#not realising or caring ab who he’s leaving behind

[padfootastic]

Ahaha thank you for the nice comments in tags <3 i love Remus but he seems bit like a spineless people pleaser and after dating somebody who would rather lie about their feelings than have people be mildly upset with them..... I chose violence 🗡

no but ur so right because!!! i’ve been sleeping on this for a while but let’s talk about remus’ personality traits and how they have the potential to make him a bad/absent partner, at best, and an abusive one, at worst. everyone wants to turn him into this image of perfection just bc he’s such an ‘uwu victim’ figure in fanon but that’s SO far from the truth omg

(i am…just gonna put this remus character analysis under a cut bc it got unnecessarily long and i wouldn’t want u to read it if u didn’t want to lol)

so, for one, he’s manipulative. he has no combinations in twisting the truth or dodging it entirely for his own benefit. like, the man could stand in front of his dead best friend’s orphaned son & not even allude to the fact that he knew his dad. he had no problem bringing james & lily up in the most twisted ways possible to guilt/emotionally influence harry. so remus in a relationship would have the capacity to either knowingly or unknowingly manipulate his partner. the definition of gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss except more sinister.

next, his spinelessness. either as a defensive measure to deal w anti-werewolf hostility or as an innate personality trait, remus has the habit of just—not standing up for things. he looks away when his friends act like assholes, even when he’s in a position of authority (which yes, u can argue that he’s afraid of losing them but atp they’ve literally risked life & magic & azkaban for him so either way, he comes off badly—either he doesn’t mind himself, or he doesn’t fully trust their friendship, or it’s just easier to look away). in a relationship, this can manifest as bottling everything inside u until it makes u bitter or u violently unload on the other person in an entirely disproportionate manner. the dynamic would also be a bit skewed. the people pleasing u mentioned is also such a big thing that people usually overlook. when ur constantly trying to make the other person happy and don’t want to rock the boat, that is a cocktail for miscommunication and breakdown of relationships. ur also constantly putting the emotional burden of constructively dealing w issues on ur partner instead of doing it urself.

connected to his cowardice is his habit of running away when things get tough. remus is conflict avoidant; he does not like to put himself in a position where he has to take a decisive stance, especially if it’s against what others around him believe in. he runs away when things get tough, and tbh, for me, this comes from a constant spiral of self hatred & self victimisation, both of which stem from his experience as a werewolf. in every difficult situation, he centres himself & his discomfort and instead of dealing with it and moving forward for a constructive solution, he decides that stepping back from it altogether is better. which, yeah, works well for him bc he can temporarily put a pin in it but it’s kinda terrible for everyone’s who’s left behind. so i also think that remus is a profoundly selfish character who doesn’t look beyond the end of his own nose. u can imagine how those traits might manifest themselves in a relationship.

and his people pleasing!! so this might be verging on fanon but his gratitude and/or devotion to dumbledore sets an…interesting tone. it’s also another example of how he cannot conceive himself in any other term except as a victimised werewolf. the marauders did a lot for him, arguably even more than dumbledore’s token representation formula, but he never felt indebted to them the way he did for D. dumbledore also kind of makes him feel needed? validates his feelings? and that just speaks to a very twisted sense of self for me. which, again, won’t bode well for his other interpersonal relations.

also, on a very hc note, i also feel like remus just…does not have any significant capacity to love. he takes and takes and takes but doesn’t give much in return. this doesn’t even have to be an actively malicious decision, tbh, just a very self-centred one. he doesn’t realise how much he’s taking bc he’s only thinking about his own circumstances.

all of these are also just why i can’t see r/s working out in any healthy manner. remus is exactly antithetical to everything sirius is/believes in, and not even in the fun ‘opposites attract’ way. but that’s another rant no one asked for lmao

[gyuswhore]

How to Win Hearts for Dummies (the answer is lattes and banana bread)

Idol!mingyu x makeup-artist!reader

genre: fluff, angst, one sided pining

warnings: slow burn, swearing, shitty bosses, some descriptions of anxiety and breakdowns, one sided pining, reader has issues opening up (lmk if there's anything else)

13.4k words (im sorry)

plot: This apprenticeship was taking a toll on your self control in the worst possible way. Walking in 8 months ago, a resignation from your corporate job and a dream in your pocket, you made an oath to stay focused on the goal at hand and to enjoy what you did for a living for once; makeup. Except, your still stuck as an apprentice with a mentor that has no inclination for your growth.

And you’re a little bit in love with your client.

masterlist

(A/N): repost bc Tumblr wouldn’t show it in the tags!!! Thank you for clicking on this clonking my pants as I hit post ! I started working on this at the beginning of exam season and I’m posting it the night before my last exam 🥲 what a full circle moment. Also pls excuse any inconsistencies or grammatical errors, my beta reader, unlike me, actually cares ab her grades and is in the beginning of exam season and therefore will not be able to read through this monstrosity for a while lmao. Enjoy hehe

Edit: I’ve just realised how many mistakes and grammatical errors I’ve made throughout the fic, serves me right for proofreading at 3 AM after a stats exam. I’ll try to fix them all asap!!! 

The camera goes off again with a distinct click. And again. And again. And again.

The camera had gone off innumerable times since Mingyu walked out in another themed ensemble, and you were there, watching, through all of it.

You watched as he kept switching positions, rotating his body and his head. Morphing his features into more variations of dazed and serious than you thought could ever exist.

Standing there, at the portable table behind the main setup, attempting to clean a lip brush that would be needed soon when the inevitable call for-

“Makeup over here! We’re taking 5”

You note your sluggish pace as you snap out of your daze and scrubbing harder with the removal cloth. Snapping your head down, hoping nobody noticed your incessant heart eyes, you realize you were in trouble now.

‘Y/n, you’ve been cleaning that brush since I left 10 minutes ago!’ The senior makeup artist snapped.

You finish up the brush in hand and quickly hand her what she needs, not before rummaging for the tiny pot of lip product you absent-mindedly packed away.

‘Sorry, really sorry’ you choke out before she leaves in her badly concealed irritated expression. You see her make a beeline for a waiting Mingyu, who adorably squats for the woman so she has better access.

This apprenticeship was taking a toll on your self control in the worst possible way. Walking in 8 months ago, a resignation from your corporate job and a dream in your pocket, you made an oath to stay focused on the goal at hand and to enjoy what you did for a living for once; makeup. Except, your still stuck as an apprentice with a mentor that has no inclination for your growth.

And you’re a little bit in love with your client.

It's not that you were overage (your mother begs to differ), but considering you were on your second big girl job and still no sign of a potential lover, the prospect was starting to weigh on your head. The first rattling experience was when one of your closest friends announced her engagement, your thoughts still stuck in a 19 year old you considered she was too young. She was not, in fact, 19, or too young, but a perfectly acceptable age to consider marriage with someone she loved, you had soon realized. You were never one for the dating scene, but you were always one to don your Dr. Love labcoat whenever an emotionally bruised friend would come seeking help. You were good at advice, but awfully bad at applying it yourself.

Coming into this job, surrounded by a plethora of beautiful people, your heart would be of stone if it weren’t to waver.

The gong of unattainability had struck the second you laid eyes on Mingyu, laughing at something Hoshi had shown him on the phone. There he was, hair and makeup-less, looking like he had just rolled out of bed (which he had), and beautiful as ever. Beginning this new chapter with a bang, only problem was that it turned into an 8 month shoot out. Having encountered a number of gorgeous people, you’d learned to appreciate their genetic lottery pull and move on. But never had a single look left you as breathless and unbeared as that one, fateful look at Mingyu. One of the team members was busy assuring you not to worry too much about the pandemonium in the dressing room, that everyone would handle it and you were only asked to observe and help with smaller things as instructed; for now. You weren’t listening too hard though.

You were now adjusted to the chaos that comeback season and 13 men plus staff in a microscopic dressing room brought about. But you will never forget how in the midst of your first rain of hell, Mingyu had asked you to pass his phone.

‘Please?’ He had said, and you slammed your hand with a force of a woman infatuated on the table behind you and (literally) breathed out the first thing you had ever said to him.

‘Here’

He smiled and gave you a quick ‘thanks’.

There was no coming back after he flashed you those irresistible canines, and to this day, you wonder what nation you saved in a previous life to be able to have him know your name, hear it roll off his tongue in his pretty voice as he asks you to fix his smudged eyeliner.

You sigh defeatedly before your mentor slash irritated makeup artist shoves her load back in your hands and instructs you to come inside to pack up. It’s become routine for you now, as you begin to pack up the bigger palettes and tools, handing a ready-to-go-home Junhui the pack of makeup wipes he asked for, zipping up bags and closing tubs of outfits. It's an organized chaos but one everybody has grown to work around.

Mingyu is done before you, as he removes his jewelry and begins to shrug off his jacket. You scramble to find the clothes he came in and his coat, pointedly ignoring the familiar scent of wood. He thanks you and shucks off the remainder of his clothing, he might be used to stripping in front of professional staff, but you look away regardless for your own sanity.

Helping the last stylists hang the final jacket, you grab your bag and get ready to leave in your own car. Mingyu has left, not before throwing a “you did well, thank you!” over his shoulder at the remaining people in the room and leaving for the honking car outside.

***

Your mashing bananas in a bowl at 12 AM when you start thinking. Impulsive baking sessions had become a norm since you started working with Seventeen, needing to keep yourself occupied to stop spiraling. Mingyu was a recurring topic (surprise surprise), but one that quickly faded when you begin to think about what the future holds for you. You start mashing the banana harder. You consider the idea that you can’t complain, being in a position some of the most well seasoned pros had difficulty reaching. Being a single young woman and being allowed so close to some of the most unattainable men was seen as near impossible. You’d like to think it was your skill that got you here but can never seem to fully rule out a processing error.

It’s hard, being stuck in the same place. Your apprenticeship should have ended 2 months ago, but even if it had, you’d still be doing the same thing. The senior artist trusts no-one but a select few to work on the boys for photoshoots, events, music videos. People like you are left to sanitize sponges and clean the fallout.

You crack an egg on the counter and it splits open entirely, falling on the floor, yolk and all. Your inability to grow stays within the idea that you can’t really do your artistry like you want.

And how you never learn to crack your eggs on the bowl.

***

Showing up on the Going Seventeen set, you rush to the dressing room way earlier than you should. Being completely honest, you’re really only rushing because you want to maneuvere yourself to do Mingyu’s makeup before somebody else snags him. This was one of the very few engagements where you were occasionally allowed to take charge on makeup. Not that it was required for the show much at all; intensity and occasion wise. Your rare (possible) moment to (maybe) come into Mingyu’s organic notice was an opportunity never to be dropped by you.

You help setting up everything on the counters as the boys begin to (loudly) file in the rooms. You see Mingyu walk in and move to ask him to sit down once he’s done discarding his coat. He was first in line and you ‘happened’ to be the first one ready to begin working.

‘Is the eye makeup heavy? I just got a sty removed and I don’t know if I should be putting anything on at all.’ He asks as he sits down and you ready your damp sponge.

‘Not really, just smoothing things out. It should be fine.’ you say as you begin to press the compact on his cheek.

Your not really sure why, because you’ve never been able to muster anything above brief replies when in contact with him, but something in you pushes you to keep talking.

‘I’m surprised they even asked for us, they rarely ever do’ you continue, heart pounding so hard you’re afraid he might hear it.

He breathes out a laugh ‘Yeah. They even started advertising the show on youtube and subway stations and stuff, I didn’t know until I saw someone talk about it online’

You smile at his response ‘Well, all of you work so hard, it's about time they pull this to a high scale production’

‘It's never really work if your having fun, we try to be ourselves on here’ He replies, still smiling slightly.

You’re damn near close to collapsing on the floor at this point. This is the longest conversation you’ve ever had with him. You opt to smile in response as you start to concentrate on his eyebrows. The rest of his face is done far too soon as you zone out and do what you do best.

‘All done’ you announce as you pull away from his lips, trying not to have yoour gaze linger.

“Y/n! Can you start on Vernon if you're done?’, another artist calls from behind.

‘Yeah, he can come up!’ you reply as Mingyu (regretfully) walks towards hair.

Just because you sew your mouth shut with Mingyu doesn’t mean it applies for the rest of them, you’re quite friendly with all of them and Vernon does well to remind you as he sits down and quips a ‘hey bestieee’ in an elongated greeting.

You audibly laugh ‘That’s another word I’ll be hearing for the next month’

‘Regretfully so’ He feigns sympathy.

‘Be quiet and look up’ you say with a fond smile before you get started on him.

***

You sit on the floor in front of your television, trail mix on the coffee table as the movie plays as background noise for your thoughts - again.

There’s a smile on your face, but you dont notice as you think about the small talk you made with Mingyu today, wondering if it could become a regular occurrence if you learned to keep your heart and mind in check.  

You were never one to stand up and take effort to do what was right for you, which is why you were talked into choosing Business Administration by your friend in highschool, who you never speak to now because she decided to ditch you for another group who were more inclined to shuttle themselves to liver failure by partying every last weekend in your entire college career. You were talked into applying to corporate jobs by your counsellors as you started looking for make-up courses, needing to abandon your dream for the second time when you landed a decent entry level desk job. It took years before you decided to choose yourself for once and made the big leap after multiple courses you had took on the side. Life was starting to look bright after getting hired here, but you’re not sure if you overrode a high or if you went back to your old zipped mouth state after you settled in. Never sure if you expected too much or if things really were as stagnant as they felt.

***

Overmanifestation can be a thing. You're not really sure how it works but you’re reaping what you’ve sowed right about now.

You’re currently standing in an offside corridor in a hotel lobby, clad in a pretty white floral dress, and a nervous, fidgety Mingyu standing in front of you.

'I know I'm asking you to do something difficult and I know it seems pointless because I'm not doing anything wrong either that you have to lie about it'

This was supposed to be a staycation with your friends for you to relax and get your mind off things. Your ticket to relaxation has become a nightmare.

'And I understand I'm being super unreasonable but I'm really trying to keep it on the down-low as we get to know each other'

You were waiting with your friends on the couches positively stuffing your faces with the complimentary chocolate bowl placed on the coffee table as a couple other friends checked you guys into your rooms. You were laughing and talking with your group, carefree and ready to have a week of well deserved rest.

That was the plan anyway. Until you see someone across the lobby, also in line at check in. He had an unmistakable toothy smile,and was hand in hand with a concealed brunette.

Your smile abruptly falls in disbelief as you feel your world halt around you.

The same hands come up to brush the hair out of the woman's face to place a kiss on her temple, smiling wide.

The nauseating feeling of ice going down your spine is becoming more and more apparent. You attempt to swallow the lump in your throat but it's like trying to swallow a brick. You lick your lips and attempt to look away but your eyes keep feeding on the picture you painted yourself in your worst nightmares. Realizing you're on the brink of possible hyperventilation, your friend drops her head and asks you if you're okay. You look up at her, not knowing what to say as you realize that nodding furiously will convince her.

Mingyu has a girlfriend.

Of course he would. What were you thinking? This man is one of the most eligible bachelors in the country, why on earth would he be single? You’re unhinged, you decide, for thinking you may have a chance, when the woman turns around and you see her in full. She’s gorgeous.

A part of you still wants to believe that you're officially past the point of sanity and that you've begun to see Mingyu in every tall man. The universe, however, is cruel. He pushes his head up and in your general direction, and locks eyes with you in unmistakable recognition.

He stops smiling.

So here you are listening to Mingyu asking you to keep this a secret from the company, to forget the woman waiting for him in the lobby.

You can only nod in slight motions as he goes on his rant to justify his oath to secrecy, managing a tight lipped smile as you miraculously find your voice, hoarse as it may be.

'Don't worry about it, I understand' - ouch - 'it's none of my business anyway. I'll keep my lips sealed, I promise'

'Thank you, thank you, thank you I appreciate it so much, you don't even know. I'll repay you soon I promise'

'No, please, it's not-'

'No, Y/n I will. You're being really good to me right now and I'm so grateful. I'm sorry for putting you through this while you're off from work and with friends. It's worth to me that your listening and understanding'

You're tired. You want nothing but for him to stop talking. So you smile again and shake your head.

'I'm sure your friends are waiting, I won't keep you. I'll see you soon though!'

And with that he leaves. Back to the lobby where you see him take the woman by hand once again. You watch again as they walk to the elevators, stepping in and disappearing when the doors close. You watch the floor number rise.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5…

You walk back to your laughing friends before you can see where they got off.

***

Retiring to your shared hotel room with Chaeyoung, you fall back first into the crisp sheets and mattress.

'Why're you so depressed dude, did Mingyu say something to you?' She asks, a slight line forming between her brows.

'I'm fine, I've been up since 5 today it's just fatigue hitting me right now' you reassure, like always. 'I might not go to dinner with you guys, might end up with my face in the soup at some point'

Chaeyoung hums. ‘Take the night off so you can gear up for the rest of the week. I'm letting you off for now but I expect full attendance for eveything else we do', finishing with a mocking stern look.

'Yes ma'am' you feign salute from the bed, mimicking her stern tone.

You've known Chaeyoung for quite a while now, meeting her in your last year of uni. Trusting her as you do, you were never fully able to fess up about your feelings for Mingyu. Fear of judgment wasn't the problem, but more so the strange feeling of shame that overcomes you when you think about talking about it with other people. It's quite beyond you, why you act this way. You loved your friends and you knew they would support you with everything, they'd proved it when you'd made one of the most difficult decisions of your life while leaving your job. But the idea of having the audacity to love someone who could never do the same seemed like a feat of embarrassment.

Who are you, y/n? Who are you to have foolish dreams of a girl in love? With someone clearly fit for all things greater than you?

Maybe this was a good thing, you thought, the weird feeling in your stomach returning. Maybe this was the universe telling you to give up and move on, a kind of rejection that keeps your dignity. This was nothing but a reality check, a sign from whatever wants best for you, to bring your attention back to what brought you to Mingyu in the first place.

***

You didn’t see Mingyu for the rest of the trip, which you were grateful for not knowing how you’d react if you had to see him so soon after, that.

Back massaged and head clearer than it had been for weeks, you feel more in control of your feelings and thoughts regarding your life. You hope the conversation with Mingyu was the last stressful thing you’d encounter for a while.

It’s almost comeback season, you realise as you see the new concept photos while scrolling on your couch at home. This meant insanely early mornings for weeks on end, but you had to push through for your own sake. You’d come out of multiple comebacks needing a brace for a month but you wouldn’t trade it for the world. Never realising the true meaning of learning through experience, you were enlightened as you entered this new, very hands on field. The concept looked interesting, hoping the scraps of makeup you’d be allowed to do would be fun for you.

That ended up being true when you were, for the first time, asked to do Hoshi’s full makeup for their first comeback broadcast.

Your stumped silence was short lived as you hastily oblige and get the chair ready for him. You’d looked at the demo sheets and face charts too much for someone who wasn’t actually going to be asked to do much, but you see it pay off as you finish his eyes and get started on the rest of his face. It was easy for you to zone out as Soonyoung had passed out not even 5 minutes in, having someone hold his face as you worked.

You felt your chest swell with an indesipherable feeling as you watched him get up with your mastery on his face; pride, was it? You were getting emotional for no reason. Your attention, however, is moved sharply when you hear someone tell Mingyu it was his turn, finding him plopped on your chair staring straight into nothingness as he’d just been rudely awoken from his nap. He doesn’t realise it’s you for a solid minute as he tried to remember his own name.

‘Oh, hello’ he says, sort of confused. ‘Sorry, just give me minute’, he mumbles as he rubs his eyes.

He stretches back onto his seat signalling he’s ready for you to get started. You trying not to feel too much in your stomach as you begin.

You’re powdering his forehead when he says “I know I already said this but I really appreciate what you’re doing”

You know he’s talking about the conversation at the hotel, you were hoping you could avoid it.

“I told you not to worry about it, honest.” You reply, and somehow manage to choke out “It makes me happy that you’re happy”

You can see him trying to fight a smile, “Thank you for saying that”.

You wanted to stab someone. But you opt for gently brushing a base colour across his eyes.

“Do any of us know her, by any chance?” You ask cautiously.

“I dont think so. We met through mutual friends at a Christmas dinner, we didn’t start talking till she had to bring me a bunch of papers I’d left at my mom’s that day.” his face depicts someone reminiscing a fond memory.

It was cute, how it seemed like fate was trying to bring them together. It would've been cuter if you weren’t in a one sided pining with one of the two lovers.

“Well, I hope it works out for the both of you”

No you don’t.

“I hope so too”

You don’t hope that at all.

You felt guilty, feeling all of this. Hated that this was your first response to him wanting to be happy. Never would you have imagined stooping this low, hoping his happiness doesn’t work out for your sake. You’d like to owe it this being your first real infatuation, but you can’t help but wonder if this was really what you thought.

You decided to focus on the good news for today, that you’re finally allowed to do your actual job. You can only hope this wasn’t a temporary advancement, allowing time to tell.

Things remained the same the following day, much to your absolute elation. You were done doing 4 people’s makeup and was just winding down to take a break, quite satisfied with yourself. You observed as the rest of the boys got their hair done and run around, half in their outfits. You stifle a snort as you watch Jeonghan hide Minghao’s socks in his pockets as the boy tried to find them to put his shoes on, the former continuing to sip on his coffee seemingly unaware.

“Y/n, have you seen my socks? The green ones with the leaves on it?” Hao inevitable asks you.

You’re forced to feign confusion when Jeonghan pokes his head behind him signalling you to keep up the charade. He continues to look and you’re just about to have mercy on the poor boy before a to-go cup of coffee is shoved in front of your face.

You look up at the person and it’s Mingyu extending his arm at you expectantly.

“Oh, I didn’t order anything” you start, thinking you’re clearing up a confusion.

“I know you didn’t, got one for you anyway.”

There’s a record screech in your brain as you absorb his words.

“Think of it as me trying to repay the favour”

Oh. I see.

You’re a little embarrassed thinking he’d get one for you in that way, not when he had someone waiting on him. You accept the cup and mumble a thank you as he unexpectedly plants himself on the couch next to you.

“I saw you drinking lattes a lot of the times, so I just got you that. Hope that’s okay”.

Your silent for a moment before replying “Yes!” a little bit too loudly, eyes widening a little realisng your lack of volume control.

He knows your coffee order.

“Yes,” you say again in a normal tone and a slight laugh to cover up your inability to read the room, “They’re my favourite actually”

Kim Mingyu knows you like latte’s. This wasn’t good for your delusional brain.

Your conversation is cut short when the boys are called for roll call before they can prepare for the actual stage. You watch him get up and leave to file into the overstuffed elevators, not before he throws you the most adorable wave you’ve ever seen. You can’t hold back your smile as you wave back and look down at the drink he got you before taking a sip.

***

As it turns out, you did makeup for the rest of their comeback season, and Mingyu, without fail, got you an iced latte every single day before leaving to go on stage.

You tried to get him to stop, but he was rooted in his position and you didn’t have it in you to say no to his pleading eyes. It was a re-charge for you, when you’d seen him break into a happy smile, prominent canines that you’d grown to adore. He’d done more than enough to ‘repay’ you for swearing to secrecy, and you felt like you too, should  should repay him the balance.

So here you were, making banana bread in your kitchen again, careful to remember to crack your eggs on the rim of your mixing bowl instead of slamming them on the counter. You’re stirring the flour in when a classified devious thought occurs to you.

These past two weeks were pivotal for both you and Mingyu, daily coffee’s meant daily conversations, which meant getting to know one another more. You’d exchanged phone numbers in the midst of all of this, to which ensued the agenda of staying up till midnight talking to each other about the meaning of life.

Setting down the whisk, you pick up your phone and sent the text before you chickened out.

[You]: I have a surprise for you.

[You]: You wanna come over? It’s better enjoyed fresh lol

[Mingyu]: Ma’am? 👁👁

[Mingyu]: That sounds a whole lot like a booty call

[You]: *attachment*

[Mingyu]: IS THAT CAKE??

[Mingyu]: omw 😮‍💨

You send the location and set your phone down, a jittery feeling going through your entire body. There’s a spring in your step as you slide the loaf into the oven and set a timer. You turn around your kitchen island and register the pigsty that is your apartment. The girls were over the night before and you had done nothing to enlighten the aftermath, pillows strewn across the entire living room and snack wrappers in places you’re not sure how they landed.

By the time you’re done and spritzed the place with some of your nicer perfumes, your taking the loaf out of the oven and on a rack to cool.

Ever the punctual man, you hear the doorbell ring just as your taking your oven mitts off.

Hoping you’ve done enough to your apartment to save yourself from embarrassment, you collect yourself and open the door for him through your ringcam. He’s barely through when your rushing towards your doorway.

“Hi!”

“Hey,” he grunts as he tries to slip off his shoes.

“‘aight, where’s my cake?” he demands once he’s done giving you a quick hug.

You roll your eyes and usher him to the kitchen, “First of all, appreciate how excited you are to see me, and second, its banana bread not cake, sorry to burst your bubble”

He responds to your grumbling with an “Oh come on, you can't put freshly baked goods on the agenda and expect me to pay particular attention to anything else”.

He has his trademarked grin and cheesy stare out on display like its nobody’s business, you want to slap it off of him in the most loving way possible, but you settle with a tiny “shut up”.

“I brought warm coffee this time, thought it’d go better” He sets the to-go carrier on the kitchen counter, following you to where you were attempting to slice the still hot banana bread on a tray.

“Oh, that was a good idea” you say.

“Where’re your plates and forks?” he asks, pulling out the drawers and cabinets you signal to.

It all felt too domestic for your weak heart to handle. Not to say it didn’t warm you to the core how comfortable he felt in your space, you did, more than you’d care to admit. But he needed to tone it down before you required an organ transplant.

You were seated on the floor, butts parked on floor cushions, backs against the couch. The coffee table held all of your goods while you both argued on which movie to watch.

“I can’t believe you haven’t watched any of the Harry Potter movies! No, we’re watching philosopher’s stone, I don’t care!” You shout in disbelief, already typing it into the search bar on the TV.

“Philly-philo- bro I can’t even pronounce it why would I watch that?!” He yells back, snatching the remote from you.

You’re both a giggling, screaming mess on the floor as you keep trying to steal the remote from each other, not stopping until one of you bumps into the table and you almost spill hot coffee all over yourselves.

You decide to call a truce and pick another movie entirely.

Just as you’re pressing play, Mingyu takes a bite of the still (surprisingly) warm banana bread and you watch as his eyes roll to the back of his head.

“This is so good” He says, his faced furrowed as he goes in for another bite. “Did you lace this with something, why is this so good?”

You’re biting back a snarky remark but you let it rip anyway; “It’s cuz these pretty hands made it”

You splay your hands out in front of your face, like your showing him your rings, fingers wiggling and a cheeky smile on your face.

He looks unimpressed as he scoffs. He swallows before saying: “At least you didn’t call the secret ingredient love or something”

“Excuse you, I’m pretty sure I heard you say that in some Gose episode” You remark.

He turns to you, all smug: “So your saying you watch Gose? Like, regularly?”

You immediately turn away from his taunting smirk, “Sometimes, if it shows up on my home page”

You take a sip of your latte before he asks you another sweat producing question.

“Oh, but you pay attention to me the most don’t you? Don’t you?”

He’s poking fun at you, you know that. But a paranoid part of you can’t help but think he’s onto you and your feelings.

So you say something maybe a little bit below the belt.

“You sure have a knack for seeking validation from the world when you have a partner already giving that to you”

The words tumble out of your mouth before you know it. In your defence, you're doing this for a greater cause, but it's still a relief when you see him comically gasp, hand to his diaphragm.

“Just because your alone in life, doesn’t mean you need to be salty about other people receiving actual love” He spits back.

Your sputtering trying to think of a response. Deserved.

He grabs a slice of the bread and shoves into your mouth to shut you up once and for all. You’re left chewing the mouthful and staring at him in shock.

He giggles and takes a sip of coffee, satisfied with himself. When he sets it down he opens his mouth to speak. Closes it again, like he re-evaluating, and finally decides to say something. He’s serious now.

“Ji Eun and I, decided it wasn’t gonna work out between us”.

Oh.

“Oh.”

He blows a raspberry and lets out a meek laugh.

“Yeah, oh. It’s whatever, it wasn’t meant to work out. Better sooner than later.”

You’re trying to find the words to reply or comfort him.

“Do you wanna talk about it?” You ask him, being careful to not lace your voice with pity, but more neutral and open. “You don’t have to, obviously, but it might be better to talk about what’s bothering you”

He pauses for a moment before starting.

“She wasn’t sitting very well with the idea that she had to share me. Like at all. She wouldn’t say it but she’d get mildly infuriated when I’d blow the fans a kiss or something, or interacted with the staff too much. I was getting home quite late certain days during comeback season and I’d find her outside the dorm at like 11 PM. It was embarrassing when all of the other members would see her there, obviously upset and basically yelling at me for, for - for literally just doing my job.I guess all the smaller things just started piling and she couldn’t take it. I tried so hard to make sure she felt wanted and secure in the relationship but nothing felt like it was ever enough. She was evasive or confrontational all at the wrong times and it came to a point- its a horrible thought to have in a relationship - but I was terrified she’d do something rash and I’d wake up to my face on articles for some reason - again”

You recollected the past couple years when Mingyu was thrown around in the media for a new accusation seemingly everyday. You weren’t involved with anything regarding the industry back then, but you’d heard enough news to be aware of what was happening.

Your heart swelled with sadness as you heard him talk, he sounded like he was trying- trying hard to be good enough. All for a person who seemed to have their priorities set somewhere else.

“She was amazing; kind and happy and confident. She treated my parents with respect, she was best friends with my sister. I know we only lasted like 3 months but at some point I really considered that she could be the one. But then the problems started and I realized she was only becoming an added factor to stress and anxiety for me more than anything else.

“I liked her because she was so family oriented, and I thought that was what would fit me because I’m like that too. But, I guess I’m just a different kind of oriented? I don’t know. I have a job that’s both interpersonal and unpredictable. There’s days where I don’t wanna get up and do work but I still love it nonetheless. I guess she just expected me to have a predictable, stable 9 to 5. Home in time for dinner, not requiring interaction with too many people; basically everything I can’t be.”

He’s silent for a moment.

You start talking after a couple beats.

“I really hope you aren’t taking this like it’s your fault. She made a choice to put up with your work, knowing how it would be for the both you. You tried your best but she made you feel like your best wasn’t good enough. I dunno about you, but that sounds like a really problematic conclusion. If she truly cared for you and what you love, she would never have been this unsupportive or not understanding”.

He’s listening to you, his expression is blank but you can tell he’s absorbing your words.

“I’d like to think I had realized that. But being completely honest, I’m not really sure when my thoughts go back to me thinking I’m the problem all the time.”

He manages a smile, a wide one, as he looks up to make eye contact with you; “But I know it’ll take me some time to really start believing that it’s not entirely my fault. We just weren’t compatible, and that’s fine. We left on good terms, and I’m happy about that.”

You smile with him as he finishes, but your a little confused when he starts sliding closer and down the cushions.

He sets his head on your shoulder.

You may have shortcircuited right then and there.

“Is this okay?” he asks you quietly, attention finally diverted to the half played movie.

You realise he asked you a question and you have to answer.

“Yeah, this is fine” You breathe out, somehow, by the graces of God himself.

No, you weren’t fine at all. You felt like the universe had flipped a faulty switch, mixed up the scripts, lost the plot, something. But as you get used to the weight of Mingyu’s head on your shoulder, you pray it won’t come back to haunt you in another chapter.

***

Your routine became inverted in the sense that, what you once had to plan out so intricately, is unfolding with no effort from you at all.

You find that Mingyu waits for you to be done with somebody else so you can do his makeup, instead of sitting on another free chair. He’d come to you specifically to touch up his makeup instead of going to an artist he saw closer to him. He never forgot to get you a coffee whenever it was that he saw you.

Mingyu hadn’t slept over that night, instead leaving in his car despite the 1 AM drizzle and your insistence for him to stay until the pour recedes.

Maybe it was better for you that he hadn’t stayed that night. Something about how you grew so close ‘organically’ made you feel like this wasn’t all in your head, that he’s choosing to be your friend.

You’re handing him his clothes as he begins to change, using the excuse to whisper to him;

“I was gonna try a new brownie recipe tonight, if you’re free you can come over?”

“I think I have somewhere to be after this but I’m free after, How’s 6?”

So there you are, back in your kitchen folding chocolate chunks into your brownie batter while waiting for Mingyu to get here.

Your phone dings from the island and you check to see a message from Mingyu sending you what looked like a grocery list; pasta, oregano, garlic…

[Mingyu]: Tell me what you don’t have from this

[Mingyu]: I’m at the store rn hurry up

You send him a list of what you don’t have, realising he intended to have dinner with you too.

[Mingyu]: k thanks

[Mingyu]: be there in like an hour

There’s a warm feeling that’s swelling in your chest, that makes you wanna punch a wall because your so happy. You choose self control, mostly because this apartment is on a lease but also you’d probably break your knuckles trying to punch anything harder than a foam mat.

By the time Mingyu’s here, the brownies are in the oven and you’re almost done with the icing. He unpacks the groceries (and the warm lattes) he bought while you finish up, confirming that he was trying a new pasta recipe tonight. Setting the brownies and coffee down on your usual coffee table, you decide wait a couple hours before starting on making dinner, instead choosing to hear him ramble about an idol he met at an award show.

“So, we start talking before we’re ready to go up- you weren’t there you were working on wonwoo’s makeup- and he starts complimenting me and so obviously I start complimenting him back”

He’s waving his arms around, and setting positions with coasters on the table trying to explain the setting.

“He asks me if I have a sister and I’m like… yes? Which I should’ve realised where this was going because he then” - he pauses to take a deep breath - “this absolute asshat decides it’d be funny to ask me for her number because apparently ‘if you’re this hot, I’m sure any sibling you have is too’ BRO, WHY THE FUCK WOULD YOU SAY THAT - how are laughing at this?!”

You calm yourself down for a second to clarify, “NO! It’s just hilarious how he thought that was okay to say”

You’re still still giggling in shock when Mingyu calms down, now also laughing incredulously.

“But actually though, please tell me you smacked him” you manage.

“I would have,” he grumbles “I got called to fix my hair cuz I ruined it or something”.

“Oh well, now you know who to avoid next time,” you say as you guide a bite of brownie into his mouth, “Forget about it now, eat sugar, it’ll help”

He chews a bit before swallowing, all while you’re watching him with an endeared smile on your face.

“Y’know, I really thought you didn’t like me when you first joined the team”

You pause mid sip of your coffee, brows furrowed, “What do you mean?”

“You never really talked me, did you? You were friendly with the rest of them but it just seemed like you never wanted to enter a room if you saw me there”

You’re looking at him in utter shock, this man was mistaking your avoidant (yet also pushy) teenage crush behaviour for dislike.

He’s looking at you expectantly, a little pout on his face.

“I never disliked you, why would you think that? I promise everything was a coincidence, it was nothing like that”

“Don’t get so defensive, kinda obvious you like me now if not before” He laughs at your panicked expression.

He meant platonic like.

“I’m sorry I made you feel like that though, I’ve been told I have a pretty serious resting bitch face, it’s gotten me in trouble before” she smile sheepishly.

“It’s fine, you made up for it with that first banana bread” He says before taking another bite of brownie, “Could use more chocolate chunks”

You snort before pushing him with a sock clad foot, “Appreciate me even giving them to you” 

You fall back to the adjacent sofa.

It’s quiet for a moment. But you feel like something’s shifted in the air.

You watch as he brings his hand to the same foot, holding onto your ankles. He’s caressing the exposed skin with his fingers, moving them back and forth. His eyes are glued to yours, looking like he’s in a trance. You’re not sure how to register this new change in mood, suddenly feeling like you need to turn the aircon on during the bleak Seoul winter. Just as you're hoping you don’t start sweating, you feel his vice grip on your ankle pull your leg over with a sharp tug. You scream as you lose support of the sofa and fall back.

You sit up in shock to find him leaning with his elbows on the floor, cackling like madman.

“Mingyu, what the fuck?”

“You-” He stops to laugh again, “You should’ve seen your face, PLEASE, it was hilarious”.

You huff before getting up shoving his shoulder with your foot again, “You’ve been playing guest a little too long, maybe it’s time you get started on that pasta”

“Will I be blessed enough to be receiving her highness’s help?” He asks.

He looks like a dream, clad in his T-shirt because he claims he doesn’t get cold. Hands behind him on the floor to give him support as he stares up at you, smiling wide. He’s looking at you with eyes full of stars and glitter.

You muster up the courage to give him a nasty glare, to which he huffs at and gets up, “Such a meanie”.

It’s hard to conceal your smile as his back his turned, sachaying towards the kitchen. You want to slap him and kiss him at the same time.

Your washing veggies in the sink when you turn around catch sight of his back as he stood at the kitchen island, sorting the rest of the ingredients. You get the same overwhelming feeling in your chest again, assuming you’re deluding yourself into thinking this is what life could be like with him. In less than 3 seconds, you’ve conjured a timeline of domestic routines, to wind down with him like this every evening.

You’re still lost in thought, still incessantly staring when he turns around and catches you in the act. He does the rude thing and snaps his fingers in front of your face to pull you out of your thoughts, “You okay?”

“Yeah” You say trying to gloss it over while busying yourself trying to find your cutting board.

“Are you sure? Do you wanna sit down at the island and watch me instead. You don’t have to help -”

“Pick a knife, and shut up dingus, it’s fine”

Once your both done eating and cleaning up, Mingyu hugs you goodbye, not before asking if you’d be free for lunch next week before he got busy the following month. You quickly agree, setting a date and time, bidding your (reluctant) farewells.

***

Once back in your apartment you realize how you can’t clean up to distract yourself because Mingyu took it upon himself to clear the space with you before he left. You sigh loudly and retire into your bedroom where you don’t have to think about how empty your living room is.

Changing into your pajamas and putting a headband on, you don’t even feel like turning your music on to do your night routine. You double cleanse, tone, serum, acid and moisturise your face with added purposefulness, taking note of the crevices of your nose and the neglected bottom of your chin. Taking extra time to make sure all of the foam is out of your skin before drying your face with a tissue.

You look at your fed skin in the mirror, and feel a weird surge of tears well in your eyes. Before they can fall you slam your bathroom cabinet to busy yourself to find your melatonin gummies, shoving them in your mouth before switching off the bathroom light and retiring to your bedroom.

Slipping the headband off and sliding into bed, you’re still chewing your gummies to a paste in your mouth. Trying not to notice how heavy you’re breathing you try to find your white noise machine, the one you found advertised for infants, and turn it on before grabbing your book to read for a few extra minutes.

Your staring at the pages like you found them to be blank. You’re phone dings next to you, signalling a notification.

Picking it up you find your mental health app sending you a daily reminder.

You’re allowed to feel your emotions.

***

Winter had run its course as you find yourself in April. You never really liked the cold, having been more sensitive to a gust of wind than the average joe, you were better suited to sitting with an aircon instead of being unable to move in the middle of Korea’s January cold rush. But alas, the cherries are blossoming and your fingers have defrosted.

That isn’t what’s on your mind right now though, as you’re standing in a Sephora, arms crossed and shoulders tense. You loved shopping for makeup, but you mostly chose to do it online unless you really had to otherwise. Parking yourself in the perfume section with the scents mixing together a cocktail of nosehair doom, you really wish you’d worn a face mask. Not to mention the migraine inducing coloured lights and mainstream pop playing in the background (you swear they’ve been playing Side to Side by Ariana Grande on loop since you got here).

These were all, however, peripheral observations for you, as you stare in absolute pneumonic shock at the number written on the price tag of the perfume you’re looking at.

Now, Mingyu is a man of class, high maintenance if you will. You’re well aware he likes to spoil himself, because he has a bank account to back it up.

Your bank account is definitely full and secure, but not enough for you to justify dropping what seems like half of its contents to something only one of the five senses can experience.

Mingyu mentioned in passing how he wanted this perfume a while ago, and knowing that he hadn’t ordered it for himself just yet, you decide to be the amazing friend that you are and surprise him for his birthday.

You may be regretting that right now, but you tentatively pick up the blue, crystalline bottle and spritz a bit on a paper strip before taking a whiff. It smelled good, that’s for sure, and it suited him too. So when the saleslady came to offer assistance, after you excused the last three, you decide you’re going to do this for him.

“Yes, could I have this in the box please?”

Walking back to your car you feel a bount of jitter run through you,

Oh, he’s gonna freak out when he sees this.

He did, in fact, freak when he saw it, and his reaction made you want to give him all of the good things in the world if you could see him like this all the time.

He’s smiling ear to ear and speaking in that high pitched voice that he gets when he’s excited. He’s thanking you over and over again, smoothing the box over in his hands repeatedly, looking at the ‘from: y/n :p’ with hearts in his eyes.

“I’m gonna save this for the rest of my life” he says, with determination and a goofy grin.

You snort at the declaration, “Sure, bud”

“I’m serious. What, you wanna bet?” he replies, taking a sip of his, latte, which you proudly credit yourself for swerving him over from Americano’s.

He insisted on going out to eat at this fancy French place a day before his actual birthday as he’d be busy on the day of, but it was risky for him to be seen eating out alone with a young woman at such a fancy place. You settled for a nicer traditional Korean restaurant, that allowed you to book a room away from possible prying eyes and one that you were both comfortable with. You decided to wait till you were back in the car with your post dinner coffee’s to give him his present.

“I’m giving you 3 months before that bottle’s dry to the dregs” You affirmed, “You smell like you empty half a bottle of something off your dresser everyday anyways”

You said it as an insult, but jokes on you because you loved the way he smelled.

“Fine, I’m gonna use this so carefully I’m not replacing it for at least a year”

“A year? What happened to the rest of your life?” you refute.

“I have you for that, don’t I”

What the fuckity fuck.

He’d turned to you, leaning on the headrest, that signature cheesy look; like he was in love or something. Voice dropping a couple octaves as he said it, laced with something defined and strong - enough for it to feel like the weight of an elephant had dropped on your chest.

You gather yourself after looking at him for a couple seconds, jaw unhinged and forgotten on the floor of his car. You chose to grab your cardigan that was neatly folded on the dash, and astral project it to his face across the seat. He’s laughing so hard there’s tears glistening in the corner of his eyes. He falls forward and you see strands of his hair fall to his face, he’d been growing them out.

“Shut up” you grumble in your seat, annoyed at how easy it was for him to send your heart through and beyond your chest.

He’s still giggling like a school girl, and you cave and give him a hint of a smile.

“There it iiiis” He announces, grabbing your face and smushing your cheeks together.

For a moment, he stops to look at you like this, like he’s contemplating. For one, brain rattling, organ exploding, microsecond, you think he might even kiss you.

Instead, he headbutts you slightly rubbing his head swiftly before letting go.

“I might need to wash my hands, I think I got your makeup on me” He mumbles, looking at his hands like a child with mud soaked palms.

“Serves you right, you buffoon,” You remark as you pull out your trusty travel pack of makeup wipes.

Yanking one out of the tab, you pull his hand over and try to wipe the remnants of foundation off, starting from the heel up to each individual finger. It’s silent as you concentrate on getting it all off both hands, he was wearing black tonight and knowing him he’d rub his hand over his pants and get beige foundation all over. You knew because you’d seen him do it one too many times.

“All done” you quip, looking up and catching his stare. He’s smooth to slowly look away and retract his open hands from your lap about 5 seconds after it became noticeable.

You busy yourself by attempting to stash away the wipes to throw out later, closing the pack of wipes and shoving them back into your bag.

He’s watching you do all of this, his stare is burning holes into the side of your head. He’s desperate to say something, but you’re not sure if you want to hear.

“Let’s go back to my place. We’ll stick a candle into a sheet brownie and call it your birthday cake. Oh, we can pick up ice cream too!”, You say, costuming your voice to sound unaffected by his vibe.

And so you did stick a candle in the fresh batch of brownies you both made at 11PM, two hours before his actual birthday. Sitting across from each other on the counter, Mingyu has his eyes closed shut, hands clasped, wearing a ridiculously coloured ‘BIRTHDAY BOY’ headband you found somewhere deep in your drawers.

“You’re gonna get wax on the brownies and they're gonna be inedible, hurry up” You groan, after everytime it seems like he’s done, he clenches his eyes shut again as he remembers another thing he has to wish for.

You’re not actually annoyed, he looks the cutest he’s ever looked, but you would appreciate non waxed brownies.

When he’s finally done, he blows out the singular candle and you clap lightly, “yay!”

You’re pulling out the candle and grabbing forks, dumping a couple scoops of ice cream on before you two start eating straight out of the pan.

Its a collection of groans as you both collapse on your couch, regretting eating all that so soon after dinner. He changed out of his dinner outfit to a T-shirt and pajama pants, he’d started keeping a set of clothes in his car when it started to become routine for him to spend regular  evenings after work at your place.

You’re in your own unicorn pajama’s, slumped over on the arm rest slightly. You feel Mingyu scooch over to put his head in your lap, claiming he was “closing his eyes for a minute”.

You knew how lightning fast he passes out, so not even 5 minutes later you start to hear his light snores. As much as you want to wake him up to move him to the bed, you know he can’t stay the night. His birthday meant he had to be with the boys, and needing to head out early tomorrow.

So you give him 10 more minutes, fingers tracing the shape of his features, in his soft hair massaging his head with your nails slightly. He had a little pout on his face as he slept. Things had been hectic for him lately, having a comeback later in the month and the plethora of music and variety shows to follow.

Mingyu had been writing lyrics on the kitchen island one day, sputtering random words as you quipped in rhymes of your own without context, stirring the pot of soup on the hob at the same time.  

One particular rhyme you spew out catches him off guard and he barks out a laugh at the ridiculous combination.

“I should put you on song credits for this”

“What do you think my producer name could be?”

He thinks for a second, “Banana bread sounds stupid, um, how’s brownie?”

“Cute, and serious enough” you agree, “I’ll be expecting to see my name on that album, sir”

Snapping out of your thoughts, you turn your attention back to the sleeping man curled up in your lap. You wonder if you could fall asleep on the couch too, keep him here with you for the night. Be a little selfish. It’d be nice, making waffles for breakfast when morning comes. But he needed to be at the dorm in the morning, the boys knew where he was but managers that’d come pouring in at 7 AM sharp, did not. And it was best kept that way. The last thing Mingyu wanted, you knew, was people getting the wrong idea. The thought stung a little bit, but you knew not to mix your hopes with what reality was giving you.

So you gather the courage to slowly reign him back from dreamland.

***

Your sitting with Mingyu and Seungkwan on the couches outside the dressing rooms, a little bit before they have to go to perform. You were done with your agenda and was waiting for them to start filing out before beginning to pack up.

“No, because why does he get to eat all the good stuff right out the oven and we don’t, that’s not fair” Seungkwan complained loudy to you, a mildly offended look on his face.

“Stop being such a complain bot, you’re never happy if I have nice things” Mingyu retorts, increasingly nasty looks being exchanged for an argument about freshly baked goods.

“Oh, I’m the hater?! Let me jog your memory, who was the one sulking and shoving me around when Y/n wouldn’t let you-”

Mingyu had jumped up and pulled Seungkwan into a headlock, his poor Americano half flying across the hall as he yells out in disarray.

“YAH!” cued with more noises of struggle and muffled threats.

You chose to embrace the violence by sitting in your seat and laughing as Vernon recorded their antics from the doorway inside eventually circing them for his supposed cinematic effect, catered for the inevitable weverse post that was to come.

Cut to them apologizing and cleaning up the mess of coffee and disregard.

You decide to be nice and attempt to make peace by reassuring Seungkwan, “Come over after you’re done promoting this week, I’ll make up for all the bread and cookies you missed out on”

“If you've finished with your escort duties Y/n, could you please come in and do your day job?”

The voice came from the doorway of the dressing room, your senior makeup artist standing there with her usual mildly inconvenienced expression. It took you a minute to fully understand what she meant by that sentence, your body completely still.

“Offended? What, like I’m wrong?”

You were no stranger to insulting behaviour in work places, but they’d always been revolving around your actual job description. People who didn’t like you knew they had to be smart on how they treated you regardles.

This was different. This felt like you were projected back in time to your solemn middle school days to mean girls taunting you about your spongebob socks, except multiply that by about a thousand.

You feel your stomach begin to churn as that nauseous feeling of shame began to settle itself into your veins.

You’re not sure how long you’ve been sitting there but when she slightly raises her voice; “Are you getting up or not?” your hands actively begin to tremble the slightest amount.

You’re making moves to get up by puting your coffee cup down, not knowing what to do except follow commands.

Your interrupted by a voice from behind; “She’s coming in, give us a minute”

Mingyu’s standing there, his expression stoic as Seungkwan and Vernon looked as stunned as you felt. You don’t register it in the moment, but the people in the hall, venue staff and those for other artists have also silenced, watching the scene unfold.

Her lips are in a tight line, her expression remaining irritated as she steps back inside the room.

You realise you need to do something to diffuse the escalated situation. Letting out a breathy laugh, you get up and tell them that you’ll be going inside, trying to keep your expression pleasant and unaffected, not waiting before turning around to spare them the burden of a response. People get yelled at everyday, and this is no different. You aren’t gonna be the one to make a scene out of a regular occurrence.

You know what's coming when you get inside, she’s waiting as she pulls you aside.

“Your behavior has been quite concerning recently, let me remind you of your place here and what you were hired to do. You've been dilly dallying with people who aren't even your friends, and its quite funny that you’d think they are. It's time to wake up from wasting your time making heart eyes at men who are way out of your league. I won't tolerate any more nonsense from you, and trust I won’t be this nice or forgiving the next time this happens”

You choose to nod your head.

“That’s another thing, use your own words. Don’t think other people are gonna be there all the time to speak for you” She spits out, her professional front slowly eroding the more she spoke.

“Yes, ma’am” You say, hoarse voice.

“Louder, next time”, she stalks out as majority of the people in the room also begin to leave for the filming downstairs.

You’re left standing awkwardly in front of the racks of clothes, trying to digest what just happened to you. Looking around the room, you try to figure out what your supposed to do.

Clothes on the couches, eyeshadow brushes on the floor. There’s a torn sponge resting underneath one of the chairs, a couple styrofoam boxes left on the tables from lunch.

There’s so much for you to do, you arent sure how you thought you had time to sit down and chat. But you’re not sure where to begin either. The room is a mess of smells and colours even without the buzzing noise of people getting ready. Tears begin to form as you try to navigate what you’re supposed to do, realising you can’t possibly find a starting point for any of this mess. Before you have time to think of anything else, a hand is holding onto your wrist, small and soft.

It’s Yoona, another one of the makeup artists.

“Y/n, I think it’s best if you go home, it’s been tiring.”

“But-”

“Don’t worry, I’ll handle her. Just trust me. Go home you’ll feel alot better”

She notices you hesitate for a second, and goes in to give you a hug.

It felt nice, to be hugged by a friend. For some reason, it didn’t feel like she was pitying you, her expression and aura reassuring you that you didn’t have to stand here alone.

“Whatever happened today shouldn't have happened, but you don’t need to think about that right now. Go home and do nice things for yourself, we’ll figure it out later. You have my number, give me a text once you get home. We can go out later if you want, when I get off work, to get your mind off things”

You’re not sure how you’re holding back the waterpark that has become of your tearducts as you hear those words from an unsuspecting friend, you nod with a smile. You feel a little more calm.

You can’t tell if you care enough to consider the consequences of your senior finding out how you’re doubling or nothing on your already posed humiliation. But the only thing you can think of right now is your bed and the ceiling you’d stare burn holes into.

So you, for the first time in a while, chose to choose yourself by picking up your satchel and leaving the chaos behind you as you walk to your car.

***

Just because you were brave where it mattered most doesn’t mean you weren’t allowed to cry.

You had come home, shot Yoona a brief text, and promptly began to sob the absolute Nile into your sheets.

You had never cried like this before, loud wracked sobs coming from a place in your chest you had locked away during a time you couldn’t even remember. You’re breathing after every choked cry is a sputtered intake of life, only to spit it back out as you let out another sob of what sounds like agony. There’s nothing in your head, nothing but the words that were spoken to you as echoes of your own mind. Hypocritical of you to hate them when the same words circled in your head like a mantra every cursed, unfortunate day. She had done you a favour, by spitting out the truth you’d stewed, chewed and kept in your mouth ever since you got here. This was a you problem, to believe that you were capable of things beyond your bracket. You were told by the universe, screamed at by the world, that this was never meant for you, and you chose to ignore it. You chose to be stubborn. You brought this misery upon yourself.

Once you’ve disposed your body weight of tears and snot and burden, you’re left to stare at your innocent sheets now stained with mascara and your sorrows. You crawl into your covers and rest your muscles for a few seconds, head empty. You aren’t sure when you drift off, but you're glad that you do.

You don’t dream for once.

***

You wake up feeling like you drank a gallon of water and went to sleep. Your eyes, nose and throat feel like they’ve been over watered yet dry at the same time. You don’t realise what’s really arising pangs of irritancy in your brain once you figure out the consistent sound is a door bell. You’re doorbell, of the house that you live in.

You’re slow to push yourself up, realising your slept in your day clothes. It’s dark out but you're not sure what time it is, and quite frankly, you can’t say you care enough to check. You need to silence your doorbell first, which can only be done by silencing whatever hell sent individual was playing drums on the button outside.

It’s a record screech in your brain as you peer through your peephole and realise who the aforementioned hell sent individual was.

Mingyu was outside your door.

You don’t realise you look like you crawled out of a sewer till it’s too late and you’ve already opened the door through muscle memory. Mingyu was always welcome in your space.

He was in casual clothes, his hair pushed back from the guessed hands that ran through it, but he was still in stage his stage makeup.  

“Oh, were you sleeping?” He asks, eyes a little wide, expression cautious.

“Yeah.”

“I’ll go then, you weren’t answering your phone for anyone and you told Yoona you were home but you weren’t opening the door, i was worried. Sorry I ringed it so much I probably should’ve assumed-”

He stops to look at you, and it’s like realizes something before he finally says; “Just wanted to make sure you were okay, I’ll see you around. I’ll leave you alone”

“Wait,” you croak out, licking your lips, conscious of your morning voice, “Can you stay? Please? If you can.”

He stops to look at you, expression changing from sheepish to defensive.

“No! I mean, yes. Yes. I’ll stay. I’ll stay for as long as you want”

You let him in as he slips off his shoes and you lead him to the living room. His presence in the familiar place seems like it last happened eras ago, when he was only here maybe a week prior.  

“You know where everything is, I’ll be back gimme like 5 minutes”

You’re scared to look at yourself in your bathroom mirror, so you don’t, and choose to scrub your face looking down at your sink. You change into a sweatshirt and trouser loungewear set, deciding to save your dignity a little bit further as you brush your hair and clip it back with a claw clip.

You take a breath before entering the living room again.

He’s sitting on the floor in your usual place, two steaming mugs on the coffee table, the tabs hanging out of the cup. He made you tea.

You sit down next to him, not really prepared for what you should be saying.

“How long has she been speaking to you like that?” He asks you quietly.

“She was always kinda itchy and uptight and stuff but, it was never like this” You say.

“Regardless, whatever that was, it was, wrong, uncalled for, all of those things” He says, sputtering a little bit.

He stops and sighs. It’s silect for a minute before he turns in his seat to face you, grabbing your folded legs and pulling you to face him too.

“Yoona heard everything she said to you after you went in, she heard it all. And she knows about some other stuff too. If you think, even for a second, that I’m not your friend, I might actually think there’s something wrong with you.

“If everything we’ve been through this past, almost a year, doesn’t amount to us at least being friends then I don’t know what it means to have one at all. You’re the first person in a while I’ve been able to be this open with. You know me better than most people, you’ve seen me at my worst and at my best. I’ve let you read me all you want, because I know I can be an open book if it’s you. I trust you more than I can trust myself sometimes, and I really wish you would trust me too.”

You’re watching him as he says all of this, you look up to make eye contact a couple times, and he’s looking at you everytime you lift your head.

“I do trust you. Probably more than anyone else. It’s myself I don’t trust. It’s hard for me to open up, I’m scared I’m gonna say something that’ll scare you away. And, I just thought maybe she was right today, that I need to realise that it can’t be that way between us, I have a job to do”

“What can’t be between us?”

“I like you, Mingyu. Like, I’m basically in love with you and have been since I fucking met you. I couldn’t believe that you could possibly be friends with someone like me, a confused, all over the place airhead who can’t tell right from left sometimes, forget you ever liking me. All that happened is that we became friends and I thought that this was as far as fate was gonna push us. All today told me was that … that was an overextension too. It was a wake up call that I can’t have everything in life. Things were going too well for us and I was letting myself think it could stay that way forever. I’m sorry for being this way, I’m sorry for making you feel uncomfortable and out of place. This is the last thing you’d want to hear from a friend and I’m sorry I’m putting you in this situation right now and that you had to go through that today-”

You don’t finish what your saying because you're interrupted. Interrupted by arms pulling you forward and into Mingyu in front of you.

Your both sitting in your living room at 3 AM, on the floor in front of your sofa like you both have so many times. Except now, Mingyu is holding you in his arms, and kissing you so delicately it hurts.

It’s warm, like getting into bed after a long day, the scent of home and security engulfing you as you begin to forget about the qualms of life.

He’s moving his lips slowly, with care and a feeling so overflowing you can’t describe.

He lets go slowly and rests his forehead against yours, his arms are around you tight, legs wrapped around your entire body so you can't escape - physically or mentally.

“You dumbass” You hear him say.

“I love you,Y/n. More than anything. And I need you to know that you don’t have to hide. If you think your thoughts are a burden then I want to carry it for you. I want you to realise you’re not alone. I want you to stop pushing me away. Everytime I want to do something nice for you, you try to push the effort to something else, everytime I try to take care of you, you have this look that makes me think you feel guilty for taking up my time or something. Everytime I think you’re about to ask me to stay the night, you remind me I have priorities and I should go, even though I know you want me to stay with you. I want you to stop caring so much for how other people feel and realise you can demand the same from the universe too. You deserve love and to be treated with care. You need to let people do that for you, love.”

Your looking at him now, your turn to have stars in your eyes.

He loves you.

And you feel it. You feel it in his words, in his eyes, in the kisses he’s leaving on your face, in his arms that are wrapped around you, ready to shield you from the world.

You don’t say anything as you fall into his chest, head on shoulder, relaxed body in the cage he’s made for you. You close your eyes as the tears are burning down your face. Except, this time they’re because your relieved.

You both got up from the uncomfortable floor and moved to your bed, still tangled within each other as you clarified everything else.

You found out that majority of the people who heard it were very upset at the situation, but didn’t know how to approach or confront her.

Seungkwan almost bust a blood vessel after he had digested what had happened, disbelief and threats on his tongue as he refused to get touched up by her during filming, apparently making a point to walk to somebody else. Seungcheol was thinking of trying to bring up the problem to management, considering how Mingyu too was distracted all the way home.

“The rest of them have gotten quite protective of you too, I think. It’s not like I shut up about you”

Apparently the only reason you were asked to start taking charge on makeup was because some of the other senior artists pressured your mentor to stop restricting you. It made you feel a little more secure that it wasn’t just you that felt pushed down.

She didn’t like that you were doing so well, considering it meant she was wrong about you and your abilities. It hurt her ego a little bit that people stopped preferring her to do their makeup or their touchups, how they wouldn’t interact with her the same way.

“Alot coming from a middle aged, married woman, attention seeking like a child” Mingyu added, scoffing with a sour face as he nuzzled into the crown of your head.

“The boys really like you by the way, they’ve been rooting for us since forever” He says, and your heart swells unimaginably so; you felt loved, so so loved.

You scooch up to plant a kiss on the underside of his chin and then one on his lips.

“That makes me happy”

“I’m happy that you’re happy. You deserve to be happy, everyday” He smooches you on the face again. “Oh, and don’t worry about that stinky face I’ll take care of her”

You laugh at the determination in his voice, but you wanted to clarify something.

“Please, let me handle her myself. I’ll ask for help if she’s stubborn but I wanna try by myself first”

“That was hot”

You push his chest away as you bark out a laugh at the random comment, hiding you face, by turning the other way.

He battles that by pull you back into his chest and continuing his atics

“What I can’t call my girlfriend hot. You’re hot. Your the sexiest motherfucker I’ve ever seen” smooch “You’re beautiful” and again  “amazing” and again “gorgeous spectacular-”

You don’t fall asleep until the sun has well made its way up the sky, taking the executive decision to sleep in till way past lunch and maybe even take a nap afterwards.

You don’t care how it goes, because your happy just being with him.

***

You met with Yoona a couple days later at a cafe.

“Seungcheol asked us if we were facing the same kind of behaviour from her too. And everyone told him she was stuck up and rude and stuff. He said he wanted to bring it up to management but it didn’t really concern him directly so they wouldn’t listen. He told us to do so ourselves and we thought about it, but we’re gonna need to tell them about that too”

You nod your head as you listen to her speak, it was making sense.

“I dont mind going up to management at all and talking about it. I get that the rest of the stuff is a little too tame to be considered, which sucks because she shouldn’t be talking to us like that at all”

“Mhm, and I was thinking we could vouch for you on how she was restraining you for almost a year. Basically not letting you do your job. That’d be a another thing for them to think about”

“Yeah. Let’s do it asap, how’s this Monday?”

“Perfect, I’ll add everyone to a group chat and let them know”

And go up to management you did, who were surprisingly understanding. Apparently having received multiple reports and even videos of the most recent incident to act as proof. It was working out for all of you, and it proved to stay that way as they responded with a promise to shift her to a different department.

You had gone home that day feeling fulfilled and relieved. Mingyu, a man with spectacular timing had also proceeded to send you a text as a distraction,

[Mingyu]: Kwan wants to come over

[Mingyu]: something about croissants

[Mingyu]: Should he text you ab it?

[You]: yeah ofc

[You]: I’ll order the butter

[You]: you tell him to text me lol

Two nights ago felt like it happened last year with all the unimaginable advances deciding to happen within the past 48 hours. Right now you were more excited for the company you were about to recieve, more concerned with making sure you made the best batch of croissants Seungkwan ever did see.

***

You were in the car with Mingyu outside the company building, waiting until the clock struck 9 to go inside.

Today was the last day you’d think about this, being called up for a face to face meeting with the staff member, so she could formally apologise. The team had planned a dinner tonight, to celebrate the end of her ‘wicked reign’ as Yoona described it.

You were finding friends everywhere, ones that were always there, pulling through for each other as you yourself navigated a new direction of thinking for yourself. You were learning to walk past your anxiety ridden desire to draw lines with everyone, as you took the first step with the dinner tonight. It would be fun for you, and a bond you’d begin to build.

You learned that you weren’t delusional anymore, and that Mingyu did love you the same. It had only been a week or so, but one of the happiest weeks of your life, despite everything. He was teaching you more lessons than he thought he was.

Mingyu squeezes your hand from the driver’s side as it was past 9, “Let’s go?”

“Lets go”

***

Mingyu’s way too enthusiastic as soon as he wakes up, indulging you in a morning (afternoon) makeout session, claiming he doesn’t care for you morning breath.

“Well I do!” you exclaim, pushing him off with a giggle “About your morning breath, stinky”

He clutches his chest in dramatic offense, “How could you? I thought you loved me”

You respond my projecting a cushion to his face.

“Do you want pancakes or eggs for breakfast?” You ask, legs hanging over the bed.

Mingyu looks up, a wicked glint in his eye, and you immediately know he’s going to say something of no help.

“I want you for breakfast” He says, grabbing you by the waist and pulling you back in bed.

“MINGYU!”

Needless to say, all was well.

[darklydeliciousdesires]

For the Love of Dogs - An Alfie & Beth Solomons One Shot Story.

I think writing that long overdue check in with these two made me realise how bloody much I'd missed them, besties. Here, another installment in their story. I do hope I will have more ideas for further stories to follow :)

Words - 7,890

Warnings - Mention of death, but lots of fluff!

She entered the house on complete, brain disengaged autopilot, her outstretched finger finding the keypad to the alarm system, punching the code in and then simply standing in the welcome hall, a home much, much too quiet for her liking. The heaviness of it squeezed her heart, sniffing hard, rubbing her thumb over the soft leather of his collar. A collar now redundant.  

Her beloved Cyril. Their beloved Cyril.  

“Come ‘ere, darlin’.” Beth wouldn’t have been able to get through it, the last goodbye with their faithful family dog, without her husband at her side. Sinking into the comforting bulk of Alfie’s embrace, she wept against his chest, hearing him sniffing back further tears of his own. He hadn’t been afraid to cry as they’d both sat out on the grass behind the veterinary surgery, Cyril wrapped in soft blankets in a dog bed provided by the staff, the birds tweeting as they’d told him how he was loved, how much of a good boy he was.  

The gargantuan mastiff had taken his last breaths feeling warm, calm and safe, his mum and dad right there with him. Thirteen years had come to a peaceful end as loving hands stroked his soft fur, leaving a hole behind in the lives of his family that far eclipsed his own huge size.  

“If it’s anything to you, thirteen is simply unheard of for a Bullmastiff to reach. You both cared for him exceptionally well, truly.” the kind vet had offered sympathetically. She’d also been the one to suggest they put him to sleep outside, a practice that they’d had to develop over the Covid-19 lockdown, and one she now offered as a much nicer alternative to pets being euthanised upon a table, in a room so many of them felt anxiety towards.  

The children were with their auntie Magda, their parents feeling it best they didn’t attend. It was heartbreaking enough for them as two adults; it would have been much too upsetting for the little ones to witness. Abe and Flora had said their goodbyes to him earlier that morning, sitting with him in their pyjamas, Beth calling the school and explaining they would not be attending on account of the event that afternoon, explaining she felt they would be too upset and distracted to concentrate in class. Luckily, the secretary had been understanding.  

Instead, Magda had booked a day off work and taken them out to keep their minds off it, Thorpe Park being her chosen destination for them to visit. “Ain’t no bother at all, sweet. I could do having a day with me kids, unwind a bit. Poor little mites. Don’t you worry at all, and I don’t want no money, either. I’m treating them, whatever they want, they get.” Beth had been eternally grateful to her children’s godmother for her kind assistance.  

Venturing into the house, Alfie pulled her wine bottle from the rack when they reached the kitchen, pouring out two glasses. He seldom drank, but felt like he needed something in that moment. His heart was truly broken, to be without the loving dog he’d had in his life for so long. Watching girlfriends come and go, his business empire going from strength to strength, meeting the woman who would eventually become his wife, adding children to their family, it had all been with Cyril by his side. 

His loss was profound, sitting down at the island, passing a glass to Beth. “To the best bloody dog who ever was, baby beast.” They chinked glasses, smiling sadly as they remembered Cyril fondly. Their first child, as they always called him. Beth still hadn’t released her grip upon his collar, and for the rest of the afternoon she held onto it, thumb still stroking the leather. 

“Would it be wrong of me if I decided to blow off my article and get pissed out of my face?”  

Alfie’s smile tilted his lips, reaching to stroke her face. “Nah, treacle. Did Mags say she was taking the nippers for dinner an’ all while they’re out?” 

“Yeah, she just texted me, actually. They’re currently at TGI Friday’s awaiting a plethora of their favourite foods.” She smiled at the thought, knowing how Magda loved it there just as much as the kids. “I don’t feel much like cooking for you and I, though.” 

“Ain’t no bother to me, darlin’. I was gonna suggest we order from that new Italian place we like. I ain’t much in the mood for eating, but a bit later I could probably see off a piece of that lasagne they do. Tell you what, why don’t you go for a nice, long soak in the bath. I’ve got a few calls I need to make anyway.” 

She took him up on his suggestion, kissing him before sliding from her seat, placing a kiss upon the collar still in her hand, too, before putting it up on one of the shelves behind the breakfast nook. She’d get to putting away all of Cyril’s other belongings at some point, but couldn’t face it right then. His bed they’d had to throw away that morning, the dog having an unfortunate bladder accident upon it. It had sealed to them that they were doing the right thing in putting him to sleep.  

His toys remained, Beth looking at them mournfully where they sat in the basket for that storage purpose, deciding to move them to a place the kids wouldn’t see upon their return. Picking up his plush frog, she couldn’t resist sniffing it, smelling his lovely fur upon it, her eyes filling with tears all over again. They had decided to have him cremated, the vet advising that his ashes should be back within the next ten days. She knew she’d be in floods all over again then, too.  

Trudging up the stairs, she felt weary with grief, knowing that she had to brighten by the time the children got back, for their sakes. She was expecting them to be upset, returning to a house without Cyril in it, although Magda had stated during various text check ins throughout the day that they seemed to be taking it well. Thorpe Park had proven to be a good distraction, it seemed.  

While the bath ran, she tidied up her little office area, smiling as always when her eye was caught by the framed article from The Times, her very first being published within the newspaper. It had been a gift from Alfie upon her moving in with him. She could scarcely believe it had been ten years since her move into St Mark’s House. It sometimes still felt like ten weeks ago.  

The smell of her Jo Malone bath oil caught her nose as she shuffled the last stack of papers, the notes of English pear and freesia crisp in their aroma, Beth stripping off her white shirt and jeans, placing them into the laundry hamper. “Need to get a load of laundry done.” she noted to herself, seeing the basket just over half full. It could wait.  

The hot water provided a nice, comforting surround of relaxation, her eyes flitting over to the wall by the stained-glass windows, once again viewing her paint swatch choices. She tired of white, wanting something a little different for the space. So far, the smoky blue was a definite front runner, but she also did favour the deep, mustard yellow, almost a dark gold in hue. Hmm. She’d live with the dashes of paint a little longer before deciding. The pink which Flora has suggested was a definite no.  

Once done, she got out, dressing in her favourite, comfortable loungewear set, heading back downstairs. The doorbell sounded just as she was about to head to the kitchen, her path swerved back out towards the front door.  

“She fell asleep about half an hour away,” Magda whispered, passing a sleeping Flora into her mother’s arms, kissing her cheek. She turned, giving her to a suddenly present Alfie, her husband stating that he would see to putting them straight to bed since Abe also looked shattered. “Got bellies full of pizza and chicken wings, they have. Had a right ole’ feast, we did. I swear, I reckon I’ve put on a bleedin’ stone and I only had the Jack Daniel’s chicken!” She then paused, reaching for Beth’s face, her thumb skimming the apple. “Bloody horrid, ain’t it? Coming back to a house without ‘em in it.” 

Of course, Magda understood the pain only too well, losing her beloved Claus only five months before to cancer. Luckily for her and Dennis, at least they still had Marley and Karma. She nipped that little slither of envy immediately, though. “It is, mate. It really is.”  

“Well, I know it ain’t much, but I got you a little something.” Reaching into her gorgeous Fendi tote, Magda pulled out a bottle of her favourite Casamigos tequila, handing it over with a smile. 

“Awww babe, love you,” Beth cooed, giving her a kiss.  

“Love you too, sweet. Open it up, get nice an’ sloshed, and thank me later. Right, I better get moving, gotta go feed his highness and walk the pups.” 

“Thanks again for taking them today, Mags. You made a hard situation just that little bit easier,” she spoke fondly, Magda waving her hand. 

“I had a right good time with them, babe. Always do.” Beth waved to her from the door as she drove away, thinking herself so very lucky. A little while later, the doorbell trilled again, Alfie answering it that time. The cause was in his arms as he entered the lounge, handing her a gigantic bouquet of beautiful flowers.  

“Whoever sent these fuckin’ mugged off half the Chelsea flower show, bloody ‘ell!” he exclaimed as his wife took the blooms, pulling the card from the top.  

“Sending all our love to you, Alfie and the babies. We loved darling Cyril so much, too. Lots of love from Mimi and Kinga xxx” 

Her heart was beyond touched at the generosity of her girls, getting together like that for her to gift something so lovely in her grief. They understood, though, how dogs truly were family. Those surprises didn’t stop coming in the wake of Cyril’s passing either, Beth’s breakfast with her dear Oliver a few days later yielding another beautiful surprise.  

“I hope you don’t get upset, darling, but Brett and I wanted to do something nice in his memory, so this is for you.” He passed the brown paper Habitat bag across the table, Beth pulling out a well wrapped, rectangular shaped gift from within. Tearing open the chic wrapping paper, her throat pinched with emotion, seeing a beautiful black and white photograph of Cyril that Oliver’s husband had taken of him the previous summer, lying outside on the patio, looking so regal in the fading evening light. “Brett says he was the most photogenic dog he’s ever met, and I quite believe that to be true.” 

She couldn’t speak for a few moments, sniffing hard, flapping her hand as she swallowed the lump in her throat. “Thank you, sweetheart. I love you both so much,” she eventually managed, placing the framed picture down and exiting her seat to give him a huge hug. 

“And we love you too, baby. He was a splendid chap, old Cyril. Remember how scared of him I used to be, back when I first visited you at home? And then by the end of that night, he was sitting next to me on the sofa, resting his massive head on my shoulder?” His fond words sparked the memory, Cyril indeed taking to Oliver very much. 

She nodded, taking her seat again. “I do, yes. Gosh, it was so long ago. I remember when he first met Brett too...” 

“And humped the hell out of his leg!” Oliver finished, clapping his hands together with mirth. What he shouted, too! “Oh, my Jesus, he’s going to give me ligament damage! Queen down! Queen down!” Her emotional wobble was forgotten as she burst into hysterics, remembering Brett literally knocked to the floor while she’d wheezed, Oliver in tears, Alfie having to detach a rampant Cyril from the object of his affections. To Brett he had been known primarily as big gay dog ever since.  

They shared a few memories of him before their conversation moved on, both discussing work, Beth enthralled by his tales from New York Fashion Week, from where he had not long returned. He’d also brought with him another gift he alerted her to in the bag, some of her favourite American sweeties, two big bags of Milk Duds present when she looked again. How well he knew her.  

After breakfast, she had work commitments to attend, calling in at London Life and Style to discuss an article she’d submitted, her little sheen dented by the fact that the viper, also known as Madeline Arlington-Smith, had dissected it thoroughly.  

“I feel that if we leave this part out, this part too, it shall be more in accordance with the overall opinion and not merely a fanciful display of the world according to Beth Solomons.”  

She remembered back to being much more novice in her journalistic endeavours, seated in that very chair ten years before, taking the heat for an article Madeline had thoroughly given the bloodletting treatment to. It has preceded her first meet with her now husband, seeking refuge and Cabernet Sauvignon in a bar that belonged to him. “Then why on earth ask me to write the article, Madeline, if not from my own perspective?”  

“Because you are commenting on the zeitgeist from the perspective of your peers, not simply you, you, you. How does the subject make women of your age feel, what emotions does it drive, how does it affect you all on a whole? I would like a little more of that. We go to print in two weeks. Please have your corrections submitted within the next seven days.” 

The viper was not aware of it, but she narrowly avoided an outburst, Beth physically biting her tongue as she rose from her seat. “I will make sure of that.” Striding from the office, she felt her chest thickening, nodding and smiling at a few of the staffers as she passed them by on the way to the elevator. She knew it was because she was still raw over Cyril, she knew that, not being able to take her critique on the chin with her usual good nature. When she arrived home, though, she succumbed slightly. 

“That bloody bitch effing bloody woman!” 

Alfie raised his eyebrows, looking at her as he clicked a pen against his teeth. “Madeline’s well then, yeah?”  

“She’s right on bloody form, she is! Oy!”  

He chuckled at his wife’s continued exasperation, making a motion for her to take a seat on his lap. Welcoming her into his arms, he kissed her head, rubbing her back where she was tense. “How about I take you out for lunch, ay? Somewhere fancy, then we’ll go pick up the babies from school? I know you’re still heartbroken over Cyril, and as such you ain’t takin’ whatever the fuck the cobra woman told you...” 

“Viper,” she interjected with. 

He waved his hand dismissively. “Whatever the fuck they call her, she’s still a bloody snake, innit? So yeah, you ain’t taking it as good as you normally do, right, so let me take you out and get your mind off it.” 

Her face crept into a grin. “Can we go to Jean-Georges?"  

He could have guessed that’s where she’d request. “You bloody want caviar, don’t ya?” Her rapid nodding confirmed. It was only in the last few years that she’d really relaxed her moderately Kosher diet to such a degree, telling Alfie it was his influence, turning her into an equally bad Jew as he labelled himself. “Good job I’m worth a mint, innit? Fuckin’ wives and their disposition for pricey fish eggs, I dunno. Let me call Stace and see if she’s got a table.” 

Stace, or rather Stacy, was the Maitre'd at Jean-Georges at the Connaught, the hostess always taking good care of them when they visited, as she did with all of her exuberantly wealthy clients. “Stace! How are ya, flower? Yeah, ain’t bad, sweet, ain’t bad. Yeah, you gotta table for about an hour from now? You do? Lovely, treacle, yeah put me down, just me and the missus. Alright, love. See you in a bit.” He then turned to his beaming wife. “You’ve got twenty minutes to go and faff. Hurry up.” 

She placed a big smacker on his lips, rushing upstairs to quickly check her face, refresh her deodorant and perfume, and change into something more suitable for a restaurant with three Michelin stars. One pair of leather leggings were pulled on, along with her beautiful, grey cashmere sweater, her red Birkin bag selected, and contents transferred from her other bag, her feet jammed into her black Louboutins, and she was good to go.  

“Oh blimey, my hair!” Circling back, she quickly picked up her brush and gave it a once over, hearing her husband boom from the stairs.  

“Five minutes, Bethany!” He entered the bedroom, pulling off his sweatshirt, giving her an approving once over. “Love them lovely legs wrapped in leather.” A smack placed to her bum echoed through the bedroom, Alfie chuckling with mirth as he shed the rest of his clothes, heading to the ensuite and getting into the shower.  

“You said five minutes!” she yelled, giving his nudity an appreciative once over while leaning against the bathroom doorframe. 

“I’ll be out in twenty seconds, darlin’.” She had to envy him sometimes, how he could go from casual to restaurant ready in a matter of minutes. Styling his hair took him all of a minute, whereas for her, she’d battled through her thick mane with the straighteners for half an hour that morning. He dressed in a grey suit with a black shirt, not bothering with a tie, handsome, yet sophisticated and casual. A spray of aftershave had him ready with forty-nine seconds to spare. Yes, Beth had counted. 

One drive across London later, and they were being seated at one of their favourite restaurant by Stacy herself, who was as attentive and polite as ever. He ordered his usual sparkling water, Beth a large vodka over ice, since it went best with what she was soon to be enjoying. The way he worded it too, when her caviar arrived, she couldn’t help but laugh. 

“Enjoying that, darlin’, having a load of sturgeon reproductive goo in your gob?”  

She almost sprayed half of them back out again. “Stop it! And yes, I am.”  

He chuckled, winking. “Anything I can do to put a smile back on your face, petal.” He paused, sipping his drink and taking another bite of his souffle. “Kids are taking it better than I expected ‘em to, ain’t they?” 

“They really are, yes,” she confirmed, smoothing more of the beluga onto a toast point. “Better than me, I think. I burst into tears as soon as I opened Oliver’s gift earlier.” She’d shown it to him before they’d left, Alfie placing it upon the hallway table, next to one of their wedding pictures. He’d loved it, assuring her he’d call Oliver and Brett personally to offer his thanks later that evening when they’d both be at home.  

“Kids are so much more resilient than we give ‘em credit for, I think. Flora had a little wobble this morning on the way to school, but she was fine by the time we got to the gates. Told her about rainbow bridge, she seemed to like that.”  

The rainbow bridge story. Her heart fluttered at his tenderness with their youngest. Leaning over, she gave him a kiss, Alfie accepting it, albeit with a slightly affronted look.  

“Ugh, get away with your fish eggs! Bleedin’ stink horrid, they do!” No, he was definitely not a fan of the delicacy. Still, it didn’t stop him from buying them for his wife whenever she wanted them, though. They followed their starters with a steak for him, Beth choosing the grilled lamb, much too full for dessert. He did, however, stop by at her favourite chocolatier on the way back to Chelsea, spoiling her a little more, purchasing a few treats for the kids, too.  

Once home, Beth sat with the children in the lounge, going over their homework tasks with them while Alfie returned to his office. While there, he found himself periodically checking his watch, the habit pure muscle memory. At 5pm every night, he’d leave his desk to walk Cyril. Sighing, he ran a hand down his face, absently stroking his beard as he leaned back and thought of his furry best friend.  

God, he missed him.  

They’d known for a while that his declining health meant only one thing, both making the decision not to keep pumping him full of painkillers for his arthritic hips, and eventual failing organs. It wouldn’t have been fair, they’d decreed, to keep him going just for the sake of their hearts. He’d outlived his life expectancy by three years, it was his time.  

Rather than continuing viewing his acquisition profits for the last month, he found himself looking through various dog rescue sites, smiling at the sweet, hopeful faces of the residents. He decided right there and then that when the family were ready, they’d rescue as opposed to buying a puppy. Maybe they could take in more than one? He’d only been looking for a few moments when he felt uncomfortable, knowing it truly was too soon to even consider any dog other than Cyril being in the house, no matter how cute they all were.  

Weeks passed, the family getting used to the lack of his presence within the house, life carrying on. For Alfie, with the kids being on their half term break from school, he threw himself into being a present dad, knowing his empire wasn’t going anywhere and would certainly not crumble for him taking time away from it, enjoying days out with them in abundance.  

It was while he was out with his offspring one morning that Beth decided to take up an offer extended to her and try something new. Mimi had been raving about her love for Thai boxing for a good few months, attending both mid-morning and evening classes at her local gym, finally talking Beth into attending one with her.  

“You know Abe thinks you’re a ninja now, don’t you?” she spoke as they ran through warmup stretches, Mimi chuckling softly.  

“Well, if you enjoy it and keep it up, he’ll be able to say you are, too!” 

“Oh no,” she scoffed, reaching to her toes. “I’m still smelly fart head. And Nagatha Christie, thanks to him overhearing Alfie calling me that.”  

Mimi all but exploded laughing. “Oh my god, he doesn’t change!” She remembered back to when she’d been dating him, him calling her exactly the same whenever she incisively bent his ear over something. “So, where did you say they’ve gone today?” 

Taking to the floor, they sat opposite each other, legs wide and feet pressed together, taking turns to pull back on one another’s hands to experience the deep stretch. “Chessington World of Adventure. They’ve never been before, you should have seen them this morning. God, Mims. The squealing!” 

“Awww,” she cooed, leaning back as she softly gripped Beth’s hands. “I can’t wait for Lis to be big enough to appreciate all of this and go there, too. I was actually talking about it to Josh a while back, but I can never remember it’s called Chessington, so I was calling it Chesterton Theme Park and he was like, “erm, what, babes? Where’s that?” until I realised that I was flubbing the name. Typical me.” 

It truly was. Mimi would not be Mimi if she wasn’t getting her words confused. Beth still wasn’t over her recent blunder of calling chicken pasta Alfredo, “the Alfred pasta.” Her and Kinga had fallen apart completely while a totally nonplussed Mims had continued browsing the menu. She was a pure joy if nothing else.  

As Beth very rapidly discovered once the gloves had been put on and focus mitts brought out, Mimi was also one hell of a mean shot with her fists. Then the kicks happened. 

“Jesus bloody Christ!”  

“Oh, don’t be daft, mate. I’m not that strong!” Mimi exclaimed, a well-placed kick sending Beth a couple of feet backwards.  

She gathered herself, holding the kick pad firmly once more. “I beg to differ!” 

By the time they were done and meeting up with Magda for a little shopping and lunch, the latter having enjoyed a blissful morning of nothing due to her booking some time off work, Beth could barely move.  

“Alright, tin man.” 

Magda’s words earned her a scowl, Beth kissing her cheek. “It isn’t funny, she beat me up!” Turning, they both witnessed a triumphant Mimi flexing her muscles, cracking up at herself and moving to greet Magda.  

“Tiny, little blonde Bruce Lee, is it?” 

“Not quite,” Mimi muffled from the crush of Magda's usual, warm, bone crunching hug. “But you should come!” 

She should have expected the face she got in reply to that. “My love, the only exercise I get is running me gob. You know that. Right! Let’s go be fancy bitches then, shall we, ladies?” The women were heading to Mecca, otherwise known as Covent Garden, their favourite place to shop. Magda’s contact at Chanel and subsequent discount didn’t hurt either. Not everyone was a wealthy as Beth.  

She still found it bizarre, though, even ten years into being the girlfriend and then wife of a billionaire, to be able to spend an unlimited budget on herself. She and Alfie did offset it by giving an awful lot of it away to charity, though. Or, as Beth often did, heading to the bank, withdrawing a few hundred pounds and giving out little wedges to any homeless people she happened to see along her way. It made her feel better about the huge divide in the country between the very wealthy and very poor.  

Still, the Chanel employees relished in seeing her name down in the appointment book, knowing they were about to receive a very nice commission.  

“Mrs. Solomons, welcome,” she was greeted by Leighton with, the chief sales attendant. “Oh, this cardigan is a dream! Is it an Oscar?” he asked courteously, smoothing the black cashmere of her sleeve.  

She leaned in close to whisper. “No, it’s actually M&S!” 

His mouth dropped open. “Oooh, I love a good bargain! Can I offer you ladies a drink? Coffee, juice, champagne?” Of course, they all chose the latter. Once furnished with drinks, Leighton allowed them to browse unassisted, Magda deep in conversation with her friend Hannah, who managed the store while Mimi picked up a bottle of her usual perfume, and Beth browsed the bags.  

She ended up choosing two of the boy bags, quilted effect design with a chain strap, one in grey and another in pink. The pink one was hidden, though, since the recipient wasn’t her. She ferried her choices to Leighton, asking him to gift wrap the pink one, moving to the shoes and selecting a pair of turquoise sandals she liked, too. Those, a skirt and pair of trousers later, and she was done. 

Once Magda was done chatting, choosing a scarf and a new pair of sunglasses for herself, and another item also not destined for her, they paid for their purchases and left, hopping into a taxi and heading over to Shoreditch. They had a table booked at Camino, Mimi’s favourite tapas restaurant, a meal she had no idea she was being treated to by her friends in lieu of being able to celebrate her birthday with her on the actual day, Josh taking her for a long weekend in Italy the following week. Hence the purchases at Chanel not destined for their own wardrobes. 

“Right then, little miss almost thirty-two,” Magda began, bobbing her tongue between her teeth as Mimi cringed. 

“Oh, don’t remind me! I was twenty-one five minutes ago, I feel old!” 

Beth snorted, lifting her eyes from the menu. “Oh, stop it. I just turned forty!” 

“And I’m hitting the big five zero in six months, so you’re still the bloody baby of the group, ain’t ya?” Magda chimed, giving her a soft poke on the wrist. “Anyway, as I was saying, since you’ll be enjoying pasta and cannoli's over in the motherland on your actual birthday, you get your gifts from us now. Happy birthday, babe.”  

Mimi’s mouth fell open when from beneath the table, two double C branded boxes were pulled out and passed to her, a long, high pitched squeak emanating. “Oh my fucking god! You didn’t!” 

“We did, now shut your gob and get ‘em opened!”  

She did, choosing Magda’s first, her mouth flying open again when she pulled out the long, gold and blue Chanel nameplate style necklace within.  

“Oh, darlin’,” the lady herself cooed, Mimi in tears as she immediately put it on and then rushed to hug her. “You like it, then?” 

“I bloody love it, Mags! Thank you so much, I love you!” 

She was so touched, Mimi always so sweet when presented with gifts. “Love you too, sunshine, and you’re welcome.” Taking her seat again, she then moved onto Beth’s present, almost passing out when she saw the bag she had so coveted within, her hands flying to cover her open mouth with a gasp.  

“Beth!” Those hands then began to flap, more tears coming. “Oh my god, oh my god!” Once again, she was out of her seat, wrapping Beth in a huge hug. “I love it, and you! Thank you!” 

“You’re welcome, darling,” she told her warmly, kissing her cheek a few times. “We know you’ve had a rough year, so we wanted to spoil you a little.” 

Indeed, it had been a bad year for Mimi, finding out in January that she was pregnant again, but sadly losing the baby just a week before her first scan. She’d been so sad for months about it, her friends trying hard to pull her out of her funk and be there for her during her period of grief.  

Beth knew the pain well, she and Alfie suffering the same between her having Abe and conceiving Flora, so had been a pillar of support for her during that time. It was also one of the reasons why she’d taken up Thai boxing, needing something to take out her anger at the injustice of losing her baby on, choosing the sport to help in catharsis. The fact that she happened to be very good at it and already training for her orange belt was a mere bonus.  

After enjoying their lunch, they were about to get a cab back over to Chelsea, since the women were heading back to Beth’s for a girl’s night that evening, when one of them saw something in the near distance she couldn’t ignore. Thai boxing had also made Mimi very brave where conflict was concerned. 

“Oi! Oi!” She shouted, pointing. Her heels were off, Mimi sprinting barefoot up the street, Beth and Magda turning to search for what on earth had caused their friend’s sudden reaction.  

“Oh, shitting hell,” Magda quietly hissed, beginning to run after her as they witnessed the object of Mimi’s anger, Beth hot on her heels. “I know she’s got all this newly found Thai boxing mettle, our Mims, but she can’t take on some scummy roadman by herself, fuck!” 

A roadman was Magda’s preferred slang term for an undesirable man, usually donned in sports clothing, who stank of weed and thought himself to be some kind of hard arsed gangster. A large dog upon a lead that was much too large for purpose was usually involved, too, which in this instance was what had drawn Mimi’s attention. Or rather, the way said roadman treated the animal in question. 

“Stop it! You can’t treat a dog like that, what the fucking hell is wrong with you?” she exclaimed, the young man of about twenty yanking the poor, skinny but still sizable, dark grey dog by the heavy choke chain around his neck. “He’s just a baby, you bastard!” 

“Yo, what’s it to you, though, yeah?” he spoke, sucking his teeth. “Ain’t got nuttin’ here, girl. No business with me, ya get me, blud?” 

“You’ve got a bloody chain about the size they use to secure fucking motorbikes around his neck and you’re yanking him up the street! I’m not standing by and watching that shit, mate! Fucking stop pulling him!” 

The man even had the gall to smirk. “Ain’t nuttin’ to you. Yo, don’t touch me, fam!” He tried to shake her grip on his arm loose, Mimi fighting to secure the lead from his grasp, people all around stopping to stare. “Fuck, I’ll fuckin’ stab you up, bird. Ya get me?” 

Magda and Beth arrived with them, the former immediately imposing herself. “Threaten her with a knife again, boy. Go on, sunshine. Fucking dare ya.” 

“And who are you, old lady? What ya gonna do, yeah?” 

Magda laughed, still imposing into his space. “Who am I? Someone who grew up on the fuckin’ roughest estate in Brixton is who I am, you little roadman twat. I’ll take the chain you’ve got round that poor animal's neck and fuckin’ knock every single one of your fuckin’ teeth out your mouth with it if you threaten me or my friend again. Ya get me, blud?”  

Her mimicking of his vernacular drew a few laughs from those watching, Magda unblinking, Beth feeling her pulse escalate with nerves. Just then, her focus was drawn by the sudden feeling of softness pushing against her hand. Looking down, she saw the dog moving closer to her legs, Mimi successfully yanking the lead free from the grip of the man still facing off with Magda.  

She crouched to him, stroking his crinkles. He was shaking. “Hello, lovely boy. Are you alright? Goodness, this chain is cutting into your neck, you poor soul,” she cooed, checking him over. He was in a state, that was for sure. She recognised his breed, but he looked the furthest from how the huge, proud looking Neapolitan Mastiff should have appeared. He was young too, she noted, nowhere near the full-grown size but still, so undernourished. Looking into his big, soulful eyes as he softly thumped his tail and licked her hands, covering her in a generous slick of slobber, her ears caught the tail end of Magda’s tirade.  

“Now, I’ll give you a choice, mate. Walk away and leave the dog with us, or I’ll fuckin’ get the law on ya for animal abuse and threatening my friend with a knife. What’s it to be? Because you ain’t lookin’ after that dog at fucking all, are ya? Look at him, barely out of his puppy months and he’s skin and bone! What’s it to be?”  

She stood firm, the man shrugging before cussing under his breath, his teeth sucked again before he simply walked away. He didn’t even fight for his dog, so little was the care for the creature beyond having a status symbol at the end of a lead. A few people applauded, a man coming forth and offering his hand to Magda, telling her how well she’d handled it.  

She then turned to Beth, taking the lead from Mimi and handing it to her with a curt nod. “Don’t say I never give you nothing.”  

Immediately, tears spilled from her eyes, hugging the dog as she cried into his soft, yet dirty fur. He stank of cigarettes and weed. “Oi, come on, babe. Hold it together, eh?” Magda continued, crouching to put her arm around her, Mimi dipping too to offer support. “Right, nearest pet shop. He needs a bit of proper dog clobber and not this nasty chain. Look at it! You could tow a fuckin’ Jeep out of a bog with it! Poor puppy, Christ! He can’t even be one yet.” 

A quick hail of a black cab got them the transport they needed to reach the nearest pet shop, the large puppy more than happy to head along with the three kind ladies who made such a fuss of him. 

“He’s a lovely chap, ain’t he?” the cabbie chirped, looking in the rear view. “Please make sure he don’t slobber on me seats though, girls! How long you ‘ad him for?” 

“About five minutes,” Beth quipped, the cabbie looking confused. “My besties here commandeered him from a roadman lad who was mistreating him, so yes, I went out handbag shopping and ended up with a couple of them, and a dog, too.” 

“Bet you couldn’t pick one of them up in Chanel either, right?” His words had them laughing, obviously noticing the branded bags they all carried from their little splurge in that very store. Once at the pet superstore, they paid him with thanks, Beth taking some tissues from her blazer pocket and wiping up where the dog had dribbled on the floor.  

“I can’t take you in on this,” she spoke, removing the chain. “Are you going to be good and stay with me, or do I have to put my back out and carry you?” He must have weighed a good twenty plus kilograms already, Magda noting on the way over that he was probably under a year in age. “Come on.” She made a kissy noise with her lips, the dog tilting his head before lolloping along with them, pinning himself at Beth’s side.  

Just twenty-five minutes into his new life, and he seemed to feel safe enough to revert to how he should have acted. Carefree, silly and happy, as all puppies should. He drew a few questions from the staff, Magda explaining the story while Beth sorted him with a new collar and lead, another member of staff coming over and advising on a harness, too.  

“You’ll of course need to come back and fit him with a larger one once he’s fully grown,” he spoke, making adjustments, noting the state he was in. “Flipping well done to you all, too, taking him away from that vile person. I can’t bear to see animals mistreated.”  

It was one of those pet superstores that also contained a veterinarian clinic as well as a groomer, Beth pleased to learn that they actually had a few appointments spare for each a little later, waiting around for forty minutes after making the purchases of food, a new bed, toys and everything else he needed before going in to see the vet.  

“From his teeth, I would estimate he’s around eight months old, no microchip either, so we can pop one of those in for you, too. I’m going to say I very much doubt he’s had his vaccinations either, so I can start a file for you with a card. I will recommend a course of wormer and flea treatments as well which we sell down in the store. Can I take your details please, Mrs. Solomons?”  

She duly gave those details, the vet speedily typing them into the file. “And the dog’s name?” 

Oh. She had no idea. Thinking for a few moments, she felt a little on the spot, feeling like it should have been a decision she consulted Alfie and her kids over. It then came to her in a flash, the perfect name for her brand-new companion. 

“Wilson.” she smiled. After all, they had been on Wilson Street when they’d found him. Once his microchip had been sorted, the little wounds caused by the chain upon his neck bathed and flushed, the vet made a few more recommendations, Beth taking Wilson’s new vaccination card and thanking him.  

They then went to the groomers section of the store, Beth remaining with him while he was attended to, for the sake of it all being so new and not wanting him to feel like he was being abandoned. The colour of the water that ran off him made her insides pinch. She guessed he’d likely never been washed. She was only surprised he didn’t have fleas or skin conditions, the state he’d been in. 

Once bathed, Beth held him while he was dried, Wilson swiping at the nozzle for the dog dryer with his paws, comically trying to bite it as well, his large, floppy ears he hadn’t quite grown into flapping around all over the place. He tilted his head back, his big, blue eyes staring at Beth with all the love and trust in the world, his tail thumping. He knew he was safe, and it melted her heart to see him accept his new life so willingly. She could only imagine just what the hell he had come from.  

With some flea treatment and wormer purchased, another cab was called for, Mimi calling for an Uber pet service, the girls and Wilson all piling in.  

“Oh god, I hope Alfie doesn’t go mental at me for bringing him home. Thank the stars you two are staying for dinner, he’ll make less of a scene with his best mate and the woman he’s terrified of there,” she exclaimed, both snorting with laughter.  

Magda pointed at Wilson, reaching to rub his ears. “How the flip can anybody go mental at this face? Look at him! Bloody lovely thing, he is!” He was, that much was true, but just nine weeks after Cyril’s passing, Beth worried that it was much too soon to consider another canine companion. Then again, what were she and her girls meant to have done? Let the poor creature remain with the scumbag who previously owned him? Taken him to Battersea? He had a new start right there waiting for him. It seemed silly to bypass such a fated meeting.  

Once back at home, Magda grabbed as many bags as she could, Beth leading Wilson to the front door while juggling his new bed under her other arm, Mimi bringing the rest. Placing everything in the kitchen, Beth unfastened Wilson from his harness, the three standing back while watching him begin to explore his new surroundings.  

“Might be a good idea to steer him in the direction of the back door, just in case he isn’t house broken,” Mimi suggested, Beth widening her eyes. 

“A very good point, my friend! Oy, could you imagine if he pissed up the sofa before Alfie even gets home to either love him or shout at me?” 

Magda snorted. “Babe, he ain’t gonna shout, you’re fine! Look at him, bloody little smasher, he is! Besides, didn’t you tell me you guys wanted to rescue? Well, he was rescued, so there you go.”  

Following the dog, they all herded him in the direction of Alfie’s office, Beth jogging to open the door that led to the garden. Once outside, his nose didn’t leave the floor, tail wagging, letting out a few excited baby barks as he sprinted across the patio, chasing a butterfly. Three hearts all melted immediately, Beth’s then catapulting into her chest when she heard the front door opening.  

“Stay out here with him, let me go and face the music.” Turning she strode through the office, welcoming her family, Alfie’s eye as eagle as ever. 

“What’s with this, this shifty look on your mug, ay?” he spoke slowly, pointing at her face and giving her another kiss.  

“Um... something happened today. Kids, go and take your coats off and wait in the kitchen. Abe, sort you and your sister a juice each, there’s a good boy.” 

His eyebrow rose. “And?” he spoke, the kids obediently trotting off down to the kitchen.  

“And...” she began, hearing a little commotion, and a soft yapping bark before turning to see Wilson slip out of Magda’s grasp and come hurtling towards them. “And we have a puppy.” 

“What the fu...” he began, his eyes widening as his mouth dropped open. “Hello, you! Fuck, look at you, bloody hell! Little tank, innit? Bit thin though, ain’t ya, ay? Hello mate!” Reaching down, he easily lifted him into his arms, Wilson showering him in puppy kisses. “Oi, no biting the beard, yeah?” More washing continued. “Where’d ya get him from? I thought you birds was off up Covent Garden? Last time I checked, they didn’t sell no mastiff’s up there!” 

“You’re not cross with me?” she asked, her hand rubbing Wilson’s wriggly legs.  

“Nah, darlin’! Bit surprised, like, but I ain’t mad. Look at him, he’s a right little champ, ain’t ya?” 

“Told you,” Magda called, ducking her head back in from where she was smoking a cigarette, swiftly going on to explain what had happened, Alfie and Beth joining them outside.  

“Bleedin’ might’ve known you two would have something to do with it!” he exclaimed, pinching Mimi’s nose between his fingers. “Thinking you’re some kind of street fighter, takin’ on roadmen, you fiery mare!”  

Mimi beamed, giving him a few playful punches. “Worth it though, wasn’t it? Puppy boy here got himself some lovely new parents and a lovely new home!” 

“Yeah,” Alfie began, setting him down on the ground again, Wilson lolloping off, “a home he better not bleedin’ take to chewing. Ain’t having none of that game, I ain’t. You got him toys and all that, baby beast? Or we gotta go out again?” 

“Nope, all sorted. Hold on, let me go and get the kids.” Rushing back to the kitchen, she retrieved her children, telling them there was a surprise waiting for them outside. When they saw him, oh, their little faces. Excited squeals filled the space, happy tears were shed, and a very big, very wriggly puppy introduced himself with lots of kisses.  

Suddenly, the house wasn’t so quiet for the new member of the family settling in, the girls night turning into a family night as they all watched Wilson happily acclimatise to his new surroundings. He played with the kids for a full two hours before flopping into his bed, asleep within moments. Since it was the weekend as well as half term, the kids were allowed to stay up late, their dad treating them to pizza while Beth ordered in a Chinese takeaway for her and her friends, eating it upstairs in the cinema room while they watched Pretty Woman.  

While taking a pause between that and the next film, she came downstairs to grab another bottle of prosecco from the fridge, pausing at the entrance to the lounge. There, all snuggled up on a nest of blankets and floor cushions, her husband sat with the children stroking Wilson, who was stretched out on his legs. Noticing his wife there, he smiled, winking. “Love you.” 

“Love you, too. All four of you.” 

And by god, how she did. With the arrival of one dog who needed them just as much as they did him, their family was whole again. Wherever the spirit of Cyril was, she couldn’t help but think he’d approve, too.  

The End.  

[nevaryadl]

bihanzo fluff

"So how much does Saibot weigh?"

Bi-Han, sweating profusely at the strain of Saibot's body across his shoulders as he did squats with them, his face red and breaths beating out of him in harsh chuffs, hoped that it would be obvious enough how much Saibot weighed. Which was 'enough to make this a workout that he had been building up to for several weeks, now please fuck off', but when Frost still stood there and just watched him, he ended up glaring at his brother's second.

"Frost," He grunted.

"Just saying, if they weigh that much I wanna do squats with them next. That's got to be great for your core and abs," Frost shrugged.

"Trying to impress Cassandra?" He grunted out as Saibot chuffed a noise near his shoulder.

"Pfft, always, but also Grandmaster Kuai Liang said that more muscle and fat makes it easier to do harder cryomancer techniques," Frost said, shrugging again.

"It is, but Saibot is not a great weight because--"

Saibot made a chattering noise, wriggled free and shadow teleported the second they touched ground, leaving Bi-Han standing there, sweating and exhausted, and Frost with a look of understanding on her face. It was almost funny, the pause as they both took in the quick getaway, but Bi-Han quickly recovered and realised that he needed to find where his shadow clone went in such a rush. It was never good when Saibot suddenly ran off.

"That... great, where are they?" He muttered.

He did stop to properly cool down and then immediately dress back up, bemoaning his new found shadow powers over his cryomancer abilities and boons, before searching the temple. Not in the common room, not in the training arena, not pestering Kuai Liang (reading and enjoying some tea), and not in the armoury. Where were they--

"... I have a feeling," He muttered, before hurrying to his room.

Saibot was there, and so was Hanzo, who was patiently nodding along as they made several different kinds of conversational noises at him. Bi-Han stood in the doorway and just pondered the scene for a moment, ignoring the disgusting warm fuzzy feelings that bloomed in his guts, to instead step into the room in a way that made noise. When Saibot turned and their shoulders hunched up towards where one would think were ears, he crossed his arms across his chest and stared down at them. After a moment of being stared down, they let out a long, hollow sighing sound and obediently came over to melt into his shadow.

"Bi-Han, how are you?" Hanzo asked, smiling softly as Bi-Han went over to sit on the ground with him.

"Just got done working out and chasing down a rather strange shadow," Bi-Han snorted, before scowling as he shed his winter coat as he caught a whiff of himself. "Ugh, I need a bath."

When he caught Hanzo pointedly staring at him, he snorted again.

"Care to join me?" He asked, finding himself grinning crookedly.

"Always, my treasure," Hanzo grinned back.

There was a sound like wet mud being churned and he felt Saibot push at his shoulder from behind, making him lean towards Hanzo.

"Saibot, I do not need your aid in seducing him," He replied dryly.

Saibot made a mischievous giggling sound as Hanzo laughed. He rolled his eyes, fondly, before giving Saibot an affectionate shove that had them giggling again, before taking Hanzo's hand and taking the still smiling pyromancer to his bathroom for a long, relaxing bath.

[pool-floatie]

Tall Tales: Part 4

Well here we go! I finally got through all the editing so it doesnt clash with the future story, which was a pain cause I changed a plot point but W H A T E V E R. So yea! Enjoy part 4 💖

Jace moved quickly, gathering materials, he really needed to eat, it was getting bad . . He was very glad to hear that those plants just needed to be boiled, that'll be quick and easy. But.. . .

Jaces stomach growled, his senses heightened for a moment, he could smell all the surrounding wildlife, hear the rustling leaves and scurrying mice,,

" ahh, shit.." jace mumbled

Screw it, he needed to eat...

Jace quickly sniffed out a herd of elk, he cornered a few of them and,, well, ill spare you the details.

Now satiated, Jace continued on his journey to the river, oblivious to the humans wherabouts.

Avril darted through the forest, well, darted as fast as someone who is bruised and hasnt eaten in 6 hours can 'dart' .

They didnt care about the direction, didnt care about other predators, just getting as fucking far as fucking possible from their fucking kidnapper.

And, being ever so distracted, they failed to see the-

*Snap! *

-Rope

Av's leg had been caught, leaving the rest of them dangling 5 feet above the ground

"Shit!" they exclaimed. They began to wiggle their foot and leg, trying to loosen the ropes grasp, but it was tied around their ankle and wouldnt loosen

-well no shit thats what its made for-

They huffed at the stupid sutuation and tried to pull themself up to reach the rope. "gah!" their abs gave out easily, the pain contributing to their failure.

Avril dangled for a moment, cursing at all this bullshit, -who the hell decided this would happen to them!?!? Fuck them !! -

Av let out a primal shout at nothing, continuing to try and wiggle out. They eventually gave up on trying to sit up to untie the damn thing. It was getting darker now, and Av realised they couldnt keep struggling, they were getting lightheaded, hungry, and the blood circulation to their foot was getting cut off. If they didnt get help they would be found by an animal and killed, found dead by whoever set this godforsaken trap, or . . . .

Av sighed and gritted their teeth

" fuck it."

"H E L P ! !"

"H E E E E E E E E L L L L P !"

Jace had been tracking the human since he had come back with water and found it gone, that was about an hour ago.

He sniffed the air again, a faint trail toward the offroad...

Jace knew there was a cabin in that direction, and he should probably just let the human go free, and spare himself getting caught, but....

Just a bit closer couldnt hurt ?

Jace moved through the thinning woods following the scent on the light wind. And then heard something-

Yes yep that was screaming, and it was definitely av, cause who the hell would be screaming that loud this late, unless-

Unless it was in trouble.

Jace could hear the distant cries become clearer as he neared the offroad cabin, he didnt care if he was seen or whatever the hell, he just didnt want the human hurt,, anymore than it already was...

Jace found the source of the shouting, The human had set off a rope trap

"Awwwh~ did you get yourself stuck after running?"

Realising this wasnt a *complete* emergency, He reverted right back to his condecending tone

Av started wiggling again, wincing as their ankle was now red and raw from rope burn

"Gah! Just leave me alone! Ah! Auuggh!" they shouted, they felt tears building behind their eyes, this was so goddamn humiliating!

"Oh are you sure~? I think i saw a puma around here the other day-"

"either of you would kill me! I-I dont even care just do it quickly! Stop fucking t-teasing me!"

Jace paused, it really thought he was going to kill it ?

"Oh, my, darling im not going to- /kill/ you-" jace trailed off

Av didnt care what he had to say, they tried again to reach for the rope, but the violent movement made it push more into their foot.

" aghhh! I - shit!-"

They cried out in anguish, breathing heavily as tears ran up their

Jace took pity on the poor thing and worked silently to try and sever the rope, finding a frayed spot, he gave a tug.

*snap!*

Jace lowered Av into his palm. They scrambled to release their ankle.

Finally free, avril took a moment to try and catch their breath.

They looked around, seeing that they were right back here,

back in the giants palm,

hurt even more than before-

- Avril broke .

their breaths quickened into sobs, they hugged their knees,and wished to fall asleep and wake from this nightmare

[twentyfivemiceinatrenchcoat]

OMG UR TOO SWEET 😭😭😭 THANK U SM <33 I feel bad cause I feel like I’m kinda bombarding you with stuff but INDONT KNOW WHERE ELSE TO PUT MY THOUGHTS AND THE WAY YOU ALWAYS EXPAND ON STUFF IS SO YUMMY I LOVELOVELOVE TALKING AB STSG X READER 💗💗 omfg them as childhood best friends that both have a crush on u… 🙁🙁 WALK WITH ME RN

Suguru who’s the type of best friend that you know you can count on when you need comforting. When you need a reminder that the world won’t leave you behind- that time isn’t something you need to endlessly chase after, that you’re deserving of a break from stress. Who’s more than happy to soothe you with totally platonic cuddles and tea, stroking your hair or your back with his big, warm hands, some movie you recall watching with him in your childhood playing softly in the background while you rant to him (or stay silent, he doesn’t mind). Who always, always greets you with a hug and a gentle ruffle of your hair. Who your family (and his) always joke about being your boyfriend — which is always met with fake vomiting noises, the rolling of eyes, or scoffs. He hopes you don’t catch the blush on his face. — who cares for you when you’re sick, who makes sure you’re always dressed weather-appropriately and brings a snack and a drink with him for you when you go out anywhere together. Who cares and looks out for you so much you start jokingly referring to him as your “second mother”. Who always listens to what you have to say, pausing to hear your voice no matter what he was preoccupied with before — anything that comes out of your mouth is important to him.

Who cares for all his friends, so you don’t find it out of the ordinary the way he so vehemently keeps you safe and out of trouble, that he notices every little thing about you, that he’s always there for you. Always. Who makes sure to keep it that way- to keep you oblivious to the way he looks at you, to the soft smiles he reserves for you and you alone, to the sickeningly sweet feeling that crawls up his throat when you laugh at his jokes or are physically affectionate with him. Who promises to himself (and to shoko) that one day, he’ll build up the courage confess. But for now, he prefers to enjoy the almost childish giddiness of having a crush — mentally cursing satoru and his childlike habits such as this for rubbing off on him.

Satoru, who realises he’s crushing on you after literally everybody else realises. In his Defense, he’s a naturally affectionate person ! So naturally affectionate that it absolutely flew right past his radar that the need to hug you the way he hugged all his other friends became the need to hug you in a more loving way, the jokingly flirting comments became the need to truthfully tell you how beautiful you look when you laugh, the over dramatic, playful hand kisses as he referred to himself as your knight in shining armour became the need to kiss you silly — and oh fuck, he’s in deep now. Who’s the type of best friend that lives off adrenaline and dopamine rushes and drags you on adventures with him or spends a ridiculous amount of money on you (he claims to invite you on shopping trips with shoko just ‘because’ , but it’s secretly because he knows you’ll look amazing in a certain shirt he passed the other day and seeing you in it will give him a new thing to blush and giggle about for the next 2 weeks) who isn’t the greatest at comforting, but will do his very best to cheer you up with your comfort shows and your favourite snacks (all of which he wrote down in his phone to make sure he doesn’t forget), who gets all pouty when you mention having a little crush on the handsome guy who works at the local cafe — and, for some mysterious reason, suddenly satoru doesn’t like that cafe anymore. “Food wasn’t even that good there anyway 😒” (he’s ridiculous).

Who makes absolutely no effort to hide the fact he’s whipped for you simply because he knows that nobody will think he’s serious — it’s satoru for gods sake, when is he not joking?Who always “jokes” about wanting to kiss you, who always tells people that yeah, hes your boyfriend, just because he likes your flustered reaction. Who treasures the hugs and glances you give him more than anything else in the world. Who loves giving you piggyback rides, who buys a diary for no other purpose than to write about you in it like a lovesick high school girl with a crush, who makes it very known to all of the people who he suspects might dislike you that you’re somebody he truly cares about, and that he’d rather die than let someone treat you bad.

Anyways they’re both clingy overprotective lovesick sillies that would annihilate anyone getting in the way of you being happy and healthy <3333 .I’m actually screaming why is this so long. Don’t look at me I’m hiding SCREAMS I DIDNT MEAN TO WRITE THAT MUCH I GOT CARRIED AWAY… UHM RUNS AWAY ANYWAYS HAVW A LOVELY NIGHT/DAY SSHDKAJDJSKDJJ 💗💗💗

STSG ANON MY BELOVED how did u know childhood besties is my favorite trope ever…….

first of all PLS dw abt sending long asks or anything of the sort i love love love reading these !!! and i love talking abt stsg w u too !! <33 this one in particular just ended me im SO weak for this trope u dont even know 😭😭😭

IM JUST . childhood friends is imho like The best trope for sugu ever and i think ur description is just perfect???? HES SO . hes just so effortlessly good at looking out for u and tending to u hhhhh :<

When you need a reminder that the world won’t leave you behind- that time isn’t something you need to endlessly chase after, that you’re deserving of a break from stress. Who’s more than happy to soothe you with totally platonic cuddles and tea, stroking your hair or your back with his big, warm hands, some movie you recall watching with him in your childhood playing softly in the background while you rant to him (or stay silent, he doesn’t mind).

^ THIS 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 i SOBBED i am picking u up and kissing u anon this is so good. he really is just soso soothing???? so comforting?? i feel like he would just be that One thing in life u can always trust and aaaaughhhhh im just so obsessed

HIM BLUSHING WHEN UR PARENTS TEASE U 💔💔💔💔 i can see it so clearly .

i feel like sugu would be okay with never really voicing his feelings for u?? at least not until smth pushes him in that direction . i DO think he’d get kinda jealous if u got a partner but less in a ”theyre mine” way and more in a ”i dont trust anyone else to love them properly” way yknow???? i feel like its just so ingrained in him to take care of u especially since uve known each other for so long!!

can u tell childhood bestie!sugu makes me kinda insane PHSJDHDJ u have no idea what uve awakened in me anon…….. 😭😭

AND CALLING HIM MOM SO REAL!!! he’d just scoff and roll his eyes but i genuinely think it would make him happy LMAOO hes like .. they appreciate me <3 . cutiepie.

anything that comes out of your mouth is important to him. <- IM NODDING MY HEAD SO HARD RN hes such a wonderful listener i just know he always always always pays attention when u speak :((((

Who makes sure to keep it that way- to keep you oblivious to the way he looks at you, to the soft smiles he reserves for you and you alone, to the sickeningly sweet feeling that crawls up his throat when you laugh at his jokes or are physically affectionate with him.

^ AND THISSSSS GOD THIS yeah. we’re so linked anon. i really think he’d be more than okay with just keeping all his love for u unvoiced until the moment is really right….. because you’re just so precious to him!! maybe he’d be afraid of scaring u away too if hes too forward.. or ruining ur friendship…. and he’d rather die than have that yk? ☹️

AAAANNDD THEN GOJO <3333 i havent thought much abt him w this trope tbh SO I WAS SO EXCITED TO HEAR UR THOUGHTS………. and i agree sm i see the vision so clearly . hes just sooo affectionate and clingy and adventurous i feel like he’s the type of bestie to throw rocks at ur window at 2am bc he wants to go buy snacks w u PHDKDH HES JUST;;;;; hes so sweet.

THE PIGGYBACK RIDES…….. and him “joking” around but obv its not actually a joke like thats so …….. stsg anon i need a fic on this whole concept im soo obsessed

Anyways they’re both clingy overprotective lovesick sillies that would annihilate anyone getting in the way of you being happy and healthy <333

^ SO REAL no bc i love literally everything abt this??? i keep saying it but im just in awe of u and ur thoughts stsg anon…

DONT RUN AWAY PSJDJDJ i appreciate u soooo much <3333 tysm for the meal!! as always!! here is a flower for u 🌷

[littleoddwriter]

Hey I'm new and was hoping I could have an Otto Octavius fic with a Trans male reader who is autistic who's hyperfixation is slashers and horror movies.

Feeling Better | Dr. Otto Octavius/Dr. Octopus x Trans!Male!Reader

Hey there! Aw, yes!!! Thanks for the request, I hope you like what I've done with it! :')

summary; You're feeling dysphoric and to distract you and help you feel better, Otto coaxes you into talking about your current hyperfixation.

notes; Trans!Male!Reader; Autistic!Reader; Gender Dysphoria; Hyperfixation; Horror Movies; Slashers (Chucky being talked about, specifically); Stimming; Kissing; Short Fic.

@scorsesedepalmafan @scaredclowncat

Over the past years that Otto and you have been a couple, you have found that a great way in helping you when you’re feeling particularly dysphoric was to let you talk to him about whatever you’re currently fixating on. 

At the moment that was horror movies, specifically slashers. 

You were enamoured, having watched everything you could get your hands on, doing research, watching behind the scenes extras and director commentaries, and re-watching everything of your favourites every single day. 

Whenever you were watching one of those things, you practically lit up with passion and excitement. Otto loved to see you like this. It made him happy. And he certainly didn’t mind watching the same things over and over again with you if it meant that you were content.

Today you weren’t happy at all, though. Watching your favourites didn’t work either. In fact, you felt too terrible to even feel motivated to watch something. That Otto felt bad for you was almost an understatement. He loved you so much that it hurt sometimes. And it was especially painful when you were hurting, too.

In the hopes of making you feel better, Otto led you to the bedroom and laid down on the bed with you, spooning you from behind as he nuzzled the back of your neck. When you were feeling so dysphoric, this was simply the best cuddling position for you. Besides, it was also the most comfortable for him because of the actuators.

You had your body pillow in your arms and between your legs, while Otto held you close with his arms around your waist, careful not to touch you anywhere remotely triggering. His actuators were in a sort of resting mode they often were in, when they realised that you two needed some privacy without those appendages making things a little more difficult.

For a while, the two of you just lay there, cuddling in silence. Otto’s mind was reeling and he knew yours was too. But you refused to speak if you didn’t have to on such days, or maybe you didn’t actually refuse, but just couldn’t - he had no idea, as he had never asked and you didn’t say anything about it. 

Sighing, Otto finally interrupted the silence, “Y/N, what was the entire plot of the Chucky franchise again? Up to the series? I know bits and pieces, but I’ve just been thinking about it and realised that from what I know it makes no sense.” The best way to get you to talk without realising that he’s coaxing you into it was by asking pointed questions you could never resist answering.

You uttered a quiet, elongated ‘oh’, before starting to respond. Slowly, at first, you told him about the events of the first three movies and how it was always the same theme there, until years later, they brought in Tiffany with the first film that was also explicitly called a Chucky movie, rather than Child’s Play, like the previous three. 

Dutifully, Otto nodded along, listening intently with a small smile on his lips. Sometimes he also interjected to leave his own comments and some more questions to encourage you to go into detail. 

Once you’ve reached the latest entry of the franchise, the TV series, your fire was back. He could hear the grin in your voice and the excitement that was bubbling inside you. You were stimming, tapping your fingers on your body pillow and shaking your legs, thumping them against the mattress slightly. 

“Does it make more sense now?” you asked innocently, when you were done talking about everything Chucky. 

“A lot more, yes. Thank you, my dear boy,” Otto said, kissing the back of your neck and making you giggle with it.

“That tickles,” you commented with a snorting laugh. God, you were so precious to him. He would do anything for you.

“What else do you wanna know?” You let go of your body pillow and turned around, intertwining your legs with his. “And, yeah, I know you’re only indulging me so I can feel better, by the way,” you smiled at him.

“Guilty as charged,” he murmured with a bright smile of his own.

Chuckling softly, you leaned in and pecked his lips, “Thank you.”

“Anything for you, my love.” Otto kissed you again, letting it linger. 

Now that you were feeling a little better already, you were able to press your front against Otto’s, leaving no space between you two. Chest against chest, you clung onto him. 

“Can I tell you about The Collector next?” you asked softly, then.

“Of course,” Otto responded, unable to wipe that satisfied smile off of his face. 

[quillsink]

concept for the community movie. it’s 2023 and the movie has finally been released and you sit down to watch it excited for what you’re about to see excited for new content about the characters. and then you realise something strange, you realise you’ve seen this situation before.

you recognise the troy you see on screen but it isn’t the troy you know and love. it’s troy fresh out of high school, troy with his hypermasculine demeanour, troy with his riverdale high letter jacket, troy with his class ring, troy with the cocky smile and faked overconfidence that never suited him. 

and you recognise the classroom—spanish 101, season 1 of community, you see britta lend abed a pencil, and hear her say she thinks she’s gonna flunk tomorrows test so she’s sorry if that makes her seem cold. and you see abed, a little less confident a little less grown up. you see him overhear a shallow, cocky statement from troy and watch him tilt his head to the side and look at troy curiously.

and soon, the movie the progresses, and you realise, this is the side of the show we never saw. this is troy and abed, their stories, their story, them meeting each other for the first time. their awkward first meeting at the fro-yo place unremembered as they get to know each other, as abed’s unashamed expression of himself confuses a hiding, pretending troy. 

and we see all the things we never get to see. we see their first meeting. we see the first time they held hands. we see the messy parts, we see the crying the messy gulping choking sobs the horrible ways in which both of them were hurt the wonderful ways in which they help each other heal. we see them decide to move in together, we see the part where they move in together. we see them living together, no annie yet, just the two of them, just a quiet smile at breakfast and a “hey, abed? i had a nightmare, can i…come down there?”

it’s a mix of things, an outsider’s view to a day from britta’s perspective as she fumbles with a stolen camera to segments from abed’s films where he and troy broke character to simply gaze at each other for a moment to outtakes from the dean’s commerical to security camera footage. threads woven together to tell a story we all knew was there from the start.

we see troy’s careful realisation, we see abed help him through it, we see the two come out to each other. we see what really went down in the 24-hour weird down in the dreamatorium before shirley’s wedding. we see the secret feelings underlying the pillows and blankets war, we see the hate concealing something much deeper they’re both trying to hide, we see a sequel that’s not just the friendship hats but a painful conversation that ends in forgiveness because it’s them, of course it will. 

and when the yam was killed. well. the tension had to be relieved somehow, didn’t it? and when abed and troy switched in good cop bad cop—well, that wasn’t the only thing they switched in.

we see the awkward, clunky relationship of obligatory heterosexuality between troy and britta, we see their attraction build and culminate in an unsatisfactory manner, we see abed observe jealously from the sidelines and try to be happy. we see a confession he makes quietly to the camera when troy’s not home.

we see a tearful conversation before troy left for ac repair school, without the rest of the study group, just them. we see the pain his leaving caused the both of them we see the blinding joy at his return and a conversation the two of them never tell anyone else about. 

we see a conversation following heroic origins where troy remembers everything, suddenly, and in an apology to abed vows to leave who he used to be behind forever, he’s himself now. everyone else can suck it, he’s not pretending one bit anymore.

we see troy leave. we see the pain in both of their eyes, we see geothermal escapism all over again, but we see another conversation between troy and abed, between the end of the game and the cloning and their final goodbyes. 

the years fly by, and we see see abed’s grief that tears him apart but he keeps going because he’s got his friends he’s still got himself and troy will come back. because eventually, it all will. and we see his disappointment and sorrow as more leave and soon, he can tell the shows coming to an end. because the cast is falling apart, the narrators lost interest, the narrative is repeating itself. 

we see abed check the tracker each day. we see his shaking hands as he drops the phone when he hears about troy’s kidnapping, see his choked sob of relief when he sees the good news troy’s alive and well. 

we see him go to LA, see him become known in the film industry, see his life flourish as he grows into himself, still in touch with the study group, builds a life for himself, amazing and happy, but there’s a hollow place in his soul.

as time moves forward, we cut between confessions to a camera, the audio terrible as both whisper, trying not to be heard by roommates or. well. levar burton. they miss each other, they’ve found a life for themselves but now they know what they tried so hard not to feel. they’re whole on their own, they can live apart, but. they don’t want to.

and then, we cut to another scene. a shaky, vertical camera, we see a video of the study group at a dock, see britta’s finger covering part of the camera. we see jeff condescendingly explain to her how to switch the camera and she does, swearing at him, and we see abed standing apart from the rest, staring at the sea.

annie squeals, and there’s the childish tycoon coming into sight, and soon, it’s docking, and we’ve switched mediums now, abed thinks, because he thought the show ended years ago but this can only be the ending of a movie—it can only be that, he thinks, as he and troy see each other in the flesh for the first time, and the music swells in the background, and the camera follows troy hurrying down the ladder and runs toward abed, who’s standing completely still, overwhelmed by troy right in front of him after years of blurry pixelated occasional calls and the odd text or letter. 

as the song reaches its climax, the two move towards each other and kiss, and then cut to a terrible quality recording of the kiss on britta’s phone with her cheering and annie squealing in the background, and jeff’s sarcastic comment on britta’s shitty phone ends the movie as the credits roll.

[its-deputy-caleb]

Okay Idk ab u but I’m a huge affectionate person and I constantly desire physical touch 😅what would the l Lords each be like with a s/o who frequently will give them physical affection like go up to them and kiss their face over while their working or hug them from behind or cradle their face in their hands

Hii!! I’m so glad you requested this! i wouldn’t say i’m overly affectionate but everyone needs a good hug every once and a while!!! (more like all the time) anyway i hope this is okay and that you all enjoy.

also a huge thank you to the 400+ followers!! i am so grateful for all of you and i appreciate all the love and support y’all have been giving me! <333

Alcina Dimitrescu

Alcina would adore you all day long. She loves to indulge in all your affection and will spend a considerable amount of the day just holding you.

One of your favourite things to do together is when you’re both sat in one of the plush lounge chairs in front of the fire place. Your head is resting either on her lap or her shoulder while she reads all sorts of novels to you.

Alcina is in her nightgown with her hair out, resting on her shoulder and you always lean up to play with the ends between your fingers.

Eventually your hand ends up cradling her face and you bring her chin towards you gently, guiding her in for a soft kiss.

For her stern demeanour, Alcina enjoys your affection especially when it’s just you two.

She loves sitting on the piano stool, you draped over her lap as she shows you how to play the sweetest melodies and her heart always melts when you lean into her embrace.

You love to surprise her with hugs from behind but it usually ends up with you wrapping your arms around her legs. Alcina never minds though, and always brings you into her arms so you can hug her properly.

Donna Beneviento

Donna always gets so flustered when you give her affection. But that doesn’t mean that she doesn’t like it, she’s just extremely unused to it.

It’s the small things that Donna loves, like when you lace your fingers together or place an arm on her shoulder, neck or elbow.

You love to brush her hair, always getting distracted by carding your fingers through it, the hairbrush completely forgotten in your other hand. Her hair was just so soft and silky that it absolutely mesmerised you.

You love to wrap your arms around her from behind and rest your head on her shoulder as she works away at another dress or is tailoring one of her dolls and you love to watch her work.

Eventually you notice how Donna warms up to your affection and leans into you subtly. Sometimes even coming up to place her head in the palm of her hands just so she can feel your thumbs stroke against her cheeks.

One time when you were walking from a family meeting a lycan thrashed from behind and gate and she jumped straight into your arms which lead you to carrying her bridal style all the way home, her head tucked under your chin.

Salvatore Moreau

Salvatore loves that you’re an affectionate person and his brain seems to short circuit when it’s directed at him.

You love to wrap him in tight hugs which always make his chest feel warm, no matter how many times you give them to him.

It’s that safe feeling he gets when you hold him that makes him fall in love with you all over again. He’s never failed to feel safe when your arms are wrapped around him and his head is resting on your shoulder.

He loves forehead kisses, especially in the early morning or just before you go to bed because you’re guaranteed to cuddle him underneath warm blankets.

He’s always been a little nervous and hesitant when it came to relationships in general but when you hug him or take his hand he feels like he can trust you with everything.

One thing he adores is spending time with you at the reservoir where you both sit in a little wooden boat. Your hand is always in his and somehow you find a way for you both to sit shoulder to shoulder without it tipping.

It’s there where you watch the sunset together, your head on his shoulder and his own resting on top of yours.

Karl Heisenberg

It was only when Karl met you did he realise just how touch starved he really was. It seems like all his time in the factory alone had numbed him to it but he felt pure joy when he was with you.

He loves that you sit with him while he’s working away at his blueprints, your hand either playing with his hair or tracing the scars that litter his skin.

He’s super stubborn and won’t ever admit that he actually likes all the affection you give him. But you read him like a book and can tell when he makes extra effort to lean into your touches or when he lowers his head slightly because he wants you to run your fingers in his hair.

He can’t deny that when you pull him in for a hug and just hold him against you, he feels loved and cared for emotionally.

Your affection also has a calming affect on him, knowing that his anger tends to boil at family meetings more than usual. However when you slide your hands between his own and gently move your thumb against his hand, Karl feels the anger leave him slowly.

Another thing you’ve noticed is the affect your touches has on Karl’s creativity. The more affection you give him, the more his experiments turn out successful. How improved his work is when you’re sitting with him and you have a lazy arm draped around his shoulder or waist.

Karl never grows tired of your constant touches and gentle kisses, hell he craves it even. It takes his mind away from everything that leaves him feeling lonely or angry and replaces it with nothing but pure love and adoration.

[harrystylesslutt]

can you write mean dom reader fucking someone else in front of harry to teach him to be good, with aftercare too please <33

Warnings: smut, humiliation kink, degrading kink, mean dom reader, kinda sub harry, mommy kink, mmf threesome, lots of fluff in the end.

Last night harry was being bad, all you wanted to do was go home, tease him a bit and then pin him down and ride his cock until he was a whimpering mess.

That was the plan all along, but once you were both naked grinding on each other, he kept complaining about you teasing him, and when you were fucking him, he kept whining about you going too "slow" for his liking, ordering you around even though you two knew who was in control that night so you decided to punish him.

That's how he ended up being tied to a chair, watching you suck some bloke (that you tied up too) off. Harry would be lying if he said that the view didn't turn him on, his dick was now rock hard, resting against his lower stomach.

"Look at that, such a good boy for me, he knows how to behave himself, you should take notes harry" you smirk when you see harry squirming in his chair and you keep sucking the tip of the stranger's cock.

You stop working your mouth on him, and you crawl up to his face "gonna sit on your face now yeah?" you hear the guy whisper a low "fuck yes"

You turn yourself around so that you're facing harry "keep your eyes on us" you tell him, before finally lowering yourself on the stranger's mouth.

You moan at the feeling of him sucking on your clit, he then teases your entrance with his tongue, before finally pushing it in. "fuck yes!" you groan when he starts thrusting his tongue in and out.

When you feel yourself getting close, you get up and walk over to harry "aww does my baby want a taste too?" he whimpers at your words and tries to free himself "please mommy wanna taste you" when you hear these words come out of his mouth, you realise he had fallen into his subspace, but that doesn't change anything.

"Look at you, all greedy for me, you know this wouldn't be happening if you were good yesterday, not my fault he behaves better than you" you kneel to untie his hands while talking, hearing him sigh in relief.

When he goes to touch you, you slap his hands away and he frowns "you can touch yourself, not me, c'mon now, watch me ride his big cock and learn your lesson".

You grab a condom and make your way back to the bed, helping him put it on, before straddling the stranger's hips, with your back facing him, and your eyes still on harry who's slowly stroking his cock at the view, you lower yourself onto the guy's dick.

You both moan at the feeling, you could feel him stretching you, he was big, well not as big as harry obviously, but it felt good.

You open your eyes to see harry looking down to where you and the guy were connected, you could see the slight jealousy burning in his eyes, which makes you smirk.

You start moving your hips, grinding on him, before bouncing on his cock slowly before finding a steady rhythm. "fuck! your cock is so good, y'fuck me so well" you moan out when he starts thrusting up into you.

You hear him mutter "so fucking tight" which makes you go harder. The sight in front you arousing you even more, harry was obviously enjoying this, even though you swore you could see him clenching his jaw when the stranger muttered these words.

"see that harry? look at him, fucking me so good without complaining" You start to rub your clit when you feel yourself getting closer "I'm so close!" the stranger groaned.

You could see that harry wasn't trying to cum, his hand was working slowly, teasing himself, you knew that he wanted you to make him cum, which you would once you were done with this bloke.

"I'm cumming!" you scream before finally letting go, you hear the guy groan behind you as he lets go in the condom.

Once you recover from the orgasm, you pull him out of you, and untie his arms, after exchanging words he finally leaves.

You turn back to look at harry "did you learn your lesson pretty boy?" you say while walking towards him and kneeling in front of him, replacing the hand that was on his cock with yours.

You hear him sigh in relief "yes mommy, learned m'lesson" You lick a stripe up his length at his words "yeah? promise that y'gonna be good for mommy from now?" you start sucking his tip, making sure to tease his slit with your tongue.

"f-fuck yeah promise" You hum at his response before taking him further into your mouth, the action making him moan.

You feel him pulling your hair which makes you groan around him, the vibration intensifying the feeling of your mouth. You start to bob your head faster, one of your hands stroking the rest of his cock that couldn't fit, and the other fondling his balls.

"fuck m'so close, m'your only good boy right?" he pants, you pull him out of your mouth, while still working your hands on him " 'course baby, that bloke doesn't compare to you, just wanted you to learn your lesson".

"now c'mon pretty boy want you to cum" you put your mouth back on his tip sucking it, and you finally feel his hot, warm cum shooting down your throat.

Once you swallow every last drop, you pull off and look up at him, "c'mon let's get you cleaned up baby". He smiles at your words and gets up on wobbly legs.

You help him walk to the bathroom, "gonna take a shower now yeah?" he hums in response and wraps his arms around you, hugging you close to him.

When the water is hot enough you both shower, slowly cleaning eachother's bodies, while you whisper sweet nothings in his ear when you wash his hair knowing that he likes to be taken care of while he's in his subspace.

Once you both get dried off, he grabs one of your shirts and you help pull it over his head. You kneel down to help him wear his sweat pants.

You put on a pair of panties and grab one of his shirts. You both brush your teeth, bumping eachother's hips, and laughing.

You make your way back to bed, changing the sheets, not wanting your bed to smell like some random bloke, once you're done, you both get settled in, and pull the covers over yourselves.

Harry wraps an arm around you, pulling you closer, resting his head against your chest. You wrap one of your legs around his hip, while you play with his curls helping him fall asleep.

He whispers a low "I love you" before nuzzling his head closer to your chest if that was even possible, tightening his arms around you.

"I love you more" you whisper back, smiling before kissing his forehead, slowly drifting off to sleep.

A/N: i was kinda confused ab whether to write it mmf or ffm but then i picked mmf for some reason. I might write the same concept but ffm (dom reader, sub harry, girlxgirl) if yall liked this one. let me know! i might take time to post cz i got so many requests but dw im gon write all of them cz i liked the concepts. anw have a gd day <3

[bigboldblog]

New gainer story: “Perspective Gains”

Enjoy this new gainer story, told from two perspectives 👀

Let me know what you think, and if you’d like to see more like this! Feel free to message me directly or leave a comment.

—

The alarm rang incessantly in Scott’s bedroom, waking him up to a hot summer’s day. His fan was running all night, and he reached to switch it off as he stumbled out of bed.

Only wearing a pair of underpants, he looked through the mirror at his sweaty body. His belly fat poured out in every direction and his love handles were getting out of control. As he grabbed them, he realised they were getting bigger by the day.

He tried tensing his biceps, which were of a decent size, despite them being covered with a thick layer of flab. He had been weightlifting down the gym every other day, and was planning on heading down there this morning for a quick workout.

He always avoided cardio and would hate the idea of running on a treadmill for 15 minutes like most people did down the gym. He also loved food too much, and it would definitely be hard to convince him to cut down just to lose weight.

Given the heat, he decided to wear his tank top today, even though it barely fit him. As he pulled the top down his protruding gut, he realised he’d have to hold it in for this to work.

Once he managed to get the top on, he let his stomach out all the way, forcing the top to ride up his belly, showing the extent of his gains. He pulled the top down and couldn’t be bothered to change it, so picked up his gym bag and set off to the gym.

He drove about 5 minutes to the gym down the road, as walking there would be out of the question, not just because of the heat, but because walking wasn’t really Scott’s thing.

When he arrived at the gym, he parked in the space closest to the entrance. As he carried his gym bag over his shoulder, his top noticeably rode up again, showing his stomach spilling out over his tracksuit bottoms. Scott only noticed this when he saw his reflection in the front door of the gym and pulled the top down the best he could, hoping the receptionist wouldn’t notice.

The receptionist smiled at him as he walked in, taking a quick glance at his stomach that looked a lot bigger today in his tank top.

As Scott entered the empty changing rooms, he took off his tank top and rummaged in his gym bag for something else to wear.

At that point, someone else came into the changing room and approached Scott from behind. “Hey, you’re Scott, right?”

As Scott turned around, he noticed a shirtless man with bulging, chunky biceps, smooth pecs and faint abs. It was Jason, an asshole from college that always made fun of Scott. To Scott’s discontent, Jason looked ripped and had doubled in size since they saw each other last, back when Scott only had a modest gut.

“Man, I didn’t recognise you. You got huge!” Jason said, in awe of Scott’s gains.

“Uh… yeah, I’ve put on a bit of weight recently,” Scott answered timidly.

“A bit? You must be like 300 pounds now!”

“Yeah, more or less…” Scott said, even though he was a fair bit heavier.

“How did you manage to put on so much weight? Look at those love handles as well, man!”

Scott started to blush and just smiled awkwardly at Jason, who was still staring at Scott’s gut. As Scott reached to put one of his tops on, Jason said, “Why are you putting that on? Aren’t you hot in here with all that insulation?”

“I haven’t exactly got the kind of body to go shirtless in the gym.”

“What do you mean?” Jason laughed. “Come on, I’ll show you my workout.”

As Jason left the changing room, he gave Scott a friendly punch on the arm. Scott decided to go shirtless after all, holding in his gut as much as he could.

Scott started by doing a bench press, setting up the weights and lying down on the bench. As he was about to start, Jason approached him and took a good look at his bulging middle that spread out either side of the bench.

“Careful you don’t break the bench there, mate,” Jason laughed, slapping the back of his hand against his stomach, causing it to ripple.

Scott decided to ignore him and continue lifting the barbell. By the fourth lift, he started to struggle, and so Jason stepped in, chuckling. “Here, let me take that,” he said, putting the barbell back on its stand.

“What are you doing?” Scott said.

“Maybe you should stick to the free weights, mate. Something you can handle,” Jason laughed, handing him 5kg dumbbells.

Jason ruffled Scott’s hair as he walked over to the other side of the gym. Ironically, 5kg was what Scott usually lifted in dumbbells.

Later on, Scott could see Jason talking with someone, pointing over at Scott with a smirk on his face. When they turned away, he decided it was best to leave before Jason made fun of him again, so he got up and sat in his car outside.

That same morning, Jason woke up to his alarm and stumbled out of bed towards the mirror. He noticed that, when he relaxed his stomach, he had a bit of a belly forming and could now grab a handful of it.

He tensed his biceps, and held his stomach in, looking much slimmer now, apart from his pecs that seemed to be looking less rugged these days.

He always avoided cardio and found running on a treadmill for 15 minutes boring. He also loved guzzling down fattening protein shakes all day long in an attempt to get even bigger.

Relaxing his stomach again, he got on his bike with only tracksuit bottoms on, and rode down to the gym for a morning workout.

His body was red hot from the sun, covered with a glistening glow of sweat that made his muscles look much more toned.

When he arrived at the gym, he made sure to hide his protruding stomach so that his abs could be seen, albeit slightly faded.

As he walked through the entrance, he pretended to itch his back so his biceps would be made visible to the receptionist who couldn’t help but notice them.

When he got to the changing room, he saw someone that looked familiar. As he got closer, he noticed this was Scott from college. But it couldn’t be, surely? This guy looked like he didn’t belong in a gym, whereas the Scott he remembered was much slimmer.

“Hey, you’re Scott, right?” he said.

As Scott turned around, Jason saw his chubby-looking face and realised it was indeed him. He blurted out his next words without thinking. “Man, I didn’t recognise you. You got huge!”

“Uh… yeah, I’ve put on a bit of weight recently,” Scott answered in a deeper, quieter voice than Jason had remembered.

“A bit?” Jason exclaimed, noticing the stretchmarks on Scott’s love handles. He wondered if Scott would have weighed himself recently. To Jason’s disappointment, he couldn’t get Scott to weigh himself now as the scales in the gym were broken. Instead, he guessed his weight. “You must be like 300 pounds now!”

“Yeah, more or less…” Scott said.

Jason was surprised that he was right and couldn’t help but comment further. “How did you manage to put on so much weight? Look at those love handles as well, man!”

Jason was excited to tell everyone he knew in the gym about Scott, and point out how fat he was now. But then he noticed Scott was about to put a top on. “Why are you putting that on?” He thought quickly for a reason to ask that. “Aren’t you hot in here with all that insulation?”

“I haven’t exactly got the kind of body to go shirtless in the gym.”

“What do you mean?” Jason laughed, desperately trying to convince him to go shirtless, almost wanting to drag him into the gym. “Come on, I’ll show you my workout.”

Jason noticed Scott was doing a bench press and didn’t want to miss seeing his large stomach droop around the sides of the bench.

“Careful you don’t break the bench there, mate,” Jason laughed, walking up to him and slapping the back of his hand against his stomach.

Jason just stared at him as he attempted the bench press, amazed at how chubby his arms were when he lifted up the barbell.

Jason then noticed his friend, Sam, come closer towards them. Sam was always boasting about his gains and the two of them were in constant competition with each other. If Sam found out that Jason was holding in his stomach the whole time, he wouldn’t hear the end of it.

Trying to show off, he took Scott’s barbell, making sure Sam was listening. “Here, let me take that,” he said, putting the barbell back on its stand.

“What are you doing?” Scott said.

“Maybe you should stick to the free weights, mate. Something you can handle,” Jason laughed, handing him the lightest dumbbells he could find.

Jason ruffled Scott’s hair as he walked over to the other side of the gym where Sam was.

“Hey, mate. You’re looking pretty bulky today. Sure you’re not getting fat like your friend?” Sam said to Jason.

“Piss off. He looks more like you,” Jason said, playfully punching Sam in the gut.

They continued to talk for about 5 minutes about their workouts, before Jason changed the subject back to Scott’s gains.

“I mean, look at him,” Jason said, turning to point at Scott. “The guy’s massive!”

“What’s he even doing here?” Sam laughed.

“I know, right. He told me he weighs like, 300 pounds.”

Sam swore in amazement. “I’m going to carry on, mate,” he later said, getting ready to lift a set of dumbbells that were the size of his head. “Let me know if you need any help lifting anything, yeah?” he laughed.

Jason put up his middle finger at Sam with a smirk on his face, casually glancing at the veins in Sam’s biceps as he picked up those dumbbells. He wished his arms looked like that, but unfortunately for Jason, he was a bit too chunky for that to happen.

At the end of his workout, Jason realised that Scott had left, and so decided to leave as well after saying bye to Sam.

When he got outside, he was relieved to be able to let his stomach out again. He glanced at his protruding belly in the reflection of a window nearby, and hopped on his bike to get some food.

He thought the nearest fast-food place would be a good stop. After all, he’d been working out a bit, so deserved a treat, and it wasn’t too far to cycle either.

However, he didn’t realise that he passed Scott in his car as he left. Scott glanced up to see a bulky man on his bike whiz past his car. Was that Jason? What happened to his abs?

Intrigued, Scott decided to follow him by car, which eventually led him to a fast-food restaurant that he, himself, admittedly visited several times.

As Jason was about to enter the restaurant with his abs no longer visible, Scott approached him by surprise and said with a smile, “What happened to your abs, mate?”

“Uh…” Jason mumbled, his heart dropping as he realised his stomach was fully protruded.

Mimicking Jason’s annoying voice, Scott said, “Man, I didn’t recognise you. You got huge!” He playfully punched his gut while Jason stood there, not quite sure how to respond.

Just before Scott set himself down in his car, he said, “Bet that guy you were with wouldn’t recognise you either!”

Jason blushed, although you wouldn’t be able to tell given his entire body was bright red already. He simply stood there for some time, watching Scott drive away. Jason looked down at his gut. He needed to find a new gym.

[jeontaeil-archived]

Stay Tonight //

~ for @earth-to-that-asian's "The Crown" collab ~

Pairing: Bodygaurd!Jaehyun x Princess!Reader

Genre: Smut, (Fingering, Handjob, Marking, Unprotected Sex), Slight Angst, Forbidden Relationship, Royal AU

Words: 1.48k

Warnings: 18+ content, Read at your own discretion.

After another tedious day of touring the Empire, you returned home, completely exhausted. The door to your carriage opened. Standing outside was your handsome bodyguard, Jaehyun. He smiled on seeing you, holding his hand out for you to take as you exited that carriage. The night air was frosty, making your teeth chatter. Jaehyun was quick to escort you back inside the warm walls of the Royal Palace.

On reaching your chamber, Jaehyun stepped aside, letting the guards push the sturdy doors open. You glanced at Jaehyun. “I'd like to have a word with you, in private.”

He didn't react, instead, silently following behind you. The guards closed the doors again, leaving you two alone. Letting out a tired sigh, you dropped the formal demeanour and shrugged off the excessively thick shawl that was draped over your shoulders. Jaehyun watched the expensive material fall to the ground. “What is it that you needed to tell me,” he asked, keeping his hands behind his back? You scoffed and sauntered over to him, a devilish grin on your face. “Oh please, don't act so clueless. You know I've got nothing to say.” You played with the buttons on his uniform. Jaehyun didn't flinch. “Come on Jae. It's a cold day today. I need someone to sleep with me so I can stay warm.”

Jaehyun took your hands in his and held them behind your back. He stepped closer to you, smirking at the way your breath hitched. “Are you sure you want to go to sleep tonight, your highness,” he asked, inching you towards your bed? The back of your knees hit the dense mattress, making you fall onto it. Jaehyun came to hover over you, hiking the hem of your gown up your legs as he did so. The feeling of his rough hands trailing up your thighs made you whimper in anticipation. Jaehyun dipped down, lips finding your neck. His tongue ran over your skin, careful not to mark you. Eyes fluttering shut, you bucked your hips against his palm, hating the way his fingers ghosted over your core.

“Patience princess. Why rush when we have the entire night to ourselves?”

Jaehyun sat up, taking his shirt off. He left his trousers on, lifting you up from the bed so that he could rid you of all your garments. There was a certain fire in your body, a passion that kept you from feeling cold despite the weather and the fact that you were now completely naked. Jaehyun never gawked at your body. That was how he respected you, even when you dropped all formalities. He also never kissed you, at least, not on your lips. Since he was not rightfully yours, he didn’t deserve to feel your lips on his, no matter how much he wanted to.

Jaehyun stared into your lust-filled eyes, calloused fingertips rubbing soft circles into your clit. With parted lips, you raised your chin, humming elatedly. Even the slightest touch of his had the power to render you senseless. You were addicted to the way Jaehyun made you feel. No one would ever be able to beat it.

Jaehyun pushed a single digit into you, licking his lips at the way your eyes fluttered shut. “Keep your eyes open, look at me princess,” he spoke as he pumped and curled it in and out of your velvety walls. There was only so much he could ask of you. So you settled your gaze on his again. He added a second finger to the mix, making it a struggle for you to keep your eyes lidded. You touched his wrist. “I need more,” you whispered. Being greedy wasn’t a very majestic virtue. But you could care less. You were lusting after a man as handsome as Jaehyun. You lost all decency when it came to him.

He smiled, pulling his fingers out of you. “What can I give you, your highness?”

Instead of answering him, you placed a palm on his crotch. Jaehyun smirked and shed his trousers off. You gripped his member, stroking it till he hardened up. He let out a shaky breath through his parted lips, letting his eyes fall shut. “Keep your eyes open, look at me darling,” you said, mimicking him. Jaehyun peeked at you, biting his lip when you pumped his length faster. “Please princess, I’m going to cum,” he warned, not making any effort to stop you. This was the bright side of being able to do whatever you wanted to Jaehyun without his interference. He let you take control without a complaint.

You pushed him down on your bed, using both your hands to jerk him off. Jaehyun whimpered and seethed, feeling oh so close to his high. “Come on, don’t hold yourself back,” you urged, wanting to hear his pretty sounds. Jaehyun let out a choked groan, hands trembling slightly. His cock twitched in your grasp, thick cum spurting out against his toned body merely seconds after. You hummed in delight, loving the way his essence dripped down his chiselled abs. It was a sight that made you drool like a child. You threw your leg over his lap and moved to straddle his middle. Jaehyun’s hands came to your waist impulsively, supporting your body as you angled his sensitive tip to your entrance. You leaned forward, placing your hands on his chest before sinking down on his massive length.

A throaty groan escaped his lips at the way your warm walls hugged his member. You felt heavenly. Jaehyun could lose himself in you forever. You began rocking on his cock, letting out soft mewls. Your sounds were so pretty that he couldn’t help but harden up again.

Dipping your head down, you ran your tongue over his skin, wanting nothing more than to cover his chest with marks of your own. Jaehyun wished he could taint your skin the way you did his. But he could not. Because you would never truly belong to him, the way he belonged to you. His entire life was dedicated to protecting and serving you. No matter what he did, he would never be able to rise above the ranks of a bodyguard, which meant that there was no way he could have you for himself.

You moved faster, feeling a knot beginning to form in your stomach. Jaehyun guided your hips over his length, reeling at the sensation of your hot breath against his lips. You stared into his eyes, displaying the intensity of pleasure he gave you. Your brows were furrowed slightly, lips plump and swollen.

When your orgasm hit, you let out the prettiest moans, arching your back as arousal dripped down your core. Feeling your walls clench around his length, Jaehyun let go, filling you up with his seed. His eyes lingered on your face, the moon’s light made you glow. You looked ethereal. Too good to be true.

Slipping off of him, you fell to his side. Jaehyun let you rest your head on his shoulder, draping your blanket over your naked body to shield you from the bitter cold.

“Father plans to get me married soon,” you revealed, tracing random shapes on his chest. Jaehyun hummed, staring at the high ceiling. He already knew that. After all, he was the one who had escorted the King and Queen to the neighbouring Kingdoms to meet suitable bachelors. Jaehyun knew these late-night rendezvous would have to come to an end soon. You were starting to realise that as well.

“I don’t want it. I’m not ready,” you said. Jaehyun stopped your hand, intertwining his fingers with yours. “You know as well as everyone in this palace that it’s not a matter of want you want or don’t want. This is a duty that you must fulfil for the sake of our Kingdom.” His words held assurance for both you and himself. He was scared of the pain and loneliness he would feel when you left.

Jaehyun was in love with you, and he knew no other woman would ever be able to replace you in his heart. It was a bittersweet thing that had happened to both of you. A forbidden story that was never supposed to be written in the first place.

Reality was beginning to hit hard as you both laid in each other’s embrace under the cold star-filled night. Only the moon was a witness to the beautiful love that blossomed between you two. You were filled with regret. There was so much you wanted to do to try and change the outcome of your relationship with Jaehyun. But you were helpless. You weren't meant to be. It was as simple as that. Nevertheless, at the end of the day, one thing remained crystal clear to you.

“I will never forget you. Until I take my last breath, my heart will always truly belong to you.”

tagging: @chwe-yeeun | @jayvoir | @jisungismymom | @lqsience | @jakesavocado | @giveortake | @choijwiss | @treasuretaeil | @bts-txt-ateez | @heeslily | @sunoosi | @dong-hyuc | @borrovvedyoongi | @neosmutcollective

send me an ask or shoot me a message if you'd like to be tagged in future works!

[samstrugglingwithlife]

You Make Him Blush

Genre: Fluff

Characters: Oikawa, Kuroo and Akaashi

Warning: Swearing, sorry

A/N: Ya girl is finally posting. I mean it’s 5 am right now but hey! I did it. V, proud of myself (I should sleep but no). I hope you enjoy it. (It’s not edited, I skimmed over it but I may have missed some mistakes, so sorry about that!!)

OIKAWA

This fucker likes to play games with you. He makes you blush all the goddamn motherfucking time. He'll wink at you before making a killer serve, lift his shirt just enough during practice that you'd see his toned abs, he'll whisper ungodly shit in your ears when you're out in public. And honestly, you're super tired of feeling your cheeks heat up every time this guy so much as breathes in your direction.  

In the start of your relationship when the two of you were still a new couple you had witnessed him blush, but it was a mild flush out of nervousness. You always felt that you never made him as flustered as he made you.

So there you were, on a Saturday evening whining to your best friend that your boyfriend doesn't get nervous around you anymore and that the spark in your relationship was dwindling.

"I don't think that it's getting mundane, your relationship," your BFF started. "He's hella whipped for you, makes me gag."

"Then? How can he make me blush, but I can't even make him mildly flustered?" you asked, your shoulders slumping in a defeated manner. "Why do you even care about that?" 

You stare at your friend, "Because, he does it all the time! I wanna do it too! I wanna see him flustered!" you whine. "I wanna make him speechless!"

 "Oh so it's a game?" your friend asks you blankly. "Listen either help me or don't judge me."

That conversation was a week ago. Today was a rare date where you and Tooru would go out rather than him practising his serves in the gym and you watching him and feeding him snacks in between.

He waited for you outside your house. You paced in your room, checking yourself in the mirror anxiously. Was it too much? Will he laugh at you? Do you look stupid? A million thoughts were rushing through your head as you looked at your appearance in the mirror. With a nervous groan, you exit your room and make your way to the front door.

As soon as he hears the front door open, he turns around with a wide grin, "Finally! What took-" he is stunned as he lays his eyes on you, "you... so long..." his words dying in his throat.

You blink in shock as you witness a deep flush spreading across his cheeks. Your face also felt hot but with embarrassment. "Th-this wasn't a good idea!" you stutter. "I'm gonna go change!" you turn to leave, but you are yanked backwards by your wrist, falling against Tooru's strong chest. "You look great," he mumbles into your shoulder. "So so beautiful..."

You were surprised, you had no idea that wearing his turquoise jersey tucked into your jeans would have this much impact on your boyfriend.

The whole time during your date, Tooru kept stealing glances at you, and every time your eyes would meet, a dark blush would appear across his face. You wanted to grin and say that it serves him right! That it was your revenge. But you couldn't say a single word, your face equally as red as his.

Because the thing is, you never realised that a blushing, flustered Tooru was absolutely way too fucking adorable. 

KUROO

It's not that you never made him flustered or nervous. You were an absolute beauty, and everything you did was enough to bring him to his knees, but he hid it well. He'd hide it behind a facade of a confident tease; when that wouldn't work, he'd strategically turn his face away from you until the redness left his cheeks.

You were under the impression that he was way too suave and that you did not have that sort of power over him. Oooh! And boy, were you wrong!

It happened right before the match between Nekoma and Nohebi. You were hanging out with the team before they went out into the court and you went to the spectator's area. 

Kuroo's team bumped into the opposing team, and obviously, your boyfriend had to shit-talk the other team. You stood to the side rolling your eyes.

Your boyfriend took another jab at Daishou regarding his ex-girlfriend. Irked, the other team's captain attempted to tease him back by saying that Kuroo doesn't even have a girlfriend.

You raised your brow, stepped forward and looped your arm around your boyfriend's and smiled sweetly at Daishou, "Now, now. I'm very offended that you think that I don't exist."

Kuroo smirked as the other guy sputtered an apology towards you. You accepted his sorry. 

You realised that it was soon going to be time for you to find a seat, so you leaned up and placed a chaste kiss to the corner of his lips. You could literally see his head exploding as a deep red blush appeared on his face. 

You almost didn't hear both teams sputtering because your eyes were blinking at your boyfriend's current state.

Yaku and Kai dragged the Nekoma team away, while Nohebi left on their own, Daishou giving Kuroo a hateful glare as he left.

As soon as it was just the two of you, he buried his face in the crook between your neck and shoulder. His knees began to feel weak. He groaned, his voice muffled by your skin.

"Tetsu, are you okay?" you asked, confused. He only shook his head still buried in your neck. "I look so lame right now..." he mumbled into your skin. He felt the vibrations on your throat as you laughed and stroked his hair. "What? You think I think you're lame because you stopped functioning because of a simple kiss?" he nodded again. This caused you to laugh loudly this time.

He pulled back and glared at you weakly, his face still flushed red. "Do you have any idea what you do to me?" he asked. You smiled and flicked his forehead, "Go out there and win, cool guy," you grin. He pouted but left after placing a quick kiss to your forehead, ready for his team to hoot for him teasingly.

As soon as he was out of sight, you placed a hand over your beating heart in your chest and took a deep breath. Did he have any clue what he does to you?

AKAASHI

Right. So I headcanon that this guy is not that difficult to fluster but he, just like Kuroo, tries his best to hide it afraid you'd think that he is unattractive.

It's a difficult task to control his face from getting red because everything you do is so cute he can't help it. One time he had to physically remove himself from your presence before you could see his neck turning red.

This one-time Bokuto found him in the storage room, face buried between all the volleyballs in the basket. He has never been more scared in his life than seeing his teammate, who is the epitome of calm, losing his shit because his S/O decided to be cute that day. 

You weren't unaware of the effect you had on him but you knew that he was embarrassed, whatever his reason was, so you never intentionally did anything that would fluster him.

So imagine your surprise when you suddenly come face to face with a new side of him.

The two of you were hanging out in a cafe, you guys were on a study date. Keiji was immersed in his textbook, his hand holding yours across the table. You noticed that his lips were slightly chapped, thinking that they would hurt if his skin stretches, you call out to him, "Keiji." He looks up from his book at you, "Hmm?" he hums.

Without thinking, you swipe your thumb across your lower lip, gathering up the gloss and then proceed to wipe it on his lips. He couldn't even get up and hide, his entire face flushes a deep red. He buries his face in his folded arms on the table with a loud thud. "K-Keiji?!" you call out startled. "Are you okay?"

"J-just give me a minute, I need to calm down," he says, face still buried in his arms. "Okay?" you sit back, confused, taking a sip from your drink.

After a while, he slowly looks up, his face still slightly flushed. "You good?" you ask. He nods weakly. "Sorry..." he apologises. "You must think I look stupid."

You wrinkle your brows in confusion, "What?"

"I mean, I probably look dumb with my face all red and ugly..."

"Keiji," you begin calmly. "You have this effect on me all the time, do you think I look stupid?" you ask.

"No!" he says quickly. "I think you look adorable."

You smile, "There you go! What makes you think that I don't think that you don’t look adorable?" He looks away, unable to answer. "Sweety, you need to stop overthinking about things like that. I love you no matter what."

He smiles weakly and laces his fingers with your fingers. He didn't say anything after that, but you could feel him relax. He felt giddy in his heart, you said you loved him. He didn't tell you yet but he will soon, in a way you deserve to hear it.

[btsbling]

— Chocolate Syrup — Kth

🍒 pairing: Taehyung x reader

🍒 genre: sugardaddy!au, fluff, relationship!au

🍒 warning: smut, daddy!kink, breeding, unprotected sex (stay safe), foodplay

🍒 summary: When he asks you to become his

🍒 w/c: 2.54k 

©️ Btsbling (i do not own any BTS members except for the fanfiction)

The sound of the elevator rang through the hallways as Taehyung stepped out. Loosening his tie, while the other held onto his suit jacket and phone. He sighed and stretched his neck as he walked through the corridor to his luxury penthouse.

It was another tiring day, the office was buzzing, non-stop calling and meetings. Yet another day of fun filled signings of new business ideas.

Taehyung combed through his hair, he could finally take a breather when the clock striked twelve. He was finally done for the day and longed to rush back to his penthouse for, someone special.

He’d never thought he would ever admit it. But he had found a place for you in his heart. It was never supposed to be something long-term. Only for its short-term benefits that would provide him with immense feelings of satisfaction.

Taehyung had met you, fatefully, under the dim lights that slightly lit the bar. He had a meeting with one of his associates there. He didn’t understand why or how, but the way your eyes glimmered as you conversed with the customer in front of you, your actions while making drinks, captivated him. Everything about you, attracted him like bees to honey.

The pull he felt towards you was indescribable and he felt his eyes resting onto you whenever he got distracted which was, frequently. You weren’t dressed as scandalous as the performers on stage, but neither were you conservative. He couldn’t see anything behind the bar, but your shirt was a tight fit and provided him with enough cleavage, making his dick grow tighter in his pants.

But after the meeting, he had realised you were long gone, another bartender replacing you. He immediately felt a wave of disappointment wash over him. He went back home, asking his assistant to get more information about you.

It was then the beautiful chapter of you and him bloomed. When he had asked you to be his sugarbaby, after a few weeks of sitting at the bar and getting to know you better, you were genuinely surprised.

You were never opposed to the idea of being someone’s sugarbaby, but from someone like Kim Taehyung? That was something you’d never expect.

Kim Taehyung. Multi-millionaire living in the state of Korea. He was young, Greek god looks and a voice that could literally send you chills down your neck. In a good way of course. The way he stood, the way he stared at you made you feel the butterflies fluttering around your belly. It came as a surprise to you, he was kind, approachable and caring. Over the weeks of getting to know him from serving him at your bar, he would always remember to ask about your day, if you had eaten, and made sure you had a safe trip home.

When he approached you with the idea of being his sugarbaby, it took a few days to make a decision. Being his meant a possibility of having your identity talked about in the media like the next hot tea. But it wasn’t a bad idea. You were desperately trying to survive of two part-time jobs and having to pay for your apartment rentals and the medical fees of your sick grandmother.

In conclusion, your decision was something you would never regret.

In the beginning, it was definitely abit awkward, considering the fact that you were a naturally conservative person who wasn’t used to someone buying branded items for you or spending that much money either.

But Taehyung made sure you were comfortable with it and you grew used to seeing branded goods being sent up to your new luxury apartment, as well as a new car. It was never-ending, Taehyung spoiled you like you were his princess.

The two of you had grown extremely close, considering you guys spent much more time in his penthouse. Every night or even day if he ever had a break, was a new sex adventure in a different corner of the house. Sofa? Kitchen table? Windows? Every single place.

He was a literal greek god. Chiseled abs, toned muscular arms that held you firmly as he thrusted into you. His moans were like sounds made by an angel and the way he fucked you, made you even more happy that you accepted his offer.

Taehyung would be lying if he said that he hadn’t gotten used to your presence. Immense happiness would fill his chest with a warm feeling whenever he awoke to the sight of your beautiful face, figure curled and snuggled into his chest. He would take the time to enjoy the sunrise if he had woken up early, hand brushing softly through your hair and leaving light feathery kisses on your face and neck.

It was the best feeling in the entire world, watching as the sky turned into a canvas that was painted with a variety of warm colours. It was a sight to behold. But it was nothing compared to you.

Memories of the night before, where the two of you just cuddled in the bed, his cock stuffed into your warm pussy, sharing stories about your day before falling into deep sleep soon after. Cock warming would have to be one of his favorite cuddle positions.

His heartbeat slowed to a comfortable pace. He felt at peace with you in his arms, as he looked out into the windows.

Taehyung couldn’t live without you.

It was a scary thought, given the fact that he never would’ve imagined falling in love with you over the year you guys spent together as Sugardaddy and sugarbaby.

But he got over it, you were worth it. Even with your hair in a mess, and a small drool dripping from your face, you were still the most gorgeous woman he had ever met. Not only that, you had the kindest of heart, always checking up on him, buying him good health products with your own money and even preparing  home cooked meals for him.

Taehyung glanced down at you, a big smile gracing his face. He was staring at his sweetheart. The only person he could love with all his heart for the rest of his life.

Taehyung could only hope that you felt the same way as he did, even if you didn’t, he would’ve chased after you until you told him to stop.

He loved you more than anything.

and he couldn’t lose you.

He placed his shoes neatly, knowing how much you hated when he threw them without any care in the world.

“Babe?” he called out for you from the kitchen as he made a beeline for the cold, refreshing water in the fridge. As he turned around, he saw you cuddled up with a blanket on the sofa, a book loosely hanging from your hand while you slept in Taehyung’s hoodie.

Taehyung’s heart swelled, knowing that you had stayed up to wait for him. he sat on the sofa beside you, brushing your hair and leaving kisses on your face before you woke up.

“Tae? wha-what’s the time?” you asked groggily, which Taehyung found to be extremely adorable.

“Come on Honey, let’s get your sweet ass into bed. It’s one am” You had no energy to respond, only managing a small nod before you were lifted into Taehyung’s hard chest. His familiar smell making you snuggled closer into the crook of his neck.

Taehyung gently placed you on the bed, covering you with the comforter before taking a quick shower and joining you in bed.

He lifted the duvets before wrapping his arms around your waist, pulling you closer to him. You eyes were closing by the second. Taehyung gave you a kiss, gentle and sweet, taking his time to savor his favorite moment of the day.

“I love you so much” he mustered up when your eyes closed fully. Taehyung stared at you before kissing your forehead and taking a whiff of your shampoo that he absolutely adored. “i hope you’ll say yes baby” he mumbled, before joining you in dreamland almost immediately

You awoke to the sunlight peeking through the windows and the heavenly smell of pancakes. Stretching out a yawn and sitting up, you smiled, thinking of how perfect everything was. Although you knew it wasn’t going to be like this forever, at that moment, it seemed like happiness would be eternity.

With that you cuddled back into the blankets only to be dragged by taehyung as he chuckles at you.

“Babe wake up, i made pancakes” he whispered to you, carrying you and placing you on his lap like a baby. Taehyung placed a kiss on your lips before smiling cutely at you.

You shook your head and pouted cutely, knowing full well he would give in and feed you in bed. Taehyung groaned before pushing you playfully, heading towards the door while you laughed.

You quickly washed up and as you were coming out of the fancy bathroom, your jaws dropped at the scene in front of you, your eyes welling with tears.

Presents from different expensive brands, shoes, bags, flowers and balloons. A pack of your favorite candy, Hershey kisses on the bed and he held a plate of pancakes while waiting for you in bed.

“Tae...what’s all this?” your voice almost broke as you quickly strolled to his side. He set the pancakes on the bedside table and quickly pulled you to sit on his lap. His face had a slight red hue as he nuzzled into your neck nervously. “i er” Taehyung mumbled before take a deep breathe, turning your face towards him.

“Y/n L/n, you genuinely complete my life” he chuckled, booping you on the nose. “Baby, you’re the one i want to see whenever i wake up in the morning, the one i want to greet whenever i reach home. I want to do things just to make you happy and see your beautiful smile.” As he said that, you smiled widely.

“I know this wasn’t supposed to develop into a deep relationship but i can’t help it. You’ve made me fall, so deep in love with you sweetheart” He whispered, holding your chin and placing a chaste kiss on your lips.

“Be my girlfriend, move in with me. We can write a new chapter. I just want everyone to know that you’re mine, as much as i’m yours, officially” The tears you were holding in, finally slid down your cheeks as you nodded frantically and turning to hug him as tight as you could.

Taehyung wiped away your tears, smiling as he was trapped from beneath you. Unconsciously, you grinded softly on his manhood, feeling his rod perk even though he had already taken a cold bathe to calm himself down.

His moans motivated you as you sat upright, grinding harder onto his clothed manhood. His large hands radiating heat as he rubbed your hips from the sides before grabbing the ends of his t-shirt that you were wearing and pulled it over your shoulders and head.

“So beautiful, my angel”

His actions left you completely bare except for your panties that barely covered your pussy lips. Taehyung captured your lips in a hurry, but it expressed the passion and heat he was feeling.

His experienced hands maneuvered its way to your nipples, massaging them and he broke away from your kiss to suck on one of them. You unconsciously pushed him closer to your breasts, the immense pleasure overtaking you.

“T-tae please”

“Tell Daddy what you want hmm” he hummed, his lips leaving your breasts and instead sucking onto your neck like you were his next snack.

You were breathless, your pulse racing, you damn well feel the wetness pooling in your panties beneath you.

“w-want your dick please” you almost screamed out as his fingers pulled your panties aside and inserted three fingers in one go.

“So wet for me already baby? Bet i could slide my cock right inside of you easily. But first” Taehyung whispered. “Daddy’s going to enjoy himself”

he reached towards the bedside table, grabbing the choco syrup bottle that he left, and squirting it all over your chest and thighs.

Taehyung continued to finger you as he licked the syrup off your body. Your spine arched to meet his tongue.

“Moan out my name baby” Taehyung demanded, his thumb rubbing on your core, edging on your orgasm.

His fingers and tongue wonders for you and soon your toes were curling and your eyes were rolled back, screaming as you came on Taehyung’s fingers.

Taehyung groaned as he slid his fingers out of you and licked your juice, humming as he did so. “Sweeter than syrup” he smirked.

You were breathless, chest heaving up and down. Taehyung took out his dick from the sweatpants he were wearing. You licked your lips as the delicious sight of his erect cock made you even wet than before.

Taehyung slid down your soaked panties slowly, before pressing his face towards your wet cunt and taking a swift lick.

“you’re so damn delicious babygirl” licking his lips as he aligned his cock with the entrance of your pussy, prepping your already wet pussy with his precum

“P-please tae, put it in me” Taehyung smirked

“What’s my name babygirl” Taehyung demanded

“T-taehyung” you whimpered out, feeling his head sliding in and out quickly.

“No baby, what’s my name” He asked again

“D-daddy please” screaming as he entered with one big thrust

Taehyung’s hands held your hips as thrusted harder and harder. You moaned with each thrust as you felt his big cock stretching you out. “You look so sexy, beneath me, taking my cock like the good girl you are” Taehyung breathed out.

He watched your breasts bounce as he thrusted harder into you, watching your face contort into full pleasure as he hit your g-spot.

“Right there d-daddy, right there” you screamed, ready to release.

Taehyung groaned as he changed his angle, sliding into you deeper and harder. “I’m coming babygirl, cum with daddy”

“Give me your milk daddy please, use me, cum in me. I’m on the pill, please i need your cum” You cried out, Taehyung moaned at your dirty talk, loving how it sounded coming out of you.

After a few more thrusts, you came first, milking his cock and after helping ride out your high, Taehyung came afterwards, filling you with his hot cum, thick spurts releasing in you. Your chest heaved up and down, as Taehyung collapsed tiredly onto you, his face nestled in your soft breasts.

He pulled the blanket over the two of you, resting on his forearms to stare lovingly at you. Taehyung smiled softly, loving the after-sex glow and the soft sunlight that made you look more like an angel. You smiled tiredly at him, brushing away his bangs and gently rubbing his cheeks. Your smile widening as you felt him nuzzle into your soft touch.

“i love you so much Kim Taehyung, and i’ll be so happy to be your girlfriend” you whispered Taehyung grinned before standing up and carrying you princess style to the bathroom. 

“I love you as much as i loved the breakfast session i just had” he grinned mischievously 

Please leave some feedback!

[blackstar95]

The Brothers reaction when MC slaps their ass

Lucifer

As usual, Lucifer listened to some classical music and poured himself a glass of wine to relax a bit.

Once he was done, he brought the glass to his lips and took a sip, savoring the taste.

"Mhm," he hummed to the sound of the melody and blissfully closed his eyes, enjoying the quiet moment he was having.

Much to his dismay, you entered his office without making yourself noticable.

Now dont get me wrong, he loves enjoys your company.

But not when your main goal is to tease him.

An thats exactly what you were doing.

You grinned mischievously as you slowly crept up to him, his back turned to you.

Since he was in his own state of mind, he didn't noticed anything.

That was until you reached your hand out.

In that milisecond, Lucifer's senses were tingling and his eyes shot open, turning around as fast as lightning.

But it was too late.

He only watched as your right hand colided with his left buttcheek, giving it a good squeeze afterwards.

Lucifer jumped and just stared at you in shock, processing what just happend.

And you just stood there with an empty expression, your eyes starring at your palm.

"Wow, your butt is actuallly softer than I thought".

Lucifer furrowed his brows in anger and shook his head.

"MC".

"Yeah?" You asked, looking up at him innocently.

Lucifer had that closed eyed smile with an dark aura surrounding him.

"Now, what made you think this was an good idea, MC?".

You shrugged and slowly walked backwards, shivering nervously "I dont know.. I was just curious?"

"Curious?" He met up with your steps and tilted his head to the side, his smile never leaving

He became dangerously close, making you more nervous than you already are.

You felt your back hitting the wall and your eyes widened.

Oh lord...

Lucifer slammed his palm beside your head, caging you.

You flinched and looked to the ground, feeling suddenly so tiny under him.

Lucifer cupped your cheek and made you look back up at him, a sadistic smile on his lips.

"Such inappropriate behavior should be punished, MC"

I leave the rest up to your imagination.

Mammon

Mammon was walking beside you as always, being practically attached to your hip (nothing new).

You guys were at R.A.D on your way to the cafeteria, since it was break time.

The greedy demon beside you rambled about that new scheme to make money, and you once again had to talk him out of it.

"Ya! It aint a dumb idea!" He protested.

"It is Mammon. Just think about Lucifers reaction and the consequences," you shook your head "Want to hang from the ceiling that bad?".

Mammon only scuffed, turning his head to the side.

You glanced over to him and noticed a visible pout on his lips, making him look like a child.

"Hey, Mammon".

"Hm?" He looked over at you "What's up?".

You raised your hand and reached over for his bottom, smiling sweetly at him.

"Cheer up".

He was about to question you, but before he could even start his sentence, you cutted him off with a real loud smack on his ass.

Mammons stopped dead in his tracks and his eyes widened in shock "W-what?".

Once realisation kicked in, his face flushed in an intsant.

"O-oi, human! Whats the big deal slappin' my butt like that?!". He yelled at you, looking like a fricking tomato.

You couldnt help but let out a few chuckles, highly amused by his reaction.

"Ya! It aint funny!"

Thanks to his loud voice, the whole hallway now knew what just had happened.

Leviathan

Leviathan walked down the stairs to the dining room.

He was really excited because he finally got his hands on the new Ruri-chan merchandise that came out.

"Woaah! I cant believe I got that limited edition figurine!, its SO rare and the new outfit- its just soo angelic-"

Levi being caught in his own ramblings didnt noticed that you were walking beside him.

"And that new hairstyle! I cant believe Ruri-chan could get even more cuter than she already is-"

"Say Levi, to who'm are you talking to?"

"WAh!", Levi jumped slightly at the sound of your voice and almost tripped over his own foot.

"Wha- MC!? How long have you been here!?"

You smiled at him and grabbed his shoulder for support, preventing him from falling down the stairs.

"There there, calm down. I didnt heard much".

Levi let out an sigh of relief and turned to you.

"Yeah right, I mean who would want to listen to an yucky otaku like me?".

You facepalmed in your mind and sighed, he really needs more confidence.

Leviathan kept walking and pitying himself, mumbling random stuff.

He has such a negative mindset.

You walked up behind him not thinking much.

But then you stared at his head and then his back,

Eventually your eyes landed on his bottom.

You smirked to yourself as you just ran past him, giving his butt a hard and loud smack.

Levi yelped in surprise and stood still, overwhelmed with what just had happened.

His hand grabbed his right buttcheek and rubbed it, being too shocked to react.

You turned around and waved at him. "Damn Levi, you really got an nice butt there! Im soo jealous!"

You then disapperaed in the dining room.

Levis brain needed a whole minute to process what just had happened.

And then he became a stuttering mess.

"M-M-MC! W-what was that now?!, h-hey wait!" He hid his flushed face behind the back of his hand as he stumbled after you.

Ngl he was kinda happy you touched him.

Satan

Satan was on kitchen duty, cooking his curry.

He invited you to join and help, so you guys could spend some time together.

And theres no way you would ignore that chance.

So here you were beside him, giving him the ingredients he asks for and making some small talk.

"Did you know that Beel almost ate my hair in his sleep?" You sighed "Im lucky im not bald".

Satan glimpsed at you and raised his eyebrow, shaking his head, "His hunger really doesnt know its limits".

He looked up, "Well speaking of sleep, I had an unpleasant dream last night."

You handed him the spoon and nodded "What was it about?"

Satan sighed, "Beel ate too much and grew to be a giant. He then ate the House of Lamentation, leaving the rest of us homeless".

You laughed, "Why do I have a feeling that could actually happen?"

Satan frowned "He already eats plates, its only a matter of time until he starts eating the walls".

You chuckled, intending to jokingly slap his arm.

But since you werent focused on what you were doing, you didnt notice how your slap landed right on his butt.

Satan dropped the spoon he was holding and looked at you with wide eyes.

"What are you doing?"

You turned to him with an confused expression "Did I do something wrong?"

Satan cocked an eyebrow and leaned his head to the side "You just slapped my butt".

Now its your turn to look at him with wide eyes. "I did what now?".

Satan didnt knew if you were joking or not, and it was kinda ticking him off.

"My butt. You slapped it".

"No I only slapped your arm- ohh wait..." you chuckled.

"What is so funny?" He asked you with furrowed brows.

"Sorry Satan, I wasnt focusing on what I was doing and accidently slapped your butt instead of your arm," You shrugged "My bad".

Satan nodded and turned back to what he was doing "Next time be more careful, or I will return the gesture".

You smirked and leaned over to him "I wouldnt mind that".

He will remember that.

Asmodeus

Asmo was having a mid-life crisis.

He was on one of his diets, because his waist gained 1 millicentimeter.

You assured him that a little more weight always looks good and healthy but he wont listen.

So here you were infront of him, eating one of his favorite Cupcakes.

"MC darling, why do you have to torture me like that?"

He whined "Its not faair!"

You just shrugged "I have another cupcake left for you, but since you're on your little 'diet' I will give it to Beel."

He sighed and dropped his head on the table "Does my pain bring you pleasure?".

You frowned "I-"

Asmo gasps and sat back up straight. "Dont tell me your into that stuff?, Wow!"

He smiled and wiggled in his chair.

You sighed and shook you head "Asmodeus, stop".

He pouted "You're no fun..".

After some time you finally finished the cupcake and Asmodeus had reached his limit.

He watched as you stood up and walk towards to the kitchen.

"Wait, what are you doing?" He also stood up and followed you.

"I will bring the cupcake to Beel-"

"No, wait!" he grabbed your wrist and stared at you.

You looked back at him "What is it, Asmodeus?".

He glimpsed to the side "I dont want him to eat my cupcake.."

You clicked your tounge and pulled him towards you, making him stumble to the side

"What are you doi- AH!" He moaned yelped in surprise as you slapped his ass.

"Just eat that damn Cupcake. Its not like you will gain 10kg from it".

He blushed "Oooooh MC! That really made me excited! How harsh you pulled my wrist-"

You just let go of him and left the room.

"MC where are you going?, you cant just leave me here!"

Beelzebub

Beelzebub asked you to keep him company while working out.

And of course you said yes.

So now you sat there, on the bench with a towel in hand, enjoying the view infront of you.

Beelzebubs biceps flexed as he lifted weights, and his white tanktop was drenched in sweat, making it transparent.

His abs showed through the fabric and you blushed.

How can this man be so big and muscular?

You blinked when he stopped his workout and laid the weights back down.

He grabbed his bottle from the floor and drank from it, taking big gulps.

You decided to stand up and walked over to him.

"Hey, Beel"

Beel lowered the bottle from his mouth and smiled at you "Hey, MC!"

You smiled back, and held the towel in your hand out to him, "Here take this".

"Thanks" He nodded at you and grabbed it, wiping the sweat on his face away.

"So, how is the workout going so far?" You asked couriously.

"Im still warming up" he replied.

You blinked, Still at warming up, huh?.. impressive.

"But im starting to feel hungry..." Beel pouted.

You laughed "You can do it Beelzebub, I believe in you".

He blushed and smiled at you "Thanks, MC!"

So cute.

You nodded and patted his shoulder "Sure".

Beel proceeded to start his warm up again, starting with some sit-ups.

But you had other plans.

"Beel wait!" You ran up to him.

He stopped what he was doing and looked over at you "What is it, MC?"

Before he could fully turn his body to you, he felt a stinging sensitation on his butt.

He looked at you startled, now realising you slapped it.

"Wow Beel, your buttcheeks are pretty hard.. are they made of iron or something?" You hold your hand up to your face.

Beel blushed slightly, not knowing what to do or say.

You just shrugged and turned around, marching towards the bench you were sitting on.

But suddenly, you felt a light clap on your own butt.

You gasped, "What-, Beel?!" You looked behind you and saw him standing there, smiling.

"Your butt feels really soft and nice, MC". he chuckled, "Is that a human thing to do?"

"Beel no-"

Belphegor

Belphegor was taking a nap in the attic, skipping the student council meeting.

And since you were coming late to the meeting due to some complications, Lucifer ordered you to search for Belphie and bring him there along with you.

And thats how you ended up infront of the attic, clearly annoyed.

"Belphegor," you spoke as you opened the door "I know you're in here".

The youngest brother laid on the bed, snoring and cuddling into his cow pillow.

You walked over to him and shook him "Hey Belphegor! Wake up!"

He stirred in his sleep and furrowed his brows.

Eventually he opened one eye and glimpsed at you. "What is it?"

"Lucifer wants me to bring you to the council meeting" you explained.

"Too bad, I wont go" he closed his eyes again. "Why dont you join me?"

"No," you shook your head, "Please, stand up".

He groaned "No, I dont want to go".

Thats it

You grabbed Belphegor by his arms, and turned him on his stomach.

His eyes shot open "Dah! W-what, hey-"

You raised your hand and slapped his ass, the sound of it echoing through the room.

Belphegor jumped and sat up straight, looking at you in disbelief.

"What was that for?!" He blushed

"You should stand up," you crossed your arm over your chest "I asked you nicely but you wont listen".

"Alright..," He closed his eyes "I will go"

You nodded "good"

But before you could turn around, Belphegor grabbed your wrist and laid you over his lap, his hand resting on your butt.

You blushed when you realised what he was doing,

You tried to escape, but his grip on you was too tight.

"Heheh," he chuckled "Time for payback".

"B-belphegor-" you were interrupted by his hand squeezing your left cheek slightly, making you shiver.

Belphegor raised his hand and striked an direct slap on your butt.

He expected you to squeak cutely, but instead a loud moan left your lips.

You quickly sat up and covered your mouth, an massive blush on your face.

Belphegor stared at you with wide eyes,

But after a few seconds he smirked.

"Didnt knew you're into that stuff," he teased you "Im not complaining though".

You just hid your face in his shoulder, too embarassed to look up "Dont tell anyone about this..".

Belphegor chuckled and patted your head "I wont, that would ruin the fun".

He will still tease you about it tho, but just when you guys are alone.

[cazimagines]

Wine Red

Synopsis: You prepare a fun evening for Zemo after he gets back from his work

Word count: 2.3k

Warnings/Tags: Switch reader and switch Zemo, Cuffs, Rope, Smut, Fingering, Blindfold, Vaginal sex, unsafe sex, blow job, kinky, Romantic smut

FOR MATURE READERS

Also posted on my ao3 account, under the same name

You smiled as the last candle lit up. You tiptoe across the floor, careful not to disturb the rose petals you had scattered on the floor, or knocking over one of the many candles that covered the floor in a heart-shaped pattern. You jump over to the bed, sitting down on the red satin that covers it. You glanced over to the wine that laid in the ice bucket debating if you should open it early but you decide against it. Instead, you grab Zemo’s coat, the one with the fur collar which you had stolen from him, and draped it over your body which you were only wearing red victoria secret lace underwear on. You lied back on the bed, your head on the pillows anticipating what’s coming when Zemo enters through the door. Zemo often had to work late into the evening because of his business, which left you at home alone a lot. You didn’t mind; you found things to keep you occupied, but when he came back home, you wanted to spend every moment with him making up for the time you lost.

You don’t have to wait long till you hear the front door open and close and footsteps slowly come up the stairs. You sit upwards, eyes locked on the door as it opens.

Zemo slowly walks in, his eyes lighting up as he sees you. He cheekily grins at you as his eyes rake up and down your body.

“So that’s what happened to my coat”

Zemo was wearing his formal clothes, black tailored trousers, a white dress shirt with a tie around it. He had already shrugged his suit jacket off and was holding it in his arm. You could feel yourself warming up at just seeing how tight fitted the shirt was to Zemo. It showed off the slight muscles he has built up and complimented his figure.

“I think the coat suits me,” you reply, shaking your shoulders at him, making the coat move slightly on your body, the fur shaking under your chin.

Zemo places his suit jacket on a chair at the side, then gets onto the bed, crawling over you till he is hovering over your legs.

He places kisses on them, moving upwards to your underwear. You throw your head back in pleasure as you feel the light kisses gently trail up your legs. He glances up, “Is there a special occasion I have forgotten”

“No occasion, I just wanted some fun”

You reach forward grasping onto his tie and pulling him forward till he is leaning over you. You crash your lips onto his hungrily. Tugging on his thin top lip. He brings his hands up to tangle in your hair, trying to keep your head steady as he delves deeper into the kiss. You flicker your tongue against his lips and he opens them quickly to let you in. He moans slightly as he feels you exploring him passionately. Your tongue intertwining with his, rubbing and prodding it. His hand sneaks down your body, brushing against your underwear. His fingers hooking on the hem of your underwear, wanting to pull them down. You smirk, feeling the bulge in his trousers press against you, knowing his impatience always got the best of him. You pull back from the kiss and push him over till he was laying by the side of you.

“Hey!” he whines from suddenly being deprived of the passion.

“I thought we could have a drink first” you cheekily say, leaning onto your side to grab the wine.

“Such a tease” Zemo whispers, also turning onto his side so he pressed into your back and left a brief kiss on your shoulder as his hand rested on your hip. He then sits up, grabbing the glasses off to the side as you pour the wine.

“How was your day?” you ask after a few minutes of you two cuddling and together drinking.

“It was good. I had to attend some business meetings. You know what about. There was one guy who had some big ideas. I reminded him exactly who had the power there”

“Flaunting the fact you are a Baron again,” you say

“Of course. What’s the point of having the title if I can’t flaunt it”

You place your now empty glass on the side and take Zemo’s glass out of his hand. He raises his eyebrow at you questionably, but grins widely as you push him onto his back and crawl on top of him. Straddling his hips. You shrug the coat off and chuck it to the floor. Your underwear following it.

“Who has the power now?” you ask him as you look down on him. Your hands trail up his body, playing with the tie, but as soon as they reach the collar you aggressively pull the shirt and tie off him, leaving him bare chested.

He shakily breaths out as the bulge in his pants pushes against you. “You, my baroness”

You reach into the draw by the side and pull out a pair of cuffs. Quickly grasping his wrists, you attach the cuffs to them and use the other end of the cuffs to attach them to the headboard.

“And don’t you forget it” you whisper in his ear then kiss him passionately. You could feel the inside of your pants get wetter as you watched Zemo’s hands strain against the cuffs bounding him. His urge to wrap his arms around you was strong, but he also enjoyed being completely vulnerable to you, so he let you take the lead this time. You leave his lips trailing down his body. You trace your tongue along the outline of his abs and when you get to them you place multiple kisses on his v line. Zemo groans, feeling all the blood rush down below.

Tugging at his trousers, you slowly slip them down, leaving him in his boxers. You could see his dick pressing up against the thin fabric. You pull the boxers off, letting it spring loose. It was a suitable length, not too long to hurt, but certainly enough to leave you satisfied. Already some pre cum had leaked out the tip. Gently you hold it in your hand and run your tongue up the side, licking up the pre-cum. Your eyes never leave Zemo’s as he watches you, his chest heaving heavily. You rub your hand along the base and your mouth goes over the top, sucking. Zemo pushes his head back into the pillows, letting at a moan as he thrusts his hips up, making your mouth take in more of his dick. You can feel it hit the back of your throat, you try desperately hard not to gag.

You bop your head up and down, eyes glued on Zemo’s face of delight. His slight moans he let out were music to your ears. His eyes were half closed, his mouth ajar, and a light blush came to his cheeks. Your tongue rested against the side and let it run over the vein that ran up his dick. You could feel him harden in your mouth and his nails dug into his hands as he came close. Chuckling, you pulled away before he could release.

Zemo whined as your denial to him. “You’ll pay for that later y/n” he growls

“We’ll see” you tease climbing back onto him, nipping the skin on his collarbone. Sitting up, you position yourself over his waist and slide onto his dick. You breathe in as you feel him stretch you open, filling you up. Zemo groans, his back arching slightly as he fights his urges to hold on to you as his hands strain in the cuffs. You place your hands on his chest, your nails dragging slightly, to keep you steady as you move your hips in a circular motion and try to move up and down slightly.

Your moans join in with his as you could feel your pleasure rising. Zemo started moving his hips in time with yours, his skin brushing up hardly against your clit, sending pleasure through your brain. You held on tight and you rode up and down on his waist, feeling the knot in your stomach tightening.

“Y/n'' he moaned, and you knew he was close. You could feel him twitch inside of you and then his seed released, squirting into you. You were quick to follow in climaxing, cumming over him as you float onto Cloud 9.

You move off him and collapse beside him, panting heavily. You reach over to Zemo, taking the cuffs off his hands, letting him freely move his arms again.

After laying beside you for a few minutes, Zemo gets off the side of the bed, walking over to the draw to grab something out of a draw. You lean on your side, your eyes admiring his ass as his back is turned to yours.

“Going for a 2nd round are we” you ask smirking, Zemo’s turns his head chuckling seeing where you were staring, “I said you would pay for what you did earlier”

He approaches you again, holding something in his hand. You raise an eyebrow at him curiously, then giggle when you realise what it was.

Zemo grabs his tie that had been discarded on the floor and takes it to your face, covering your eyes and tying it behind your head, taking away your sense of sight. His hands trail up your skin, making you feel tingles. Goosebumps rise on you, being utterly helpless to him.

Being unable to see, he used it to his advantage to touch and kiss you in places before pulling away so you did not know where he would touch next. One moment he was on your neck, then the next moment he was on your thigh.

You could feel yourself getting wetter wanting him and you whined as he teased you. “Have more patience, y/n '' Zemo muttered, pressing a kiss on to your stomach.

He pulls back again; he grabs what he had gotten out of the draw. He grabs your wrists and ties the red rope around them. He attaches them to the headboard, similar to what you had done to him. He takes the rest of the rope and wraps it around your boobs and chest, taking it down to wrap around your tights and tying them to the side of the bed, leaving you spread.

He moves off the bed, leaving you completely vulnerable. “Zemo” you moan out, feeling the urge to want to feel him inside you. Your toes dig into the sheets of the bed.

“Oh, do you want something y/n?” Zemo asks, sounding as if he was across the room

“You know what I want!” You say growling

“I really don’t. Use your sweet words and tell me,” Zemo replies

“Please Zemo”

“Please what?” Zemo asks as you feel the bed dip near the end

“Touch me”

“Like this?” one of his fingers touches your leg, the contact making you jerk. His finger trails up your leg, on your inner thigh but stops short before your core then moves away

“More!” you moan, and he places his hand on your tight, his hands digging into the soft flesh. His other hand reaching up to your core, hovering just outside it.

“Please Zemo, fuck me” you finally beg and you can feel the breath of his chuckle against your tight.

Swiftly one of his fingers entered you, curling inside, making you cry out. He moves it in and out, pushing in as far as he can. He quickly enters one finger, then another after stretching you out. Because of earlier you were really wet allowing him to easily pump his fingers in and out of you, many sounds came out because of it.

Your clit throbs from its desire for attention, making you cry. Zemo knew how you were feeling, but he was waiting for you to say. Finally, you give in crying out, “Zemo please touch my clit”

“If you so wish my Baroness”

Your back arches as you feel his wet tongue come in contact with your clit, twisting around its nub, sending waves of shocks throughout your body. He rocked your world as his fingers worked in and out of you and his mouth sucked on your clit. You strained against the restraints as you felt yourself sweating. You felt the climax coming again, but just like you had with Zemo previously; he pulled away before you were satisfied.

“Zemo!” you groaned, but he didn’t leave you for long. He crawled up till he was over your body and then slipped his dick inside of you. One of his hands wrapped around the side of your neck, squeezing while his other hand fondled your breast. His mouth wrapped around your other breast, sucking on the nipple as he thrusts quickly into you. The force makes your body bob up and down. Your moans grew louder and louder as you felt the knot in your stomach tighten again. Zemo switches giving attention to the other breast. He sucks and slightly grazes his teeth on it making you gasp. Zemo finally leaves your breasts to pull you into a passionate kiss while his other hand goes back to giving your clit some more attention. In doing so, he causes you to orgasm, clenching down on his dick tightly. You moan into his lips as he grunts, thrusting into you. He slightly bites your bottom lip as his thrusts grow less rhythmic and wild till he thrusts one ultimate time, releasing into you once again.

He lies on top of you, panting. He reaches up and takes the tie off you and undo the rope attached to the headboard. You bring your arms over his head, hugging him and closing your eyes, drifting off into a sleep as you hold him close.

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