#man i have to meet my friends tomorrow to prep for an event next week. the other guy i'm giving sort of an attitude bcs he clearly still

[hannie-dul-set]

also the most unwanted drama esque shit keeps happening to me why can't my love life go the way i want to.

[andydrysdalerogers]

Following Team Orders - Mexico City

Pairings: Steve Rogers x OFC Olivia Williams

Summary: Olivia Williams is Formula One royalty. Her father is a racing legend and all Liv wants is to be one of only six women in the world to have raced in the most elite racing division in the world. When she finally gets the chance, she has to not only take on a male dominated sport, but her past, her teammate and a life beyond the track that she was not ready for. She just has to follow team orders but what happens when one man challenges her on and off the racing line...

Word Count: 3K

Warnings: A-N-G-S-T!!! eventual smut, slow burn, enemies to lovers, love triangle (if you squint) misogamy, fluff, racing accidents, an asshole Steve Rogers (you'll see what i mean); parental death

Dividers by @firefly-graphics

Series MasterList - Main Masterlist

Wednesday  

I did not sign up for this.  

Why did I sign up for this? 

I’m a racer, not a model.  

Except my boyfriend is a racer who looks like a model.  

God, he’s gorgeous. 

Hmm, wonder if he’ll model his underwear for me? 

Or maybe naked... 

“OLIVIA!” 

Liv snaps her head over to Andy who is standing with hands on hips and a rather grumpy face. “Sorry Andy.”  

“Where are you Bug?” 

Liv sighed in her chair as the prep team touched up her hair and makeup. The last two weeks had been nothing but interviews, press events and photo shoots.  Her win was a big deal in the racing world.  Since she was the only woman in history to win in Formula One.  The governing body and the team wanted to take advantage of that. “I’m here Andy, just tired. I thought I was going to have a day off.”  

“I know Bug, I’m sorry.”  

“How am I supposed to race if I’m not rested?” Andy could hear the whine coming and knew he needed to nip it in the bud. 

“Let’s just finish this and then I will see what I can do for tomorrow. 

Steve walks in just as Andy goes over the schedule.  “Can’t handle the press, princess?” 

Liv narrowed her eyes at him.  “I can handle it, Rogers, but I can’t race if I don’t sleep.”  

“Aww, the new queen of racing a wittle bit swepy?” Steve play mocked.  

“Rogers, that’s enough,” Andy snaps before Liv can launch herself at him for the beating he knew was coming.  “The next few interviews are with both of you so please for the love of God, play nice.”  He turned and walked out as Nat walked in.  

“You’re already in trouble?” She asked Liv.  

“Not yet.  I just have to be nice to Stevie here, so his feelings don’t get hurt.”  

“Hey, my feelings are fine,” he pouted, getting a laugh from his girl and her best friend.  Nat turns to the craft services table for a snack.  

“Hey punk, do you know where my notebook is?” Bucky asked looking through his bag. “Had it in your room...” he looked up and stopped.  

“Bucky, you ok?” Liv asked.  She followed his line of sight to Natasha, who was popping a grape in her mouth.  She smirked and cleared her throat. “Bucky, you have some drool, just right there...” she pointed to the corner of his mouth.  

Bucky wipes his mouth, “shut up.” 

Liv giggles, “hey Nat! I need you!” 

As Natasha walks towards her best friend, she sees the brunette and smiles.  “Hi, I’m Nat.”  

“Buck, James, Bucky,” he shakes his head as he continues to stare.  

Steve sniggers behind him.  “Bucky, you ok?” 

“I’m fine.” He throws a murderous look at Steve before going back to Natasha.  “Sorry.  Hi, Bucky,” he offers his hand.  

“It’s nice to finally meet you.  Liv said only nice things about you.” 

“She mentioned her best friend but failed to mention how beautiful you looked,” he replied with a wink and his trademark smile.  Liv watched as her best friend swooned and she rolled her eyes.  

“Great, best friends meet and everything.  Rogers and I have an interview so…” she pulled Steve away as Bucky and Nat continued to talk.  “That was unexpected.”  

“Do you mind?” Steve asked, concern laced in it.  

“Not at all,” she flashed a smile at her man.  “I got the one I wanted.”  She looked around to see if anyone was around and pushed Steve into a corner before sliding her hands around his neck.  His hands immediately went to her waist. “I got the man I’ve been dreaming about for a while.”  She got on her tip toes to give him a soft kiss.  

“Damn right you did, and I’m never letting go.” 

“We have to tell Bucky.”  

“Why?” 

“Because he can help us.  We have to decide if and when we are going public and stuff.”  

Steve rolled his eyes.  “Fine.  Let’s go to dinner tomorrow.  The four of us and they can help us decide. And then maybe,” he pecked her lips, “I can take you to my bed.”  

“Sounds like a plan.” 

Thursday 

“Nat, please?” 

“Why?” 

“Because no one knows, and we have to tell him, and he will need a distraction and what better distraction than my sex walking best friend?” Liv smiled and blinked rapidly at Natasha.  

“I can’t believe you just said that.” Natasha shook her head.  “Fine. Fine, I will go with you guys to dinner and I will distract the sexy driver.”  

“You’re the best!” Liv squealed.  “Ok, so dinner is in three hours. How about a margarita then prep?” 

“Now you are speaking my language.”  

As Steve finished getting ready, Bucky was complaining about how he had to wear a dress shirt to dinner.  “You just had to pick a fancy restaurant.  Couldn’t have just gone to a taqueria and had tacos in the room.”  

“We’re celebrating Liv’s win.  As her teammate and her crew chief, we should be encouraging her to continue.”  

“I understand that’s my job, but I swear the girl would have been happy with tacos and a couple of margaritas.  Maybe a burrito and some churros.”  

“I swear this is why you are single, jerk.”  Steve slipped on his navy sport coat and grabbed his wallet.  “It is a nice surprise for her.”  

“Fine, whatever.  You’re getting me tacos later then,” Bucky grumbled as he followed Steve out the door.  They went to Liv’s room and knocked.  She opened the door and Steve was floored.  She was in a strapless black dress with flowers on the border.  Sky high heels adorned her feet and she had pulled her beautiful long hair to one side, exposing that delectable neck to him.  He swallowed, lost for words.  

“Hey Bug, you clean up good,” Bucky said, not really noticing Steve’s reaction.  “If we hurry, we can hit happy… happy…” he stops and his mouth hangs open. 

Liv smirked as she knew Natasha was behind her in an amazing red dress.  “You remember my friend Nat.” 

Steve elbowed Bucky, bringing him back from his shock and awe and getting an answer.  “Hi Nat.”  

“Bucky, nice to see you again,” she smirked at him.  “So, we headed somewhere?” 

The group headed to a sit-down restaurant a couple of blocks away.  Bucky was entranced with Nat, who was besotted by the attention.  Why Liv never thought to set them up was beyond her but here they were.  

“So Buck, I have something to tell you,” Steve started.  

“Is it that you and Liv are hooking up?” Bucky smirked at his driver and his best friend.  

Liv froze. “How – how did you know?” 

“I didn’t.” Bucky shrugged with a smile as Steve groaned.  “But I knew this idiot would talk to you eventually.  You’ve been too nice to each other.” Liv lower her head towards Steve, covering her face.  “It’s ok, Bug.  I’m happy for you.” 

“You are?” 

“I know that he would do anything for you.  He almost knocked me out because I was dating you.”  Steve groaned but Bucky ignored him. “You two are good for each other.” 

“Thank you, Bucky.” Liv smiled as Steve squeezed her hand under the table.  

“So, this is what this dinner is about?  Telling me you two are sleeping together?” 

“Not just, jerk,” Steve replied, rolling his eyes.  “I’m with her.  We’re in love with each other.  We plan on announcing after the season, but we didn’t want to lie to you.  She’s telling Frank before practice tomorrow.”  

Bucky smiled. “That’s good.  Keep it under wraps.”  

Friday 

Liv was putting on her gloves, chewing her lip as Frank got her helmet ready.  “Frankie, have you ever been in love?” 

“Once, a long time ago.”  Frank absentmindedly fiddled with a screwdriver.  “Didn’t work out with my traveling so much but yeah.  Why do you ask?” 

“Just wondering.  I’m hoping that I can keep that.” 

“Keep it?  Bug, what are you…” He watches as Liv gives him a shy smile.  “Rogers?”  She nodded.  “When?” 

“Singapore.” She shrugged.  “We yelled, he kissed me and,” she sighed, “it was perfect, Frankie.  Just perfect.”  

Frank smiled.  His best friend was finally happy.  

After practice, Steve looked around before knocking on Liv’s trailer.  “Who is it?” 

“Steve Rogers,” he replied with a smile.  

“Never heard of him.”  

He smirked.  “He’s the one who did that thing where his tongue…” the door flew open and he saw his girl, standing in cutoff shorts and crop top, showing off her toned stomach.  She scanned the area before letting him in. “So, you do remember me.” 

“A little,” she said with a bite to her lip.  “I remember all the dirty things you do to me.” She ran her hands of his polo, earning herself a groan from him.  

“Doll, you have to stop touching me like that,” he said softly in her ear as he kissed her neck.  “I may have to take you right here right now.” 

“Don’t tease me with a good time, Rogers.”  

“Then stop doing that.”  He stepped back and held her hands to his chest.  “Andy is taking the team to dinner.  Think you could behave long enough to get through it, and I’ll reward you like the good little girl I know you are.”  

The tone of his voice cause Liv to close her legs slightly, a familiar heat flashing in her abdomen. “O-okay,” she replied with a shaky tone.  She swallowed as she looked at his eyes darken slightly.  

Steve could tell he had gotten to her.  He pulled her close, pinning her arms to his chest as he placed on hand on her hip and the other on the apex of her thighs.  He felt her shudder at his touch.  “Behave, kitten,” as he gently rubbed though her jeans.  “I can tell you are already wet for me.  Think you can keep it going until after dinner?”  She nodded and he chuckled. “Go get dressed, love.  I’ll wait for you outside.”  

Liv thought she would be set on fire as he walked away, her legs wobbling as she walked to get some nicer clothes on.  

Steve Rogers was trying to kill her.  

Saturday 

Liv woke with kisses being pressed her to neck and back as warm hands traced her naked flesh. She sighed as Steve continued his gentle assault on her, kneading her flesh softly, kisses that tickled her neck.  “Stevie,” she sighed 

“My beautiful Livie,” he whispered in between kisses.  He softly turned her onto her back and laid on top of her to continue his affections.  He lowered himself further and further until he just barely touched her clit with the tip of his tongue and heard what he was looking for.  

“Stevie, please…” 

Steve could never deny his girl. He lapped her up gently, relishing at her taste and softness.  They had time; he wanted to take his time.  He slowly slid in two fingers, and she groaned at the feeling. “You ok?” 

“I… I need you. Please don’t make me beg,” she whimpered.  

“No, no begging today.”  He wanted to love on his girl. With a final kiss, Steve nipped and sucked his way up her body. He slotted himself between her legs, dipping his swollen tip in her folds. He looked into her eyes, “keep them open beautiful,” as he pushes slowly in. She gasped and her head tilted up as her body accepted him.  After a moment, Steve rutted into her, enjoying her warmth.  

Liv was lost in the fullness of him in her. He fit perfectly and his thrust was not aggressive at all. He made love to her.  The tightness in her belly began to grow. She whimpered and Steve stopped.  “Sweetheart?” 

“No! Don’t stop!” She moaned.  

He got the message.  He grasped a thigh to hook around his hip to allow him in further.  He was getting close and now he could tell so was she. “C’mon baby.”  

“Stevie,” she moaned.  

“That’s it, my love bug, feel me inside, squeezing me tight.  So gorgeous.” He was almost there but she needed to go first. He snapped his hips harder and hard.  Her needs were more important. “Livie, cum for me.”  

That was it. Liv let out a silent scream as her eyes closed, the colors dancing in the darkness as she lost herself in pleasure.  Steve was absolutely positive that her face as she orgasmed was the most beautiful thing in the world.  She had a vice grip on his cock, making it almost impossible for him to move.  It took him a couple of more snaps and he too was lost to the world.  

As they laid together post session, Liv’s head on Steve’s chest, his hands running through her hair, Steve cleared his throat.  “Doll, I should get to my room.” 

“No, I’m comfy.”  She snuggled deeper into his chest as he chuckled. 

“I know, love bug.  I am too but everyone will be up soon.”  He leaned over to kiss her head.  “If we want to keep it a secret…” 

“I hate this,” she pouted.  

“Me too.  But soon, baby, it will all be out in the open.  Hopefully, you’ll have a ride with another team, and we can be together during the season.” 

Liv sat up and looked at Steve.  “You want us to be racing rivals?” 

“My favorite part of the weekend is racing against you. It makes me so horny watching you handle that car.” He smiled a lopsided smile as she blushed a delicate pink.  “C’mere, pretty girl,” he pulled her to him and kissed her softly. “It’s you and me against the world.”  

“You and me,” she whispered back. She squealed as he flipped her over and kissed her one more time, distracting her enough so he could get up.  He put his boxers and sweats back on, looking around for his t-shirt. 

“Looking for this?” He turned around and saw his shirt on Liv’s body. He’s mouth dropped as she walked towards him, a sway in her hips. 

“Fuck Livie, I love you in my clothes. But I need this back.” He grasped the hem and pulled it off. 

She pouted at him in all of her naked glory. He grabbed the robe and pulled it around her. “I want your shirt.” 

“I’ll leave one for you next time. I gotta go.”  He slipped on his shoes and went for the door.  “See you later, love bug.”  

“Wait!”  She grabbed him by the shirt and gave him a heated kiss.  “Until tonight,” she whispered. 

Steve walked away, a big smile on his face.  His girl was fantastic. 

Sunday 

Pulling into the 3rd place spot, Liv smiled, looking over at Steve who won the race.  Ransom had managed second, which sucked but Liv had needed just a couple of more laps to beat him.  And next race is another race.  

As she shook out her hair from the fire resistive cap, Steve came over and picked her up and swung her around.  “Great job Liv!” 

“Thank you, Steve! Nice win!”  He set her down and then went to his pit crew to celebrate.  Liv headed over to her crew and saw Bucky with a big smile.  “So boss, whatcha think?” 

“I think for a girl, meh, you were ok,” he said with a smirk.  He reached over and gave her a big hug.  “Good job proving all the doubters wrong,” he whispered to her. She smiled as Andy came over to congratulate her.  

The podium ceremony was ok, Ransom was acting odd for Ransom but Liv let it slide.  She was ready to head to her hotel after the press conference and have a relaxing night with Steve.  She showered and changed into her Red Bull polo, doing her hair so she could wear her hat and headed out into the press area.  She was smiling and waving to the crowd when Andy stopped her. “Liv, I need to talk to you.”  He pulled her away from the press area and back towards the Red Bull garage.  

Steve, Bucky, Frank, and Sam were waiting for them in the garage. Liv looked around.  “What’s going on?” 

“Since when have you and Rogers been together?” 

Steve’s head snapped up as Liv’s face blanched.  “What do you mean?” 

“I mean this,” Andy slapped a photo down on the work bench.  It was of Steve and Liv from the morning before as Steve was leaving her room.  Steve swallowed as he watched for Liv’s reaction.  

“Where did you get this?” Steve asked.  

“The press has it.  And they are having a field day.  So, I’ll ask again, how long?” 

Liv was frozen starting at the photo.  Steve cleared his throat.  “Since Singapore.”  

Andy started to pace, running his hands through his hair.  “Singapore.  Perfect.  I gave you one direction Rogers and that was to stay away from her.  This,” he picks up the photo, “this is the reason why. The FIA is gonna want to investigate to make sure you two aren’t cheating. They are going to investigate the team to see if you are giving orders to your girlfriend to win this championship. Un-fucking-believable.”  

Steve watched as a single tear fell from Liv’s eye.  He had enough, He pulled her to his chest so she could cry. “Andy, we love each other.  We didn’t do any of that, we promise.  She won on her own.”  

Andy looked at Livie, watching her as she hid herself away.  “Liv, is it true?” 

Red rimmed eyes looked back at him.  “I love him, Andy.” 

Andy stared at her.  “Then I’m gonna do my best to protect you both.”  

As they headed out of the garage, they are swarmed by the press. Liv and Steve make it to the car that was waiting for them.  Steve held his girl, unsure of what to do next. 

Taglist:

@patzammit @jennmurawski13-writes @texmexdarling @slutforchrisjamalevans @firephotogrl74. @tinkerbelle67

[mysticalrambling]

Hey there😄😄I hope you are doing well...You did my last request so fabulously🤩🤩So I'm back with another request😅😅It's another arranged marriage request and I think its the most bizarre request I ever had so please be patient with me😂😂 and you can decline the request if you don't feel so😅😅...Ok so here it goes..

*Steve and y/n are required to get married under the marriage law, he doesn't wants to but being the good soldier he obeys the government....they get married but steve is cold towards his wife...his teammates tell him to give his marriage a chance but he ignores them...Then the accords happen and without a care he leaves his wife behind who is heartbroken seeing all this..Then after 2 years he sees her but again he feels nothing but after the snap when he saw losses around him and he gives his marriage a second chance, he starts being civil to his wife and cares for her but they never consumated their marriage...When the time heist becomes successful Steve consumates his marriage with the reader out of happiness and she thinks all is well...Everyone returns from snap and no one dies...But steve returns the stones and stays in the past and old steve comes back.... Heartbroken Y/n refuses to meet him and leaves the compound...turns out she was pregnant with Steve's baby and doesn't wants the old steve to know so...One day old steve sees pregnant y/n who is around 7 months pregnant and realises its his baby, he apologizes but she ignores and turn away from him... He goes to get help from Scott bcz he wants to be with his wife and son now bcz he and Peggy couldn't have kids, everyone thought steve was selfish...But then he tells the truth that he never wanted to stay in past, but when he went to say goodbye to peggy, she abducted him and broke the timetravel apparatus and forced him to stay in the past...Young Steve comes back and now his son is born who is around 8 months old...He attempts to get back with his family but his wife still ignores him and doesn't let him come near her or her son...Steve regrets for not loving his wife in the past and also volunteering for returning the stones...Then one day powerbroker (Sharon) blasts the house where steve's family lived thus killing his family, in way to revenge her aunty peggy...Steve is left with nothing but pain and regret....*

Regretting His Decisions (S.R)

A/N: Thank you so much lovely and I loved the plot line. I loved writing about it and I made a few additions to the story. Hope you like it.

Steve Rogers Fanfiction (Fanfiction Master List)

Summary: You and Steve get married and he is really rude to you. Then he leaves you behind and goes back to Peggy but he doesn’t realise that you are pregnant. However, Sharon kills you and the baby to avenge her Aunt Peggy and Steve is left with nothing but pain and regret.

Warnings: Angst all the way.

._._._._.

Steve never wanted to marry you or anyone else for that matter. But the government wanted it and like a good Captain, he listened to them. It was the stupid law and he wanted to wring the neck of those who made it. The protectors of the world had to get married so that the world sees them as fellow citizens instead of humans with super powers.

All the Avengers knew that Steve was hesitant to get married and he was doing out of duty. They knew that it was unfair but they all had met you. They all loved you instantly and knew that you and Steve would hit it off. However, the only problem was that he refused to meet you. The only thing that he knew about you was your name and your job occupation. Apparently, it wasn’t worth his time to get to know his to be wife.

“You need to give it a proper chance before you form an opinion.” It was the night of your bachelor party and while everyone is blackout drunk, Steve and Tony just sat on the side couch. For a person who was getting married tomorrow, Steve looked miserable and Tony couldn’t help but interfere.

“I am doing my job and that’s all that matters.” Taking a quick sip from his glass, he didn’t even wince at the liquid burning his throat.

Sighing, Tony filled up his glass again. A drunk Steve was better than a sober one, in his opinion. “A marriage is not a job and you need to try harder.”

“You don’t get to have an opinion, Tony. You got the perfect girl and the perfect wedding.” Jealousy coursed through his veins when he realised that everyone got to be with the love of their loves while he was stuck with someone who he barely knew.

Tony was left speechless and before he could come up with a response, Steve got up from his place and made his way towards his room. Calling it a night, he dreaded the next morning. He was happy for all of his friends but he also wanted to fall in love over first coffee dates, first movie nights, the first kiss and the moment he proposed because he loved you. Not because he was obligated too.

“You ready, Stevie?” Bucky was trying to be supportive but the headache was killing him. The tequila was literally seeping out of his pores. “How are you not hungover right now?”

“I didn’t drink like a maniac last night.” Adjusting his bow tie, he took a deep breath. This was the most difficult thing that he was going to do in his life and he just wanted to be left alone for sometime. “Can I have a moment alone?”

“Are you going to run if we leave you alone?”

“I am not a quitter and you all know that.” They all filed out of the room and he just sat down on the sofa and gave himself a prep talk.

You were no better on the other hand but you were ready to give it a try. Captain America was a good man and he would make a good husband. At least, that’s what you thought. You understood that the marriage was not happening under the best of circumstances but you could give it a fair chance. Taking a deep breath, you went to join your father on the doorway. He gave you a tearful smile and linked his hands with you.

“Do you take Steve Rogers as your lawfully wedded husband?” The minister asked the much awaited question and you quietly responded with an ‘I do’. During the whole ceremony, you wanted him to look at you but his eyes kept wandering. You passed it off as nerves but little did you know that he was so repulsed by the idea of this marriage that he refused to look at his wife to be.

“You guys are finally married. Treat her well, Rogers.” Fury took you both in a bear hug while your husband just hummed in response. You were like a daughter to Fury and that is why he recommended you as Steve’s spouse. He knew that Steve was an honorable man so he would fulfill all his duties as a husband.

The whole night was spent with you both smiling and engaging in conversations with the guests. However, you both made minimum effort to talk to each other except a few stolen glances. Your feet were killing you by the end of the event but you were never the one to complain. A look of relief appeared on your face when Steve announced an end to the event and thanked everyone for coming.

“Come on.” Hurriedly meeting his steps, you sat in to the passenger seat and those were the last words that were exchanged between you. When you entered the house, he took you straight to a guest room and then left. Whatever expectations that you had for tonight were crushed and so you went to bed with tears in your eyes and your wedding dress still on you.

During the next few weeks, Steve didn’t even glance at you but whenever you made an effort to do something nice for him, he shot you off. He was not willing to give it a chance and for the first few times that you made him dinner, he just picked it up and threw it in to the trash. You were never allowed in to his room and you learned it the hard way.

One day, you just wanted to put his laundry in to his room because he was not home yet. What was the harm? But boy, were you wrong. He came home early that day and he bursted at you the moment he saw you in his room. He called you some very mean things that you do not even want to recall. That night, you cried so much that your entire pillow was soaked but you didn’t want to leave him. You were in love with him way before you were married. He was the guy who saved the world and he was a good and an ethical man. Maybe he wasn’t nice to you but he was a good man and you couldn’t disagree with that.

It wasn’t that you needed a man in your life or you were dependent on him. It was that you had feelings for the man and your parents never raised you to be a quitter. You were still hoping that it all may be alright in a few days or weeks and you could have a family together. She knew that she had to be realistic but sometimes a girl wanted hope.

“I won’t be coming home for a few days.” At least he had the courtesy to tell you this time that he was going. "I have asked some of the agents to check up on you daily so if you need anything, just ask them."

"Okay." You quickly dismissed his questioning stare because he thought that you would ask questions. However, you knew that he would be rude and you would snap at him this time. A girl could only handle so much.

A week had passed and you got daily updates from Liam and Noah regarding the civil war. You still couldn’t believe that Tony and Steve were fighting because you witnessed their friendship firsthand. They had just informed you that Steve and his team were arrested by the government and shipped off to a black sight. You wanted to go to Fury and ask him to release all of them but Liam told you that it wouldn’t work. It was out of his hands.

“What do you mean?” You couldn’t believe your ears right now. Fury came by your house instead of Liam and Noah. He informed you that Chris and the other Avengers escaped from the prison and no one knows their location. Hurt was one of the most evident feeling running through your body and you didn’t know how to respond. How could he leave without telling you anything? How could he just leave?

“There will be some investigations on you but it would be nothing serious.”

“Why?” You exclaimed.

“The government is convinced that you know their location. It will blow over in sometime.”

“I am not going to sacrifice my freedom for someone who wasn’t even bothered to tell me about all this.” The hurt quickly turned into rage.

“But (Y/N)-”

“Tell all of them that I will not be doing anything and that you all should leave me alone.” You stood up and Fury took it as his cue.

Closing the door, you don’t let yourself ponder over the throbbing ache in your chest and instead get to packing. You were going to move out of this house and leave this life in the past. You moved into your parents house and immediately shot down their questions about Steve. There was a bookstore across from a studio apartment that Tony helped you find in the next few days. You loved books and the job paid pretty well. Soon, you forgot all about Steve and your failed marriage. Of course, there were feelings that you had to bury deep inside of you but you successfully managed to move on with your life.

“Have you heard, munchkin? Cap is back.” Tony shuffled your hair as he entered the library.. Pausing for a minute to absorb his words, you got right back into arranging the magazine section. It was the last thing that you had to do before you got off for the night.

“I don’t care. Are we still on for the night?”

“Yes. Pepper is cooking for the first time. Just say that you like the food.” From the past two years, Tony has been your person. He was the one who ordered you food when you were feeling too low or who massaged your feet when you had feet sores from lugging around books all day. You were thankful to have him in your life because he was not there to support you financially, he was there to support you emotionally. Sometimes, you felt so alone that you thought you might go into depression. But he was there to pull you back and so was Pepper. They were your family.

“Okay, Tony. I already know.” Quite a few things have changed over the years such as you changing your hair color to low lights and getting bangs. You changed your sense of style and. now you were pretty much unrecognizable. It was all in hope of leaving the past and turning over a new leaf. And you were somewhat successful.

“So how was the food?”

“Awesome!” The fake, shrill voice was hard to recognise, even for you but you didn’t want to hurt Pepper’s feelings.

“I know it was not good so I ordered some pizza as a back up.”

“I love you.” A chorus sounded from Tony and you as you both hugged her and kissed her on either cheek.

“Yeah, yeah.” She quickly dismissed you both but the cheeky grin on her face was hard to hide. You called it a night when you started feeling sleepy and you said your goodbyes. Your apartment was only two blocks away so you decided to take a walk to clear your head. Steve had been on your mind since the time Tony mentioned that he was back. As much as you wanted to believe that his arrival didn’t effect you, you couldn’t deny all the feelings that came rushing back in.

“Robbins Library, how may I help you?” Without looking up, you asked the question in a fake, chirpy voice.

“Why are you not at the house?” The voice startled you from your receipt checking and you gave him a confused look. As you had time to process the question, you looked over his appearance. More muscular and a fully grown beard was an interesting look and definitely suited him.

“Well, it was not mine to begin with.”

“I left you that house so you would be comfortable.”

“I am doing just fine without it. You know, I didn’t need anything from you but love and respect.”

Steve was trying to do something nice for you but he didn’t understand you. He felt nothing towards you even if he tried. Guilt coursed through him when he saw the look of hurt on your face but he couldn’t do anything about it. “That is too much.”

“Well, I deserve it and I am not going to settle for anything less.” This time, the brain won the battle and you were secretly glad. You resumed your work and he left without saying another word.

The city was in chaos in a few days because there was an alien invasion in place. The Avengers were all over the problem but Pepper and you were panicked. However, the only difference was that she could ask about Tony’s whereabouts and you couldn’t do that for your husband. There were no updates for you and when Noah came to get you both with a battered suit, you were worried.

Walking towards the tower, you realised that many people were crying but the most important thing was that it looked like half of the population was gone. There were a lot of things that you didn’t understand right now but only one thing mattered. One person. Steve. You ran towards the tower and when you saw him sitting on a chair with his head in his hands.

“What happened?” The logical part of your brain started working right on time.

“We couldn’t prevent the snap and Thor escaped.”

You didn’t know what it all meant but it was definitely something bad. “So what does it mean?”

“It means that half of the human population have disappeared. It means that half of our friends, families, loved ones have disappeared. It means that I have failed!”

“Why are you getting angry at me?”

“Just leave me alone.”

“Do not speak to me like that. I do not deserve it. When you are in the right frame of mind, come talk to me.” You were not the person that suffered silently. You were the person who knew. what she wanted and how she should be treated.

Going outside, you called your parents but it just went to voicemail. However, busy they might have been, they always picked up their phone. So you knew that they were gone too. You were alone in this world and you didn’t know what to do. In the far distance, you saw Tony and Pepper hugging and you were happy to see that your best friend was not gone.

With tears running down your eyes, you turned back and collided into a firm chest. Looking up, you saw Steve and you just wanted someone to be with you right now. That’s what Steve also wanted because he felt like a failure right now. He wanted to give the marriage another chance as he thought that it was a miracle that you both were still here after the snap. It was not fair on you but he just needed someone and so did you. It was a fair trade.

“I just don’t want to be alone right now, Steve.”

“Me too. Let’s go upstairs.” You both just silently hugged each other and kept staring out into the Manhattan skyline. You knew that he didn’t have any feelings towards you and you cared about that. But not today. Today, you wanted to just lie down and soak up in his presence because he was the only one left for you.

He brought you breakfast in bed the next morning and he took you to all the meetings. You were confused as to why he was doing all of it and when you asked him, his answer was ‘I am trying’. You didn’t get your hopes high because you knew that it would be pathetic. This was going to be temporary and you just knew it. However, you just wanted a companion so you rolled with the situation.

“We can work around quantum physics and get all of our friends back.” He informed you over the ice cream that you were sharing. A Netflix movie ran in the background because it was a Saturday and it was a routine for you both.

“That’s a really good thing.”

“We are going to do it tomorrow.”

“Nice. I am going to bed. Are you coming?” He mumbled out a small yes and picked up all the dishes to put them in the sink.

The whole day tomorrow you clinged by your phone and called your parent’s number after every fifteen minutes. You looked crazy by the end of the day but when they finally picked up, you couldn’t explain the joy that coursed through your whole body. Talking to them for hours, you promised that you would visit them and you cancelled the call.

Steve came back with a bottle of wine in his hands to celebrate. “We were successful. The world is saved. Cheers!”

“Cheers!” Both your happiness knew no bounds and after a few many glasses, you both were dancing to Taylor Swift songs. By the end of the night, you two were truly drunk and one thing led to another. You woke up the next morning with sheets wrapped around your frame and the pillow beside you crumpled but cold. You regretted the night so much because you knew that he did not have the same feelings for you.

The whole day, you spent cleaning the apartment as there were empty bottles of alcohol laying around. Then you went to the library and today was a busy day because many people wanted an update for the past five years of their lives. It kept you distracted from everything and when Tony came in, it was like the past repeating itself. He told you that Steve went to place the stones back but he came back as old.

You stopped listening to him after sometime as your mind tried to process what was happening. He betrayed you. Again. You were preparing yourself for the hurt whole day but this was totally unexpected. You knew what to do so it was a good thing. Detach yourself from the situation and do damage control. That was your motto for the next seven months and you refused to meet him even after you found out you were pregnant.

“You are in the mood of some ice cream with pickles, hmm little bean?” Rubbing your round belly, you walked towards the snacks aisle. The flavored pickle was on the top shelf but it was out of your reach. A wrinkly hand from behind picked up the jar and when you turned around to thank him, your voice was stuck in your throat. There stood your husband but the older version. The wrinkled face still held some similarities to the young captain but he had a slight hunch and grey hair.

“(Y/N), is that you? Are you- You are pregnant?” The question in his eyes was pretty evident.

“Seven months.” You curtly spoke and wheeled the trolly towards the check out. He quickly figured out the timeline and felt guilty. It was his baby and he left you alone. He caught up to you when you were bagging the groceries.

“I am sorry, (Y/N). I didn’t know. If I could change everything, I would. Please give me another chance.”

“You chose Peggy so you don’t get to come back in my life. Leave us alone. It would be a favor for this child if he never gets to know you.” Telling him off made you feel a whole lot better and you went towards your car.

Seeing you leave, Steve knew that he had to make things right. He went to the compound where all the Avengers were lounging around.

“I thought you had retired, Cap.” Peter called out from playing his video game with Bucky.

“I want your help, Scott. I want to go back to my old self.”

“Why, Captain? Got bored of the grandfather look?” Tony asked while stuffing his mouth with buttered popcorn.

“No. I just found out that my wife is pregnant and I want to be there for them.”

“That’s sweet but why? You already had your chance with Peggy.” Natasha wasn’t very happy with Steve right now but they all had the same question running through their minds.

“Peggy and I couldn’t have kids.”

“So you are using (Y/N) and this kid as a replacement. That’s just selfish, Steve.” Everyone gave him a disgusted look because they couldn’t believe that he was just using you and the child to fill a hole in his life. Not because he loved you both.

“That’s not true. I didn’t want to stay in the past with Peggy but she forced me to. She broke the time machine apparatus and I had no other choice but to accept that life.” He looked at all of them and saw that they all were listening to him. “I made a time machine the whole time I was there and when it was complete, I got the hell out of there.”

“Oh, Steve. We are so sorry. Of course, we will all help you.” Hugging him tight, Nat spoke on behalf of all the others. The machine was all ready to go so Steve stood in the middle of it with Scott. They had to go back and fixed the machine’s timing and it would take some months to do all that.

Meanwhile, you got back home and unpacked all the groceries. Your hormones were running wild at the moment as you sat on the sofa with your swollen feet on the coffee table. You wanted a companion sometimes who would massage your back or who would call you pretty when you were feeling insecure about yourself or who would bring you food at four a.m. But this was a dream and you gave up on it a long time ago. You were enough for your baby and that was a fact.

When Steve came back, 10 months had passed by. You had given birth to a beautiful baby boy after a 21 hour labour. You cried and even though you had your mom with you, you still called out for Steve. You wanted him with you and afterwards, when you held that boy in your hand, you wanted Steve to be there with you to enjoy the moment. However, it was the last time his name even came out of your month.

“Oliver, you need to eat, bubba.” The last 8 months have been a rollercoaster ride for you and you knew through Tony and Pepper that Steve had gone back in time. You didn’t bother with the details because you had another human being to worry about.

“Nooooo.” This one word was the kid’s favorite and everyone of his sentence started with it. You were interrupted in the middle by the doorbell. Picking up your child from the high chair, you made your way through the house towards the door.

“What are you doing here?” Steve looked the same age as you so you knew that the time machine trip was successful. But you saw red. He didn’t deserve you or Oliver.

“(Y/N), is- is that him?” The blubbering baby did not even pay attention to his father and kept on pulling your hair. He was an exact replica of Steve from the dirty blonde hair to the charming smile. A literal reminder for you but you loved this little boy to death.

“Yes and now go away. We don’t need you.” Looking at the baby, he regretted the day he made the decision to be the one to return the stones. He regretted the fact that he did not allow himself to love you. He regretted everything. “Do not come near us. Goodbye.”

You went on with your week as per usual with feeding Ollie in the morning and taking him to the library with you where he had his own play pen. Then getting light lunch across the street and coming back home to take a nap for a few hours. Afterwards, you both ate dinner while Oliver’s favorite cartoons played on the tv. Except for the fact that Steve was at your house, your job and your cafe from the day he came back. He tried to apologize but the years that you spent in agony was too much. It was too little, too late.

It was a Sunday afternoon and by some miracle, Steve had left you alone. He had a meeting with the other Avengers regarding Asgard today. You were just playing with Oliver on his mat as he tried to crawl towards the stuffed toys in your hands. Before you picked him up, you thought that you smelt gas. However, a loud explosion threw you in to the nearest wall and you knew that your time was here. During the last few breaths, you tried to find Oliver but you couldn’t move. Mentally calling out for Steve, your gaze became unfocused and you lost conscious.

“Wha-What happened?” Steve knew that there was a bomb blast and he wanted to hope against all hope that you both were safe. However, the two body bags wheeled out of the burnt down house had him fall to his knees.

“There was an explosion and we caught Agent Sharon fleeing the scene.”

Sharon had confessed that she wanted to have revenge on Steve for cheating on her aunt Peggy. The new family that Steve had was a disgrace to her Aunt’s memories so she murdered them. She had gone a little crazy because Peggy was the one who take care of her when she was a child and she felt that Steve betrayed her.

Steve didn’t know what to do with his life at the moment. He was left all alone and his family was snatched away from him. He didn’t get a chance to be with them and now he was left with nothing but pain and regret. Trying to convince Fury to let him go back in time and prevent the explosion was futile because Fury just told him that this would upset the balance of nature. He didn’t understand it at first but then as time passed, he did. All the toys and photos that were salvaged from the house now decorated Steve’s very lonely apartment and he never let himself forget.

This was his punishment and he was not going to run away from it. Not this time.

Hope you guys enjoyed it!!

._._._._.

A/N: I loved writing about Steve but I am no longer taking requests for some days. I actually have some of my drafts that I want to complete. You can send in requests but it will take some days for me to get to them:) Love you guys and do tell me if you want to be added to my taglist.

Taglist: @kalopsia-flaneur, @justile

Like, comment and reblog.

[xoxo-teddybear]

Oh, The Lies You Tell - Bakugou Katsuki - pt.5

Bakugou x f!reader

Warnings: angst, trauma, abuse, betrayal, fluff, slice of life, smut, cursing, manipulation, possible spoilers, physical harm, 18+

BAKUGOU’S MASTERLIST

Ep. Warnings: cursing, blood, DADZAWA, tiniest bit of angst, Kinda Short Again : P

Summary: Bakugou and Y/N have made up and have gotten much closer. Y/N still isn’t completely sure what they are yet, but that thought will have to be put on the back burner since Shigaraki has a job for her. But what happens on that job is what makes this part interesting. 

Pt.1 Pt.2 Pt.3 Pt.4 Pt.5 Pt.6 Pt.7 Pt.8 Pt.9

All day, you and Bakugou were together. Talking, laughing, just doing whatever. Almost like a couple. Quick kisses here and there and long hugs quite often. It even got to the point where they were constantly cuddling. Mind you, this all happened in just a day. Speaking of which, at the end of it, Bakugou went back to Y/N’s room and they fell asleep together.

*Beep* *beep* *beep* *click!*

You woke up to the glorious sun, shining it’s golden rays through your dorm window. It’s 6:00. Time to get ready for school. As you looked around in a strangely peaceful atmosphere, you found the reason why. Right next to you, layed a sleeping Katsuki.

You smiled at his peaceful state and took a moment to admire all of him. Bakugou chose to not sleep with a shirt due to his quirk, which gave you the benefit of laying eyes on someone who was truly built by the gods. His chiseled chest glowed under the solar rays and his abs were covered in scars from his past adventures as a UA student. Your eyes traveled to his face, where porcelain skin lay. His ruby eyes shut, as his long lashes curtain them. Your hands automatically went to his head, running your fingers through his surprisingly soft spiky hair. You giggled as you noticed it refused to lay calm, much like Bakugou himself. To your surprise, his deep morning voice spoke up.

“Can we just stay like this forever?” He smiled in his drowsy state. You jumped at his voice as he chuckled at your jittery behavior. Your hand had left his hair, much to Bakugou’s dismay, and so he brought it back to where it previously was. “I never said stop, princess.” He said as he attempted to drift off back to sleep.

“Heh, well I didn’t ask if you did. You gonna keep sleeping or you gonna get up and get ready for school?” You teasingly asked.

“You gonna keep petting my head?” Bakugou asked with his eyes still closed and a slight smile.

“No.”

“Then no,” he said as he woke up with a scowl and grumpy eyes. He sat up from his previous position and stretched his arms as he watched you get up and walk to your dresser. You grabbed your rebellious uniform before walking back to Katsuki.

“See you soon, okay?” You said and pecked his pouted lips. He replied with closed eyes, a smile, and a simple “mhm” as he got up and left to his dorm.

As Bakugou walked to his dorm, he tried to savor the feeling of your plush lips on his. He smiled at the recent memory. He walked back into his dorm and got ready, excited because he knew once he was done, he would get to see you again. As Bakugou finished and left, he walked to your dorm and found you and Rumor shutting the door, ready to go. He walked to your side and held onto your waist.

“Ready to go?”

“Mhm!”

You both walked and talked until you reached class, as you opened the door and walked in, everyone saw you and cooed.

“Ouuu~ whats this Bakugou?” Sero asked in a playful manner. Bakugou just rolled his eyes but continued to hold onto you.

“Is she your girllllfriendddd?” Kaminari teased. The whole class giggled at the cute little POSSIBLE couple. It was adorable. Who would’ve guessed the ruthless and “dedicated to being number 1 only” Bakugou would have fallen for someone. They continued to laugh until Bakugou spoke.

“Maybe she is, morons. Is there a problem if she is?” He asked with piercing eyes, causing the group to shut up. “Good.” He said as he sat down in his seat and placing you in his lap. You guys had a couple minutes before class started so it would work out just fine.

As the group continued to talk, a deep voice was heard throughout the room.

“Are you going to continue holding my daughter hostage in your lap, Bakugou? Or are you gonna let her take her seat?” The group looked towards the door and saw their teacher, Mr. Aizawa, standing in the doorway. Everyone, besides Bakugou, Y/N, Kaminari, and Kirishima, gasped at the revelation of Y/N being Aizawa’s daughter.

Bakugou sighed as he let you go to his seat, which was right next to him, and looked towards his teacher. “Happy?”

“Very.” Aizawa replied.

“You know, for the record, you aren’t my real dad.” Y/N clarified.

“Correct, but I adopted you. Which legally makes you my daughter. So listen to your dad and hush!” He said with glowing red eyes which made you quiet down with a huff. You placed your head in your hand as you blew a strand of hair out of your face.

‘He’s probably gonna mention the competition tomorrow,” you thought to yourself.

“Alright class, to begin let me tell you about a battle competition we’ll be having next week.” He said.

‘Next week?’ You were confused. What happened to tomorrow? This would throw off the league’s plans, which surprisingly, you were kind of okay with.

“It was supposed to be tomorrow, but we caught word of a few villains figuring out about the event so the school rescheduled it to a different time at a different location,” Mr. Aizawa began, “the competition will be a battle of schools. Class 1-A and B will be attending. Each class will be its own team. You guys will do something similar to a race but depending on the routes and turns you take, you will end up facing a challenge or fighting an opponent aka a different school’s class. The race is over when a class gets to the finish line and rings a bell. Winners get a week off from all work.” He explained.

The class cheered in excitement at the event coming up and spoke amongst themselves about how they would prepare. You, however, were in minor distraught.

‘Villains? The only villains that could’ve know were the league. Did one of them slip up?’ You thought.

Mr. Aizawa refocused the class and began the lesson. Blah, blah, blah, quirks, blah, blah, blah, law, blah, blah, blah, heroes. The usual. Except this time, you payed a little attention. Hero work did interest you but there was no way it was possible for you. You were already in too deep with villainy, so you just sat in self pity as you listened to the lecture.

At the end of the class, Aizawa pulled you aside to talk. He said he had a few things he wanted to ask you.

“Y/N..” he said.

“Eraser-Head..” you replied. He rolled his eyes at the name.

“It’s Mr. Aizawa, or Aizawa sensei, or even dad!” He complained but this time you rolled your eyes.

“Alright then, DAD, what do you want?” You asked.

“I just want to know what’s going on with you and Bakugou. You’ve gotten awfully close. Kissing in the kitchen, sitting on his lap. Are you dating that boy or what?” He questioned you, and to be honest, you couldn’t really answer. What exactly was your relationship with Bakugou? You weren’t dating, that wasn’t established, but you guys weren’t just friends. This was all so confusing. Still, you couldn’t give the man a straightforward answer.

“Even if I was, it’s none of your concern.” You said with a puffed chest and total confidence.

“It is my concern as your now father.” He said. “I just want to know. I’ve seen some improvements since you came here.....I’m proud of you.”

This shocked you. It threw you off and your body basically deflated from its once confident state. He was proud of you. Words you’ve longed to hear from somebody..anybody, and you finally got to hear it. It almost made you tear up but you had to stay composed.

“Proud of me? For what?” You asked with a little sass and attitude. Gotta keep up your bad girl rep, you know?

“Proud of you for choosing to come here in general. You made a good choice. You’ve benefitted yourself in all the right ways. You’re going down a path of greatness, I can see it. I’m also proud of the friends you’ve made and how open and social you’ve become. It makes me glad knowing that you’re coming out of that dark spot you were stuck in for so long. And it seems that having Bakugou around really helps.” He explained.

The whole thing almost brought you to tears. A father figure was proud of you. He knows your past and who you are and he was proud of you. It’s like a dream come true. You were so stunned, you could barely speak.

“Yeah...Umm..thanks.” You began. “Well! If that’s all..I have to get to lunch. I’ll see you around,” you said as you blinked away the tears gathering in your eyes and began to walk to the door.

“Y/N...if you’re ever struggling, you can come talk to me about anything. I’m your teacher and dad now, so I’m always here to help.” He offered. You looked back at him with a kind face before speaking.

“Thank you..”

‘...Dad,’ you thought to yourself as you let out a small smile and walked to the cafeteria.

——————————————————————————

The day went on as usual and when school and training was finally over, you and Bakugou got to spend more time together! You don’t know what it was but being around each other just made each other feel more..complete.

After school, you guys took a fly around the city on Rumor, stopped for some ice cream, and went to play with puppies at the local shelter. By the time you guys got back, dinner was being prepped in the kitchen, so you guys had some time to kill. You both decided it was cool to just hang out in your room.

“Hey, I’m gonna change real quick and I’ll meet you there, okay?” Bakugou said, pointing to the area of his dorm.

“No problem!” You said as Bakugou leaned down and pecked your lips before leaving. You smiled as he walked away and looked towards Rumor who had to be giving you some type of smirk. “Shut up,”

When you both walked in to the room, you changed out of your school uniform and opted for something more comfy. Before you sat down in bed, your earring went off. The league was calling.

“Y/N!...Can you hear me?!” Shigaraki said through the communication device. You ran to it in fear of displeasing your superior if you took too long.

“Right here. What happened?! What villain got caught speaking about the competition???” You asked in shock.

“It was Twice. Idiot can’t keep his mouth shut.” Shigaraki said as you heard Twice’s voice in the background saying it was an accident.

“Look, it doesn’t matter, because the events been cancel due to concern.” You explained.

“ARGHH, figures!” Shigaraki screamed, “look, I’m just here because I have a quick job for you. The others are out setting up our next attack so you’re the only one available.” He said.

“But- but I have something to do right now,” you said, hoping you wouldn’t have to go.

“Well drop it. You’re not getting out of this one. Besides, it’s simple. Get in and get out.” He said.

“..alright,” you didn’t know why. It wasn’t like this was your first job, but it made you want to cry.

“Good. All you have to do is get into heartfilia manner. Boss man, Jude Heartfilia, hired the league for a job offering big banks. He never payed up. All we want is revenge and you’re our best stealth fighter. So get in, kill the man, and get out. Oh! And grab his checkbook too, it’s signed off with his name already. Sounds like easy money. Okay?” He explained.

Kill. Kill. It wouldn’t be your first time. Heck, it wouldn’t even be your 100th time, but the thought of doing it again made you nauseous. However, denying a request from Shigaraki made you even more nauseous. You feared him. You didn’t know just how powerful you were so in your mind, you were the weakest link in the league. So with that in your head, you answered. “Okay.”

You looked towards Rumor in sadness. He seemed to have known what was about to transpire.

“Go get ready, Rumor. We have a job to do.” You said as you walked towards your closet to pull out your villain costume tucked in the back. What stopped you was your...whatever he was to you, walking in.

“Hey princess, I’m back! Miss me?” He said with open arms, closed eyes, and a cocky face, expecting you to leap into his arms. But nothing came. He opened his eyes and saw you near your wardrobe.

“K-Katsuki! Hey! Umm, I’m sorry, but something came up so I can’t really hang right now.” You explained while closing your dresser and walking towards him.

“Oh? What happened? Do you need some help?” He offered. Ugh, why did he have to care about you so much. It’s making things so much harder.

“Um, no. I’ll be good. I just remembered...Korra wants to speak to me. So..I’ll be heading out to talk to her for whatever she needs.” You lied. You felt so guilty lying right to his face but it had to be done.

“Mind if I joined you?” He asked.

“Um, yeah actually, I kinda do. It’s nothing personal, it’s just that these meetings between mentor and pupil are kinda..private. You know?” You asked. You could feel in your soul how furious Korra was that you were using her name to lie your way out.

“Okay, no problem. I’ll see you later?” He said hopeful. You couldn’t deny him that.

“Of course,” you said while giving him a tight hug and a peck on his cheek. Satisfied, he walked out of the room and off to wherever. You let out a sigh as you shut the door and locked it. “Okay Rumor, let’s go.”

——————————————————————————

Rumor was in giant hawk form as you sat on his back and you both were flying over the estate. You looked down and saw the place covered with security, however, there was a landing on the rooftop with a doorway inside. You had Rumor glide down there in silence and quickly tranformed back into Wolf-dog form mid air as you landed on your feet. You both quickly ran inside but not before knocking out the single guard standing inside.

Inside, you both were very cautious. The halls were surprisingly emptied. Nothing but a guard or maid here and there. When you finally found the master bedroom, you busted in and saw he wasn’t there. You scoped around, checked his private bathroom, and still got nothing.

“Rumor. Go into the closet and find some dirty laundry or something. Track his scent and then come find me.” You ordered and Rumor nodded in confirmation. You went back out into the halls and found his study. You walked in prepared to kill and get you still saw no one.

‘Where the hell is everyone?’ You thought to yourself.

You saw scattered papers laying on his desk as you approached the laying furniture. He must’ve been in a hurry if he left the place so disorganized. That or he’s always been a slob. You scurried through his desk and drawers and found his checkbook.

“Bingo. At least we found one thing.” You placed the check board into your pocket as you continued your search. You read through the papers on his desk and saw he had frantically signed a signature to book a place at the Inko Hotel right in Musutafu. Then your eyes went wide.

“.......He knew!” You said in shock. He knew the league would send an assassin. Right when you said that, Rumor came in and barked. He had his scent. You ran towards Rumor as he transformed into giant wolf form and hopped on him. He began to run not caring about the people he bumped in to. Security obviously noticed you all and began shooting at you. You turned around on Rumor’s back and used your metal bending to stop the bullets and send them back, killing others in the process. You cringed behind your mask at the sight but kept a strong facade as Rumor finally made it out. You jumped into the air giving him enough time to turn in a giant hawk again and fly off, picking you up mid-air along the way. You both flew off as fast as you could to the hotel where Rumor’s nose was taking you.

Once you arrived you entered the hotel through a back way entrance. You realized you would have to fit in so off came your black cloak and mask. You walked around in your villain costume that thankfully no one was suspicious of and followed Rumor’s nose. He sniffed the floor and followed Jude’s scent until he reached door 402. You noticed a guard standing by and so you used your charm to seduce the man. While he was distracted by the flirt, you surprisingly used your dim mak and paralyzed him from the neck down. You knocked him out and dragged him to a storage closet and returned to the room. You busted open the door and saw Jude laying there in his sleep. You shut the door and locked it. In case he woke up, you put your cloak and mask back on as you approached his unknowing body.

‘He looks so.....peaceful.’ You thought while watching him. ‘But I have to do my job...no matter how cruel,’ you reminded yourself. You reluctantly and shakenly used your air bending to create a sphere of wind around the man’s head. While maneuvering your hands you took his breath away, depriving him of oxygen and killing him in the process. You just killed a peaceful man in his sleep. As you came to that realization, you released a breathy sigh as you put your hands together to pray for him and allow his spirit to leave the world in respect.

Once you opened your eyes again, you noticed tears pricking at the ends. You hated this part of the job. Stealing and grifting was easy. But murder? That was a whole ‘nother level that made you want to scream. As you walked off with your head handing low, you left the building in a sadly successful job. On the journey back to UA, you called Shigaraki through the earring and told him of your mission results. He congratulated you on a job well done and asked for you to return the checkbook when they would later attack UA. Your face grew sour at the reminder that you’re all here just to create misery. What a pity.

You had noticed Rumor had gotten generously tired and so you opted to just walk instead of fly home. It wasn’t that bad and you needed to clear your head anyway. After walking for some time, you were close to the dorms but as you took a turn, you of course ran into....... Bakugou?!

Due to a quick reaction, Rumor had shrunk to a mouse and you were so thankful you wore your cloak and mask....YOU WORE YOUR CLOAK AND MASK!

“Woah! Hey! Watch we’re you’re-“ he cut himself off as he noticed your attire. He recognized you instantly. “You’re...Titania!”

Thankfully he wasn’t aware of who was under the mask. You picked up Rumor dashed off before anything else happened. But Bakugou being the hero he is, he chased after you.

“Hey! Get back here!” He said using his explosions to blast himself further and give him some speed. However, you had a few tricks yourself. You used your air bending and applied it to help with your running and give you a boost.

As the chase went on, you zig-zagged through alleyways and over city obstacles like trash cans and such. Bakugou was right on your tail...or so you thought. As you turned back to see if he was still behind, you saw nobody, and in the heat of the moment, you let your guard down. You allowed yourself to stop and just breath as you layed against a brick wall in the shadows but to your surprise Bakugou had tackled you to the ground from the side. Now he had you pinned down as he huffed closed to your face.

“You damn villain scum“ those words made you cringe behind your mask. He was right. Villain scum is what you are, but those words coming from Bakugou just made your heart hurt. “What the hell are you doing out here?!”

When he asked that questioned, you remained silent. He grunted as his eyes squinted in frustration. “Tell me!” He demanded.

As your head got back in the game, you kicked his groin and used some wind to push him back. Throwing him behind a pile of trash cans, you quickly used your fire bending to blast you into the air as Bakugou’s sight was blocked. You threw Rumor’s mouse form into the air as he transformed into a giant hawk and you both escaped before Bakugou looked back up to look for you. You successfully got away.

—

When you returned, you had Rumor go back to his mouse form to sneak into the dorms. You waited by the side as Rumor went to retrieve some clothes for you to change into on the side of the building. When he returned, you changed under your cloak and then hid it as you walked in with Rumor. You passed a few students but none seem to be suspicious of anything. You made it to your room and sighed in relief as you layed down but then, Bakugou of course barged in.

“You’re never gonna guess what the fuck just happened, Princess.” Bakugou said as he threw off his jacket and flopped on top of you. You let out a ‘Oof,’ and giggle as you began to pet his head. Yes, you felt guilty for what you did and were about to do but you had to. Right?

“What happened, Suki?” You confidently said. Bakugou slightly flinched as he looked up to you with a slight blush.

“Suki?” He questioned.

“Mhm! My new name for you. Cute right?” You happily said.

“M-mhm,” he said as he tucked his head away in your chest and blushed even more.

“So tell me what happened.” You said. He sighed before speaking almost as if he was frustrated.

“I was out walking after stopping by my parent’s place to drop something off and I ran into..Titania.” He explained.

“Titania?” You played dumb, “that top ranking villain?”

“Not just any top ranking villain. She’s the top and most wanted female villain out there. She’s bad news and I chased her down. Of course she got away though, can’t believe I thought I could take her down. Her skill level is insane. She’s had to have been fighting since she was probably our age or even younger.” He went on.

“You know her age?” You said with a slight panic. You didn’t want Titania’s anything to be revealed.

“With her skills, I’d bet she’s at least in her late 20s.” You were slightly flattered by the fact that Bakugou thinks you’re that powerful, but of course he didn’t know it was you. That was kind of disappointing though, he didn’t know who you truly were. Then you thought back to what he said. Villain Scum. If that’s what he thought Titania was, then when he found out who she really was, he would definitely have a thing or two to say about you. You saddened at that thought but wanted to change the topic after becoming slightly uncomfortable with the “news.”

“Don’t let it get to you. We are still hero trainees after all. We can only do so much. C’mon, let’s watch a movie and cuddle instead.” You offered to which he happily agreed. And so you both sat and just enjoyed each other’s presence and the movie. You were seated in Bakugou’s lap as you both sat on your bed just living in the moment. Bakugou would pepper you in kisses every now and then to which you laughed and happily accepted.

You loved the time you got to spend with Bakugou. It felt right whenever he was around. Your life was a hot mess but then he came and became your little getaway. He was a breath of fresh air to you and everything about him just made you smile. His presence made you happy, his smile made you swoon, his touch had you melting and his kisses were just...amazing. You guys weren’t an official couple, but you were something. And although it was confusing, that something was enough to fill your heart with all the warmth and love that you’ve been missing for the past 16 years of your life. The only question was...how long was it going to last before it all came crushing down?

*sorry for any spelling mistakes, this was quick and delayed*

[royallyprincesslilly]

Title: Kismet {8}

Henry Cavill x Famous OFC Aliya Taylor

Warning: Plot, Tiny Slow Burn, Mild Cursing, Dialogue Heavy, POV Changes, Small Time Jumps

Words: 6.6k

Summary: Aliya is a singer turned model turned actress. Since she was fifteen, she’s been creating her empire in the entertainment world. As the daughter of a famous fashion model/designer and Hollywood director, you’d think life is easy for her, but her past has been anything but easy. Due to past trauma, she’s forever changed and no longer trusts any man that is not in her family and a select few in her team. She’s sworn off love and serious relationships and has planned never to fall again, but love isn’t something that can be planned. It just happens when it’s meant to. Can Aliya outrun a love that seems hellbent on holding tight to her, a love that is Kismet?

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As always, thank you so much for reading. ❤️❤️

***Loosely Edited/Proofread***

***Interactive***

Previous Chapters: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |

-Henry-

The minute he woke the next day and the alcohol had worn off; he instantly regretted his actions. His head was pounding and his nose stuffy, which was always what the morning after a drinking fest looked and felt like for him. the pain in his head made him painfully aware of everything he’d said to you. More than half of him wished he would have just held his peace and moved on, but the other side of him—the stubborn bull side felt nothing but satisfaction from what he’d done. It was time, especially seeing that you completely had the wrong idea about who he was and his character. He couldn’t help but wonder what you thought about your conversation, but instead of dwelling on it, he decided to push it to the side and do the logical thing. Move on.

 It was now five days since that conversation, and though it felt strange the first couple of days to not send you a message when you ran across his mind, he did it and adapted. He now was throwing himself into work because there wasn’t a shortage of it. Most days, he was in pre-production for Witcher two, and that in itself was a lot of work. Production decided to kick fight choreography up a notch because last season wasn’t badass enough. The choreography this season was definitely taking it up several notches, and it meant more long hours of training and even more potential for him to be hurt.

By week two post convo, he was steadily counting down to his vacation time. Training was kicking his ass, and the more and more days that passed, the more he thought of you. That wasn’t all though, the more the way he thought of you changed. In the beginning, he thought he was infatuated or possibly obsessed. When he was around you, he always felt as if he wasn’t in control. He felt like there were forces that were controlling your interactions and pulling a starry blanket over his feelings. He expected this time away to act as a purge, but it hadn’t, not in the way he’d anticipated.

 “Come on, her name is Becca, and she’s super cute,” Alisha said.

 “Why is it that all my brother’s wives want to set me up?”

 “Because we care. You’re too great of a guy to be alone,” Halley complimented.

 They all nodded, and his eldest brother painfully squeezed his cheek.

 “Plus, look at this face,” Nik teased, making all of them elate.

 It had been like this since they were kids. Nothing had changed.

 “I’m perfectly fine being alone,” he answered.

 “Doesn’t mean you should be,” Amee piped out.

 No matter what, he said it wouldn’t be good enough until he gave them what they wanted. He had no intention of doing it, though. He wasn’t sure if it was really his loathing of being set up or because he didn’t want to pretend to want anyone else. Whatever it was, it had him declining to their annoyance. He could stick it out for the next two weeks until he got out of London.

  -Aliya-

“You fucked up, plain and simple,” Amaya blurted out as she flipped through a magazine.

 You rolled your eyes and tried to continue writing notes to the song you’d just wrote. As sure as you were that it was pitch black outside, you knew she wasn’t done—not by a long shot. A minute passed in silence, but as projected, Amaya began again.

 “Just explain to me why you don’t want to be happy.” Amaya tossed the magazine aside, giving you her full attention. Still, you ignored her and kept your eyes glued to the note pad.

 “Liya, come on. At some point in your life, you’re going to have to be honest with yourself.”

 She was right. For the last few weeks, you’d spent a lot of sleepless nights doing just that. Since Henry’s call, you’d been forced to look at your situation in a light you’d ignored. It wasn’t that you were doing it maliciously. It was just easier and neater to see the worst in every situation hence the worst in people. You’d been the girl who dug deep for the best in people and only focused on that and their potential for too long. It made more sense from a survivalist standpoint to be different.

 You’d went back and forth and round and round your situation, and perhaps you were too quick to jump to conclusions. The bottom line was the things he said had affected you, more than you liked and more than you could ignore. A few days after his call, you saw his picture in The Sun. He wasn’t alone. It looked like he’d had a long night of partying. You deduced it was probably the same night he called you. Though he was obviously drunk, he still looked so damn good. In the last few weeks, you’d thought about him a lot. On several occasions, you’d taken up your phone for the sole purpose to stalk his Instagram or even scroll through your gallery to gawk at his pictures. Never though, did you attempt to call.

 The main reason was that you hated being the one in the wrong. You hated feeling like the asshole and what was worse was that you also hated apologizing. So, you bit your tongue, pushed your thoughts and emotions aside, and just hoped time would make it all fade. It didn’t.

 “Aliya!”

 Closing your notepad, you stood. “We’re going to miss the flight.”

 “Whatever! It’s a private jet. It’s your private jet.”

 You were already out of the room, which meant thankfully, you didn’t have to see her face. The drive to the private airfield was about forty-five minutes. For the entire ride, you could feel Amaya’s annoyance with you. she didn’t say one word. Instead, she kept her nose buried in her phone scrolling her life away. It was okay with you; you had plenty of work to do. Plus, you knew this wasn’t over, not by a long shot.

 Sure enough, twenty minutes into the flight to London, she was back at it. The difference between Amaya and Alicia was simple. Where Alicia liked to leave me be until she knew the perfect time to go in because she knew the perfect time would come when you would be more receptive to it, Amaya preferred to go in all the time. She was always on one hundred. You loved both your best friends dearly, and they both spoke to different sides of you, but sometimes you wished they were wrong a lot more often than they were right.

 When you got pulled into a phone meeting, you were grateful and even more so when it lasted for almost two hours. By the time you ended the call, Amaya was napping. Though you thought the silence was what you wanted, it was a blessing in disguise. It meant you now had peace and quiet to think, and your thoughts more often than not went right to Henry.

 When you landed in London and checked into the hotel, it was after midnight. Once you’d taken a shower and answered a few emails, you popped two sleep aids in hopes they would knock you out because you needed all your energy tomorrow.

  -The Next Day-

Hectic was an understatement for how your morning and afternoon had been going. One of the great things about being you was that when you got bored with one career avenue, you had three more to distract yourself with. For the last several months, you’d been focusing on your acting career and had been able to complete two films and three guest appearances. In between acting gigs you were also able to do a few modeling events, including Fall and Spring fashion week.

 What had fallen to the wayside was your singing career. It was almost time for you to fulfill your contractual obligations by releasing another album. You’d been focusing on writing new material for the last few weeks, and tonight you were putting on one of the last stops on a mini-tour your team had planned months ago. The travel alone was killing you. You were exhausted, even more than usual. With every show, you felt your body telling you it would soon be time to slow down or stop for a few months. You needed a break.

 “I should have flown in days ago. I hate feeling like this isn’t perfect.”

 “Aliya, it’s fine,” Alicia countered.

 The perfectionist in you didn’t believe her.

 “I promise. I wouldn’t lie to you. You have to go anyway. The show is supposed to start at six; it’s already three.”

 She was right. Though you hated it, you would have to cross your fingers and hope things looked cohesive. After finishing up the last-minute wardrobe adjustments and a quick pep talk with your dancers, you made your way back to the hotel to get in a little bit of pampering before having to get back to the center for prep.

 As you laid on the table and enjoyed your deep tissue massage, you allowed the worries to float away. There was nothing you could do about it now anyway. You were also sure it was perfectly fine, and just your obsessive nature taking over. Tuning everything out, you focused on your meditative breathing. Before you knew it, it was time to get back to the center to get into wardrobe and put on a show worthy of the hundreds that were spent on tickets. You were determined to perform your ass off.

  -Henry-

He couldn’t have gotten out of tonight no matter what. He’d tried. When Charlie announced to everyone that Heather had made plans for their adults' date night, he rolled his eyes. Now that he thought of it, it was around the time that Amee tried to set him up with that woman. This was supposed to be a blind date, and since he’d declined, he was here alone while all his other brothers were snuggling up and whispering to their significant others.

 Here he was an hour and ten minutes into your show, and he’d never had more fluctuating thoughts and feelings. At first, it was surprise; then annoyance, then it transitioned into awe until it moved to arousal and admiration. Now he was stewing deep in all of them, and it was not a good look. Your voice was incredible. He’d always known how talented you were. Your stamina to dance and sing blew his mind. Then when he watched those dance moves closer, it was impossible to keep his thoughts pure. It also didn’t help that the outfits you were wearing only fueled his imagination more.

 “What’s wrong with you? You said you liked Aliya Taylor,” Amee shouted over the music.

 Plastering a smile on his face, he nodded. “Yeah, she’s great. I’m tired.” It wasn’t a complete lie.

 When you came out for the final song in a flowing low cut white gown and barefoot, he staggered backward when he envisioned you walking down a flower aisle.

 “Fucking hell!”

 All eyes snapped to him, and the curious looks on their faces only had him needing air even more.

 “I—I’m gonna get a head start to the cars.”

 Not waiting for a response, he turned and walked through the crowd, not daring to look back at you.

   -Aliya-

Amaya and Alicia laughed together at something on Amaya’s timeline. No doubt it was some picture of one of her boy toys. You sipped from your flower decorated porcelain teacup while staring out over London to the Eye. Just behind it, Big Ben stood tall and proud as it chimes for four o’clock echoed through the city. This was a city you’d spent a lot of time in thanks to your grandparents on your father’s side. Not as much time as they’d like, but there was only so much free time you had. Big Ben and the Eye were two of your favorite things about London.

 You should have been on cloud nine after another successful show and checking another thing off your extensive to-do list, but you weren’t. You felt almost as gloomy as the rolling clouds in the sky that threatened rain.

 “You seem depressed.”

 Alicia’s voice had you turning back to them you softly smiled. “I’m not.”

 “You look it,” Amaya slid home.

 Rolling your eyes, you finished your cup of tea and gently placed it on its matching saucer with a shrug. “I don’t know what to tell you then.”

 Amaya then gasped with a smile in her eyes. “I know what it is. You’re finally missing your grade A prime beef of a man.”

 Snorting, you shook your head. “Oh god. Try again.”

 “You might be right, Mya,” Leece started placed her elbows on the table to peer at you closer. “This all started the night we had dinner with him. What’s his name again?” Both of them pretended to wrack their brains to remember his name, but they knew damn well what it was.

 “Ah, Henry,” Amaya cooed, making you roll your eyes even harder.

 “Both of you stop. You’re not funny.”

 “We approve.”

 “I second that,” Alicia added.

 “What? Really?”

 “Are you kidding? Yeah. Not only is he gorgeous, like drop dead gorgeous, but he is also super nice. Throughout dinner he was very courteous and sincere. You know I’m a good people reader,” Amaya attested.

 “He’s funny, and he seemed to be genuine with his efforts to get to know Mya and me. He also was putting in effort into proving something to you.”

 Sighing, you took a few sips of your water.

 “Honestly, I couldn’t find anything wrong with him.”

 “Really? Perfection?”

 You couldn’t believe your ears. Yes, you’d suspected they liked him, but the perfect word was just uttered. It was never spoken of, not by them.

 “Pretty much,” Amaya doubled down.

 “Wow.”

 “Tell me about it. Move on that before some other chick does. He will not be single for long,” Amaya added.

 For some reason, this was the first time you’d thought about that, and you couldn’t believe it. She was right. He was gorgeous, among other things, and women already fawned over him. He wouldn’t be licking his wounds much longer. A knot formed in your gut, and a sour taste in your mouth followed. Glancing away from their penetrative gazes, you looked around the restaurant and nearly dropped the water glass when you saw Henry across the restaurant laughing. This was the first time you’d seen him in person since your breakfast in New York weeks and weeks ago, and he looked great.

Your eyes drank him up, taking their time soaking up every detail of his face, the slight stubble that decorated his chiseled jaw, his perfectly imperfect smile, his hair that fell slightly longer than you remembered. When he spoke again, you watched his mouth move and quickly got lost. You didn’t have to hear his words. You knew how he spoke them. You knew the effect his voice had. At the thought of that effect, you peeled your eyes away and tried to keep them on either Alicia, Amaya, or the table. Of course, it was impossible. Your eyes continuously found him, and it was on him they remained until you forced yourself to look away.

 “What do you keep looking at?”

 Amaya glanced around the restaurant. You knew she’d found him because when she turned to face you again, her smile was as wide as a thief's.

 “Oh ho ho, looks like fate is on mine and Leece’s side.”

 “Stop. Be cool, act natural. Don’t make a scene,” you pleaded.

 “Look at that, same place, same time, just mere feet away.”

 From the tone of her voice, you knew she was tempted to fuck with you.

 “Stop, Amaya. Don’t.”

 “Why?”

 Trying to keep your voice down and the panic from your face, you pleaded again. “Just don’t.”

 Amaya studied you for a few moments before she nodded in defeat. Relief flooded you. Though you tried, you couldn’t get your head back onto lunch and off of him no matter how you tried. The three of you left shortly after passing his table on the way out.

 Thanks to a little free time, you, Amaya, and Alicia were able to soak up some shopping in London and before getting back to the hotel for a quick change, then dinner. Even though you tried to stop thinking about Henry’s face earlier, you weren’t the least bit successful, but you played it off like everything was cool. You didn’t know if you fooled either of them, but you really didn’t care. You were so ready to get the hell out of London.

  -That Night-

Big Ben’s chime for one in the morning ringing out all around you. It was yet another night of sleeplessness. From your seat at the window, you could feel the nice breeze. It still smelled like rain, but for whatever reason, the rain was staying away. Finishing your glass of wine, you sighed out and nearly leaped out your skin when your phone rang in the quiet room.

 “Hello?”

 “What’s wrong?”

 You smiled from the unexpected sound of your gramaw’s voice. It was like the concrete gate you had around your heart that was constricting it to the point where it was challenging to breathe loosened.

 Sighing, you leaned back, reclining against the surface.

 “I think I fell in love,” you whispered.

 “In love?”

 Hearing the words said back to you made you close your eyes and shake your head.

 “Yeah, at least I think that’s what I’m feeling. I can’t sleep well, not that I could before. I feel a little depressed, and I can’t pinpoint why, but when I think about it, I feel this way when I think about him. Not to mention, I think about him all the time. Christ, I even dream about him.”

 Pausing, you glanced at your phone to find his picture there. It was the last thing you’d been looking at before tossing your phone away.

 “I truly feel like I did something wrong, like I was wrong,” you confessed.

 “Have you talked to him?”

 Hitting your head back, you groaned. “Not since he called me and told me I’m missing out on him and gave me all the reasons why I should realizing I’m missing out.”

 You couldn't help but smile at his words as you remembered them.

 “Do you feel like you’re missing out?”

 Your Gramaw always knew the right questions to ask. She was one of the few that did, one of the few that you’d even listen to. Bowing your head, you sighed again.

 “Maybe. Normally I’m sure about someone and sure that I don’t need or want them in my life, but with him—I have doubts with my snap judgment.”

 “Oh no, snap judgments are never a good thing, Aliya.”

 You groaned hearing the disappointment in her voice. “I know, jeez do I know.”

 “What do you feel like doing?”

 You scoffed, if you knew that you wouldn’t be going through this struggle.

 “I’ll be to you in a few days. I’ll see you soon.”

 “Your heart, Aliya, not your head,” she cautioned before you ended the call.

 For the next thirty or so minutes, you paced the balcony of your room as you debated with yourself over what you were going to do. After psyching yourself up as much as you could, you bit the bullet dialing Henry’s number before you talked yourself out of it. After one ring, you almost hung up but forced yourself to stick through the terror running through you. Two rings passed, then three. At the fourth you began to lower your hand to end the call and then his voice echoed through the speaker.

 “Hello?”

 You froze drawing a blank and forgetting for a moment you had a voice.

 “Hello?”

 “Hello,” you whispered.

 The rustling on his end was loud but brief.

 “Aliya?”

 Swallowing the lump, you took a deep breath. “Yeah. Hi.”

 “It’s after one in the morning. Is everything all right? Are you hurt?”

 Your heart lurched, and a soft smile spread across your lips. “Yeah, I’m okay. I’m not hurt,” you assured.

 He sighed, then yawned.

 “I uh—I know it’s late or early. I know you, um, probably have something better to do than be up. I’m sorry if I woke you,” you half rushed and stuttered out.

 “You’re rambling, Aliya.” You stopped your pacing then and slapped your forehead.

 “Yes, I am. I do that when I’m nervous,” you blurted.

 “Why are you nervous?”

 Pausing, you gripped the rail on the balcony and used it to center yourself and get your nerves under control.

 “Well, I’m about to ask the man I told I wouldn’t be with to meet me somewhere at nearly two in the morning. I’m—sending major mixed signals.”

 Henry didn’t speak right away. Instead, he waited, making you chew your bottom lip as your anxiety increased.

 “Why?”

 “Wh—why? Why what?”

 “Why should I?”

 Stunned, your jaw dropped. “Oh, wow, out with the hard questions. Okay. Um—well—you should meet me because uh—it’s not often that I realize I was wrong or did something wrong and when I realize that, I like to say so.”

 Again the silence over the phone stretched for long moments. After a full minute of it, your anxiety peaked.

 “Still there?”

 Henry sighed. “I’m here. I’m thinking.”

 His voice sounded so deliciously deep. Either you had woken him, and this was his sleepy voice, or he was purposely giving you that sexy baritone.

 “By all means. Think as long as you need to. Um—I’ll be at the eye until 2:30. I um—I hope you show. If you don’t, I understand, really I do and no hard feelings.”

 Quickly you ended the call and panted as if you’d been running a marathon all in an effort to calm yourself down. It had been years since you’d put yourself through something like that, and you had a feeling it was only the beginning of you making amends.

Being Aliya Taylor afforded you some perks, and one was being able to have access to the eye well after closing. All it took was one call, well two to be exact, and voila, you were sitting in one of the cars anxiously waiting for Henry. You had no idea if he’d show, and the more and more time that passed with him not magically appearing, the more and more your brain worked overtime. The scenery helped a lot, but when you glanced at your watch and saw that it was almost 2:30, the scenery could do no more. Your nerves and anxiety had erupted like a volcano.

 “You shouldn’t be out here alone.”

 Spinning, you saw Henry at the door still on the platform. You released a relieved sigh, realizing he hadn’t stood you up.

 “Good thing I’m not—anymore.”

 Henry stepped into the car and took a few steps to you but stopped when he was still a ways away.

 “London after two is not safe,” Henry informed.

 “I know.”

 The doors closed, and the contraption began moving.

 “How in the world did you get them to open this for you?”

 Smiling, you shrugged. “I may know people in high places,” you replied, which made him smile.

“This is one of my favorite places in London,” you announced as you walked around the car, taking care not to get too close. You didn’t know if you could handle it right away, and you had to feel him out to see what his coming really meant.

 “Why?”

 “You can see all of greater London from here and out to the countryside if you really look once you’re up high.”

 Henry also walked around the car, mirroring your intentions. Neither of you came close enough to touch one another.

 “How often do you come to London?”

 “A lot. I have some family here, plus I prefer the countryside.”

 “So you have some British blood,” Henry inquired, half a question, half a statement.

 “I had to. Only the Bris would dare think to send their daughters off to finishing school,” you quipped.

 Henry’s laugh filled the car, making you smile widely. He walked to one of the many windows turning his back to you. Slowly you looked over his broad back, taking in every detail. Your fingers could still remember what the dance of his muscles felt like underneath them, and they itched to feel them dance again. Taking a deep breath, you fiddled your fingers.

 “Uh--I hope I didn’t interrupt anything important by asking you here. Like I hope I didn’t impose on—anyone.”

 You were fishing, it was obvious, and you felt no shame.

 “Eh, who needs sleep anyway. I can sleep when I’m dead,” Henry replied with a shrug of those magnificent shoulders still keeping his back to you.

 “Were um--were you uh—sleeping—alone?”

 Your heart was pounding so loudly you could swear he could hear it. He didn’t speak or turn around. He just stood there torturing you. You wondered if he knew it was sheer torture what he was doing. Did he even care? The longer he remained quiet, the more you freaked out until you decided to backtrack all the way back.

“I’m sorry. Don’t answer that. It is absolutely none of my business. I don’t even know why I asked that,” you rushed out, rubbing your forehead from embarrassment before beginning to pace the car.

 That was when Henry chose to turn around.

 “I know a woman doesn’t say something she doesn’t mean, and usually when a woman asks a question, she wants to know the answer either to prove herself right or in hopes she’s wrong. What is it for you?”

 His voice made you stop in the midst of pacing to watch his mouth as he spoke. There was something poetic about how he spoke, and it always distracted you. Nibbling your bottom lip, you thought about how to respond. You were already tired of the verbal Olympics and talking around each other.

 Sighing, you rolled your eyes. “Henry--.”

 “You know that’s the first time you’ve said my name without the word goodbye in front of it.”

 That made you snap your mouth shut. Had it?

 “That’s not true,” you protested.

 “It actually is. I was beginning to think you like saying goodbye rather than hello.”

 You took a step to him. “That’s not true. I like saying hello way more than goodbye,” you defended.

 The neutral look on his face gave you no confidence to go on, so you rolled your eyes and continued to walk around the car. This would be harder than you expected, you thought.

 “I was sleeping alone. I’ve slept alone for quite some time now,” he informed just as you were looking out of the window to the city.

 “Look, Henry, I-,” you began again, but then henry cut you off.

 “That day in New York those weeks ago, I should have plain and simply laid it out for you. I should have told you everything. I was with Francesca--.”

 “Don’t, don’t, don’t. I honestly don’t want to know.”

 “But you need to know. There is no way you can begin to trust me or begin to let yourself gravitate to me the way you’re entire being wants until you know,” Henry slid out. Pressing your palm to your abdomen, you tried to slow the butterflies that began flitting.

 “I was with Francesca for about two years. The whole time I knew she wanted a family in life. She was always vocal about her wanting to get married young and have kids. I knew, but I never paid attention to it. I was away filming something for a while, and when I came home one weekend, I caught her with someone else.”

 Your eyes widened, hearing his words.

 “turns out she was beginning a relationship with someone else, someone who she thought would lead to marriage and kids,” Henry added. His voice held steady, but you could imagine the pain going through those memories again.

 “I’m sorry.”

 Henry shook his head, “It’s not necessary. After a few months of her trying to make amends, I thought we’d try again.” He scoffed then rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m a hopeless romantic. After months of trying, I knew it wouldn’t work, but I kept a relationship of sorts with her.”

 You understood. They were bed buddies.

 “I then met Abby, and what started as a fling developed into something more. Long story short, I got wind of a rumor she was using me for fame and money, so I distanced myself from her. after some time of her telling I had it all wrong, I decided it was easier keeping her around though my heart wasn’t in it. I wasn’t juggling them. I hadn’t slept with either of them in a long time. I just—I felt it was better to have someone who misses me and wants me than living the lonely actor life.”

 His honesty had you frozen. When he began to explain, you hadn’t expected him to reveal so much. You expected a bare minimum explanation, but what you’d gotten revealed so much more about him. You felt bad.

 “I guess allowing the attentions and affections to remain is just as bad as juggling them. I was playing with their hearts. I’m not proud of it.”

 Henry dipped his head, showing he felt some shame for his actions.

 “When I met you, I realized although I had these two women sort of vying for me, I was still lonely, but those moments we were together, I didn’t feel alone. I felt--,” he paused as if trying to find the right word. His hesitation made you look down.

 You knew what you’d felt.

 “When I met you, I felt someone I’d never felt before, something I don’t fully understand. I don’t know what that means, but I know I want to find out—with you.”

 Finally, able to release the breath you held, you took another, then cleared your throat. “I’m not juggling two guys. I was dating two guys, but not sleeping with both. I was with Liam first, and we had an okay relationship. We were busy, never saw each other and when we did it wasn’t for long. He um—he got annoyed and broke up with me. He said I was impacting his work, and he needed to focus.”

 You remembered how he’d said it too. He’d said it like you were the one to blame for the roles he’d gotten or hadn’t gotten.

 “I was fine with it, and during those five months apart, I met Jesse. We worked together and had fun and began dating. It wasn't anything sexual. Then Liam comes back and wants to pick up where we left off. I told him about Jesse, and he was fine with it.”

 The shock on Henry’s face almost made you laugh. Alicia and Amaya were also surprised they’d chosen that unconventional path. Amaya, of course, thought you should have kept it secret from both of them.

 “One day, Jesse sees Liam and me out, and it pissed him off enough to end things. Three weeks later, I lay it out for both that I don’t want to choose, and I don’t want anything serious. They were both fine with it, and so it went on. Six months later, I decided I needed to be on my own to focus on work and me. They didn’t like the decision. They call and text me to try to—rekindle something.”

 Henry scoffed, and you watched a soft smile tickle his lips.

 “I haven’t physically seen either of them in weeks, now maybe months,” you finished.

 Henry was quiet for a few seconds before he snorted.

 “They were mad.”

 “Angry?”

 “No, mad, bonkers,” Henry clarified.

 “Oh, crazy.”

 “Yeah. To be okay to share you, be willing to do something like that. I couldn’t do that,” Henry informed, making you smile in the process.

 “Well, men do crazy things.”

 “I can attest to that, but I’d never do something that crazy. I can’t share what’s mine. I won’t.”

 Your eyes locked, and your body swayed toward his. It was like he was metal and you a magnet. Everything in you wanted to be close to him. The more you tried to fight the pull, the harder it became to breathe. The harder it was to breathe, the dizzier you became.

 “I—I—I—I,” you began before gulping the knot in your throat down that was making you speak in a raspy whisper. “I don’t—know what this is.”

 Henry nodded.

 “I am not used to not knowing and being out of control,” you continued.

 “You feel less controlled too?”

 You couldn't help but to nod. Once you did, Henry took a step to you. You took a step back.

 “Hold on. I like control. I like control a lot. Anything that threatens that control is not for me.”

 Henry’s eyes lowered but only for a moment before he was looking right back into yours.

 “But—I really want to find out why you make me less controlled,” you finally admitted.

 The uncertainty on his face spoke volumes.  “What does that mean? Where does that leave this—us?”

 You chewed your bottom lip; you realized how ill-prepared you’d been.

 “Honestly, I didn’t think this meeting out that far. I only planned up to when you showed up. I’ve um—I’ve been winging it this whole time.”

 His smile started small but spread wide in seconds; then, he laughed loudly.

 “So you won’t mind me making a plan?”

 Oh lord, you thought, feeling his alpha pop out. You bit your bottom lip again.

 “What kind of plan?”

 Henry closed the remaining space between you. Every step he took had you shaking even more.

 “A plan that I’ve envisioned every night since brunch.”

Stopped in front of you and held you captivated by his gaze and the sheer dominating energy rolling off of him. The way he stood there taller than you made your mouth run dry.

 “Jesus, you’re freakishly short,” Henry teased in his perfect Englishman voice.

 Smiling, you shook your head. “I know, I debated wearing heels but didn’t—I wanted you to see me normal for someone reason I don’t under--.”

 Henry’s sudden movement cut you off. He dipped down the entire foot he overshadowed you and lifted you into the air to hold you flush against his body. Then he lowered his lips to yours, taking and keeping control of an intensely passionate kiss. A kiss you hadn’t known you craved until it began, a kiss you were not prepared for. You moaned against his lips, and that moan triggered his. Wrapping your arm around his neck, you clung to him, and every sensation you were feeling and even new ones he was awakening within you.

 Slowly, Henry pulled his lips from your, but he kept your body to his. You kept your eyes closed, relishing the lingering effects.

 “You’re shaking,” Henry whispered.

 “So are you.”

 You opened your eyes and gazed into his as he slowly lowered you back to your feet.

 “What else is part of your plan?”

 Henry's smile spread across his face. “For me to carry out any other part of my plan would be completely rakish of  me.”

 His smile was adorable, but still intimidatingly sexy.

 “I take it you’re not a rake.”

 “Not in the least.”

 “All right. So, alternate plan?”

 He smiled again. “Still pretty rakish.”

 With that, he brought his lips back to yours, but this time he didn’t pull back for several long minutes.

 Though you knew people in high places, it didn’t mean you could keep the eye open all morning. After three trips around, the two of you got off then walked around London holding hands and eating ice cream. It was such a weird sensation allowing someone to hold your hand. It had been a long time since you’d ever wanted to. The entire time you laughed and talked about everything and nothing at the same time. One thing was clear; neither of you was in any rush for your time together to end.

 But end, it had to. When Henry walked you back to your hotel, it was almost time for the sun to come up.

 “Home safe and sound,” Henry joked.

 “Yes, thanks to Superman.”

 “No, no, I’m just the man. Henry Cavill.”

 He held his hand out to you. Smiling, you rolled your eyes.

 “Now is when we get to this?”

 His goofy smile and shrug had your head skip a beat.

 “Aliya Taylor,” you said, shaking his hand.

 “Nice to meet you. Mind if I call you Aliya or Liya, that's all a mouthful,” Henry teased.

 Your laugh was loud, and you had to clamp your hand over your mouth, remembering what time it was.

 “Yes, you can call me either. Can I call you Henners or Hank?”

 “No. My friends call me that.”

 “So, I’m not your friend?”

 “If I have anything to say about it, which I do, then no. I don’t want you as a friend.” Henry replied, making you smile like a little girl at Christmas.

 “Then what do you want me as?”

 Your eyes lingered for a few seconds before Henry was pulling you closer to brush the back of his hand against your cheek.

 “For now, I’ll settle for my girlfriend.”

 The man was an expert at charm. You bit into your bottom lip and tried to stop smiling. “Girlfriend, wow. That’s a loaded title. What does it entail?”

 “Well, for one, it entails being your true self with me, accepting my true self, being there for me when I need you, letting me be there for you when you need me or when I need you, allowing me to be your strength when you’re weak, your hope when you’re hopeless. Allowing me to grow with you, learn with you. Giving me your time and attention, enough of it so what we have can grow. Trusting me and letting me spoil you rotten.”

 If he weren’t holding you against him, you would have fallen back.

 “Is that all?”

 Henry leaned closer kisses your cheek. “To begin.”

 “And if I refused to be this girlfriend you speak of?”

 “Then I’d just have to convince you,” Henry cooed.

 “How?”

 Right on que, Henry dipped his lips to yours. The second they touched, you moaned and held him close. Why resist when you could enjoy it, you thought. His tongue swirled with yours before he nibbled then sucked your bottom lip. When he pulled back, your eyes remained closed.

 “I’m convinced.”

 Henry pecked your lips once, then twice. “Good. Girlfriend.”

 Your eyes locked again, and you forgot all common sense for what felt like an eternity.

 “Eh-em—I have to be on a set in the morning.”

 “Which is now,” Henry filled in.

 Still hazed in the brain, you stuttered and smiled like a fool.

 “Mm, did I stay out all night?”

 “You did. I hope it was worth it.”

 Smiling, you kissed his jaw. “We’ll see,” you whispered as you backed away from him, making your way to the door.

 “Good morning, Henry.”

 He smiled again, watching you disappear inside the hotel. As you walked to the elevator bank, you couldn’t stop smiling or stop the butterflies that had been flying all night in your stomach. As you stepped onto the elevator and watched the doors closed, you recognized the feeling you felt as happiness. It had been absent for a long time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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[mackeydoodledoo]

The Star Athlete x The Pro-Box Fighter

Pairing: Izzy Garcia x (FemKnight!)Reader

Summary: It follows a girl: Y/N Y/L/N, who currently owns the "Pteradon Champion Zord", along with its DinoSoul Key, who is currently a Professional Box Fighter. The youngest ever to be a pro. What she doesn't know is that she is a direct descendant of the supposed Mythical "DinoSoul" Tribe. [Equivalent to the Ryusoul Tribe]. Her partner, she calls him, "buddy" as she doesn't have a proper name for him. The two of them embark on a journey to figure out who she is, finding an old flame and developing a new crush in the process.

Warnings: Box Fighting, BLOOD, Near-Death

A/N: I know nothing about Professional Box-Fighting, so if the Box-Fighting scenes are inaccurate, I’m sorry. R is 18 and Izzy is most likely between 16-18 if I had to guess Izzy’s age and anything romantic between Izzy and R is consensual.

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As the next couple of days go by, you and Izzy meet up for both of your daily work outs and for Izzy to practice for her own competitions, she wanted to work with not only her cousin Lily but you as well.

"Hey, where's your cousin?" You ask, "I Thought you told me she was going to be free this morning?"

"I did, I guess it was an emergency" Izzy grimaces at her thought, "I got mad the last time she didn’t show up for my training session."

"Well, things happen," you say, gleefully, "Let's stretch while your coach runs her errands. It's extremely helpful."

You motion for her to begin following your movements to stretch out your muscles for today's workout session.

As you seat yourself next to Amelia, you could feel her leaning over.

"You look good Y/N," Amelia says

"You too Ameils," you say back

As you see Izzy come out for her competition, she looks up and spots her friends, especially you. You give her a thumbs up and a wink, hinting to her that its a "good luck wink".

"What was that?" Amelia asks

"Just.. A good luck wink Ameils," you say, noticing Amelia's change in tone, "Not very sure why you're on edge about it."

Your focus never left Izzy as she preps herself and her javelins for the javelin throw event.

"Now in the first round of the javelin event , we have, Izzy Garcia!" The announcer exclaims

You and the team cheers as she take a javelin. You watch her shake off her nerves and beginning to prep her wrist for the throw. You watch intently as Izzy gets her running start, seeing her use your technique that you taught her your first training session with her. It lands farther than the throws during your training sessions. You and the team applaud for her loudly as others do as well, but not as enthusiastic.

After Izzy's competition, she is given the gold medal in the javelin event. She looks at you whilst you were watching her. She mouths 'thank you' to you. You mouth 'you're welcome' to her back. After the awards ceremony, she hugs her step dad, Javi and then her teammates. Then Lily; for helping her with her afternoon sessions. When she turns to you, her hug was more tighter than the others' hugs.

"Thanks for waking up at 5 am to train me," Izzy smiles

"Always Izzy," You smile, "Always happy to help."

“Izzy Garcia was it?” a voice asks

Izzy turns to the direction of the voice: a well dressed man goes up to her and shakes her hand.

“That was a fine race you ran kid,” He smiles

“Thank you,” Izzy says

“I was also impressed with your race I’d like to offer you a full ride scholarship to Pine Ridge’s Upstate College.” He blurts out

The both of you stand there, in awe that Izzy is getting the recognition for her outstanding athleticism as she deserves.

“Can I have time to think on it?” She asks

“Of course,” He says, “Your deadline is the beginning of your summer vacation.”

He turns on his heel and begins walking away. You turn to her, kind of dumbfounded that she didn’t accept the offer right away.

“Why didn’t you say yes?” Izzy’s dad comes up to her

“I wasn’t sure if I’m ready for it yet.” Izzy says nervously

“Not ready?” He sighs, “You’re more than ready pumpkin. You proved to them you were the best!” 

“Mr. Garcia is it?” You call out to him

“That’s right,” He says, “You’re Y/N Y/L/N, Izzy couldn’t stop talking about you.”

He goes to shake your hand and you shake his hand out of respect.

“If you don’t mind me saying,” You start, “It is Izzy’s choice to accept the scholarship or not. However, I think it’s great she’s getting recognition for her athleticism.”

After the competition, Izzy’s dad invited you to a celebration dinner at Izzy’s favorite restaurant. You park your car in the parking lot and get out just as Mr. Garcia comes up to you.

“Izzy’s told us so much about your winning matches whenever she gets the chance to watch them,” Mr. Garcia smiles

“Is that so?” You ask, smiling whilst looking at Izzy, “Well, I’ve also taught Izzy some of my basics to my style of box-fighting and she’s picked it up fast.”

“Izzy’s also told us about how you’ve been coaching her in the mornings too,” he adds, “I appreciate you waking up early to train my daughter.”

“Always happy to help Mr. Garcia,” You smile

Izzy wanted a ride home from you, so you ended up driving around for a little bit.

“Your dad sure seems very enthused about your sports accomplishments,” You sigh

“Yeah, he does not talk about Javi’s accomplishments at all,” Izzy sighs with you

“Javi’s a great musician,” You state, “I’ve seen BuzzBlast videos of him jamming out with different instruments. Color me impressed, I only know three.”

“Wait, you’re also a musician?” Izzy asks, turning to you

“Well, not professionally,” You answer, “Before I went into pro-box fighting, I wanted to be a musician. However, I was also worried I wasn’t going to be able to make a living off of it, so I turned to Boxing instead. I do still play bass guitar and drumset though.”

Izzy doesn’t answer but you could feel her nodding at your slight past facts about you. Once you pull into the Garcia’s driveway, Izzy turns to you again.

“Thanks for the ride Y/N,” Izzy smiles, giving you a quick kiss on your cheek before hopping out of your car

You watch Izzy enter her house just so you know she’s in her home safely, you head back to your own home; thinking about Izzy’s cheek kiss she gave you.

The only thing that was left for the week was your upcoming boxing match. You personally asked Izzy to coach you as you prepare for your own competition. As you throw your signature; 'rapid punch', you felt a strong ache in your upper left arm. You immediately stop and Izzy brings an icepack and places it onto your sore spot on your arm.

"Thanks Izzy," You sigh

"You overworked yourself," Izzy states, "Let's call it a day."

You instantly agreed to it. Izzy threw a towel around your neck to cool you down. You begin unwrapping your left hand wrap but when you went to reach for your right wrap, you drew your arm back.

"Here, let me," Izzy says, kneeling at your side

As you watch her unwrap your hand, you thought back to the first morning training session you had with her, you were in Izzy's place and she was in yours. You didn't realize you let out a small giggle, making Izzy look up at you.

"What?" she asks, smiling

"I'm just thinking about our first morning training session," You smile, "You were barely paying attention to my wrapping tutorial, and now look at you. Maybe I'm the one that needs a lesson or two."

"We'll see after your match," Izzy says, now helping you get dressed

She helps you hoist your sore arm through the arm hole of the shirt. However, once you got it through, you still felt Izzy's hands gently placed along your waist. Hoisting your right arm through its sleeve, you turn to Izzy, facing her. Your arms resting on her waist and hers resting on your arms. You took notice of how Izzy was looking at your lips then back up to your eyes. Your head leans down instinctively as hers meets yours halfway. Her hands slowly move around to the back of your neck as you could feel yourself getting goosebumps just by the movements of her hands and her smiling in the kiss. Not caring about how sweaty you were, you wanted to never let that moment go. It was only ruined by both of your communicators going off. You didn't realize how long the both of your guys' lips were locked together until you almost gasped for air. The two of you smiling at each other before you decided to answer your communicator.

"What's up Zayto?" You ask, answering your communicator

"A sporix beast was spotted near the park," he explains

"We're on our way," You say, looking at Izzy one more time, the moment she looked at you before you kissed her was on your mind. But snapped back into reality as the two of you decided to talk about it another time.

After the sporix beast was defeated, Void Knight managed to get the sporix glob before any of you could reach it. You remember you have to do something ack at your apartment. So Izzy wasn't able to catch you to talk about your guys' kiss before you two left to defeat the monster. And you were kind of relieved. You weren't sure why you kissed Izzy. But, you weren't complaining about it either.

"Hey partner! Welcome back!" he says

"Hey buddy," You smile

"How did your training session go?" he asks

"Good," you say

"That's it?" he asks

You nod, "Well, if you really want to know, I kissed Izzy."

"YOU WHAT?!" He yells, but immediately regrets it as you shush him

"I kissed Izzy," You say, once more

"How did she react?" He asks

"She didn't push me away," you say

"She's so into you!" He teases

"Is she?" You ask

"And you're so into her!" He adds

"Listen here bud," You begin, but not knowing what else to say

"You have to tell her how you feel," He suggests

"How?" You ask him, "I have a match tomorrow and I have a sore arm, on my way home all I could think about was Izzy. I need to focus bud. Okay, I'll ask her to get brunch with me. A thanks for her helping me."

"There you go," he says, "Then after the fact, tell her how you feel!"

"Thanks bud. I'm going to-wait, did you make me food?" you ask, inhaling a delicious scent through your nose

"Yeah! Your favorite!" He says, "Well, now that you mentioned your sore arm, I'll pull out some bath salts and run a hot bath when you're almost done eating."

"Hey bud, actually, get that bath started right now,"  You say, stretching your arm, "I've heard from Amelia once you should wait 30 minutes to get in water."

"Y/N... It's a bathtub!" He says

"But, I'll still take my bath first!" You say, "Change that, I need a shower. But I can do all that. Just get that bath started bud!"

"On it!" He says as you follow him into the bathroom

Your partner was given to you by your mom on your 5th birthday. Yes, he's able to talk to you. However, little did you know, on your 13th birthday, your mother had driven off of a cliff on a very rainy evening. Trying to get home in time for your birthday. Since then, you've disliked your birthday; a reminder of the day your mom died. However, oddly being raised by a Champion Zord was difficult. But, you and your partner are inseparable. He was like your second family.

After your shower/bath, you reheated your food that your partner made for you. You throw on the news via your phone and watch a recap of your fight from earlier that day.

"How's your arm?" he asks

"A whole lot better," You answer, "Thanks bud."

The next morning you get to the arena early to get in your "cold morning stretch". You'd often do this on match day to relax yourself and to get a feel of the ring. You have a tendency to analyze the ring whenever you get in there. You don't come up with the 'winning strategy'. All of that come up on the fly as you're in the ring, facing your opponent.

"Hey Izzy!" You call her over, watching her run over to you

"Wait! No admittance!" The security guard states, stepping in front of Izzy

"C'mon Mark, she's with me, let her through," you sigh

As Izzy walks past him, you take her into your arms; hugging her. Once you let her out of your arms you look over her shoulder and see the team.

"Hey guys! Glad you could make it!" You say, hugging each of them, "Welcome to The Pine Ridge Arena!"

you enter the ring, stripping off your robe, you look around the crowd, spotting Izzy; giving you a thumbs up. You smile at her but then spot Amelia, who didn't look amused at all. You also give her a smile out of your love for your still having a friendship with her. You look ahead to your opponent for the night; quite larger and more muscular than you already are.

"Y/L/N and Hall," The referee starts, "No head blows not any blow below the waist."

"Got it ref," You reply

"Whatever ref," The opponent growls

The two of you take a couple of steps back from each other, preparing the first round of your match. But, this time, Izzy was watching you in person over seeing it on her Television at home.

"Come on Y/N. You've got this.." Izzy whispers to herself, but hoping her words of encouragement would reach you

The bell rings and you get into your initial stance. Hall immediately throwing out a punch, to which you ducked. You send a punch to her shoulder, making her stumble backward. However, she sweeps your feet and you're knocked onto the ground, wheezing for air. Using your arm strength to push yourself back up you hear the ref's whistle.

"Foul!" he calls

Izzy comes up to you as you wheeze for air.

"Deep breaths Y/N, remember?" Izzy says, gently stroking you arm

You nod, not able to form words, still affected by the sweep you were just under.

"Hey, you got this okay?” Izzy smiles before sitting with your teammates again

You force yourself to stand back up, going into your starting stance for the second round to start. Although you already feel winded and weak, you were still able to dodge Hall's punches and throws. However, she gave you a suckerpunch to your stomach, sending you back onto the ground; Izzy and your teammates watching in pain. As you hit the ground; your chin hitting the ground first, you struggle your way to stand back up.

"1,2,3-" The ref began counting before you picked yourself back up

You took a low blow to your side. However, you managed to get yourself back up, despite the fact you took a low blow. You put your hands up into their initial stance as you pant for oxygen. You could hear Izzy and the rest of the team cheering for you. You took this last one minute break to get your mind together. You really wanted to look at Izzy and watch her encourage you and boost your confidence. But, hearing her was enough for you.

"You got this Y/N!" Izzy finally screams out

When the bell for the third and final round sounded, you took a deep inhale of breath to get more blood flowing in your veins, to your arms. You immediately dodge a punch Hall flung at you, sending out your own right against her shoulder. The punch was enough to send her whole arm to fly back; obviously not enough to break it. That wasn't your goal. Breaking your opponent, let alone accidentally killing them is never your goal. you send another punch to Hall's side as you begin your signature move; keeping it all above the waist. As you sent your final punch to Hall's other shoulder with as much force as you could give out; she falls back.

"1,2,3,4,5!" The ref calls, "Y/N Y/L/N is the winner!"

The whole crowd cheers as paramedics begin taking a look at Hall's injuries. Izzy comes running into the ring as you begin to falter; holding you up as the ref holds your other arm up high into the air. The whole team cheers for you outside of the ring as a medal goes around your neck.

After paramedics had checked you out, you head to the locker room to change into sweats. Each time your even so slightly moved your limbs though, it was hellfire to you.

"Need a hand?" Izzy asks, standing in the doorway to the locker room

"Sure," You sigh

"Your opponent really took that last hit, so they're going to take her to the hospital," Izzy says, helping you get your legs into sweatpants

"I hope she'll be fine," You sigh, "I'd immediately retire from boxing if I ended up killing an opponent."

"Well, so far you haven't," Izzy states, getting your head through a hoodie you packed

Izzy takes your duffle bag and puts it around her, "I'll help you get home."

"Thank you Izzy," You sigh, having your arm sling around her

Her arm coils around your waist and her other hand holding onto the hand that's slung around her shoulders. Everyone applauds you as you emerge from the locker room, with Izzy under your arm. Javi helping you with the other side of your body.

"That was a real match you had there," Gale states

"Oh, hey Gale," You sigh, "Did you come to the match?"

"That I did kiddo," She says, "Hey, I'm going to give you three weeks for everything in your body to recover. But, someone will need to help you out as you recover."

"I'll do it," Izzy jumps the chance

"Alright, done," Gale smiles, "See you in three weeks kid."

"My manager," You explain to Javi and Izzy

Three weeks huh? Well, at least Izzy will be by your side while you recover. But, the downside to that is that you'll miss out on taking on sporix beasts.

"She really took a beating huh?" your partner recaps

Izzy nods, "Well, I also volunteered to keep an eye on her."

"Good," he says, "You know, there was one time she couldn't stop talking about you."

"Bud!" You try to scream but wince in pain

"Is that so?" Izzy asks, smiling at you

You could feel the heat go into your cheeks; flushing a deep pink as you try to look away to avoid eye contact. Izzy breaks eye contact as she ooks at her communicator go off.

"Go," you say, "I'll be fine."

She makes her leave from your apartment, going to catch up with the other rangers

Part 4

[drkcnry67]

Dance with me?

A/N: @obxmermaid​  this is day 15 omg thank you for the opportunity to make christmas stories this year. im honored that i can expand my writing fandoms. today we find that its before owls, before christmas feast, before their relationship was out in the open. this is the formal, this is the hogwarts winter formal. draco and Yn are not yet a public couple but this night Draco takes the courage to ask YN to dance and no one asks questions cause all cards and rivalry’s are off the table during the dance and for that day. so this is what looks like a friendly dance between a guy and a girl. but it is so much more than that.

pairing: Draco Malfoy x reader

prompt: snowball fight/ winter formal

mentioning @sweetness47​

25 days of hogwarts

the yule ball, or in some cases what would be known as a winter formal is one of the most sacred events hogwarts has the honor of throwing every 2 years. its a grand event some people have their gowns and tuxes picked out months or years ahead of the event. 

but you had no gown yet for the gown you wanted was in london at a shop you had passed by so many times and the last time you did you saw a halter peacock teal floor length gown. it took your breath away. 

this was the gown you wanted but alas you had no time at that moment to get it. a few days before the ball you were watching the entire dorm obsess over their gowns, choosing hair and makeup. but you and draco hadnt even discussed going to the ball. 

or at least what would happen at the ball. but meeting draco for your session a few days before the formal, you were distracted and draco could tell.

Draco: something on your mind love.

YN: the formal is in 2 days and well we cant go as a couple no one outside of our friends know, and what if people ask questions. 

Draco: so we wont show up together but the formal is a chance for everyone to forget the rivalry’s and grudges and hard feelings are off the table. no one will ask questions if i ask you to dance. and whats better is this will be the first of many dances to come i hope. 

yn: i just wish i could walk in with you on my arm and not have to worry about a thing. 

Draco: i know what you mean but it will hopefully show the professors that even our rivalry can be put aside when it matters. 

YN: i hope so. i need a dress though. 

Draco scribbles out a quick fire message and sends it off... 

YN: what was that about...

Draco: trust me you will thank me later... just promise me you will have the time of your life at the formal besides we will dance and no one will say anything... besides i look forward to the end of the party, where you and i meet in the courtyard to just watch the stars and hide away for a kiss, all before returning to the charade and our dorms.

YN: so basically you have the entire night planned out. 

Draco: more or less yes... now go you need to have energy for tomorrow. get some rest my love. go before you fall asleep on my lap. 

YN: i guess your right, i will see you tomorrow in class... 

you walked out of the tower and back to your dorm. where you collapsed on the bed as hermione walked in. 

Hermione: so how was your tutoring tonight cuz? 

YN: it was fine... we talked about the formal... he has the entire night planned out but then i told him that i didnt have anything to wear. and before you say it cuz, its fine i mean im sure he will dance with me whether im in a pretty dress or my uniform. 

Hermione: i know we are gonna look killer at the formal or we are gonna fail trying to have a fun night. now what about your wardr... Oh My God! cuz get over here a box with a bow on it just showed up at the entrance.

you get up off the bed and run over to the entrance where Hermione was gawking at the box. 

YN: OMG what could be in such a large box... 

Hermione: well lets get it inside and happily look at this mystery package. 

YN: i think i might know who this is from... but yes lets get it inside before we do anything else with this. 

it was your own mind putting draco’s mysterious fire message with the sudden appearance of this box. the timing of it all was far too coincidential, but never the less you looked forward to whatever lay inside this box. 

You set it on your bed, you ran your fingers over the box, tracing the bow, tracing the box outline. this was when your cousin noticed an envelope on top of the box tucked under the ribbon. 

Hermione: maybe that envelope will explain better as to whats inside and possibly who its from... 

you grab the envelope and open it, its a list of what is inside the box as well as instructions. 

“this box contains the following items: - A-Line Scoop Neck Floor-Length Chiffon Prom Dresses With Beading Sequins in Ink Blue, - navy blue  Faux Fur Fashion Wrap, -a custom bracelet in rose gold, -a gold  Beautiful Rhinestone/Alloy Headband & -  Black Women's Leather Suede Heels Latin With Ankle Strap. do not open this box until the day of the formal. you will look beautiful. save me a dance or several.. love always Draco”

you sat back on the bed and smiled lightly as you tucked the box under your cousin’s bed and hid the note in your dresser, you giggled yourself to sleep that night. for you knew the next 2 days would be torture till the day of the formal anyway. 

you were the one person in this entire school who would ever take the dance not seriously. you were the only one whose heart would not allow you to fall in love with a person who did not share your heart. 

you woke the next morning to the sound of your alarm. you went to the closet and pulled out your uniform putting it on and grabbing your cloak before heading out of the room with your wand in your sock. 

YN (to self): i hope this doesnt mess up anything, tomorrow is gonna be a happy day. the next day is the formal, and I have the opportunity to show this school that even those who are rivals can become chill even in the midst of the old laws. i need to get to class so that way no one suspects anything. 

you made it to potions and smiled slightly as hermione was sitting beside your seat. draco had followed you inside. you knew that hermione could feel the happiness flowing out from you. 

You were the one person that Hermione could trust and likewise her for you. But it was now to your surprise that she passed you her notebook with a few simple words on it.

"Draco won't stop glancing at you. His pupils dilate when he stares at you. It's like he is mentally undressing you or something..."

You reply back with a simple phrase.

"he I'm sure is just removing a few layers, back to when we were in london and we went swimming in a private pool. We made out for hours. Now we will discuss this later."

you slid her back her notebook and both of you paid attention as snape decided to begin his lesson with a pop quiz type thing, you and hermione being the 2 smartest witches in the room decided to let the other students have a chance to answer the questions. 

Snape: yn tell me what is the common use of wolfsbane?

YN: wolfbane used to sedate or subdue a werewolf. it is also known as acanite or commonly found in the form of a blue flower, it is in some cases a rare find. 

Snape: and how exactly does one give wolfsbane to the werewolf?

YN: it has to be while its human, most times wolfsbane is used to snuff out the werewolves in human form before its too late. 

snape: i would like each of you to take one of these flowers and for the next class prepare to brew me some wolfsbane if you wish to pass. now before the end of class today copy down the board, we will be studying wolfsbane for the next week. 

you went to your notebook and copied down the board. it was very distracting when you knew your boyfriend was stealing glances at you...  this made it very hard to concentrate. 

you wrote a note on your notebook and slid it to your cousin... 

“im getting antsy, cuz i am really anxious...”

she replied with the typical responce.

“dont worry girl, im sure you both will have your alone time later... think about it this way, in 2 years you will be able to marry and there will be nothing anyone can say to stop you.”

you had to internally laugh...

“me married can you imagine that... god if i know much more about that than you do... by the way i am so nervous to see what is in that box... like what if it doesnt bring the correct appeal...”

you sighed as your cousin wrote her responce.

“chill girl, your gonna rock that formal... now finish your notes so you can get out of here and be with your man.”

You smiled as you finish your notes and wait for Snape to dismiss the class. You stared at the ceiling for a few moments trying to keep a cool head.

Snape: alright those who finished the notes can leave a few moments early, those who haven't you have 5 minutes to finish those notes.

You and Hermione got up and walked out of the class, you walked by where Draco was sitting you had used a slight of hand to slip him a note.

You knew he would read it after class, you also knew he would thank you for it later. But you and Hermione took off and walked back to the court yard.

Where you both parted ways you both had picked a random slot for your separate ways. You were off to the quidditch tent to prep for the upcoming Christmas match, Hermione headed to divination.

You were one of those few captains who would take half a period out of your entire day to spend it preparing for a match that was a week and a bit away.

You had to come up with a strategy that would knock your match out of the water. you could feel something strange something abnormal as you stood in the tent. 

the earth began to quake, the tent came down on your head before you could move out of the way.... you were covered in tent, and one of the tent pole was on you too heavy to move. 

you held your wand up... 

YN: periculum!

you sent the sparks and then passed out. you knew someone would possibly come find you. you had to have faith, you had too believe that one person above all others would see it. 

meanwhile, hermione had bumped into draco in the hall on the way to divination, she told draco that she last saw you in the courtyard... draco and hermione then saw the sparks. both of them went to find any professor they could cause that was the rules. 

they ended up spying mcgonigal, running up to her in a hurry they approach her with the news of the sparks. 

mcgonigal: miss granger, mr malfoy come with me we will investigate this immediately. 

the 3 of them hastely rushed toward the sparks, seeing the collapsed tent on arrival, mcgonigal waves her wand and sets the tent right, they all went inside and foudn you there after. 

mcgonigal transported herself plus you draco and hermione to the hospital wing. madame pomfry immediately got involved, she was pushing everyone back... but the only person who had to leave was minerva. 

hermione and draco now remained in the room to wait whether and when you would wake. your body had gone into a state of shock, the pole had bruised you a bit and thanks to the miracle potion that madame pomfry had administered to you, you were healing nicely. 

hermione: come on girl, come on we still have to rock this formal, come on please wake up come on cuz... we both need you to wake up. 

draco: don't you dare leave me, you can't, we haven't had any time. Come on YN wake up, open your eyes. We need to have our day in the sun! I need you to open your eyes so we can live our future together our way.

Madame pomfry heard what Draco said deciding not to say anything she just came back round to your bed side and administered a second dose of medicine.

Madame pomfry: take a bed each of you. Get some sleep, you both will be alerted first when she wakes. Try not to worry she will pull through she is a extraordinary girl.

Draco took a bed near you, Hermione took one on the other side of you. They wanted to be the first people's you saw when you woke up.

They tossed and turned but eventually both fell asleep. it was 8 hours later that an announcement rang through the school...

Minerva: attention students the quidditch field is off limits due to an investigation of recent events. someone brought the tent down on ravenclaw Yn. note that the perpetrator who is responsible if a student will be immediately expelled and sent to the ministry to await trial. we take this seriously. please be sure to make good notes for your fellow classmate as she is soon recovered in the hospital wing thanks to madame pomfry, classes go on as scheduled and the formal is still happening, thank you for your attention. 

both draco and hermione sat up a few moments after at the sound of your groans. they both looked at you in time for you to open your eyes. 

hermione: YN...

Draco: YN... your ok!

madame pomfry walked in at that moment as well to see you sit up. 

Madame Pomfry: YN your awake wonderful how are you feeling. 

YN: like i was hit by a unexpected brick wall what happened?

madame pomfry: you were found under the collapsed quidditch tent, you were brought to me bruised and unconcious. these 2 were among those who found you. you are pretty lucky you werent seriously injured. your bruising has gone down, you will stay in here for a few more hours then you can go back to your dorm. it is my recommendation that you get plenty of rest and then you go to the formal tomorrow and take it easy... your cousin will be allowed to stay with you tonight so she can make sure you get the rest you need. 

now that madame pomfry had come to see you hermione got off the cot she slept on and came to hug you... you flinched a bit but returned her embrace, Draco approached from the other side and touched your shoulder. 

hermione let go of you as she went to madame pomfry and began asking her for a written report for hermione to deliver to professor McGonagall. while both hermione and madame pomfry werent looking Draco came to sit on the edge of your bed, he smiled lightly... 

Draco: you are awake. i was so worried about you. 

 YN: strange thing is i dont recall the tent coming down. i remember being in there working on my strategy for the christmas exhibition match, when the earth shook and thats when everything went dark. i wasnt even done when everything happened. i am so sorry i worried you. 

Draco: you are such a brave girl, im very lucky to have you on my arm and by my side. i love you YN. 

YN: i love you too. now go do me a favor and take a shower and change your robes. no offense my love but you need to take a shower. 

Draco: i will take your advice... ill see you in a while. and ill have your homework... 

Draco took his leave to go take a shower and change his robes before class. he went to class but his mind was not completely there. the professors had already gathered a stack of notes for you, so while draco attended the classes he couldnt focus. that was not a good thing, especially for his grades. 

but the professors understood, for they all knew he clearly had other things going on, for at this time you and draco were out to the school. no one questioned why draco wasnt fully paying attention, they just hoped you would be okay. 

a few hours passed, hermione brought you your casual dress to get you back to the dorm. as your fellow students watched you and hermione walk back to the dorms. you smiled slightly at draco who just watched you in passing like any normal rivalry. 

the next few hours were spent with different people coming in to do different shifts of watching you, helping you, taking care of you. finally it was the tutoring time. you were told to be on bed rest, but when hermione didnt return to the dorm you figured she had arranged something. 

Draco knocked at the door before he entered. once he came into view he was entranced by how stunning you looked sitting there, with your pet cat in your lap. (*yes okay yes i realize that this is the first time i mention the reader’s pet... sue me i forgot about that part till just now.*) 

YN: hey.

Draco: i brought you the notes and stuff from classes. YN i feel so awful about what you went through i....

thats when you placed your finger to his lips this shut him up immediately.

YN: its not your fault, there was nothing you could have done. i went to the tent it was my choice. please i dont want you to blame yourself for what happened. lets just focus on the formal. now i want to thank you for the box... and before you say that it isnt from you or that you have no idea what im talking about. the magic signature on the card on the box belonged to you love.  i havent looked inside, but i know that when i show up at the formal im gonna look absolutely smashing. 

Draco: i have to use the money my father sends me somehow, so i went to the shop, and i picked everything out with the measurements that i got from hermione of course. plus it matches us a bit... anyway, here are the notes i had a few questions i knew you could help me solve. snape wants me and you to be among the first to brew the wolfsbane. he says it will be a easy task or at least for you it will be. he also said that you need to submit your formula on wolfsbane by fire message before the end of the day. 

You quickly did that as Draco said it, he looked at you with curious concern in his eyes. he stayed with you for a few hours explaining what happened in the classes you missed. handing you the assignments, letting you explain what he didnt understand. 

*TIME SKIP: the rest of that evening went by pretty quick, you spent time tutoring Draco, who left when your cousin walked back into the room. you were now spending time chattering with her over the hair styles for the formal the next day. well you and hermione got an early sleep for the next day would sure be a busy one. now we go to the showers where you have just arrived to stretch out and begin your day.*

you were in your stall, mulling things over under the hot water. your brain swimming with thousands of thoughts, ones that made you begin humming, something you do quite often and in different situations you hum different songs. in this case it was something celtic something haunting some sort of ancient melody that haunts your very soul.

your hum echoed through the castle. no one could figure out where the sound was coming from except your cousin. for she had heard you hum that tune many numerous times before. 

Hermione: so you thinking again?

you snapped out of your hum, for you had not realized that another person could have walked into the room, never mind your own cousin. 

YN: just got some butterflies about tonight... H what if this doesnt go the way we think it will... 

Hermione: well cuz if you think about it this way, people will expect the rivalry to still take place during the event no one will expect the rivalry to be non existant during the event. to see 2 people who arent normally friends acting like friends even if for one night will do us all proud. now hurry up so we can go open the box to see what your man gave you... 

YN: ah yes thank you for reminding me cuz, thank you for giving draco the information he needed to get these things for me.. i appreciate it a ton. 

Hermione: no to worry cuz you are gonna look beautiful. now hurry up or you will look like a prune... 

 you finished cleaning up, you dryed off and wrapped up in your housecoat to go back to your dorm. twas the only way you were comfortable. your cousin right beside you both of you discussing your hair and what the hell you would do with it. 

Hermione  and you now sat in your dorm and just stared at the box between you both, the blue box that had tormented you for 2 days now sat between you ready for the unveiling of what lay inside. 

you removed the note and slowly undid the ribbon binding the box shut. you reached down to ope the lid, the first thing you saw was the dress, picking it up you stood spinning around holding the dress against your form.

YN: remind me to thank him for this...

hermione: oh im sure just wearing this tonight will thank him enough for this. now come on lets see what else is in here… 

you lay the dress over your cousins lap as you reach into the box and pull out a fashion wrap…

YN: isnt this basically just a cape?

Hermione: yes it is but we dont speak of that… lol it is nice and it looks like it goes in matching with the dress. 

you lay that as well over your cousins lap and pull out a small bag.

YN: wnder what this is…

Hermone: well it must be valuable in order to require its own packaging inside of packaging, 

you ope the baggie to reveal a custom bracelet. 

Hermione: ive seen those before, you can get it engraved with whatevr you want particularly used for couples. 

you flip it over and look at the enraving, “Yn & Draco always and forever 08-22”

you smiled ear to ear, little giggles left your lips, happily of course as you attached the bracelet to your wrist. once it was attached you reached into the box to pull out the next item again another baggie a bit bigger than the last. you opened it to reveal a gold headband. 

YN: so he is gona treat me like a queen

Hermione: at least i dont have to worry about you. 

YN: but you still will anyway cause thats just how you are cuz!

hermione: come on girl whats the last thing in the box.

You reach into the box and pull out a pair of leather strap short heals and smile. 

Hermione: lets become fabulous. cause we all know thats a crime in itself but we have 5 hours before we have to be there for presentations and plus the rivals have the first dance as is in the announcement this year. 

you had forgotten that the ministry had made that announcement… since fudge was supposed to make an appearance at the dance. He wanted to see the rivals of the school have the honor of first dance. It was a new tradition and would remain so for generations to come. 

First was to get dressed. You went behind the change cover, you put on your strapless and a nice pair of seamless bottoms. You were now ready for the dress, but you realized that there was a bra built into the dress already. Well at least into one part of it. ****A/N: yes i know that this wasnt mentioned but the dress that im describing is a two piece, it was one i had done my research on and liked the way it looked in the color scheme i was using for this story. Okay back to the story.****

You removed your strapless as now you knew you didnt need it. You pulled on the skirt fiestas to make sure that you were good in that department. You kinda did a half twirl and then put on the top, well you couldnt do it up as the zipper was at the back. 

YN: hey cuz, can you zip me up?

Hermione: a zipper… how does it look 

YN: its a 2 piece… its in my house color, its soft fabric it feels soft against my skin. 

Hermione: well come out and hold yourself in place. 

You stepped out from behind the shield and watched your cousin turn around in her dress. You both squealed in happiness for it made you both happy to know that you both looked amazing! Hermione did your top up and both of you stood side by side in the mirror.  

Hermione: cuz we need to photo shoot this in the mirror, we are still sure of this plan, we are so certain that this is the night the school will accept the possibility of a union between you and draco. I mean when are you guys planning to tell everyone about your relationship anyway. 

YN: no idea, it hasnt been discussed to much, we know we need to tell everyone we just dont know when or how. But when we do it will be a big event. Alright on a different note ive set the mirror to do the photo shoot of us its taking 5 very precisely timed shots. So lets wing it. Nice one first so we can duplicate it and send it to our folks then we go from there. 

Pose 1: normal, side by side and looking your best. 

Pose 2: charlies angels, missing an angel but smiling anyway

Pose 3: the shocked first look in outfit (hermione shocked at seeing you)

Pose 4: parting the sea, back to back looking away

Pose 5: and finally the hug it out moment

You went round to the window to stare down at the world, the school looked all decorated for the formal and the sound of people gathering around the grounds, the concorse full of people and visitors. You strapped on your shoes and your cousin finished your hair and applied your wrap. 

you wondered how the night would look, you wondered if anyone would question the less amounts of tension between you and Draco.

You wondered alot of things but a knock at the door brought you back to earth. You turned to see Harry and Ron standing at the door. 

Harry: wow, ladies you both look amazing! 

You and Hermione smile as Harry hands you something from minerva

Yn: it's professor McGonagall she wants to see me, says it's of great importance. 

Hermione: that's okay I'll walk down with the boys. Go go… 

You walk out of the room and go as fast as possible without tripping and falling to where you knew the professor would be. 

Minerva: ah YN you look lovely..  

Yn: thank you professor, I got your note you wanted to see me. 

Minerva: yes as you may have heard by now this year the Minister of magic is attending the formal as a honored guest, he has requested that you and Mr malfoy be honored guests as your rivalry is legendary as well as you and Mr malfoy will be receiving something special from the minister. He wants to commend you both on jobs well done this year. Your main task for the dance is to start the dancing off, now i know that you are a little sensitive YN so if you need a minute to process this before we make the announcement and before your fellow classmates begin to gather. 

YN: ya could i actually have a minute… where do i enter from?

Minerva: you will enter from the right side of the staircase, mr malfoy will enter from the left, just be there and ready for the announcement. 

You went round to the right side of the staircase and began pacing, letting your brain sort itself out to be able to go out there and not kiss Draco in front of everyone. 

To not run straight into his arms, to be able to just be a boy and a girl with no connection other than their rivalry for one night. 

That Un be known to you would be the case on this night you would be just a girl, and Draco would just be a boy who would be spending time together during the formal. 

Draco (to self): OK tonight can not go wrong, it's just one night to be just a boy and just a girl. I know she is probably nervous but she will be her normal brilliant self, i will be charming and pleasant and this evening will take the rivalship between me and YN to an 11. I hope she isnt overthinking things. 

You on the other side of things were overthinking everything that could go right and everything that could go wrong. You were also talking to yourself and pacing and borderline freak out. 

YN(to self): i cant do this, i can do this… what am i saying tonight is gonna go horrible… something is gonna mess this night up and screw up the entire eco system that is a almost 2 year secret… i wonder what it would be like if draco and i were out to the school and the public eye as a couple… what am i saying that would be a disaster. The ministry, the school, my parents, his parents, our friends, everyone would reject us… we would end up living as muggles for the rest of our lives, we would be exiled from the wizard records, we would have our legacy dragged through the dirt or worse. 

That's when you heard Dracos voice in the wind. 

Draco: don't stress babe, I'll be right by your side the entire time, trust me babe… Then we will happily go outside for some air later. Now let's get ready… and don't worry about a thing love. 

Thats when you had calmed down a bit more, and listened to mcgonigal speak.

Minerva: settle down everyone, before we all enter the great hall, it gives me great pleasure to introduce 2 people who im sure need no introduction, their rivalry is legendary amongst the entire student body. The minister himself asked that these 2 be given a very special entrance, ladies and gentlemen to kick off tonights winter formal i proudly present YN and Draco.

That was yours and Dracos cues to walk out from cover and down the stairs. All eyes were on the 2 of you as you both united in the center between the 2 staircases. 

Draco: in all my years at hogwarts never have I ever been so lucky in all I do, for my rival and I we know that we will make hogwarts proud in all we do and one day who knows maybe we will end up teaching here as well one day. But our rivalry won't end with graduation or parting for one final time. You all shall hear of our rivalry far and wide as we continue the rivalry even outside of hogwarts. Sorry for the speech slur but I figured on behalf of all of us we should make a statement. 

Draco then held his arm for you to take. That you did and both of you walked the rest of the steps together, the only person who you both stopped to acknowledge was the minister. 

Fudge: in all my time as minister for magic, i have never seen 2 people who just go from rivals one minute to just pleasant normal students, almost like the bond of your rivalry has brought you both closer together. Tell me YN did you ever see yourself and mr malfoy here being friends maybe. 

YN: i honestly can say no i have not seen that possibility but there is an ever changing future and i look forward to seeing what it may hold, if per chance one day this rivalry of ours becomes obsolete we will im sure become the best of friends, as long as that would be viewed as a good thing in the eyes of the ministry of course. 

Fudge: friendship is never an issue… now let the formal commence, music… 

You and draco walk onto the dancefloor, you both had not danced outside of the astronomy tower before you both were unsure of how to act. 

Draco placed one hand on your waist and one hand on your hand. The music started and you both began to move with the music, but no one would be able to hear your conversation….

Draco: you look wonderful tonight…

YN: thank you, i mean it wasnt hard to figure out who sent these wonderful items, but that was also a given considering we talk one minute about the formal and the fact i didnt have anything to wear and the next minute there is a mysterious box with a note saying that the dress and stuff was in the box made me smile. I figured it out when i saw the box, before i read the note. 

Draco: was it that obvious?

YN: yes it was but thats ok, cause i know that tonight we arent rivals, we are just 2 people who happen to be a big part of the school and its events. I honestly didnt know that this was what we had to do till i got mcgonigals note. 

Draco: well tonight will be special i promise. 

YN: ill hold you to it. 

Draco just smiled as more people joined you on the dancefloor, after a few songs you and Draco went to get something to drink. You both picked a table and sat down beside eachother, so as to have a civizled conversation. 

Draco: any plans to go home for break?

YN: nope, as far as my parents are concerned i am staying at the school and just helping minerva… its not like i have much at home anyway. I mean sure my parents are there and they love me but i dont want to go home, see my parents start getting back into my home life routine and then have to come back to hogwarts… its just too hard. Thats why i stopped going home for break, thats why i stay here and help the professors keep the school over break. 

Draco: well what would you say if i stay here as well over break… think of it as we are on one continuous date for 2 weeks. 

YN: now that i would enjoy. But i think we should tell the school… somehow… someway… but we shouldnt wait too much longer, we dont know what the consequences will be… 

Draco: i know you are right… i…

Just as he was about to speak again the minister came up to both of you pulling up a seat beside you… 

Cornielious: having a good time tonight…

YN: yes we are minister thank you… we were just discussing what the tutoring schedule will look like over the next bit before our owls and winter break. 

Draco: are you having a good time minister?

Cornielious: its like nothing has changed at hogwarts, this party is fantastic, it is a good time, it also gives me a break from my work at the ministry.. Oh YN your mom and dad said to say hi… i have them checking into a few strange occurrences for magic bursts. 

YN: well you certainly picked the right people for the job, i know my parents well enough to know that they wont quit a case if there are no leads… as my mom always the hardest case is the easiest case for the answer is staring you in the face. 

All 3 of you start laughing as the music changes again and one student exclaims…

Student A: its snowing!!!

All the students  continued to dance as the music changed to more slow songs, you and draco decided to try to slow dance again. But no one would have predicted the scene that would happen about quarter way into the dance. 

You were having a small convo with draco and he decided to kiss you on the cheek. No one else noticed, your cousin however smart and brilliant for she non vocally slowed time a bit to the point of you and draco could recover and pretend that it didnt happen.

But a few students and teachers noticed… this made you go bright red, you backed away from Draco and turned to run through the crowd, grabbing your cape and going out the doors down the stairs and into the rose garden. 

Time resumed but no one said anything, all they saw was you running out of the great hall and draco standing in the center of the dance floor. Hermione started to move toward the door but saw draco run after you… he realized he made a mistake. She went to explain to the professors what happened and the dance was resumed. 

Draco followed your footprints and got into the maze… he located you in the center of the maze, he was very careful to approach. But you were already aware that he had followed you. 

YN: no need to be cautious, i know you are there…

Draco came fully round the corner and became visible as he appeared in front of you. 

Draco: im so sorry about that in there love. It was… well i just…. I mean… 

YN: its okay i understand what happened… heat of the moment and all. But as my cousin has told me telepathically of course is that she has spoken to those who saw this happen and she told them that it was nothing special. It was just a simple slip of the moment. But she harry ron and crab and goyle all know the truth… one day we will tell the rest of the students and the professors but for now…

Thats when he threw a snowball at you… well now he had started something, this fight went on for a few moments before you realized that he was close enough to you & that you guys were still alone and that no one would know if you shared a moment under the falling snow… 

YN: tonight just being normal was amazing! Thank you so much for this… 

Draco: there is one more thing i feel like we should do… one thing that we are gonna do to remember this moment, how we looked on the floor and for anyone that wants a memory of tonight, i know i will and i know our friends will but we also need to start making memories for our children to see one day… so here is one for the history books...

You didnt have time to respond before he kissed you. the snow falling on your faces and the calm night air made this night even better to just be there together. 

~to be continued~

[allie1804-fan]

Ile de Re (Chapter 1)

I wrote this fic  last year, mostly while on holiday on this lovely island.  If you are on Archive of Our Own, you may have seen it before. Written before Matrix 4 was announced and before Covid so sorry that the timelines are no longer realistic!

Summary

Keanu meets a chef to help him prepare for a movie role. Events conspire for them to spend even more time together than they planned and despite the large age gap, romance ensues.

1 2 3 4 5  6 7 8

April 2020

Keanu hung up the phone and quietly fist pumped to himself. He’d just had news that a new project had been green lit. It was one he’d been collaborating on for some time - where he’d play an American chef, somewhat down on his luck who was establishing a new restaurant in a rural French town. The thing that thrilled him most was that the project afforded him the chance to finally learn how to cook – at least a bit - because he’d need to demonstrate some skill in the film itself and to ‘find’ his character he wanted to understand more about the craft of being a chef – especially the passion that drove them.

He went to his office and pulled out his laptop, opening a file holding details of some chefs who Erwin’s team had tracked down that fit the bill in terms of the knowledge they had and their personal experiences. He dropped an e mail first to a chef names Yves Le Gouhier and another to a woman called Claire Bonnevin. They each had restaurants in LA but were French natives who had trained at home before heading to America to open restaurants of their own. He hoped that the guy would say yes since he felt he’d probably relate better to his experience however he checked out both of their bios and looked at restaurant reviews on line.

A few days later, the decision was made for him as to who would give him the coaching as Mr Le Gouhier was out of town for at least a couple of months, establishing a new restaurant whereas Ms Bonnevin was able to fit him in for some daily ‘classes’ starting the following week. Whilst mildly disappointed, he also recalled that he’d actually eaten at Ms Bonnevin’s place once and had really rated the cooking which mixed homespun flavours with Gallic finesse - the seafood there was to die for.  He responded quickly in the affirmative, and ever the perfectionist, asked if there was anything he needed to bring or any preparatory work he could do before Monday. Claire replied that if he could let her have a working copy of the script and tell her what his favourite meal was before the weekend – they could work on the skills he’d need to demonstrate in the film and, depending on what the meal was, also aim to make his favourite meal to a good standard by the end of the week. If he had some friends who’d like to eat what he made, then he should ask them if they were free.

“What a question!” he pondered, thinking about what his favourite meal was. Keanu was a man who liked to eat - so much so that he needed the counsel of his trainer Denise to keep off the pounds in between films! Would it be a good steak with garlicky greens and crushed potatoes?, veal with a cream and mushroom sauce, roast lamb with flageolets and dauphinois potatoes – this task was just making him hungry!  He decided on the latter thinking it would be a challenge and fitted with the style of cooking they had at “Le Chat Botte” which was Claire’s restaurant. The pressure of feeding something he’d made that wasn’t bacon and eggs or a peanut butter and jelly sandwich was both thrilling and unnerving. He messaged his sister Kim, his mother and friends Rob, Alex and Josh who were all pleased to be free although they joked that they might need to go to Macdonald’s to fill up afterwards!

Monday came around and Keanu pulled up at “Le Chat Botte” at 9am prompt. Entering via the service entrance as instructed, he walked into a spotless kitchen with gleaming stainless steel work stations, hobs and ovens  ranged along one wall and a large wooden kitchen table in the centre which had 2 sets of chopping boards in different colours along with a variety of knives, spatulas and other cooking implements arranged side by side in the centre of the table. No-one was in sight though Keanu could hear the sound of a voice coming from an adjoining room. Walking across the kitchen he stuck his head round the door of what turned out to be an office where he saw a petite, dark haired woman he recognised (from her bio) as Claire Bonnevin  - she was speaking to someone on the phone in French. She raised her hand to him in greeting, mouthing sorry and hurried to complete the call.

“Oui, Oui, je te rapellerai demain  - mon nouvel client vient d’arriver, oui oui c’est lui, donc il faut que j’accroche.  D’accord d’accord, je sais. Au revoir”

Claire turned to Keanu blushing - she had the distinct impression that he’d understood that she’d just referred to him in her conversation.

“so sorry about that – that was my restaurant manager back home in France just giving me an update on my dad  - he’s not been too well recently so we’ve been talking every day” Her English accent was excellent with only a slight gallic note.

Keanu stuck out his hand

“Nice to meet you Ms Bonnevin and no problem – you didn’t need to rush them off the line on my account”

Claire smiled and shook his hand, “I heard you were impossibly polite! – of course I did, I was eating into your paid time – nice to meet you too by the way. Keanu grinned - Claire could feel the colour rising in her cheeks again  - she wasn’t exactly sure why - maybe it was the directness of his gaze or the brilliance of his smile.

“So, are you ready for your training?”

Keanu chuckled and responded with what he thought was the expected reply “hell yeah” but Claire didn’t react, “maybe the Matrix reference was unintentional” he thought – she was pretty young after all, (her bio said she was 35) so maybe she was one of the few whom it had passed by!

“So let’s go through to the kitchen and get started” she said leading the way back to the room where Keanu had entered earlier.

For the next 4 hours they talked through and tried out some of the particular skills that would be needed in kitchen scenes. Whilst they worked, they got to know each other a little with Claire wanting to find out about Keanu’s food knowledge and experience and Keanu quizzing her about her beginnings in the industry. He discovered that she grew up on a tiny west coast island in France called L’Ile de Re” where her Dad still owned a restaurant called, like hers in LA, “Le Chat Botte”.  He no longer worked as a chef there but lived in the little village where it was, hence the manager being able to keep Claire appraised of his health.  She’d learned her craft there and then moved on to train in Paris, New York and then LA to establish her namesake restaurant in the US.

For her part, from what Keanu said, she could see that despite not having grown up in a house where people had a passion for cooking, he nevertheless clearly had a passion for food  - from the humble sandwich to fine foods from around the globe. He was also a quick study, picking up the knife skills needed to finely chop onions and garlic on film that he’d need. She was a patient teacher, though she would occasionally break into French when she was struggling to communicate the exact technique such as when at first he couldn’t master the rotation of the knife needed to chop finely:

“tient tient, comme ca” she said, placing her hand over his to show how the blade needed to rock back and forth over the garlic.

At 12 they broke for lunch at which point Claire challenged Keanu to make her his best sandwich from the ingredients on hand. He asked her what she liked and created a layered club sandwich which she declared excellent. By the time he left at 1pm, Keanu was convinced that she was an excellent choice of teacher and one he’d enjoy learning from. He could hardly wait for the next day when they were going to study cuts of meat by going to Claire’s favourite butcher.

The week progressed with a mix of hands on cooking classes and continued trips to suppliers which served to explain the importance of provenance and quality ingredients. They also worked on timings  and started to plan the stages of creating the menu Keanu had planned for Friday’s lunch.

On Thursday Keanu tried out the dauphinois potatoes and was thrilled with the result - he was really starting to enjoy cooking and his rapid growth in skill. Claire praised him warmly and suggested he try a dessert as well for the next day.

“You could try something simple like a mousse au chocolat but I think you’re ready to really wow them”

“Oh yeah?” Keanu grinned “With what?”

“A tarte Tatin”

“What!, are you sure?”

“Absolutely – you’re an excellent student - let’s do one today together, you’ll master it I’m sure”

She showed him how to prepare the sugar and butter in a special tin that could go on the stove and then in the oven to finish. They prepped the apples placing them rounded side down in the tin and proceeded to caramelise the butter and sugar until it was a gorgeous molten mahogany. Then he learned how to make the shortcrust pastry using cool hands to rub the butter into the flour then bring it together to a dough which rested in the fridge. Once rolled out, he placed it onto the cooled apples, tucking in the edges round the sides. The result when they turned the tarte out (upside down to reveal the apples) was amazing – sweet, tender apples with the sugary caramel cut a little by freshly grated lemon rind and a melt in the mouth pastry to top it off.

“See!” she smiled, “I knew you could do it”

“No, you did it!” he grinned

“Well, OK so today we both did it but tomorrow it will all be down to you”

Friday came and Keanu got to the restaurant at 8am wanting to have as much time as possible to get everything perfect.

By 11.30 the lamb was resting, his gratin and tarte were in the oven and the beans were simmering gently.

The meal was beginning with a simple salade aux lardons  - it was time to dress it with the vinaigrette he’d made earlier. He started to toss it gently but some lettuce flipped out over the side

“Watch out you don’t drop too many said Claire – unless you want lots of children’ she laughed!

“What?” Keanu asked, shooting her a quizzical look.

“it’s a saying we have in France that the number of leaves you drop when you’re tossing the salad tells you the number of kids you’ll have.

“Oh right” he chuckled, “that’s cute, but it’s way too late for that”

“What do you mean?, you’d have time to have them if you wanted, surely”

“I’m too old Claire”

“What, you must only be what?”, she paused to look at him and consider his face “…. About 45”

“Ha ha” Keanu laughed heartily.

“No, I’m fifty five”

“Merde” she exclaimed “ce n’est pas possible!”

Keanu shook his head and smiled - he loved how she reverted to French when she was reacting spontaneously to something.  

“I’m afraid it’s true, so even if I had a wife or even a girlfriend, I still think it’s too late to be having babies. I might be dead before they’re 20 or 30.

Claire’s face clouded over

“Sorry I didn’t mean to be all maudlin” he said

“Don’t worry, it’s just my mother died when I was 25 so I know that’s hard – but people die all the time, young and old.

“Ain’t that the truth” Keanu agreed quietly, remembering his own past.

“and lots of guys have babies when they’re older. Maybe you shouldn’t rule it out”

“Maybe maybe, anyway, enough serious talk, we should raise a toast before our guests arrive”

He poured himself and Claire a glass of wine.

“Here’s to satisfied customers!” she said

“and here’s to you for being such an amazing teacher – I can’t believe you’ve got me this far so fast”

“well that’s really down to you” she replied, smiling, “you work so hard and learn so quickly, it’s very impressive”

“I don’t know about that!” he said blushing, “Anyway, let’s not get ahead ourselves, I haven’t served it yet!!

They put down their glasses and Claire went to see if the guests had arrived at the table they had set aside in the restaurant. Meanwhile Keanu busied himself with finishing the salad and carving the lamb which he was happy to see was just the right shade of pink. He put it in the warming oven and also took out the tarte Tatin praying that it would be as good as the one yesterday when he turned it out later. Finally, with the main course as ready as it could be, he took the salad and some French bread through to the dining room.

The meal went down a storm - at the end Keanu stood and raised a toast to Claire

“Thank you for all your kind words folks but we really need to toast this amazing lady who has taught this old meat head some cooking skill. He took her hand and placed it over his heart

“ thank you, thank you, merci beaucoups, I’ll be forever grateful!”

Claire laughed and blushed.

“Just wait until next week when we’ll have you working in the restaurant kitchen, then you might not be such a fan!”

He laughed

“That may be!”

They said their goodbyes to Keanu’s amazed guests and went to clean down the kitchen.

“How’s your dad by the way?”

“Oh about the same apparently – no better, but no worse, he just needs to take it easy and stay off his damn bike”

“Oh, a pushbike or a motorbike?” Keanu asked, his interest peaked

“A push bike – he’s not a racer guy like you!” Claire saw Keanu pull up each day often on different bikes so she knew about his passion for them.

“everyone goes everywhere on bikes on the Ile de Re” she continued - it’s a cyclist’s paradise with cycle paths across the salt marshes and oyster beds and through the forests. But he had a heart attack last year and whilst he is supposed to exercise, he just pushes himself too much and that worries me”

“Do you have any other family there to keep an eye on him?”

“No, I’m an only child and there are no aunts or uncles either.

“Is your father still alive? She asked.

“Yeah – well at least I haven’t heard otherwise! He left my mother when I was three and I haven’t seen him since I was 13.”

“Mon dieu that must have been tough growing up without a dad”

“Yeah well I had my mum and my sister - he wouldn’t have been a good role model anyway”

“I could see today that you adore Kim and your mother”

“Yeah, yeah  I do - family and friends are my rocks to come back to  - after every project that’s what I look forward to”

“You know you’re not at all what I expected!” Claire stated.

“Oh, how so?” he asked

“Well, a couple of people I mentioned you to said they heard you were a nice guy and very polite but I guess I just expected someone more ………..starry, you know!”

Keanu burst out laughing.

“Well I’ll take that as a complement” he said

“you should – you’ve made it a very easy first week of teaching” she smiled

“Well thanks” he said the colour rising in his cheeks.

They finished up in the kitchen and Keanu took his leave saying he’d see her at 9am prompt on Monday for his week in the working kitchen.  He’d enjoyed her company so much that he’d almost asked her to dinner but held himself in check. She was so much younger than him and he knew his feelings weren’t entirely platonic. She was very cute with olive skin, beautiful eyes and a slender yet not too skinny figure – he didn’t really have a type but she hit the spot with him. He’d just have to quash those thoughts, focus on the learning and keep things on a friendly footing.

https://allie1804-fan.tumblr.com/post/625977593110364160/ile-de-re-chapter-2

[mimymomo]

Orphydice Weathering With You AU Part 2

I’m just gonna get straight to it!

...

Eurydice’s standing outside the backdoor of the bar. The alleyway is barely lit under the cloudy sky. She’s holding a bag filled with cheap snacks, deli sandwiches, and chips she bought at the store.

And she’s nervous af

What was she doing here? She was in an alleyway behind a bar where she’s supposed to be meeting a boy she barely knows (a cute boy sure) who can also control the weather?!

“Hello, Eurydice!” The girl jumps as she notices the backdoor she’s been staring at is wide open and being held by the boy plaguing her brain. “H-hey, Orpheus.”

The boy leads her inside and up the stairs to the house section of the mixed-use building. He and Mr. Hermes live above the bar. Once they reach his room, Eurydice holds out the bag she’s been gripping, “I bought these. Sorry I didn’t know what you like so-” “No, no this perfect! Thank you Eurydice,” he smiled causing the girl to unwillingly blush. Wth was wrong with her today??

Orpheus pulls her into the kitchen/living room hybrid and starts prepping their lunch while Eurydice looks around. There are pictures on shelves and on the walls of Orpheus in varying ages. Baby, a toddler with baby food painted across his mouth, cheeks, chubby fingers and even forehead? A picture of him standing outside of a classroom holding a sign that said “first day of kindergarten,” school photos, photos of him playing a guitar, writing, at the bar, nearly every picture is of him smiling. She even sees photos of a familiar man she can’t put a name on and...Persephone and Hades? She has to ask Orpheus about that.

Then she sees something. Eurydice reaches out to grab a frame that’s been knocked over and hidden, facing photo down. Carefully flipping it over, it’s an old photograph, the corners bent and worn with some discoloration from the years. It a picture of a woman holding a months old child. She’s smiling but eleven from the photo Eurydice can tell it’s not genuine. The baby is staring at someone, not looking directly at the camera. It must be Orpheus but who was the woman? 

“That’s my mother.” Eurydice whips around to see Orpheus, smiling slightly but there’s a trace of sadness behind his expression. “My dad left before I was born and that sent my mom into a downward spiral. She never wanted a kid, especially not one who was...“difficult to raise,” he emphasized with air quotes. “So she left me with Mr. Hermes when I was about 5 months. That’s the last pic we have of her and me together.”

Eurydice didn’t know what to say, she knew that Orpheus didn’t live with his mother but that was... “I’m sorry Orpheus.” Orpheus shakes his head, “no it’s fine. I think it worked out for the better. I love Mr. Hermes and my family and life here.” He said all that with a smile, no sadness to be found. “Do you have any family Eurydice?” Caught off-guard by the question, Eurydice ponders what to say. “No, no I don’t.”

The two eat and Eurydice pitches the idea she originally came to discuss: starting a partnership with Orpheus. “You want me to start changing the weather for money?” Orpheus is extremely hesitant at first because it doesn’t seem right to charge money for it but Eurydice convinces him (it will help him raise money for Hermes/expenses, spread joy for others she will handle the business part and all he has to do his the singing/weather changing). The two come to an agreement and even upload an ad on Craigslist for their services.

As they’re finishing up Mr. Hermes comes up and asks them what they’re doing. Eurydice finally figures out where she recognized the man from- she met him at Seph’s shop. “You’re Mr. Hermes?” she screams, less at Hermes and more at her own stupidity for not putting two and two together.

Suddenly a notification for their Craigslist ad pops up: someone hired them to clear the weather for an upcoming farmers market. Said farmers market is tomorrow.

“We already got an offer?! Eurydice I don’t think I can do this!” “Orpheus, you’ll be fine! I’ll be there with you tomorrow.” “It’s tomorrow?? Please let there be clear weather tomorrow...” “What would be the point of us showing up if the weather is already clear?!”

The next day, Orpheus is a mess. Eurydice brings him gloves with hand warmers in them, an umbrella she scribbled music notes in sharpie on and a thermos of hot tea. Orpheus appreciates the gesture (sure he cant use the close with he plays, nor hold the umbrella but the gesture is sweet all the same)

When they get to the market and set up, the rain is pouring furiously. Orpheus is shaking, partially from the cold, but mostly from nerves. He’s under an awning away from the crowd and mostly our if the rain but Eurydice still covers him with the umbrella as a precaution. His fingers are shaking as he starts playing, constantly stopping to tune the ancient guitar.

The runner of the market is not amused (it was one of his workers who hired these children). He tries to tell Eurydice and Orpheus to go home but Eurydice convinces him to wait. Orpheus begins his song, “la, la la la, la la la~ la, la la la, la la la~”

As he performs, the rain slowly comes to a stop, the clouds parting to reveal a beautiful crystal blue sky. The golden sun coming out to say hello. Murmurs from all around can be heard, fingers pointing to the sky, people shocked by the return of the sun.

The man is shocked and ends up paying the kids double than what they charged for proving him wrong. “You got a gift kid, voice ain’t half bad either.”

For the next month, the two get job, after job, after job. The run around the whole city and sometimes even further out, clearing the sky, for birthday parties, weddings, competitions, even for a daycares field trip to the park. Orpheus is never a stickler for payments (he did the daycare job for $20 (the teacher forced him to take it) and a bunch of stickers and snacks).

Orpheus and Eurydice get closer and closer through their job and all the travels they do (they both have crushes on each other but they’re teens. They stupid with love). Seph teases her for how much she hangs out with Orpheus (“I’m losing my apprentice to my cute nephew!”) while Hades gets more annoyed than anything (he misses her and all the stuff she does around the house. She makes hades and Seph ultimately get along better).

One of their biggest jobs is to clear the sky for a 4th of July firework show. Since they are hired by the event coordinators, the two have to dress up. Eurydice shows up in her black dress, Seph had got it tailored to fix any holes, tarnished hems, and other rips. While Eurydice talks with a few event workers, Orpheus shows up.

He looks absolutely adorable. Still, in his suspenders, he replaced his cream shirt and signature bandana for a white button-up with a red bow tie. His pant legs are rolled up to reveal red socks and fancy shoes.

Orpheus performs and the sky clears. The firework show goes off without a hitch. The event planners let Eurydice and Orpheus have a private area to watch the show as a thank you.

“It’s beautiful. I’ve never seen fireworks in person before,” Eurydice says. “Yeah, Mr. Hermes and Aunt Seph used to take me to watch these fireworks how’s for my birthday when I was younger. Haven’t been able to in years since Hermes has gotten sicker and Aunt Seph and Hades haven’t been getting along as well...”

Eurydice grabs his hand, “Orpheus when is your birthday?” “Oh,” Orpheus pauses for a second, “next week? 4 days to be exact.” “Oh my birthday is before yours,” Eurydice says.

“Wait, how old are you?” Orpheus asks. “I’m...1...8...” Eurydice says slowly. ‘You liar!’

“You don’t look 18,” Orpheus unintentionally counters. “You saying I’m lying?” Eurydice smirks. ‘You are!’ “No! I just meant you look young.”

“How old will you be next week Orpheus?” “Oh, um...17.”

‘Shit he’s actually older than me!’ Eurydice thinks to herself. Then sit there the rest do the night watching the fireworks but in all honesty, more time was spent between the two staring at each other secretly then actually watching the colorful display in the sky.

Over the next few days, Eurydice tries to figure out what to give Orpheus as a present. She tried asking Persephone and Hades but...they were absolutely no help. Then she tries Hermes. While Orpheus is busy, she slyly tries to question Hermes on what Orpheus would want for his birthday.

“So girl, how many secret jobs do you two have left?” Hermes asked while wiping some glasses. “Just one more next week, the day before Orpheus’ birthday actually.” “Really now?” “Yeah, since the job offers have been getting kinda overwhelming we decided to take one more offer then go on a break.”

Hermes nods and goes back to work. Perfect opportunity! “Speaking of Orpheus’ birthday-”

“You love him, don’t you girl?”

Eurydice then proceeds to freak the eff out. “What?? No! No, no! I mean, he is very cute and a talented musician and I love to hear him perform or laugh...or when he turns pink after cracking a joke. But I just wanted to think of a birthday present NOT BECAUSE I LIKE HIM OR ANYTHING! Just for a friend! Yeah, a friend...what the hell is wrong with me?”

Hermes smiles at the girl, “Eurydice.” The girl shuts up immediately. “I’ve been watching over that boy since he could talk. And I can tell you he would love whatever you’d give him. Even if you decided to give him nothing but a hug or a few sweet words. He would treasure it all. But I can tell that this goes deeper than you just wanting to surprise a friend with a present.”

Eurydice’s quiet, she knows he’s right but she wasn’t planning on be confronted on it today. “I... I like him...?” She raises the end like a question. Making sure that it’s okay.

Hermes nods, “aight, I give you my blessing.” Eurydice’s chest lightens. “Now about that gift idea...”

...

“Stop running!”

“Shit!” the man runs for his life. He hadn’t done anything wrong but with police, it never was innocent until proven guilty. It was guilty until proven innocent.

He ran down the slick streets, nearly falling as he turned the corner down a backstreet.

Suddenly he was corned by three detectives from the downtown police department. “Wait officers, I didn’t do nothing!” the man tries to reason with them.

“We know,” one says. “What?” the man asks. They hold out their badges: Detectives Atropos, Clotho, and Lachesis.

“We tried to tell you that but you just went and started running,” detective Clotho said with an amused attitude.

“Are you the guy in this video?” detective Lachesis held out her ooh one displaying a shoddy video of surveillance footage of the night a month ago when a girl fired a shot that nearly blew his head off.

“Hell, that kid nearly shot me in the fucking face!”

“She’s apart of a missing child’s case,” detective Atropos states, not acknowledging what the witness just said. “Parents filed her as a runaway. She also may have possession of an illegal stolen firearm. A firearm that actually looks eerily similar to one that went missing from a previous unrelated case that wasn’t solved a few weeks before this incident.

“We need to find the girl. Have you seen her around?”

...

Seph is working at her Anthomania. The rain is drizzling once again and the streets are starting to flood. She’s arranging an order when an older woman steps through the door.

“Welcome in!”

“It’s really pouring out there ain’t it?” the woman asks. “Sure is,” Seph agrees. “Kinda frightening.”

“Frightening? Child ain’t nothing but a lil’ rain. The world was covered with water before humans were got involved. It’s all just a cycle. Reminds me of a story I dudes to hear as a child though.” Seph silently encourages her to continue. It’s a slow day, one old tale can’t harm her.

“There used to be ones that could control the weather. Children of the earth and sky, chosen to bring balance to nature. By their voices alone, they could end storms and disasters. Blessed beings they were. But they were also cursed with a heavy and heartbreaking burden. Those poor children.”

Seph back straightens, a chill running up her spine. Dread pooling in her stomach. “What kind of burden? What happened to those kids?”

The old woman gazes up at Persephone, “death.”

[ficswithrimi]

Golden (Chapter 13)

First: Chapter 1

Last: Chapter 12

Next: Final Chapter (Pt. 1)

A/N: Raise your hand if you thought I forgot about this story or gave up on it? Jokes on you, cuz I haven’t forgotten the story that has brought me so much joy! And the next chapter is the last chapter. I’d like to sincerely apologize for the long wait! My life has been hectic since the last update. I moved from the USA to South Korea where I work lit ALL the time and my passion for writing actually died somewhere in July. However, as of late, my writer’s block lifted and I’m writing again! Golden Chapter 14 (Final) is slated for a 2020 release so I will see you next year! Thank you for your patience~ Just wait a little longer! I love you! Bye!

_______________________________________________________________

T-minus Five Days Until the CW Final

           “And finished!” You let out a sigh of relief as you confirmed your classes for the following semester. Since you would be finishing up your GE requirements this semester, you could 100% focus on your major for the following one. After officially declaring your major in dance Wednesday, it felt as if a load of stress fell from your shoulders. However, you still had other stressors that prevented you from feeling the peace you’ve been missing since October. Not only did Monday start Finals Week, but it also meant that on Wednesday, Jungkook would reveal himself to the world – okay, maybe just the campus – that he was Golden. You already imagined the day was going to go down in history for your university. There had been rumors tossed around in the last CW class this morning that ranged from plausible to ridiculous. Most were ridiculous, however. The wildest one you heard was that the university’s president was going to make a guest appearance and give Jungkook – Golden – a key to the school. The more reasonable one, and the one you chose to believe from past events, was that the Golden Search Party from Junmyeon’s party a couple of months ago managed to get the university’s news team to record the final and hold interviews after.

           Chloe and you had sat in the back of the auditorium – as usual – where all the rumors were being thrown. However, you remembered glancing to the front and seeing people whispering and glancing around the auditorium as well – as if trying to see if anyone would slip up last minute that they were Golden by the rumors being told. Jungkook, as always, had played it cooled. He and Taehyung just sat at front, not really paying attention to the professor as she explained the rundown on how the final would work. The final…

           The final on the blog that you deleted out of anger. You literally had less than a week to figure something out. You could always recreate the blog, but your professor would be able to clearly tell that your blog was new. To be honest, when you first signed up for the class, you imagined it’d be Chloe to fail as she barely showed up and didn’t take the blog assignment seriously. However, it now seemed everything backfired as you would be the one to fail the class because of your missing blog.

           Letting out a frustrated groan, you gripped your hair and dropped your head to the desk.

           “You literally just went from relieved to stressed out in the matter of two minutes,” Chloe nonchalantly commented as she laid on her bed, flipping through a magazine. The bed creaked as the young woman sat up and turned her attention to you. “What’s wrong? Finals? Jungkook? Taehyun-“

           “Ugh!” You let out another groan as she mentioned Taehyung. He had been texting to ask to hang out almost every day. Every time a message popped up, you’d immediately ignored it. You already knew he was into you and wanted to go on another “date.” However, your feelings were clearly for someone else – someone that also happened to be a good friend of his.

           “Lemme tell good ole’ Tae Tae,” Chloe smirked as she cracked her knuckles. At the sound of this, your head popped up.

           “You’re not telling him. I’m telling him,” You frowned at the woman as she shrugged.

           “Sure, okay.” she said as she plopped back down. “I can see it now. It’s your wedding day and as you walk down the aisle, your eyes shift to the man you’re marrying, Taehyung, but slowly they go over to Jungkook, who is standing beside Taehyung, and immediate regret washes over your face cuz it should’ve been him you were marrying. If only you told Taehyung the truth in your sophomore year of college…”

           Rolling your eyes, you stood up from your chair and looked towards Chloe. “For someone who skipped out on CW for nearly the entire semester, you sure have an imaginative mind.”

           “Of course. All aspiring actors need to have more than one talent in them,” Chloe smirked. “But seriously, what are you gonna do?”

           “I’m gonna tell him… tonight?”

           “Tonight?” Chloe grinned mischievously. “Oh, when? Where? I wanna be the-“

           “No! I’m telling him alone, Chloe,” You frowned towards her.

           “Fine, fine,” she waved you off. “So, what are you going to say? How you like the real Golden and not him, the imposter?”

           “Taehyung never told me if he was Golden or not so calling him an imposter is a little…” You scrunched your nose. You never thought of what you would say to Taehyung when you met up with him. Obviously, you had to come up with something before asking him out. You could always just tell him that you don’t share the same feelings as he does. He didn’t have to know why or who your real feelings were for. Still… did he have the right to know? How would he feel if he saw you and Jungkook…?

           But did Jungkook even have feelings for you? Were you the only one that harbored a crush between the two of you? It was silly to assume just because he, as Golden, held similar feelings because of the lowkey flirting he did and the hints he responded to his anons with. It was his online personality, after all. The outside Jungkook was a quite shy young man. He’s only opened up to you within the past two weeks despite knowing him for almost three months. When he did, however, you felt the connection. He was really easy to talk to once he felt comfortable. Sometimes you did see his Golden personality come out through the real him and-

           Bzz! Bzz! Bzz!

           You blinked as your left your thoughts to look at your phone. Another text message… from Taehyung.

           “Golden Wannabe, again?” Chloe casually asked as she went back to flipping through her magazine.

           “Stop calling him that,” You glared slightly at her as you opened your messages. Glancing over the message, it was exactly what you had expected. Gliding your fingers carefully over the letters to say your response, you nervously bit your bottom lip. It was now or never, you guess.

                                                          ~!~

Jungkook’s POV

           It was a typical Friday night for Jungkook. He was spending his evening with two of his best buddies – Jimin and Taehyung – in their dorm, planning what the night had in store for them. Of course, there wasn’t as many options to hang out as usual as finals were happening the upcoming weeks and that meant the students who usually worked at the hangout spots, such as the student center or arcade, were off studying for what could make or break their college career. Jungkook had been studying and prepping for his finals all week and would return to studying tomorrow so he chose tonight to relax a bit. Luckily, Jimin and Taehyung had the same mindset.

           However, instead of planning what and where the trio would be going, they sat in the dorm, listening to Taehyung complain about Y/N and how she never responds to his texts asking them to hang out. Jimin tried to explain to his friend that Y/N took finals seriously and was probably stressing over them – Jungkook knew he was not wrong as he recalled how the girl acted during midterms- and to give her time. Though Taehyung understood, he didn’t accept that for an answer. After Y/N’s bizarre disappearing act on Wednesday, he was more determined to see her and ask what was going on. He knew it had to be more than just ‘stressing over finals.’ Jungkook couldn’t lie. He wondered what happened that day, too. Jungkook had run into her at the counselor’s office later in the day where she declared her major. She had looked as if she wanted to tell him something else before his counselor had called him inside. Since then, she hasn’t really reached out to talk to him. Out of the three in the dorm, Y/N had only contacted Jimin.

           “She only asked me to meet her on Sunday,” Jimin shrugged as he explained to the other guys – mostly Taehyung as Jungkook was in his own thoughts – why Y/N messaged him earlier in the day. Jimin didn’t see the big deal as he was considered Y/N’s closest guy friend next to Namjoon.

           “Why doesn’t she want to meet with me? Did I mess up our date that badly?” Taehyung sighed as he threw his head back to stare solemnly at the ceiling.

           “Y/N said it wasn’t a date…” Jungkook mumbled as he scrolled through his messages on his blog.

           Anon: Dnt understimate my listening skills, Golden! I will find you out BEFORE Wednesday!

Anon: Have you heard the rumors in CW?! I heard the mayor is coming to see your reveal!!

                       Those were only some of the messages Jungkook had been receiving since finals were rapidly approaching. He thought it was ridiculous how everyone was making his reveal some humongous event for the school. Namjoon had even told him that some classes were holding viewing parties as some classmates – and even the school’s news team – were planning to record his final. Though it made the young man nervous, what Jungkook cared the most about was receiving a decent grade and, more so, impressing Y/N.

           “I thought it was a date! She didn’t think so?” Taehyung’s eyes widened as Jungkook’s words circled in his mind.

           Jimin laughed nervously as he saw a wave of worry wash over his best friend and roommate’s face. “Y/N’s really… uh… picky with her words? So, even if she thought it was a date, she-“

           “She clearly said the night you asked her out that it wasn’t a date.” Jungkook bluntly said as he looked up from his phone. Jimin threw the younger man a look as he shrugged. Meanwhile, Taehyung’s mouth fell open.

           “I-I thought it was a date! I thought it was known it was a date! All those times she sat up front in the class beside me and let me walk her back to her dorm! I thought she was into me!”

           “Look, Tae, Y/N… she thinks you’re cool but…,” Jimin glanced at Jungkook again with a knowing face. Jungkook arched a curious brow at the junior as he tried to read his expression. His eyes widened as a previous thought came back to him. Jimin knew he was Golden. He knew Y/N had feelings for Golden meaning she had feelings for him.

           “Maybe… you guys are wrong. I’ll ask her to meet me again!” Taehyung reached for his phone.

           “I don’t think that’s a good idea, dude. I mean, she hasn’t been responding to your texts all week, right?” Jimin said.

           “Yeah but I need to know how she feels.” Taehyung said as he began to rapidly type his message. “I want to tell her how I feel!”

           Jungkook’s heart dropped to his stomach at his words. Though he knew Y/N liked him – or Golden which was technically him – what if after Taehyung’s confession, Y/N began to realize her feelings for him? Granted, she was already under the impression that Tae was Golden and said how they weren’t similar in real life – which makes sense considering Jungkook is Golden – but what if she decided to begin to know Taehyung and fall for him? Taehyung was a much more outgoing guy than Jungkook which anyone could tell  as he wasn’t afraid to ask the girl outside despite being ignored. If it were Jungkook, he would’ve given up the first time he was brushed off. However, Taehyung seemed determined to win Y/N over and, don’t get it wrong, Jungkook wanted to express his feelings to Y/N as well… he just needed time. Exactly five days to be exact.

           “Tae, wait! What if the one Y/N likes is Gol-“

           “And sent!” Taehyung grinned his boxy grin as usual. However, it wavered slightly as nerves began to eat the boy up. Jungkook was a little surprised at this as Taehyung had always appeared over-confident when it came to approaching girls he liked. “What were you saying Jimin?”

           “Ah… nothing…” Jimin scratched the back of his head.

           Bzz! Bzz! Bzz!

           Taehyung’s eyes widened as he looked at message on his phone. Immediately, a more confident grin broke out on his face. Jimin and Jungkook both knew that could only mean one thing…

           “She agreed! She responded! We’re gonna meet on Monday after out finals are done! This is it, guys!” Excitement filled Taehyung’s eyes as he grinned at his two friends. Blinded by his joy, he didn’t notice the nervous smile Jimin threw at him and the distant, blank look on Jungkook’s face.

           “That’s great but-“

           “I gotta go! I’m meeting Sungjae to go over our final project!” Taehyung said as he grabbed his bookbag and headed for the door. “See you guys later!”

           Taehyung slammed the door behind him as he left, causing the room to shake a little from the force. Jungkook let out a frustrated sigh he had been holding in and gripped his hair with his hands. This was not working out. Why did he and his friend have to share the same feelings for the same girl? It wasn’t going to work out for one of them. Best case scenario was that she’d turn down both boys. Besides, both Vmusic95 and Golden had been stressing the woman out for the entirety of the semester. She’s been harassed online by strangers, forced to go to parties and dance in front of large crowds, gotten into fights with her best friend over it, and who knows what other turmoil it caused the rising junior.

           “So…” Jimin said, breaking Jungkook from his thoughts. “I’m sure you figured it out by now but I kinda sorta know you’re Golden…”

           Jungkook looked up at Jimin. “From Chloe?”

           Jimin simply nodded his head. “Chloe.”

           It wasn’t a surprise the blonde told Jimin. He figured it was her who spilled that week everyone went to dinner together. Jungkook let out a slight laugh which caused Jimin to question him.

           “So, if you’re Golden… that means Y/N…”

           “Likes me. Yeah…” Jungkook chuckled darkly. “She thinks I’m Vmusic95 and earlier this week… she told me that she likes Golden…”

           “The biggest crush, honestly,” Jimin mumbled as he recalled the times the girl would smile dreamily at her phone – like a creep – while scrolling on her blog or blush whenever Golden – Jungkook – would casually mention her. Shaking his head, he looked back to the man. “So…”

           “Golden…” Jungkook sighed, “…Has the biggest crush on her, too.”

~!~

T-Minus Three Days Until the CW Final

             The campus was freaking out. Lines at the various coffee shops had waiting numbers as students stood in line impatiently awaiting their drinks after pulling all-nighters from constant studying. The student union building was so quiet that one could hear the howl of the outside winter wind. Several students even claimed to have witnessed a tumbleweed roll by it. The library was beyond capacity limit and had begun redirecting students to other buildings to study since Friday evening. Freshmen shook in their boots from witnessing the nerves of their seniors – also because it was cold outside but whatever – as their heads violently twisted left and right to watch the plethora of sophomores, juniors, and seniors rushing back and forth on campus. Meanwhile, there were the high performing students who laughed conceitedly as they performed well enough throughout the semester to be exempt from nearly all their exams. They were able to sit in their dorm lounges and sip on whatever warm drinks that protected them from the outside cold. Meanwhile, professors sat in teacher lounges, laughing evilly as they thought up thousands of impossible to answer questions – non-multiple choice, of course - to slap on their finals and making final papers have a 10-page, 12,000 word – 12-font, single spacing, and no, the title and your name doesn’t count - minimum requirement. At least, that was what was rumored around the university.

           Yes, Finals Week brought out the worst in everyone. Then there were the other half of the students who lazed around for the semester and began to panic as they realized if they didn’t pass their exams, they’d have to either retake the class, or worse, be on academic probation. Unfortunately, you fell in the latter half of how students were the final week of school all because of one class – creative writing. Earlier in the semester, you would’ve been freaking out about your Chemistry final, but, after passing the midterm with a high enough score, you were exempt. In fact, you were exempt from three out of five of your exams – dance and creative writing. Thinking about the cursed class sent anxiety shooting through your body. Why did you delete your blog out of anger? How were you going to make up for three-month’s worth of content – even if your blog was sort of boring – in three days?

           “Have I mentioned-“

           “How much you hate me because I took the last spot in technology that you needed to complete your GE requirements and I’m the reason you’re in creative writing and why all of this is happening to you,” Jimin rolled his eyes as he watched you butterfly stretch beside him. Your dance exam was tomorrow and Jimin and you were getting one last practice in before the early morning exam.

           “I’m glad you agree,” You grumbled as you stretched your legs in front of you. Tori Kelly’s Paper Hearts was playing in the background as you both loosened up. The dance final consisted of a made-up choreography to any song you wanted. Jimin not only choreographed a dance but he did it for his own song. You swore him along with Namjoon, Yoongi, and maybe Hoseok, too, were going to form some sort of boyband one day. It’d be even funnier if it turned out Taehyung, Jungkook, and Jin could sing well and joined them, too. Dusting yourself off as you stood up, you turned to look at the older boy. “Seriously, what am I gonna do, Jiminnie?

           “You’ll think of something, Y/N. You’ve come this far, right? I’m sure your professor knows about Golden’s popularity. Just blame it on those asshole anons as to why you deleted your blog.”

           It wasn’t technically a lie. The anons you received throughout the day just because Golden acknowledged you were vicious. Some of the messages you had received did make you want to delete your blog at times or at least turn off messaging. But, if you would’ve turned off messaging, you wouldn’t of have been able to talk to Vmusic95 – Golden – or the few decent anons you received. Still, you couldn’t find it in you to use that as to why you weren’t prepared for your final. You had to come up with something.

           “Do you think I can reblog three-months of material within the span of two days?” You asked Jimin as he turned on the song he was dancing to for his final. He said it was called Serendipity.

           “No.”

           “Thanks.”

           “Stop stressin’ over it. Think of something else. Like… your date with Taehyung tonight,” Jimin wriggled his eyebrows at you only to earn a groan. “Just kidding… I know… you don’t like Taehyung in that way.”

           “Huh?” Your eyes widened. You don’t think you told Jimin about how your first date with his roommate went so how would he know? Did Chloe spill to him about it?

           “Don’t hurt his feelings too badly tonight, okay?” was all Jimin said as the song began to play over the speakers. You tried to focus on his dance, but your mind kept going back to his words. Great, now you had to worry not only about your creative writing final but Taehyung’s feelings as well. Why couldn’t your life be normal and the only thing you had to worry about was waking up on time for your finals. Sighing, you decided to try and watch your close friend move effortlessly to the beat of his song while thinking of ways to not hurt anyone’s feelings within the next couple of days.

                                                        ~!~    

           Since everyone was mostly busy with preparing for the start of finals tomorrow – or in a couple of hours if you were one of those people – the dining halls were practically empty. And when the dining halls were empty, you’d thing there’d be a ton of fresh food available and no shortages because no one was there, right? Wrong. During finals, students would load up on to-go trays to bring back to their dorms. It was busier than ever this time of year because of the amounts of students that would come as soon as the halls opened to grab all the food and leave as quickly as they’d come. Usually if one found a break between their studying in the evening, the best option to restock on food was to go to the nearby McDonalds. You could only imagine the chaos that was happening in there on this Sunday night.

           So that’s why Taehyung decided to settle on the dining halls for your evening out! If you weren’t planning on rejecting the man’s feelings for you tonight, then you’d be a little upset with his choice of grabbing food. You sat in front of the brown-haired 20-year-old and stared at what was supposed to be spaghetti with meatballs. The noodles were overcooked, however, and the meatballs were almost nonexistent as everyone knew it was the best thing about the dish and usually overloaded their plates with them. You managed to scoop out the last one and you ate that about five minutes ago.

           “Sorry, I thought McDonald’s would be busy…” Taehyung laughed nervously as he saw you twirl your spaghetti noodles around your fork with no intentions of consuming it.

           “It’s fine… thanks for… uh… inviting me out?” You gave him a weak smile as you shifted your eyes away from his staring saddened ones. He had been looking at you with those eyes since he came to pick you up from your dorm. At first, you thought he was mad about something. Especially because it was Chloe who answered the door when he knocked with a, “Oh, it’s the annoying can’t-take-a-hint guy that’s friends with Park.” Before she could say anything else to the boy, you dragged her away by her arm. Still, after the awkward greetings and on the walk to hall, you noticed he didn’t give off an upset demeanor, but a sad one.

           “It’s no problem…” He gave you a lopsided grin – opposite from his usually boxy one. You felt your hands sweat from the nerves you felt. Something was obviously off. You wanted to ask what was wrong with him, but you were afraid of the answer he’d give. Was he upset because you ignored his messages up until now? Shouldn’t he be happy you finally agreed? Or… worse? What if he knew you knew he wasn’t Golden – that he was Vmusic95? What if he was waiting for you to expose him at any given moment? Of course, you’d never do that. You’ve known Jungkook was Golden for almost a couple of days and the thought of exposing him hadn’t cross your mind not once. What if-

           “So… what made you finally agree to come with me tonight?” Taehyung arched a brow at you as he pushed his untouched food aside.

           “I… uh” Shit. You knew he was upset about you ignoring him. “I’ve been busy studying for finals. I kinda take them really seriously…”

           “Yeah… Jimin told me,” was all he said. You shot him a nervous smile as he looked at you. He didn’t return the gesture. Clearing your throat, you picked up your glass of water and looked towards the TV screen as you took a sip. Immediately, you began to cough as the screen flashed a “Breaking News” banner across it from the university’s news team. Apparently, they had been granted permission to record Golden’s big reveal. It was breaking because not only was your professor allowing it, but the university’s president was allowing it as well. It’d be the first time a final exam would be aired on live – yes, live – television.

           “Wow…” Taehyung breathed out as he stared at the screen, too.

           “They’re really taking this Golden thing seriously, huh?” You nervously laughed as you took another sip of your water.

           “You know Golden, right?” Taehyung suddenly asked, causing you to choke again on your water. Clearing your throat and grabbing a napkin to wipe your mouth, you looked up at him.

           “U-uh everyone knows Golden!”

           “Yeah… everyone,” He seemed to search for the right words to say as it became silent between the two of you. “Would you… believe me… if I told you I was Golden?”

           “H-huh?!” Your eyes widened. There was no way he was Golden. No chance. Chloe had confirmed Jungkook was Golden. Still, did she ever really give you evidence that Golden was Jungkook? What if Golden really was Taehyung as you thought all along? Your heart pounded in your ears as you stared at Taehyung. He seemed to search your eyes before speaking again.

           “Would you be okay knowing I was Golden?”

           You gulped nervously. How could you tell him that you’d be really disappointed if he was Golden? You’d finally accept Golden as Jungkook and just knowing that made you so happy. You liked Jungkook before you even knew he was Golden. It was just like the Little Mermaid where Eric realized Ariel was the girl he’d been searching for all along. Golden – Jungkook – has been right beside you all along since you first met him in that café with Namjoon.

           “You don’t have to answer. Your face says it all. I’m… not Golden…” Taehyung smiled sadly at you as your eyes widened. You felt your heart drop again at his following words. “I’m not… the one you like… even if I was Golden… I still don’t think you’d like me…”

           “Taehyung-“

           “No, it’s fine! Trust me! I’ll be okay! I just… I just wanted you to know the truth. That’s actually why I invited you out tonight. Thank God you said yes, or you’d had to find out the truth on Wednesday like the rest of the campus,” he chuckled. “I still… can’t reveal who Golden really is, but I think you’ll be really happy when you find out.”

           You felt as if a cat had snatched your tongue as you didn’t know how to respond him. This wasn’t what you were expecting when he asked you out. You assumed he’d admit his feelings for you or something – not admit he wasn’t Golden. He must’ve picked up on your confused emotions as he suddenly stood up.

           “Well… tomorrow’s finals. I gotta… go study. You should study, too. See you on Wednesday?” He threw another off-grin towards you.

           “Taehyung I-…” You let out a heavy sigh as you gained your voice back. “I’m sorry…”

           “No worries! Thanks for meeting me! I’ll catch you later, okay?” He placed a heavy hand on your shoulder where he let it linger briefly before removing it and walking away. Somehow, you felt like he transferred the weight of his emotions to you as your chest felt heavy with regret and sorrow. Sighing, you sat further back into the chair you sat in as Taehyung’s words continued to swirl inside your mind. When was this nightmare going to end? You could only pray for Wednesday…

                                                          ~!~

T-Minus One Day Until the CW Final

             “I repeat! T-minus ONE day until the shitshow that is this CW final!” Chloe jumped on you as you laid in bed with the blankets covering your entire body. Usually, you’d yell at the girl for jumping on you suddenly, but you weren’t in the mood for picking a fight with her. You were stressed to the point that you had shut down completely Not only was your deleted blog due tomorrow morning, but you kept replaying Sunday’s night out with Taehyung in your head. The only thing that distracted you from your thoughts was your dance final yesterday that you were sure you aced. Even then, it was a minute or two of bliss before the dance was over and your thoughts clouded your mind again.

           Seeing you not respond to her jumping on you, Chloe poked out her lips and crossed her arms. “Y/N, I know you’re upset about hurting Taehyung’s feelings and all, but he seems like a strong guy. He’ll move on.”

           “Taehyung… final… creative writing… fail… blog,” You incoherently mumbled from your underneath your covers. Chloe just blinked confusedly at you as a heavy sigh escaped your  mouth. Getting frustrated with your moping, Chloe climbed off you before tearing your covers from you. You groaned loudly as you grabbed for your pillow to cover your head with. Unfortunately, you were a bit slow and Chloe snatched that away, too.

           “Laying in bed all day and crying over a deleted blog isn’t gonna help your situation. How about getting your ass up and throwing some random things together? We have less than 24 hours until the final.” Chloe said.

           “I can’t do that. It’ll look like I just started the project the night before.”

           “Well….” Chloe stretched out the “l” as she rolled her eyes up to the ceiling. “It would be kinda true since you rage deleted your blog.”

           “Just let me accept my failure,” You frowned as you outstretched your hand towards the girl to ask for your pillow and blankets back. Chloe returned your look and tossed the objects to her bed.

           “No! Listen,” Chloe’s eyes shifted to her digital clock on her nightstand. “I have to go to my final but when I get back, you better be making your new blog and not in bed.”

           “I have no idea-“

           “Ask Golden,” She smirked at you as a faint blush crawled up your neck. “Bye!”

           You jumped slightly as she shut the door with a loud bang. Sighing, you ran your fingers through your hair. Chloe was right. You had to think of something for your blog. Maybe you could be like her and make posts about your daily struggles in life. Of course, hers was more about her unrequited love for Namjoon but still. You had enough material to practically write a novel about what’s happened within the past three months. However, you didn’t really want to share with the world – or your classmates – about your drama surrounding Golden – Jungkook – and everything else that’s happened. Maybe your only option was to just reblog some random pictures and call it a day. You could make up some story about the concept of your blog. It wasn’t like your original blog had an in-depth meaning anyway. You had planned to explain how the blog showed your interest in both dancing and cooking. It wasn’t anything special.

           Deciding that Chloe was right and sitting in your bed wasn’t going to help you get anything accomplished. Biting your bottom lip, you nervously reached for your cellphone and pulled up Jungkook’s number. You hadn’t seen the freshman since that day you ran into him at the counselor’s office. Maybe he could give you an idea. He was Golden after all, right? Your thumb hovered over the send button after typing up a text asking him to meet you someplace. Admittedly, you were a bit nervous to be alone with the boy now that you knew he was Golden. Your mind would occasionally go back to the morning you told him about your feelings for Golden under the impression he was Vmusic95. No wonder his face had been so red when you told him. And on top of that you kissed his cheek. Yikes.

           Too busy overthinking, you didn’t notice your thumb twitch slightly – just enough to send the message to Jungkook.

           Bzz! Bzz! Bzz!

           My final ends at 3pm. I can meet you there at 4. :) -Jungkook

                                                           ~!~

           Jungkook’s POV

           “Hoping that you won’t forget…”

           Yoongi gave Jungkook a thumbs up as he finally finished the song he’d been preparing for the past week for his big reveal. The freshman wanted it to be nearly perfect as it was now confirmed the school’s new team was coming to record the entirety of the creative writing final. Jungkook thought it was a pretty dumb idea as the class was about 200 students and since Golden was a mystery to everyone, they’d have to sit through and record every final. There was a rumor that the news team received a “lead” paper where the professor provided them with a roster of the class and marked each student’s name with a star as to who she thought could possibly be Golden. From what Taehyung told him, Jungkook’s name was not marked.

           Jungkook didn’t want the reveal perfect just for the news team, however. He also needed it to be nearly perfect because not only was he revealing himself to the school but to Y/N as well. He thought hard about rather telling her personally or the route he had chosen. The downside to revealing himself to her along with the school is that she could be angry at him for not telling her sooner. Then again, she had to understand it was part of his blog idea. Besides, how would the school know his reveal was also a personal reveal – and possible confession – for the girl?

           “So, what’s the plan? You’re just gonna stand on the stage as this plays in the background and say something like, ‘Hey I’m Golden?’” Yoongi arched a brow at the brown-haired boy as he exited the studio. He pulled out the flash drive and handed it to Jungkook whose eyes were glued to his phone. The amount of anons he had been receiving since the “breaking news” last night was ridiculous. He was overwhelmed with all the messages. Yoongi arched a brow at him as he didn’t receive answer. “Yo? You good?”

           Jungkook looked up from his phone and to Yoongi. The senior could see the stress and exhaustion in Jungkook’s brown eyes. It was true – Jungkook was tired of maintaining his blog. Golden wasn’t supposed to become as huge as it had become. There was literally nowhere on campus or in the surrounding area where Jungkook didn’t hear his blog mentioned. Don’t get it wrong, he was happy that his music taste could connect with such a large amount of people but, the messages that ranged from love confessions to trying to gather information to stalk him was just too much. He just wanted it to be over.

           “I’m fine… thanks… for everythin-“

           Bzz! Bzz! Bzz!

           Jungkook let out a groan as his phone cut him off. It was probably another message. Turning his phone on briefly, his glanced down at the screen to see it was a text from Y/N. Eyes widening with sudden excitement, the boy shoved the flash drive with his cover song on it into his pocket and immediately began tapping away. Yoongi only smirked at the sight as he saw a brief smile appear on Jungkook’s face. He didn’t even need to ask who it was.

           “Guessing you have to go now?” Yoongi chuckled as he watched Jungkook pull on his jacket.

           “Yeah. I have a final and then I’m hanging out with Y/N,” Jungkook’s face reddened as he said her name. Yoongi only chuckled a little louder. Jungkook made it obvious he had a crush on the sophomore.

           “Hey… before you go…” Yoongi placed a hand on Jungkook’s shoulder to stop him. Jungkook arched a brow at Yoongi in response. “You should consider stop reading all those messages I’m sure Golden is getting. Can be a bit too much to handle with it being finals week and stuff, you know? No need to be stressing over a blog that will be ending soon and finals, okay?”

           Jungkook seemed to be in thought for a bit about Yoongi’s advice before nodding his head and giving him a smile. “Thanks…”

           “No problem… now leave me alone. I’ve done enough for Golden this semester,” Yoongi shooed off the freshman.

                                                            ~!~

           Your POV

           This was like deja-vu. You were sitting in the same little sandwich café off campus that you and Namjoon loved to study at. Your laptop was with you as you were waiting for the arrival of your other party except it wasn’t Namjoon  you were waiting for this time. It was Jungkook. The café happened to also be the place where you first met him. You remembered thinking how shy he was when you first met him. Granted, you were shy as well but not as much as him. You will admit, you weren’t that interested in the boy the first time you met him – he was just another one of Namjoon’s millions of friends. If the current you would’ve told the you from three months ago that you’d develop feelings for that same shy boy who also turned out to be the mysterious music blogger you were obsessed with, you definitely wouldn’t believe yourself.

           It was almost 4:10 as you sipped on the hot cocoa you had ordered. Concluding that Jungkook’s final may be taking a little longer than expected, you decided to open the blog site. One thing you accomplished this morning after Chloe had left was creating a URL for your new blog. You still didn’t have an idea of what to do but hey, it was a start. Instead of going with DancerCookies again, you decided on BeautifulDancer. It was a song rec Jungkook did a while ago. You thought he may have recommended it for you discreetly since the day he posted it, you had told him about your struggle with choosing a major. Of course, you could’ve been completely wrong, and he just really liked that song and wanted to encourage others.

           You scrolled through some blog pages before stopping on one. Eyes widening, you clicked on the name of the blog – “Falling in Love with a Senior That Will Be Graduating Next Semester: The Sad Story of Chloe C.” Chloe’s blog! She updated it? You noticed that she had just posted a blog update. Titled, “Not All Princesses Receive Their Prince Charming’ – which received an eyeroll from you – you scanned through the post. It had to be the most normal post Chloe had made since making her blog. She still used acronyms to keep the obvious identities hidden, but she mainly talked about coming to terms that, “Sometimes people don’t return your feelings” and “You can’t force someone to like you.” She also mentioned how that the post would be her final update on the blog as, “This stupid blog assignment ends tomorrow and so does this blog.” You had to admit, you were proud of how Chloe had matured over the past three months. Yes, she was still your beloved wild Chloe, but ever since the Namjoon incident, she seemed to back away from the senior. You chuckled as you remembered the song Namjoon wrote for her. You wondered how Chloe would quickly change up this post after she learned that Namjoon actually did return her feelings for him. That, however, was something that they would have to talk to each other about. The last time you revealed something to Chloe regarding Namjoon, it ended in a week-long fight.

           As you clicked away from her blog, you heard the jingle of the door and saw Jungkook walk in, hands stuffed in his padded jacket and face buried in his scarf. Your face reddened as his eyes searched the café before landing on you. He threw his bunny-like grin at you as he quickly made his way towards you.

           “Sorry I’m late!” He apologized as he removed his jacket. He was wearing a gray Puma sweat suit and white sneakers. He must’ve recently gotten a haircut because, despite his bangs still being down and slightly disheveled – much to your annoyance – his hair looked shorter. Several silver earrings accompanied his ears – one in the right ear and two in the left and a silver watch on his wrist. It was a very simple, causal look but you couldn’t help but stare. He looked so… cute. Not the same “cute” you thought when you first met him and thought he had a baby face and looked adorable. No – he looked cute as if he matured more into a man within the last three months.

           “It’s okay! I only got here five minutes ago,” You shifted your eyes elsewhere to stop staring at him. You knew he didn’t believe you when he eyed your nearly empty mug of cocoa.

           “Sure…” He laughed it off as he sat down. “So… what’s up?”

           “H-huh? Oh! Um… just wanted… to hang out?” You laughed nervously as closed your laptop to give Jungkook your full attention.

           “On finals week? That’s unlike you.”

           “Oh, and you know me so well now, huh?” You playfully smirked at him which caused his face to turn red. He was so cute. There was a brief silence between the two of you as you both tried to think of what to say to one another. You wanted to ask him what he was planning to do to reveal himself tomorrow but then he’d know you knew who he was – as well as your increasing feelings for him.

           “Thought of a blog idea yet?” He suddenly asked, taking you away from your mind. You let out a heavy sigh as you sunk back into the booth you sat in. “I take that as a no…”

           “The only thing I’ve done is create an empty blog page. I have no idea what to put on it.”

           “Hm…” Jungkook tried to think of something to tell you for your blog.

           “Think if I write a post about cats, she’ll give me an A?” You asked as you sat up. Everyone in the class knew of the professor’s weakness for the fluffy furballs.

           “I’d say a C- at the most,” Jungkook chuckled. You sucked your teeth at him before sinking back in your chair. Another silence between you two as you both pondered what you could do for your blog to save your grade. Well, at least you wondered about it. You didn’t know what Jungkook was thinking. Occasionally, you’d both make eye contact with one another and give shy smiles and giggles. Though it was silent between you both, you felt completely comfortable. You couldn’t wait for him to reveal himself tomorrow. You could finally talk to him about his music taste and share songs with another. Maybe you could even make him a  mixtape of your favorite songs – if people still even did that. There was so much you wanted to talk to him about but his secret of being Golden was holding you back. It felt like there was a part of him you both knew about but couldn’t discuss. It was agonizing. You wanted to know so much more about Jungkook so your feelings could grow for him – or fade out depending on what you learned. However, you don’t think it was possible for you to stop liking him.

           Just as he was about to say something, both of your phones started to violently go off along with several others in the café. Thinking it was a severe weather alert, you whipped out your phone and to your surprise – it was your school’s newspaper posting a “Breaking News” article about how “The Infamous Golden turns off messaging hours before his big reveal!” Your eyes widened at the article and immediately your eyes glance at Jungkook who was still looking at his phone. He seemed slightly annoyed by the article.

           “Golden is making everyone go crazy, huh?” You laughed nervously as you set down your phone. Jungkook tore his eyes away from the article and looked at you. His face still seemed tensed.

           “Is Golden still making you feel crazy?” He suddenly asked, taking you by surprise. You felt your mouth go dry as you searched for a proper response in your head. There was no way you could let him know you knew who he was. You avoided his eye contact as he seemed to try to search for an answer within them.

           “Uh… not really? My… um… blog was deleted! So, I haven’t really been on the app to see what he’s up to. And he obviously can’t message me because I deleted and all… and he doesn’t know my new blog name… so…”

           Jungkook seemed to think about your answer before nodding his head as if accepting it. You let out a nervous chuckle as you chugged down the remainder of your now cold cocoa.

           “Golden makes me crazy…” You heard Jungkook mumble.

           “Yeah, but after tomorrow, no more Golden, right?” A wavering smile appeared on your lips.

           “Yeah… no more Golden…”

                                                           ~!~

           You sat at your desk in your dorm, one foot in the chair as the other hung loosely. It was 11:30pm and you still hadn’t thought about what to do with your blog. You had tried going on the app again after leaving Jungkook, but it was going crazy with the news of Golden closing his inbox. The school somehow made the hashtags #GoldenIsComing and #GoldensReveal trend nationwide. It was insane. No wonder Jungkook was stressed. He wasn’t the only one, though. When you were brushing your hair a few minutes ago, you could’ve sworn more strands came out than normal. It had to be from all the stress the semester put you through and is still putting you through. Tomorrow would be the end of things but you were no way prepared.

           “Y/N!” Chloe suddenly came bursting into your dorm room along with Jimin. You didn’t know where the girl was this late at night with only a couple of hours before the final – or why Jimin was with her – but you assumed she was out with her other friends. Unlike you, Chloe was prepared for the final. Funny… she didn’t even show up to class and she was prepared. “Did you hear?!”

           “Golden closed his inbox?” You shrugged. It had literally happened hours ago. It’s all everyone around campus had been talking about for the rest of the day. In fact, when Jungkook was walking you back to your dorm, you both heard people gossiping about it. He looked annoyed from it while you had thrown him worried glances.

           “No! Taehyung!” Jimin said as they both ran up to you and shoved their phones in your face. Both were on different pages. The one on Jimin’s phone revealed the homepage for Vmusic95 and on it, as clear as a day and in bold letters, there was a post that said:

           Hello! Kim Taehyung here! I was gonna reveal myself tomorrow but… I thought I’d do it now. I’m VMusic95. Can’t wait to present my blog tomorrow to everyone! See you then! – Tae (V)

           Your eyes widened as you snatched Jimin’s phone from his hand, earning a “hey!” from him in response. What was going on? Did they plan this? First Jungkook closing his inbox and now Taehyung revealing himself before the final. Would this put Jungkook in danger? Would people suspect him after this? How many of your classmates noticed the two together?

           “Forget about that, Jungkook made his final post as Golden!” Chloe took Jimin’s phone from you and tossed it to her bed, earning another “hey!” from the boy. “And you’ll never guess what it is!”

           “What is it?” You blink confusedly as you took her phone from her. There was a black screen and that only meant that he had done another cover. Where did Jungkook find the time between finals to record a song. More importantly, what song was it? His caption that usually told the song name and gave a brief description as to why he chose the song wasn’t even there. It simply said:

           See you in a  few hours. – Golden

           You pressed the play button on the video and instantly, you felt your entire body freeze over. That song… it was…

           “Paper Hearts…” Jimin said breathlessly as the song filled all your ears. It was the song you absolutely adored. The song you always listened to before you did any dance. Jungkook was the only other person outside of Jimin, Hoseok, and Chloe who knew your love for the song. Taehyung knew about it, but he didn’t seem to care for the song. You knew Jungkook was Golden, but this just confirmed things even more.

           “What is he planning?” Chloe held her chin as she tried to make a connection as to why he would cover this song.

           “Maybe he really likes the song!” Jimin said, receiving an eyeroll from Chloe.

           “Park, are you dense? He didn’t just choose that song just because he likes it. He chose it because…” Chloe looked at you and immediately your face was red as a strawberry as you knew what she was implying.

           “How is he gonna pull this off? I’m so confused. Taehyung didn’t even tell me he planned on revealing himself tonight!” Jimin exclaimed.

           “We’re just gonna have to wait until tomorrow…” Chloe said. Jimin nodded in agreement before turning to you.

           “Good luck, Y/N! You’ll be fine…”

           “I have less than 12 hours before the final,” You frowned at him.

           “Okay, maybe you’ll be fine!” He said as he retrieved his phone from Chloe’s bed. “I gotta go prepare for my finals tomorrow so… see you guys tomorrow?”

           You both just nodded at Jimin as Chloe and you looked at Jungkook’s blog on her phone. Jimin slipped out the room as Chloe grabbed her phone from you. “I don’t know what’s going on but I’m going to bed so I can be on full on detective mode at the final tomorrow.”

           “Chloe…” You groaned. She threw you a mischievous smile as she walked inside your shared bathroom.

           “Don’t worry… I won’t expose Jungkook for being Golden. I just wanna… get some information on something else,” She smirked as she closed the door. Not knowing what she meant by “else” and your thoughts returning to your own blog, you walked over to your bed and faceplanted into the pillow. Letting out a heavy breath, you let your brain wander around for literally any idea. At this point, you were just gonna explain how your blog was blank because “simplicity is sometimes best” or something like that. Your mind drifted back to Jungkook’s cover of Paper Hearts. It was a beautiful cover and made you want to cover the song yourself. Of course, it’d be through dancing and not singing. Your vocals couldn’t handle the vocal legend that is Tori Kelly.

           …

           Suddenly, you shot up from your bed as a light bulb went off above your head. A cover! A dance cover! That was it! You could choreograph a dance to the song! It was clear as day! You’d be able to explain easily why there was only one video of you dancing on your blog – how choreographing a dance takes time just as choosing a major or creating a successful blog or any other event in life. It’s not about the quantity of the blog but the quality. Hopping out your bed, you grabbed your cellphone and room key.

           “Chloe! I will be back in the morning!”

           “Huh?” Chloe said as she stuck her head out of the bathroom door, half of her face still covered with makeup while the other half still intact. She glanced at the time on the clock. 11:59pm. “Y/N, where are you going? It’s late!”

           “Thought of what to do for my blog! I’ll be at the dance studio!” You grinned at her as you rushed out the door. Just as you slammed the door with a loud bang, the time on the clock changed to 12am.

           T-Minus 0 Days Until the CW Final.

D-Day.

[etherealwaifgoddess]

To Give Him The World, Chpt.5

Main Characters: Thor x Ellie (original female character)

Summary: Ellie takes Thor on a walk into town for coffee and a little sightseeing. If you haven’t read the first four chapters you can catch up HERE!

Warnings/ Content: as usual- fluff and Thor getting frustrated with himself but Ellie helps him through it. Brief mention of PTSD and depression. Personal head cannon - I like to think that Bruce would have pulled Thor aside after Endgame and been like “Buddy, this isn’t just about being sad. You can get help. PTSD is real. Depression is real. Gods aren’t excluded from suffering.”  #brucebannerisagoodbro

Word Count: 2.9k

Author’s Note: Hello lovelies! It’s been a loooong week. I’m so happy it’s Friday because I’m planning on scrubbing through the rest of this fic tomorrow morning while sipping my coffee and pretending the outside world doesn’t exist. For now, enjoy chapter five. We’re over halfway through ya’ll!  XOXO - Ash

To Give Him The World, Chapter Five

Ellie led the way to New Asgard’s only coffee shop. It was situated at the edge of the main shopping street with patio seating outside under the blue and white awning. It was bright and cheery inside with walls of books and a whole section of teas and coffees to buy and make at home. Thor looked around eagerly, having never been inside before. Ellie let him look around a minute while she headed for the counter, desperately ready for her morning coffee. 

A young man with short cropped hair and rich brown skin stood behind the counter. He waved as she approached, “Morning Ellie! Your usual?”

“Hey Marcus. Yes, a big one today, I need it.” Ellie told him.

“I bet you do…. I see that guy you brought in with you. Hel-lo tall, chubby, and handsome. So is the dry spell over then?” Marcus quirked an eyebrow at her suggestively and she couldn’t suppress a giggle. She had befriended the overly dramatic barista when the shop opened four years ago and she started coming in daily for her coffee fix. Marcus had the morning shift on the weekdays, and sometimes on weekends they would find time to hang out. He was always up for some girl talk and his own dating life was much more exciting than Ellie’s so she got to live vicariously through him and his escapades to find his very own prince charming. 

Ellie blushed and couldn’t bring herself to possibly embarrass Thor by talking about him. “Be nice, he’s an old friend. I’m not sure about anything more just yet.”

Marcus shrugged, “Says the girl in yesterday’s clothes.”

“Marcus!” Ellie picked up a biscotti out of the counter top bin and threw it at him. 

Marcus laughed as he dodged it and walked over to the espresso bar to start on Ellie’s vanilla latte.

Thor had heard the commotion and walked over to join Ellie at the counter. He stared intently at the board reading through the options. “There are so many things.” he said almost to himself. Thor was starting to fluster, not knowing what most of the items on the menu were and becoming frustrated that he was inept at something as simple as finding the right type of coffee. He wished for a beer, he wouldn’t have to worry about anything if he just had a few beers. 

“Why don’t you get what I’m having and if you want to try something new next time, Marcus can go through the different types with us. I don’t know what half of this crap is.” Ellie offered.

“Okay, whatever you’re having is fine.”

“Marcus,” Ellie called over to him, “Make that two.”

“Not a problem, doll face. Gimme one sec.” 

Thor looked from Marcus to Ellie curiously.

“He’s a good friend. I come in daily for my caffeine fix and his dating life gossip.” 

Thor nodded, “Hello, Ellie’s friend.” He called out.

“Hello Ellie’s other friend.” Marcus called back cheerily. He took a minute to glance over and get a good look at the new man in his friend’s life, but his jaw dropped when he saw it was Thor. Marcus fumbled with the frothing milk pitcher, splashing a little on his hand with a curse. “I’m so sorry. I meant no disrespect your majesty.” Marcus tried to back peddle. 

Thor shook his head, “None taken. Any friend of Ellie’s is a friend of mine. It’s great to meet you. Please, call me Thor.” Thor extended his hand warmly which Marcus scrambled over to shake. Thor shook the smaller man’s hand heartily and Ellie had to bite her lip from laughing as Marcus’ whole body was swayed by the shake. 

Marcus was still wide eyed but managed to speak, “I’m Marcus. Can I get you something to drink?”

Thor nodded, ”Well, Marcus, I’m going to have whatever Ellie ordered.”

“Oh, right. Sorry. It should be almost done.” Marcus scrambled back to the espresso bar to finish the drink. He shot Ellie a quick text while he waited for the last two shots of espresso to pour. “Details girl. You owe me details.” He typed. 

Ellie’s phone chimed in her pocket and she pulled it out to check. She laughed when she read the message. “Later. Promise.” She sent back. 

Thor looked inquisitively at Ellie’s phone. “Everyone seems to be obsessed with those mobile devices. I don’t understand it.”

“They keep people connected.” Ellie explained, “It’s much easier to send a quick morning hello, or just something you found funny by text than call and have a whole conversation. Think about it, if you wanted to talk to Valkyrie to catch up, what would you do?”

“Hit myself in the face. It’s what she’d end up doing anyway.”

“Thor!” Ellie giggled and smacked his arm, “Be serious.”

“Alright. I would call her from my house phone. Or I would walk down to find her in town.”

“Okay, perfect. So, you would only walk to town once a day, right? You wouldn’t make trips down and back just because you thought of something else. You wouldn’t call her several times a day with small things.”

“No, I’d wait.”

“Exactly. With cell phones we stay connected all the time. You could tell her right away when you think of something instead of waiting until your next trip into town and possibly forgetting it.” 

“Hmm.” Thor took a minute to ponder her words, “It could be useful. But I don’t know if anyone needs me interrupting their day that much.” he says with a self depreciating chuckle. 

“I go back to work on Monday and I wouldn’t mind having my day interrupted by hearing from you.” 

Thor felt a blush spreading across his cheeks and ducked his head to look at the floor. He was saved by the return of Marcus with two lattes in hand. “Here you go. It was good seeing you Ellie, and nice meeting you, your magis…. Thor.” Marcus feels weird calling their king by his first name but doesn’t want to make an even larger faux paux by refusing to respect his wishes. 

Thor shoots Marcus a grateful smile for catching himself and pulls Ellie’s hand into his as they exit the shop. The streets are busy for a Friday morning and Thor’s hand squeezes Ellie’s a little tighter when people recognize him and say hello. He’s anxious but holding on and Ellie is so proud he’s managing. One overeager older gentleman stops them and begins giving Thor a piece of his mind for abdicating the throne to a non royal woman. Thor shifts uncomfortably, trying to come up with a polite response and squeezing Ellie’s hand for dear life. 

Ellie decides she’s heard enough chauvinistic rambling and steps in. “Wouldn’t you say being present is extremely important to governing a community?”

The old man’s eyes narrowed in on Ellie, unsure where she was going, “Well yes, of course.” he conceded.

“Good, we agree then. You can’t lead people if you’re not there and Thor has been part of the Avengers for almost a decade. He could be called away at a moment’s notice. He has been called away so much within that time that he’s been away more than he’s been here. Valkyrie hasn’t left since she returned and has no other obligations to pull her away. Clearly Thor made the right choice in leaving Asgard under her care.” 

The old man stared at Ellie like he wanted to argue but needed to restrategize first. Ellie didn’t give him a chance. “But thank you so much for stopping to say hello. We must be off. I hope you have a lovely weekend.” Ellie pulled Thor along with her, refusing to look back and enjoy what was probably a hilarious expression on the man’s face. 

Thor was stunned at how easily Ellie shut the man down and was staring at her, baffled, as they moved briskly down the sidewalk. Ellie looked up to see Thor’s face and gave him a little shrug, “Sorry if I overstepped. That guy was relentless and you seemed to be really uncomfortable.”

“You didn’t.” he assured her, “And I was. That man is exactly why I stay home.”

“Oh darling, no. Don’t let him get to you. We’re going to have a lovely morning out. I’m with you and nobody is going to upset you as long as I’m here.” Ellie promised him. 

Thor smiled down at her, amused by her determination. Remembering the cup in his hand, he asked, “I rather like this drink. What was it called?”

“Vanilla latte. I get one every morning from there.” 

“I might have to start. It’s like coffee but better.”

Ellie chuckled at his description. “It’s mostly milk and sugar but it has espresso which is kind of like really strong coffee.”

Thor nods, thinking for a moment, “And the cafe is open every day?”

“Yes, every day. Though Marcus is only there on weekday mornings. The weekend morning girl is Rachel.” 

“You really do go everyday.” 

“Of course! I can’t make this at home and it’s typically my breakfast.” 

“This is your breakfast?”

“Yeah, mostly. I never seem to remember to prep anything or bring it along even when I do.” 

Thor frowns, “You need more than that for a morning meal.” 

“I survive just fine, Thor. And look, we’re here.” Ellie pointed to the gates of the community garden. 

It was a beautiful area dedicated to nature and fenced off from the town surrounding it. The paths throughout the space were lined with smooth river rocks in varying sizes and low lying flowering plants. It managed to be whimsical and elegant all at the same time. You wouldn’t be surprised to stumble across either a wedding event or a faery tea party while you walked the paths. It was one of Ellie’s favorite places in New Asgard, she loved the smell of the green earth there and the calmness it brought her. Thor watched her face as she stopped every so often to admire the plants, sometimes bending down to lovingly run her fingers across soft leaves. Thor thought it was very well done and was impressed with Valkyrie’s planning. 

“Have you been here before?” Ellie asked him as she noticed he wasn’t as engrossed as she was. 

Thor shook his head, “No, but Valkyrie had talked to me about her plans years ago. It’s lovely.” 

“It really is. I come here a lot, especially if I’m stressed. There’s something soothing about being here.” 

“That’s nice you have a place to go. That’s how I feel about my rock.”

“Your rock?”

“Yes, the rock on the cliff at the edge of my backyard. You can sit on it to watch the sea. There’s nothing more relaxing than sitting there.” 

“Huh. I’d like to see that. Maybe we can do that next. I’ve shown you my favorite peaceful place, it’s only fair I get to see yours.” 

Thor was pleased he’d been able to contribute to their day and he grinned at Ellie who was already off, rubbing her fingers through a stretch of tall grasses. They walked through the labyrinth-like trails hand in hand, exploring each new turn as they came to it. Thor found a bench to park himself on for a bit and a trash can for their paper cups in the area around the large decorative fountain. He was happy to sit and people watch as Ellie backtracked a bit to try and see where the one narrow offshoot led to. She had a feeling it was a shortcut to the new children’s garden but wanted to explore. Ellie hadn’t wanted to try and have Thor navigate through the small area but when he announced he was ready to sit a moment she took the opportunity to go back. 

Thor sat happily people watching for almost fifteen minutes while Ellie explored. He loved sitting outside in the sun and realized he hadn’t done it in quite some time. As much as he enjoyed being outside in his yard, and especially sitting on his rock, it had been increasingly harder to get out of bed to the living room, let alone go outside. Thor knew it was depression and PTSD but it didn’t make him feel any better about it. He’d talked with Banner about it at length before he returned to New Asgard. There were medications he could try but being Aesir it was unlikely they would work so they ruled them out. Bruce had sent him emails on things he could do to help manage both issues but after a little while things started landsliding back to the way they were before Bruce and Rocket had found him in the cottage with Korg and Miek. 

Ellie found Thor right where she’d left him, deep in thought. “Hey,” she said sitting down next to him, “I was right, it was the children’s garden. It has a Very Hungry Caterpillar theme. Look.” Ellie held her phone out to him and flipped through the photos she’d taken of the area.

Thor was starting to like the idea of cell phones. “Thank you for taking those. It’s a charming little area.” 

“It is. So how was your rest? Ready to keep moving?” 

“Yes, I think we should. We’re almost done, right?” 

Ellie nodded, “Yeah, we’re about three quarters of the way through. Or we can take a quick route right out if you’re ready. We’ve already been here over an hour.”

“You love it here, we can keep going. But I will pay for a ride to get us home afterwards.”

“No, it’s okay. I come here so much, I don’t mind. Let’s call a car now and get you home. I need to pop over to my apartment at some point today though. My clothes are pretty gross at this point.”

Thor hadn’t even realized Ellie was still wearing yesterday’s clothes. The same clothes she had spent the whole day cleaning in. “Ellie, how inconsiderate of me. I didn’t even think of it. Is your place on the way back?  We can stop there first.”

“No, it’s okay. It’s a few more minutes in the opposite direction. Don’t worry about it, I’ll go later” 

“We can still go. You shouldn’t have to be uncomfortable any longer than you have been.”

“You sure you’re up to it?” 

“Absolutely. I’d like to see where you live.”

“Okay, thank you. And don’t get too excited. My place is pretty boring, just a little apartment over on Oak Street. Let me call for a car so we can head out.” Ellie pulled out her phone and made the call. They had ten minutes which was plenty for them to get back to the entrance. She took Thor’s hand again and showed him the most direct route out from where they were. There was a straight route out from almost anywhere in the gardens if you knew where to look. It was a safety measure but one that was most often used by frazzled parents with overtired children who were ready to be done with their outing. 

The car was early and they were walking out of the gates as it pulled up. Thor opened and closed Ellie’s door for her before dashing around to his side. Ellie gave the driver her address and they arrived at her little apartment barely five minutes later. It was an old stone house that had been subdivided into three apartments, one on each floor. Ellie had the bottom floor and she loved having the large backyard right outside her kitchen door. The car agreed to wait while they ran inside for a few minutes to gather her things and Thor followed Ellie into her home. It was nothing special, just a basic collection of rooms with cream colored walls and pale oak wood floors. Thor would have expected it to be more homey and wondered why Ellie hadn’t decorated. It could have been a show home for all the blandness. 

“Did you just move in?” Thor called to Ellie who was in the bedroom changing. 

“No, I’ve been here since we arrived. It was a great catch getting a bottom floor apartment.” she called back.

Thor was even more perplexed and was about to ask about the lack of personal items when Ellie popped out in her new outfit. “Oh, wow.” Thor had to consciously keep his jaw up when he saw her. Ellie had changed into a pair of soft looking leggings and a long cable knit sweater with a neckline large enough that it exposed her left shoulder. Thor thought she looked absolutely edible and fought the urge to go kiss her senseless.

Ellie laughed at his reaction. “So I’m all set. Unless you think I should pack a bag.” 

“Pack a bag?” Thor parroted back confused, his mind distracted by how soft her pale, creamy skin looked against the dark green of her sweater.

“Yes, Thor, if I’m staying over again I need to bring a few things. I didn’t want to pressure you or presume anything but you said you slept better with me there and I don’t have any plans this weekend.” 

That caught Thor’s attention. “Yes! Please do. Pack a bag. Several bags. I’d love it if you stayed the weekend.” 

Ellie laughed again, “Okay, give me one more minute to pack.” She raced back to her bedroom to gather up two sets of clothes, her toiletries, and set of lace underwear just in case. She was hurrying back to Thor in the living room before he’d gotten a chance to get his wits about him. 

“Come on, let’s go.” she herded him out the door and back into the waiting car. 

Tag list lovelies: @thorfanficwriter @lancsnerd @avengers-fixation

[creativestalkerrs]

Dear Aksel

best friend!aksel x reader

warning; angst, swearing, heartache

summary; when you begin to feel something more towards your best friend, you know he never sees you as such, so you though. it was only with a letter that he finally realizes before it’s too late

word count; 1.7k

You sat on Aksel’s bed, looking at him while he edited. You loved the man with all your heart, he’s been there for you since every major and minor event in your life. You burst out into laughter as he recorded his lines, completely messing up. Although you always creep around Aksel while he edits, he just couldn’t get a good recording with your presents right there.

“Y/N!” Aksel laughed as your laughter filled the room. “How am I going to finish this line when your breathing down my back! God, you’re so annoying,” Aksel spun in his chair as your back was on his bed, trying your best to keep it down because his lovely mother was asleep. 

“You say that as if I was literally the worst person you meet when you have Alex in your life,” You sat and looked Aksel dead in the eyes. “I’ll buy you pasta to make up for your lost recording,” You whisper, leaning into Aksel, whose face was inched towards yours. His eyes sparkled in the dimly lit room, his lips plump and your stomach had butterflies. What was your heart doing? You swallowed the lump in your throat as Aksel’s eyes burned a spot into your soul. His loving eyes and look warmed you up. You ignored it as if it was nothing, but your palms were clammy… this wasn’t the first time Aksel made you feel these things, but it was getting worse every late night you stayed to watch him stream or edit. You couldn’t understand why this was happening. He was your best friend since you saw him on the playground in the 4th grade. This moment felt like it lasted for an hour. You wanted to resume this moment.

“Deal, boomer,” Aksel finally spoke.

“Good. I’ll bring you some tomorrow then… I should get going,” You jumped up and whipped your palms on your jeans and grabbed your phone. Aksel raised his perfect eyebrow and tilted his head, confused because it was pretty early to leave.

“I thought you were staying the night. I was prepping on sleeping on the floor like a rat,” Aksel laughed.

“Nah, you’ll be editing all night. Besides, I have to wake up early tomorrow,” Y/N lied. “I’ll come back tomorrow with that pasta you ordered,” Y/N laughed leaning into Aksel and giving him a kiss on the forehead. “Love you, egg, try to actually sleep this time,” Y/N softly spoke as Aksel spun his chair back to his computer.

“No promises hoe!” He shouted as you left his room and shut his door. Your back was to the door as you felt your heart beating out of your chest. You felt Lola cuddle up to your leg as you smiled and gave her a pet

“Lola, your good a secrets… I know you know,” Y/N laughed as Lola purred. Y/N clenched her phone and began to walk out of Aksel’s home

***

Months went by, and Y/N finally accepted she loved Aksel in more than a friend way. Y/N never spoke up because she didn’t want to ruin the bond between the two. Even the deep down, she knows Aksel wouldn’t judge and would still continue to break into her house and pet your dog while you were at work. It still scared her. 

Y/N planned on telling Aksel everything. She told Ani about everything she was feeling because Ani understood was Y/N was coming from, about her insecurities and fears and even her strength with her relationship with Aksel. 

Y/N was planning on going to dinner with Aksel and then she was going to go to tell Aksel how she felt. Ani suggested that would be best and Y/N planned out everything. It would be nice for the two to spend some time together, especially since the last few weeks Aksel has been kind of distance with her. It sucked, but she knew Aksel was stressed with videos and streams, so she didn’t take it too seriously.

bing

Y/N checked her phone to see a text from Ani. Y/N read it and with tears spilling down her cheeks, he heart began to break. So this is why he has been distance.  I was too late.

ANI; Hey Y/N. I was talking to Aksel tonight and I have some news I thought you should know. Aksel was talking to Alex and I and told us he has a new girlfriend… I’m so sorry. He said he was going to tell you the same night you wanted to tell him. My heart is breaking for you. I love you and if you ever need a vacation, I will be here. Don’t look at Instagram for a while

Sobbing into her pillow, she threw her phone onto the bed, shaking. How long? Why didn’t he tell her? They were best friends. Her sobs were so loud that her mother walked in, worried. Y/N’s phone was flashing the message sent by Ani and read it, understanding the sobs of weakness and betrayal. Y/N told her mother everything, and how she felt towards Aksel was no exception.

“Why does this always happen to me? Why am I crying about a boy? Why am I crying about Aksel?” Y/N asked as salty tears soaked her pillow, her mother embracing her into a hug.

“Your heart wants what your heart wants, love. Everything will be okay… Aksel will understand… Shh,” Her mother cooded into Y/N’s ear. Y/N grabbed her phone, begging for more heartbreak, she checked Instagram to see a picture of Aksel and his new girlfriend, kissing. 

Her sobbed became louder, but no tears seemed to be coming out. They must have been trapped in her pillow. Her mother left to give her a cup of ice water and to help her throw the night, but Y/N couldn’t understand any of the situation. It just hurts

***

Weeks went by. Y/N ignored Aksel like the plague, as Aksel never seemed to notice. Y/N took up Ani on that offer and made a trip to see her. She wanted to do one last thing before she left for god knows how long. She wanted to write Aksel a letter and give him his pasta she promised that night. 

Tears rolling down the page, smearing the ink. He hand began to cramp as she spilled her heart out on the page. She had to leave shortly, but she felt like this was important before she left.

She folds the paper and stuck it in her pocket. She put the last of her stuff in the car and grabbed the pasta box out of the fridge. The box was in her lap as her mom drove her to Aksel’s house to give him his food, having no idea she was coming only to leave. Y/N put the paper inside the box as her heart started to race. She got out and knocked on the door to see Aksel.

“Hey…” Aksel said with a half smile. “You fell off the edge of the earth, what’s going on?” He asked. Y/N looked down at her shoes and gave him his box.

“Here’s the pasta you wanted…” She said, ignoring Aksel’s question. He looked confused as he took it. “I won’t be in town for a while… I’m taking a holiday,” Y/N avoided eye contact, looking at her boots. Aksel’s long fingers meet her chin, lifting it.

“Why didn’t you say that? What’s been going on Y/N? You’re scaring me. I miss you,” His voice was shaking as you just shook your head, not believing he hasn’t put anything together. Y/N’s mom honked the horn.

“Maybe some other time Aksel… I have to go. Enjoy the pasta,” Y/N frowned as she turned onto her heel and went back inside her mother’s car. Aksel just looked at her, angry and confused. He watched as the car pulled away and left. He tried to understand what he did and why she was leaving.

Later that night, after Aksel’s girlfriend left, Aksel finally wanted to eat the pasta Y/N gave him. Opening up the box, he notices a piece of paper on top of it. Aksel put down the box and opened it, seeing Y/N handwriting.

Dear Aksel

When you’re reading this, I'll be gone and away from you. I’ll be thinking about everything that came for this moment. I wish I could have talked to you, but life made it so I couldn’t. I never wanted to fall in love with you. In fact, that was my number one rule; DON’T FALL IN LOVE WITH AKSEL. But here we are, the butterflies and all. I was going to tell you that face to face, but then I found out you started to date someone else. I found out from Ani. I wish you told me yourself.

I don’t know what’s going to happen now. I need a mental break. Love really fucks you up. You’re my best friend and that will never change. Maybe in 5 years, we can laugh about this, or in 5 years we can ride away in a car that says JUST MARRIED on the back. Who knows.

I hope you live your life happy if I never see you again. Maybe I can date Tom Holland and you can be my maid of honor, but I know, even if I count all the stars in the universe and even if I love Tom a little too much, it would be you I would want to be with. 

Please promise me this, if you never felt an ounce of what I felt, that you treat your girlfriend the way you treated me, but with more love and compassion. I know you never loved me like that, and that’s okay, but please, tell me the truth. I’m sorry I had to run out like that.

Love you,

Y/N

Aksel’s heart broke, realizing you were the one he always wanted to be with. Now, it was too late, for you were in your next chapter in life. Without Aksel.

PART TWO?

[jbbarnesandnoble]

Forever and Always: Part 6

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Series Summary: You and Bucky used to date, until someone got in between you two. After a year without seeing him, he pops up in your life again, and old feelings with him?Harsh words can never taken back, but can they be forgiven?

Chapter Summary: Christmas Eve/Day, New Year’s Eve

Word Count: 2,131 

Warnings: Things are gonna get super messy from here on out:)

A/N: Y/N/N stands for, Your nickname. Sorry for the delay, my brother came from Australia to visit for 3 weeks -he actually leaves today, so I’m not sure when I’ll see him next- and my older sister came from Florida for a few days. So we had a family reunion. Which is why I haven’t been working on F&A. Please leave some feed back, I love to know what you all are thinking. If you want me to tag you in this series feel free to let me know!

Christmas Eve

Back when you were in college you started a tradition where every Christmas Eve you would bake cookies for all of your close friends and family members.

Slowly that small tradition turned into something much bigger. You started baking cookies for your neighbors, co-workers, even your mail man Happy

His real name is Harold, you call him Happy because he always seems to be so happy whenever you see him.

At six-thirty you decide to start baking. Natasha went out with Clint to pick up some last minute things for tomorrow. You take advantage of having the place to yourself, playing your music at full volume. After gathering all the necessary ingredients and items you’ll need, you put on your favorite apron. It’s the one Bucky got you, as soon as he found out your love for baking he practically ran out of his house to get it for you. He told you that he thought the 1940′s style suited you. You weren’t quite sure what that meant, but you couldn’t deny how sweet the gesture was.

A while later you’re dancing around singing at the top of your lungs, using a spoon covered in cookie batter as your microphone. Which is probably why you didn’t notice Nat come home. Or when she called out your name.

“Did you start the Christmas Cookie festivities without me?” Nat manages to yell over the music. Her sudden appearance makes you jump.

“My gosh woman, maybe try a warning next time.” you place your hand over your heart, trying to calm yourself down after experiencing a near heart attack.

“Maybe try turning your music down next time, and I did. I called your name like three times." she sasses you back, placing a hand on her hip

“Oh... Sorry.”

“I can’t believe you would start baking without me.” ignoring your apology she makes her way towards the kitchen counter.

“I didn’t know when you would be home and I didn’t feel up to baking at 2-am.” which was true, but you also prefer baking alone. You can do it at your own pace and you don’t have to worry about the other person asking  you what to do. Plus it helps to calm your nerves.

“Well, I’m back now. Put me to work Y/N/N.” her red lips spread into an effortlessly beautiful smile. You baked a decent amount of the cookies already. You only have a few batches left to make. While Nat works on make more batter, you start decorating a few of the cooled cookies. 

After all of the cookies have cooled and been decorated Nat helps you assemble the cookie bags 

“I think we’ve outdone ourselves this year, Y/L/N.” Nat licks a bit of frosting off her index finger.

“I think you’re right, Romanoff.” You say with a smile

Christmas Day

You spend the day running from place to place, spending most of the morning with your family. Then meeting up with Bucky and Sam before going to Steve and Peggy’s place for a bit. Afterwards you stop by Wanda’s small apartment located directly above her jewelry store to drop off her present. You didn’t stay long, seeing as her brother is in town for the holidays and you didn’t want to be in the way of their time together. 

After a long day you’re happy to relax home, Nat spent the day with Clint and his family. You say hi to him briefly when he drops her off. 

“Are you ready for the real Christmas festivities to begin?” Nat says with a sly smile. You know she can only mean one thing.

“If you mean, Christmas pajamas, Eggnog, cookies, and binge watching cheesy Christmas Rom-Coms? Then of course I am!” You both let out an excited squeal. The two of you have had the same Christmas tradition for as long as you can remember. It has always been your favorite part of the whole holiday. 

“You get the food I’ll set up the movies.” Nat says a bit too excitedly

You spend the rest of your night happily watching movies and eating junk food while spending time with one of your best friends.  

  New Year’s Eve

You wake up slowly already regretting tonight. You have no reason to be anticipating the worst. You have no reason to. Yet for some reason you have it in your mind that something is going to get wrong.  

You told Nat, Wanda, and Peggy that you've been dreading this night since you agreed to it and have no idea why. Tonight isn’t meant to be making you stress so much. In fact, it’s meant to be quiet the opposite, nothing more than a fun night with your friends. The three of them agreed that you were just being paranoid and that you have no reason to be worrying. But somehow that only made you feel worse.

"What could possibly go wrong?" You think, trying to reassure yourself. Even though you know that is the last question you should be asking yourself. Because once you ask that, every possible thing that could go wrong, goes wrong.

You’ve spent the last few hours trying on different outfits only to rip them back off and throw them onto the mountain of clothes that is taking over your bed. You plop onto your it with a tired huff. 

If Nat were here she would help you pick an outfit no problem. But alas she’s not, she went out with Clint this morning and told you that she would meet you at the party later on.

The thought of canceling crosses your mind a couple of times, but is quickly replaced with the picture of Bucky smiling brightly at you when you first agreed to go that day in the coffee shop.

You sit up with an aggravated huff. Looking around your messy room you finally decide it’s not worth stressing over and grab a plain black dress from the top of the clothing pile on your bed.

After a quick shower, you get dressed and apply a bit of makeup. Once you’re ready you begrudgingly leave the comfort of your small New York apartment.

An hour later you find yourself sitting in your car outside of Bucky's apartment building. After giving yourself a bit of a prep talk you head inside, making your way for the small elevator.

Getting inside you press the small button that'll take you to his floor. You stand there watching the floor numbers getting higher and higher, your anxiety growing with each floor. When you finally reach his floor you slowly make your way towards his apartment.

Even though it's been over a year since you've been to his place you still know the building like the back of your hand.

You're about to turn down his hallway, but stop short when you hear loud footsteps thumping down the hallway. You turn around to see Sam with a crooked smile planted on his face.

"Hey Y/N!" you give Sam a knowing head nod and smile.Without missing a beat you fist bump as he walks up to you.

You exchange pleasantries before you continue on your way, walking together.

Without knocking Sam leads you inside Bucky's apartment. As soon as you step inside a wave of old forgotten memories and nostalgia washes over you. You're too busy looking around to notice Sam left your side to say hi to everyone in the living area.

You only seem to notice the loud music and all of your friends sitting around laughing when Clint calls you over. You smile to everyone before taking a seat on the couch next to Wanda.

As soon as you take your seat you notice someone missing from the group. Looking around you lean closer to Wanda.

"Where's Buck?" You whisper, the question being for Wanda's ears only. She doesn't answer you, only nodding towards the kitchen. You offer her a small smile before sneaking off.

Slowly you open the door to the kitchen to reveal Bucky working on some last minute preparations for tonight. He has always been a perfectionist when it comes to hosting a party, even when it's as small as it is today. Everything has to be perfect.

You don't want to ruin this moment by walking inside the kitchen, instead you chose to lean on the door frame, watching Bucky work intently.

"Hey." You say quietly, smiling at him. If your sudden presence scared him he doesn't show it. Instead he grins at you.

"Hey Y/N."

"What's so important that it demands your attention. While your friend are having fun without you in the other room." You ask walking over to him

"That's a secret." Bucky says with an easy smile and wink. Even though he's smiling you can always tell when something is bothering him.

"What's wrong Buck?" You ask him softly putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Nothing that you need to concern yourself with doll." He tries to give you a reassuring smile, but you can see the worry behind it.

"Is it your dad again?" For as long as you have known James Barnes his dad has had health issues. Whenever he falls ill Bucky has to take charge of the company, putting more stress on him than he already has.

Bucky has always been the type to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders, no matter what he's going through. And if he was ever offered the world? He would refuse it.

He gives you another small smile -sad this time- and a weak nod.

Without another word you place your hand on his shoulder and offer him a small reassuring smile in return.

You're all out in the living room when a few more of Bucky’s friends arrive. You remember a few of them from previous parties and company events that Bucky invited you to.

"Hey Y/N, wanna get a refill with me?" Nat shakes the ice in her empty glass. She exchanges a strange look with Peggy and Wanda. Before you agree, even though your glass is still full.

"Haha, what's going on? You girls are making me nervous." You know you didn't have to add the last part, they can clearly tell you're concerned from how you’re acting.

"Y/N, Natasha and I have something to tell you." Peggy's words are gentle and slow.

"Go ahead Nat, tell her what you told me." Wanda puts her hand on Nat's.

"As you know, Bucky is in a relationship." She starts slowly.

"The other day -on our way to drop some things off here- Peg and I accidentally overheard a... strange conversation."

"It was a man and a woman. The man seemed to be frustrated about something, he even gave her a deadline." Peggy adds

"He said something about not getting the money fast enough, that whatever it is their planning, it shouldn't be taking this long." Nat looks at Peggy, hoping she'll fill you in on some of the blanks.

"From what we could understand, we assume that these people were lying and manipulating some poor soul for his money."

"Wait, what does this have to do with me and Bucky and his girlfriend?" The last part comes out just above a whisper, realizing what they’re trying to say.They must hear the worry in your voice, because they all step closer to you. Placing their hands on your shoulders.

“You don’t mean...” The next words don’t leave your mouth, you can’t bring yourself to say it. Luckily you don’t have to.

"We were going to just ignore what we overheard... that was before we heard the woman speak..." Nat stops, the words disappearing from her mouth. She can't seem bring herself to say the nasty part either.

"Y/N, It was Bucky's girlfriend." To your surprise it’s Wanda who speaks this time.

"We think she's using James for his money. We don't have any solid proof. But from their conversation her intentions seem pretty clear.” Peggy adds, you look into her bright brown eyes. You don’t miss the hint of pity or sadness in them, though you pretend you did. You look at your friends, the shock and fear evident on your face. You don’t bother hiding your emotions, you’re comfortable enough around them to be yourself.

“W-what?” Your voice comes out barely a whisper. You aren’t sure what to do, heck, you can barely process what they just told you. You can only think of one thing, of one person. I have to tell him. Plays over and over in you mind before you speak.

“I have to tell him, I have to tell Bucky.” this time your voice and eyes are full of determination.

Part 7

Tag List: @justreadingfics @soopranatural @invisibleanonymousmonsters @bloodyproudpotterhead @marvelsbangtan @void-imaginations @ladifreakingda @the-canary @taliarosej00 

[80steenmovie]

Single: Part One

Billy Hargrove x OC

part two

Summary: in the days leading up to when billy would officially meet your parents, you reflected on the the events and the time you had spent together.

Word count: 3.8k

Warnings: none

a/n: ahh I did a thing!! my first billy story so don't be too hard on me but tips and constructive criticism are always welcome. there's probably some common writing errors but I edited so quickly and needed to get this out already. I know this first part barely has any billy but good things come to those who wait I promise!! (also thought I should mention that what initially sparked this idea in my head was the song single by the neighbourhood so that’s where I got the title. it was initially going to be a short little thing but here we are.)

________

Attending an all girls private school meant no interaction with the opposite sex, just how your parents wanted it. That meant for eight hours a day, they didn’t have to worry about anything their precious daughter was doing besides preparing to attend an Ivy League school. But the other sixteen hours, aside from sleeping in your bed and being at home with them, they had no control over. As long as your parents believed you were at a friends house studying or staying after school for college prep classes you were free from their realms and were free to do whatever, with whomever.

February 1985

Hawkins High was located in the town right next to yours, but was only a few blocks down the road from where the town borders met. Rumours had circulated their way from Hawkins High into the halls of St. Jude that their was going to a huge party this weekend, the party of the century some were speculating.

You were at your locker, collecting your books for last period when a petite girl with short, brown hair jumped next to you.

“Three words. Party. You. Me. Going.”

“Lexi, that’s four words.”

“Oh. Yeah. Gee, how the hell did I even get into this school?” She joked.

Lexi always made you laugh, right when you needed a good laugh, and sometimes when you shouldn’t be laughing which was admittedly the times when you wanted to laugh the most. You bonded at orientation over the fact that neither of you were thrilled to be attending a school made up of a hundred percent estrogen and zero percent testosterone. For only being 5’3” Lexi was a fireball who wouldn’t let anyone stand in her way, and wouldn’t let a second go by without defending you against anyone. If it weren’t for Lexi, you might have still thought you would have had no life outside of school. But from that time freshman year when she invited you over for a “sleepover”, only to find out that there was no sleepover and her plan was sneak into a Hawkins High football game, you knew the next four years were going to be anything but dull with Lexi by your side.

“There’s parties all the time, what makes this one so special?” You speculated.

“Don’t tell me you’re going to make me go all by myself.”

“No, never. It’s just another lie I have to make up to tell my parents. It was fun for awhile, but now it’s starting to feel like a chore.”

“I’ll make up something and tell them for you.”

“No, I don’t want you to do that. But you never answered my question.”

“Shit girl, I don’t know. Apparently some kid who lives in a big ass house with a pool is having it as his house because his parents are out of town.”

A girl passing by in the hall was holding a bright yellow piece of paper and Lexi didn’t let her go by without checking it out. She quickly asked the girl if she could borrow it and you and Lexi quickly skimmed the flyer for you both to see Lexi’s assumption to be confirmed.

“party @ the harrington house

saturday @ 8

b there or b square

food and drinks 4 dayzzz”

“Be there or be square. How original.” You quipped.

“Okay so whoever this Harrington kid is isn’t acing English but no one makes flyers for a party unless it’s going to be insane.”

“Lex...I don’t know…”

Lexi cupped her hands together and with a puppy dog face pleaded, “Please, Anna. I promise if it blows we’ll leave.”

“Not the puppy dog face, come on.”

With that, Lexi pursed her lip and bowed her head even more than before.

“Damn you, you know I always fall for the puppy dog face.”

“So you’ll go?”

“Yes, I’ll go.” You sighed.

“Yay! I promise you won’t regret it!” She bubbled and wrapped you in a hug almost knocking you over. “Meet up with you after class!”

As you watched Lexi trot off to her next class, your mind started to wander and you hoped you wouldn’t regret this decision as Lexi had promised.

______

Last period seemed to drag on for forever and a day as you were scrambling your brain for a feasible lie to tell your parents what your whereabouts would be tomorrow night.  It would be the third time this week you were going out after dark and you worried your parents would get suspicious and start asking questions. You’ve been to a handful of parties before and had no problem telling your parents you would be at Lexi’s or going to a study group but there was a pit in your stomach telling you this wouldn’t be like the other parties and things would be...different.

“Anna!”

You had spaced out from your mind racing and hadn’t noticed that the bell rung and Lexi was standing in front of you at your desk.

“Are you good? When I got here you were staring at the ground and I said your name like three times.”

Still collecting your thoughts and being pushed back to reality you tried to form a coherent sentence by opening your mouth. But your brain wasn't cooperating and nothing came out.

Lexi could tell you were troubled and sat in the desk next to you. “Are you still worried about talking to your parents?”

It only just now occured to you that for almost three years the majority of your conversations with your parents were based off of lies, lies that you created. If it were up to them you would be in school all day until it was time for dinner and then to sleep for seven to eight hours. You couldn't live your life like that. And after the one time freshman year when you asked them if you could go to a small party and their reaction was anything but reasonable, that's when the lies started. But their disciplinary nature drove you to that, and you couldn't possibly try to reason with them now. Yet still, in the back of your head you feared a day would come when they find out and you would be on house arrest for the rest of your life. There was anxiety looming over you at the thought of having to tell another lie straight to their faces.

You lifted your head and shifted your body to look at Lexi and said, “Honestly, for the first time in three years I'm scared to death.”

“Hey, I'll do all the talking. You just stand there and nod in agreement. Deal?”

You couldn't help but smile and let out a small laugh at Lexi’s sly manner, “Deal.”

______

“Mom? Dad? I'm home. Lexi’s here.”

The only response was the echo of your announcement.

“Well, they're not home so I guess we’ll have to tell them later.”

Lexi had a big grin on her face and wagged her finger at you, “Ohhh no you don't. We're telling them tonight and you're not getting out of it. What happened to what we agreed to?” She protested.

You sighed out of defeat and pursed your lips as there was no way you could back out of an agreement with Lexi.

“Remember. I’ll do all the dirty work. You don’t have to do anything except stand there and look pretty. Got it?”

“Got it.” You hesitantly agreed.

“Good. Cause a car just pulled into the driveway.”

Your eyes went wide and your heart rate accelerated, you quickly whisked around to see your father grabbing his briefcase out of the backseat and headed towards the front door.

Lexi grabbed your hand and pulled you towards the kitchen. She took hold of your shoulders to place you on a seat at the island then grabbed a glass out of the cabinet.

“Anna? Are you home?” Your father called.

“In the kitchen dad!” You replied.

You were leaning on the island with one hand under your chin and the other tapping the marble. Lexi was filling a glass with water and shot a quick glance at you assuring you that she had it under control.

A tall, tan man with blonde hair that had recently started graying at the roots entered the room. He set his briefcase on the island before greeting you with a kiss on top of your head. The most your father ever greeted you with was a warm smile. This was extremely unusual, but you went along with it as if everything was perfectly normal.

“Hello, sweetheart. How are you?” He greeted while holding his hand to your cheek.

You placed your hand on his and replied, “Alright, Dad. How are you?”

“Just alright? Is everything okay at school?”

“It's okay, there's just a lot to do before spring break.”

“Ah, of course. Spring break. I had been meaning to talk to you about that.”

Lexi broke in before the conversation between you and your father went on any longer, “I apologize for interrupting Mr. Prescott, but there's actually something we wanted to talk to you about first if that's okay.”

“Oh Lexi, you were so unusually quiet over there I almost didn't notice you.” He griped.

You knew Lexi well enough that if it were any other time she wouldn't let that snide remark from your father pass, but she needed to be on his good side and let it slide.

With a wide smile almost through gritted teeth, she mustered up a reply to his remark. “Again, I sincerely apologize for interrupting. As I was saying, there's something Anna and I would like to talk to you about. It's actually my idea so if you're not okay with it, don't put any of the blame on her. I'm solely accountable.”

“Go on.” He muttered.

“St. Jude and Hawkins High are conducting a joint bake sale to raise money and I was put in charge for St. Jude’s contribution. My mom is an amazing baker and I thought if Anna, myself and my mom all put our heads together we could whip up some great ideas for the bake sale.”

You were unaware of what Lexi was going to prepare to tell your parents until just now and you sat there in shock at the performance she just gave. Your mouth was slightly agape and Lexi motioned to you to close it as your father turned his attention towards you.

“Anna, did you agree to this?” He questioned.

Quickly closing your mouth you replied to your father’s question, “Uh, yeah. You know I’m always looking for ways to get more involved at school. Lexi had this great idea and I thought she should pitch it to you.”

Before he said anything else he squinted his eyes and furrowed his brows staring at the ground for a moment and for a split second you were worried he would ask more questions out of suspicion. Your eyes darted to Lexi who was raising her brows in confusion, then back to your father.

You couldn’t bear the dead silence in the room and finally spoke up. “Dad?”

“That’s fine. Do you need money for supplies?” He said flatly.

You were surprised at his question, you were given a monthly allowance which was more than enough and never asked for more unless it was something extremely important, which was rare. But not knowing what may come of tomorrow night, and wanting to be fully prepared, you didn’t hesitate to take him up on his offer.

“Actually, yeah. That would be great.”

“Take whatever you need out of the safe and make sure to close it back up when you’re done.”   He murmured while gazing at the floor.

Still a bit taken aback by his offer, you slid off your chair and at first only lazily putting your arms around him then pulling yourself closer and resting your chin on his shoulder. He hesitated before putting his arms around your waist and lightly pressing his lips to your cheek. Your father was never one for warm embraces, the most affection you ever exchanged was a cheek to cheek kiss, and that was a rarity. To your parents, a hug was barely touching the other with at least a few inches in between them. Your mother would lightly place her hands on your father’s shoulders and your father would place his hands under your mother’s elbows while their lips touched as if there was a force pulling them apart. Sometimes you wonder how you even got here.

“Come on Anna, we need to start brainstorming.” Lexi interjected.

Hesitantly pulling away from your father you gave him a warm smile and said, “Thanks Dad, for everything. I love you.”

“I love you too dear.” He replied with a faint smile in return.

You almost forgot Lexi was still standing in the corner of the kitchen sipping her water before she uncomfortably cleared her throat.

“You better get going before it gets late.” Your father stated.

“Oh and one last thing, Mr. Prescott. We’re probably going to be up late whipping up baked goods, so is it okay if Anna spends the night?” Lexi asked.

“Yes, Lexi. Now go on.” He said.

As you grabbed Lexi’s hand to hurry upstairs she shouted back, “Thank you Mr. Prescott!”

______

Entering your parent’s room, you guided Lexi towards the back of the closet where the safe was located. Neither of you uttered a word till you opened the safe and reached in and took out a few hundred dollar bills, “So now what?” You questioned.  

To your dismay, Lexi’s face didn’t share your satisfaction and only showed disappointment.

“What is it?”

“So are we just not going to talk about it?”

“We both know damn well that was something out of parallel universe.” She quipped.

Your face fell, avoiding Lexi’s gaze, you brushed past her, making your way out of the walk in closet and sat on the end of your parents bed staring at the shiny hardwood floor.  

“I’m sorry. That was a shitty thing to say.”

“No, you’re right. I really don’t know what the hell just happened. I hope he’s okay. He’s not even like that towards my mom.”

“You mean being so affectionate?” Lexi inquired.

“His entire body language was strange, it felt...off. Something told me that was the right thing to do. Now I feel awful for lying to him. Maybe if I tell him the truth, he’ll try to be understanding.”

“Maybe. Maybe not. You don’t know that and it’s probably better this way.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.” You sighed. “Can I ask you to do something for me?”

“Anything.”

You lifted and turned your head to look at Lexi and worriedly said, “Help me not regret doing this.”

“I think I can do that.” She said with a sly grin.

______

Saturday mornings usually consisted of 10 AM breakfast on the balcony with your father’s head in the newspaper and your mother discussing her latest case. That was the routine, and you didn’t assume this morning to be any different. In anxious anticipation of what lied ahead, eager to start the day, you rushed down the stairs and headed towards the back of the house to the kitchen to see everything was untouched and pristine, aside from the glass Lexi had used yesterday.

Did they eat without you? Why did it look as if no one had been in the kitchen? Did your mom even come home last night? These among several other questions that were swirling around in your head, still not fully awake.

You knew no would respond, but shouted to the air anyways asking if anyone was there. To no surprise, you and the dust in the air were the only ones residing in those walls. Too worried and anxious to eat a full meal, you would have opted for coffee made by your father but the espresso machine was sparkling clean and you could never make it like he did. Trudging over to the refrigerator, about to open and stare at it fully stocked but still claiming there was nothing to eat, a note stuck to the door stopped you.

“Your mother and I had some business to take care of this morning. I apologize for missing breakfast on both of our behalf's. Here’s a 20 for food in case there is nothing to eat. - Love, Dad.”

Taped to the note was a crisp twenty dollar bill; you stared at it for a few seconds, then back at the note, then again at the dollar in your hand.

Something was happening with your parents that they didn’t seem to want to let you in on, whether it was good or bad you didn’t know and couldn’t even begin to make a guess. You would have to contemplate it later, the party was consuming any other thoughts and you and Lexi still had plans to do quite a bit before eight o’ clock.

______

You weren’t expecting a call from Lexi, she knew your Saturday family ritual and made a point to not call and interrupt it. You always knew it was her without her having to say it. She quickly told you  to make yourself look decent, meet her at Benny’s and hurry before she hung up.

The town car pulled up to the front of the diner and you threw the door open before it came to complete stop. “Thank you, James!” you yelled back while slamming the door shut.

Jogging towards the door and almost tripping over your own feet, you shuffled into the diner not letting the music from the jukebox or the voices talking over each other distract you. Quickly pacing the room, you spot Lexi nestled in a booth, seemingly unharmed.

Breathing heavy, you throw your bag in the booth and almost fall into the seat.

“What’s with you? Did you run here?” Lexi asked with a puzzled look on her face.

“I thought it was an emergency. You made it sound like you were in trouble!” You blurted while still trying to catch your breath.

“Wait, so you did run here?”

“No, of course not. I took a town car.” You hissed.

A waitress with bright red, curly hair and big glasses strided towards your table with a wide smile on her face and cheerily asked, “Can I get you anything young lady?”

“Black coffee with two sugars and a splash of non-fat milk please.” You hastily replied.

“Will that be all?” She asked.

“Yes, thank you.” You said with a forced smile.

“And your food will be right up dear.” The waitress mentioned to Lexi.

With the same forced smile, Lexi thanked her and gave her your menus. She put her hand on the table, and tried to make eye contact with you to break the tension.

“Your dad called this morning. He said your mom and him were going to be out, and that I should meet you for breakfast somewhere. He also told me to make it a surprise. Not exactly sure why but I took matters into my own hands by calling you and sounding worried because I knew you would ask questions.”

You met her eyes and there was only one thing you took from that entire explanation. “My dad called you? Willingly?” You were perplexed.

“His voice is the last I would expect to hear on the other end. I thought he was going to chastise me because he found out I was lying and I almost hung up. Everything has been super weird since last night.”

“I mean, why would he call you and not me? He left a little note on the fridge that I almost didn’t see.” You mumbled.

“I’m sure he just didn’t want to wake you.”

“If something is wrong, I would hope they would tell me. It feels like they’re hiding something.”

“They probably have a big surprise for you, your birthday is coming up soon. I know it’s easier said than done, but try not to worry too much. In any case, I’m here for you no matter what happens.”

You put your hand on top of hers and smiled softly, “I know.”

The red-headed waitress made her way back to your booth with your coffee and Lexi’s food, “One coffee with two sugars and a splash of milk and an order of french toast with a side of hash-browns.” She announced. “Are you sure you don’t want anything to eat hon?”

“Yes, I’m good, thank you.” You replied with a now genuine smile.

“Alrighty, enjoy.” She said with a genuine smile in return.

“Are you sure you don't want some of this?” Lexi muffled with mouth full of food.

You laughed at Lexi’s lack of social grace and shook your head while taking a sip of your coffee. She was mumbling something about how that was the best french toast she's ever eaten when your attention was diverted by a bell above the door and a young man walking in. He took a seat at the counter and you noticed the red headed waitress rush back into the kitchen out of the corner of your eye. Maybe he was a rowdy regular who tried to give the employees trouble? The cigarette between his lips and his dangly earring didn't exactly exude warmth and kindness. Or maybe it was the clunky boots and what seemed to be permanent scowl on his face. But you knew better than to make assumptions based on what someone chose to show the world. Especially not with a face like that.

“Anna, you have to try this. I-” Lexi said still with a full mouth.

“Lex, turn around. But don't make it obvious.” You urged.

Disregarding your request, Lexi whipped around and her jaw dropped. “Damn, cut me off a slice of that.”

“Lexi!”

“Sorry but he’s just - wow. He's like nothing I've ever seen before.”

“I know.” You hummed.

“There's something about him that's so…”

Forget his stature and finely chiseled figure. Forget the way those jeans held his posterior. Forget his salty locks and golden skin. Forget his eyes that he stole from the ocean. Even with a scowl painted on his face, you felt a fiery glow deep within him buried by coal and you were determined to dig it out. He was like a fallen angel who spent a few too many nights with the devil and now couldn't get out of a bad deal. Could you be his guiding force?

“Otherworldly.” You whispered.

It felt like you were staring, or maybe you were dreaming. You couldn't take your eyes off of him and he demanded your attention without saying a word or looking your way. You were hooked on every move he made; a sip of coffee into his soft lips and down his throat, a shift to get more comfortable on the bar stool, his chest puffing out and back in from a deep sigh. You longed to be in his ember glow and could feel your body temperature rising and your slow breaths getting deeper and deeper.

tag list: @hipsmcgee @xicarcalii

[starry-eyed-svt]

The Florist and the Hit-man ~ Jungkook Mafia AU

Genre: Angst/Fluff

Warnings: Mention of murder

Word Count: 3,542

Wow, okay hi. Haha it has been a minute. I was randomly hit with inspiration so I thought why not post? This was originally supposed to be a multi-chapter fic but I scrunched it into a scenario so I apologize if it is rushed. I am a bit rusty as well. My ask box is open so feel free to request! Without further adieu~

When I was a little girl I always explored the luxurious gardens in my neighborhood getting lost in the greenery and hiding when my mother would call me in for the night. So naturally when I grew up I learned the techniques of arranging flowers and learned the symbolism of the colors.

One of the best days of my life was the day I started my business as a florist. Over the last few years I have built a strong network of customers that grows by the day. I have a few employees that help out around holidays or with huge events like weddings.

Usually it is just me at the store though from a quarter to seven to begin prepping the shop and finishing last minute orders until closing at 7:00pm.

The day dragged on and I was looking forward to locking up. It was about 20 minutes to closing and I was wiping the counter when the doorbell rang.

"Hello." I greeted the customer.

He nodded his head in a greeting manner and walked around.  

He looked to be about my age with black hair and piercing dark brown eyes. His lips were in a flat line. He wore a black dress shirt tucked into a pair of black slacks.

"Let me know if you need any help." I said. He grunted in response.

He walked around perusing the store and I continued cleaning the counter.

I glanced at the clock and noticed the time had ticked away rather quickly.

"Excuse me sir, it is closing time. You may buy flowers if you would like but if not I am going to have to ask you to leave." I said in my best manager voice.

"Of course, sorry." He muttered and grabbed an arrangement of carnations and brought them to the counter.

"Who is the lucky lady?" I asked

"My mother." He muttered pulling out his wallet.

"Then you should go with this arrangement." I said grabbing another pot with the same flowers though they were different colors.

"What's the difference?" He asked quirking his eyebrow.

"The dark red ones you would buy for a lover, the light red ones symbolizes admiration." I explained.

"All the colors have different meanings?" He asked with a cute genuine curiosity in his voice.

"Yeah, they do."

"Nifty." He said.

"Uh that will be 8.99." I said and he handed me a 20 dollar bill.

I gave him his change and he took the arrangement.

"Have a good night."

"Thanks, you too. What is your name?"

"Y/N." I replied.

He smiled and exited the shop. My smile faltered as I realized he didn't tell me his name.

I finished cleaning the shop and went home.

The next time I saw the man again was a few nights after he first came in.

"Hello, Y/N." He greeted.

"Hey..." I trailed off.

"Jungkook." He said giving me his name.

"Did your mom like the flowers?" I asked.

"She did, that's why I'm here for more." He said. He walked around the shop and I shuffled around prepping for close.

"Hey, uh Y/N?" He asked.

"Yeah?" I questioned approaching him.

"What do these purple flowers signify?" He asked.

"Those are angelonia's. Purple is a symbol for: extravagance, creativity, wisdom, dignity and peace among other things." I said.

"My mother is wise. Would it be acceptable to give her these."

"Yes." I replied.

"Perfect, then that is what I will get."  

We walked to counter and he paid for the flowers.

"See you around." He smiled and ducked out of the shop.

The next time he came in was about a week later. Once again it was nearing the end of the day and he entered the shop. A fading bruise was present around his eye and a healing cut was on his lip.

"Are you okay?" I asked foregoing my usual greeting.

"I'm fine." He smiled, I noticed the small wince as he did so, "how are you?" He asked.

"I'm well thanks. Flowers for your mom?" I asked.

"Just looking." He replied.

I nodded and resumed putting together an order for first thing tomorrow morning.

"Why is it always just you closing up?" He suddenly asked. I looked up at him and caught him studying me.

"I have a few employees with flexible schedules, they usually help out for major holidays like Valentine's or Mother's day. Or when we are preparing for a wedding. But it is usually slow at night so I close up alone." I replied.

"Wait is this your business?" He asked and I nodded, "that is amazing. How long have you been open?" He asked.

"About three years now." I said.

"That is awesome." He gave me a sweet smile then continued looking around.

"Would you like help closing up?" He asked.

"Oh no, I'm fine." I said.

"Too bad." He said and found the broom and began sweeping the lobby. I bit back a huge grin as I turned off the open sign and locked the doors.

I shut down the registers and put the money in the safe before helping Jungkook clean the lobby and make sure the flowers were all put away in a colder environment.

Jungkook and I exited the shop and I made sure the doors were locked.

"Thanks for helping me." I said.

"It was fun." He grinned.

"I guess I will see you around?" I questioned.

"Yeah, how about I walk you home though it is a bit sketchy in this neighborhood." He said.

"Oh yeah, I would appreciate that. I heard the mafia and gangs are growing back again." I said.

"Yeah. I heard that too.." He replied.

We made small talk getting to know one another better as we walked to my apartment that was close by.

We bid each other a good night and he was on his way.

Jungkook began coming around each night to help me close and goof off a bit.

We began growing closer yet it hit me I still didn't know too awfully much about him.

"What do you do for a living?" I asked one night as we shuffled around the shop cleaning it up.

Jungkook visibly tensed at the question.

"I work for a finance company." He said avoiding my eyes.

"Oh really? I didn't expect you to work with money- I mean I should have assumed you usually are dressed nicely." I rambled on.

"Yeah, kinda shocked me too." He said.

"So what do you do there?" I asked.

"Um I'm more of an errand boy for the higher ups. It's small company though so it isn't too bad." He said.

"Cool, that sounds like a pretty nice job." I said.

Jungkook silently continued cleaning the windows.

As we walked back to my apartment in a comfortable silence I had an idea, I wasn't too sure where it came from but I couldn't stop the rambling that came from my mouth.

"So um, I don't have a lot to offer but as a thanks would you like to come in for dinner?" I asked. Jungkook stayed silent a moment checking his watch, "I mean like of course only if you wanted, you don't have to-"

"I would love to." He chuckled.

"Oh great, well all I really have to offer is ramen with an egg at the moment." I said.

"That sounds perfect to me." Jungkook smiled.

The two of us entered my small apartment.

"Make yourself at home." I said and went to the kitchen.

Jungkook followed suit and leaned against the counter as I got out my ramen pot and a couple packages of ramen.

"You have a nice little apartment." Jungkook commented.

"Thanks, it's not much but it works," I said putting some water on to boil; "do you live around here?" I asked.

"Yeah, it isn't too far. I have a couple roommates though." He said.

"Oh really? Friends from school or did you meet because you guys needed roommates?" I asked.

"I've known them basically my whole life." He answered.

"That's way cool that you've all managed to keep in touch and get to live together."

"Yeah." He replied.

I finished making the ramen and we chatted about random things we had in common.

We were almost done with dinner when his cell phone rang. He pulled it out of his slacks pocket and looked to see who was calling.

"Pardon." He said standing up and heading to my kitchen.

I could faintly hear his conversation considering how close the table was to the kitchen but I found it rude to listen in, so I tuned him out.

A few minutes later he came back to the table.

"I hate to dine and dash but I have a meeting to attend." He said as he gripped the back of the chair he previously sat in.

My brows furrowed in confusion.

"At nearly 9 o'clock at night?" I asked.

"It's an international call with our sister company in London." He said.

"Ah I see. No worries. Hope you don't have to work too late. Thanks for eating dinner with me, sorry it wasn't much."

"I enjoyed it. I.." He started, "I enjoy your company." He smiled in a bashful manner.

"I enjoy your company as well, Jungkook." I smiled.

I got up and he followed me as I unlocked the door.

"See you around, Y/N." He smiled.

"See ya." I said and shut the door after he left the apartment.

I happily cleaned up our mess and went to bed excited where things might be going with Jungkook.

The next day was busy from the second I unlocked the doors. I had a few different couples come in looking for pricing on their dream arrangements for their weddings.

It was just about lunch time and it was finally slowing down when a man entered the shop.

"Welcome, let me know if you need anything." I smiled.

The man looked at me, he had mint green hair and small eyes that looked to be in a perminate glare.

"Are you Y/F/N Y/L/N?" He asked in a low voice.

"Yes, who are you?" I asked. My stomach began twisting nervously.

"A friend of Jungkook's." He said. My head tilted slightly confused.

"Oh.. He's not here. I can tell him you stopped by." I said.

"No need. I'm not here to see him. I'm here to see you." He stated.

"Why?" I asked growing increasingly anxious.

"Jungkook isn't who you think he is. He isn't a good guy, if you wanna stay safe as well as keep your parents and little brother safe I suggest you remove yourself from his life."

"Is... Is that a threat?" I asked softly.

"I'm not the bad guy. If it was this easy for me to find where Jungkook has been running off to, imagine what someone else who isn't on our side who might want to do unspeakable things to you would do." He finished.

I blinked a few times trying to register what he said.

"Are you asking me to remove myself from Jungkook's life?" I asked.

"That's up to you sweetheart. I'm just giving you a warning of what kind of life you would lead with him." He shrugged.

I couldn't even reply as I absorbed his words.

"Well I best be going. And if you do decide to dump him don't mention my visit. I'm not in the mood for a fight." The man said and exited the shop.

I skipped lunch and immersed myself into work to try and ease the thought of the vague threat that was given to me.

I impatiently waited for closing time to come. I was sorely disappointed when Jungkook didn't show up.

I had most of the shop cleaned up when I caught a glimpse of Jungkook passing by. He was in black jeans a black zip up hoodie and and a black hat.

"That's odd." I mumbled to myself.

I exited the flower shop and locked it quickly.

I don't know what my plan was but I began following him. If he noticed me following him he didn't let on.

After a while he finally ducked into an alley. I placed my back on the the building and I thought of my options. I can look into the alley and have him jump out and tell me his friend's ominous warning was a joke. Or I could walk away and pretend I hadn’t even seen him.

I wish to whatever entity is up there I hadn't looked around the corner.

My eyes widened as I watched the man I grew to have feelings for shoot a man at point blank.

I clamped my hand over my mouth as I laid back against the wall again.

My heart hammered against my chest and I waited for it to calm down.

That didn't just happen. It couldn't have.

I craned my neck around once more and sure enough Jungkook kneeled over the body checking for a pulse.

I turned and I ran, I ran until I couldn't run. I numbly walked the rest of the way to my apartment.

When I got there I didn't bother undressing. I laid on my bed and thought of the small hints here and there.

A finance company, what kind?

A meeting at 9 o'clock at night.

His lovely friend who dropped by...

Now this.

Is he apart of the mafia?

My sweet Jungkook who I know so little about.

I couldn't stop the tears or the sobs that racked through my body.

I didn't remember falling asleep but waking up was a treat as my head pounded as if I had downed a pack of beer.

I contemplated having one of my employees run the shop today but there was too much I needed to do personally.

So I sluggishly got ready and made my way to the shop. I had to use my best customer service voice and give my best smile.

I usually looked forward to the last half an hour or so of work but today I dreaded it.

Did he know I followed him? Was I going to die? Would my family pay for my nosy ways?

The bell chimed indicating someone came in.

"Evening, Y/N."

I looked up from the supremely clean spot on the counter I had been scrubbing while spaced out for a good five minutes.

"Hey." I replied.

"Sorry I couldn't stop by last night. We had a long meeting at work." He said.

Yeah. Meeting. Is that code for murder?

"No worries." I smiled softly and continued cleaning the counter.

Jungkook began perusing the store rather than grabbing the broom.

After a little bit he brought an arrangement of carnations over.

"You goof, dark red is for lovers remember." I said giving him a look doing my best to forget that just 24 hours ago I watched him murder someone in cold blood.

"I know, these aren't for my mom." He said.

An odd pang of sadness hit me. Though I should be glad he may take himself out of my life so I don't have to.

"Oh, nice. I hope the recipient of the flowers likes them." I smiled as we exchanged cash.

"I hope so too." He says.

"Is there anything else I can do for you?" I asked.

"Well, these flowers are for you." He said picking up the arrangement and handing it to me.

My heart beat picked up and my head tilted slightly.

"What?" I was confused. I deduced he hadn't seen me yesterday. Or he was buttering me up before the slaughter.

"I like you, Y/N. A lot. I have never felt this way about another human being. You make me happy and remind me of the goodness in the world. So these are for you because I would like to take you out on date." Jungkook said.

I finally took the flowers from his hands and let go of a breath I didn't realize I was holding.

"If you don't feel the same I understand." Jungkook suddenly said and I realized I hadn't said anything.

"I like you too." I finally said aloud admitting it not to just him but myself.

Jungkook gave me a toothy grin.

"Really?" He asked and I nodded.

"So can I pick you up tomorrow night for dinner?" He asked.

"Yes, I would love that." I smiled.

"Perfect. I can't stay tonight to help clean but I will be by tomorrow to help close up and then we can go to dinner." He said.

"Sounds good. See you tomorrow, Jungkook."

"See you tomorrow." He grinned and left the shop.

My feelings were jumbled. On one hand I really liked Jungkook. The slightly mysterious finance worker who helped me close my shop and became a real good friend.

On the other hand, I watched him murder someone.

But I had this calming feeling in the back of my mind that he wouldn't hurt me.

I didn't say anything. We went to dinner and the date was successful. We had a few more dates before we officially decided to be a couple.

Despite my knowledge of his involvement of what I presume to be the mafia, we acted as a normal couple.

Lately though I have been seeing him less and less. More "meetings" he had to attend to.

There were rumors going around that a bunch of mafia families were in the middle of a war over territory. Of course the paid off police and politicians turned a blind eye to the increase of violence and illegal activities.

I sat in my living room as the night wore on. A glass of red wine barely touched.

I was brought out of my thoughts as a light knock came from the door.

I got up and checked the peephole.

Jungkook stood in front of my door with his hands in his pockets.

I opened my door and he greeted me with a bittersweet smile. I let him in and he made his way to couch.

"What's up?" I asked sitting next to him.

His elbows were placed on his legs at he sat slightly hunched over with his face in his hands.

"Y/N.."  He started.

"Yes?"

Jungkook took a deep sigh, he stood up and paced a little bit before standing across from me between the tv and coffee table.

"We should stop seeing each other." He finally said.

My heart dropped. But I understood. His friends warning, I am collateral damage.

"I'm just super busy with work so I don't have much time to give you. I'm not a good person." He said

"I know." I replied.

He looked at me with a baffled expression.

"What?" He asked.

"I know."

"About..?" He questioned.

"The day before you confessed... I uh saw you walk past the shop and I followed you. I shouldn't have, but I did. And I watched you..." I couldn't say the words, "don't worry though, I won't tell anyone." I said.

Jungkook hung his head ashamed.

"You were the last pure thing in my life and I couldn't even protect you from the monster that I am." He mumbled. He took another deep sigh.

"The rumors going around the city are true. I can't really tell you much more but it is bad. And I can't afford to.. I can't drag you into this."

"I understand." I said.

I watched as Jungkook walked toward my door.

I stood up and followed slowly.

"Why did you accept my feelings and pretend you hadn't seen what you did?" He asked as his hand stayed firm on the door handle.

"Because I fell in love with you." I replied.

Jungkook turned around and took my face in his hands and kissed me with so much passion.

I returned the kiss and wrapped my arms around him tightly.

We kissed until we couldn't breath. Jungkook pulled away and left without another word.

I poured the rest of my wine down the sink and laid down.

I text one of my employees and asked if they could run things tomorrow.

I closed my eyes and nodded off into nothingness.

After Jungkook left my apartment that night I hadn't seen nor heard from him. It was like he disappeared into thin air. Did he really exist or did my lonely mind concoct this elaborate story to distract me from my mundane life as a florist.

It was about a half an hour to closing after an extremely exhausting day.

I swept the lobby and prayed a customer didn't come in.

Fate is a funny thing and likes to tease you even when you're at your wits end.

The doorbell rang indicating a customer had entered. I didn't look up as I gave my usual greeting. The customer didn't say anything. Great I'm going to get robbed.

"I'm buying flowers for an old friend, her favorite flowers are the forget-me-not's."

My heart pounded in my chest as I looked up at the man whose face was starting to fade from my mind.

He smiled at me and I couldn't help but smile back.

Sen~

[iloveyou-morethanthis]

The Man of My Dreams

Word Count: 3,000

Rating: angst, mystery, eventual smut

Summary: A car accident steals four years of memory from a girl. Anyone in this circumstance would be surrounded by loved ones. But she's not. They've all abandoned her, or so she thinks? She's made new friends, and fallen in love again. But are they really new friends? Is it really a new love? Secrets, lies, deception all for the sake of protection. As her memories start to comeback she begins to recognize a familiar figure in her memories but before it all comes back she's in danger again. Will she survive long enough to uncover the secret in her own?

Dark.

Cold.

Quiet.

She awoke gasping for air.

Choking. Drowning?

That's how she always wakes up from them.

Dreams? Nightmares? Memories?

They don't happen as frequently now.

Once a month, maybe?

At least now they seem to guide her. As if they're trying to tell her something. She's no longer afraid of what they have to show her. The visions, as her therapist calls them, are her ‘suppressed memories’ trying to ‘resurface’. They always show her snippets and clips but never the full movie. Sometimes her mind plays reruns and she'll have the same dream for weeks. Sometimes they're new. Sometimes she'll remember them. Most of the time she doesn't. But there's one thing that's always the same.

Him.

She knows him.

Well she did, or did she?

“Maybe he’s your guide?” Her therapist would say.

Maybe he's my anchor. She thinks. He never takes me anywhere. He's always just....there

*ding*

The familiar sound of the front door rang through the coffee shop. At 6:30 in the morning the shop was usually buzzing, but it’s Saturday, even in the city, not many people are bustling around this early in the morning. She’s an exception of course, being assistant to the Head of Design for multi-million dollar fashion company meant that vacations and weekends mean nothing to her workload. This Saturday was no exception. The Fall line is to be released in one month, so her team is working overtime to prepare the finishing looks, prepping models and arranging last minute seating charts for the fashion show guests. Not to mention all the while preparing the looks books for next year’s summer and fall lines. Thankfully the Spring show is being handled by the second design team. Handling one season is hard enough, but getting three seasons in a row is unbearable. If fashion wasn’t something she loved she would’ve quit the first day of her internship, if you could call 72 work hours of stitch removal an internship. She still remembers soaking her hands in warm water the first weekend and crying to her brother about the witch she now calls her boss. He told her to quit if she hated it so much but she was determined to make it. She’s always wanted her own fashion line, and if getting it means she has to make deals with the devil, then show her the dotted line.

“Good Morning Katsumi.” The young man behind the counter greeted her.

“Good Morning Nini, and how come you never call me Sumi?” She returns his smile.

The man smirked, with a quick look behind him he leaned in close and spoke, “You know I’d call you that if it wasn’t for you know who.”

She peeked over his shoulder looking down the hallway. Just beyond the boxes of to-be-stocked coffee beans she could see his office. Jongin’s boss was mulling over some papers, with his silver rimmed glasses perched at the tip of his nose. He looks exhausted. His dark bangs falling into his face. He must have stayed up late last night only to return first thing this morning. She wanted nothing more than to walk behind the counter and run her fingers through his hair, to soothe and comfort the man.

“He works too hard,” Jongin says shaking her from her thoughts.

“Yeah, he does.” She agreed. Lifting her eyes to the office one last time she’s met with an empty desk. The man instead is standing in the doorway just behind Nini, looking right at her. She starts to stutter good morning but the air in her chest remains trapped. Words never breaking out. He's handsome. Gorgeous even. She's smitten. He's not nearly as tall or broad as Jongin, but still built, his muscles firm beneath his too tight dress shirts and dress pants (not that she was looking, but if she was she'd report a marvellous ass carved by the gods.) As perfect as his body was, it was his face that bewitched her. His doe eyes were a deep dark brown, so deep that when she looked into them she could see her secrets welling inside them. As if him looking at her could cause her to bare everything to him. His smile was contagious, his laugh just as precious. On the off chance she was graced with its beauty she felt happy for days. His smile was mostly gums and teeth, but boy was it the cutest thing she'd ever seen. She wanted nothing more that to see it on him always and to be the reason for that smile.

“Good morning Ma’am, is it your usual today.” The man said stepping from the doorway to the machines on Nini’s right.

“Actually sir I've already got it ready.” Nini said stepping to his left and handing over a large to go coffee and a warmed croissant in a small bag. Looking to his boss and back at Jongin she spoke a small thank you.

“Making me look bad,huh?” Minseok raised a brow in their direction.

“Oh please you're just making an excuse to not finish your work, a very pretty excuse if you ask me.” Nini quips, shooting a wink in Sumi direction. The heat in her cheeks rising quickly, while she silently wills it to disappear. An accidental glance towards Jongin’s boss shows she not the only one with tinted cheeks.

“So you're in awful early on a Saturday morning, even for you?” Minseok questions.

“Ugh tell me about it. Between closing the summer line and opening the fall one, yah girl gets no sleep.” She says using exaggerated hand motions. This brings a smile to both men's faces.

“Do they have you working Spring this coming year? Surely not Winter to finish out the year?” He questions, eyes full of concern.

“Thankfully no Spring. After the flower fiasco of 2017, I refuse to step within 10 feet of a Spring lookbook.” At that Jongin chuckles, apparently recalling her stories of the baby runways and mini flower floats. Her boss was lucky she actually liked children but that was more than she could say for the rest of her team.

“As for Winter I'll be joining the executive team as a designer. My accessory line was approved, so I won't have to plan the events for the season but just participate. It'll be nice, in a nerve wrecking kind of way.”

“Oh my god, Congratulations, Sumi!” Minseok expresses, noticing Sumi’s surprise he adds, “Really, I mean it. It's a big deal to have your line appear. Especially on the executive team. Your work must be amazing if you've only been with them for 3 years.”

She can feel her cheeks warming again at the praise. “Thank you. I'd like to think it's because I work hard, but my work is pretty amazing if I do say so myself.” She winks. Looking to her watch it reads 6:45am, she doesn't need to be in the office until 7:30 but not wanting to catch traffic she decides to say her goodbyes.

“Nini are you gonna be at the studio next weekend for Yixing’s classes?” She asks.

Jongin and Sumi met at Yixing's dance studio, not too far from the coffee shop. Even though they go to the studio for different reasons, Jongin to choreograph and Sumi to relax, they both love dance. That's what they built their friendship on, it's also how she found the coffee shop, and in turn Minseok. She'd been coming to this coffee shop for almost 2 years. Her and Nini meeting shortly prior, their friendship never extended past the studio and the coffee shop. She was okay with that. In the time she's been coming to the shop, she and Minseok had never exchanged anything more than a few pleasantries, it was love at first sight. Well from her sight.

“Yep, and guess who's gonna be recording his choreo?” Jongin says wiggling his eyebrows.

“No way!! Is this the same one you were working on in spring?! I'm so glad you finally finished. Does this mean he's gonna let you teach it? Oh please please teach it! I better feature in this video or we’re gonna fight.” She joked. Jongin worked hard on his choreos always honing his skills making sure each move was perfect and if anything felt off or just not quite right it never saw the light of day, that is until he found just what was missing.

“Promise. I teach first thing Saturday morning. I'm nervous, it's not like it's my first time teaching but I guess since the class is international it makes it a big deal.”

“You'll do great Nini. Don't worry about it. I'll be right there in the front row” She encourages. At that moment another customer walks through the door. “Well I should get going I will see you guys later.” She waves.

Minseok and Jongin laugh. “We'll see you tomorrow.” They chime.

“Heyyyyyy.” She faux pouts. “I have the day off tomorrow so I was gonna sleep in.”

“Mhmm sure,” Minseok taunts, as Jongin helps the new arrival. “So I'll just make your coffee for dine-in, maybe even later in the day? 8:30?”

She sighs, tapping a finger on her chin thoughtfully. “I suppose I do have some errands to run tomorrow. I guess spending the morning here wouldn't hurt.” She smiles. Minseok nods in acknowledgement and waves her out the door. With a quick wave from Nini she heads down the sidewalk towards her car.

At seven o'clock it's time to close up shop. He let Jongin go home early. Since he goes to school now he lets him pull doubles on weekends as to not disturb his class work. He always feels bad for him and tries to send him home to get some rest when the shop isn't busy. The kid works too hard. He's wiping down the last table when he hears the door open.

“We're closed.” He calls out to the customer.

“Ah, sorry about that. Good thing I'm not here for coffee,” the customer states.

Minseok's heard that voice before, and he's certainly not fond of it. It's arrogant, irritating, bitchy, pushy and too smooth. His voice sounds like it belongs to a seasoned salesman. The kind that sells you what you never needed, takes your last penny and you never realize it till you've already sold your soul. He's the devil.

“Well, to what do I owe the pleasure, Yuta.” Tucking the towel in his back pocket, he places the last chair on the table. He hates saying the young man's name, it always leaves a foul taste in his mouth.

“Shall we sit?” The younger asks motioning to a booth by the window. No doubt making the elder an easy target for whatever gunman the younger has stationed outside, should Minseok try anything. Which, sounds like a pleasing thought, but he's not in the mood to take a bullet over a good sock to the younger’s face. Minseok heads to the booth and takes a seat. He glances out the window for any visible signs of Yuta’s men, but it's all in vain. Even with his trained eye he could only guess the spots they're in. After all this is his territory, so Minseok is confident that even if he doesn't have eyes on Yuta’s men, then Seungcheol definitely does. He and Jongdae were opposed to him opening up the coffee shop complaining that it leaves him exposed and vulnerable. He's been known to live on the edge never worrying about consequences, that is, until that day. He always knew his risk-taking would get him hurt, maybe even kill him. He was ready for that, but he wasn’t ready when the consequences fell to someone he cared most about. He never expected that she would have to pay the price.

“I'm sure you know why I'm here.” Yuta smiles warmly. To those who don't know him they'd trust that smile in good faith, but Minseok knows that smile all too well, it sends cold chills down his spine.

“Actually, I'm not quite sure why you're here. As I recall, we settled our business months ago with no intentions of renegotiating.” Minseok said sternly. Minseok is almost 32 and has obtained, maintained and controlled most of Seoul’s underground for a decade, as well as outer lying cities. He was young like Yuta when he came up. He was arrogant pushed the boundaries and grew his territory with a relentless hunger and iron fist. Yuta has recently overtaken a smaller rival gang that originated in Minseok’s home town of Guri. The gang has always been a thorn in his foot, but he never had any desire or need to extinguish until Yuta appeared. The younger is like a starving leopard, his blood lust evident on his face. The younger man pushed an envelope across the table.

“I think this will reopen our negotiations.” His smile grew into something similar to the Cheshire Cat. The elder grabbed the manila and opened it. He splayed it's contents across the table in front of him.

There were pictures. Five freshly printed photos of her. Of Sumi. Each one he could tell was from different times of the year. The first was from last year around summer time she hadn't been coming to the shop for long at that point. The next photo was of her leaving her apartment that following winter, then again in early spring. Each picture leading up to today. It was her exiting her car from her office’s private parking garage.

He was fuming. Minseok is usually good at controlling his anger but once you've pressed his buttons he sees red. And right now Yuta’s blood was the red he sought after. He wants nothing more than to spill his blood across his freshly cleaned table.

How dare he bring her into this? How dare he even consider threatening her? Bringing someone innocent into this. She's done nothing and means nothing to him. What could he possibly—How does he even know? Does he know?

Looking up from the pictures into Yuta's eyes, he gets all the answers he was looking for. Yes, he plans to use her against him. Yes, he will do anything to get what he wants, even harming her. And yes, he does know.....exactly who she is.

“Ahh, so you do know who she is.” Yuta drawls. “I was under the impression my men were following a useless lead.” He chuckles. “But seeing the look on your face shows me I should've put more resources into this much sooner.” Smirking he interlocks his fingers and places his hands under his chin.

“So, what do you say? You give me the outer cities. I already have Guri, what about I give you the girl and you give me Suwon and Ansan.”

“That's bold. Even for you.”

“Well, how much does she mean to you?” His face darkens. “Besides, Suwon isn't much worth to you, it sits on your outer boundaries. What would you really be giving up? A few hundred thousand won? Besides, Ansan is your baby, that where you keep your arsenal isn't it?” The glint in his eyes are starting to grow into a wildfire. “The girl means nothing to me. But she means a lot to you, Ansan and your trading ports mean a lot to me, and I can't just stand by and watch you forsake them. So I propose a trade—”

“Not happening” he counters. “What you're gonna do, is walk back out that door you came in, get in you car and drive home. The next time you set foot in my territory is the last time you walk.” His whole demeanour darkens. He can see it even rattles Yuta, not enough to scare him but enough to catch him off guard. “That girl is off limits. You wanna throw her into the mix then you can consider yourself cut off. No more deals, no more supplies. If you want so badly to be a solo independent organization then prove it. But you just bit the hand that feeds you, and I put those dogs down, not kick them out. If it's a war you want then that's what you get, but you're undermanned and if you think your equipped to handle something of this magnitude then you're dumber than I thought. Now get the fuck out of my coffee shop.”

With that the younger man stands and exits, just as confident, if not more so, than when he came in. This is what he wanted. He came to strike a nerve, and that he did. Minseok doesn't care if he put if heart on his sleeve or let his emotions show, it's how he's always been and it's how he'll continue to be. He's never backed down from a fight, and he's not going to now. Yuta's messes with the wrong boss today, and he's gonna out that brat in his place, then put him out of his misery.

He grabs the photos in the envelope and locks up the shop. He exits through the backdoor into the the cool night air. Picking up the buzzing phone from his pocket he swipes to answer. “Yeah. I know.” Is all he says into the receiver before hanging up. He doesn't let himself think about anything the whole 30 minute ride to his night club deep in the heart of Seoul. He cherishes the silence knowing that it'll be his last of the calm be the storm. He may not get this again till he's rid himself of Yuta. Or until Yuta get rid of him.

He pulls his car to the secret entrance at the back of his club. Jongdae is already waiting for him. He didn't need to look at his best friend to know the look he carried on his face. It was one mixed with concern and disappointment. Jongdae is his right hand man. Best friend since childhood. When they started in this business Minseok was the muscle and he was the brains. Where Minseok can be hot headed, Jongdae was always ten steps ahead and had contingency plans for his contingency plans. All jobs Jongdae headed were bound for success, if anyone could get him out of this mess it would be him.

“Before you say it, let's find the mole so I can blow off some steam.” Minseok entered the building, he could feel the bass vibrating through the walls.

“I already know who it is, but you're not getting his name. We need him, for now at least,” Jongdae said taking the lead and heading up a stairwell to the office.

“Jongdae—” Minseok wanted to say more but was cut off.

“Look Minnie the first course of action is contacting Kyungsoo. He needs to know.”

“He'll kill me.”

“Then we agree on something.”

Cont.