#there was another person but she’s the one who decided our friendship had had a good run and then blocked me. so.

[morgenlich]

do ppl actually talk to each other in online spaces bc I’ve never felt weird for not doing so but eddy was surprised when I said I p much talk to them and two other people and no one else

[thestarsarebrightertonight]

thats that me espresso!! // theodore nott x fem reader

playlist: espresso - sabrina carpenter

summary : theodore nott hasnt slept in days, and it was for one reason only. (or one person)

fluff , hufflepuff reader , y/n , short

lucky girl syndrome!! (another theo fic) masterlist

rubbing his eyes wearily , theodore nott poked at his breakfast , feeling the eyes of concerened friends burning into him.

"what?" he asked blankly finally looking up at his friends.

"theo is something wrong?" lorenzo asked with genuine concern snaking through his face and tone.

"yes something- no someone is wrong!" theodore said angrily as he dropped his fork , "i have not slept well for days!"

"why?" draco asked , not really that bothered by theodores insomnia , just wanting to get the tired vibe out of the friendgroup.

"because..beacause!" he started before pausing each time , finally sighing and saying in a hushed voice ,"her!"

his whisper shout and eyes staring into the distance made the whole friend group follow his eyeline , landing on a hufflepuff girl talking to her friends , y/n.

"stop staring!" he said loudly making the whole group turn back to him , drawing their eyes away from the girl , eventhough theodore himself didnt look away.

"y/n? what has she done?" lorenzo asked , confused why his hufflepuff friend would be causing theodore struggle.

"great , of course youre on a first name basis with her!" theodore seethed in jealousy finally tearing his eyes away from your smiling face , "shes not really....done anything.. God i dont know shes like an espresso , i cant look at her without getting a burst of energy! and i cant stop thinking about her its keeping me up all fucking night!!"

the group watched as theodore ranted , exchanging knowing looks before pansy decided to speak up , "theodore dont get angry with that poor girl , its not her fault you like her!"

"how could i ever get angry with her," theodore muttered and stopped talking , until matteos laugh filled the short silence , "what are you laughing at dickhead!" theodore snapped , assuming matteo was laughing at him.

"oh nothing im just laughing at diggory trying to chat up your girl," matteo smirked watching everyone frantically look back to the hufflepuff girl , only to see that she was still sat and talking with her friends , cedric no where to be seen.

theodore , who had stood up in a panic smacked matteo on the back of the head and angrily snapped at the laughing boy, "shut up man not funny."

"sorry , sorry youre really gulible ," matteo laughed to himself , draco smirking at the two.

"i shoudlve never told you lot ," theodore grumbled himself , going back to poking his food.

"dont be like that theo , just a bit of fun , " blaise smirked as theodore threw him an angry look.

"no but seriously theodore , you cant let yourself be exhausted because of a girl" pansy said.

"shes not just a girl , shes nice and funny and beautiful and!-... im pathetic," theo sighed in frustration and ran a hand through his curls.

"im done with all this sappy , annoying shit , go ask her to hogsmeade or ill do it. and trust me i wont rest until she falls in love with me, " draco warned , attempting at making his friend confess.

"DONT!" theodore shouted at him , immediatly letting embrassment sink in as everyone , including you, turned to look at him, "ill....do it"

lorenzo and pansy spoke words of encouragment as the petrified boy rose from the table , draco , matteo and blaise forgetting the whole ordeal and discussing quidditch instead.

once theodore was far enough from the table pansy turned to enzo , "why is that the most emotion ive ever seen out of him in our whole lifelong friendship?"

"dunno , hufflepuffs are really effective i guess," enzo shrugged before they both skipped to another conversation and started eating again.

----

theodore walked towards your table with a confident stride , stopping behind you and sliding in next to you on the bench , close enough to the point that your bodies were pressed togther. as you jumped in suprise theo gave you a flirty smile and stared you dead in the eye.

"hi theodore , can i help you?" you asked wearily , glancing away from him and at your confused friends for a split second.

"yes, you can ," thedore smirked , "how about hogsmeade , this weekend , you and me?"

you physically paused as your mouth hung open , this was the second time you had ever talked to theodore nott and he was suddenly asking you out??!

"oh um....yeah - yeah sure id love to" you gave him a smile , a little cautious and very much confused.

"great , see you then beautiful ,"he winked, planting a kiss on your cheek before slipping out of the bench and confidently walking back to the slytherin table.

you looked at your friends with deep confusion, before going on to watch theo walk away , whilst your friends yapped about how hot he is.

-----

"so how was it?" pansy asked theodore as he sat down.

he quickly dropped his confident , cool face and let a wide grin bless his features , "perfect!!! she said yes! i walked up and acted real calm and collected ,and she didnt know i was nervous at all!!"

pansy and lorenzo smiled at him as the other boys just ignored him , uninterested. "thats great theo! so are you gonna be able to sleep now?" enzo laughed.

"like a baby." theodore grinned.

[adascore]

The Missed Swap

pairing: alexia putellas x england!reader

warnings: swearing. reader receives a push. jealous alexia. mentions of alexia doing her acl.

author's note: finally finished this!! love writing about the complexity of their rivalry!

part 1 | masterlist

•••••••

The press conference room was filled with all sorts of journalists; Spaniards, Brits or just avid women's football researchers who were hyped about the upcoming friendly between Spain and England.

Between Y/N and Alexia rested only a few metres, their respective coaches accompanying them. Sarina and her captain sat composed waiting on the start of the conference, while their opposition exuded a calm confidence that would have intimidated any other pair.

Despite the heartwarming interaction at the Champions League final a month prior, there was no evidence of any kind of friendship as the two star players avoided each other's eyes, and any traces of the camaraderie from Turin seemed distant.

In an attempt to break the ice, Alexia discreetly sought a glance from the striker, hoping for a sign of recognition or acknowledgment, but the Spaniard was only met with a polite smile from Sarina.

The midfielder felt almost stupid for having looked forward to this, seeing her again after Turin. She'd hoped it was the start of a change, one where they could talk to one another without the forced formalities and could even become friends.

Yeah, she felt incredibly stupid.

The moderator signaled the start of the pre-match press conference. ''Good morning, everyone. Welcome to the press conference with Spain coach and captain Jorge Vilda and Alexia Putellas, as well as England coach and captain Sarina Wiegman and Y/N Y/L. We are going to start with the questions.''

The first few minutes were standard; asking about the expectations, main thoughts about the opposition, how they were all feeling about the upcoming European Championships, etc. The four of them answered all the questions directly and in a diplomatic manner.

However, it was a certain Spanish journalist that decided to shake things up. ''Hello, everyone. This question is for Alexia,'' the man spoke up in his native language, ''after the Champions League final, we witnessed, what seemed, an emotional interaction between you and Y/N. Would you say your relationship has changed since then? Or was it just a moment for the camera's? Will it have any impact on the game tomorrow?''

Alexia maintained her diplomatic tone, carefully choosing her words. ''Good morning. The final in Turin was an intense and emotional moment for both of our teams. With Y/N, we share respect for football, the game. Now, we are here to represent our countries in preparation for the Euro's.''

The reporter, undeterred by the captain's media-trained answer, pressed with a sly smile. ''But is there a good relationship between you two? There seemed to have been a connection of some sorts.''

''I understand there might be interest in our personal relationship, but I want to focus on our match tomorrow.'' She answered with poise, not entertaining the controversy he was trying to stir.

Y/N couldn't help but smirk at the journalist's persistence. Despite not understand their language, it was clear Alexia hadn't given him the satisfaction of actually answering his question.

The moderator urged for someone else to take the microphone, quickly wanting to move on before it became more of an issue. The word was then given to an English journalist.

''Hi, for the Daily Mail,'' he greeted them, Y/N having to fight the urge to roll her eyes at the mention of for which news outlet he worked for, ''for Y/N, uh, many of the players of the Spanish team play for Barcelona, and we all saw what happened last month. Do you think their defeat had something to do with your presence or maybe that the rivalry between you and Alexia Putellas was a factor in that?''

Y/N raised an eyebrow at the loaded question, but remained composed. ''Every match is different, and Spain is also different from Barcelona. Football is a team sport, and the outcome of a match depends on a lot of different factors. I don't think it is fair to attribute the result of a match to the presence or absence of a single player. I mean- I'm a footballer, not a witch.'' She concluded her answer with a lighthearted joke, relieved it caused some of the tension in the room to disappear.

''A question for both the coaches,'' the conference moved on again, ''how do each of you feel about another meeting between Alexia and Y/N? They're not just the star players of your teams, but also of women's football. Does it add any excitement or pressure to the match?''

Sarina responded first. ''Well, every match is a great opportunity to have good battles, as a group or as individuals. They're both exceptional talents so it will be a treat to watch for all of us, but the main focus is on the team performance and preparing for the European Championship next month.''

Jorge nodded, seemingly agreeing. ''Individual matchups add excitement, but the success of the team remains a priority.''

The press conference concluded not much later, the four of them alleviated they could get up and leave.

As they exited, Y/N and Alexia found themselves walking side by side, albeit a bit awkwardly. The corridor felt like a neutral ground, free from the scrutiny of the media.

“They're always searching for stuff…” Y/N broke the silence, still somewhat frustrated over the questions about their personal relationship.

Alexia nodded in agreement, her expression reflecting a similar feeling. “Yeah, so stupid.”

The quietness returned, both women unsure of what to say.

“Congrats on winning the league again, by the way.” Alexia rambled, the words leaving her mouth like a speed train.

Y/N smiled, appreciating the attempt to continue the conversation. “Thanks, you too.”

“Thank you.” The midfielder hesitated, a subtle struggle visible on her face.

Alexia sighed, searching for the right words. “Look, about Turin…”

Y/N raised an eyebrow in curiosity. “What about it?”

There was a pause as they walked, the weight of unspoken words hanging in the air.

“I wanted to talk more, you know, after the match.” She admitted, a hint of vulnerability in her voice.

The England captain slowly nodded. “Ah, yeah, it looked like that, but then your coach whisked you away.” She awkwardly laughed.

“I don't know why he did that, it probably felt as weird to me as it did to you,” Alexia responded, “but I just wanted to thank you for your words, cause… you didn't have to come up to me, but you did.”

Y/N smiled warmly. “You really don't have to thank me. I know what it's like as captain, it's tough. It just felt like the right thing to do.”

“What you said about our growth and stuff, it means more than you think, you know, to the team.” The Spaniard quickly added the last bit, not wanting to get too sentimental.

“I'm glad if it brought a bit of comfort to your team. I meant it, you guys have really made a great transition.” Y/N wasn't by any means a great loser, but she would always give a team credit when it's due.

Alexia nodded appreciatively. “Thanks. I'm, uh, excited about tomorrow.”

The England captain grinned, feeling a subtle shift in their dynamic. "Yeah, it should be a good game.''

“Yes, it should. Hopefully it goes my way this time.''

Y/N loudly laughed at Alexia's words, taking the Barcelona midfielder by surprise. ''I didn't know you were this funny, Putellas.''

Alexia chuckled, a genuine smile breaking through.

“Y/N…”

The striker turned back to where the call of her name came from, and she was met with the hesitant face of Sarina.

She gave her coach a hand motion that said ‘I'm right there, let me wrap this up'. The Dutchwoman seemed to understand as she gave both players a nod.

“Uh, I gotta go- team stuff, but I'll see you tomorrow then.” Y/N bid goodbye.

“Yeah, tomorrow.”

Alexia watched her rival leave, eyes roaming over her athletic figure that was adorned in an England training kit that seemed to highlight every curve of her body.

The Spaniard had to shake herself out of her daze, not knowing what came over her.

As she turned to head in the opposite direction, she refocused herself on the game ahead and realized she had to put aside the emotions and complexities that seemed to find her every time she encountered the England captain.

It had already cost her one match, she wouldn't dare let it happen again.

The score wasn't reflective of how exciting and high-pressing the match actually was. Neither side had scored, but there had been plenty of great chances.

It also included a lot of fouls, specifically on the English captain by the Spanish players.

Y/N found herself on the receiving end of another rough challenge, this time from Carmona.

As the referee's whistle pierced through the stadium, signaling the foul, Y/N couldn't contain her frustration. “Fucking cunt.” She muttered under her breath.

The Real Madrid defender, catching wind of the insult, didn't take it lightly. “What did you say?” She exclaimed, responding with a push.

The striker didn't budge, simply giving her an unimpressed look. “I said you're a fucking cunt.” She repeated her words, not one bit intimidated.

The tension escalated, and the players from both teams rushed to get involved.

More of the Spanish players stepped in to defend the young player, throwing insults at Y/N. While the England players tried to form a protective barrier around their captain, not shy of vulgar words themselves.

Amidst the chaos, Alexia took a step forward, signaling to her Spanish teammates to calm down. “That's enough.” She told Olga, placing herself in-between the Brit and the defender.

“Let it go, it's just a friendly. No need for this.” Her authoritative tone resonated, and she managed to diffuse the situation.

Olga, still visibly upset, reluctantly stepped back, but mumbled some more Spanish swear words that had Patri giving her a light push.

Alexia, with an apologetic look, turned around to address Y/N, but Rachel intervened, pulling her captain away from the aftermath of the chaos.

“We need to take more advantage of the counterattacks, we're just giving everything away.” Rachel immediately focused back on the game, whispering her thoughts.

Y/N caught Alexia's intention, but let it go, redirecting her attention to the unfolding match.

In a retaliatory turn of events, Georgia committed a foul against Alexia.

The England captain didn't want it to escalate the way it had only a few minutes before, so she quickly addressed her teammate.

“G, tone it down!”

The midfielder gave a thumbs up and an apology to Alexia, which the Spaniard accepted.

The final whistle blew, ending the intense encounter with a draw. Both sides were disappointed not to walk away with the win, but the result felt right to the match.

As the players exchanged handshakes and words of sportsmanship, Y/N and Alexia found themselves facing each other once more.

“Good match.” They chorused, shaking hands with a content smile.

“I guess it didn't really go your way this time.” Y/N chuckled, recalling Alexia's words from the day before.

The midfielder laughed, relieved there was no tension between them anymore. “It was tough today. Great defense from your team.”

“Thanks, your attacks warranted it.” The Brit playfully rolled her eyes.

They walked together towards the officials to shake their hands, making small talk about the match.

“Hey… your shirt…” Y/N switched topics, pointing at the red Spain jersey.

“Yeah?” Alexia's eyes widened slightly, almost beaming at the fact that the striker would want to swap shirts.

“My teammate, Katie, she's quite the fan and would you do me a favor and like, ask her to exchange kits? She didn't get to play today and it would really cheer her up.”

A tinge of red colored Alexia's cheeks as she realized her misinterpretation. “Oh, uh, yeah, no problem.”

“You don't have to, if you want to keep the shirt.” Y/N noticed the slight expression change in the opposition's face.

“No, I really want to. I'll ask her, no big deal.” Alexia quickly brushed it off, embarrassed by her own thoughts.

“Thank you so much, it will mean a lot to her. Usually she's a chatterbox, but…” The striker trailed off.

Alexia nodded, finding it a sweet gesture of the rivaling captain.

“Uh, actually, could you do the same? One of the younger girls, Claudia, really looks up to you and would appreciate the shirt.”

The midfielder saw her younger teammate lingering not too far from where they were standing, not subtle in observing the captains' interaction.

“She's the small girl that's standing behind you.” Alexia smiled, laughing as Pina pretended to look at the crowd once she caught her Barcelona teammate watching her.

Y/N followed her eyes and gave Claudia a wave, which the girl shyly returned.

“I‘ll ask as well,” she softly responded, “uh, so I'll see you in the Euro's final then?” Y/N grinned, teasingly.

“Yeah, I'll see you there.”

As they parted ways, each player headed toward the teammate they had promised to exchange shirts with.

“ALEXIA PUTELLAS TEARS ACL BEFORE WOMEN's EUROS”

Y/N read the headline in utter shock, in disbelief that the Spain captain had tore her ACL in training, the day before the start of the tournament.

“You heard about Putellas?” Jill interrupted her thoughts, joining her in the lounge that had been set up for the team.

“Yeah.” She nodded, closing her phone.

“I feel for her.” The Manchester City player sympathized.

Y/N remained quiet, wondering how Alexia was doing- mentally then.

“Are you two friends?” Jill inquired, confused by the captain's silence.

She looked at her older friend, lifting her shoulders. “I don't know. We're not enemies.”

Intrigued by the cryptic response, Jill couldn't resist probing further. “You guys were laughing with each other after the Spain match.”

“Yeah, and?” Y/N chuckled, uncomfortable by her teammate's stare.

The midfielder raised an eyebrow. “What's the story?”

“There is no story, we just had a laugh.” The captain retorted.

“You used to shut down like a toddler whenever someone mentioned her, and now you're acting like buddies together. What happened, Cap?” Jill was properly confused on what the status was with the two football stars.

“I won, that's what happened.” Y/N opened her phone again, hoping her response was enough to satisfy Jill's curiosity.

The older one frowned. “Won what?”

“I won the final. Champions League. She lost.” It was a vague clarification, they both knew that.

“And that makes you friends?”

Y/N sighed, sensing the skepticism in Jill's tone. “You don't get it, Scott- be glad that you don't.”

“So what if you hadn't won?” Jill asked, a subtle gravity behind her question.

Y/N took a moment before responding, contemplating the hypothetical scenario. “There was no way I would have lost that final. Not in a hundred years.”

“So humble you are.” Her teammate sarcastically commented.

The captain dramatically winked at the older woman.

“But seriously… what is that?” Jill made a gesture with her hand, as if she was physically pointing between her and Alexia.

“Don't know, I guess she isn't as pretentious as I thought she was.” Y/N answered, recognizing the wrong perspective she had of the Spaniard.

Jill raised an eyebrow. “She probably thought the same of you.” She laughed.

“I guess so.” The younger player admitted. “Should I send her a message? Like wishing her well or something?” Y/N asked Jill, holding up her phone.

She looked at the striker's phone, considering the suggestion. “Why not? I can't think of one player who wouldn't be happy to get a message from you.”

“Alright…” Y/N mumbled, opening Instagram and pulling up Alexia's account.

Jill glanced at her screen. “You don't even follow her!” She scoffed.

The captain looked from her screen to Jill, and back to her screen. “Yeah, and?”

“Follow her, and send the message.” The midfielder instructed.

“Are you my boss?” Y/N playfully rolled her eyes, but followed up on Jill's instruction.

| Y/N.Y/L: hey, heard about the injury. hope you're doing alright, and know that a lot of people are behind you. take care ❤️

“Good enough for Miss Scott?” Y/N asked her teammate.

Jill nodded, approvingly. “Look at you, extending an olive branch.'' She teased.

''An olive branch? We never had any problems.'' The younger one frowned, as an olive branch usually meant for there to have been a conflict.

The Manchester City player chuckled at her confusion. ''Well, it's a nice gesture. I'm sure she'll appreciate it.''

Y/N shrugged. ''It's a serious injury, she's at least out for like 8-9 months. I can't imagine her not playing with Spain and Barca.''

Jill nodded, a similar sympathetic look on her face. ''Yeah, I just hope she comes out better of it.''

''She will.'' Y/N said, voice full of confidence.

It was still Alexia. La Reina. She would not be taken down easily.

Meanwhile, freshly arrived in her home country, Alexia finally unlocked her phone after a long and hectic day. A certain notification stood out, it couldn't be could it?

She could feel her heartbeat as she saw the message from Y/N. She hesitated for a moment, contemplating whether to open it immediately or not. Alexia edged herself, answering everyone else's messages before getting to the Brit's.

After an eternity, she decided to open and read it as her curiosity got the better of her.

Alexia's eyes softened as she read over the words. Y/N's DM was not something that anyone hadn't told her before, but her rivaling captain had taken the time to wish her well and that meant more than Alexia was ready to admit yet.

| alexiaputellas: hey, I am back home now so doing better! thank you for your words and good luck at the tournament! ❤️

The captain stared at her phone, pondering on how their relationship had changed so much- at least to the point where they were sending messages to one another. Yet, here they were, exchanging words beyond the constraints of the game.

She couldn't deny the intrigue she had towards the striker. The phenomenon that was the England captain was unexplored territory for the Spaniard. Everything she had though before about Y/N all seemed to fade as she got more and more glimpses of who her rival actually was.

As Alexia wondered about the new dynamics, her train of thought was interrupted by a new notification.

| Y/N.Y/L: that's great to her! too bad we can't meet in the final now

The Catalan smiled, her fingers swiftly moving over the screen to compose a reply.

| alexiaputellas: yeah, maybe another time!

| alexiaputellas: if you do play against Spain, I don't want you to win, though 😉

| Y/N.Y/L: ooooohhhh, im gonna play extra harder against them now :)

| Y/N.Y/L: are you coming back to England to watch them?

| alexiaputellas: yes, after I've had my surgery!

| Y/N.Y/L: good luck with that, btw

| alexiaputellas: thank you ☺

The messages continued on for a while, mostly staying on the joking side. Alexia appreciated the unexpected distraction Y/N provided for her, her torn knee having become forgotten for just a few moments.

Their next meeting came 2 weeks later as England took on Spain in the quarterfinals. Y/N was wary about meeting their team still quite early on in the tournament, but it would be a great test for them, and not having Alexia on the pitch could only be a benefit to the English- even if it happened due to unfortunate circumstances.

The match was intense, reminiscent of their friendly match the month before. In the 54th minute, England fell behind, conceding a goal. The pressure only intensified as the entire team and stadium looked at their captain, in serious need of a solution.

Y/N screamed more motivation at her teammates, applauding and praising every pass and chance they made. Fortunately, Ella managed to equalize, and Georgia had everyone going crazy as she put one extra in the net during extra time.

The striker jumped into the young midfielder's arms, yelling inaudible things as they celebrated her world of a goal. ''You're a legend, G!''

''Come on, girls! We can do this!'' Millie exclaimed, clapping her hands to hype everyone up to keep their lead.

''Keep pressuring them! It's in our hands now! You're doing amazing!'' Y/N joined in, her infectious energy working on the team as they all nodded and got back to their spots on the pitch.

The whistle blew and the entire squad could feel a huge weight leaving their shoulders, relieved this tribulation was over and they could focus on the semifinals.

In the post-match rituals, Y/N glanced towards the Spanish team. A bittersweet realization struck her- the victory was nice, but a part of the competition was missing without the direct face-off with the Spanish captain. She almost forgot her colleague would not be on the pitch to shake hands with, or to analyze the match with.

She tried finding her in the crowd, but Alexia must have already made an escape to the locker rooms. The Brit didn't blame her, she probably didn't want to stick around to see a rival team celebrating knocking their team out. 

Half an hour later, Alexia watched Irene stroll into their changing rooms- one of the last players to arrive, holding a white England shirt in her hand.

Her curiosity got the better of her and she approached her fellow captain on the other side of the room. ''Irene, who did you swap with?'' She asked.

Irene grinned, unfolding the jersey as Y/N's name and number was displayed in front of Alexia's eyes. ''Our favorite girl,'' Irene sarcastically said, the England player had caused a lot of damage to both of the women, on club and international level, ''she asked me. You just can't say no to that face, can you?'' The defender chuckled.

A subtle flicker of disbelief crossed Alexia's features as Irene continued chatting about the exchange. The realization that Y/N had chosen to swap shirts with the older woman stung a bit, sparking an unfamiliar emotion in her. Perhaps, it was a fleeting sense of envy for the seeming connection that her and Irene had. The Spaniard had played against the Lyon striker numerous times during her stint at PSG.

Despite her attempt to keep a neutral expression, Alexia's reaction was far from enthusiastic. ''Oh, that's great.'' She replied, her tone a bit more dejected than she had wanted.

Irene noticed the shift in her teammate's demeanor. She raised an eyebrow and shot a look at Alexia. ''Something on your mind?'' She questioned, a mischievous glint in her eyes as she sensed there might be more to the midfielder's reaction.

''No, nothing at all. Just… surprised.'' Alexia forced a smile, attempting to downplay the jealousy. However, her eyes betrayed her.

The defender raised an eyebrow, her grin only widening. ''Surprised? Why? We've known each other for a long time, played against her a bunch of times.'' She responded casually, enjoying whatever was happening at the moment.

''Yeah, true. Well, good for you.'' Alexia nodded, trying to mask her unease with a nonchalant tone.

The Barcelona player chuckled, starting to recognize what this might be about. She held up the England shirt, a teasing glint in her own eyes. ''You want it? I still have a Lyon one from a few years ago.'' She playfully extended the jersey towards Alexia.

The midfielder shook her head, again forcing herself to laugh. ''No, no. It's all yours, don't even want it, anyway.'' Alexia waved off the offered shirt with a dismissive gesture.

''Alright, whatever suits you.'' Irene smiled, placing the shirt in her own bag.

She left the blonde alone, walking back to where she had settled before the defender had waltzed into the room.

Alone with her thoughts, Alexia couldn’t shake off the uncomfortable feeling. Watching Irene prance around with Y/N’s shirt left her with a strange mix of emotions that she hadn’t dealt with before, or at least not when it pertained to her teammate and rival.

What puzzled her even more was why Y/N had never asked her for a shirt swap. She wondered if their rivalry and everyone’s comparisons of the two, overshadowed the possibility of something more- whatever that something more was. Did the England captain only see their interactions through the lens of competition?

Alexia grappled with a simple yet difficult question: did she want Y/N to ask for a shirt swap or did it bother her more that she didn’t seem to be considered for one?

[missvelvetsstuff]

No Benefits

Bucky Barnes x Reader, Bucky Barnes x Sharon Carter

Summary: Reader and Bucky are best friends until a drunken hook up. Bucky wants a friends with benefits situation because he doesn't feel ready for a relationship but reader knows that will lead to a broken heart.

Then Sharon Carter comes to work with them.

Notes: Steve and Tony are around but retired, everything else is mostly canon

Chapter Notes: I'm really nervous with the direction my muse has taken with this story. I hope I can pull it off. LMK what you think, please.

Previous chapter:

"Cookie!" Bucky roared as he came striding up to her office "What the Hell is this bullshit?"

Chapter 3

Warnings: Swearing, angst, Bucky's a jerk, Sharon Carter sucks

Cookie looked at Bucky with a deep exhaustion caused by researching all night and early morning briefings with the top agents to figure out what to do with Sharon while Bucky was her guard dog. Maria was ready to tear into him. Cookie cleared her throat to gain Maria's attention then made a small shake of her head to ask her to back down, Cookie knew she could handle Bucky by herself.

Maria nodded and left to sit in her office across the hall, leaving the door open just in case.

Cookie straightened her shoulders and sighed "How can I help you Sargent Barnes?"

Bucky glared at her breathing heavily "You know damn well how you can help me. Who the fuck do you think you are making accusations at Sharon like this?" He waved the report in her face until she grabbed it and tore it from his hands.

Holding the partially torn report Cookie stood up to her full height, her heels bringing her eye level with Bucky. She stared at him in his cold blue eyes to show him she wasn't intimidated by him, then walked around her desk to close the door "I don't think it's wise to leave the door open while we discuss top secret intelligence."

She returned to her chair "Please have a seat Sargent." took a deep breath and spoke calmly

"I think, no I'm damn sure I'm the lead east coast Intel analyst who was hand picked from Quantico by Nick Fury while you were still on ice with Hydra, who kept our intel operation running during the Blip while Nick Fury, Maria Hill and....hhmm, oh that's right, You, were all dust in the wind. None of my conclusions were specious and I followed the facts, without prejudice, as my job requires. This has less than nothing to do with your personal, ahem, entanglements. There's solid evidence to back up every claim."

Bucky shook his head "Bullshit. You've been acting put out since I rejected you and found a way to hurt me back. You obviously faked the proof. You better fucking retract this garbage and clear Sharon's name."

Cookie scoffed and shook her head "No Barnes. You're the one who lied to me and decided on your own to end our friendship but this has nothing to do with that." she turned away before he could respond and went into the filing cabinet behind her desk, pulling a thick folder from the top drawer then dropping it heavily on the desk.

"Here is all of the evidence that I have been compiling on the Power Broker since they showed on our radar during the Blip, and spent most of the night organizing. The pictures and the stack with a red paper clip all came in the mail from Latvia a few days ago, the envelope is attached, and was opened in front of Fury and Hill. The night before we received them I was on the phone with my top informant, the one who sent that package, who tried to tell me something about the power broker but was killed while on the phone. Before disconnecting a woman's voice told me to back off of the power broker or I'd be next." She played the recording of that call and others from the same informant.

Bucky shook his head "You've been doing this long enough, you could have made authentic looking evidence. Especially with all the AI stuff. Or had someone do it."

Cookie looked at him like he'd grown another head "Are you serious Barnes? You think I would ever intentionally risk the reputation and career that I've worked my ass off for my entire adult life, over a broken heart? You think that I would ruin someones life and risk legal repercussions on myself over a man? You know what this job means to me and what I've been through to get here."

Bucky hesitated with a pained look on his face and shook his head like he was trying to clear it. There was a voice in the back of his head, telling him this was all wrong but something made him push it down and keep going.

"Well, maybe one of your people is doing it. Are you even sure that informant is dead? Maybe the family is trying to get paid. Or the real power broker is smart enough to lead you to Sharon and you're all too willing to believe the worst because of me."

He paused for a minute "And I heard you call me a liar but I've never lied to you."

Cookie laughed "You sure about that? It's been awhile so I understand if your memory is failing. That morning? The last time you actually acknowledged me outside of work related, yeah you lied to me. Twice actually"

Bucky tried to remember back to that morning, something he tried to avoid because he knew he made one of the worst mistakes of his life. He shook his head to clear the image of her heartbroken face "Yeah I don't know what you're talking about."

Cookie scoffed "Of course you don't, I'm surprised you remembered my name when you came in here. First, you told me you weren't ready for a relationship but you jumped into one with Sharon before her car cooled down" Bucky opened his mouth to protest but she glared at him and he backed down "and second, you told me you loved me and wanted to stay friends but went to ignoring me before my tears dried."

She felt her eyes filling up and cursed "Fuck. You even started leaving the room if I was there. Do you know how it feels to have one of your so called best friends cut you out of their life like you were dog shit on their shoe?" She cleared her throat and wiped her tears.

"I would never frame someone, ever. No matter how I felt about them. Not even you."

Bucky stared at her then winced as though he was in severe pain and dropped his head into his palms before speaking again.

"Well something is going on somewhere because I know, in my gut that Sharon isn't the power broker. There's no way."

He picked his head up and looked at Cookie

"I'm not in a relationship with her, we're just friends. And I didn't lie, I was wrong. I thought I wanted to stay friends with you but I don't, I can't. You're always looking at me and making me feel guilty and I don't deserve that. Plus you've been nasty to Sharon since she got here, don't think she hasn't told me about the horrible comments you make to her."

Cookie laughed "This is the most we've spoken in months, I'm not doing anything to make you feel guilty. That's all on you. But Sharon has you all twisted around because she's the one making nasty comments to me."

Bucky bristled "I don't have anything to feel guilty for. I've done nothing wrong and Sharon wouldn't lie to me."

She shrugged "If you say so, I didn't say anything. Now I've given you the details and shown the evidence. What you do is on you."

Bucky stood up, winced again and shook his head "I don't know if you did it or someone you're working with but I do know someone is trying to frame Sharon and you're going along with it. I'll prove you're wrong, that's what I'm gonna do."

Cookie scoffed "Good luck with that, Barnes"

Bucky put his hands on her desk and leaned into her space, his voice quiet and cold "I'll prove you're doing this because of your jealousy and your job and reputation will be over."

Cookie spat at him "Go fuck yourself Barnes, if you think that poorly of me you obviously never knew me. I have never been anything less than thorough and professional. I guess I should be grateful you panicked and cut me out of your life before I let myself get too attached. Good luck with Carter and get the Hell out of my office."

She sat down and went back to the packets she was finishing.

Bucky stood and stared like he was expecting something to happen before turning around and stalking off to find Sharon.

He woke up in the dark, with Sharon curled into him and looked at his watch. 9pm? Not again, his last memory was yelling at Cookie after breakfast then finding Sharon but nothing after that. He decided he had enough and scheduled an appointment with medical in the morning to see if they could help him figure out why he kept losing time.

Cookie spent the rest of the day in more briefings with senior agents to discuss the Sharon Carter problem and how to negate it. Bucky Barnes attachment to Carter was discussed as well since he had already started causing trouble over the revelations and couldn't be trusted to do the right thing.

When she was asked why they couldn't just arrest Sharon and tranq Bucky if he caused a problem, Cookie told them about her concerns that Sharon had an ally in the intel department that needed to be weeded out before Sharon.

She was back in her office, cleaning up her desk for the day when Sharon Carter herself wandered in, sat down and waited expectantly for Cookie to speak.

"What can I do for you agent Carter? I'm a little busy."

Sharon smirked "I know what you're trying to do and I understand. You're in love with Barnes and he wants me. It sucks and I know you must be hurting but slandering me won't get him back. In fact he ran to me this morning to tell me what you were trying to do and wondering why you wanted to hurt him so bad. I told him I would work it out with you."

Her face turned nasty "So here's how this is gonna work. You are going to stop trying to smear my name and leave Barnes alone, he doesn't need or want you. Think you can handle that?"

Cookie kept her face blank. "I don't need you to tell me how to do my job, agent Carter, so get the Hell out of my office."

Sharon laughed "Don't mess with me Cookie, I'm not the girl you want to play with."

Cookie faked an exaggerated yawn "Sure Carter, I'm scared."

Sharon smirked "It doesn't matter what evidence you have, you know. Barnes won't believe you. You could record me telling you that I'm the power broker and want the Soldat to be my enforcer because that's the truth." She grinned and winked "and show it to him. He won't believe you, he's already mine." She sighed "Of course now that you're on to me I will have to adjust my plans but he will want to go with me, even beg to come to protect me from all of you.

Don't chase us little girl, you won't like what you catch."

Her grin grew to something that would rival the Joker "In fact, go ahead and show him. I know FRIDAY is recording all this so let's go and show him. I want you to see how pointless this all is so you can leave us alone."

Her face hardened "Let's go" she grabbed Cookie by her upper arm and dragged her away from her desk. Cookie tried to fight her but she wasn't great with hand to hand, give her a weapon and she might have a chance but Sharon didn't give her the opportunity to grab anything.

When they arrived at Bucky's room Sharon's face softened before Bucky answered the door.

"Hey doll, you don't have to knock just-" he stopped and frowned when he saw Cookie "What the Hell is going on, Cookie have you been harassing Sharon?"

He looked to Sharon for an explanation.

Sharon was able to squeeze a tear from her eye "I was by her office to talk to Maria and Cookie said she was watching me and knew she could prove that I'm the power broker. Listen to what she said. Friday can you play the audio from my talk in Cookies office a few minutes ago?"

"Of course agent Carter."

A recording started of Sharon and Cookies interaction in her office. Bucky started listening with a passive face but he grew angrier with everything Sharon said.

Cookie felt hopeful that he would finally see the truth about Sharon but he aimed his ire at her.

"Seriously Cookie? You just can't let it go can you? Sharon hasn't done anything except make me happy and it's killing you. Like I'm some prize to be won. I never thought you would compromise yourself like this but maybe I'll have a talk with Fury and Hill about your obsession with me."

Cookie just stared at him, trying to figure out what the Hell he was talking about. They both heard Sharon say she was the power broker but he still didn't believe it. "Are you listening to the same audio I am Barnes? She said right there shes the power broker and wants the Winter Soldier to be her enforcer."

Bucky glared at her "Jesus Cookie, that's not even close to what she said. Maybe you need to take a vacation because you're losing it."

He looked her up and down "Honestly you look like shit. When did you stop taking care of yourself? I definitely wouldn't have slept with you if you looked like this."

Sharon just stood next to Bucky grinning like a JackAss at Cookie. "I told you Cookie, he's mine so let it go."

Cookie took a breath then turned and walked away without another word. Sharon must have found some way to brainwash him again and Cookie knew there was nothing she could do right now except notify Fury and Hill that Bucky was under Sharon's control so they could work on getting him back. They scheduled a meeting for first thing the next morning at 5am.

Cookie was woken up by her phone ringing at 3am after just falling asleep. It was Sam, Bucky and Sharon were gone, Stark phones and tracking devices left sitting on the desk in his quarters.

Chapter 4

The Power Broker and The Winter Soldier, in the wind.

@erelierraceala @capswife @ozwriterchick @cjand10 @wintrsoldrluvr @mrsbuckybarnes1917 @browneyedgrli @greatenthusiasttidalwave @hhiggs @dontworryboutitsweetheart-blog @behindmygreyeyes @pattiemac1 @calwitch @mrs-bucky-barnes-73 @ordelixx

[eclipsedrgn]

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝑩𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑳𝒆𝒇𝒕 𝑩𝒆𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒅

(y/n) befriended the turtles along with her best friend ren. she didn't have anything to offer the family of ninjas, except her friendship and love. and when she realizes she's just pulling them back, she decided to take it to her own hands.

rottmnt!leo x fem!reader

⋇⊶⊰❣⊱⊷⋇

⋇⊶⊰❣⊱⊷⋇

It wasn't until you notice they started acting differently around you when you had a feeling they're starting to pull apart. All four turtles, each in their own unique way, rejected you. Either hanging out, or eating out to even going on patrol together. You didn't exactly offer a lot on the table if you were being honest. You were just the lucky girl who they rescued, and somehow became part of this mischivious family.

Mikey became your closest friend, you two were too much a like whether it was being completely naive to the world to being the most childish person of the group. The two of you never felt judged by one another.

Donnie, embarrissingly, became your buddy when it came to doing your homework. You did all the work of course, you hated cheating but Donnie was the one looking over your shoulder half of the time telling you from right and wrong.

Raph was coincidentally your therapist, although you mostly smile around the turtles, Raph knew the signs of depression and anxiety, most importantly anger. He saw how much anger you hold within yourself that he took upon himself to help you.

Leonardo...

To you, in your eyes, he was everything. He was the perfect turtle for you and could not stop yourself for falling in love with him. He was your everything, you were willing to even make yourself unhappy just to get his attention...

But you knew with the way he looks at Karai, it wouldn't happen.

You guess it was probably the way you let yourself loose. You ate too much pizza with Mikey, you barely exercise, or maybe how you just chilled on the couch for the longest time. The turtles noticed.

But they did not care.

And that's how you ended up in this situation, hiding behind the walls of the kitchen eavesdropping the turtle's conversation about you. Worst of all, your best friend Ren just sat there listening to them, though you didn't see her face, she was devastated that the turtles thought of you this way.

"Come on Leo, are we seriously letting this girl stay with us?" Raphael states with an annoyed tone. "She has done nothing but sit here with her thumbs up her nose"

Was all the times you come to Raph about your problems fake? Did you complain too much?

"We can't just kick her out Raph-" Donatello started but was interrupted.

"We can and we will. She eats all the food, she plays all the games while we're up there risking our lives" Raph complains.

"Dude... she's my best friend" Mikey muttered, nobody heard.

"She doesn't bring anything to the table! April does the news, Casey's a police officer- hell even Ren brings us notices about the Foot. (Y/N) does nothing" Raph says.

You are nothing.

A burden.

Leo shook his head, the warm feeling at the thought of you turned guilt, anger, confused. He knew his brothers were right. You didn't bring much to the table. But how can he kick out the only person who brought joy and compassion, no matter what the atmosphere of the lair is.

You clench both of your fists as tears stream down your face, you covered your mouth with both hands as another sob was coming. Leo barely stood up for you, Donnie barely stood up for you and Mikey... all he did was sat in silence. You wiped your face with your hands, getting rid of signs you were crying and came out of the kitchen with a smile on your face.

"Hey guys, I'm headed out for some pizza. Want anything?" you asked.

"J-Just some Hawaiian dudette" Mikey says with an unsure look on his face.

You smiled, "Sure Mikestar, I'll be back in a few"

"At least she brings us food" you hear Raphael scoff as you walk further from the lair.

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾

You barely looked where you were headed, you were just walking aimlessly for the past 20 minutes since you left. The depression was getting worst, your anxiety is off the roof and the fact the only people who truly liked you has been faking all this time...

You sighed as you yelp when you bumped into something... soft? You opened your (e/c) eyes seeing the father of the four turtles. You forgot Splinter likes to take walks around the sewer twice a day, curing boredom he said when you asked him once.

"My child, were you crying?" Splinter asks.

You sniffled and shook your head, "Allergies, Sensei"

"I can tell in your eyes you are lying. Tell me, what's going on?"

And so you did.

You snitched.

You told him how the turtles hurt you. How they didn't know you've listened to their cruel words.

The look on Splinter's eyes slowly dimmed, his sons, were not nice towards you?

"I'm gonna leave" you decided, Splinter looks up surprised you even claimed such decision. "I can't spend the rest of my life being a burden to everyone. I need a change of pace, I need to leave New York City"

Splinter sighs, "I cannot change your mind. But I do have an offer for you. My Master Yoshi has a friend in Japan called the Ancient One, fly there and tell him Splinter sent you. Tell him your desire to change, he will help you"

Your eyes became misty as tears started to gather, you hugged Splinter tightly and then came up with a plan. The turtles need to know how much you've been hurting, you became a little bit of a bad person.

That night you came back home, calling your tech friend to fake a news, hacking into the lair's tech and played the news.

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾

"We interrupt this program for some breaking news."

Leo paused sharpening his katana as the news blared on, Raph paused his benching, Donnie came out of his lab and Mikey stared blankly at the TV.

"(Y/N) (L/n) was found dead in her apartment at 21:34, her cause of death is currently unknown."

"No" Leo gasps his eyes widening, the brothers followed, Mikey gagged sprinting towards the bathroom. Leo watches at the apartment building you once live in, burst into flames, the firefighters rushing to put it out.

"Firefighters rush to stop the fire but it is all too late. The body was found with burned beyond recognition and the police have ordered an autopsy... Stay tune for further news"

"She never came back" Mikey croaked, leaning against the door frame. "She went out for pizza and never came back"

"S-She must've went to get more money, went home and then boom" Donnie says rushing towards his computers for answers.

Leo slammed his katana against the ground he was sitting on so hard, it broke into two pieces. He stood facing his hotheaded brother with a menacing look in his eyes.

"Are you happy now?" Leo sharply asked. "You asked for her gone right! You told us, to kick her out right! Well here you go Raphael. She's gone. For good"

"I-I never meant-"

"You knew she was depressed, you knew she fighting on... Raph, you have no idea!" Leo yells.

"BOYS!" the four flinch at their father's tone.

Splinter...

What're they going to tell him?

"What is going on here?" Splinter demands.

"(Y/N)'s dead" Mikey says voice cracking as the tears finally streamed down his face. "She's dead and its all our fault"

"Mikey..." Donnie says comforting his baby brother. "We should've helped sensei... but we... we didn't"

"5 times" Leo says confusing the others. "I saved her 5 times and this time, I couldn't"

"Leonardo..." Splinter sadly said.

Leo shook his head and walked away, the others slowly went their own way to grieve.

Splinter stood there with one though, he hopes you know what you need to do.

[twinklelilstarkey]

Tutor: A Plan

Words: 4k+ Type: Angst (I guess?) Summary: The girls have a plan. Warnings: Fem!Reader. The angst isn't between Y/N and Rafe, you can breathe. Rafe isn't nice. The girls are annoying. Slight mention of alcohol and drugs (and being drunk). BUZZCUT IS HERE, BABY!

Tutor Masterlist

I do NOT give you permission to repost my work. If you’d like to read my stories on other platforms, you can find them on my Wattpad and AO3.

They aren’t sure why or how, but they cannot find you. The girls have put at the top of their priority list to talk to you as soon as they laid their eyes on you. They just didn’t expect it to not be able to do it for an entire week.

You did go to school and class, but it was as if you had disappeared into thin air as soon as the bell rang.

The girls did watch you when they could. Their eyes would scan throughout your body as you would walk into class with your usual dresses. And they would never find any bruising or a look on your face that could mean you needed to talk to someone. You were just there, in class, taking notes and sometimes looking at your phone under the desk.

They remember clearly how, for the entirety of the week, they would hear the bell ring, and you would just swiftly grab your stuff with your bag thrown over your shoulder and would just disappear into the crowd with a blink of an eye.

You would never be at the cafeteria or near your locker during lunch. One of the girls even checked the bathrooms, but they never found you. It got to a point where, on Thursday (just two days ago), they stopped by your house. They knocked at the door, only for no one to answer it.

One of your neighbors eventually appeared from behind their fence, as they had been there watching the whole time.

“Are you girls looking for someone?”

Kristy was sure that every neighbor knew who they were since they had visited your house many times. Yet the neighbors just don’t like to seem as if they know everything about the person that lives beside them - even though they very much do.

“We're looking for our friend!” Kristy would scream back at the neighbor, offering your name to him as well.

“Oh! She’s tutoring today. Her mother told me!”

And that only led to the girls walking back to the car, defeated. They would never find you at this rate, and they know it. 

Still, they did not give up.

Today, on Friday, they did everything they could. They tried to catch you in every class again or at lunch or after school, even when Kristy knew that you tutor on Fridays. It is fair to say that they weren't able to do it. Yet, their failure only led to another idea.

Due to your new friendships, the girls know there will be a larger possibility of them still finding you tonight. And because of exactly that, they searched to know what parties would be happening for the evening.

After knowing all of it, they planned their entire Friday night. Tonight will be the time they will finally get to talk to you.

From their source, there are a total of 5 parties tonight as school is just about to end, and some seniors care more about their beer than their finals.

Three parties belong to the Pogues, which they automatically scratched from any possibility of you being there with Rafe Cameron. And the other two are from the usual kook party planners. They had decided on where to go first and had everything planned out.

They all met up at Kristy’s house and got ready there. They had to wait for time to pass for a bit, as they didn’t want to get to the party too early or else there would be a possibility of spooking you away. 

When out of the house, they got to their first party fairly quick. There were so many cars at the front they knew there wouldn't be a problem hiding in the crowd. And before they went in, they split up to search for you throughout the party individually. 

The music was deafening due to how loud it was. There was smoke throughout the house due to all the sweet indoor smoking and tables which Kristy hated to find. All the tables were filled with all sorts of kooks, hovering over a small pile of powder, which only made her try to find you even harder.

All throughout the search, the possibility of you being home resurfaced time and time again, but Kristy pulled through. In a way, she did not want to find you a party at all. Kristy wanted you away from these tables and all the eating-face couples she had to elbow out to get through the crowd. She ignored all the guys that handed her out drinks as she passed through the kitchen and eventually found herself in the backyard without sight of you or your friends.

“Did you see her?” One of the girls asked.

“No.”

They waited for every other girl to appear. Kristy analyzed their faces before they could even say if they found you or anyone. They were always disappointed as they walked out, and in some way, that made Kristy feel calmer as the possibility of you being home grew and grew.

“Maybe we should stay and wait up in case they get here late.” One of the girls said to all of them, and they agreed.

Minutes went by, and Kristy checked the time on her phone every few seconds. She watched as the girls went in and out of the house again to try and find you, but with no luck. It must have been an hour into it that Kristy decided it was time to move along to the next party.

The next party would be much harder, and they all knew that before even going in.

It was supposed to be a small party that not all kooks knew about, and here they were: A group of girls who weren't personally invited and probably didn't know a soul inside that house.

The girls talked inside the car about the best strategy to follow. They thought of the possibility that they could go inside one at a time, yet they had no idea how small the party was. What if they went inside, and everyone just looked at them? What would they do then?

By the time minutes passed and no one had moved, Kristy jumped out of the car and went inside the house. Sure, her heart was almost jumping out of her chest, but she still did it. The girls watched her walk up the porch and open the unlocked front door.

Inside, there were a lot more people than Kristy expected. It was much smaller than the party before, but there are still around 30 people all throughout the house.

The music, this time, is much softer, and people aren’t screaming and spilling drinks everywhere.

Kristy closes the door behind herself and walks towards what she assumes would be the kitchen, trying her best to act natural and as if she knows what she’s doing. She pushes the door open and finds herself in the kitchen, but not by herself. Kelce, a known friend of Rafe Cameron and Topper Thornton, is standing right by the counter, mixing up his own drink.

She assumes it is due to the time that she simply stood there watching him because Kelce looks up at her after a few silent seconds and stops mixing the liquid in his cup.

“Can I help you with anything?” He asked. His tone isn't too condescending, but definitely confused.

“Oh, no,” Kristy says, quickly snapping awake from her state of shock. “Sorry. I was just a little too focused on my own thoughts.”

She smiles at him, and Kelce simply does the grin one does to not seem rude. He picks up his drink and is ready to leave when an idea strikes Kristy.

“Wait!” She says right as he’s about to walk out through the door. “I actually do need help with something.”

Kelce turns to politely give the strange girl his attention and awaits her next words.

“Do you happen to know someone by the name of Patty?” Kristy asks, not exactly knowing how she remembered the name in the first place.

“Patty as in Patricia?” Kelce asks, sipping his drink in the pause, “That Patty?”

Kristy weighed down her options in a panic. What is she supposed to say? What if it is not Patricia and some random person that has that nickname?

“Yes, her,” Kristy says with another smile.

“Yeah, I know her.” 

Kristy looks at Kelce in silence, awaiting him to say something more, but all he does is look back at her and take another sip of his drink. Through the awkwardness, Kristy tries to make everything seem normal and her to seem collected and not insane in any way.

“Uh… Do you know if she’s here?” She points down to the ground, symbolizing the party.

“I saw her a while back, yeah. Not sure where she went.”

Kristy jumps at the opportunity, “So, she was at this party.”

“Yes,” Kelce says slowly, looking at Kristy as if she had gone insane for a second.

“Were her friends here too?”

Kelce eyes Kristy up and down, finding her the most suspicious person he has ever met. He can tell she is somewhat excited about the news, which makes him assume she must know Patty and is trying to meet up with her. But her hesitant tone and lack of names of other friends make him question if she’s even someone known to Patty at all. Can you be someone’s friend without knowing any of their other friends? Especially for someone like Patty?

Kelce decides to test her for it.

“Like who?” 

Kristy tenses up at the question. What if Patty, the girl she now knows you were texting, is just someone you met at a party? Not a friend of Rafe’s or even Kelce’s. Maybe Kelce only knows her name and nothing else. Kristy has to risk it because she knows he is finding her more distrustful by the second.

She begins with the easy name, saying yours first. But all Kelce does is look at her, awaiting more names, “Uh, and Rafe or Topper?” She asks quickly before adding, “Were they here too, by the way?”

Before he could answer, Kristy checks her vibrating phone, noticing the many messages coming from the girls that stayed in the car. All the messages unnecessarily asking her to tell them everything she is seeing. Kristy checks the time, and it is just a few minutes past midnight. Kristy has no idea how much time she has to find you.

“Yeah,” Kelce’s voice makes Kristy look up, “Actually. They left not too long ago. I’m sure Patty was with them when they walked out.”

“Oh, ok.” She says to him.

“Want me to say something to her in case she comes back?” He questions her, watching her every move.

“Oh, no. That is not needed. Thank you,” She says to him with yet another smile. 

Kelce smiles back at her and lifts his drink slightly as his way to say goodbye before leaning his shoulder against the swinging door and disappearing into the party. Kristy looks around the kitchen in defeat. She knows Kelce could’ve lied as he was already finding her weird with all her hums and weird silences, but what is she supposed to do now?

Kristy runs her fingers through her hair and sighs out loud, finding the vibrating of her phone irritating. She turns around and pushes the door of the kitchen open, using the door that faces the other side of the house as an advantage to lose Kelce.

She is quick and discreet with her steps, making her way out of the front door before closing it softly behind her. As she did it, she now thinks back on how she should’ve stayed a little longer to not raise any more suspicions. But it is too late now, leaving her to hope no one saw her.

Her eyes find her car, and through the windshield, she can see the girls’ widened eyes on her. She takes a deep breath before beginning to walk over to them, and, when finally by her door, she opens it right as she gets bombarded with questions.

She begins to explain everything only when she's sitting comfortably in the front seat. The girls listen quietly, never opening their mouths to ask anything until she gets to the end.

“Did he say anything about where they went?”

“No, but I also didn’t want to push him to say it. It was already awful from all the questions I had already made”

“Maybe they went home…?”

“At midnight?” A girl questions the other.

Kristy nods in agreement as they all find it too early for your night to end. The girls talk amongst themselves, thinking of the possibility of you changing parties or going home to hang out. Others said that you all went to get more drinks for the party. But the amount of liquor and convenience stores on the island made the girls give up further in finding you.

They had failed to find you again. If only they had started with this party.

Minutes go by, and the girls finally come to terms with the fact that they are done for the night. Kristy begins to pull away from the house in silence, and the girls all look outside, deep in thought.

“Could we go get something to eat before we go back home?” The girl in the passenger seat asks Kristy, getting the girls’ attention and silent agreement.

“Sure,” Kristy says with a small and sad smile.

The car disappears from the small driveway, and Kelce continues to stare out the window with a frown. With his phone over his ear, he curses himself silently for not even getting the girl's name before she bolted out of his house.

Everything about her seemed wrong. Even when she answered such an easy question correctly, the way the girl got out of the house confirmed it for him. She’s a weirdo.

“We’re almost there,” The voice on the other side of the phone says right as they pick up.

“That’s alright. Just wanted to ask you something,” Kelce says as he looks back at the party, “Do you know a girl with, like, brown and blonde hair?”

Patty laughs drunkenly on the other side of the phone.

“What? Maybe,” She says back to him. “Why?”

“Some girl came into my house asking me about you and then just got out without a word.”

Patty laughs again, finding what he said absolutely ridiculous. Kelce listens as she asks Topper about the girl with highlights, yet the answer is just as negative.

“Do Rafe an-”

“Hold on, let me put you on speaker.” Kelce sighs at Patty.

“Do Rafe and Y/N know her?”

“We don’t know.” Topper answers him.

“Well, can you ask?”

“They’re out of the car.” Topper says, confirming to Kelce that Patty’s ‘almost there’ is really ‘we haven’t even gotten out of the parking lot yet’. 

“Why are you so stressed about it?” Patty asks him.

“Because she was weird…” He comments to her, “And she said all your names when I asked her which friends she wanted me to know about.”

“Know about?”

“Yeah, she wanted to know where you all were. You two, Y/N and Rafe.”

They stay silent on the other side of the line, and Kelce is left to contemplate his own theories on who that girl could be.

“That is weird,” Patty says in a murmur after thinking for a bit.

“I know.”

There are more seconds of silence, and Kelce walks away from the window. He goes around the house, awaiting the two other people on the call to say something else, but they don’t even whisper.

“Is the food almost ready or what?” Kelce asks them.

“We don’t know. Rafe and Y/N went to pick it up,” Patty says to him, “But they’re still at the front. It might take a few more minutes.”

“Alright,” Kelce says as he sits back down with his other friends. “Text me when you’re on your way back.”

“Will do.”

(...)

“I’m hungry.” You groan out loud, leaning back on Rafe as you watch the restaurant’s door.

“I know,” Rafe says, “You’ve told me that many times.”

You turn around and wrap your arms around him, looking up at his face. Rafe stares back at you, at how your every emotion has just been intensified due to the alcohol you’ve consumed tonight - not his fault. Your smile grows as you watch him, and he has to hold himself back from smiling back right away.

“I like the buzz cut.”

“I know,” Rafe repeats himself. “You’ve also said that many times.”

“Good, because it’s true,” You tell him quickly before kissing his lips in a small peck and pulling away from his body. 

You walk over to the restaurant's door again, eyeing the inside as you watch the only people in the open kitchen work their asses off with the usual insane orders on Friday nights. You watch them cut up the ingredients and toss them into a pan on the stove. Rafe watches you as you watch the food, comparing you in his mind to some cartoon with hearty eyes only for food.

He looks over at the car where Patty and Topper are, seeing as Patty holds her phone in the air as she talks to someone, obviously entertained. 

You get back his attention when you step away from the door, and it opens in front of you. A guy holds up a white bag towards you, which makes you grab it, and he notices how drunk you are before deciding to direct his words towards Rafe instead.

“The rest of the food is almost done as well.”

“Thank you,” Rafe says back to him before the man disappears inside the restaurant again.

You walk back over to Rafe as you peek inside the bag, dying to eat anything inside the takeout boxes.

“I’ll take this bag to the car,” You tell him.

“Are you sure you can walk there safely?”

You send him a dramatic look, and his smile appears as you do it.

Even when refusing to let him be right, you walk very careful steps toward Topper’s car. You are very much drunk, but it does feel good to be so after a week of studying for your finals.

A car drives into the parking lot, getting your attention, but as soon as you have a slight difficulty seeing it in the darkness of night, you look away uninterested and get back to careful walking. Patty opens the car's door to welcome the bag of food, and you smile brightly at the equally drunk girl while holding the bag carefully in your hands.

You hand it over to her, and Patty does not even wait to open the first box at the top. Rafe watches from afar and chuckles as the two of you almost fight over one of the forks.

You happily take the fork from Patty’s hand after she has her bite, and you take yours. You practically feel your heart exploding with love for the food.

After swallowing, you take another bite and give the fork back before beginning to walk back to Rafe.

“Was it good?” He questions you.

“What was?”

“You didn’t eat?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” You say with a shrug.

Rafe smiles at you, and you walk back over to him, wrapping your arms around him again. And, in the distance, the girls watch the two of you.

In shock, after they had spent so many hours looking for you, they lay their eyes on you now, and relief hits them before any of the helplessness. You were safe and happy. Yet they cannot reach you now. Not when you're with him.

They are too distracted amongst themselves that they never turn off the car, which does sound suspicious to someone standing in an empty parking lot at night, such as Rafe. He looks over his shoulder to check out the car, half-parked in a spot with the engine running and lights on. And it has been there for some time now.

Due to the lights, Rafe cannot see who could be inside the vehicle, but those in it can see him and what he’s doing clearly.

The girls inside are discussing with each other about their next move, torn between the choice of risking going there while Rafe is right beside you or letting you go and leaving this for another day.

The discussion eventually escalates into arguing, and one of them steps out of the car before the others could reach for her.

The door is slammed closed, and the girl's silhouette appears on the side of the car. Rafe has stopped looking at the strange vehicle since you moved away from him and are now telling him all about your plans for tomorrow.

Kristy, who is still inside the car, realizes that she forgot to turn it off and does it now as they watch their friend approach the couple.

As she gets closer, the door of the restaurant swings open, and a man looks over at you. You grab the plastic bag full of food handed to you, and Rafe pulls out his wallet for the tip.

The girls impatiently watch as you say something to Rafe and begin walking toward a car. By doing that, you unknowingly create a larger distance between you and the approaching girl.

As the girl begins to change route and go toward the car you’re heading to, Rafe turns around to do the same. Yet something stops him, and his eyes go from the girl to the now turned-off vehicle, making every girl freeze on their spot.

He stares as the girl who was casually heading over to his girlfriend now simply stands before him and watches him in return. He looks over at you as you get further away from her with complete innocence. His eyes go back to the car for just another second, and he slides his wallet back into his pocket.

“What?” He asks her plainly.

The girl opens her mouth to speak but then shuts it right back up. Rafe watches her do it, and how her eyes go over to try and find you. You’re too distracted talking to Patty to even notice her.

“We want to talk to Y/N,” She forces herself to say.

“She’s busy,” He says before pointing towards the car, “Having dinner.” 

The girl stays quiet.

“Care to leave a message?”

Her silence is enough of an answer.

Rafe begins to move, and the girl turns towards Kristy's car. Anger is boiling underneath her skin as she looks over her shoulder, watching as you turn around to face Rafe. Your smiles and high-pitched voice as you excitedly speak to him. All while completely unaware of what has happened.

It doesn't take much of a thought to know that Rafe will never tell you, drunk or sober, what has happened and who has wished to speak to you. And that only angers the girl further.

She hops back inside her car and shuts the door behind her. No one dares to ask her what happened or what he said, so they sit silently and look outside.

Rafe opens the car door for you and lets you hop in as they watch. And before he goes in with you, he makes sure to have another look at the car and the girls inside it.

Rafe is a meany, y'all.

I know it wasn't much, but I hope you enjoyed this <3

[vex91]

Hanni Pham - Not so secret crush

Pairing: Hanni Pham x Female Reader

Fandom: NewJeans

Requested by: Anonymous

Request: can you write a fluffy oneshot where Hanni is a big fan of One Direction (Idk the fandom 😭) and the Reader is a Taylor Swift fan and they dedicate 'Perfect' and 'Style' to each other or something like this? Also, sorry for my writing, English is not my first language and I used the translator 😭

Summary: No one expected Hanni to dedicate a love song for you but what was an even bigger shock is you doing the same.

A/N: A request for my NewJeans's bias wrecker is always welcomed, also me as a Swiftie reading this request🤭 Thanks for requesting <3

3rd's POV

"In our studio today NewJeans, welcome" The interviewer smiled and bowed at the girls which they reciprocated. Today NewJeans had an interview for one of the most popular radio shows in Korea where they came to promote their upcoming album. That day Hanni was in a very happy mood that was noticed by the other members and even though they were curious as to what happened to her to get her in such a good mood, they decided to just leave it be and be happy that she was happy.

The reason for Hanni's sudden happiness was the fact that that day was the release of your solo album and as your biggest fan she couldn't wait to get back to their dorm and listen to it. Truthfully Hanni was your fan ever since you debuted in IVE and was constantly supporting you ever since then and when she finally debuted, all she could think about was that now she had a chance to meet you in person and maybe talk for a bit. Honestly she wished that she could be with you together as a couple but it seemed impossible for her, especially since you guys weren't even friends.

That's what often saddened her, despite talking a few times during music shows and stuff she couldn't call it a friendship. At least you knew she existed and even complimented her and her group a few times which caused her to make a big deal out of it, not letting her members forget about it for the rest of that day. She was just completely into you.

The interview continued just like always and everything was completely peaceful until one question came up "So, is there any idol you want to dedicate any song to?" The question was unexpected but didn't bothered the girls and when it was finally Hanni's turn she looked into the camera and decided to just go for it "Well a lot of my fans might already know that I was a huge One Direction fan before so I want to dedicate "Perfect" by them for IVE's Y/N-sunbaenim" This left everyone surprised by the choice of the song and an idol since no one there expected Hanni to just dedicate a love song for another idol.

Minji slapped Hanni's shoulder before laughing along with her and somehow they managed to change everyone's attention from Hanni and to Danielle who was the last one to answer the question. Still that didn't changed the fact that their fans had the best day with this one clip and the next day yours and Hanni's names were trending all over social media and despite her being pretty bold in that moment, later she was stressed because she wasn't sure how you would react.

And then you had a solo interview there with the same person who interviewed NewJeans and they decided to use the opportunity and ask you the same question "So Y/N, is there any idol you want to dedicate any song to?" You smiled when the question was asked, already knowing how to answer this "Yeah I do actually. So I saw a clip of NewJeans's Hanni dedicating 'Perfect' to me and by the way great song choice because I love it. That's why I want to dedicate a song to her and since I'm a huge Taylor Swift fan I'm gonna go with 'Style' " The interviewer chuckled at the situation before he continued the interview.

To say that Hanni was shocked would be an understatement, she had to watch a clip hundreds times before showing it to all her members to make sure that she's hearing it correctly. Just like before the internet went wild with the clips and your names were trending everywhere along with your ship name. People who thought before that something was between you had the time of their lives with the whole situation and it became so big that your companies had to make statements.

"Starship Entertainment denies the rumors surrounding one of their artists, IVE's Lee Y/N and Hybe's artist, NewJeans's Hanni Pham. After confirming the situation with the artists they claim that the relationship between them is only platonic"

Honestly that didn't changed much because despite the statement being released to let people know that there is nothing between you two, everyone are sure that there are some feelings involved.

And truthfully they may be right.

[theydonthavenames]

Can I just quickly point out how Netflix and the rest fucked with us with the stills and trailer they released. They showed us everything yet we knew nothing and made us believe in exactly opposite of what happened. Have a look.

Didn't we all think here shit oh shit Simon is so happy vibing with his new bf at the party. RIP Wilmon, let Sircus reign. Well in the exhibit above the petty little gay bitch is making his almost-ex boyfriend intentionally jealous af and he was winning at it (or rather loosing as we found out later). And that smirk? Nothing to do with Markus, sorry not sorry.

Awww such a cute bff moment. Pahahaha. Little did we know we were about to be hit in the face with the biggest cringe moment of the season. I remember one or two souls saying well they look a bit sus cuddling on a bed like that, and the rest (including me) shouted noo! beauty of platonic friendship! We were played my friends. Lol. Just lol.

Look at this sequence. We thought first day back at school? Reunion moment? What is Simon smiling like that for? Well he's about to break our hearts in two and mend us again at the same time. That includes Wille, actually. We had no idea. Neither did Wille. 

The speech makes me lol as well. I don't think anyone was too excited about it. Everyone thought yeah another princely thingy, some shit speech, yawn, whatever. My ass! Who cried at the shitty boring speech? I'll go first 🙋‍♀️

Look at them, some dirty villain-to-half villain deal about to commence. The only dirtiness that commenced was in August's bedroom. And it was actually cute and fluffy af. This must be my most favourite twist this season.

Blue lights in the mirror? Finally August is about to be taken by the police!!! Yeah, party police. Let's move on.

Ohhh Sara baby what's wrong? Are you sad? Is Hillerska treating you badly? Are you having anxiety attack? Did someone hurt you? Listen people, she was horny. For August. Out of all the people. Seriously, wtf Netflix?!?!

I was obsessed with this pic. Aww Wilmon having such a cute couple moment, they're out and proud at Hillerska, not a secret anymore. Nope. Simon just momentarily forgotten he doesn't love Wille anymore and is supposed to move on but then he remembers it and jumps away coz he probably saw Markus looking at them like ???? Still a cute little moment.

Wille on the table, Wille on the table! They all cheer because all Hillerska ship Wilmon too! Not quite. All they ship is their own asses and maybe some heteronormativity. (Is that even a word?) Ugh.

Who's that???? Oh shit that's Markus. Must be Markus. Wille bumped into him at Simon's house 😱 Wille looks sad. I'm so stressed!!! Chill out people, it's only Simon. And Wille's just about to announce he can give up the throne for him. Nothing exciting, you know, just some domestic couple stuff.

And this moment? Looks serious. Simon looks sad? Is he comforting Wille? Has someone died? Well the only person who died at that moment was me okay?

They fucked with us. Or our clowning backfired. Decide for yourself.

[talaok]

Could you please write an imagine where Pedro and reader know each other for a very long time and reader comes from a not so happy family (unlike Pedro)

He’s in love with her and she does love him but does believe love is real or that relationships can last (thinking everyone only wants her for her body from past flings) and can’t give him a chance due to fear

Happy ending if you want

Thanks

warnings: angst, and brief talk about reader's bad childhood

a/n: im starting to honestly think yall should start writing fics, cause the shit you come up with is so good like

The first time you told him you were 13.

You had showed up at his doorsteps asking for a place to sleep.

You couldn't stand another minute of hearing your parents scream at each other two doors down.

They hadn't even noticed you were gone, they never did.

He was your only real friend at the time, and after a sort of awkward moment with his parents, he'd led you to his room and asked what had happened.

And that's the first time he heard the sentence he'd grow to hate.

"Love isn't real. It never lasts"

Your parents were the proof. Love is a trap, it deceives you into thinking you can spend your life with someone, when really, all you're doing is locking yourself into a cage, and when you finally realize what you've done, it will be too late, because then you'll be scared to get out, to start new, and that's why you'll stay, forever imprisoned because your own stupid choices.

From then on, it became your mantra.

With every guy who disappeared after having gotten you into bed, with every guy who dumped you as soon as they'd seen what's underneath your clothes, one sentence engraved itself in your mind.

Love isn't real. Love isn't real. Love isn't real.

And that's why, he, of all people, knew better than anyone why he shouldn't tell you, why he should continue pretending like he'd been doing for almost twenty years,

Maybe he was a masochist, or maybe his feelings were getting too strong and they had started to fog his brain, but he couldn't hold it in anymore, he'd kept it hidden for too long, and no matter how many women he'd meet there was always you in the back of his mind.

It had always been you.

And that's why tonight... tonight he had finally let go.

"Y/n, I love you" 

He saw you freeze before his eyes, shocked and terrified of the words that had just come out of his mouth.

"I'm sorry" he murmured, swiping his sweaty hands on his jeans and looking around your living room to try and gather some composure. "I'm sorry to drop this on you like this. I know how you feel about the whole... love thing" he winced internally as his eyes set anywhere but on yours "And- and I don't want to ruin our friendship, and it's ok if you don't feel the same way, but..." He swallowed what felt like sand in his mouth as he finally looked into your eyes "Y/n I've felt this way for so fucking long" he breathed "I-I think I was too young to understand it when we met, but as we grew up it just became clearer and clearer and... and I couldn't do it anymore, I couldn't keep it to myself anymore y/n, I'm sorry"

His words felt distant, muffled.

You felt like you were drowning and he was trying to talk to you from above the water.

He'd just told you the three words you dreaded most in the world, and now you didn't know what to do, or say, or even think.

And it wasn't the same as when any of your old boyfriends had said it, no, with him, with Pedro, those words scared you because they meant so much more, 

because they reached into that deep, hidden part of you that... that felt the same way.

And that part of you was hidden for a reason, that part of you was the only thing that prevented you from becoming like your mom, from falling into the trap.

And now he'd just handed you the keys, and all you needed to do was decide to open the lock.

And you didn't know if you wanted to.

"I don't want to lose you y/n, the last thing I want is to lose you, you- you're the most important person in my life, I-I'd be lost without you, so if you don't feel the same way, it's fine, I promise it's fine, I can take it, but before you say anything I just want you to know that when I say I love you I mean it," Both your hearts were beating faster than they'd ever beaten before"I mean I love every single part of you, every single inch, that I love you when you sing off-tune and I love you when you call me in the middle of the night" he laughed "That- that I wake up and go to sleep thinking of you- that without you I wouldn't know how to breathe, that since I met you, I felt the need to become a better person so that maybe I'd deserve you." he said more softly now "And I'm sorry about your parents, and I'm sorry about everything that happened in your life, but I promise you that I'd never do anything to hurt you, that if you just give me a chance, I'll try my hardest to prove to you that love is real, that- that it can last if you just give it a try"

The soft roar of an engine made its way to your ears as a car drove by outside, the fabric of the couch felt itchy all of a sudden, and your breathing had become uneven.

You didn't know how long you both stayed silent, how long it took you to take in all he had just said, but when you finally opened your mouth, your voice didn't sound like your own.

"Pedro-" his eyes were filled with hope, but yours only with pain "Pedro you know how I feel about this" you murmured, like doctors did just as they delivered bad news "I'm sorry I- I can't do this, you know I can't... I just-" there was this feeling in your stomach, like all your organs were twisting, like your body was telling you you were making a mistake "I don't want to lose you, and I know that if we did... this, it would only end badly" you watched all the hope in his eyes crumble and you didn't think you'd ever hated yourself more than in that exact moment.

"I'm sorry Pedro," you said "I can't"

He didn't look like himself anymore, he didn't feel like it either. He felt as if all the life had left his body, and all that remained was a useless sack of skin.

But still, still, he couldn't help but realize that you hadn't said one thing, the one thing that was gonna make him give up forever.

"So you don't feel the same way?"

It wasn't tears threatening to spill from your eyes, it was liquid pain, liquid hatred for yourself.

"T-that doesn't matter"

He frowned, trying to come up with something to say that wouldn't make him sound any more pathetic than he already was.

"B-but it does y/n. it does"

You swallowed thickly "Pedro, please" you begged

"I need to know," he said with a thread of voice 

"I-I can't" you murmured, as a tear finally stained your cheek "I..."

He took that as his answer.

You didn't love him, and deep down, he'd always known.

"I think-" he cleared his throat to try and gain some composure, "I think it's best if I go," he said as he stood up.

you didn't know if you nodded, you didn't know anything anymore

He glanced back at you for a moment to see if there was any sign of you wanting to stop him, but your head was down.

both of your hearts broke with each step he took, and as he got farther and farther, this... feeling spread inside your body, this presentiment of having just made the biggest mistake of your life sneaked up your throat and robbed you of all oxygen.

And was only when his fingers grabbed the doorknob, and you grasped his arm, that you could breathe again.

"y/n-" he tried to speak, but you needed to do this before your mind could catch up, so you cut him off.

"I do," you said, as more tears fell from your eyes "I love you, Pedro"

His mind was a mess and his heart was a mess but he still managed to spit out a sentence

"Y/n, if you're saying that just because-"

"Pedro" you softly placed your hands on each side of his head, as you huffed out a silly laugh "Just kiss me"

[multifunctionalnitroglycerin]

The Locked Tomb Series- Alecto Theory

Brace yourselves this is 3000 words of me connecting dots that aren't even there.

First things first, this post is an amalgam of various brilliant theories I have seen posted on Tumblr, so if anything feels familiar, that will be the main reason. I am just going to present my own take on this, and hopefully add something new to what we already have.

                The subjects of today’s conspiracy theory are Alecto and Anastasia -and Cassiopeia in part, the vow to Anastasia’s bloodline and what could very possible be, Dios Apate MAJOR.

                So let’s start with what we have from the books, and feel free to correct me or add sth I might have forgotten.

                Anastasia and Samael are the only ones of the original Lyctor batch, that didn’t complete the Lyctorhood process, thanks to - in no small part – John, and/or possibly Alecto. (“I am sorry about Samael”). Which could mean that Alecto was somehow involved in the whole process going wrong, and thus she feels responsible for Samael’s death, or that she was close enough with Anastasia and Samael, that she herself felt Samael’s loss, or she felt for Anastasia’s grief. (I like to believe that they did have a tentative friendship even before the vow thing happened.)

                Anastasia is also the only one of the Lyctors we know, so far, to have had children. Which is an important bit on its own, (Can full Lyctors, have children? If so, are they different from other children, necromantic or not? Is there a reason that in spite of biological capability- if it exists-the other Lyctors have chosen not to have children? Even with Augustine’s and Mercymorn’s plan we see that in the end Gideon is conceived with Wake’s material – John is a whole different story as far as Lyctorhood goes so he doesn’t count.)

Back to our discussion though, Anastasia’s bloodline was so important to the Ninth House that it has been preserved for 10.000 years. We do not really get a clear picture on whether the Reverend Family knows why the continuation of the bloodline is important, Harrow certainly doesn’t, but it was so deeply ingrained to them that Anastasia’s bloodline must remain intact, that they effectively committed genocide, dooming the House’s future, in order to produce one more direct descendant of the Saint that wasn’t.

We do get a hint, a rather big one, on why the preservation of Anastasia’s blood is so important, in Nona’s Epilogue. Alecto states that Harrow is “the blood of the tombkeeper” after kissing her and drawing blood. What did she taste on Harrow’s blood I wonder? And how did she recognize the taste, as the taste of Anastasia’s line? Did the vow she initially made to Anastasia herself involve them drawing blood? Did it bind them to one another, so deeply that they ingrained themselves into each other on a molecular level?

To add to this, young Harrow, young desolate Harrow, who had had enough with her life and was prepared to die, young Harrow who opened the Tomb for that express purpose, loves Alecto from sight. And decides to keep living for her. And there is something exceedingly weird to just how much Harrow loves Alecto. Alecto is probably the most attractive person Harow lay her eyes upon to that day, true, but this instant infatuation, and its persistence throughout the years has something more to it, don’t you think? As Gideon points out, both to herself and to Ianthe, Harrow’s heart belongs to the dead cold body in the Tomb. And said cold dead body in the Tomb, recognizes Harrow from sight when she wakes “Alecto recalled her, for it was a face once dreamed in Alecto’s dream.”

And this line begs the question. Could Alecto dream, in the tomb? If so, how? And what did she dream of? Did she dream of Harrow? Why did she dream of Harrow if that is the case? Or did she dream of Anastasia, and the resemblance is that great? On the other hand, if this refers to Harrow first opening the Tomb, and looking at Alecto, does that mean that she was in some form conscious throughout that stasis? Does this mean that she could have heard and felt Anastasia while they were both locked in the Tomb, for however long the other woman lived?

(The scene where Nona describes the feeling of Anastasia's hands in the water and feeling safe. I am going to cry.)

I do have an interesting theory about Alecto’s “dreams” but we’ll get there in a bit.

Something else that is fishy, is that the Ninth, is the House of the Sewn Tongue. It sounds a bit like too much flesh magic for a bone magic house to specialize in, right? The cure to the Sewn Tongue on the other hand? Removing the mandible and all that? That sounds like a Bone Magic solution to a flesh magic problem. And I wonder if the fact that the Ninth House’s emblem is the Jawless skull, insinuates that the Ninth is not so much a house where many secrets are kept – though this is undoubtedly true, as the Ninth is known as the House of secrets by the other houses – as much that in the Ninth, all secrets are revealed. Where the sewn tongue is healed, and the truth comes to light. And I’d like to point out that it sounds a bit like foreshadowing, and a promise. Anastasia has been betrayed by John and sworn to secrecy, and then locked in the Tomb to die and take his secrets with her. I feel like the jawless skull acts as a constant reminder, that even with the sewn tongue, all curses can be broken, and all secrets will eventually come to light. And it feels like a promise to John, that her House, the house of secrets and unspoken truths, will be the one to rid of the sewn tongue and bring the truth he so fears forward. And this aligns a tad too well with the Sixth’s mantra, Six for the truth, over solace in lies.

And you know what else fits here, in this concordance of the Sixth and Ninth Houses? Cassiopeia and Anastasia’s friendship. Their alliance if you will. We know they both worked closely together trying to figure out the perfect Lyctorhood process, and it is possible that Anastasia made her attempt a bit before Cassiopeia. The exact same attempt, that performed in perfect conditions ended in failure, with John ultimately killing Samael.

 We also know that Cassiopeia left contingency plans in place, should the emperor become a hindrance to the empire. And from what we have seen of Cassiopeia in the books, it is safe to assume that she is driven, determined, exceedingly intelligent, perceptive, logical, and excellent at planning. She is also the one to point out John’s less than favorable qualities pre-Resurrection such as his interest in taking vengeance on those that wronged him being bigger in his interest to save lives.

So, we have, Cassiopeia and her logic driven, truth seeking brilliance, and Anastasia, the thorough, overly methodical researcher. We have them both working on perfect Lyctorhood, and we have them both, in one way or another, being betrayed by John. Chances are, that they were the first post Resurrection to notice John’s flaws, the first to concoct a plan against him. But contrary to Cytherea, Mercy and Augustine, they are more subtle than those cannonball attempts. No, I believe they planned. And they planned long term, and together. Cassiopeia left her House a note, left them instructions, she was preparing them for when John would become a liability. And then an aforementioned amount of time later, Anastasia is asked to design the tomb.

We do not really know anything about Alecto’s relationships with the other lyctors apart from the fact that most found her revolting, a “monster” in Mercy’s words. So here is a thought, perhaps Anastasia, the one of the original Eight to never ascend, perhaps the one whose failure Alecto was involved in – “I am sorry about Samael” – finds kinship in John’s unnerving pet, his undead “cavalier”, the one he betrayed first, the soul of earth. Perhaps they even became friends. Perhaps she and Cassiopeia realize the extend of what John has done and realize that Alecto is the key to undoing it. When John refuses to kill Alecto to appease the others, the plan fully forms.

So, they construct the tomb. And Cassiopeia is well-known for building mechanisms within houses, so maybe her and Anastasia create secret passages, and mechanisms with extra access to the tomb that would be independent of John sneaking in, or whatever he planned to do with that blood-ward.  And hear me out, we know that Cassiopeia stayed 7 minutes in the river before being torn apart by the resurrection beast – at Mercymorn’s account at least, not sure how reliable of a narrator she is. But what happened during those seven minutes? Paul says he thinks he knows how to get to the Locked Tomb via the River. So, the river and the Tomb are connected. What did Cassiopeia do, I wonder? (Here I’d like to say that my other theory is that she did eventually die, or rather was consumed by Varun the eater, much like Judith Deuteros was. The RB burned through her in what, a couple months? How long would a Lyctor last? Perhaps that was the reason that Varun didn’t resurface until 100 years after Cassiopeia’s presumed death. She could have been alive and slowly wasting away, while still making failsafe within failsafe until she lost her sense of self and eventually wasted away)

To recap until now, the first part of my theory is that Anastasia and Cassiopeia dissatisfied with the world John had made and the truth he had served them, probably worked together to find the truth. And they worked together from the shadows, to create a plan, a long-term plan, with which they could bring John down if the need ever arose, and undo what he had done. And Anastasia’s bloodline and their secrets are really bloody important to that plan. (Also, some nice symbolism about the Ninth being about secrets revealed, rather than secrets kept, and that functioning as a bit of foreshadowing.)

Now into the second part of my theory. Anastasia’s bloodline is so important because she has bound her bloodline to Alecto. And I think this happened in the premise of the Vow Alecto has made to her, or they have made to each other. This might be part of the initial vow, of which we know nothing about, apart from the fact that Alecto pledged herself to Anastasia, and that it is important enough that she pledges herself to Harrow, or a failsafe within it. A failsafe to ensure that should Alecto wake after Anastasia has passed, she will not be fooled by any imposters, or anything else John might have planned. Or perhaps, a failsafe to ensure that even if John changes his mind and finds a way to rid of the body within the tomb, to “kill” Alecto, she will not be completely gone, she will keep existing within Anastasia’s line, thus ensuring that the plan for John’s demise can still be enacted and that the soul of the earth will not be dead.

That plays really hard in the Alecto is within Harrow from the beginning theory. And I will explain. I believe I saw something that looked like this in Twitter by lesbian_mothman, but I do not really remember so I apologize if all this has been said before.

In all the dream chapters with John, we relive memories from just before and after the resurrection, and John talks to Harrow as if she is Alecto “You always say that Harrowhark” as a response to “I still love you.” Or when Varun recognizes the Earth’s soul “green thing” within Nona in the car chase scene, or when Judith regaining consciousness asks “Harrowhark?” and Nona replies, “No, and I never was.” So that begs the question of how much of Harrow is Harrow, how much is Alecto and how much are the 200 souls within her? (And there was a crowd of dead children there. They were striving loudly against living children on the far-off shore of the tomb. CHILLS)

In Nona we learn that Palamedes and Camila on the one hand and Pyrrha on the other have two different theories about who Nona is. The Sixth believe that she is an amalgam of Gideon and Harrow, and Pyrrha believes she is Alecto, golden eyes and all. And I am more inclined to believe that it is indeed Alecto, or at least a part of her, that resides within Harrow, and took the wheel when both Harrow and Gideon were gone. Think abt it. Gideon is back in her body, and we have no idea what the hell happened to Harrow, only that she doesn’t have the wheel, and Nona acts nothing like Harrow or Gideon did. It’s like she is learning how to be human for the first time. She learns how to love and be loved for the first time. So with no soul to govern the body, the part of Alecto within Harrow takes the wheel.  

And then there is the candle metaphor in NtN. Alecto’s soul is the candle passed from one necromantic heir of the Ninth to the other.

So long story short, part of the vow, if not all of it, is that part of Alecto will always live within Anastasia’s descendants, so long as they are necromancers. And here comes the part of Alecto’s dreams. Because if indeed she lives within the souls of Anastasia’s necromantic descendants, does she see through their eyes? Does she feel through their hearts? Does she dream of their lives, while locked in the Tomb, while a part of her lives in them? Is she conscious within them? Or does the whole thing act like a cavalier- lyctor sort of connection, where she cannot take the wheel unless the other soul in the body Is gone?

 Part of her soul is bound to Anastasia’s line, and they are bound to her, and over the course of 10.000 years do they spill over? Alecto to Anastasia’s descendants and they to Alecto.  Was this part of the plan to have a failsafe within Anastasia’s line in case something happened to the body in the Tomb? Was it a promise Anastasia made to Alecto, to give her a chance to live, to be human, through the lives of her own descendants?

All in all, I guess I could some it up in a few concise points.

Cassiopeia and Anastasia worked closely together, they were friends and allies and saw in John, the unfulfilled promises he made, and all the faults he tried to cover with rewriting his own version of history.

They decide to make a plan, a long term one, a detailed one, for when John is more a liability than it is worth. And thus, Cassiopeia creates the mechanisms in the Sixth and leaves the protocols for the rest to find. Truth over solace in lies.

Meanwhile Anastasia attempts to ascend, and John kills Samael. Alecto might be consciously or unconsciously involved and harbors guilt over Samael’s death.

Anastasia probably befriends Alecto or finds kinship with this strange being that is the soul of a planet that no longer is.

The planning continues and John after being asked to kill Alecto decides to lock her in the Tomb instead and has Anastasia design it. He later asks her to stay in the tomb and guard Alecto. (Antigone style)

Anastasia designs the tomb, probably with Cassiopeia’s help, probably with a few hidden mechanisms of its own and or a secret pathway through the river, an extra way out.

At some point, Anastasia sires a line, and she makes her vow with Alecto.

The vow probably is in regards of bounding Alecto to Anastasia’s line so long as there are necromantic heirs. A part of Alecto is constantly alive within each descendant of Anastasia’s.

It might work a bit like the lyctoral process, because Alecto only takes the wheel when there is no Harrow and no Gideon in Nona’s body, aka when there doesn’t seem to be another soul guiding it.

Alecto dreams. Whether she dreams of herself within the tomb and that’s how she recognizes Harrow on sight – from the memory of Harrow first unlocking the Tomb – or her dreams are glimpses of the lives Anastasia’s descendants lead I don’t know.

Alecto is thus bound to Anastasia’s line by blood. She recognizes Harrow by her blood, tasting either Anastasia, or the part of herself residing within it, when she kisses her. It also ensures that the line is intact the vow is intact and it’s not a pretender trying to fool her.

Anastasia and Cassiopeia planned to bring John down by opening the tomb when the time was right and leaving her to Alecto’s (and the RB’S???) mercy. There is still a lot left to be explored.

The tomb is to remain closed until the time has come God has to die. We can all see how that can be misinterpreted to > if the tomb opens God will die. And instead of a promise to be fulfilled it becomes a terrible terrible thing, that will spell everyone’s doom.

The freaking skull of the ninth is a threat, a foreshadow and a promise. The Ninth was a house that should have died with Anastasia in the tomb. But it didn’t. It continued existing its bloodline unbroken for 10.000 years. Nine for the tomb and all that was lost. The Ninth is predominantly I feel a house of mourning – the whole nuns, all black, and skull makeup thing. But it is also a house of secrets. It is a house represented by the cure to even the tightest secret held. So the Ninth, the house that should never have been the house that should have died with its secrets in the tomb of its inception, is the one that will break the sewn tongue, and reveal all the secrets, bringing the truth to light.

[eunseoksimp]

Hi! Can you write jealous reader x Sungchan (could be same y/n from poison)

You writing is so good !!x

hey anon, thank you so much for your kind words. i wrote a completely different reader because all my poison creative juices have been exhausted, i hope you don’t mind.

i also low-key got carried away with the insanity, this might be a step further than simple jealousy whoops.

.   ݁ ˖ ࣪ . ⋆ * .♡ *:･ﾟ.   ݁ ˖ ࣪ . ⋆ * .♡ *:･ﾟ.   ݁ ˖ ࣪ .

it wasn’t a hidden fact that the bounds of your jealousy did not mirror those of a normal person.

you found that you tended to like people a lot more passionately than others, but you assumed it was overall a healthy amount of course, the type that any person might feel when they liked someone.

that was until you met jung sungchan.

you weren’t sure what it was about him that induced a scary amount of rage every time you saw him draw near to another girl.

you had no right to dictate who he could and couldn’t speak to, because the truth was that the relationship between you and sungchan was complicated.

you couldn’t exactly call each other lovers, but the things that you both did was nothing becoming of friends. so you were stuck in a weird sort of limbo, forced to ramble to your best friends and hope it would alleviate the burning flame that resided in your chest.

‘i don’t get it. it’s not like the both of you are dating, so why do you care that he’s around other girls?’ wonbin spoke up, tossing another skittle into his mouth successfully.

‘she likes him stupid, why else would she feel this way?’ chaewon, who was resting her head on her shoulder had her eyes closed, almost as if she was sleeping, but you knew she was listening.

‘my point is, if you like him why don’t you tell him that?’

you loved wonbin, you really did, but sometimes you wondered how someone so pretty could be so empty headed. he often was unable to pick up on context clues and you thanked god that chaewon was always with you, otherwise you might go crazy.

‘i don’t want to ruin our friendship. what if i lose him forever.’

‘i’m pretty sure your so called friendship was ruined the moment you both decided to fuck like rabbits,’ you lifted your head to give wonbin the middle finger, but quickly dropped it as you sighed.

a drunken night at a party is what led to the situation you were in. at the time you were sure that it was nothing more than sex, and given that the both of you were best friends and trusted each other more than anything, you decided on keeping a friends with benefits dynamic.

it was great at first, being able to sleep with someone without having to worry about feelings, or inviting strangers into your home and your body. sungchan was such a gentleman, looking after you in and out of the bedroom.

when you fucked, it was magical. he was always more concerned with your pleasure than he was his, drawing orgasm after orgasm out of your first before he would finally retire for the night, satisfied that you enjoyed yourself.

eventually, you found yourself craving intimacy outside of the bedroom, and it wasn’t uncommon for him to stay over after to cuddle, or to make the both of you a quick meal.

before you knew it, you started to become dependent on sungchan, needing him nearby at all times, wanting to be the only one he touched, or the only one he looked at. there was a desperate desire for him to be with you forever, and you thrived off of the feelings you got whenever he touched you.

‘i hate that he talks to other girls. it makes me want to hurt them,’ you confessed, truthfully, because you felt like you could trust your friends.

for the first time since you had started your conversation, chaewon’s eyes opened, scrambling to hold your head in her hands as she stared directly at yours.

‘you’re joking. right?’ a part of him knew the answer to that question, chuckling nervously as he observed you.

‘she’s not. that’s the scary part.’

lately it felt like your feelings for sungchan were bordering on obsession. you relied on him heavily for emotional support, seeking attention and validation from him in everything you did.

he had the ability to make or break your day, and you realised that as dangerous as it was, you placed the responsibility of your happiness onto him. depending on when he paid attention to you he could make you feel like you were on top of the world, or in the deepest pits of hell.

‘why is it so serious in here,’ sungchan walked into a tension-filled room, duffle bag slung over his shoulder, hood covering his messy hair.

chaewon moved away to make room for him and wonbin cleared his throat, but you paid no attention to them both, a wide smile forming on your face as you looked at the man you were in love with, even without trying he was beautiful, the ability to take your breath away something that came so easy to him.

‘hey,’ he was standing in front of you, crouching down till you were eye level, his smile mirroring yours as he messed with your hair. there was no way he couldn’t feel the intense connection between the both of you, how perfect you both were for each other.

‘where were you?’

‘karina needed some help so i stayed behind. she got me some coffee to thank me,’ he was nonchalant in what he was saying, but you furrowed your eyebrows at the pink that faintly painted his cheeks.

‘you’ve been spending a lot of time with karina lately,’ you dug your fingernails into your palm, hating the mention of her name.

karina, or yu jimin as written on her birth certificate, was the evil bitch trying to keep you away from sungchan. ever since they started sharing some classes together she had been hanging around him more and more, like a fly hovering over him so persistently.

you recall moments where sungchan would cancel your movie nights, or invite her out when your group would go to the cinema together, or even eat. it drove you mad, watching her flip her hair over her shoulder, flashing him a smile as she playfully pushed his shoulder.

each time your stomach would turn and it would make you want to throw up on the spot. why was she trying to steal your favourite person?

‘i actually wanted to tell you guys something. i-um, we’re going on a date this saturday,’ his eyes darted towards yours and you chew on your bottom lip, afraid to allow your thoughts to spill out.

you were sure he felt the same way you did. he had to with the way he looked at you. he wouldn’t be able to fuck you so good if he didn’t.

so why did he need another girl? what did karina have that you didn’t? how desperately did she push up on sungchan to get him to fall for her.

‘i have to go,’ you stood up abruptly, grabbing your things from beside you and making a beeline for the door, suddenly feeling the room close in on you. you could hear sungchan’s hurried footsteps coming after you, but it only made you want to go faster.

‘please slow down, i need to know if you’re okay,’ he finally succeeded in grabbing a hold of you, chest rising and falling as he caught his breath for a couple of seconds.

‘do you love her,’ your voice was quiet, barely above a whisper as you looked at him expectantly, awaiting his answer.

‘love? what no, i barely know her.’

‘then why are you taking her out?’ a tear spilled down your cheek, but you refused to make an attempt to wipe it.

‘i just- i like her i think,’ you could tell he was trying his hardest not to hurt your feelings, but it only made your heart ache more. how could someone so sweet, someone so caring, want to be with karina and not with you?

how could you carry on knowing the one you love unconditionally, the one that you go to for everything, the one who helped you breathe, was thinking about another girl.

it was hard to hear, to see that his whole world did not revolve around you, like yours did around his. that not hearing from him made you anxious and paranoid that he would one day abandon you.

‘i still want us to be friends, you mean so much to me,’ he was sincere in his words, but your ears were ringing as you thought about the date he would be on with that girl tomorrow.

it left a bitter taste in your mouth, and the rational part of your mind would tell you to see this as a sign to move on, to look for someone else who would love you the way you wanted.

but the loss of sungchan was just too much to bear, so much so that you would do anything to keep him.

this was why you spent the rest of your night stalking through her instagram pages, seeing her likes and dislikes, her personal style.

it was why you were haphazardly dying your hair blonde, having only the tiny mirror in your bathroom to guide you.

it was also why you desperately searched in your cupboard for clothes with the same cuts, or prints as her.

you were changing your self-identity slowly, lost in the hope that this would make sungchan return back to you.

maybe then he would like you.

and when you showed up to sungchan’s house, merely a few hours before he was meant to go on his date, you took the shock on his face to mean a good thing.

‘you look… different,’ his voice trailed off, carefully studying your features.

he was always so perceptive, you were sure he had figured things out by now. but that didn’t matter, as long as you could keep his attention on you for a little while longer.

a faint line between faith and blindly waiting.

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for not defending an ex-friend when people called her a slut?

I (20 f) fell out with my best friend and roommate M (20 f) at the end of sophomore year of college. reason we fell out isn't the main subject of this post but I think it's relevant so I'll try and keep it as brief as possible.

For context I'm Black attending a VERY white school. Frenshman year I was the only black girl in my building and this was just post-covid so student groups were pretty dead. So first trimester most of my college friends were the girls from my floor including M (white) and S (20f, asian american). It was very isolating tbh, esp bc I experienced a lot of microaggressions, but the girls I befriended were pretty good at sharing my outrage and letting me confide in them.

The worst incident was when at a party, a guy (G, white) made some very racist comments towards me and in general (said the n-word a few times). I admit I escalated it by engaging w him and the whole thing got out of hand, a lot of people saw, and he got a reputation as a racist. Afterwards, he was always rude to me, blaming me for egging him on while drunk and just constantly making disrespectful comments about me and my 'attitude' where i could hear. no one ever said anything to his face but were supportive of me after the fact - S was always particularly supportive and said she could relate.

I was generally fine with avoiding G esp in sophomore year when we moved out. I lived with M and another friend (P) and it went pretty well. We were asked in like November if we would renew our lease, and though M and I wanted to the third friend didn't, so we began to think of replacements, and S was looking for a place.

Thing is, while S and I were still on good terms I felt like she was being a bit secretive w me. She'd often come over and talk privately w M and I got the gist she was seeing someone and didn't want me to know. I shook it off as us growing apart and the fact I'd gotten more involved in Black student groups and hadn't hung around with our dorm friends as much, but then in Jan, as we were planning to sign the new lease, I found out she was dating G. Tbh at this point we weren't even close friends that I felt a strong personal betrayal, but more so I was mad at them both for not telling me while making plans for us to live together. They knew I was uncomfortable around G and wouldn't want to live w his gf, esp without knowing. It felt like they were almost purposefully going behind my back.

I didn't do anything at the time, just slowly backed out of the lease renewal and made other arrangements. I stopped hanging out with S almost completely and was just cordial w her and took a big step back from M and our dorm friends.

The other relevant bit of context here is M had a boyfriend (T, 20 m) who was in our freshman dorm and very close to our year one friends (lived with them sophomore year and now junior year too). She broke up w him in Feb, which led to a lot of her friendships w our dorm friends (her only friends really) to deteriorate a bit, esp as she was no longer super comfy hanging around where he was. this especially became an issue in the spring trimester bc she got a new boyfriend over the break, a friend from her classes T hadn't liked.

So, M kept pressuring me to hang out w her and our dorm friends a lot more, which inevitably meant seeing S and now G, who they'd all decided they were cool being around when I distanced myself. I told her why i didn't want to and I didn't want to see G again but she promised he had 'changed' and wouldn't say anything to me. eventually I folded and went out w them all once and it honestly sucked. M completely abandoned me to be w her other friends, G didn't say anything but kept glaring at me the whole time, and I felt very out of place. afterwards I told M i was sorry, I know she felt awkward around her ex without me, but I wouldn't do that again.

She left it till like the end of the year then there was a big dinner she really wanted to go to that T would be at (her bf was not invited), w all our dorm friends. I kept saying I wouldn't go, but then she told me she checked w the hosts and confirmed (and promised) G wouldn't be coming. I said okay but asked we sit next to each other and made it clear how I felt around S etc, and she agreed and promised we would. Long story short G was there, I wound up next to S and across from him snickering at me the whole time, with her on the other end of the table. I texted M about it, she said it was 'fine' and I was imagining it and to try and enjoy the gathering.. yeah no. I dipped before desert, she chased me outside asking what was up and I explained why i was upset, she said i can't expect her to be there for me the whole night and she's allowed to 'have a good night without my drama,' i said racism wasn't drama and she literally dragged me along to deal with her drama, nevermind my comfort, and that she was an incredibly selfish friend for putting me in this position. I left, she wound up crying with everyone comforting her, everyone there (M included) went off at me for being an unsupportive friend/dredging up year old drama with G/overall making everything about race, I cut them all off and moved my stuff into my girlfriend's place a week after all this and didn't speak to anyone since.

which is pretty much all the backstory (longer than the main bit, sorry), that gets us to the actual AITA situation. Junior year starts, I'm at a welcome back party w some other friends and i'm vaguely aware my old dorm friends (including S and G) are also here, but it's a huge party and i'm w my very supportive friends who ik will back me if anything happens so i dont really care. eventually M arrives w her bf, gives me an awkward look but doesn't say anything to me.

Then at some point, I'm upstairs using the bathroom and I hear the girls from our dorm group speaking to M in the hallway. Apparently it came out over summer she'd hooked up w her new boyfriend before she ended things with T and they were all pissed at her (esp for her playing the victim w her ex). I tried to stay in the bathroom until the conversation ended but someone was pounding on the door and I wound up having to get out and waddle past them awkwardly to get back downstairs. When I got out one of the girls was calling M a slut and other names and while i tried to avoid it I accidentally made eye contact with M, who was super upset and crying. I kinda just shrugged and went downstairs.

Later that night i got a long ass message from her new bf about how he knows I'm upset with her but it wasn't fair for me to just leave her in that situation, and that it was petty and selfish of me (esp bc I'm usually the person calling out this shit). I spoke to my gf, and she said she understands why i did nothing but also that it's never okay for people to call someone a slut. I agree with that 100% and in any other case i might have tried to diffuse the situation (like if it was safe and I thought I could). I've told a couple friends who think I did nothing wrong and it wasn't fair to expect me to say smth when she never said/did anything to defend me and that she had it coming, but my mom told me I should've done the kind thing and not stoop to their level and it's made me feel really bad. I think I might be TA bc i could have stood up for her without anything bad happening to me beyond being in an uncomfortable convo, and also bc it kinda felt good seeing her friends turn on her? Like she threw me under the bus to be in their good books and defend them and they dropped her ass anyway, and if I acted from a vengeful place then thats asshole-y of me. but also no one in this story has apologised to me once and as my friend says its not fair to rely on black ppl to fix racist white ppls mess.

so, AITA?

What are these acronyms?

[yuhzz]

y/n's 5 types of crushes - le sserafim x fem!reader

summary: your "my 5 types of crushes" (hc ver.).

warning: fluff. angst.

word count: 1.3k words

==============

Eunchae: a friend from grade 2

-> eunchae was a friend of yours from grade 2 (and remained as one until grade 3).

-> you 2 were close, almost best friends but since you took different classes from one another, your friendship never bloomed.

-> nevertheless, it didn't stop you from harboring feelings for her.

-> she was supportive, slightly clingy, kind, humble, cute - all the possible reasons that made you fall for her.

-> but the past remained in the past.

-> you were young, you knew little of love and crushes.

-> so you never confessed.

-> what started as a friendship, remained as one.

==============

Kazuha: no more than classmates

-> let's see. at the opening ceremony at the beginning of the school year, you met her.

-> both of you were in grade 3 at the time.

-> she was a new student so she was having trouble familiarizing herself with the new environment.

-> you and eunchae were wandering around the school that time when you both bumped into her.

-> with just one glance, you fell for her extraordinary beauty.

-> she was pretty and you sure did know it from the bottom of your heart.

-> after that day, you tried your best to get close to her.

-> but it eventually became clear to you that she wanted to be no more than classmates - acquaintances.

-> so you stayed as 2 people who were no more than classmates.

==============

Yunjin: the BFF you were crushing on for 4 years

-> bff...we once all had a crush on our bffs but 4 years? damn. you're holding on too tight.

-> where did it start? oh, right. grade 7.

-> months before the pandemic, you transferred to a new school and she was one of the first few people you met.

-> both of you weren't all that close then, most especially when the pandemic took the world by storm in a negative way.

-> thanks to social media, you got to know each other better. soc-med helped you communicate with her since you transferred schools again when you reached grade 8.

-> as months - years went by, you got closer to the point that you started calling each other "best friends" or "BFFs".

-> you even made promises to each other and you knew you had feelings for her.

-> but then, in June 2022 (grade 10), she met your cousin and fell for him.

-> you being the good, supportive best friend that you are, hid your feelings for her and helped her with her relationship with your cousin.

-> you were bitter about it, nevertheless, you remained supportive of them - heck you even went your way just to save their failing relationship 3 months later.

-> however, all that effort was lost when they eventually broke up 4 months ago, in January of 2023, a few weeks before Valentine's.

-> now, since it was indeed your cousin who was in a relationship with her, your friendship with yunjin ended together with theirs.

-> though you still talk to each other up until today, it just was not the same as before.

-> but be honest.

-> do you like her because you know you can and will love her?

-> or do you only claim that you like her because you were afraid of losing her?

==============

Chaewon: the person who likes hugging you

-> who doesn't fall for people who often hug them? i bet no one, or maybe you're the only one who does.

-> you met her in grade 10.

-> the school remained in an online learning set-up since of the pandemic still spreading havoc on earth.

-> from the 1st up to the 4th quarter, you've been group mates because of research.

-> she was friendly, not to mention pretty.

-> so why not be friends with her?

-> in the first and second quarters of the school year, you spent it online.

-> and then boom! covid-19 suddenly weakened and people were now allowed to walk freely outside again.

-> now, because of that, the school decided to hold intramurals. the students had no choice but to attend unless they had a valid reason not to.

-> you didn't really miss going outside since the pandemic made you some type of introvert. but again, you had no choice but to.

-> thankfully though, you did attend because that's where you officially met her.

-> and the first thing she did when she saw you, she hugged you again and again and again, but it never occurred to you to ever hug her back (it must be because you were controlling your heartbeat).

-> the intramurals were one week long so every time she saw you that week, of course, she hugged you.

-> and then last night, prom.

-> the elevator door opened, and the time slowed dramatically.

-> the first person that you saw the moment it opened was chaewon.

-> the way her dress courted her body, her hair tied up in a bun, and the elegance of her outfit screamed made your heart scream as well.

-> this will be your last year before you graduate from junior high, and the last time that you will be seeing her except for graduation.

-> that must explain the reason why she hugged you tighter than ever before.

-> so you hugged her back for the first time.

-> after last night, you agreed to yourself not to confess.

-> it was not because you didn't want to.

-> it's just that you thought that she was too perfect for you.

==============

Sakura: the unforgettable crush

-> we've all had that unforgettable crush before.

-> for you was miyawaki sakura.

-> she was your classmate for 3 years (grade 4 - grade 6).

-> sakura was perfect in all ways. she'd often be the vice president. she was cute, pretty, kind, and giving.

-> and you were you.

-> you were almost a stranger to her but you became seatmates, group mates, paired in a project, and were once even field trip partners (only because your adviser assigned you your partners for the field trip)!

-> but you were no more than a classmate to her.

-> there were times that you were her best friend though.

-> there were also times when she seemed like your childhood friend.

-> whenever you were with each other, you felt awkward.

-> but no what it is that's going on between the two of you, she will always be out of reach.

-> nevertheless, you gave her your all.

-> you didn't mind losing everything because, to you, she was your all.

-> grade 4, the first year you were classmates with her, you seemed like a total outsider to everybody else inside the classroom.

-> that year, you two went from strangers to classmates.

-> grade 5, another year spent with her. that was one of the best years you've lived so far since you were paired with her for the field trip, and though you were still assigned to different groups (due to activities) during the field trip, you were still happy that you got to seat with her inside the bus from and to your destination.

-> that year, you went from classmates to mild friends.

-> and then grade 6, another unforgettable year in your life, not only because you were still classmates and you were about to graduate from grade school but also because she hugged you.

-> it was just a simple gesture of her to say thank you to you but it was still enough to make your heart race a bit. there was also this time when the class was assigned a project about photography or capturing things you think were beautiful in any aspect. sakura was one of many you took a picture of.

-> and you never regretted it.

-> since up until now, her pictures are the reason why you're reminiscing about the past - because she was a part of it.

-> sakura remains the most unforgettable crush for you and though you knew she doesn't feel the same way about you, you were still happy to spend 3 years of your life with her despite her being so close and yet so far away from you.

-> she was a beautiful memory, indeed. every single one of them was.

[annknnwa]

I’ve known Ona for years now, have been best friends since we were kids. Well to her at least, i was always in love with this girl. Always the bright sunshine of my life. But I was just her best friend, her bro, her platonic friend.

When she dating guys, I decided to turn to other things to distract myself. The hole I had in my heart that had been filled with love for her had to be filled instead with lust for others. I was constantly on tiktok watching thirst traps, trying to forget her.

Ona had started maturing into herself, being more confident, and well “growing” in other areas.

She started dressing less like the girl I loved and more like the girsl I lusted for.

Guy came and went, but the last one would be the storm that would finally break her. Her last boyfriend had cheated and she found out, they had broken up.

When I asked if she was okay, she sounded devastated, like her world was crashing down.

“Why does this keep happening? Is it me? Is something wrong with me?”

Remembering my unrequited love and my place as the best friend, I had to console her

“I’d never cheat on you if i were him, he was crazy to go for another woman, you’re so h-”

Caught myself before possibly turning my friendship weird. No way i could call her hot, how could I? Id have to explain that I was attracted to her, not as her best friend but more.

“i’m so what? Don’t be the next guy to lie to me too, You’re all I have left”

“You’re so… hot…”

Didn’t realise those words would send her spiralling, but in a different way

Only minutes later, I get a video of Ona, dancing just like the girls she knew I liked

“You always watch thirst traps right? on tiktok?”

“yeah but why did yo-“

“Am I hot? Hotter than the girls you always watch?”

I didn’t realise how much this meant to her

“I’ll be yours, just don’t look at anyone else, I don’t want it to happen again”

“Lets meet”

I don’t think we said more than 5 words. We drowned in each others pleasure. Skin to skin, body to body. We shared sweat, saliva, fluids more than we did words. We had known each other for forever, we didn’t need words to know what we wanted.

Every thrust, every pump filled Ona with what she thought was lust. Position after position, round after round, condom after condom. Then there was no more

“we ran out of condoms, maybe we should stop”

But she put me back inside of her

“Keep going, don’t stop, show me”

She wanted to be loved, but she’ll settle for lust, he had broken her, and I was all she had to fill that emptiness

“Please don’t stop”

But I loved her, I always have, and the thought that another person had hurt her this way, broke my heart.

“Wait if we keep going, ill-”

But it was too late, loving Ona, and being inside her, makes you a different person. It’s Ona after all, who could resist her.

“I’m- I’m gon- Im gonna cu”

Her walls clenched around me, encouraging me to fill her. Who am I to deny that? Her legs wrapping around me was the last straw. Missionary, no escape, no turning back. This was my chance to prove to her it wasn’t lust, it was years and years of love.

With one last thrust, I released it. Ropes painted her walls, filling her with my seed. Neither of us moved, filled with ecstasy. All that was moving was me still filling her up, her still clenching as she came harder as if my cum was a drug keeping her from calming down and our breathing.

“I’m sorry, I was just lonely and you were always so nice to me and”

Ona went on and on, same old same old, always spiralling after an event

I leaned in and kissed her on the lips. A soft one, not one out of lust but out of love.

“Stop, if I didn’t already like you, I wouldn’t stick by every bad decision you made”

That night was years ago now.

I had deleted tiktok, no more need for thirst traps

Ona stopped spiralling, she had me to keep her steady

and we stopped being best friends, instead we had become lovers. Active lovers. All it takes now is for Ona to send a video of her dancing to one of the trends on tiktok, for me to head to our nearest 7-11 to get a few protection items and we relive that night, over and over.

Although, we have been using condoms less and less, maybe we should look into baby items. Eh who cares, nothing a married couple can’t handle :)

My First actually story post! Thanks for reading! Little different from my usual reblogs and more immoral stuff. A wholesome one for a wholesome girl :)

Thanks to @ayyitsona for the request, pics and video are from her too. Check her out, you won’t be disappointed.

Story is purely fiction and only for fun. Send in your requests if you want one too! Dms open :)

[w2soneshots]

Friends? -W2S

Words: 1.3k+

Warnings: angst with a happy ending, mention of a break up, friends with benefits. (I think that’s it?)

In which you and Harry start a new relationship but he breaks your heart.

Liked by wrotoshaw and 461,093 others

y/username: my weekend❤️ @wrotoshaw @miniminter

-comments-

taliamar: stunning😍😍

-> y/username: me or @miniminter ??

miniminter: I look like a neek

y/nfanpage21: the shoes🔥🤍

user85358013: Is she on a date with Harry!??🫢

-> user91245750: no you can see other people there.

I've been best friends with Simon for as long as I can remember. We hit it off during school, I supported him when he first started YouTube, I introduced him and Talia and have always been the one person he actually talks to about things. Simon is a surprisingly closed off person, so when he cried into my arms because him and Talia were struggling I knew I'd finally broken down that wall.

When he began the Sidemen channel and moved into the house he shared with Vik, Josh and JJ we grew apart slightly. He was so busy: constantly streaming, making videos, editing those videos and his sleep schedule was royally fucked up. He had no time to hang out or even give me a call. But once he met Talia it began to change and I quickly found myself back in his life like nothing had happened.

I soon became good friends with the rest of the boys as I came around to the house more. I especially enjoyed Harry's company, he's funny, slightly awkward until you get to know him and he's very fit (which helps). As the years went by our friendships became stronger even as people began building their own lives with girlfriends, pets and even kids.

Almost 2 months ago while on a night out me and Harry got a little closer than friends should be... aka we fucked. The next morning I woke up next to him in my bed and slightly freaked out. But after that night it happened again and again until one morning as we sat lying next to each other, my head resting on his sheet covered chest we decided we were labelled as friends with benefits. I wasn't exactly thrilled about the idea but what else could I do? Tell him I was sorta starting to catch feelings... no way.

Another 2 months later... we have now been fucking, whenever one of us needed a release after a long day or just someone to hold them while they drifted off to sleep, for around four months. One day I woke up to a phone call from Simon. Me and Simon tell each other everything, we always try and find the time for a phone call at the end of the day or whenever anything big happens the other person is always one of the first to know. So it was no surprise he was very aware of mine and Harry's... situation. I answered the call "hello?" I said groggily through the phone. "Hey y/n... Harry-" he said hesitantly. "What about Harry?" I asked slightly pissed off that I was woken up from my deep sleep.

"His ex... she's back." he said. I was quiet for a second. Harry's ex abruptly up and left him almost a year and a half ago. She didn't give him a proper reason and he was left broken. "What do you mean she's back? Does Harry know?" I asked rapidly. "Woah woah, yes he knows... he told me he's getting back with her." he said the last part with pity in his voice. I felt as though all of the air in my lungs disappeared along with the oxygen in my bedroom. I blinked and a single tear rolled down my cheek. "y/n?" Simon said softly. I glanced down to my phone and clicked the red decline button.

As soon as I put the phone down I burst into tears. In that moment I knew I'd fallen hard for Harry Lewis. I was so confused on how he could completely disregard the past few months with me and get back together with the person who left him broken for everyone else to pick up the pieces. Almost an hour later there was a knock on my door. I signed and stood from my bed. Once I got to my front door I cracked it open to see Simon and Talia stood there. Talia also knew about me and Harry since she caught us making out in the back of a club so I told her the rest.

Simon opened his arms and I fell into them and began sobbing again. I broke away a minute later once I calmed down. Talia gently rubbed circles with her hands on my back as we sat on the couch. "How could he get back with her after what she did to him?" I said quietly. Simon spoke up "he told Behz that she just got scared of how serious they were getting so left, but I'm not one hundred percent sure about that." I looked up "he could have at least told me before I had to find out from you." I said fiddling with my hands. "I'm sure he just didn't want to hurt you." Talia said trying to think of any positive. "I would have found out ether way." I said.

They left soon after and I sat holding myself on my couch while I watched a movie. Then when 5 o'clock hit I ordered myself a Nando's, ate it and fell asleep on the couch. The next morning I woke up and took a long hot shower, got dressed into a sweat set and left my apartment.

I got the lift down into the car garage below my building and found my car. I hopped in and drove to Boots to pick up my click and collect package. After I picked that up I decided to go to Asda to pick up some stuff since I was in need of a food shop. I was wondering down the isles when I got a phone call from Faith... "hello." I said once I answered the call. "Hey, you ok?" She asked. "Uh ye, I'm just in Asda." I replied. "Oh ok, just because I heard about- um Harry's ex and I knew you too sorta had something." she said. "Wait what? You knew?" I said slightly flustered. "y/n. Everyone knew it was obvious." she said. "Shit."

After my phone call with Faith I paid for my food, packed my car and drove home. As I walked towards my apartment, three bags full of groceries in hand, I spotted someone sat next to my door. "Harry?" I said as he stood. "Hey." he said. I stared at him wide eyed "what are you doing here?" "I just- I- I need to talk to you." he said nervously. I sighed "come in."

Harry sheepishly walked into my apartment and we stood in the kitchen. I put the bags down and began unpacking them into the fridge and cupboards. Harry stayed silent until I was finished. I sighed and placed my hands on the counter that Harry stood on the other side of. "Listen, if you're coming here for a quick fuck then-" I started. "What- no- I- I just came um- to apologise." he said and I furrowed my brows. "What?" I said confused. "I broke it off completely with my ex... I just couldn't believe she was back- I was so stupid, I took her back immediately but last night I realised that she wrecked me and I'd already moved on and also that I loved someone else," he said and finally looked up at me properly... "you, I love you."

"You do?" I asked stunned. He nodded "it's okay if you don't feel the same but I just needed to tell you." I walked around the counter and stood in front of him "I love you too Harry."

[maggiedanikka]

Been Here Along (Preview)

Summary: Why are you so good at helping your best friend with his relationship problems? Probably because you've been doing it your entire life. Unrequited love is a bitch, especially if it has spanned several decades. Maybe he'll come to his senses, or maybe its time to give someone else a chance.

Warnings: Angst (but do you really expect anything else from me?), cursing

Length: 1.4k

Pairing: Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw x F!Reader, Jake "Hangman" Seresin x F!reader

A/N: The summer is here and for the first time in 4 years I am not studying or working so you better bet my days will be empty and just for writing. This is one of two things I currently have in the works. This one specifically is looking like a one-shot (or two-three shot). The other one is looking like a series, and hopefully I can post the first part in the near future. But here is the preview of been here all along, let me know if you're intrigued and want more <3

“I don’t understand women.” Rooster says with a sigh, plopping himself down on the bar stool next to you. 

You and Phoenix, who was sitting on the stool to the other side of you share a look of light amusement before turning back to the mustached aviator. 

“It’s like they say one thing, and then mean another? Why can’t women be normal?” He groaned into the counter. 

“What do you mean by that Bradshaw?” Phoenix narrowed her eyes at her friend.

You inwardly chuckled before joining Nat in her joking disapproval. 

“Yeah, are you saying women aren’t normal? In our day in age of 2023,you, Bradley Bradshaw have the audacity to say something so misogynistic in the presence of women!”

“You know I always saw you as a friend, but this interaction has me questioning the entire foundation of our friendship.” 

You and Nat were struggling to keep your laughter down as Rooster continued to groan into the counter. 

“Introducing you two to one another has been one of the worst ideas I’ve ever had.” Rooster grumbled as he finally picked his head up from the bar counter. 

“Phoenix is my fucking soulmate, we would’ve been best friends with or without you.” You stuck your tongue out at him.

“I thought I was your best friend.” He pouted. 

“You’re my oldest friend, there's a difference.” You told him teasingly. 

“Sucks to suck Bradshaw, I’m just way cooler than you.” Phoenix poked fun at her fellow pilot. 

“I can’t believe you’re laughing at my misery, you used to love to fix my problems.” He muttered. 

“Okay okay, I’m done. What’s up Roost?” You chuckled, flashing him a concerned smile. 

“It's Abi.” 

“And that's my cue.” Phoenix hopped off her bar stool. 

“It’s time for me to kick Hangman’s ass at pool again.” She announced as she walked towards the other pilots.

“Why does she do that?” Rooster asked as she walked off.

You shrugged in response.

This was a common occurrence, Phoenix often leaves whenever Rooster starts talking about his girlfriend. She seems to do this whenever any of the guys talk about their relationships. Phoenix was very much a free bird and had no interest in the little details of people’s love lives. Even though everyone can definitely see the little flirtation she has going on with Coyote. 

“So what's wrong with Abi?” You asked, turning your body to face Rooster. 

“She’s pissed at me.”

“Again?”

Abigail was a bartender that Rooster met at a bar in the city on a night that the group decided to venture away from the Hard Deck for a change. She was on the younger side, well younger compared to the dagger squad and of course Rooster.

But she was sweet and kind and beautiful and caught Rooster’s eye that fateful night. From there they had a bit of whirlwind romance. They were together every single night and there was a good stretch of time where your group of pilots didn’t see Rooster outside of work.

Can you really blame him though? Abi was the ghost of Grace Kelly, all delicate features with light green eyes that draw you in. 

She had the sweetest voice and the personality to match. You’ve never met anyone who is as beautiful on the inside as they were on the outside. 

Her and Rooster seemed perfect…if you were an outsider.

“What did you do?” 

“I have no clue! She knows that tomorrow is my only day off for a while and I needed to blow off some steam and get a drink tonight.” 

“Okay..?”

“Then a few minutes ago, she called me asking where I was and I told her that I’m here doing exactly what I told her I was gonna do.”

“she asked why not grab a drink at her bar. And I told her that it’s too far and the guys hate it there.”

“Then she got pissed.”

It made sense now, Abi and Rooster hadn’t been together for a long time and their issues only really started as little tiffs, a few arguments here and there, but the past few weeks have been pretty rough, especially for a newer relationship. 

You suppose it has something to do with the longer hours at work. This new TOPGUN class was definitely harrowing to the crew and there was also having to be prepped for any incoming mission. 

“Brad, you’re an idiot.” 

“Hey! I thought you were gonna help me!”

“I am!”

“think about it…. what was the last thing she got mad about?”

“When I slept through our planned date because of the long hours….oh”

Realization finally replaced the confused look on his face. 

“She thought because I have a day off..”

“Keep going Roost, you’re almost there.”

“That I would spend the night with her.” He finished.

“Ding, ding, Ding! We have a winner folks!” You stood up dramatically announcing with a game show host voice. 

You held an invisible microphone up to your lips. 

“Attention folks! It was a toss-up there for a second. But I am proud to announce the winner of “Why is your girlfriend mad?”... BRADLEY “ROOSTER” BRADSHAW!!”

Your gaggle of pilots cheered from the other side of the bar, whooping and hollering at your bit, receiving raised eyebrows from the other patrons but mostly indifference as they have grown accustomed to your regular hijinks. 

“Congratulations sir, any words from the winner?”

You held an invisible mic to to his face, Rooster leaning into the imaginary mic. 

“Hello yes I would like to thank my parents, my uncle, the bartenders, my fellow pilots, and this beer from the tap, all of which have contributed to my cluelessness towards women. WIthout you all I would not be here.” 

“No thank you for me?” You raised an eyebrow. 

Rooster chuckled at your antics as you sat back down on your bar stool. 

“So what am I supposed to do?” 

“Bradley please don’t make me spell it out for you. Its right there.” 

You pointed your eyes at the phone sitting in his pocket. 

“Oh, okay. I should call!”

“Yesssss and do what???.” 

“Apologize?” 

“You got it! Finally I was getting tired over here. Hosting this game show is hard work.” You whistled wiping a fake sweat off your forehead. 

“Thanks, woods!” He exclaimed as he quickly stood up and made his way out to the back deck to call Abi. 

You watched his retreating figure enter the darkness of the night as you sighed into the back of your hand propped up by your elbow on the bar. 

“So are you some kind of masochist?” 

You quickly jumped, surprised at the sudden presence coming from the bar stool that was occupied by Phoenix several minutes ago. 

“God Bagman, please refrain from giving the host a heart attack.” 

He chuckled at your reaction. 

“Game show host huh? Bit of the week?”

“More like the night, I’m gonna workshop a few things before I make my final decision.”

“Is that so?”

“Gotta keep y’all dorks entertained somehow.” You shrugged. 

“That you do Woods.” 

“So what do you mean about me being a masochist?” You raised an eyebrow. 

“That” He pointed at Bradley on the back porch passionately talking into the phone, you couldn’t tell if it was a negative or positive emotion but it looked intense. 

But despite that he looked radiant against the light that emanated from the full moon tonight. He never failed to take your breath away. 

“What about Rooster?” You turned back to Hangman. 

“Come on dollface, I’m not blind.”

“You know Bagman, I’m surprised you’re capable of seeing things outside of your personal radius.” 

“See? If even I can see it then that tells you how obvious this little crush is.” 

His statement left your mouth hanging open. 

“I.. I can’t believe you-- how dare.” 

He kept an amused smirk as you stumble over your words. 

“You know you only make it harder on yourself when you fix his relationship problems for him.”

“I don’t-” 

He cut you off with a chuckle as he turned away back to the direction of the pool tables.

“Its okay Woods, i get it, just make sure you know what you’re doing.” 

He left with you that last piece of advice as he walked away. 

As much as you denied it. Hangman was right. You probably have loved Bradley your whole life.

Will be creating a new taglist for this work :)