#night really snuck up on me (why does my browser not think 'snuck' is a word. the night did not sneaked up on me)

[ereborne]

Song of the Day: January 3

"King of the Road" by Roger Miller

[iamnotparticularlyproud]

PPB Square: Kink Discovery | @peterparkerbingo

word count: 2.7k rating: mature warnings: none ao3 link: https://bit.ly/3xpiBdx

Summary: Bucky and Peter have been together for a while, but Peter can’t bring himself to talk to his boyfriend about how their sex life is a bit - uh, well, boring. Instead, Peter searches Bucky’s laptop while he isn’t home for any sign of kink whatsoever. To say it doesn’t go as he planned would be an understatement.

Bucky’s amazing. So, so amazing, and Peter could go on about it for days - about his silly nicknames, the way he makes the Brooklyn drawl sound adorable, his unexpected dorkiness and razor sharp wit, how his hands are so calloused but he holds Peter so softly--

Days, Peter could come up with these for days. 

So, it’s not like there’s anything he wishes he could change about their relationship. It’s - they’re - perfect, everything’s been perfect. Bucky’s just so nice, and after Beck, Peter wasn’t sure he’d ever be in a relationship again, let alone one so - so good. So healthy, and so supportive. 

It’s just--

Their sex is so vanilla. Painfully vanilla. The most unconventional Bucky gets is with his dirty talk, and, yeah, Peter loves how his boyfriend will call him his sweet lil boy, and tell Peter how good he takes a thick cock in his tight ass, but that's about as far as Bucky ever goes. 

And that - that isn’t a bad thing, Peter knows that, it’s just. Boring, sometimes, is all.

Peter wishes he could talk to Bucky about it, because the man always stresses communication and talking problems out, but it’s just so embarrassing. Peter’s just thinking about it and he’s flushed, so how could he say the word kink out loud? 

He can’t. He really, really can’t.

So Peter does the only other thing he can think to do.

He steals Bucky’s laptop and rummages for any signs of kink - anything to suggest his boyfriend isn’t as vanilla as it seems. Peter knows he doesn’t have long - Bucky’s out getting takeout from their favorite Thai place, and it isn’t too far - so he doesn’t waste time as he searches all the keywords he can think of in Bucky’s unorganized folders, his internet history that’s never been cleared, the hard drive Peter got him because he complained about memory but Peter was 99% sure he never touched - he was right - and then tries his luck with the recycle bin, but--

There’s not just no sign of kink.

There’s nothing. There’s no porn at all.

Peter’s mind is blown. He hadn’t even considered that he wouldn’t find porn, he thought that everyone watched porn - and unless Bucky knew how to delete specific pages from his browser history, which Peter heavily doubts, because, c'mon - but apparently, Bucky doesn’t.

He considers that, maybe, since Bucky is nearly a decade older than him, he consumes his porn in a different way. Maybe physical movies or, godforbid, magazines.

Peter’s considering looking through Bucky’s drawers and closets until he finds proof of pornography consumption, but then someone’s clearing their throat behind him.

“Jesus, how do you--” Peter exclaims, because it’s nowhere near the first time this six foot hunk of a man has snuck up on him. Then, he glances at the clunky computer in his lap that is obviously not his, and back at Bucky, who’s looking at the laptop, and then at Peter.

“What’re you doin’ with my computer?”

Peter panics, not because Bucky seems upset, because he doesn’t, just - confused, but it’s such a weird thing to be doing, and he can’t lie at all, and this isn’t--

“Does that say porn?” Bucky asks, suddenly leaning over Peter’s shoulder, and he just sounds amused, but Peter goes on the defensive anyway.

“I-It’s just, you never, and I - this isn’t me wanting you to change, or--”

Bucky moves quickly when Peter starts that familiar stress-ramble; he circles around the couch, puts the plastic bag filled with food down on the coffee table and sits next to him, wrapping an arm around his back and shushing him kindly.

“Slow down, doll.” Bucky smiles, sincerity etched in his crow’s feet, “Can’t understand you when you’re talkin’ too fast, remember?”

Peter stops. He nods, then he takes a breath. When he lets it go, Bucky tells him to take a deeper one, so he does, and as he breathes it out, he feels the alarm fade.

Not completely, though. Not with the evidence of his snooping in his lap.

With a glance back at where porn is still typed out in the recycle bin’s search bar and a chuckle, Bucky asks, almost laughing, “What were you doin’, sweetheart?” 

Peter doesn’t expect it, but the fight drains from his body. It’s him accepting his fate, he realizes belatedly.

“I, uh,” Peter pauses, because it’s still so difficult to say the words, “was looking for porn.”

Bucky laughs for real this time, and Peter closes his eyes with a sigh. That wasn’t what he meant to say, at all.

“No - I was looking for y-your porn, like, what you watch,” Peter explains, and Bucky is still laughing, but he waves a hand.

“Yeah, I got that.” He says, making an effort to curb his laughter, “Why, though?”

Peter bites his lip. "Do you watch porn?”

He was scared that meeting Bucky’s question with a question would frustrate the man, but he only looks more amused.

“Why would I?”

Huh?

“What?”

“Why would I watch porn?” Bucky sounds genuinely confused, “We have sex almost everyday.”

Almost, Peter nearly stresses, but catches himself. Obviously, he’s dramatically misread the situation. 

“Y-Yeah, but,” Peter tries to come up with something, anything, “like, maybe, before we dated?”

“I know it’s kinda old, but I got the thing not too long before we met, actually.”

That bit of information also sends Peter reeling, and he almost argues about it - because the laptop isn’t 'kinda old,' it’s ancient - but Bucky speaks before he does.

“Were you lookin’ for the kinda porn I’m into?”

Peter nearly sags with relief. How does he always manage to get it before Peter has to explain? 

“Yeah.”

Bucky’s smile shifts, and it’s - he likes that, Peter notices, and, it’s - it's sexual.

“What, did you wanna tease me?” Bucky licks his lips, “Rile me up?”

Oh. That works, and it’s pretty true, even. Peter can work with that.

He nods. Bucky continues, and he looks so pleased.

“It’s you, sugar,” Bucky brings his hand to Peter’s cheek, and his hold is so gentle, but the calluses are rough, and it’s such a satisfying dichotomy that Peter can’t help but lean into it, “You get me wild.”

If only. Peter’s never seen him be wild. 

But he couldn’t say that. Not when Bucky sounds like he absolutely means it, and it makes Peter’s heart flutter.

Peter has been a bit weird lately. 

Well, Peter is always a bit weird, but it’s a part of his charm. He’s been acting extra weird lately, Bucky’s noticed, and while it’s just as endearing, it’s confusing, too.

He almost calls Peter out on it after he’s found him searching for porn on his computer - more than he had already, anyway - but he just gets so tense when Bucky tries to make him really talk about something. He doesn’t want to bring up that energy - not so late, anyway. 

So Bucky plans to talk to him about it tomorrow.

And Peter thwarts that plan as soon as they wake up. Usually, he’s eager to spend the last day of their shared weekend off together, but before they’ve even had their coffee, Peter’s rushing out the door with the excuse of meeting up with his college friends at a cafe. Not too long later he texted they were going to do an impromptu study group for an upcoming quiz, then, after five hours, texted him they were going to hang out more.  

Bucky tries not to be suspicious of or retaliatory to Peter even more than he’s learned to be with his partners, because the kid’s not had a great track record with boyfriends, to say the least, but this is ridiculous. When he’s been gone for a whole seven hours, under the guise of shoddy excuses, Bucky decides his curiosity needs to be sated more than Peter needs to be coddled, and his new plan is to snoop into Peter’s computer like the kid tried with him. Obviously, if he assumed Bucky would have porn on his laptop, Peter’s got some on his. 

Bucky doesn’t plan to look until Peter texts that he’s on his way home, though. He thinks it’ll be funny if the kid finds himself where Bucky stood last night.

So, after Peter texted that he’s omw, Bucky pulls out his computer. It’s so sleek, thin and light, yet wide, and he hates using it, but he’s dying to know. How much porn could Peter possibly watch, considering how much they have sex, and how busy he’s kept as a student and part-time employee?

Not very much, Bucky assumes.

And holy fuck is he wrong.

He takes a wild guess and searches porn in the convenient - but too bulky, and ugly - search engine in the toolbar, and a stupidly obviously labeled folder, not porn don’t look, comes right up. There’s several subfolders - distinguishing the videos by kink, dear God - and dozens of videos in most of them, over a hundred in a few.

What the fuck.

Bucky’s surprised - Jesus Christ, so surprised - at so many things, but - where the fuck does Peter find the time to watch so much porn? What does it mean that he’s amassed such a collection? How has Bucky never walked in on him watching it? Is there a way to see how many hours of it there are, because it’s a stupidly high amount, definitely--

Bucky takes a breath. He leans back, too, because the little previews are too much to look at, and he takes a moment to appreciate just how understandable it was that Peter was so confused yesterday. It must be unthinkable, to not watch porn, to him. But - Peter’s never even mentioned porn before, not in the half-a-year they’ve been dating, so what was so different about yesterday?

The question has Bucky sitting back up, ready to delve deeper. He starts by reading the names of the folders closer, finding it’s not just organized by kink, but by his favorite pornstars, too. The kid’s got several, all with typical pornstar names, and according to the previews, he’s got a type for big and buff. Checks out.

With another deep, grounding breath, Bucky clicks on the folder name Ultimate Favorites. It’s only got thirteen videos in it, but all the titles are a fuckin’ doozy. It’s shit like Small Twink Fucked Hard, and Daddy Pounds His Boy Until He Cries, and - Jesus fuck - Dom Verbally Abuses Sub While Anally Abusing Him. 

Bucky’s nauseous just reading that last one. He never would’ve guessed Peter was into such rough sex. Not just because the kid gets all wide-eyed and stuttery whenever sex is even mentioned, but because Peter’s just so - soft. In all the ways a person can be, really.

Bucky doesn’t know how to reconcile what he knows Peter to be like with this new information about him. He distantly knows that he doesn’t have to - that Peter’s kinks don't reflect anything about his personality, and acting like they do is only reductive - but the instinct is so strong, he can’t help but fruitlessly try.

Before he can reconsider, Bucky’s clicking on one of the more mildly titled videos - not that any of them are mild at all - just to understand better what Peter’s so into. 

The video loads almost immediately, and it doesn’t waste time with any kind of introduction - there’s suddenly two men on the screen, their size difference resembling Bucky and Peter’s to a ridiculous degree, and the larger one pushes the smaller onto a bed carelessly before climbing on top of him. It’s a bunch of shoving and aggressive groping along with cruel words and name calling, and Bucky’s never been more turned off in his life. He can’t believe this porno is among Peter’s favorites - his boyfriend’s never once let on that this is the kind of sex he’s into.

While he’s staring, Bucky’s on screen lookalike finally quitting with the rough teasing and moving onto the brutal fucking, he hears Peter enter his apartment. Bucky doesn’t mute the video, and Peter’s light footsteps stop immediately. Bucky can just see the look on his face - that caught-in-the-headlights one that makes Peter look more like a deer than Bucky thought a person could - and he stifles a laugh as the steps pick back up, this time much more hesitant. When Peter’s a good foot into the living room, Bucky turns around, acting as if he hadn’t heard him coming in.

With the computer filling the room with sounds of slapping and exaggerated moans, Bucky greets, struggling to keep a smirk off his face,  “Hi, honey. How was your day?”

Peter doesn’t answer him and - yep, there’s that look. Instead, he gapes like a fish at where his computer is steadied on Bucky’s lap, eyes wide and frantic.

“Why’d you never mention this, doll?” Bucky asks, dropping the act as Peter keeps looking like disaster is seconds away. He pauses the video and sets the laptop to the side, motioning for Peter to join him on the couch.

Peter does join him, albeit uncertain and his eyes still trained on the graphic image on the computer screen. He’s quiet as he sits as far as he can from Bucky.

“I--” Peter starts, gaze transfixed on the laptop. “Can you - close that?”

Bucky does. Peter keeps looking at it.

“You okay?” Bucky asks, chuckling.

Peter finally looks at him. He seems scared, Bucky realizes. He closes a bit of the distance between them, leaving some incase Peter feels suffocated, and puts a hand on the back of his neck, a touch Peter always leans into.

He does this time, too. He relaxes some, and Bucky prompts, “Were you scared to tell me?”

Peter relaxes even more, his shoulders falling. He nods. “I know you probably don’t care--”

Bucky interrupts to confirm with a nod of his own, “I don’t.”

“But it’s just--” Peter huffs, eyebrows furrowing, “Embarrassing.”

Bucky nods more. “It doesn’t change how I think about you.” He reassures Peter, “At all.”

“That's good.” Peter breathes, and Bucky can’t help but laugh softly. “I was starting to think it would gross you out.”

It kinda does, but Bucky doesn’t say that. It isn’t important how the porn he’s into makes Bucky feel. 

“No, baby. It doesn’t.”

Peter leans into his side, and Bucky shifts to embrace him. Silence attempts to settle around them, but Bucky can’t help his need to tease.

“So… where’d you find the time to make such a collection?” 

Peter cringes. “I, uh, started it years ago.”

Bucky raises his eyebrows. He doesn’t know why he didn’t assume that - it’s a seriously massive collection - but thinking of how far back years suggests, and how Peter is just twenty-two, he can’t help but ask for clarification.

“How many years you talkin’?”

“Uhh…” Peter trails off, seeming to really think about it. Bucky can see the moment he finds the answer, and his expression closes.  “...several.”

Bucky decides to wager a guess. He doesn’t really know why he wants to know this answer, but he thinks it might help him understand just how into kink Peter is.

“Sixteen?”

Peter whines. “Jamie.”

Bucky’s eyes widen. “Fifteen?”

Peter pulls away a bit to cover his face with his hands, and he whines unintelligibly this time.

“Christ, it wasn’t younger than thirteen, was it?”

Peter shakes his head. “N-No, I--” His words are muffled by his palms,  “I was fourteen.”

Bucky breathes a sigh of relief. Peter can’t lie for shit, so Bucky can tell he isn’t just appeasing him. 

Then it hits him just how long Peter’s been fantasizing about this kind of sex.

“You’re really into this stuff, huh?”

Peter burrows further into his hands. Bucky rubs his back, and considers his next words carefully.

“If you want, we could explore some of the tamer stuff you have in there.” 

Peter drops his hands from his face and he looks excited for all of two seconds. Then, his expression falls. “None of it’s… tame. I mean, I guess--” Peter cuts himself off to cough, wincing as he tries to get the words out, “uh, im-impact play isn’t, you know, hardcore, I guess.”

“Spanking and stuff?”

“...and stuff.” Peter says with a flush. 

“We’ll start with spanking,” Bucky laughs, adding just in case, “if you want to.”

But it wasn’t necessary, because Peter brightens immediately. 

“Really?”

“Yeah, really.” 

Peter smiles wide, and Bucky can’t help but return it with one of his own.

[whatifxwereyou]

Ashes Chapter 13: Perception

Fandom: Mortal Kombat 2021

Pairing: Liu Kang x Reader

A/N: Maybe it's inevitable. Definitely cried like an adult while writing parts of this. I'm a weepy baby. I hope you imagine an ugly MySpace style sparkly gif every time Y/N uses the word "kidnapping". As always, appreciate you guys <3

First Chapter << Previous Chapter Next Chapter >> Chapter Index

Buzz.

You peeked one eye open and caught sight of the smart phone dancing around on the nightstand close by. Strong arms were wrapped around you and there was no mistaking who they belonged to this time. Liu. You’d fallen asleep next to each other and somewhere along the line, in unconsciousness, he’d cuddled against you.

This was fine.

This was all fine.

The phone continued to dance and nearly vibrated right off the edge of the nightstand and onto the floor. You grabbed it from its place near the edge and wiped your eyes with your other hand. Johnny Cage. Rubbing your eyes again, you checked the time on the phone. It was nine at night. Carefully you snuck out of Liu’s arms without waking him. You’d mastered sneaking out of bed while you’d been dating Kung Lao. He was so heavy a sleeper that in the beginning of your relationship you had wound up trapped beneath his arms for hours. Then when you tried to get away, you’d wake him up. Eventually you’d mastered maneuvering from his grasp without waking him because waking him led to fooling around or talking and then you were either trapped having to pee or late for some responsibility or another.

Liu adjusted behind you but didn’t wake up. You fixed your askew shirt, grabbed your keycard, and then answered the phone and stepped into the hallway, carefully closing the door behind you.

“This is weird. I don’t think I even got your name earlier.” Johnny spoke without waiting for you to acknowledge him. You chuckled beneath your breath then cleared the sleepiness from your throat. “I know that may seem like it’s a pretty common thing for me but…”

“Y/N. You can call me Y/N.” You interrupted what you were sure was a very cleverly crafted explanation about his popularity and fame. Johnny Cage seemed like the type to be easily derailed from a topic with banter. You’d become skilled at wrangling men like that given that Kung Lao had been your other half for so long.

“And you’re from China, right?”

“Yes, but what does that have to do with anything?”

“Just trying to make sure I spell your name right…” His voice was distant, as if he spoke nowhere near the phone. You spelled your name for him with a sigh. “Is that…?”

“That is not important right now.” You interrupted him again. You had to keep him on task or this conversation was going to go on forever.

“Right, yes. I’ve been thinking about this morning.”

“And?”

“I was hoping to hash out the details with you guys before I officially agree to anything.” Johnny Cage tried to sound like he was bargaining with you but you were already convinced that he was joining you. This seemed like a formality. Or like he was dragging it out. Why? You couldn’t think of a good reason. Maybe to try and land a date with Sonya? You didn’t think that was going to happen and also it seemed petty. Then again, you and Liu were a hot mess in the middle of all of this so you couldn’t criticize anyone else’s motives. “I’ve begun clearing my schedule for the next few weeks but I’m a busy man, you know. Takes time.”

“I understand that. I’m sure that we can meet tomorrow to answer any questions you may still have.” There was no point in arguing with him on that. It was a reasonable request though not entirely necessary. Besides, you were still ready to jump to the kidnapping stage of this endeavor. If he caused too much trouble tomorrow then you would promptly lure him somewhere quiet and knock him out. Then you’d go from there. You could probably convince Cole to help you if you had to but you didn’t think it would go that far.

“That’s exactly what I hoped to hear!” You could hear the smile on Johnny’s face. “When we’re off the phone, I’ll text you where to meet me.”

“Sounds like a plan.” You yawned.

“I wanted to ask you something. You seem like a nice woman.”

Oh, how misguided a man Johnny Cage was. Oddly trusting for someone in his position. Here you were planning out an elaborate scheme to kidnap him and drag him to China and he thought you were nice. It was probably the tea thing from earlier. Ah, well. You’d fooled him.

“Ask away, Mr. Cage.”

“Just Johnny, if you don’t mind.”

“Sure.”

Then he sighed as if trying to word his question or embarrassed to ask it. You waited patiently. There was no need to rush him. You weren’t sure that Johnny Cage could be rushed. “Are you guys for real? Or are you just dicking me around? No one put you up to this, right?” After everything that you had showed him that morning, he was still stuck on the idea of this being a prank. Was Johnny often victim to silly pranks? Did he find himself the butt end of a joke amongst friends? It was funny to imagine.

“I know that this is… what’s the saying? Difficult medicine to take?” You weren’t so good with the English idioms. Maybe that was why he thought you to be nice. You were far more sarcastic in your native tongue. Your English was good but stuff didn’t always come out right.

“Hard pill to swallow but I got the point.” Johnny chuckled. “…so yeah? It’s true?”

“Trust me, Mr. Cage, I have much better things to do than play silly pranks on you.” You reassured him but he scoffed as if insulted. “That and I’d never heard of you before this.” It sounded like you’d punched him. Ah, yes, the delicate male ego.

“Low blow. Never heard of me?” You could picture the horror on his face.

“No offense meant.”

“I bet you just didn’t remember my name. Dragon Fist? Cage Match? Aquatic Assault? Exiting the Dragon of Death? A personal favorite of mine…”

“Exiting the Dragon of Death?”

“Yeah? You’ve heard of that one?”

“No.”

“Come on, don’t play with me like that.”

“I couldn’t resist.” You spoke over him as he made to list more movies. “I’m sorry to have offended you.” You were certain this could go on all night and you were still tired and now you were hungry too. Your appetite was back and you were far less shaky than you’d been earlier that day. “I did watch one of your films last night with a friend so that I could be familiar with your movement patterns.”

“For that crazy duplication thing you did?”

“For my arcana, yes.”

“…and?”

“It was a fun movie.”

“Which one did you watch?”

“Mr. Cage, this is a conversation for another time. Can we stay on topic?”

“Just Johnny, please.” Apparently no, he could not stay on topic. You pulled the phone away from your face so he wouldn’t hear your heavy sigh. Hearing footsteps behind you, you turned and found Cole approaching holding an ice bucket and offering a wave. He stopped next to you and nodded toward the phone. You mouthed that it was Johnny Cage. Then he offered you a thumbs up, pointed toward the end of the hall and walked away, presumably to get ice. “I’m making a choice to trust you. I don’t think you’re lying to me. I hope I’m making the right choice.”

“I’m a terrible liar so good choice.” He continued going on about something but your brain was tired of the babble. You needed food! This conversation felt like it would have gone on all week if you let him talk the way he wanted to. “Can I trust you no to dick us around?”

“I promise. You’ve got a deal, Y/N.”

“Text me the address and we’ll meet you just before noon.” You assured him.

“Got it. See you then.” Johnny hung up and you breathed a sigh of relief. At least this part of your trip was going smoothly. Seconds later your phone buzzed with a message from the same number. You selected the address and put it into the browser of your phone after figuring out how that worked. From what you could tell, the address seemed legit. A house by the shore. Of course, a beach house. Why wouldn’t he take the opportunity to show off?

“How’d it go?” Cole returned with his bucket full of ice.

“Mr. Cage is going to meet with us tomorrow to discuss details.”

“I anticipated us having to use your devious plan B so I’m surprised he’s going to meet with us.” Cole adjusted the bucket in his arms. “What do you think of him? I’m having a hard time taking him seriously.”

“I meant it when I said that I thought he was funny earlier. Honestly, if we had met without any of this pretense, I think that he and I would get along quite well.” You shrugged. “I also think that he’s going to do what he thinks is right if that’s what you were really asking. Seems like the type to talk a big game but ultimately a good guy.”

“That’s optimistic of you.”

“I usually have a good read on people.”

“I can tell.” Cole gestured toward your door. “You just getting in? Maybe not.” He looked down at your bare feet.

“I was napping.”

“And you came into the hallway to take a call?”

“Yeah, I was uh… going to grab food.”

“Without your shoes?”

“Are you always this nosy, Cole?”

“Not really but this afternoon has been especially boring. Plus, your reactions are entertaining.” Cole smirked. “You have more color now. That’s good to see.”

“Why does no one believe me when I say I’m just tired?” You gestured back to the room. “I’m gonna go.”

“We’re about to grab a bite to eat if you want to join us. Late dinner.”

“No, no, thank you though. That’s sweet. I’m okay.”

“You just said you were going to get food.” Cole laughed.

“…I think I’ll order something.” You pointed to your bare feet but was sure your expression was one that screamed you’d been caught in the most pointless of lies. Cole had inadvertently talked you into a corner. You hadn’t even meant to lie! It had just happened. This was why you didn’t usually bother.

“You’re lying.”

“Yeah, turns out I am. I’m not good at it.”

“I can see that.”

The door to your room opened behind you and Liu Kang peeked into the hall, still looking sleepy.

“Hello Cole” Liu stepped into the hall and kept the door propped open a crack, back leaned against it. Then he bowed his head politely in greeting. He turned to you and spoke Chinese as if this weren’t suspicious. You didn’t think it had the intention that he wanted it to have. “Everything okay?”

“I had a call to take with Mr. Cage. No big deal.” You replied in English to try and make it seem like you had less to hide. Why? Because Cole was already giving you a look as if to say it was ‘nothing’. You sighed. “I’m just about done.”

“Good.” Liu replied in English. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” You snapped at him without meaning to then took a cleansing breath. He was just worried about you but you were tired of the worry. You felt far better than you had earlier. A few hours of sleep had done you good. “I really am fine.” Liu bowed his head politely to both you and Cole and then disappeared back into the hotel room.

“What was it you were saying earlier? About that being nothing?” Cole teased in a whisper after you made no move to offer any explanation.

“If you recall, I also said it was none of your business.” There was no point in trying to lie again. You folded too easily. Instead, you’d be evasive. That was easier. Avoiding the truth was far easier than twisting it at least for you.

“Liu looked pretty tired. You guys have a nice nap?”

“We fell asleep talking.” You narrowed your eyes at his implications but also hated how close he was to the truth.

“Sure, is that what the kids are calling it these days?”

You shoved his shoulder with a laugh. “Your ice is melting Cole. It’s nothing.”

“Yeah, I’m going to have to mentally shift my definition of that word to better fit what I’m seeing.” He teased. “You’re trouble, Y/N. I’m making note of it.”

“You have no idea, Cole.” You pointed to the room behind you. “I’m going now.”

“Enjoy your nothing.” He called after you. You disappeared into the hotel room and then leaned against the door once it closed. You fiddled on your phone and sent a message to Jax, relaying what you’d learned from Johnny Cage along with the address and what you’d agreed to. The door to the small bathroom to your right opened and Liu stepped out, closing the door behind him. He waited patiently for you to finish on your phone.

“When I woke up and couldn’t find you, I was worried.” He nodded to the messy bed where you’d been sleeping. And snuggling. You mustn’t forget that there had been a fair amount of snuggling.

“My phone was ringing and it felt rude to answer it with you asleep so I stepped into the hall.” You shook the phone in your hand and then filled him in on the conversation you’d shared with Johnny Cage. You left out the exhausting banter that had kept you on the phone for far longer than necessary. Even if it had been mentally exhausting, you had also enjoyed talking with him. Your phone buzzed with Jax’s response. “Okay, Jax is going to arrange a ride to take us to meet Johnny tomorrow. He’ll also let everyone else know where to meet.”

“Good.”

Silence followed and you stood awkwardly in the small entranceway of the hotel room.

“So.” You began.

“So.”

“You should probably go, right?”

“Yeah.” Liu shifted but made no move to leave and a smile played on his lips. “Or… I could stay. We could order some food and continue our… getting along for the day.”

“Mostly getting along.” You corrected. Maybe he’d chosen to forget when he’d pushed you against the wall and you’d nearly undressed him. You blinked the mental image away. If you thought about it for too long then you’d probably end up right back where you’d started. “We could. Is that what you wanted to do?”

“Are you okay with that?”

“I guess.”

“There was a menu around here somewhere.” Liu walked back into the open area of the room and you were grateful he’d taken the initiative to make the decision to stay. In all honesty, his presence was comforting and conflicting. You craved the comfort but the guilt and pain made you want to push him away. Your brain was such a mess. Your emotions were even worse. You joined him and mulled over the menu, trying to discern what was safe for you to eat. Liu called to place the order since he had several questions about the food. His diet was more specific than yours was. You had never quite taken to the vegetarian diet completely. Your food arrived and you sat on your bed and ate while making quiet conversation. It was pleasant, if not a little awkward. In a way, it was reminiscent of when you would spend time alone together when you were first dating Kung Lao. You had often avoided discussing the difficult things then but not for the sake of each other. Instead, it was for Kung Lao.

“Cole seems to have taken a shine to you.”

“Yeah, he’s a nice guy and his family is cute. I think he feels guilty about Kung Lao so he’s compensating a little.”

“I could see that. I tried to reassure him that he isn’t to blame.”

“I did too.” You clicked your tongue in amusement. Liu gently nudged you with his shoulder.

“Today was nice.”

“I mean, parts of it were.”

“We had a bit of a rough start but things didn’t end so horribly.”

“Well,” you began in a higher, nervous pitch, “we didn’t exactly fix anything.” Liu laughed. “And I think we definitely made things worse but… all things considered, neither one of us is dead and we aren’t screaming at each other so that’s something.”

“I was thinking and… maybe we don’t have to fix anything.” Liu avoided your eyes and began to clean up dinner. You knew why he was avoiding your eyes because you were looking at him like he’d lost his damn mind. He had. He was insane. You couldn’t keep going like this. You both knew that. “We can’t ignore it, obviously. But we can’t expect to resolve anything when we’re like this. We’re grieving, Y/N. We hurt each other. But I also think that it could be healthy to try and find a way to be content amongst all of that too. We can’t force a resolution, Y/N. I think that’s clear.” Liu’s smile was soft but strained, like talking about it so analytically pained him. “I don’t think I can handle this much misery all the time.”

“I understand.” You didn’t necessarily disagree with him you just couldn’t see the end either. He seemed to think there was some kind of happily ever after waiting for you and you didn’t think there was. The only end to life was death. Even if you found happiness eventually, life would continue moving. No amount of happiness would erase your history nor would it erase your trauma. That didn’t mean you wouldn’t find joy. You were just being realistic. “It’s weird, isn’t it?” You helped him gather the dishes. Liu then placed the tray aside on the desk. You picked up the tray and placed it carefully outside the door and then returned to him. “Surreal is maybe a better word for what we are right now.”

“Surreal works.” Liu’s smile was forced and it pained you. “We’re going to be okay.”

“Oh, you think so, hmm? Confident in that?”

“I am.” He grinned but you could still see that worry behind his dark eyes. Liu had never been a good liar either. It was a wonder that he’d fooled you all those years ago. Perhaps because he’d said all the things that you’d been afraid he’d say.

“I suppose the worst thing that could happen is that we decide not to talk to each other anymore and lose touch. Then in like, thirty years, we’ll reunite and reminisce about the old days. Then this won’t seem so complicated anymore.” You hadn’t realized how much you’d considered that as an option until then. Liu seemed alarmed. “What?”

“Is that what you plan to do?”

“That would imply that I’ve thought past today so… no.” You sat on the side of the bed facing the window. There was no way to open the window so this was as close to the breeze and the stars as you could get. “But it happens. People drift apart even after being as close as we were especially after traumatic stuff like this. And this is a pretty messed up thing we’re dealing with, Liu. I can’t pretend to know what will happen.”

“I don’t want to drift apart.” He sat next to you and cautiously placed a hand over yours on the bed between you. There were times where he treated you like a ticking time bomb. This was one of them.

“Of course not, Liu. I don’t want that to happen either.”

“You had that scenario pretty thought out.”

“This time, Liu? You’re the one overthinking things.”

“Maybe.” He watched out the window, but you felt his thumb brush over the back of your hand. Looking at the night sky was easier than looking at each other. But right now the night sky looked empty. You didn’t see the stars. Just the lights of busy Los Angeles, a thing which brought you no peace. “Do you think you’ll still be this cute in thirty years?”

“I uh…” You laughed and pretended to consider it. “I didn’t think about it. For the brief moment I considered this make-believe scenario, you were still cute.” You joked and nudged him playfully.

“You’re beautiful Y/N, so I’m sure you will be too.” Liu still didn’t look at you. “I always thought so. Even when I used to tease you.” You rolled your eyes at him in disgust and he laughed again. You were well beyond being bashful at his compliments.

“Cut it out, Liu.”

“I just don’t want to leave it unsaid.”

“It feels like you’re trying to butter me up.” You narrowed your eyes in suspicion.

“Maybe. Or… perhaps this last week I’ve been cruel to you. I thought that I’d pay you a compliment instead.” That was as good an excuse as any. You had dug at each other quite a bit the past few days.

“I’m not vain.”

“I know. I always liked that about you.”

“Stop it, Liu. You’re freaking me out.” You laughed and shoved at his shoulder.

“I won’t.” He leaned back on one arm. You reached for your phone on the bed behind you as it buzzed. Jax had verified the location online as legitimate. He’d even found out that the property belonged to Johnny. Apparently, Jax had been much more suspicious of him than you had been. You’d decided to trust Johnny. And if he lied to you then you’d just go to plan B. Kidnapping. Jax continued on to say that he’s pretty sure the asshole just wanted to show off his beach house. You chuckled. You’d thought the same thing. You replied quickly to ask if you were still to meet in the morning in the same place. Jax replied to be in the lobby by ten. “Going off without a hitch?”

“Are you spying on my conversation?” You cradled the phone protectively against your chest and pouted.

“I didn’t mean to.” You set the phone aside face up. You had nothing to hide anyway, you’d just been trying to lighten the mood. Then you watched the dark sky out the window and tried to find something positive to say about it. He was right. You’d had too much unpleasantness lately. “Kung Lao would have loved…”

“Do you think about that a lot? What Kung Lao would have thought or felt?”

“Don’t you?” You thought that was obvious. “We spent most of our time together. This is the longest I’ve been alone in years.”

“I… hadn’t considered that.” Liu’s eyes fell to the floor. There was plenty that you hadn’t thought regarding each other. “It must have been hard waking up next to me.” You sighed heavily. There were those difficult conversations you couldn’t seem to avoid. You didn’t know how to respond. That wasn’t an easy answer. If you could have lied and said it wasn’t weird than it would have been simpler. But lying had gotten you into this in the first place and you didn’t want to lie. You were so tired of hurting.

“I… yes.” You sighed and then closed your eyes tight. “But I confess that I miss being held.” You hated saying it and even got the chills as you did. You and Kung Lao had spent most nights at least next to each other if not tangled up in each other. Liu was watching you with those big sad puppy dog eyes of his again. “But I also feel selfish and awful for having briefly thought it was nice.”

“It’s okay to be selfish at times.” He clasped his hands together in his lap, as if nervous they would betray him as they had often done. “I confess that when I woke up alone, I panicked.” You smiled a little. You hadn’t considered that he would be upset to wake up alone after falling asleep next to you. Oh, boy. You were both a mess. “But then I remembered this was your room and you had nowhere to run, really.”

“Did you briefly consider that I was so dedicated to running away that I went and got another hotel room to avoid you?”

“No.” He laughed and then furrowed his brow as if trying to picture you doing that. “You didn’t consider that, did you?”

“Of course not.” You chuckled, resting your elbows on your knees. “The phone rang and I didn’t want to wake you. That’s about as far as I had thought.” Your head was pounding and you realized all at once that you were clenching your jaw. Ugh, tension headache. “At least this time I woke up with all of my clothes on.” Liu laughed softly and avoided your eyes. Then he laughed harder as if he’d just gotten the joke. “What’s so funny?”

“It’s kind of like déjà vu, isn’t it? You woke up next to me again and then I woke up alone.”

“You know, Liu, I’m trying, but that’s not funny.”

Still he laughed and you watched him in disbelief. Was it you? Were you the one cracking up?

“I have to laugh, Y/N. I have to or I think about how screwed up it is.” He leaned back on the bed and stared at the ceiling. His face fell. You turned to watch him in disbelief and your stomach twisted up into knots. “I just couldn’t help myself, could I? I had to… cross that line.”

“Liu…” You didn’t want to fight again. You thought you had made a truce for the day.

“I have to say this, Y/N.” He turned his head to the side to look at you and you leaned on your side to better meet his eyes. They were so sad and it was killing you. “The woman that Kung Lao planned to spend the rest of his life with. Only a little while after he’s gone and I just… how selfish I am.” You searched his troubled eyes and then couldn’t help but laugh but you weren’t smiling either. Liu knit his brow in confusion.

“Liu, I… I said the same things to myself.” You offered a sympathetic smile but he didn’t seem relieved to hear that. “Not about you, obviously. I don’t think I’ve ever used the word selfish when describing you, really. Or at least meant it. Maybe out of anger… but I… how could I? Kung Lao’s best friend. His brother. I feel like I just lost him and I still, somehow, couldn’t manage to keep myself together well enough not to sleep with you.”

“Sometimes we’re a lot alike.”

“Most times it feels like we’re oil and water.” Now you avoided his eyes, afraid of what yours might reveal to him. “I’m sorry that I ran off that morning, Liu. I panicked. I didn’t know what else to do. I was terrified and embarrassed and ashamed and… the idea of having to talk to you about it was too much.”

“Why were you so scared?” He turned on his side to face you, as if eager for this answer, as if he had been caught wondering that same thing for too long. “I know it was a… big thing but I…”

“I guess no matter how I played it in my head, it went wrong. You uh…” You were having a difficult time saying the words without getting upset. “I kept picturing us having to find a way to… be okay with… it being a mistake because… I…” You were frustrated with yourself for not being able to say it. “It felt like a mistake. Like we’d fallen into an old habit. Or that it was just… a transaction and I couldn’t hear those words again after everything. I was already falling apart and I don’t know what that would have done to me. And then… you being receptive to it would have been just as painful… I… Kung Lao…” You had to stop there. You were pretty sure you’d made your point.

“I think I get it.” His eyes were taking you in while yours were avoiding him and were most likely glassy with tears. “Maybe I didn’t consider how much I’d hurt you back then. It never crossed my mind until you brought it back up and I realized the damage I’d done. I hadn’t considered myself that important.” There was that similarity again. Neither one of you thought yourselves to be important to the other when it was far from the truth. “I wish I’d had a say in the matter that morning.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I understand now.” He sat up and offered you a hand to help your back up too. you took it and sat up with him but he didn’t let go of your hand. “I’m sorry too. I’m sorry that I reacted so angrily. That I was so cold to you. I thought it might make things easier and put distance between us.”

“Did it work?”

“No. No, it didn’t. I wish, more than anything, that I could go back.” His eyes were dripping with sincerity and you avoided his gaze again. You couldn’t help but think that if this had been Kung Lao, you never would have had this conversation. Nothing ever would have gotten resolved. You had both avoided your emotions like the plague.

“To that morning? Hard pass, Liu.”

“Think about it. I could wake up with you. Keep you from running. We could talk.”

“That’s a fantasy, Liu. It wouldn’t have ended the way you want.” You threw him an accusatory glance. “You’re fantasizing. I was too panicked. I would have lashed out.”

“And maybe I could have kept a level head.”

“It’s a fantasy.”

“Let me have my fantasy, Y/N.” He laughed and gave your hand a squeeze. His smile faded as he let go of your hand and closed some of the distance between you. Your instinct was to pull back but you didn’t. He pushed your hair away from your face and tucked it behind your ear. The loose strands of your long hair tickled your neck as they fell back into place. You turned your gaze away. His hand was warm as it rested on your cheek and you could feel him admiring you.

“Seems dangerous to let you.”

“Many good things can be dangerous, Y/N,” he whispered. You got the shivers and moistened your lips nervously. You should have moved back when you’d wanted to. You were so much closer than you’d realized and his lips brushed just against yours. He was going to kiss you and you knew what would happen. Tender kisses led to feverish kisses. No kiss between you had ever stayed just that. You had never once exchanged a soft, momentary kiss. Every single time you had wound up in his arms. His lips would treasure yours like they were something priceless and yours would tease his in return to make him want more. Then you’d be naked.

The more time you spent this close to Liu the more inevitable it seemed to wind up in his bed and you weren’t sure that was the right thing. You weren’t sure it wouldn’t destroy you. It was a dangerous way to think but he was right too. Many of the best things were often dangerous.

“Don’t.” You managed and caught his eyes, half-lidded and admiring your lips. His gaze snapped back up to yours and you watched as he took a careful breath. You could feel it against your lips. He was thinking it too. How dangerous this had become.

“Probably a bad idea, right?” His voice was low and just for you.

“An incredibly bad idea.” You tried to joke but your words fell flat. It was miserable being this close to him and not kissing him, against every instinct in your body. You could feel as he ran his tongue over his lower lip, as he weighed the pros and cons of defying you. You held your breath.

Then he scooted back a few inches. You felt like you could suddenly breathe, like the air was less thick than it had been so close to him. Your heart was hammering away and it was a headrush, as if to punish you for having wanted that kiss. You cleared your throat and put more distance between you. But try as you might, you couldn’t stop thinking about those marks you’d left on his back that you had so clearly felt earlier. Did he think of how you’d clung to him in passion every time he shifted and felt those scabs? That was truly a dangerous thought.

“It’s late. I should go.” He had turned away, but his eyes were wide and his breath was short, as though he were also fighting dangerous thoughts.

“Yeah. Good idea.” You got up and walked past him and around the bed. He followed you and then walked past you to the door. Then he bowed politely.

“Goodnight, Y/N.” He looked hesitant, as if he were still considering crossing that line again.

“Get out, Liu.” You gestured to the door behind him, making the choice for him. He laughed and did just as you asked. Once he’d gone, you leaned against the door with a thud and whined. “What am I doing?” You closed your eyes tight and felt a wave of guilt weigh you down. Then you flipped the swing bar lock shut on the door as if this would provide you with protection from your stupid feelings.

Maybe you had to reconsider the situation.

Maybe this was inevitable.

Maybe guilt wasn’t enough to keep you from being attracted to Liu Kang.

It felt wrong. It felt like you were betraying Kung Lao. It was too soon and you were too broken. But maybe someday it wouldn’t be those things. You weren’t sure how long either one of you could wait either. Spending the afternoon with Liu had been eye opening.

Next Chapter >>

[jungkookienoona]

The Meme and His Tutor

Part 13: The Time There Was A Meme War

Recommended Song: I Luv It by PSY

|All Chapters|

Summary:

Jungkook started something he could not finish and you begin to question yourself.

Genre: Fluff, comedy

Pairing: Jungkook X Reader (Y/N)

Warnings: Swearing

Word Count: 3745

Length: 13/?

Since your first lesson back after returning from Korea, you had taken Jungkook's advice to study harder. For the past few weeks your lessons focused on correcting the errors brought to light on your trip, and you were slowly gaining a better understanding of how to speak less formally.

When Jungkook rang you it just so happened that you were busy studying, a highlighter between your teeth as you answered the Skype call.

"Annyeonghaseyo Kookie." A small smile gracing your lips as you gave a wave.

A mischievous grin appeared on his lips, "Hello Noona."

There was a look in his eye that had you feeling suspicious.

"I don't like that look." You said, closing your textbook. "What are you up to?"

"Nothing."

"Do you really expect me to believe you?"

He ran a hand through his hair and you felt your heart stutter a little at how attractive he looked while doing so. No, stop. It wasn't the time for that.

"I'm not doing anything Noona."

"Okay... so what have you done?"

He bit his bottom lip in a failed attempt to stifle an amused chuckle. Why did he have to look so good? You shook your head. That look plus his amusement meant only on possible thing. You quickly opened your browser and typed in the address to his blog. There it was. The first thing to greet you on his site, a meme of you.

"Jeon Jungkook."

"Ye?"

"Prepare to die."

Jungkook started laughing, leaning back in his seat with an arm thrown across his face as you open up that one folder on your desktop. You were prepared for this day. Since spotting his folder full of memes on your first day in Korea, you had been plotting your revenge. And when you arrived safely at home you put your plan into action, screenshotting Skype and downloading pictures sent over KaKao. And with each new image, you created a new meme for your arsenal. It was time to release your creations onto the world.

Having recovered from his little laughing fit, Jungkook was watching you intently from the other side of the screen.

"Noona..."

"Yes, Kookie?" You said, creating a new Tumblr post and selecting your meme. It was a tough choice.

"What are you doing?"

You recycled his earlier words. "Nothing." You added a few hashtags and pressed post with a smile.

You heard Jungkook's phone vibrate. He picked it up and quickly checked it with a shocked gasp.

"Noona! That's so mean! I look ugly in that."

"I looked ugly in your one!... Also, do you get notifications every time I post? How long have you been doing that?"

"Since I followed you." You were going to ask why when you noticed a new notification had appeared. Clicking on it, you were not surprised to see Chubs’ ship blog reblogging the posts. You had an audience already.

"Noonaa~" Jungkook called and you refreshed the page.

Sitting at the top of your dash was your face, eyes wide and mouth open as if prepared to sneeze. Beneath it was the caption: 'when Jungkook Skypes you'. He'd even watermarked it.

"You little shit!"

You went into your folder again as he cackled in the background. It didn't take long to find one you wanted to use. It was the screenshot you had taken from when he was shirtless (the one that was still your desktop background) but with "Yokhareulharyeoko fuck boi cheoreom (Tries to act like a fuck boi)" at the top and "Hajiman geu-i museowo yeosang aidol. (But is afraid of female idols.)"

Jungkook was wiping tears out of his eyes when his phone went off. He paused and narrowed his eyes at you.

"Yah! What's a fuck...boi?" He glanced back at his phone, "And I'm not afraid of female idols!"

You lost it, covering your face with your hands as Jungkook mulled in his own confusion.

Between laughs, you managed to explain that a fuck boi was similar to being an international playboy, but meant acting even more like a dickhead.

"I'm not a fuck boi." He pouted.

"I don't know, going on Skype shirtless seems pretty fuck boi type behaviour to me." You grinned evilly.

"I put on a robe for you!" He said then winced at the sound of his voice. "I have to be quiet. Hoseok went to bed early."

"And how can you say you're not scared of female idols? You move away from them and hide behind the members."

"I'm being polite and respectful."

"There are compilation videos of you avoiding them. You backed away from a few with a terrified expression."

"... I was scared of accidentally starting career damaging rumours."

"Yeah right."

"If I was scared of women I wouldn't be friends with you." He gestured across the screen to you.

"I'm not an idol. It's different."

You got another notification about Chubs' ship blog reblogging from you but this time with a caption. 'HOLY SHIT! HE LET HER SEE HIM SHIRTLESS! AND SHE HAS BLESSED US BY SHARING IT WITH US!'

"What is it?" He asked.

"Check the ship blog." While he was doing that you scrolled through your folder, deciding what to post next.

"I don't see what the big deal is about me not wearing a top."

You sighed and minimised the folder to look at him. "Why do you have to wear swim shirts when you do things involving swimming on camera?"

"Because we don't want ARMY dying at the sight of our abs?"

"Exactly- wait, no!"

"Yep."

"It's because BigHit makes more money by teasing us with little glimpses of skin."

"And because in Korea we have to swim clothed."

There was another notification waiting for you on your Tumblr.

"Are you not going to look, Noona?" He was sitting smugly and you wished you were there in Korea to push him off his chair. "It's a good one. One of my best!”

It was you in your panda onesie, face bright red. 'Says she isn't adorable but is adorable af.'

"Next time I'm in Korea you're going to die."

You decided your next attack would include more than one meme. You found the ones you were looking for and started uploading them. Meanwhile, Jungkook was staring intently at his screen. A pair of circle glasses had found their way onto the bridge of his nose and you had to tear your eyes away from the Skype window. They were your weakness.

You heard his phone go off and sat back while he took a moment to look at them.

"Yah! Noona! Why so many?!"

"Don't call me cute!"

"...At least you Korean is improving."

You smirked and remembered the ones you had selected, one of him being shook, another of him spinning in his chair out of boredom and a selca of him with a bad hair day.

"I've been practising."

"Good." It was his turn to smirk when you saw he had uploaded half a dozen pictures of you including ones he'd taken on your trip to Korea.

"Is...Is that me sleeping?" You enlarged one particular photo you'd never seen before. It looked like it was taken using the front-facing camera and you could just make out the leather of Jungkook's jacket as you leant against his shoulder.

"It was after you landed. Remember?"

"Oh yeah... You took a picture of me sleeping?"

You swore you saw a hint of pink get added to his cheeks as he scratched the back of his neck with a sheepish smile.

"I couldn't help myself. Noona looked so peaceful and childlike."

"I'm just glad it's dark. You can't see a lot of my face."

"I didn't want to use flash and wake you."

"How considerate," you grumbled, going back to looking at the other images. "I need to stop wearing my panda onesie. All the worst pictures are of me in it."

"Noooo~ Noona should wear it more. Noona looks best in her onesie. See."

Your Skype chat was then filled with screenshots of you in the onesie as well as some pictures that were sneakily taken on the movie night.

"How did you take those without me noticing?" You said, eyeing one particular picture. It looked like a failed attempt at taking a photo of you from the side as all he managed to capture was your linked hands in his lap.

He tapped the side of his head with a smirk, "That's a secret."

"Aish. You're an impossible child."

He frowned, "I am not a child!"

"You act like one. I have proof."

You uploaded a dozen more screenshots to Tumblr all with various pieces of text of the images. There was a candid one of him you snuck at the restaurant after going to the market. He was cradling his phone in his hands, eyes bright as he stared down at his new phone case it in adoration. A screenshot of him pressing a kiss to Honey's head was followed by one of him with a blanket draped over his head.

"See, a child."

His frown deepened.

"Does Noona only see me as a child even after all my goodnight selcas?"

By some miracle, you didn't blush as he reminded you of the selcas he sent you when he was preparing for bed every night.

"T-t-that has nothing to do with your child like behaviour."

"But I have muscle." Jungkook pushed up his shirt sleeve to give you a better view of his flexed bicep. "Does this look like a child to you?"

"Stop!"

"Or this?" You noticed his hand grip the hem of his t-shirt and in a burst of panic, you slammed the laptop shut.

You got a message over Kakao.

'Or this'

It was followed by the image that you wanted to avoid. His shirt was pulled up revealing his abs and he had the cockiest smirk you had ever seen.

'By the way, you were very rude just now. You're going to pay for that.'

Your eyes went wide as you opened up Tumblr on your phone to see even more memes. This was meant to be your revenge. Why the hell were you taking turns?

Jungkook was waiting for you on Skype, his shirt back in place. You coughed to get his attention.

"Has Noona recovered?" He teased.

You scowled at him, "You're the biggest little shit. I'm supposed to be getting back at you and it turns into a competition."

"Which I won."

"You think you won?"

"I always win."

"Prepare to lose then."

There was a video file from back near the beginning of Jungkook's lessons when his English was still broken and he frequently switched between the two languages. You had recorded it to see if you could find a way to improve your teaching strategy. With a merciless grin, you uploaded a small segment of it to Tumblr.

He tripped over his words and stuttered often. It was adorable and was sure to make him angry. It always embarrassed him when you reminded him of how he started off. And sure enough, not a minute later, Jungkook had his head buried in his hands.

"Noona~ delete it!"

"Not until you admit I won and upload a post saying you concede."

You were lying. He looked thoughtful for a moment then nodded.

"Fine Noona. You win."

And then he was clicking and typing away. You waited patiently for the post to appear on your dash. When it did you were a little confused. It was a video with Honey as the thumbnail and the caption: 'Noona wins (this was filmed before I changed her name)'

You pressed play and was met by the familiar intro to Cypher Part 4. Jungkook was nowhere to be seen as the camera pointed at the wall of his bedroom you had grown accustomed to seeing.

All of a sudden, Jungkook's head popped up over the edge of the desk in a pair of oversized sunglasses. He mouthed the words 'ireum, ireum!' And then ducked back down only for Honey to pop up in a matching pair of glasses in time to 'Sorry bae.'

The video continued like that until the end of Namjoon's verse where the video also ended. You were bent over, clutching your stomach in a fit of laughter, temporarily forgetting that you were still in a Skype call with Jungkook.

"Oh god. Why is he like this?" You said when you finally regained composure, wiping a tear from your eye.

"It's a talent of mine." He said, surprising you enough to yelp. "Did you like it?"

You pressed a hand to your chest, willing your heart to stop hammering. "You're the biggest meme possibly on earth."

He gave you a smile and then he was clicking and typing again. It didn't take long for a new post to appear. Another video. It was a video of him singing along to Very Very Very by IOI but when it got to a certain point he would chug a little Thomas the Tank engine along. It was captioned: 'I'll be a meme more because I like Noona's laugh.'

A giggle slipped out while you watched him push along the little train. Where he got it from you didn't know but it didn't matter.

"That was adorable, Kookie!"

He ducked his head but you could see he was smiling proudly for making you laugh.

"Losing was worth it."

You decided to check on the ship blog to see how Chubs was handling the memeage. Apparently, not very well. She had moved on to flat out saying she was dying. Jungkook noticed you had gone quiet and asked you what you were doing.

"Are you plotting something? Because I have no other videos to post."

"I'm checking in on Chubs. She's said she's dead five times now."

"Ask her whose memes killed her!"

"Jungkook!"

"Judging by the tags on each meme post she reblogged, it was both of us... tell her not to die. I need someone to document our history."

This time your cheeks did heat up.

"I'll get right on that."

You heard a door open and Jin came into view, peering over Jungkook's shoulder.

"Igeos-eun jeolm-eun sarang-i doen geos? Naneun neohui dul-ege silmanghaessda. (Is this a young love thing? I'm disappointed in the both of you.)"

There was that word again. Why did it keep popping up so much recently? And why is it always Jungkook? You noticed Jungkook glance at you before apologising and giving his attention to Jin.

"Do you need something?"

"Oneul sueob-e chekeu-inhaneun geosman-eulo, Kookie. (Just checking in on today's lesson, Kookie.)" Jin caught your attention with a wave. "Igeos-eun yeong-eo sueobcheoreom boiji anh-eoyo, Y/N. (This doesn't look like an English lesson Y/N.)"

You sent your message to Chubs and gave Jin a sheepish smile. "Urin swigoiss-eo? (We're taking a break?)"

"... Seoloui mim-eul mandeuneunga? (By… making memes of each other?)"

"Geuneun geugeos-eul sijaghaessda. Naneun modu sueob-eul gajil junbigadoeeo iss-eossjiman, geuneun yaggan-ui ttong-idoegiro gyeolsimhaessda! (He started it. I was all prepared to have a lesson but then he decided to be a little shit!)"

"Noona!"

"If I'm going down I'm taking you with me!"

Jin braced himself on the back of Jungkook's chair as he broke into laughter.

Jungkook pouted, "But I didn't do anything!"

"You know what you did!" You nodded in Jin's direction, hoping that despite being on Skype Jungkook caught on to not wanting to say anything in front of Jin.

"Neo dul-eun neomu isanghae. (You two are so strange.)"

Chubs finally responded to your message about not dying.

'How can I not die when you two act like you were made for each other.'

'Don't say stuff like that. I'm just Y/N-chingu.'

'Yeah right. You two are totally not just friends. I see the way you look at each other.' Was her immediate response.

You let out a huff and typed out a reply. 'Even if I did feel something more for him (which I don't!) he doesn't like me like that. Nothing is ever going to happen.'

'Keep lying to yourself.'

"Noona~ don't get distracted. You're meant to be spending time with me!" Jungkook whined, drawing your attention back to him. You noticed Jin rolling his eyes.

You got another message from Chubs, 'You seriously need to sit down and have a think about how you actually feel about him. It's not good to be in denial for so long.'

"Noona~!"

"Sorry Kookie, Chubs was over reacting to our little meme war."

"Chubs-i nuguya? (Who's Chubs?)" Jin asked at the same time Jungkook wondered what she was saying.

"Geunyeoneun nae chingu ya. (She's my friend.)" You told Jin before looking at Jungkook, "Nothing important."

"Why won't you tell me?"

"I told you it's nothing."

"Noona~"

Jin smacked his shoulder, "Neoneun Y/N-i anj-aseo agicheoreom uneun geos-eul deudgo sip-eo handago saeng-gaghanayo? (Do you think Y/N wants to sit and listen to you whine like a baby?)"

"Geunyeoneun geugeos-eul saranghanda. (She loves it.)" He said with a smug smile.

For some reason, you couldn't bring yourself to argue with him about it. Jin chuckled to himself and ruffled Jungkook's hair, "Jeulgeoun aireul gaj-ja! Neomu heungbunhaji mala. Geuneunleohji anh-eumyeon oneul bam jamdeulji anh-eul geos-ida. (Have fun kids! Don't get too excited. Otherwise he won't sleep tonight.)"

"Hyung!"

You waved goodbye to Jin and watched Jungkook shake his messy hair back into place. You couldn't help what you said next.

"Messy hair suits you."

He paused at that looking slightly shocked.

"R-r-really?"

"Ye."

His hands immediately shot up into his hair, messing it up again.

"Like this Noona?"

You pursed your lips in thought, "Separate your fringe... Ye, like that."

He grabbed his phone and took a picture. Your phone buzzed. He sent the selca to you over Kakao.

Your heart skipped a beat. What on earth was wrong with you? This was only Jungkook. Jungkook, your tutor and tutee. Jungkook, the Golden Maknae of BTS. Jungkook who saw you as Y/N-chingu and nothing more.

You cleared your throat, "It really suits you Kookie."

"Taehyung tells me he likes my hair different but if Noona likes it messy, I like it messy too." He smiled and the sight of his dimple made your tummy do a little flip.

"You can't like something just because I do. What do you prefer?"

"Messy."

"Honestly?" You asked, ignoring the flashing light on your phone alerting you of Tumblr notifications.

"Honest. I don't like the product they put in it. It feels icky."

"Icky? You're such a child." You laughed.

"Yah! What do I have to do to make you see me as a man?!" There was a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"Why does it matter?"

He hesitated for a moment, "I don't want Noona to treat me like a child. To see me as a child. I'm an adult."

You started to giggle which only riled him up further. "I am the strongest member and only an inch shorter than Namjoon-hyung!"

"That doesn't necessarily make you a man. You still act like a child." You were dragging it out, seeing how far you could push him. And watching him grow hot and bothered was an extra.

"Was I not a man to you when you visited? I drove you around Seoul and bought you things. I treated Noona like a princess!"

"Yeah... you did. So it seems you can only act like an adult when I'm there in person."

Your phone screen lit up with yet another Tumblr notification. You decided to check it.

"Next time you visit I'll show you how much of a man I can be. I'll treat Noona like a queen."

The next time you visited...You had yet to tell Jungkook that even after picking up a few more hours at work it didn't look like you were going to be able to afford to visit after exam season like you had discussed. He'd only insist on paying if you told him and you couldn't have that. Not again.

"Yeah. Next time."

"You're going to love it, I have so much planned!"

You felt your heart sink with guilt. Maybe you could get a second job... you scrolled through the notes you had received on the mobile app. The responses were overwhelming. Jungkook's video had already hit a thousand notes in just under an hour. The ship blog was thriving with activity; a new post appearing every time you refreshed. You were suddenly aware of all the attention on the two of you.

"Noona?" You heard Jungkook call but you were busy reading one of Chubs's responses to a very annoyed anon yelling at her to 'spill the details on the couple'. "Noona!"

"Yes, Kookie?"

"When are your exams over?"

You bit your lip thinking about it.

"My last one is in three weeks time."

"Okay, I'll-"

Before he could finish what he was saying Jin came back into the room.

"Neuj-eoss eo. Neoneun jaleo gaya hae. (It's late. You should go to bed.)"

"Hyung~"

You giggled as he pouted and crossed his arms.

"Neoneun naeil malhal su iss-eoyo. Jam jal sigan-iya. (You can talk tomorrow. Time to sleep.)"

Jungkook nodded, "Okay, I'll say goodnight."

You said goodnight to Jin who left the two of you alone.

"Go to sleep, Kookie."

"I'm not tired."

"It doesn't matter. If you stay up you will be tomorrow."

"Fine... Goodnight Noona... I really had fun today. Your laugh is beautiful."

A warmth burned your cheeks, "Your hair makes you look handsome."

"Don't you mean more handsome?" He teased, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Go to bed!"

"Goodnight Noona! Sweet dreams, think of me."

"It's still the afternoon here. Sweet dreams Kookie."

He smiled, then an idea seemed to have popped into his head as the smile gained a hint of mischief. You wondered what on earth it could be until your thoughts were interrupted by him imitating Jin's signature flying kiss. You sat there, a little stunned not knowing what to do.

Jungkook was quick to tell you, "You're meant to catch it!"

"Oh, uh, try it again."

He blew you another and you reached out to grasp the kiss then clutched your hands to your chest as if holding something precious.

He grinned. "Have a good day and think of me tonight."

"Goodnight BunBun."

He grinned and gave a little wave then hung up.

What the heck just happened?

A/N: Co-written with @tragicshadows . So Y/N is finally beginning to question herself thanks to Chubs and the constant appearance of the L-word. And Kookie seems to be trying his best to make Y/N see him as a man, I wonder why that is? As always we would love to hear from you guys so feel free to message either one of us.

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