#planned on having a party (would've been my first ever birthday party)

[ofkithandmckinney]

UPCOMING MILESTONE BIRTHDAY

Expectation:

Reality:

[thef1diary]

Little Big Fan | Nine

— Little Big Phone Calls

Series Masterlist

wc: 1.7k

Ever since you had brought Isabella home from the hospital, quite a few things happened.

Twenty-four hours after she was discharged, Tyler finally had the nerve to give you a call. You debated whether or not you should pick up the call as you glared at the screen while it rang, but then you didn't want to stoop down to his level either.

"Is Isabella okay?" were his first words, and if it weren't then you definitely would've unleashed hell upon him. "Yeah she's okay, no thanks to you," you scoffed.

Then he proceeded to claim that you didn't have the right to take Isabella home from the hospital because she was supposed to stay with him for the weekend. You sighed, rubbing your forehead, as you considered how to explain the issue to him in a calm manner.

"You weren't even there when it happened," you started, but then he had the audacity to interrupt you, "I was in a meeting."

"You're always in a fucking meeting! You left our daughter with Emma, it is not her responsibility to take care of our child." You lost your patience rather quickly, and you were glad that Isabella was currently at a classmate's birthday party so she didn't hear your argument. Leave it to her to quickly befriend others.

He was silent for a moment, "Emma is my girlfriend, and she doesn't have an issue with staying with Isabella so neither should you."

You paced around the room, having a strong urge to throw the phone against the wall. "Emma is not the problem, I'm grateful for her actually. The issue is that you need to get your shit together and choose if you want to be a father or a businessman, and quite frankly, you're doing a shit job at both right now."

You didn't wait for his response, hanging up and tossing your phone on your desk while burying your head in your palms.

Then, to make matters worse, you realized that Max's ten-day vacation was almost over, because he had to return to racing. You had quickly become accustomed to his presence and began missing him the moment he left your house a few days later.

You may or may not have hugged him for a few minutes too long on the day he was leaving, especially after knowing that he would be busy with back to back races for two weeks.

When you parted away, Max placed his palms on your cheeks and made direct eye contact with you. "When I'm back, me and you are going on that date," he stated in a tone of finality and you nodded, agreeing with him. "I'll be waiting."

Ruffling Isabella's hair until she smacked his hands away before smoothing it herself, Max had to remind her of school when she asked if he would take her to the races as well. He would have agreed if he had been a little more gullible.

"Gifts?" She settled for instead, earning a laugh from Max and widened eyes from you. "Isabella!" You exclaimed but couldn't hold back your smile at her request.

She shrugged, looking at Max, "if you want," she added. "Always," he responded, since he had already planned on buying a few gifts for both of you.

Then it was just you and Isabella, and even then you were alone when you returned home after dropping her off at school. You never had a problem with being alone at home until you experienced the joy of being with others.

—

Isabella was up bright and early on race day, considering that the race took place earlier in the morning in your time zone. However, you knew she would take a nap as soon as the podium celebrations were over, not wanting to stay up for the interviews. Which is exactly what she did after the last race you watched together, but her "tiredness" could've been due to the fact she was disappointed that Max had not won that race.

You remember the conversation you had with him after that race, and he was quite upset—rightfully so in your opinion as it wasn't a driver issue, but rather a technical problem.

"I don't think my lucky charm works from such a distance," he told you, making you furrow your brows, "what lucky charm?"

"You, of course. Please come to another race soon," he explained, earning a chuckle from you with a blush rising to your cheeks. "I'll think about it."

Today’s race was a different story, because Max had been leading during the entire weekend, always coming out on top for all the practices, qualifying, and even during the race itself.

Later that night, Max called you and you immediately congratulated him for the win. "See, you don't need a lucky charm." He made a sound in denial, "I think it's because I called you right before getting in the car, but we can test it properly when you're at a race again."

"You'll have to try harder than that to convince me," you teased with a chuckle. "I have two more weeks to convince you in person, I think I can manage."

"You're going to be here for the whole two weeks?" You could hear the grin in his voice, "I'm flying out in two days, plus the last time I checked, I have a date with the most attractive woman I know and I am not cancelling those plans at all."

You muttered his name, "did I ever tell you that you're the sweetest." He hummed, "maybe, but I don’t mind hearing it again."

"You're the sweetest, kindest and I'm glad you're coming back."

"Did you think I wouldn't?" You shrugged, "well, I thought you would be busy with the season and all." He was quiet for a moment, making your jaw drop, "you didn't."

He hummed and you gasped, "Max..."

"Yes, schat?" He pretended as if nothing was wrong. "Did you cancel any plans for the week?" You asked, slipping past the unknown word he used, knowing that you'll be searching it up later.

"None were as important as flying back to you, but I think that Christian is keeping an eye on me," he revealed and while you wanted to comment on his words, you were intrigued by his boss. "Why's that?"

"He keeps wondering why I am more interested in my phone than the meetings." You couldn't hold in your laugh, "Max, I had no idea you were in meetings while texting me."

Before the conversation could continue on, you heard pitter patter of footsteps coming down the stairs. You noticed the time, and it was past Isabella's usual bedtime so you wondered why she was still awake.

"Hold on, Max, I think Bella's awake." Isabella walks towards you with a shy smile, quickly climbing onto the couch and cuddling you.

You didn’t hang up, instead you put your phone on the side as you wrapped your arms around her. "Mama, do I have to go to daddy's next week?"

"You don't want to?" You asked while brushing your fingers through her hair. You felt her shrug, "I don't know."

"Did something happen?" You pulled back to see her face that had a frown growing. "I met Emma,"

"Yeah? How is she?" Her frown turned into a small smile as she thought of Emma, "very nice, she plays some games with me, oh and we baked together too."

"That's good..but?" You urged, watching her small smile slip back into a frown. "But daddy doesn't spend time with me anymore and he says bad things about you."

You raised your brow, wanting to focus on your daughter's words before you think about having another conversation with Tyler. "Like what?"

"He says that you're not a good person but I think you're amazing! You're the best mama in the whole world." Her little arms reached around you, placing a small kiss on your cheek.

"Aw thank you, angel," you peppered kisses all over her cheeks until she started giggling.

"So do I have to go?" She asked, snuggling up next to you while fighting back a yawn. You shook your head, "no, if you don't want to, then you don't have to go."

"Good, I want to spend time here, with you and Maxy," her toothy grin was back as soon as she mentioned him. "With Max? You like him?" You could've guessed her answer but it was reassuring when she nodded, "sooo much, he's so nice and he buys me ice cream and glittery clips."

You threw your head back with a laugh, "oh Bella, you can't just like him because he buys things for you."

"But mama he's also nice and he makes you smile." She stated, making you snap your head towards her, and you could see her smile turning a little mischievous.

"What?" She shifted in your lap, wrapping her fingers in your hair as she continued speaking, "I like it when you smile and he makes you smile, right mama?"

"Yeah he does." You glanced at the phone, the call still ongoing so you know Max heard every part of your conversation.

Looking back at your daughter, you suggested, "why don't you go back to sleep, you have school tomorrow morning."

"Can you read me a story?" She asked with hopeful eyes, and you quickly nodded, "of course, why don't you get all comfy in bed and I'll be right there?"

"Okay mama." you kissed her forehead before she slid off your lap, running back upstairs.

You pick up the phone again, "are you still there?" Max hummed in response, "yeah, I'm here."

"I'm guessing you heard everything," you didn't mind it at all, but still needed confirmation. "I did. She not wrong, you are an amazing mother." He chose not to comment on the topic relating to your ex, knowing that it would ruin the mood.

"I've had help lately," your tone indicates that you're speaking of Max as help. "I try."

"Before Bella comes back down to ask for you again, I have to say one thing," Max started and you urged him to continue, "go on,"

"You make me smile too," he stated, reiterating the comment made by your daughter.

Taglist: (continuing the taglist in comments) @xjval @mrsmaybank13 @cherry-piee @urfavnoirette @solphin @burningcupcakefire @nessacarty1 @dreamsarebig @omgsuperstarg @fanficweasley @redbullgirly @llando4norris @wonnou @randomgirlnumber13 @dark-night-sky-99 @chanshintien @leilanixx @gisellesprettylies @peachiicherries @monsieurbacteria6 @67-angelofthelordme-67 @arian-directioner @distancedss @morenofilm @sachaa-ff @lighttsoutlewis @teamnovalak @casperlikej @sadg3 @d3kstar @lewisvinga @lpab @queenofmanydreams @glitterf1 @honethatty12 @drunk-teens-doing-drugs @its-avalon-08 @yourbane @oconswrld @noneofyourfbusinessworld @ssrcsm @softtina @hockeyboysarehot @formulaal @namgification @tallrock35 @bloodyymaryyy @formulanni @ellouisa17 @phantomxoxo

[singmyaubade]

No Longer Yours

James Potter x Female!Reader

IB: In The Cold November Rain by @sweetsweetjellybean (Make sure to check it out, it’s incredible and one of the best I’ve ever read !)

A/N: First, I apologize for my time writing this; it just had to be perfect! I am so grateful that you all love my story enough to give it so much love and support and practically beg for a part 3; thank you so much. I had no idea how to start and continue this, so please be kind. I really hope you guys enjoy this part, and I hope it's everything you dreamed of <3

Summary: James had disregarded you for multiple years, but when you have an epiphany in your final year, how does it feel to taste his own medicine?

Warning: It may contain swearing and soon-to-be smut.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

"Shh.. don't wake her up!" You heard Lily whisper in your half-asleep state as the sun peeked at you through the blinds.

"It's Marlene's big oger feet," Mary snorted.

"Hey! My feet are not the size of oger feet," Marlene replied, sticking out her tongue.

"Shh!" Lily warned.

You heard the shuffling of paper and steps as you opened your eyes to see your best friends hanging up decorations, a smile appearing on your face immediately.

"Oh, bollocks," Lily sighed, face-palming, "Happy birthday!" She yelled, half annoyed but half happy there was a smile on your face. She embraced you as you sat upright in bed, glad to see your friend's dedication to your birthday.

The rest of them told you a happy birthday, embracing you in a tight hug.

"Wow, I can't believe you actually got Marlene up this early," You said, opening another card they gave you.

"Well, it took a chicken drumstick," Dorcas replied.

"Otherwise, I would've been grouchy, and Y/n would have had a horrible birthday, so really I did it for her," Marlene said as Mary rolled her eyes.

"I wonder what the Marauders have planned, especially James," Lily muttered.

Every year for your birthday, James would give you a grand birthday party and tons of presents. He usually would sneak into your dorm room and surprise you with cannons and the other Marauders, but of course, this year was different.

And coincidentally, your birthday was the same day as the start of winter break, which always meant you had to pack on your birthday.

And every birthday, you had to go over to James's house for your birthday dinner with your families.

Which you were not looking forward to this year.

"Oh shit, sorry, Y/n, I know you don't want to speak about him," Lily apologized.

"It's alright; I'm sure I'll be reminded of him today many times," You replied, getting out of bed, "I can't believe I don't get to spend my birthday at Hogwarts," You said, grabbing clothes from your closet, setting them next to the trunk.

"It does suck, but you can at least be excited about your birthday dinner," Lily replied, closing her trunk.

"Hopefully, it goes well without James hinting to our parents that I hate him and don't want anything to do with him," You angrily said, shoving your clothes in your trunk.

"Do you really hate him, though?" Mary asked, "I mean, you were best friends with him all these years, and now, you utterly hate him,"

"That was before I realized he was cruel and truly considered me anything but something that he couldn't get rid of," You said, "But enough about James, are we still meeting together after Christmas?"

"Of course, your house, Y/n?" Dorcas asked.

You nodded, "But we can't steal my parent's booze again; I'm pretty sure the elves are scared of Marlene,"

"I didn't mean to scare them with my clown impression; it was just too good," Marlene smirked.

"Yeah yeah, for sure," You said, laughing before packing the rest of your clothes.

Suddenly, your parent's owl flew in from the window, delivering you a letter. You opened the envelope and straightened the folded-up letter, which stated:

Dear beloved Y/n,

Your father and I are experiencing a torturous delay from France; we have fought with the conductor multiple times and even considered apparating or the floo. Unfortunately, because of the horrible mangling rabbit, I TOLD your father not to eat, he has been throwing up all evening, and we can't apparate, and the nearest floo is eight hours away. You will stay with the Potters tonight and tomorrow night because too many wards might injure you in the house that the elves can't disable, but we hope to return before then. We want you to have the most incredible birthday and love you so much; we are incredibly sorry to miss it. Please forgive us.

Sincerely,

Your proud parents.

"What does the letter say?" Lily asked, glancing at you the folding her socks.

"My parents are stuck in a delay and can't make it to my birthday dinner in time, or even tomorrow," You shrugged.

"I am so sorry, Y/n," Lily said, embracing you.

You hugged her back. "It's okay; at least I have the Potters.

"Are you sure you will be okay?" Dorcas asked.

"Yeah, you can stay with me if you want," Mary offered.

"No, it's fine." You sighed, "They will be hurt if I skipped the opportunity to continue the tradition, and my mom would wring my head off if I didn't go," You joked.

"Okay, well, let us know," Lily smiled.

The whole part of you was sincerely upset; you didn't want your parents to not be there for your birthday. Even worse, you weren't on good terms with James, which only made for an awkward dinner with his family.

But you understood and knew your parents would make it up to you, and you know how guilty they felt; you just missed them.

You chose to keep your mind off it and keep packing until it was time to go to the train.

"When does this bloody train come?" Marlene shivered, "I'm fucking freezing,"

"I told you to bring your jumper," Mary sighed.

"I didn't think I really needed it," Marlene replied, gritting her teeth.

"I knew you would be cold," You said, giving her one of your extra jumpers.

"You know, Y/n, I'll kick Potter's bloody ass for you; just remember that," Marlene suggested, causing you to laugh.

"Speaking of the devil," Dorcas muttered under her breath.

You turned around to see James looking straight into your eyes. You had to admit that James had never been so intimidating. His eyes looked as if they had darkened, and he looked as if you were his Slytherin competitor in Quidditch.

"Are you ready?" He asked, his voice sounding deeper.

He didn't even say Happy Birthday.

"I'm gonna sit with them," You blankly stated, not an ounce of kindness in your voice.

"It's better if we sit together," James demanded, "Otherwise, we won't be able to find each other in the crowd when the train stops," He explained to you slowly as if you were a child, which only pissed you off.

"Are you fucking mishearing me, or are you just delusional?" You asked, "I said I'm gonna sit with my friends and not assholes. I don't even consider an acquaintance." You sneered, your voice sounding so harsh that it shocked your friends, "Please do me a favor and leave me the fuck alone."

"Are you really gonna be an uptight bitch?" James asked, a cocky smile on his face, "I mean, Jesus, I like it better when your mouth is shut or perhaps filled." Some of you knew that James was just being an asshole because he was hurt, which is what he always did, even when he was a kid, but the only thing about it was that he only did it to you.

That only angered you more before you slapped him for his rude comment, "Don't you fucking dare speak to me like that."

"Or what?" He stepped closer

"Okay, guys!" Lily stepped in, "We will approach you five minutes before the train stops, and you guys will walk together in peace, hopefully," Lily dragged you away as you glared at James.

"I can't believe you actually slapped him," Marlene said, following after you guys, "I mean, after what he said, I would've punched him so hard in the di-"

Mary cut her off, "Jokes aside, are you okay, Y/n? I mean, I have never seen James so mean and awful towards you or anyone for that matter,"

You sighed, "Yeah, I'm fine, I just don't get why he is so mean to me when he was the one who broke my trust in the first place,"

"What did he do?" Marlene asked.

The rest of the group looked at Marlene as if she had killed a unicorn. Nobody had really asked what James had done but considering your resentment towards him, it must’ve been unforgiving.

You hesitated, “He just didn’t say some nice things about me.” You answered, hoping to move on.

“Like what kind of things?” Marlene pried.

You could tell she was just curious, but you were so humiliated by what James had said that you didn’t even want to tell your closest friends.

Dorcas elbowed Marlene, causing her to hiss in pain before she said, “It isn’t our business if you don’t want to tell us, Y/n.”

“Yeah,” Lily agreed, “Maybe it’s better it is between you and James.”

The rest of the group agreed including Marlene who was hunched over in pain and verbally cursing Dorcas for the hard elbow.

You muttered a “thanks” before heading onto the train. You sat by the window, staring outside to the foggy mountains.

You didn’t want to admit it but you did miss James and how much he cared for your birthday. Sometimes it seemed like it was his birthday with how high he held your birthday.

You didn’t understand why he couldn’t just try to even figure out what he had done or fight for your forgiveness, he just chose to be angry at you.

You didn't even want to think about him. Why does your whole life revolve around him?

"Anything from the trolley dearies?" The Trolley Witch asked.

"Chocolate frogs," Marlene said.

"Jumbling Jellies," Lily answered.

"I'll take Fizzing Wheezies," You said, paying her 10 galleons for you all.

"Y/n, you don't ha-" Lily was about to say before Marlene shushed her.

Lily glared as Marlene spoke, "Bless your heart, Y/n," She smiled as you laughed.

As Marlene started devouring her chocolate frog, you couldn't help but remember how you and James would share Fizzing Wheezies every time on your birthday on the train.

Practically tradition.

You wondered if he thought the same. If he was relishing in the memories.

Your thinking was halted when Dorcas set a hand on your thigh as you smiled, laying your head on her shoulder. You closed your eyes, trying to prepare for the day ahead.

--

"Y/n," Someone lightly shook you by your shoulder as you looked to see Lily. She was waking all of the girls up as the train stopped.

You yawned, getting up to grab your luggage. James was right that there would be traffic, so you had to rush off, saying your goodbyes to your best friends.

"Promise to write?" Lily asked, looking near tears.

"Lils, it's only a week," You snorted as she gave you a stern look.

"A week I won't get to see you," She hugged you tighter as you smiled and returned it.

"See you before Christmas?" She asked.

You rubbed her shoulder, "See you before Christmas."

"Promise me you won't forgive Potter," Marlene sighed, causing you to laugh.

"Do you have no faith in her at all?" Mary asked next to Marlene.

"Do you have no faith in her at all?" Marlene mocked, causing Mary to glare.

"Okay, okay!" You laughed at the both of them, "Only if you promise you both will stop bickering," You hugged them both.

They glared at each other as Dorcas spoke, "Forgetting someone?"

You grinned, "Never," You hugged her, kissing her on the cheek.

You were waiting for her to say, "Give him hell?" You asked as she laughed.

"I think you know what to do," She encouraged before you exited, waving goodbye to all of them.

Even though it was only a week, you still hated being away from your best friends. They were like your third family besides your actual and the Potters.

You saw the back of Sirius's head as you approached him, considering he lived with the Potters.

He turned around before you could tap him, picking you up, "Happy birthday Y/n!" He said, kissing your cheek as you yelped.

"Okay, thank you, Sirius, put me down!" You giggled.

He put you down as you smoothed your clothing, "So where's Potter?' You asked.

He smirked, "Only last name? Ice cold Y/n." You didn't respond, so he assumed you were waiting for an answer, "He went to the toilets,"

You hummed, silently tapping your foot on the pavement, only hearing the ruckus around you both.

"Excited for your birthday dinner?" He asked, partly ready for the drama.

"Very," You sarcastically said.

"Hey, Mom and Dad aren't too bad," He said.

"We both know Euphemia and Fleamont aren't the Potters I despise," You muttered.

"Well, for your sake, I'll make him behave," He sent a charming smile your way.

"What would I do without you, Black?" You rolled your eyes.

"Probably be miserable," He answered, causing you to laugh.

"What are we laughing about?" James said, not even a smidge of excitement in his tone.

Your usual mad facade slipped back in as you grabbed your luggage and started heading toward the car. You could hear Sirius laughing behind you.

You saw Euphemia and Fleamont waiting by the car like they had usually done since Sixth year since James told them to stop coming inside because of his newfound "popularity."

Your face lit up immediately, excited to see two of your favorite people worldwide.

You embraced Euphemia, giving the tightest hug you could and giving Fleamont a kiss on the cheek while they asked about your studies. You could see James rolling his eyes both audibly and physically.

"Okay, Mother, I don't think Y/n likes all the questions," James said, leaning his head on the window while his father drove.

Sirius was in between the two of you, snoring asleep. Considering the train ride, you didn't even know why he was tired.

"I don't mind at all," You said, smiling as James glared at you.

You knew that Euphemia could feel the tension between you and James, but she ignored it, "So Y/n, I have made you something extraordinary." Euphemia said.

"And that is?" You asked, knowing she wouldn't tell you.

"I guess you will have to find out tonight during dinner." She sweetly said, winking at you.

You smiled to yourself, relieved your birthday wouldn't be that bad.

--

You entered the house that you had been over to so many times, admiring it fully.

"James will show you your room," Euphemia said, rubbing your back as you smiled, trying not to show your discomfort about James.

James didn't even wait for you before heading up the steps. Thankfully, he carried your luggage because he knew Euphemia would berate him.

"It's in there," He lazily said, not even opening the door before walking downstairs.

Jerk.

You grunted, lifting your heavy suitcase inside the room.

You admired the room, which looked like it was made for you. It was warm and tremendous for a guest room. It had all of your favorite colors and smells.

It was perfect.

You decided to nap before dinner, considering you had no one to talk to, and you were partly tired after the drive anyway. You knew an elf would get you when it was time.

--

"Ms." A frail voice said as your eyes fluttered open to see Dot, the Potter's elf that had been there since you had first moved in.

"Oh, hello, Dot," You spoke lightly, yawning.

"Ms. Potter tells Dot to inform you it's time for dinner," Her small voice said.

"Thank you, Dot, I appreciate it," You thanked before the elf nodded her head and apparated out.

You stretched, wearing a semi-formal dress, one of your favorites.

You headed down the stairs as you smelt the food radiating from the dining room. It was all of your favorites; it was pretty extraordinary. Ms. Potter was always the type to blow you off of your feet, regardless.

Your face lit up, "This is stunning, Ms. Potter," You looked at the glowing lights.

Euphemia smiled, "I'm glad you love it,"

You sat next to James with Sirius next to him. His face had certainly softened, but he was clenching his jaw when you sat beside him.

"Now," Euphemia started, "I know we usually do gifts after dinner, but we all had such beautiful surprises for you that we couldn't wait."

Euphemia started first, giving you one of your favorite movies since you were a kid, except the movie wasn't available anywhere.

You rose excitedly, embracing her, "How did you get this?" You asked, smiling at the CDs.

"A friend of mine is good friends with the director, and he happened to have one last copy," She answered as you excitingly hugged her before returning to your seat.

"Thank you, Ms. Potter," You looked at Euphemia, "I love it,"

She nodded before Fleamont gave you his gift. It was a beautiful crystal from Bejing.

You thanked him for the beautiful gem before Sirius offered you his gift. He gave you a perfume that smelled of fire whisky but wasn't actually fire whisky.

Part of you wanted to know how he did it, but you decided to save it for later as you thanked him, kissing him on the cheek as he cheered.

Last was James, who picked up the gift from under the table. He had looked you in the eyes, not a set of resentment in them at all.

Your breath hitched as he gave you a stuffed animal your grandfather gave you when you were nine. You had cried for a week because you had lost it and teared up when anyone mentioned it.

He gave it to you as it looked brand new and was cleaner than when you had it when you were nine.

When you pressed on the heart, it always said "I love you" in your grandfather's voice and even had your name on the collar.

You teared up, "How did you find it?"

He stuttered, "I-I found it in the treehouse in the corner,"

"I thought the treehouse was infested with Clockonuts," You said.

He laughed, "Well, I risked my life to get it back,"

Every sense of anger you had felt had disappeared; he had done something that was so out of his actions lately that it made you miss him.

"Thank you," You genuinely said.

He gave you a simple nod before you began eating. Conversations started after, talking about school.

"So, any boys, Y/n?" Euphemia asked as James dropped his fork on his plate, making a huge sound that caused you to look at him.

You cleared your throat, "Well, I am trying not to focus on that right now,"

"Except for Carrows," James muttered.

"Who's Carrows?" Euphemia asked, genuinely curious.

You took a bite of your carrot, "Um, well," You swallowed, "He's just a friend I have."

"I don't sit on my friend's laps," James scoffed, causing you to glare at him.

"Well, I don't call my friends sluts," You spat.

"James Fleamont Potter, what did you call her?" Euphemia added.

James ignored her, "Well, when your best friend is acting like one just because you don't fancy her, I think she deserves it,"

Mate-" Sirius chimed in, but you were faster.

"When have I ever fancied you?" You asked, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of that knowledge.

"Y/n, you were practically obsessed with me," He ridiculed, "I couldn't get away from you, and the only time I could was when I dated Lily; it was the best months of my life," His face looked shocked after he said the last words.

You couldn't tell if he meant it, but it hurt you badly. All those years of friendship were fake; he couldn't tolerate you.

"That's enough!" Euphemia said; even Sirius was silent.

A tear ran down your cheek, "I'm actually not feeling well; I'm gonna go to bed." You said, placing your napkin on the plate in front of you.

You heard Euphemia berating James as you ran up to your room. In some ways, you didn't understand why James did everything he did if he hated you so much.

Why did he give you that gift? Why did he always call you and get mad when you didn't want to be his friend? Did you ever mean anything to James Potter?

And if you did, why did he have to ruin your birthday?

A/N: If you hated this, I apologize.

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[asteroshearts]

Date Night

Itadori tags along for one of your date nights and wonders how you have a completely different Nanami Kento than the rest of the world.

Nanami x Reader

Tags: she/her pronouns, public nudity?, third wheel itadori

"Good evening, we apologize for the wait. Thank you for calling Gyomei's Ginza branch. How may I help you today?"

"Hello." You could never get sick of his voice. "I have a reservation for Nanami at 19:00. I know it's last minute, but can we add another person?"

"That can be done: we can add another chair to the table you selected," the hostess responded. Grinning wildly, you turned in the passenger seat and met your fist with Itadori's. "Do you have any special requests for this party member?"

"Don't include the drink course for him," your husband stated. Broken beams of white light from the street lamps came and went across his glasses as he drove by. "He's a child."

"Of course, will this extra person need a high chair?"

A gasp rang in the car.

"That won't be necessary." Quickly shutting off the call, Nanami huffed as you burst out into giggles at Itadori's sputtering.

"Aw, he's our son, Kennie."

"Nanamin!" his pink-haired student cried from the back seat. "Why did you say that?! Now they're going to think I'm seven or something!"

"You are a child." The man didn't even bother to glance at the rearview mirror.

"Maybe we should've gone with the long con," you teased. "Do you think they would've given us a discount if we said that Yuji-kun was twelve? That could save us a bit of money at a place like this!"

"Do you think I'm broke?" Nanami scoffed before pressing down on the accelerator, taking off in Tokyo.

Itadori hadn't initially planned to crash your date night.

Although they had finished the assignment efficiently, Nanami noticed something was up with the teen despite how quickly they exorcised the curse. From the boy's slouched posture and tucked shoulders, Nanami easily got the boy to confess what was on his mind.

"Oh…it's my grandpa's birthday today…" Eyes facing the ground, his voice suddenly grew quieter. "It's the first time I've ever had it without him."

It would've been so simple to say his monotone condolences, take a step away, and move on with his day. However, one call to you later, you had no problem with inviting Itadori along your night with your husband. In fact, you were even more certain you had married the right man when he asked permission to bring his student and help take Itadori's mind off his late grandfather's birthday.

But, Itadori didn't want to third-wheel at his pseudo-teacher's date, wouldn't that be kinda weird?

Nanamin seemed just, so – well – cold. Don't get him wrong, he enjoyed the man as a mentor, but to tag along for a date? He wasn't sure how the blond managed to score a pretty girl like you as his wife, but he didn't want to spend a night with you while Nanami silently ate at his side.

However, when he brought it up to the group chat that Nanami might be paying for his meal at this place called "Gyomei", Nobara yelled at him loud enough that he could hear it through text. A Michelin-starred and free meal was something a teen boy like him couldn't pass up.

"Um!" Itadori called out to you after Nanami had parked in the underground garage of the high-rise you were going to. "Thank you again for inviting me!" Pink coloring his cheeks, you had mentioned earlier when Nanami picked you up that if they didn't allow reservation modifications, you would just let the deposit go and find another spot to have date night at. Not only were they in the most expensive area of Tokyo, but he knew from Gojo's blabbing that Nanami's coveted date nights were never a spontaneous event. They were planned weeks, even months in advance, to get you to the best venues, restaurants, and events. To think that you had just easily let him drag along…touched him more than you realized.

You chuckled at his attempt to bow in the backseat, folding your legs so you could turn in your seat. "It's no problem at all! It's always so fun to talk with you, Yuji-kun! Good thing they let us add another chair though, I've been wanting to try this place forever."

Although, he wondered why you weren't making an effort to get out of the car. Nanamin had parked a while ago, and you still haven't opened your door. Were you waiting for him to pay for your parking spot?

"Yeah! Gojo-sensei tells me these places usually don't allow modifications for reservations."

"Oh. That." Your shoulders fell before a large smile broke out on your face, laughing at your own joke. "Let me tell you a little secret, Yuji-kun." Leaning in closer and lowering your voice, you confessed, "We lie to Gojo."

Huh?

"He wants to crash our date nights all the time, but Ken would rather eat rocks than invite him," you said with a laugh. "So we lie and tell him it can't be done."

Door opening on your side, you perked up as light flooded your car and you turned you head up to gaze at your husband holding the door.

"What are you laughing about?" your grumpy husband asked. Although his voice was dull and drab, Itadori wondered how you managed to brighten up so much just at the mere sight of the blond man. He was even more confused at how you only stepped out of the car after Nanami had opened it, so much more different than the blond he knew who was strict and hated doing anything beyond the required effort.

To the Nanami who told everyone to drag their own baggage, this seemed like night and day, yet here you were, not even lifting a finger.

Where was the real Nanamin?

"Not at you," you reassured, slipping out as Nanami stepped back slightly. "At Gojo."

Face souring as if he had eaten a lemon, he quickly told you that he didn't even want to think of the white-haired man tonight, not when it was your night. "If you wanted to laugh at clowns, I should've taken you to the circus instead."

Holding on to his arm, you looked up at your husband. "Well then, good thing we have Yuji-kun with us, right? At least someone will laugh at my jokes today."

Exhaling tiredly, Nanami pushed up his glasses to hide the small quirk of his lips.

"Itadori-kun, what are you waiting for? Get out of the car."

Eyes widening, he jolted in his spot, clumsily opening the door and trying not the hit the car next to you. "R-Right!"

"Aww, maybe you should be the gentleman and open the door for him."

Rolling his eyes beneath his round glasses, he placed his hand over your hold on his bicep. "Do you think I open the door for everyone?"

In the background, Itadori watched as you were eye-to-eye with your husband.

Oh, he realized. It's still Nanamin. It was just that you got special treatment.

"You were a sorcerer too?!" Yuji shouted in the restaurant, far too loud for your comfort.

"Itadori-kun!" Nanami snapped from beside you, wine glass held up to his lips. Gasping at his mistake, he quickly scanned the restaurant, eyes skimming across lavish tables draped with silky white cloth, dainty lighting up above, and flower bouquets scattered across the room, but thankfully no wandering or surprised eyes from other patrons that were caught up in what he had yelled out.

"Sorry…" he said, dropping his eyes to look at the first few courses in front of him. Sighing, now Nanami was even more glad that he selected the most secluded table in the restaurant, far away from the other booked tables where everyone got an obstructed view of you three, but where he could see everything in the room.

You waved off your husband's irritation and squeezed his hand underneath the table. You waited until his knitted eyebrows relaxed a bit before you even thought of looking away.

"That's alright, Yuji-kun." You had met him before this, but you were sure that you had given off the impression of someone who was pampered and privileged as you opened up the door for Nanami and Itadori that one day in nothing but a simple chemise (that Nanami covered up before the teen's eyes) and your face mask on with your hair up. Certainly not battle-ready. Not to mention, you had introduced yourself as another office worker, leading Itadori to believe that was where you two met.

"You didn't know," you said understandingly before your eyes softened. "That's actually how Ken and I met — Oh, he was so different back then. He actually gave me a whole box of poetry inspired by our favorite emo bands back in — "

"Darling," he said sharply, rather than affectionately.

Laughing off the intense aura Nanami was giving off, you continued. "You know, I come from a pretty old sorcerer family. We were a big deal back in the Meiji period, but we all died off since then." With a shrug, you added, "My mom never wanted me to be a sorcerer anyway, so I guess it all worked out that I ended up quitting after graduation."

"Huh?" Itadori tilted his head in confusion. "If your mom didn't let you, how were you able to join Jujutsu Tech?" With those old coots around every corner, it was harder to get into JJ Tech than leave.

Barking out a laugh, you grinned at the pink-haired teen. "Cause I thought I was sooo edgy back then. I thought I was being so cool." Then, suddenly — you grew pacified as the onslaught of memories hit you. When you spoke up next, your voice was a lot quieter. "I was obsessed with being different and finding myself, I thought…" When your memories conjured up a certain brown-haired boy you had lost once upon a time, you faltered. "At graduation, I realized I ended up losing a lot more than I had discovered."

A large hand landed on your thigh, and you were only called back to earth after Nanami had given your leg a quick squeeze. Nothing suggestive or intense, but as you focused on the warmth of his palm and the feather-like touch of his fingers brushing across your skin, you focused again on the present.

"I was just lucky and landed myself a good job. My brother-in-law was one of the co-founders of a well-to-do startup, and they got me a cushy position, so I'm more than happy with what I have now." Placing one of your hands on top of Nanami's you made sure to point those last words at him, just to assure him. Righting yourself up to push these memories behind you, "And besides, I'm sure Ken has the short end of the — "

Slam!

When you blinked the splatters from your eyes, you realized what had happened around you. A tripped-over waitress was hands and knees on the ground, three dishes of your lamb roast had scattered across the polished wooden floors amongst shattered plates, and furthermore, your pristine button-up shirt was warm and drenched in dark red wine sauce.

"Shit," you muttered into the quiet air, and that was all you needed for chaos to descend from every corner. Itadori was yelling something in your ear, your husband was quickly trying to pat your shirt dry, the tearful waitress was extremely apologetic on her knees, and all while the owner of the establishment came rushing forward to see what the commotion was all about.

"What is the meaning of this!" the man roared, red in the face before whirling in on the girl. "Hima — !"

"M-Ma'am, I-I'm extremely sorry," she said with her head bowed while she was still on the ground. "I hope that you can please forgive me — "

"Hey," you said easily. The last thing you wanted was for a young girl to cry. "It's alright," you tried to speak up against the overlapping voices.

"Please forgive us," the owner said, head bowed as well while he gave her a nasty glare from the side. "She's new here. I assure you that this behavior is unacceptable here, and I'll be sure to — "

"Hey," you sternly spoke through. "It's fine. Really. Everyone makes mistakes," you said gently, keeping your eye carefully on the young girl. "And it's just a shirt. This will come off." Tilting your head up toward the blond man who was worriedly hovering around you. This was something that he gifted you. "This stain will come off, right?"

Giving you a quick nod, Nanami carefully pulled out the strands of hair attached to the side of your neck from the spill. "If it doesn't, I'll buy you a new one," he said immediately.

Quirking up your lip at him, you said, "That's unnecessary. Like I said, it's just a shirt." Catching the girl's eye contact, you said calmly, "Everything's fine. Please go patch your knee up." You excused her.

The boss seemingly wanted to argue, opening his mouth to argue as the girl thankfully nodded, hidden behind a curtain of her hair before she rushed away, but the sight of your husband's dark stare from over your shoulder, as he stood large, muscled, and broad, shut him up.

"Where's your bathroom?" you asked. Your shirt was becoming transparent and sticking uncomfortably.

The owner looked extremely apologetic again. "It's currently closed for cleaning, but I'll let my employees know — no more than five minutes — !"

"That's alright," you repeated shortly.

"Go get my wife a laundry bag and a towel." The owner certainly wasn't going to argue when your husband stood like a pillar behind you. Holding his clean hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose, he breathed carefully. "As fast as possible."

"R-Right away." With a bow, the owner made another uneasy promise of covering your dry cleaning, restaurant bill, and that he would send someone to clean this up immediately.

"Kennie," you called. As the spill cooled, the sauce stuck to your skin and was starting to become oily and coagulated, overall unpleasant the longer it lingered. Cringing, you said, "I don't want to wear this shirt any longer, can you help me?"

No further words were needed. With a quick flash of movement, almost as fast as how he took down curses with his ratio, Itadori watched as the older man pulled his blazer off his body and stood to hold it up around you like a curtain.

The man's large arms were nearly encircling you, muscles flexing as he tilted his body and blazer to give you all the privacy you needed to change. Facing the ceiling-to-floor windows that gave you the grand view of the Tokyo skyline, you began unbuttoning your shirt.

Although Itadori caught a peek of the top of your lacy black bra, he quickly averted his eyes with pink cheeks, both out of shame, and with how Nanami's gaze could've set him on fire.

"You can put your shirt here," Nanami gestured, nodding toward the back of his chair. Nodding, you quickly dropped your wet shirt out of your hands, allowing Itadori to see the LEMAIRE tag poking out from the folds.

You patted yourself clean with the cloth napkins you had around the table, and you thanked Itadori as he handed you his. Once you cleaned off as much of the spill as possible, your bare shoulders finally met with the sleek silk lining of your husband's jacket. As you slipped your arms around the oversized jacket sleeves, Nanami finished helping you button up his jacket.

Taking a knee, the blond man cleaned up your chair before he let you sit down. The blazer was comically oversized on you, giving you broad shoulders from the sturdy padding, and the lapels gave you a low cut where your bra could still be seen, but it was better than nothing.

The blond man let out a deep sigh. If he wasn't in public, no — if you two were the only people at the table, he wouldn't waste any time to tuck his face in your shoulder or rest his head on your lap even.

"Darling," Nanami started, and immediately Itadori was shocked at how the stern and reserved Nanami seemed so soft. "This date's been a mess, I'm sorry — " Weak even, against your presence.

"Why are you apologizing?" you said with a chuckle. "The date has barely even started yet! And now we get free food!"

Giving you a frown he added, "What's the point if you had to be embarrassed like this?" Beautiful brown eyes peered up at you, and you swore you could never get sick of the sight, not even to this day.

"Embarrassed? I've done a lot more humiliating things as a high schooler — willingly too." With a grin, you reached over to pinch his high cheekbone. "And I love wearing your clothes anyway."

"I — "

"Nothing a shower won't fix," you interrupted him by grabbing his face and leaning over to give him an Inuit kiss. "And what's the matter with one 'ruined' date?" Holding up your hand, you showed off your grand wedding and engagement ring. "You locked me down anyway," you said cheekily. "I'm not going anywhere."

Yet the blond man looked regretful anyway. Ashamed that he made your night anything less than wonderful.

You wondered where it all came from, this insane pressure to give you what he deemed as a perfect life — the perfect adulthood, rather. Perhaps it was from how you constantly repeated how much you valued and appreciated him when he was being bogged down by competitive coworkers who walked all over him.

Or perhaps it was from the look on your face as you sat next to Haibara's body in the morgue, as the light slowly dimmed from your eyes.

Heart swelling with true love, you couldn't resist pulling the man forward for a real kiss. One deep and hearty, skin against skin, until space had never existed, and you could get your atoms to touch.

"Um..." Itadori squirmed uncomfortably in his seat.

Did you forget he was here?

[bubblebbg]

would you be able to do a Miguel x f!reader where the reader is a civilian who's the sunshine to his grumpy? She's pretty much the definition of the quote "the violence it took to be this kind". She had an abusive childhood, and unfortunately she's currently up in an abusive relationship, she tries really hard to hide her pain with warmth and laughter, hiding her bruises with long sleeves in the summer and concealer.

This is my first request, I'm so happy! I wasn't really comfortable writing the physical abuse part (I don't want to misrepresent this issue) , so I've made it to where the reader is in an unhappy relationship instead. I hope this is along the lines of what you wanted. :)

𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞.

Miguel O'Hara x reader

To him, you're one of those people that deserves better, deserves the best. Today especially, that's what you should be getting. If Miguel could, he'd hand you worlds on a silver platter. But he can't. Not with your boyfriend around to stop him.

Part 2

"Your boyfriend is the biggest asshole I've ever met. Come on, you have to know this by now." Miguel has pulled you to the balcony of your apartment and away from the music and festivities, his jaw clenched with anger as he seethes. He's never liked your boyfriend; there's you, the sweet, kind woman who's always considerate, endlessly patient, practically saintly in nature. And then there's your boyfriend, some scum of the earth who's only ever been callous and cold during your interactions. Miguel has tried and tried and tried to keep his mouth shut about it, but the way your smile faltered as you explained that he couldn't take off work to be at your birthday party is his last straw. "Seriously, today of all day's he has to work? Say the word and I'm sending that douchebag flying through a wall-"

"Miguel, stop it. It's fine, he's just a busy guy you know? And I'm sure you throw enough people around already." You chuckle, but the sadness doesn't quite leave your eyes. You sip some of the champagne in your glass, sighing as you let the alcohol numb some of your senses. Looking out at the cityscape, arms folded on the railing. He really wishes you knew how much you deserve, and the selfish part of him wants to be the one to give that to you.

When you catch him staring at you, at the way the lights of the city glow on your face, he turns forward, sighing and running a hand through his hair. "I just don't get it is all. You could have anyone you wanted, why him? Hell, you're better off alone than with him. If I could make the decisions for you, he would've been gone a long time ago."

You step closer to him and rest your head on his shoulder, eyes closed and the champagne drained from your glass. "I know you're concerned about me, but in the end these decisions are mine to make. I'll talk to him after the party. Until then, how's everything at work? Still got a lot on your hands?"

A smile plays at his lips, feeling a bit warm from the touch. "Hey, don't go changing the subject on me. We need to talk about this."

"You change the subject on me all of the time! Humor me on my birthday, please." He rolls his eyes because he can't believe that you'd play the birthday card on him, but he also knows he can never say no to you. Not with the way you look at him. So he puts an arm around your shoulders and lets a breath out his nose.

"Still stressful, but not so bad. I guess your whole 'have meetings to help people with their mission strategy instead of just yelling at them' plan has been working." You laugh at that, eyes crinkling as you lean more into him. You look good like this, the cheery person you usually are, not the one being let down by their partner. "See? And how hard was that? If I had spider powers like you, I'd be the ultimate diplomatic leader and badass." He can't stop the laughter that bubbles up in his chest when you punch and kick the air to emphasize your badassery.

"Your form is terrible," he smirks, "You'd be dead in seconds."

"And if it weren't for me, every spider ever would have quit because of your nagging."

"Right, right, whatever makes you feel better, civilian."

This is how it's supposed to be, the way it was before you decided to date this guy. It was always you and Miguel before: him carrying all of your grocery bags as you raved about some new hobby, you and him on the roof of your apartment building, him pointing out flaws in a movie at the theater while you ate all the popcorn, him begrudgingly pushing you on a park swing despite his assertations that you were in fact too old to still do this. It hits him all at once. He's missed you. Your absence leaves gaps in his life that no one else can fill.

"Hey," he mumbles, "I know you said you didn't want any gifts, but I got you something. Happy birthday."

Your eyes widen as he timidly hands you a rectangular box, his gaze turned to the city and a light blush on his face. He watches through the corner of his eyes as you open it. Inside is a silver necklace with a lily-of-the-valley preserved in resin, the flower you told him about that grew around your childhood home. Your palm comes to cover your mouth and tears well up in your eyes at the considerate nature of his gift. (That's Miguel, always remembering the details of things you say. When was the last time your boyfriend did that again?) Miguel turns to face you with an anxious expression. "Do you not like it? I left the receipt in there, you can return it and use the money on-"

"No, no, no, it's beautiful," you smile, turning and lifting the hair from your neck, "Could you please put it on me?"

He sighs in relief, taking the necklace and clasping it gently around your neck. As soon as he's done you jump into his arms with a delighted giggle, beaming with joy. He lets himself hug you back for a few more seconds before setting you down. Seeing you like this has his heart racing as he's filled with the courage to say it, to tell you what you mean to him. He opens his mouth to speak and -

Someone shouts through the sliding doors of the balcony, "Hey, where have you been? Get inside, your boyfriend just got here!"

And just like that, the courage is gone, his mouth closing to a slight frown. As he's preparing to go back in and stomach the sight of you with that man, he sees you climbing the steps of the fire escape and stops at the door.

"What are you doing?"

You stop, turning to look at him with the breeze at your back and the moon shining on you. You offer your hand to him.

"Come on, let's go. We can sit on the rooftop like we used to."

He pauses, taking a look at the party inside. Then he takes your hand and you're leading him up like you used to, and everything that was out of place in him shifts back to fit. He smiles at how small and smooth your hand is in his larger, rough one. Yeah, he thinks.

This is how it's meant to be.

[enypsh]

TRY AGAIN - 01. maybe it's natural

SYNOPSiS. the expected had unexpectedly, but finally, happened. infamous heartbreaker sunghoon park and quiet girl y/n. broken up. you and sunghoon, the college campus it couple. what happened? what happened to the two lovers who had the most love for each other in the world? broken promises and broken hearts. but do you two ever want to try again?

PAiRiNG. non idol!sunghoon x fem!reader (ft. rest of enhypen, chaewon from le sserafim, ningning from aespa, yeji from itzy)

WARNiNGS. sickening loads of fluff , swearing , mentions of food , parties , drinking , mentions of hook ups

WORD COUNT. 2K

TAGLiST. open! send in an ask or dm

SERiES MASTERLiST NEXT

Love at first sight was either something people agreed on or found as a fib. a "figment of imagination", some would call it. "There's nothing actually called love at first sight."

Fortunately, for you and Sunghoon, it was real. A dream come true. Just a slight glimpse of you two, and people would truly believe love at first sight was real.

Who would've thought that you being sleep-deprived would cause this whole... incident? A happy coincidence? Was it luck?

Maybe it was the way that your head fell onto Sunghoon's shoulder due to the lack of sleep you'd gotten the previous night.

Or perhaps it was the way you cutely and quickly apologized, wiping the teeny trail of invisible drool from your cheek. Randomly, and suddenly, proceeding to give him the sandwich you were planning on having for lunch. But you gave it to him instead, impulsively. All because you felt sorry for getting a spot of drool on his shoulder.

"No wait," he tried calling out for you before you quickly rushed out of class in embarrassment, blending along with the rest of the students leaving class. "Wait! it's okay - wait! Come back!" He tried going after you, quickly packing his bag as the rest of the students were leaving.

As he bent down to grab his stuff, he noticed a glint at your seat. A bracelet. Quickly shoving everything into his bag, he grabbed it without hesitation and rushed out.

He went around almost everywhere near the cafeteria area to look for you. He didn't know your name, which he just realized. Even though you two had always sat next to each other, coincidentally. But anyways.

"Hey, sunghoon!"

Turning around, he found Jake rushing to him at a frantic pace. "Hurry up! I've been trying to get to you through calls and texts too! We're late!"

Well shit. Today was Jay's birthday. The group: Jay, Jake, Heeseung, Jungwon, Ni-ki, Sunoo, along with Sunghoon, was supposed to meet for lunch. And he had completely forgotten about it.

"Jake, go without me. I'll be there soon, tell Jay i'm sorry, I swear I'll be there real soon." Well, leaving Jake in a very confused state, Sunghoon rushed out of the cafeteria after he saw you at the corner of his eye. Outside, sitting under the tree reading a book. Alone, with a pair of headphones.

He jogged to where you were, trying to get your attention.

"Hey," he cleared his throat. Gosh, he didn't know why he was being so awkward. The Sunghoon Park was being an awkward person around you. He started again, seeming to figure out you were too zoned into the book you were currently reading. "Hey!"

Finally getting your attention, you looked up at him. Cue the random wind that you could only see in movies, your hair softly blew in the wind. Cue the sudden glow right onto your skin from the sun, making you look prettier than ever.

Oh a dream, in Sunghoon's eyes. You were pretty, and Sunghoon saw it. He noticed it. and well jesus, Sunghoon park was fucking blushing because of you.

He snapped out of his daze after hearing you, well, shriek. "Oh my god! I'm sorry! Are you still mad about what happened in class? I'm really sorry, I promise I didn't mean to." You were ranting, almost sounding like you were trying to rap. Awkwardly getting up, away from the spot you were previously sitting at.

Cute, he thought. "Oh, no, it's okay. don't worry about it, I actually found your bracelet. I think? I was putting my stuff away so," was what he had said instead. Handing you your bracelet, he gave you a lopsided smile.

Oh, he's cute, you thought. If only you two could read each other's minds.

"Do you not want it?" Sunghoon was just standing there, an awkward arm extended.

"Oh! no! i want it it's mine. Oh my goodness I'm sorry I'm a mess today. Did you like the sandwich? Do you want more?" Your cheeks were on fire, redder than a tomato.

Sunghoon chuckled, "You're cute." Shit. That was actually not what he meant to say but he was just speaking his mind, we could say!

"What?" Well you were red as a tomato now. This was one of the most, top 5, embarrassing and most fucking awkward moments of your life.

Quietness. A moment of stillness as the college's well-known heartbreaker Sunghoon Park was blushing over you. With that damn arm still extended out in front of him, holding your bracelet. Is this how slow-mo from the k-dramas feels like? It was such a sweet thing. Staring into each other's eyes. An awkward arm’s length away from each other. And hundreds of texts piling up in Sunghoon's messages from his friends asking where the fuck he was. 15 minutes late already.

"Wait shit,” Sunghoon was frazzled, letting out a little squeak. “Sorry i need to get going. Please forget about what I just said.. slip up! Yeah. A slip up I was getting nervous, sorry. Yup. See you around." And there he went. Awkwardly leaving, bag over his shoulder while you were clutching onto your bracelet for dear life.

There was no fucking way the sunghoon park just called you cute out of nowhere and left. You were in a daze. still blushing. And awkwardly standing. But you were hopelessly in love. Scratch that. No, you weren't. Well, you were gaslighting yourself into thinking that you weren't. You couldn't be in love with Sunghoon Park, he'd done the bare minimum for you. What was so warm about the fact that someone returned your lost item to you? Well christ, you were a goner. Too late. And there you went contemplating on the true meaning of, "Am I in love?", for the rest of the day.

Meanwhile, Sunghoon had finally arrived at the local restaurant. "Sorry Jay, real sorry. I had to give someone-"

"Who was the girl you had to go see?" Jake had cut him off mid-sentence. And shit, Sunghoon looked up after taking his seat, only to see all his friends devilishly grinning at him. Oh god, how was he supposed to explain everything to them? Should he lie? Say it was just a friend? Or completely act clueless? Or be honest?

Jay laughed looking at his friend’s blank face. "Don't be sorry. It's fine, but who's the girl anyway? That's a fun topic to talk about. Jake told us you ran off to give something to a girl?" Sunghoon could practically hear Jay’s grin.

Sunghoon sighed, acting all calm while he most definitely was not, while the rest were grinning ear to ear, "That's out of context. She was sitting next to me in my last class, and she forgot something behind so i just went off to give it to her." Quietness. But a different kind of quiet - the quiet where six pairs of eyes were on him, with a cheeky grin plastered on their face, all thinking of the same thing.

"Well then why are you blushing?" Heeseung pointed out. Grinning more, if that was even possible, staring into Sunghoon's soul. 

This was not going as Sunghoon planned, and he was blushing. Again. He was supposed to make girls blush, not for girls to make him blush. (Or whatever people say!) He was supposed to have a silly fun night with girls at parties, a one-time thing, and that was it. He never felt any “romantic” connection with anyone for a date, nothing like that. But what was it with you? Did he have a thing for girls who were socially awkward and fell asleep on his shoulder? 

"I'm not blushing!" Stupid. He knew damn well he was. He downed the cup of water that was next to him, throat burning. From denial. But he wouldn’t ever admit that.

"Right... better introduce us to your. Classmate." Jungwon threw a silly little wink at Sunghoon, and if it was even possible, everyone grinned even more. A whole-ass grinch smile on every single one of them.

"Deny it all you want but," Jay started, still grinning, "to make it up for coming late Hoon, you’re coming to the party later tonight. And you better come on time, or come early with a special treat for me." 

Did Sunghoon want to go? No. But was it for his friend? Or for the chance that, just maybe, he could see you? For you. For Jay.. definitely! Well, tonight was going to be a very long night.

In another universe, you were very busy ranting about Sunghoon Park to your friends. for the past 2 hours. Well - Ningning got sick of it. Chaewon was immersed in this situation, along with you. while Yeji was concerned. Very concerned. You, a girl with minimal experience in the real meaning of life - was here expressing your silly love crush on Sunghoon Park. 

"He's notorious for being an asshole with girls, y/n." Yeji thought he was absolutely a no-go. just at the thought of him ever dating you, it gave Yeji a whole body chilling irk. A whole nightmare you could say. "I really don't think you love him, honestly maybe he was just being nice. He’s usually not like that, you know. Maybe to earn a night with you?" Objectifying. 

The horrors of college party nights. Stories from girls who slept with Sunghoon, “I thought he genuinely loved me.” Well christ, they should’ve gotten the hint by now.

"Nope," Chaewon intervened. "He's definitely in love with you. If the Sunghoon Park did all that, chased after you to give you that damn bracelet, literally blushed. Like I’m pretty sure the Sunghoon Park we know, does not blush! He’s supposed to make you blush! Which I bet you did.”

In fact, you did. You could even feel it when you were standing up. The heat spreading across your cheeks. The way you had no thoughts, christ, Sunghoon Park was standing in front of you. He was known for being good-looking as well, and for once, nobody was lying about it. His face, with a soft smile in the view of your eyes. You liked how everything around you muted when you were there with him. Love at first sight. 

“You zoned out again,” Ningning sighed. She knew that you were hopelessly crushing on Sunghoon Park already. As much she would’ve cheered you on, with whatever decision you were making. Sunghoon Park was an absolute and instant no from her. She heard about all the tales that he did around the college campus, and she didn’t want you to become a victim. A victim helplessly under this trap. “Let’s think rationally, please. What if he’s purposely trying to flirt with you? You know, like, trying to get your attention. Because there’s also the party we’re going to later tonight and he probably knows that you’re going, so.”

The party. You were not going to the party. “Nope! Not going to the party.” You were walking away from your friends, searching for a bottle of water to chug. “I’m not going to be wasting my time at a lousy party that’s full of too many people who just grind on each other and smell like shit. no thanks.”

“But what if you see Sunghoon there,” Chaewon smirked. You knew where she was going with this. It was definitely a great way to make you go, but you didn’t want that to be the reason on why you would go.

You sighed, “Fine, I’ll go. But NOT because he might be there, actually. I’ll go because last time I skipped and made you guys go, I’ll just go with you guys together. You know like a fun little night.”

Cue the giggling from Chaewon and the long sighs from Yeji and Ningning. 

Chaewon was doing this weird eyebrow wiggling at you, “Sure. You’re definitely not just going for Sunghoon. Right. Got you. Well then, what are we waiting for! Let’s get ready!”

It was going to be one hell of long night.

NOTE. finally finished chapter 1.. i was planning on writing more but decided to keep that stuff for chapter 2. first chapter ever written, there's like mistakes here and there i think i sort of rushed.. BUT i have this whole image painted in my mind for this series i'm so excited 🥹

TAGS. @lovingvoidgoatee @babystrlla @adoredbyjay @eneiyri @bts-army380 @rikibun @ddazed-lhs @txtlyn @enhastolemyheart @nyfwyeonjun @sunsunl0ver TAGLIST IS OPEN!

[heartfullofleeches]

God I really need random blurb of Pin to quench my fluff thirst of him (and ideas). Speaking of Pin, can he eat? like, can he munch down the foods or just straight up swallow everything like a black hole

[They do have a mouth technically - how they eat will remain a mystery. Here's a blurb with my favorite Yan doll and reader who likes to bake/throw parties]

-

"Sorry... I can't make it."

"Maybe next time?"

"I'm sure others will show."

If only they had let you know sooner.... Or at all.

You always took the smallest thing into accountability when planning. Work schedules, events with family, the weather. You found the perfect day when all of your friends should have been free and sent the invites out a week in advance on the cutest little cards you found on your last trip the supply store. A couple of them had excitedly messaged you about the party, gifting hope soon to be crushed as you sat alone at the dinner table piled with cakes and cookies, and all the other treats you had prepped for their arrival.

You guessed not every adult wanted to visit what was essentially a glorified tea party with no real reason to celebrate, but it would've been nice if they just said that instead of wasting your time and effort. You wouldn't feel as bad if they texted you beforehand, but as always you were left in the dark. They only wanted your skills when it meant something. You were who they called to cater for birthdays and engagement parties - what was the harm in gathering just to see each other?

It sucked, but at least you weren't completely alone.

"At least I still have you, Pin."

The doll's round eyes point down at the large slice of cake on their place, hands posed on either sides of the table. You used the left over ribbon from decorating to make a bow tucked into their hair, keeping their yarn locks parted from their smiling face. Frosted stained their stitched grin from the first time they'd fallen over when you seated them in their chair. It was nice to know someone appreciated your baking - even if they were made of cotton and fabric.

The first to arrive and the only one who stuck around in the end. You found them at the same supply store you bought all of your decorations, but sometimes it felt like they were the one who found you. The oversized almost squashed you when it came tumbling from another prop you'd been checking out. When you couldn't find a price tag and the store owner claimed to never have seen them before, they gave you a fair estimate and you went about your day with a new friend and roommate. Pin had always been there when your friends weren't. You had an entire album full of pictures of your many celebrations together and costumes to match. If there was anyone you could depend on to brighten your day - it was them.

"I'll never leave you!"

Your first smile of the day - all because of the scripted lines of a giant doll. "Thanks, Pin. Glad I can always count on you."

Detangling your fingers from the cord attached to their back, the string pulls once more as you yank your hand away.

"I'm all you'll ever need!"

Your smile falls. "You just might you're right about that.... Well, it's getting pretty late. I should start cleaning up. Enjoy your cake while I do, okay?"

You gather the empty plates and cups on the table, returning them to the cabinets with a heavy heart. Next time will be different. It has to be. You leave Pin in their seat as you change into something more comfortable. Their button eyes follow you from the reflection of a mirror on the wall. While changing, you wonder what to do with the leftovers since there's far too much to eat alone before it all spoils. Reentering the dining room, it would seen that wouldn't be as much of a problem as you thought.

Sprinkles and crumbles coat Pin's face as they hang slumped in their chair. The fork that was once in their hands lies on the floor and their fingers were covered in just as much frosting as their shirt. There was even some on that zipper on their chest you were never able to get down even with pliers. Where an entire cake once sat was now the final envelope from the invite cards you picked up earlier that week. Your name was written in bold lettering on its back along with a little drawing of the missing cake.

"Y/n! Thank you so for always inviting me to your wonderful parties and making me feel like I belong. I wish we could talk more, but I'm a little shy. Your cakes are so delicious, and I'm really sorry your friends didn't come, but that just means more for me! I'm sure they'll come around someday, but if not you know I'll always be around to cheer you up. I love love love you, and appreciate everything you do so please don't ever stop doing what you love.

Sincerely, Pin."

[creedslove]

HEARTLESS 💔 - PART TWELVE

Agent Whiskey (Jack Daniels) x f!reader

Summary: The day before Wyatt's birthday brings you a series of information on Jack you didn't expect, revealing he was a lot more broken than you thought

(This is the twelfth chapter of the HEARTLESS 💔 series)

• PART ONE TO ELEVEN ON MY MASTERLIST

Warnings: angst, hurt, mentions of depression, mentions of implied suicide attempt, fluff, mom!reader

A/N: This was a difficult chapter because it ended up being a lot more angsty than I intended, but it felt right to the story, I hope you besties enjoy it ❤️🥺

4.1k words

You bit your lips as you took the road that led you to Jack's ranch. You felt an anxiety creeping up your chest, at the same time Wyatt couldn't take his excitement of going back to his papa's house. It was going to be a big weekend for your baby boy: his birthday party happening on Saturday on the ranch for the very first time. It was a huge event for Wyatt as kids are absolutely obsessed with their birthdays and for Jack too, being the first birthday he'd get to spend with his boy. Not only that, for the first time, his ranch would welcome a party and be filled with people, kids running around, music, laughter and everything Jack's lonely heart had ever wished for since the moment he'd bought that ranch.

Jack had asked you to go on Friday afternoon, he had a surprise for Wyatt and he would like for his son to be able to enjoy it before the party, so there wouldn't be too many kids wanting to play too and stealing his thunder. 

For the past two weeks, you'd been in contact all the time, for visiting as your son and his dad couldn't stay away from each other, growing attached each passing day and because you and him needed to plan the party. Jack had assured you all you needed to do was to decide decoration, food, and pick any other details and he would make it happen, regardless of how much it would cost. He was willing to make your son's little dreams come true and he wasn't going to spare any money. 

However, as the co-parenting part was going great, your relationship with Jack was someone else. After that morning at your apartment, he just took his distance from you; he was physically there several times during the week, playing and spending time with Wyatt and planning the details of the party with you, buying the three of you dinner from your favorite places or ice cream for dessert, he was still kind, generous and polite, but he was emotionally distant from you, understanding that you didn't want anything to do with that old cowboy. So now he respectfully addressed you by your name and only that, no sugar, sweetheart or darling, he was keeping respectful. He also hadn't mentioned anything related to his love life nor yours, so you had no idea if he tried Tinder again or going on any dates, the thought still bothering you even if you tried acting like it didn't, but it also puzzled you that Jack hadn't said anything about Frankie either. It didn't take big brains to assume the cowboy hated the pilot and vice versa, but you expected Jack to go full maniac and have someone at Statesman get a hold of Frankie's classified file or criminal records and whatever, and your guess was that Frankie was clean, otherwise Jack would've said something already. Sometimes you thought Jack's reaction was an exaggeration but overall it felt reassuring to know he would do his best to keep you and Wyatt safe. 

As for you and Frankie, things were… slow. He had some jobs to do here and there and you were quite thankful for that, it's not that you didn't want Frankie anymore, but you thought that maybe you and him weren't on the same page anymore, or perhaps you never were and your whole relationship was just a way to try and run away from the haunting ghost that was your former relationship with Jack Daniels. You had even invited Frankie to the party - especially after Jack gave you a free hand to do whatever you wanted to - because you thought it would be nice for him to bring his daughter Melissa along. She was a year older than Wyatt and though you'd never met her just as Frankie had never met your son, you assumed it would be cool, it was another kid for your son to play with on his special day. 

Wyatt was a giggly mess, not containing himself as he couldn't wait to see his daddy and play on the ranch. You felt your heart warming with love, at your son's happiness, having his daddy around was essential for his blossoming into a more extrovert and confident child. 

You parked in front of the ranch, finding it odd Jack's bronco wasn't there, but instead of overthinking things, you helped Wyatt unbuckle and get out of the car. You held his little hand as you walked inside, but he immediately ran away at the same time Helen welcomed you with a hug. She was so glad to see you and your son again, and especially after she learned you and Jack were on good terms, even if it meant you were friends and nothing more, it was good to see Jack smile, go back to riding his horses, excited about things once more, from one who watched him from afar, it seemed he went back to life, after getting his family back. 

"Dada???" Wyatt squealed at the top of his little lungs once he got into the house, he thought it was odd for him not to welcome them, but his attention was immediately shifted to the coffee table, where he was the most adorable horse action figures he'd seen. Helen smiled at him "you're daddy is at work, but he left these horses for you" she explained as Wyatt rushed to the table, sitting on the floor and immediately began playing with them "did you know your daddy was your size when he played with his little horses? His mama found the box she kept them and sent it over to your daddy, so he could give it to you" Helen explained to your son in her gentle voice, while her hand ran through his soft curls. Wyatt smiled widely, so entertained by the toy, and no matter if the action of time was visible, he fell in love with each little horse of the set. It was a simple one, and you could have a small glimpse into Jack's humble but also very happy childhood, and suddenly a suffocating need to see your cowboy appeared. As if Helen read your mind, she smiled "Jack is back at Statesman, he went to hand out some invitations for tomorrow, but he shouldn't take long" 

You nodded and followed her into the kitchen, knowing your son would be quietly playing by himself and accepting Helen's cup of tea. 

"A penny for your thoughts?" She tilted her head and chuckled at your frowned expression "I can see something is going on in this pretty little head of yours, honey and I know it has to do with a certain cowboy…" 

Your cheeks heated up immediately and you looked around a little embarrassed to see you were too easy to read, or perhaps Jack told her everything that happened, it wouldn't be too surprising if he had, as he often got very chatty once he drank a lot, and Helen played the role of friend very often too, whenever she didn't have to act like Jack's mother at his irresponsible behavior. 

"What has he told you about the latest events?" You raised your eyebrow and let the woman make an account of what Jack had told her about his attempt of going on a date and everything else that happened after that. "...He was very upset when he got home that morning, I assumed he had done something bad, but I see he was just feeling rejected; though I can see you aren't looking like a million bucks either, so I'm guessing the situation messed up with the two of you"

"I just don't know what to do anymore, Helen… I try so hard to fight my feelings for Jack, but they're still so strong, even after everything he did to me, I can't help but love him. But at the same time I'm scared of giving into this love, how can I trust him? He even talked about trying for a little sister for Wyatt, but Helen, how can I get pregnant with his child after everything he did to me?" You said as your eyes were full of tears, you were just too confused and scared of what things would be like, of what people would talk about if you ever decided to give in and try things with Jack. 

"Y/N!" Helen chuckled "you are overthinking things right now… a baby? Sure, that's a situation to think about, but no one is asking you to jump into that right now… Jack is asking you for a chance! A chance of taking you on a date, of showing you he can take care of you and Wyatt and that you will be happy with him" Helen took your hand and caressed it happy "Jack loves you and Wyatt, he's a man who really loves his family and I know he's done some real bad shit, but he's proving to you he's turning into a better person, isn't he?" She smiled as you nodded and bit your lips "no one is telling you to jump right into his bed, but let him in, you want him to get near too, don't you? Give him a chance, spend the weekend with him, feeling what it would be like to be an actual family with your cowboy" Helen smiled but a shadow crossed her face as something dark flickered in her eyes and she cleared her throat "I'm sorry if I seem insisting, I don't mean to make you embarrassed but I just worry about Jack so much… but ever since you walked into his life… Well, ever since he walked back into your lives and you accepted him, he has improved, you know? Because he was bad…" 

"Yeah, I know… he told me about the mission and all" you always felt sad when you thought about that, looking at Helen and seeing how she went serious 

"What about before the mission? Did he tell you what happened?" 

"No… what else happened? Did he get hurt?" You gulped, as your anxiety was increasing by the minute you realized the subject was even more serious than you thought. Helen sighed and got up, going to the kitchen window and checking to see if Jack's bronco wasn't there, she knew he wouldn't forgive her if he overheard her telling you what had happened.

"You have to promise me you're not gonna say anything to him at all, please, he's gonna be really angry if he knows I told you… he doesn't like talking about that at all" 

"I-I promise, now please Helen, tell me already, you're making me anxious…" 

The older woman sighed and rubbed the back of her head "Jack's behavior had been really erratic, especially the months before he decided to finally go after you and Wyatt. I noticed he seemed to be more and more depressed, as he was dwelling into his loneliness and guilt, and that's when the heavy drinking began. I mean, you do know he drinks, but it wasn't just his usual drink, it was more, and he was mixing up alcohol too, something I had never seen him do… he's a classy man, and he likes whiskey and that's about it" 

She took a breath and served the two of you some more tea, taking a longer sip and swallowing slowly, before she could talk again 

"And with the drinking, it also came the dangerous behavior… it was first the driving and drinking, he had always been extra careful with that, but suddenly, it was like it didn't really matter anymore to him, he would just get drunk and speed up whenever he needed to leave home. Then we had the horse incident… Jack decided to ride one weekend, he hadn't been around his horses very much, and especially not Silver Pony and I guess it's because it reminded him of you, but still, he went riding and he didn't get his saddle correct and he fell from the horse, and Y/N, you know Jack and how good he is at horseback riding, you know he wouldn't simply forget to fix his saddle. Well, he fell from the horse and the doctor said it was a miracle he hadn't broken any bones and if he had hit his head in the fall…" Helen sighed and watched as you looked at her in horror, your eyes wide at what you had just started learning from him. You had no idea until what extent he was broken, but that made you hurt in a way it was impossible to explain. 

"And there was this evening I called him because dinner was ready, but he wasn't answering. It was just odd, Jack isn't the kind of guy to ignore, so I went to his room and I found him passed out… He'd washed down some sleeping pills with whiskey and god… I don't even like to think what would've happened. Of course he denies it and says it's an accident, but when the Statesman forced him to go to therapy, I sighed relieved, and when he first came back home after spending time with you and Wyatt and I saw the beautiful smile in his face, I prayed so hard he would find his way in life, and of course I know you're not a savior and it's not obligation to save anyone, but it's important to know you have such positive effect on him, and well, if you two are meant to be, there's really no other way out of this, you'll stay together" 

By the time Helen was finished telling you those things, you realized your tears were running down your cheeks; you sniffled and tried to wrap your head around the fact that if it weren't for fate, or a little divine intervention, your cowboy Jack, would be dead by then. It was a suffocating feeling, there wasn't a loss, but the mere prospect of it was enough to make your stomach swirl and your chest get too heavy to breathe. 

"Dada!!!" Your son's voice was enough to break the spell you were under and you quickly dried your tears as best as you could, being able to hear Jack's heavy boots walking and his voice cheering and talking to Wyatt. You and Helen looked at each other and you tried your best to pretend you hadn't been talking about Jack for the past half an hour, as he walked into the kitchen, he politely greeted you and at that moment you knew you'd give everything to hear him call you sugar.

The cowboy was carrying Wyatt in his arms and tickling his tummy, loving to hear his happy giggles, but frowned immediately as he saw your crying face 

"What happened?" He asked concerned and took a step closer, 

"Uh, nothing… I was telling Helen about my mom" you mouthed the end of the sentence so Wyatt wouldn't be curious or wouldn't get upset at the mention of his grandma "she's not coming to the party because I didn't invite her after what happened…" you added to your half lie, as you hadn't invited her at all especially because she would give you shit about letting Jack throw the party and also because you were sure she would end up screwing up the party to one of you, if not to everyone. 

Jack bought your excuse as he felt sad to know you were having problems with your mom, of course he still felt guilty about that, but he was aware that you have always had problems with her, so it's not like it'd started just because of him. Yet, the cowboy took a step closer and took his hand to your face, his thumb wiping the last tear that insisted on rolling down your cheek. 

"I'm sorry about that, sugar, but pretty girls like yourself shouldn't cry… ain't that right Wyatt? Don't you think that pretty girls like mama shouldn't cry?" He talked to your son, who joined the conversation excitedly, at the same time you leaned into Jack's touch, before he could shy away. 

There it was: sugar. 

You had no idea how much you'd missed that until you heard it again from his lips after weeks of awkwardness around each other. You didn't think twice before wrapping your arms around Whiskey and burying your face into his chest you sniffed into his scent and playfully nibbled your son's little legs, making him squealed in pure happiness. You felt the cowboy's arms wrapping around your body and keeping you in that embrace, his family's embrace. 

You looked up at Jack's puzzled face and smiled big at him 

"I guess I missed you" you rested your head against his chest once more and felt when his lips pecked the top of your head, and chuckled when Wyatt did the same, imitating his daddy in being an authentic southern gentleman.

                             •••

Jack had kindly asked Helen to set things out in the backyard so he could grill his famous burger for dinner. He knew you used to love them when you were together and he was hoping his son would also take a liking to it as well, but first, he was overly excited to show the two of you, Wyatt's birthday gift. He wanted it to be a day before his actual birthday so the other kids wouldn't make a fuss about it and he could play calmly. He called you to follow them, placing his own stetson back on and handed Wyatt's small one. You felt kind of disappointed Jack didn't have one for you, after all, he had said he would get you a hat too, but you felt sad to realize he probably assumed you'd been just joking. He guided you towards the stables, Wyatt was very excited, his arms wrapped tight around Jack's neck and little eyes widening the second he spotted the new farm fence right next to the horses. You were also extremely curious to know what the cowboy had come up to your baby. 

"Do you know how to read?" He asked Wyatt who shook his head a little confused as he stared into a sign at the gate of the dence, Jack smiled sweetly at him "then papa's gonna teach you. Look!" He pointed at the W and his fingers followed the sequence

"W… Y… A… T… T…" He read out loud "Wyatt's ranch, that's what it says baby boy, it's your ranch" Jack explained to him excitedly with a shit eating grin, opening the gate and pulling Wyatt down the moment he spotted the pony his daddy got for him.

The little boy felt he was going simply insane, as his present was also his new best friend, he immediately hugged the little pony which was very gentle and easy going towards kids. He loved how the pony looked like a tiny little version of Silver Pony and he looked up at his parents, his eyes had happy tears, being so emotional to have the best birthday of his little life. Your son clung to you and Jack, and sobbed happy tears, at the same time he giggled when the pony nudged his hand gently. He sniffled and leaned into his daddy's soothing touch, who dried his tears and smiled

"W-what's the name daddy? Of my pony?" He managed to ask, and Jack chuckled "she's yours, baby, you can pick whichever name you want" he caressed his soft curls and smiled at you. 

Wyatt nodded and caressed the pony cute head, thinking very hard as he looked at you "she looks like Silvew Pony, mommy…" he said melting your heart, so you just nodded and stroked his cheek "yes she does… maybe Silver Pony is the mommy and she is the daughter" you suggested, knowing it wasn't possible but for Wyatt's innocent head it made so much sense he gasped. He held her head gently and looked into her eyes, showing how good he was at handling animals, again, another trait inherited from his dad senior agent Jack 'Whiskey' Daniels 

"Silvew Staw" he said proudly. 

You didn't know exactly how long you and Jack spent watching Wyatt play with Silver Star, but it didn't matter as your little boy was thrilled. He was so happy and wouldn't stop giggling and cuddling the pony, kind of treating her like a puppy, while you and Jack took turns between watching and playing along. When evening came, Jack said it was time for dinner, though Wyatt didn't want to leave Silver Star, which caused the three of you to take the pony back to the house and let Wyatt play with her while Jack worked on grilling his burgers. Helen had set everything up, and your heart clenched as you saw she'd placed everything you loved, your favorite bread, your favorite sauces and fries too, knowing how much you loved when the cowboy made his burgers or steak.

You held Wyatt who sat on your lap exhausted and downed a box of apple juice, as he watched his dad make dinner. You could tell your son was tired but extremely happy as he couldn't stop smiling. You snuggled him and rested your chin on his head, loving how warm your son was. You could tell he was hungry but he was so tired he didn't even seem to notice. 

You on the other hand, nearly salivated the moment Jack served you your burger, you ate it so quickly, savoring each bite and not one single bit embarrassed about your satisfied moans, Jack thought it was quite amusing and couldn't stop watching you, feeling happy at that moment of pure domesticity, he extended his hand and placed it above yours, stroking it gently, you bit your lips at the realization of how big his hand was and what they were capable of doing. He pointed at the lawn and the two of you laughed softly as you saw Wyatt and Silver Star napping on the grass together. The toddler was snuggling his pony and that made you very happy.

You looked back at Jack and took his hand again 

"Thank you, for everything… Today's been wonderful and it's already the best birthday he's ever had, even if his birthday is technically tomorrow… and his present is amazing" 

He chuckled and caressed your knuckles with his thumb "anything for our son, sugar and anything for you too, all you gotta do is ask" 

"I know you were there Jack" you suddenly said and he frowned in confusion "the day I gave birth to our son, I know you'd been there, in the hospital… I saw you, you went there to see us, but I was too feverish to say anything and in the morning my mom assured me I had hallucinated" you sighed sadly and Jack immediately left his chair and sat next to you. 

You looked into his eyes and there it was, his soft, teary eyes, full of hurt and regret, but at the same time making you see he was still your Jack, your cowboy

"I-I tried holding Wyatt, I really did, but your mom told me not to, she said you'd given orders to specifically not let me get near Wyatt" he swallowed "I'm sorry I didn't insist more, maybe if I had held our son, I wouldn't have left, hell, I'm sure I wouldn't have left, I'm sorry Y/N, I know that you will never forgive me and I know I'm not worthy of your forgiveness but I wish I could show you I mean business when I say I want you and Wyatt, I want to make things right between us and our son" he said in his desperate way once more, even after he had vowed not to beg for you any longer. 

You stroked his cheek "I'm confused and I know I make you confused too, Jack, we're like cat and mouse now, I wish I could just take a decision and stick to it, I wish I could be rational with my feelings, but feelings are never rational" you said "the rational thing would be moving on from each other, me finding a nice guy to rebuild my life and you finding yourself a new sugar, someone you can give yourself fully into your relationship now that your late family is behind you, but we both know this is not possible" 

You blinked some of your tears "I wanna try if you wanna try, Jack… I wanna believe and have faith in you, so I guess I want a chance for us to see if we can still be a family, but I also need some time, I need to talk to Frank-" 

Jack interrupted you by placing a peck on your lips, he didn't even want to hear you mention that other guy's name. He thought his heart would burst out of his chest at any minute, it was like his dream was coming true. 

"I don't want to just jump into your bed Jack, I want us to do things right, restart, get to know each other again, because we are different people after everything that happened… all I'm trying to say is: will you be patient with me?" 

"I'll do anything for you, sugar" he leaned towards you and kissed your lips, as you two decided to take a step together towards the future.

____

A/N: Hi besties, did you like the chapter? I hope so ❤️ Whiskey is the best dad in the world or what? And for a brief moment I considered making him also gift reader with a baby goat because 🤏🤏🤏

[hurricanrxna]

balloons & birthday bashes .

pairing : husband!cody rhodes x reader genre : pure fluff! synopsis : it's your birthday this weekend and your lovely husband Cody has been working hard to make sure that it's the most amazing day you've ever had. surprises and tooth-rotting fluff ensue!

a.n. : my first post on this new blog, weeee! I have always been such a softie when it comes to Cody, and I hope that my fellow lovers of this man will enjoy this onslaught of fluff and cuteness &lt;3

send in your requests here!

Cody wondered if, in another life, he would've been a party planner. Maybe it was the excitement of getting everything organized for your birthday party, or how all the perfectly coordinated decorations made him strangely giddy. The joy he got from visiting the local party supply store was a strange but not unwelcome new sensation that made him laugh all the same. No matter what his alternate universe self could be, where he was now was making him happy.

Ever since Cody had fallen in love with you, he had wanted to take care of you. Not in an infantilizing way, but a spoiling-you-with-the-best-stuff kind of way. It was true that he wrestled because he loved the sport and wanted to build his reputation and honor his family, but the money he earned gave him the chance to give you the life he knew you deserved. That was evident in the way that he just burst with happiness when you both bought your first house together and said "I do."

So giving you quite literally the most extra birthday celebration possible was kind of a no-brainer. You were onto him, mostly because he was an awful liar and it was impossible for him to hide his smile around you. But you also weren't aware of the true extent of the situation, and he wanted to keep it that way until the last minute.

"What are you up to..?" You had asked suspiciously with a big grin as Cody shuffled you out of the house. He had made sure your friends, who were all in on the surprise party, were able to keep you occupied for a few hours while everything got set up. Cody chuckled sweetly, leaning forward to kiss you before he opened the front door with a gentlemanly air.

"Me? Up to something? Babe, I would never! I'm an upstanding man, I'll have you know." He feigned incredulousness, placing his hand to his chest for added effect. "I just thought it'd be fun for you to hang out with your friends a bit on your birthday! Plus, I heard there may or may not be a bottomless brunch in your immediate future if you go with them..." He said with a sing-song lilt, gently urging you forward to where your best friend and a few others stood waiting. Cody still held your hand, though, up until the last minute.

"Alright, alright, you had me at bottomless brunch. Damn you!" You laughed, kissing him on the cheek with a big grin. "See you later, then?"

"Before you know it!" And with that, it was time for Cody to get to work.

..

Everything had already been planned for months, and now it was just a matter of getting everything set up. Oh, and making sure that all the guests made it on time plus the caterers and the-- Okay, he needed to breathe. Everything was gonna be fine! Cody was nothing if not a stickler for detail, and everything was about as planned as it could possibly be. So he took a minute to gather himself before heading to the bedroom to change. Of course he was gonna wear something snazzy for your special day!

Cody spent the rest of the next couple crucial hours decorating. While he could've easily hired someone to do all this without him even needing to lift a finger, he thought it was more important that he do it himself to show how much you mean to him. That meant he busied himself putting up streamers, blowing up what felt like a 1000 balloons, setting up tables, you name it. By the time all the setting up was said and done, your house and backyard was bursting with your favorite color.

An hour before you were due to return home, all of your friends and loved ones began to pour into your home. Everyone you could possibly want at your birthday party was here, eager to see you and your husband! They marveled at the impressive spread of decorations and food (which was a generous smattering of all of your favorites) in your honor, including the very cute photo of you that Cody had gotten printed as a centerpiece for the whole celebration.

It was only a moment longer before you returned home to find your backyard lit up and the sounds of a roaring crowd calling you inside. Maybe you had expected just a small get together with your closest friends and family, or maybe even just an intimate dinner with your husband. But an entire party?! Yeah, he was so extra~

Cody was the first to welcome you back, of course, practically sprinting over to you to pick you up and swing you around in his arms. Pharaoh hung close to your feet and barked excitedly, clearly enjoying all the attention he was getting from the guests too.

"Welcome home, y/n! Whaddya think?" He asked, clearly hoping with every ounce of his being that you were happy. "You know me, I get a little carried away when it comes to you. You mean the world to me, and I wanted to show you." The cheerful crowd of your favorite people behind him was painted beautifully like a dreamy backdrop.

Without hesitation, you answered. "I love it, and I love you. Though I think you might spoil me a little too much," you chuckled, pulling him in closer with a gentle kiss (with him looking as good as he did, how could you resist?!) "How am I supposed to keep my ego in check when my husband plasters up a giant photo of me at my surprise birthday party?!"

"Who said you should keep it in check? I don't see anything wrong with knowing how amazing you are," he beamed. Reaching forward he grabbed your hand and tugged you further into the party, never straying too far from you. "Besides, just wait 'till you see the pile of presents."

[cringe-but-proud]

I read your wonka fic and wanna say that it’s amazing for your first time writing x reader! I was hoping that you can do a miles morales x reader where reader miles best friend and is a fan of Spider-Man (reader don’t know miles is Spider-Man) and readers birthday is coming up so miles knowing how much reader loves Spider-Man decides to do a guest appearance at their birthday while being Spider-Man. Reader is happy Spider-Man is at their party but is sad that miles isn’t there. Was hoping it can end with Miles revealing he’s Spider-Man and confessing to reader!

Thanks for the request! I had fun writing this one!

Miles Morales x gn!Reader

Warnings: A little cursing, reader being sad for a min

A/n: Just wanna let everyone know that my asks are open 😈

"Dude, I swear to God, he was right next to my apartment. Right there! If I had been looking out the window, I totally would've seen him!" You spoke excitedly as you showed Miles a video of the infamous Spiderman swinging past your apartment building.

"Yeah, that's cool. That's really cool." Miles nodded.

"Do you think I'll ever get to meet him? Like, for real? Face to face?" You asked as you turned the phone back to yourself, rewatching the video a few more times.

"I mean, he's in Brooklyn a lot, so..." He shrugged.

"Yeah... It's weird, I feel like everyone I know has had some sort of encounter with Spiderman, but I've never even spotted him in person."

That was true and it was intentional. Whenever miles was being spiderman, he did everything in his power to avoid you. He liked you a lot and you were his best friend. If he ever had to interact with you as spiderman, he'd probably get nervous, slip up, and blow his cover.

But, he did feel bad. You were obsessed with Spiderman. And he'd heard over and over again about how badly you wanted to meet him.

"Do you think he does cameos or anything? Maybe I could buy one of those for myself with all the birthday money I'm about to get tonight." You suggested with a chuckle.

"Nah, I don't think he does those."

You sighed and began to go on a rant about how much money spiderman could make from doing something like that.

But, Miles wasn't really listening. He was starting to get an idea. And if he wanted to follow through with the idea, he'd have to leave. Like, right now.

He stood up. "I gotta go."

"What? Really?"

"Yeah, I just remembered, uh, I gotta finish doing my laundry."

You blinked. "Alright, dude. See you later."

This was gonna be the perfect birthday present. All he had to do was stick to the plan.

Miles was going to come to your party as spiderman. He'd take some pictures with you, wish you a happy birthday, and try to keep all the talking to a minimum.

Perfect.

Your party was on the rooftop of your apartment building, which worked out perfectly for him. He arrived fashionably late, when the party was already in full swing, and he was quickly spotted.

"Yo, is that Spiderman?" A small crowd quickly formed around Miles as he searched for you.

"Yeah, yeah. I, uh, thought I'd swing by wish a happy birthday to... Y'know, Whoever." Miles said, trying to act nonchalant.

"Spiderman?!" You were suddenly standing right in front of him, eyes wide, mouth agape.

"Hey! Happy birthday!" He said to you happily.

"How'd you know this party was for me?"

Shit.

"Uh..." Miles shrugged. "Spidey-sense?"

"Cool..." You smiled. "I'm such a big fan. You- You're like- I mean, you're you. You're Spiderman." You gushed. "Could I take a picture with you?"

"Yeah, for sure." This was going better than expected.

"Can I get one next?" Some random guy piped up.

"Uh... Sure." Miles shrugged.

"Could I get one too?"

"... Yeah?"

Ok, this wasn't part of the plan. Miles was now stuck awkwardly taking pictures with your friends and family.

And where were you? He hadn't seen you in a while and this was YOUR party!

Should he be worried? Well, whether he should or shouldn't didn't really matter. Because he WAS worried.

Miles slipped away from the line of people wanting pictures to look for you. He found you sitting behind your apartment building on some steps.

He cleared his throat. "Hey, uh... Why aren't you up at the party?" He asked as he walked over to sit next to you.

You glanced over and straightened your posture nervously. "Oh, I just... My best friend isn't here and I'm starting to get sort of worried." You shrugged.

Oh, no. This wasn't part of the plan.

"Well, I'm sure he's fine, maybe he just..." Miles trailed off.

"Maybe he just didn't wanna come?" You suggested.

"No! No! I wasn't saying that! I mean, maybe he's just busy."

"Yeah, but he would've texted me if something came up." You shook your head.

Miles was panicking. Spiderman was at your party! That was supposed to make you happy! He didn't think you'd get sad about his absence.

"Well, I'm sure he's got a good reason for not being here." Miles said. "He definitely didn't just ditch you because... I mean, this party is awesome. And you're awesome... I mean, you seem awesome. From what I've seen." He was supposed to keep talking to a minimum. What was he doing?!

"You're probably right. I just wish he could be here, y'know?"

"I'm sure Miles wishes he could be here right now too."

"Yeah." You paused. "Wait, how'd you know his name?"

"Uh-"

"And how do you know my best friend's a 'he'?"

"Well, obviously-"

"Why'd you even come to my party in the first place?"

Well, shit. Miles didn't know how to talk his way out of this.

"I... Um..." You looked at his with narrowed eyes. "Alright, don't freak out, but... I..." He took off his mask. "It's me. I'm Spiderman."

Your jaw dropped.

...

"Please, say something." Miles said.

"Are you kidding me?!" You laughed. "You're- You?! How did I never figure it out?!"

"Cause I was good at hiding it?"

"Why did you come to the party like this?"

"Cause I know you love Spiderman, and I know you've wanted to meet him, and I wanted to make you happy!" Miles says. "But, I... I didn't think you'd get sad about me not being here. Me as in Miles." He said.

You paused. "You know, you didn't need to do the whole Spiderman thing for me."

"Yeah... But, I did." He shrugged.

"Why, though?"

"Cause I like you."

"What?"

Oh, God. This was like a nightmare. Whatever, no going back now.

"I like you." He repeated. "Like, not just in a platonic way."

"Oh."

...

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-" He began.

"No, no! I like you too!" You quickly reassured as you chuckled. "I was just surprised."

Miles was surprised for a moment, but then he smiled in relief. "That's cool."

"Yeah." You rested your head on his shoulder. "It's cool." The two of you sat in a comfortable silence for a moment. "Thanks for coming, man."

"You saying that to Miles or to Spiderman?" He teased.

"Shut up." You chuckled.

This was a nice birthday gift.

[tokkibbang00]

SECRET SECRET - BANG CHAN (1 - It's Spring But Not Love)

mdni. unedited

synopsis: seeing your unrequited first love was never on the list of things you have planned as you attended your high school friend's wedding. you and chris went a long way back during elementary, you never expected your beloved friend from high school to have befriended him during college. it's been 12 years since you have last seen each other and both of you have changed; things have changed. seeing him now also feels different, in a good way at least.

warnings: cursing and mentions of alcohol.

word count: 2152

⇐ || series masterlist || playlist || ⇒

Rays of sunlight seeped through the trees as the sun started it's descent back to sleep. On the other hand, cherry blossoms were blooming and the garden was bustling with life; guests were being seated as they caught up with life and were telling stories about the groom and bride, while the said groom and bride's entourage were being assisted by the event coordinators to their places to walk down the aisle.

You held your phone to your left ear as you tried not to stumble walking on the soft patch of grass with your high wedges. You spot where your high school friends were seated and waved, walking towards them as you did.

“I swear to god, Y/N. If I don't see you here in the next hour, I'm going to cancel the wedding.”

You rolled your eyes at Minho's nagging voice over the phone. It wasn't new for you to hear the man's dramatic ass, this was just mild in your book of memories.

“Calm down, I'm already here. I'm not even part of the entourage walking down the aisle, Min.” You replied as you took a seat, “Besides, you love Erin too much to even cancel out. She'll smack you even if you tried.”

“It's not my fault that they decided to let Erin pick the bridesmaids and maid of honor while they gave me the groomsmen and best man.” You can feel the man was actually nervous just from his voice; he was probably bouncing in his holding room at the moment, trying to shake off his nerves.

“Hey! Jihyo is still on her way— Is that Minho?” Mina, who was seated at your right, asked you, you only nodded at her. She shook her head, chuckling.

“He's already getting married and he's still like how he was back in high school. You'd think Erin would've tamed him down a bit.” Seungmin added, he was seated on your left.

“She did tame him a bit, but no one could really stop him.” Felix said from beside Seungmin, purposefully making his voice a bit louder so that the latter on the phone could hear him.

“Tell those three that I heard them, I'm so glad I chose Jungkook and Mingyu as my groomsmen.” Minho said smugly.

The two men who were seated beside each other just huffed and Mina just rolled her eyes when she heard him.

“Anyways, go get ready. We're literally just here, the wedding's going to go smoothly. Don't worry.” You reassured him before the both of you came to an agreement and dropped the call.

The three that you were seated with started to converse with each other as you looked around.

It really did feel weird having to attend Minho's wedding, not in a bad way. You've known Minho ever since you guys were in your sophomore year in High School. It was you, him, Seungmin, Felix, Jungkook, Mingyu, Mina, Ryujin, Jihyo, and Somi. You were each other's back and bone despite the 2-3 year age difference with some of you. You've seen each other's ups and downs. It's no surprise that all of you have seen developments in your relationships, and achievements.

Besides seeing your friends, a bunch of your high school batchmates were here too. The last time you saw some of them was during Minho's 20th birthday party. Some got drunk and vomited on your arm, and you had to babysit half of them for the rest of the night. After a few years, you finally got to see them again at his wedding.

After observing your surroundings, you finally fell into your friends' conversation until the wedding started.

The sun has already set and Minho and Erin are now officially married.

Ryujin and Somi walked down the aisle with Mingyu and Jungkook, since they were part of the bridesmaids. Your two friends became friends with the bride during College and were the reason why Minho and Erin got together in the first place.

Minho cried when he saw Erin walk down the aisle, sun setting behind her back, its rays acting as a shining veil surrounding her presence. You would've cried too if you were in Minho's shoes. The both of them became even more emotional when they started reciting the vows they made themselves.

You and your group of friends let a few tears slip out during the wedding ceremony and the photo sessions, but of course, no one's telling Minho.

You're finally in the reception area, seated with your friends. The place wasn't that far from where the garden wedding was held. It was a huge open tent canopy out in the garden decorated with fairylights, decorative plants, and foliage.

Your table was near the bride and groom's family. It was decorated with fake vine pieces, leaves, and real cherry blossom petals. A few candles were placed in the middle, their lights flickering in the soft breeze that was passing through the area.

A cough coming from the speakers caught everyone's attention, pausing the laughter and conversations around the venue. Erin's older brother stood in the middle of the dance floor with a grin plastered on his face.

“Good evening, everyone! Most of you probably know me as Erin's brother, Eric. I'm here today as your host. Before anything, I ask our precious guests to please stand up to welcome the bride and groom with their entourage!”

Everyone stood up, dance music played in the background as you watched some of your friends enter from the flower arch entrance. Ryujin, Somi, Jungkook, and Mingyu made everyone laugh as they twerked as a group to Shut Up and Dance With Me in the middle of the dance floor when they entered.

Your eyes squint at the pair entering after your friends, the woman was one of Erin's cousins, Jamie. The man she was partnered up with looked familiar to you, if it weren't for the strobing lights and your friends asking you to take pictures of them and you as a group, you would've known who he was... You think. Something about the man's stature was familiar to you.

The entourage's entrance finished and it was time for the bride and groom. The newlyweds entered hand-in-hand. Erin changed to a more fitting silk white dress that hugged her body beautifully, and allowed her freer movement than her actual wedding dress. Minho still sported his black suit, but his hair was now slicked back; he looked neater too.

Wide grins were etched on their faces as they entered the dance floor. Eric finally introduced them, and nothing but love and happiness was radiating throughout the venue as all of you watched the couple.

Everyone was now finally seated, including the newly weds and their entourage. Some of the entourage were seated on the table beside yours, them being Jamie and her partner; the four closest to you hurriedly went to your table and got seated right after their grand entrance, finally able to catch up with everyone.

The reception continued with the small games for the couple and their guests. You and your friends still couldn't stop teasing Minho from your table. He could obviously see where you guys were; all your group received from him was an eyeroll and a scoff. It didn't go unnoticed by the table beside yours, earning a few chuckles from them.

It finally came time for the toast. Eric asked everyone to stand up to give a huge toast to the lovely couple. You held the champagne flute in your right hand, lifting it and taking a sip from it afterwards.

You finally got to see a glimpse of Jamie's partner as he clinked glasses with Felix who was seated beside you.

Eyes slightly widening as your chest tightened seeing the familiar smile on the man's face, finally getting your resolution as to why this man radiated this sense of familiarity. Your fingers slowly grip the glass' stem as your breathing becomes heavier.

Ryujin, who was seated on your other side, seemed to notice this. As she spoke up to ask if you were okay, you respond with a nod and a nervous smile. She was not at all convinced, but decided to just let you be, knowing you'd tell her about it at some point in the night.

The man you were looking at filled your head with memories from your childhood you thought you have forgotten. Could it really be him? The last time you saw him was during your middle school graduation. You remember the look of pity he had as he rejected the white rose you were planning on giving him as a congratulatory gift, you ran away from him before he could say anything more.

You were somewhat nervous about this. I guess it IS a small world, but what were the odds that he was here?

“Chris?” You call out, unsure. A small voice inside your head was hoping that it was him.

More memories with the man flooded your mind, and you can't help but cringe at how stupidly you expressed what you felt towards him.

He finally turns around, head tilting in confusion as he hears his name, that is, until his eyes meet yours.

Your breath hitches in your throat and your chest tightens once again as he locks eyes with you, a grin slowly forming.

There he is, Christopher Bahng. Your unrequited first love that never looked your way. His grey suit hugging his build and hair slicked back neatly with new piercings adorning his ear.

He's changed.

He's grown.

And yet, he's still beautiful.

His jaw and cheekbones were more defined. His dimples were deeper. His smile still had that boyish charm that would sweep any person off of their feet, but it was manlier, more confident.

His eyes were the same, but brighter, the sides crinkling as he smiled at you.

“Y/N? Is that you?”

Your friends seemed to have noticed the interaction, and trained their eyes on both of you.

You nod at Chris, making him smile even wider, placing his champagne flute back on his table. He takes a few steps towards you, shimmying through the chairs and excusing himself from Felix (which the boy didn't mind, as he found this reunion amusing).

He opens his arms a bit for a hug, which you nervously accept. You close your eyes, inhaling slowly before patting his back and pulling away from him. You hoped he didn't feel the pounding of your heart in your chest.

Chris was surprised.

He was just making acquaintances with the man beside him before he heard someone calling his name, seeing you.

The long black hair he remembered you sporting back in middle school was long gone, and was now replaced by a textured pixie cut that framed your face. You've also dyed it lighter. Your dress was flowing beautifully and it emphasized your frame.

He also noticed you were wearing high wedges. He chuckled, remembering that you hated heels or anything high when you were younger.

When he hugged you, he got a good look at your face. Your features were more defined, but your eyes were still the same and familiar to him.

Your round bright eyes looked back at him in shock as he gave you a smile, “Hey, how have you been? It's been a while, yeah?”

“Definitely. It's been what, 11? 12 years?”

He pulls his chair near yours, as everyone takes their seats, waiting for food to be served.

“I haven't seen you in so long! You just missed the middle school reunion just a week ago. Remember Hyunjin?” He asks, your friends still watching; they dove back into their own conversations a little while later.

How could you not remember Hyunjin? The man always stayed at your place for weeks. You were closest with him until you lost contact when you had to move schools.

“I barely had contact with anyone when high school came, Chris. Besides, you guys were always together. I'm not surprised that you stayed close.”

“Well, change is inevitable, but there are some things that stay the same.”

You took a glance at him, and you can't deny it; he's right.

“I'm surprised you still remember me.” You say jokingly, earning a scoff from Chris.

“Of course, I'm too smart to ever forget you.”

You roll your eyes at him, “Still cocky as ever, huh?”

He winks at you in a joking manner. You brush it off and ignore the heat that was creeping up your cheeks. Before he could even say anything, the food was served.

“We'll continue this conversation later,” he tells you, before turning back to his table and focusing his attention to the food.

You turn back to your table and are greeted by a bunch of looks from your friends.

“Spill.” Jihyo says, arms crossed, and a teasing smile etched on her face.

Dinner ended and so did your whole backstory about you and Chris. Of course, your friends didn't let you hear the end of it, poking jokes at you when they had the chance to do so.

“See, Y/N? Fate really does hate you. Look at the irony of you meeting your first love, who rejected you, by the way... In a wedding.” Jungkook teased, you rolled your eyes and threw one of the grapes from the table at him. The group laughed as it hit him straight on his nose.

“Lower your voice, will you? He's literally just at the table beside us.” You said, glancing at your back.

Chris was crouched down to one of the flower girls who was seated at their table. She was showing him how to make crane origami with the paper on their table. You watched as his smile grew when making one with her. You couldn't help but smile too.

“Are you trying to make him melt?”

You turned back to your table to see your friends back in their own little conversations. But Felix, on the other hand, was smirking while looking at you.

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“You literally zoned out for 17 seconds just looking at him.” He responded, taking a sip from his wine glass.

You shook your head at him, taking a sip from your glass too. “I was looking at the cranes. I don't know what you're talking about.”

“Sure, and denial is a river in Egypt.”

Felix gave you a knowing look. You've been friends with him ever since freshman year in high school. He knows you like the back of his hand. Even during college, the both of you still stuck together; going to the same college and both majoring in production design. He's seen the drama and relationships you've had.

“Look, Lix. Nothing even happened between Chris and I back in middle school. At most, I had a crush on him—”

“A crush on him?”

“Yes—”

“The way you look and talk about him doesn't make it look like it was just a crush.” Felix chuckled, finding it amusing how you tried to reply but only sputtered out words trying to reason out your actions.

“Fine. Whatever happened, happened. Go on now, the guy has been waiting to talk to you.” He said, after your rambling.

You looked at him confused.

“I didn't tell you anything, but he's been glancing at you throughout our whole conversation.”

You turned your head to look at the direction Felix was pointing at, and he was right. You caught Chris glancing at your direction. By the way he sheepishly smiled at you and waved, you knew he wasn't supposed to get caught.

Felix snickered, rolling his eyes at the cheesy sight. He suddenly gave you a little nudge, urging you to go talk to him.

Before you say anything to Felix, Eric's voice rang from the speakers. “Enjoy the night while it's young! The bar is now open and so is the dance floor! Have a good one everyone!”

To be fair, you did have the urge to talk to him. You just feel like you don't really have anything to talk about with Chris. It's not like you were that close back then. He was simply a classmate that you were with ever since 1st Grade. The both of you were always in the same class but were never in the same friend groups, but you did have mutual friends.

You chugged down the champagne in your hand before placing the empty flute back on your table. You looked at Felix and the wine in his hand; he only looked at you confused.

“What are you planning on— Hey! That's mine!”

Before Felix could say anything more, you snatched the glass from his hand and chugged its contents.

“You know, alcohol isn't going to help you at all.” He said.

You turned your back at him, “Watch me.”

You walked towards Chris, who was waiting for his turn at the bar.

Chris was waiting to get his hands on the caramel beer that Minho was bragging about. He was planning on letting loose tonight. He just graduated university and he hasn't really celebrated properly with Minho; the man was busy planning his wedding.

Feeling a presence beside him, he looks beside him and sees you standing there. You were smiling at him and he couldn't help but break into one too.

“You here for the famous beer?” You asked him.

He raised an eyebrow at you, “Well, how did you know?”

“We always have this when we meet-up. He ordered a bunch of kegs from the bar we go to, just for tonight.”

Chris nodded in understanding. He's curious as to how you and Minho knew each other. He didn't really think that he'd see you here.

When he noticed that no one was really ordering anymore, he leaned on the counter, getting ready to order. Before he could say anything though, you knocked on the countertop and the guy behind the bar turned his attention to you.

“Two caramel beers, please.” You said, the guy smiled at you and nodded. A few seconds later, he gave you two pint glasses of what you ordered. You turned to Chris and gave one to him.

“So, did you really want to talk to me or did you really just come up to me to take my place in line?” He asked you, a teasing tone etched in his question. He took the glass from you and led you to a spacious area near the bar to prevent the both of you from holding the line.

“Just wanted the beer, that's all.” You said jokingly.

Chris held out his drink for you and you clinked glasses with him. You drink some of it faster than you expected. You were starting to feel the effects of the alcohol since you chugged down two glasses of wine.

“I didn't know you're that kind of person now Miss Y/N.”

A small smirk formed on your face before you chuckled, “Mr. Christopher Bahng, I'll let you know that a lot has changed the past twelve years.”

a/n: sorry it took a while for me to post the first chapter. my friends and my boyfriend have been getting me out of bed and are pushing me to go outside more. it's also finals week in my college and i'm barely done with my academic requirements because i've been writing fanfics and making music that has nothing to do with my subjects. :D anyways, i hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter! thank you for taking time to read my story/stories <3 i always appreciate the likes, feedback, and reblogs! taglist is open and my requests are selective at the moment, but feel free to talk to me or chat me <33

[useless19]

I was kinda hoping for a junior birthday edition of days, i loved junior in this series? I thought you were hinting twards it to. Did you have ideas or was it just a way to reasure bowser that luigi would be back?

So was I! I made a space for it in my drafts doc and everything, but I couldn't figure out enough of a plot to hang it together. It might've been because by that point I was starting to wind down my writing in Days with an aim to finish the series off, or it could have been because it would've required a fairly heavy narrative switch and I was already struggling with Bowser's pov for Day 16.

Or it could've been that I didn't want to have to figure out what a spoilt 8-year-old Koopa prince's birthday presents were going to be!

It's Junior's birthday, so it's going to be the most coolest awesomest day of the entire year! -the planned summary

Like King Boo, I left myself the option of writing Junior's birthday just in case. I've honestly found this to be pretty useful for constructing the series as a whole. Things happen that the narrative doesn't show (Luigi thinks about taking Junior Lava Bubble fishing one time, but we never see that), and allowing myself the freedom of not having to write it meant that I managed to finish more other parts than I ever thought I would when starting.

Still, I know roughly where the characters are at on Day 51 (aka Junior's birthday), so let's have a look at them, shall we?

Luigi extends his visit so he leaves the day after Junior's birthday. It's much easier for him to agree to stay longer than it is for him to commit to a longer stay before he arrives. He gets comfortable where he is. He spent the previous day making sure Junior knew he was going to leave after his birthday so that he wouldn't have to keep reminding Junior on his birthday and bring the mood down. Luigi likes a good party and he doesn't have to be the centre of attention, so he has a great time.

Bowser likes a party even more than Luigi and his son is growing up so well. He's way more tolerant of destructive antics than most parents too (he's got minions to deal with mess and rebuilding). He also starts to realise some of Luigi's problems when it comes to visiting; ie that he's very suggestible. It's not an entirely conscious observation, but he's less worried when Luigi leaves and spends more than a week away, despite saying that he was only going for a week. There's always going to be some lag. Email updates help (even if the first one is from a long-suffering Mario).

(If anyone other than me did the maths and figured out that Luigi wouldn't actually be at Bowser's castle for Day 69, assuming a consistent week-in-the-Mushroom-Kingdom/week-in-Bowser's-castle, this is why. It's always a bit more than a week-long visit).

And, of course, Junior. He's more resilient than Bowser in the being abandoned department, though he's still a bratty kid who's used to having his own way. He's very determined to show Luigi every single last one of his presents so Luigi will know what he's missing out on if he goes ahead with his stupid leaving plan. Similarly, the Koopalings also get the full range, but they have to leave in dribs and drabs over the next week too.

I guess part of why I couldn't figure out a plot was because Junior is going to be getting more and more intense and overexcited as his birthday party goes on and that would narrow the focus too much to be interesting.

(Maybe the lesson here is that putting it in Junior's pov was a bad call and I should've been trying to see Luigi's thoughts on the whole thing).

I don't know what Luigi would get Junior. He'd probably play it safe and do some art supplies (which are fine, but nothing super exciting and he gets a bit miffed when Junior moves on fairly quickly). He also delivers a letter from Peach (which Junior initially dismisses as boring), with an invitation to a brand new tournament she's organising (I'd have just picked a random sport that's not a main Mario tie-in game, or maybe one of the less represented sports like one of the Olympic ones). Luigi can't remember speaking with her about that, but he must've said enough for her to do this. Junior's quite excited over this - it's his own invitation, not just his dad's!

I also imagine that Mario sends something, maybe food? Possibly a bunch of hot sauce bottles from the various places he's helped out (they won't stop sending them and, while he likes spicy food, he can't eat this much!)? He puts the same amount of effort into it as he would a nephew. Luigi's also surprised at this and has to deal with the (actually super obvious in hindsight) realisation that he's sort of on his way to becoming Junior's step-dad, not just a regular old babysitter.

(Yeah, this would've been a challenge to properly depict in Junior's pov. Possibly an interesting one though.)

It was definitely set up more as potential day for writing, but it was useful to help reassure Bowser once I'd added it.

[fountainpenguin]

"The world's smallest violin really needs an audience, so let me play my violin for you..." (x)

---

New Origin of the Pixies chapter today!

Chapter 43 - “Letters and Numbers”

Read on FFN || Read on AO3

Start from Chapter 1

---

Since Sanderson came into his adult wings last chapter, it was only a matter of time before his younger coworkers did too. Tensions rise as Longwood and Smith begin to assert their dominance, and H.P. does what he can to ensure his position as Head Pixie remains secure.

Next time we see these kids, we'll be off to war...

(First 1,000 words under the cut)

---

Letters and Numbers

Spring of the Yellow Tailfeathers

---

Longwood hovered by the tram station, his shades pushed into his hair and his arms crossed. As I drifted up to join him, I raised an admittedly exaggerated brow. "And you're absolutely sure you don't want me to call your Refracted counterpart?"

"I am."

"You realize that after today, you can never enter a Daoist shrine again. Without her kiss as a juvenile, you're impure. Your window of opportunity will have closed. If you ever want in again, you'll have to travel to the High Kingdom and meet on her territory."

"I get it, H.P." He smiled thinly. "I'm Zodii. I'm all Zodii."

I suppressed my sigh. "All right. No ceremonial coming of age kiss. Well, if we're not going to be spending the evening witnessing a dance, I'm glad we're going out instead." I picked up my coat and pulled it on while Sanderson watched from the stairs. "Where do you fancy? Preferably someplace with soda."

Longwood sized me up with a rueful sideways glance. "H.P., I'm 164,000. Adult wings or not, I can't legally drink for 25,000 years."

"… Right. I knew that. So where do you want to go? Hawkins and I went hiking, and Wilcox and I spent the weekend soaring above the cloudlands as geese. You and I have to go somewhere- anywhere you want. A getaway for just the two of us. That's Pixie tradition."

"I want to go to the Leaves Temple and present myself before Thurmondo."

Oh. I wrinkled my nose. "Um. That place by the Frozen Garden Palace? That's what you want? Am I even allowed to go there?"

Longwood nodded. "You're allowed to be on the lower two levels. The echo chamber is on the top floor. H.P., I know you don't believe, but I want you to come and meditate with me. That's my birthday wish."

I watched his face for any hint of ulterior motives. "What exactly do you plan to do while I'm there?"

"Just pray, and think, and listen. It's the Temple of Curiosity. It's sort of a play area up front for the nymphs and pups, and more of a museum in the back. Lots of little puzzles to fiddle with and solve. You'll like it."

"Okay. If that's what you want." I glanced over my shoulder. "Sanderson, you're in charge. No parties."

"Yes, sir."

We took the pilgrimage without magic as best as we could. I would've been content to ping there and be done with it, but Longwood insisted on the trams. At least using magic on the way home wasn't against their self-imposed rules. Longwood and I arrived in Cornflower City on Wednesday, then paid the temple a visit in the morning. I'd glimpsed the temple in passing: lush plants that betray the frosty outdoors and all of that. I'd never been inside before. Longwood walked me to the door. We entered together.

The noise hit me first. Longwood led onward and we stepped from the hall into an enormous brightly lit room.

"Holy chaos…"

Everything was a puzzle. The floor. The walls. The tables and chairs. Puzzles of cloudland cities. Puzzles of the Rainbow Bridge. Puzzles of famous monuments. Puzzles of planets. Puzzles of farms, animals, factories…

I turned a full circle, sliding my hands up to grasp my hat. Mazes of wire. Mirrors that alter your appearance in nonsensical ways. Children's toys strewn all over the ground (Ah, so that's how the Zodii lure you in young). Fairy nymphs and Anti-Fairy pups raced and poofed back and forth, shrieking and chortling as they zipped from one place to another. Amused parents sat on benches along the walls.

Longwood looked at me, awaiting any further reaction on my part. "If it's too much, sir, on the other side of the room, there's a door that leads into the meditation hall. It's quieter there."

I squinted. There was laughter, and crying. Bright construction paper. Train sets with engines and tracks. Interactive wall panels. Tunnels. Slides. Climbing bars. Trampolines. Squishy blue mats. Ringing rainbow xylophones. Spinning hoops. Wooden blocks. Sports balls. Foam balls. Toy blasters to fire those foam balls. Adventure quests and target games you could work your way through with a pretend wand in hand. Scoreboards?

It was every doctor's office waiting room, playground, splash pad, nymph gymnasium, and socializing nursery I'd ever imagined contained under one roof. My awareness zinged in a thousand directions at once, trying to track every rapidly moving kid, shot ball, and thrown toy. Every toenail, every hair, every dust flake, every skin cell.

Howls of pain. Bruises? Blood? Snot? Barf? Pee? There was no way to know what wild kids did when ducking through the tunnels and enriching themselves where adults couldn't see them. I am almost positive everything in there was liable to give you some contagious disease at the simplest brush of your hand. Nothing in there was sanitary. Nothing in there was safe. It wasn't right.

"Longwood," I whispered, "I can't do this. I can't stay in here. Nothing in here is organized. I'm going to have a meltdown. In front of all these people."

"Really?" He looked again around the Temple. "I thought you'd like solving the puzzles and filling in the coloring sheets."

"I will. Oh, I will. Longwood, I'm glad you have the ability to focus on just one thing at a time. To set up just three of a hundred dominos, to rotate a wheel filled with beads just half a turn, to flip an hourglass over when it hasn't timed out, to roll a play cloudcar a short ways across the floor, and then move on with your life."

I met his gaze, tugging my hat lower. "But if you start me on this, I swear I am not leaving until every one of these puzzles is done at the same time, and stabilized that way. And I do not care how many nymphs or full-grown adults I have to bowl over to do so. Either let me absolutely loose, or get me out of here- now."

[Cnt'd on FFN / AO3 - Links at top]

[zzhhbloom]

[ 10:24 pm ]

≡ᶻᶻ༄ synopsis: your parents have planned a birthday party fit for royalty for you, and you're ironically the least happy person in the room. lucky for you, though, you have a best friend who's willing to save you from your own version of a dragon tower.

≡ᶻᶻ༄ genre: bestfriend!ni-ki x gn y/n || best friend au || a bit of fluff :>

≡ᶻᶻ༄ warnings: joking mentions of kidnapping

≡ᶻᶻ༄ word count: ~600 words

≡ᶻᶻ༄ a/n: a lot of my fics are more just silly and not so much on the fluff but i have fun writing them nonetheless hehe,,, also let's say this happens in a place that has disneyland and 18 year olds can drive

≡ᶻᶻ༄ disclaimer: this does not in any way shape or form represent the real people whose names are mentioned, this is just a deranged kpoppie trying something new :)

It was your very own 18th birthday celebration and you wanted out.

Of course, you basically had no say in anything for the planning of said party. Your parents, being the attention-loving, high-profile, perfect reputation socialites that they were, took the entire matter off your hands. No matter how many times you asked for your own friends to be invited, or the food menu to be changed to actually match your tastes, they just brushed it all aside. They seemed to think that they were doing you a favor in that planning your own debut party was something you shouldn't have to worry about.

You were really trying to enjoy yourself at least: talking to people you've really only met a handful of times at your parents' business galas, making small talk with their kids who seemed to not even know whose birthday it was or whose house they were standing in. It wasn't that great, admittedly. On the outside, it was a success of a debut party. But to you, it just felt like a prison.

If just one person whom you actually wanted around was here, maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

Your ringing phone broke you out of your puddle of self-pity. You quietly slipped into a storage closet (you knew all the places with the best chances of privacy by heart) and answered the call.

"You having fun up there?" a voice snarked at the end of the line. Nishimura Riki, one of your best friends, and your parents' favorite acquaintance of yours to criticize. If you had a chance to invite even a single person, it would've been Ni-ki and his silly indescribable antics all the way. Not like they would have ever approved of it, but oh, what you would give to have a laugh right about now.

"Oh, yes, this is the most enjoyable birthday party ever!" you replied in dreamy sing-song. "I know everyone here and the food is amazing~!"

"Oh, okay," Ni-ki began non-chalantly. "I was going to ask if you wanted to leave, but you're obviously having the time of your life, so I'll just go ask Jake if he--"

"Please kidnap me." You begged.

"Meet me outside in fifteen minutes, then."

"Fifteen minutes? Aren't you here already, can't I just go now?"

"I don't know, depends. Are you good with going into dark alleys in uncomfortable party clothes?"

"You know I was joking about the whole kidnapping thing."

A clear laugh from the end of the line that caused you to smile genuinely for the first time that day.

"Just get your ass outside in fifteen, your highness," you roll your eyes at Ni-ki's favorite nickname for you. You peek your head out of the closet and feel slightly guilty to your parents for what you're about to do. Well. Not really.

"Hey! Isn't that my hoodie?" Ni-ki cries indignantly as you approach him and his car waiting outside your gated driveway.

"No, ho," you retort. "It's mine, remember? I was going to give it back but you were all, 'Ew no, rich people stank, just keep it'."

He pondered for a minute before shaking his head. "Never said that, never happened--give it back."

"So, what? You want me to strip right here?"

"Forget it," Ni-ki turned away before you could pull the piece of clothing off your head. "Just get in."

"You still haven't told me where we're going?"

"We're going to Disneyland, your highness."

"Seriously?!"

"No, of course not, the fuck?"

"Aw, c'mon, you know I've never been."

"Your highness has never been to Disneyland, go figure," he starts the car engine. "Also it's like 10pm, doesn't it close soon?"

You hold up your phone screen that says that Disneyland closes at midnight, and he waves you off on the pretense that you're distracting him.

"Alright, so not Disneyland. Where, then?"

Ni-ki paused, as if seriously thinking for the first time about where he was actually going to take you. Then he turns to you, that trademark glint of mischief in his eyes.

"Wanna go stargazing?"

[gamerbearmira]

Really old Housebroken stuff 😨

OK this is for the like one person that wanted to see it <\\33 This is. Very old. Like literally the very first thing I wrote, the Beta version. I.

I hate it 💀

I'm taking a break from writing for a couple stories and. This is the only content I currently have that wouldn’t spoil anything.

The idea??? Originally, was that the kids left, and then around a year later they would've been cursed, because by that point Alma would’ve given up on looking for them (and had given up looking for Bruno, as he left shortly after the search parties stop).

This was also when the triplets would've been affected after the kids had came back, but left again because Alma scared them away, for various reasons, though the main one was that she tried to immediately get then to help in town again. This ALSO resulted in Casita's destruction.

Anyways don't look too hard y'all this writing is from like March or April (丿°ˇ°")) Also it randomly cuts off and jumps to amother part because. I had bullets in between but I don't think they're really that important.

-----

Isabela held Mirabel in her hold, cradling her. Mirabel cried into her hermanas dress, clenching the fabric with her small chubby hands, glasses crooked. Dolores rubbed her back before looking up at Isabela. Neither of the girls had seen her at all that week; Abuela had really piled on their chores and it seemed like Mirabel was never around.

“Mirabel? What’s the matter? What happened?” Isabela asked, petting Mirabel’s soft curls.

“A-Abuela was being mean again! She told me to stay away and that I was useless!” Mirabel looked up at Isabela. “I just wanted to help! I-I only wanted to help you garden!” Mirabel buried her face into Isabela’s dress again. Isabela’s own eyes teared up. Before her 5th birthday, Mirabel loved to help her garden, even if she didn’t have to help.

Dolores spoke up this time. “How come you didn’t tell Tia Julieta or Tio Agustin? Or my mama and papa?”

Mirabel slows her sobs down to sniffles, and turns her head towards Dolores. “I tried—but they wouldn’t help. I don’t think they love me anymore.” Isabela and Dolores froze at that.

No 5 year old should think those thoughts.

-Isabela and Dolores sat on the bed, facing the 3 younger sitting in front of them. Mirabel and Camilo were tightly holding hands, refusing to let go while Luisa held both in a bear hug.

“So Dolores and I have been thinking really hard on this. And we want you to know that you don’t have to if you don’t want to.” Isabela started. The other 3 nodded in understanding, and patiently waited for whatever it was they were called for.

Dolores took in a deep breath and looked at the 3 children in front of her. “Do you want to run away with us?” she said simply. At first the 3 children didn’t respond. But once the words registered, Luisa was the first to speak up.

“Runaway? Like…leave Casita?” she said a little cautiously.

“Well…yes. It’s just that Abuela has been the worst, and it’s affecting you guys. It doesn’t look like it’s ever gonna change, and we think that if we run away, we’ll be happy again.” Isabela looked into her hands, where a small daffodil sprouted. “We only want you to be happy, and staying here isn’t gonna make that happen.”

Dolores patted Isabela’s back before turning back to them. “It’s just that a lot has made us all sad. Isabela can’t have fun with her plants anymore. Abuela keeps asking me to listen in on things I don’t like. Luisa is always super tired and stressed. Camilo can’t play with any of us and Mirabel is being treated really badly. But if we left, we could be a family again and be happy!”

“A family? We can play again and be a family?” Luisa said, a hopeful look in her eyes.

“Yes! Me and Dolores have actually planned it out. I created a treehouse of vines and wood deep in the forest that we can live in, and I can also make fruits and Dolores can fish! We can bring extra clothes and blankets with us and make our own little Casita!” Isabela explained.

The younger three looked at each other then back to the older girls. It did sound like a good idea…maybe they could be happy again!

-

Dolores held the envelope tightly, before kissing it one last time. She set it at the head of the dining room table where Alma sat. With that, she left the room, back to where the other 4 were waiting.

Isabela did a head count and all of them were there. Everyone had their things, and they had their supplies. She triple checked to make sure everyone had their clothes. Each of them had a small bag full of clothes, and each bag had a thick blanket on top.

Isabela had another bag, full of food that would last them weeks and water jugs that would last them at least a year, until they could find a clean source of water in the woods. Dolores had an extra bag full of several sheets and some small pillows. She insisted on bringing more so they could sleep comfortably. Luisa was carrying 2 large jugs of water, in addition to the water Isabela would bring. Camilo was carrying his and Luisa’s bag of clothes, while Mirabel carried an extra blanket under her arm.

Isabela and Dolores adjusted the children’s clothes, snuggling them tightly so the cold autumn air wouldn’t cause them to shiver. Taking in a deep breath, she ushered them out of the front door, where a donkey was attached to a large cart. Both of the older girls were quick to pack their things into the carriage. Once everything was settled, they all turned back to Casita, who frankly, looked sadder than usual.

“We’ll miss you Casita,” Mirabel said, pulling her scarf up. Each of the children patted the door frame before loading themselves onto the carrt. Luisa, Camilo and Mirabel sat on the back of the cart, while Dolores sat at the front. Isabela closed Casita’s front door gently, hugging the house's pillar one more time.

“I’m sorry…but this is for the best. You understand, right?” Isabela asked quietly, looking up at the window shutters. They flapped sadly in understanding, causing the girl to sigh. She teared up, sniffling as she pulled away. “Adiós Casita.” Isabela whispered, briskly walking back to the cart. She moved to sit next to Dolores, taking the reins of the donkey. With one last wave, they were off to their new home in the forest.

That night, two 13 year olds, a 10 year old and two 5 year olds left the Madrigal house.

----

EWWWWWWW

There's more but I won't subject you to that. I might rewrite this solely because I hate how its formatted.

OK BYEEEE

[friendship-switchblades]

for end-of-year asks: 14 + 20?

HEY STZERO!! :)

14. Favorite book you read this year? I'm SO glad someone asked me this one! Geoff Rickly's Someone Who Isn't Me was fantastic, and held the crown for most of the year. Having just gotten back into reading regularly, I was mostly plowing through fun sci-fi novellas and mid nonfiction (perhaps, all nonfiction is simply mid at best). SWIM was the first that stood out as a work that had goals beyond entertainment - and succeeded. Prose, structure, the unflinching honesty of "I think this is a good basis for a novel but fuck it, let's punch it up." Geoff has always deserved more than just being "the guy who gave MCR their first break" and I'm so happy for him!

Idlewild by James Frankie Thomas is dead-heat-tied for favorite of the year. Calling it a "psychological thriller" evokes superhuman serial killers and action setpieces, but I truly have no other way of describing it. A moment in time (NYC post-9/11; teenhood of the early 00s) captured in the obsessive, codependent romantic-friendship of queer teen weirdos. I couldn't put it down. Watching Nell and Fay's all-consuming relationship jump the rails and witnessing their shared plural perspective split into their separate, singular narrative chapters felt like being flayed open.

(If only they were a few years younger, and had been teens when The Black Parade came out. That would have fixed nothing but I like to think those fanfic-writing theater kids would've loved the album.)

20. What’s something you learned this year? HM this is a good one. I answered the above right away, but needed to reflect on this since receiving the ask.

I think I'm a person prone to inertia, I don't naturally assume the role of initiating. And this year I spent a lot of time stepping out of that predilection. It's not like I was ever happy not doing anything, just that I couldn't conceive of the steps and the consistency in pursuing them.

This year I confronted that a lot, both personally and professionally. I got multiple tattoos (so much emailing), I planned TWO birthday parties for myself (regular winter bday and then forced everyone to go to the beach for my half birthday), I booked a short trip by myself! Not to mention all of the time I got to spend with friends just because I stopped being such a passenger princess. This was all shit I've always wanted to do that's never happened as much before!

I also had to do all this shit professionally, too, but that's way less fun and heartwarming lol. But hey I art directed an entire [redacted] and posters I designed were plastered all over NYC, which fuckin ruled.