#or I’m not sure what the state plans with it

[awrkive]

NEIGHBOR BLUNDER, pt. 1 — JJK

in hindsight, you should have seen it coming. had always knew your luck – or lack of it, thereof – and the universe's meticulous plan of your downfall made it easy for you to get tangled up in a series of unfortunate events, which presents itself as the neighbor that lives across from you, jeon jungkook.

PAIRING jungkook x (fem) reader

GENRE r18+ (fluff, angst, (eventual) smut) MINORS DO NOT INTERACT!

CHAPTER WORD COUNT 17.8k

CHAPTER WARNINGS/MISC neighbor!jk, bff!jimin, accountant!oc software engineer!jk, jk and jimin are chaebols lol, mature language, this chapter's pretty tame (for now) but theres a lot of FLIRTING, envision the jk on the cover, if u squint this story is a mosaic of every shows i love lmfao, for the apartment complex just imagine the nami villa from the kdrama fight for my way

NOTES hello im back!!!!! remember the jk in tech xmas fic i told you about last year? this is it except its not a xmas fic anymore lmfao. had an idea to make it a full blown story and im just sooo excited to share it with u guys on this platform!!!!! if ur from wattpad, the chapter system is gonna be a little different here but the content is not <3 anyway let me know what u guys think!

READ ON: WATTPAD | AO3

You never settled your relationship with the summer season. To put it simply, it was a love and hate sort of thing; you liked that it was dry, and the air always felt like it was filtered and healthy even though you were well-aware of the current shit-state of the Earth's ozone layer. There were beams and sunlights and street vendors and people lying on the park's ground. Summer felt nostalgic, like the first time you bought a vinyl in highschool and listened to Fleetwood Mac in secret because your mom was certain they peddled cocaine and all sorts of illegal drugs, and with a highschool friend you no longer talk to, not because of a friendship-breaking betrayal but something more melancholic than that like drifting apart as you got older — the ambience, generally, was what you loved the most about it.

But regardless of those, summer got hot. Sure, you could forgo layers of clothing and it was always nice to lounge about in short bottoms and strapless tops and sandals, but at the end of the day, you needed to set your AC on the lowest temp, and it cranks up your monthly rent a greater percentage which causes a detrimental result to your monthly pay. (And you always had to reapply make-up every now and then whenever you went outside because if not, you'd be a sweating mess.)

In the grand scheme of things, though, there was nothing more than you disliked than Park Jimin, your best friend since college, asking you to be his plus-one on his mom's birthday dinner. For the second time.

“I told you, Jimin, I’m not doing that anymore. Your mom called me fat and recommended a bunch of expensive skin care products to treat one single zit on the side of my forehead the last time you brought me there. I hid that with my bangs and she still saw it, like what the hell? The baked lasagna might have tasted good but I’m not stepping one foot in your house ever again.” You spat out, rolling your eyes at your friend who just dramatically flopped himself on your bed.

“Okay, so I’m really sorry about my mom. She’s a…” He trailed off, looking at you with meaningful eyes that weighed words you knew he couldn't exactly say without feeling bad, and you sighed. Nodded in understanding. Jimin’s face contorted into a cringed expression at that. “... yeah. But! Please. I swear! This is the last time. I just really need you to be there. They’re setting me up with Heesu, okay? You know that snotty nepo baby of the Kang clan who owns Kang Tech?”

“Jimin, you’re a nepo baby.”

He hit you with a pillow. “I am but I can earn a hundred thousand won without my family’s money. They can cut my credit cards and I'll still be thriving.”

You broke the serious demeanor and laughed loudly at his seemingly confident claim.

“I’m sorry but you could not even get a job at a burger joint without some nepotism let alone have a hundred thousand without your dad’s credit cards. Bitch, you’re just lying.”

“Fuck you. I was employee of the week at Seventh Street Burger.” He backfired, referring to that point in time in your sophomore year where you picked up a part time job during the summer at a burger joint and Jimin just decided to come along randomly. He got it because the owner knew of his dad.

“Yeah, because Sowon had a crush on you?” You said, remembering the owner’s daughter, who was also helping out at the store at that time. She was so smitten by Jimin you almost felt bad for her.

“Okay, fair, point taken. No need to be such a bitch about it,” Your best friend said with a dismissive wave of his hand, telling he was over it. You only laughed at that, boisterously, might you add, just to piss him off for no reason. Jimin deadpanned. “But seriously. I think they’re planning to marry me off to Heesu.”

Your face fell out of genuine concern this time.

“Oh my god, really?”

Jimin once again cringed visibly. “Yeah. I mean from a business lense it makes sense. But me marrying at 33? That makes me – like – a child groom.”

“Oh… yeah…” you trailed off, sympathizing with him. Not that you've ever been in the situation where your parents forced you in a sham marriage for their own wealth because there was no wealth to begin with. But you felt bad for Jimin. You always have, when it came to this particular subject.

You knew how it was with rich people, having known Jimin for almost half your life. It was true that arranged marriages were still a thing, and while Jimin seemed that he could pretty much do everything he wanted because of his free-spirited nature, his parents could still most likely make him marry someone he barely knew. Solely for business.

“Ugh.” Jimin groaned. “Should I just come out at the dinner so they can stop linking me to women? I’m gay as fuck, man. My cousin Park Youngdam would have a field day given that homophobic fucktard has been calling me the f word ever since he learned it in seventh grade.”

You shook your head, visibly cringing at his words. You didn't have family yourself. It was your mom who raised you alone for all your life, until she died five years ago. Didn't know any extended family. But frankly, you thought it was better that way than to deal with a complicated family like Jimin's.

“Nah. I mean if you’re ready, well, do it. But like, your parents are…” You two shared a look together again, and Jimin just slapped his palms over his face, indicating his doom. Your face twisted with another shot of deeper sympathy for him.

“This is it for me. They’ll marry me off to Kang Heesu and we’ll fly to the US and live in Massachusetts to fulfill her white picket fence fantasy. I’ll be a miserable husband and she'll be an even more miserable wife because she’ll eventually find out I’m gay. The neighbors will start talking and the white republicans will shun me out of the town church. We’ll have a surrogate baby and—”

“Jimin, what the fuck!” You hit him hard on his arm as you couldn't keep a straight face anymore at his dramatic monologue. “You’re not gonna marry Heesu and you won't live in fuckass Massachusetts and no one’s gonna shun you out of the town church and you won't have a surrogate baby.”

“It’s a possibility.” Jimin shrugged.

“I feel like you're guilt-tripping me into agreeing to be your date again at your mom's birthday dinner and I think that's very evil of you.” You said, squinting your eyes at him.

“Well, duh? But also, I’m really kind of lowkey highkey scared they’ll marry me off to someone now that I’m pushing forty.”

"You're quite literally seven years away from forty." You countered.

He looked at you with an expression of I know right! And he told you so.

"That's what I said to mom and dad, but they're acting like my sperm will freeze next year. God, I can't stand them!" 

Jimin, for all his jokes and unserious and bitchy behavior, was someone extremely important to you. Yeah, sure, he was rich as hell and he annoys you when he says something that reeks of too much nepotism but he was never intentionally snotty, never thinks he was better than everyone else (Jokes about how he thinks he has the fattest and juiciest ass in the world, though), and he wasn't at all like the rich people you've had the misfortune of interacting with at his mom's birthday party last year. He might be a self-proclaimed bitch but if you put him together with those people, he might as well be one of God's disciples.

For all his crass language and rather strong personality, Jimin was a doting friend who was there for you every single time. You could call him up at 3 am and he’d be at your door bringing Chinese take out and two tubs of ice cream, ready to hear you vent about your stupid job or a guy that you fumbled by being weird and off-putting because you didn't know how to handle a relationship. He was the kind of friend who would defend you in front of anyone else but will mercilessly tell you off and list down all points of your stupidity once you were in closed doors. He was the kind of friend that would ask you to be his pretend partner at a birthday dinner party, but he was your best friend ultimately and even if you had a big problem with his family and their extremely traditional (read: toxic) ways, you didn't want him to be pressured into coming out just so he could avoid to be engaged off to another random heiress. Didn't want him to do something he wasn't ready for. Didn't want him hurt or anything of the sort.

The last dinner wasn't even that bad, if you were to be honest. His parents were shitty, yeah sure, and the other guys in there that consisted of politicians and businessmen and people in the showbiz industry were something taken out of the toilet bowl for how stinky their elitist, better-than-you personalities were, but you both just totally forgot all about it by getting wasted at the local bar right after leaving. Not that his mom’s words didn't sting a bit or didn't make you a little conscious, but at the end of the day, you weren't actually dating Jimin so you didn't care what his parents thought of you.

Additionally, you didn't have something planned for the next two weeks when the birthday would be happening. You were supposed to, but that ship has long sailed when you fumbled a date with the guy at the IT department. For the record, you didn't really like him that much and he talked too much about his job and while you didn't mind that, it was getting a little too tiring. If you wanted IT lessons you would’ve majored in it in college. Still, Shin Taemu was handsome. And he wore those rounded glasses. Was tall. Had nice arms. Too bad he wanted to be the next Mark Zuckerberg. Fuck that guy.

“Ugh, I don't know,” you groaned. “It's just so disgusting to be your girlfriend, okay?”

Jimin audibly gasped. “How dare you? A lot would jump on this ass.” He said with incredulity seeping through his voice, pointing to his bum.

You rolled your eyes. “Not me, obviously. Before you take offense—”

“Offense taken.”

“—it’s just that you're like my cousin and when you call me honey I want to crawl out of my own skin.”

Jimin laughed at that while you looked miserable, remembering those moments from last year. Seriously, how could you have fooled anyone in that party that you were banging? You swore you looked like Ariana Grande and Troye Sivan in that one music video? (Jimin was the one who showed that meme to you, by the way.)

“So I won't call you honey. Just babe.”

“Ew.” You quickly retaliated.

“Ohh, the homophobia is sho-wing.” Jimin sing-sang, ever the mature individual he was.

“Fuck off, seriously.”

Jimin just giggled and then scooted closer to you. “No but like, are you coming? ‘Cause jokes aside, I'm just gonna find someone else if you really don't wanna do it. But you know you're always my first choice.”

“First choice when you do some stupid shit.” you countered, rolling your eyes for the nth time that night. Jimin would be the cause of your eye surgery if ever they got dislocated or something.

“That’s my biggest act of love.”

“I don't want it.”

“I’ll double what I paid you last year.”

“Double it again and give it to the next person?”

Jimin flipped you off. “I’ll give you my nintendo and I’ll get you a card at that coffee shop you love so much.”

That caught your attention. You raised your brow. “On god?”

“When did I ever lie to you?”

You deadpanned. “We won't finish this conversation if I list all the times—”

“Okay, okay, point taken. But I'm really serious. Please, please, please, please be my pretend girlfriend on my mom's birthday party please, please—”

“Shut up. Ugh,” you could already feel the big smile creeping up Jimin’s face when you let out a big sigh. “Okay, I’ll do it. Buy me boba now.”

Jimin tackled you to the bed and hugged you and kissed your forehead.

“Thank you! Best best friend ever.” he delightfully said, grinning widely, eyes almost disappearing in his triumph.

Your face contorted into a disgusted expression while Jimin just laughed as you pushed him so hard he almost fell off the bed.

“You are a disgusting limpy sack of dicks! Also, I’m not your best best friend, you don't have a wide selection. I'm your best friend. Period.”

“Unfortunately.” He waved you off and when you were about to retort something his phone suddenly rang. You watched quietly as he put it over his ear. “Hey, you just landed?”

If it was a private conversation Jimin would've left the room but since he didn't, you decided to stay in bed, kind of listening in to the conversation, but also not, as you turned the volume down of the show you were watching earlier on your laptop.

“Nah, you want me to pick you up?” Jimin sat up on the edge of the bed and you looked at him curiously. “Sure, I’m free, Kook. You have a place to stay? Hotel suite or something?” He nodded to whatever the other person was saying on the other line. “Oh, you're here for three months? Thought you were just flying in for mom's birthday?”

It was moments after they said goodbye that Jimin turned to you to ask, “Well, my cousin’s apparently staying here for three months. Got this job thing going on.”

“Is that one of the non-problematic twenty percent cousin lineage of your very complicated family tree?" You asked, referring to him telling you one time that his family, including the extended ones, was eighty percent shitty and twenty percent decent.

Jimin chuckled at the inside joke. "Well, yeah, he's one of the good ones. Knows I'm gay."

"Oh, nice."

Jimin stood up from your bed. “I’ll get you your boba and head off. Gotta pick cousin up or he’ll start throwing tantrums at the airport.”

“Add extra pearls please.” You told him, watching as he clicked away on his phone to get you your drink.

“I spoil you too much.” Jimin said, clicking his tongue, eyes still on his phone.

“What are you here for if not my glorified sugar daddy?”

“I will kill myself in front of you.” Jimin deadpanned, getting a chuckle out of you.

You didn't know the psychology — or if there even was psychology — behind feeling embarrassed when you were about to cross a path while carrying huge boxes. It was a normal task, and yet, it always felt like a huge walk of shame when you did it.

It was probably because you had to carry it over a flight of stairs, and there was no way you wouldn't trip on yourself carrying two heavy boxes in your hands that were already disrupting your vision.

Maybe it was your fault for choosing the pick-up option when you were checking out these furniture online, all because there was a huge increase on the fee for door-to-door delivery. For the record, there was a huge gap and the boxes were not really that heavy to the point you could not carry them both. It's just a lamp and a portable desk, you thought a week ago when you opted for the pick-up option, I could carry it all the way to the unit just fine — and obviously, your delusion has resulted to this very moment.

As soon as you managed to walk over five steps, you felt as if your oxygen supply just got cut back, panting like someone fresh from a marathon. Damn. You definitely needed to work out a little. Maybe do some squats for your New Year’s resolution, commit to it for three days straight then forget about it for the next 362 days of the year.

You looked ahead of you and a string of curses let themselves out of your mouth automatically as you estimated the number of stairs you needed to get through to get to your apartment.

This day sucked! It was Sunday and you planned to wake up at five am to have a productive day but then you slept through your five alarms and woke up at eleven am instead. You ran out of eggs and you had to go to the convenience store to eat a sad meal of yogurt and kimbap. And now there were these boxes that you needed to carry over what seemed to look like six million of stairs. You weren't Sisyphus! And where were your goddamn neighbors when you needed them?

"You need help, ma'am?"

"Jesus Christ—" you turned to look to your right only to see a man who seemed to own the previous voice.

And Jesus Christ, indeed.

He was wearing a white shirt and some shorts, Nike sliders on his feet and a pair of headphones on. He was wearing glasses. And he had a tattoo sleeve.

What the fuck.

What the fuck!

It has been so long since you thought a man was crazily attractive. Okay, well sure, the guys from the IT department were something else (or you just had a weird eyeglasses fetish, Jimin once pointed out, that you still — to this day — vehemently try to deny) but you’ve never been this taken aback by someone’s face before.

The guy’s lips tilted a bit, some sort of greeting maybe, and you quickly looked away, embarrassed, fearing that he caught you looking at him longer than necessary.

Oh god. This was pathetic! He was a stranger! He was a man! He just had a cute face attached to a very good body with an arm full of tattoos and he was tall but you were sure he wasn’t six feet two. Also, he had hair that looked fluffy from where you stood and a pair of eyeglasses but Jimin was just bluffing when he said you had a fetish for them. Right?

You were performing mental gymnastics until you realized he was asking a question.

"Oh! Uh, no, thank you. It's fine." You said, embarrassed at the way you almost jumped in surprise earlier.

But the whole thing was ridiculous. What, because there was a very fine man across from you the universe suddenly decided to fuck up your fate by making you be seen by that very man struggling with boxes all the way up to your unit? Couldn't it just have been on a day when you did your make-up and dressed up in that overpriced dress you bought hundred bad choices ago?

You fumbled with the boxes a little bit before continuing your way up, nevermind the guy whose response you didn't wait for because you needed to get the fuck away from him before you say something weird and off-putting.

Truthfully, you could use the help. But at what cost? A fine man carrying them? Okay, that wasn’t so bad. But what were you supposed to do with... all of that?

As if the universe was indeed trying to prove to you that you were, in fact, not its favorite creation, you almost tripped. And the guy most definitely saw it.

Fuck.

You turned to the side to see him looking at you, concern etching his face. You wanted to convince yourself that it was genuine concern because you'd commit something that would totally change the trajectory of his life if he was to laugh.

But you thought his own unit must be way up as well, as he was going to the same path as you, and if that was the case, he must have been a new neighbor in the complex because you've never seen the man before.

“Well, it’s not that heavy but…” you trailed off, looking blankly at the cardboard boxes. And then at him. "I could use some help, if you don't mind."

The guy just chuckled. Oh wow, his laugh was very... low.

You didn’t even know what the fuck that meant.

“I’ll get them for you.” He said, crossing the small distance between you and taking over the pile, leaving you with nothing in your hands.

“Oh, no, I’ll have that one. It’s fine.” You said, stepping closer to take the other one but he was already securing it in his hold, with stability this time, ready to take off.

He let out a small laugh again and you bit your tongue to not think about how cute he looked. If he was a new tenant, you hoped you didn't cross paths with him ever again.

"It's okay, ma'am."

He's got to stop calling you that before you do something drastic.

“It’s quite far from here, I'm all the way up to three-three-six.” You uttered, pointing forward, a few steps behind the guy, who hummed at what you said.

You quickly caught up to him. "Really, thanks for doing this."

"No problem, it's nothing." He said, smiling at you. Warm and kind. All cute. "I'm all the way up to four-four-six as well."

Your eyes widened. "No way, that's just across mine."

The stranger, apparently your neighbor now, grinned.

"Nice coincidence, huh?"

A sheepish smile formed on your lips. You didn't dwell on that comment too much. Knew it was just small talk.

"If you don't mind me asking, are you a new tenant here?” You asked out of genuine curiosity. You had never seen someone come out of the unit across from you out of all the four years you'd been here.

He nodded, agreeing with what you presumed.

"Yeah. Just temporary, though.”

“Oh…” A surprised sound. Maybe it was a good thing he was only staying temporarily... “I hope I didn’t inconvenience you or anything. You really don’t need to bring the boxes over to my apartment.”

The man just chuckled, dismissing your worry. “You looked like you could use a hand, these boxes are big. Anyway, I was just out checking 'round town. Settling in.”

From the sound of it, you'd assume he was not only moving in in a new apartment complex, but new city as well. Perhaps country? But he most definitely looked Korean. But maybe he came from abroad. Who knows.

“Yeah, there's a really nice coffee shop three blocks away. You should check it out sometime. Ji—my friend and I are obsessed with their iced caramel macchiato. And the boba.”

His brows furrowed in pure interest. “That must've been the one I passed by this morning. I’ll make sure to try that one.”

“You really should. And the barista gives you a brownie on Sundays if he likes you.” You shared like it was gossip, mentally taking note to visit the cafe sometime this week.

“And I'm sure not everybody gets the privilege?” The guy looked at you funny, and that made you laugh.

"Of course, yes! You have to earn it, I think. I feel like I spent over a million there before he started giving me brownies."

"Hope my charm works on him as well," he said, and it caught you off guard.

What did he mean, "as well"? Like he was speaking from the basis that you had charm and so he hoped he had it as well to get the barista to like him?

"Well. He's strict." Was all you could say, before you spotted your apartment. "Hey, I'll take it over from here."

The guy looked over the plated number on the door, reading three-three-six just as you said earlier. Trudging forward, he set the boxes down on the side of the porch.

"Thank you, really. This was really nice of you."

You extended your gratitude once again as if you didn't spend the walk up to here thanking him non-stop, sounding like a broken record. Thank god the guy didn't seem to mind your over-the-top gratitude, only waving his hand.

"Told you, it's fine. You need help with a few boxes again and just ring me up across," He joked, turning around slightly and looking at the door across your unit, Unit 446. It earned a chuckle from you. His face turned serious now, but there was still a charming smile on his face. “Hey. I’m actually pretty new in this town. I was thinking about visiting a few restaurants downtown, maybe you could recommend me some?”

You didn't mean to, but you took note the way his doe eyes seemed to shimmer even behind the frame of his glasses.

“My favorites are just, like, a ten-minute walk away. There’s this restobar near that drugstore when you turn left from this building, right?” The guy nodded, and you were slightly delighted he knew right away. “Yeah, their ramen's great, you'd thank me forever.”

He chuckled at the way you said it and you smiled.

Your interactions with new people were always a range from pure silence to oversharing; talking to them like they were your long lost friend whom you’ve milked goats with in your father’s orchard. It was probably just a product of introversion; not knowing the right approach to socializing.

“Thanks for the recommendation.” He said, a genuine appreciative tone lacing his words.

“You’re welcome. If I can ring you up to help me with some boxes, you can ring me up for some restaurant recommendation.”

"It's an exchange, then. Deal."

"Why not?" You shrugged, laughing along with him when he did so.

You both stood there for a while until seconds passed. You didn’t know exactly how to end the conversation, not that you wanted to, but there was nothing that went to your head to talk about more. And besides, he was probably headed somewhere, so you began to speak.

“Hey, so I’m going in—”

“What about we—”

“Oh.” You stopped. “Sorry, what was that?”

The guy just shook his head. “Nah, you’re probably busy. Thanks for the recommendation again.”

“No, seriously, sorry I didn't hear it the first time...”

“I was just gonna ask about the name of the restaurant.”

“It’s Midday Miso.” You told him, smiling.

“Midday Miso,” The guy nodded, “Yeah. Got it. Thanks again.”

“You’re welcome, and, uh, thanks. For the help.”

You took your keys out from your shorts and you didn’t expect to still see him standing in front of you when you turned around. You jokingly squinted your eyes at him.

“Yeah, you first, get in.” He said with a low chuckle.

It was a little embarrassing and pretty stupid how your heart fluttered a bit at that.

“What a gentleman you are,” You respond with a snort, opening the door to your unit and pushing the boxes inside your apartment. When they were in, you turned to look at the guy again, saying, “Okay, bye for real. See you around. Hope you like Midday Miso if you try it. And the coffee shop. It's called Brown Coffee.”

“See you around.” He did a little wave that made you both laugh before you closed the door.

When the lock system clicked, you stood on your doorway for a little while.

And then fake-cried.

You quickly clicked on Jimin's pinned contact on your phone.

You [5:35pm]: JIMINNNNNNNNN You [5:35pm]: POP EMERGENCY You [5:35pm]: POP EMERGENCY BITCH IF U DONT RESPOND You [5:36pm]: I HAVE A DIABOLICAL CRUSH AND ITS GOING IN THE MEMOIRRRRRR

It wasn’t even one full minute when Jimin replied.

cuntress #1 [5:37pm]: oh my god SHUT UP!!! im at a training program for ghis stupid ass company my fathers been running fir 600 years cuntress #1 [5:37pm]: whats up cuntress #1 [5:38pm]: its always a crush and never a job 😒

You [5:39pm]: yeh so remember when i told u im oacking up my vagina last summer

cuntress #1 [5:39pm]: many such times

You [5:40pm]: 🖕 You [5:40pm]: SO raincheck!!! You [5:41pm]: COZ I just met a fine man at my apartment AND flirted with him You [5:41pm]: i think

cuntress #1 [5:42pm]: ohhhhh OK???? cuntress #1 [5:43pm]: cuntress #2 flirting???? now thats not uninteresting go on while i fake a restroom break 👀

You [5:45pm]: this story is not for the imessages baby get ur ass up and ICE CREAM WITH ME NOW.

cuntress #1 [5:46pm]: omg 😭😭😭😭 cuntress #1 [5:46pm]: i’ll be off 7:30pm wait for me 😭😭😭 cuntress #1 [5:47pm]: i also have #stories to tell

You [5:49pm]: 🤭

There must be a time where you finally grow up and learn to cook.

You were a twenty-eight-year-old woman and yet, your meals sadly ranged from instant noodles, canned goods, and food from the nearby twenty-four-hour provision shop. Sometimes, you had the gall to cook something from scratch—but with scratch you meant scratching off the labels from food take-outs and reheating them in your microwave.

Jimin had told you one time you would die at twenty-nine with your lifestyle. You told him he couldn't tell you shit because he didn't know how to cook either, he just worked out and ate healthy stuff, and you did, too! But Jimin knew you, and in an evil manner, clocked you with, "Buying fresh produce and not consuming them does not count as healthy living."

Anyway, you never understood why you were so bad at cooking. Your mother, as you remembered her, was decent at it but you guessed it was because she never really taught you and you never really bothered, either. In some immature way of thinking, you'd like to think it was a win for feminism as you were battling patriarchal standards by not conforming to stereotypical "female" qualities. But deep inside, you knew cooking should be a survival skill.

Well, maybe Jimin was right and you would indeed die at the ripe age of twenty-nine. On the bright side, at least you wouldn't have to pay off your student loans and your monthly rent.

In relation, not knowing how to cook meant impractical visits to the restaurant, and that was how you ended up at Midday Miso for dinner after your shift.

It was only a little over nine pm when you entered the restaurant, the ahjumma quickly greeting you and preparing your usual, a sign of familiarity that implied your countless visits ever since moving in at your current apartment building.

Regular visits meant usual sitting spot, and in your case, it was the high stools that faced the glass walls of the restaurant's facade where you could see the busy street making that little area of the town alive.

As minutes overlapped with one another, your food was served and you were hit with the waft of the restaurant's delightful signature beef ramen and bibimbap that the ahjumma made sure to add extra beef on.

Eating with a happy heart made you feel like nothing in the world mattered but you and the food before you, so, you didn't pay attention to the person who was coming to your direction and eventually sat beside you, but what caught you off guard was when said person suddenly said,

"Hi."

When you turned to the side to see who it was, your eyes widened as you said in both recognition and surprise, "Unit 446?"

"That's me." He, Unit 446—in the flesh—said with a low chuckle, twisting himself so that he was sat appropriately on the high stool. Still, his body leaned towards you when he continued to say, "Fancy seeing you here."

You grinned, flattered at the casualness of his approach.

"Same to you. I wonder who told you about this local gem."

He pursed his lips. "A nice neighbor across my place... whom I still don't know the name of."

"Oh, shoot!" You'd face-palm right now if he wasn't looking, but truthfully, you didn't even think about that! You've just been referring to him as the Staircase Guy slash Neighbor 446 in your head and when you told Jimin about him. You laughed at the thought. "That neighbor of yours is __."

Neighbor 446 nodded and extended his hand to you

"I'm Jungkook."

It was a little silly but you shook hands, anyway, and knowing it was, indeed, silly, you both laughed together at your joint connection.

Jungkook. Huh. Not exactly a common Korean name, but it wasn't rare either. The name does ring a bell though, felt like you've heard it somewhere before.

You brushed off the familiarity as inconsequential.

Unlike the completely casual attire he adorned the first time that you met him, he was now in some sleek slacks and a white polo which sleeves were ridden up half high, which exposed the vines of ink on his right arm once again. There's a coat that hung around the back of his chair, and he had forgone the glasses this time around, which was a bit of a shame on the part of your brain that might have a silly crush on him.

Jungkook's clothes seemed to mirror your own business casual ensemble, and that made you think about what he possibly did for a living. Maybe he worked a corporate job just like you, and the prospect might have made you down a little—only because as far as you were concerned, corporate people weren't the most pleasant people you could encounter—but it was not something you dwelled on too much because you couldn't care less. If Jungkook was corporate, he sure didn't seem to be one the way he was.

Besides, you wouldn't be the one to bring up the depressing and aggravating conversation about gross grown-up things like... jobs... Eurgh. You both could just talk about the weather or how insane the ahjumma's ramen tasted for eternity.

"Well, hello, Jungkook." You greeted him. All warm and soft, testing the syllables of his name on your tongue. Rolled off well enough. He had a nice name that sure fit his face for some reason.

"Hi, __." He mirrored the soft smile on your lips, and just as he said it, the ahjumma was heading towards your direction to give him his order.

In that usual way grandmas reacted, the ahjumma gasped audibly—and dramatically, might you add—upon seeing Jungkook, but what she said next made you want to dig a hole under your seat.

"__-dear! Is this young man your boyfriend?"

Good thing you weren't consuming anything as of that moment, because it would've entered the wrong track.

"Ahjumma!" You laughed, totally not authentic at all because your face didn't match it, looking at Jungkook who just sent a shy smile her way.

Ahjumma must have seen you both talking to each other and had completely jumped to a conclusion. An insane one at that! 

Shaking your head, you clarified, "This is Jungkook. A friend. He's new in town and checking out all the stuff around here. I recommended him this place."

You saw Jungkook nodding along with your words while he helped her set his table.

The ahjumma just shook her head. "I apologize, then," She looked at Jungkook and as if gossiping with him, whispered in a not very subtle way, "I keep on telling this girl to date already! Such young beauty shouldn't be wasted, you know."

A tsk-ing sound made its way through her mouth, and as much as you were starting to feel embarrassed that she was telling on you on Jungkook—who was literally a stranger to you a day ago and whom you may have a teeny tiny bit of crush on—you knew ahjumma did not have any malicious intent and just chose to laugh the whole thing off.

You heard Jungkook do the same.

This was ridiculous.

"Ahjumma, I told you, you're gonna be the first one to know when I date. For now I'm just a part-time accountant and a full-time promoter of Midday Miso." You pout at her, trying to dodge the topic of romance altogether.

Not in front of Jungkook.

"Ayee," She gave you a side-eye. "Fine. I'll bring over some extra beef."

You mouthed an enthusiastic "yes!" and raised your fist in the air with excitement, and Jungkook looked at the interaction with a smile on his face.

As the ahjumma walked away, you looked over at him.

"I'm glad you came by—" You identified his order to be the same one you used to be obsessed with the first few months you came to the restaurant. "—and ordered their best seller. You sure know how to be a tourist."

"Looked good on the menu. The ahjumma also seems to be nice. Seems like she's a close friend, huh?" Jungkook said.

"Totally."

And it was the truth. There was just something about ahjumma that made you feel reminiscent about the grandmother you've never had. Ever since you moved in and became a regular at this place, it felt like she's taken care of you and your relationship had been special since.

"This is really good." Jungkook commented after having his second bite, and you nodded in agreement. "She was serious about the beef thing?"

You chuckled at the mention. "Yeah, she always gives me extra."

"You just always get free stuff around these areas?" Jungkook joked which earned a hearty laugh from you. You remembered telling him about the free brownie on Sundays at Brown Coffee, a little bit surprised he recalled that.

"Now that you said that, I actually do." You proudly shared. You've been in this town for so long that the various faces just went from familiar to friends.

Jungkook nodded, his face showing amusement.

"I have to learn your ways, then."

"The secret to that is be incompetent at cooking. It means it's either take-out or eat out. Business owners around here have no choice but to see me every three days because I can't cook my own meal."

You could see Jungkook's amusement growing every second, and to add faux insult to injury, he joked, "Oh, bummer."

You decided to ride along with that.

"You mean you're a good cook? That's the real bummer! And here I thought we were bonding." You said, purposefully trying to sound scandalous at his implication of being a good cook.

He shook his head instantly, chuckling. "Okay, nah. I'm not that good. Just decent. But I'll have you know I can make a mean tangsuyuk. Any other complicated stuff is out the window, so there, we are bonding."

"I appreciate that you're under the assumption that I know where to begin with the non-complicated stuff. You're already putting way too much faith in me."

"I seriously doubt that." Jungkook laughed once again.

"You know what my friend tells me? That I'd die at twenty-nine because I don't know how to cook."

Jungkook almost keeled over hearing you say the words, and as much as you were amused at his own amusement, you decided to further add on the joke because you were enjoying this way too much.

"Wow. I wouldn't doubt you'd be an accessory to my murder the way you're laughing way too hard at my impending death. That's next year, you know."

Jungkook reached over for the glass of water and drank it. While he did so, the ahjumma had come over to give you the beef she promised. You did not forgot to thank her as soon as she went away. 

You did hope Jungkook didn't notice the malicious wink she sent your way.

"Fuck, sorry." Jungkook's laughter had gone down this time, but his eyes still showed a hint of mirth when he asked, "You're twenty-eight, then?"

You nodded. "Yep." Unfortunately, you thought.

"Oh, that's actually surprising."

A gasp left your mouth. Jungkook was quick to correct himself.

"I meant it's surprising because I thought you were way younger."

Oh.

"Don't flatter me. I won't share my extra beef with you."

"I thought—" He shrugged. "—Early twenties."

"I'm guessing you are in your early twenties." You joked back.

"Okay, now, don't flatter me. I know how old I look." Jungkook said with a dismissive tone, but nevertheless light-hearted. Just like how this whole thing was going.

God, you were so in awe of how good he was at talking to you that he was practically bringing out the extrovert in you you only ever show to exclusive people like Jimin.

"So, you're like, fifty, then?"

Incredulous, Jungkook burst into laughter. "Wow."

"Sorry, just that you sounded like you were five years from retirement! Anyway, you look like we're the same age?"

He shook his head. "Three years older. Turning thirty-one later this year."

Jaw dropped. Not physically, but mentally.

"Oh wow, you're basically—" a fucking DILF! What the hell!

Thankfully you managed to cut yourself off before Jungkook could think you were way off your rocks and embarrass yourself in front of him for eternity. You could just hear Jimin from miles away telling you off about calling thirty-year-old men DILFs even though you didn't know if they had a child.

What do you mean this guy was thirty and why did that just make him even hotter in your head... He's got to stop this madness before you do something completely incomprehensible.

"—A senior." Was the lame thing you came up with to finish your sentence.

"Ouch." Jungkook said, but his word was completely opposite to the expression he was wearing on his face the way he just couldn't suppress the grin that had been visible on his mouth since you started talking.

You brought your hands up.

"Totally didn't mean that in a negative way."

Which was the entire truth. So far, the things you knew about him was that he had tattoos, a nice body, a nice personality, good ass freaking conversationalist, and that he was thirty! Thirty! As in, the peak of male hotness. The evil psychological concept of most men only getting hotter as they age.

"I'm sure, I'm sure," Jungkok nodded. "By the way, are you heading out after this?"

"Oh, yeah. Don't have anywhere else to go. I have a nine A.M tomorrow so..." you shrugged, and he nodded in understanding.

"You work as an accountant, right, from what you told the ahjumma?" Jungkook asked you curiously.

"Yeah... it's a very tedious job." You grimaced a little bit. "What about you?"

He tilted his head a bit, picking up a dumpling on his plate. "I'm a software engineer."

"Oh, that's cool."

You nodded to yourself while you processed what he said.

Works in fucking tech; another thing you just learned about him. 

You weren't actively seeking out guys in tech, but why did they seem to come to you voluntarily? God forbid you saw someone who wasn't in there! Was every man working in tech now? Was Jimin really only being truthful when he said they were exactly your type?

"Have you made any software or is that, like, a wrong assumption about you guys?"

Jungkook merely chuckled at your retort.

"Not entirely, no. I've designed a few software in college—I'm still doing it. I'm just currently doing more business stuff now." He gave you a sheepish smile. "You?"

"Well, it's just... you know—I actually work at a tech company. I'm a junior accountant. And, uh, nothing interesting, really. You get to do cool math like programming, and I get to do boring math like calculating money I don't have. It's always a great day at work." You said, couldn't help the laugh that skipped your mouth at your own sarcasm.

Nothing like joking about hating your job to someone who you just met yesterday.

"Programming and coding are not all that, either. It's tedious and... it's just a really boring job. But... it all pays the bills."

You chuckled.

"Yeah. Totally."

Without minding it, you raised the small glass of soju, initiating a toast, one that Jungkook understood immediately and met you in the middle of it.

The night was still you when you walked out of Midday Miso, but unlike any other nights, it was with Jungkook this time walking beside you.

"So you just—what—hid him for three months?"

"Well, yes! I wasn't about to get a notice for that! And besides, he was really cute. But he's in good hands now, his owner still sends me pictures of him. He's very grown and big."

"That's insane."

You peered at Jungkook who watched you in awe as you told him about the story of Alfredo, the cat whom you rescued on your way home from work a year ago. The landlady obviously had her fair share of rules and regulations in her building, and keeping pets was an absolute no, which was a shame. Definitely wasn't a shame when you first just moved in the complex, but things got lonely sometimes when you were living alone and company was almost a luxury.

Anyway, as told, you managed to keep Alfredo out of the landlady's sight until you found a highly qualified parent on some online forum who you still kept in contact with to this day.

But as you watched Jungkook, you noticed the way his expression fell into something concerning. He looked worried, which made you feel the same way as a result.

"What are you thinking?" You asked him curiously.

"Oh, nah, I was just... thinking. See, I actually have a dog."

"Oh!" You looked at him wide-eyed.

He has a dog; another thing about Jungkook that would qualify him on the regular rounds of hot boy of the month on Twitter dot com. 

"Yeah."

"You didn't read the terms and conditions of the building?" Your eyebrows formed a concerned expression.

Jungkook chuckled and shook his head. "I did. I just—suddenly thought about him, is all. He's being taken care of some place. But, you know, I missed him, and I was thinking about getting him here and showing him around my new place and all that."

"Oh... that's a bummer, then. The landlady's strict, even with the small dogs, can you imagine? Is he small, by the way, your dog?

"He's a Doberman, so definitely a big one."

"He must be really cute. What's his name?"

"Bam." He smiled at you, and you could totally see the pride showing on his face at the mention of his dog. And with a tone that you could only identify as someone who's suppressing his enthusiasm a little bit, he added, "You wanna see a picture of him?"

"Sure!"

Jungkook took out his phone from his pocket and showed you images of a big, chocolate brown dog. Bam definitely wasn't like the other regular Dobermans you'd see around. His ears weren't cropped, and his tail wasn't docked either. You didn't know if the lack of surgery was intentional from his side, but you'd like to think he kept it that way because he knew it hurt the dog greatly. From how you've been knowing him, you were certain he just didn't want to put his dog under unnecessary pain, which was honestly heartwarming to think about.

Jungkook was becoming way too good to be true in you head little by little.

"Awe, he's adorable!" You cooed, especially when he swiped through the picture of his pet, Bam, as a pup in what seemed to be Jungkook's arms based on the familiar tattoos that peeked from the exposed arm as seen on the picture. The tattoos also seemed to be new at that time as well, considering that the skin was still yet to be fully covered like now.

"I'm flattered you think that."

"Where is he, by the way? If you don't mind me asking."

"He's at a... friend's place in New York. He's not very good at flying so I didn't bring him with me here, and I thought, I'll only be here for three months, anyway, so." Jungkook shrugged.

Three months. Well. He did say he was only staying here temporarily.

You nodded. "For business, right?"

"Yeah, yeah."

"You grew up there?" You kicked the stone that was caught at the tip of your shoe, putting your fists in the deeper part of your coat's pockets. Summer may be hot during daytime, but it sure as hell was cold on nights like these.

"Nah, I'm from Busan. Flew to California for college and have been there since. Until now, that is."

Jimin was also from Busan, you thought. Though he said they only lived there for a few years until his parents moved to Seoul, but he made sure to visit his hometown every now and then. Most of the time, he made you come with him which you never had complaints about. You lived in the city all your life so going there, especially in the more urbanized area where you and Jimin stayed. Felt like fresh air—which Busan had, quite literally.

"My best friend's from Busan too."

"Really? What about you?"

You chuckled before answering, "I, unfortunately, did not come from any interesting place. Born and raised in Seoul, through and through. Though my mom told me she lived in Daegu for many years prior to having me."

"Seoul is an interesting place, though."

"Eh. It's okay." You shrugged, and your nonchalance made you both laugh.

The walk to your apartment building from Midday Miso was not that far. Still, it was five blocks away and while you and Jungkook were currently sharing conversation together and seemingly walking the same path, you weren't sure if you were both walking together there.

As if he read your mind, he suddenly spoke after a few minutes of comfortable silence.

"You mind if we walk together to the building?"

You decided to joke to get the jittery feeling out of your system.

"Scared of the dark, Jungkook?"

"Sure... my five-eleven self is."

You squinted your eyes at him. He did not just go there!

"Is that a slight against my height because I'm five-seven, mind you."

Jungkook stopped in his tracks which made you do the same, and you watched as he put his hand on his waist while the other reach up to his face to place a finger over his chin, seemingly assessing you up and down. You looked at him incredulously.

"You're bumping your height to two inches." He seriously said.

You gasped audibly.

"Oh, shut up,"

You rolled your eyes and turned your back at him, continuing your walk as you heard him behind you bursting in laughter at your reaction.

"I'm kidding!"

You first met Jimin at a college party. He was five years older than you, supposedly out of college by the time you attended, but he always had a problem with rebellion–what with his ragged relationship with his parents, he would intentionally flunk his courses as a message to them that he'd always be a black sheep and a proud one at that, hoping it would be enough to convey that they could not force him to be the heir of their company. (Obviously, it had taken him nowhere, given that he was now currently attending a training program to work at said company).

But maybe it was a blessing in disguise that he was set back to five years for graduation. Because you got to know him, and he got to know you.

On the outside, you might look like the total opposite of each other–because Jimin was the definition of extroversion who wasn't afraid to put himself out there–while you, admittedly, were more reserved and usually shied away from any public attention.

As much as you were welcoming to a lot of people, you didn't have a lot of close friends growing up–at least not the kind of friends you'd see on TV shows–but when Jimin came to your life, you clicked so instantly you could not even figure out where you two exactly began.

The instant way you two clicked, you realized, was like your relationship with Jungkook nowadays.

Ever since that night at Midday Miso, you've been seeing a lot of each other. Granted that it was only in the same place, same time. You'd usually arrive past nine and he, a few minutes later. Jungkook, cladded in his slacks and long-sleeved polo, was becoming a usual sight after a shift, and your business casual clothes was turning as one for him as well.

Your usual seating spot became his as nights passed, and ahjumma, thank God, no longer asked you if he was your boyfriend. You were glad that she was slowly getting acquainted with him though, greeting him with a friendlier smile and tone reserved only for customers like you when he entered the restaurant, and Jungkook seemed to welcome the newfound friendship wholeheartedly.

On the consecutive nights you'd spent with him, it was almost as if you lived quite the same life. Though, you didn't know when he went to work. In fact, you didn't see him during the mornings even though in theory, it could be easy, granted that you both lived across each other. But strangely enough, you'd never caught him retiring to his flat to go to the bus station. You assumed he started earlier than you or way later.

You never asked, it never came up either.

Still, there was some sort of tranquility in the thought that you could spend some time with someone after your shift and just talk about whatever–and whatever meant a lot of things. Random at best. You once told him about the first raccoon you met in your life, and he told you all about the lioness he got to watch when he went to a South Saharan trip a few years ago.

Sometimes, the conversation went around what happened in the office that day. Jungkook noticed the little blot of ink on the cuff of your baby blue long sleeves, and you told him about the jammed printer in the accounting department. He'd told you later on about how he almost fucked up a report, said he was nervous because he was taking on a new role in the office.

Those moments were shared in long walks from Midday Miso to your apartment building, because naturally, you both established a small tradition of walking home together after a night of eating your hearts out at ahjumma's restaurant.

It was a rather sweet gesture, if you were honest to yourself. But you chose not to linger too much on the romantic thoughts that floated in your head, especially when you'd notice the way he made sure to walk on the outer side of the sidewalk, and when your fingers got too close the tips almost touched.

Because Jungkook, for how objectively good looking he was, was more than just his pretty face and physique.

He was kind and funny and genuine unlike any other straight men you've met in your life. Maybe the bar was low, but for all the times you've gotten to talk to him, he never showed any signs of ego most men would by the second hour of your meeting.

In the dating scene as an adult, a lot of men would come up to a date talking about how high they were placed at their company's hierarchy and how much they made in a month, and when they hear about yours, they'd always have a backhanded comment about how "you could only go up from there, right?" and those moments were always a bummer. Yawn-inducing, to be more accurate. Men and their predictability was boring and it was the reason why you'd declare to Jimin almost every time you got home from a date that you were retired from looking for them because most men just plainly fucking sucked.

But with Jungkook... was it different.

You found he didn't talk a lot, and one time you asked him if you were doing it–the talking–way too much, but he just chuckled and told you that he didn't mind.

Later on, you learned that he was just more of a listener rather than a talker, and that was not only a pure assumption of yours because he did listen attentively, alright. As for all the random things you've told him about, you never expected him to recall a single thing, not until one time when you passed by a food truck.

"Hey, didn't you say you like sundae?" Jungkook asked, and when you followed where his eyes were, it was at the food truck parked just a few steps ahead from where you both were.

"I do... wow. It's been so long since I saw a food truck around here." You said, following his steps towards the vehicle.

They had tables to dine in, and even if you were still full from eating at Midday Miso that night, the sundae was just too gratifying to decline. Jungkook was the same with the tteokbokki on his small plate, telling you he missed eating at one of these things, as they didn't exactly have anything like this abroad.

After he paid for the food (and of course not without a long, silly, light-hearted argument about it), he came back with two sticks of Melona ice pops which you looked at with widened eyes, animated expression written all over your face especially when he thrusted the purple yam flavor to you.

"Oh my god, how do they have these?"

"I was surprised as well... this is the first time in a while I'm eating this again." Jungkook said and then gestured to the ice pop in your hand, "You like the purple yam, right?"

"Yeah!"

You were about to ask him how he knew, but then you briefly remembered that one time you had a passionate rant about people hating on purple yam ice cream and why they weren't right.

And as you looked at Jungkook, he seemed to remember it all too well.

Jungkook showed genuine interest in the things you'd tell him about. He'd visit the cafes and restaurants you recommended to him as much as he could, and because you've come to exchange numbers with him eventually after almost two weeks of casually hanging out, they sometimes came during lunch break.

1 message received from Jungkook (Unit 446)

That day, you only exchanged contacts the other night, so seeing him on your phone so quickly like that caught you by surprise. It was welcomed though.

Jungkook (Unit 446) [12:36pm]: I went to Cafe Heaven for lunch and loved their ice americano

As soon as you read the first message, another one came.

Jungkook (Unit 446) [12:36pm]: This is Jungkook by the way :)

You laughed at his introduction. As if he didn't see you type his name on your phone last night–like he didn't jokingly complain about you putting the (Unit 446) in there but giving in eventually and also adding (Unit 336) to yours in his own contacts.

You [12:38pm]: Hi Jungkook! You [12:38pm]: im glad u went!!! u should also try their fettuccine alfredo

Seconds later, he sent a picture of the dish you just mentioned which put a smile on your face.

Jungkook (Unit 446) [12:39pm]: i'll get my refund from you if this doesnt taste good

You [12:40pm]: 1 week of friendship and ur already ripping me off 🤐

Jungkook (Unit 446) [12:40pm]: 😁 Jungkook (Unit 446) [12:40pm]: first bite Jungkook (Unit 446) [12:41pm]: second bite

What was he on, you didn't know. But you were glad that he was slowly coming around, his jokes getting more... how would you say it... less polite? He just stopped apologizing after he said them! He usually would in the first few days, but now in your newfound closeness, it was like you were out of that stage where you tiptoed around each other still, feeling the other one out, trying to figure them out, all that stuff.

Nowadays, it was just more natural. Smooth-sailing. Paradoxical, almost, because of how the relationship felt more defined as well as loose.

You found you liked it that way. 

Jungkook (Unit 446) [12:42pm]: I like it 👍🏻

And to your surprise, he sent you a picture of him, indeed, holding a thumbs up.

You'd like to think you were an expert on going along with the tide because even though you would be classified as introvert by most, you did pretty well in forming relationships with people–granted, most of them were fleeting, at best, hence the lack of bigger circles in most of your life–but you were great with making friends, regardless. 

And maybe it was how you ended up with this whole thing with Jungkook. Because you were friendly and open, although you wouldn't dare to take all credits because as you mentioned before, he was a great conversationalist.

He didn't talk much as you said, but he didn't ever make you feel like you were talking way too much because he made sure that you knew he was listening, and when he talked, it was always engaging; conversations with him transitioned to different subjects in perfect seugue you would never noticed how you jumped from Melona ice pops to the existential dread you fought every morning before going to work.   

When it came to humor, Jungkook's was different from Jimin's, of course, and your dynamic with your best friend could never be replicated with somebody else but Jungkook was close to truly becoming your friend, and for that, it was getting easier to ignore his handsome face.

You may have had an embarrassing moment of panicking mentally at seeing such a man in the first meeting, but nowadays, you could hold a conversation with him without thinking how hot he was.

Dare you say, you were starting to think more platonically about him rather than romantically. As you said, you were an expert on going along with the tide.

Or maybe that was too soon a declaration, because there were moments, like now, when you were certain juvenile flirting insisted on happening between you, steering you clear from completely feeling wholly platonic about Jungkook.

"I certainly have a bigger hand than you."

As if you didn't know that, Jungkook brought his hand up to show you it. Confused but not totally minding the whole thing, you proceeded to extend your own hand towards his, pressing them both together. Predictably, his hand could have engulfed the entirety of your own.

Jungkook laughed at the sight, and you didn't know exactly who broke the physical contact first but you were glad it was over as soon as it started.

But you couldn't have forgotten the electric zap along your spine when your hand got so close like that to his. Couldn't have ignored the hot feeling in your cheeks when you were made aware of what you just did.

Wow.

Were you guys flirting? Was he flirting? It was flirting, right? Juvenile, at best, because this was what kids did in high school! And Jungkook's hand was so...

You never imagined what it felt like–never even crossed your mind until now. Expectations about how his hand felt never formed in your head because you sure as hell never thought about that kind of thing happening in the first place, but Jungkook's hand was the right balance of soft and hard. Calloused in a way most men's hands naturally were, and soft like enough comfort when held and touched.

It wasn't clammy, thank god, but you also wouldn't have thought he had clammy hands, solely because he just looked like he didn't. But god, was it big.

And my goodness, did it make you feel things.

You drank your water fast and cleared your throat, subtly, so that he didn't think too much of it.

"O-okay, but that's just genetics. Doesn't mean you could throw stronger punches."

You said in retaliation to one of your useless debates which now covered the coin-operated boxing arcade machine across the bus station nearby.

Jungkook leaned back against the monobloc chair that was definitely way too flimsy for him.

You were currently hanging out at the dining area of the food truck you came across a few days ago, forgoing Midday Miso for the night. Lately, Jungkook and you have been exploring a few more places other than there. You've tried other restaurants nearby, but ultimately, Midday Miso was still the top favorite and the food truck was becoming a staple in lieu of its convenience and just the overall vibe of eating outside and feeling the breeze of summer night air.

"You got me curious about the boxing machine." Jungkook said, crossing his arms.

"I held the highest score there for like a week, you know? Only did it though to impress the kids who liked to watch."

At that, Jungkook's face lit up in interest.

"We should do that sometime."

"Oh... I see, I see. You wanna impress the kids, too?" You playfully accused, squinting your eyes at him.

He chuckled and waved you off.

"It can be a challenge." Jungkook shrugged and looked at you with a hint of mirth in his eyes.

You let out a puff of breath, amused at his obvious antics.

"What's the catch?"

"Well... free boba delivered to your door for a week if you get the higher score. How's that sound?" He looked at you expectantly.

You chuckled before saying, "I'm gonna rip you off so bad, Jungkook."

"Only if you win, though." He said with a mischievous smirk. 

"Oh, wow. When, you mean. When I win. So what's in it for you?" You leaned your elbow on the table and studied his face.

He looked at you for a while, then, the smirk from earlier was wiped off and exchanged with a much gentler smile.

"Home-cooked dinner at my place next week Friday."

Your eyebrows met.

"You want me to cook you something? Jungkook, do you have a death wish? I may either give you unintentional food poisoning or burn your house down, there's no in between."

"No," Jungkook laughed at your insane conclusion. "Sorry, I should've specified. I mean if you lose, I'll be cooking us a meal at my place."

"Oh."

You were left staring at him, a bit dumbfounded.

He just said he wanted to cook you guys a meal. At his place.

He was inviting you to his place. His personal space.

"It won't be better than Midday Miso but I think I can keep up." Jungkook added with a sheepish smile and scratched the back of his head in that seemingly boyish manner.

"Sure..." you responded, a bit delayed, much to your effort of not showing your big surprise at his offer. Before he noticed the way you were not believing what you heard, you chose to quip in a (hopefully) cheeky, "That is if you win, though."

Jungkook only hummed and then nodded.

"If I win."

He said, smiling at you.

This was dangerous.

The whole thing was teetering to something that was not very platonic, and just as you were starting to think this whole thing was!

Jimin always told you that you were bad at flirting, but in your defense, how were you supposed to know, exactly, if someone was flirting with you? A lot of people were friendly like that! Jungkook was maybe like that? Had you shown interest and he noticed so now he was playing into it? But that would be uncharacteristic of him. You didn't think he'd be the type to do something cruel like that...

But the tide was always rising and falling, they said, and the good thing was; you knew how to go along with the current.

So you did what you do best.

"Would you like to donate to the poor?"

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but there's a chance this card's gonna decline because I am the poor."

The cashier looked you in the eye with an even more impassive look she already had before your turn on the counter.

"Could've just said no." She said, punching your order away and you had to shamefully swipe your card and leave to go over where Jimin was.

"The cashier just snubbed me for being poor." You complained to Jimin, moving your coat on the next seat and settling in in yours.

Jimin took a sip from his latte and looked at you dead in the eye and said, "I'll call the manager if you want."

"Fuck off." You retaliated immediately. Jimin snorted at your way too predictable response.

See, this has happened more than what your fingers could count you could not even pinpoint the exact time when Jimin started to joke about going on full Karen-mode when you complained about a single little thing about the places you went to.

Anyway, you were currently on a lunch break when Jimin texted to see if you were free. What better way to spend your lunch than with your best friend? The company's canteen food was getting old and they hiked up their prices. Your office's kitchen also ran out of Solhee's – your coworker – biscuits and so you thought you had to make do of Jimin's money for that day. You told him so and in turn he told you to pay for your pasta — at a café that was way too expensive for its own good.

You stole a bite off his churros, and he rolled his eyes at you.

"Why'd you want to see me, by the way? What's up? You don't have training?" you glanced at your wristwatch, reading 12:40pm. Soon, you were casually taking over his plate of churros. For how ridiculously priced it was, it sure tasted good as hell.

"I got the day off." Jimin shrugged.

You eyed him suspiciously, "Did you really...?"

It was a few seconds before Jimin gave in and took back his plate.

"Okay, no, I ditched the training today but for the record it's for a very important reason."

You put your hand over your chest and contorted your face in an awed, touched expression.

"The important reason being... meeting me?"

"Ew, no," Was Jimin's quick, disgusted, response – which earned a laugh from you as usual.

From your peripheral vision, you saw the waiter heading towards your direction and so you waited for him to come over and serve you your pasta. After thanking him, you huddled closer to your best friend and asked, "Okay, what is it then?"

Jimi pursed his lips, making your eyebrows meet.

"It's kinda... bummer news."

"You're pregnant?"

"No, you'd be way too happy and I can't be a single dad," He shook his head as if not even wanting to imagine that.

"Namjoon looks like he's gonna take care of it with you." You sing-sang, sipping on your coffee and winking at him indiscreetly – indiscreetly because you never knew how to wink properly.

What you did not expect, was the look on Jimin's face when you mentioned Namjoon.

"Well..." He trailed off, and you waited for it curiously; waiting for him to say something in return because your conversation was always quick-witted like that. But right now, Jimin's expression was devoid of any jokes. 

Not something you expected when you just mentioned his boyfriend.

"I—did something happen?" You quickly dropped the teasing tone and exchanged it with a concerned one, eyes looking at him with worry.

Jimin closed his eyes for a while and let out a deep breath. "See, that's the bummer news."

"Do you want to tell me? Or we can just—"

He cut you off before you could even finish your sentence. But he did it with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. And this was Jimin. His eyes did not not reach his eyes when he smiled!

"He's going to Italy."

"Oh."

When the pause prolonged for over a minute, with you looking at him with gaped mouth, Jimin let out a heavy sigh once again and shook his head.

"I know. It's work... and I always understood that. He travels a lot and we're both okay with it. But it was usually just around the country, not another continent. I mean, what did he mean Italy? And that's not even the worst part. He knew a month ago he was going but he only told me two days ago and he's leaving Thursday," Jimin looked at you to take a pause. You thought, that's tomorrow. As if he read your mind, he nodded, "I know."

"Oh, Jimin..." You said, out of words.

Jimin and Namjoon had been together for over a year. At least, officially, because they spent the last three years they've known each other just casually hooking up on and off. You liked them together and were glad when they finally put a label on it – exactly why you knew Namjoon enough to not badmouth him when you usually would men, and you knew perfectly well that he genuinely cared about your best friend and loved him. So if Jimin was at a loss for this obvious mistake on Namjoon's part, even more so you were.

"He's been blowing up my phone ever since." Jimin added, glancing at his phone on the table. "Intentionally didn't charge my phone today so I don't receive his calls and texts."

And then you remembered.

"Oh, that's why he texted me yesterday. He asked about you, and I told you through text but you didn't answer." Things were starting to make sense now, and as you observed Jimin's face, they were getting clearer. "You never talked since?"

Jimin pursed his lips. He took his coffee back to his mouth and sipped while looking away. "Nope."

"Jimin." You tilted your head.

He looked at you again and there was now a pout on his lips.

"I know. I just..."

"He could've told you sooner?" He nodded at your words. You mirrored that. "He should have. Italy is not Busan, you know? It's not just a train ride away."

Jimin sighed, looking exasperated now. "I told him that exactly. I'm not even mad he's going to Italy, I just think I deserve to know right after he was told about it, you know?"

You nodded. "You should really talk. It sounds like he wants to apologize, anyway, given that he's now trying to talk to me to get through you."

"Sorry you got caught up in this. I'm gonna talk to him about it."

"Eh, it's fine. Joon and I are also friends, you know?" You shrugged, genuinely not minding Namjoon coming to you. 

You liked Namjoon and thought that he was the perfect match for Jimin. They were cute together and just seemed to... take the best out of each other. You'd go to any lengths to keep them together, as long as Jimin wanted Namjoon and as his boyfriend. You've seen Jimin go from relationships to relationships, some just fleeting and simple dalliances, and most destructive and were just... not good for him. You've never seen your best friend truly happy and committed in a romantic relationship other than with Namjoon, and as someone who cared about him, you'd do a lot of things to make him happy.

"Here's another thing, his flight is tomorrow at 11:30pm in the evening. Mom's birthday dinner is at 10." Jimin usually had his composure everytime, and it was very rarely you'd see him show any worry because he liked everybody to think he was in control of every situation. You smiled. Classic Jimin. He'd only ever show his true nature to you though, and that was exactly why he looked at you with worried eyes and continued to say, "I really wanna be there to send him off."

The call time for his mother's party was at 10 and naturally people would start swarming in way past that time. If Jimin were to sneak out way too early, you knew his mother was not going to be happy about it and his father would give him an even bigger shit for it. Sure, he could cancel, but what would he say? That their supposed cishet son is sending off his boyfriend at the airport for the night? He couldn't reason work either because he didn't exactly have one. And after having his wrongful DUI accusation last spring– which was actually already settled, on the grounds that it was definitely not DUI and the owner of the other car just overreacted to a fender bender, the media was adamant on tactically using that to taint his family's company image and it succeeded – and it was exactly why Jimin had been laying low these past few months. Going to training programs, obeying his parents more than usual, doing what they wanted...

You sighed. Your best friend deserved so much better.

"Don't worry, I'll find a way to get us to leave early." You told him after awhile.

Jimin arched his brow, intrigued.

Waving him off, you said, "I can fake something."

As if hearing some magic words, Jimin suddenly perked up.

"No way you're using the diarrhea card?"

Giving him a dirty look, you shook your head. "Nah, not during a dinner party. It's gotta be something new and less... gross."

"Oh, oh!" Jimin put a finger over his lip. "What about a sprained ankle? Can you pull that off?"

You deadpanned. "Okay, you ought to pay me more if you want me to do that."

"I can, but I won't. Stop ripping me off, I'm your best friend."

"Jimin, I'll save you from your family. I'm great at this." You said jokingly, but you hoped that he knew you weren't just jesting and were serious about it.

With the appreciation masking your best friend's face, though, you knew he got the message right away. As you looked at him longer, you realize that he was about to say something and you quickly pulled back, shaking your head.

Jimin quickly reacted. "No! You know what, I'm gonna say it—"

"Don't say it." You quickly cut him off, giggling while you shake your cup of coffee.

"You can't keep me from saying I—"

"Jimin, I will tell everybody in this place you watch dubbed anime, I'm serious."

He gasped, quite dramatically.

"You did not just go there!" Then, he lowered his voice a bit, arching his brow at you, vindicative when he said, "You wore skinny jeans a month ago."

"How dare you, you wore a fuckass poncho last week. I saw on your IG story."

"That was from Namjoon and he also gave you one, FYI."

You grimaced. "Tell him I love him but I'm not wearing a poncho, Jimin."

"I was gonna tell you I love you and that you're the best person ever but now I have to rethink all of that." He rolled his eyes, and when the banter ended with you having the last words, you laughed at his face.

"God, you're just never beating me at this."

"Please, we both know you write your mediocre insults on your diary every night trying to one-up me, __. But let's talk about something else."

"I'm not even gonna acknowledge the diary thing but, sure, shoot." You said, starting to eat your pasta.

Jimin looked at your food and grimaced. "Is that shrimp? Your doctor is growing grey pubes as we speak," He commented, and you knew he was referring to your shrimp allergy so you shushed him.

"This is vegan shrimp. It's tofu."

He just shook his head, disagreement written on his face.

"Anyway, how's Mr. 446?"

The pasta suddenly got on the wrong track.

"Girl," Jimin was quick to offer you the glass of water on his side and you were just as fast to drink it. "You okay?"

"I'm sure there are existing cases of people dying because food got on the wrong track while they're eating, but yeah, sure, I'm okay." When you finished the water, you looked at Jimin who was just doing the same thing.

Crossing his arms, he eyed you expectantly. "Well?"

"I mean... what do you want me to say?" you told him, and you could've sworn to not show anything on your face but now there was a huge smile on it and for some reason, you couldn't help it.

Jimin's jaw dropped. Expressions of disbelief and amusement when he asked you curiously, "What do you mean by that?"

"Okay, look, Jimin—" You scratched the back of your head. "He told me we'd get dinner at his place if he wins this... thing this Friday."

His mouth was agape by then and you couldn't help but laugh.

"You... slut."

You would absolutely be rolling off the floor if you weren't at a public place the moment he mouthed the word, but still, you couldn't help but retort back.

"Shut up, you can't be the only one whoring around in this friendship." Jimin snorted at that and you both had to stifle your laughter when you noticed a woman from across the room eyeing you both. This was one of the reasons why you Jimin and you didn't belong in a public place together other than bars or clubs – because you were way too rowdy for civilization.

"So you're saying you're whoring around?" He eyed you suspiciously.

"Wrong information. It's actually kind of platonic."

Jimin quickly waved you off. "Babe, if a guy invites you to his place, nothing is ever platonic about it. What do you think you'll do together there? Stare at each other for two hours straight?"

"Okay, you're being insane about this. It's just dinner. And anyway, we had some sort of deal about it so it's not definite."

Your best friend just shrugged. "I'm all for it. But you're sure he isn't a serial killer, right?"

"Jimin, god, no," you chuckled at that. "I mean, I don't really know for sure, but we're friends now and as far as I know, he's never shown signs of psychopathy."

Jimin and you hadn't hung out in a while, so you haven't really told him all about Jungkook yet and the things you got to know about him. He didn't even know his name. As far as he was concerned, Jungkook was still Mr. 446, and you were fine keeping it that way. He had a lot on his plate right now, anyway.

"Just being cautious." He sing-sang, putting both his hands in the air.

You shook your head.

"Anyway, we also need to talk about what we're gonna wear this tomorrow," Jimin suddenly said. "You got the Pinterest board I sent you, right? For the inspo."

Grinning, you grabbed your iPad from your bag and got to the link immediately. Your phone died on the way to the café, and good thing you had another device and brought it with you.

"I also added a few things in here. Gold and black's the theme, right?" You clarified, scrolling through the board you and Jimin both contributed to. Jour best friend took it upon himself to transfer seats so he could be beside you and look at your screen at the same tim.

"You're gonna look so good in Schiaparelli, babe," Jimin said while checking out the pictures you added.

"It's just an inspo, I don't actually need to wear a Schiaparelli." You chuckled.

"Who do you think your best friend is?"

You both laughed at that but it stopped when a notification popped up on your computer. Recognizing the address as your work email, you were quick to hover over it and were about to open it to see the full message, but then as soon as you did that, your iPad suddenly died.

"Shoot." You looked at Jimin with a straight face. "I forgot to plug it in. Didn't notice the battery."

Jimin grimaced. "Didn't bring any power cable."

"We'll have to do with a phone. Mine died."

You were just about to ask him for his but then you remembered what he said about avoiding Namjoon, hence, his phone was of no use either. 

"We're gonna have to freestyle."

Last year, Mrs. Park's party was held at a theater hall – your first time at one, by the way.

Tonight, it was at their mansion.

You've only ever been to the Park's a total of one time, which was now. Stepping a foot inside here for the first time in your life, the house felt unreal. It was the epitome of money and wealth and everything regal in the world – like a palace of some sort. They had butlers and guards at the gates so maybe that wasn't an exaggeration, but damn, Jimin truly came from money.

Regardless of how shiny the whole building was in both literal and figurative senses though, there was an emptiness to it. It didn't look lived in – which was a fair assumption for a house this big. It definitely did not look like people liked staying here, and maybe that was true, because as soon as he turned 18, Jimin moved away and lived in his own place ever since. You asked him on your way here and he told you it was his first time this year to visit his own house.

The decoration was sick, though. Granted, they must have surely hired people to do it but at least they'd hired excellent ones. You wouldn't have expected anything less from Jimin's mom.

Jimin and you arrived at 10pm sharp, and thankfully, people were already starting to fill the place up. It was now past 15 minutes to 10pm since you arrived and there really was nothing different that went on from last year; you saw some familiar faces, politicians, and celebrities. Jimin introduced you to some people as his girlfriend, and you to have quick chats with his model friends.

You knew it didn't actually matter if you thought about it carefully, but there was truly nothing compared to the feeling you get when you see someone in the flesh that you only see on TV all your life. You didn't feel lucky to see them in person, per se, you were just poured over the realization that these people were actually real and they weren't just some sort of simulation to keep the entertainment industry of your country going.

Although, you did meet Han Sol – an actress whose works you genuinely admired. Jimin just told you her husband was his second cousin.

It wasn't later that Jimin and you were invited to his family's table, where some of his cousins and immediate family were.

The greetings went pretty normal. Normal as in: Jimin's mom didn't say anything about your weight first thing first, again. Granted, she didn't try to hide the look of disappointment on her face when she saw you with his son. Probably reeling at the fact that you were still "dating" each other even after a year. His father, meanwhile, was... quiet. As usual. A man who obviously didn't really say much except ask Jimin about the training program and his siblings' jobs.

Mr. Park didn't really talk to you, just like last year. Like you were almost invisible to him – and you were glad that was the case. He probably didn't like to acknowledge your supposed relationship in the first place. Probably knew that you were working a middle-class job and didn't want to know any further. But at least, he wasn't saying anything. That was nice.

"Where's your cousin?" Asked Jimin's mom suddenly, looking at his son.

"He said he got caught up in traffic. Sent 20 minutes ago." Jimin shrugged. You would ask him about which cousin they were referring to but they had like millions of it at these events so you didn't bother.

Mrs. Park shook her head disapprovingly. "That kid. Always late to the family dinners. Did Junghyun ever teach—"

"Hey,"

Your attention was then focused to the man who just arrived. Black tie, tall... dashing. Jimin was a good-looking individual and his family, as evil as they may be as per his words, were blessed with good genes. If you were to look at the new man that arrived to the table very carefully, you'd say he almost looked familiar.

"Oh, Junghyun!"

Jimin glanced at you and discreetly mouthed, "Cousin."

"Aunt, happy birthday." He said after laughing at Jimin's mother coos. He looked across the table and continued, "Hi, uncle. Jaeyul, Sunghoon, Jimin." They all greeted him back and you could feel the hairs on your nape starting to stand up when his eyes landed on you once again. "And this is...?"

"Oh, that's Jimin's girlfriend, __." Jaeyul, Jimin's brother said.

"Oh?" Junghyun immediately looked at Jimin, eyes not hiding his shock. When you trained your eyes on Jimin, you felt his fake smile. "That's great, man. I didn't know you had a girlfriend. Anyway, sorry I'm a bit late, got caught up in traffic."

"How about you, Junghyun? Got a girlfriend yet?" Jimin asked as soon as Junghyun sat on the opposite side of the long table.

You could see Jimin's mother's curiosity peaking at that.

"Tell us, dear. Last time you were dating Kang Iseul, right? The actress. You're still with her?"

Everybody at the table nodded while you almost choked on the smoked quail you were eating. He was dating Kang Iseul? She was a popular actress who announced a hiatus three years ago. That actress Kang Iseul?

Junghyun chuckled and shook his head. "Nah, aunt, that was my brother."

"Oh well. I just wish your brother stops dating that woman. I never really liked that girl. She acts way too self-righteous! I mean, who cut ties with their billionaire father and live independently just so they can say they're self-made? It's ridiculous." Jimin's mother said in that usual snotty tone of hers, and you could not possibly process all of what was going on.

If it wasn't clear to you a moment ago, it was crystal now. Unfortunately, you were a bit chronically online and were there in real time when one random tweet blew up about Kang Iseul being a nepotism baby. But was this guy's brother really dating her? The most important and concerning thing, though, is that: why was Jimin's mom always so annoying about whom her family members date? And this was not even her immediate family, mind you.

"Jina," Jimin's father had a warning tone when he called her but Jimin's mom just shrugged him off with a "tsk!"

"Kids are so ungrateful nowadays, don't you think? Anyway, Junghyun dear, you remember about the Kang gala I told you about two months ago?" Jimin's mom looked pointedly at Jimin and you bit your lip.

Of course, here comes her passive aggressive disapproval of you. 

"Kang Heesu and her sister Kang Hani will be there. Heesu is a wonderful woman," she chuckled, looking over at Jimin's direction subtly. You had to physically restrain yourself from rolling your eyes. Couldn't she be more obvious about acting as a wingman for Jimin and Heesu? But she continued, just like she always did. "Kang Hani works in tech, Junghyun. Tell your brother to chance a date with her. Pretty lady."

Junghyun just awkwardly laughed. "I'll tell him about it"

Jimiin's father suddenly spoke, making everyone look at him.

"Where is that kid?" He said, authority dripping through his voice. Jimin was obviously not close to his father, and who would be? Mr. Park was way too intimidating. You found it funny to think if he ever did anything remotely paternal towards his children.

"We were supposed to go together but he said he had something to finish. He'll be arriving later."

"I see." Jimin's father nodded. "Still practicing law, Junghyun?"

Junghyun responded with a "yes" and they started to talk about this other guy they mutually knew. 

You knew Jimin's complicated family was composed of all sorts of professionals, but damn, they had lawyers in here too. It was like out of a career day event at grade schools.

"I heard Gukka's going to be CEO?" Jimin's mother said, joining the conversation.

You were glad they were doing all the talking. Last year, they talked to you like they were interrogating you and that was not nice.

"Well, dad's not giving up the company so soon. Gukka's going for interim CTO first." Junghyun said with a polite smile.

Gukka. That must be the brother of Junghyun, although it sounded more like a nickname than a real name.

"Your brother's a hard worker. He's looking at a CEO position, some are still at training programs." Jimin's father remarked with a pointed tone.

Oh, fuck me, you thought to yourself.

You tried subtly looking at Jimin to see if he was okay or anything, but you felt him squeezing your wrist under the table. His face was devoid of any emotion as he continued with his own food.

Junghyun, meanwhile, was obviously taken aback by the response and also looked over at Jimin but was quick to recover. He probably knew that was a jab at his cousin just like every other person in the room. Atmosphere grew tense, and you had to squirm in your seat a little bit.

"Training programs help a lot, though." Junghyun awkwardly laughed.

"Well, you're lawyering. Trainings are important. Mine's kinda stupid." Jimin said which made everybody look at him, including you.

"You're learning anything yet, son?" His father pointedly looked at him.

"We'll see."

Jimin's dismissive tone made you feel the eye roll he would've done after saying that.

Look, he rebelled for the most part of his life so him being passive-aggressive towards his family was not a new thing, but to witness it was both nerve-wracking and honestly... funny. His parents were such assholes so they probably deserved his attitude.

Mrs. Park smiled a fake one before looking at you.

"Well, what about you __ dear? You're a... what was that again? How is that going for you?"

Because you wanted to piss them off, you mirrored her fake smile and said, "I got fired six months ago at my accounting job."

"Pft—" you pinched Jimin's arm at his reaction.

Of course he'd laugh at that. You asked him how you could piss his parents off tonight just to get back at them from last year and he told you to pretend to be unemployed or you work a minimum wage job because that was their biggest ick. Jimin didn't know you were going to come through.

"Oh."

The look on Jimin's mom's face looked as if she heard the most scandalous thing ever, and if his father's frown was deep even before the dinner started, it was now below the ground. It felt satisfying to get those looks on their faces. Good! They were such assholes. Imagine getting devastated at someone being unemployed? Okay – for the record, being unemployed was devastating but these people weren't sympathizing with that, they found it humiliating in an elitist way– criminal almost. 

You nodded, your lips almost getting tired from stretching them too far.

"Yeah. Anyway, I started working at a local burger joint. You should visit us sometime."

"I'm vegan." Jimin's mom said, her face now drained with the fake joy she's worn all night.

"We have vegan options." you quipped. Jimin once again made a sound beside you, hiding his laughter.

"Wait, really? They offer vegan options at a street burger joint?" Sunghoon, the youngest of the Park brothers, asked.

You almost laughed at the genuine curiosity in his voice. He was still a high school kid and from what Jimin told you, he was a nice kid. He wasn't very close to any of his brothers, though.

"Nah, it's the only one in town." You bullshit one more time, drinking the wine beside you. "Sorry, can I excuse myself for a minute?"

They nodded and you stood up, heading to the bathroom, brisking once you got out of their sight to get there more quickly.

It was now 10:30 pm – meaning, you had to do something to get Jimin out of here now if he wanted to be on time at the airport to send off Namjoon.

Once you get inside, you looked at yourself in the mirror and sighed. 

This whole thing was sucking the shit out of your soul, but you needed to get through it.

It took you awhile to finish your pep talk in the bathroom.

If only you could've have locked yourself in there to avoid socializing with anybody, you willingly would. But you were running out of time and unfortunately, you had something to do and that was to fake some illness to get both Jimin and you out of here.

When you got out to approach the family's table one more time, you suddenly stopped in your tracks.

The table was at least fifteen meters away from where you stood, but you could clearly see the side in which Jimin's cousin, Junghyun, sat, facing your direction. He wasn't the issue – no, far from it. It was the guy beside him who wore the same set of black tie as him; the face attached to the body who wore it though, was someone you did not expect to see.

Why the fuck was Jungkook, Unit 446, here?!

Why did he look so comfortable with the Parks? Why was he at the family table laughing and conversing with everybody, including Jimin? Why did he seem like he went to many of these, like this was just another Thursday for him?

There was a waiter who walked past you and you were grateful for it because had it not been the case, people would start to get weirded out about you standing on the same place longer than necessary, looking stoned.

"I'll take this," You told the waiter and grabbed the glass of champagne and quickly turned on your heels, heading to the opposite side of the family table where the Parks, and apparently, Jungkook were.

You found yourself heading to the bathroom again, your feet seemingly developing a mind of its own as it led you there unconsciously. You knew you'd be in trouble if they found out about you putting the champagne glass in the sink, but you needed to get inside the toilet and think over everything that was happening tonight.

What the fuck. What the fuck!  Again, why the hell was Jungkook here?

As far as you knew, he was just a regular man that happened to be living across from you. He was just supposed to be some guy you were regularly hanging out with nowadays. Your friend. Your crush – whatever! What he wasn't supposed to be is be here at your best friend's mother's birthday party and hanging out with his family!

Your phone dinged, a message notification from Jimin welcoming you.

cuntress #1 [10:32pm]: girl what happened I saw u going back to the bathroom?

You didn't know why it was suddenly too hot, but you felt the balls of sweat starting to form on the side of your forehead.

You [10:33pm]: im going with the diarrhea excuse

cuntress #1 [10:32pm]: tbh idc atp I just wanna go to joon 😔

"Shit!"

Right! Joon. Namjoon. Jimin needed to go to Nmajoon as soon as possible.

cuntress #1 [10:33pm]: also another cousin has arrived u rmr jeon jungkook he's junghyun's brother cuntress #1 [10:33pm]: love this guy but moms starting to compare me to him and I need out right NEOW

You could just feel the blood draining from your face as soon as you read Jungkook's name in the text.

Jeon Jungkook. Jungkook. Gukka. Kook-a.

You started to replay some memories in your head, trying to figure out if you've ever heard Jungkook talk about his family in one of your conversations. But as far as you remembered, he never did. All you knew about him was that he was from the States, and he only got here because of work and he had a dog and his cousin was not Park fucking Jimin, your best friend.

Pacing around the confined space of the toilet, you tried to wrack your brain if you've ever mentioned Jimin to him and in the event that you did, why he never told you that he was his cousin – but you came up blank. Blank because you never told him about your best friend's name... and in turn, Jimin didn't know what Mr. 446's name was, either. They were both genuinely oblivious about the whole thing and couldn't have made you a fool in the situation.

In short, you were the one who was stupid as hell for not connecting the dots sooner.

"Hey, you just landed?"

If it was a private conversation Jimin would've left the room but since he didn't, you decided to stay in bed, kind of listening in to the conversation, but also not, as you turned the volume down of the show you were watching earlier on your laptop.

"Nah, you want me to pick you up?" Jimin sat up on the edge of the bed and you looked at him curiously. "Sure, I'm free, Kook. You have a place to stay? Hotel suite or something?" He nodded to whatever the other person was saying on the other line. "Oh, you're here for three months? Thought you were just flying in for mom's birthday?"

It was moments after they said goodbye that Jimin turned to you to ask, "Well, my cousin's apparently staying here for three months. Got this job thing going on."

"Fuck me." You hissed, remembering that time when Jimin told you about his cousin staying here for three months because of a job thing going on.

cuntress #1 [10:35pm]: gurl ur making me nervous and ur also taking way too long in the bathroom cuntress #1 [10:35pm]: its either ur taking a guinness world record breaker piss there or u really do have diarrhea now and ur shitting cuntress #1 [10:36pm]: anyway get this, jungkook's gonna be acting cto at your company did u know that??????????????????

You almost dropped your phone upon reading the last message.

What the hell did he mean by that?

Heart beating fast as if it wanted to break out of your own ribcage, you closed your eyes and read Jimin's message once again. There was no way he would be shitting you about any of this. He knew where you worked at and you knew your current company was his uncle's, and now that you knew Jungkook was his cousin...

Shit. Was this what they were talking about at the table earlier? About Junghyun saying his brother was gonna be interim CTO? Did he mean Jeon Jungkook all along? Your freaking neighbor?

Suddenly, you remembered about the message you received from your work email earlier that you never bothered to check again because you simply forgot about it – who even actually checks their work email? Literally no one. You spend your weeks facing your computer while email flew in like porn ads on a shady website, you weren't about to willingly go to the app and check it on your leisure time.

But maybe you should have.

Fingers involuntarily shaking in their wake as you switched to your work email on your phone, you clicked on the recent unread message that was on top from the HR department.

Subject: Invitation to Assembly Meeting: Announcement of Interim CTO Dear Blue Nexus Inc. employee, I hope this email finds you well. We would like to inform you that an assembly meeting has been scheduled on July 29, 2028, 10:00 am at the AVR Hall 5, 12th floor. The purpose of this meeting is to announce the appointment of our interim Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Mr. Jeon Jungkook. As you may be aware, our previous CTO, Mr. Shin Juman, is currently on medical leave recovering from a stroke. While he is recuperating and undergoing treatment, it has become necessary for us to appoint an interim CTO  for an indefinite period of time to ensure the continuity and effectiveness of our operations. Your presence at this meeting is highly valued as we introduce the new leadership to the team and outline our strategic direction moving forward. Light refreshments will be served. Thank you for your attention to this matter. We look forward to seeing you at the assembly meeting. Best regards, HR Department

You knew that feeling when you were just taking hits and hits? This was it.

So not only was Jeon Jungkook Jimin's cousin, he was also gonna be the interim CTO of the company you were currently working at. He was technically going to be your boss, and you would be both working in the same place all the while living across each other where he would see you taking out your trash every Sunday morning in your worn-out highschool PE shirt and pants. He was going to be your boss working at the company you complained to him about on the nights you walked together to your shared apartment complex.

You flirted with Jungkook. You flirted with the guy who was the son of the owner of your whole company building – and not only that, he was your best friend's cousin, to add salt to injury.

You [10:38pm]: jimin we need to get out of here

cuntress #1 [10:38pm]: ive been saying

You [10:38pm]: but i cant go out there again. Just tell them i had a problem in the bathroom??

cuntress #1 [10:38pm]: ok on it  cuntress #1 [10:38pm]: im kind of convinced u shitted in there tho????????

You rolled your eyes, but at the same found an opportunity in that. Jimin can't know the truth.

You [10:39pm]: u cant judge me for having a very human experience fuck u

cuntress #1 [10:39pm]: KJAHFKGSIDFHDSHASFHSKJBF

You [10:39pm]: im literally doing this for u and joon

cuntress #1 [10:39pm]: IKNOW!!!!!!!!!!!!thanks to ur stomach problems cuntress #1 [10:39pm]: im going there

You [10:40pm]: make sure they don't see us again to really sell the whole im-embarassed thing

cuntress #1 [10:40pm]: ON IT! Were going out the back door I don't think they'll notice

You couldn't even find it in you to laugh a little bit at your silly exchange and scheme, because you were way too stressed about what you just found out.

You let out a controlled, heavy breath, leaning your back on the door and shut your eyes aggressively.

"What the hell am I gonna do after this?"

all right reserved © awrkive, 2024. no reposts, modification, and copying allowed. if you enjoy my work/s and have the extra means, please consider supporting me on ko-fi <3

[afterglowkatie]

no one but you | k.c.c.

kyra cooney-cross x reader | 4k | you and kyra finally confess your feelings for each other

ˏˋ°•*⁀ this is part of the pair of pests universe. you can thank my sudden lack of desire to sleep lately, definitely not posting this at almost 3am, and to focus solely on getting my energy out through writing to have this part now and for how long it is! please let me know what you think! hope you enjoy it! :)

Leah carefully slipped out from underneath you, careful not to wake you up just yet. She ended up staying the night, not feeling comfortable leaving you in the state that you had found yourself in. The mix of the alcohol and mental exhaustion had you passing out fairly quickly and easily once Leah had gotten you into comfy clothes and settled down into bed.

She had thought about sleeping on the couch but she knew that you needed more than just a presence in the house. You needed to feel safe and holding you while you slept seemed to ease her worries about you a little bit as well as make you more comfortable and content to ignore your thoughts and let yourself sleep.

Leah knew you were in no state last night to talk about anything but she knew she would have to bring it up today. You caught her off guard but she held nothing against you and your actions. The rare moment you let down your walls, Leah could see a world of pain hiding behind your eyes. 

All of the thoughts and feelings you had pushed away to deal with at a later time had caught up with you, not being able to hold it all in any longer. You were, in a way, glad that it happened with Leah of all people and not someone random and glad it didn’t happen with Kyra in that way. 

Leah opened your bedroom door, instantly being met with a smell coming from the kitchen that made her own stomach grumble. Steph had come home not that long after Leah had taken you back to the apartment. After you left, Kyra didn’t stick around and then the rest of the girls started to make their way back to their own homes. 

‘Oh, morning Leah,’ Steph eyed Leah quizzically, noticing that she was in the same clothes she had worn last night, ‘I didn’t know you stayed, there’s enough here for you as well,’ Steph got out another plate and sorted out breakfast for the three of you.

‘Yeah,’ Leah breathed out slightly while grabbing a cup to get some water for you knowing that you would definitely be needing it this morning. Leah didn’t want to tell Steph about the kiss last night, especially not without talking to you about it first, ‘Just wanted to make sure she was okay, put a movie on, it was late,’ Leah trailed off, mumbling an excuse so Steph didn’t get the wrong idea while not giving away what exactly happened.

‘Leah, chill,’ Steph laughed, amused at the rambling, ‘It’s obvious nothing happened, I’ve never seen you look at her that way. Even last night while dancing I noticed you still tried to keep a slight distance between you both,’ Leah let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding, thankful she wasn’t on the end of a different kind of conversation, ‘Plus if anyone, even you, tried anything on her when she was that drunk would have a death wish by me,’

‘She’s in safe hands with me,’ Leah was genuine, she had known you for as long as she’d known Steph, you were a good friend to Leah.

‘I know,’ Steph smiled at Leah, ‘By the way, how is she?’ The one question Leah didn’t want to be asked right now. She really didn’t know how to answer. You weren’t okay, that much was clear, but she didn’t want to worry your sister just yet.

‘I’m going to talk to her,’ Leah half smiled and Steph nodded in understanding, not pushing anything further. Steph had planned on talking to you but she would leave it up to Leah, fully trusting her and trusting that if need be either you or Leah would go to Steph, ‘I’ll come grab the plates once she’s woken up,’ Steph put two of the plates in the oven to keep them warm.

Leah made her way back to your room, smiling when she saw Calvin sitting at your bedroom door softly whining wanting to be let in. You normally slept with your door slightly open so Calvin could come and go as he wanted. Apart from Kyra, Calvin was your favourite cuddle buddy, ‘She’s going to need all your love, you think you can do that?’ Leah ran her hand over the top of his head while Calvin looked up at her wagging his tail knowing she was going to open the door soon enough.

‘Mornin’ Calvy,’ You groaned, waking up to the weight of the dog jumping on top of you accompanied by the slobber he was leaving on your face. Though his presence made you smile and you gave him the biggest hug you could manage having still only just woken up.

Though your bubble that existed of just you and Calvin burst when you noticed Leah’s figure still standing in the doorway moving to close the door behind her. Your face heated up remembering about the kiss from last night. You hid your head under your pillow, groaning and wishing that you could suddenly disappear from the inevitable conversation you were about to have with Leah.

‘C’mon you don’t have to hide from me,’ Leah’s voice was softer than usual, setting the water down on the side table. Sitting down on the bed next to you, Leah gently lifted the pillow off your head, a small reassuring smile from Leah that contrasted the frown your own lips were making, ‘There you are,’ 

You rolled your eyes, moving your body to sit up against the headboard, hugging your pillow close while Calvin curled up at the end, laying on your feet. You sighed, putting your head into your hands, ‘I’m sorry, Leah,’ You mumbled into the pillow, Leah only just catching exactly what you had said.

‘You don’t have to apologise,’ Leah started off, her hand resting gently on your back, her touch grounding you from the thoughts that were starting to swirl around your head again, ‘Just talk to me, what’s going on up there?’

You sighed softly, moving so you were sitting cross legged and facing Leah. Nervously you were chewing on your bottom lip, not knowing where to start. Wondering if you should address the kiss or just blurt out your newly realised feelings for your best friend. You started fidgeting with your fingers, looking down before deciding on how you were going to approach or put into words how you were feeling.

‘I like Kyra,’ You mumbled. It felt different actually saying it from just thinking it. It both overwhelmed you and felt like a weight was being lifted from your shoulders. You could actually say it, but then when you said it that’s when it felt even more real. The realness of it all is what overwhelmed you. You still thought that Kyra liked someone that wasn’t you. Maybe if you talked about your feelings it’ll be easier for you to get over them and carry on as if you didn’t like your best friend.

‘Hate to break it to you but I’m not Kyra,’ Leah smirked, your face tinting a slight pink when you realised she was referring to the kiss last night. Not that you would tell Leah, but when you kissed her you were only thinking of Kyra. 

‘Oh shut up,’ You threw the pillow at Leah, smiling and laughing a little, ‘Just forget about it,’ You shook your head, hiding again back in the comfort of your hands.

‘Not a chance. I’ll keep it between us for now though,’ You didn’t expect Leah to go tell everyone about it but relief flooded your body at her words, instantly relaxing back into the bed, ‘You’ve got soft lips by the way, Kyra will be lucky when she gets the chance to feel them,’ 

‘God you’re so annoying,’ You rolled your eyes, pushing Leah’s arm slightly, ‘I think she likes someone else anyway,’ Leah watched you deflate, your smile dropping off your face, moving to pull you into her side, rubbing your side gently.

‘Are you serious?’ Leah’s eyebrows raised while she looked down at you. You returned her gaze but confusion was visible on your face, ‘Have you not seen the way Kyra looks at you? That girl really likes you, it’s so obvious,’ Leah’s words got into your head. You started thinking back through your previous recent interactions with Kyra. You didn’t want to overthink or read into things too much, but there could be a chance that everything wasn’t as friendly as you thought it to be.

You didn’t know what to think though. Everything was still so confusing for you and you felt your head start to spin again with all the what ifs. You didn’t want to ruin anything you had with Kyra, but you knew you couldn’t keep going on only just being her friend. Even if you could magically wake up one day and all your romantic feelings towards Kyra would be gone, there’s a part of you that wouldn’t even want that. You love and hate the way you feel for her. 

‘I don’t know, Le,’ You sighed, laying your head on Leah’s shoulder, running your hand over your face.

‘I think you just need to talk to her. I know it’s scary but it’s what’s best for the both of you. I’m not letting you run off and try to get a transfer just because you don’t want to face this,’ It was like Leah could read your mind. Not liking that she knows you well enough to know that you’d rather run from your problems than face them head on, ‘I’ll always support you. You have me, Steph and all your teammates both club and country to lean on. We’ve all got you, no matter what,’ 

Leah always had a way with her words, knowing what to say to make you feel better. You knew you had people who would listen and support you, but you hate leaning on others and feeling like you’re burdening them when they have their own life to deal with. But you know, in the back of your mind, that you need to learn to not try to deal with things on your own, it would make your life a lot easier to accept the support that’s given to you, ‘Thank you, Le,’ 

A few days had passed by and neither you or Kyra reached out to each other. Even though the both of you went to send a message or call the other, you both would delete the text or lock your phone and throw it away before actually doing it. You knew that you had to talk to her before the next training day or there would be more questions as to why you and Kyra weren’t glued to each other.

You were scared to have a serious conversation with her, one that you didn’t know how it would go. Not being able to control the situation made you nervous, so you held back on reaching out to Kyra until the very last possible day to do so. Kyra on the other hand still couldn’t figure out what she had done wrong. Still thinking about the other night and how you hadn’t even gone up to her. 

Granted you weren’t completely to blame, she knows she could’ve gone up to you. But it felt like you were purposely avoiding her and she didn’t like that. Those few days where Kyra didn’t hear a single thing from you or about you were the worst for her. She spent many hours each day picking up her phone, going in and out of your contact, drafting multiple messages just to delete them. Thinking that if you wanted to hear from her you would’ve reached out by now.

But the thing that worried Kyra was that there was no trace of you anywhere online, she checked your socials multiple times each day. You were normally quite active when you had time to yourself. If not posting anything, you would be stalking the fans and leaving comments here and there on your fans posts on tiktok and instagram. 

There was nothing though. Even the fans had started talking online, some thinking your silence was concerning and others thinking you were finally having some time to yourself and telling others to stop their theories and rumours.

There was training tomorrow and if Kyra didn’t hear from you today then she would wait to see you in person tomorrow. Though it was hard to be away from you. Kyra wanted nothing more than to be wrapped up in you watching movies and laughing just like it used to be. 

What Kyra didn’t expect that day was to hear knocking at her front door. She frowned, not expecting anyone and thinking it was one of her neighbours or some sort of emergency. Her eyes went wide and a small smile ghosted her lips when she saw you standing at her front door. She frowned a little seeing you had Calvin with you, knowing that you didn’t live that close to each other. Kyra knew something was wrong, you only ever walked for a long time if you needed to clear your mind.

‘Hi Ky,’ A small smile on your lips, your voice was soft. Kyra relaxed hearing your voice, it had been days since she heard it. Doing her best to not wrap her arms around you and pull you into a hug, she stayed fidgeting with the door handle, ‘Steph and Dean are out tonight. Did you want to come help me pet sit this little guy here? We can have a movie night?’ You leaned down, patting Calvin’s head, smiling down at him, your voice was still quite soft and there was a hint of hesitation in your voice. 

‘I would never say no to a night with you and little Calvy. My two favourites,’ You relaxed when Kyra agreed to come over. You knew she at least wasn’t that upset with you, even if you hadn’t talked to her in a few days and completely ignored her at the night out. 

‘I won’t tell Harper that we’re your favourites and not her,’ You joked, laughing  a little, causing Kyra to smile more. She missed you so much, not realising just how much until you were in front of her again. Your laugh sending a swarm of butterflies into her stomach, you noticed the way she was looking at you. You closed the gap and pulled her in, hugging her as best you could while still holding Calvin’s leash. 

Kyra melted into your embrace, not wanting to let you go. The two of you stood there, arms around each other, neither of you wanting to let go of the other. Only pulling apart when Calvin started to whine and pull on the leash to get your attention.

Kyra offered to drive you all back to Steph’s apartment, you were grateful since you had used all the energy you had left to walk to Kyra’s in the first place. The two of you settled into a routine as if you hadn’t been apart from each other, as if nothing from the previous week had happened. You were both awfully good at pretending and awfully good at secretly, not so secretly, pining for the other.

The night had been going just like it normally would when you and Kyra would hang out together. You’d put on a movie, ordered some takeout, and now you were cuddling together on the couch. Kyra’s arm wrapped around you keeping you nestled against her side, your legs were on top of hers and your head laid against her shoulder. 

The only difference was about halfway through the movie you started to fidget with your fingers. In the back of your mind you knew you had to talk to Kyra about how you felt. You wanted to push it back again, especially since you both seemed to be acting like normal again. 

Kyra was anything but normal when you were so close to her like this. Her heart was racing and if your head was pressed against her chest instead of her shoulder you definitely would’ve been able to hear it. Kyra noticed your fidgeting and gave you her hand so you could play with her fingers instead.

You weren’t paying any attention to the movie now. Instead focusing on how Kyra’s hand felt in yours, how her fingers were so soft and how you liked having her hand in yours. Things you wouldn’t have thought twice about, were all you could think about since you realised and accepted your feelings for Kyra.

‘Are you okay?’ Kyra’s voice was full of concern, whispering in your ear. Her breath on you made a slight shiver run down your spin and your breath hitch slightly. You took a moment before answering.

‘I’m sorry for the other night. I didn’t mean to act the way I did, I don’t even know why I did,’ A small lie but Kyra wouldn’t know that, you knew exactly why you acted the way you did but you didn’t want to lead straight into it, ‘I’m just sorry, you didn’t deserve that,’ You weren’t the best at apologising, never knowing exactly what to say but you looked up at Kyra and she could see in your eyes that you meant every word, even the ones you didn’t say but she could see.

‘It’s okay. I was really looking forward to spending that night with you. But it’s really okay, there’ll be other nights anyway,’ Kyra shrugged a little. You had hurt her with how you acted towards her, but she could’ve come to you earlier to sort things out. She had you back right now and she really just wanted to move on, ‘Plus I prefer this, getting to spend time with just you and no one else around,’ You looked down at your fingers entwined with hers not wanting Kyra to see how your face flushed a little at her words.

You sat up a little and turned more on your side so you were looking at her, ‘So, do you like her?’ Your face was full of questioning, your voice was quiet not wanting to be crushed by Kyra’s response. 

‘Who?’ Kyra looked at you, slight confusion on her face, wondering who you could be talking about. Apart from this week when you were both not talking to each other, she only ever spent time with you. Charli had been teasing Kyra lately for never spending time with anyone else but you.

‘Lia. The night we all went out, you guys seemed quite close,’ Kyra’s smile dropped a little and she looked down at the two of you. The way you were cuddling, thinking about how she’d follow you around wanting to be as close as possible to you, Kyra wanted to cry out in frustration how you couldn’t see that she liked you. Not understanding how you couldn’t see that but you could see and think she would like anyone else that wasn’t you.

‘No, we’re just friends. You know she’s been helping me a lot since I joined Arsenal,’ Kyra had paused the movie now, not wanting any other distractions right now, ‘If we’re talking about the other night, then what about you and Leah? All over her on the dance floor and I saw the two of you leave together,’ 

‘I just wanted to dance,’ You shrugged off Kyra’s comment and ignored the last part. Not wanting to bring up how you kissed Leah, that would definitely ruin you telling Kyra that you liked her. Not wanting to bring up how Leah helped you accept your feelings for Kyra and helped you believe that Kyra could like you back, not letting you run from your feelings.

‘You could’ve danced with me,’ Kyra was quick with her words, making you look back up at her, ‘I always love dancing with you,’ It was now Kyra’s turn to be the one fidgeting with your fingers. A small smile took over your lips, you missed the way Kyra glanced down at your lips before back up to your eyes. The best memories you had always involved you and Kyra dancing around together.

The times you’d dance around your bedroom, sometimes the only music would be whatever you decided to sing or noises you wanted to make and Kyra would go along with it. The times you’d be out and you’d end your nights dancing with each other, the music and Kyra being only things existing to you in those moments. The times you’d be cooking for the two of you and Kyra would put on a song and whisk you away to dance around the kitchen together, you’d burnt a lot of food being wrapped up in each other. 

You probably should’ve realised earlier how you felt for her, and realised how she felt for you. If anyone was to ever witness those moments where it was just you and Kyra alone together, they would’ve thought you were actually together and more than just best friends.

‘So you don’t like Lia and you don’t have a crush on anyone,’ Your voice trailed off towards the end. Hoping that Kyra would talk and prove your accusation wrong. Hoping that she would say she liked you before you admitted to liking her first.

‘Well, I never said that I didn’t have a crush on anyone,’ Kyra smirked, leaning further back into the couch. This caught your interest. Kyra didn’t seem to have any attention to continue on and give away just who her crush was. You knew if you had a chance to potentially get the information you wanted out of her, then you were going to have to prompt her.

‘What are they like? Is it another footballer?’ You twisted your body a bit more, you were practically half on top of Kyra at this point. Leaning a bit closer towards Kyra, you had your hopes up, but not too much just in case you were wrong about this and you still wanted to protect yourself from being crushed if you were wrong. 

‘Well, she’s just the sweetest person I’ve ever met. Her smile lights up the room and whenever I hear her name announced at matches and the way she interacts with fans, it makes me smile,’ Kyra sighed a little bit, her face heating up a little and heart racing a bit faster knowing that she was about to tell you in her own way that it was you, ‘She just understands me in a way that no one else does. She’s my best friend and I love spending so much time with her,’ 

Kyra was smiling softly at you, her hand had reached up now cupping your cheek, her thumb rubbing along your soft skin gently. In this moment, it was just you and her, nothing else mattered, ‘Ky,’ You breathed out shakily, smiling softly at Kyra. You leaned into her touch, your eyes drifting down towards her lips. 

The action didn’t go unnoticed by Kyra. Her hand on your cheek drifted down to your jaw, her touch more firm than before but still soft. Before either of you knew what was happening, you leaned in softly placing your lips on Kyra’s. Your breath hitched and you smiled into the kiss when you realised you had actually done it and not just in your mind.

You pressed your body against Kyra’s when you felt her kiss you back. Your lips against each other felt right, you longed for it and now you’ve had a taste you knew that you wouldn’t want to stop. After a few soft and slow kisses you reluctantly pulled away from Kyra, your face still just inches from hers. Her hand, now resting on the back of your neck, was playing with the little baby hairs at the base.

‘I really like you Kyra,’ You whispered, your breath hitting her lips with how close you were to each other still. You wanted to stay like this for as long as you could. Kyra made you feel safe, she felt like home.

‘I really like you too,’ You smiled wide, it felt like a dream that you were afraid to wake up from, ‘God, I really like you,’ Kyra held your head in her hands, emphasising her words by kissing you deeply.

[saikikthoughts]

Saiki in the volcano arc when the friend group is planning their trip: please pick a time that isn’t Eruption weekend. Like any time

His friends: woah so convenient the only time our schedules line up is during Explosion season

Saiki: fine but please just pick somewhere besides Lava City, I don’t want to have to worry about you while I gotta do my annual chore of white knuckling an active volcano back into a dormant state

His friends: oooo what if we see hike to see the pretty pretty volcano that’s totally safe

Saiki: ughhhhh do whatever you want but i literally can’t come i need to make sure once and for all that Japan doesn’t get Pompeiified

His friends: you ditch miette? You leave miette for no real reason on this most important last trip of our second year?

Saiki: this is like our fifth second year but fine I’m coming but I’m not happy about it

His friends: yay!!!!! The glue that binds us all can make it!!! Our final year at school can start in style!!! Also btw Mera can’t come whoops teehee

Saiki: why’d you let her leave?!?! Why do you need me to come? I bet you wouldn’t even realize if I wasn’t there! Take Toritsuka!

Toritsuka: yare yare?

Saikis friends, sniffing Toritsuka: this Saiki smells Off. Silver Spoon, go find our Saiki!

Saiki, having just saved the country for good from the spicy earth blood: I’m too tired to deal with getting found out. I gotta make today yesterday so i don’t have to deal until tomorrow

Aiura: 🔮✌️

[lexisecretaccx]

A+ Student Pt.5

Masterlist!

(Fem reader, suggestive, kissing, smut, female!receiving, etc. Not proofread!)

Summary: Y/n is a great student in her college, always getting good grades. Her college professor Matt, thinks she can get even higher ones with some “extra credit.” That is until she meets her new gym teacher..

“She was talking about professor Sturniolo right?” Lizzy asks me hesitantly, I shrug. “Yeah, I’m not bothered though.” I lie unbelievably. “Pfft,” she laughs slightly, looking at me with a raised eyebrow. “You’re not bothered? You’re literally gripping your skirt so tightly.” I look down as the fabric is clenched in my fists. I let go and laugh slightly, “I guess I do care a little bit.” I sigh.

Chris’ POV

I type up on my laptop plans for the next lesson with y/n’s class, gotta make it easier because I don’t want y/n to struggle. “Mr Sturniolo?” I look up, a woman in a fitted suit jacket with a pencil skirt is staring down at me with her arms crossed. “Uh yeah?” I reply in a confused tone. “I’m gonna need you to come with me please.” She states.

“Okay.. where are we going?” I ask slowly. “The Principal’s office, an anonymous note has told us something we need to talk to you about.” She keeps her eyes forward as she walks quickly ahead. Oh fuck.. this isn’t about what happened at break? Nobody else was in there nobody could’ve heard us, or seen us..

“Everything alright Mr Sturniolo?” She doesn’t look back. “Oh, yeah.. call me Chris if you want.” I try to soften the tone in the air. “No.. I keep it professional.” We arrive at the Principals door and she opens it.

“Hello Christopher.” The principal smiles softly before dropping it. “Take a seat.. thank you Andrea.” The lady leaves the room. “Why am I in here?” I ask, trying to play dumb. “Do you value your job Mr Sturniolo?” He leans on the desk and peers at me from above his glasses. “Yeah of course, I love my job.” I smile.

“Do you respect the workplace and its rules and guidelines?” He asks again staring into my eyes. “Yes I do.” I nod, he grabs something from his drawer and places it in front of me. A mirror. “You seem to have a little.. a lot of things on your neck, do you not?” I look in the mirror at my neck, which is plastered in hickies.

My face drops, “Oh uh.. I had my girlfriend over last night I didn’t know-” I start to explain.. lying obviously. “It’s okay Mr Sturniolo, I don’t need personal details but make sure to cover it up, this is a first warning so you aren’t in trouble.” He smiles softly.

I sigh softly, “I’m sorry.” I scratch the back of my head, “it’s alright, us men like our women but sometimes we have to hide it.” He chuckles and I awkwardly chuckle back. I get up to leave and the principal gives me a little wave. I quickly rush back to the gym and throw on my jacket, which almost covers all of the marks.

It’ll have to do.

Y/n’s POV

I pack up my stuff and leave the sociology classroom, “I fell asleep.” Lizzy smiles as we walk to the exit. “Really? I couldn’t tell.” I sarcastically joke, she let out a few snores causing people around her to laugh. “Did I snore loudly?” She asks nervously, “meh, it was like semi loud.” I laugh and she groans in embarrassment.

“Right I gotta go, my mom needs me,” Lizzy rolls her eyes, “my aunt and uncle are visiting.” She sighs. “Does that mean?” I start to say but she finishes my sentence. “My annoying little cousin is here too.”

Lizzys cousin Theo is like 10 years old and the most annoying kid ever, he will tell his parents any gossip Lizzy says while she’s on the phone, he will constantly go through her stuff and he told Liz’s mom about my secret boyfriend 2 years ago and then my dad found out.. wasn’t fun.

I start to walk home as I get a text from Matt. “I have 2 hours where Chris and Nick aren’t here, at 5. Come over.” I smile and reply, “okayy.” I put my phone away and start to walk home faster. I hear footsteps running behind me, Mason. “Hey.” He smiles, breathing heavily. “How far did you run?” I laugh slightly.

“Just from the bench down there to.. here.” His cheeks are slightly flushed. “I thought you were an athlete, how are you out of breath from that?” I scoff. “I am an athlete y/n, I just didn’t stretch.” He rolls his eyes. “Why are you walking with me?” I ask him, raising an eyebrow. “Oh I am meeting my friends this way to walk home.”

“What are you doing in like an hour?” He asks me, breaking the silence. I look up at him with confusion. “Why?” I hesitantly ask. “I dunno if you wanna like get coffee or something.” He shrugs. He’s got nice intentions but no.

“I’m busy sorry.” I sigh, trying to act sympathetic. “Oh.. no worries, it was worth asking.” He smiles. About 10 minutes pass and I’m about to turn down my street, “I thought you were meeting your friends?” I tilt my head, “yeah I am, in the field down there.” He points down the main road and smiles softly. “Oh okay, this is my street so I’ll see ya.” I smile back.

“Bye y/n!” He calls as I walk away. He’s a sweet person but I just can’t find him attractive, hopefully he finds someone else to like. I walk through my front door to see my dad laying on the couch with a Pepsi in his hand watching sports or something. “Hey dad.” I smile, “hey pumpkin, how was your day?”

Pumpkin is the nickname he’s called me for the past 12 years, because when I was 6 around Halloween we went to a pumpkin patch with mom and I was running and fell face first into a pile of pumpkins and it went all over me. I cried but he thought it was funny to call me pumpkin after that. Now I find it a sweet nickname but I hated it when I was a kid.

“It was okay, I’m going out in like an hour.” I tell him, he nods. “No worries, stay safe though.” I walk upstairs to my bedroom and lay on my bed, spreading my limbs out on it. I take a deep breath before going in the shower.

After my shower I dry my hair and get dressed into a basic fit, I want to be comfy bc I know what’s gonna go down. I do some makeup, not too much, and I go downstairs to leave. “Bye dad!” I call as I leave, “see you later y/n!” I hear from the kitchen. I walk to his house, as it’s only 15 minute walk away, although last time I took a cab.

I finally arrive at Matts house and I see the expensive car is gone. I knock the door hoping Chris and Nick are not there. Luckily Matt opens in and smiles when he sees me, “I’m guessing either Nick or Chris drive the Porsche?” I smirk, “yeah Chris spent a stupid amount of money on it, I drive it sometimes too.” He explains as we walk in.

We sit on the couch, “Deja vu.” I laugh softly, “yeah, except this time I won’t freak out.” He chuckles, “prove it.” I taunt him with a smirk, he tilts his head and grins before leaning in and kissing me, this time feels more passionate.

His hand finds place at the back of my head and the other one on my thigh. My hands entangle in his hair as he pushes me back on the couch slightly, deepening the kiss. His tongue explores my mouth and I let out a soft moan as his hand rubs my upper thigh. He breaks the kiss partially to say something.

“Let’s go upstairs, don’t wanna make a mess on my couch.” He breathes out. I nod and go to stand up but he picks me up like a princess and carries me up the stairs, walking into his room which has a comforting vibe to it. Before I can take it all in he throws me down onto the satin sheets.

“Bet Chris didn’t do this did he?” Matt smirks as he slides my shorts off pulling me to the edge of the bed. “No, it was different because he had to stand and hold me the whole ti-” I start speaking but Matts hand covers my mouth. “I don’t need to hear how my brother fucked you okay?” He looks at me before removing my panties quickly.

He kneels at the end of the bed, his hot breath fanning against my inner thigh as he moves my legs onto his shoulders. “Gonna make you feel good, treat you for being such a good girl in class.” He peppers kisses along my thighs closer and closer to my heat as I squirm. I can’t believe I’m actually doing this with him, he’s had a change of heart now that he knows Chris fucked me first. He’s gonna make this a competition between them I know it.

He starts to kitten lick my folds to tease me, I whine pushing towards him for more. He grabs my hip with one hand, pushing it against the bed to stop me moving. Without warning he dips his tongue inside of me before swirling it around my clit. My back arches off the bed as I moan out.

He grabs both my thighs and pulls me closer, his tongue lapping at my heat. “Fuck Matt..” my hands travel down to his hair as I grip it tightly. He continues to swish and swirl his tongue around me, occasionally dipping it into me causing my back to arch and my grip on his hair to tighten.

“Matt.. I can’t.. I’m gonna cum.. please..” I whimper as his pace doesn’t slow. He hums against me, the vibration hitting my clit in the right way which results in me reaching my high and coming undone. He licks up the rest of my arousal before bringing his face up towards me, I wipe the sweat off of my forehead and breathe heavily.

He leans to kiss me, my arousal still on his chin and I turn my head away, “wipe that off ya lips before kissing me.” I chuckle softly, “you don’t wanna taste yourself? Hm?” He continues to try and put his face by mine, teasing and joking around. “Definitely not, it’s gross.” I squirm, “I disagree, I could have my head between your thighs every day.” He smirks, lifting his shirt to wipe the arousal from his mouth.

“Will you kiss me now?” He grabs my cheeks and brings my face to face his. I nod and he pushes his lips to mine his tongue instantly exploring my mouth, I bite his lip softly and he groans. “Fuck I need you.. to feel you.” He whispers lowly. “Please do..” I whine softly, “You’re gonna take it like the good girl you are.. yeah?” He asks, looking me in the eyes with lust.

“Yes.. of course.. definitely.. I will.” I speak rapidly, needing to feel him inside of my walls. He starts to unbuckle his belt, not breaking the eye contact. He begins to pull down his pants but then.. Slam.

Both of us look towards the bedroom door and back at eachother, “that was a car door right?” I whisper and Matt nods, he checks his watch. “It’s 6pm they said they’d be back at 7.. shit.” He re does his pants back up and I sit up, “get your clothes on.” He throws my panties and shorts at me. His entire tone and body language has changed and now it’s more tense.

“Jeez okay..” I put my clothes back on, I feel gross he didn’t clean me up or anything but I can’t go to the bathroom because they’re home. “What do I do?” I whisper, “just shut up a sec okay?” He snaps, “oh.” I sigh and sit back on the bed. “Matt?” I hear Chris call from downstairs, “stay here.” He spoke softly and I nod, “good girl.” He mumbles before leaving the room and closing it behind me.

I grab my phone from his dresser and open it, 4 missed calls from Lizzy? What the fuck? I text Lizzy, “hey everything okay?” She replies almost instantly, “No. But it’s fine now, no thanks to you though.” Fuck. “I’m pretty busy right now Liz I’m sorry.” I would help her right now but I don’t know what’s happening with me and Matt.

She leaves me on opened. Great, I don’t even know what’s happening or what her problem is. Matt comes back in and grabs my arm, quickly leading me downstairs and through the front door, “see you on Monday.” He whispers flicking his hand so I leave shutting the door behind me. So rude, I thought he was actually giving a fuck about me. It’s raining too, I’m gonna get hypothermia.

I turn to walk down the street away from his house and I hear someone call my name, I look up quickly to see.. Chris?? “Y/n? Why are you by my house?” He asks walking closer, my eyes widen in fear. “Uh.. I was.. fuck, I don’t know.” I lie looking down at my feet. “You stalking me?” He chuckles, I laugh lightly and shake my head.

“No, not that.” I sigh, “it’s cold and raining, you wanna come in for a warm drink or something?” He smiles lightly, I can’t go back in there especially if I just got kicked out by Matt. I thought Chris got home with Nick? “I can’t sorry, I’m going home.” I smile softly, “oh okay.” He looks disappointed. “You were in my house weren’t you?” He steps closer so we are inches apart.

“What no! Why would I be-” I go to like but he cuts me off, “you were with Matt. I know because I heard you shuffling around upstairs when he came downstairs to greet us.” He spoke sternly. “If you were inside then how are you out here?” I ask, looking up at him. “I watched you leave from my bedroom window, then I snuck downstairs and got out quickly to see you.” He sighs.

“So you were stalking me?” I chuckle, “you were the one inside of my house,” he laughs softly, “about that, what were you and Matt doing?” He asks me, but I know he knows the answer. I tilt my head at him, “we didn’t fuck.” I cross my arms, “I never said you did.” He smirks, “I’d rather not go into details.” I scoff.

“Mhm, he wouldn’t have been able to fuck you as good as I can.. right?” He leans down slightly and I shrug. “Right?” He asks again more aggressively. I smirk, “sure whatever you want to believe.” I go to turn around to walk away. “Let me drive you home, you’re gonna get wet ma.” The nickname causes me to turn quickly, “I already am.” I smirk, “in what way?” He tilts his head.

“Not the way you’re thinking, that’s inappropriate Mr Sturniolo.” I bite my lip lightly, “I’ll bring my car around, so Matt doesn’t see you.” He nods and rushes around the corner, the tension was so strong but the rain is getting worse I can’t think about anything other than my hands freezing off. The Porsche drives around the corner and pulls up, I open the passenger door and get in.

“Thanks.�� I breathe out, he presses the seat heaters on and leans in the seat behind him and pulls out one of his jackets. “Put that on, you should wear it to school on Monday.” He smirks, “it’s a college not a school.” I scoff, “same thing, and I can take the jacket back if you’re gonna be ungrateful.” He looks at me before laughing slightly.

“You know.. I should be mad that you were with my brother but for some reason, I don’t give a shit.” He adds, turning on music, “Maybe it’s because you’ve got a bigger-” I stop myself, “a bigger??” He asks, “Ego.” I huff. “Sure, sure.” He smiles.

He pulls over for a moment “Wait where do you live? I just realised I don’t know where I’m going.” He looks at me, “we don’t need to go to my house right now.” I grin, “what’re you thinking?” He tilts his head, “I think we should go for a drive and chill out.” I smile.

“Does chilling out include you riding me in the backseat or..” he laughs and I do too, “Chris!” I say and pause for a moment. “Maybe.. just keep driving.” I add. He smiles widely and starts to drive again..

A/n: I haven’t written this in a while but omg I’m excited to continue, I’m pretty busy with school atm but I will try to update asap. Also sorry for edging y’all with this.. why am I kinda team Chris tho 😖 and Matt is kinda an asshole sorry not sorry

@blahbel668 @mattsleftnipple03 @rac00ns-are-c00l4 @hysteria-things @mattybslover @jakevwebber @braindead4l @mattybearnard @st7rnioioss @junnniiieee07 @bueckerslover @fratbrochrisgf @sturniol0s @alwayssublimedelusion @certifiednatelover @freshsturns @riasturns @sturniololvrrr @maryx2xx @whicked-hazlatwhore @cammie4298 @sturnsjtop @sturnzblog @chr1sgirl4life @evie-sturns @milasturniolo @jaxyy219 @mattsturniolosbae @h3arts4harry @littlebookworm803 @realqueenofpepsi @elsxz1 @jnkvivi

[sleepyjuice]

28 + 45 w jj ofc

summary: jj picks you up from a girls night!

warnings: drinking, vomiting due to drinking (it’s barely described and not detailed!) jj once again being an absolute dream<3

All bets were off when it came to a good old classic girls night.

It had been far too long since you, Sarah and Kie had a night to yourselves without the boys. But for once, the boys had plans for the night, so the three of you took this opportunity and ran with it.

You had met at Sarah’s, as she somehow had the house to herself for the weekend, which also meant unlimited access to Ward’s in home bar.

You could barely even remember what you were drinking after a while, all of you completely wasted just a few hours into the night.

Kiara had passed out on Sarah’s bed, out for the night, and Sarah was texting John b to come back early so he could stay the night with her.

About a half hour later, you heard the doorknob to Sarah’s bedroom rattling, causing the two of you to gasp and grab onto one another, both of you positive there was an intruder breaking in to kill all of you. Kiara wasn’t phased, still sound asleep, and you envied the fact that she would go semi peacefully, while you and Sarah fought for your lives.

“Oh my god, Sarah, we’re gonna fucking die!” You whisper yelled, Sarah’s fearful eyes meeting your own as you clutched onto each other for dear life from your spot on the floor.

You both screamed when the door opened, hiding your faces against one another as you prepared for the worst, and you damn near jumped out of your skin when you felt a hand on your shoulder, leading you to cautiously peak your eyes up.

“jj! What the fuck?” You gasped, your heart still racing, but you soon giggled at the sight of your boyfriend’s shocked expression, looking beside him to see John b sharing the same look of shock and confusion.

“What the fuck, me? Y’all just screamed bloody murder for no reason. John b just texted Sarah that we were here and she texted him back and said to come up. Literally like two minutes ago.” jj explained, now noticing all of the empty bottles and glasses scattered across Sarah’s desk. He certainly found the humor in this situation, but he was just confused.

Your eyes widened at his explanation, turning to Sarah, both of you immediately giggling loudly.

“Oops!” She laughed, reaching up for John b’s hand so she could stand up.

“Glad you ladies had a good night,” John b spoke, his hand around Sarah’s waist as he held her up, “Kie still with us?” He asked, glancing over at the sleeping figure at the bed.

“Mhm, she knocked out a little bit ago. She smoked a little, too, so she got sleepy.” Sarah responded, leaning into her boyfriend.

“Alright, let’s get you home, baby.” jj spoke as he helped you to your feet, his hands fixing your shorts that had ridden up from sitting for so long.

“John b, you staying the night here with Sarah?” jj asked, the brunette nodding in response as he worked to keep Sarah upright as she swayed.

“Yeah, I’m gonna take her into the guest room so she can sleep. She’s fallin’ asleep in my arms.” John b responded, sarah giggling sleepily as he led her out of her bedroom.

“John b! Make sure you take her makeup off ‘fore she sleeps, ‘kay?” You quickly reminded your friend, giggling once again as you leaned back into jj’s arms that were wrapped firmly around your waist, holding you in place.

“Copy that. Night guys. jj, take the Twinkie and just pick me back up sometime tomorrow.” John b stated, tossing the keys to jj as they made their way to the guest bedroom.

jj gave a little salute to his friend as they walked away, turning you to face him now, smiling lovingly down at your flushed face.

“You get into a lot of trouble without me, hm?” He grinned, patting your ass gently as you gushed up at him.

“Maybee…” you hummed, leaning up to plant a little kiss against your boyfriend’s lips, unable to stop smiling. You had a good night with your friends, and now you got to go home with your boyfriend. Life couldn’t get any better at the moment.

“Yeah, you do,” he laughed, “let’s grab your stuff so we can get back to the chateau and get your little ass to bed.” he instructed, dropping his hold on your waist to grab your shoes that were discarded on the floor a few feet away.

He looked at you, and you gave him a look, which he knew all too well. Shaking his head, jj kneeled down to slip your shoes on your feet, unable to hide his little smirk at your behavior.

“Got me doin’ all the work here.” He teased as you smiled satisfactorily, your heart swelling at your boyfriend’s sweet actions. He was so good to you.

“Alright, you bring anything else?” He asked, glancing over at your purse sat on a chair across the room, stepping over to grab it.

You shook your head at his question, expecting him to hand you your purse, but instead he put it over his shoulder, causing you to giggle giddily.

“You look so cute!” You gushed at your boyfriend, wishing your phone wasn’t in said purse so you could take a picture.

“Yeah, I know, let’s get going, baby. Say bye to Kie.” He rolled his eyes, walking over to stand in the doorway as you gave Kiara a little kiss on her forehead, seeing as she was still sound asleep.

You followed over to jj, watching as he quietly shut the bedroom door behind him as you made your way down to hall and to the top of the long and winding staircase, stopping at the top as jj went down the first few steps.

He turned to look back at you when he realized you weren’t right behind him, immediately recognizing the look in your eyes.

“Baby-“

“Can you carry me?” You asked before he could finish speaking, swaying slightly as you were dizzy and the length of the staircase below you was rather intimidating in your current state.

jj sighed dramatically, but not in annoyance. He loved how soft and clingy you got when you were drunk. It honestly wasn’t too different from how you normally were, but your behavior was endearing to him and he felt happy to be not only wanted, but needed. Even if it was something as small as carrying you when you were drunk and didn’t want to walk.

You couldn’t hold back your smile as jj made his way back up the top few steps, positioning his arms below you and swooping you up so he was carrying you bridal style.

“Thank you, jay.” You hummed in appreciation, wrapping your arms around his neck and resting your head into the crook of his neck as he carried you down the long staircase.

Once at the bottom, he managed to keep you held up with one hand as he pulled the front door open, stepping outside and pulling it shut before repositioning his other hand to hold you properly again.

You sighed at the feeling of the fresh air hitting your skin. The slight breeze felt like heaven against your flushed cheeks and the sound of the not so distant waves hitting the shore was nothing short of soothing.

“Glad you had fun tonight, baby.” jj murmured as he walked through the large front yard towards the Twinkie, setting you down to open the passengers side door for you to get in.

You opened your mouth to respond, but the sudden shift from being held in the air to standing up straight had your vision spinning and your stomach turning.

“Ughhhh…” you grumbled, no stranger to what was about to come.

jj read your expression immediately, recognizing your sudden shift. He acted fast, pulling your purse off his shoulder and setting it on the hood of the Twinkie before moving behind you to pull your hair back as you knelt down over the grass that surrounded the long driveway, his other hand holding your waist steady so you didn’t fall as you began to empty your stomach into the grass. Sorry Sarah.

You threw up quite a bit, coughing loudly once you were finished as you worked to get some air back in your burning lungs. jj’s hand patted gently at your back, cooing soft words in your ear as you recovered.

“It’s okay, I got you.” He spoke softly, sitting down on the pavement and gently pulling you down to sit between his legs and lean back against his chest, wanting to give you a minute to recover before getting in a moving vehicle.

You sighed as you leaned back into jj, the air slowly filling your lungs again, closing your eyes as you let the cool breeze help cool you down as you recovered.

“I love you, jj, so much.” You spoke quietly after a moment, turning your head behind you to meet your boyfriend’s gaze. His soft skin looked beautiful under the moonlight, his blue eyes looking nothing short of iridescent as they met yours, his soft pink lips tugging up into a grin before kissing the top of your head several times.

“Mm, I love you, too, baby.” He spoke into your hair before resting his chin on the top of your head.

“Let’s sit here a few more minutes and then let’s get you home. Gotta get my girl to bed.”

[beans-core]

Do you know how there’s some fics of Percy getting forced to take immortality from the gods? Well, what if he was tricked into it instead? What if one of the gods decided to take advantage of Percy’s Hera-Induced amnesia to make him accept immortality?

To start their plan, this god gives Percy a quest. They’re much more stable than the other gods because the Roman version of them is pretty similar, so they aren’t being affected as much by the split. This quest is issued before the quest in SoN, and even if Percy could remember some reason to want to reject it, he can’t. Quests, am I right.

So yada yada, Percy does his thing with his questing partners, and then gets offered immortality as a reward. Percy is pretty weirded out by being offered such a big reward from one quest. Surely that wasn’t enough to earn immortality? And why only offer it to him?

He decides to ask the god how his actions had earned such an esteemed reward, and they respond that Percy had done other quests before his memory was lost. That he hadn’t been able to accept immortality before due to some… extenuating circumstances, but now he could.

As he mulls this over, he thinks about the Annabeth person in the back of his mind. But why would she not want him to have this magnificent reward? All the demigods he’s met would kill to just meet a god, not to mention the opportunity to become one. Annabeth is the only reason he can think of turning down this offer. Anyway, it’s not like this person will disappear if Percy becomes a god, right? He can find Annabeth later. Actually, with godhood, he’ll be able to find Annabeth even faster. Then maybe he could negotiate with the gods to make her immortal too! (Like Dionysus did with his wife, he remembers randomly. He’s not sure why he knows that.) Just thinking about it hard enough wont get his memories to come back. A few have been coming back slowly but surely, but he can’t guarantee that he’ll remember everything. The god before him had confirmed that Percy had a life before this. He doesn’t want to lose it forever.

So Percy accepts immortality.

When he does, it breaks the spell Hera put on him, and it all comes flooding back. But now with his memories regained, it hits him that by becoming a god, he has now lost the life he had before forever. Things won’t ever be the same again, not for his life at camp halfblood or camp Jupiter. And, oh gods, what about his mom and Paul? He wants to pray for this to just be a bad dream, but even his dreams aren’t this harrowing.

The first thing he does is rush back to Camp Half-blood to find Annabeth. It is… an emotional shitshow, that’s for sure. I wouldn’t be surprised if Annabeth loses a lot of faith in the gods.

(And this fucks up Hera’s plans by the way. Like, royally. She’s SO pissed off at the god who did this. But I’m sure the demigods are fine. Let’s say that Nico ends up being the seventh, and the prophecy states “by fire or storm” so there’s definitely something to work with.)

[themcsspot]

(I found this on Pinterest and it said the creator is (@2L9l2Aa8UCL0IGJ) on X)

One Up | Part 2

Chapter 1, Chapter 2 - Attempt & Re-plan

Brief Synopsis - Gojo tries his hand in the competition. Getou comes up with a plan that puts both men on an even playing field.

(Also posting on AO3 - 100yenman)

“Hey, Y/N,” Gojo began, his voice oozing with such confidence.“You free?”

‘What?’

“Uhm, no, s-sorry,” Y/N replied in a flat, awkward tone. She had a bad habit of doing that when she was nervous and talking to strangers.

Upon hearing her answer, Y/N could’ve sworn she saw his face twist into a form of surprise. It was odd. Every time she saw Satoru around campus he radiated confidence, from head to toe.

As quickly as his confident expression disappeared, it reappeared. “Oh, c’mon, you been here long enough. Take a break with me. Only for a bit.”

Y/N must look like a deer in headlights. ‘Was he asking to hang out with me?’ She managed to break her eyes from his and scanned the room. More eyes were on them than before. Students, who were sitting near her table, must've heard Satoru’s request. 

“Fine, let’s go,” Y/N gave in to the boy’s request, mostly to get away from all the eyes. “Where’re we going?”

Satoru grabbed her hand, catching Y/N off guard. “Follow me.”

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟

Shoko, who was mid-smoking a cigarette, perked up. “Hmm, who’s Satoru’s newest victim?” 

Mei Mei looked in Shoko’s direction, seemingly curious. But, she already had a good idea who it was. “Oh, her,” . . . “She’s in for a real fun time, isn’t she?” 

“Ain’t that right,” Shoko agreed as she blew out more cigarette smoke.

“Well, I’ve got to go,” Mei Mei waved goodbye and made her way from Shoko.

 Mei Mei had to make sure nothing happened between Y/N and Satoru. She wanted this competition to drag out longer. The more Y/N gets comfortable, the worse the rejection will be. It was truly unfortunate that she valued drama rather than her “friendship” with Y/N.

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟

Satoru’s plan was simple: Take Y/N to his apartment under the guise of just hanging and then the rest would be history. It’s a good plan. Geto is going to be busy at school pretty late, so it’ll just leave Satoru alone with Y/N. He couldn’t believe how easy it was going to be to win. 

He took a glance behind him and saw the weird expression on Y/N’s face. ‘Maybe I should make conversation with her. After tonight I’m not gonna speak to her ever again.’

“You’re quiet back there, what’s on your mind,” Satoru questioned, slowing down his pace to walk beside her rather than in front of her.  

This caught Y/N off guard a bit, he didn’t talk about the whole “journey”. Just leading her to an unknown destination as his hand engulfed her’s.

“Uhm, Where’re we going,” Y/N asked awkwardly. 

Why did she allow him to drag her this far? She could’ve separated herself from him when she was away from prying eyes. It was times like this that she wished she could say the words ‘no’ more often.

  “How about we go to my place,” Satoru proposed. “We could just chill.”

‘His place? This is not a good idea.’

The parking lot came into view and he could see his lavish car in the distance.

Before she could respond, her phone buzzed. She had to pull her hand away from Satoru’s with a bit of force to retrieve her phone. It was a message from Mei Mei.

‘Odd, Mei Mei never texts or calls me.’

-

To : Y/N | From : Mei Mei

Hey Y/N I need your help

It’s urgent

I’m outside your dorm room

-

‘It must be urgent if Mei Mei’s texting her out of all people.’

“I have to go, my friend needs help with something,” Y/N stated. “Sorry.”

Y/N turned her back and began to walk away, leaving Satoru shocked and alone. 

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟

Y/N finally made it to her dorm room after a long walk, but no Mei Mei in sight. 

‘What the hell?’

-

To : Mei Mei | From : Y/N

Hey, where are you?

Mei Mei?

-

Y/N waited for a response, but after a minute or two went inside her dorm. She slammed her door in frustration and sat down on her bed. Today has been the most eventful day of her short time being here. She needs to sleep for at least 12 hours to recover. 

She changed into some comfortable clothes and lay down with a groan. 

Y/N hopes nothing will be weird tomorrow.

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟

After the shock wore off, Satoru made his way to his car and then drove off. He drove with the windows down, his hair flowing gracefully as the cool air hit him.

As he drove through the streets of Kyoto he began to dwell on what happened a while ago. He was beyond confused; he'd never been rejected by anyone before.  But, he guesses that’s why Mei Mei chose Y/N for the competition. Truly a challenge.

…

Satoru entered his empty apartment and went straight to his room. ‘This could’ve been a good night, but no~’ He opened his massive walk-in closet and gathered some clothes for a shower. ‘I could just wait for Geto, but he’d be too tired. Damn.’

After a long, hot shower he lay in bed with just a bath towel around his waist. He scrolled through his phone for a while before putting it away and staring at the ceiling. He thought about Geto, his university life, and weirdly enough, Y/N. He couldn’t get over the rejection. Satoru thought about the competition so intently, that it was almost alarming.

Before he could brainstorm a plan he heard the door open. ‘Geto. He must’ve finished early.’ He rushed up from his bed and made sure to slow down his pace when he got closer. He couldn’t seem desperate. He walked into the kitchen and saw Geto’s back facing him while he was getting something from the refrigerator.

“You’re back early,” Satoru said and he leaned against the kitchen island.

Geto faced him with a cooled water bottle in hand. He eyed Satoru and smiled. “Were you comfortable while waiting for me?” He walked to the kitchen island and leaned against it, opposite of Satoru, still facing him.

“Something like that,” Satoru replied.

“How was your little outing with Y/N,” Geto questioned before taking a sip of the water.

“How do you know about that,” Satoru probed. “Tell me.”

“It wasn’t hard to find out, Satoru,” Geto replied. “It seemed you were a little bold with your advances, hmm?”

“Whatever, I wouldn’t even call it a date,” Satoru stated. “She didn’t even reach close to my car.”

Satoru’s statement made Geto chuckle, making Satoru a bit confused.

“What’s funny?”

“You. You’re clueless.”

“Well then, offer me some insight if I’m so clueless then, Geto.”

“You have a reputation, Satoru,” Geto began to explain. “You can’t just lead the girl to your car and expect her to drop her pants once she makes it to the apartment, y’know?”

“Then what’s your plan, wise one,” Satoru questioned.

“You’ll see and you’ll be impressed.”

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟

October 16th

It was so early, yet so sunny as Y/N walked to her class. She would’ve skipped, but she was sure the professor was announcing a big project that included partner work, so she couldn’t miss it. In this class, she shared with most of Satoru and most of his friends. 

‘There’s no way he didn’t tell them about yesterday.’

She groaned and pushed forward on her way to class, she was almost late.

She walked into class, where a majority of students already filled the room, she could’ve sworn she saw a few eyes follow her to her seat.

…

After at least an hour of listening to the professor ramble on, he finally began to assign the trios that would be working together on the project. 

‘Hopefully I get good partners.’

“Shoko Ieiri, Mei Mei, and Kento Nanami, you guys will be paired up.” The professor stated.

Most of the class had been selected for a group she was getting closer and that was making Y/N more and more anxious by the second.

“Suguru Geto, Satoru Gojo, and…”

‘Please don’t say me. Please don’t say my name!’

“...Y/N, you guys will be paired up.” 

‘FUCK!'

…

Satoru, upon realizing this must’ve been Suguru’s plan, smiled knowingly at him and Suguru returned the same smile. 

What a dangerous duo.

[somanyratsinthewalls]

Burning Hearts Chapter 19

Pairing: Law x Straw Hat Zoan Type (named) OC 

Summary: You’ve spent a year with Law and the Heart Pirates now. Law is still pressing to unlock the full capabilities of your devil fruit powers as a mythical loan type, but you’ve got other things on your mind. You’ve uncovered Law’s plan to kill Doflamingo, but you’ve resigned to stop him and accept the way things are meant to be. He needs you. Your heart lies half with Law, but half at home with the Straw Hats. 

+18 CONTENT! SMUT! MINORS BEGONE!

Taglist: @zoros-fourth-sword @cottoncandyloverrrr @airwolf92 @nothing-but-brass @tuskjohnny

WC: 4200 This should have been two chapters but idk I'm the author.

Burning Hearts Chapter 19: Finally

— — 

You couldn’t sleep that night. You had spent a year here with Law and his crew. How could you keep the secret that he was planning to abandon his own crew to take on Doflamingo alone? It was surely destined to fail… as strong as he was, you knew he was no match for the dangerous warlord. 

You tossed and turned until the sun rose and you threw the comforter off your body in defeat. You had to meet Law for training. You couldn’t let him know you knew about his plans… not yet. You didn’t know what to say. Do you try to convince him to stay? Do you tell the rest of the crew and have them join you in your efforts?

Law was so stubborn. He’s changed his mind less times than you could count on two hands. 

*knock knock*

You hopped out of bed and scurried to check the peephole in your door. It was Law. You suck in an anxious breath. 

You let him in. 

“Hi.” You say shyly as you close the door behind him. 

“Hi back.” He says with a slight smile. 

You try to return the smile but fail to look in his eyes. You backpedal a few feet and lean against the back of your bed. 

“So…. What’s up?” You ask as he stands awkwardly in your room. 

“I.. was wondering if you wanted to take the Tang out with me tomorrow night? Just us? Like… a date, maybe?” Law took a step towards you and placed a gentle, cold hand on your waist. 

“I… yeah sure.. should I pack anything?” You flinch involuntarily and he recoils his hand. You still haven’t made eye contact, keeping your eyes at Law’s chest level. 

“Probably just an overnight bag…” Law takes his free hand and tilts your chin up softly so you can meet his gaze. “You okay?” He asks. 

“Yeah, just didn’t sleep well.” You lie. “Makes me kind of jumpy, I guess.” You feign a laugh, obvious to both you and Law that it was artificial. 

“We don’t have to go out tomorrow, we can do it some other time-“

“No! It’s okay.” You respond quickly, not wanting to draw more attention to your distraction. “I have a bunch of work in the garden to get done. So I would have to skip training today in order to finish in time to go out tomorrow…” You couldn’t help but at least try to give yourself an out. You move over to your desk and start putting on your apron and grabbing your gardening tools. 

“That’s fine.… well I’m going to be gone tonight but I’ll have the snail if you need me. I’ll pick you up tomorrow when the sun’s down, I should be back by then.” Law tries to push past your skeptical tone. 

“Where are you going.” You state firmly, finally make eye contact with Law and you stop shuffling through your gardening gear. You straighten your back and look deep into his grey eyes. 

“I have a meeting.” Law swallows. “World government stuff.” Law’s eyes flick to the floor, to the east wall of your room, then back to your harsh gaze. 

“Hmm.” You huff. Should you bring it up now? What was even the point? He’d never abandon his plan for you, so you probably shouldn’t bother. He was trying to be sweet… ask you out for a late night submarine trip alone… but he was still lying to you. You could tell. 

Love had been clouding your judgement- no, lust? It wasn’t love. You barely knew him, you were realizing now. Lust had been blinding you to the fact that Law only cared about his own goal. A man that cared about you wouldn’t haul his ass to a foreign country to let himself get brutally murdered after abandoning his lover and his loyal crew… you knew that much. 

There was an uncomfortable silence. 

A dry, choking feeling crept up your throat. You couldn’t show him that you knew.. he couldn’t know that you were upset… not yet. You sniffed, swiped your face with your hand to fake an innocent runny nose. 

“Right well, see you tomorrow then. I have to get to work. Have fun at your meeting.” You usher Law out of your room and close the door behind the two of you. You start walking quickly down the hall with your gardening tools in your arms before he could notice the tears welling in your eyes. 

“Yeah. Tomorrow, then.” Law mumbles as you walk away. 

But unbeknownst to you, of course Law had seen the tears.

— —  

You toiled away all day in the garden. Winter was here but you still had potatoes and winter melons to tend to along with the hardy evergreen plants. You threw yourself into your work to take your mind off of Law. Things had been so good until you discovered his plans to invade Dressrosa and the finality of your ‘relationship’ had become so real in your mind. 

The outdoor plants were fed and happy so you retreated to the shed where your prized plants were kept warm against the elements with heat lamps and hydroponic irrigation (a complicated system that Penguin had helped you set up). 

You spend the next hour or so trimming your marijuana plants and didn’t notice the sun setting outside the frost covered greenhouse windows. You reach inside your jumpsuit pocket and retrieve your rolling papers. 

You sigh and slide down against the shed’s wooden wall in a damp corner of your makeshift greenhouse. You roll yourself a joint as carefully as possibly with shaking, anxious hands. 

With trembling hands, you placed the joint between your chapped lips and fished out your butane lighter. You looked down and ran your thumb over the lighter’s gold engravings, and smiled weakly remembering the thoughtful crew mate who had gifted it to you years ago now. 

You push down the pangs of remembrance and light the joint. You take a long drag and let your head fall back against the wall. 

You exhale and catch yourself letting out a sob. You bring your hand to cover your nose and mouth, trying to keep it all in. Tears stream down your cheeks and slip over your fingers like water in a creek after a heavy rain. 

The door creaked open. 

“Hey… D? Are you in here? People are eating dinner and wondering where you are…” Ikkaku’s voice comes from the doorway. 

*sniff*

Ikkaku scans the shed and finds you clutching your knees to your chest in the corner, obviously crying. 

“Oh, honey…” Ikkaku’s curly hair bounces behind her as she rushes over to you and squats down next to your huddled form. “What’s wrong?” She reaches out to push your grey streak of hair out of your eyes gently. 

“What the fuck am I doing?” You manage to choke out after removing your hand from your mouth. You lean into Ikkaku’s chest and sob harder. She pulls you close into her arms. 

“It’s okay… let it out…” 

Ikkaku lets you cry violently into her body for several minutes until she finally pulls you back and wipes snot from your nose with the off-white sleeve of her jumpsuit. 

“Now what did he do this time? I thought he was taking you out tomorrow night?” 

“I-I can’t go.. it’s too much.. I’m leaving soon….” You whisper between sniffles. 

“Soon? In a year?” She cocks her head and asks. 

You nod. 

“Baby that’s then, this is now. Love has never had a place in the New World. It’s the shitty nature of it all. You’re going to have to make a choice. Do you want to just be happy for a year and then miserable forever, or miserable forever starting now?” Ikkaku tries to dry your cheeks the best she can with one hand as she strokes your back with the other. 

You cry harder at the thought of making that choice. 

“Just go with him. If he’s asking you to go, it’s because he needs you.”

You look up through wet eyelashes at your friend and weakly nod. 

“T-thank you…” 

“Any time. Now finish up in here and I’ll bring dinner to your room. I don’t need all those nosy ass boys gossiping about why you’re upset.” 

— — 

The Next Day…

You leaned with your forehead against the steamy shower tile fore awhile. Ikkaku’s words rang in your ears. “Do you want to be happy for a year and then miserable forever, or miserable forever starting now?” 

All you wanted more than anything in the world was to give yourself fully to Law, body and mind… but you couldn’t stop that gnawing feeling in your gut about the heartbreak you’ll inevitably receive hearing about his death. You had to push it aside as much as you knew it would hurt one day. But Ikkaku was right, you would regret it for the rest of your life if you didn’t see how far this could go. 

With a sigh you finished shaving your legs and trimming everything else, washed off the remaining body wash and turned off the scalding water. Steam radiated off your damp skin as you stepped out of the shower stall. 

You dried off and applied your favorite vanilla cashmere lotion all over your freshly smooth skin. As apprehensive as you were… he did refer to it as a date after all…

You got dressed in something cozy, not wanting to doll up too much due to the cold, and packed a small bag of overnight essentials. You tossed in your hair brush, tooth brush, fresh underwear and leggings, and an ornate cigarette case full of rolled joints and your butane lighter. 

You wave bye to Ikkaku and Penguin on your way out, Ikkaku giving you a sympathetic, comforting smile. 

You push open the heavy metal door to the base and pull the hood of your sweatshirt up to keep the brisk air from nipping at your ears. You could easily fly to where Law asked you to meet him and be there in a quarter of the time, but for your mind was telling you to walk. You trudged through the frozen field to the dock and cleared your head with each fall of your boots. 

— — 

Eventually you made it to the dock where indeed the large yellow submarine was anchored and waiting for you. You flitted up to the top deck and let yourself in the door. You slinked through the metal corridors of the ship and ended up at the control room. 

You knock twice but open the door immediately, feeling anxious. 

Law was standing with his back to you the same clothes he was wearing when he left. He turned upon hearing you open the door. He drops his hands from the wheel of the ship and stepped towards you. 

“Hey..” He sighs out softly as he starts to smile tiredly. You see that the bags under his eyes were even darker than usual. He looked exhausted. Law lifted his arms weakly towards you. You instinctively throw yourself into his embrace. One hand wrapped around your torso tightly while the other immediately went to grip the back of your head to pull you closely into him. You could tell how much he really did need you right now. 

Oh gods! You were so selfish! All you were worried about was your own inevitable heartbreak that you didn’t even think about how taxing this whole thing would be on Law. Bringing up so much past trauma and so many bad memories compounded with the thoughts of his own mortality… you almost teared up at the idea of him struggling with his feelings alone. 

“Missed you…” Law mumbled into your neck after giving it a quick kiss and a nuzzle. 

“Gods… must have been some meeting… you look like shit…” You say softly, still caught in his tight embrace. Law chuckles. 

“You could have said something like ‘I missed you too.’”

“I know I could have. I said what I said.” You smiled as you pulled back so you could look at his tired face. You cup his cheek gently. “Let’s just get out of here.” 

— — 

You look curiously at the abyssal ocean out of the Tang’s front windows as Law had been piloting the ship for some minutes now. Occasionally you see a fish or eel skittering out of the way in the dim blue light coming from the submarine’s windows illuminating the surrounding water. 

“So where exactly are we going?” You asked without turning away from the bay windows. 

“Nowhere.” Law responds before you hear different knobs and switches being turned and flipped behind you. 

“I beg your finest pardon?” You ask as you turn towards Law and rise to your feet. 

Law steps toward you and brushes your hair over your ear before kissing you gently. 

“I’m tired of everything getting in the way. No one can bother us out here.” Law leans back in to kiss your lips more firmly this time. You put your hands on his chest. 

“So you’re planning on wooing me at the bottom of the ocean?” You cock your head. 

“At this point it seemed like the only option… that or maybe the moon…” Law leans in again but this time kisses your jaw and down your neck. You huff out a laugh.

“And who is going to be piloting the ship while you’re indisposed?” You ask.

“It’s on auto-pilot, obviously.” Law remarks as he runs his hand through your hair. 

“Okay okay lover boy, you need to go clean up and change first.” You pull yourself from his grasp.

Law rolled his eyes. “No no, come on, off you go.” You turn him by his shoulder and push him towards the door to the hallway. “I’ll wait in your room, I promise.” You smile softly as you both enter the ship’s main hall. You playfully push him off to the bathroom and you turn to your right and enter the captain’s quarters. 

The captain’s chambers on the tang were a mirror image to his bedroom at the base. A rough hewn wooden desk was surrounded by bookshelves along the walls, the surface of the desk messily covered in papers. On the opposite side of the bedroom was a queen sized bed fitted with navy sheets and a quilt, made with surgical poison. The only difference from Law’s room at the base was the large windows that allowed for a fine surveillance of the ocean floor on the starboard side of the ship. 

You slipped off your sweatshirt over your head and dropped it to the floor. In just your sports bra and leggings, you flop onto Law’s bed on your stomach and gaze at the sea life floating around the windows. You notice a family of seahorses in a row frolicking across the sea floor and smile. So cute the little ones were as they followed their father in a neat row… You rolled onto your back and grabbed your cigarette case out of your pocket. 

You curled your feet up onto the bed and lit a joint. You laid back fully on the bed and watched the fish swim past as you smoked. You had no idea how much time passed, but you were down to half your marijuana cigarette. The door to the bedroom swings open. 

“I had a feeling you’d be doing that.” Law comes in with jeans hung low on his wait and ruffles a white towel through his wet hair before throwing it towards his desk. 

“A submarine ride is far more enjoyable under the influence, I’ve learned.” You smile and sit up and cross your legs. 

Law smirks. “I can’t argue with that.” Law walks towards his desk. He pulls out a drawer and roots around for a moment before fishing out a bottle of whiskey and two glasses. He sets them on his desk and uncorks the whiskey. He pours two hefty glasses before bringing them over to you on his bed. He hands you one. 

“Is this technically sailing while under the influence?” You remark as you take the glass from Law’s outstretched hand. 

“I’ve violated several world government laws in the last few hours… I don’t think this one matters that much.” Law clinks his glass with yours. 

You outstretch your hand that contained the half joint. “A little? One puff?” You goad Law. 

“After what happened last time and I thought I had to switch my breathing from automatic to manual?” Law raises an eyebrow. 

“That was over 100 milligrams of straight herb, this is just a hit. I promise you’ll be fine.” You gesture the lit joint towards Law again. 

Law rolls his eyes and takes the joint form your soft fingertips. He inhales and passes it back to you.

“Wow, if you could see yourself a year ago…” You chuckle. Law exhales a large cloud of smoke and takes a swig of his whiskey. 

“Shut up.” 

“Make me.” You playfully retort and take a sip of your drink. It burns your throat but it helps you push the feelings of anxiety aside. For tonight it would just be you and Law. 

Silence goes by again and you snuff out the joint. 

“Daisy… I need to tell you something…” Law says as he turns his body fully towards you, his eyes still on the rocks glass in his hand. 

“Oh?” You inquire… knowing he’s going to tell you of his plan to kill Doflamingo and you were going to have to act surprised, how the hell were you supposed to-

“I love you.” 

The world stopped. You pick up your head and look at Law in the eye, suddenly incredibly sober. What did he say?

“W-what-“ You manage to get out, but it sounded more like a cough. 

“I love you, Daisy. I-I don’t know how else to tell you how I feel I just.. you don’t have to say anything back, I just-“ Law stutters out after seeing your shocked expression. He shuffles closer to you on the bed and places his hand on your cheek. You weren’t even remotely prepared to hear that phrase from Law’s lips… shit, anyone’s lips, as long as you were alive. He was being foolish… he couldn’t possibly mean it..

“Love me enough to stay away from Dressrosa?” You spit out without thinking. 

Law’s tender hand recoils from your face. 

“W-wha-“ 

You grab his hand and return it to your cheek. 

“I know I can’t convince you to stay… I just want you to stop hiding it from me…” You say as you nuzzle your blush-tinted nose into the warlord’s cold palm. 

“Y-you know…” Law whispers.

“I do. I don’t want to talk about it right now. We have a long time, don’t we?” You smile and press a kiss against Law’s lips. 

“W-we do… Daisy I… I do love you… I don’t know what else to say… I’m sorry…” Law says as he presses his forehead against yours and paws at your hips. You could almost swear you saw a wet twinkling in his eyes. 

“I love you too, Law.” You say softly up at him, unsure of the words even as they left your lips… but they felt so natural. It felt foreign. You bring your fingertips up to your lips to try and even believe that you said it out loud.

You lay back against the pillows and pull Law on top of you with your arms around his shoulders. “I want you, Law.” 

Law flops a bit clumsily on top of you. 

“A-are you sure?” He asks. 

“Yes.” You say confidently. “Please make love to me.” You grasp his hat and toss if off to the side of the bed before pulling him into a searing kiss. Law returns the kiss by slipping his hot tongue into your eager mouth and letting your head fall fully against the pillow behind you. 

Law kisses down your jaw as he pushes his hands under your torso to remove your bra. Once discarded, he pulls down your leggings and leaves them on the floor with the rest of your clothes, leaving you fully exposed. 

Law leans back and sucks in a breath as he sees your naked form before him. He freezes in place. 

“And you?” You chide as you pull at the button of his jeans. 

Law snaps out of his trance. 

“R-right.” Law undoes his pants and pulls them down swiftly along with his briefs so that you could both finally see each other bare. He approaches you again on the bed and strokes your thigh, not looking you in the eyes. 

“Wow…” You couldn’t help but remark. 

“I-it’s alright?” Law asks nervously. 

“It’s more than alright.” You couldn’t help but chuckle as Law’s impressively large member bobbed eagerly in front of you. You swallowed at the thought of that fitting inside of you… not having anything bigger than a single finger for several years. “I-I just might need a little help…” You smile and grab at Law’s wrist. You bring his trembling hand to your sex, encouraging him to touch you further. 

“Right… of course…” Law returns to his analytical self as he begins to stroke up and down your naked slit with two fingers, warming you up to his intimate touch. You shudder a bit at his cold hands, but you warm to them quickly as you feel Law’s tender touch grip your breast with his other hand. After a few moments of rubbing through your wet folds, Law inserts his fingers inside of you with precision, like he had been preparing for this very moment. 

“Oh!” You gasp out. 

Law pinches your nipple in one hand while he gently taps into your sweet spot with the other. He stretches your walls delicately and gently while he slowly coaxes more wetness from your insides with his fingers. 

“Shit, Law-“ You groan in pleasure and grip Law by the hair on the back of his neck with both hands, bringing his head close to you. He grunts and begins to place messy kisses down the column of your throat. “F-faster… honey please…” You beg as you buck your hips into Law’s precise touch. Law obliges and pulls his fingers into your g-spot firmly and quickly, you feel the pressure of your orgasm built faster than you were anticipated. 

“Law, I’m- I’m-Fuck-“ You cry out as you reach your peak. 

“Yes, give it to me…” Law presses his face into yours and captures your lips in a needy kiss as you release all over his waiting palm. Chilly doctors fingers finally warmed by your insides, he pulls himself from you slowly. You breath heavily as you come down from your high, giggling slightly as you relax your head on the pillows of Law’s bed. 

“Good , b-baby?” Law awkwardly asks, realizing he’s going to now be asked to perform for the main event. 

“Yes… but I want you now. Please…” You grab further down Law’s back trying to pull him up over you fully. He shifts in compliance with your touch so your hips are aligned. “I can take it…” You whisper as you sign Law’s weeping cock up with your entrance. You couldn’t believe this was really happening… but you knew this was what you wanted…

“Y-your legs are shaking… are you sure? We don’t have-“ Law stutters out as he unconsciously rubs his head against your soaked pussy. 

“I want this. I want you.” You assure him. “Just do it.” 

Law nods. 

He pushes into you fully to the hilt in one swift motion. 

“Ahhh-“ Law groans the instant he feels your wet walls wrapped around him. 

“Fuck-“ You cry out, not fully physically or mentally prepared to have a man inside of you or on top of you again, regardless of who it was. You slam your eyes shut and your body goes rigid. Law senses your change in demeanor. 

“O-open your eyes. It’s just me.” Law whispers down at you as he supports himself on his arms above you. “It’s just us…” 

You open your eyes. 

Seeing Law gaze at you with such adoration and lust, all insecurities and past anxieties melted away in his ice crew eyes. You bring up your hand and cup Law’s jaw. 

“I love you, Law…” You whisper. 

“I love you too, Daisy.” Law replies as he gently pulls himself out of you and begins to tentatively thrust his hips. “So much…” His eyes move from your mismatched ones to where his cock was settled inside of you. “Shit-“ 

“Oh, fuck, Law…” You moan at the feeling of his thick length sliding in and out of your tender walls.

“I-I can’t last…” Law stutters out, embarrassed. 

“That’s okay…” You reassure your anxious lover and stroke his back. 

“Fuck!” Law quickly removes himself from you and you gasp at the sudden absence of sensation. You crane your neck down and see that Law gas empties himself all over your stomach, ropes of cum shooting so far that it decorated the underside of your breasts. 

Law collapses on top of you, sandwiching his own spend between the two of you but not caring enough to move. Law rolls out of you, pulling you into his chest without cleaning of either of your messes. 

You laid in his embrace for a long time, just enjoying the feeling of his sharp breaths and sweaty skin against yours. This man loved you, and you loved him… and so it shall be… until the end of things…

— — 

*A/N* WOOOO THEY DID IT! 19 CHAPTERS LATER!!! THANKS FOR STAYING ALONG FOR THE RIDE YALL! It’s gonna get angsty in the next chapter ugh I’m sorry guys… but enjoy the sexy time and the fun while we’re here! I promise there will be better smut in the future this was just their cutie pie first time :)

[darkwood-sleddog]

What is in the water this week?? work’s got me like this

[shimmeringweeds]

Captivating how “盗火者” (Prometheus) ends with three solos. Li Tianchen’s bit ending with a breath out- snuffing out a light; Liu Xiao ends with a whisper-putting someone to sleep; Li Tianxi with her piano gets one last action- a sharp rolled chord- a certain finality.

Beautiful how “3,2,1!” Includes singing and clapping together as a means to stir up the old dust into a tiny whirlwind. Come together and find rhythm and music together. We will create together. We will do this together. The future will be alright.

Anyway Michael Yu and Fan Ka did it again with the lyrics, and if you haven’t watched their interviews about the process yet, you really should consider it.

[crowcryptid]

Stuck at a red light and I could count 16 cranes all making new condos and apartments. Maybe a few of them are offices but they looked like apartments.

Filled me with a new sense of dread

[fingertipsmp3]

Last night’s dream was the first one I’ve had in a long time where I wanted to fall back asleep and stay in it/experience it again

[laomelettedufromage]

Oh boy guess who has to make decisions about their short term future soon😳

[the-magic-school-bus]

i have been screaming internally for several hours and it’s about a situation i don’t even have control over

[gojonanami]

❝ 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐌𝐄𝐀𝐍𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐒𝐀𝐘 𝐆𝐎𝐎𝐃𝐁𝐘𝐄 ❞

❝ I CAN'T BREATHE WITHOUT YOU, BUT I HAVE TO... ❞

✧ pairing: satoru gojo x f!reader (canon / multi au)

✧ summary: "would we love each other in every life?" it's the question you asked satoru the night before his battle, and he replied that, of course you would. but did that promise create a curse -- or were you both always cursed to begin with when it came to love?

✧ warnings: 18+, nsfw, smut, jjk manga spoilers (236 spoilers), multiple lives, assassin!reader x duke!gojo, actor!gojo x singer!reader, prince!gojo x knight!reader, model!gojo x photographer!reader, oral (f!receiving) in a car, semi-public, making out in public, pantyhose ripping, canon compliant except towards the end, angsty, but also bittersweet / implied happy ending

✧ wc: 6,589

“Do you think we would be together in another life?” you ask, not thinking much of the question, as your fingers draw lazy circles against his bare chest, your head resting right between his shoulder and chest. 

Satoru chuckles, vibration against your skin, “Of course we would, sweetheart,” his arms curl around you, tugging you higher, as he gazes up at you, “you think I could live any lifetime without you?” He murmurs, his lips finding yours, “I know we’d find each other, time and time again,” 

“How do you know?” your fingers brush against his cheek, shaking as he presses his cheek into your palm, a smile pulling at his lips. 

“Because, I love you,” he kisses you again, sweet lips gliding against yours, his breath warming your lips as he parts. 

“You did say love is a curse,” you give a small smile, and he presses his forehead to yours. 

“Then I’d want you to curse me — in every life.” 

“I swear on my life,” you press the dagger to his throat, blade digging into his formerly  perfect porcelain skin, drawing scarlet to the surface, “I’ll kill you, Satoru Gojo,” 

“I’m flattered to be a target of the infamous blueblood assassin,” his cerulean eyes glinted like stars in the candlelight, flames flickering across his eyes like burning comets, “but I didn’t think you would announce yourself as you did — what if I called for my guards?” 

You scoff, fingers flexing against the hilt of your dagger, “Then you would be dead before you uttered even a single sound and do you think I left your guards to chance? All of that schooling to be a duke and you haven’t learned a single thing have you?” 

“And what have I done to end up as your target?” he hums — as you bit back a sigh stuck in your throat — you preferred your marks to be much less chatty, but all he had was his mouth you supposed, “you only target the rich and the corrupt — and while I may fit the former, I do not fit the latter,” 

“You’re certainly sure of yourself,” and he’s unfazed by your reply, as his eyes wander the only thing visible of your expression — your eyes. 

“Since you have not stated my crime, I can only assume that I’ve committed none, and the infamous assassin whose morals could not be compromised have been,” and your grip wavers a moment, and he takes advantage of your hesitance to disarm you, and pin you to a nearby chaise all before the clatter of your blade hitting the marble floor, “and now what’s an assassin’s price who has done all of this for no reward?” 

“How do you know I’ve done this for no reward?” you squirm in his grip, but it’s ironclad, and you know all too well he could have broken from your grasp at any point, but he had chosen not to — your heartbeat roars in your ears as one question repeats again and again stuck between  beats — why? “I very well may have taken a payment you don’t know of — you act as if you know of me,” 

“Because I do,” the heir replies with a simple smile, “I have followed your work for a long time, and I found myself fascinated with what you do — and why you do it,” 

“Honored to have caught your attention,” you say in mock reverence, your arm beginning to ache, “now do you plan to call your guards?” 

“Didn’t know you were so eager to die,” he stares still, as you turn your head away from his piercing gaze, “shouldn’t you keep your eyes on your target or now your captor?” 

“Do you ever shut up?” You mumble as you flinch as you squirm under his grip, sleeve riding up ever so slightly — and then he sees it. His eyes narrow, as his hand grasps at your wrist now, “hey! Don’t—“ 

In a moment his fingers nearly rip the fabric of your tunic to tug your sleeve up —  angry red cuts and purple bruises litter your arm. Your breath catches as his eyes stare for several moments before sliding back to you — no longer a placid pool but a raging ocean. 

“Who did this to you?” he says quietly, and you’re blinking, nearly slack jawed, as you try to rip your arms away, but he won’t let you, “who is it? Is it the same person who told you to kill me?” 

“Stop—“ 

“Is it the same person who’s taken someone important to you?” and you grit your teeth in silence, “is it the little orphan you adopted? Yuji?” 

And your eyes snap to his, “How do you know this? Who are you?” 

His lips curl,  “You told me yourself, I’m Satoru Gojo,” and his fingers brush your cheek, “it’s a shame you don’t remember where we first met — because I never forgot,” 

You furrow your brow, “What are you talking about? I think I’d remember you. You’re…” you jerk your head, eyes looking him up and down — lingering on his white hair and eyes, “distinct,” 

“Well what if I had black hair and green eyes, would you remember then?” And he whispers your name in your ear, and you pause, “the fireworks were nothing compared to you,” 

And your breath catches — “You? But—“ 

“I had snuck out, had a disguise and everything, and I had planned to explore the festival alone but who do I find but you?” His grip on you loosens only to pull you a little closer, “the girl who had stolen two steamed buns and pinned me with part of the blame, making me run after you—“ 

“You didn’t have to run—“ and he snorted. 

“Well, it was that or get caught sneaking out — so I chose the lesser of two evils,” you can’t help it, your fingers trace the curve of his jaw to the back of his ear, “are you seeing if I’m defective?” And you find it. 

“No, he—“ you stop yourself, “you had gotten a small cut right behind your ear, it was deep enough that it would have left a scar behind,” and he had gotten a small cut from one of the soldiers who had grabbed them, bucking him with his sword, before you wrenched him out of there. The two of you spent the rest of the night eating food and sneaking around guards. And then finally climbing up on a rooftop to watch the fireworks. 

“How did you—“ 

“One of my father’s advisers found me later that night, in exchange for never sneaking out again without telling him, he said he would keep tabs on you,” 

You have no words, but one left — “why?” 

“I don’t know,” he shook his head, “maybe it was because I’ve been surrounded by nothing but my family’s yes-men, and you were the one person who treated me like a person, maybe it was the fact that day was the only day I actually had fun,” and he glances at you, “or maybe it was because I was drawn to you,” 

And you snort a little, “Do you believe in that fates nonsense they fed all of us as kids?” 

“I think fate is a very real thing, and I think it’s up to us to seize it,” he releases you, holding your hand before bending to press the barest brush of his lips against the back of your hand, “so, will you seize it or continue to evade your fate?” 

“We’ll never be able to evade the press if you do this,” you whisper, as he presses you against a wall of a secluded pillar of whatever place they had chosen to have this awards show, “and our teams will definitely chew us out if we don’t make an—ah,” you gasp, as his teeth nip at your neck, “Satoru, don’t leave a mark,” 

“Sorry, sweetheart,” he licks his lips, as he leans up, his normally messy white locks combed and parted to the side, his lips kiss bitten red from the liplock he had you in for the last ten minutes, and his white suit slightly ruffled and pressed against you, “you taste so sweet,” his thumb runs down your puffy lips, “and the desserts tonight sucked,” 

You chuckle, your fingers toying with the hair resting against his undercut, “Think you would have been pleased with receiving the award for best actor, is that not enough Mr. Gojo?” 

“The only thing that pleases me is my gorgeous wife’s singing and,” his lips find yours in a desperate kiss, and you could taste the fruity mocktail he had earlier on his lips, “and her moans when she’s under me,” his hand slides under your dress, dragging over your pantyhose clad thighs, “do you think anyone would notice if you came back without these?” 

“Yes, I do,” you gasp as he tugs at the delicate fabric, “Toru, we shouldn’t—” but your pleas are half-hearted, as his lips drift to press butterfly kisses up your jaw, “you deserve me insane,” 

“I know,” he chuckles, “that’s why you love me,” and you hum, your noses brushing before you meet lips again, “I love you so much,” 

Your fingers cup his cheek, as he leaned into your touch, “I love you too — don’t you want to enjoy all the accolades, the interviews, the congratulations? You won such a big award, Toru, I want you to celebrate,” 

“I am celebrating,” he grins, tilting his head, “I’m surprised at you, princess — and you’re the smart one between the two of us,” he teases, as he turns his head to kiss your palm, “in an entire ballroom full of people in there and all the places in the world, there’s no one place I rather be with than here with you.” 

“How did I end up stuck with you?” you grumbled, your armor weighing on you heavier than other days, as you stood in front of your prince — the little sun of this kingdom and the future king, the man you were sworn to protect for the rest of your earthly days, and your best friend, for better for worse, “if the fates have written it, I must have done something horrid in a past life,” 

“Do you really believe in that garbage?” Satoru raises an eyebrow, as he places his sword down from practice, waiving off his training partner, as he wipes off his sweat with a towel offered by a maid, “You know that stuff they fed to us so we wouldn’t throw tantrums during classes — so we didn’t turn into slugs for our next life,” 

“Why turn into one when you are one already?” you smirk, and he rolls his eyes, as he runs his hand through his hair. 

“Has a slug ever looked this good before?” and you roll your eyes. 

“Think your ego is going to be so large by the time you become king, your crown won’t sit atop your head correctly,” you sigh, rising to your feet, “now we must get you cleaned and dressed, you have a meeting with the—” 

“I actually cleared my schedule for the rest of the day,” and you blink, frowning. 

“His Majesty will not—” 

“His Majesty will be fine — old man hasn’t kicked the bucket over the last fifty things I’ve done — I doubt this will be more than a ten minute lecture on decorum, fifteen if I decide to poke the bear,” he throws you a grin, as he pulls on a fresh shirt, “come, I have something to show you,” 

“Show me?” you repeat, before his hand finds yours — his hands are smooth despite the constant swordplay and practice he put in — he supposed he owed that to the royal staff, tending to his looks as much as they did his health. The same could not be said about yours — riddled with cuts and calluses alike. Your cheeks burned as your unkempt hand held his — “your highness, this is—” 

“‘Your Highness?’” he repeats, throwing you a smirk over his shoulder, “when have you ever called me that?” 

The appearance of holding your hand as he pulled you down several hallways through the palace was beginning to attract the attention of several gawking onlookers. Your cheeks burn — and you’re not sure if it's from the stares, his words, or the fact he was still holding your hand as you both arrive outside his chambers. But you can’t stop him — but you never could stop him when it came to this, could you? It reminded you of the times he dragged you through the gardens, wanting to show you the rabbits’ hidey hole he had found in the corner of the royal gardens. 

“Well I was made an official royal guard and appointed as your personal guard yesterday so I thought a little professionalism—” he unlocks his door, turning to look at you, a smile pulling at his lips. 

“There’s no need for decorum between us, now is there?” his fingers find a stray strand of your hair, and presses his lips to it, as he opens his door. You glance inside to find a lovely decorated cake and a present wrapped perfectly on the table, “Happy birthday, sweetheart,” 

“What—but—” and your mind realizes the date, “how did you—” 

“You think I’d ever forget your birthday?” he tilts his head, as your eyes slide to him, “it’s the day we met,” 

It was — the day you were brought from your home with your father who had been the king’s royal guard for many years, you were brought to be the prince’s — but you didn’t know you would find more than that in him. 

“I didn’t know you did this for your personal staff,” you teased, a smile pulling at the corners of your mouth, “I certainly can’t imagine what they would think of you inviting a woman to your room for it,” 

“Well, you are my personal guard, you’re here to personally guard me against anything, right?” and this was the nature of your relationship wasn’t it? Teasing and goading — toeing that line of proprietary before one of you eased off. 

“It seems like I need to guard you only against yourself, your highness,” 

“Satoru,” he corrects, his eyes sliding to you, as he says your name with a softness that you wished he wouldn’t, “you had no issue calling me that before,” 

“We were only friends then, I’m your guard now—“ 

“Do you kiss all your friends?” And your cheeks flare, as your gaze refuses to meet his. 

“That was—a mistake,” you whisper the last two words, “we can’t do this—“ 

“Why not?” You turn away, your eyes sliding to the cake, a frown pulling on your lips. 

“Because you have a duty to your people and I have a duty to you,” and his fingers find your shoulder gently, giving you leave to pull away — but you can’t, you couldn’t. 

“My only duty I desire is the one to you—I love my people, but I can’t be the king they deserve if you’re not the one beside me,” your gaze still cast downward, “I will cast away any responsibility, if I could have a chance with you, sweetheart—“ 

“The king has discussed your engagement with me,” you murmur, “he told me he plans to have you engaged with a princess from a neighboring—“ And his arm is wrapping around your waist, pulling you closer — your gaze lost in the endless blue skies of his eyes, “we can’t—“ 

“I’ll find a way,” and you scoff. 

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep,” you mutter, and his warm palm slides against your cheek. 

“This isn’t me promising to find a unicorn when we were five, Princess,” and you chuckle at the thought of his child self trudging into the woods with carrots in hand and what he thought was fairy dust (it was ladies’ finishing powder), “I swear that we’ll be together,” and he reaches into his pocket, and holds a small box, opening it to reveal a beautiful infinity pendant, “and this is my promise,” 

You bite your lip, staring at the silver glinting in the sunlight trickling in from the windows, “Satoru—“ 

“Finally giving in?” And you sigh. 

“How can you be sure we’ll be together?” He chuckles, as he gently turns you, making you face the mirror in his room as he places the necklace delicately around your neck, his fingers brushing against the skin of your neck before he clasps it. His arms slowly slide around your middle as he meets your gaze in your reflection, lips curling. 

His lips press a sweet kiss to your cheek, “Because I know I’d choose you, again and again.” 

“Why did they choose him as my model again?” You groaned as you looked at the list, tossing it back on your desk, “he’s so impossible to work with—“ 

“The shoots are finished quick—“ your boss replies gruffly, as he stands with his hands in his pockets, “and he said he’d only shoot with you. Said he likes your work and you’re the only one who can ‘capture the real him,’ some crap like that,” he shrugs. 

“Yaga, I can’t keep dealing with this man, can’t he shoot with anyone else?” 

He sighs, scratching the back of his head, “Look, the magazine we’re working with chose him as the model, and he said he would only do the shoot if you did it,” 

You sigh, leaning on your palm, elbow against your desk. “you’re not giving me a choice are you?” 

And no, he wasn’t. 

Because now you were at the studio for the sight of the shoot, getting everything ready that you could before your model arrived. You made sure his preferred makeup artist and hairstylist were available, you picked out his favorite snacks, got his preferred lighting (to be adjusted when he was on set), and had your cameras adjusted for his light sensitivity. 

All of which reduced the amount of time you had to spend with this man — but not even the most divine snacks would stop him from running his mouth. 

“Sweetheart,” you turned to see him, “miss me?” 

“When pigs fly, maybe,” but your words don’t faze him, a mock pout on his lips, “why do you request me to do your shoots, Gojo?” 

“Because it’s the only way you’ll see me,” and you sigh, as you continue to adjust your camera again, “you still haven’t given me a chance—“ 

“I gave you one chance, wasn’t that enough?” Before you turn to him, “look, I’m here because I have to be. I want to shoot — get in and get out and not have to—“ 

“One chance to talk to you — please, even if you don’t believe me or forgive me—“ 

“Fine,” you shake your head, frustrated, “go finish the shoot and we can talk for five minutes after,” and maybe he would stop forcing you into this situation. 

Satoru Gojo was the top wanted model by all the agencies — agencies were looking to snipe him and others were looking to have exclusive deals with him — whether it was photography businesses or brands. 

You couldn’t blame them, as you adjusted your lights and took a few test shots — he was gorgeous, even by model standards. From his skin to his body to his attitude, it was effortless for him. Even a bad angle or bad lighting did very little to detract from his flawless look. 

The chiseled cut of his jaw put statues to shame, his eyes shone brighter than the shiniest gemstones, his charm the envy of the love goddess herself, and his smile was enough to change hearts and minds alike. 

The shoots always look little time — the part that took the most time was choosing the best shots — you’d love to take one bad picture of him. Even for yourself — but that had proved impossible. Even deprived of sleep in the hours of the early morning, he was perfect. 

Perfect — except for his loyalty, you supposed. 

How had it gone so wrong so fast? And how did you let yourself become so carried away that you thought you were different from the others he bedded? 

And the shoot was over in a moment, and just like he said, Satoru was by your side as you begin to break down the equipment, as the other staff filed out, “can we talk now?” 

“If you have to,” you would give him an ear, but it didn’t mean you’d give him anything else.

“I never cheated on you—“ 

“Bullshit,” you reply, as you pick up the tripod you set up,  “I guess you didn’t the full five minutes,” 

“No, I didn’t—what you saw—“ 

“I saw you kissing another girl all over social media—“

“You saw me with Suguru,” he sighs, “and we weren’t kissing — we were hugging. You thought it was kissing from the angle of the picture, and before I could explain, you had blocked me on everything,”

You pause, “Suguru?” You repeat, as you pull out your phone and pull up the picture — black hair, hair half up, and they could have been hugging. And Satoru pulls out his own phone and shows you a selfie he took that same day, the meta data matching, “oh, oh fuck,” 

“Was that an apology? Not familiar with those coming out of your mouth so—“ 

“Satoru, I’m so sorry,” you murmur, “I saw the pictures and I heard the rumors and I assumed the worst of you,” you run your fingers through your hair, “even though I knew you better than that,” 

“You did, but I understand why you thought that,” he shrugged, “we had only been seeing each other for a month, but it meant something to me,” his voice softens.

“To me too,” you shake your head, “I’m so sorry, Satoru. I don’t know how to make it up to you,” 

“I know,” he smiles, “have dinner with me,” 

You blink. “why?”

“What do you mean, sweetheart? Everyone eats dinner, it’s a—“ 

“Satoru,” you sigh, “I didn’t believe you, I didn’t trust you, how can you forgive me like that? How could you want to be with someone like that?” 

“Well, you made a mistake — you forgave me for the other mistakes I made during our time together, and if I hadn’t let my team convince me that my fake reputation as a playboy would help sell my image — maybe we wouldn’t have been in this mess to begin with,” his fingers brush against yours, “besides, I want to believe in second chances — because I’d want to believe you’d give me one too,” 

Your fingers intertwine with his, “Even when I don’t deserve it?” 

And he lifts your hand to his lips, blue eyes glinting like an ocean dabbled in sunlight, “All the more for you make up for, right?”

This wasn’t right. No. No. 

“Satoru, Toru, please,” your fingers cupped his face, your fingers smeared with his blood as Maki pulled gou away, “no, no!” You don’t remember screaming, but you know you did because your throat was raw, your tears streaming down your face as your hands shook, staring at the dried blood on your fingers. 

He promised you he would win. He promised you he would come back. He promised you a life, a family, a home — something beyond jujutsu. 

And now you were left with nothing but that. 

“I’ll come back,” he had murmured in your ear the night before, his fingers tracing your cheek, “there’s no way I won’t. Have you ever seen me lose?” 

You give a small chuckle, “You just got trapped in a box for almost twenty days?” And he pouts, as he tilts your head up, fingers sliding against your cheek. 

“It was a one time fluke, sweetheart,” and his lips grazing your lips, “and I’m here now aren’t I?” you hum, “and I’ll always be there,” 

“In every life?” He smiles. 

“In every one.” 

In every one — except this one.  

“One would think you’re helpless, if you pout like that,” you teased, as you crawl into bed beside him, a smile on your lips, as he tugs you steadfast into his arms, “it’s only been a few minutes,” 

“It felt like a lifetime,” he presses a kiss to your head, “Is he asleep?” And you nod, a sigh on your lips as you settle into bed.

“After about twenty minutes of arguing, he passed out while I was telling him a story. He’s still not accustomed to this mansion,” neither were you — you had spent a few nights lying awake after jerking from the clutches of sleep — the paranoia still rampant in your mind. But those thoughts were a little farther now as you lie against his chest, heart thrumming under your body — the very heart you were meant to stop, and a chuckle escapes your lips. 

“What is it?” He raises an eyebrow, and you shake your head. 

“Why did you help me?” You draw circles on his chest, “you had every reason not to,” your fingers traced a line across his neck, “I even held a knife to your neck,” 

“And that was very attractive,” and you roll your eyes, “what? I like a woman who takes charge,” 

“Oh I know,” you chuckle, your lips pressing sweet kisses to his neck, “but I still don’t understand — you had every reason to distrust me, we barely knew each other, and yet—“ 

“You were still the girl I fell in love with that night,” he murmurs, “I just knew you were something special and when I saw what you were doing — trying to uproot corruption, I knew I was right. And I knew I had to make you my duchess,” 

“Well I’m not your wife yet,” you tease, the words barely out of your mouth before he’s got you pinned under him, “Toru—“ 

“Now, I told you I was going to seize my fate when I saw it,” and he kisses you, stealing every thought from your mind and every breath from your body, his touch filling you with warmth in return, “and I see it right in front of me,” 

“And what does it look like?” you smile against his lips, as he leans down to kiss you again. 

“Bright.” 

“Is it just me or do these paparazzi lights get brighter and brighter each time?” you rub your eyes as the two of you slide into your car for the night, the driver setting off towards your home. 

“I don’t know, I was too busy being blinded by my gorgeous wife,” and Satoru’s hands are all but under your dress, sliding up and down your sides, before one cups your cheek, “did i mention how incredible you look, sweetheart?” 

You hum, “about a million times,” your fingers slide against his shoulders until he’s practically lying on top of you against these leather seats. 

“That’s a million times too little — you look incredible, sweetheart. This dress was made for you,” and his lips taste as sweet as his words, your fingers sliding into his snowy locks while his slide against your bare thighs, “and I can’t wait to take it off when we get home,” 

“You’re going to take it off now if your hands slide any further up,” he draws a shiver from you as his hands do just that, daring further up your thighs, “Toru—“ 

“Don’t worry, the partition is up and it’s just you and me, sweetheart,” and he’s sinking to his knees on the floor, as his hands slide up your dress, “just keep your voice down, don’t want anyone hearing my wife, do we?” And his lips are grazing your inner thigh, his smirk against your skin, “good thing I relieved you of those pantyhose, huh?” 

“Toru,” you whined, as his fingers parted your thighs, and he could see your all too soaked panties, a damp patch and the fabric nearly translucent while it clung to your clit, “please—“ 

“So needy — and now that mouth of yours is being as honest as this one,” his lithe fingers tug aside the crotch of your panties to expose your cunt, “all this f’me? Been like this since our make out earlier? Surprised I didn’t see your cum drip down your legs,” 

And his words make you squirm, “Satoru, I swear to god—“ and his lips kiss your clit, as two fingers tease at your entrance, gathering your pre on his fingertips. 

“You don’t have to call me god, Princess — just Satoru is fine,” he murmurs as his lips close around your clit, as his fingers work inside your walls, a delicious stretch that draws a pretty gasp from your lips, your head falling back against the leather headrest. 

The sounds of the squelch of your cunt and the slurping of his lips against your clit rang in your ears — your fingernails digging into the seat as your other hand clamped over your lips. 

“That’s it, just like that, Princess,” his tongue darts out to  drag circles around your clit, while his fingers find the spot that makes you see stars. 

“I’m—“ you manage, before you’re cumming around his fingers and lips, your toes curling as you do, head back against the headrest. Your eyes find him to see him looking all too perfect even ruffled, as his lips were glossy with your release, tongue darting out to clean it, before he licked his fingers one by one. 

“And you were worried about the paparazzi noticing your missing pantyhose,” he murmurs, pressing a kiss to your lips, letting you taste yourself on his tongue, a smirk against your mouth, “let’s hope no one saw that,” 

And there’s a sharp rap on the window, “Sir and madam? We’ve arrived,” and his lips quirk, as he adjusts your clothes, cleaning your smudged lipstick with his thumb, as you reach up to wipe his lips where the lipstick had gone. 

“Shall we celebrate my win properly?” He opens the door and slides out of the car, holding out his hand for yours.

“As we always do?” And your fingers find his, as he presses his lips to the back of your palm. 

“Always, Princess.” 

“Are you ready yet, Princess?” Your Prince’s arms slid around your waist, his lips already at your neck, as his ocean blues met your gaze in the mirror, “how lucky is our kingdom to have such a lovely future queen? And how much luckier am I to have her as my wife?” 

“We do not know if the people will approve of me still, Toru,” you murmur, eyes shying away from his, your fingers finding the infinity around your neck, “you promised me forever, but will they grant it to us?” 

“Do you have such little faith, sweetheart, in your future husband?” His fingers find your chin, tilting it upwards to meet your gaze, “I’ve already done the impossible — I charmed you over the last two decades haven’t I?” 

“More like wore me down,” and he pinches your cheek, before he presses a kiss to the affronted skin, “re-defined the long game,” and he kisses your nose, “and stole my heart and soul while I wasn’t looking,” 

“I never steal,” he smiles that same smile that was emblazoned in your memory all those years ago, when he emerged from the woods with not a unicorn, but a baby fawn he had frightened from very same thicket, “I only take what was given to me,” he smiles, “and you willingly handed over your heart the moment you let me into your life,” 

“What was I thinking?” you murmur, cupping his cheek, “now I’ll have to deal with the politics of a kingdom for the rest of my days,” 

His lips curl widely, as his lips find yours, a heat that simmers into passion and then into simple love, “I promise, in exchange, I’ll spend the rest of my days making you the happiest you’ve ever been,” 

“The happiest, huh?” you murmur, foreheads pressed together, “that’s a tall order, so you think you can do it?” 

“I know I can,” he smiles, his arms pulling you impossibly closer, “because I’ll never trying to make you happy, Princess.” 

“You’re far too happy with this arrangement,” you say through the door, arms crossed as you pressed your back against it, “I don’t want to come out,” 

“You agreed to this, c’mon sweetheart, you’ve taken countless pictures of me—“ 

“You’re a model — it’s literally your job,” you glare at him through the door, “I’m behind the camera — not in front of it,” 

“But you’re just as beautiful in front of it as you are behind it,” and you can hear his pout through the door, “if you really don’t want to, sweetheart, I won’t make you—“ 

And the door opens, your lips curled in a pout as you emerge in a cerulean gown — the same color as his eyes, the very same that widened upon seeing you. 

“Was this necessary?” you squirm in place, as he bites his lip, eyes raking over you, “Toru—“ 

And he’s in front of you in an instant, his arms winding aaaaaaaaround your waist, “I want to kiss you so badly, but I’ll mess up your makeup,” your breath catches, so his finger brushes against your lips and presses it to his own lips, a little of your lipstick sticking to his lips. 

“Toru,” and his lips quirk at the nickname, “why do you want to take pictures of me?” 

“Because, I want pictures of you that are just for me,” he gently takes your hand, pressing a kiss to your wrist, “because I’ll never have this moment with you again, but I’ll have these pictures with you,” 

“And when do I get pictures that are of you and just for me?” And he presses a kiss to your head. 

“Anytime you want,” he murmurs, “we have all the time in the world, don’t we?” 

Time — that was the one thing Satoru Gojo always lacked. It felt as if his whole life was an hourglass, waiting for the sand to run out — and the one time it came close, blood seeping like sand through his neck, he was able to turn it on its head, until time was on his side agai.  

He wasn’t sure if time was on his side now.  

He could only see the winter sky above — flecks of white he could think were snow but never be sure if that was his vision going blurry. He couldn’t feel anything — but he heard the all too distant squelch of his blood against the ground, the sounds of footsteps, the feeling of his body being lifted, a smile still on his face.

He was going home — the one person who always made his world right side up — the only person who could catch the sand that slipped between his fingers and hold it between warm palms. He forced his body to keep running — to keep going, the flow of cursed energy may have come from the stomach and his brain may be able to power his reversed curse technique — but that didn’t compare to his will to make it home — make it to you. 

“Toru! Satoru!” he couldn’t will his eyes to open, only managing the barest flutter of his eyelids, “it’s okay, Shoko’s got you, I got you,” you murmur, a soft brush that must but your lips. 

Love was always the most twisted curse of them all — and he knew it had always been a curse to love him. Anyone drawn into his orbit seemed only doomed to fall around him — whether it was by their choice, his choice, or fate’s choice. 

Fate. That was a word he never had put a lot of stock into. Suguru always said there was a certain order to things — sorcerers were made to defend humans, and that was our duty. He had replied that fate was an excuse for people too afraid to challenge the status quo. 

Maybe Suguru took that too seriously. 

When Suguru defected — Satoru knew something had to change — he couldn’t let others go even when they had that blue spring. The time that he had stayed frozen in — even as everyone else left, he still lived in those moments, and so he barely lived in the present at all. 

Not until you had shattered his self made prison. 

And it wasn’t without difficulty. 

He told you so many times that it was dangerous to love him, it was foolish to love a person like him with a constant target on their back because inevitably the target would shift to you. And he didn’t want to live in a world without you — but he could choose to, as long as you were the one who would live. 

But you were steadfast in your love, roots cracking through concrete until he was covered in your ivy, entangled so deep that there was no escape—because one look from you had stolen his reservations out from under him. Because loving you was as simple as breathing — it just was. 

“I would want you to curse me — in every life.” 

That’s what he told you the night before this battle — because he knew if he didn’t make it in this life, maybe he could be with you in the rest of them. But how many days would it take until you couldn’t remember the sound of his laugh, the smile on his lips, the way his face looked — because he always feared the same about outliving you. He would only want to outlive you, if only because he didn’t want you to have to bear the pain of outliving him. 

Love was twisted, he thought — as your lips brushed his, he could hear you whisper sweet nothings, falling on deaf ears, but heard all the same — once one found it, they cannot live without it — until they have to. 

His eyes flutter open, and he sees the blurry image of your face, scarlet smeared on your face, as his hand shakily lifted to your cheek, “I love you, sweetheart,” he manages barely a whisper, “I’ll see you again, I promise.”

Maybe he did curse you in the end — because your souls were bound together in existence — to fall into each other’s orbit and live together happily in every lifetime—

Your fingers gently shut his eyes closed, as tears streamed from your own — except in this one. 

“Is it really a curse to meet you again?” you had murmured that early morning, as dawn peaked over Tokyo, and his lips brushed against yours, “sounds like a blessing,” 

“You know that blessings often wear disguises — and words like that always carry a price—” but his lips curl, “but if the price is to meet you and fall in love again and again, I suppose I could pay it.” 

“‘Suppose?’” you repeat, and he laughs at your immediate pout. 

He kisses away your pout, as you slowly melt into his kiss, “Y’know I’d pay any price to fall in love with you again, sweetheart”

You smile, “Just stay with me in this one, that would be enough.” 

Did other lives matter when this was the only one he had fallen for you in this life? He wanted to stay with you here — in this moment, in this time — he wanted you in every life — not just all the others. 

And he vowed that he would— his fingers twitched— 

He would love you in this life too. 

✧ a/n: i hope you guys enjoy this one!! i had a lot of fun writing it. it might not be everyone's cup of tea but hey, i enjoyed it. although i questioned my writing ability a lot while writing it lmao

✧ taglist: @gojolova4eva, @xxemmarldxx, @gojolvrr34, @lilbrubby, @jaixxxsc, @hatsunemitskislobotomy, @elaemae, @gojonegs, @captain-shittykawa, @sillyrabbitreads, @akumicchi, @satorustorm, @equikaz, @imaginativeghorl, , @dhoranbolt, @strawmariee, @catsgomurp, @that-goth-bisexual, @fushitoru, @dazailover1900

[yandere-writer-momo]

Part 2 🖤I made the demon king a black man. I don’t see many Yandere POC OCs 🖤

Yandere Head Canons:

Defying Destiny

Yandere Demon King x Isekai Saintess Reader x Yandere Hero (mentioned)

TW: imprisonment, kidnapping, stalking, uncomfortable themes, sexual themes, Somniaphilia, Dacryphilia, etc.

Part 1

You woke up wrapped in the silk sheets of snow unfamiliar bed. Your eyes wild and your heart raced in your chest like a startled animal. Where were you and where was Reinhardt?! Why were there candles everywhere in this dark bedroom? Was Reinhardt planning to… oh god you were terrified.

You felt a sob rack through you when reality set in. Had Reinhardt stolen you away to live out some sort of sick fantasy instead of going through with his quest to slay the demon king? No… Reinhardt wouldn’t bring you to such a luxurious home. But who on earth brought you here?

“I see you’re awake, my delicate flower.” Your head snapped to the doorway to see the silhouette of a large man. You felt your blood run cold and a shiver run down your spine by his presence. That raspy baritone voice belonged to a stranger.

You flinched when the man suddenly slapped his clawed hands on the end of the king sized bed. Your eyes met gold for the first time and you seeped your heart stopped in your chest from pure terror. There was no mistaking who your captor was… he was the demon king.

“What’s the matter, saintess?” He chuckled as he reached a taloned finger out to hook around a strand of your hair. “Cat got your tongue?”

You felt tears stream down your cheeks when he flashed his long fangs at you. He was bewitchingly beautiful with his burnt umber skin and golden eyes. There was no doubt he was a demon and that fact terrified you. What did he want from you? Was he… was he going to kill you?

The demon king sighed at your shivering form before he moved himself to sit beside you. His hand moved to hold yours. “It’s alright, darling. I’m not going to hurt you.”

You sniffled when he began to wipe away your tears. “W… what?”

“I’d never hurt my saintess.” The demon king gave you a toothy smile. “My beautiful, merciful saintess… my salvation.”

You gasped when he brought your right hand up to his lips to press a tender kiss to the back of it. “It’s so wonderful to finally have you here with me… you’ll be safe here.”

“I’m just a bit confused about all of this…” You felt so small under his intense gaze, like he was about to pounce on you at any second. “Who are you and why have you taken me?”

The demon lord chuckled as he rose up from the bed to stand at his full, intimidating height. His curved black horns nearly added another foot to his height which made he give you a smirk. “Why I am the Demon King but you can call me Amon.”

The demon king- no, Amon, bowed his head to you. “And I took you to save you.”

You were surprised to see a tray of freshly made food in front of you when Amon snapped his fingers. Your stomach growled at the delicious sight, but you were hesitant to accept… Amon quickly caught onto your hesitance and took a bite of the food for you. “Don’t worry, it’s real and completely edible. Only the best for my saintess.”

You shyly took a bite and smiled at the taste. It was lovely…

Amon smiled warmly at you, his golden eyes studied your satisfied smile in pure joy. He was so happy to please you!

Amon ran his talons through his long black hair with a smile. “I’ll take care of you from now on. You’re safe here.”

As the weeks melted into months, Amon kept his word. None of his demon nor monster henchmen were mean towards you, unlike the hero’s party. Sure Amon was never far from you, but his company was much preferred over Reinhardt’s. Amon would bring you meals and made sure you had fresh clothes. He pampered you like a beloved pet.

Though it was never officially stated, you were Amon’s lover. And thus, you treated as such by his subjects. They’d wait for you on hand and foot. You received various expensive clothing and jewelry, they were eager to make you smile. It was such a stark contrast compared to your treatment prior…

You often gazed out your window at the volcanic city below. It was fascinating just how different monsters and demons lived from humans… so why did the humans want to destroy them so much?

You jumped when Amon entered the room to wrap his muscular arms around your waist, his nose pressed onto your shoulder. A few of his box braids tickled your skin. “I missed you so much… I just wish the humans would leave us alone. I grow tired of the hero and his party. They’re so much weaker without your barriers and healing. To think they never treated you well. What a bunch of losers.”

You turned to gaze at Amon in interest. “What is it that they’re after? Why do the humans hate your people so much?”

Amon gave you the softest of smiles, a bit of his fangs peaked out from under his lip. “Our magic stones. Monsters and demons produce enough magic stones to fuel humanity for eons… they’re worth a lot of money to humans.”

Amon pressed a tender kiss to your shoulder, his gold eyes stared expectantly up at you. “You’re the only human to ever question their greed and motives. You don’t wish to be bound to a destiny thrust upon you by the world.”

Amon bent down on one knee and pressed his lips over your palms and fingers. “Join me. Together we can defy our destiny. You don’t have to be a Saintess forced to marry the hero and I won’t have to be a page in the history books.”

You felt a blush on your cheeks when he tilted his handsome face at you. “Let’s watch the world burn together.”

And now you had a choice to make. To fulfill the destiny predetermined for you or to defy your destiny.