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youkiyoh · 5 years

Text

bittersweet

pairing : lucas x reader

genre : highschool au

summary: he’s the captain of the basketball team, and you, his best friend. Your feelings for him has always been hidden, and so is his. Will you finally gather the courage to ask him out?

“Wong, this is the third time you’re late to my class this week.” Your teacher scolded as Lucas openly walked into class 15 minutes after it started.

“Sorry, the shower queue was horrible.” Lucas apologised nonchalantly, making his way over to you and sliding into the seat you saved him. Tossing his backpack on the floor, he proceeds to rumage for the materials he needed for the chemistry lecture.

“You don’t even look like you showered.” You frowned, subconsiously leaning away from him as the sweat glistened visibly against his skin. “How the hell did Mrs Johnson buy that?”

“I lost track of time practicing with the boys.” Lucas whispered, flashing his award winning smile in your direction. “Didn’t even hear the bell going off.”

“Again?” You frowned, watching as he ran his fingers through his hair to brush them back. “You’ve been practicing non-stop for these past few weeks. Finals are coming up.”

“As well as the competition.” Lucas explained, tapping his pen against the wooden table softly. “We can’t afford to lose to Danford this time round, it’ll cost us our reputation.”

“If anyone wants to talk, go outside. I’m having a lesson here.” Mrs Jackson scolded, glaring at the both of you with her brows raised.

“Sorry..” You cleared your throat, hanging your head down low as your cheeks turned red slowly. Smirking, Lucas tapped his pen against your head, pointing to the board. “Focus. We’ll talk about this later.”

--------------------

“Can you believe she did that? In front of the whole school?” Yuqi exclaimed, shaking her head in disbelief as both of you made your way towards your lockers. “I feel embarrassed for him.”

“It’s Hannah you’re talking about.” You chuckled, giving your opinions on what happened at the cafeteria when you were gone. Apparently Hannah, who so happened to be the school’s most popular girl had openly rejected a guy’s offer when he asked her to prom. “Is it even surprising if she did that?”

“You didn’t even see how much effort he put into his posters. There were donuts, Y/N. Who’d say no to that?”

You shrugged, reaching your locker and opening it to put your books away. You did feel bad for George, he wasn’t a very popular guy and to be publicly humiliated like that after mustering up the courage to ask someone he fancies out, you didn’t even want to think about it.

“Whatever, I’ll see you fifth period. What do you have now?” Yuqi asks, tilting her head to the side as she smiled at you.

“Math.” You sighed, slamming your locker shut and holding your books in your hands. “I just can’t seem to understand anything that’s going on in that class. You?”

“Free period.” Yuqi clicked her tongue, narrowing her eyes at you playfully as you rolled yours in frustration. “Just ask Lucas or something, he’s not the top in math for nothing.”

“Yeah, ask me.” A familiar voice called from behind. Turning around, you let out a smile at Lucas as he leaned against the lockers, folding his arms together.

“Hey.” Yuqi greeted, waving her hand in his direction to which Lucas returned. “I’m gonna go find Mark okay? See you.”

Humming in response, you watched as she wiggles her way through the heaps of students crowding the hallway. When she was out of your sight, you turned your attention back to Lucas who was typing away on his phone.

“Physics?” You asked casually, starting to make your way to your next class as Lucas followed behind. Tucking his phone back into his pocket, he shrugged his shoulders to readjust his bag, taking bigger steps until he caught up with you.

“Yeah, it’s the same way, might as well.” He breathed out, referring to both your classes being in the same hallway. “Plus, you need someone so you don’t feel lonely.”

Rolling your eyes playfully, you nudged him with your shoulder in which Lucas responded with a low chuckle.

“But seriously, if you’re struggling in math, I’m more than willing to help.” Lucas offered, walking backwards so that he could get a full view of your face. “My A’s aren’t there for nothing.”

“You’re just saying this so I can help you in chemistry right?” You raised your brow in amusement, his facial expressions giving him away completely. Huffing in defeat, Lucas blew his hair out of his face, going back to walking alongside you.

“Can’t you just let me gloat over my achievements for a bit?” Lucas whined, glaring at you as if you just took his favourite toy away from him. “Everyone has something they’re bad at. And to be fair, that’s the only subject I’m bad at.”

“Don’t you have practice?” You asked, remembering that his competition date was nearing. “You sure you have the time to tutor me?”

“I’m not tutoring you.. we’re just helping each other. Plus I know where my priorities are. My academics are just as important to me as sports.”

“Yeah, glad you know..” You joked, stopping in front of your class. “Then.. I’ll meet you at the study area after school?”

“Mmhm.” Lucas nodded, waving goodbye as he jogged off to his class that was a couple rooms away from yours. “See you.”

Smiling to yourself, you sighed softly to yourself, pushing the doors open as you prepared for your next class.

--------------------

“I can’t get it.” You groaned, burying your face in your hands as you got the wrong answer yet again. You’ve been trying to solve this stupid question for 15 minutes now, having gotten the wrong answer 3 times in a row.

“Come on you’re near, you missed two steps here.” Lucas comforted, pulling your hands down so you’ll look at your paper. “Just bring x over to the other side and multiply it. Redo it from there.”

“Finals is in two weeks.” You whispered, grabbing your eraser and rubbing your workings away. “I’m gonna fail at this rate.”

“Not on my watch.” Lucas clicked his tongue, going back to his own work. “You’ll be fine, trust me.”

“Wait till I tell you about organic chemistry.” You scoffed, grabbing your pencil to try the question again. “I’ll see what you say.”

“Don’t even remind me about it.” Lucas groaned, waving you off in attempts to tell you that you were distracting him.

Biting your lip in contemplation, you worked in silence, determined to solve the rest of the questions by yourself. After all, Lucas won’t be there when you take your paper.

“All done!” You smiled in victory, looking up at Lucas only to find him resting his head in his palms, staring at you. “Wanna check?”

“I was done hours ago.” Lucas joked, snatching the paper out of your hands as his eyes trailed over your workings. You ignored his comment, tapping your foot impatiently against the ground as you eyed his expressions.

“Not bad.” Lucas smiled, nodding as all your answers were correct. “See? You’re doing fine.”

“Finally.” You breathed out, throwing your head back against your chair as you slumped forward. “That took forever.”

“Now, my turn.” Lucas licked his lips, slamming his textbook loudly on the table causing you to jump in surprise. “I have to pass this class.”

“You’re such a genius.” Lucas complimented, writing down the last of his notes. “You sure we’re taking the same class? Why is it that I can’t seem to understand anything that comes out of Mrs Johnson’s mouth but you do?”

“My brain works better than yours?” You shrugged, folding your arms together as you finished explaining the entire chapter to him. “We’re done for today right?”

“Yeah,” Lucas agreed, closing his book and checking his phone for the time. “It’s getting late, we should go before school closes. I’m starving, wanna get dinner?”

“I can’t, I’m working today.” You frowned, raising your arms to stretch your muscles.

“I thought that’s tomorrow.” Lucas tilted his head to the side in confusion, putting his things away alongside you.

“Someone’s sick today, I’m taking over her shift for now.”

“I’ll drive you there.” Lucas offered, standing up and pushing his seat in as he swing his bag over his shoulders. You hummed in agreement, pulling your hair into a high ponytail as you followed him towards the carpark where his car was located at.

“Thanks.” You huffed as Lucas pulled up to the cafe that you were working at. Unbuckling your seatbelt, you hugged your bag to your frame and smiled at him in appreciation, proceeding to climb out of the vehicle.

“Grab something to eat in there if you’re hungry.” Lucas reminded, rolling the window down to look at you. Flashing him an ok sign, you jogged into the cafe that was bustling with people, squeezing your way through the crowd to get into the kitchen.

Lucas sat in his car,watching as you greeted your manager and wore your apron. Drumming his fingers against the steering wheel, he sighed to himself, knowing damn well that you were probably gonna go without dinner again. It was a busy day, well so it seems, and you definitely won’t have the time to eat.

Shaking his head and driving away from the cafe, Lucas made a mental note to himself to make sure you’ll eat something in front of him before your work next time.

--------------------

“I need your help.”

Looking up from your notes, you adjusted your glasses, tilting your head in confusion at the person standing in front of you. Ripping your headphones out of your ears, you scrunched your brows up, completely missing what she just said.

“Sorry?” You asked, getting her to repeat her question.

“I said I need your help.” Hannah rolled her eyes, taking a seat opposite you. You raised your brow, knowing where this conversation’s leading towards.

“No.” You rejected, shaking your head. “Absolutely not.”

“You didn’t even hear what I have to say.” Hannah scoffed, brushing her hair behind her back.

“You’ve only spoken to me about 4 times in the past 3 years and every single time it’s about Lucas, so no, I’m not hearing your story.”

“I need him to ask me to prom.” Hannah rolled her eyes, leaning forward and pushing your books away from you. “It’s in three weeks and he haven’t made a single move.”

“What move do you expect him to make?” You laugh in disbelief, shifting your books back to their original position. “What part of he’s not into you do you not understand?”

“I just need a date.” Hannah insisted, slamming her hand on your book to block your line of sight. Throwing your pen down in frustration, you glared at her darkly, feeling your patience running low.

“Find someone else, aren’t guys lining up to take you?” You rubbed your temples, cursing her mentally for wasting your precious free time.

“You don’t understand, he’s the only guy that’ll keep my image up there.” She quoted, smiling at you sweetly. Of course, that’s the only reason she’s taking interest in Lucas.

“I’m sorry to say this but you have zero image to keep up. If you’re only interested in him for that reason then I suggest you find yourself a different date. He’s made it clear multiple times he’s not interested.” You snapped, standing up and gathering your books. There was no way in hell you’ll let her use Lucas like that.

“It was nice talking to you.” You feigned a smile, pushing your chair in with so much force she felt the table shake slightly.

“Fine, I’ll find another way.” Hannah mumbled to herself, staring in your direction as you turned the corner and away from her.

“Hey I have something to tell you.” You greeted, tapping on Lucas’s shoulder as you approached him in the hallways. Nodding in acknowledgement as he closed his locker, he whipped around to face you, motioning for you to continue.

“Hannah looked for me.” You explained, tilting back on your heels as you watched his expressions switch from happiness to annoyance.

“Again?” He groaned, squeezing his eyes shut and throwing his head back. “What’d she ask this time?”

“She wants my help, she’s planning on getting you to ask her to prom.”

“I won’t even go if she asked.” Lucas scoffed, shaking his head at her absurd plan. “She can’t take a hint can she?”

“That was more of a clear no than a hint.” You scrunched your nose up, remembering when you overheard the phonecall where Lucas stated he wasn’t into her when she confessed. “I honestly think you need to tell her again, face to face this time round. It’ll get her mind out of the gutter.”

“I’ll deal with it if she comes again.” Lucas waved your advice off, tapping his foot against the ground as he looked around. “You have training today too right?”

“Mmhm, till 5.” You shrugged, not even bothering to ask if he had practice considering how he had his white tank slinged over his shoulder.

“Wait for me at the front door.” Lucas smiled, jogging off into the sports hall after noticing his teammates entering. “I won’t be late this time!” He called out as he disappeared into the hall.

“Won’t be late my ass.” You huffed, scrolling through your phone as you sat at the fountain in front of the school. Lucas’s practice ends at 5.30 on friday, giving you plenty of time to freshen up after your own dance training. It’s been a routine for both of you to hang out on friday nights, considering how you didnt’t have work and his parents couldn’t make it home to have dinner with him.

The minute hand on your watch reached 5.55 and Lucas was still nowhere to be found. Seriously considering to leave the school compound, you refreshed your instagram page, groaning when the same content popped out on the screen.

A pair of shoes appeared in your line of sight and you let out a sound of annoyance, looking up to glare at Lucas for making you wait this long for him. The words died in your throat before you could scream it out though, as your eyes locked with a pair of unfamiliar ones.

“Hey.” The boy asked, cocking his head to the side as he looked down at you. Lockinh your phone shut and setting it in your lap, you nodded hesitantly, not sure why he’d even come up to you.

You definitely know Taeyong, he was in your math class and was somewhat popular as well. Have he ever spoken to you though, not that much. You’re pretty sure the only things you guys have ever said to each other was thanks and welcome when papers were passed around class.

“uhh hi..?” You greeted awkwardly, not really knowing what else to say. “You wanna sit here or something?” You asked, pointing to the huge empty space beside you. Maybe he just thought it’ll be a good idea to say hi before he sat down?

“I mean since you offered,” He shrugged, plooping himself down beside you, readjusting his bag to the front. You just smiled politely, looking down at your phone again as you opened your chat with Yuqi.

“Why’re you still here? It’s a friday.” Taeyong asked, trying to start a conversation. He leaned back against the concrete platform, turning his head to look at you.

“Oh I had dance practice.” You explained, giving him your full attention as you thought it’ll be rude if you took more interest in your device than him. “I’m waiting for a friend.”

“Lucas?” Taeyong blurted casually, bobbing his head at his own question. You blinked multiple times before nodding hesitantly, surprised but not really. Everyone knows that the both of you were really good friends.

“You sure you guys are just friends though?” Taeyong pried, raising his brow at you. You looked to the side, nodding your head as a silent yes, not knowing why he was suddenly interested in your friendships.

“Okay, I’ll see you around.” Taeyong stood up after that short conversation, sending a wink your way before strudding out of the school gate. You looked out after him, your brows scrunched up in confusion by that short encounter with him.

“What’re you looking at?” Lucas chuckled, snapping his fingers in front of your face to snap you back into reality. He had dashed out of the building the moment he finished showering, not even bothering to dry his hair off as he ran out, only to find you eyeing the school gate like a lost child.

“Next time, I’m leaving.” You huffed, glaring at Lucas as he lifts his hands up in surrender. Adjusting your bag over your shoulders, you walked out with him, proceeding to the foodcourt that was a couple minutes away from school.

“Sorry, coach had things to tell us,” He apologised, brushing his fingers through his hair in an attempt to dry it. “What were you looking at?”

“Nothing,” You replied, wiping your face as you felt the water droplets splash onto you. “Taeyong came up to talk to me.”

“Taeyong?” Lucas frowned, stopping in his tracks as he repeated the name you just told him. “The one on the track and field team?”

“I think so?” You confirmed, walking backwards so that you could face Lucas. “All I know is he’s in the same math class as me.”

“Whatever, he was probably just bored. Quick I’m starving, I waited 40 minutes you know?” You groaned, clutching your stomach with one hand as you used your other to grab Lucas’s wrist, pulling him forward.

--------------------

For the next few days, you find yourself running in Taeyong more often than you usually do. Apart from math, you find yourself passing by him more often in the hallways, and you even ran into him once near your dance studio when practice ended. It was either a coincidence, or you didn’t notice him as much before he talked to you.

You brushed it away though, not wanting to seem self-obsessed with yourself. He was just being friendly.

“Mark asked me to prom yesterday. We’re official.” Yuqi confessed during lunch, giggling to herself like a 5 year old. Your eyes widened in surprise, your smile matching hers as you watched her cheeks flush red as she broke the news to you.

“And you only told me now?” You whispered, scooping another spoonful of soup into your mouth. “I’m so happy for you.”

“I can’t believe he finally asked me to be his girlfriend, I’ve been waiting for a month!” She squealed, resting her face between her palms to hide her rosy cheeks. “Best day of my life.”

“Does that mean we’re not going together?” You sighed jokingly, picking at your food that all of a sudden looked unappetising.

“We can all go as a group though?” Yuqi suggested, feeling bad for you. It’s not like it’s a big deal, not having a date for prom, you just felt..left out. “We can ask more people, pitch in for a ride or something.”

You shrugged, not rejecting the idea but not being overly keen on it either. It’ll definitely be fun if you went in a big group, but some or most of your close friends were attached. Plus, you’re not that big a social butterfly.

“There’s still time, I’m sure someone will ask you.” Yuqi assured, patting your hand with hers as she wiggled her brows at you. “I mean, who wouldn’t? You’re such a catch.”

Chuckling at Yuqi’s statement, you went back to your plate, changing the topic to something else as you finished up the rest of your meal.

Bowing slightly at your teacher as you left your class, you let out a silent yawn as you walked out of the room, glad that the school day was finally over. For some reason, today dragged on for what seemed like forever.

“Great I still have to go to work..” You sighed, rubbing your eyes due to how tired you were. Considering how you had a couple of hours before your shift, you decided it’ll be a good idea to pay a visit to the library to study and hopefully, get a quick nap in.

“Wait up.” A voice called out behind you and you turned around to face Taeyong, speaking to him for the first time since that day.

“Are you free tonight?” He asked straightforwardly, taking you by complete surprise. You would have never expected such a question from someone like him.

“uhh not really I have something on.” You rejected, trying to sound polite. It’s not that you were lying or anything, you really had things to do tonight.

“If that’s the case..” Taeyong nodded, pursing his lips seemingly deep in thought. “I guess I’ll ask you another day?”

“What?” You asked, not getting why he was asking you out all of a sudden. “Why’re you talking to me all of a sudden?”

“I think you’re pretty cute.” He shrugged nonchanantly, shoving his hands into his pockets.

“Oh thanks..but we don’t really know each other that well and um..” You scratched your head, not knowing how to react. You’ve zero experience with situations like this, the only compliments you’ve ever heard was from your family and a few close friends and it was usually on your outfit or grades. Having a boy call you cute, now that was something new.

“Which is why I’m asking you out..?” Taehyung tilted his head to the side, stating the obvious. “I want to get to know you better.”

“Right..” You nodded hesitantly, your hands gripping the straps of your bag tightly. How were you gonna get out of this without making things more awkward?

As if someone heard your prayer, your phone started ringing in your pocket, saving you from the situation. Giving Taeyong a tight smile, you fished for your phone, pulling it out to see who’s calling.

“Sorry..” You whispered, turning your back against him as you slide answer.

“Mom?” You greeted, pressing your phone against your ear. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.. I just wanted to know if you’ll be having dinner tonight?” She coughed slightly and you frowned at how frail her voice sounded.

“I have work today, I can have dinner myself.” You assured her, biting your lip worridly. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah I’m fine. I’ll cook a few dishes okay? It’ll be in the fridge.” She offered, and you could hear her smile from the other line.

“Okay, don’t go to work if you’re not feeling well.” You told her out of concern, your eyes widening when you see a familiar figure walking towards you. Glancing behind to find Taeyong still staring at you, you internally panicked, clenching your hands into fists.

“I’m fine don’t worry, see you tonight.”

“See you mom, bye.” Ending the call quickly, you brushed your hair out of your face, cursing your entire existence as Lucas approached you.

“Hey.. what’s going on?” Lucas frowned, his smile immediately fading from his face when he noticed Taeyong was with you.

“Nothing. we were just talking.” You denied, looking up at Lucas. “Aren’t you late to practice?”

“I don’t have practice today, I thought you knew that.” Lucas shook his head, eyeing Taeyong up and down. “It’s Tuesday.”

“Yeah..” You breathed out, pretending to check the time to act like you’re late for whatever you had to do. “I actually have to go.”

“I’ll go with you.” Lucas offered, sending you a warm smile, the one that made your heart do flips. “Library right?”

You nodded hesitantly, glancing back at Taeyong to see him with a tight expression. Do you just leave him behind?

“Go ahead, I’ll text you.” Taeyong nodded, waving goodbye as he started walking off in the other direction.

“Come on,” Lucas urged, rolling his eyes as he grabbed your wrists, dragging you off to the other block. Not bothering to protest, you let him lead the way to wherever he was dragging you to, even though the library was the way Taeyong left.

“You know the library’s there right?” You raised your brow when he arrived at the fitness corner, finally letting go of you as he dropped his bag to the ground.

“I would have went there with you but he walked in that direction.” Lucas scoffed, sitting cross-legged on the soft ground. You followed suit, placing your bag next to a pole, settling down opposite him.

“What’d he say this time?” Lucas cocked his head to the side, jutting his chin forward. “Let me guess, he asked you out?”

Your expression gave you away immediately and a smirk broke out on Lucas’s face as he shook his head from side to side.

“Why, is it that surprising?” You asked, placing your hands on the ground and leaning into them. You didn’t understand why he was acting the way he was.

“No, it’s just that I didn’t realise he’d ask someone like you.” Lucas reasoned, leaning his head against the pole.

“Excuse me?” You hissed, folding your arms across your chest offended. “I didn’t come here to get attacked.”

“That’s not what I meant,” His eyes widened when he realised you took it the wrong way. “You’re too good for him.”

You remained silent at his sudden compliment, biting your lip to fight the smile from breaking out on your face. You coughed dryly, shifting forward slightly as Lucas eyed your actions lazily.

“That’s better.” You nodded, trying to act as if his words didn’t have an effect on you. “What’re we doing here?”

“I don’t know, get a breath of fresh air.” Lucas shrugged, looking around the compound. “Or we could go eat? You wouldn’t after work anyways.”

“Is food the only thing on your mind?” You laughed, bringing your knees to your chest. “I have food tonight, my mom cooked.”

“She’s not taking the night shift today?” Lucas closed his eyes, getting comfortable in his position.

“She is, she just said she left something in the fridge.” You sniffed, rubbing your nose from the cold. It was a chilly day today.

Humming in response, Lucas slowly fell asleep, his head jerking forward occasionally. You smiled softly to yourself, resting your head between your knees as you looked over his features, how his brows creased together in his sleep, his lips slightly parted.

You were hopelessly in love with your best friend and he doesn’t know it at all. It’s been your little secret for 2 years now.

You realised you liked Lucas when he introduced his first girlfriend to you. At first you just shrugged it off, thinking that the weird feeling you got at the pit of your stomach was just temporary, that you were just not used to the idea of your best friend getting close with someone that wasn’t you. I mean having being friends for such a long time, you were bound to have those feelings.

You remembered beating yourself up countless times over that issue, feeling like such a selfish person. Lucas wasn’t yours in any way shape or form and he was free to do whatever he wants with his life. So why were you getting so worked up everytime you see his arms around her? She was such a sweet girl but you just didn’t understand why you couldn’t bring yourself to like her.

The news of them breaking up a year later was the best piece of news you’ve ever heard in your entire life, and you couldn’t wipe the smile off your face that whole day.

And that was when it hit you.

You like Lucas, you had feelings for him. And ever since, those feelings had just been snowballing into something bigger.

--------------------

“I need help.” Lucas sighed, going in for a baseline dunk. Running back to catch the ball, he bounced it a few more times before going for another shoot.

“What?” Hendery breathed heavily, grabbing his bottle and downing half of its content. “What help does Lucas Wong need?”

“I’m asking someone to prom.” Lucas admitted, scratching his head sheepishly as Hendery started choking on his water. Throwing the ball in their direction, Lucas plopped himself down on the floor next to them, slamming his back against the ground.

“Why the hell do you need our help?” Ten asks, hitting Lucas’s stomach. “If anything, it should be the other way round. And didn’t you went 2 years ago?”

“Yeah but that’s different, Lia was my girlfriend, the person I want to ask isn’t.” Lucas explained, tucking one arm behind his head as he stared at the ceiling.

“Who is it? Hannah?” Mark teased, everyone laughing alongside him.

“It’s Y/N, he told me the other day.” Kun smirked, tossing Lucas his bottle.

“I don’t think it’ll be hard asking her though, I’m positive she’ll say yes.” Ten shrugged, looking at his teammate. “It’ll be awkward if she says no, she won’t do that.”

“But what if she says yes for that exact reason? Only because she doesn’t want to ruin our friendship?” Lucas sighs, peeking his head up to look at Ten. “Plus, there’s competition now.”

“Someone’s into her?” Mark asks, genuinely interested. “Who?”

“Taeyong.” Lucas groaned, laying his head back down. “He asked her out yesterday.”

“Yeah, you need our help.” Hendery chuckled, leaning against the bleachers. “He’s a tough one.”

“Exactly.” Lucas agreed, sitting back up to pat Hendery on the back. “If this works, I’ll ask her out as well.”

“What made you change your mind? You guys have been friends for years, why now?”

“Puberty probably.” Ten teased, earning himself a smack to the head.

“You little shit..” Lucas cursed, cracking his knuckles. Seeing Ten lift his hand up in surrender, Lucas backed down, shrugging his shoulders as he thought about his answer.

“Hopefully it works..” Lucas mumbled the last part to himself, licking his lips anxiously.

--------------------

Wiping your hands off, you untied the straps of your apron, hanging it up in the kitchen hanger. Rumaging through the closet, you grabbed your bag, shoving all your things back into it.

“If there’s nothing else I’ll leave first.” You bowed to your manager, reaching behind your hair to tighten your pony. She nodded, shooting you a smile and bid you goodbye before going back to counting the income for the day. Pushing the doors open, you shuddered slightly from the cold air, rubbing your arms together to warm yourself up.

Taking a step forward to make your way home, you stopped abruptly when a hand extended in front of you, jacket in it. You whipped your head around, eyes locking with that of Taeyong’s.

“You look cold.” He offered, pushing his outerwear in your direction.

“How’d you know I work here?” You questioned, completely disregarding his offer. “Are you following me?” You narrowed your eyes at him, taking a step back.

“I saw you when I passed by a few months ago.” He shrugged, his arm dropping back down to his side. “I swear it was a coincidence. I’m not a stalker.”

Huffing impatiently, you turned around, continuing your way back home. Footsteps could be heard behind you and you rolled your eyes as Taeyong was hot on your heels.

“Hey don’t ignore me.” He breathed out, poking at your shoulders. “I just wanna be friends.”

“We are friends.” You nodded, keeping your eyes straight on the road ahead.

“Well then I want to be more than that.” Taeyong announced, causing you to stop in your tracks. Are confessions usually this straightforward?

“We don’t even know each other.” You sighed, shaking your head slightly. “How are you possibly into me?” You were never a big believer of the whole love at first sight thing.

“You didn’t give us the chance to talk.” He defended, tugging at his roots. “I’m trying.”

“Look, I know you’re a nice guy.” You sniffed, licking your lips due to how dry they were. “I’m more than willing to be friends with you but I’m sorry, I’m interested in someone else.”

You played with your sleeves nervously, watching silently as Taeyong’s expressions fell. This was the first time you’ve been confessed to and the first time you’re rejecting someone. All of a sudden, you felt like Hannah.

Well, minus a huge crowd.

Taeyong nodded after a few moments, pursing his lips. You bit your lip, hating the awkwardness that came with this. Stepping forward, you hesitantly lifted your hand up to pat his forearm, smiling softly at him.

“We can still be friends.” You suggested, tilting your head to the side. He’s actually a really nice guy based on what you’ve observed.

“Yeah of course, that’ll be nice.” He smiled back, taking up your offer. “I was planning to send you back home or something you know?” Taeyong chuckled, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

Laughing awkwardly alongside him, you nodded, looking at the streets ahead. “It’s late, you should go. See you in school tomorrow.”

“Yeah see you. Be safe.” Taeyong feigned a smile but his eyes however, gave his emotions away completely. You watched as he turned to leave, walking back up the small slope and disappearing around the corner of the cafe.

“Great..” You sighed to yourself, trudging back home. You couldn’t help but feel like such an asshole.

--------------------

“You look like you’re just about to murder someone. What did your noodles ever do to you?” Kun chuckled, nudging Lucas’s shoulder. He was picking aggresively at his food and if he kept it up, Kun was sure he might even break the plate.

“He just can’t stop staring at her can he?” Lucas growled, his eyes burning into Taeyong’s frame. You were sitting at your table with Yuqi, as usual, just that someone else had his eyes trained on you.

“You know, I’ve never struck you as the jealous type.” Kun smirked, going back to his lunch. “Definitely an eye opener.”

“I’m not jealous.” Lucas rolled his eyes, dropping his fork down. “He’s just up to no good.”

“What makes you say that?” Kun prompted, his mouth full of food. “You’re not the only one that’s allowed to like her.”

“My point is, Taeyong would never in his entire life take interest in someone like Y/N. Come on, just look at the difference between her and the girls he associate himself with.”

“Well then make a move quickly.” Kun shrugged, leaning back against his seat. “Besides, now that Mark’s with Yuqi, you might be able to get extra help.”

Lucas’s eyes widened when realisation struck him. If he could get Yuqi on his side..things will be a whole lot easier. Why didn’t he think about this before?

“You’re a genius.” Lucas breathed out, slapping Kun on the back in appreciation.

“He what?” Yuqi frowned, not believing the words she just heard.

“He said he wanted to be more than friends.” You whispered back, looking around to make sure no one was listening to your conversation.

“And you didn’t agree?” Yuqi asked a little too loud and you imeediately raised your finger to your lip, shushing her.

“Sorry.” She whispered, bringing her volume down again. “Y/N, you’re telling me Lee Taeyong confessed and you rejected him? Are you crazy?”

“What?” You tilted your head at her, folding your arms together. “It’s not like I’m interested in him or anything.”

“Yeah, but you didn’t even give him a chance. He might have even ask you to prom.”

“It’s not that big of a deal.” You shrugged, not getting why she had such a huge reaction over the situation. Worse comes to worse, you’ll just go alone. It works out.

“It’s about Lucas isn’t it?” Yuqi hissed, narrowing her eyes at you. “You rejected Taeyong for Lucas.”

You remained silent, confirming Yuqi’s assumptions. Sighing, Yuqi leaned her face against her palm, looking at you deeply. “Prom is in two weeks. Have he spoken anything about it to you?”

Pursing your lips, you shook your head no hesitantly. That topic had never come up in any conversation between you two.

“Maybe you should ask him.” Yuqi suggested, jutting her chin forward. You stared at her as if she was joking, but her face showed that she was being completely serious.

“It doesn’t have to be one on one, just ask if he’s interested to go in a group or something, with Mark and I. This might be our last prom, just go for it.”

“I’ll consider.” You nodded, smiling at her as your thoughts ran wild in your head.

“You’re coming today right?” Lucas asked the second he walked up to you, slamming himself against the empty lockers beside yours. You hummed in response, taking a sip of water as you side eyed him.

“Will I not go?” You joked, smiling to yourself as you gathered your books. “It’s your first game, I’m pretty sure the entire school population will be there.”

“You’re the best.” Lucas grinned, his eyes turning into cresents as he beamed down at you. You looked down immediately, not daring to look him straight in the eyes when he was looking so damn happy. “How was your paper?”

“It’s okay I guess..” You shrugged, sighing as you closed your locker. “I ran out of time, didn’t manage to solve the last two.”

“That’s okay. As long as you’re sure of the rest you’ll be fine.” Lucas nodded, kicking your shoe with his own gently. It was your math final today, and you could finally get a breather from all the stress you’ve been giving yourself the past week. It wasn’t hard, it was definitely managable, but you didn’t want to be too confident in yourself.

“You’re done with yours right?”

“Mmhm. And thanks to you, I think I’ll do well.” Lucas snapped his fingers in front of you, referring to the countless chemistry lessons you’ve painfully forced him to.

The ringing of the bell had Lucas puckering his lips up, sighing as he turned to you. “That’s your cue.”

“Hey.. can I talk to you after your game, just for a short while?” You blurted out, tapping your fingers against your folder nervously. Yuqi was right. You can’t possibly wait for him to make the first move, it’s the 21st century.

“Yeah sure.” Lucas nodded, not thinking much of it. Not like there was anything for him to think about, he had his whole mind focused on the competition tonight.

“See you.” You nodded, walking away quickly before he had the chance to say bye. Thinking that you were probably just rushing to get to class, Lucas headed in the other direction towards the sports hall, meeting his team to prepare for the big event later on. He definitely felt the pressure, being the captain of the basketball team and all. Besides, they had a reputation to maintain and Lucas isn’t planning to ruin that anytime soon.

--------------------

Sitting on the bleachers, you bit your lip nervously, watching as the game advances. They were currently in their second quarter, the opposing team a couple points ahead of the guys. You leaned forward, eyes never leaving Lucas as he ran across the court, motioning for Hendery to pass him the ball.

“I wonder if any of them have a date yet.” You heard one of the girls beside you whisper. You glanced to your side, noticing that it was non other than Hannah and her friends. Ignoring the sounds of awe that came out of their mouths every single time the boys did something swoon-worthy, you shifted closer to Yuqi, their screams getting on your nerves.

“Will Mark say yes if I asked? We’re in fourth period together, I’m sure if I-”

“Not a chance.” Yuqi interrupted, looking straight ahead as she smacked that thought out of that girl’s head. “He’s already going with someone.”

You straightened yourself up, your hands slyly making their way over to hers, patting lightly to get her to calm down.

“Honey, he’s going with me.” Yuqi retorted, leaning behind to get a good glimpse of the girl. She remained silent, eyeing your best friend up and down before huffing softly, flipping her hair behind her back before returning to watch the game.

“Girl thought she had a chance.” Yuqi scoffed, rolling her eyes. You let out a laugh of amusement at her act of jealousy, seeing Yuqi act this way for the first time was definitely an eye opener.

“Hannah, you’re making your move tonight?”

Your ears immediately perk up at that question. Trying to play it off, you tucked your hair behind your ear, pretending to be engrossed in the game when in all honesty, you were trying to get information out of that conversation. It’s not like you were eavesdropping or anything, they’re just speaking a little too loud.. right?

“You bet, I have it all planned out.” You balled your hands into fists, everything clicking in your head. She’s planning to ask Lucas tonight as well.

“Good for you,” Her friend sighed, resting her face in her palms as she stared at your best friend play dreamily. “He looks so good in that jersey.”

“Look, I’ll tell you about it somewhere else, gotta keep it a surprise am I right?”

You accidentally looked over in her direction, locking eyes with her. She cocked her head to the side, smirking at you.

Great, she knew you were listening the whole time. How sneaky.

Forcing yourself to focus on the game for now, you scrunched your brows up together throughout, wanting nothing more than to rush behind the court the moment it ended.

They ended up winning the third and fourth quarter, not that you were surprised. They have been training day and night for the inter-games this year, and their hard work definitely showed.

Tapping your foot against the ground as you waited for the crowd to disperse, you scanned your eyes over the area for any signs of Hannah. She left quick, you were busy talking to Yuqi when it happened and now she’s gone.

What if she’s already with Lucas? It’s not like you’ve anything to be worried about, he’ll most probably say no eitherways. No matter what, you just couldn’t help but feel anxious.

“If you’re that worried let’s go find them.” Yuqi offered, noticing how distressed you looked. “They should be having a debrief.”

Nodding in agreement, you brushed your hands on your jeans before standing up quickly, following Yuqi down the bleachers and into the preparation rooms.

“Oh..” You uttered, realising the group of boys emerging from the hallways before the both of you could even enter. Yuqi smiled at you, pointing at Mark before making her way over to him.

“Hi,” Ten waved, greeting you with a grin. You waved back at them, congratulating them on their win. You’re friends with all of them, considering your association with Lucas.

“Where’s Lucas?” You asked casually, realising that he was not with them. Did he leave already?

“He’s outside.” Hendery pointed towards the foyer, filling you in on Lucas’s position. “He’s with Hannah, she-”

Kun mentally facepalmed himself as he kicked Hendery’s heel, effectively shutting him up. Noticing your change of expression, Kun beamed at you brightly, clearing his throat trying to find the right words to get you to go find Lucas.

“You should go, I think he’s waiting for you.” He encouraged, nodding in the direction of the main entrance. You smiled back, thanking him before making your way out, glancing back slightly to see all of their eyes on your frame.

Pushing the doors open, you sighed in relief as you saw him standing there alone, scrolling through his phone. The sound of your footsteps caused him to whip his head in your direction, and there it was, that smile that you adored so much.

“You did great.” You complimented, folding your hands behind your back as you congratulated him on his first win.

“Thanks,” Lucas breathed out, swiping the back of his head across his forehead. “Where’re the rest? They didn’t follow you out?”

“Oh they’re still inside..” You explained, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. “Did Hannah..look for you just now?”

“How’d you know?” Lucas tilts his head in confusion, his eyes boring into yours.

“Did you say yes?” You asked straightforwardly, catching Lucas by surprise. He blinked a few times, trying to wrap his mind around your question.

“No, of course not. Why would I say yes?” Lucas let out a laugh, shaking his head no. You nodded, seemingly calm and unbothered on the inside but little did he know that you were actually freaking out.

“Anyways, what did you want to talk to me about?” He asks, changing the topic.

It was now or never.

“Look, I don’t know if you’re already going with someone and I know you just got asked but, do you wanna go together? Prom, I mean.”

Those words tumbled out of your mouth before you had the chance to take them back. Lucas’s eyes widened in surprise as he stared at you, and all of a sudden you feel your palms getting clammy, your heart started beating faster. His silence was killing you.

“You mean, one on one?” He mumbled, the size of his eyes never getting smaller.

“You don’t have to if you don’t want to.” You rubbed the back of your neck, feeling anxiety bubble in the pit of your stomach. Now, you finally got a taste of what Taeyong felt when he confessed to you the other day. “We could go as a group, with Yuqi and Mark or even the guys. What’d say?”

--------------------

“So, I guess it’s just the three of us that’s missing a date now?” Ten quips, slapping the arms of Kun and Hendery.

“Considering how long this is taking,” Mark sighs, resting his arm on Yuqi’s shoulder. “I bet they’re making out right now.”

“There’s cameras.” Ten snort, scrunching his face up in disgust. “Are you speaking from experience?”

“He’s back.” Yuqi whispered, tapping Mark’s thigh as she stood up, running down the bleachers.

“Wait where’s Y/N?” Kun frown, jogging over to his teammate. “Did she leave?”

“I think I screwed up..” Lucas bit his lip, sighing as he tugged at his hair. “I told her that I’m going with someone else.”

“What the hell is wrong with you?!” Yuqi scolded, slapping Lucas’s arm as she demanded for an explanation. “Aren’t you planning on bringing her?”

“That’s just it! I should be the one asking her, I had everything planned out and I didn’t expect her to.. wait,” Lucas stops, narrowing his eyes at the 5 of them. “You guys knew all along didn’t you?”

“Only four days ago.” Mark shrugs, pointing at his girlfriend. “Yuqi told me when you asked us to help.”

“What did she say after you told her that?” Yuqi pressed on, trying to get every little information out. “You didn’t even try following her?”

“I did, she said there was no need for it and she’ll see me tomorrow.” Lucas explained, scratching his head nervously as Yuqi glared at him like he owed her his life.

“You’re such an idiot.” Yuqi huffed, placing her hands on her hips as she walked circles on the spot. “What now?”

“I’m still planning on surprising her, there’s no doubt about that.” Lucas confirmed, licking his lips. “Plus, now that I know she likes me back, I’m not so nervous about it anymore.”

“Yeah, you threw her the job of being nervous.” Yuqi scoffed, rolling her eyes at him. Lucas lifted his hands up in surrender, knowing how badly he had messed things up.

“You could have just said yes.” Kun groaned, walking back to the bleachers to pick up his duffel bag. “Things would have been a whole lot easier, you would have got yourself a girlfriend tonight.”

“Well I’m sorry I blanked out!” Lucas retorted back defensively. “Nothing was processing okay?”

“Taeyong confessed to her by the way,” Yuqi added, deciding to throw everything into the conversation. “Just thought it’ll be good for you to know.”

“That quick?” Lucas frowned. “He doesn’t even know her that well.”

“She rejected because there’s someone else in her heart.” Yuqi smiled, tiptoeing forward and narrowing her eyes at Lucas. “And that someone rejected her today.”

“Ok, I get it.” Lucas groaned, realising that Yuqi was trying to make him feel bad. “I’ll make it up, I promise.”

“Hell, you better make this a good one. She better be the happiest girl alive after this.” She folded her arms, raising a brow at Lucas in a challenging way.

“Oh, she definitely will be.” Lucas smirked, shoving his hands into his pockets as he accepted the challenge.

Needless to say, he can’t wait to make you his.

--------------------

Everything seemed to be in such low energy today. In all honesty, it was just you feeling this way but you didn’t really care. You’re just glad that you haven’t ran into Lucas today, and he didn’t come up to talk to you like he usually did. It was painful and relieving at the same time.

“Did you get ran over by a bus?” Yuqi’s voice rang in your ear as she nudged your shoulder, leaning closer to look at your face. You gave her a small smile, pushing her away playfully before returning to your homework.

“I heard about it, sorry.” You shook your head at her, pursing your lips tightly. There was no need for her to apologise, it wasn’t her fault. She was merely trying to help.

“Still friends though?” Yuqi asks, looking down at her book as she tapped her foot against the ground furiously. She had to be careful around you due to how horrible her lying skills were, one look and you’ll see through her immediately.

“I guess so.. I haven’t seen him the whole of today.” You shrugged, trying to play it off as nothing. You pushed away the thought of Lucas avoiding you, finding yourself stupid to think that. He wouldn’t do that to you.

“Anyways, do you wanna hang out Saturday? Finals will be over by then and we can go relax, you know, get your mind off everything.”

“Sure, I have nothing on.” You smiled, taking up Yuqi’s offer. Quite frankly, you needed it.

“Great!” She clapped her hands together, nodding in triumph as she picked her pen back up to continue with her work, the smile never leaving her face.

“I think we should just stick to my plan.” Lucas suggests for the third time, eyeing you secretly from across the cafeteria. “Why can’t I talk to her? She’ll just feel worse.”

“It’s just two days, two days Lucas.” Ten emphasised, showing the digits with his fingers. “If you talk to her now, she’ll feel even worse, trust me.”

Lucas sighed, mumbling incoherent words to himself as he took a huge bite of his sandwich. You looked so sad, a smile never making its way onto your lips the whole time Lucas was watching you. You didn’t even turn your head in his direction.

How badly had he messed up?

--------------------

“Where is she?” You uttered to yourself, glancing at your watch. Yuqi had asked you to meet her at the park at 6.30, which was weird considering how you guys never make plans at night. Your watch now however, read 6.53.

Rolling your eyes, you walked towards the nearby bench, getting tired of standing. Next time, you don’t want to be the early one again.

Scrolling through your contacts for Yuqi’s number, you pressed the call button, pressing the device to your ear. Taking in a deep breath, you closed your eyes, relieved to finally get a breath of fresh air after finals.

Of course, you got sent straight to voicemail. Huffing in annoyance, you dropped your phone in your lap, looking at the scenery ahead instead. The lake was beautiful, the warm orange from the sunset reflecting into the waters.

Looking around aimlessly, you tapped your foot against the ground, trying to search for any signs of your best friend arriving. Yuqi’s usually always on time and if she’s gonna be late, she’ll have called you by now.

And although you did manage to find your best friend, it wasn’t Yuqi.

Your eyes widened to the size of saucers when you saw Lucas standing near the playground, looking around frantically. You froze for a second, not knowing what to do. What was he doing here?

Your heart started racing rapidly when his eyes locked with yours. Coming back to your senses, you immediately rip your eyes away from him, standing up quickly. He definitely saw you.

Grabbing your bag, you started walking away quickly, not wanting to talk to him just yet. You didn’t want to make things more awkward than it already was.

“Y/N, wait!” He called from behind, his footsteps loud against the ground. You squeezed your eyes shut, widening your steps as you pretended that you didn’t hear anything. But considering how Lucas was literally a head taller than you, it didn’t talk long before he eventually caught up with you.

“Hey..” He grabbed your wrist from behind, standing in front of you so that you couldn’t walk away again. “You saw me, why’re you avoiding me?”

“I’m not.” You lied, looking down at your feet. “I’m waiting for Yuqi.”

“You know how your ears turn red when you lie?” Lucas asked in amsement, smiling down at you. “They’re doing their thing now.”

You remained silent, bringing your hands up to rub at your ears. Great, you couldn’t even deny it now.

“Stop running away from me,” Lucas whispered, taking a step towards you. “It sucks, not talking to you.”

“I was busy with exams,” You nodded, coming up with an excuse that could justify your actions. “I didn’t have time.”

“Really? Or are you just upset because I said that I’m going to prom with someone else?”

“N-no.” You stuttered, finally lifting your head up to look at him. “I told you it was fine. Why would I be upset about it?”

“Because I’ll be with her the whole night. Because I’ll dance with her, laugh with her, have fun with her. Because she’s not you.”

You gulped, breaking eye contact with Lucas as he spoke your heart out for you. When did he figure out your feelings for him? You swore you had kept it subtle.

“Y/N,” Lucas whispered seriously, grabbing your shaking hands in his as he interlaced your fingers together. “You like me don’t you?”

Your heart was just about to beat out of your chest at this point. Your breathing was unsteady as you looked at your hand linked with his. Denying it was impossible at the point.

“Yeah,” You admitted, your head hanging low since you didn’t dare to look at him. “I like you, okay? I have for 2 years now, and I didn’t want my feelings to ruin our friendship especially since.. you were with Lia at that point in time. I just didn’t know how to tell you and I’m scared that-”

Lucas pulls you towards him, grabbing your face in his hands as he leaned down to press his lips against yours, stopping you from rambling on any further. You let out a sound of surprise, your eyes staring at Lucas’s closed ones. Blinking, you let your eyes flutter shut, your hands moving up to grip his sleeves as you kissed him back.

Feeling you reciprocate, Lucas smiled into the kiss, his hand travelling down to your waist to tug you closer, if even possible. You felt your head spinning from happiness, everything seemingly too good to be true. It was exactly what you’ve imagined and more.

Breaking the kiss, Lucas pressed his forehead against yours, his breath hot on your face. Opening your eyes to look at him, you can’t help but smile, he was looking at you as if you were the only thing that matters to him.

“I like you too, so so much.”

You felt your cheeks heating up at his confession and honestly, you didn’t really care if Lucas noticed or not.

Your best friend of years, Lucas Wong, just said that he felt the same for you.

“I’m sorry I made you upset.” Lucas nodded apologetically, his gaze soft. “I was going to ask you to prom and I didn’t expect you to make a move first, hell I didn’t even know if you liked me back. So I lied, that someone else was you, that was the only excuse I could think of at that time.”

“You could have just agreed you know?” You hummed, pushing his shoulder playfully.

“I know, I know.” He groaned, squeezing his eyes shut. “I’ve gotten it a lot for the past few days.”

“This was all planned huh?” You asked, realising why you’re in the park in the first place. “Yuqi was never gonna come.”

Lucas smiled down at you sheepishly, letting out a laugh that was music to your ears. Grabbing your hands once again, his expressions turned serious, asking you the question that you’ll say yes to in a heartbeat.

“Be mine?”

Leaning up to peck him, you nodded yes, your smile reaching your eyes. Lucas’s smile reached yours as he pulled you into him, his arms encircling your waist as he hugged you.

“I guess I have a date to prom then?” You asked, your words muffled since your head was buried in his chest. Lucas chuckled deeply, his grip on you tightening.

“That makes two of us.”

__________________________________________

hi guys!! I decided to write something admist involved, and here you go!! Hopefully you guys like it. :)) I’ll still continuing posting new chapters for involved, so stay tuned!

#lucas #lucas wong #nct #nct u #wayv #nct wayv #wayv lucas #wong yukhei #highscool au #nct scenarios #nct imagines #lucas scenarios #lucas wong scenarios #bittersweet #huang xuxi #xuxi #lucas x reader #wayv x reader #nct x reader

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darkestangel1326 · 4 years

Text

Prologue - This was real life. Right?

Hey lovelies. So I know it is likely no one is going to read this but me but I just had to write this anyway. For me. Posting for the same reason! Fic under the “Keep reading” cut, but here’s how I got here:

This all started when I wondered what would happen if MC was a scientist. Or a science grad student. But then I thought, what would be enough to compel a scientist or science grad student to stop their sciencing realistically for any amount of time? Because as my previous PI says, every scientist becomes a mad scientist at least in one point in their careers for their research - this is especially true for grad students.

Then, I just never understood the whole returning a phone excuse Unknown gave MC to lure her into Rika’s apartment. Like MC, with her own phone, is gonna return a phone she doesn’t even have, just because Unknown was persistent? He even says he’s a student in the States who will eventually return home so what was with the urgency to go to find the owner? If he really wanted to return the phone, he could’ve mailed it since he has the address right? We know he does because he sends MC there. It just always bothered me.

Finally, I wanted to slightly self-insert to make the MC (Emme C.) a bit more human so that it even if you couldn’t change her choices, it would still be entertaining. I heavily relied on second person, to help give it the mystic messenger vibe though I’m not sure it works.

This prologue is some character building for Emme C. (Actual name: Emme Cee), brief OC appearances and, for my sanity, this is all taking place in the US. TBH I’m not even sure how deep I want to go with this story. I just know I needed to write it.

So without further ado!

“My biggest fear and why? Hmmm,” you mulled it over and took another sip of your beer, after your lab mates glared at you for an answer.

Or former labmates - you were leaving for grad school in a few weeks so this was kind of your farewell social. Even with your general distaste of beer, even you had to admit this one was really good.

You closed your eyes and sheepishly rubbed your neck. “This is gonna sound weird but a time loop,” you answered hesitantly. “It just makes me uneasy to be stuck in never-ending cycle, replaying the same scenario over and over again with no end in sight.”

“True but we are in academic research!” Marie answered, a teasing lilt to her voice that transformed into a chuckle.

“Yeah you might have to deal with it during your Masters program, especially the thesis stage.” Whitney continued, joining in with a laugh.

“Don’t remind me,” you giggled as you took another sip - a longer sip - of your beer. “But that’s not exactly what I mean either” you persisted, a bit more seriously.

I’m afraid of replaying the same day, the same events, the same interactions over and over again, not knowing why or how to stop it,” you finished more seriously. You took another sip of the fizzy drink and felt your equilibrium teeter a bit.

“You mean like that movie Groundhog Day?” Aurora quietly inserted.

“I haven’t seen that movie but if it’s like what I said, then yes, that’s it,” you answered, your fizzy drink now gone.

“Sorry wait. Why are you afraid of time loops? I think I missed that part. Wouldn’t replaying the same day and seeing how your choices change events be a good thing?” Sally asked. Technically, she was completely right - repeatability was one of the sacred ideals of science after all. Plus, If you really thought about it, you hadn’t actually said why you’re afraid of time loops, just that you are.

“I’m afraid of never moving forward - of never progressing, no matter how hard I try or work. A time loop means, yes, I’ll know what my choices would entail, but not how to escape or what the triggering event for my release could be. I could replay the time period of the same few weeks but for years without knowing how to escape and move on. And, I guess, since it took me so long to even start my Master’s and I felt like I might never be able to, this fear was just born,” you admitted, pouring more beer for yourself.

I mean an actual time loop where every single thing happens the exact same way, down to the underlying rhythm of conversation. And where you can’t escape until you figure out the common problem then fix it. How would you escape it? And what if you mess up, in different ways, forever? Who would want that?!

—————————————————————————

You awoke with a sigh, realizing you had that dream again. Or was it a flashback since this happened a few weeks ago? You shrugged your shoulders and got to work sorting boxes. You were set to start on-campus work in a few weeks so you were just trying to do the bare minimum research wise. Plus, you wanted to really focus on decorating your new apartment and get acquainted with the town since you’d be living there for the next few years.

After a few hours of scrambling and organizing, you sat on the floor (you were still in the process of buying furniture), and looked at your emails.

One in particular caught your attention, so much so that you took off your glasses and rubbed your eyes, almost laughing at such a cartoony response. The subject line of this email was what confused you. It read “missing research paper - need citation”. It was an unfamiliar email, moreover, it was sent to your previous college email, which was linked to your past research publications.

Curious, you bit the inside of your cheek and read the email.

“Dear Emme,

Hope this email finds you well. I am a student from XXX University and have been working on a research project concerning XXX. Your research was one of the most recent and prominent examples as to why this area needs further study, however, I have not been able to access the paper I saved as a bookmark in my web browser. After extensive searching, I have been unable to find the original paper or even one of the articles that referenced it - almost as if the article has completely disappeared from existence! Is there a reason the research article is gone? If not, could you provide me with an idea of where it is and the proper citation for my research article?”

what. whAT. WHAT!?

Your research couldn’t be gone! This didn’t make any sense! Yes it was a few years old, but it couldn’t be gone from the web! There are research papers from the 1960s that are archived and accessible online for goodness sake!

You had to calm down. Take deep breaths. You continued trying to breathe as you pulled out your research flash drive. You looked for the paper on your there and found it, sighing in relief. It grounded you, reminding you that your work did exist. Just as you were set to attach the file and corresponding citation to the email, your internet stopped.

Scratch that, your entire laptop stopped.

You groaned. Yes, this was an older, refurbished model, but it’s been working fine. The screen distorted for a second, as if the extra pixel boxes emphasized the frozen nature of your screen. Before you even had time to process it, your laptop unfroze and you breathed a sigh of relief.

Thank heavens. You had just moved and weren’t sure you could realistically afford a new laptop anytime soon. As you look over your screen, however, your relief shifts to panic.

omg. oMG. OMG!

It’s gone. Your research files. The ones on your laptop and on your flash drive. The email is gone. Before you can refresh the page you get logged out. You can’t even log into your old email account - Error 404 Not Found.

Your heart races. Then, it aches. You worked so hard on those projects. They were part of your scientific fabric and now both were just gone. Your years of work, gone in seconds.

You felt like crying. But you decide not to, at least not until you’re in the shower where the tears can blend in with the cascading liquid as you sing emo music.

For now, you decide a quick walk and some fresh air are what you need, so you grab your keys and head for the mailbox. You’ve only lived in this apartment for a week but you check the mail constantly in an effort to get in the habit rather than because you expect something.

But today, you did get something. A small parcel with no return address. Curious, you take that and the grocery flyers to your apartment and open the package there.

A phone? It’s from the same company as yours, just a slightly older model.

You blink at it, almost telepathically asking it what it’s doing in your mailbox. You decide to turn it in to the mail service and are about to put it back in its envelope when you notice a note.

“Charge me”

“What the hell is going on today?” You mutter as you pull out your charger and plug it into the phone.

You sit on the floor with this new phone in hand and sigh. “Why am I even taking orders from a mysterious note for anyway?”

Just then the screen lights up. There’s no passcode so opening the phone was super easy. The phone’s screen and minimal app selection almost made you think it was new, but the lack of setting it up told you that wasn’t the case. Who would buy this phone and not use it? And why did they send it to you?

There is one app that calls to you, mostly because you’ve never seen it before. And because it was unlike the rest of the default apps on the screen.

RFA? What’s that?

Just then, the screen turns dark and green characters zoom up through the screen. You sucked with all tech but even you knew this reaction was abnormal. You swore you didn’t press the app but seeing the phone continue reacting, you become less confident.

“Hello?”

You stare at the screen. ‘Unknown’ was messaging you.

You respond. Stupidly. Naively. And without thinking about the consequences.

Because this was real life. Right?

What’s the worse that could happen?

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I’m debating taking this next part a few routes...we’ll see what I decide...

If you, by any chance made it all the way down here, can you drop a reblog or something with your thoughts? Was Emme Cee likable? Did the flow make sense? Do you like where this is going? Let me know!

#mystic messenger #mysme #mysme fic prologue #DA writes #This was Real Life. Right?

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crimefightingspiderguy · 5 years

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awkward

Summary: "Can you write an imagine where Peter Parker and the reader get stuck in an elevator right after an argument?" (REQUESTED BY @smilexcaptainx )

Warnings: None that I can think of?

Pairing: Peter Parker x Reader

Word count: 2,122

A/N: Sorry that this took forever to post, I was going to do it during my winter break but I got an eye infection and I could no longer see what I was doing long enough to write it. But I finally got it done and so here it is! Hope you enjoy :)

“I don’t understand what your problem is (Y/N),” Peter said, making you scoff at him and roll your eyes. The two of you were currently walking home to your shared apartment complex. You had just found out last night that he was Spider-Man and this was the first time since then that the two of you were alone and you had gotten to ask him about it. “My problem is, you’re out there every night risking your life, and for what? No one asked you to do this Peter!” You throw your hands in the air in frustration. You didn’t want him to get hurt, that’s all. “No one had to ask me! It’s called being kind, maybe you should try it out sometime!” Peter retorts back, and instant regret fills his face once the words settled in the air between you two. “Well, if I’m so unkind and you’re such a saint, why do you keep me around?” You ask, tears of hurt and frustration well up in your eyes and you turn and begin speed walking, getting farther ahead than Peter. “(Y/N)! Wait! I didn’t mean it like that!” Peter yelled after you, but you ignored him and kept on going. Peter sighed, knowing it was best not to run after you, giving you some space and time to cool down.

You ran up to your apartment and into your room, glad your parents weren’t home from work yet to pester you about your day. About why Peter wasn’t over for your usual post-school homework session. You lay on your bed and let out a sob, wondering if Peter actually meant those words. You figured that he probably didn’t really mean it, it was just a heat of the moment thing, but it still stung. Still, you kind of wanted to get back at him. The two of you had been friends since Peter got dropped off by his parents at his Aunt May and Uncle Ben’s. You grew up just a couple apartment doors down from him and when Aunt May quit her job to stay with Peter, your parents offered to pay her to babysit you. Aunt May quickly agreed, welcoming the extra income and someone to distract Peter when she needed to do something like cook. The two of you had spent your entire childhood together and then when it came time for school, Aunt May was more than willing to drop you off and pick you up with Peter, then watch you until your parents got home from work. You’d been through thick-and-thin together and you almost never really argued with each other, unless it was some silly debate about Star Wars. So Peter’s comment really did come as a shock to you, and part of you wanted to shock him back. You knew it might come off as a little petty, but you knew that in the end, you’d go back to being friends and have a good laugh about all this, so why not have a little fun with it on your end. You decided to give Peter the silent treatment for around a week, or however long it took for him to get the point. It was not going to be easy, seeing as you not only lived next to him, but you rode the same bus to and from school, we're in the same extra-curriculars and had study sessions every day after school. But, luckily you were starting a new job this week, so hopefully, you’d be spending most of your free time there, so it would be slightly easier to change your typical routine.

The next day was going to be the first day of your evil plan. Peter, of course, had already tried messaging and calling you multiple times the night before, but you just silenced his number so that you got his messages, but they wouldn’t bug you. You decided the best way to begin your avoiding was to catch a different bus to school. There happened to be a bus that took the same route as the one you usually took, but it left 30 minutes early. As you were hugging your parents good-bye, they gave you a confused look, “Honey, you’re 40 minutes early?” your mom questioned. “Yeah, I’m avoiding Peter to get back at him for saying that I wasn’t nice” you shrugged and walked out the door as you parents sighed and lightly chucked at how petty you were being. You managed to walk past Peter’s apartment without him catching you. Walking down to the bus stop, you got on the bus when it arrived and sat down next to a friendly looking mother holding her daughter. You start scrolling through your phone when you notice that you have more messages from Peter. You go through and read them. “Where are you?” “Answer your door” “We’re gonna be late for school!” “I’m leaving, message me when you wake up.”. Luckily your parents had left for work before Peter came over to walk to the bus stop with you, so they didn’t ruin your plan by telling him. When you got to the school, you decided to hide in the library so you didn’t run into Peter until first period.

You did have your first class with Peter, but it wouldn’t be hard to avoid him. He knows you don’t like to talk in class, so you’ll just sit farther away from him but he’ll know not to pass you notes because it would only piss you off more. You waited until the bell rang to enter the room, knowing Peter’s never been late to a class. Luckily there were two seats left open, your usual one next to Peter, and one right in the front, next to the door. Peter’s head quickly shot up at the sight of you, and he smiled and waved at you. You simply ignored him and sat in the seat near the door. You heard Ned lean over to Peter and say “Damn, dude, what did you do?”, making you smirk, knowing that your plan was working. When the bell rang, you quickly got up and started talking to the teacher, coming up with many questions about the term paper that you had assigned. You had already finished it, but you needed an excuse to not talk to Peter. He sort of awkwardly waited for you, but then realizing you wouldn’t be done anytime soon, he left for his next class so he wouldn’t be late. You smiled at your teacher and thanked her for the help, leaving for your next class.

You were doing good so far at avoiding Peter, at least up until lunch. You didn’t really know what you were going to do for lunch. You weren’t allowed to eat in the library, otherwise, that would be your go-to. You decided to go to lunch like you normally would, and you would simply not sit at your normal table. After all, Peter wasn’t your only friend. You went into the cafeteria and got your lunch, then walked over to the table that Flash was sitting at. You and Flash weren’t best friends because he was an asshole to Peter, but you tolerated him because he was nice to you and he was on your academic-decathlon team. When you sat down, Flash gave you a confused look, but didn’t say anything and continued his conversation with his other friends. You snuck a look over to where Peter, Ned, and MJ were sitting and they all had very confused and almost bewildered looks on their faces. You simply look down and eat in peace.

Luckily, Peter had dropped out of band about a week ago, so you didn’t have to try and avoid him there. However, your next challenge was the academic-decathlon meeting. You decided to pretend to be sick. Walking into the meeting room, Peter got excited to see you, but his face fell a little when you instantly walked over to the teacher instead of coming to him to explain your behavior. “I’m really sorry to do this, but I think I going to have to skip practice today. I just got done vomiting, and I feel like it’s going to be an on and off type of thing.” You say rubbing your “upset” stomach. The teacher just nodded and told you to get better, sending you home. You walk out, not looking back at Peter. You quickly got out of school and took the bus home. Since you had some time before you had to leave for work, you sat down and did some homework. You were startled out of your concentration when there was a banging on the front door. You walk over to the door and look through the peephole, it was Peter. You sigh, luckily the door was already locked, so you could leave out the window without worrying about someone breaking in. You quickly grabbed your bag and hopped out the window onto the fire escape, while Peter continued to bang on your door, “(Y/N), I know you’re in there! I know you went home sick, come talk to me please!”. You could hear the hurt in his voice, and you almost caved, but you really did need to get to work.

You made your way down the fire escape and to the nearest train station. You recently got a job being none other than Pepper Potts aka, the CEO of Stark Industries, assistant. The building was so far away from the apartments, you knew there was no chance of you running into Peter at least until you got home. Your first day actually went really amazing! Pepper was super nice to you and kept telling you how excited she was to start working with you. When the day was done, Pepper showed you to the elevator to take you downstairs. When the doors open, you were met with none other than Peter Parker. “Thanks again, (Y/N), I’ll see you tomorrow” Pepper smiled, you returned it and got into the elevator with Peter, not saying anything even after the doors closed. It was sort of awkward because neither of you knew what the other was doing in Stark Tower, and neither of you wanted to break the silence. Peter finally sighed and slammed his hand on the stop button, causing the elevator to turn off. “What the hell is going on (Y/N)? Why have you been avoiding me all day and all last night?” Peter asked turning himself to face you, crossing his arms. You sighed, “I was trying to get back at you for hurting my feelings, by giving you the silent treatment.” you admit. Peter looked offended, “And just how long were you planning on ignoring me?”. You shrugged, “As long as it took for the message to sink in”. Peter rolled his eyes at you, knowing how stubborn you could be. “You’re such a child sometimes” Peter teased you. You knew he didn’t mean it in a bad way because of his tone, so you didn’t get offended. “At least I don’t insult my best friend.” You retorted with some sass. “Look, I really am sorry about what I said, I just was getting so frustrated… and I don’t know, I meant for it to come out a lot more sarcastic then it did I guess.” You nodded, knowing that he was being sincere. “Well, I’m not sorry that I ignored you all day. I’m actually pretty good at the silent treatment as I’ve come to discover.” You smirked at him, “But I do accept your apology.” You smile, opening up your arms for a hug, which he gladly accepted.

After you both left the building you took the train back home together, and that’s when you finally asked him the question that had been bugging you for the past half-hour. “What were you doing at Stark Tower?”. “Oh, Tony’s sort-of took Spider-Man under his wing,” Peter said, blushing a little as you congratulate him. “What were you doing there?” Peter asked you. “I got a job working as Pepper’s assistant!” You say excitedly to him. “How come you didn’t tell me? That’s awesome!” Peter says. “How come you didn’t tell me about Spider-Man?” You retort, “I don’t have to tell you everything Peter.” You smirk at him, knowing that you had made a good point that he couldn’t necessarily argue. “How about, from now on, we are completely honest with each other?” Peter offers, holding out his hand to shake on it. “Deal,” You say, taking his hand.

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ddonggeun · 6 years

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Hey! So I’m suspecting if I got adhd/add but is there any symptom idk. It’s really exp here to get it diagnosed

sorry it took me a while to get back to you because honestly i dont know whats a good alternative for you can be so i guess i can share my own experience?

first of all i think googling symptoms and types of adhd and reading peoples account on how adhd/add manifest is a good start? my doctor and the reddit /r/adhd REALLY help me to accept myself (which is the first step i think) but the way i get diagnosis (i am adhd with predominately inattentiveness - but at the same time i have depressions and dyslexia which is like a killer combo 10/10 would never rec) is that i came across with an article a couple months about how girls with adhd are more likely to be (mis)diagnosed with depression and it basically fucks up multiple generations because they cant get the help they need and i was like wait whats describe in it sounds kind of like me but at the same time i have always been very lethargic and rather well behaved in class growing up i am nothing like what you would typically associate with adhd (you know the hyper-activeness) so during my next visit to the doctor (im getting treatment for my depression) i mention to the article to her and she said wait you know what describe how you feel in a classroom setting growing up and is there anything you do that teachers complain about repeatedly and tell me how studying and doing homework is like to you and so i did (i can go further into details of my life since a lot contributes to why i only get diagnosis when im 21… let me know if you would like to know i guess?)

my doctor (who just so happens to be an adhd specialist and is quite active in the research area i didnt know before then we stan forever i love her really she is so encouraging and so good at her job) took some notes as i was talking and after im done she said you know what i think you might be onto something but i cant be sure yet (since i have depression and dyslexia which both overlaps quite a lot with adhd/add) why dont i first explain to you what adhd is and i’ll give you the set of official diagnosis questions you dont have to do it just take a look at it first do some research organize your thought talk to your parents about it and if you think getting a test on it is something you want we can set up another appointment and we can go from there - which is really really nice because adhd has always been a taboo at least with my upbringing it makes you a loser socially academically and you know just in general its not something you will want to have….

in hind sight there are SO MANY SIGNS even in early childhood how come no one notice i dont know prolly because i grew up in the 00s if you are different you need to kys lmao rip:

trouble paying attention in school or work,

the appearance of not listening - although im an audio learner funny enough

avoidance of activities that require sustained focus,

being easily distracted

restlessness

fidgeting and cant sit properly - i shake my legs or click my pen so much especially when im thinking or anxious lmao, i got into trouble a lot when i was younger because i only sit in my seat facnig the teacher 5 mins max at at ime then i move around or i move the chair around i think better when i cross my legs but i went to a uniform school and i always make my skirt too short so you know

interrupting - if i dont say what comes to mind when it comes to mind, the thought is gone forever

frequent talking and talking way too fast - i get the exact same comment every single report day class from when i was 4 till i graduated high school im not even kidding “she has excellent comprehension skill and reading speed. it would be great if parents can help her out a bit in maths or chemistry. she has a lot of potential if she applies herself, she seems distracted although when we ask her questions she can answer. very helpful and bubbly and yet she talks too much in class. she is not disruptive and her seatmate never complains but she just doesnt stop talking. we have been pairing her up with quiet students in class in the hopes that she will talk less in class but she just turn the quiet student talkative”

trying to do multiple things at once - i cant do one thing at a time, even when im say writing a paper i need to be listening to music or talking to someone if not switching between tabs or word files

mood swings

hyperfocus - oh boy oh boy oh boy

impulsiveness - i dont know if i get better as i age or is it getting worse i just know how to clean up my mess lmaooooo

poor time management - although i would say ever since i start listening to stuff 24/7 it really helps build a sense of the passage of time or whatever? its like now i know ok by the time i get to the third song in the shower i need to be washing out my conditioner; or say i need to go somewhere in 40 mins which is really abstract to me i set timers and put on a show thats 35ish mins even tho im not watching it just so im aware of time is actually happening if it makes sense

fail to follow through - i start things and once i have it figure out in my head i struggle to put it down in words or explain it to others i work well with other adhd peps tho

doesnt follow instruction and only do stuff their way

burnout - this is the worst especially if you are a perfectionist or a control freak and guess who is both

trouble coping with stress -

i luck out because im canadian and my doctor (in my schools clinic) just so happens to be a specialist who is very passionate about helping undergrads and grad school students to achieve as much as they can - so doctor and diagnosis for me is free. i do have to pay for my medications out of my pocket for a bit since im on vyvanse (to treat both my adhd and depression-lead anxiety its complicated but it makes sense when my doctor explained it to me lol) and this drug isnt covered by Pharmacare (CAD $130ish for 3 weeks worth of 30mg, im mostly on 30mg but on days when i dont have work on stuff or go to school i take 20mg just so my anxiety dont cause me to explode lmao) and very expensive but recently my doctor and i have agreed that vyvanse really work for me and it is something that i should be on daily for the foreseeable future we applied for special authorization which means i only gotta pay the tax… of course medicating isnt a must but it is what works for me and we figure out a way to make it affordable so i cant be more happy about that

at the same time i work with my psychiatrist to you know configure the whole adhd thing cause you know 21 years of repressing and forcing your feet into a shoes that not even your size frick you up thats something people dont tell you 🤷🏻‍♀️

what my doctor said to me then stuck with me - she told me adhd or add really is no monster or flaw in fact it is a very valuable set of traits we inherit from our ancestor - we hate it now because modern society render these skills useless well you see adhd isnt all about the hyperactiveness you see in the media people with adhd are extra sensitive to their surrounding and prefer hands on experiences (today we call them distracted) they are always aware of the change around them and is capable to attend to a couple things at a time and act fast because their brains are always making sense of things even when they arent consciously doing it. in todays society we dont want these kind of people why? because they ask questions they are curious people who notice trivial stuff that dont contribute to productivity they cant sit still which makes them not the ideal factor workers or pupils BUT! you have to remember that industrialization started like a century ish ago before that our ancestors live in predominately tribal society - adhd people then are the perfect caretakers and protectors, why? because they are always noticing things they adapt and react fast… so yeah it kinda suck for us growing up in a system thats designed to be everything we are and it is something that need to be changed but for those of us who “made it out alive” especially people who only get diagnosed in adulthood more often than not they look back and realize they have developed so many incredible ways to cope to make things work - are they always the perfect way? are they always health? no definitely no but at the same time it shows you how incredible these people are they make things work yes things are really hard sometimes but you got to give yourself a pet in the shoulder for not giving up… with the help of science and research we now know a little more about how adhd affect people we now have medication and programs developed to help people with adhd - they arent to dumb you down or numb you but instead it helps you to focus better so you can actually hear your entire thought and not just phrases or sentence fragments

#i rambled but i hope my personal experience give u a slight idea of how adhd/add manifest in others? but like i said medicating is not the #only way i think talking to people with similar experiences is helpful too even tho they might not be able to offer you professional medical #advices not feeling alone or that you are a weirdo is so important people talk a lot of about how poor self image among adhd ppls are common #and i think the social pressure is def one of the things that make it worse #i dont know where you are but if you are still in school #i guess talking to a trusted teacher or like social worker would be a good start they might be able to point you to more local and accessibl #resources.... and i mean you can always talk to me im very new to the whole actively combating adhd and not just cope with it but you know #sometimes you just need someone to hear you rant about stuff and im always here... i might not be able to reply fast since im in my last #semester 😳 and school is killing me lmao but ill try to response as soon as i see it :)))#ask #anon

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inyournightmares97 · 7 years

Text

TOMORROW TODAY SERIES

Jinyoung Ver. (Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) (Part 4) (Part 5) (Part 6) (End)

Word Count: 3.8k+

Warnings: Strong language, subtle mentions of sensitive topics.

Summary: A road trip to your hometown results in a number of unexpected setbacks. Hopes and fears are revealed, while Jinyoung and Jaebum help you understand that life is difficult for everyone, and nobody ever really knows what they’re doing.

“Yah, Jinyoung. Would you mind slowing down? It looks like you haven’t eaten in a week and the ahjumma over there is giving us weird looks,” you complained, watching him shovel noodles into his mouth.

It was late afternoon by the time you came across a town with a decent restaurant. Things like that were rare in the countryside, so all three of you were starved and tired from being stuck in the uncomfortable pick-up truck. Personally, your back was aching from the bumpy country roads. Jaebum seemed stiff from all the driving, and you had spotted Jinyoung trying to rub some feeling back into his ass once he got out of the truck bed. He had noticed you looking at him and stopped abruptly, though, his cheeks flushing a light pink.

“Let him eat, he must be hungry,” Jaebum scolded you, leaning back in his seat and stretching his arms. The restaurant was small and homely, but the noodles were so amazing that you’d each had at least two bowls. Jinyoung was on his third, while Jaebum had already finished his. “Urggh, I’m so full. I don’t know if I can drive anymore. What do you guys think about hanging around here, maybe taking a walk around town or something?”

“But we still have a lot of distance to cover if we want to make it home before nightfall,” you pointed out.

Jinyoung swallowed his mouthful of noodles and looked up curiously. “Why do we need to make it home before nightfall? The wedding isn’t until the day after tomorrow. We could honestly get there tomorrow and still have plenty of time. I don’t mind taking a walk, and I saw a really pretty route with flower fields on the way here.”

You cleared your throat uncomfortably. “Yeah, I kind of need to be there by tomorrow morning.”

“Why?”

You had been hoping to avoid this conversation. It was extremely awkward and you didn’t want to bring it up in front of Jaebum since the whole wedding was a sensitive issue in the first place. But both Jinyoung and Jaebum were looking at you expectantly so you had to blurt it out, “I’m kind of one of the bridesmaids? I have to be there for the rehearsal tomorrow.”

Jinyoung gaped at you. “Seoyeon-noona asked you to be one of her bridesmaids?”

You folded your arms across your chest, a little hurt at his disbelieving tone. Maybe you weren’t the prime candidate for a bridesmaid but you were one of the few unmarried girls left from your town who wasn’t a little kid and you had been Seoyeon’s hoobae in high school so why wouldn’t she…

“Yeah okay, she probably couldn’t find anyone else,” you admitted with a sigh. You glanced sideways at Jaebum and saw that his lips were pressed together. “I didn’t want to do it, honestly! But my Mom called me and said that it was bad luck to turn down a request to be somebody’s bridesmaid. Apparently it curses your own chances of getting married or some shit like that, so she freaked out on me and you know how crazy my mother is…”

Jaebum raised an eyebrow, trying a little too hard to look unaffected. “You don’t have to reject it. There’s no reason why you shouldn’t be her bridesmaid.”

Jinyoung seemed worried as he watched Jaebum’s face. He cleared his throat and spoke hesitantly. “Hyung… you know that we don’t actually have to go there, right? We can always skip out on the wedding and say we were busy. Nobody’s going to hold it against us that we didn’t come all the way down from Seoul just to attend a high school friend’s wedding-“

Jaebum cut him off sharply. “We came this far, why wouldn’t we go? Besides, we have a bridesmaid travelling with us now, so we can’t afford to ditch.”

“But hyung-“

“You guys finish eating. I’m going to go get some gas for the truck so we can save time, okay? We’ll take a quick look around town and get back on the road once we’ve digested lunch a bit.” Jaebum stood up and gave Jinyoung a casual pat on the back to show that he was fine before he left the restaurant. You watched him leave and then turned back to Jinyoung, who was looking at you uncomfortably.

“What?” you demanded.

Jinyoung sighed. “He’s upset. He was probably planning to bail before the actual wedding and now he can’t. Could you be careful what you say around hyung about the wedding?”

You felt a sudden burst of irritation. Why was Jinyoung accusing you of being insensitive? Jaebum wasn’t a child, he would eventually have to come to terms with the fact that his ex-girlfriend was getting married. You frowned at Jinyoung. “Yah. What was I supposed to say? Was I supposed to lie about being a bridesmaid? It’s the truth! Besides, I only brought it up because you guys were talking about being late and missing the rehearsal!”

Jinyoung sighed. “I know, I’m sorry-“

“No, this is honestly annoying. Since when do you guys tip-toe around each other like this?”

“Huh?” Jinyoung blinked.

“Earlier in the truck. Jaebum-oppa kept saying that you’ve been distant from him for a while. He asked me to talk to you and find out if something’s going on. And you keep behaving as if mentioning the wedding, that we’re on our way to, by the way, is some kind of taboo topic that we can’t bring up in front of him. Would you like to give me an update as to what’s going on? Because your weird bromance is literally flying over my head right now.”

Jinyoung put his chopsticks down and you noticed a brief look of panic flash across his eyes. His expression made you sit up straight in worry. You had expected Jinyoung to say something rude to you or shrug you off. You hadn’t imagined that he would look guilty. “Jinyoung-ie…”

He blinked at you. “Huh?”

“You would… you would tell me if something was going on with you, right?”

Jinyoung chuckled and nodded, picking up his chopsticks again. But there was something about his expression that bothered you. Why hadn’t you noticed it before? His pupils were shaking slightly as he gave you a smile. “Of course I would. What could possibly be going on with me, anyway? I’ve just been super-busy with college, as usual,” he shrugged lightly and poked at his remaining noodles with the chopstick. “I was avoiding Jaebum-hyung’s calls because I had a huge paper due.”

“A huge paper? For months?”

“Yeah, we’re supposed to take the whole year to write it. It’s like a research-intensive project and you have to collect primary data as well…” he trailed off and rolled his eyes. “It’s law school stuff, you wouldn’t understand it. Honestly even explaining it to someone who isn’t a law student is just as exhausting as writing the paper itself so I avoid talking about it.”

“So why are you here?”

“Huh?”

“Why are you here, on the way to your brother’s ex-girlfriend’s wedding when you have a huge paper due that’s apparently taking you a year to write?” you demanded. Suddenly, Jaebum’s worries about Jinyoung didn’t seem so silly anymore. There was definitely something off about his behavior. He had always been anal about his academics. “You won’t even get coffee with me when you have a paper due or an exam to prepare for. So why are you taking four entire days off to attend a random wedding?”

Jinyoung narrowed his eyes, sounding defensive. “I wanted to take a break. Is that so bad? And I’m worried about Jaebum-hyung because we both know how heartbroken he was when Seoyeon-noona dumped him. I couldn’t let him come to the wedding alone.”

“He’s a grown man, he could have handled it.”

“Are you mad at Jaebum-hyung about something?” Jinyoung demanded, eyebrows furrowed.

You stiffened. “Me? Hardly. I’m just a bitch in general.”

“Sure, you’re a bitch to me because we’ve always treated each other like that. But haven’t you always respected Jaebum-hyung? I thought you were grateful that he helped convince your parents to come to Seoul. What’s with the sudden hostility towards him?”

“I’m not being hostile.”

“Fine. Then I’m not avoiding anyone or being distant. I’ve just been busy.”

“Fine,” you replied. You weren’t sure whether Jinyoung had overheard the conversation between you and Jaebum in the truck, but the look in his eyes told you that he was probably just trying to distract you from asking more questions about him. You both stared at each other for a few moments longer, trying to discern whether the other was lying. Jinyoung’s eyes were normally extremely expressive, so you could tell that he was holding something back, something that he didn’t want to share with you. You wondered if your own secrets were written on your face as clearly as his were.

Maybe you both had things you weren’t ready to tell the other.

“Did you kids have a nice meal?”

You and Jinyoung flinched as the nice old woman running the restaurant came up to you with a smile. Jinyoung forced a polite smile on his face and thanked her for the meal while she handed him the bill. His eyes widened when he looked at the amount and he sighed, giving you a look. “I guess Jaebum-hyung forgot to pay before he left. I’ll call him and tell him to come back and pay.”

You raised an eyebrow. “What? That’ll take forever. Here, give it to me.”

Jinyoung tried to give you a meaningful look, one that you took to mean it’s-more-expensive-than-you-think. You snatched the bill out of his hands and sighed. Looks like your shameless pigging out had consequences, because eight bowls of noodles cost a pretty penny. You fished your wallet out of your bag and handed your card to the woman.

Jinyoung sighed. “I’ll tell Jaebum-hyung to pay you back later-“

“Don’t worry about it so much, it’s just lunch. I got a new part-time job recently so I can handle it. Jaebum-oppa pays for us all the time, it’s not fair on him. I’m starting to have doubts about how much he earns at that company after seeing the state of his truck,” you muttered. “Has it even been repaired in the last decade?”

Jinyoung rolled his eyes. “You know he only keeps that truck because he’s weirdly sentimental.”

“He’s just weird.”

You thanked the woman who handed your card back and then got up to leave the restaurant. The roads were quiet in this town and it felt rather relaxing to not hear the sounds of traffic. You inhaled the fresh air and took a deep breath while Jinyoung smiled at you. It wasn’t so much a smile as a smirk; the sort of mischievous smirk that you had learned to watch out for. He nudged you in the shoulder slightly and you flinched away from him.

“What?”

Jinyoung cleared his throat. “You know, I seem to remember you and me making a pact towards the end of high school. First one of us to get a job has to give the other a treat? Is that why you didn’t tell me about your part-time job?” he teased.

You frowned at him. “What? Part-time jobs don’t count, don’t be stupid. I meant like getting a proper job after we graduate college.”

“You didn’t specify that when we made the pact. You just said that the first person to get a job would have to get whatever the other person wanted. If you’re earning money then your part-time job still qualifies as a job. We had an oral contract and there are consequences for breach,” he pointed out intelligently. You rolled your eyes. Fucking lawyer tendencies.

“Fine, what do you want?”

“Ice cream!”

You couldn’t help but laugh as you lightly punched him in the arm. “Wow. Did you have to pull out your legal dictionary just to convince me to buy you ice cream? I would have done it anyway. Save your lawyer tendencies for the future, because I fully plan to mooch off you once you become a hotshot lawyer. Be prepared to sign guarantees for my loans and bail me out of prison if I get caught embezzling funds or something.”

You grinned at Jinyoung, expecting him to say something along the lines of you wouldn’t have the guts to embezzle a stray dollar but he only kicked at a pebble on the ground. Your smile dropped a little and you nudged him a little. “Yah. Park Jinyoung. Are you okay?”

“Fine,” he reassured you. “Are you buying me that ice cream or are you bailing on your promise?”

“Fuck you. Let’s find a convenience store before Jaebum-oppa gets back with the gas. I don’t want to end up buying him ice cream too.”

You hurried into the nearest convenience store and spent a good ten minutes with your faces plastered against the freezer glass. Somehow the simple childish activity made you feel lighthearted. You couldn’t remember the last time you had gone into a convenience store to choose an ice cream and just enjoyed it. Jinyoung took forever to choose the flavor he wanted and you joked about he had always been so anal about everything. He retaliated by placing one of the freezing cold Popsicle packets on your cheek and you squealed, shoving it away from yourself. (It landed on the floor and broke, so the store employee made you pay for it).

“Let me taste yours,” you pressed, nudging him. You’d found an empty bench outside the convenience store to enjoy your ice cream. Jinyoung frowned and pulled his ice cream away from you.

“No. You always do this. You pick some weird flavor which you know that you won’t like and then you eat mine and I end up having to eat yours,” he protested. He had a Choco bar which was suddenly starting to look more appealing than your guava flavored popsicle. You pouted at him lightly but Jinyoung only laughed and ignored you. He licked at his ice cream lightly and then suddenly smiled.

“You remember we used to buy ice cream like this all the time in middle school?” he asked. “We’d buy two popsicles and eat half of each so that we could get both flavors. But you always ended up picking a flavor I didn’t like on purpose so that I wouldn’t want my share of yours. ”

You nodded. In middle school, you and Jinyoung had often saved up on pocket money just so you could go to the convenience store on the way home and buy ice cream. “Wasn’t there some reason we stopped doing that in high school? I somehow remember us agreeing never to eat each other’s ice cream again…”

Jinyoung laughed suddenly, as he remembered. “It was Sex Ed class! I remember our teacher telling us one day that some diseases could be spread through saliva contact and kissing, like mono and stuff. And you saw me kissing that girl from our class… what was her name? Jieun? You refused to let me touch your ice cream after that because you thought I would get mono from her and give it to you by licking your Popsicle.”

“I was just bitter that you’d had your first kiss before me,” you admitted with a grin.

“You jealous bitch.”

“Jieun dumped you in less than a week,” you reminded him cheerfully, remembering how Jinyoung had been furious after his first girlfriend told him that she’d started to like somebody else. “Didn’t we pretend to voodoo her in revenge? I remember taking one of my old dolls and stabbing it with a shit-load of sewing needles while chanting some weird shit.”

Jinyoung rolled his eyes. “That was probably your crazy idea.”

“But did it make you feel better or not?”

“…It did,” he admitted reluctantly. Jinyoung sat up and frowned as he remembered the events. “I mean, honestly, that girl was crazy in the first place! She was the one who came up to me saying she liked me, I only agreed to date her because I didn’t know how to say no. And then she dumped me herself a week later. Who does that?”

“She probably realized how anal you are about everything.”

“Stop calling me anal.”

“Let me taste your ice cream.”

“No.”

“Come on, just one lick.”

“What if you have mono? I don’t know who you’ve been kissing,” Jinyoung joked, pulling his Choco bar away from you. He blinked at you when you didn’t laugh, and your lips pressed into a straight line instead. Jinyoung leaned closer to look at your face. “What? Did you want it that badly? Fine, you can have it, don’t get all moody on me. I never know when you’re going to throw a fit.”

You forced a smile and shook your head, pushing his ice cream away from you. Jinyoung opened his mouth to speak when you heard the unmistakable sound of Jaebum’s rotten old pick-up truck. Jaebum got out of the driver’s seat with a frown on his face.

“Ah, busted,” Jinyoung mumbled lightly.

“You guys were sitting here and eating ice cream? I went all the way back to the restaurant looking for you! This godforsaken town has no cellphone reception so I couldn’t call!” Jaebum complained, sounding annoyed. He folded his arms across his chest and gave you both a stern look. “Can you guys grow up for once and not scare me? I have enough to stress about without you both going missing.”

Jinyoung rolled his eyes. “Hyung, it’s literally down the road. We didn’t elope or anything.”

“It’s only a matter of time,” Jaebum muttered, rubbing his temples. He had panicked for a few minutes when he couldn’t find either of you, but he knew that you wouldn’t understand his worry. He walked over to where you and Jinyoung were sitting, and pulled his wallet out of his back pocket. “I went back to the restaurant because I realized I forgot to pay, but the ahjumma told me that you settled the bill. Here.”

Jaebum held out a handful of bills in your direction, and you blinked.

“Oppa, it’s fine. It was just noodles,” you waved him off.

“Take it. I saw how much the bill was, I knew we shouldn’t have eaten three servings. I know how difficult it is to make ends meet in college, so you shouldn’t waste your money on stuff like this,” he lectured you, still waving the money in your face. You felt a sudden burst of irritation and glared up at him. Why was he being so stubborn about it when you’re said that it was fine?

“It’s okay. We always eat on your money,” you insisted. “I wanted to pay, so I did-“

“Yeah, but that makes me feel like an asshole-“

Jinyoung cut in. “It’s fine, hyung. She wanted to pay because she got a new part-time job.”

Jaebum visibly flinched. He turned his sharp gaze towards you. You felt small under his glare as he let out a small scoff. He knew better than anyone what your part-time job was. You looked up at Jaebum, pleading with him not to say anything but his lips were already curved into a sneer. “Is that what they call it these days? A part-time job?” he demanded, sharply. “Well, how about you keep your part-time job money for yourself. Don’t spend it on me and Jinyoung, we wouldn’t want to reap the benefits of your hard work.”

Your stomach twisted. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“You know what it means,” Jaebum replied. His tone was sharp as he folded up the bills and threw them on the bench next to you firmly. You flinched and even Jinyoung’s eyes widened in shock. “Take it. I don’t want to eat on your part-time job money.”

“Why? Is my money dirty to you?” you demanded, your blood boiling. You forgot for a moment that Jinyoung was sitting next to you, you forgot that you had a secret to keep. All you could think about was how Jaebum was looking at you as though you were something disgusting. You picked up the bills that he had thrown on the bench and crumpled them in your fingers. “It’s just money at the end of the day. Do you think yours is cleaner than mine? That’s just stupidity because guess what, oppa? All money is dirty.”

Jaebum glared at you. “Do you really want to do this here?”

You felt tears fill your eyes as you looked down at the bills in your hands. Was your money so disgusting that Jaebum wouldn’t even want you to buy him a meal with it? You suddenly remembered that Jinyoung was sitting next to you and watching the whole exchange. You felt a sudden rush of shame, and panic that he would figure out what his brother was talking about. You couldn’t lift your head.

“No,” you whispered. “I don’t want to do this here. I’m going to sit in the truck.”

“We were going to take a walk before setting off,” Jaebum reminded you quietly, watching as you clenched the bills in your hands and headed towards where the truck was parked. He seemed to be regretting his outburst, because his voice softened. “Let’s go look at the flower fields Jinyoung saw earlier. We can all cool off.”

You looked up and forced a smile. Jinyoung was staring at you. There was a mix of confusion and worry in his eyes and you blinked back your tears so that he wouldn’t notice. “No, I… I’m tired. You guys go ahead. I’m going to nap in the truck.”

You climbed into the truck bed and lay on your back. Jinyoung and Jaebum stayed near the bench for a few minutes and talked in low voices. You felt like you were going to be sick, and you tried to close your eyes and take deep breaths to calm down. Relax. You should have known this was going to happen. You knew Jaebum wouldn’t take this lightly. You heard footsteps approach and heard Jinyoung’s soft voice call out to you. “Yah. Are you asleep? Hyung and I are going to look at the flower fields, we’ll be back in a bit. Keep your phone next to you, okay?” he said gently.

“Hmm,” you mumbled. Jinyoung hovered in place for a few moments before you finally heard his footsteps walk away from you.

Once you were sure that he was gone you took a deep, shaky breath and pressed your face into the nearest backpack that Jinyoung had been using as a pillow, willing yourself not to cry.

Why does everything have to be so complicated?

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

A/N - Thanks for the love you guys are giving this series! I’m having a lot of fun writing it. Have you guys figured out what the reader’s and Jinyoung’s secrets are? I’m not being too subtle about it, lol. Even if you haven’t figured it out, everything will be revealed next chapter!

Also, I know Jaebum is kind of an asshole but don’t worry, he’ll probably redeem himself in his own version! I don’t know how regular updates will be, but I’ll try my best!

#got7 #got7 scenario #jjproject #jinyoung scenario #park jinyoung #jaebum scenario #im jaebum #got7 fics #got7 angst #got7 imagines

104 notes · View notes

texanredrose · 7 years

Note

11 or 13 for the uni prompts with the pairing of your choice?

THIS TOOK FOREVER AND I’M SORRY. But I actually filled both of these and the other one will be posted on Friday, if it’s something that you might be interested in or whatever, lol.

Blake stared at the page, willing for the words to come. She’d read the chapter five times but still hadn’t managed to find the proper way to articulate her point for the essay, which was due in a mere two days. Normally, she wouldn’t be this stonewalled while doing any form of writing assignment, but recently her attention seemed shot as she faced the dreaded reality that she might, in fact, be facing a rather severe case of writer’s block.

Ultimately, the entire premise sucked. The Faunus understood being unable to string words together when it came to creative writing or a piece of fiction, where all the work sat on the writer’s shoulders to arrange and rearrange words until they fit together just right, but academic papers should be rather straight forward. Choose a point, articulate it, expand upon that articulation, then wrap everything up- it shouldn’t be this difficult.

Yet, here she sat, in the college library at nearly eight o'clock in the evening, staring alternatively at a blank page and a textbook and no closer to finding a way to express her answer to the essay’s question.

“What impact, if any, did Vale’s Standardized Trade Agreement have on Remnant politics?” She kept her voice low, hoping that rolling the syllables off her tongue might help the answer come together.

It wasn’t that she didn’t know the impact it had- quite the opposite, actually- but condensing the fifty years of political reform that followed seemed impossible to do in a mere four thousand words. While points likely wouldn’t be taken off for missing a few key developments, she couldn’t quite hit on where to start, seeing as the more profound effects weren’t acknowledged until a good twenty years after the STA was put into effect, but several small victories were won in the meantime.

Sometimes, being a political science major vexed her to no end.

“Hey, babe,” someone said, effectively breaking her concentration due to proximity alone. Her right feline ear flicked atop her head, a momentary betrayal of annoyance; she had to work especially hard to block out distracting noises, but she shouldn’t have been so focused as to not notice someone approaching her. About six feet away, leaning on the edge of the table, stood a young man with brown hair and a cocky grin. He had his arms crossed over his barrel chest and seemed at once disinterested and entirely focused on her. “Busy?”

“Very,” she replied, her ears laying back a little.

“You can’t be that busy.”

“Yes, actually, I am.” Turning back to her textbook, Blake opted to try ignoring him in the hopes he might go away.

No such luck. “I’m sure you have some time to spare. It’s just homework, right?”

“It’s an essay that counts for a significant portion of my grade.” She flicked her amber eyes up, scowling at him through black bangs. “And I need to focus. Please, leave me alone.”

Being polite, perhaps, wasn’t the optimal way to go, but she really didn’t have the energy or patience for an escalating shouting match. Hopefully, he would take the hint.

He did not. “Aw, come on, Kitten.”

“Don’t call me that.” Mentally, she kicked herself for reacting, but she couldn’t help but throw a glare his way as the words left her mouth.

“Why not?” The young man’s lips curled into a grin, as if he was somehow gaining ground. It bolstered his confidence, apparently, leading to him pushing off and swaggering a few steps closer. “Seems like it gets your attention.”

“I just want to do my work,” she said, mentally doing the calculations. Blake didn’t want him towering over her, true, but neither did she want to move and invite him any closer. If he took the aggressive route, she would overall have an easier time arguing her case if she remained seated, and she absolutely hated that she would have to put herself at a disadvantage to gain that.

“I know what you want.” He winked, sending a shudder through her frame as every fiber of her being went on high alert. He advanced, preparing to lean over her, and she balled her fists in response. “You’d really like if I-”

“She’d like for you to leave.” A new, feminine voice cut in, followed by the dull thunk of something being placed on the table. Whoever had come up behind her had the young man’s full attention, eyes going wide as he immediately began to back away, holding both hands up in a placating gesture. She caught the soft swirl of fabric as the newcomer stepped around her but didn’t dare look; she didn’t trust the man to keep his distance. “I believe we’ve had this conversation before, Winchester.” The woman spoke with the authority of a superior but she couldn’t be much older than Blake herself, or the young man for that matter. Hair white as snow, pulled off to the side of her head, swayed with her motions as the interloper put herself between the Faunus and the man, continuing her tirade. “Your barbaric, unsolicited advances are as unwanted as ever. Leave while I’m feeling merciful.”

“Alright, alright, sheesh.” He turned and walked away, hands shoved into jean pockets as he muttered one parting shot. “Frigid bitch.”

When the woman turned around, the relief that Blake had hoped to feel fled in the wake of realization; she knew exactly who’d come to her ‘rescue’, though she couldn’t decide yet if that was a good or bad thing.

“I could’ve handled it myself,” she said, her ears still laying back against her skull and the urge to stand and face the threat against her prickling at her skin. On the outside, she tried to remain composed, but Blake prepared for the worst internally.

“I’m sure you could’ve, but I couldn’t stand idly by while that cretin ran his mouth.” Bright blue eyes darkened as they flicked towards where Winchester had fled, her expression pinching into a scowl. She had the pale skin of one born in the northern continent, marred only by the scar bisecting her left eye, but that served just as further confirmation of her identity, something she must’ve noticed when she turned her attention back to Blake and saw a rigid posture and a healthy dose of skepticism. “I suppose my reputation precedes me.”

“Weiss Schnee of Atlas.” The Faunus didn’t bother with the pleasantries, cutting right to the heart of the matter. “Heiress to the most unambiguously unethical corporation in all of Remnant, famous for their constant breaching of labor laws. I do know who you are.”

Despite the certainty with which she said the words, Blake had to mentally admit that she probably wouldn’t have recognized her from afar. For someone who could easily clothe herself in thousand lien jackets and the like with nothing more than a snap of her fingers, the woman seemed rather… normal, if a bit overly formal. A plain white blouse and a light blue pencil skirt with heels- she’d easily be mistaken for an aid or research assistant rather than a student, if she was a student at all. The Faunus only kept up with the scandals that seemed to always scroll across the bottom of every news station; what the controlling family did in their personal lives rarely concerned her. Really, the messenger bag hanging from her shoulder seemed to be the only thing hinting at her heritage, the white Schnee snowflake emblazoned upon it and looking at least worth a few hundred lien, but the coffee cup from the shop adjacent to the library seemed out of place, just like the rest of her ensemble.

“Right. Of course.” Something flashed in the woman’s eyes as she lowered her gaze, then inclined her head. “I apologize for my intrusion.”

Blake watched as she turned away, starting to leave. Her ears slowly rose, no longer pinned in place as her muscles relaxed. She… hadn’t thought it would be that easy to break contact with a Schnee, though she admittedly had never met one before. In an effort to dismiss the whole fiasco, she turned back to her textbook and noticed out of the corner of her eye a new addition to the table, the source of the sound she’d heard upon Weiss’ arrival. Another cup from the coffee shop.

“Schnee.” Blake called out, just loud enough to catch the woman’s attention. She waited until blue eyes were directed her way before nodding towards the cup. “You left your drink.”

“It’s not for me,” the woman replied, offering a small half smile. “I’ve noticed we’re both usually here in the library on Wednesday nights doing homework so I thought… perhaps we could talk.” She looked away. “I was foolish to make that assumption.”

“Why me?” She didn’t need to look around to confirm it; during the week, there were always several students in the library, and many kept to a schedule. If she simply sought company, she had plenty of people to pick from, so deciding to approach the Faunus seemed… odd.

“You mean aside from your interest in political science?” She nodded towards the textbook on the table. “Beacon is famous for its diverse student population and it would be a shame if I didn’t take advantage of that to learn more about people outside of Atlas. My roommates advised that most probably see me as… unapproachable, so I should try approaching others.”

“There are plenty of humans here who would love to be your friend,” Blake narrowed her eyes slightly, trying to shake the sensation that the woman was being as sincere as possible. Her entire posture seemed far too stiff- shoulders, back, arms, neck, all riddled with tension like a drawn bowstring- and her voice carried a hint of finality, as if she was prepared to be dismissed at any second.

“I’m quite certain if they want to be my friend, I probably shouldn’t be theirs,” she replied, a small sigh passing through her lips. “They probably see me the same as you do- a greedy bigot poised to seize power of an influential company. It’s certainly the mold laid out for me, isn’t it?”

“Are you saying you haven’t done anything to fit exactly that?” After dealing with that jerk from earlier, she really didn’t have the patience for tact as her anger boiled close to the surface.

“No, I have.” The woman looked away then and it took Blake a moment, in her anger addled mind, to realize that she wasn’t diverting her gaze out of wounded pride. In fact, it looked more like… shame. “I’ve said some awful things. I may not have put any policies in place or raised a hand myself but that doesn’t negate what I have done.” A mirthless chuckle escaped as she shook her head. “It’s a double edged sword, I’m afraid. It wouldn’t even matter if I apologized; no one would believe I mean it, but they’ll believe anything negative I say in a heartbeat.”

“You can’t know that, especially if you’ve never actually tried.” The Faunus turned, flicking her ears forward as she faced the woman, her homework disregarded for the time being. It would mean a late night tomorrow to catch up but she’d rather call this bluff now to ease any doubts in her mind. “Try me.”

“I beg your pardon?” The Schnee looked at her then, apparently confused.

“Let me hear this apology of yours.” She propped her head up in her hand, waiting. “Let’s see if I believe you.”

“Very well.” Turning towards her fully, the woman straightened her shoulders and tipped her chin up, blue eyes hardening like sapphires as she spoke. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry for the things I’ve said; they were hurtful and close minded, born from a place of hate and ignorance. I didn’t realize it at the time… but that doesn’t relieve me of the responsibility of saying them.” Her expression and posture faltered slightly, obvious effort being put forth to maintain eye contact with the Faunus. “I’m sorry for the way I used to think, for believing the lies fed to me and taking them as absolute truth.” Then she broke her gaze away, somewhere into the distance over Blake’s shoulder. “But, ultimately, I’m most sorry that it’s taken this long, that my family’s held fast to this terribly archaic and discriminatory mindset, and that they’ve continued to inflict all manner of harm upon the Faunus and all other manner of people they… we considered beneath us. I’m sorry it’s taken until me to change and I’m even more sorry that I haven’t done it fast enough.”

A frown touched her lips as Blake looked, seeking any sort of deception in her tone, her face, her posture, but finding none. Just… an incredible amount of poise, likely taught from birth, and in that moment she realize what the woman had meant. If it was anyone else, she’d take them at their word- people make mistakes, they believe falsehoods in absence of facts, and while ignorance was no excuse it did lend a different lens to a person’s actions- but, because the words were coming from a Schnee, she felt compelled to seek out any hint of duplicity. Even if she had every reason to believe the words were true, some part of her didn’t want to believe it at all.

“Why now?” She tilted her head, waiting until she had the woman’s gaze focused on her once more. “What prompted you to change your mind?”

With a wave of her hand, Schnee- Weiss indicated the library around them. “You mean aside from compelling evidence?” A small smile touched her lips, the bitter sort. “I’d started to suspect there was more to the world than I was being taught a few years ago. Subtle inconsistencies, hushed remarks I shouldn’t have caught, but they started to add up. Coming to Beacon confirmed my theories, as well as opened my eyes to… much more.”

“That’s pretty recent a change; semester only started a month ago.” Blake flicked her ears.

The woman shrugged. “I have to start somewhere. I chose to start here and now.”

“You father can’t be too happy about that.”

“I suspect he won’t be but, if I play my cards right, I’ll be in control of the family business before he realizes I have no intention of following through with the policies he’s put into place.” Her jaw clenched, a little aggravation creeping into her voice. “Frankly, that’s the hardest part of all this.”

“Why not walk away from it all?” She reached over, taking hold of the paper cup. “I mean, trying to change it from the inside is no small feat.”

“The alternative is allowing things to proceed as they have for far too long. It might not make me the most popular person in Atlas but I’ve spent my whole life being a precious doll on parade, doing exactly as I’m told. I think it’s high time I earned some ire.” Her blue eyes flashed, confidence in her tone matching the smile on her lips. “If I leave, I can do nothing but hope things improve, but from the top, I can tear away the cancers with my bare hands and guide the company into the future. If there’s any honor left in my surname, I want to be the one to restore it.”

“That’s… well, it’s something.” She didn’t want to give the woman too much credit; a lot could change in the years before she took control of the company, after all. Yet, she also found herself wanting to believe her, if for no better reason than she had a point. If her family’s company would finally fall in line with the progressive trends occurring in other kingdoms, the movements would pick up traction. It certainly would eliminate some roadblocks that continued to stymie affected groups. Deciding to take a drink to buy herself a little time, Blake lifted the cup to her lips and blinked in surprise as the liquid hit her taste buds. On the one hand, it appeared to be close enough to her usual order for her to not mind the change… but on the other- “It’s cold.”

She looked over in time to note the brief panic that flares in the woman’s expression before she spoke, appearing calm and collected. “Yes, well, you seemed rather focused on your work and I know I’m not very fond of distractions when I’m trying to study, so I thought I’d wait until you took a break.”

The Faunus felt her lips curl into a small smile as one brow rose. “And just how long were you waiting?”

Whatever composure Weiss had broke down in that moment, exasperation showing plain on her face. “I couldn’t just come up and bother you! I don’t think that would’ve worked out well at all!” Blake remained quiet, watching the woman with an expectant expression until she finally rolled her eyes. “I got here at five.”

“At five?” She checked her scroll for the time and couldn’t help but laugh. “You’ve been waiting to talk to me for three hours?”

“I was trying to make a good first impression.” She set her free hand on her hip, the one wrapped around her own cup shifting so she could point a finger at the Faunus. “Admit it; you would’ve been quite vexed with me if I just came up and started talking to you while you were working.”

“Maybe a little.” She looked at her blank page, a sigh passing her lips. “But I might’ve welcomed the distraction. Three hours and I still have no idea how to even start this paper.”

“What’s the subject? Maybe I could help?” Weiss took a step closer, but that was all, still walking on eggshells it seemed.

That made two of them. “It’s… well, it’s about the changes generated from the STA.” Her brows furrowed as she ran a hand through her hair. “I know every little thing that happened following its implementation, but I have no idea how to condense all that down to four thousand words, and frame it from a purely political standpoint. It’s just… impossible.”

For a moment, she simply wallowed in her frustration, trying to make the words assemble properly, but the futile effort was broken when the woman spoke. “Have you considered approaching it from a macro level?”

“How do you mean?” The Faunus’ ears flicked forward as she looked at Weiss.

“Well, the STA did one thing that cemented its importance in the history books: it firmly tied financial stability to individual rights by forcing other kingdoms to acknowledge foreign merchants as full fledged citizens.” She gestured towards the book. “Kingdoms who refused suffered economically and those who acquiesced had to amend their laws to accommodate the influx of merchants, who eventually founded the rights activism groups that led to wide spread victories for the Faunus and other minorities across Remnant. In turn, these new groups of citizens had the right to voice their opinions in political forums through suffrage, thereby changing the face of Remnant politics.”

Blake blinked. On a very vague, large scale level, that explanation actually did sum up the entirety of the STA’s impact, and it gave her the opportunity to reference the laws and agreements that followed to usher in those new social expectations of corporations and kingdoms alike that she’d struggled to acknowledge before. Quickly, she reached for her pen, beginning to scribble out the beginnings of her outline, opting to plan it out now so she didn’t go off on a tangent and exceed the word limit by too much. By the time she was finished, considerably more confident in her ability to complete the essay on time, the Faunus looked up to note that Weiss had left at some point and was just then returning, another paper cup in hand.

“Here. This one’s at least warm.” She offered the new cup and it briefly occurred to Blake to beg off but, all things considered, she’d probably need the caffeine boost.

“So, I suppose the next logical question is: how do you know my order?”

“You wouldn’t take 'lucky guess’ as a suitable answer, would you?” Weiss chuckled, nodding back towards the cafe. “I’ve been behind you in line a few times, and you’ve left your receipt before. Plus, not many people order a chai tea latte with a shot of espresso.”

She tilted her head, noting that the woman was still standing instead of claiming one of the chairs at the table. Even with her textbook and notebook on the surface, there remained plenty of room for her to set her bag down, if she so chose. But she suspected it didn’t quite have much to do with that. “How long have you been trying to work up the nerve to talk to me?”

“I suppose I’m giving myself away, aren’t I?” She sighed. “A few weeks now. It just… never seemed like the opportune moment.”

“You were nervous.”

“I was not nervous.” They held each other’s gaze for a long moment before the woman relented. “I believe 'apprehensive’ is a more suitable term.”

“Which… is synonymous with 'nervous’.” Blake smirked, counting the eye roll she received in response as a victory.

“Are you a walking thesaurus as well?”

“No, but I am taking a minor in creative writing,” she said, glancing down at the textbook. “I want to change the world for the better, and the written word can influence that as well. Books can last well beyond a single person’s lifetime.”

“Well, I know who to call for appropriate phrasing when I inevitably put out the memo to everyone that it’s a new company policy to stop being an asshole,” Weiss replied, chuckling with the Faunus’ unexpected laugh.

“You know, so far the only expectation of mine you’ve met is having all the subtlety of a battering ram.” She tilted her head, one ear flicking back as she heard someone mentioning the library would only be open for a few more hours. “And a pretty way of handling words.”

“I’ll take both of those as compliments.” She paused, weighing her next words carefully. “To be frank, I’m a little surprised you decided to listen. I certainly couldn’t fault you for… well, not doing so.”

“My parents taught me to listen well and be slow to anger; that patience creates change just as much as it anticipates it. I don’t always live up to that motto, admittedly, but I try.” Suddenly, something occurred to her and she couldn’t help but test out her theory firsthand. “By the way, I don’t think we’ve been properly introduced. Unless you managed to pick up my name as well while you’ve been nervously hovering just out of sight.”

“I didn’t, actually, and, for the record, there’s a clear difference between gauging a situation over a long period of time and 'stalking’ as you seem to be implying I’ve been doing, which I haven’t!” The Faunus anticipated such a defensive response- the woman likely had little choice, either taking the offensive or constantly defending herself, especially on such an open minded campus as Beacon- and offered her hand, effectively stymying Weiss’ words. Noting the amusement that must’ve been showing in amber eyes, she shook her head and accepted the gesture. “At any rate, you’re already aware of who I am. Weiss Schnee, middle daughter and heiress to the most unambiguously unethical corporation in all of Remnant.”

“Charmed,” she replied, shaking Weiss’ hand firmly. “I’m Blake. Blake Belladonna.”

Immediately, the woman stiffened, her eyes widening just enough to betray the panic that must’ve shot through her. “Blake… Belladonna.”

“Yes. Daughter of the Chieftain of Menagerie… but I think you already knew that.” Blake withdrew her hand, leaning back in her seat and tilting her head slightly. “At least, you’ve certainly heard of my father, Ghira Belladonna. Probably my mother too, right?”

“Your- your parents are publicly visible figures; of course I know who they are!” Half a step back in retreat, that was all Weiss gave before she stopped herself. “But you…”

“I’ve stayed out of the public spotlight.” She shrugged, remembering so many arguments she had with her parents over their decision. Eventually, she matured to the point where she understood why they wanted so badly to keep her sheltered from some of the ill effects of the spotlight; she might not be able to outrun her reputation in the capitol of Menagerie, but she had a fair amount of anonymity elsewhere in the kingdom, and the rest of Remnant never seemed to connect her to her father. It probably had to do with her feline features being from her mother’s side of the family, and Kali worked best behind the scenes. “My name’s a dead giveaway, true, but it’s usually only Faunus who can recognize me on sight, and sometimes not even then.”

“If I’d have known…”

The way she trailed off piqued Blake’s interest, causing her to cant her ears forward. “If you’d known who I was, what then?”

“I never would’ve approached you.” She admitted, blue eyes falling to the space between them. “Out of everyone, I would think you’d have the most reasons to object to… everything my name represents.”

“Then I suppose I should thank my parents.” She nodded, slowly. “They always told me I would one day understand the benefit of anonymity. I always thought they meant putting off what it would feel like to have every Faunus in the area turning to me for guidance or answers but… I guess that day’s today.” Her ears fell slightly as she chose to be a bit more honest. “I’d heard rumors that one of the Schnees was attending Beacon and I did everything in my power to ignore that. I figured our meeting would just lead to a fight and it wasn’t worth getting expelled over, so I definitely wouldn’t have sought you out, even if people started saying you were friendly to Faunus.”

“I probably would’ve done the same, had anyone mentioned the child of Ghira Belladonna was attending the same school as me. I would’ve avoided any and all Faunus, just to keep from causing a scene.” The woman stared for a moment before recovering, a small laugh escaping her lips. “How poetic.” At Blake’s prompting, she elaborated. “It seems only fitting that we both share an understanding of what burden the weight of one’s surname can be. We’re not so different, are we?”

She smiled. “I think that’s the beauty of the world, though. For all the differences, the nuances that can divide us, we are, at our core, more similar to each other than dissimilar. Some of us choose to ignore that but those who can acknowledge it… I think it opens up untold opportunities.”

“You certainly have a way with words… Miss Belladonna?”

“Blake. We’re peers, are we not?” She took a sip of her drink, much preferring the liquid at its proper temperature. “Thank you for this, Weiss.”

“You’re welcome, Blake.” The woman smiled, taking a sip of her own drink and frowning slightly. Apparently, while going to grabbed a fresh cup for the Faunus, she’d opted not to get one for herself, or had already drank it all. “I’ll leave you to your studies now. I’ve taken up enough of your time.”

“Don’t you have some work to do as well?” She indicated the messenger bag.

“Yes, just a bit of studying for a test.”

“There’s plenty of room here.” Blake set her cup down and picked up her pen. “I might not be much for conversation while I’m writing but there’s no need to run off.”

Weiss smiled, walking around to the other side of the table. “I suppose you have a point.”

She returned to her essay, starting on a fresh page and following her outline while the woman pulled out her own study material across from her. They spent the rest of the time in silence, working independently, until the library closed and they were forced to retire. Blake only had the conclusion of her essay left but her wrist ached from sustained writing, a common problem she couldn’t seem to overcome. It would be much easier to simply type the essay but her professor was the traditionalist sort who thought the use of scrolls would make plagiarizing much easier. While she could appreciate the feel of a pen in her hand and enjoy the scratching of its tip against paper, such enjoyments were reserved for her personal writing rather than assignments.

“Do you live on campus?” Blake found the words slipping from her mouth as she absently rubbed her wrist, the two descending the library stairs together. It seemed a forgone conclusion for most of Beacon’s student population but she wasn’t talking to the average student, at least not background wise.

“Yes, actually. Over in the Nevermore building, second floor.”

The Faunus blinked, tilting her head slightly in surprise. “Really?”

“Yes? Why would I lie about that?” Weiss puffed out a breath, half exasperation and half amusement. “Don’t think I haven’t considered living off campus, though. My roommate can be a little… much at times. She’s an engineering student with more energy that a frat house with an endless supply of beer.”

Laughing at the rather colorful simile, Blake caught her breath as they started walking towards the building, which was quite a ways from the campus library. “No, I mean- I’m not surprised you live on campus.” Okay, that wasn’t entirely true. “Perhaps I am a little bit, but I’m more surprised we live in the same building and have never passed each other in the halls; I’m on the third floor. I’m even further surprised that I know exactly who your roommate is.”

“You do?” The woman raised a brow, but then nodded to herself. “She does seem like the type to be friendly and outgoing, when she isn’t engrossed in some messy project.”

“Actually, I know her because she’s my roommate’s sister,” she said. While she couldn’t tell if Ruby talked about her sister quite so often, Yang would go on and on about her genius sibling, accepted to Beacon a full two years ahead of most. Her roommate also kept a collage of pictures from when they were growing up beside her bed.

“Wait, Yang Xiao Long is your roommate?” Weiss furrowed her brows, looking quite scandalized. “I’ve never met her myself but everyone-”

“Those rumors are… true, but not to the degree most people tell them.” The Faunus sighed, having dealt with both hearing the whispers herself and Yang’s exasperation regarding them. At first, the blonde didn’t seem to mind, but things quickly spiraled out of control and she couldn’t seem to escape her own reputation. Seems they had a bit of a club going in that department.

“So, she doesn’t start fights everywhere she goes?”

“No, but she’s prone to using her fists rather than her words. She and Ruby got to Beacon before the beginning of term and decided to hit up a club downtown to celebrate. When she caught someone trying to spike her sister’s drink, she lost her temper and it started a huge fistfight.” Blake shrugged, having heard the story from both of them when she first arrived, before the rumors started in earnest. “Yang’s actually pretty chill otherwise. She’s a bit messy as a roommate but she’s honestly more of a mom than anything; it took two weeks solid before I got her to stop texting me to see if I missed a meal.”

“Well, I can certainly see the familial resemblance. Ruby’s just as messy, I imagine, and she gets so focused on her projects that she forgets to eat.” Weiss huffed. “At least now I know who keeps texting her at all hours of the day. From what I understand, her sister practically raised her, and I knew she was on the campus but had no idea she lived on the floor above us.” The woman hummed to herself thoughtfully. “Well, now I feel spectacularly foolish. Had I consented to meeting Yang properly, I wouldn’t have spent the past few weeks trying to just talk to you.”

“Yeah, you probably should’ve been more mindful about reputations belying a person’s intentions,” the Faunus said, a smile curling her lips at the clear dismay in Weiss’ expression.

“I suppose I have a long way to go in practicing what I preach,” she replied, a rueful smile on her lips.

“I think we all do.” She shrugged. “But once we’ve realized a misstep, it’s on us to do better next time.” Blake pulled out her scroll, shooting off a quick text to see what her roommate was doing that evening. Although she didn’t take studying nearly as seriously, Yang maintained respectable grades and split her time between training for her sports teams to keep her scholarships and catching up on any homework she didn’t do in class. There was about a fifty-fifty chance of her being in the room on any given night because of that. “Would you like to meet her? We can invite Ruby too, maybe go out for a late dinner?”

Weiss checked her own scroll, looking at the time. “I… don’t have an early class tomorrow and I’m fairly certain Ruby doesn’t either. I’ll text her.”

The Faunus felt her scroll buzz and checked, glad to see that her roommate was both free and hungry, shooting off another text informing her of the plan. “Great. Yang’s down, and she knows all the best restaurants with reasonable prices. Be ready, though; she has an… interesting sense of humor.”

“Yes, her sister always mentions that she favors puns.” The woman rolled her eyes but smiled all the same. “Honestly, it might be a refreshing change of pace.” Blake opted to remain silent on that front as they arrived at their dorm building, heading up the stairs together and parting at the second landing, seeing as they still had to drop off their books and such before heading out. “Blake?”

“Hmmm?” She stopped and turned around, noting the genuine expression on the woman’s face.

“Thank you,” she said, shrugging slightly as she seemed to struggle for words. “For giving me a chance.”

“Thank you, Weiss. For daring to ask for one.” The Faunus smiled a bit wider. “I’ll see you in a few minutes, outside the front door?”

“See you then.”

Blake went up to her floor, bypassing the student lounge and heading straight for her room. Along the way, she ran into a friend, the monkey Faunus looking like he’d just barely woken up despite the relatively early hour.

“Hey, Blake. What’s up?” He yawned, reaching up to stretch. “Where ya been?”

“At the library, studying.” She contemplated, for a moment, telling him the whole story, but refrained for two reasons. One, he was obviously barely awake as it was, and the second being she wanted a longer gauge of Weiss’ character before making a big deal out of their tentative friendship. Sun might’ve been one of the most laid back Faunus she’d ever met, thanks in no small part to him hailing from Vacuo, but she didn’t like to take risks when she didn’t have to and things might not work out anyway. “Calling it an early night?”

“Nah, I took an afternoon nap that went way too long.” He chuckled, running a hand through his mop of blond hair. “You heading to bed?”

“I’m going out to dinner with some friends first.” She patted his bare shoulder. “I’ll catch you later.”

“Yeah, see ya.” Sun mumbled before ducking back into his room, likely to play some video game or other for a while until he could fall asleep again.

As Blake ducked into her own room, right next to his, she idly thought about introducing him to some of her friends. They had differing schedules which made hanging out a bit difficult at times and, after the first two weeks where he barraged her with questions about growing up in Menagerie she’d avoided him for a bit to drive the point home that he needed to learn a little self control, he actually was a very nice person and a good friend. Now that they had more or less hashed out their boundaries- well, hers, to be specific- she needed to set aside some time for everyone to meet.

“What’s up, roomie?” Yang called out, sliding on her favorite leather jacket. “Kinda surprised you wanna head out for a bite this late. Don’t you have class tomorrow morning?”

“We won’t be out too late.” She set her textbooks on her bed for the time being and watched the blonde finish getting ready. “Plus, I think this is going to be worth it.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Your sister’s coming with us, plus her roommate, who I just spent the last few hours getting to know.” Blake waited for the spark of recognition, slightly surprised when it didn’t come.

“Oh, that rich chick? Funny, didn’t seem like she was the type to hang out like normal people.” Yang chuckled, checking her hair in the mirror by her bed. “Ruby always made her sound like the anti-social type.”

“Well, all things considered, I can see why she’d avoid people at first,” she said, waiting a beat before continuing. “A lot of people have strong opinions about Weiss Schnee.”

Instantly, her roommate’s gaze snapped to her, expression pinching into one of slight anger. “Are you fucking kidding me? That-”

She held up a hand, stopping the woman’s rage in its tracks. “Hey, I just spent the past few hours getting to know her, okay? I think she’s sincerely trying to be a better person than she’s been in the past and I’m willing to give her a chance. Shouldn’t you?”

Yang clenched her jaw, eventually sighing and waving her hand. “Alright, alright, I’ll cool my jets. But she says one thing I don’t like and I’m punting her through a window.”

It was an empty threat, mostly, but an expected reaction all around. “You’re being overprotective again.”

“Is there another way to be?” The blonde arched a brow, offering a small grin. “Sorry, roomie, but you’re stuck with me lookin’ out for you, and I come with a lifetime guarantee!”

Blake laughed, shaking her head. “Fine, but hurry up. I’d like to get back at a decent time.”

The duo eventually went down and met Ruby and Weiss at the door, the former practically jumping in place with excitement while the latter seemed mildly annoyed and amused. By the time the four arrived at a suitable restaurant- a nice, traditional Vale noodle house down by the docks- Yang had mercilessly teased Weiss whenever the opportunity presented itself, trying to make the woman snap and it eventually worked. Blake and Ruby almost couldn’t stop laughing at the nigh ten minute long lecture Yang endured and the woman almost left the restaurant entirely rather than deal with the ridiculous antics, but she eventually calmed down and everyone took turns teasing one another over silly things. Ruby and Yang got it the worst, though, after the younger of the sisters decided it would be fair game to bring up childhood stories that embarrassed the both of them, and the trip back to Beacon was spent trying not to pass out from laughing too hard.

“Ya know, roomie, I gotta hand it to ya; the Ice Queen ain’t half bad after she thaws a little,” Yang said, closing the door to their dorm room behind them and crossing her arms over her chest. “But now, I got a question.”

“Go on,” she replied, moving her textbook and notebook from earlier to the desk, ready for the following day, while collecting up a change of clothes. They’d gotten back later than she would’ve liked but, honestly, the night was worth a little lost sleep.

She should’ve known by the silence that forced her to look at her roommate and she definitely should’ve expected it when she saw that teasing twinkle in lilac eyes. “Is it gonna be 'Blake Schnee’ or 'Weiss Belladonna’?”

The Faunus followed her first impulse; she picked up her pillow and threw it with all her strength at the laughing blonde. “Yang!”

“Aw c'mon, admit it, she’s cute, she’s smart, you both seem to share a fair few ideas regarding how things should be in the future- isn’t that the definition of a power couple?” Yang tossed her pillow back, offering a theatrical shrug. “But, maybe I’m just seeing things.”

“You are,” she replied, hoping this it would bring an end to the discussion once and for all.

Although, as she went to change, she couldn’t help but acknowledge that Yang wasn’t wrong on any particular count, but it probably wouldn’t work out, anyway.

#TRR writes #Monochrome #Expectations College AU

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princessbrivee · 8 years

Text

The New Girl [Chapter 13]

Mugen Academy will never be the same for academic achiever and talented, Michiru Kaioh once a new student is enrolled in the school.

Tagging @rocketonthemoon , @thatgirlwiththedeepblueeyes , and @haru-michis

Also posted on AO3 here

Michiru knew she was someone who liked to distance herself from things after they happened. So it just so conveniently happened that her spring break fell right after the events with Haruka. Her family went away to the Caribbean, which was a very nice space to clear her head. Her parents asked her if she wanted international coverage for the week, which she politely declined. That way she did’t have to hear from anyone, and she would have an excuse for ignoring miss texts and calls from Haruka. She didn’t know how any of it was going to come up. She would go back to school, where eventually she would have to face everyone.

Did she regret anything she did? No, of course not. But she wished she would have thought more rationally about everything that happened the past few weeks.

Though when it was the Monday to return to school, everything seemed to return to normal. At exactly a quarter past seven, Haruka’s car was outside Michiru’s home. However, this time when she arrived inside there was something different. In Haruka’s hand was a cup of what one could only assume was coffee, and another cup sat in the adjacent cup holder.

“Well you look nice and tan.” Haruka said with a smile, as she placed her to go cup down. “I’m so sorry for not returning your calls. I didn’t have service.” Michiru apologized, half telling the truth, only leaving out that she opted not to have any service. “That’s for you.” “Hm?” “The tea.” Haruka said, pointing at the cup that didn’t belong to her as she began to back out of the driveway. “I bought it for you.” “Thank you…” Michiru said, reaching to pick it up. “I got a job over the break,” Haruka began, “at the local coffee shop. I only clean the tables and the counters and shit, but I get the employee discount. Free beverages.” Michiru only nodded as she took a sip of the tea. For someone who drank tea as much as she did, she couldn’t identify the certain type. In all honesty, it wasn’t the best tea she’s ever had. But, she didn’t complain, placing the cup down with a smile. “It’s not the best, I know, the place is pretty crappy. But it’s just a few blocks down from my apartment and I thought it’d be nice.” “Haruka, it’s fine.” Michiru said, turning her gaze out the window. “I’m not looking forward to school today. At all.” “Anything I can do to help?” Haruka asked, as she continued driving her normal way to school. “Meet me in the library for lunch?” Michiru asked, knowing sometimes the track team met for practice during the lunch period when they were nearing semi-finals. “Sounds like a plan.” Haruka said, aimlessly reaching over to grab Michiru’s hand. And Michiru calmly pulled her hand away before the blonde could grasp it. They didn’t have time to speak about where they stood together, and in all honesty, Michiru would prolong it as much as possible.

———

Homeroom was a drag. Michiru was sitting, writing little notes in her planner for the following week. She had papers to hand in today, and she was marking the other papers and tests she had upcoming. She was hoping the real part of school was not going to be the hard part of coming back after break; the hardest was going to be dealing with her classmates.

“Well, well,” said a familiar voice. And with that, Michiru felt her entire body go numb. She didn’t even need to look at who was talking, but she perked her head up anyway. Stood in front of her was Elsa, whom she hadn’t spoken to since history class that day. “Look what the cat dragged in.” “What do you want Elsa?” Michiru asked, trying to concentrate on anything but the girl stood in front of her. “I’m busy.” “I just want to talk to you.” Elsa said, taking her seat next to the teal haired girl. “We literally haven’t spoken in forever. I saw you at the race before you left, and you didn’t even have the decency to come over to me and apologize.” “Apologize for what?” Michiru asked, closing her book and putting her pencil in to mark her place. “You made it clear you didn’t want me to talk to you or come to your party, so I didn’t.” “So you’re just going to throw away your social life because we had a little fight? Come on Michi, let’s just hang out and talk like old times.” Elsa said, almost as if it were a command and not a question for Michiru to decide for herself on. “Will I see you at lunch today?”

Michiru honestly had to think for a moment on whether or not she was going to be joining Elsa and the group for lunch. Sure, she was looking forward to Amis calm nature, but she was not looking forward to having to discuss where her and Haruka stood. Though, that was much better than having to explain everything to her supposed group of friends. So with a deep breath, she finally made up her mind on what she was going to do.

“No Elsa, no you won’t.”

———

By the time lunch had rolled around, Michiru was honestly ready to call it a day. Ami was busy flipping through her newest book, and instead of doodling Michiru decided to rest her head down on top of her sketch book. “Everything alright?” Ami asked, quite concerned since she had never seen Michiru act like this. “Yeah,” Michiru said, propping her chin up on her hands, “I’m fine don’t worry Ami. There’s just been a lot going on the past month or so, and I guess getting away from it all was nice for a while.” She shrugged, turning her attention to the door where she saw Haruka walk through. “Guess I’m going to just have to get used to the fact that it’s over.” “What’s over?” Haruka asked, taking the seat next to Michiru. “Break.” Ami answered for Michiru. “Luckily, the school year will be over quicker than you know.” “That’s a relief.” Haruka said, ruffling her hand through her hair. “I’m kind of excited for the rest of the year, though.” “There’s not much left exciting to happen.” Michiru commented, emitting a sigh before leaning back in her chair. “Everything okay?” Haruka asked, moving her arm to wrap it around Michiru’s shoulder. However, Michiru was swift today in avoiding all forms of physical contact, standing up right before the blonde could touch her. “I think I need some fresh air.” Michiru said. “Do you want us to come with you?” Haruka asked, but Michiru responded by shaking her head and leaving the library. After Michiru was out of the doors, Haruka stood up in an attempt to follow her.

“I don’t think that’s the best idea.” Ami stated, placing her bookmark in her page. “Perhaps it’ll be best to give her space Haruka, she seems like she needs a moment to herself.” “I just want to help.” Haruka said, sitting back down. “Did she mention anything that was bothering her?” “No,” Ami began, “and I was not going to interrogate her on it. She said she was doing okay, though her body language and tone of voice said otherwise.” “You’re very observant.” Haruka pointed out. “Sometimes being quiet has it’s advantages.” Ami stated, shrugging her shoulders forward. “I’m sure Michiru will be fine, however. Though she did kind of disappear. I hadn’t heard from her all break.” “Neither did I.” Haruka stated. “She went to a different country, didn’t have service.” “Makes sense.” Ami said, before picking up her book. She could tell the conversation was dying down, and she wasn’t going to prompt further discussion if the blonde did not want it.

The rest of lunch was spent in silence.

———

Michiru had been looking forward for the school day to end before it even began this morning. So, she took it upon herself to excuse herself to the bathroom during last period and instead, walk outside and wait by Haruka’s car. She needed some air and to just get out of the school for a while. Michiru looked at her phone. It was five to three, meaning that Haruka would be joining her soon enough to drive her home. For those long five minutes, she just enjoyed the feel of the gentle spring breeze on her face. With a deep breath, she knew she was ready to talk about what was going on with Haruka. She had to.

Seven minutes had passed, and soon enough Haruka was walking toward her car. She was a little shocked to see Michiru standing by her car, as the two usually met inside the building. “I was looking all over for you.” The blonde pointed out, unlocking the doors allowing for them to get inside the car. “Sorry,” Michiru apologized as she buckled her seatbelt, “I just needed to get out of there.” “Are you sure everything is alright, Michiru?” “Haruka, could we go back to your place. I don’t want to go home.” “Yeah, of course.” Haruka said, taking a turn to go toward her complex instead of Michiru’s house. “Do you have to call your parents or something first?” “No.” Michiru stated. “I’ll say I had to work on something at school. They won’t mind.” “Alright.” Haruka said, speeding up her driving a little. Luckily, Haruka’s apartment complex was only a ten minute drive from the school, on side roads that no one cared about. So maybe the sign did say the speed limit was fifteen, but going twenty-five really wouldn’t hurt anybody.

———

Arriving at Haruka’s house felt strangely comforting to Michiru. She felt like it was the only place, aside from Haruka’s car, where she could really be herself. The blonde kicked off her shoes and removed her blazer. “Sorry for the mess.” Haruka said, hanging her blazer on the door. “I had work last night.” “It’s fine.” Michiru said as she took off her own shoes. “Do you want something comfortable to change into?” “Would you mind?” “Nah, I got some of my running clothes washed for practice this week.” Haruka said, making her way to her room. Michiru followed along behind her.

Beside the blonde’s bed sat a basket of somewhat folded clothing. Michiru supposed that it was basket of laundry. She watched as Haruka placed the basket on her bed and began to go through some of the clothing in the pile. Michiru saw Haruka pull out a shirt and a pair of gym shorts, studying the two items of clothing before reaching out to Michiru.

“These should do.” Haruka smiled. “They might be a little big, though. But — ” “They’re perfect.” Michiru said, taking the shirt and shorts from Haruka and placing them on the bed. “Would you mind if I changed in here?” “No, no go ahead. I’ll go change in the bathroom.” Haruka said, picking up her own clothes to change into and walking out of her room.

For a moment Michiru just stood and took a look at her surroundings. When she was in Haruka’s room last, she really didn’t have a chance to just look at it. The walls were painted a light blue. It wasn’t the biggest room but Haruka seemed to make space of what she had. Haruka’s bed was full sized, placed in the corner. Next to it was her dresser, leaving the whole other half of her room empty, aside from a pile of clothes which Michiru could assume was laundry. On top of Haruka’s dresser were sports magazines and some school books. Along the walls were various photos, most of them were of Haruka and her track team, others were just scenery. She took a moment to look at the photos, secretly wishing there were one of the two of them. Not like they ever took a photo together, but still she wished that there was some sort of element of herself in the blonde’s room.

With a sigh, Michiru sat on Haruka’s bed, rolling her stockings down and folding them, since she would have to put them back on later to go home. She unbuttoned her skirt and soon it fell to the floor. She took the shorts off of the bed and pulled them up. Haruka was fit, though she was taller and more muscular, making the shorts slightly big around Michiru’s small waist. She pulled her own uniform shirt over her head, beginning to fold the shirt and the skirt she took off earlier.

That was when she heard the door opening, so she turned around to face it. “Oh my god — I’m sorry I didn’t know you weren’t finished I — ” “Haruka it’s fine, it’s just a bra.” Michiru smirked, taking the shirt and putting it on. It was rather big on her, but there was something comforting about it.” “I didn’t mean to just walk in on you without your top on.” “Don’t dwell on it, it’s nothing.” Michiru commented, sitting on the blonde’s bed. “These photos,” she said, pointing to Haruka’s wall, “did you take them?” “Nah, found em on google.” The blonde said, sitting down next to Michiru. Michiru only answered by nodding her head.

“I think we should talk Haruka…” Michiru began, looking down at her hands as she began twiddling her thumbs, something she did when she was nervous. “Okay…” “Haruka, where do we stand?” She asked, averting her gaze to the blonde. “What do you mean?” “You know what I mean.” “No, I really don’t.” “Haruka, before break we kissed at my place and made out here, and I stayed the night for crying out loud.” Michiru said, standing up and pacing the floor. Haruka’s azure hues watched Michiru as she did so. “So I think it’s right for me to know where we are.” “Well, let’s see, all that happened and then you ignored me for an entire week and every time I attempted to do something with you, you pulled away. Don’t think I didn’t notice this morning.” “Because I wasn’t ready to talk about it.” Michiru sighed, stopping in her tracks. “I spoke to Elsa this morning…” Michiru stated, fidgeting with her hands once again, “She asked me why I hadn’t spoken to her even after she clearly told me not to bother. I don’t want to be her friend anymore and I know she doesn’t want to be mine.” “Well, why don’t you just tell her ‘you and your friends are all bitches that I don’t want to be associated with anymore’?” “I can’t say that!” “Why not? It’s how you feel.” Haruka pointed out. “You can’t hide from them forever.” “Everything is happening all at once…” Michiru said, emitting another sigh. “How would I even tell them that I don’t want to be associated with them anymore.” “Just tell them you have friends who treat you better than they do. Or say that you deserve better than them. Or go with my first option.” Michiru didn’t respond, she just sat back down.

“You do have better you know,” Haruka said. “You have me and you have Ami, we’re your friends.” “Just friends?” Michiru asked, a frown forming on her lips. “You tell me.” Haruka said, placing her hand on Michiru’s cheek, stroking it with her thumb before leaning into kiss her. It was a soft kiss, and it was short.

When the blonde pulled away, however, Michiru was not done. Her hands made way to the blonde’s back, pulling her back in to kiss her some more. Haruka leaned back, allowing for Michiru to position herself on top of her, like last time. However, this time their kissing wasn’t the only thing going on. Michiru’s hips rolled forward, grinding against the blonde. Haruka’s cheeks burned red, but she wasn’t complaining, nor was she going to stop her. When the kiss did break, Haruka propped herself on her forearms. “Wow, uh,” the blonde began, as Michiru took it upon herself to kiss down the blonde’s neck. She started at the base of Haruka’s chin, leaving little kisses down to the nape of her neck. Michiru sucked at it, before deciding to pull away. Michiru sat up, proudly straddled over the blonde. Haruka just looked at her, dumbfounded. “Wh-why did you stop? Did I do something wrong?” “I’m not going to leave a mark on your neck.” Michiru said. “You have a race this weekend don’t you?” “Yeah…” Haruka said, as she sat up coming face to face with Michiru. She leaned in to give her another kiss, which Michiru happily obliged to. “Are you going to come to the race?” “Of course I will.” “Okay, well, afterward Oli is having something at his house, so we could go to that.” “Booooo.” Michiru groaned. “Afterwards, we’ll come back here, alright?” Haruka said, planting another kiss on Michiru’s lips. “Yeah, sounds perfect.”

#harumichi #Michiru Kaioh #haruka tenoh #sailor moon #fanfiction

14 notes · View notes

nachtgraves · 8 years

Note

a++ kuzuhina: maybe the same ship with #4.“I’m flirting with you.”?

Oh my god I am so sorry this took forever and a half BUT I FINALLY FINISHED IT. I experimented with writing a thing told mostly through texting so hopefully it still flows pretty well? It was an experience, I tell you. Also. I apologize for the awful title for this but it was literally the best I could think of. And I probably should have used time stamps but I’m a dumb and hope extra spacing gives the same effect?

Title: Mis-Texting Could Possibly End in Kissing // AO3Word Count: ~4200Warnings/Tags: PG. Told through texting with interspersed prose, high school au, hope’s peak still exists, but no despairs, some typos are intentional and let’s pretend the others are too, real minor angst. Hajime is non-italics, Fuyuhiko and the two instances of Chiaki are in italics.

[ughhhhhh][im so bored][she wont stop taking][talking*]

[That’s kind of the point of a presentation]

[nooneasked for ur sass]

Hajimedoesn’t know how it happened, but he and the infamous ‘baby-faced yakuza ofHope’s Peak High’ are texting buddies.

Well.

Maybethat’s not entirely true. He does know how it started, at least.

[heypres][its kuzuryuu][souda gave me ur number][wat do we need for teh fair agian?]

[Sorry, youmight have the wrong number]

[oh][ur not nanmi?][fuck][souda is dead][sorry]

[Noworries. Mistakes happen][But, by Souda do you mean Souda Kazuichi?And did you mean to text Nanami Chiaki?]

[yeah][who r u??]

[Chiaki’s a close friend. Ournumbers happen to be really similar. Hers ends in a 1 instead of a 2]

[ohthanks][srry for the mix up]

[Don’tworry about it. Happens fairly often :p]

Hajimedoesn’t hear back from the stranger for a few days and quickly forgets themix-up even happened. He hadn’t been lying when he said that such thingshappened fairly often, especially since Chiaki was voted as class rep. (She hadbeen so surprised and happy, Hajime thought a new VR game system was announced).Chiaki and him and found it quite amusing and it wasn’t much trouble to fix themistake usually. But one afternoon, he’s cleaning up his room and finds apacket of papers that look important by the large scrawling over the front pagein Chiaki’s loopy handwriting, reading: ‘SCHOOL FEST BUDGET’. He also knowsthat Chiaki wasn’t going to be home for hours, since her school festival wasthis coming weekend and she’s been staying back to organize, plan, and dowhatever it is class representatives do for events like that.

[Hey you left a packet of papers atmine. School fest budget?]

[Chiaki?]

[Goddmannit did u foget to chargeyour phone again?]

Knowingthat if the packet were important, Chiaki would be freaking out (she always putso much pressure on herself, especially since she became class rep), Hajimestares at the packet in his lap. He could run to Chiaki’s high school, butdoubts he would be let in since it was almost sundown and Hope’s Peak High wasone of the more prestigious secondary schools in their district. Hajime himselfgoes to a regular public school a short walk from their neighbourhood.

Staringat his phone, as if it was going to give him an answer, he finds one as hescrolls through his messages. He still has the short conversation from thestranger from Chiaki’s class. It’s worth a shot, at the very least.

[Hey this is Chiaki’s friend HinataHajime. I still had your number from when you mis-texted me and I was wonderingif Chiaki was nearby? She’s not answering her phone]

[yeah][why?]

[I think she forgot something at myhouse. School fest budget?]

[yeah][she thought she lost it][shes asking if u can drop it off at her place][her phone is dead]

[Yeah I cando that][Thanks]

Laterthat night, Hajime is attempting to complete a history essay due the nextmorning when he receives a text. His phone is plugged in by his bed, on theopposite end of where his desk is. He literally jumps at the distraction,hopping into bed and lying back against the pillows propped up against the headboard.

[Thanksfor dropping off the packet.]

[No prob][You need to remember to charge your phone]

[I know. (*_ _) ][How did you have Kuzuryuu’snumber, by the way?]

[The miss-text a few days ago.Figured it was worth a try]

[Thank you. You really saved me.]

Threehours later, it’s inching closer to midnight and Hajime hasn’t returned to hisassignment. Chiaki is not impressed.

[Doyour work.]

[I’m takinga break]

[(￢_￢) You’ve been ‘takinga break’ for three hours. Stop procrastinating and finish your homework.]

[You’re notdoing your homework]

[I finished my homework. I’m makingsure all the plans for the school fair next month are in order.

You’recoming to it, right?]

[Yeah][If I’m not stuck wiht tuorting…][Tutoring*][Can’t you help???]

[You know I’m not that much betterthan you. Sonia helps me.]

[Give me hernumber?][I’m desperate a tthis point]

[That’sa breach of privacy.]

[Chiakiiiiiiiiiii][Please?][I’ll do your Japanese hw next time?]

[No.]

[JapaneseAND math?]

[Tempting.But good night, Hajime.]

[Chiaki][Chiaki][Chiaki come back][Chiakiiiiii][What kind of friend are u?]

It’stimes like this Hajime sometimes wishes he was closer to some of hisclassmates. He’s not a loner, but he’s definitely a drifter of sorts. He has peopleto talk to and sit with at lunch, but rarely does he spend time with hisclassmates outside of school or for non-school related activities. Because ofthat, he’s not close enough to anyone to randomly message them at close tomidnight for homework help.

Justas he’s trying to figure out a solution – since it’s far too late to actually do his work like the goodstudent he only sometimes is, his phone goes off. And this, is the true startof everything.

[cmon i’ll pay u][and by pay i mean not break ur fucking teeth with my fist]

[Wrongperson?][Hopefully, at least]

[fuck][sorry][yeah][i meant to text the person above u in my message list thing]

[Everythingokay?]

[yeahjust some shitty hw]

[You too?][I have this awful history essay due tomorrow]

[historyis whatever][math is killing me]

[Math isn’ttoo bad][At least there’s always just one answer]

[historyand english u just bs tho]

[But it’sso subjective][Everything depends on something else]

[wannatrade then?]

Andthat is how Hajime found himself a homework buddy. Kuzuryuu is good at Englishand history, while Hajime’s strengths lie in math and science, and the both ofthem were pretty good at Japanese. One night of texting back and forth, helping(dipping into the realm of ‘academic dishonesty’ on occasion) with theirrespective assignments. They say goodnight close to dawn, but Kuzuryuu had stayedup long after his homework was complete and waited and helped Hajime until hewas done as well.

Fromthen on, Hajime would find himself texting back and forth with this boy he’snever met. At first, they exclusively went to the other for homework help, buteventually Hajime would send Kuzuryuu a short text about something funny that hadhappened (a cat attacking some dumb kids that were trying to taunt it) andKuzuryuu would send him a rant about something that annoyed him (old womenthinking that he’s younger than he is or a police officer asking if he’s losthis parents) and it snowballs into them casually texting throughout the day,particularly during boring presentations that no one, including the personpresenting, cared about.

[Payattention and stop distracting me]

[potnd kettle][stop looking at ur phone during class]

[Shush][I’m bored too]

[fuckinquit the holier than thou then][i can ignore u][nd u can be bored alone]

[Youwouldn’t do that][Who’d you distract if not me?]

[plentyof pple][ur lucky i deign to talk to u]

[Yeah][I’m sooo grateful]

[ushould be]

[Stilldoubt that you could ignore me]

[fuckintry me]

[Is that achallenge?]

Kuzuryuulasts all of until the end of the school day. Hajime can be quite theannoyance.

[jfc ur gonna break my phone]

[I win :D]

[uwin a fist to the face when i see u]

[Are wegoing to meet up then?][So eager to see me :P]

[Kuzuryuu?]

[I’m sorryif I made it weird]

[nahi had to hide my phone fr a bit][ur the one who sounds too happy bout gettinghis face smashed]

[You’re tooviolent][How do you have firneds if you treaten to hurt htem all the time?]

[nicetypos]

[Hush. Atleast I use proper grammar most of the time]

[yshould i waste my time with shit like that?]

[Forlegibility][I got to go][Got phys ed :/][Save me]

[ihope u have to run laps the entire time]

[You areevil]

Hope’sPeak’s festival comes and goes one weekend. As usual, it is a busy event due tothe school’s prestigious standing. Hajime, as promised, visits Chiaki’s class,doing an interactive murder mystery café of sorts where customers are givenclues with their orders to figure out the murder of a prop set up in the centerof the classroom. He finally meets some of Chiaki’s classmates whom she’stalked about and apparently she’s talked to them about him in return. However,and though he won’t admit it to anyone other than Chiaki if hard pressed, hekeeps his ears open for the name Kuzuryuu and is disappointed to realize thathis texting buddy was nowhere to be seen.

(“Kuzuryuu?We sent him to go advertise with Koizumi and Saionji,” says Sonia. “Do you twoknow each other?”

“Uh,he mis-texted me once,” Hajime replies. He redirects further questions awayfrom him and towards what they used to make the neon pink blood for the fakecrime scene.)

Hajimemay have lingered around for a bit until he couldn’t justify staying and beinga distraction any longer. By the time he leaves to go back home, he’s exchangednumbers with a few of them with vague promises to meet up some time and hangout. Even as he leaves the school, weaving past the steady stream of peoplestill entering the premise, his eyes roam for individuals advertising forChiaki’s class. He returns home to his books and TV without having met aKuzuryuu.

[You guysdid a good job at your school fest]

[uwent?]

[I promisedChiaki]

[u2 datin or somthn?]

[God no][We’ve known each other forever]

[doesntmean u havnt dated]

[Ew][She’s practically my sister]

[heardu got numbers frm some girls in my class]

[Oh yeah][Are Sonia and Mioda always like that?]

[annoying?][obnoxious?][preppy?]

[Haha][Your class seems really cool]

[seems][u dont see them 5 days a week]

[I bet your classmates have thingsto say about you too]

[maybe][but they wouldnt live for long if they say anything]

[Hahahawhat are you, the yakuza?]

[Kuzuryuu?]

[uhavent looked me up?]

[Why wouldI?][And you’ve never told me your first name]

[uwouldnt need my first name][but its fuyuhiko]

[You’re not pulling oneover on me are you?]

[i go to hopespeak idiot][sonia’s a motherfucking princess][nd y woud i joke about that?]

[You’re not going to send people after me for makingfun of you, are you?]

[ur entertainingfor now]

[Oh ha ha][Glad I amuse you]

[Wait][Oh my god][Is this you?][[image]]

[u got somethingto say?]

[No][Just][Not what I was expecting]

[think carefullybout ur words hinata]

[I thought I wasentertaining?]

[toys can getbroken]

[Now that’s uncalled for][I didn’t even say anything about how adorable you look]

[HINATA]

[It’s true though!][You can’t call a hit on me for being truthful]

[just shut up][y did i tell you to look me up][yd u look for pictures?]

[Curiosity][We’ve been talking for a while now and we don’t even know what the other lookslike]

[Kuzuryuu?][Did you know what I looked like?]

[bein cautious isimportant]

[Omg you looked me up][What horrible pictures did you find???]

[[image]]

[That’s from Chiaki’s fb!]

[not that hard]

[I TRIED TO FIND YOU ONFB THOUGH]

[securitysettings]

[Oh][Point]

It’snot too long after that Hajime receives a friend request from one KuzuryuuFuyuhiko. He hits accept almost embarrassingly fast and proceeds to exploreKuzuryuu’s newly unveiled profile with the eagerness of a stalker given an inchand taking a mile. There’s not much to explore, the other boy doesn’t seem touse the website very much, which honestly does not surprise Hajime though hecan’t help but feel a little disappointed.

[The last time you were active onfb was almost a year ago][And it was a profile pic update][That you didn’t even upload??]

[soudand sonia hacked my account][sonia was offended my profile pic was like 2 yrs old][koizumi has a fuckton of pics of ppl][nd i was 2 lazy 2 change it]

[It’s agood picture of you]

[thanks]

Uponadding Kuzuryuu, Hajime’s flooded by friend requests from Chiaki’s otherclassmates and ends up talking semi-regularly with them. Kuzuryuu and him stilltext each other practically daily, to the point Chiaki comments on it whenHajime is over at hers to help her complete co-op achievements for a game she’syet to 100 per cent.

(“Youand Kuzuryuu seem to really get along.” Chiaki glances pointedly at Hajime’sphone as it buzzes several times, Kuzuryuu’s name flashing on the screen.

Hajimeshrugs noncommittedly, and is oddly relieved that the game finishes loading andthey’re thrust into a horde of mutant creatures.)

Evenhis classmates notice he’s on his phone a lot more often during and betweenclasses.

(“Gota girlfriend, Hinata?”

Frowning,Hajime shakes his head, “No, why?”

“You’realways on your phone texting and smiling down at it.”

Hajime’ssure his face has never been more red and when, moments later, he gets a textfrom Kuzuryuu complaining about the apparent Souda-Sonia-Tanaka love trianglethat should just turn into a threesome, he realizes his face does indeed moveon its own.)

[Oh my godhelp]

[what’dyou do?]

[Gave into peer pressure and wentto a goukon with some classmates -_-][I’m hiding in the bathroom][But I’ll have ot go back out there][:c]

[urnot drinking r u?][ur not 20]

[A yakuzaheir is against underage drinking?]

[udidnt answer]

[No one’sdrinking][We’re at a karaoke place][But htank you for caring c:]

[shutup][u dont usually go out w/ ur classmates]

[Yeah][Some of them have been teasing me about a girlfriend so I mostly just went sothey’d shut up]

[girlfriend?][u said u nd nanami werent dating]

[We’re not][They think you’re my secret girlfriend]

[?]

[Apparently I smiled while textingor something][And I’ve been on my phone more often][And you’re the only person I really text during class so]

[oh]

[Yeah, funny right?][Wonder what they’d think if they knew I was texting buddies with the heir tothe Kuzuryuu clan lmao][Though some ofthem already give me shit for being close to Chiaki just cuz shegoes to Hope’s Peak][They think you guys are snobby elitests just cuz you go to a prestigiousschool and we’re just public school kids][But you guys arent tat different][Just different talents and families][Woops sorry][Didn’t mean to get all ranty][Ugh I gotta go][Can’t hide here forever]

Afterthe goukon, which wasn’t horrible but neither was it all that enjoyable, Hajime’splunged into preparations for his school’s culture festival and upcoming exams. He’s barely had timeto text Kuzuryuu other than short greetings and the occasional tidbit from hisday that the other boy would find amusing. He misses their daily conversationsand when he finally has some down time, the day before the culture festival,he’s holed up in his room and on his phone while he catches up on TV shows onhis laptop.

[Hey longtime no chat][I’ve finally got free time again!]

[yea][school stuff?]

[Yeah][Every teacher decided to have everything due weeks early so we weren’toverwhelend when finals come around][Kill me -_-]

[shouldnt u be spending ur free timew/ ur gf stead of talking to me?]

[What?]

[ugot a gf or whatvr after that goukon][didnt u?]

[No?][Where’d you hear that?]

[therewas a pic on fb][u were tagged][it showed up on my feed]

[I haventbeen on fb recently][Lemme check]

[Oooooh][Yeah no][I wasn’t even aware this was taken][And the comments are baseless][I barely spoke to her][There was no ‘chemistry brewing’]

[shescute tho]

[Yeah Iguess?][Objectively][But not really interested][She doesn’t go to my school][And we met for like five seconds]

[datingimplies getting to kno eachother]

[Yeah but][Idk][Just nothing clicked?][And I wasn’t even looking for anything going to the thing either so][What about you?]

[watabout me?]

[You thinkshe’s cute][She your type?]

[no]

[Am I notgetting more than that?]

[i’mmore into a dif set of anatomy]

[?????]

[shesnot a he]

[Oh][OH][You’re]

[homo]

[Oh]

[ifthats a problem u should delete my number]

[NO][Not a prob at all][Sorry][Just surpside][Supreied][SURPRISED][Fuck][I’m sorry]

[usaid that alredy]

[Well I am][Could have responded better]

[couldaresponded worse][so][not a prob?]

[Coursenot][That’d be stupid for one][And hypocrtical for antoher]

[hypocritical?]

[I’m bi][Or pan][Idk][Still nto sure about the difference tbh][Nd I have a friend who’s ace]

[nanami?]

[I cannot divulge something that isnot mine to tell]

[she let it slip when we werecleaning up after culture fest][sonia and mioda bugged her bout if u two were dating][hanamura wanted to know bout ur sex life]

[Hanamurascares me][And yes to Chiaki being my ace friend]

[hanamurascares everyone][u basically gave it away with ur notanswr answer]

[Shedoesn’t care][But I still didn’t actually confirm or deny][Because that would be rude][(◡‿◡✿)]

[fuckoff][dont u dare start using those kaomoji things like nanami]

[(。・ω・。)][( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)][*｡:ﾟ+\(^‿^✿)]

[imgonna block u]

[(◕‸◕✿) *pout*]

Theydon’t re-visit the topic of sexuality again and settle back into their frequentback and forth texting. Hajime’s still teased at school but once he finallycaves and lets his classmates know that he is not texting a girl, but a boyfrom Chiaki’s class at Hope’s Peak, all interest in his affairs are lost.

Winteris fast approaching and with that comes the school culture festivals foreveryone other than Hope’s Peak, who have their festival earlier because no onewould go to any other school event if Hope’s Peak is allowing outsiders to touraround. Hajime’s class decides what to do rather quickly since no one’s allthat interested in putting too much effort, but Hajime still ends up being runragged with the rest of his class in the last minute preparations.

[I hateculture fests]

[culturefest?]

[Yeah][My school’s one is coming up][My class is doing a butler/maid cafe][Because we are simple public school students who don’t have the resources forpink blood]

[I was kidding][Your class’ murder cafe was the best thing I’ve ever seen][Thouhg I admit I had high expectations since you guys do go to Hope’s Peak]

[it was nanami’s idea][nd hanamuras a creep but good cook][nd sonias gotta 1up everyone nd dished out money so we could go way overbudget]

[Haha][But it was great][I had a lot of fun]

[Btw][Your birthday’s coming up right?]

[no][y?]

[Is yourbirthday not during the winter?]

[itsin aug]

[But yourname is FUYUhiko]

[ndmy sis is natsumi but her birthdays in march]

[But][That doesn’t make sense]

[blameour parents]

Hajime’sculture festival comes and goes. It goes fairly well in his opinion, even ifhis butler uniform ended up shrinking in the wash and it was too late to fix. He’spretty sure his pants were borderline indecent with how tight they were and thefact that he had felt far too many eyes on his ass and crotch region during theday was not comforting in the least. No real disturbances occurred though, other than when Chiaki came by and was recognizedby video game enthusiasts and Hope’s Peak admirers.

[thoughtu were doing a butler cafe not a host club]

[?????]

[[image]]

[Where didyou get that???]

[ihave my sources][could u not find pants that werent 3 szies too small?]

[It shrankin the wash okay][But oh god][Did I look that bad all day???][Kill me]

[udidn’t look bad][how many ppl asked u out this time?]

[None??][Though now I know why girls kept giggling when I turned my back][I don’t know if I can show my face at school again]

[theywere prob giggling cuz u have a nice ass]

[Ha ha]

[urnot ugly idiot][i bet tons of girls are crushing on u at school][nd guys][im surprised ur single]

[Shut up][If it’s a surprise anyone is single it’s you][You’re funny, snarky, smart, and really attractive][And you pretend like you’re relaly grumpy and antisocial][But when Chiaki talks about school and you come up you’re always taking part][And the fact that you’re secretly really toned][Like seeing those beach pictures on Koizumi’s fb][Oh my god][And your eyes][If they look that gorg in candid photos I don’t want to imagine in rl][And I’m just this normal whatever][Mediocre in every way]

[Uh][Pretend I never said all that?]

[didu fb stalk me on other ppl’s fb?][nd ask nanmi to spy on me for u?]

[No]

[Maybe][No to the spying][Maybe I would ask about you though?][I’m sorry]

[ur not mediocre][wanna talk about pretty eyes?][and secretly toned bodies?][if u wore clothes that didnt swallow u][ud be batting away pple who wanna date/fuck u][nd ur eyes are the ones that are gorg and unique][u have any idea how many times ive thought of wanting to see em in person?][nad how nanami talks about u all the time][i knew of u before the whole mistexting crap][but as nanmi’s annoying notboyfriend][and now i get hwy she praises u so much][anyone would be lucky to go out with you][ur stupidly nice and considerate][but also a sarcastic little shit u cant hate]

[You don’t need to say nice thingsto me just cuz I made a fool of myself just now]

[imflirting wth u dumbass]

[Oh]

Hajime is typing…

[uever gonna finish ur reply]

[I’mpanicking][Give me a break][I don’t know how to respond]

[fine][go on a date with me?][ y ( ) n ( )]

[How did Inever realize how dorky you are]

[fuckinjust anser or ill punch ur stupid face]

[Maybe I’drather you kiss it]

[andi’m a dork?][fucking loser]

[Shut up][You didn’t say no though]

[ustill havent answered me]

[You first]

[fucku i asked first]

[I askedsecond]

[HINATAI S2G I WILL SHANK U]

[I’m sorry][I default to annoying when im embbarsed and dont know waht im doing][I want you to kiss me. I want to kiss you][So yes please]

[yesor no woulda been fine][dork]

“…”

“What?”Kuzuryuu finally snaps.

“This is a lot harder in person,”Hinata laughs weakly. And it really is. Especially because Kuzuryuu is even cuter in person and Hajime didn’tthink that could be possible. Also, the skinny jeans and casual button downcombo he’s sporting makes it hard for Hajime to look anywhere at the boy’s bodywithout blushing. He’d been so excited to finally meet up, expecting to fallinto conversation as easily as they do while texting, but one look at Kuzuryuuwaiting by the entrance of the movie theater, scowling at everyone who’d lookat him, had wiped most of the vocabulary in Hajime’s brain.

“Younever shut up when we text,” Kuzuryuu grumbles.

“It’snot my fault you’re even cuter in person and I forgot everything I wanted tosay.” Kuzuryuu scowls but he also turns redder than before. “See! If you canstop being so adorab—”

“Hinata,I swear if you call me c-cute or a—that, again you’ll wish I sent Peko afteryou.”

“Peko?”

Kuzuryuugives him a look that is equal parts fond and exasperated and a littlebewildered. “You could have found so much about me just from a few google searches.”

Hajimejust shrugs and looks down at his feet, “Yeah, but I’d rather get to know youby actually talking to you.” When he looks up, Kuzuryuu’s facing away but notenough to completely hide the fact that his cheeks and ears are tinged a darkpink-red, especially since Hajime’s got a 22cm height advantage. Hajime grins.“C’mon, we’re going to be late for the movie.”

Whenhe reaches forward and grabs Kuzuryuu’s hands, he files away the squawkingnoise the shorter boy emits as he tugs him along towards the movie theater. Inall honesty, Hajime wouldn’t be able to tell anyone about the movie they saw –he believes it was an action flick – since Kuzuryuu decided to pay back the handholding with a game of gay chicken that led to some intense public displayingof affection. They’re lucky the theater was mostly empty and they chose seatstowards the back. Hajime’s mental notes of Kuzuryuu by the end of the movieinclude several points relating to the plushness of Kuzuryuu’s lips, the factthat Kuzuryuu’s palate is quite the sensitive spot, and that Kuzuryuu has totry extremely hard to remain quiet.

#ask #kuzuhina #hinata hajime #kuzuryuu fuyuhiko #sdr2 #dangan ronpa #danganronpa #super dangan ronpa 2 #anonymous #my writing #tumblr fic

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