#so happy the WHOLE friend group is reunited

[variinfreefallfalling]

Jab is that you?

[sixthsensewulf]

I have mentioned this before talking about Junior Year was Gorgug's year... But in all honesty....

Gorgug is one of my favourite d20 PCs because of his growth.

He is intelligent. He is smart. He is confident. He is protective. He is strong. He is one of the voices of reason in the Bad Kids (the other one is Riz and occasionally Adaine) . He is the heart of the group. He is also the quieter one of the group.

It's not seeing yourself as smart that just makes me so happy that he has that development throughout Sophomore and Junior Year. It's that lack of confidence that turns into the first Barbarian and Artificer multiclass and it works. It's him going, I need to figure this out in order to help understand and solve this part. He put a satellite into space to contract Elmville to get help. He fixed the Hangman, he created that Solar Lasso. Before deciding to become an Artificer.

Literally Leviathan was mostly Gorgug asking questions which got the others thinking. He is sometimes the catalyst for them to slot the puzzle into place (if that makes sense)

His friendships with the Bad Kids are amazing. He cares about all of them so much. He knows he can put himself in front of the weaker players (Adaine and Kristen) knowing that they have his back. That his team, his friends are going to be there to pick him back up and keep going.

The whole "It's Gorgug, Keep Going". . Yes that is important to the character and his relationship with the rest of the Bad Kids. But if your Barbarian says "I'm here. I'm right here. You can keep going. I've got you. I'll see you on the other side", then you know everything is going to be okay. Gorgug will keep going. You can get back up and keep going.

It's Fabian going straight to hug Gorgug when they reunite during the forest. It's Kristen using her low dex to keep Gorgug alive on a moving airborne ship during Junior Year. But it's also "remember when we died? It might happen again" conversation. It's Fig being in Barbarian class and gifting Gorgug those drum sticks. That helps him work out there is math to being in a rage. It's Riz and Adaine taking on his stress by helping him do 4 years of class in one year, but also there to give Gorgug the support that he needs.

It's Gorgug tanking the blows from the bigger creatures in the Last Stand-ard, especially from the Purple Worm. Since he knows and is comfortable that the others have his back and also dealing with the smaller creatures.

It's Gorgug taking hit after hit from Porter, surviving because of his friends and his will to Keep Going. Him dropping out of rage to help the final moment. It's Gorgug keeping Porter occupied throughout that fight. Even in his teacher's grasp.

It's Gorgug, Keep Going.

Just keep going and everything will be okay. You can get knocked down but get back up and keep going. Keep pushing. Just keep going.

[bruhnze]

Okay Miss Formal- Dr. Lucy Bronze x Reader

A lil dancey dance with the reunited friends ^^

Summary: You're a bit of a nerd and your friends drag you along to a bar. Lucy gets dragged along to a lesbian bar in London by her new Chelsea teammates. You two hit it off. (In an alternitive world where Lucy doesn't have a girlfriend!)

Warnings: Smut (at the end)

Wordcount: about 5k

Friendgroup

It was Saturday, after a long week of work you and some friends had gathered at your bestfriends house.

You were with about 10 people and drinks were being poured, not quite richly but enough to have taken the edge off of everyone.

After dinner there was a game thrown down on the table, with a few insisting on playing.

As the game went on and the vibes got better and better one of your friends opted some crazy idea.

''what if we go to the club we used to go to''.

''What, to ALU?''

''Yeah''

Your friendgroup consisted of lesbians, it was the thing you all bonded over, everyone had different jobs, well most, but the consistant factor was your shared love for women.

In fact, the bar they wanted to go to was the place most of you all knew eachother from. Others had joined later, being partners to the original group of friends.

''Do you guys really want to go to that, aren't we getting a bit old for that?'' You asked, resulting in various gasps from the group.

''Y/n! we're not old!''

''omg, we are, y/n is the youngest and if she's saying that''

''nah, we're not even 35, i think we can go until we're 35''.

You laughed, you knew age was always a sensitive subject ''sorry, okay, I was just think about how there's probably such a young audience there tho, remember how young we were when we met''.

''it'll be like an aniversary thingy''

Someone laughed ''unplanned? and how long ago was that even?''

''y/n was 18 i believe, right?''

''yup'' you responded, remembering how excited you were to be finally old enough, when your bestfriend was already 19 and went every weekend.

''yeah i was 19'' your bestfriend added ''so 7 years ago guys, we've known, well most of us, known eachother for 7 years''.

Your bestfriend, who you had known basicly your whole life, had recently started dating someone seriously, after half a year she had been invited to the hangouts, you were happy everytime someone brought someone along but you couldn't help but pity yourself.

You had had one relationship in your life, the girl had been perfect, so you thought, but after a year of the relationship you had caught her cheating, it had come a surprise and you had felt stupid for a long time, that you had never noticed anything, but after that you had been done with dating.

''so we're going?''

''i guess so'' you sighed as your other friends replied with more enthousiasm.

...

Chelsea

A few miles further Chelsea had just played their first game this season, they had won and the girls wanted to go to a bar they liked, celebrating with the new signings of the club.

They called the club, asking if they could come to celebrate there and if they could close the doors for them, wanting some privacy for the big names like 'Sam Kerr' and 'Lucy Bronze'.

Because the girls were known by the owners, they'd agreed, but they had said they wouldn't kick people out, only stopping people from entering. The team had agreed.

...

Friendgroup

Your group stood inside of the bar, it was kinda dead, but that was probably because you guys were quite early. Everyone spoke about the things that had changed and you all took place in the familiar spot which had been your fixed spot for about 3 years, then on and off for another year and eventually everyone had become too busy with life. Until now.

The group of friends came together once a month, those hangouts were sacret, always at someone else's house, rotating. Now the group hadn't seen each other for a while because it had just been the summer holidays and everyone went on a trip, not you, you had no one to go with anyway.

You had decided to continue working through the summer, since you got a little more money to be available during the summer, and thought you could always go on vacation, maybe just out of season, when it was cheaper.

The group had a great time at the bar, the only strange thing was that you seemed to be the only ones, you went to the bar to order some new drinks and asked the bartender, who you knew was also the owner.

"Hey, how can it be so quiet here…or does the partying start so much later these days?"

The woman laughed ''well, i closed the club actualy, just now, your group was a little early thats true but usually the club would be stamped by now''.

''closed?'' you asked ''do we-

''no its allright, i recognised your group, its nice to have yall here again, so i told them i wouldn't be forcing the people out who were allready in, but that i would close the club''

''You recognise us!'' you gasped ''really, that's so cool, did you know that we know eachother from this place? today is the 7 year aniversary, or well, we celebrate it today don't know-

''wait'' you interrupt your own ramble ''what do you mean 'them'?''

The woman smiled ''oh some football club, womens team sometimes comes here to celebrate, they're okay, some have a bit of an ego, i much prefer groups like yours, how fun 7 years! would you guys like to make a picture i can hang behind the bar?''

''yeah for sure'' your eyes search for something behind her, when you spot it you point ''look, there is a picture of our group, well most of the group''.

''really'' the woman smiles ''Jules! get over here!''

The other owner came to see why her wife had called out for her ''what's up honey, im preparing champagnes, we need to have them cold for when they- ''oh hey''.

''Hi'' you say smiling

The woman behind the bar explains and after getting the group and telling them also, there was a group picture made, with both of the owners aswell.

..

''So there's a bunch of footballers coming?'' a friend of yours asked.

''Yeah'' the woman who was apparently called Jules said ''but don't be afraid, if they're dicks we'll tell them off, you guys celebrate in peace okay''.

''wow, they have quite a bad rep'' you whisper to your bestfriend.

She shrugged ''i dont know, maybe, i know nothing about that world''.

''yeah me neither'' you say.

The evening continued to be very nice and about half an hour later the ladies, the so called football team, came in.

You glanced at them and didn't see anything special, other than the fact that they were wearing very nice clothes, they looked pretty normal.

Still, you couldn't help but think that things must look completely different underneath those shirts than they did on you and your friends.

Although you were not an unattractive group of friends, you were all not very sporty, most of you played sports or went to the gym, but other than that you were not really familiar with sports that were on TV, for example football, you would not know which team had just walked in, maybe if they'd been in kit you would have been able to make a slight guess, but still you opted your chances low.

....

The evening went on and eventually the two groups mingled with each other, played drinking games, danced and talked a bit.

You had learned that the season had just started again and that the team, Chelsea or something, had won against another club.

Someone from your group had mentioned that you were celebrating your 7 year friendship, which had started in this bar.

At that, one 'James' and a 'Sam' had said they'd have to pay for the group, as a present. A buff blonde, that was apparently the captain, whatever that was, agreed, so Chelsea took the bill for the evening.

"Don't be shy about ordering now," said a dark-haired lady who had not spoken much yet, "Chelsea can handle it."

"I don't know, Bronze," said Sam Kerr, "I think they've gone completely broke with that new deal of yours."

''Oh please, I went for a bargain, I wanted to go to Chelsea so bad''. The woman that was called Bronze said.

Everyone from the other group burst out in laughing, probably an inside joke you thought.

Someone spoke ''yes, yes Bronze, we have already accepted you, you don't have to suck up to us anymore''.

You were so curious you hadn't realised you were asking a question until you spoke ''did you come from a rivaling team?'' you asked with genuine interest.

The brunette smiled at you ''yeah, i was with Barcelona last two seasons''.

''but isn't that like Spain?'' You asked ''how is a Spanish team playing against an English one?''.

''Guess that explains the chillness'' Sam laughed out loud ''these girls know nothing about soccer''.

Everyone laughed, your friends included.

But the brunette wanted to explain to you, she walked closer to you to explain. ''In every country-

When she began explaining you couldn't focus on her words, this woman was fit, she was mesmerizing, handsome and pretty at the same time, something about her was so-

She touched your arm lightly, while still enthusiastically explaining, making you come out of your daydream.

''so in the Champions League we won, uhm i mean, Barca won from Chelsea, but im gonna make sure Chelsea wins this time''

''wow'' you say, ''you liked it at Barca?''

''yeah, i did, the weather, the afternoon naps, but i still want to get more trophies with more clubs, so thats why i made the move, kinda''.

''Hmm, It seems like a tough profession to me, so much training, so many competitions and moving to other countries'' You contemplated.

''I guess, but it has so many good things too, like when you win something, thats just perfect, its the best feeling there is'' she said.

''i can imagine, gosh do you guys get like the silver thropies''

She chuckled ''yup, or medals, but i prefer those gold, rather than silver''.

You chuckled now too ''sadly we never get those in my field, im just 'et all.' you joked ''oh i don't know if you get that, it's-

She fake gasps ''calling me dumb?''

Your eyes widened ''no, sorry, god no, i didn't mean it-

''Im jokinnggg'' her hand touched your arm again ''i did a studies in sportsmedicine so coincidentally i got that joke, but i am probably way less smart then you are, because i wouldn't be the one publishing the papers, i just read them''.

You laughed ''yes, I do research, biomedical research, I am currently doing research within cultured blood cells, but after research, when you actually have to write the paper, that's the part that sucks the most, but i think what you have with the winning, i have with the publishing, when it's approved and gets peer reviewed, that feels very nice''.

''wow'' she said with an open mouth.

''We could probably learn eachother a lot then'' you joked ''you teach me football i teach you science, i dont know a lot on organ-level tho so don't know if it's any use to you, i more of a cell kinda girl''.

You cringed at yourself, the hot woman's silence had made you ramble. Luckily she was laughing now. ''sorry'' you said ''i don't know what i just said''.

''Nah'' the dark-haired woman said and again there was this brief touch ''i thought it was funny, and im not opposed to learning'' ''or teaching for that matter''.

''okay bet'' you challenge.

''what bet?'' she asked.

You laugh hard ''don't you know, like bet, bet, aight bet, like we will make it happen, something like that''.

She groaned ''this is not because im old, this is because i was in spain for 2 years, didn't keep up with the english language appearantly''.

''old? you can't be that old right, athletes are quite young aren't they''

''yeah i can't talk about this subject'' she said half joking half serious ''its too sensitive''.

You smiled ''what's your name then, or is that also a painfull subject''.

''Oh yeez, we haven't even introduced, im sorry for being rude, Lucy'' she reached her hand out to you.

Laughingly you shook it ''mkay miss. formal Lucy Bronze, i'm y/n''.

''actually if you insist on full name with titels'' she smirked ''its Dr. Lucia Roberta Tough Bronze MBE''

Your mouth dropped open ''your a doctor? im so sorry for that joke earlier''

She laughed ''Nah, its an honorary doctorate, but it sounds cool doesn't it''.

''Well you've had to be doing something major to recieve it so i don't want to belittle that''.

''What's your title then?''

''I'm y/n y/ln MS'' you chuckle ''one degree below you, i think maybe someday i'll do my PhD, but i have not found a subject i want to commit too yet''.

'''wow, you have your masters?''

''yup''

''thats so cool''

''Yeah but lets just keep it at y/n and Lucy then, right?''

''yeah probably best''

..

You hadn't noticed it had gotten quite late already and some of your friends had left, aswell as some of Lucy's teammates. Lucy and you had been talking for hours appearently, because your bestfriend said her and her girlfriend were headding home and asked if you wanted to Uber with them, which had made you check you phone for the time.

''Uhm'' you said debating, you kinda wanted to stay talking with Lucy, the Lucy who had touched your arm often while talking, an act which you had returned when a subject you knew a lot about came up.

''I can Uber with her?'' Lucy offered ''eh, if you are not afraid of strangers''.

You chuckled and touched her arm again, at this point it just felt like the two of you were magnetic ''i'd like that'' you say, after that you turn to your friend ''ill call you tomorrow okay, if i don't i was killed by Dr. Bronze here''.

''Doctor? nevermind, im too tired, ill hear it tomorrow'' you friend said and gave you a hug ''mkay bye Doctor, please make sure she gets home safe for me''.

''I will'' Lucy assures your friend ''i had a good night by the way, you guys have a great friendgroup''

Your friend and her girlfriend laughed ''yeah'' the girlfriend said ''y/n is great''.

Lucy and you looked at them questioning but shrugged it off as the pair walked off.

..

When everyone had left and the bar was closing the two of you also walked out.

''uh i ehm, i live nearby'' Lucy said carefully ''want to walk to mine?, i could pour us one last drink?''

''mkay'' You thought about the fact you were probably gonna sleep the whole sunday and that you were happy you had this monday off.

''do you not want to? i can still order that Uber?''

''No no, i was just thinking, do you not need proper sleep as an athlete?'' you asked, without judgement. Lucy started walking and you followed the lead.

''Well'' Lucy sighed ''usually yes, but im kinda, i never sleep much, so i actually really enjoy this, i enjoy speaking to you''

'i do too, but what d'you mean not much, what's your usual then'' you were intrigued.

''Hmm, it mostly depends on my schedule of course, but i'd say 2am-7am usually''. She stated.

''oof, well you've missed your bedtime big time, and i missed mine even worse, i'm usually done for at 23pm allready'' you admitted.

''Are you tired right now?'' Lucy asked.

''Hmm, strangely i'm not, but that could be the attractive woman around, keeping me alert''. You said, realising how weak your flirting game had gotten, damn, you had been talking about science the whole evening and now you were trying to get into her panties, she was also way above your league.. your cheeks flushed from embarrassment.

Lucy grinned ''you think im attractive?'' she looked at you and noticed your blush.

''Hey'' she said, taking your hand ''i think your attractive too''.

''Thanks, sorry i haven't done this flirting thing in a long time'' you blurted out, getting even darker red, if that was even possible.

''Me neither'' she admitted ''but eitherway, what your doing is working so don't worrie''.

''is working?'' you questioned.

''Yeah being so smart and funny and looking hot'' she listed.

A small smile appeared on your face.

''and smiling so cute'' she halted and brought her hand up to your face, she caressed the corner of your mouth with her thumb, she looked at your lips, then your eyes and back at your lips.

A new wave of heath travelled to your cheeks, the blushing was a new constant factor in your life apparently.

''i'd like to kiss you'' Lucy said

''i'd like to be kissed'' you say with a husk voice.

She leaned in and slowely brought her lips to yours. Lucy tasted of alcohol, you probably did too, eventhough you hadn't drank that much, the second before you had to leave the bar, you and Lucy had downed your glasses in a second because all the talking had taken my mind off drinking.

After a couple of minutes kissing, god she was a good kisser, she broke the kiss. ''We're pretty close to mine''.

''yeah lets go then'' you say as you tried to come down from the cloud you ended up in during the kiss.

....

She had an appartment in the middle of London in a nice building ''nice place'' you said.

''hm, this is not mine actually, i have a dog, which is now at my moms, until i found a place with a garden, this is an Chelsea appartment'''.

''Ahh, i see, wait what kind of dog''

''Westie mix, little white doggie'' she showed you a picture ''she's really active, so cant keep her in a place like this, that wouldn't be nice, to her or to me''.

''ah what a cutie, i love dogs, i watch my parents' dog sometimes, i love him, they got him after my childhood dog died, both border collies by the way''

''ah those are the smart dogs right?''

You laughed, thinking about your parents dog ''yeah normally yes, but he is.... special''

Lucy laughed ''yeah well, mine is special too, most others of her breed aren't active at all, but she's really active, but i always say it my influence''.

You laughed ''thats a thing right, dogs looking like their owners, or the other way around,.. but i dont know what that means for my parents tho''.

She chuckled, you were happy you could atleast still make jokes, your flirting game was something else, you had to work on that because this was just emberrassing.

...

As the two of you had taken of your coats and walked to the kitchen she asked you what you'd like to drink.

With the drinks, just juices this time, you headed to the couch.

After you taken a sip Lucy came to sit closer to you ''you have a little" she said as her thumb stroked over your top lip.

You watched her intensly, her eyes were locked on your mouth, her thumb was now going over your bottom lip. She seemed to be debating something.

You let out a nervous chuckle and pressed a kiss to her thumb.

She smiled and retrieved her hand.

This time you initiated the kiss, leaning forward and closing the gap between you two. But you kissed her softly, wanting to keep the opportunity for her to opt out if she wanted that.

But she didnt, on the contrary, she pulled you closer. Lucy grabbed your hips and placed you on her lap, something which made you let out a little moan in the kiss.

You felt her mouth form into a smile.

"Shall we take this elsewhere?" She whispered.

"Mhmm" was the only thing you could get out, as you were already trying to stand up from her lap.

But her grip stayed on you "can i carry you" she asked with a glistering in her eyes.

You chuckled "i dont know, can you?"

She smirked as she lifted you easily, her hands now below your but, it felt nice and you were amazed by her strenght.

"Wow, so strong" you cooed, caresing her shoulders and travelling to her biceps.

Lucy tried to focus on her task of walking to the bed but could help but smirk at the praise for her muscles.

You found yourself placed on a big bed in a nice but minimalistic bedroom.

Lucy stepped away from you after having you placed carefully on her bed and took of her sweater and shirt at once.

Your mouth dropped open at the sight of the toned stomach that was now on display, you sat up and your hand streched out instinctivly only for you to quickly take it back, not knowing if it was rude.

She smiled and took your hand, placing it on her abs. "You like it?"

You chuckle shyly "yeah, its hot".

For a second you thought you could see her getting a little blush. Only for her to hit you with "Can i take your top off?"

You blushed, knowing you werent half as fit as her "you can, but dont laugh at me"

She looked you into your eyes seriously "laugh at you? God no, has anyone ever done that to you?"

"No but i have never been with someone as fit as you" you admitted shyly.

"Do you know whats funny?" Lucy asked retorically "i dont think abs are that hot, i just have them because i love the gym"

You laughed "its okay you dont have to try and make me feel better"

"Okay, but its true though, to me one of the sexiest things is women with dresses where you can see a little pouch and their hips"

You chuckled "mkay" and took your top off.

"Scrap that actually, this might be it, this is the sexiest thing" she looked at you, taking in the sight of you wearing only a skirt and a bra.

You stand up and kiss her grinning "less talking?".

She nodded in the kiss and you unzipped her pants, the pants were quite wide, so they fell to the ground after you had pulled them past her butt.

Her hand reached around you finding the zipper of your skirt on the back, you were impressed she had noticed it was at the back, it made you wonder if she had thought about undoing it earlier this evening.

You stepped out of the skirt and pulled Lucy with you, so that her back was now turned to the bed. She lets you push her on the bed and you took place sitting on her lap again.

You were happy you had made an effort this afternoon when dressing up, happy that you hadn't gone for the usual comfy underwear but was actually wearing something nice.

With one hand Lucy unhooks your bra, but she holds it and searched your eyes ''sorry should've asked first, can i take this of?''.

''mhmm definitely, can we take yours of too?'' you ask about her sportsbra, while shedding your own bra to the floor.

''ofcourse'' Lucy replies as she takes it of, when she's struggling to get it over her head you help her. Returning to kiss her when the bra was off.

You felt good, her hands on your boobs, fingers playing with your nipples, sent a wave of pleasure through your body. You lean a bit forward, grinding down on her lap.

Her hands find your sides and she flips the both of you, pinning you to the bed. Hovering over you she kissed your neck, jaw and ended at your mouth.

As the kiss deepend you squirmed below her weight, she was leaning more and more into you, pressing you into the mattress.

Her thigh searched it's way in between your own, her hand pulled one of your legs up a bit, creating more space for her to come inbetween yours.

You moaned at the pressure, you felt a little ashamed that you were already so wet and ready. She broke the kiss to look in your eyes, your vision was hazy so you couldn't make up how she was looking at you.

''can i take these off?'' Lucy asked as her fingers grazed under the top edge of your panties.

''yeah'' you whimpered breathlessly ''please''

You blinked to restore your vision, Lucy got up on her knees, you whined at the loss of the pressure but lifted your hips to let her take your panties off.

When you laid your hips back on the bed Lucy rubbed her hands along your thighs ''so pretty´´ she said.

But you were paying attention to something else; her biceps, which you now had a perfect vision of. She leaned back over you and kissed you again.

While kissing her you felt her hand travel down again, you groaned from anticipation, longing for her touch. She swiped her fingers through your folds, feeling how wet you were.

When another small moan escaped your throat you felt her smirk in the kiss, the sign of confidence made you tremble below her.

''how do you feel?'' she asked with a low voice.

Your confused by the question and you take a second to respond, it made her stop what she was doing, and she looked at you expectantly.

''y- yeah i- im good'' you swallow ''im really good Lucy''.

She smiled ''good'' she said as she slowly slid her hand back.

''this okay?''

You nod ''mhm''.

She gently pushed one finger in and hovered back over you, going in to kiss your neck. The sensation of that combined with her finger made your back arge.

After a few thrusts she gently slides a second finger in. When her thumb finds your clit and the fingers inside your curl, it doesn't take long for you to come undone.

''fuck'' you moan against her shoulder as your body shakes. Lucy kept fucking you with her fingers slowly, helping you come down from your high. As a new orgasm builds up she slows down and pulls out.

You groaned and tried to keep her close, holding her arm, but she snuck away from you and walked to the bathroom.

When she came back you look at her questioning.

''D'you want to shower with me?''

You laugh ''uhm okay, but that was kind off an abrupt ending tho, why is that?''

''yeah im sorry, i realised when i was in the bathroom that was probably a strange thing to do, but i just got in my head that i wanted to safe the rest for when i have taken you on a proper date''

''is this your way of securing dates'' you laugh ''give em a taste of what could come, luring them in''.

She was now sat besides you on the bed.

''uhm, no, i dont know, definitly a first for me, im sorry''

You chuckle.

''don't laugh at me'' Lucy said pouting unduly.

''im sorry, its just funny to me how you approach this, its okay doc, ask me, then ill come shower with ya''.

She smiled ''d'you want t'go on a date with me?''

''yeah i would like that'' you smile ''your funny''.

Lucy narrowed her eyes '''r ya mocking me now?''

You ignore her on purpose ''come on lets shower then''.

...

The next morning you wake up against a strangers bare chest, your face in the crook of an unfamiliar neck. Your arm was draped over an unknown toned stomach.

You breathed in their scent as you remember where you were. Exactly at the moment you remembered who you were with, you felt a soft kiss placed on your forhead.

You shifted groaning as you were waking up.

''Good morning'' a low voice with a thick northern accent said.

''How late is it?'' You asked, hiding your face deeper in her neck.

She chuckled ''10 am, your not a morning person are ya?''

you shook your head, thats when you felt your light headache ''no and drinking doesn't help either'' you groan.

She scratched your back lightly ''headache?''.

''mh no, not too bad''.

''Breakfast?''

''just one more minute...''

''i just remembered you should probably text your friend by the way'' Lucy laughed ''i failed her though, you didn't get home''

You chuckle ''abducted by dr. Bronze''

That made her laugh aswell.

[maelialuv]

Call It What You Want, Steve Harrington

Summary: Going to a party at your bully's house had to be your worst nightmare come true. But you know what they say; don't get over someone, get under them.

Warnings: SMUT! slow burn filth. I need a hot shower level. breeding kink if you squint. unprotected sex (wrap it before you tap it!) fem!reader :)

NOTE: some characters have been aged up, like chrissy, so that everyone is in senior year at the same time :)

Word Count: 5.9K

You loved a party. Couldn't get enough of the heat of a group of people, the roar of laughter overlapping with the excited chatter of friends reuniting. The inevitable crash of dropped glass making the whole crowd hush before resuming their nestled talk. You were, in every sense of the word, a party girl. But that wasn't always the case.

Before this year - your senior year at Hawkins High- you'd been riding the coat tails of your childhood best friend, Nancy Wheeler, all throughout your school life. You were the sad little puppy that followed her around, but Nance never minded. She was always happy to have you by her side, or just behind her. Everywhere she went, you were there a few seconds later. That was until she started hanging out with, and later dating your sworn enemy.

Steve Harrington.

The guy had tormented you since middle school, along with his minions Tommy and Carol. The two of you used to make fun of people like them, stuck up and out of touch, and then she became one of them. Just like that. You could tell she felt guilty, by the way she would send you a furrowed glance at lunch as if to say 'I'm sorry, I have to!', like she had no control over who she surrounded herself with. As if she had no choice but to curl up beside the guy that broke your elbow in seventh grade.

Like she couldn't help but fall into the arms of the guy that had made your life a living hell for more than six years.

You still occasionally spoke to Nancy. After all, you lived across from one another, and thus had to see each other at some points. She would sometimes invite you to study, but you had started to make excuses after you had seen Harrington climb the garage roof and into her window, not liking the thought of his impulsive tendency for a romantic rendezvous interrupting a study session whilst you were there. You didn't want to put Nacy through the grief.

Your 'Lost Lamb' persona left you the moment you started hanging out with someone you never thought you'd consider a friend in your wildest dreams, or nightmares, Chrissy Cunningham. Expecting her to be a total Queen Bee, she was nothing of the sort. She was warm and kind and sisterly, all the things you missed from your friendship with Nancy. She sat with you at lunch, went to the movies with you, and eventually secured you a seat at the table with the rest of the cheerleaders, their boyfriends and the rest of their gang. They welcomed you with unexpected sincerity, and that was that.

You started going to house parties on Saturdays, diners on Wednesday nights with the girls, study sessions with some of the basketball team that couldn't quite pass a class or two. People waved at you in the halls, remembering your name for once. You and Chrissy would have sleep overs, and you felt the hole in your heart that Nancy left slowly start to heal. More or less.

But then you got that stupid invite.

"Gotcha!" Chrissy closed your locker door, scaring you senseless.

"Jesus, Chris!" you stacked your books in your arms. She was smiling wide, as always, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "What?" you said, a raised brow and half a smirk making its way across your lips.

"Before you say anything, just let me talk," she made tiny praying hands to her chest, puppy dog eyes gleaming. "Promise?"

"Okay," you sighed.

"There's a party this weekend, and we're all going, and we all really want you to come." You looked at her with raised brows, as if to say 'go on?'. "It's Steve Harrington's party."

You'd managed to avoid almost every one of Harrington's parties with some believable, and some not so believable, excuses in the past year since your surge in popularity. "I don't know, Chris, I'm so busy with college applications this weekend-"

"Who needs them!" she cried, "We all know you're gonna get into Yale or Hardvard or Brown or whichever super crazy smart college you want to go to." She grabbed your hand, swaying it back and forth, like a child begging their mother for a candy bar at the grocery store. "Pretty please?" she did the puppy eyes again, knowing it would sway you to agree.

"Fine."

"Yay! I'll come to your house at nine tomorrow to get you!"

And that's how you found yourself in your old bullies house, red solo cup in hand, full of whatever lethal punch one of the football players had concocted. Already tipsy, lingering by the kitchen so that the constant stream of drinks wouldn't slow. Bodies moved ungracefully around you, shimmying and shoving through to the living room or to the ruckus of the back yard where people were throwing each other into Steve Harrington's large pool. You sipped on your drink thoughtfully, feeling the confidence built over the last year slip away from you as you returned to your old wallflower state.

"Why are you hiding in here, silly?" Chrissy came to your side, the shimmery pink eyeshadow on her lids making her green eyes luminous in the low light of the kitchen. "The gang's all next door, come on!" She grabbed your hand with surprising strength, dragging you into the large living room. Deep sofas lined the walls, each with a basketball player and their girlfriends curled up on one. On the one furthest from you, was Nancy and Steve. Next to them, Tommy and Carol. It made your stomach turn to see her with him. You avoided her persistent gaze. But Harrington's gaze, raking you in and eyes darting up and down, was harder to lose. He stared at you adamantly.

When the buzz of chatter died down, a few of the basketball players and their girlfriends left to find more entertaining activities, it was just a handful of people left in the living room. Including you, Nance and Steve. Tommy had the glint of wicked amusement in his eyes, and it made you uncomfortable. "I know what we should do," he said, eyes falling to you. "Let's play a little game." Carol perked up beside him, as if their minds were connected in some twisted way. "Yeah, let's do something fun."

"Games, come on guys," Jason, Chrissy's boyfriend, spoke up. "We're not in middle school anymore." Carol got her own wicked smile.

"Oh, certainly not." her eyes fell on you , analysing how your style had changed. You were wearing dark make up, smoking out your eyes and giving them an alluring pull. You showed off skin, knew how to present yourself. Her eyes narrowed, her smile a venomous sneer. "No, if this were middle school, I wouldn't be caught dead at a party with her."

You simply cocked your head to the side, giving carol a tight lipped sarcastic smile. Inside, you felt thirteen again. Instinctively, you grabbed your elbow, as if you could feel the pain of the break there now. Tommy barked out a laugh at Carol's comment. "Yeah, who knew the black sheep would turn into a black swan, huh?"

You felt gross as he raked his eyes over you, unashamed as he stared at the place where the hem of your dress ended.

"Fuck off, Tommy." you retorted, voice calm but heart racing a million miles a minute behind your ribcage. You felt like you were a lamb on a platter for the lions, ready for the slaughter.

"She speaks!" Carol squawked. Next to them on the couch, Nancy squirmed. Never one for confrontation, she excused herself to grab a drink. You caught her eye as she left. She looked guilty. You wanted to follow her, grab her by the shoulders and tell her to wake up. Tell her that her friends, and her boyfriend, were assholes. But she never listened before. She just couldn't admit it to herself.

"Been a while since we've seen you, babe. Where've you been hiding those legs, huh?" Carol smacked her gum as she spoke, obnoxious and loud.

"I found some better people to hang out with." Beside you, Chrissy stuck her arm over your shoulder. Her face was hard. It made her look older, the serious glare that she was sending Carol. Carol sneered at her, and the expression aged her terribly.

Steve caught your eye, shifted hard away from Tommy. He was gripping his beer with a tight knuckled grip. His eyes slithered down your neck, over your chest, and landed similarly to Tommy's. You grabbed the hem of your dress and yanked downward.

"One of the cool kids now, are you? Not following Wheeler around like a dog anymore?" Tommy took a long sip of his beer.

"We drifted apart." you said simply.

"Oh yeah? Since when?" Carol chimed in again and you felt your blood boil beneath your skin. Steve continued his obvious oggling.

"Since she traded her spine for a shiny new basketball player"

Nancy stood by the door, drink in hand. Her eyes were wide, like a deer in headlights. The whole group erupted into astonished laughter, Chrissy struggling to hold back as she clutched her stomach. Steve glared at the floor, as if willing it to say a comeback that would sting you back. Nancy sat down beside him, silent.

"Woah, you gonna take that Wheeler?" Carol guffawed.

She remained silent as a mouse at Steve's side.

"Nance was never one for speaking up anyway. "

You grabbed your cup and flittered out of the living room, the atmosphere suffocating you. You needed another drink, a cigarette, and some alone time. Drink secured, and obscenely strong, you crept up the stairs to the second floor. Once you found a room that didn't stink of puke or had two people sucking face in, an ensuite bathroom, you locked the door and sat in the tub.

Shutting the shower curtain, doc martens resting on the taps, you lit your cigarette. You still couldn't believe you were in Steve Harrington's house - let alone one of his bathtubs - after everything that went down all those years. Yet there you were. Nancy lost to the dark side, you in with the cool kids. Your middle school self wouldn't believe it. You rested your eyes for a moment, breathing in the smoke and taking gentle sips of your drink.

Your thoughts were interrupted by muffled yelling in the next room. You stubbed out your cigarette, trying to get out of the tub as quietly as possible, when you heard your name. It was Steve and Nancy, and they were fighting. About you.

"Why are you bringing this up now?" Steve said, exasperated.

"You guys were awful to her, Steve!"

"Yeah, like you did anything about it, huh Nance?"

You recoiled back into the tub, feeling invasive but caring more about what Nancy had to say for herself than your moral compass. It was a years' worth of pain cementing your form in the tub, ear preened toward the doorway.

"You tormented her!"

"And you watched! If anything, that's worse!"

"How is that worse than what you, YOU, did to her Steve?!

There was a pause. You could imagine Nancy's face; pouted lips, furrowed brow, cheeks blotchy from an ill-fated attempt to hold back her angry tears. Steve laughed humourlessly. It was a cutting sound, and you could hear Nancy take deep breaths.

"What we did, sure, it was stupid. Do I regret it? Of course, we never meant to get her hurt back then."

"You're still awful to her!"

"And there's the kicker," Steve chuckled darkly. "She always stuck up for herself. That's why we did it, we knew she'd give us some fun." There was a long moment where no one spoke. "You never stood up for her once, Nancy."

His words hung in the air like smoke, seeping into your clothes and clogging your throat.

"You never defended her, then or now."

Nancy was flustered, stuttering over her words.

"You never stood up for your best friend? Thats...awful, Nance."

You could hear as Nancy struggled to find a defence, as she used to with you. She would blubber to you, relaying how guilty she felt with enough tears that you eventually ended up comforting her, forgetting that you'd even come to her for help.

"Fuck you, Steve." You could hear as she grabbed her things, storming out of the room with vibrant language. The loud declaration that "it was fucking over" made a laugh - vindictive and partly delighted - rise in your chest.

You smacked a hand over your mouth in realisation. Your movements froze, fear jolting through your bones as you heard Steve pattering about the next room. His movements stopped abruptly as your foot knocked a bottle of shampoo off the edge of the tub.

In a split second - idiotic- decision, you decide to make a run for it. You rip back the curtain, jumping to the floor and striding for the door, the door you had so stupidly locked. A warm hand grabbed your wrist in a vice like grip.

"I wouldn't do that, if I were you."

His voice was low, deep. It echoed in your chest. It made your heart thump. It made your blood boil.

"Get your hand off me." you seethed. His grip remained, making the skin of your wrist tingle. His touch was firm yet feather light. Unwilling to let you go, but not trying to hurt you. When his hand remained unmoving, you struggled against his grasp. "Get off, Steve."

He was leaning over you, shoulder blocking the door. He hovered above you, taunting, as he looked you over again. His gaze was relentless, inescapable. Confusing.

"Let go, Steve." You sighed out, defeated and embarrassed as he held you in place. You felt unnervingly calm. Strangely glued to the floor under his honey brown eyes as they bored into your own. You wanted nothing more than to move your feet - maybe stomp on his own so he would release the grip on your hand- and get out of the claustrophobic bathroom. You risked a glance up at the boy.

Christ.

Steve was never unattractive. Never had an awkward phase. He was always tall, athletic and tanned. Your hatred for the boy hadn't blinded you to the painfully obvious. But in the dim green light of the bathroom, shadows accentuating sharp cheekbones and jawline, you saw it. Saw it as the other girls did. Steve Harrington was gorgeous. He was painfully attractive, in every sense of the word. From the symmetrical lines of his cupids bow to the dark lashes framing honey eyes, he was hypnotic. And he had you completely under his spell.

"How much of that did you hear?"

His voice was aggravatingly quiet, gentle. Intoxicating. There was a gap between the two of you, small enough that you could feel the warmth of Steve's breath on your cheek as he spoke. You felt like a child being scolded by a parent, guilt driving you to complete honesty. It was the same tone that would make you confess to a teacher, had the same soft lilt.

"Enough." You replied, and your voice was hoarse. Rough, like you needed water desperately. You did, you felt as though your throat was bone dry. "Enough to hear you chew out Nancy."

Steve's eyes were inexplicably soft as he looked at you, and at the mention of Nancy they hardened almost imperceptibly. "Yeah, well," he sighed, languid and frustrated, "that was gonna happen, no matter if it was about you or not." When you raised as brow - both in shock at his willingness to detail the state of his relationship, and as a sign to continue- he went on. "All we do is fight."

"Hmm."

""What?"

"Karma came and bit you both in the ass."

The look Steve gave you made you feel bad for saying it, but it was overruled by the vindictive joy you felt at hurting his feelings. The way he backed up slightly, as if he'd not expected you to say something, made your heart jolt a bit. He'd been so awful to you for so long that the knowledge of his relationship being far from perfect made a smile creep its way across your lips.

Steve huffed, frustrated again.

"You are incredibly hard to understand." He said, the same sickeningly sweet voice at play. "You're very different...to how you used to be."

"You mean I'm not a loser anymore?" You quirked a brow.

"You were never a loser," he stepped closer to you, hand still on yours. "You were just...," he trailed off. His gaze was unashamed, staring straight down at your lips as he spoke. "Different."

'What a crock of shit,' you thought. This coming from the guy that bullied you all throughout middle school, even through high school. it was the biggest load of bullshit you'd ever heard. But your ears rang with the rush of blood behind your ears as your heart hammered inside your chest. Steve Harrington was a flirt, and a good one. You were experiencing his best lines. And they were working.

"Different?" there was hardly any space between the two of you now, Steve's lips brushing over yours as he shifted. You didn't stop him when his hand brushed your sides.

"Yeah," the hand that had been holding your wrist against the doorknob came up to cup your cheek. Steve's top lip was on yours as he spoke, "different."

The two of you crashed together with teeth and lips, a brawl of desperate hands and angry grudges. Fingers tangled in hair immediately, tugging and scratching. Steve tasted of smoke, beer and something innately Boyish. His hands settled at your waist, grasping the fabric of your dress there. His lips were pillowy and soft, addictive. You suddenly understood why Nancy put up with it; kissing Steve Harrington was like having your own personal drug. The kiss deepened as you shifted heads, turning for better angles and access.

Steve groaned as his tongue slid across yours, and the way he so clearly enjoyed the kiss made you feel powerful. He backed you up against the bathroom counter. "Jump," he whispered, your bottom lip between his teeth as he nipped the skin there. You did as he said, his voice husky and hypnotic, and he lifted you to rest on the sink. Legs parted, Steve rested between your open knees. One hand resting there, one working on shrugging you out of the jacket that clung to your shoulders. He pulled away from you, an amused smirk on his face as you whined, to rip the jacket away. Shoulders and neck exposed, Steve got to work on the skin there.

You were suddenly way more aware of what you were doing.

"You better not leave a mark, Harrington." you panted out, as Steve nipped a particularly sweet spot just below your ear. He chuckled, and the sound sent a shiver down your spine.

"Why?" he asked, smug lilt to his words. "Afraid of people knowing?"

"More ashamed than afraid," you said, choking on your words as Steve nipped at the skin of your throat. "Can't have people thinking just anyone can have me."

Steve pulled back, and god you melted right there. Hair a mess, eyes blown wide, and lips swollen. It was a glorious sight. "And I'm just anyone?" He was smug, overconfident. Irritatingly attractive.

"Yeah," you gripped the belt loops of his jeans, yanking forward. The bewildered look on his face made you grin. "so this stays between us."

"Aye aye, Captain."

And off you went again, lips colliding in heated snarls. There was a primal anger behind it, driving you into his strong arms as he encased you. Was this self sabotage? Maybe so, but it was the hottest thing you'd ever experienced. Steve's nimble fingers caressed their way up your back, finding the straps of your bra with ease. He snapped one against your shoulder, making you yelp and using the sound to slip his tongue back into your mouth. If it didn't make your bones feel like jelly, you would have chastised him for the cheap move. Carnal desire taking over your mind, you let your cold hands scrape up his chest, lifting the hem of his shirt to graze his stomach.

He tensed up at the touch, a stuttered breath fanning your face as he sighed. His two hands landed firm on your knees, creeping up your legs and stopping as he stroked your inner thigh with his forefingers.

"Permission to come aboard?"

You nodded, arousal coursing through you like a stake to the heart.

"Words, please...Captain."

"You find yourself funny, don't you?"

"Very." His fingers were so close yet so far from where you wanted them. "Do you want to?"

"Yes, I do."

"There we go."

He kissed you again, this time slow. It was harder than before, and as he swiped his tongue over your bottom lip, Steve slipped your underwear down your legs. He groaned into the kiss as he felt you, excitement clear by the wet patch on your panties. "God, you're wet."

You should have been embarrassed. You should have pulled your panties off the floor and run out of the house and all the way home without looking back. But you were putty in his hands as Steve slipped a finger inside of you, hooking upwards and finding that special spot almost immediately. A high pitched whine - one that shocked even you- made its way out of your mouth, muffled as you buried your head in Steve's neck as he set a slow pace. "What a pretty sound," he groaned, catching your face in his hand as you threw it back against the mirror. "You gonna keep making 'em like that?"

You nodded, breathless, and then he was out of your sight.

Steve kissed down your chest, shoving your dress over your stomach and kissing the skin as he went down. His fingers intwined with yours as they gripped the marble counter. You sat up to catch his eye, and what a pretty sight it was. Steve Harrington, pupils dilated with lust, with his head between your thighs. He kissed your thighs, and you mewled; so close yet so far.

"Please," you moaned. Embarrassment crept up on you, and you could feel the blood rush to your cheeks. "God, please Steve."

Steve dug his fingers into the skin of your thighs, toying with them. He kissed his way to your knees, enjoying the sight before him as you writhed about. "Please what?" he said, and had you not been desperate for him to bury his head between your legs you would have kicked him. He grinned as you fought the urge to beg. "What do you want?" He left surprisingly tender pecks to your knee.

"I want you."

"Where do you want me?" he was taking his time with you, partly for himself - savouring the moment, rejoicing in the way you fell apart before him- and partly to tease you into insanity.

"Jesus Christ," you groaned as he nipped the supple skin of your thighs.

"Steve is just fine." He laughed, putting you out of your misery as he licked one broad stripe up your centre. It was the stupidest, most reckless thing you could be doing, which made it even hotter as Steve hooked his hands under your hips, holding you on top of the counter as your legs wrapped round his head and your hands wove themselves into his hair. Almost immediately you understood Steve's reputation, and you felt a pang of possessiveness as his lips encased your clit, humming as he went. Your back arched off the tiles, mouth agape in a silent 'O' shape. Harrington knew what he was doing, that much was clear as your first orgasm crept up on you.

You could hardly muster words, the only sound in the jade coloured bathroom being the obscene wet sounds and your whimpers as Steve continued to ruin you on the counter. "I'm gonna - oh shit, Steve." The way you moaned his name - like it was the only one you knew, the only one that mattered- made Steve's jeans feel impossibly tight, palming himself for something, anything to relieve himself. He was just as desperate, just as wanting, as you were - if not more. The thought of what was to come made you clench around Steve's fingers, exploding in a white hot scream on his tongue. You fell back against the mirror, hairs sticking to the sides of your face, cheeks flushed with both heat and bashfulness. Steve crept up your stomach again, stealing a kiss when he made it to your lips.

You could taste yourself as he kissed you, slow and deep. His hands swiped the hair from your face, in a gesture entirely too sweet for a boy that had just ravaged you in his bathroom. It bothered you. That wasn't part of the interaction - there was no sweetness involved. It almost took you out of the moment, but as your hips bucked into Steve's, and he let out a strangled groan, the moment was saved. As his lips found purchase on your collarbones, your hands made work of unbuttoning his shirt - purposefully slow, you enjoyed watching his stomach tense as you grazed it. The sharp intake of breath as you began unbuckling his belt made you feel powerful, made your stomach do flips. "Here?" you asked, kissing down his neck to the space where it met his shoulders, "or somewhere else?"

Steve's eyes lit up like a christmas tree at the prospect that this - whatever this was- wasn't over just yet. He gripped your hands on his belt buckle. "Not here." With little effort, he hoisted you over his shoulder - much to your shock and dismay. You swatted his back but couldn't help the swell of arousal as his arm tightened round your waist. He set you down on the edge of the bed, standing in front of you with one hand on your cheek. In the dim light of his bedroom, Steve Harrington was devastatingly handsome. The soft glow of peaches and oranges made his eyes a molten chocolate, skin peppered with a red hue from...exertion.

"It's rude to stare." he said, voice void of the smugness from before. It made your ribcage rattle, heart thudding with the weight of his stare. It felt like he was looking at your soul, and it made you shiver. The boy who'd tormented you for years, was seeing you. Staring right back at him, your hands made their way to his belt loops. It was your turn to make him writhe a bit.

"Can't help it," you said, voice all airy and entirely foreign to your ears. It dripped with a lust, husky and soft. "You're somewhat of a looker."

You ripped his jeans open, nimble hands ridding him of the garment in seconds. As you grabbed the waistband of his boxers, the outline of his cock straining against the fabric, his hand stopping you. "As amazing as that would be," he said regrettably, "if I don't get you on that bed, I think I may lose my mind." He said it so breathlessly that it made your thighs clench together. He wanted you so badly. You cocked your head to the side, half playful and half serious as you said, "Do something about it then."

Steve didn't need to be told twice. He dove into you, hand steadying your head as your lips locked together - an irritatingly perfect puzzle piece finding another. You were a tangle of legs, arms, and lips as the two of you buried yourselves in Steve Harrington's bed, ridding each other of the clothes that stopped your from touching one another completely. His knee found its home between you, shifting your legs apart to make room for hips. You were encased in Steve; his scent, the feel of his lips on your skin, his legs locking yours in place. His hips rocking into yours as he kissed your neck with sinful skill.

Your hands grew restless, tugging at the hairs at the nape of his neck as if he would understand the morse code in the pulling. "Steve," you groaned as he knocked his hips into yours, "please."

You were begging, and you were embarrassed. You couldn't bring yourself to say the words- couldn't stand the thought of asking your middle school bully to fuck you in his bed at his own party. But the boy had other ideas.

"Say it." he toyed with your clit, thumbing it as you whined. When you stayed silent, he pinched one of your nipples between his fingers. he smirked at how quickly they puckered underneath him. "Say you want me."

Your cheeks burned with shame. You couldn't - wouldn't- beg him.

He hovered over you, hands either side of your head, nose brushing yours. You could feel the ghost of his lips over your own. His hand came to rest on your chin, thumb sliding over your lip, tugging it down and letting it slide back. "Open."

You did as he said, opening your mouth wide enough for Steve to slide his thumb into your mouth, a teasing smile on his face as you swirled your tongue around it. "Say you want me to fuck you." He pulled his thumb out of your mouth slowly, grinning as it made a satisfying pop. He leaned down to the shell of your ear. "Tell me you want me to ruin you," he whispered.

The burn in the pit of your stomach raged as Steve kissed the hollow of your throat, waiting for you to speak. Your breath was shallow, eyes closed as you whispered into the air, hoping the buzz of the party below would swallow your words.

"I want you to ruin me."

Steve grinned, wolfish and smug, as he lined himself up with you, locking eyes with you as he pushed himself in. You knew you were gone when he moaned your name like a prayer, said it like it was the cure to his troubles. Like you were something to treasure. One strong arm gripped the headboard as he panted. "God," he grunted out, "you feel incredible."

There was something electric about hearing praise from the boy that tormented you for years, something wickedly delightful about watching his mouth hang open with pleasure as he bottomed out inside you. You clenched around him, desperate for any friction to satisfy the burning between your legs. "Can I move?" he groaned.

"Yes, please."

In public, Steve was an athlete. Behind closed doors, under the sheets, he was an Olympian. He set a fast pace, hitting your sweet spot with every thrust, deeper inside of you every time. The sounds of the party- the drunken teens stumbling, the music blaring- were drowned out by the slapping of skin on skin, of your whines and Steve Harrington's moans as you fell apart beneath him.

"Shitshitshit- man, you're amazing." he moaned as he rutted into you. You were frozen in pleasure, mouth open from silent screams of pleasure. You bit your lip, so hard you would have tasted blood had Steve not being everything you felt in that moment. "Oh, fuck," you groaned at a particularly deep thrust, "I'm s-so close."

"Me too," Steve whimpered, and you were sure it was the hottest thing you'd ever heard. "Where should I-"

"I'm on the pill." you sputtered out.

Steve's eyes darkened, delighted at the permission, determined to get you to your peak before he fell apart himself. "Yeah? You gonna let me come inside?" His hand reached between your conjoined bodies, rubbing tight circles on your clit. "Gonna come for me?"

Your back arched off the mattress, the coil in your stomach snapping at the same time Steve collapsed on top of you, his stuttering as he came. You both panted, recovering from the exertion. Rolling over onto his back, you and Steve stared at the ceiling, the weight of what you had done sinking in.

It was wrong, so wrong. He'd just broken up with Nancy, seconds before you let him crawl between your legs. You would have felt terrible, like you'd betrayed her, had it not been so good.

You would have felt guilty, had you not felt the shake of your legs still reeling from the intensity of your orgasm.

Steve turned his head to face you. You turned to look at him.

"I'm sorry about how I treated you, before."

You snorted.

"You don't have to apologise just because we had sex, Steve." The ridiculousness of it made you laugh. "Thanks, though." You were both silent for a while, just laying there. You tried spying your clothes across the room. "Where's my underwear?"

"Oh," Steve mumbled, getting up from the bed and into the bathroom. You couldn't help but stare at his retreating form, back muscles flexing as he stretched. You did the same, a soreness washing over you. Steam filled the bathroom, the sound of the shower running loud against the dying party below. Steve returned in his jeans, smirking as pulled your lavender lace panties from the back pocket, tossing them at you. You caught them with one hand.

"Perv," you said, sliding them back up your legs. Steve smiled from the bathroom doorway. He was looking at you that way again. It made your stomach uneasy. "What?" you said.

"You can, uh, clean up here. If you want." He scratched the back of his neck. He gestured to the shower. You stomach flipped again. You rose from the bed, using the sheet to cover your chest. You stopped in front of Steve, who was struggling not to look down at your loosely covered front.

"This is not a thing, okay?" you said slowly, as if saying the words aloud would make them true. As if hearing them from your own lips would stop the way your lips yearned for Steve's the second they left your own. "This goes nowhere else."

Steve nodded, mockingly serious.

"Aye aye, Captain."

He grabbed your hand, making you drop the sheet, and led you into the steam filled bathroom. You let him wash your skin, all soap and too much affection given who he was to you. You didn't stop him when he kissed below your eye, on your nose, or when he placed an all too tender kiss on your lips for just a second. But it was long enough. You let him wrap you in a towel, drying you with gentle hands. You didn't object when he dressed you in his old basketball shorts and a tattered sweatshirt. You let him tuck you under his sheets, didn't flinch away when he tucked your hair behind your ear.

You let him wrap his arm over your waist when he returned, having kicked the last stragglers out of the house. You let yourself fall asleep in his bed, warm and soft and all too inviting, much like its inhabitant.

What you wouldn't do was let yourself fall for this, you thought. You wouldn't fall for Steve Harrington. Wouldn't fall for his moves, his overused lines. Wouldn't get wrapped up with the wrong guy.

But as morning came, and you turned to see Steve already looking at you, that look on his face, you thought that maybe it was too late. And by the looks of Steve Harrington, it was too late for him as well.

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

On Kurapika's Self-Imposed Isolation

While I recognize that probably everything I'm about to say is going to be super obvious, I just wanted to briefly touch on Kurapika's self-isolation, and the reason behind his not picking up his phone or exchanging anything more than clipped words and business after Yorknew.

I think the obvious answer is that Kurapika doesn't want his friends in harms way, or to be used as a bargaining tool against him. This is an understandable and probably accurate conclusion. After all, Gon and Killua did get taken hostage, and Kurapika was forced to negotiate an exchange. Chrollo picked up on Kurapika's "weakness" right away - that he values his friends' safety before his revenge. Fortunately for Kurapika in this situation, Pakunoda was a whole lot more similar to him than he would've cared to admit, as she placed a value on Chrollo's life even though everyone in the Spider was intended to be replaceable. So, now that he's been through Gon and Killua having potentially gotten killed or seriously hurt, and Chrollo knows that he has a soft spot for them, it does make sense that he would try to push them away for their safety and for the sake of not having an exploitable "weakness" in future. He may also not want to burden them more when they have their own lives to live - he does slip off without telling Gon and Killua for the sake of not distracting them from Nen training, after all.

Except that he already tried all this earlier in Yorknew arc. He tried to tell them they shouldn't get involved, and they all agreed that the risks were massive - but his friends agreed to undergo the risks anyways to help him. Kurapika was even grateful for it - "I have been blessed with good friends."

So, for him to push them away solely for this reason after the fact, knowing that this was very much a likely situation to happen, is a little odd to me. Kurapika knows full well that Leorio would be frustrated, Killua would be offended and Gon would worry. So, I think there's a little more to it than that, and I actually would venture to say that "keeping his friends out of danger" is more a secondary reason for his actions - one that would come across as more of a reasonable excuse to others.

The primary reason is likely a lot more selfish than that. Kurapika has to ensure his mission comes first. And unfortunately, he is fully aware that his path and choice in abilities is deeply self-destructive.

Kurapika needs to make sure that he doesn't have exploitable weaknesses, sure, but he also just as much needs to purposefully worsen his headspace - and he can't do that with those three around.

Think back, what are the happiest moments we see from Kurapika in the series? The one that comes to mind first, and the one I'm sure most of us will think of immediately, is this:

[ID: A screenshot from the 2011 anime adaptation. Kurapika smiles - he looks at ease. End ID.]

It's one of the sweetest scenes of the series imo, right before the whole group is reunited for the first time since the Zoldyck Family arc, and it's even more notable because it comes immediately on the tail end of this...

[ID: Three panels from HxH Chapter 101. Kurapika removes his contacts over the sink. His expression is distant. End ID.]

...and this...

[ID: A panel from HxH Chapter 101. A close up of Kurapika's vacant and furious expression, his eyes wide and dangerous as he says "It might as well be you." Though the art is in black and white, it's apparent his eyes have gone scarlet. End ID.]

...and this.

[ID: A panel from HxH Chapter 101. A distant Kurapika speaks on the phone on a rooftop at night, the cityscape of Yorknew around him dark, but speckled with lights and stars. He says "The Spiders are dead." His face is not visible to the reader. End ID.]

This is, up to this point in the series, Kurapika at his lowest. In contrast to Gon, who is happy to hear that the Spiders are dead already because now Kurapika can focus solely on finding his peoples' eyes, Kurapika... is clearly not happy - and that's because killing the Spiders himself isn't just revenge. It's penance. It's survivor's guilt. Kurapika's powers, which Izunavi even comments sound much like he is chaining himself in the process of chaining his enemies, are oh-so-beautifully prophecied to destroy him - and Kurapika was aware of this from the moment he set off down this path of revenge.

(As a side note, this is why I'm really hoping we see Gon and Kurapika interact again after the Chimera Ant arc - while Gon has always been pretty attentive to Kurapika's emotional state, in Yorknew, he lacks a true understanding of why Kurapika would go so far... but as of now, he understands rage fueled by guilt and grief all too well. I know we're all rooting for Leorio to reach Kurapika, but barring that, I really think Gon could get through to him - after all, they are similar in several ways, and I find it fairly apparent that Gon reminds Kurapika of Pairo.)

But back to the main point here - I do suspect Kurapika expects (if not wants) his revenge mission to destroy him. I think a lot of times, we forget just how young Kurapika is, and how much his character is dictated by honour, and the abandonment of it.

Certainly, he can and will go against his principles for the sake of his mission... yet, almost paradoxically, he's bound to his promise to his fallen clan; a promise to avenge them made in anger.

But Kurapika... doesn't come across as a naturally angry person to me at all.

He seems like the stoic, vengeful type on his initial introduction... and then we get his panic at Gon's recklessness

[ID: A panel from HxH Chapter 2. Kurapika and Leorio wear matching expressions of panic in front of Gon, calling him out for his recklessness. End ID.]

...and his near-immediate forgiveness of Leorio after getting the first inkling of his character - of someone who cares just as fiercely as he does.

And after that point? Almost all through the Hunter Exam? Kurapika smiles so readily at them. He's sharp and funny. He mediates at times, but is stubbornly prideful in others. He's very amused by his friends' antics, and it really does seem like he starts to enjoy himself, with them. And, more than that, he counters Leorio's initial impression of him as an independent loner - on several occasions. He decides to follow Gon because Gon intrigues him. Asides from Gon, it is Kurapika who is the most unwilling to fight each other at the bottom of Trick Tower. Kurapika who makes the first move to team up with Leorio, even though that arrangement benefits Leorio much more than it does him. Kurapika who refuses to abandon Leorio to his fate in the cave, and who checks on Gon after noticing his bad mood. Who was furious enough watching him get beat down by Hanzo that his eyes went scarlet for the first and only instance outside of Spider mentions and Emperor Time. Who quite readily detoured to help rescue Killua.

[ID: Three screenshots from the 2011 adaptation Hunter Exam arc. In the first, Kurapika smiles at a sleeping Leorio. In the second, Kurapika stifles laughter as he pretends he's asleep. In the third, Kurapika has an open-mouthed smile as he acquires the airship tickets for them, Leorio and Gon standing behind him. End ID.]

Look at him! He's so bright! So happy!

...too happy. Too happy to do what he promised himself he would do. And that's his biggest fear, isn't it. Without his rage... what is he left with?

[ID: A panel from HxH chapter 2. A close up of Kurapika's eye as he says "I do not fear death. What I fear is that my rage will one day fade away." End ID.]

Kurapika is far, far less mired in anger when he's with his friends. I actually dare to say that at certain points, he was able to go for lengths of time without thinking much about it - alternating between almost forgetting in one instance and being hit like a sledgehammer on exposure to a reminder in the next. This violent swing is... actually the beginnings of the natural process of healing from loss and trauma. But to Kurapika, who's made a promise to his people's memories, this is not a relief. This is betrayal.

I think that actually scares him, that he can almost picture it. A life beyond his guilt. That he, too, could learn to be happy, even after unimaginable loss.

And so, as Kurapika continues his mission offscreen, finding more and more gruesome reminders of the cruelty inflicted on his people and losing more and more pieces of himself in the process (in his own words, no less), he prioritizes his responsibility to them, and pushes away his distractions. He cannot be a soul at peace until his work is done; he must be in turmoil. He pushes people away who he cares for, and binds himself, and keeps his people's eyes on him, quite literally, because respite, for him, is unacceptable. Perhaps that guilty part of him even hopes, by the end of this, that his soul will be so unrecognizable as to be fundamentally unsalvageable. But the truth of the matter is, or at least what comes across to me, is that Kurapika cares much more fiercely than he hates. He knows what matters most. And for as long as he does, he still hasn't truly lost himself.

[ID: A panel from HxH chapter 350. Kurapika looks down at baby Woble with a gentle, yet complicated expression. The inking is somewhat softer. End ID.]

Kurapika's soul is kind, really. And it wants to heal - but for the sake of his mission, he needs it damaged and bleeding. And so, he forces himself to exist in that pain. All alone.

[ID: A panel from HxH Chapter 344. Kurapika, dressed in a black suit, sits with his back to the reader, looking down at a photo in his hand. He is slumped a little before the church vigil he has prepared, all his clan's eyes lined up in their jars and honoured with flowers and candles. He thinks to himself "There is no home for me to return to... and nobody to welcome me back. I have nothing left." End ID.]

[aettuddae]

business matter - chapter 113.

↳ synopsis: two of the most important kpop companies covet a partnership with a huge global brand, only to be surprised when the deal is extended to both labels. fearing potential sabotage and cynical strategies to secure exclusivity for just one of them, both CEOs resort to desperate measures. in a bid to maintain trust and prevent betrayal before the signing, they come up with a pact: forcing a fake relationship between the leaders of their star girlgroups. if one side attempted to fail the other, they threaten to expose it all to the conservative south korea.

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[written chapter]

"i can't believe we have to come to greet the devil." complained yves as she followed the aespa staff who were leading them backstage along with some other people who had attended the concert.

"we're not going to greet her, we're going to greet yizhuo." serim corrected.

"see how i said 'the devil' and you understood who i meant?" she observed.

"you mumbled that the whole concert, every time she appeared on the screen." she frowned. "the girl next to us thought you were asthmatic."

"but then she was surprised when she realized it was me and asked me for a picture." the shorter one dramatically moved her hair back giving it a flick.

"and then she asked you if you were asthmatic." she repeated, causing sooyoung to roll her eyes.

they entered the artists' area where there was a wall lined with promotional posters of the group's tour, set up as a photo-taking area with the guests. the members who had just finished the show were standing in front of it talking and waiting for their friends, colleagues and family members, turning around excited once they arrived.

well, most of them were excited, "the devil," on her part, looked like she had seen, redundantly, the devil himself enter the room.

it had been a month since she had last seen jang serim, at the door of her apartment saying goodbye to her. she found it curious how with her busy life time always seemed to fly, but that particular month had seemed to go on forever. and now that it was over, august had brought her back, though she knew serim wasn't coming for her.

there weren't many people, which was normal since the concert in seoul had two dates so the guests were split between them. trying to deal with the shock of breathing the same air as jang, she began to move by inertia towards the crowd, ending up in the arms of her family. from her father's hold she watched as the oldest walked right past without paying any attention to her, as if she were invisible. her eyes followed the woman until she could no longer turn her head and when she wanted to turn her eyes towards her relatives she bumped into yves, who had indeed stopped next to her with the mere intention of giving her a look full of contempt, only to continue on her way once she had successfully communicated her feelings with her face.

the girl reunited with serim who was enveloped in a hug by ningning. karina realized she had no business looking at them and turned her attention back to her parents and sister.

"that was a good concert." serim broke away from the maknae, keeping her hands on her shoulders as she spoke to her. "i enjoyed it very much."

"really? thanks for coming." yizhuo squeezed her cheeks slightly. "how about you? what did you think?" she turned to sooyoung.

"it was amazing." she assured. "you have great songs, hit after hit." she began to wave her hands excitedly through the air accompanying her words. "if you are ever missing a member i would be happy to fill their spot." she proposed. "personally, i think you girls need to kick out that karina girl." she opined wryly. "there's no need two rappers, really, and she's got some dark vibes." she shook her head.

"can you shut up?" serim tapped her on the shoulder.

"we'll take you into consideration." ningning nodded with an awkward smile. "what was your favorite song?"

they engaged in a short chat between the three of them about the concert and occasional banal things, until the heaven members went over to greet winter and giselle once they were available, and ningning went on to thank her other acquaintances for attending. serim wasn't close to the other two aespa members, she barely knew them, yet she knew that out of politeness she should go over and talk to them. but there were not enough good manners in her body to force her to assume that karina was a real human in that room and that she was also part of the group that had just given the concert she had watched, she avoided her as if she were an evil spirit, as if acknowledging her presence was illegal.

the group arranged themselves in front of the wall to have their pictures taken, posing with their acquaintances who passed by one after another. when it was yves and serim's turn, they were guided to stand in the middle, but because of how the group was positioned, that way karina was right next to jang, who upon realizing this gave a long sigh and moved, walking to the left end and standing to the side, causing yves to do the same, leaving them both at either edge. the photos were taken in an awkward atmosphere, jimin didn't even bother to smile for these.

once they lowered the camera and the next group of people approached the members, serim again said goodbye to ningning, then walked away with yves ready to leave the establishment, all this under the watchful eye of karina who wasn't listening as she was asked to properly settle in with the guests.

"ask her, question." she mumbled distractedly, without even looking back, with that weird habit she had picked on those past weeks of shortening her sentences, and ran off after serim.

the members of heaven had already passed the door leading to the room, they were in a corridor behind the stage heading for the exit of the building, but stopped abruptly at the shouts naming the older one. when they both turned to see what was going on they met karina who was shaken from running, she stopped behind them trying to catch her breath.

serim rolled her eyes, yves jumped on top of the dancer ready to rip her hair out.

"hold still." her bandmate pushed her back again.

"no one breaks my semmie unnie's heart and gets away with it." she took another leap with intentions of reaching karina, but once again her leader blocked her with her arm, causing her to end up climbing over her shoulder and part of her back, swiping at the air above serim to see if she could grab something.

"behave!" she exclaimed, setting her down. "why do you always behave like animals wherever we go?" she folded her arms in annoyance.

"because we learned from you!" she finished off.

"touché." she nodded, changing her attitude. "what do you want?" she turned her gaze on karina.

"i have something to ask you." she explained, playing with her fingers nervously.

"you can't." yves interrupted.

"go away." her leader scolded her, pointing away indicating for her to walk away.

"but semmie-"

"i'll be fine, get out." she reiterated.

"alright." she took a few steps away, but turned on these quickly addressing karina. "but i hope you're aware i know where you live." she threatened her, then resumed the way she was going before, but turned back to the girl. "and if you do one of yours i'll have to involve yujin." she warned intimidatingly. "and yujin is demented." she finished, now really leaving the leaders alone.

"are there any members of your group who don't have behavioral problems?" questioned karina in confusion.

"look who's talking." she raised her arms in the air in disbelief then looked at a fake audience as if asking them if they could believe what she had just said. "what do you want, karina?" she put her hands on either side of her waist impatiently.

"karina? no more jimin?" she spoke softly, she felt embarrassed.

"yves has been calling you the devil all night, would you rather i call you like that too?"

"yes, i heard her." she shifted her body weight from one foot to the other restlessly. "i actually think she wanted me to listen to her." she guessed. "but please don't call me that." she asked shyly.

"what were you going to ask me?" the vocalist resumed.

"well..." she contemplated for a second what she was going to say. "did you like my solo?" she inquired, an innocent smile forming on her face.

"is that it?" her face lost emotion, skeptical.

"hey, i wrote that song for you." she confessed cheerfully, trying to dispel the tension in the air.

"it's a song about lesbian sex." she recalled in frustration.

"you didn't like it?" the sad aura enveloped her once again. "do you think it's a bad song?" she clasped her hands together again, rubbing them against each other wanting to calm the anxiety.

"no, it's a good song, don't worry." she assured, dropping her head wearily from the situation she was in. "if that was all, i'm leaving." she turned around.

"namu!" yu stopped her.

"don't call me that." she stated facing her again.

"serim, sorry." she amended. "that's not what i wanted to ask you." reported, remaining silent, serim tossing her a gesture with her head prompting her to continue. "i wanted to ask you..." she swallowed. "i broke franky."

"that's not a question."

"hiro broke franky." she reformed.

"what did i do to that dog to make him hate me so much?" she grimaced in dismay.

"i don't know, but he doesn't like you." she admitted. "i gathered up the soil and the plant, put it back in the pot." she commented. "but i wanted to ask you how can i know..." she tried to choose her words well. "if it's still alive."

"why didn't you google it?" she said with obviousness.

"i guess you're more reliable than the internet." karina shrugged.

"okay." serim agreed. "you got to check that the leaves are firm and green, if they are turning brown or are soft and wrinkled it's either not getting water properly or the roots are rotten, which would mean you repotted it wrong." she advised earnestly. "in this case, you're going to have to move it to a new pot." she approached her so she could explain more comfortably. "if you end up having to do so, you will completely remove the old soil from the roots, if any of these are damaged, you will have to cut them, carefully!" she suddenly exclaimed, she takes this hobby seriously. "carefully, jimin." insisted.

"you called me jimin." the addressed one pointed proudly, cutting her off.

"shut up." the oldest ordered without giving her comment any importance. "if the roots are too wet you should leave it in the open air to dry out, okay? at least for two days." she continued. "then you're going to plant it again in new soil." she helped her. "try to get soil specifically for succulents, you can go to a nursery garden and ask for it." finished.

"so, the leaves... the roots... i have to be careful when cutting them..." she began to list using her fingers. "basically if it's dying i should..."

"start all over again, yes." she completed the sentence for her.

"i understand." she confirmed. "thank you, serim." she expressed honestly.

"no problem." the girl dismissed. "thanks for the pet, by the way." she added with a faint smile. "goodbye." having finished the conversation she assumed she could leave.

"wait!" the youngest one followed her as the other intended to catch up with yves to leave the place, standing in front of her as she stopped to hear her.

"what now?" she cocked her head helplessly.

karina took a big breath of air, she knew she was already draining serim's patience who seemed to just keep waiting there hoping she had some doubt serious enough to not let her anger explode on the day of her concert. she held out her hand, her eyes, with clear insecurity in them, following every little movement there was in the woman's facial features. she placed her open palm in front of serim, expectant.

"hello." she blurted out simply in a low, hesitant tone.

"what are you doing, karina?" serim analyzed her judgingly.

"take it." she suggested.

serim wrapped her hand with her own in a squeeze, holding them between their bodies, to see what the younger girl had on her mind.

"hello." she said again. "my name is yu jimin." she introduced herself. "i saw you inside and i think you're really cute." she smiled self-consciously.

"what are you trying to do right now?" serim let go of the grip they had to rub her face despondently.

"if it's dying, i have to start over to save it." she recapped.

serim understood what was going on, what karina's intentions were and where all this interaction they were having was coming from. the reality was that yes, serim loved her desperately, but she was worn out, she couldn't keep orbiting around jimin, she had realized the night she didn't reciprocate her feelings. what the girl's reasoning was didn't matter because it didn't erase all the wrong she had done before. she hadn't tried for them, so what was the use of starting now.

karina's hand was still in the air hoping for her, so she held it out again. "hello." she fixed her gaze on those pupils. "i am jang serim." she shared. "and please don't bother me anymore." she sentenced.

serim left, now without anyone stopping her as jimin was left stupefied on the spot, alone with her hand outstretched with no one to take it. she hadn't planned that, she hadn't previously thought about the possible consequences of her actions, she just did it, but didn't expect the woman to reject her like that. though she understood, of course, she understood, and she knew she deserved it.

serim walked down the hallway and turned a corner where yves was waiting for her, disappearing from the younger woman's range of vision.

"how did it go?" her companion asked when she saw her coming.

serim threw herself against a wall, her forehead sticking to it and then began to slide down on it as if she was melting. "i love her." he communicated.

"what?" yves looked at her quizzically. "what happened?"

"she's the stupidest woman alive," she knelt on the floor, arm open, torso and face still pressed against the wall, her gaze lost in the distance dramatically. "and i love her." she affirmed.

[latanyalove]

Special Love

* . °•★|•° °•|☆•° . *⋆ ──⋅☆⋅⋆ ── * . °•★|•° °•|☆•° . *

Pairing: Monkey D Luffy x Jealous Y/N

Summary: You get jealous from the affection Luffy was getting from the Minks

A/n: Happy Birthday to the future King of the Pirates! I kept delaying this and now it's a whole week after his birthday! I hope you enjoy this as much as I did writing this! WC: 2,770 <3

* . °•★|•° °•|☆•° . *⋆ ──⋅☆⋅⋆ ── * . °•★|•° °•|☆•° . *

Monkey D Luffy, you and half of the crew find yourselves on Zou, an island known for its touch-sensitive animals. As you explore the island, you quickly realize that any contact with the animals can trigger a variety of reactions.

Some animals become docile and friendly, while others become aggressive and defensive. It becomes a thrilling challenge for you and the crew to navigate through the island without accidentally setting off a chain reaction of animal responses.

"Hey Luffy, be careful! These animals on Zou are really sensitive," You warned as he watched Luffy approach a group of touch-sensitive monkeys. Luffy grinned mischievously and replied, "Don't worry, Y/N! I'm gonna figure out how to make friends with them all!"

With his rubber powers, Luffy managed to gently touch the monkeys without triggering any aggressive reactions, earning their trust and forming a unique bond with the touch-sensitive creatures.

As they continued their adventure on Zou, Luffy's ability to connect with the animals became a valuable asset, allowing the crew to navigate the island without any major incidents.

"Wow, Luffy! I can't believe you managed to befriend all these touch-sensitive creatures," Franky exclaimed, impressed by Luffy's knack for making connections.

"Yeah, it's amazing how your rubber powers come in handy," Usopp added, admiringly. Luffy grinned proudly, "Well, they're my friends now, and they're gonna help us find the way to the next adventure!"

With the crew's trust in Luffy's unique abilities and their newfound allies on Zou, they set off on their next journey, ready for whatever challenges lay ahead.

As they reached the outskirts of the city, Luffy and his crew were stunned by the sight of the once thriving city in ruins. The destruction was immense, and it was clear that a fierce battle had taken place.

They were led to the secret base of the Mink Tribe, where they learned that the city had been attacked by a powerful enemy seeking to capture the Minks and exploit their unique abilities.

The crew's hearts sank as they realized the gravity of the situation and the need to help their new allies rebuild their home. With determination in their eyes, they pledged to stand alongside the Mink Tribe and restore their city to its former glory.

When they finally reached the base, Luffy and his crew were relieved to be reunited with the rest of their crewmates. The sight of their familiar faces brought a sense of comfort and solidarity amidst the uncertainty of the situation.

With their full crew intact, they felt a renewed sense of strength and determination to aid the Mink Tribe in their fight for justice and the restoration of their city.

"So what happened with Sanji?" Luffy asked, while a Mink was softly chewing on his cheeks. Nami sighed and filled Luffy in on the events that had transpired during his absence.

She explained how Sanji had been forcibly taken away by the powerful enemy, leaving a trail of worry and uncertainty in his wake. Luffy's eyes narrowed with determination as he clenched his fists.

"We're going to find Sanji and bring him back," he declared, his resolve unwavering.

The Mink Tribe, grateful for the crew's support and eager to show their appreciation, decided to have a grand feast in honor of their new allies. As the feast progressed, the minks, their touch sensitivity enhanced by the celebratory atmosphere, became twice as touchy.

Luffy and his crew, understanding the minks' intentions and feeling a deep sense of camaraderie, welcomed the affectionate gestures with open arms, cherishing the bond they had formed with their furry friends.

However, for you, this proves to be problematic, as you tend to get easily jealous.

You excused yourself from the feast, feeling a mix of discomfort and jealousy as you watched the minks shower the crew with affection. It wasn't that you doubted their loyalty or friendship, but the sight of your crewmates being lavished with attention stirred up a sense of insecurity within you.

Luffy's eyes were on you as soon as you stood up, curiosity shining in his eyes. Luffy's attention was quickly diverted by the irresistible spread of food before him, causing him to momentarily forget about your departure.

As he eagerly dug into the feast, his focus shifted entirely to savoring the delicious dishes, leaving little room for him to notice your absence or the turmoil of emotions within you.

You wandered through the forest, the sound of rustling leaves and the gentle breeze brought a sense of tranquility to your troubled mind. The vibrant colors of the flora and the melodious chirping of birds helped to momentarily distract you from the jealous thoughts. You took deep breaths, allowing the fresh air to cleanse your mind and release the grip of jealousy that had taken hold.

You haven't felt this much jealousy in a long time, but it had suddenly started when the minks surrounded Luffy with their affection. It was as if a switch had been flipped, and all those insecurities came rushing back, clouding your thoughts and tainting your enjoyment of the feast.

Did you want Luffy's attention all to yourself? You couldn't help but wonder if you were being unreasonable in wanting Luffy's attention all to yourself. After all, he was the captain and the center of attention wherever he went.

But deep down, you longed for a moment where it was just the two of you, away from the distractions and the constant influx of new friends.

As you closed your eyes and let the gentle sounds of nature lull you into a state of calm, you couldn't help but reflect on your own emotions. Jealousy was a complex emotion, one that often stemmed from a place of insecurity and fear of losing someone's affection.

It was clear that you craved Luffy's attention, but perhaps it was time to confront these feelings and communicate your needs with him.

Was it possible that your jealousy stemmed from more than just a desire for attention? Did you have deeper feelings for Luffy that you were only now beginning to acknowledge? These were questions that lingered in your mind as you contemplated the depth of your emotions.

As you contemplated the depth of your emotions, your mind drifted back to that fateful day when you saved Luffy from a severe injury.

The memory was etched vividly in your mind - the sound of swords clashing, the adrenaline pumping through your veins, and the concerned look on Luffy's face that made your heart beat faster.

In that moment, you realized that your connection with him went beyond friendship. It was a bond forged through shared experiences and a deep understanding of each other.

"Are you okay?" Luffy asked, his voice filled with genuine worry.

"I couldn't bear to lose you," you whispered, your voice choked with emotion.

Luffy's eyes softened, and he reached out to gently cup your face in his hands. "You don't have to worry about losing me," he said tenderly.

But now, as you reflected on that moment, you couldn't help but wonder if there was something more between you and Luffy. Maybe, just maybe, your jealousy stemmed from a desire for a deeper connection, a longing to be more than just friends sailing the seas together.

As you contemplated the depth of your emotions, your body still aching from the last battle in the previous island, you decided to take a nap. You found solace in the peacefulness of the moment, allowing your tired muscles to relax and your mind to wander.

Your head rested against the back of a tree, its rough bark providing a comforting support. As you closed your eyes and let the gentle sounds of nature lull you into a state of calm, you couldn't help but feel a sense of contentment wash over you.

In this moment of tranquility, you realized that regardless of the complexities of your emotions, the most important thing was to cherish the bond you shared with Luffy and let the natural course of your relationship unfold. . . .

* . °•★|•° °•|☆•° . *⋆ ──⋅☆⋅⋆ ── * . °•★|•° °•|☆•° . *

You woke up to the sound of wild animals and immediately sat up from the tree, your heart racing. The eerie calls and rustling in the bushes outside your window made your imagination run wild.

Was it a pack of wolves? Or maybe a group of coyotes? You couldn't shake off the feeling of unease as you listened to the primal sounds echoing through the night.

As you peered into the darkness, you noticed the glint of many pairs of eyes shining back at you from the bushes.

Your mind raced with possibilities. Were they nocturnal animals, or something more sinister?

The mystery deepened as the glowing eyes seemed to multiply, surrounding your tree. Fear gripped you, and you realized that whatever lurked in the shadows, it was not a natural occurrence.

Suddenly, a group of wild animals ambushes you, trapping you in an inescapable position. Panic and confusion set in as you desperately try to find a way out. The animals' growls and snarls fill the air, intensifying your fear.

With each passing moment, the realization sinks in that you are at the mercy of these mysterious creatures, and the prospect of escape becomes increasingly unlikely. As you search for a solution, your mind races with thoughts of survival and the need to remain calm in the face of danger.

You try to muster the strength to fight back, knowing that in any other circumstance, taking on animals like them would be no problem. However, your whole body is frozen, and you can't move a muscle.

The fear and the pain had paralyzed you, leaving you defenseless against the growling predators. As you desperately search for a solution, your mind races with thoughts of survival and the need to remain calm in the face of danger, but the overwhelming panic makes it difficult to think clearly.

As the creatures draw closer, their eyes gleaming with hunger, you can only hope for a miracle or for someone to come to your rescue. The minutes tick by agonizingly slow, each second feeling like an eternity as you desperately search for a way to break free from this terrifying ordeal.

Suddenly, Luffy comes out of nowhere and stands in front of you. With his signature grin and boundless energy, he fearlessly confronts the wild animals. His mere presence seems to command respect from the creatures, as they hesitate for a moment, unsure of how to react.

Luffy springs into action, his rubbery limbs stretching and contorting as he delivers lightning-fast punches and kicks. With each strike, the sound of bone meeting flesh echoes through the night.

His powerful attacks send the creatures flying, their bodies crashing into the surrounding trees. Luffy's agility and speed make him nearly untouchable, as he effortlessly dodges their desperate lunges and retaliates with devastating force.

The sheer strength and determination in his eyes are matched only by the ferocity of his blows, as he single-handedly holds off the pack of predators. With each punch, Luffy's resolve grows stronger, his determination to protect you evident in every movement.

The wild animals, now battered and bruised, begin to retreat. The once-intimidating glint in their eyes is replaced with fear and submission. They scatter into the night, leaving you and Luffy standing victorious, the danger averted.

Luffy quickly ran towards you and asked if you were okay. "Are you hurt?" he exclaimed, concern evident in his voice.

You shook your head, still in disbelief at the incredible display of power and bravery you had just witnessed. "I'm okay, thanks to you," you managed to reply, gratitude filling your words.

Feeling weak and exhausted, you tried to get up but failed, leaning against the tree for support. Luffy's worried expression deepened as he rushed to your side, offering you a helping hand. "Take it easy, you've been through a lot this week," he said, his voice filled with genuine concern.

You nodded, feeling the weight of the exhaustion and adrenaline coursing through your veins. As you leaned slightly against him, Luffy's presence provided a sense of comfort and stability, allowing you to catch your breath and gather your strength.

"You know, you've been acting weird today," Luffy stated, taking a good look at you. Concern etched across his face, he gently asked, "Is something bothering you? You can always talk to me, you know."

You avoided eye contact with him, unsure of how to respond. The truth was, something had been bothering you, but you weren't ready to share it just yet.

The events of the night had only intensified your internal struggle, and you knew that opening up to Luffy could mean revealing a vulnerability you weren't quite ready to confront.

You hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to express your thoughts.

"Y/N?" Luffy said, lifting your chin up to meet his gaze. "I can see that something is bothering you. Remember, we're a team, and I'm here for you no matter what."

"You wouldn't understand," you muttered, diverting your gaze.

"Try me."

"I...I get jealous every time someone touches you," you started, your voice barely above a whisper. "It's irrational, I know, but I can't help it." Luffy's eyes widened in surprise, but he remained attentive, waiting for you to continue.

"Jealous?" he repeated, trying to process your words.

"Yeah, like I don't want anyone else to have your attention other than me," you explained, your voice tinged with a mix of vulnerability and longing. Luffy's expression softened as he reached out to gently brush a strand of hair behind your ear.

"I feel the same way too. Like when Sanji hangs around you for too long, I get this feeling in my stomach," Luffy said easily, his voice filled with a mixture of relief and understanding.

You couldn't help but smile at Luffy's understanding and the way he effortlessly lifted your chin to meet his gaze. It was in moments like these that you realized how deeply connected you were, even in your vulnerabilities.

"I guess it's natural to feel that way when you care about someone so deeply," you admitted, a small smile tugging at the corners of your lips. Luffy nodded, his eyes locked with yours.

"Yeah, it just means we care for each other," he said, his voice filled with determination.

As the weight of your unspoken emotions lifted, you felt a surge of courage. With a mix of anticipation and nervousness, you slowly pulled him into a kiss, letting your lips meet in a tender and passionate embrace.

In that moment, all doubts and insecurities faded away, replaced by a sense of connection and understanding that only deepened your bond with Luffy.

It was a soft and lingering kiss, filled with warmth and tenderness. In that moment, you both felt a sense of comfort and reassurance, knowing that you could trust each other with your deepest vulnerabilities.

You pulled away from the kiss, your breath slightly shaky as you looked into Luffy's eyes. The intensity of the moment lingered in the air, and you couldn't help but feel a renewed sense of trust and love for each other.

As Luffy's hat fell off his head, he instinctively caught it just in time, but instead of putting it back on his own head, he gently placed it on yours. It was a small gesture, but it spoke volumes about his protectiveness and the depth of his feelings for you.

"You know," Luffy said with a mischievous grin, "I think that hat looks even better on you than it does on me."

Blushing, you playfully roll your eyes and respond, "Well, I guess I'll have to wear it more often then."

"Well, I wouldn't mind seeing you wear it every day," Luffy replied, his grin widening.

Without hesitation, you leaned in again, feeling the warmth of Luffy's lips against yours. This time, the kiss was filled with a mix of passion and tenderness, as if you were both trying to convey the depth of your emotions through every touch.

The world around you faded away, and in that moment, it was just the two of you, enveloped in a kiss that spoke volumes about the love and trust you shared.

In that moment, you felt an overwhelming sense of security and love. . . .

* . °•★|•° °•|☆•° . *⋆ ──⋅☆⋅⋆ ── * . °•★|•° °•|☆•° . *

[eddiezpaghetti]

Okay, so my experience with Stranger Things is a weird one.

I didn't care when it first came out, started to watch it out of "might as well" in 2020, wasn't interested in it enough to make it past S2, forgot about it outside of going "oh, hey, cool, there's a lesbian in it now, I guess," in S3, got really annoyed when "Running Up That Hill" got popular from it because it was a song I listened to on fucking loop after one of my best friends died in high school and I fully expected its appearance in the show to ignore the whole survivor's guilt theme of the song (and was very happy to learn later that it did the exact opposite of ignoring the lyrics), saw people drawing Eddie, suddenly got a lot more interested, watched just the fourth season like a fucking psychopath because I was seriously only there for Eddie, then got interested enough to start the show over properly, having mostly forgotten what I did watch of the show before.

And let me tell you something from the perspective of someone who started with the complete fourth season, who wasn't there from the start, who wasn't tainted by ship goggles or this internal battle of hope and despair, who wasn't theorizing about what the painting could be or expecting Mike and Will to kiss when Volume 2 happened or rooting for Mike and Eleven's relationship to go down in flames or whatever the fuck. Just someone who went blind into Season 4.

It's really fucking obvious that Will and Mike are gonna be endgame.

Like holy fuck. It's so fucking blatant I don't even know why people are nervous.

No sane fucking person would shoot this scene this way if they wanted the audience to care about El and Mike as a couple. Despite being all blurry in the background, Will's reaction to what's happening here is smackdab in the fucking middle, clearly showing that the important part is what's going through his head here. What he's feeling. It's like the opposite of that scene from Kingdom Hearts II where Sora and Riku reunite and Kairi just fucking vanishes into the aether while it's happening because, despite the fact that she was standing between them when the scene began, she doesn't matter to the scene, so she's just kind of gone when the camera angle changes. Will could have been behind one of their heads, or so far in the distance he blends in with the background, but he's not. He's so obvious that despite being massively blurred out, he's still the first goddamn thing you look at. What, you think that's an accident? You think he's in the middle of this dramatic fucking scene because of a mistake? He basically has a big flashing neon arrow pointing at him with "THIS IS THE POINT" being screamed through a megaphone.

And then this?

They're paired up like they're taking fucking prom pictures. Each one of these pairs is so fucking close to one another and so fucking far from everyone else. It's not, "Oh, they're standing vaguely near each other in a group shot," it's fucking Noah's Ark out here. Again, there's no way to take this as an accident. It's not just a framing issue. If they wanted to make the shot look balanced while still not hiding anyone else behind El, they would have scattered people around much more naturally. Even if they wanted to keep Nancy with Jonathan and Hopper with Joyce, there's so much room on that hill for three people to stand on El's left and three on her right. But they didn't do that. They put Mike and Will together on purpose in the most obvious way possible.

Like I get that coming up with crackpot theories is fun in and of itself and I'm not blaming anyone for having fun. I totally get the appeal of arguing a point and reaching for every stupid little thing to pull into it because it's like a game, okay? I've done that. But if you're trying to actually convince someone (whether it's someone who wants to believe or someone who's pissed at the very idea that Mike and Will could be in love), stay away from blue and yellow lights, stay away from costume design, stay away from the existence of closets in backgrounds. And don't worry about whether Mike's gay or bi when he's in love with Will either way. I'll give you a little tip about persuasion: You're only as strong as your weakest argument. Even if you've got strong stuff in there, too, the person you're trying to convince is going to dismiss anything you say as complete insanity the second you start going on an entire tangent about the shape of a character's fucking pocket.

Sometimes, clothes are just clothes. Sometimes, there's a closet in the background because it helps establish that a character is in a bedroom. Sometimes, blue and yellow are just a couple of colors that look nice together. And sure, it might be set designers and costume designers and cinematographers smirking and winking at the audience from behind the camera. But if the show was just those things, instead of those things in the context of everything else, they wouldn't be saying anything of note.

But this?

This tells a story all on its own. Someone with no context can look at this and automatically assume that each paired person is standing with someone they care about deeply, seeking comfort as they watch some sort of disaster unfold. And yeah, romantic couples usually come in twos, and we live in an amatonormative society, so that's going to be the first association anyone makes seeing a bunch of people paired off.

It's the same reason you look at this

And go, "Oh..."

"Those two are probably a couple."

And I genuinely don't understand how people could have watched S4 Vol. 2 and gotten scared. Because as someone who went in with no investment whatsoever, I just looked at these two--

--and went, "Oh, those two are a couple. Good for them." And I moved on. Shut up about the trees for five seconds and just see the forest for what it is.

Oh, and if you're still nervous? Little thing from a storyteller here: You don't leave a hanging thread like "Will confessed his romantic feelings for Mike by projecting them onto El, but Mike either didn't understand or at least didn't say he understood," without coming back to that later. That's Chekov's gun hanging on the wall, babes. It's gonna fire at some point. If Mike was going to reject Will's feelings, if they weren't relevant, they would have had that discussion in Argyle's van. There'd be no reason to leave you in suspense.

[ja3yun]

The Sun That Always Burns | S.JY pt.3

sim jaeyun x afab!reader

warnings: suggestive (smut-ish flashback), angst, lost love, pet names, not many warnings tbf, and not proofread. anything I missed please lmk!

wc: 10.3k+ (honestly, i need to make these shorter)

synopsis: you and jake's high school relationship blossomed into a romance filled with hope and promise. however, as time went on, jake's long-term expectations began to weigh heavily on you, who struggled to meet them. your paths eventually lead you in separate directions, each experiencing different aspects of life and ultimately moving on from your past love. unexpectedly, fate intervened and you both reunite after years apart. the reunion allows you to rediscover your feelings for each other but also forces you to navigate the complexities of your past and present.

part 1 | part 2 | part 4

a/n: hi! I'm giving you this chapter kinda quickly. heavy appearances from my wjsn ults because they are now integral to the story &lt;3 will update the next part during the week

4 years have passed since you left. No contact with your family, sometimes opting to send them a Christmas card with no return address just to let them know you’re alive. You missed them like crazy, more than any words could explain. It had been so long sometimes you wonder if you should go back, even for your mum’s birthday but it would be too awkward. The dramatic teen you left behind is who they knew you as, not the woman you’ve grown up to be. 

College changed you dramatically, for the better you like to hope. Your roommate Eunseo quickly became your other half, showing you the ropes of Avanti, Being a year older than you she was accustomed to the college, she picked you up when you needed it the most and she didn’t even have to. You thought she took pity on you at first, just taking you under her wing because you were a crying dismantled mess. But she was simply just the loveliest person in the whole world. You wouldn’t have made it to today without her. She left college last year and got a job close by so you saw her often and you were thankful for her every day. 

Throughout your college experience you did the typical; study, party, make questionable life choices at said parties. But one thing you couldn’t do was get into a relationship. 

You started hooking up with guys in your second year, just flings and one-night stands. Eunseo supported your habits, “I will always support women's rights and also their wrongs” she used to say every time you pre-gamed and she never asked why you didn’t get into a relationship. 

Jaeyun’s name hadn’t left your lips in 1460 days. A choice that you made as soon as you stepped off the bus in Pyeongchang. Jaeyun’s name also hadn't left your mind in 1460 days. Every touch from another felt wrong, every chat up line, every unwarranted dick pic. It wasn’t him so it didn’t matter to you. 

You started to enjoy yourself more as time went on, creating a new friend group and new memories. By the final year of college, you were content with your life, finding a degree in film was a fluke but you ended up loving every bit of it, an internship was on the horizon at HYBE Media to shadow a music video producer, your hair routine finally working out. Everything was coming up Y/N. This was the right choice. 

Yet you still thought about Jaeyun every day. What was he up to? Did he like living in Busan? Was he with someone else? Granted you don’t like to think about that last one too often or else you get a tightness in your chest. You wanted him to be happy but selfishly you didn’t want to know if that happiness was because of someone else. 

“Helloooo, Y/N, are you even listening?” Eunseo’s hand waves across your face as you come back from your zoned-out state, “Tell me what I just said.” She huffs and crosses her legs and arms, sitting back knowingly. Eunseo had invited you to a coffee date in a quaint little shop outside of your university. She originally introduced it to you on your second day here and it became your favourite spot. Laughing, crying, and hungover, you both occupied this little shop as if it were your second home.

You smile guilty and laugh, “You were talking about how much you love me and that we should get married,” you shrug and tilt your head jokingly.

“Weirdly you are close!” Her pointer finger is now in front of your face as she leans forward quickly in a flash. 

“I was?” You gave an incredulous look with one eyebrow raised.

“Yes! It has to do with marriage.” Her hands gesture an arch that can only remind you of the one SpongeBob imagination meme and you giggle. 

“Please don’t tell me you’re marrying Serim after like 2 dates.” You half joke and half panic, it wouldn’t be unlike her to do something like that and you both know it. Eunseo takes in your expression and slaps the table loudly and laughs. If there was one thing your best friend wasn’t good at it’s being quiet, and you love her so much for it.

“I like him a lot, but no. Actually, it's about my sister. You know she’s getting married?” You nod, sipping your coffee, “Well of course I’m the maid of honor,” she lifts the back of her hands and twinkles them under her chin and you chuckle, “Someone dropped out and there is a spare seat. Yeoreum is a freak and needs it filled for everything ‘to go as planned’”

You had never met any of Eunseo’s family, they lived a few hours away and despite the effort Eunseo made to invite you to every family gathering, even Christmas, you declined not wishing to be a burden. “I want you to come. I checked your schedule and you’re free, I have a dress, I’m driving us up,” she keeps rhyming off every reason you have ever given her to bail on traveling with her, “and you owe me one.”

Furrowing your eyebrows and tilting your head you encourage her to continue, owe her for what? “Well you don’t owe me yet but I heard the best man is single, older than you, and has these gorgeous big eyes. I’ll set you both up.”

“So I owe you for something that hasn’t even happened yet? And you don’t even know if he is interested? Or single?”

“Details, details.” Eunseo’s hand waves dismissively, “Please just come. I want you to meet my family since you don’t have any of your own. Think of my family as yours.” 

Eunseo doesn’t know what happened back home. You never told her you didn’t have a family but that you were just estranged from them, never disclosing details, particularly that the reason you don’t go home is your own fault, she didn’t have to know. Eunseo didn’t know anything, not about Jaeyun, nothing at all and yet she didn’t pry into your past. You were so thankful for her.

“Eunseo,” rejection is on the tip of your lips but she’s pouting, her eyes big as she does her best to look cute, and to your dismay it works, “I’d love to come.” The sun suddenly started to shine and burn your skin as its light lay on you through the window.

“Amazing!” clapping her hands rapidly she giggles, “We’re leaving tomorrow.” 

Your eyes expand and she stands up not letting you protest at how soon the wedding is. “I thought she wasn’t getting married until Saturday?” You query and check your phone which reads Monday. 

Walking out she explains, “Yeah but I need to be there early for final fittings, yadda yadda, boring wedding stuff. So I’m taking you with me. Either that or you drive up yourself.” The glint in her eyes as she turns to you makes your face deadpan.

“Fuck you, you know I can’t drive.” She laughs and grabs your hand. 

“And I still don’t understand how you’re 23 and can’t even ride a go-kart without crashing.” Playfully you hit her arm and laughed, a memory of you and her go-karting painted your brain. After that, you never got behind another wheel. 

___________

You arrive at Eunseo’s parents' house and your jaw slacks open. It’s bigger than any house you’ve ever seen. Your best friend joked a lot about being rich but you didn’t know she was rich rich. There are stairs leading to a giant white door that compliments the ash-coloured stones that surround it. Moss is growing up on each side of the home with intentionally placed pink flowers decorating throughout. Those rich bitch houses are so ugly, I want as small a house as possible so I’m always close to you no matter what room I’m in. His voice plays in your head but you shake him out.

Her parents are graciously letting you and her stay in the spare bedrooms, you don’t dare ask how many rooms are actually in this castle. Something about the air feels strangely familiar. You shrug it off and head inside with your blue suitcase and steamed dress. You curse rich people for having so many stairs.

“My baby!” Eunseo’s dad shouts from the door, “How is my sweet angel?” He greets her at the top of the stairs and hugs her tightly. You miss your dad a lot. His comforting words, his piggyback rides, his weird cinnamon body wash that made you despise the spice, you missed it all. “This must be Y/N! It only took 4 years to meet you.” His chest lets out a deep laugh as he hugs you just as tightly as his own daughter. A smile plasters on your face as you hug him with one arm, the other outstretched to protect the dress. 

“Thank you for having me. It’s an honour to be part of your daughter’s big day.” Eunseo’s dad’s eyes turn to crescent moons as he smiles and steps aside to usher you into the big house. 

“The party is in a few hours. The happy couple aren’t here, running last-minute chores but you’ll meet them tonight.” He turns to you and points up the stairs, “Eunseo will show you where to get changed. If you need anything, me and the wife will be hovering around.” You side-eye Eunseo quickly and she smiles widely. She didn’t tell you about a party. 

Bowing slightly you thank him and follow Eunseo who is squealing, shouting about how excited she is for you to meet everyone. Sometimes you wonder if she is the relationship you’ve been seeking after Jaeyun, platonic or not, you love her all the same. 

A few hours later you hear bustling from the crowd gathered down the stairs, the party in full swing as Eunseo finishes curling a wispy strand of your hair. Glancing up at her you notice how beautiful she truly is; her bangs falling effortlessly to frame her face, her lips plump and naturally pouty, she was flawless. 

“If you keep staring I’ll literally take you on the bed.” She smiles and you laugh. Pouting her lips near your face she pretends to kiss you and you play into it. Life is so easy with her. “Go get changed, I need to see my masterpiece completed.” Walking away she picks up the dress and thrusts it into your chest, “You’re gonna look amazing. That babe of a best man is gonna fall at your feet.  Now go.” she shoos you into the ensuite bathroom.

Staring in the mirror you analyse her work on your face and hair. Never in your life have you ever looked so beautiful and you can’t help but stare. You shed your old life behind you yet this is the first time you really felt like you were reborn. The immature you left behind, the 23-year-old staring in the mirror coming up from the ashes.

Unzipping the garment bag you see the dress Eunseo picked for you and you gasp. Its a silky deep red dress. Far too sexy for something like this.

“Um, Eunseo? This dress is…” You hold it against you and observe what it would look like on you. Hot. That’s exactly how it would look and considering this was the first time meeting a whole family of someone dear to you, you’d rather be more covered up than this.

“Shut up it’s hot. My cousins will be wearing something way sluttier so it’s all good.” Her nonchalant tone doesn’t ease you but it’s either this or the dress she got you for the actual wedding. 

As you adorn the dress you notice how it fits you perfectly and hugs you in at the waist flatteringly. It’s been months since you’ve put something on this beautiful. Your cleavage is out just enough, the material stops at your mid-thighs, and you feel like a beauty queen. As you take yourself in your hand goes up to your necklace. That necklace. The gold of the sun complimented the dress perfectly. You never did bring yourself to take it off.

Opening the door you see Eunseo changed into a pastel blue dress, covering her arms and neck but cut out to leave her chest exposed just enough, a slit runs up her thigh. Your jaw is on the floor as she walks over and eyes you up and down. “Look at you! A literal goddess.” she smiles as she takes your hands. “You ready to upstage my sister at her own engagement party?”

“Eunseo…you did not pick these outfits to stand out on purpose did you?” Suddenly your heart is beating quickly and the urge to change is more than ever. 

“Of course not! We’re just hotter than anyone here, including her.” She laughs and hands you the pair of gold heels you eyed up as she unpacked her bags earlier. They were exactly your style. “Take these and put them on. Literally take them off whenever but for the grand entrance you need to be complete” She used her right hand to motion over your body. 

Putting the shoes on you grew about 4 inches taller and were on Eunseo’s eye level now. “Ready to rock this bitch?” You nod and she grabs your arm, dragging you down the stairs.

There are eyes on you everywhere and you can’t lie, it is a little uncomfortable considering the age range of the men staring are in their late 50s. It's a party like you’ve only seen in movies; waiters walk around with Hors D’oeurves and flutes of expensive champagne. You start to wonder how much all this cost and if you could convince someone at this party to pay off your student loan. 

“Hey Eunseo?” You grab her attention as she hands you a glass of bubbly happily, “I just realised I don’t know Yeoreum’s fiance’s name.” 

“Oh,” She laughs loudly and slaps your arm, “It’s Jaeyun.” Your heart stops for a moment, there are lots of Jaeyun’s in Korea. Jaeyun from TO1 could walk through that door for all you knew. “Jake is what he goes by though.” Your heart drops rapidly. There might be a lot of Jaeyuns but none that also go by Jake. Part of you wishes it was the biggest coincidence in the world but as voices fill the archway into the living room where you and your best friend reside you see Yeoreum, more beautiful than any picture Eunseo showed you could capture, and Jaeyun. Your Jaeyun.

Static is all you hear as you watch him greet guests and thank them for coming, and each footstep closer to you has your mouth going moist, ready to vomit. He hasn’t noticed you and if you had control of your body you would be bolting out the door instantly, but your mind has glued your feet to the floor. You take him, his face more defined than his previous squishy state, he’s wearing a fitted black suit blazer with no shirt underneath and matching wide-leg black trousers, and his hair is slicked back with stray pieces falling around his face. He looks expensive. He looks like the home you once knew.

You see Eunseo talking to you but as your eyes meet his, that static you once heard turns into rapid heartbeats. Your body is flushing with heat as you notice how his eyes widen for a second, his body turns to you instinctively.

“Eunseo!” Yeoreum squeals and shuffles quickly to give her sister an all-consuming hug, just like you want to do to Jaeyun right now. “Jakey come here” she beacons her fiance towards the both of you and without blinking or taking his eyes off you he walks cautiously forward. “You must be Y/N? Eunseo talks about you all the time.” 

She’s lovely. Gorgeous, clearly kind, she’s perfect just like her sister and it makes you want to cry. She’s perfect for him.

Plastering a smile on your face you fake glee as you hug her lightly, stealing another glance at Jaeyun while she can’t see you. He might have gotten older but those eyes still looked the same. “It’s so nice to finally meet you,” you pull away and step back, sole focus on his bride, “Congratulations.” It's bitter and you say it quickly.

“Aw thank you!” She beams and you feel like being sick again. 

“Excuse me, I’m going to go to the restroom, I’ll be right back.” You excuse yourself and rush past the couple and Eunseo leaving a gust of air behind you. Clutching your chest you run upstairs for an escape. Out of all the best friend’s sister’s fiances, how was he the one you were faced with? Pushing the guest room door open you scuttle in and take a few deep breaths reliving the moments just before.

“Y/N?” The Australian accent hits you hard as you turn around and meet his eyes. It takes only seconds before his hands have cupped your face and his body dangerously presses against yours, so close you can feel his heart, a heart that used to beat only for you.

“Baby,” he pauses as his eyes search your face trying to convince himself that you aren’t a dream, “where did you go?” Jaeyun desperately whines, his voice cracking in sadness as his forehead touches yours. There is love laced within the melancholic question. Instinctively your hands grab his wrists as you close your eyes. “Princess, please talk to me. '' He's pleading, begging for any explanation. Jaeyun’s hands go from your cheeks and trace down your shoulders, his eyes scanning every inch of your face in desperation. He doesn’t believe you’re real and in front of him, your face is more mature yet still the same girl he loves even after all these years. 4 years he’s waited for you to come back to him.

Your silence and shallow breathing urge him to ask more questions, his thumbs stroking the area between the base of your neck and collarbone. “What happened?”

“You’re engaged.”  The first words out of your mouth take him aback. His mouth stays open, his hands leaving your body leaving you cold, and shivering. “She seems nice-”

“Don’t do that,” His bottom jaw slowly clenching as he speaks, “Please don’t act fine like this. Don’t make it seem like I’m the only one that’s hurting for us right now.” You sob without tears as you see him vulnerable and eyes beseeching. Jaeyun’s hands point to you before coming together in a praying motion, “I looked for you everywhere. I spent months trying to find you.” Deep down you knew he would have looked for you, but not for months, maybe for a couple of weeks before he left for Busan, but never months, “What did I do?”

Without a beat, you respond, “Nothing. You could never do anything.” 

“You don’t just abandon people you love, Y/N. Not us. There had to be something I did to make you fall out of lov-”

“Jake!” You hear a familiar voice shout and your head falls down to stare at your shoes. 

“Baby please,” Jaeyun wants to hold you, kiss you, understand what happened but he can’t. Not right now. 

“You should go, I’ll leave in the morning-”

“Don’t leave me again, baby, please.” His voice is quiet, despair etched within his tone. His eyes fall on your necklace, the necklace that he gifted you. His eyes trail down to properly take you in and if he wasn’t astounded before by your mere presence he was now, “You look so beautiful, just like always.”

“Jake your dad is gonna make a speech-” Heeseung's voice bellows throughout the room and yet you and Jaeyun don’t take your eyes off each other. As Heeseung walks in he freezes at the sight of you. Over the years Heeseung silently forgave you, seeing his best friend move on with Yeoreum brought him some solace when he thought about what you did to Jaeyun, but now the anger that was dissipated through time is bubbling up again, “Y/N? What the fuck are you doing here?” His tone is surprised more than angry, but you can tell he’s fuming.

You don’t dare look at him. 

“You should get back to your engagement party." Nothing but a whisper as it comes out. You’ve lost him as quickly as you got him back. You did this, and now you need to deal with the consequences. Brushing past him and Heeseung you make your way back to Eunseo ignoring his hand that grazed your wrist in an attempt to stop you.

His family was here, his friends, people from your past that you wanted to forget. The pressure was starting to become too much as you rushed down the stairs before colliding with someone, “I’m sorry.” You bow quickly.

“Y/N?” Mr. Sim’s voice quips in astonishment, “What are you doing here?” His head comes down so his eyes are level with yours, “What-” He has no words, looking at the girl he thought was going to marry his son. 

“Mr. Sim, It’s nice to see you again” You bow but still avoid eye contact. “I’m sure you’re proud of Jaeyun.” 

“Darling, we thought something awful happened to you.” The sincerity in his voice made you look up at him, heartache carved in your features “Your mum and dad haven’t stopped worrying about you.” A hand is placed on your shoulder and as you look down you see Eunseo.

“Girl there you are! You took one long bathroom break.” She laughs and bows to Mr. Sim, “Ready for your speech, Sir?” Mr. Sim looks at you inquisitively before returning Eunseo’s bow.

“I’ve been preparing this speech for years, only some minor tweaks.” His eyes find yours and you start to think maybe he’s hinting towards the speech he would have given at Jaeyun and your engagement party. “Better head.” Lips forming a tight smile he descends the stairs. 

His words circle your brain. You understood your parents would worry but all of these years you never had to face it, not until your past was being pushed onto you. Eunseo takes your hand and pulls you to the dining area where people are gathered to make speeches and say their congratulations. 

Jaeyun strolls in behind Heeseung, his hands in his pockets before he notices his soon-to-be wife and wraps one arm around her. Tears threaten to spill as you watch the loving action. That should have been you. You should be marrying him, taking his second name, being his everything.

A fork clinks with a wine glass as Mr. Sim starts his speech. “Thank you everyone for coming. I will make this short considering I’m sure you’re all sick of us talking, especially when there is a free bar.” the people occupying the room laugh loudly and you see Yeoreum smile up at Jaeyun. It killed you but like always you put a smile on your face, “My son, he’s always been someone to wear his heart on his sleeve, always giving one hundred percent of himself to the person he loves,” Mr. Sims eyes fall on you and you feel like the speech is somehow directed to you, “Jaeyun deserves to have someone who loves him unconditionally, without prejudice, without pride, and always with his best interest in mind. I believe he’s found that.” 

Crushed. Your heart can’t take the rest of the speech as you walk out of the room and bolt for the entrance of the house. Heaving your chest to gasp for air you feel yourself clutching at your chest, if you hadn’t had a panic attack before in your life you would have thought you were having a heart attack. You breathe out harshly, gasping for air as you lean on the banister. Someone comes up behind you and places a hand on your shoulder gently. 

You hear muffled words but don’t take anything in as the figure guides you to sit on the steps, their hands rubbing your arms to keep you warm.

“Breathe for me, Y/N. He He Hoo or whatever.” You follow the words and inhale two breaths sharply and exhale extendedly. “That’s it.”

Your vision starts to come into focus as you see Heeseung in front of you, his Bambi eyes soft as his thumbs rub circles into your upper arms, “Keep doing that for me, okay?” He’s always been so kind to you, that you want to cry and he notices, “Hey, look at me, Y/N. Tell me about that band you used to like way back when.” Heeseung is trying to distract you but your brain is fuzzy and tears are rolling down your face, “The one with that rapper Jaeyun was always jealous of because you had him as your lock screen?"

“Monsta X?” you breathe out and he smiles lightly.

“Yeah, tell me about them. Are they still together?” His hands leave your arms as he discards his jacket from his body and wraps it around you.

Nodding you start to answer his question, “Yeah, they’re still together.” You sniffle and feel your heart start to slow down and breathe at ease, “Most of them are in the military now.” Your lips naturally form into a pout as you think about your favourite band being separated, not being whole until 2027.

“Sucks doesn’t it? I felt the same about ONF.” He laughs and so do you, letting out a singular sob as you do so.

“I didn’t mean to come here, Hee. Her sister is my best friend.” His eyes go wide and then looks down, his hands finding their way to your knees. 

“Y/N, you can’t be here. He finally moved on.” There is a pleading intertwined with sorrow in his voice and you slowly nod. “He’s happy.”

“Heeseung?” Jaeyun’s voice pierces through you, the warmth from Heeseung’s jacket becoming null as goosebumps prickle your skin. “Can I talk with her?” 

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, man.” They’re talking like you aren’t even there and a part of this too yet your voice is too weak to speak up and share your thoughts. Tension is looming in the air as Heeseung gives the man you love a stern stare, but Jaeyun has always been stubborn when it comes to you. If he can’t talk to you now he will find a way. However, for now, at least, Jaeyun listens to his best man, and with one more glace to your fragile body he heads back to his party. It hurts him to see you like this, he wants nothing more than to swoop you up and take you in his arms like he used to all those years ago.

The party continues as you head back in making your way to the guest bedroom, giving excuses to those asking simply saying you’re tired from travelling. You miss him being yours. That was the real exhaustion.

________

The party ended a couple of hours ago, the once loud and busy foyer now dark as you tip-toe down the stairs, heedful to not wake anyone up. It’s 5 am when you awake dying of thirst and decide to leave the comfy double bed of the guest bedroom and get a glass of water. Looking around you see empty wine glasses, a few smashed ones lined up on the long table just beside the stair banister. It truly was a magnificent party and in any other circumstance, you would have had a great time. Yeoreum’s family is lovely and welcoming it’s no wonder they have so many friends, and no wonder Jaeyun fell in love with her and fit so perfectly as her soon-to-be husband. 

A leak of light bleeds from the kitchen and you presume an under-unit lamp is still on but as your feet scuffle into the kitchen you see a broad back staring at you. Taking in the figure you notice their blue and yellow checked pajama bottoms and casual black t shirt evidently not intended to be worn together but clearly the first thing they could find. 

A creak sounds from under you alerting them of your presence causing them to whip around. Jaeyun. One of his eyes was shut indicating he was not long up himself, his dark hair fluffy and tussled but still slightly in place due to the remnants of styling wax. He takes your breath away every time.

“Hi.” You whisper and make your way to the fridge. Heeseung was right, it wasn’t a good idea to speak to each other. When you saw Jaeyun again after all these years you thought he would be mad, scream at you to get out, seething in hate, but that was never who Jaeyun was. Instead, you felt his love shooting through you and that was the dangerous part.

“It’s late.” His eyes never leave you as he watches you pour a glass of filtered water. 

“Or early.” You shrug and lean against the unit not daring to look at him. “I guess it depends on whether you went to sleep or not.” you mumble, small talk never being your thing. 

Jaeyun still feels like he’s in a dream. Your presence is haunting yet he hasn’t felt more at home. Just the simplicity of you being in this kitchen is enough for him to experience contentment he hasn’t felt in years. Not since then. 

“When did you get engaged?” The question punches him slap-bang in the middle of his chest, the wind escaping his body. 

With his head hanging low and his middle finger tracing his coffee mug he muttered, “ A few months ago.” to which you nodded and pursed your lips. “What about you?” he questions back, “you seeing anyone?”

“No.” It’s sharp and direct but you don’t want to touch on the subject any further, you didn’t want to accidentally divulge that you couldn’t get over him, not when he was sitting afore you an engaged man. It’s embarrassing.

Jaeyun sucks in a breath and holds it as if he was going to say something but in his hesitance, you speak up again. “Eunseo, she’s my best friend.” giving the information as a way to explain why you’re here. “I didn’t know it was you getting married to Yeoreum, I promise.” Your eyes are begging for him to look at you so he can see the sincerity in your words but he never does, opting to just nod slowly. “I’ll make up an excuse to get out of here before the wedding.”

“Why did you leave, Y/N?” Jaeyun’s voice is soft but laced with hurt, “Tell me why because for 4 fucking years I still haven’t been able to figure it out.” 

No words come out of your mouth, instead, you bite your lip trying to pluck up courage, suddenly the idea of him looking at you made you uncomfortable but of course, now his eyes are on you. “You owe me that much.”

“I-,” You place the glass of water down and grip the counter behind you tightly, “I…I didn’t get into any colleges that I applied for, none near Busan. Only one accepted me but it was a few hours away.” His eyebrows are crossed in confusion as he asks, “What do you mean? I thought you only applied for ones near Apollo. We had planned-”

“My grades weren’t good enough to get into any colleges in Busan.” There is a slight venom in your tone but it’s not directed at him but rather yourself. “If I had told you I wasn’t going with you, I was scared you would give up your dream school and just fuck it all off to be with me.” You finally look at him and the confusion is dispelling from his face as you continue, “You said it yourself, you would have gone anywhere if it meant being with me. I couldn’t ask you to do that. I would live with the guilt every day, watching you attend a subpar college all because of me. I loved you Jaeyun I couldn’t do that to you.” 

Jaeyun doesn’t miss the past tense usage of ‘love’ but he rewinds, “So you left our relationship because…it would be long distance?” 

“Jaeyun it wasn’t just that, I did think about long distance but I knew you would grow at college without me, i kept thinking about what you said. The whole slowly breaking away from each other because we become different people stuff got in my head and I couldn’t bear to slowly lose you, so I-”

“So you thought leaving me without a word was the right way to go? Y/N we could have worked it out, we would have figured out a solution.” Jaeyun stands up and walks over to you, “I didn’t mean to pressure you into moving, or applying for the same college, or fuck even making you doubt our chances at long distance.” His hand naturally caresses your cheek as you let a tear slip.

Shaking your head you look up at him, “I was stupid and I didn’t want you to worry about me, you already had so much going on between work and school. But look, you went to college and you grew up, look at what you have.” Your hands gesture upstairs to where Yeoreum sleeps peacefully unaware of what is transpiring in her parent’s kitchen.

“We could have had this Y/N. You could be the one I’m marrying if you just let me look after you like a boyfriend is supposed to if you trusted me enough.”

“I did trust you.”

“Not enough to tell me what was going on when I gave you that ring. Y/N-” He huffs out loudly and drags a hand through his hair. “That should have been your opening to talk to me about all this. I love you so much I would have made long-distance work.” His deep eyes are searching into yours. All these questions he has and you can’t answer or retaliate to any of them. “When I gave you that ring and made that promise to be yours forever I wasn’t fucking around okay? I meant it.” He lets out a dry laugh and takes your hands in his. “Baby, I love you.”

You stand too stunned to speak. Here Jaeyun was after all these years still hopelessly yours. An engaged Jaeyun was still in love with you. You want to let out a laugh of disbelief but you’re frozen. The room is silent except for the annoyingly loud hum of the refrigerator. 

Jaeyun notices how your eyes fall to his lips as he licks them wet, taking the opportunity to lean forward just enough that his breath hits yours. If your lips touch you no doubt know you won’t ever let him go. 

“Jaeyun…”

Footsteps are heard behind you both and you push Jaeyun away forcefully but despite the other presence making themselves known, his eyes never leave your tear-glassed ones. “Baby,” he whispers just loud enough for you to hear but you shake your head and barge past him, head down so the other person doesn’t see you. “Y/N?” Jaeyun calls out, reckless abandonment is telling him to chase after you but as he feels an arm stopping him to a halt he looks up and sees Heeseung. 

“Jake, don’t.”

________

Stirring in your sleep you groan as you hear a plethora of laughing coming from downstairs causing you to take the pillow from under you and suffocate your ears with it. After last night’s tragic events you just wanted to go home. Nothing would make you happier than to catch the first bus back to your flat and rewatch every episode of Fleabag to take your mind off of everything. Jaeyun was still in love with you and selfishly you hoped he hated you after what you did, that way your heart wouldn’t leap at every word he said. 

Baby, I love you

You shake the thought away and give in, sitting up and looking around the room. Eunseo is gone, probably downstairs being the reason for everyone’s laughter you think to yourself. With a huff, you pull the covers off your body and immediately feel the cold breeze causing you to shiver. You don’t know if it's a coincidence or not but as goosebumps rise on your legs and arms, Jaeyun’s laugh is heard over everyone else. You missed his laugh so much, your heart had a shot of pain pierce come on so suddenly. There was a glimmer of sun outside that made your necklace sparkle as you proceeded for the door.

It was as if your ears could only hear Jaeyun as you walked quietly down the stairs. “If it’s Yeoreum making him laugh I might kill myself.” you mutter, pulling your hair up in a pony. It’s dramatic but right now you can’t face to see them in love, it hurts. You’re hurting.

“Y/N! You’re awake!” Euneo stands up and scurries to the kitchen, grabbing a plate for you, “Mum just made breakfast.” 

“Hey! I helped.” Yeoreum faked offence which Eunseo simply rolled her eyes in response. She handed you the plate before you could tell her you weren’t hungry. “Sit down, Y/N, please.” Eunseo’s mum points to the empty chair at the comically large table, you suppose she does have a large family. 

Luckily for you, the seat was situated far enough away from Jaeyun that you could avoid him, unfortunately, you couldn’t avoid his eyes burning holes into the side of your face. You ignore him and scan the feast of food before you and you wonder if this is what it was like for Annie in Parent Trap when Chessy made a buffet of all her favourites. “Eat up, Y/N, there is plenty here.” Yeoreum and Eunseo’s mum says.

“Thanks, Mrs. Son.”  You pick up a few hash browns and start to eat one. That’s when you become aware of the enemy of all condiments, black pepper. It was a great tool in the kitchen, adding a little flavour and spice. Not for you though, the black powdered devil always makes your tongue itch. Who the fuck puts black pepper on hash browns? You think to yourself, face scrunching and teeth running along your tongue as you pour yourself a glass of water and take a huge swig. It does nothing at all so you go to excuse yourself to get a glass of juice or anything with taste but before you can there is a glass of apple juice placed beside you. Glancing up you see Jaeyun placing the cup with a knowing look on his face.

Of course, he knew. He knew everything about you and with the face you were pulling it was one he had seen too many times at restaurants.

“Why the fuck would they season their food with this, like, isn’t that what these are for?” You grabbed a pepper shaker and started waving it in his face. You had both gotten back from a day-turned-overnight trip to the beach and stopped off at a service station in the middle of nowhere, the diner was quaint with an American feel to it, undoubtedly your favourite kind.

“Princess I think your weird tongue is the only one that would complain.” Jaeyun laughed and swapped your eggs for his bacon. “There, now there is no pepper in sight.” He also passed over his apple juice with a bright smile.

“Take this.” His deep voice pulled you back to reality. Thanking him you take the cup and chug it quietly, but everyone's eyes are on you.

“You don’t like the food, Y/N?” Mrs. Son says not offended but certainly not pleased. Waving your hand quickly you swallow the liquid and explain, “No, it's lovely Mrs Son, me and pepper just don’t go well together.” 

Yeoreum looks at Jaeyun with furrowed brows but doesn’t question it. There is a massive part of him that knows he should have left you to deal with it yourself so as to not raise suspicion but his instincts kicked in. He takes Yeoreum’s hand and kisses the back of it tenderly. It stings your heart.

“So,” Mr Son claps his hands diverting the attention to him, “I thought since the whole wedding party is here we should get to know each other. We will be family once Saturday passes after all.” A groan comes softly from your right and you turn to see Heeseung with his eyes shut. 

“If he makes us play charades I’m passing my best man duties to literally anyone else.” He whispers to you which causes you to snort laugh and bite your mouth shut. You miss Heeseung’s smile as he watches you. He always did love you like a sister despite everything. He knew this situation wasn’t just hurting Jaeyun and after last night he was sure you were just as heartbroken as he was.

“We’re going to have a friendly game of football!”

“Dad, I can’t get bruised before my big day!” Yeoreum exclaims, her arms wrapped around her body to protect her from an imaginary ball flying at her. Jaeyun laughs and rubs her arms, “Reumie I don’t think your dad means you guys.” 

Heeseung’s hand lands on your shoulder as you watch the loving act. They did look good together you couldn’t lie about that. Their energy matched, they would make the most beautiful children to ever walk this earth, and even their sense of style was similar - casual but fashionable. 

“I was going to say 5 v 5, there are enough men here right?” Mr Son starts counting around the table as Heeseung slowly slides down the chair, his eyes hidden behind this hand as he pretends to rub his forehead. 

“I thought you liked football, Hee?” You whisper but he shakes his head violently. 

“Used to. I have since grown a great distaste for it, especially with Yeoreum’s cousins. They’re brutal and leave me bruised.” he mutters the last few words and you laugh leaning close.

“Aw is Hee scared of a little bruise.” He doesn’t appreciate your taunting yet he smiles and rolls his eyes. “You’re almost as good as Jaeyun, you can handle yourself I mean look.” You sneakily point to one of the cousins who is on his 3rd plate of food, “He’s going to be so full he can’t move, stick by him and you’ll look like Messi or something.”

Heeseung laughs out loud, “Oh! Heeseung I almost didn’t count you.” Mr Son claps, “That makes 10!”

Heeseung’s tongue pokes the side of his face as his rage-filled eyes look right into yours. You mouth a half-hearted ‘sorry’ and hold in a giggle. “I’ll kick the ball in your face.” He warns but you’re too busy chuckling to notice. 

Eunseo’s eyes meet yours with her eyebrows raised. Giving her a confused look you knit your eyebrows together to ask her what that look on her face is for but she simply smirks and looks at Heeseung. Fuck. You forgot that was her favour to you, to set you up with the dishy best man. Oh if only she knew. You and Heeseung were so out of this world impossible that you had to fight to hold in your laughter. 

“What’s so funny?” Heeseung whispers and his lips graze the shell of your ear. You quickly turn around and his face is incredibly close to yours. Eunseo must be loving this.

“Eunseo promised to set me up with the hot best man. That was my bribe to get me here.” A shallow laugh leaves his throat and he sits up, hands pointed to his chest.

“I am hot to be fair.” He jokingly smirks causing you to hit his chest playfully. “What? Do you not think so?” 

“I know so. It’s just how cocky you are about it all,” Heeseung’s lips part to say something but you stop him, “If you’re going to make a joke about your dick I don’t want to hear it, Hee.” he shuts his mouth instantly. You missed this just as much as you missed Jaeyun. The banter between you and your friends is what kept you from losing your mind most of your high school days, and right now it’s taking your mind off this ridiculous situation. 

“Eunseo tried it on with me once,” Heeseung says while eyeing her up and giving her a wave. 

“But she acted like she didn’t know you? When she brought you up it was as if she had never met you.” He scoffs as you recall the conversation in the cafe.

“I rejected her, she’s not my type. Plus, she wanted double dates all the time, and don’t get me wrong I love Jake and Yeoreum but they’re insufferable. Kinda like you and hi-” He halts himself mid-sentence and looks at you apologetically. “Sorry.” You wave it off and pretend it doesn’t hurt you to hear before he continues, “I probably shouldn’t say this but if it’s any consolation, he isn’t half as infatuated with her as he was you.” It does bring some solace but you try not to let it sit in your mind too long. 

“I’m not having a great time with it but at least he’s happy.” You mumble playing with your fingers and picking at the skin. Heeseung’s big hands encase your smaller ones as he squeezes them discreetly.

“You’ll always be his first love, just remember that. And who knows,” He leans back in his chair with that smug look on his face once again, “Your next love might be the hot best man.” 

Pinching the bridge of your nose you can’t help but laugh again. “Heeseung please shut up.”

While you and Heeseung were talking, none of you noticed Jaeyun staring purposefully as if his eyes could pry you two apart. He wasn’t jealous, no, he was just wishing he was with you both like old times, laughing with you as if no time had passed. Yeoreum strokes his arm lightly and looks up at him. “Jakey, you okay?” to which Jaeyun hums and turns to her, kissing her forehead lightly. “Never better, Reumie.” Lies but as his lips touch her head he remembers last night and how his lips felt like they had found their way home.

“Okay! Let’s go and get ready for a full day ahead. The game starts in an hour.” Mr Son’s voice bellowed throughout the dining area.

“Come on,” Heeseung takes your hand and leads you to the kitchen, “You’re eating something before you’re tormented by the whole aunt brigade.” Heeseung’s always been so sweet. Whoever ties him down is going to be the luckiest girl in the world.

__

The game had been on for 20 minutes and you can’t escape the daggers coming from Mrs. Sim across the table. Of course she’s mad, you hurt her precious baby boy, you completely understand but that doesn’t make it any less uncomfortable. She liked you a lot before everything went down, always treating you like her own but now it’s like her heart turned cold towards you, a contrast to her husband who seems to actually tolerate you enough to be civil. Meeting the Sim family again was beyond awkward but you were thankful none of them let on to the others about you and Jaeyun’s history. 

“My Jakey is so good at football. He said he used to play in high school.” Yeoreum gushes, her hands clasped beside her cheeks as she watches her fiance on the garden lawn.

“Yeah, he was the captain in high school. Almost got a scholarship but he didn't want to do that professionally.” You say and sip at your white wine and lemonade top. 

“How do you know he was captain?” The question comes from Eunseo and you nearly choke on the sweet wine. Shit 

“Yes Y/N, how do you know?” Mrs. Sim quips and you want to die. You look over at the men on the field and panic trying to find any rhyme or reason you would know that information. Maybe I should put on a strip and join them, a ball to the face would be less painful. 

“Oh, um, me and Jae- Jake spoke about it at the party. Getting to know him and all that.” your words are rushed and your hand reaches for the bottle to pour more wine. Admittedly, this is probably the last thing you should be doing, getting drunk and not running your mouth was never something that came easily. The party of girls nod and accept your answer. You need to be more careful. You don’t dare look at Mrs Sim with the fear of being obliterated on the spot. 

“You got this, baby!” Yeoreum shouts loudly and gains the attention of Jaeyun, his smile bright as he waves, his eyes never leaving yours. You smile back and give him two thumbs up. He starts to wipe his face with the bottom of his t-shirt to gather the sweat. It gives you a peak of his lower abdomen and you feel like a Victorian man seeing an ankle for the first time. 

The mind is a powerful tool and also your greatest enemy at the moment as you recollect every time you kissed down his stomach, sometimes leaving hickeys to mark him as yours. You remember how his jaw would slack open the lower you got, the moans that would fall from his lips as your tongue trailed from his belly button to the top of his boxer waistband. When his dick was pressed against that very stomach you would trace your fingers touching everything but his cock. You swallow hard, thighs clenching together, you can’t think these thoughts but fuck it was so easy.

Jaeyun notices your face change and smirks, biting his lip and ogling at your thighs rubbing against each other just like you used to when you were turned on by him. His eyes dart to his fiances but she seems unbothered by his act. Heeseung comes up behind him and wraps an arm over his shoulder. “Dude this is rough-” he pauses and follows Jaeyun’s eyes, “What you looking at? Yeoreum? Y/N?” he whispers only your name and it makes Jaeyun sigh.

“Let’s just get back to the game yeah? Sooner we beat these old men the sooner I can have a beer.” Heeseung laughs and claps his best friend’s back.

While you're zoning out, your best friend speaks up. “Heeseung looks good, huh Y/N?” Eunseo giggles and nudges your shoulder with hers. “I thought I saw him flirting with you earlier.” You laugh and shake your head dismissively. 

“Nah he was just engaging in conversation.” Everyone is looking at you waiting for you to elaborate, “Oh, it was just usual chit-chat. Weather, work, small talk stuff.” 

Eunseo doesn’t buy your chatter, she’s convinced after seeing you both this morning that you two will be the next wedding she attends. “Y/N, he was all over you at the table!” Eunseo chimes and tries to recreate the scene for the other girls at the table, “He was all like touchy, and your faces were like here!” Her nose brushes yours to which you laugh it off and push her lightly, shaking your head.

“Well I think you should try to speak to him more, he seems interested.” Yeoreum says and you try not to laugh in her face.

Mrs Sim snorts and sets her wine glass down. “Yeoreum, honey, Y/N isn’t his type. He likes classy girls, loyal girls with a good sense of worth.” Ouch. It was probably deserved but shit did that prick your heart. Eunseo looks at you confused but you shrug and don’t pay attention to it.

“Heeseung isn’t my type either.” you mutter. Yeoreum leans her elbow on the table and places her face in her palm as she asks, “What is your type then, Y/N?”

Jaeyun.

“Eh, I like guys who are sweet, um, they laugh at stupid jokes,” You start to look at Jaeyun as you continue, “I like when guys are attentive and know things about you that you don’t even really know yourself because they listen to every little thing you say.”

The girls around the table are gawking at you, “Y/N? Have you ever been in love? You must have been!” One of the bridesmaids asks excitedly. You shrug your head to the side and laugh.

“Once upon a time but that was forever ago.” You slyly look at Mrs. Sim and it was astronomically the worst decision. Her face was overcome with disgust.

Ironically, it’s Yeoreum asking the question now, “Tell us about it. Wasn’t he the ‘one’”. How do you say to her that your love, the one you want to spend forever with, is hers? 

“I think he was but I was an idiot, too young to understand that we should have fought through our challenges rather than me running away from them.” The honesty in your voice is raw and you’re holding down the tears. One of the bridesmaids asks, “How do you know someone is the one?” 

“J-” You almost say his name but smoothly continue without anyone noticing, “You know because there is an easiness in loving someone you know you're going to spend your life with. It comes naturally like breathing. There’s no trying to impress, no hiding parts of you. You both love each other like it’s the only thing you know how to do right. Even if you're apart, when you eventually come back together you slide right back into where you left off. Your love is infinite." 

Yeoreum starts to cry "That’s like me and Jake." The crowd of girls hurry to her side and hug her as she sobs, encouragements from her party saying how they are ‘meant to be’ flood your ears. While they are distracted you wipe a tear, that’s when you feel a hand hold yours. Mrs Sim has a mournful look on her face, her thumb swiping over the back of your hand now seated next to you. Its unexpected but this is a step up from the hateful glares and you’re more than thankful.

Her eyes hold a love for you just like those years ago, maybe it took you explaining your feelings for her to truly understand how sorry you were about the whole situation, opening her up to forgive you even a little bit.

Yeoreum composes herself, fanning her face with her hands as everyone proceeds back to their seats, everyone except Mrs Sim who stays by your side, forcing Eunseo to move to the opposite end. “Thanks, girls. Ugh I just love him so much.” 

Don’t ask it. Don’t ask it. Your brain is screaming to ask her the question that you know would set you off, “How did you two meet?” The words fall from your lips before you can catch them with your teeth.

A smile spreads widely across her face as her whole body turns to you. This is the first time you have properly examined her features and you wish you didn’t. Easily she is one of the most beautiful girls to ever exist, her small face but big features making her look otherworldly, her body is naturally slender, her black hair is long and sleek straight, her bangs fit around her face perfectly, her eyes gleamed with life and love. She was truly perfection. “We met at Apollo! You know the college in Busan?” Her eyes twinkle and you become jealous because in the past 4 years, your eyes have become dull and empty, “He was walking to class in the East block and I just thought he was the hottest guy I had ever seen.” 

Mrs. Sim delicately squeezes your hand but doesn’t spare a glance. Despite her feelings for you, she knows this isn’t easy for you and she doesn’t envy you in this situation at all. “I just walked up to him and asked him out. He was so reluctant at first, saying he was still getting over his ex,” she smiles at the memory, “and let me tell you, after that night he probably didn’t think about her again.” Yeoreum smirked as the girls squealed.

“Yeoreum, as his mother I don’t need to hear this.” Mrs. Sim scoffs, her face slightly disgusted. The bride-to-be mouthed a quick sorry and continued, “We went totally casual for a while, but you know how things escalate, he was in love with me by like the third time I met him.”

You nodded at her as she continued to tell you about her romance with the love of your life and you feel your heart slide its way into the pit of your stomach. It's nauseating how he found a love and you couldn’t even face dating anyone. But you couldn’t be mad, of course not, because you did this.

“Y/N?” You look up to see Heeseung and Jaeyun, both of them with their eyes on you purposefully. Yeoreum grabs Jaeyun’s hands yet his eyes don’t leave your face. Heeseung’s voice continues, “Can I grab you for a minute? I got a-” he pauses to think of an excuse, “I need a second pair of hands to bring out more drinks, yeah?” His eyebrow raises at you to follow along to which you nod and stand up. Noticing Eunseo’s stares you shake your head and give her a small smile. 

Heeseung’s fingers interlock with yours as he leads you away into the house and suddenly you feel like you can breathe again. “Y/N you okay? You looked like you were gonna throw up.” You look up at him, his 6”0 frame towering over you. 

“I’m fine, just asking questions I know I shouldn’t.” You let out a half-hearted laugh and smile sheepishly at him, “It’s okay. How was the game?” Proceeding to the kitchen you open the fridge to pick up the jug of margarita Yeoreum and Eunseo had lovingly made with way too much spirit and minimal mixers. 

“I still hate you for getting me caught, but we beat them so,” He shrugs and reaches from behind you to grab a six-pack of Peroni, “Wasn’t as eventful as your time at the interrogation table. I saw them all grilling you.” You snicker and disagree.

“Nah, they were just asking about my life, the usual.” It wasn’t the full truth but it wasn’t a lie either. 

Heeseung moves from behind you and leans against the kitchen island, one foot propped up on the base of the counter, swinging the beers between his legs. “How was Mrs. Sim? That must have been hard, I could feel her ice-cold stare from the other end of the garden.” He opens up the packet of 6 and hands you one, “Open this for me?” You nod and take it from him, setting the jug down to pop open the lid with the edge of the unit before giving it back to him. 

“I thought I was going to die I can’t lie, but then she was okay, I think?” You question the interaction in your head, “She was nicer to me as the afternoon went on, but I think it was pity.” Heeseung brings the bottle to his lips and sips the cold beer and his eyebrows lifted.

“I don’t think It would be pity, you know she loved you more than Jake, at least that’s what he always thought." He pauses and takes a sip from his bottle before dramatically pulling it from his lips and pointing towards you, "Fuck, didn’t she have your wedding dress practically paid for?” 

This was news to you and Heeseung guessed as much by the look on your face, “You didn’t know? She always went about how she had a separate savings account for you and Jake’s wedding. I think she still has it.”

You look at him quizically, “Wait, why would she still have it? Surely she would have put it to this wedding.” You search for a glass to pour the margarita into and wait for Heeseung to respond.

“Nah, they didn’t pay a penny for this. They don’t want him to marry her.”

“WHAT?!” You exclaim and turn around bug-eyed and mouth open, “What do you mean? His dad was saying all that nice stuff at the toast, and his mum looked like she was bursting with pride when Yeoreum was talking about Jake.” 

There was a silence in the air as Heeseung stepped forward and grabbed your shoulders, “They like her, but babe she isn’t you. Mr. and Mrs. Sim know Jake doesn-, you know what I shouldn’t be saying anything.” You plead with him to continue, gripping his hands that are placed on you, “Hee, please, Jake doesn’t what?”  

Just as Heeseung is about to divulge very useful information, Eunseo walks in with her hands up, “Ignore me, love birds, just came to get the jug of fun,” she spots it behind you and points, “Can you grab me that please?” 

Stepping back, Heeseung grabs the jug and hands it to Eunseo, “We were just coming out anyway, right angel.” 

Oh, you were going to murder him. His face smug and Eunseo’s mouth breaking into a large smile, you grab your glass and head out with them, Heeseung’s hands on your hips and lips to your ear, “Let me give her what she wants.” You turn around, eyes scolding him.

“Don’t even think about it, and don’t think I’ll let our little conversation go either.” As you walk and warn Heeseung, you’re already outside, a pair of usually wide, bright eyes, now thin as they watch you and his best friend joke around.

Jaeyun is seething.

[rowdyslove]

𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐇 𝐀𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐑𝐘. | quinn hughes

꒰ pairing: quinn hughes x genderneutral!reader

꒰ genre: angst + fluff ;exes!au, exes to lovers trope | short oneshot

꒰ synopsis: after four years, going back to the hughes lake house for the summer brings back many emotions & memories from the past—especially the memories of you and your ex-boyfriend.

꒰ word count: 2.4k

꒰ author’s note: i just love the idea of ex lovers reuniting and giving each other a second chance :((( i think it’s so sweet, so this one i’m kind of very proud of :D

the time was around 3:00am, and as no surprise to you, you couldn’t sleep at all.

maybe it could have been because of the immense amount of happiness you were feeling due to it being your first night back at the hughes lake house for the summer with all your best friends.

this day had been your first day back with everyone since the incident that occured with one particular boy from the group four years ago.

and you thought you would’ve been completely fine, spending the whole summer back here just like you used to. everything should’ve been okay—except for the fact that the particular boy from four years ago, being the oldest of the hughes brothers, was now your ex-boyfriend and was very present in the house.

you honestly should’ve been able to move on from the boy by now. that’s why you decided to come back to the lake house. it’s been an entire four years, but you still found your mind clouding over with memories of you and quinn all the time.

you saw him almost everywhere you looked. always seeing him on the tv, either in a game of hockey against one of the many other teams or doing an interview for sports channels. you felt like there was just no escaping him no matter how hard you tried.

the cool breeze from the wind and the serene still-state of the lake was just enough to calm your mind-racing thoughts for the time being.

the moon had taken it’s bright spot over the sky, stars littering all around it, offering you bits of company as you sat on the dock by yourself. the sounds of water lapping against the bottom of the hughes family boat was the only thing you could hear. the air bouncing off of the lake comes cooler and the light gusts of wind leave goosebumps trailing down your arms. your breathing was smooth and stable, smelling the burning scent of the campfire that was still floating through the air, even after it had been put out.

the slightest sound of soft whispers being carried through the wind hits your ears, almost as if the sky was asking how you were doing; asking if you were okay as if the moon and stars could feel the sharp pains coursing within your heart.

you wanted to be honest, saying that you haven’t been okay for a while now. saying that you missed the way that the stars had painted the sky so brightly the night that quinn had kissed you for the first time on the very same dock those many years ago.

everything about this place just reminded you of him all over again.

through nights quite similar to this one, quinn would’ve been holding you safely in his arms, pressing the sweetest of kisses on your lips in the late hours you would spend together by the lake after sneaking away from the commotions happening in the lake house. he would give you all the comfort you needed, but now you sit there feeling nothing but hurt.

and it feels like the sky is judging you for staying hung up on the same boy you had left behind. but how could you not still be so enamoured with him when there was always love swimming in his eyes whenever he looked at you.

as if the moon could hear your thoughts, quiet footsteps can be heard coming from behind you. the slight creaking of the dock contrasting with the small waves beneath you. you think that you must just be seeing things as you look over your shoulder, watching the dark silhouette draw closer to you and it becomes more and more clear that it is quinn.

even through the fact that you could barely see from the darkness of the night, you feel your chest tightening from the way his hazel-like eyes are so easy to recognize, even in the darkest of hours. you couldn’t move, your body still as he sits down beside you, bringing his knees up and resting his forearms on them.

“look, i just came here to relax. we don’t have to talk or anythi–”

“i couldn’t sleep.” is all he says.

however, he doesn’t tell you that the reason for his sleepless night was because his mind was full of thoughts of you. the thoughts of the many times he had tried to reach out to you after you left him. the amount of unanswered calls and the unreturned efforts you made to come see him when he came home to michigan after being in vancouver.

he was reminded of the times he kept chasing after the love he probably should’ve just left alone.

he heaves intense breaths by you on the dock, everything around him seemingly blurring deep into the background the very moment he finally lets his eyes land on you. looking at you even though he can feel the fear building in his chest of breaking down right there next to you. you don’t catch onto the way his gaze stills on you as you keep your sight on the lake in front of you.

the last time he looked at you through blurry vision and unrequited stares was four years ago. he couldn’t be blamed for thinking that the sight of you right there next to him just like those times so long ago could be a simple figment of his imagination.

“i guess your love for the lake is still there, huh?”

quinn feels almost relieved at the thought of constancy from you. he couldn’t explain the strong emotions that were running through his veins at the fact that he still knew you so well, even after all this time being away from you.

sure, you might’ve been walking with a new kind of confidence around you, and the things you liked may not have been the exact same. but your love for the lake was still there. you still wore your hair up in messy ponytails the way you used to, and you still had the same liking for the kind of comfortably styled clothing.

the love of his life was still the same.

“are you okay?”

he loses himself in your words, and he’s not sure if it’s just the way you had said it, or if it was how genuine your voice sounded as you asked him. but something about the way you looked at him, with the softest gaze he’s ever seen, gives him the courage to answer you.

it’s a question he had heard plenty of times now. from his brothers, his teammates—pretty much everyone around him has asked him the same exact thing. it was a question he could never really answer properly, and even now, he still doesn’t know how to answer it.

but he tries his best to give an answer to you, even if it’s not the most accurate.

quinn couldn’t tell you just how much he was hurting still from losing you. it would be a lie if he said he had not been wondering for the past four years if things could have been easier with you still by his side. it would be another lie if he also said he didn’t feel his heart pounding and butterflies fluttering in his chest the moment he saw you walk in the door of the lake house earlier that day.

“i’ll be okay,” his answer was surprisingly honest. the most honest he could be in the moment.

quinn knew that he would be okay as time passed. and you hummed in agreement quietly to his words, bringing your legs up to hug them against your chest, chin resting gently upon them as the slow breeze continues to blow past the two of you.

“why didn’t you fight harder for us?”

his question caught you off guard, but it was a question you knew you always had the answer to. but the look he gives you seemed like he was not expecting a proper answer; he was just looking for closure. anything he could get in explanation for why you had ended your relationship the way you did.

“i didn’t want to get in the way of your dream.” your answer was something you had memorized in the back of your mind. but you never thought you would ever have to voice it right to him. even then after hearing it from you, he still didn’t seem satisfied with your answer.

“you were apart of that dream though. i wanted you by my side through everything.” the breaks in his voice didn’t do anything to disguise the pain he was obviously feeling.

“i didn’t want you to have to eventually choose between being in the nhl or staying behind with me. i knew what you wanted, and staying with you through it just seemed too difficult at the time.” your voice was more silent, more of a whisper. but quinn felt like he needed it shouted loud and clear at him.

“i never said that it would be easy for us. but i did know that if we tried, we would’ve been able to make it through. you could’ve waited.”

“you were leaving for vancouver that night. i didn’t know exactly when you were coming back, or if we’d even be the same while you were away in a whole different country.” you thought that quinn had let out all he had to say, but you werent prepared for the large pain you would be feeling in your heart at what he said next.

“you know, i was going to ask you to marry me.”

the thought that you had let marriage with quinn slip away just as quickly as you did with your relationship was enough to absolutely break you. especially when he was looking at you, tears shedding down his cheeks he didn’t even know had formed in the first place. the cracks in his voice broke through the peace that the cool breeze was bringing to the both of you.

“i’m so sorry.”

you were aware of everything that you were letting go of that night you walked out on him, and a sob itches at the back of your throat for the life you could’ve had with quinn.

noticing the large set of tears now escaping from your eyes, quinn is quick to pull you into his hold, hands finding the familiar spots on your back that he knew were quick to calm you down.

“i didn’t mean to end things for us the way i did.” the words he heard leave you were heartbreaking. you sounded so defeated.

“i didn’t think we would end like that either. i thought we would never end. i thought that we could get through anything, and be by each other’s side through anything life had in store for us.”

your shoulders felt like they had a large weight on them, physically able to drag you down to the deep depths of the water. it pained you to know how willing he was to make things work with you even through the time that seemed to be the hardest.

“shh, it’s okay.” he hushed down your sobs, pulling from you and holding your cheeks in his palms, using his thumbs to wipe away the tears that refused to stop running down your soft skin.

“i want you to know.. i’m proud of you. for all that you’ve accomplished, you know. i’m so proud of you for reaching your dream.”

it’s the first time you’ve said the words out loud, and it truly felt so good to finally be able to tell him just how proud you were of him, especially with how much time and effort he had put into his passion.

that was your first time smiling that night, even thought it was paired with the messy tears splayed across your cheeks and red puffy eyes , he smiled right back at you. quinn was glad to hear that, even if it wasn’t very direct, your heart still thinks of him always. and then he’s left to wonder if you ever notice the way he kisses the chain you had gifted him on your first year anniversary everytime before he goes on the ice. without ever forgetting, his lips always make contact with the silver, reminding him of one of the dearest people that had stuck with him through all of the cruel training and would take care of him when he ended up overworking himself.

the feeling of having you so close and the sight of the gentle smile on your lips was something quinn never wanted to leave. “i wish we could just start over. but maybe the universe just doesn’t work like that for us..”

“but what if we could try again? what if this time there was no end?”

you notice how his eyes travel between both of yours, then to your lips, and then back to your eyes once more. and the sight of his quivering lips, really the most vulnerable you’ve ever seen the man, has you sucking in a deep breath.

“do you really think we’d be able to make it?”

the hard thumping of your heart grows louder and louder through your ears when he starts leaning in, and you can feel the world around you darkening. the only sight visible being the man sitting right in front of you, and when his forehead lands on yours, you were convinced that you no longer knew how to breathe. “i think we’re worth another try.”

when his hands find their place on your cheeks for the second time that night, this time your eyes flutter closed and you allow your lips to meet his in a slow kiss that you didn’t even know you were yearning for all this time until you actually felt it. it was slow, deep, passionate; every possible emotion was being expressed through the way the two of you kissed each other. your touches clouding your minds until all you can feel is one another. not even the cool breeze in the starry night could be felt anymore.

memories coming back to mind of the same night you shared your first kiss, on the same lake, under the same amount of endless stars, with the same man you loved so long ago. however this time, the both of you are a bit more grown than before.

and now, there is a new memory, where the hope for the two of you is brought back, and the love you once felt so deeply gets to have a second chance.

[alisonsfics]

red carpet premieres

pairing: kit connor x costar!reader

summary: after not seeing kit for a few months, you both are reunited at a red carpet event for heartstopper

word count: 2.1k

As you sat in the busy airport, your eyes were drawn to all of the chaos around you: parents struggling to calm their kids down, people in business suits rushing to make their flight.

You were at the biggest airport in New York, so you shouldn’t have been shocked. You were currently waiting to board your flight to Los Angeles for the red carpet premier of the newest season of Heartstopper.

“Hello hello hello,” you heard a chipper voice say beside you. You looked over and saw Will with his suitcase and an iced coffee in hand.

“There you are, I was worried you were going to be late.” You teased him. He jokingly rolled his eyes as he took a seat next to you. “And how long have you been here?” He asked you.

Your silence spoke volumes as to your answer. Will started to chuckle. “Fine, I’ve been here for two hours, but what if security had a really long line or if something went wrong?” You said, justifying your dedication to being early.

“See, you are and forever will be the mom friend of our group.” Will reminded you. You couldn’t stop the giggles that escaped your lips. All of the cast had decided that you and Kit were the mom and dad of the group.

This was inspired by two things. First, you both were the most responsible people in the cast. Second, you both were harboring some secret crushes on each other that everyone knew about.

“Speaking of, how is your fellow co-parent?” Will asked you. Your shrugged your shoulders. “I haven’t seen him in a while.” You told him, sadly. This was one of the reasons you were so excited to see him at the premiere tonight.

“As though you both don’t FaceTime everyday. We all know you both couldn’t stand to go that long without talking to each other.” Will continued to tease. You could tell that your cheeks were heating up. You were also struggling to keep the smirk off of your face because you knew every word he was saying was true.

You hid your face in your hands trying to hide the fact that you couldn’t keep a straight face.

“Yeah, you totally look like you’re not in love with him.” Will said, sarcastically.

You groaned with frustration. “If it’s so obvious, what am I supposed to do when Kit finds out? He’ll never speak to me again.” You told Will. He reached a hand out and placed it on your shoulder to comfort you.

“Hey hey, Kit would never do that. Plus, I know we tease you both about it all the time, but I really think Kit has feelings for you. He’s always smiling when you’re around, and when you’re not around, all he does is talk about you.” Will told you. He really wanted the best for you and Kit. You were best friends, and he knew how happy you and Kit would be together.

“I may have lied when I said I hadn’t seen Kit since the last time the cast was together.” You told him, honestly.

About two months ago, you and the rest of the cast had to film some promotional content for the show. After that, you had been in New York working on some projects, while Kit had been in Boston. You both had really missed each other and knew you had to spend some time together.

“What is this I’m hearing about? A little secret date rendezvous?” Will asked, shocked. You both hadn’t mentioned it originally because you were worried there’d be more teasing about you both being in love with each other. But, if Will really thought Kit liked you, you wanted him to know.

“It wasn’t a date or anything romantic. We both happened to have a day off at the same time, so Kit bought a train ticket to New York, and we spent the whole day together.” You told Will. A smile grew on his face, seeing how happy you were talking about Kit.

“Wait was that the day you were late to breakfast with me and you were all smiley when I asked why you were late?” Will asked you, started to peace it together.

You shrugged with a giant smirk on your face. “I was happy I got to spend time with my best friend, but it wasn’t a date.” You told him.

You both continued to talk about the reasons Kit did or didn’t possibly like you throughout the flight. If you were going to make a move on Kit, you wanted to be pretty confident he liked you back.

You both landed at the airport and got to your hotel room before the premiere. After you both got ready, you headed over to the premiere in your limo.

When you arrived, you noticed only Joe and Bash on the red carpet, so you knew you were among the first to arrive. Will gestured for you to go first, and you posed on the carpet for pictures. Things continued as normal.

You smiled for all the cameras and posed just like you had done a million times.

You heard commotion among the photographers. Then, you realized they were calling Kit's name. You looked to your right and saw Kit standing on the red carpet. He glanced your direction, and your face lit up. He instantly smiled at you and waved.

Without wasting a second, he jogged over to where you were standing. “Hi,” you said, at the pitch of almost a squeal.

Kit wrapped his arms around you, picking you up off your feet and spinning you around. You could see the speedy flashes of the cameras as they all took pictures of your sweet reunion.

“I’ve missed you,” Kit whispered in your ear as he set you back on your feet. “I’ve missed you too,” you replied, resting your hands on his arms.

He pulled you into another hug, and the cameras began furiously flashing again. Everyone would be talking about the pictures tomorrow and how you happy you both looked.

“I’ve been looking forward to seeing you tonight,” he whispered in your ear, then you both started posing together for pictures. His arm effortlessly slid around your waist, and it felt more natural than you’d like to admit.

You heard an interviewer calling your name, so you pulled yourself away from Kit. She quickly introduced herself as Sarah and began asking you questions.

“While we know you can’t tell us much about what to expect in season two, but do you have any favorite moments from filming season two?” She asked. You nodded along to her question.

“Oooo favorite moment? There was one day that we had to do a night shoot, so we were all a little exhausted. Eventually, Joe, Kit, Yaz, Will, and I got a little delirious and giggly. The group of us just couldn’t keep it together. We just kept cracking up and once one of us was giggling, we all just couldn’t stop.” You told her, smiling as you recalled the memory.

You continued answering her questions, slightly going into autopilot with the typical questions.

You felt a slight chill go down your spine. The cool evening air felt soft against your skin, but you couldn’t help but shiver a little. You subconsciously crossed your arms and continued answering questions.

You felt a warm hand press against the small of your back. You turned around and saw Kit standing there. He gave you a soft smile. “I don’t mean interrupt. I just wanted to give you this.” Kit said, placing his jacket over your shoulders. Your lips curved up into a smile at his sweet gesture.

Then, Kit walked away to go back to the interview he was doing. You slipped your arms into Kit’s jacket, warming up instantly.

You continued rotating between interviews and posing for photographers.

Then, they called all the cast members for a big group photo. You huddled together, and Kit magically showed up at your side.

“Hi,” you said, cheerily smiling at him. He returned your smile. His arm slipped around your waist. Your big group all smiled for the photo.

Then, confetti went off above your heads, shocking you all. Kit was in awe as you watched you smiling and watching the confetti fall.

“What?” You asked when you finally noticed Kit staring at you. He just shook his head and smiled at you. He brushed some hair behind your ear, then grabbed a piece of confetti that was stuck in your hair.

He placed the confetti in his palm and playfully blew it towards you. You giggled softly to yourself. After standing there for a while, the cast starting to walk inside to the party celebrating the premiere.

Kit placed his two hands on your shoulders, so he wouldn’t lose you in the crowd. Once you both made it inside, you spotted Will, Yaz, and Joe. You made a beeline for them, and Kit followed.

“Mom and dad are back together.” Joe cheered when he spotted you both walking towards them. Yaz and Will joined his cheers and smiled at you.

“Alright, enough enough,” Kit said, trying to calm them down.

“We just love seeing you together. You’re best friends.” Will added. When Kit looked away, Will winked at you. You frowned at him, signaling him to stop.

“I’m going to go get a water. I’ll be right back.” Yaz said, and Kit followed after her. “Will told me you were going to try to make a move on Kit tonight.” Joe said, wiggling his eyebrows at you.

You playfully hit Will’s arm. “That was supposed to be a secret.” You said, giggling. “Well, I’m excited for you both. You better tell me how it goes.” Joe told you.

You glanced over Will’s shoulder and saw Kit standing at the bar with Yaz. He met your gaze and smiled at you from across the room.

You continued talking to Will and Joe, then Yaz rejoined your circle. You turned, expecting to see Kit following her, but you didn’t.

Then, you saw Kit talking to a girl, who was leaning in really close to him. You instantly felt a pit of jealousy in your stomach. Will noticed where you were looking. “Hey,” he said, softly. He reached out to comfort you, but you pushed his hand away.

You started walking towards Kit, knowing you had to tell him how you felt before it was too late. The girl excused herself from him right before you got to him.

“Hey, there you are,” Kit said, smiling at you. He noticed the shift in your demeanor instantly. Normally, you were all smiles when he was around.

“So, I don’t know who that girl was, but I just really need to tell you something. I’ve been meaning to tell you for a while, but I’ve been terrified. You’re my best friend, and you mean the absolute world to me. You make me so happy, and in more than a friend way. The last thing I want to do is destroy our friendship, but I can’t keep this in anymore, so I’m sorry if I just ruined everything.” You confessed.

Kit just stared at you. You could almost see his brain trying to piece together what you had told him. Then, he cupped your face and kissed you.

It took a second for your shock to wear off, but then you kissed him back. Kit’s arms wrapped around your waist, pulling you close to him. His lips moved smoothly against yours.

Both of you felt like you were on top of the world. You had been waiting a very long time for this to happen.

You both pulled out of the kiss and had giddy smiles on your face. “Wow, I can’t believe we just did that.” He said, smiling down at you.

“In a good way or a bad way?” You asked him, double-checking.

He chuckled at your uncertainty. “Definitely a good way,” he said, pulling you back in for another kiss. Over your shoulder, you heard cheering from your friends. “Mom and dad,” Will cheered.

“I guess we have a few fans.” You said, as you both pulled away. He nodded his head. “They did kind of predict the two of us having feelings for each other.” He told you, grinning.

“And here they come,” you said, seeing all your friends walking towards you. Kit grabbed your hand, interlacing your fingers and giving your hand a squeeze. “You guys finally did it.” Will cheered, pulling you both into a hug.

“Mom and dad are finally mom and dad. I love you guys,” Joe added.

When you had imagined your first kiss with Kit, all the versions you could think of involved a quiet date with just the two of you. You definitely didn’t expect it to be at a premiere, surrounded by all your friends. But now? You wouldn’t have it any other way.

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[dawllick]

Things I would like to see in Season 2 under the cut

- Lucy and Cooper discussing their past marriages sjdbjdbdnd

“My wife was willing to drop bombs to preserve our family.”

“I married, fucked, and killed my husband and said marriage lasted…less than 2 hours.”

“Sweetie what the fuck I thought you were nice”

- Lucy telling Cooper the ghoul she shot was her mom and what she found out from Moldaver

- Max doesn’t have to lie to have a good time

- more Max and Dane, idc if romantic or platonic they just have better chemistry than max and Lucy I’m sorrryyyyy

- Cooper teaches Lucy to swear

- Lucy finding out who the Ghoul is

- Let Dane meet the Ghoul. I have no reason for this other than I think it could be interesting and a little funny

- let Stephanie do a violence. She’s earned it.

- let Reg and Woody reunite they should not have been separated

- the dog gets a new toy 💕

- Chet becomes a house husband

- Norm is okay and fine and not in a paralyzing and horrific trauma situation

- vault 4 riot post finding out Moldaver was killed

- vault 4 still hasn’t sharpened that sword lmao

- vault 4 overseer has twice as many moldy cups of whatever on his desk now

- more monsters esp with Lucy and Coop like walking in a small group to wherever her dad fucked off to, but for horror and FIGHTS

- Coop saves Lucy bc uh oh he cares

- Lucy having a whole “you did a nice thing!!! We are friends!!!” And coop threatening to cut off another finger

- more Lucy and coop parallels they really went off on that shit

- Max just becomes the Steve Harrington of this show, just gets beat up all the fucking time RIP

- also I wanna see Lucy’s dad suffer for so many reasonsssss :)

- wardrobe stay away from coop his outfit is perfect please do not change it unless you get something cooler

- maybe have a vault that was built faulty and didn’t hold up and so it became inhabited by whatever so horror vault for someone

- when Max and Lucy reunite no one is mad just happy the other is alive

[hwangism143]

limbo (part 3)

synopsis: you finally reunite with hyunjin and felix, but things take an unprecedented detour

pairing: non-idol!minho x non-idol!fem reader

warnings: swearing, drinking, mentions of food and eating

word count : 711 words

a/n: ok so i KNOW IT'S REALLY SHORT but this is more of a peace offering since it's been weeks since my last update. i am having severe writer's block with this fic i'm so sorry :(

part 2 | masterlist | part 4

now.

You were engulfed in a bear hug, courtesy of Lee Felix. He wrapped his arms around you tightly and sniffed, tears welling in his eyes.

"I missed you so much," he said, pushing a warm box of brownies towards you.

You couldn't help but laugh, ruffling his hair in affection. Beside him, Hyunjin gave you a dramatic eyeroll, distressed by the information that you text Eun-bi everyday but texted them 'once in a blue moon' (how bold of him to call your weekly two-hour long gossip sessions once in a blue moon, but oh well).

It was true, you had gotten extremely close to Eun-bi after moving away. You both chatted on the phone regularly, leading you to add another member to your best friend roster. Eun-bi somehow always knew what to say to you. Maybe it was stemming from the experience of having lived longer than you (as you frequently reminded her), but conversations were never boring with her. She, thankfully, never touched upon the topic of Minho. Even though Hyunjin and Felix had bombarded you with questions about your break-up after it had freshly happened, she never did.

Soon, you two became each other's go-to person for everything. You got a promotion at work? You told her first. She and Chan got engaged? You were the first to find out from her end. You couldn't even just call Eun-bi a close friend; she was like a sister to you in every way that mattered.

In what seemed like an instant, the three of you got to conversing, not a single bump in the conversation. It reminded you of your college days, sitting at the corner of a tiny coffee shop when the boys needed escape from their astoundingly loud dorm house, hunched over textbooks and coffee that was exponentially cooling.

You were happy that Felix and Hyunjin were working with their college group of friends. You knew how strong the bond those eight boys shared was. You were also extremely surprised to know that 3Racha were doing extremely well in the Korean entertainment industry and were looking to branch out into western music. For some reason, you had always thought it would be the other way around.

Conversation continued even after your food came, Hyunjin making a fuss after taking a steaming bite of barbecued chicken and Felix silently (yet extremely obviously) judging the brownie ice cream that sat in front of him. Hyunjin's phone dinged! in his pocket and he took it out the check what was written. His face contorted as soon as he read it.

"What's wrong?" you ask. Hyunjin offers you no response, instead exchanging a worried glance with Felix. Assuming that it's work problems, you busy yourself into sneaking a spoon of Felix's untouched dessert while he wasn't looking.

Hyunjin cleared his throat and you looked at him, savoring the chocolatey explosion that was currently ongoing inside your mouth. You raised your eyebrows and tilted your head slightly upwards, non-verbally signaling him to just spit out whatever he so desperately looked like he wanted to say.

"So, uh, Chan hyung is hosting a party this weekend to celebrate you coming. The whole gang will be there..." Hyunjin's voice trails off.

"You don't have to come," said Felix quickly, "But Chan hyung and Eun-bi noona do have a killer penthouse."

You feel both pair of eyes trained upon you. You must have been like a bomb to them right now, ready to detonate at any given second. Yet, you mind was elsewhere.

Ah. The whole gang. You knew what this meant. Minho would be there. Either way, it didn't matter to you. The thought of meeting your old friends made you feel giddy. And yes, what Minho did to you was in your eyes, unforgivable, but you were fine with it nonetheless. Eventually, you both would learn to have to be cordial with each other. That was growing, wasn't it? Learning to live with things that had hurt you and moving on all the same. After all, Minho was your friend before he was your lover. As unlikely as it seemed, you both may at least remain some semblance of 'friends'.

"Okay," you said giving the two boys a tight smile, "I'll be there."

main taglist (reply to be added) - @linoalwaysknows @moon0fthenight

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

"Mirror, Mirror, on the Wall, Who's the Fairest of Them All?"

This set of headcanons was the most difficult for me to write for of the 7 dorms. I think it’s because I don’t immediately associate Pomefiore with any group activities, unlike most of the others.

Note: Rollo does not canonically dislike apples, I just decided to run with it to go along with the whole joke of him being Catholic... and how apples are representative of "the first sin" in much of pop culture.

A Big Pomefiore Welcome to Rollo!

Four dormitory visits in, and Rollo's dreading the next. He expects it to be every bit as exhausting as the first four were, whether physically or mentally. But no, he won't let his spirit be broken, won't let these NRC students under his skin!! Rollo trudges onward.

Pomefiore boasts a pleasant atmosphere right as he enters their realm. It is filled with soft birdsong and lush greenery, sunshine coming down upon his face. He shields his eyes and squints at the rustic castle towering ahead. it's grand, imposing, and filled with rich history. So far, so good.

At this point, Rollo expects someone to jump out of the bushes to annoy him, but the entire walk to the entrance is uneventful. Something is very wrong here, he thinks, slowly rapping on the doors. Does a jump scare await him beyond it? Rollo braces himself when the doors creak open and push out.

“Bienvenu, Roi du Mouchoir!!” an irritatingly familiar voice calls out to him. Rook rushes at Rollo at a frightening speed, nearly crushing the man's bones in a hug he's too slow to avoid. An arm coiling around him like a snake, a hand on the small of his back, Rook happily welcomes Rollo inside.

The huntsman talks. Incessantly. He talks about how happy he is to be reunited with him, he talks about the beautiful weather, he talks about the wonderful reception Pomefiore has painstakingly planned to welcome his arrival. He just about never stops talking, never wipes that big, dumb smile off of his face. It’s plainly unsettling.

Rollo utters a sharp “Tais-toi!”, which finally silences Rook (but only for about all of 5 seconds). His eyes crease, and something about his expression reminds Rollo of a hungry fox. “Ah, I see that your fiery fervor has yet to dim. Harboring such unyielding ideals… Fufufu, that tenacious spirit of yours makes you a wonderful fit in the realm of the Beautiful Queen.”

“Tch. You keep speaking in that overly familiar tone of voice,” Rollo snips as he and Rook come to a new set of doors, “acting as though we’re on amicable terms, ushering me into your fold. Make no mistake, I do NOT plan on becoming intimate with…”

The doors open into an opulent lounge decorated for a fancy reception. Streamers are suspended from the ceiling, confetti dusting open seats, vases of flowers topping ever counter, petals spilling in a luxurious waterfall from one table. Sitting upon elegant purple cloths are plates of hors d'oeuvres and flutes with sparkling liquids.

Students in robes with billowing sleeves are scattered around a throne where a beautiful man sits. Nervously standing at the seated queen’s side is a shorter boy with fluffy lilac hair and large eyes. Their gazes momentarily meet, and there’s a flicker of recognition in both of them. It’s Epel Felmier from the masquerade.

Rook approaches, sweeping his feathered hat off and bowing. “Je suis revenu.” There’s a nod from the beautiful man—the dorm’s ruler, Rollo believes—as he raises a hand to the onlookers. “Thank you for escorting our guest to the venue, Rook. Now then, let the festivities begin.” The Pomefiore students clap politely for him as soft orchestral music begins to play, as if by magic.

“Well then, my friend—” (“We are NOT friends,” Rollo sharply corrects Rook.) “—please enjoy yourself! As sorrowful as it is to part ways, cruel Fate dictates it must be so. Worry not, our paths will surely cross again! Until then, I leave you with this token to remember me by.” Rook produces a rose from his sleeve and slips it into Rollo’s hat, then prances off to his dorm leader.

Rollo removed the the rose crushes it in his palm like a stress ball. He lets the crumpled flower fall to his feet, mingling with the petals already on the polished floor.

“Erm, Rook-senpai… Is it okay to really let him walk around the party without supervision?” Epel asks as his upperclassman draws near. “Won’t he… um, you know??” (To this, Rook chuckles. “Non, we needn’t worry. Acting so boldly in broad daylight is not to his style.“)

Rollo tries to minimize his presence, finding some quiet corner to stand in until the reception ends. Unfortunately for him, Pomefiore students keep walking up to chat. He’s on edge, expecting them to be combative or nosy—but no, he finds that they’re a more insidious kind of evil… the underhanded, subtler sort.

Many of the mob students compliment his outfit. However just as many of them raise their eyebrows when they see him up close. They coo about how Rollo’s complexion looks so haggard and how he has such dark circles under his eyes. (A few of them also remark that his haircut is “a choice”.)

Some mob students start giving him (uncalled for) beauty tips and product recommendations. Retinol creams, vitamin C serums, sleeping masks—all manner of lotions and potions to supposedly “fix” his dark circles and sickly look.

Rollo takes their words as gracefully as he can, but inside his annoyance steadily accumulates. (How shallow and frivolous their interests are!! And how dare they try to impose their vain standards onto him?!)

The conversation soon takes a turn into history, a subject which he finds much more enjoyable. He hears of the Beautiful Queen and passes on stories of the Righteous Judge—equal parts give and take.

Rollo learns that their dorm leader, Vil, is skilled in the laboratory. Potions, poisons… he can brew them all. “He even tends to our plants and harvests them to create his own cosmetics,” a mob student excitedly tells Rollo. “That’s our Vil-sama!”

“What a coincidence. I, too, partake in gardening as a hobby.” Rollo chooses his words very carefully, but still a smirk finds its way onto his face. He can’t help but sneer a little at these hapless fools (who misinterpret the look as an awkward attempt at a smile). “Fufufu, yes… I do so love flowers of a crimson color in particular. Lotuses have a charm to them as well. The red ones are reminiscent of fire.”

Every time Rollo has to take an aside to cover his (frequent) grimaces with his handkerchief, the Pomefiore mobs remark on how thoughtful and graceful it is for him to do such a thing. They start talking about how they, too, should invest in their own handkerchiefs—what colors and designs should they consider? “… Any will do,” Rollo grumbles.

When he thinks about it, a lot of the Pomefiore mobs’ admiration for Vil reminds him of his own peers back at NBC. They stare at him with sparkling eyes full of adoration, praising him for every achievement, falling over themselves to be at his beck and call. Hmph, how foolish.

A feeling of unease never fully leaves Rollo as he converses with others. He feels as though he’s still being watched by Rook—yet when he glances over to check on the huntsman, he seems preoccupied whispering into Vil’s ear or laughing a something Epel said. As soon as Rollo looks away, that eerie sensation returns.

When the mob students finally retreat into their own smaller circles and cliques, Rollo decides to have a light snack to regain all that energy he just expended entertaining nosy idiots. He’s pleased to find foods that remind him of home: charcuterie boards, cheeses, grapes, breads—

An awkward cough sounds from behind him. “W-Would you like some juice, sir?” It’s Epel, shyly offering a glass to him. (From a distance, Rook nods encouragingly and gives him two thumbs up. Vil sighs, swirling around liquid in a goblet of his own.)

“You were sent personally,” Rollo remarks. (Epel was; Vil had prodded him to go so he could observe how he handled himself in a strained social situation.) “Why?” (“You um… seemed thirsty?”)

“It’s not poisoned, is it?” Rollo asks suspiciously, cautiously accepting the glass. (“N-Nossir! It ain’t! I swear it on mah life!!” Epel insists.) He peers inside and finds golden juice. “This must be apple. Do you have an alternative? Perhaps grape.”

“E-Eh?” Epel seems surprised (and mildly offended) by the request. “You prefer grapes to apples?” ("I do. Apples may keep for a long time relative to other fruits, but I find the texture of them to be quite mealy and difficult to get down.")

"Mealy?!" Epel's outburst draws the attention of everyone in the room (including Vil, who does not look pleased). The first year mutters an apology before returning to Rollo. "I'm sure there's some kind of apple you must like...? There's many new breeds out now because of advances in MMOs."

"Magically modified organisms?" Rollo sneers at the idea. "What makes you think I would want to ingest produce that has been touched by magic? The concept itself is abhorrent. Apples were simply meant to be the lesser fruit."

"LESSER FRUIT?!" Epel's even louder (and more appalled) this time. “You oughta take that back ‘fore I…!” Vil frowns and rises from his throne. Epel pales and instantly shuts up as his dorm leader sashays toward them.

"My, I do hope our Epel isn't imposing on you," Vil drawls, glaring at the first year. Epel's prepared to be chewed out--but miraculously, he's spared with the wave of Vil's hand. (He scrambles off with Rook, leaving Rollo to Vil.) "As you can plainly see, there’s still much work to be done in terms of his manners and temperament. Some potatoes take more time and effort to whip into shape than others, I'm afraid."

“Of course. I completely understand.” Rollo’s reply is terse and stiff as he regards Vil—a famous face he recalls seeing in various works, posted about almost religiously online. An idol for the masses, is his immediate thought, flaunting about like a primping peacock. Pushing products and an excessive lifestyle for others to ogle and covet. Encouraging sin.

Epel gives Rollo a dirty look when he’s sure Vil isn’t looking. “No way can anyone hate apples and be a good person!! His heart is pure black, Rook-senpai!!" Epel clutches onto the robes of his upperclassman. "He definitely still can’t be trusted!!”

“I don't believe I've had the chance to formally introduce myself." Vil slowly swirls around the carbonated apple juice in his own goblet. "Vil Schoenheit—a pleasure. I’ve heard so many stories about you.” None of them good, Rollo suspects.

With a glance around the room, Vil sighs. He gestures to the garden that awaits beyond a window. “It’s getting to be a bit stuffy in here. Would you care to take this outside?”

Rollo seizes the opportunity to escape from the suffocating space and prying eyes. He enters the night, finding comfort in the darkness and silence. For a moment, he almost forgets that Vil is with him—until he hears the distinctive clacking of a sharp nail against glass.

“I hope Pomefiore’s hospitality has met your standards,” Vil says nonchalantly. “Rook tells me you’re very particular.” And truthfully? Rollo confesses to him that it’s been the least abrasive of the dorms he has visited thus far. Vil makes a face. “… I had my expectations set low for some of the others, but I can’t fathom what horrors you’ve experienced at the their hands.“

“You have some sense in you.” What a shame it is that you are a mage. Rollo doesn’t speak his true thoughts out loud, but Vil seems to sense the animosity radiating off of him.

He gives a snooty laugh. “You must think little of me. As an A-list actor, I can see easily through your facade. Let’s drop the pretenses, hmm? I’d like to speak with the real Rollo Flamme.” At the invitation, Rollo scowls. Vil smirks right back. “That’s more like it.”

“… What is it that you want? There must be a reason why you’ve gone out of your way to isolate us from the rest of them.”

“A queen can be curious,” Vil explains in a dismissive manner. He sweeps a golden lock behind one ear, treating the scene no different from another set. The moonlight on him as he delivers a soliloquy. “… It goes without saying that I do not approve of your methods. However, there is something to be said of your doggedness. That, at least, deserved to be lauded.”

“You’re congratulating me.” Rollo says it as a statement of disbelief.

“In a way, yes.” Vil’s laugh is low and cruel. “The more you want something, the harder is it to obtain. It’s never quite so simple. You’re promised the world as a child, and then you grow up and realize the world doesn’t owe you a happy ending no matter how hard you bite and hiss and claw for it. I know of that frustration well myself.”

Vil wants the truth? He’ll get the truth. Rollo lets the vitriol slip into his voice, turning it pointed and poisonous. “I’m appalled that you would even imply that we are similar. Do not compare me with the likes of you…!”

“Am I wrong? Please, enlighten me.” There’s a newfound satisfaction in Vil’s expression. He knows he has not won, but that he has gotten under Rollo’s skin. “It’s difficult to put on a smile and act as though all is well, isn’t it? That’s the burden we bear. The roles we are expected to play.” Vil smiles a bit. “Perhaps in another life, I would have welcomed you as a student of my dormitory.”

“If a second life exists, I would want a life of normalcy—not to be jailed in your gilded cage of a castle,” Rollo spits out. “I would wish to be free of this burning curse. I would have him back.” I could be happy again in that fairer world.

Vil nods and solemnly lifts his glass. “… To your wish upon a star—and your efforts to realize it.” Rollo finds himself mimicking the motion, compelled by a feeling he doesn’t recognize. Is it a pledge to never give up, even if the world is against him? Is it a part of him acknowledging Vil’s harsh truth? He doesn’t know.

They toast and raise the cups to their lips. Somehow, the apple juice tastes bittersweet on both of their tongues.

With that, Vil turns away. Heels clicking rhythmically, he follows the warm lights spilling out from Pomefiore back inside. He will return to the reception, mingle with his subjects. Maybe scold Epel as he had initially intended to, or tell Rook off for coming onto their guest too strongly.

Rollo is alone in the night.

… Or so he thinks, until a hand comes upon his shoulder.

“Roi du Mouchoir,” Rook says softly, emerging from the shadows as though he were born among them, “Let us make haste back to the reception. You’re the guest of honor—it wouldn’t do to have you running off on us! Ah, but if you do… I would be more than happy to chase you down to the ends of Twisted Wonderland to retrieve you.”

“Wha…?! Where did you come from?!” Rollo jerks away from him with a yelp, which doesn’t seem to bother Rook at all. He keeps smiling that crude, large smile of his and claps. “Très bien, you’re still brimming with vitality for the rest of the evening! Come now, let us return!”

His patience snaps.

“If you know what’s good for you, you’ll keep far away from me!!”

[superjumpintomyheart]

Been thinking a little bit about Eight reuniting with Iso Padre in Inkopolis Square since we can see him in the cafe in splat3. I'm imagining Eight chatting and walking into the cafe with Pearl and Marina, stopping by for a snack before they head in for some turf wars or ranked battles and all of a sudden she stops mid sentence when she spots the isopod sitting at the counter. It's impossible to mistake him for someone else with his signature black suit, and how many other giant isopods inhabit the surface anyways?

Eight- just to be sure- still asks stunned, "Iso Padre?"

He turned around to see who had called him and when he sees the octoling standing there he grins widely, "Young squire, is that you?"

Before Pearl and Marina can even ask Eight about who this interesting person is, she's running across the cafe to give him a hug, laughing as his multiple limbs embrace her. It filled her with such joy to see him here on the surface, in the heart of Inkopolis Square where he always dreamed of being. After they had defeated Commander Tartar and effectively freed the deep sea metro patrons, she worried about where the friends she made along the way had ended up- if somehow they remained trapped underground with no way out. Thankfully, it appeared that wasn't the case, as even someone like Iso Padre who had been on the metro for a long time was able to make it to where he desired to go.

"You made it! I'm so, so happy you're here, how long have you been in Inkopolis?" Eight asked, still holding onto to her dear friend.

"For some time now, although not terribly long. Once the tests stopped being required in the metro I figured it was my chance to follow the light you were chasing as well. Then I made my way here before I even knew were I was going, like it was calling me." He hummed thoughtfully.

She nodded against his chest, finally pulling away to look at him with a smile. In many ways thats what it had felt like for her too, leaving the underground world of octarian life with nothing but the clothes on her back and a heavenly melody in her head, letting instinct guide her. It seemed things always worked out when they trusted what their hearts yearned for.

"I'm so glad," she could almost feel tears beginning to well up in her eyes, overwhelmed with happiness and relief. "It's wonderful here, isn't it? Everything you ever thought it would be?"

Iso Padre chuckled and nodded, "And so much more. I have to say thank you for what you accomplished, Eight. If you hadn't come along I wouldn't be sitting here now, I'm forever grateful for the light you shined on the metro."

"No, I really should be thanking you, Iso Padre. You helped me so much on my journey to get here, with my memcakes and all the support you gave me. I was so thankful to have a friend to rely on."

"Then we both can share thanks for each other," he concluded, patting the octoling on the shoulder.

Eight is suddenly reminded of her friends she came with when she hears Marina coo "awww" from a few feet behind her. As much as she wants to be embarrassed by it, she instead waves the idols over to join them, excitedly introducing them to Iso Padre, "This is Pearl and Marina, you might know them as Off The Hook, but they helped me a ton with escaping the metro too."

"Allow me to extend my thanks to you girls as well, for taking care of Eight both back then and now," he says, offering one hand to shake.

Pearl takes it first, commenting, "No prob, we owe it to you as well for helping her out too. This whole thing was kind of a team effort, huh?"

The group agrees and settles down in the cafe to catch up on life and share stories of the deepsea metro, spending a few hours just talking and enjoying each others presence. From then on, Eight reserves a day of the week to meet up with Iso Padre at the cafe, to stay in touch and update each other on their lives on the surface. Occasionally when she's just heading in for turf war, she makes sure to stop by for a moment just to say hi and he wishes her good luck, and reminds her that no matter how many losses she has at least it will never be as bad as pushing that 8-ball down a narrow pathway again.

[roryelijah02]

Hello! Hope you're doing well! Wondered if you could analyse the whole 'what does Carol want' thing? There's the Eugene&Carol scene where she tells him to go meet Stephanie and then he says "I sincerely hope you get what it is that you want" - and the very next thing for her is negan giving her alpha's head. And then there's the Alpha hallucination being all 'what do you wantttt'. And then daryl asking her if she got what she wants after nearly jumping off a cliff and she says "no and I won't" but then she's insane with emotion when he says "you still got me". There's probably more. What is ittt, what does she want 🙃🫠 I feel like if you put all the scenes in sequence where they touch on it then you could see her working through that question herself, but then I feel like it's left hanging there and I'm never clear on what it actually is.

Hey there. Thank you so much for your ask. I'm very excited to get into this analysis so let's get started.

All throughout season 10a and 10b, a big focus on Carol's mind is to defeat Alpha. A big motivating factor for why she wants to defeat Alpha is to get vengeance and justice for her son, Henry's, death which was caused by Alpha. However, there's also a big part of Carol that wants to defeat Alpha to avoid anything like what happened to Henry and the other people who died at the end of season 9 happening to anybody else, especially Daryl (more on that later).

During Season 10 Episode 9, Squeeze, when the group are trapped in the cave, Carol has a conversation with Daryl where she admits to him that she doesn't just want to ki*l Alpha but that she also wants to hurt her, make her regret everything and beg for forgiveness before she does so. This is what I believe Daryl is referring to when he asks Carol if she got what she wanted in Season 10 episode 16, A Certain Doom. Carol and Daryl can understand each other extremely well, better than they can anybody else, so I believe that Carol knew that conversation was what Daryl was referring to with his question. This is why Carol responds with "no and I won't" because even though this is a really happy moment for her - she's reuniting and making up with Daryl after they had what was probably the worst falling out they've had since their bond blossomed - in terms of that conversation she had with Daryl in Squeeze, she didn't get what she wanted. She ended up having to reach out to Negan for help with defeating Alpha (my thoughts on why she didn't reach out to Daryl about it later) and he ultimately ended up being the one to ki*l her. So despite trying her hardest, Carol didn't manage to hurt Alpha or make her regret everything or beg for forgiveness, she didn't even get to be the person to ki*l her. Something that is interesting to note here is that Carol released Negan from his cell and asked for his help in Season 10 episode 4, Silence The Whisperers, before she had this conversation with Daryl in Squeeze, so if what she told Daryl was truly all she wanted, she was probably already aware at that point that she wouldn't get it because it would be Negan dealing with all of that for her. That's the first thing that makes me think what she said in that conversation during Squeeze wasn't what she truly wanted but I do still believe that the contents of that conversation was what Daryl was referring to with his question.

Let's move on to the scene between Carol and Eugene. Immediately, something important to note is that whilst Carol and Eugene are friends, Eugene doesn't come anywhere near to being as close to Carol as Daryl is. In fact, to emphasise again, nobody is as close to Carol as Daryl is. Therefore, it is very, very unlikely that Carol would have confided in Eugene, or anybody other than Daryl, about what she admitted to Daryl during their conversation in Squeeze. This leads me to believe that whilst yes, Eugene is likely aware that Carol wants vengeance and justice for Henry, he doesn't know the finer details of how Carol wants to take Alpha down and therefore, this makes me think that he's at least only partly talking about Carol's revenge on Alpha when he says he realy hopes she gets what she wants. I'm lead to believe this further by a couple of other things: Firstly, the context of the scene. This scene takes place in season 10 episode 12, Walk With Us. This is just 3 episodes after the cave incident in Squeeze and it's clear that Carol is in bits over her falling out with Daryl, breaking her promise to him and hurting him. This is proven by how in the previous episode, season 10 episode 11, Morning Star, Ezekiel easily finds Carol at Daryl's old camp and when Carol asks how he found her, his response is "This is Daryl's old camp, right? I figured you needed some comfort." This proves how much Ezekiel is aware about what Daryl means to Carol and how, if there's anyone who can provide her with comfort, it's him, even if that's in an indirect manner. However, it's not just Ezekiel who's aware of this. So many characters in the show are fully aware of Carol and Daryl and what they mean to each other. Some examples are: Glenn asking Daryl what they should tell Carol when they return to the prison without him and Negan calling Carol Daryl's girlfriend. Therefore, it is extremely likely that Eugene is also fully aware of what they mean to each other. Eugene has also just witnessed Carol being punched by Yumiko. This is a traumatic thing to go through in general. However, as Eugene is very possibly aware of Carol's past experiences, he's very likely to know that she needs Daryl for comfort during their conversation, just like Ezekiel had in Morning Star. The other thing is that Eugene tells Carol he really hopes she gets what she wants just after Carol tells him to go and be with Stephanie, who she knows he has a romantic interest in based on their conversation. This feeds into how Eugene is very likely to be fully aware of what Daryl and Carol mean to each other. Therefore, I believe that Eugene feels like Carol needs Daryl in this moment and maybe she needs him more than she's letting on so when he says he hopes that she gets what she wants it's almost like he's telling her to go and be with the person who will make her happy/find her happiness just as she's advised him to do with Stephanie.

Side note: I find it very interesting that Carol encouraged Eugene to go and be with the woman he was interested in romantically during season 10 and then during the first season of Daryl Dixon, Daryl encourages a man to go and be with his girlfriend.

Back to the analysis now and the scene that ultimately solidifies my belief that the "what do you want" notion for Carol throughout season 10 isn't just about her wanting revenge on Alpha has to be the scene where Carol hallucinates Alpha in season 10 episode 14, Look At The Flowers. Whilst it's Alpha on our screens talking, showing Alpha is who Carol sees and hears voicing her thoughts, it's important to remember that Carol is hallucinating in this scene and so all the things "Alpha" is saying are actually coming from Carol's head directly, these are distinctly her thoughts. At this point in the season, Alpha is already dead so it's very interesting that "Alpha" asks her "what do you want?" Because if what she wanted was for Alpha to meet her demise, that's already happened, so there has to be something more, right? And like I previously mentioned, I don't think what she wants is about her conversation with Daryl in Squeeze because Carol had already released Negan by the time that conversation happened so knew it was unlikely she'd be able to take Alpha down in exactly the way she wanted and she definitely can't do it now as Alpha is gone. Therefore, in my mind, there's definitely something more to it about what she wants and I believe this scene gives us a detail that heavily suggests what that is. At some point during her conversation with "Alpha", Carol ends up trapped under a boat with a walker desperately trying to get to her. "Alpha" starts listing off the people that Carol has lost: Sophia, Lizzie, Mika and Henry. She even mentions Ezekiel. However, it's Daryl's name that captures Carol's attention when "Alpha" adds him to the list and suggests that Carol could soon come to lose him too. It's this moment, upon hearing Daryl's name and the thought of him being in danger and losing him that gives Carol the emotional strength she needs to push the boat off of her and kill the walker attempting to get her, dislocating her shoulder in the process. This is a very telling moment for me as once again, it emphasises how important Daryl is to Carol and how she feels like she can't lose him. Many Carylers say there's no Carol without Daryl and I fully agree with them.

So, what does Carol Peletier want? Ultimately, whilst I do believe part of it was about wanting revenge on Alphaz wanting justice for Henry and wanting to protect the people around her from Alpha and the Whisperers, I do think it does come down to being about Daryl but Carol can't admit to herself, let alone other people, that it's Daryl who she wants, who her heart lies with, who is the only person who can properlu comfort her because she's terrified of losing him. Carol's conversation with "Alpha" confirmed that because the minute that she thought he could be in danger, she said that she could never let that happen and it was this notion that gave her the strength to get out from under the boat. It's also why Carol went to Negan for help with Alpha instead of going to Daryl because she knew how dangerous Alpha was - look at what happened to Henry - and if anybody had to lose their life in order to take Alpha down, it makes sense that Carol would've preferred it to happen to a villain like Negan instead of the man she cares about the most, Daryl. I believe Carol's fear of losing Daryl stems from all the other losses she's been through, especially after what she had to do to Lizzie, which makes her feel like she isn't worthy of him. I believe that Carol feels like she has a curse on peiple, where if she gets too close to them and crosses a certain line with them, their life will be in danger because look what's happened to all the other people she's loved - Sophia, Lizzie, Mika. With Henry, I feel like Carol started maybe started to think her "curse" was no longer a thing because she'd been Henry's mom for years without anything happening, but then he dies and it starts all over again. This is why, much as Carol really wants to be with Daryl, she feels like she's not worthy of him, like she doesn't deserve him and like she'll be putting his life in danger if she tells him how she feels about him/if they cross that line. That's why all of those times that people ask, she can't admit that to them, she can't admit it to anyone.

Hopefully, if she gets to work through some of her trauma in The Book Of Carol like the synopsis and information we've been given about the show have suggested, this will leave Carol's heart more open to letting Daryl in in the way she wants 🤞