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starrylothcat · 1 year

Note

Hello there! I absolutely love your writing, I often feel bad I’m constantly littering your notifications 👉🏼👈🏼

I’m not sure if you’ve done this but I would love a hunter x f!Jedi reader with spicy prompt “make me forget today” with either side being angsty.

In my mind the dynamic between the two is similar to codywan- really close but duty comes first. Could take place during clone wars or bad batch show, whichever you think would work best! Can definitely be NSFW, whatever you’re comfortable with.

And of course, feel free to pass if this ask isn’t for you. I completely understand! All the love! 💕💕

Conquest of Spaces

Pairing: Hunter x Fem!Jedi Reader

Summary: You and Hunter give in to one another, your hidden feelings set free. It’s something that you both know can’t continue, but when you meet again after Order 66, are you finally allowed to have what you’ve always wanted?

WC: 3600

Warnings: NSFW, 18+. PiV sex, angst, happy ending and Soft Hunter Bad Batch. Reader is a fem Jedi, looks not described and no pronouns used. Takes place before and after Order 66.

A/N: Never feel bad for spamming my notifications! Oh do I love me clone and Jedi angst. Thank you so much for the amazing prompt, I hope you enjoy it. It’s fluffy and angsty and hopefully kind of romantic? Lol 🥹👉👈

“Please make me forget today.” Those five words, spoken in broken desperation, sealed your fate. “Please.

You didn’t mean for this to happen, to allow feelings to bloom between the cracks. You tried plucking out the weeds, clearing those aggressively growing sentiments from your subconscious but they resurfaced stronger every time.

Your voice shook as you whispered those words in his ear, grasping onto his armor like it was a lifeline, you knew it wasn’t fair.

It was unjust to both him and yourself.

He could have said no, pushed you away.

You could have attempted to hold yourself together, to put on the in-control, strong Jedi facade one more time, though that mask was beginning to fracture.

You weren’t sure how much longer you could hold it up before it would shatter completely into dust.

You were assigned to work with him and his brothers often, building trust with the team that few others had.

You and Hunter shared a strong camaraderie, a fellowship forged by mutual respect and dedication to your roles in the Republic. Your ability to understand one another with just a glance, how perfectly you fit together, could not be denied.

You tried to disregard the growing lingering glances, the way his tone would soften when he addressed you, or how he frequently invaded your dreams.

You could tell he was restraining himself, too. He knew the risks, the dangers of letting emotions divert you from your defined roles in this war.

Maybe in a different life, you could have more, but not in this one.

You locked those feelings away, though it was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore them.

It wasn’t until you returned to Kamino after a disastrous mission that you left that hidden chest of feelings unlocked, whether you did it purposefully or not.

You had lost most of your squad. It wasn’t your fault, but you were bearing the burden.

You had known Hunter was on Kamino for a short leave, and comm’d him to meet you. He was the only one you could talk to.

Hunter met you, knowing immediately something was wrong. Hunter listened to you speak, your words quickly coming out as quiet sobs, feeling lost. You were supposed to be a protector, a peacekeeper. You felt as if you were failing. You told him of all your uncertainties about the war, and how you didn’t feel like a protector when all you did was fight for something that seemingly had no purpose or end.

You don’t remember the exact timeline of events, but after you breathed those words, his arms were around you, pulling you into a firm embrace as you leaned against his armor.

He murmured that he understood, and the burdens of being a leader weighed heavy on him, too.

You had looked up at him, locking on to his honeyed eyes you often found yourself lost in, almost too gentle to belong to a born and bred warrior such as him.

Hunter’s face was so close to yours, that you could see the speckles in his cornea and edges of his tattoo where the ink had bled into his skin.

His musky, spicy scent overtook your senses right before his lips met yours.

Hunter’s lips were warm, his stubble lightly scratching your face as his tongue slid against your own, your previous tears now long dried.

He pulled away, giving you the chance to say something.

“If I’ve gone too far-“ He started, but was cut off as you pulled him back in, your body buzzed with a craving you didn’t realize was possible.

This kiss was more fervid, and desperate as he wrapped his gloved hand in your hair. You were weightless in his arms, your mind spun with excitement, guilt, desire, and regret.

You shouldn't be indulging in this, letting him whisk you off your feet as he carries you into a nearby weapons closet, his mouth nipping and licking at every pressure and pleasure point on your neck.

The door slid shut, mouths crashing together again, tugging off armor and robes alike as everything that had been built between the two of you was finally set free. The thin, fraying tether that was keeping your professional relationship and what you truly desired apart had finally snapped.

It was a moment of weakness for you both.

But neither of you stopped.

You didn’t know where either of you began or ended, bodies burning with need as he slid into you, his mouth leaving marks along your collarbone.

Hunter’s pace was rigorous, knowing you didn’t have much time. Even as he desperately pounded into you, his touches were generous and worshipful, almost like you’ve done this a million times before.

He knew exactly where to feel you, he knew exactly what you wanted and when you wanted it. He rasped between strained groans about how beautiful you were, and how long he’s been wanting this.

You didn’t respond, knowing if you did, it would make this situation even more complicated than it currently was.

All you could do was gasp his name, pulling him closer and closer to you, wishing that you could stay in this weapons closet for the rest of time, just you and him.

Afterward, as you lay sweaty and messy, awkwardly perched on a weapons locker, there was so much you wanted to say.

Instead, the words hung in the air with your heavy breaths as you quickly dressed.

You could feel Hunter’s eyes boring into your soul, not knowing exactly what to do next. Hunter broke the silence, speaking the words he knew he shouldn’t say, the utterance like blades piercing your heart.

“I love you.”

You bit your lip which was now trembling, tearing your eyes from his, unable to look at him.

“Hunter…”

Why did he have to say it out loud?

Guilt weighed in your gut, as heavy as durasteel, knowing you shouldn’t have given in.

You wanted to cradle his face, kiss him, run your fingers through his locks, and tell him you loved him too.

Of course you loved him. You’ve always loved him.

You wanted nothing more than to just be with him, but you both knew that was a fantasy.

The war was only becoming more devastating, more clones and Jedi were needed by the day to keep the peace.

Hunter was the one his brothers looked to for leadership. He couldn’t leave his squad, his family.

For you to be the perfect Jedi the Council wanted, you needed a clear conscience and a pure heart. That meant no selfish attachments to cloud your mind.

Hunter placed his thumb and forefinger under your chin, seeing your face darken at his words. He tilted your head toward him.

“I know you can’t say it back. But I want you to know.”

His lips met yours once more, chaste and restrained, before exiting the closet without looking back.

You almost called out to him, to return the forbidden words. Instead, you let him walk away.

It was the last time you saw him before the galaxy erupted into chaos a few short weeks later.

Everything you once understood, once thought to be true, was burned and spread with the ash of the Jedi Temple.

You narrowly escaped, losing contact with everyone and anyone, hiding on remote planet after remote planet, not staying in one place too long.

You thought of Hunter, nausea wrenching your gut. Was he alive? How many Jedi has he killed? Was he with the Empire now?

The thought of him pointing his blaster at you, his viroblade at your throat, the tender glint in his deep, brown eyes replaced with bloodlust made your stomach lurch.

It made you sick, wishing so desperately you would have told him you loved him, said it out loud. You wished you had not been afraid, tethered to the Jedi Code that now meant nothing.

As you wandered and hid, you found yourself holding your comm, wanting to contact Hunter.

You knew you couldn’t, but not knowing whether he was alive, dead, or worse, ate at your soul.

Whether it was The Force, cosmic fate, divine intervention, or pure coincidence, you would see Hunter again.

You caught wind of a smuggler offering credits for jobs on Ord Mantell, in desperate need of work.

When you saw Hunter and his brothers sitting at the bar in Cid’s seedy establishment, you thought you were dreaming, or stepping into a trap.

They just stared, just as shocked to see you.

You whipped out your blaster, memories of clones pulling their own blasters on you, firing without mercy as you begged them to stop as you barely made it alive out of the Temple.

“I-I don’t want to hurt you!” You stood your ground, trying to hide the fear in your voice.

No, no, no, no, this can’t be happening!

Hunter was the first to stand up slowly, your name leaving his lips in quiet surprise.

You gripped your blaster, waiting for the moment he drew his.

Tech stood up slowly next, raising his arms.

“We won’t hurt you.” Tech said. “The chips did not activate in us.”

“Chips? What chips? What are you talking about?”

Your blood was ice, stepping backward toward the exit.

“Please I don’t want to…“

Your finger hovered on the trigger, not knowing if you’d have to fight those who you once called friends, the man who you once loved, and still did.

Hunter examined you, as if not believing what he was seeing was real. Maybe you were a ghost. You sure felt like one.

Your eyes darted between them all, none of them reaching for their weapons.

Your body shook, tears in your eyes, never expecting to see anyone you knew ever again, especially not them. You slowly lowered your blaster as Hunter approached you, placing his hand on your wrist as your legs almost gave out from the adrenaline coursing through your body.

“Is it really you…?” You choked out, your blaster clattering to the ground. Hunter nodded, pulling you in close for an embrace, saying your name with such profound relief you could have fainted.

Hunter pulled away, his eyes swimming with emotion, as were yours. Before you could say any more, the rest of the squad were surrounding you.

You hugged them all, too, happy to see them alive, and not trying to murder you.

It was a bittersweet reunion, catching up on all that had happened once they convinced you they weren’t dangerous.

They explained everything.

The chips, the conspiracy, Crosshair, Omega.

Your mind spun, trying to process it all.

All the while, Hunter’s eyes never left yours in all the hours you sat at the bar.

There was so much you wanted to say, but it had to wait.

They invited you on their next mission with Cid, even offering a small cut of the credits when the job was completed.

You agreed, having no other option than to say yes, though it made you nervous to join them, especially since the Empire was already on their tail.

Adding an (ex) Jedi to the mix could make things messy.

They didn’t seem too concerned, as long as you didn’t make yourself obvious.

Hunter gave you a small smile, a knowing look in his eyes flashing momentarily, his hand coming to your shoulder as you stood up from the bar to head to The Marauder.

“I’m happy you’re coming with. We’ve…I’ve missed you.” Hunter spoke quietly.

“I’ve missed you too, Hunter.” He nodded, wanting to say more, but Echo was gesturing to him to go over the mission details.

He squeezed your shoulder. “See you on the ship.”

You stepped onto The Marauder, and not much had changed, besides Crosshair’s absence and Omega’s new corner of the ship that she proudly gave you a tour of.

As you took off from Ord Mantell, watching the planet get smaller as you ascended into the atmosphere, it felt like before, when things were more simple.

Eager for your next assignment, ready to serve the Republic and make the Council proud.

You sat in a blast chair, watching the boys talk and Omega peering over Hunter’s shoulder as he set the hyperspace coordinates.

It felt like old times. Almost.

The job was simple, at least that’s how Cid described it. You were to retrieve a package from an arms dealer who was expecting you in a small village of the heavily forested planet you were heading for.

You weren’t to meet him until the next day, so you had downtime the evening before.

Tech landed the ship in a small clearing on top of a hill, most of the planet thick with old-growth trees. A lake was nestled amongst the trees down the sloping hill a few klicks away.

The water reflected the sun that was almost set as two moons drifted into the sky to replace the star in the sky.

Tech and Echo were busy looking at the map, deciding the best way to get to the village the next day while Wrecker and Omega played a game of Dejarik. Hunter was quietly and diligently cleaning his blaster, sneaking glances at you as he did so.

Hunter was respecting your boundaries, not wanting to push you into anything too quickly. He wanted nothing more than to kick everyone off the ship, wrap himself around you, feel you against him, proving that you were indeed real. He assumed you were still weary of clones, which he didn’t blame you for. He was just happy you were alive, and safe. That was enough for him, if nothing else.

You knew he was looking at you while you were organizing your things. You desperately wanted to talk to him alone, about the last time you saw one another.

Did he still love you? Did he mean what he said? Could you even pick up where you left off, after all that’s happened?

You peered at the clones you shared the ship with, tears filling the sides of your eyes, memories flooding back to you of your time with them. It seemed so simple back then. But now…what were you? They were still clones but now untethered by what they were bred for.

You were free as well, though the Jedi Code still burned into your skull, finding it hard to forget. If you weren’t a Jedi anymore, then what were you?

“Are you okay?” Omega noticed you, your hands trembling.

You sniffed, quickly wiping your eyes. You could feel everyone’s eyes on you, especially Hunter’s.

“I…just need some air.” You stood up, shoving your pack under a blast chair. “I’ll be at the lake if you need me.”

You smashed the button to lower the ramp and headed out before it even touched the ground, before anyone could say anything to you.

Intense emotions swirled in your chest, briskly walking toward the serene water. The cool air of the evening calmed the ache in your being slightly, your hands still trembling.

The man you loved was in the ship behind you, and yet your footsteps led you further away from him. It was almost too much, suddenly being back with them, with him.

You roamed silently to the lake, sitting down near the edge of the water.

You closed your eyes, trying to meditate, focusing on your emotions. You honed in on the water lapping at the shore, the breeze rustling through the leaves, and the distant call of a nocturnal predatory bird.

You knew Hunter was there before he spoke.

“Everything is different now.” His voice was low. “It’s…still hard for me, too.”

You nodded, biting your lip, your eyes still closed.

“I tried to find you, to see if you were alive. But I didn’t want to risk endangering you.”

You slowly opened your eyes, focusing on him. He was looking right at you, his form illuminated by the glow of the moons.

“I didn’t know…I was afraid…” You stammered. “I wanted nothing more than to know if you were alive…I’m sorry that I never…” Your next words were caught in your throat as Hunter’s lips met yours, soft and loving. You were transported to your first kiss, all that time ago.

That ache in your chest was suddenly gone, replaced with a weightlessness only he could make you feel.

He pulled away almost as quickly as he leaned in.

He silently gazed at you, a hand coming to caress the side of your face.

You leaned into his touch, bringing your hand over his. “I never stopped thinking about you.” He whispered, his thumb tracing your cheek.

“Can I kiss you again?” He murmured.

“Yes.”

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧ ✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧ ✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧ ✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

Soon, you laid out underneath him, your clothes a makeshift blanket under you on the shore of the lake.

Instead of in a cramped weapons closet, you were free in the evening air, the endless sky above you.

You took your time re-exploring each other’s bodies, relishing in languid pleasure as the moons hung heavy in the night sky.

Hunter did not leave an inch of your body untouched, bringing you to your peak over and over again with his hands and mouth, making up for the lost time.

When he was satisfied you were ready for him, he positioned himself on top of you, his hair hanging from his headband, haloing his face above you.

He slowly entered you, moans leaving both of your lips, your hands coming around his shoulders, welcoming the stretch as he sank into you. It was mind-melting pleasure, feeling him so close and real.

Hunter stopped once he was fully seated in you, dropping his head to your side.

“I still love you.” His lips were right at your ear, deep inside you, but not moving. Not yet.

You cradled his face, just as you wished you did all that time ago as he searched your eyes for an answer.

Part of him worried you had just made the same mistake as before, giving into your carnal desires when there was still so much uncertainty.

Was this something you should be doing, was it selfish to want one another when others were still suffering?

You kissed him gently, tears catching on your eyelashes, his worried thoughts evaporating with your touch.

“I’m sorry I never said it back.” You traced his tattoo with your fingertip, his eyes closing, relishing your touch.

“You couldn’t. I knew you couldn’t.” He muttered, his brows furrowed. “I shouldn’t have put you in that position…”

“We can now. We can say it.”

Hunter’s eyes opened, a gentle smile on his face. “Then say it.” He pressed his forehead to yours.

“I love you, Hunter. I always have.”

He smiled as he nuzzled the side of your face, the world melting away as he began to move, bodies entwined as one.

You were boneless and safe in his embrace as his fingers and lips molded to you perfectly.

His thrusts were slow and purposeful, his eyes never leaving yours.

Hunter touched you like before, like you’ve been lovers for 100 years, mapping your body so lovingly, so exquisitely, so perfectly.

He was afraid if he didn’t intricately memorize every curve and soft swell of your body, you might slip away again, and he wouldn’t get another chance.

You locked your ankles around his waist, changing the angle. Hunter let out a low whine, his head falling to your shoulder as your pleasure grew.

You were thankful for the slight breeze coming off the water, sweat forming on your bodies as your passion intensified.

You lightly tugged at his hair, his name leaving your lips in breathy mewls, his baritone moans thick with longing, dropping an octave as you clenched around him.

Hunter brought a finger to your clit, drawing tight circles, his thrusts hitting you in such a way you couldn’t discern the stars in your vision from the ones in the sky above.

Your fingernails dug into his muscled shoulder blades as your body arched toward him.

Hunter was drunk on your smell, your body, his senses absorbing every small sound.

Your intense arousal filled his nostrils, tasting your sweet skin as he left open-mouthed kisses on your neck.

Your body was on fire, overwhelmed by his tenderness, his devout passion, wordlessly telling you how much you meant to him.

“I’m right here, I have you.” Hunter rumbled, pressing his lips to yours, feeling your body tremble as you teetered on the precipice of your final orgasm. “I’ll always have you.”

He swallowed your pleasured sobs as you came, constricting and trembling around him, sending him over the edge.

Hunter let out a shuddered groan, pressing his hips into yours one final time, filling you with his release, his lips still on yours.

Your hands delicately roamed his back, your eyes fluttering open to meet his as he rested his weight on his forearms around you.

Your bodies stilled, trying to catch your breaths, the only other sound the tranquil waves splashing on the shore behind you.

You held on to one another, not wanting this moment to end. Hunter left feather-light kisses on your jawbone, leading to your lips, sliding his mouth to yours for an immensely passionate kiss.

The future was uncertain and unmapped, just as it was back when you were Jedi and soldier. You may have to take up your old roles once again, putting duty before all else.

You made peace with that, knowing how you felt for one another would only make you stronger, having something real to hold on to as you traversed into the unknown.

Taglist: @crosshairlovebot @blueink-bluesoul @kimiheartblade @wizardofrozz @clonemedickix @din-miller @sunshinesdaydream @kashasenpai @freesia-writes @multi-fan-dom-madness @coraex @aconstructofamind @dreamie411 @dystopicjumpsuit @starqueensthings @idontgetanysleep @secretthegriffin @anxiouspineapple99 @sinfulsalutations @secondaryrealm @littlemissmanga @maybethatfanfictionwriter @pb-jellybeans @wanderer-six @king-chaos-world @the-cantina @wolffegirlsunite @dukeoftheblackstar @523rdrebel @sleepingsun501 @wings-and-beskar

Dividers by @idontgetanysleep

#Hunter x reader #Hunter x you #Hunter tbb #Hunter x jedireader #the bad batch #the bad batch fanfiction #the clone wars #the clone wars fanfiction #Star Wars fanfiction #x reader #reader insert #tbb Hunter #Hunter tbb x reader #hunter x fem!reader #sergeant hunter #tbb #starrycatwrites

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mychlapci · 8 months

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I have a big brain that is smooooth, an obsession with Megatron being 100% breedable and mother material (i have a picture somewhere in my memories of WHY megatron is so breedable.) and im sorry for spamming your inbox out but I need to indulge myself in like 2000000 different things, i promise im sorry ;-;

Megaratch is the hill i am going to die on. Because now we need Ratchet sheepishly admitting to Optimus, who’s 100% ready to kill himself or the closest bot, that he was the crazy mech to spike Megatron multiple times.

Yeah Prowl definitely bluescreens, and doesnt re-online for a couple days because his stress-meter blew out the roof.

Meanwhile with the cons, everyone’s 100% sure its Optimus, despite how he swore it wasnt him. But that changes the moment Megatron pops out the next batch of babies, clearly used to birthing out lil bitties by now. And one of them comes out with. Sirens. TINY LITTLE SIRENS, rocking white and red plating, 100% ambulance sirens, their armour still a rubbery consistency , and red optics. And then everyone realises ‘oh god the autobot medic’

I will also die on the hill of that medics are perfect stud material, strong in multiple ways, sturdy and well built, He could pump Megatron full of transfluid for hours, not stopping until Megatron asks or he’s empty of transfluid.

Annd…who is Megatron to say No to an offer like that?

Okay but like. Hell breaks loose AGAIN in both factions, everyone’s confused as fuck because WHERE has Megatron gone, WHY the autobot medic, WHEN did they start fucking on the weekly and HOW have they gotten away with this?!

- Chase anon :3 , Thank you for feeding into everyones addictions, i’ll try not to go crazy on your inbox i promise <3

Megatron is breedable. He's powerful, strong, has the body and the hips for it, and a carrier capable of protecting his litter is a good carrier. Also 100% medics are perfect studs, which is probably why it all started. You have a perfect, capable carrier, and a very capable sire, both of which really hate each other, but… the sex is fucking great, and the breeding drive just makes it so much better. And Megatron wants heirs. And Ratchet is just… living out some rage fantasies and blowing off steam.

Ratchet probably gets away with it for a long time. However long it takes for Prowl to stop yelling at Optimus. Which is a long time, indeed. But then there's a lot of doubt circling through the autobot ranks, distrust in their leader, so he ends up having to admit that he ended up fucking Megatron. He has to say it in front of the whole high command too, just really rip off the bandaid and let everyone know that no, it wasn't Optimus who knocked up Megatron, it was him (and maybe Optimus is a little jealous…)

The proof is Megatron's next batch of bitties, which come out significantly more ambulance coloured. My bet is there were a few decepticons who had a bet on the autobot medic, but only a few, and they end up loaded for sticking to their guns even though everyone told them they're being stupid.

You think they share custody? You think one day Ratchet's just got a couple bitties in his arms the entire day. A couple big, fat, red-eyed bitties. Prowl probably suggests, not so subtly, that they should get rid of them, but that idea is immediately shushed by everyone with half a spark because…just look at them. The bitlets are, somehow, so cute.

#valveplug #kind of #pregnancy mention #megaratch evening

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whoishotteranimepolls · 7 months

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The state of my inbox, requests, the queue and four-way poll updates

Please quit spamming my inbox. If you would like to add to the discourse regarding anything on the blog. For instance the one piece art style debate or why does Gojo keep losing? Please comment or reblog don't spam my inbox because at the moment there's so much junk in it relating to the discourse that I struggle to find the request for the polls I'm supposed to make. So while I sort through all the junk. I'm not making the polls so that's just going to delay the request opening back up even longer.

Right now I'm kind of debating on whether or not I need to just shut off ask completely because some people are abusing the privilege. Because at the moment there is more stuff in my inbox than when I originally closed the request. Plus most of it isn't even poll request anymore. It's random questions about are certain cartoons going to be allowed and crap about the one piece and Gojo debates

Again, I do this blog for fun. I run this blog by myself and I have a job and a life outside of it. And I want to get through this batch of requests Because I know next time I open up the request box there will be a lot more variety since I have almost triple the follower count. And that means less one piece for all the people that complain because the queue is about 80% one piece and their requests are about 50% one piece. However, I'm not adding new one piece polls to the queue at the moment so that ratio might change

So the person who suggested character cooldowns that just isn't feasible because I got one piece polls that have been in the queue since January. Because I just hit shuffle on the queue a couple times to make sure there isn't going to be too many one piece polls everyday before the polls start posting. Because depending on how many polls post each day you're going to get at least 2 to 4 one piece poll everyday at least for the foreseeable future I am trying to add more variety But with the state of the queue and the request box this is what we're getting until I can open it up again.

On to the topic of four-way polls, I know I've got a bunch of questions about them

For future reference, when it comes to four-way polls, it's better to ask for forgiveness than permission because I don't think this person even bothered to ask. They just sent in the request and I already had all the photos so I was more willing to say yes. But if it's ridiculous and I have to hunt down four photos specifically for one poll because it's super niche characters, I'm probably going to say no. But if I already have all the photos saved because I've done polls for the characters before I'm more likely to say yes. Or maybe you send in the photos. But finding the photos is the hardest part of making the polls. So far there's only been four four-way polls requested so far. Still not done. Going through the request box there could be more.

So if you want to try to get me to do five and six way polls by just sending it in and hoping for the best. Maybe you'll catch me in a good mood but I might say no. As long as everyone understands that anything more than three, no guarantee it will be made you are welcome to try

I hope this made sense. It kind of was a bit of a rant But hopefully this clarifies a lot of the questions and issues that have been brought up the past couple of days

#not a poll #announcement #blog update

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maiji · 8 months

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Something I'm excited about with regards to finishing fight / flight is that now I can finally post a new batch of images to Pixiv! Not just fight / flight, but also other illustrations I finished over the period of time and/or forgot to previously post to the North Bound series there. I really wanted to do one last illustration of these three to close it off.

I usually wait a day, several days before posting art/comics to other platforms. Partly to spread out the update spam, partly to try to increase visibility, but mostly because 9 times out of 10 if I post things too fast I almost immediately discover some silly mistakes and then I'm crying inside because I'm repeatedly editing, reposting, finding another mistake, repeat etc... and/or I can't edit a post on some platforms and have to delete it all and start over. So I try to pace myself a bit, giving myself a little distance and opportunity to be more aware and mindful. (Sometimes it works. Sometimes I'm like, who cares, no one will notice except me, and move on with my life.)

It's always hard to assess your own work objectively. Projects like North Bound are particularly interesting because of the funny elasticity of time that you have with all the different pieces of it. That some ideas are so old and you're finally getting to them after all these months/years or other people are finally seeing them when you've already long moved on to something else. That different things are at varying stages of conception and sketching and refining and finishing, and so on. Webcomic creators are very familiar with the concept of "webcomic time". I think anyone who works in a field where there's a lag between the initial conceptualization of something and the actual publishing/launching it out into the world know what I mean. Webcomic time maybe even more so because the barriers to entry for webcomics can be wonderfully low and webcomic creators often do SO MUCH in the production so lots of people get to commiserate in this funny space/feeling together. To be honest I think I feel it with North Bound even more than I ever felt it with Now Recharging. The latter I worked on in a relatively regular fashion to hit specific posting schedules, while North Bound really is whenever I can squeeze in the time and motivation and also problem-solve narrative issues.

Looking back, Mirror Most Dark (completed 2017), I Heard A Cicada Cry (completed 2020), Survive (2021) and fight / flight (2024) (see them all here) form a four story set as "this is North Bound Hokushin's formative time before he meets Raizen". But what I really like is that they feel pretty self-contained - more like "this is an interesting little supernatural historical fiction-y series of stories". (Enough so that I actually woke up one night thinking, "Hey, this set of stories would actually make a pretty robust printed book! The 3 comic stories alone come to 108 pages! I wonder how many pages Mirror Most Dark would come to if I re-laid it out as a printed illustrated story... I'd have to redraw the illustrations in black and white to be able to print it more cost-effectively and match the style of the comic stories..." and then I was like no, you already have enough things to work on, and you don't need another box of books sitting in your closet for the next 10+ years.)

Working on these helps me really appreciate the art and craft of storytelling and building out/fleshing out a character, and also pushes me to try so many things I otherwise wouldn't have the opportunity to. Mirror Most Dark, the oldest work in this group, still holds up not too badly (though there are a lot of errors and issues, and many things I would change if I were attempting it today...), and some panels and sequences I've been very proud of throughout the stories. When I reread them I do always see little things I'd like to fix, but overall... I made them, I learned from them, they exist, and it was all a very worthwhile experience!

#yu yu hakusho #hokushin #semimaru #tomoe gozen #historical fiction #fancomic #fanfiction #art by maiji/mary huang #yyh north bound

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saucyzoo · 10 months

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Just to explain the mass spam the last 24 hours:

Since I started this blog, I had been queuing posts instead of posting directly so that I don’t end up spamming too much too often. This got out of hand and led to me having a queue of around 250 posts.

For one, this causes a disconnect where there’d be days and days inbetween stuff like having a poll and then having the results actually show up. Secondly, this was a pain any time I needed to double check whether or not a post successfully went through. Thirdly, now that I am using style tags, it meant that I’d have to type out the whole style tag each time and never get it auto suggested since the queue was longer than an entire batch by this point.

Maybe I’ll go back to experimenting with using the queue in a limited capacity at some point, but for now, when you see is when I actually make them, which is brand new.

#ai art #stable diffusion

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sanchoyo · 3 months

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ok...I think i'm done making a lil hitlist for artfight. maybe. >:') I've heard people say the AF website tends to crash the first day or two bc the amount of traffic so I've saved every ref (+the characters maker and team) in a cute lil google doc. very prepared. (I did save like 40 characters which is unrealistic and I KNOW I will not get to ALL Of them, but I wanted to give myself Choices and Variety. ('variety' but 90% of them r mew mew ocs lol. but theres SO many mew mew ocs!!! I limited myself to bookmarking 2 per user too if they had more than 1 cute one and that was so hard!! :( )

that being said I DO want to try to draw as much as possible...everyday? (this does not mean I'll necessarily do 1 ATTACK a day, but will try to work on some daily...) and possibly post speedpaints with all of them?? (I need to test clip studios recording feature before then, possibly on the next drawing I do today or tomorrow?? I have (2) fanart things I want to draw before af starts and one lil original thing kjhadkjf)

anyway, I'm wondering what people would prefer as far as posting them goes? would you guys (who follow my art blog) prefer I post them as I get them done (which is what I'll be doing on AF lol) or want me to post them in a batch at the end of every week?? the batch feels less like spamming my art blog followers but I worry a lil that the creators might want their ocs in their own post. does that make sense. what do u guys think

#i say the hitlist is done but i will still be perusing a bit in the tmm tag on af to see if I missed any rly cute ones 👀#i seriously doubt ill be able to get to all of them but i will do as many as I can without hurting myself lol!!#btw the hitlist will stay private ik ive seen some ppl letting ppl fill out forms to get added to theirs but i am not doing that #i want ppl to be SURPRISED!!! >:)#I GUESS i should also account for the idea of ppl attacking me first but i cannot imagine there will be a lot of those #bc its my first fight and i dont have any real examples of what my attacks will look like yet #heck im not even sure what theyll be yet like will i do lil chibis? sketches? full illustrations??#most likely it wont be consistent and will depend of my energy and time when im drawing each lol #sanchoyorambles #also i do not think my art blog followers would MIND spam since u guys stuck around for the daily may i just. Worry abt getting annoying #it Is the Anxiety #its also not technically 'spam' it is just. posting often.#i will tag all of them art fight regardless so ppl can blacklist if they want 2 :)

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guqin-and-flute · 2 years

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The Dadliest Chat (3zun Group Text)--Modern 3zun raise Jingyi AU

[Modern 3zun Tag] [Ao3 series]

[This was a lot of fun and the first thing I have written in a WHILE, so I just let myself go for it and write whatever. Therefore the vibe is a little all over the map; slice of life, fluff, lil' bit of lemon, a bit of angst and trauma work, but mostly just sort of day in the life look at 3zun's group chat as fathers! A-Fu is about 10 months old in this.

CW: dirty talk, lemon (I'm leery of tagging more cause I don't wanna get flagged because Tunglr™, but they sometimes have adult convos over text, ya know?]

SATURDAY

<10:42 AM>

Xichen: Stupid bill?

Xichen: [sent picture]

Da-ge: spam

A-Yao: 👍

Xichen: 👍👍

MONDAY

<12:12 PM>

A-Yao: People are stupid

Da-ge: yep

Xichen: !! :( Are people being difficult at work? 💙

Da-ge: are zixuns being difficult at work

A-Yao: Yes

A-Yao: Need son pics, please

Da-ge: lol to up your blood sugar

Xichen: On it!

A-Yao: Something like that

A-Yao: ❤❤❤

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: [sent video]

Xichen: [sent picture]

Da-ge: !

A-Yao: My god

A-Yao: They’re like drugs

Xichen: Better? 💙🥰

A-Yao: Better than drugs, yes

Xichen: 😂 Not what I meant but I’m glad! I have so many more.

Da-ge: who won the fight

Xichen: 😂 He’s playing DRUMS in that picture, Da-ge.

Xichen: It’s his music class.

Xichen: We Lan eschew violence.

Da-ge: yeah

Da-ge: that’s why wangji almost took a chunk out of my thigh when he was a kid

Xichen: 😬

A-Yao: Hush, I’m basking

Da-ge: lol

TUESDAY

<9:56 AM>

Lan Xichen: [sent video]

A-Yao: Why does he sound like that? Is that normal?

Da-ge: gollum

Xichen: 😂

Xichen: I was thinking more sink drain, but that too!

A-Yao: Our son is not GOLLUM

Xichen: He’s started making that noise when he’s happy, A-Yao, it's alright! 💙 He does it especially when he looks at the tiger toy A-Yu got him. Or when he’s going to the bathroom.

Da-ge: lol

Da-ge: he has your smile

Xichen: Not sure that’s possible, Da-ge😂

A-Yao: I actually agree with Da-ge

A-Yao: I think it's the eyes

Da-ge: yeah

Xichen: Hmm, well his mother's father's father was my father's cousin, I believe. Or second cousin, I can never rightly remember. Several branches off, we'll say.

Xichen: Maybe my father was the common link.

<2:27 PM>

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: I don't see it, really.

Da-ge: see what

Da-ge: whose that

Xichen: A similarity in our smiles.

A-Yao: Is that your father???

Xichen: Yes.

A-Yao: !!!!

Da-ge: i didnt know you had pictures of him

Xichen: I don't, I asked Wangji if shufu had ever shown him any. He was visiting him with Wuxian and A-Yuan today, so I suppose he found one.

A-Yao: Or Wuxian did.

Da-ge: snoop

Xichen: Well, maybe 😋 I didn't ask.

A-Yao: Hmm

A-Yao: People don’t always use their real smile for pictures

<3:04 PM>

Da-ge: ?

Xichen: Hm?

A-Yao: Are you okay?

Xichen: Yes? Why wouldn’t I be? 🤗

Da-ge: you went quiet

Xichen: 😉 I'm fine.

Da-ge: ??

Xichen: 😘 I'm fine.

A-Yao: Er-ge

Xichen: Truly, I'm fine! A-Fu and I are at the park.

Xichen: [sent picture]

A-Yao: 😍

Da-ge: ❤️

Da-ge: how did you get him to wear the sunglasses

Xichen: Patience and sweet potato puffs.

Xichen: He also threw them on the ground directly after the photo, so don’t praise me too much 😂

Da-ge: distraction

Xichen: ?

A-Yao: You’re cheating, Er-ge

Xichen: Cheating?? Cheating what?? How??

Da-ge: 🙄

Xichen: It was just odd to think I’ve never seen his real smile. I'm not even thinking about it anymore, I'm keeping A-Fu from eating sand! I can call you to prove it but really, it was just a thought. I'M FINE 💙

A-Yao: I'm bringing home eclairs from Jean’s

Xichen: 🤩🥰 A-Fu is EXCITED!

Xichen: [sent picture]

A-Yao: 😭😭

Da-ge: so fuckin cute

Da-ge: how are his cheeks so big

Da-ge: chipmunk cheeks

A-Yao: This one is going in the next batch I’m printing

Xichen: 🥰

Da-ge: we’re gonna run out of wall space by the time hes 1

WEDNESDAY

<5:17 PM>

A-Yao: Eggs

Rice

Okra

Coffee

Da-ge: ok ty

THURSDAY

<12:47 PM>

Xichen: [sent picture]

A-Yao: ❤

Da-ge: daww

FRIDAY

<8:24 AM>

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: I do not enjoy stepping on Cheerios, I’ve found. Whether wet or dry.

Da-ge: lol good luck

<9:17 AM>

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: Oops 😬

Da-ge: well we were gonna give him a bath tonite anyway

A-Yao: How???????

A-Yao: It was on the counter!

Xichen: I was vacuuming after the Breakfast Cheerio Disaster and then I turn around and, well, plant down.

A-Yao: Did it fall on him??

Xichen: Nope! He just dug around in the dirt and remnants after he managed to pull it down.

Da-ge: kids are sturdy

Xichen: I don't understand how he can climb but can't walk yet???

Da-ge: monkey genes

A-Yao: Technically ape

Da-ge: 🙄

Xichen: 🙈

A-Yao: Where was that from again? That garden store downtown? I can pick up a new one omw home

Xichen: We might be able to repot it, they seem pretty sturdy. Maybe go pick up a hanging one this time, though?

Xichen: I'm just glad we made sure all the plants werj;/ abb noewlp

Xichen: Sorry, he slapped the phone out of my hand and it sent. We made sure all the plants were non-toxic if eaten or I'd be having a heart attack right now 😱

A-Yao: HE AUE IT?? ?

Da-ge: you didnt see the dirt in his mouth? kids put shit directly in there as default there’s no stopping it

A-Yao: IS HE OKAY???

Xichen: I called poison control even after looking it up online. Totally fine! There was only a little bit gone, after all.

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: See?

Da-ge: lol i was imagining cartoon bite marka but that makes more sense

Xichen: 😂 He doesn't even have teeth yet!

A-Yao: Is his tummy upset???

A-Yao: has he poop ed??

A-Yao: did they say we should feed him something or make him dirnk water or ???

Xichen: My love, he's COMPLETELY fine, I promise.

Xichen: Look!

Xichen: [sent picture]

Da-ge: tiny feet ❤️

Da-ge: cant stand that show tho

Xichen: Actually, I find it oddly soothing.

Da-ge: you had no tv growing up. huaisanf was addicted to fuckin telletubbies for AGES

Da-ge: gets old really fast

Da-ge: hate how they talk

Da-ge: youre still panicking aren't you ayao

A-Yao: No

Xichen: And what does WebMD have to say? 😂

A-Yao: …

A-Yao: That it’s nontoxic to humans and pets.

Da-ge: lol

Da-ge: like he said

Xichen: 😂

A-Yao: I apologize for overreacting.

A-Yao: I wasn’t trying to question your competence.

Xichen: A-Yao, no! I didn’t take it that way!

A-Yao: It’s fine!

Xichen: I’m sorry, A-Yao, we shouldn’t have teased you when you were worried about A-Fu :(

A-Yao: It’s fine!

Xichen: Love, please pick up.

Xichen: A-Yao, please call me.

A-Yao: I'm fine! :)

Da-ge: bullshit

Da-ge: answer him or me you choose

A-Yao: I'm in a meeting.

Da-ge: i doubt that

Xichen: Please call me when you're out?

A-Yao: Maybe! My schedule is very full today. I'll try to remember.

Da-ge: don't fucking start that just call him

A-Yao: I'm in a meeting.

Da-ge: then promise to answer after

A-Yao: I’ll try to remember.

Da-ge: you don’t forget shit set an alarm to remember then instead of being a child

Xichen: Da-ge please that’s not going to help

Da-ge: its stupid if he’s going to have a problem with something we said and not fix it

Da-ge: just fucking tell us instead of the pasive aggressive shit

Da-ge: he knows that

Xichen: You know that’s not how it works. Please don’t do this here, just text me privately. A-Yao, we’re not talking about you behind your back

Da-ge: thers no other way TO talk to him when he does this

Da-ge: this can literally be over right now if he just answered his stupid phone

Xichen: Please stop. Call me.

<10:01 AM>

Xichen: No one’s angry with you, A-Yao 💙 You can call in your own time!!

<1:45 PM>

Xichen: I’m going to make some stir fry for tonight! 2 batches, one with meat and one without! Extra bamboo shoots! 😊😊😎 Any requests?

<3:32 PM>

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: A-Fu Baxia cuddle puddle 😴🐱👶🥰

<5:07 PM>

A-Yao: Im sorry

A-Yao: I was being stupid

A-Yao: I’m sorry

A-Yao: I wont do it again

Xichen: Shhh, call me, Da-ge came home early, we can all talk 💙💙💙💙

SUNDAY

<11:05 AM>

A-Yao: Why do stores rearrange everything so often??

A-Yao: Is this the right brand??

A-Yao: [sent picture]

Xichen: I think? Show me the back?

A-Yao: [sent picture]

Xichen: I think they just changed the packaging, it should still be the right one!

A-Yao: 👍

<2:43 PM>

Xichen: Can Huaisang still babysit tonight after A-Fu goes down?

Da-ge: he says yes

Xichen: Perfect!

<4:33 PM>

Da-ge: thought you two were going out for dinner? isnt that why you needed asang?

Xichen: Something happened with a last minute change to a contract and he has to go in to oversee changes, but I need to run some errands anyway, so I’ll take advantage of the expanded mobility 😂

Xichen: It’s surprisingly difficult to shop for baby clothes with a baby in tow.

Da-ge: sucks

Xichen: Yes, but there’s always next time!

MONDAY

<8:07 AM>

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: We love Papa’s breakfast!

Da-ge: ❤

TUESDAY

<12:18 PM>

Xichen: Da-ge, A-Yao came home with one of his headaches--I'm going to take A-Fu out so he can sleep and I'm putting his phone downstairs so he isn't tempted to use it. Can you check on him when you get home? 💙

Da-ge: I will

Da-ge: poor ayao ❤

Xichen: I know 😢 Love you!

Da-ge: love you both

Da-ge: let me know if i should bring something home

Xichen: Right now, I think he just needs some sleep for now, he caught it early instead of pushing through (for once)!

Xichen: Proud of you, A-Yao!

<8:57 PM>

A-Yao: ❤

WEDNESDAY

<11:34 AM>

Da-ge: [sent picture]

Da-ge: what is this shit

A-Yao: Ugh

Xichen: Sigh.

<2:04 PM>

Xichen: Look what just came on my photo roll!💙

Xichen: [sent picture]

A-Yao: Ahh, Da-ge in an apron, my favorite

Da-ge: lol

Da-ge: i remember that day

THURSDAY

<6:41 AM>

A-Yao: [sent picture]

<7:25 AM>

Xichen: !!!!!!!!!!!

Xichen: A-Yao is so handsome 👀💙

Da-ge: love when you wear that one

Da-ge: it’s sexy

A-Yao: 😌

<7:40 AM>

A-Yao: Not overtly, right?

A-Yao: Not somehow inappropriate?

Da-ge: fuck no you just look good in a suit

<10:13 AM>

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: Cousins at the library!

A-Yao: Ahh, A-Ling!!!

A-Yao: 😍😍

Xichen: A-Fu’s being very gentle!

Da-ge: good!

Xichen: I saw Mary there!

Da-ge: basoonist?

A-Yao: No, that’s Mari. Mary is the percussionist, curly hair, glasses, nose ring

Xichen: She says they miss me, which was very sweet.

Da-ge: still trying to get you back?

Xichen: I said I didn’t know when I’d be back as director, which is the truth!

Da-ge: you don’t have to apologize for anything

Xichen: I know 😊

Da-ge: mmm

SATURDAY

<4:55 PM>

Xichen: Will you be home for dinner, Da-ge?

Da-ge: no they moved my flight up

Xichen: We’ll miss you!! 😙

A-Yao: Fly safe! Do you have all your IDs and chargers? Do you have your meds? Did you get your motorcycle in for the scrape?

Da-ge: yea yea yea no

A-Yao: Should I have A-Su drive it in? She’s very responsible

Xichen: I didn’t know she rides motorcycles!

A-Yao: She got her license but doesn’t have a bike yet

Da-ge: nah it’s fine i’ll get to it when i’m back

Da-ge: leaving earlier means im only out for 4 days instead of 7

Da-ge: more meetings but

Xichen: Make sure to get lots of rest! Don’t burn yourself out.

A-Yao: Good!

A-Yao: [sent picture]

A-Yao: FuFu says “love you, Papa”

Da-ge: ❤

Da-ge: my boys

SUNDAY

<8:45 AM>

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: Morning!

Da-ge: ❤

A-Yao: 😍

A-Yao: So cute

A-Yao: Also I love that braid, Er-ge

Da-ge: everything ok there?

Xichen: Going swimming-ly! 😉🏊‍♂️

Da-ge: lol

<7:02 PM>

Da-ge: how was the dinner with the all the jins

Xichen: Loud but good fun! A-Fu loved it.

Xichen: [sent picture]

A-Yao: I want to schedule them more regularly

<8:22 PM>

Da-ge: night

Da-ge: lov you

A-Yao: Poor sleepy Da-ge. Love you

Xichen: We love you!

MONDAY

<7:00 AM>

Xichen: ☕

Da-ge: [sent picture]

Da-ge: how did you know

Xichen: 😁 We are creatures of habit.

<6:11 PM>

A-Yao: Toilet’s doing that thing again

Da-ge: fuck

Da-ge: upstairs one?

A-Yao: Yep

Xichen: I’ll call the plumber but it’s late and short notice so 😬 We'll see!

<6:32 PM>

A-Yao: [sent picture]

Xichen: Little gremlin 🥰

Da-ge: adorable

<8:20 PM>

Da-ge: goodnight love you all

Xichen: Love you! Baxia misses her Papa and so does A-Fu! 💙 A-Yao’s making popcorn, he says ‘We love you, dream of us’ from the kitchen!

Da-ge: lol will do

Da-ge: hows the toilet

Xichen: We are taking care of it, focus on work! 💙

TUESDAY

<9:03 AM>

A-Yao: Can someone call

Xichen: You okay??

Da-ge: eating lunch whats up

A-Yao: Murder

Xichen: Ahhh 💙

Da-ge: are we coming up with scenarios or ar you

<12:24 PM>

Xichen: Honestly, why don't we bake bread more? The house smells SO good.

Xichen: 🍞

Xichen: I'm making honey butter! 🐝

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: A-Fu approved! 👍

Da-ge: ❤️

A-Yao: Hell day. Want fresh bread

A-Yao: Look at him

A-Yao: So cute

Xichen: I’ll have plenty for when you come home, love! 💙💙💙 I can always make more!

Xichen: I’ll make it again fresh when you get home, Da-ge!

Da-ge: yum

<9:18 PM>

A-Yao: ❤ Sleepy?

Da-ge: eh

Da-ge: a bit

Da-ge: why

A-Yao: Want to video call?

Da-ge: oh? wheres xichen?

A-Yao: [sent picture]

WEDNESDAY

<7:01 AM>

Xichen: Good morning! ☀☕

Da-ge: lol

Da-ge: bet you slept good

A-Yao: Oh, he’s very pleased with himself. It was all his idea, actually

Da-ge: is he blushing

A-Yao: Yes, it’s very cute

Da-ge: lol ❤

<9:39 AM>

A-Yao: [sent picture]

A-Yao: ???

Xichen: 😂

Da-ge: wtf

<6:27 PM>

Da-ge: timezones suck

Da-ge: work trips suck

Xichen: 😟💙

Xichen: Need to talk?

Da-ge: just complaining

Da-ge: wanna go home

A-Yao: We all want you here

<8:00 PM>

Xichen: Goodnight, Da-ge. We love you and can’t wait to pick you up on Friday!

THURSDAY

<8:05 AM>

Xichen: Last day apart! Good morning! 🌈

Da-ge: thank fuck

A-Yao: I do not say this lightly, but I’m ready for the weekend

A-Yao: Can we go out to dinner somewhere when he gets back? That bistro place?

Xichen: 🤩 A wonderful idea.

<11:26 PM>

Da-ge: so fuckin horny

A-Yao: Oh?

A-Yao: Lonely, Da-ge?

A-Yao: Xichen fell asleep on the couch, here. I’m all alone in our bed

A-Yao: I can just imagine you there, in the dark, touching yourself

A-Yao: Did you hold back until you ached? Probably not, hm? You can be so impatient sometimes

A-Yao: Did you even get your pants off?

A-Yao: What were you thinking of? Or who?

A-Yao: Are you remembering our call together?

A-Yao: Xichen was magnificent, wasn’t he?

A-Yao: So were you

Da-ge: fjck

A-Yao: You know what? I’m going to call. I want to hear you

FRIDAY

<7:14 AM>

Xichen: Oh my 😏

Xichen: Good morning! ☀ Seems like you had fun last night!

A-Yao: Sometimes you miss out when you go to sleep at grandpa hour 🤷‍♂️😉

Da-ge: the mouth on you

A-Yao: You came so hard, too

Xichen: PLEASE no dirty talk when I have no recourse, the Backyardigans are not the right backdrop for this convo 😩

Da-ge: lol

Da-ge: you just wait for tonight

Xichen: 😳

<12:13 PM>

Xichen: You emailed me the new gate information, yes?

Da-ge: ya

Da-ge: see you tonight ❤

<5:35 PM>

A-Yao: Here!

Da-ge: 15 minutes out

Da-ge: just landed

A-Yao: We’re by the vending machine

<6:44 PM>

Da-ge: diaper bag out of wipes

A-Yao: On it, there’s emergencies in the car

MONDAY

<6:16 AM>

Da-ge: i just saw the morherfucker scratched the door getting it in

Da-ge: couldn’t see it in the dark

<7:30 AM>

Xichen: ? Who? It?

Da-ge: plumber

Da-ge: toilet

Da-ge: [sent picture]

Xichen: Yikes, I must have missed that, I’ve been coming in the back.

Xichen: The plumbing company should cover it, right?

A-Yao: If you make it their problem enough, I’m sure they will. This is the right one, yes?

A-Yao: [sent picture]

Da-ge: yes

Xichen: Yes.

A-Yao: On it

<7:56 AM>

A-Yao: Idiots

Xichen: It’s not too terrible, it won’t be a problem. It’s not like we don’t have money!

A-Yao: No.

Da-ge: there he goes

A-Yao: It’s the principle of the thing, now

Da-ge: honestly agree

<8:11 AM>

A-Yao: Done. They’ll pay for whatever replacement or repair

Xichen: Ahh, persistent A-Yao saves the day! 🥳

<10:28 AM>

A-Yao: Omg call me when you're done with your appt, gege

A-Yao: I have stories about the assholes from music class

Xichen: A-Yao, they're BABIES 😆

Xichen: Was it A-Chi? They have a bit of a rivalry.

A-Yao: LANDON

Xichen: Ohh nooo! 😱 One second, I'm paying.

Da-ge: i've got 10 min before my meeting with the contractor

A-Yao: EVEN BETTER

Xichen: 👶🍵

Da-ge: wtf is that

Xichen: Baby tea!

A-Yao: I love you so much ❤

Da-ge: ???

Xichen: Ask Huaisang about it later! 😃 He will probably groan because I'm old and using slang 👴

Xichen: Calling now!

TUESDAY

<2:27 PM>

A-Yao: Do we have chicken at home?

Xichen: Nuggets but no breasts.

Da-ge: lol

A-Yao: I'm not going to grace that with a response. Chicken Parm for dinner?

Xichen: Yum!

Da-ge: works for me

A-Yao: A-Yu’s coming tonight with A-Yuan, remember

Xichen: Yes!

Da-ge: yep

WEDNESDAY

<1:02 PM>

Xichen: I feel terrible. I didn’t reapply the sunscreen on his neck well enough.

Xichen: Look.

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: I’m sorry. I’m going to run him an oatmeal bath and get aloe. I’m going to order him a sunhat right now. I won’t let it happen again.

A-Yao: Oh Er-ge, it happens, don’t feel bad

A-Yao: It’s not so bad, just a little pink!

Xichen: It will get darker. They always do.

Xichen: I was just reading about UVB and how our ozone is getting thinner and the rising rates. I should have been more diligent.

Da-ge: a little sunburn isn’t the end of the world xichen

Da-ge: hes gonna be fine

Xichen: It can give you melanoma.

Da-ge: hes literally 10 mo he’s not gonna get melanoma from 1 sunburn

Da-ge: asang once turned bright red like a lobster and he’s fine

A-Yao: Provisionally 😁

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: Is that enough oatmeal, do you think? I added some honey as well, they say that it would help.

Da-ge: youre going to kill our pipes

A-Yao: ER-GE YOU’RE GOING TO STRAIN THAT BEFORE YOU DRAIN IT, YES??

Da-ge: ^

Xichen: I know.

A-Yao: Please don’t beat yourself up, it happens

A-Yao: We’ll all be careful and we’ll put aloe on him

A-Yao: Is he in pain?

Xichen: I don’t know. He seems alright. A little more cranky. He fell asleep on the way home from the splash pad.

Da-ge: sunburn can do that

Da-ge: you didn’t do anything wrong

Da-ge: its a fact of life and all kids will get sunburn

A-Yao: It’s his first one, it’s not going to hurt him

Xichen: We’ll go to the library and children’s museums this week instead to let it fully heal.

A-Yao: Alright, sweetheart, that sounds like a good plan ❤

<6:08 PM>

Da-ge: they said they dont carry those tongs anymore

Xichen: Drat.

THURSDAY

<10:02 AM>

Da-ge: why the fuck is this class called mommy and me

Da-ge: its weird

Xichen: 😂

Xichen: How heteronormative of them!

Da-ge: plus the kid isn't the one paying or driving

A-Yao: Marketing, probably, but I agree

Da-ge: lady is looking at me all confused

Da-ge: think she's trying to place me

Xichen: Mm, a bit old for a nanny? 😁

A-Yao: She's like 'there's GOT to be a mommy here somewhere…'

Da-ge: lol

Da-ge: [sent picture]

A-Yao: 😍😍😍 His little butt!

Da-ge: he's so weird

A-Yao: He is not! He's perfect!

Xichen: All children are weird, A-Yao, it's alright 💙 Why is he upside down?

Da-ge: who knows

Da-ge: at the sand table now

Xichen: 😬

Da-ge: i’ll take the car to be vacuumed after

Xichen: 💙 Thank you!

A-Yao: FuFu likes the carwash with all the lights!

Da-ge: ok

FRIDAY

<5:43 PM>

A-Yao: Are we alright on fruit?

Xichen: Apples would be good!

<8:21 PM>

A-Yao: I’m going to be later than I thought, don’t wait up

Xichen: Drive safe!

SATURDAY

<10:39 AM>

Da-ge: [sent picture]

Da-ge: 👍👎?

Xichen: 👍👍👍👍👍👀

A-Yao: Holy shit

A-Yao: Buy that shirt right now

Xichen: Yes PLEASE, Da-ge! 🙏

Da-ge: lol

Da-ge: well alright then

Da-ge: 😏

Xichen: I’m legitimately flustered right now, I can’t focus 😵

Xichen: I keep looking at this picture,

A-Yao: When are you coming home???

Da-ge: lol

SUNDAY

<9:37 AM>

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: Coolest kid in the grocery store 😎

A-Yao: 😍

A-Yao: This grout is fucking horrible

A-Yao: [sent picture]

Xichen: I’ll grab more of the heavy duty stuff, then.

Da-ge: youre both insane

Da-ge: lan qiren is not going to look at the grout

Da-ge: and the dinners not til wed

Xichen: To be fair to us, he very much will look at the grout.

MONDAY

<8:53 AM>

A-Yao: more watr pls

Xichen: 👍💙

<10:21 AM>

A-Yao: watrre pls

Xichen: 💙💙

<1:13 PM>

A-Yao: help

Da-ge: ??? ayao?

Xichen: All is well! Help getting up is what he meant 💙

Da-ge: hows he doing

Xichen: Not much better than how you left him, I’m afraid ☹

Xichen: He won’t let me cancel the dinner.

A-Yao: will be fin

Da-ge: get off the phone

Da-ge: and sleep

Da-ge: xichen you should confiscate his phone

A-Yao: using it 4 help

Da-ge: SLEEP

A-Yao: then stop txtin

Xichen: I scolded him very gently, but we should all let him get some rest 💙

<4:11 PM>

Xichen: Pedialyte and more painkillers and crackers, please!

Xichen: Oh, and maybe ginger ale?

Da-ge: ok ty

WEDNESDAY

<8:02 AM>

Xichen: I’m sorry I’m so behind on laundry, everyone.

Xichen: I should have been more on top of it.

Da-ge: its FINE

Da-ge: i still have like a weeks worth of boxers

Da-ge: youve been taking care of ayao and afu

Xichen: I kept meaning to get to it.

Da-ge: srsly

Da-ge: your shufu isnt going to even be in our room he’s not gonna know about what laundry you did or did’t do

Xichen: It’s not about that.

Da-ge: it is tho

Da-ge: xichen

Da-ge: what are you doing

Xichen: Cleaning the kitchen, why?

Da-ge: you already did that

Da-ge: can you just chill out for a bit?

Da-ge: call over asang or asu or yanli and go out for a bit on your own

Xichen: I don’t want them to get sick.

Da-ge: ayao overworked himself

Da-ge: you know his immune thing

Xichen: I’m fine, I don’t need them to come over! 😊

Da-ge: im rolling my eyes so hard at you rght now

Da-ge: did you eat?

<9:27 AM>

Da-ge: xichen did you eat

<10:11 AM>

Da-ge: answer your phone

Xichen: Sorry! I left it in the family room while I washed windows! Calling now!

THURSDAY

<9:43 AM>

Da-ge: i’m glad we’re all sane again

A-Yao: 🙄

Xichen: Don’t pick fights, you two 😂

Da-ge: mm

<12:20 PM>

Xichen: [sent picture]

Xichen: So sleepy 💙

A-Yao: He’s SO cute

A-Yao: Is he going to think we’re creepy when he’s older?

Da-ge: ???

A-Yao: We have so many pictures of him sleeping…

Xichen: 😂

<5:04 PM>

A-Yao: I have to work late, rain check on the soup?

Xichen: Oh.

Xichen: Of course! See you when you get home 💙

A-Yao: I’m sorry ☹

Xichen: It’s alright! It happens.

Xichen: Love you.

A-Yao: Love you, too 💙

Da-ge: again??

SATURDAY

<11:31 AM>

Xichen: Oh, turns out we don’t have Draino! We need some, please.

A-Yao: 👍

SUNDAY

<4:19 PM>

Xichen: Poor Da-ge is crying at The Fox and the Hound 💙😭

A-Yao: Oh, that one is BRUTAL

Xichen: Lilo and Stitch levels of crying.

A-Yao: Hug him for me ❤️

MONDAY

<10:29 AM>

Xichen: A message from your son!

Xichen: irriOydristI

Xichen: Rogzkgz,lgsoycllydglci k🙁🤐s

Xichen: s😖d😒d🛌xx🦋🐙s🎳🕐📥aa

Xichen: ➿Dd

A-Yao: He opened the emojis!

A-Yao: He’s so smart!

Da-ge: i hope youre joking but know youre not

Xichen: A-Fu says ‘Baba and Papa should stop arguing’! 👶

Da-ge: lol

WEDNESDAY

<12:15 PM>

Xichen: [sent picture]

A-Yao: Holyshit

A-Yao: Holyshitholyshit

Xichen: Really? I thought it was amusing…😅

Da-ge: fuck thats so hot

Da-ge: why is that so hot

Xichen: 😳😳

A-Yao: Remind me to thank Huaisang for his gag gift

A-Yao: Cryptically, of course

Da-ge: where did you find that even?

Xichen: Back of the closet! You’ve never worn it, right?

Da-ge: i mean its a crop top

Da-ge: not really my style

A-Yao: Maybe it should be….

Da-ge: hmmmm

Xichen: 👀 I require…proof.

Da-ge: i need you to wear that while i fuck you

Xichen: 😳😳😳

A-Yao: Oh my god

A-Yao: Who?

Da-ge: yes

A-Yao: What’s that meme? ‘I will not spend the rest of the evening consumed with lust’?

Xichen: Well…decluttering surely has its advantages.

Xichen: I’m going to…take a break for a while.

A-Yao: 😏

A-Yao: Well, there’s Da-ge gone

A-Yao: Ah, Er-ge as well, it seems

A-Yao: Well, SOMEONE has to work to pay the bills around here :P

<12:50 PM>

Xichen: 🙁

A-Yao: No no

A-Yao: Sweetheart, I was joking, you know I would NEVER mean it in that way

Xichen: I know 💙

A-Yao: I know you worry about your choice to stay home

A-Yao: And like we’ve told you every time you mention it, we both fully support you doing so ❤❤❤❤

Da-ge: yes

A-Yao: I shouldn’t have said it that way. It was careless. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you.

Xichen: You didn’t.

Da-ge: bs

Xichen: :P

A-Yao: Can I call?

Xichen: Of course 🥰

<2:04 PM>

Xichen: Sorry for being a boner killer, before 😂

Da-ge: lol

Da-ge: i think all the boners had been taken care of byu that point

Da-ge: youre fine ❤

Da-ge: im just glad you said something at all

Da-ge: usually you don’t

Xichen: I’m…trying. To be better about it.

A-Yao: ❤❤❤❤❤❤

TUESDAY

<10:19 AM>

Da-ge: you bite so hard

Da-ge: my nipple is still sore

A-Yao: Awww 🥺 Lemme see

Da-ge: im not sending shirtless pics at work

A-Yao: Mm, should have kept wearing the crop top, obviously

Xichen: 😂 Easier access?

A-Yao: Exactly

A-Yao: Come home and let me kiss it better 😘

Da-ge: 🙄

Xichen: This is all very distracting when you're in the dairy aisle, you know 😂

A-Yao: Then get out of the dairy aisle and come home ❤️

A-Yao: FuFu 's asleep

A-Yao: Just went down, we swam all morning so he'll be asleep a long time

Xichen: Paying

A-Yao: [sent a picture]

Da-ge: fuck

Xichen: O mw

A-Yao: Seems we have a winning outfit on our hands!

Da-ge: smug gremlin

A-Yao: 😊

#modern 3zun #my stuff #my fic #3zun #they make me smile #not the au I thought I would be updating but it has the same amount of fathers in it! So I was right #Contains crop top adventures and NieYao judging people together #I just feel like Xichen is one of those people who REALLY try to communicate through text with emojis and tone #Like it comes off as really peppy but he's trying to be either transparent or purposefully obscure to direct the conversation #I feel like he also enjoys showing affection and so he allows himself to be goopy in this private chat #With normal texting he's concise and friendly but tones down the emojis and exclamation marks #Those are for His People

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soundofseventeen · 3 years

Text

Miracle (Lee Jihoon)

Happy birthday @peachy-hoon! A million thank yous will never suffice but I can always give you this! I’m sorry for any mistakes; I literally uploaded this as I finished. And you know, it’s not my best work, but alas.

Word count: 2645

Inspo

“And that’s a wrap!” Jihoon spoke into the mic to let Wonwoo know he was done for the day and without waiting for him to leave the recording studio, removed his headphones and stuffed his sweater and whatever he could fit into his backpack and ran out of Universe Factory, the door wide open and leaving his confused, but amused friend to tidy up the small room. In his rush he literally ran into Jeonghan, who ended up throwing all the papers in his hands, and Jihoon, although didn’t like running behind schedule, stayed to help pick up the mess he made.

“Where are you going in such a rush?” The older boy teased, checking the papers he had in his hand to make sure they were all in order and ready for presentation.

“Home.” Not bothering to check the pages, Jihoon handed them over and let Jeonghan sort them out.

“It’s still early, don’t you think? Soonyoung said he still has to go through the choreography and Seungcheol wanted everyone present for the meeting.” The impish smile had formed on Jeonghan’s face before he finished his sentence.

“Soonyoung said he’d record it for me and Seungcheol already told me everything I need to know.” Jihoon searched for his cellphone, groaning internally when he realized that he had left it in the practice room when he dropped the towels off for his clingy friend.

“Aren’t you gonna help me put these back in order?” Jeonghan asked when he saw him walking away.

“You have that handled well enough.”

“I’m missing the first page, and I had it before you knocked me over.”

“Don't do this to me right now Jeonghan.” This time, the groan he let out was external. “I have plans that I can’t break.” Well, he could if he wanted to, but he wasn’t gonna.

“You’re not going anywhere until I find it.”

“It’s under your shoe. I’ll grab it for-move Jeonghan. I need all the time I can get.” Jihoon crouched to pick up the piece of paper.

“Why not just invite Y/N over so you stay a little longer and then you can leave together.” Jeonghan not so subtly moved his foot along with the paper so he wouldn’t take it so easily.

“I don’t think so.” He pushed his older friend, momentarily making him lose his balance and successfully retrieved the paper, squinting his eyes to read it and looking confused. “How is this our fault?”

“It’s not. The CEO is already talking to Jun about it and we’re supposed to see what measures we can take from happening again.”

“Then shouldn’t we talk to Yanan about it? I don’t know why they thought squawking every time their ringtones went off and unnecessarily texting each other throughout the day is our fault.” And both of them were messaging both groups, but he didn’t need to add that part. Instinctively, his hand went to his pockets, ready to make sure his phone stayed on silent, but he remembered he didn’t have it.

“If it gets the CEO off our backs, I don’t care what we have to do.” Jeonghan took out his own mobile device, shutting the noise off as a safety precaution. “I dreamt Yanan was part parrot twice already.” He shuddered at some memory.

“Okay, so I’ll see you tomorrow then. Bright and early and not a minute more. I have a song for you and Mingyu to go through.” He was ready to step past him when Jeonghan grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back slightly.

“Do you really have to go though? This hyung hasn’t eaten lunch and it’s your turn to buy.”

Woozi let out a deep sigh, took out his wallet, smiled briefly at the picture he had of you, and pulled out his debit card, along with the loose change he had. “You know my pin number and this is literally for anything else. ‘Bye.”

“Will Y/N be okay with you staying longer?”

“Yes, but I won’t be.” He turned the other way to head over to the practice room, only instead of seeing Soonyoung, he found Chan in the middle of a choreo practice. “Sorry, I’m just here for my phone.”

Chan hit the pause button on the remote, and gratefully took the towel Jihoon provided. “Oh, uh, I haven’t seen it. Maybe Hoshi hyung took it when he left?”

“Okay, I’ll see you guys tomorrow then.” Although he wasn’t thrilled to be phoneless the rest of the day, he figured that no one important would try to get a hold of him and if he managed to convince you to turn it off, then it’d be foolproof.

“Hyung, what are you today with Y/N that you’re not staying here with us?” Chan wadded up the towel and threw at him when Jihoon shook his head.

“Nothing, for real. I just wanna go home and take a nap on the couch.”

“I don’t believe you, but go ahead and leave us to suffer with our evil CEO and Joshua hyung.”

“I don’t know what you did but I’m glad you did it. Now Bumzu is in charge of getting the chorus done before you leave ton-stop looking at me like that. I’m not abandoning you.”

“You’re leaving us for Y/N.”

“I already had these plans.” And not even his best friends would hold him up.

“Okay fine, don’t tell me what super fun, cool thing you’re gonna do while we just slave away here.”

Jihoon began walking away, backwards and slowly. However, he couldn’t hold back the smirk on his face. “We aren’t doing anything or going anywhere. I’d ask you guys to come over after work to see for yourself, but I don’t wanna.”

“Ever since you and Y/N started dating, you’ve changed.” The fake sniffle Chan let out almost sent Jihoon to the floor but he managed to reach the door and once he took a bow, walked out.

Jihoon let himself in quietly, just in case you were asleep or on the phone with someone important to you, but he was greeted with a Stray Kids song coming from the living room. He smiled while he watched “Back Door”, nodding to himself when he saw Bang Chan. He admired the leader, and respected his choices regarding his group, but if anything, it was how much you fawned over him that made him petty. (Not in the sense that whenever you argued, he’d tell you to be with him, but rather he thrived on the idea that if he was with you in public and you came across Chan, Jihoon could always be satisfied in knowing that you were on his arm, and bragging about him.)

He did make a note to remind himself to tell the boys that your friend wanted Seventeen to do the choreo and if he could just remember it one day, it’d be great.

“Jagi?” He called out so he’d know where you were.

“I’m not home,” was your response and with that, followed the sound of your voice that led him into the kitchen. “You’re early.”

He placed a kiss on your hair and let you finish the dishes while he checked the mail you left on the table. Bills, spam, a few unknown addresses written to you and he could only assume you found more photocards and you’d show them to him later. “How was work?”

“They wanted me to stay a little longer but I told them I couldn’t.”

“So just about the same as me.” He tore up the junk mail, and threw it in the trash. “What’s that smell?” He asked, wrinkling his nose.

“I might have burned the first batch of cookies, while I was in the shower. But don’t worry, thes ones in the oven are almost done and they’ll be good for dinner.” You turned around to wave at him, but he stood up, opened a pack of peach gummies for you and fed you one. “Speaking of, what sounds good?”

He wrapped his arms around you, back hugging you while you resumed your chores. “I’m not hungry right now. How about you throw these in the dishwasher and we can just watch movies and we’ll make food later?”

“Vacuum the living room first and then I’ll go meet you there. I have to clean the bathroom after this and dust my shelves and-” you sighed, “-so much to do.”

“But you’re not working tomorrow. Can’t you do that?”

“I have plans tomorrow and I won’t be home until late.”

“Fine, I’ll help you do our chores so you can finish and then we’ll watch something that Wonwoo swore was good.”

He kissed your cheek, only to jump slightly when you yelled out, “Ateez present!”, followed by, “Turn the TV up. I love this song!”

He nodded but didn’t say anything else, instead running around the apartment with the vacuum cleaner and you occasionally scolding him because you couldn’t hear your favorite songs, and after that, collecting all the trash to throw out so you wouldn’t have to go outside and lose whatever motivation you had. He liked when you had energy like that; it usually made him wonder what other things you had done, like the fact you changed the bedsheets this time, washed his clothes, and baked some dessert. You worked extra hard today and he couldn’t wait to have you sit next to him and watch something that you wouldn’t focus on, but you’d have a good night’s sleep if that happened. He wished he could do what you did in the short amount you’ve been home.

You somehow managed to finish at around the same time, but he could see you weren’t tired because you were teasing the cat with all its toys. (The cat he said he didn’t want when you bought the apartment, but for some reason couldn’t bear parting with the stray so now, he was an active member of the family, but he wasn’t complaining. The feline kept you company when he was gone and it strangely put Jihoon at ease.) “Haha, you’re too slow. Come grab it now.” You picked him up, trying not to wince when one of the claws came out. “Come on pretty boy. You’re gonna watch a movie with us tonight.”

Jihoon was already waiting for you, your favorite blanket ready to be claimed and the snacks ready to be eaten. “Come on Jagi. You don’t know how long I was waiting to do this with you.” He extended his arms wide enough for you to fall into them, and when you did, wrapped them around you, sighing contentedly. “You know I can stay like this forever, right?”

He kissed your forehead when you nodded, and you could feel the tiredness creeping in. He always made your long days a little better and you often wished you could be the beacon of energy he needed, and you tried really hard to be that. Your work’s complaints could wait for another day, but this couldn’t. “Thank you for coming home early.”

You could feel yourself falling asleep a little into the movie, not because you were bored, but because you were so warm and comfortable and you didn;t wanna break your little bubble. Jihoon played with your hair, further lulling you into a slumber and when he placed random kisses on you, you just silently asked for more. So it surprised you when the doorbell rang and you looked at him. “Did you order dinner?”

“No. Did you?” Then came the hard knocking and you recognized it immediately, and you let out a laugh.

“They didn’t,” Jihoon groaned. “I told them no. Just ignore them and they’ll go away.”

“Is that why you turned my phone off earlier?”

“Yes. I don’t always get this time with you.”

“Should I just let them in? You know they won’t stop until we open the door.” You didn’t know how long you stayed liked, but you reluctantly got off of Jihoon and opened the door, him muttering profanities and threatening to put them through hell the next time they were due to record.

“Y/N, you’re here!” Seungkwan pushed through everyone to hug you. “How come you don’t visit us? Don’t you love us anymore?”

“Dude, I’ve been so busy lately. I’m sorry.”

“WAIT!” Chan cried loud enough to wake your neighbors so you put a finger to your lips to quiet him down. “So Hyung was telling the truth when he said you weren;t doing anything?”

“We literally just cleaned the house and we were gonna watch a movie until bed.”

“Wow, you’re not fun.”

You counted all the heads, multiple times, frowning a little when you counted the 12. “I haven’t made dinner and we were just gonna have noodles.”

“Oh good! We’re starving.” Someone pushed Wonwoo and they all rushed inside, quickly making themselves at home. Jihoon shot you an apologetic look and you smiled at him. You enjoyed Seventeen’s company, but Jihoon shook his head, trying to look annoyed at their presence, but the smile he tried to hide was confirmation enough to have them here for a little.

“Everyone is having ramen form the packet and if you don’t like it, then you can go and get your own food.” Your eyes widened when you saw the time on the stove. It felt so much later than it actually was.

“I just wanna know why you guys are here and not at home.”

“Hyung, you invited me earlier, remember? While I was working on the choreo and you were looking for your phone.”

“That reminds me. Catch Woozi!” Soonyoung fished the phone out of his pocket and threw it at his best friend, snickering when he failed to catch it.

“I didn’t invite you. I said I wish I could, but I don’t want to.”

“Well, we’re already here and Y/N said we could stay.”

“But please not so late; I’m working tomorrow. But later this weekend, you can go nuts.”

“I thought you weren’t working,” Jihoon asked after the unexpected guests left.

“I’m not, but like you said, we don’t always have time to do this.”

“You’re the best. Go play the movie; I can finish right here. Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Not kicking them out. You could’ve done that.”

“They were already here.” You shrugged. “I guess you guys still need each other sometimes.”

“Still, I appreciate that.” He lightly pushed you to the living room, though you couldn’t actually sit down. There was a small mess you could’ve ignored, but you were already up and you didn’t know how long it’d be until Jihoon finished. Plus it wouldn’t take long, especially since your favorite boy was sound asleep on his tower after Jun and Vernon chased him around.

And you also also had to change Netflix accounts so no one would be confused about anything. Luckily, no one touched your stuff, so you were able to find your spot fairly quickly and Jihoon came by just in time, with two of your cookies in his hand, and handed one to you.

“I love you, you know that?”

He nodded. “Let’s finish watching this, so we can go to sleep.” He flopped on the couch, once again extending his arms to you, where you met him with small pecks and flushed cheeks.

You finally pressed play again, hoping for no more interruptions until the next day, quickly falling into your previous state of almost falling asleep right then and there. “I love you Jihoon,” you mumbled to him again.

He shut his eyes in his euphoric state, letting your words warm him up before he responded to you, quietly enough that not even your favorite boy could hear.

“You are my miracle.”

95 notes · View notes

sumzysworld · 3 years

Note

Spamming you so much I'm sorry😭🙏

Member : Jin (I'm so biased😭)

Trope/genre: Jin as a chocolatier, reader as a Baker. Fluffy strangers2lovers. They're both crazy about each other's creations but don't confront each other. Also their respective shops are next to each other.

My plots are so lame😭

There is no such thing as a lame plot.

Member: Jin X Reader

Genre: Strangers to lovers

Would it be possible for someone to marry a complete stranger? In your grandfather's generation or older, maybe, when parents made the decisions and introduced the bride and groom just before they got hitched. But today, you yourself had to be a commodity. You had to have the looks of a Movie star, the grace of a Goddess, the seduction skills of a Geisha, the strength of Iron Man, the intelligence of Sheldon Cooper and the patience of Mother Teresa. And clearly, you were none of those things.

What you were, was a very good baker. You ran the bakery in town after taking over it from your grandfather. You defied your parents and family, who doomed you to singlehood and failure for not marrying early or getting into the corporate machine.

But watching your grandfather, that old burly man deftly roll our the dough, sprinkle it with delicacies and spices, layer them with a wash, and slide them into the oven, before an aromatic smell created an alchemical transformation, with the loveliest bread rolls emerging hot and mouth watering. You wanted to recreate that magic. So instead of college after high school, you stayed to apprentice under the ageing old man, taking over from him since he got crippled after a paralyzing stroke and maintaining the tradition of his homely shop.

Cakes and chocolate were more the norm lately. They took centre stage, brought in more customers and made cafe's popular. But your shop was known for its exquisite breads, and including cakes meant you had to manage to mass produce them effectively. With a small loan, you added a coffee machine, expanded the front to create a cafe-like seating space and bought supplies to begin your cake experiments. It took you a few tries to nail the vanilla sponge cakes, the plums and red velvets and the cinnamon rolls. They all became a hit, expanding your little cafe's reputation. But what troubled you most was the chocolate.

Regular store bought chocolate power was...average. You tried making it fresh from cocoa, or sourcing from different brands, but they just never hit the spot like the other flavors did.

You remembered the only time you had tasted chocolate that hit the mark - it was a home-made bar that was better even than the Swiss thins you had seen at a five-star. It had come from an acquaintance of your grandfather's who had dropped off a gift basket one new year's. You had tried asking the convalescent old man who that was, but with his failing memory, he couldn't tell you. So you were resigned to producing just a couple of chocolate products that you weren't fully happy with, but couldn't really call a failure.

A wintry evening had caused you to shut a little too early, and you found a lady in an expensive fur coat banging on the door. You let her in, asking her to take a seat, though it was past closing, ans hoped the blizzard didn't affect her. She replied that she was late on picking up breads for her family for the weekend and had a large spread to make. She know this was irregular, but could you please help make her a batch?

She'd pay you generously.

You didn't have the heart to turn away such a polite lady. So you sat her down, and got out batches of fresh loaves of various kinds, putting an entire basket together, even baking a couple afresh. And bid her a pleasant evening when her car arrived.

After she left, you turned to wipe the counters, to find a box of chocolates left on it with a note of thanks. It was the lady, thanking you with some of her chocolates.

Curious, you took a bite. And memories of that exquisite chocolate that you had tasted nearly thirteen years ago flooded your mind. You rushed out into the blizzard, hoping to catch her and find out more about the chocolate, in vain.

Sadly, you locked up the shop, resolving to save the chocolate for yourself and grandfather to savour slowly.

--------

Jin was a chocolatier, not a fighter. And as a result he found himself a fish out of water during his military service where his chocolate making skills were put on the bavkburner. Instead, he joined his comrades on complaining about the terrible food (his sensitive palate!) And trudging through the mud or training endlessly like his country needed him to.

The only bit of solace he would get was when his family would send him their monthly tuck box fill of knick-knacks, supplies and snacks that would help him trudge through another set of days of grueling insanity. He looked forward to the chocolate his mother sneaked him (the meticulous recipe which he had developed and insisted on perfecting). His parents owned a hotel chain, and considering his brother manages the chain, having an expert in all things sweet in the family was considered a matter of pride.

This time his mother had snuck him some loaves of bread, and some sandwiches.

He bit into one of the fresh rolls (crust is crisp and exquisite, inside is soft airy and chewy, there's a pleasant crunch, the flavor... just right!) And was blown away by the simplistic beauty of this one humble item. He jealously guarded his stash till it nearly went bad and he had no choice but to finish. His mother once praised the young woman whose delicious delightful bread made even the simplest sandwich a filling, satisfying experience.

And when the bread appeared in his next couple of tuck boxes, he had made up his mind.

He wrote to his parents, telling them that no matter what, he HAD to marry the woman who baked this bread.

Someone with magic in their hands to deftly knead so much bread, spice and flavour it to perfection, bake it just right and make it unforgettable was clearly a caring, capable individual. And he wanted no one else.

His parents were flabbergasted initially. But when they realised who your grandfather was, they decided as well.

And that's how you received a marriage proposal accompanied by a lifetime's supply of the world's most sinful chocolate from one of the finest cbocolatiers, albeit by his parents acting on his behalf.

A lot of back and forth happened. You refused them. You hemmed and hawed. They Kapolei you, and even bribed your grandpa. Did they know him?

But who could possibly resist chocolate?

And you caved in.

And thanks to his military service, you only exchanged letters with the man you now called fiancé. He was humorous. Caring and thoughtful. Surprisingly flexible. And he adored chocolate.

His photographs made him seem exceedingly handsome, but you supposed the real surprise would be the cake you were baking a masterpiece that you'd unveil, made of the finest of his chocolate and the best of your baking, on the day he'd return from service, and the two of you meet for the first time in your lives. Seems so improbable, but isn't that the point of a surprise?

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onyourzeus · 4 years

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it just is | pjh

ykcyj ➝ arskyh

title: it just is pairing: park jaehyung (jae of day6) & you genre: angst with a happy ending words: 4.2k

author’s note: this took a few days to write because i wanted to approach it with sensitivity, and some realism from personal experiences. as i get to know jae as an artist, a day6 member, and a person even more, i feel so grateful for his music and his vulnerability that oftentimes is met with differing opinions from other people. i wanted to express that in this fic, and i hope i did the genre justice.

content warning: discussions of online hate, criticism, feelings of worthlessness, coping through them

any requests? check my pinned post if i’m accepting any at the moment, thanks!

You don’t get it— or maybe you do. You’ve been given criticism before; on a powerpoint presentation, college-level essays, exams with written solutions needed, even for work performances. It has its benefits, having other qualified people observe you through their own lenses. It makes you notice the errors in your answers, mispronunciations, and flaws in your work ethic you wouldn’t have been able to catch if you were tasked to evaluate yourself.

There’s a difference however, in the ways that you’ve experienced being given criticism and the way Jae has.

He gets criticized. Instead of firm and blunt observations that he needs to take into consideration, and adjust when necessary, he isn’t given a room for improvement. He just receives these words with a punch to the gut, a slap on his face, and it stings. A whole damn lot.

You think about the unfair times you were given criticism for work or a task that you originally thought was executed decently enough, at least for your standards. But that’s the point of being handed blunt feedback, is to let you realize that you can reach higher than this, go beyond what you previously had shown to others or even to yourself.

Criticism given to you over the years had always spared space for you to reflect, and grow with it. It was always supposed to be a weapon for you to take into your own hands, and wield it yourself. It was never meant to attack you full force, and leave you bleeding with no help in sight.

So maybe you do get it, but also you never really will when it comes to Jae.

Either way, you’d be lying if you said you wouldn’t pick up the phone at a time when everyone in the city should be fast, fast asleep. When people have already drifted off into a deep slumber that enables them to dream beautiful things.

You’d be lying to yourself if you said you wouldn’t ride your bicycle so late at night which you absolutely abhor. The cold air hitting your face as you speed up against its current is rarely a welcomed feeling, but that was the least of your concerns as you turned the corner to his apartment.

When it comes to Jae, your mind hums a low beep, static noise to blaring fire alarms and resounding thoughts in an instant.

You don't think much of it, however. He's just another friend, one who is in need.

You never truly believed he could be alright by himself, but you wanted to give him a chance. Now, hearing his voice crack through your phone followed by the connection breaking apart, you struggle to forgive yourself for letting him be. Even for just a little bit.

There wasn’t a need to knock, but you’re worried Jae may have forgotten he even called you in hesitation in the first place. In order to avoid spooking him, you make your presence known more clearly in the darkness.

“Jae, it’s me. I’m coming into your room.”

The door squeaks lightly, but the view isn’t any different. It remains dark, and lifeless in here. Stepping inside, the air just got a little bit heavier, and Jae’s breathing sounds more difficult that you began feeling aware of your own heart rate speeding up.

Retracing your steps from the multiples times you’ve been here, you get to the small lamp he barely uses on his desk. You turn it on the lowest brightness setting, giving the room a bit more dimension. It gives you a better view of Jae laying down on his bed, eyes staring into the ceiling. His hands support the weight of his head, lifting it up from the sheets.

He sniffles for a split second, and your heart thuds like a mic stand dropping on the floor at an empty stadium.

“Hey,” you approach him, careful not to be too loud with your movements.

The mattress dips from the weight of your body, and Jae slightly shuffles to the side to give you room. The side of your lips twitch in response as you make yourself comfortable laying down next to him.

For the next few minutes, no one talked.

Not even a hello back from him, and that’s new.

It’s… concerning, to say the least. Even in his most stressful days, you’d stop by his place knowing it’d annoy him but the sight of you and the smell of homemade spam musubi never fails to brighten up his mood.

He doesn’t forget to tell you that, and it makes you feel needed.

Taking in a deep breath, you look at him in the corner of your eye. He’s not asleep, although his eyes flutter back and forth from keeping it trained to the ceiling and drooping it ever so slightly. You squint further, noticing dried streaks of tears blurring onto his skin.

Your voice shakes. "Tell me where it hurts, Jae.”

You will yourself to resist your own choked out sobs. You’re not even sure what the issue was today. It’s always different, as if they have a giant wheel reserved just for him that someone gets to spin for their own pleasure.

Sometimes it lands on the same, debunked misunderstanding. Other times, you’ve become shell-shocked at how quick they fill in the blanks with made-up accusations for the sole purpose of hurting him even more.

None of it makes sense, and what angers you the most is the fact that Jae made you promise not to interfere. You hate that he used that word with you, promise me, please? because both of you know the importance behind them, especially when said between the two of you.

Did he change his mind tonight? Did it suddenly become too much to bear that breaking the very promise he asked of you was his last resort for help?

“Tell me,” you repeat with more determination now than overwhelmed nerves.

“You wouldn’t understand,” Jae answers, cold and empty.

Any other day that you pester him with a makeshift therapy session, you’d take that as a challenge. But tonight, his words linger in the air and you can’t shake off the goosebumps on your skin.

Maybe he’s right; at this point, shouldn’t you be more irritated than concerned? If he’s not willing to at least describe how inflicting the pain must be with every word online stabbed into him, why do you bother cleaning up the mess?

“How do you know that?”

“Because you’re not me. They say those things because it’s me. I’m the problem.”

“Jae—"

You have the script memorized, the tirade of counterpoints to every blame shifted upon himself, but tonight you stop the words spilling from your mouth.

You turn your body towards him, hands folded underneath your cheek, a lone tear falling from your right eye.

“Do you believe them?” You ask, and the pause in Jae’s staring doesn’t go unnoticed.

He finally looks at you directly, ever since laying down beside him on his bed. With his body still laying flat, he turns his head to face you, his lips pressed together roughly.

You elicit a tsk sound, ignoring the amount of time that has passed since your question. Your fingers meet the cracked skin on his lips as you gently pry them off of each other. It’s wet, and the bright ring of blood doesn’t surprise you. Instead, you wipe it away, pulling your hand back to smear it off your shirt.

At some point, Jae mouths you a sorry but you don’t acknowledge him. Just as he’s obviously avoiding your own query.

“You’re not sleeping well,” it was more a fact than another question thrown at him. You reckon he’d be more cooperative with you if you say it how it is without him denying openly obvious things.

“You’re only drinking dubious cups of coffee in a day with one meal in between, at the most.”

“I haven’t had an appetite recently.”

“But you’d cater to your growing caffeine addiction more so than bring your appetite back?”

You don’t want to sound mean, but the stress lines forming on your forehead aren’t helping with your attempt to ease into the conversation more slowly.

Jae sighs, and it’s one of his many signs that entails he wants to move on, talk about something that is less targeting his questionable behavior and more mundane shit that doesn’t fit into the mood of the room at all.

“I didn’t think you’d come.”

Unexpectedly, you look back at him and answer with a hint of surprise, “You think so low of me.”

Jae laughs, and for a moment the room became brighter. Just a little bit.

“Dude, do you know what time it is?”

“Yes, do you?” It was a rhetorical question, but you’re sort of glad he’s not just staying silent anymore. “I don’t have class in the morning. Even if I did, I’d still be here. Just cursing you out more for making me bike in the cold.”

“It’s because you don’t wear enough layers, dummy,” Jae points out, pointing at the lack of thick clothing covering your upper body.

Your first instinct is to flick his forehead, nudge him by the shoulder, and call him a fool. How can you even think of yourself that way when you receive a call from someone whose voice was on the verge of tears?

But you let it go for now, it’s not like he’ll believe you. It’s not like it matters.

“I still haven’t gotten my From Friends merch, Jae,” you taunt him and he laughs once more. Slowly, you feel his mood change from dreary to a few degrees warmer as he sits up on the bed.

You follow his lead, keeping your knees close, chin resting atop them. You’ll humor him for right now, it’s probably best that you don’t force his feelings out in the open as unwanted as they may be. He might not allow you in the future if you do.

“You can have one of mine. They gave me a ton from the first test batches,” he offers, leaning into you as if to convince you even more.

“I’m seriously gonna hold you onto that. I’m not leaving your apartment tonight without a sweater or two,” you respond, darting your tongue out. Normally, Jae would reciprocate, and if he’s feeling even riskier, inch his face towards yours for shock value.

Tonight, he’s definitely acting differently than normal. Especially with what he says right after is not something you’d expect from Jae.

“Don’t leave tonight.”

“I—”

“Just for tonight?” Jae pleads, gaze fully on yours now. “I’m sorry for being selfish, but… I’m really, really glad you came. I wouldn’t know what… I’m just.. lost and I don’t know what else to think. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I’ll stay,” you reassure him, not entirely sure what this entails.

This doesn’t feel like those nights you’d be here for sleepovers countless of times before. Those nights were planned, prepared, and eventually ends up with Jae sleeping on the couch and you hogging his bed, as per your request (yet he willingly lends you his blanket).

Maybe two, three hours at best— this was the amount of time you believed you’d stay. You’ll listen to him vent, or just sink into the silence with him. Either way, you knew your presence can only soothe his pain temporarily, and he won’t say it out loud so you show yourself out the door voluntarily.

He wouldn’t protest, just hug you goodbye and ask that you text him when you get home.

You awkwardly stretch out your legs, placing your hands on your thighs. Swallowing a nervous breath, you let out, “So, um, do you want to talk about it, pal… or…”

All of a sudden you can’t comprehend a single word you’re saying, while Jae just stares at you amusingly, his lips in a tight smile waiting to burst out in giggles.

“I’m trying to comfort you here!” you whine, pouting at the way he’s making fun of you. “When you suddenly ask me to stay just like that, it makes it… weird!”

“I’m sorry,” Jae chuckles airily, carding a hand through his ruffled dark brown locks. “It’s fun for me when I’m not the butt of the joke,” he continues on, tone spiraling to that of seriousness again.

“Is it something incredibly absurd again? What was it? What happened?”

Jae shakes his head. “The words don’t matter.”

You argue back, “Yes, they do. It’s what hurts the most.”

You’ve seen the tweets, sometimes even the hashtags and you wish there was a way to mass report the whole app altogether, and throw it all away in the trash. But Jae reprimands you for overreacting, even if you catch him smiling at the suggestion.

“Debatable,” he sighs outwardly, clasping his hands together and resting them in between the wall and the nape of his neck. “A lot of them are just empty words, sure, but the pain they inflict is something else entirely.”

There’s something about the way Jae speaks about criticism thrown at him that makes you frustrated.

It’s not a secret that there isn’t an ounce of defensive vein in you when you’re at the receiving end of people finding faults in your work, your character. You believe humans are overprotective of who they think they are, they’ve become, as much as they like to hide it.

But with Jae, he sounds way too calm and composed for your liking. Ironically so, since he mentions pain. Perhaps this is his coping mechanism, take them as they are, unembellished and oftentimes hurtful.

But it doesn’t have to be that way, because the more he speaks of them so nonchalantly, the less his eyes sparkle and show his true feelings.

Your eyebrows crease even further, examining Jae’s facial features that remain still and unmoving, giving attention to anything else in his line of sight but you.

“A lot of them are false accusations, you don’t have to accept what you think is false.”

“Are they, though? To an extent, I think it shows what others perceive of me on a daily basis.”

“So you’re saying you do believe what they say about you?”

“At this point,” Jae starts off, stretching his arms upwards before crossing them against his chest languidly. He looks tired. “What else do I believe in? You know when the negativity becomes so loud in your head, I can’t explain it, but the words that tell me to keep going get muddled and overpowered by everything that screams I’m not enough?”

You’re not sure whether to respond.

It doesn’t seem like anything you say can add value to his confession. You look down on your hands, not knowing what to do with them so you keep them intertwined. It’s sweaty, yet the buzzing of his air conditioner fills the air. For some reason, you can’t stop your heart from pounding heavily inside you either.

In a way, it’s possibly because of the realization that all you can offer Jae is an ear to listen to. All you can offer him is your body warmth hopefully exuding onto him, having the presence of another person in his space just to ensure that someone is listening to what he has to say. When no one else seems to let him do so online.

But you want to be more, you have wanted to be so much more. You wish your hands can extend themselves to his, pull him closer so he can hear your heart beating desperately for him. If it had a morse code of its own, it would have confessed the love you feel for him all this time.

It’s gone quiet again, so you slowly lift your head to sneak a peek at him. His eyes are closed, and you wonder if he’s fallen asleep with unwanted thoughts fogging his brain.

Great, the guilt makes it way on your shoulders, weighing you down with it. He asks you to stay, you don’t believe his sincerity, and when he’s opened up so much in one night, you lack the response he needed to hear.

“If it means anything, I don’t believe them. You have your share of dumb moments, sure, but who hasn’t? If they figured out how much stupid shit I have said or done in my lifetime, I don’t think I’ll have a career ever again,” you mutter, mostly to yourself now.

Your mind wanders back to those times that you’ve made yourself look like a fool in front of Jae, and he still holds you against them to this day.

“Remember when I said owls were the cutest animals ever? And then I saw a tumblr post of what their legs looked like underneath all of those feathers? I felt so betrayed,” you recall out loud, snickering at times the group chat you shared with Jae and your mutual friends consisted solely of those creepy baby owl pictures that have surfaced on the internet-- seemingly their only purpose was to torment you with the truth.

You had posted your intense distaste of the animal on your Twitter, rather proudly even. It was a good thing your account was private, but the shame you felt was too intense to keep it on your profile for too long so you ended up deleting it, anyway.

But imagine if someone had somehow saved that tweet and called you out for being cruel towards unsuspecting birds?

“Or the time I got so drunk, I basically roasted all of your solo songs, calling them the national anthem of a hopeless romantic who will never find the love they’ve been praying for?” This was before It Just Is with Seori, and it was a dare that Younghyun had given you as payback for making him act out a lovey-dovey manhwa scene with Dowoon.

You think, if their supporters heard that out of context, you’re most likely toast.

Understandably, these are all a stretch, and at the end of the day, you’re not as famous as Jae. And if anything, the “roast” you had blurted out was completely inaccurate of what you actually think of his solo projects.

A projection, if you will, of your own feelings. If anyone in your circle of friends wears the title of a hopeless romantic, the crown has been glued to your head since meeting Jae.

“I’m not making any sense,” you say, rubbing your cheeks for comfort while watching Jae just doze off into the night. You weren’t sure if he still needed you to stay, but you’d feel it would be amiss if you left.

You begin to shuffle your way off the bed to give yourself more space to think about your next move until you feel Jae’s hand reach for yours, and squeeze it tight.

“I didn’t say you can go,” he mumbles sleepily, eyes still fluttered close. Yet his lips are smiling, almost as if he’s dreaming lightly. If that were the case, you humor him, and let his hand fall into yours. You like it that way, too.

“Did you hear what I just said two minutes ago?”

“No,” he lies.

“Mhm,” you hum, slowly making your way on the bed again. This time, you sit next to him, his sweatpants clad thigh leaning against your leggings. Your hands still held together, albeit loosely, he lifts it up as if to examine it with droopy eyes.

“Thanks, though. Oddly enough, that made me feel a little better,” he admits. “Except for that time you said hated my songs. I don’t think I’m letting that go easily.”

“I was apologetic, and it was a dare! I offered you food for a week,” you protest, shaking his hand off but he doesn’t budge. He keeps it in his palms, and you don’t know what to do with yourself.

A blush escapes on your cheeks, pink and warm, and most definitely as a result of your nerves getting the best of you.

“True,” he recalls, and tilts his head to the side inquisitively, “but it sounded like you really meant it…”

“Jae, you know that’s not true. I literally stream them on soundcloud almost every day,” you say a matter-of-factly, but regret it since it wasn’t something that he had no knowledge about before tonight. He pulls your hand closer to his chest, and excitedly beams at you.

“No way?” He exclaims, and you have no choice but to confirm, a helpless pout on your face. “Yeah, I listened to it on the way here.”

“My number one fan, huh,” he coos, tracing the lines on your palm. You gulp hard, knowing how much sweat your hands had accumulated since meeting his touch. You really don’t want him to notice, but the soothing caress of his fingers felt better than not anything else in the world.

“Whatever floats your boat, dude,” you try to brush it off, and Jae nods animatedly.

You try your best not to appear sleepy as a yawn finds its way out your lips. Jae notices this, and sadly lets go. Then, he taps on his shoulder, the one right next to you.

“Sleep, my child.”

“Never call me that. Ever again.”

“Don’t be dramatic, and just lean in,” he insists, cradling your head until you plop down on him.

It feels awkward, angled a bit on the uncomfortable side. But he adjusts for you, and you feel your body giving in to the source of support for your weary mind.

“I can sleep on the couch—”

“Shh, no more talking.”

Silently, you roll your eyes and say nothing more. Your fingers fiddle with each other once again, remembering how much of Jae’s skin slid next to yours, and now your cheek is pressed down on his frame.

Again, this isn’t the first time it’s happened, but the events leading up to this particular night is all new to you. You allow your body to get comfortable, used to this feeling, even if it’s just tonight.

Your original plan was to be Jae’s shoulder to lean on, but the roles seem to have reversed.

Softly, Jae calls your name. For a second, you’re too immersed in the synchronized breathing the two of you share. When he brings your hand into his, your senses perk up but you refuse to look into his eyes; afraid of what he might see in yours.

“What? You said no more talking.”

“I’m happy you’re here,” he tells you, even softer than before as your hands melt together, filling the spaces between. You don’t know whether to let this happen, not understanding the meaning behind his actions.

It’s.. weird, unknown, foreign, but addicting. His touch is addictive, and you know you’re going to crave for more if you’re not careful with the dosage.

Biting your lip, you struggle to reply. He might mean it in a friendly way, but the invitation to relax right onto his shoulder, lacing your fingers as if they’re meant to be locked in place that way, it’s all too much for your brain to process— and definitely your heart.

Face hot, heart heavy with emotions, you say shakily, “I’m happy you asked me to.”

“Hm?”

“I.. want to be the person you call first when you’re feeling like shit. If possible, I want to be the only person.” There was no going back, no swallowing words you’ve let go in the open.

As you speak, Jae’s fingers tighten its grasp around yours. You feel weak, but you appreciate him supporting you this way as you keep going.

“I probably will never understand what it is you feel when certain words pierce through you too deep, like you said. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to. I want to know how you’re feeling, from good to bad. From the best and the worst of it all. I want to be there.”

“Who said you aren’t?” Jae’s low voice interrupts your stream of emotions, and it compels you to finally see his eyes. They’re shining, teary, and smiling at the same time.

You feel your cheeks soaking wet, and a hiccup arises out of your lips. With your free hand, you hide half of your face in embarrassment. Two idiots, crying together, hands never letting go of each other.

It didn’t seem long until you fell asleep on his bed. The only difference this time, from all the other times you’ve been here, Jae was sleeping beside you.

Arms over your frame, his long fingers finding their permanent place within yours. The two of you have exhausted your emotions enough that night, and there was plenty of time in the day to talk it all through.

You dream of what seems to be a possible future for you and Jae. Moments when he’d fuck up, when you’d say something out of pocket, but it was met with a healthy discussion between you.

And even if there are days when people online couldn’t understand the growth happening in his life, you see it. You see him, and you don’t hesitate to forgive, and give him space to grow. As he does with you.

#day6 imagines #day6 scenarios #day6 x reader #day6 au #park jaehyung imagines #park jaehyung scenarios #park jaehyung x reader #park jaehyung au #day6 fic #by:jiae

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leerongrong · 4 years

Text

College Student!Jeno -

part of the NCT DREAM living the Y/N life collection.

full name: lee jeno

age: 20 [international]

height: 177cm

lets meet the infamous lee jeno

jeno’s a cutie with an eye smile, tall, and handsome

he has passion for multiple things; loves helping people, feeding stray cats, being an all around sweetheart

his love for cats got him a job at the local pet shop in his hometown

he works 2 hours a day after school, immediately going straight to work

the owner, who’s a lovely grandma, loves him to pieces

treats him like her own grandson; squishing his cheeks, gifting him snacks to bring home and even adding a little more to his monthly paycheck

she tells him people visit their pet shop more because of him and jeno always smiles and declines the thought

“this pet shop was already busy even before i worked here.”

although she’s 100% sure its because he smiles at everyone that passes by

so its not a shocker that the guy has his own batch of admirers at school

seniors, juniors, the lunch lady- you name it

everybody who’s anybody knows and adores this prince charming

most of the girls in school even go out of their way to watch him when he plays soccer or dances

people stare at him with literal heart eyes and they’re confused because he never seems to notice anyone??

the most popular girl in his class once confessed her feelings and asked him out a date

but got turned down by jeno

“i’m sorry, i don’t like you that way. maybe we could just be friends?”

the whole school went into chaos,, because lee jeno just rejected the queen bee- and no one’s ever done that before

and they’ve been hunching its because jeno already has a girlfriend

a secret girlfriend who jeno doesn’t admit to anyone

lmao truth is-

it’s because jeno’s a fanboy who’s heart has been taken by an idol

who’s none other than you

you’re the sixth member of red velvet

lead vocalist, lead dancer and song writer

born and raised in california before you decided you wanted to be a kpop idol

your heart breaks everytime you remember that your parents never showed you their support

they kicked you out the moment you told them about becoming an idol

you worked yourself to the bone, working at 4 different places just to save money for yourself to fly to korea

and when you do, your spirits were dimmed

audition after audition you were cast out, companies rejecting you left and right

the only company that hasn’t called after your audition is SM Entertainment

and by now you’re just about ready to give up because you know there’s no way SM’s going to accept you if the other smaller companies didn’t even bat an eye

until your phone rings

you initially thought it was the landlord, calling for the umpteenth time demanding you pay your bills

picking up and noticing right away that it wasn’t the landlord, instead one of the higher ups from SM

you cried tears of joy when they told you that you passed

you train your hardest everyday, along side seulgi and debuting together after 6 years of being a trainee

okay you, yourself know and adore jeno

yes you read that right, a kpop idol who remembers and love her fans with all her heart

well its because jeno’s been there since the very beginning

he’s been there when you first debuted, he’s been supportive and he’s never left

and you know him by name because he’s ALWAYS been there

fansigns, concerts, showcases, you name it

jeno’s always been there to support you and your group as you grow

you’ve always had a little piece of him in your heart because he’s different from the usual more older male and female fans

how could he not?

you’ll never forget that summer after you went MIA because of your health issues

you saw jeno again after months and in your eyes, he wasn’t a boy anymore he was a man

yeri and joy teased you a hell lot after you said it

“of couse you love reveluvs and what’re the odds! jeno’s a reveluv too.”

despite their teasing, you’re sure his eyes were locked on you the whole concert

and jeno would agree.

he remembers being brokenhearted after receiving news that you were going on a hiatus because of your health

he spammed your twitter and instagram accounts with so many ‘get well soon’ wishes

and jeno’s a loyal guy, he would never leave the group he stans just because his bias is missing

although he can’t say it feels the same without you on the stage but he still continued to cheer you on through social media along with streaming your group

he was over the moon when they’d announced that you’re coming back with a full album and concert no less

going straight to his piggy bank and breaking it open just so he could watch your concert

time skip to a few months after

today’s a very special fansign for you

it may or may not have smth to do with the fact that today’s jeno’s birthday and you may have pulled some strings just so the fansign happens today

you hope and pray that you’‘ll get to meet him today of all days

its because you have bought him a few presents for his birthday and you hope to give it to him

you bought him a cartier love necklace along with some perfume, multiple polaroids of you with the members and a very special handwritten letter

the members supported you all the way, they knew of your infatuation with jeno and you can’t bring yourself to care if you lose some fake fans along the way

you know the other reveluvs saw the gift and you’re glad nobody complained

the fandom p much knew how jeno’s literally the first ever to stan your group

they ALL know his love for you

and they all agree that he deserves your presents

although you heard some girls whispering dirty things about him and you

“shouldn’t she love us all the same? what’s so special about him?”

“inconsiderate to her other fans”

they were shushed by true reveluvs, the ones that that knew about jeno and his story

besides,-most reveluvs go to fansigns in hopes of running into him because that boy his HANDSOME and they’re lowkey staning him too by this point sjksjsgd

your fist clenched so hard when said girls came up to you and asked for your autograph

your fake smile is as clear as day, and irene tuts at you when she sees you rushing them away to the other members

which you knew was very petty of you and could ruin the career you’ve worked hard for

and you’re scared of what it might mean for you but you won’t tolerate anyone talking about jeno like that

you try to hide your disappointment when you don’t see jeno, the fansigning almost coming to an end

the gifts you preapared for him are still on your right, untouched

yeri nudges you on your hand and you’re sure your face lit up when you see jeno at the end of the line

a fansite took a picture of the exact moment and it clearly showed your wide smile, you looked like a fan who’s going to meet her bias and not he other way around

you wait and are filled with jitters when jeno finally stands in front of you

you give him the normal greeting, smiling at his newly dyed brownish hair and hand him the gift

you giggle when you see his face bright red and he’s ducking his head trying to hide his smile and your heart literally melts at the sight of his smile

while jeno’s literally dying inside because- you? his ultimate bias just gave him a gift? on his birthday? which you remembered? even after all these years?

he tries so hard to hold in his smile and tears because in no way is he going to cry in front you and plenty other people that are ready to take pictures

and his heart jumps when you, the members, and the people around him sing him a happy birthday while clapping their hands

even the manager behind you is smiling a little

while your agency’s in mock panic because multiple hashtags are trending on twitter

along with the footage of you and jeno

#y/nxjeno

#youandjeno’sshipname

and while jeno couldn’t wish for a happier 20th birthday, he’s not sure he should be relieved because now he’s famous too

253 notes · View notes

sinnhelmingr · 4 years

Text

SO YOU WANT TO PROMOTE YOUR ROLEPLAY GROUP.

and that’s great! i’m sure you have a fantastic idea to develop your story, and a genuine love for what you’ve created. there’s nothing more harrowing and rewarding than putting your skeletons out there and watching interested players snap them up! i don’t think there’s anyone but the most curmudgeonly indie who will begrudge others for wanting to share their creativity with the community.

no doubt you’ve poured at least a day or two into the skeletons, the theme, the graphics, and perhaps most importantly, the promo. after all, how will your group get off the ground without reaching out to others? promoting is a time-honored aspect of roleplaying on this site, one that most of us have taken part in from time to time. from the simplest single image to the most ornate multi-panel gif templates, promos are a great way to get your blog out there and invite others to engage with your content.

if. they are used reasonably. promos give you the power to reach out to entire communities that could join your group, and with that power comes great responsibility. this includes recognizing that while you are ready to put in the work to put your group on the map, there are plenty of indies who use the same tags you do. some indie muns might be willing to apply, some might simply scroll past your content, and some will block groups on sight, and that’s the variety you can expect from the independent blogs you share tags with. one thing that all kinds of muns can usually agree on, however, is that scrolling past entire walls of content over and over again is annoying.

really, really annoying. especially in the event that your promo overtakes the tag others are trying to navigate. double that annoyance if trying to take the high road and block/filter out your promo account breaks the tag entirely. with some groups, it becomes obvious that moderators think that taking over a tag is a sure way to generate interest, which might be true... but ask yourself if people complaining about your content is the kind of interest you want.

it seems that recently, a number of rpgs have decided that posting a single or rotating stable of promo graphics upwards of ten to fifteen times a day is necessary to drum up their numbers, and in particularly slow but active tags, the spam can really add up fast. and that is what it comes down to : spam, flooding a tag with your own content so nothing else can rise to the surface. this is the kind of behavior that gets commenters banned on more functional sites, but as we well know, tumblr is not that. thus it falls more to the moderators themselves to, well, moderate themselves.

consider the following before invading a tag:

try to maneuver one of your favored tags from another account. see how long it takes you to find an indie blog, or block your promo account and see if it breaks the tag. this should give you a taste of what indie muns go through trying to maneuver around your flood of content. consider that while you want to build a community of writing partners, so do people outside of your group, and how you might make that harder for them through your promotion tactics.

only post in an rp tag from your promo account. i often see blogs post unrelated content into tags commonly used to promote for new followers, things like mod activity updates from an hq blog or even random asks about fcs. ask yourself what bearing this really has on your promotion, especially in a tag you already use heavily. people have already seen your many graphics -- is an update about you being online or activity checks that could be handled in-house really going to reel in that one person who might not otherwise apply? i suppose it’s possible, but it’s just as likely you’re contributing to a wider audience having to block another account just to make it through to people who will interact with them.

consider changing tags. have you noticed that people aren’t applying from a certain fandom or setting? have you posted in that certain rp tag time and time again only for that latest batch of applications to come up with no results from it? maybe that should be a sign to ease off of the tag for a bit. if you post too frequently, rest assured that users are seeing you, and it’s likely people there aren’t taken by your group. that might be hard to hear, but not everyone has the time or inclination to pour into a group, and that’s okay. shift focus to those fandoms and settings where you are getting some good returns, and if you still need that other tag, try again in the future. chase what works and stop trying to make your group happen where there’s a lack of curiosity.

try looking into alternative tags. imagine how much easier it would be for players to find your account if there was a dedicated group tag depending on the fandom or genre they write for. your page could be more easily accessed by popularity without having to compete with indie account promos, which often rack up a fair amount of likes and reblogs, for space at the top of the page. as there are already some pretty dedicated ‘indie [fandom]’ and ‘indie [genre]’ tags in play, there’s nothing saying that groups can’t employ the same advertising maneuvers.

and above all else, scale back the number of posts you queue in a short amount of time. twenty posts in a day, which i have seen in extreme cases, is inexcusable. even ten in a day has the potential to really upend maneuverability in particularly slow but active fandoms. i want to repeat that your page is being seen, i promise, and if you’re ruining the tag for others by putting out more than one post an hour, you’re being seen for all the wrong reasons. if people have to actively come forward to you asking you to please stop posting so often, consider that you have a problem with oversaturating your group.

of course, no one group of mods is under any obligation to listen to this. the few groups that i have seen others reach out seem to believe that if they don’t post at least three times an hour four times a day some other group will swoop in and steal potential players out from under them. a few that certain mutuals have approached even claim that many promos a day is ‘normal.’ and i would like to say, from the bottom of my heart, it shouldn’t be and you’re part of the reason other mods think that. i want to believe after almost a decade on this site that indies and groups can coexist as they always have, but i know others and i myself are recently at the mercy of scrolling past endless amounts of group promotions to find even one new blog, especially in larger fandoms. some groups have even gone so far as posting in indie rp tags, which defeats the purpose of the tag entirely. with a little courtesy and less obsessive advertising, we can find a middle ground that allows both groups and indies to use the tools available to us to entice new interactions and players alike.

#rp #rpg #group roleplay #i'm gonna be honest this is a personal bugbear AND one i have seen several mutuals post about so i had to finally vent about it.#i literally went into one tag and saw 20 promos in a single 24 hour period and that is ridiculous.#especially recognizing that most indie accounts will only have one promotion in a tag at any given time.#and that the site is so broken that sometimes just trying to block a page breaks the tag in question entirely.#long post //

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bangtan-madi · 4 years

Text

546 Days Without You — Eight: Day 225

Pairing — Seokjin x Reader, platonic!Namjoon x Reader

Tags — boyfriend!Seokjin, older brother!Yoongi, producer/songwriter!MC, military au (ish), idol au (ish)

Genre — fluff, angst

Word Count — 4.4k

Summary — Kim Seokjin is your entire world, and that world falls apart the moment he and your older brother Yoongi are conscripted into the South Korean military.

Part — 8 / 15

Warnings — minor language

A/N — Taglist is open! Comment or submit an ask if you want to be added :)

Previous — Next

Once Bang PD gives his blessing on the next Tour, everyone at the company hits the group running. Choreography is created, photography and promotional material are completed, tour dates and locations are worked out, and the final details are worked out for the album. Everything is coming together beautifully, and about time, too! The release of Map of the Soul: Dream is less than six weeks away, and the excitement is only growing.

All of this is over your pay-grade, and gratefully so. You've spent most of the past month gawking over the wild success that your song Silhouette has been on Soundcloud. You had millions of plays by the end of the first day, let alone the impressive amount you have thirty-five days later. Your pride and joy has been in the news, on tons of fansites, and all across social media. No one expected the youngest Min sibling to do anything solo; you've taken the world by storm, rivaled only by the boys themselves. The overwhelming consensus is that you blew it out of the park.

"It's actually worked out perfectly from a marketing standpoint," Bang PD said at a meeting recently. "Your fame is only going to fuel the fire of the comeback since we've been radio silent since December. Thanks to you, we've been given a little push that we needed. But you know what would be even better?"

You knew what he was going to suggest, and you scoffed when he said it aloud.

"Put your song on the album as a feature and tour with the boys. People will lose their damn minds, I know it."

"The only person who's lost his mind is you, PD-nim."

While you'd teased him at the meeting with the boys, the idea has pricked your interest. While the thought of performing in front of tens of thousands of people terrifies you in a way you can't explain, it also gave you a sense of excitement. Your anxieties are holding you back, you know it, but what can you do against your own dread?

"That must be a pretty interesting batch of ochazuke."

You smirk and turn towards the leader of the group, lifting the bowl of green tea on rice. Or, as it's called in Japan, ochazuke. "Made enough for two. Want some?"

Namjoon's dimples deepen as he sneaks around the corner with a giddy grin. "You're the best. Jin and Yoongi's cooking skills have rubbed off on you."

Due to the busy schedule, you've temporarily moved back into the dorms to be closer to the madness. You've done similar things in previous comebacks, and the boys always loved having you around 24/7. This is never more true than around mealtime. With the two oldest members gone, aka the only ones that are qualified to operate anything in the kitchen, there have been weeks at a time where takeout is the only thing the group consumes. As your workload has lessened due to the nature of being a music producer, and their's has gotten heavier, you've taken it upon yourself to make home life a little more normal.

"I asked Yoongi to send me the recipe last time I wrote," you reply, pouring a serving of green tea over Namjoon's portion of the fish and rice. "I got it yesterday with his letter. Figured it would be a nice pick-me-up."

The member agrees and takes the dish with a slight and grateful bow. "Eat with me? I have to run back to the studio after, but the summer day is gorgeous, and I feel like we haven't had alone time in a while. Just you and me?"

You grip your lunch between your hands and nod eagerly, allowing Namjoon to lead the way to the expansive balcony of the dormitories. Being several floors off the ground and in the heart of Seoul, the area around you is gorgeous. The buildings stretch tall and imposing, casting shadows across the space as the mid-day sun streams through the light cloud cover.

He's right. The day is as close to perfect as you can imagine.

Once you both settle into the chairs in the corner of the balcony, under the wood and vine-woven covering that shades a little of the harsh sun out, you start to dig into the meal. While it doesn't taste exactly like when Yoongi makes it, you're elated to have a piece of him back.

"If you ever get tired of producing, you can always open a restaurant," Namjoon chimes, clearly enjoying himself as he scarfs down the dish.

You chuckle, replying, "Thanks, but I think I'll leave that to Mom. Music is my life. I can't imagine doing anything else. Ever."

"Actually...I wanted to pick your brain about something related to that. You mind?"

Taking another big bite, you shake your head. There are very few times you're not excited to have an in-depth conversation with Namjoon, about everything or anything. "Shoot."

Namjoon leans back in his chair, resting the bowl against his thigh as he chews lightly on the inside of his cheek, a nervous habit. "With the comeback and album release just around the corner, I've been thinking..." He turns to face you. "I'm not sure if Bang PD was kidding or serious when he offered to put you on the album that first time, but I talked to him about it after you shot him down...and I think it would be a really cool idea."

Your stomach does flip-flops at the thought. Instantly, you're shaking your head fervently and placing your bowl on the side table. "Nope."

"Why not?"

"'Cause."

Namjoon gives a disappointed scowl. "Not good enough, [Y/n]."

"I just don't want to, Namjoon," you retort, crossing your arms tightly over your chest. "If my song goes on 'Dream,' then it has to be performed. By me. On tour. In front of fifty-thousand people. I'm...I'm just not ready. I put out one song to exercise a creative outlet, not to get famous or perform life or anything like that. It's like 'Mono.' I never intended it to get this much attention."

"If I had the chance to perform 'Mono' on stage with the members, I would fucking take it," he replies wholeheartedly.

"That's you, Joonie. That's not me."

Breathing a soft sigh, Namjoon takes another bite of his lunch. "Look, I've told you all this before. So have all the other members. We're not here to force you to sing in public or do anything you don't want to do. I just wanna be sure that you're not hiding behind your fear."

It takes every fiber of self-control not to roll your eyes. "Of course, I'm afraid."

"Of what? Not living up to BTS? Your brother or boyfriend?"

"Maybe at one point that was it, but no. It's not that anymore."

"Then what is it?"

Pulling your knees up to your chest, you hug them tightly as you try to vocalize your fears. "You guys know me. The real me. I'm sarcastic and snarky. I make inappropriate jokes and I use humor to mask my pain. I'm a little on the abrasive side and I like to pretend I'm the toughest person in the room. But when I'm in front of crowds or around people I don't know, I shut down. I get quiet. My inner lioness quiets and turns into a mouse. I just...Thinking about getting on that stage to sing and rap in front of thousands? That's probably my biggest fear."

Namjoon listens patiently, just as he always has. He's never rushed you or interrupted you; it's one of the many things you adore about him. As dorky and destructive and silly as he can be, above all else, Namjoon is the one person in the world you can go to about anything. This includes your brother boyfriend, best friend or childhood friend. Namjoon will give you the facts, an outside perspective, and a logical solution. He tries to be as objective as possible and not let emotions get in the way, all while being a gentle and caring soul.

"So, stage fright?" You nod a wordless reply. "That's completely normal, [Y/n]. We all started like that, and we all still get nervous when shows begin. And this isn't me trying to convince you, but I hope you realize that those anxieties are an outdated form of self-preservation. Those fears you have about being in front of crowds, it's leftover from a time when humans had to hide. Your brain is trying to keep you safe, but you can reprogram it. You don't have to live in that place of irrational fear forever. You don't have to let your mind keep you there. You can be stronger."

You crack a smile at his comparisons. "Of course you'd look at it that way."

"Well, it's true." He shrugs his shoulders. "Again, not trying to convince you otherwise. I just...Don't live in fear of others for the rest of your life, [Y/n]. Our time is short, and the time we have together—in front of the spotlight—that's even shorter. You have a chance. If you take it, you know you have all of our support. And if you don't want that, for a reason other than fear, you have it then, too."

Both of your phone's buzz. As you look at yours, you see an unknown number pop up on the screen. Figuring it's probably a spam call or journalist or someone else you really don't want to talk to, you ignore it.

Namjoon groans lightly at the text he's received. "Someone mixed up the names of the songs for the final version of the album. I gotta go fix this before they send it off. That's the last thing I need." As he stands, he gives you a grateful smile. "Thanks for the lunch and conversation. Always can count on both of those to be good with you. Sorry to leave so quickly."

You return the expression, waving your hand nonchalantly. "Don't worry about it. Go take care of business, boss."

The leader rolls his eyes and heads towards the door. He turns and points at you, still walking backwards, and says, "I meant what I said! If you want to include Silhouette, let me know. I send off the final version later tonight, say eight. Let me know before then? Just give me a call, and you're on."

"What would you do?" you shout after him, fingers playing absentmindedly with each other. "If you were in my shoes?"

Namjoon stops in mid-step, grip on the doorknob and eyes settling somewhere on the Seoul skyline. He takes a moment to think, then turns back to you with the response, "I'd go for it. What do you have to lose but the chance of a lifetime?"

Sometime after Namjoon leaves for the studio, you're sitting alone in Genius Lab, a pad of music sheets in one hand, a pencil in the other. Your mind continuously shifts back and forth between a wholehearted yes and a horrified no. Every possible angle replays over and over in your mind, including your conversation with the true middle member from earlier.

Glancing at the clock, you see the minute hand tick past the twelve. You've been here for hours, trying to bury your mind in writing another melody, but nothing is coming to you. You even went through Yoongi's unpublished works to see if anything your brilliant brother came up with would spark something. To no avail, the time has ticked past seven.

"Another hour," you murmur. "Gotta make up this damn indecisive mind."

Knowing you're not going to get anything else done tonight, you set the writing materials aside, stretch your legs, and make your way to the door. Tugging the hoodie over your hair, you shuffle back towards the balcony with the intention of getting some fresh air. The sun has yet to set, and the majestic hues that cascade across the tall buildings remind you of the first date you had with Seokjin all those years ago.

It brings a smile to your face, and you settle your front against the edge. Arms resting against the solid railing, your eyes focus upward. The moon is full and shining, and ever since the last album, it's a constant reminder of the man you love most.

Your phone rings again in your pocket. Retrieving it, you see the same number as before. It had called you again earlier in the afternoon after Namjoon had left, and you'd ignored it again.

Huffing an annoyed breath, you swipe the answer key and place the phone against your ear. "Okay, what the hell? How did you get this number and why don't you give up on trying to sell me shit I don't want, nor need, and I'll have you know that I—"

Obnoxious, hiccupy, overly familiar laughter comes through as clear as day. It cuts you to your core, stunning you enough to spur you into a sputtering silence.

"Holy hell, Jagiya, that's some way to answer the phone!"

Your knees buckle, and you have to trip the railing to stay upright. Lower lip quivering, body trembling, eyes watering, you slide onto the ground and pull your legs to your chest. The free hand cups over your mouth as you try to hide the whimpers that escape.

"Jagi?" he murmurs, his voice softer than before. "Hey, are you okay, [Y/n]?"

You swallow hard and close your eyes, allowing the tears to fall. God, his voice sounds just as calming and perfect and lovely as ever. Despite the eight months of separation, it's the one thing that can bring you back to the last time you heard it—on that training field right before you said goodbye.

"S—Seokjin...is that...you?"

The love of your life gives a small, breathy chuckle. "I told you I'd see you soon, Jagiya. Have you ever known me to be a liar?"

A laugh slips out, tumbling past your weak sobs, and you finally allow him to hear your emotions. "God, yes! You lied about that horrid dress I wore to the MAMAs that one year. I looked terrible, and you looked like a King. You lie all the time, you big oaf."

"Excuse me, I thought you looked like a Queen!" Seokjin scoffs. "That's the last time I try to compliment you."

The lightness in his voice brings a smile to your face. Wiping the tears away with the sleeve of your hoodie, you ask, "Wait, how can you call me? I thought they didn't allow cell phones for Privates."

"They don't, not for Second Class at least. Guess who got a promotion and some special perks along with it?"

You gasp and wiggle in your seat from excitement. "You're First Class now? That's amazing, Jinnie! I'm so damn proud of you."

"I was hoping you'd get all excited," Seokjin says, elated at your response, "but I was starting to think you'd moved on after you wouldn't pick up."

"I didn't know the number, idiot! You know how many scammy calls we all get. Trust me, the last thing I felt like dealing with today was a journalist prying into my love life or asking about my future as an artist."

Your boyfriend makes a sound of understanding, then shifts the conversation. "I know I've written to you before about your song, but I have to tell you now. Jagi, I'm completely serious when I say I've never heard you so excited about anything. Or more passionate. Or sounding more beautiful. Silhouette is a masterpiece. I'm so proud of you." After saying such sweet words, he tosses in a playful scoff. "Although, I have to admit I'm a little pissed I didn't get to hear the process of you making it. And I'll have to ignore the fact that Taehyung-ah got to do that with you. Should've been me!"

You lean your head back against the railing, flashing an infamous smirk. "I know, I know. Believe me, when you get back, we'll compose plenty of music together."

"About damn time!"

There's a lull in the conversation as you stifle your laughter and Seokjin brings his voice down to a normal volume. "So, these phone privileges, how long do you have?"

"A half-hour or so," he replies. "I have my own phone for work at the base. To communicate with my team, that kinda thing, but we're allowed a half-hour a day after shifts to talk to our families. I knew my first call had to be to you."

"Not even your mother? I'm honored."

"Yeaaah, I'll hear about it when I call her tomorrow, trust me."

Sentimentality tugs at your heart strings at his confession. "I appreciate it, Jinnie. I could use a pick-me-up."

"That reminds me..." He pauses, and there's shuffling on the other line, as if he's getting comfortable and settling in for a long talk. "How have you been, [Y/n]? I know we talk through letters all the time, but..."

"Just not the same?"

"Yeah," he breathes. "Exactly."

You bite your lower lip in anticipation. Half of you wants to tell him everything that's going on. The other half is fighting so hard against it. You just got him back after over half a year. Do you really want your first conversation to be about you? There are so many things you want to hear from him, about his life in the military. Even just to hear his voice would be a relief. Who knows how regular these talks can be.

But the things floating around in your mind have to settle soon, otherwise you might regret inaction.

"So...this can be a regular thing?"

"As regular as every day, if you want it. When I get a new phone, one maybe not made by the military, we can even facetime. How does that sound?"

An immense wave of relief washes over you, causing your to sigh, "God, Seokjin, that—that sounds absolutely perfect. I've missed you."

There's a smile in his voice; even over the phone, you've always been able to tell. "I've missed you, too, [Y/n]-ah. So, tell me. How's life been? How's the album coming, and tour? The boys? Anything on your mind?"

"Awww, but I was going to ask you the same thing. I wanna hear about the military and your work with your new team and how things are going."

"Next time," he laughs. "Promise. I've been dying to hear about the outside world, more than just bits and pieces through letters and word-of-mouth. Tell me what's on your mind; that'll make me so damn happy, you have no idea. And you sound a little pre-occupied. Is there something on your mind?"

Taking his words at face-value, you decide to relent and bring up the subject that's been occupying your mind all afternoon. "Well...if this is going to be a regular thing, I could actually use your advice right now."

"About what?"

"I'm torn, and I've talked to Namjoon, but there's still so much I need clarity on. If you're up for listening, I'd love you a million times more."

"A million times more than infinity? How can I resist such a pretty lady's request?"

You tell him everything. All your fears, all your dreams, all your reservations and wishes, everything you discussed with Namjoon, and your own thoughts. Seokjin listens intently for the next few minutes, drinking in your words as if they're the last he'll ever hear.

Even with nearly eight months of separation, with nothing but letters to connect you, you pick up on caring for each other as if no time has passed at all.

When you finish your explanation, you wrap up with, "I just—I'm so torn. Like I said, I think deep down I want to do it. I wanna have Silhouette on 'Dream.' I wanna tour with our boys. I wanna live that secret dream and show the world my creativity and work and eight years' worth of effort. I'm just...I'm so terrified, Jinnie. It makes my skin crawl thinking about the stage, the audience, the crowds..."

As you trail off, Seokjin speaks up for the first time in nearly ten minutes. "I know how you feel, better than anyone I think, but I think you're underestimating just how much you've grown and changed. Even, and especially, since December. You've become a lot bolder, a lot more sure of yourself and your music, and a lot more willing to share. This time last year, would you even have thought about releasing your own song? Let along contemplating its addition to our next album?"

"No," you reply, stifling a laugh at the idea of your former self. "Definitely not."

"See? That's exactly what I mean. You've changed, Jagi, in all the best ways. I've seen it. The boys see it. Clearly Bang PD sees it, too. Why else would he ask you several times to join them on tour? It's just been a gradual change, so slow and sneaky you didn't notice it yourself. But look back on the last year. You've come such a long way. I bet, if you wanted to give it a go, you'd find tour invigorating."

"You live for tour, though."

"I didn't at first," he admits. "I was just good at hiding it. As the oldest, I felt it was my job to put on a brave face for the other members." Seokjin groans a little bit at the confession. "You know me. You know how introverted and private I am. I have come to love performing, but there were shows where I almost died of fright. I had to grow and change, just like you are now. It's growing pains, but it will only do you good in the end."

"You really think so?"

"I do." There a hint of pride and warmth in his voice, one you've surely missed. "You asked Namjoon what he would do if he were you. He's as honest as they come, and I have to agree. If I were you—because at one time, I was you—I would take the leap of faith. What's that quote you love so much? 'Take the leap of faith. Aim for the moon. Even if you miss'—"

"—'You'll land among the stars," you grin, mumbling the remaining portion of the saying.

Seokjin gives a deep and amused chuckle. "That's my girl." A beat of silence fills the space. "What're you thinking about, Jagi?"

"That it's been too many damn days without you," you admit, allowing your eyes to flutter shut. "I've counted every one."

"We're on Day 225," your boyfriend agrees. "Don't worry. I've been keeping count as well."

"Only 321 more to go. Didn't think I'd survive 546 days without you, but we're halfway there, so there's hope I suppose."

"You know, that's what I wanted our song to be called originally, but I chickened out and forgot to give it an actual name."

Your eyes open. Staring up at the sky overhead, you see the stars start to twinkle, the moon rise over the buildings, and the sky shift from warm hues to cool tones. "Our song?"

"The one I left you, the one Namjoon gave you. I know we agreed to put it on 'Dream,' but don't you think it should have a proper name?"

"I agree. What was it? '546 Days Without You'?"

Seokjin scoffs at the English phrasing. "Or the Hangul equivalent."

You burst into laughter, hearing him laugh right along with you. "You're such a hopeless romantic."

"Only for you."

"That's a damn lie, Kim Seokjin."

"Okay, okay, Min [Y/n]," he confesses, and you can almost see him lifting his hands in defense. "Caught me in a lie. But I do love you, and that's not a lie."

Your tone softens at his adoring words. "I love you, too."

"So, when do you have to let Namjoon-ah know of your decision?"

"Um..." You pull away from the phone, looking down at he digital clock. It reads just after seven-thirty. "Like, right now? Shit."

"No worries, Jagi," Seokjin says with casual ease. "I'm at my daily limit anyway. I'll text you from this number tomorrow, okay? You'll have to let me know what you decide. Just know, whatever you choose, you have me in your corner."

You pull yourself up from the ground, brushing off your pants and pulling yourself together. "I adore you, you know that?"

"I do," he laughs. "Goodnight, [Y/n]."

"Goodnight, Jinnie. Sweet dreams."

The call ends, and you lower the device from your ear. Your heart is at ease for the first time in what feels like months. The conversation you so desperately needed to have with the person you yearned for most has settled your soul. The restlessness you felt today has subsided, and in its place is certainty and resolve.

Quickly calling Namjoon, you get him on the second ring. "Put it on." It comes barreling out of you like an instinct. Because of that, you know you've made the right decision. "Add Silhouette to 'Map of the Soul: Dream.'"

Namjoon hesitates before asking, "Are you sure? I mean, I'm thrilled! But don't let anything I said pressure you."

"I'm sure," you nod, even if he can't see it. "More sure than I've been in a while."

"All right," he relents, sounding more excited than anything else. "Track thirteen is all yours! Gotta say, cutting it a bit close."

"I know, I know. I'll explain when you get home." You push back into the dorms, leaving the balcony and your fears behind. "Also, is it too late to change a track name?"

"Um...technically no? Which song, and to what? And while I'm at it, why?"

You huff out a sigh, having too much energy to stay home any longer. "Screw it." Grabbing your scarf, you dance towards the door. "I'm coming down there. Give me five."

"Um...okay, but [Y/n]—[Y/n], are you still there? Helloooo? You didn't tell me why we're changing it? What the hell, did I break the connect—"

Taglist — @joyful-jimin, @gracehiii, @live-2-fangirl, @rjsmochii

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eryiss · 4 years

Text

Event: LGBTQA+ Month hosted by @ft-wwtdp

Ship: Fraxus ( Freed Justine x Laxus Dreyar)

Prompts: Love, Gift, Brave, Tease, Quirk.

Verse: Canon Compliant

Alternate Places To Read: Fanfiction, Archive of our Own. Event master list here.

This is the first batch of submissions for the Fairy Tail LGBTQA+ week. I’m putting five drabbles per post as not to spam the tags, and I’ll make a new post every five days. Hope you enjoy them.

Day One – Love (Of A Stubborn Thief)

Despite what many people thought, Laxus had always had a good handle on his emotions.

He always knew what he felt, had always been good at realising what his feelings were and what they meant, and he had enough emotional intelligence to understand other people's feelings as well. Thanks to his father's influence, there had been a time where he would shut off his emotions, but even then he had known what he was feeling. Even at his worse, he understood people and he understood himself.

It was because of this emotional intelligence that he wasn't shocked when he realised he was in love with Freed.

They'd been dating for a few months by then, and it had been incredible. Having this extra layer of intimacy with the other man made him feel comfortable, happy, and warmer. It was as if every second was just a little bit better than it could have been with Freed being only a friend. A small but constant improvement, and one Laxus had no intention of giving up.

It wasn't a particularly big moment that lead him to understand what he felt for Freed. It was in the middle of august, and the two of them were shopping in Magnolia's marketplace for everything they would need for the upcoming week. Laxus had been tasked at getting meat from the butcher's cart, while Freed made his way through the produce stands. Shopping together was something they had started to do three weeks prior, and although Laxus hadn't admitted it, he was rather fond of it now. Before, it had been a chore, but it was somehow pleasant when Freed was with it.

Laxus had never guessed he would enjoy the domestic side of a relationship this much.

After getting all the meat they needed – which was a lot, given they were intending to have a barbeque in the upcoming days – he began to walk towards the fruit and vegetable sections of the market. When he got in earshot of Freed, a grip split on his face.

"You and I both know that you're overcharging. I am not going to pay double the worth for a punnet of strawberries," Freed had snapped, voice a little harsh.

"Then you ain't shopping here," The vender said, and even with the distance between them Laxus could see Freed's jaw clench a little.

Laxus decided to stay back. This would be fun to watch.

The following few minutes were quite entertaining for Laxus. Freed, as he often did when he saw something he identified as an injustice, decided to use every tool available to make his point. One moment he had worked out the exact price of an individual strawberry – which was admittedly quite high – and was loudly making sure the people around them knew it. The next moment, he was explain the many health code rules that the vendor was breaking, and threatening him with an impromptu visit from the governing authorities so that they could see these violations.

After glancing at the vendor, who had turned from a confident extortionist to a bumbling victim of Freed's calm but effective threats, Laxus decided to approach. If left too long, Freed might make it known he had a weapon attached to his hip. That might be taking it a little too far.

Although, it would be funny.

As he got closer to his boyfriend, Laxus thought back to when he first met Freed. He had expected the other man to be a reserved and calm figure, lacking the eccentricities that made up Fairy Tail's members. Makarov had once confessed that he thought Freed would be a calming influence on Laxus, as he was one of the more mature members of the guild. Looking at him threaten a man's livelihood for a discount on some fruit, it was hard to believe that was the case.

"Hey," Laxus greeted, standing beside Freed. "Everything alright?"

"I'm simply refusing to be a victim to a scam," Freed explained, and Laxus fought off a grin.

"As I said before," The vendor continued, though his tone was unsure now. "I am not going to lower my prices because someone in threatening me."

"They are pretty expensive though," Laxus said smoothly, before Freed could cut in. "Maybe you could knock twenty percent off, get us out of your hair. I think we both know that this asshole ain't gonna give in."

The vendor took a moment to think, cussed under his breath, before offering a lower price. Laxus brought his wallet out and paid for the food before Freed could barter it down lower – there weren't many fruit vendors in the market, they couldn't afford to be backlisted by the best one – and started to walk away. Freed joined him a moment later, walking beside him as they began to left the market.

Freed was quiet, and Laxus assumed it was out of annoyance that he hadn't managed to get a bigger discount. But when he looked to his side, he saw that Freed was eating what appeared to be a peach, and Laxus frowned. That hadn't been part of what they intended to buy.

"Where did you get that, Freed?" Laxus asked with an amused expression on his face.

"The fruit stall, of course," Freed said, and Laxus let out a single laugh.

"Did you pay for it?"

"It's entirely dependent on what you consider paying to mean," Freed shrugged. "If you mean I paid the amount he wanted, then no. If you mean I covered the cost of overcharging by getting what my money was worth, then I did pay for them."

"So you stole it?" Laxus laughed, before furrowing his brows. "Wait, them? How much did you steal?"

Freed reached into his pocked and pulled out another peach, offering it to Laxus. The blonde looked at it for a moment, shaking his head in a mixture of both amusement and disbelief. His boyfriend – the man many people claimed was a voice of reason inf Fairy Tail – had actually stolen some fruit because he believed that he was being overcharged. He seemed completely unrepentant about it, and Laxus knew that if he objected Freed would stubbornly defend himself to an inch of his breath.

And it was then, when he took the stolen peach for himself, he realised he was in love with him.

The moment he realised it, everything seemed to make sense. Because of course he loved this ridiculous, stubborn, incredible idiot. Who else could he love? Who else could make him feel as he did? Who else was so perfect for Laxus?

It was a warm feeling, a feeling of solidity and comfort that Laxus hadn't often felt in his life. He found out he liked it. And as he looked down at Freed again, who had continued to eat his peach without so much as batting an eyelid as to where it came, Laxus found himself more contented than he ever thought he could.

"Freed," Laxus began, insides bubbling.

"Yes," Freed said patiently.

"I'm in love with you."

He kissed his boyfriend before he could say anything in response. Delightfully, it tasted like peach.

~~~

Day Two – Gift (From Afar)

"Hey Freed, wait up."

Freed turned around at the shout from behind him, stopping. It was his birthday, and he was retuning home from the customary celebrating in the guildhall. His parties were always a smaller affair than those of the louder members of the guild, something he had requested. Still, it had been a merry affair, but as the night had worn thin, Freed found himself fighting a small amount of melancholy as he sat around his friends.

It came form the fact that, while all his friends were there, his husband was not.

Laxus had taken an S-Class job nearly a month prior, being the only available member of Fairy Tail with the ranking to attempt it. He had known it was going to be a long job and that he would possibly miss Freed's birthday, and the rune mage hadn't minded. Missing out on things was an occupational hazard in their job.

Still, now the day had come, Freed couldn't deny he was missing him. They didn't have any particular traditions when it came to breakfast, other than being awoken with a fresh mug of coffee, so it wasn't as if he was missing anything in particular. It would have just been nice to have Laxus with him.

"Damn, you're a pretty fast walker," Natsu panted as he approached Freed.

The rune mage looked at the younger man with a small quirk in his eyebrow. They weren't the closest of friends, but they got along well enough given their contrasting personalities. He waited patiently for the other man to catch his breath – maybe he was a faster walker than he realised – and absently wondered what Natsu could have wanted. He'd congratulated him, given him a gift, and demanded a fight throughout the evening. There wasn't much else Natsu normally did on a birthday.

"I have this for ya," He eventually said, raising a hand.

In his hand was a package wrapped in brown paper and tied up with string. It was a simple looking thing, and Freed took it with a small amount of hesitance. Natsu's gift to him had been two bottles of alcohol; one a refined scotch, the other a cheap brand of tequila that boasted being the closest thing to breathing fire a man could experience. Lucy had later confessed that she tried to convince him to get the scotch rather than the tequila, and this had been a compromise.

But, given the fact the man had gotten him something already, it seemed unlikely that there was a third part to his gift. He looked down at it, then to the man, with a small expression of his confusion. Natsu grinned.

"It's from Laxus," He explained. "We had a mission close to the town he's helping and met up with him. Told me to give you it."

Freed looked down to the wrapped package with a small smile. It was of course nothing compared to having the actual man here, but it made him feel rather loved anyway. A lot of people assumed that Freed would be the more romantic of the two, but that wasn't exactly true. They both had their moments, both were thoughtful and kind to each other, and this was an example of Laxus' more romantic inclination.

"Sorry I didn't give it to ya in the guildhall," Natsu continued. "Didn't know if he wanted it to be private or not, so I waited. I should get back, so see ya," He started to jog back, waving towards Freed. "And I want that fight!"

Freed smiled a little as the younger man ran off, looking down at the gift in his hands. He continued to walk towards his house, absently moving the package from hand to hand as he did. It wasn't a long walk, so he decided to wait.

When he got home, he walked to his living room and settled in his large armchair. A pile of his presents had formed from when he had teleported them from the guildhall, and he decided he would deal with them in the morning. He ran his fingers down the brown paper of the gift with a soft smile on his face. He used his nail to cut it open revealing a small note above the gift written in Laxus' familiar handwriting.

'Freed. Sorry I'm not gonna be there for your birthday. I know you said you don't mind, but it's still kinda shit. I'll make it up to you when I get back, which shouldn't be too long I don't think. I hope this make you smile. Love, Laxus.'

Freed smiled, moving to place the note on the side table. When he did, he noticed writing on the back of the paper.

'Salamander. I swear to god if you opened this instead of giving it to Freed I'm gonna fry your balls off when I get back. Evergreen and Bickslow know I've got him something, so I'll know if he doesn't get it.'

With a laugh, Freed placed the note on the side and looked at the gift itself. It was a leather-bound book, and when Freed saw the title, he smiled. It was a book containing multiple short stories aimed at children, the same book that he had read as a child. This was a first edition of the book, and it seemed to be in immaculate condition. He smiled softly as he opened the first page and looked down at the illustration.

Freed realised, as he read, that Laxus' job had taken him through a far-off town that boasted a well-stocked vintage book store. He must have brought the book before he arrived at the job and kept it to give to Freed when possible. The idea of it made him smile, as did the knowledge that he had only mentioned the book to Laxus once, and he had remembered.

He smiled as he turned a page; Laxus really was a romantic at heart.

~~~

Day Three – Brave (In Every Way)

Laxus had always known that Freed was brave.

There was never any doubt in his courage. He had stood against powerful mages and fought dangerous beasts hundreds of time and had never shown any signs of backing down. He had pushed himself to his limits to help others, had stood up against injustices and cruelty, and had never cowered when challenged on his ideals. He was one of the bravest men that Laxus had ever met, and that was something Laxus would never change his mind on.

Today, he was proving it. Because fighting mages, stopping monsters and ending injustices were something mages had to do. True bravery could be seen today, as both Laxus and Freed walked into the large foyer of Freed's childhood home.

Laxus would say it was more of a mansion than anything else. But saying that wouldn't be appropriate.

Freed's relationship with his family had always been tense. Not as shattered as many Fairy Tail members, but there was always an underlying animosity between them. Freed hadn't been the perfect, obedient son that they had wanted, and from what Freed had told Laxus, they had resented him for that. He was his own man, had made his own decision, and those decisions had been at odds with what they wanted for him.

Apparently him joining Fairy Tail had been the last straw for them. His father had threatened to cut him off, remove him from their will, and essentially disown him. Freed had left the house the moment he could, and hadn't returned since.

Until now.

After the incident at the S-Class trials, it had been assumed that many members of Fairy Tail had died, and Freed was included. So when they returned after seven years alive, people had been shocked, and it had been a big part of the news. Apparently Freed's parents had seen this and, now that their supposedly dead son was alive again, they reached out to him. According to their letter, the seven years thinking he had died had shown them what it truly meant to have him out of their lives, and they had regretted their behaviour.

Laxus wasn't going to say anything, but he had heard Freed's soft sobs as he read the letter for the first time. Clearly he had been missing his parents more than he thought.

Today was the first time they would see each other, and Freed had admitted to being scared. He had insisted that Laxus come with him, both for support and to show his parents the man he was to be married to. If they wanted to accept who he was, they needed to accept Laxus as their future son-in-law.

"I'm so glad you're okay," Freed's mother whispered.

She had been the one to open the door, and the moment she saw him her face melted into emotions and she pulled him into a hug. Laxus had stood by a little awkwardly, allowing the two to have their moment. Although Freed didn't cry like his mother was, the strength in which she hugged her told Laxus how much It meant to see her again. It was nice to watch.

"I am too," Freed said softly. "You look well."

"So do you," She smiled. "You must still be twenty-one, mustn't you?"

"I am," Freed said with a small laugh, though a small frown followed. "Is father not coming?"

"He's coming," She assured him. "He's not as mobile as he was before, I'm afraid. But still pig-headed enough to refuse my help."

Freed nodded, and his shoulders hunched slightly. Neither his mother nor father were innocent in Freed being driven out of his home, but his father was the worse. He was loud and argumentative with his disproval, if Freed's stories were accurate, and it had been the constant arguments and fights between them that had been the final straw for Freed. It was clear that seeing his father would likely not go as well as seeing his mother.

And yet Freed stood firm, and Laxus was again reminded of just how brave his fiancé was.

As Freed and his mother spoke, Laxus allowed his eyes to stray around the room. There was a large painting above the staircase, seemingly of a pre-teen Freed with his mother and father. The father was a stern looking man, with a strong jaw, authoritative expression and pushed back shoulders. He looked like a high ranking soldier, actually.

He pulled his eyes away from the paining when the doors to the side of the stairs opened, revealing the same man from the painting. He was now hunched over, leaning heavily on a walking stick, covered in wrinkles. He looked old.

"Freed," He said, voice a little croaky yet still firm and controlled. "You came."

"I did. Hello father," Freed replied, voice tighter now.

"Who is this?" He asked, looking to Laxus.

"This is Laxus Dreyar. His grandfather is the guild master of Fairy Tail," Freed explained. "He's also going to be my husband."

It was perhaps the bravest thing he had ever said.

Apparently neither Freed's mother nor father had been told of this, as they both looked to Laxus in shock. Laxus didn't look towards Freed's mother, and instead kept eye contact with his father. If Laxus had judged them both correctly then the father would be the one to have an issue with him, not the mother. He looked at the older man without showing a hint of intimidation, and the man looked right back at him for a few moments.

"You do good by my son, and we won't have a problem," He eventually said, huffing.

"Of course," Laxus nodded.

"Good," The old man nodded, before turning to his wife. "We'll be eating soon, I assume."

As the older couple walked off, Freed's mother saying they would be waiting in the dining room and dinner would be served in twenty minutes, Laxus stood beside his fiancé and looked down to him with a gentle expression. Freed seemed to take a few moments recover; he had apparently expected something worse as well.

"You okay?" Laxus murmured to him.

"I think so," Freed said with a nod, looking up to Laxus with a smile. "Having them know I like men is rather a large weight off my shoulders."

"I bet it is," Laxus said, kissing the top of his head. "You ready to catch up with them?"

"I think so, yes" Freed nodded.

As they walked, Laxus was left with no doubt that Freed was the bravest man he knew.

~~~

Day Four – Tease (At Your Own Risk)

"Well, isn't this cute."

Bickslow had his arms crossed over his chest, the biggest shit-eating grin stretched over his features. Freed's eyes fluttered open as he was awoken, looking towards the man responsible through a hazy gaze. The cocky attitude radiating from the man was clear even without being fully able to see him, and his tone was annoying Freed already. His tired glare didn't dissuade Bickslow from his amused taunting.

He, Bickslow and Laxus had taken a mission together and had ended up sleeping in the woods. It was originally intended to be a Raijinshuu only mission but Evergreen had been called out at the last second, and Laxus had taken her. Bickslow had been more than happy to hear this, and now that the mission had begun Freed understood why.

The idiot had decided he would spend the entire mission teasing the new couple as much as possible.

Many little comments had been made about him third-wheeling them by coming along with them, and about how sorry he was that he had gotten in the way of their romantic time away. When fighting a pack of creatures they had been forced to split up, and Bickslow joked that if they wanted time alone then they could have just asked. And the moment he realised they were sharing a tent he had all but imploded with laughter at his own jokes about what they would be doing inside of it.

It was starting to grate on Freed's nerves, just slightly.

Right now, the subject of his teasing was the fact Laxus was sleeping, head resting on Freed's chest, arms wrapped tightly around him in an almost possessive manner. Freed probably had his nose nuzzled into his boyfriend's hair before he had woken up. Bickslow clearly had enjoyed seeing the two of them cuddled together.

"The two strongest, most badass men in the guild," Bickslow continued. "All snuggled up like idiots in love. It's enough to make your heart melt."

"You know I have a sword, Bickslow," Freed croaked a little as he spoke. "And you also know I enjoy using it."

"Whatever you to do in bed – or in the tent – ain't any business of mine," Bickslow grinned even wider, and Freed's glare got even more intense. It didn't stop Bickslow even slightly. "I always knew Laxus was this cuddly, didn't think you were though. Honestly wish I could take a picture of this, because it's too damn cute."

Freed sighed. He should have expected this when he and Laxus revealed their relationship to their teammates. They were both happy for them, and didn't bat an eyelid when Laxus essentially came out to them, and Freed was grateful of that. For a few days it had been nice, they had been given space and respect. It was now clear that was some sort of amnesty period, because their relationship was now as much a target for teasing as everyone else's. Freed would be better equipped to deal with it if he hadnt just been woken up.

"Did you honestly open our tent just to bother us?" Freed asked, yawning.

"Nah, I was gonna make some breakfast and see if you wanted anything. This is fun though," Bickslow cackled. "So, did you have a nice romantic evening kissing under the stars after I fell asleep."

"Leave him alone, Bix," Laxus groaned, waking up and removing his face from Freed's chest.

"Why?" Bickslow laughed. "This is fun."

"Because eventually he'll get pissed off at ya and try and kill ya. And that means he wont be here and he's really fuckin' warm and I don't wanna lose that until I'm really awake," Laxus explained, pulling Freed closer. Bickslow actually cooed at the action.

"Fine," The blue haired man said finally. "Bacons nearly ready. Be out here if you want any," He then grinned again. "And if you want some privacy, leave a sock on the tent's zipper and I'll get the message."

He cackled as he walked away, and Freed glared at his retreating figure as he turned to his boyfriend. Laxus was smiling a little in his tiredness, clearly amused by the situation; he was always more of a morning person than Freed was. The blonde pulled him closer, pressed a lip to Freed's collar bone, and curled up closer to him. Freed found himself placated slightly by the action and closed his eyes.

"How long do you think it'll take before he stops?" He asked, tiredly.

"None of us have given Ever a break since she got with Elfman," Laxus shrugged. "Just try not to let him get under your skin. You know this is his way of supporting us."

"I know," Freed admitted. He would be much more offended if Bickslow wasn't acting like this.

"And if he really does start pissing you off, we can just keep doing this. It's pretty relaxing if you ask me," Laxus mumbled, nuzzling his nose against Freed's chest. The rune mage smiled a little at that, and ran a hand through his boyfriend's hair.

"I suppose," Freed agreed, before laughing. "Although I do often enjoy getting revenge rather than calming down."

"You can do that too, later," Laxus grinned. "And hey, you're the team's leader right, meaning he technically has to do whatever you say during a mission. So the next time he really annoys you, make him do some weird shit to distract him."

Freed grinned as he looked down at his boyfriend. "I rather like seeing your devious side."

"Couse you do. You're a freak," Laxus taunted, smiling into Freed's torso. "But do it later, because right now I wanna fall asleep again and wait for the idiot to cook us our breakfast."

Freed chuckled at that, leaning down and pressing his lips to the top of Laxus' head. He curled down a little so he was lysing again, wrapped an arm around Laxus' waist, closed his eyes, and plotted his revenge.

~~~

Day Five – Quirks (And Their Meanings)

Freed considered himself an expert on many things.

There were a wide range of subjects that Freed was knowledgeable. There was the obvious, such as his magic and the languages associated with it. There was the necessary, such as how to survive in many situations that the normal person wouldn't find themselves in. And there was the obscure and pointless, such as the process in which leather was made and applied to the bindings of old books. Freed's mind was a home of knowledge both useful and not.

One thing he was particularly knowledgeable about was his husband. Many people assumed Laxus was unreadable and stoic – which was a fair assumption when compared to the loud and expressive people of Fairy Tail – but Freed knew better. You could often tell what Laxus was thinking, you just needed to know what to look for. This was something Freed excelled at.

Laxus showed many little quirks that betrayed his emotions. Some were obvious, like when he grinded his teeth together when annoyed, or how he swayed a little as he was on the cusp of getting drunk. Others were more specific, like how his index finger twitched when he wasn't paying attention and instead was thinking about a song stuck in his head. Freed had realised that particular one when they were getting chastised by Makarov for being destructive during a mission, and Laxus' finger tapped against the arm of a chair in time with a song they both liked.

The point was, Freed could read Laxus well. And right now, he was uncomfortable.

Freed had of course expected this reaction, when three weeks ago Guild master Bob had approached the Raijinshuu and requested they become part of the guild after Fairy Tail's closure. They wanted powerful mages to do some of the more intense missions, and that suited The Raijinshuu well. But, as was Blue Pegasus' gimmick, they needed to occasionally flirt with customers.

Each member of the team had different reactions. Bickslow and Evergreen took to it well enough; Bickslow was sociable and friendly already, and Evergreen found she enjoyed men fawning over her. Freed approached it pragmatically, it was a part of the job and he did it as well as he could. Laxus didn't.

He tried at the start, but he wasn't good with people. Either intentionally or not, he had started to be more standoffish and almost rude to those interested in him. It didn't seem to deter them, instead attracting an even more intense crowd.

Which was why he was so uncomfortable.

Freed had just finished speaking to a man who wished to garner his attention – nice enough, but Freed was happily married – and his gaze fell to the blonde. A group of women sat at his table, clearly not understanding that Laxus' uncomfortable and short-tempered attitude wasn't an act. But being an expert in reading his husband, Freed knew what to look for.

His shoulders were hunched, an attempt to make himself smaller. A trial for someone of his size.

His pupils were dilated, the girls surrounding him were annoying him them.

His sentences were short and filled with contractions. He was trying to force an end to the conversation.

There were other things, but Freed had seen enough. His time entertaining had ended anyway, and it was clear that Laxus needed a break. He stood up from where he had been entertaining men and walked towards the table Laxus was hunching over.

"Excuse me," He said, interrupting the almost single-sided conversation. "I'm incredibly sorry to interrupt, but Mr Dreyar is needed outside for a short while," Some of the women went to protest. "I understand, but I've spoken to Hibiki and he's rather excited about stealing you away from Laxus, and I'm sure you wouldn't want to keep him waiting."

The clear lie worked. Freed almost shook his head at how gullible they were.

Once the gathered women spread and went towards Hibiki – who barely managed to hide his shock and looked to Freed with a glare a moment later – Freed nodded for Laxus to follow him. It was part of their job to always seem willing to attend to the guests unless absolutely needed, and therefore Freed had to keep up the lie that Laxus was required in the back. He led him to the alley outside, both for privacy as well as the fact Laxus was occasionally called there to help move beer barrels when the guild was understaffed.

"You looked like you needed a break," Freed commented, leaning on a wall. "You okay?"

Freed watched as Laxus deflated slightly. His tense posture lessened, the tightness in his jaw released, and he allowed a trapped breath to leave his mouth. The quietness of the alleyway and the company of his husband clearly had an affect on Laxus, and Freed was glad to see it.

"They just get a bit intense," Laxus sighed. "And they're all fuckin' loud all the time. They screech."

"I've heard," Freed laughed a little. "I can't imagine it's pleasant when it's right in your ear."

"Honestly, I think that fucking laugh is gonna haunt me in my nightmares," Laxus groaned, but he was grinning a little now. "Should have done what you did and asked just to see guys, least they don't shatter your ears every time you say anything."

"No, I suppose they don't," Freed patted his husband's arm softly.

Laxus' deflation wasn't just because he was glad to get out of the main hall, it was also because he was slightly defeated. His identity had always been interlinked with Fairy Tail in one way or another, and Freed couldn't understand exactly what it felt like for him to lose that and have to join another guild. It must be hard, and all Freed could do was try and help him through it in any way he could. Knowing this, Freed reached into his coat's breast pocket and pulled out a piece of paper which he handed to Laxus.

"If it's any help, I stole this," Freed said, and Laxus looked down at it. The paper was a job notice, requesting the arrival of mages in a village many miles away. A simple enough problem, but what had attracted Freed was the estimated time it would take to complete.

"Says it'll take three weeks," Laxus voiced, clearly having noticed the same thing.

"Exactly. It won't take us that long; a few days at the most," Freed explained. "But that'll give us two and a half weeks where we can claim we're working, when we're actually taking a break from…" He looked towards the guildhall. "Entertaining. "

Laxus grinned, tipped Freed's chin up slightly and brought their lips together. The kiss they shared was desperate and showed just how much Laxus had needed this break. Freed felt a little guilty that he hadn't noticed this need sooner. Until Fairy Tail opened its doors again, he would have to make an effort to make Laxus as comfortable in Blue Pegasus as possible.

After all, what use was it knowing all of Laxus' quirks if he couldn't use them to make his husband happy.

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