#on my second binge watch of this in a matter of a month

[lorastyrels]

A really beautiful place

[risriswrites]

Just Roommates

summary: a series of moments between bradley bradshaw and his roommate that prove they're a little more than "just roommates"

pairing: roommate x bradley bradshaw, fem reader

warnings: none, just some mild language and lots of fluff

author's note: this is my second fic and i just wanted to say thank you all for the love on the first one! it made my heart happy :) likes, comments, and reblogs are welcomed and appreciated!

word count: 9.1k

“Okay but hear me out. What if we painted the living room wall a pale green?” you question, gesturing to the beige wall directly across from you with a spoon, that was once being used for your bowl of cereal; which had been discarded five minutes prior in favor of the sudden inspiration to revamp the living room.

Tilting your head to the side you allow your eyes to wander the length of the wall before adding, “Not like a pastel green but more like a sage green. I think it’d compliment the couch…and the wood floors.”

Bradley was leaning in the doorframe of the hallway that led to your separate bedrooms, arms crossed over themselves and letting his eyes trail over the way you’ve perched yourself onto the granite kitchen island, one leg crossed over the other.

It was a Saturday morning, so it didn’t surprise him that you’d foregone pants and settled on an oversized t-shirt, really short shorts, and fuzzy socks. You always complained about how you couldn’t sleep if it was too hot, so he made sure to keep the thermostat at a comfortable 70 degrees, but as soon as you woke up, you’d be freezing and needed socks to keep your feet warm. He’d never understand it.

Dragging his eyes away from you he lazily glanced at the wall of the living room. Honestly, he was fine with the way it was, but he wasn’t an interior decorator, so his opinion didn’t really count for anything in the name of “design”.

“I don’t think it really matters” he shrugs, letting his eyes wander back over to you. Your hair was still a little messy from sleeping, but in way he found oddly, cute.

A huff slips past your lips as you slide off the counter and move to wash the bowl you’d been using, “Bradley, the apartment could use a little bit of color. It’s kind of bland in here,” you grimace, sparing him a quick glance before resuming your assault on the navy-blue bowl.

Sighing, Bradley pushes himself off the doorframe in favor of moving to the granite island you’d been sitting on a few moments ago, “Well, you pay for half of the apartment, so whatever you think will make the place look decent that’s up to you.”

“That’s not how decisions work between roommates, Bradley. We have to both agree with it,” you mutter.

Shaking your head you force a breath out, “Look, we can talk about it later if you want, it’s not a big deal. We can always meet in the middle and bring in a plant or something instead? You keep the neutrality of the apartment, and I can have some greenery to look at.” you negotiate, all while wiping your hands on the hand towel hanging across the bar of the oven, shooting him an awkward smile, doing your best to not glance at his naked chest.

He forces his own smile back at you and nods his head the tiniest bit to let you know he’d think about it.

With that conversation ending you decide to leave Bradley to his thoughts in favor of snuggling into the couch for some warmth and an excuse to binge watch “The Witcher”.

You and Bradley had been living together for a little over a month, having been introduced to each other through your friend Jamie.

Jamie was a landing signal officer for the navy that you had met while you were in college. He was just getting his associates degree to pass the time while he worked on achieving all of the necessary credentials to start training in the navy, and once he graduated, was stationed out in Miramar. He had worked alongside Bradley during a few different missions and had kept in contact with him over the past few years. The two were close enough that Bradley valued Jamie’s feedback and opinion, so when Bradley came to him with his roommate dilemma, he knew the perfect person to recommend.

Based on your first meeting alone you liked Bradley. He was well mannered, reserved, and yet, still had a certain rugged charm to him. And now you were here, laying on the gray couch you had convinced Bradley would look perfect in the small living space, snuggled under a knitted blanket from your grandma, as Bradley fixed himself a cup of coffee.

“I’m going to go out for a run in ten minutes, do you need anything while I’m out?” Bradley called out to you.

You tilted your head back to look at him from the throw pillow you were currently laying on, “No thanks I’m good,” you smiled, quickly turning back to your show, successfully avoiding gawking at your roommate as he maneuvered around your shared kitchen.

Ten minutes came and went, and you never heard Bradley leave the house. Crinkling your eyebrows, you sit up from your spot on the couch and peer back into the kitchen to check if Bradley had snuck out without you noticing. Only to see him sat on a barstool at the kitchen island, one arm leaning on the long piece of granite and the other holding his coffee mug in his hand, casually sipping at the hot beverage while his eyes were glued to the tv screen.

A smirk grows on your lips, “Going for a run, huh?”

Bradley’s gaze breaks from the tv screen and snaps to you, his eyebrows pinching together as he shoots you a playful glare, mumbling into his mug, “I’m about to leave.”

“Sure, you are” you snort.

Silence ensues as you continue to smirk at him and he glares at you, before finally he breaks.

“Alright fine,” he huffs, “One episode, and then I’m going for a run.”

You turn back to the tv with a knowing smile on your face before getting comfortable under your blanket again.

Bradley stays put at the kitchen island for the next episode, but once you’ve started the second, he’s gravitated to sitting on the arm of the couch.

You glance over at him every now and then, smirk growing larger with every minute he continues to sit and not leave to go for his run, too enraptured in the show currently playing on your shared tv screen.

Grasping the remote in your hand you pause the show, turning you head and quirking an eyebrow at him, “Soo…still going for that run?”

Bradley huffs and throws his head back groaning, “I need to.”

You stay in your position allowing yourself to let your gaze roll over the scars that litter his neck and along his cheek. Seeing the war waging on in his brain you decide to make it easy for him, “How about you go on that run, and I’ll just pause it until you get back? It’s on Netflix so it’s not going anywhere anytime soon.” You smile.

Bradley turns to face you, moving his arms behind him to rest on the couch, further exposing his naked chest, “You sure? I don’t wanna make you wait to finish the episode.”

You push aside any thoughts about how hot he looks right now and instead focus on his honey brown eyes, letting your smile turn into an easy smirk, “I’ll be okay Bradshaw, I’m a big girl I can wait one hour for you to finish your run.”

Bradley raises an eyebrow while leaning towards you a little bit, letting his tongue poke out to swipe across his lips before he fixes you with a sarcastic smile of his own, “Sweetheart, it’s cute you think that it’s gonna take me that longto go on a three-mile run.”

And with that statement being put out in the air, he’s moving off the couch and heading towards the door, passing the water bottle he set out earlier.

Momentarily dazed from his proximity, you regain your train of thought and call after him, “Have fun show off!”

“Don’t start that episode until I get back sweetheart!” he yells, pointing a finger back in your direction, letting the door swing closed behind him.

A snort escapes you as you take to scrolling through your phone, waiting for Bradley to come back.

And exactly twenty minutes after you last saw him; not that you were counting, Bradley strolls back inside, a sheen of sweet glistening from his chest and abs as he strides towards the water sitting on the island.

Having looked up at his arrival, you quickly force yourself to look back down, cursing under your breath at how heaven sent he looks right now.

As Bradley is unscrewing the cap from his water bottle, he glances towards you propped up on the couch scrolling through the many apps you have on your phone before he slides his gaze to the tv, smiling to himself when he sees that you’ve kept your promise in keeping the show paused.

Allowing himself a few gulps of water, he sets the bottle back on the island and turns his attention back to you, “You mind keeping it paused for a little longer? I need a shower.”

You keep your eyes glued to your phone screen, “Don’t need to ask Bradshaw, I’d rather not have you tainting our clean couch with your sweat.” You snicker, wrinkling your nose in disgust.

He just shakes his head and smiles as he sets off towards the bathroom.

Another ten short minutes had passed before Bradley saunters back into your shared living space freshly showered and wearing a pair of gray sweatpants.

You stare for all of five seconds before becoming conscious of what you’re doing and move to grab the remote that’s been lying dormant on the side table for the past thirty-five minutes, eager to distract yourself from allowing him to take up any further space in your mind.

Bradley, however, has other plans and is picking your legs up off the couch and maneuvering himself under them in order to sit, bringing them back down and settling them in his lap, unknowingly regaining your attention.

Said attention being specifically on his right hand that is currently resting on top of your left leg, allowing a warmth to settle where his hand is, and traveling up through the rest of your body, a flush no doubt currently on your cheeks. Giving your head a small shake, you press play on the remote before forcing yourself to relax into the throw pillow and focus on Geralt arguing with Jaskier.

He's your roommate.

You’re very attractive roommate, but your roommate, nevertheless. And reminding yourself of that fact helps you stay focused on the show before the two of you part ways a few hours later.

He’s your roommate. Nothing’s going to happen.

~

“Pretty sure this is the kinda injury you go to the hospital for, Bradshaw. Not your very unqualified roommate and a first aid kit” You grimace.

Bradley was currently sitting on the toilet seat of your shared bathroom; after what you can imagine was another interesting night at the hard deck, in his typical white tank and Hawaiian button-down combo while you stood in between his jean clad legs, attempting to control the bleeding above his eyebrow.

“I’m serious you might need stitches,” you grunt, grabbing some more gauze and pushing it against the laceration.

Bradley snorts, “I wouldn’t say you’re completely unqualified if you’re gonna stand there and say I need stitches.”

You roll your eyes at the statement and resist the urge to smack him, “Anyone with half a brain can deduce that you need stitches, doesn’t take someone with a degree to know that.”

“So, you’re saying you’re perfect for the job, since you don’t need a degree? That’s perfect, thanks sweetheart,” comes the reply of a grinning Bradley.

A huff escapes past your lips as you mutter out, “You’re impossible”.

Your eyes examine the items from the first-aid kit that are currently scattered across the countertop, landing on a small box that says, “butterfly wound closures”. You light up at your luck before ordering Bradley to keep pressure on the gauze you’ve been holding as you move to get the much-needed bandages.

Once you’ve grabbed two or three bandages from the box, you push Bradley’s hand off the gauze and slowly peel it back to check on the bleeding. Luckily, it’s stopped now, and you can focus on closing the wound.

Grabbing a square packet with the words, “alcohol pad” on it, you rip open the packaging and take out the small piece of moist fabric, before sucking in a breath. Just knowing how much this could burn against Bradley’s wound has you wincing and hesitating to clean the area around it. “This might sting a little if I get to close, so try to stay still” you whisper, trying to keep your voice steady as you start wiping around the wound. “How’d this happen anyway?” you question, attempting to distract him from any pain he might be feeling.

Bradley watches your face as you begin to wipe away at the dried blood above his eyebrow, nose scrunched, eyebrows pinched, and eyes focused on his wound. It’s endearing, how seriously you’re taking this.

“Some guy kept bothering Phoenix, she can usually handle guys like that on her own, but this one just wouldn’t take no for an answer. I stepped in to help escort him out of the hard deck with Hangman when the guy swung on me. It’s not a big deal.” He sighed.

You forced out a chuckle at his response, “I wouldn’t say that. Not when you’re coming home with blood rushing down your face”.

Bradley clocked the skip in his heart at the word “home” coming from your lips.

Ignoring that thought he rasped out, “Yeah well, better me than Phoenix. Plus, he definitely looks worse than me, I can guarantee you that, sweetheart.”

And just when you were about to retort back, you made the mistake of brushing the alcohol pad too close to his open wound.

Bradley’s eyes instantly force themselves shut, reaching out to grip your legs as he inhales sharply.

“Shit, shit, shit, I’m sorry Bradley” you apologize, moving your hands to hold his head in place. And before you even register what you’re doing you’re blowing air on his wound, applying the same knowledge you have with the reaction between small cuts and hand sanitizer to this scenario.

Bradley slowly let out the breath he’d been holding, muttering out an, “It’s fine sweets,” allowing his body to relax again.

Discarding the alcohol wipe, you quickly grab the bandages you set out, unwrapping them at a swift pace before moving to place them one by one over Bradley’s cut. Gingerly, you smooth your thumb over the last bandage, securing it in place on Bradley’s sun-kissed skin.

“Okay” you let out a breath, “You’re all set to be a hero again” you smile softly. “Don’t get into the habit of getting into fights with drunk men.” You warned, moving your right hand to squeeze his shoulder.

Bradley’s eyes flutter open meeting your soft gaze, and he can’t help but to let one side of his mouth quirk up into a smirk, “I make no promises sweetheart.”

Rolling your eyes at his confession you take a step back from him, forcing his hands to drop from your thighs, “You think you can manage putting everything back in the first-aid kit, show off? Or do you need my help with that too?” you smirk.

Bradley scoffs, pushing himself off the toilet to tower above you, “I got it,” he jests, light blue Hawaiian shirt swaying at the speed he moved from the toilet.

With the smirk still playing on your lips you back out of the bathroom, rounding the corner completely before calling out to him, “good to know you’re not completely helpless, Bradshaw!”

~

It’s been almost a year since you and Bradley started living together and somehow, he’s managed to supply endless excuses as to why dagger squad wasn’t able to meet his roommate. No one was more frustrated about the lack of an introduction than Phoenix, as Bradley’s closest friend she was a little pissed and mildly offended at the realization.

So, after some choice words between Phoenix and Bradley and the occasional nagging from Hangman, Bradley folded and told the duo that he’d talk to you about inviting them over for dinner.

Dragging his feet, Bradley opened the door to your shared apartment, taking in the smell of the lavender essential oil you had diffusing in the entryway.

Bradley faintly remembers you educating him on the effectiveness of essential oils when it comes to mental and physical health, and how lavender was best for promoting sleep and relaxation. Something you learned from your “stress management” class in college. It’s funny how that knowledge has him instantly relaxing once he’s stepped into the apartment; or maybe it was just knowing you occupied the same space as him.

“Honey I’m home!” Bradley calls out, tone light and playful.

He rounds the corner to see you propped up on the couch, book in your lap as you glance up at his loud and flashy entrance.

Quirking a brow at the flight suit currently tied around his waist, you watch him move one arm above his head to lean against the doorway, black fitted tee straining as he makes himself comfortable. You shoot him a playful smile, “Have a good day, sweetheart?”

Bradley lets a smirk grace his lips as he watches you, “I’ve had better.”

Rolling your eyes, you turn your attention downwards towards the book in your lap, “Well there’s always tomorrow” you reasoned.

Bradley allows himself to take in your appearance, tongue poking out to wet his lips as he watches a strand of hair fall in your face. He decides then and there that the matching green sports bra and spandex shorts set is his new favorite outfit that you own and there’s definitely gotta be some rule about inappropriate thoughts about your roommate that he’s ninety-nine percent sure he’s breaking.

Breaking his gaze from you he moves to the kitchen, focusing on fixing himself a glass of water when he remembers Phoenix’s words from earlier.

Meandering around the kitchen for a few more seconds he decides to just throw it out there.

“Hey sweetheart, are you okay with a few members from my squad coming by the apartment?”

Hearing his voice echoing through the kitchen into the living room, you allow his words to sit for a second, letting them mull over in your head until you decide to answer him with a, “why not? The more the merrier,” and glance back down to continue reading the murder mystery you’d been attempting to finish for the past few days.

Letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding; Bradley smiles softly at your focused expression before grabbing his phone and shooting a group text to Phoenix and Hangman to let them know they could swing by later this week.

Only putting his phone down when he got a thumbs up from Hangman, and an enthused text from Nat telling him to send the details when he can, allowing himself to refocus back onto the girl currently sat on the gray couch, with an impressive number of throw pillows surrounding her, and a book he’s never heard of before in her hands.

Smiling quietly to himself, he runs a hand through his curls and decides to head to the bathroom to shower, already hearing you in his mind telling him how you don’t want the smell of jet fuel on the couch.

Once he’s finished, he throws on an old Navy tee and gray sweatpants, heading back into the living room to try and persuade you to put down your book and watch a few episodes of “The Witcher” with him instead.

Maneuvering himself around the coffee table and onto the couch, he quickly grabs your legs and props them onto his lap and shoots you a wide smile.

Peering over the top of your book you fix your gaze on his honey-brown irises and quirk an eyebrow at his disruptive actions.

Bradley nods his head to the tv in a silent question, and you hide the growing smile on your face behind the book you’ve had your nose in for the better part of the last few hours. “Bradshaw, can’t you see I’m reading?” you challenged, quirking an eyebrow up at the man sitting in front of you, puppy-dog eyes on full display.

He nods, “I see that, and I raise you with a much more interesting proposition.”

Lowering your book just a tad, you tilt your head to the side and scoff, “Oh really, and what might that be?”

Bradley bites his bottom lip before shooting you a dazzling smile, “You, me, and at least three episodes of ‘The Witcher’, accompanied by pizza and wings, if you’re into that kinda thing?”

You hum at his idea and look up in thought, biting the bottom of your own lip in the process, “I don’t know Bradshaw, this book is really starting to get good, and I’ve been wanting to finish it for like, a week now” you exaggerate.

He gives you ten seconds, and then he’s reaching across the couch to swipe the book from your hands tossing it behind him, earning a surprised shriek from you.

“What book?” he smiles again, beaming from ear to ear.

Not able to contain your own smile, you let out a soft laugh, “Go order the pizza, show off.”

Bradley stands, sending you a mock salute as he makes his way to his phone.

“Oh! And I want a Hawaiian pizza Bradshaw!” you call out.

Bradley scrunches his face in disgust at the thought of pineapple on pizza, turning back to you phone now up to his ear as he waits for the line to connect, “Still can’t believe you like pineapple on pizza, it’s a crime.”

“It’s really not!”

Pushing yourself up onto the arm of the couch, you bring your knees to sit underneath you, using your hands for emphasis as you argue the point of how perfect the sweetness of the pineapple compliments the saltiness of the pizza, and all Bradley can do is roll his eyes and smile at how enthusiastic you are. And despite him not agreeing with you, he orders the pizza for you anyway. Moving back to his spot on the couch once he’s placed the order and grabs ahold of your left leg, massaging it as you continue to rant about the different universally accepted sweet and salty combinations.

Once the pizza has been delivered, the two of you spread the small feast across the coffee table, as you start the second season of “The Witcher”.

Every now and then Bradley will make a small comment that makes you laugh, distracting you long enough that you’d have to rewind the show every few minutes to make sure you caught everything. And Bradley would just smile in return, taking pleasure in knowing that he’s the one making you laugh.

Once the pair of you have gotten through the third episode, you exit out of the Netflix app and turn the tv off, and before you can make a move from the couch, Bradley brings up the topic of his friends again and you tell him Friday at six should be good for you.

Sending him a small smile you slide your legs out of his grip and stand from the couch, bringing the leftover pizza with you and placing it in the fridge, Bradley close behind you with the wings. Once everything is put away, the two of you exchange “goodnights” and part ways to your separate rooms, lingering looks, and fond smiles left in the shadows of the dark.

Two Days Later

Friday comes quickly, work having been overwhelming and taking up most of your limited time. The time you normally are reading or hanging out with Bradley is almost nonexistent.

Once you’ve made it back to the apartment you make a beeline for the bathroom to wash off the day. Letting yourself linger under the hot water long after you completed your routine, forcing yourself to turn the water off, step out of the shower, and dry off.

Remembering that Bradley invited his friends to come by tonight, you curse under your breath, wrapping the towel around your body and swinging the bathroom door open, stepping out into the hallway, only to crash into a hard chest.

“Shit” you mumble, scrambling backwards towards the bathroom.

Looking up you make eye contact with Bradley, who’s sporting his black tee and flight suit attire from his day working at the naval base. Gulping you tighten the towel around your body, squeaking out a “sorry” as you try to look past his eyes towards your bedroom door.

Bradley ignores the urge to look down past your eyes, willing himself to think of anything other than your naked body, and shuffles back a few steps to let you past.

You take that as your opportunity to scurry to your room in an attempt at avoiding any more awkward moments for the night. Deciding to throw your thoughts into what outfit you’re going to wear instead of the recent interaction between you and Bradley. Coming up with jean shorts, a white t-shirt, and white socks, you give yourself a onceover in your floor-length mirror and nod at your reflection, leaving the safe space of your room to wander around the kitchen.

Since you and Bradley had ordered pizza earlier on this week, you take it upon yourself to order takeout from the local Chinese restaurant. Not having been able to go out and grab groceries to prepare for tonight’s dinner, ordering Chinese seemed better than ordering pizza for a second time.

The bathroom door opening signals to you that Bradley’s finished showering, almost like a warning of his inevitable presence.

Busying yourself with tidying up the living room, you don’t notice him walk out of the hallway, too focused on how to lay your grandma’s knitted throw blanket over the couch.

Bradley lets out a breath, closing his eyes and wills himself to forget about your moment in the hallway, instead choosing to put his shoes in a more orderly fashion by the front door, and switching the diffuser on as he passes it, the smell of lavender quickly flooding his senses and bringing him back to thoughts that all involve you in nothing but a towel.

Shaking his head, he forces the image of your wide eyes, wet hair, and glowing skin from his mind and moves back to the kitchen to unload the dishwasher.

You finally take notice of him and send him a shy smile. He sends you one back and breaks the silence by asking about your day at work.

Thankful for the distraction, the awkward tension dissipates and the two of you fall into easy conversation until three sharp knocks come from the door.

Looking to Bradley he sends a reassuring smile your way before going to answer the door. The sound of two voices arguing back and forth hit your ears and you instantly smile and let out a small laugh at the loud, “Bagman I swear, if you don’t shut your mouth, I’m going to sew it shut with the next toothpick I can find.”

Composing yourself quickly, you tuck a stray hair behind your ear while you sit at the kitchen island, only standing when a woman with shoulder-length black hair and chocolate brown eyes, moves around the corner.

Once Phoenix makes eye contact with you, she’s instantly grinning and coming closer to give you a polite hug, introducing herself with her callsign and then her name, telling you to call her by whichever, and settles in on the barstool next to yours.

A blond with perfectly styled hair and a smug smirk follows shortly after Phoenix and quickly scans you from head to toe, smirk deepening (if that’s even possible), Bradley right behind him with a sheepish smile on his face as he looks towards you.

“Well, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes” the blond drawls, he’s a little short compared to Bradley and you take note of his southern drawl, Texan maybe?

Eyes flitting from Bradley back to the blond, you let a sarcastic smile settle on your lips and hum, leaning your arm onto the counter, hand forming a fist as you rest your chin, batting your eyelashes at him, “Bagman, isn’t it?”

Nat snuffs out a laugh, hiding her smile behind her hand as she looks at you.

“Hangman, actually.”

“That’s not what I heard,” you retort back, smile staying stationary on your lips, challenging him.

“Oh, I like you,” Nat grins. “I like her” she states, turning to give Bradley a pointed look.

Hangman breaks the stare down choosing to look towards Bradley instead, “I like her too.”

Rolling your eyes at the statement you also turn to Bradley, tongue coming out to swipe across your bottom lip as you point a finger towards Hangman, “I can learn to tolerate him.”

Bradley lets out a chuckle moving to grab a set of beers from the fridge huffing out an, “We all do that, Sweets” the room erupting into laughter at the expense of Jake “Hangman” Seresin.

Somehow over the course of the night you and Nat had made your way over to the couch, her sipping on a Heineken and you on a coke, leaving the boys to their own devices in the kitchen.

“So, how long did you say you’ve been roommates again?” Hangman questioned, nodding over to you, toying with the perspiration sweating off his beer bottle.

Bradley brings his beer up to his lips slowly, “About a year now, were good friends” taking a sip after he answers.

Jake hums, “And how long have you been lying to yourself about that second part?”

Bradley whips his head towards Jake, eyebrows pinching at his suggestion, “What?”

Huffing Jake turns his attention from the couch where both you and Natasha have started gossiping about some picture on your phone, back to Bradley, “Bradshaw, when’s the last time you went on a date with a girl, or even hooked up with one?”

Jake is met with silence from the naval aviator, and takes a sip from his beer, “That’s my point. You like her man.”

Bradley leans on the countertop, eyes focusing on the way your eyes light up at something Phoenix says, your giggles filling the space of your shared apartment and making him suppress a fond smile. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, we’re just roommates, Bagman.”

Jake watches Bradley watching you, a knowing smile breaking his smug façade, then he moves to sip at his beer, glancing back over to you and Nat, “Whatever you say Bradshaw.”

~

From the way the wind and rain were whipping against the windows of your apartment, you’d think you were dealing with a stage three hurricane, but according to the weatherman it was just a bad storm. Maybe someone should double check his certification.

Every few minutes thunder would rumble, ricocheting off your apartment complex, shaking the building, and sending you into another gathering frenzy. Moving around the apartment in a flurry, you grab the collection of candles you’ve been hoarding and any lighters you can find.

In your rush, you don’t hear Bradley enter the apartment, too busy with collecting all of the necessary items.

Bradley smiles as you pass by him, oversized tee flowing behind you, socks making you skid on the hardwood floors of your apartment as you spread the abundance of candles throughout the living space.

“What are you doing?”

A shriek escapes your lips, narrowly avoiding dropping three candles as you recompose yourself, straightening your back you let out an exasperated breath. Placing the remaining candles down onto the side table you huff, “What does it look like I’m doing?” You turn to face Bradley, who looks like he’s soaked from head to toe; he must’ve left his flight suit at the base today since he’s sporting just a black tee and his workout shorts, “I’m preparing for our inevitable demise.” You exaggerate.

Bradley chuckles at your dramatic opinion of the weather, “I don’t think fifty candles are gonna help us sweetheart.”

You give him a reprimanding look, groaning as you say, “No but they’ll help with our vision whenever the power goes out. And some of us, are afraid of the dark.”

Bradley’s smile softens at your admission and angles himself toward the foyer table, reaching into one of the drawers and pulling out the flashlight you’d been looking for. Turning to you and giving it a little wave in an effort to make you feel better.

You smile at his thoughtfulness, “I’ve been looking for that everywhere.”

Giving the flashlight a light toss, Bradley chuckles, “And looking in all the wrong spots apparently.”

Another round of thunder rattles the apartment, making you jump, eyes flashing with fear for a moment. Bradley raises his eyebrows at your reaction and sets the flashlight on the kitchen island.

“You okay?”

You turn to him, giving a small nod, “Yeah, I’m fine. Storms don’t normally bother me but this one just feels like it’s closer to a hurricane than a regular storm.”

Bradley nods at your statement, “You gonna be okay if I take a quick shower?”

Throwing your hand up nonchalantly, you wave him off, “I’ll be fine, probably gonna light a few candles and start a new book.”

His eyes wander the expansion of your face, looking for any cracks in your calm and collected façade you’re putting up. Not finding any, he rationalizes that he’ll only be gone for ten minutes tops, and can coax you into cozying up on the couch to watch another episode of “The Witcher” once he’s finished.

Shooting a reassuring smile your way he side steps out of your way to head to the shower, “I’ll be out shortly sweetheart!”

Shaking your head, you force yourself to move again throughout the apartment, huffing as you grab a case of water and set it on the island.

Standing at the entryway to your home you play with a strand of hair nervously, studying the progress you’ve made throughout the space, giving a decisive nod of approval, before heading off to your room to pick a book and grab a few extra blankets to set on the couch.

The wind has picked up even more now, making the patter of rain on the window hit with a force you thought for sure resembled hail. Shivering at the thought, you clutch your collection of blankets closer to your body and make your way back out to the living room, throwing yourself down on the couch and cuddling into your favorite throw pillow, snuggling under the blankets.

Another loud boom of thunder rattles your building, making you let out a soft whimper in response, snuggling further into the couch for comfort. In an effort to calm yourself down you reach across the cushions to grab the pink book peeking out from the collection of blankets, totally abandoned in your haste to hide from the thunder.

You thumb through the first few pages until you see the intricate curvature of the words “Chapter One” typed at the top of the page and immediately immerse yourself into another world of fiction. And within five minutes, you’ve completely forgotten about the raging storm outside, the sharp beating of the rain on the window turning into a dull thumping as your eyes scan the pages in front of you.

Bradley curses to himself at the amount of time he’s spent in the shower, quickly stepping out and drying himself off, throwing on a white tee and his favorite gray sweatpants. Hanging his towel back on his hook, he swiftly opens the door and takes long strides to the living room, reaching his hand around the hallway entrance and poking his head out to see where you’ve scurried off to.

Momentarily panicking when he doesn’t pinpoint your exact location, until his eyes zone in on your blanketed figure on the couch. A grin splits his lips, and he bites the bottom one to contain his chuckle, you’re reading that new book you were talking about, but the way you’ve huddled into the blankets reminds him of the alien from E.T. all wrapped up with only your head being visible.

Sidling up to the frame of the hallway he folds his arms over his chest, shaking his head as he calls out your name. Actually, letting out a chuckle this time when you don’t acknowledge him.

“You good over there, sweetheart?” he tries again.

This time you do look up, and his heart clenches at the sight of your wide eyes, “Shit! I’m sorry Bradley, how long have you been trying to get my attention?”

“Not long sweets, don’t worry about it.” He juts his chin towards the tv, “What do you think about a few episodes of ‘The Witcher’?”

Glancing down at your book you think about it for a second, it was starting to get interesting but you could never say no to Bradley or “Geralt of Rivia”. So you smile and push the blanket off of your head, “You know,” you clicked your tongue, “I’m starting to think you like this show way more than I do.”

Bradley scoffs, “Definitely not, I’m only suggesting it because there’s nothing else worthy of watching on that godforsaken streaming service.”

“Oh please,” you roll your eyes, “just admit it Bradshaw.”

And just as Bradley opens his mouth to give you some smart retort back, a loud crack echoes throughout the room, and the power flickers off. You suppress a scream and instead resort to a quiet whimper.

“Shit sweetheart, are you okay?” Bradley calls.

You bite down on your lower lip and close your eyes to avoid looking into the void of darkness that’s encompassed your apartment, “Not really,” you breathe out.

Bradley goes quiet for a second, trying to make the moment lighthearted in an attempt to make you feel better, “All those candles and you didn’t light any of them huh?”

An offended scoff that closely resembles a whine leaves your lips, “Seriously Bradley.”

“Hey, I’m just pointing out the obvious, sweets” Bradley teases.

“At least I thought about this happening and got us prepared,” you sputter out. “Some of us were too busy washing their mustache to care” you sneer, eyes still screwed tightly shut.

Bradley pinches his eyebrows, “Hey now, no hating on the stache.”

“Bradley I can’t see anything and it’s really loud so I’m sorry, but the feelings of your mustache are not on my list of priorities right now” You huff.

“Okay well then how about we try to find the lighter so we can actually see in here?”

“Fantastic idea Bradshaw, best one you’ve had all night,” your tone exaggerated, moving your hands to aid in pushing yourself up from the couch.

Letting out a puff of air, Bradley ignores your comment and starts using his hand to navigate through the living room, hoping he’s getting close to the couch, bumping his knee into what he thinks is the side table, letting out a low groan.

“You okay over there, showoff?” you call out, taking a few tentative steps forward.

“Yeah,” he grunts, “I’m fine.”

You nod your head in understanding and mumble out a quiet, “Okay, good.”

Bradley moves forward again, maneuvering around what he thinks is the coffee table. He can hear your shaky breaths so he’s almost a hundred percent sure he’s a few steps away from the couch.

Growing a little bolder you take two steps forward, which proves fatal as you end up tripping over what felt like a shoe, forcing you to stumble forward in an attempt to catch your footing, throwing your hands out to avoid crashing into anything, only for them to land on Bradley’s warm and hard chest.

Not quite balanced yet, you stumble forward a bit more, Bradley grabbing your wrist in hopes to help steady you, pulling you closer to him in the process.

You haven’t been able to see since the power went out, but having him this close allows you to see the outline of his face and the sparkle of his eyes, your breath hitches in your throat at your proximity and it all becomes overwhelmingly intimate.

Looking away from his profile into the darkness, you momentarily forget about the fear of the storm and instead are distracted by the very muscular, very attractive man; that is your roommate, currently holding you.

“You okay there, sweetheart?” Bradley whispers.

Closing your eyes, you turn your head and force a shaky breath out from your lips, “Yeah, just tripped over a shoe or something.”

“That’s not what I’m talking about.” He mumbles, voice a little raspier than normal.

 Shit.

Your eyes shoot open, your head tilting back to face him, “If you’re referring to the fact that it’s darker than a black hole in here right now, then no, I’m not okay, I would really appreciate at least one of those candles being lit right about now.”

Another roll of thunder crashes into your living room, echoing along the walls and through your chest, making you press further into Bradley’s firm hold.

Closing your eyes again you huff, “I’m sorry.”

Bradley moves the hand that doesn’t have a grip on your wrist around your back, tugging you into his warm embrace, “You have nothing to be sorry for sweetheart,” he reassures, resting his chin on top of your head as he speaks.

You sigh, allowing yourself just for a moment, to enjoy how close he is right now. Just roommates you remind yourself.

“I swear I’m not usually this bad with them,” you mumble against his chest, referring to the raging storm outside.

Bradley’s chuckle rumbles through his chest, nodding his head in understanding, “Where do you think that lighter is right about now?”

“I have no idea, maybe on the island? That’s where I put the majority of stuff.” You mumble, placing your hands flat against him to aid in inching yourself away from his chest.

Bradley hums, keeping a firm grip on your wrist as he steps back slowly towards the kitchen, pulling you with him. “Okay,” he nods, “Lets focus on getting the flashlight and then the lighter. That sound okay with you?”

Feeling the way his thumb is rubbing small circles into your skin, you whisper out a “Yeah,” gulping down your nerves that are so frazzled you’re not sure if it’s from the storm, or from how tender he’s being.

Taking a few more short steps; with Bradley leading the way, the two of you eventually make it to the kitchen island. Bradley letting your hand go in favor of roaming his over the countertop, blindly searching for the flashlight while you focus on finding the lighter. After what seems like hours, Bradley announces his accomplishment and flicks the button on the metal piece of the flashlight, a beam of light hitting your pupils making you flinch and close your eyes. Bradley cursed under his breath in apology, moving the light down towards the countertop in search of the lighter, allowing you to reopen your eyes and get accustomed to the new source of light.

Eyes scanning over your pile of necessities, you spot the lighter peeking out from behind one of the candles.

“Found it,” you sigh in relief.

Bradley’s eyes pan over to you from where he’s standing, watching as you reach past an emerald, green candle that has a picture of the woods wrapped around it; the words “sandalwood” in some typewriter font scribbled at the top, and pull the lighter out of the dark and into the beam of light coming from the flashlight.

Meeting Bradley’s eyes you shoot him a soft smile, giving the lighter a little wave, “Lets light these candles.”

A soft chuckle rumbles through Bradley’s chest while he shakes his head in amusement, “Leave it to you to make a ‘The Boys’ reference.”

You smile, turning away from him as you grab the same emerald, green candle that he was just looking at, clicking the lighter on and pushing it against the wick, “It’s not my fault okay, there’s some great one-liners in there. I just so happen to be capable of altering it to fit our scenario.”

The sky rumbles shortly after your statement and has you kicking into gear, setting the newly lit candle back down onto the island and moving swiftly throughout the apartment, lighting as many candles as you can to brighten up the room, but also not enough to be a fire hazard.

Lighting the last cream-colored candle by the couch, you straighten up and turn towards the room to look at your handiwork, Bradley standing next to you doing the same as he clicks the flashlight off. A soft yellow glow has settled in different areas of the living room and kitchen, the areas surrounding it darker, the further away you get from the candles. “I think that’s good enough.” You murmur, arms crossing over themselves while you scan the space.

Bradley hums in approval, moving an arm around your shoulder and tugging you closer to him.

“What do you wanna do now sweetheart?” Bradley’s voice is soft as he asks his question, allowing his thumb to rub small circles onto your deltoid. It’s comforting.

Allowing your guard to slip, you lean further into his body, turning your head up to look at him, whispering, “Can you sit with me on the couch while I read?” Eyes flickering towards the darkness of your room before returning to his gaze, “I just don’t want to be by myself right now.” You mumble.

And for what feels like the millionth time in the past year, Bradley’s heart skips at your confession, his mouth wanting to grin at just how cute you are and pull you into his chest. Instead, however, he settles for a soft smile and a, “Anything for you sweetheart.”

Gripping your shoulder tighter, he pulls you back towards the comfort of the couch making himself comfortable as he settles into the cushions, allowing you to leave his embrace to grab your book. But once you try to sit back at the opposite end of the couch, Bradley immediately grips your wrist and tugs you back to him.

“You’re gonna end up here anyway, sweetheart, just sit with me.” He rasps out, his warm breath hitting your ear, making you shiver.

Not trusting your words, you hum in response, letting him guide you back into his chest, propping your knees up to rest your book on them as you open it, conveniently landing on the page you had last read.

Somewhere in your brain a little voice was screaming at you that this isn’t what normal roommates do, getting a little louder once Bradley hooked his left arm around your waist, but an even louder voice was telling you just to enjoy it while you could. And in the end, what did it matter anyway? You were going to read and the two of you would part ways once the power came back on to your respective beds and everything would go back to normal. So, what’s the harm in lying here with him now?

The thunder was still rolling outside along with the sharp gusts of wind, but now that you were reading in Bradley’s arms you honestly couldn’t hear it anymore. And what felt like a few short minutes, turned into three hours, your eyes growing heavy, almost dropping the book on your face once you started to nod off.

Becoming mildly alert, you shift your body upwards to set your book on the coffee table, turning to tell Bradley you were going to bed, only to see him peacefully sleeping with his head tilted back onto the throw pillow, right arm flexed behind to support his head as he slept.

Smiling softly to yourself you shake your head and move to get up to go sleep in your bed, only to be anchored down by Bradley’s arm.

Frowning, you grab his hand with yours and begin to try and peel it away from you, Bradley’s grip only growing tighter and successfully pulling you back against him, your hand promptly landing on his chest to avoid faceplanting into it.

Just when you were about to make a second attempt Bradley’s raspy voice rings loud in your ears, “Stop trying to leave me.” He grumbles. Eyes still closed he brings his second arm around your back and pulls you tight against his chest, “Just stay.”

Biting your bottom lip at his drowsy statement, you try to pull your body away from him again, his arms only squeezing tighter around you. “Bradshaw, I need to go to bed,” you huff. Bradley pushes his body further down the couch, keeping you in place as he makes himself comfortable, “Sleep here” he mumbles.

Jesus Christ he’s gonna put you in an early grave.

You allow your eyes to examine his face, the way that his eyelashes touch the tops of his cheeks, sweeping over the tiny freckles littering his face, and stopping at the curve of his lips. Goddamnit. Shaking your head, you squeeze your eyes shut, you can’t do this.

“Bradley” you whisper, voice shaky as you break your gaze from his face and focus on the flickering candlelight, “I really can’t sleep here.”

This pulls him from his drowsy state almost instantaneously and has him fluttering his eyes open, blinking a few times to bring his gaze into focus.

His thumb has a mind of its own it seems, since you feel it push under the fabric of your t-shirt and rub your skin in small circular motions, biting your bottom lip to refrain from doing anything rash, a small “Bradley,” slips past your lips, tone warning.

He doesn’t say anything.

Instead, he brings his other hand up to your face and forces your gaze back to him. It’s quiet as the two of you stare at each other, blood rushing in your ears over the silence that’s only broken by the distant roar of thunder.

 Sighing, you start to move your body backwards to put some distance between the two of you, “Bradley, I need to go to- “, your sentence is cut off by Bradley, who’s pulled you down and collided his lips with your own. Your eyes fluttering closed at the sensation of his lips on yours, a moment passing before you understand what’s happening and push your lips against his.

The hand that Bradley has resting against your cheek pulls you further against him, fingers curling around the nape of your neck to keep you close, as you melt into the kiss, his lips caressing yours, mustache tickling your upper lip as they slot together over and over again, until you pull away to catch your breath.

Your eyes flutter open, reconnecting with Bradley’s. His honey-brown eyes have a certain glow behind them as he takes you in, leaning forward to recapture your lips with his own, “Stay.”

Closing your eyes again, you push your lips against his, letting them linger there for a moment before you lean back, and whisper out a breathy, “Okay.”

A soft, adoring smile pulls at Bradley’s lips, giving his head a short nod as he leans the two of you back, settling himself into the couch cushions while you pull your grandma’s knitted blanket off the back of the couch and over the two of you. Nuzzling yourself into his neck, placing a few chaste kisses along the scars that have made homage there. Slipping your hand under his white t-shirt while you mutter, “Just so you know,” another kiss, “I will be milking the fuck out of this.”

Bradley lets out a chuckle, kissing the top of your head briefly before closing his eyes, “Wouldn’t have it any other way, sweetheart.”

Two Weeks Later

Nat and Jake had come over again for another dinner night. This time, you chose to make dinner, a simple “lasagna roll-up” recipe you found on pinterest that has never failed you when it came to impressing guests.

Bradley and Jake were sitting at the kitchen island, mulling over the salad Bradley had just finished tossing while Jake gave him “pointers”, occasionally stealing glances at the two women sitting on the couch, deep in gossip.

Every now and then you’d look over and send Bradley a soft smile, until Natasha grabbed your attention with another story of the shenanigans that had taken place earlier on base. Jake watching the love-sick expression on Bradley’s face, and stewing in the knowledge that Bradley Bradshaw had it bad for you; just like Jake had told him he was several weeks ago.

“Took you long enough Bradshaw,” Jake poked, bringing the beer he’d been holding up to his lips and taking a sip, smirk prominent on his face.

Bradley spared Jake a glance before returning his attention back to you, clicking his tongue, “When are you gonna tell Phoenix how you feel, Seresin?”

Jake’s eyes flicked to Nat’s figure currently relaxing on the gray couch, not giving anything away, keeping his expression in his traditional cocky smirk, “I have no idea what you’re talking about Rooster.” Taking another sip of his beer, Jake moves his body off the stool and towards the living room, sitting himself down ungracefully next to Nat, her throwing an irritated look at him.

Rooster suppresses a chuckle at his teammates and shakes his head before moving himself to sit next to you, easing his arm around your shoulder, you relaxing into his embrace immediately.

Jake leans onto the arm of couch, permanent smirk etched onto his lips, “Okay I gotta know. What got you hooked on our very own ‘Rooster’ Bradshaw?”

Nat smacks Jake’s wrist and immediately reprimands him with an annoyed “and this is why we only tolerate you, Bagman” while you sit there, a blushing mess, as Bradley rubbed small circles into your shoulder.

You mull it over in your head for a second while Nat continues to reprimand Jake before you speak up, “Honestly?”

Everyone goes quiet at your consideration of Jake’s question, apart from Jake who lets his famous smirk return to his face, “I’d love to hear the honest answer.”

You look up at the ceiling briefly, cheeks flushing as you mumble, “Definitely the mustache.”

The room immediately erupts into laughter, Jake and Nat rushing out questions at a million miles a second, while you cover your face in embarrassment.

 Bradley just chuckles to himself and pulls your face into his side, kissing the top of your head, emphasizing the rub of his mustache against your forehead, making you burrow further into his side.

“Just Roommates my ass!”

[slashersthings]

Jealousy // Billy Loomis x Fem! Reader

—

You were wild that summer. Plenty of parties, plenty of binge drinking, plenty bad decisions.

One of which was currently peppering your chest with sloppy drunk kisses while you sat on the counter during another wild party.

Jeff… er… Jack - whatever the case, slammed you on top of the cold counter a few minutes ago after sharing a couple of dances and drinks.

His breath was hot against your skin as his lips moved back up to capture yours once again.

“This the best you can do after me?”

A familiar voice has you breaking the kiss, and you turn to face the one guy you could never have. (Well, you’ve had him plenty of times, but it never went beyond more than a hot hookup.)

Billy Loomis stood in the doorway of the kitchen, arms crossed over his chest as he shot you and what’s his name a glare. Jealousy was always a good look on him. His warm eyes a shade darker as he watched this guy, this fucking wannabe Brad Pitt with his hands all over you in his kitchen. The same kitchen where just last month was the spot where you two spent the better half of the night fucking away all your issues and problems in life. And here you were - getting groped right in front of him.

Jeff or Jack (whatever), takes a step back from you and frowns. “You never mentioned that Billy was your boyfriend.”

“He’s not.” You state it while staring directly at your on again-off again fuck buddy.

“No, I just fucked her over there,” Billy motions to the dining table, “Last month for shits and giggles. Was fun though, right Y/N? Must’ve been, seeing as how we didn’t stop there.”

Jeff/Jack awkwardly shifts his eyes to the floor. “ I think I better go.”

“Good choice.”

You scoff. “No, you don’t need to leave.”

“I think you and Billy need to talk things out.”

And with that, Jeff/Jack makes a quick escape out of the kitchen, leaving you and Billy alone. He smirks and takes a few steps closer.

You stayed still on the counter. “You gonna chase away all the guys I wanna date?”

“You weren’t on a date just now.”

“We could’ve went out on a date tomorrow.”

“Oh? Even though we both know you’re never planning on seeing him again after tonight?”

“And why’s that?”

“Because you don’t even know his name.”

During this little back and forth, Billy had managed to step in front of you with a smirk. There was a sort of dark thrill with having someone like him giving you so much attention.

“Pretty low, you know. Hooking up with some other guy in my house. In my kitchen.”

Your eyes narrow. “Not any lower than your little scene out there with that blonde.” That was what had started you seeking out solace in that other guy in the first place. Watching Billy getting practically dry fucked on the dance floor by some strange blonde had sent you over the edge and left you wanting to get revenge.

To make Billy feel the same pain you felt.

“You told me to move on, Y/N, just last week.”

“And you sure did just as that, didn’t you?”

There’s a long pause as Billy stares at you. Then he finally says, “Not exactly. Sure, I might have flirted a little but that’s it, Y/N. You’re the one who’s been on my mind, no one else. I want you.”

You felt your resolve start to crumble as Billy followed his sweet talk up with one of his hands cupping your cheek. “You say that.”

“I mean that. Do you really doubt it?”

Before you could answer him, Billy decides to show you that actions speak louder than words and does so by pulling you in for a kiss. Unlike the other guy, Billy didn’t start the kiss out slow and sweet, only to gradually build in intensity, no, Billy’s kiss was rough and messy, tongue plunging inside your mouth with a groan.

“I want you too.” You mutter against his mouth, feeling his lips curl into a smirk as his hands coast their way down your waist. Course, Billy already knew this. You weren’t exactly the best at being subtle here.

He pops off the buttons to your silk blouse in a matter of seconds, his touches so thrilling that you don’t even bother in chiding him for it. The blouse slips off your shoulders and lands somewhere behind you on the counter.

Your hands delve underneath his white shirt, pulling it up his back and off. “Bedroom?” You whisper while his lips trail to your collarbone.

There was a party going on twenty feet away after all. And you didn’t need nor want someone drunkenly stumbling in on you and Billy going at it on the countertop. “Here’s fine.”

You pull back slightly, eyes narrowing.

“Uh-uh, no way. What if someone walks in?”

“You weren’t too worried about that earlier.” His mouth leaves your throat in favor of nipping at your ear, tugging on the earlobe as he says it. “I walked in on you and that jackass.”

His grip tightens when he mentions the guy. Fingers digging into your hips as he bites hard, marking you. “Wasn’t planned.” You gasp out.

“Neither was this.”

“Billy, come on.”

His hands drop as he steps back. He looked annoyed as he glared at you. “So you’ll let some creep you don’t even know fuck you during a wild party but not me. Someone you do know.”

“I wouldn’t have let him-“

“No? Looked like he was getting pretty far.”

“Like you and your little blonde out there?” You hop off the counter with a glare of your own. “And how dare you talk to me like that?”

“I wasn’t almost fucking that blonde, Y/N.”

“Looked like you were getting pretty far.” You repeat his earlier sentence.

“So you can move on but I can’t? You can flaunt around town, acting as if we weren’t a thing just last month while I have to suffer?”

“You weren’t suffering earlier with that blonde.”

“ENOUGH about that FUCKING BLONDE!” Billy exclaims, and you jump when he bangs his fist on the counter. You had never seen him look so pissed off before. It was a little startling.

Having seen your reaction to his outburst, Billy mutters, “Shit, baby, I’m sorry,” and reaches for you.

You shake your head, stepping back slightly.

“Don’t.” You say with a sigh and walk away.

[luvistqrzzz]

August slipped away into a moment in time 'cause you were never mine

the summer i loved you — jake x f.reader wc — 3.3K

summary — where August was the month of new beginnings and first loves but mostly, heartbreak.

genre — friends to not lovers, second lead syndrome, angst, fluff, summer au, august inspired

warnings — sad ending, jake is a huge dee eye see kay (🤢🤢), profranity, heartbreak, not proofread

an — um guys haha def dont come at me for the ending 😊😊 but omg this had been in my drafts for a while now n im glad im able to release this in august ✌🏽😈 have fun reading pookies (1 fucking am rn imma die help)

ps — ☆ a visualizer cuz why tf am i extra ?!

August is a weird month. It seemed to rush by you like a dream and yet at the same time it felt like the last period of every Friday, not finishing fast enough. You'd prefer the former.

August reminded you of memories— pretty but mostly ugly ones or maybe when the hurt in your heart ran so deep, even the happy memories turned ugly, didn't they?

It was not a month you enjoyed, you didn't like summers, you didn't like feeling like new beginnings and first love.

August reminded you of it all... It reminded you of Jake.

It was 1st of August when you realized what those weird feelings were.

‘Y/N!’ You opened the door to the sound of your name, only to be met with a tired and almost teary eyed Jake. He looked up at you, mustering a small smile as you stood before him your mouth agape. 

‘A-are you okay?!’ you asked, pulling him into your house.

‘Um. Not… really’, your friend replied, scratching his neck nervously. ‘It’s just… she kinda broke up with me.’

She. he didn’t even need to mention her name and yet you let the word pierce your heart, a little. Kang Eunji. Jake’s girlfriend, well, ex girlfriend. 

It was her, always her. It wasn’t unusual for you to hear that they both had a fight but you never thought they'd break up. ‘What? Are you being for real?!’ You were shocked to say the least. Jake and Eunji were what people deemed to be the “power couple” at school. They wouldn’t break up, or could they?

He nodded and sat on the couch, ‘We were fighting over one of those petty matters again, she was angry why I was so busy. It was about soccer practice of course! And when I kind of lost it, she said we were over.’ His voice caught in his throat before he let out a small sob.

Your heart sank as you patted his back and pulled him close into an embrace, ‘Ssh, it’s okay’, you ran small circles on his, ignoring the butterflies set free in your stomach at the close contact. 

You could never understand what went on in their relationship. This may have been the first time they broke up but it surely wasn’t the first time Jake came to your house on the verge of tears.

You hated seeing him this way, like a broken record. 

‘What will I do now, Y/N?’ ‘You just broke up, it’s not the end of the world. Plus, you have the entire summer before you, right? We’ll figure a way out,’ You broke the hug, looking straight into his eyes, trying to reassure him.

But they all meant nothing. Getting reassured of a broken heart didn’t mend the damage, you knew better than him. Jake nodded nonetheless, wiping away the stray tears, ‘Goodness, I feel so dumb for just crying like this.’ ‘don’t be. You are allowed to feel your emotions.’

He gave a small smile in your direction and your heart skipped a beat.

‘So’, you turned towards the television, searching for a distraction. ‘You wanna binge watch something? Or maybe some Doraemon?’

Jake grinned, ‘I’d love that! What would I do without you, Y/N?’

You let out an almost sad chuckle, ‘I am the coolest best friend ain’t I?’ The word best friend left a bad taste in your mouth.

4th August was when Jake realized the bookstore was his safe place.

Clink! The door to the bookstore opened with a small chime. You looked up from your position at the counter only to find Jake walk into the shop. 

He smiled before taking a seat beside you, much to your surprise. It wasn't unusual for him to drop by the store. But mostly he came for borrowing a book or having a quick chat with you. 

But never like this.

'So, how are you doing?' You asked, turning towards where he sat, fidgeting with a pen. It was a slow lazy afternoon with barely any customers.

'Oh, uh, I'm fine. At least I'm trying to be. We had so many things planned and like, it feels weird. We were good for each other…' he kept on rambling about his latest break up.

You could feel your heart clench a litte. You understood why Jake was doing so but it didn't help. It didn't help that there were two broken hearts in the same room. It was always you and the second lead syndrome against the world.

Sometimes you really wondered what you had done to be stuck in the loophole of falling for a friend.

You had been friends with Jake since middle school, always finding yourself blush whenever he was around. 

The first time you tried confessing to him during Valentine's Day in freshman year, your hand baked cake (which you had prepared for hours) got destroyed. You kind of gave up on him, treating him as a friend.

Well, that was until Eunji came along last year. Seeing Jake with her brought about a fresh wave of emotions you think your heart had forgotten.

It hadn't. 

The bookstore was Jake's hideaway from the world. He loved everything about it. Loved how calming it was and the people who came in always greeted him with a smile. He was a quaint place, maybe mysterious in a sense that Jake didn't want to uncover the secrets it hid.

He liked how you let him sit there for the entirety of your shift. But mostly he loved the conversations.

Throughout the summer, Jake couldn't remember the number of times he found you sitting with him, flipping through some book as you both chatted away, be it in the lazy afternoon or under the evening sky, where the buzz of the grasshopper was the only thing he could hear. They felt weirdly intimate, like the secrets he used to keep as a kid. He almost wanted to gatekeep them. 

'Sorry do I bore you here?' You asked one day. It was a question bothering you for a while.

Jake frowned, 'What? No. Of course not, Y/N. You could never bore me.' But you were unconvinced, 'No, like, who spends their summer sitting in a small little barely functioning bookstore except maybe be. You must have a lot of plans, right?'

'I wouldn't lie. I haven't ever spent such a quiet summer but turns out, I like a lot. Too much for my own sake. The bookstore isn't boring. Rather, it gives me a sense of escape from reality.' He gave you a reassuring smile.

'Also', Jake added as a second thought. 'You aren't boring Y/N. You just make it all loads better.'

Your phone went off with a sharp ring. Your alarm wasn’t set to ring today. Who could it be? You groaned as you sleepily grabbed it from the nightstand. Without even checking the name, you picked up the call, ‘Hello? Who?’ ‘It’s me Jake, you dummy!’ His excited voice came from the other side.

You yawned, ‘What do you want?’ you checked the time, ‘It’s literal fucking half past four.’ ‘More reason to wake up, right?!’

‘Shut up, I’m hanging up and-’ ‘No no! I really did plan a surprise. Get ready, please, just for today. Please’, he begged from the other side.

Now, you were definitely wide awake, upon hearing his voice. He had planned what…? ‘Okay but the surprise better be good.’ ‘Also! Keep your bicycle ready.’

‘There you are!’ Jake greeted you with a wide smile as you grumbled and walked down the road with your bike where he stood. ‘You don’t get to smile like that after pulling me up from sleep’, you muttered angrily.

But really who were you to complain? It was Jake and you couldn’t deny the fact that you were genuinely excited for what was coming. It was always an adventure when it came to him.

‘You won’t be disappointed, trust me’, he said, boarding his bike and motioning for you to do the same. 

You breathed out a calming sigh, looking ahead at the empty road. Thanks to summer, the sun was already somewhere there on the horizon, spreading a fuzzy glow around you. Everything looked simpler, softer. In the light of the dawn, your thoughts felt less complicated, you almost felt it would be easy to sort out your feelings. Would it?

You turned to look at Jake, cycling in peace, a small grin on his face, ‘Told you! I sometimes go out on early morning rides, especially if I have a lot on my mind.’

‘So, why are you taking me then?’ ‘I don’t know. I just have a feeling you’ll like this place’, he shrugged. ‘Plus, I like spending time with you’, Jake added as an afterthought.’

A blush crept into your cheeks at his words. Stop over thinking you scolded yourself. But you couldn’t help the hope blossom in you. False hope. 

‘Here we are’, Jake spread his arms wide, showing you the view. After half an hour of cycling through empty streets and quiet places, you found yourself on a small hill. It was pretty abandoned, the only sounds that reached your ears were the chirping of birds and the whistling of trees in the cool summer morning.

In front of you lay your town and the forests beyond it. Those familiar buildings looked all new when you saw them from top of a hill. It radiated calmth… and comfort.

Or was the latter because of the person beside you? 

‘Thanks’, you spoke in a soft whisper but then you felt a hand tucking a strand of your hair behind your ear. Your heart stopped as you turned towards Jake looking at you with a fond smile and slowly pulled you closer, resting his head on your shoulder. 

You couldn't process what he was doing. Was it all intentional? No, it was the usual playful Jake you knew, right? But the usual playful Jake wasn't like this. He had pulled you into a hug several times but never like this.

Never so tender in his actions that it made you think otherwise.

'I like the view so much. I hope you do too. It's just… very special, I had never shown it to Eunji either. People ruin things', he sighed, looking ahead. 

You scoffed as an attempt to lighten the atmosphere, 'So, I'm not a person?' 'No, you're Y/N. It's an entire special thing to be in itself.'

You didn't know what it meant anymore. The secret smiles, the small actions. You weren't oblivious, you saw it all but your face masked it behind the friendship.

But was it even friendship? You hoped it wasn't. You hoped you both had crossed the line of being "just friends".

It was the 20th of August when Jake liked mint chocolate ice cream. 

He touched his cheek as a familiar warmth flooded in at the sight of you. What was happening to him? Ever since the day on the hill, he had been feeling weird. Be it when he visited the bookstore or when you both hung out during the day (or night).

The way your laugh sounded in his ears, when you smiled, he noticed the way his heart skipped a beat. But he loved the most when through the afternoons you talked. Just talk, nothing and everything.

Jake had never felt so connected to anyone. You both had always been friends but seeing a friends standing before him, two ice creams in hand shouldn't make Jake blush.

But it did.

'Hey Mr.Zoned out!' You snapped your fingers before him, pulling him away from his thoughts. You handed him his ice cream while joining him on the curb. 

He made a disgusted face at the cone you were holding, 'Ugh. Mint chocolate.' You slapped his shoulder playfully, 'Yah! You are a person with zero taste.' 

'Oh really? Lemme try it then', Jake replied, challenging you. He scooped a bit with the plastic spoon before closing his eyes and tasting it. 

'Ew', he gagged. 'This tastes like fucking toothpaste', he wiped his mouth in disgust.

'Shut up, no need to be so over dramatic about it all', you chuckled and rolled your eyes. 

Jake looked at you as you continued eating and looking at the street in front. It was almost 5 in the evening, the kids were out playing but their shouts were only distant noise because all he could hear was your voice. All he could see was you. You weren't bright like the background but in his eyes, you were glowing. The sun falling on your face, as if highlighting only you in his eyes.

Almost as if on instinct, his hand slowly reached out to your free one, his fingers finding yours and intertwining them together.

You stopped, your heart beating way too fast, you could almost feel the redness of your cheeks.

What was happening? What was Jake doing? Why was he doing this? 

It felt wrong, you knew it. Your intuition could tell it. This was something you had waited forever to happen, but you knew this couldn't be.

Let go of his hand, Y/N. Let go let go let go let go… don't let go.

You didn't, too foolish and in love to walk away. And maybe that was the first mistake you had made.

The first rain of August came on the 25th.

Why was rain often associated with sadness? No, rain didn't mean sadness.

Because on that one day of August, you stood outside the bookstore looking at the dark clouds, the rain gave you hope.

You sighed, no wonder your mother kept on insisting you to take an umbrella. Now, there you were, standing in front of the closed shop.

But a bright yellow thing caught your eye, standing out in the dull gray background. You squinted your eyes as the figure came closer.

Jake.

Your stomach jumped. Had he come for you? 

He ran through the rain, his bright smile evident as you stared at him in wonder.

'What?' He asked. You shook your head, 'You…?' 'I came for you. You always forget your umbrella.' He completed the sentence for you.

Your mouth formed an "O" but a soft smile spread across your lips. 

'Here', he handed you the spare umbrella in hand and took hold of your wrist, pulling you into the rain.

You shrieked, 'At least let me open mine first.' He laughed at your sight, moving closer and holding his umbrella over you.

You noticed every single thing, the things you had noticed a hundred times before. But mostly you noticed his little actions.

The ones that made you fall for him all over again.

'Fuck, if I catch a cold, it'll be your fault, Sim Jake', you threatened the boy standing in front of your porch, grinning. You both had recklessly ran in the rain as a result the umbrellas had been pretty useless… but it was fun.

'Don't worry', he stepped forward, a certain fondness flickering in his eyes. 'I'll be there to bring you the meds.' 

It happened in a fraction of a second, swiftly, Jake bent down and gave a sudden kiss on your cheek. It was soft as a feather, almost like it didn't happen.

But you felt it. You almost felt dizzy, her cheeks heating you. You brought your hands to where he had just kissed you. It had happened, hadn't it?

But before you could say anything, Jake turned around, his head hung low in embarrassment but his stomach full of butterflies and sprinted in the opposite direction.

Had he meant it?

As Jake walked his way back home, his head filled with thoughts of you, a sudden buzz of his phone. He took it out, expecting a text from you.

But no… It was someone else.

His heart dropped. A contact that hadn't been there since 1st of August.

Eunji.

"jake, im so sorry."

But what followed after that day was something you had always feared. 

He ignored you. Every text, every call, no reply. Did he just get awkward? But even an awkward Jake wouldn't be this rude. Or was he angry with you? You didn't even do anything.

The next time you saw Jake, three days later, was when you went on a grocery run.

You could spot him anywhere. 'Jake! Wait', you called out to him. He didn't stop. 'Omg, stop being a shit head would you?! Stop fucking ignoring me!' You huffed, annoyed. 

That's when you saw his figure slowly turn towards you. 'Sorry', he muttered. You ran a hand through your hair. sorry? That's all he had to say? 

'Look, if it's about that day then forget it. You-you never kissed me.' 'What? Of course not, it isn't about that day', he replied. 

You looked at him confusedly, 'Huh? Then why, Jake? I had tried calling and texting you so many times but you couldn't bother to reply to me.'Your voice slowly rose.

'I was busy catching up with Eunji okay?!' his tone matching yours.

There came that name. Her name. Did you hear it correctly? What was she doing in this conversation?

'E-eunji…?' you looked at him, at loss of words. 'I thought yo-you were over her?' 

He gave you a look of disbelief, 'No. That day she sent me a text and I realised… I wasn't.'

Why did the crack in your heart deepen? Why was it always you who got hurt? 

And you couldn't help but ask, knowing the answer would make you feel worse, 'What about us then, Jake?' 

'Us? Y/N what are you talking about? We are friends, we always have been. There is no us.' 

There, the final blow. 'Why did you make me feel so special then? All for nothing? You know how much I like you, so much that everytime we spent time together this summer, I got my hopes up. I was so foolish, because of you Sim fucking Jaeyun. And that day you kissed me, I thought, finally you'll realize but no. It's always her, isnt it?', you didn't scream but the crack in your voice said it all.

And Jake remained silent through it all. because he knew he deserved 'So, this summer meant nothing to you?' You sniffed, a single tear rolling down your cheek.

'Nothing.' But you missed the flicker in his eyes. The flicker that said otherwise.

That it wasn't nothing, it was his eveything.

August 31st was when you lost it finally.

‘It was just a summer thing’, the words rang in your ear, loud and clear. They drowned the voices of all the chatter of classmates. ‘y/n? y/n? Are you okay?’ Lily asked beside you, furrowing her eyebrows in worry.

But you couldn’t respond to her, at that very moment, you thought you couldn’t do pretty much anything except look. Or rather stare at the sight unfolding before you. Before you knew it, the plastic cup fell from your hands, the beer splashing all over the floor and getting the attention of the people in the room, the attention of them. 

In the haze, you met your eyes with his, the soft brown ones that you had fallen in love with, the one which enveloped you in warmth. But now they felt like they were hurting you, the annoyance in them.

A tear rolled down your cheek as you turned around. The room suddenly felt too small, the stares of the people felt accusing. You let go of Lily’s hand that gripped your wrist and ran in the opposite direction.

Did you hear footsteps behind you? Were they Jake’s? You hated to admit it but you wished they were. You wished that he was the one following you, the one who'd hold you back.

For once, prove it to you that you weren’t the second lead.

But he wasn’t there.

You found yourself rushing to the porch, the sounds fading out. But you could hear the blood pumping in your ears, the sound of your shallow breath that you had been holding for so long.

He wasn’t there. What did you even expect?

You were a summer thing for him… but he was your summer love.

permanent taglist open- send an ask- @rikizm @str0l0gy @yenqa @heetoldme @crxzs @s00buwu @nhularin

nets- @en-web @k-films @enhanet @hyfenet

[thefrontofmymind]

That's Where You Loved Me II (Joseph Quinn x gn!Reader)

a/n: so i did write a part 2, and i'm going to write a part 3 now as well. as always, any feedback it greatly appreciated! kisses!

SYNOPSIS: Reader and Joe decide to meet for a drink, after all, they're both not clearly still in love with each other, right?

WARNINGS: alcohol consumption, some yelling and arguing but nothing violent!

In just over a month, you’d managed to regain a somewhat well adjusted life after the rollercoaster that was your breakup with Joe. After moving out and staying with a friend for a while, you’d carried on and found yourself a new place. And it was better, closer to your work, in a bit of a nicer area, and you finally felt like you had some independence by yourself–you were stronger for it.

That’s not to say you didn’t still think of Joe from time to time–it was frankly impossible not to. He was the next biggest thing in pop culture and it seemed he appeared every way you turned, you could barely have a conversation with a coworker without them bringing up the fact that they’d binge watched the new season of Stranger Things over the weekend and ‘that new guy, Eddie, he’s really good, I almost cried when he died!’, and you’d abandoned wasting time scrolling through social media altogether–it just wasn’t as fun with every second video talking about ‘the English newcomer on the scene’ and speculation about his personal life. 

It was a precarious position you were in–it felt like a secret, that you were still hung up on a guy who apparently half the world deemed the new hottest thing. Occasionally you felt sorry for yourself, after a few glasses of wine you often thought about sending him a text saying you missed him, you should go for a coffee some time–even when it seemed like a bad idea, there was nothing your heart wanted more than to lay your eyes on him again, just to see if was the same between you. Though who didn’t think that when they were still in love with their ex-boyfriend?

It was late on Friday night–you weren’t exactly sure of the time as you were tucked up in bed about to go to sleep, still thinking of your new life in your new apartment and how much you’d changed in such a short time.

You weren’t sure if it was arrogance or cockiness, but somehow, without processing it, you’d typed a message to send to Joe, who’s contact was still in your phone–a mistake, you knew.

‘Hi Joe! Not sure if you still have my number saved or not but I finally finished your new show and was wondering if you wanted to catch up and get a drink? There’s that place in Soho we went to for your birthday that you loved that had those really strong martinis? x’

You kicked yourself as your brain went on autopilot and sent the message–what kind of person does that? Send a text like that to their ex after only two months of being broken up? And the kiss at the end? Stupid! You hurriedly closed your phone and placed it on your bedside table, mortified, when it chimed back at you twice.

‘I’ll call you in the morning’

‘x’

You barely slept a wink that night, how could you? You felt a little silly waiting like a sitting duck for Joseph’s call. You’d even checked your mobile plan to make sure he could call, and nothing would go wrong on your end. 

In all honesty, you didn’t have high hopes when it came to what Joe was going to say to you, but something about the excitement, the anticipation, the suspense of what could be.

There was a pang in your chest as you thought about the last time you were in this position, not too long ago. When you and Joe first met, he was only just beginning to make a name for himself–he’d been in a few projects and was a standout in almost every single one, but he wanted more. It inspired you to see him so passionate about his job, and it was exciting being able to attend all these fancy parties as his plus one–where you’d end up making a fool of yourself in front of some hotshot producer but it didn’t matter because Joe would just laugh when you’d tell him before pulling you into the nearest closet for some privacy.

The sound of your phone ringing jolted you back into reality. With palms sweaty and breathing uneven, you answered the phone after a couple rings.

“Hello?” You could hear wind blowing the microphone on the other end of the line–Joe was probably outside for his morning smoke, you thought. “You there?”

“Yep,” was all he said at first. “How are you going?”

You let out a sigh before you spoke–it all felt somewhat trivial, small talk and all. “I’m doing okay, sad about Eddie.”

Joe chuckled under his breath. “Yeah, ‘m a bit sad about that one too…”

You didn’t know what it was about Joe, but somehow the silence between the two of you never felt gauche–the pair of you would settle in the quiet like it was your natural state, and you could sit for hours together not saying a word but being right on the same page.

“Are you free tonight?” Joe said after a second of contemplation. “We could go to Duke’s, like you said. Have a chat?”

You tried to fight the smile on your face. You knew it wasn’t wise to see Joe–it hurt when you broke up. It felt like your world had been torn to shreds, your comfort was gone, you couldn’t function thinking Joe hated you.

“I just don’t understand what you mean!” Joe yelled, following you as you packed up your things in a rush. “When did I say I don’t want to spend any time with you?!”

You were emotional, and probably not thinking straight, but watching Joe stumble into your apartment well past midnight once again, still tipsy from whatever get-together a costar of his had held that night, pushed you over the edge. “You didn’t! But for an actor you’re not good at hiding your feelings! When was the last time we went out somewhere together? Christmas? Six months ago?” You rambled, putting a final handful of clothes in the overnight bag you were dragging around. 

“Is that really what this is about? I’m ‘neglecting’ you? Well unfortunately some of us are trying to work hard in a career that isn’t very welcoming, so I’m sorry if I seem to be putting in some hard work I can be proud of!” Joe’s voice was dripping with sarcasm, and he slurred a little, still.

“I’m staying with a girl from work for a couple days, until you decide to grow up and take this relationship seriously.” And with that you walked out of the apartment, slamming the front door louder than you probably should have at that time of night.

Soon enough, neither of you felt the urge to call and apologise, a few days away turned into weeks, and before you knew it, you were telling your distant relatives that ‘no, you weren’t seeing anyone’ when they asked at family parties. It happened without you even realising it.

“Meet me at eight out the front, and wear that blue blazer you wore to the Catherine the Great premiere, remember?” you said. You always thought he looked good in blue.

“Yes, drill sergeant!” he joked, before you both said goodbye and hung up on the quick conversation.

You didn’t want to jinx anything, but it felt good to call Joe again, and you’d most certainly hoped the feeling would persist as you saw him standing out the front of the upscale bar, scrolling on his phone with a half-smoked cigarette in his hand–he wore the blazer.

He looked better than the last time you’d seen him, whatever he was doing was agreeing with him, whether it be the travel or the success. His face looked a little rounder than the month prior, and his hair was starting to grow a touch longer than you knew he liked it, though you always preferred when he let his curls start to get unruly, and his favourite pair of sunglasses were perched atop his head–why? You weren’t sure since he was squinting, trying to fight the bright rays from the sunset.

“How are you?” he said, slipping his phone into his pants pocket and pulling you in for a brief hug, where you couldn’t help but inhale the scent of the aftershave you’d bought him for Christmas the year before. And if your eyes didn’t deceive you, he took his time looking you up and down with a glazed-over look you’d seen before, a look mostly reserved for when the pair of you would go out somewhere and the night would quickly become a race to see who could get the other riled up first–you missed his playfulness, as well as his hand on the small of your back as he led you into the establishment and onto a stool at the bar.

You both ordered, going over pleasantries–him asking how your work was going, you asking if his family was well. It wasn’t until your drinks arrived that you’d finally moved onto his work. 

“It was truly amazing, Joe, seriously.” You tried your hardest to look into Joe’s eyes as you were being sincere, though he was making it difficult by looking only to the ground to hide the blush growing up his neck. “Even better than what you told me about it! Eddie is a cultural icon now!”

“You’re too kind, love,” he said, taking a sip and swallowing before continuing. “Was that all you wanted to really talk about? My work?”

It was now time for the inevitable, you thought. Admittedly, you still weren’t one hundred percent sure why you did text Joe to begin with–perhaps a wicked cocktail of self pity, loneliness, and introverted behaviour wanted you to reconnect with seemingly one of the only people in your life who truly understood you, at least for a while.

All your memories together were constantly swirling in your head, the good and bad, and maybe you thought seeing him in a low-pressure environment would remedy that. Because the more and more you mulled it over, you just wanted Joe back in your life, you were tired of missing his voice and his smile, not to mention his cooking.

You hesitated on answering for a moment. “Partially.” You declared. “Wanted to see you as well…missed talking to you.”

It pervaded you as to what omnipresent force made you immediately spill your guts to Joe, but that was the way it always went–you couldn’t think of one gift you’d given him that he didn’t manage to get you to spoil for him during the week leading up to whatever occasion called for it, and any and every piece of gossip you knew–regardless of whether he knew the subject or not–was common knowledge shared between the two of you. It periodically made you feel contemptible, though you figured since Joe was part of you in a sense, it didn’t matter anyway.

You knew you should’ve been wary, you felt so desperate and clingy–part of the reason you broke up was those very qualities, why did you have to bring it all back up again? You cursed yourself in your head.

“It’s been weird not seeing you,” Joe admitted. “Feel like I’ve got FOMO or something…”

He could always find a way to make you chuckle. Soon enough, the conversation began flowing smoothly–almost like you were old friends catching up, which in a way, you supposed you were. Sooner or later, you’d both finished your martinis and were begging the bartender in the nicely pressed, white jacket to make you another round, which he refused, stating bar policy was only one martini per patron because they were so strong.

You were sceptical on the apparent five shots of alcohol in the drink–it had barely gone to your head, at least until you remembered the bottle of vodka sitting in your freezer.

“D’you wanna just go back to mine? ‘ve got all that bartending stuff, still so we can just make our own drinks?” you were quite certain your voice was even and steady, and that it was just Joe who was beginning to sway in his seat, though something told you in the back of your mind as you subconsciously placed a hand on his, the buzz was just starting to reach you.

Joe intertwined his fingers with yours and jumped up from his seat. “To yours it is.”

[nihoneshi]

Welcome to Aqua Rambles on about KFP

I just finished binging Kung Fu Panda 1-3 (not 4 yet) and man outside of a few secondhand embarrassment scenes, because there are a couple of them still for my brain, What I will say is this

god I do miss KFP fandom so so much but I also was REALLY young when I first found myself in that fandom, so like, It's only a matter of time before I found myself brainrotting the movies again and even shorter of time before I re-entered Fandom Space.

So let's get the obvious ones out of the way. God I love Tragedies and the whole prophecy that was laid out hundreds of years ago, I love how cohesive the Trilogy is (I think we all agree that KFP3 was the true end of the Series, since not even the VAs liked KFP4 and it was a glorified corporate cash grab, but don't worry, AUs exist (: )

Tai Lung and General Kai are definitely by far the two MAIN villains I vibe with the most given their situations (Tragedy Affliction & Bond Brother Give-Take disagreement) I do love Shen but my love for him is extremely nuanced on the fact he's a diabolical genocidal sociopath but he's also oddly fucking dramatic, theatrical and comedic of a villain DESPITE the 3 words I JUST called him.

But also the Wolf Boss.. God he's a bastard (affectionate) but EVERY TIME HE "INSULTS" PO HE JUST GOES OFF ON NON-THREATENING TERMS homie please stop being bisexual on the battlefield lmaO /pos.

The Will to write Tai Lung just like 13yo me wanted to has not changed outside of the fact that after a decade more of writing with extremely intricate and nuanced characters with complex tragedies and traumas, I feel like I could finally do justice with this Snow Leopard (especially with Redemption Arcs, because hee-ho I write Saren Arterius, you know. Mass Effect 1's big bad villain that is just as much as a tragedy as Tai Lung but unlike Tai Lung this idiot decided to try to get parasitical genocide machines to spare them and ended up getting indoctrinated against his will)

Now onto Main Cast. Just like kid me, Viper and Mantis were my two go-to idols for KFP1, my love for Crane's realism-centric attitude and Tigress' having second thoughts and a much more intricate wake-up call in KFP2 and on became so much more apparent, like, trust me I haven't watched any of the other animated content but you can tell like, these 6 have gotten so attached to one another (Monkey and Po, especially, literally best buds love that for them)

But the SHEER amount of times I have said this phrase "Viper, Please rephrase yourself" has been in the nearly every thing she has ever said she is so upfront and has misread the room every single damn time. and don't even GET ME Started on KFP2/3 Tigress, the sheer amount of character development she gets is insane

she goes from an asshole to deep down realizing that Po has fallen still due to mental turmoil SEVERAL times and isn't keeping Po down there with Ox and Croc because she doesn't want him getting in the way but BECAUSE She doesn't want him to get hurt like him freezing up both times has gotten him. And then further more watching Po teach everyone their own ways of Kung-Fu all the WHILE TIGRESS IS HOLDING ON TO A BABY PANDA THE WHOLE TIME, EVEN FIGHTING WITH THE KID. AND THEN SHE CARRIES THEM AROUND EVEN AT THE JADE PALACE AT THE END OF THE MOVIE.

And please I can't fucking believe it took Crane several MOVIES TO GET HIS FUCKING NECK FIXED AFTER WHAT TAI LUNG DID TO HIM, HOMIE HAD A CROOKED NECK FOR MONTHS. There were scenes in KFP2 and Early KFP3 where this man's neck was still partially FUCKED. Dude shrugs it off like it's nothing and then proceeds to heal his wing in merely a few damn days max.

The Theatrics, all of the animations, the voice work.. god damn I adore these three movies so so much. But there is one thing I was not expecting and honestly I should've seen it coming.

My eventual brainrot and emotional attachment to side characters and characters with very minimal screen time (I should've seen this with me Writing Volteer from The Legend of Spyro, Nihlus Kryik from Mass Effect 1, and many more)

Dude I LOVE Master Croc, I don't know why SPECIFICALLY him but like. I like how he looks so cocky wanted to kick Shen's shit in, even laughing to himself, how he's so so loyal to Ox after Rhino's (supposed death), like you KNOW these three were inseparable and it LOOKS like Rhino reunites with Master Ox and Master Croc at the end of KFP3 that's what I hope if it was even only for a couple of minutes following what was probably Rhino heading back to the Spirit Realm.

I really love Master Croc, it is not even funny he's such a character, a silly, perhaps.

but now my rambles go to something else, since it takes place in the era that it does.. and like.. my hoard of Dragon OCs and Dragon Characters (literally all the guys on this blog ARE dragons!~ ) Like.. what would be the general consensus of a Dragon popping up in universe? Since back then they're still hailed as deities (Like the Dragon Kings, and all the dragon deities in both Chinese and Japanese mythology)

I am so so curious. But maybe I should add more to my rambles later when I am not so tired but god I have ideas and WILL enact on them.

A tiny edit: I 100% support kaiway due to the context I now have from watching KFP3, homie you have spent all the time in the world holding up Oogway's Chi charm like you want him to see everything like, they def. had something going on pre-banishment

[wanderlust-in-my-soul]

Currently Watching - August

aka The Masterlist

Because I love a good little list - in alphabetical order! 😊

Regularly updated during the month, latest update 31.08.2023

Here you can find my weekly roundup that goes into a bit more detail about each episode.

And a little link to my favorite bl-tropes-collection 💙

I am always happy about gif-requests. If you want a special scene, just let me know.

Here you can find all of my gifs.

And if you want to show me something you think I might like, just let me know with #josistag

At the end you can have a look at what we can expect in August with MDL link and a link for a trailer (if avaible).

This is guaranteed to contain spoilers!

1. Dangerous Romance (Ep 2/12 on Youtube)

I really liked the first episode. Well, I hated most of the parts, because of the whole bullying, but it feels like a really good enemies to lovers story and I am weak for this shit. There is way more bullying than I thought would be and it is really hard to watch at some points, but I love Sailom! He is such a clever badass!

2. Hidden Agenda (8/12 on Youtube)

Okay, I can smile a little bit watching this. Both of them have a hidden agenda and I kind of like Joke and his attempts to make Zo fall for him. And I like that we already know that Joke likes Zo. That makes everything...I don't know...a little bit cuter. And after the third episode I was finally all catched up and I am invested now! I like this show!

3. I feel you linger in the air (2/12 on Gaga)

Okay, I wanted to wait to binge watch, but I couldn't resist to sneak into the first episode and now I am obsessed! This time travel drama looks just so good and I love all the interactions between Jom and Yai! I am here for the fluff, but I guess I stay for the angst...

4. Jun & Jun (7/8 on Viki)

An office drama about Lee Jun and Choi Jun, who were childhood friends and who meet again after being seperated for years. The one an intern and the other one the director. I like those combinations, so I am looking forward to it. And the flirting is strong in this one! Just learned that it is rated PG 16...that explains a lot!

5. King the Land (10/16 on Netflix, no bl)

You know the feeling, you wake up in the morning and you're craving some good korean romance drama? That happend to me one day and so I just thought to give this a shot and it is good. Cheon Sa Rang works as a concierge at the King Of The Land Hotel and there she always has to wear a smile, fake or real doesn't matter. She meets the new boss in town Gu Won, who just can't stand fake smiles, but I guess her beautiful and real smile will make him fall head over heals.

6. Kiseki: Dear to me (3/13 on Viki)

The start is quite promising. I am looking forward to see more of the second couple. But for now I am pretty satisfied with this series, the plot and the characters.

7. Love Class Season 2 (6/10 on Viki)

I just wanted to watch one episode and see if I like it and now I am invested! This looks as this could be a really interesting story. I like the acting and the dialogues. I am curious how every story will progress. And yes, the epsiodes are way too short!

8. Minato Shouji Coin Laundry Season 2 (9/12 on Gaga)

Minato and Shin are dating for three month now and it feels like we are back at the beginning of the first season. Minato is always surprised when Shin wants to exchange some affection or when he just wants to know if Minato likes him. And to be honest, if I was in his place, I would ask too, because right now it doesn't feel like Minato likes Shin. But with the second episode we finally get some of Minato's thoughts and it is cute and sad at the same time. The second episode totally got me and I am excited what there is to come!

9. Only Friends (3/10 on Youtube)

I have the deep urge to call it Only Fans... Can't see the difference. It is cringy... and funny... and yes, very hot. It was a wild start that just promise a wild ride! The most surprising thing for me: the plot wasn't that bad.

10. Stay Still (1/5 on Youtube)

Well this first episode was a little bit confusing. It felt like you've been thrown into the middle of the story. Perhaps I should watch episode 0, but why not make it the first episode? So Damien and Hayden start a new, complicated relationship and Archie and Kelvin restart their high school love. I like the flashbacks. Archie and Kelvin were cute together.

11. Taikan Yoho / My Personal Weatherman (2/8 on Viki and Gaga)

This has a very interesting vibe. Yoh is a manga-artist. Because his work is not that popular, he accepted a deal by his senior in college, now a well known weatherman. Yoh accepted to be Mizuki's slave. He does everything at home and obeys to the weatherman's wishes. And everytime there is a sunny forecast, they sleep together.

12. Wedding Plan (7/8 on iQiyi)

I knew I am going to have a problem as soon as I finished the trailer. And here I am...totally obsessed with this show! And we are on episode 1! Well, what happens when the Wedding Planner and the groom fall for each other? I don't know either, but I can't wait to find out!

13. Why R U (4/8 on Viki)

The korean version of the thai series Why R U that is so different than the original one. And I really like it! The characters are fun, the story is, well, not that special, but I like it, and over all I like the vibe of this one.

Finished in August

Series

1. Sing My Crush (8/8 on iQiyi)

Han Baram wants to quit making music after confessing to his first love and he got rejected. But he meets Im Hantae, who manage to befriend him and push him back on his way. The story skips a few years and lfe becomes complicated with plagiarism and a second wind. Such a beautiful story! I loved every minute of it! I love stories about arts like books, writing, dancing and of course music! And this is really good! A wholesome 10 out of 10 for me!

2. His Man Season 2 (14/14 on Gaga)

The korean dating show for gay people! I loved the first season and the second was so much better. There was so much drama, but also so many wholesome moments and discussions. And yes, I was and am a fan of the roommates! I loved how their relationship developed and the fact that those two are still dating is just 🥰 And thank you @leonpob for our weekly discussions about the show! I am looking forward to the third season 🥰 This is a 10 out of 10 for me.

3. Shigatsu no Tokyo wa... (8/8 on Gaga or Viki)

Kazuma and Ren were close friends during middle school and now meet again years later after their ways parted. This was a turbulent ride for us, but it was so good. I like the darker tones this bl had and how close it was to the original webtoon. This bl made me sad and happy and the ending was just so wholesome. It deals with some difficult topics, so watch with caution. But for me this is a 10 out of 10.

4. Be My Favorite (11/12 on Youtube)

When Kawi tries to travel back in time to change his life, it doesn't necessarily go in the direction he had in mind. But this series is so much more than just a time travel story. Kawi is like our inner voice of insecurities and inadequacies. And it is like healing a little bit watching him gaining a little bit more self confidence and self love. And the same goes for Pisaeng. His journey in self-acceptence and starting to live the life he wants and deserves is just so beautiful. This series just screams in your face to live the life you truly want like you would never want to travel back in time and change a decision. And that is such a strong message! And I love all the characters and their decisions and the growth all of them were going through. And I love that it is shown that we can't help everyone, because some things can't be changed. But we can try to be the best support, the best friend, the best child and also the best parent we can be. For me one of the easiest 10 out of 10!

5. Stay with me (22/24 on Gaga)

Okay, I was sceptical at first. This new adaptation of Addicted came out of nowhere for me. I really like the original adaptation, despite its flaws and toxic traits. But Stay With Me managed to be such a great show! I am lost for words at this point! The characters are all so well written, the story is so good and the actors really remind me of stubborn highschool students which is quite nice. The chemistry is off the roofs! It has an open ending, but more because the second season is confirmed and I can't wait! The dance the show had with the chinese censorship was beautiful! This is really not a bromance, it is a bl and I love it so much! One of the best watches this year! Yeah, this is a total 10 out of 10 for me.

Movie

1. Red, White and Royal Blue (on Prime)

I haven't read the book, yet. It sits on my Pile of Shame and wants to be read someday. The movie was... wobbly and rushed. Alex and Henry were cute together, later in the movie. In the beginning of their relationship, they were most of the times horny. But I liked them together. And at the same time it felt a little bit bland. I don't know how to express it... the chemistry lacked of emotional connection for me. There was not really character in the characters. They felt a little empty. So I will read the book soon, to get the emotional impact of everything going on. Don't get me wrong, I liked the movie. I had fun and was well entertained and the love story was cute. A 7,5 out of 10 for me.

Short Film

Rewatched in August

Dropped/On-Hold in August

1. See you in my 19th life (7/12 on Netflix, no bl)

It was so good when I started it, but I couldn't keep up with it and so I lost interest over time. I guess it would be different if I binge watched it. I know I won't come back here soon, so I just dropp it for now.

2. Low Frequency (3/8 on iQiyi)

Well, I really don't have the urge to watch this anymore. Perhaps I will come back to it, when it is finished airing, but right now...no thanks. The story is interesting, but I think it is a little bit to exhausting for me right now.

3. Dinosaur Love (8/10 on iQiyi)

Well this was a dumpster fire. It was fun to watch in the beginning, but after a few episodes it wasn't funny anymore. It was exhausting and nothing I was looking for in my weekly schedule. So, the conclusion was I dropp it. And I am fine with not knowing how it ended...

Looking forward to in August

Stay Still - Trailer (August 1st on Youtube)

Sing My Crush - Trailer (August 2nd on iQiyi)

Heartstopper Season 2 - Trailer (August 3rd on Netflix)

Taikan Yoho (My Personal Weatherman) - Trailer (August 11th on Gaga)

Love Class Season 2 - Trailer (August 11th on Viki)

Red, White & Royal Blue - Trailer (August 11th on Prime Video)

Only Friends - Trailer (August 12th on Youtube)

Dangerous Romance - Trailer (August 18th)

Love in Translation - Teaser (August 19th)

My Universe - Trailer (August 20th on iQiyi)

Kiseki: Dear to Me - Trailer (August 22nd on iQiyi and Viki)

Why R U? Korean Remake - Trailer (August 24th on iQiyi)

Man Suang - Trailer (August 24th in Thai Cinemas)

I Feel You Linger In The Air - Treaser - Pilot - Trailer (August 19th on Gaga)

Crazy Handsome Rich - Trailer (August 28th on Gaga)

[grippingbeskar]

salt, ice and fire | frank castle

chapter four - a better man than me

[series masterlist] [previous chapter]

frank castle x fem!reader

word count: 4.9k

warnings: canon typical violence, mentions of scars, death, general gross imagery involving hands and nails ew, mentions of mental illness

a/n: bing boing enjoy.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

“We need to leave.” Frank already had half his stuff shoved back in a bag when you walked through the door.

“They’ll follow.” You were covered in blood, and didn’t walk any further into the house than the small mat at the front where other pairs of Franks combat boots were placed neatly in a line.

“Doesn’t matter. We put distance between us and them. I’ll get you to Madani after-”

“I’m not going with her. Or you.” Frank zips up his bag and grabs the keys on the kitchen counter. “You’re on the Colonels shit list, for some reason. You should leave before the next wave comes.”

“You wanna stay here? Be my guest, but you’ll either be dead or back in the Colonel’s cell in an hour.” 

“He’s gonna track me no matter where I go. I’ll lead him straight to you.”

“So? Once we get far enough I’ll hack that shit off myself, we just gotta get to Madan-” You roll your eyes, no longer caring about getting blood all over his floor.

“It explodes. If I leave the city. It’ll go off.” Frank stops his packing, and he looks at you like you’ve just spoken another language.

“You’ve had a bomb strapped to your arm for two months?” You shrug, and he starts to shake his head, but still swings the bag over his shoulder and heads for the door. “We’ll make a stop first.”

Your chest starts to feel tight.

Two months you’ve been working for the Colonel, doing anything he asked because you thought he held your brother captive. Now, you learn he never had him in the first place, and you have killed twenty four people for no reason. 

Now your only options were waiting for the mass onslaught of ‘New America’ psychos to show up and inevitably kill you, or go with the guy who seems to have the CIA in his pocket. The blinking on your cuff turns to a constant, whining sound. The light was still orange. 

“We have to move.” Frank grumbles and pushes past you, but you haven’t budged. You know the smart play is to go with him. At the very least, he has weapons, but he also strapped you to a radiator less than 30 minutes ago.

“Why would you help me?” You stand at the door, and Frank starts walking backwards down the driveway, clearly eager to get out of here.

“I ain’t got time for this. You either come with me or stay here. I don’t give a shit either way.” Frank kicks at the dead guy near his right leg, the remainder of his face being buried into the dirt.

He must take pity on you, because the hardened expression he was constantly putting up cracks just a little.

“Look, just get in the van. We’re an hour out of the city, and I’m your only ride. You can do whatever the hell you want after that.”

Your entire life, you have only wanted one thing. To protect your brother from the very thing he is probably facing right now. The Gnucci’s were the reason you had no family, the reason you were pulled apart and sewed back together. If they still had your brother, every second you wasted fighting with this guy was ruining your chance of getting him back in one piece. 

So maybe you would get blown to pieces on the way back, but it was worth the risk. Everything was worth the risk. You had come this far, crossed this many lines. What was one more, if it meant you could get him back? At least with this option you’d have the freedom of doing it on your own terms.

The only way to have your own choice, to do what you want to do, for once in your life, is to go with Frank Castle.

You swung the passenger door of the van open and slid inside, watching as the trail of bodies gradually disappeared out of sight. 

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Only twenty minutes have passes, and for someone who had spent the last three years in complete isolation, the silence between you both is uncomfortable.

No radio. You would have liked that, at least. You don’t remember the last time you heard a car radio. Or music. Your mom always had music playing when you were a kid.

Frank hadn’t said anything about where you were going, nor has he mentioned the constant ringing of your cuff, and you hadn’t brought up how the colour had now changed from orange to red. You had never seen it red before. You had also never heard it make these sounds before - a high pitched squeal of a noise filling the gap of silence. You were pretty sure it was going to blow up any second.  

“Just press the button.” Frank says lowly, his knuckles almost white from gripping the steering wheel. 

“It doesn’t work like that. It’s an alarm - now it’s triggered I can’t turn it off.” 

“Is it always so goddamn loud-”

“Well, if you’d shot me when I told you to, you wouldn’t have to worry about it.”

“Christ.” He shakes his head and puts his focus back on the road. While he’s distracted, you take the chance to observe him. Like, really look at him.

You never get photos of the targets you are meant to hit. Just a name and a location. It was why you were so surprised when his face matched one of the names you were given. You had only seen a glimpse when you were carried out by the Colonel, but his features were hard to forget.

He had a hard jaw, and a nose that looked like it had been broken one too many times. Yours most likely looked the same, although you hadn’t had the time to examine your own face like you were currently examining his. 

His hair was cropped short, and it was dark brown. Nearly black, but you knew it was brown because the sun was out, and it was shining through the short strands at the top. It was strange that you noticed that.

You couldn’t see them right now, but you knew his eyes were brown, too. You don’t know why you remember that, either. He was making your exhausted brain focus on all the wrong things. You should be thinking about his weaknesses, like that arm that was still broken. You see him look over at you, and you shoot your gaze forward, pretending to be busy staring at the traffic.

You were somewhere outside the main city, maybe on the edge of it. The tall buildings of the skyline you saw in the sunrise are still a fair way off. Frank indicates and pulls off the main road.

“I hope we’re close. This thing doesn’t seem to like wherever we’re going. Wherever this is.” Frank finally stops the car outside of what looks like a school building.

“He’s a friend. He’s dealt with this kind of thing before. Should be able to get that thing off your arm, if you ask nice.” You roll your eyes and your head drops back on the head rest.  

“This friend. He CIA too? You gonna turn me in with a bomb still on my wrist?”

“He’s not.” His face is hard. Clearly, whoever your going to see is a close friend. Maybe family. Instead of focusing on how you could use this against him, you look at how his eyes are definitely brown. Dark, too. The beeping starts again, and you focus your thoughts. 

“Guess I’ll take your word for it.”

“You make one wrong move in there, and I’ll kill you myself.”

“I’m sure Madani won’t be-“

“One wrong move.” He turns fully in his seat, left hand instinctively on the gun that always seemed strapped to him. You raised your hands in a mock surrender, and he scoffs before getting out of the car. “He’s in there.”

It’s then, catching your reflecting in the side view mirror, that you realise you’re still covered head to toe, in blood. It’s splashed across your face, all over your shirt and arms. Your pants are black, but the rest of you looks like a serial killer.

Fitting, but not ideal when you needed to law as low as possible.

“Put this on.” Frank throws something giant and black at you, and you manage to catch it before it drops to the floor. You fist the material, and it feels soft. Soft, and as you pull it over your head, you feel it’s warm too. God - it’s probably the most comfortable thing your held in your hands in years. It feels like a blanket, and you shift it around in your hands until you see the sleeves.

The jumper covers most of the blood stains on your arms and body, and when you finally pop your head out of the hole, you realise it’s on backwards, the hood obscuring your mouth. Two hands tug it around your body in one go.

“You put your arms in-“

“I know what a fucking jumper is.” You bite back, a little embarrassed. You don’t remember the last time you had worn one. As you finally tug it into place, he’s still close, standing right next to you. His arms come up near your head, and the animal in you screams to run - kill him and run now. You ignore it and don’t move, and his hands grab the hood behind your head and pull it over your hair.

“Keep that up. You’ll scare people.” You know it’s true, but the way he says it sounds more of an insult than an observation. You flip him off with the hand in your pocket and follow him into the building. Good thing it was a Saturday, because you would hate to see what the kids thought of your face.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Frank leads you through the empty hallways of the school Curtis runs his sessions in, that stupid fucking beeping sound following him as he tries to find the right room. He told him to meet here because at least if this all goes south and they get blown to pieces, they won’t be able to ID Curtis at his house.

“That you, Castle?” His voice calls from an empty classroom, and he opens the door to find Curtis spreading out a bunch of supplies, already wearing his bomb suit. “If you want to see me, we can always just go for a drink. You know, like normal people.”

Frank pulls him in to a hug, and Curtis returns it warmly. It had been a couple months since he’d seen his friend, with everything that happened he figured they all needed time to recover on their own, but damn if he didn’t miss him.

“I appreciate you, man. You know that?” Curtis scoffs a laugh and goes to reply, but loses the words when you step into the room, hood still drawn over your head. 

“The woman with the bomb, I’m assuming.” Curtis motions for you, and surprisingly, you obey. It was kind of scary, the way you move with such caution, like you were anticipating the explosion any second. It didn’t fill Frank with a lot of confidence, but he stood right next to you, beside Curtis. “What’s your name?”

You tell him, and stick out your hand to shake his. Frank realises he never asked you for it. It’s why Curtis would always be a better person than him, and why Frank knows he could never do the job he does. He just doesn’t think of things like that.

“Nice to meet you. I’m gonna see what I can do here, okay?” You nod, lifting your other arm out. “How long has it been beeping like this?”

“About an hour or so. I have to check in every two or three, and if I don’t it triggers the alarm. That’s the button there-” You twist your arm to show the buttons on the side, and Frank catches an eye of the extensive scarring down your forearm and around your fingertips. “-and the lights go off.”

“It’s been on for two months?”

“Yeah. It also tracks location. I think the chip is back there, underneath the light. Dug around when I first got it, but I couldn’t figure it out and I didn’t really want to blow my face off.” You twist again, and Curtis turns to grab some wire clippers and a screwdriver.

“Couldn’t have that.” Curtis smiles, as if he doesn’t know what you can do. Or maybe he does, and just doesn’t care. He does keep Frank around. He turns your hand over a few times, and taps around on the screen. It has a digital time and longitude and latitude.

“What you think?” Frank tries to say quietly, but you both look up at him anyways.

“Seems standard. I doubt these guys had a lot of funding to be packing away explosives, let alone in something this small. I’m not even sure they could make anything decent in this size. I’m more concerned about the tracker.” He starts to unscrew the side of the watch, and the beeping gets higher pitched, almost like an alert. A last ditch effort to give off your location before it was shut off. He sees your eyes close under the hood, preparing, and he tries to put his body between you and Curtis.

Curtis keeps working, screwing at the other side until the inside of the cuff is exposed. There was a small chip, presumably used to track your location, as well as an intricate wire system packed into a tiny space.

“Shit.” Curtis swears, and puts down the wire cutters. “Who are these guys again?”

“Call themselves ‘New America’. Why? What’s wrong?” Frank pushes.

“This is just - for a start up organisation, even for criminals this technology is - it’s hardly even in the market. Someone’s paying big money for this stuff. I just need to- Okay, the wires are all woven together. I need something small and sharp, maybe like a needle or-”

“This?” One of your fingers extend, and a metal nail, sharpened to a point protrudes about two inches out of your finger. It’s the first time Frank can see it up close, and it’s almost like they have embedded it underneath your real nail.

“That will uh-“ Curtis, unfazed, gets a little closer, examining it. “That will do it.” He takes hold of your hand, and you let him control you, slipping the sharp point of your nail underneath the complex wiring. Franks only had a few run ins with this kind of thing, but Curtis always worked it out better. He had a head for this stuff, and at the very least, Frank needed a friend right now.

He hears a wire pop, and finally the beeping noise stops. He can still hear it ringing in his ears, but the noise is gone, and the hardest part is over. With the explosive disarmed, Curtis pops out the tracking device and places it on the table next to you. Your fist comes down with a crack, splintering it into dozens of tiny pieces.

The actual cuff turns out to be the hardest part. It’s made of some kind of reinforced metal, and Curtis can’t cut it with the pliers he bought, so him and Frank lead you out and down to the wood shop classroom hoping there’s something more high powered in there. As they walk, you taking your time somewhere behind, Curtis tries to pull him aside.

“Are you sure you aren’t in over your head with this one?”

“What do you mean? I’ve been on the Gnuccis for months now-“

“Not with that. With her. I mean, if she’s really what they say she is, maybe you shouldn’t be tying her up in your house and dragging her around the city. Cut your losses.”

Frank looks back at you, watching how you examine the now disarmed cuff around your wrist.

“She doesn’t wanna be here as much as much as I do. We got stuck with that thing on her wrist. I’ll bet you $20 she’s outta here before we even make it back to the van.” Curtis turns into the wood shop room.

“You know I’m not a betting man, Castle, but I might just take you up on that. Could use some easy money.” Before he can ask him what he means, you walk in, looking around the room.

“What is all this?” You ask, running your hands over the smoothed wooden tables.

“You never seen a wood shop classroom before?”

“Never went to high school.” Your confession stumps him. He tries to remember what it said on your file. You were only 12 when your parents died, and living with a mob family probably didn’t allow a lot of time for school, let alone shop class.

“You didn’t miss much. Full of bad haircuts and worse outfits.” If the hood wasn’t so far up your face, Frank would of seen you smile when you laughed at Curtis’ comment. He moves around the table, facing you.

“Put your arm here.” Frank says and you look up, confused, but you do what he says. “Like this.”

“If I lose my hand because of your shitty high school shop skills, I swear-“

“Just put your fucking arm down.” He takes your arm in his, fingers careful not to brush over any of the scars that line your arms. He can’t help but look - they are almost certainly surgical scars; the one, long line on the outside of your forearm and tiny ones spread out across your fingertips are so straight they had to be done with precision. He turns his focus back on the cuff, where your arm moves to his manipulation.

“I’ll bring this down.” Frank points out the lever on the side of the table, made to allow you to crank it up and down to apply more pressure between the two sharp points of metal. “Just hold still. It might get tight, but we want it to pop off.”

“Sure.” You adjust your arm, and he starts to move the lever down. The points find their place on the side of your arm, but they start to dig into the skin, and he sees you flinch, so he pulls it back.

“Sorry.”

“It’s - fine.” You don’t look up, your eyes burning holes into the ground. He starts the lever again, and can see your arm starting to shake. This was clearly a thing for you, like the fire was, and he wasn’t about to shove you through that again. He calls Curtis over in hopes of distracting you while he continues to crack through the metal.

“Hey Curt, you ever call that girl again? What was her name?”

“Callie?”

“Yeah. You call her back?”

“Nah. She told me she didn’t want nothing to do with me after last time.” Frank remembers it was his fault he got called out, because he needed help tracking down Billy Russo’s new men.

“C’mon. Just turn on that old Curtis charm. Show up with a box of chocolates or something. She’ll hear ya out.”

“I tried her house, but she wasn’t there. Screening my calls, too. Think I might of lucked out.” You make a small noise from the cover of your hood, and Frank runs with it.

“You got something to say, kid?” You look up, squinting at him.

“I’m not a ‘kid’, and no. Not unless you actually want to get laid. Otherwise stick with the chocolates.”

“Hey, I’m desperate here. It’s been a month of nothing.” Curtis can see what Frank is trying to do, and joins in. Of course he sees it, he deals with this kind of stuff for a living.

“What’d you do?”

“Stood her up on the third date. Didn’t call her for a week after it, too.”

“The third? Come on. Even I know that’s the big one.”

“Yeah, yeah. I know. There wasn’t anything I would of rather gone to. Trust me.”

“Did you tell her that?”

“I, uh- it was complicated.” Curtis looks down at Frank, who shrugs. He doesn’t know how much you know about him, about what he does. If you knew, you hadn’t thrown it in his face yet, although throughout his minimal interactions with you, he has a feeling that if you knew, you would have.

“It’s like - fuck!” Frank clips your skin in one of the points on the lever. Your head drops again, and Frank hesitantly puts his hand on top of yours.

“You good?” The gesture seems to have the desired effect, because your eyes are now off the lever and on his hand, fingers lingering over your knuckles. You nod, and he keeps going.

“So what do I do?” Curtis catches your attention, and one more crank of the lever should do it.

“Just be honest, or as honest as you can be. She will be able to tell if your lying - women always know.”

“Ain’t that the truth.”

“Cook for her.” Your eyes get a little distant when you say it, and Curtis nods at the idea.

“Yeah?” You nod.

“It’s the effort. My dad used to-“ You swallow and take a deep breath “-when he fucked up. He always used to cook for her, my mum, do this big meal in a pot or something.”

“That’s sweet.” Curtis uses his group therapy voice, and it shakes something in you. “Hopefully she likes toast, cause that’s about all I can make.” You smile, and it doesn’t meet your eyes, but Frank notices.

He finds himself looking at other parts of your face, and how it all seems to come together when you smile. The final crank of the lever sends the cuff flying off your wrist with a satisfying ‘clink’.

“That’s it, then?” Curtis takes the remainder of the cuff and throws it into the furnace.

“That’s it.” Frank stays seated opposite you.

“I, um-“ Your eyebrows furrow, and you look down at your hands. “Thank you. Neither of you had to do this.”

“Any friend of Franks is a friend of mine.” Another smile plays at the side of your face, and you look at him as if he’s a part of a joke only you two know.

“Oh yeah, best buddies. Next time we can braid each other’s hair.” Franks the one to laugh, shaking his head as he gets up and claps Curtis on the back, a silent thank you. He nods and heads toward the door, and you open your mouth, going to say something but you are cut off by a giant bang somewhere outside the door.

“We got company.” Curtis is looking through the small window of the classroom door.

“Colonel’s men?” You say, already moving towards the door.

“Do they wear military uniforms?”

“Fuck.” Frank curses. “The chip was destroyed.”

“Maybe they tracked it before we got it out.” Curtis was moving the table in front of the door, but you put a hand out to stop him.

“I’ll buy you time.” You swing the door open, the voices of at least 30 men echoing down the hall. Just like before, Frank sticks his arm out in front of you. “Stop doing that.”

“I just spent the last twenty minutes angling a bomb off your wrist, and now you’re just gonna get yourself killed?”

“I can handle myself.”

“Christ, that’s not what I’m saying. Look at you.”

“What do you care?” Frank shuts up. Madani must of gotten into his damn head, because now he feels himself giving somewhat of a shit about what happens to you. He justifies it by saying he owes Madani a favour, and he shouldn’t let her only lead run herself into a quick death.

“There’s a way out back.” Curtis had already moved to the back of the classroom, where another door must lead into a gym. He holds the door open, and Frank keeps his arm out in front of you, hoping you make the right call.

With a slight push back of his arm, you move towards the back door. He tries to hide the relief.

Curtis moves through the gym, leading you both through a storage room, out a staff bathroom to the outside parking lot.

“I should split off.” You say as Frank and Curtis head towards his car. Curtis stands in front of his drivers seat door, and looks at Frank.

“You got no car.” He tries.

“Faster without one.” You throw back, flexing your hands out the sleeves of his hoodie.

“You don’t know where your brother is. Madani can help you.”

“Can she? Without locking me up?” Frank looks to the right, where he can hear the men moving through the school building. They were probably near the shop classroom now. “I have to-“

An explosion from behind you sends debris flying, and car alarms go off sending the entire lot into chaos. Frank dives down, and he was close enough to you that when he instinctively put out his arm, he covered your head.

“Frank!” Curtis calls out, and he waves him off.

“Get outta here!”

“Not without you, let’s go!” He looks up to find you, only to see your body is halfway under another car, the engine already starting to kick over. A few wires hang out the bottom, and you were flicking them together, sending sparks flying as you hot wired it.

“He needs to get out of here. They will kill him. Go.” You turn to him, both of you still laying on the ground. His head was fucking throbbing, and the sound of the explosion must be messing with his head, because instead of crawling towards Curtis’ car, he moves towards you. “What are you doing?”

“I’m not dragging him in to another war. He’s done enough.” You drop the wires as the engine roars to life, and sit up, staring at him. With a second of you looking at him, apparently the words hit home, because you nod and stand, offering your hand.

“You go, Curt. I’ll catch up.” Letting Curtis see he was good, he nods and jumps in the car, speeding off onto the main drag. He sees you go to the drivers side, and grabs the hood of your jacket. “I’m driving.”

“Are you kidding?”

“No. I’m driving.”

“How many fingers am I holding up?” Apparently the explosion was closer than he thought, or maybe he got hit by something, because he wasn’t sure if the answer was two or seven. “Yeah, I’m driving. Get in the back.”

“Fuckin’ back.” He groans, but doesn’t have the brain to complain when you shove him into the back seat, using a little more strength than you needed to. He watches as you pull away from the school, and even though every logical bone in his body tells him he shouldn’t trust you, shouldn’t let himself pass out right now, he looks up at you, and finds he does anyway.

[next chapter]

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

tag list

@stress--relief

@hellskitchens-whore

@blkwayne

@itwasthereaminuteago

@margoo0

@daisykins

[beecastle]

Never Letting You Go

When you get sick, Din does everything he can to make you feel better

Din Djarin x F!Reader

Word count: 900

Warnings: sickfic, hurt/comfort but more comfort than hurt, fluff, illness is not specified but it’s a pain around the belly/lower part of the body, Din carries reader in his arms, Din takes of his helmet, Peli shows up, wrote this kind of quickly so there might be mistakes

A/N: @littlemisspascal​ as I can’t physically be there to help you feel better, this is the equivalent of me showing up at your house with warm soup, a fuzzy blanket and ready to binge watch the first season of Teen Wolf or whatever you want until you feel better ❤️ 

MASTERLIST

The day had started off well, checking the items on your to-do list left and right. One of the broken panels in the Razor Crest was now fixed, Din's collection of weapons was placed in order, and you had sent a hologram message to your friends telling them of the adventures you had experienced the last couple of months. You were unstoppable, that is until the pain comes in the late afternoon. It appears out of nowhere and makes you drop the crate you are carrying, a loud bang echoing in all the ship as you grab onto the nearest wall for support. Din flies down the ladder and is next to you in a matter of seconds, his hands on your arms steadying you and guiding you to a crate so you can sit. 

"What's wrong cyar'ika?” Worry seeps through his usually controlled voice. “What's going on?"

You’re focusing on breathing and trying to keep the pain at bay. At your silence, he takes off one of his gloves and touches your forehead. "You're burning up, I'm landing the ship."

"No, the bounty is getting away." The protest is weak even to your ears. 

"I'll find them later, you're my priority." He helps you to the floor above and straps you to the chair being as careful as he can to not make whatever’s hurting you worse. He checks in one of the cabinets and hands you a pill for the pain, one that you’ve seen him take after fights. "Just hold on cyar'ika, I’ll get you help."

The pain in your belly and lower body seems to worsen by the minute so, by the time you land on Tatooine, Din has to scoop you into his arms and brings you out of the ship and into Peli's hangar. 

"What are you doing back here so soon?" Your friend asks while coming out of the building. "Is my old friend giving you trouble?" She asks referring to the ship, but the moment she notices you in Din’s arms she stops cold in her tracks, and there’s no trace of humor in her voice. "What's going on?"

"She needs a doctor,” Din answers.

"You heard the man,” Peli says turning to her droids, “go fetch a doctor." At the droid’s confusion, she exhales frustrated. "Why am I keeping you here for? I'll do it myself. And you, bring her to my room." Din wastes no time in finding the room and putting you on the bed, with a cold compress on your forehead. 

He sits next to you on the bed, but as soon as the cold beskar makes contact with your skin you move away shivering violently. “Sorry.” He stands up and starts taking it off and setting it to the side until the only thing remaining is the helmet, at which point he sits down again. "Come here."

Your curl against him and he wraps his arms around you, while he mutters loving words in your ear. You must have fallen asleep at some point as Din gently shakes you awake when the Peli and the doctor arrive. As he moves from your side, you start complaining but he doesn’t sit back down, taking your hand in his instead. “It’s alright cyar'ika I’m here.” If the doctor notices the lack of armor on Din, she says nothing, shifting all her focus to you. 

When the doctor touches an extra sensitive spot you squeeze Din’s hand so hard you’re afraid you’re hurting him but he takes it without making so much as a noise. When the doctor is done checking you she gives you the diagnosis, alongside some medicine. “Take these antibiotics and you'll feel better in a couple of days, and avoid any heavy physical activity for a week or two, give your body the time to heal."

There’s an exchange of medicine and coins between Din and the doctor before Peli shows her the way out. The woman comes back a minute later, with a sympathetic smile as you are gulping down the medicine and hoping for a quick effect. "You'll be fine my girl, especially with a man like that taking care of you." She goes to her closet to retrieve a small bag. "Do me a favor and stay here for the night, get some rest in a real bed."

"Where are you going?" Din asks before you can.

"To the tavern, they have rooms with jacuzzis upstairs, it’s going to be like a vacation. I'll open the tab under your name." She smiles at Din, and you know the woman will spare no expense. "Whatever you need, the droids will get it for you."

"Thank you, Peli." The medicine is already making you sleepy, your words a little slurred. 

"Of course, my friend, just focus on getting better."

As the woman leaves, she closes the door, leaving only the two of you in the room. After locking the door, not wanting a droid to burst in, Din takes off his helmet and gets in the bed next to you. He hugs you as close as he can while making sure you’re still comfortable, and he plants a soft kiss on your forehead. “Go to sleep my love, I’ll be here when you wake up.”

[minho-hoho]

ENHYPEN's reaction to you wearing their clothes (JakeHoon)

5yearz

genre... fluff! pairing... bf!enhypen x gn!reader! warning... kissing, not proofread yet! requested... yes! wc... 0.8k ! note... first thing I've written in almost two months, bear with me while I try to come back to my senses and habits :< !

MASTERLIST

심 제이크 Sim Jake

You came home after an exciting but long day with your friends, all you wanted was to take a long and hot shower and binge watch a drama with your boyfriend. Unfortunately, when you opened your front door you were met with nothing but the cold silence of your home. You had expected it, after all, he had told you beforehand that he'd be busy and might come home late as he frequently did these past few weeks, but a part of you hoped that he'd surprise you with his presence.

You sighed as you scanned your living room. You quickly ushered to your bathroom to take the shower you had been waiting for all day.

Now feeling clean and fresh, you were looking at your closet, trying to find something comfy enough to wear as a lounge wear. You kept looking trying to find something, but nothing satisfied you until your eyes laid on a quite big oversized hoodie that seemed to belong to Jake.

You smiled to yourself, knowing the both of you liked it when you stole his clothes, he thought you looked even more attractive in them, and you just found his clothes more comfortable.

You put the hoodie on, and went straight to your living room, and decided to continue a drama you had started. It didn't take long before the excitement of the day wore off and you drifted to sleep.

Jake slowly and quietly opened your front door, expecting you to be asleep at those ungodly hours. What he had not expected however, was to see you sleeping so peacefully on the couch in one of his hoodies. A loving smile couldn't help but creep up on his face. He felt like he was falling in love all over again, seeing you so peaceful and free of any worries.

He sat in front of you, wanting to take a better look at your sleeping figure. Jake brushed gently a few stray hairs off your face. He couldn't help but admire how precious and fragile you looked at that precise moment, as if you were made of porcelain. He just wanted to protect you.

He got up and brought a blanket, he put it over you to make sure you wouldn't be cold. Jake took one more look at you and gave a a small kiss on your nose.

“Good night babe”

박 성훈 Park Sunghoon

You had only planned to laze around for the day, having no energy to go outside after being out every day for a a week straight. But unfortunately, your boyfriend Sunghoon had absolutely none of it. He wanted to have the best time of his life in the states, with his favourite person being you.

Today, he had planned a little date at the state's fair, he had seen some beautiful pictures about it and really wanted to go with you.

He busted through your door with an devilish but excited smile.

“Heeyyy” you side eyed him, not really knowing what to expect.

“What?” you asked him, his smile only growing wider. “Get ready, we're going out.” you frowned and shot him death glare, you had already told him that you wanted to rest for a day.

“Nuh-uh. Not happening. I already told you.” Sunghoon pouted sadly, he started to beg you to come as you shook your head, not even bothering to look at him any more.

“Please! Look at those photos! We'll have an amazing time there. Please!” he kept whining, “You know what, it doesn't matter. I'll be waiting for you here in 15 minutes.” he demanded, making you chuckle, the sudden seriousness was funny to you. But you still didn't budge, and it was now Sunghoon's turn to send you a death glare. And within a second you found yourself under your boyfriend attacked with tickles. You couldn't resist more than two minutes before giving up and getting up to get dressed.

You honestly weren't in the mood to pick a perfect outfit, especially after being forced to go out. You had never really wore Sunghoon's clothes before, you never really cared for it, but this time as to annoy him you decided it was time for you to take a closer look at his closet.

You found an awesome tee and jacket that you thought would go well with each other. And in five minutes, you stylish self got out of the shared bedroom and stood right in front of Sunghoon with one of the biggest grin ever.

You expected to see an annoyed Sunghoon but you were instead met with a lovestruck Sunghoon. He was basically swooning over you and you couldn't help but feel a little shy at his intense but sweet stare.

“Stop staring, it's rude you know” you informed him feeling your cheeks heating up.

“Sorry, but you look fantastic dressed like that. In my clothes.” he signed you to come closer to him, to which you obliged.

“Let me take a better look at you before we take off.”

PERM TAG LIST! : @stacey-stonem, @sh1mzu, @axartia, @echantedrose, @leeknowbuttsmasher, @nikipedia07, @deafeningballoonnacho, @sristsblog

[buckybarnesss]

I, of course, was orphaned after leaving the SPN fandom, and got into Teen Wolf because of the gifsets. Teen Wolf was on it's second season by then, so I had to binge season 1 to catch up.

It was so much fun!! It was really the last time I felt connected to a big fandom! We would all liveblog the episodes (RIP to my SPN followers who were annoyed with me for not tagging it), we'd argue about whether or not Allison should apologise, we'd yell about the treatment of black and brown characters, and then the Scott vs Derek war happened and we all yelled at each for MONTHS.

I think THAT is when the phrase "Defense Squad" started. I never saw it in use in the fandom before then, but we were definitely splintered off into camps at that point.

I remember the beginnings of Failwolf Friday. Pink Undies Sunday. Who first wrote the phrase "Derek lets his eyes bleed red" to indicate that Derek's eyes changed colour? I don't know but that pioneer lives on in every Sterek fic (because we all stole that phrase immediately).

Also we had knotting BEFORE omegaverse became a thing, and without any of the weird gender rules.

lol i was on ontd_spn too and followed the mass fandom migration to tumblr.

teen wolf fandom is important to the history of fandom culture on this god forsaken webbed site in large because it was a fandom that took off after the large livejournal migrations and the end of the closed fan forum. we had no where else to go to interact and twitter always has and will always suck at being a place for fandom.

i also started watching in s2. i binge watched all of s1 in a night at my then job and was right on time to join fandom right when abomination aired.

i loved supernatural but i cannot emphasize how hard it was to break into that fandom. one thing about livejournal i never cared for was how easy it was for cliques to form and if you didn't befriend the right person your meta, your fics or your discussion thoughts went into a black fucking hole.

at least on tumblr there was a higher chance of engagement. your posts would be in the main tag and if you by chance got reblogged by someone with a higher follower count you would then get more followers. meta would be passed around and developed with additions and commentary by others. it was so much fun.

gif sets were a new method of communication of ideas. we could easily do parallels, create visual au's and just generally engage in a new but fun and interesting way.

tumblr leveled the playing field in a lot of ways for smaller creators.

of course the old fandom ways of shipping wars and rivalries happened too and even now a decade later there's still division in the teen wolf fandom but sometimes i got to like the subreddit and i'm like "bro we had this discussion in 2013. this is a settled matter!"

[respectthepetty]

Second Season When?

A random post about the second seasons I want.

I hate second seasons, yet I still find myself praying for them and even plotting them out with my ideal scenarios:

 *spoilers ahead*

Manner of Death – This was already supposed to happen (Transplant)! When we left off, not all the bad guys were caught and Bun and Tan showed up on Triage where there was an entire missing kidneys plot! Sorn should be in medical school now while That should have more control in the family business. This is coming but the actors are busy (and blessed!), so it is just a matter of rearranging their schedules to give me my murder mystery husbands back! Likelihood – 9/10

Not Me – When we left off, Black hit Todd with a reverse Uno. The second season should focus on the aftermath. We get to learn more about Black since season one was White focused. What happened between Todd and Black while White was away? What happens when Todd wakes up? Will Todd and Black finally realize they are enemies AND lovers? We can also see how Akk Yok is doing with making Dan grovel. Likelihood – 2/10

History 3: Trapped – When we left off, Tang Yi was headed “upstate” but we weren’t told for how long. HE SHOULD BE FREE NOW! The sequel needs to focus on his pseudo-sister getting married, him coming back as the boss and all the discrimination he gets, and him making things work with his no-longer-on-the-force boyfriend. Likelihood – 4/10

KinnPorsche – When we left off, everyone was happy EXCEPT KimChay! People complained that KimChay felt like a different story compared to the others, so lean into it for the second season. Give me a university drama where we see the rich idol chase the once-poor university student. Mix in a bit of danger like Love in the Air is doing (according to the tags since I’m not watching it), and voila! Kinnporsche: KimChay writes itself! Likelihood – 5/10 (for an actual second season, but not THIS second season)

Vice Versa – When we left off, everyone was back in their original universe, but we knew NOTHING about the relationship between Tun and Tess. The second season has to focus on this! I don’t care if it backtracks and shows us how they were doing while in the alternate universe or simply picks up with them back in their universe. I’m not picky! I need to know about them and Fuse/Aou in any way, shape, or form. Likelihood – I’ll tell you next month after the GMMTV event

Love Mechanics – When we left off, the show hinted at all of the upcoming spinoffs in the final episode. We will get Call My Name and Future that focus on Vee’s brother and Mark’s friends, but we don’t know when we will actually get them. I trust Rookie Thailand after it gave me the excellent 21 Days Theory, so I’m keeping the faith that these spinoffs are coming. Likelihood – 8/10

Light on Me – When we left off, the boys were on a beach and happy. It felt complete. It was a solid ending. THEN TaeKyung and ShinWoo made a cameo in Best Mistake 3 looking even more adorable than they did in their series, and we still need to find out who that mystery guest was that visited the teacher. There is a story there, and we deserve it! Likelihood – 5/10 (Maybe To My Star 2 will help Korea see the potential of a sequel)

To My Star – It doesn’t matter where we left off because the third season should focus on Ho Min and his journey becoming an idol. What, you say. Ho Min, Seo Joon’s manager, quit because he wants to become an idol and the best CEO, Pil Hyun, gave him money to train remember? Plus, we had that other kind actor who was working with Seo Joon. He was a rising star. Let’s focus on them! – Likelihood – 0/10

We Best Love – This was supposed to happened! When we left off, Zhe Yu and Bing Wei were engaged, Zhou Shu Yo and Gao Shi De were back together, and the doctor/bar owner was figuring out his relationship with that guy who has been in love with him for forever and day. There was some type of announcement about this, and then it was gone. Maybe I dreamed it. Was it never real? I don’t know. Likelihood – I am crazy?! 0/10

Cutie Pie - When we left off, they were officially engaged...again. An announcement was made about three special episodes. If it's not the wedding, I don't want it. Likelihood - 10/10, but it better be the wedding or nothing at all.

[masterofengene]

COULD i also request an idol!K oneshot/longshot (perefered fem reader but also wtv you are comfortable w) inspired by you are in love by taylor swift and its like suuper fluffy and he is so sweet and kdramary and like theyre wondering around the city or smth(can you tell I just finished binge watching i-land and immediately need compensation for the pain it caused me 😭😭😭) omg maybe like a friends to lovers trope and he realises how much she means to him and its like a she fell first but he fell ten times harder like IM SO SORRY FOR RAMBLING I NEEDED TO GET THIS OUT OF MEJFDHSKDFGJ like im just imagining confessions in the rain after a miscommunication which left them both rlly sad and then she runs after him in the middle of a city street at midnight. honestly PLS TAKE complete creative freedom because as you can probably tell my thoughts rn r super messy and delulu ajshgfhkfhkgdjhsdfhgfdjkg i literally just have been thinking abt a long fic to get immersed in w K bc i have seen ltrly none😔 THANK U SMSMSMSMSMMS ASDKJFH.

Here i am!! So i finally got back to my writing and this one got those creative writing juices flowing and it gave me so many ideas so enjoy!!

…………………………………………………………………………….

Coffee at Midnight.

K! X fem reader based off the song “ you are in love “ by Taylor Swift.

…………………………………………………………………………….

You and K had been friends for what feels like forever. You guys had gone to the same school and were close in age so you two naturally grew closer. Before you even realized, you two were best friends. But as time went by you couldn’t help but look at K differently, Over the years he had filled out and his features grew more defined. Anyone who knew K would notice this, unless they were blind.

But you hadn’t even registered your own feelings changing, not until you were head over heels for him. You two shared a love of the performing arts so when he debuted, he managed to get you an audition and then he stepped back and let you handle it. He knew you’d land the rest yourself, he always had a blind faith in you. He trusted you more than you trusted yourself. It was a little bit after that, that you realized you’re own feelings towards K.

It was one look, and a dark room, a light hearted joke.

It had been a few months since you had begun your training, and to say that you were exhausted was a major understatement. It was well past 10 at night your monthly evaluations were right around the corner and you couldn’t quite nail the choreography that you would be tested on. Your body was tired and you were drained but you couldn’t just give up. Your eyes were aching so you had dimmed the lighting just enough to relieve the dull ache.

You were so into your practice that you hadn’t heard your phone going off, you didn’t hear the messages that k was sending to check on you. And lets just say when he got no response, he went to check on you himself. Because how dare his best friend not answer him.

What you did hear was the door to the practice room opening. You had thought for a second that it would be an instructor coming to kick you out of the room, luckily it was not. It was just K.

“You weren’t answering me…i was worried about you.” K said, being the one to always speak his mind. But he could read you like a book. So why bother hiding your exhaustion. Without saying anything, you let out a sigh and not-so-gracefully sat down on the ground. You laid back and simply said. “I have been at it for hours and i cannot get it right no matter how hard i try. Im not that much of a dancer.”

And then he gave you that look, the look that would make you feel so loved and cared for that it unlocked all of those hidden feelings.

“Please don’t be so hard on yourself. You’re doing so well. Even if you do not realize it. You know….i think i saw some janitors, trainees… even a few pigeons watching you dance through the windows. An amazing performance.” He said jokingly, although he truly meant that you did an excellent job. He had just wanted to see you smile instead of looking like you would cry any second.

And after that, your feelings for him kept growing but you were certain he would never see you as anything more than a friend. Still you always had hope that he /could/.

That was until you had gone to the mall one day and were window shopping by yourself, you had invited K along but he had said that he was at a practice. You didn’t think anything of it, they had a comeback coming up anyway. You really didn’t give it a second thought. Well…until you did.

You had walked into your favorite store, the place where you got all of your clothes from. It was locally owned and they only had this one location. Everything about it made you smile, from the dresses to the shoes, to their jewelry. You were happily browsing but that soft peaceful smile that you had faded in an instant.

Right in front of you was K and a girl you had never seen before standing in front of a bracelet rack. They were clearly close, leaning closer to each other as they talked.

In that second, it felt like your whole world had came crashing down. Why had he lied to you about practice? Why was he here with /her/? And why was she standing so close to him? A thousand questions raced through your head as K looked up and made eye contact with you. There was panic in his eyes in that second, and without a word you turned around and left. If only you knew the real reason that he was so panicked….

Unknown to you, the reason he was there in the first place was because he had wanted to buy you a bracelet and confess his own feelings that had grown. He wanted it to be romantic and special. A sweet confession. He had asked his cousin to come along and help him pick out something that you would like. He only wanted to surprise you and not hurt you.

He thought situations like this only happened in the dramas that he watched on the television. But K had seen that devastated look in your eyes and he felt the pain that washed over you in that second. You might have fallen for him first but he fell harder that’s for sure.

it was midnight when you decided to go to the convenience store and get some coffee, your head was still swirling with emotions, and the weather outside represented how you were feeling, windy and stormy. Then you felt your phone go off and found that K had texted you, saying that he was on his way to your apartment. All you said in return was that you were getting coffee, to come a different time.

As you rang up your coffee and a little sweet treat, you pulled your hoodie up to cover your hair before going back out in the rain. You wee still hurting but you couldn’t see K until you felt calmer. You didn’t want to lose him entirely.

The bell sounded from the door and before you knew it you heard your name bing called. You’d recognize that voice anywhere.

“she is my cousin.” That was all k said as he walked up to you. And you were still in shock because how had he known that you were at this convenience store.

“This is the only place open that has coffee near your place..” He seemed to hear your silent question, then you noticed that his hair was soaking wet from walking in the rain.

“still. I thought you had practice.” The hurt in your voice had said enough as you walked around him heading back inside. It was all a fresh feeling for you and you still had so many questions left unanswered.

“stop and listen please.” K said following you outside into the pouring rain. That’s when he let the truth slipped past his lips as he let like he was losing his best friend. He grabbed your hand and you felt a smooth, cool metal press against your hand. “I didn’t know that you felt this way about me until i saw that look in your eye today. (Y/n) i was planning to do this in a better setting but ill just tell you now. She was helping me buy you a bracelet, I couldn’t tell you because it was going to be a surprise. But i really like you, actually no. You’re my best friend and you mean the entire world to me, i love you. Im sorry you had to find out this way.” The look in his eyes was a desperate one.

You felt shocked, you had never once considered any of the things that just fell past his lips, and as if he saw your shock he let go of your hand and left the bracelet there. He rocked back on his heels to give you time to process his words as the rain fell around you two.

“i… you like me? Really? But how did you…. Did you know I’ve felt the same?”

“not until today…i saw that look you had. Like you wee heart broken…I can’t risk losing our burnt toast sundays…” His comment made you crack a smile as all the pieces slowly fit into place.

and the rest…. Well that’s history.

[limelocked]

Hi! Weird request, but i have been trying and failing all week to track down an online english subtitled way to watch Mondays: See You 'This' Week!. I saw a trailer for it a while back and got obsessed, but am so disappointed that it doesnt seem to be more well known >:[ I found your tumblr by searching the tags! Do you happen to know a way to watch it that doesn't involve learning how to torrent? Cause im willing to learn but am trying to exhaust all my options first. No worries if not!! Thanks!

i highly recommend adblockers and other such internet security things when going to the first site (the one where i watched it) because i do not vouch on that, my pc is fine but its also old enough that im starting to wonder if the viruses are too advanced to run

this is the ONE and ONLY* place where i have found you can watch it for free with english subs without downloading anything

warning that the subs are a Bit fucked, in places theyre out of sync and this is the biggest thing; there is both english and japanese subs at the same time which is a bit distracting but also not the worst considering the circumstances (re: when i first found the dramacool link it was because i had resorted to using Bing)

*the same source just on a different site is here (found upon trying to find a second/better source while replying, i did not find a better source)

its joinked from a streaming site called u-next which does exist and i tried to fuck around with it but iirc (and this was a good few months ago so yknow) it might be region locked on top of being subscription

upon further inspection of the site ive learned that i need to start learning kanji like Stat (i understand only that it has some sort of issue with my browser no matter if its firefox or chrome) but ill link it anyways in case theres any experts out there

closing remarks: i went rabid when seeing this ask im so normal about this movie

[oh-obrien]

Red Line (0.1)

Anakin Skywalker

A/N: A little bit of tension, a little bit of flashbacks and little bit of young Anakin. Bada Bing Bada Boom. And read all of that in a New York accent because no matter how hard I try I can’t escape my accent. 

Prologue   Part Two

Word Count: 5,141

Warnings: Uhhh a little tension, not really an inappropriate use of the force but two kids totally using it improperly. 

“All you ever do is fight dirty!” Lyra hissed before she disconnected her lightsaber from Anakin’s. She felt sweat beginning to collect on the back of her neck as their blades connected again before she turned away from him. Her hair had been tied into a sloppy bun at the base of her neck prior to the start of their duel and she felt some of the loose strands starting to get stuck in the sweat. She hated the feeling but knew that she couldn’t focus on it at the moment. 

“We’re dueling for the younglings to learn and you still fight dirty!” She barely managed to move out of the way this time as his saber moved over her head, the cracking of his blade far too close to her ears for her comfort. Two months off planet meant two months of no duels. And two months of no duels meant her skills felt rather rusty, and she could not risk a lackluster performance today. She had her lightsaber with her the entire time she had been on Kessel as an extra layer of security, but she had not needed to ignite it the entire time she had been on the planet, thankfully.

The sound of Anakin and Lyra’s sabers clashing together filled the training arena and Anakin smirked, leaning in closer to Lyra this time as their blades dragged across each other the blades letting out a screech which grew louder as their blades began to travel closer to the other’s hilt. “And you can fight just as dirty as I can, you’re just choosing not to.” He raised his left eyebrow in a mocking gesture before pulling his lightsaber away unexpectedly and gracefully turning out of Lyra’s reach. Lyra knew he was trying to egg her on, trying to get her to be reactive in a way that would eventually lead her a misstep, an opening for him to gain the upper hand.

Mace and Obi-Wan had told Lyra and Anakin earlier that their duel today needed to be educational for the younglings, it didn’t need to be clean and it didn’t need to be fair. It simply needed to be educational as those they would eventually meet in combat would not fight clean as they have been learning in their classes. Armed with this knowledge Lyra looked up to where the two Jedi Masters stood behind the group of younglings, quickly making eye contact with her Master who nodded slightly. Mace and Obi-Wan both also knew that Anakin and Lyra liked to toe the line of what was allowed and what was not in their practice duels. The two Padawans were so far ahead of their peers in combat skills that they needed to find new ways to challenge each other.

Without hesitation, Lyra ignited the second blade on her saber and heard a few surprised gasps from the younglings who were watching her and Anakin’s every move. Most younglings knew that there were Jedi who wielded lightsabers with two blades, or even two separate sabers, but most likely hadn’t seen a double bladed saber used in a duel yet. It was likely made even more impressive to them by the fact that Lyra’s blade was also purple, she had gotten many of the same surprised gasps earlier when she first ignited her lightsaber.

“Now who’s the one fighting dirty?” Anakin asked as he took up a new, more defensive, stance. With her second blade lit Lyra knew that Anakin absolutely would not move first now; Anakin was typically an offensive fighter, but he knew when to slow down, when to let his opponent begin to tire themselves out. However, Lyra also knew this, and she planned to use it to her advantage. Lyra laughed lightly as she twisted the blade behind her back gracefully before she caught it with her other hand, now just showing off while she took a few moments to slew her breathing.

“Both of us are fighting dirty now, Skywalker,” Lyra shrugged before lunging at the boy, their blades again letting out a high pitched noise as they connected. Being the only Padawan to currently wield a double-bladed saber meant that Lyra often received plenty of dueling practice as most Jedi Masters wanted their own Padawan’s to train with her. However, Anakin tended to be her primary dueling opponent as they were currently the only Padawans that could pose a challenge to each other. Today they found themselves demonstrating how to duel in front of one of the older classes of Younglings, those that would soon depart on The Gathering. It served as good practice for them as well, of course, but they both had in the back of their mind that the duel was to serve education purposes as well. After their duel each of their moves would be picked apart by Mace Windu and Obi-Wan Kenobi in front of the children as a part of what they called the necessary learning experience. 

The fighting between Anakin and Lyra continued for some time before she saw an opening that would allow her to gain the upper hand, and hopefully, would allow her to win. She was thankful to find this opening as her body had begun to grow tired as their fighting continued. Carefully watching Anakin’s feet Lyra allowed their lightsabers to connect in front of the two Padawan’s before she quickly turned around, allowing her second blade to push Anakin’s single blade away, the boy losing his footing momentarily as she finished spinning around, her first blade stopping right before it made contact with Anakin’s side as he steadied himself again. While the younglings would be utilizing training blades that could not injure others, Anakin and Lyra both utilized their own sabers that could do massive amounts of damage in seconds if not handled properly. They had both grazed each other on multiple occasions in the past, and it was not a pleasant feeling.

Lyra watched as Anakin’s eyes trailed down to his side where Lyra’s blade hovered, he trailed his eyes back up to her before he turned off his lightsaber; Lyra did the same moments later with both of her blades. The room went nearly silent after the lightsabers had been turned off and the two Padawans continued to watch each other closely. Lyra saw the way that Anakin’s chest heaved with deep breaths as he tried to recover from the rather long duel the pair had just fought. His saber still gripped tightly in his hand as if he wanted to reignite it. If it were just the two of them dueling and Anakin had lost he would simply insist ‘again’ before reigniting his blade and making the first, usually sloppy, offensive move. Now though, he had to concede to the girl, the young woman, standing in front of him, and it bothered him, it bothered him deeply.

Anakin’s eyes were wild, adrenaline still clearly coursing through his body from the fight he had just lost. Lyra gulped down her own deep breaths, maintaining eye contact with Anakin while she clipped her lightsaber back on to her utility belt, signaling that she was done fighting for the moment. Anakin squinted at her and offered a lopsided smirk before he clipped his own lightsaber back onto his utility belt, holding both of his hands up when he was done, signaling that he was no longer considering continuing their duel, at the moment at least. “I’ll win later, don’t worry,” the words were spoken so only Lyra could hear and she knew that she’d be seeing the boy again later that day.

The two gave each other respectful nods as they waited for Obi-Wan and Mace to join them on the floor of the dueling arena. “You used to despise your saber,” Anakin spoke quietly to Lyra as the two moved to stand closer to each other, “and now look at how valuable it has become to you.” She felt Anakin’s force signature reaching out to her, something he hadn’t done since the pair were twelve and ten. Something he had not done since Master Windu scolded them relentlessly for their attachment to one another before they were separated completely for six months. 

The words stung slightly, even though they weren’t meant to, reminding Lyra that at one point she had demanded she be given a new lightsaber, convinced the force had picked wrong and that the purple double bladed weapon meant she didn’t deserve to become a Jedi, that she was doomed as some small part of the Dark Side resided inside of her. Now she embraced her unique lightsaber and used not only it, but also used her advanced knowledge of The Force, to her advantage. “I only despised it for a short amount of time,” she let her voice waver slightly before she allowed her own force signature to meet Anakin’s; comfort and familiarity immediately washing over her. “Some helped me realize the true gift it was.” 

Lyra and Anakin had gone on their Gathering trip together and Anakin had seen the despair that plagued Lyra first hand when she had received a purple Kyber crystal and constructed a double bladed saber. Lyra vividly remembered not realizing her crystal was purple prior to exiting the cave last, ensuring all her clan-mates had made it out of the cave with their crystals before her. 

*-*-*-*

The younglings had all begun comparing their crystals before Lyra had managed to reach the group, Master Yoda offering praise to the soon to be Padawans for successfully completing The Gathering. “Lyra isn’t back yet, Master Yoda,” Anakin approached Master Yoda, his blue Kyber crystal clasped tightly in his hand.

“A challenge she must face,” Yoda spoke to Anakin, “return to us she then will.” The small man didn’t offer any further explanation before he hobbled away from Anakin. The two had stayed together in the cave nearly the entire time, Lyra had even watched Anakin pick up his crystal, cheering when it glowed in the palm of his hand. She had insisted he travel back to Master Yoda while she ventured deeper into the cave, telling Anakin that she needed to find her crystal on her own; that she could hear it calling to her from the depth of the cave but she knew she needed to find it herself.

Huffing out a sigh Anakin pulled his coat tighter around himself and went to wait near the mouth of the cave for Lyra. He sat on a rather large rock and began to turn his own crystal between his fingers, he had hoped for blue. He didn’t see much of the color on Tatooine, but since he had arrived at the Jedi temple it had quickly become his favorite color. “I tried to say she wasn’t ready to travel here with us,” Silas, one of the boys in Lyra’s youngling clan, spoke as he stood next to Anakin. He was thirteen, three years Lyra’s elder and one year older than Anakin, but he had not yet connected with the force the way Anakin and Lyra had managed. He relied too heavily on his brute strength rather than relying on his skill and connection with the force, “If she wasn’t with us we could all be constructing our lightsabers already. Instead we’re waiting for a ten year old.”

“She was plenty ready,” Anakin didn’t spare the boy a glance as he tucked his Kyber crystal into his pocket, “she was making sure everyone else got out before she went to find her own crystal.”

“Proves she’s weak,” Silas simply crossed his arms as he spoke, “putting everyone else’s needs above her own.”

Master Yoda made his way over to the two boys and looked up at Silas. “Not weak is putting others first,” he then looked over to Anakin, “ The true way of the Jedi, putting others before yourself is.” He let out a small ‘humph’ before turning away from the two boys and rejoining the other younglings. 

“Don’t worry lover boy,” Silas exaggerated the words, “she’ll probably make it out.” He patted Anakin on the back as he stood up, tossing his green Kyber crystal up in the air and catching it as he went. Jerk. Anakin turned back to watch the cave as the sun began to set in the sky, he knew once it had fully disappeared the cave would close, Lyra would be stuck inside. He pushed himself off the rock and approached the mouth of the cave, waiting for her to finally emerge. He knew he wasn’t supposed to go back in, but he felt something trying to pull him back in, like something was reaching out to him. 

Anakin looked over his shoulder briefly, seeing the others too engrossed in conversation to acknowledge him, and he stepped forward into the cave once more. 

The icy ceilings stretched high and, at first, he wasn’t sure what direction he was supposed to go. That was until he felt drawn to the path on his left, his feet immediately carrying him that direction. “Lyra!” He felt himself calling out her name, his voice bouncing off of the cold walls. His feet continued to move until he came to another fork in the road. However, he didn’t even need to think before he entered the path leading down and to the right. “Lyra!”

“Anakin?” A small voice called back. Anakin felt his feet begin to carry him faster until the girl in question appeared in front of him. She looked tired, moving incredibly slow. “I found my crystal, but something attacked me down there, we need to go!” That was when he noticed the deep cut that ran from her left temple down to the corner of her mouth. It was still bleeding but it didn’t seem to be too excessive. The pair followed the same path Anakin had taken in, the older boy making sure that Lyra was right next to him the entire time. What had attacked her and where did she need to go to retrieve her crystal?

The pair finally reached the mouth of the cave where they saw Master Yoda waiting for them. “Reckless that was young Skywalker. Her own way out she would have found.” Lyra just let out an exhausted sigh before she reached into the pocket of her Tauntaun fur lined coat and pulled out her crystal. The light from the Ilum sun caught her crystal and flashed purple back at her, not blue or green like the other younglings had received. She let out a defeated sigh and allowed the crystal to come to a rest in her palm.

Lyra stared at the imposter crystal in her palm before dropping it in the snow, turning to reenter the cave when a voice behind her stopped her from advancing further. “Where are you going Lyra?” Anakin stopped looking at the blue crystal in his hand when Lyra started trudging back to the cave.

“To go get my crystal, I picked up the wrong one.” Her voice sounded defeated, tiredness and disappointment beginning to fill her force signature, Master Yoda shuffled to where Lyra had dropped the supposed fake crystal and picked it up. 

“A gift, this crystal is,” Master Yoda held the crystal out toward Lyra for the girl to take again. “Special is your connection with the force. Talk to the Council about this I must.” Master Yoda didn’t offer anything else as he began to shuffle back towards the ship where the younglings would craft their sabers. Lyra just stood still as the other younglings spoke excitedly to one another about their new lightsabers and Kyber crystals, staring at the purple crystal in her hand wondering why she could never just be normal. She reached a hand up to her face and saw the blood on her hand. She didn’t know how large the cut was, but she knew that she would be teased relentlessly for it. 

As soon as the ship coming back from Ilum landed, Lyra was the first off,  her new Lightsaber clutched in a white-knuckled grip in her left hand and a new scar adorning the same side of her face. One of the droids on their transport had medical programming, thankfully, but Lyra’s injury had been left to fester too long without attention to disappear completely. The scar cut through the freckles that dotted her face, and if it were to have been shorter, would have just made it look like she wore a constant smile on the left side of her face. 

She wasn’t even quite sure when she got the cut, she had to climb through a maze of large and sharp icicles to escape the creature that had been chasing her. It was likely that one of the frozen spears had done more than brush sharply across her face, actually breaking the skin. “It looks super cool Lyra,” Anakin had assured her once she took her place next to the boy while the constructed their lightsabers, and, while she appreciated the sentiment, it didn’t make her feel any better. 

“Thanks Ani,” Lyra offered him a lopsided smile while she pulled her Kyber crystal on the table and set out to complete the task in front of her. 

After constructing their sabers Lyra had discovered that her’s had not only been a different color than the other younglings, but also had a blade on either end of the hilt. She was weak, and the Force knew it, thus it had given her a lightsaber that was not only a different color but also contained two blades to makeup for her weakness. Despite Master Yoda reassuring her multiple times that she was gifted with her Kyber crystal and lightsaber, Lyra saw nothing but weakness.

The hood of her robes was pulled over her head as she exited the ship and she was determined to not make eye contact with anyone as she retreated to her chambers. No one could know what a failure she truly was. No one could see her lightsaber and no one could see the mark of failure that would now maim her face permanently. Members of the Jedi council were waiting to congratulate the group of younglings on constructing their lightsabers and completing the trial on Ilum. Lyra, however, didn’t stop to talk to any of them and in what was likely considered an act of defiance stormed right past all of them not even acknowledging their praises or questions. Obi-Wan reached out to grab Lyra’s shoulder and she easily dodged the motion, ignoring him completely. 

Anakin was next off the ship and proudly clutched his new lightsaber, gladly receiving the praise he was given by the Council members. Obi-Wan, who also stood among those ready to congratulate the younglings, kept track of Lyra’s force signature as she aggressively opened the door to her living quarters and slammed it behind her, promptly blocking out anyone trying to prod into her mind or feelings. She was often more in touch with the force then the other younglings and could feel when the older, more experienced Jedi were trying to probe into her thoughts. Obi-Wan knew, however, where she would be hiding and where he would need to go look for her once they were free to leave the hanger. 

“Gifted with a purple lightsaber, she was.” Master Yoda spoke as he approached Obi-Wan, Anakin at his side. “Upset about this, she is.” He looked over to Mace Windu who was now listening to what Master Yoda had to say at the mention of a purple saber. “Careful guidance, she needs. Great anger inside of her, I feel. Your padawan, Master Windu, she will be.”

Unaware of the true weight of the conversation going on around him, Anakin decided to contribute to the conversation as well. “She was upset that she was the only one who didn’t get blue or green! But her saber is purple and has two blades. It's so cool!” Obi-Wan took a deep breath and looked down at Anakin, barely, as the boy was now twelve and had just recently gone through a growth spurt. Anakin was unaware of the anger building up inside of Lyra now that she would be seen as an outlier and likely someone to be picked on.

“That does sound rather fascinating, Anakin.” Obi-Wan spoke directly to his future padawan. “Why don’t you go join the other younglings and I’ll come find you later and we can test out your new lightsaber.” “You should go check on Lyra,” Anakin’s face contorted into an unreadable expression, “she’s upset. I can feel it and she also wanted to go find a new crystal but Master Yoda said her’s was a gift. I’d be happy to get a gift like that, so I don’t know why she’s upset. Well she got hurt so maybe that’s why but she shouldn’t be upset about her lightsaber.” Mace, Obi-Wan and Yoda watched as Anakin went to join the other younglings who had just gotten their sabers, the group dueling sloppily without their blades ignited. 

Obi-Wan crossed his arms over  his chest and took in a deep breath. “I’ll go try and speak to her for now, I believe I’d have the greatest chance at actually getting through to her and understanding her feelings.”. Prior to finding Anakin on Tatooine, Obi-Wan would have sworn that Lyra was meant to be his future padawan. The two had a connection that easily rivaled the one Obi-Wan shared with Anakin, especially considering that Obi-Wan and his past mentor had been the ones to discover Lyra and her force sensitivity. However, he had promised Qui-Gon prior to his passing that he would take Anakin on as his Padawan and that was not something he wanted to deny his late Master. He’d considered taking both children on as his Padawan but combined they likely had too much power for him to guide and build upon on his own. 

Upon turning to leave Obi-Wan heard someone trying to catch up with him. “I thought you said we were going to test out my new lightsaber Obi-Wan,” Anakin paused a few feet behind Obi-Wan and the Jedi Knight let out a quiet sigh before turning to the youngling. 

“I’m going to see how Lyra is doing and then we can try it out, does that sound okay?” Obi-Wan didn’t want to upset Anakin anymore than he had to at the moment. Anakin was already older than the others on the Gathering and that had been hard for him, but Obi-Wan also knew that someone needed to check on Lyra that she trusted before she was able to stew in her negative thoughts for too long, and he could only handle one overly upset force sensitive child at a time. 

Anakin scrunched his face up in thought. “I can come check on Lyra with you.”  Anakin’s face pulled into a smile, clearly thinking he had come up with a brilliant idea. “That way you don’t need to come find me,” he shrugged, “and besides we’re usually able to cheer each other up.”

“Very well,” Obi-Wan nodded, “come along then.” Anakin fell into step behind Obi-Wan as they approached the living quarters their clan of younglings shared. While each Youngling had their own private room, there were shared bathrooms and lounge spaces. Lyra’s room sat in a corner of her clan’s space, only Anakin’s room next to her own, the corner room also allowing her additional space for storage that was the size of a large closet. Anakin and Obi-Wan being the only two that knew the space had been converted into a small area where she could go to decompress if the world felt like too much. On very rare occasions they had both been let into the space, but it did not happen often.  

When they approached Lyra’s door Anakin felt the overwhelming feeling of despair begin to fill his heart. “Lyra,” Obi-Wan said softly. “I can feel the emotions simmering inside of you young one, it is not good for you to let them simmer until they begin to boil over.” Obi-Wan had been one to witness first hand just how destructive Lyra could unintentionally become if she let her emotions grow too large. An entire shelf of books about the native wildlife of Naboo had been lost in the library the last time she ignored her emotions for too long. 

“Go away.” The voice was choked and clearly the girl had been crying, only confirmed by the small sniffle she let out. “I don’t want to speak with you right now.” Anakin held up a finger and leaned against the door, propping his foot up on the solid material as he did so. Obi-Wan couldn’t help but notice how much the boy in front of him had matured in the last few months, and unlike the other younglings, he knew within a few days time he would be officially taking Anakin on as a padawan, although the boy had been solely under Obi-Wan’s guidance since he arrived at the temple. 

“Would you speak with me?” Anakin felt Lyra’s despair subside slightly and no answer came immediately as it did when Obi-Wan spoke. Anakin heard the closet door click open and a pair of feet shuffled towards where he and Obi-Wan stood, the shadow of Lyra’s feet blocking some of the light once seeping under her door. “Obi-Wan needs to leave though.” Anakin knew that Obi-Wan was to assure the council that Lyra was in fact emotionally stable and in no way vulnerable to her emotions, but if she would not speak to him and he could not listen in then that duty could not be fulfilled. “I’m not going to turn into a Sith because I’m upset, Obi-Wan.” Anakin could hear the eye roll in Lyra’s tone. “Just let me speak with Ani.”

“Very well,” Obi-Wan had learned what battles to give up with both Anakin and Lyra, and this was not a battle worth fighting. “You are both to come find me in my chambers once you are done talking so that we can begin practicing with your real sabers.” Once Lyra heard Obi-Wan’s footsteps disappear from their common area she unlocked the door, the small ‘click’ reaching Anakin’s ears as soon as she did so.

“You-”

“I need to wait, I know.” Anakin let out a quiet laugh as he heard Lyra shuffle away from the door. He began counting to thirty in his head before he motionlessly opened the door, slipping into the room and closing it behind himself again. He slipped off his boots and left them next to Lyra’s next to the door before he crossed the room to her small closet. “Do I need the secret code this time?”

Anakin heard a small huff from behind the door and the knob twisted, the door cracking slightly in invitation. Anakin shuffled into the dark closet and slid down the wall, pulling his knees up to his chest and resting his chin on them. He let the silence between the two of them linger for a moment as their force signatures began to wrap around one another, Anakin’s trying to counter the sadness and disappointment Lyra’s was exuding with comfort and reassurance. The two did not often let their emotions show around the other younglings, or Jedi Knights and Masters, but when they had rare moments to themselves, they would often bask in comfortable silence and let their abilities do the real talking.

“I’m already younger than everyone else in my class,” Lyra wiped her eyes with the sleeves of her robes, but fresh tears just followed, “and they made fun of me for that. Now that they’ll all know I’m weak because I need such a special lightsaber? I’m just going to leave the order, Ani.” 

As soon as he heard those words Anakin was moving forward, pulling Lyra into his chest as she sobbed. “Don’t be ridiculous,” he adjusted so she was more comfortable in his hold, her face tucked into his neck as she tried to get her breathing back under control. “You are one of the most powerful younglings here with many gifts yet to be discovered.” Anakin began to run his hands through Lyra’s hair as he finally felt her begin to calm. “And you are the furthest thing from weak. The force only gifts those who are strongest in the force with such a crystal, those who are determined and prove to be incredibly brave even in the face of adversity.” 

“Thanks,” Lyra sat up and pulled Anakin into a tight hug, “we can go find Obi-Wan now if you want.” She reached her fingers up to brush them over the still fresh scar on her face. “And we need to show him my scar that’s apparently super cool.” She used Anakin’s words from earlier against him and the boy in front of her used the force to flick the tip of her nose.

“Hey!” Lyra scrunched her nose in frustration while she watched Anakin go to reach for his boots to put them on, but she quickly closed her eyes before opening them to see Anakin’s boots floating in the air, just out of his grasp.

“Oops.” She let the boots fall to the floor with a thud, the two falling into a fit of laughter while they tried to beat each other out the door, pushing and shoving as they went. The youngling’s banter, however, was stopped when they saw Master Windu standing in the doorway of their housing unit. Obi-Wan stood not far behind him, a look of guilt and sadness contorting the features of his face. 

“And what were the two of you doing in Lyra’s room together?” The man’s stern voice caused both younglings to stiffen, standing up a little straighter. 

“Anakin was just helping me feel less upset, Master.” Lyra swallowed thickly after she spoke. “I umm- was not happy with the lightsaber I received at first and was injured on my journey inside the cave.”

Master Windu looked to Anakin who just nodded in agreement with Lyra’s statement before he let out a deep sigh. “Anakin,” the boy looked up at Master Windu, his posture becoming even more rigid, “why don’t you go with Obi-Wan, Lyra and I need to have a conversation.

“Yes Master,” Anakin began walking across the lounge area to meet Obi-Wan who looked genuinely upset. He paused briefly when he reached his Master, looking over his shoulder to give Lyra, who seemed to be getting a rather stern talking to with a smile and small wave.

Lyra held up her left hand and gave a half-fake smile in return before the door closed behind Obi-Wan and Anakin.

[ciaossu-imagines]

I saw that your ask box was open and I wondered if maybe you’d down for some Hiruma smut? Maybe he and f!reader had a thing back at Deimon and reconnect as adults when he’s in the NFL and she’s in town (either for business or just to see him play) and it turns out the feelings haven’t changed?

(Also your writing is wonderful and I’ve been [re]binging it all the last few days, lol)

I’m always down for smut, my dear! And thank you so much for the sweet compliments. I truly appreciate them! I hope you’ll enjoy the headcanons though I feel this one isn’t quite up to snuff, isn’t really overly smutty either, and is a lot rougher than my other replies recently! My apologies for that.

I feel like the thing you and Hiruma had back at Deimon was largely sexual, rather than extremely romantic. I just don’t see high-school aged Hiruma being all that ready or available for an actual relationship since he was so focused on football that he had little time for anything else. So, it would have been more a friend with benefits thing. You guys got along and the sexual chemistry and tension between the two of you was insane and you guys just fell into a sexual relationship back then. It probably ended around graduation or maybe a little sooner if you’d wanted more than he could give at the time, but it didn’t end badly, and you guys were still sort of friends. You’d update each other periodically on your lives but did drift apart.

You had grown to love football while together with Hiruma and when your work was sending you to the town where his team plays, you decided to reach out to him. Just give him a heads up that you’d be in town for that month long stretch on business and to tell him you wanted to see him play, ask about the game schedule.

The two of you started texting and messaging each other more and more after that initial contact. It would still be a couple weeks before you headed to his town but the two of you were in contact almost every single day. At first it was just about football, giving you the game schedule or letting you know he’d gotten you a seat up in the VIP section for a time that worked for you. Then it just kind of became catching up, updating each other on your respective lives…and then it became more friendly, more personal.

When it was discovered that both of you were single, the conversations slowly started taking a naughtier turn. You’d send a slightly risqué selfie and he’d toss back a slightly sexual reply and it just escalated into you teasing him with nudes, to messages and texts that made the both of you hot, to video-calls that were supposedly ‘just to chat’ but always ended up with you stuffed full of a toy, performing for him on camera, getting off all over it while he jerks himself off, telling you the lewdest, filthiest things. Hiruma’s always been kind of a master at dirty talk, honestly.

After all those years, the sexual chemistry is still very much there.

After watching the game, he offers to take you out to eat and he does…his hand just seems to find it’s way along your curves during the night, your foot just seems to run up his leg, teasing him during dinner.

You guys don’t even last until dessert before the check is called for. The only dessert he wants is you.

Back at your hotel, he pins you against the wall the second the door is closed. He’s still a tease after all these years and he takes his time getting you all worked up, no matter how much his throbbing cock is screaming at him to just fuck you already.

There’s so much dirty talk on his part and he enjoys ordering you around, since he’s always had a dominant streak sexually.

He’ll cum really quick when he does fuck you that first time, but he’s got a pretty short refractory time and he will have you so many times, so many ways that first night.

He’s really nervous about possibly getting you pregnant and, even though he wears a condom, he prefers to pull out still before cumming and to have you suck him off or to jerk himself off onto your body.

He takes his time exploring your body over the following month while you’re in town. He’s curious as to whether you’re still sensitive in all the same spots, if you’re still into the same things, if you still feel so utterly perfect wrapped around him, if you’ve learned any new tricks. And he wants you to discover all that about him, to be honest.

This could become a fairly regular thing that develops into a relationship, or it could be a one-time fling, depending on how you want things to progress, because I do feel the potential is there for either one.