#sorry if i am complaining about school a lot i am just SO CLOSE to being done and instead i have. assignments.

[wellnoe]

did completely fuck up this test on the other hand i was literally having an anxiety attack when i started it so i think thats ok

[makeitmingi]

Be Your Solace

Genre: Romance, Fluff, Comfort, Slight Angst

Pairing: San x Reader (y/n)

Characters: UniversityStudent Girlfriend!Reader, UniversityStudent Boyfriend!San

Summary: Since your relationship was still relatively new, you were afraid of letting San meeting your family. You didn't want them to chase him away. But your boyfriend can't stand to see you stressed, anxious and exhausted from your family. So he tries to help you and be your solace.

Warning(s): Reader has anxiety and is mentally anxious, bad mental health. Depictions of toxic family dynamic and family members. There may be triggering topics to certain readers. Please read at your own discretion.

[A/N: Happy belated birthday Choi San!!!!!! This is my 'self-indulgent' fic. Some parts you may find rather detailed because it is a close depiction to my own personal experiences with extended family. And how I am going through it right now. So I wrote this to vent, rant and comfort myself.]

Word count: 7.7K

'At the end of the day, family will always be family. And family will always comes first.'

That's what you've been told your whole life. No matter what happens between family members, you'll always be family, you'll always share blood bonds. And blood is thicker than water... right? The expectation that family will always come first was seared into your brain.

"(y/n)? Did you hear what I said?" Your boyfriend's voice pulled you out of your mind's despair.

"Huh? No, sorry, Sannie. What did you say?" You frowned at yourself, not even realising that you were spacing out. You blinked and let out a soft sigh, moving to meet his eyes.

"What's wrong? You didn't even react when I called you 'jagiya'." San joked but his eyes filled with concern and worry.

The reason you didn't like the pet name 'jagiya' because that was what San and his best friend, Wooyoung, called each other.

Instead he calls you, 'baby', 'love' or his favourite, 'baby love'. To him, that was the most unique and it combined his two other petnames for you. And that made it special to both you and San.

"I'm fine. Just a little distracted." You forced a smile. One of San's hand reached out to cup your cheek, the other wrapped around your waist to pull you closer to him.

"You're not fine. Tell me what's bothering my baby?" He tilted his head with a small pout.

"It's just my family... You know how it is... My cousin's coming back to visit and as usual, the whole family is rushing to accomodate her as if she's the queen. She's not even here yet and I'm already so bothered by it." You rubbed your temples.

"This is the cousin that's the favourite of your oldest aunt, right?" He clarified. San hasn't met your extended family yet so he only knows them by your stories and rants about them.

"Yes. And since my aunt is the head of the family, we kind of have to do her bidding. I'd rather not face her wrath." You said.

"I understand." San nodded.

"And she knows I'm off school now so I'll probably be roped into doing more of whatever she has planned. She even made an excel sheet schedule." You groaned.

"Looks like all my weekends are gone." You said, looking at the schedule. San looked over to read through it.

"That's... a lot of things to do..." San frowned. Even he felt exhausted looking at that.

"I know!" You groaned, your head falling onto his shoulder. And what's worse is that you won't be able to see San as much since so much of your time would be taken up for family. San turned his body on the couch so he could face you and hug you properly. You buried your head into his chest.

"I shouldn't be complaining, right? I should be grateful for all these extravagant meals and outings she drags me to. But why do I feel such an exhaustion and dread?" You gulped.

"Everyone has a social battery, baby love. And it is very exhausting. I remember the last time she came back, you were sick after she left."

"Yeah because she has the flu and still came in close proximity to us." You mumbled bitterly.

"Would it help if I was there?" He asked carefully, rubbing the back of your hand with his thumb as you tucked your face into the crook of his neck.

The last thing San wanted to do was to add to your stress or make you feel pressured into inviting him for these.

"Thanks, San. But I like our relationship so I don't want to risk scaring you away yet." You chuckled.

"Baby, you already have me and my love for you is greater than what your family can do to me. If I have to accept your family to be with you, so be it." He laughed and pulled away slightly to kiss the crown of your head.

But from your answer, San knew not to push it or insist that you let him come with you. He didn't want to make things difficult for you. You knew your family and were old enough to judge the situation.

"Wait, it's not that I'm embarrased by you or anything, okay? That side of my family is just judgemental and not welcoming-"

"Woah, woah, woah. Breathe, baby love. It's okay. Hey." He cupped your cheeks in his hands to ground you.

"Sorry..." You mumbled.

"Mmm-mmm, you have nothing to apologise for. Thank you for wanting to protect me." San pressed his forehead against yours. You gave him a small smile.

"I really wish I could have you with me. But there's this whole thing they have about insiders vs outsiders." You sighed.

"Before we continue, let's move to the room. This couch is too small to cuddle." Without saying anything else, San lifted you up and brought you to his room. As he climbed over you, he hovered over you for a few seconds to give you a kiss before landing his body beside yours.

"Here." He put Shiber in your arms for you to hug while he wrapped his arms around you to hug you.

"I'm sorry I'll be more absent these 3 weeks." You sighed, inhaling Shiber's scent. He smelled just like San, which comforted you.

"Don't worry about that now, baby. I'll miss you dearly but that's not for you to worry about. I'm not angry nor do I blame you." He assured pulling you closer to him.

"But I am angry. I need my San time." You whined. San laughed and cupped your cheek to give you a peck.

"You can come over any day, any time you need, hmm? Or if you want me to go over, let me know." He rubbed your back.

"Thank you." You murmured. San wished he could do more, he hated seeing your anxiety peak like this and how stressed out you were. The least he could do was be here for you when you need him.

When San hugged you like this, you felt so safe and protected from the world. Your anxiety was something you were transparent about right from the start. But San never grew annoyed with it, he was always there, patient and understanding.

It's funny because now you wonder how you lived without him all these years because you've definitely grown dependent on him.

"Take a nap, hmm? Rest your mind." He said, gently massaging the back of your neck to help you relieve the tension there. You melted in his touch.

When San woke up from the nap, you were not in bed with him. He heard you talking outside.

"So you've seen the schedule. Just help me book my hair and nail appointments where there's a free slot. No mornings though."

"Sure... I'll call and check. Then update the schedule." You said, nodding to the phone that you propped up using your mug so you wouldn't have to hold it.

"And make a booking at the Chinese restaurant for Sunday brunch too. Since you're usually the one who makes it."

"Okay, hang on for a bit." You blanked the camera and turned off the mic, waving San over. You both still heard your cousin rambling about something on the other end. San shuffled over to you, leaning down to give you a kiss. You giggled and ran your hands through his hair, combing out his bed hair.

"Sorry I left the bed. She called and I didn't want to wake you up with the talking." You sighed.

"It's okay. But you owe me." He smiled with a playful glint in his eyes. You laughed and nodded, giving him a final kiss before he moved away. You turned the camera and mic on again.

"What happened? Why did you have to turn off the camera and mic when we were talking half way? Why are you acting so secretive?"

"What? I'm not secretive." You frowned.

"It's just a boyfriend. You're at your boyfriend's place, aren't you? It's not that big a deal, (y/n). You don't have to act like it's some big secret. I have a boyfriend too."

"I know that. I just... It's not that it's a secret. I just enjoy my privacy." You sighed.

"Privacy? We're family, why do you have to keep it so private? That's making it a big deal."

"Anyway, back to the plans." You diverted the topic. You could only bite your tongue for so long and you didn't want to accidentally say something ugly. There was a nice facade that you had to maintain to keep the peace.

"Also, since I'm back, can you make me that Chinese dish you learnt to make the other time? I've been asking each time I return and you haven't made it for me."

"It's a lot of work and I'm busy..." You chewed on your bottom lip.

"Yeah but you're on holiday, right? What? You want me to pay you? I can pay you to make it."

"Money is not the issue here... It's time consuming and a lot of work. There are other things I need to attend to. Making that dish will take me two days..." You tried to reason with her.

"What's the point in saying you learnt to make it if you're not going to make it?"

"Yeah, my bad." You hummed.

"Anyway, our aunt said that for the two family gatherings, you're in charge of desserts so make enough this time, okay? And try something new, you always make the same thing."

From the kitchen, San listened to the conversation, his frown growing deeper as time went on. This was the first time he heard you speak to your cousins and it's like you're an entirely different person. He hated it and he hated how your cousin used your aunt's position in the family to make you do things.

"Are you bringing your boyfriend for any of the gatherings? I brought my boyfriend the last time I came back."

"I remember. But no, I don't intend to bring him this time." You shook your head, eyes casting to the side to meet San's. He just stared back at you with an unreadable expression.

"Maybe it's best that you don't. I got some heat the last time and I'm the favourite of the family. So, who knows what you'll get."

"Right, thanks for the heads up." You awkwardly chuckled.

"But I'm not saying you should keep him away forever. It's rude of you not to invite him. If you're serious about him and talk about him, you should bring him to meet us."

"I do intend to since he's already met my parents a few times. Just not this instance." You said.

"Keeping him away is not only rude, it's not fair to him either. You'll hurt his feelings and your relationship this way."

"I'm aware. Thank you for the advice." You forced a small smile, swallowing the lump in your throat. The exhale you let out was shaky, you were trying your best to keep it together but it was hard when she talked about how you were 'treating' San.

"Baby, are you free? I need your help!" San shouted. You looked up at meet his eyes.

"Looks like you're needed, you better go. Are you sure you can't pick me up from the airport tomorrow?"

"Seems like he needs me. And yeah, I'm sorry about that. I have a family dinner." You lied, hoping she bought your lie. San had come closer to you.

"Mmm, okay. But you better send me to the airport when I leave. Bye, I'll see you the day after tomorrow then."

After she hung up, you felt your whole body quiver. With shaky hands, you put your phone down.

"Baby love?" San approached you carefully but you stood up. You gulped and took a deep breath. In addition to everything else, now you felt embarrassed that San witnessed that.

"I-I'm going to the restroom." You made a beeline for the bathroom and closed the door. You knew you needed to collect yourself and not constantly depend on San to comfort you, you didn't want him to think that you were using him. Turning the sink on, you splashed your face with cold water.

*KNOCK KNOCK*

"Love? It's me. Open the door, hmm?" San was heard on the other side of the door.

"Just give me a second." You breathed out. From the gap beneath the door, you saw that he still stood there but he didn't rush you. He remained quiet until you were ready.

"God, I'm so embarrassed." You let out a tired sigh when you opened the door. San was leaning on the opposite wall and stood up.

"What's there to be embarrassed about, baby love?" His eyebrows furrowed with worry.

"Nothing. I'm good, Sannie. Don't worry about me, I-I'm used to it. But thanks for saving me." You threw your arms around his neck. His hands went to their usual place on your hips.

"I'll always save you." He kissed your cheek.

"I hate that she talks to you like that. I... I really hate it... She doesn't know anything about us." He mumbled against your shoulder as he hugged you tightly. You let out a hum, fingers toying with the ends of his hair behind his head.

"You're not rude and I'm not hurt that you're not bringing me to meet your extended family, okay? Our relationship is stronger than she thinks." San squeezed your waist.

"I know. What you think and feel is the most important. That's all that matters to me." You replied in a whisper.

"Aigo, my baby love. My pretty baby, my precious girl." San cooed, patting your butt teasingly.

Before meeting San, you hated people in your personal space. But one of the ways that San shows his love is through physical touch and now, you can't live without his hugs, kisses and cuddles.

*BEEP BEEP*

"Please tell me that's not her." San groaned and buried his face into the crook of your neck as you fished your phone out.

"Oh, nope. It's your boyfriend, he's coming with food for dinner and Yunho's tagging along." You informed, reading the text. San pulled away just to show you that he was rolling his eyes at you. In your phone, Wooyoung's contact was 'San's Boyfriend' and you did refer to him as such.

"He's not my boyfriend and I'm not his boyfriend. I'm YOUR boyfriend. You, (y/n) (y/l/n)." San squished your cheeks, pressing his forehead against yours.

"Not that many people have their boyfriends call another guy 'jagiya'. So can you blame me?' You teased.

"You-" San feign anger, chasing you around.

As you ran away, there was someone at your door. San wrapped his arms around your middle, playfully nibbling on the exposed skin between your neck and shoulder.

"Oh, your boyfriend and Yunho are here." You giggled and opened the door to let them in.

"Jagiya! I'm here!" Wooyoung came barreling in, throwing his arms around San, who caught him before they could both fall over. You chuckled with a shake of your head and wrapped an arm around Yunho to greet him.

"Sorry for coming unannounced." Yunho grinned, wrapping his long arms around you. You shook your head, all of San's friends were nice, you liked being around them.

"Some love for you too, baby girl." Wooyoung tugged you away from Yunho's embrace, planting a kiss on your cheek to rile San up.

"YAH!" San let out an outraged yell.

-

It only took about 3 days after your cousin's return for you to come back to San's place.

"San?" You called out after letting yourself in. He wasn't around, probably in the gym. The first thing you did was shower and wear one of San's shirts. After seeing that you liked to wear his shirts to comfort yourself, he started to set aside some of his shirts in the cupboard labelled 'Baby's Pile'.

"Hi, Shiber." You created a nest of San's blanket and hugged Shiber, just wanted to engulf yourself in his scent. It was the only thing that kept you sane now.

The first thing San did when he arrived home was notice your shoes in the doorway. The past 3 days, you haven't even had the time to text and call each other so he didn't know how you were doing.

"Baby love?" San called but there was no reply. He frowned in confusion and dropped his gym bag on the couch.

"Baby? Where are-" San paused when he saw you in his bed, fast asleep.

"My love." He whispered, hovering over you to give you a kiss on the cheek. You looked so precious and adorable in his shirt, hugging Shiber to you.

San went to take a shower, wanting to jump into bed with you and not disturb you with his sweaty self.

"Sannie?" San heard your sleepy voice from the bathroom and opened the door. You smiled when you saw him there.

"Don't you dare move a single inch. I haven't got a chance to get my cuddles. Let me dry my hair first." San threatened. You saluted and laid back down, squeezing Shiber tightly. You were glad you convinced San not to keep Shiber in storage or something.

"Okay, I'm here." You felt the bed dip as San crawled over to you. His arms reached for you to pull you close to him. The first thing he did was shower you in kisses.

"Come here, baby love." He smothered your in kisses, making you squirm and laugh.

"Ack, San!" You laughed as he gave you a final kiss on the lips.

"Sorry for being MIA and coming unannounced, I just needed to get away for a bit... It's only been a few days since she's been back and I already feel like I can't breathe." You sighed into his neck.

"Don't apologise, I'm glad you feel safe and comforted here. And I'm always happy to see you." He grinned.

"She appeared at my parents' place and wanted to stay over. The moment she left, I came straight here." You told him.

"So that's why you've been MIA. Where's her mom and brothers though? Shouldn't she be staying with them? Or even your oldest aunt, she always stays with her right?" San asked.

"Her mom and brothers couldn't care less. Her mother lets her do whatever she wants and her brothers would rather have her out of the house too since she orders them around and rules the house like a queen. And I think she's only staying my oldest aunt's place towards the end of her trip." You explained.

"My poor baby." San pouted.

"I have the first family gathering tomorrow and frankly, I'm so exhausted I don't even want to go..." You blinked.

"Can you not go? There is another gathering before she leaves, right?" San asked.

"No, I have to. The family will rip me to shreds if they found out I skipped a family gathering to stay with my boyfriend. Because family comes first, right?" You rolled your eyes.

"The only one tht doesn't like her is my mother." You chuckled.

"Your mom never puts up with anyone's bullshit so I am not surprised." San chuckled.

"Plus my mom lowkey doesn't like most of my dad's family anyway." You giggled. San laughed, nodding his head. He stroked your cheek with his thumb.

After you fell back asleep, San quietly grabbed his phone, careful not to disturb you. He thought to send your mother a text to let her know that you were with him and to ask if it was okay for you to stay the night with him.

'Also, I am aware that you have a family gathering to attend to tomorrow. I promise to make sure that I will drop her at your place earlier or the gathering's location on time. - San'

'Alright. Thanks for letting her stay with you, San. She's been stressed and I think she needs some comforting. - (y/n)'s mom'

'Thank you for trusting me. I promise to take good care of her. Have a nice evening. - San'

San then called his mother for recipes because he wanted to cook for you. He wasn't a gourmet cook but he could cook simple dishes for you to eat.

"San?" You called out from the room.

"In the kitchen, love!" San replied from his position by the stove. You shuffled out of the room, still holding Shiber.

"Oh my! Omonim, hello. I'm sorry I didn't see you there!" You jumped when you saw his mother on video call. You jumped out of the frame to adjust your crooked shirt and bed hair, as well to put Shiber down. Then you stepped back to properly bow to her. Both her and San were laughed at your funny actions.

"No worries, dear. Hello." She waved. San was still snickering at you so you secretly pinch his waist. He yelped and jumped, turning to glare at you.

"How are you and abonim? I miss Byeol!" You smiled to the camera, taking the phone up.

"Oh, we're doing fine, dear! Don't worry. And I'm sure Byeol misses you a lot too." She giggled, turning the camera to Byeol.

"Hi, Byeol! Such a cutie." You cooed. Byeol let out a loud meow in response, making you laugh. You could hear San's mom laugh on the other end before she turned the camera back to you.

"Ah, which reminds me. Thank you for sending appa the new foot massager! And for the royal jelly you sent me."

"I'm glad you both like it." You giggled, sitting on the couch and pulling your feet up.

"Like it? I can't even get him to get up from the thing... He even wanted to bring it to the dining table to use it while eating." San's mother sighed with a shake of her head. San smiled softly as he overheard your conversation with his mother.

"I didn't know you sent my parents things." San said after you handed his phone back to him once his mother hung up. You shrugged and leaned against the counter.

"Your mom always feeds me delicious food." You scooped the rice, seeing how San was finishing up his cooking.

"Well, thank you for taking such good care of my parents, baby love." He kissed your cheek.

"No need to thank me. I wanted to do it." You giggled. The both of you sat down at the small dining table to eat together, San handed out the cutlery.

It was nice, spending time with San like this. There was something warm about how domestic and homey it felt.

That's why when San drove you to your oldest aunt's place for the gathering the next day, you didn't want to leave the car. To coax you, San offered to walk you right to the doorstep. You pouted like a little child throwing a tantrum but still let San hold your hand to lead you to your aunt's apartment.

"I don't want to gooooooo. I want to stay with you." You whined, stomping your feet. Full disclaimer, you don't usually act like that, only around San.

"I know, baby. But I promised your mom I would send you here." San chuckled, pulling you along.

"You just hate me, don't you? Because if you love me, you wouldn't send me here."

"Ah, baby~ How can you say that?" San sent you a look. He came up to cup your cheeks, planting a kiss on your lips and swiping the slightly smudged lip gloss.

"Do you want me to stay with you then? I don't mind." San smiled.

"No, you should save yourself when you still can." You groaned. San squeezed your hand and walked with you.

"This is it." You stopped in front of the door, voice filled with dread and despair.

"You'll be okay, baby love. You're strong. But if you've had enough and need me to come get you, just say the word, hmm? I'll be here as soon as I can, your knight in shining armor." San engulfed you in a bear hug, planting a kiss on your temple.

"Thank you, Sannie. I don't know what I would do without you." You hugged him tightly. Before you ran the doorbell, you wanted to wait for San to leave first but you ran into your parents.

They were carrying the two desserts you made before going to San's place yesterday. One carrot cake with cream cheese frosting and the other was cookies.

"Omonim, abonim." San bowed respectfully.

"Thanks for dropping her off, San ah. Would you like to stay for some food?" Your father offered.

"Thank you for the offer but maybe next time, abonim. I already have plans with my sister." San lied. He turned to you and you sent him a grateful smile.

"Ah, alright." He nodded. With a final hug and a bow to your parents, San left. Your cousin opened the door.

"I knew I heard talking outside! Why are all of you just standing there and not ringing the doorbell?" She asked when she saw all of you.

"Oh, (y/n)'s boyfriend dropped her off so we were just greeting each other. But he has something to attend to so he couldn't stay." Your dad explained before entering the house to greet your siblings with your mum by his side. After you removed your shoes, your cousin held your arm.

"Hey, you know... I know your dad said your boyfriend had to rush off but he should have at least come in to say hello to everyone and introduce himself." She leaned in to whisper.

"Yeah but this isn't really the time to introduce him to everyone. Maybe next time." You replied.

"Was he in that much of a rush he couldn't say hi? It just gives off the impression that he's unfriendly and it's honestly quite rude, you know?"

"San's not rude, not in the slightest." Now you felt the need to defend your boyfriend because San was not rude and unfriendly.

"Wouldn't know, he didn't even bother to come in." She chuckled and left you to go.

You felt something boil within you, an ugly anger. She could insult you all she wants but mentioning San was going too far. San would give the world to you, he was a nicest person ever. You chewed on your bottom lip, willing yourself to hold back.

"(y/n)! Why are you just standing there? Come on!" Your other cousins call you. Once again, you took a deep breath, swallowing your anger before forcing a smile and going to join them.

"Hey." You greeted them with hugs.

"My sister said your boyfriend came?" The cousin you were closest to, whispered in your ear as he hugged you.

"Yeah. He wanted to come in to say hi but I told him to just go and save himself. Luckily I did or else he would get grilled, I can't risk that." You sighed.

"Good call." He chuckled, patting your shoulder. You giggled and went to greet your other relatives.

"Oh, (y/n). Can you change the hair appointment you booked for me?" Your cousin asked as you were scooping food.

"You can't make it? I made sure to book it on an open slot in your schedule. And my hairstylist is doing me a favour by coming in on her day off to do your hair before you leave..." You sighed.

"I appreciate that but I don't want to have to wake up so early when it's one of my last days off. You booked it too early." She shrugged.

"Yeah, you should just call and change her appointment. You know she doesn't wake up early for these things, if she goes late, it'll be an even bigger waste of your stylist's time." Your oldest aunt voiced out in support of your cousin. You knew your cousin purposely said it out loud in front of the adults.

"Thank you, you can change the appointment to one of the empty slots in the afternoon or evenings then." She smiled and took her food to go back to one of the tables.

"(y/n), when you booked the chinese restaurant brunch, did you preorder the peking duck?" Your oldest aunt checked.

"No, I was just told to book the table for 8 people at 11 am..." You blinked.

"Ah, you should know we always get the peking duck! Better call them to reserve it before it's too late. I only get peking duck when I am back from London." Your cousin pouted.

"I'll get on it..." You said, trying to contain the sourness in your voice. Putting your food plate down, you went to call the restaurant.

When San heard the doorlock beeping, he checked the time on his laptop. He continued typing on his reports, knowing that you knew your way in. And as he expected, you came trudging in, falling face first onto the sofa.

"Hey, baby love. How was the gathering?" He greeted. You mumbled something into the couch, burying your face into the material of his sofa. San chuckled, putting his laptop and coming to you.

"I didn't hear a single word you just said, my love." San crouched down beside you and stroked the back of your head.

"San..." San didn't expect you to lift your head and to see tears in your eyes.

"Baby! My sweet love, why are you crying? What happened?" San was shocked, he wasn't expecting to see you crying so that sent him into a panic.

"I... I..." You shook your head, feeling like a baby for crying. San hushed you, not wanting to press you for answers.

"It's okay, I've got you." He pulled your leg over his lap so you were straddling him. You clutched onto the material of his shirt like a koala.

"Breathe, my love. Breathe with me. Shh..." His voice was soft as pressed his forehead against yours and purposely breathed loudly so you could follow him.

"It's okay, breathe, baby love. Slow down and take all the time you need." He whispered softly, rubbing your back. You nodded your head in agreement, you did need a minute, a minute to breathe and soak in San's comforting warmth. San was patient, quietly comforting you until your sobs turned to soft whimpers.

"There we go. Good girl. It's going to be okay. Just keep breathing." He kept his eyes trained on you.

"Thank you, San..." You murmured. San guessed that nothing particularly bad happened. You were probably just so frustrated, and mentally and physically exhausted.

"Nothing for you to thank me for. I hate seeing you cry, love." He grasped your hand, rubbing your knuckles with his thumb.

"I know it's tiring. I'm sorry I can't make it any better." He whispered.

"No, you make it better by being San." You pulled away to meet his eyes, cupping his face in your hands. You were so grateful for San being the most amazing person in the world.

"Cute. I'm glad me being San makes you feel better." He chuckled, holding your hand to kiss your fingertips.

"It's not easy being a San." You played along.

"It's all worth it for you. When it's for you, it's never tiring or difficult." San reached up to wipe the last tears off your cheeks. You hugged him again, feeling his arms securely wrap around your waist.

"Do you know she reached over and took food off my plate? Saying that she's deprieved in London so she never gets to eat such nice food. Then she was being annoying by trying to 'convince' me to give my entire share since she deserves it more?" You complained to San.

"In the end, she used her fingers to take bites of my food!" You sighed, shaking your head.

"At that point, I'd rather give her my food. I don't want to know if she's washed her hands. Couldn't she have just taken her own portion and be happy with it?" San sighed, rubbing your arm.

"Apparently not. She kept all this food for herself, saying she'll eat it later so others won't take it and guess what happened?" You asked.

"She didn't even finish it?" San guessed.

"Exactly! First she stops us from eating then after that, says it's too much and she'll feel sick if she eats it. She'd rather THROW IT AWAY!" You exclaimed.

"That's horrible." San frowned. If San was there, he would be frustrated and annoyed too.

"My aunt bought this really fancy, nice ice cream for all of us to share. My cousin took my portion without asking me! She said I could have it again another time but she can't. And by the way, that was her THIRD share. So I didn't have any... It's not even that I wanted the ice cream that badly, it's more... her!" You groaned.

"I know, baby love. I can't believe you two are from the same family when you're so different." San said, leaning his head on his hand.

"She's so different from the rest of the cousins..." You threw your head back.

"I know you said it wasn't about the ice cream but do you want some? I stopped by the store on my way back and stocked up the freezer with your favourite." San offered.

"Why are you so perfect, Choi San?" You whined.

"Far from but I'm glad you see me as such." He kissed the top of your head. You went to the kitchen to grab the ice cream and two spoons.

"No, you eat it, baby." San shook his head when you held the spoon out to him.

"The best part about ice cream is sharing it so take the spoon." You insisted, taking a seat beside him. San peeled open the lid for you to dig in. You leaned against his arm, the both of you taking turns to scoop out of the tub to eat.

"Do you want a blanket?" San asked.

"No, I just want to stay like this... With you... I don't want anything else." You said with a shake of your head. You were just happy in San's presence, he was all you needed.

"Just one more week before she goes back, one more week with one more gathering and it'll be over." You sighed.

"You can do it." San chuckled. When the ice cream was done, San threw the empty tub while you washed the used spoons.

"Go shower and come to bed, hmm? I'll wait for you." San squeezed your hip. You nodded with a hum, feeling slightly sticky on your cheeks from crying previously.

-

The last big, family gathering was at your house. You barely slept the night before because you were stressed. While you baked the desserts in the middle of the night, you were talking to San on video call. You felt bad for making him stay up with you but he was gaming on the side.

"Hello! Welcome." You heard your parents greet the family members that came. You were still setting up the food table, getting everything that you would need.

"Wait, you're wearing that when you have guests in the house?" Your cousin came up to you.

"No, I just haven't got the time to change since I was helping my mother set up." You replied with a soft sigh.

"Well, now that guests are here. You should change. You shouldn't welcome them in home clothes." She raised an eyebrow. You pursed your lips and placed the napkins on the stand.

"Honey! Go change. We can handle the rest, thank you." Your mother came.

"Sure, mom." You nodded with a tight smile and went to take a quick shower to wash the sweat off you.

'She just arrived and she's already giving me grief... - (y/n)'

After sending San a text, you threw your phone aside and took out clothes to change in. You stood by your dresser to dry your hair a little, not wanting to get told off by your relatives by going around with wet hair.

"Oh, welcome! So glad you could make it!" There was a loud commotion outside, you mainly heard your mother exclaim. Putting your hair dryer down, you went outside.

"Thank you for having me." The latest guest said, handing your mother a bouquet of flowers and your father, a bottle of wine.

"What..." You stood there, frozen and dumbfounded.

"(y/n), you didn't tell me your boyfriend was coming!" Your relatives all looked fondly at you and San as he respectfully bowed to greet all of them, shaking their hands too.

"Uhhh, yeah I didn't know too..." You said, frowning slightly hoping you were not dreaming.

"It was my idea to surprise you with San." Your mother giggled.

"Yes, it was all her idea." San, handsomely dressed in a shirt and dress pants, wrapped an arm around your waist, nodding his head.

"Hey." He smiled to you. You smiled back, still kind of surprised by his sudden appearance. But you took a deep breath, San being here shouldn't make you scared, it should make you feel more relaxed and comforted. You were still worried that your extended family will be too hard on him.

"Wait a minute, come here for a bit?" You asked softly. San nodded, following you to your room.

"Baby love, I'm sorry, I know you said-" San was cut off by you throwing your arms around him to hug him tightly. His hands went to hold your hips.

"I'm hoping this hug means you aren't angry?" He chuckled.

"Not at all. Surprised, yes. But angry? No. I know your intentions are good." You smiled softly, pulling away to give him a peck.

"Of course. I'm here with you." He placed kisses along your jaw, making you giggle at how ticklish it was. After that, you both went out, not wanting to stay in your room for too long.

"Let me help you, omonim!" San squeezed your hand and left your side to go your mother in the kitchen.

"Ah, San, go get food and eat. You're a guest." Your mother chuckled, shooing him out.

"You should eat! You and (y/n) have been busy preparing the whole morning, I'm sure you guys didn't get to eat breakfast. Come, I'll take over." San insisted on doing the dishes. Your mother gave up, going to join your father at the food table.

"You wash, I'll dry." You grabbed the dish cloth.

"Baby, I want you to eating something or at least, sit down to rest. You didn't even sleep last night..." San frowned.

"With you, I don't feel tired at all. And we can eat together later." You shook your head. San sighed in defeat, reaching over to knock his head against yours since his hands were soapy.

You weren't done with the dishes but your mother and father came to chase you and San out.

"I guess we should eat." You shrugged. Sticking by San seemed to save you from your cousin and save San from your relatives.

"You want this?" San asked, holding your plate for you. He held both your plates and patiently followed you while you scooped the dishes for both of you.

"No~ No vegetables." San held his plate away when you tried to put spinach salad.

"(y/n), don't be mean to him." Your mother chided. You shot her a look of betrayal while San smirked proudly. With enough food on your plates, you went to sit down with your other cousins. They were nice, making an effort to get to know San and including him in the general conversations like he was part of the family.

"Here." San removed the bones from the galbi and placed it on your plate for you, taking the other pieces that still had bones in them off your plate.

"Thanks." You smiled. Shifting your eyes, you saw the judgemental stares from your spoiled cousin.

"San, would you like a glass of wine?" Your father offered.

"No, thank you. I have to drive later. Do you want a glass?" San turned to you. You nodded and San stepped up, respectfully receiving your glass from your father with a slight bow.

San got along well with your relatives and cousins. You could leave him alone and he would be fine.

"I'm going to the bathroom." You stood up. San held your plate for you while he conversed with your uncle and cousin.

"(y/n), why did you bring your boyfriend to the gathering?" Your cousin stopped you in the hallway just as you were exiting the bathroom. You took a slight step back, suddenly feeling how menacing her presence was.

"I didn't bring him, not planned to at least. You heard it earlier, my mother surprised me by inviting him and my father wanted to introduce him to the family." You spoke calmly.

"Do you know how humiliating and unfair it is with you parading him around in front of me?" She crossed her arms.

"What do you mean? What does San being friendly and nice have to do with you?" You frowned.

"You saw how interrogative they were with my boyfriend, they treated him so much like an outsider. It's unfair that they warmly welcome yours." She scoffed.

"Shouldn't you be finding issues with your boyfriend rather than issues with mine? It's not San's fault that he's better." You glared.

"How can you say that?" She gasped, obviously feeling the shock of someone speaking to her that way.

"Your boyfriend came in, dressed like a slop! He didn't bother to say hi and introduce himself, he just helped himself to the food and didn't bother to offer anyone help with anything. So those issues lie with your boyfriend, they have NOTHING to do with mine." You clenched your fist by your side.

"You-" She took a step forward.

"Hey, baby love. I was looking for- Is everything okay?" San came, a slight frown on his face when he realised it was you and your cousin, the tension in the air heavy and thick.

"I don't know, is it?" You raised your eyebrows at your cousin, making San glance at her as he slotted himself between you and her.

"No offence but this is a family issue, San sshi." Your cousin said with spite. You rolled your eyes.

"I am aware, I just want to try my best to protect (y/n) from anything that may upset her." San smiled. He didn't wait for her to react, or he didn't care.

"Let's go, your food's getting cold." He patted your head. You nodded and walked back out with him.

"Sit here." San naturally brought you to the balcony to sit with him on the bench for some privacy, bringing your plate and wine glass with him. The way he did it, no one paid any mind. He disappeared for a bit and came back with a throw blanket from your room.

"Thanks, San. I'm fine. Really, and this time I mean it when I'm fine." You chuckled as he draped the blanket over your lap so you wouldn't be cold.

"What happened?" He asked softly.

"Blaming you for things that have nothing to do with you. You know that I would take any insult but when it comes to you..." You sighed.

"My hero." San cooed teasingly, scratching your chin like you were a cat. You knew he did that because you always did that to him, comparing his likeness to that of a cat.

"You're always protecting me and being my rock. I can protect you too." You cleared your throat.

"Thank you, baby love. You're so cute. But you know I don't care what anyone else thinks. All that matters to me, is what you think."

"Well, I already think you're the most amazing person in the world and that I don't deserve you-" San stopped you by putting his hand over your mouth.

"There you go again, sprouting nonsense." He pouted with a frown. You laughed and held your hands up in defeat, stabbing a piece of meat to eat. San looked at you with pride and happiness, as if you were his whole world. And if you ask him, he'll probably say that you ARE his whole world.

"Shall I get you a refill of wine?" He offered, gesturing to your empty wine glass.

"No, it's okay, just stay here with me?" You asked.

"Of course, as long as you need." He smiled softly, letting you lean your head on his shoulder. Lacing fingers with you, he brought your hand up to kiss the back of it.

You were wrong, there was nothing for you to be scared of, bringing San to a family gathering.

It didn't bring you more stress and anxiety like you thought it would. Instead it made you feel reassured and comforted having him around, the same feeling San always gives you.

Your crazy, chaotic family didn't chase him away. They welcomed and accepted him, seeing him the same way that you do.

"I'm grateful I have you with me, Sannie. Not just here and now... but always." You squeezed his hand.

"I'm glad you feel that way because I'm not letting you go that easily. Plus, I think I can safely say most of your family loves me. Including your dad! He wanted me to drink wine with him and told me I could stay the night if I need to." He grinned proudly.

"Wow, that's really progress. Coming from my dad. I thought it would take a while more for him to be friendlier with you." You chuckled.

"He's just protective of his daughter like any father is. I would be too if my daughter was like you." He said. You rolled your eyes and snorted at his cheesiness.

"And this is a warning, I will be protective of our daughter. I'm serious." He said seriously.

"W-What are you saying now?" You grew flustered at his words and punched his arm, fanning your face. But deep down, you knew you would want nothing more than to have a future with San.

~

Masterlist

[kryannoy]

it slipped out, i'm sorry . . .

genre: fluff

character: xiangli yao

a/n: another fic about him because i am so in love with this man. i am fully aware he is sadly a fictional character 😀

Oh, how you love your boyfriend so much.

He has never raised his voice at you, never raised his hand at you, never even complained about you. He is just so . . . him! So perfect. The man any girl or woman would dreamt of. The man anyone wants as their partner because he treats you like royalty.

So, how? How does one get him to be your lover? And that person in question is you. How did you even hit the jackpot has always been a question you can never answer yourself. It has remained a mystery for as long as you can remember.

There has been a lot of time you look at him, stare at him, observe him and pinch him and yourself to see if this is real or not. And when you pinched him, guess what? He didn't get mad at you.

He flinched from the pain and immediately turned to you to see you pinching yourself as well. He raised his eyebrow and questioned you.

"Wha . . . What was that for?" His voice is gentle as the breeze, full of confusion yet patience.

"I don't think this is real. Yao, my love, can you pinch me so I know this isn't a dream?" You answered.

He chuckles at this. He doesn't need anyone else to keep him entertained after being buried in his research. You were enough. "No, princess. I don't want to hurt you."

You pout at him while playfully crossed your arms. "You saying that isn't helping, y'know?"

The look on his face isn't really worth seeing. You quite regret this action. Somehow, he seems to believe you. Or more likely, ready to apologize for saying something wrong—when clearly he wasn't.

"What is this all about? Is something troubling you? You can just tell me and I will help to the best of my ability."

He did it again! is what you want to say but you don't want to further upset your boyfriend. After all, why would you do that when he never does the same? He doesn't deserve it.

"It's just, I can't believe I have someone like you. No, wait. That sounded wrong. I meant, like, you're so perfect, how did I end up with you? And why did you choose me when there are other girls who are more fitting to be with you. You're so nice and I feel like I haven't done enough."

His heart bloomed. He feels suffocated but in a good way. An amazingly, romantically good way. He never gave a thought that you felt this way. He always thought that you were just as happy as him to be together.

He moves towards you and cups your face in his large hands. His prosthetic hand feels cold on your left cheek but somehow, you still feel the warmth resonating from his touch.

"My beautiful, lovely, sweet, gorgeous queen." He pecks your lips and even from that short kiss makes both of your skin hot, but still, he wasn't going to shy away now. "You are also perfect as is. So, we are perfect for each other. And I don't need anyone else. Got it?"

Oh, his eyes are shining. His smile is beaming. His touch is welcoming. But his distance is killing. He's so close!

At times like these are when you feel so shy around him no matter how many times you both have hugged, cuddled, kissed and such. You still feel butterflies in your stomach like having a school crush. You wonder if he feels the same way.

"And in another few years, we will be married, live together and have ki—"

He stops abruptly before he gets ahead of himself. Well, it's already slipped out anyways.

How else were you going to respond to that?! He just proves himself to be dreamier than before.

"Xiangli Yao . . ." You breath.

He notices you're so stiff and tense, not to mention, how red your face is right now. He better take a step back before you faint.

The proximity is now enough for you to take a breather. He scratches his cheek with his metal finger, looking flustered as you are. He must have felt the same way—the butterflies in his tummy, the blinking eyes, the awkward gesture.

He lightly clears his throat. "M—My apologies, I . . . uh, got ahead of myself. Forget what I said. I wasn't really thinking straight and it slipped out before I knew it."

It makes you much happier now after hearing his words and seeing you're not the only one who can get embarrassed. You're fully aware your boyfriend loves to make plans, even plans for next year, but you didn't know he made plans to be fully committed to you!

How'd you land a guy like him will always be the question.

You couldn't hide your smile anymore as you flung yourself into his arms as if he just put a ring on your finger. "I'll just say it now; I do!"

Xiangli Yao is so glad you couldn't see his face because if he does, he'll most likely malfunction like his robot one time. "I think you need to pinch me, princess. I feel like I'm dreaming."

[thewritetofreespeech]

Gale x Tav

words: 1992

rating: E

pairing: Gale x Tav (post game pairing)

summary: since you all are so thirsty for an extended verison of the NSFW headcanons post, I guess I had to make one. I am nothing if not a servant to my people.

tags: magic sex (literally. but also metaphorically), exhibitionism, voyeurism, masturbation (kind of), Gale using magic for naughty reasons, projection!Gale

part ii part iii

“Alright class! Please turn your alchemy text to Chapter 8, page 394.”

There was a loud, unanimous sound of rustling paper as all the students in the lecture hall flipped through their books to the requested text. You don’t know what Gale was always complaining about. This teaching thing wasn’t that hard.

Gale had to leave for a community conference of the Blackwater staff and some of the other schools of magical arts in Faerûn. Given that they were all wizards, you had asked why they all couldn’t just project their consciousness into one place and avoid the travel, but Gale didn’t have an answer for that and left earlier that week. In his absence, he had asked you to take over his Introductory to Magics class while he was gone. Given that it was an introductory course, which mostly meant learning the basics and text anyway, and you’d had ‘private tutoring’ from Mystra’s former Chosen himself, he insisted you were more than qualified to act in his stead.

It had actually been pretty fun. The young weave masters were all eager to learn. Honestly the hardest thing was keeping them on task with the subjects instead of running off with a lot of questions about your victory over the Elder Brain and recuse of the realm. It was flattering, but not apart of the testing materials.

The students all wait patiently with their books open for you to begin, and you turn around to the blackboard. All of a sudden you felt a twinge between your legs. Not a painful one but more….

“Professor [Y/N], are you alright?”

You turn to look over your shoulder at the class, clearly spaced out for a moment, before you smile and tell them, “oh yes. Sorry. Let’s talk about alchemy then.”

You begin to write and talk to the class when you feel the sensation again. It was faint, but distinct. At first you thought it was just the seam of your trousers rubbing against your apex. But it was too consistent for that. The sensation would come. Then the sensation would go. You tried to keep your mind on the lesson but the more it came & went you had to wonder what was going on.

It couldn’t be Haarlep. Despite your adventure being over, your contract with the sex demon wasn’t. He still used your form from time to time, though your popularity in Avernous seemed to be waning as he hadn’t called on it in some time. If it were him the sensation would be constant, before fading away like a breathless sigh off your lips. So it was something else.

By the time you get through explaining the 4 key groups of alchemy, and made it to page 396, the sensation had crawled up from your core and just to the pit of your belly. You were having a harder time focusing on the lesson. Your attention now spilt between 50% focused on what was happening to your body, a mere 10% on the lecture, and the rest on the stimulating sensation between your legs that was just too pleasurable to resist.

To save face, and avoid any embarrassment like moaning out loud in front of a class full of minors, you quickly pivot the class schedule into independent study. Telling the students to go out around campus and find 5, no 15 herbs, floral, whatever to craft with for tomorrow morning’s follow up lecture on application.

Some of the students seem confused. While other just look excited to have the afternoon off for ‘foraging’. Still, the all leave rate orderly while you wave them off, and just as the door closed behind the last one you let out a deep breath you didn’t really you were holding and brace your hands against the desk.

Your body felt like it was on fire. Teased, tormented, toyed with. Your hands still splayed on the desk, you spread your legs and let out a moan. Conventionally thinking would lead on to believe that rubbing your thighs together would make the sensation stronger, yet somehow spreading them apart made more room for…whatever this was to work. Your clit throbbed at the feeling of something rubbing against it. If they weren’t in front of you, you would have sworn it was your own hand touching you. The sensation was so similar. Your fingertips twitch at the thought. Prepared to slide down the front of your pants to finish you off.

“Hello there!”

You jump with a start. Eyes wide in alarm at the sound of a voice. The immediate thought coming to mind that another professor has come to ask why the entire Introductory to Magics class is out picking herbs & flowers instead of being in a classroom and caught you on the cusp of a very public private moment. Thankfully, it wasn’t. Only Gale’s Mirror Image projection standing there looking cheerfully at you. “Gale? What are you doing here?”

“I assume you mean what is Gale doing sending me here.” The clever non-corporeal remarked. “Gale has sent me here to see how his new technique is working out. And, judging by your flushed cheeks and wanton appearance, I would say it’s going splendidly!”

Your brain struggled to gather all the bits of information the projection was dealing out through your fog. But you gather enough to finally understand what’s going on. “Gale did this to me!”

“Doing. He is doing this to you ma’m.” As if to prove a point of the explanation, there was another, firmer press of rubbing against your clit. One that made you moan again and knees nearly buckle. “Gale has informed me, to tell you, that he enchanted one of the stones on his ring to be linked with your…well…your own stone. He also wants me to tell you it’s the ruby one. On the silver band.”

The one you bought him. “Can I ask…mmm…why he did this?”

“You can ask! He says it was to give you pleasure while he was away. Long distance relationship can be tricky.” It had been less than a week. “He thought this would be a good resolution in the intermedium. And, perhaps other times in the future.”

You’re not sure if you should feel violated by Gale’s magical molestations or marvel at his creativity. It didn’t really matter in the end because all you could think about was the nagging need to cum. And one other nagging thing – “and you couldn’t possibly wait until I was home to try out this new technique? I’m in the middle of teaching your class. I’m still at the academy! What if someone comes in here right now??”

“Oh. Not to worry. Gale has informed me that the door is magically locked until 2:30 this afternoon. Something about office hours? No one can enter until after that time. Does that help answer your question?”

You let out another long, heavy sigh. One of abject relief and feeling your legs give way as you fall back into Gale’s chair. All the energy sapped from your body as you gave way to the pleasure that had been bubbly up. No longer holding it back, but instead letting it wash over you.

“Gale says he’s happy you like your present.”

You open your eyes. Seeing the projection staring at you with a blank, but soothing expression. Those unending eyes seeming to look right through you. Or perhaps, more to the point, stare past itself and straight to Gale. It was kind of hot. The coolness of its gaze. “My present, eh?”

The projection nodded. “Yes. He says he did this for you.”

“Just for me?” You unbutton your blouse. It had been feeling terrible constricting for quite some time now anyway. The projection doesn’t say anything. Nor does its expression change more than the slight tilt of it’s head, as the fabric gave way to relieve more skin and the outline of your breast in their bra.

“He says yes. But the pockets of his mind I can access independently lead me to believe it’s not purely altruistic.”

You giggle at the projection’s honesty, before your laughter turned into moans. The feeling on your clit more intense. As if Gale was trying to change the conversation.

“Fuck…Gale….” Your back arched off the back of the chair for a moment before it came back down again. “I can’t take it anymore. Are you as anatomically correct as before?”

“Hmm…I believe so.” The projection looked down at itself. Seeming to ponder the concept, as well as all its parts. “But Gale has instructed me that he’s not interested in me using that ability with you. The time in Shar’s Caress was due to the other guests in attendance. With you, Gale wants you all to himself.”

There was an odd feeling of arousal at Gale’s possessiveness, even against himself in a way, but also disappointment. You were close. But the sensation from Gale’s ring to your core wasn’t enough. You needed more.

Just as you were again about to shove your own hand down your pants, you feel a new sensation of hands on you. Not just one hand, or two, but multiple hands. Mage hands. They play with your breasts, your nipples, your ears, your hair. You lean back in Gale’s chair with your eyes closed. Moaning and panting with a white-knuckle grip on the arm rests as the invisible hands play with your body. One finally gives you what you want. Phantom appendage digits thrusting into your inner core, wet and hot.

Your hips jerk up as you let out a wordless scream before the fall back down and you let it fuck you. Legs wide. Blouse open. Mouth agape as Gale abuses his power to abuse your body in the most pleasurable way possible. You’re about to cum probably harder than you’ve ever cum in your life and your pants were still on. How insane was that?

You open your eyes, half lidded and only for a moment, to see the projection still staring at you as you fall apart. Then, you finally do. You cum hard. Bowing back off the chair so hard you hear it creak, before you fall back limp against the soft leather.

“Did you enjoy yourself?”

You look up at the projection again. Trying to catch your breath and right your world again. “Yes.”

“Good. Gale is glad you did. He also says that it’s made up for a rather dull afternoon of meetings.” A shiver ran up your spine at the thought that Gale had done all of this during a meeting. “The time is now 2:00. If you would like to freshen up, I suggest you make haste before 2:30 when the doors reopen. Gale says that enjoys how you look right now, but it is probably not appropriate for academia.”

“Then maybe don’t do this at ‘academia’ locations.” You quip back as you smooth out your hair.

“Fair.” The projection agrees. “Gale would like to know if you would like to do this again then when you are not in academia. Perhaps tonight? At home?”

You bite your lip at the thought of it. Doing this all over again, only this time naked in your bed. Perhaps even able to participate more now that you knew what was going on. “Absolutely.”

“Splendid!” The projection offers you a smile before it fades. Disappearing with a last, “see you tonight” as it reabsorbed back into the weave.

Alone again, you stand on shaky legs and try to right yourself for the next class. You still had two more classes to teach before you could go home that evening and become Gale’s play thing again.

The thought made it completely impossible to be totally focused on your lesson plan. You may have told some impressionable young wizards that Fly and Feather Fall were absolutely the same spell. Oh well. Mistakes happen.

[angelic-sturniolos111]

Some Privacy 🌌 pt. 1

You’ve been staying with the triplets in LA for a few weeks and are growing incredibly sexually frustrated being in Matt’s presence all the time. A late-night hot-tub sesh between the two of you reveals all…

matthew sturniolo x fem! reader

warnings: smut in future parts 🤭, mentions of rape, lots of sexual tensionnnnn

author’s note: quite possibly my best work to date tbh had to make it into parts

future parts will be linked here =>

Y/N’s POV:

The triplets, close friends of mind, were kind enough to let me stay with them in LA for a few weeks while I had off from school while I work remote. They’ve showed me all around LA and we’ve spent a lot of time together having fun and making content for their YouTube channel. Everything has been great, and I really have no reason to complain, except for one thing…

I’m horny as fuck.

Normally, my libido is a little above average I’d say, but there’s one major contributing factor to my frustration.

Matt Sturniolo.

I’ve always had a crush on him since we’ve met though I’d never act on my feelings in fear that he’d reject me. Aside from my feelings for him he is absolutely, incredibly, insanely hot. I can never get my eyes off of him when we’re in a room together. The way his stubble perfectly contours his jaw, his big veiny hands, the tattooed, everything. Though he wasn’t just a looker, he’s also one of the sweetest kindest people I’ve ever met— which is why I can’t risk losing him as a friend.

I’d typically handle my current situation on my own. The problem is, I’m sleeping on the triplets couch in the living room. Knowing those night owls, anyone could enter the room at any given moment, and I can’t risk getting caught. Not only that, but we’re always together and not once have I had the house to myself or any moment of privacy since being here.

I’m laying on the couch seriously debating on whether or not I should touch myself, but then my mind wandered to the thought of Matt possibly catching me in the act. The thought of Matt watching me touch myself made my situation worse as the heat built up between my legs and my heartbeat got that much faster.

“Ugh— fuck this.” I said to myself. I got up off the couch and grabbed some of my workout clothes to change in the bathroom. Then I went back into the living room by the front door and sat down to put on and tie my sneakers. The only other way I could let this frustration out would be to go for a run, and that’s just what I planned to do until I hear a door creak open.

I see Matt stepping out of his bedroom, clad in sweatpants and a t-shirt, rubbing his eyes as if he’d just woken up.

“Hey, I’m sorry if I woke you up.”

“Nah, I was kinda already awake and I thought I heard you— wait, what are you doing? Where are you going?” He questions once he sees me dressed and tying my shoes, ready to head out the door.

“I’m going for a run.”

“Ummm no you’re not.” He says in a serious tone.

“Ummm yes, I am.” I reply in the same tone.

“Y/N, I’m not letting you go for a run alone this late at night.”

“I’ll be fine Matt,” I say as I stand up and start grabbing my bag and water bottle. He roughly grabs my wrist and stops me forcing me to look up at him.

“NO you are not going! You’ll get kidnapped, or raped, or something… I am not letting you leave this house.” He said sternly. I sighed, staring up at the ceiling in surrender.

“Why do you want to run this late anyways?” Matt says letting go of my wrist and leaning against the kitchen counter. I pause thinking of how to answer.

“I’m just… stressed.” I half-lied.

“How come?”

“It’s ummm— it’s complicated. I’m just really stressed and needed to hash it out somehow so I could relax and go to sleep.” Matt nods his head in response, and though the room is dimly lit I can still see the concern behind his blue eyes.

“How about I go get the hot tub heated up and we can relax in there together, okay?” The hot tub? Alone, with Matt? Before I could protest he speaks up, “C’mon, go put a bathing suit on and I’ll meet you out there, k?” Matt says assuredly. I sigh, turning back to the living room to get a bathing suit out of my suitcase and change again.

*****

I push open the sliding glass door to see Matt already in the bubbling, steaming hot tub. He's in his bathing suit, shirtless, the front strands of hair gently clinging to his forehead from the steam, soft blue light of the hot tub illuminating his face… Fuck. In no way was this helping my sexual frustration.

I saunter over to the tub and step in letting the hot water consume me. The pulsing jets hitting all the right spots on my lower back and shoulders. I inhale deeply feeling the humid steam fill my nostrils. I exhale letting my head fall back onto the side of the tub.

"Feels good?" Matt asks. My heart skips a beat at his question as I imagine him saying it to me under different circumstances, and for the filthiest of reasons.

"Mhmm." I hum in reply, not dropping my head back to look at him because I know that would just drive me up a wall.

I stayed in this position for a while, head back and eyes closed as I try and focus on the soothing sensation the hot tub is giving me while also trying not to bring my attention to Matt knowing that would only make my situation worse.

"Why are you stressed? What's on your mind?" Matt asks bringing me back to reality after zoning out. I reluctantly drop my head back down and open my eyes to meet his. Big mistake. The steam had collected on his skin causing small beads of water to fall down his chest into the tub. His arms were outstretched against the walls of the tub, and his legs part wide open as he laid his back against the tub wall. Despite being submerged underwater I could feel my core getting increasingly wet.

"I told you it's complicated, and it's personal…" I reply shyly.

"Awe c'mon Y/N, you can tell me. You know Nick nor Chris can have mature conversations about our feelings like I can." I sigh. He's right. I've always been able to talk freely and openly with Matt about my problems, my anxiety, and he opens up to me about the same things.

"I've been very… frustrated recently." I say hesitantly, looking at the blue bubbling water to avoid eye contact.

"How come? Is being in the house with us too much? I know we can be a lot sometimes so if you want to go home that's totally fine, we'll understand." He says genuinely. My lips curl into a smile huffing out a light laugh at his cute assumption.

"No! No that's not it at all. I love being here with you three." I say bringing my eyes up to find Matt's already looking deeply into mine. He raises his brows slightly and tilts his head indicating for me to continue. "I've been," God, was I really about to tell him this?

"I've been sexually frustrated. Extremely." I say, not breaking eye contact. Everything inside of me is vibrating and I feel like sinking down into the tub and drowning myself in it.

Matt's eyes widen slightly as his mouth gently parts. "Oh…" he said softly as that was all he managed to get out. He dropped his arms into his lap and stared at the water looking deep in thought. We both didn't speak, only for a moment, but the silence made time feel like it was dragging out forever.

"Why, then… Have you— have you touched yourself at all?" Matt stutters out. I can sense he's just as nervous as I am to have this conversation, but I also can tell that there is genuine concern laced in his voice.

"No. Trust me, I've wanted to. I’ve been sleeping on the couch in the living room, so I haven’t. You and your brothers are up at all hours of the night, and one of you has come into the kitchen for a late-night snack, or come to the living room to see if I was awake to chat or film. So I feel like I just haven’t had enough privacy to do so— that’s all.”

Matt and I have had many deep conversations before, and I am always super honest with him because he makes me feel safe and comfortable. But right now, I’ve never felt so vulnerable in front of him.

“Mmm.” He hums, his eyes darting away from mine.

A few moments of slightly uncomfortable silence pass before he pushes himself off the hot tub wall and slowly makes his way over to me. Our eyes lock again, but his are different this time, darker.

“We have some privacy now.” Matt says in a low, deep tone.

We? My breath hitches in my throat.

Suddenly, everything in the atmosphere changed. We deeply stared into each other’s eyes. Our stare was one where we both didn’t have to speak, and the silence felt comfortable. His stare quieted the millions of thoughts racing in my head until I was only focused on him and how my body called for him. I no longer felt vulnerable. I felt stronger. Confident.

I could see in his eyes that he was thinking the same thing I was, and his blown out pupils told me he wanted it just as badly…

**********

taglist:

@flowerxbunnie @delimeats-000 @daddyslilchickenfingers @sturniolosluvv @lovingmattysposts @lustfulslxt @sturnioloskies @recklesssturniolo @strniohoeee @apclyptc @strawberrysturniolo @hoesformatt @luv4kozume

[siriuslovebot]

˖ ࣪⭑˖ ࣪𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒔𝒌𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 ➸ 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒖𝒔 𝒍𝒖𝒑𝒊𝒏˖ ࣪⭑ ˖ ࣪

𓏲 ࣪₊♡𓂃 𝑨𝑵𝑶𝑵𝒀𝑴𝑶𝑼𝑺 𝑨𝑺𝑲𝑬𝑫: hello my love! ik you’ve already made a couple but i was wondering if you could make another one of those mouse ones, if you’re not up for it that’s completely fine! thank you for taking the time to read this!

𝑨𝑵𝑶𝑵𝒀𝑴𝑶𝑼𝑺 𝑨𝑺𝑲𝑬𝑫: we all need more remus x mouse!!!

𝑨𝑵𝑶𝑵𝒀𝑴𝑶𝑼𝑺 𝑨𝑺𝑲𝑬𝑫: please write another remus lupin x mouse fluff please. i love your writing style. it's just perfect<33

𝑾𝑨𝑹𝑵𝑰𝑵𝑮𝑺: injured reader, the nickname 'mouse', some embarrassing (possibly?) moments, nothing else i can think of??

𝑺𝑼𝑴𝑴𝑨𝑹𝒀: after convincing the reader to go ice skating, things end up going a bit sideways for the marauders.

𝑨/𝑵: merry christmas (and happy holidays) everyone! here is a bit of a late gift for you all! i was astonished to see the amount of requests for more remus x mouse! i didn't even include all of them here. i'm sorry i've been mia for so long! this one may be a bit rusty, but i hope you all enjoy even if i am a little out of practice! (also this is unedited so if you see any typos/mistakes no you didn't)

𝑾𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝑪𝑶𝑼𝑵𝑻: 3.3k 𓂃♡₊⭑

·͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺

“it’s bloody freezing out here,” mutters sirius, his voice gruff in the early morning air.

you roll your eyes, glancing at him out of the corner of your eye. in your peripheral, you can see his mussed hair and dark circles, as well as the scowl that colours his handsome features. 

“you should’ve stayed behind if you’re going to whine, sirius,” you respond, raising your brows.

he wrinkles his nose, looking an awful lot like he’s smelled something foul. “are you mad? i’m not staying cooped up in that castle when you lot are out here having fun. where’s moony?” he looks at you expectantly.

“running late, i suppose,” you glance at your watch, a christmas gift from remus. it’s charmed, the tiny mice printed on the watch frolicking around as you get the time. your face turns pink, embarrassed although you love the little watch. you hope sirius doesn’t see. you’d never hear the end of it. 

“well, it’s half eight. earliest i’ve been up in weeks.” sirius yawns, swiping his sleeve across his face.

you roll your eyes again. you knew the lot of them would be menaces upon returning from the christmas holidays. sirius spent the two weeks of holiday break at james’s house, the two of them likely driving the potters out of their minds. the pair of them had clearly suffered from a lack of sleep, made clear by sirius’s incessant complaining about being up early. 

you wanted to spend the holidays at hogwarts, hoping that remus might convince his parents to let him do the same, with no luck. you suffered a miserable two weeks at home, your parents refusing to let you out of their sight for a second. you hardly even had time to respond to the owls sent by your friends; notably, a muggle christmas card of lily and her family, an odd photo of sirius and james wearing charmed elves’ hats, and a sweet note from remus wishing you a merry christmas and promising you a gift upon your return to school. 

thus, you are excited to spend a few hours having fun with your friends without worrying about lessons. if only you can wrestle sirius out of his grumpy mood. 

there’s a chorus of boots crunching through snow behind you, and you turn to find lily approaching. james and remus trail close behind, with marlene at the back. 

“what’s with the frown?” lily makes a face at sirius, who makes another disgruntled face.

“hasn’t got his beauty sleep,” you warn, a smile playing on your lips.

“you’d know about that, wouldn’t you?” sirius says crossly.

you raise your eyebrows at him.

“simmer down, pads,” james says, bright as ever. “don’t mind him. he’s just peeved because of that detention mcgonagall gave him.”

he pats his friend on the back, accompanied only by a grumble from the long-haired boy.

“yes,” says remus, “who knew she would catch him trying to turn marie littletree’s quill into a bowtruckle?” 

“all right,” says sirius. “i get it. i’ll paint a stupid little grin on my face like prongs here. can we get on with it?” he grins at the confused half-smile on james’s face, then nudges his friend in the shoulder. 

“right,” says marlene. “lily’s got an itinerary.”

“yes,” says the redhead. “first hogsmeade weekend back, and i’ve got plans. now, the three broomsticks is going to be absolutely swimming with people.”

“it’s always swimming with people,” james chimes.

“right,” she gives him a sharp look, and he scratches his neck awkwardly. “i was thinking, we should skip the morning crowd, and have a go at ice skating.”

“ice skating!”

“ice skating?”

james and your exclamations mirror one another, as you both gawk at lily. james looks like a child on christmas morning, and you look… well, terrified. 

“oh, godric, i’m going to be so embarrassed. i can hardly walk, lils, much less skate!” you groan, feeling the exasperation sirius has been bleeding all morning. 

“c’mon, y/n!” james gives you a shake around the shoulders, looking excited. “you’ll be fine. a little arresto momentum, and you’re saved.”

“right, and which one of you is going to babysit me to keep me from face planting?” you glare at him.

“sounds like a job for moony, if y’ask me,” says sirius smugly. he’s already strutting towards the pond, james close on his heels. 

marlene grins, and lily looks at you pleadingly. “c’mon, y/n,” she begs, pouting like a child.

“it’ll be fun,” marlene adds.

you huff, not wanting to feel like a buzzkill. 

remus places a gentle hand on your shoulder, squeezing gently. you sigh.

“you’ll be all right,” he urges, voice soft. 

you sigh, but concede. “fine.” 

lily and marlene cheer, taking off behind james and sirius on their way to the pond.

you frown, glancing over at remus as you fall into a slow pace following them.

“do i have to?” you wonder aloud, hooking your arm through his as you crunch through the hardened snow.

remus smiles down at you, a gentle smile finding his lips. his cheeks are pink from the cold already, his honeyed hair sticking out in tufts from beneath his knit hat. your stomach does a flip, and you have to force yourself not to look away.

“don’t tell me you’re scared, mouse,” he says, raising an eyebrow.

“scared? pfft, i don’t get scared,” you mutter, rolling your eyes.

“oh, really?”

“really. but i know my strengths. and ice-foot coordination is not one of them. i’m preparing to embarrass the wits out of myself.” 

“it can’t possibly be that bad,” he says.

“have you met me, rem? i tripped over the air just last night.”

“i actually think that was a badly timed jinx from sirius.”

“i hope you’re joking.”

“afraid not.”

“oh, he’s got it coming.” you shake your head, remembering the burn of your cheeks as you tumbled in a heap in the common room. remus came over, smiling to himself as he helped pick up your things. you’d wanted to crawl into a hole and hide for the rest of the night.

as you approach the pond, you blink at the sight of a few other students gliding over the frozen water. you blink, not feeling confident in your abilities. you can feel your legs wobbling already, hearing the sound of yourself crashing into the ice. 

“okay,” you stop in your tracks, grabbing remus by his wrists. he faces you, eyes expectant.

“yes?” he humours you, looking as serious as you feel.

“promise you won’t laugh if i fall.”

his features crack into a smile, his head falling as he laughs softly. “c’mon, mouse,” he nudges you, draping an arm over your shoulders. he’s warm, and you lean into him as he leads you closer to the water’s edge, where your friends have already conjured up their ice skates. 

“if you laugh, i’ll never forgive you.”

“i’ll keep an eye on you,” he says, “and i promise i won’t laugh.” 

“holding you to it,” you say, joining marlene and lily by the pond.

“here,” marlene takes half a second and conjures you a pair of skates, untied on your feet. 

james and sirius are already on the ice, flitting around faster than you can keep up with. they’re a pair of blurs, their laughter ringing through the air. 

you make a face, your ears burning just at the thought of how you’re going to look trying to keep your feet beneath yourself. you don’t even notice your untied laces as you wobble towards the ice.

“just a second, mouse,” remus says softly, his large frame stooping to tie your shoes.

your face goes red as you glance down at him, feeling sheepish. “sorry,” you say, “i could have done that.”

“i’ve got it,” remus hums, his scarred hands tying your skate laces with expertise. 

he’s towering over you again in half a second, winking at you as he reaches down to grasp your hand. his skin is warm, even through both pairs of your gloves, and you feel a bit better. 

“y’alright?” remus wonders aloud, guiding you to the edge of the ice. he steps on gracefully, somehow able to keep his feet from sliding beneath him. you stare down at his skates, nervous.

you frown. “i’m scared,” you admit, face darkening with embarrassment.

“don’t be scared,” remus says. 

he tugs your hand, smiling warmly. you hate how persuasive he is; his soft voice and gentle smile have a way of turning you into a gushing mess in the palm of his hands. no one knows how to make you feel better like remus does. 

“you’ll still love me if i make a fool out of myself, right?” you wonder aloud, stepping slowly onto the ice. you tuck your bottom lip between your teeth, focused on keeping yourself upright. 

“i’d love you even if you made a fool out of the whole world, love.”

he’s laughing as you join him on the ice, the velvety deep sound sending butterflies rampaging through your stomach. he grasps your hand, ever so gently, and pulls you to the center of the ice, where fewer of the other students are. your classmates fly by, agile and quick on the ice. you feel somewhat like a baby deer, your legs wobbly beneath you. 

“see, not so bad, is it?” remus encourages, his features now split in a jovial grin. his tawny eyes glitter with amusement, the corners crinkled by his big smile.

“no, i guess not,” you agree, fingers still gripping the sleeve of his coat in a vice.

“d’you want to try on your own?” he inquires. his long fingers loosen their hold on your wrist, but you tighten your own around him.

“no–not yet!” you squeak, moving closer to him and throwing your arms around his middle. he laughs, his chest rumbling against your cheek. you take a deep breath.

“sorry,” he chuckles, smoothing a hand over your hair. “i’ve got you, m’little mouse.” 

you blink, peeking around his frame to see sirius and lily engaged in a race across the pond, their speeding frames silhouetted by the snowy landscape behind them. a grin spreads over your features, watching as james and marlene cheer them on. 

“i don’t know how they do it,” you muse, shaking your head.

“you’ll be racing them in no time,” remus says teasingly, slowly unraveling your death grip around him. 

“if you say so,” you murmur.

remus pulls you along gently, gaining some speed as you become more comfortable at the feeling of being on the ice. after several minutes, you’re no longer as unstable on your feet. you hardly even shriek when james charges at the pair of you at full speed, spraying you with a shower of ice as he stops at the last second.

“you git,” you hiss, sending a snowball his way with a flick of your wand.

he curses loudly, already halfway across the pond when it hits his back. lily and marlene dissolve into a fit of giggles, while remus chuckles gently. 

you don’t even notice that he isn’t holding you steady anymore. distracted, you’ve released your grasp on his sleeve, and are slowly gliding alongside him. you’re closer to the edge of the pond, your feet steady beneath you as you gather confidence. 

“feeling okay?” remus has spun around, facing you as he skates backwards.

what a showoff, you think, but you say nothing. he doesn’t know it, but you adore just how easily he picks up on the things you find to be absolutely mind-boggling. despite his insistence that he’s nothing special, he picks up on skills with ease. he’s a talented wizard, quick-witted and good at solving problems under pressure. it’s precisely why he excels in school, despite being out around each full moon and sometimes struggling to come out of his shell.

“thanks to you,” you say, flushing. “i wouldn’t be out here if it weren’t for you, you know.”

he smiles sheepishly, his wind-chapped face going a deeper shade of pink. “sure you would.”

you laugh, shaking your head. “i’m serious, rem,” you say. “thank you.”

“don’t thank me,” he says, looking more than a little embarrassed. 

you reach for him, wanting to hold his hand, but you see concern flash in his eyes. your eyes widen, but before you can say anything he’s already reaching for you.

“watch out–”

but you’ve both reacted too late. another student slams into your shoulder, knocking you off kilter. you squeal, falling to the ice too quickly for either you or remus to react. the air feels as if you’re caught in slow motion for a second; the ice is approaching your face with extreme speed, glistening in the morning sun. without thinking, you brace with one hand, the other halfway reaching towards remus. 

your arm breaks your fall, and there’s a sickening crack as you hit the ice. it’s harder than you thought. you shriek, a sickening pain rocketing up your wrist and shoulder as you finally collapse completely.

“shit,” remus hisses, crouching as you feel his hands on your shoulders, trying to help you up to a sitting position.

you’re too focused on the excruciating pain in your arm to realize that you’re crying. the tears are hot against your skin, burning your cold cheeks as you sit up. you clutch your arm with your other hand, looking at the horrible purple lump already protruding at your wrist.

“merlin,” you sob, “it’s broken!” the sight of the bone jabbing at the inside of your arm makes your stomach do a turn, and you force yourself to look away. remus crouches in front of you, his worried face swimming in your teary vision. 

you hear your friends shouting, and several nasty words directed at the student who slammed into you. you glance over, seeing marlene dragging sirius away by his scarf as he tries to throttle the poor third-year student. 

lily skates towards you, slowing as she approaches.

“oh, dear,” she says, as she sees your arm.

“it’s bad, isn’t it?” you ask, glancing between remus and lily. you can’t force yourself to look back at the arm, feeling as if you’re going to faint if you have to see the bruises blooming over your arm.

“not so bad,” lily lies, offering a forced smile.

“we’ve got to get some help. you need to see madam pomfrey.” remus says. he’s crouched, one hand coming out to wipe the tears from your face. you breathe in his scent, trying to ground yourself. 

james, sirius, and marlene finally join you, sirius still cursing the student as marlene drags him over. 

“ugh,” james says as he sees your injury. 

sirius peers over remus’ shoulder, his eyes blazing with fury as he sees the extent of your injury. “i’m going to curse the bollocks off of that kid!” he hisses, reaching for his wand, tucked into his coat pocket.

“sirius, stop it!” marlene scolds. “we have to do something about that arm. there’s no way y/n’s making it back to the castle in this state.”

“i’m fine,” you insist, though your stomach is rolling unpleasantly. you think you’d likely vomit if you had to stand. 

“you’re not fine,” remus says, his voice stern. “your arm’s gone sideways. you need to be in the hospital wing.”

“we can’t move her like this,” james says, sounding as sick as you are.

“let lily have a go at it. she put my pinky right when that bludger hit it at practice,” says sirius. 

“your pinky?” remus says incredulously. “i think an arm’s a bit more important than a pinky.”

“rem,” you say, nudging him with your foot. “it’s fine. i trust lily. besides, i think i’ll be sick if we don’t do something now.”

remus sighs, his eyes dark with worry. he places a hand on your knee, shifting slightly to let lily get closer. “fine.” you can tell he’s not happy about it. 

“marlene, go get some help, will you?” you say, your head swimming. you feel closer to fainting by the minute, shock setting in.

“‘course i will.” she’s gone in a flash.

“okay,” you breathe, closing your eyes as you wait for lily to fix your arm. 

“right, then,” she pulls her want out of her pocket, leaning closer. there’s a second of silence before she says, “episkey!”

only, the spell doesn’t go quite right. a blinding hot pain blooms in your arm, and you shriek again. this time, you’re not strong enough to keep from fainting. white spots bloom behind your vision, and you collapse. 

you wake hours later, in the hospital wing. you stir, your throat dry as you turn over in the cot. your vision is blurry as you peel your eyes open, finding your arm wrapped in some kind of sling. madam pomfrey is nowhere in sight, but remus is slumped in a chair at your beside.

his eyes are closed, his breathing steady as he sits. his head rests lazily against the back of the chair. you study his face; his scars shine in the sliver of evening light that spills in from the window behind you. you groan as you move, your entire body aching.

your muscles throb, the fall having taken its toll on you. you watch him for a few minutes, the delicate rise and fall of his chest. his hair falls in golden wisps over his forehead and his ears, tickling the nape of his neck. you smile, glad he’s getting some rest. you’re sure he’s been perched in that uncomfortable chair all day. he’s probably missed all of his meals, crouched by your bed worrying.

you smile to yourself, wondering how you’ve ended up with someone so perfect. 

he stirs finally, his eyes crinkling as he yawns.

“rem,” you say softly, catching his attention as he opens his eyes.

“hey, sleepyhead,” he says, a tired smile painting his features.

you reach for him with your good hand, his long fingers reaching out and enveloping yours with ease. his skin is warm as he brings your hand to his lips, holding it there for a moment. your face heats up. embarrassed, you want to sink down into the cot and disappear, but you can’t run from him. he knows you too well.

“have you been here all day?” you wonder.

“of course,” he says, as if you’d be crazy to think otherwise. 

“you didn’t have to do that.”

“yes i did,” he says, frowning. “it’s my fault you went out there in the first place. you wouldn’t be hurt if i hadn’t convinced you to go skating.”

“hey,” you scold, “don’t say that. it’s not your fault. none of it’s your fault.”

he shakes his head, looking apologetic. you sigh, squeezing his hand.

“i’m serious, rem. i don’t blame you. i had a lot of fun, until that kid ran into me, at least.” you grin, trying to lighten the mood.

he can’t help the smile that creeps onto his features. “poor guy,” he says, “sirius wanted to hunt him down so badly. said he was willing to have detention for the rest of the year, if it meant he got his revenge.”

you roll your eyes. “what a hothead,” you laugh. 

“yeah, think the kid was pretty scared too. he send a card up, and some chocolate frogs.” remus passes you a card. you open it up, and a flock of little birds explodes from the paper, as well as a bright, sparkling message that says get well soon!

you smile, feeling much better already. you squeeze remus’s hand again, closing the card as he passes you a chocolate frog. 

“thank you,” you say in response, though both of you know you’re not just thanking him for the chocolate.

he nods in response, leaning over to press a kiss against your forehead.

tags: @delulu4marauders

[clarisse0o]

Camp Wiegman-Part 45

Lucy Bronze x Ona Batlle

Alternative Universe : Military School

Words : 6k

Masterlist

———————————————————————

Thursday, February 4th; 9:30 AM - Parking.

Lucy revved her car up to the entrance where my mother was waiting for us. She was talking to the elderly lady at the reception, someone I’ve always liked. One of the few here, actually.

"Move to the back."

"What? Why?"

"You’re not seriously going to let your mother sit in the back, are you?"

The back door opened at the same time. Before I had a chance to react, my mother climbed onto the seat and closed the door.

"This is quite a car you have!"

"Thanks," she smiled proudly. "But you don’t have to sit in the back. Ona will give you her seat."

"Oh no! I’m perfectly fine here. And for the love of God, stop being so formal with me! It makes me feel ten years older."

I held back a laugh as I saw Lucy's expression. She definitely wasn’t expecting that response, unlike me. My mother has always been very friendly with my friends, even when we’re not on the best terms. Lucy gave up the battle and resumed driving through the streets of Manchester. On the way, she suggested we take a stroll down a pedestrian street, which seemed to delight my mother. I was pleased as well since I hadn’t had a chance to visit it yet.

"So... How long have you been doing this job?" my mother asked.

"This is my fourth year," Lucy replied. "I was trained for a year. I became independent quickly."

"Is this what you’ve always wanted to do?"

"Oh no," she chuckled. "It’s just a transitional job. My best friend and I are working on a project. We plan to start our own business."

The news caught me off guard, and I had a hard time hiding my surprise. She had never mentioned this to me before. Starting a business is a big deal. It takes a lot of motivation, but I’m not worried about Lucy in that regard.

"In what field?" my mother continued.

"Sports," she smiled. "We’re planning to open a gym with training programs and classes," Lucy explained. "Everything’s starting to come together... If all goes well, this will be my last year at Camp Wiegman."

"What!? Seriously?" I exclaimed, unable to hold back.

Silence fell after my unexpected reaction. It was already a lot to learn about her project, but finding out that this would be her last year? It was a complete shock. Lucy glanced at me briefly with a small smile.

"Sorry for breaking the news this way. We were struggling with the bank, but I just found out a few days ago that our funds to start the business have been released. So, it’s recent news."

"Hum..."

"Oh, don’t look so down. You know what you need to do now."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you have no choice but to get your diploma this year. I want us to leave this school together."

"Of course... Things aren’t looking too good right now, though," I muttered.

"Defeatist. Just because you started this second semester off poorly doesn’t mean you won’t get your diploma. I’m going to make you work, just watch. We’ll even start tonight," she announced, making me groan.

"Seriously?" I complained. "Oh crap, speaking of studying! I had exams today and tomorrow!" I realized. "What am I going to do!? Do you think they’ll let me make them up?"

"Of course," she rolled her eyes. "That’s good news. We can study the subjects together this weekend."

What did she just say? Judging by the way she stiffened, she seemed to realize her big mistake. There’s no way we’re spending weekends together. She glanced at me out of the corner of her eye, making me uncomfortable. I noticed her hands tightening on the steering wheel as my mother questioned us.

"This weekend?"

"Wiegman requires me to stay at school when Ona is there," Lucy replied instinctively.

I released the breath I had been holding until then. I had forgotten that Lucy knew how to get out of awkward situations. The best part is, she does it without lying. I immediately backed her up by continuing:

"Bronze knows I struggle with some subjects, so she sometimes keeps me at school to work on my courses together," I said, fully aware that Lucy keeps me without official permission.

"Is that why you don’t come home as often?" my mother asked. "Joan keeps asking about you."

Joan... Oh my God, I’ve completely forgotten about him these past few days! I was so obsessed with my problems that I didn’t even think about my little brother. I felt a wave of regret. I sighed, running my hand through my hair.

"I’ll call him as soon as I can... How is he?"

"He’s fine."

"And the truth?"

I saw surprise in her eyes through the rearview mirror. As if a simple "he’s fine" would satisfy me. I hadn’t checked in on my brother for a month. The least I could do was ask now. Especially since he’s probably been feeling down, not having seen me for a while.

"He’s been having a lot of tantrums since you’ve been gone, and he sleeps in your bed a lot... he misses you terribly. You should come back to Barcelona sometime. This weekend, for example. We’re going away for the weekend with Marcus. You’ll have the house to yourself."

"When exactly are you leaving...?"

"You won’t see me if that’s your question. We’re leaving Friday afternoon and returning Sunday evening."

A small smile crept onto my lips. I discreetly glanced at Lucy, who had the same reaction as me. She must know what I’m thinking. I haven’t set foot in Barcelona for a month since she forbade me because of Feli. It’s about time I went back, and if she can come with me, that would be just perfect. It’s not an opportunity that will come up often.

"It’s not up to me to decide that kind of thing," I simply replied. "As I just told you, Bronze has the final say on my outings. We’ll have to discuss it first."

"We’ll talk about it when we get back," Lucy confirmed. "For now, wipe that silly smile off your face. I haven’t said yes yet. I just told you that you need to study."

"Oh come on! Think about my brother," I said, pulling an adorable pout.

"Playing the puppy dog, really Ona? You should know that’s not going to make me soften up."

I groaned, crossing my arms. She hasn’t said yes, but she hasn’t said no either. So, I still have hope. If it was a no, she would have already said so. Or maybe she’s uncomfortable with my mother’s presence and doesn’t dare say it. That’s one possibility. I can tell she’s not as comfortable as usual.

"Stop it," she growled.

"Stop what? I’m not doing anything."

"Yes, you are. You’re looking at me. It’s distracting me."

I hadn’t even realized it. To annoy her, I kept doing it while leaning against the car door. She furrowed her brow but didn’t take her eyes off the road. I smiled at the sight. Lucy is such a beautiful young woman. I’m lucky to have her. We finally arrived at a red light near downtown, where she took the opportunity to push down on my knee that I had lifted up.

- "Sorry," I mumbled, feeling sheepish.

She sighed softly, engaging the handbrake and shifting into neutral. The traffic lights here always take a while. I’m starting to know my way around this city, having come here so often. She turned slightly to look at me.

- "Just because you're banged up doesn’t mean you’re getting special treatment."

- "Oh, I know that, don’t worry about it, Commander!"

She rolled her eyes dramatically. It's crazy how much I enjoy provoking her. She seems to hate that nickname even more than before. Good to know if I want to tease her. I suppressed my smile at the thought, not wanting to provoke her further.

- "Sorry, I can’t help it."

- "Hmm."

She settled back into her seat as it was time to drive again. I did the same, glancing into the rearview mirror. Bad idea, as I caught my mom’s eyes staring at me with a strange expression. I pretended not to notice and focused on the suddenly heavy traffic.

- "Where exactly are we going?" I asked.

- "To the pedestrian zone downtown. It’s nice to see. There are also some good restaurants if you’re interested."

- "We trust you completely," my mom replied.

Lucy managed to get us out of the traffic jams thanks to her knowledge of the side streets. I should memorize them one day if I plan to live here. Then again, with my sense of direction, I’d probably still get lost. Lucy finally parked in a spot that wasn’t too crowded or too far from where we were headed. I took a deep breath before getting out. Here goes my first mother-daughter moment in ages.

Thursday, February 4th; 12:30 PM - Restaurant.

This morning was full of surprises. I’m still struggling to process it all. Just yesterday, I was on bad terms with both my mom and Lucy, and now, here I am, sitting with them around a table. I expected the morning to be a disaster, but against all odds, it went smoothly. No one brought up any sensitive topics, which was for the best. Even so, it was exhausting. I could have collapsed on the table when we arrived, but I restrained myself to avoid Lucy’s reprimands. For some reason, she kept putting me in my place in front of my mom. I guess she just wanted to assert her role, but her reactions were often over the top.

In any case, I’m glad it’s all over. My mom insisted on going shopping. The street was lined with stores, so she wanted to enter every one that had something she liked in the windows. Let’s just say I’ve never shopped this much in one morning, let alone with my mom. Lucy was probably right in saying that she was trying to rebuild our relationship. She bought me a ton of clothes. I definitely have enough to restock my school wardrobe. I started to enjoy it once Lucy joined forces with my mom. She was lucky to have Lucy help me survive the onslaught. Lucy also gave me her opinions whenever my mom wasn’t looking. The fittings were difficult with my injuries. My abdominal pain was so intense that Lucy had to help me more than once. Luckily, my mom was too busy finding me new outfits to notice.

- "Have you decided what to order?"

We all looked at each other before nodding to the waiter. I settled on a Caesar salad, not feeling very hungry today. Lucy seemed to be on the same page since she ordered the same thing. My mom chose salmon. The waiter jotted down our orders and left.

- "Are you sure you girls don’t want anything else?"

- "I’m not very hungry."

- "That’s surprising, you’re usually always hungry," Lucy teased.

- "Hey! That’s not true!"

- "It is. You’re a bottomless pit," she said, raising an eyebrow.

I stuck my tongue out at her and puffed out my cheeks. She pinched them playfully. Damn, she’s way too adorable.

- "I’m surprised to see Ona so open with you," my mom commented.

- "It wasn’t easy," Lucy replied honestly with a smile. "It started with floor scrubbing and arguments—"

- "Don’t exaggerate," I interrupted. "You just made me  clean a bathroom and some toilets," I retorted.

- "Oh no, scrubbing is the right word," she insisted with a mischievous smile. "I’ve never seen anyone do it so well. Anyone else would have done a sloppy job."

Is she joking? I remember that day like it was yesterday! It was my second day, and she pushed me to the limit by making me clean a locker room after my classes. I didn’t think my work was perfect, but Lucy had stopped me. I thought it was because it was time to eat, but it looks like I was wrong.

- "Don’t make that face. It was a good lesson for you back then. You taught me that you could be very meticulous."

- "You were testing me?" I asked, offended.

- "It was more of an assessment. Anyway," she continued before I could respond, "all Ona needed was a bit of attention, and I gave it to her. It was my job as a supervisor, but I quickly grew attached to her and her story. That’s what built her trust in me."

- "She confided in you?" my mom asked.

- "Yes, mom," I answered myself. "I confided in her."

- "I wanted her to see a therapist for a long time, but if I had known all she needed was a lovely young instructor, I would have changed my approach," my mom joked.

Lucy laughed at her comment, while I found myself embarrassed. A strange feeling washed over me. She’d never been so complimentary about my friends before. And we’d never managed to have such a pleasant time together. If it happened before, I don’t remember. It felt like Lucy’s presence changed everything, and that made me happy.

- "To be honest, I also considered that idea for a while," Lucy admitted once she calmed down. "I mean, about the therapist," she clarified. "But knowing Ona, I knew she would resist, so I didn’t even bother suggesting it."

- "Good thing you didn’t!" I replied. "I’m not sick; I don’t need to see a doctor."

- "No one said you were sick," she rolled her eyes. "It’s just that seeing a therapist might have helped. I sensed you were in a dark place more than once, and it could have done you some good, but whatever."

- "Hmm," I sulked slightly. "Just so you know, I’d much rather confide in you or Mapi than in some stranger in a lab coat."

- "Oh my," Lucy mocked, quickly joined by my mom.

I didn’t understand why they were laughing. Maybe my reaction was exaggerated, but that’s how I feel. There’s no way I’m talking about my problems with a stranger, even though I’ve gotten better about it. Back when I first came back, the idea was unthinkable. I shut down just at the thought of outside help. I barely left my room, so there was no way I was going to venture outside the house. My mom eventually gave up, realizing I wouldn’t change my mind on the matter. I turned to Lucy, who gave me a sad smile. Her sorrowful eyes affected me deeply. I didn’t mean to make her sad, but I’m so relieved that someone finally knows my secret. A weight has been lifted off my shoulders, but it’s clear it has been placed on hers instead. I hope she’ll be able to process it quickly. Thankfully, the server arrived with our meals, ending our discussion. That concluded the conversation as we wished each other a good meal and began eating. My mom restarted the conversation after clearing her throat.

- "So… this might not be the right time to bring this up, but… I’m curious why you chose management as a class option. I imagine Lucy had something to do with that choice."

- "That’s a slippery slope, mom," I warned. "The last time we brought this up was at Christmas, and it didn’t end well."

- "You didn’t tell me about that," Lucy whispered, making sure only I could hear.

I glanced at her out of the corner of my eye, remembering that I hadn’t mentioned it to her. Mapi wanted me to call her that very night, but I didn’t want to. It was a holiday, and there was no way I was going to bother her with my problems. I hadn’t brought it up again since.

- "I’m not going to judge your choices anymore, Ona," my mom continued. "It was just a simple question because it’s surprising. You were never very fond of math, as far as I remember."

"I didn’t like science either," I retorted. "But if you really want to know, it was a purely strategic choice. Management is always useful. Especially when you want to become independent quickly. »

I feel Lucy’s hand tighten on my thigh. She’s probably afraid I might lose control. She’s probably right, as I tend to snap when it comes to my mother. Her touch instantly calms me and even reassures me. I know I’m not alone.

“You want to go into the art field, don’t you?” she asks me.

“If I may,” Lucy interjects, “I’m the one who encouraged her in that direction. It might be a risky choice, but…”

She pauses for a moment to look at me before continuing with a smile on her lips.

“I would’ve preferred to tell her first, but you’re her mother, so you have the right to know as well… I’ve got a good chance of finding her some support to get started in that field.”

Her announcement makes me choke. I’m not sure I heard her correctly. Lucy helps me as I cough, patting my back and handing me a glass of water. I down it in one gulp to clear my throat, while she discreetly rests her hand back on my thigh.

“I didn’t think it would have such an effect on you,” she laughs.

“What do you mean by ‘support’?”

“I have a friend who knows people in the field. I gave him one of your sketchbooks.”

“You did what?!” I exclaim.

“Oh, listen to me before fixating on that detail,” she scolds. “He passed it on to an expert who thinks you’re very promising! You could thank me instead of complaining.”

“Where did you find it?”

“Maybe in your closet full of sketchbooks?”

She went through my closet… in my room? When? Did she see all the drawings I’ve done in recent weeks? Damn. I blush just thinking about it. I lower my head to avoid my mother noticing. Most of the sketches are of her, or places and landscapes we’ve seen together, from every possible angle. Deep down, I was desperate and just wanted to reconnect with her. My art is always better when my feelings are involved.

“I took the least personal one,” she tells me, tightening her grip on my thigh.

“You saw everything…” I breathe out as if it’s obvious.

I can’t believe it. I would’ve preferred if she had asked me before doing something like that. It’s way too personal. Yet, I can’t even be mad at her.

“What would happen if the professional took an interest in Ona?” my mother finally asks.

“I’m not exactly sure. My friend mentioned mentoring her or possibly helping her get into an art school to refine her skills. The man was very interested and plans to show it to his boss. There’s a good chance they might take her under their wing. Anyway, the most important thing is that she gets a foot in the door so she can start and get noticed.”

I’m still struggling to believe it. If she did all that, it’s to give me a golden opportunity for my future. I don’t know who her friend is, but I’ll have to thank him properly. My mother seems completely understanding of what Lucy is saying. It’s very surprising. I didn’t think she’d take it so well when she’s always preferred me to follow in her footsteps.

“I guess if it works out, she’ll stay here?”

“It’s up to her to decide…”

“I’m likely to stay here in almost any case, Mom. I like it here, and my new friends all have plans to settle down here. It’ll be my fresh start. It’s what you wanted, right?”

I’ve never been so clear about what I want for my future as I am today. The others talk about it all the time. I already know Alexia will do anything to stay here to be with Jenni. She’s subtly trying to convince her sister to stay too. As for Leah and Alessia, they already live here. Just like Lotte, who lives with her father at the school, along with Patri and Claudia. And then, of course, there’s Lucy. She’s my main motivation for wanting to stay. I’m not sure I want to live with her right away, for fear that things might move too quickly, but I’ll find a way to stay here regardless.

“I guess you’ve already made up your mind…”

“I never said that,” I sigh. “I’m just thinking about it, that’s all. You’re the one who sent me here. I just created the life I like.”

“It’s obvious,” she smiles sadly. “I haven’t seen you this happy in a long time. That’s why I want to thank Lucy, who’s surely a big part of that. Especially with her hand on your thigh at this very moment.”

Damn. How did she notice? Lucy was so discreet. She immediately removes her hand, making my mother smile. I don’t even dare look to the side. I’m sure Lucy is just as panicked as I am.

“T-that's not what-, Lucy stammers.

“Oh, come on,” my mother interrupts her. “I wasn’t born yesterday! I already knew about Mapi, if you’re still wondering, Ona.”

I open my mouth to speak, but my mother beats me to it.

“I don’t blame you for keeping quiet. I completely understand why, given our situation, but try not to lie to me again. You tried to be discreet all morning, but your looks and gestures when my back was turned were obvious.”

“I swear I-,” my girlfriend tries.

“You still dare to deny it?” my mother gently teases.

Lucy sighs and finally looks at me. I’ve never seen her like this… So embarrassed? Worried? Her behavior affects me even more than before. She nervously runs her hand through her hair.

“Fine,” she says. “I’ll be honest then. I tried to ignore your daughter, but I simply couldn’t.”

“Please, feel free to address me informally. You’ve done so well up until now.”

Lucy grimaces slightly. The situation must be different for her now. I’ve never seen her so uncomfortable. It’s my turn to place my hand on her thigh to reassure her. I thought she would remove it, but she doesn’t. She takes it and intertwines our fingers. I didn’t think we’d have to have this conversation so soon.

“If you want to report me to Wiegman, I’ll accept the consequences, but there’s no way I’m staying away from your daughter.”

I hadn’t even thought of that. I look at my mother with a panicked expression. Would she dare? Her face is unreadable until a small smile appears on her lips.

“That was never my intention. Ona would never forgive me if I did something like that,” she says with a genuine smile. “It’s a beautiful gesture of love, in any case. My intention was just to confirm my suspicions, and it seems I was right.”

Lucy’s grip on my hand loosens slightly. I think her wave of panic has passed. She gently caresses the knuckles she had just been crushing.

“So… I mean, it doesn’t bother you that we’re together…?” I ask uncertainly.

“Why would it? Ona, I know we didn’t always see eye to eye, but I’ve never wanted anything but your happiness, even if you have a hard time understanding that. If Lucy is the one who makes you happy, I’m not going to stand in your way. I should be thanking her for bringing my daughter back.”

“There’s nothing to thank me for. She makes me just as happy.”

I don’t know what to say. So my mother knew all along, and I didn’t even realize it. Maybe Mapi told her, or maybe I’m less predictable to her than I thought. We weren’t on good terms, but her opinion still mattered to me. It could have completely torn our relationship apart, which is why I was afraid to tell her. In any case, this conversation was unexpected. Dimples form on my girlfriend’s cheeks as she smiles. I lean in to kiss her, not caring if my mother is watching. It doesn’t last long, but it’s enough to convey all my gratitude for facing this with me.

“So, how long have you two been together?”

Lucy and I look at each other for a moment before a small laugh escapes us. It’s probably the tension releasing.

“To be honest… Only since last night,” Lucy admits.

“Oh… I expected it to be longer than that,” my mother says with a hint of disappointment. “And how old are you? If it’s not too intrusive.”

“Mom,” I groan, rolling my eyes.

“It’s okay, Ona,” Lucy giggles. “I’m turning twenty-six this year. I’m older, but it’s never bothered us until now. Ona is very mature for her age… Stubborn when she wants to be, but mature.”

This is the first time she’s ever said that. I didn’t know she thought that about me. She usually calls me a “cheeky kid.” I look at my mother to see her reaction. She just smiles and nods. She doesn’t seem to want to contest it. She was always interested in the people in my life, which is why I was afraid to tell her about my orientation. When I was a teenager, I sometimes brought home a few boys, and that was the only time she asked questions and seemed to care about me.

“It seems you’ve found your rare gem, Ona.”

“I hope so. She scares me sometimes, but otherwise she’s perfect.”

- "Hey!" complains my girlfriend.

- "Sorry, but I used to think of you as a tyrant at first," I admitted.

- "Nice," she mutters.

Our conversation is interrupted by laughter, not from us, but from my mother. We look at her, unsure of how to react. I gently stroke Lucy's hand with a smile.

- "You two are adorable. Since yesterday, you say? You don’t seem like it, given how you act around each other."

- "We kind of delayed things because of me," Lucy admits, briefly glancing at me.

- "You're definitely welcome in Barcelona this weekend, since that's probably what's going to happen," my mom teases us.

- "That wasn't my intention..."

- "But you knew I was going to suggest it," I said. "You're not going to make me beg, are you? She’s giving you her blessing!"

- "And why not?" she raises an eyebrow. "If I'm supposedly a tyrant, you might as well beg."

- "You’re impossible."

- "And you're a fool."

I groan in frustration. I’m sure she would be capable of saying no. I move closer and kiss her on the cheek.

- "I’m sorry for thinking that. You know, of course, that I don’t believe it anymore. Now that you’ve had your apology... Will you come to Barcelona with me? Please?"

- "Hmm... I don't know," she teases with a smirk.

- "My mom is giving you permission to come," I repeated desperately.

Seeing that she only responds with a smug smile, I pout and return to my meal. I have to let go of her hand to pick up my fork, which doesn’t seem to please her. But I don't like being teased this much either. I hope she won’t refuse to let me go home if she decides not to come. My priority is to see Joan now. I wouldn’t want her to be mad at me for forgetting him.

- "We’ll talk about it later, okay?" she says more calmly.

- "It’s already decided. Either you come with me, or I go alone," I muttered.

Lucy sighs, catching my attention. I know she won’t let me go alone given the circumstances.

- "Fine. You win."

- "Really?" I asked, more excitedly than I meant to.

- "I suppose, yeah," she says, shrugging nonchalantly. "If I’m allowed," she adds, looking at my mom.

- "I don't see any problem with it. My daughter is an adult; she’s old enough to handle her love life."

- "See! So, you’re coming with me?"

- "Alright, alright."

- "Oh my God!" I exclaimed, jumping into her arms. "You’re the best!"

A sharp pain shoots through me because of my position, but it doesn’t stop me from kissing her cheek repeatedly. I’ve wanted her to see my world for so long. Now, that’s one thing that will finally happen.

- "But I haven't forgotten about your studying."

- "Are you serious?" I groaned. "Can’t you leave your responsible side behind for once?"

- "No. I’m not repeating a year because of you."

- "I’m not asking you to do that."

- "But I’m not letting you repeat a year on your own either. Who knows what kind of disaster that would be. I guess we can study tonight and tomorrow."

- "Good idea. That way we can relax this weekend."

- "That depends on how much you get done."

I roll my eyes as she laughs. Well, she’s right anyway. I didn’t start my second semester off well, and I need to get to work if I want to succeed. Especially after what Lucy just told me about my future. The rest of the meal continues mainly with conversations between my mom and my girlfriend. My mom is very interested in Lucy’s life and, surprisingly, in mine here as well. Maybe we’re finally ready to move forward. I still think Lucy’s presence has a lot to do with it. My mom must really like her. She’s nothing like Feli or my other boyfriends. She’s smart and full of charisma. I’m lucky she chose me as her girlfriend. To think she’s helping to solve all my problems with my mom.

Thursday, February 4th; 4:00 PM - Lucy’s Room.

I smile as Lucy collapses onto her bed just after we enter her room. For a day that was supposed to be relaxing, it was surprisingly busy. We just got back. Lucy kindly offered to drop my mom off at the airport after lunch. They connected immediately. We stayed with her until she took off. My mom took the opportunity to buy our tickets for this weekend. She got three after we discussed it with Lucy. I noticed she was uncomfortable with the idea of coming to Barcelona, so I suggested we bring Ingrid along. I like her, and I’ve heard she’s getting closer to Mapi. It’s a chance to thank her and make up for things.

- "This day was so unexpected," Lucy comments, pulling me out of what must have been an intense stare.

Her smile widens, probably thinking I was watching her. I blush and look away. That’s probably not the best way to prove otherwise, but it was an automatic reaction.

- "Yeah... I-I’m going to call Mapi. I’ll let her know we’re coming to Barcelona this weekend."

- "I think your mom was afraid I’d change my mind, which is why she bought the tickets," she laughs.

- "Probably. She really liked you."

- "Isn’t that a good thing?"

- "I don’t care what she thinks."

She sits down to take off her shoes. Meanwhile, I grab my phone from the nightstand drawer. Lucy tosses her shoes onto the floor, creating a loud noise, before lying back against her pillow with a satisfied sigh.

- "You know, Ona. You can lie to anyone you want, but definitely not to me," she smiles.

- "Alright... Maybe it matters a little."

She giggles and pats the spot next to her. I don’t like that she can read me so well. It feels like I can’t hide anything from her.

- "I expected your mom to be more difficult," she confesses. "She really cares about you, you know."

- "I know," I sighed.

I sit on the edge of the bed to take off my shoes, which quickly join Lucy’s on the floor. As soon as they’re off, I gasp in surprise when she pulls me back.

- "Gently," I grumbled. "I’m still recovering!"

- "Oh, sorry hermosa," she says, freezing me in her arms.

This new nickname from her feels almost strange. She presses herself against my back, burying her head in my hair.

- "Are you okay?" she whispers.

- "Yeah," I sighed.

I turn over, groaning as I move. The painkiller is starting to wear off. But I smile when she kisses my forehead.

- "Are you still in a lot of pain?"

- "It’s manageable," I say, running a hand through my hair.

She looks at me in a way that makes me finally see what she’s feeling. I wonder how she used to hide her emotions so well.

"I’m going to put more cream on you, and you’ll take another painkiller with dinner. That should keep you comfortable through the night. »

- "It's not necessary."

- "Don't argue," she says as she gets up. "You've been complaining about the pain all day, so you're going to let me take care of you."

- "Fine," I relented.

It's hard to argue when she's already in the bathroom getting the cream. I take advantage of her absence to lie down in the middle of the bed and lift my shirt up to just below my chest.

- "I'll take this opportunity to call Mapi, if you don't mind. She's going to give me an earful for not being in touch," I added.

- "Go ahead," she says, straddling me. "I told her I'd allow you to call in the next few days. Maybe you'll be spared since she thinks I was the one keeping you from it."

- "I doubt she believed that," I giggled.

I can't help but look at Lucy with soft, tender eyes. She seems so different from usual. She's much more... open. Maybe I wasn't the most closed-off one between us after all. I must be looking at her strangely, given the way she starts to smile.

- "What? Is something bothering you?"

- "No," I said, blushing. "It's just that you're acting differently."

- "In a good way, I hope?"

- "Oh yes, yes," I stammered.

- "Well... You'd better get used to it... At least in private, of course."

My eyes linger on her hands, now covered in cream.

- "Make your call. She's just waiting for you to do it."

I nod as I dial her number, feeling a slight knot in my stomach. I'm dreading her reaction after my long week of silence. She has every right to be upset with me. The call connects just as Lucy's hands rest on my sides.

- "Wow! A call from my Onita? I thought I was hallucinating. Is it really you?"

- "Hello to you too, Mapi... Yes, it's me," I rolled my eyes.

- "Oh, well it's a good thing it's you. Just so you know, I'm hurt by your radio silence, Ona."

- "It wasn't my fault."

- "Of course. What did you always tell me...? Oh yes, I remember. 'When there's a will, there's a way.' Isn't that right?"

What was I thinking? It was obvious she'd be upset. I close my eyes as a shiver runs through me, thanks to Lucy's gentle touches. It's such a contrast to the harsh, resentful words my best friend just said.

- "If you keep pouting, I'll hang up without sharing the good news."

- "Good news?" she scoffs. "Who am I talking to? Whoever you are, give me back my best friend. She hasn't had good news to share in weeks."

- "Okay, fine, you win. I'm hanging up."

- "Oh, there it is! I think I recognize my Onita now!"

I roll my eyes in amusement as I hear her laugh. There's some commotion in the background, and I frown, realizing she's not alone. It's rare for her to be with anyone since her breakup; she had isolated herself.

- "Who are you with?"

- "Miller and Bryan. They're helping me with a project for class. They send their regards."

- "Oh, that's unexpected. You're not in for an easy time with them. Say hi to them for me too."

- "I have to spend time with people since you're not here. And you'd be surprised. They're actually decent help, against all odds."

There it is, the remark I was expecting. Mapi can be very bitter when she wants to be.

- "I'm sorry, Maps," I say, focusing on my stomach where Lucy's fingers are still working. I'm trying to make it up to her, but she won't let me get a word in edgewise.

I didn't know Lucy was so skilled at massages. It's making it hard to concentrate. My stomach is still covered in bruises, but she's being very careful not to hurt me.

- "Hey, Batlle!"

- "Hmm?" I responded absentmindedly.

- "You sound... quite occupied," she teases. "Maybe I should hang up instead of waiting for your apologies."

- "Sorry," I groaned. "I was just focused on something else."

Lucy chuckles at my response, finally looking up at me. I blush at the thought of what she might be thinking.

- "Oh, and what's so distracting that you're ignoring me, again?"

- "I'm not ignoring you," I rolled my eyes.

- "Hmm... Sure, whatever you say," she mutters. "Anyway, what's this good news? Since you couldn't manage to write to me for a whole week, you better tell me you talked with Lucy."

- "That's actually the good news, sort of," I replied, locking eyes with Lucy.

I bite my lip as I feel Lucy's hands move up my sides, a very sensitive spot for me since I'm extremely ticklish. I wonder if she can hear what Mapi's saying.

- "Explain. You owe me that much, I think."

- "Everything's sorted out. The good news is that I'm coming home to Barcelona this weekend, and she's coming with me."

- "Oh really, yo-... Wait. What!?" she exclaimed.

I smiled, imagining the expression she must have. I'd pay a lot to see it. I can hear the guys teasing her in the background.

- "She just figured it out?" Lucy asks me.

- "I think so."

- "Put her on speaker."

I comply, pressing the button before placing the phone beside us.

- "I assume you're with her? How could you hide this from me? Since when!? It's a disgrace! I’ve been supporting your relationship from the beginning and putting up with your broken hearts! I should have been informed the next hour!"

- "Calm down. It's very recent," Lucy replies.

- "Lucy!" she exclaims in surprise. "No, but seriously! I'm both mad at you and happy for you at the same time. You'd better take care of my best friend, and as for you, Ona, you'd better tell me everything! I want all the details!"

- "There she goes, we've lost her," Lucy jokes. "I don't need your threats to do that, you know," she retorts. "You've already done enough, and I've already had to face Ona's mom's threats."

- "It's thanks to my threats that you're together, in a way. Hey, wait. What did you say? Abby? What's this all about?"

- "It's a very long story," I say just as Lucy applies cream to my bruised eye.

- "You two are so mean to me," Mapi responds. "How dare you hide everything from me, of all people?"

- "We're not hiding anything from you. We'll explain everything this weekend, I promise."

- "Pff, yeah, whatever. It doesn't change the fact that you'd better take care of Ona, or you'll be hearing from me!"

- "Don't worry about that."

I chuckle as Lucy rolls her eyes. She smiles at me before leaning down to kiss me. We must not be very discreet because it triggers a disgusted noise on the other end of the phone.

- "Please, don't do that while I'm still on the line."

- "What's wrong, Mapi?" Lucy teases. "Isn't this what you wanted?"

- "Oh yes, but I'd rather not hear your kisses and cuddles. It's depressing for a single person."

- "As far as I know, you won't be single much longer."

- "What do you mean?" I asked. "Since when does Lucy know more than I do?"

- "Since you've been missing in action, duh."

- "Very petty revenge, Mapi. Once again, it's Lucy who didn't want me to text you at night."

- "No, it's not that I didn't want you to. It's just that you needed to sleep earlier, and she preferred being in Alexia's room before."

- "Yeah, whatever. Doesn't matter. Now that I'm here, is what she just said true?"

- "Of course," Lucy answers. "Mapi is just scared to take the plunge with Ingrid."

- "Lucy!" my best friend exclaims. "I thought that was supposed to stay between us!"

- "Oops?"

I giggle as Mapi sighs in frustration. So, she's scared to date my instructor. That's new and very unexpected.

- "You'd better stop stalling, Mapi. Ingrid won't chase after you forever," Lucy tells her.

- "I know," she sighs. "But it's complicated with the distance and all. I'd prefer to talk to her face to face."

- "It's your lucky day because she's coming with us this weekend."

- "What!?"

- "You heard right. I know you told her you'd give her a chance when you saw each other again, so if you want my advice, start coming up with convincing arguments. Ingrid can be a very difficult woman when she wants to be."

- "Wha-"

- "Don't say we never did you a favor. Now, I'd like to spend the rest of this afternoon with my girlfriend, if you don't mind."

- "No, no, wait, please! Don't hang u-"

- "Goodnight, Mapi."

I look at Lucy curiously as she hangs up on Mapi. She's not going to appreciate that. What bothers me more, though, is that Lucy knows more than I do.

- "What did I miss?"

- "Mapi is scared and keeps pushing things back. A bit like me. The situation is starting to frustrate Ingrid, and I just gave her some golden information. She'd better use it because Ingrid can be very unforgiving."

- "Oh... I guess she's afraid to open her heart again."

- "I don't know Mapi well enough to understand her reasons," she shrugs. "She just confided in me because I know Ingrid, and you weren't around."

- "Hmm... I hope things work out for them."

- "I'm sure they will. I said Ingrid was unforgiving, not heartless," she smiles. "She might just make Mapi sweat a little, if you know what I mean."

- "I know exactly what you mean."

I laugh against Lucy's lips as she comes in for another kiss. She doesn't stay long, though, as she gets up to return to the bathroom to put away the cream and wash her hands. Meanwhile, I don't dare move since I'm covered in cream everywhere, and I don't want to risk getting it all over. She comes back shortly after to put away my phone and then lies down next to me again. I smile as she wraps her arms around me. I hope Mapi finds the same happiness I've found. It's the best I can wish for her. One thing is certain, though: this weekend is going to be very interesting.

[reiding-writing]

Hi. I was just wondering if you would write a One shot about Spencer and a male reader as a married couple (they are gay, pretty obviously) with an adopted 4-year-old daughter (they adopted her as a baby). Just a domestic fluff One Shot, I mean. If you are going to accept this request, thank you.

early mornings [ s.r ]

Summary:

Spencer Reid has spent the last twelve years with the love of his life, 7 of those years married, and 4 with his beautiful daughter. Now it’s time for her first day of school; And Spencer is excited if not a little overwhelmed

WARNINGS: n/a

pairing: dad!husband!spencer x male!reader

genre: pure fluff

wc: 2.1k

masterlist!!

a/n: i feel like i’ve been uploading a lot recently

i am not a dude in any way shape or form so i hope this comes off alright 😭

thanks for the request <33

The jarring blare of Spencer’s alarm clock forced the two of you awake, and Spencer groaned softly into your neck, his arms tightening around your torso as a clear rebuttal to having to wake up.

It was pretty much the same every morning; Spencer having to get up early to go to the office, refusing to get up when his alarm tells him to, and instead leaving you to practically drag him out of bed under the threat of withholding your body heat for him to curl himself into every night. “Spence, baby, you gotta wake up,”

You weren’t complaining, you could spend, hours, days even, holding Spencer in your arms, his head resting soundly against your chest as you ran your fingers through his curls. But he had to get up. And not just because he had work today.

Spencer muffles a refusal against the dip of your neck, his head shaking as much as he is able through his drowsiness, and you swear you melt at the sight. Twelve years, and he still manages to turn you into a puddle of emotions just by existing.

“We’ve gotta get up, it’s Dee’s first day of school today remember?” You don’t have to say anything else before Spencer is ripping himself from your arms, and you can’t help the soft groan of dissatisfaction as the chilled air hits your body.

“Of course it’s her first day of school today-” Spencer mutters to himself as he clambers out of bed, running his hand through his flattened curls as he pulls his work clothes out of his wardrobe to get changed.

He’d been preparing for this day for weeks, but apparently the mixed power of drowsiness and the comfort of lying in your arms had rendered his mind completely blank.

“Hey, calm, what do we do when we’re feeling anxious?” Your arms snake around Spencer’s from behind, and you place a chaste kiss just in front of his ear.

“Breathe slowly…” Spencer closes his eyes, taking a deep breath in as he replies to you and exhaling through his nose as he relaxes slightly into your embrace.

“It’s only 7:00, we’ve got an hour yet before you need to leave for work and an hour before I’ve got to drop off Dee, we’ve got plenty of time.” Your words are soft, whispered against his ear as your hands trace small circles into his torso.

“Your right, i’m just overthinking, sorry,” Spencer rubs the palm of his hand down his face. He just wanted everything to go well. He really did.

Diana was his whole world. it’d taken so long for the two of you to find an adoption agency that accepted same-sex couples, and even longer to find a child ready to be adopted. He was sure that Diana was a miracle, a four-month-old baby anonymously left in a hospital and left under the care of the agency you were working with.

He remembers how he cried when he first saw her, how her weight felt in his arms when he held her for the first time. Diana was everything, and he wanted to make sure that her school experience was the complete opposite of his, the best that it possibly could be.

“You should wake her up,” You ghost a kiss against the nape of his neck. “I’ll get breakfast started,”

“Mmm, okay…” He mourns the loss of your body heat the minute you remove him from your arms, and you place one final kiss against the bridge of his nose before vacating to the kitchen.

Spencer edges Diana’s bedroom door open as carefully as he can, careful to spill as little light into the room as possible as he enters, kneeling down beside her bedside and taking a second to adore her sleeping face.

He brushes the wisps of hair that barely constitute a fringe from her forehead before planting a kiss on her hairline, causing her to stir awake almost immediately. “Daddy..?”

Her voice his barely audible, slurred from sleep and quiet as she fumbles to rub her hand over her eyes.

“Morning angel,” Spencer almost chuckles at the display, helping Diana sit as he tries in vain to do it herself, her arms not yet as awake as her brain. “Do you remember what today is?”

Diana responds to his question with a blank stare and a few blinks. Apparently her brain wasn’t very awake either.

“It’s your first day of school today,” Spencer tucks some of Diana’s hair behind her ear as he answers his own question, and Diana’s expression seems to brighten at the revelation.

For an almost 5 year old, Diana seemed to be way more excited to start school than most, unafraid of leaving her parents’ presence for the few hours to spend her time in a new environment with people her own age.

“Shall we pick something to wear?” Diana nods immediately at the question, scrambling out of her bed and running over to the mini wardrobe on the other side of the room, pulling open both of doors wide open.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“Well well, don’t you look fancy this morning,” You give Diana a faux bow as she runs into the kitchen with Spencer trailing behind her, fit in a white dress with a fluffy tulle skirt decorated with flowers. “Your majesty,”

Diana giggles at your display, taking advantage of your bent over position to grip her hands at the collar of your t-shirt with the insistence of you picking her up, which you gladly oblige to as you hoist her into your arms, leaning her against your left side. “Daddy helped me pick!”

You can practically feel the enthusiasm radiating off of her, aided by the smile painting her face. “Oh he did huh?”

You glance over at Spencer, who flashes the two of you an adoring smile as he leans against the door frame into the kitchen. “Well, your daddy’s got good taste,”

You give her a kiss on her nose before setting her back down on the floor, and she takes her freedom of movement as an invitation to take a seat on the pulled out chair at the kitchen table, kneeling on the pillow laid on top of the chair.

Spencer follows close behind, walking behind you to give you a kiss on your temple before also sitting down.

The second you place the plate in front of Diana she practically squeals in excitement. “Pancakes and strawberries?”

“It’s a special day, you should have a special breakfast,” You place a kiss to the crown of her head as you place a similar plate in front of Spencer and the seat space for yourself, not forgetting Spencer’s insanely sugary coffee nor your much more acceptable one as you finally take a seat yourself.

“Thanks papa!” She practically dives head first into her pancakes as she begins eating, and Spencer has to remind her to slow down as he puts a hand on her shoulder.

“Ah, careful, remember what happens when we eat too fast?” Diana has to take a few seconds to think before she pipes up, a beaming smile on her face. “Oh! Our heart can get sick!”

The two of you share a chuckle at her answer, something she’d learned after asking Spencer to tell her facts before she goes to sleep instead of a typical bed time story.

“That’s right angel, so you’ve gotta eat slowly okay?” She responds with an enthusiastic nod as she continues to excitedly eat her pancakes, albeit more slowly than before.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Once breakfast is finished, you send Diana on a mission to retrieve her backpack, and Spencer fills up her water bottle whilst you finish packing up her lunch box. “I can’t believe she’s going to school already,”

Spencer sounds genuinely flabbergasted at the idea, and you can’t help but laugh softly at his bewilderment. “Time flies,”

“You can say that again…” Spencer walks over to you from behind once the bottle is full, snaking his arms around you and placing the bottle on the table besides her now fully packed lunchbox. “It’s crazy,”

Spencer’s voice muffles against the nape of your neck. “It feels like yesterday that we got married, and now our daughter’s off to school,” He sighs against your neck, the warmth sending small tingles down your spine, and you swore you could hear his voice hitch with emotion.

“Hey,” You turn around, your back leaning against the kitchen counter as you take Spencer’s face in your hands, leaning it up to look at you. “Dee’s supposed to be the one crying about her first day of school, not you,” You chuckle softly, rubbing your thumbs over the apples of his cheeks.

“I know, I know, I just-” Spencer sighs softly, leaning the weight of his head into your hands. “I never thought i’d get to live a life like this, and sometimes it just all comes back to me you know?” His eyes glisten as they look into yours, surely glassed over with tears. “I’m so lucky to have the both of you…”

“Spence…” You sigh softly, your face softening at the authenticity of his words, matched in the pure gratitude of his expression.

“Sorry-” He pulls his head out of your hands, taking a deep breath and wiping the back of his hand over his eyes.

“Hey-” you cup his cheek in your hand once more, closing the space between you once more. “I love you, you know that right?”

Spencer breathes out a small laugh, looking into your eyes with a small nod. “Yeah, I love you too.. so much…”

You bridge the remaining distance with a kiss, one which Spencer readily accepts, and you can feel his smile against your mouth as he returns your affection.

“Ewwww,” Diana’s voice calls out from the kitchen door, an animated expression on her face. “Daddy and papa are kissing,”

“You can get in on some kisses too you menace,” You playfully chase Diana around the kitchen table as she laughs, running away from you with her rocket ship backpack planted securely on her shoulders, and once you close the gap you scoop her up into your arms, planting kisses all over her face whilst he tries to wriggle out of your grasp.

“Daddy help me!” Her pleas go unfounded, Spencer joining in on the smothering, leaving Diana out of breath from her giggling.

Diana remains securely in your arms as Spencer, packs her bag with her water and her lunch, zipping the bag closed with another kiss to the side of her face.

“Are you coming too daddy?” Diana’s eyes twinkle as she asks the question, as if silently pleading Spencer to join you in dropping her off for her first day.

“Of course I am angel,” He places another kiss to the tip of her nose that elicits another giggle from her mouth and an excited wave of her arms in celebration.

“Are you sure?” You give Spencer a knowing glance. His job was important, and whilst Diana didn’t quite know just how important, she’d had enough experience with him going on ‘holidays with work’ to not be too disappointed if he couldn’t make it.

“Of course I am,” Spencer tucks some of Diana’s hair behind her ear, her smile only amplifying as he double-confirms that he’s joining them. “It’s my angel’s first day of school, I wouldn’t miss it for the world,”

[mephinomaly]

[TL] Backdoor - an Original Scenario written by Akira

Backdoor is a short original story written by Akira-sensei to accompany the release of the Crossroad animated series. I recommend watching it before reading this, especially if you haven't read the original Crossroads.

Please enjoy my translation below!

—

Backdoor

I break in from the backdoor. I feel like a super cool outlaw from one of those movies. Avoid the countless traps, blindly shoot the enemies like bang bang bang! Feast your eyes, idiots of the world!

I am the great Oogami Koga…!

"..."

By the back door is a guy with blond hair who’s sorting the trash out, probably works here part time. Since I came in and started acting like a weird middle schooler, he looks at me, surprised.

“Hey, you–” Part-time-kun (tentative name) puts his hand out with a totally bored expression. “One thousand yen. It’s the entrance fee.”

“Oh, yeah. Sorry.”

“Next time come in from the proper entrance, ‘kay?” Part-time-kun (tentative name) doesn’t lecture me any further and exchanges my 1000 yen bill for a sleek plastic card.  If I show this at the bar, I can get a drink and stuff. I thank him. “Enjoy your night～♪”

Part-time-kun (tentative name) is side-eyeing me, and at this point in time I’m so embarrassed all I want to do is go home but I pull myself together and head inside. 

I’m in a cheap underground livehouse in the downtown area, near Yumenosaki Private Academy, the school I’m going to attend. 

My sanctuary is here.

My god is here.

***

The livehouse I've been hanging around in lately is built a little weird. The entrance to the stairs is in a back alley. At the bottom of the stairs, there’s two corridors, one leading left, the other right. There’s a lot of soundproof doors, standing one after another. The majority of these small rooms are booths, meant to be hired out by amateur bands to practise in. If you look through the window of one, it’s normally empty since nobody really uses them.

Well, these days people don’t practise by actually picking up an instrument, playin’ until their fingers hurt.  I’ve been doin’ that too lately, sittin’ at home ‘n staring blankly at my computer screen. I dunno. 

At the end of the empty corridor, there’s the employees only room, the kitchen, and the back entrance which I found by accident when I was trespassing. 

I’ve been short on cash lately because I’ve been buyin’ like, introductory books to playin’ the guitar ‘n stuff so I’ve been sneakin’ in that way ‘cos then I don’t hafta pay the entrance fee. No-one’s ever around anyway. 

“I won’t be able to come in that way next time,” I complain as I walk down the corridor in low spirits, stopping when I find the soundproof room I’m looking for. 

The biggest, most extravagant door is in the middle of the corridor. At the back, at the heart of this place— is the livehouse, or I guess you could call it a music hall. 

“♪～♪～♪”

I open the weighted door and my entire body is blasted by music. 

This is it. This electrifying feeling.  

At the back of this relatively wide space is a really nice stage, and that’s where bands that have signed up to perform do so. The entrance fee also covers one drink, but you can order more food and drink and enjoy the show at the same time. It’s your average livehouse. I dunno though. I’m underaged, so I stick to a non-alcoholic tomato juice whilst enjoying the show.

Since this place is close to Yumenosaki, a lot of the customers are scruffy-looking students. I never thought young me would come to a place like this. I’m just in ordinary clothes. This place pays attention to its customer base, so there's not a drop of alcohol or a single cloud of cigarette smoke to be seen. Only super cool music is playing. It’s echoing. 

“～...♪”

My God is in the middle of the stage, singing enthusiastically. The lyrics are in English, and I understand almost none of them. The lyrics are probably about wishing for world peace, or religious sacrilege; something complicated but meaningful. When I asked what he was singing about later, he said something like “I’m so happy because my cute little brother has recovered from his cold!”

Is he stupid? Or am I the stupid one for being so entranced by him?

But. I didn’t know that sort of thing back then, so I was genuinely moved by him.

Illuminated by the dim stage lighting, his pale corpse-like skin stood out in the shadows— him.

Crimson eyes like hellfire. 

Black hair that melts into the darkness.

From between his seductive lips that are sexier than any girls’, comes a masculine, deep voice. 

He looked simultaneously like an angel that could rescue the world and a devil that could destroy it too. Whether angel or devil, his singing voice was powerful enough to completely change the very fabric of this world.

“～...♪”

The name of the person I respect the most in this world is Sakuma Rei. 

My God.

***

I was born and raised in an unremarkable environment. 

We’re middle class. My dad’s an office worker and he earns a pretty decent wage, and my mum’s a housewife, which is rare nowadays. 

They bought a nice detached house in a nice place. Both of my parents like kids and like taking care of others, so I grew up pretty pampered. I’m aware that since I was spoiled, I grew up to be a selfish, cocky brat. I was given whatever I wanted. I didn’t know what I really wanted though since it would be handed to me before I could even think about it. When I got to an age where I didn’t need to be looked after, my parents got a dog to satisfy their overflowing need to help others (?). His name’s Leon. He’s the best dog ever. 

I fussed over him too, but not in the way my parents did. Everyday, they’d treat him like he was a baby, doting on him, probably the same way they treated me. It made me sulk a bit. 

I could tell that my parents’ interest had shifted from me to Leon. Leon isn’t bad. He was bought to be loved. He’s a pedigree, he was born for this, to be doted on. He’s a really good boy and whenever I felt sad he’d snuggle up close to me and put his face next to mine. So I wouldn’t be lonely. So I knew I wasn’t alone. 

But I felt that the amount of love I had received up until this point was steadily decreasing, and it made me anxious. 

—Alas! Miserable, spoiled Oogami Koga-kun!

But I wasn’t shameless enough of a person to say “pay attention to me instead of the dog!” Leon deserved to be loved as much as I did— I wandered around town, searching for someone other than my parents who could love me.

I was starved, yearning. I looked like a stray dog scavenging around for something to fill me up. My parents aren’t bad. Neither is Leon. I’m probably not bad either. 

I’ve already finished compulsory education. I had reached the age where I could fend for myself. So I should have. I’m sure other people are doing that. We leave the watchful eye of our parents, tackle teenagehood, and find out who we are. Find what we want to do with our lives. After countless trial and error, I found what I was looking for— Sakuma Rei. His music satisfied what my soul had been craving. 

***

The performance ends, and Sakuma Rei disappears behind the stage. 

I’ve never been on stage before, so I don’t know what it looks like back there. There’s probably a passageway that leads to a green room or something. The livehouse is weirdly dark and it’s hard to see much of anything, so it really looks like Sakuma Rei vanished like a ghost. 

The person who fills the gap in my heart, vanishes. 

So I grow anxious again and begin blindly searching for him everywhere. I make my way through the livehouse, pushing through the swathes of people who came here to see Sakuma Rei.

—Sakuma Rei, Sakuma Rei, Sakuma Rei.

My soul wants him. 

Of course, I’m not part of his family. We’re not even acquaintances, let alone friends. He’s probably never even heard of me. But I didn’t mind either way. I found him, met him, fell in love with him, and had my yearning quenched. That alone made me thankful. Sakuma Rei, without a doubt, saved me. That’s all I wanted. I was just a sheep, one of hundreds who came here. To me, he was the night sky, something I thought I could never reach. I didn’t mind just watching from afar. That’s how I really feel. If I never got to see him closeup, I’d be fine with that.

And yet. 

“What you’re drinking looks good.”

Suddenly, the tomato juice I’d ordered, which I didn’t end up liking because it was weirdly sweet, is taken from my hand by someone next to me. 

—The hell, bastard? That’s mine. When I go to look up at whoever grabbed my drink with a belligerent expression, I realise it’s Sakuma Rei. 

“If you’re not drinking it, I’ll have it. Singing’s got me workin' up a sweat.”

Naturally, my body stiffens.

That’s Sakuma Rei.

If I reach out my hand, I could touch him.

I’m so surprised by what I originally thought was something that could never happen, I have nothing clever to say and instead, like an idiot, I freeze with my mouth ajar. 

“What’s up? Oh, you’re at that age where you think indirect kisses are embarrassing, right…?” Sakuma Rei says with a somewhat apologetic expression. Then he says something absurd.

“Oopsies, sorry～…Don’t worry, I take full responsibility for stealing your first time. Mhm.”

That was the first conversation we had, and it’s not exactly something I can brag about to anyone. 

Ever since then, ever since that moment, I’ve been at the mercy of this arrogant person.

***

I step through the backdoor.

The unmotivated-looking blond employee is slacking off on his phone again today– he’s a playboy called Hakaze and is actually the manager of this place. He’s also supposedly one of my senpai from Yumenosaki. He glances up from his phone at me with a gross expression.

“Look look. I just got another girl's number. I’m typing out my first message now.”

“Shut up, I don’t know you. Don’t talk to me, playboy.”

About two years have passed since I had my first conversation with Sakuma Rei, Sakuma Rei-senpai, a conversation I’d rather not remember. 

I’ve got a bit taller and a bit stronger. 

I practised intensely so my guitar and singing skills have somewhat improved. 

Whilst I was growing, Yumenosaki had gone to the dogs.

Yumenosaki Private Academy’s an idol school steeped in a rich history and tradition. But inside, it was rotting. 

I wanted to be like Sakuma-senpai, so I followed him without thinking and took Yumenosaki’s entrance exam like an idiot. I was blinded. I didn’t know anything. Every Yumenosaki student is shit. Naturally, I noticed that since I frequented the livehouse in order to see Sakuma-senpai. 

A rotted miniature garden where those with dead eyes spend their sad youth reeking of corpses. Sakuma-senpai was weirdly energetic despite the backdrop of death, so I got it wrong. No. I think I was just an immature, stupid brat, so I didn’t notice. 

Sakuma-senpai had those same dead eyes. 

In the mountain of dead bodies, he was clinging onto life. He was the only one who didn’t want to die, he was the only one praying for something to happen.

No-one could save him. 

A bespectacled monk boy from a temple came along and evoked anger in him, trying to make him into a human— into something more than human.  The stupid, lost dog just wagged his tail and followed the hand that fed him. 

We didn’t realise that the person that was always grinning like a fool, and living what appeared to be a happy life, was actually suffering more than anyone. He desperately needed help. You can see why we didn’t notice; he looked like he was having fun.

When he stood on stage with me and Shitty Glasses as Deadmanz, he lived each day like it was his last. He looked genuinely happy—he looked like he was alive. But that was only a short-lived dream. Once he steps off stage, the spell breaks, and he turns back into a corpse.

A revolution takes place at the rotted Yumenosaki.

Sakuma-senpai was seen as a cause of evil and exterminated by those who claimed to be on the side of justice. The evil monsters had been defeated, and everyone lived happily ever after. It’s creepy when a corpse moves. Yeah, nothing will change if you don’t exterminate all the gross monsters, right?

—Fuck you, you bastards!

***

“Wan-chan, will you be singing today too?” The bored-looking playboy asks, on his phone as usual. Guess he doesn’t really want to talk to me. “You should stop because you’re dampening the mood. People think you're one of Sakuma-san’s henchmen, so people think you’re evil too and will persecute you like he was.”

“I don’t care. I… I’m.” I growl, the shallow first person pronoun Sakuma-senpai sometimes used slips from my mouth [1]. I cling onto what I’ve got left of him. “I just wanna sing with all my energy. I don’t care what the rest of you do.”

“But you’re creating problems for the livehouse. A customer pokes fun at you or Sakuma-san, you get angry, and you start a fight—I really don’t want things like that happening.”

“I won't create any problems, I’ll be on my best behaviour.”

“Will you really? But you’re like the rest of the customers— You always look like you’re going to start arguing with other Yumenosaki students. You come in from the back entrance like, everytime, to avoid any trouble, right?”

“I still pay the entrance fee.”

“Why do you go out of your way to perform here even though you’ve got to jump over so many dangerous obstacles to get here? It’s super bothersome.” Playboy's grumbling as usual. He pulls out a key and throws it to me. “Here. I’ll give you a key to a room so you can change clothes and get ready. If you swear to not cause any more trouble, you can become our new breadwinner, Wan-chan. I actually want to cheer you on,” the playboy said and laughed insincerely. 

I hate his demeanour, so I snap back. 

“Don’t call me ‘Wan-chan’.”

“Sakuma-san calls you ‘Wanko’. I call you ‘Wan’ as in, ‘number one’. Honest, honest to god.” [2] Playboy’s face goes serious for a split second and he waved his hands around like he was trying to hide his embarrassment. “You can be my number one breadwinner, like Sakuma-san.”

“Don’t hafta tell me twice.”

Just like Sakuma-senpai, I’ll become the best guy in the world. My voice alone will excite the crowd. A flirtatious glance will have women swooning. With a single look, even the strongest of men will bow down to me. In an instant, their souls are gripped, I captivate everyone. I’ll become like Sakuma Rei too. But the journey is a long one. “Let’s go. I’m singin’ tonight.”

I reach my booth, key in hand, and change into my costume. I take out my guitar, who’s as important to me as my parents and Leon are. Once I’m ready, I head to the stage. To tackle this head on.

“Shake, you fools! Imma show you what real music is!”

I sing. My guitar does too.

Just like Sakuma-senpai did.

Right now I’m blindly copying him, but I pray that one day, I’ll be able to be just like him.

I hope this song reaches him, wherever he is. 

***

Once, I was starving, yearning. But when I found Sakuma Rei and his music, my soul was satisfied. 

—Now it’s my turn. 

“Rock ‘n’ roll…!”

Come on, idiots of the world. I’ll open your eyes with my music. I’ll become your God. 

~~~~

Translation notes:

[1]  in the line above this one Koga says ‘俺...俺様は’ or ‘ore…ore sama wa’. Oresama being the first person pronoun rei sometimes used, and its very egotistical.

[2] number one is pronounced as, in this case, ‘nanbaa wan’

[emma23]

Just a simple tutoring:

Tw: aged gasp.

————————————————————————

"Oh, hello." Jonathan stood outside his front door, a recently lit cigarette in hand. "You're here early."

"Sorry, my shift finished early."

Jonathan smiled and took a drag of his cigarette. "I'm not complaining. It's a nice surprise." He stepped a little closer to you.

"So this is Mr. Levy's house," you said, chuckling nervously. "Sorry, I don't know why I said that."

Jonathan laughed. "It's alright. Come on, follow me." He led you into the fairly spacious apartment, holding the door open for you.

"Wow, nice house."

"Thank you," he said, closing the door behind him. "Can I get you anything? Water, wine, coffee...?"

"A tea?"

"Sure," he replied, making his way to the kitchen. "Take a seat, I'll be right back."

You took out a notebook and a pen while Jonathan returned from the kitchen with two cups of tea, setting them on the living room table. "What are you writing?"

"Just some notes for our tutoring session. Thanks again for helping me."

Jonathan sat next to you, his hand brushing yours as he took his cup of tea. "Of course, don't mention it. It's my pleasure."

You took a sip. "Hmm, that's good, thanks."

Jonathan smiled. "No problem." He took a sip of his tea, leaning back on the couch.

"Soo..."

"Soo," Jonathan echoed, mocking you playfully before laughing softly. "You seem a little nervous."

You blushed. "Sorry, I don't know why I am."

Jonathan smiled warmly. "It's alright, relax. There's nothing to be nervous about." He took another sip of tea.

"I really care about this class."

"I can tell. And that's admirable," Jonathan said genuinely. "But seriously, you seem like a nervous wreck."

"Yeah, long shift."

"I see. You work a lot, huh?" Jonathan said, looking you up and down.

"I need it to pay for school."

"Right, I forgot you were a student," Jonathan said, looking slightly embarrassed. "Well, don't overdo it, okay? Take care of yourself."

"I try when I have time. Which is rare."

"I get that, but remember: your health is a priority," he said, giving you a serious look.

"My future is."

"Your future won't come if you overwork yourself," Jonathan said, his voice somewhat stern but with a hint of concern.

"What a poet you are."

"I try my best," Jonathan said with a smirk, leaning back on the sofa. "But seriously, don't push yourself too hard."

"Alright, I will try, Professor Levy."

Jonathan snickered when you called him "Professor" and rolled his eyes. "Please don't call me that when we're not at the university."

"Oh, just Levy?"

"Yeah, or just Jonathan," he said, a smile pulling at the corners of his mouth. "Only my students call me 'Professor Levy.'"

"Alright... Jonathan."

Jonathan seemed to like the sound of his name on your lips and grinned. "See? It's not so hard, is it?"

"A little weird," you chuckled, sipping your tea.

"Hey, don't try and make fun of me now," Jonathan teased, lightly tapping your shoulder.

"It's okay."

Jonathan leaned back on the couch, his eyes never leaving your face. "You're a strange one, you know that?"

"Oh really?"

"Yes, really," Jonathan said, looking amused. "Most people feel more comfortable when they come to see me, but you... you're all tense and nervous."

"I'm like that with everybody."

Jonathan laughed softly. "Seriously? All this time, I thought you were so nervous because of my charming personality."

"Well, your charm might work on other teachers but not on me... little me... just a little student... really... too young..." You blushed as you realized you were babbling.

Jonathan couldn't help but let out a bark of laughter at your rambling, finding your little mess-up quite endearing. "Yeah? Too young, huh? Am I too old for your taste?"

"I'm 21."

Jonathan raised an eyebrow. "21, huh? Just when I thought you couldn't get any younger."

"What age did you think I was?"

Jonathan pretended to ponder, putting a hand to his chin. "I don't know... maybe 25?"

"Well, I was born in October, so you know, end of the year."

Jonathan nodded slowly, as if only just realizing the implications of the information you just provided. "Ah, right... so you're really only 21."

"I will turn 22."

"But right now you're still 21," Jonathan said with a smirk.

"Only four months, it's the same thing."

"Sure it is," Jonathan said with a chuckle. "I'm just pulling your leg, relax."

"And you, Jonathan... how old are you?"

Jonathan pretended to look surprised. "Are you interested?" he teased, before grinning. "I'm 45."

"Okay, well it suits you."

"Is that a compliment? You're just full of surprises today," he said, clearly enjoying the back-and-forth banter.

"It's your tea, I think."

Jonathan raised an eyebrow, feigning offense, and put a hand to his heart. "You're giving all the credit to the tea—not me?"

"Alright, alright," you chuckled. "We should start the tutoring session."

Jonathan laughed and grabbed the folder on the table in front of him. "You're right, we should get started."

Jonathan went over your notes, occasionally offering suggestions and guidance. His brow furrowed with concentration as he spoke, and every so often he glanced up at you, his intense gaze studying your face for any sign of understanding.

"Soo?"

Jonathan leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms. "Honestly, I think you're doing quite well. You've got a good grasp of the material."

"Yeah, but it's not perfect."

Jonathan smiled slightly. "No, it's not perfect. But nothing is, especially not when it comes to philosophy. It's all about learning and growing, and you're doing just that."

"Yeah, but..." You sighed. "That's why I prefer math. If you write the correct answer, you know if it's right or not."

Jonathan chuckled. "Ah, a math lover, huh? I see your point, but there's a beauty in the ambiguity of philosophy. Sometimes there isn't a right or wrong answer, only different perspectives."

"It's always maybe."

Jonathan grinned. "That's right. Maybe this, maybe that. The uncertainty adds to the charm, don't you think?"

"Maybe," you smiled.

Jonathan let out a hearty laugh. "See, you're getting the hang of it already!"

"I learn from the best," you chuckled.

Jonathan smirked. "Oh, you flatter me. Flattery will get you everywhere, young lady."

You locked eyes, the moment stretching out with a charged tension. Jonathan didn't break eye contact, his gaze locked on yours, studying every detail of your face.

You glanced at your watch. "Shit, it's already 8 PM. I have another shift."

Jonathan seemed slightly taken aback by the sudden break in the moment, but he quickly recovered his composure. "Already? Time flies when you're having fun."

"Yeah," you chuckled, quickly putting your things back in your bag. "Thanks for today, Professor Levy... I mean Jonathan," you blushed.

Jonathan grinned at your slip-up, clearly enjoying the effect he had on you. "You're welcome. See you next time, little student."

At the door, your eyes met again, and time seemed to stop.

Jonathan's gaze held yours captive, an electric current of charged energy passing between you. The air thickened with potential, and for a moment, neither of you moved.

"B-bye Jonathan," you stammered, starting to hurry away.

Jonathan watched you go, a mixture of satisfaction and something else—curiosity, frustration?—on his face. The door shut behind you, leaving him alone in the silence of his apartment. He let out a sigh, running a hand through his hair as thoughts of you crossed his mind once more.

[luci-in-trenchcoats]

Imagine...Tailgating With Your Family

Pairing: Jared x daughter!reader (with Uncle Jensen)

______

“Dad,” you groaned as he tugged you along through the parking lot. “Oh my God. Dad.”

“Am I embarrassing you?” he teased. “Come on, you used to love tailgating the games last year.”

“Well now I actually go to this college so you know, odds are I see someone I know,” you said.

“You want to sneak a beer while mom’s not looking or not?” he asked.

“Oh mom doesn’t care,” you said. “She says don’t be a dumbass is all.”

“Y/N.”

“I’ll be on as good of a behavior as you are,” you said with a smile.

“Had to be a little smartie,” he mumbled, throwing his arm around you, pulling you into a noogie.

“Dad.”

“There’s some cute boys over there. Want me to say hi?” he laughed.

“I will murder you,” you said, your dad chuckling as he stopped at the back of the Ackles’ truck.

“Who we murdering?” asked Jensen, sipping on his beer from his lawn chair.

“Father. Potentially,” you said.

“You just let me know when and where, kiddo,” said Jensen.

“Dude,” said your dad, taking a beer out of the cooler.

“Eh, I’m joking. Mostly,” said Jensen, your dad rolling his eyes as he handed you a beer. “Oh. Look at the rebel.”

“Uncle Jay,” you said. “You literally gave me my first-“

“Ahhhhhh,” he said, Jared crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow. “Your child is delusional.”

“Well I knew that,” said your dad, digging through the back of the truck and tossing some sunscreen at you.

“Dad.”

“Don’t complain when you get a sunburn then,” he said.

You groaned as he smirked, heading over to the grill close by.

“You do burn pretty easy, kiddo,” said Jensen.

“I know, I know,” you said, rubbing some cream into your skin. He stood up and got the back of your neck and shoulders where you’d missed a few spots. “Where are the kids?”

“Bathroom trip. You know that guy over there is checking you out,” he said.

“No he isn’t,” you said, cracking open your beer. You took a sip, Jensen chuckling as he walked over towards the grill. “Tell dad I want a hotdog please.”

“Mhm,” he said.

You felt a poke on your shoulder and you spun around, staring straight at Billy Dalton’s bare chest.

“Hey, Padalecki,” he said with a smirk. 

“Hi,” you said, forcing your head to stay up and not at his shirtless chest. 

“You mind if I borrow some of that sunscreen?” he asked.

“Sure,” you said, handing over the tube.

“Thanks. I didn’t think you were much into football,” he said.

“My family’s always been super into UT football since we moved here,” you said.

“I thought you were local,” he said.

“I had an untraditional childhood,” you said with a smile. “But I’ve been here since middle school.”

“Me too. I was always too tiny to play football at my school if you can believe it,” he said.

“Really? I totally thought you were a jock...and that sounded so bad.”

“It’s cool, Padalecki. I played baseball and I got a 4 on my AP English test. Complete package right here,” he said.

“Seriously? No one in my school scored a 4,” you said.

“Life was very interesting being the dorky cool guy,” he said. “Trying to leave that behind now that we’re in college and all that.”

“You’re an English major, right?”

“Education. I’d like to be an English teacher though,” he said.

“My grandma was an English teacher,” you said.

“Seriously? That’s awesome,” he said. 

“Hey, Y/N,” said your dad, wandering over with a smile and a hot dog for you. “Who’s your friend?”

“This is Billy. He’s in my English 203 class,” you said.

“203, huh. You must be a reader then,” said your dad.

“Mhm,” you said, your dad still smiling at you. “Thanks.”

“Hey Billy. How old are you?” he asked.

“Twenty.”

“Twenty and you’re a freshman?” asked your dad.

“I had to take a year off after high school. My dad was in a bad car accident over that Fourth of July that year. I stuck around home to help out,” he said.

“Well that’s a very selfless thing to do,” he said with a nod. “Y/N, you can go hang out with your friends if you want.”

“Mhm,” you said as he walked away. “Sorry about him. He likes to you know, be a dad and harass his children.”

“That’s cool. Mine’s the same way. Thanks for the sunscreen, Padalecki,” he said as he turned to go. “You uh, want to grab lunch after class Monday?”

“Sure.”

“Cool. See ya, Padalecki,” he said. You smiled and turned around, your dad and Jensen sipping on a beer at the back of the truck with shit eating grins. “What?”

“I smell a boyfriend incoming,” said Jensen.

“She knows what she’s doing,” said your dad with a smirk.

“I will tell mom and Aunt De what you two got up to last weekend unless we never discuss this again,” you said.

“How is she so scary for being so tiny,” said Jensen.

“I learned if from you two,” you laughed, throwing your head back. “Shit, I forgot to get the sunscreen back.”

“Take it from two previously twenty year old boys. He kept it on purpose,” said your dad.

“When was that? 300 B.C.?” you asked.

“Why don’t you go get back my sunscreen or I’ll tell your parents what you got up to last night,” said Jensen with a smirk.

“I thought you were staying over your friend Sara’s,” said your dad. 

“Of course I did,” you said, shooting Jensen a look. He sipped on his beer and smiled. 

“Oh yeah. Of course she did,” he said, knowing very well you called him and asked him for a ride and to crash in their guest room when you partied a little too hard the night before.

“I hate you both,” you groaned as you headed back towards where Billy was with his friends.

“Love you too, kiddo. Now hurry up. Game starts soon.”

_____

[goggles-mcgee]

Hi! I hope you’re doing well! Do you have any head canons about your felinette stories (Moving on, finding home; The haunted Bride, The not-so phantom…) and Marinette, the Rolling Stone? I love all of your stories, specially daminette 😈

Hi! Of course I do! But since you're grouping them for the Felinette, I will focus these headcanons on the felinette aspects a bit! Also I am so sorry for the very late reply. Motivation has been very low 😔

Moving On, Finding Home:

•As Marinette starts to work with Amelie, Amelie decided they should go out for lunch along with Felix, but when they got to the cafe she suddenly had some business to take care of and rushed off. Felix took this as an opportunity to really talk to Marinette and apologize for his behavior last time he was in Paris.

•At first she's skeptical but as he went into detail about why he did it, she feels for him. He told her about the loss of his father and that he knew it wasn't an excuse but he had been hurt and angry. Especially at Adrien and his Uncle. He was surprised when she didn't immediately jump to Adrien’s defense.

•Since he was so willing to be vulnerable and he seemed genuine in wanting to start over with her, Marinette told him everything that had happened at school. At first she had just wanted to explain that her and Adrien weren't friends anymore but once she started talking she couldn't stop.

•After this talk, things work a lot smoother, and Felix actually tags along with his mother when she goes to meet Marinette. Somehow them having lunch became a routine as well, but neither teen complains.

•Amelie adores Marinette and has a hard time not spoiling the girl but she can't help that her love language is gift giving and look...if Marinette is going to be taking on as big a project as she is then of course she needs a new design desk...and tablet since her old one had a chip on the corner...and a new mattress because her little designer needs the best sleep to dream up wonderful designs!

•Felix does try to reign her in, but it's hopeless.

•Tom and Amelie are two peas in a protective-parent-pod. They love talking to each other about their respective child and all they do in the name of that love, like the time Tom threw Marinette’s birthday cake in the trash several times in a panic because he didn't want to spoil the surprise. Tom and Amelie basically become bestie with a fond Sabine watching over.

•Amelie being a Petty Betty and allowing paparazzi to take pictures of her, Felix and Marinette when they are out together (with permission, of course) all so she could show off how cute Felix and Marinette are together but also to rub it in the face of her brother-in-law that she nabbed the very talented designer before him.

•Felix does become the new Chat Noir, but he changes his name to Grimalkin and Adrien, who starts not-so-vague posting on his Chat Noir account on social media that the name sucks and nitpicks about everything of the new Cat Hero.

•The class start to think the reason Marinette has "changed" so much is because of Felix, and they start trying to include her in things again in an attempt to lure her away from the "problem" Lila hates this and tries to intervene but it never works out for her.

•Gabriel is having a rough month, what with Lila Rossi being herself, the Dupain-Cheng girl getting snatched up by his dreadful sister-in-law right before he was going to open an early-experience type of internship so he could keep her close and figure out how to akumatize her but also she did have great talent and it would be a waste if he let her slip through his fingers, then Adrien reveals he and Mlle Dupain-Cheng aren't on speaking terms and to top it all off!!! There is a new cat hero who is actually competent, and that is making being a super villain very hard.

The Haunted Bride:

•Marinette had for as long as she remembers, been obsessed with the Culpa Mansion. Her parents thought it was cute and funny at first, but when she still spoke about it and even spoke about details, she couldn't have possibly known, but when she overheard her parents talking about taking her to a professional or something she stopped talking so in depth about it.

•But she dreamt of it almost every night and keeps a dream journal where she drew a lot of things from her dreams. She has it locked and hidden because she fears if anyone found it, they would think she was crazy, especially her parents.

•Hawkmoth is defeated and in jail, but Adrien did somehow get through it all without being suspected of aiding his father. Nathalie is the one taking care of Adrien since Gabriel took the fall for everything.

•Marinette as Ladybug, decided against Ladybug and Chat Noir revealing their identities to each other. Something just told her not too but she did promise that if Chat found her, she would let him know. Her and Adrien dating kind of happened out of nowhere to her, but then he kept making cat puns here and there, and well Marinette came to the conclusion he was Chat and hat found her. So she made her own subtle references.

•Adrien does not know that she is Ladybug, but she thinks he does. He just started dating her because she reminded him of Ladybug, and while he did start to like her, he was still very much in "love" with Ladybug.

•Marinette starts to realize he actually doesn't know who she is, and it kind of opens her eyes to how he tries to manipulate her. She doesn't think he is doing it maliciously or anything, but she can see how much he values the class and keeping things happy, and she sees that he's doing it kind of subconsciously so he can keep his perceived normal and happiness. It's why he never breaks the peace, even if it's the right thing to do.

•When she wins the trip to the Mansion, Marinette actually exchanges letters with the owner of the Mansion, who happens to be her age, and she thinks that's cool. They become pen-pals and friends, and Marinette is just so happy to get to rant to someone just as obsessed with the mansion as much as her.

•When she and her class go to the mansion, she is already trying to break up with Adrien but that's kind of hard to do when he won't spend any time alone with her like a boyfriend should. She finds out that Lila is the one manipulating him in hopes that he would be charmed by her and fall for her. The girl squad (some of them) are helping her.

•Marinette is almost always somehow left alone, and during those times, she meets with Felix, and they just have a fun time hanging out, and Marinette finds herself falling for him. She only ever meets him at night though but it's when she's with him that she feels the happiest and most clear headed. He keeps her grounded.

•But while staying in the mansion, her dreams come back in such vividity that she starts having trouble determining what reality is and what is a dream.

The Not-So Phantom of the Théâtre du Châtelet:

•Felix is not scarred, nor does he live underneath the theater. The Phantom is a character he plays to manipulate and scare those who seek to hurt the theater and the owner, his mother. He doesn't mind the rumor. He plays into it in the name of protecting his mother and the theater she loves. He also does not care nor mind hurting others to do so.

•He works as a permanent stage hand and sometimes a stage manager since he knows the theater better than anyone. Yes, he did build hidden trap doors and such to help with his time as the Phantom.

•But what started as him protecting his mother and their theater kind of morphed into punishing those he thinks deserves it and if you're thinking his mother would not approve of this or not know what her son is doing, nah. She knows and supports her troubled little man.

•When he first meets Marinette, he immediately realizes what potential she has and is charmed by her almost immediately. They become friends as costume designer and stage hand. But when he sees the treatment of her from her ex-boyfriend and the lead actress, he will do anything to protect her.

•Marinette didn't believe in the Phantom until all these strange events started happening, and she keeps getting roses left in her workshop. She doesn't know how she feels about everything and thinks that makes her an awful person.

•She does have a crush on Felix, and they connect so well, but she also can't help but be drawn to the Phantom when they keep having encounters.

Marinette The Rolling-Stone:

•Marinette meets Felix after her big move to London when she goes to her new private school. Yes, Jagged and Penny enrolled her in a private academy because they feared what people would do if she were in a public school, given all that happened and what was televised.

•It's a school that allows her to work from home sometimes. The excuse that was given was that it was due to her adopted father's work schedule, but in actuality, it was because Marinette told Jagged and Penny about being Ladybug and the Guardian and they agreed she could home-school on days she needed to be in Paris.

•She got adopted into the Quantic Kids group by surprisingly Felix. He just felt like she needed friends, and she reminded him of himself before he became friends with his friends.

•It takes a while for her to trust them, but when she does, she cries over how much happier she is. When she starts getting feelings for Felix she's scared but Jagged and Penny help her through it.

•Felix doesn't know when he fell for Marinette, but contrary to what his friends think, he didn't freak out or get angry or anything like that. To him, it made sense, she made sense...they made sense. So no, he isn't scared of his feelings and is more than determined to prove himself to Marinette.

•Her friends find out she is Ladybug and convince her to let them help. Of course, she doesn't want to, but things are getting worse, and she needs people she can trust. Jagged and Penny are also there to help as well.

•Felix, of course, becomes the new Cat Miraculous Holder and becomes known as Carbonel!

[kitteneddiediaz]

(Early) Tease Tidbit Tuesday

tagged by honestly everybody since I haven't posted in over a month sorry!

So I'm doing probably my 10th rewatch of Psych, and during one of my favorite Shawn & Juliet scenes I thought it was be so cute to rewrite it with Buck and Eddie. This isn't actually a WIP, just a fun little pre-relationship Buddie thing I wrote. If anybody wants to watch the scene in question, here is a link to it on YouTube. I did kinda switch up the beginning of it - since Buck and Eddie aren't detectives and I didn't feel like flushing out an entire au for just one scene... so if it's a little choppy, no it isn't. I also added a little bit to the bottom to wrap it up nicely since it was hard to do it exactly like it is in the scene... ANYWAY enjoy!

It's well past midnight by the time Eddie pulls up to the roller rink. The parking lot is empty, save for the Toyota Matrix belonging to the attendant - whose name is Sam - still inside, the facility closing up since Saturday Night Skate ended an hour ago. He grabs the skates from his passenger seat and hops out of the truck cab, locking the door behind him and jogging up to the doors of the building.

Sam let him borrow the skates (perks of Sam happening to be Carla's nephew) for a goofy community event the firehouse was hosting, that for some reason involved putting Eddie in skates since he was the only person besides Bobby who wouldn't fall on his face.

They ended up fundraising way more than they were expecting for the community, and despite what he's willing to admit out loud, Eddie really did miss skating, so he can't complain too much. He used to go with his little sisters when Adrianna was thinking about trying out for the roller derby when she was in high school. He practically taught himself how to skate just so that he could teach her.

The spare key Sam gave him slots into the lock on the front doors, and a minute later Eddie is walking through the dark hallways towards the rink, footsteps echoing along the walls.

The only thing that was missing today was Buck - who had prior plans with Kameron and Connor, something about putting in effort to be more than just an ex-roommate and a sperm donor to them. Regardless, Eddie's only a little (a lot) disappointed Buck didn't get to see him skate around the firehouse, weaving in and out of the 80's themed decorations and community members filing in and out of the bay doors.

He walks through the doors to the open skate track, eyes locked on to the skates as he fidgets with one of the wheels. He passes the glide lane into the middle of the rink, where there's a few chairs and speakers set-up.

Just as he's passing by, a figure rises up from the chairs, startling Eddie only a little bit and stopping him in his tracks. There's Buck, sitting down in front of Eddie at the skating rink, looking up at him in surprise, as if Eddie's the one that's out of place here.

"Oh, hey, Eds! What are you doing here?" Buck asks.

Eddie has to shake himself, exhaustion giving way to complete bafflement at Buck in front of him.

"I'm returning my equipment, what are you doing here?"

Buck shrugs, "just hangin'. You know, chillin'. I was actually feeling a little nostalgic." Buck pauses, chuckling to himself. "Remember when I dropped you off here to pick up some roller skates for an 80's themed fundraiser at the station?"

"Yeah... I remember that."

"God, it just... it just feels like it was just yesterday."

"Probably because it was... yesterday." Eddie says as Buck stands up from the chair he's sitting in. The three inches in height Buck usually has on him is weirdly... not three inches. Eddie has to fully tilt his head up to meet Buck's eyes, which is unusual unless they're standing less than a foot apart.

Eddie's eyes drift down Buck's form to land on his feet, "why are you wearing skates?"

"Oh yeah, look at that!" Buck says, looking down at his feet. "I guess I am."

The confusion Eddie felt earlier has increased tenfold, and he's giving Buck a look like he's lost his mind.

"I don't know, uh," Buck continues. "I guess I just thought it was a shame. We have this big beautiful track, and... no one to skate on it."

Eddie looks around towards the glide lane, nodding along.

"It's also been a long while since I've had a good blister." Buck says.

It draws Eddie's eyes back to him, and he can feel his heart rate jump with the look Buck is giving him. Confident, playful, maybe a little flirty. Eddie can feel a blush rising up his face, painting his cheeks and ears a pretty pink that Buck always teases him for.

He doesn't get a chance to respond though, because Buck breaks eye contact to look up at the tech booth that's perched over the entrance doors. He lifts a single finger, making a swirling motion with it towards Sam. Who Eddie didn't realize was up there the entire time since he walked in and started talking with Buck.

Sam's voice filters in over the speakers in the rink, "this will be a couple's skate. Couple's only."

A second later A Flock of Seagulls' Space Age Love Song filters through the speakers.

Eddie turns back to look at Buck, flush spreading through his entire body, heat rushing down his spine, to the tips of his fingers, pooling in his belly. The heavy beating of his heart turns up a notch into full palpitations, and Eddie can't for the life of him remember the last time someone made butterflies burst to life in his belly, warm and bright and colorful, threatening to spill out of his throat if he isn't careful.

Buck just looks at him, a small easy smile tugging at the corner of his lips, eyes crinkled.

The echoing of the guitar picks up, and Buck reaches his hand out towards Eddie. "Come on," he mouths.

"Buck," Eddie says softly, reverently. Unable to fight his own smile pulling at his mouth, nervous energy spilling out of his pores, dripping down onto the floor for Buck to see how happily unsteady he makes Eddie. The spotlight flicks on from behind Eddie in the tech booth, and everything that isn't Buck and Eddie is bathed in darkness, highlighting them alone in the center of the room.

It's not a minute later that Eddie has his skates laced up, following Buck out into the glide lane to drift together against the airy, floaty music filling the space.

Buck stumbles once, towards the middle of the song after they had done a couple laps, and Eddie's arms fly out to catch him, one wrapped around Buck's bicep and the other curled around his abdomen, determined to keep him upright. Buck recovers a little too quickly though, and Eddie pulls his arms back, eyeing Buck suspiciously.

"Did you do that on purpose?"

"No... Maybe... Okay, yes. Yes, I did."

Eddie smiles and ducks his head, entirely flustered that Buck would pretend to almost fall over just to get Eddie's hands on him.

After another lap around the track, Eddie feels Buck reach out, curling his pinky finger around Eddie's.

Eddie grips his right back, stars and butterflies bursting under his sternum anew. They skate in slow circles around the rink for the rest of the song, until it fades out and the spotlight shuts off.

"Sam only promised me one song, and I know you're tired so, we should head out." Buck says, turning to drift backwards in front of Eddie.

Outside, after the skates were put back into the rental area and the spare key was placed back in Sam's hands, Buck walks Eddie to his truck, hand gently resting on the small of his back.

He pauses them at the drivers side door before Eddie can climb in. "Thanks, for tonight. I was a little bummed I didn't get to see you in action at the firehouse."

"Of course," Eddie laughs. "Thank you."

Buck just nods, looking at Eddie with that same stupid boyish grin he had been earlier that made Eddie's insides melt and Eddie... can't look away. Buck is so beautiful under the dim streetlights and the neon lighting of the roller rink sign.

It's Buck who breaks their moment first, looking down at his feet for just a second. "Well, you should get home. And don't forget, I'll be there bright and early to make breakfast before we take Chris to the planetarium."

"Right... I almost forgot."

The grin on Buck's face grows, and he takes a small step forward into Eddie's space, towering over him, close enough that Eddie can see the individual freckles decorating his nose.

"Have a good night, Eddie. I'll see you bright and early." He says, whispering.

And with that he's gone, carrying his warmth with him as he skips along the parking lot to where his Jeep is parked, and Eddie doesn't know how he didn't notice it earlier.

The cool night air is a small reprieve against his heated skin, tempering the flush that's decorated his features since Buck practically jumped out at him inside the skate rink.

He has to take a few minutes once he's inside his car to stop the shaking of his hands. Buck has been a little more flirty with him in the past few months but this is the first time Eddie can truly say that Buck was wooing him. He feels like a teenage girl, remembering how Sophia and Adrianna would talk about the boys they had crushes on like they were the only thing in the world that would bring either of them happiness. He wants to bury his face into his hands, squeal and cry and giggle and- goddamn he's so far gone. He already knew he was, but fuck now that he's been on the receiving end of Buck's charms he knows there's no going back.

It's a full ten minutes before Eddie has himself pulled together enough to start his truck and drive home, but sleep doesn't come as easy as it should once he gets there, too wrapped up in Buck's pretty eyes and toothy grin and open flirtiness.

He wakes the next morning way later than he wanted too, the smell of bacon and chocolate chip pancakes permeating the house, sweet sounds of Christopher and Buck talking and giggling at each other all the way in the kitchen.

Eddie lets out a small happy sigh, burrows a little farther into his pillow, and relishes in the butterflies fluttering around in his belly.

[xsweetcatastrophe]

You Broke Me First

Part 24

sorry guys, I suck

xo

_____________________________________________________________

The alarm went off at 7:30 am, but Zoe was already awake. She's been awake for hours.

They were home, in Zoe's apartment, bright and early on Monday morning. Normally, Zoe arranged her work schedule so she wouldn't have to be in the office until about 10 or 10:30, giving herself a light start to the week.

But not this week.

This week she had to meet with Cillian and Heather - their PR relationship was officially coming to an end, and they had to discuss their breakup.

The rest of Sophie's party was a blur, and Zoe felt numb through it all. She partly blamed herself; typical Zoe, getting caught up in her emotions and feelings and not seeing things for what they are. This was never a real relationship, this was a contract signed for Cillian's image. Once the contract is done, they are to go back to their separate lives.

The issue is, Zoe doesn't remember life before Cillian.

A lot can happen in 3 months. 3 short months and Zoe started seeing the world differently, the anxiety eased and the weight on her shoulders disappeared. Life felt lighter, it felt fuller, it felt more rich. She didn't want her old life, she wanted this. She wanted the beach sunrise on a ratty old blanket in her old high school sweatshirt with Cillian next to her, forever.

Zoe reached over to her end table and shut off the alarm. She rolled back into bed, on her back, and continue to stare at the ceiling, much like she was doing for the past couple of hours.

"Did you get any sleep?" Cillian softly said. His arm was draped over her stomach, and he gave her a little squeeze.

"Not at all." Zoe replied.

Cillian sighed. "It doesn't mean anything. Let's just go and talk to her. We'll figure it out, okay? You and me."

Zoe sighed and smiled. "Me and you." she softly said, barely enough for Cillian to hear.

Cillian pulled her closer and gave her a slow kiss. He softly pulled away but stayed close, his nose touching hers. "It's going to be okay. I promise you," He whispered.

"Don't make promises you can't keep. You don't know what's going to happen," Zoe said, fighting back tears. She looked away from him, focusing on the window across her room. It looked sunny out. The leaves were blowing... is that a dog she heard? She was focusing on anything except for Cillian and their upcoming meeting.

"Hey," Cillian whispered, placing his hand on her cheek and slowly moving it so she was looking at him. "What do you think is gonna happen? You honestly think I'm gonna walk in there with you, talk to Heather, then walk out and act like a stranger to you? Never speak to you again?"

"I don't know, I really don't. I'm so embarrassed," Zoe said, fully turning her body towards him, laying on her side and blinking back tears. "I was so hesitant these past 3 months of this entire thing. I swore we would have a dinner once a week or do a walk so they can take photos, and that was it. I didn't think I'd feel this way. I don't want this to end," She said, finally letting the tears roll down her cheek. Cillian was quick to wipe them away.

"It won't." Cillian whispered. "It won't end if you don't want it to end. I know I don't want it to end. So it won't end. I mean, you forget I'm homeless and living here..." Cillian said, trying to bring humor to the situation.

Zoe huffed out a laugh. "Yea, how's that gonna work now? What are we gonna do?"

"I'm going to stay here for as long as you let me -"

"You're welcome here as long as you need to be," Zoe said, cutting him off. Cillian smiled.

"I'm going to stay here for as long as you let me," He continued, "and continue to talk to you, and be with you, and watch shows with you, and eat your cooking, and listen to you complain about your mom.. I want everything exactly how it is, I don't want anything to change. Only difference is there won't be a stupid paper contract saying we have to be together. I want to be with you, contract or not. I don't care what Heather even says today. Nothing changes how I feel about you," Cillian said, pulling her into him. She wrapped her around him, burying her face in his chest.

"You must thing i'm such a baby," Zoe mumbled.

Cillian laughed. "Not at all babe," He said, kissing the top of her head. She looked up and caught his lips with her own. Cillian sighed and looked at the time. "alright. Let me go feed Scout and take him for a quick lap around the block," He said, stretching his arms over his head. Zoe rolled off him and sat on the edge of the bed, stretching and standing up. Cillian didn't shy away from looking at her ass peaking out from her baggy t-shirt that she slept in when she stretched her own arms up over her head. He sighed and got up himself, making his way around the bed to stand in front of her. He caught her as she tried to walk around him, grabbing her by the hips. "Come here," He said, maneuvering her in front of him. She sighed.

"I'm fine, Cill" Zoe said. Lie.

"No you're not, you're picking at the skin around your nails. Look at me. I. Am not. Leaving you." He said, speaking very slowly and annunciating every word. "I'm a grown man. I'll be damned if a 20 something publicist tells me what to do with my life. I tell THEM,and they adjust. Understand? And what I want, is you." He said firmly, but softly. "No one is keeping me away from you." He whispered, stroking her cheek with his thumb.

Zoe leaned into his touch, closing her eyes and smiling. When she finally opened her eyes, he was staring back at her.

"You and me?"

"Me and you."

Cillian and Zoe arrived at Heather's office, hand in hand. Any confidence Zoe had, she was getting from Cillian.

"Come on in, guys!" Heather said, coming into the lobby and ushering them into her private office. She did a double take when she saw both Zoe and Cillian holding hands.

Once they were inside and Heather closed the door, she turned to them both. "You guys don't have to do all that in front of me," She said, waving her hand at them, implying the hand holding. Zoe, on reflex, let go of Cillian's hand, but Cillian held tight.

"We gotta talk Heather," Cillian said, sitting down on the couch and pulling Zoe down with him, still holding her hand.

"I know! Big day!" She said, sitting across from them. "Coffee? Champagne? You both survived! 3 months weren't that bad, right Zoe?" She said, smiling at her.

"I understand the contract is up, which is fine, we'll sign whatever we need to, but we are going to continue to see each other," Cillian said, interjecting.

"Why?" Heather said, tone of voice completely different. She turned off her professional voice and her stuck up, bratty valley girl came out real quick.

"Because Heather, when you force 2 people to be together for 3 months for 'image', you get to know people and I've gotten to know Zoe, and I want to continue seeing her." Cillian said, firmly. "And please know i'm not asking you. I'm telling you. We are continuing to see each other. Regardless of what you say or agree with."

"Cillian," Heather said, switching back to her professional tone. "This is going to be really, really messy-"

"Good thing I have a publicist then." Cillian interrupted.

Heather smiled and looked down at her desk. She was pissed.

"...Okay. Okay." Heather said, almost as if she was convincing herself. "You're always free to do as you wish. I will do my best to clean up the mess in the aftermath."

"I'm not a mess," Zoe mumbled.

"Oh of course not, sweetie!" Heather said, as if she was talking to a 4 year old. "Just saying I will continue to do my job to the best of my ability."

"So we're good then, yeah?" Cillian said, standing up, causing Zoe to stand up with him since he was still gripping her hand.

"Sure are!" Heather said, smiling. "I did speak to your real estate agent, he asked if you had availability today for some houses, so if you could call him back, he also sent over some listings in your email. I also want to let you know I am drafting up a breakup article and once approved it will hit the publications next week -"

"Heather what did we just say?" Cillian said, dumbfounded.

"Cillian, just because you don't want to honor your contract, doesn't mean I can't not honor mine," Heather said. "I had these planned for weeks, they're all already aware, and I need to keep my word.... listen, I can see if I can edit them, but I can't pull them." She said firmly.

Cillian sighed.

"Do what you gotta do, but we're together." Cillian said, opening the door to her office.

"Of course! You can count on me," Heather said, smiling sweetly and following them to the door, seeing them out. She watched them, hand in hand, walk through the lobby and out the door. She waved when Zoe looked back at her, still smiling. She finally dropped her and and smile once the door closed and they were out of sight.

"Over my fucking dead body."

_______________________________________________________

I know it's short BUTTT besties it's about to get messssssyyyyyyy

tags: @lau219 @borntodiemp3 @cillianmurphyvevo @shopgirl6us

[streetlight11]

Stranger's Hearts

Summary: Working at a restaurant as a waitress, you are bound to have cute customers every now and then, right? But so far, none has properly caught your eye before. Until recently...

Theme: waitress au, strangers to lovers

Genre: pure fluff

Warnings: mentions of alcohol

WC: 3.1k

Pairing: Hwang Hyunjin x Fem!Reader

a/n: Hello! I haven't been active due to many reasons but I'm back to share a new writing with you! Enjoy 🩵

It was a Saturday afternoon, you are working a full shift today to earn money for a lot of commitments. Like your rent, power bills, phone bills, water bills, groceries, school fees, etc. Being a university student isn’t easy but you aren't gonna give up just yet. Which is why you work a full shift on weekends to earn extra than what you get every other day due to working short hours after school. After serving the food orders to a table with a family of four, they thanked you for your good service before you left to continue with your work.

You went to the back room to take a short breath from running around for the past few hours. A fellow colleague of yours who is the senior waiter and team lead, Hyungwon, was just informing the chefs the new orders before clipping the paper to the string for the chefs to refer.

“Tired already?” Hyungwon teased you as he walked up to you with a smile on his face. Yes he’s your senior, but somehow, he’s very close to you and treats you with so much care as though you were his little sister. He is in fact 4 years older than you so that explains a lot.

“One of the tables is occupied by a group of girls who seem like they’re the kind to complain about the pasta being fusilli and not linguine…” You said with a huff, only for him to laugh.

“Still… They’re customers so all we can do is give them what they want.” Hyungwon said, giving you a soft pat to your shoulder before he left the kitchen. You didn’t wanna get caught slacking by your boss so you got up and left the kitchen to continue doing your job. You went over to a table near the window where a couple was sitting, so you could take their orders.

“Is there anything else?” You asked.

“No, thank you.” The woman said with a kind smile in which you happily returned.

“Alright then. Your order will be served soon.” You said as you turned to head back to the kitchen. Unfortunately, you turned a little too soon because it caused you to accidentally crash into someone who was walking past your back.

“Oh my gosh. I’m so sorry!” You said as the handsome guy simply smiled and shook his head.

“No worries. Are you okay?” He asked so you nodded. He then held out his hand, gesturing you to walk so you did. That’s when you heard a voice calling for the person standing behind you.

“Chan hyung!” The male with full cheeks waved in your direction as you glanced past your shoulder to find the guy you bumped into, giving a thumbs up. This slipped your mind as you went into the kitchen and delivered the order to the chefs. A few minutes ticked by and you were currently serving drinks to a table near the front entrance. When you turned back to head to the kitchen, you saw the guy from earlier raising his hand up in hopes that one of your friends would see him.

Lucky for him, you saw his hand raised. Hence, why you were now making your way to their table. As you got closer, you felt a little nervous seeing that their table is filled with 8 very good looking guys who look to be around your age. You tried to keep your professionalism in and smiled when you arrived at their table.

“Hello, are you ready to order?” You asked and the same guy from earlier smiled at you politely.

“Yes we are. Can I have one beef bolognese pasta with linguine and one coke please? What about you guys?” He then points to his friends as they go around the table giving you their orders. When you noticed there were just 7 food and drinks in total, you spoke up to make sure everyone had their orders in.

“There’s only 7 orders. Am I missing out on one?” You asked as their heads soon turned to the male sitting with his arms crossed on the table, head hanging low to burn a hole into the menu, looking as though he’s hiding under his cap.

“Hwang Hyunjin. Aren’t you the one who complained about being hungry just 10 minutes ago?” The one with a black fitting shirt said with a teasing smirk.

“Uh… I’ll um… I’ll get the um…” Hyunjin clears his throat as the one sitting opposite him with fairly long dark brown hair and feline eyes smirked at him to tease afterwards.

“Come on, Jinie… Don’t be shy in front of the waitress… She’s waiting.” The male said, making some of them squeak along with teasing noises. You couldn’t help but let out a soft giggle as Hyunjin finally looks up after glaring at his friend and meeting your gaze.

“I’ll get the sirloin steak with mac ‘n’ cheese and salad please.” He said, keeping eye contact with you.

“Great! How well would you like your steak to be cooked?”

“Medium well, please.”

“Awesome. Any drinks to go with that?”

“Uh… Just iced americano, please.” Hyunjin said and you smiled while writing it down.

“Got it.” You said and soon repeated their orders before taking the menus with you and left. Minutes tick by and you were too busy to steal glances at their table but maybe it’s good because if not, you probably wouldn’t be focusing on work. When their food was ready, you carried the plates on your arms, balancing them expertly. With your help of calling out the name of each dish, they raised their hands to their individual orders and you gave them out accordingly.

You came back again with the remaining dishes, handing Hyunjin’s food last since his was in fact steak. After you’ve given him his order, you flash them a smile politely.

“Enjoy your meals. Call us if you need anything else.” You said and they thanked you in unison.

For the next hour, the crowd had died down a little, giving you room to relax. You were just by the cashier counter, changing the empty paper roll to a new one in the bill printer machine when your eyes naturally flew over to the table in the back of the room. This accidentally caught the attention of the male with feline eyes. He visibly smirked at you as you saw his lips move. Just in time for Hyunjin to glance past his shoulder and lock eyes with you.

This made you look down naturally, hoping you didn’t look too panicky. You busied yourself with checking the bill history to make sure they tally. Suddenly, your co-worker Ellie came to you and was grinning at you from ear to ear.

“What now, El?”

“Those guys seated at the back… I heard them talking about you when I came to clean the table next to them.” She giggled, making you huff at her.

“You probably misheard them.”

“No! I’m serious! Would I be mistaken when they clearly said ‘the girl at the cashier’?” Your breath hitched as you tried to brush it off.

“If they really are talking about me, it’s probably to comment on my rushing ass.”

“Uh… No they weren’t? The one wearing a grey sweater clearly said ‘Ask for her number. She’s at the cashier, maybe you should pay for our meals too while you’re at it’ and he was pointing to the guy sitting in front of him.” Ellie said, making you blush. There’s no way she could make this up. So to see if she was telling the truth, you glanced up and looked at their table. You almost choked on your own saliva when you saw Hyunjin and some of them were already staring at you and Ellie.

“Shit El, they’re looking at us.”

“Correction, they’re looking at you.” She giggled as you saw Hyunjin stand up from his seat while everyone else remained seated.

“Uh… El? Why is he coming here?” You whispered while stacking the receipts in a pile.

“Oh, Hyungwon Is calling me. Bye!” She said whilst rushing into the kitchen, completely walking past Hyunjin but he couldn’t care less about her since she wasn’t the one he’s focused on. Before you could speak up to call for her, your words got stuck in your throat upon seeing Hyunjin approach you at the cashier.

“Hey… Um, can I pay for our table first?” He asked, making you smile.

“Of course. Can I have your bill?” You asked and he passed you the small clipboard with their bill attached to it. You keyed in their table number into the computer and their orders came up on the back screen for him to see.

“Help me do a quick check to see if everything is correct.” You said as his eyes soon fell on the screen behind your computer.

“Yeap. Everything’s in.” He said before meeting your eyes shyly from under the brim of his cap. You then asked how he wanted to pay for the meal and he said by card. While you were keying the amount into the machine, Hyunjin stole a quick glance past his shoulders, just in time to catch his friends gesturing for him to get your number. When he turned back around, you had just placed the machine on the top of the counter for him to insert his card.

He entered his pin number and proceeded to wait for the approval. The receipt finally prints out to indicate that the payment was successful. However, Hyunjin was debating on asking you for your number simply because he was nervous and shy. So when you handed him the receipt and his card, he quickly thanked you before going back to the table. You were a little sad that he didn’t ask for your number or even your social media but maybe it’s not meant to be. With that thought, you went into the kitchen to distract yourself. Little did you know, Hyunjin was literally smashed by his own friends when he came back empty handed.

A few minutes later, they were preparing to leave but Hyunjin thought that maybe he should just ask you for your number before he leaves. He slowed down his pace in hopes that you’ll come out from the back room. Even after he was a few feet away from the main door, you were still nowhere to be seen so he couldn’t help but sigh and left the restaurant for good.

Regret slowly seeping through his skin for not manning up and just ask you when he had the chance right in front of him. Looks like it’s too late now.

A few days had passed now and you still couldn’t get Hyunjin out of your mind. Ellie asked you to try and find his social media since you knew his full name thanks to his friend. However, you didn’t wanna be a creep and stalk him so you opted to just forget about it. Today is a nice cooling Friday evening. You took a few days off from work for the next few weeks to focus on your upcoming tests and exams. Tonight however, your friends from university, Lisa and Jennie wanted to go to the bar and take a little break from studying.

With that being said, you decided to tag along to relieve your stress. You changed into a pretty dark grey side drawstring sleeveless top and a pair of denim jeans. The girls met up with you outside the bar as you went in with them. Once you made it inside, there were a lot of people all around. Some at the bar, some at the stray tables and some at the sofa booths.

You were just walking behind Lisa and Jennie to find an empty table when you caught sight of a group of familiar looking faces at one of the sofa booths. The one that really triggered your memory was Hyunjin. He was seated there with his left arm resting on top of the sofa, wearing a satin white button down shirt with denim skinny jeans and sneakers. His hair is currently blonde, long enough for him to tie it in a half ponytail with his bangs framing his face.

He didn’t notice you at first until his friend whom you remember is the one with feline eyes nudged Hyunjin’s side and nodded his head towards you. Before you could look away in panic, Hyunjin locked eyes with you and it made you instantly smile. He did the same as he watched you walk past their booth and sat in the booth a few tables down where there were four guys greeting you and your friends.

They were Lisa and Jennie’s friends from college and you have met them a few times before. You just weren’t really close to them. Minutes went by as you slowly took your time to finish your drink while they were all on their umpteenth shot of whiskey already.

“Hey waiter! We need another bottle!” Yunhyeong slurred drunkenly to an imaginary waiter and you couldn’t help but laugh.

“I’ll go order a bottle for you guys.” You said rather calmly considering you weren’t anywhere near drunk at all. You got up to go get them a bottle of whiskey, making your way to the bar. When you made it there, you smiled at the bartender who in return, gave you a cheeky grin. Thank god he’s handsome, if not, you would’ve just cringed.

“Can I get one bottle of whiskey, please? My friends seem like they’re going through tough times.” You said, only for him to laugh. He grabs a bottle from his shelf and hands it to you.

“Just don’t let them sleep in the bar all night.” He said, making you laugh.

You took the bottle and thanked him, handing him cash before leaving the bar. While you were making your way back to your table, you caught a glimpse of Hyunjin’s table and as if they were already waiting for you to look, some of them were already waving to you. The one with feline eyes smirked at you and gestured with his fingers to call you over.

With a mind of its own, your legs brought you to their table and soon, Chan speaks up on behalf of everyone.

“Hey, you’re the one who worked at that restaurant right?” He asked, making you nod.

“Yes. And apparently, I have a name in case you’re wondering.” You said, only for the one with feline eyes to smirk.

“Hyunjin already has a name for you but go ahead. Tell us your name.” He urged you gently so you did.

“It’s Y/N.” You smiled, glancing over to Hyunjin. He had a shy smile on his face, only for you to hear Lisa’s voice calling for you from their table. A soft sigh left your lips as you bid them goodbye.

“Well, there’s my cue. Bye guys.” You laughed and walked away a little sadly. Another half an hour or so went by, you were just starting to get borderline tipsy when a soft tap on your shoulder made you turn to find Hyunjin standing there. You were surprised to see him there since you never thought he wanted to talk to you.

“Hey, can I buy you another drink?” He asked so you nod. You followed him to the bar as he sat next to you and told you to order whatever you want. You ended up with just a glass of bourbon as he settled for a glass of whiskey.

“I don’t wanna sound like a creep or anything, but I’ve been thinking about you lately. I guess I regretted not talking to you more the other day at the restaurant.” Hyunjin said, making you laugh.

“It’s okay. That makes two of us I guess.” He couldn’t help but laugh as you chatted more with him, getting to know him a little better. You found out that he’s two years younger than you, is a Hankuk U student unlike you who is a Yonsei U student, he is taking up dance major and he likes art, more specifically painting, drawing, sketching and fine art. You were so engrossed in your conversation with him that you didn’t notice your friends were leaving until you felt a tap on your shoulder.

Jennie was holding onto Lisa who seemed completely out of it and was a giggling mess, “Sorry to interrupt, but we’re heading home. Wanna come with us?” Jennie asked. You glanced back at Hyunjin who gave you a soft smile and nodded at you to go with your friends. You hesitated for a bit but then an idea came into your mind. That’s when you took out your phone from your back pocket and unlocked it, clicking on the contact list and holding your phone to him.

Hyunjin didn’t waste any time in entering his information before passing your phone back to you. With that being done, you bid him goodbye and you left, helping to hold Lisa’s other side.

That night, Hyunjin patiently waited for you to text back. He wasn’t sure if you’d actually text him since you’re the one with his number. He was just lying in bed, ready to go to bed when his phone chimed with a new text message. He took his phone from his nightstand and saw a few texts from an unknown number. He clicked on it and there were 3 unread messages.

You [sent at 1:54am]: Hey! It’s me, Y/N

You [sent at 1:54am]: I actually wanted to text you when I reached home but I got so busy helping my friend that I forgot to text you…

You [sent at 1:55am]: Sorry if I’m disturbing your sleep. We can text tomorrow! Haha :)

Hyunjin wasted no time in replying to you since he’s been waiting all week to do this ever since he laid eyes on you.

Hyunjin [sent at 1:56am]: Hey! No, you weren’t disturbing. I just got back a while ago anyway :)

The conversation continued until late, not realising that it was just a few hours before sunrise. You excused yourself to go to sleep, making sure to tell him that you loved talking to him and that you’d wanna continue the conversation later in the day again and he agreed. Hyunjin felt like his heart would explode at any given moment now that he finally gets to talk to you.

Fate does work in mysterious ways…

[sorencd]

APPLE CIDER

pairing: charlie dalton x f!reader

summary: he’s brash, annoying, distracts you from your studies, and plays the saxophone too loudly. you don’t like him at all. right?

word count: 0.6k

a/n: really tempted to make an unofficial part 2 to this one hdhasfuf

the room was frigid as the cold wind entered your room through the window, sending a chill down your body. you were staring up at the ceiling, thinking about the past events of this week. you got up from where you were on your bed to close the windowpane, deciding that you couldn't bear the chilly temperatures anymore, but sat down on the edge, you spotted your jumper that was hanging on the door.

'hi (y/n).' a voice from above you spoke, it was charlie. he had that cheeky smile again. 

'what do you want, dalton?' you replied, annoyance evident in your tone. clearly stating that you didn't want him there and bothering you. you were studying outside of the school you attended, the neighbouring academy to welton, emma porter academy. you shouldn't have expected peace and quiet when you chose a bench outside of school as your place to study.

'you're really good at organising.' he said as he pointed at your notes. 

you looked up at him with a bizarre expression, where did that compliment come from? to hide your confusion, you instead feigned irritation. 'seriously, what do you want charlie? i'm busy right now.'

'you looked lonely and i didn't see your friend amelia around here anywhere. so i figured i'd give a poor soul like you company.'

despite your best efforts to try and make him leave you alone, he was persistent. no matter how many times you told him to go away, he'd quickly change the topic and say something about you.

'you know what? i'll be the one to leave. please don't follow me.' you pleaded as you started walking away.

he didn't say anything the first few minutes you got up to leave, you were tempted to look back to see if he had any sort of reaction, but before you could, he beat you to it and spoke up.

'i like your jumper!'

you quickly shook your head as you cleared your thoughts of charlie. lately, he's been plaguing your mind and you have no idea why. it's giving you a hard time to focus and you're afraid your grades and studies would be affected if this continues.

you resumed what you were planning on doing and closed the window shut. you caught a glimpse of yourself in the reflection, your hair softly glowing from the light the moon illuminated.

'could you, i don't know, smoke somewhere else?’ you complained as you coughed while waving your hand in the air to try and get some smoke out of your face. charlie really went out of his way to sit down next to you on your favourite spot, the bench, to light a cigarette. 

‘i think i’m fine where i am.’ he snickered and raised his cigarette up towards your head and though you tried moving away, charlie still managed to put cigar shavings on top of your head. to your dismay.

you stood up from the bench and quickly cleaned your head, you hoped the smell wouldn't rub off on you to save you the trouble of explaining to your parents why you smell like cigarettes.

'would you quit that?' you angrily grumbled as you scowled at him. he only laughed again in return.

'sorry sorry, wouldn't want to ruin your pretty hair.' 

and there it was again. that feeling in the pit of your belly that bubbled up every time he'd compliment you. he's just messing around with you, isn't he? after all, you both hate each other.

for the second time tonight, you snapped yourself out of your daydreaming and made your way back to bed where you plopped down face first and let out an exasperated sigh. 

charlie has been fogging your mind all week and it was starting to get annoying. that annoying sly grin of his, his annoying handsome face, annoying compliments, annoying soft hair, annoying charlie. you disliked him. hated, even. you hated him a lot. you don't even like him that much.

but maybe it's time to admit that you do.

© sorencd . 2023 ─ do not copy, repost, translate or claim any of my works as your own.