#thought of this immediately when dan said that. everything reminds me of her
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deathchic · 9 months ago
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“how does one serve cunt in shorts”
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formulaonecrumbs · 2 months ago
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Hi was wondering if you also wrote for Daniel?
Maybe like reader having an eating disorder and Daniel comforting her when she’s struggling again?
this body is still yours
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Daniel Ricciardo x reader
summary: reader struggles with an eating disorder and body image issues. daniel comforts her during a breakdown and helps her take a small step toward recovery.
warnings: READ WITH EXTREME CAUTION eating disorder thoughts, body image issues, emotional breakdown, food avoidance, soft comfort
A/N: hi, my loves. this is a heavier topic than i’m used to writing, but i hope it does justice to how it feels when u have an ED. ik what it’s like and my heart goes out to anyone dealing with one. if u are, pls talk to someone, consider seeking help. i love u, pls eat. we need u here, alive, healthy and happy. with that being said, of course i write for daniel. i’ll write for any driver y’all request tbh, u’ll just have to bear with me while i figure out how some of them would act and talk. i’m wishing all of u the best. aim for at least 2 meals a day (if not 3) and 1 snack. ure doing amazing baby ❤️
p.s. enjoy my fav pics of dannyric for the mood-board cuz anything related to the actual theme of the fic felt insensitive
୨ৎ ୨ৎ ୨ৎ ୨ৎ
you hadn’t eaten all day. not because you forgot—no, your body reminded you every five minutes with the loudest growls—but because the mirror had gotten to you.
you stood there that morning for way too long, poking at your stomach, tugging at your hoodie, hating every angle you saw.
you didn’t cry right then. you just shut the lights off and crawled back into bed like maybe if you didn’t exist for a while, it’d go away.
daniel had been out for hours. you told him you were tired, wanted to stay in. you made it sound casual. easy.
he texted you a few times, checking in. he always did.
dan 🥵:
hey sleepyhead
hope you’re being kind to yourself today
want me to bring something home? i miss your face.
you couldn’t bring yourself to answer.
because what were you supposed to say?
hey, i’m spiraling and the only thing i’ve had all day is guilt and water?
you stayed curled up on the couch, hoodie pulled over your knees, blanket wrapped so tight around you it felt like armor.
your chest ached. not from hunger, but from all the thoughts you couldn’t shut up.
the door opened softly. you didn’t move.
daniel’s voice floated in, light and happy like always.
“guess who brought sushi and those weird seaweed chips you like? and your pink juice. i had to go to two stores, so you’re legally required to love me now.”
you still didn’t move.
he turned the corner and stopped.
his eyes found yours immediately, and everything about him changed.
his expression softened. his voice dropped.
“baby?”
you blinked at him. your face was hot. your hands were shaking under the blanket.
he walked over slowly, crouched in front of you, his hand resting gently on your shin through the fabric.
“is it one of those days?” he asked. not like he was annoyed. like he already understood.
you nodded. barely.
“okay,” he said, eyes never leaving yours. “talk to me when you’re ready.”
it came out faster than you meant it to.
“i didn’t eat today.”
his brows pulled together, but he didn’t flinch.
“okay,” he said again. “thank you for telling me.”
“i just—fuck” your voice broke. you looked away. “i hate how i look. i hate it so much. i feel huge and gross and i know it’s stupid but i can’t stop thinking about it. i just want to be small. and empty. and i thought maybe if i didn’t eat, it’d feel better, but it doesn’t. it never does.”
your throat closed.
“i feel disgusting, danny.”
he moved so gently, like the whole world had to slow down just for you. he sat beside you, wrapped his arms around you, pulled you into him.
you let him. you needed him.
“you’re not disgusting,” he whispered, his voice so soft it made your chest hurt. “you’re just hurting.”
you sniffled. “i just want to be skinny. like those girls on your instagram explore page. i see them and i just… wish i looked like that. i wish i could stop thinking about it, but it’s constant.”
daniel kissed the top of your head, then rested his chin there.
“you don’t need to look like anyone else. you’re not meant to. you’re you. and you’re the only person i want. like this. even when it’s messy. even when your brain is lying to you.”
you wiped at your face, but the tears wouldn’t stop.
“i feel so broken.”
“you’re not broken,” he said. “you’re tired. you’re overwhelmed. but you’re still here. you’re still trying. and that matters more than anything.”
you stayed in his arms, his heartbeat steady against your cheek.
after a while, he pulled back just enough to look at you.
“can we try eating something? just a little. not to fix anything. just to be gentle with yourself. i’ll eat with you. we can sit on the floor and watch that trash reality show you love. uh.. what was it- dubai bling?”
you hesitated. your stomach flipped.
but you nodded. because you trusted him.
he smiled softly.
“that’s my girl.”
he stood up and held out his hand like it was sacred.
and somehow, with the storm still raging in your head, you took it.
THE END :>
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fandomwrites · 2 months ago
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Can you do a kevin William Paul x fem reader where the reader comes to the Outsiders opening night to surprise him with the help of Dan to get front row of the show, then backstage passes
KWP x Reader
Summary- You and Kevin have been together for a little while now. After your show in LA is over, you drcide to surprise him on the opening night of The Outsiders.
Word Count: 635
HOW ARE YOU HERE
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It has been way too long since I’ve seen Kevin. I’ve been in LA doing a show there but the show just closed and its opening night for The Outsiders. So I decided to surprise him tonight. With the help of his dressing room roommate Dan I managed to get front row tickets and a pass backstage. 
As I’m getting ready Dan calls me.
“Hey Dan what's up?”
“Hey I was just making sure you got the email with the ticket.”
“Yes I did. Telecharge right?”
“Yes ma'am. Good, so after bows go to the stage door and show them the pass I sent you. Tell them to call me if they need clarification okay.”
“I will do that thank you.”
“Your welcome, I can’t wait to see his reaction. He’s been talking about you non-stop this week.”
“Aww what a sap. I can’t wait to see him either, I couldn’t miss opening night. It’s too special.”
“I know and there's no doubt he’ll appreciate it. Listen, I have to go get ready for the red carpet so I’ll see you soon.”
“Okay bye Dan see you later.”
“Bye.” And we hung up. Which reminds me, I need to figure out what I’m wearing to the show.
I decided on an outfit that I haven’t had the chance to wear yet. I look at the time and it’s getting a little late so I decide to get my bag and stuff together so I can get to the theater. 
I can’t wait to see him. 
*At the theater*
As I walk into the theater I’m in complete awe. I can’t believe I’m finally here. After all I’ve heard from Kevin it's finally happening. 
I can just tell by the energy of the crowd the show is gonna be incredible. As I see Brody walk to the stage I can barely contain my excitement, here we go.
After the show I’m speechless. Everyone was unbelievably incredible. My face is stained with tears and I’m just so proud. 
As everyone is bowing I can’t help but scream for everyone and I catch Kevin’s eye and I see his smile get so much bigger.
I can’t wait to go backstage and finally hug him. After bows while everyone piles out the theater to go home or stage door I just stand there and take everything in.
When I get to the door the guard lets me in when I show him my pass from Dan. Once I step into the backstage area all I can hear is people shouting in excitement. I walk upstairs and I immediately see Dan.
“You made it!” He says and hugs me.
“I did, oh my god you guys were incredible I couldn’t stop crying.”
“Thank you, Kevin said he saw you at bows, he doesn’t know your back here though. He said you texted him to meet outside.”
“Yeah, I couldn't spoil the surprise since he already saw me.”
“Good call, okay let's go to the dressing room so you can say hi.”
We walk upstairs and I pass by Emma who I’ve done a show with before so I quickly hug her before continuing up the stairs to Kevin and Dan’s dressing room.
“Kevin, are you dressed?”
“Yes!”
Dan opens the door and Kevin looks up from his phone.
“Hi Kev.”
“Oh my god, what are you doing back here? I thought we were meeting outside.”
“Well I couldn’t spoil the complete surprise could I.”
He doesn’t say anything, he just hugs me tight.
“You did incredible, I’m so proud of you.”
 “Thank you. And thank you for being here, I know you're probably tired after doing your show.”
“I am, but you’re more important I couldn’t miss this.”
He smiles again and kisses me. I’m finally home where I belong.
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captainshurley · 1 year ago
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Baby I'm not alright, but I'm okay (Part 5)
Cash Wheeler x f reader
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Previous chapter
A few months later.
The relationship between y/n and Daniel was slowly but surely improving. They texted often, and sometimes called each other. Wheeler often tell y/n some stories, talked about the city they were performing in that week, ask her how she was, how things were going at work, about the weather. They discussed literally everything in the world. Y/n was reluctant to talk about herself. Sensing this, Dan didn't pressurize the girl to get something personal out of her and turned the topic to his plans for the day.
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Daniel and David were sitting in the locker room after a match at another Dynamite. They had been traveling around the states with AEW for a few weeks now, occasionally appearing on NJPW shows and shooting promos for various matches.
"Finally, almost a week home" sighed Harwood tiredly. "I've missed my girls. Finley called this morning asking when I was coming over."
"Yeah. A few days off. Paula didn't call me, of course, but I'm sure she missed me too" Daniel smiled a little sadly.
David finished tying the laces on his sneakers, walked over to his friend and patted Dan on the shoulder. "You know you're always welcome at my house and Finley is always happy to see you. I'm not sure about Maria, but Finley sure is."
Wheeler immediately caught David's playful tone and the sadness receded.
After a little thought, he picked up his phone, opened a chat with y/n and started typing.
"Hi, y/n. I'll be back in town tomorrow for a couple days. How about taking a walk?"
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y/n was patrolling the city with her partner, discussing the Shotgun Rider band that was coming to town this weekend. As it turned out, they had both bought tickets to the concert.
"NO WAY! I'M A HUGE FAN OF THEM. I DIDN'T KNOW THAT YOU ARE TOO!" marveled Jonathan. "We should go there together. I'll pick you up. No refusal accepted."
y/n laughed and jokingly punched her partner in the shoulder.
"You leave me no choice!"
The girl wanted to say something else but was distracted by the notification of a new text message.
Jonathan noticed that y/n was distracted by the phone.
"Is your celebrity crush texting again? Calling for a date?"
"Stop it. He's not my celebrity crush at all. Just a friend of my best friend, I guess. Yes, we hang out, but it's nothing like that. Just a friendly stuff."
The girl quickly typed a reply and tucked her phone away in her pocket, getting back to work again.
"Yeah, right." Jonathan stated sarcastically and returned his attention back to the road.
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Wheeler, having rested a bit after flying halfway across the country, packed up and arrived at y/n's house. Fixing his hair that was slightly disheveled in the wind, he pressed the doorbell.
After a minute, the girl opened the door.
"Oh, shit. I completely forgot we agreed to go out for a walk."
Daniel took a quick look at the girl. His gaze stopped on a t-shirt with a large logo of The Revival on it. He smiled, made a note in his head to be sure to remind y/n about it, and replied, "Don't worry, it's no big deal. Pack up, I'll wait."
The girl stepped aside, letting Dan inside.
"Come on in. I'll be quick."
Y/n ran upstairs and began to change out of her house clothes.
While the girl was getting ready, Wheeler made his way into the living room.
The atmosphere inside was warm. Very minimalistic, no frills. What surprised Daniel a little was the absence of any items that somehow characterized the host. Like pictures, a lipstick forgotten on the coffee table, a magazine, a book or something like that.
"Hey... I'm ready. We can go" said the girl after a few minutes, coming down already dressed in jeans, t-shirt and sneakers.
"Yeah, sure. You look pretty by the way." Wheeler gave the girl a hand, helping her over the last step on the stairs.
The girl's face flushed at the unexpected compliment. She smiled and mumbled a barely audible "thank you".
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Y/n and Daniel were strolling through French Broad River Park.
"So, you are "The Revival" fan?” said Dan, recalling to the girl that he had seen her wearing merch.
"Well... I wouldn't call myself a fan. Maria, Finlay and I went to an NXT show once. Truth be told, I only ended up there because Maria called me out. But it wasn't bad. I could even tell that I liked it."
"Wait. You were at the show? I'm surprised we only recently met if you even came to the show."
Wheeler remembered Maria coming a few times with family and friends. But he had never seen y/n among her friends.
"If I'm not mistaken, that was my only visit to NXT. I've also been to Dynamite a couple times, but that was before you and David debuted. Maybe that's why we didn't meet earlier. Besides, I don't really like too much attention on myself, and I was in a relationship with Josh at the time" After mentioning the ex-boyfriend's name y/n fell silent.
"Josh? You didn't tell me about him" gently asked Daniel.
The girl's facial expression changed from cheerful and relaxed to sad and regretful.
"There's not much to tell to be honest. We dated for a long time. But because of me, that relationship ended."
Y/n suddenly felt goosebumps run down her skin. Whether it was the cool breeze that came out of nowhere or the memories of a relationship ruined by her problems. She shuddered and clenched her body. The man noticed this, took off his jacket and threw it over the girl's shoulders.
Dan's jacket was imbued with the pleasant scent of men's cologne. The scent was soothing and relaxing y/n.
"Whatever happened there, it's not your fault. All problems and misunderstandings in a relationship are always both parties' fault."
It was noticeable by y/n that even though the jacket kept her warm, she still didn't feel comfortable.
"My last relationship didn't end well either... So, I understand how you feel."
Unexpectedly to herself, y/n hugged Daniel's hand, which he kept in his pocket. The warmth of man's body warmed y/n pleasantly.
"Thank you... You, it turns out, know how to be nice, not just wildly vulgar and weird."
Wheeler covered the girl's hand with his own and smiled softly.
"Yeah... Sorry about that. I sometimes act like an idiot when I don't know what to do. And for the past few months in my interactions with girls, this has been happening a lot. But sometimes even acting like an idiot works out."
The phone in y/n's pocket vibrated, notifying her of a new incoming message. The girl pulled out her phone.
"Maria just texted me and asked if I wanted to come over and chat with her."
Dan stopped and now looked at y/n seriously and a little frustrated from top to bottom.
"If you want, I'll walk you to David and Maria's house. We can take a walk some other time."
"Nah, I'm good. I'll text her that I'm busy right now."
The y/n's reply couldn't help but make the man happy. It warmed his heart that she had chosen him over spending time with her best friend.
Maria: "Yeah? Maybe you hang out with Dan? 🤣 Come on, get out of the house and I'll be waiting for you."
Y/n: "Actually, I really am."
Maria: "NO WAY! Don't fool me👀"
The girl grinned and shifted her gaze from her phone to Daniel.
"I told Maria I'm with you and she doesn't believe me." She was about to put her phone away but suddenly an idea hit her. "I want to take a picture and send it to Maria. Are you okay with that?"
"Sure" replied y/n Daniel and put his arm around her shoulders. Y/n took the picture and pressed send.
"I'll be expecting a message from David now" joked the man and gently took the girl's hand. "Let’s go?"
For a while they walked in silence. The silence was not heavy. They were comfortable in each other's company. They could talk, discussing everything, or they could remain silent, taking in each other's non-verbal cues. Before they noticed, the sky had clouded over and a light rain began to fall.
"I think it's time to go home," Willer suggested. He lifted his head and looked up at the sky "and hurry up. It looks like it's about to start raining in earnest."
The girl nodded and they quickly headed towards y/n's house.
As they literally ran to the house the downpour started and both were soaked from head to toe. Y/n opened the door and stepped inside.
"Well... I'll be off then. Had a good time. See you next time, I guess. Of course, if you want to." Daniel said uncertainly and was about to leave, but y/n stopped him by taking his hand.
"Don't be silly. You're all wet, and it's still raining and windy outside. Come on in. You’ll get warm, and I'll find you some dry clothes and make us some dinner. Then you can decide what you want to do next."
Dan wasn't sure if she really wanted him to stay right now or if she was just being polite, so he stood there for a few seconds deciding.
"Are you sure?" he wanted to make sure. "If it's going to be an inconvenience, I'd better go”
"It's okay. Come on in. You're welcome here."
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traincarsandstars · 1 year ago
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Dan Heng approaches Stelle with a small smile and a palm-sized bag resembling a new year envelope. Within are several chocolate pieces of different flavors, all in the shape of stars.
❝I've read that in many cultures today is a holiday to celebrate one's partner. I'm incredibly honored to have you in my life. Happy Valentine's Day, Starlight.❞
After pressing the bag into her hands he reaches up, slowly, to to trail his fingers down her cheek, his own flushing in response. (Aeons, she is beautiful.) He can feel the heat in his face, he knows he must be turning blue, but he can't back down now. It's the perfect day for it and he knows the courage to do this will fade if he doesn't press forward.
So with a quiet, ❝And... if I may...❞ When his fingers reach her chin he pulls gently, bringing her a touch closer, enough for him to lean in, eyes shut, and softly press his lips to hers.
~Starlighttrain
Stelle didn't notice how her breath hitched when he touched her cheek, or how her fingers curled around the bag in her hand. All she could see, all she could feel was Dan Heng.
His touch was cool and gentle, reminding Stelle of the moss growing on the weathered ruins of scalegorge. Yet despite this, her face was burning and only grew hotter the farther his fingers traveled down her cheek.
Stelle had blinked in an attempt to clear her rapidly hazing mind only for her to notice that Dan Heng's face had turned a brilliant blue color. She had seen his face turn blue several times before, but not to this extent. Curious and slightly concerned, Stelle open her mouth only to rapidly shut it when his voice reached her ears.
Stelle recognized that tone, that low growl, it was the voice he used while in his Imbibitor Lunae form. Stelle shuttered, feeling a small chill trickle down her spine. However, it wasn't a bad feeling like the ones she got when fighting Cocolia or Phantylia; it was pleasing in a way she didn't understand. Though, she had no idea what he was asking permission for... Until Stelle felt Dan Heng's slender fingers cup her chin, then, everything clicked.
Stelle has read enough manhwa and romance novels to know where this is going. Her face turned a darker shade of red as her inner thoughts were swept up in maelstrom of different emotions.
Is he really going to kiss me?!
Didn't we just become a couple?!
How so you even kiss someone?!
Yet, despite these thoughts, Stelle trusted Dan Heng; she knew he would never hurt her ever. Kissing seemed like a big deal, but perhaps it will be less scary since it's with Dan Heng. Determined, Stelle closed her eyes as well and allowed Dan Heng to guide their lips together. She immediately stiffened on contact; however, after a second or two, Stelle began to relax. She didn't 'melt' into the kiss per se, but she did become less rigid. The kiss didn't feel warm, or wet, or soft, or sweet; it only felt like skin. Which was a relief in a way Stelle couldn't describe.
Eventually, Stelle pulled back and ran her fingers over her lips. She could still feel where he kissed her, but it wasn't a bad feeling. Stelle smiled at this, and looked back up at Dan Heng.
"Thank...Your lips felt like skin." She paused, realizing what she just said. "I mean... Uh. The kiss, I. Thank you." Stelle shuddered, feeling her face heat up again. "I liked it. But maybe we can go for the cheek next time?" Just a few more baby-steps and less world ending thoughts.
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"But, thank you, Dan Heng," her smile appeared once more, "and happy Valentines Day to you too."
@starlighttrain
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yoon-ssi · 2 years ago
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the traveler in hsr
gn!traveler in honkai star rail (crossover)
word count: 2k
description: what if the traveler continued their journey with the astral express after Teyvat… (nostalgia, comfort by Jing Yuan)here the traveler is in place of the trailblazer.
a/n: noticing shit in HSR and connecting it in GI made me do this, also Jing Yuan has me in a chokehold help(characters mentioned subtly/fully or included (spoiler alert): Herta, Asta, Mona, Pom-pom, Himeko, March 7th, Dan Heng, Sampo, Arataki Itto, Paimon, Yae Miko, Gorou, Tingyun, Welt, Yanqing, Xiao, Jing Yuan, Kazuha)
You were walking in Herta's space station getting familiar with your surroundings before it was time to leave with the Astral Express crew. You were sure you were not staying here with Herta so she could lead experiments on you, you didn't need to get experimented on. Moreover, just the thought of it reminded you of a certain Fatui Harbinger you met in Sumeru. The modern aspect of the whole station was something new you haven't seen in a while. It was interesting to see such different technology. Once you heard they had a museum at the station you wished to see it before leaving. You made your way into the big room, it was filled with various objects some of the past, some of other worlds, and some you didn’t recognize. Trying to understand your settings and your upcoming travels, you stopped in front of each of the relics. Once you finished reading a quote under one of them and went to move on to the next one, you caught a glimpse of something all too familiar. It immediately pulled you close Unable to control it yourself, you rushed to it, your eyes staring through the glass. The black feathers of the wind glider shined. The glider looked like it had worn before and had flown in the sky. You felt overwhelmed, not expecting to see it here, reminding you of everything and everyone you left behind… Your eyes dropped to read the description. As the words described the nature and surroundings of Monstadt you felt your heart tighten, a surge of pain and nostalgia pulling you under. You gently put your hand on the glass. Slowly you sat down leaning your head on the cool metal, allowing yourself to feel those emotions. You had your wings back now, and while they felt amazing; being reminded of how you used to glide down the Liyue mountain peaks, the Sumeru desert… so many places with the wind guiding you. It… hurt. You asked Herta if you could perhaps borrow it or just take it with you when you leave the station but were rejected. Not that you expected her to allow you something like that, but you had to… just had to ask at least. While fighting certain enemies the lead researcher Asta fought alongside you. Through spending more time with her,  you couldn't help but giggle at her behavior. Her constant mentions of the stars since she is an astronomer and her spending habits reminded you of a certain astrologist who was once your close friend. So standing in front of the pink-haired girl with her shorter subordinate as she complained about her funds being unavailable you couldn't help but smile to yourself. She noticed you were looking at her endearingly and asked about it.
„Hey, trailblazer is everything okay?“ she smiled, „you're looking at me kinda strange“. You smiled in response your eyes turning into little crescent moons and answered „Ah.. it's nothing. I was just thinking of someone. You reminded me of them.“ You nodded as you ended your sentence. Asta nodded as well, smiling, and then continued the previous conversation.
The express crew seemed nice. Pom-pom was quiet but caring, Welt's way of speech reminded you of a certain older Archon, March 7th was sweet, Himeko seemed to be a very knowledgeable person and Dan Heng said he'd be happy to help with anything you needed from the archive. You assume the journey with them while... trailblazing would be enjoyable.
As the three of you set foot on Jario VI the snow felt comforting, reminding you of your adventures on Dragonspine. You were expecting to experience the effects of the sheer cold and leave in a short amount of time or find a heat source, but March and Dan Heng assured you it's normal and you wouldn't grow to be that cold. A goofy man is the first person you meet and his way of speech warms your heart reminding you of a certain Oni from Inazuma.
At one point you were walking around the Overworld and walked to a rail. You were gazing at the trash can since it was looking at you strangely but you did nothing about it, being a polite and respectful person. The guard looked at you weirdly and once you tried moving on past the rail he informed you it's not allowed at this moment.
In that moment you remembered how Paimon would always say „How about we explore the area ahead of us later?“ whenever you two would wander off too far… You looked down on the rail, then at the guard, and turned away. You were looking at the ground on your way back to the hotel. You kept seeing faces that seemed so familiar that it brought you comfort and a smile to your face, the way you'd see your friends in other people. You continued to see similar people to them in the way they would talk, walk, behave, or simply their personality.
All the fights were normal something you already got used to before, and the life of trailblazers made sense. You were glad that it was also obvious that your goal was to help the nation or in this case the planet with their stellaron problem.
Xianzhou Loufu came as a breath of fresh air as well. Seeing Tingyun reminded you of the comment Yae Miko made to Gorou that if he took better care of his tail it could even be fluffier. You wondered if his tail would look like Tingyun's. The happy thoughts and memories helped you get through each day. The next day you were chatting with the general, Welt and March while standing in front of the hotel. As you were used to (so far) you were listening, paying attention to their words, this time there was no one above your shoulder to state shared thoughts and opinions. It felt quiet, an empty space that used to be filled. Occasionally, they would look at you to comment, and you'd say a few words but mainly keep quiet. So used to having a companion who spoke for the two of you. Especially since this language wasn't your native tongue, Paimon was helpful in these situations. It was an enjoyable conversation learning some information about the structure of the Luofu and the further plan for catching the Stellaron hunters. What you didn't expect was a smaller boy with blonde hair, the hairstyle just like an Adeptus general to run up to your conversation. He had a big smile on his face and a sword around his waist. His bright personality shined as he spoke and introduced himself. It all made you immediately think... he looked… he looked like… If you and Xiao had a child that's how you think the kid would look… and in that moment it broke your heart. Seeing someone like Xiao wouldn't break it because that isn't him just someone similar to him. But seeing a kid that looks like a son of you… You couldn't help the tears filling up your eyes. In that moment you knew you'd protect that boy with your life although looking at him breaks your heart.
Luckily the conversation seemed to be coming to an end as you were trying to fight the tears. Just before the first tear decided to drop the conversation ended and you managed to turn your face and walk away as the first tear fell.
You didn't notice the general looking at you the whole time since you set your eyes on Yanqing. He noticed your expression change, your smile turn fake, and your eyes fill with pain and tears. As he said his goodbyes to the others he quietly followed the direction you left in.
You sat on a bench a bit further away from the hotel. Your face in your hands, quiet sobs escaping your lips as your emotions and memories flood you. You softly mumbled his name once. „Xiao.“ Knowing you're not in Teyvat and he wouldn't come when you called… That fact alone made you sob harder, hot tears streaming down your cheeks as the pain cut you deep. You pulled your legs closer and leaned your head on your legs. In a couple of minutes, soft footsteps could be heard making you look up showing your face just enough to see who it is and if you're in danger.
You looked up and your honey-colored eyes met golden ones. The general had a worried look on his face. „Hey… mind if I sit?“ You nodded, wiping your cheeks and sitting properly again. As he sat down he looked at you „Are you okay? Your expression changed when you saw Yanqing.“ You took a moment to breathe and calm down your voice. „I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean to worry you.“ He looked at you with the softest eyes and offered a smile „I assure you it is no trouble.“ He spoke with a deep voice that soothed your ears. You sighed. Your intuition said he is a safe person to talk to. And so far you were never wrong so you decided to chat openly. „He, Yanqing looks like if me and a… ah..“ Your voice trailed off trying to find the right words. „If me and a person who means a lot to me had a child together.“ You knew how strange that sounded so you quickly added: „His small face, hairstyle, wavy hair, and eye color are exactly like his, but the golden hair color is like mine…“ The general nodded and gently put a hand on your shoulder. „I understand you're not having an easy time adapting… some of my assistants said you are new to the Astral crew and spent years somewhere else before this.“ You nodded to his words. He took note you didn't speak much unless necessary, he was much more observant than you expected. You two sat in silence until you calmed down a bit.
He had many thoughts processing in his head, running through the things about you that seemed interesting and different in a way. Like the sword, you kept your hand on at all times. The blade seemed dull, without shine, old, used and it didn't make sense to him. You fought like a very skilled swordfighter, and your technique was impeccable. He thought about offering a new sword or maybe offering a polishing up for the one you had but seeing how capable in fights you were he decided not to comment on it, an extraordinary fighter as yourself would have a good reason to use such a sword and he decided to not doubt you.
„After so many years of living and ah..“ You spoke softly, your voice was soft and pained. „I connected to the last place I was. The people..“ Your voice trailed off again and you sat in a comfortable silence which you desperately needed. Just someone to be there as you process your feelings.
Once he heard you say 'many years of living'  he came to realization the that you were closer to the age that he was rather than the one your appearance claimed and your current crew thought you were. In the way you carried yourself, the few words you spoke it all confirmed that you were much older than you looked. After all, a person with a long life span can easily recognize another one like them.
The artificial sun started to set and you leaned your head on Jing Yuan's shoulder. He gave your head a few gentle pats as you two enjoyed the silence. Even for him, there weren't people of similar age. Both of you were just calm and sitting on some sort of leaf of peace in this storm that is life. You looked to the side and you felt a soft breeze rustle your hair and you swear for a second you hear a soft voice recite a haiku about the sea. You missed him too… as you took a deep breath in you leaned further onto the general. Maybe you would find some comfort in each other. You remained like this even when the sky got covered in bright stars.
It doesn't feel like what you had so far. The trailblazing was fun and you're enjoying it, the worlds, and the planets are nice to explore. You're making some friends and memories along the way (though, the friends didn't feel like the ones you've made so far) You tried to find hope in it. As fun as it was you didn't expect nostalgia to hit you this much. Furthermore, you didn't expect you'd ever be close to somebody like you were to people in Teyvat again. Yet here you were getting comforted by Jing Yuan. A new friend who seemed like the one that would stick around. Still as amazing as this all was, the Luofu, the Underworld, the Station, the Express… it will never feel like that, like Teyvat, this will never be that.
It will never feel… like home
(maybe you will hold on a bit tighter to Jing Yuan. So your breathing will get easier)
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giu-world · 3 years ago
Text
[SPOILER]
If the Duskwood characters had spent a day at the beach...
Lilly | Dan | Cleo
-Cleo
Dear Diary,
We went to the beach today.
Hannah and I wanted to organize something to have a great day all together. MC came up with the idea of the beach and Hannah immediately found the idea appealing! ☺️
So, Hannah and I organized the car trips. If I had known earlier how it would end, I'd have chosen differently...😮‍💨
But let's go in order.
Before leaving, I had thought about bringing one of my cakes. The time to go into the kitchen and take the ingredients and I realized that the cake would have been irreparably soiled with sand. I was supposed to bring the plates and cutlery, but not everything fits in the bag. 😓
I decided to give up reluctantly. I thought that if the group was hungry, we could always go and buy something at a nearby bar.😒
So, I was already quite disappointed not to have been able to bring anything when, once in the car with Lilly and Dan, he asks me to drive. Considering that his breath smelled of alcohol (or maybe I imagined it, but knowing Dan, I don't think), that the last time he drove, he was miraculously saved, and that maybe he still had a head injury, since if he was staying there, it was because he had escaped from the hospital and not because he was healed, I simply told him that the car belonged to my mother and that if I had even just scratched it with the thought, she would have strangled me. 😵
Dan was offended and, out of spite, began to haunt me throughout the trip, pointing out that I was "doing wrong" in everything I did: from turning the key to putting on the arrows. 🙄
At one point, tired of that childish attitude, I gave him an ultimatum: either he shut up or I would have let him down and abandoned him on the street. 🤬
It worked.
Now and then, I heard Dan mutter something and, for a moment, he reminded me of my pressure cooker. 🍲
When I got to the beach, I helped Dan get from his car to his wheelchair. I pushed him to the beach. Thomas was having trouble opening the umbrella and I left Dan momentarily on the sand to go help Thomas. ⛱️
Later, I arranged my towel between Hannah's and MC's. Jake was taking up half of MC's towel and was hugging her. MC told us that she had prepared a surprise, but when I asked her what she had in mind, instead of answering, she got up, picked up Jake, and replied that I would see it later. Then she dared Jake to join her and they run away. 🤨
I turned to Hannah to ask her if she knew anything about it, but she seemed distracted staring at MC and Jake as they passed in front of Dan's chair. She returned to reality and I repeated the question, but she shook her head and said she knew as much as I did.🧐
Seconds later we heard Lily scream, when we turned around, we saw her covered in sand throwing her sunglasses at MC. 🕶️
I lay down to sunbathe as Hannah walked out to sea, followed by Thomas. MC was returning to her towel with Jake. They were a nice couple. 🥰
I closed my eyes when I heard a familiar voice. I opened them just in time to see Phil handcuffed. He smiled at MC, and Jake pulled MC closer to himself and glared at Phil. 😒
I was about to ask him what he was doing here instead of being in jail when a wet Jessy ran up to him and hugged him. Phil looked distracted, staring at MC. 😐
At one point, Alan appeared next to Phil. MC greeted him cheerfully as if they was just waiting to see him. I wondered if this had anything to do with the "surprise" she mentioned earlier. 🤔
Alan told her that he had managed to get Phil special permission from the judge to be there with them that day. When MC invited Alan to stay, he accepted.
Phil sat down next to Jake's towel, not taking his eyes off MC. The tension between Phil and Jake could be sliced with a knife. 🔪
Hannah also watched them in silence. Thomas, on the other hand, was watching Hannah. Maybe he wanted to share a romantic moment with her...
I walked over to him and asked him if he was okay. Thomas nodded weakly with his head and told me that was all right. I gave him an encouraging smile and went back to my towel.
Later, Richy warned that he had to leave, taking us by surprise. I don't know if our surprise was because he was about to leave or because he was doing it because of a CUSTOMER. 🤯
My first thought was that that was an excuse. I was about to ask who this mysterious customer was, when Richy mumbled something about Alfie's toy car, which had broken down again. Our gaze immediately shifted to Thomas. 🧐
He, as if he had guessed our thoughts, raised his arms to the sky, saying that this time it had nothing to do with it.
Jessy started to follow him, but Richy told her to stay with her brother, at least for today.
I picked up the phone and started making some Instagram stories. I thought that I should tell my followers the reasons why I was unable to post photos of my new recipe today. While I was taking some photos, Lilly sat down next to me. She looked annoyed and was getting bored. Then, she asked me what I was doing and I showed her pictures of my cakes. Slowly we began to chat. First about my desserts, then about various anecdotes and funny stories.
At one point, we hear Jessy's voice calling us in an alarmed voice. We turned around to see her, she looked scared. She told us that she had seen something and that she felt spied.
Thomas and Alan jumped up and set off in pursuit. They returned shortly after, saying they hadn't seen anything. Jessy insisted that something MUST be there, she was sure of it.
Then Jake asked if she hadn't imagined it. Hannah also came to the same conclusion and MC agreed, for Jessy's passion for horror and writing.
When we got back to the cars, Dan asked me again if he could drive. I sighed and sent him to hell. 😡
The next time we organize another similar outing, I'll have to bring some duct tape, so I'll be sure that he'll be quiet for the whole trip. 😠
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saturnsummer · 4 years ago
Text
helpless.
han joon hwi does all he can to save kang sol a. kang sol a, for the first time, realises she’s not alone.
ao3 link
notes: this has been manifesting in me ever since i saw the scene of sol a fainting. i’m sorry it’s so long, but i hope the law school fans like it! it’s my first time, but i’m open to request and improvements. do share with your fellow solhwi fans if you like it! any grammar mistakes and all will be taken fully responsible by me.
edit: this is written by @inactiverat , which is MY secondary account. i did not copy this from someone else. both accounts belong to ME. i am republishing this on my primary blog to better manage.
words: 4130 words.
it’s been a terrible day for sol.
forget about a terrible day, it has been a week of horror.
she can’t remember the last time she laid her head on the pillow of her clean sheets and mattress. with her semester test coming on friday, she has spent the entire weekend cramming for her test. she has opted to sleep at her desk for no more than 10 minutes at a time. her eyes sting from the roll-on muscle relief ointment that she rolls on every few hours under her eyes. her head pounds and the only things she has eaten are ramyeon and black coffee. (no sugar, extra shots.)
sol sighs as she fixes another highlighter in her top bun. she’s been staring at the same question for hours. she looks over her desk, hoping to find peace by seeing a sleeping sol b, but only remembers that she went home. her tiger mom’s orders, since “she shouldn’t study with her roommate, who is at the bottom of the cohort.”
sol visibly frowned as she thought of that sentence. she doesn't need to be reminded every minute and second of her life that she’s the worst. that whenever she fails a test, the smarty pants are cheering due to the bell curve. that she barely scrapes through every class. that she blubbers and mutters answers like an idiot in every lecture.
that’s why she works so hard. to show that she doesn't need money or connections to succeed in this school. that a single parented girl, making enough to get by, holding a part time job can be like the rest. for her mom, she tolerated years of violent abuse, yet still being so strong for her children. for dan, who she so desperately misses and wants to find, even though she knows dan may never want to see her. for byeol, the reason why she decided to study law; the only human she loves in this lawless world.
sol knows she’s pushing herself too hard. yeseul made an effort to remind her to sleep via text. bokgi teased her once during a study group after mentioning she looks like a disheveled panda. even professor kim pulled her out of lecture to give her a talk to remind her to eat.
but joon hwi hasn't.
she internally scoffs. she doesn’t expect him to. (what does a second round judicial exam passer want to know about the worst student?) and maybe, she doesn't want him to. she wants to show him she can do it on her own. she can’t count the number of times he helped her with her grades and cases. studying alone without help was the smallest thing she can do to show him her independence.
thus, she found every moment to stay away. well, from him, in particular. she only came to lectures on time, sat at the back (as opposed to next to him) and left immediately. she returns to her dorm to study (ditching study groups with him in it) and only leaves in the odd hours to get drinks and food when she’s absolutely starving. she hears the buzzes and rings from yeseul and joonhwi, but only smiles when they ask about her inactivity. (“it was dead. i must have forgotten to charge it again.”)
she sighs in frustration and stands from her chair, grabbing her phone and keys out to the pantry area. she needed more caffeine, if she was going to survive this night.
what she doesn't expect to see, is han joon hwi, devouring his late night snack of ramyeon at the table. the shuffling of her furry slippers raises his head from his precious bowl.
“you’re still up?” he asks.
it’s too late to turn around and pretend she didn’t see him. so instead, sol just nods silently as opposed to her defensive remarks. joon hwi stops slurping his noodles and sets the bowl aside. preparing to walk to the staircase, his next question freezes sol in her steps.
“why have you been avoiding me?”
his voice is gentle and nowhere near angry. but concerned and fearful, as if he’s done something wrong to upset her. for a moment, sol feels like she’s in her first lecture with professor yang and is left speechless. (only now, there is no where to hide.)
joon hwi wasn’t blind to her actions. he noticed her absence when she didn’t sit next to him in lectures. he noticed that whenever he was there for a study group session, she wouldn’t; but when he would ask the others, they would say she was there for the ones he wasn’t. joon hwi was certain that sol was avoiding him.
and he couldn’t understand why.
until now.
joon hwi’s eyes examine the young woman in front of him. he’s certain that a middle school student could figure this out; kang sol a is overworked. her dark eye circles are prominent, puffy and her bloodshot eyes do nothing but intensify her lack of sleep. he noticed just how pale her lips look, as he walks over to her. how has she gotten skinnier too?
joon hwi’s certain that she’s avoiding him not because of something he said that annoyed her. but because he knows that she doesn’t want him to see her in this state. his eyes soften and heart aches from the amount of effort she's putting in to her tests.
for sol, he knows how much the tests meant. it was like her entire life depended on it. that’s why he always wanted to help her. he didn’t want to see such a talented person fall behind. she has already proven herself worthy with all the cases she has participated in. but joon hwi knows that no matter how many times yeseul or bokgi or him say how smart and talented and how she’s doing great, she will never be satisfied in this cold, competitive prestigious school. she will always think she’s the worst and has no potential.
“sol.” his voice firm and serious. sol swears she felt a chill run down. she mentally braces herself for this conversation that she has tried all means to avoid. only one person dares address her as just ‘sol’.
“when did you last sleep? or eat proper food?” his eyes are serious, yet soft and glassy. his voice is gentle and soothing. she closes her eyes and lets out a silent sigh. she is nowhere the mock court, yet she feels like she has taken the witness stand and the oath. lying is perjury, she hears herself say.
“i’m doing fine. i just need to do well on this test.” she lies through her teeth. well, it’s a half true and a half lie. it’s just up to him to pick out which is the lie and truth. joon hwi isn’t an idiot, and can read her emotions with just a single look. it’s an utter lie.
“i’m getting coffee.” she mutters to herself. it was the whole reason she came out, anyways. her sleeve is caught by him but she yanks it away forcefully. she doesn’t even know why she’s being so harsh and angry to him. all he’s done is just ask how she’s doing.
“you need sleep. not caffeine.” he spins her around by her shoulders, his eyes serious and almost frustrated. she fails to meet his eyes, afraid of falling apart before him.
“joon, just let me be.” she says harshly and pushes his hands off before running to get that extra potent coffee. it was the first time she has ever called him that, and it falls out just as naturally as the word ‘sol’ does out of his. sol doesn’t notice how wet her eyes are until she’s downstairs, grabbing cans of coffee from the vending machine. (pathetic, she thinks, getting teary because of lying to her best friend.)
joon hwi doesn't follow. and sol isn't one bit affected.
not. at. all.
-----
the next time sol sees joon hwi is in the morning. he’s carrying his books and has his backpack slung over his shoulder, leaning against the wall. sol braces herself. she knows joon hwi to be protective and caring. but for him to be waiting at the entrance of their dorm was downright surprising.
sol’s not doing any better. when the caffeine and sugar stopped her from staying late, she resorted to stabbing her hand to keep herself awake. when her hand got too red and bloody, she switched to another spot on her arm. underneath her hoodie is her arm with dried blood and bruises all over. she’s surprised she hasn’t had blood poisoning yet.
sol flashes the most natural smile she can on her face, pretending as if her argument with him did not happen a few hours ago. her head was numb, but hanging on with the ointment she applied at her temples. she needed to act okay. just so he would stop worrying and leave her alone.
“sol.” joon hwi’s voice calls, going forward and grabbing her arm to support her. sol is about to create a joke, laugh it off and pretend everything is okay, hopefully convincing him she’s doing better (even if she’s far from it.). but what she doesn’t anticipate is his hand accidentally squeezing the sore wound of hers,
she hisses as his fingers dig into her wound and he immediately lets go. joon hwi’s eyes well in concern, not knowing what he’s done that caused her so much pain. sol’s eyes meet his, uncertain and afraid, as if a secret has been exposed. she pulls her sleeve down and is almost regretting that when joon hwi gently lifts her arm and lifts her sleeve up slightly to expose her arm and hand.
joon hwi takes her good hand in his and drags her to an empty staircase not far from where they were. joon hwi notes the dried blood on her hand and gives a disapproving sigh. just what was she doing to herself? she draws her hand back and pulls her sleeve down, hiding it away.
“sol, you need to take care of yourself.”
“joon, i’m doing okay, i promise. it’s not a big deal.” her voice upbeat and slightly more energetic. joon hwi is about to call her out from lying, but she flashes a smile. “come on, how can an exam defeat me?”
“i’m going to be late.” she says and runs ahead of him, joining yeseul and yebeom in front. sol feels a gnawing guilt in her heart for lying, but she momentarily forgets about it as yebeom sweeps them into a conversation.
i’m sorry, joon. i really am. but i’m not going to burden you any further.
joon hwi is left, helpless and broken, watching the back of the woman he loves stray further.
-----
it isn’t a secret that joon hwi and sol a are good friends. everyone on campus is always shocked. joon hwi, the school’s top student. sol a, the school’s worst student. everyone would have expected sol b when they heard ‘kang sol’. after all, it made sense, didn’t it? the two best students in school.
but what would be even more shocking is that han joon hwi, second round judicial exam passer, is deep in love with kang sol, the klutz with the top bun.
joon hwi couldn’t deny the joy he felt whenever sol was around. it started with study group and tutoring and messages about school. then it became lunches every moment they could. now, he couldn’t go a day without seeing her, hearing her voice or even a simple text. he can’t remember the moment he started falling for the clumsy woman, but when he realised it, he knew it was too late. he was in, deep.
and that's why he can’t bear to see her suffer. that’s why he spends late nights studying with her even though he doesn't need to. that’s why he insist walking her home, even though he installed the camera. (“i miss byeol! that smart cookie...” would always be his excuse.) that’s why he calls her ‘sol’, and he lets her call him ‘joon’, even though no one calls him that anymore.
sol locks herself in her room and buries herself under multiple books after her lectures. sol admits it, she’s tired. she can barely keep herself together and her body is so weak she doesn’t know how she managed to survive the week with less than two hours of sleep combined per day. she can’t remember the last nap she had that lasted more than half an hour.
the guilt from lying is eating her inside. when she closes her eyes, she can only see how hurt joon hwi’s face looks when he saw her arm. taking a shaky breath in, she doesn’t notice the tear running down her cheek. what was she even crying about? lying? hurting her best friend? fatigue? she slams her head against her books, shaking her thoughts out. it’s already 3am, and she doesn’t have much time left.
“kang sol a, you need to do this exam, you hear me? if you want to pass out, do it later on in the afternoon! you have 9 hours till the test.” she scolds herself out loud. stabbing her arm once again, she jerks herself awake and writes her notes over and over. just 9 more hours.
later on in the day, sol finds herself seated next to joon hwi. but she doesn’t notice him. her eyes are too out of focus to concentrate on anything but the paper and pen she holds. when the teaching assistant makes an announcement to start, she races against time and scribbles furiously. her head throbs, but she clings on to her last ounce of sanity keeping herself awake.
-----
she’s worse. joon hwi thinks. much, much worse. her skin is paler than normal and her eyes are fluttery. with her sleeve pulled up slightly, he notices the wound on her hand more bloody than it was. he visibly winces. but it’s nothing to the hurt in his heart. he knows that he should be busy scribbling, but his eyes are slightly glassy and all he can think of is her bloody hand.
all he wants to do is to drag her away. to take her far from this school. he wants to hold her small body in his arms and cradle her as he tends to her wounds. he wants to tuck her into a soft bed and stroke her brown hair. he wants to tell her how he feels, how she’s perfect, smart and beautiful in his eyes. how sol has already had his validation, and no matter how many kang sols there are, he will only have one in his heart.
as the clock leaves a minute or so to the end, sol struggles to keep her head from falling. she just needs to finish the last sentence. her eyes are blurred and her head has never felt more tight and woozy. her ramyeon from 4am is threatening to make an appearance.
“sol, you’re bleeding.” she hears an familiar echoed voice say next to her. instinctively, she brings a hand up to her nose, and wipes it, revealing the bright red blood. she can’t care for her jacket sleeve and carelessly wipes even though her arm aches. just a bit more, she tells herself.
the voices around her blur as she feels hands on her shoulder stopping her. she pushes them off weakly as she finishes the last word on her paper. she lets out a breath of relief and pushes her paper away from her. she’s finally done. she can finally breathe and have that nap. someone calls her name, but she’s too tired to respond.
then her eyes rolls back and she crashes into oblivion.
joon hwi manages to catch her head before it hits the table as she slumps sideways. he scribbles his name on his paper before chucking his paper and hers towards the teaching assistant. yeseul passes a tissue over to joon hwi and shakes her, eyes getting teary. he gently blots her nose, soaking up the blood. the other students leave unbothered, with only their study group crowding around them.
the next hour is a mad rush in joon hwi’s head. they are frantic for an ambulance, but joon hwi just cradles her body in his arms and runs outside. “it’s faster to run.” he says before taking off. she’s light, way too light for her frame, even with the layered coats that she’s wearing. when he reaches the hospital, she’s laid on a stretcher and sent for checks while the nurses ask him to wait for short while outside.
and for the third time, he stands outside, clutching to a bloody tissue, helpless.
-----
joon hwi wants to beat himself over and over. he should have been more forceful with her. heck, he should have done more than just watch silently. he should have sent packed lunches, compiled his notes, offered to stay up with her. even after when he knows how much sol is suffering, he only stood by.
his eyes are teary when he is allowed to see her. she looks so small under those white sheets. the doctor mentions that they had to take her hoodie off to patch her wounds and insert her IV drip. “dehydrated on caffeine, lack of nutrients and fatigue.” the doctor tells him. he only nods as the doctor leaves him.
his group chat is pinging with endless messages and he takes a moment to update them. he sends a quick text that he’ll let them know when she’s awake. his hand brushes the stray hairs out of her eyes and as best as he can, arranges her bangs the way she likes. his touch is as light as a butterfly as he lets his fingers brush pass her bandages.
with the curtain closed around him, joon hwi lets himself crumble silently, as tears run down his face, hands gripping sol’s stained hoodie sleeve. he wishes he could do something then just watch sol lie on the bed. he knows she is okay, but knowing that he could have prevented this worse case scenario from happening makes him upset. he gives himself a few minutes to compose himself before taking his own hoodie and layering it on her.
and for hours, joon hwi sits by her bed in his own thoughts, once again helpless.
-----
when she wakes up, her head pounds worse than the time she got the worse hangover in school. her eyes flutter, drawing the attention of joon hwi. her mind is cloudy as she starts registering the antiseptic smell and bright lights. her eyes come into focus as she turns over to find a pair of warm brown eyes looking at her.
“joon hwi...?” she says with barely any energy.
“you’re awake.” joon hwi lets himself sigh in relief knowing that she’s awake. it’s already 6pm. the others should be on their way over soon. he sends a quick “she’s awake” to the chat and shuts his phone.
“i... finished my exam right?” the words come tumbling out of sol’s mouth.
“that’s all you are thinking of now?” the anger in joon hwi’s voice catches her by surprise. she lowers her hand and avoids his eyes. she’s really done it, then. she’s really pissed him off.
“aren’t you one bit concerned about your health? you could have literally died being so overworked.” his eyes are glassy. realising that he’s frightening her, he lets a sigh out. joon hwi helps her sit up and props a pillow for her. her fingers fiddle with the thin blanket of the bed. there’s no point being strong in front of him now, after all this.
“you know how much every test means to me.” she mutters in a voice so soft, it’s unlike her to be so...small. joon hwi knows under that strong woman with a fiery passion for justice, there’s a vulnerable little girl, insecure and uncertain. but this was the first time, he realised, that she’s opening up herself.
“i’m so tired, joon. i’m so tired of running this stupid rat race that i’ll never win. i’m so sick of putting everything into my grades and not receiving anything back.” her voice so small, staring at the bandages on her hand. was the pain worth it? she’s not sure now.
joon hwi doesn’t say anything back. how could he? this man was born for this system, to bring law back to the country. he can’t compare to her, who spends countless nights studying, while taking care of her family. all he can do is sit by her bed and provide comfort.
“my head hurts. my body aches all over. yet, i can’t seem to do well in my exams. tell me, joon. just how long must i suffer?” his heart is pierced with every word she says. she’s so broken. joon hwi then notices the small pearls of tears dripping down her face.
his hand reaches out and his thumb rubs away her tears on her cheeks. he doesn’t know what prompted this, but sol doesn’t swat his hand away. she lets him as her hand wipes her remaining tears away.
“i’m here now. you can rely on me.” he says softly to her. suddenly, he takes her small hand in his and squeezes it in comfort. sol’s slightly taken aback, but she doesn’t know why she feels fuzzy inside. she feels warm and for the first time, she feels her burden lifted. with much courage, she gives a small smile.
“noona!” they hear a familiar panicked voice ring and they instinctively draw away from each other. if joon hwi’s face is slightly red, sol doesn't notice. sol is swept away into arguing with bokgi with her health and a teary eyed yeseul. even jiho and sol b came, but stood by silently. (jiho notices joon hwi’s flushed cheeks and his too-bright smile that he finally realises is meant for kang sol a. he makes a mental note about it.)
joon hwi leans back as he watches yeseul and bokgi fuss with sol’s health. he suppresses a smile as he looks at sol’s light laugh, knowing how her burdens are slowly fading and lifted. that he’s finally managed to reach out for his soulmate as she sinks further. it was going to be a journey, but joon hwi will drag her, his sol, out from her darkness every time.
i’m going to be there, no matter what, kang sol. you will not fight alone. i will stay with you, even when you think you don’t deserve it. it doesn't matter if you feel the same towards me or not. if i can see you smile and laugh, it’s enough for me. your happiness is all that matters.
because kang sol, i just love you so damm much.
-----
sol doesn’t notice the switch in her jacket. when she leaves about an hour later with her friends to eat jjajangmyeon (extra pickles, she orders.), she assumes the jacket she has by her bed is hers. she doesn't notice the sandalwood and jasmine smell, as opposed to her pine scented fabrics. when joon hwi teases her and she argues back in annoyance, she’s carefree and light.
when joon hwi smiles at her with his sweet smile, she can’t help but think she’s so lucky that she has him, of all people, by her side. her heart skips a beat, and she’s certain that she feels more than friends towards him. that all this time, she has finally fallen for the cheeky and charming joon hwi behind his intellect.
she smiles back, teeth bared and eyes crinkled as they walk back.
after all, who is to stand against her now, when she has him by her side?
joon hwi, thank you for finding me no matter how much i try to hide away. thank you for believing in me when everyone didn’t. i know you like someone else, and it’s okay. because whoever that is will be so damm lucky to have you. to see you smile your charming smile is enough to put me at ease.
because han joon hwi, i admit, i have fallen for you. i’m in love with you.
-----
bonus:
“noona, they like each other, don’t they?” bokgi watches as sol a barks at joon hwi. joon hwi only runs ahead and buries his hands in his hoodie pockets while letting out light laughs and continues teasing.
“oh, they are so whipped for each other.” yeseul triumphantly says as she walks with the rest behind the not-so-obvious lovebirds.
well, this would be an interesting relationship to see unfold.
161 notes · View notes
zalrb · 3 years ago
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OTH 1x07 Rewatch
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If by ‘weird vibe’ you mean absolutely no chemistry then you would be correct. I can’t even give them the narrative, everything about them feels forced, I can feel the writing trying to make me care about them and I should never feel like the writing is trying to manipulate me.
Their whole thing reminds me of the opening lines of Sk8er boi “He was a boy, she was a girl, can I make it anymore obvious?” because that’s what the narrative is doing like, Peyton’s tortured, he’s tortured so obviously they’re going to have a thing, without Chad and Hilarie having the chemistry to make that work whereas again with Marissa and Ryan, if I were to be like, “He was a boy ,she was a girl, can I make it anymore obvious?” and overlayed it on their driveway scene, their vibe would do the heavy lifting.
It also makes no sense that Peyton would invite Lucas to Dan’s house to talk about their relationship when the last time Lucas went to a Nathan Scott party, he was humiliated and Nathan stole her car to drive another girl home.
Honestly, Naley eventually becomes really cute but Haley starting to look at Nathan differently because he said two lines about having emotions and gave her a bracelet from a Cracker Jack box has me like ... girl. Which again, this is why I generally don’t like these kinds of storylines because the asshole character does the bare minimum and the character who’s meant to know better is immediately like THEY’RE NOT WHAT YOU THINK. And it’s made worse by the fact that Haley doesn’t know the other shit that Nathan is done, she wasn’t there for the prom video or for when he said that Dan wished Lucas was a stain, she doesn’t know that after dropping her off in Peyton’s car, he got into a hit and run, said he didn’t care if Peyton got in trouble, tried to pin it on Lucas, went back home and asked Peyton if she wanted to have sex. Nathan is horrible and a cracker jack bracelet is enough to semi-erase that? Lol K.
All of these characters making stupid decisions in service of drama, why would Keith and Karen go to Dan’s event?
There’s something to be said for how Breyton isn’t the best because of the Lucas agenda but I would say from Brooke’s side. Like two episodes ago Brooke gives Peyton a wakeup call about how she lets Nathan treat her like shit and now because she’s trying to go for Lucas, she’s telling Peyton they’re meant to be together. Inconsistent. Peyton is consistently shitty to Brooke.
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Girl, WHY.
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but this actually hasn’t happened yet! He’s just made like four corny jokes and you laughed. Oh my God, these episodes are painful.
Everyone looks like they’re going to a funeral
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I like how Lucas just not being an active asshole is what makes him a really good kid. Like he hasn’t really done anything except not be actively terrible.
Jake just STAYS skulking.
I just find pre-Brucas BL interactions hilarious because, like,
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and when he says this
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it’s like how many times did you have to remind yourself?
I like how Theresa is the go to side character to make it seem like more than seven people exist in this high school.
I’m not saying what Brooke is doing at the event is excusable, I am saying that the episodes we’ve seen up until now, Brooke isn’t actually mean-spirited. And Nathan getting irritated at her is like sit down, sir, you were publicly humiliating Lucas two seconds ago.
And again, things that are avoidable but are done to ratchet up drama in a show with already pretty bad writing makes me roll my eyes. There’s literally no reason for Haley to interrupt Peyton and Lucas, the writers just wanted to interrupt their second kiss.
I’m sorry, I’m just laughing because this is supposed to be sincerity
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and it looks like a line. You need to channel
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Jake is more Luke than Luke.
My guy looks sincere with practically everyone.  But Peyton.
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I remember in the commentary Mark was saying that everyone thought Jake’s secret was that he was gay, which is why Brooke makes that comment at the party and I was like why would being gay make Jake come to school late and leave early?
Webcam thing always weird.
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chaos-caffeinated · 5 years ago
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Emotions can help you remember Part 3 (Sebastian Michaelis x reader)
 Okay this is it, those words say everything you need to know, enjoy!
update: Oct/06/2020: To compensate for the part, I completed the story. 
Like I said -did I even say it?- I am an overachiever...and a sucker for plot
Not requested (Tagging @naniky​)
NSFW/T - 18+
Smut, lemon
One more thing: Do not forget I am not the only author, my brother and I share this blog for the sole reason of creating content together as well as maintaining an easy access to our stories. Just look under #caffeine for more stories from him, the media he does, previous works, requests/commissions/, and what he is willing to write and not write. 
Okay, NOW onto the story: Enjoy!
I wrote this part incredibly long that I just had to make another part, which will be uploaded in the next hour (October 31, 1pm). If you would like to be reminded, just click on the button on the top right corner (if mobile) and select “get notified”.
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“Though it’s good, it’s not fluent enough. Again.” Sebastian ordered, his facial expression was laced with the strictness of his voice. His eyebrows were knitted behind his delicate oval glasses that were chained for easy access. He held a short whip that caught your attention each time he smack it onto his hand, sometimes wondering to ask him if it hurt to whip himself. 
Flinching from the sound, you involuntarily let out a whimper before gazing at the text before you, “Ce soir, je serai donné à l’obscurité, je n’ai que moi-même au prince des ténèbres. Oh Crow permettent à mon corps d’aider dans votre plaisir que votre vie s’est propagée avec la douleur que l’humanité comme elle l’a-a...a...^1” You felt burned out, your voice no longer being able to read off the text that Sebastian had you reading, emphasizing the importance of pronunciations. 
Sebastian, on the other hand, was enjoying the moment you were casting yourself off to him, simply smiling behind his façade of strict teacher. Once you finished your speech you would his for the night, but he flinched when you stuttered towards the end, his attention towards you made him realized you looked tired, “Sebastian...I’m sorry, but I...I am so tired...French is not my strength, I am so sorry.” You gazed downwards, too ashamed to even look at him in the eye. You felt the constraining corset shift underneath as you crossed your arms, disappointed at yourself.
Before he could sigh subtly, his brain had racked up the idea to try something. He smirked widely, his eyes glinting the mischief with the intertwined lust. 
“It is unfortunate, Miss. (L/N), but you have four days before the ball, and I’m sure you want Miss. Hopkins to be delighted upon your return without a language barrier, right?...”
“...Y-yes.” You confirmed, saddening at the fact that you may potentially be upsetting her. 
“Well then, I hope you realize I have a couple tricks under my sleeve, however, some may deem it as unorthodox because of its-” he used the thin stick in his hand to whip the desk, his free hand placed on the mahogany desk leaning over slightly, hovering over your body. Your head whipped upwards where you immediately came face to face with the handsome butler/tutor, to which your cheeks were tinted with a slight pink hue from the closeness between you. 
“Physicality.” He finished with a smirk, “Of course I need your permission, but time waits for no one my lady.” He adds as he rose the tip of baton from in-between your collarbones up to your chin with a light tap. You subconsciously tipped your head back lightly in response to the baton to which he responded with a subtle smirk. When you heard his sultry voice, you almost swore to hearing a purr at the end. 
Entranced by his proximity, you gulped subtly and let out your respond:
“Yes....Sebastian.”
“Then we shall start immediately.” And he closed in by pressing his lips against your lips, one second secure and passion, the next dominant and rough. You let out a soft meek as you were trying to push against him, but he was strong. You sensed he wanted more, hence why he was rough enough to lean you back. 
He removed himself, smirking and revealing the fang as he lick his lips lightly, “I hope you are ready, Miss. (L/N), for I am not lenient.” And he stood up, “Stand.” He commanded, raising the baton to visually represent his command as you obeyed. 
You watched as he made his way behind the desk, but you looked ahead as you were afraid of anything sudden.
He made his way to where you sat and the chair scraped along the floor. 
“Sit.” He ordered, and you sat down to an unfamiliar seat when you realized the firmness and slight shift underneath. You blushed as you realized you sat on his lap.
You trembled softly as you felt as he placed his hands on your hips as he adjusted both of you, “You will read and translate the words I point, if you fail, I will punish you accordingly. Ready?”
You nodded, “Yes, S-Sebastian.”
With a smug look, he pointed at a word of ease to get you comfortable. This went on for a couple dozens of words before he began to challenge you: adding feathery touches to your back, causing you to flinch. 
“And this one?...” He leant by your ear, his voice having a slight rasp as he ushered.
While his gloved finger lightly traced your back, your body shivering from the touch, your voice faltered from it, “Uhm...eh...p-plaisir^2...”
“A stutter, Miss. (L/N)? When the ball is in session, I’m sure you’ll have someone like this as well. You can’t be distracted with this simple touch.” He took his forefinger and traced down your spine, making your cheeks blush again from the vulnerability. 
“...S-so what’s my punishment, then?...” 
“You want to be punished? Hm~...I’ll speak two paragraphs in French and you’ll translate them.”
Groaning as you had trouble listening and understanding, you took a deep breath and sighed, “Fine...”
“Good. Now...Dès que je t’ai posé les yeux, j’ai étré enchanté par ta beauté. J’avais espéré que vous travaillions pour Mlle Hopkins, et vous avez fait votre preuves devant elle ainsi que le jeune maître; talentueux et belle, je te voulais. Je vous ai dans mes mains, votre cœur bat vite, votre corps est à la chasse d’eau- Je sais que vous me voulez tout aussi bien, et à tout moment vous vacillez dans vos leçons Français, je vais m’assurer que vous souvenez de mes mains, mon corps, ma voix. Vous ne m’oublierez jamais aussi bien que la belle langue de Français.^3“
You couldn’t concentrate while he was caressing your back. Images flashed in your mind and you were shy to even have them possessed into your brain. You were fantasizing about being fondled, his hands caressing in other places, to have your own hands running through his raven locks. You wanted it all. However, when he spoke you understood some wording, his distinct pronunciation brought the sense of familiarity which gave you the confidence to translate his message, making you blush in the process as you processed the message. 
The more you spoke, the more Sebastian grew with anticipation. As you finished, he had held your hip, without moving his digits and whispered into his ears, “Good, now for a reward. (Y/N). Tell me, are you in any way against of my teachings?”
“...N-no...” you shyly confessed, “Please...keep it going...I do believe it’s helping me.”
His smirk widen, enough to reveal the fangs, “Good.” He whispered, “Then from now on...nous parlons dans Français ^4.”
(From this point on, it will all be english, I promise. I just thought this was fun)
~
You let out a gasp when he rose his hands, groping your breasts as his lips grazed on the back of your shoulders; he let out whispers you were able to catch, only to respond with the same whispered voice. Each word he spoke out you would be given a kiss from his soft, yet rough lips onto your warm flesh. His hands lingered over your breasts, his fingers rubbing your clothed-areolas triggering them to harden. 
“Tell me how are you feeling, (Y/N). Describe it.” He pulled back his hands as he teasingly, irritatingly, slowly removed your dress to expose your soft skin to his greedy mouth and hands. He removed his gloves to expose his black nails and the Faustian contract that linked his current master and him as property as he was currently ready to devour a mortal body in front of him, “Tell me, (Y/N)...what do you want me to do to you?”
“I...I feel like...my skin is on fire, like I want more just to get rid of it, but...but I like it...I like the feeling of your hands on me...I never want it to stop... I know I want more, I want to feel you everywhere...” You let out shaky breaths as you tried to muffled your moans in, your chest heaving as you gazed down to see his right hand placed on your abdomen area and you gently grabbed it, leading it back to your breast. His touch alone was driving you wild, craving for more as you tried so hard to hold back; believing that you were strong only to fall back.  
Sebastian hummed in response, "Then so be it." Where his hands were located, he easily held you down while bucking his hips, earning a few mewls from you, and your head lulling back as your chest arched forward. You hated how your body betrayed your logical side, falling into the temptation that you thought you had handled, but it was only destroyed from his presence, from his words, from his eyes. 
He bunched up the skirt so your clothed womanhood would be pressed against his clothed bulge, your moaning raised slightly to place your hands on the top of the desk, immediately interrupting the craze. You were panting, you were blushing, you were craving for more of his hot touches that got your body to get tingles, “...It is overwhelming...how is it that your so good to get me so desperate like this?...You are like the devil everyone warns to stay away from...” You attempted to take control of your body again, but you felt something pressed against you as you not only felt a hand on your hip, but another placed in front by your hand. 
Sebastian was even more entranced, while you felt he was responsible for your craze, he blamed you for his craze towards you. Other people would feel guilt while in the bliss of pleasure, others feel a sense of betrayal for their partners, others feel used when the Head Butler of Phantomhive seemed to be intriguing enough to have his attention, but when there isn’t a direct order from Ciel to gather information, to get them to cooperate, he feels a sense of ferality since his interest is purely internal. His plans were to make you his; you can be feisty, you can be yourself, he was most amazed that a simple being such as yourself can manage to stir a demon with their core motivations. He just wanted you, but there were instances where he believed he was doing this because he was to be yours, and that did not sit well with him, which is why he would do everything to get you to submit to him first.
When Sebastian stood up, the chair sliding back, he pressed against you, "Are you scared of me?" He whispered into your ear, "Because I can assure you that even the devil can open your eyes to reality...” He taunts as he raised his hand to caress your exposed arm with his fingertips then grazing them with his black nails before placing on top of yours, interlacing with your fingers.
You whined desperately, turning your head slightly to glance at Sebastian who was smirking. Once again your flesh burned with passion as you feel him start discard your undergarments, the idea that you two were getting closer and closer to bond was filling you up with anticipation, with more shivers down your back. What surprised you was to see each piece of your dress in front of you as he asked you what they were called: he wanted you to continue to learn despite the situation you two were in.  
"What is this?" He asks as he takes off each material. You grunted as he was testing your French by having you name every single material. Each time he removed something he would ask you and it was getting annoying. It was torture, hell, trying so hard not rip anything apart to get closer to become one.
After what felt like an eternity of hell of torture, you were naked in front of him. You realized how vulnerable you were in the position, offering yourself to the Head Butler of the Phantomhives and that made you cower slightly. Trembling, you tried to close up when you felt two soft hands placed on your back.
"Such a magnificent body you have, it's no wonder why everybody else wants you. Beauty like this deserves to be shown off...,but at this moment, and moments like these...you are mine alone." He whispered to you only, his ushered tone had a growl towards the end, like a predator growling in victory towards its prey. His fingers trailed up your back to the nape of your neck and held it in place as the other groped your breast.
You wondered when he had the opportunity to unbuckle his pants, but you shivered once you felt the head of his cock rubbing against your clit, a wanton moan releasing as your body pressed against him almost out of instinct.
"Mmm, desperate for more?~" Sebastian teased as he smirked devilishly, holding you in place as he rejected to further your pleasure.
"Please....please, Sebastian." You begged, tearing up, "Please..." you panted as you swayed your hips in an attempt to tempt him further.
Sebastian smirked and remained like that only to hear and see you move less and less. You tried waiting patiently, tried, but you simply closed your eyes and imagined the scenarios that made you blush. As you imagine him, your thoughts were quickly interrupted as he guided you to bend over the desk as he held your hips, "Distracted yet again, Miss. (L/N), my my. You are one persistent student, aren't you?" He snapped his hips towards, his cock rubbing against your entrance which startled you, "Patience 'will get you anywhere and everywhere', my dear." He reminds you before he proceeded to enter.
As you stiffened from the pressure of his member stretching you, you let out a strained moan as your hands gripped the edge of the table. Even Sebastian groaned subtly as you tightened around him and he calmly rubbed your back in a soft manner, "...W-was...Was this your first time?" He caught his breath as he eased the thrusting by removing himself until the hilt.
You involuntarily let out a breathy moan as he returned, thrusting in a steady pace. Each thrust felt more good and pleasurable than the last before you your hips pressed back against him. You even arched your back as you press back to feel his hips slap against you. The pace was increasing ever slightly, his breaths were audible as he let out breathy moans with your vocal ones. He had an immense grip on your hips that bruises were going to appear, but you didn’t mind. You would have to deal with that in the near future, at the moment you getting taken care of very good by the butler. 
Sebastian let out a soft chuckle as he removed himself and proceeded to sit on the chair. You gasped and whined from frustration when you looked over your shoulder to see him sitting, his erection was resting against abdomen; the image alone was an unholy sight, for he had achieved his core motivation. 
The way his hand rolled over to curl his finger into a “come hither” motion made you and your body responded by flowing with his hand. You turned around and watched as he accommodated his sitting position for you to sit on him once again. Facing forward, you rested your knees beside his thighs and remained uplifted as you stared into his enchanting crimson red eyes. His smirk widen -his bloody smirk- as he leaned forward to nip at your flesh. His arms entangled you in an embrace, but he held you down; he had successfully trapped you fully, he had you, not the other way around he thought you intended. 
You took a deep breath as you felt him once more, but this time it felt different. The way he held you, the way he gazed into your eyes as your back arched and your head leaned back, mindlessly staring at the ceiling. He leaned forward once again only to lick at your mounds and made suckling motions over  your harden nipples. His right arm wrapped around your waist and held you down as he thrusted into you unexpectedly with a steady speed. 
Moaning and instinctively placing your hands through his raven locks, you tilted your head down only to look straight into his devilish eyes. He pulled away from your nipples as you tugged at his locks; his eyebrows twitched subtly as they furrowed slightly; lips were agape as he panted softly. There were sweat beads decorating his pale face as he let out soft moans, your blush darkening from the mysterious man himself, 
“Are you e-enjoying the view, Miss. (L/N)?” He asked in his best attempt of a flustered tone, “You’ve gone back to your head once again, and just how would you feel good if trapped in there?” He bucked his hips which made you buck your hips in response. He pulled your body at an angle which trigger a hyper vocal activity, even your hand left his hair to cover your own mouth, closing your eyes to sense him intensely than before.  There was an intense tingling sensation as your body took over control to reach their goal too. 
As the speed and pressure built up, you had the courage to not only sit back up, but wrap your arms around his neck, curving forward so your mouth latched onto his neck, biting into it as he stiffened from the sudden move. 
You had reached a point that you desperately wanted to increase the speed from how close you were, grinding against him; knowing him already, you were the one that had to obtain it instead of asking. 
Sebastian was completely thrown off guard from the bite, his nails puncturing your skin as he stood up with you in his arms and laid you on the top of the desk, his hands gripping on your thighs, bruises would be appearing in a while, but he didn’t care as he aid in your goal, “A naughty girl indeed..” He panted, his eyes darkening, “Marking me in such a way is unforgivable...now I have no choice to reciprocate your feelings-”
Before you can even comprehend his intentions, you felt a sharp pain on your shoulders, your back arched forward as you cried out in pain, “S-sebastia-”
A hand covered your mouth, your voice muffled as he moaned as well into your shoulder. 
As you came onto his girth member, he remained still as he tried to hold off, even his body shivered from the denial- the torture he put himself into when he purposely holds himself from pouring his pleasure into you. As your body shivered and bucked into the pleasure, you simply held onto him as you rode out your orgasm, the sensation of the building pressure continue to overwhelm, the feeling of pushing him off whilst holding him close was a dilemma. 
As your eyes closed, you can feel him shift, you hear the rustling of clothes in a quick, yet slow manner. Instead of the clothes, you focused on yourself: your legs slightly shaking, your chest heaving as you breathed heavily, your cheeks burning, your body freezing from the sweat that had gone out to refresh you from the hot man in front of you. 
Slowly, you opened your eyes to see him dressed up already. His deep red eyes maintained fixed on you as he fixed his tie, his smirk plastered on his facial features, “Miss. (L/N), I do believe the lesson over for now, I think it’s best for you to rest.” He offered his hand towards you while you just had come down from the high. You felt queasy, but it wasn’t it. No, you felt lighter, you felt fresh for some reason. Could the taboo act made you much bolder, could it have made you more experienced?
“...My dress.” You managed to croak out in English, your voice sounded hoarse and you blushed from embarrassment as your hand hovered over your mouth.
“Oh my...I think overstepped my boundaries a bit, my apologies my lady, I will prepare some tea to soothe your voice...We don’t want our lesson to go to waste.” He spoke in a matter-of-fact. You blushed as you averted your eyes from his as you nodded, “Y-yes...”
“Yes?” Sebastian’s eyebrow quirked slightly which you quickly corrected, “I mean, ‘Oui, monsieur’.” 
When you saw him smile in a satisfied manner, you nearly sighed in relief, but you were now flustered and quiet from the ‘lesson’ that he performed to help you learn French. Without a doubt it left an impression you, an act of intimacy and vulnerabilities in a lovemaking surely stirred things up to help you remember words -events- more effectively. 
While you were thinking, Sebastian helped you back in your dress, “I have to say, I didn’t know of such a strong bite from you, my lady. It was certainly an eye-opener.” He explained as he helped with a few items. When he got to the corset, he lifted you onto your  feet and turned you around, “Hopefully you don’t forget about our time like...this” he whispered as he guided his hands across your abdomen which you instinctively let out a breathy moan, “Y-yes...I’m sure I’ll never forget about the event...” you stabled yourself as he pulled on the corset only to make you gasp from how tight he was pulling. 
After a couple minutes, you both cleaned up the area and headed to your room to rest. Your voice felt raspy, nearly gone. When a surprise visit from Ciel caught your attention to ask about your lessons, Sebastian intervened for you, “I apologize young master, but realizing that Miss. (L/N) is tight on schedule for the ball, I had a trick under my sleeve to ensure she would capture the lesson, but...I believe I was too harsh on her.” He smirked lightly which you forced yourself to nod.
“...L-lost my voice a bit...” you confirmed, “But it’s not like a cup of tea won’t help.”
Ciel nodded slightly, glaring at Sebastian, “I’m sorry as well, I know Sebastian can be too rash with his studies, but if he does it again you can tell me. I’ll be in my office if needed- Sebastian, I want cake when you’re finished.” and he proceeded to walk to his study room. 
“Yes, my lord.” Sebastian responded before guiding you to his bedroom.
“Couldn’t have been more obvious?”, You bit as you rested your hand on your neck.
Sebastian chuckled behind his fist as he arrived to the room, opening the door for you, “If you wanted me to, I could have.”
“You really have no shame, Mr. Michaelis, but please...I ask that you keep this our secret...I don’t want you to get in trouble as well as I...” You asked of him as you entered the room to sit on the bed. 
Sebastian placed a hand over his chest as he leaned forward wit his eyes closed, “As you wish, I will keep it between us.” He stood up once again with his eyes open halfway. 
You smiled small as you leaned against your hands behind you, “You’re so...intriguing Sebastian. One moment you are a shadow, the next...uhm, you are almost a beast, and right after that you are....back to a shadow- how?...” You sat up, “I’m...beyond tired- very tired- and you are still up and going to complete your duties.”
Unnecessary to withhold his smirk, his half-lid eyes glanced on your way, “Your observational skills never cease to overwhelm me, Miss. (L/N), however..” his voice got more stern as he got closer, “ I have mentioned before that if you look into someone, you might regret it later, so I advise you my lady to keep at bay..”
The closer he got, the more you look up to stare into his eyes, challenging him, “Temptation rises when provoked, so I suggest you stop provoking me, Mr. Michaelis. Because we...intertwined in a forbidden act, you opened the doors to temptation, my... I even have to take care of myself in order to walk through those doors again...”
The corners of his lips curved slightly, Sebastian took your statement into consideration, but as entertained as he was to continue this conversation, his duties in the manor made him realize he had to cut it short, “I do have a few ways to cure that, my lady.” he suggested, his tone completely changed from the previous ominous tone to the mischievous one he possessed earlier. 
“Keep your tricks in your sleeve, please. I’m already exhausted from...your lesson there.” You huffed with a flustered face as you avoided eye contact once again. However, you failed to realize just how close he gotten. He reached out to your chin and pulled you close to him, “My lady, I have many tricks under my sleeve that I am not afraid to show you...four days is all I need.” He smirked darkly as he pulled away with a cheerful smile as he closed his eyes for the moment one again, “I will be right back with the tea as promised. In the meantime, please do relax and rest your voice...madam.” he added and proceeded to close the door behind him.
He left you speechless, knowing full well that his tricks were just promises ready to occur.
~
When Sebastian reached to the kitchen, he couldn’t help but rest against the door for a moment. After taking a deep breath, he chuckled darkly as he placed a hand over his face, “Sweet, sweet (Y/N), you drive me into a deep craze.” The hand hovered the side of the neck you bit him at. He was serious when he said you had a strong bite, and it wasn’t just that of muffling your moans. He strolled over to the counter and took out a knife to use as a mirror. He lowered his collar and managed to see a bruised bite-mark on his neck. His smirk widen and he clicked his tongue as he placed down the knife, “You’re a feisty one; I admire that.” He smiled darkly as he removed his coat to prepare the young lord his dessert. 
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~4 Days later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 
The music was soft and inviting, a subtle siren in your head to set the atmosphere of the ball. It was a slow drag from the violins which gave you strength to take a deep breath and walk forward to the crowd whom were laughing. 
Ciel was conversing with a man -the truth being the other way around-, commenting and opinionating of events that bore the young master to a tremendous level, but he remained to act as if he was in interest to the best of his ability to focus on capturing a special guest. When the nobleman excused himself after recognizing an acquaintance, Ciel called forward Sebastian who stood behind him, “Sebastian, keep an eye on Miss. (L/N) and anyone she is speaking with, there may be a chance that she’s talking with him at this moment-” as he gave him his order, Ciel spotted you with someone casually talking in French. He stood there slightly impressed at your proficiency and commented instead, “Miss. (L/N) has a lot of confidence with her French, she even looks different from before.” 
Sebastian smiled with his eyes closed as he respond, “Thank you my lord, it took a little more effort due to the time restraint, but additional teachings were added to ensure proficiency.”
Ciel eyed him for a moment, “Additional teachings? It didn’t involve something like close proximity did it?” He asked with a near disgust that his demon butler would go that far, but not surprised if he revealed the information. 
Placing a finger over his lips, Sebastian responded, “Miss. (L/N) has asked me not to disclose any information regarding our situation young lord, but that should already tell you.”
Ciel’s eyebrow twitched before releasing a sigh, “...Unfortunately, it did.” 
When he turned back to look at you, he audibly gasped when he didn’t see you there anymore, “Sebastian, track her.” He ordered  with a slight urgency in his voice, 
Bowing his head, Sebastian replied, “yes, my lord.” and he walked from his master to find you.
~
While the dynamic duo were talking, you were having a conversation with someone that was visiting a friend. It became so casual and so friendly that the two of you had walked over to the table to take a few pieces of snacks. 
His name was Jacque Arias, born into a family that dealt with the fabric industry in South France, you thought having a good friendship with him would help Miss. Hopkins with future business after you explained to him that you worked as a tailor for her. 
As you took a drink from your glass, he spoke: “I am so relieved to finally have something to go to, if I had to stay in the office one more night I would have gone insane.”
“So you like parties to distract yourself from work?”
He nods, “Yes, and to meet lovely ladies that could potentially be my future wife, like yourself.” He smiled small with a slight tilt of his head.
You blushed from hearing this, stiffening slightly, “Searching for a wife? Me? Surely you gist, sir. I am merely just a tailor intern.” You explain to him, ‘At least for the time being, I like having those small arguments with Sebastian,’ you admitted in thought. 
He reached forward to your hand only to caress, "A beautiful intern no less-...it maybe my imagination, but perhaps the party has tire me out. Shall we go somewhere more...silent? Somewhere we can be more intimate?"
You were ready to say no, already losing the interest of a business partner potential. If he wanted to marry you, for some reason you felt it was your choice to choose, and you wanted to choose someone that perhaps wasn't necessarily available to be taken, and you responded, "I don't want to offend you, but-"
He took your hand in his and lightly started guiding you out, "Then let's enjoy nature together." He suggested, "I...I don't-" You glanced around to see the mysterious man himself offering glasses to the guests, but he also glanced at your way. You noticed the faint smirk before he tilted his head forward, 'Go.' You felt him say before he went back to attend with the rest of the guests.
Almost feeling your body going light, you then followed the man ahead of you with a light smile.
It was chilly, your skin shivered to make some warmth, "Are you cold? I'll call up my carriage." He offered as he took off her coat, "In the meantime, here." He placed the coat over your shoulders, "I'll be right back." And he walked with a rushed speed.
You were surprised to see his nice side as he was going to get the carriage. You were suddenly curious about taking his offer, but you wanted to reject by the interaction at the table. Giving him the second chance to see him truly, you decided to wait outside than inside where it was warm.
~
Waiting patiently for a couple minutes, you felt your body shiver once again, but you subconsciously glanced around. You felt like someone was staring at you- stalking you. It felt uneasy for you, your hands tightening the coat around your body while you made your way back to the manor so you would at least be with someone before you spotted someone in pitch black. You almost called out his name until your eyes widen at the revelation.
While the ball was still in place and everyone was blissful at the moment, with the earl holding in his disinterest in people and balls overall, Sebastian kept a close connection with you. He immediately recognized the man you were with and knowing how humans seemed to be believe they were mated with one intense session, he just had to play the role of the silent lover, granting the permission for you to be with the next chaperone, 
The atmosphere was filled with a wave of chattering, the laughter whether genuine or filled with arrogance, Sebastian could listen to all with depth. He listened to the piece played by the string quartet and multi-task with his butler duties. Suddenly, he heard a change in the quartet, a new piece was to be played and he listened.
The violins and violoncello were stroked rapidly in the next piece that it threw people off guard. They were not expected such an allegro tempo from the players: notes raised, dropped, the moments of silence, the notes raising a subtle anxiety from the audience even Sebastian felt it. He felt the anxiety, he felt -for a moment- his heart beating faster and faster and he turned to glance at the young master only for him to just watch the quartet as well. In that instant, he heard your panting with his demonic ears, it was the only thing that stand out from the silent crowd and the musicians ahead of him. 
He strolled to the head of the family and bent over at his height only to whisper by his ear to prohibit eavesdropping. While Ciel watched ahead, his full attention was for the demon. 
“Sebastian, I order you to find him and bring both of them back here after the ball.” He ordered with the ushered tone as the butler replied: “Yes, my lord.” before smirking at the slight liberation in his current state.   
Previous Part/ Final Part 
~Translations~
1: Tonight I will be given to the darkness, I have but myself to the prince of darkness. Oh Crow allow my body to help in your pleasure as your life has been done with the pain that humanity as it (cut out: brought/ apporté.)
2:Pleasure
3: “Good Now...”The moment I laid my eyes on you, I was enchanted by your beauty. I had hoped you worked for Miss. Hopkins, and you proved yourself in front of her as well as the young master; talented and beautiful, I wanted you.
I have you in my hands, your heart is beating fast, your body is flushing- I know you want me just as well, and at any moment you falter in your French lessons, I will make sure  you remember my hands, my body, my voice. You will never forget me as well as the beautiful language of French is in your possession.”
4. we will speak in French
A/N: Tell me why I spent over 45 minutes searching the music sheet for the Diabolic Waltz and Danse Macabre (Can you blame me? It’s amazing work.) only to confirm or learn from parts where in the music because I am an overachiever and I go all out when I attempt to describe the music without being “the music played louder” come on, I didn’t spend two years in the marching band and be discriminated for being a woman and a semester in Music Appreciation in college for NOTHING- TEMPO, FORTE (Brother save me, this is my call for you to save me, this has gone way too far even for my own sake).
P.S. I am saying it again: Do not forget about my brother, Caffeine, he makes exclusive and waaaaay better stories than I. Just look under #caffeine for more of his content as well as a list of the media he covers for any requests/commissions.
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senstia · 5 years ago
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~That one time when Andrew thought Neil cheated and it caused a bunch of unnecessary emotional distress~
*andreil
*angst with a happy ending
“A-Andrew?”
“Just go Neil.”
“I don’t understand. This is just over for good? After all this time?” Neil said, his voice breaking.
“This was never anything. And now it’s done. Get away from me.”
Andrew couldn’t bear to look at Neil for another second. His heart felt like it was in a vice grip and it was about to shatter into a million pieces. He’d never felt this level of pain before. And the one person he thought he could trust... No. He was done. Neil chose to cheat on him. Neil ended this. He had no right to look so heartbroken. He had no right to have tears streaming down his scarred cheeks. Andrew stormed out of the dorm before he hit Neil. Or took back every word he had just said. He couldn’t handle another second looking at those blue eyes. He couldn’t handle the way it felt like he’d lost a part of his soul.
~
Neil’s mind was a kaleidoscope of memories blinding him by the second. He couldn’t help but go over everything that had happened in the past month, trying to figure out where he went wrong. Trying to figure out why Andrew had shattered his heart and left him with no warning. He came up empty. They had had no fights, no arguments, nothing of consequence had occurred. He’d been blindsided. And now it felt like he was drowning and there was no way to the surface. To live without Andrew by his side. He would never see those hazel eyes sparkle again. He would never get to feel Andrew’s lips on his skin again. He would never get to have a lazy weekend with Andrew again. He couldn’t bear it, didn’t know how he would be able to survive this. Maybe it would be easier if he knew the reason, but Andrew gave no explanation. He was just done. He knew he would be haunted by this forever. Knew the loss of Andrew would be a scar that never faded. The pain was excruciating.
And there was nothing Neil could do but try to survive without his heart, for it would always belong to Andrew.
~
It was a Saturday night when Andrew had felt his world shatter before his eyes. He had been going to see his stupid junkie. Because he missed him. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Of course Andrew had assumed Neil would be alone. The first sign was the thong thrown haphazardly on the floor in the living room, and then the bra following soon after. Andrew had felt nausea roil in his gut at the sight. He knew for a fact no one else was here but Neil. No one else had been staying in the dorm for the past few days, all busy with different plans. And as he had walked closer to the closed door he heard a girlish voice, followed by Neil’s carefree laugh.
“Neil stop it,” the girl said playfully, giggling.
“Okay, okay,” he laughed.
“Damn Neil, you’re insanely sexy. This is perfect!” The girl exclaimed.
Neil giggled softly and Andrew could easily imagine the blush on Neil’s cheeks at the compliment.
“Do you have condoms?” The girl asked playfully.
“Yeah, yeah. Don’t worry,” Neil said.
That was the point of the conversation when Andrew couldn’t stand to listen anymore. The familiar feeling of betrayal ripped through him like wildfire, surprising in its intensity. Neil didn’t want him anymore. Neil had chosen someone else, someone better.
His instinct was to go up to the roof, but he couldn’t bare it anymore. The roof was drowned in memories of Neil. He couldn’t go up there without feeling the echo of Neil’s lips on his skin.
So he started driving. He drove until he buried the heartbreak as far down as he could. Until he felt only numbness. He wiped away the few tears that had managed to escape him. And then he came back and Neil was alone again. He couldn’t bare to ask. Couldn’t bare to hear Neil either lie or confess. He just ended it. Ripped off the bandage. And then it was gone. This light in the darkness. Andrew had been in darkness his whole life, just surviving. And then Neil had come along and it was like he could finally see again, as much as he didn’t want to. And now the light was gone. The universe had proved him right once again. There was nothing good for him here. Neil was and had always been, a pipe dream, and Andrew had finally woken up. It was more painful than he had expected it to be. The pain would linger, he knew. He would never be able to escape it. Because part of his soul was missing now, shredded apart, taken by Neil’s scarred hands and ice blue eyes and silver tongue.
~
It was movie night with the foxes. It had been two days since Andrew and Neil’s breakup and none of the foxes knew. Neil felt nauseous at the thought of having to tell the foxes, of having to be in the same room as Andrew again. He hadn’t seen him since that day. He didn’t want to cry again. For two days he had dreamt of Andrew. Andrew next to him, Andrew loving him, and both times he had woken up to remember the truth. It shattered him every time. He hadn’t expected to cry. But the tears flowed and overflowed and never stopped. Just the thought of Andrew made his throat tighten painfully.
~
Andrew knew he looked like shit. He hadn’t slept one minute the past two days. He hadn’t been able to smoke either, it reminded him too much of Neil. The nicotine withdraw mixed with his grief caused headaches, lack of appetite, nausea. He had already vomited his guts up twice today. He had told Bee what happened, but her advice had just sounded like ringing in his ears, faraway, insignificant. He was drifting off to sea and there was no one to pull him back. And now he had to see him. He had to sit in the same goddamn room as Neil for hours, pretending to care about movie night, pretending to be some form of a capable human being. It was going to be agony to be at a party when he felt like an open wound, raw and bleeding out.
Neil wasn’t there yet when he got in. Andrew dragged his tired body to a beanbag and plopped down, not acknowledging anyone. Normally, he would have stopped to get ice cream first, but he knew he would vomit if he so much as smelled it. Normally he’d be sitting with Neil up against him, his warmth seeping into him like honey. Nothing was normal anymore.
Neil finally appeared in the doorway and it was a slight consolation to Andrew that Neil looked like shit too. His eyes were puffy, red, and bloodshot. He had deep dark circles under his eyes. His hair looked greasy and disheveled, like he hadn’t bothered to wash or brush it in days. His eyes were lifeless, like chips of ice so cold they could burn. Neil’s eyes caught Andrew’s for a moment and his entire body froze. Andrew felt nausea roil in his gut at the feel of Neil’s eyes on him. He looked away quickly.
“Hey... woah Neil. Are you okay? You look like shit,” Matt said.
Neil’s eyes barely flickered in recognition of Matt’s words. He didn’t even look at Matt, his lifeless eyes were glued to the floor.
“I’m fine,” Neil said, his voice cold, dead. Matt looked deeply concerned and he exchanged worried looks with Dan and Nicky. Neil just trudged over to his beanbag on the opposite side of the couch and plopped in it, staring at his hands like he was searching for something there.
“Neil? Can you tell us what’s wrong?” Allison asked, leaning over Neil.
Neil didn’t reply, just flicked his eyes to Andrew for a moment and then went back to staring at his hands.
All the foxes looked to Andrew then.
“Andrew?” Nicky said tentatively.
“We broke up.”
All the foxes froze at this. Eyes jumping between Neil and Andrew over and over, most likely cataloging how miserable they both looked.
“W-what happened?” Nicky asked looking to Neil.
Neil snapped his eyes to Andrew, fire flickering there once again, “He dumped me,” Neil said, his voice like steel. Andrew wanted to bury a knife in his gut in that moment. How dare Neil make him out to be the bad guy?
Andrew snorted, muttered under his breath, “You’re pathetic.”
Neil seemed to freeze at the words, and then deflate. He looked so broken and defeated in that moment that Andrew almost felt regret. No. Neil cheated. He deserved this.
Allison went over and sat next to Neil, wrapped her arm around his waist.
“Mind if I sit with you for the movie?” She asked kindly. Neil just smiled weakly and rested his head on Allison’s shoulder. Nicky gave Andrew a scathing look before flicking the lights off for the movie. By the end Andrew’s head was pounding and he felt one second away from vomiting all over the floor. Nicky, Allison, Matt, and Dan had all been fawning over Neil the entire movie. Bringing him food and drinks, hugging him, whispering words of kindness in his ears. Aaron and Kevin had been cautiously watching Andrew throughout the night but hadn’t said a word. They had looks of concern in their eyes though.
When Nicky flipped the lights on Andrew immediately got up to leave, but he swayed on his feet. He paused, closing his eyes, trying to gain equilibrium. Neil had trudged off to the bathroom so at least Andrew could leave the dorm in peace. Andrew almost didn’t say anything, but he felt their eyes on him, angry and accusing. Because how dare Andrew hurt their perfect little Neil. Andrew paused in the doorway on his way out, turned to look back at the foxes.
“You can stop treating Neil like a broken victim.”
“Why?” Nicky said sharply.
“Because he cheated on me,” Andrew said with a cold grin, saluting the foxes with a hand as he left the dorm.
Andrew felt Aaron on his heels as he was leaving the dorm. He turned around to face him. Aaron looked confused, distraught.
“He cheated on you?”
“That’s what I said isn’t it?” Andrew said, raising a brow.
“How do you know?”
“I heard them. I saw remnants of their clothing on the floor,” Andrew said honestly.
“Another guy?” Aaron asked, sounding afraid.
Andrew swallowed the tightness in his throat, “A girl.”
Anger and disgust flashed in Aaron’s eyes, “I’ll kill him. I’ll kill that bastard,” Aaron said venomously. Andrew just laughed coldly and walked away.
“Don’t follow me.”
~
Aaron stormed back into the dorm, ready to rip Neil’s throat out.
“Where’s Neil?” He demanded.
“He just left to go on a run... why do you look like you’re about to commit homicide?” Matt asked cautiously.
“Because that piece of shit cheated on Andrew.” Aaron said.
“I thought Andrew was kidding,” Nicky said.
“Holy shit... Neil actually...” Kevin muttered under his breath.
“Wait. Wait. Are you sure?” Dan asked, looking to Aaron.
“What? You think he’d lie about that?” Aaron asked scathingly.
None of the foxes had a reply to that. They were all standing in shocked silence. Morning practice tomorrow was going to be rough.
~
Andrew squeezed his eyes shut and gripped his hand against the goal, trying to fight against his nausea. He knew he was going to vomit again. He just didn’t know when.
Neil hadn’t shown up to practice yet. He was 30 minutes late. All the foxes had been silent throughout practice, only speaking when absolutely necessary. Wymack had asked what the hell was going on so Nicky went up and whispered something in his ear. Wymack stayed quiet after that.
Andrew walked over to the water jug, trying to blink the stars out of his eyes. And then Neil walked onto the court. Andrew physically gagged at the sight and had to swallow back his vomit. Neil looked even worse today, if that were possible. He didn’t look at anyone as he trudged towards the team. He looked dead inside, like a ghost of himself.
Before anyone could react Aaron had Neil slammed against the wall. Aaron punched Neil in the jaw and Neil’s head snapped to the side at the impact but his expression barely changed. He didn’t even fight back. Everyone was frozen, not knowing what to do.
Aaron slammed him harder against the wall, “I should kill you. I should rip your throat out right here.”
Neil just laughed, his expression dead, “I won’t stop you.”
Aaron seemed to pause at Neil’s tone. Because Neil meant it. If Aaron had actually tried to kill him, he wouldn’t have fought back. The lack of fire, the lack of care in Neil’s eyes, it was terrifying. And even though Neil had shattered Andrew, the thought of Neil dead, the thought of Neil wanting to be dead, made Andrew sick. And finally the vomit he’d been holding back all day came out. Everyone turned to Andrew in shock. Andrew was on his hands and knees on the ground now, dry heaving, choking and spitting. He had barely eaten in days, his stomach had nothing left to reject but the feeling of his heart shattering over again.
“Andrew,” Neil said breathlessly, breaking apart from Aaron to run to Andrew’s side. Andrew kept dry heaving, didn’t have enough energy to push Neil away when he settled next to him on the ground.
When Andrew finally stopped dry heaving he turned a scathing look to Neil, grabbed his shirt with a fist and pulled him closer.
“You piece of shit. You don’t get to do that. You don’t get to give up. You don’t get to want to die. Don’t you fucking dare Abram.”
Neil’s eyes widened, he shook his head, over and over, “I can’t... I can’t do this Andrew. It hurts too much.”
And for some reason at those words Andrew paused, realized something. Neil had never once looked guilty. He had never once looked regretful. He had only looked heartbroken and confused. Either that meant that Neil was much more heartless than Andrew had thought, or... No. There’s no way Andrew was wrong. He knows what he heard. He knows what he saw. But some instinct inside of him made him pause. He knew Neil better than he knew anyone or anything, and if Neil had really cheated on him this wouldn’t have been his reaction. Andrew went over what he had seen and heard over and over in his head, and realized... there could be another explanation. The hope that flared in his chest pissed him off so much that he shoved Neil away as hard as he could. Neil just steadied himself and blinked at Andrew. He had noticed Andrew’s thoughts changing direction.
“Drew?”
Andrew glared at him, “Don’t. Don’t fucking call me that right now.”
Andrew’s thoughts were going a mile a minute, trying to discern the truth from what he had assumed. He knew he should just ask Neil, but he didn’t want an audience for that conversation. He looked in Neil’s blue eyes and only saw fear, confusion, hope, and such deep, unending sadness. No guilt. No regret. Had Andrew truly been wrong? Did he break up with Neil for a reason that didn’t exist?
“What is it?” Neil asked.
Andrew just shook his head and walked off the court.
Andrew went to the roof of fox tower. Smoked a cigarette, smoked 3. He called Bee. Told her his predicament. Of course she just said he needed to have an honest conversation with Neil. Andrew rolled his eyes at the thought. It had been a while and he was sure practice was almost over by now but he was tired of waiting. Andrew drove back to the court and waited in the parking lot. When the foxes saw Andrew waiting they all paused. Andrew just looked to Neil and gestured for him to come over. The foxes stayed back, watching, but just out of earshot.
Neil walked up to Andrew, he looked nervous.
“When I came to the dorm Saturday night there was woman’s undergarments thrown of the floor. I heard you with someone in the bedroom. She told you you were sexy and she asked if you had condoms.” Andrew said calmly. Neil blinked. Blinked again. He dropped his bag and racquet on the ground like he was in shock.
“You thought I cheated on you!?” Neil half-shouted.
“Didn’t you?” Andrew asked.
“No! Andrew I would never- I can’t believe-Oh my God.”
Now Neil was making Andrew feel stupid for ever thinking it, and that really pissed him off.
“Explain,” he bit out.
Neil rubbed a hand across his face, disbelief and frustration written all over his face.
“One of the girls in my math class. We were assigned a group project together so she came over a few times to work on it. Her clothes were on the floor because she spilled her coffee all over her on her way in. I let her borrow some of Allison’s leftover clothes while hers got washed,” Neil cringed, “While we were working on the project she said my hair looked long and I needed a haircut. I agreed and she trimmed my hair a little. She called me sexy because I guess she thought it looked good,” Neil’s cheeks flushed and he twisted his hands together, “She knew I was seeing you later that night, thats why she was talking about condoms. I’m sorry Drew.”
Andrew stared at Neil, took all this information in, repeated it in his head. He knew Neil wasn’t lying. Neil’s words were genuine, his expression was genuine. He felt like an idiot. Of course Neil wouldn’t cheat on him. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
“Okay.”
Neil took a step closer to Andrew, looked at him with those big blue eyes.
“Does this mean we’re back together?”
Andrew scoffed and looked away. Neil just took another step towards Andrew and lifted his hand to Andrew’s cheek. Andrew nuzzled his head against Neil’s hand and sighed, his eyes fluttering shut. Andrew’s heart felt so happy, so light. The relief of having Neil back was almost enough to bring him to his knees. His Neil. The light was back brighter than ever before.
Neil stared and stared at Andrew. His Andrew. He understood now. He felt horrible, thinking of the way Andrew must have felt the last few days. He wish he would have known. If he had known Andrew had thought he was cheating, of all things... The thought of Neil ever cheating on Andrew was laughable. Neil would rather die than be with anyone else. All Neil wanted to do now was wrap Andrew in his arms and never let go.
“I thought i’d lost you,” Neil said softly, still caressing Andrew’s cheek.
“I thought you didn’t want me anymore,” Andrew whispered. The confession broke Neil’s heart.
“Yes or no?” Neil said and right when he saw Andrew’s nod he wrapped him in his arms, holding him tightly.
“I love you Drew. You’re all I will ever want. Every day for the rest of my life. I only want you. Always.”
Andrew had his head buried in Neil’s neck, breathing him in, soaking up the words Neil was saying.
“I love you too. And yes junkie we’re back together.”
Neil laughed lightly and pulled back, “Promise me if you ever think I cheated on you again you’ll talk to me about it first before dumping me?”
Andrew snorted but still saw the phantom pain lingering in Neil’s eyes, “I promise. But Neil? Why did you think I broke up with you?”
Neil frowned, “I didn’t know. I thought you just got bored of me like you said you would.”
“I never meant that. I want to be with you forever.”
Neil sighed and his lips quirked up, “That’s good.”
“Yes or no Neil?”
“Yes,” Neil said breathlessly and then they were kissing, slowly, languidly. Andrew pulled Neil closed and wrapped and arm around his waist, the other going to his hair. Neil tangled his hands in Andrew’s hair as they kissed and all the pain of the last few days disappeared.
When they broke apart Neil traced Andrew’s lips with a hand, “I love you Drew. Only you.”
Andrew kissed Neil once on the forehead and flicked his eyes to the foxes. They all looked thoroughly confused. Probably all wondering why Andrew was taking back Neil if he cheated on him. Neil glanced back at the foxes and then looked to Andrew, frowning.
“They all think I cheated on you don’t they?”
“Maybe,” Andrew said, his lips tugging up at the corners.
Neil snorted, “Well that explains why Aaron punched me.”
Andrew’s grin faltered, he examined Neil’s jaw but only saw a small bruise there. Neil’s eyes softened.
“I’m okay. And besides if I had cheated on you I definitely would have deserved it.”
Andrew snorted and gestured for the foxes to come over to them. They all cautiously walked up and waited for Andrew or Neil to speak.
“I didn’t cheat on Andrew. But I appreciate your defending him. If I had cheated on him I would have deserved much worse.”
“Oh thank god. So you two are back together now? Because it was really horrible having you both so unhappy.” Nicky rambled.
“Wait. Andrew you just assumed he cheated and dumped him without even asking him about it?” Kevin asked.
Andrew just shrugged, “Oops.”
Aaron narrowed his eyes at Neil, not fully believing him. Andrew caught his eye and nodded. Reassuring Aaron that he knew what he was doing.
“We’re leaving now. Bye,” Andrew said, taking Neil’s hand and dragging him to the car.
Once they were alone in the Maserati Neil smiled softly at Andrew. Andrew just stared back.
“What is it junkie?”
“I love you,” Neil said, grinning widely.
Andrew rolled his eyes but couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his mouth. He leaned in and kissed Neil softly on the lips, “I love you too.”
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jetaime-jespere · 4 years ago
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Prompt #19
#19. “Does your life revolve around embarrassing me?”
“Aaron, I need a favor.”
His boss, Rich, catches him as he’s arriving for the day, shuffling a few piles of papers on his desk as he waits for the clock to strike 8. Not a moment before, not a moment after, he thinks. Their shifts are carefully timed, every minute on the clock accounted for. The budget is tight; Aaron’s heard the rumors, questioning of why Ambassador Prentiss needs the amount of security she has. Whispers of cuts have become more and more frequent over the last few weeks. He’s grateful to still have a full schedule of shifts. Others haven’t been as lucky.
“Sir?” Aaron asks as evenly as he can. It’s about to be a long day and from what he’s learned in the months of working there, visits from Ambassador Prentiss’s head of security typically entail some special assignment, one he didn’t sign up for, but is volun-told for. “Is there something you needed?” He knows he shouldn’t ask, but he needs a good letter of recommendation when he ultimately puts in his two weeks sooner rather than later. He has his eyes on something a bit more ambitious, potentially the FBI. He’s already started the grueling application process.
“A big favor.” Rich sounds slightly out of breath, as if he ran the whole way to his office, judging by his red face. He looks annoyed, his face a little pinched, etched with a few more lines than it had the first time they met. Aaron still isn’t quite sure what makes his job so stressful - the Ambassador’s residence runs like clockwork, and now that it’s fall and things have settled down, it’s been relatively quiet.
“I need you to drive to New Haven this morning. I’d ask Harris to do it, but he called off sick and we’re short-staffed already.” It’s the way he says it that Aaron knows he just learned the news too, as if trying to coordinate logistics in his own head.
New Haven. Fuck, Aaron thinks, briefly closing his eyes. What he wants to say is Harris called off for a bachelor party in Ocean City and to find someone else. Instead, he sinks into his desk chair, doing his best to keep his expression neutral. Driving to New Haven can only mean one thing, and while he’s almost certain no one knows what happened over the summer, he can never be too sure. “New Haven, Sir? This morning?” He glances at the calendar on the wall - shit. It’s the coming weekend before Thanksgiving -more traffic is all but a given, and it also means Emily will be home for almost a full week.
Then he remembers he’s scheduled to work doubles most of the holiday week.
Great.
“Ambassador Prentiss called me to her office an hour ago. She’s asking that Emily be driven home from Yale tonight. I don’t know the details, but she was pretty persistent that one of us would go up there and get her. My guess is she got into some kind of trouble, but you didn’t hear that from me.”
Aaron tries to hide his annoyance, and more so the slight tug of worry in the pit of his stomach. “What are you talking about? What kind of trouble?” He does the math in his head - it’s  a five hour drive to Connecticut without traffic. There and back will be at least a twelve hour day, if not more.
“I don’t want to speculate, but the last time this happened, she got caught underage in a bar and nearly got arrested. We never found out exactly what happened, but from what I heard, it wasn’t good.”
Aaron grimaces; it’s exactly like Emily’s mother to sweep something like that under the rug and completely ignore the bigger issue at hand. From what he’s learned, it’s been a familiar pattern for years.
“The Ambassador approved time and a half for whoever makes the trip. I know you said you need the -”
“I’ll do it,” Aaron says quickly before he can think too much about the circumstances, wondering just what could be so pressing at such a last minute.  His situation with Emily is complicated, one that should have never even become a thing in the first place. But it did, and even three months after she’d left, she remains at the forefront of his mind most days, a constant reminder of those hot summer nights in mid July.
There’d been nights at his apartment and early mornings in her room; behind closed doors he’d fallen for her. She’d careened into his world completely unexpected, a welcomed change from his familiar pattern of soft-spoken, yet well-intentioned blondes. Emily was the exact opposite. There had been secret meetings tucked amongst the endless gardens, dinners in dive bars and a few trips to nicer restaurants under the city lights when his paycheck allowed.  It was exhilarating and all consuming until it wasn’t, when it all came to a screeching halt a few weeks later.
They haven’t talked since the night before left for New Haven. The night ended with an argument, along with tears (hers) and a ridiculous sense of guilt (his) as he dropped her off just outside the gates of the mansion. Yet she’d been the one to end it, explaining through thinly veiled frustration that it just wouldn’t work, that everything would change and none of this could continue. His pushback had only angered her, his attempts to assure her it could in fact work fell on deaf ears. And as she’d all but fled from his car, it was fear he saw in her face. Fear of possibility for what could be.
All of this, along with their months of silence, means he’s probably the last person she’ll expect to see outside her door. Aaron has a feeling she isn’t quite prepared for what is about to be a very unexpected visit. What he also knows is that neither is he.
It’s been awhile since he stepped foot on a college campus, and he doesn’t exactly blend in wearing a full suit and dark sunglasses in a sea of jeans and sweatshirts. He ignores the stares he gathers from the small groups of students all over the campus, finding her building with relative ease.
He nods a thanks to the girl holding the door open, quickening his pace just a little. She gives him a once over, lifting an eyebrow at his attire. “Campus security is the other way, you know. You look a little lost.”
“I’m in the right place,” he retorts quickly, brushing past her and up to the third floor. As he climbs the stairs with a slight burn in his lungs from the exertion, Aaron remembers Emily complaining about that three story climb over the summer, and the memory of her, warm in his arms, almost makes him smile. Almost. But she most likely has no idea he’s coming; it’s impossible to tell what her reaction will be. Anger? Indifference? But by now he’s standing outside her door, and it’s too late to turn back.
Aaron knocks three times, crisp and precise, then waits a few perfunctory moments. No answer. He knocks again, this time a little more insistent, and he hears a soft grunt, a muffled voice from behind the door. What he doesn’t expect is what he sees when the door swings open. A guy, about her age give or take, blinks away the confusion from his eyes, his defenses rising immediately. He’s clearly not expecting visitors, and Aaron, half expecting him to close the door in his face, briefly wonders if he has the right room.
319. It’s right, and this just got significantly more awkward, even as a small bubble of jealousy rises in his throat, one that takes him by surprise. “Who the hell are you?” Aaron asks, instinctively propping the door open with his foot.
“Name’s Rob.” There’s a cigarette in his hand; the room smells like an ashtray and slightly of stale wine, even though it’s the middle of the day. He flicks his eyes over Aaron’s suit and scoffs with an air of arrogance. “What are you, some kind of cop or something?”
“I’m here for -”
“Aaron? What are you doing here?” Emily suddenly pops up behind Rob out of nowhere, looking just as surprised, and slightly embarrassed as realization dawns on her face. “Tell me my mother did not send you here.”
Rob visibly tenses at the mention of the Ambassador. “Your mom’s got the cops chasing you now? I thought you said she wouldn’t find out about  -”
Emily’s cheeks flush as she rolls her eyes, taking a sideways look at Aaron. “He’s not a cop, Rob. He just works for her.”
“Basically the same thing, right? You said she basically had her own secret service. You know this guy?”
“Yeah,” Emily sighs with frustration. “I know him.”
Aaron shifts from foot to foot, staring between them both. Being here suddenly feels invasive; he wishes he would have never said yes to this in the first place. It’s clear nothing has changed between Emily and her mother, and everything has changed between the two of them. She’s clearly moved on. Maybe it’s best to make this as detached as possible - a business transaction, no emotions or feelings. “I’m your ride home. Start packing.”
“What the fuck are you doing?” Emily narrows her eyes and crosses her arms over her chest.
“Just following orders.” He scans the room - the counter is littered with empty cans and cups, a deck of cards strewn over the desk in a corner, an ashtray full of cigarettes. “How soon do you think you can be ready to leave?”
“Leave? What about tonight?” Rob cuts in. “Brian and Dan got bottle service tonight. I thought you were going to bring that hot friend of yours. Dan wants to meet her.”
“Bottle service?” Aaron says incredulously, wishing he could wipe the smirk off Rob’s face. “You do know she’s underage, right?” He doesn’t have to look at Emily to know that is enough to set her off, and she shoots him a look that could cut glass.
“Listen man,” Rob begins, swaying on his feet. “I don’t know who you are but -”
“I’m  the guy who's going to kick you out-” Aaron begins tersely.
“Just go, Rob. Please just … go.” Emily snaps, presses her fingertips to her eyes, the heat rising to her face like two blood red stains on her cheeks. “I’ll … I’ll call you once I figure this out. Just go without me.”
“Or just ditch your babysitter.” He scoffs but still leans in closer, all but towering over her. Aaron doesn’t miss the way Emily recoils when Rob kisses her cheek. He reminds him of the type of guy who would go from her room straight into another girl’s without a second thought, say all the same things and no one will be the wiser. But the door shuts, leaving them alone for the first time in months. Aaron shoves his hands in his suit pockets and stares out the window as Emily sneers.
“Does your life revolve around embarrassing me now?”  she huffs, looping her hair behind her ear, shoes obnoxiously clunking against the floor as pulls a suitcase from under her bed. “Because if so, you’re doing a real bang-up job.”
“No. My job,” he says, placing emphasis on the word, “is getting you back home like I was ordered to do.”
“So they sent you this time?” She sighs, dumping some empty cups into the trash. “Why am I not surprised?” It’s mid afternoon but she looks exhausted, and Aaron wonders if she even got any sleep at all the night before.
“I’m just following orders,” he says again, following her with his eyes as Emily starts tossing clothes into a bag. There’s no thought to her packing process; she opens drawers and slams them shut, pulling out clothes with a little too much force.
“Do you want to tell me what happened?” He asks a little more softly this time, keeping space between them both.
“No.”
As expected.
“You can tell me, you know.”
“Nothing happened,” she says crisply, zipping her suitcase shut. But she doesn’t look at him, which confirms that something definitely happened.
“Then why am I here?”
“Aaron,” Emily says almost teasingly, as if any memory of the last time they spoke has seemingly evaporated from her mind. “This is certainly not the first time my mother has sent one of you up here to come get me for some reason or another. It certainly won’t be the last.”
“Seems like an awful lot of trouble for her to go to.” From the tone of his voice it’s clear he doesn’t believe her, but she doesn’t seem to care.
“You have met her right? The only person my mother cares about is herself. And her career. She doesn’t care who else is inconvenienced by that.”
He can’t argue with her, and decides to drop it for the time being. There’s a five hour car ride awaiting them; plenty of time to peel her walls down. “If we don’t leave soon we’re going to hit rush hour,” he says patiently, checking his watch. “The sooner we get back, the better.”
She’s quiet for a few minutes, finishing the last of her packing. But finally Emily meets his stare, and for the first time since he arrived, offers a smile. “It’s good to see you, Aaron.”
This time, he almost believes her.
...
“So, who’s your friend?” Aaron asks casually, a half hour into their five hour trip. She’s hardly said a word since taking the passenger seat; her only request was to stop at the gas station for coffee and a pile of sugary candy that she’s started to work her way through. “Rob?”
His question gets the shortest of laughs from Emily as she tips her sunglasses down her nose. “You lasted longer than I thought you would.” Yet she gives nothing else, and he knows he has to push her a little harder.
“He’s kind of an ass,” Aaron says without taking his eyes off the road. “You hang around him a lot?”
“Why?” She challenges, less out of anger rather than amusement. She’s known this question was coming since the minute she saw him standing in the door. “Are you jealous or something?”
He says nothing, only turns his head to stare at her. “Answer my question.”
“Sometimes.” Emily picks at the seam of a bag of peach rings, her eyes on her lap. “You’re not wrong, though, in your assessment.”
“And yet you still hang around him?” He doesn’t bother to hide the distaste in his voice. “Seems like bad news. Is he the reason why I’m here?”
“You’re worried,” she says quietly, crossing and recrossing her legs. “I can tell.”
“Of course I’m worried, Emily. I’m fucking worried to say the least. Can you blame me?”
“You shouldn’t. It’s under control.” Her silence is telling, an indicator that the conversation is over as she pointedly turns to face the window. Aaron swallows in frustration, knowing he pushed a little too far.
Connecticut turns into New York, the miles already starting to blend together in the tense quiet. As the traffic thickens and the SUV comes to a stop, the George Washington bridge looming in the distance, Emily speaks for the first time in more than an hour.
“Aaron?” She says hesitantly, her bottom lip between her teeth with worry. “Can you keep a secret?”
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practicalmagicintuitions · 4 years ago
Note
Here is the Chris Reading for the anons asking for it:
I’ve placed a whole bunch of things down for this one. You guys wanted general, so until I could hone in on something, I had to just test the waters on all things. (I’m not following him so I don’t know what’s going on at all) if you guys notice something in this reading that you think could be symbolism for something you actually know of in his life, let me know! :)
I was asked for General, how he feels about relationships, how he feels about marriage, career? And love life.
1. I put down Chris
2. Being in a relationship” second. BIAR Wanted to be in front of Chris, Chris also wanted it there
3. Career was confused where to go, Being in a relationship was in the way. Career decided it’s gonna jam itself between them. (Already this is super telling.)
4. Being Single - single was attached to career, it wanted to stay with career it wouldn’t move elsewhere
5. Family are right behind Chris, (good that’s where they should be. Doesn’t look like any animosity atm)
6. Strangely, marriage wanted to be in front of in a relationship……..? That’s gonna be a fun one to figure out.
7. “Having kids” is behind him, past family and on the left (it’s the furthest placement away so far”
Chris is staring ahead at Career, single, BIAR and single. They’re all in a line.
Chris is staring straight at career. I can’t feel anything from him besides the fact that this big brick wall called a career is in front of him. I see nothing past that. “Single” though, rather than seeming as big as career, seems to represent itself as a little flag thats just been pressed into the side of the brick wall, single isnt giving me any feeling either.
That being said, the career brick wall is not intimidating. It’s just more like he’s looking up at it like, “huh. Big guy” he has the need to climb over it.
Yeah, listen this wall is a wall but he’s not trying duck his head to the side and see past it, he just has the need to jump over this brick wall. The wall is maybe 7 foot tall, so in comparison to himself and how big he feels in this scenario (he feels his normal 6 foot self) he absolutely could. But it’s just interesting that what I’m seeing/feeling is a brick wall that’s like 5 foot in length and yet he has no desire to just bypass it and go to the side, he wants to climb the fucking thing?
Chris stans, tell me what the HELL that is about. You know him better than I. Does he like the competition or accomplishment? Does he feel he needs to prove himself the hard way?
Anyway, he’s pretty confident he can jump this wall. And single is not even a thing to him in its current position.
He’s thinking very hard about how to jump this wall. Like he knows how, you lift yourself up and jump over it I can see that image in my head very easy, but he’s struggling to actually DO it?
Nope, ok he doesn’t want to.
He knows he can jump it, he knows it’s blocking everything else, but I go to take an action for him and he’s like “nah I’m good tho”
Seems a fitting time to put in “anxiety.”
I laughed out loud when I had to place anxiety. Take a wild guess where it felt it needed to be?
You bet chya, it’s on the wall.
And then it couldn’t make up its mind. Officially I’ve placed it on the wall together with “single” and “career” but the energy for anxiety is actually that’s it’s jumping in front of the wall, to on the wall, to behind the wall and it keeps doing that. Just back and forth.
Makes total sense as to why he can’t cross this wall.
Now that anxiety is there he doesn’t want to look in its direction at all.
He’s gotten a bit warm and a bit of a headache too now, and a bit dizzy. The headache is real present.
The good news is in these situations where someone can’t move due to anxiety or otherwise, it’s always a good time to place supports, so the person can feel supported to do the thing they want and move forward. Luckily, his family are already placed behind him, they seem to really love him, so it’s just about me utilising that now.
This part I’m going to do more privately (as in I won’t type it) cause this would be a personal thing (maybe even generational thing) that he needs to move through with his family in order for them to feel that support. His anxiety didn’t come from nowhere. That being said I’m also not going to do a whole ass constellation with him cause 1. He’s not here and 2. It would take hours.
All I’ll say is his mum is a MASSIVE support for him, and also……. 😬 kinda swamping him a bit. He doesn’t mind it, it’s actually very comforted, but she truly is just physically in this reading SWAMPING him. An outsider could see that she’s maybe a bit too involved with his life.. which isn’t great for a fully grown man. But, he finds it comforting, what are ya gonna do. Clearly he doesn’t want it to end… :/
(For reading purposes So it’s not just jumping, I took about 5 minutes with him and his family to help move past anxiety, his family love the crap out of the guy it’s real cute.)
I thought this was important to note:
What Career feels in relation to CE:
Very big, bulky, serious. Reminds me a bit of Wilson Fisk from into the spider verse. Just very big, bulky, serious a bit of a bully. Not gonna move. You’re gonna do what I tell you. Restrictive. That kind of energy. It doesn’t HATE him, but it has rules. And Chris is gonna follow them. (That’s a threat) it also feels like within career is actually a powerful male that kinda owns his ass? Not sure who that could be, once again CE stans, gimme the tea.
For the next part I might… get in trouble. I know that when it comes to the talk of relationships no one likes to hear it. Don’t kill the messenger here you guys:
he has his back TURNED from “single”
I could encourage him to look everywhich other way for any other representative, but single? Back turned.
Doesn’t wanna look at it.
Single on the other hand is kinda looking at him like a little kid like :) hi Chris look pls. Chris! Pls :) Chris look at me Chris pls :) Chrissy! Take a look!
For whatever reason “single” in this reading is feeling very adolescent. Maybe he feels that being single isn’t a grown up thing to do anymore? (I forgot to mention, the things in the field take on the energy of the person it’s focused on, not necessarily how it is perceived by EVERYONE in the world, only how it’s perceived or how it acts in relation to the client. Single to ME might be a knight in shining armor that protects me, Single to Chris seems adolescent.
So, Chris is looking at both “marriage” and “being in a relationship” he’s not feeling particularly drawn towards either, but he is giving a lot more attention to “being in a relationship” than marriage.
Which is weird, cause if you don’t want single, yet you don’t want relationship, what do you want?
I have now brought in “situationship” “flirting w/ someone” and “fwb”
situationship is closest, but doesn’t have his full attention, as it’s to the left side of him at an Angle. FWB is just behind situationship but more aligned to be in front of his eyesight, and flirting with someone is on the right from him, at an angle and is the furthest of the three.
Ok, FWB feels the most comfortable for him, he actually took a step towards it. He’s not feeling super fond of any of the three in any way, but FWB is nice it’s comforting, he’s.. semi happy? It’s not even really happy… it’s just like “doing ok!This is ok! This is comfortable.”
He’s side eyeing the shit out of “situationship” though and is anxious at how close it is. He doesn’t actually want the situationship there, but it’s close now and it’s not moving, and he’s having a bit of anxiety about it. He can’t stop looking at it though. FWB is immediate comfort, situationship is SO ANXIETY INDUCING but it’s also more interesting to look at?
(Chris get therapy 🙄)
Flirting with someone is out of the picture, been there, done that doesn’t care about it. (Could be that he’s already gone through the flirting stage with someone that’s why it’s of no interest to him)
Now that he’s finding situationship more interesting, he’s looking past FWB and to “being in a relationship” which he also finds nicer to look at. The thought coming up is “that would be nice” but in a wistful way.
Marriage is still right out, we’re not looking at marriage.
I’m gonna move relationship closer to situationship to see if he feels better or worse.
Lmao ok, I put them both together and imagined situation ship and relationship being close, like they’re holding hands. In his mind, situationship is a cute little brunette that’s like 5’4 and “being in a relationship” is built like an Amazonian 6’5 goddess and he’s both in awe, yet intimidated a bit, but also not hating it, but the only thought that came up was “ahhhhh…. Fuck.”
Two thoughts came up but they both got crossed out before he could finish it.
“I don’t want-“
“I’m not ready……..-“
And now he just keeps hesitantly saying relationship over and over again but he’s saying it like he’s brand new to the word, like he’s trying to find the word for the word - yet he’s already speaking it??
And now it’s just a flatlining “😐 mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm……”
Sat with this for a while and didn’t have much movement so time to move to:
Question time:
Q: Chris.. are you in a situationship?
I don’t know what I’m in
Q: Ok. Are you… sleeping with someone
Yeah
Q: Are you FWB?
He’s hesitant? Like he’s not sure. That word doesn’t seem to fit what he’s up to atm. He seems very confused about what he’s in.
Q: Are you going on dates with someone?
I’m going on dates
Q: With many people or just one?
Just…. One… (not sure why he was hesitant about telling me, but I feel like I’m starting to cross on something I’m not meant to talk about, so I’m ending it here. If he wants to keep it to himself, he is absolutely in his right to do so)
I will say when He said just one, a person did show up: brown hair, she’s shorter than him (but that’s obvious) and she’s slender and kinda perky. When I see her she looks like she’s fun! I saw her dancing around a bit. I liked her energy.
Sound like anyone you guys know?
Note: this is where I’ve ended it. Wasn’t gonna push on it he was getting more and more hesitant it’s not my place to push anything that he doesn’t want me to access. Now that we’ve created the focus though it will be easier to go from there :)
Hopefully that covered it for the anons that asked :) I’m over @energyanon to anyone that needs anything clarified.
Thank you for doing this @energyanon ! Your gift is amazing and thank you for your dedication!
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extremelyblackandwhite · 5 years ago
Text
handmaid - 11
PAIRING: mob!sebastian stan x ingenue!reader
WARNINGS: age gap, mentions of violence, gun mentioning
A/N: i watched endings, begginings again solely because of the scene we get a close up of seb making out with shailene and that scene will forever make me want him in unholy ways. hope you enjoy this chapter xxx
NEXT CHAPTER
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    - What? - Y/N stared at him, not because she hadn’t heard what he had said but because her brain seemed to have stopped mid synapse. She wondered if this was the hopeless romantic in her mixed with the lack of sleep that were making her hear things. But no. That confirmation came to her through his actions as he stepped close enough to her she could feel his breathe on her cheekbone. His hand cradled her face, looking at her with the uttermost adoration, almost like a scene straight off Springtime by Pierre-Auguste Cot. 
   - I’m here, nothing and no one can harm you. I don’t think you understand the things I would do for you. - he traced her bottom lip with his calloused thumb causing her small hairs to raise up as a shiver rolled down her spine. 
   - I ... You shouldn’t. - she was too immobile to even try and step back, but in all honesty, even if her nerves weren’t stopping her from moving, she herself would’ve stopped herself from moving. It felt nice. - You make me very nervous, Mr. Stan.
She took a step forward, hearing the shift of the gravel as her sock covered feet moved so her toes touched the point of his shoes. She wasn’t entirely sure what to do but there was an overwhelming need to be close to him. As so, she stretched her arms to him, wrapping them around his neck and burying her head in his pyjama shirt. It was a very baggy shirt with the logo of Regis High School. She guessed it had probably been his during his high school years and the little holes and slight thin patches of fabric spread across the tee contributed to that guess of hers. Sebastian sighed at this motion, his hand coming to rest upon the small of her back while his lips pressed against the crown of her head, slightly inhaling the faint scent of her lavender shampoo.
They remained in that same position as the bird slowly awaked as the very first sun rays broke through the night sky, the sounds of nature making them both forget they had just escaped a crossfire. They continued in that embrace until his phone loudly rang from the backseat where he had thrown it before. 
With much regret, he broke the embrace, hand taking slightly longer to her waist as he grabbed his phone, angrily answering it. Y/N just stood there, hand hoovering over his like someone who really wanted to hold his hand but was too shy to do so. Of course she was to shy to do so, this was her friend’s future husband. The same future husband who she would have to kiss and some day give a child to and here she was fully considering the idea of entering some sort of Anna/Vronsky relationship minus the opium and suicide.
   - I’ll be there in a few. - his words as the phone beeped off took her off her thought pattern.
   - Is everything alright? - she questioned, worry laced into her sleepy sounding voice. It was 4 AM after all, Y/N guessed that all in all, she’d probably gotten about an hour or two of sleep. 
   - Yeah. - he sighed, rubbing the side of his neck out of tiredness. - We need to go. 
   - Where are we going? - what was she doing? she asked herself as she noticed she was already sat in the shotgun seat without getting an answer. Was she that enamoured that she would get in the car without any response? Maybe, yet he did let this particular sight of safety. 
  - Airport.
She watched as his eyes were kept on the brightening road. Y/N didn’t know exactly what to say, all she knew exactly was that he made her feel warm and nervous but not in the way that being next to a mob boss. You should fear contact with one not crave one. 
Things were rather silent until the crash of noise from the airport made her look at something rather than the side of his face, watching as various airplanes landed a bit closer than she’d ever seen them land. He just drove as if a plane couldn’t misdirect or mislead and hit them, he drove with that sort of confidence that made you want to throw your arms in the air in great Taylor Swift music video fashion. He drove with the confidence she wished she had. 
The car slowly yet surely came to halt and as she turned her face to the window she could see the airplane from a few days before. She guessed they were going home for safety and despite her love for Paris, right now she wanted to go somewhere familiar. 
   - Gwen’s already inside. - he put his hand on the glove compartment, picking the music box and handing it to her. - Make sure you don’t lose this one too.
   - Are you not coming? - she noticed his hand was still very much gripping the wheel of the car. 
   - After this, I think I have some matters that need resolving. 
   - Why won’t you come with us? Surely it is Mr. Williams’ job to look over the Paris affairs. 
   - He’s very useless, angel. If I leave him to do anything, I’ll have to fly back and fix it. Besides, I’m sending him to New York for a bit after his disastrous deal.
   - Oh ... - she cradled the music box closer to her chest. - Are you gonna be alright?
   - Are you worried about me, angel? - he smirked at her, immediately causing her cheeks to heat up. - I will be just fine, you need only worry about Gwen.
   - That’s not what I meant. - Y/N faintly smiled at him, leaning over to kiss him on the cheek which took Sebastian off guard. It was so sweet and so young that half the rage he had accumulated towards whoever shot at his hotel. She just stared at her lap, lightly tracing the golden details of the box. - I don’t exactly want to go to your funeral.
   - I think I’ll be fine, angel. 
He is a mob boss, he will be fine. One does not become notorious by being easy to wound or easy to kill. Nevertheless, so had been the man who raised her and Gwen and he had still gotten a pretty bad wound shot every once in a while. No one is invisible. Achilles had his heel and Odysseus, Perseus, Theseus all had a lot more and they were all heroes who were eventually defeated. Dynasties fall and Y/N had seen it plenty of times.
She opened the door of the car, her sock covered feet reminding her that she was about to walk into a private jet in her pyjamas and socks. Gwen surely had thrown her into some wild situations yet none seemed to quite match up to this one. 
Closing the door behind her, she walked to the stairs that led to the door of the plane, turning around to briefly wave at Sebastian before he took off. Maybe it was best they were separated for a bit, maybe it was just a little crush that would vanish with a bit of time. What she wasn’t expecting was to walk into Gwen having her neck peppered and sucked by one of the bodyguards, Christian. 
    - Morning, Y/N. - she pushed the man away, giving her an enthusiastic smile as Y/N sat in the leathered seat in front of her. - Where have you been? Elias said Sebastian took you during the crossfire.
    - Yeah, are you okay? Sebastian said you were, I’m really sorry I didn’t come to find you.
    -  You two are sure buddying up. - she opened one of the magazines that were on the stand as the plane prepared to take off. 
    -  Oh, it’s not that. - she bite her lip looking at her feet.
    - Of course it is. You better not tell him about any of the boys or Christian, the last thing I need is to have someone dead because my fiancée is jealous. 
    - I’ve told you I’ll never tell on you besides he’s not jealous, he’s just worried about you. 
   - Well ... - she smirked, lowering the magazine. - He does employ some very fine men, specially at the art of bedding.
   - See, this is why your dad didn’t want you to watch Sex and the City when you were younger. - Y/N laughed, remembering when a teenage Gwen would sneak in at night along with her to watch Sex and the City reruns on the TV which would constantly annoy Mr. Forrest. 
   - You can’t be such a prude, you must have someone on your radar. Seriously, has there never been a guy who made you want to take a cold shower just from looking at him?
   - Guys don’t tend to look at me Gwen, they look at you. 
   - Bullshit. I could just bet you have someone and you’re just not telling me. 
Y/N just laughed it off, leaning against her pillows and the sleep finally won her over, throwing her for a nice slumber. She was awoken by the faint sound of rain hitting glass and as she slowly opened her eyes, she came to see the airport of what she called home for now. 
Rather quickly and wearing one of the bodyguards jacket in order to not look like a public threat to society in her pyjamas and socks, both her and Gwen were hushed into the limo which drove them back to their penthouse. The building looked darker and the weather was even darker. She prepared to go inside the bed and sleep more, despite having slept for 9 hours on the plane from Paris to NY. 
   - You look terrible. - Y/N heard a familiar voice as the lift doors opened. A big smile stretched on her face as she saw Dan standing there. - Are you even wearing any shoes?
  - You’re here! - she jumped into his arms, wrapping hers around his neck before stepping away for a bit. - I wasn’t expecting you to be here this soon.
  - After the crossfire, I decided to spend some time with you and Gwen at least until Mr. Stan returns
  - Oh great. - Gwen rolled her eyes. - Another babysitter. 
  - It’s good to see you too, Gwen. - he turned his gaze back to Y/N. - You look unharmed. Survived your first crossfire
  - Yeah, it’s been a crazy few days. Enough about me, did you bring Sophie? 
  - No, she’s staying at her mum’s for a while but we can go and visit I’m sure she’ll love to see you. 
  - Just set the date. 
  - So ... - Daniel took a seat on the living room’s coach while Gwen returned to her room, Christian in her foot. Y/N guessed she would be better sat by Dan’s side than in her room where she would possibly hear sounds of things she didn’t really feel like hearing right now. - I heard from Gwen that Sebastian was the one who took you during the crossfire. 
  - Yeah, his room was closer to mine ... - it wasn’t, it was as further from hers as it was from Gwen’s but she didn’t exactly felt like telling Dan that she had kissed his sister’s fiancé. - He’s not as bad as you think, Dan. 
  - You always try and see the good in people, Y/N. It is remarkable but please be careful. Seriously, there are things in this whole world that you are not used to. 
  - I’m not exactly clueless, Dan. He hasn’t been rude to me, he’s treated me as well as he treats Gwen. Besides until he mistreats any of us, I refuse to have such a deep dislike for him. 
  - Y/N, c’mon. I know you don’t get to see it but his kill count? It’s high even when compared to my dad and grandfather’s count all together. You step out of the line, you get erased. 
  - That’s not true. Mr. Williams stepped out the line in France and he’s still not dead.
  - Mr. Williams? When have you even met Thompson Williams?
  - At Gwen’s engagement party. What I mean is, I’m safe here, Dan. I would love if you stopped treating me like I’m the most clueless thing ever.
  - But you are clueless, Y/N. We’ve sheltered you and Gwen for most of it, you don’t ...
  - Oh ... - Y/N interrupted, getting up. - Since I’m that clueless, I think our conversation is over.
  - Y/N, don’t take it personally. 
  - I’m going to bed. I’ll see you tomorrow, Daniel.
tag list: @lilya-petrichor @xoxohannahlee @irespostthingsiwanttoseelater @nikkipea @madisonpillstrom @cevans98 @thelostallycat @sideeffectsofyou @anxiousdreamersworld​ @sarge-barnes-sir​
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knickknacksandallthat · 4 years ago
Note
Hi! I just want to say I really love your fics and your writing so much.
Aww, hello @sarcasm-is-my-only-langauge!! Thank you so much!! That is so sweet of you to say. It really makes me so happy when someone enjoys my writing! Thank you for brightening my day! (And psst...here's a little something to look forward to...coming soon! ♥)
“It’s non-negotiable,” Wymack reminded them again in the lounge on Friday.
“But why?” Dan questioned. It was unusual for the captain, who normally sided with Wymack on everything, but even this ask had her screwing her face up in distaste.
“Because someone,” and here Wymack’s eyes flicked to Neil so quickly that Andrew almost missed it, “gave the public the idea that we don’t give a shit about anything other than Exy.”
Neil stared back at him with zero remorse.
Andrew rolled his eyes. Junkie.
“Yes. So?” Kevin responded to the accusation, all arrogance.
Andrew was slightly amused that, for once, Wymack wasn’t referring to him.
“So, Kevin, the board determined that it’s about time this team started giving back. They arranged this little publicity stunt to make us look good, so that’s what we’re going to do. We’re going for a week’s worth of community service, and not a single one of you is going to give me shit about it.”
This, of course, was met with a chorus of protests, swearing, and rude noises.
“Seriously, Coach?”
“Come on! As if I don’t have enough going on?”
“We’re students. On a scholarship. I thought the whole point was we’re supposed to be studying.”
“Just blink twice, Coach, if it was Kevin who said it. Promise I’ll wait until your back is turned to slug him.”
“And here I thought we were the community service,” Aaron muttered.
“I heard that, Minyard. Keep talking and I’ll have you doing burpees for ten minutes straight,” Wymack snapped at him.
Aaron, who loathes burpees, quickly shut up.
“The same goes for any of you who try to duck out of this,” Wymack glared at the rest of them.
The group immediately fell silent.
He scanned the room, eyes landing purposefully on Andrew, as he continued, “I want you there, 8am sharp, ready to get your hands dirty.”
“My hands were born dirty,” Neil grumbled under his breath, but he at least was smart enough to keep his whisper to only a volume Andrew could hear.
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thewildwaffle · 5 years ago
Text
Haunted Houses
“You know the translators don’t work for written word right?” Danro grunted, eyeing the small tablet screen his human companion held out to him. It was displaying several small human glyphs.
“It’s just a waiver saying you’re okay with coming in, and that if you have any bad effects from the flashing lights or spooky stuff they use, you can’t sue them because you chose to be here willingly, blah blah blah.” Human Addy again held up the tablet. “Basically it’s just the legal-ese version of everything we talked about earlier. I can read through it for you if you really want.”
Danro let out a growling hum. “Just look through it and make sure there’s nothing in there that wasn’t what you told me earlier.”
“No prob.” Addy pulled the waiver back and scanned over it quickly, mumbling to herself under her breath as she read. Danro looked at the human working behind the check-in counter who was doing their best to not be obvious that they were gawking at him. Not that that bothered him or anything. Standing head and shoulders above most other humans and covered in long light brown and white fur, he certainly stood out from the gathered crowd.
“We’re good to go, everything checks out!” Addy declared, handing the tablet and stylus to Danro. “You just need to write a signature at the bottom and we can go in.”
“But I don’t know how to write in your language,” Danro glanced dubiously at the screen.
“Just take it,” Addy pushed the stylus into his large hands, “You can write in your language, it doesn’t matter.”
Danro doubted that. He sighed. Humans and their contracts. They were obsessed with them, and honestly, the more he got to know of their race, the more he started to understand why. Humans, for all their ingenuity and seemingly lovable natures, could be quite underhanded. They could think their way around and through most obstacles, especially when those obstacles were well-established but loosely-defined rules and expectations. Many a treaty or trade agreement had been swung wildly in favor of the party consisting of or including humans. It was like they lived for loopholes and variable interpretations. Intersystem lawyers have been scrambling to learn from and replicate the style humans wrote contracts. After all, only a human contract could (at least somewhat) confidently bind a human.
He scribbled his name in his own familiar letters, figuring that would have to be good enough. He trusted Addy when she said it was just a liability waiver after all. She had already signed one herself. After handing the tablet and stylus back to the kid working the booth, they were off.
As they walked around the entrance gate, Danro’s mind immediately went into overdrive trying to take in and process the scenery. The surrounding buildings creating the quad the event was hosted in were lit up with orange, purple, and green lights. Queues of patrons stretched along the concrete sidewalks that ran between buildings. They were watching costumed dancers in the middle of the quad as they waited to enter the “haunted” buildings. What looked like old metal trash cans had fires lit inside them with small crowds of humans and the occasional alien figure huddled around them. There were smaller lines in front of a few trailers and booths that looked like they were selling very aromatic foods and drinks.
An approaching figure caught Danro’s eye. It was almost as tall as him, draped in a raggedy shawl, and had a grotesquely disfigured face with lacerations running from the top of its head and across one eye. Danro sniffed. He saw blood, but he didn’t smell it. This must be a human actor in a costume, something Addy had warned him of beforehand. They were likely wearing stilts as they were almost eye level to him.
“My my my, what have we here!” The actor’s voice was both screechy and gravely, a combination that made Danro’s fur prickle slightly. "I've seen many a ghost and ghoul in these mansions, but I've yet to encounter any of the likes of you two." They made an exaggerated show of looking between Danro and Addy, as if sizing them up. “What do I call you two apparitions?”
Addy gave a small chuckled and gestured to herself. “I’m Addy, I’m a human. And this is Danro, he’s a kexi biet.”
“Mortals?!” The mask wobbled a bit as the actor stepped back dramatically and then leaned in to whisper conspiratorially, “I’d keep that information to yourselves while you’re here. Who knows what lurking terror might overhear and decide to snack on your bones!”
Danro smiled indulgently at the costumed human. They were certainly well in character.
“We’ll be sure to not mention it again,” he nodded.
“Be sure that you don’t!” the mask rose up so that the fake, glossy eyes were almost level with his own. “You are a brave biet, Danro. Brave, or perhaps foolish. I do hope you and your small companion survive. Come.” They turned and led them towards the center of the quad. They paused and waited for them to catch up next to one of the trash can fires. “Have either of you been here before?”
Addy nodded, “Yeah but it’s been YEARS.” Danro shook his head.
“What a treat, then.” They pointed to one of the closer buildings with a purple light out front. Danro noticed that the actor’s costume was detailed down to the largely uneven stitches on their sleeves. It gave their arm an odd shape. Or at least, he hoped the odd shape of their arm was just part of the costume.
“Each of these buildings is haunted, some more than others. They are color-coded by the lights of how ‘dangerous’ they are.”
“So is that one the safest?” Addy dipped her head to the building being pointed to.
Their guide only laughed ominously. “Present your passes to the attendants by the door. No running, no pushing, no flashlights or video, no explicit language as it disturbs our… residents, and keep your hands to yourself if you’d like to keep your hands.”
And without another word, their guide ambled off. Addy shuffled a little closer to the fire and grinned at Danro.
“Alrighty then! Which one do you want to do first?”
Danro looked around at the quad. The dancers finished their song and were now walking and milling away to tents to warm up or rest, smallish humans were carefully nibbling on a pink puffy food on a stick that looked suspiciously like hair. The buildings themselves loomed around them, lit by their colored lights and the flickering fires around the quad. Their boarded up windows gave no indication of what was inside, although they couldn’t quite muffle the occasional scream from within.
“I’d prefer it if we could find the one that’s the mildest first,” Danro admitted. “Kind of ease myself into this, if you will.”
“No worries, bud.” Addy started towards the building with the green lights. “I think that would be this one. Green usually means easy, or mild, or good or whatever.”
That’s not what green was usually associated with on his planet, but hey, trying to scare yourself as a method of amusement and recreation wasn’t really a thing back home either. This was all very new to him.
The line in front of the green building moved pretty quickly. As they approached the front, Addy put a hand on his arm and looked up at him.
“Hey, thanks again for coming. These things aren’t nearly as much fun alone.”
Danro smiled. “Thank you for the invite.” Addy had invited a few more from their crew once she knew they’d be planetside on Earth just before what she claimed was one of her favorite holidays. He had been the only one to accept. A few others had gone to a “corn maze” with another human from the crew. Apparently, it wasn’t “haunted” and so appealed to more crewmates. Danro accepted the invitation because it saddened him to think of Addy going somewhere scary alone. That, and afterward it would be known across the ship of how much more brave he was than those who were too afraid to come.
The attendants at the door reminded them of the rules, marked their passes, and opened the doors for them.
Once inside, the doors shut noisily and Danro could feel the confidence he’d held on to outside drip away. His senses were being thrown off in here. The lights were dim, which isn’t too bad, he didn’t have great night vision, but it was alright. But there was something wrong here. He couldn’t tell why, but he could feel it. As Addy started down a narrow corridor covered with cobwebs, he took a deep breath and told himself it was just his nerves. Or maybe, he thought as they continued down the winding corridor, it was all this smoke stuff. It wasn’t real smoke, it smelled different, like minerals instead of burned materials. That was also throwing him off. The first time he saw an amputated human arm dangling out of a bag, he nearly freaked out. It was only when they passed right by it that he realized he didn’t actually smell any blood. He clutched Addy’s shoulder ahead of him as they walked by.
Danro muttered to himself. “It’s not a real arm. It’s not real. It’s not real.” He was really just saying it to himself, but from the way Addy looked back and up at him, he knew she must have heard him.
The next room was divided by a series of ripped and filthy “curtains.” As soon as they entered, Danro growled. The lights here were flashing strobe lights, making it difficult to see. There were human-sized figures standing in the room. As they passed by, he realized they weren’t human, but some sort of mannequins. Good, he sighed. Some of them looked grotesquely mangled and mortally wounded. He was glad they weren’t actual humans. As they were deep into the large room, his heart nearly stopped as he realized that some of them were moving. No, he thought, no, it had to just be a trick of the strobe lights.
Near the exit of the room, one definitely moved. The figure jumped out at them with a gravely yell. Addy screamed and jumped back. Danro froze momentarily and had to remind himself to not attack. They weren’t in danger. This wasn’t real. This wasn’t real. This wasn’t-
Addy scampered through the exit without him. Danro did his best to maneuver after her. The figure that had scared them stared at him with white eyes. That… that’s not normal. Humans have colorful and/or dark eyes. They smiled at him, baring their teeth. Even when normal humans smiled like that, Danro found it disconcerting, but this was on a whole different level. This felt genuinely dangerous.
Addy was waiting for him in the next room.
“Sorry,” she panted. “Didn’t mean to leave you behind back there.”
“Their eyes,” he whispered loudly to her, as if worried they’d overhear and come after them from their room.
“I didn’t even see their eyes. Were they creepy?”
Danro nodded.
Addy smiled, without baring her teeth, Danro noted appreciatively. “This place has really stepped up their game since the last time I was here.”
They continued through, warily watching out for hiding figures, walking through narrow maze-like halls, over uncomfortably soft and uneven ground, and through a tunnel where the walls looked like they were spinning around them. He nearly lost his balance off the walkway. He could have sworn the ground was moving. Even after they passed through that and went up a flight of stairs, he could still feel the dizzying effects. Coupled with his sense of sight and smell being confused around nearly every turn, he was starting to feel the tendrils of dread creeping into his mind. As they rounded a turn, he immediately noticed a dark figure moving in the corner. They looked like they were climbing the walls. After a few heartbeats of analyzing its movements, he realized it was mechanical. Good, it was just a prop then. As they walked through the room, bright lights strobed and the figure on the walls flew at them. Addy screamed again and ran to the door. Danro jumped up and fell back on the ground. The figure jerked to a stop in the air a pace or two away, and slowly retracted back to the wall. As Danro scrambled back up to his feet, he noticed the folding metal lattice mechanics that moved the dark creature. As terrified as he was, he had to admit that that was quite a creative scare.
There were several other rooms they walked through with no actors inside, just creepy dolls and mannequins or unsettling objects that made Danro’s fur prickle. There was a long hall with poor lighting and a very low ceiling that even Addy had to duck to get through.
“I hope nothing tries to scare us in here,” Danro muttered as he squeezed through the narrow passageway. “I don’t think I’d be able to get away very fast.” “I don’t think there’s anything in here. Or at least there wasn’t when I came through here when I was in high school. I think this part’s mostly “scary” because it’s supposed to make you feel claustrophobic.”
Danro scanned the bare cinder block and exposed dim light bulbs along the narrow passageway. Well, he thought, it was certainly claustrophobic in here. He could feel his heart rate increase the longer they walked through here and was incredibly relieved when they reached the end. Addy helped him watch his step as he climbed down from the small exit and into the dim cellar-like room.
"Are you okay?"  She carefully brushed some fake cobwebs from the fur on his arms.
“I’m fine. There aren’t any more small tunnels like that though, are there?” Danro, much like many biets, did not enjoy tight spaces.
“I think there’s another one in one of the other buildings, but it’s nowhere near as constrictive as that, or as long.” She looked up at him with a concerned expression. “Is that alright? You don’t have to do anything if you don’t want to.”
Danro smiled and nodded. “I’ll be fine. I got through this so far, I can handle it. Plus, it’s more fun to do these things together, right?”
Addy’s smile was worth any fright this place could throw at him anyway.
They pressed on and got a few more screams out of Addy and a few more alarmed jumps from Danro. As they rounded another corner and entered another dark room, Danro paused, senses alert to the scene before them. Something felt off, though he couldn’t place the reason why. His fur stood on end and he swore he could see his and Addy’s breath. He could see places where actors were likely hiding in wait to scare them, but that wasn’t where his attention was focused. There was something different about this room and it made his heart rate skyrocket.
He thought he saw movement in the corner of his vision, but when he turned his focus there, expecting to see an actor sneaking towards them, there was nothing. Addy slowly crept deeper into the dark room ahead of him. Not wanting to be separated in a place like this, he tried to stay close. Halfway through the room though, he froze. Did he really see… he swore mentally. Was that a chirnu? What was a thing like that doing in a human attraction? What was it doing here at all? It had no right, no right to exist outside biet folklore and nightmares. The living shadow, or the fang of the shadows, depending on who was telling the story. Danro closed his eyes instinctively. Don’t look at it. Don’t look at it and it might not look at you.
“Danro,” Addy whispered, realizing she no longer felt his hairy bulk behind her.
He said nothing but willed her to remain quiet. The chirnu might hear her if it hadn’t already.
“Danro, we’re almost at the end, just a little further.” She reached back to put a hand on his arm.
A loud shriek and rush of movement made them both jump. Danro swept Addy into his arms and ran. To gadring with the rules! He ran! He could hear laughter behind him and taunting voices that may or may not have been human, at this point he didn’t know nor care. He could smell fresh air ahead and it seemed to be like a beacon of hope to him.
“Danro!” Addy cried out but was cut off by a loud growl to their left. A figure jumped out from the shadows, donned in a ripped cloak, and holding a weapon that Danro later realized was a human tool used for cutting lumber.
How the heck had this maniac gotten in here with that?! Danro dodged to the right. Addy screamed and held on so tightly to Danro’s fur that she might have pulled a few tufts loose. The maniac with the saw laughed and gave chase.
This was a mistake! This was a mistake! This was a mistake!
Maybe if he could just make it outside where the crowds were, they could lose their pursuer. Surely he wouldn’t give chase into public?
Danro barreled through the final door and out into the chilly air outside. Relief! The roar of the saw was still right behind, and so he kept up with his pace. Thankfully, their pursuer didn’t seem to be able to keep up and eventually stopped a ways outside the door to laugh and Danro and Addy ran around the corner of the building and back to the crowded quad area.
Once he was absolutely sure they were no longer being followed, he stopped only long enough to set Addy back on the ground before he started again for the main entrance.
“Hey! Wait, where are you going?” Addy bounded after him.
“We need to let someone know. They need to be warned before someone gets killed!”
“What? Wait, do you- do you mean the chainsaw guy?” Addy was now at his side, but struggling to keep up. “That’s just part of the whole thing, it’s a classic end to a haunted house. There’s no actual chain or blade or whatever, it’s safe.”
Danro slowed and turned to face Addy. He studied her face. She was smiling and didn’t seem at all worried that they had almost been killed by a psycho with a “chain saw.” He took a few deep breaths to slow his heart down. “It’s not real? We’re fine?” He finally managed to ask.
Addy smiled and nodded. “We’re fine. So, first time through a haunted house, what did you think?” Danro looked back to the building they had just run out of. He stared hard at it, trying to make sense of the whole experience. Or mostly, trying to make sense of what he had seen in that last room. Had he really seen what he thought he saw?
“Danro? Are you okay?” Addy’s worried tone snapped him back.
“I thought…” he was almost embarrassed to ask now. Admitting that he had seen what would be to her an alien monster, a mythical alien monster at that, seemed to be a bit laughable now that they were back in the safety of the quad. Addy continued to look at him though, expecting him to finish his thought.
“I thought I saw… a chirnu in there in that last room,” he admitted quietly.
Addy blinked. “Chirnu? What’s that?”
He grimaced. It was said that talking about them could help them hunt you down later. As briefly as he could, he described the monster that terrorized biet folklore.
Addy listened intently and nodded. When he was done, she hummed. “That does sound pretty bad. But I’m pretty sure we’re okay. I don’t think what you saw in there was a chirnu.”
Relief flooded Danro’s system. He felt silly even entertaining the idea that chirinu were for one thing, real, and another thing, here on Earth. Although, that did leave one question.
“Then what did I see?”
“Well, I’m not entirely sure. That last room was definitely creepier than the others. I think it’s genuinely haunted.” Danro tilted his head and Addy laughed. “Although if I had to venture a guess, from your description I’d say it was probably a giant rubber spider. That room did kind of have a spider theme if you didn’t notice.” “Spider theme?”
“Yeah, I think the whole building kind of had a “phobia” theme to it. Arachnophobia is the fear of spiders. Lots of people have it. I just didn’t know biets had it too.”
Danro straightened his back in mock indignation. “I’m not afraid of spiders.”
Addy laughed. “Okay, then you were just pretending back there?”
Danro frowned, but the human’s happy energy was too much and he eventually cracked and smiled back. He looked around at the other patrons, mostly humans, who were waiting anxiously in line. They came to be scared. They wanted to be scared. How odd. And yet, Danro could feel himself still riding the high of his fight or flight senses. From what he understood, humans experienced a similar feeling, heightened by the production of a hormone called adrenaline. He could see how places like this might seem attractive to those seeking that rush.
“Well,” he responded airily, “I thought the whole point was to pretend to be scared.”
Addy laughed and teased. He teased back, recalling and imitating her many screams. They continued doing so while they waited in line to buy a bag of what Addy called “popcorn” and two caramel covered apples. Addy said they were some of her favorites, and caramel apples were a fall tradition. Danro enjoyed both. He smiled as he listened to Addy continue on about things she loved about the season and upcoming holiday before they went to wait in line for the building with the orange light.
That night became, quite possibly, one of his fondest memories. Humans are weird. They think getting scared on purpose is fun. Maybe Danro was a bit weird too because he whole-heartedly agreed.
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