#let me. i'm coping with confessions

[li-nox]

I dunno about you, but somehow Eddie’s “Oh... uh... listen, no offence, I’m straight” in addition with his looks is THE QUEEREST way to decline...

[disgracefulthings]

How To Redeem a Shen Jiu

A Guide By A Prolific Fanfic Reader

Option 1: Give him a transmigrator brother

Shen Jiu: Now that I've found my long lost brother I no longer need to abuse my students

Shen Yuan: You need better coping habits

Option 2: Give him a transmigrator disciple

Shen Jiu: I've never cared for a male disciple and I'm not going to start now

Disciple Shen Yuan: That's what you think old man, be prepared to get morals!

Option 3: Give him a transmigrator son

Shen Jiu: This weirdly intelligent baby has helped me see the error of my ways

Baby Shen Yuan: I'm too young to be doing this shit

Option 4: Have him be a transmigrator's son

Baby Shen Jiu: If I had better hand-eye coordination I would strangle you in your sleep

Shen Yuan: System, is it wrong to shake a baby?

Option 5: Have him take over Shen Yuan's dead body

Shen Jiu: So I get a loving family that's also rich without facing the consequences of my actions?

Ghost Shen Yuan: Hell naw, your walking my ass straight into therapy

Option 6: Have Yue Qingyuan confess

Yue Qingyuan: I came back for you

Shen Jiu, about to get his limbs torn off by Bing-ge: It would've been nice to be told this YEARS AGO!

Option 7: Have him get together with Liu Qingge

Liu Qingge: Let's have hate sex so you don't abuse your students

Shen Jiu: We definitely won't develop feelings because of this

Option 8: Kill him off and have Shen Yuan fix his problems

Shen Jiu: This is my favorite option

Shen Yuan: SPEAK FOR YOURSELF!!!

[luveline]

Hii! I'm in love with your Hotch adult daughter fics. Could we get one where she is getting bullied in college or where she works and then Hotch finds out somehow and helps her? Please please :)

thanks so much for requesting! fem, 1.2k

He decides to surprise you. He’s at risk of embarrassing himself greatly, and he’s okay with that risk. 

Hotch stands outside of the George Washington University and winces in the hot weather. The sun beats down on the back of his neck. He’s more aware of how little sun protection he uses as the time stretches on, waiting for you, but he doesn’t mind it. He’s worn full suits in the Nevada desert. 

You emerge from the main building where your last class for the day takes place. He dropped you off here last week, got to watch you walk in and say hi to the custodian. It was a nice insight of who you are, someone he’s proud to be the father of though he had little hand in what you’ve become. 

Behind you are two female classmates. 

Hotch pauses under the tree he’d taken refuge by. 

He can’t hear what they’re saying, but he can see the rigidity of your shoulders, your hackles rising as they talk. The brunette gets a nasty look on her face, to which you respond, and the blonde’s volume begins to rise. 

The brunette looks like she might reach for you. “Don’t touch me,” you warn. 

Hotch steps in. 

“Hey, excuse me,” he says, loudly and firmly, the Unit Chief tone in play. He’s gotten very good at raising his voice without shouting. “What’s going on here?”

The two women who were talking to you falter, but the brunette stays fiery. “We’re just talking.” 

“About what?” 

“It’s none of your business.” 

“If you’re going to lay your hands on her, it becomes my business,” he says. 

There’s a guilt to the blonde’s expression that proves you’d been thinking correctly and that she was going to touch you, even if it were only to grab your wrist, but she bristles and denies. “We weren’t.” 

“Then you have no reason to stay.” 

You frown deeply. “No, they can finish. Clearly they think it’s important–”

“But do you think it’s important?” Hotch asks you. 

Your frown, your anger beginning to ebb. You take a breath. “I suppose not.” 

Hotch levels the women with a look. Just a look, not interrogative or heated, but prompting —it’s the kind of look he gives people when he wants them to realise they’ve missed their cue to leave. 

“See you next week, then,” the brunette says, a threat he abhors. 

“I’m sure she will,” he says, hoping anything unsaid is felt. He has no idea who they are or what you’ve apparently done to make them angry, but you won’t be intimidated. 

“Do I need to talk with Dean Langley?” he asks, turning to you as the women walk out of hearing range. 

“Aaron.” You look at him, look like him, not in appearance but the pinch to your brow as you rub the bridge of your nose. “I’m sorry you had to deal with that.” 

“What?” 

“They do it to me every time I’m here.” 

“They do?” 

You sound like it’s a chore. “They think I’m sleeping with our professor.” 

“Why would they think that?” 

“Because ever since I stopped working, my grades are much better, n’ they think I cheated my way there.” 

Oh, of course. Hotch tries to do something good by you —he’s started giving you a little chunk of money every week so you don’t have to work anymore, nothing obsequious but enough to cover everything you need, rent and food and transportation, clothes, textbooks, and he made it clear you can ask for more— and it makes things worse for you instead. Still, “Your grades are improving?” 

“I’m doing pretty well,” you confess shyly. 

He holds your shoulder. “I’m sorry they’re jealous, and I’m sorry they’re inventing a narrative to cope. I really can speak with Dean Langley if you need me to.” 

You smile and let yourself lean into his touch. “Inventing a narrative to cope,” you repeat. “That’s a good one. I’ll use that one.” 

You have more fight in you, it seems. “If it gets too much, just let me know. You don’t have to entertain their delusion.” 

“I’ll use that one, too.” 

He laughs, hand sliding behind your back to hug you from the side, his nose briefly pressing to your temple before he gives you space again. “I was hoping I’d catch you on your way out, are you busy? Let me take you to dinner, celebrate your performance.” 

“You realise I wouldn’t have improved without your help?” you ask. 

“I think any parent in my position should provide for their kid,” he says easily. “It’s not help. Not everyone can support their children through college, but I can, and I wish I had been from the start.” 

“You don’t owe me anything,” you say. 

He nudges you into a walk toward his car. “I owe you more than you realise.” 

He takes you to an early dinner, and celebrates your improving grades with the dessert of your choosing. Conversation with you can sometimes feel strange. It’s hard to think you were a kid once and he’d never met you, but then he realises how young twenty two really is, how you’re still willing, longing for him to be a father to you. You’re smug that he’d go to the dean to for you. You like that he stepped in. And you love being doted on, being encouraged. He can see that easily. 

“When can I come back to see Jack?” you ask eventually. 

He wishes he could say whenever you like, but he has a hard time following Haley’s movements. “I’ll ask. Soon, I promise.”

“He took great care of me.” 

The last time you’d stayed over, Jack acted like you were the best thing since sliced bread (which you are, in Hotch’s eyes). 

“You know, he had a little trouble with bullies last year.” 

“They aren’t bullies,” you say, taking a bashful bite of your ice cream. 

“No, of course not. But he’ll understand, if you want to tell him about it.”

“Aaron, he’s five.” 

“He’s six,” he corrects. 

“Oh, sorry. But still, I don’t think Jack wants to deal with that. I couldn’t unload on him, he’s my… you know, he’s my little brother.” 

“Then tell me about it, at least.” 

“You saw the most of it.” 

He sighs. Wishes you’d call him dad, understands why you don’t, and can’t think of what to do. It was easier when Jack had trouble, because little kids bully each other almost on accident. They don’t know what they’re doing is wrong, having learned the behaviour from their parents. It’s almost never personal. 

Your situation is not the same. 

“I’ll talk to the dean,” he suggests again. 

“Don’t bother. It’s alright. And if it gets worse, I’ll tell you.” 

He smiles, reaching over plates to squeeze your hand briefly. “Thank you.” 

You look down at your food. Some shyness to you still at being cared about. “Thank you,” you mumble. 

[fluerchive]

ㅤㅤㅤㅤ ★ㅤㅤi love you, im sorry ㅤ ࣪˖ ִ𐙚

summary. two oblivious friends and the 3 words left unspoken.

aka inspired from the prompt “you’ve been talking about this crush for months now, when are you going to just go for it?” “i don’t think i can…” by @novelbear

pairing. jake x f!readerㅤ

wc. 2k

genre. fluff , crush to friends to lovers , college au , (mutual?)pining , jake is just dumb , hee is a brat(affectionate) , jealousy(??) , apparent one sided crush

warnings. profanity , not proof read , crusty aah writing , fries dipped in coke , drinking (like once)

notes. hi this is my first work on this account and i havent written anything in almost a year lmao so pls bear w me :"3 this was a word vomit and i have no idea what i yapped in the ending so :D!? happy reading ^0^

‘So, how’s it going with him?’ Jake asks as he places his lunch tray beside yours at the college cafeteria. You look up from your phone to meet his hopeful eyes, ‘who…?’ ‘Omg, Y/N, your crush!? You’ve been talking about this crush for months now, when are you going to just go for it?’

You almost choke on your coffee, from when did Jake have such an interest in your so-called crush. The “mystery guy” as your friend group likes to call him. Little did they know that the boy in question was sitting right beside you and yeah, it wouldn’t be the wisest decision to let that out.

‘I… don’t think I can’, you answered hesitantly, that was the closest to the truth you could give Jake and you hated lying to your friend, especially when feelings were involved, feelings involving… him.

Maybe if you weren’t so close with him, it would have been easier to handle the overwhelming urge to confess to him, hold his hand and softly kiss his cheek. But life was definitely playing a cruel joke on you when your small hallway crush turned out to be your seatmate in freshman year, two years ago.

It was almost impossible not to be friends with Jake from then on. You found yourself talking to each other in class, which eventually led to exchanging numbers and the rest was history. He had this inborn kindness in him, which perfectly complemented his pretty face, the happiness that radiated off him was quite infectious. And with each day that you got to know him, you fell a little more in love with him.

'C'mon Y/N, it's worth a try plus most chances are he'd like you back, right?' you dont, Jake. 'Plus, I'm always here in case of any help. I know our friends may keep making jokes on it but I totally understand you', he ends with a small shy smile that doesn't quite reach his eyes, you don't know why.

But you want to scream at his face STOP! Stop making it so hard for me to move on, Jake. Instead you return his smile, or at least you try, before quickly stuffing your face with your lunch, making it impossible for him to continue the previous conversation. Talk about healthy coping mechanisms...?

The slip up had just been a drunken mistake. It was one of those stupid drinking games Yunjin had roped you into and soon enough, you were mildly intoxicated or just way too lovesick to admit to your crush. You couldn't ignore the bitterness in your stomach every time a girl approached Jake at the party.

‘Okay, Y/N, drink up if you like someone present here’, Sunghoon passed you a mischievous smirk, which oddly enraged you, or maybe it was the alcohol already in your system. Before you knew it, you were drowning down the cup in your hand, gripping it tightly as if that’ll give you an ounce of strength. You gave one glimpse at Jake who had a concerned expression on his face.

Someone else, probably Yunjin, excitedly asked, ‘Omg who?! And how do I not know?’

Since then it has been a challenge in your friend group to “search” for him if they ever felt bored. You wonder who else can ever attract such an unemployed friend group, it is honestly a bit funny to see them try.

Your train of thoughts is broken when you feel someone sitting beside you, it’s Heeseung. ‘You know, staring at him from afar won’t do any good’, he shrugs. Alarmed, you look at him motioning towards where Jake is currently playing on the football field. You often find yourself sitting at the bleachers, after class waiting for him.

‘Hey! What d-do you mean?!’ you sputter, totally caught off guard at his words. How does Heeseung even know? No, how can he even get the slightest idea that you like Jake? You thought your masking skills were actually pretty good.

The boy gave you a small chuckle, 'you really think you are very sneaky and nonchalant about your crush don’t you? I’m surprised how our friends and even Jake haven't caught up to it.’

This little shit. You hit him with one of your books. ‘Woah, stop, at least I haven’t exposed you in front of them!’ He raises his hands in defense.

Well, he does have a point. He could have won whatever bet your friends had going on you, but he didn’t. ‘Okay, fine, thank you Heeseung for your kind gracious favour’, you roll your eyes at him. ‘That’s more like it, brat.’ You stick out your tongue in return.

You rest your back on the bench, your eyes naturally following the brunette as he scores another goal, a small smile tugging at your face. ‘But in all honesty, I think there’s a hole on Jake’s back with the entire staring contest you have going on.’ ‘fuck off if you can’t help.’

Heeseung sighs, ‘the only advice for this is for you to confess, a relationship isn't gonna form itself.’ ‘He’s my friend, do you see everything on the line?’ ‘And do you see that he could possibly like you back?’ he raises his eyebrows.

Yeah, the false hope, being delusional did not seem like a fun choice right now. You would have pushed Heeseung out of the bleachers if it weren’t for Jake running towards both of you, a weird look on his face, ‘Why are my two friends strangling each other?’ he yells over the stands. Heeseung ruffles your hair, ‘Friendly banter! By the way, you two want to grab dinner with me? His practice is almost over too.’

Something in your gut tells you that Heeseung may be up to no good and the shit eating grin that follows his requests, probably confirms your suspicions.

But Jake beats you to the reply, ‘Of course, I’m kinda starving. I need my extra fries.’

Something shifts in the air once the three of you are out of the campus. For starters, Heeseung finds it very funny to annoy you and Jake has this distant look on his face from earlier. He’s also very quiet and Jake is never silent, especially with Heeseung.

Once you enter the restaurant, you and Jake take your places in a corner booth. You sit across from him. ‘Hey, was everything okay at uni? You seem down.’ He finally makes eye contact with you, you have no idea why he refused to meet your eyes before, ‘Yes, Y/N, just a little tired.’ He retreats back to his previous positions.

You nod, not convinced with his explanation when a thought comes up. Did he… hear you both?! Nonono, he can’t! You’ll be beyond cooked and losing a close friend must not be a nice feeling. Yeah, he most definitely did but you cannot lose your shit in public so you try distracting yourself. You nervously look around, hoping for Heeseung, who was at the counter, to finally come and break the silence.

Goodness, this thick uncomfortable silence or is it the greasy smell of fast food oil? No, it is definitely the silence between the both of you which is really unheard of in your relation.

You finally see a figure approaching, balancing the three orders, and a small grin on his face. ‘Here we go, people.’ he takes a seat beside you and Heeseung doesn’t miss the subtle change in Jake’s expression, smirking at the latter.

‘Omg, Y/N, you should try the fries dipped in coke.’ ‘you are fucking disgusting, Lee Heeseung, get away from me’, you scrunch your nose in disgust but not before the boy pushes some soaked fries at your direction, making you gag.

Seeing the exchange, Jake hastily picks up the fry, removing it, and instead replacing it with his normal, not soaked in coke fries. The insult you were about to hurl at Heeseung dies in your throat, looking up at the boy who is back to quietly eating his burger.

What has gotten into him?

'I'm so full', Heeseung stretches walking out of the place into the cool night air. 'Ok then, see yall later, I'll head this way', nodding his head. You bid him goodbye when he mouthes something you're unsure of. go. for. it. before giving sly smirk and walking off.

You stand confused in your place, and realize that Jake has been silent for so long. You turn around to see him already walking down the footpath. You sigh deeply, tired with his weird actions before catching up to him.

'Yah Jake hold up!' he hears your voice call out behind him, stopping on his tracks. You stop your jog, slightly catching your breath. 'No why the hell am I chasing you in the middle of the road? Please drop this act.'

He turns around abruptly, face to face with you and you realize the distance between the both of you, your heart picking up its pace. Jake's face is unreadable, his eyes are closed off and expresionless. You are about to ask another question when he– 'Is Heeseung the one you like?' His eyes seem dead set. Despite yourself, you can't help but break into a chuckle.

Were you reading the situation right? 'Help what?! Not that dumbass, hell no. You know for someone as smart as you, you really are oblivious.' And it all starts to click in, Jake's rough behavior, his distant stares, and the glares he was throwing at Heeseung.

'Are you... jealous?' You ask, trying to peer into his eyes for something... anything. Jake shakes his head, raking a hand through his hair, 'It's no problem if you date him obviously, he's good guy, plus I think you look really cute together and I want the best–' 'I like you', you blurt out in middle of Jake's long ramble, freezing in your place.

Did you just–?! No how did you mouth even speak without coordinating with your brain? Your eyes widening in shock, Jake's expression is pretty much the same (oh here goes your friendship) before you see the shift in his face. Shock slowly giving way to a more shy face.

'What...?' 'Um, sorry, I messed it up so bad didn't I?' You may as well confess now that he knows. 'I... have liked you for the longest time, Sim Jaehyun and it is not easy to hide all these feelings when you're standing right here. I know I'll probably mess up our entire friendship but I can't lose you.'

there. here comes the rejection. you shuffle in your feet, resisting the urge to dash in the opposite direction. 'Is this real?' he says instead.

You look up to face him and his face has broken into a bright smile, and suddenly it's hard for you to breath because why are you seeing your crush beaming at you when you just confessed your feelings.

Suddenly you feel a pair of lips on yours, catching you off guard. Oh this cannot be happening. You melt into the kiss immediately, reveling at the feeling. Your rapid heartbeat has stilled, almost in tandem with his.

This kiss is short lived but it leaves you feeling breathless. 'Are we seriously this dumb? I... I like you too', Jake's the one to break the silence, placing a hand on your cheek.

You feel a small flower bloom in your chest at his words. He tugs at your hands, pulling you close, into a hug.

Resting your face at the crook of his neck, you mutter, 'We're in the middle of the road, we should move.' Although the lanes were empty, save for a few passing cars.

'I know but I like it here', Jake says softly and you can almost see the pout forming. Yeah you'd stay this way forever if it meant never letting him go.

reblogs and feedbacks are appreciated :D

work belongs to @ rainytapestry don't steal

[your-nanas-house]

Can you do cage sex with Joe??? He kidnaps you and then sexy stuff happens in the cage but at the end you realize he really isn't ever going to let you go? Thank you I LOVE your Joe fics

Yessss. Omg, thank you ♡ Sorry it took me so long 😭

Glass cage

◇ Pairing: Joe Goldberg x fem!Reader

◇ Warnings: smut, Joe being Joe, kidnapping, glass cage, lies

◇ Summary: Y/n tries to escape by seducing Joe.

◇ Note: Sorry for the mistakes and the English.

Her head had hit the glass in frustration, the cold surface pressed against the warmth of her cheek. She had been locked since days now and started to get used to the routine.

Waiting, receiving, waiting, suffering, receiving.

She had been stuck in the waiting phase since probably hours, her hopes pretty low to see Joe enter the basement. But not zero.

The door opened, and a glimmer of light appeared on the dusty stairs. His footsteps were slow, he probably was carrying something with him as he made his way downstairs.

"Joe!" The young woman quickly beamed, pressing her hands against the glass in hope to see what the man was doing. To ease her heartbeat and fear.

Was he there to feed her again? Bring her a book? Good news? Free her?... hopefully.

"I brought you some more paper so you won't be out of it for your book. How is your writing going so far?" His voice filled the basement, making her tired mind realize she wasn't alone anymore. With all the time spent on her own and the continued planning to escape, she started to cope a bit to protect her from what was happening.

"Thank you.... yes, I've been writing some pages, but I'm stuck. I feel so lonely and guilty... for the way I treated you. You were just doing it for me, to protect me and help me, and I was just so...." Y/n stopped her voice, cracking during her lie. She really hoped that the bookseller wouldn't notice and just go along with what she was confessing.

Hopefully freeing her.

But of course, it wasn't that simple. His face mirrored a mix of confusion, uncertainty and hope. His doe brown eyes staring intently at her figure waiting for her to continue.

"Ungrateful. I'm sorry for that, Joe... I miss you, miss having you close.. I miss your cock" she whispered, pressing her body against the glass with a fake desperate facade.

The man in front of her was a complex instrument, a couple of wrong buttons and the symphony would change into a horrible thing. But with the right ones everything could go for the best.

"Could you ever forgive me? Please, Joe. We could starts everything from the beginning. Buy a house with a white fence, get a dog... kids" her tone got more pleading and soft, tears welling up in her eyes as a soft smile appeared on her face.

Joe didn't speak yet, his eyes following her as he looked up with hope and "love". His chest felt suddenly warm and everything felt right in his point of view. His slender fingers played with the keys, searching the right one so unlock the door.

His guard seemed still up as he opened it carefully, stepping inside and closer to her.

His expression was mimicking a puppy's one, his soft gaze piercing in hers as he hesitantly approached as if he thought he was in a dream. It wasn't a dream, though.

Y/n was still locked and was playing a dangerous game. A bad move and she could end up even worse, maybe six feet under.

"I'm so glad you can finally see it. We are meant to be, we always have... since you walked in the bookshop." He rambled out, his hands rested shakily on her hips to pull her into a hug. Their bodies flush against each other, fabric rubbing softly together as their perfumes mixed together.

A hesitant look up to meet his brown eyes and their lips were locked in a kiss. A kiss that seemed now almost foreign, different from the ones they shared before the disaster. It was needy, passionate yet tender and vulnerable just like Joe's touch.

The door was still open, just leaned, a clear message of possible freedom. The mere thought was enough to inject adrenaline in Y/n's veins, her lips moving more fiercely against his. One of her hands tangled in his brown curls while the other started to unbutton his shirt. She dreamed about freedom, she couldn't bear staying in that glass cage for any longer.

Her hands worked quickly on his belt, unbottoning and unzipping, before moving her hand in them. Her palm pressed against his hardening crotch, causing the man to whimper in pleasure.

His brown eyes flattered shut for a moment as to take in the sensation of having her hand again on him.

"Always wondered how—" Y/n started, shutting herself when her lips pressed against Joe's. Her movements increased in speed, stroking now his erection through the soft fabric of his underwear. Meanwhile his hand had slipped in her pants as well, rubbing her clit as he peppered kisses wherever he could.

It didn't take much time for the man to squirm and move her hand away, already too close to the climax. They hadn't fucked in a while and Joe wanted it to be more than 8 seconds or a couple of minutes, nutting on her hand like a teenager. He wished to be inside her, feel her, trust her.

In little time Y/n's face was against the cold glass of the cage, legs spread as Joe's cock kept thrusting between her folds. His hands pressed hers against the surface as he kept grunting in her ear, repeating as a mantra 'I love you' when he reached his climax.

And... then the door got locked again. Locking her there again.

"Joe?" Y/n's voice broke, her eyes wide as she watched him, now fully dressed. His brown watery eyes pierced hers as he smiled goofily, hearth beating like crazy.

[clawsdevour]

hq charas confessing hcs !!

wc: 0.6k content warning: not proofread, all fluff headcanons!!

⊹͏*.◯

-the type to have false confidence in themselves to help cope with their anxiousness. they'd for sure be hyping themself up loudly in the corner of the locker room with their headphones blasting in their ears. when they do confess though, they are a complete mess. they'd confess somewhere discrete where no one else is able to see them in case they get rejected right there despite knowing that you've been liking them.

"hey... look. i kind of like you. you don't have to like me back if you don't, i totally understand if you want to stay as friends even though it could be awkward-"

charas: kageyama tobio, tsukishima kei, kenma kozume, sakusa kiyoomi

─

-the type to come completely prepared for rejection. they just can't keep all these feelings bunched up anymore to the point where it's obvious that they have this big fat crush on you, and their heart is bursting with every beat. they're willing to accept the fact that you may not like them back and they're completely fine with it. when they confess, they just let it all out.

"SO basically you probably don't know.. or well know already but I really LIKE LIKE you! you've been running around in my mind like crazy these past few weeks and I just can't keep these feelings to myself anymore.. it's completely okay with me if you want to stay as friends though!"

charas: bokuto koutaro, hinata shoyo, nishinoya yu, tanaka ryunosuke

─

-the type to be calm, cool, collected despite having all these wandering feelings rapidly evolve and take over their mind. they're prepared for the worst and the best, mainly the worst. they're stern and real with their feelings, staring into your eyes to try and read your body language waiting for a simple yes or no.

"I like you.. that's kind of all I have to say. i'm sorry for sending a letter telling you to come all the way back here just for me to confess. but i've been having these feelings building up for so long, it's just time I come clean."

charas: akaashi keiji, iwaizumi hajime, ushijima wakatoshi

─

-the type to be abolsutely fiddling their fingers before they even meet with you. they may be one of the most hard working players with immense respect to their name but at the end of the day they're human too. the growing emotions that sway their opinions on you grow much larger by the day, theres none where their mind is just blank.

"I need to confess. I can't keep up with my emotions any longer. to be short and blunt, I really like you. you're just.. I don't know how to say it but.. someone I really value and see as more than just a friend.."

charas: daichi sawamura, sugawara koshi, kita shinsuke, osamu miya

─

-the type to be highkey prepared to accept whatever your response will be. they've come to terms to let life roll at its own pace, if you said yes the spark will lit into a torch that guides the hole in their heart. they're sincere with their words in a one on one, a bit more serious than usual when confessing to show that they aren't joking or playing around because they have actual interest in you.

"this is gonna be kind of embarrassing on my part but listen, I have these serious feelings for you that won't stop changing. I like you, okay? you don't have to respond to me immediately.. i'll even wait for your response because you truly do matter to me."

charas: kuroo tetsuro, oikawa tooru, yaku morisuke, atsumu miya, suna rintaro

masterlist here

[duvetchico]

love, eventually - (smau)

a yu jimin x fem!reader x huh yunjin smau

NOW PLAYING ; Autumn by NIKI " when do i let go? all you do is blindside me, it's hard to be brave. "

synopsis ; y/n’s been in love with jimin for years, but jimin’s always sending mixed signals. now, with graduation around the corner, y/n can’t ignore her feelings anymore. the tension is real, but things get complicated when feelings are confessed and secrets come to light. in the end, y/n’s faced with a choice—one that might change everything.

heavily inspired by an indie movie "i'm drunk, i love you"

genre ; college au / angst asf / humor / fluff / romance / friends to lovers trope

warnings ; mild swearing / emotional distress / unhealthy coping / miscommunication / heartbreak / unrequited love / slow burn / suggestive humor

featuring ; aespa / le sserafim / itzy ryujin / jeon somi / nct jungwoo / txt beomgyu / enhypen sunghoon

taglist are open !

status - on-hold !

main masterlist. playlist. big three. clockshit.

CHAPTERS ;

00. prologue

01. ryujin opens her mouth and ruins everything

02. i fear for our lives

03. im gonna fake my death

04. i hope this bus explodes

05. beomgyu vs. the kids

06. the bus ride from hell

07. hunger games

08. public transportation is a scam

09. it's ryujin's fault

10. it's ryujin's fault p.2

11. real..

12. wtf is this gas station

[becausebuckley]

michelle's buddie fic recs: week 13!

lthe year is officially one-fourth over and i gotta be honest, i do not vibe with that at all. the passage of time can suck my ass. enjoy these fics!!

this is a mix of fics with all ratings, so some include NSFW content. please take a look at both the ratings and the fic tags before reading! some contain spoilers for season 8.

if you come across something you like in this list, remember to show some love to the author by leaving kudos and a comment!

across our great divide (a glorious sunrise) | catchingpapermoons/@adamsparirsh | 53.7k | M

Eddie gets Buck to come to couples therapy with him. truly such a stunning fic. i love how this is just filled with emotion at every corner, not just in the dialogue but descriptive passages as well. brilliant, brilliant stuff!!

anther | theghosts | 6.6k | E

Eddie gets hit with pollen from a magical plant and develops some rather interesting symptoms. Buck does what any good best friend would do and helps Eddie through it. it is my humble opinion that the 911 fandom needs more sex pollen fic. if you're reading this and you don't immediately agree with me, i'm gonna need you to click the link above, read it, and then come back and tell me that i was absolutely right, because we do, in fact, need 700 more fics just like it. this one is so, so well-written, i love the bits of worldbuilding and the buddie and the smut. it's so good <3

champagne kisses | spaceprincessem/@spaceprincessem | 1.9k | GA

eddie comes home and buck stays. gorgeous writing AND a love confession?? oh, this fic absolutely delivers. love it!!

cinnamon kisses | tawaifeddiediaz/@aashiqeddiediaz | 3.5k | T

Buck wakes up from a nap, cuddles Eddie, proposes, and devours cinnamon rolls, in that very order. i have an all-day study session planned for tomorrow and i'm gonna pick up a cinnamon roll as a treat just because of this fic. i have been craving one so badly since reading this!! this was a reread of one of my favourite fics ever <3

close enough for comfort | allyasavedtheday/@littlespoonevan | 14.1k | T

A look at how Buck and Eddie's physical relationship develops from season 2 to season 5 AKA the one with all the hugging. i love how this dips into canon at all these places and how intimate the whole fic feels <3 so good!!

finders keepers | drh0rrible/@betanoiz | 7.1k | E

After Eddie leaves for Texas, Buck finds Eddie’s sex toy in his new bedroom. He reacts normally. i'm a huge fan of all the unhinged buddie long distance sex fics lately, and this is a shining example of just how good those can be. absolutely mind-blowing!!

i'm scared of being lonely (i'll let anybody hold me) | justhockey | 9.4k | T

“I’m not in love with my best friend,” Buck says, but the words feel strange in his mouth. this has such a lovely reunion bit and i always love how this author writes ravi <3

it hit me in the kitchen | heartcompass/@bugsongs | 13.1k | GA

Eddie leaves for Texas and everybody copes with food in one way or another. buddie and food is one of my favourite fic combinations <3 this is lovely and heartwarming and all the food sounds so, so good!!

oh what a terrible honor it's been (to learn that my blessings are things you call sins) | wafflesofdoom/@capseycartwright | 18.3k | GA

Christopher leaves for Texas, Eddie goes back to therapy, unearths an emotional lockbox he had been fourteen years old when he buried, and has a lot of thoughts about how Buck is sunshine incarnate. In hindsight, it probably should have been obvious he wasn't straight. this has been on my marked for later list for a while and i'm so glad to have had the opportunity to actually read it! i love how this captures eddie and touches on religion and queerness and just everything, really. also, can we talk about that title? i LOVE that title

pain is cold water (your brain just gets used to it) | lilacbarnes | 22k | M

Eddie leaves, and calls, and calls, and calls. Buck falls apart, and lets it go to voicemail. such a wonderful fic!! i love how the voicemails capture eddie's voice, and following buck's arc through this was just lovely <3

tell me how it feels (say it ain't so) | Iover_of_mine/@lover-of-mine | 8.3k | T

Eddie hears Natalia saying Buck's death was cool and things spiral out of control from there.  this has some of the absolute best buddie dialogue i've read in ages. it feels so, so true to character, it's so good!!

this whole thing between us | facewithoutheart/@facewithoutheart | 3.9k | E

Eddie and Buck swap bodies and get together. bodyswap fic!! i love a bodyswap fic!! this is suck a fun take on the trope and i love how both of them reacted to the swap <3

write your name on every blank page | lamardeuse/@lamardeuse | 11k | M

This is an impulse he doesn't have to worry about, because a) it's only going to cost him two dollars, and b) it's frivolous. Eddie doesn't usually do frivolous, but Father Brian told him to allow himself joy and he desperately needs some right now. listen i am not joking when i say that i've been waiting for a postcards fic ever since eddie said he was moving to el paso. this is absolutely everything i could have wished for and so much more <3 i loved looking at the cards they sent!!

[vendettasfanfictioning]

Ok so. "Why does this sound like a goodbye?" Was fucking heartbreaking, right; we have the full-on uninterrupted eye contact, the head tilt, Dean's already open mouth twitching before the scene cuts to Cas' "I love you," like he had more to say, but Cas beats him to the punch. It's great, we love that. But for the dialogue to be sequenced that way, and to have Dean reply with, "don't do this, Cas."

I'm only just realizing how fucking insane it was. And sure, I might just be coping here, at the end of the day who fucking knows, but look at it. Think about it. Now let yourself feel it all over again.

It's Dean's death knocking on the door behind Cas, and it's Cas' death emerging behind Dean. Like this, they're directly facing their own demise—but they're too stuck on each other, in their moment, to give a damn. And then Dean doesn't say, "I love you too." He says, "don't do this."

He isn't disgusted or ashamed or put off in the slightest by Cas' confession, because if he is then why is he on the verge of tears? In what world would it make sense for him to want to cry after his best friend confessed to him, if the confession was something he did not want. He says don't do this here, don't do this to me now.

Even if, and that's the most unlikely if to ever exist, Dean did not reciprocate Cas' feelings—don't do this is still so fucking powerful. Because Dean's connected the dots, happiness [...] is in just saying it, and Cas said it, so where does that lead Dean? That's right, with Cas dead again, trying to save him again.

Don't do this. Don't die for me, don't love me only to die for me, don't love me at all, just stay with me.

Don't let me watch you die again and not even let me follow you—because, at the very least, that was a consolation. She's gonna kill you, which Dean knows that Billie knows will hurt him more than his own death, and then she's gonna kill me.

"Don't do this," was actually so fucking powerful, I don't know how it slipped past me until now...

[theresatzu]

Blue Lock characters and their reaction to getting friendzoned

Featuring: Isagi, Bachira & Nagi x reader

"Oh, no, we're just friends! He's like a brother to me!"

Isagi Yoichi

Let me tell you, this man is crushed. He's too polite to outright say or show it, but internally, all his innards are imploding, his stomach sinking up to three miles into the ground.

After, when you're both walking home, Isagi is unusually quiet. Normally, he'd ramble on and on about a new trick he'd developed in football or complain about one of his rivals again.

This time, he seems to have sunken into his thoughts, his eyes are cast downwards, his hands are stuffed into his pockets, and he's downright slumping.

You've been shooting him concerned looks for ten minutes now, and frankly, you couldn't take it any longer.

"Yoi, what's wrong?" You gently asked him, your hand lightly touching his arm.

Isagi was instantly shaken out of his stupor. Goosebumps rose up from where your skin was making contact with his.

"You know, you can tell me, right?" Your eyes searched his, so kindly, so sweetly.

Isagi inhaled sharply, an inner debacle raging within him.

He'd been coping with these complex feelings for years, but you still hadn't noticed. And honestly, he couldn't quite contain them any longer.

But on the other hand, he didn't want to ruin the precious thing you had. His stomach wound up in knots at the thought of him breaking your trust by confessing his feelings to you.

So, he said nothing.

"I'm... fine. Yeah. Just, uh, haven't slept really well lately. Ha ha." Isagi scratched his neck, shielding his face to prevent you from seeing the ruddy flush spreading across his cheeks.

You narrowed your eyes in suspicion, tilting one disbelieving eyebrow, before reluctantly letting it go.

Isagi clearly seemed uncomfortable, and you didn't want to push him. That quiet reassurancd yet another thing Isagi was afraid to lose.

Sighing, you interlocked your fingers with his. "Just know you can tell me, alright? I'll always be there for you."

You then turned away from Isagi, walking on, completely unaware of the pained, wistful look in Isagi's eyes.

He let out a shaky exhale, his eyes stinging.

"You'll always be there for me, but you won't always be mine."

Bachira Meguru

If Bachira Meguru is a cheery, sunshine incarnate when he's happy, then he's also a deflated, morose sack of depressive pouting when's sad.

Yeah, this man is pouting and sulking after hearing those cruel, cruel words spill from your lips.

The switch up in demeanour gave you whiplash, but you also knew that talking to him when he was like this, was a lost case, so you opted to just silently offer your reassurance.

Even though you didn't even know the reason why he was like this, you stayed by his side, through thick and thin, like a pillar of support.

This gesture made Bachira's heart squeeze together even more, so much so that he couldn't keep up the whiny charade any longer.

Dramatically, he threw himself onto you, arms seamlessy draped around your neck, his cheek resting against your shoulder like a puzzle piece slotting in.

Chuckling, you returned the gesture by slinging your arm around his middle, the other carding through his silky yellow and brown locks.

Bachira made a noise of contendness at the familiar and comforting feeling of your fingers gently massaging his scalp.

Though, this wasn't enough skinship for Bachira. He wanted, needed more. Throwing his arms around you, he pushed himself against you until you both went toppling onto your bed in a flurry of limbs.

You gasped in surprise before it quickly melted into delighted giggles.

Seeing you laugh so carefree and pretty, and because of him, Bachira's eyes softened, drinking in every little detail from the way how your hair was splayed across your pillow, to the upturn of your lips.

Your legs were intertwined, hands clasped together, and faces inches apart. Not quite unlike a couple.

And Bachira wondered quietly, just for a moment, if putting a label on your relationship would really change that much.

Nagi Seishiro

Nagi is a slug. Or a cactus. Because he doesn't need that much attention.

But after hearing these words from you, you can count on him practically vying for your attention, even going out of his way to do things for you.

Because well, he just had to remind you that having him at your side wasn't a hassle.

"Nagi? What's this?" You say, surprised, when he plopped a small package onto your lap.

"Mhm..." He answered while snuggling up to you, where you were laying on the couch, his cheek resting against yours as his hair tickled your face.

You opened the package, curiosity overtaking you as you peeked inside.

"This is... Nagi..." You said disbelievingly, shooting a perplexed look at the man in question.

"I can't take this." You declared decisively.

Nagi's head shot up at that, the motion so sudden it startled both of you.

"Why not? You said you wanted it, right? So I got it for you." Nagi retorted matter of factly.

"But... Nagi. This is really... this is too much."

You picked up the necklace, awe overtaking your face.

"How did you even find this? It's limited edition." You inquired in wonder.

"I just did." Nagi dismissively replied, his bottom lip sticking out. "Can you wear it?"

"I... are you sure?" You looked from Nagi's half-lidded eyes to the necklace between your fingers, chewing on your bottom lip as a conflicted expression washed over your face.

"It's pretty." You mumbled.

"You're pretty." Nagi mumbled into your shirt, arms haphazardly slung around your middle.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing. Just wear it. Please?"

You chuckled. "Alright. Can you clasp it for me?"

Nagi nodded, sliding off the couch as he appeared from behind you. (See? Look how attentive and caring he was being! No one could top this!)

He swiped your hair to the side, ignoring the urge to run his fingers through your soft-looking locks as he fastened the necklace.

He swallowed arduously as his fingers brushed against your skin, redness tinting the top of his ears.

"All done." He murmured before taking his rightful place onto your body, your legs interwoven and his head resting on your upper body.

"Thank you, Nagi." You softly spoke, a small, grateful smile flitting over your features.

Despite not seeing your disposition, Nagi happily hummed as his eyes fell closed.

And when your hands returned to his hair, Nagi could've sworn he was already dreaming.

Nagi might not be your boyfriend. (Yet.) But there was no one who would take this moment away from him. This place, right on your lap, was just for him.

And maybe, maybe that was enough for him.

[trainer-from-unova]

slow dance

english ao3 Ⓢ spanish ao3 Ⓢ masterlist Ⓢ 𝄞

ship: robert reynolds x f!reader

summary: part of being a new avenger consists in attending galas with the rest of the team and bob, and after drinking a little too much to cope seeing him interact with a beautiful girl that makes you insecure and jealous, you confess your feelings and desire for him

au: none, during the timeskip

c/w: provocative dress, alcohol, drunkenness, light angst, jealousy, crying, bob and john being besties, ava and you being besties, hugs, rough kissing, sexual insinuations, sexual humor, fluff, ambiguous happy ending as usual in my works

a/n: reposting because tumblr said that my post was inappropriate for some reason before and english isn't my first language

word count: 4473

You couldn't say they went to galas and events as much as they went on missions... but they went quite a lot. They were public figures now, and part of their job was that. Valentina forced them to prepare as if they were going on a mission, and in many ways they were — they had to be just as, if not more mentally prepared, and the aim was to show a good image in order to win support of all kinds from all over the world.

If possible, Bob would go where they were going as their shadows, mostly at the request of the team. He went as a chaperone because they wanted to keep an eye on him, to prevent him from feeling left out, to get him out of the tower and interacting with other people. Besides, dress up could also help his mental health. But neither he nor the other men took long to get dressed up, that was the job of the women, who went to another floor of the tower to have their hair, make-up and clothes done by a whole team of specialised stylists, whether they liked it or not.

When they received a message from Yelena via the group chat that they were almost ready, they went down to one of the entrances of the tower, where they would meet to get into a limousine (not owned or driven by Alexei) to take them to the gala.

It wasn't the first time Bob had seen ______ all dressed up, nor would it be the last, and he found her attractive even when he saw her appear in the kitchen, freshly awakened and in her pyjamas with her hair in a mess, but he was always impressed to see her like this. He couldn't help but become more shy and nervous than usual, and even blushed a little. This time, apparently, she was wearing a long, elegant black dress that didn't reveal anything, with a turn-down collar and even long sleeves, but when he approached her and let her into the limousine first with the others, he realised that her entire back was uncovered, seeing that she wasn't wearing a bra and with a cleavage that revealed her high buttocks. He couldn't help but widen his eyes and put a hand to his chest in astonishment, to which John noticed and laughed quietly as he tapped his on the back to let him in.

"I've never been to as many parties as I have in the last few months," Bob said talking to John and ______ already in the place, standing with drinks in their hands, "I guess I'm making up for it," he shrugged.

"Not even in high school?" John asked.

"Neither," he replied, remembering that he dropped out shortly after entering high school and that before that he had no one to go with and couldn't because he was recovering from the car accident he'd had.

"Well, this is kind of like a high school party, only there's no music and no teenagers dancing," John said, and she nodded.

Then the attention of the woman in the trio was called by Mel, trying to make her way through the crowd to her and connecting their gazes, beckoning to her and calling her name and gesturing silently for her to try to approach her as well. She probably wanted her to talk to someone.

"Excuse me," she said turning away from them to approach the secretary, and they nodded and couldn't help to look at her bare back, especially Bob.

"Good thing she doesn't have eyes in the back of her head, uh?" John joked affectionately.

He didn't want to accept his feelings for her, but there was no fooling John on that score, from his experience of being in love for so many years.

"She's beautiful," he said in his defence as he laughed, slightly embarrassed and blushing.

"Tell her, not me."

After a while it was time for dinner, with all the guests seated at a large table in a large hall. At events like that they always asked to be seated together — they were a tight-knit group even in situations like that because some weren't very sociable or talkative (or were nervous about interacting with others because of what they might think of them in John's case). On one side of the table were ______, Bucky and Yelena, and on the other were John, Ava, Alexei and Bob. Both protagonists were at different ends, and both she and he had people they didn't know next to them — in his case a young, good-looking woman, in her case a middle-aged man. Sometimes she was talking to him next to John and Ava, but she was more interested in Bob at the other end, talking to that girl next to Alexei and Yelena. (Poor Bucky was in the middle of both conversations, and preferred to be quiet and listen at times to one and then the other).

"What are they talking about?" She asked in a whisper, leaning to the left to get closer to Bucky as she held her glass in her dominant hand.

"Nothing important really," he replied, leaning to his right at the same volume, unconcerned, "they vary."

"He looks fine," she said with a quick glance at Bob.

"Yeah," he replied, "and I think Alexei's trying to help him flirt with her."

"What?" She asked, trying to hide her annoyance and surprise as much as possible. "Tell me," she asked even though she probably wouldn't like what she would hear, and hoping her friend would think she was asking out of gossip and not jealousy.

"I don't know more," he said shaking his head subtly, making his long locks of hair move as well, "I haven't heard much but that's my feeling of what's happening."

"Your arm may not be rusty, but you are — you're turning into a horrible spy," she said half jokingly, half seriously.

"I'm still a good enough spy to know that you have nothing to worry about."

The instant she heard such an answer she tensed, looking at him with a mixture of seriousness and nervousness, then tried to flee the conversation by taking a sip from her glass, composing herself in her seat.

It had been a while since dinner and dessert, and people were still drinking — some still sitting in their seats, others standing around the table talking to others who were also standing or still seated. She kept drinking while Bob kept talking to that blonde girl, and the jealousy got the better of her. She'd be lying if she said she didn't want to spill the drink over this one's head, but she just took the last sip and got up from the table to go to the bathroom.

"Where is ______?" Ava asked when she noticed that she had been up for a while and hadn't returned to her seat. Bucky, John and she looked around for her, but couldn't find her.

"She didn't tell me where she was going," Bucky reported.

"Maybe she's in the bathroom," said John.

"I'll go check," Ava announced as she got up from the table. "______?" she asked as she entered the bathroom, seeing that if she was really there she would be inside some cubicle.

"Yeah?" answered or rather asked the aforementioned confused woman from inside one of these.

"Are you all right?" Ava asked as she approached where she had heard her voice.

"Uh... Yeah."

"You don't sound so sure..."

very sure of herself, "he loves you too much to hurt you by being inconsiderate," she said as she shook her head.

She remained thoughtful, and ended up leaving the bathroom to return to her seat next to Ava. When she returned to the spot she noticed that to her good fortune the blonde girl was no longer sitting there, and that the two of them returned caught the attention of everyone in the group, including Bob. Their gazes connected for a second and they both smiled at each other. Then she looked at Ava (mostly because she had no choice as they were sitting across from each other), who watched as her gaze connected with him and gave her a teasing but mostly encouraging smile that made her blush a little (more).

Luckily they didn't stay there much longer. When it was time to go home they got back into the limousine, and as she sat next to Bob in the limousine, between her tiredness and the alcohol, she dared to lean over his shoulder to rest her head and intertwine her arms and hands. He leaned over his shoulder as well, resting his cheek on top of her head. Before she closed her eyes, lulled by the alcohol and the soothing jolt of the moving limo, she saw Ava smiling at her, this time more teasingly than encouragingly, but she wasn't offended — in fact, she was amused by it too.

"Hey, we arrived," she heard Bob say close to her ear as he gently shook her arm to wake her up, still holding hands.

She hadn't meant to fall asleep on the way, just rest her eyes, but apparently she had done so for God knows how long. She had reached one of the tower doors without realising it, and as she woke confusedly she saw the others exit the limousine one by one. Bob came out second to last, and offered her his hand to help her out, a gesture she gladly accepted.

"Do you need help?" he asked as she stepped completely out of the limo, still holding her hand. This one, thanks to his serum like the supersoldiers, was unaffected by alcohol.

"I'm not that drunk," she said in her defence, with a smile that rubbed off on him, "but... Yeah," she said because she was tired of wearing heels and above all because she wanted to continue to have physical contact with him, "thank you."

They entered the building and moved through it hand in hand, and in the meantime she had an idea which she dared to communicate when he escorted her to the door of her bedroom while the others were also on their ways to lock themselves in theirs:

"Would you dance with me?" she asked.

"What?" he asked confused.

"You said before that you never went to a party in high school, and neither have I, and since we're both dressed up..." She shrugged her shoulders. "But if you don't want to it's fine," she hastened to add.

"No, no! Of course I want to," he hastened to reply. "It's just that the proposal took me by surprise."

She smiled warmly and excitedly before turning to open the door to her bedroom, which he entered behind her. He closed the door and then slowly walked in, surveying the bedroom as she went to the bedside table to get her wireless earphones. She turned them on and put them in her ears to her friend's confused look, again.

"I'm going to go find a cool song," she said, and he whispered a small "Oh" as he finally understood what she intended to do.

She tried to hurry up and search for an appropriate song on YouTube, looking for a slow but not overly cheesy song as she didn't want to give him cringe or make him uncomfortable. Bob didn't know what to expect while she was doing it, and neither did she. In the end, out of everything she heard in a minute, she decided on Slow Dance by Clairo and took off one of the earphones to give it to him, which he accepted as she tossed the mobile onto the mattress.

"A slow one?" he asked confused.

"Do you prefer pop or techno?" she asked with genuine curiosity. "I wouldn't mind, but it's not the time to make a lot of noise, and I think we're both tired, so...". And it was partly true what she was saying, but the biggest reason she wasn't keen on the idea at the moment was because she wanted to get closer to him physically.

"No, it's fine, if... you don't mind if I..." he said nervously, gesturing with his hands and pretending to put them on her waist, "I put my hands..."

"No, that's fine too," she said smiling a little too broadly perhaps, but she couldn't be disguised with him in this state, so close to her and so elegant in that outfit. "Touch wherever you want," she said without thinking as she moved dangerously close to him, still smiling as she placed her hands on his shoulders, on the side of his neck and brushing the ends of his long locks of hair. He tried to be expressionless and remain as calm as possible as he placed his hands on her waist, feeling her skin against his. "Did you have a good time tonight?" She decided to ask with genuine curiosity as their eyes connected and to ignore the lyrics of the song.

"Yeah."

"You seemed very amused talking to that blonde you had sitting next to you," she said trying not to sound too jealous or annoyed, trying to avoid making eye contact with him at that moment by looking at his shoulder in front of her. "Have you hit on her?" she asked now daring to look him in the eyes, wanting to see how he would react and respond, but at the same time she was exposing herself. He noticed the feelings she was trying to hide, but his first thought was that they were probably his imagination and he didn't think much of it.

"Oh no, I'm not interested in her in that sense," he hastened to answer, quite sure of what he was saying as he subtly shook his head, stroking her fingers through his moving hair, "and anyway," he said as he shrugged, "I don't think she was interested in me in that sense either."

No. She was sure that girl was interested in him, ...or maybe the alcohol and jealousy were thinking for her as well as the lack of self-esteem, caused by depression and trauma, was speaking for Bob.

"Why?" she asked confused.

"I don't think I'm the prototype for that kind of girl," he replied with another shrug. "Or anyone, to be honest," he "joked" with a shy laugh.

"Bob, believe me, you could have anyone," she said seriously as she looked into his eyes, tightening her grip on him. And then he realised that what he was sensing was most likely not a delusion of his own.

"...Are you flirting with me?" he asked confused as well as surprised.

"I'm not really sure what I'm doing," she laughed nervously, "but I think I am, and I'm confessing by the way, apparently," she said as she shrugged and took a step back to separate from him. "I'm sorry, yeah, I like you, a lot," she said as she pulled the wireless earphones out of her ear and threw it on the mattress, defeated, "And I don't like seeing you with your self-esteem so low, just like I don't like seeing you talking to women prettier than me."

To say that Bob was in shock was an understatement, he even froze and as he tried to process everything they were both silent for a few seconds. He couldn't believe what he had just heard, what he was experiencing at that moment. His friend and roommate, the one he was in love with, really just confessed to him and even admitted that she was jealous just because she had seen him talking to another woman at dinner? He was looking down, his eyes moving from side to side but fixed on the floor as if he would find the answer to that question and many more as he slowly reached up to take off his wireless earphones.

"I'm so sorry," she added suddenly as he redirected his hand to put the earphone in his jacket pocket, "I know it's very childish of me" she said as her voice broke, and he, even more surprised, finally looked back at her, "to be so jealous, and I hope this doesn't ruin our friendship."

"No, no!" He hastened to say again, taking a step forward but not quite knowing what to do. "Don't worry," he said, although now he was the one who was worried because he didn't like to see her in such a sad and pessimistic state, "it's something you can't control."

"I should," she said as her lower lip trembled and her eyes watered.

"Please don't cry," he said as he shook his head, "you don't have to."

"I have no right to feel like this."

"Who says you don't?"

"Um..." She thought about it — she didn't really have an answer for that, but she felt she had no right because he was nothing to her beyond a friend and housemate. "I don't know, but..." She shrugged, and he came over to her and hugged her. He supposed that would calm her down, especially if it was true that she was in love with him, and he was right. "I'm going to fuck up your jacket with my make-up..." she said as they embraced, her forehead resting on his shoulder.

He couldn't help but laugh snorting through his nose, as he was both surprised and touched by the fact that she was more concerned about the state of his jacket than herself at the moment.

"Don't worry about that," he said, and when they parted he took her hands and added: "Look, I know firsthand that you're not in your right mind right now, and that you might regret-"

"I'm not going to regret expressing how I feel about you," she said with self-assurance as she subtly shook her head from side to side.

"Maybe not about that, but about the way or the moment... I- I don't feel right having such an important conversation with you in this state... It's not right for you to confess something so intimate to me when you're drunk."

"Again, I'm not drunk," she said with a frown, "I just had a little too much to drink," she said almost offended. "It's not like I'm going to pass out or like I won't remember this tomorrow."

"Still, I think we'd better talk about it tomorrow, okay?"

"How am I going to sleep?"

"I'm sure the alcohol will help you."

"I mean- The intrigue, the nerves."

"You don't have to be nervous, I feel the same way about you," and now she was the one who gasped, paralysed as she tried to process what she had just heard. Seeing the state she was in at his confession, before she could hesitate and ask any questions, he added as he tightened his grip on her hands, "I promise. In fact, I think I'm more nervous than you," he said laughing in the same way as he said, "don't you feel my hands shaking?"

"I thought the shaking was mine," she said now, laughing nervously.

"Perhaps it's from both of us," said he laughing too but this time more amused, and after that they were both calmer, looking at each other smiling and unable to prevent their glances from sometimes going to their lips.

Although he also wanted to kiss her he dared not come closer to her and lean over to kiss her because of her state, but she, also because of her state, dared to let go of his hands, come closer to him and grab his tie to pull him down, bending down to kiss him. Although at first he was as surprised and paralysed as when he heard her confession, and above all doubtful of what to do, in the end he gave in and reciprocated the kiss as he put his hands gently back on her waist and she put her hands back on his shoulders.

"______..." He said as he tried to break the kiss and pull away, seeing that they were both getting more heated than they should be and that he should be the voice of reason if she couldn't be.

"Please, my love..." She pouted as they parted but at the same time holding in her laughter, though it didn't help to see him with her lipstick all over his lips in a mess, and she guessed she was the same way. "I want- I need to feel you from the inside."

"Any time," he dared to say trying to remain serious, but also holding in his laughter and blushing because he still couldn't process the situation, "but not tonight."

"I don't look provocative enough?" she asked half jokingly and half seriously.

"Oh yeah, I've been staring at your ass all night," he said in the same tone, and she couldn't help but let out a laugh that she was sure those in the bedrooms close to her heard, causing her to quickly put a hand to her mouth to cover it.

"Cool, that's what I wanted," she said as she pulled her hand away, "Stay with me, come on," she pouted again as she held back her laughter.

"Listen," he said more seriously now, lowering his voice, "I'll book a hotel room for us tomorrow if you want, okay?"

"Well, okay," she said defeated but smiling.

"Now get some rest, okay?" He said as he pulled away from her and she nodded slowly. "Do you need anything?" he asked before walking towards the door.

"I need help to undress," she said, and Bob didn't know if she was joking or if she was trying her luck again, but he shook his head as he laughed quietly and looked away with a blush. "No, but thank you," she replied more seriously now as she walked him to the door, "Thanks for making my night."

"You've made mine, believe me," he said with a sweet smile as he reached for the doorknob to open the door. "Good night."

"Good night," she replied.

"Oh wait, I almost forgot to give you this," he stopped short as he reached into his jacket pocket for the wireless earphone with his sense of touch. When he picked it up and she saw it she opened her hand to place it in her palm. "And this," he said as he leaned down to kiss her on the forehead, causing her to grin from ear to ear again.

She felt so happy she felt like she was in a dream, and if she was she didn't want to wake up — though on one hand she was looking forward to the hours passing and waking up the next morning. But when she did she was confused, for in the first moments of lucidity she thought that it had really all been a dream. When she realised that everything actually happened she was staring at the ceiling, and she slowly put her dominant hand to her mouth, then rubbed her forehead at the same rhythm while thinking with her eyes closed:

"My God, what was I thinking?" she thought ashamed, almost horrified — she didn't feel bad about confessing her feelings to him because it worked out in the end, but she did feel bad about the way and the timing of it (as he said) and how she devoured his mouth mercilessly, apart from the sexual innuendo. "Never again," she thought, referring to drinking (so much) alcohol.

a/n: _____ preparing herself to exit her bedroom and talk to bob that morning:

[afniel]

So today I woke up and promptly remembered that hey, didn't I have jury duty at some point this month...? I went downstairs and checked the summons postcard and sure enough, I did.

Last week!

Now, this isn't me confessing a criminal misdemeanor, because I was excused, actually. Luck was on my side (and so was the Wayback Machine, which is how I had to check). No failure to appear, no foul.

The thing I'm actually proud of is that I didn't freak out about it. See, when you've got a lifetime of internalized ADHD shame, the typical reaction to realizing that You Forgot Something, Again, goes like this:

Panic so much. You're going to be In Trouble. Nothing can possibly be worse than being In Trouble. This is a category 5 emergency.

Self-flagellate as hard as humanly possible. What kind of useless sack of unreliable shit, accidentally mislabeled as a human being, could have fucked this up so badly? This is just like everything else in your life. Nothing you do is ever right no matter how hard you try. What's even the point? You're an eternal fuckup. Might as well just accept it.

Existential crisis spiral until you can't even remember what the real problem is. The problem is just you. The problem has always been you. Why are you like this?

Eat an entire thing of Oreos, or whatever your self-destructive self-soothing behavior of choice is. Do you feel better? Not really. You stopped hyperventilating at least, so it'll have to be close enough.

Actually deal with the real problem, if it's even a problem. It probably wasn't. Now you just feel stupid for getting so worked up about it.

Completely fail to realize that you punishing the hell out of yourself in steps 2-4 is just reinforcing your panic response and making you less capable of coping in the future, because you've had it beaten into your head that forgetting things, a normal and reasonable human error, is Simply Not Acceptable, even if it's ultimately pretty harmless. But hey, if you kick your own ass about it harder than anybody else would or even could, then you've personally made sure you have control over the severity of the punishment, right?

Right?

Does that sound like a trauma response? Well, it should, because it is. Many people with ADHD have this same trauma response, because having a brain that doesn't work like everyone else's in a world that is not just not built to accommodate that, but in fact is built to convince you that this is a personal, moral, and unforgivable failure is actually pretty traumatic.

That's verbatim how I've lived most of my life. Don't ask me how the hell I got this far carrying on like that, because I don't even know. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger gives you a goddamn complex. But I've been working on it over the past I don't even know how many years, and today, my response was more like this:

Oh shit jury duty was a week ago. Well, now I just feel silly.

Uhh...let's figure out the worst possible outcome. Jail time? Seems highly unlikely for a first time misdemeanor. Possibly a fine, but probably a warning.

Let's look up what actually happens to people in my county who miss their jury duty. They get sent a second summons. That's very reasonable and not at all a real problem if it happens.

Let's find out if I was even summoned to appear. If not, it isn't even a problem. Mention it to my partner at this point. They say 'yeah, I forgot I had jury duty once. I looked up whether or not I was summoned on the Wayback Machine. You told me to not worry about it either way because people honestly forget all the time, and it's a fixable problem whatever happens.'

Realize they are right (and that I forgot this happened until they mentioned it because it was such a non-issue), and I should take the advice I give and treat myself like somebody I care about. I reassure myself that it's not a big deal and people do it all the time and nobody's doing to be personally affronted, and a sincere apology goes a very long way even with a cranky judge if it comes to that. I check the Wayback Machine.

I was excused anyway, so no big deal in the end. I now have a funny story to tell, and I'll probably remember better in the future as a result. Realize that even if it had gone worse, it still would have ended up a funny story later. Yeah, even if they inexplicably threw me in jail for a night. That sure would never get old retelling.

Have a shower and get on with my day.

Gold star for me, I completely didn't even realize that I was de-catastrophizing so well until after the fact. Like I've got it down to a reflex now. I am legitimately just a much calmer person than I used to be. Feels pretty alright! I could get used to this not kicking the absolute mental health out of myself every time something goes slightly wrong. Highly recommend being nice to yourself actually, 10/10 experience.

Anyway that's me tooting my own horn. I feel very emotionally stable and pretty good about that fact. It's been a fucking journey.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

OKAY HELLO UH. SAVANACLAW DREAM UPDATE SPOILERS ?!?!!2!!2!2

THE. WAY BOTH JACK AND RUGGIE ADMIRE LEONA SO MYCH AND FEATURE HIM IN THEIR DREAMS 😭😭😭😭 Jack making Leona basically nOT HAVE DEPRESSION QUFBWKANDK 😭😭 and making him a fair player... Jack my boy... your dream is lovely but you made him do stuff hED NEVER DO 😭😭

AND RUGGIE. THE FACT HE AND LEONA NEVER MET IN THIS DREAM *BUT* THE AMAZING DRESM SCHOOL HE ATTENDS WAS SKGNKENAKjfkenalNIfjeksksn MADE/PROPOSED TO BE MADE (?) BY LEONA 😭😭😭 AND HE SAYS THAT PRINCE LEONA IS MORE POPULAR THAN FALENA AMONGST TYE YOUTH AJFNWKNudnekskalakdknsk tHEY WANT ME DEAD. D E A D.

and then ... ruggie says smth about him choosing the king he'll follow and LATER WHEN REFERRING TO LEONA HE SAYS SMTH TO JACK LIKE. "LET'S GO WAKE UP OUR KING" I'm fuckifnwjzbslakznaklNdkdkals akehueuqjakansksk THEY ADORE HIM SO MUCH. I CAN'T DO THIS.

So this means we'll get a full chapter ONLY for Leona's dream... I don't think we'll see him crying like Jack and Ruggie but GOD IF WE DO SEE THAT I'LL BE FOUND DEAD- i just knowwww that whichever way they go w it (the "he already knows it's a dream theory" or SMTH else), there WILL BE drama and I *WILL* die internally... my Leona plushies will pay the price (they will be hugged very tightly)

[Referencing the book 7 part 11 update!]

Me, coping: Oh, the book 7 Savanaclaw update is split into two parts? That means the first part must be dedicated to Jack and Ruggie and the second part must be Leona only. Surely this means I am free from being sniped in the Jack and Ruggie segment. Me, from the future:

. . .

ME EXPERIENCING THE FIVE STAGES OF GRIEF ALL AT ONCE

WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT 💀💀💀 I was kind of expecting some element of respecting their dorm leader to come up (definitely for Jack's), BUT NOT THIS EXTENT OTL

Of the two, Jack's dream was the more obvious one to feature Leona in a very positive light. His admiration for the guy was clear ever since book 2, in which Jack--someone who regularly sucks at expressing his feelings--confessed MULTIPLE TIMES that it was Leona's passionate magift play on TV that inspired Jack to follow in his footsteps. And that's why he was so disappointed to learn that the guy he admired all along was a scumbag that would play dirty to get ahead. The Leona in Jack's dream might be that version that Jack had in his head... The Leona he yearns for the attention and praise of, the Leona he thought was a virtuous leader who values hard work and good sportsmanship, the kind of person who gives speeches to inspire his team and helps people up by the hand when they fall. Another reading could be that this is the Leona Jack believes is still possible if he works toward it, because this dream seems to be set a YEAR after their loss to Diasomnia. And this is Leona at his best and most dangerous because he's throwing literally everything he has into this training, so he'll probably do the same in combat; Yuu and co. have to develop a whole strategy in advance to isolate Jack because they KNOW they're going to get blasted by dream!Leona if they give any inkling of trying to wake the dreamer up. JACK LITERALLY DREAMED ABOUT LEONA THRIVING, BEING HIS BEST SELF... Jack, the self-proclaimed LONE WOLF, who claims he doesn't like GROUP ACTIVITIES/SPORTS, longs to be part of the pack that LEONA leads... But he won't follow just anyone, Jack has standards AND LEONA APPARENTLY MEETS ALL OF THEM (or, in Jack's eyes, Leona can meet those standards).

THEN WHEN JACK WAKES UP... Hoo, boy... The way he was smiling but then broke down into shouts and sobs... That's literally got to be my favorite kind of emotional distress (part of why I loved Idia's breakdown when he was introducing his newly built little brother to the Styx researchers). You can hear how betrayed he feels in his voice, all the raw emotion that didn't come through as strongly in book 2. ASKHLBLBIASDIVDAI SORRY TO DUNK ON BOOK 2 AGAIN BUT IT'S TRUE. Jack's feelings of betrayal... They were so blunted there, it felt like he was reacting to a minor setback (he seems to easily shrug off being called a traitor by the guy he supposedly admires) rather than genuinely being hurt. I'm glad that the emotional weight that wasn't addressed then is finally getting the spotlight it deserves now.

Then Ruggie's dream???? 😭 That one caught me SO off-guard. The way it opens with Yuu and co. suspecting it's Leona's dream because they arrived in Sunrise City, one of the few industrialized places in Sunset Savanna... The lore review of how it's difficult to get the people to get behind developing the land due to how it would negatively impact the nature they want to live in harmony with (plus the brand-new reveal that these disagreements can become VIOLENT)... and Idia realizing that this, THIS is why Leona actually decided to take an internship at an energy and mining lab back home--because Leona realized he cannot change the country on his own, no matter how often he butts heads with his brother. He needs even more knowledge and a team to work with him. An NPC donut vendor lady randomly drops it on us that it's thanks the PRINCE LEONA that Ivorycliff Academy was able to be established. Not only that, but turns out Leona has graduated already and has spent his time after NRC building schools and establishing magift teams for Sunset Savanna (the latter being something Leona expressed interest in, as having a national sport and/or famous sporting teams can enhance his country's soft power). AND HE'S MORE POPULAR AMONG THE YOUTH THAN FALENA IS???????? MR. LEONA I-HATE-DEALING-WITH-KIDS KINGSCHOLAR IS POPULAR WITH... THE KIDS????? ? ?? ?? ?? ? ?? ?????? ?? ? 💀 The guy who claims to only help the underclassmen because they'd otherwise be an inconvenience to him... is admired by the same underclassmen... and now that has translated over to Ruggie's dream as the youth of Sunset Savanna loving him... OTL YOU'RE KIDDING ME RIGHT/????? ? ??? ? ??v????? ? ? ????

The most bewildering detail to me about Ruggie's dream is that he and Leona haven't met at all; Ruggie acts pretty clueless when asked about it and Leona graduated from a completely different school than him (NRC). There's no way they could have met, yet the dream still deemed that Leona was an important enough aspect of Ruggie's life that he was incorporated into it... and, unlike in real life, Leona now has the influence to make these systematic changes not just for bettering Ruggie's life, but the lives of everyone in Sunset Savanna...

UUUURURUGUUGHHGHHHHHHHGHGHHHHHHH H H HH H H HHHHHHH H H H HH H H AND THEN WWHEN RUGGIE FINALLY WAKES UP AND AND ANADNANDANDANASHADSNADSNADSNAN NDDDSDD SD SM ADSB,M ADSDBSM DDD HE CALLS HE WON'T FOLLOW A "FAKE KING", HE WANTS TO CHOSOE THE KING HE FOLLOWS 😭😭😭 RUGGIE TELLS JACK THEY SHOULD GO AND WAKE UP "OUR KING"... Ruggie, who constantly complains about how easy rich people have it and how hard Leona makes him work for his coin, is standing right here and HE'S CHOOSING LEONA.

This is all so crazy to think about because back in book 6 (citing the moment that broke me Yet Again, lmao) Leona implied that while he has hope in others (like Jamil), HE DOESN'T HAVE THE SAME HOPE FOR HIMSELF. But there's literally his whole dorm who trust him to lead them and their futures as professional athletes 😭 Jack who believes Leona is capable of being that shining, ideal senpai he dreamed of... Ruggie who believes Leona can and will change not only his life for the better, but also the lives of marginalized beastmen like hyenas, the younger generation, and heck, why not their whole country too... OTL

THIS IS LITERALLY THE WORST POSSIBLE OUTDCOME FOR ME... . . . . ....... . .. . . . .. . / / / / / . . . .. . .. ... . . . ... . . YOU JAVE JACK'S DREAM SUPPLYING THE RELIABLE BIG BRO/ONII-SAN LEONA... THEN RUGIGE'S DREAM SUPPYL inG THE SMAR TDETERMINED PRINCE LEONA ... AND THEN NEXT UPDAT.E.XBBCXL V.CV . . . . . . . . ...... .. .. . . . . OTL ASCTUAL LEOPJNA DFGFAYVAFIVAVIYAIAGIGEIYGEPEIQAGfhgpaebpyrwqeg,hpgqeugqm[gqepg./l.,pjm9hmh4 gephmhurwhbaudavmudfsgnyofegnyoifui

GOD IF EW SEE THAT BITCH CRYi NG gkj eabihlaegbiaegibyegoqetpr13569 87q3tbkhl3o tyb6fOfonfOTFsugfaiugfanyoigFGION qit' S LEOVER FOR MEAMBFFVHAJVFFVEUGFO EOFAENYFEOFHdhmFSLJGADFsmf aLALLL OF HIS PENT IUP FRUSTRATIONS JUST SPILLING OIUT;V .F,DSBFAHLFLFFNODGOVSMHFAV UEGOFEAHMAEGDGSKPFSHIM THE RAGE AT MALLEUS DFN BAFVKJAFYGLAFGIDGIDGIODGSOIDN FOR FOTRICNG THIS LIE UPON HIMFDS NFASVAEFBLADFIOBY AGIOQEGONYFWmpdphGAMGobf IT'D BE SO SEXSYFDH HOT IF HE KNEW IT WAS A DREAM ALL ALONG PELEEEEEASE 🙏 I'M ONT MY HANDS NAD NDD KNEEESLSD DFS,SFHBAFLHAFDLI EO FQEYG VADGNOVSHUPVPUFFmhagyo 4wpeq/pll.,wjph9q80th9umpdbsaihoadnFSuov fsogyFSGUOFSu SNOGYAVUO FSA

.

.

. Ah-HEM!! 😇 Sorry, I don't know what overcame me... I just blacked out and when I came to I don't remember what I was doing or saying for the past several minutes 💖 Now if you'll excuse me, I am filled with an intense desire to enact violence on the nearest lion-shaped object I can get my hands on--

[luveline]

Ok what about a lil fic of Remus being snappy with his gf leading up to the full moon? Just some angst and then fluffy ending with them reconciling

thank u for ur request! —remus says something he shouldn't before the full moon, and later campaigns for your forgiveness with affection and a confession. fem!reader, 1.2k

Remus lays on the couch with his forearm pressed to his eyes. It's the day before the full moon, and he feels the hours approaching like a death sentence every time. You hover in the doorway, watching, unsure of how to help. He gets the same every month (or rather, every cycle). 

Irritable. So anxious he can't breathe properly, let alone enter conversation. 

You hate seeing him like this. Your Remus, who spends every moment you're together trying to make sure you're as happy as you can be. 

Cautious, you round the sofa to crouch by his face. You hold out your hand, trailing a gentle fingertip down the length of his arm, tripping over pinched skin ridged by scars. He's beautiful no matter what, but he gets insecure about how he looks every full moon. You know he thinks he's a monster. You've no way to prove it to him beyond this. 

"Hey, handsome," you say softly. "I know you're not hungry, but I made dinner anyway if you feel up to it. And I know," —you drop your voice to a near whisper— "I know you're not in the mood, but I'm here. I can sit here and stroke your hair in silence all night if that's what you want, my love. I'll do whatever you want." 

"Then leave me alone," he says. 

Half snap, half firm defeat. You wince at the ire in his voice. It won't ever be nice to have someone you love speak to you like you're getting on their nerves, but you know what it is he's facing. You know this is hard for him to cope with. You can forgive him for everything if he makes it through this in one piece. 

"Okay. I'm sorry. I love you, Remus." 

He turns his head toward the sofa cushions. 

You leave the room with a heavy heart. In the kitchen, you try to eat, but every mouthful makes you feel sick, your eyes welling with tears as you chew. You're hurt, he's hurting, and this really, really sucks. 

The smell of dinner starts to amplify the nausea. You grab your plate and carry it to the back door, scraping your leftovers straight into the rubbish. You wash your plate and leave it to drip dry on the draining board, your eyes burning. You sniff, wiping your nose in your sleeve. 

You're hoping desperately that Remus will come around before bed, but he stays where he is. Thinking he's finally found sleep and wanting to leave him to that blissful reprieve, you creep through the living room and down the hallway into the bedroom. Tears fall as you change into your pyjamas. You're so tired that you barely have time to cry yourself to sleep. 

You're not sure how much longer it is when you wake. A familiar hand cups your cheek. 

From the warmth of your skin, he's had his hand there for a while. 

"I'm so sorry," Remus says. 

You don't know how he knows you're awake. He must have been watching you long enough to spot the difference. Honestly, you're not sure you want to see him yet, because you love him so much, and it breaks your heart to be at the end of his disdain even when you know the cause. 

You struggle to see him in the dark. 

"I should never have spoken to you like that." 

Your eyes close of their own accord, exhausted and sore from crying. "You didn't mean it." 

"I wish you'd shout at me," he murmurs, sliding his hand over your ear. His thumb draws along the shell of your ear. 

"I'm too tired," you mumble. 

Remus' head shifts closer to yours. Sharing the same pillow, his hand falls to your shoulder, his arm wrapping around you, a firm bicep pressed to your front. 

You let yourself lean into it. His breath warms the space between your brows. 

"It's no excuse, but I… I can't think of anything else but the pain, sometimes. I get so angry about it, because I'm–" He stops short, swallowing audibly in the otherwise silent room. "I'm scared. But I would be a hundred times more terrified if I didn't have you, knowing you're there for me, unflinchingly, before and after it happens, it helps me get through it. It's not fair that you give me so much peace and I just… 

"I'm sorry, dove. I don't mean to take advantage of your… heart." He says heart like he's been winded. He hadn't sounded finished, but everything stops at that word. 

You force your eyes open. He's looking at you with an unspeakable amount of love, kind to keel you over if you were standing. His eyes are pitch black in the lack of light, irises melded with pupils, giving him an even sorrier gaze. You raise a sluggish hand to his where it rests behind your back and pull it back to your face. You miss his touch. 

"I love you," you say. 

"I know," he says, his jaw tensing in an attempt to stage off tears. "I love you, too." You watch them collect in the corners of his eyes, following one as it slides to rest in the dip of his nose bridge while he lies on his side like this. 

"So don't be sorry." 

"But I am sorry. I can't fathom why I think it's okay to treat you that way." 

"You don't think at all, Remus. I'm not being flippant, but you're busy worrying about the worst of it." You shake your head gently. His hand twitches against your cheek. "I don't blame you." 

"I know," he utters. 

You stare up at him as he sits enough to tower over you. His smile is sorry, in love and ashamed. You want to tell him how it doesn't matter, that it's okay, but you're thinking maybe you need him to say it first. 

"I'm sorry." 

"Remus, you only told me to leave you alone." 

"I need you to know that any other time, you're all that I want. You're everything. I couldn't ask for more than you. Please don't think I'm cruel," he pleads in a whisper. 

You lift your chin incrementally. "I'd never think that." 

His apology kiss is coddling. Like he's worried he'll hurt you, like he's holding back, he kisses you like you can't handle more than a chaste press of the lips. 

"I love you," he says into it. 

You lift your head to kiss him harder. You love him, and you won't break. You can be exactly as strong as he needs you to be, so long as love waits at the end of the night. 

"I love you." A huff of a laugh escapes him. "Does this mean I'm forgiven?" Caution has his joke falling flat.

You nuzzle your cheek against his, knowing you'd forgiven him just as soon as he'd snapped. "If you let me stroke your hair. Did you eat your dinner?" 

"I'll eat it tomorrow," he says. A white lie, you both know, but he slides down further under the sheets so you can reach his head. 

You card your fingers through his hair until you've both fallen asleep. 

[boredpotate]

Happier Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Arcane or any music, just this concept idea.

Concept: Isekai Fem Reader turns back time to fix her timeline, but has unforeseen consequences.

??? Pov

Running. It's all I have on my mind right now. Get away. Get far away from that thing. I can still hear the few people left standing fighting. Shots being fired, screams of pain and a brawl happening. Damn it. This was supposed to be a secure place. The boss said so himself.

I hear as the fighting ends in the distance behind me, but I keep running anyway. Not chancing it. Not with this person. I need to report to Simon and le-

*BANG*

"AAAGH!!!"

An immense and sudden pain shoots through my leg, causing me to fall over onto the ground.

"FUCK! fuck! shit! fuck!" I yell out swears to the skies as I grab my leg onto my leg. I don't have time cope with the fact that I just got shot in the fucking leg, because I know they're coming. I see their silhouette through the smog. One arm raised in my direction and the barrel of a handgun I can't make out facing towards me, and a shovel being held in the other dripping with what is most likely blood. I push through the pain and force myself up to limp myself to an alleyway as they shoot in my direction and use the wall as a support. They're messing with me.

'Why me!? We aren't even in their territory! We made sure of it!,' I continue on and take many turns to try to loose them and holding onto my leg wound to lessen the blood dripping, 'I just need to get to the light. They never come out of this hole.'

I start becoming more aware of the pain as I continue moving, but ignore it to keep my pace steady. Some hope rises as I look back to see nothing, but just as I turn back around I am met with a boot to my chest. I feel the wind get knocked out of me as I hit the ground, my vision dazed from the back of my head being hit as well.

I look up already knowing who it is standing in front of me, but I never thought I'd be one of their victims. Boots, ragged pants, shovel hanging from their hip on one side with a holster on the other side, some dirty jacket with some kind of body armor underneath and an enforcer gas mask with a one of the old miner helmets. Always covering their face. Always a bad omen for any gang that's hunkering down here.

"Please! I do- AAGH!" I yell in pain as they stomp on my wound. I then feel myself be yanked up by my collar before getting slammed into the wall.

"Talk."

"Listen I don't know anything you want! I was only put in charge of that warehouse!"

"Bullshit, that's what the last guy said before he confessed about you. He said you report to your boss and I want to know where he is."

'Of course she does. Another gang leader being tracked down by this crazy bit-.' my thoughts are interrupted by being pistol whipped across my nose.

"Fuck! Please, I really don't know! I only report to a guy named Simon, but he's not the boss! You saw the place I was in; it was hardly secure at all!", I plead to them, hoping for some mercy. They stare at me for a second before letting out a breath of frustration.

I am yanked forward and thrown onto the ground. I flip over and find myself looking up at them as they stand over me; my eyes staring down the barrel.

"NO! PLEASE, I TOLD YOU ALL I KNOW!"

"You want to beg? After all the lives you've taken and ruined ever since you moved into this area? Be happy I don't make it slower."

"WA-"

Then there was nothings.

Reader Pov

'Another fucking dead end.' I think to myself in frustration as I holster my revolver.

I take a minute to finally catch a breather before checking for anything useful on this guy and the others at the warehouse. Once I'm done I decide to go track down this Simon guy next. It's been nothing but this constant cycle for the past eight years.

"At least everything is going good up above. From what I hear at least." I say to myself, trying to look on the bright side of things. Ironic considering how I'm in what is now the shittiest part of the Undercity. It's been awhile since I've left this area, and since I've seen them.

Last time I left, it was to go witness that historic speech on the bridge. They did it. Vander and Silco finally accomplished their dream, and now Zaun has become a better place. So much light and the whole mood of the town is different too. Much more happy. Just like what I dreamt about, but I don't go over there. I can't.

There's enforcers that will most likely think I'm up to something, it's too bright to hide, not crowded enough to blend in anywhere and honestly I just don't really fit in with this new Zaun anymore. Not their fault, it's me that's the problem. Everyone dresses so nice, clean and casual along with how nice the community has become. Then there's me. I look like I crawled out of a dumpster or came back from an apocalypse..... honestly the latter isn't too inaccurate considering what almost happened originally. Probably also the reason why people usually leave me alone and gives me looks sometimes. I look weird compared to everyone else.

Though even with everything I still do my part. Just because most of Zaun has become better doesn't mean there isn't any who didn't like the idea of Piltover and Zaun making peace. Mostly gangs. Since enforcers were able to do their jobs easier the gangs have been pushed down here with me. I've been taking out as many as I could, and nipping the bud of one's that start growing. Especially the one's I knew were aiming for Vander and SIlco. No mercy. Like that one group who tried to recruit me to, I quote "Rebel and takeover Piltover for the true Zuauites." what a bunch of weirdos. Though this most recent one I've been working on is giving me trouble.

They were the only smart one's to stay under the radar when I first started the purge of gangs down here and only recently have been making bigger moves. They aren't too big yet, but if I don't dismantle them they could cause trouble. Turns out that would be harder than I expected. Every time I get pointed to one person, that person points me to someone else and the cycle continues. I'm no detective either, so I'm getting nowhere with the way things are going.

'It's fine. Something will come up eventually,' I try to reassure myself on my way home. It helps a little. Still tired. Kinda hungry too, 'I need to find a way to money.'

Making money the old way wasn't as easy anymore. Not many people that need "jobs" done, and not a lot of people who need to hire a merc for anything anymore. Most of the mercenaries either used their money to leave or joined up with the enforcers for some good and reliable pay with benefits. Can't blame them. Either my line of business is almost dead, or I'm one of the last one's still keeping it alive. Zaun doesn't need mercs like me anymore. That's good.

*stomach grumbles*

*sigh* "I really gotta make more money. Maybe I can pick up some small jobs here and there. Deliver mail to people or something." I reach into my jacket and pull out my journal. I don't write anything in it, but I do draw.

I turn to my most recent sketch and touch up on some details, another one of Jinx. I can't help, but remember. Sometimes I dream of all that happened. I try to put it behind me, but it's hard. They're scarred into my mind, but they remind me why I do this.

"Always stubborn about your hair. Even when I warned you how it can cause trouble in a fight, you insisted." I say to myself as I draw her braided hair. Took forever to braid them, but she loved. Honestly she made them look good.

I smile. Taking a moment to forget about the world and get lost in something else.

'Hopefully this, Simon, has better info.'

3rd Person

Meanwhile above ground across the bridge. A certain investigation in being looked into. With an ongoing interrogation happening.

"Do you really think we're that stupid?" Vi asks the woman sitting across the room from her and her partner. Both in crime and..... other things.

"Yeah."

Vi shoots forward and ready to lunge, but is quickly stopped by Caitlyn who leans into her ear.

"Calm down, Vi. She wants you to get upset." she says while holding onto one of Vi's shoulders to comfort her. Though she does understand her frustration.

Ever since they've been looking into a recently bold gang, they've hardly gotten anywhere. She takes a moment to make sure Vi has calmed down before turning back to the woman in questioning.

"I understand that you have no reason to help us, bu-."

"No shit. I get thrown behind bars and then pulled out for questioning about a gang, I'm not even a part of."

"But. We really need something here. If you cooperate we could negotiate with reducing your sentencing. Your records show you have been improving and haven't caused trouble, but we can only do that if you work with us." Caitlyn explains, trying to negotiate some kind of deal for some information.

The woman slightly relaxes before shaking her head with a sigh.

"Listen girl, I told you before. I really don't know anything about this gang. All I know is what I told you. They used to be small and kept to themselves and they've grown."

Caitlyn scowls, not at the woman, but down at the table in front of her. Another dead end.

"But.... you could try asking the hound." the woman suggests, which catches Caitlyn's attention, but Vi scoffs.

"We already asked my dad. He's not really involved with that stuff anymore, and his contacts have been out of that kind of business for awhile."

"Not Vander. The new one down in the deep end of the Undercity." this catches Vi's interest now.

"A new hound? Let me guess, another wannabe big shot?"

"No. This one's the real deal. Has been making a name for themselves for a few years now. Ever since most of the gangs got pushed back down deep into the Undercity; ever wondered what happened to all those old gangs eight years ago? Bloodhound took them out one by one." the woman explains, her tone lined with admiration and respect. Caitlyn raises a brow at the name.

"Bloodhound?"

"That's what people call them. No one I've met knows their name or has seen their face."

With things moving in a good direction, Vi sits down next to Caitlyn at the table.

"I assumed all the gangs just died out after peace was made. So what? They some gang leader or something?"

"No, but they do have a small territory. All to themselves. They got a lot of respect down there. You remember that weird group two years ago? Dressed all rugged and called themselves "True Zaunites"? They idolized Bloodhound; tried to dress like them too. Then one day they went into their territory and tried make them their leader, but ended up coming back beaten black and blue. The guy who was leading the group got a bullet through his skull."

Caitlyn looks skeptical and glances at Vi, who also looks to have some doubt about this "Bloodhound". The inmate notices and shrugs her shoulders.

"I know, sounds weird but it's true. The point is, they hunt down gangs. You want someone with info, then try them."

"How do we contact them?"

"I don't know. Last people who tried was that weird group. Now a lot of 'em are too scared to go back down there."

This brings some, not a lot, but some hope to Vi and Caitlyn to this investigation. Better than nothing. Caitlyn stands up before holding out a hand towards the inmate.

"Thank you for your time and the information. I'll be sure to put in a good word for your cooperation, maybe even get you on probation."

"No problem. Not like I had a choice in coming here. You better not be bullshitting me about that deal." the inmate says as she takes Caitlyn's hand.

Caitlyn nods before turning around to leave, Vi already holding the door open for her. Caitlyn wordlessly signals the two enforcers standing outside to escort the inmate back to her cell before walking with Vi.

"So this "Bloodhound", you think they're legit?"

"I don't know. But we don't have any other leads on this case. My mother trusted us with this case Vi, we can't just give up." Caitlyn says with hints of frustration in her voice.

"Hey, I'm not saying we give up, Cupcake. I was just wanting to hear your thoughts."

"I-I know. I'm sorry. It's just, I don't wan-."

"AH. You don't need to apologize Cupcake. I get it. Don't wanna disappoint parents, trust me, I understand," Vi says reassuringly which makes Cait stop, "What?"

"I love you." she says with a smile before giving Vi a peck on the cheek, making said Pink haired girl blush like a tomato.

"I-I love you too, Cupcake. .....Ahem a-anyway, I don't know if going to find this guy will work. I was thinking maybe we could go see my dad instead. He might know someone who can get in touch with this guy. Plus, I think he'd like to know that there's another "Hound" in the Undercity." Vi says as she wraps an arm around Caitlyn's shoulders to hold her close.

"That sounds nice."

Powder Pov

"So you want me to see if I can get someone to talk to this guy that you two need to talk to."

"I know. It sounds sketchy, bu-." Vi was saying until Benzo cuts in.

"Are ye kidding!? Vander! We gotta see this kid. Running around using your title; they must be a fan! How have I not heard of this guy before!?" Benzo says, poking fun at dad since apparently he has some copycat or something.

"I second that!" Mylo says, making Claggor shake his head with a chuckle.

Dad rolls his eyes, but still has a smile on his face.

"Technically not the same. They're called "Bloodhound"." Cait says, but slight smirk still on her face with Vi wearing one to match.

'Might as well join in on the fun.'

"I don't know if that's a good idea. They might want his autograph." I say with my own cheeky smirk. Leaning into Ekko, as he writes in his book of projects, sitting at the bar with everyone.

"Alright, alright. I get it. I might have some people who still owe me a favor or two," Dad says, as he wipes down a glass behind the bar, "One condition. They gotta meet you two here."

"YES!" Benzo yells in elation, but Vi doesn't look that happy.

"Here!? Dad seriously this person could cause trouble and this place isn't like that anymore." Vi says, but Dad doesn't look like he's budging.

"I'm being serious too. I've heard stuff hear and there about them and I don't want you two going down there alone. I know you two can handle yourselves, but if anything I've heard is somewhat true then this isn't like any other thug or gang leader." Dad says, which makes Vi back down.

'Damn. Now I'm interested.'

"Are you sure they would even come here?" Caitlyn asks a pretty reasonable question.

"Pretty sure. From what I hear they've been getting into shootouts with the gang recently. Probably hunting them down too."

"That isn't a guarantee though. What if they don't show up?"

"If they don't then show up, then they don't show up. They wouldn't have been help even if you went down looking for them, you'd probably just gonna end up in a fight."

'Fair point, honestly.'

Cait looks to Vi, who sighs as a sign of surrendering.

"Fine. How soon can you get someone to talk to them?"

"Today."

Cait looks surprised which makes Dad shrug.

"I got good contacts."

"Good. I guess tomorrow in the afternoon? Does that sound fine?" Vi asks, looking at Cait for confirmation which she gets via a nod.

As the conversation shifts to something else, I look at Ekko as he continues to scribble in his notebook.

"What do you think?" I ask him which makes him stop writing for a second.

"About "Bloodhound"," he asks and I give a simple nod, "Sounds a little fishy. Sounds like one of those people still stuck in the old times of crime everywhere."

"It doesn't sound like they are. They did supposedly take out that one weird group of "True Zaunites"; honestly those people were so stupid." I say with a small laugh, Ekko chuckling a little at the mention of that bizarre group of people.

'The speeches those guys made in the streets were insane.'

"Still, doesn't sound like good company. Why would they want to stay in the deep part of the Undercity? Zaun has become so much better over the years."

"Maybe..... they're afraid to move forward. Don't wanna lose what they have now." I say, honestly projecting more about myself than what I actually think.

'They could just be a psycho.'

I feel Ekko's arm come up to my waist before pulling me in closer as he sets down his pencil.

"Powder. I know it's not easy, but I really do think you could do a lot of amazing things. I know you're afraid of things changing, but..... sometimes taking a leap forward means leaving a few things behind."

"I-I just.... I don't know. I just need some time to think about it." I say, avoiding the topic of what I want to do in life, looking away just staring at the details of the bar counter.

"Okay..... just know I'm here for you Powder. Nothing will change that." Ekko says, supporting and sweet as always, which makes me smile.

"Thanks." I say before giving a small kiss on the cheek.

"No thanks needed."

We sit at the bar in a comfortable silence as my mind wanders.

'Tomorrow should be an interesting day.'

The Next Day.

Deep in the Undercity the infamous Bloodhound stands in the middle of the street, farther than usual from their territory. What is usually a busy street is now completely empty with only Y/n standing there by herself, and facing towards the brighter side of Zaun.

People peak out from their homes through blinds. People who looked like they were about to step outside immediately turn around to lock themselves inside. Others who were making there way down the street immediately turns right around to take a detour around.

All of them had the same questions on their minds.

Why are they here? What are they up to? Is a fight about to happen? Is someone about to die? Are the meeting up with someone here?

.....Also why are they just standing in the middle of the street?

Reader Pov

'Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck this shit! This is, SO! FUCKING! BAD!', I internally panic as I stand in the middle of the street.

Yesterday right after getting some intel from that Simon guy I got a message from some guy. Literally right after. I just tackled that fucker out of the second floor of his shitty bar when he tried stabbing me after getting information out of him. Then I turned and there they were. Staring in shock. Anyway that doesn't matter.

What really matters is the fact that Vander wanted me to come to The Last Drop. I couldn't even ask why because before I could they ran away.

'Why!? What did I do!? Am I in trouble!? I didn't even do anything!'

I'm not supposed to meet them, but how am I supposed to ignore a call from Vander. From Dad. So I forced myself out of bed and I only made it this far before getting too scared. I feel rooted to the ground. I'm scared. I'm scared to see them after so long, even if it's just to talk or something.

"What if I mess this all up?," I ask myself. Trying to decide whether or not it's worth risking all of the good things that have happened to Zaun over the years, "What if I cause a butterfly effect and ruin everything?"

But then there's that other part of me. Desperate and longing to see how my family has been after so long of isolating myself down here alone.

I stand still in contemplation for another minute before finally taking a step forward.

"One time couldn't hurt. Just this once."

Hope you enjoyed. Sorry if there are grammar mistakes.

[emakataken]

Where the Smoke Settles

Pairing: Sal/Tommy/Buck

This is pre-canon, slow-burn AU, Buck arrives at Station 118, carrying more than just the burden of being a new probie, he’s a decorated Navy veteran with no support system, a body carved by war, and a past he has no intention of sharing. All he wants is a fresh start, but in a firehouse ruled by the bitter and dangerous Captain Gerrard, survival is more than just a job requirement, it’s a daily fight.

And this is an outtake. Although no one is probably obsessed with the idea of Tommy/Sal/Buck like I have been this week. So, 🤷🏻‍♀️.. I'm coping people, okay. Not well, but here we are.

... my favorite scene so far...

Buck waited until the noise of the station quieted to a dull hum. Until the voices softened. Until Tommy left the kitchen, Hen disappeared down the hall, and Chim’s footsteps echoed toward the dorms.

Buck’s chest ached from the smoke from the last call. He moved before he could talk himself out of it, crossed the bay and slipped into the locker room.

Sal was at his open locker, half out of his jacket, towel slung over one shoulder. His jaw was still tight from the earlier call, a smudge of ash across the back of his neck.

He didn’t hear Buck at first.

Didn’t register the kid until Buck stopped a few feet behind him, all nervous energy and raw silence.

Sal glanced back over his shoulder. “You need something, Probie?”

Buck’s voice came out too fast. Too thin.

“I can’t lose this job.”

Sal stilled.

Buck swallowed, his hands twitching at his sides, trying to stay still.

“I mean it. I can’t. I don’t have anything else, okay? No backup. No savings. No fallback plan. I need this job.”

Sal turned, slowly, facing him.

Buck kept going.

“But someone,” his voice cracked. He pushed through. “Someone’s gonna get me killed, Sal. And I don’t know what the hell to do. I’m the probie. I follow orders. That’s the rule, right? But they contradict each other. All the time. You say one thing. Rodrick says something else. Gerrard says God-knows-what and all I want to do is do the damn job right.”

He took a breath.

Not a big one.

“So I need to know," He lifted his eyes, all blue steel and something like desperation. “Who do I listen to?”

The question landed like a body on the floor.

Sal didn’t speak for a long moment. Then, slowly like he understood just how hard that question was for Buck to ask he stepped forward. Closed the space and lowered his voice. “You listen to me.”

Buck exhaled, shaky, sudden, unsteady.

Sal added, quieter so they wouldn't be overheard. “If it’s a call, and you’re not sure who’s right, you listen to me. You see my eyes? You trust them.”

Buck nodded once.

Sal cupped the back of his neck and squeezed. “You’ve got instincts kids. But if they ever make you hesitate, let mine take over.”

Buck didn’t move. Couldn’t. The pressure of Sal’s hand at the back of his neck wasn’t just grounding. It was the first thing in weeks to make him feel like he had solid earth beneath his feet. "And if you’re not around?”

Sal’s jaw flexed.

For a second, Buck thought he might not answer.

But then Sal let out a slow sigh, deep and heavy, like he was letting go of something he’d been holding too long.

“Tommy.”

He didn’t hesitate.

“Then Chim. Then Hen. In that order."

Sal leaned in just a bit more, steady and quiet, voice like granite. “These are your people, Evan. We are your people.”

Buck’s eyes stung.

Sal didn’t give him time to argue. “Roderick, Allen, Cohen?” He scoffed. “They’re Gerrard’s boys. Always have been. They’ll cut your rope mid-climb if it earns them a nod.”

Buck’s next words came out soft quiet like confession, fragile like whispered treason. “And if my orders are between you and Captain Gerrard?”

Sal’s expression hardened, but not at Buck. He took a slow breath, like he needed to steady the rage clawing behind his ribs before he could speak.

“You follow the orders that keep people alive.” His voice was low, a bit cold but his command clear. “If Gerrard tells you to do something that’ll get someone hurt, including you, you do not follow it.”

Buck swallowed hard. “That’s not how the chain of command works.”

Sal leaned in, just enough for Buck to feel the heat of it. “That’s not how he works. And that’s the problem.”

Sal tone dropped, quieter but sharp, “You ever get caught between me and him again, you look at me. If I don’t give you the nod, you don’t move.”

Buck’s breath caught. “That could get me fired.”

Sal’s jaw ticked once. “Better fired than dead. Do not make me bury another probie, Probie.”

Buck blinked. Because that was the first time anyone had said it, out loud. Plain. Like it was just truth and not some thing he was supposed to pretend wasn’t happening.

Sal stepped back, shoulders still coiled. His eyes lingered on Buck. Twenty-three. Still too thin. Too pale. Face marked with soot and exhaustion, standing stiff like he was bracing for punishment.

And trying so goddamn hard.

Sal swallowed hard, past the guilt and grief that clawed at his throat. “Like I said you've got good instincts, Buck. You know what's at play here. You know you're taking orders from a man who’d bury you to hide his own mistake.”

Buck stood frozen for a long beat. “Okay.”

Sal nodded letting go. "We'll handle the fallout so long as we're all still breathing." He turned, pulled the locker door closed behind him with a soft click. "Now go get some sleep, Hershey. You’re off gear check tomorrow."

Part 2