#the concept having to be.. small town /or/ store like a choice had to be made sdjfs

[reunitedinterlude]

lofi phantasy: the album

track 7: small town store

[rennybu]

Hiii Andy! I've adore your art for years and your characters. Their designs are so lovely!! And expressive!! I was wondering if you had any tips for a cohesive character design? Or even advice on adding little asymmetrical details or features? And help is greatly appreciated! Thanks! Wishing you all the best!

HELLOO!!! AAAH Thank you so much for such a thoughtful question, this makes me so happy to hear! I'm so sorry it took me so long to get back to you, it turns out I have way too many things to say about this topic AKLSDHFKLSDG

(pls take this readmore<3)

For the starting point in a design, I try to stick to whatever rules apply for the setting the character is in, and their role in that setting.

Basic colour theory is always at the back of my mind, as well. I tend to use analogous and complementary colours when I design my characters and their closets. Analogous colours keep a palette contained and feeling similar to itself without being monotone. And then using colours that are complementary to that elsewhere in the design adds contrast while still maintaining that feeling of cohesion :D

The intended use of the character also heavily affects what can make a design cohesive or not - it's very dependent on art style and medium. (A design for use in animation would be extremely different from semi-realistic TTRPG concept art. The rest of what I've written skews more towards the second option!)

I consider the colours, shapes and materials that make sense for what I want to convey about the world, and how the character would want to be presented in it. The Dogwood characters are my current exercise; Mel's clothes fit him perfectly since he works a labor intensive job on the farm, and his identity is wrapped up in it so he never strays far from heavy cotton, straight cut. Ryan and Park both wear ill-fitting clothes in completely different ways (Ryan, butchly. Park, autistic and transly) - and they each have work uniforms. Ryan's work uniform suits her gnc appearance (welding coveralls/safety gear), while Park's uniform completely transforms him into "Just Some Guy" and that changes how others read him, too (cashier). And they all shop at Local Thrift Store / Farmer's Surplus / The Walmart 1hr Outside of Town. Their styles give them each a distinct silhouette, and their levels of social comfort as well as public expression contribute to body language, colour choices, and shapes that make them stand apart from each other despite living in the same small bubble. COHESION!

Asymmetrical details and features are my FAAAAV THEY ARE SO FUN, I find inspiration for these in people-watching, nature documentaries, architecture, my reflection, my friends.. <333 This part is also fun to tie in to the character's setting! Springboard questions like. Are they prone to injuries? Magical injuries? Do they have like, modern dental procedures available? Do they give a shit about crooked or crowded teeth? Are they missing a tooth, or did they chip one? Do they smile a lot and have crow's feet/other wrinkles? Do they get a lot of sun, and do they have/use sunscreen? (Even finer wrinkles.) Did they have acne as a teen? Do they still? Are they in a combat-heavy setting, with the scars to show it? Even more uniform features like freckles aren't symmetrical.

Clothing is really good to use to play with asymmetry - maybe the character rolls their cuffs but one is coming undone a little. Jewelry of all types is also great for asymmetry since it can go anywhere on the body!! Facial and other physical deformities or injuries are also incredible to see, and should be researched to find out if they impact other parts of a person's overall health and mobility outright. The different skin texture of a birthmark, for example! I noticed in certain photographs, the subject's red birthmark changed the texture of the skin, so I started drawing Orson with one drooping eyelid on the side affected by his birthmark. The more you look, the more you find!

Before I get too carried away. I try to use asymmetrical details and features as a way to boost that "world setting" cohesion, and to bring attention to parts of the character I am personally endeared by or want other people to notice. Mahon's snaggletooth is an eternal fav, which made me draw him smiling more, which made me more prone to drawing lines around his eyes. And since the anchor is in his left hand, and he tries to hide it subconsciously, I put thumb-holes in his left sleeves, which he plucks through as a nervous fidget, and as a result, his clothes pull a little across his entire body :D ITS VERY FUN to find the right jumping-off point that lets specific details click into place. For Mahon especially, since so many of those details are derived from the setting and his role in it!

Asymmetry and symmetry are just tools at ur disposal. Asymmetry tends to be more comfortable and natural. Symmetry gives a sense of stability and can be pushed for a sense of power, a sense of being uncanny, rigid, etc. Asymmetry can also be pushed into uncaniness depending on what it's applied to!! (But as a matter of personal taste, I find asymmetrical details to feel more natural and inviting than perfectly symmetrical ones. Which. Again. Depending on the character's purpose, could equally contribute to a cohesive design!!!)

OMG ok my final thought. Asymmetry can also be used as a balancing tool which yet again lends to a sense of cohesion. Adding a detail on the left while leaving it out on the right, repeated throughout with different details where applicable. Loam's colour spots, archery gear, scars and jewelry are all areas I've played with this idea.

[dukeofankh]

I am a guy. I was not trained how to dress myself growing up. My dad--bless his incompetent small-town soul--still can’t dress himself, so it’s not like any of that was being modelled for me. And I was homeschooled, so I didn’t have friends to emulate. Everything I learned about clothing I learned from watching television, and every choice I made was made fun of. But luckily, there’s a lot of media around about how to dress yourself, and clothing can be cheap if you’re willing to go looking. (and if you get 50% off at the thrift store you work at).

I was also not trained in home decorating.

Like, I see a lot of posts about how single men’s homes look, on average, like shit. And yeah. They do. Nobody could really argue that they don’t. 

But what you learn with clothing is also applies to home decorating it is a language. There are regional dialects. There’s slang. There’s high and low formality. And learning that language takes time and effort, especially if you don’t have a teacher. Average men's fashion, like, off the rack mall stuff, is extremely homogenous, mainly because men don’t actually speak the language. They see something that looks good on someone else and they copy it. They know clothing phonetically. Not comprehensively.

But men's clothing literacy staggeringly outstrips the understanding most men have of home decorating. The term “Bachelor Pad” describes, for most men, their home during the only length of time where they live in a space which is not decorated primarily by their mother or partner. So it looks like garbage. (It is often also filled with actual garbage, but one issue at a time).

And like...it’s very easy to not be too sad about this. To frame this difference in literacy as further labour women must do for men.

I married someone with a literal fine arts degree, who could run circles around me on every component of composition, colour theory, ect. But she...cared what I thought. She asked me what colours I wanted in our house. She asked me what sort of spaces make me feel good. And when I didn’t know what words to use, she flipped her laptop around with pinterest and asked me to point. And then we found common ground, which ended up being dark academia.

I have never had a partner care enough to do this. Ever. My afab partners have always assumed that I had nothing to offer in terms of decorating the house. My wife told me that a vintage armchair I’d been hanging onto for years finally, finally made sense to her, because it looks terrible in an empty white room but it looks amazing by a fireplace. I’d bought it for 15 dollars. My taste wasn’t bad. I just had no concept of how to express it.

So rather than make the house her house and treat my input with disdain, she used her greater understanding of the language to glean what I liked, and then we built that together. Our house looks absolutely amazing, and I love it, and as a result of having that connection to it, I actually do a lot more housework and decorating projects. I watch tiktoks about Feng Shui and how to organize a space, I find cool old furniture at work and bring it home, i put up shelves for our cat to play on... because the result makes me feel like we have a lovely home. Our lovely home.

[sidehugsnsideblogs]

FCSU #95 Moving On

“Becca-Dawn,” drawled Vangie one morning over breakfast “I was thinking. Why don’t we go shopping today? And maybe a haircut?” Taken aback Becca stammered out a response. This was a big step for Evangeline. The two headed into town, jogging along the path. Becca-Dawn didn’t own a car and, as a trainer, never missed an opportunity to exercise. 

In the store Vangie struggled to put together outfits. It seemed like all the shirts were croptops, why don’t townies want to cover their stomachs? She decided that she wanted to keep pretty modest, but she was excited to try pants! Becca tried to help but a lot of her choices were too masculine for Evangeline’s tastes. In the end they had to call Penny and have her give advice over facetime.  Penny was dead on with her outfit choices. 

The next stop was the hair stylist. Vangie had cut bangs into her hair once as a child after teasing from Nina and Dina, but she’d never had a proper haircut. Her thick, dark brown hair hung far down her back when it wasn’t piled on her head and smothered in hairspray. Either way, it felt heavy on her neck and skull, causing headaches. The stylist was kind, going slow and checking with her client as he trimmed the length. Finally Vangie ended up with a cute style that ended just below her shoulders. She starting experimenting with different braids and learned to craft voluminous ponytails. 

Vangie loved all the outfits she bought! She modeled all her different looks for Becca-Dawn later that day. Each ensemble made Vangie feel beautiful and confident, and they were a mix of her favourite colours! It had been so long since there was some colour in her life.

Across town Farrah was grappling with similar thoughts. She had accepted she’d have to integrate with townie life but wanted to maintain the modesty of her faith, both old and new. She’d read all the books Jonah had given her and was now trying to make her way through the King James version of the Bible. She’d also been talking to Jonah almost every night. It sounded like he missed her. They decided to enter a long-distance courtship arrangement. This was good for Farrah, who still had to wrap her head around the concept of choosing a partner for herself.

They’d agreed that Farrah would stay with her sister until her kids were safely in her custody and emotionally stable. Then they would all move to Henford and hopefully the courtship would continue in person. AJ was surprised her sister was moving on so fast but offered support. Farrah was an adult after all, and AJ’s job was to love her family even if didn’t understand some of her sister’s choices-in love or fashion.

Likewise, Farrah didn’t understand the fashion in AJ’s family. Anna had finally aged up and was very much a teenager. She wore short, tight skirts, makeup and shirts that were down-right sluttish! She couldn’t understand why her mother would let her out of the house like that. That being said, sometimes the outfits worn by AJ raised her eyebrows too. AJ, for her part, didn’t much care what her children wore as long as they were doing well in school and kind to each other. She was grateful Farrah hadn’t been staying with them when Autumn lived there, she would have scheduled an exorcism.

Farrah was reading at the apartment when she got a phone call from a police officer, a sickly, malnourished and filthy girl had been left at a hospital in Windenburg who matched the description of one of her daughters. AJ offered to go with, but Farrah wanted to go alone to see her. She thought it'd be easier that way. She borrowed AJ's car to make the journey to Windenburg.

She was led to a small room in the hospital basement where Faith was lying on a bed. Tears welled in Farrah's eyes to see her daughter hooked up to a monitor and an iv. She looked so fragile. "Is she going to be okay?" She asked the nurse. "She's going to be fine. She's just getting some antibiotics for her infection and fluids because she's dehydrated. I'll leave you two alone for a while. Ring the buzzer if you need me." Answered the nurse before bustling down the hall.

Faith awoke about half an hour later. "Mama," She asked, rubbing her eyes, "Is it really you?" "Yes!" Wept Farrah, hugging her daughter. "You're safe now." As she regained her strength, she updated her mother and the detective on the others. "LeRoyce has been driving us all around in a filthy truck for months now. No one will agree to marry him, so he's trying to starve us into submission. I got a cut on my leg, and it got infected from all the filth. He thought I was going to die, so he dumped me here." She told them. Once her statement was taken and she recovered enough to travel, Farrah drove Faith back to Brindleton Bay.

Thankfully Alex had graduated and moved out meaning there was enough room for Faith to stay in the house as well. She set herself up in his old room while Alex pursued his biology degree from Foxbury Institute along with his cousins Ryder and Thomas. The three were planning to live in the dorms together but ended up rushing a rather loud and obnoxious fraternity and moving into the house, much to Teresa and AJ’s chagrin. 

[trinh24]

On the concept of luck and my legacy in Japan:

When I came to Nishiki, my supervisor told me, "You were really lucky to come here, to Nishiki." Out of all the small rural towns in Japan, in Kumamoto, in Kuma-gun. And I really didn't believe her. As many other upset people feel when they uproot their lives to move somewhere unfamiliar, I couldn't see the so-called luck I had. Me moving into a foreign country struggling with things that could have easily been prevented was not luck. Being able to say "I guess it could get worse" is a privilege, but it obviously didn't feel like that in the moment. At that tumultuous time, I was a pessimistic person who wanted some validation that my new struggles were real and painful.

But I admitted to myself that didn't know how my year in Japan would shake out or what kind of challenges I would face. As I slowly moved through the first few months, I had both positive and negative experiences that I thought were very balanced. I knew that I was lucky to have someone help me with the endless paperwork and translate my language shortcomings, but also unlucky that my house wasn't clean and I had a hard time teaching at school. Yet I needed to persist, even when overtime, the challenges eventually got worse and worse.

But sometimes you can only count on chance and luck. As a JET or an ALT, I knew from the get-go that I was already giving up many of my freedoms. I came knowing that I didn't get a choice of where I would live, what car I could have, what town suited me, what scenery I liked, or the types of friends and communities I could have around me. I allowed myself to be frustrated with losing those freedoms, because I know they're important to my life. But there was also no use in crying and sobbing for weeks over spilt milk.

After many months of getting to know my town and my coworkers, I realized that many of the relationships I had here, my car, and my house were all hand-me-downs. They were all things that someone else had maybe poured lots of time into, or things that had gone unattended after someone left suddenly. I could see things like love and attention in many places. Students I talked to could remember past ALTs and asked for them to visit them in Nishiki, fondly. Other times, it was things like the storage room next to our office, littered with years of old materials that had been stuffed full into cardboard file cabinets that are so heavy they couldn't slide out. Year after year, no one had touched what had come before and simply piled more on top and slammed the cabinets shut. And now, as I forced the drawers with two hands, I needed to use my body weight to yank them open. Peering inside, there were old worksheets, dirty flashcards, broken toys, picture books, and attendance lists that were once so precious. It had been so many years, but the worksheets were still here being archived in the storage room. Someone had created them, used them, and then left them here because they didn't want to forget them. But seeing the worksheets crumpled and forced into their spot between the books, the care that went into writing and printing these sheets was not also stored in this drawer. The people who came after didn't care to reuse them, to sort them, or to learn from them. The original care had left, and now the papers had become feed for recycling when I found them. They lasted so long here, but only to feel thin and fragile now.

Over the past year, I slowly learned of all these hand-me-downs that were out of my control. They were put here by someone else. But nevertheless, I could feel that they were mine. I inherited them. I didn't choose to inherit them but they were given to me. I can close the drawer and pretend not to notice, but every so often, a student will call for another teacher and tell me that they still remember what has come before, even if I try not to listen.

And now, the positive to all of this is that I have the chance to overwrite or continue building upon these relationships and these old memories. I didn't get a choice in what landed in my lap, but it's with my own freedom that I can change it.

Many people here were surprised I was only staying for one year here because I haven't experienced everything I could. When I arrived, staying for a short time actually threw a wrench into their plans, and I knew for others and myself that it was hard to conceptualize welcoming, training, and building a relationship with someone who had already decided to leave just as they arrived.

I think it's a habit of mine to overbook and keep myself busy with unrealistic expectations of what I can accomplish in such a short time. But I wanted to somehow leave this place just a little bit nicer than how I'd gotten it. Even if it wasn't at a macro, school district level of improving the proficiency of every single student, I wanted to peacefully and happily leave people with good memories or resources. I wanted to do the 頑張る and put in the "work" of what I saw in the worksheets in the storage room. But this time I would archive it together with the care, the organization, and precision I felt was missing from the previous years. I saw the opportunity to upgrade so many things at the office, the schools, the storage room, in my apartment complex, with so little time. But I was (or still am) determined to make it something worthwhile.

Even if it wasn't for me or my own self-growth, I slowly found people I trusted and people who had helped me through the lonely and frightening parts of this corner of the world. And I wanted to leave them something.

On a certain rainy Wednesday in July, It had been 11 months since I came to Nishiki. I wasn't surprised by many things at this point, but the fatigue and burden I had put on myself that came with trying to change or grow a legacy was weighing down heavily on me and my co-ALT Will. We simply wanted everything to go well, which was a small yet surprisingly high bar to pass with all of our stressors and obstacles at work. Every event we planned felt like an uphill battle, being bombarded at a nursery school and running around the office for hours had us listless by the end of the day. As the afternoon melted away, we both agreed that it was days like this that made us realize why overtime was common in Japan. Things like overwhelming deadlines that get pushed up due to unfortunate domino effects, needing to rethink and debate logistics a million times, and knowing that the next day we'd have to do it all again and explain (or debate it) with other coworkers.

As rewarding as it is to work with students and children, Will and I think very carefully about the reputation and legacy we're attempting to create and build upon. I suppose both of us are very ambitious in the sense that we consider our work to be crucial stepping stones for future ALTs to have smoother transitions and relationships with the people in Nishiki. It's quite a self-righteous and virtuous goal to chase. The catch was that it involved us having to teach ourselves how it all worked.

It's not that we said yes to too many things, but I feel that it's particularly in these last few months where we're seeing the dividends of our year's work. We were falling into the rhythm of the new school year and fiscal year, and now the work that people were gracious and comfortable to entrust us with came at us all on that day.

When my shift was finished, I took gathered my things from the office and walked downstairs to leave ahead of Will. Seeing the warm rain sprinkling down, I opened my umbrella and walked to my car quietly. As I approached it, another lady across from me got into her car, and I greeted her before opening the door to my passenger seat. I threw all of my things inside haphazardly and then finally closed my umbrella, luckily not needed because the sprinkles had come to a stop. I took the last of my energy and slammed the door shut to walk around to the other side when I heard a quick kerchak of the door lock.

I tried all four doors and the trunk, and of course nothing would budge. Of course it was on this day, and of course this would happen to me. I stood staring into the tinted windows of my car, with my phone and key locked inside. And after a minute, I saw Will walking towards me with the sad smile born from corporate fatigue. I returned the same smile.

As he lamented my situation, we relocated inside his car, which was parked right next to mine. I held my face in my hands and his phone rang, and we waited for our supervisor to call our car dealer.

"Of course this happens today of all days," I remember saying again out loud to him. I'm a believer in karma, and that whatever force that governed luck was doing it as a reaction to some other event in my life. Even after I had had enough of the day, the day had not had enough of me. It was luck that would do this. After a stressful work day, it was only fitting to get locked out of my car and feel even worse sitting with my friend in his car and taking up his time. I hid my face and wanted to cry because I knew that we were both tired and wanting the day to be over. If there is a fate or karma or luck in the world, there's that, plus me and my choices as a catalyst. The world slowly spinning on its axis plus me leaving my car keys deep inside my bag. With no luck to fish them out from the outside.

When our car dealer arrived from his busy schedule, I felt that I needed a deeper hiding hole to crawl into. Even though I was reassured that things were fine and that a representative from the car company could come to pick open the lock, I didn't feel any less tired and the process dragged on. As I listened to my car dealer, or rather my grandfather in spirit, talk to Will and I about locking mechanics, I thought if this was how it would feel like to still have grandparents. Will and I stood outside my car as he gave an anecdote about another lady he helped locked out of hers. I rotated between the same three reactions and shifted my weight from one leg to another. The grey sky showed no indication of time passing, like I was stuck in a video game cutscene or world that was choosing to move slower. Slowly, the rain began to fall on my glasses and we agreed to sit back in our cars.

I was being held hostage in the parking lot for longer and longer, and finally, our repairman came and we all crowded around outside to watch him use a stick to force the lock open from between the door and window. The rain hit my shoulder because Will's umbrella wasn't wide enough for both of us, and I again felt terrible for taking everyone's time. If I could've solved everything without mentioning it to a single soul, I would have. My original mission to make life and work easier for everyone who had helped me in Nishiki was slowly crumbling the longer I watched everyone stare at my car.

While the repairman struggled, my dealer/grandpa went into his car and came back to hand me an umbrella. I looked at the tacky print and hurriedly said thank you. It was a nice reverse or inverse umbrella that for sure was his wife's. When I puffed it open, it smelled like a grandmother.

In time, the other workers from the office finished their work days as well, and they drove past us, all crowded around the car.

"Ara, what's happened here?" One of our education advisors said, rolling down his window to look out at the absurdity of my fate. I sheepishly explained the situation. He smiled at how silly it was but reassured me it would be fine. When he wished us luck and drove off, another car drove in with my coworker and supervisor, back from an appointment.

"Ara? You're still here?" They rolled down the window and opened their mouths, gaping at the spectacle of my misfortune. Then, they parked and got out to help with the staring. I thought I was living out the rule of threes from children's storybooks. The next person to show up would surely have porridge that was not too hot nor cold or be a pig with a house made of bricks.

And sure enough, another secretary had, without me noticing, materialized on the other side of the crowd behind my car. "Oh, it's all fine now. You can go home, please!" But he ignored me and said he would stay to see if I needed his help. Everyone was insistent that they stay to watch the lock click open. I was stressed about the situation, but I wasn't trying to turn an anthill into a mountain.

At long last, the lock clicked open and they opened the door, setting off the piercing alarm. I scrambled for the key in my bag and turned it off, feeling the silence and relief.

I said thank you and good bye and thank you again and good bye again to everyone who had helped me. It had been a slow hour and a half since I had locked my car. Everyone slowly dispersed, and my dealer came back after seeing off the repairman. It turned out he was acquainted with his boss's boss, so he advised me that if a bill came for me in the mail to pay it. And if by some random chance there was no invoice at all... to not tell a soul and leave it at that.

I didn't know what to say other than thank you. After driving to come and help me for nothing in return, I was embarrassed and wanted to cry again.

What had I left for everyone who had come to help me today? I felt so lonely and confused coming to a new place alone with nothing, and wanted to strengthen the legacy I thought was weak from people before me. My goal was to help everyone who had paid me kindness this year, yet I was somehow leaving with more kindness and the urge to pay the debts I had accrued. But there was no real debt that anyone was expecting from me.

As I sat in my car by myself with the engine on, waiting for it to warm up and drive away, I knew that this was that blessed or cursed fate. That luck that my supervisor had told me I had. The reason why the car locked, and I spent an hour and a half here. That was the time it took for people to gather around me, to help me, and to support me. The time for me to have no choice but to be living in that moment where people were coming to me and saying that they cared. Because I needed to realize the kindness and love I was lucky to have, the universe and my stupidity banded together to make me sit down and show it to me. With no chance to look away or run away.

The care that I believed was lost from previous ALTs maybe wasn't in that drawer anymore. But it was sprinkled across this town, somewhat imperfect but still here, and I had grown it further. I was lucky that I inherited the people in this town who still cared for foreigners and strangers amongst them. I was lucky that everyone wanted to ask if I was okay and make sure it was so, even if I didn't say anything. It was both that luck I inherited and the effort I had poured into this place for 11 months, working together.

The last things for me to do are to continue writing thousands of words in advice I wish I had, using my strengths to help my co-teachers, and introducing my new friends to each other so they're not lonely after I leave. I can't control what's going to happen to the town or to me when I leave, but I trust that all the work I tried so hard to improve will settle into all the cracks and crevices of this town and sparkle.

Maybe I am lucky after all.

I cried on the drive home, thinking about how I did my best. I worked hard. The Trinh who wanted to make sure that the future was safe and comfortable had already accomplished that goal.

[starryevermore]

miss american pie: quite the sweet tooth (1) ✧ lee bodecker

miss american pie ✧ a modern tatted!lee series | ao3 | send in a request (consult request faqs first)

pairing: modern tatted!lee bodecker x tiny fem!reader

summary: when a little baker moves to town, the sheriff finds that he can’t wait to sink his teeth in her.

word count: 1,302

warnings?: slight age difference between reader and lee (reader is mid-20’s, lee is late-20’s/early 30’s), pet name (sweet cheeks), not proofread (wrote this in an hour, so expect mistakes whoops) 

note: while this is the main storyline i envision for modern tatted!lee, feel free to send in any ideas/concepts you’d like to discuss in my asks. 

disclaimer: by “tiny”, i am simply referring to the height of the reader, which i am envisioning as being 5’2” or less. i am not commenting on the weight/body type of the reader. just how she compares in height to lee. 

Moving to Knockemstiff was, perhaps, not the first choice you would’ve made when you got out of college. But, there was a thing about small towns: the cost of living was relatively low, at least when you compared it to the city. If you were moving to Cincinnati, for instance, you probably couldn’t afford the tires on your car. Not to mention how much more difficult it would be to get a job. In a small town, though? People were practically begging for workers. Plus, everything was so much cheaper. You were able to get a 2-bed, 1-bath apartment all on your own. And you wouldn’t even need a roommate! The best part, though? Your apartment was right above your soon-to-be-opened bakery. 

It was almost funny how small towns sometimes would lack things that bigger cities would have. Knockemstiff only had the one grocery store, where they would get any sort of food that they needed. What more could they want with their typical grocery items, the deli, and the bakery that the little Mom and Pop shop had? Everything they needed, all in one place. They didn’t need, or really want, anything else. 

Well, to that, you’d say that they hadn’t tried anything you’d made yet. 

The bakery was cute. Not quite how you wanted it to look from the exterior, but that was the price you paid for putting it right on Main Street. Every building there was considered historical, and the local Historical Society would serve your head on a platter if you ever dreamed of doing anything to ruin the aesthetic of Main Street. So, you bit your tongue on the matter and worked your damned hardest to make sure that, if you couldn't have the outside of the building to your preference, at least the inside would be exactly as you wanted it. 

You worked tirelessly to make sure everything was ready. And finally, finally, it was all coming to fruition. 

The local newspaper had come down earlier to take pictures of the grand opening. Something about a bakery coming to town was a big deal. You thought it odd, but figured it was just another one of those small town quirks. And, besides, it was free publicity. Your bakery would be front and center on the front page of the newspaper. Anyone who hadn’t heard of your bakery by now certainly would by the time they read tomorrow’s paper. And, if you were lucky, it might even draw in a few curious folks. 

You stayed busy most of the morning. While you had been working on getting the bakery up and running, word had spread throughout Knockemstiff about you, and there were more than a few people who, for better or for worse, wanted to know what the big deal was. And, so it seemed, you only had satisfied customers, if the looks on their faces as they dove into their chosen treats were any indication. 

Most of the morning rush had died down when you heard the little bell above the door ring. You don’t look up, busy placing another tray of chocolate chip cookies in the glass case, calling out, “Hi! Welcome to Sweet Sensations! I’ll be with you in just a moment!”

As you straightened back up, you realized that you had a crowd of people coming into your shop. The entire sheriff’s department, so it seemed with their uniforms and tools of their trade. 

One man stepped up to the counter, glancing over the treats you had out on display. As you looked up at him, waiting for him to say something, you suddenly became aware of just how small you were, especially compared to him. You barely were taller than the cases you’d ordered, but compared to this man? Shit, he could probably squish you under his boot.

Then your eyes zeroed in on the shiny sheriff badge on his chest, then trailed down his arms to the wisps of a tattoo peaking out onto his hands. When you finally looked back up, unaware that you were licking your lips, the sheriff was smirking down at you. “What can I get for you today, sheriff?”

“Well, what would you recommend, sweet cheeks?”

“Um, everything?” you squeaked. Your eyes dart over the top of the glass cases, trying to figure out what would be best to recommend. “I, uh, think my favorites would be the personal apple pie, the red velvet cupcakes, and the peanut butter cookies.”

He nodded, stroking his chin like he was thinking. Finally, he said, “I’ll take one of those pies, a half dozen of the cupcakes, and a dozen of the cookies.”

You nodded, grabbing some boxes to put each of the orders into. “You got quite the sweet tooth, sheriff.”

“Lucky for me that I got a sweet little thing like you to satisfy all of my cravings.”

You paused as you stacked the boxes into a bag for him to carry. Did he just? No, surely he couldn’t have. He was just talking about food. Right? There was no way he actually said that, was there?

“That’ll be twenty-four dollars and seven cents,” you said.

He reached into his back pocket, retrieving his wallet. It was almost like he was taking his sweet time in pulling out his credit card, like he was doing his damned hardest to make this interaction last as long as possible. It almost made you melt. You couldn’t remember the last time someone was this dedicated to spending time with you. 

The card reader was on your side of the register, so he reached over, his fingertips brushing up against yours as he passed you the card. You fought the urge to squeak at the contact, focusing entirely on swiping the card and ripping off the receipt that spat out from the register. But, as you passed the card and receipt to him and your fingertips brushed against his again, the squeak fell out before you could stop it.

His smirk was wide as he slipped the card and receipt into his wallet, before returning it to his back pocket. “Now, what’s a sheriff gotta do to get your number, sweet cheeks?”

You weren’t sure where the confidence came from, the feeling odd as you found yourself saying, “You gotta share a cheesecake with me first.”

“Ah. Well, I get off work around four o’clock. That good for you?”

Wait, he was serious? And he wanted to see you tonight? What kind of cheesy Hallmark movie nonsense had you walked into? But, shit, as you looked into his soft blue eyes, you couldn’t help but wish it stayed as sweet as a Hallmark movie—at least, minus all of the drama that comes with a movie. If it could just stay like this, you’d never complain. 

“Just peachy.”

“See you then, sweet cheeks.” As he turned, ready to leave, you called out, stopping him in his tracks. He turned, the smirk on his face prominent, as he asked, “Yeah, sweet cheeks? You need something?”

“Only fair that I know your name before you come over tonight. My name’s—”

“Lee. Lee Bodecker. And don’t worry ‘bout tellin’ me your name. It’s my job to know who everyone in this town is.”

You frowned. “You already know my name?”

“Like I said, sweet cheeks, I got quite the sweet tooth.”

And, with a final wink, he turned and left, the little bell above the door ringing as he went. You stood for a moment, trying to process what the hell just happened. But, that would have to wait. You had a business to run, and a cheesecake to pick out for tonight. So, you straightened yourself up, brushed off the invisible dust from your apron, and called out, “I can help whoever’s next!”

[outofsstyles]

WILDEST DREAMS

a/n: soo I’ve been working on this for a little while now and I’m very excited to share it with you al!! This piece is inspired by Taylor Swift’s music video for her song Wildest Dreams. If you’ve never seen the video, or don’t remember it really well, I recommend you watch it *after* reading the story so you don’t get it spoiled! If you’re interested then you can watch it by clicking *right here!!*

Word count:  17.2k                     Rated: M, mature           

You agree to help your friend on her film project and Harry is playing your love interest.

“You’ve been frowning a lot and haven’t said a single word in the past five minutes, what’s wrong?” You looked up to your quiet roommate sitting opposite to where you stood near the kitchen counter. 

A playlist you both had made months ago, meant only for cooking days, as Nia had instructed, played faintly in the background. You hummed along to the melody of a song you didn’t really know the name of, but had listened to it enough to mumble the lyrics, as you focused on cutting banana slices.

Nia was the one who brought up trying out a new fruit smoothie recipe she had found while scrolling around on Pinterest. She was pretty excited after coming home with the groceries, ready to start the process. Which is why seeing her sitting quietly as she glared at her phone was a big sign that something was wrong.

“I think Jordan is about to pull out on us,” she groaned loudly, locking her phone and throwing it on the counter, running her hands on her face, “I can’t believe this is happening a week before filming starts.”

“Oh, that’s not good news” you said, looking back at your friend’s defeated state in front of you as you threw the banana slices into the blender. “What happened?”

“He said he decided to go with his cousin to Ibiza.” Her arms muffled her voice as she lied on top of them, sighing once again, “this is the third one that leaves, I might as well just cancel the entire thing and fail this class.”

You rolled your eyes lightly at her, shaking your head as you listened to her dramatic reactions. Being her friend for as long as you have, you knew how stressed Nia got with a project, specially something she was passionate about. She was always too hard on herself, trying to push everything to be as perfect as possible, which is a good thing when you focused on the ultimate results. But she often tended to over-stress herself, and that’s what makes you worry.

With this one in particular, you could tell how excited she was from the day her teacher assigned it. She came back home and rambled for hours on end about making her first film. Which is why when she begged you to be part of it, and you couldn’t find it in your heart to say no. 

It was a small production after all, it just being Nia and her partner Evan, whom you have known had gotten close to her in the past months. She assured it would a rather simple concept, with only two characters. The trickiest part being the fact that they would film it out of town, in a camp house that belonged to Nia’s aunt. You had agreed to it to make her happy, and with her promise of buying you chocolate muffins. Most uni students, however, didn’t seem as keen to sacrifice a week of their spring break as you were.

“You’re being dramatic Nia,” you reassured, turning on the blender and cringing at the loud noise that took over the place. “Maybe they just read on the script that they would have to kiss me a couple of times and got too nervous about it,” you tried to humor, raising your voice a bit before turning the processor off. Nia looked back at you with a serious expression, making you scoff, “calm down, grumpy pants, I’m sure Evan knows someone who can do the role, stop worrying.”

“All I do is worry, you know that,” she sighed, standing up to walk towards the cabinets behind you. She selected two matching cups that she had gotten for your birthday, one had Elsa printed on it, and the other Anna. You smiled as she placed them on the counter, knowing you always thought matching friendship objects were silly, but Nia loved it, so you loved it too. She looked vaguely at the blender, letting her shoulder weight down.   “At least we have a banana smoothie.”

“And something else!” You said, jumping on your feet to get to the fridge and retrieved a tupperware. You held it in her direction and smiled, “leftover spaghetti from Joe’s!” you exclaimed, attempting to brighten her mood. She looked back at you, grabbing the container from your hands, as she tried to fight back a smile.

“Yes,  how could I forget the leftover spaghetti?”

**

As the days passed by, the both of you had gotten more stressed out. Nia was still worried about everything related to her film project. With the days passing by and no one to fill the other role on the script, she found herself on a daily cycle of stress breakdowns. 

Just two days after your former cast partner dropped out on the project to spend his week on the busy beaches of Ibiza, she had bought three different boxes of hair dyes. And as you helped her turn her hair into a light shade of pink, she cried about how everything seemed to go wrong in her life.

Meanwhile, you had been struggling to fight your procrastination tendencies and try to finish as much work as possible before spring break. A task that was showing itself to be extremely difficult, considering your mind seemed more focused on binge watching true crime shows on YouTube. 

The blank document stared back at you from your computer screen, as you wished that if you looked at it for long enough, the essay would somehow write itself. Writing a couple of words but soon deleting them and going back to an empty page, you signed. Why was it so difficult to introduce a topic? You took a sip of the hot drink on the sparkly Cinderella mug you had chosen for the day, another one of Nia’s Disney-related possessions. 

You frowned at the blank document, your failure to write a single paragraph still open in front of you. You heard a light knock on your bedroom door, but before you could even say anything, you spotted the already fading pink hair coming into the room. 

Nia walked in jumping excitedly, saying your name in little squeals and almost tripping down as she made her way to sit on your bed in front of you. Breathing out, she looked at you with a big smile and messy hair before blurting out.

“We’ve got you a husband!” you stared back at her, arching your eyebrows. You knew she was referring to the role on the film, but you still laughed off at her choice of phrasing. “Evan got someone, it’s like his old friend or something, said he trusts him not to drop out.”

“Well, fourth time’s a charm, I guess?” you smiled at her. 

“We’re planning a pizza night this Friday, so we can, you know, set the details and all that.” She properly lied down next to you, playing with the strings on the hem of your pajama shorts. “Also so you two can meet each other, of course, you’re going to be married for a week after all.”

“The way you say it seems like we’re actually doing it,”  You laughed, finally closing your computer, and moving down to face her. “We’re just playing characters, Nia.”

“I know, I know… You’re really no fun, aren’t you?” She moved her arm up to support her head and poked you with her free hand as you rolled your eyes at her. “Also, he seems pretty cute, Evan showed me his picture, maybe you two can hit off.”

“I’m sure he is,” you tried not to fall for her attempt on teasing you over someone you don’t even know. Sure, you’ll be playing love interests, but you’ve done this plenty of times before, back on your theatre days. Kissing someone on stage doesn’t mean you have feelings for them in real life, and you knew that pretty well. You sighed, looking down at her, not wanting to engage into this kind of topic.

“Anyway, should we celebrate your new cast member and my inability to write a single sentence about art history?” you changed the subject, trying to distract yourself from your own thoughts. “We could watch Devil Wears Prada and make caramel popcorn.”

Nia gasped dramatically, “these are the most beautiful words I’ve ever heard coming from those pretty lips of yours,”  jumping to her feet as she pulled you to stand with her. She then ran out of the room, screaming back, “I’ll get the blankets and you start with the popcorn!”

It’s been years since you’ve known Nia, but yet the dynamic between the two of you has never really changed. You’ve always considered yourself very lucky for having a friend like her in your life. From the day you met her in your English class, it was like seeing someone you had already known your entire life; it was always that easy to be with her. 

You two became inseparable from day one.

Looking back, it’s crazy for you to realize how well your high school plans with each other had turned out. Most people you know had those friends in school they only really talked to because they saw them five times a week. But as soon as graduation came by they parted their ways and became only good nostalgic memories for one another. With the two of you, everything just worked out. 

You both got into the university you wanted, ready to get matching art degrees. On your second year of college, you moved in together. And halfway through the course, Nia just dropped out to enroll on an eighteen months film school. And that’s when she met Nate. 

You always knew she was destined to be that kind of person who just has one great love in her life. Which was funny considering that anyone who spent over five minutes with her and Nate in the same room could swear they would never work together. They just were those kinds of couples who are the polar opposite of each other. 

Nia was a little social butterfly, who could start a conversation with anyone about anything. She could talk for hours with the old ladies at the grocery store about how the new brands of beans are just not as good as the ones not as well known. Or chat with the yoga moms about a new reality show that had premiered on Netflix. She loved experimenting on new things, trying out new recipes or mix distinct colors together on her clothes.

Nate, on the other hand, just wasn’t much of a talker at all. Since the start of their relationship, he often stops by at your apartment -wearing a different shade of grey every time - but it would be a lot to say that you two have had a conversation for longer than five minutes. He just mostly kept it to himself. 

They balanced each other, which is why they worked so well.

It would be a lie for you to say you didn’t think about having something like that for you. You thought maybe you just weren’t the kind of person to have one meaningful relationship in your life. And that was okay. You’d like to think you’re better off on your own, anyway. But now and then you wondered how it would be to fall asleep in someone’s arms every day.

But you tried your best to keep those thoughts locked away in the back of your head. You knew that for the most part love is not really meant to last, Nia was just part of the lucky few.

**

The atmosphere in your shared apartment was cozy, as you waited for Evan and his friend to arrive before you started the pizza hangout, as Nia called it. 

You both had spent the day tidying up the place, trying to decorate it a bit with some fairy lights and nice pillows you found in your room. It had been a long time since you had done any kind of social gathering in your home, and Nia wanted everything to be perfect. She even insisted on making the pizzas herself, which took most part of the afternoon, and a lot of bossing around on her part. 

By the time the food was in the oven and the only thing left to do was wait, her boyfriend joined the two of you. 

She was very talkative and bubbly, as she usually is, getting the wine bottles she selected for the evening and placing them on the counter as she chatted with him. It was nice seeing her back do being her usual self after such a stressful week. 

You got the right amount of glasses, placing them next to the bottles, as you hummed along to the Declan Mckenna’s voice playing in the background. You weren’t really paying attention to Nia’s babbles, catching a word or two as she rambled about some dolphin documentary she had to watch for one of her classes. Pouring out a glass for yourself, you looked over to Nate who had a puzzled look on his face, as he tried to make sense of whatever rant his girlfriend had going on. You took a sip of your wine, and laughed lightly at yourself at the contrast between the two of them, something you had always found very amusing to observe. But before you could go further into your thoughts, the sound of the buzzer took over the small apartment.

“They’re here!” Nia gushed, as she quickly made her way out of the kitchen to get the front door, yelling back at you to get the pizzas out of the oven.

“Yes, ma’am,” you teased after she left, earning a light chuckle from Nate. 

Making your way around the kitchen, you took out kitchen gloves that had figures of little chicks printed on them, giving one last check inside the oven to make sure everything was ready, before opening it and taking out the food. You could hear Nia greeting Evan excitedly in the background, as she rushed him and his friend to come inside. As their voices got closer, you turned your back to the entrance, concentrating on not burning yourself while you placed both pizzas on top of the counter.

“There’s our star!” You heard Evan’s loud voice taking over the kitchen space, making you look over your shoulder and laugh at him. 

You turned around while taking off the gloves, as he pulled you into a tight hug, the strong scent of his cologne invading your nostrils. He wasn’t much taller than you, making him being considered short for a man. But his presence in a room was always so loud and bright that he seem much bigger than he actually is. You pulled back and looked at him, suddenly feeling underdressed in your own home. His entire outfit was bright red, being consisted of a jean jacket and silk pants, his eyes matching with vibrant eyeshadow taking over his whole eyelids.

“It’s very nice to see you again Evan,”  you smiled at him, his hands still holding onto your shoulders as he looked warmly at you. “It’s been too long! You look fabulous!”

“Oh honey, you flatter me too much! It’s why I love coming here,” he scoffed playfully, coming to your side and wrapping one arm over your shoulder as he guided you. “But tonight is not about me, unfortunately. It’s about the two of you.”

As you finally moved your attention to the kitchen entrance, you realized another presence standing there. A man, who you assumed was Evan’s friend, already smirking down at you as both of you approached him. 

You suddenly felt nervous under his stare while you could hear Evan commenting on something you didn’t really pay attention to. You had been taken completely by surprise by the man standing in front of you. Sure, Nia had mentioned to you once or twice that he was good looking, but you were not expecting this. 

It was a weird feeling, being this affected by someone you had just met, but you would have to be blind not to notice. His face was beautiful, a sharp jawline contrasting his soft skin, his fingers poked at his bottom lip as he smirked, you could notice the hint of a dimple forming on his cheek. His hair was short, but still long enough to see the shape of slight curls forming in it, some locks falling charmingly against his forehead. But what hit you the most were his eyes, thanks to the dim lighting you couldn’t really tell if they were a shade of forest green or more of a hazel tone, but you could feel your cheeks warming up from the way he watched you as you got closer.

His shoulders were broad, as he was leaning against the entrance, the hand that wasn’t poking at his lip resting inside the pocket of his brown pair of trousers. He wore a blank white shirt, partly tucked in, underneath a beige cardigan. The sleeves had been rolled up to his elbows, making you notice the tattoos hugging the skin of his arms. You felt a curious wish to know how many more you could find under all the layers of clothing..

As you and Evan got closer, he moved from his leaning position to stand tall in front of you. The smile never leaving his lips, and his eyes still watching you closely.

“So, darling, meet Harry,” Evan spoke up, gesturing you towards his friend. “He’s a pest, but I’m sure you’ll get along just fine”

“Way to give a first impression, E,” Harry rolled his eyes at his friend’s teasing, before turning his attention back to you. He moved closer, embracing you into a side hug “S lovely to meet you-”

You quickly cleared your throat, afraid that your voice would give you away, before saying your name. The attempt didn’t really seem to work, as your words came out higher than you had intended. You could feel Nia’s gaze turning to you on the corner of your eye, but tried your best to ignore it. He repeated it, before shooting a smile in your direction, the sound of his deep voice and the way his lips circled around the words making the hairs behind your neck rise.

“Okay! So how about we move this party to the living room?” Nia’s voice broke into the atmosphere. “Everyone can get their wine glasses and make themselves comfortable while y/n and I finish arranging the pizzas.”

She shot you a knowing look, before moving to get the wine bottles and handing them to Nate. Everyone shifted to get their glasses and settle in the other room, leaving you and Nia alone. 

You moved to get the knives and looked at the pizzas standing on the counter in front of you, calculating how you could cut out even slices on each. You could see your friend from the corner of your eye leaning on the counter staring directly at you.

“You know you can’t fool me even for a second, miss,” she teased, you could hear the smirk on her voice.

“I’m not doing anything,” you murmured, still not looking in her direction. She scoffed, elbowing you lightly as she mimicked you, saying your name in a high-pitched voice. You shot her a dirty look before shushing her, afraid the guest in the other room could hear her teasing. “I didn’t sound like that!”

“Oh please! You should have seen how you looked at him!” She rolled her eyes at you, “thought you were gonna drop down on your knees right then and there!”

“Nia!” you screamed in a whisper, your cheeks warming up at her words as you pinched her, making her squeal. You quickly shot a look at the entrance to see if anyone might’ve heard her, but they seemed to be enrolled in their own conversation. “Let’s just get this done quickly before they suspect we’re in here for too long.”

“Okay, cheeky girl,” she bit her lip and moved to get a knife to cut one pizza, but still eyeing you with a slight smile, leaning in one last time, “but I told you he was cute.”

Eventually, the two of you finished sorting out the pizza slices and joined everyone in the living room. Nia then rushed to join her boyfriend on the loveseat, leaving the only spot available for you being between Harry and Evan on the couch. She shot you a teasing smile, but you tried your best to ignore it and focus on finishing the wine glass you had poured for yourself earlier.

“Okay, so I’m going to need everyone to eat the food and tell me how good it is,” Nia pointed out to the center table where the  pieces of pizza laid upon, “I’ve spent the entire afternoon on these babies, so eat up!”

“You know that I’ve helped you with them, right?” you added, squinting your eyes at her, “some credit wouldn’t hurt.”

“You only laid the toppings on the dough so they would look even,” she snapped back pointing a finger at you, “I did all the hard work, so shush it.”

But before anyone could move to get a slice, Evan was already stretching out his arms to stop you from moving. “Wait a second,” he spoke, “I feel like I’ve watched enough seasons of MasterChef to be the first one to judge.”

“I mean, you are the best critic I know,” Nia pointed, leaning in to get a slice and offering to Evan, “but again, I don’t really know any other critics.” She humored as he took the food, making a show of analyzing it.

Everyone waited expectantly as Evan bit into the pizza slice, keeping a straight face that didn’t reveal much of his opinions. Nia leaned in his direction, nervously biting her bottom lip as she waited for his final verdict.

“You have to be honest,” she warned, observing him, “but know that I can get my feelings hurt pretty easily.”

“I don’t mind that,” Evan finally said, straightening his posture as he looked back to Nia’s waiting eyes, “I’ll say that it’s not the best pizza I’ve ever had,” he announced, “but it works.”

“You know what, I take it,” everyone laughed lightly as Nia visibly released a breath she had been holding in, “It’s not a bad review for a first time.”

The hours went by quickly as you eased into a conversation with everyone. It was nights like this you missed the most when the stress of all the accumulative work weighted on your shoulders. Having a more of a cool night to hangout with a few friends, drinking some wine and chatting about whatever topic came to mind.

As time passed, you could tell Nia and Evan got more agitated, probably due to the amount of wine they had consumed without even realizing. They chatted excitingly about Midsommar, their voices raising a bit too loud. But every time you tried to shush them, jokingly reminding of the neighbors next door, they would soon forget about it again.  You watched them babble, giggling when they would get excited on a certain topic and start to trip over a few words. 

You also felt lighter because of the alcohol, not as much as them, but still enough so you could feel your chest warmer and your mind a bit dizzy. You still felt an annoying tingle at the pit of your stomach when you felt Harry’s eyes fixating on you when you spoke, or when your hands brushed as you reached for the bottle at the center table. It was silly, and it made you feel like a teenager being in the presence of an attractive boy for the first time.

When it all quiet down eventually, Nia had dragged Evan to her room so he could give an insight on how she could decorate it. It was something she would do now and then, give her room a big renovation so the change in the space could make her more motivated, or something like that. Sometimes, if she felt inspired enough, she would change around the living area or  even your own room - when you allowed her, of course. 

Nate was still sitting on the loveseat looking like he was about to fall asleep at any moment as he scrolled through his phone. He hadn’t spoken a lot during the night, which wasn’t unusual for him, but he still managed to chat for a bit. 

That left you and Harry alone sitting on the main couch, with one person less it left you enough space to cross your legs, making yourself more comfortable. He was sitting on his side, his back resting on the big pillows by the arm of the couch, his chest turned towards you.

You reached for the wine bottle at the center table, realizing there was just a bit left, enough for a last glass for the two of you. “Wanna help me finish it?”  You turned to him with the bottle in your hand. He had a smile resting on his lips, as he raised his glass toward you so you could pour the liquid into it. You could tell his eyes were a bit cloudy, but you knew none of you had had enough to be drunk.

“Thank you, love,” he said, the raspiness on his voice as he spoke the pet name making the hairs in the back of your neck rise. You poured yourself the rest of the wine left, emptying the bottle as you settled it back where you got it. “Should we make a toast?” 

“Sure,” you replied easily, smiling at him, “what should we toast for?”

He looked away, puckering his lips slightly as he made a puzzled expression, a hand scratching at his chin as if in deep thought. You giggled at his dramatics before he pointed his finger up, his face turning into a big smile. He raised his glass in your direction, as you did the same. “A toast for being husband and wife?”

You chuckled, clinking your glasses together, “that’s fair,” you said, “ ‘s why we’re here after all, isn’t it?” you joked, taking a sip of your drink before settling it down on your lap.

“Sure is,” he mimicked, rising his glass to his lips, a smirk still adorning them as he managed to not break eye contact. He took a small sip before settling his glass back on the table.  He scratched the tip of his nose slightly with the side of his finger, before he relaxed back on the couch. “So” he spoke up, bringing your attention to him, “E told me you’re an actual actress,” he raised his eyebrows at you, “made me a bit nervous, love.”

“That right there is a lie,” you chuckled, biting your lip and shaking your head. “I used to do theatre back in the day, haven’t done any acting for years though.”

“A theatre kid, huh?” He laughed as you rolled your eyes jokingly.

“I’m aware we have a poor reputation, yes,” you said,  “I reckon we deserve it, but we weren’t that bad, I promise.”

He giggled, making your heart skip a beat at the sound. His smile was something you could easily get used to, the way it formed crinkles in his eyes and the dimples deep on his cheeks. You had to stop yourself for staring too much, moving your gaze to the glass on your lap.

“People are too harsh on theatre kids,” he reassured, “I think it seems pretty fun — only time I did it was when I played Elvis when I was about five, I think.” He added, resting his arm against the couch, his hand just a few inches away from your shoulders. “Had the time o’my life though.”

“You got main character though, that’s impressive,” you expressed, raising a hand to poke at his side playfully. “Have you done anything since your big debut as the king?”

“Can’t say I have, no,” he chuckled, “guess this is my big comeback, maybe I’ll get a call from broadway soon.”

“I’m sure you will!” You giggled, taking another sip from the glass in your hand.

You found it easy to dive into a conversation with him. You were both giggly from the wine, but it still seemed like you could stay like this for hours on end,  just talking to each other. 

He told you he wasn’t planning on doing the film, considering he never really thought about acting. But when Evan asked him if he could be part of it, he saw how desperate he was to fill the role, so he agreed. It warmed your heart to hear how fondly he spoke about his friend, telling you how willing he was to help, even if it involved doing something out of his comfort zone.

You two bounded over your mutual wish to become teachers. You found out he was studying Literature, a choice that for him as an easy one, considering throughout his life he had always been an avid reader. He said no matter how harsh thing got, he always found an escape between books, you could tell how passionate he was about it as he spoke about his favorite reads.

Eventually, you could hear voices coming closer from Nia’s room, as they seemed to be gushing about the filming that was starting soon. 

As Evan came into the room, he made his way to the couch, placing his hand on Harry’s shoulders. “Honey, as much as I wish we could stay here ‘til dawn, I’m afraid we must get going.”

With his declaration, everyone moved around to gather the dishes splattered across the center table to put it all at the kitchen counter. After some insisting -mostly on Harry’s part- on helping with cleaning, you convinced them you two could handle the task just fine. And they were the guests, after all.

Finally, you said your goodbyes, pulling Evan on a small hug, assuring him you’d do your best to do his script justice.

And as you came to face Harry, he leaned into a hug, giving you a last kiss on the cheek, before telling you how lovely it had been to meet you.

**

You had woken up with your door opening abruptly, making you jump a bit from the sudden change in the peaceful atmosphere from your deep slumber. Before you could process the situation in hand, Nia was already pulling out the covers and spitting out words at a faster pace than you could comprehend in your mind state.

“Get up already! We are very late,” She urged as you lazily scratched at your eyes before sitting up to look at her. “Evan is going to kill us!” She cried out.

Your head pounded slightly, making you search for your water bottle previously prompted by yourself the night before, knowing you would need it in the morning. You reached for it in your nightstand, taking big gulps as you watched amusingly Nia run around your room picking random clothes and throwing it in a duffel bag you had just noticed.

Resting the bottle down on your lap, you yawned lightly, still in the process of waking up. “Calm down Ni,” you mumbled, “We still have time, we’re only leaving at like, two.”

She looked back at you as if you had just slapped her across the face, your shirt falling partly from her hand. “It’s already one,” she informed, making your eyes bulge as you reached to check on your phone, confirming as it read 1:16pm. “We don’t even have our bags packed AND we got a sink full of dishes to wash.”

The minutes after that were rushed, as you two did your best to get ready as fast as possible. Mentally slapping yourself for leaving everything for the last minute, but still managing to pack your bag in record speed.

But as time passed and the list of things to do was still far from over, Nia phoned Evan and let him know you would need a few more hours to be ready to leave. To say he wasn’t the happiest about the news was an understanding, but there wasn’t much he could do about it.

A couple hours later you were finally packed, and after a quick stop to shop for road trip snacks you were off on the road. 

You left much later than planned, and even if it wasn’t that much of a long drive, it was still 3 hours until you got there. The ride itself was mostly quiet, except from Lorde’s Melodrama playing softly in the background. You hummed along to the words, but apart from that there wasn’t a lot of talking between the two of you, all due to the limited amount of sleep you got from the previous night.

As you got closer, the scenery of open grass camps and blooming flowers at the peak of spring was a peaceful change of scene from the busy city streets you were used to. And when you finally got to the house, the sun was almost setting on the horizon. The sky being a satisfying mixture of blue and orange. There was a car already parked in, and as you got closer, you could see two figures sitting on the front stairs. 

Getting out of the car, you quickly made your way to where they stood. “Have you been waiting long?” Nia asked as you got closer to them. 

“Longer than I was planning to, I’ll say that,” Evan replied, taking off his sunglasses to greet you.

Harry came up from behind him, looking incredibly cozy wearing a knitted cream sweater. It took everything in you not to nuzzle on him as he met you with a quick embrace. You had to focus on keeping your breathing steady as you looked up at him when you parted. The sun coming from behind you doing wonders as it hit his face perfectly. His eyes were the prettiest shade of green as he smiled down at you before moving to greet  Nia.

“We’ve been here fo’ ten minutes, don’t listen to him,” he assured with a small laugh.

The house itself was much bigger than you expected, it wasn’t huge, by any means, but you had pictured a small cottage with barely any space for the four of you. The place, however, was big enough for you to have your privacy but still small enough to feel cozy and welcoming. 

You quickly found there were three rooms, and despite you arguing you didn’t mind sharing one with Nia, considering you two lived together, she still insisted that you and Harry had your own bedrooms. It was her way of thanking you for agreeing to help them.

After you got established in your respective room, you met everyone down at the kitchen. The place was loud with chatter as they played around while making dinner. Nia seemed to boss the boys around to cut the vegetables properly, as she concentrated on figuring out how to work the old stove. They laughed lightly as she cussed under her breath in frustration after another failed attempt. You watched quietly for a moment, before joining in to help her.

You finally turned the stove on with the help of a few matches you found laying on the counter, being able to cook with no more trouble. It was already getting late when you finished eating and gathered the dishes to lay them on the sink. Still, Nia insisted on watching one of the movies she had carefully selected on her extended collections of DvDs to bring with her. 

You decided to make yourself some tea while the rest of them moved around to arrange themselves for the movie night. After offering if anyone else wanted a cup as well, you were met with Harry’s warm smile as he accepted shyly.

Soon enough everyone settled down on the big couch to watch the movie. Evan took his place on one of the armchairs, while Harry opted to sit by the end of the couch, setting his legs on the footrest in front of him. As you walked in with your mugs, he gazed up at you, shooting a soft smile and muttering a quick ‘thank you’ as you handed him his drink.

He patted the spot next to him, indicating for you to sit, to which you happily obliged. 

“Wanna share?” he asked, holding up a blanket that lied at the arm of the couch. “There’s jus’ three of ‘em.”

“Sure,” you replied, moving to pull the blanket, so it was covering the two of you. You knew very well you could always get an extra one from one of the bedrooms, but you would never bring yourself to suggest it.

Finally, Nia entered the room with a small pack of m&m’s on one of her hands and the DvD case for ‘Love Actually’ on the other. She was quick to insert it on the player before settling down next to you. Pulling out the leftover blanket for herself, she lied down to rest her head comfortably on top of your legs.

It didn’t take long until she fell in deep slumber, cuddling up on your lap as soft snores left her lips. You pouted slightly down at her. The poor thing was exhausted from driving all the way, and the bad night of sleep the day before.

As the movie progressed, you could feel your eyelids getting heavier as well, the words coming from Keira Knightley’s mouth becoming more of a background noise as you fought to keep yourself awake. But before you could doze off, you felt Harry shifting slightly next to you. Suddenly feeling his arm hugging your shoulders, as he gently pulled you closer.

You moved your head to look at him but before you could say anything he shushed you softly and pulled you back in. “ ‘S fine, love,” he whispered, “can see that you’re tired.”

And with a half-woken mind and heavy eyelids you laid back on his shoulder and allowed yourself to snooze.

You woke up with him shifting again from under you, opening your eyes slowly to find the end credits rolling up the screen in front of you. You yawned lightly before sitting up, being careful not to wake a still-very-much-asleep Nia on your lap.

“Sorry,” you heard Harry say as you scratched at your eyes, “didn’t mean to wake you.”

“It’s fine,” you assured, your voice a bit raspy from your nap, “would have to happen, eventually.” You looked down at the unconscious girl lying on you, knowing you had to get her to bed so she could sleep properly. “We should wake her.”

“Want me to carry her to her room?” he asked.

“I think she’ll be okay,” you replied, gently calling her name so she could slowly wake up.

Surely, it didn’t take a lot of coaxing to get her eyelid to flutter open, as she lazily rose from her sleep.

You helped her to her room, afraid she’d trip down the stair in her hazy state of mind, still half asleep as she dragged her feet across the floor. 

As soon as she laid down in her bed, you made your way back to the kitchen to fix yourself a glass of water so you could go to sleep. 

It surprised you to find Harry still awake as you entered the space; he looked up at you from his position leaning on the counter with his phone in his hand. Quickly placing it in his back pocket as he saw you coming in, giving you a slight smile. “Thought you’d gone to bed.”

You reached for the cabinet Nia had pointed you to earlier where the cups were placed, picking one with little thought and closing it. “Just came here for a glass of water,” you spoke, moving the cup under the tap, “always have one next to my bed, y’know, in case I get thirsty and stuff.” You shook your head slightly, not wanting to ramble about the benefits of staying hydrated during the night just to make a conversation.

“Smart girl,” he joked, causing you to chuckle as you felt blush creeping out on your cheeks. You could see him coming closer to stand next to you from the corner of your eye, which didn’t help the tingly feeling forming at the pit of your stomach. “Excited fo’ tomorrow?” he asked, crossing his arms on top of the counter as he leaned next to you.

“Guess I am,” you answered, looking up at him and finding he was closer than you had realized. You smiled nervously as you met his eyes gazing down at you, before clearing your throat lightly. “What about you?”

“To be honest ‘m a bit nervous, love,” he confessed.

“Why’s that?” 

“I mean,” he started, his eyes still fixed on you, “ ‘s not every day I get to pretend ‘m married to a pretty girl like you.”

You could feel your heart skip a beat as he reached one of his hands to move a strand of your hair behind your ear. He kept his hand on your cheek just as his eyes seemed to gaze down at your lips, so subtly that it felt like you might’ve imagined it. 

The silence in the room was loud as you could almost hear your heartbeat pounding in your ears, as he leaned down just barely, getting closer to you. He looked down one more time at your lips, this time making sure you realized the unspoken question behind that action. You suddenly felt water pouring through your fingers, as the forgotten cup in your hand overflowed. This caused you to jump back a bit, quickly turning the tap off and resting the glass on the counter. 

“Oh my god,” you squeak, reaching out for a towel right next to the sink to dry your hand. “I’m sorry, that was-” you chuckled, glancing at Harry who seemed to watch you with an amused expression. “That was awkward, sorry.”

“No need to apologize,” He assured, picking the full glass and moving it in the counter so it was out of your reach. “ ‘t was actually quite cute,” he moved closer to you again, reaching his hand to hold at your jawline. 

You held back your breath as you felt his own hitting the top of your upper lip, your noses brushing slightly. 

“Been wanting to do this fo’ a bit now, love,” he spoke a bit above a whisper, his deep voice sending chills down your spine and making you grab at his sweater, ”would you let me?” his thumb caressed your cheek lovingly, “would you let me kiss you?”

You could feel your heart beating strongly against your rib cages, swallowing hard as you looked up at him. He was watching you closely, his dark emerald irises gazing down at you as your lips barely brushed. You nodded at him, trying to pull him closer.

“Use your words, darling,” he insisted, not budging from his position. “Wanna hear you say it.”

“Please, Harry I-” you moved your hand to grasp on his waist, “just —kiss me.”

Giving a satisfied hum, he finally leaned down, closing the space between the two of you. His hand remained stroking your cheek softly, as the other sneaked under your neck.

He moved his lips ever so slightly, his cupid bow founding its way above your inner lip, sucking on it gently. The kiss was teasingly slow, making you hyper aware of all of your senses. Your hands feeling the soft fabric of his sweater, grabbing at it as if asking for more. 

He moved the hand on your neck, pulling gently at your hair, making you angle your head up a bit. As his tongue poked to lick at your bottom lip, you opened your mouth, deepening the kiss.

You stayed like this for a while, pressed against the kitchen wall as you enjoyed the taste of each other. 

When you pulled back, he splattered a few kisses along your cheek, giving one last peck on your mouth before pulling back.

“As much as I don’t want to end this now,” he muttered, moving his hand, so they were both holding your cheeks, “We should get some sleep fo’ tomorrow.” 

“We should,” you agreed.

“We’ll get the chance to do this again,” he said, making you bite down a smile at the innuendo behind his words.

He gave you one last kiss before pulling away completely, reaching for the glass of water you had already forgotten about on the counter and handing it to you. 

You walked back to your rooms without saying a word, but still sharing glances and smiles along the way. And as you got to your respective rooms, you whispered quiet good nights before parting ways and closing the door behind you.

**

The days that followed were rushed, considering the filming had officially started. You two barely had the chance to be alone again, which was disappointing. But still you couldn’t find yourself time to miss the feel of having his soft lips against yours, considering the scenes you had with each other. What you did miss was being able to kiss him without it being written in a piece of paper, or having someone from outside tell you to. You missed the intimacy of feeling his tongue meet your own and having his hands pulling you close as you both craved for more. You missed the shared secret between just the two of you, that was knowing how it felt to have him all to yourself.

It was discomforting, earning for someone you barely even know. Jumping into a feeling you know there’s no way can end well. You both were playing characters. Lovers, yes, but it was all pretend. It didn’t help that he was so good at it. In front of the cameras he would be so loving that you often wondered how much of it was just part of the act. 

It was subtle things that made you think of it, like a glance across the room between takes. Him leaning close to you every time they called you to watch back something you had just recorded. Or when he sucked in your lip during a scene, so softly you could barely notice but still made your heart skip a beat.

But as much as it was nice to pretend that you two had some shared secret, you knew that the most likely scenario was that he was just doing his work and being friendly. So you tried your best to convince yourself that all of it was just your mind playing tricks, this way you could prevent yourself from inevitably getting hurt. That encounter in the kitchen was most likely his way of making things less awkward to when you inevitably would have to do it in front of a camera. That was it, nothing more. 

It seemed to have worked pretty well, you two had the chemistry Evan hoped for when he wrote his script. Nia kept teasing you with every given opportunity. You didn’t tell her about the late night kitchen situation, but you knew she could sense the ‘chemistry’ was not simply because you two were just that good at acting. No one was complaining though, considering everything was going so smoothly they suspected it could be wrapped up even earlier than expected.

Every time they would mention the possibility, you found yourself wishing deep down something would set you back on the schedule. You felt bad for it, and you never voice your inner thoughts, but you knew wrapping up early meant going home early, and you were getting a bit too comfortable getting to act all loved up on camera.

As if some kind of outer force had listened to your wishes, just as you were halfway throughout the week, mother nature seemed to be your biggest ally.

You had just woken up with the annoying tune of your alarm clock, one you had chosen for finding it soothing at first. But you soon found that those sounds are not meant to feel soothing at all, as it woke you from your deep slumber. You were quick to turn it off before rubbing your eyes softly and enjoying the warmth of your bed for a few more minutes. You could hear the gentle sounds of raindrops hitting your window, but barely paid any attention to it as you rose lazily, stretching your arms above your head.

Making your way down the stairs you first noticed Evan standing by the big window in the living room, looking out with a hand resting on his hip and the other one holding a mug. Behind him, in one of the armchairs, sat Harry, also drinking out of a mug as he read a book quietly. But as if he felt your presence as you got to the bottom of the staircase, he looked up, smiling at you as you made your way into the room.

“G’morning,” he spoke, alerting the man by the window of your presence as he turned around to look at you.

“Good morning,” you said back, before realizing the worried expression on Evan’s face, “is everything okay?”

“A disaster just happened, honey, look out the windows!”  he snapped, gesturing behind him where you could see the rain hitting the glass. The sky was dark with clouds, suggesting it was just the beginning of the storm that was to come. You looked back with a puzzled expression, knowing the weather was not the best, but as far as you remembered you had already shot all the scenes you needed outside. Evan rolled his eyes, “our natural light is gone, honey, it’s too dark to shoot!” he barked.

“Hey, no need to yell at her like tha’,” Harry looked back at his friend, attempting to calm him down, “ ‘s fine, we were early on schedule anyway, one day is not gonna delay it.”

He shot a look at Harry, his hand finding its way back on his waist as he let out a deep breath. “I’m sorry, this is just incredibly frustrating.”

You smiled at him to assure it was fine, knowing how much stress he was putting on because of this project. “Doesn’t Nia have one of those light things you were using the other day to make the scene brighter?” You suggested.

Evan sighed, “that’s a reflector, it just— well, reflects the light, we would need the sun for it to work, and seems like she’s not showing her face anytime soon,” he weightened his shoulders down, clearly feeling defeated. “I guess today is our off day — we should use it to pray for sunlight tomorrow, otherwise I’m pulling my hair off.”

When Nia woke up, you could tell she was not happy at all with the news that filming had to be cancelled for the time being. She spent the whole breakfast whining and crying about the poor weather. You tried your best to console her, but knowing your friend you knew her dramatics showed off when she worried about something. She tended to overthink every scenario that could go wrong, which did nothing to help the pressure she put on herself.

The day went on as eventless as it possibly could, the rain outside just seeming to get angrier as time passed by. You did your best to distract Nia from her own head, asking her about the recent documentaries she had watched, knowing she could go on tangents for hours. You talked about crime shows you have started before filming and shared different theories you had on them. You even listened to her deep analysis of trashy reality shows she loved to watch and always tried to drag you to get into it.

You talked and talked with no end, considering there wasn’t much else to do. Nia’s aunt hated computers and refused to install any kind of wifi, leaving you with a shitty connection that barely loaded a five-minute video.

As the evening came by, and the raindrops still hit angrily at the windows, you decided to watch another movie — this time it was Evan’s choice of Freaky Friday. 

You volunteered to grab the blankets from the cabinets on the second floor, while Nia excitedly announced she would make popcorn for everyone.

Quickly moving along the hallway, you made your way in front of the doors and opened them. You could hear footsteps coming up the stairs as you tiptoed to  reach the top shelf where the soft blanket you had used the first night lied on top of. 

“Need help?” You heard a voice approach, looking over your shoulder to find Harry walking towards you with an amused expression on his face. You nodded, chuckling as you quickly stepped out of the way to allow him to take your place. He reached up, easily retrieving the blanket and giving it to you.

“Thank you,” you muttered, looking up at him for a moment.

“No problem, darlin’,” he said, fetching two other blankets  before closing one door with a swing of his hip. You closed the other one with a small giggle. You started to quietly move along towards the staircase when he cleared his throat, causing you to look up at him. He kept his gaze down before speaking softly, “After the movie, think I’ll go back to my room a bit early,”  he looked at you for a moment, “ ‘f you want to join me.”

You stopped walking to look at him arching your eyebrows surprised, not expecting this kind of proposal at this moment. He stopped a step ahead of you, staring back with nervous eyes and shooting you a shy smile. “I’m not saying we have to do anything, I just-” he spluttered, “just wanted to be with you, without the camera and stuff.”

You smiled at him, “of course,” you voiced, “sounds nice.”

Shortly, you found yourself in the same position as the first day. Sharing a blanket with Harry, but this time Nia was wide awake next to you with a bucket of popcorn plopped on her lap. Some people would consider her to be the worst kind of person to watch movies with, considering she would always get too excited and comment on every scene she could. You had gotten so used to it with time, that it felt weird watching a movie without her voice interrupting a scene every five minutes.

It got hard to concentrate on this one in particular, and not because of Nia’s speaking over the lines, but the sudden feeling of Harry’s hand resting on your knee halfway through it. Your legs were crossed on top of the couch, making part of it rest slightly on top of his as he eased his thumb over your skin.

As time passed, he moved his hand up a bit, finding its final place on your inner thigh, causing goosebumps to arise on the back of your neck as he caressed it softly. You caught yourself holding your breath multiple times, something he was also probably aware of, considering the position of his arm on the side of your chest. 

The tension between you two was almost palpable as the end credits rolled up. At that point you had prompted yourself to lean your head on his shoulders. He grasped your skin slightly before removing his hand and motioning his position to get up, making you pull back from him.

“‘m going back to my room now,” he announced as he got up, shooting you a knowing look, “g’night.”

You stayed back for a few minutes so as not to look too suspicious, folding up the blanket you had used and scrolling through your phone for a bit. Not long after you excused yourself, climbing the stairs two steps at a time.

You found him in the hallway, leaning in on the wall right next to his door as he looked down on his phone. As he felt your presence he gazed up, grinning softly before bringing his finger above his lips as to warn you to stay quiet.

The two rushed inside his room, trying to be as quiet as possible, considering your friends downstairs could come up at any second. He closed the door behind him, looking right at you as he leaned back. His room was similar to yours, the difference being a few more clothes lying on top of the small couch standing at the corner. The curtains hanging on the big windows were pushed open, allowing the moonlight from the now-clear sky to illuminate the place. 

Your breath got caught in your throat as you stared back at him, meeting his dark irises. He started stepping closer to you until he could lean his forehead against yours. His hands found their way caressing your jawline, one of them going as far as to pulling lightly on the hair above your neck. You held your breath, gazing up at him as you waited for his next move.

He smiled lazily, brushing his nose against your softly before placing a peck to the corner of your lips. He was teasing you, his hand leaving your hair to find its way down your body, paying special attention to the side of your breast before placing itself holding your waist.

You swallowed dryly, feeling your heart speed up as you pulled him closer, wanting desperately to close the space between the two of you. Too scared that your voice would give out your desperation, you moved one of your hands to the back of his neck and pulled him in. He didn’t think twice before finally closing the space and allowing you to feel his lips against yours.

The kiss started slow, both of you still trying to figure it out how it was to taste each other like this. His lips were soft, moving teasingly as he sucked on your bottom lip. Your hand pulled his hair gently, causing him to whine into mouth, licking at your tongue as he deepened the kiss. The hand on your waist moved up, caressing the side of your breast softly as he tried to pull you in as close as possible.

He started easing you backwards, considering neither of you were willing to break the kiss to watch where you were going. You felt the mattress of his bed hitting the back of your knees. You allowed him to lay you into the bed, parting for a moment so you could move upwards, laying your head on the pillows. Shortly enough he joined you, placing his elbows on both sides of your head, not wasting any time before closing the space between your mouths again.

The two of you stayed like this for a while. Slowly kissing each other, as your arm found its way back behind his neck and one of his hand caressed your cheek. You could get used to this, with him being the only thing you could sense. His taste. His touch. His scent. 

He was all you could think about.

When you finally pulled back, you could see his red, puffy lips even with the limited amount of lighting going into the room. 

He looked into your eyes for a moment, “you look so pretty like this, darling,” he murmured, his voice just above a whisper, sending chills down your spine. “Could eat you up.” 

A small whimper left your mouth, as he dove back in to spread kissed along your cheek and down your throat. You bit hard into your lip and swallowed back a moan as he sucked in a spot right below your jawline. You could feel him grinding his hips down on your tights, making you aware of the growing bulge inside his sweats.

You placed your hand on his shoulders, pushing him gently and disconnecting him from your neck. He pulled back, looking back at you with a puzzled look. You kept pushing him until his shoulders hit the mattress, reverting the previous position you both were in, as you stranded his waist.

Looking down at him, you wanted so badly to discover his body, to make him feel good. So you took the same position he had on you. Placing your lips against his neck and running your tongue against it, sucking in his skin. You kept doing it as your hand smoothed down his body, finding the hem of his shirt and lifting it enough so you could scratch at his love handles. He gave you a small moan, a sound so delicious to hear you that made you want to swallow him whole. 

Both his hands found their place on your waist, pressing you down so you could feel his need between your tights. You quickly pulled your head from his neck, giving him a soft peck on the lips.

“Please, love, just-” he grunted, looking up at you with pleading eyes. “Just do something, please, I-“

His hands gripped tightly on your waist as you rolled your hips against him. Neither of you could contain your moans as you repeated the movement, even fully clothed his bulge rubbed deliciously against the place you needed it the most. 

You leaned down again, this time pushing his shirt up as you made your way down his body, splattering open-mouthed kisses along his warm chest. You paid a special mind to the tattoos you met along the way, sucking spots over the wings of a butterfly inked on his stomach. As you licked along the leaves of the ferns that adorned his love handles, you felt one of his hands tangling in your hair, his hips rising slightly as he whimpered.

“A bit impatient, you are,” you spoke, feeling his belly tighten as you placed a playful bite under his belly button, causing another moan to leave his lips.

“Darlin’, please,” he whined, “Just- fuck, just need you right now.”

You decided not to tease him for too long, considering you needed it just as much as he did. Finally, you moved down once more to place a kiss above the hard on over his pants. He lifted his head, watching your every move as his hand that was placed on your hair pushed some strands away from your forehead. You wrapped your hand around the hem of his sweats, rising your eyebrows at him as you felt he wasn’t wearing any underpants. The thought of having such easy access to him making you press your thighs together, feeling your wetness already damping your underwear 

Slowly, you bit your bottom lip, keeping your gaze focused on him as you moved his sweats down, he raised his hips as to help you out. Once his cock was fully out, you stared back down at it lying proudly against his stomach. You ran your fingers gently along his length, causing him to hold his breath, his abdomen tightening once more. He was definitely bigger than anyone you had ever been with, causing your mouth to water a bit and your thighs to press together once again at the thought of fully having him.

You could feel him peering down at you as you wrapped your hands around the base and applied the smallest amount of pressure. The precum was already escaping from the tip and sliding down the tiniest bit. 

Moving your head forward you looked back at his waiting eyes, spitting on top of the head as you moved your hand up caressing it. This time he gave you an actual moan, throwing his head back at the pillows behind him. 

Looking down at him, you didn’t know where to place your lips first, wanting to bite and lick every part of his body. Finally deciding on sucking a spot on his thigh, right next to where rested an ink of a tiger head.

You kept the movement of your hand, twisting it and applying more pressure eventually as you watched him shift around under you. He raised his hips slightly as he pleaded under his breath for more, his hand firmly on top of your head as the other was thrown above his own.

You moved your thumb to run across his slit, caressing the head with a flick of your wrist as you moved your mouth to place kisses at the base. At this point he became a moaning mess, throwing his arm over his mouth as to muffle the sounds while you licked up his shaft.

“God- fuck- such a good girl,” he moaned on his arm, moving it out of the way so he could look down at you. “Doing so good, you feel so good- shit.”

Smiling at him, you jerked him off a couple of times before resting your hand at the base so you could replace it with your mouth.

You licked around his head, giving it a small kiss before you moved down as far as you could go. He cried out, tightening his grip on your hair and moving his hips up to meet your movements as you sucked on him.

He was desperate to reach his climax, and you were desperate to see him cum undone under your touch. So you started speeding up, your mouth licking at his veins, your hand helping you as you moved it along his dick. He was cursing and moaning over you, pleading for you not to stop. You kept moving your hand as you licked at his head once more before detaching so you could look up at him with pleading eyes.

“Almost there?” you asked, having him nod frantically at you, “will you let me have a taste?”

That seemed to do it for him, as he pushed your head back down, making you attach your lips to his head as you felt him shoot his load inside your mouth. You milked him as he came down from his high, feeling his softness on your lips as you swallowed down.

You sat up and looked down at his hazy eyes while he calmed down with heavy breaths. He adjusted his sweats quickly before moving himself up to pull you in for a frantic kiss. “God, darling, you’re a dream,” he spoke between kisses, his hands gripping at your waist as he positioned you to lie on top of him, moving one of them under your shirt, pulling it up slowly.

You quickly placed your hand on top of his stopping him from going further as you detached from him. He furrowed his brows at you. “I should go back to my room,” you said, “got an early day tomorrow.”

He gave you a puzzled look, “but you still haven’t- “

“it’s okay,” you interrupted, moving to get up from his bed, suddenly feeling nervous under his gaze, “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? Good night!”

You left his room before he could protest, wanting to slap yourself from running away like this. 

**

The next morning was thankfully much brighter than the one before, with sunlight shining through the windows at the earliest hours. You didn’t get a lot of sleep, tossing and turning around, replaying the previous night in your head. The thought of what could’ve happened if you had stayed imprinted itself in your mind. You started to overthink it. What did he even think of you? After running away like that? 

Your thoughts consumed you as you sat in of the stools in the kitchen by yourself, for the first time being the first to be awake. Your coffee running cold by the minute, as you frowned to yourself, taking a sip every so often.

It didn’t take long until you didn’t find yourself alone anymore, having Evan join you as he happily cheered about the nice weather. You nodded along to him, not really in the mood for talking as you anxiously poked at your nails.

It was when you walked towards the sink to wash your used mug that you saw Harry walking into the kitchen. His hair messy and his eyes sleepy, making you annoyed at how charming he managed to look even after just getting out of bed. 

He greeted you with a raspiness to his voice, his eyes lingering on you a moment too long as he smirked before moving to the cabinets. He stood next to you while you washed the dishes, grabbing himself a bowl while he worked on his breakfast.

Yours arms would brush every so often as you moved while doing your tasks, making you gaze at him. He kept a grin sitting on his face as he casually made a conversation with Evan, his dimple poking out the smallest bit, but still not looking back at you.

As soon as you were finished you left for your bedroom so you could get ready for the day, but not before sparing one last glance at Harry. This time his eyes were already trained on you as he chewed slowly his fruit salad. You felt your cheeks getting a bit warm from the eye contact, making you look down and leave the room with a speeding heart.

The work started early, as you ran around to keep up with the schedule after losing one day of productivity. 

Harry seemed to be in it for teasing you. His touches lingered longer than needed. His kisses were harsher, the need behind them being almost palpable. His gaze on you told you something you couldn’t really tell exactly what it was. Lust? Desire? You weren’t entirely sure, but every time you caught him watching you felt a warmth take over your face.

In one occasion, between takes, as Nia and Evan discussed the best position for the camera considering her broken tripod. You stood awkwardly waiting for their instructions as you played with the hem of your dress. You could feel him staring closely, looking up to find him with the same smirk he gave you in the morning. He looked quickly over your friends who were still trying to figure out the problem before leaning up close to you “Still haven’t let me have a taste, love,” he said quiet enough to that just you could hear, the words sending a chill down your spine and making your core twitch as you glanced back at him.

That same night, after you announced you’d tuck yourself in, just as you changed into your pajama shorts, you heard a soft knock on your door.  You opened up to see his darkened irises staring back at you as he quietly let himself in. And within a few minutes he found his place between your legs, your hand gripping tightly at his curls as you moaned into your pillow.

The  following day wasn’t much different, starting with a tight filming schedule that was coming to a close end. An exchanging of glances across the room and yearning touches with underlying motives behind them. Ending with you lurking into his room at the dark hours of the night, craving-filled touched and muffled moans.

**

The wrap up of the film was welcomed with a bittersweet feeling settling itself in the pit of your stomach. Knowing as much as you were glad everything had gone as smoothly as possible during this week, it was time to leave it all behind. 

You were nervous about how it would be with Harry after you got home. Was this the start of something that could potentially become a warm and beautiful feeling? Or was it just a lust-filled affair that would end as quickly as it had started? It made you anxious to think about it, not wanting to let go of it just yet.

Nia walked into the living room with two champagne bottles that had been brought up for this exact moment. The atmosphere was filled with chatter as everyone celebrated the end of the hard work. 

You were dressed in the fanciest clothes you had brought on your rushed-packed bag, which consisted itself in a black blouse and a loose pair of pants you stole from Nia’s wardrobe a couple weeks prior. But you once again could not compete with Evan’s sense of style, as he seemed right out of a cover with a hot pink turtleneck under a sparkly black dress that hung all the way to his feet.

But you still couldn’t keep your eyes off of him.

You watched as he laughed along at something that had been said, his eyes meeting yours for a moment before fixing on Nia as she offered to serve him the champagne she had just opened. 

He looked so good. 

Like you, he didn’t opt for a very glam look, wearing a simple graphic white tee with a rainbow printed on it, and a simple pair of checked trousers. But as plain as someone could argue it was, he still managed to look incredibly inviting, which made it harder for you not to latch yourself onto him.

You were coming into your sixth or seventh glass when it all died down. Your head was fuzzy, and you felt giggly as you cheered along with everyone about the successful week you had. Nia had already gone back to her room. She didn’t  drink as much considering she would have to drive early in the morning, wanting to leave most of the celebration for the premiere day. 

The glances stolen between you and Harry were getting more frequent, the longing in each other's eyes visible with the effect of the alcohol.

**

He had you pressed up against your bedroom door as he sucked in your bottom lip harshly. His hands gripped at your waist tightly, putting his weight against you.

You wrapped your hand around his neck as the other pulled at his shirt desperately with the need of having him close. You felt overwhelmed by him in the nicest way. Having his hips pressing against your own, making you open your tights slightly as you felt his arousal straining on his trousers.

You whimpered into his mouth at the feeling, suddenly needing him as close as possible. You could tell his desperation matched your own by the way his hand pressed on the side of your body and his mouth moved against you. His groans getting lost in your throat every time you tangled your fingers on his roots, pulling at it.

“You’re gonna kill me like this, baby,” he breathed out, his lips moving against your wanting ones, “so fuckin’beautiful.”

You tried to keep your shaky hands steady as they travelled down his chest, scratching as his tummy lightly under his shirt before you began pulling it up. He detached from you to quickly reach over his shoulders and pull it off completely.  He didn’t waste any time bringing his hand to unbutton your blouse, peppering kisses along your lips as he moved it down your shoulders, only to be met with your bare breasts underneath.

“Fuck me,” he groaned staring down at you, attaching your lips once again as he pulled you from the door as he fiddled with the zipper of your pants. You stumbled on each other's arms across the floor until you were met with the plush feeling of the bedcovers on the back of your thighs. 

You stepped out of your pants as they got loose around your waist and fell damply to the floor, allowing Harry to push you gently into the mattress. He quickly got rid of his own trousers, wasting no time before towering above you, connecting your mouths once again.

It was like no matter how close you were, it still wasn’t good enough to satisfy the craving you had. You still wanted more. Needed more. 

He was fully licking into you, his hands gripping your tights as he rolled his hips to meet yours. You moaned in unison at the feeling of your arousals meeting deliciously as he repeated the movement once more before parting your mouths so he could spread kisses along your neck.

“Harry,” you breathed out his name, dragging your nails along his back as you moved your hips up eagerly.

He moved his head from your neck o hover above yours, licking his lips teasingly as he looked down at you with dark eyes. He moved one of his hands to caress your cheek lovingly, as the other found your breast, his thumb grazing over your nipple. “Can I have a taste, baby?” he leaned his forehead against your, not breaking eye contact, “just a fo’a bit, then you can have me.”

You nodded frantically, brushing your nose against his. He gave you one last peck on the lips before moving down again to lick down at your skin. He pressed open-mouthed kisses at your chest, sucking harshly between your breasts.  His tongue moved along your belly, craving his finger into it playfully like you had done to him, making you squeal above him.

He finally settled down between your thighs, his hand gripping at them to keep it apart before moving teasingly slow to the hem of your underwear. Your breath got caught in your throat as you moved up to lean on your elbows, gazing at him, hyper-aware of his every move. 

He looked up, grinning like a devil, before moving his face down to nose gently at your mound. Pulling away, he pressed his hands on your sides, sliding your underwear off your legs as you helped him, raising your hips slightly.

You whimpered as you felt him kiss along your inner thigh, meeting your middle as licked you once. Your hips raised impatiently, making him smirk at you again before completely diving in.

You got lost in the pleasure as he licked his tongue into you, letting yourself fall back in the cushions behind your head. Your hand moved to grip at his hair tightly as he sucked in your clit, making you yelp and call out his name. His mouth was warm as his saliva mixed with your own wetness every time he licked into you.

Feeling your arousal pooling on your folds, you desperately needed to feel him as close as possible. Wanting every inch of him against you.

You pushed him from you, grabbing at his shoulder so he could move up to face you again. He didn’t protest, spattering quick kisses along the way before pressing his mouth against yours. The taste of champagne still lingering on your tongue mixed with your own taste on his as he licked into your mouth.

“y’taste so good, baby,” he groaned, parting from you as he moved to remove his briefs. The limited amount of light illuminated his face beautifully, making you able to notice the glistening of your juices down his chin. You felt your core twitch at the scene above you, desperate to have him fill you up.

“Please,” you urged him, grabbing at his hips to pull him down.

“Can I have you, darlin’?” His voice was raspy, as he looks down at you with hooded eyes, “‘d you let me?”

Your arousal blurred your mind, your grip on his waist tightened as you raised your hips impatiently, nodding along to his question.

“Have to hear you say it, love,” he spoke, leaning down to place kisses along your neck, “just say it, and you’ll have me.”

“You can have me, please, I-” you moaned desperately, babbling words without thinking, “I need you, please.”

He raised his head from your shoulders, giving you a quick peck before reaching down to guide his length between your folds. Your belly tensed as he rubbed his head against your clit, holding back your breath as he finally slid in you.

“Fuck, you’re wet,” he choked, pushing his hips all the way, allowing you to feel every inch of him fill you up. You breathed out a moan, reaching your hand on his back. “‘s this all fo’ me?”

You whined out a ‘yes’, rolling your hips as a way of urging him to move. 

His movements began slow, his cock rubbing heavenly against your walls, making you clench around him. You both moaned and whimpered as your lips brushed.

“Can feel me deep?” He asked, resting his forehead against yours as he pushed his dick all the way in. You nodded, yearning for him to start moving again. “Can feel me in y’belly?”

“H, please,” you begged, gripping your nails on his shoulder blades.”Want you.”

“y’have me,” he kissed you hard before moving again, rolling his hips as he picked up the pace.

 The air around you was hot as you threw your head back with the delicious feeling of him hitting the spot inside of you. He was addicting. The salty taste of his skin. The touch of his hands gripping on your sides. The smell of his cologne faintly mixed with sweat. The sound of his skin meeting yours. It made you earn for him in every possible way. 

You felt your wetness dripping out of you as he pulled your leg up to your chest, allowing him to effectively hit deeper spots. The new position made a cramp start to creep up on your thight, but you ignored it to focus on the way his hips met yours.

Time seemed to pass like a blur as you pleasured each other, but soon enough you felt your orgasm building up. His thrusts became more frequent and smooth as he felt you clench more around him.

“that’s it, baby - fuck,” he grunted, moving his hand down to flicker your clit, causing to arch your back, moaning loudly. “Wanna feel you come for me.”

His cross necklace dangled over you as he watched you closely. You kept your gaze locked on his as you felt the feeling deep in your tummy take over your entire body. A moan got stuck in your throat as you opened your mouth to an ‘O’ shape, digging your nails further on his shoulders as you reached your high.

**

Getting home, you soon realized that throughout the week you had been so lost in your feelings with Harry that you didn’t even think of asking him for his phone number. 

The month that followed passed by surprisingly quickly. During the first week you were swiftly thrown back again into your old reality of course essays and textbooks. You hadn’t heard a word from Harry, and the most frustrating part is that he seemed to have settled his place inside your thoughts. You tried asking about him to Nia once or twice again, but every time she seemed to come up with vague answers and change the subject, so you figured she had other things to worry about. 

It was a disappointing end, to say the least. Even knowing from the start that being let down was the most possible outcome, it didn’t hurt any less. You often wondered if it had been something you’d done that made him pull away, or if he just wasn’t in it from the start.

By the second week you had gotten a job at a tiny local cafe you used to go after class to study and eat cinnamon rolls. That’s when time starting to rush by, as you found yourself busy through most of your day. Nia was working more than you’ve ever seen her. You two barely talked as she spent most of her time with Evan or inside her room editing. And as the week at the camp house got further away, it started to almost seem like you had imagined all of it. 

Having a lot of distractions helped, but you never seemed to push the thought of a certain curly-haired boy completely away. Sometimes during a tedious lesson you would daydream about the feeling of his lips against yours. Or right before you fell asleep you would think about the taste of his skin, how strong his hand were gripping on your thighs. Maybe even at work. When there wasn’t a lot of movement, you could almost hear the sound of his voice.

It was aggravating, the effect he left on you. It got to a point where you got angry; sometimes at him but sometimes at yourself. He was the one who had gone after you, and yet he was the one who disappeared. But again, he didn’t really owe you anything, and that’s what’s frustrating. You were the one who allowed him; you knew from the start that you would get hurt but you still went for it, anyway.

As you got closer to the premiere night that was planned, you started to get anxious. You would catch yourself daydreaming more often, not being as focused as you were. You even started picking your nails again, which is a habit you thought you’d kick it a long time ago. But truth to be told, you were nervous.

The thought about seeing him again made your heart race. You wished that you could somehow find a way not to go. Maybe ask Nia if the two of you could have a private viewing. You had even thought about bribing her with making your mom’s brownie recipe. But you already knew the answer before you even suggested it. This was an important night for her, and you would be there to support it.

You were overthinking this. Was it going to be awkward when you met him? How would you even greet him? Would he kiss you? Would he ignore you? Should you ignore him? All the scenarios in your head made you want to throw up and run away.

**

When the two of you finally arrived, you were greeted by a cheerful Evan, who jokingly teased you for being late. As you got into his house, you found a bigger group than you expected. It seemed like you and Nia were the last ones to arrive, as there was around ten other people in there. Some of them you recognized from being Nia’s friends, others you had never seen, but none was the one you earned to see the most.

Evan guided you across the living room area, “I’ll show you the kitchen so you two can get some drinks,”  He held up his glass as he spoke. Gesturing to the entrance of the room, “We’ll start everything in around ten minutes, so get ready.”

As you entered the kitchen behind Nia, you could feel her stiffen her posture a bit, before looking back at you. You frowned lightly at her, confused by her behaviour, gazing inside the room and finding immediately a pair of green eyes already watching you. It made you think back to the first time you were in this exact position, except in your own kitchen. This time, however, he was the one to approach you.

He looked really good, which did nothing to help the butterflies flying relentlessly in your stomach. He was in all black, a buttoned up shirt with a few buttons open, exposing a bit of the skin on his chest where a silver necklace laid upon. You swallowed dryly at the sight of his hand running swiftly through his hair, with a ring hugging each one of his fingers. 

As he got close, he greeted Nia first, giving her a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek, before turning his attention back to you. He shot you a shy smile, before embracing you into a hug. You didn’t really know if it was your mind playing tricks but you felt him a bit hesitant as he greeted you and placed a kiss on your cheek. Pulling away, he cleared his throat, running his hand again through his hair, he almost seemed… nervous?

“‘S nice seeing you again,” he mumbled, “this uhm… ‘s my girlfriend, Jess.”

You could felt your heart drop with his words as you finally noticed a smiley girl coming to his side. 

She wasn’t much taller than you, her red hair pulled back in a perfect ponytail. She matched him with a small black dress that annoyingly hugged her body in all the right ways. You could barely register her greeting you, as you tried your best to keep a straight face to hide the shock that took over your body. You felt a heaviness at the pit of your stomach, a feeling so distressful that made you want to scream as an attempt to make it go away.

You didn’t pay a lot of attention as Nia made a conversation with the girl, knowing that’s what she did best. You kept your gaze directed to Harry, your eyes asking a million questions - you didn’t even think you wanted to know the answers to. But he kept his eyes locked on the floor, eventually looking up at the girl in his arms as she seemed to mention him. But never meeting your own.  Her hand was caressing his chest lovingly while his found their way on her waist, keeping her close.

“I think I’ll get something to drink,” you announced, realizing you might’ve interrupted the conversation as they stopped talking. You turned to Nia, “do you want something?”

She looked back at you with sorry eyes, “I should go with you,” she quickly turned back to the girl, “It was lovely meeting you, Jess.”

“Oh! Sure,” she smiled brightly at you two, her hand moving to rest on Harry’s chest, “we should go get our seats as well, right, babe?” 

You left the scene as quickly as you could, not wanting to hear any more of it. Looking at all the drink options on top of the counter, you tried to think which one could get you drunk enough to stop feeling hurt over someone you spent just a week with, but still sober enough so that you could pretend everything was fine. Before you realized, Nia was standing next to you, getting two plastic pink cups before she stared at you with guilty-filled eyes.

“I should’ve just told you about it,” she sighed, “I didn’t want to make you sad, but looking back it was probably best if you already knew.”

You turned your head to look at her, “so you knew it all along?” You swallowed the lump in your throat as you felt it close once again.

“Evan told me like a few days after we got back!” She rushed, “I don’t know if they were together while we were filming.”

You took a deep breath, knowing Nia was probably blaming herself for putting you into this situation. But you knew it wasn’t her fault, she would never purposely put you in this position if she knew about it before.

“You know what, it’s fine,” you tried your best to cover up the hurt and gave her a weak smile, “it’s not your fault Ni. It’s okay. I’m fine.”

She pulled you into a tight hug, “I’m sorry, bubba,” she said, “let’s get you something to drink so you can enjoy this party like the star you are!”

The two of you decided on the vodka mixed with watermelon juice, something you had never even thought of trying before but seemed to be ideal to handle the situation you found yourself in. You walked back to the living area, where people were already beginning to settle on the chairs. 

Following Nia, you prompted yourself on a seat at the edge closest to the door, opposite to where Harry sat with the girl. His girl. You thought bitterly, taking a big sip from your cup and cringing at the strong taste.

There was a speech you didn’t pay much attention to before they started the film, only giving a slight smile when you realized the mention of your name. 

Before you knew it, the lights were out and your face took over the screen. 

It was harder than you thought it would be.  Looking up at the scenes you had with Harry, knowing everything that happened behind the cameras. Knowing every touch and every kiss felt more than just playing a character. You knew the actual feeling of having him to yourself. But now staring at it right in front of you, it just left a sour taste in your mouth. 

You finished your drink barely ten minutes into the film, the feeling of your chest aching starting to become overwhelming as you watched your shared kiss on the big screen. You could feel your throat close once more, your eyes watering a bit.

“I’m gonna get some air,” you whispered to Nia sitting next to you, who gave you a sympathetic smile as you got up. You glimpsed quickly to Harry who had his eyes trained on you, the girl next to him leaning to whisper something in his ear.

You could feel the tears falling down stubbornly as you left the room. Standing in the hallway, you made the decision to turn to the front door instead of the back, not wanting to face anyone with reddish eyes.

You left the house, picking your phone with shaky hands as you managed to call a ride home, sighing in relief as your screen told you it was just about three minutes away.

You heard the door open behind you as stood on the sidewalk hugging yourself to get some warmth on the chilly night. You tried your best to swallow back your tears as you turned around, expecting to find Nia looking at you with pitiful eyes. 

To your surprise, the person standing there was Harry, looking like a deer caught in the headlights as he took in your tearful eyes. He spoke your name in a soft voice, causing you to look away.

“Don’t-” you interrupted, raising your hand at him, “I don’t wanna hear it.”

He frowned at you, not wanting to upset you more. “I’m sorry,” he hesitated, taking a step forward.

Your phone buzzed in your hand, as you watched your ride pulling in front of you. You looked back at him, “I’m sorry too,” you said before moving to enter the car. 

You spared him one last glance through the window as the driver pulled away.

[sansmania]

Why is thia going past 2 parts its gonna be 3 oh NO

Title: Your Man

Ship: Boss [ @bonelyheartsclub ]/ GN reader

Descrip: i got disctracted by the cAR DRIVE????? also cowboys apparently arent real

You were quick to get dressed in something decent- not wanting to push the tall skeleton's patience, but also knowing there was a standard he held when it came to appearances in public. By no means would he allow you to spend time in town with him wearing something lazy and frumpy- he wasn't like Sans or Stretch.

After a once over, you were pleased with your choice. Making sure the combat boots you picked out were tied right and scuff free, you hopped down the stairs and grabbed your go bag.

Boss had busied himself by fingering through your unused bookshelf and books, having picked some hardback out, eyelights skimming over the words in silence. He startled only slightly when your keys rattled, closing the book and placing it back where he'd taken it from with a click of his jaw.

"Hey, you're fine- didn't mean to spook you." You laughed as he made a sarcastic sound at the back of his throat.

"I am aware how ‘fine’ I am, but you did not 'spook' me." Your shit eating smile didn't go away at his retort, though the first bit caught you off guard. Boss was such a haughty bastard sometimes and it really got under your skin. You wondered if he was aware of that.

But, before you could think any harder, the skeleton headed towards your beat up front door.

"Now, are you ready to go? These sneakers are not comfortable. I am hoping this store you have found has others for me to choose from so I can throw these out."

"Come on, maybe if you'd coordinate with them, you could pull off neon orange Converse, Boss." He made a short gagging sound as you laughed, locking the door behind you. "Ah, well, I can dream, can't I?"

"Keep the dream to yourself then, human. Because you will never see me in detestable clothing like this ever again." Though, Boss didn't seem as unamused as you figured he would be at the suggestion, a slight curl to his mouth.

Out of sheer habit, you headed towards your car before Boss caught the collar of your shirt, pulling you away from it and across the street towards his own deep red convertible.

"Absolutely not. Put the location in the GPS. I am driving." There was no fight put up, to his demand. Boss's car was insanely nice- when you first saw it, you almost didn't want to touch it, let alone ride in it. But, it was his casual vehicle. He drove the damn thing everywhere and you were not going to complain about it today.

You both settled in and were off on your repairing adventure.

The top was cranked down, your hair whipping in the brisk wind, Boss had perched a pair of dark shades on his nasal ridge- probably held on by magic, you stopped asking to be honest- and had an arm perched on the door as he focused on the road and GPS feeding directions through the radio.

He wasn't one for music, loudly proclaiming his distaste of your taste in music after blaring "Two Trucks" as you were trapped in traffic one day. The look on his face was worth a lifetime ban of tunes on your drives, but you didn't mind the silence or small conversations you shared.

Yeah, Boss could be blunt and downright rude at times, but you found it added to his charm. You could always expect honesty to come from him no matter what you both talked about. He couldn't lie to save his life, anyway, and it was a feature of his that you appreciated dearly.

"Human, I am aware that it is very easy to get struck by my visage," Boss smirked folding up the sunglasses and placing them in the collar of his shirt, causing you to blink and blood rise to your face instantly. "But, I do believe we have made it to our destination."

How had the ride gone by so fast? Had Boss been speeding? Were you so lost in your enamored thoughts you had no sense of time? 

Both?

"Right." You cleared your throat with an awkward laugh, climbing out of the car alongside the tall skeleton. He seemed to be greatly amused at your embarrassment as the pair of you headed into the southern couture themed shop. 

The first thing that hit you about the place was the smell of leather and hardwood. The second thing was the twang of county music playing over the speakers.

"Heh, they really stick to the theme, huh?" You couldn't help the eye roll, but Boss said nothing. Oh, right. The skeletons hadn't been on the surface for long, so this may be a little much. 

"Bit of a culture shock, Bossman?"

"Hm?" He broke out of whatever train of thought had taken over, shaking his head when you'd elbowed his hip. "Oh, no. Though I am impressed by their dedication to the concept."

"Pft, concept? Boss, cowboys and the mid-west are real." Now that made him snort.

"Do not play coy with me, human. I believed Undyne once that anime was real, and I am a wiser skeleton today by not believing everything on television. Now, where do we drop these off?" He had managed to cut off any argument you had prepared with his question.

You wouldn't let it go, but made a noise and looked around, spotting a sign on the ceiling that directed them to "Ye ol' boot fixin'" desk in the back.

Before you had a chance to say anything, Boss followed the directions on the desk. 'Ring the dinner bell for assistance', tapping the loud triangle several times as a voice in the back called out.

"Hold your horses!"

"Technically I could hold a horse, but I would much rather get my boots repaired." Boss said dryly as the cobbler walked out of the back. He only reeled slightly at the sight of a seven foot tall skeleton at his desk, wiping his worn hands on the old apron tied to his waist.

"Well, I'll be. Ain't had any of your kind come by before. So, ya'll said boot repair? Came to the right place then; names Willie." He held his hand out with a wide smile, Boss was only slightly taken aback by the gesture, meeting in the middle with a firm handshake.

"You may call me Boss. Apologies if my appearance is in any way menacing, as I cannot change that." Willie just chuckled, stopping you from interrupting any spiel your neighbor was about to go into.

"No need to apologize. Now, where's these shoes that need repairin'?"

[osir-ethria]

...... I have ideas and all but if anyone finds my head canons interesting enough feel free to ask me about a topic that I can turn into a head canon or scenario/drabble/mini story/one shot. If anyone does do this then fair warning I may not immediately respond or it may take me a bit to think of something or create said something. Or I may not choose to respond to it if I don’t feel comfortable to do so.

_____________________________

For now, Happy B-Day Weiss! (I finally got an idea and it’s probably late to some people but it’s still May 15th for me so here we go.)

_____________________________

How RWBYJNRWWWQEOK+AceOps and maybe Sun and Neptune act today... Maybe Raven and Tai too, I want Raven to join them and Tai to reunite. More so let’s just have the entire found family.

(Setting they are in a building, not a tent. Like maybe a room in Haven or after Salem fight and they survive but making sure the world doesn’t break is becoming stressful on the group because they were main figures in the war. Now hold leading positions that I won’t get into but y’know it be hard for them.)

First is the mutual agreement to LET WEISS SLEEP IN TILL LIKE NOON. They be letting the Ice Queen rest especially with all the bullshit she has to put up with on a daily basis and the fact she hasn’t slept properly in days.

Weiss does try to wake up, thinking it’s a normal day but it isn’t, Ruby pins her to the bed where she is laying on top of Ice Queen. Weiss doesn’t have the strength to resist and just lays there asking Blake and Yang for help but no response. She eventually passes out again and Ruby gives Weiss her cape before sneaking out.

Yang and Blake go out to get ingredients and anything they need to make a meal of the size of the party they are going host for Weiss.

Ruby is making cookies with the current ingredients, Yang’s style based on Summer’s recipe, and Winter is getting some coffee ready.

Whitley, Ren, and Jaune are organizing presents. I’ll list what they got Weiss.

Ruby: A pocketknife she made, girl be way into weapons. (I’m giving you choice here, choose the design.)

Yang: (She be making the cake but y’know) I like the idea she gets Bumblebee back and it would be upgraded. Taking Weiss on a ride with it.

Blake: Simple but gets the new White Fang badge with the Schnee insignia as an acceptance. Would offer to help her with duel wielding after learning that she can and had to do so when they fell.

Jaune & Neptune: They’d go off on how much of assholes they were during Beacon. Jaune for not taking “No” as an answer and Neptune acting the way he did. Weiss would get a good laugh then retaliate with “I was just as much of an asshole as you two but thanks for saying that.”

Ren: Would carve out the flower he associates Weiss with the most out of wood and paint it over perfectly.

Nora: Depending on the timeline either new kitchen ware or take over any manual labor tasks for the next week for her. Maybe both.

Willow: She found a store filled with puzzles of all sorts. Buy Weiss three and a book on puzzle making and concept. Probably get her a lot of information based books but she knows by now that Weiss likes them and isn’t weary on if it’s the right thing to buy.

Whitley (Depending on if CVFY joins then with Coco): New stylized clothing of both grouped “feminine” and “masculine”... Do you hear my sarcasm. They just styled and got tailored Weiss’ new wardrobe. Whitley has the courtesy of a sweater/hoodie with FIGHT on the back representing her response to Jacques’s abuse. Also got Winter one with ‘Flight to Fight’, Willow one with “Froze but Thawed”, and himself “Fawned but Freed”. Just something nice. (Klein got a hoodie with “True Schnee Dad” on it and I don’t take no for an answer).

Winter: Got Myrenaster sharpened, taking over all ‘logically enduring’ tasks of the next week that don’t require Weiss specifically. Going out to dinner the next day but that’s the next day. With the help of Ruby she picked out new jewelry. The one she thought would suit Weiss the most was a custom made necklace with silver, the Schnee emblem, and small rubies.

Klein: Did a stand up comedy act with his many split personalities with a little help from Neo. There, that’s Neo contribution. Acts like his butler self for the day which brings a rather nice nostalgia to a poor past.

Qrow: After years of traveling together, much to Winter’s dismay, he has allowed Weiss to refer to him as Uncle if she wants to. Paid for the material to her new wardrobe by Whitley and Coco.

Tai: Helps her with hand to hand combat. Knitted a sweater for her that has some goofy dad joke on it in reference to her. (Btw, as much as Weiss cringed she loves the damn thing.)

Raven: Goes on the whole apology, she did a big one for everyone but this one was directly for Weiss. She teaches Weiss how she made the dust blades and the whole concept, and to Weiss’s request, will be teaching Ruby the same thing. (I wouldn’t take it as an unknown thing, dust blades, but it’s difficult to craft and you need to master it perfectly.)

Emerald: Probably also put on something funny but this time she’d disguise herself as Jacques for an hour as Weiss goes all out on how much he hates him. Best thing to watch and the entire time Emerald has to keep herself from breaking down by the reminder that this is towards Jacques not her. After the whole ordeal Weiss hugs Emrald thanking her and said she acted him out perfectly.

(You guys got to think of other characters, I can’t think of anything else for presents right now while writing this.)

Weiss wakes up after, after Ruby finished cookies and Winter coffee and Klein a proper breakfast, and she is greeted by both of them along with Whitley and Willow. Ruby is smiling animatedly which always gets Weiss to grin, Winter sits down on the edge of the bed with a calmer smile but she has gotten better with emotion, Willow is at the edge with a motherly look that Weiss starts to cry a bit, and Whitley has climbed onto the bed and is on the other side of his sister, sitting there, smiling.

Ruby places her breakfast down before using her semblance in a quick burst to get directly to Weiss’s right side and lean on her. A few rose petals are there but nothing has been disturbed. (At this point the Schnees have gotten used to Ruby’s and Weiss’ closeness, either as partners or if you ship them like me then maybe more.)

After brunch she is dragged out by Ruby again to just lounge about the town or city. Weiss is saying that she should be doing tasks and Ruby is always responding with “nope” which leads Weiss to give up.

When dinner comes they go back and to Weiss’s surprise their entire group is there with presents, food, and a huge cake. They all scream happy birthday to Weiss and she starts crying. Past birthdays for her weren’t great and she has gotten used to smaller celebrations by her team, but seeing all those she considers family here, she breaks.

Gets all the hugs, Ice Queen deserves them.

Afterwards she just outright says-

“I honestly forgot it was my birthday, just thought everyone was being soft for no reason.”

Everyone is stunned but in the end everyone is laughing.

The rest of the night is a blast, everyone is having fun, Weiss roles her eyes at most of the presents or smiles genuinely. Just Weiss smiling the entire time because of pure joy. They get Sun to use a aura clone to take a picture of their entire group which is huge. That was using Velvet’s camera.

(Weiss treasures that photo like it’s more expensive than any jewel/gem one will find.)

As a last gift given by her team they all do a snuggle pile when they sleep. Yang holding all of them, Blake snuggling into Yang’s left side, Ruby either snuggling into Yang’s right side or Weiss, Weiss’s arms a little under Yang and just wrapping around far enough to just meet Blake, and Blake has her arm, like Weiss, going as far as it can.

It’s loving Weiss day and I wrote this as me showing how much I love her.

[sleepdeprivedheretic]

Wild Heart: Taishiro Toyomitsu fluff and nsfw at the end

Notes: Smut with kinda nomadic and village people with animal features. Sorry s/o, but you’re a lil’ bunny with a kinda fearful backstory. All characters are of age, and this story has some dark elements to it. Don’t read if you’re underaged.

Warnings: No forced mating happens to s/o, but there are mentions of the fearful possibilities, and s/o living in fear of it. Kinda Mary Sue s/o but whatevs.

……………

When your first heat took over you, you first lived in your own little space in your parent’s temporary den. Of course they expected this. You, however, did not expect them to take advantage of your delicate situation by inviting possible suitors in their home.  

It scared you so much, laying there in your feathered nest, listening to your parents in the other room basically interviewing each and every suitor, acting as if you were a piece of meat to be traded off to. Which, you realized, that you were.

Traveling in the past winter was difficult, for many villagers fell ill, got lost, and were eaten by wilder animals, which made your parents desperate to help reproduce the decaying tribe. Of course, rabbits being one of the most fertile breeds, were sought by more dominant species to reproduce. A predatory species such as a wolf or dog, for example, will always have pups, if their mate isn’t high on the list of dominance that is.  

It made young bunnies such as yourself a prize, because although highly fertile and bore kits quickly, the kits will be a species of their mate, instead of rabbits themselves.  

 You weren’t sure if you wanted kits, only to repeat your species’s vicious little cycle. You were sick of it, and always fearful that somebody who your parents approved of, will just come into your nest while in heat, and either fuck you then and there, or drag you away to be a little breeder.

You were so scared and sick. Although terrible, your parents seem to know that a fearful bunny in heat was not good, and the stars aligned with luck as you heard them sigh and say that right after your heat, you will be traded to the well off weasel in your tribe in exchange for nesting materials and food.

It understandably made you angry, and that fateful night, when you felt ready, you packed some things and left without your parents knowing.

To where, you did not know, but like your kin, you will find your own little place, whether it be in a small nomadic village such as your parents, or all alone in the wilderness. It was unsafe for you. Your heat had just lifted, but the intoxicating smell still clung to you.

You traveled far, avoiding to stay at one place for too long, suspicious strangers, and open fields. Wolves would leer at you, owls and other birds of prey would gauge whether should they swoop down at you. Your nights were spent curled up in either an abandoned den, or huddled against a large tree, hoping that you’ll be safe.

As for your heats, you definitely had to play extra safe, so far as gathering two week’s worth of food to place in a temporary den, blocking it and not even thinking about coming out until it was at least a week after your heat.

It was an absolute nightmare to be writhing on the ground, hearing the scratches, threats, and wanton moans of animals outside, wanting to break through your makeshift barrier, and never succeeding. It scared you so much, that a small part of you wondered if the weasel would have been a better choice. You shook it off. No, you were more than an incubator. You always got through the night, and you’ll get through this one.  

On the lucky side, your food resources would not run out due to it being late summer, and so wild fruit, vegetables, and berries were still available to you, making stored temporary dens so much easier while dealing with heats, which drained your energy. You didn’t want to continue walking forever, living in fear and hiding,  but you didn’t want to be near your parents ever again.

One day, you came across a friendly little village. It surprised you. Unlike your village, they had buildings built there to stay, not tents flapping in the wind, or an abandoned den in which would be abandoned again. It felt like a secure place, and you decided that you will try to find a den on the outskirts of town.

It didn’t take long to find an old fox den. The smell has long since faded, and there was no outcry or claim when you left of what few belongings you had. Being smart, you covered the opening up with grass and branches, and headed towards the village to hopefully find work for food so that you could eat for the upcoming winter.

The people were friendly. They saw you not just as a foreigner, but one of the few beings who actually wanted to stay. The majority of your land had a nomadic lifestyle, but this place had structure, rules, and more importantly, safety. Beings of all kinds were welcomed here, and nobody discriminated. It was too good to be true, you thought. You thought that it was a trap, but it wasn’t.

It was a new concept of living, and many beings found it too weird and suffocating, not like the free reign they were use to having, so many beings avoided the village. You loved it. So you stayed.

Of course there were doubts, and the ever-lingering fear, yet it melted away when you seen the sunny faces of a fellow rabbit named Izuku, a red salamander by the name of Eijiro, the warm smile and fluffy squirrel tail of Ochaco, the leader of the village, a droopy crow man by the name of Aizawa, and others , you knew that this was your place.

It didn’t take you long to befriend the villagers. It was not a large village, but for the first time, you felt very welcomed and supported, and even found a job working as a gardener with Ochaco. You felt so happy, that you let yourself smile, which you haven’t done so in ages.

Of course, of all of the villagers, there was one who caught your eyes the most. When your eyes met, you couldn’t help the fluttering feeling beat within your chest. Bright orange eyes, soft yellow hair, and a round face met your gaze. The rare tiger breed was eating something sweet, and had a little speck of food on his face, in which you couldn’t help but find adorable.

It didn’t bother you that he was round, or the soft blush on his cheeks, or the way his pretty eyes had glistened a little with surprise, and most importantly, his sandalwood and soft vanilla scent. You knew that you shouldn’t like a person just bases on their looks or scent, but at that moment, you couldn’t help the blood rushing to your cheeks, a little.

Of course, it didn’t help when he offered a smile and one of his sweets, that you were pulled a little more into the rabbit hole of like at first sight.

Throughout the end of your gardening, he would visit you often. His name is Taishiro Toyomitsu “but you can call me Tai-chan!” as his tail flicked. He was only a few years older than you, and his job was help keep the peace, patrolling around the village and help protect it against invaders.

You were smitten but of course could not tell him. A part of you wanted him to like you in despite of your heats and fertility, and you was scared.

As you continued being his friend for the next year, you learned that not only was he a great and a trustworthy friend, but he had lost his fat during spring, and gained it back during the harsh winter months. You honestly thought his bigger form was cuter, but you were not complaining at all to see rippling muscles adorned with sweat during the summer heat.

Which didn’t help your heats at all when you lay deep within your den, writhing with your fingers within you, feeling incomplete and needing something bigger as you could imagine the soft feel of his flesh rutting within you or hard muscles holding you down. It was torture, and you knew that by not telling him how you felt, and not wanting to ruin your relationship with one of your closest and dearest friends, you allowed yourself to suffer.    

Within the next two years, you worked hard and never complained. You learned how to sew, clean, cook, garden, gather, and even carpentry. You helped your neighbors, and in return, they, mainly Taishiro, helped you build your little fox den into a rabbit hut.  

You never told your neighbors about your problems before, but it didn’t take a genius to figure things out. You were a lone being with no mate, not another’s scent on you, and had never brought anybody into your house. It was obvious that you ran away, and you even let it slip while casual talking to Izuku.

Of course, not to mention that the scent of your heat always lingered a week or two on you after your actual heat. You didn’t deny the thrill up your spine whenever Taishiro would accidentally inhale your scent. You didn’t miss the way his pupils dilated with lust, ears perked, and tail thrashing wildly as he looked at you whenever he thought you weren’t looking. Oh no, you were totally aware, and ate it up. Every little image was fodder for you, and it made your heart race faster.  

Everything changed for you, one November day. You were outside, planning on where to plant your crops for the next spring, happily humming to yourself as ever, until you felt yourself being pushed down onto the ground. In a daze, you scrambled to back up from whatever force that was near you, and looked up.

It was your father, and he was seething. You didn’t understand. You traveled far, hadn’t you? Your scent would have faded on your travels, and why now, after three years, has your parent finally found you with an irrational attitude?

You did feel like you left your parents to defend for themselves, but you had to do this for yourself. If not for your dignity, but for your freedom. The only rational thought you could come up with was that the tribe was traveling this direction, and you, living on the outskirts of the village, was easily spotted.

Fate was unfair, sometimes.

“Where have you been? We were worried for you! Your suitor, the weasel, has already found another mate! Your mother and I had lost a lot of opportunity when you ran off like a coward!” It all came falling out of his mouth as he screamed at you. Three years worth of anguish filled his tone.  

Your ears flattened back as your body stiffened with fear. Then an unexpected anger hit you out of nowhere.

“Do you know how scared I was while you were inviting strangers into our home? While I was in my heat for no less? Overhearing how you were going to trade me in as if I never mattered? I was so scared that you were just going to let somebody walk in and do whatever they wanted to me!” You shouted as tears threaten to spring from your eyes. You hurriedly wiped them away as your father stared in shock. However, you weren’t done.

“I traveled so far! Trying to escape you two, the tribe, and everything that holds me down biologically! I had to hide during my heats, hearing...things outside trying to get through the dens I blockaded. Storing food, hiding in the darkness for weeks until I felt safe to go out...looking above me or behind my back every second….” You trailed off as your anger dissipated fast. You frantically wiped your eyes as your father’s shoulders relaxed.

You almost jumped when you felt a hand land gently upon your shoulder. A fierce sandalwood scent overpowered the sweet vanilla, and you knew who it was. Swiveling to look up, your heart sped faster at the sight of Taishiro, who now had a feral look to him as he stared your father down. Your heart sank. You didn’t mean for him to find about your troubles. His ears flat, tail puffed out and swishing, and eyes didn’t leave your father as he spoke.

“Is he botherin’ you, Darlin’?” His voice was gentle to you, although his body language spoke another situation. You eyed your father as his face held a tiny bit of remorse, and fear.

“No,” You found yourself saying aloud. “he’ll be leaving, soon.” After those words, your father gave a curt nod and left just like that. You couldn’t believe your circumstances, or the loop that life threw at you. Your cheeks paled as you remembered that Taishiro probably heard everything.

To be honest, you didn’t care. You wanted him to know, but of course under better circumstances. Tail smoothing down, ears perked, the sweet vanilla overpowering the sandalwood, and eyes round, he looked at you with a worried expression.

“Are you alright? I came running as soon as I scented an unfamiliar scent around your area, I feared for the worse. Damn, I didn’t mean to overhear everything! Seriously, you went through all of that?” His concerned babbling made your heart leap. He cared about you. Feeling brave, you looked at him and decided to shoot a question.

“What did you fear, Tai-chan?” Your question caught him off guard as his eyes widened and a pink dust settled over his cheeks as he swiftly looked down at the ground. For a second, you thought he was going to start blubbering, but then he looked back at you with a determination.

“I was worried that you had found a suitor.” He admitted. Oh. Oh.

“That would have bothered you, wouldn’t it?” You asked with a serious gentle voice. He couldn’t help but nod.

“How long?” You pressed. His ears flattened with a bit of embarrassment and his eyes tentatively met yours.

“When I first saw you. Timid thing with wide eyes, couldn’t help but find ya...ya know, cute. Then you were always friendly, ya know? Um, I could see ya admiring me, even when I was heavy and fat during the winter, I always felt you starin’ at me with those eyes, and it made me feel special. As if my personality was worth more than my body weight, ya know? Then when the years passed and I got ta know ya, I realized that I loved you.” His flush deepened with every breath as he admitted this.

You felt warmth pool within you despite the November chill, and your heart raced. He loved you? You asked him how he had noticed, and he smiled a little.

“Honestly, you aren’t very subtle, Darlin’. Even a week after your heat, I can see you liking the way I’ve been reacting to your smell. Three years is too much, but I’d wait more if you’re still decidin’.” He let out a little growl, and you flushed.  Your heart hammered loudly, and you swore that he could hear it. Then you let it out.

“I loved you when I first saw you,” Your voice broke out and he looked at you with wonder. “as you heard the outburst I had with my father, I was at first a little insecure about liking somebody. Everyone before I came to this life, saw me as an object waiting to be used. You’re not like that. The villagers, my friends, aren’t like that. I didn’t know that you had feelings for me, but I kept pushing away suitors just in case if you changed your mind, one day.” You admitted freely. It honestly felt as if a giant weight had been lifted off of your shoulders.

Only for warm arms to embrace you. Your little bunny tail couldn’t help but swish happily as you wrapped your arms around him, pushing your face into his chest and taking in the sweet vanilla scent. This was happening. You both acknowledged your feelings towards each other, and now can rest easy.            

  After a few minutes, he broke the silence first.

“In my old tribe, it’s custom for males to court their lovers before they finally settle. Would you like that, lil’ rabbit?” He teased lightly as his hand ran circles on your back. You nodded without hesitation. Then you remembered.

“My heat is tomorrow.” He froze and pulled away to look at you with wide eyes.

“Darlin’…” He let the sentence drop as you cupped his face.

“I’m tired of spending them alone. They’re getting worse, and it’s hurting more every passing season. If you’re wanting, I rather have nobody in my nest for the rest of my life but you.”

The next thing you knew, his warm mouth was onto yours, holding you tight against him as he started kissing you. You shivered a little, and he pulled back.

“Oh, sweetheart, I’d love to.” He crooned, making your insides turn into warm mush. He’d love to make love to you is all you could think about, and in an instant, years of self restraint seemed to wither.

“Tonight, before my heat?” You pondered. It took him a second, but then he nodded. You smiled warmly up at him and caressed his cheek. Because it was getting to winter months, he was bulky. Not fully round, but not fully muscular, yet. You loved him any other way, but were pleased that you got to have both for your first time. You wanted to remember everything clearly, and not be in a heat induced mess where fingers and hazy memories of being alone was your only companion.

“Alright, Darlin’. Tonight. I’ll head home and get ready, alright? I’ll meet you in your hut.” You agreed and the both of you parted ways temporarily. Your heart pounded and you felt slick pool out at the images you had stored in your head that built up for the last three years.

Night fell slower than you’d like, but you took the opportunity to clean your hut, make your nest comfortable, and even made stew. You were more excited than nervous. You trusted him, you knew that when the morning came, you’ll have a bonding mark, letting everybody know that he was yours, and you were his. Time crawled slowly, letting you think upon other things.

Would he want kits? You could easily imagine little cubs looking exactly like him and you, and to be honest, you didn’t mind at all. He’d be a great father, but you weren’t with him because of that. Oh no, you loved him, and your body, although not knowing it yet, will too.

You opened the door to the slow and steady knocking. He was standing there, eyes locking onto yours as you let him in without a sound.

“Would you like supper, first?” You asked. You had already eaten, but you didn’t know if he had or not. He shook his head.

“Honestly, Darlin’? I’m ready for desert.” He exclaimed while staring directly at you with a tone dark with lust. It was a newer side of him than you’ve seen, and you liked it. There was hardly any words when you led him into your nest. He had asked if you were sure about this, and you reassured him that you were more than willing. Your head was clear, and more than likely he would spend the next week with you during your heat. Your lustful hunger had been put off for way too long, and you were more than willing to share it with somebody who cares about you.

...Smut:

When you closed and locked the door, he stared at you with such a lustful gaze, you felt slick leak out. He must have smelled it, for his eyes dilated.

“I’m different when I’m in the mood, Darlin’. I’m still me, but my instincts are screamin’ at me to bend you over and fuck you full of my cum. One last chance, are you sure?” He growled out, and you all but crooned.

“I’m sure, Tai. I trust you.” You admitted, and that was all he needed to hear. Although gently, he pushed you down onto your feathered bedding, towering over you as he stared at you like a man starved. His eyes glowed under the moonlight. Your hand cupped his face gently, and he bent down to kiss you. Kissing was something new to you, and he probably could tell. He’d lick your lips, and you’d instinctively granted entry. He was warm and soothing and coaxed you to swirl your tongue over his as he lightly sucked onto yours.

You broke away from air, only for him to tug off his clothes quickly, and then tugging off of yours. You wished it was a little slower, but you enjoyed the sight. His fat and muscles glistened with sweat underneath the moonlight, and you couldn’t love it more. What caught your eyes, however, was his erection. It was fat and heavy, and leaking pre-cum onto your bedding. You never saw one up close, but you already wanted to taste it.  

“You’re beautiful.” You found yourself admit, and his eyes reached you with warmth.

“As are you, Sweetheart. Honestly, how did I get so lucky?” He murmured as he decided that the two of you needed to continue, and you were on board with that.

You all but gasped as he took a nipple within his mouth, swirling it as he stared into your eyes with an almost cocky smirk. His other hand reached out to your other nipple, and gently rolled it between his thumb and forefinger. It was a new experience, feeling his rough calloused hands do that to you. You knew you were sensitive there, but never indulged too much time because other areas cried for your attention during heat. He sucked eagerly, rolling it around with his tongue, only to let go and gently blow cool air onto your bud. You gasped and he chuckled.

“A little sensitive, Dearest?” He gently teased, but you nodded anyway. Your lower half was aching. You didn’t want to rush the experience, but your self control was withering.

“Taishiro.” You let out a whine. He all but laughed at your expense.

“A little eager, aren’t we?” A darker tone filled with lust was replacing his normal tone, and you and your instincts loved it.

“My little slutty bunny wants to be eaten out, huh?” His voice sent a fire to your loins. You didn’t care what he called you, the both of you knew that was instinct, and it did set you alight. So you nodded anyway as you found your legs being separated with his face in between them, staring at your sex as if it was his favorite meal. You whined.

“What a pretty flower, you’ve got there, Sugar.” Was your only warning as you felt his hot mouth onto you. You crooned with relief and surprise. How did he know how to do this? You didn’t mind his past, he was forever yours, now, but it still had you wondering. His hot tongue rubbed against your clit a little roughly, and you felt his hand lift from your breast, and soon you felt a thick digit enter you. His hands were calloused and bigger than yours, and so the stretch was odd, but you wanted more.

You moved your hips gently with the thrusts of his fat finger as he slowly added more, eyeing you with a raw hunger. His mouth left your opening and you let out a low whine. He kissed your thigh gently as he added a third finger, stretching you out as you moved against him, liking the feel of the foreign burn.

“You’re so tight, squeezin’ onto my fingers, drippin’ pre-cum and ruining yer bed like a wanton whore.” You hear him all but growl. You felt yourself tighten with those words and looked away in embarrassment as he chuckled darkly. You couldn’t help it!

“Ya like dirty talk, huh?” He growled out a whisper as he pulled his fingers abruptly out of you and ignored your moan of protest. He continued, pulling you onto his lap, rubbing his erect member against your clit as he growled out the remaining words that you wanted to hear.

“You wanna bounce on my cock, Baby? Lemme fuck yer cervix? Fuck you roughly through your orgasm and paint your womb white with my cum? Huh?” He breathed hotly into your ear, and you had to keep yourself from cumming then and there as you clung to him with desperation. You whimpered. This is what you’ve been wanting for so long, and you were so happy that it was with Taishiro. You weren’t scared that this was your first time, and knew that your body could take him. You wanted your body to take him, and so you nodded.

“Alright, Darlin’.” His voice was softer now as he laid you gently upon your bedding as he stared down at you with a gentle yet feral look. You knew that he’d been putting this off as long as you had, and was desperate. Unlike his dirty talk, his behavior was sweet as he kissed you gently, holding onto you as you felt the head of his cock slowly enter you.

You kept yourself still as you felt your walls envelop the large intruder. It didn’t hurt like you thought it would, but it did leave a pleasurable burning stretch that you weren’t sure to make of at first. Your eyes were locked onto his as he eyed your expression. He then came to a stop, resting flushed against your skin.

“You doin’ okay, Darlin’?” He asked hoarsely, and you nodded.

“It feels a little weird, but it doesn’t hurt.” You admitted. His muscles stiffened as he looked at you with surprise. You were confused at his expression, and then it hit you. He didn’t know of your inexperience, and you just assumed that he’d know.

“Oh, Dearest, had I known-” You cut him off by kissing him. You didn’t want him to think, right now. All you wanted was to make love.

“Move.” You ordered.

“So demanding.” He chuckled, but complied as he gently rolled his hips, grasping at the nest as he eyed your expression with such intensity. You knew that he was holding himself back for you, and honestly, it was sweet. Yet, you wanted him to enjoy himself, too.

“Taishiro, I’m not hurting. It feels-Ah!-Good. Mmh-I want you to…” Your eyes looked downwards for a second while he looked at you confused. Then you looked up at him dead in the eye as you finished your sentence.

“I want to bounce on your cock.” At this, he stilled so fast that you thought he had stopped functioning, and then with a feral growl unlike you ever heard before, he pulled you up onto his lap.

“I was trying to be gentle, Baby, but since you’re such a little slut, I think you should fuck yourself on me.” He growled darkly as he aimed a sharp thrust, burying deeper inside you and you all but screamed with ecstasy as you felt his dick hit a special spot within you.

“Oh? Was that your spot? You gonna let me fuck you, or are you gonna bounce?” He then moaned as you tried your best to meet his erratic thrusts. You all but keened as his mouth latched onto a nipple that belonged to your bouncing breasts, harshly sucking on it as his other hand roughly groped your other breast. This was what your nirvana felt like as your walls began to tighten.

Refusing to come first, he then pulled out. Any amount of protest you had, was stifled as he turned you around harshly, bare ass in the air and your face muffled within the nest. His hands gripped at your hips tightly as he thrusted in, now with fervor. His weight laid heavy on your back as he breathed into your ear, talking dirty. You crooned, because this angle was newer and you felt the heaviness of his dick plow into you better.            

         “Fuckin’ virgin wouldn’t allow me to take this slow,” He nipped at your ear through heavy breathes. “I love you so damned much. I’m going to make you ride my dick slowly next time, and you’re going to enjoy the slow intimacy, yeah?” A rush of touched warmth enveloped you as you nodded, trying to focus on cumming.

“I love you-Ah! More!” You breathed out. He let out a laugh as one of his hands reached under to rub your clit.

“Oh, Baby, the shit you do to me.” He growled for the umpteenth time. You couldn’t help it. Your walls clenched tightly as you heard him curse, and the best orgasm in your life hit you hard. You screamed out his name through the white haze of euphoria. When your senses came to, his hips fastened their pace as he suddenly gripped both of your hips hard, stilled, and felt sharp teeth clamp tight around your scent gland as he came harshly. You felt him spurt his come into you as he held you down.

His hips were now gently pumping in and out of you, letting the last spurts of his cum be released inside as he licked your wound apologetically. You couldn’t see it, but you already loved it. He gingerly pulled out of you, flopping right next to you as he pulled you close to his chest. The two of you were quiet for a while as you snuggled within his chest, feeling your erratic heartbeat calm down as his slowed.

“No, I love you more.” He countered, and you couldn’t help but laugh.

……………………………….

I think this is my most favorite fic that I’ve ever written, and one of the longest omg.    

[jan-marie]

Things My Dad Gave Me: A Scarcity Mindset

My dad died a week ago Friday. I’m trying to process his loss the best I can (with no help from my insane relatives), which involves a lot of reflection on our better memories, which either center on shared musical experiences, or Christmas. But of course the rougher memories trickle in as well.

I remember the year my dad declared bankrupcy like it was yesterday. He was living in Tobyhana, a small town in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania. He was driving a gold Daewoo he’d been leasing (Dad loved cars, but hadn’t bought one new in decades; used sales or leases were his bag). He’d been bouncing around apartments in Whitestone, in the city, where everything is smaller and more expensive. So before Tobyhanna, when I came to visit my dad (once every third month, or on holidays) I stayed on couches, or Dad slept on the couch and I took his bed. In my nine years on earth, I never had a room of my own, until that house. I remember when it was empty and he told me it was mine. I remember coming back three months later and he’d bought me a bunk bed, with a futon bottom that folded out into a double bed. He told me I could have a friend come stay sometime if I wanted. I could be so bold as to make friends in Dad’s neighborhood? And not wonder if he’d move again and I’d never see them again? How novel! I remember us going to Rite Aid, where Dad loved to go on shopping sprees (because you could buy so many things, for so little money per item!) and getting a Little Mermaid figurine to put on the dresser (there was a dresser!). It was the cherry on top of the perfect room sundae, and it was all mine.

I remember three months after that, when he told me it was all gone. The house, the bunk bed, the figurine, the Daewoo. It had all been “repossessed,” a word I’d never heard before, by the bank. My mom tried to explain to me the concept of “credit card debt” with little success.

The next month was my birthday. Anyone who’s known me since childhood wouldn’t be surprised that I grew up to become a professional vocalist. I was constantly singing, making the world my stage. My elementary school peers nicknamed me “Jukebox.” So when my dad bought me a karaoke machine for my birthday, you’d think I would’ve been over the moon. And I was, until I saw that he’d left the sticker on: “Rite Aid - $49.95.″ I didn’t know how much $50 was exactly, but it felt like a lot. After my dad left to go back home, I told my mom I didn’t want the karaoke machine, and to ask Dad if he could take it back to the store. He called, confused, “Don’t you like it?” “I love it, Dad. I just don’t need it.” 

A few months later was Christmas. I always spent Christmas Eve with Mom, and on Christmas Day, Dad would come pick me up and we’d drive into the city. We’d go to Radio City Music Hall to see the Rockettes “Christmas Spectacular” show (cancelled for the rest of this season on the day he died; fitting), then go see the tree in Rockefeller Center, then go ice skating in the plaza, then go look at all the lights in Douglaston. 

This Christmas was different. We couldn’t go see the Rockettes this year, he said. I threw a tantrum. I didn’t understand. We could still go see the tree and skate though, which appeased me well enough. But on the way walking there I saw a pretzel vendor. “Dad I want a pretzel.” “I thought you wanted to go skating?” “I do! I also want a pretzel!” “You can’t have both.” “Why not?” “Because I said so.” I chose skating, of course. But that moment is seered into my brain because it wasn’t until years later, when I could grasp the idea of debt, that I realized I couldn’t have both because he couldn’t afford both. Or Radio City. Or probably skating either, but he made it happen. 

He taught me the necessity of choice, and the idea of needs versus wants, at far too young an age. 

So consequently, here at greater than thirty years of age, I’m still struggling with a scarcity mindset. Even though I don’t need to. Scared of “ending up” like my dad, I’ve always been careful with money. I’ve never had a late credit card payment since opening my first account at age eighteen. I’ve foregone so many trips and foods and experiences because I understood that once you spend money, it’s gone forever. Instead, I saved it for a rainy day. I haven’t really had one yet, but I’m still waiting for the shoe to drop. And since I can’t shake that feeling, I can’t loosen the overly tight grip I have on my own bank account.

My phone is dying. It doesn’t have last more than 2 hours off the charger, and you can’t hear anyone talking unless you put them on speaker. My tablet shuts off randomly if you look at it funny. I can’t use my laptop without keeping it plugged in because the battery is 20 charge cycles from causing permanent damage to the hard drive. I broke three pairs of headphones this year, and haven’t gotten new ones; I instead hold my phone and bike with one hand which is crazy dangerous. 

A phone or tablet is like $700. A laptop is probably double that. But headphones are about $15—and I can’t bring myself to buy any of it. And when I do buy nice things for myself, I get massive guilt, and return it all. Almost every time. Because no matter how much money I make, or save, I am always waiting for someone to come take it away, to the point where I not only don’t spend money on leisure, I don’t even spend it on necessities. 

I guess my love of minimalism aligns nicely, but I wish it fit for different reasons. 

What did your parents give you?

[disneydreamlights]

To the Future

AO3 | FFN

Summary: Namine's invited for a girls day out in Twilight Town.

A/N: Written for @naminezine who I cannot thank enough for this experience. If they do a leftover sale you guys should definitely pick up a copy.

The irony is not lost on me that it's Star Wars day and the fic I'm publishing is not Star Wars but this has been in my backlog for months and I'm so glad I can finally share it!

Naminé was still more than a little nervous about following Kairi to Twilight Town today. Today had been the day she was finally allowed to leave Radiant Garden to go explore the other worlds, and Kairi had insisted that to mark the occasion, she’d get to visit Twilight Town and meet the friends who had helped them on her journey.

As Kairi stopped in front of the Usual Spot (Naminé knew it, she’d helped design it in the Virtual Twilight Town for Roxas after all), she put a hand on Naminé’s shoulder. The fact that they were both born from the same heart had left them connected, and it was likely she knew that Naminé was much more nervous than she’d let on. “Don’t worry, Naminé. It’ll be fine, we’re starting small, and they’re both friends with Roxas too.”

“I know.” The small reassurance from Kairi did wonders, and Naminé followed after her into the small hidden room in the alley of Twilight Town.

“Kairi! You’re here!” Despite the fact that they’d never met, Naminé recognized Olette easily from the memories she’d had to create such a long time ago. “Oh, is this the friend you said you’d be bringing?”

Kairi nodded. “This is Naminé, we just recently finished the replica to help her get a body of her own.” It made sense Kairi wasn’t bothering to protect the World Order, then again, Twilight Town was a strange world to begin with. “Naminé, this is Olette. And that’s—”

Naminé watched as the other girl in the room stood up from the armrest she was sitting on with a smile. “It’s nice to see you again, Naminé.”

“You two already know each other?” Kairi tilted her head slightly, not to Naminé’s surprise. Kairi knew with the exception of Riku and DiZ, she had spent most of her year alive alone.

Naminé, however, simply nodded in response. “Once, a long time ago.” She didn’t elaborate, now wasn’t the time to talk about what had gone down during the year Sora had been asleep. “I’m glad to see you again too.” Xion’s fate had been something that had never sat well with her. Knowing she got a happier end, that was what mattered.

“Well, if I’m the only one here who isn’t your friend yet, that just won’t do,” Olette smiled at Naminé, who was surprised by her kindness. “I guess we’ll just have to become friends today.”

And just like that, Naminé smiled, feeling at ease among the two girls who welcomed her so easily to their day together.

-x-

It turned out, when Kairi had invited her to a girl’s day, it had been planned specifically with Naminé in mind. “So I think the first thing we really need to do is get you a new outfit,” Kairi smiled, leading the girls into a small clothing shop in the main street of Twilight Town.

“What’s wrong with what I have now?” It wasn’t that she didn’t understand the concept; the white dress and others like it was all she’d ever worn—it was comfortable, a part of her.

“You were wearing it while I was still in the Organization,” Xion pointed out. Naminé couldn’t argue about that, though she still wasn’t sure she understood.

Olette looked at her in a bit of surprise. “You’ve been wearing the same outfit that long, with no other options?”

“I didn’t have a choice,” despite having been fine with it earlier, Naminé found herself self-conscious at the fact that the girls were so surprised by that fact.

“It’s not a bad thing, but Xion said you guys had met before, right?” Olette pointed out, waiting for Naminé to nod before continuing. “Well, if you two had met during that time, it probably wasn’t in the best of circumstances, and sometimes, changing what you’re wearing can help you feel like you have control over what happened, changing anything can.”

Unsure if what Olette was saying was true, Naminé turned to Kairi for confirmation. “It’s the main reason I wanted you to join us today. The reason Riku cut his hair after coming home was to feel like he had control after everything that had happened, and to show that he had changed.” Naminé nodded, she did remember that his hair had been longer when they’d worked together to save Sora than it was currently. “Right now, cutting your hair seems like it’d be a bit of an extreme to do, but changing your outfit would still be a good start.”

Naminé sighed, willing to accept it for now, at least while they were shopping and supposed to be having a good time. “I understand.”

“Great, then in that case, let’s get started!” Olette immediately dove into the racks, looking for something in Naminé’s size, Kairi following behind her eagerly, although with a reassuring smile, probably sensing how nervous Naminé felt at the idea.

It was Xion who stayed behind while the other girls looked. “I know you’re nervous about it, I was too,” she indicated her new clothes. The black top and white skirt looking like they belonged on her. “You don’t have to even wear anything they buy you today.” And they would, both of the girls were sure of that. “Just keep an open mind. If you’re not ready, none of us will force you to change it right away.”

Naminé gave Xion a small smile in appreciation. “Thank you.”

Before the dark-haired girl could continue to offer reassurance, Olette came back over with an outfit. “How about this one!” It was a dress, not far off from her current one, which Naminé couldn’t help but find relieving in its own way. The dress remained plain white until it got to the skirt, in which a small blue pattern embroidered the bottom, looking like the ocean’s waves.

Naminé looked it over once. “It looks nice.”

“Then come on, go try it on!” And with that Naminé had been shoved into a fitting room by Olette to try it on. She emerged moments later in the dress to approving smiles from the three other girls she was with. While Xion had remained in her normal outfit, Kairi and Olette were both trying on different outfits, although given that Kairi’s was a neon yellow she wasn’t sure if either of them were as serious about it for themselves as they were for her.

“I knew it’d fit!” Olette was grinning, clearly proud of herself for finding a good outfit.

Kairi was just as happy. “You look great.”

And Naminé smiled. “Thank you.”

Maybe this whole new clothes thing wouldn’t be so bad after all.

-x-

Two hours later, three stores, and ten new outfits purchased, the girls had finally decided they’d had enough of shopping and had returned to the main plaza in the shadow of the clocktower for an ice cream break. Olette came over with the four light blue bars with a smile, spreading them out like a hand of cards. “Here.”

Kairi and Xion both grabbed a treat immediately, unwrapping the bars. Naminé grabbed hers, although was a bit more hesitant in her unwrapping. “Thank you.”

“You’ve never had sea salt ice cream before?” Xion asked, her confusion evident in her voice. Xion was the only one who knew she’d been in Twilight Town before.

Naminé shook her head. “DiZ never brought it for us.”

“It’s good,” Xion took a bite out of the bar, which Naminé shuddered as she watched, just imagining how unpleasant the cold on her teeth would be.

“Don’t feel bad about being disturbed by how Xion eats her ice cream. There are other ways.” Kairi seemed to demonstrate, rather than biting into the bar she licked it.

“Yeah, the rest of us don’t eat our ice cream as though we have no sense,” Olette grinned, clearly teasing Xion, who pouted as a result.

“There’s nothing wrong with how I eat it, Axel and Roxas eat it that way too.”

“Lea and Roxas are not the standards you should be going by,” Kairi pointed out. “They eat their ice cream badly too.”

“Roxas really bites into his ice cream?” Olette looked shocked. “That’s terrible, didn’t the virtual version of Hayner, Pence, and I teach him anything?”

As the other girls continued their bickering, Naminé took a small bit of the ice cream, deciding to try it the same way Xion did and savoring the salty, yet sweet taste of the bar.

Kairi stared. “Oh no, Naminé not you too! Don’t tell me you’re embracing Xion’s cursed ways of eating ice cream.”

“So what if she is?” Xion defended herself. “It’s a good way, right Naminé?”

Naminé nodded in agreement, taking another bite. It was cold, but not unbearable, and she couldn’t help but laugh. “It is, the cold isn’t so bad.”

Letting go of the ice cream eating bit with that comment, each one of them resumed eating their frozen treat—laughing the rest of the day.

[sunbird-tells-stories]

Some concepts I want to write about in the MW!-verse:

-Jack going over to Jermaine’s house to meet his family for the first time

-Jack and Jermaine going to prom together and it turning out to be an absolute disaster, so they bail and hang out in NYC together for the entire night, and they kiss as the sun rises.

-Jack helping Jermaine learn new martial arts moves by figuring out the physics of each move so Jermaine can improve his technique.

-Jermaine collecting random junk he finds at thrift stores and taking them back to Jack so his bf can strip them for parts.

-Timber finally getting the therapy she needs for her survivor’s guilt, untreated PTSD and BPD.

-Clay getting therapy for his PTSD

-And he and Timber bonding over it

-Clay and Timber bonding over their rough relationships with their siblings and the rocky home life they’ve had to grow up in.

-Clay and Timber bonding over being nerds, since Timber is into botany and Clay is into animal taxonomy.

-Clay and Timber bonding over the struggles of being unfairly stereotyped as bumpkins just because they grew up in small towns and have “funny accents”

-Clay being reminded of his sister through Timber and calling her Jessie at least once

-Clay and Timber being so supportive to each other that they’re siblings in everything but blood.

-Jack and Omi acting like brothers

-Jack and Rai being rivals/frienemies

-Jack being valued for his tech skills

-Jack and Kimiko bonding over their tech skills and building a genuine friendship based on mutual respect

-Jack finally earning Kimiko’s forgiveness for what he did to her dad and Jack taking it even further by helping Mr. Tohomiko our whenever possible.

- Timber getting a crush on Kimiko

-Timber getting a crush on Kimiko

-TIMBER GETTING A CRUSH ON KIMIKO

-And a mini arc where Rai and Timber become rivals because they’re both crushing on the same girl 👀

- Rai and Timber literally fighting over her at one point, wearing themselves out to the point they can’t even move, and then lying next to each other and looking up at the sky as they talk it out.

-Them making up and promising that no matter who wins her heart, they’ll always be teammates and they’ll always be friends

-Rai and Timber being close friends because Rai knows what it’s like to think you’re not good enough and betray your friends out of that fear.

-Timber looking up to Rai as a role model after she hears about his past.

-Rai and Timber pranking Jack at least once a day.

-Jermaine and Omi living together in the same temple and hanging out 24/7

-Omi helping Jermaine figure out his powers (won’t say what element yet tho)

-Jermaine and Omi growing up to be two of the best martial artists in the world together

-Omi and Timber geeking out over all the new places they see In the world, and Omi hanging onto every word as Timber spouts off facts about cultural sites and historic locations.

-Omi dragging Timber out of bed every morning for some early drills and helping her get to everyone else’s level when it comes to martial arts

-Timber and Kimiko being soft together late at night, with Kimiko braiding Timber’s hair as Timber listens to her talk about her life in Japan. Platonic or romantic, it doesn’t matter - these two girls are soft and sweet to each other no matter what. And I like that dynamic.

-Shadow crushing on Timber

- Shadow crushing on Timber HARD

-Shadow crushing on Timber HARD but she’s Shadow so she’ll never admit it to anyone

-Shadow seeing Timber and Kimiko getting closer and being MAJORLY jealous and doing whatever she can to sabotage dates and outings between the two.

-A big dumb arc where Shadow creates the ‘Willow’ persona just to catch Timber’s eye and it works and Timber starts to fall in love with the girl who has tried to kill her multiple times in the past without even realizing it.

-Shadow slowly dying on the inside because not only has she caught feelings but the girl she likes doesn’t even like HER, just an idealized version of her.

-Timber finding out in a situation where Shadow has no choice but to reveal herself and Shadow bailing in shame.

-Timber tracking her down so they can talk. And for once Shadow lets herself be vulnerable and tells Timber how she feels.

-The two actually managing to work something out and maybe even holding down a healthy relationship despite Timber being a Xiaolin Dragon and Shadow being an agent of chaos.

-Flash forward to the future and the two are married with a daughter named Venus, who looks just like Timber, but has Shadow’s reptilian eyes. And Timber and Shadow are genuinely good parents and are genuinely happy and good for each other, despite the fact they’re still on opposite sides of the Heylin and Xiaolin.

-Wuya hating the fact that her daughter married the Xiaolin Dragon she was supposed to take out years before, but being fond/tolerant of her granddaughter.

-Chase staying out of his daughter’s affairs but also being fond of his granddaughter.

-Jack and Jermaine becoming dads to twins named Jake and Jasmine.

-Clay being a single dad and having a son named Colton. I don’t know who he’d marry but I do know he has a kid and that kid’s name is Colt and they’re an adorable Father/Son duo.

-Omi becoming a dad to an orphaned kid he ran into during his travels. To multiple kids he’s run into during his travels. To all the kids his friends have. And loving and caring for each and every one of them.

-Omi meeting a young man named Boris and finding the only blood relative he has left and building a great relationship with him. And the two grow old together with a deep, unshakable bond.

-The Xiaolin Dragons growing up

-The Xiaolin Dragons finding happiness together

[talltree-writes]

Art History, Philosophy, and Scientific Periodicals // K.NJ

Y/N is a senior in college and works part time at the library near her apartment. RM is the leader of the powerful Wings gang. Despite knowing his dangerous reputation, Y/N can't help but be interested in the sweet man who borrows vastly different books and talks with her for hours.

Genre: Fluff, slice of life, mild angst? (there's a brief fight between reader and her brother), f2l

Pairing: Kim Namjoon/(F)Reader 

Warnings: Reference to sexual assault (it doesn't happen, but it's implied it could have), swearing, guns (make an appearance, but they aren't used in the story), fighting 

Word Count: 7.2k 

 Author's Note: Inspired by Close to You by hollyhomburg on Tumblr (I just checked, and I think she might have deleted, so if anyone can find a link, that’d be really cool!). A really cool concept that I obviously enjoyed, haha! Also I intended this to be a little warm-up piece that was maybe 2k, but uhhh, that obviously didn't happen (it was still a bit of a warm up, it was just a warm up that lasted about 2 weeks...) 

Photo isn't mine!!

-Kim Namjoon had always intrigued you.

-You had seen him for the first time at the local library you worked at part time, earning a bit of cash to help pay for the last bit of tuition that your scholarship didn’t cover.

-It wasn’t the best location, but it was close to you, you enjoyed most of the people who came, and most of all: you loved books. And, well, the enigma of a man who came in during your shift didn’t hurt

-Namjoon stood out in most ways from the normal visitors.

-For one, he checked out odd combinations of books. Usually, the books were philosophy or art history combined with a scientific periodical, often adding a book on a certain language (it changed every once and awhile), or one on music theory or history.

-Secondly, the man, with his blonde hair, piercings, leather jacket, and copious tattoos were far cries from most of the library’s usual visitors

-Lastly, he always came alone. Most of the regulars at the library brought someone at least occasionally, a child, a wife, a friend, someone. But never Namjoon.

-Curiously, instead of finding what he needed and either occupying one of the couches or arm chairs in the back, or even simply taking it home, he always sat at the table closest to your desk

-After a while of reading, he’d ask you a question or bring up a topic. Sometimes your day, or your classes, sometimes he’d ask what the oddest thing someone had checked out was, or, on particularly slow days, he’d leave his books and come sit on the counter next to you, where you two would chat about your lives or philosophy or mythology or art.

-He checked his books about thirty minutes before your shift would end, flashing you a dimpled grin and tucking his books into the beat up backpack he always had before waving on his way out.

-Now, you weren’t dumb. You knew Namjoon was RM, leader of the Wings, and that you should absolutely be scared of him. He sold drugs, he threatened people, hell, he killed people.

-But he was also Namjoon, the dork who showed up at the times he knew it would be slow (street reps were important), the dimple-cheeked guy who teased you about your love of dramas (before secretly confessing to enjoying a few himself). He was the guy who would help you put returned books away before he left, laugh brightly at your dumb jokes or confused face or ruffle your hair affectionately when you did something cute. He was the guy who made butterflies flutter in your stomach and your heart thump wildly.

-So, against all logic, you couldn’t muster up any fear for him.

-However, you did fear your walk home

-Normally, you went unbothered, but that didn’t change the fact that you were walking through a bad area of town at night. You carried a small switchblade and pepper spray just in case.

-One night, everything had been going normally. You had finished closing up the library, waving goodbye to your coworker as you both set off in different directions.

-For the first half, everything seemed normal enough. You stopped at a small shop on your way, grabbing a few essentials that your brother had asked you to get before continuing on your way.

-A few of the street lights were out ahead of you, but you shrugged, it happened sometimes, and would probably be fixed in a few days’ time. Still, you were more cautious as you walked, conscious of the shadowy alleyways along the street.

-You palmed the small blade in your sweatshirt pocket, tensing as the area around you grew darker. Just a few hundred feet, you reassured yourself. Just a bit more and you’d be back in the light, in safety.

-A few feet from returning to the light, you were passing an alley when the shadows started shifting.

-Before you could react, foreign hands reached out to grab you, pulling you towards them. You screamed as loud as you could, but a hand wrapped around your mouth, another pressing something sharp into your side.

-“Shut up, bitch.” A man hissed into your ear.

-You whimpered as he dragged you backwards, the point of what you assumed was a knife digging further in, a silent order to comply. His hot breath in your ear sent spikes of fear through your body, and you felt tears drag down your face.

-The sudden cock of a gun forced both of you to freeze.

-“Let her go. Right. Fucking. Now.” A familiar voice commanded. Your eyes widened when you looked up and saw Namjoon standing at the alleyway entrance.

-The hands on your body shifted, and for a moment you thought he might let you go, but your heart fell when the hand at your mouth just shifted down, grabbing the knife from his other and bringing it to your throat. Your captor arranged your positioning to where you were acting as his unwilling shield, any shot your savior tried would risk your injury.

-You saw Namjoon’s gaze shift slightly to the area just behind you, and you heard another gun cock. “He said let the girl go, asshole.”

-Slowly, the hands around you released and you stumbled away from him, towards Namjoon who already held an arm out to catch you.

-You buried your head in the chest of the familiar man, one of his arms holding him to you comfortingly.

-“L-look, I didn’t know she was your girl. I-I just wanted a little fun. I’m sorry”

-You gulped at his implications, burying yourself impossibly closer to Namjoon.

-The other guy with a gun growled “It’s not fun if she isn’t willing, you piece of shit.”

-“JK, take care of this guy. I don’t want to see him around here any time soon.” You felt the rumbling of his voice through his chest.

-The arm holding his gun lowered, reaching back to shove the weapon in his waistband. He lead you out of the alleyway and back the way you were going. Faintly, you wondered how he knew, but were still too in shock to think too much about it.

-It wasn’t until you were standing outside a well lit shop that your emotions finally hit you.

-Honestly it’s not pretty.

-We’re talking snot, tears, all of it.

-But he just hugs you to his chest and rubs your back, letting you cry away your fear and horror before you got home

-“It’s going to be okay, you’re safe now. I won’t let that happen again.”

-You realized he was whispering soothing things to you and you just gripped his jacket tighter.

-Finally, after you had cried yourself dry, he leads you into the store, nodding once at the owner, and telling you to get some candy

-He left you to choose, always being careful to stay in your sights, and to keep you in his. He wandered to the drinks, grabbing two bottles of water and, after a moment of hesitation, a chocolate milk.

-The two of you met at the counter, you with a bag of assorted mini chocolates and him with his drinks.

-You started to take out your wallet to pay for all of the items (afterall, he saved you, you kinda owed him a lot) but he beat you to it, throwing down a few bills and telling the owner to keep the change.

-He gathered up your purchases in one hand, grabbing yours with the other.

-Outside, he offers you your choice of water or chocolate milk and gives you your candy.

-You choose chocolate milk, because you haven’t had it in forever and it just seems so comforting

-It is, in fact, very comforting and you smile a little at his thoughtfulness

-As the two of you walk, you don’t do much talking. You’re still pretty rattled up from the alley, but you offer him some of the chocolate from the bag you’ve put in your sweatshirt pocket. He doesn’t accept, and you just shrug.

-You don’t realize that he actually really wants some chocolate, but he refuses to let go of your hand and his other hand has water bottles in it.

-He forgets he’s carrying a backpack and can just put them in there, because wow you’re really pretty and distracting and your hand is so small and delicate and soft and he will absolutely Not be letting it go until he has to

-Eventually, you speak up.

-“Thank you, by the way. For the chocolate and for the… alley. I’d have been in much worse shape if you hadn’t shown up.”

-Your voice is quiet and scratchy from crying, but he catches every word, always so very aware of you.

-He shrugs, as if saving you was a given. “I don’t want to see you hurt. Especially like that, no girl should be treated like that.”

-You squeeze his hand again in thanks.

-You idly chatter to each other, but he seems a little more distracted, scanning the area.

-He glares at several people. Some cross the street with their head ducked, others pass with glares of their own. If they glance at you, Namjoon’s hand tightens around yours and pulls you closer.

-When you get to your apartment building, he only hesitates about walking to your door a moment, encouraged by your hand tugging him along with you.

-Honestly, you’d kind of forgotten his hand was wrapped around yours, only becoming conscious of it when he would squeeze it.

-He doesn’t squeeze it when you start to drag him into your building

-At your door, you look back up at him and send him a shy grin.

-“Thank you, again, for saving me. And for comforting me, and walking me home, and… yeah. You didn’t have to do most of that and I’m really grateful.”

-His eyes are soft and tender as they meet your gaze, nothing like the man who aimed a gun at someone not 45 minutes ago.

-“I’ll always do my best to protect you, Y/N. I re-”

-He was cut off mid word by your door swinging open

-“Y/N! Oh my god, are you okay? What happened?” Your brother’s gaze zeroed in on your red, puffy eyes and the small dribble of blood on your throat caused by the small cut the knife had made. You hadn’t even noticed until now

-Namjoon had. Namjoon was going to help you clean it up when you got back to your apartment if you let him.

-Namjoon, assuming the guy was your boyfriend, dropped your hand quickly and cleared his throat

-You really hated the lack of warmth honestly and had to stop yourself from reaching for it again

-Your brother’s eyes shifted to the large man standing in your doorway, noting his appearance and drawing his own conclusions

-“What the fuck did you do to her, you son of a bitch?”

-Namjoon was ready to knock your “boyfriend” out for insinuating that he’d ever lay a hurtful hand on you but you stepped in between the two guys first

-“What-- No, Jordan, he saved me. Someone attacked me. I’ll tell you the whole story later, but I’m fine now, and that’s mostly thanks to him.”

-Your brother’s jaw clicked shut and stayed tense. His words were clipped and cold, almost as if he didn’t believe you.

-“Well. Then, I suppose I should thank you. (Y/N)’s safety is very important to me.”

-Namjoon’s voice was equally as tight in his response.

-“It was no problem. I’d hate to see her hurt, too. I should head out, though. You guys have a good night.” You glanced at his retreating form curiously. You had seen RM, the gang leader, you had seen the Namjoon from the library, but you’d never seen this version. This one was standoff-ish, and nowhere near the passionate and boyish guy you knew.

-It unsettled you a little.

-Your brother gently gripped your forearm and pulled you into your apartment, shutting and locking the door firmly once you were both inside.

-He met your eyes with a searching gaze, but waited a moment before speaking.

-“You can tell the truth now, did he hurt you?”

-You recoiled in shock. Namjoon? Hurt you? Sure, you knew who he was and what his reputation was, but you felt safer standing next to Namjoon than almost anyone else.

-“No, Jordan, he didn’t hurt me. I know him, he wouldn’t do that.”

-You made to turn away and go to the bathroom. You wanted to shower and wash the last few hours off your body. But your brother wasn’t done.

-“Wha- Know him? (Y/N), do you know who that is? How in the everloving fuck do you know him?” He practically shouted

-You shushed him, conscious of your nosy neighbors and the thin walls separating the apartments.

-You rolled your eyes, though. “Yes, I know who he is. That’s RM, formerly known as Rap Monster, and he’s my friend. He comes into the library a lot during my shift and we talk.” You bit back a soft smile at the thought that he might be back tomorrow.

-Your brother sees this though-- he’s way too good at reading you

-“No, absolutely not. You cannot be friends with him. He’s dangerous and I don’t trust him or his gang members.”

-He crosses his arms and stands straight, as if the extra inch and glower will force you to conform.

-But you weren’t 14, and he wasn’t your father.

-Anger washed over you, and you nearly forgot about your nosey neighbors and the thin walls.

-“Jordan, I am not a child! In fact, I am a fully fledged adult woman who can make choices for herself! Now, I have been getting to know Namj-- RM for a few months now, and I’d like to consider us friends. Not to mention, he and one of his gang members just saved me from a rather fucked up experience, so I’d be pretty damn grateful for him right now. Tell me, though, how exactly would you stop me from being friends with him? I met him at the library, you know, the place I work? Are you going to make me quit my job too?”

-You’d started to say Namjoon, but figured he didn’t want too many people knowing his real name.

-“I know you are not a child! But you’re my baby sister, and I promised to protect you always. I’m grateful he saved you tonight, but maybe you should consider quitting. You only need a few more credits to graduate next spring, maybe you should focus on finishing up and looking for a big internship, you know?”

-You glared at him.

-“Oh yeah, because we can really afford to lose my income.”

-He didn’t have a leg to stand on and he knew it. But he kept going.

-“Ok, so maybe it would be tight for a while, but if it got too bad you could get a new one, maybe closer to campus, just until you could start using your degree.” His voice started edging on desperate, but you just rolled your eyes and turned your back.

-“I’m not quitting my job or avoiding RM, end of story. Now I’m going to take a shower and go to bed. I’ve had a long night and I just want to move on.” You, once again, started for the bathroom.

-Your brother stepped forward and caught your arm again, his touch gentle despite the argument you’d just had, and when you turned his eyes were soft and concerned.

-“What did happen tonight, (Y/N)? Are you okay?”

-You swallowed and nodded. “I’m okay now. A guy grabbed me as I was walking and dragged me into an alley. He had a knife and a hand over my mouth so I couldn’t do much, but RM and one of his guys threatened him and he let me go. RM took care of me and brought me home.” You gave him what you hoped was a reassuring smile. Honestly, you were still pretty rattled by the whole experience.

-His eyes searched your face again, and your expression must have been convincing, because he just nodded and let you go.

-“Get some rest.”

-“Thanks”

-The next morning, your brother was up and gone before you, as usual, but he had prepared breakfast before leaving for work. There was a note left on the counter beside it.

-‘(Y/N), I’m sorry about last night. Have a good day and call me if you need anything.’

-You smiled a little at his apology.

-The day dragged on; you had one class in the morning that ended around 11 and your first afternoon class started at 2, so you used the time between to get a headstart on homework. You usually tried some at the library, but got distracted by Kim Namjoon more times than not.

-Your shift at the library started like any other. You saw some regulars, some people just there on a whim or because they needed a reference. You checked books out occasionally, checked them in when you needed to, but all around, had a quiet shift.

-When Namjoon walked in towards the end of it, though, you were surprised. He’d been there yesterday, and he didn’t usually come one day after another-- even he couldn’t read the books that fast.

-Even more surprising, he didn’t even go look at the books. Instead, he sauntered over to the desks, settling himself next to you. His grin showed easy confidence, but his eyes were guarded in a way you hadn’t seen in months.

-“You doing alright?” He asked

-You shrugged. You’d kept your mind preoccupied enough today, but you’d be lying if you said it hadn’t affected you.

-When a classmate had run up to catch you after the lecture to get last classes notes, you’d noticeably jumped, your heart rate increasing far more than if it had been a normal scare

-You kept checking over your shoulder as you walked to class, despite knowing how safe your campus was and the fact that it was broad daylight

-You really weren’t looking forward to the walk home tonight

-“I’m still spooked, but I think that’s a little justifiable given the circumstances.”

-He bit his lip, looking like he was trying to figure out whether to ask something. Something must have won, because he asked

-“Are you walking home alone again? I mean-- is your boyfriend coming to get you or are you going by yourself?”

-You cocked your head. Boyfriend? “What boyfriend? Is someone telling people that he’s my boyfriend?”

-Now it was his turn to look confused.

-“The guy last night at your apartment? Jordan or whatever, wasn’t he your boyfriend?”

-You stared at him for a second, trying to gauge whether he’s joking or not. “Jordan? You mean my brother?”

-A look of shocked understanding took over his face briefly. “Your brother, oh. Okay. Cool, cool. That’s cool.” He had never been this awkward, and you had to bite back a smile.

-But when a bright smile broke through his guarded eyes, you let your own loose.

-Namjoon stayed for the rest of your shift, helping you shut everything down and walking out with you.

-You expected him to wave and head off on his own after you locked up, but he stood for a second.

-“You never answered my question about whether you were walking home alone earlier.”

-You’d thought about calling your brother, really, you had, but every time you had the opportunity to do so, Namjoon did or said something that distracted you

-He didn’t know he was doing it, of course. How could he know you were thinking of calling your brother to bring you home after your shift?

-“Oh- um, well no. I don’t. I can call my brother, though, and he’ll come get me.”

-“But you’d still have to wait for him to come get you, right?”

-You shrugged, already opening your phone. “Yeah, but it’s fine. I’ll just wait here or at the shop down the block.”

-“I mean, I could just take you home.” He shrugged casually

-This man is absolutely not casual in his head, he is freaking the fuck out

-He has his bike, which he doesn’t bring to the library most of the time

-Mostly because that’s kinda conspicuous

-But also because he’s been trying to work up the nerve to ask to walk you home for a while

-But today he figured you might not want to walk

-You glanced up at him. “I don’t want to inconvenience you. It’s a long walk.”

-He shot you an easy grin, “I wasn’t proposing walking. I have my bike.” He gestured to the parking lot where a motorcycle sat

-Your resolve is already pretty low. The walk is long, and you’d have to wait for your brother and then do the walk yourself, and you’d honestly rather just get back home and go to bed

-So you nod and follow him to the barely lit lot

-He hands you the helmet hanging from the bars, and when you shoot him a questioning look, he shrugs

-“I’d rather I get hurt than you, and I don’t have another helmet.”

-He’s definitely buying one for you like tomorrow

-You put on the helmet and slip onto the seat behind him, loosely wrapping your arms around him

-He smiles a little at the feeling of your slim arms around his waist and kicks on the bike.

-Now, you’d been on motorcycles before, and you knew what it sounded and felt like. But that didn’t stop you from jumping a little and tightening your grip around him

-You feel the rumble of his chuckle as you cling to his back, only really relaxing once you had gotten on the streets.

-Truth be told, the way home wasn’t that long when you drove it.

-The ride came to an end far too soon. He walked you to your door again, and outside your apartment, you hesitated.

-You had been talking all throughout the end of your shift, but you didn’t want it to stop. You wanted to keep talking, about the books he reads, about his life, about your life, about everything. You were incredibly interested in the enigma standing before you and just wanted to figure him out.

-“Do you want to come in tonight?” You offered, very hopeful.

-He glanced at the door with an odd look. Almost as if he wanted to just as much as you did, but was nervous or scared.

-Which is odd. Because he doesn’t get scared.

-Right?

-RM, leader of the most influential gang in the city, hardly rivalled and with numbers unknown, didn’t get scared of going into a girl’s apartment right?

-He didn’t get scared of overprotective brothers, or of not being enough for them

-Not at all

-Apparently, he does.

-Because he shakes his head, and says “I don’t think your brother would appreciate it.”

-He shoots you a smile, and heads back down the hall.

-You slip into your apartment and frown at your brother, who’d obviously been listening.

-“What did I tell you about him, y/n?”

-You glare and shake your head at him

-“And what did I tell you? He’s a good guy, he was just bringing me home.”

-You brush past him and towards your room. He was always like this with guys, which made sense, but didn’t mean you had to appreciate it.

-You showered and ate dinner, but otherwise stayed in your room doing homework. Your classload the next day was light, so you could sleep in

-When you woke up the next day, Jordan was already gone, but today he hadn’t made breakfast or left you a note.

-‘Message received, dickwad.’ You thought, moving to grab a cup of coffee.

-Both your classes were after lunch, so you studied all morning, until you got a text from a friend in your art history course who wanted to meet up and study, since he’d heard you had a quiz that day.

-You agreed, and got ready, getting to a coffee shop near campus by 11:45, 15 minutes earlier than you had agreed, but you didn’t care much.

-Soonyoung got there early too, and you both quizzed each other on paintings and their years and artists. The quizzes weren’t exactly hard, they were just a lot of memorization

-You went your separate ways for your first classes, yours a basic bio course that you’d been putting off, and his some advanced math class for his major.

-Both classes passed as normal, and you felt you did well on the quiz, which was largely due to the studying and warning Soonyoung had given you

-You both walked out together, smiling and talking, and he offered to go with you to your job

-He needed some reference material for the paper you’d just been assigned

-And you were both from the same area

-You’d just met at the campus cafe earlier so you could study longer

-He also has a big ole crush on you

-Has for like a year

-Mans literally took the class to get close to you

-You have 0 idea and just think he’s a really good friend

-It’s kinda because you’re very focussed on this really nice gang leader who reads art history and philosophy books paired with scientific periodicals and articles.

-Agreeing, you both head to the bus stop, chatting just as easily all the way to the library

-That is, until you get there and see a familiar figure walking from the parking lot, a motorcycle parked among the few cars

-You notice that there are two helmets now

-And one of them is your favorite color

-Something you’d told him months ago when you were playing a silly 20 questions game to pass the last hour of your shift

-And he’d obviously remembered, or just gotten lucky and guessed

-The smile automatically lands on your face

-He very rarely comes at the beginning of your shift, he’s a very busy man, afterall.

-“Oh shit, y/n, RM’s here.”

-You haven’t stopped watching the tall man, and his gaze hits yours, and he waves, a smile starting to grow before it lands on your companion.

-He tries not to assume again, because last time he’d assumed your brother was your boyfriend

-“Yeah, he’s here pretty often.” You look over at Soonyoung in time to miss RM’s glare at the boy.

-Soonyoung, who hasn’t missed the glare, glances at you. “I’ll stay until he leaves.”

-He’s determined, and you can see it, and before you can tell him that you’d literally never been safer than when Namjoon was around, you’re walking in the doors and you have to go clock in.

-Soonyoung goes to look for his references, very obviously keeping an eye on RM

-Unfortunately for him, the references he needs are a few aisles away from him, so he can’t watch him forever, and, about 30 minutes later, he’s alarmed to see RM leaning against your desk, laughing and grinning

-You’d dissuaded his fear before he’d even voiced it this time

-“Soonyoungs’s not my boyfriend either, you know.” You’d said as he’d approached with the same guarded look. “He’s just a friend who needed a few references for a paper our professor assigned”

-He’d brightened again, and decided to try and play nice

-Even if the guy is a rival

-Soonyoung thinks he’s making inappropriate advances because you look a little scandalized, but he can’t tell that you’re also laughing at the smiling guy in front of you

-Your friend slides in, all cool confidence, doing everything he can to edge between Namjoon and your counter.

-“Hey, man, what are you doing here?”

-You watch as the smile slides quickly from his face and is replaced by the expression he wore when he’d seen your brother-- expressionless, mildly intimidating, cold.

-“I’m getting a book and talking to y/n. What are you doing here, Hoshi?”

-One glance over Soonyoung’s shoulder told Namjoon that you had no idea about your friend’s gang affiliation.

-Soonyoung, who didn’t want you to find out this way, but was determined to protect you, regardless, stood his ground, “Y/N and I are friends and I came with her.”

-He doesn’t want RM to know where you go to school, that could open up a whole world of trouble.

-RM looks Hoshi up and down, before cracking a smile. “Ok. I guess I’ll just go look at my books over here.”

-He doesn’t want to start a fight in the library, but oh boy does he want to start a fight with this guy

-So he’s making it very clear that he’s not intimidated

-He doesn’t expect Soonyoung’s next words

-Neither do you, honestly.

-“I think I’ll join you.”

-This man is trying not to scare you, but he’s gotta get the point across to the Wings boss that you are Off Limits and Protected™

-You watch, astounded, as your two friends go off together

-You still haven’t really put the connection together that Soonyoung is in a gang

-Why would you, he doesn’t necessarily look like a gang member.

-He’s pretty delicate looking, and he doesn’t have a lot of piercings or tattoos like Namjoon, and he’s never done anything or given you any sign that he might be affiliated

-You go back to your work though, occasionally glancing at the guys

-Namjoon is facing you and catches your eye to send grins

-Otherwise they glare at each other over their books

-You’re getting more and more confused

-What had happened?

-They both stay to the end of your shift-- neither leaving before the other

-So they both end up helping you close up

-Soonyoung fails to notice how RM knows what to do and has obviously done it before

-They both wait for you to lock up, staring at each other and daring the other to leave.

-When you turn around, their gazes don’t move. “Ok, I think I’ll leave you two to get a room…”

-It’s mostly a joke, but you still brush past them

-It’s a joke because you’re not ready to walk home alone yet

-And you were really hoping the second helmet meant that Namjoon was going to take you home again

-And you got paid that day so you were kinda hoping you could pay him back with a quick dinner

-The joke snaps them out of it and Namjoon reaches out to (gently) catch your arm

-But Soonyoung doesn’t like that

-“Get your fucking hands off her!” 

 -He shoves Namjoon and steps between the two of you 

 -But now RM is mad 

 -This is the second guy who assumed he’d ever hurt you 

 -And that’s pretty offensive given that he’d literally let you run a bus over him -When i say the guy is whipped 

 -The first was your brother, which he excused. Brothers are allowed to be protective 

 -But this guy is another gang member and has tried to stake a claim on you that he doesn’t have any right to 

 -Back off, Hoshi, you’re going to scare Y/N.” 

 -Namjoon keeps his voice level because he really doesn’t want to scare you, especially given the events of the other night 

 -A glance at you would reveal that you’re really not scared, you’re just confused 

-“Soonyoung-” 

 -You don’t get to finish your sentence because the fucker interrupts you 

 -Now you’re kinda mad 

 -“I’m just trying to keep her safe. She didn’t appreciate your flirting earlier, so just catch the fucking hint, asshole.” 

 -He turns and grabs your arm this time. “Y/N, let me walk you home.” You just look at him. This man just made a lot of presumptions about your life without talking to you and you don’t really appreciate it. 

 -“Actually, Soonyoung, RM is my friend, and I don’t like what you’re implying about him.” 

 -You’re kinda glaring 

 -Namjoon thinks you might be referring to the part where Soonyoung said he was flirting 

 -He was definitely flirting 

 -He’s a had a huge crush on you for a while 

 -He’s still angry at Hoshi but now he feels a bit like a kicked puppy too 

-Oh well 

 -More emotion to take out on Hoshi 

 -But then you’re really glaring when Soonyoung pulls you closer 

 -“Y/N, that guy isn’t the kind to defend. You don’t know him, not really. 

 -Let’s go, we can talk more on our way to your apartment. 

 -He’s never been to your apartment 

 -And you don’t necessarily think he’d do anything 

 -But you kinda get a weird feeling about him going there. 

 -You wiggle out of his grasp and step towards Namjoon 

 -“No, Soonyoung, it’s fine, you go on.” 

 -Soonyoung is very determined not to leave you with RM 

 -“Y/N, c’mon, let’s just go.” 

 -He reaches for you again 

 -“I’m pretty sure the girl said no, Soonyoung. Go on home, and tell the other Diamonds that she’s officially under Wings protection.” 

 -Namjoon’s voice is pretty deep, and he puts his hand on your shoulder 

 -Which means he feels you flinch when you hear about the Diamonds 

 -The whole interaction makes more sense 

 -And you know why Namjoon called him Hoshi earlier 

 -But damn are you pissed that he didn’t tell you 

 -You step closer to Namjoon, bumping into his chest, when Soonyoung steps closer to you again, his face very apologetic and obviously trying to make amends. 

 -You’re not afraid of him, he can’t hurt you when literally the scariest gang leader is standing right there and just blatantly said you’re under his protection  

-But you definitely don’t want him to touch you right now 

 -He looks a little hurt but backs off. 

 -You put your hand on Namjoon’s and turn your head up to look at his face 

-“Can you give me another ride home?” 

 -The look he returns to you fills your heart. It’s so tender, damnit. 

 -“Of course. Do you want to go wait by my bike?” 

 -You nod and start to walk toward the parking lot. 

 -That is, until Soonyoung yells very angrily 

 -“Oh! I see! You’re RM’s whore, that’s how you got Wings protection-” 

 -The fool doesn’t even finish the sentence before Namjoon is shooting his fist out to meet Soonyoung’s jaw 

 -The fight breaks out quickly, and you stand shocked for a second 

 -Obviously you had seen fights before 

 -But Namjoon, no, RM, is absolutely wailing on Soonyoung, who looks like he’s reaching for somethi- 

 -A gun 

 -He’s reaching for a gun 

 -And you look up at the security cameras 

 -And you really don’t want the police asking you questions 

 -Especially because you must seem very familiar with two guys who have gang affiliations in the footage 

 -You also don’t want Namjoon to get hurt 

 -Like you really don’t -So you start screaming at them 

 -“Stop! Jesus fuck, both of you, just stop!” You try to move in to pull one off the other, but a poorly aimed limb hits you instead (you’re pretty sure it was Soonyoungs, but you can’t be certain). “RM! Soonyoung! Stop!”

 -When you spot the gun, your screaming becomes a little more frantic. 

 -When you said you wanted to return the favor, you didn’t mean patching him up after a fight 

-“RM! RM! Stop! Soonyoung! Stop!” 

 -Neither seem to hear you, and you can’t get in to pull one of them off the other, so you try something else. 

 -Honestly, it’s a longshot 

 -And you’re hoping you don’t hurt either of them 

 -Because you’ve got some heavy books in there that could give them a concussion 

 -But you just need to shock them enough to get them to stop 

 -You throw your bookbag at them 

 -It hits both, thankfully, so they both get distracted 

 -They’re still locked in the same positions, but now they’re both staring at you, their chests heaving 

 -Your chest is as well, but that’s out of panic more than exertion 

 -“Both of you, stop it. I don’t need the cops at my door asking me questions because I openly interact with you and you kill one another. Nope, no thank you.” You take a deep breath because now that shit seems a little de-escalated, your heart needs to calm the fuck down. “Soonyoung, go the fuck home, and don’t ever talk to me again. Return your books during someone else’s shift, don’t talk to me during class, just, don’t ever fucking talk to me again. I’m no one’s whore.” You glare at him with every ounce of anger in your body 

 -Which, to be fair, is a whole lot 

 -He lied to you, didn’t listen to you, didn’t respect your boundaries or when you told him no, and then called you a whore. 

 -“Y/N, look I-“ 

 -RM, who has let him go and moved to stand in front of you again, opens his mouth to say something but you beat him to it 

 -“I said go, Hoshi.” 

 -He tosses one more glare RM’s way before turning around. He walks off and for a second neither you or Namjoon move. 

 -Then you let out a sigh of relief when his form disappears around a corner -Namjoon immediately turns to you, hesitantly reaching out a hand to cradle your face and check if you’re okay 

 -“I’m fine.” He still looks at you, very concerned. “Really, I’m fine. I’m not the one who just got into a fist fight.” 

 -You start scanning your eyes over his face. You couldn’t see much in the low light, but you caught a cut by his eye, where the skin was darkening already. 

 -Otherwise he looked fine

 -You couldn’t see the rest of him though 

 -And honestly, if you saw the rest of him… 

 -You probably wouldn’t be looking for injuries 

 -Let’s be honest 

 -“Joon, your eye…” 

 -You reach your hand up to brush your fingers over the cut, and you don’t even realize that you’ve just called him Joon 

 -But damn, he did. He doesn’t realize it but he’s holding his breath, and he’s staring at you with wide eyes and oh wow he might be in love is this what love feels like? It has to be because he can’t be this excited about a nickname unless it’s from someone he loves 

 -A couple of other people call him Joon

-It’s not that complicated of a nickname 

 -But he doesn’t get this feeling when they call him Joon 

 -You notice that he’s staring at you after a second of him not saying anything and you give him a more concerned look “Namjoon are you okay?” 

 -He starts breathing again, but kinda only because little black dots start appearing in his vision and he doesn’t want to scare you 

 -“I-I’m fine, y/n. Um, what did you just call me?” 

 -You get shy 

 -You really hadn’t realized you said it, but Namjoon just seems so formal sometimes and you wanted to give him a nickname 

-Also you’ve been calling him Joon in your head for a while 

 -But only sometimes, not all the time 

 -Only when you were thinking about how cute his dimple smile is 

 -Or when you thought about that one time he hugged you -It was the day after your birthday a few months ago 

 -He’d found out because he’d come in on your birthday (he didn’t even want a book, he literally just wanted to see you) 

 -But you had asked your coworker to cover so you could spend the day with some friends and brother 

 -The official excuse was that you had a doctor’s appointment and it was the only time they could fit you in for a few months 

 -He’d been pretty concerned (and very disappointed) so he’d asked your coworker 

 -She worked the shift with you sometimes and knew the two of you got on well 

-So she just shrugged and said it was your birthday 

 -She figured he wouldn’t snitch on you 

 -Also she really wants you two to get together

-Because she can see how he looks at you 

 -It’s literally like you hung the moon 

 -This man goes out and panic buys chocolate and a little plushie that he thinks is really cute and that you’ll love 

 -You do. You love both 

 -When he gives it to you, you’re really shocked, though 

 -Because you didn’t know that he knew when your birthday was 

 -And you didn’t expect him to care that much 

 -You should have realized then that he was coming into the library just to see you sometimes 

 -You’re really shocked, though, and you kinda run into his chest and give him a hug 

 -And he just wraps his arms around you 

 -And it’s the nicest hug you’ve had in a while 

 -Because he’s so much bigger than you 

 -And his arms are so warm and gentle and strong and safe 

 -Anyway, so you weren’t really calling him Joon that often, right? Just whenever you thought about him... 

 -You step away from him and drop your hand, wrapping your arms around yourself 

 -“I called you Joon…” 

 -You’re silent for about .5 seconds before you start babbling 

 -“I’m sorry, it just kinda slipped out, but your name seemed so formal, especially since you just defended me again. I won’t call you Joon again if you don’t want me to, it could just be a one time thing if that’s what you want but I just- I- I’m sorry.” You finish lamely and look down, blush tinting your cheek 

 -He cradles your face tenderly, guiding your eyes back up to his. “Please call me Joon again, Y/N. There is almost nothing I’d like you to call me more than Joon. In fact, please forget you have ever heard any other name for me.” 

 -He gives you that soft grin you’ve only ever seen when he looks at you, and it’s your turn to freeze 

 -His eyes are sparkling with affection and mirth 

 -And his hand against your cheek is warm 

 -And are you crazy or is he moving closer? 

 -He’s absolutely moving closer 

 -Oh my god oh my god oh my god 

 -His lips are soft, and honestly, you’d hardly call it a kiss, more like a barely-there brush of lips 

 -There aren’t any of the fireworks or sparks you read about in all those romance novels

-But it raises goosebumps all over your body 

 -He pulled back just a little to catch your reaction, his eyes holding a little bit of anxiety about being rejected 

 -You blink up at him owlishly before raising yourself up to meet his lips with yours again 

 -You keep it soft, trying to transmit your feelings through the kiss 

 -You break away a moment later, smiling softly “Do you maybe want to go get some coffee or dinner or something? My treat.” You ask softly, aware of the bare amount of space between you 

 -He grins, straightening and taking your hand to walk towards his motorcycle 

-“There’s nothing I’d like more in this moment, Y/N.”

[scatterpatter]

Some Covid-19 Vaccine Info: what to expect

So some disclaimers:

I’m only going to talk about vaccination in America- sorry to the rest of the world but I don’t know enough about the vaccination process in other countries to talk about them

I’m not a doctor or nurse or otherwise medical professional, I am however someone who’s related to multiple doctors/nurses, used to work in a nursing home and got vaccinated while working there, am currently working for a company that facilitates clinical trials, and just did my basic online research. If I get something wrong, please correct me!

CW for obvious medical talk, nothing graphic or gore-y though, mentions of needles and whatnot but again nothing bad

Under the cut!

When am I going to get my vaccine?

This will vary state-by-state, check your state’s rules, you’ll likely find what you need by a quick google search(ex. “Vaccination eligibility in [state/county/town]” or something like that)

The most vulnerable are put at highest priority: for example- those 75+, those who work at or live in nursing homes, those who work in hospitals, those who are immunocompromised, etc. After that will be those as somewhat high risk, this will vary state by state but could include: grocery store workers, teachers, and other employees who come in contact with many people for their job, those 50+, etc. After those are vaccinated, it will slowly open to the general public: most likely depending on both your age and where you work/go to school. The less at risk you are for getting/transmitting covid, the longer it will be.

As of this post(March 16, 2021), children are not permitted by the FDA to get the vaccine. Pfizer’s vaccine is approved for ages 16+, while Moderna’s and J&J’s vaccines are permitted for ages 18+. These companies are either planning to or are currently conducting vaccine trials in children, but it’s unknown when the vaccine(or a variant of the vaccine) will be available for children

The Three Vaccines

Pfizer was the first vaccine to be approved and distributed, and some basic info about it:

It comes in a series of two doses, 21 days apart

It’s dosage is 30micrograms of vaccine, and has a 95% efficacy rate(efficacy meaning in a group of people, there’s a 95% reduction of covid-19, more thorough definition here)

Used to need to be stored in -94 degrees Fahrenheit, which required special freezers, but recently, the FDA announced that the vaccine can be shipped and stored (for a two-week period only) at temperatures of normal pharmacy freezers, between -13 and 5 degrees Fahrenheit

After thawing, a vial of the Pfizer vaccine must be used within five days

Because of the above point, you’re more likely to find Pfizer doses in urban and less likely in rural areas due to the storage issues

Moderna was the second vaccine to be approved and distributed, and some basic info about it:

It comes in a series of 2 doses, 28 days apart

It’s dosage is 100 micrograms of vaccine, though hasn’t shown evidence of being any more effective than Pfizer’s vaccine

It has a 94.1% efficacy rate

Moderna’s is stable at fridge temperature for 30 days and at room temperature for 12 hours

Johnson and Johnson(J&J) was the third vaccine to be approved and distributed, and some basic info about it:

It is a one-dose only vaccine

They’re also testing a 2-dose vaccine, though the results from their trials will not be available until most likely May 2021

It has a 66% effective rate against moderate-to-severe symptoms of covid, but is 85% effective against severe disease

Because of this, J&J is working on a booster shot to increase the effectiveness of this vaccine, though its unknown when this booster will be ready(I believe this booster combined with the original is the 2-dose vaccine mentioned above, but don’t hold me to that)

J&J’s vaccine can be stored at room temperature (not to exceed 77 degrees Fahrenheit) for 12 hours when the vial hasn’t yet been punctured. After the first dose is withdrawn, the vial can be stored in a fridge for six hours or at room temperature for two hours.

The above means that this vaccine is encouraged for use in rural communities, where it’s difficult to store vaccines at extremely low temperatures and the travel times between small towns

While Moderna’s and Pfizer’s vaccines came out before many of the variants seen throughout the world, J&J was specifically testing with the variants

How do the vaccines work?

Both Pfizer and Moderna’s vaccines work on what’s known as a messenger RNA vaccine, or mRNA for short. To put it in simple terms, the way it works is as such: a harmless “spike protein” is injected into our bodies, this protein can also be found on covid-19 cells. When our immune system sees this protein, it recognizes it as something foreign that should not be there and starts making antibodies in order to fight off these proteins. Now that there is an immunity built up, whenever a covid-19 cell is now introduced to the body, the body already knows how to fight off the virus. (more detailed explanation here) 

J&J’s vaccine works a bit differently, using what’s known as a Viral Vector Vaccine. How this works is as such: a modified version of a different (and harmless) virus, known as the vector, is introduced into the body. Much like the mRNA vaccine explained above, this cell has the same proteins on the exterior that covid cells have. Your body will build up antibodies to fight off this vector, so that once covid is introduced to your system, your immune system already has the built up defenses to fight it off (more detailed explanation here)

To put it as simply as possible: all 3 vaccines introduce a harmless substance in your body. Your body’s immune system then builds up a defense against this substance, and now that you have a defense built up, your body is now prepared to fight off covid-19 cells.

Do I have a choice on which vaccine I’ll get? Which one should I get if so?

Depending on your area and where you go to get the vaccine, you may not have a choice in which one you get. It’s more likely that you’ll get a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine if you’re in a more urban area, and it’s more likely that you’ll get a Moderna or J&J shot if you’re in a more rural area, but who knows. 

If you do get a choice, however, there’s really no vaccine that’s considered the “best”. Pfizer’s and Moderna’s are so similar that the differences between them are basically pointless. If you have a choice between one of them and the J&J vaccine(or a choice between all 3), then that may make a difference due to J&J’s functioning so differently. Honestly, this will come down to what you think is best for you. Weigh the pros and cons of each, and make a decision on what you feel is the best option for you. It may come down to what supplies a clinic has for a day, I’m not sure, I didn’t get a choice in which vaccine I could get.

I cannot stress enough that none of these are the “wrong” decision if you get the choice. A vaccine is a vaccine at the end of the day.

What is herd immunity?

“Herd Immunity” is the concept that, when a large enough number of a population is immune to a disease, it prevents the disease from being able to spread. If one person gets covid, but everyone around them is immune, the virus will be unable to spread to anyone else. This concept is important because it protects at-risk people who can’t get the vaccine(children, pregnant people, etc). It’s important with dealing with vaccination numbers to remember the following: We don’t need to vaccinate everyone, we just need to vaccinate enough people. (source)

What about those adverse reactions?

There have been a small number of people who, after getting one of the mRNA vaccines(Pfizer and Moderna), have experienced anaphylaxis(a severe, life-threatening allergic reaction). There are 3 important things to keep in mind with this:

Anaphylaxis after COVID-19 vaccination is rare and occurred in approximately 2 to 5 people per million vaccinated in the United States based on events reported to VAERS. This is an extremely low percent.

There are medical professionals on site who are ready to treat someone who goes into anaphylaxis.

There’s no data on the exact numbers, but some of the reports of adverse reactions came from people who had a history of allergic reactions to other vaccines

If you have no history of allergic reactions to vaccines, you should be fine. If you DO have a history of such, consult with your doctor over risks and benefits, and bring an epipen or some other form of treatment in case of an emergency.

What can I expect when I go to get my vaccine?

The registration and check-in process will vary depending on the place you go, so I won’t try to guess what that will be like. As for the administration of the vaccine, it’s very quick and easy. They’ll ask for your arm, and it’s not required but recommended to give your non-dominant arm(since it’ll most likely be sore for a few days). The needle is very small, and only in your arm for about 5 seconds. I get very squeamish around needles, so if I could handle it just fine, so can you. A small bandaid because you might bleed a tiny bit, and you’re good. It’s like most muscle-injected vaccines, very simple and clean.

The CDC recommends that, because of the adverse reactions mentioned above, that you stay at the vaccine site for 15-30 minutes so the medical staff can monitor you. Cases of anaphylaxis occur within 30 minutes, so if you’re one of the extremely rare group who has a reaction, staff will be there to treat you effectively and immediately.

Setting up a second appointment, getting the record of vaccination, etc will vary depending on where you get your vaccine. 

What side effects can I expect afterwards?

Side effects may vary from person, and there are some differences experienced by the different vaccines, but overall you can expect to have flu-like symptoms for a few days. If you’re getting a second dose, your side effects are likely to be worse after your second dose.

It’s a good sign if you’re having side effects! This means that your body is responding to the harmless mRNA or Vector explained above. By fighting these off, you’ll have flu-like symptoms, but in turn your body is building up the right defenses to be able to fight off covid. So don’t panic, side effects right after a vaccine means its working!

Common side effects either reported online or I’ve seen from talking to others who were vaccinated:

Fatigue

Headaches

Muscle soreness on the arm that was injected

Fever

Chills

Nausea

Soreness at the injection site

For the most part: taking it easy, drinking fluids, taking painkillers for any pains, etc should be enough to get you through it.

You may want to see a doctor if:

Your symptoms are getting worse, worringly-so(basically if your symptoms would make you see a doctor if you had the flu)

The redness or tenderness around the injection site gets worse after 24 hours

My personal experience after getting the Pfizer vaccine:

The first dose hit me harder than I expected. I had a light fever(didn’t get an exact temp but I was definitely feeling warm, I was most likely hovering below 100)

My god, was my arm SORE. I even drew a thing here. Definitely hurt to lift for a few days, but painkillers helped

Was more tired than usual for a few days, had trouble staying awake while working from home at my new job

Since the first dose hit me harder than I expected, I thought the second dose would’ve been awful, but it wasn’t as bad as I expected. Worse than the first, but not as bad as I was bracing for

The morning after, I woke up feeling mostly fine, but an hour later my temperature spiked to 100.4 and I felt like I was hit by a truck. I took some acetaminophen(pain killer/fever reducer) and within another hour or two jumped back down to 99.5. Kept that fever for a few days, but it never spiked that high again, so I was fine.

I had “brain fog”, which is pretty common with fevers, which is when you feel somewhat loopy, and have trouble concentrating/speaking/thinking as clearly as usual, since your body is so focused on building its immunity.

How long should I wait before my vaccine is fully effective?

Right now there isn’t enough data to give an accurate timeline on when a vaccine is effective, but it’s recommended to wait 2 weeks until after you get your second dose(or first dose if you got J&J) to consider yourself immune.

It’s important to note that the vaccines are proven effective against symptoms of covid-19, but as of right now, it’s possible that a vaccinated person can still have covid with no symptoms but still transmit the virus to others. One study conducted by the Israeli Health Ministry and Pfizer Inc. found that the vaccine reduced infection, including asymptomatic cases, by 89.4% and in symptomatic cases, by 93.7%(source). So while the evidence suggests this, it’s still important for those who were vaccinated to continue taking preventative measures such as masking up and social distancing.

Some More Sources

I’ve used this data throughout this post, so read up on these, and do your own research! The more informed we are, the better!

CDC Information on vaccination

FDA information on vaccination

Statnews comparison between the 3 vaccines(content warning: picture of a medical needle on the top of the article)

CDC: What to expect after getting a vaccine

TL;DR:

I recommend reading this whole post, but here are some key points in case you can’t:

Pfizer’s and Moderna’s vaccines use the same method and there are very few differences between them

Each vaccine has pros and a couple cons, and you MAY have a choice in which you can get, but each is proven safe and effective against covid-19 in adults 

Expect flu-like symptoms a few days after getting vaccinated: it’s not only normal and expected, but it’s a sign your vaccine is working

[ifeveristoday]

Let me explain… no, there is too much. Let me sum up.

Strap in kids, it’s Boom! Buffy issue #20 and the last issue we get this year. So long and fuck off, 2020.

Spoilers underneath the cut

Well. That was bracing.

In this issue we get the spotlight on the adult characters and their struggles - the status of Giles and Jenny’s relationship (on a break), Wesley Wyndam Price trying to convince Faith of her sacred duty and oh, that vampires are real, and a direct callback to Wesley’s standalone issue and the shadowy Watcher’s Council, and Anya, who finally reveals her true purpose of being in Sunnydale. Or does she?

Subplots involve Willow’s conversation and off-page deal with Evil! Xander, the status of Robin and Buffy’s relationship (ghosty ghost avoidance on Buffy’s part), and the unspoken elephant of broken trust in the room (everyone else).

There really is a lot going on - so I’m going to break it down by character, because that has always been a strong point in Jordie’s reimagining of the Buffyverse. Jordie writes about the characters and their motivations and their inner lives and not so much about the Plot (though she’s improved on that front). 

Jenny

Clearly has seen and suffered a lot of Shit, but it isn’t delved into for trauma porn - and she’s had enough. She loves Giles, but she doesn’t want to be a part of whatever is unfolding, but she still has compassion for Evil! Xander and can see that his actions are not too far off from his human self’s desires, only twisted. Evil! Xander wants love and attention and now he has the power to force it  - but somehow is talked out of it by Willow. Jenny makes the choice to protect herself, even if it means walking away from Giles and their relationship. 

Giles 

When not in a Jenny-daze, Giles picks up an important clue from their last conversation and calls in the troops to discuss the matter of trust and truth. It’s a nice nod to the previous issue’s reunion with Willow and the rest of the Scoobies - Willow not being comfortable about the trust fall, even though she suggested it, and here, being evasive and lying to everyone about where she got her shiny new trinket. I also notice none of her adventures in gay witch cult utopia have been folded into the Jordie timeline yet, but I assume that will be a reveal for later. Giles trying to mediate the conversation-turned-argument is interesting because for a lot of the series, he’s been on the side of caution and covering up because of the Council’s indoctrination process. 

Anya

This was the surprise of the issue for me and one of the high points - all those previous crumbs of Anya referring to herself as a demon witch, and then Giles saying she was a watcher too, and then mention of a past Watcher being friends/school mate of a demon, and somehow just appearing at the right possible time to solve problems/save the Scoobies while hiding in plain sight. Anya being the connection to the Watcher’s Council and her dealings with vampires, Wolfram and Hart, she’s the perfect agent of controlled chaos. The reveal of her being the demon figure helping out the previous Slayer Morgan (who I now think is the original character they were hyping up issues ago and all that talk about multiverses and such - she and Anya are most likely behind what happened in Hellmouth). A revenge demon working with a Slayer is just *chef’s kiss* because who wouldn’t want revenge if they’re a young teenage girl suddenly tasked to save the world and not have her own life? 

Anya’s conversation with Willow about demons being morally grey and that souls don’t need to come into it (along with the Princess Bride reference -  “Anyone who tells you is a fool or selling you something”) is one of the themes running throughout the issue. Jenny hints at it with her compassion for Xander’s soulless self and his still very human desires and wants, and Anya’s team up with Morgan at the end. They don’t think what they’ve done (the Watcher killings) is bad because they’re giving the Slayers their normal lives back - Anya can open up portals to store her magic knickknacks, why wouldn’t she be able to open up new timelines to ‘save’ Slayers? It would fit into her revenge scheme against the Watcher’s Council too. It casts a different light on her previous actions - giving Buffy the stone to call Xander’s soul back for an unspoken fee later, but not money, showing up at the eleventh hour to lead the girls into battle during Hellmouth with her convenient stash of weapons, tricking Dru into setting Camazotz free to gain Buffy’s and Giles’s trust later...and she knows Giles’s full name, so you know stuff is going to go down.

Willow

Tangled web, Wills. And all the little lies - why didn’t she tell her best friend and everyone else that she got the new shiny gem from Anya? Who is she really protecting? Herself or/and Xander? Willow’s (un)trustworthiness and growing capabilities in magic are going to be Issues with the gang later, definitely. And a possible source of isolation, because everyone at that meeting is paired off and she’s alone - Buffy and Giles presenting the slayer/watcher bond, Kendra and Rose as girlfriends and protective of one another. 

This is also an example of Anya being a subtle architect of chaos - she scolds Willow about good and evil being too simple of a concept and that Willow should be smarter than that, and suggests the possibility of doing the wrong thing (in Willow’s case, lying) for the right reason (saving Xander). This could also be a clue to the other Willows we’ve seen in previous issues - it could actually be original time line Willow just visiting multiverses to check on Xander and Buffy.

Wesley

is finally in Sunnydale and completely out of his element, not only as an Englishman in small town America, but as a watcher with an unruly lone wolf of a Slayer, who doesn’t even believe in the cause or that vampires are real. It’s hilarious. They provide the lighter side in the issue, and I look forward to what Jordie has planned for them, because right now they’re channeling Odd Couple energy and I’m here for it.

Also, Wesley brings up the English vs Irish rivalry and FINALLY, someone says it. There weren’t enough Spike and Angel fights about their places of origin.

If Wesley’s ideals are just the baby version of Giles’s loyalty to the Council, Faith is the pragmatic version of Buffy’s stressed but down for the cause Slayer.

Faith

Faith doesn’t really question why she suddenly can cause a bunch of messed up looking people dusty death, because vampires can’t possibly be real, but aliens, sure. It’s a refreshing and meta take on the whole lore - Faith even cheekily bringing up that vampires are clearly a metaphor for sex and she doesn’t have time for that.

Look at that, a skeptical but roll with the punches Bad Guys-because what else is she going to do- Faith. Not oversexualized but blunt and funny and upfront about what she really wants - which is a burger. A good update to the character. I do wonder if Jenny’s earlier line about ‘good Faith’ was purposeful because of this introduction to Faith, or just a regular line.

Buffy

After all she’s been through in the previous issues, Buffy takes more of a backseat in this issue, but that’s okay - there really was SO Much that Buffy and Robin’s continuing communication problem really wouldn’t fit as an A plotpoint.

Girl still has huge trust issues, and with Willow’s defensiveness and her own reluctance to really talk to Robin, that’s going to be a problem for later on.

Robin

Still juggling the responsibilities of being a regular guy, Buffy’s almost boyfriend, trainee Watcher, and son of presumed dead Slayer Nikki (though with what we’ve seen so far, Nikki might be alive in another multiverse), Robin is mostly the diplomat in this issue, giving everyone respectful space. 

Rose and Kendra

Are cute and happy together and that’s all that needs to be said really. The only couple that’s figured out communication and presenting a united front in this issue, honestly. #goals

Morgan Palmer

Another WOC slayer! Can’t wait to see what she did/has plans for the Scoobies and Sunnydale.