#of how easy it is to be targetted and fall back into things without proper support

[thedeafprophet]

Jamie's relationship to alcohol/drug is a complicated magter, even before...direct influence comes into play. So many factors come into play, many outside their own influence.

The social attitude at the time very much allowed them to be brought into contact with things at a younger age than they perhaps would have otherwise, not to mention how common it was in the social areas and artsy scenes they frequent, back on the surface and on the neath. It was and is practically expected of them.

We've all seen the texts about the bohemian faction after all.

This mixes rather poorly with Jamie's individual circumstances. Trauma and mental illness can make one vulnerable to these things. Combined with the unknown issue of highly impacting ADHD, Jamie leans often into fully unaware self medicating to help themself function in the day to day. A few times becomes habit, a process becomes routine, and they don't even realize what is ongoing until things are far, far too late.

And there's something to be said, for how those who are vulnerable and struggle with mental illness, can often be targeted by those who are predatory.

[lizaluvsthis]

The Absence of a Father

SMG4 Movie: Silence of the Cats

MAJOR SPOILERS

This content was labelled mature for mentions of a mother and kids- though its not a serious situation. It is only fictional.

Let's get to the point, this movie thoroughly explains how big of an -ss head Mr WPNZ became after his kids would choose their mother over him.

Now the reason it all takes place is very simple. It's not what they will need. It's what they will want and have. Guidance. A parent to guide them to know what they do is right. A parent is good to their own kid and even if they get hurt, a parent will always be there to help. Not to be forcefully used.

As someone like Mr. WPNZ had an absence of a father around his kids for so long that the kids didn't even know they even had a father at first. Every mother speaks the truth. Being pr-gn-nt and raising kids is a very risky decision to make, and Karen chose the right thing to give her kids a better life.

What leaves the question is... who really left?

Was it Mr WPNZ or Karen? Either say on behalf of half that Karen parted her ways and retired her job being part of an assassin. And WPNZ possibly knew or not about her being pr-gn-nt, only leaving for us this question.

Why can't they have a better family?

It's because it's impossible. Seeing how Mr WPNZ and his strong intentions of destruction and the whole murdering going on, he didn't think for a moment about what future his kids would've had if they were raised in a future having him as the father by their side. And overall, it is a real crime that murdering people can have you arrested, and it's why it's dangerous to juggle all of them at once.

The only reason Karen chose to leave WPNZ unattended is to not GIVE the KIDS a BAD INFLUENCE from him. But if it were to ever happen, at least we had to give Mr WPNZ a chance of being a good father for the kids.

But had mr WPNZ ever thought that having kids raised with karen and being present by that day would risk of losing their kids if they became a target? But NO all he thought as simple as a pie that they can fight back, that they're stronger enough. He thought it's the best for them.

When Karen said no to Mr WPNZ, he respected her decision even after his presence came known from the children. He didn't waste anymore second and left, and he was being direct to her thinking that it would've been nice to come back. To come and see his own kids for the very first time. Because they hadn't met him in general, only from him whenever he saw them around, although it was never easy he had been there without them knowing it was him for the very first time.

And to the time that made me touched, was that he still had Karen's weapon. A weapon he gave just for her was in his hands with that polite kneeling down for an offer. Matter of time just until she stomped on his face with rejection.

Can we all just talk about the part when they were doing a shooting game from an arcade? I still see a good in their relationship when we saw how in that split second, Karen didn't let him slide over that mention of having a higher k-ll count over her. Because they both know, they ran over this whole shooting game when they were "partners" during their old times. And believe me, Mr WPNZ missed the times that they did this. It's how he kept calling Katana not just by her real name. It's by explaining how he sees so much of the old her.

But Karen couldn't compete with WPNZ either, just reminding herself that she was a mother of 3 kids. It was too much for her to deal with having an ex that she has.

When we saw Karen instinctively giving out training wheels for her kids to have proper balance without falling and getting hurt, we saw it as gentle parenting. No parent wants their own kids to get hurt when they fall. But no one is there to remind them to lessen it.

Because until they grow up, they won't get used to it. And that's exactly the point how Mr WPNZ explained it to Karen, he used a common sense for her to give her kids a treat for once.

With a dad's absence it must have been hard to live a life alone with all of the duty he had gone through, spending his own on his missions with no care. But getting called "dad" left him hope. It did break him alot after hearing his own kid call him that for the very first time, he hadn't been present for all of their life after they were born.

It would have given him a second thought that he'll teach his own kids for the better and GIVE himself time to be a good father for their kids again.

And the fact he called her by her name "Karen" sends me shivers, Karen is surprised by that. Because we see timestamps. WPNZ calls Karen by her old name, but her new name however. Is a tip from his tongue and we can tell by this act that he was serious, and genuine for her and the kids. He thought about the present her.

After we see Karen phase out for staring at hugging their kids with that paw out it might have given her a thought, what would've happened if things that they went from being assassins never began from the start? If only she could have given him a chance but without the whole weaponry thing involved and all of the k-ll-ngs, would that ever have changed them?

Now seeing how Karen looked at her kids with their dad having time for each other. They were having a nice time of their life, she of course had never seen them this happy before. It's way more different to have a mother-kid bonding time with a father-kid bonding time. And by that matter, she would've never known how having a father-bonding meant to them. It's because SHE never had a dad to begin with.

She was a lonely cat who lived in a street as the lore showed back in the previous episodes we learned. She was a lonely kitten that had no guide, but was picked up from the side after an agent saw her.

The mention of going with him "for a Secret Mission" made her overreact and chose to prevent her kids from making the bad decision.

So the expression Mr. WPNZ made after Karen said he had not changed for one bit was TOTALLY out from the gutter. Karen THINKS mr WPNZ is taking her KIDS away from her even though he was only taking them out on a real mission to test their sk-ll. And JUDGING from that reaction, is because she never considered trusting him from any kind of danger for once and this made him so upset that he just lost Karen completely. To completely turn her view, mr WPNZ thought of the kids too. Not just her. He thought of letting them use their power to know that one day it could save their lives. But not how Karen wanted it or expected coming from him, although the kids are awfully young. She can't take her chances to give the life that she never WANT them to have.

"Have you ever asked them what THEY want?"

It only took her down to 0 after that, she was so afraid of watching her kids that would one day grow up to be like him.

To a moral lesson thanks to smg4, that's from the part she starts to change her ways and support her own kids no matter what. Depending on their own decisions, she watched her own kids grow up and it's their time to pick their own decisions, young or old.

When WPNZ told Karen that they needed tough love to learn the hardships of becoming LIKE their dad. It's not how they wanted and expected from him at all, as part of a good and bad parenting. Some parents tend to give their child tough love in order to discipline themselves, to THINK for themselves that they have the opportunity to control their power. But it is NEVER easy to put on a tough love with a kid because every child is fragile with a pure heart. No kid deserves to be treated that way ESPECIALLY with his kind of parenting to them, it only says the truth that he needs to learn a thing about children BEFORE striking out from doing over missions instead of teaching them their lessons of seriousness.

Kids like them are still too young to be exposed to the influence of handing guns or any kind of criminal act that they THINK is fun and all games to have. This just gives him more of a smack in the face after the kids chose Karen's kind and gentle parenting over him.

It's reasonable enough due to how he has never been there with them from the start. And it has all been about their mom even when she provided them everything, she was an ultimate sacrifice. A breadwinner of the family. Thanks to her, she gave her kids a purpose.

Mr WPNZ didn't know any better, that's why he was served a better treatment for getting finished off. How many times that he got rejected, he needed to be with someone he was closest with. But even yet he couldn't do that either.

[beatskylar]

A broken memory, is a knife to the heart. Part 3

“Who are you? What are you doing here?”

“Who are you?” “And what are you doing here?”

Taking a deep breath in, Carmen slowly exhales as her eyes flutter open revealing that she is in a different room. The stiff bed she’s gotten used to is now gone, and as she begins to feel the tension in her back muscles, the awful bed is deeply missed. Both of her forearms, palms, and left cheek are pressed against cold metal, and as she slowly rises from her bent position, she begins to feel her muscles relax. “Never thought I would miss my bed back at the academy,” Carmen whispers as she rotates her shoulders and neck, but the crick in her neck refuses to leave, the pain and soreness a familiar sensation to her.

“Shadowsan! Shadowsan!” The young girl yells as she skips behind the master of stealth, who continues his walk to his classroom. Without verbally acknowledging her presents, the girl knows that he’s waiting and listing. His strides have become slower, a change was barely noticeable to passing by students but a clear sign for her. “Can you teach me that neck knockout thing?” Once she is close enough, she jumps to reach his neck, unable to lay a finger on her target.

“The pressure point pinch.” After another failed attempt, she stops her efforts knowing he’ll get mad if she decides to continue. Finally, after years of getting in trouble, Carmen knows how far she can push things before the faculty get angry with her. Coach Brunt, being the mama bear she is, doesn��t mind anything she does, even going out of her way to excuse the girl’s behavior as ‘Learning new skills.’ Professor Maelstrom and Dr. Bellum allowed six attempts, on their good days, before they become irritated and threaten to call the Cleaners on her. Countess Cleo gives her three tries, and on the fourth try, she forces the girl to take a ten-hour lecture on how to be a ‘Proper Lady’. Lastly, Shadowsan might allow two attempts before he starts grunting in disapproval.

“Yeah, that!” When he doesn’t utter another word, she continues before he returns to his normal pace. “Blackout betted I couldn’t knock him out and I am going to enjoy proving him wrong. At first, I thought of asking Boris and Vlad for help, but they only appear when I do something ‘wrong’ and/or ‘foolish’. Then I thought of using oil, but Professor Maelstrom banned me from the kitchen after, and I quote ‘covered the stairs leading to VILE in oil, causing Cookie Brooker and several other operatives to fall and hit their heads’… Which I am innocent of doing, I swear it was Neal the Eel, despite footage showing otherwise.”

“If I teach you, will you leave me alone?” In an instant, he completely stops in his tracks, which leads the girl to bump into his legs. A grunt escapes him, but she will not let him change his mind. Immediately she agrees to his demand, running around his legs so she is standing in front of him. “Alright. I will teach you when you wake up.”

“Wake up?” Before she could realize what he meant; the man leans down so they are at eye level as his right hand rested on her shoulder. In a swift motion, he quickly applies slight pressure to the muscles on her neck.

Lifting her right arm to massage her neck, Carmen feels it. The slight sting on her wrist as the metal cuff moves against her irritated skin. “Of course, they wouldn’t make it too easy for me, that wouldn’t be fun.” It doesn’t take her long to see the cuffs around her wrist aren’t standard police handcuffs. The metal link is longer than it should be, allowing enough room for her to stretch one arm at a time but making it difficult to fight at her fullest capability. There is no way she can pick the lock, considering she’s without any of her gadgets and there is no keyhole to even pick. In an instant, she understands that the cuffs are using a magnetic lock, and the only way she’s getting out is if she steals one of the blue coat’s keycards. No random idiot’s clearance level will work either, she’s going to need one of the bimbos that arrested her or the boss’s card.

The table Carmen is sitting at shows signs of being altered to keep her restrained. The metal bar, ensuring she remains stuck with the table, is a dark copper that stands out from the silver table. The bolts on either end of the pipe are hastily screwed into the table and pipe, the quick work leaving some space between the bar and screw head. Not a lot, but just enough for her to unscrew the screws. Running her left index finger over the end, the sharp metal begins tugging at her skin, with enough pressure and speed the pipe could cut skin.

Looking around the room, Carmen sees that she’s in a typical interrogation room. Two metal chairs on the other side of the table. One exit to her left that must be unlocked from the other side as there’s only a handle to pull the door open. Flickering lights hang above her, a slight hum the only sound she hears, as her eyes land on the two-way mirror, five feet away from her. Focusing on her reflection, Carmen leans forward being sure she moves both of her hands in front of the screws, effectively hiding them from view. As she tilts her head to the right, she discreetly tests how well the bolts are tightened. The hard part is to hide her thumb’s movements to avoid anyone on the other side of the mirror seeing what she is up to. When she feels both screws budge a little, only being able to do half a turn, Carmen knows that if she wants to escape, she first needs to remove the nuts from under the table.

There must be at least ten agents that can easily be taken care of, but Shadows will be a threat she needs to prepare for. The only thing that might stop the ex-faculty member from playing hero, is a hostage. The male agent, with the glasses, is going to put up a fight and he has already proven to have no regard for his safety or the safety of others. The female agent on the other hand barely put up a fight against Carmen, even going out of her way to tell the other agent not to hurt her.

Leaning backward till her back is pressed against the metal chair, Carmen sighs in relief. It’s going to take some doing but she’s going to be able to escape. All she needs to do is play her cards right and she’ll be walking back to VILE with the greatest price in the world, a bluecoat.

As she stares at her reflection, an image of herself without her signature red coat and fedora brings a shiver to her spine. A reminder of a time before she graduated from VILE, a reminder of a bright-eyed child that admired Shadowsan, and was attentive to every single word that came from his mouth. Carmen loathes that she tried so hard to make him proud, all those years before she even enrolled in VILE, spent trying and failing to prove herself. Everyone in the faculty had approved of her skills before she was able to walk, the only one who constantly refused to acknowledge her abilities was and still is Shadowsan. All of her accomplishments were undermined by him, whenever she bested an operative, he would state it was because she received help from Coach Brunt or she cheated.

“Black Sheep, you had better be certain that becoming a professional thief is what you truly desire, for if you choose this road there will be no turning back.”

“I want this more than anything Instructor Shadowsan, and I am willing to go to the end of the line.” As she bows to him, her posture remains firm and calm but her heart beats fast enough to fly out of her chest. She doesn’t want to show how badly she wants his approval, how even if the rest of the faculty tells her no, she’ll be ecstatic if he just for once approved. As she slowly rises in time to see the vote, her heart stops at the sight. Once again, the faculty approved of her, except Shadowsan. Her heart stops beating and falls to her feet as the ninja leaves, she wants to throw up at the feeling of being rejected again, for the millionth time.

The hiss of the metal door opening draws Carmen's eyes to the only exit as a pair walk in, one of them being the agent she tried to kill in the Ferris wheel. Neither are wearing suits, instead choosing to remain in their civilian disguises. The girl holds a single red laptop in her hands, setting it carefully on the table before taking a seat. The other agent takes a long time to sit down.

"I see you survived your little fall; I was starting to get a little worried I missed your funeral. Guess I won't need to pay my respects... yet." In an instance, both agents react to her comment, the female clenching her fist to calm down while the male agent looks away from Carmen, his eyes showing the fear of being reminded about his fall. Seeing she hit a nerve, Carmen innocently smiles at the two. As the three of them fall into silence, the girl uses the time to start up her computer while the boy stares at the oh-so-fascinating floor. Taking a small glance down, Carmen sees why the stained floors have the young agent’s attention. "Tell me, agent was your free fall the other day your first? Wasn't it exciting feeling the wind hitting you as you fell?" Carmen makes it a point to whistle a tune that starts off at a high pitch and quickly lowers, mimicking the sound effects as a cartoon character would fall.

The boy doesn’t have a great poker face, as he grimaces at her words, and she leans towards him. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees that the female has turned the laptop to point at Carmen, but her blue eyes focus on the male. “Just breathe bro-“

“Yes, just keep breathing, and breathing because-” Slowly moving her right hand under the table, Carmen begins the process of unscrewing the nut as she states. “I wonder how many breaths you’ll take before I take your last.” Her shell of a threat works, her eyes noticing him gulp as he leans away, almost causing him to fall onto the floor. Despite knowing she won’t be able to follow through with the threat if she wants to escape, it helps elevate Carmen’s situation. If they are going to keep her imprisoned, the least they could do is allow her to mentally break the agents.

“We might be friends, but I will not let you talk to him like that!” The female yells, slamming her left hand down next to Carmen’s. For a moment she stops unscrewing the nut as her brown eyes meet the agent’s eyes.

“We are not friends.”

“Yes, we are!” Sighing, the girl sits back and takes a deep breath before continuing. “We are more than friends, we are family-“

“Don’t make me laugh.” Out of the corner of her eye, Carmen sees the laptop turn on and she is immediately greeted by a young boy. He looks unsure as he stares at her, bags under his eyes yet he keeps them wide open. For several minutes no one says anything, no one even moves a muscle as everyone waits. Everyone is staring at her, and she hates it with a passion.

A thief isn’t supposed to be seen; she’s supposed to be like a ghost. Appear and then disappear.

“They’ve been calling you the crimson ghost, red.”

“Really? What an honor.”

Closing her eyes, Carmen forces the voices in her head out. She needs to stay focused, and she needs to get to work. Breathing in and then out, Carmen opens her eyes and begins unscrewing the nut again. Her left hand hid the bolt from the agent’s view.

“Red, do you remember me?” Carmen doesn’t reply, just letting her eyes linger on him. She has never seen him before, and she starts to wonder how long this agency has been after her. If they know anything about VILE. “My name is Player, and I’ve been- we’ve known- I’m your friend, best friend.” Her features remain still, not showing an ounce of emotion as she forces herself not to roll her eyes. No one at VILE had friends, especially the faculty. There were only the fellow thieves you could work with and the thieves you wish you could push off a cliff. And even though she got along with Crackle, Carmen still didn’t consider him a friend, because she knew if they were to ever be trapped, with law enforcement creeping in. She would throw him under the bus.

She can never be caught…. Unless it was worth it.

“I was there for your first caper when we meet Ivy and Zack,” Player stops for a minute, gesturing to the agents in the room, as they smile. It’s faint, and with one look from Carmen, Zack loses his smile as he shrinks into himself. “The four of us have been inseparable since then, and we’ve only gotten closer when Shadowsan joined us.”

A soft chuckle leaves Carmen’s mouth just as she was able to remove the nut and can feel the bolt come loose enough that she can yank it out of the table. Shifting her body to look at the young boy through the screen, she positions her left hand over the remaining bolt. Her right-hand repeats the process of removing the nut that is keeping her trapped. “You don’t say? Tell me ‘best friend’ what other grand adventures we’ve been on.” The young boy begins detailing events but with every twist of the nut, Carmen tunes him out until the nut drops in her waiting palm. Taking a deep breath, she leans her head back which makes the boy quit talking.

“Carmen?” The girl asks, but when they lock eyes, Carmen springs into action. Pulling the metal bar out, she leans back far enough to use her legs to push the metal table toward the two agents. The red-headed boy is just barely able to jump away from the table as the other agent’s back is smacked against the see-through glass and pinned there by the table. As she slowly makes her way to the terrified agent, she throws one of the nuts at the laptop screen, causing it to crack as the boy yells her name. The second nut she has makes immediate contact with the female’s forehead.

Before Carmen can get the chance to torture the agent in front of her, the door leading to her exit bursts open as more agents barge in. Looking over her shoulder she smiles as she sees Jules and the loudmouth agent are among the agents now aiming their weapons at her. “Carmen Sandiego, surrender or I will be forced to take you out,” A tall woman states in a commanding voice, and simply by her attire Carmen knows that she’s in charge. Slowly turning on her heels, Carmen raised her hands up, the metal bar being loosely held in her hand. “Drop the weapon.”

The second Carmen sees Shadowsan, she can tell that he’s able to anticipate her next move as he goes for his sword and yells. “Julia move!” Unlike in the past, this time she’s faster than her old mentor and gets to the agent in the blink of an eye. In a swift movement, Carmen is able to twist Julia’s arm behind her and press the metal bar to her neck.

As her now-captured agent yells in pain, everyone in the room takes a small step back. “Do as I say or say goodbye to Jules.” To ensure her threat is heard, Carmen pulls the bar down causing the agent’s skin to tear a little. A small cut, but enough to allow a few drops of blood out.

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

[struggling-to-find-home]

Humans are resilient.

It is, unfortunately, a basic fact that I learned when no matter what horrible things happened to me, and no matter how bad the abuse got, I still just couldn't. Seem. To die.

I thought that it would be,,, easy, I guess? That one day, my family would snap, and then - boom! We got a gun in the house - and I'd suddenly be dead, a tragedy nobody would care about. A life taken too young, a future cut too short, sad and ultimately pointless.

But they escalated, and I kind of just... Learned to live with it. My mother went from threatening to throw stuff to actually throwing stuff to threatening to kill me to loudly screaming in my face while holding a knife way too close to my body, and I learned to hide, and to dodge flying objects, and to silently cry while sitting in the front seat of the car as her driving went more and more erratic and we got closer and closer to crashing, and to pretend that I wasn't scared when her rage got so bad she actually tried to kill me.

My brother went from being... A psychopath, I'm gonna be honest with you, that man used to beat me and choke me as a child and then hid every phone in the house so I couldn't call for help, and he didn't get better as he grew up, to a... Well. He has a fucking weaponry arsenal under his bed. He's working on getting a gun license so instead of just the half-lethal stuff, he can get the regular super-lethal stuff, too. He's the only reason why I know how a barrell of a gun looks like when it's pointing straight at your face (terrifying) and what a grip of someone who's intentionally trying to snap your bones feels like (ow). And I didn't even do anything to deserve that last one; he was just pissed and I was an easy target. I learned to... Avoid him, mostly. You don't really become okay with living with a fucking ticking time bomb, but you do learn to defend yourself as best as you can. The only way you can.

I thought, hoped, sometimes prayed, that something, anything, them, a meteorite, whatever, would just... Kill me, because a permanent relationship with death was better than constantly walking on the knife's edge, never knowing when the insanity will strike and you'll come to school exhausted, again, because they tried to kill each other or you, again, for the second time this week and it's only Wednesday.

But, unfortunately, humans are resilient. Or maybe it's just me. I am resilient. God, strong soldiers, tough battles, yada yada. In all honesty, I think that quote is just plain wrong - it's more like god gives it's weakest battles to it's worst soldiers, because it knows that if it puts the weak ones in any sort of proper battle they'll become even worse if they survive it and then just be insufferable. And the rest of us? The rest of us get, well, the rest. It seems like a stupid shift of thought, but the idea of "this particular asshole would fold and either kill themselves or become a criminal if they had to live through even a fraction of what I had to live through" honestly helps me keep my sanity and stay calm throughout dealing with judgement, and disdain, and fucking ableism in the medical field, and stupid old people who think they have it the worst ever, and friends who don't understand, because nobody can understand unless they also suddenly lost 50% of their vision and couldn't get it back without expensive, painful surgery without any previous pathology and any sort of trigger to make it happen. And me? The doctors told me I'm a one in a billion case, with all of my circumstances. Nobody understands, because the chance of someone else who lived through that is super small.

I lived through abuse. I lived through trying to navigate life after abuse. I lived through the shitty college experience, and toxic friends, and annoying boys who don't take no for an answer so you have to recruit another guy in and manipulate all three of them until it all kinda falls apart and crashes down and you're just left with this insane story where you somehow became the main reason for two love triangles, and you didn't even do almost anything. I lived through grieving a friend-lover-situationship-enemy, cried over dancing on beaches together, and nearly two years wasted on someone who only wanted to take my happiness and resources and leave everything else. I lived through picking up pieces after pieces after therapy (self-therapy) left me a mess, building a healthy self by cutting the rot caused by all of the badness around me out of my own soul and stitching together what was left. I lived through blindess. I lived through blindess.

And throughout it all, I stayed resilient. I didn't even... Choose to do it. I just stayed trodding on, slowly, step after step, until I moved past where hundreds have tripped and fallen.

Now, I turn my head to see my father holding a pan above me, ready to bash my skull in, and I instinctively point the hairdryer - max settings, because I have a lot of hair that doesn't dry quickly - at his face so he flinches back, and continue to do so until he puts the pan down and leaves the kitchen. In all honesty, I've gotten pretty good at avoiding sudden death (ha, that's a reference almost noone will get).

Now, I just text the groupchat "Hey guys! Thankfully, I got cleared so I'm not getting a second surgery, and so I'll be back to cause more chaos alongside y'all in roughly a week!", ignoring the week I had of constant misery, constant what ifs, what ifs, what ifs. Now, I turn my face away from the past, away from how painful a three hour surgery without anaesthesia was, and make a plan for the future. Slowly, step by step, until I walk away and keep moving.

I am not brave. I am not powerful, or smart, or strong, or beautiful, or interesting, or particularly notable in any way. In reality, I probably should have been killed by my psychotic family when I was seventeen. I should have been both dead and forgotten already. If not then, then by the guy that pulled a knife and nearly stabbed a guy to death in the coffee shop I was in, trying to get coffee three weeks ago. Or the other many dangerous experiences I somehow managed to survive.

But no, instead, I'm nothing except resilient. I just keep going, and going, and going, and at this point I don't even know where, or how to even stop. I'm just resilient.

I fucking hate being resilient.

[talesfromasnarkylisa]

Lacey: Chapter 28

James: September 15, 2023

I had gotten back into the swing of things when it came to university. Studying was now easy as usual, assignments felt light and casual, and I finally stopped being tired running from class to class after a little while. 

The online side of things, on the other hand, was more of a double edged sword. Sure, I had become a proper editor at Music Refined with the authority to actually make changes to pieces instead of having to go under-the-table to do so like with Oscar Winters. The job was not super easy, but it was fun to laugh at people ignoring the private notes I gave them. I also became better at filtering out vitriolic commenters targeting me via forcing certain keywords to trigger pending labels which I’d have to look at first before giving my approval.

But the hate comments still kept coming. While they came more privately, this also meant that people could be more specific with their vitriol. One such comment seemed to come from a commenter who knew far more about my private online matters than they should have.

AveMaria69 (11 hours ago): Heyyyyy Archer. It’s me, God’s little sinner of an angel. I know you don’t really believe in God - you did say that you were agnostic in one of your QnAs, after all. Remember last year’s? The one where you said you were sooooo not dating Lovergirl or Augusta? Well, I sure do. That was a fucking lie, wasn’t it? Of course, that’s not the only reason I’ve come here to comment. I mean, everyone already knows that. The real reason why I’m here is because of what you’ve done to him. Remember Code Javelin? Well, I know just why Sanjay hated you. He doesn’t want to talk about it all that much beyond what went public, so I’ll respect that. But ohhh boy, you had done fucked there with all the shit you did years ago. Remember what you did to Carolina with the “you’re just a female friend therefore you’re not as high on my priority list?” Mr. “You Are A Terrible Person That Should Log Off Forever Because You Didn’t Understand The Evils Of Facial Profiling Software?” Oh yeah, what about Mr. “Uses His Gay Best Friend’s Crush On Him To Turn Him Against One Of His Own Friends While He Is Secretly Self-Harming?” That’s a good one, isn’t it? Anyways, I’m just going to stand and watch as karma burns you to the ground. Because I just know it will.

First of all, this comment was just pure baloney at this point. Just about everything save for perhaps Sanjay’s resentment of me had been resolved a long time ago. As for him, he did apologize. But he later called me out on me being a jerk, so…

Regardless, I was still somewhat concerned with how much private stuff this “fallen angel” seemed to know. Mind you, I was smart enough to know that this was definitely not anything supernatural. However, there was no way anyone could have known about me telling off Corianna’s attempts to bond with me as a friend due to her gender and relationship status or me debating a guy over DMs when he tried to explain why facial profiling for face recognition software was good without either being involved in the Code Javelin or being someone that someone there spread the word to. 

And that’s not even getting into Darian’s alleged crush on me. I’m honestly not sure if I believe it myself, that someone as sociable as him could possibly fall for a man like me when there are so many other spicier candidates out there. Besides, I know for a fact he’s into women as well. He did date Eleanor, after all. But I am his best friend and he is rather clingy sometimes. Who knows?

I decided to talk to Vivian about my concerns over a Discord call.

“Hello, Vivian,” I greeted her.

“Hey Archer,” she responded. “Long time no see, am I right?”

“Yeah,” I answered.

Vivian unmuted herself.

“It’s fine,” Vivian reassured me. “We all have our own lives. Anyways, did you want to talk about something?”

“Oh yeah,” I told her. “I’m sorry if this is an uncomfortable topic for you now, but…do you remember if anything and what got leaked from the Code Javelin chat beyond what was given to me and given publicly? Since Carol talked to you a lot about it and communicated stuff from there?”

“Of course other stuff got leaked,” stated Vivian. “Believe me when I say this: the first third of this year and the final half of last year were probably the absolute worst time periods for your reputation online. Now, this wasn’t entirely your fault. It is not easy to go through what Augusta did and not lash out in any way. But the fact of the matter is that your own pre-existing arrogance only made it worse.”

Pre-existing arrogance? I thought to myself. Preposterous! Vivian does not understand my intellect. I pulled myself by bootstraps to survive while barely underage and kicked out of my parents’ house. I was the valedictorian for my high school. To this day, I still remain on top of every class academics-wise. And on the social side…well, there’s Lacey. While she isn’t caving into every facet of my plan to ruin her, she is still in contact with me on decent-ish terms. Besides, I’m in a position of power over her as an editor of a publication where she is a mere beta reader.

I was just about to unmute myself when I got a DM from Lacey.

Lacey Hannah (09/15/23, 7:31 PM): Heya…I kind of need advice on something.

Finally, I felt relieved. She’s desperate for my help now.

“You there?” asked Vivian.

“Yup,” I said. “Thanks for your insight. I kind of need to go now, though.”

“Alright then,” Vivian responded. “I’m going out with my girlfriend soon regardless, which no one but you and whoever else I’ve told needs to know about. See ya!”

Vivian muted herself.

“Bye,” I ended the call.

I set my Discord status to Do Not Disturb and texted Lacey back.

Archer J (09/15/23, 7:37 PM): Alright, what’s up?

(Wattpad version: https://www.wattpad.com/1523720482-lacey-chapter-28)

[thelocalconstellation]

Something I'm Very aware of is the way Branzy always seems to slip under the radar, no, he's not a strong combatant, maybe he can't seem to weave webs of lies so elaborate and well said that he can control people enough to keep them off his back, but I will always say that I think he's got the hearts of the people. He's harmless enough that people will run right by him without a second thought, harmless enough in practice that people can cross him and doubt he'll actually get his promised vengeance, he seems harmless enough to be an easy target.

Like one might assume an angel dropped into hell to be.

But what I'm overly aware of because it's such an interesting character trait, is that there's that underlying bloodlust. There's that desire to be seen as a threat. It's the fact that he can trap people and pull out redstone contraptions that are just insane actually (I had to figure out how that fucking roulette wheel was built, and my design is undoubtedly more spaghetti-ish and far more complicated than Branzy's was, but By Fucking God. As somebody who built that. No.) I mean. look at the death carnival! He wants so badly to be dangerous, he Knows that he's a target and he's sided up to Clown, somebody who is dangerous but there's also that hint of the fact that Branzy seems to enjoy playing with fire sometimes.

Which. Because he's harmless, at least in most conventional situations, people forget that Branzy likes being a threat.

So that also explains the fallen angel branzy headcanon.

But uh. Yeah. He goes in as an angel and the betrayal of Vitalasy was probably part of the tipping point, the other part being Spepticles murder, but it's the second time around that he's proper condemned by whatever god he was to follow.

I think it's interesting to imagine that from Vitalasy's perspective too though. Because your ally, who you likely knew wasn't entirely harmless, but you knew wasn't exactly the strongest player on the server, has ended up in cahoots with Clownpierce. The evil murder clown. the guy who could hunt most of the server and plan his way on top- the guy who. just does not give up. And your ally, this angel who has managed to land on this server, the angel on your team whose wings have been slowly tinting more and more grey, is helping that murder clown. And then you're invited to the funhouse your friend has helped with. And you probably suspect for a moment that this is a trap, but that's your friend who has helped build it- he hasn't warned you not to go, and it's Clown, even if it is, he's just going to hunt and kill you anyways. So you go! And you see your friend so cheerfully explain the system, getting that kind of finnicky he always has when people activate his redstone when that's his thing to do, and you think that maybe it'll be okay!

And then it's not. And then you're falling, and you keep falling, and that murder clown your friend has been helping is down there. And you're being chased and hunted and he didn't warn you. And even as you die, he apologizes, he says he's sorry, and he says "surely you understand- working with- with a murder clown!" and you don't. Because how could you? How could he think you'd understand when you don't really understand his choice to work with the murder clown in the first place. And you die there. And he's still saying sorry. But if he was, would he have done it to begin with?

And next time you see him, that angel that was on your team, that angel who managed to get this far on lifesteal, it takes a minute for you to find his wings again, they're so dark. It's clear he's fallen. And you wonder, even if only for a minute, if Clown did this. If Clownpierce did something to him- dragged him down this path and so fundamentally changed who he is.

And on that note.

I like to think that Clown, for a moment, was almost scared he did- was almost scared that he was at fault for Branzy's baseline change in what he was. I like to think that when the horns were coming in, Clown, entirely- oh so human, one of few on the server, somebody who had managed to hide that fact so well many thought he was a demon for a period of time, was scared that he was at fault for this. And Branzy just looks at him and tells him that Clown didn't do this to him, it was a long time coming. Branzy was just waiting to find that tipping point for his god and he considers it a kind of freedom because he can finally disregard the expectations from his god. Branzy- hazy through the fact that horns growing in when you're this old and have definitely pissed off at least one deity- thanks him for giving him that freedom. Clown is just glad that slight worry doesn't haunt him anymore.

Now? After Falling, the rest of the server probably Knows of his penchance for chaos- Knows of his break from whatever morals he might have had left- the morals they thought he had. Branzy... hasn't changed. And nobody understands that except Clown. Branzy is still the same person, usually worried about Something or other, penchant for chaos and making traps, harmless as he was. Well. Except for the sudden acquisition of a murder clown he has wrapped around his finger, but when the clown isn't around, he's practically harmless. And it takes a little bit for people to figure that out. And then he's back to being seen the same way he was. And people forget just when he fell, people forget he Fell at all, sometimes. Sometimes they just think that he was always like that, he was an angel maybe? Who knows!

Branzy is still good ol' Branzy. never thought to expect him to slip poison into your cup, but he might just do it anyways!

Clownzy but its human Clownpierce and angel (Fallen angel) branzy. Something about in the funhouse era between the casino portion and after the betrayal of vitalasy Branzy who has been slowly sliding out of the gods domain finally crosses that unseen line and the feathers that were going from the grey they turned as soon as he joined lifesteal to a pure vantablack shade. Something in Branzy having that small measure of power left to him not knowing, never wanting to or caring to use it, being free enough from whatever expectations his god may have held still disregarding the gifts he was left with, but Clown, all the bloodlust and lingering threats and danger that he can be being so completely human. Something about the impressiveness of that skill especially in comparison to the inherent power that was deliberately never used in an act of spite.

Something in the opportunity for Ash to look Branzy in the eye, knowing that those horns weren't there three weeks ago, knowing that the last time Branzy molted, those feathers were a grey, now dark enough you can't make out the individual feathers anymore, the chance for Ash to know all that, look Branzy in the eye and ask if he's being held hostage. The question of "what did he do to corrupt whatever might have survived this server- what did he do to make you Fall?" When Branzy wasn't dragged down by Clown his morals were never changed by his sudden associate. Branzy was always like that. Clown just gave him the freedom- the protection enough from the rest of the server to actually show it.

Something about worship, I think.

[explicit-tae]

Cruel Intentions (Part 1)

Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Finale | Cruel Intentions: Organized Crime | Overthinking (Drabble) | Reward (Drabble)

Pairing: Jungkook x Reader (Italics meaning past events)

Genre: smut, Mafia!Jungkook

Warning: (eventual) smut, yandere themes, mentions and display of death, blood,

Word Count: 8,335

Description: You adored your eldest brother - you truly did. Before his addiction got the best of him, he was amazing at caring for you and your other siblings. Now, however, it was your turn to care for him without the help of your siblings who long abandoned him, advising you to do the same. Once your brother manages to get himself imprisoned, you realize just how much trouble he got himself into. Once your family is threatened, you offer to pay off the debts your brother owes with the one thing any powerful man couldn't resist - your virginity.

"Are you aware of the father...?" The woman asks when she brings a fresh cup of water to you, her eyes scanning your bump. She watches you drink the water hastily, droplets dripping down the corner of your mouth and down your chin. She leans back into her chair, tilting her head and waiting for a response.

"T-Thank you." you murmur to her, your left hand caressing your bump. "I must keep going-"

The woman halts you from standing up. She gives a head shake and sits you back down. "You've been traveling by foot this entire time?" she asks, your disheveled appearance already giving her the answer she needed. "Where are you headed to?"

You open your mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. Because, to answer your question, you don't know. You had nowhere to go, no one to fall upon. You had siblings, yes, but that would be putting their lives at risk - the lives of their children at risk, as well. That was something you couldn't bring yourself to do.

"I cannot allow you to leave in this state." the woman is stern, her grey hair poking out beneath the scarf she wore upon her head. "Especially when you're expecting a child."

You shake your head. "I-I have to go. I can't stay in one place for too long." you try to explain, but the woman wouldn't listen.

"I found you asleep in the middle of the field, utterly exhausted. My son helped bring you here. You were beyond dehydration. I don't know your situation, nor do you have to explain to me. But as a woman who has nothing but her own child, I cannot allow you to set off on your own." the woman stands. "I'll be making dinner soon. Down the hall to the right is a guest bathroom, you can use that to clean yourself up."

And you do, running yourself a hot shower. You were unsure how you made it along the country side. You didn't have a cellphone any longer - you destroyed that long ago. You also didn't have a map, and even if you did you weren't sure if you knew how to decipher it. It's been months since you managed to escape him, but doing so hasn't been easy. You walk for days on end sometimes, only stopping to sleep wherever you are deemed safe. You didn't have a destination - but knew wherever would be better than with him.

You haven't had a proper shower in months. You ran out of money long ago, having slept in cheap motel rooms that offered shitty breakfast - something that could satiate you and your growing belly. You never stayed in the same place for too long, understanding the fact that they were looking for you - to either bring you back to him or kill you out of revenge. Either or, you were a walking target - one of the reasons you had no desire to stay with the woman and her unknown son.

But you couldn't leave - she wouldn't allow it. Not when you woke up early in the morning to already find the woman cooking breakfast. Not when she gave you clean clothes and medicine for the cold you had. Not when she fed you delicious food and offered old baby clothes that once belonged to her so - that she washed freshly the day of. She offered different remidies to make the pregnancy go smooth, each remedy being the perfect batch.

You hadn't met her son until a week later, him strolling through the door with a confused look on his face upon seeing his mother and you cooking around the kitchen. You waddled around, your stomach in the way and your kicking baby far too energetic.

"This is my son, Soobin." the woman introduces her son with gleaming eyes - he was her pride and joy.

Said man offers you a kind smile that makes your heart melt. He didn't say much, but the act of kindness he displayed was one you hadn't witnessed in years. Men didn't act like Soobin unless they wanted something from you. But Soobin didn't desire anything - from you at least. He was kind and gentle, assisting you in whatever he could. Pulling out your chair, getting anything that was out of your reach - he even massged your feet because they were swollen.

Over the months of your stay, you understood now that it was long term. The woman - whose name was Byeol. She kept everything she had for Soobin when he was a baby. She dusted and cleaned off the old crib, washing the sheets and allowing you to set up a small nursery in your bedroom. She had many stuffed bears and toys, even a rocking chair that creaked when you rocked back and forth.

It brought you to tears knowing that she assisted you without understanding your situation. How someone could be so affectioate without desiring anything in return.

Byeol insisted on making memories - she had scrap books piling up of Soobin. She took many pictures of you - you cooking, washing dishes, rocking back and forth in the rocking chair, everything she could of your growing bump. She insisted it was the memories you needed to look back upon.

"Have you decided on a name?" Soobin asks you one day. Byeol had gone down for a nap and you and Soobin opted to sitting on the porch, the sun shining but the weather was just right. "I know you don't want to go to the city for whatever reason but..." Soobin leans back and glances your way. You never told him why you were afraid to go to the city and thankfully, he never forced it out of you. "...we can find out the gender."

The gender of your child was something you always thought about. You wanted a girl - someone whose hair you can do. Dress up in cute clothing - Byeol had many netural clothing that once belong to Soobin, and after a few years you ould eventually find yourself a job once you deemed it safe enough to do so.

The act of having a boy terrified you, to say the least. You couldn't imagine raising a man - you didn't know how to. One thing you did know was that you'd be damned if you allowed your son to act the way his creator did. You wouldn't call him a father - you had no desire allowing him the knowledge of your pregnancy prior to your escape. What he didn't know wouldn't put your child at risk.

"I think it's best if it's a surprise." you tell Soobin, your hand resting on your belly. Your child must've been asleep, they weren't moving or kicking at the moment.

"I know someone. A friend." Soobin's eyes widen. "They could offer you an ultrasound right from home!"

You laugh. "That's a lot of equipment to bring into the household." you say, but the act now gets to you. You have never seen your child via ultrasound. You have been present before for your sisters ultrasounds and seeing them. Even hearing the heartbeat was emotional for you and you were nothing but the aunt.

You cave into Soobin's request and a few days later you are watching the moniter closly as the woman shows you your child. Byeol has a soft smile on her lips and Soobin is utterly confused. "How do you know that's the foot?" he asks, his eyes seeing nothing but black and white blobs on the screen.

"With years of schooling and medical practice." she says. "Do you want to know the gender?"

You bite your lip, eyes wandering around to see Byeol and Soobin. Soobin gives you a thumbs up while Byeol grins. The decision was yours and you find yourself nodding.

The woman hums and her eyes scan the screen. "It's a boy!" she cheers, as does Soobin and Byeol, but your smile flutters and the corner of your eyes swell with tears.

You had 4 older siblings, you being the youngest of 5. Growing up you were closest to your eldest two siblings, Yechan (your first born sister) and Hyun-woo (your first born brother). You recalled the many times they'd taken you to and from school, brought you with them on errands and even took you to the park when they weren't busy. You would often get confused with being Yechan's daughter due to the age difference.

Se-hun (your second eldest brother) and Ye-Rim (your second eldest sister) was a different story. You often argued with Ye-Rim over petty drama which resulted in you two fighting. Se-hun ignored your presence most times, you being nothing but a younger sister who annoyed him every now and then.

Yet and still, they were your siblings and you loved them. Now being 22, your and Ye-Rim's relationship was better. She no longer considered you a burden of a sister and you enjoyed your nieces presence. You visited Se-hun often now that he was married with 4 kids - something you were shocked to think back to. But, he wasn't alone in children when Yechan had the same amount.

You strove to be the perfect aunt, buying whatever gifts you could for 9 children, trying to take them out of your siblings hands for a bit but you were just one person, afterall.

Your siblings were all doing great for themselves - all except Hyun-woo. When you were a child, Hyun-woo was hard working. He worked every night until late and every morning made sure you all had breakfast on the table to eat. The man you witnessed now was not the man of your childhood - there seemed to be no life behind his eyes. He appeared a mess, oftentimes. His hair was greasy and his teeth had a dull grey color. He wasn't old in the slightest but appeared to be as though he aged like milk.

"I told you to leave him alone." Se-hun sighed once, shaking his head. "He was far beyond himself."

"I couldn't have him around my kids." Ye-Rim snickers as she washes her dishes. "When I did he left cocaine in the bathroom."

"He's going to drag you down with him, Y/N." Yechan warned, and how right she was.

Hyun-woo didn't take long until he was arrested for petty theft. His drug addicted mind had him breaking into homes, stealing small items. Sometimes he would remain in said homes and hide to do nothing in particular. You managed to bail him out the first time, raising enough money (no thanks to your siblings) and bailing your brother out. The next month, he was back - this time off to prison.

"You should've left him there the first time." Ye-Rim told you. "So he could've thought about what he was doing with his life. Your bail money went down the drain."

Down the drain was right. You had a hefty savings - you weren't a university student. You decided that working was best after High School, but all the savings you had was poured into your brother's bail just for him to off to prison shortly after. You were stuck - working check to check. You didn't wish to live off of your older siblings - they had children and lives of their own to manage. So you decided - pay your rent to have a roof over your head or eat with no where to lay your head. You chose your rent with a little money left over for necessities. It was difficult - but you managed.

What you weren't able to manage was the two men in dark suits coming into your work place looking for Hyun-woo. You widen your eyes at them - because, for one, they knew you and your workplace but also because they were bold enough to do this in broad daylight. At you telling them that your brother was in prison, they left. You thought this would be a sigh of relief, they whoever those men were wouldnt be returning.

You were wrong.

They did return and even were kind enough to trash your house. You were home when the door was kicked in, a scream erupting through your throat. The men had destroyed everything in sight, a robotic look in their eyes and actions. Almost as if they were being compelled to do this - maybe by a higher up. Before they left, one of the three men had come forward to your weeping figure and dropped to his knees. He eyes you for a moment too long before then tells you that they would be returning a week from that moment to claim your brother's debt - a total of 64 million won.

Your heart stops at the high price. You questioned how in the world there was so much money to be loaned to someone that appeared as your brother did - grey teeth, some missing. Greasy hair was often left in a low bun and stubble on his chin and cheeks. He was an utter mess and a known addict - what else could he be? How much drugs were dealers willing to give someone with no job or money? You had kept your valuables hidden from him - he was a known thief and even you being his youngest sister didn't leave you untouched.

You worked extra hours the next day at your job - the grocery store appreciating it, they were already short staffed. Whatever you had left that wasn't broken by the men you sold - your couch, the tv in your room and livingroom (that was only half broken but pawn shops don't discriminate). You even sold jewelry, not as though you had anywhere to wear it. You were still down millions of won, the money not being realistic for you to attain in a short amount of time.

So, here you were scouring the internet for ways to attain large amounts of money, legal or illegally. You were desperate to do anything, at this point. You got your answer when you were invited - via vpn tracking, sadly - to a private event. You were skeptical, but the invite said that if you had anything valuable to sell, you could through the black market - an event that happened every few months in an underground location.

You went - your fanny pack holding a bottle of bear mace and a pocket knife and a mini taser. Your backpack holding a change of clothes for this occassion. If this was a trap, you refused to be down bad and die there. You've lived this long, far too long to die like that. At your arrival at said place, you were disappointed to see that there was no one there. You looked around the abandoned alleyway, the dark light alley lights flickering as you let out a sigh of defeat.

"Looking for something?" a voice startles you. The tall man crosses his arms behind you. He steps back, allowing you space.

"I,uh...I guess not. I'll be leaving." you take a few steps back yourself, not wanting to be too close to the man.

"Are you trying to buy or sell anything?" the man says, his eyes narrowing. He was being conspicuous without saying too much in the case that you weren't looking to do that.

"S-Sell." your lips purched.

The man nods, he turns towards a metal door. "Follow me." he tells you.

You follow behind him, your hands on your fanny pack in case you need to grab a quick weapon. As the two of you walk behind the door and down a dim lit hallway, he opens a wooden door at the end of the hall and motions for you to enter. The room was huge with loud chattering. Sea of people, all dressed far more expensive than you, holding glasses of wine and champagne. Your eyes glance to the man behind you. "What do people sell here?" you ask him, unsure if this was the correct place to do this at.

"Everything." he says. "Expensive jewlery - stolen or not. Property, businesses, foreign exchanges...sex." he shrugs. "Whatever you have to offer. State your price - start high. Someone will be bound to buy what you're selling."

You nod your head. "I-Is there a restroom?" you look around. If you were going to be selling yourself to the sea of men, you were bound to change into whatever cheap lingerie you brought in your backpack, long jacket hanging over your shoulders.

Everything was separated into categories just like the man stated. Sex was the last exchange sold and this late into the night you were nearing exhaustion. Your feet ached in the heels you wore that you took it off the second hour and slide against the floor in a sleepy haze. You were standing up right when the catergory you were waiting for was now. There was many woman, all shapes and sizes, offering sex - some in more ways the others. Their asking prices weren't the same as what you were going to be asking far, far less. Nonetheless, like the man states - start high and state your price.

You were next. The lights of the stage seemed brighter than every when you were the center of attention. The host speaks with you silently, his eyes widening at your asking price.

"64 million won." the host states into the microphone, you hear a few gasps and snickers. You gulp, taking a deep breath. You removed the long jacket, letting it fall to the floor. Your lingerie was simple, a white lace that shown more than you desired, but if you were going to sell sex you needed to ooze sex. "Tell me, why do you think you deserved 64 million won?" the host asks, trying to get you to sell what you could.

"I'm not just selling sex." you speak into the microphone, the sea of people watching you making your stomach feel uneasy. "I'm selling my virginity."

The crowd erupts in more gasps, and with that the biddin started. One man offered 64 million straight out, his old shaky voice cracking. You were disgusted, but kept your smile on your lips. Another man shouted 65, the next 70. The last was what has you yelping. "400 million won." the voice says, this time it didn't sound old or cracked out. It was young and deep - determined. "Cash."

"Sold." the host says, head shaking in disbelief at the amount of money you were about to obtain for your virginity. You gulp, your eyes watching the figure make their way to the stage. You're captivated, watching as the man - couldn't be much older than you - make his way onto the stage. Something in your gut is telling you - he was familiar to you.

He grasps your jacket and places it upon your shoulders. He pushes you gentle towards the left side of the stage and down the small stairs.

You two had a lot to talk about. For one, you couldn't believe that amount of cash the man took out of the black bag, He shows you, allowing you to see that he was serious about this. You fidget in you stance, the man intimidating you. He wasn't the one who appeared to need to buy pussy - or virginity. He was young, piercing dark eyes with the same dark hair. He had a lip ring in the corner of his lips and the smirk he gives you was enough to have you want to fuck him without the money.

"Before we...make out a contract. Why are you doing this?" the man asks you. He has taken you to his car, a black mercedes with dark tinted windows. You two sit in the back while a man drives him.

"I need the money." you admit.

"64 million won is a lot of money to need." the man chuckles a response. "College? Mortage?"

"My brother's in debt." you say. You were exhausted. You tell the stranger everything - how your brother was a drug addict who finally met his match in prison while you were left to pay for the damages. How the men destroyed your home and only allowed you a week to conjure up the debt your brother owed. You admitting to selling nearly everything you owned and now deciding the last thing you did own was your diginity and virginity.

The man remained quiet at your rambling. You remained quiet the rest of the car ride to your home. Much to your surprise, the man had given you the entire 64 million won, stating that he would be back to collect his debt you owed to him and give you the rest of the money he promised. Your eyes sparkled and you nodded with determination. You got out of his car with a short bow, vowing to be the best you could to him when he returned.

What you weren't expecting was the man to indeed return the day of the debt collecting - right on time. As you allowed the man inside your home, envelope in your hand with the amount of cash they needed, your door, once again, was kicked in. The man, along with one other, raises their guns at the men in your sitting area.

"What the hell?" one of the men hiss to the intruders, arms raised. His eyes widen in realization. "Jeon-ssi? What are you doing-"

A shot ranged out and all you could do was drop to the floor, eyes wide. The man, Jeon, shoots the man speaking, a crazed look in his eyes. The man screams at the bullet through his shoulder. A few more shots ring and you're now crying on the floor, a pool of the mens blood surrounding you. You may have fucked up and got yourself into deeper shit than you imagined.

You hear footsteps approaching, but you don't open your eyes. You never do - not until you feel fingers wrapped into your hair and yanking you upward. You hiss, eyes shooting open, the tears pooling out faster now. "P-Please..." you try to shake away from the familiarly strange hand.

The man removes his hands from your hair and steps back, head tilting at you. "Stop crying." he murmurs. "I'm not going to kill you."

You sniffle. It was hard to believe this man wasn't nefarious when he and his friend murdered the men in your home seconds ago.

"That's it." Jeon nods, a smile on his pierced lips. He reaches out to wipe a tear from your left eye. His hand then caresses your cheek. "I can't believe these cowards left you in such a compromising position."

You gulp, shaking stiffly. You couldn't move, far too afraid that he wold put a bullet through you next if you had.

"Come." Jeon says.

"W-Where are you taking me?" you cry out when you feel him grab your shoulders and bring you closer to him. "I-I don't need the money anymore, take it-"

"Hyung, please wait in the car for us." Jeon says to the man behind him, a tall man with narrowed eyes and broad shoulders. He does so, not bothering to close the door behind him. "You...fear me." Jeon says to you. "After I got you out of debt and handled the men who disrespected you."

You want to scream and cry, everything at once. You were beyond frightened and you swore if you could piss right now, you would.

You remain still when he brings himself closer to you. "Let's go home, Y/N." he tells you sternly, the look in his eyes telling you that he wasn't going to say it again.

You take a deep breath, humming softly to yourself. You were rocking back and forth with a hand rubbing your growing belly. You felt indifferent now knowing the gender of your child. You thought of the future of you and your child - how you would be cuddling her to sleep every night, breast feeding her until she was full, bathing her. Now, you were doing this to a baby boy.

In the past you wouldn't dare be disappointed in the gender of your child. However, the past you once thought you would be married first, have a dog or a cat before allowing a child into the picture. Obviously, that was not the case in your situation. You now pondered on how your child would look, if he'd look like you or the man from your past or take your features. 

Nonetheless, you couldn't dwell on the gender any longer. You will soon have a child to raise, far from the drama that came with the Jeon empire. You would be the sole influenced - along Byeol and Soobin - to this child, needing to have him be the man you wished you encoutered from his father. 

"I like the name Dal." Soobin stands in your door frame. He leans against it as he eyes you. 

"I chose Jin-Seon." you murmur to the man.

He raises a brow. "You did? When? Why didn't you say anything?" he was excited, possibly more than you now, at the fact there was going to be a baby in the home. 

"A few hours ago. That's the only boy name that stuck...with me." you stop rocking to glance towards the old crib. Soon you'll be putting your son in that crib."What if I'm a terrible mother?"

Soobin gasps at your sudden words, far taken aback by your change in demeanor. He steps inside your room to get closer to you. "Why would you say that? You'll be an amazing mother!" he assures. He kneels down so he can be face to face with you. "What's going on?"

You shake your head. You couldn't tell Soobin of your past and the worries you had to raise your son to not be like his father. Of course, he wouldn't be around you two for Jin-Seon to be a bad influence, but still, they were blood after all. You were afriad you would fail your son like you failed to help your brother.

"I know we haven't been together as friends for long, Y/N...but I know you'll be a great mother. You're already so motherly to Jin-Seon. He is in great hands." Soonbin gives you a smile that makes you want to cry - his kindness was overwhelming. "And if you need any help, Eomma and I are more than willing to. It take's a village to raise a child, Y/N, I'll never allow you to do it alone."

You were unsure how long you were kept into the room - possibly a day or two. It appeared as a guest room, everything neat and organized and not lived in. You hadn't showered yet, either, the blood of the men soaked and dried onto your skin. You were disgusted and horrified with what was bound to happen to you. This man, who you have yet to know the name of, has not returned.

Often, you lay upon the bed that you were given, hoping to sleep away the memories but they never left. You were always left with waking up every few hours in a cold sweat and a yelp, the memories of the shooting, the blood and the cold eyes of your captor.

While you lay awake, your mind drifts to the outside world. It's been days - maybe a week? has anyone tried looking for you? You haven't been to work in so long, has anyone called the police? Has your siblings been notified? The act of being labled as a missing person was what terrified you - you were missing in plain sight, unsure of when you'd see the outside world.

The door jingling makes you freeze in your spot. You lay your head against the pillow and hold your breath, not wanting to make a sound. "How long has she been here?" a voice comes, a voice of an older woman. "She's covered in blood and you left here like this? Is this how I raised you?"

The lights in the room turn on from a switch just outside the door and you hiss lowly, your eyes not seeing brightness for so long. You begin to shiver when the voices and footsteps come closer. "I didn't know what to do, Ajumma." the familiar voice of the man you called Jeon says. "You know how the Hyung's are."

His voice now was different from when you last heard of him - there's no venom laced in it, nor is it deep and threatening. It's normal, light when speaking to the older woman. You feel a hand on your shoulder and your shivering stops. Your eyes glance upwards to see them - Jeon and the older woman, hair dark but a few strands of grey caught their way out. She had wrinkles covering her forehead and low bags covering her eyes. "Let's get you up and bathed." she says.

Your eyes are low when you stand up, stomach rumbling and knees shaking. The woman turns her head to glare at Jeon. "Did you starve the poor girl?" she hisses. "Jeon Jungkook! You're just the same as your father." she looks back to you with softer eyes, "Come with me. We'll get you bathed and fed."

You follow the woman, your mind puzzling together. His name was Jungkook. Jeon Jungkook.

Once the older woman took you to a large bathroom, the floor - cold against your bare feet - was marble and clean. So clean you could see your reflection against it. The shower was separate from the large tub and as you turned the water on, you marvelled at how many faucets and power jets of water sprayed out. Soon you were scrubbing your skin roughly with the vanilla scented bodywash to remove the blood stain from it, but nothing felt good enough. You still felt dirty with blood, sweat and even the tears that dried up upon your skin.

You wash your hair with the shampoo that was inside the shower, not caring if the ingredients were good for your hair or not. You didn't have time to care when you were in a foreign home with people you didn't know. You were unsure if the man was allowing you to shower simply because he wanted his payment or because he geniually cared (suddenly) for your appearance and well being.

A knock sounded on the door as soon as you turned off the shower. You watch as the door opens and the woman comes in. She smiles at you warmly and lays down a towel, a robe and under garments. "So you can get out of those old clothes. I'll make sure that boy get's you a closet full of clothes."

You nod. "Thank you." your voice was meek and quiet. She leaves the bathroom and you make your way to dry and dress yourself. You knew you couldn't hide inside of here forever, but you wanted to. You were unaware what was going to happen next with the man that was Jungkook. All you did know was that you were left terrified of him and who he was. Him killing the men in cold blood without batting an eyelash - that only told you he was one of the same of these men, just possibly more powerful.

You twist the doorknob once you are done, poking your head out. The hallway was quiet and there was no sign of the older woman. You contemplated if you should remain in the restroom or wander around. This estate was foreign to you, all you did know was that the man, Jungkook, wasn't going to allow you to leave anytime soon.

You decide to get out of the bathroom, closing the door behind you. You tiptoe down the hall, your bare feet cold against the marble floor. You wrap the robe tightly around you, trying to remember the way you came and go back to the dark room. But luck wasn't upon your side and you find yourself utterly confused as to where to go. Every door appeared the same as the next, all dark, modern and closed. You didn't have the guts to open any and see for yourself, afraid of what's behind it.

"Looking for something?"

You yelp, startled at the sudden voice. You stiffen and turn around with wide eyes.

"You must be Y/N." the man steps closer to you. He reminded you of Jungkook, the way he was attractive with a hint of intimidation. His features were symmetrical, jaw line sharp and angular. It was his eyes that attracted you to him - you were unable to look away. They were as if he was calling you towards him without saying a word. "You are as cute as the little one said you were." he coos.

The man reaches you, his hand coming out to stroke your face. "I can tell you are truly innocent as he says. Never been touched by a man. Or woman - I'm a judgment free man." His laugh captivates you. As close as he was to you now, you could see around his eyes the lightest shade of eyeshadow around them. "Tell me, are you looking for Kookie?"

You're stuck, unsure of how to respond. So you nod your head, assuming "Kookie" was "Jungkook" who you previously met. The man grasps your hand and tugs you closer to him. He interlocks your fingers and soon the two of you are walking down the hall together, hand in hand. It was as though your nervousness - even fear - had gone away. THe closeness between the two of you made your nose catch his scent - a bittersweet aroma that gave off a spicy yet fruity smell; inviting.

"People call me Himeros." the man murmurs to you, his voice in a hushed tone as if it was a secret. You gulp and nod, your little knowledge of greek mythology, you were certain he was the living embodiment of Himeros. "But my family calls me Jimin, and since you're with Kookie, you can call me Jimin, too."

You listen to him talk about random things, remaining in a comfortable silence as he guides you down another hall and soon you're in a large sitting room, surrounded by men in dark suits. 6 men stood out to you - one being Jungkook - their suits were white in contrast to the dark ones surrounding them. They all sat huddled together in a deep conversation when you arrived. They sat on a deep burgundy leather couch, a medium size glass coffee table in the middle - the colors of the room being a mixture of gold, silver and black. Your eyes trained on the men surrounding them, some staring out the large windows. It was at that moment you noticed they held guns - large rifles and a few others you know not a single idea of.

Your nerves kick in again being surrounded by so many unfamiliar faces - all men at that. Your hands unknowingly squeezes Jimin's and he shakes his head. "It's alright. No one here will hurt you." he assures, noticing your uneasiness. "Kookie." his voice sings songs. It makes the group of men sitting stop and look towards your way, eyes scanning you up and down.

Jungkook's eyes lock with your hand in Jimin's. He leans forward, tongue in cheek.

"Don't be that way." Jimin giggles, unlocking your fingers. "She was lost so I brought her here to you. Hospitality." Jimin gentle places his hands on your shoulders, a smile on his lips as he looks towards Jungkook.

"Is this the girl?" a man asks, his voice deep - the deepest you've heard a man have.

You witness Jungkook nod, standing forward. "Y/N." he says to you, his lip curling upwards slowly.

You remain silent, unsure of what to respond with.

"Does she know your name?" a man chuckles, his laugh high-pitched as if laughing at his own (lame but truthful) joke. You wouldn't know his name if it wasn't said by the older woman. "She looks so...scared. Like a little mouse."

"I would be, as well, if I were in a room full of men in nothing but a robe." another man says, he slouches against the couch with a bored expression. "Why did you bring her here and not his room?"

Jimin scoffs. "I do the right thing and it's still wrong, right, little mouse?" Jimin shakes his head and then looks towards you. You nod slowly, unsure of what else to do. Jimin smiles in return. "Well, Kookie," he turns towards the man. "She's all yours. I have a job to do." Jimin's hand slowly pats your shoulders and then he turns around, strolling down the same hall you came from.

"Come." Jungkook says to you, strolling to you and taking your hand in his. "We'll discuss things later, Hyungs." he calls over his back as he saunters down the hall with you.

"But we weren't done-" the deep voiced man starts, but then groans when he realizes Jungkook has no intentions of turning back.

"Damn kid." another man hisses.

Jungkook and you walk for a few minutes before reaching a room. When he opens the door, you realize it isn't the same room you were held in. He gently tugs you inside and closes the door behind you. The room was fairly large in size - double than the one you had been in. You figured the lights inside the room were motion sensored because it lit upon your arrival. In the middle of the room lay a large bed - possibly king size - with an upholstered headboard. The sheets upon the bed were satin and you noticed the amount of pillows spraw upon them.

The bedroom itself was modern and minimalistic, on each side of the bed sat a nightstand. There were 2 doors opposite to one another that you assumed were closed, you assumed they were closet space. "Do you like the room?" Jungkook's voice sounds. "It's much bigger than the last. Come." Jungkook strolls ahead of you to one of the doors. He opens it wide, your eyes trail inside the large room - quite bigger than you expected.

"This is your closet. He'll have to fill it up eventually." he trails off. Your eyes dart around the room - it was bigger than your sitting room back at your apartment. The mirror facing you was large that had lights surrounding it - also sensored. The room had wall shelves that reached the ceiling and a few in-wall drawers. It was luxurious, you'd amit, but you were afraid to ask why he was doing this for someone he paid to sleep with? "Do you like purses? We could display them on the top shelf."

You nod your head, agreeing with whatever he desired so you wouldn't upset or offend him. He smiles and then motions for you to follow him again. He reaches the next door, it opens and displays a bathroom. The floors were the same marble tile as the last one. What caught your eye was the circular bathtub and the large floor length window that displayed outside the estate - a mixture of flowers and vines. The shower was to the right of the bathtub with several faucets while the double sink and vanity mirror displayed on the left.

"My closet is in here." Jungkook says. "It's smaller than yours but does the job."

A knock was what caught you two by surprise. You turn towards the bedroom door then to Jungkook. You watch as he opens it to peek out, then opens it wider once he realizes who it is. "Ah," he smiles. "Food is here. I forgot I ordered food for us."

You were marvelled at the many trays of food coming into the room, all on rolling tables. The men - this time in chef attire - roll in the tables and display it for you and Jungkook. You questioned why Jungkook ordered much food for the two of you - you noticed many amounts of meats, different side dishes and even - as displaced as it was - a few slices of pizza. The last table to be brought it were the drinks and a large bowl of ice.

"I wasn't sure what you enjoyed eating." Jungkook says with a low chuckle. "So I ordered everything I like."

Soon the two of you are eating. You sat yourself far from him, nibbling on the food slowly. Jungkook wasn't shy in his own home or in front of you. He ate as if not swallowing at all, his eyes wide with pleasure. You ate a few more wings and called it enough. You wiped your mouth with the napkin and remain silent, waiting for the man to be done.

"Are you done eating?" Jungkook asks; he realized you hadn't picked anything up in a few minutes. At your nod and releases his grip on the slice of pizza he was holding - the cheese and pepperoni oozing off of it slowly. "Are you-"

"When are you going to fuck me?" you ponder loudly, possibly coming off rude.

Jungkook is taken aback. He turns his head fully to you and raises both brows.

"I...I would rather you get it over with." you murmur. You feel uncomfrotable against his gaze.

"Get it over with?" Jungkook snickers. "I told you already you aren't going back."

You're trembling now, fear overcoming you. You didn't think he would actually keep you here for his own personal reasons. He was a powerful man - you see that now by the way he had men lining up to cater to him. Not only was he powerful and obviously wealthy, but he was attractive and surprisingly young. He has to have women lining up to even get the chance to sleep with him (with nothing in return) yet he has chosen you - someone who only truly needed him for money. 

"Why would you want to leave? I gave you shelter - better than that run down apartment you were in."

Jungkook's tone and words offended you. You didn't come from money. You weren't raised poor either, however, you were raised to work for what you needed. You afforded a well enough apartment in a decent area. You saved up your money to fully furnish your apartment with what money you did have to make it feel like a home; not only that, but you cared for your brothers addictions (unknowingly) and gave a little cash whenever your siblings were low and in need. You didn't need Jeon Jungkook to insult the way you lived.

You turned away from him, your fists clenching. It wasn't smart to talk back to him, he was a man after all and could easily overpower you if needed be. 

"Would you prefer we slept together before the ceremony?" Jungkook sighs. He scotts closer to you, placing the trays of food back upon the rolling tables. "So it'd be easier for you?"

"What ceremony?" you murmur, your head turning towards him. This wasn't making much sense to you. But, you willing to sell your virginity to any man willing to pay wouldn't make sense to anyone - and you refused to tell your siblings such when the time came.

"Our wedding, silly." Jungkook chuckles. He taps your nose as if you were a silly child. Your eyes widen at the statement and when you realize his laughter died down and his eyes narrowed - he was serious. "I told you this was our home, baby. I gave you a large closet for you to fill."

You gulp. Your head was spinning and your stomach churned. The sensation of your body in this state was nothing but uneasiness, you felt lighthead and ready to faint. You snap your body away from him. "I'm not marrying you." your words were stern - as stern as they could be while you were frightened of the man. "That was not the agreement, Jungkook. I would never agree to sell myself to marriage."

"But you are willing to sell your virginity?" Jungkook snaps. "That makes the situation better?"

"No!" you hiss back at him, voice raising. You felt horrible enough that you were willing to give up something sacred to whatever greasy man was willing. But you didn't wish to put your life or those of your family in more danger due to Hyun-woo. "I just-"

"Watch your fucking mouth, Y/N." Jungkook interrupts you with a grasp of your chin. "I got you out of that situation with those men and I managed to kill their boss that was threatening you. How could you be so selfish?" he spits.

You tear your chin from his grasp and yelp. 

"My men are at your disposal. My wealth and power is yours." Jungkook again grabs you, this time his large hands gripping your cheeks to force you to look at him. "You'll be my wife and a part of Bangtan along with my own brothers, their partners and children. I'm the only one left in the family to be wed and bear an heir."

You feel sick. You couldn't help but cry out at the thought of marrying a man and bearing his child without your consent - he didn't give you much choice. This couldn't be your life now, not with a man like this. A man you didn't know anything about and vice versa. 

"Shh, baby, don't cry." Jungkook pulls you into his chest. You didn't fight him and instead allowed yourself to cry into his chest while he caresses your back. "I know it's overwhelming, but you'll be happy with me. I promise. We can see the world, you and I!" he continues to caress you while promising you every and everything - besides your consent and freedom. "Do you like babies?" Jungkook asks suddenly, his hands stopping the patting on your back. "Maybe we can visit Hyung's home tomorrow. He has the cutest daughter! That should be able to cheer you up!"

You cry harder at the thought. 

"Is this necessary?" you ask Byeol, arms crossed. You stood outside your bedroom, facial mask below your lips. 

"Put your mask on, Y/N!" Soobin yells, his eyes wide with shock. "You can't inhale the paint! It's not good for the baby!"

You do as you're told with a roll of your eyes. You hear Byeol giggle beside you. "To him it is."

You were woken up from your afternoon nap by Soobin. He had shook you awake and insisted you leave the room so he could paint it. You were initially irritated by the sudden act, but Soobin wouldn't bulge. He was now painting the room - the wall in which all of Jin-Seon's belongings sat - determined to paint the white clouds as neat as he could. 

"I just wouldn't want to trouble him." you sigh. "And you. This is your home after all. I wouldn't want to intrude." 

Byeol gently slaps your shoulder. "You could never be an intruder, Y'N. You know this now." she shakes her head, upset at the audacity of you thinking you would ever be considered a burden here. "Soobin is just overjoyed that there's more life in the home. It's always just been the two of us."

And overjoyed Soobin was. After he spent two days painting one wall - a simple set of clouds and mountains in different shades of blue and greys, he was done and added a few finishing touches. He adds Jin-Seon's name onto the wall above the crib given to her by Byeol. He then adds a few shelves, already displaying the ultrasound picture he had framed and gifted you. Next to the ultrasound was a picture he took of you off guard - hand resting on your stomach while you munched along on a piece of cake Byeol had made. It wasn't your favorite picture of yourself, but you enjoyed the act of kindness Soobin showed. 

"I still think it's all too much for something temporary." you told Soobin, but your heart was full at the kind gesture. 

"It's never too much when it comes to Jin-Seon. I want him to feel loved." Soobin smiles at you, his eyes squinting. You feel your heart flutter at him, he was entirely too kind for his own good. "And I want you to feel welcomed here. You don't have to leave as soon as Jin-Seon is born."

You let out a sigh. Your eyes glance away from him and to the wall, trying to avoid his gaze. They were making it hard - Vyeol and Soobin - for you to ever want to leave them. Byeol was utterly kind, always making sure to cook you delicious food. She insisted you needed a strong and healthy baby. She oftened wash the sheets and your clothes, even when you insisted you could do it yourself. 

Soobin was much like his mother, always welcoming. He came home everyday with different types of snacks and treats for you to try. He would give you the company you craved after Byeol rested. He encouraged you - ensuring that you would always be in good hands with them. 

"I won't force the two of you to stay." Soobin tells you, his voice low into a whisper. "But there isn't a time limit. You can stay for as long as you need to. This is your home just as it is ours."

Your throat clenches and your heart is now beating faster. You turn to Soobin and offer a trembling smile. He frowns at you. "Y/N. What's wrong?"

You're crying. You are sure it's the hormones. You looked like a crazy fool crying at Soobin. He must feel horrible with himself and questioning what were the words to set you off. 

"You all are so kind to me." you cry, whipping the pathetic tears from your cheeks. "I don't know where I'd be without your hospitality."

Soobin releases a laugh. He brings you closer to him, in a hug. He rubs the top of your back and shakes his head. "You don't have to cry, Y/N." he ensures. "We'll always be here for you and Jin-Seon. I promise." he says. 

Alright so here's Part 1 to Cruel Intentions. This would be a multipart series, I hope going between present to past isn't too much to understand.

Prequel | Next | Masterlist | Part 3

[lonelym00n]

The Red Means I Love You

Amber Freeman x Reader

Word Count: 2.8k

Summary: Ghostface is running around and you don't know who to trust. Amber reassures you that things will be okay.

Warnings: Typical canon violence with descriptions of blood. Please read with caution! Follows the events of Scream V. Also, Angst!

A/N: guysss... I did a thing... I'll just let you read and find out.

Title + fic inspired by Madds Buckley's song, The Red Means I Love You

If someone had told you a few days ago that you’d have to watch your close friend take a bullet to the head, you’d have slapped them across the face and added them to Mindy’s ever-growing list of potential future ghostface suspects. 

In retrospect, you suppose you were naive for thinking that you’d make it through Woodsboro High without falling victim to someone deciding to take up the infamous killer’s mantle. You should’ve suspected that it would happen eventually, especially considering that three of your best friends were related to survivors from the years prior. That fact alone painted a bright red target on your back and it was only a matter of time until an eight-inch hunting knife sunk into you because of it.

Did some higher deity sew the stars together to seal the fate of you and your friends? Were you destined to die at the hands of the ghost that haunted the little town you’d lived in all your life? Some part of you thinks that yes, this was meant to happen, because a tiny voice in your head always figured the friend group you’d become a part of was doomed from the day it began to form.

Everyone else in Woodsboro had it easy, their parents were present and the killings that plagued the town only existed for them in the form of the notorious Stab franchise. The same couldn’t be said for your friends.

Put a handful of Woodsboro High’s most traumatized students into one group and what do you get? The perfect cast for the next series of killings. Mindy tells you as much when you and the rest of your friends are clustered together in her living room, trying to identify who among you was responsible for brutally attacking the others left and right. 

As if being friends with people who are related to the survivors wasn’t bad enough, you learn from Tara’s older sister that she is connected to Billy Loomis, the original ghostface himself. More than being connected, Sam’s his daughter. You have half a mind to notify your parents to start picking out your tombstone now.

You barely listen as accusations fly around the room. How could it be possible that you were in the same room as the killer right now, when you’ve known everyone here your whole life? You were having a hard time processing the fact that one of the kids you’d played in the sandbox with in elementary school had grown up to become someone so sinister. 

Distantly, you hear Mindy conclude that Sam must be the killer, that it made the most sense because of who her father was. She storms out of the room and after a beat, you stand up on shaky legs and murmur a goodbye to the remaining occupants of the Meeks-Martin living room. Your head was reeling and you needed to get away or you’d break down and lose your last semblance of sanity. 

If there is a God that exists, they must hate you, because you break down anyways. Just outside the house, you’re hunched over, a hand clutched desperately at your rapidly rising chest. Despite your best efforts, you’re unable to chase away the dread and terror that have nestled in and made a home in your torso. 

Too wrapped up in trying to calm your irregular breathing, you don’t hear the familiar clunk of boots swiftly making their way towards you.

Though your vision is blurred, you’ve spent enough time around Amber to recognize her presence almost instantly. She’s bent over you concernedly, and you think she’s speaking to you but you can’t hear her over the accelerated pounding of your heart that has arisen from the lack of proper oxygen intake. 

Her body firmly encompasses your own and your senses are overtaken with everything Amber. If you were able to breathe, you would’ve sighed at the feeling of security that blanketed over you. 

Amber’s hands grasp yours and she presses your joined hands onto her chest, where her heart steadily thumps beneath. At the feeling of it, you will your own heart to match its rhythm. It takes a while for it to slow down but once it does, you faintly become aware of her sweet voice reminding you to breathe slowly, in and out, in and out. 

She looks relieved when you finally descend back to reality. “There you go, baby. You’re okay. I’m here.”

You throw your arms around her and sob into the embrace, struggling to ignore the burning in your chest. She rubs your back and shushes you quietly. 

“Amber, I can’t do this. I’m scared.”

She presses a chaste kiss to your forehead and pulls you in closer, resting her chin on the top of your head. “We’re gonna be okay.”

You mumble into her chest, “How can you be so sure?”

Practically smothered in her embrace, you remain completely unaware of the ominous look that has blossomed in the dark brown eyes that you love so much. 

“You trust me, don’t you?” 

You nod, albeit a bit hesitantly.

“Good. I’m going to protect you, I won’t let anything happen to us.”

It isn’t lost on you that just as there is with everyone else, there’s a slim possibility that Amber could be the killer. But out of everyone, you know her the best. Ever since she had asked you out, all shy and nervous and very un-Amber Freeman like, the two of you had been inseparable. She weaseled her way into your everyday thoughts and in turn, you became the center of warmth that thawed her previously cold heart. No one could deny that you and Amber balanced each other out perfectly. For the first time in your life, you found someone you could trust enough to fall deeply and irrevocably in love with. If you could trust Amber with such an intimate and fundamental piece of your soul, you could trust that she wouldn’t be silently plotting your death, right?

Wrong.

Just like Liv’s skull cavity, your heart shatters at the abrupt finality of Amber’s bullet. 

Chaos erupts at the spray of Liv’s blood and the crash of her still-warm body hitting the ground. Sam and Richie scatter as Tara knocks Amber’s next shot off course. 

The only thing you can think to do is run, so you do. You clamber up the stairs and dive into the hall closet. You clamp a hand over your mouth to muffle the pitiful sounds desperately trying to slip past your lips. 

You feel utterly broken, like the piece of your soul that you’d given to Amber was cruelly snatched out of your body and crushed in her murderous grasp. You want nothing more than to scream and wail until you yell yourself hoarse, but you can’t give up your hiding spot. As much as you’re sure that the pain of betrayal outweighs any cut from the blood-stained knife, you don’t want to find out if there’s any truth to the comparison. 

You hear two sets of feet making their way up the stairs, one stomping heavily and the other flailing uselessly. You aren’t one-hundred percent sure, but you think the pained whimpers you’re hearing belong to Tara. Which means Amber was likely the one accompanying her.

At the thought of your girlfriend, you recoil further into the closet. You can feel your whole body shaking in fear. 

After a few more long minutes, you can hear the familiar creak of Amber’s boots on the hardwood floor. She’s calling out your name and you press your hand harder against your mouth to completely silence the sound of your breathing. 

Her search becomes more frantic and the clunking of her boots begins to pick up speed. You reach around blindly in search of anything you can use to fend her off.

Just as you tighten your grip around what you think might be an umbrella, the closet door flies open. You swing with all your might, but Amber moves quicker, grabbing the umbrella and disarming you.

She quirks an eyebrow and chuckles at your failed attempt to hit her. She motions for you to stand.

 “Come on, down to the kitchen we go.”

You make no move to get up, paralyzed at the sight of her donning the ghostface robes. 

She groans, “I can’t have you ruining the plan. Let’s go.”

Her commanding tone does nothing to move you. You’re rooted to the spot in fear, wondering what fate is waiting for you down in the kitchen. 

Amber growls and you flinch backwards as she steps into the closet, towering over your seated form. 

“You’re being such a pain in the ass.”

Her hands wrap tightly around your waist as hoists you up and tosses you over her shoulder. You struggle futility, but there’s no chance you can escape the strong arm wound snugly around your midsection. 

Amber carries you easily down the stairs and you wriggle around faster, knowing from your frequent visits to the house that you’re almost across the threshold that leads into the kitchen. 

You’re placed onto the ground and firmly shoved to the other side of the island. Before you can even think to move, the steel barrel of a gun is pressed into your forehead. It’s Richie on the other end of it, and only then do you realize that Sam is laid out on the ground, a hand pressed into her side, where blood is trickling out despite her efforts to stop it. She looks up at you with sorrow and terror and you’re sure that your expression reflects hers like a mirror. 

Amber takes the knife that Richie offers to her and makes her way to a different corner of the kitchen. She jumps gleefully, and if things weren’t so fucked up you might’ve found the sight endearing.

Though the gun blocks out most of your vision, you see two other women in the kitchen. 

Gale Weathers and Sidney Prescott. Shit, even they managed to get trapped in this nightmare. 

Richie, seemingly pissed that you aren’t giving him your full attention, grips your jaw with more than enough force to leave a bruise. Your resulting moan of pain is insignificant to him.

“Leave her alone!” Sidney yells out and Amber’s knife presses threateningly into her throat, swiftly silencing her.

Richie laughs menacingly, “Sid, when are you gonna finally realize you aren’t in control here?” 

He turns towards you and frowns angrily.

“You know if it were up to me, you’d have been dead at the start of this thing.” 

A glob of his spit lands on your cheek and the gun is pushed further into your forehead, the force practically moving you backwards.

You’re scared, the most afraid you’ve ever been in your life. Your hands are trembling and you stutter, completely unable to come up with the necessary words to plead helplessly for your life. 

“Pathetic,” Richie growls out. He looks in Amber’s direction, “I don’t know what you saw in her honey.”

“She usually has a lot more fire in her.” 

You meet her gaze for a second. Amber’s eyes are nearly black, pupils blown wide with what must be psychotic pleasure. 

You open your mouth to finally say something, but the sudden smack of the gun across your face shuts you up. You cry out and lift your hands to your face instinctually. Your head is pulsing at the unexpected pain.

While Amber’s distracted with Richie’s assault on you, Sidney makes a grab for a knife sitting on the countertop.

Her actions don’t go unnoticed. Amber reacts with the speed of a demon and plunges her knife into Sidney’s gut. Gale yells out as Sidney crumples to the ground.

With both Sidney and Gale momentarily incapacitated, Richie knocks you backwards, sending you carelessly stumbling back and straight into Amber’s arms. He turns towards Sam, while Amber pins you against the counter.

“Get rid of her Amber, we need to start staging the bodies. Fast baby, we don’t have much time.”

She hums, not bothering to verbally acknowledge him. You shiver as your eyes lock together, hers still full of straight mania. 

Her arm lifts up and she moves slowly, tracing the blade against the smooth skin of your face. You try not to gag at the coppery smell of blood that is being carelessly smeared across your face.

She smiles softly at you, creating a confusing juxtaposition with the wild expression that fills her eyes. 

Amber leans in to whisper almost lovingly in your ear, “I always knew you’d look so pretty covered in blood, baby.” 

You can’t stop the tears from leaking out of your eyes. You’re so distraught, it’s nearly impossible to think straight with how overwhelmed you are. How could this Amber be the same Amber that had admitted to being nervous the first time she told you she loved you? 

“Amber, please.” You begged brokenly, hoping the girl you loved so dearly was still somewhere inside the maniac that stands in front of you.

Her gaze softens just a hair and you nearly cheer at the glimpse of your Amber. 

“I’m sorry. You know I’d keep you around if I could.”

The relief exits your body. Your heart drops deep into your chest at the words.

“You said you’d protect me.” You feel desperate, there had to be something you could say to snap Amber out of this state.

She pouts and brushes a strand of your hair behind your ear. “I did. Richie wanted you to be the opening kill, but I stopped that from happening.” 

The special smile that she always saved just for you spread across her face, “I even convinced him to leave you to me tonight. I’ll be the last person you see, won’t that be nice?”

Your jaw trembles with the newfound knowledge. Amber spared you, but only to prolong your life so you’d die by her hand. Your resolve finally breaks, and you are fully encased in dread. 

In a strange mirroring of the day’s earlier events, you begin weeping loudly. Amber’s arms wrap around you in an attempt to comfort you. 

She deposits a kiss onto the top of your head.

“I know you don’t understand it, but I’m doing this because I love you.”

Her arms tighten around you and you’re suddenly blindsided by excruciating pain. Amber’s knife is slowly pushed deeper and deeper into your body, your insides twist around at the intrusion. 

As you yell out in pain, she shushes and gently praises you, repeatedly whispering how much she loves you. 

She rips the knife out of your gut, just to harshly plunge it back in once, twice, and a third time. You feel sick at the squelching that sounds out each time the knife enters your stomach. 

Blood dribbles out of your mouth as you groan in pain. 

Hazily, you notice that she’s covered in your blood. Your vision is darkening and you feel yourself begin to dwindle in and out of consciousness. 

Amber takes note of this and leans closer, her lips nearly touching yours. 

“You did so good for me, love. I’ll make sure they cast someone beautiful to play you in the movie.”

With a final whispered confession of love, Amber places a gentle series of kisses to your bloodied lips. She stabs you once more, and lowers your body carefully to the ground as she pulls the knife out one last time. 

You lay there, unable to move even if you wanted to. You stare up at the ceiling, it spins around and around and around. 

Your ears are ringing. If you could think clearly, you reckon you’d wonder what you did wrong to end up in this situation. You don’t think there’s any possibility for things to have ended differently. Fate was cruel and unforgiving, but at this point you have no choice but to lie in the bed that it has made for you.

The pain is gone, replaced with the silent weight of nothingness. You feel yourself drifting away, and you welcome the feeling. Maybe your next life would be kinder to you.

Unfortunately for you, your peace never comes. 

Instead, you find yourself opening your eyes disorientedly. You let out a sharp hiss at the blinding white lights that glare back at you. 

Once you’ve adjusted to the light, you finally make out that there are a couple figures crowding around you. 

“Wha-”

It hurts to talk, as a matter of fact, everything hurts. 

“Alright, alright you’re okay. My name’s Dr. Ford. You’re gonna be in a lot of pain for a while, so let’s take it easy.”

You stare back at the man in disbelief.

Somehow, despite all the odds, you survived.

A/N: ta da!! I'm actually planning a part 2 to this that follows our dear reader through the events of scream vi, so stay tuned! Heads up, it won't actively be about an Amber x R relationship cuz... well you know :'(

Fellow Amber stans plz forgive me for not feeding y'all more regularly.

[itsamejin]

easy || jungkook angst/fluff

Summary: Date you, win a bet, get his rent paid off. Sounds promising enough, right? Jungkook should’ve known that his ambitions would end in disaster, but even if he did, that still wouldn’t have stopped him from pursuing you.

Warning: cursing, crude humor, fuckboy talk

Genre: college!au, fuckboy!au, bet!trope, angst, fluff

Pairing: Jungkook x female!reader

Premise: In which Jungkook accepts a bet from Taehyung to date the first girl that walks into the lecture hall and realizes that he bit off more than he could chew when starts to catch feelings. Now, he has to suffer the consequences of being an idiot.

Commission Request: @altus-gens​

Word Count: 9,203 words

—

It's not like Jungkook planned to be one of the most sought after person in Yonsei University, but it somehow turned out to be that way. Truthfully, he basks in it, loves that so many people idolize him for doing the bare minimum. He was handsome after all and had a level of charm that surpassed the need to have a good personality. 

He got into such a prestigious school through an athletic scholarship for Taekwondo, managed to convince his professors to pass him when he put in minimal effort, and there was no shortage of girls to call when he was feeling lonely for a night. He was the stereotypical 'it' boy on campus and maybe if he was a little bit smarter, he'd have a better choice of friends than the six idiots he always hangs around with.

"How about this," Taehyung starts, gum in his mouth, "the first girl who walks in, you have to successfully get in her pants."

Jungkook rolls his eyes. They were in a damn lecture hall and yet Taehyung had no shame bringing up sex. Typical.

“This again, bro?” Hoseok sighed. “Aren’t you sick of bribing us to do weird shit for you?”

Taehyung smirked.

“Not at all, actually.”

"For how much?" Namjoon cut in, probably curious for the price point Taehyung would arrange this time. He was fired from his job just a week ago and could really use the money. "I'll do it if it’s enough to pay for my rent this month."

Taehyung scoffs, although knowing full well he could pay for all of the boys’ tuitions combined if he wanted to. He was the resident rich bachelor on campus after all.

"I'll pay it for a full year and your utility bills too if you're really down," Taehyung flaunts. "You just gotta have proof you actually managed to do it."

"Dude that's gross," Seokjin chimes in, "No one wants to send you proof of us doing it with a random girl."

Taehyung shakes his head.

"No, no, no," he says, clicking his tongue. "I phrased it incorrectly. I’m not a fucking pervert."

“You got us fooled,” Jimin mutters. 

Taehyung leans in closer to the six boys and even Jungkook finds himself getting intrigued. Admittedly, he was a little curious considering he hasn't had a proper meal in weeks. He could really use having some extra cash for food without worrying about rent.

"You have to date the girl for like three months," Taehyung says seriously, "and I'll consider that as enough proof that you managed to actually do it since I know you guys are too horny to wait any longer than that to fuck."

They all look at Taehyung in disgust, Jimin even opting to hit him in the back of the head for being so vulgar. To be fair, they were all thinking of accepting Taehyung's bet regardless. It's not like they were new to leading girls on anyway.

"You gotta pay me more than that to fuck just any girl," Yoongi says, yawning in the process. He seemed the least likely to take up Taehyung's offer, but he was still game depending on the person.

"Then how would you feel," Taehyung starts, "if I told you guys that I could get you priority registration for next quarter."

The boys, even the ones who weren't interested, were now listening to Taehyung's every word.

"You mean," Hoseok gulps, "I could finally get that fucking Organic Chemistry class I need to get out of this hell hole?!"

Taehyung shrugs, an ominous smile on his face.

"Just the perk of having parents who have connections," Taehyung replies. “I’ll only accept one of you guys to do it though. I don’t wanna have you all fucking the same girl- that’d be weird.”

Hoseok rolls his eyes.

“Yeah, that’s what’s weird about this,” he grumbles.

“So are you guys in or not?” Taehyung asks, his patience growing thin.

He lays back on his chair, a smoldering look on his face when they all nod. They were desperate for money after all.

"The next girl that walks in will be the subject of this bet and whoever calls dibs on her first will be the one to woo her,” he says with a stretch of his arms. “Good luck boys.”

They all turned to look at the door and Jungkook watches silently as guy after guy walks into the lecture hall. No girl yet. 

Jungkook was hoping, from the bottom of his heart, that no familiar faces would walk in. If he had to deal with a past fling, he’d have to back out immediately. He never dealt with exes very well.

The guys are at the edge of their seats, praying for a cute girl to walk through that didn’t already know about their horrible reputation. They were looking for an easy target, someone that could fall for their charms almost immediately.

And then, you walk in. You were clad in sweats with earphones on, rushing toward the front row seats of the lecture hall. You were chatting with your friends, yawning several times throughout your conversation with them. Jungkook couldn’t help but smirk. There was nothing special about you to point out, in fact, you were just like everyone else. Strangely enough, he found that the most intriguing part about you.

"Nope, nope, nope," Jimin shakes his head repeatedly. "Can't, won't, never will. Sorry, Tae."

They all stare at him in confusion.

"What the fuck, what's wrong with her?" Yoongi asks, crossing his arms over his chest. Jimin faces away from you, not wanting to look at you any longer.

"No, nothing," there seems to be a blush forming on his face. He was hiding something.

“Bullshit,” Taehyung furrows his brows. “Bro, if she’s crazy and one of us gets our dick bitten off, we’re all blaming you, so spit it out.”

Jimin just sighs.

"She's been giving me Professor Kwon’s notes for the past few weeks,” he starts, much to the confusion of his friends. “Her name is [Y/N]. It'll be really mean if I go after her, especially since she and I are kind of friends. Plus, I really need to pass this class. I failed last quarter..."

The boys groan. Jimin was no fun.

"She's not my type so I don't think I could really get into it either," Seokjin states, no longer interested in the prize after Jimin’s confession. He’s been banking off of your notes from him too. 

"Aren’t we all old enough to know not to mess with people’s feelings?" Hoseok sighs.

They roll their eyes at Hoseok’s statement. Who was he trying to fool with the nice guy act? He probably fooled around with girls just as much as the other guys did.

"Yeah, I’m backing out," Yoongi agrees, "and she hates me so there's that."

They all look at him questioningly and he puts his hands up in the air from their gazes.

"What? I just realized who she’s talking to down there.”

He pointed at a girl discreetly, but no one seemed to recognize her.

“Her friend and I dated,” Yoongi continues, “and I broke up with her over text and blocked her without letting her respond. That whole friend group is pretty much pissed at me. I'd rather not have to deal with them again."

The guys look disapprovingly at him. Breaking up over text was harsh, but probably not the worst thing Yoongi has done to his exes.

"You're actually a piece of shit," Namjoon sighs. "I really do need my rent paid though..."

Jungkook nods in agreement. It's been almost impossible to balance Taekwondo practices, college papers, and working a part-time job all at once. If he could somehow find a way to quit his job for a while and get priority registration for classes, then he doesn't mind getting his hands a little dirty in the process. Plus, you were cute enough and he's sure you weren't too difficult to befriend as long as he doesn't mention Yoongi in any conversations.

"I'm in," Jungkook chides, finally saying something after such a long period of silence.

They all look at him with disbelief in their eyes. Jungkook was never the one to partake in Taehyung's bets. In fact, he was the one usually ridiculing them for participating. He must have been really desperate if he was willing to do it.

"I mean, it's all yours if you want," Namjoon replies, "I don't wanna turn it into a competition.”

“Don’t worry dude,” Jungkook fist bumps Namjoon, “I’ll quit my job and refer you for it.”

They nod at each other as if they were on the same wavelength. 

“I knew I could rely on you,” Namjoon says, faking tears from his eyes. The boys groan in response.

“Alright,” Taehyung claps his hands. “In exchange for providing me some mindless entertainment and going out with [Y/N], you will get your rent paid for the rest of the year and get early registration for next quarter. Sounds like a pretty sweet deal to me.”

Jimin shakes his head.

“I don’t know about this, guys...”

Jungkook doesn’t hear him and instead takes one last look at you. You catch him in the corner of your eye and you can’t help but feel flustered at his serious expression. 

“Should be easy enough,” he mutters to himself and turns his gaze back onto his friend.

“So we have a deal?” Taehyung asks.

He smirks, shaking the outreached hand Taehyung held out for him. He steals another glance at you and he finds you staring right back. He gives you a wink.

“Deal.”

—

Jungkook slid into the seat next to yours in the campus canteen, his eyes filled with determination. His posture was laid-back, but it was a little too obvious that he was trying to act like he didn’t care.

“Hi,” he greets you in a breathy tone- girls loved it when he spoke with his breathy tone.

“Hi?”

You’d been sensing that someone was staring at you during the lecture, but you thought that was just the paranoia that came from being near such an intimidating group of guys. Turns out, you should always trust your instincts.

Jungkook had a boyish grin on his face that made you want to smile back but also stare at him in disgust.

“I heard you help Jimin with Professor Kwon’s notes,” he whispers mischievously. “I’m struggling myself, actually...”

Not really, but you know. This was the easiest tactic to approach you- tackle your similarities. You nod understandingly at his words, not quite getting that he was flirting with you.

“Yeah I can send you the Google Drive folder,” you comply, taking your phone out. “But you can’t let Professor Kwon know or else he’ll flip out. He doesn’t want people to have the notes for some odd reason...”

You trail off but Jungkook just scoffs. You seemed clueless.

“That’s not what I necessarily meant,” he says, a little shy this time. “I need a tutor.”

You furrow your brows at him.

“Yeah, you’re gonna have to pay me for that,” you say seriously. The last time you offered to tutor someone for free, they ended up blaming you for their failing grade and screaming about it all over social media. You needed money to compensate for that emotional trauma. “Microeconomics is hard to teach.”

“Well thankfully I’m a good student,” Jungkook teases. You stare at him with a deadpan face.

“You wouldn’t need my help if you were a good student,” you say blankly, standing up from your seat. “My hourly rate is 20,000 Won. Take it or leave it.”

Jungkook’s eye twitched. He had to spend his money to get Taehyung’s money? Well, the payout would be worth it in the end anyway. He reaches out a hand to you.

“If you’d have me,” he says cheekily, looking up at you. You take his hand in yours and maybe for a second you felt your heart skip a beat, but that was soon over when you let go of him.

“You have sweaty hands,” you say straightforwardly. You wipe your hand on your shirt and he coughs awkwardly at how unresponsive you truly were. Didn’t Jimin say you were a nice person? 

You take your barely-touched lunch tray and walk away from his pensive figure.

“Wait, can I get your number?” he yells. You don’t look back.

“Alright, whatever,” he mumbles to himself. “I’ll just ask Jimin, I guess.”

Without even a second glance, you disappear from his sight. He sits back on his chair, heaving out a deep sigh. Sure, this wasn’t the first girl that didn’t care much for his advances, but you didn’t even crack a smile or anything. This is going to be harder than he thought...

—

“She hates me,” Jungkook whines to Seokjin as they walked down the university halls to their next shared class. “Yesterday, I went up to her to get her number and I left with a fucking debt. Does that make any sense?”

“Well, maybe you shouldn’t have taken on the bet,” Seokjin yawned. “Namjoon would have wooed her with his poetry by now or some shit.”

Jungkook rolls his eyes.

“Yeah, I’m sure she’s interested in a dude who can’t even put on a hat without causing an earthquake.”

Seokjin smacked him on the back.

“At least he’d have the guts to say no to having a fucking tutor,” Seokjin replies. “You dug your own grave, man. Now roll around in it.”

“Do you want me to succeed or not?” 

“I want you to not be a fucking dumbass, Jungkook,” Seokjin sighs. “Do you really wanna make your reputation worse than it already is?”

Just as Jungkook was about to reply, he catches a glimpse of you walking farther ahead in the university courtyard. You were a bit far but he’s sure he could make it if he hurries. He smacks the binder he held in his right hand onto Seokjin’s chest.

“Yo, can you cover for me,” he asks hastily and Seokjin stares at him with a concerned gaze. He watches as Jungkook takes off his backpack and leaves it on the ground. Jungkook looked about ready to break out in a sprint.

“What the fuck, why?” Seokjin questions.

“Just tell the TA I’m out for a bit,” he says in response, already running ahead to catch up to you. “I’m winning this fucking bet or I’ll die trying.”

Jin stands still, mouth agape. Jungkook really left him with his backpack and binder just to talk to you. He shakes his head. ‘I need to make new friends,’ he thought to himself, picking up the discarded backpack and walking in the direction of the class Jungkook was planning to be late to.

You were walking with your earphones on, not noticing someone sprinting at you in record speed. You only turn your music off when Jungkook stops in front of you, his hands on his knees. He was panting heavily.

“Hey,” he says through deep breaths. You nod at him awkwardly.

“Why are you running?”

“I wanted to... catch up to you... and I thought... you were closer... but the run here... took... fucking... forever,” he says breathlessly. “Water. I need water.”

You take out a bottle from your tote bag hastily, handing it to him. He took it into his hands, grazing your fingers a bit. As he was about to start chugging it, you halted him.

“Waterfall,” you say curtly- you were still planning to drink out of it later after all. 

He nods in response, a drop of sweat cascading the side of his neck. After he was done, there was practically no water left anyway. ‘I’m gonna have to refill it myself,’ you thought begrudgingly. You stuff it back into your bag and wait until his breaths become more even.

“A bit out of shape, huh?”

He scoffs and gives you a glare, clearly offended.

“I actually have a Taekwondo scholarship, you know that? I just wasn’t warmed up and I’m naturally sweaty so it’s not like-”

You laugh a little.

“I’m joking,” you say, a smile adorning your face. He feels his face turn red and he can’t help but purse his lips out of embarrassment. Jeon Jungkook couldn’t take a fucking joke.

“O-oh,” he says shyly, avoiding your gaze. Why was he acting more like an idiot than usual? You hear the chiming bells of the university tower and stare at your phone to check the time.

“Don’t you have a class?” you ask him. His eyes widen and soon he was dashing off again. He turns around mid-run, jogging backward to face you.

“My number is 06-1313-9197,” he yells, loud enough for the other late students in the courtyard to hear. Most of them roll their eyes, knowing that Jungkook was flirting with another girl yet again. You’re embarrassed by the amount of attention he’s getting, but punch his number on your phone anyway.

“Text me,” he shouts. “I’ll always respond to you.”

Now it was your turn to be flustered.

—

"That’s wrong,” you say, reaching over to Jungkook’s notebook and marking a large ‘X’ on his paper. “You’re not supposed to apply that function for this problem...”

Jungkook stared at you with a tired face. He didn’t think he was too bad at the mathematical aspect of Microeconomics, but it seemed like it was your life’s mission to make him look like an idiot. Of course, you caught every mistake that he made- even the ones he made on purpose just to see if you were really paying attention to his work and not bamboozling him.

“My bad,” he mutters, copying down the same problem on a different sheet of paper. He didn’t even get a chance to make a move on you today- not like he could make any big developments in the campus library anyway.

“Is it like this?” he asks, tilting his notebook to face you. You take a hard look at it and nod.

“Yeah, just make sure you know the difference between these two formulas, or else you’ll mess up on the midterm,” you say thoughtfully.

This was your fourth or fifth tutoring session by now? Truth be told he wasn’t really counting. Each moment he spent with you kind of blended together and he didn’t quite know if that was a bad thing or not.

“You know you’re not even struggling,” you say, your nose buried deep in your textbook. “It’s not like you’re completely clueless like Jimin. It seems like you’re wasting money on stuff you already know.”

Jungkook laughs heartily, getting shushed by the people around him. He really was stupid, wasn’t he?

“Yeah, well, it was just an excuse to hang out with the pretty girl in class, you know?” he says as nonchalantly as he could. You stare at him for a second and he swears he feels his body freeze over. If looks could kill...

You just shook your head with a click of your tongue and got back to reading.

“The pretty girl in class is most definitely not me,” you grumble. “If you wanted, I could’ve given you Soobin’s number without all the added hassle of you trying to come talk to me-”

“Woah, woah, woah,” Jungkook stops you from saying anything else. He looked worriedly at your face. “I don’t even know who the hell Soobin is, why would I want her number?”

You look at him and finally, you chuckle. ‘She really does have a nice smile,’ Jungkook thought to himself. It would be nice if he could make you laugh more often and not just on rare occasions like this.

“You’re saying you don’t know Yoongi’s ex?” you tease slightly. You were finally letting your guard down with him and Jungkook smirked. One wall down, another million more to go.

“Bold of you to assume that I know any of Yoongi’s exes,” he says and you scoff. “He’s an asshole when it comes to dating.”

You roll your eyes.

“Isn’t that your whole friend group?”

He pouts. You knew of his reputation after all. Jungkook thought he could get away playing a nice boy act, but it didn't seem possible considering your knowledge of him. A little white lie couldn’t hurt in the end.

“Not me,” he replies. “I choose my relationships pretty carefully.”

You take a glance at him before jotting down a few more words in your notebook.

“Well,” you start off, a little shy to admit what you were about to say, “I guess we both have that in common.”

He tilts his head rather cutely out of confusion.

“What do you mean?”

You cough awkwardly, adjusting yourself on one of the library’s notoriously squeaky seats.

“I’ve never really had a boyfriend before,” you say quietly. His eyes bulge out from their sockets.

“You’re lying.”

“No, I’m not,” you say, a hint of amusement in your voice.

“Like, you’ve never been on a date or what?”

“I have,” you say hesitantly. “I’ve been on a few but they just never led into anything serious. I was pretty focused on studying in high school so there weren’t really any opportunities to get involved with someone. Plus, the guys who pursued me weren’t very... attractive.”

Jungkook laughs loudly again, much to the dismay of the other students in the library. He liked that you didn’t beat around the bush- it was easier to talk to you that way.

“And me?” he asks teasingly, laying his head on his arm that was atop the desk. He looks up at you with that boyish grin of his that gave you small butterflies in your stomach. You stare back at him, but only for a second. You ignore his watchful gaze and continue to flip through your textbook, trying to find the passage you last read. He keeps his eyes locked on you and you just couldn’t resist.

“What about you?” you ask, feigning ignorance.

“Am I attractive?” he replies as bluntly as he could. You stop your movements and he chuckles.

“You’re... cute,” you settle on that word. Cute. It was safe enough to not be misinterpreted too much. He sits up straight with a satisfied smirk. He takes his pen and draws a heart on the side of your notebook. He winks at you when you stare back at him, puzzled by his actions.

“You are too.”

—

“Tell me you’re lying,” Soobin whines disappointingly, shaking your shoulders. You were trying to eat lunch undisturbed in one of the campus cafes but your two friends seem hell-bent on making you suffer. “There’s no way you’re friends with Jungkook.”

You sigh, attempting to rid yourself of Soobin’s grasp but to no avail.

“He’s an asshole, [Y/N],” Gaeun sighs disappointingly. “I thought you were a feminist, why the fuck do you even tolerate him?”

You glare at her for a split second before going back to prying Soobin off you.

“Jungkook has no respect for women or himself. It shows in how many shitty friends he has,” Soobin chants, still clearly bitter that Yoongi dumped her.

You shake your head, rolling your shoulders back when she finally lets go of you.

“Jungkook’s not even as bad as you guys describe him,” you reply. “He’s actually been really sweet.”

The girls take a glance at each other and burst in a fit of laughter.

“You must be out of your damn mind,” Gaeun cries. You cower slightly at their words. It’s not like you said anything that controversial, did you?

Soobin slaps Gaeun on the shoulder when she realizes how your face had soured. It wasn’t right to judge you for your choice of friends so harshly, no matter how horrid said person was.

“As long as it doesn’t go past friends,” she says soothingly, but that only made you feel worse.

“Why?” you ask a little hesitantly. “Does Jungkook sleep around?”

Gaeun nods, a worrying glimpse in her eyes.

“He's not exactly the type to kiss and stay...”

You nod understandingly. You weren’t too clueless to believe Jungkook when he said he was “careful” on who he dated. As long as you knew the boundaries that came with being his tutor, everything should be fine... right?

“Don’t worry guys,” you say with determination. “I’m not the type to get played-”

“Of course you are!” Gaeun sighed. “Guys gravitate towards girls like you who lack experience. Jungkook’s a fucking weirdo, of course, he’s gonna try and-”

“[Y/N]!” a shout from across the cafe screams. That distracted you from the various insults Gaeun was spewing from her mouth. You get that she was being critical of Jungkook, but did she have to speak ill of you too?

You look around and catch Jungkook waving frantically at you. He stops at your table and takes a mere glance at your friends before setting his focus on you. 

“Do you have time to help me out today? One of the papers for my writing class-”

“You tutor him in writing now, too?!” Soobin exclaimed, mouth agape. “[Y/N], what the fuck.”

You try to ignore your friend’s overreaction, a little disheartened when Jungkook looked hurt at their words. He had started to shy away from them as if he didn’t feel welcomed.

“Nevermind, I’ll just ask you later-”

“Actually,” you say standing up. “I’m free now.”

The two girls look back and forth between you and Jungkook, noticing the stars in your eyes when you looked at him. They did not like the thought of you two together at all.

“But [Y/N]-” 

You ignored their words and start to walk away, hoping Jungkook would come catch up to you. You didn’t quite know why their insistence on him being a bad person had made your blood boil. It wasn’t like you weren’t aware of his flirtatious tendencies, but hearing from your friends that you shouldn’t pursue a guy that you liked-

You stopped in your tracks and feel heat climb up your face. Like.

No way you admitted that just now. There’s no possible way you actually like-

“Hey, wait up,” Jungkook pants, his hand touching your shoulder. “Why do you walk so fast for-”

He sees your shocked face and turns you towards him, his hands on your shoulder similar to how Soobin had shaken you just earlier. Except this time, it felt comforting. It made your whole body feel warm as if you were coated with a weighted blanket. Was he always this gorgeous?

“What’s wrong?” he asks, inspecting your face closely. “You look like you just saw a ghost.”

“N-nothing,” you swipe his hands away and rush out the door of the cafe. He smirks at how flustered you look, maybe he did have an effect on you after all.

Jungkook takes a last glimpse at the two girls who sat in their seats, staring at him disapprovingly. He raised an eyebrow at them and shoved his hands in the pocket of his jeans, following after you. ‘They’ll try to get in the way,’ Jungkook thought to himself, ‘but they’re already too late.’

The girls clenched their fist out of annoyance. He was definitely trying to get on their nerves.

“There’s something strange about what’s happening,” Gaeun mutters.

“They’re up to something,” Soobin agrees. “I don’t trust him at all.”

—

It’s been a week since you last spoke to your friends, not really wanting to read the messages they bombarded you with about how you should stay for away from Jungkook. It was hard to take any of their advice seriously when they were just badmouthing him without reason. They based all their opinions on him from rumors around the school and Soobin always felt the need to compare him to Yoongi even though they both had very different personalities. Well, at least to you they seemed very different.

Frankly, you were sick of their nagging and just turned off notifications from that group chat altogether. Instead of sitting next to them during Microeconomics, you opted to sit with Jungkook in the back of the lecture hall instead of at the front with them. Jungkook had abandoned his own rowdy friend group to sit with you and flashed them quick smirks and winks whenever they’d stare at him. 

Slowly, Jungkook had started to become a constant in your day to day life. You walked to class with him, ate with him, played video games with him. It was sort of strange how used to you were of his presence, like you had known him your whole life. Jungkook snaps you out of your thoughts when he starts humming a little tune.

He draws a heart in the corner of your notes- which you find he has a habit of doing whenever he wanted to say something stupid.

“I don’t get what he’s saying,” he pouts cutely. “It’s like he’s speaking a foreign language.”

You shake your head, not paying him any mind.

“Well maybe if you actually paid attention,” you mutter softly. He scoots closer to you and you feel yourself stiffen.

“But you’re tutoring me later on anyway,” he says teasingly. “I get more bang for my buck if I know less.”

“Bang for my buck,” you scoff. “Who even says that anymore?”

He points at himself nonchalantly and you can’t help but crack a smile as you continue to focus on the professor’s words. You don’t even cower under his gaze like you usually do when he stares at you with those puppy dog eyes.

“What do you want?” you ask, finally caving when Professor Kwon adjusted something in his PowerPoint slides. He smiles.

“I want to hold your hand,” Jungkook replies and you could feel your palms clam up. His flirtatious comments increased as time passed and you didn’t really quite know whether he was just teasing you or if he was genuinely interested in you. You weren’t very good at taking a hint.

“I’m writing right now...” you reply, slightly skipping a beat in your note-taking. He really was the ultimate distraction, wasn’t he?

Jungkook pouts sadly, but you can tell an idea pops up in his mind when his eyes start to glimmer. He sits his hand on your thigh and you jolt back from the touch of his hand on the material of your jeans. He pulls away slightly, scared that he had made you uncomfortable.

“I just want to put my arm around you,” he asks innocently. “Are you okay with that?”

You calm yourself down and nod. For goodness sake, you weren’t a child- why did a hand on your thigh make you so nervous for?!

“Yeah,” you say, a little more confident despite your nerves. “Go ahead.”

He smiles softly at you and connects his hand to your waist, pulling you a little closer to him. It was comforting, not at all meant to be more than just a public display of affection. He finds himself getting lost in the lecture along with you, his hand playing with a loose thread on your shirt through it all. He didn’t even look at his friends who were teasing him on the other side of the class or your own friends shooting daggers into his being.

At that moment, it was you, him, and Professor Kwon giving out a lecture that had half of the students already asleep. He smiled at how diligently you worked and how your breath would quicken when Professor Kwon switched the slides without a warning. It was the little idiosyncrasies like this that caught his attention, the kind of things that made him wonder where you’d been all his life.

The smile on Jungkook’s face disappeared when he came to that realization.

Fuck.

—

Jungkook rolls around the grass while you sit on the picnic blanket you two had set up. Midterms were over and grades would soon be announced. He wanted a much-needed distraction from the monotony of constant studying and you had suggested a small picnic in a nearby park. Of course, he agreed. 

“We’re free,” he groans. “Finally free.”

Jungkook stares hungrily at the assortment of food you had laid out for the two of you. He tries to reach a hand out to grab a bottle of lemonade but ultimately fails in the end. You giggle at his silliness, popping a grape in your mouth.

“You’re welcome by the way,” you say jokingly. “Don’t think you could’ve done it without me.”

He sits up to face you, bowing deeply as if you were a traditional empress.

“Thank you,” he says, imitating a Joseon accent. He was watching far too many historical dramas recently.

“You’re embarrassing me,” you say, attempting to straighten him out. “Sit up.”

He complies, only after a few pulls from you, with a toothy grin on his face.

“Seriously, I don’t think I could have gone through the first few weeks of Professor Kwon’s class without your notes,” he sighs, opening his mouth to signal that he wanted to be fed. You roll your eyes but placed a grape between his teeth anyway.

“You have hands, you should know how to use them,” you mumble shyly.

You move to take another grape for yourself, but he grabs your wrist before you could. He intertwines his fingers into yours.

“Why should I when my hands are holding yours~,” he says in a sing-song voice. It made you want to throw up at how cheesy he was, but you couldn’t help but laugh along as he cringed at his own words. When was it so normal for him to hold your hands like this?

“You can’t go one sentence without flirting, can you?” you sigh, feigning annoyance.

“Not when it comes to you,” he replies, but you could feel sincerity laced between his laughter. “I can’t resist flirting when it makes you all giggly like this.”

You purse your lips to prevent yourself from smiling too brightly. Jungkook and you were somewhat past the point of being just friends by now, but you were too much of a coward to label what you had with him. What if there was a chance that he was just leading you on?

Jungkook saw your furrowed brows. He rubbed circles on your hands with his thumbs to ease you.

“Am I making you uncomfortable?” he asks softly, about to let go.

“No-” you say a little too quickly, clasping him closer to you. Your faces were inches apart now, much nearer than they were before.

“D-don’t,” you attempt to say but you’re tongue tangled as you looked at his lips. He certainly does have nice lips...

“Don’t what?” he asks in a lowly voice. You start to look around you- anywhere that wasn’t him. The park was relatively empty but it still felt embarrassing to say anything too loud.

“D-don’t let me go,” you say, your eyes on the picnic blanket rather than on him. His gaze was too intense to look at. Jungkook feels his heart clench. You were cute, too cute. 

He shouldn’t be feeling this attached to you, but he couldn’t help it. Everything you did, every word that came out of your mouth- it had him wanting more from you than he could possibly handle. It was dangerous to feel this way.

“Why don’t you want me to let you go?” he asks nervously. He too was anxious for the answer. If you were to confess to Jungkook right now, he’d get the first part of the bet done, but there’d be no turning back after your confession. He would have to lie to you from now on. 

Jungkook closed his eyes, chanting to himself that it’s okay to like you for a little while, just as long as he doesn’t get too attached in the end. He needed the money, he really did.

“Because,” you start off with a sigh, staring at him now with glossy eyes. “I like you.”

Jungkook feels like he could do ten backflips in one go and it wouldn’t even drain him of energy. The smile on his face was huge, his eyes curling into that half-moon shape that made you swoon. 

Jungkook was relieved and if the boys asked, it was because he’d only have to date you for three months. He’d die before he’d admit to them that he caught feelings because Taehyung, as generous as he was with his bets, would never give Jungkook the money unless he cleanly broke up with you. It was one of his unspoken rules.

“I like you too.”

You smile at him and he can’t help but pull you close, his lips hovering over yours.

“Can I?”

You nod.

His lips graze yours slightly but he pushes a bit closer when he feels you lean into his touch. He kisses you again, and again, and again, but you pull away when his tongue had started to prod at your lips. Your face was flushed,  embarrassed to be doing this in such a public place.

“Maybe later?” you say, panting slightly. He gives you a cheeky grin and nods.

“At my place?” he asks with a wink.

You hesitate, letting go of his arms, twiddling with your fingers. You wanted to set clear labels on what your relationship was. You didn't want to accidentally get caught up in a friends-with-benefits situation and be all shocked when Jungkook ends up breaking your heart.

“So we’re dating now, right?” you ask cautiously, looking at him with a worried glint in your eyes. 

Jungkook’s mouth opens to speak but no words come out. He thinks a little harder about the whole situation... He was getting good grades, spending some quality time with a girl he’s clearly attracted to, and having his rent paid off all in one? He was killing three birds with one stone. It shouldn’t be too big of a problem to catch feelings for now, right? It’s not like any of his relationships lasted longer than a couple of months anyway.

He nods, cupping your face lightly.

“Yeah,” he hesitates. “We’re dating.”

Jungkook wasn’t aware, as he gives you another light peck, that it wasn’t possible to have his cake and eat it too.

—

It happens naturally. You coming in and out of his apartment that he shared with his friends, you tangling your legs with his underneath the sheets of his bed. It was hard to imagine a life where you didn’t wake up with him by your side. You were so wrapped up in his touch, so wrapped up in the sweet words he would whisper into your ears, that you spent most of your time with him. 

You weren’t really up to date with your friends anymore and he didn’t really hang out with his either. Jungkook shared an apartment with Seokjin and Hoseok, and so the only contact he had with the other boys was when they visited those two. He should’ve known to take you back home when all the boys bombarded into his living room, where you sat with him watching TV. 

“The lovebirds are at it again,” Taehyung coos, a mysterious glint in his eyes. “The honeymoon stage hasn’t passed quite yet, has it?”

Jungkook chucks one of the sofa’s throw pillows at his friend, obviously annoyed. What the fuck did Taehyung think he was doing?

“Quit it,” he mutters. You were sitting next to Jungkook, his arm around your shoulder protectively

“Why?” Yoongi yawns. “Anyone can see how incredibly in love you two are.”

You didn’t quite like the smirk he gave the two of you. This didn’t feel like regular teasing... it felt like he knew something that you weren't aware of. It made you curl your toes out of fear.

“Guys,” Jimin says calmly. “Stop it.”

The boys shrug their shoulders as if they said nothing wrong.

“We’re just pointing out how cute they are together,” Taehyung noted, “It’s not like we’re lying to her or anything-”

“Yeah, or leading her on or anything like that-”

“I think I should go,” you say hurriedly, uncomfortable at how tense the atmosphere was. Jungkook was clenching his fists, about ready to start a fight any second. Knowing his strength, you didn’t want anyone to walk around with a bruised eye because you couldn’t handle a few jokes- if that’s what Taehyung and Yoongi think they’re making. Harmless jokes.

“I’ll take you home,” Jungkook announces, standing up with you. Namjoon pulls him down back on the couch.

“Let someone else take her,” he says sternly. “We need to talk.”

Jungkook was about to protest until you spoke up.

“I can get home by myself just fine.”

“Hoseok and I can take you,” Seokjin insists, pulling the unassuming man up with him. “We don’t mind.”

Hoseok gives you a lopsided smile and you return an equally awkward one.

“Okay, that’s settled,” you say, clapping your hands. You walk over to Jungkook. “I’ll text you later okay?”

He nods, grabbing your hand and kissing it lightly. Yoongi scoffs and Taehyung glares at Jungkook. The dirty glances they were giving each other... You didn’t like it at all.

“Let me know when you get home, okay?”

“Okay.”

—

The walk to your apartment was unnecessarily awkward, Hoseok and Seokjin were talking too much and you talked too little. You tried to respond to their every quip, but you weren’t in the mood for chatting after that whole mess.

“You okay, [Y/N]?” Hoseok asks worriedly. “Don’t think too much about what those idiots said back there, they’re like that all the time.”

You nod, keeping your eyes on the ground. There was something chipping away at the back of your mind, something you wanted to get out of your chest.

“Would you say Jungkook and Yoongi act similarly?” you hesitate to say, “like with relationships?”

The two boys exchanged nervous glances at each other.

“Well, it depends,” Seokjin starts, choosing his words specifically. “What about relationships specifically?”

“Does he...,” you start off, not knowing the right phrase without sounding too harsh, “play around with girls? Like how Yoongi played around with Soobin?”

Hoseok looked at you with a raised brow.

“Who’s Soobin?” he asks before getting punched in the arm by Seokjin. “What the fuck bro!”

Seokjin clears his throat.

“What Hoseok meant to say,” he starts, glaring at his friend a little too harshly, “is that Yoongi never really introduces us to his girlfriends. You, on the other hand, are one of the few girls Jungkook actually took the time to invite over.”

“Yeah,” Hoseok chimes in. “He’s not exactly the most chivalrous, but he wouldn’t ghost someone like Yoongi did.”

Somehow their words weren’t enough to satisfy you. There was still something off in the conversation that transpired between the three boys- as if they were all keeping something from you. You stopped abruptly in front of your apartment complex, finally making eye-contact with the two boys.

“Do you think...” you start, a slight quiver in your voice, “that Jungkook is cheating on me?”

The two boys let out a deep breath that you didn’t even notice they were holding and laughed joyously together. They cackled as if what you said was the funniest thing they had ever heard in their life. Seokjin wipes a stray tear from his eye.

“Y-you think Jungkook’s cheating on you?!”

You nod, a little embarrassed at their reaction. Hoseok shakes his head, sighing out of his laughter.

“Trust me,” Hoseok starts, his breath evening out. “Jungkook would never cheat on you.”

You start to giggle along with them until a serious look suddenly takes over Seokjin’s features. He faces you fully.

“But listen [Y/N],” he starts. “If Jungkook hurts you, just know that he does love you. Like, undeniably. He does.”

“And we’re not just saying that as his friends either,” Hoseok continues. “We know how he’s like and we can tell that he really does like you.”

You smile at the two, feeling a small sense of comfort at their words.

“Thank you, guys. I mean it.”

They pat you on the back.

“Anything for Jungkook’s girlfriend.”

—

You walk through the campus cafeteria, eyes searching for a free table that you can sit alone in. Jungkook had Taekwondo practice so there would be no lovey-dovey feeding time with him. 

He’s been a lot tenser since the living room incident (which was already a week ago) and it seemed like he got more agitated as the days passed. Not towards you directly, but he’d always mutter slight insults whenever Yoongi or Taehyung passed by. It made you worried that you had done something to possibly drive a wrench into their relationship without even knowing it.

‘Whatever,’ you thought, ‘I’ll talk about it with him when he comes over later.’

You aren’t able to find a seat, though, when you feel dainty fingers wrap around  your elbow to pull you back lightly.

“[Y/N],” Gaeun says in a low voice. “We need to talk.”

It wasn’t like you had been ignoring them deliberately, though that was definitely the case at the start. You just couldn’t find the time to really hang out with them as much as you used to since you were with Jungkook most of the time. It was like that too when Gaeun and Soobin were in relationships, so you never really felt bad about doing it yourself.

“Yeah sure. I miss you guys,” you smile at her, but she doesn’t return it back.

“Come with me.”

Gaeun leads you to a table near the back of the room, where Soobin was sat up against the wall with her own tray of food. You sit down in front of her and Gaeun takes the seat next to Soobin.

“Good, you’re here,” Soobin says, apprehension laced in her voice. “We need to talk about Jungkook.”

You roll your eyes.

“Not this again-”

“[Y/N],” Gaeun warns. “Listen.”

You keep quiet, a little intimidated of how scary their expressions were.

“It’s all a bet,” Soobin says sternly.

You furrow your brows at her. She tends to speak vaguely when you needed her to be specific the most.

“What?”

“It’s a bet, [Y/N],” Gaeun repeats for her. “Jungkook’s only dating you because Taehyung said he’d pay his rent off if he did.”

You clench your fist on the table. How could they sit there and spew lies so easily?

“What are you guys-”

“Those dicks do this all the time,” Soobin rambles. “They play stupid games with girls just to fucking break their hearts later on and-”

“I don’t believe you,” you say confidently. “Jungkook would never do that to me. Besides-”

Gaeun didn’t even wait until you stopped talking to play a recording on her phone. The voices were familiar enough to recognize.

“So you’re telling me that Jungkook’s just fucking around with [Y/N] because he wants priority registration? You have to be fucking joking...”

You could tell from the sound of the person’s voice that it was Soobin. It sounded like she was putting on her clothes.

“Of course not. He’s doing it for priority registration and his rent getting paid for the rest of the year. I’m not joking when I say Tae goes big with his bets. He likes to flex his money on us like that.”

Your jaw drops at the sound of the man’s voice. It was Yoongi. You were sure of it.

“And you guys don’t feel bad? Like at all?”

“Why should we? Jungkook’s planning to break up with her next week anyway so she doesn’t catch feelings for too long. It’s not like they were gonna last past the three-month deal...”

Gaeun paused the recording when she sees you bite your lip so harshly that blood starts to surface. This didn’t feel right. It didn’t feel real.

“I hooked up with him last weekend,” Soobin admits, shame written all over her face. “He was spewing stuff about Jungkook spending all his time with you and not really hanging out with the boys like he used to.”

“You still hook up with Yoongi? After all he did to you?” you ask, not meaning to come off aggressive but undoubtedly did.

“Look,” Gauen starts, taking the heat off of Soobin. “She was just drunk and looking to have fun. I was with her that night and I was talking to Namjoon. He...”

Gaeun trailed off, but you were sick of it. Sick of being kept in the dark from something you should’ve known all along.

“What?”

“H-he told me that all the boys were getting tired of him playing around with you,” she says, twiddling with her fingers. “He’s supposed to break up with you today. Some of the guys think he’s just prolonging it to fuck with you and they’re getting really annoyed-”

You bite back the tears threatening to spill over any minute now.

“Hoseok and Seokjin told me to trust Jungkook. They said he wouldn’t hurt me-”

“Did they also tell you that their rent gets paid too if Jungkook pulled through with the bet?” Soobin replies angrily. “Because they live together, don’t they?”

You open your mouth but no sound comes out- just a small whimper. Your lips start to quiver and you bite your lip again to calm yourself down. When you had collected your thoughts, you glared up at the two girls.

“And you didn’t tell me this earlier?”

Soobin scoffed.

“You were fucking ignoring us too, how were we supposed to tell you?”

“Still it wouldn’t have killed you to-”

“Don’t take your anger out on us,” Gaeun warns, her finger pointing at you. “Jungkook is the one to blame. We told you from the start that he was bad news.”

You pursed your lips and Gaeun put her finger down, feeling guilty that she lashed out on you when obviously you were just processing the information.

“Hey, I’m sorry-”

“Why me?” you ask with teary eyes. “What did I even do to them to deserve this?” 

They glance over at each other for a long while before Soobin breaks the silence. You had the right to know, but at the same time, they knew it would break you.

“It’s a sick game that they play where they just choose someone randomly...” Soobin starts off gently handing off the next few words to Gaeun, “and you were just the first girl to walk into Professor Kwon’s lecture hall. He thought you’d be...”

“Easy,” Soobin finished.

Just as they predicted, you had burst out in tears.

—

Jungkook opens the door to your apartment, using the spare key you had given him a month earlier since he tended to visit often. It was more convenient that way. 

He was freshly out of his Taekwondo garb, still sweaty, but otherwise clean from taking a shower at the campus gym. He found it strange at how dark the room was, but he knew you were on the couch from the noticeable lump of a blanket on it.

All Jungkook wanted was to cuddle with you and fall asleep in your arms after such a harrowing day. Lord knows he needs your warmth right now.

He smiled as he made his way towards you, but stops in his tracks when you sit up from where you laid. He couldn’t quite see you in the darkness so he walked to the light switch to turn the lights on. His heart broke at the sight of you.

Tears stained your cheeks, your eyes red and puffy from all the crying. You looked a mess and his blood boiled at the thought of someone hurting you. 

“What happened?” he asked, rushing over to you and cupping your face in his hands. You push him away.

“You don’t have to act anymore,” you say softly. “I can handle it.”

He looks at you with furrowed brows.

“What are you talking about-”

“I get that you really need the money,” you say through bated breaths, “I get that financially, it would have really helped, but did you really have to hurt me to do that?”

Jungkook’s breathing stopped. Everything was happening too quickly, his world crashing down when you uttered those words. He knew what this meant, knew that now you would see past his lies. Jungkook couldn’t have you finding out this way. 

He kneeled in front of you, attempting to wipe away the tears from your eyes but you push him off.

“[Y/N] no-”

“It could’ve been anyone,” you whimper, trying to look up at the ceiling to prevent any more tears from falling down. “Anyone could’ve walked through that door and you would’ve been okay with it.”

“That’s not true-” he interjects but you stop him.

“A-and you flirted with me all the time ‘cause you knew that I wasn’t used to it,” you say, your voice quivering. “You took advantage of me.”

Jungkook shakes his head rapidly, eyes pleading for you to let him speak. It hurt seeing you refuse to even look at him, to have your eyes so filled with sadness because of what he did to you. He fucked up, he fucked up so bad.

“No, you have to listen-”

“They told me not to trust you,” you whimper somberly. “They told me and I didn’t believe them because I... I was delusional or something. I thought that someone like you could actually like someone like me-”

His heart broke. It wasn’t you that didn’t deserve him. It was him. All him.

“Please don’t say that-”

“Did you come here to seal the deal? To finally break up with me?” you ask sadly. “Are you happy you’ll get the classes you want next quarter, Jungkook?”

He clenches his teeth. Jungkook knows you’re mad, knows you have a right to be, but it feels like he’s being cornered by you. Why won’t you give him the chance to speak?

“[Y/N], no,” he says sternly, “You have to trust me when I say that it went past just a bet. I like you. Genuinely, I like you.”

There was no point in lying any longer. You deserved to know the truth, but he needed you to know all of it- not just the information your friends cherry-picked to fit their narrative. He tried to speak again, but you wouldn’t let him.

“How could you,” you whimper. “How could someone be so cruel?”

Jungkook’s heart breaks at the words. He should’ve seen this coming. How could he delude himself into thinking he’d be okay if you find out- that he’d be fine seeing you heartbroken? He was disgusted with himself.

“I’m sorry [Y/N],” he whispers. “I’m so sorry.”

You shake your head, your vision getting blurry from the tears. He clasps your hands in his, knowing that it used to soothe you whenever you felt worried over something, but you just wailed harder at his touch. He didn’t know what to do, he didn't even know where to start.

“Stop pretending like you care,” you cry. “Please. It hurts.”

“It was a bet,” he admits and he breaths through the words to prevent himself from getting too emotional, “but I promise that my feelings are genuine. You have to trust me.”

“Trust you?” you ask crudely.

You stare at him, slowing your breaths to ease the crying. There was a certain emptiness in your gaze and it scared him. It was awfully frightening having you looking at him with a certain animosity that was not there before. Like he was a stranger.

“I can’t do that anymore, Jungkook,” you say softly, “because I hate you.”

—

A/N: Gasp A double update?! Say it isn’t so... I had so much fun writing this!!! Probably one of my favorite fics I’ve written in a while because I love this trope. How do y’all feel about Jungkook? Forgive or forget? Let me know!! Thank you @altus-gens​ for requesting this story, I hope you like it :)

Please leave any comment, critiques, or just random thoughts about my story! I’m planning my murder mystery series rn and I’m so excited (I might... do an album giveaway along with it...) I really love the direction I’m taking this blog in and I hope you guys are excited for the stories to come~~ 

buy me a coffee?

[calebwittebane]

like listen i understand its not like a Major Part Of The Gameplay but its plot relevant: the ease with which you bribe sokolov during his interrogation is so lame. now i understand that its in-character for him to have no real principles despite his claims and to be very easily bribed by his favorite luxuries and instinctively suck up to whom be perceives as High Class People Of Good Taste And Status. those are rly fun traits to establish and play off of, and that he thinks highly of corvo since they knew each other beforehand is also good. i think him hyping up his Legendary Resolve And Stubbornness only to relent the second he's promised his favorite brandy is really funny and fitting

but my issue is that like. theres basically no reason to do anything else ever unless youre specifically going out of your way to get the highest chaos possible. okay to back up a little: the fun thing about dishonored is that the game consistently tempts you to go high chaos, with all the cool Killing Powers and Killing Gadgets and being detected causes people to gang up on you and how a lot of the time the easiest solution to a problematic area is to just recalibrate all the security devices, all the watchtowers and pylons and walls of light, and have them fry everyone for you while you watch from a safe distance. in contrast, non-lethal routes often aren't as obvious. sure, there are some alternative paths to your objective where if you find them its super easy to stay undetected (i mean its a stealth game.), but thats not always true, not in the slightest. sometimes you really do have to time shit just right to sneak past some npcs. non-lethal ways of taking enemies out are waaay more unreliable: choking them out requires you to become extremely vulnerable to being detected by others, sleeping darts are a relatively limited resource and without the right upgrades take time to kick in giving the target ample opportunity to react and alert others, you don't get to dispose of bodies and instead have to hide the incapacitated npcs somewhere they wont fall off and die, etc etc. stealth-oriented powers like possession and stopping time are very costly to upgrade to full potential, very costly to use, and only give you a very short window of time to make use of them. so like. it takes effort to be proper stealthy and not a Murder Man. you get my point

so when its time to find a non-violent way to get information out of sokolov youd think thered be some type of skill or thinking required. maybe you have to put in some effort into finding out what it is that would convince sokolov. but no, literally like. 3? 4 people? tell you right away. yeah he likes this nasty brandy you should try getting him that. you have that little interaction with piero and you might think that how you react to catching him in doing something bad would dictate his willingness to help you but no not really. not only that, he just happens to have a bottle of the brandy. ok. but he says hes not giving it to you for free, it was a huge pain to obtain. so im like ok, maybe its like mad expensive, so if you havent been like collecting and selling sokolov paintings and have been buying upgrades and all it might not be possible for you to afford, maybe thats the wall. no, its 150 quid. it costs less than a sleep dart at graff's during the campbell mission. and then you give it to sokolov and hes like yaay yippee okay i'll tell you what i know

like maybe im wrong for focusing on this so much i mean in a way this stage of the quest is kind of a formality and not really what the Gameplay is about but it just bothers me. like mannnn what was the point of all that. maybe even just having sokolov tell you what kind of bribe he'd like if you press him about it, or having to do a sort of trial and error with it, or nobody telling you anything but theres some expensive stuff you can buy from piero you never had any reason to purchase before but now youre like ohhh okay, but theyre rly expensive so theres a chance you wont be able to afford all of them. you know? anything. small changes that wouldve made a big difference

like again idk the game is so good overall that weird moments like that are so jarring to me

dishonored is such a good game that those couple of moments where it suddenly really drops the ball for no reason are so jarring

[letarasstuff]

"I don't wanna leave you, Daddy"

(A/N): This was requested by an Anon and it's based on this concept. I hope you are ready for the feels.

Summary: Hotch's daughter is an introvert. A quiet one. But why does she go even quieter after her mother's death?

Warnings: So much hurt. Angst. Fluff. It's bitter sweet.

Wordcount: 2.3k

✨Masterlist✨ _____________________________

(Y/N) never really was an outgoing person. Even since she was able to walk and talk, she still clung to her parents. She refused to play on the playground when other children were there. Socializing was just not her thing. Her parents were sure that she would never be the person to stand up and perform on stage spontaneously. And it is ok.

This doesn’t really change when Jack comes around. Sure, as he grows older and more capable of things (Y/N) plays with him. But it really seems like he is the only one around her age she is not afraid to befriend.

Aaron and Haley reassure themselves that their daughter will find friends in elementary school. After all this is an institution where many children go to and there also are adults trained for helping them coming along. She definitely will find at least one other kid to hang out with regularly and learn how to be a proper child. Because as of right now (Y/N) is more like a little adult, taking responsibilities, like watching over her little brother, she doesn’t need to do voluntarily. Maybe she will be more messy, rebellious, anything but a perfect child.

But this doesn’t exactly happen. (Y/N)’s teachers are really happy with her. Every parent-teacher conference is about how well and polite she is, always behaving good and following the rules. Sadly, they don’t have any good news regarding her social life. It’s not that she doesn’t get along with her classmates, it’s just that she isn’t able to strike up a conversation or is very good at keeping one long enough that a kid is interested in her.

Knowing that (Y/N) is mostly quiet in her school days, Aaron makes it a habit to bring her more often to the office. She surprisingly warms quickly up to his team and whenever she is around them the girl is an unstoppable tornado running loose around the bullpen.

This is kind of how she grows up until the age of middle school. (Y/N) learns some social skills and makes a few friends over the last few years. Unfortunately these friendships are not as deep as the parents wish, still it’s better than nothing.

Things get difficult when Aaron and Haley start to separate. It never is easy when parents fall out of love and it is not only difficult for Jack to see his father not as often as he used to, considering he still is a toddler needing both parents. Especially (Y/N), who is more of a daddy’s girl than a mommy’s girl, suffers from the situation at home.

Of course it’s hard on her to not see her father for a week or two at a time, but ever since her parents are going on parted ways she sees him at most one weekend every three weeks. This also changes her social life dramastically.

“(Y/N), don’t you wanna do something with your friends? You can invite them over for the weekend”, Haley suggests after watching her daughter not going out with somebody outside of school for several days. For the past two weeks the ten year old just comes home, does her homework and puts her nose in one of the books her Uncle Spencer recommended.

The girl only looks up at her mother to shake her head. “Why not, Sweetie? I haven’t seen William and John in so long. Are you still friends with them?” (Y/N) nods again. “So what is it? Are you guys fighting?” Haley sits down next to her on her bed.

“No, they just-just don’t know about this. I don’t want to tell them. And I want to stay home. It’s ok how it is right now”, she admits. Her mother’s heart breaks at that statement.

In this moment she realizes that anything a parent does has immediate consequences for the children. “I’m sorry, Sweetie. I didn’t know this is so hard for you. Maybe you can talk to them over the next few days about it, I think it’ll help you. Do you want to watch a film with me for now? Jack has a sleepover at a friend’s. We can do a girl’s night. We hadn’t had one in a long time.”

(Y/N)’s eyes light up at that. “With all the candy in the world?” Haley smiles at the newfound excitement. “Of course. Anything you want.”

From only seeing Aaron every now and then it suddenly turns to not knowing when she will see him next. After George Foyet ambushes him and makes his family into the next target, (Y/N), her brother and her mother have to go into witness protection.

The goodbye at the hospital is painful and filled with tears. “But Dad, I don’t want to leave you. I’ll miss you too much. I don’t like not seeing you. And what about you? You will be more lonely and-and I can’t leave you”, she confesses, sobbing into him.

Hotch has to hold his own tears back. He doesn’t want to come over as stoic, but as the strong father figure he always tries to be. “Honey, I know I’ll miss you so much. You have to be strong for your mother. This will not be easy and I know it. I promise to do my best to get all of you back as soon as possible, ok? Please be good for your mother and behave. We all need to work together for you to get back fast and safely.”

(Y/N) continues to cry into his hospital gown. Aaron can’t help it and dissolves in tears himself while trying to calm her down. “Shh, Honey. Everything will be fine. I’m so so sorry for all this. I never wanted something like this to happen. Shh, we will see each other real soon. The team and I will do our best. Just please, don’t cry. Please, it all will be better. I can’t let you go without seeing your beautiful laugh for one last time.”

“I don’t wanna leave you, Daddy. I-I wanna stay with you and Uncle Dave and Auntie JJ and Uncle Spencer and Uncle Der and Auntie Penny and Auntie Em. I’m scared you won’t be fine when we come back.”

It’s needless to say that nobody cracked even a smile that day.

Going into witness protection made Haley worry about Jack especially. He is just four years old and she isn’t sure how much he understands about what’s going on. Surprisingly the boy gets accustomed to the situation pretty fast. Of course he misses his father and his people from school, but he is also quick to meet new ones in the town they moved to.

(Y/N) has bigger problems. New school. New kids. New everything.

“Maybe you can see it as a fresh start. Here is nobody you know. You can be whoever you want to be. I can take you shopping and you can try out a new style”, her mother tries to make the situation sound advantageous to her. But the girl dryly answers: “When somebody doesn’t like me how I am now, how will they like an act?”

Sam Kassmeyer regularly reports back to Aaron about his family’s well being. “Jack is thriving. His teachers describe him as a bundle of joy. (Y/N) slowly gets acclimated to the change. Haley told me she started making friends with a girl in their neighborhood. I already ran a background check and the family is clean.”

Hotch lets out a sigh of relief. He turns towards the image on Penelope’s monitor. “Happy fifth birthday, Buddy.”

A few weeks after that it seems like the events overturn each other.

Foyet coming back. Kassmeyer getting tortured. Foyet finding Haley and the children. Them coming back to their house. The call. Working the case with Jack. The gunshot. The fighting noises. Hotch opening the box and hugging both of his children, relieved to see them alive.

The following weeks are difficult for the now smaller family. They mostly consist of watching videos of happy memories and talking about their feelings. Although it’s more like Jack talking about his feelings, (Y/N) went mostly silent ever since their mother’s death. This worries her father more than anything.

Two months have gone by. “Hey Honey, I’m going into the office today. Do you wanna come with me, stay at home or go to school? Anything is fine by me”, he asks her softly, kneeling beside her chair at the table. The girl is munching on her cereal halfheartedly.

“Can I come to the office?” (Y/N) asks in a hoarse voice. It’s actually the first time in four days that Aaron hears her voice. A small smile forms on his face. “Of course, that’s nice. Aunt Penny is asking me after her favorite Hotchner for days on end now. And Uncle Spencer got a stack of books he has for you to read.”

His daughter nods and quickly gets ready. They are soon on their way to Quantico after dropping Jack off at daycare. “How are your classmates? Do you like the new school?” They decided to send (Y/N) to a different school. She couldn’t bear the thought of only being the girl whose Mom died because of a serial killer.

“It’s fine. There are a few girls who are really nice. I think we can be friends. Mo-” She suddenly cuts herself off. Aaron glances over at her. “Continue, Sweetheart. Just tell me what’s on your mind”, he tries to encourage her.

The girl hesitates before following her father’s advice. “Mom would have liked them,” she mumbles. It’s quiet for a few seconds. Hotch is looking for a suitable answer. After all it’s the first time she talked about her mother since her death. “I’m sure of it, Honey. Maybe you can invite them over and I can get to know them. Think about it, no pressure of course.” (Y/N) nods to indicate that she heard him.

Not long later they enter the bullpen. “There she is! My little Hotchner! How you doing, Baby?” Derek asks her and envelopes her into a hug. But she only shrugs her shoulders. This goes on for the rest of the day. Whenever anyone talks to her, the only answer is given by her body language.

Hotch watches helplessly Spencer trying to engage in a conversation with her. His arms and hands are waving around. (Y/N) though just looks at him without being really there mentally. It seems like she is lost in her own thoughts, like it happened so often over the last few months.

“Have you tried talking to her about it?” Dave asks, sitting down on the chair opposite of him. Aaron looks at him funny. “Of course. But (Y/N) is just not ready to talk about Haley and everybody grieves differently. I can’t force her to speak, Dave.”

The older agent leans back in his seat. “I don’t think she needs to talk about her. This probably is too soon. She needs to talk about you. The changes.” After a short pause, in which the other one still doesn’t get the point, Rossi continues. “That little girl just lost her mother. She is scared to lose her father, the one with the high risk job. I think that is enough to talk about.”

This occupies the agent for the remainder of the day. Aaron was so invested in fulfilling both parent roles, that he forgot that he is just a father. The man his children go to when they have a nightmare. The one, who is more lenient than their mother. He can’t be both ones. He can’t be two people in one.

A kid trusts a mother and a father usually. And he can’t be mother and father at once. Hotch has to accept the fact. The fact that (Y/N) and Jack are going to grow up without a mother. But luckily not without mother figures.

Later that day, after tucking Jack in, Aaron knocks on his daughter’s door. A small “Come in!” echoes back to him. He enters her room and spots (Y/N) already in her bed reading a book Spencer gave her today.

“Hey, do you have time before it’s lights out?” He asks, still wanting to give her the upper hand on this. The girl nods and scoots over for her father to take a place. He lays next to her, pulling his daughter into a hug.

“I know I can’t promise it. Coming back to you every time. You know it as much as I do. But I promise you to try anything and everything in the books. You guys keep me going.” Tears roll over both of their faces.

“I-I just”, (Y/N) moves her head onto his chest to sob into it, “Just don’t wanna lose you, too. I-I don’t think I-I can’t be the girl, who doesn’t have a mother AND a father. C-can you stop that from happening?” Hotch has to wipe his eyes before answering.

“I-I try to keep that from happening, Honey. I promise.”

This is how they fall asleep, squished in a twin bed close to each other. In the morning they both are overheated and got a visitor during the night. Jack wakes them up, asking why they had a sleepover without him.

This morning is the first time Aaron sees (Y/N) smiles since day zero.

Taglist:

All works:

@dindjarinsspouse @big-galaxy-chaos

Criminal Minds:

@averyhotchner @mggsprettygirl @herecomesthewriterwitch @ash19871962

[gladerwolfstarkimagines]

Imagine being Azula’s favourite friend who she recruits first. The two of you have always had an unspoken attraction which neither of you were brave enough to acknoweldge...until you save her life and Azula decides to reward you

Background

You and Azula attended the academy together and had initially started as rivals. You were an above-average fire bender and because she didn’t know you Azula saw that as a threat. So she made it her mission to ruin your life when one day she found you arguing with Zuko. You didn’t hesitate to yell at him or point out his faults and from that moment on Azula knew she’d misjudged you. Azula be-friended you and you became a part of her group. Over time you became her favourite. She trusted you and could feel your loyalty to her, which was something she grew to respect more and more as Mai was compromised by Zuko and Ty lee became even more whimsical. You soon became inseparable and as the friendship grew it began to feel like more...you realised you liked Azula as more than a friend. You enjoyed every second you spent together and thought she felt the same. The tension between you grew and although Azula would grow flustered around you when you flirted with her she never reciprocated your feelings openly. You were heartbroken but understood that falling for the princess of the fire nation hadn’t been a very smart decision on your part. So needing some space to mend as soon as you graduated from the academy you joined the army. It hurt to be around Azula every day and to know you could be something great together if only your nation was more progressive. So you ran away from the situation and didn’t see Azula for years. You managed to stop thinking about her constantly after a few weeks and soon your heart didn’t feel as broken anymore...but you knew deep down you still cared about her. The princess would always be your first love. 

Your POV

The army was tougher than the fire nation academy for many reasons. For one your name, reputation and grades didn’t matter once you passed through the doors. They didn’t care if you'd sparred with the best fire benders or got the highest grades in combat skills for ten years, you were reduced to a number and treated as one. You hated every second of it but the alternative was to return to your family and you’d take anything over that so you stuck it out. 

One day all the recruits were ordered to wear their best clothes and report to the large training hall which could only mean one thing. Someone wanted to buy troops. High ranking generals or rich businessmen could hire trainees for missions or any jobs they needed completing. The buyer could choose who they wanted after watching you all in training and you would then decide if to accept or not. You took every opportunity you could and so stared straight ahead for inspection, trying your best to look hirable when a voice broke your resolve. "I’m looking for something in particular" Azula told your trainer and you only just managed to keep your head forward but a small smirk broke out on your face. Azula spotted you and walked down the line slowly before stopping in front of you. "Well, well who do we have here?" she asked. You looked up at her and matched her smile "long time no see huh?". Your trainer was horrified at the way you addressed the princess and rushed to yell at you when Azula cut him off with a laugh. She took your arm and you hugged her tightly. Your stomach exploded in butterflies and you clutched her tightly, you’d missed Azula dearly. "Your highness i don’t know what...i’m sorry for this one’s behaviour" the trainer started obliviously and Azula rolled her eyes "are they all as dumb as you? Obviously i know y/n". You smirked and Azula was spurred on by that beautiful expression she’d missed. "You really have no idea who she is?" Azula asked laughing "this is y/n l/n, her father is friends with my father and she is a personal friend to the royal family. To hear you haven’t treated her appropriately is very displeasing" Azula frowned and you smiled as your usually cruel and horrible trainer shook. "I’m sorry we had no idea who she was! We will treat her better, promote her actually" he babbled. "No that won’t do" Azula said "and that wont be necessary, y/n will be leaving with me for a job and won’t be coming back here". The guard hesitated "i...you can’t just take a recruit". "I’m not but i could" Azula growled "i think you’ll find it’s more y/n quits". "She can’t quit" the guard replied “she made an oath” and Azula raised an eyebrow in response "are you tell me what i can do? Are you telling a noblewoman what she can do? Any debt she owes you will be wiped by my command, understand?" Azula barked. The trainer paled but nodded "yes princess" and bowed his head. "Good" Azula nodded and she strode with you right out of the front doors. 

Azula brought you to the lodgings she was staying at in the nearest town and you were amused to see it had been given the royal treatment. Red everywhere, freshly polished surfaces as far as the eye could see, gold and silver decorations lay on every available service and of course a large portrait of the fire lord hung on the wall. Over a lavish dinner Azula told you the mission making you realise you’d accepted and left the army without even asking for any details. You were fine with hunting the avatar and Zuko with Mai and Ty lee but you also recognised you would’ve accepted almost any mission Azula gave you because you’d been so happy to see her. Azula had always had this effect on you and time apart hadn’t done anything to lessen that. You were as much in love with her now as you were the day you left two years ago. 

After dinner Azula led you to your shared apartment, it contained two bedrooms with ensuites and a large living room which you were pleased to see and you sunk into the sofa happily. "Your hair’s shorter" Azula commented suddenly and you nodded touching it self consciously "yeah it was a target in sparring". Azula scoffed "seriously? Don’t they teach the other recruits proper fire bending moves as opposed to childish tricks?". You shrugged "they told us to win by any means. That it doesn’t have to look good so long as you win". Azula laughed again "amateurs all of them! Of course it should look good". You smirked "well when it comes so easy to you" and glanced over her. Azula shrugged but had a large smile on her face "well I suppose I have been blessed in that aspect". You laughed again and smiled "this is nice". Azula smiled too "it is" and you locked eyes for several seconds before she looked away slowly. Azula stood up abruptly "we should get some sleep we’re moving on foot tomorrow to go get Ty lee and then Mai". You were excited at the thought of seeing your old friends and grinned "great! Also don’t think i didn’t notice you came for me first" you called as Azula made her way towards her room. She halted and you smirked "I always knew i was your favourite but really Azula to make it so obvious" you grinned and Azula paused. You walked to your own room and Azula finally responded "i always made it obvious you’re my favourite, it’s nothing new" and went into her room.

You stepped into your own room and leant back against the closed door blushing vividly from the encounter with Azula. You’d spent all your time in the army trying to convince yourself your relationship with Azula was purely platonic. That the fact your heart sped up whenever you thought of her or how you dreamt of her often was just because you were close friends. You managed to convince yourself you weren’t in love with Azula and that she didn’t feel anything for you either but less than a day with her and you knew that was a lie. You couldn’t deny the way she made you feel and how she smiled at you in a way she never did with anyone else...as much as it made you nervous your realisation also excited you. You couldn’t wait to be around Azula again and felt a happy glow spread over you. You settled in your bed, a smile still on your face and burrowed into the exquisite cushions. You expected to fall to sleep easily but a while later you were still awake. You frowned confused as to why. You were happy, you were with Azula and the bed was comfy so why couldn’t you sleep? You figured maybe the bed was too soft compared to what you were used to in the army so went into the living room to try the sofa. You laid down and realised this was better, more like the beds back at the military. You had just closed your eyes when Azula’s door opened. "Trouble sleeping?" she asked and you nodded "i think the bed’s too comfy". Azula laughed "i thought the opposite, really y/n your taste has worsened in our time apart". You shrugged "it’s better than what i’ve been sleeping on for the last 9 months". Azula lay down on the sofa next to you and you looked at her. You didn’t ask why after finding her own bed soooo uncomfortable she came to lay on a sofa barely a foot from where you were and just enjoyed the silence. “So, anything else i missed you didn’t put in your letters?” you asked. Azula hadn’t written to you much at the academy and honestly that had been a good thing. You’d have just missed her more than you already had but she did send brief updates once a month. Azula nodded "probably tons, i couldn’t write often". You didn’t point out she wrote to you on the first of each month religiously instead you turned on your side to look at her. Mai and Ty lee had also written to you but you’d noticed compared to their letters and the changes in their lives Azula’s had been...well boring. You felt almost sorry for her, you’d all moved away to different things but Azula had been stuck at home with a father who was cruel, the ghost of a cold mother and the memory of a banished brother. Azula quickly discussed some events that had happened and then also turned on her side to face you. "What about you then? How was military life really?". You shrugged "not as i expected". "I knew that job would be awful" Azula commented "why did you stay so long then?". You sighed "well i liked some parts of it, the physical training was similar to what we did in the academy which i liked, the mental tests were better, they made me use all my brain". "That’s a first" Azula chimed in and you rolled your eyes "i liked those parts of it...could’ve done without the abuse from the trainers, food restrictions and ban on leaving". Azula raised an eyebrow "remember what i always told you y/n no self-pity, you could’ve left at any time. You chose not to". You thought Azula sounded a bit angry when she said that but you shrugged "i could but that would have meant going back home not coming back to the capital and I’d rather fight all the trainers at once than that" you said through gritted teeth and Azula saw you’d tensed. She recalled you never got along with your family but she hadn’t realised they were part of the reason you’d taken such an awful job so soon after graduation. "They hated my move to the capital and said if i failed at all they’d have me back and married, i had one shot to escape them, there’s no way i’d give it away because i didn’t actually like what i’d chosen". Azula didn’t comment she just watched you conflicted, she hated self pity and weakness but you were so like her, she’d have done the exact same thing in your position. "But you did leave" Azula commented “you left to come with me” and you looked down "i did...". Azula saw the way your face changed, filling with worry and she actually felt slightly guilty. You’d left instinctively for her when she asked, no matter what it might mean for you in the long term. You did all that for her and it proved to her again why you were her closest ally.

Azula laughed and you looked at her confused "y/n do you really think i’d make you give up your job for a small mission?". You frowned "what?". "Your parents won’t be angry because this a much better job, you’ll be paid more and you’re working with me" Azula said pointedly. "They can’t say anything against that, as long as you’re with me they can’t touch you" she smiled and you grinned at Azula "you’d vouch for me?". Azula nodded "of course, i want you with me and that’s what i’ll get, i don’t care who your family are they’re not taking you anywhere ever". You were equally touched and shocked "ever?". Azula nodded "well obviously you might not be here forever but they’re never taking you back to tie you to a marriage, i’ll just keep coming up with excuses to keep you in my company until you’re too old and then they’ll have to leave you alone with me" Azula explained and you smiled "sounds perfect".

Azula laughed and met your eye, seeing how intensely you looked at her gave her chills. Azula had missed you greatly in the capital but honestly she’d let you leave without a fight. She sensed a growing attraction and longing for you which she knew had to stop. So she let you go figuring some distance would be good but as soon as she needed allies the first face in her mind was yours. The second she saw you she knew she’d made the right choice but she also felt the attraction just as suddenly. Laying here staring at you made it more apparent than ever and it scared Azula. She blushed and turned away from you, facing the back of the sofa "try and sleep" she commanded "we'll be up early". 

You didn’t comment on how much Azula was blushing or how she’d chosen to sleep out here with you. You just smiled and closed your eyes basking in the feeling of all she’d said and the safety of her. “Good night Princess” you whispered and you fell asleep almost instantly.

The next day you reunited with Ty lee and then Mai. Ty lee had launched herself at both you and Azula when she saw you and the same occurred for Mai. Mai grunted and hugged Ty lee begrudgingly. "I thought you ran away to the circus?" Mai asked Ty lee and she nodded "i did but y/n and Azula showed up and well they called louder than the universe" Ty lee smiled. "Wait y/n and Azula, isn’t the circus closer to the capital than the military?" Mai asked looking from you to Azula. "Yeah so?" you said confused and Mai shrugged "nothing just seems like it’d make sense to go to the circus first then military but hey i’m sure Azula had her reasons for coming to get you first" Mai smirked slightly. You didn’t look at Azula but Mai and Ty lee exchanged a look at the matching blushes you were both sporting, some things never change. Azula recovered first and pretended Mai hadn’t said anything about the two of you and began explaining her plan. You joined in after a few seconds of recovery but still felt giddy at Mai’s words.

Throughout your trip you and Azula grew closer and closer just like you’d done at the academy. Although neither of you spoke about it you felt drawn to one another and Azula acted differently around you. She sought you out more than the others, always kept the closest proximity to you and paired Mai and Ty lee and you with herself whenever you had to split into teams. As you fell into old habits all the past feelings came back and you began to worry at all the dangerous situations Azula was putting herself in just to please her father. She’d infiltrated Ba Sing Sei without any backup besides you, Ty lee and Mai which terrified you. Of course her plan worked but still you were so grateful Azula had been unharmed and managed to take over the whole city without any mishaps. You hoped it’d be smooth sailing from there but of course she wanted her brother and the avatar too. You did exactly what she said to try and help her but you couldn’t escape the feeling something would go wrong. Azula had left to go and face the avatar all alone apart from her dai lee agents and you couldn’t get her out of your head. Azula had put you in charge of making sure the earth king and his bear were looked after but you wanted to ensure she was okay so left it to Ty lee and Mai. You followed the secret passage you’d seen Azula take and found your way into a massive cavern filled with people. You spotted Azula fighting the avatar and saw her shoot him with a lightning bolt. He fell to the floor and you gaped at the fact Azula had likely just killed the avatar. The water bender with the avatar then went into a rage and flew through the air using a massive wave to catch him. Azula smirked ready to engage with her and you saw Zuko standing beside her. You were surprised to see Zuko beside her, never thinking she’d actually manage to get Zuko on her side but of course she was a master at manipulation. You smiled at all she’d achieved when you noticed Azula’s uncle Iroh was approaching them. He had flames in his hands and was looking right at Azula who was fixed on the water bender. You gasped at Iroh’s intentions and how nobody was aware of what was going on behind them. You broke out into a run and leapt down the cliff as quick as you could. You were getting closer but you still weren’t close enough. Iroh raised his hands and you went into panic mode. “Stop” you yelled and threw your own fire as Iroh released his own. Your strike managed to hit his off course and it hit a rock beside Azula. Azula and Zuko both jumped and Iroh turned to you. You were now stood blocking his path to Azula and you sensed he still wanted to take her down. You anticipated his attack and blocked it instinctively before firing back your own. Iroh was much stronger than you so you were heavily outmatched when suddenly two flames burst onto the scene. Azula sprang in front and began attacking her uncle savagely while Zuko helped. You were again slightly surprised by Zuko but quickly joined in. With three on one even the dragon of the west couldn’t last long and with a final hit from Azula he fell to the floor. “Seize him and throw him in a cage” Azula spat and walked past him to you. “I thought I told you to wait upstairs” she said fixing her intense gaze on you and you shrugged “I wanted to help and I think it’s a good job I did”. Azula shot you a look at your boldness but you could tell she was more amused than annoyed. “You appear to be correct” she replied curtly before walking past you. You smiled after Azula, admiring how happy she looked and why wouldn’t she? She’d taken over Ba Sing Sei, possibly killed the avatar, brought down her uncle and convinced Zuko to ally with her, all in all it had been an excellent day and Azula had proved herself a force to be reckoned with. You began following her when you saw the guards walking Iroh in the opposite direction. You were going to look away when you noticed he was still staring at Azula. You could feel his anger and knew what his intentions were, he meant to finish the job. In the blink of an eye Iroh burst out of his restraints, threw his guards to the side and took a stance. “Azula get down” you yelled sensing the electricity in the air but he had an excellent shot at her and she had nowhere to go. Instinctively you threw yourself into the path of the lightning. 

Azula also responded instinctively. She conjured her own lightning to meet her uncle’s when she saw you running into the fight, You tried to raise a wall of fire but there wasn’t time, you got hit by the bolt and collapsed. Azula only just managed to direct her own bolt away from you and felt her heart beating rapidly. As the smoke cleared Azula saw your body on the floor rage consumed her. She conjured a huge amount of electricity and sent it all at her uncle. He tried to block it but Azula’s bolt sliced through his defences hitting him square in the chest. Azula didn’t even check to see if her bolt had met its mark, she knew it had so rushed to your side. “Y/n” she yelled and she knelt beside you staring at the smoke coming off your back where the bolt had hit you. Your uniform was partially melted and Azula could smell the burning flesh strongly. "I need water” Azula yelled grabbing you and trying to feel for a pulse. She felt one and felt her own breathing somewhat stabilise too. "Now" Azula yelled and people rushed forwards. Azula poured the water over you "it’s okay" she told as you winced as she poured more. "We need to get her into the pool" she called "someone help me get her to the water". Zuko appeared and helped Azula carry you to a fountain. You were semi-conscious which made Azula hurry even quicker, she wanted to reduce your pain as soon as possible. Azula climbed into the fountain first and told Zuko to pass you to her. She took you carefully and laid you on your back floating. Your eyes closed as you passed out and Zuko called for a doctor. Azula clutched your by your arms keeping you close to her in the water "you will not die y/n" she snarled "you will be fine do you hear me?". You didn’t respond. 

Later

You woke up face down on something soft and tried to move your face away from it when shooting pains erupted along your spine. You felt like your back was cracking open and groaned loudly. "Careful y/n" you heard someone say and saw it was Ty Lee. "Ty lee? What happened?". "You got burnt" she explained "on your back..luckily Azula cooled you in time to stop any long-term damage but it’s still really sore so be careful". You reached for your back and flinched at the slightest touch of it. "Stop" Ty lee told you "Azula said i’m to watch you and make sure you rest, apply more soothing cream on it every three hours and just basically always make sure you're okay!" she told you cheerfully. You shook your head "Ty lee i’m fine you don’t have to sit guard over me" you tried to sit up and went pale from the pain. "Don’t do that" Ty lee cried rushing to your side "if you want to get up i can pile some pillows in front of you for you to lean on. I don’t think you can sit up for a while". You pouted annoyed but asked Ty lee to bring you said pillows and managed to pull yourself up onto your elbows "so what happened? Tell me everything". "Well thanks to you we managed to stop Iroh escaping and hurting Azula, we took Ba Sing Sei and the avatar is dead". "Wow" you said surprised "That is... a lot". Ty lee nodded “Ow and Zuko’s back on our side". You nodded and smiled "I bet Mai is happy". Ty lee grinned too "she is i haven’t seen her since we started for home". "We’re on our way back?" you asked and Ty lee nodded "yes but Azula said me, you and Mai are to stay with her even after we arrive back in the capital, she said she still has a need for us". You smiled laying your head down blushing slightly, Azula had kept her promise, she wasn’t letting you go. You sighed happily and Ty lee smiled "y/n?". "I’m just glad to be going back" you smiled "i think we'll have lots of fun". You had been dozing when the sounds of the door made you jolt awake sending shooting pains down your back. You winced but prepared yourself for an attack until you saw her. Azula raised her hands as she saw you jump and she smiled "just me". You relaxed "Azula, sorry i was asleep". "Don’t apologise you need to rest after what happened, i just wanted to come check on you. We'll be in the fire nation in a few hours". "That’s good news" you smiled and Azula nodded "how does the back feel? Ty lee says you’re doing as well as can be expected" Azula’s eyes drifted to your back and you froze. You were now very aware you were laid on your front with only a blanket covering your bare torso from Azula’s eye. Azula stepped closer and you rushed to explain and stop her inspecting you. "I’m fine" you told her "the burns aren’t too bad, they hardly hurt at all". Azula raised an eyebrow "then you won’t mind me having a look?" and stepped beside you. She reached for the blanket and you grabbed her hand with an uncomfortable strain "wait, i lied...i don’t want you to see it, Ty lee says it looks bad. It’s in the blistering stage and yes it hurts but everything has already been done for it and me so you don’t need to see it or check on me". Azula titled her head to one side as you couldn’t meet her eye and she sighed sitting on the floor beside your bed. "It will scar but unlike Zuko you can wear yours with pride" Azula said forcefully and you looked up at her shocked "with time i’m sure it will simply resemble a tattoo" Azula explained. You turned on your side to look at her, something you’d practised with Ty lee and could now manage. "Ty lee told me you did as much for me as you could...i can’t really remember it but..". "Do you remember jumping into the path of lightning for me?" Azula said "without protecting yourself or even any concrete attempt to do so, and what for?". You sighed thinking Azula was angry at you "i...i know it was reckless and stupid, it went against everything we were taught at the academy but I don’t know Azula, i did it without even thinking. I saw it heading for you and you weren’t ready! It would hit you and i just did it without hesitation, i know it seems stupid and emotional but i don’t regret it Azula i’d do it again" you told her sighing, feeling she wouldn’t understand. "I know that might sound stupid...why i’d do that for you but Azula i..." you started as Azula cut you off "y/n". Azula gently raised your head with a hand helping you to look at her. You were confused by Azula’s gaze, it was soft but at the same time intense, you couldn’t recognise the emotion, was she angry? Happy? Excited? Apparently it was somewhere in the middle. Azula leant down to you, hand on your cheek as she ghosted her lips over yours. You felt a sensation like water being thrown over you as Azula kissed you softly and quickly before pulling back "i don’t completely get it but i understand" she smiled blushing softly "i think I can imagine why you did it" she said looking away from you "thank you for saving me". You were speechless, Azula was thanking you? Azula understood why you did it? Did that mean she liked you too? She’d just kissed you so of course she did! Or was that what she thought you wanted? Azula had been used all her life, did she simply think you did this in order to make gains with her? 

Azula smiled slightly to see your brain short-circuiting at her actions and stood up. "i just wanted to make sure you were okay so now I know you are i’ll let you go back to sleep. I’ll wake you when we’re there". You nodded still confused and watched Azula walked away. You weren’t sure what had just happened but you knew you had to make Azula realise you didn’t do this just to use her. "Azula" you said suddenly "is that...what you just did...if that was my reward or what you think i wanted from you after today...i didn’t save you because i was expecting a reward or anything from you so what i’m saying is you don’t have to compensate me if you don’t want to. I didn’t do it for any reason other than to keep you safe". 

Azula blushed suddenly and felt her emotions swirling, she realised she was happy. To hear you express openly your desire for her safety filled her with excitement and she realised nobody had ever cared for her before like you did. Azula nodded slowly "that is welcomed news y/n" she smiled "but i didn’t reward you like that as a forced compensation either" she told you "although my intentions were personal and selfish i suppose”. 

You smirked slightly and nodded "good...i mean fine with me". Azula nodded "i’m glad we understand each other, good night y/n". "Good night princess Azula" you said savouring the words and Azula’s eye twitched but she maintained her calm expression and bowed leaving. You lay back giggling as realisation (and the medication you were on for the pain) set in. Azula had kissed you and told you she didn’t do it because she thought she had to but because she wanted to! For selfish reasons!!! You wrapped yourself in your blankets and didn’t stop smiling even in your sleep.

____

Is it just me who loves the idea of being in a secret relationship with the princess of the fire nation? I feel like Azula would excel at sneaking around the palace and would like rebelling against Ozai for once

[maraudersftw]

Claudia — this prompt!!!!!!! 💕✨

1. Two characters haven’t seen each other for a while, one keeps rambling about something insignificant and the other one kisses them because “Shut up you’re rambling just kiss me.”

Omg, M, so excited to receive this from you! 😂💜 And I had a blast writing it, so obviously it got long (1.5k words). Thanks for the prompt. Hope you enjoy!

Glittering Darkness

The Butterbeer is a slide of warm froth down his throat, easing up frozen insides brought on by the biting January cold. He smiles, grin stupid on face, hazel eyes bright behind glasses, and listens to Sirius yammer on about Quidditch and teams and players—

“The Canons don’t stand a fucking chance this season, mate,” Sirius repeats for the thousandth time that week, to the audience of Remus’s rolling eyes, Peter’s enraptured gaze and James’s dazed attention. “I have my bet on the Arrows. I mean, have you seen Crossby’s performance lately? Not missed a single bloody snitch so far in. That’s gotta be some kind of record, doesn’t it? Doesn’t it? Oi, Prongs!” he snaps, brows instantly furrowed at not receiving James’s immediate response, no matter that Peter’s vehement nodding probably dislodges the boy’s neck. “Someone throw a Confundus at you? That’s a dumb expression on your face, if I’ve seen one.”

James sighs, leans back, embraces the lovely chatter of his peers around The Three Broomsticks. “I’m just having a good day.”

The boys are instantly suspicious, each choosing to express such emotion with a varying degree of subtlety.

“How come?” Sirius asks, sounding almost put off at not being privy to the answer already.

“Well, I get to spend such a lovely afternoon with you lads. What more could I want?”

“To get laid,” says Sirius, a phrase that is followed immediately by Peter’s loud snort of laughter.

“By a very specific person,” Remus can’t help but add, amusement quirking his mouth in that typical way of his.

“Nonsense,” he waves off, another gulp of Butterbeer tossed back. “I’m perfectly content.”

“Okay, I take it back. It has to be a cheering charm,” Sirius ponders solemnly, just as a group of familiar Gryffindors enters The Three Broomsticks, huddling together as they brush off snow from thick robes and gloves.

Such a sight is by no means a rarity, given that the pub has already been crawling with Hogwarts students since the start of day. But James’s eyes are quick to lock onto a very specific person, a flash of red hair, pink cheeks, bright, bright laughter. No one around him seems to notice the tectonic plates shifting under their feet, nor the way that colour splashes, vibrant and sudden, painting the world afresh. No, they carry on with their conversations and snark as if air hasn’t suddenly become easier to draw in, as if her mere presence hasn’t literally lit up the room. He supposes, after a second of reflection, that she’s indeed his personal cheering charm.

Lily nods to the girls—Mary, Dorcas, Marlene—and points to a booth somewhere at the back. He can’t be arsed to check the exact location; not when it means taking his eyes off a much better alternative. But instead of moving away with them as they take their seats, Lily, curiously enough, breaks off from the group, face blank, easy grace and gait as she meanders off to the loo. Her eyes don’t travel to him, not once.

And yet, James spots that minuscule quirk of lips right before she disappears from view.

Oh.

Very well then.

He’s instantly on his feet, wooden chair scraping back with a loud groan, cutting off Remus mid-speculation as to the reason behind James’s jolly disposition. Three heads turn to him; curious, amused, perhaps even a little concerned.

“Um, you okay, mate?”

“Brilliant,” James replies, feels a thrum of excitement shiver through him, and wonders if it’s openly visible. “Perfectly brilliant. I just need to take a leak.”

“Well, alright, Mr Potter, you’re excused.” Remus laughs.

He takes the time to roll his eyes, but not the effort to dim his smile. It’s probable he looks like a complete loon on a sugar rush, but James truly has never cared about anything less. “Yeah, yeah, have your chuckles, Mr Moony. We’ll see who’s laughing by the end of the day.”

“I genuinely have no idea what you mean, and you sound completely unthreatening with that ridiculous beaming going on.”

James scoffs, walks away from another bout of laughter. “Fuck off.”

The hallway leading to the loos remains mercifully empty; luck that he doesn’t take for granted thanks to the crowd spilling inside the pub. With a quick manoeuvre honed over years of efficient marauding, he pulls out a shrunken invisibility cloak from his robes, enlarges it to its normal size, and disappears beneath the silvery material, feeling its strange softness like a second skin. And then he flattens himself against the wall, scooting around until he’s strategically placed within an alcove near the entrance to the girls’ lavatory—far away enough to give a wide berth to anyone he doesn’t want to alert, but near enough for an encounter with his target.

His target, who he presumes is not nearly as unsuspecting as she’d let on.

It takes only about ten seconds or so before he sees the swish of her robes, witnesses the easy smile on her face as Lily rounds the corner, nose teased red from cold, freckles scattered like stars, and finds the walls of his chest tighten like concrete slabs at the sight.

In a flash of movement, he’s got a hand wrapped around her wrist, sliding to her waist, yanking her firmly against his body without so much as a whispered greeting. Lily’s impulsive screech of surprise dies down the instant the cloak falls over her head, enveloping them both. The tension of her muscles melts away beneath his fingertips, and she’s quick to plant her hands on his chest, brush indelicately closer, space shrinking enough that he tastes the mint on her breath when she speaks.

“Rather indecent of you to accost me like this, Potter.”

He bends down, appreciates the excited gleam in the green of her eyes. His thumb finds her nape, massages gently. “I had something very important to discuss with you.”

“Mm,” Lily purrs. “That’s better. How may I help you?”

“You see,” he starts, chokes slightly when she grinds against him purposefully. “You see, I was just leaving the castle this morning, ready for a lovely outing with my mates, when a witch who looked remarkably like you all but shoved me into a broom closet, declared her undying love for me, and then snogged me into oblivion. And well, you’ve got to understand what that sort of thing does to a bloke’s mental state.”

“Huh,” she remarks, lets her upper lip slide over his bottom one, nothing but a ghost of touch. “I don’t know much about undying love proclamations, but do go on about this snogging into oblivion business, please.”

James drops his head, sucks on the pulse that jumps beneath the skin of her neck. “Oblivion. Abyss. A whole lot of glittering darkness,” he confesses. “And since this witch resembled you—”

“Remarkably,” she moans, soft.

“Remarkably, of course—I thought it only proper to inform you of such an occurrence, y’know, for reputation’s sake. You’ve got that Head Girl image to maintain. Can’t have imposters of you running around making out with the Head Boy. Doesn’t look too good, to be honest. And I’m saying this purely out of selflessness, of course. If, on the other hand, you were to shed some light on this act and admit to...I don’t know...a lack of an imposter, it would mean a whole other thing—”

Lily slams him back against the wall, hand shoving his chest, mouth dangerously close to his. “Shut up, you’re rambling.” She smirks. “Just kiss me.”

And almost as if unable to sustain any patience to allow him to follow the directive, her lips crush over his in a kiss that somehow burns through his every molecule, scorching the very skin he wears, rivalling even the best kiss he’s ever had in his life, which was, incidentally, shared with the same person naught but two hours ago. Lily’s hand curls over his collar, twisting the fabric, giving her purchase to devour him alive. He reciprocates with a tightening grip on her waist, tilting her jaw, slipping his tongue inside to brush over the warm wetness of hers. A mad rush of breath, of gliding mouths and hands and softly uttered moans passes between them, the air under the cloak sweltering despite the cold outside.

Eventually, James wrenches himself away long enough to get the word out; her name. “Lily.”

“Mm,” she manages, lips on his cheek.

“I’m going to need you to spell it out for me.”

The breathless sincerity of his tone gives her pause, and she pulls back, eyes dark and confused. “What?”

“Do you,” he swallows past the cowardice, the thump of his heart. “Is this happening for real? You actually want...me?”

A beat passes, a long one, and Lily stares and stares and stares. Eventually, a smile spills, and he’s reminded of that abyss; glittering endlessly. “Yeah, James. I want you. Wholly. Fully.” She kisses him again, trails the honey on his lips. “I’m just letting you enjoy this outing with the boys, because once we’re back at the castle…”

She’s trailed off, left him to articulate thoughts. “What then?”

Lily grins, glint of teeth so cruelly delicious that it steals his breath, especially when accompanied by the roll of her hips. “I’ll let you fill in the blank.”

[erabundus]

he  drifts  behind  her,  humming  occasionally  when  it's  appropriate  —  to  show  that  he's  paying  ATTENTION  to  the  explanation,  if  nothing  else.  ❝  at  least  you  won't  have  to  worry  about  uninvited  guests.  ❞  the  wanderer  remarks  dryly  —  an  issue  he  finds  himself  more  familiar  with  than  he  cares  to  dwell  on.  he  looks  like  an  easy  target.  anyone  would  be,  settling  down  for  the  night  in  the  middle  of  some  conveniently  isolated  area  or  another.  of  course,  there  are  very few  things  in  the  world  ren  would  truly  consider  a  genuine  THREAT  —  and  not  a  single  one  is  wont  to  come  scuttling  out  of  the  moonlit  underbrush,  dagger  between  their  teeth.  that  doesn't  stop  it  from  being  just  the  slightest  bit  IRRITATING  when  he  would  much  rather  wait  out  the  sunrise  with  a  book.

he doesn't like having social interactions forced on him by DEFAULT. he likes them even less when the other party is actively trying ( albeit unsuccessfully ) to hurt him.

he  tries  not  to  let  the  CURIOSITY  show  on  his  face  when  she  opens  the  door  —  tries,  because  ren's  myriad  of  expressions  are  nothing  but  an  ongoing  form  of  betrayal.  soundless  steps  bring  him  to  the  entrance;  he  trails  fingers  across  the  doorframe  as  he  steps  through  —  there's  no  real  reason  for  it  beyond  simple  fascination  with  the  TEXTURE.  (  touch  is  how  the  wanderer  most  prefers  to  interact  with  the  world,  after  all.  )  as  those  bright  eyes  drift  over  their  surroundings,  his  lips  part  in  wordless  surprise.  though  he  has  dabbled  in  a  handful  of  artistic  endeavors  over  the  year,  that  was  always  without  the  luxury  of  a  proper  workspace.  he  supposes  the  closest  he  ever  came  was  the  balladeer's  quarters  —  though  he  kept  those  so  fastidiously  clean,  spattering  it  with  paint  and  clay  and  wood  shavings  bordered  on  sacrilegious.  even  so,  he  must  admit  the  sight  before  him  now  is  a  bit  interesting.  story,  personality,  aspiration  all  conveyed  through  an  eclectic  MESS  as  chaotic  as  it  is  eye  catching.

perhaps  it's  for  that  precise  reason  the  wanderer  finds  himself  taking  his  time;  drifting  slowly  through  the  cluttered  space,  head  swiveling  to  and  fro  as  each  subsequent  DETAIL  manages  to  catch  his  attention.  until  finally,  finally,  the  next  thing  indigo  settles  upon  just  so  happens  to  be  the  easel  at  the  very  back  —  and  ren  freezes,  rise  and  fall  of  his  chest  coming  to  an  abrupt  (  unnatural  )  STOP.

❝  ...  ❞  he  knows  what  he  looks  like.  seen  himself  captured  in  photographs  —  gazed  at  his  own  REFLECTION  and  seen  the  loathing  roiling  in  his  eyes.  though  the  wanderer  may  wear  it,  the  face  he  has  is  not  his  own.  crafted  by  one  grief-stricken  god  in  the  likeness  of  another.  it's  never  something  he's  taken  pride  in,  nor  felt  any  sort  of  particular  fondness  for  beyond  its  usefulness  as  a  tool  —  though  the  same  goes  for  the  rest  of  this  body.  yet  something  about  the  painting,  about  seeing  his  likeness  recreated  not  to  highlight  unnatural  beauty,  but  to  simply  portray ...  himself,  doing  something  mundane  that  gives  him  peace  (  something  he  did  that  very  morning  )  brings  the  wanderer  a  strange  feeling  he  needs  a  moment  to  label  as  JOY.  huh.  he  likes  this.  he  likes  this  a  lot,  actually.  that’s  him. that's perhaps the most him he's ever seen himself.

he  isn't  sure  how  long  he  spends  STARING  until  he  remembers  he's  meant  to  say  something.  (  that  he  remembers  he's  forgotten  to  fake  BREATHING.  )  pretending  to  clear  his  throat,  ren's  gaze  sweeps  the  ground  somewhat  awkwardly  —  though  it's  only  a  few  seconds  before  he  swiftly  returns  to  looking  at  the  painting.  ❝  not  bad.  ❞  the  wanderer  finally  says,  and  it's almost  laughable  how  subdued  the  response  is  compared  to  his  wordless  reaction.  ❝  ... what  are  you  going  to  do  with  it  once  it  dries?  ❞

His reaction is actually quite a bit calmer than she'd been expecting. Most people would be far more puzzled as to how they got here... but at the mention of the traveler, she quickly understands. This isn't the first time he's been to one of these adepti realms, which makes things a lot more simple for her.

At least, she hopes so-- she isn't the best at explaining how this all works to someone that doesn't already know.

"A lost easier then camping out every night." She agreed, leading the way towards her workshop. "Especially with how much I travel. Not that this place doesn't come with it's own challenges, though." She sighed, looking faintly embarrassed.

"Since I can control the time of day here, when I'm painting I usually keep it daytime. Easier to see everything, right? Well, it also takes away the ability to tell how much time is actually passing. I once spent five days straight working on a picture without even realizing it, missed a bunch of plans I'd set up-- ugh, I was so embarrassed."

"Aaanyways, come on in and take a look!"

Finished rambling for now, she swung open the door to her little studio and invited him in. It was a bit messy, with paints and brushes scattered here and there, and nearly every wall was covered with some kind of art. Sketches, other paintings, photographs, it was kind of a mess. A pretty mess, though!

Near the back is where she'd set up her easel, where the painting would sit for a while longer until it was dry. And there it was, a painting featuring Ren sitting high up in a tree and watching the sun rise. The level of detail wasn't picture perfect, but her use of color more than made up for any shortcomings on that front.

"So, what do you think?"

[west-tokyo-incidents]

It's so warm.

CW; violence, gore(ish), idk what else to warn its almost 1am

-----

Hooves click on the hard, dark cobblestones. The mare lets out a snort. She gnashes against her bit. Her rider gently stills her with a hand to her neck.

"Hush, Vairon."

If a horse could growl, Paresse imagined she would, her ears folding back as she shakes her head. She takes no issue with her rider, living or dead. She takes issue, instead, with the loose shoe on her back foot.

"I know. I will find you a smithy soon." His voice is gentle like he is with no other creature.

It almost seems to calm her. She still indignantly refuses to let him brush her for the day when he dismounts before sunrise. The fledgling chalks her odd behavior up to her shoe... until he realizes she's staring off into the forest.

A hunter? Is he being tracked? His head tilts back and he sniffs the air. He doesn't smell human, nor any masking salve. He does smell smoke, though, and concludes that is what's causing his mare's caution.

With a hum, he leads her further off the road. It has rained recently, no fire should reach them if it's in the forest, but it doesn't hurt to be certain. A drain beneath the road will suffice for shelter.

Vairon shakes her head at the more rough terrain, but relents. She fears fire more than a sore foot.

While she grazes at the edge of the wood, he lays out on a rock inside the drain, keeping himself out of the running water.

It's oddly warm for so late in autumn.

-----

Vivid eyes watch the fledgling. He doesn't smell very old. He's so very stupid, too, sleeping in what may as well be open air. The only thing that keeps him at bay are the silver spikes on the horse's hooves and the strange weapon he carries.

The cloth around his neck as well, prevents a swift kill.

How bold, as to steal a hunter's garb and horse. Must be a young horse, untrained, if it doesn't attack its rider.

How very curious. But hunger gnaws in his stomach.

But he's too easy a target. Sitting in the open, belly practically bare, his skin still slightly flushed with whatever his previous meal had been. This fledgling will be a filling meal to sustain him long enough to leave on a proper journey back to where he belongs. A shame he was fairly pretty, as well.

His eyes flick up. The sun shines a barrier between him and the drainage pipe. He has waited a long time. He can wait a few hours more for the sun to dip barely below the horizon. For the shadows to grow long enough to connect the forest to the pipe. The dumb animal will not be a problem.

-----

Paresse startles awake to Vairon's scream. It's not a death scream, but a warning she's been trained to give at the scent of a vampire when her rider sleeps. Instantly, he twists, feet splashing into the drain. His eyes aren't even open fully when a large body slams into him.

They fall into the water and he feels intense pressure on his throat. A snarl rips from his throat without thinking. He acts purely on instinct. He gets his knees between the large body and himself before kicking.

Hard.

The motion makes the fangs in his neck tear through the cloth and hit silver.

The shriek that follows falls just short of agony, but only just. The weight comes off of him. His first priority is his weapon. Soaked and running on adrenaline, the shine of his lance is all he sees before his hand wraps around the leather handle. He whips around and brandishes it between him and his attacker.

He expected a beast form, for the weight that had been on him. Instead he sees a man with a hand over his mouth and fire in his eyes. The man is as big as a beast, shoulders nearly broad enough to brush either side of the tunnel. Only then does he smell the smoke. It burns his sinuses. He lifts his lips and bares his fangs.

The cloth on his neck hangs loose, torn now, and shows the silver plated collar still there, between the tears.

"Clever child." The larger vampire spits blood out and lowers his hand, "Lucky." He turns and bolts out the other side of the drain. Leaving the hunter in the tunnel.

Trapping him, Paresse realizes. He can't see his opponent. If he exits, he won't know where to defend from.

Usually.

A quick, two-note whistle, and an enraged whinny sounds out. Vairon's hooves clatter in one direction, and Paresse goes the other. She is trained to charge into battle, and she has done so many times against many more than one vampire. Once outside, the last rays of the day sting his skin, but he endures it. He claws his way onto and then over the road where his horse has gone.

A rising glee fills his throat. Delight colors his eyes a cruel shade as he lifts his chain tethered lance and throws it. It misses, but sends the vampire, panicked, into the trees.

With no thoughts, he climbs onto his mare's back and snatches his lance as she gallops past it and into the woods, following the vampire as he transforms and takes off, weaving between the trees.

-----

A mad cackle follows him. If it weren't for the sun above, he'd fly higher, fly away. But he can't. And if he stops, that lance will be in him before he can catch breath.

Foolish, foolish, foolish!! He should have known better!! He hadn't stolen that clothing, nor the horse, they were HIS!

He misjudges a tree, hits a branch. He swings into the trunk and the wood explodes beside him, silver blade far too close to his side for his liking. He climbs higher into the tree, out of the chain length of the weapon.

He hears the chain rattle, and then the weapon tearing out of the wood and falling to the ground.

"Oooh, batty, batty, why don't you fly away? Are you so hungry you can't wait for the sun to go down to attack? Treed like a common pest, ah?"

He looks down. The fledgling is pulling the pole arm back up to himself with the chain. He hisses down at him. A hunter turned vampire? What madness is this? What mad vampire had turned a hunter? Had he killed his sire?? The red fur of his chest heaves as he looks around frantically, trying to find a clear path through the trees to fly through again.

He doesn't see the hunter vampire unclip the chain from his belt and stand on his horse's back.

"Keep alert, fire-rat!"

Only the hunter's words make him look back down to see the lance as its loosed. In a panic, he jumps off the tree to try and fly, but it's too late. He screams as it hits his thigh.

The ground rushes up at him too fast.

-----

Paresse grins at the sickening crack-thud of wingbones hitting the ground. He jumps off Vairon's back and walks over to the heaving piles of beast, with no hurry to his step.

A wheezing laugh makes the blades of grass by its face sway and shudder, "What... what the hell are you, demon?"

He rips the weapon out of its thigh and circles around to its face, head tilting. He doesn't answer, letting a pause stretch out.

"Don't tell me you've got no fight left in you." He pokes at its flank with the tip of his blade, like a child poking at a corpse with a stick.

"What good would it do me? My wing broken, my leg maimed, my would-be prey a mad man... tell me, who turned you? A hunter?"

"None of your concern."

"They're dead, aren't they? What a fool... is the turning that maddened you? Turned into your own prey, and made you this?"

A laugh, a cacophanous cackle that bounces off the trees. Paresse sits down on a jutting root, laying the weapon across his knees, "You'd make a good jester, smoke-stink. No, I've always been mad. You're clearly from east-France. I'm far too known in the west." He licks his teeth, muscle flicking off the sharp tip, "Tell another joke, clown-rat. Before you bleed out."

A hum rolls out of the beast's chest, "And why would I give you the pleasure? You revel in this. If I am your jester, then kill me, my king, for I will entertain you no more." He closes his eyes and lets out a sigh.

Paresse narrows his eyes. He gets up again and kicks his foot against the beast's shoulder, causing a cry of pain. He presses his blade to the creature's throat and lifts its chin to face him. Deep green eyes squint open at him.

"No, I don't think I will. I'll leave you here to rot. I'll let the mice and maggots eat holes into your pretty hide. Maybe I'll come back through here and fetch your skull, hang it off Vairon's saddle." He smiles, and it's anything but comforting, "A shame, if you'd just listen, I might even have made you my pet." He pulls the blade away and turns to get on to his proud looking horse.

He pauses, seeing the beast staring back at him, "Tell me, what was your name?"

The vampire lets out a small, weak laugh, likely at being referred to in the past already, "Fierté..."

Paresse laughs, "Sins, the both of us. How fitting an end for Pride, at the hands of Sloth."

-----

Fierté stares at the man's back as he rides away. He would have taken a breath and turned him to ash is he hadn't been so hungry.

Sloth.

Paresseux.

Hah. What an end, indeed.

He waits until he can't hear the hoof-falls any more. Then heaves himself up.

Thankfully, it won't really be the end. He twists and becomes human-looking again, finger-bones easier to set than wing bones. His thigh wound cauterized with a careful press of his fingers into it.

He still needs to eat. Perhaps a rabbit will ease the pain enough for him to get back to the village. He'll have to risk the hunter there to do it, but he has no choice any more. He just has to hope he doesn't hit a thrall of the greater beast there.

He sits there a moment longer, the shining green in his 'king's' eyes on his mind's eye. It lingers like the burn of the sun lingers on his skin. A mad man... he must be just as mad, he thinks, as a little smile comes across his features.

[softinkshadows]

battlefield encounters  (gojo, nanami, geto, sukuna) (part 1)

Some short vignettes of jjk men x female reader imagined scenarios, where reader meets them for the first time in the middle of a fight (all taking place within the same world and timeline of the manga/anime, although as parallel storylines). 

Gojo Satoru 

The gun cocks. You aim it at the man standing in front of you. He pleads pathetically with a look of despair, his face coated in cold sweat as he mumbles words begging for forgiveness, promising riches. It’s always the same. You scoff, then pull the trigger - once, twice, three times. The sound of the shots echo throughout the empty abandoned warehouse. You watch as the man slumps to the ground in a lifeless heap, joining the other scattered bodies around him. 

“Well, that’s the last of them,” you mutter to yourself, sheathing the gun back in your belt. The Inozuka syndicate had been overstepping their boundaries in the city recently, creating unnecessary pressure on the Matsuba faction, which long held control over the city’s largest district. And of all people, they had chosen to attack you in this dank warehouse as a bargaining chip for more territory, thinking you were an easy target because you were a woman. When in fact you remain one of the strongest upper-management leaders of the Matsuba syndicate. You gaze down coldly on the pile of bodies at your feet, some distorted, bloodied, eyes half-open in death, and the familiar hollow feeling creeps into your chest before you can suppress it. Killing, again and again and again. Is this my life now? Resigned, you turn on your heels, preparing to leave.

A sudden cold wave hits you from behind without warning, a wave so suffocating your mind spins, and your chest tightens as if dozens of clammy hands are gripping your throat. A bead of sweat rolls down the side of your face. As you spin around, your hand instinctively reaches for your gun at your waist, but what you see makes you halt in terror.

Four protruding eyes sit atop its grotesque head, its large set of teeth pitch black and spread wide in an unnerving smile. An overpowering aura emanates from its body, all four limbs streaked with giddying patterns of black and white, and your eyes glance downwards at its incredibly sharp claws, feeling a lump gather in your throat. There’s no mistaking it. You had always been able to see curses ever since you were young, those small annoying fly heads and larger clumsy monstrosities, but this... this is different. It’s as if you're staring at death in the face.

The cool handle of your gun against your fingertips propels you back to reality. Don’t think! You raise your weapon only to feel yourself flying across the open room, slamming into discarded storage boxes with a loud crash. Limbs faltering, you struggle to get up from underneath the debris. A terrifying gleeful screech resounds as the curse leaps towards you, and you move the best your instincts allow, diving out of the way and firing a few useless shots.

You’re only aware after the fact of a sudden throbbing pain in your left arm, and a growing wetness that trails down your skin to your wrist. You examine it briefly, gritting your teeth in pain. Your exposed flesh is ripped up like paper, with large stinging claw marks running across your arm. There’s a stabbing feeling in your ribs and one of your legs isn’t moving like you would wish it to. 

“Shit,” you mutter as you drag yourself towards the concrete wall, propping yourself up against it. Unharmed, the curse licks your blood from its claws, mocking your helpless state. You feel the fabric of your pants getting gradually soaked in warm pooling liquid, along with the onset of dizziness from the blood loss. Shit. After all these years of fighting, surviving, killing... I guess this is how I’m going to go out, huh. In a dingy-ass warehouse. Chewed to scraps by a damn curse. 

“Fucking hell,” you chuckle flatly, lifting your gun again in a last burst of dignity and taking aim. Then it lunges.

You prepare yourself to meet your end, awaiting the heavy, pulpy crush of your skull against the wall, but it doesn’t happen. Instead, the warehouse warps before you. 

“Wha-” your voice falls away as you’re moved away from the line of attack in the blink of an eye. Suddenly, you’re staring at the ground from above, your limbs dangling beneath you. You hear the loud crack of crumbling cement from the curse’s impact where you stood a mere second ago. A firm hand holds you by the waist. A different energy, deeper, much stronger this time, radiates fiercely from beside you like the blooming of plum blossoms in snow.

“Who in the hell ar-” you cough out, both wary and mesmerized, struggling to look up over your shoulder.

“Now, now, don’t get too excited,” a voice teases, “I promise to pay proper attention to you in just a while.” A man with a tacky-looking blindfold looks down at you with a smug, annoying grin. Although somehow, even with the dark cloth securely over his eyes, his distant gaze is strangely piercing. The next thing you notice is his striking white hair, a shocking colour accentuated by his dark clothes, giving him an air of otherworldly elegance. But hell, something about his tone grates at you - is this guy actually being cocky at a time like this?

Before you can protest, he lifts his hand towards the approaching curse. You feel yourself gape in awe as the space before him curls wildly, pulling in and amassing a good deal of energy. Within seconds the curse is shredded horribly, twisting and screaming as it burns out with a bright blue flame. You heart thuds and you feel your hair stand on end. This curse could have snapped you in half at any moment. Yet this man takes it out with a single wave of his finger.

"You can see it, right?" His voice jolts you from your stupor. He is standing on the ground now, still carrying you rather expertly in a way that avoids pressing down on your injuries. He looks at you intently with a curious expression. You don’t realize he has taken interest in the surprising lack of cursed energy dwelling in your body. It reminds him of someone he met a few years ago, someone who nearly killed him...

"Yeah, so what? It's not like I haven’t seen them before. And you can put me down now,” you’re growing cautious of this stranger, but retort rather weakly as the effect of your wounds start to set in.

"Hmm, interesting~" He casually ignores your last statement, strolling over to pick up what appears to be a blackened, wrinkled finger on the floor, stringing you along like you weigh absolutely nothing. You hear him mutter to himself something about finding a fifth finger, and handing it over to some shitty higher-ups. 

Tutting in annoyance, you raise your voice, moving to pry his strong fingers from around you. "Hey, blindfold, I don't know who you are but you can let me go now, I’m good-" You speak too soon as the searing pain in your arm returns, making you wince. “Sure you are,” he chortles doubtfully, stifling a laugh at your awkward, impossible efforts. Oh, you’d love to hit him right now. But his hands say something else, pulling your struggling arms apart, gentle and serious, as if determined to not let you hurt yourself further. Gojo ponders thoughtfully for a moment. Looks like I’ve found something interesting. And a troublesome one, too. He lapses into a smug grin again. “Let’s get you taken care of, shall we?” Speaking in a lighthearted singsong voice, as if to a child, he smirks a little, before tapping two fingers against your forehead. Immediately, your vision darkens, and the last thing you are vaguely aware of is a faint scent of fresh pear, and a strong arm hooking under your knees, lifting you to lean against someone’s chest as a warm feeling of enveloping safety lulls you to sleep.  ------ My writing got a little long for Gojo’s so i’m going to split the post into several parts over the next few days! I’m trying to keep it such that Reader has different identities in these different storylines, to perhaps propel your own imagination to take the story further from there. Hope you liked this one~ :)  --- Taglist (っ˘ω˘ς ) : @encrytpta @wilddreamer98