#sorry I’m so late with asks they always blindsight me

[gaymcwee]

Oh! Super curious, but if you were a Pokemon Trainer what would your battle quotes be? Things like victory, defeat, your Pokemon landing a super effective hit, your Pokemon taking a super effective hit, Pokemon on low HP, Pokemon fainting, low HP victory, stuff like that?

It would start with me saying ‘can we not?’ and end with me on the floor unconscious. Win or loose

Everything in between is me crying

[ladyblogger-margie]

Permit Pending - Part 4

Pairing: Will Miller (Triple Frontier) x F!Reader

Summary: When Will tries to push you away, you turn to the Morales’ for help. 

Words Count: 3304

Rating: 18+ ONLY (PTSD related issues, shower sex, unprotected sex, cream pie, PinV penetrative sex) Some angst. 

a/n: Thank you to everyone whose been reading, sharing, and liking this series! If you’re struggling with mental health, it’s okay to reach out for support. Take care of yourselves! 

Series Master List

All In

“You’ve reached, Will Miller. Please leave your name and number after the beep and I will return your call as soon as I am able,” Will’s voicemail spoke to you, just as it had all day when you tried to call him. 

The morning after you witnessed the true weight of Will’s PTSD symptoms you had woken up alone. You knew that his PTSD was something he struggled with; you had noticed him wince at a car backfire when walking through the park one day, and a few other small moments, but this was different. He called this an episode. You’ve never been with someone with PTSD before and didn’t know the etiquette, you were waiting for him to talk to you first. 

That being said, you had done some research and felt so stupid for forgetting everything you had read the moment he woke you up in the middle of the night. It was just so unexpected, the night before had seemed totally average. You guys watched some mindless science-fiction movie you didn’t care about; you were barely paying attention as Will had spent most of the time with his hand gripped tightly around your hip which had been way more interesting for sure. He was quiet before you went to sleep, but you just assumed he was tired. In retrospect, you could see the slightest hint of the signs peeking beneath his calm exterior. Signs you promised you’d never miss again. 

You checked your phone, rereading the two texts you’ve already sent him in response to the simple message you’d woken up to instead of your boyfriend’s warm embrace. “Sorry about last night. I’ll call you,” was all it said, but it’s after dinner and he hasn’t called you all day. 

You puttered around your apartment catching up on housework you’ve neglected as a result of spending so much time with Will lately. Eventually it got late enough that you knew he’d be asleep - he was so set to a routine that you could picture him following it exactly and it broke your heart to feel so removed from it. You’d thought you were part of that routine now. Since you had started dating you’d rarely spent a day apart, none of those days were unscheduled. He certainly had never forgotten to wish you goodnight. 

Will laid in bed, thoughts of you swirling around his head. He knew you were at home, comfortable in bed, and he longed to be with you. All his thoughts were wrapped up in you. He felt that what he was doing was right, but he missed you so badly the ache in his chest was nearly unbearable. He couldn’t sleep, agonizing over the idea of you home alone thinking that you had done something wrong. In his eyes you were perfect, and you didn’t deserve what he was doing to you. 

You went to bed where you tossed and turned for several hours. You felt that you and Will had something special together, and you had believed that he cared about you, and you clung to that as you forced yourself into a restless sleep.

You swore to yourself that you would never define your life by a man, but here you were, checking your phone compulsively, just waiting for some indication that your feelings weren’t one sided. 

You did impeccable work every day, your parks were in good order, your permit applications were completed on time and in good standing. Yet, here you were, aching for William Miller to call you, or simply text you back. You knew his brothers called him “Ironhead” and now you were beginning to understand exactly how stubborn that man could be. 

It has been a week since you heard from Will, and you weren’t sure what else to do, so you called Maria. 

“Hello! So good to hear from you,” her sing-song voice rang through the phone, her chipper mood exactly opposite to yours, “What’s up?”

“Hey, has Frankie talked to Will lately?” you asked, pinching your nose, feeling embarrassed for having called, “it’s just I haven’t heard from him and he said he’d call me.”

“Let me ask,” she said and you heard her set the phone down. You waited for her to come back, biting your nails - a habit you thought you were long past - until she picked up the phone again. “You know that martini bar on 12th street? It has a stupid name?” she asked, her voice much more serious now. 

“Um, Martiny’s right?” you asked. 

“Yeah, meet me there,” she said and hung up. 

At Matiny’s you had a martini and your friend in front of you when you asked her, “What’s this all about?”

“Will isn’t going to call you,” she said sadly. 

You felt the air drop out of your lungs, totally blindsighted, “He’s trying to ghost me?”

“Basically, yes. He’s, he’s a good guy -” she started before you interrupted.

“I know he’s a good guy, well I thought I knew he was a good guy, this is coming out of nowhere!” You said before you took a large drink from your chilled glass. 

“He’s trying to get out first,” she tried to explain. 

You were even more confused now, “Get out first?”

“These guys carry a lot of burden thanks to who they are, and they all carry it differently. Will takes it the most personally, sees it as a personality flaw he tries to hide,” she said. 

“He thinks I’m going to break up with him because he has PTSD?” you asked. 

“Wouldn’t be the first time,” Maria said with a sad smile. 

“I - It never even occurred to me. I’ve always known he had PTSD, it seems he completely underestimated me,” you said, a little angry. 

Maria smiled at you and you couldn’t figure out why. 

“What?” you snapped.

“You’re a fighter.”

You smiled back, “I need the chance to show him that I know him better than he thinks I do, prove to him that he’s worthy of this love I have for him.”

“Love?” she winked at you. 

You felt your cheeks get hot and you wouldn’t look at her, but it was true. You were in love with Will Miller and you were determined to prove it to him. 

“Yes,” you barely whispered, “I’m in love with him,” you said before you downed the rest of your drink. 

“He’s at the gym with Benny, Frankie went to see him when I left to meet you. I’ll drive,” she said, as you signaled for the cheque. 

At the gym Benny caught Will off guard with an overly aggressive rib-shot which knocked the wind out of his lungs. 

“The hell was that?” he grunted at his baby brother. 

“You’re the one who said you wanted a distraction,” Benny smirked. 

Frankie shook his head from ringside. “I told you this wasn’t the answer, Will,” Frankie sighed, 

“It wasn’t going to work out, it’s better this way,” Will said firmly. 

“Ghosting? Come on man, I’ve seen how you look at her. You’ll never go through with it,” Benny said. 

“That’s why it has to be this way. If I see her again, I won’t be able to say goodbye,” Will said, licking his lips frustrated. 

Frankie lifted his hat and ran his fingers through his hair, “I know what your ex did to you messed you up,” he said. 

“She was right,” Will sighed. 

“She didn’t want the life you had, she didn't know what it means to be a warrior, what it does to a person,” Frankie said, “But the right girl, she’ll understand.” 

“Are you saying I’ve already found the right girl,” Will said, his voice sharp, “What makes you think you know anything about my relationship?”

Frankie put his hands up in a mock surrender, “I’m not saying I do, only you can know that. I’m just asking you to talk to her before you decide on her behalf how she feels.”

Benny wanders over, removing the fight tape from his hands, “I’ll drive you,” he offers before he gives a playful punch to Will’s shoulder. 

Will shakes his head, “What if she doesn’t want me anymore?” He knew his voice sounded weak, but these guys were his brothers, literally and metaphorically in all the ways that relationship could mean and they knew him better than he knew himself. He needed these guys to help him see there was any hope you could love him back, and assure him he'd be okay if you didn’t. 

Frankie claps a hand to Will’s shoulder, “Then at least you tried. All I know is that finding Maria, making it work with her, it’s the only thing keeping my head above water most days,” he said, “You deserve that too.”

“If she rejects you, we’ll get hammered,” Benny promises. Will knows Benny’s playing things light now but when push comes to shove, if things got dark for him again after this, Benny would be there every step of the way, just like last time. “I have a feeling she’ll say it back, I saw you two at Thanksgiving,” Benny said. 

Will nods, “You drive, my hands are shaking,” and he pushes Benny forward and they head out. 

They reach the door before Frankie says, “I guess I’ll clean and lock up?” and the Miller brothers waved him goodbye, tossing a “Thanks” over their retreating shoulders. 

Frankie was about to lock the doors when you and Maria walked in. 

“Is he here?” You ask before even saying hello.

“What are you doing here?” Frankie asked after giving Maria a quick kiss hello. 

“She’s here to get her man,” Maria explained. 

Frankie beamed, “I knew I liked you,” he said. 

“I like you too, Frankie, but I’m looking for Will, where is he?” You ask, craning your neck and looking around the obviously deserted gym. 

Frankie laughs, “He’s headed to your place.” 

You burst out laughing, “You’re kidding?”

“You missed him by 10 minutes.”

Maria shakes her head, “Let’s go, I guess I’m still your driver,” and the three of you file out of the gym. 

It starts raining as Maria drives you home. When she drops you off at your building, “Go get him,” she says before she kisses your cheek. 

You raced through the rain to the front door of your apartment, and you were drenched before you made it there. 

Standing in front of your door was Will, also soaked from the rain. You rushed into his arms and he pulled you in so tight and hard you were lifted clear off your feet. He crashed his lips into yours, only breaking away to repeat, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” into your skin over and over again. 

“I went looking for you,” You tried to explain, but he cut you off with a deep kiss that cleared your brain and quickened your heart rate. 

“Frankie texted me,” Will said, keeping his body pressed against yours. 

“We should go inside, talk this through,” you said, your voice serious. You turned your back on him to unlock your door, hoping for a break to collect your thoughts. This was serious business and you needed to have your wits about you, but whenever you looked into those piercing blue eyes you would get lost in the moment and would forget the bigger world.

He followed you into the apartment, his hands never leaving your body. He helped you remove your wet jacket and hung it in the closet. 

After, he sat next to you on the couch, he’s hand settling on your knee. He needed to feel you, be near you. You had gone looking for him, you didn’t give up on him, and so he didn’t know what to do now other than cling on tight. 

But then you looked at him, and he backed off. He saw the seriousness in your look and knew he was not off the hook. 

“I owe you an apology,” he started. 

“Yes, you do,” you replied to him simply, clearly waiting for the real thing. 

“I’m sorry,” he said with as much sincerity as he could muster, “I should have explained why I left.”

“Why did you? Did I do something wrong? Should I have brought up your PTSD sooner so we could’ve talked about it? I didn’t want to push,” you said, matching his sincerity in a question that stunned him. 

“You knew?” he asked. 

“The day we met you said you had your good days and your bad days, I believed you,” you said simply. 

“You remember what I said the day we met?” he asked, floored by you. 

“I remember everything.”

“I love you,” he found himself saying. There were thousands of better ways he could have told you that would’ve been more romantic, more thoughtful, but he just couldn’t help himself. He loved you and he wanted you to know. 

His words flushed over you and sent tingles through your whole body. You closed the small distance between your bodies and kissed him. You let him pull you onto his lap, your legs straddling him as you brushed your fingers through his short, wet hair, dropping your hands to his shoulders. He ran his hands up your back, leaving a trail of fire beneath his touch. 

Suddenly you broke the kiss and pulled away. He clung to the back of your shirt, gripping the fabric tightly. 

“Wait,” he begged in a whisper. 

“I love you too,” you said. 

“Oh,” Will said, and he kissed you again, “Come on, let’s get you out of these wet clothes.”

He stood, keeping your legs around him as he carried you into your bathroom. 

“I love you,” he said as he finally dropped you to your feet. 

“I know,” you said, trembling from the cold and something else you couldn’t describe but knew was all Wil’s doing. 

You pulled Will’s shirt off over his head and exposed his perfectly sculpted chest. You took advantage and placed a series of kisses across his skin. 

He quickly stripped you until you were complete naked then you stripped him completely naked as well. You grasped his already erect penis in your hand. You pumped him as you kissed him, losing yourself in him completely. 

He gently pushed you away, more gently than you’ve ever been pushed. As he started the shower you reached for him, needy.

“I’m sorry, baby,” he said as he returned to you, “I just thought you’d want it warm when you stepped in.”

You followed him into your curtained shower as the hot water started to rain down. He pulled you in close as the water fell over your heads. He pulled you in tightly to his chest, and after a moment you pulled back. 

“I love you,” you said, “I want you inside me, now..”

Will looked into your eyes and saw that you meant what you said. He kissed you hard and fast. You broke the kiss and spun around, grinding your ass against him. 

“I love you, baby,” he said. 

He pushed you forward, rougher than normal but in a way that sent waves of excited pleasure through you. You felt the warm water hit your skin until he blocked the stream and pushed you against the shower wall, forcing you to brace yourself with your hands. You waited there with your ass out and hands on the wall as Will admired you.

“Touch me,” you basically begged. 

He pushed you up against the shower wall, “Are you ready for me?”

“Fuck me, baby,,” you actually begged him this time.

“Anything for you, sweetheart,” he said as he lined himself up to your entrance from behind.

You were barely able to take it when he entered you with his hands wrapped around your hips. You gasped as his full length entered you, filling you completely. You braced yourself against the shower wall as he pounded into you. You felt his grip tighten, fingers digging into your flesh. 

You pushed back against the wall, trying to match his pace but you barely kept up. He wasn’t his usual patient self, you knew this was a race to a release so you brought your own fingers to your clit. 

You were so wet and so full of him, it wasn’t long until your orgasam sent flutters through you and you clenched around his cock. As you struggled to stay standing on your weak legs, Will supported you and he came himself, deep inside you. 

You felt him twitch before he pulled out. You moved to stand up straight, but he put his hand on your back and kept you bent over. 

“Let me look at you,” he whispered, barely audible over the running shower. 

You clenched at his words and he moaned as you felt his cum dripping out of you and onto the shower floor beneath you. 

Your legs were shaking as he cleaned you up, and held you in his arms. He took your body wash and lathered you up with his hands, caressing you as he went. 

When he finished cleaning you up, he turned the shower off and stepped out, wrapping a towel around his waist. He grabbed your towel and wrapped you up tightly in it, rubbing your shoulders through the fluffy material. 

He kissed you gently, then trailed his lips across your jaw before travelling down your neck. He nipped at your throat then ran his tongue across the spot. 

He kissed you again and then helped you dry off before he pulled you out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. He pulled back the sheets so you could slip under them. When he was sure you were comfortable he went to the kitchen and returned quickly with a glass of water and handed it to you which you accepted gratefully. When you finished he set the glass on your dresser and joined you in bed. 

You snuggled in close to Will’s side, breathing him in as you brushed your fingers across the smooth skin of his chest. After a few minutes you sighed and pushed yourself up on your elbow. 

“We still need to talk,” you said seriously. 

He kept a hand on your hip. “Okay,” he breathed, sounding tense. 

“Why’d you try and ghost me?”

“I’m not proud of it,” he started, “I thought it would be easier if I ended things before you could break it off.”

“Why did you think I’d break up with you?”

“I had a fiancée,” Will said, his voice thick.

“I know, 4 years ago, right?” You said, recalling the news you learned at Thanksgiving. 

“She left me when I was really struggling. I don’t blame her, things were really bad then, and besides that we just weren’t right for each other.”

He paused and you decided to take a guess, “but those reasons didn’t matter until your PTSD got bad, and she used that as her reason to bail,” you finished, angry on his behalf. 

“Something like that,” he forced a smile. 

You took his head in your hands, “I’m not her. I’m not going anywhere.”

He smiled at you and kissed you passionately. 

You broke the kiss, “Promise to talk to me from now on. I need you to trust me, and I need you to tell me what’s going on. I don’t want to be blindsided again.”

He nodded, solemnly. Then he traced his thumb across your check and held your face in his hand. “I swear I’m going to make this up to you. I won’t make decisions for you anymore,” he said, and you believed him. 

“I’m not going anywhere, I’m all in,” you said before you sealed the promise with a kiss. 

He took you in his arms and you felt at peace

Part 5 

[idk-mlb-is-reals-cute44]

Blossoming

Hey @queerymiracle ! I’m your (backup) secret santa! Sorry it’s so incredibly late!! I hope you like it. 

@mlsecretsanta 

AO3 Link 

Summary: It starts with a bouquet. It ends with one too. A series of moments in which Kagami, Adrien, and Marinette realize they might just be perfect for each other.

K A G A M I 

It must have started on a Tuesday. Kagami remembered this, because Ladybug had kidnapped her that day on her way to fencing practice to fight an akuma, and Kagami had fencing practice on Tuesday. 

The akuma in question wasn’t particularly special. Some college student who got his heart stomped on. There had been four nearly identical akumas that month alone. 

Still, Ryuko took every akuma seriously. 

Usually. 

She had just been thrown into a wall when she spotted them. 

In the mad dash to get away from the madman in bright pink, it seemed someone had dropped a bouquet on the sidewalk. They were a little crumpled… but… 

Ryuko’s mind stayed on the flowers for the remainder of the battle. 

“Miraculous Ladybug!” Ladybug cried, throwing her polka-dotted taxidermied deer into the air. 

“That was awesome, m’lady!” Chat yelled, bouncing on the balls of his feet. 

Ladybug laughed. 

“You say that everytime.” 

She turned to Ryuko, who was fidgeting restlessly. 

“You did very well in this battle-” 

“One second!” Ryuko called, dashing down the alley. 

Scooping up the bouquet, now full of life, she sprinted back and shoved them into Ladybug’s hands. 

“Here,” she said, and smiled. 

“O-oh,” Ladybug stammered, “Are these for me?” 

Ryuko nodded. 

“Thank you,” Ladybug said, and then, “Why?” 

“I…” Ryuko didn’t know. Still, her mouth opened, and without her permission formed the words, “You look very pretty today.” 

“That’s my line!” Chat Noir called from outside of the ally. 

Ryuko opened her mouth again, but no words came out. Blushing and not sure why, she quickly took off her choker and gave it to Ladybug, already turning to leave.  

***

Then it happened again. And again and again. Picking a rose for Adrien as they walked together. Buying a bouquet on her way to school and thinking of Marinette. Tucking a dandelion chain into Ladybug’s hair. She did it unthinkingly, almost instinctively. 

It came to a head on a Wednesday. Kagami remembered it was a Wednesday, because on Wednesday’s she tutored her classmate Mark, and she was picked up off the street outside of Mark’s house. 

“What’s the akuma?” she asked, squirming into a more comfortable position in Ladybug’s arms. 

Ladybug blushed, the first sign that the evening was not going to go as usual. Ladybug didn’t blush, or at least not when talking about akumas. She was cool and collected in the midst of battle and strategizing, which meant that what she was about to say was neither. 

“No akuma,” she mumbled, “I just wanted to… I wanted to do this thing for you, because… I mean, well…” 

Ladybug trailed off and didn’t explain herself further, face not unlike a fire truck or some other incredibly red thing. 

Kagami weighed her options and decided not to ask again. She would surely find out soon enough. Instead she admired the color of Ladybug’s cheeks, which seemed, impossibly, to grow even brighter. 

Ladybug’s heels skidded against the concrete of the roof as they landed. 

“Here,” Ladybug said shortly, avoiding Kagami’s eyes as she set her down. 

Kagami turned to find… well. She wasn’t sure what it was. 

Sitting on the center of the roof was a collection of flowers unlike any Kagami had seen before. Not that they were some unknown species, but they were arranged in the shape of a heart. Ladybug had to have bought out an entire flower shop to make the arrangement. 

Kagami hadn’t seen anything like this outside of the stupid k-dramas Adrien made her watch. (She silently apologized to all the protagonists she’d made fun of. Her heart was fluttering. Should she go to the doctor?) 

“W… what is this?” Kagami asked, totally blindsighted. 

Ladybug coughed awkwardly. 

“Um… well,” she laughed, noticeably higher than she usually did, “You were just.. Always giving me flowers and I thought it was so nice, so I thought you might like some in return. It’s probably dumb though! I’m sorry, I was-” 

“It’s not,” Kagami said, nodding shortly at Ladybug. “It’s not dumb. Thank you.” 

“Oh,” Ladybug said softly, “Thank you.” 

Kagami strode forwards and studied the flowers critically. 

“What are you doing?” Ladybug asked. 

“Trying to figure out how to pick it up,” Kagami said, “I want to keep it in my room.” 

Ladybug giggled. 

“You don’t have to do that.” 

“I want to,” Kagami said, wrapping one arm under the base and holding the other side to steady it. Pushing with her legs, she picked it up- 

And toppled over. 

“Oof,” Kagami said, the air rushing from her lungs as her back hit not-the-ground. 

Not the ground indeed. 

Ladybug’s unfairly strong arms wrapped around Kagami, her chest shaking with laughter. 

“Let me help you with that,” she said, pressing a kiss to the side of Kagami’s head. Seeming to realize what she did a second after it happened, she let out a squeak.  

Kagami felt her own cheeks warm to match Ladybug’s. 

“Thank you,” she said quietly. 

***

“Adrien,” Kagami said very seriously, turning to him, “I have something I would like to talk to you about.” 

“O-okay,” Adrien said, putting down his video game counsel to mirror her, legs crossed and facing each other on his sofa. “Is everything okay?” 

“Maybe,” Kagami said, and then scrunched her face up, “I don’t want to hurt your feelings.” 

Adrien leaned forwards, then leaned back, looking (adorably) confused. 

“You don’t… have to?” he said. “I mean, don’t worry about that, actually. What do you want to talk about?” 

Kagami took a fortifying breath. 

“I think I’m in love with Ladybug,” she said, “And I apologize, because I know the two of us are… somewhat involved.” She thought for a second. “Pre-involved.” 

Adrien tilted his head and then laughed. 

“No need to make fun of me,” Kagami said, feeling off-kilter. She hadn’t been expecting him to laugh. 

“No, no,” he said, “I’m not. Me too.” 

“What?” 

“I’m in love with Ladybug too,” he said, “Well. Sort of. It’s complicated. I’m trying to move on, I think.” 

“Oh,” Kagami said faintly, blinking four times rather fast, and then settling into this new information. “Oh I see. So we’re rivals, then.” 

“Uh,” he looked stricken, “I guess. I guess so.” 

“Well.” She held her hand out to shake. He took it. 

He had a firm grip. 

“Well,” he repeated, and then neither of them spoke for several moments, still shaking hands. 

Finally, Adrien picked back up his counsel and resumed the game, and Kagami picked up her book from where she had left it, bookmark perfectly snug against the spine and red-side-up, and opened it. 

She leaned her head against his shoulder as she had been before. 

“What does being rivals entail?” Adrien asked, attention seemingly completely taken by the videogame. Still, Kagami noticed he botched a few hits he usually performed easily. 

“What do you mean?” she asked, 

“Do we have to like… compete?” 

Kagami thought about this. 

“Not necessarily,” she said, “I suppose we can have… an understanding.” 

“An understanding?” Adrien asked. 

“May the best man win. You know. We’re in love with the same girl but… we can still be friends.” 

“Friends.” Adrien smiled. “Good.” 

Kagami settled into his side more firmly and resumed reading. 

***

“Here,” Chat Noir said. 

Ryuko stammered rather intelligibly. “I- what- eu- you can’t-” 

Chat tilted his head, curious. 

“What are you talking about?” 

He looked down at the flower crown he was holding. 

“Do you not like it?” he asked then, looking rather sad. 

“No!” Ryuko yelled, quite a bit louder than she had intended to be. “No,” she said again, quieter, “It’s just so… so romantic?” 

Chat Noir stared down at the crown, uncomprehending. Slowly, his face turned red. 

Ladybug giggled. 

“Oh, come on,” she said, rolling her eyes, “He doesn’t mean anything of it. He gives me flowers all the time.” 

“You give her flowers?” Ryuko cried, “That’s my thing!” 

“Your thing?” he yelped, affronted, “That can’t be your thing! I’m the one who’s in love with her!” 

“You’re what?!” Ladybug asked, voice shrill. 

“You’re not the only one!” Ryuko said, “Get in line!” 

“You’re what?!” 

Chat Noir gasped in the most outrageously offended way, resembling a genuine cat puffing up in indignance. 

“I saw her first!” 

“She’s not a prize or a shotgun seat to call dibs on!” 

“Well! She’s my partner!” 

“She doesn’t even know your real name!” 

“You don’t know her’s!” 

“Neither do you!” 

“SHUT UP,” Ladybug yelled, face red. “Can someone explain to me what is going on right now? You guys aren’t… You guys aren't- I mean, you-” 

Which, of course, was when the akuma attacked. 

***

A D R I E N 

Kagami was waiting for Adrien when school let out. 

At least, Adrien thought Kagami was waiting for him. And she was, sort of. He didn’t expect her to snag Marinette too. 

“Come with us,” she said in the awkward, imposing way she did most things, grabbing Marinette’s hand as she strode down the sidewalk towards the park. 

“I- okay,” Marinette said, clearly as baffled by this turn of events as Adrien was. 

Kagami led the two of them to a picnic table. 

“You two are my only friends,” she started, shifting awkwardly on the bench, “And so I’d like to ask you some advice.” 

Only friends? Marinette mouthed to Adrien, looking sad. Adrien shrugged and turned back to Kagami. 

“What with?” 

Kagami blushed. 

“I have… feelings. For a girl. I would like to know how to pursue her. Or, ah… make her like me.” 

“Oh,” Marinette said, “Who?” 

“Aren’t we rivals?” Adrien asked, “Am I supposed to give you advice?” 

“We are honorable rivals,” Kagami said to Adrien, “So we are allowed to aid one another in the spirit of good sportsmanship.” And then to Marinette, she said, “The girl is Ladybug.” 

“You’re in love with Ladybug?” Marinette asked, face carefully blank, and then to Adrien, “Wait, you’re in love with Ladybug?” 

“We’ve already covered that,” Kagami said, and Adrien nodded. 

“Oh,” Marinette said, looking faint. 

“You seem distressed,” Kagami noted, “You aren’t also in love with her, right? That’s too many rivals.” 

“N-no,” Marinette said.”I’m not… in love with Ladybug.” 

“Good,” Kagami said. 

“What have you been doing so far?” Adrien asked. 

“Flowers,” Kagami said, pulling out a notebook, “But I have a whole bunch of ideas.” 

“I-it sounds like you don’t really need our help then,” Marinette said. 

“Your feedback is invaluable to me,” Kagami said, “I can’t possibly do all of these.” 

She flipped the five or so pages of ideas back and forth, looking at Adrien and Marinette with something resemblant of puppy dog eyes. If puppy dogs looked like they regularly kicked your butt in fencing and knew it. 

“I… sure,” Marinette said, sounding somewhat resigned. Adrien looked questioningly towards her. She was usually so enthusiastic to help. 

“First off,” Kagami said, “We have buying her a car. I saw that in a movie.” 

“Don’t do that one,” Adrien said, “Nino told me people don’t buy each other cars. It isn’t done.” 

“Why not?” Kagami asked. He shrugged, and the two of them looked at Marinette. 

“I-I don’t know,” she said, and growing rather flustered, continued with, “Maybe you should just… uh, compliment her. Show her that you hare. Care. Show her that you care, a-and maybe. Um. Maybe you could flirt with her?” 

“How do you do that?” Kagami asked, taking notes. 

“Puns,” Adrien offered. 

“No,” Marinette shot down immediately, to Adrien’s disappointment. “Just… you know…” 

She gestured vaguely. 

“What does that mean?” Kagami whispered to Adrien. 

“Look, I don’t know,” Marinette blushed, “I’ve never been all that good with… f-flirting.” She coughed awkwardly. “And people haven’t really flirted with me. Just… be nice to her.” 

“Am I not nice?” Kagami asked. 

“That’s not what I meant!” Marinette said, “No, no, you’re nice. Just. You know. Eye contact. And um… play with your hair. And wear red.” 

“Oh, I read that wikihow article too,” Adrien said, causing Marinette to turn a shade redder. 

“Eye contact,” Kagami mused thoughtfully. 

***

“I’m not gonna open my eyes until the two of you stop it,” Ladybug groaned, exasperated, hands over her eyes. 

“We’re not doing anything,” Chat Noir said, staring unblinking at her. 

“Yes, you are,” Ladybug grumbled, sitting down on the tiled roof, “Stop… looking at me like that.” 

Chat Noir smiled. Romance novel characters said that all the time. His plan was working. 

He glared at Ryuko, who was a foot away from Ladybug and peering at her owlishly. His plan, which had somehow been stolen. 

“Ladybug,” Ryuko said slowly, “On a scale from 1-10, how interested are you in me romantically at the moment?” 

“We’re supposed to be doing patrol,” Ladybug complained, “And actually doing our job. Can you two please quit it?” 

Ryuko backed off and looked sheepish. 

“Sorry,” she said. Chat rubbed the back of his neck. 

Ladybug uncovered her eyes and looked at the two of them, both rather chastised. She rolled her eyes and giggled, shaking her head. 

“You two are ridiculous,” she said. “Race you to the Eiffel Tower!” 

***

Adrien found a book in the library. Technically, he had a strict reading regime. He was predicted to finish reading his 20th classic novel of that year in two weeks. But he’d seen in movies that people hid magazines in textbooks, so he did this with the book he found in the library. 

He wasn’t sure why he decided to check out that particular book. The subtitle had been something about romance and he was determined to up his game now that Ryuko and Kagami were in the running. 

As soon as he finished it, he called up Kagami. 

“We don’t have to be rivals,” Adrien said. 

“What are you talking about?” Kagami asked, “Are you giving up?” 

“No, no, no,” Adrien said, “I’m just a genius. I read a book.” 

“You’ve never read a book before?” (And Adrien would be peeved if she didn’t sound genuinely confused.) 

“Look, polyamory,” Adrien said, “It’s like… a thruple.” 

“That word sounds gross,” Kagami said, “Is the meaning as gross as the word sounds?” 

“No,” Adrien said, “Look it’s like… a three-person-couple. A thruple. Ladybug can date both of us!” 

“You mean like… how in Taitoru O Hyōji, Ren, Ayumu, and Misaki share a powerful love connection that can withstand time itself?” 

“I haven’t seen that anime,” Adrien said, “But yes.” 

“It’s on Crunchyroll, we can watch it together on Sunday,” Kagami mentioned. 

“Sweet. Anyway, we can do that! Be three people in a couple. Or… a thruple.” 

“I agree to this only if you stop using the word thruple,” Kagami said after a moment of contemplation. 

Adrien felt a grin break over his face. “Great. Great.” 

“We should leave flowers on the Eiffel Tower for her, so no one else can find it.” 

“I know a great florist,” Adrien said thoughtfully, forgetting to wonder how she planned to get the flowers up there in the first place. 

***

Adrien was going to break out into hives. Or something. Maybe he’d drop dead on the spot. He sure felt like he was about to go into cardiac arrest. 

“Chaton?” Ladybug asked, “Are you okay?” 

“You got me flowers,” he said, voice cracking over the last word. 

“Y-yeah,” Ladybug said, “Is that okay? There was… a sale.” 

“Yes, that’s okay,” he said, carefully accepting the bouquet of daisies. He buried his face in them. “Thank you.” He smiled, and he was sure he must look a little weird, deducing from the fact that his cheeks hurt and his eyes were probably all crinkled, but he really didn’t care. His lady had given him flowers. 

“Y-you’re welcome,” Ladybug said, turning red. 

“Is there a reason?” he asked, “For the flowers?” 

“You deserve nice things,” Ladybug said, suddenly looking like she was ready to fight him if he argued. 

He plucked a single flower and tucked it behind her ear. 

“There’s totally a book I should lend you.” 

***

Adrien and Marinette were partnered up for a history assignment. 

“Ideas?” Adrien asked, tilting his chair back just far enough that he probably wouldn’t fall, pencil poised over a notepad. 

“Maybe we could do, um,” she said, then paused to think and scrunched up her face adorably, “Aqueducts?” 

“A-kwa-ducks,” Adrien said slowly, sounding it out as he wrote it down. 

“That’s kind of boring, though,” Marinette said. 

“I wouldn’t mind doing it if you wanted to,” he said, peering at her over the note pad to smile at her. 

She dazed off for a second, spacing off as she stared at his face. 

“U-uh, I mean,” she said, suddenly blushing and turning towards the desk so fast she knocked over her water bottle with her elbow, “I don’t really haunt-want-I don’t really want to do aqueducts. It was just the first… thing I thought off.” 

“Okay,” Adrien said, “How about…  flowers?” 

“Flowers?” Marinette asked, cheeks still mysteriously red and eyes laser-focused on the grain of the wood in front of her. 

“Yeah like… the language of flowers in history,” Adrien said, “Like how daisies mean innocence and purity and all that stuff. That’s because they were some goddess’s flower symbol I think.” 

“Really?” Marinette asked, finally turning back towards him. 

“Yeah,” he said, “I looked it up.” 

“That could be, um, cool,” Marinette said. 

“Do you like flowers, Marinette?” he asked, and somehow he wasn’t really sure what he was actually asking. 

“Um… yes?” Marinette timidly answered. 

The next day, a bouquet of tulips showed up on her desk. Adrien very carefully did not research what they meant before he bought them. It made it easier to pretend he didn’t absolutely know what he was trying to say. 

***

“Some things have come to my attention,” Adrien said the next time he and Kagami hung out. 

She tilted her head to signify he should continue. 

“Right,” he took a deep breath, “We can date each other. Too. In our thr- uh, I mean, our… couple for three. We can date each other too.” 

Kagami looked thoughtful. 

“Do you want to date me?” she asked. 

“Um,” he reined in his nervous giggles, “Uh, yes. I do.” 

Kagami scratched her hands absently through his hair, his head resting in her lap as the cartoony fight scene continued on screen. 

“I guess that could be nice,” she said, allowing a small smile. “I was rather disappointed when I had to break things off when we became rivals.” 

“I think I was too,” Adrien admitted. 

Kagami frowned then. 

“I’m not good at… emotions,” she said, “I know I like you a lot but I’m just not… I don’t know how to. Have them. Emotions.” 

“That’s okay,” Adrien said softly, reaching up awkwardly next to his head to pat her knee, “We can figure it out together.” 

Kagami’s frown smoothed out, and then her face was very close to Adrien’s. Very, very close. 

“We never kissed, before,” she observed. 

It turned out that they did kiss, after. Adrien didn’t remember how the movie ended. 

***

A L Y A (interlude) 

Alya was worried. 

“Marinette,” she said, a little desperately, “You can’t honestly be trying to convince me you aren’t bothered that Kagami and Adrien are dating now.” 

“Uh,” Marinette chewed on her lip absently as she flipped the page of the fashion magazine, “I don’t know, Alya. It’s fine.” 

“You can’t expect me to believe you feel oh-so-neutrally about it,” Alya said, “You can’t expect me to believe you’re over Adrien when just yesterday you basically waxed poetic about his eyes.”  

“I’m not,” Marinette said, most of her attention very clearly on Vogue’s new jacket line, “I can have a crush on him and be happy for him and his girlfriend at the same time.” 

Alya didn’t say anything, just squinted. 

“Suuuuuuuure,” she finally drawled, taking a pointed bite from her sandwich. Lunch was almost over, but she was getting to the bottom of this. 

***

“Look,” Alya said, “Adrien posted about Kagami on his Instagram.” 

Marinette took the phone from Alya. 

“Awww,” and Alya thought, victory, but then, “They’re so cute!” 

“You’re kidding me,” Alya snatched the phone back and scrolled through the slides. There was one of them holding hands and two of them sharing ice cream. “You’re not even a little jealous?” 

“Nope,” Marinette said, popping the p. 

“Really?” Alya asked, incredulous. 

“It’s really not that big of a deal Alya!” 

“So just like that?” Alya asked, raising her eyebrow, “You’re just… giving up on your crush? You’ve been crazy about Adrien for ages!” 

“I didn’t say I was giving up,” Marinette said, “I just… don’t mind that they’re dating.” 

“How do you not mind?!” Alya asked, scrolling through Adrien’s Instagram. “He’s clearly serious about her!”   

“Yeah, I know,” Marinette said, “Look, are we gonna work on the math homework or not?” 

Alya gaped after her. 

***

“What are you reading?” Alya asked, dumping her bag on the floor as she swung into her seat. 

Marinette held the book up without comment so that Alya could read the cover. 

“The Modern Romantic, How to communicate and form healthy relationships,” Alya read aloud. “Hm. That looks like something my mom would read.” 

“It’s actually really interesting,” Marinnet said, “A friend lent it to me.” 

Alya’s eyebrows crept up to her hairline. 

“A friend lent you a book about forming healthy romantic relationships?”Alya asked. 

Marinette blushed and buried her face in the book. 

“Shut up,” she mumbled. 

***

“Alya,” Marinette said, “I’m gonna need you to wear this.” 

“Why?” Alya asked, taking the blazer from her. 

“Because this is a business meeting.” 

Alya, thoroughly confused, put on the blazer. 

“Good, good,” Marinette said, clearing her throat and slamming a giant binder on the table between them. “I’m going to need you to talk me out of a spectacularly bad idea.” 

“Story of my life,” Alya said, snorting, “What idea of yours is so bad you need a business meeting?” 

Marinette flipped to the first laminated page. 

“Polyamory,” she said, in the very same voice she uses when doing school presentations, “Is when people consent to a non monogamous relationship.” 

“Yes, I’m aware” Alya said slowly, “I wasn’t born yesterday, girl.” 

“One type of polyamory is,” Marinette continued, flipping the page and ignoring Alya, “The Thruple.” 

“I’ve been on the internet before,” Alya said, “You don’t have to spell this out for me.” 

“Person A has a crush on Person B,” Marinette continued in her school presentation voice, “But Person B is in a relationship with Person C. Person C has openly admitted to having a crush on Person A. Person B’s feelings on the matter are.. unclear. What should Person A do?” 

Alya stared down at the chart before her uncomprehending for a moment. When it came to her, she looked up at Marinette so fast she almost gave herself whiplash. 

“Kagami has a crush on you?!” she asked, jabbing the red square that represented Person C rather violently. Marinette’s following blush was answer enough. 

“Oh my god,” Alya said, and then let out a laugh, “Oh my god! Of course she does. You’re too cute to resist.” 

“Shut up,” Marinette said, slamming the binder shut. “What should I do?” 

“Well…” Alya scratched the side of her jaw as she thought, “I mean, do you like Kagami?” 

“I-” Marinette made a choking noise. “...uh. Yes. Maybe… yes” 

“Well then I guess just ask?” Alya said. “I mean, what do you have to lose? Just tell them how you feel! Kagami and Adrien love you, even if it’s just as friends, so it’s not like it’ll ruin the friendship forever or anything.” 

“Alya!” Marinette shrieked, “Don’t say that! Because now I’m thinking about it, and what if I ruin the friendship forever?” 

“I just said that there’s no way that’ll happen,” Alya said, rolling her eyes, “Even if they don’t want to, uh, thruple it up with you, they’re not gonna be mean about it. They’ll totally be chill, I promise!” 

Marinette smushed the heels of her palm into her cheeks, smoshing her face and looking torn. 

“You were supposed to talk me out of this,” she mumbled mournfully. 

Alya just laughed at her. 

***

“Okay, but according to this website,” Marinette said, “Lilies mean pure love, but don’t they also mean death?” 

“Stop freaking out, girl,” Alya said, plucking a brightly colored sunflower from a giant bucket, “They’re just flowers.” 

“No, they’re not ‘just flowers,’” Marinette groaned, “They’re, like, important. I’m confessing my l- my… interest in a relationship. They need to be perfect.” 

“Okay, but consider this,” Alya said, “If you don’t know what flowers mean without extensive, confusing, googling, do you think anybody else will?” 

“They’re rich, Alya!” Marinette said, “They probably know all about this sort of thing!” 

Alya let out a frustrated puff of breath. 

“Look, I get it,” she said, “You’re a details kind of person. But you need to relax! I’m sure they’ll love anything you get them.” 

Marinette sighed, fiddling with a bundle of carnations. “I know. But I just… I want it to be special.” 

Alya rolled her eyes, but she was sure the fond smile she wore ruined the effect. 

“Okay, okay, I’ll help you pick out the perfect bouquet or whatever,” Alya said, “What about roses?” 

“Too cliche,” Marinette said, shutting that idea down immediately. 

“They’re only cliche because people like them!” Alya countered. Marinette looked thoughtful. 

Thirty minutes and several rounds around the shop later, they had finally come up with an arrangement that Marinette deemed acceptable. 

“Will this be all?” the cashier asked, smiling at them kindly. 

“Uh, yes, that’s-” Marinette said, and then the screaming started. Marinette blanched. 

“Akuma,” she said. 

Alya squinted, and peered out of the glass front of the shop. 

“Uh, yeah,” she said, “Looks like it.” 

Marinette looked regretfully to the flowers, and then stammered out, “I need to go check on, uh, my parents!” 

“Wait, Mari, don’t-” 

But Marinette was gone, the only sign of her being the door jingling as it swung shut. 

Alya sighed and turned back to the cashier. 

“I guess I’m paying then,” she said, fishing out her wallet. 

***

M A R I N E T T E 

Ladybug, Chat, Ryuko, and Carapace were trapped in a box. It sounded like the beginning of some sort of themed riddle that you’d find in the back of the newspapers that Marinette’s dad read.  

But no. 

Ladybug pressed her back to the chill metal and slid, slowly, to the ground. 

“Plan, anyone?” she asked from the floor, staring at the ceiling as though it might give her an answer. 

She was supposed to be confessing to her crushes right now. Hawkmoth sure knows how to time things, she thought to herself ruefully. 

“Uh,” Chat knocked his fist against the wall, “Seems pretty solid to me.” 

“I don’t see any seams,” Ryuko mentioned, “So no hidden doorways, most likely.” 

Carapace winced. 

“Maybe if I blast at it with my shield?” 

“I mean,” Ladybug sighed, chewing on her lip, “You could try, but I don’t think it’s gonna work, and I’d rather we minimize the amount of people about to detransform.” 

Chat twitched as everyone turned to look at him. 

“I’ve got three minutes now,” he updated them, bouncing his leg anxiously. 

“That’s,” Ladybug pressed her eyes with her hands, “Fine. It’s fine. We’ll just have to figure our way out of here in the next… two minutes. And then you’ll have a minute to hide.” 

“I don’t think that’s possible,” Ryuko said. 

Ladybug heaved herself up and started to examine the corners. 

“What are you looking for?” Carapace asked. 

“I don’t know,” she admitted, “But better safe than sorry.” 

“Two minutes,” Chat chimed in. 

“Okay,” she said, “Okay here’s what we’re gonna do. Chaton, do you have food for your kwami?” 

“Uh, yes,” he answered. 

“Good, good,” Ladybug said, “Okay, everyone turn around, and close your eyes. You can detransform, feed your kwami, and then retransform. Problem solved.” 

“We still don’t have a way out,” Ryuko said as they all turned to a corner and followed Ladybug’s instructions. 

“I left Chloe with her miraculous,” Ladybug said, “Because I didn’t have time to get it back last Sunday. So I guess we can only hope she figures something out.” 

They stood there in awkward silence, until the tell-tale glitzy sound of a detransformation could be heard. 

“Jeez, Adrien, you’re working me to the bone out there-” the tinny voice Ladybug recognized as Plagg’s said, and then, “Oh. Ah. I see we have company.” 

Ladybug sucked in a breath. 

Adrien? 

No, surely there were tons of other Adriens in Paris. 

But… 

“Adrien?!” Carapace said, sounding positively shocked. 

“I told you not to look!” Ladybug scolded, trying her very best to ignore her own burning curiosity. 

“Sorry,” Carapace said, not sounding sorry at all. “Adrien, dude! I can’t believe you’re Chat Noir!” 

Chat made a confused noise. 

“Do we know each other?” he asked. 

“Yeah, dude, it’s me, Nino!” 

“NINO!” Ladybug yelled, “Rule number one! What is rule number one?!” 

“Oh!” Ryuko said, “Adrien!” 

Ladybug groaned, turning around with her eyes still stubbornly closed. 

“Plagg,” she said, “I’m gonna… I’m gonna skin you alive!” 

“It was an accident!” he said. 

“Ladybug…” Chat said, sounding nervous, “I’m so sorry.” 

“No,” she sighed, “It’s not your fault. 

“You can uh,” Chat paused, and then took a deep breath, as if preparing himself, “You can open your eyes, if you want.” 

Ladybug grimaced. 

“I can’t believe I’m doing this.” 

Adrien was Chat Noir. 

Adrien Agreste was Chat Noir. 

She had known it. Logically, what other Adrien did Nino know? 

But it was one thing to know it and another to see with her own eyes, Plagg hovering around the head of her crush. 

Her crush. 

“Oh my god,” she whispered, “I have a crush on Chat Noir.” 

“What was that?” Adrien asked, voice shrill. 

“You lent me a book on polyamory!” she said, ignoring him, “Oh my god! You’re Adrien Agreste!” 

“We’ve been over that!” he said, voice still unnaturally high-pitched. “You have a crush on me?”

Ladybug started laughing. 

“My chart was so inaccurate!” she said. 

“What chart?!” 

The box started to rumble. 

Ladybug shook herself. 

“We’ll talk about this later,” she said, attempting to return to serious leader mode. “Adr- Chat, I mean, transform.” 

He blinked at her for a second, shocked, and then complied. And in the nick of time. Just as the last of the magic sparkles were settling, the metal box popped out of existence. 

Queen Bee stood, a wicked grin on her face, and the akuma’s giant blaster resting on her shoulder. 

“You guys are missing the party,” she said, winking. 

“GIVE THAT BACK!” the akuma screeched from out of view. 

“Let’s get to it then,” Ladybug said, allowing one more quick look to Chat before she unclasped her yoyo and launched herself in the direction of the villain. 

***

Marinette tapped her fingers against the desk at a rapid pace, nervous. 

After the fight, she had had to run off before anyone could talk about anything. That had been yesterday. Now it was the first class of the day. Adrien hadn’t arrived yet, but Marinette was sure she’d find a way to make a complete fool of herself when he did show. Not that she didn’t usually, but now she held the oh-so-nerve wracking piece of information that he was Chat Noir. 

“Are you okay?” Alya asked, “You look like you’re about to explode.” 

“I’ll get back to you about that,” Marinette said. “I feel like I’m about to explode.” 

“Can I ask why?” 

Marinette shook her head. 

“Alright,” Alya said, a little suspicious. She cleared her throat and leaned closer to add, in a whisper, “I paid for the bouquet. I’ve got it at home. We can pick it up during lunch?” 

Marinette startled. 

Right. 

Somehow, she had forgotten about her plan to confess to Kagami and Adrien. So. Add that to the list of things that were stressing her out. 

She managed a shaky nod for Alya, and was about to say something when Adrien walked in. 

Hiding behind her hair, she avoided eye contact. 

“Adrien!” Nino said, “How… are you… after… yesterday?” He winked. 

Marinette tried not to giggle. Nino could not make it more obvious that something was up if he tried. 

“Good!” Adrien said, looking for all intents and purposes like an overenthusiastic puppy, “I am very good!” 

He sat down and shared a secret smile with Nino. 

Alya suspiciously looked between them, but didn’t say anything. 

“Okay, everyone!” Miss Bustier said, and Marinette breathed a sigh of relief as class started. She hadn’t made a fool out of herself. Yet. 

***

Marinette was left with a real predicament. One she contemplated instead of doing her math work. 

Fact one: She had a crush on Adrien and Kagami. 

Fact two: They had a crush… on Ladybug. 

Fact three: she knew their identities but they did not know hers. 

Fact four, irrelevant but also kind of weird: Didn’t Chat think that Ladybug was like… hundreds of years old? 

Marinette mulled this over. She saw three plans of action. 

Plan one: Take her chances as Marinette. Unguaranteed success. 

Plan two: Take her chances as Ladybug. Guaranteed success. 

Plan three, and the infinitely scariest plan of them all: Tell them her identity and ask them out. Guaranteed success, but at a major, major cost. 

The easiest plan was, of course, number two. But love wasn’t about being easy. It was about… 

Well. Marinette didn’t know what love was about, entirely. She’d never really been in love, not properly. But her crush was… getting there. For sure. 

Something about being in almost-love makes you want to take risks. 

Gaze flitting up to where Adrien sat in front of her, Marinette scrunched her eyebrows, thinking. 

This was a risk. Were they worth it? 

Yes. 

The answer came to her shockingly quick. 

But just because she was filled with hormones and a massive romantic didn’t mean she was an idiot. She was gonna plan this out. 

Flipping her notebook to a fresh page and altogether ignoring the algebra textbook beside her, she got to work. 

***

Step one of her plan was easily achieved. Technically. 

Emotionally, it was harder than lifting a bus. Which Marinette had done before. So, logically, she could do this(?). 

“Hi,” Marinette said, and then immediately wanted the floor to swallow her. 

“Hi, Marinette!” Adrien said, smiling up at her from the bench he was sitting on with Kagami. They were holding hands and Marinette was trying to not get distracted by how cute they were. 

“F-for you,” she stuttered, shoving the bouquet she had paid Alya back for in their general direction. 

“What is this?” Kagami asked, sniffing it. 

“It’s um.” Marinette felt like her face was melting. She must be blushing so embarrassingly hard. “It’s cause I, uh. Like. You. B-both of… you.” 

“Ma-” Adrien started to say, but before he could finish, or even really start, his sentence, Marinette was a block away and in a full sprint. 

So. Step one went… it went. Not well, but it went. 

***

Step two was easier by a long shot. She was in the mask, which meant instant confidence boost, and she didn’t have to mention her feelings at all.  

“I want to tell you guys my identity,” she mentioned offhandedly as they all sat on the roof, about to start patrol. The miraculous holders, other than Ladybug and Chat, were on a rotation for patrol, and today was Ryuko’s day. It was Saturday, which meant she hadn’t seen Adrien and Kagami since she had done a hit-and-run on them yesterday. 

Chat almost fell off the roof, and Ryuko scooted closer, stars in her eyes. They both looked at her expectantly. 

 “No, not now,” Ladybug said, “I’m just letting you know. That, uh. That you will know, eventually. Soon.” 

“How soon?” Ryuko asked, head tilted adorably. 

“That’s up to me,” Ladybug said, a little mysteriously, and then hopped to her feet. “Shall we?” 

They went off into the night, keeping Paris safe. Ladybug tried to suppress the smirk that was trying to make its way onto her face. She was totally crushing this. 

***

She was not totally crushing this. 

In her planning stage she had somehow managed to overlook figuring out who to tell first. 

“Okay,” Marinette said, partially thinking out loud and partially talking to Tikki, “Well, Adrien’s known me longer, so maybe I should tell him first? But Kagami is less likely to tell Adrien as soon as she finds out.” 

“You can’t just tell them both at the same time?” Tikki asked, flitting around her head. 

“No,” Marinette said, collapsing back into her bed, “Because the only time the two of them are together is during dates, and I don’t want to interrupt those, or during superhero business, and I really don’t want to do this all… out in the open.” 

“That’s true,” Tikki hummed thoughtfully. “But… what if you just invited them both over to your house?” 

“Tikki, what did I do to deserve you?” Marinette said. “I’m an idiot! I can just invite them over!” 

Tikki giggled. 

***

Step three began with a text. 

Hey! Do you guys want to come over tomorrow? 

The sending of the text was preluded by a generous amount of freaking out, but it was sent nonetheless. 

Yes, was Kagami’s short reply, followed by Adrien’s Yeah, of course Marinette! :) 

So of course Marinette spent four hours deep cleaning her room. Upon waking up, she spent two more hours picking out what to wear. 

They were arriving at noon. For lunch. So that left her an extra hour to freak out about what was for lunch. 

“I promise it’ll be ready!” Sabine assured her daughter, obviously amused, for the tenth time, “And yes, I promise to leave you three alone.” 

Before Marinette could reply, there was a knock on the door. 

“I’ll get it!” she yelled, even though she and her mother were the only two people in the house above the bakery. 

She flung open the door, revealing Adrien, holding Kagami’s hand, and Kagami, holding a small bunch of peonies.

“O-oh,” she said, “Are these for me?” 

Kagami nodded and smiled a little. Marinette’s knees felt weak. 

She took the flowers and turned to find a vase, gesturing them in. 

Adrien closed the door behind them, and they both took their shoes off before following her to the kitchen. 

“There’s soup and sandwiches on the table,” Sabine said, passing by them on her way out, “I’ll be in the bakery.” 

Marinette watched them sit down at the table as she filled the vase with water, and then stuck the flowers in it. 

“So, you like us,” Kagami said, cutting right to the chase, “Romantically.” 

Marinette squeaked and almost knocked the vase over. Steadying it, partly because it was expensive and partly to avoid eye contact, she whispered, “Yes.” 

She was going to pass out, probably. She kind of wished she would, if only to put off this conversation. 

No! she steeled herself, Be brave!  

Taking a deep breath, she turned around. 

“Yes,” she said again, louder. 

Adrien was smiling so wide it looked like his face would split in two, and Kagami’s cheeks were faintly pink. 

“Also,” she said, before they could reply, “Uh, I’m… well, how about I just…” 

She made eye contact with Tikki, who was hiding behind the cookie jar. Tikki nodded at her. 

“Tikki, Spots On!” 

The silence was deafening. 

“Um.” Ladybug felt like she was gonna sweat through her costume. “Surprise?” 

“Oh my god!” Adrien said, hurtling out of his chair. “Oh my god!” 

“Is it that bad?” she asked, and she meant it to come out as a joke but her voice wavered dangerously.

“No,” Kagami said, enormous grin on her face, “It’s not bad at all.” 

“Cool,” Ladybug breathed out, and then let her transformation go. Tikki winked and flew off. 

Adrien started walking towards her first, but Kagami was soon to follow, and the two had her crowded against the counter before she could blink. They both looked so incredibly happy. Marinette figured she probably looked about the same. 

“I’m Ryuko,” Kagami mentioned, “Since we’re getting it all out there.” 

Adrien’s smile grew impossibly wider. 

“Oh,” he said, “Oh.” 

“So,” Marinette breathed, “What happens now?” 

Kagami looked at Adrien, and then at Marinette. 

“Can we kiss you?” 

Marinette made a noise as all the air left her lungs. 

“Yes,” she said, “Yes yes yes.” 

Kissing Adrien was like kissing sunshine. Warm lips, a tentative hand hovering near her waist, his lips curled into a smile. 

Kissing Kagami was a rollercoaster. She started out fierce, crushing her lips against Marinette’s, but slowly softened, humming. 

Marinette felt like she could kiss them forever. 

“Wow,” she said as soon as her lips were free, and then threw her arms around them to pull them into a hug. 

***

E P I L O G U E 

It became a tradition, and a code, and an inside joke all in one. 

Sunflowers for every anniversary. One month, six months, a year. 

Get me flowers? Adrien texted, and his girlfriends knew it was gonna be a rough day. 

“Roses? You shouldn’t have,” Ladybug laughed on the random Tuesdays that Ryuko bought them for her. 

And Kagami wore aster flowers in her hair the day she proposed, many, many years later. 

And they were unimaginably happy. 

[svt13roses]

Put A Little Love On Me

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Words: 4.6k

Summary: He was always looking out for you, even since that night. It just took a particularly bad night at the club to realize it.

Pairing: S.Coups x Reader

T/w: mentions of alcohol, swearing

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A/n: It’s Seungcheol day!!! This was originally supposed to be finished up and posted back in July but life got in the way. I hope Seungcheol has a good birthday and knows how much we really appreciate how great of a leader he really is. He deserves all the love ;u;

     The weekend scenes were starting to blend together into a mirage of too loud music, too many flashing lights, and too many bodies of people. It was a Friday, again. The weeks seem to fly by until Friday night, and in those few precious hours out, time seems to go by too fast while also being too slow. You can remember ordering some fancy drink to start the night, and you remember the stranger next to you saying the next round of drinks were on him. Somewhere in this mess, one round became two, and like a moment of realization you were out on the dance floor, lost in your own world. You didn’t care though, you knew all eyes were on you at this moment. This was your show, and you were the star every weekend.

     You didn’t know who you were performing for, you could put on the air of self-confidence and say you were doing this for yourself because you knew how good you looked and you knew you could probably have anyone you wanted tonight to bring home. However, there was a seed of thought being planted in your mind every time you partied the Friday night away. Could this be a show to prove that you weren’t hurt by him anymore? That you moved on from the shambles of what you could barely call a relationship? In the heat of the moment, none of those thoughts crossed your mind. 

     You broke out of your trance when you felt something cold dribble down your left shoulder. You could feel the sticky-sugary liquid slowly travel down your arm and onto your fingertips, the sensation made your skin crawl in the worst way. You whipped your head around trying to find who could have spilled the drink, but there were too many bodies pressed against each other making it nearly impossible to see who did or did not have a drink. Taking a breath, you maneuvered through the sea of people trying to get to the bathroom. You somehow managed to get to your destination without too much trouble, though walking took more concentration than it really should have. You made your way over to the sinks and grabbed a paper towel. You looked at yourself in the mirror, and you could finally see the stain along your arm. 

     “What the hell kind of drink could this have been?” You mumbled to yourself, seeing how it left a long purple streak down your arm. You managed to wipe off the streak, but you could still feel the stain it left behind, the stickiness making itself known with every movement of your arm. “Maybe this is just a sign that I should go home.. fuck. Whoever that asshole was should have at least apologized. If this happens again I swear this heel is going straight-” Your rant was interrupted by a group of girls who definitely were not aware of where they were at the current moment. The blinding fluorescent lights, the loud bass from the music outside, and the shrill cry of the girls became too much. It felt like all your senses were being attacked yet you couldn’t feel anything. You willed yourself to take a step, with each step feeling like you were chained to bricks. You thought you heard one of the girls cry “oh my god is she ok?” before you were met with the cold tile of the bathroom floor. 

      Pain shot through your right ankle and your head began to spin. Taking in your surroundings, you could see the group of girls beginning to crowd around you. You became overwhelmed by the lights and the scent of overpowering perfume. 

     “Should we like, get the bartender?”

     “Oh my god no! He’s a bartender, what good can a bartender do?”

     “Well, I dunno! I haven’t had some chick drop to the floor before!”

     “You can’t just call her some chick! She’s literally right in front of us!”

     “Well you guys are the ones talking like she’s not in front of us. Maybe I should call a… what’s it called again? The truck! The thing with the lights!! Weeoo weeoo!”

     “Oh my god you’re literally so dumb! It’s called an ambulance!”

     “Yeah!! That!! Should we call for one of those?”

     “Don’t call an ambulance, please. I’ll be ok.” You croaked out, beginning to stand. You knew that you probably should have just waited and asked for help. You knew that what you’re doing in the first place is irrational and probably stupid on your part. Coming out alone on the weekend was never a good idea, yet you did it anyway. Your friends had warned you to just stay home for once, a night in was never a bad idea. Of course, you didn’t listen. You craved the temporary escape from reality, where time was a fleeting illusion. This world, you were the star and he didn’t matter. Your past doesn’t matter; the petty arguments, the words that left incurable wounds in your heart, the actions that can’t be undone. It’s all in the past, and you need to accept the past. But instead of accepting, you only seemed to be running. 

     Little things reminded you of him everywhere you went. Little, insignificant details that really shouldn’t be a reminder but you couldn’t help seek them out. His favorite color on you was yellow, so you stopped wearing yellow. He always stopped by a coffee shop near your workplace in the mornings because he knew he would run into you there, you avoided that route entirely. He drank a certain kind of bottled water, you went out of your way to drink anything except that brand. He had told you, when things were still ok, that you would never be able to escape him. At the time, you had giggled thinking it was an endearing gesture, but now you couldn’t help but think that he had put a curse on you that day. 

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     It was a typical Friday night for Seungcheol: he had come home and relaxed for a while, began watching Netflix, and then the itching started. It wasn’t a physical itch, but an intuition of sorts that something was wrong, or something bad was going to happen eventually. He checked the time on his phone: 10:32. I wonder.. Ugh there really is no escaping you huh? Seungcheol chuckled to himself, making his way off the couch to get dressed up for the night ahead of him. Dressing up on a Friday night to head out and socialize wasn’t an unordinary occasion. However, no matter how nice he looked or how much he indulged in the flirtatious games of strangers, he always left just as he arrived. Not a hair out of place, not a button undone, no trace of alcohol to be found. He was a man of routine, and as such he always found himself at the same place every Friday. Seungcheol was very similar to you in that aspect, he did not like change. If things were fine the way they were, why fix it? You both were stubborn and were blindsighted to the small details around you. Small details, however, can build up. As Seungcheol put on the jacket that he wore that night, he was reminded of what truly happens when the small things get ignored for too long.

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A few months ago

     Seungcheol knew he messed up, but he knew that you were in the wrong too. However, you were both too stubborn to admit it. Tonight was supposed to be a date night, a rare event as of late. Seungcheol had gotten the notification on his calendar, but absentmindedly disregarded it while helping Jihoon in his studio. You also had a reminder go off, but your boss had you stay late at work. You could have gotten home in a timely manner for dinner, but one of your friends at work had also stayed late. You both had gotten caught up in a conversation and before you knew it, you both made your way to a fast food place for dinner to catch up. 

     Seuncheol had tried to rush home as soon as he could, not caring if some work was left to be completed tomorrow. When he arrived, you were at the kitchen table eating the remnants of whatever food you hadn’t finished at the restaurant. 

     “What the hell is this y/n?” He tossed his jacket onto the chair across from you. “Tonight was supposed to be a night for us two, why are you eating now? If you got hungry and couldn’t have waited, you could’ve at least texted me.”

     “Oh shit.. I completely forgot. I’m sorry Cheol, maybe next week?” You finished off your fries and put everything in the bag, making your way to the trash. Seungcheol grabbed your arm as you passed. 

     “No, we can’t do next week. Remember how busy I’m gonna be? And you even told me that you’re going on a business trip with your boss and a few coworkers to a conference next weekend. Did that suddenly change?” His voice began to rise. “Look I feel terrible for not being able to make it tonight but you’re acting like it’s no big deal. Don’t you care at all? Cause right now it seems like it’s some small thing that can be made up!” His grip on your arm began to tighten. The fast food bag dropped to the ground, long forgotten. 

     “Cheol your grip- please let go.”

     “We have to talk now or we’re never going to talk! I haven’t heard from you in days and we fucking live together y/n!” You could feel tears brimming, but you couldn’t tell if it was his tone, his grip, or both. 

     “Ok well communication’s a two-way street, isn’t it?” You slapped his hand with your free hand, effectively freeing you from his hold. “And don’t grab onto me like I’m some inanimate object, that fucking hurt! You act like I’m the problem when it’s you! I tried to reach out but I was always met with silence or some stupid two-word answer. This date night that we both forgot about? It was my idea because I feel like I haven’t seen you in weeks. And guess what? I expected this to happen! Sure I got dinner but can I be the one to blame? You’re the one leaving me behind and coming back when you feel like it! I’m done being… whatever this is!” You screamed, tears falling freely. 

     “Oh don’t act like I’m the bad guy here. You’re not so saintly either when it comes to talking. I try to talk to you when I’m free but you’re always out with your friends-”

     “Because you’re not there for me!”

     “Let me finish. You got to talk without interruptions so now it’s my turn.” You huffed, crossing your arms. “Don’t act like that’s so hard to do. Or is it? Cause it seems like I can never get a word in these days! You knew I’ve been busy, and you knew I would be with Jihoon today so obviously things were going to go late. But honestly, at this point it seems like you would rather have me at work so you have an excuse to go out with your friends. Which, by the way, you never even update me on where you are so for all I know you could be hurt and I wouldn’t know-”

     “Of course you would know!”

     “How do you know that?” he shouted. “Do your friends even know my number? Hell, I don’t even know your friends! For all I know, you could be seeing someone behind my back and I wouldn’t even know! Maybe this ‘business conference’ is just a cover-up for some fancy trip between you and your boss, huh?”  You have never seen him so angry before, and the silence was the heaviest force you have ever felt.  Wiping your tears, you bit the inside of your cheek and let out a long sigh. 

     “I don’t even know what to say Cheol…” You whispered. “I thought you knew me better but I guess time apart can be a bitch. I won’t even question where those thoughts came from.” You chuckled bitterly and began to walk away.

     “Wait y/n no, that’s not what I meant-”

     “Clearly, Seungcheol, it is or else you wouldn’t have said it. When people are angry they say how they really feel. Guess I know now that my boyfriend thinks I’m some cheating whore or something.” You could feel yourself beginning to cry again. It didn’t help when he began to follow you, calling your name. You both ended up in your shared bedroom, you sitting down on the bed. He laid down and wrapped an arm around your waist, pulling you closer to him. He secured you firmly into his hold, and you buried your face into his chest, letting out all the sobs that had been building up for months. Every insult you had wanted to call him came out in whimpers as your body shook from how hard you cried. You could feel Seungcheol begin to run his fingers through your hair, trying to calm you down in some way.  The two of you laid in bed for what seemed like hours, the tension still thick. Finally, he croaked out something you couldn’t hear. 

      “What was that?” you mumbled into his chest.

     “This isn’t us. This isn’t our relationship”

     “I don’t think I understand, Cheol.” You looked up at him. He let out a deep breath and sat up, you following suit. He gently cupped your cheeks and began wiping away the stray tears with his thumbs. 

     “Y/n, we’re not who we used to be. We’re not some love-struck couple stuck in our honeymoon phase. We’re not happy.” He gently kissed your forehead. “I think we need to end this here y/n. I hate seeing you hurt, and knowing I’m the one who caused you that pain.”

     “No, I understand. I feel the same way actually.” You moved his hands from your cheeks and held them. “I think we were both too scared to admit it. I mean, we were each other’s first loves, right? We didn’t want to lose something that precious. Besides, neither of us like change all that much.” Seungcheol smiled sadly. “But, I think you’re right. Let’s end this here before we hurt each other even more. I’m sorry for not being as open as I should have. I’ve felt unhappy for so long that I’ve tried to fill that void with my friends. Obviously you saw through that, but I should have known better. You can read me like an open book.” You hugged him tightly as if holding him close would make him stay any longer. 

     You both spent your final night together wrapped up in each other’s arms, pretending everything was okay for just those moments. And in those moments where everything was peaceful, with you and the rest of the world asleep, he felt a spark of love he hadn’t felt since he first fell in love with you. 

     “I guess this is goodbye isn’t it, sweetheart?”

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     Seungcheol could feel the vibrations from the bass from outside the club. He probably shouldn’t be as familiar with this place as he is, but he justified his reasons for coming to himself. The breakup was just as hard for him as it was for you. However, he hadn’t expected you to be coping the same way as him: with copious amounts of alcohol. It was a complete coincidence that he saw you at this particular club a few weeks after he had moved out of the apartment. He had made sure to stay out of your way, not wanting to cause a possible scene. He couldn’t help but be curious as to who you were here with. When he had said he barely knew your friends, he wasn’t lying. As far as he could tell you were alone, lost in your own world on the dance floor. That first night, he stuck around a little longer than he planned, his eyes never leaving you. 

     He found himself in front of the same club the next week. He told himself that he had a really good time the previous week and wanted to come back, this time actually planning on getting drunk. However, his plans were ruined once he saw you at the bar. From where he was standing, he could see how uncomfortable you were. Seated next to you was a man who, in his opinion, was way too old to be in a club like this. He was sitting a little too close to his liking next to you, and you couldn’t seem to shake him off no matter how long you talked to him. Seungcheol took it upon himself to try and at least try and drive the man’s attention elsewhere. When the bartender came to take Seungcheol’s order, he asked the bartender to strike up a conversation with the older man. He may have also slid the bartender some extra tip money to make sure he actually got the man away from you. Ten minutes later, the bartender was still talking to the man and you had managed to slip away to the dance floor. 

     It became a habit for Seungcheol now, coming to the same club every Friday. Every time he would tell himself that it would be different, but each time he found himself looking out for you. If you seemed to have a little too much to drink that night, he would tip the bartender a little extra to make sure you got some water before going home for the night. If he noticed someone was making you uncomfortable at the bar, the bartender already knew to go and try to distract whoever was talking to you. Seuncheol was also there to see you walking out with whichever stranger you deemed fit to spend the night with. Is this really how they’re choosing to move on? He had asked himself on more than one occasion. He knew that you both had further discussed the end of the relationship, and had ended it on mutual terms. However, he couldn’t help but feel a little mad at himself every time he saw you leave with someone new. What did these people have that he didn’t? What weren’t you telling him while you two were still together?

     As time moved on and the weeks passed by, he slowly felt himself becoming comfortable with this routine. If he knew you were safe, he was happy. Jihoon had called him a creep multiple times for his behavior, and Seungcheol would retort right away “just because we’re not in love doesn’t mean I don’t still love them.” With this new routine, Seuncheol could feel himself slowly moving on from the past. Sure, it still stung, but now he finds comfort in the fact that for at least one night he knows you’ll be okay. Tonight, however, felt different. When he felt like something bad was going to happen, nine times out of ten something bad almost did happen. There have been multiple times where he’s had to save you from going home with someone who definitely had malicious intentions. He was hoping that tonight would not be one of those nights as he kept his eyes on you on the dance floor. Before he could stop it, he watched as someone accidentally spilled their drink on your arm. 

     “What the hell is wrong with people?” He muttered, making his way down the bar closer to the bathrooms, making sure you arrived safely. As time passed, he grew more and more worried. No one had left the bathroom you entered since he saw a group of girls go inside. Had he had some liquid courage coursing through his veins, he would have just barged into the bathroom by himself. Before he was about to ask the bartender if there was something he could possibly do, god knows the bartender knows him by now,  he saw the bathroom door swing open from the corner of his eye. He turned towards your direction, and he saw you shuffle across to the bar with a hand on your head and the gaggle of girls stumble behind you. He didn’t care at this point if you saw him, he couldn’t leave knowing something was wrong. Before you could catch the bartender’s attention, Cheol had called them over. 

      “Hey I know you’re probably tired of seeing my ass hanging around here every Friday night without even ordering anything, totally understandable. I need you to do a favor… again. That girl I’m always here for? I think something’s wrong. Give her a bag of ice for her head will you? And maybe call an ambulance if it seems bad enough?” He slid the bartender a few bills and made his way to the club’s entrance, texting Jihoon to come pick him up. Before exiting he took one last look towards the bar, and he saw you sitting on a stool with a paper towel and a bag of ice sitting gingerly on your head. With a sigh of relief, he made his way outside, the crisp air hitting his face. 

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     After a long and tiring battle of insisting that you did not, in fact, need an ambulance and that your head is fine, with a little help standing up and getting steady, you made your way out of the bathroom. Your head was pounding from the music, and you knew right away that you needed to sit down as your vision began to slightly blur. Somehow you ended up at a barstool safely, and waiting in front of you was a bag of ice and a paper towel. 

     “Excuse me, sir!” you called out, not knowing whether your hoarse voice would reach the bartender’s ears. Luckily enough, the bartender turned your direction and walked over. 

     “What can I do for you tonight, miss?”

     “Uhh this bag of ice was sitting here and I’m not sure if this was from someone previously sitting here or not.” You explained, carefully fiddling with the bad. The ice hadn’t melted yet so it couldn’t have been here long. Before you could question it any further, you heard the bartender let out a chuckle.

     “Ma’am that bag is definitely for you. Someone must be real worried about you, I’ll say that much.” You carefully put the bag of ice on top of where you hit your head. You flinched slightly at the sudden temperature difference between the cold ice cubes versus the hot and humid club. 

     “Someone knew what happened in the bathroom?”

     “What the hell happened in the bathroom? You know what, I don’t wanna know. You seem to be talking fine so you don’t need an ambulance.”

     “Ok wait how can you say I don’t need an ambulance but then not know what happened-”

     “Look”, the bartender looked you in the eyes, “I don’t know what happened. All I know is the same dude has been coming by my bar for a few weeks now every Friday night. He doesn’t buy anything though. He does, however, always seem to have his eye out for you. Not in the creepy way like I’ve seen in the past though.” You blinked a few times before fully comprehending what the bartender just told you. Someone was looking out for you? You didn’t know anyone who would do such a thing, since your friends didn’t always join you on weekends. Maybe you caught someone’s eye the first night you came here? You sighed, resting your open hand against your cheek. The bartender looked at your confused face and smiled to himself. “He just left when you were stumbling out here. You might be able to catch him, I know I would. He’s a handsome fella; captivating eyes, nice cheeks, pretty lips. He’s not my type, but maybe he’s yours?” The bartender began wiping out a few glasses, walking away. 

     “He definitely does…” you trailed off, a burst of realization hitting you. If it’s who I think it is I’m going to shit myself. No, it’s just some pretty guy looking out for you, stop this wishful thinking. You set down the bag of ice and wrapped the paper towel around it. “Thank you so much for the ice, and for looking out for me!” You called you, practically running towards the entrance of the club. 

     The outside air hit you harder than you expected, helping you sober up even more after having the ice on your head. You desperately looked left and right, looking for any sign of who could have been the person helping you. Your eyes caught sight of a familiar car slowing down, as if it was coming to pick someone up. That looks like Jihoon’s car if I’m remembering correctly. Granted, I only rode in it a handful of times. You looked at where the car was headed, and that’s when you caught sight of a very familiar person. 

     “No.. it can’t be..” you whispered to yourself. “Aw fuck it, what have I got to lose?” You walked a few steps towards him. With a deep breath, you called out as best as your voice would allow. “Seungcheol!” You felt something warm against your cheeks, and after quickly wiping whatever it was away, you realized you were crying. You sniffled and called out one last time. “Seungcheol!”

     He turned to look at you. You didn’t know what to expect, nothing had really changed about him since you last saw him except for his hair color. Your eyes met his, and you became just as mesmerized as you did in the past. You didn’t realize you were staring until you noticed him moving. Seungcheol slowly made his way over to you, shouting at you presumed whoever was driving the car that he would only take a minute. He stopped in front of you, and you looked up at him. Up close you could see the small details in his facial features that weren’t there previously. His eyes were still beautiful, but they weren’t as bright as you remembered. The lines under his eyes looked a little darker, and his lips were slightly chapped. You felt something warm being put around your shoulders. You looked down and it was his jacket that he was wearing previously. 

     “Cheol I-” You stuttered out as he gently grabbed your shoulders.

     “Hey, stay safe will you? Don’t worry me too much and get home alright.” He gently patted your head and began walking back to the car. You were well aware at this point of the tears freely falling down your cheeks. You couldn’t help but let out a sob as you saw him give you one last smile and a small wave as he got into the car. As the car began to drive off, you began wondering how long he had been looking out for you and why he never chose to approach you. You felt your phone vibrate from your pocket, and you pulled it out. You chuckled as you saw who the message was from. 

     “I’ll open it some day, Cheol. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but I will when I think we’re both ready” you mumbled to yourself, opening up your contacts to call your friend to come pick you up. Your friend picked up after two rings. “Hey, I know you told me not to but I went out again. Can you come get me? I.. I saw someone and I need to tell you about it.”

[stopeatingwhales]

school friends x graham coxon

okay so, this is like my first shot at a one-shot type thing, i’m unsure if i like it but i do hope you guys like it! there’s barely any fics on here so i thought today was the day i was going to contribute hehe, anyways enjoy this soft school shit

Paring: high school graham x reader

Warnings: nothing, just some cute shit 

Word count: 1.956

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The shouts and echoes of kids chattering down the mundane hallways of the school rung through my ears. Period change was always the worst; crowded corridors, people pushing past you without the audacity to apologise, the parroting of the loathsome school bell, stating lesson had begun, and even some hair pulling if we’re talking about the obnoxious fools who have little care towards not only their education, but everyone elses. Everyday was like this - it seemingly felt like a continuous ambush, leading up to the day I walk out the doors. Some days were better than others, though. If you were able to rush out of class just as the bell dismissed you, you would be able to avoid the agonising horror that is, people. 

Walking into the science room, I scurried to my usual seat, unpacking my things silently. I was sat by the window at the back, and although my eyes could barely read the board most of the time, it was bearable; I was sat in one of the most peaceful spots I was able to stumble upon campus. My attention span was limited towards the subject; I was more of a humanities person, which made looking outside the window one of the greatest things in the 50 minutes of learning, and in general. It was relaxing, watching nothing but the wind howl, the leaves sweep past the grey concrete, the occasional teacher jog by - clearly late for something.

Snapping me out of my significant trance, I turned my head to see not only a filled class, but Graham, the person who sits next to me in this particular lesson. Graham was nice, he rarely talked but for the several years we’ve both been attending the school, I had seemingly formed somewhat of a fondness for him - a crush you could say.

“Hey!” he cheered, a big grin plastered on his face.

“Hey, what’s the cheerfulness for?” I laughed, quieting my voice as the lesson had begun. He was like me - we both had little to no interest in either science. I felt as if that was what blossomed our friendship, the idea that neither of us wanted to pursue a career in the subject, or maybe because we were similar. We both were quiet, content people, only speaking when there’s something needed to be said. I had most of my friends in separate classes, and Graham mostly spent his lunchtimes with people like Damon Albarn in the music room, someone I had never seen nor spoken to in my life. 

“It’s last period and I found a tenner in my bag, I didn’t have lunch today so I’m perhaps going to treat myself to some chicken after school,” He grinned, turning his back to rummage through his bag, grabbing the note and wavering it around in my face. Gigging quietly, I shook my head, watching him bring the note to his nose, inhaling the scent of the paper. He had his eyes shut - showing the emphasis of his delight to the finding. 

Me and Graham were the basic definition of ‘school friends’, you’d never meet up but you act as if you’re close. Sometimes I wished for that to change, for him to ask for us to meet up one day, and get to know each other. Things like that don’t happen to school friends though, regardless of how much I had wanted them to. I never gathered the courage to ask him myself; the thought that he’d reject me, or ask the horrifying question why, removed the potentiality of that ever being words that would leave my mouth.

“Graham Coxon, put that money away and focus on your work!” The teacher yelled, catching both me and Graham in shock - the teacher was old enough not to notice that there were students at the back of his classroom, or so we had thought. 

Graham, startled by the sudden attention and sea of eyes that had turned to look at him, awkwardly ran a hand through his hair, shoving the money in his pencil case. “Sorry Sir,” he mumbled, looking down at his unopened exercise book. 

For the rest of the lesson, it was silence between the both of us, especially with Graham. Little things like teachers calling him out usually caused him to silence himself for a while, something which made my ‘fondness’ of him stronger; he was able to show his sensitive side, unlike the vast majority of any teenage boys who would find it ‘wimpy’. 

I patted his shoulder slightly in a form of comfort, tilting my head, trying to meet eye-to-eye with him. His eyes got caught with mine, his facial expression showing nothing but how much he was fed-up the lesson was still going on - it felt like hours since it had begun. As if on cue however, the teacher was cut off by the disgustingly loud bell, resulting in the class being over. Me and Graham jolted in our seats, both wide smiles spread on our faces. I got out of my seat swiftly, crouching down to grab my black rucksack underneath the table, gathering my things to put them away. 

Standing up, I swung the bag over my shoulder, turning to look at Graham. “You okay?” 

“Yeah, he just really pissed me off you know,” he replied, chewing on his top lip. I nodded in response, stretching my arms out in the air as I yawned.

“At least now you’ll be able to have some nice food,” I said, walking out of the classroom with him. We both usually walked the same way home, so it was normal for us to continue our small chats on the way out of the premises. 

“Yeah about that,” he said, pushing one of the hall doors open, allowing me to walk through first. I smiled sweetly at his actions, my heart warming at how kind he was. “Do you- you don’t have to, by the way, but- do you want to go with me? I’m going there alone so,” 

Once hearing those words, I stopped in my tracks. Did I mishear something? Or was he genuinely asking if I would like to be his accomplice? Brushing a few stray baby hairs from my face, my top lip captured my teeth, my heart rate now so loud it echoed through my ears, just like the same shouts of kids in the school halls, who were now pushing past my limp body. 

“Y/N?” Graham asked, pulling at my arm, as the once empty halls began to cramp together with more and more of screamy teenagers excited to leave school for the weekend. I blinked a few times, trying to regain some sort of consciousness. I took a deep breath, feeling Graham’s strong gaze shining over me. “Like I said, you don’t have to-” 

“No,” I blurted out, mentally slapping myself in the face for the mess I had made myself, over just one question. Swallowing hard, I regained my breath. “I would love to go with you Graham,”

~~~

“What do you want?” he asked, turning his head back to look at me, patiently waiting behind him. 

“No, it’s fine I’ll pay for myself,” I smiled, my heart once again warmed from his sweet gestures. 

“No, no, I have enough for the both of us, what do you want?” he argued back, resulting in me sighing and staring back at him with a you-really-don’t-have-to look, to which he raised his eyebrows carelessly. Knowing he wouldn’t give in, I reluctantly placed a small order of fries; I wasn’t that hungry for something more, and I still felt bad that Graham paid. 

As we both sat down with our food, we began talking about random little things that happened during our day. Whilst we were talking, I couldn’t help but notice the hidden, small, cute features painted on his face that I had blindsighted for all my days of knowing him. The way his lip curved to the side when he was talking about something he found funny, in hopes it would make me laugh, or perhaps the way his eyes wandered around the room, his mouth open slightly like a puppy, as he tried to remember what he was going to say. My new found adoration for him grew increasingly fast whilst the conversation progressed; I was finding out more and more about him than I was ever able to in our boring science lessons together. 

“And Damon, him being the idiot he is, decided to pull his pants down, as if that’s a way you’re supposed to pick up a girl,” he laughed, which caused my eyes to widen, laughing with him in shock. 

“Goodness, would I ever be able to meet this mysterious Damon Albarn?” I joked, dipping the last few fries I had in ketchup, devouring them.

“Of course, he’ll be seeing a lot more of you,” he answered, a casual smirk illustrated on his features.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I laughed, confused as to what he was implying. We both binned our food, said our thank-yous to the worker at the counter and walked out to the chilly streets before he continued.

“Perhaps I want you to come hang out with me and Damon at lunch on Monday,” he started, a big grin spread on his face as he fixed his gaze at me. “I like spending time with you, shame we haven’t done this before,” 

I stared back at him, a huge, goofy beam spread out on my face. Gathering enough courage, I linked arms with him, staring out at the familiar street we both spent our afternoons strolling home. I felt his eyes on me, to which I tried to ignore, but his angelic brown eyes would never fail to make me fall for him more than I already had. 

For the remainder of our walk, there was a soft, casual silence. Not like the one we shared in the science room, but a comforting one. We were both engrossed in our surroundings, sharing a peaceful moment with each other, until it was my time to depart from our travels. The scenery was filled with newly bloomed flowers, trees regaining their green, shiny leaves and grass as green as ever. It was mid-March, meaning that spring was starting. I’ve always found walking on the breezy streets in the spring season the most relaxing, all new life blossoming around you, along with the pretty, delicate colours of flowers like roses and daffodils decorating the landscape. The start to new beginnings, the genesis. 

“This is me,” I said, stopping in my tracks by the drive of my house. Graham’s facial expression changed to a disappointed one, clearly sad that our time together - outside of school - had come to a close. “I’ve really enjoyed my time with you,” 

“There’s just one thing,” he said, his stare enveloped in my eyes. 

I noticed Graham had slowly taken a few steps forward, bringing our bodies closer together. My heart rate picked up again, curious as to what he was going to do next. His stare was now fixated on my lips, as I watched him begin to lean in. I froze, a thousand thoughts running through my mind. Suddenly, I felt his lips graze mine, holding it in place for a few seconds, savouring the kiss. 

Pulling away, he smiled at me and bit his top lip. I grinned back at him, my mind still stunned from the events that had happened merely seconds ago. 

“See you Monday,” he shouted, waving at me cutely. 

“See you!” I shouted, marching up to my door and unlocking it with my keys. As I stumbled through, I squealed. Apparently he likes me too. 

[exhaustedfander]

First Comes Love: Chapter Four

Chapter Summary: Virgil and Logan talk about Logan's dreams and a jarring conclusion is come to.

Word Count: 3,031

ao3 link

Link to previous story in the series: When is Enough Enough?

1  / 2 / 3 / 4 / ?

"Logan?” Virgil’s voice was laced with exhaustion, but it was clear he hadn’t just been roused from his slumber. Logan considered that a small miracle of some kind.

“Virgil –.” he cursed the way his voice wavered with such unsteady emotion, turbulent and strong, “I’m – I’m sorry to be calling you so late.”

“Whoa, hey, it’s okay dude,” Virgil assured, hearing the panic in his friend’s voice, “What’s going on?”

“I…I had a dream. Virgil, it was vivid. So vivid…I didn’t…I couldn’t see the difference between it and reality and…”

“Hey man, it’s going to be okay. Was it another nightmare?”

Virgil knew well of Logan’s nightmares. Just like he had been with Roman, Logan had been close with Virgil for many years now. He was one of Logan’s closest friends, someone who he knew he could go to with almost any matter, and Virgil would listen with compassion. His snark and wit was something that, while sometimes slightly irritating, brought Logan a great deal of joy. He loved that he could go to his friend about anything, and this was no exception.

“No. No, it – it wasn’t. I dreamed…I dreamed that Remus and I were married.”

“Oh...Huh. And that’s…a bad thing?”

“No!” Logan hissed, sure to keep his voice as quiet as possible in the fear of disturbing Remus, “I mean, yes. I mean, I don’t know! When I woke up I – I thought it was true, for a moment. I thought Remus was my husband.”

“Right, uh, okay. I’m not sure if I’m following you here: Did you want to get married?” Logan searched his mind for an answer, searched for the words No, of course not. That would be completely and utterly ridiculous. We’ve only been dating a short while. Despite everything, the words never surfaced. “Logan,” Virgil repeated, the concern in his tone deepening, “Do you want to get married?”

Logan leaned against the kitchen counter, crushed under the weight of the desires he could no longer ignore.

“I –.” He paused, worrying his bottom lip, before forcing himself to get the word out, “Possibly.”

“Logan, buddy, where the hell did this come from? I mean, you guys have been dating, what, eleven months now?”

“Almost a full year,” Logan muttered, miserable at the onslaught of unbridled emotion, “In two weeks.” Virgil sighed into the phone.

“Okay, sure, yeah. But where did this come from? Was the dream just out of the blue, or what?”

For a moment, Logan was about to explain his conversation with Remus, the jealousy he felt when he was told of Roman’s desire to propose to Virgil – but luckily, even in his state of over emotion, he still had some sense left in him. it wasn’t like he could just tell Virgil about how Roman was planning on proposing to him at some point! Even so, he needed to explain his predicament somehow.

“Remus brought up the idea of marriage earlier tonight,” Logan explained carefully, “I’ll be honest…my reaction was not the best.”

“What do you mean?”

“To put it bluntly, I freaked out. It just blindsight me, it’s by no means something I’ve considered in the past.” Logan could practically see Virgil gazing at him intently.

“And now you’re all for it?”

“That’s not…that isn’t what I said.”

“Then what are you saying, Lo?” Logan groaned softly, running a hand through his mussed hair.

“I don’t know. Before Remus, I’d never allowed myself to consider a future with anyone. As far as I was concerned, I was going to be alone and…I suppose I made peace with that. But then we got closer, and we started dating and…everything changed.” Virgil laughed on the other end, a tired, amused sound.

“Yeah, love will do that to ya.  Do you think I had any idea I was going to become as sappy as I’ve become? I mean, Jesus, just the other day I nearly burst into tears when Roman and I were picking out curtains together – and we’ve been living together for months now!” Logan could certainly empathize with that.

“I’m still not entirely used to it. Being so at the mercy of my emotions.”

“Welcome to the club, pal,” Virgil said with a chuckle, “But my point is, it makes sense that you’re getting worked up thinking about how you’ve got someone in your life who you love and who loves you. It can be a lot to take in sometimes.” Silence rung out between them for an uncomfortable moment before Logan spoke again.

“I want to marry him.”

“Whoa – slow your role, man! Just because you had some dream where you were a married couple?”

“…Yes.” Virgil groaned.

“Oh my god, this cannot be the Logan Sanders I know and love. Logan, dude, do you recognize how fucking insane that sounds?!”

“I do,” Logan said, though his tone of voice seemed to indicate the opposite, “But really, now that I’m considering things, it makes perfect sense.”

“You’re going to have to expand upon that then because I’m lost as fuck.”

“The entirety of our relationship has been incredibly fast. At first, I’d been opposed to such things, but quickly I found myself not minding the pace that things were going. Despite my initial hesitations, it all felt natural. To put it simply, Remus and I have been “speedrunning” our relationship. I can’t picture being with anyone else, and I don’t imagine he can either, therefore marriage is the next logical step.”

“Okay, but is it really the next ‘logical’ step? Don’t you think you might be rushing into this a bit, man? I mean, I’ve always considered you such a careful planner. How can you possibly know this is the right thing to do based on a dream?” Logan went silent for a moment, lost in his contemplation before posing a question to his friend.

“Can you imagine being with anyone besides Roman?”

“Ah – geez man I don’t know about –.”

“Can you?” Virgil sighed, the sound somewhat defeated.

“No…no I can’t. Fuck, I love him, a lot – but hey, we’re not talking about Ro and I’s relationship. We’re talking about you here,” Virgil said, clearly intent on steering the topic away from himself.

“I made the connection to you and Roman’s relationship in an effort to help you understand where I’m coming from. I'd never considered the fact that I could be content in a long-term relationship, I didn’t think it was possible, but I am. I love Remus immensely, more than I knew I was capable of loving someone else. I don’t ever want to consider the idea of being with anyone else, I just want him.”

“So you’ve decided, just like that, you want to get married?” Virgil asked incredulously, “I mean, just a couple minutes ago you called me sounding terrified.”

“Tell me, Virgil, do I still sound terrified?” Virgil paused, mulling the question over before sighing.

“No, you don’t. I guess you sound pretty clear-headed.”

“Precisely. I know I must’ve sounded frantic – I’ll admit, I was feeling rather frantic, and I apologize if that was cause for concern. But now, I feel like I’ve found such clarity. I know this is probably nothing you’d expected of me –,”

“You got that right,” Virgil interrupted pointedly, but there was no bite to his bark. He was quickly adjusting himself to the fact that Logan’s mind seemed very well made-up.

“Yes, well, that is understandable. Regardless, I feel strongly about this. I know it must be strange, me getting so lost in a dream, believe me, it’s just as odd for me to get so wrapped up in something so trivial. But I feel as though it’s sort of been…” Logan trailed off, unsure of his wording.

“A sign?” Virgil supplied hesitantly.

“Something like that, yes. I want him to be my husband, Virgil. It’s as simple as that,” Logan said as if anything about this situation felt simple.

“I know he was the one to bring it up, but do you think Remus will be keen on getting engaged this early in?” Virgil asked, before considering it for a half a second. “You know what? Never mind. Knowing him, he’s already planning on proposing to you or something. I mean, he’s the one who claims to be “Mr. Unpredictable” and all that.”

The idea made warmth bloom in Logan’s chest.

“Well, I-I don’t know about that. But at the very least, I can be certain he won’t shoot the idea down entirely.”

“And you’re not scared?” Virgil asked, “Of such a big change, I mean.” Logan laughed softly, still mindful of his sleeping boyfriend.

“Scared? Of course not. I’m positively terrified.” It was Virgil’s turn to laugh, it seemed, barking one out at sentiment. “Nonetheless, this is what I want.”

“Okay, L,” Virgil said finally, settling into the idea, “If that’s what you want, then you’ve got my support.” Logan sighed, more than a little relieved to have his friend onboard. He’d need all the help he could get to pull this thing off.

“Thank you, Virge. That means a great deal.”

“Yeah, yeah. What’re friends for, am I right?” Virgil said, clearly trying to downplay the clear emotion in Logan’s tone, distantly wondering if he’d ever get used to seeing such emotional vulnerability in his friend, “What kind of help do ya need?” Logan blinked.

“I beg your pardon?”

“For the proposal,” Virgil clarified, “I’m sure you’re brewing some kind of plan as we speak. What can I help you with?” Virgil wasn’t wrong; a plan was beginning to form in his mind.

“Well,” Logan said, mind already teeming with ideas, “Since you offered, I was wondering…could you and Roman host a party?” Virgil scoffed.

“A party? What’re you on about, dude? You fucking hate parties.”  

“Be that as it may, Remus and I’s relationship began at you and Roman’s party nearly a year ago. I feel it would be a…pleasantly familiar atmosphere to propose to him in.” Logan could hear the gears in Virgil’s mind turning.

“Wow, Lo. I think that’s the sappiest thing I’ve ever heard you say.” Logan sputtered, feeling heat rise to his cheeks. “Hey, hey cool your jets, man,” Virgil said with a laugh, “I didn’t say no, just that it’s unexpectedly cheesy coming from you. I’ll ask Roman about it, though I’m sure he’ll say yes. He’s gonna think this is the cutest thing.”

“I – thank you, Virgil,” Logan breathed out, still feeling fairly flustered, “I sincerely appreciate it.”

“Sure man. Not too many people at the party, I assume?”

“Yes, I would prefer to keep it small.”

“Okay What’s the cover-story, then? Are we going to call it your guy’s One Year Anniversary party or something?” Logan considered it a moment. Doing anything else would surely arouse suspicions, and that would be strictly out of the question. But a party in honor of the milestone they’d reached in their relationship? That made sense.

“That…that sounds satisfactory,” Logan concluded, though Virgil could clearly hear how much more at ease he felt.

“Alright, man. I’ll let you know the details tomorrow. This is absolutely insane to think about, but I hope it goes great. If anyone could make it work, it’d be you two.”

“Thank you, Virgil, for everything you’ve done for me tonight. I appreciate it,” he choked out, “a great deal.”

“You’re welcome, L. Now I’m gonna let you go before this gets even more incredibly sappy.”

“Right, of course,” Logan said, remembering how late it was, “Goodnight, Virgil.”

“Night, man,” Virgil said before hanging up the phone and leaving Logan to process the conclusion he’d just come to.

Logan Sanders wanted to get married. Considering how he’d been behaving earlier in the evening, he should’ve been terrified by the prospect of wanting such a thing, and to some extent he certainly was, but he also felt so much calmer having decided to take this course of action.

Despite everything, he believed in this, believed in the strength of his relationship. For the first time in his life, Logan saw a future for himself that was worth holding onto.

He poured out the mug of tea that had since gone cold and crawled back into bed. Remus grumbled sleepily beside him, throwing his arms around him and pulling him into a sleepy embrace, though he didn’t wake. Logan returned the embrace happily, aware of the fact that he’d most likely struggle to get back to sleep, but it didn’t matter. He held Remus as tightly as he could, engulfed in his plan.

=+=

“Princey, you are not going to believe the conversation I just had,” Virgil announced loudly after he’d gotten off the phone, walking into their shared bedroom. Roman was sitting at the desk, probably rereading a script he had to prepare for that he’d long since memorized. Virgil decided it had been kind of a steal, finding a partner who was just as much of a night-owl as he was, though they’d both always be equally as tired in the morning.

“Who in their right mind was talking to you at this time of night?” Roman asked as if they weren’t currently still awake. Virgil belly-flopped onto the bed with more force than necessary, turning to face Roman who had since closed his laptop.

“So Logan calls me at one in the morning in a panic, right?”

“Logan? What was the matter with pocket protector? A nightmare?” Virgil sat up on the bed, crossing his legs.

“See, that’s what I thought too, but he told me the dream he had wasn’t a nightmare. He said it was a really good dream – which was exactly why he’d woken up so frantically.” Roman arched an eyebrow.

“Why in the world would he wake up and call you about a good dream?” Virgil couldn’t fight the smile his face broke out into if he wanted to.

“That’s the thing: he dreamed about him and Remus getting married.” Suddenly, Roman was on his feet with an incredulous look on his face.

“Oh my god! Are you serious?”

“I am! We talked it out a little bit, and then out of the blue, he was committed to the idea. He’s gonna fucking propose to your brother.” Roman couldn’t help but laugh.

“Oh my gosh, I just had a conversation with Remus today about how he wants to propose to Logan!”

“Are you fucking joking?!”

“I’m not!”

“That’s insane! So you’re telling me that Logan wants to propose to Remus…and Remus wants to propose to Virgil…”

“Apparently. Oh, it completely slipped my mind! Remus requested that in two weeks we host a party –.” Virgil buried his face in his hands. “What’s the matter, love? You’re not keen on the idea?”

“No,” Virgil asked with a snicker, “No, it’s not that. It’s just, Logan just made the same request to me.”

“You…you cannot be serious,” Roman said, seeing how Virgil was still laughing, “Oh sweet heavens, you’re serious.”

“I am. Did you tell Remus this all seemed a bit fast?”

“I did. And I presume you told Logan the same.”

“Course I did. I couldn’t help it; I was just so surprised. But it looks like this is what both of them want.” Roman sat beside Virgil, taking his hand and squeezing it.

“I can’t believe they’re both planning on proposing to one another.”

“Ditto,” Virgil said, his thumb tracing circles against Roman’s hand, “God, this is probably going to be such a mess.”

“Knowing those two, yes, yes it will,” Roman said, intent on more physical contact as he pulled Virgil into his lip, his head resting against the headboard. Virgil quickly accepted his new placement, sighing contently as Roman began to card a hand through his hair. “Even still, it’s so romantic, isn’t it?” Virgil sighed fondly.

“I knew you were gonna get all sappy,” he said teasingly.

“But it is, though,” Roman defended, “They want to propose to one another, both unaware that the other wants just the same.”

“I say it’d be a hell of a lot easier if somebody just told them.”

“Don’t you dare even think of doing such a thing,” Roman said pointedly, “They’ve got to do this on their own.”

“I know, I know,” Virgil said, his lips curling into a smile as Roman massaged his scalp, “I’m not being serious. I mean, this out to be pretty damn entertaining, right?”

“I suppose so,” Roman said, though there was something far-off about his tone. Virgil pushed his hand out of his hair, despite how nice it felt, and positioned himself to make eye contact with his boyfriend.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Roman shook his head.

“Nothing’s wrong, my love.”

“Ro, c’mon, babe, you’ve got that wistful look in your eyes.”

“What look in my eye? I don’t know what you mean.”

“Roman.” It took very little for Roman to crack under pressure, and Virgil saying his name like that was a surefire way to do it.

“Okay, okay. I’ve been meaning to ask you for a while now…” Roman trails off, feeling his pule beginning to flutter.

“Hey, it’s alright. I’m listening,” Virgil encouraged softly. Roman nodded, determined to keep going.

“Right, well, I’ve been meaning to ask you your thoughts on marriage.” Roman could instantly feel the panic rising in his boyfriend. “I’m – I’m not proposing right now! I just wanted to know your feelings on the matter.” Virgil visibly began to relax.

“Well, as far as I’m concerned, getting married is the end goal.” A soft, hopeful smile graced Roman’s face.

“Yeah…yeah, me too. So if I was to, at some point, hypothetically, ask you to –.”

“I’d say yes,” Virgil assured, his voice brimming with emotion. Roman, utterly relieved, pulled his boyfriend into a kiss with far too much intensity for the time of night; neither men seemed to care.

“I love you so much, my dark prince,” he said pressing their foreheads together, his voice just above a whisper.

“I love you too, Ro,” Virgil promised, his heart swelling with unbridled emotion, “With all my damn heart.”

That night two couples slept, both intent on marriage and both helplessly, hopelessly in love.

=+=

[chases-gerty]

For the Bellarke prompt, how about costars!Bellarke where one of them accidentally lets out their secret relationship during a live interview? :) .. Or if you would prefer canon, Bellamy in the scene where Monty reads the list. :)

Hey anon! Sorry this is kind of late. I saw this like an hour ago. I wrote the costars!Bellarke. Hope you like it!

Show You

Pairing: BellarkeWords: 1923

“Happy Tuesday, everyone! We are live here at the E! News studio. Today I have the pleasure of sitting down with the two main star, Clarke Griffin and Bellamy Blake, of the new hit drama Arkadia. To everyone at home watching if you haven’t seen Arkadia, you must be living in a space station because this is the hottest show on television right now.” Gina said through a huge smile of pearly whites. Clarke fidgeted with the hem of her skirt. She hated interviews. She always came out of it feeling phony because all the makeup and hair extensions. Not to mention her face always hurt afterward due to speaking through a fake smile. Today, was no exception but she was a little more nervous than usual and it was all because of her handsome costar/secret boyfriend beside her. Bellamy seemed to notice and titled his head slightly as he eyed her carefully. She smiled and gave him a discreet nod informing him not to worry. “Clarke Griffin and Bellamy Blake it is so nice to have you both come down to the studio.” “It’s always nice to see you Gina.” Bellamy replied with a small wink. “Bellamy Blake always the charmer.” Gina replied with a giggle. Clarke stiffened and suppressed the eye roll that was begging to present itself to Gina’s flirtatious giggle. Clarke instead plastered on the most fake real smile she could muster. She knew Bellamy was only putting up a front like she was now but hot damn was she getting irritated “Everyone who watches the show knows that the two of you play Eliza and Bob, best friends who form a band and make it big. Now your characters are trying to deal with the pressures of fame and how it can affect every aspect of your life. The story lines that your two characters are getting hit with this season are dark, pretty tough stuff. Did you both have to dig deep to relate to Eliza and Bob?” Gina questioned with a serious expression. “Eliza is trying act and look the way that society pressures women to think they have to be in order to be unrealistically perfect. I have to say that I give our showrunners Raven Reyes and Luna Nightblood and the writers a lot of credit, because they are taking Eliza through a journey so many women are dealing with but yet Hollywood refuses to acknowledge.” Clarke’s response puts a smile on Gina’s face as she nodded with agreement. “You know how it is Gina. You work in this business. Society puts a lot a pressure on us women to have unrealistic ‘beauty’ perfection. So, I guess I can say I do relate to Eliza and her journey.” “You got that right.” Gina gives Clarke a high five and then turns to Bellamy. “Raven threatened me if I spoiled anything she’d kick my ass.” Bellamy eyes widened. “I’m so sorry. I know we aren’t supposed to curse.” Clarke and Gina both laughed at Bellamy’s expense. “Oh, well it happens.” Was Gina’s response. “Sorry, again.” Bellamy apologizes once more and continues. “So, all I’m going to say is Bob and I are like completely different people. I couldn’t relate and had to really dig deep to get into his mind.” Bellamy responded with a timid smile. “Does that mean Bliza is going to happen? I’m sure you know that the pairing is a fan favorite.” Gina crosses her legs and sits more attentive. Clarke feels her palms sweating. She knows the question isn’t about them but about their characters. Still, Clarke can’t help the nerves that take hold of her. It was because of the show that Clarke and Bellamy realized they had a connection that was more than partners. Their characters were slowly building up to a romance and the scenes had pushed them to work closer together. Forcing Clarke and Bellamy to realize they weren’t just acting, it was real. “You know we can’t say.” Bellamy responds with a cocky smile on his face. “Of course but a girl can ask.” Gina responds oozing sex. Clarke can feel the irritation grow to anger. Gina smile changes in an instant from sexy to a grin. “I hear that you’re a big basketball fan.” “A Spurs fan. I bleed black and silver.” Bellamy responds automatically causing Clarke to roll her eyes with a grin. Fan was understatement. He played any chance he got and watched every game he could. Before she met Bellamy Clarke knew nothing about basketball. Never had some much as even picked up a ball. Now, after a few months of dating Clarke was getting pretty good at dribbling. “We decided it be fun to have a game of hoops.” Just as Gina finishes speaking two men wheel in two basketball hoops and rack of basketballs. Clarke looks to Bellamy with wide eyes and shakes her head. “Oh, this is so not fair. He is always playing. There is no competition.” Clarke’s statement causes Bellamy to laugh because he knows just how competitive she is. He grabs her hand and pulls her toward the rack of balls. “Oh, come on. It’ll be fun. I’ll go easy on you.” “Don’t you dare. I may not be good but I’ll take the L like a champs.” Bellamy eyes darken as his smirk turns sexy and Clarke has to take a step back. They wanted to keep their relationship under the radar but if he kept that up she was going to kiss him here right in front of everyone on live television. Gina comes to stand beside them eyeing their hands and close proximity causing Clarke to pull away, as causally as possible. She’s pretty sure she wasn’t in anyway discreet. “Are you guys ready?” Gina asks. Clarke moves to her rack of balls and sticks her tongue out a Bellamy who returns the gesture. “I take that as a yes.” Gina begins to count down from three and when she hits one a buzzer sounds off. Bellamy is on fire the minute he grabs the ball. His are nothing but net and all the while he is talking to Clarke making it look effortless. “Come on, Princess. I know you can do better than that.” He taunts hoping to get Clarke’s to competitive side to really show. Clarke is throwing the balls but they don’t even make it close to the hoop. They keep falling short. Clarke is on her last ball and Bellamy’s taunting is causing a heat to rise in her blood. She grabs the last ball and throws it as hard as she can. Clarke watches as the ball hits the rim of the hoop flies back and toward Bellamy. The next moment the ball is hitting Bellamy square in the face, blindsighting him. “OH MY GOD! BELLAMY!” Clarke yelps as she runs toward Bellamy. He is covering his nose and his eyes are watery and red. “I’m the worst girlfriend ever. I’m so sorry.” Clarke says as she grabs for Bellamy’s hands, “Babe, let me see.” Before she can even touch them he is shaking his head. “It’s okay. Bleeding.” Bellamy’s muffled voice echoes down at her. Boy, was Bellamy bleeding. The blood had already began to seep out from his hands. The medics on sight rushed to Bellamy’s side and usher him out of the camera view. Clarke begins to follow when Gina calls out. “Did you just say girlfriend?” Clarke stops in her tracks. Her blood was boiling. Did she really just ask her that when Bellamy had gotten hurt. “Yes, I’m his girlfriend. If you don’t mind I need to see if my boyfriend is okay.” Clarke’s words were icey but it didn’t make Gina flinch. She smiled at the camera and said. “You heard it first on E! News Clarke Griffin and Bellamy Blake are an item.” Clarke rolled her eyes and huffed in annoyance as she stalked off after Bellamy. ~ Her legs were intertwined with his and they lay on the couch watching a movie about life after nuclear war. Bellamy’s phone began to ring shattering the nice comfortable bubble they were in. “What Murphy?” He looks down at Clarke and rolls his eyes. “Yeah you too, asshole. See you tomorrow.” Bellamy ends the call and instantly his phone chimes. “Murphy is a real dick.” Bellamy says as he shows Clarke his phone. “Look what he sent.” He opens up the video and it’s of Bellamy getting hit in the face by the basketball but someone’s remixed it. Bellamy’s getting hit over and over but the scenery changes and it’s in tune with the song. Clarke instantly begins to laugh. “I’m sorry but that is hilarious.” She says between laughs. Bellamy grabs Clarke and rolls them off of the couch and onto the floor. She shrieks and continues to laugh as he pins her to the floor. “You broke my nose, told everyone we are together, and now you’re going to laugh at my expense. Of course I’m glad you told everyone. Now I can kiss you whenever I want,” He says as he looks down at her. After everything Bellamy wasn’t upset with her. He just kept teasing her throughout the day calling her the Nose Slayer. Even then he was kissing her and hugging her while he called her Nose Slayer. So she knows that his words are meant for teasing but his eyes are anything but teasing. They are glistening down at her like they have never before. The heat takes root in her belly and makes it way all the way to her toes and to the top of her head. Her heart is pounding and yet it feels still. “I love you.” It just blurts out of Clarke. She doesn’t regret it either because in that moment she feels it. Bellamy’s eyes widen and he begins to laugh jubilantly. “I love you too!” He says with a smile from ear to ear and his face glowing with happiness. He digs his face into crock of Clarke’s neck leaving a trail of kisses and whispering I love you over and over again. Suddenly he stops tries to look at Clarke with a serious expression. He is failing miserably. “Breaking my nose is how you show me you love me?” Bellamy questions with a teasing smile on his lips. Clarke shakes her and places both hands on either side of Bellamy’s face and gently brings her mouth to his. The kiss is soft, slow, and sensual. Clarke pulls away and sees Bellamy with two dark circles under his eyes, bandage on his nose, a goofy smile on his lips; she can’t help but feel lucky. Lucky enough to have someone love her even when she screws things up, and breaks their nose on accident. “That’s how I show you I love you.”