanal craft tree, must be special indeed. It seemed rather frivolous.

—0–0–0–0–

The next morning passed without any drama, and you found yourself during lunchtime nose deep in a book. This week had been slow, dreadfully slow – despite Mingyu and his more than occasional visits – to bring you out of the ordinary.

Your dreamlike state was shattered with a loud ringing of the entry bell, signifying the door had been opened with a little more force than necessary.

A gasp caught in your throat at the sight of Mingyu– and while you were overjoyed at his visit (3 days in a row was a new record) you couldn't help but notice the scowl on his face.

"Y/N."

He'd never said your name before, it sounded like heaven coming from him. But maybe a little bit of slipping from the clouds and plummeting down to earth kind of heaven because his tone was heated.

You watched as he rummaged through his pant pocket, before he pulled out a familiar wad of cash.

He unceremoniously dumped the notes onto the counter in front of you, and his eyes drew you to them, even though the first thing you wanted to do was look away.

"I said no. Why did you do that?" He sounded affronted, and he ran his pretty long fingers through his soft mop of hair to emphasize his frustration with you.

You wanted to say sorry, but you weren't. And if not for a faux apology, what were you supposed to say to that? So you kept quiet, hoping it would pass.

He narrowed his eyes at you sharply, and if gazes could kill...

"So, do you just go around giving away the things you make to anyone for free?" The angry set of his jaw was as frightening as it was handsome. You knew this boy – you'd been watching him for so long. His goofy, light-hearted demeanour could not be clouded with a foul mood.

And as if you were psychic, your silence seemed to stun him. He'd come in here hoping for a reaction and when he realised you weren't going to give him one it calmed him down. You watched as his tense stature relaxed, and his frown mellowed out.

"My sister loved the gift, by the way." His tone had gone soft, "She said it was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen. I thought so too."

Your heart rate quickened – his sister? You had a nasty habit for jumping to conclusions. It's not as if he'd come into a craft store to buy handcrafted wooden condoms.

Your heart had a pessimistic way of thinking, you'd liked him so much and for so long that your brain turned to non-functioning mush in his presence, clearly.

His sister. The tree was for his sister.

You chewed on your lower lip, trying to concentrate on evening out your breathing and heartbeat. To no avail, naturally.

His gaze was on you so strongly you could feel it. "Aren't you going to say anything?"

"I'm...sorry?" Wow it's like you didn't even try to be convincing.

"No you're not." He chuckled, low and quickly – and it built up into laughter much lighter "You're not sorry at all."

You looked away, caught.

From your peripheral vision you saw him slide the notes over to you, even closer than they were before. "Put the money in the register. Now."

His tone didn't leave much room for debate, it was low and persuasive and you found yourself trembling at the thought of saying no.

"I want to watch you do it."

You detected hints of flirtation in his tone but you didn't want to get ahead of yourself, so you reached out to grab the money and just get it over and done with, but he was quicker.

He snapped the money back up and held it between his middle and forefinger, just for the purpose of keeping your gaze. "And don't try this again, I live too far away to keep coming back like this."

You tilted your head in question, he lived far away?

You held your hand out and he gave you the money, allowing you to put it in the register underneath his watchful gaze.

You shut it, and looked up. "Satisfied?"

He grinned at you, "Very..." A pause,

"Don't sell yourself short, don't ever try to give some guy free things, especially when they're so beautifully and carefully crafted."

You felt mildly affronted by his accusations. "What do you mean by some guy?" your lips fell into a thin line, the previous mood shattered. You chose to ignore the latter half of the sentences flattery.

"I don't know. Maybe if some guy you like comes in with his friends and charms the pants off of you and I don't know... you just give away your things for free."

You gave him a look of complete confusion. Was he daft?

"I like you, jerk."

Your hands came up to your mouth, as if it would do any good. Why had you said something so rash?

His eyes went wide, and if you didn't know any better you might have seen his face flush.

"What, why? You don't even know me..." He scratched the back of his head, "For how long?"

How coherent of him?

"Why? Because I can. I might not know you but, that doesn't mean I don't want to! And, uh, a while..." You huffed indignantly at the end of your mild outburst.

"No, god I mean..." He ran a hand through his hair, "I wouldn't say I like you, it's more of a crush... I don't know how to explain it, how can you like someone you don't know? You know?"

He had a fair point, in all his jumbled musings, perhaps blurting out your affections so carelessly made him think you were someone who used those words often.

"Well..." you thought, deflecting, "how can you have a crush on me then? Or whatever it is you want to call it."

"I asked first."

You almost scoffed, folding your arms. "Because I see you looking around and you're always happy. This is my father's store, and it makes me happy seeing you happy inside of it."

How many times did you just use the word happy?

He looked pleased at your admission, a sweet sly smile playing at his lips.

You sighed, "Now you."

"Alright" he shifted his balance onto his other leg, looking far taller and more imposing than he should have for someone so pleasant. "You make me curious, that's why."

Huh?

He rolled his eyes at your blank stare of confusion, "You make me curious. Whenever I come in you scramble to hide the books you're reading, to pretend like you were working." There was laughter in his voice, "It's cute..." he leaned in closer over the counter, "and it makes me so curious, I always wanted to know what you were reading."You felt your cheeks warm in embarrassment, "You could've just asked."

"No..." he hummed in reply "Because I spent my time in here day dreaming about what you might be reading. It entertained me."

You huffed, "Nice to know I'm a good source of entertainment."

"And whenever you look over at me..." He ignored you and carried on, "And I notice from the corner of my eye and look back, you always look away. Why do you do that?"

All of this time he'd never let on just how attentive he was to you. Knowing this embarrassed you to no end.

You didn't answer him.

"Why do you do that?" He tried again, his voice sounded closer than before. He looked so handsome with confusion lacing his features."I don't know." You bit back shyly

"You're a shit liar, do you know that?" he bit his lip and gave you a once over, "I'll ask you one more time, why do you look at me like that?"

You played with the frills on your sleeves out of nervousness and pat down your store pinafore one too many times than was necessary, desperately needing a distraction from your ever fluttering stomach.

"Y-you know you're nothing like I thought you'd be." You muttered

He smirked and gave you a look as if to say, 'no shit.'

"Wrong answer." Was what he whispered back instead.

The two of you just stood there staring at one another, and you couldn't discern whether or not the silence was comfortable, or unbearable.

You could've sworn his eyes darted to your lips for a moment, but the spell was broken when the bell sounded and a customer came in through the door.

"Welcome!" You got out, albeit breathlessly.

You met eyes with Mingyu again, and he looked as if he was on the brink of saying something. He sucked in an annoyed breath and looked away. But that façade didn't last long because a second later his attention was back on you.

"What time do you get off?"

Your eyes darted to the clock. 5.20. You had 10 minutes left but you'd rather clock out early than have to wait through the tension of, well, whatever the hell you'd call this.

You watched as your final customer left after looking around extremely briefly.

"Now." You whispered, taking off your pinafore gently and setting it beneath the counter.

You went out back for only a moment and switched the power off, coming back out to meet Mingyu.

Your nervousness was palpable, and you patted down your jean skirt that was beneath the pinafore, hoping that your blouse was presentable enough.

It felt like time was moving very slowly as the two of you walked out of the store together, his beautiful features were darkened in shadow – illuminated only by the soft cloudy light emanating from the glass doors.

The two of you slipped out wordlessly, but not before you flipped the sign at the door around to 'Sorry! We are CLOSED.'

—0–0–0–0–

Mingyu took you to a park that was close by, and while the sun wasn't out shining, there was a real charm to the dull grey – with little hints of blue dotted throughout the sky.

The two of you sat on a bench overlooking a field of grass and trees, with flowers scattered about, growing in sparse groups.

"You know, I'm sorry for teasing you." He murmured, looking forward.

You smiled, only a little.

You often day-dreamed about Mingyu taking you out, but back then he didn't have a name to his face. He was just the smiling boy who'd come in whenever he felt like it, with no routine.

But now that you knew the kind of flirtatiousness and deadly charm of which he was capable, it got you to thinking. Just what exactly was it that you liked about him? He had every right to tease you, and to question – because in his eyes you were just a silly girl with an even sillier, baseless crush.You turned to look at his side profile, marvelling at the perfect sculpture of it. "You are?"

"Yeah. Can I tell you the truth?" There was an odd sort of smile on his lips – that met somewhere between a grin and a grimace.

You nodded – hopefully he caught it in his peripheral vision.

"At first I was annoyed with you – for telling me you liked me so carelessly. I thought maybe you'd said it to lots of people before me, I got jealous I suppose." He leaned off to the side of the bench and sat back up with a daisy in his hand, and when he started picking at the petals you supposed it was to put his energy somewhere. "But seeing the way you act when I even... look at you. The way you look at me, it's..." he sighed softly, thoughts dribbling off into nothingness. You hadn't even realised he thought so deeply about you, you felt awful for making him uncomfortable – even without realising it."What I'm trying to say is that I understand you." He finalised "I'm drawn to you, too, more than I can understand why."

You smiled softly, suddenly feeling very warm.

"But, you don't know me, Y/N." He looked at you – looking far too beautiful in all his earnest composure. "Can you live with that?"

"For now." You whispered, "But I meant what I said before, is it so wrong to want to get to know you?"

"Which..." He inhaled and reclined into the bench, legs splayed out in a boyishly charming manner "Which me did you start to like, how was I?"

You thought about the confusing question for a moment, "You smiled a lot. Made a lot of weird, goofy faces at inanimate objects my father and I made. Ridiculously charming stuff." You giggled "And you'd always buy the silly things that my dad loves and I loathe. You know, the wooden sculptures with odd anatomy. I told him there was no market for it, but you became the market." You bit your lip to keep from laughing harder.You paused, "I'll only be a little upset if that isn't the real you."He pulled his lower lip through his teeth and turned to look at you, there was something indiscernible about his gaze, "Only a little?" he whispered.

A.Lie.

"Yeah..." You trailed off

"Do you make it a habit to lie?" he scoffed, turning away from you. "I already told you, you're a bad liar."

"'Shit', I believe was your adjective of choice."

You watched him grin, if you were brave enough to call it that. "I'm serious, Y/N. If you want my truths you have to give me yours, it's the only way we can figure out..." his index finger flicked between the two of you in an exaggerated gesture "Whatever this is."

He was right. He was probably always right.

"I'd be upset, but I'm sure I could get used to every part of you."

Satisfied, he seemed to drop it. "Good, because it is a part of me, before you that is."

You quirked your brow, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You make me nervous." He concluded simply.

"I make you nervous? You never let that on, at all." You murmured, truthfully confused.

Mingyu seemed very well put together. He was a person who you'd always assumed never gave two shits about the thoughts of other people. But the more time you spent with him alone, the more you realised your awful habit of projecting personalities onto people was a dangerous game to play.

The Mingyu you had feelings for was only a small part of his personality, there was more depth to him than he let on.

"I'm a better liar than you." He was looking at you fully, now.

It was silent for a while before he spoke up again, "My mom took me to this area when I was a little younger during the holidays. You didn't work at the shop at that time but I vaguely remember seeing your face. I loved the eccentric toys your father made, so I always asked my mom to bring me back."

This was news to you, you didn't remember him at all. But listening to him recollect so fondly about your store made your heart swell with pride. That's all your father had ever wanted, a homelike store full of warmth and treasures people of all ages could enjoy.

The store was especially bustling during holiday season and irrevocably dead during off season, so it was understandable you didn't recognize his face.

"I always drive down here when I get the time. I feel at home here for some reason because I have good memories of the store – it was so magical and big when I was a kid, not so much now, naturally."

"Yeah, you're huge." You cut in.

He snickered before continuing on, "Since I felt at home in your store I always got a little comfortable, entertaining myself. But then I noticed you looking at me once, and I don't know what it was about it, but, something happened to my heart that day."

You blinked a few times, trying to absorb all of this information. He was a wonderful speaker – his voice was so calming and deep you found it hard not to fall in.

"Your heart?" You questioned delicately, just trying to make sense of the connection the two of you seemed to have – which until today had gone severely unnoticed.

"Yeah. And before I knew it I was nervous, I couldn't act the way I usually did because I was afraid it would scare you off or something. I felt like I couldn't be myself around you, you were too beautiful for that." He ran a hand through his hair after the statement, and you felt blessed to have seen him do it up so close.

"That's...shallow. You were willing to change who you are, for me? Because you thought I was pretty?" You laughed lightly at the notion

He raised his eyebrow at you and leaned in close, "Shallow?"

You swallowed at the close proximity.

"You never answered my question, and I've been so truthful I think I deserve an answer..." He ran his tongue along his lower lip, following the teasing lilt in his tone. He was teasing you, and he wasn't attempting to conceal it this time.

You knew exactly what question he wanted the answer to.

'Why do you look at me like that?'

He fucking well knew the answer to it too, and you wondered if he was 50% kindness and 50% mischief – maybe 60/40.

But you were certain, even after everything he'd divulged to you – you'd take all 50% of his teasing, of his bullying and smirks and eyebrow raises and every other bloody thing that came along with Mingyu's personality – if it meant you got to see him laugh with glee from time to time.You'd gotten caught up in your thoughts while watching him, and you shook your head to shake you out of the dazed reverie.

"You were doing it just now." He fell back dramatically into the bench, leaning his head back "Christ."

"Sorry."

"No you aren't!"

You giggled, then.

"No really. I am, I'm sorry. I didn't ever want to make you uncomfortable. That's the truth. It was the last thing I wanted." You felt a little ashamed of yourself, at not ever being able to hide your feelings well.

Your inability to do so had caused the person next to you a great deal of confusion.

"Whoever said I wanted an apology from you? I love the way you look at me. But I told you before, I'm curious." He shifted close to you, impossibly so. Close enough that your thighs were touching – but his were clothed.

"If you don't tell me, I'll kiss you."

You looked at his mouth and had to fight back laughter. That was a threat? Oh boohoo, that would be awful.

Perfectly annoyed by him, you grabbed gently at the collar of his shirt and brought his mouth to yours. He let out a low, pleased noise – melting into your touch.

His lips felt like heaven on yours, they were soft and warm – and the noises of pleasure he was making was doing little to stifle the rampant thumping of your heart. He kissed back with fervour, wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you into him further.

When it had all gotten too much, he pulled away slowly and hesitantly, before putting his head into the crook of your neck and letting out a soft sigh. "That was unfair." He whispered, leaning back to look at you. "You're avoiding giving me an answer."

"Are you done being a brat or are you going to admit that you already know the answer?" You wound your arms around his neck and played with the back of his hair, admiring the feel. It was as soft as you'd imagined.

"Is it so wrong to want to hear it from you?" He murmured, leaning forward and pressing his lips to yours again quickly.

You laughed softly into the little space between you, effectively ignoring him.

"I really am sorry about liking you so early. But I think it'll be very easy to like all of you,Mingyu." You hoped you sounded sure.

"You're not sorry." He bit his lip, smiling through the gesture.

"You're right." You whispered, leaning up and placing a delicate kiss to his forehead, and lingering far longer than necessary;

"I'm not."