#to be fair I get confused sometimes when I hear a solo project then the same lead singer in a band and I go whaaaaaa such similar voices

[emeraldcreeper]

I miss when you can like a band and know nothing about who’s in it, I was living in peace before I learned who the lead singer of love/joy (no slash I’m futilely censoring it) was, now I’m embarrassed that I like one song of theirs

[queerchoicesblog]

An Unexpected Turn of Events

Hiya, folks! So, as previously announced, the wlw writing project continues after a break with a miniseries set back in Vienna, one of the iconic capitals of opera at the time of Mozart. An emerging singer gets the chance to be an understudy in the latest Mozart’s discussed opera Le Nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), that  premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienna on 1 May 1786, w and play the pants role of the page Cherubino. Preparing for the role doesn’t quite go as planned… .

Tagging: @scottishqueer​

Previous chapter: The Understudy

Hope you enjoy it: if you do, please consider spreading the word!

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A couple of days later I go back to Melchiorri for another session as planned. He is inflexible that I allow my voice to rest at least one day before practising again not to damage it. As I observe the streets of Vienna passing by from my carriage, I wonder if the little fugitive will visit us today too and a tiny smile crosses my lips. I should be bothered by such unprofessionalism but surprisingly I enjoyed the interruption. A private comedic enteract. It also reminded me the maestro is human: I stole a glance of the domestic, family life people like me is generally unfamiliar with. I don't plan to marry anytime soon honestly if I can avoid it, despite what my Aunt claims. I owe her and my uncle, the wealthy side of my family, everything. She brought me away from the small town by the Alps I lived with Mom, Dad and Hans, my little brother in a wooden cottage by a stream. We weren't indigents, we owned a small typography in town that mainly served the local journal of the valley and well, the church crafting the prayer books you would find on the bench every day at mass. We weren't rich with either: you don't exactly became high socialite with so little. Hans is now running the typography as my father's eyes are not the ones he used to have since he got sick. I don't envy my poor brother; I am glad I got my way out of that life. I am eternally grateful to Auntie Helga for insisting to drag me to Graz and deciding to turn me into a star of the opera after hearing me perform a solo in the church choir during one of her - not so frequent, actually - visits.

Auntie built her fortune over a good marriage with a promising young lawyer who couldn't resist her charm and eventually allowed her to live in sober luxury and even be invited to court. But that seemed to be her sole aspiration in life: she left the small town and never looked back. I am an opera singer, I want more. My career comes first and I have yet to meet a worthy match honestly. And no, I don't want to be a puppet, a doll to a man who will eventually ask me to leave the stage and my beloved arias to look after a child or be a proper wife, whatever it means. So, no, thanks, I chuckle in my head while taking the hand the driver offer me to get off the carriage. When I knock at the door, I am considering that maybe Herr Giorgio is not that bad, even if I didn't like the way he addressed the maid and the poor naughty boy. Nor the lusty looks he throws me. The maid welcomes me with a smile and a little reverence. Good girl, probably she expects me to chastise her too. As if I had any intention to do so! She takes my fur and quickly disappear into the wardrobe room before walking back towardsme. I thank her for her zeal but I know the way to the music room, the maestro is surely waiting for me, I say. I start walking but what she says next makes me freeze, confused. "Actually, Miss...the master is not here today. I'm very sorry. His wife is waiting for you in the tea room". What? That...that must be a joke. The maestro hired to prepare me last minute disappears before the official rehearsals. I turn and throw a bad look at the poor maid, who doesn't deserve it in the least. She's just a messenger, her eyes beg before lowering them to her feet. She's right, my anger is all for Mister Melchiorri. What do I do now? "Whatever, lead the way then" I exclaim, following her. "I can't wait to hear what the fair lady has to say about this". My voice is cold, sardonic; the girl doesn't say a single word while we walk in the opposite direction than my usual route in the house. She's certainly too afraid to dare say a thing. When we finally arrive to the right room, she knocks politely at the door and steps in when a female voice comes from the inside. She bows her head and announces my presence before disappearing back down the corridor. She stops only to let the door open for me. I let out an annoyed sigh and enter. The room is significantly different from the maestro's studio. No instruments, only paintings at the walls and fresh flowers on the little tables around the room. The perfume is delicate and inebriating: are they orchids, I wonder? A neat wooden library holds the place of honour on the main wall, opposite the fireplace and framed by windows that fills the whole room by natural light, even if the sun doesn't shine today: it will probably rain soon. Letting my eyes wonder outside I spot green and a carousel: I didn't realise we were so close to a park! Unlike the music room, here even if the furniture, the velvet armchairs, the Persian rugs, every decor are certainly expensive, the atmosphere is surprisingly...cozy, an adjective I would have never thought of associated with Melchiorri's place. It's almost inviting, calming? "Miss Bauer, I am so incredibly sorry for the the latest developments and all the trouble they must bring on you...but please, take a seat! Franziska will be back soon with fresh tea". I turn to see a woman gesturing me to join her by the fireplace. Her German has a thick Italian accent which gives her "a bit of exotic" as they say at court. She doesn't wear a wig, her long raven hair are done up in an elaborate grateful chignon and two curly strands frame her visage. She reminds me one of those shepherdesses portrayed in bucolic frescos at the Emperor's Palace. Her dress is not in character though: a plain, cerulean dress which is not necessarily cheap but does nothing to enhance her figure. Poor taste probably: even money can do little about it sometimes. She must be in her early thirties or so I wager and thinner than most ladies I know in her standing...I wonder why Melchiorri chose her if he's so clearly fond of female curves. Maybe it's another arranged loveless marriage. I wouldn't be surprised. I oblige and thank her politely, forgetting my anger for a moment. It surprises me, it must be a reflex, a natural response the soothing silky voice of the lady. Like the feral beasts tamed by the gentle melody of Orpheus' song, I think trying to shake away such thought. I suddenly realise that I don't know her name. Melchiorri never talked about her. But I don't want to tell her: it's not a nice thing to say to a wife, right? As if reading my thoughts, she shakes her head slightly embarassed. "I forgot my manners, didn't I?" she sighs. "You must forgive me, Miss, I do not receive many visitors lately and I've never been introduced to famous opera singers...nor any of my husband's pupils. My name is Cecilia, Cecilia Melchiorri". I feel a pang of sadness for this lady excluded from the theatre world his husband works in. I don't get why she has to be cast out like that. I've met other illustrious wives at social gatherings around Vienna or at court. I offer her my hand, gesturing no apologies are needed, and repeat her name. "Cecilia...". Sadly, I completely butcher it: I studied Italian for the opera but my Austrian tongue is still incapable to recreate the sweet sounds that comes so natural to her. It must not be the first time because her lips curl in a quick understanding smile. "You can call me Lia, if it's easier for you. My family used to call me so". Lia...what a pretty little name. I smile, grateful. "I will then, if you don't mind...Lia. You can call me Constanze: it seems only fair". "As you wish, Miss Bauer!" she says before realising her mistake. We share an amused look, even if hers is a bit more bashful. In that moment, after another polite knock, Franziska returns with the tea and some butter biscuits. They're different from the ones Mister Melchiorri usually offers me in his studio. She's serving the tea when a familiar figure materialises on the threshold of the room at my peripheral. Lia is giving him the shoulders so she can't see him. I turn in his direction with a smirk. "I believe we've already met, right, Sir?" The two women turn at unison too and the kid childishly hides his face but doesn't move. After a moment he spies us through his fingers and retrieves his hands, smiling. Franziska puts the tray underneath her arm and tells Lia that she will bring him to his room, making the boy pout. He's quite the character. "Maybe he followed you because he just wants a biscuit" I say, my eyes wandering between them to check if I'm overstepping. "Maybe you're right...but only if he doesn't bother you" Melchiorri's wife concedes with a tired smile. I shake my head and take the decorated plate in my hands. "Would you like one?" I ask in Italian to her son, not sure if he speaks proper German. His face brightens up and he nods enthusiastically. We share a soft laugh, even the maid joins. He gets ready to speed across the room when he stops, considering. He searches his mother for approval. Lia nods, asking to behave like a good boy though. So he approaches slower than he wanted, with great effort to refrain himself, and grabs a biscuit from the plate. Before taking a generous bite, he mutters a quick thank you. "Mystery solved" I comment, placing the plate back on the table. "You must excuse him, Miss Ba- Constanze" Lia say, gently pulling him closer. "Nino is not a bad kid, just a bit of a rascal at times". "A rascal with a sweet tooth" Franziska adds and we share another laughter. "I'm so sorry he interrupted your private session the other day. Franziska had quite a fair share of work to do and I was indisposed in my room, I couldn't look after him as I usually do". I dismiss her apologies, taking a sip of tea. "But it was fun, wasn't it?" I wink at Nino who chuckles. "Yes and she sings very well, Ma" he says, turning to his mother. "Of course, I heard her too from my room" she smiles. "She's a promise of the opera, it's written on the newspapers". "Sing again?" the little boy begs, expectantly. His childish enthusiasm amuses me. "I cannot do those trills now, I need to warm up my voice first" I apologise, before winking. "Another time, I promise". Lia whispers something into his ear and he thanks me, concealing his disappointment. Crumbs are stuck on his lips and make the smile that follows a bit funnier than it was supposed to be. "Now, sweetheart, why don't you follow Franziska back to the kitchen?" She says, stroking his curls. "Take another biscuit and she will give you a glass of milk, just as you like it, huh?". She doesn't have to say it twice: while the maid gently places and arm around his shoulders, guiding him away, he takes not one but two biscuits in his hands. He throws me a conspiratorial look before chuckling. Then he turns towards Lia and stretches his neck to kiss her cheek. She caresses his face and tells him to be good with Franziska. When the two of them are out of the room, she meets my gaze again, shaking hear head. "Apologies, Miss...I sent Franziska to buy these for you this morning and he managed to put his eyes on them. He became obsessed". "Kids" I shrug, unbothered. I am pleasantly impressed that she had such a kind gesture towards me. I mean it could be a way to get on my good side because of the news she has to give me...but after all, this situation is not her fault. Her husband left her to deal with this and me all alone. She turns serious and sighs. "Anyway, have you heard of the flooding near Salzburg?". "What?". "Torrential rain lead to conspicuous floodings in the area surrounding Salzburg. I don't know if Giorgio mentioned it to you but he head there after your session for a family emergency....his brother lives there". "I'm afraid he didn't say a thing about his little journey" I say, trying my hardest not to look angered, even if I am: I would have rather be informed sooner of such details. By the look on her face I can tell she expected such an answer. "He surely thought he would be back in time today, he didn't mention staying for long. But during the night the weather deteriorated and the roads are pretty much impracticable, so to speak. We've just received a note saying he will be back as soon as travelling conditions are restored and the emergency solved. Probably a couple of days...maybe more? He must have sent you a similar one, you just missed it because you were on your way here already". "A couple of days? Maybe more?" I exclaim. That's not promising... "The rehearsals start in a week" I frown. "I still need to practise...". "You are free to do it here if you wish, Miss" she suggests, apologetic yet encouraging. "I am perfectly aware this is a hideous setback for you with such a tight schedule. You must believe me when I say I wish we never put you in this situation...if there's anything I can do, Miss, ask away. I'm not my husband but...". I consider her words for a moment. My mind runs wild to find a solution for this unexpected unfavourable circumstance. I could find another maestro maybe but how, within such a short notice and little time before official rehearsals begin? I could do it on my own but another sudden foolish idea crosses my mind. "Do you play the cello, Mrs. Lia?" I must have taken her by surprise by the look on her face. She tries to conceal it, refilling her cup. "Why, yes. My father was a musician, I took cello classes in my youth but I don't see how this-". "Excellent! Then you can take your husband's place until the he’s back" I exclaim, cutting her short. My words must come as a shock: she almost spits her tea. "Beg pardon, Miss?". "You will be my maestro, well understudy maestro for the time being" I smile, explaining. "You said yourself that you can play the cello, you can assist me as I practice". "But...but I don't have my husband expertise" she objects, at loss of words. "You heard me practicing with your husband, right? So you must know how it should sound. And that aside, you can even tell yourself if my performance is good or not: you have ears too, if I am not mistaken". She opens her mouth to say something, anything to make me change my mind and spare her such thing...but nothing comes. Her lips presses together for a moment before she places her cup back on the table. "Very well, then...if you think it would work" she smiles weakly. "Just be patient with me: I do not usually play opera arias".

[lysjeon]

0.3. my melody

— pairing: yoongi x reader

— genre: fluff | college au

— word count: 1.2K

— collab series by @dreamcatcherjiah & @lysjeon

“Don’t be nervous, you just have to choose one.” Y/N repeated Hoseok’s words as she walked inside the big music building.

By far this one was one of the biggest buildings on campus, if not the biggest, that only adding to her nervousness. As soon as she entered she worried she’d get lost and therefore, be late to her meeting with not only one but two professors, one of which she had never met. Even the thought of making the professors think that her tardiness meant she wasn’t serious about the collaboration making her stomach turn and mouth fill with a funny taste.

To say she was nervous was an understatement, although she knew she shouldn’t be. Not right now at least. This was just the first meeting of many she’d have to have in the next couple of months to prepare for the show, and she was sure this would be the simplest meeting she’d have.

Today she was just meeting who she was going to be working with. That was it.

She walked down the corridors of the building where she saw the occasional arrow sign vaguely pointing towards professor Nam’s office. Sometime along the way there, she had stopped following the signs in favour of following the beautiful melody coming from what she assumed was a practice room. The door wasn’t closed all the way, so she could hear the music clearly as she stepped closer to it. Not wanting to disturb the person who was beautifully playing, she went on her tippy toes to look at the player through the window on the door.

Immediately she was captivated by him. She watched his relaxed shoulders, then her eyes traveled down his arms until she reached his fingers that were pressing the keys with skilful ease. The room was dark apart from one light shining on the pianist from the far back of the room, making it hard to see his face, but even in the shadows she could tell his eyes were closed as he enjoyed and felt each note being played. She was entranced by the way he so effortlessly played what, in her opinion, was a hard piece. It was fast paced, making his fingers look like they were flying over the keys, yet he seemed so peaceful and calm.

“Y/N?” Her head snapped towards the voice that called her name, a slight blush covering her cheeks as Ms. Son had caught her spying on the guy. “I was wondering where you were,” she chuckled, “Come on, darling, we’re waiting for you.”

“I’m sorry, Ms. Son.” She apologized with a slight bow as she walked towards the professor, “I got distracted.” She admitted.

“I could see that.” The professor smiled cheekily as she started walking.

After taking some turns in the corridors- this building could double as a maze any time - the two of them reached professor Nam’s office, where he was standing with a polite smile at the door. She bowed politely at him and smiled as Ms. Son turned towards her.

“This is my star student I talked to you about.” Ms. Son bragged, making the other professor roll his eyes playfully, making the atmosphere less tense for Y/N.

“Let’s not waste this lady’s time, shall we go see the options?” Mr. Nam asked, already walking ahead of the two women.

“Options?” Y/N asked looking between the two professors, confusion clear in her voice. “I thought today I was meeting who I’ll be working with.”

Ms. Son chuckled and looked at her, “You are, darling.” She nodded, “But first you have to choose who you’ll be working with.”

“That’s right.” He agreed, “Ms. Son and I planned this project a while ago, so I had three of my best students compose their own piece for this. You will listen to the three pieces and choose which one you’d most like to dance to.” He explained.

She nodded quietly, biting her lip as the nervousness returned and made her palms start to sweat. Her professor noticed her slight change in posture and run her palm up and down her arm reassuringly, smiling when Y/N turned towards her.

The three of them then entered a big practice room where three people were sitting on the chairs to the side, them standing up immediately after seeing their professor and bowing towards him.

“These are some of my best students,” He proudly said turning towards her. “Im Minju,” He pointed towards a short haired girl, “Song Dohyeon,” He moved his finger a couple inches to point at a tall guy who smiled politely, “And finally but by no means least, Min Yoongi.” The last guy bowed politely towards her.

She frowned. She knew him, he was the guy her professor had caught her spying on. Unlike the other two, he seemed shy as the professor started talking to the three of them after introducing her to them. Minju and Dohyeon asked her and the professor questions, whereas Yoongi remained quiet and showed the smallest of smiles every time her eyes briefly met his.

She was intrigued by him and right then and there her mind was already made on who she would choose. She would never admit it out loud, and she reprimanded herself for choosing him without even listening to the other two, but after hearing him play earlier, how could she not choose him? He had captivated her with the way he played the piano so effortlessly, and no pianist had ever been able to do that and she had worked with a fair share of them over the years.

“Would any of you want to go first?” Mr. Nam asked, Minju raising her hand up as fast and high as she could. “Miss Im, go on.” He smiled.

The girl walked towards the piano placed to the side of the room and after releasing a big sigh she started playing her piece. It was fast paced and even though she tried, she could not imagine herself creating a choreography for the song or even dancing to it for her solo. After she was done, she bowed and walked towards where she was previously standing, softly elbowing Dohyeon who offered to go next.

Doheyon’s piece started soft but quickly turned fast. She was somehow surprised his piece was so versatile going from slow to fast paced various times until the piece came to an abrupt ending. When he finished, he turned around in the seat and smiled expectantly, most likely waiting for a praise from his professor.

“That was amazing, Mr. Song.” He finally gave in before turning towards Yoongi. “Mr. Min, your turn.”

Yoongi walked towards the piano slowly, as if nothing could ever rush him, and sat down the same way. His fingers softly hovered over the keys and Y/N could hear the short breath that left his lips before he started playing.

Unlike what she had heard him play earlier, this piece was rather slow and it filled her with the feeling of melancholy, the key of it sounding unlike anything she had ever heard before. He had her full attention as he played, yet he didn’t seem to mind or care, or even realize. She could see herself in him, in the way he got so lost in what he was playing that he forgot about his surroundings and just played. Seeing him play this only made her even more sure of her decision.

She was going to choose him.

🏷: @loveyoongles @acupfullofsuga @neocultishtech @salty-for-suga @mabel-k3 @listless-losers @crunchycrocodile @prdshobi @ambrietalksanddraws @biaisezabini @sugagimmesugar @hot-tae-with-suga @jeonqukie @anothershorthuman @chocobetterknot @magicshop-myg @amoreguk @snickerdoodlest @atulipandarose @cookiemonstermusic258 @randomkoalablog @lisaisnotfunny @kawaii-desv @ratking101 @super-btstrash-posts @elliemeetsevil @forkpops @sayanne @falsegodtae @clarrolx @btsxdoll @fruityy-juno

[disneydreamlights]

Training Days

FFN | AO3

Summary: "Oh, and by "us," I mean me and Lea. He's really sorry for all the trouble he caused. I told him it's fine, but he won't stop apologizing. I'll admit that I was a little scared of him at first, but I've gotten to know him better. All he wanted was to help his friend. Honestly, it's hard not to like him."

A peek into Kairi's and Lea's days of learning how to use the Keyblade. Written for Step Forward: A Kairi Fanzine

A/N: I would very much like to thank @kairizine​ for letting me work on this project. You guys are absolutely amazing and I couldn’t say how much I enjoyed being a part of this zine. For all my followers who haven’t had a chance to pick up this lovely zine, a second round of pre-orders is dropping on July 5th, so you guys should check that out for sure! Also tumblr fucked my formatting press f to pay respects.

It had been two weeks since Kairi started training with Axel. Or at least, it felt like it had been two weeks. Merlin said that the world they were training in existed outside of time, so it probably wasn’t that long to everybody else. But for her at least, it was valuable time. Time where she could learn how to use her Keyblade properly, and to finally get her chance to fight.

She also had time to interact with the man who had—at one point—kidnapped her. That was something she was still coming to terms with. Axel saved Sora and apologized for what he’d done to her, but it still didn’t make it any easier to be training with him.

“Yo, Kairi.” Speaking of Axel, the redhead showed up once more, looking almost uncomfortable with the idea of having to pull her from her thoughts. If there was some reassurance to all this, at least Axel was just as bad with handling talking to his former victim as she was talking to her kidnapper. “Thought you could use some company. Merlin said you’d just finished learning about how to use Fire, and as the resident fire elemental, I call myself an expert in the subject.” If it weren’t for the fact that his hand was running through his hair, a sign of nerves, Kairi would’ve been sure his discomfort was perceived on her end given the way he didn’t seem bothered.

“I’m fine, Axel, I don’t need teaching from a ‘fire expert’”—she raised fingers, making air quotations at Axel to show she didn’t really buy it—“to learn how to use a Fire spell. Merlin has it all covered.”

“Right.” She noticed the way Axel slightly deflated at her refusal to train with him. When he spoke, his voice sounded more hollow. “Hey, Kairi, just so you know, I really am sorry. About kidnapping you, and all that. I know I’ve said it before but I wanted to say it again.” He left, and Kairi couldn’t help the unpleasant feeling that arose in her heart.

-x-

Another few weeks of training passed, Merlin said it hadn’t even been a day in the real world. Which was fair, it meant Sora and Riku wouldn’t be missing her too long, at least. And it meant another month around Axel, training. She was slowly feeling competent: Merlin had decided that it was time to start training her in using her light as a weapon. It was a sign of progress towards becoming a Keyblade Master.

What was odd was that when she stumbled upon the normally energetic pyromaniac this time, Axel seemed to be a little less upbeat than normal. He’d continued his stream of apologies, expressing how much he regretted what he’d done, but Kairi doubted that’s what had him down. Deciding it was finally time to return his interest in getting to know her, she sat down next to him. “What’s on your mind?”

Axel jumped, having not noticed her approach. “It’s nothing,” he waved her off.

Kairi frowned, looking at Axel skeptically. He raised his hands in defense of her stare. “Okay, so maybe it is something, but it’s not really something you need to worry about. Just that I can’t shake the feeling…” He shook his head, almost as though he couldn’t believe what he was saying.

“Feeling?” Kairi asked. She didn’t really expect him to give him an answer, but she wanted to know. It was obviously something a lot more important than he was letting on. When he didn’t answer after another moment, she smiled. “I didn’t know you had any of those.”

“Ha ha.” Axel gave a sarcastic laugh, but also a small smile at Kairi, grateful for the joke. “Hey, y’know I’m not a Nobody anymore. I can feel, just as much as you can!” It seemed he wasn’t willing to confront what was going on, and she couldn’t blame him for that. It wasn’t like she’d given him any reason to believe she trusted or wanted to help him.

And to be fair, she wasn’t sure that she did trust him. She may not have been mad over it right now, but despite his regret  Axel had still kidnapped her. It seemed like a good idea to not press for now. “Sure you can, just like you couldn’t when you were a Nobody.”

“I couldn’t!”

Kairi laughed at his protest. “You don’t kidnap somebody to see your best friend again if you don’t care about them a little.”

Axel sat there for a moment. “Right, sometimes I forget that even if I couldn’t feel guilt over what I was doing to you, I still felt something.” Maybe it was his way of justifying it: he couldn’t feel. He couldn’t feel bad over what he had done because he couldn’t feel. But he seemed to be feeling the regret of that now. “I know you’re probably tired of hearing it, but I’m sorry, about all of that.”

For the first time, she acknowledged his apology. “I know.”

-x-

Two months of rigorous training. Two months of her only company being Merlin and Axel. Although they still weren’t close friends, things had started getting easier between her and Axel. Kairi found herself talking to him more since she’d found him that day, or at least she was more willing to talk to him. For one, she almost believed his apologies in that he truly did regret his actions.

This time as Axel approached Kairi, he seemed slightly more at ease. “Hey, how’s training been going so far?”

“Hey Axel,” Kairi smiled. She couldn’t believe that she was at least appreciating Axel’s presence for once. “I’m pretty sure soon I’ll be ready to take you down. What about you, think you can take me on?”

“Nah, not like I have years of experience on you. Anyways I wanted to see if you were up for a bit of a break.” He reached into his pocket, pulling out two light blue bars of ice cream. Kairi couldn’t help the way that her eyes lit up as soon as she saw them. “Whenever we finished a mission, Roxas and I would go to the clocktower back in Twilight Town and share these.”

Kairi grabbed the ice cream bar, taking a small bite and wincing as the cold hit her teeth. “I like that tradition.”

“I figured we could resume it, now that we’re training together.” Axel grinned, seemingly relieved that she was willing to enjoy it. “Or at least that’s what Merlin said, starting tomorrow we’ll be training together.”

“I’ll look forward to it. Don’t think I’ll go easy on you either.” Of course, that revelation couldn’t help but make her a little nervous. But Merlin wouldn’t have her fight Axel if he didn’t think she could hold her own against him.

“Wouldn’t dream of anything less.” It seemed Axel was at least willing to go along with it. “Hey, Kairi, I just want you to know-”

“You’re sorry, I know.” Kairi smiled, leaving Axel looking at her in surprise.

“I’ve said it that many times now?”

“I think I got it memorized.”

-x-

After yet another loss to Axel, Kairi and her sparring partner decided to enjoy a treat. There were still quite a few losses in their practice fights, but she did have a couple wins to her name, and that was progress enough for them to be celebrating. He reached into the cooler, handing her an ice cream bar as they sat on the cliffside watching the sunset. Axel told some stories from the Organization to keep her entertained.

“So I mentioned how I got sent on solo missions all the time for the Organization, stuff that needed to be kept...under the radar.” He seemed hesitant to fully explain what that meant, which made Kairi all the more curious about what he was trying to explain. “See, a lot of those had me going to Castle Oblivion—terrible place by the way, more boring to look at than The Castle that Never Was and impossible to navigate, anyways—I was chasing down some chamber for our boss. Not sure what was in it, but what I do know is the Castle did not want us finding it. So this one time I was–”

“Castle Oblivion...” Kairi frowned, causing Axel to pause in his account. Sora had never mentioned the castle in his stories, and Riku had only mentioned it a couple of times in passing, yet the name brought with it a feeling of dread… “That means you know Naminé?”

Axel nodded. “That’s right. I was one of the people who was guarding her while she messed with Sora’s memories.” Before Kairi could say anything more, Axel raised his hand, stopping her. “Don’t worry, I wasn’t one of the ones hurting her! I was actually the one that helped her.”

He...what? Kairi stared at him in confusion. “Right, Sora...probably wouldn’t have been able to tell you. I was the one who let Naminé go.”

Although she couldn’t communicate directly with the blonde to confirm Axel’s story, she felt Naminé faintly in her heart, confirming Axel’s story: “He did. If it weren’t for him, Sora might be lost forever to the Organization’s trap…”

“Really?”

“I think it was because he didn’t want the Organization to win. For my freedom, I owe him, almost as much as I do Sora…”

“Hello, Kairi! You in there?” Axel waved his hand in front of Kairi, pulling her attention away from Naminé’s presence, which had once more gone dormant in her heart.

Kairi smiled. “Just getting a message to pass on. Naminé says thank you.”

Axel looked at her, and his eyebrows slightly raised in surprise. She wasn’t sure if he hadn’t expected Naminé’s thanks, for the two of them to have any form of communication, or for Kairi to pass on the message.“She did? I don’t suppose she left a message for you to accept my apology this time, did she?”

Kairi paused for a moment, as though she were conversing with Naminé once more before smiling. “Nope, nothing on that one.”

Lea laughed at her answer, and it wasn’t long before Kairi found herself laughing too at his reaction.

She was still a long way to forgiving him for what he’d done, but maybe Lea wasn’t so bad.

-x-

It became a tradition to meet up after training to snack on some ice cream and talk about whatever thoughts crossed their minds. Most of the time, conversation flowed between Kairi and Lea easier than she would have ever suspected when their training had first begun, but right now the exchange seemed more one sided than ever. Lea appeared lost in thought, and Kairi’s attempts at getting him to talk about the various details of his life were earning no results.

Normally she would have been content to leave that where it was—Lea wouldn’t have confided in her anyways. But now she could tell there was something bothering him, and she didn’t feel right leaving it alone. “Lea, are you alright?”

“Huh?” He shook his head before giving a laugh, running his hand through his hair as though nervous. “I guess I’m just distracted. I was thinking about an old friend.” She stayed silent, and after a moment Lea continued. “You know Saïx–I’m serious, stop staring at me like I’ve grown a second head or something.”

After another quiet moment, she finally managed to find her voice: “What!?” Lea was friends with Saïx? How could Lea be have been friends with him of all people? Saïx kidnapped her!

...Just like Axel had.

The realization that she’d nearly forgotten that Lea had kidnapped her was sobering, but it did manage to put a damper on some of her surprise at least. “You and Saïx were friends?”

“I know, a big shocker now, but back when we were kids, Isa was my best friend.” Lea seemed quick to play if off. “We used to get into a lot of trouble back in the good old days. Most of it was my idea.” A low chuckle escaped him. It sounded bitter, like Lea still couldn’t believe just how much things changed. “We would sneak into Ansem’s castle so we could get a peak at his experiments, or just to cause some problems.”

“That doesn’t sound like Saïx.” Kairi pointed out. But it made sense. They had both lost their hearts, and the Lea in front of her felt as different from Axel as the Isa he was describing sounded from Saïx.

“Losing your heart changes you.” Lea’s answer was simple, but he had a point. Even if they had hearts, neither he nor Saïx learned that fact until it was already too late.

Kairi nodded. “That’s why you both drifted apart?”

“Part of it.” For once it looked like Lea was getting uncomfortable with the direction they were going in. Isa, it seemed, was a much more touchy subject than Kairi would’ve guessed. “He changed for sure, but there was also the way he treated them. Roxas and–”

“And?”

Lea didn’t respond. He wasn’t sure of who the “and�� he was referring to was in the first place.

They ate their ice cream in silence, neither of them sure how to continue for a few minutes before Lea finally spoke. “You know, when I first saw you, you reminded me of somebody. I don’t know who just...somebody important.”

“Naminé, maybe?” It made the most sense, Naminé was her Nobody. Lea knew her. That had to be it. Except he shook his head.

“Nah, not her. I’d know if it was her I was thinking of. I just don’t remember. That’s why I was so quiet that day.” Kairi knew which one he was talking about. The one where they’d had their first real conversation.

The way Lea looked now reminded Kairi a lot of that day. She’d never seen him so muted before, and it was still an uncomfortable look for him now. “Don’t worry, Lea. Once we beat Xehanort, I’ll ask Naminé help you with your memories, and we’ll find whoever they are.” And she would, she didn’t turn her back on her friends so easily.

“Right, thanks.” Lea turned to her, still frowning in thought for a moment.

He grinned shortly after, though Kairi wasn’t sure if it was a realization about who he was forgetting or a joke until moments later when he said, “hey, have you ever thought of dying your hair black.”

“What?”

Lea raised his hands up in defense. “I just can’t shake the image of you with black hair it sounds right.”

“Lea, that’s not funny!”

“Sure it is!” He laughed, and she lightly smacked him for the joke. “Sorry, sorry, alright I’ll let it go...for now.”

“Lea!”

-x-

It didn’t take Kairi long to realize that their time in the training world was coming to a close. Her fighting was as flawless as one could get when kept out of the heat of a real battle, and Lea had stopped trying to throw his Keyblade every ten seconds. To her surprise, he had adjusted to close combat and swordplay remarkably well. Merlin had told Riku would be there with some new equipment in a few days. It all made it feel very real, and very final.

Which was why Lea and Kairi had returned to their cliffside hangout, trading stories and sharing idle conversation. Lea told stories of teaching Roxas about the worlds and his adventures in Radiant Garden, and in return Kairi told stories about her time on the islands. It was the best they could do to keep their mind off the battle that was looming ever closer.

“Sora was so surprised when I told him I couldn’t swim. He tried to teach me but his idea of teaching me meant having me just start flailing my arms in the water,” Kairi laughed as she remembered the story from a couple months after arriving on Destiny Islands. “If it wasn’t for Riku, he might’ve drowned me with how bad his instructions were.”

“You’d think Sora would know how to swim better than that since he lived there. Hard to believe he couldn’t even explain the motions he was making.”

“His heart was in the right place, at least.” Kairi smiled. It was a fond memory of her friends, one she would’ve liked to think on a little longer.

Lea laughed as well, and they fell into an easy silence as Kairi started searching her mind for the next ridiculous story of her adventures with her friends.

“Hey, Kairi.” Lea raised his hand hesitantly, almost as though he were regretting what he was about to say. “I just, ya know, in case everything goes wrong, I just wanted to say sorry again. You know for–”

“I know.” She cut him off before he could ramble further. She’d heard it more than enough times over the course of their time training together. “And I forgive you.”

[issabakugodrangeel]

Showcase gone wrong

Stray Kids 10th member AU

Summary: Stray kids get ready for the showcase in order to debut, but things didn’t go as planned. 

Warnings: None!! But just a DISCLAIMER no hate towards the ITZY members or their fandom just wanted some drama in my story!!! 

A/N: Request are open!! It’s finally up took me a while but here you go....... sorry if this wasn’t good....

Lisa’s P.O.V

“RISE AND SHINE BOYZ!!! I got some excited news!!!!” Chan yelled, opening the door to me and Felix’s shared room as he turn on the lights. I groan pulling the covers over my body tossing to my right side. 

It’s been half a month now since I moved in with these idiots and I’m kinda I love them dearly but they’re so loud sometimes. 

“Felix! Go turn off the lights!!” I said in my sleepy voice.

“How about you get it? You’re the one that’s on the bottom bunk.” He argues. I groan again.   

“Do I have to get Woojin to wake up your ass?” Chan bursted through again giving us our last warning. 

That got my attention and I jolted sitting up. “Okay, I’m awake!” I shouted with my eyes still close. Chan laughs and leaves the room before saying “Hurry up!” 

I sight tiredly. Trying to adjust my eyes, I can hear Felix’s giggles. “Is someone scared of Hyung?” He teases his head was hanging between the railing end. I glared at him. I grabbed my pillow and smacked his face. He let out a ‘ow.’ 

So I may or may not be afraid of getting waken up by Woojin. I don’t even wanna say why, I can’t relive that morning. I did warn them I love to sleep. 

Finally, having the energy, I pulled the sheets off me and slipped on my slippers.  Felix also gets down from his top bunk. 

“You got drool on your face.” He giggles pointing to it. I didn’t have the energy to say anything so I try to playfully smack him but he runs out the door. 

“Noona, I made you pancakes.” Jeongin set a plate in front of me. “Aww!! Thank you my little Dongsang.” I pinch his cheeks. “Don’t baby me, Noona.” He whined sitting down next to me. 

“Hey, where are my pancakes?” Jisung asked him. “You’re a grown man. Make some yourself.” Jeongin tort back. Jisung just glared at him. I couldn’t help but snort. 

“Noona.” Hyunjin called me. “Hmm?” I asked taking a bit out of my food. “Do you cook?” He asked. I almost chocked on my pancakes. Everyone just looked at me oddly. “Hell no I don’t. I can’t cook to save my life. So, don’t ever ask me to make anything.” I warned them. He frowns. 

“Okay, so JYP emailed me the line up for the show case.” Chan announced once he was done with his food. 

“Who are we competing against?” Changbin asked him. 

“ ‘Boy story’ That new Chinese boy group JYP is trying to debut.” Chan started reading the list. 

“Isn’t that boy group that are 10 years old?” I questioned. He nods. God dang it. Why these kids so damn young. 

He started listing off others. Some of I never heard of and some I have. “And then the girls project.” He finished reading the list. 

“Hey isn’t your friend in that group?” Minho nudge Jisung’s elbow. “You mean Ryujin and her squad?” Jisung asked him. He nods. 

I felt tens when Jisung said that name. I still haven’t told them about my beef with them and I don’t plan to. 

“I’m not friends with them anymore remember? I haven’t been since a long time.” I got confused. “What do you mean?” I asked him. 

“Didn’t you used to train with them before Chan asked you to join our team?” Felix asked me. I slowly nod. 

“I stop being friends with them cause I heard they were bullying this trainee at the company. More like I was told they were harassing them. I don’t like being friends that are bullies.” Jisung explained. I almost Aw. At least he good at making good choices. 

“Do you know who it is?” Seungmin asked?” Jisung shook his. “Nope. They never said their names.” He said. I kinda felt grateful for them for not reveling me but also scared at the same time cause other trainees paid attention. 

“They scare me.” Jeongin said

“Why?” Hyunjin raised his eyebrow at him. 

“Well, they look scary.” He said. We shrugged it off. 

“So, Lisa, hows the solo stage coming along?” Chan asked me going to a new topic. 

“I told you guys I’m not spoiling. You guys are just gonna have to see like the others.” I smirked at them they let out a groan. JYP asked me to do a solo stage during the show case and I agree. I tried to kept what I’m doing a secret. And the kids have been dying to know what I’m going to do. 

“Knowing you, it’s going to be amazing.” Seungmin said. “I promise to every inch of bone in my body I won’t let you guys down.” I promised them. I need to debut with them I gotta make them debut. 

“There’s nothing to worry about. Everything will be fine.” Chan assured us. 

------

The following past and it was the day of the showcase. I was so nervous I tried not let it show. Tho I can’t help like something bad was going to happen. 

When we arrived at the venue the girls project team acted like they didn’t know me. The guys thought it was wired since they know i’ve trained with them before but didn’t questioned me. 

We were in the dressing room waiting to do our practice run. A knock was heard on the door. The staff member opened it. “Lisa, you have visitors.” She said. I frown my eyebrows. 

My lips turned to a smile. “You guys came!” I screamed running up to thew two men that came into the room.  

“We told you we would come.”Zelo smiles. 

“Besides you did came to my survival show so it’s only fair I come to your showcase.” changhyun lifts me off the ground. 

“Now I have even more reasons to be nervous.” I admitted. 

“You nervous? What are you so nervous about?” Zelo questioned me. 

“Well for starters I’m doing three stages. And I don’t want to let my team down.” I said fast. 

“Hey.” Changkyun places his hands on my shoulders. “You’re going to be fine. You did this once before.” 

I still couldn’t get this feeling off my chest. I know he’s right but, the others are what I keep thinking. I won’t be able to live with myself if I can’t make them debut. 

“Noona, we’re on in ten for practice.” Seungmin called for me. 

“Go get em shorty.” Zelo smiled at me. I glared at him. 

----

Following the other members I made my way to grab my mic to make sure it was charged and working fine. 

Meanwhile the girl project team was practicing. The guys were talking about how good they are. And they were. 

“You okay?” Chan asked. I jumped from sudden appearance. 

“Y-yeah. They’re good huh?” I pointed over to them. 

“We got this.”Chan assured me. I just stared at the stage. 

Once the girls were done it was our turn to practice. Fist it was my solo stage. Surprisingly it turn out just fine. 

“Wow, Noona that was amazing.” Felix said having the bright smile. 

“I feel like i should’ve done something better.” 

“Trust us. That performance was enough.” Hyunjin said. 

“You honestly killed it. Rapping and singing not to mention dancing at the same time I felt that.” Minho places his arm around my shoulder. I took a sip of my bottle before Chan called me for the 3racha stage. 

For this stage the boys did mess up a bit nothing serious but I didn’t seem something like they would do.  When we got to the team practice for warrior descendant Changbin and Jisung messed up again. 

Chan pulled them to the side to talk about the mistakes they did. 

“You did well.” The voice of Yeji startled me. I looked at her confusingly. “But it looks like you guys need a lot of work.” She fakes smiles. 

“Oh, I saw you guys had a few mistakes yourselves. You guys just don’t want to admit it.” I gave her one in return. She didn’t look to happy. 

“Well, just see who gets to debut in a few hours.” She grins at me before leaving. I ignored her and went to check up on the others. 

--------

It was finally time for the real showcase tonight JYP was making his way to his place. 

I went to go double check my mic that it was recharged and working fine. “Testing 1,2,3?” The tech guy gave me thumbs up saying it was good. I nod. Minho stood next to me to check his. 

“Lisa your stage is almost up.” A staff member reminds me. Well, it’s now or never. I gotta do this. I try to take glance at the rest of the members as I could reminding myself I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them. 

----

My solo stage was done I handed my mic to the tech guy rushing over to the others. 

“See you had nothing to worry about.” Woojin pats my shoulder.

“I still have two more stages. Am I shaking?” I asked looking at my hands

“You’re not. You’re over reacting.” Changbin said placing his ear set in. 

“3racha lets go.” Chan called to us. Here we go again. 

----

Our stage went fine just that Chan slipped a little but I don’t think too many people notice. The way he fell scared me but I stayed focus. 

Now it was time for our team again. I feel like we should be okay we practice so man times. 

Everyone kept cheering us on. When I got to my rap part I only made it to three words till my mic was go cut off. I began to panic but tried not to show it and still went on and did my verse using all the power in my voice so people could still hear me. Before my verse ended Chan notice my mic was off and quickly rushed to my side making it seem like it was part of the dance and let me shared my mic with him. I kept it calm but in the inside it wanted to barf. 

--------

Getting off the stage hearing the crowd die down I quickly rushed to backstage. At this point my eyes started to water. Fearing for the worst. 

“What happened back there?” Our manager came up to us. This time my heart was beating ten times than it was before. 

“I don’t know my mic was working just fine.” I said with a panic tone in my voice. I can tell by the others they were uneasy about this. 

“Didn’t you make sure to check your mic before going on stage?” He yelled. 

“I did before going on for my solo stage.” I answered him by now you can hear the fear in my voice got to me. 

“I was there when she checked it. Something must’ve happened.” Minho tried to defend me. 

“Minho, not now. She needs to learn from her mistakes by herself.” Our manager raised his hand up thinking he was going to hit me I flinch and back away a bit. Everyone looked at me confusingly including manager. 

He takes a moment to realize my actions. “L-Lisa -ah, did-did you really think I was going to hit you?” He questions me his voice lowering with concern. 

I was too embarrassed to reply and hid my hands underneath my sleeves. “I-I’m sorry.” I knew I messed up. This was exactly what I was afraid off. I didn’t really tell them during my time at TS everyone there would get abused it was something I just kept to myself not wanting to cause more trouble. At this point my head started hurting. I let myself get carried away. 

Our manager sights. “Well talk more later, you guys are needed on stage.” 

“Lisa-“ Chan tried to put his hand on my shoulder till I lightly shoved it off and walked to to the stage.

----- (gonna speed this part up a bit)

I was so nervous. I knew I screwed up our chances of debuting. The boys probably hate me at the moment. Though we did received positive feedback  we still had some flaws.  

JYP was now talking to the ‘girls project’ not gonna lie. They were really good. “But there was one person who stood out to me the most the entire time.” I snapped back to reality hearing what JYP had to say. “Lisa.” My heart began to beat faster as he made eye contact. Now everyone turned to look at me.

“I wasn’t expecting you to have a mistake on stage. Even so, your mistake could’ve hurt your group you handle your situation very well.” My heart was still racing. “Most people would’ve panic and stopped but you kept performing keeping it natural. And Chan you helped a lot by sharing your mic with her noticing the problem. I give you points for that. That’s team work. “JYP complemented us. We thanked him and bowed. 

He’s right if Chan didn’t save my ass back there things might’ve been worst for us. 

“Of course I care about my artist knowing it wasn’t something out of the blew we’ll be looking into it.” JYP assured me. I nod. Could someone really sabotage?

“This is really hard for me because all of you are really good. But there is one winner.” JYP said. “Congratulations boys team.” My heart instantly dropped hearing our name. It dropped in a good way. Our team looked at each other with shocked eyes. I held back my tears from crying in front of all these people. I felt someone put an arm around me to comfort. I glance over to see it was Minho.

“You guys still need a lot of work but I really liked how you guys work together. You move if you were one body. I can really feel that stage aura in all of you. “Congratulations. You are the new JYP boy group to debut. ” He smiled at us.

So many emotions were going trough my entire body. Once the cameras were turned off. I quickly hugged Minho. After that I ran over to face Chan. He too was crying. “Thank you.” I cried as I hugged him the tightest. “Thank you.” I sobbed in his chest. “I should be the one thanking you.” He chuckles through his sobs.

Once everyone was done hugging and crying. “Guys I’m really sorry for letting you down.” I apologized to them for the million time.

“It’s okay. You heard JYP, mistakes happen.” Chan said.

“That doesn’t change the fact we almost didn’t make it this far.” I argued.

“Noona! We’re debuting! No ones blaming you and why would we? We never did.” Jisung said placing his hands on my shoulders. Everyone nods.

“I love you guys. So much.” I smiled at them.

“Another group hug.” Jisung yelled as we all huddle around each other.

“Lisa!”I heard Changkyun call for me when everyone let go.

“guys!” I smiled and ran over to them hugging them.

“You did it.” Changkyun ruffles my hair.

“You we’re amazing regardless of what happened.” Zelo patted my shoulder.

“I don’t know I have feeling it was planned.” I told after what JYP said.

“Maybe but did you see the girls team when JYP said you were going to debut. It was hilarious.” Changkyun smiles. Mine fades once he mentions them. What if it was them.

“We should celebrate with your members.” Zelo suggested. All I did was nod. 

--

-To Jisung  

As Jisung was packing his bag someone came up to him. "Congrats Jisung Oppa." He jumped a little but notice it was just Ryujin."Oh, thanks Ryujin. Sorry you guys didn't make it but there always next time right?" Jisung tried not to be selfish about it but just didn't want to talk to her.

 Her smile faded. "I feel bad for what happened to Lisa. It was wired her mic died middle of her performance." Ryujin mentions. Jisung stopped packing his bag and glanced over to Lisa. He knew she was beating herself up over the little incident. "yeah, Minho hyung was right, her mic was fully charged before we went on stage." Jisung also couldn't but think about. He also knew that Lisa was acting very wired at every single practice they had to prepared for the showcase. This wasn't something he knew that she would make a mistake in.

“Anyways, the girls and I are gonna go get dinner do you and the other boys want to join us?” She asked moving to a different topic. 

“Ryunjin, remember we’re not friends anymore.” Jisung reminded her as he zipped his bag. 

She looked hurt by his words. “That does mean we still can’t hang out?” 

“To me it does. Sorry, but the guys and I already have plans.” Jisung told her his final answer.

“Fine.” Ryunjin took her bag off the table but all her stuff fell out as it was not zipped. 

She let out a frustrating yet panic sight and she quickly tried to put everything back in her backpack. Jisung notice something odd that shouldn��t be in her bag. 

“Is that a mic you have?” He questions her as he went to pick it up but Ryunjin snatched it from his hands. Tho Jisung was quick enough to react to get it first. “Why do you have this?” He gave her a confused look. 

Ryunjin tried to snatch it but Jisung pulled his hand away. He then took a moment to process everything that just happened. “You switched out Noona’s mic? Why” He had a look of disbelieve. Ryunjin just had look of fear on her face. 

“You guys are the ones that have been harassing her haven’t you?” Jisung put the pieces together he figured it out. “The way she would always tense up whenever we talked about you guys. She used to trainee with you guys. Why!” He started to raise his voice. 

Ryunjin backed away a bit. “What did she tell you?” She regain her composure and acted like she didn’t do anything.

Jisung started to get angry at this point. “She didn’t say anything. Now I know why she never talked about herself much. Why did you do this? You know this could’ve impacted the rest of my member too? Do you know how hard Chan hyung worked to get us here? What do you have against Lisa anyways?”

“She’s not one of us oppa!” Those words really hit him. 

“That is so stupid. She doesn’t have to be. So she’s not Korean just because she’s not our race doesn’t mean she has what it takes to debt. We all deserve a chance. You’re lucky I’m not reporting you and the others.” Jisung snapped at her. 

Ryunjin was shocked she never seen him this angry before. Just as she was about to walk away Jisung grabbed her arm. “I’m warning you right now Ryunjin, you and your other members so try to lay another figure on my Noona you’re going to regret it.” Jisung glared at her as he went to talk this members. 

{Lisa SKZ 10th Member Masterlist}

[prettywordsyouleft]

Life Lessons

Summary: you knew with the changes in your environment at home, you son Daehwi was bound to show signs at school. What you weren’t ready for was the support from his teacher, Mr Hwang.

notsosubtlekpop said:

Requests?!?! Well, you know what I would request, if you feel so inclined 😂

Pairing: Hwang Minhyun x reader ft. Daehwi

Genre: teacher au / parent au / fluff

Warnings: none

Word count: 2925

This has since become a two part series. Link to part 2 can be found at the end of this story.

You weren’t ready for this to begin. You had believed you had several years left up your sleeve until you got called into school to meet with your son’s teacher. After all, Daehwi was only six years old. What kind of havoc could he cause in the first week of school?

But you knew your son and his rambunctious ways, and as you hurried along the corridor to his classroom, you resigned yourself to the fact you were in for all sorts of things this year.

Coming to a halt outside the room you had dropped your son off at earlier in the morning before work; you took a steadying breath and rapped your knuckles on the door. You expected the teacher to call out for you to enter, but the door opened instead and you were greeted by Daehwi’s teacher.

Wait, wasn’t he a she earlier this morning? You flushed with colour at your mistake. “Oh, I think I have the wrong room.”

“Mrs L/N?” the teacher asked, smiling welcomingly at you. You blinked several times, trying to open your mouth to say something in return. Like correcting the title he had just given you.

But words seemed to be a lost cause, much like your thought process in the handsome teacher’s company.

You followed the tall man across the room, barely taking in the various art projects that had clearly filled the afternoon of class today. The teacher gestured to a chair and you glanced at it, noticing how small it was. He chuckled at your obvious stare. “Ah, the joys of teaching six-year-olds. Sorry, I don’t have any adult sized ones to offer you unless we go into my office. I thought it would be more welcoming to have our chat in here. They’re stronger than they look.”

You smiled meekly and took a seat, laughing at how ridiculous you felt as you adjusted yourself on the little chair. You glanced over at the man who now sat with his knees up far too high for it to look all that comfortable. He grinned and the tension you felt coming in to see Daehwi’s teacher subsided.

Until you realised you were still confused as to who he was. “I uh, thought Daehwi’s teacher was female this morning.”

“Oh, that would be Ms Kim. She helps out in the classroom in the mornings. She’s a teacher’s aide.”

“I see.”

He grinned and then his mouth fell ajar briefly, before he threw his hand out at you, a tinge of colour flushing his cheeks as he chuckled. “Sorry! I know who you are, but you don’t know me. I’m Daehwi’s teacher, Mr Hwang. But you can call me Minhyun.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” you replied, taking his outstretched hand and shaking it. You ignored your reaction to the way he held your hand and pulled it back, looking around the room before settling your eyes on Mr Hwang.

Minhyun.

“So uh, the message I received stated that Daehwi caused an issue today?”

Minhyun nodded, his expression turning solemn. “He is a really lovely kid, and whilst I can see no harm was intended, well, Daehwi was a little bit opinionated today and it made a couple of children in class upset.”

“I see.” You cringed, knowing that the teacher was downplaying it. You knew just how opinionated Daehwi could be.

And how adamant he was even if he had come to the wrong conclusion about something. You could still remember when you had taught him all about the colours and yet he was certain the sky was green, even if he could point out what blue was immediately from anything else.

But what colour the sky was wouldn’t be something that could get him in trouble right away. Kids say the funniest things and you were certain Mr Hwang had heard his fair share of amusing anecdotes over his years of teaching.

Minhyun cleared his throat before continuing. “I uh, just wanted to warn you perhaps about what he hears between you and your partner or husband. Whilst it’s not really my place to discuss what may or may not be said within the home, Daehwi was adamant in telling all the children at his table that fathers are useless jerks.”

You gasped, your face flooding with colour whilst Minhyun smiled weakly. You could tell he was uncomfortable, but not nearly as much as you were in this moment. For the umpteenth time this year, you felt like a failed parent.

“I’m so sorry, I never expected… you see Daehwi’s father left us earlier in the year and, oh my god I don’t know why I’m telling you this.”

The teacher’s smile turned encouragingly and he nodded his head. “It’s good for me to know that there is a transitional period happening with him at home.”

“It’s my fault, I should have triple checked that he was asleep,” you continued, blinking back your tears. Minhyun was up and soon returned with a box of tissues, placing them on the table. He didn’t offer you one outright and you appreciated that, knowing had he, you would have turned into a blubbering mess. That was something you weren’t quite prepared to become in front of your son’s teacher. You had already cried far too much in front of everyone, especially Daehwi. You internally mourned for the trauma you and your ex had placed upon your child.

“We all have hard times as parents and sometimes we don’t always notice that our kids are picking up on more than what’s said. I’m sure Daehwi just wants to protect you and has chosen to vent his anger towards his paternal figure.”

You nodded slowly. “I’m so sorry again.”

“I just wanted you to know. He’s not in any trouble; I managed to distract them all from the heated conversation and will ensure to make sure that we incorporate healthy ideas in the classroom about different ways families exist. It’s actually a good thing in some ways, as we can all learn from this experience through an upcoming module.”

Just then, your son ran into the classroom, tackling his teacher who laughed heartily. “Mr Hwang, you have taken up far too much of Mummy’s time!”

“Daehwi!”

The teacher nodded happily. “You’re right, I have! Shall I let you go home now?”

“Yes please!” Daehwi then turned to you. “Can we get ice-cream on the way home?”

“We’ll see about that,” you informed and Daehwi pouted before yanking on your hand to help you up. You stood up and nodded gratefully at Mr Hwang. He smiled and waved you off.

Despite talking with Daehwi on the way home that day, it wasn’t your last time being called into school. You were seeing far too much of Minhyun after class and now you were both on a first-name basis. You no longer were meek and wounded in front of the teacher; rather, you spent a lot of time trying to come up with strategies to assist Daehwi with his misplaced anger. You could tell Minhyun was a hub of resources and the ideas he gave you were definitely working within the home. You were thankful that the meetings soon became positive ones and your son was settling into his new routine of school with little disruption.

You realised it was also helping you heal from the separation and pain you felt from being cheated on. Although you had no desire to date any time soon, you humoured your best friend when she showed you a notice on the community board in the grocery store.

“Look, it’s a group for single parents to meet up.”

“I don’t need that, Nara.”

“Y/N, you could meet some people who could connect with you more than someone like I can. I don’t even have a kid and as much as I love my adopted nephew as if he were my own, I don’t always understand what you go through with Daehwi. These people will.”

You paused in pushing your cart out to the car, pondering the idea. And then you scrunched your nose up. “I don’t think so. It’s probably just a place where people get together and whine about how hard it is to raise kids alone.”

“So? Don’t you do just that to me at times about Daehwi?”

“I do,” you agreed, smiling weakly. “I mean, I want to meet with people who feel empowered and have positive things to say too. I’ve been learning a lot of great tips for positivity in the house from Daehwi’s teacher and-”

“Ooh, Mr Hwang!” Nara cut in dreamily and you reached out to swat her away. Nara laughed and nudged you. “That teacher has been a blessing for you and Daehwi, I’ll admit. But I think you might be harbouring a crush on him.”

“Nara, don’t be silly. I couldn’t date my son’s teacher.” It sounded so odd just saying that out loud and your face flushed with colour.

“You like him!”

“He’s probably married.”

“Does he have a wedding ring on his finger?” Nara continued and you sighed exasperatedly at her.

“If I promise to go to one of these meetings will you stop going on about Minhyun?”

Nara grinned knowingly at your use of his first name but nodded firmly. You took the flyer from her hand and placed it into your bag, unloading your groceries into your car and hoping one meeting was all you would need to commit to.

The solo parents’ meeting wasn’t what you had expected. Sure there were people were littered around the room chatting about what their kids had or hadn’t done before the session was called to order. But there was a lot of structure and you were surprised when a guest speaker started talking about what impacts parenting alone can have on a child and the parent itself. You walked away not only pleased with what you learned during the session, but with the contacts for a couple of really friendly parents who made you feel welcomed. You signed your name up for the following meeting and counted down the days until Thursday arrived again. You were earlier this time, having dropped your son off at his grandparents for the night and decided to go out for dinner after the meeting as a treat to yourself. You greeted the few faces already around the room and went over to the table to collect your name badge the coordinators had out ready for the parents. You found someone staring at your name and gasped when you recognised who it was.

“Minhyun?” you asked and the tall man turned to face you, somewhat startled to see you there. He recovered and reached for your badge, handing it over. “Do teachers come along to these nights to learn from the guest speakers?”

He nodded softly. “Well, I’m sure there are a lot of various professions mingling around this room. Parents have jobs outside of the home too. I mean, that’s why you’re here right?”

“Yeah, I came last week and learned a lot.”

“You will, these sessions have helped me immensely. Some of the stuff I shared with you didn’t all come from experience but from what I picked up here,” he explained though you looked up at him in confusion. A tinge of colour crossed his face from your continued stare and he visibly jumped when another person greeted him.

“Minhyun, it was so sad you missed last week. Is Sohyunnie feeling better now?” The coordinator looked at you beside him and grinned. “Oh, you have already met our newcomer. Y/N, Minhyun is one of the parents who helped in the beginning set this all up. It’s been just over two years now, hasn’t it?”

“Something like that,” he mumbled and you nodded softly, watching Minhyun still. Not once had you considered his help came from a place of understanding what it was like to parent alone. You believed he had some amazingly normal life, and you almost laughed out loud at your quick assumption.

And the fact that you now realised there were so many ways of being normal. Your previous thinking had been so narrow-minded.

Minhyun glanced at you and then gestured to the chairs to take a seat upon. Once there, he angled himself towards you. “I have a daughter. I’ve been raising her alone for the past three years so I know what it’s like to think you’ve failed as you did when I first met you. I can’t guarantee it gets any easier; there have been times where I thought I was doing everything wrong by Sohyun. Having a group like this to turn to for advice and strength when it all feels so wrong has really helped me. I guess that’s why I poured time into helping you with Daehwi because I understood how lost you feel when it’s all suddenly different.”

“I feel so foolish; I was so self-absorbed and just thought you were a teacher who went the extra mile with your students.”

Minhyun grinned. “Well, that, regardless of being a parent, is a trait of mine.”

“Is it bad that I feel some sense of relief from finding out about you also being a solo parent?” you asked and he shook his head, still smiling. “It’s nice to know someone already in my world who understands what I’m kind of going through.”

“I admit, it’s been comforting helping you with Daehwi too.”

You shared a smile with him before the session was called into order and once again, you felt like you were in a magical place full of wisdom. Except, this time, you got to see how the words of those around you affected Minhyun, and share knowing glances with him in between scenarios that you both related to. You hadn’t felt this fulfilled in forever.

Stepping out after the meeting, you lingered in the foyer, waiting for Minhyun to catch up. When he reappeared, you smiled brightly at him. “Do you have to go home to Sohyun now?”

“No, she’s with my sister for the night. Daehwi?”

“With my parents.”

“Have you eaten yet?”  “Would you like to go for coffee?”

You both laughed at your predicament and then you nodded. “I haven’t had dinner yet. If you want, you could join me?”

“That would be great, I barely had a chance to stuff half a sandwich in before coming tonight,” Minhyun mentioned and then pointed to a local restaurant down the road. You nodded in agreement and you both started walking in that direction.

For some reason, you began to feel flutters in your stomach about going somewhere alone with Minhyun. It wasn’t as if you hadn’t spent a lot of time alone with him so far, but the difference was you weren’t surrounded by charts showing the alphabet or colourful pictures on the wall. And despite just being with a bunch of parents just now, this was a rare occasion for you to be with an adult and do adult stuff.

You swallowed at the feeble romantic voice inside your head trying to title this as a date.

Minhyun cleared his throat and you glanced up at him, blinking away your juvenile thoughts. “Y/N?”

“Mm?”

“Do you think whilst we eat dinner we could do something different from what we normally do?”

You frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Well,” he started and despite the plume of darkness that surrounded you now that the sun was long gone from the sky, the streetlamps allowed for you to see yet another tinge of colour surface on his cheeks. Did Minhyun always blush like this or was it because you were with him outside of his usual teaching habitat?

“All we’ve done is talk about Daehwi, and now Sohyun, since we’ve known each other. Which makes sense given our initial connection.” He took a deep breath. “Do you think tonight we could just talk about us instead?”

“Us?” you repeated, feeling your stomach rejoicing far too prematurely. Minhyun coughed awkwardly and you surmised his slip-up hadn’t been in the way you immediately thought. “Oh, you mean about ourselves. Sure, I don’t get a lot of time in my day to have adult conversations with people.”

“I was hoping you would see it more as getting to know more about each other to see if there could be an us,” he admitted shyly and you snapped your focus back to his face. “If you feel comfortable with it being like that, that is.”

“As in, how you would on a date?” you questioned and Minhyun nodded.

You felt your cheeks burn from how happy you suddenly felt. And then you faltered. “Is it appropriate for a teacher to date their student’s mother?”

“Well, it’s not normal conduct, I guess.” Minhyun smiled down at you, offering out his hand. “But as one parent to another, shouldn’t we explore feelings if we experience them?”

You didn’t hesitate to slip your hand into his, his comforting grip making your heart thump faster.

You weren’t looking for someone to come into your world and shake it up even further than it had been earlier in the year. And you were sure that you would stumble and fail along the way with dating Minhyun too, if this actually progressed that far. But if there was one thing you had discovered over the past year, it was that life was all about learning.

And you couldn’t wait to learn more about Hwang Minhyun.

_________________

Next: Defining Roles

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[la-vita-in-arancione]

Killer Queen: Chapter 7 - Bohemian Rhapsody

Summary:  Arabella Ruth White is the fifth member of the Marauders. And life at Hogwarts certainly isn’t easy. Especially when you have alcohol, relationships, unhealthy music obsessions, a fake stage persona, weird ass friends with weird ass problems and actual school all thrown into the equation. (This story is also on Wattpad and AO3 of the same name. I will always update on Wattpad first.)

A/N: Sorry I didn’t post last week even though I said I would. Half term ended up being busier than planned. We are now up to date with the Watttpad version of this story so that’s something! Enjoy!

Warning(s): swearing, mention of babies because that might be triggering for some people

Word Count: 2.6k+

Taglist: @missqueeniewrites

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I don't often receive owl mail. I just don't. No idea why. My darling bastards of siblings can never be bothered to write to me, claiming that if they send me loads of letters then we'll have nothing to talk about when I get home. Which is fair enough. Even if it does seem a bit rude. But oh well. What are you going to do?

The only good thing about it, however, was that when I did get owl mail, it was always about something important. Some of my favourite letters have been from Rhea telling me that she never intended to speak to Luke ever again, only for her to reverse this statement only one day later; one from Mum telling me that the lady who owned the chippy on the pier had had a baby; and one from Luke telling me that said baby had shat on the carpet of his bedroom and that he now had to share with Rhea.

So, going by this logic, every letter I will ever get while at Hogwarts is guaranteed to be either important, amusing or both. This means it's worth my time. I reminded myself of this when I acquired my first letter of the year on a misty Friday morning which just so happened to be Halloween. As it was a Friday, I was naturally exhausted after the long week we had had (our OWLs must have been catching up with me). This was why I felt the need to remind myself that I absolutely had to read this letter. It could remodel my entire life my life for all I knew. The untidy bordering on illegible handwriting on the envelope clearly told me it was from Mum. I ripped it open and not one but two things were inside: a short letter from Mum and a small parcel which was the unmistakable size and shape of a single vinyl record.

Hello Ruth,

I actually apparated to just outside the school gates to owl this to you as it couldn't wait any longer. This morning Queen released a new single and you'll find it enclosed in the envelope. It's called Bohemian Rhapsody and the B-side is called I'm In Love With My Car. God knows what inspires them to make these songs. Steve from the record shop down the road says both songs are superb and that you'll like them if not love them. No news as to when the album is coming yet.

I hope everything's been going alright at school. How is the "project" going? Please tell me you've started by now, it's not fair on Remus to keep him waiting for this long. Sorry for not owling you sooner but to be honest, nothing much has happened in the two months you've been gone. The only thing really worth noting is that someone tried to shoplift some things from the shop so I threw a bucket and spade at them. They haven't come back since.

Luke and Rhea send their love of course, not that they would ever admit it in the presence of the other. Trixie from next door also asked me to check up on you as she hadn't seen you much all summer. I can't wait for Christmas so you can come back, thankfully it's only less than a couple of months. I'm slowly losing my mind without anyone else here to have an intelligent conversation with.

Love you lots,

Mum xxx

Fuck yes, Mum.

She is an actual savage and I love that so much. Only she would get away with throwing kids toys at thieves. Sounds like he deserved it though. What kind of crackhead would assume they could steal from my mum and get away with it. I made a promise to myself to reply to her after lessons had ended for the day.

But on a more important note. Queen released a new single.

Two new songs.

Holy shitting fuckity fuck on a crumpet.

FINALLY NEW MATERIAL.

AFTER A FUCKING YEAR.

YES.

The gods must have been smiling at me that day for this was a glory that not even Clotho could have foreseen. I unwrapped the record, more carefully this time as to not scratch it, and, true to Steve's word, there was the vinyl: Bohemian Rhapsody. Whatever the fuck that meant. Sounded pretty epic though.

"Are you OK Ruth?" Remus asked, mock concern lacing his voice. He'd given up on trying to teach us how to stay alive years ago, now he merely observed and occasionally saved our lives. Honestly, bless that boy. However, it wasn't until he had asked this question that I realised this wasn't the first time the boys had tried to get my attention since I received the letter.

"I'm fan-fucking-tastic, darling. Never been better," I grinned.

"Now here's the thing, I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not," Peter chuckled, causing me to lightly whack him around the back of the head.

"No, you bloody wanker, I am genuinely joyful."

"Well that's new," Sirius muttered, earning him also a small smack. I would never properly hit any of my friends unless they had absolutely betrayed me. Which was unlikely.

"What's so good about this letter then?" James asked earnestly, just a tad confused.

I smirked at him, "If you come and bunk this lesson with me then you'll find out."

So that's how the boys and I ended up in the Room of Requirement, listening to Queen's latest song, instead of being in Divination.

At some point during my first year, I found out about the Room of Requirement when I overheard a conversation between some 7th years. Upon discovering this, I promptly went to the room's location, wishing for a space for music. A bit vague, I must admit, but at the time, I had merely been searching for a place to keep my record player and vinyls. The room itself was not as plain as I first visualized. Many wooden, modest-sized crates and boxes filled to the brim with my records were scattered around - more of an organised mess than you might expect. Each crate was dedicated to a certain artist who I loved: Queen, Elton John, David Bowie, The Beatles, etc. My scarlet, black and gold record player sat proudly on top of a dark oak cupboard that existed for purely decorative purposes. A grand piano stood on the other side of the spacious room next to a throne of sorts that I felt was necessary to have. A crimson, old-fashioned sofa was positioned at the back of the room with an identical ivory one opposite it. Fairy lights were tangled in just about everything in the room, adding to the general aesthetic rather than any form of assistance. If anything, it was more of a nuisance but I would never sacrifice the atmosphere it presented.

The boys plonked themselves on the leather sofas as I crouched down, carefully placed the record on the turntable and adjusted the speed from the usual 33 RPM to the 45 setting. I put the needle on the rim of the record and sat cross-legged on the floor next to the speakers. I loved to have them right next to my ears whenever I listened to a record for the first time. Especially when it came to Queen – it didn't escape my attention that the sound often went from one speaker to the other. I closed my eyes softly when I heard the familiar crackle that always made me grin like an idiot. There was something about focusing on just my hearing and giving my other senses break. That was how music was supposed to be – for your ears.

Is this the real life?

Is this just fantasy?

The strong harmonies rang throughout the room, almost echoing.

Caught in a landslide

No escape from reality

Open your eyes

Look up to the skies and see

The piano started to creep in, gradually getting louder as the song progressed.

I'm just a poor boy, I need no sympathy

Freddie's effortlessly recognisable voice sung alone for a moment, only for the harmonies to make a comeback.

Because I'm easy come, easy go

Little high, little low

The lyrics filled both of my ears, left then right. It was so stereotypically Queen; it was like their seal, their stamp, their trademark that said 'Yeah, we did that'.

Anyway, the wind blows

Doesn't really matter to me, to me

The repetitive notes of the piano and John's wonderful bass sound played alone for a couple of bars.

Mama, just killed a man

Put a gun against his head

Pulled my trigger, now he's dead

Somewhat taken aback by the dark turn the lyrics had taken, I felt goosebumps up and down my arms as a reaction to the melancholic feel of the song.

Mama, life had just begun

But now I've gone and thrown it all away

The song as a whole rose to a crescendo. I could hear the emotion and passion in Freddie's voice – it was almost ethereal.

Mama, ooh, ooh

Didn't mean to make you cry

If I'm not back again this time tomorrow

Carry on, carry on as if nothing really matters

The volume suddenly decreased. Roger's drumming became more prominent in this verse.

Too late, my time has come

Sends shivers down my spine

Body's aching all the time

Goodbye, everybody, I've got to go

Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth

Mama, ooh (anyway the wind blows) I don't want to die

I sometimes wish I'd never been born at all

The lyrics got darker if that was even possible. The clear, sharp sound of Brian's guitar solo filled every inch of the room. After about half a minute of glorious guitar, all of the instruments were cut short by quiet, staccato piano chords.

I see a little silhouette of a man

Scaramouch, Scaramouch will you do the fandango

I wasn't exactly expecting a full-on choir that was truly just Freddie, Roger and Brian's voices on top of each other, over and over again. I dreaded to imagine how long that must have taken to record.

Thunderbolt and lightning, very, very frightening me

Galileo, Galileo, Galileo, Galileo,

Galileo Figaro magnifico

The 'Galileo's made me giggle: how the fuck could Roger sing higher than me? I understand that I'm an alto but he's a bloke!

But I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me

He's just a poor boy from a poor family

Spare him his life from this monstrosity

Easy come easy go will you let me go

Bismillah, no we will not let you go, let him go

Bismillah, we will not let you go, let him go

Bismillah, we will not let you go, let me go

A tiny smile crept its way onto my face at hearing 'Bismillah'. It was a word that I had heard Dorcas say on numerous occasions.

Will not let you go, let me go (never)

Never let you go, let me go

Never let me go, ooh

No, no, no, no, no, no, no

Oh mama mia, mama mia, mama mia let me go

Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me

For me, for me

Roger's ridiculously high voice filled my ears once again, even higher-pitched this time around. Louder, more rock-orientated music blasted out of the speakers of the record player. I couldn't help but bang my head along to it. It was like being hypnotised; you couldn't control your movements.

So you think you can stone me and spit in my eye

So you think you can love me and leave me to die

Oh baby, can't do this to me baby

Just gotta get out, just gotta get right outta here

The song quietened down again, not unlike how it had been at the beginning.

Ooh yeah, ooh yeah nothing really matters

Anyone can see nothing really matters

Nothing really matters to me

Anyway, the wind blows

The last line was barely audible but fortunately, I could make out Freddie's voice from my spot next to the speakers. When I finally opened my eyes again, I could see the boys had been straining to hear it. A gong sounded throughout the room, marking the end of the song.

I glanced at the boys, wanting to observe their reactions to the near enough six-minute masterpiece we had just had the privilege of hearing.

"That was definitely worth missing Divination for," Remus chuckled and honestly, that was the best I could have ever hoped for. We spent the next 20 minutes gushing about the song and listening to it again about 2 or 3 times. Only after this did we realise that we hadn't yet listened to the B-side: I'm In Love With My Car. Unsurprisingly, it was written and sung by Roger and was indeed about him being in love with his car. Not quite sure what I was expecting if I'm honest. It turned out to actually be a brilliant song and the boys and I had a blast rocking out to it.

Suddenly I had an epiphany. That absolutely, completely, positively could not wait a moment longer.

So naturally, I had to tell the boys.

"Guys, guys, guys!" I exclaimed, everyone turning their heads to stare at me like they were a clan of meerkats, "Remember our Halloween prank tonight at dinner? Change of plan."

**********

The rest of the day was a fairly normal affair. I could hardly concentrate because my mind was buzzing with thoughts about Queen and our prank tonight. Nothing out of the ordinary then.

By the time dinner came around, the excitement was radiating off us in waves. Somehow, this was the first prank we had done all year, which was certainly saying something. Just as Dumbledore stood up from his seat to give one if his famed speeches, I tapped on the table to signify the start of the prank. Peter took his cue and murmured a charm, making all of the candles suddenly blow out and plunging the Great Hall into darkness. Hushed whispers from confused students were suddenly silenced by the sound of a microphone whistling. This meant Remus had executed his part of the plan, now it was time for James's. Being the best at Transfiguration out of all of us, his job was to transform the metal torches at the tops of the walls into various different instruments - guitars, basses, drums, pianos, gongs, wind chimes, etc. Now for my part. I charmed all of the floating pumpkins in the hall so they would sing. Which song you ask? Bohemian Rhapsody, of course, my dears. I smiled when the familiar voices of Queen echoed all around the Great Hall. Once the acapella part of the song was over, Sirius charmed the newly made instruments so they would play their respective parts when needed. I had to bite my lip to stop myself from laughing: even in the darkness, I could make out some facial expressions that could only be described as a mixture of confusion, annoyance, glee and defeat.

The song seemed to be over before it had even begun, which was a shame. Everyone applauded as we reversed the spells and Dumbledore actually congratulated us in his speech! McGonagall, however, reprimanded us and gave us detentions for disrupting the dinner or some bullshit like that. I personally believed she secretly loved the prank. Maybe the eye roll suggested this as she trooped back to the teacher's table. Or maybe I had imagined it.

Who even knows any more?

[solastia]

‘tis the season to be freezin’

ONE SHOT

Pairing: Jung Hoseok x Reader

Summary: Is that Jung Hoseok drunken caroling outside of my window at 2 am?

Word Count: 3,621

Genre & Warnings: College Au, FLUFF. Hobi being adorable. Gratuitous use of Jane Eyre quotes. 

You heard Jung Hoseok before you saw his face. 

It was the first day of English Literature 1A, a class you needed for the credits, despite it having nothing to do with your major. Still, you did appreciate the classics, so you didn’t mind too much. You’d arrived a few minutes early in the hopes of getting a decent seat near the front, a hope that was fulfilled when you stepped in and saw only a handful of students. The professor wandered in not much later, and class began right on time. You zoned out a bit since the topic was Jane Eyre, a book you’ve read countless times as well as watched every movie adaption there was. You could recite the story in your sleep. 

You were losing the battle to keep your eyes open. Professor Jung was discussing Jane’s relationship with her Aunt and cousins and all the ways it affected her later in life. You were startled back to alertness when the faint sound of high pitched shrieking reached your ears. You sat up to try and focus on the sound as you realized it was getting closer. The professor stopped his lecture and with a deep sigh, gestured towards the closed doors. 

“Everyone, meet...”

“GOOD MORNING CLASS!” The double doors were slammed open, and a voice that was both honey smooth and raspy shouted out his greeting as he ran inside. 

“...My very late son. Hoseok, take a seat up front here, won’t you? And try not to be late again, it makes me look bad.” Your professor looked like he was fighting off a smile when Hoseok playfully salutes him.

“Yes sir, Professor Jung who I have never seen before in my life. By the way, your wife, who I have also never met before, would like you to grab some milk and dog food on your way home.” Professor Jung snorts and waits for the rest of class to cease their laughing before he goes back to his notes. 

You’re further startled when out of the three rows of seats in the front, nine seats in total of which only two are taken, he settles noisily in the place to your right. He sets down his textbook and searches through his tiny hip bag. Finally, with an annoyed sigh, he turns to you.

“Hello! I’m Hoseok. Can I borrow a pen?” 

You finally turn and examine the entirety of Jung Hoseok for the first time. The twinkling coffee-colored eyes, sharp jaw, and elegant nose were striking. However, it was the brilliant full smile that caught your eye. Your heart fluttered wildly, the room suddenly felt too warm, and a quote came to mind.

“A beauty neither of fine colour nor long eyelash, nor penciled brow, but of meaning, of movement, of radiance.”

Radiance. He was absolutely radiant. You’d offered a shy smile of your own and one of your precious, expensive pens that you never let anyone borrow, basking in his grateful smile like he was the sun personified. 

After that first meeting, the two of you had become...well, semi-friends? You conversed easily enough during class when his dad wasn’t paying attention. You’d claim each other for projects and he never once moved his seat. You’d learned a fair amount about him since he always liked to swap stories of how your days were going. You’d discovered he was a music production major with a minor in dance. You learned his sweet tooth could probably rival yours. 

Outside of class, however, it was mostly waves and smiles when you passed each other in the halls. He had a pretty intimidating looking group of friends, so you’d never been able to gather the courage to just go up and say hello. Not to mention, after a couple months Hoseok had developed quite the fan club, and women flocked to his group asking him to every event. You’d never actually seen or heard of him dating anyone, but you figured it was only a matter of time.

Even the one time you saw him at a party, you’d grinned and waved, but maintained your distance, hoping he would be the one to come to you. You didn’t want to embarrass yourself or him in front of his friends, thinking you were just another thirsty Hoseok fan. Instead, you’d stayed safely with your small group of friends on the other side of the living room, smiling wistfully as you watched Hoseok screaming and periodically dancing during several rounds of beer pong. You convinced yourself it was just your drunken imagination that it seemed like his eyes followed you around the room. 

Every day seemed to find you falling more for Jung Hoseok. You admired his ambition and drive, his sweet personality that hid a surprising savage twist at times. He was hilarious and always kept you smiling and laughing in class. He was as loud as you were quiet, and you actually enjoyed his attempts to bring you out of your shell. One of your favorite hobbies became trying to find something new to frighten him with because he was surprisingly easy to scare. It also gave you a reason to buy him a cup of apology tea. His discussions that he often drew you into with his father during class showed intelligence and an ability to look for the good in the world, despite its vast darkness. 

During one class discussion, Professor Jung had asked you all to close your eyes and envision someone special to you, then write down the words that came to mind. You’d rested your hands on the table and shut your eyes. Of course, Hoseok was the first thing you pictured. Suddenly, you’d felt pressure against your right hand. You opened your eyes just enough to peek under your lashes, and there was Hoseok’s hand. Skin to skin with your right hand. Pinky to pinky. 

You’d glanced out of the corner of your eye and saw that Hoseok’s eyes were still closed. He probably didn't even realize what he did. You’d released a shaky breath and tried to casually grab your pen, maybe accidentally but not really brushing your whole palm against the back of his hand. You’d thought you might have seemed him jolt a bit, but since he didn’t say anything, you assumed you were safe. Pen to paper finally, you write down the words that came to mind when the vision of Hoseok laughing first appeared in your mind. 

“Her coming was my hope each day, Her parting was my pain; The chance that did her steps delay Was ice in every vein.”

You’d sighed and tucked it away before sneaking a peek at Hoseok. He was smiling at you, but it was a smile you’d never seen on him before. One that got your heart fluttering and your knees weak. Soft and gentle. It disappeared in a flash and Hoseok finished writing his own quote while humming what you were pretty sure was the theme song for the Jetsons. 

Eventually, the end of your first semester at college came to a close. You’d just finished your final for Lit 1A and began putting your things in your backpack so you could leave.

“Pssst.” 

You glance up to see if Professor Jung is paying attention before whispering back. “What?” 

“Wait for me? I just have like two questions left.” Hoseok asked quietly. 

“Sure.” You responded, confusion evident in your tone. He’d never done that before. Sometimes you’d talk on your way to the door, but that was when everyone left at the same time. 

You answered the texts you’d been ignoring during your test while you waited. It only took another five minutes, then with a whispered, “Let’s go,” you both gathered your tests and belongings before bringing them up front. 

“I should have known the two of you would be one of the first ones done. I know Y/N probably did exceptionally well, especially since I included a Jane Eyre essay question with her in mind. How do you think you did, Son? I know you’ve actually been studying.” Professor Jung asked with a smile as he accepted our tests. 

“Great, especially since I have a loving Father who wants me to succeed in life. Even though he’d rather put customized questions in for hot girls instead of his own son.” Hoseok quipped as you hung behind, hopefully unnoticed, as you choked on your own saliva hearing him refer to you as a hot girl. 

Professor Jung laughed quietly and set the tests aside. “Y/N, I know you’re not a Lit major, but think about signing up for 1B with me next month. You and Hoseok both did great and kept the discussions going, so I’d think it’d be excellent to have you both back. Him, I can force. You, I’ll beg.” 

“Well, since you begged me, I’ll see what I can do. You’re a great professor anyway, so it’s no hassle.” You laugh, giving a small wave goodbye as Hoseok grabs your elbow to drag you away from his dad. 

As the two of you walked out of the classroom, Hoseok cleared his throat and asked, “So what are your plans for Christmas?” 

“Oh, nothing really. I usually do holidays solo. My mom travels with her boyfriend. I’ll probably just chill with some cookies and movies. Get some pizza from Gregoria’s Pizzaria. Maybe try to talk them into making it Christmas tree shaped. You?” 

“That sucks about your Mom. I’m just doing the usual family stuff. Dinner, presents, sneaking into the rum that was meant for cakes. Although I hate to tell you that Gregoria’s probably isn’t open on Christmas. They are just down the street from me, and I’ve never seen them open.”

“They are right across the street from me, and they are open every holiday except labor day. They’ve even made me four leaf clover shaped pizza for St. Patrick’s day.” 

“Dude, I think we are neighbors then! I’m on 6310 Kyrene.”

“Oh my God, you’re the house with the yellow fence that always has that giant snoopy house thing for Christmas?”

“That’s us! I love Snoopy! Where are you at?”

“6302...”

“OH, I know that house. You guys never put any decorations up. My Mom complains every year that you mess up her aesthetics.” 

“Ok, do you see me? I can’t put up all kinds of decorations by myself. Occasionally I’ll buy a small Christmas tree because I like the smell, but that’s if I’m feeling crazy.”

“Wow. I bet we’ve been to all the same places, all the same schools, and yet we are just now meeting. It’s like this cosmic fate thing where the universe decided we couldn’t meet until we reached a certain age, despite being so close to each other.”

“You sound like Namjoon now.” 

“You know Namjoon?”

“Not really know. He’s in my philosophy class. He’s very into class participation.”

“Sounds like him. Listen, I’ll feel bad knowing that I’m that close feasting while you’re literally down the street eating pizza by yourself...probably in the dark...singing sad songs.”

“You have quite the scene plotted out there, don’t ya buddy?”

“Yes...it’s so sad. Do you have a cat? That would make it extra dramatic. Wait, I’m getting sidetracked. Oh yeah, I was going to say you should let me bring you some food. We live off the leftovers for like a week after Christmas so we won’t miss it. And bonus: if I tell my Mom it’s for my poor, sad friend living alone with only a cat for comfort, she’ll probably give you a whole pie.”

“I don’t have a cat.”

“Even better. You’ll get two pies.” 

You chuckle softly, basking in the attention, as Hoseok holds the building doors open for you and the two of you walk outside into the chilly winter air. Hoseok must have seen you shiver because he took off his zip-up hoodie and placed it on you before you realized what was happening. You glance up at him with wide, confused eyes as he adjusts the overlarge jacket around you and places the hoodie on your head.

“It’s a bit big, but you look cuter in it than I do. You usually take the bus home right? Wanna ride?” He asks, and it takes you a second to respond as you’re still standing there confused by him and overwhelmed by being engulfed in the citrusy scent of Hoseok. 

“I...err...yeah. I mean, no thank you. I actually have some errands to run, but I appreciate it. I’ll...see you around?”

“Yup. I’ll have to come by to get my hoodie, right?” He winks and saunters towards the parking lot, singing a butchered version of several holiday songs in one. 

You didn’t know what to make of him. It certainly seemed like he’d been...flirting? With you? You shook your head at yourself, knowing that you shouldn’t think about it too deeply. He was just nice. That’s who he was. But it didn’t stop you from burying your face in his hoodie the whole bus ride to the shopping center, breathing in his scent happily. 

You glance at your alarm. 2 am. 

Someone was singing very loudly outside of your window at 2 am on Christmas day. Someone was about to be killed at 2 am on Christmas day, you decided, finally forcing yourself to sit up. It was cold, and you hissed when your feet touched the freezing floor. You searched around with your toes for your slippers, shoving your feet in quickly when you find them. You shuffled towards your window and peered out into the darkness.

It was actually snowing again, a thick blanket of it covering everyone's yards. You’re momentarily distracted by the beauty of the slight storm before a loud screech of “’tis the season to be freezin’” reminds you of your task. You search your front yard for the source and find it in a red snowsuit covered person building a snowman in your yard. You lift up your window and peek outside, shivering from the bitter cold.

“Excuse me, my dude. That’s cool and all, but can you keep it down?” You yell out, and the person turns to face you.

“Y/N! You’re up! I know you couldn’t do decorations, so I made you a snowman! Wanna build a snowman with me?” A very obviously drunk Hoseok slurs out, dancing around his large lumps of snow that looked more like a snow Jabba the hut than a snowman. 

“Hoseok? What on earth...hold on. I’m coming down.” You slam your window shut, mumbling about idiotic men as you gather a jacket for yourself and stomp outside. 

Hoseok’s smile is almost blinding when he sees you, and his nose and cheeks are red from the cold. He runs up to you and envelops you in a hug, sighing when his chilled face touches your warm cheek. He pulls back and grins at your startled expression. 

“MERRY CHRISTMAS!” He screeches, excitedly gesturing towards his “snowman.”

“Merry Christmas. I see you’ve been celebrating already.” You giggle, thinking drunk Hoseok has to be one of the cutest things in existence. 

“Yeah. My sister got home today, and we snuck an entire bottle of rum. Then I kept thinking about how you didn't have any decorations and probably no rum either...and it made me sad. So! I’m making you a snowman, and then I’m kidnapping you to come drink with me and let my mom feed you a pie. Isn’t that the best idea ever?!” Drunk Hoseok seems to be on a permanent loud setting, and you grin at his excitement, letting him grab your hand and pull you in the direction of his house. You guess he wouldn’t take no for an answer in this state, and since you were worried about him getting sick if he stayed out much longer, you give no resistance. 

Once you reach the porch of his overly decorated house, he pushes the front door open before turning back to you and picking you up bridal style. 

“Hoseok, what are you doing?!” You squeak as he adjusts you in his arms with a slight wobble. 

“You’ve never been here before, so I have to bless the threshold.” He explains matter-of-factly as he walks you both into the entryway and kicks the door shut with his foot. 

“That’s for brides, and you’re drunk. You’re going to drop me and crack my skull open all over your mother’s floor on Christmas.” You complain, and he chuckles and sets you down safely, albeit unsteadily, once he reaches the living room. 

He takes off his snowsuit, revealing a simple outfit of jeans and a Christmas sweater that had a rapper Santa on it. He helps you with your jacket after and grins when your snowflake pajamas were revealed. 

“So cute! You look like Elsa!” 

“Shut up.” You chuckle and take his outstretched hand and let him lead you to the kitchen, where he poured the two of you some rum from the already half empty bottle. 

He walked you back to the living room, and the two of you settled into the couch. You admired the large and extravagantly decorated tree as you sipped your drink, allowing the rum to warm you back up. You marveled out how quiet Hoseok had gotten and peeked at him to see if he’d fallen asleep. He most certainly was not.

He was staring at you, chewing his bottom lip like he was nervous. The expression on his face made you warmer than the alcohol did. 

“There was another reason I wanted to bring you here.” He muttered quietly before getting up and picking up an envelope. It had your name on it in bright yellow glitter glue on the front. He hands it too you shyly then resumes his seat next to you, watching as you carefully tear it open. 

Inside was a handmade card on notebook paper, the front of it a mess of glitter and Christmas themed doodles. Trees, snowmen, stockings, even a cat with a Santa hat. You grinned and opened it up, finding a written message on the inside. 

“Every atom of your flesh is as dear to me as my own: in pain and sickness it would still be dear. Your mind is my treasure, and if it were broken, it would be my treasure still. I ask you to pass through life at my side—to be my second self, and best earthly companion.”

These were two Jane Eyre quotes meshed together. Two of the most romantic Jane Eyre quotes meshed together. Your heart thumped wildly, and you stare at Hoseok in question. 

“I, um, well. I remembered how much you liked when we did Jane Eyre in class. Do you remember when my Dad had us do that one exercise, where we had to close our eyes and envision someone then write down a quote? Well...I...saw you. Then I wrote down that first quote. I added the second one a few days ago when I got the courage to make it into a card.” Hoseok rushed his explanation, a blush taking over his cheeks that you didn’t think came from the booze.  

“Hoseok...you...what does this mean?” Your voice was shaking, hope and uncertainty shining through your eyes.

“Do you maybe want to...date me?” He smiles gently, taking your free hand and tugging you closer.

“God yes!” You blurt out, before covering your face in embarrassment. 

Hoseok shrieks excitedly and pulls your hand away, placing a couple of sloppy kisses all over your cheek. 

“She said yes! It’s a Christmas miracle!” He yells, and you giggle at his cuteness.

“You realize as my girlfriend, you kinda have to stay for Christmas, right? You should probably plan on being here next year too. And certainly the one after that. Maybe all of them.” Hoseok tucks you into his side and laces your hand in his, stroking the back of it as he smiles happily down at you. 

“I will. Merry Christmas, Hoseok.” 

“Merry Christmas, baby.”

Many years later you find that card again, buried in a box full of Christmas decorations you’d pulled out to start decorating your home. You read it fondly, the words still having the power to warm your heart. You have an idea and grab one of your precious, expensive pens to write a message beneath Hoseok’s, and you punch a hole in the card, looping a ribbon through it to hang on your tree. Once done, you smile happily at the sight before heading outside to the two shrieking males, one dancing around in his huge red snowsuit, the other toddling after his father as they built a snowman. 

“Reader, I married him.”

[goldstarrbb]

SAVIOR | BUNNYBEAR

Who: Rachel Berry & James St. James 

What: After meeting up with Eric Rachel freaks out and goes to the St. James residence. Things are admitted that even Rachel wasn’t ready to let out.

Where: Lima Ohio, the St. James residence

When: Thursday, October 11th

Warnings: smut mention, rape implication, feels

RACHEL

Rachel stands outside the St. James residence hoping that her knocking on the door wouldn’t wake anyone up if they are sleeping. She tries her luck though, needing James.

JAMES

James shows up at the door with a cup of tea and answers it with a concerned expression. "Rachel? It's like midnight. You okay?"

RACHEL

“Did I wake you?” Rachel pushes passed him, careful to not bump him and spill his tea on the floor or worse, on him. “I don’t know.”

JAMES

"No. I'm working on my sectionals thing." James shrugs and closes the door after she enters the house.  "I still don't know what song I'm doing, but I'm doing a solo."

RACHEL

“Oh. You’re doing something? That’s great.” She manages a small smile, hoping it was bright enough. She really did feel enthusiastic about him performing.June 9, 2018

JAMES

"I'm performing Stutter, and Micah has been kicking my ass with that choreography. Boy goes hard when it comes to dance, doesn't he?" He chuckles. "Want to have a cup of tea and hear it?"(edited)

RACHEL

Rachel’s face falls at the mention of her brother. “I’ll just hear you sing if that is alright?”

JAMES

"Yeah, I can just sing. Whats up with Micah? Your smile fell."

RACHEL

“It doesn’t matter. Just sing for me! I love when you do!” She grins at him.

JAMES

"Don't laugh. I'm going to end up probably losing my voice right after sectionals with this." He laughs and turns on the music to practice the song.

RACHEL

"I could never laugh at you." She promises, sitting back so that she could properly watch him. She's smiling, liking how confident he had become. "I think it is wonderful. I'm hoping my song will fit in with all the others as there is a common theme and Don't Rain on My Parade doesn't fit it." She shrugs.

JAMES

"If not. Then I will love how much you stand out." James smiles at his best friend. "I would show you the dance, but I think you guys learned it already."

RACHEL

“I always stand out.” Rachel says seriously, before nodding. “I do know it but if you want to run through it, that’s okay.”

JAMES

"We can do that. Where are you placed exactly? Are you one of the girls we have as my backup singers?" He asked, pushing the sofa out of the way so they could practice. "I know I'm supposed to take someone and start dancing with them but they never came to that rehearsal."

RACHEL

“I’ve been at every rehearsal I’m supposed to be at.” Rachel says softly. “I meant if you wanted to run through it...not us. But I guess can dance with you”

JAMES

"Then I need that person. My routine depends on it." James bit his lip. "Rachel, do you want to dance a part of the song with me?"

RACHEL

“For now or for sectionals?” She raises an eyebrow. She felt too tired for this but he would know something is wrong if she turned down an opportunity to perform.

JAMES

"Both. Obviously that person isn't coming to sectionals if they haven't been to rehearsals. You're honestly the only person I would trust to dance with me anyway."

RACHEL

“Okay. Then you can teach me.” She smiles, moving to the center of the floor with him and following his steps, catching on quick.

JAMES

"You got this, or do you want to practice again?"  He asks with a grin and lets her go . "You caught on quicker than I did."

RACHEL

"We can practice again. That's fine and then you should probably reheat your tea since I interrupted your drinking it." Rachel can't help but laugh a little. "I happen to be a dancer is all and you're a good dancer but not classically trained."

JAMES

"My tea will be fine. Perhaps you will join me after this." He smiles. "Okay, ready? Correct me in what I might be doing wrong. I know how much winning sectionals would mean to you."

RACHEL

“If I join you we’ll get to talking and I’m not sure I want to talk.” She admits, before nodding. “Of course. You’ll be the perfect trained dancer when I’m done with you.” Rachel continues nibbling at her lip as she makes a few corrections here and there mostly posture and pointing toes. She hopes she’s not being insulting.June 10, 2018

JAMES

"Maybe it will do one or both of use good to talk. You don't have to talk, of course. But if you want, I will listen." James smiles, then follows her instructions. He doesn't get angry, because he knows that she is just wanting him to be better.

RACHEL

Rachel smiles. “I hope we win this year. It would feel really amazing and be good for the club, get us some respect maybe.” She helps him push the couch back in place and then grabs his hand to lead him to the kitchen. “Sit! I’ll make myself a cup and we’ll talk.”

JAMES

"Winning sectionals would be pretty cool. Even if some people would still roll their eyes" James admits and lets himself be led to the kitchen. "Yes, madame." he moves to reheat his tea, then sits down.

RACHEL

“They’re just judgmental. One day we’ll be far superior and they’ll regret their actions when it is too late for them.” Rachel shrugs, going to grab a mug, and then a tea bag from his extensive collection. The last step is pouring the water into the mug. “So I got dropped off here by Eric.” Rachel says quietly once she sits down.

JAMES

"Eric. I don't know who that is." James reaches for her hand and takes it gently, giving it a gentle squeeze. "I'm here for you, sweets. What's up?"

RACHEL

“He...he has purple hair.” Rachel offers, realizing how little she knows of him. “I know you are and I’m here for you even if it hasn’t seemed like that.” She sighs, “I went to do. To do naughty things with him.”

JAMES

"Oh, I've seen him around before. He usually hangs out with Liv." James runs his fingers through his hair. "I gotcha. No judgement here. If that's what you want to do. Then you do you."

RACHEL

“But I freaked out and I made him bring me here.” Rachel continues. “All because he wanted to touch me and I couldn’t tell him no. I just wanted to touch him.”

JAMES

"There's nothing wrong with that, Sweets." He speaks softly and kissed the top of her head. "Is there a particular reason why, or just you didn't want to be touched?"

RACHEL

“I...had a bad first time over the summer.” She says quietly, looking down at her mug. “And I just didn’t want it to be about me.”

JAMES

"Bad first times are an understandable reason. I know from experience." He whispers.

RACHEL

“What happened?” Rachel grabs for his hand, though she’s noticeably skating. “With Danny?”

JAMES

"It was with Danny, and I wanted to, but not..like how we did... It's hard to explain." James laces their fingers together.

RACHEL

Rachel nods her head slowly. “I’m sorry. I don’t think that I wanted what happened at all but I didn’t say no.”

JAMES

"You were probably scared, Rachel, and that's understandable. I don't know because I wasn't there, so I don't mean to assume." He rubs his thumb across the back of her hand to comfort her.

RACHEL

“I was scared.” She nods slowly. “But maybe I shouldn’t have been and that’s why I’m trying to explore so I know what...what I’m supposed to feel when it’s my choice.”

JAMES

"That's completely understandable, Rachel.  That person took away what should have been your choice, and so now you are exploring options and discovering what you like."

RACHEL

“I’m glad you understand.” Rachel says with a smile, liking that she told him, without exactly telling him. “I’m still willing to hunt Danny down if you want.”

JAMES

"Of course I do." James nods, then shakes his head. He's a scumbag and totally not worth the effort or jail time." He then took a sharp breath in. "Does Micah know?"

RACHEL

"You're worth the effort though. I love you." She smiles, taking a sip of her tea. "No. Nobody needs to know that I'm not completely happy about how I lost my virginity. It isn't a big deal."

JAMES

"I think he should know, but I'm not telling him. Mainly so he can understand if you're down because of it." James bites his lip. "I love you too."

RACHEL

“He’s going to be so mad though. I don’t really want anyone knowing. I’d like to explore enough that this is just an after though.” She chews her lip, knowing it didn’t work like that, that this wasn’t the life she wanted for herself. She had plans and throwing herself at boys at fifteen had never been one of them.

JAMES

"You don't know that, but do what you need to do." James gives her a reassuring smile. "Just be safe. For me."

RACHEL

"I don't really remember what safe means anymore." Rachel says with a sigh, "But I'm doing my best."

JAMES

"You know what I mean. Don't let anyone take advantage of your current state of mind." James  bit his lip, hard. he hoped he didn't offend her.

RACHEL

"My state of mind is fine James." She gives him a look, mostly of confusion. She's not sure she knows where she is at and what he means by that.

JAMES

"Not what I meant, but you know. Don't let any unsavory boys take advantage of you in general." He rubbed his arm.

RACHEL

“Maybe that’s what I want.” Rachel says seriously, staring him down.

JAMES

"I'm talking about guys like Danny, Rachel. Not your normal teenager like Eric. I'm just saying be careful, because I don't want to see what happened to me happen to you."

RACHEL

“I want to kill Danny.” Rachel says sadly. “I’m sorry. I hate what he did to you. I hate him for hurting you. I just love you so much.”

JAMES

"I hate him for hurting me, too, but it's something I'm working on moving past." James sighs. "It's not fair to project this onto every future partner I will have or even my friends to have to deal with me not coping."

RACHEL

“I don’t think you’re doing that.” She whispers. “It seems you’re trying to make it through and you talk to me and Jesse.” Her face falls a little. “You’re opening yourself up to Mickey.”

JAMES

"I'm doing better sometimes, then other times it's like I'm suffocating and I feel like I should be by Danny's side. It's weird." He watches her face fall. "Rachel, why did your face fall like that when you mentioned Mickey?"

RACHEL

“You don’t need him.” She says seriously. “He’s awful and he deserves nobody and no happiness. You were too good for him!” She ignores his question

JAMES

"I know that now, but it takes a long while for the whole mindset to wear off." He sighs. "Don't ignore the question. I really want to know."

RACHEL

Rachel nods slowly. She’s not sure she could understand that but their situations are different. “Because I’m Rachel and I’m selfish and want to be everybody’s first and last thought.”

JAMES

"Selfish? I don't think that at all, Ms. Rachel B. Berry. You're pretty damn selfless to me." James looks her in the eye. "Are you jealous? And mind you, this doesn't leave us."

RACHEL

“I’m not selfless and...I’m not jealous. What would I have to be jealous of exactly?”

JAMES

"That's a lie because I've seen you be selfless before. And I guess that it's because they're with me."

RACHEL

“It’s not like that. I’m not jealous of them. I’m not!” Her eyes widen and she makes herself smaller

JAMES

"It's a natural thing, you know." James raises an eyebrow. "Come here."

RACHEL

“No. No. I can’t.” She shakes her head. “It’s just stupid. I’m so stupid.”

JAMES

"You're not stupid, Rachel. You're human." He sighs.

RACHEL

“You’re not supposed to love your gay best friend who is already in a relationship.” She stands from the table.

JAMES

"What do you mean? I love you lots!" He  stands and  moves toward the sink to wash his mug.  "Wait. You... you're in love with me?"

RACHEL

“I need to go.” Rachel whispers. “I need to get out of here. Please.” She digs her nails into her hand slightly to keep herself present.

JAMES

"Let me at least drive you home. That way I know you got there safely." He softly pleads with her, feeling bad about what he had just caused.

RACHEL

Rachel feels the tears start falling and instead of running out the door like her mind was telling her to do. She goes and sits on the couch, facing hiding in one of the pillows,

JAMES

James makes his way to the couch and sits with her. "Rachel, I'm sorry. I didn't realize it. I've just been wrapped up in my own shit that..That's no excuse. I've hurt you."

RACHEL

“I was never going to tell you.” She cries. “I was just going to pretend and move on and it would be okay. I would be okay.”

JAMES

"I'm glad you did, actually. Now I understand why you've been a bit off lately." He admits, actually crying just because his best friend was crying in front of him. "You're still going to be okay. Talking helps."

RACHEL

“You’ll never love me.” She says sadly. “And no one is going to love me because I’m just some broken girl who let someone take advantage of them.” She brings her knees to her chest. “It hurts how much I love you.”

JAMES

"I do love you. It's just in a different way." He reaches for her hand. "One day, you're going to meet the person of your dreams, and they're going to be everything you ever needed. They're going to love you. I promise you'll find them with as talented and beautiful as you are." James can't even look at her. "I'm sorry for that."

RACHEL

“I know.” She pulls her hand away quickly. “I don’t need you to be positive for me. I just...need you to pretend this didn’t happen and I need to sleep.” She’s still crying, body shaking as it does when she cries like this.

JAMES

"You're not going home like this. We have plenty of room here. I'll give you my bed, or there's the guest room, or here if you really insist on the couch." He speaks softly, watching her.

RACHEL

“I want to sleep here.” She whispers quietly. “I don’t want to move I just want to stay here.”

JAMES

"You can stay here. I'll get you some proper pillows and an extra blanket." James whispers, getting up from his seat.

RACHEL

Rachel just nods her head, laying down once he is off the couch. By the time he comes back, she’s fast asleep.

JAMES

James comes back with some extra pillows and blankets, gently tucking her in while trying not to wake her.

[mindynichole]

Watch out peeps! I'm about to go full Reylo on you!

I'm going to be upfront and honest.

Like seemingly everyone else, my very first reaction to TFA when it initially came out in the theater was Rey somehow had to be a long lost-Skywalker since the force was obviously very strong within her. As a long-time fan, I felt I could recognized that Skywalker brand of force anywhere. Regardless, I also clearly recognized the unmistakable connection our bad ass Jedi scavenger shared with Kylo Ren. They were destined somehow. I just figured it was in some blood way like Luke and Leia. This was my very first impression.

However, I was unable to view TFA again for a second time until the following summer when my children finally got me the DVD for my birthday. Upon the second and subsequent viewings, I started to deeply suspect something very different than my first impression.

There seemed to be more going on there between these two characters than the simple little connection between Luke and Leia. I strongly seen the connection much more as romantic (yes even more romantic than the whole incest thing) and thought I must have been crazy. After all, it isn't like Star Wars hadn't already fooled us once with the whole family/love interest thing before.

So I proceeded to do something I never thought I'd do again and dusted off my Tumblr account (I was a big part of the Bethyl fandom once upon a time but swore off the site due to the toxicity of it all. While I was mostly on other social media, I did use Tumblr a lot at for reference, research, and the occasional battle cry) in order to see what other fans  thought. That's when I discovered I wasn't alone in seeing this connection. In fact, there was a whole bunch of other people who also got what I did from TFA! Okay, so I wasn't crazy after all!

However, despite the large number of people who "got" Reylo right away, I also quickly noticed there was also much of the same toxicity that the Bethyl fandom also experienced from other fans - and let's be honest, Star Wars is a much bigger deal than TWD.

So while I'm very sorry to all my fellow long-time Reylo warriors and sufferers, I quickly noped it right out of there again. Call me a fair-weather shipper if you must - but I've already fought the good fight once - and while I ended up with some amazing friends I cherish to this day, I didn't ever want to go there again.

Besides, I'm probably much older than most of you lovely peeps on here (being an "old" lady and all) and have way too many responsibilities that affect way too many people to be slacking again like I did way back then. Seriously, I'm surprised sometimes I still have a job and marriage and stuff after dedicating so much time to Bethyl. Shipping is hard work!

Therefore, I've never really voiced my suspicions outside of family and close friends until I finally got to view TLJ on Christmas Eve. Now, I'm utterly convinced I am right on all my various Star Wars theories with very little doubt.

That was that, right? Everyone gets it now! Well, apparently not. *throws hands up in air*

Something astonishing happened. I actually once again took to the internet in order to revel in the canonization of my little crack ship and realized there were still soooo many people who still just didn't get it! Wait, what? I mean, really? What's a girl got to do to explain some Star Wars? After all, I'm an original fan here and unlike most people my age, I actually believe I get what George was trying to do with the Prequels so never mind even Reylo and stuff - the one thing I am confident in knowing (besides TWD...at least back in the day when it was actually good) is Star Wars!

And I hate to break it to a lot of people but I believe Reylo IS THE ENTIRE POINT of these new movies.  

So here I've been ever since; literally weeks of working on much too long and much too time consuming metas about Star Wars - all while my household implodes around me. And once again, I'm probably going to get some pretty nasty criticism. Seriously, you should have seen how much I got downvoted and the mayhem that ensued on Reddit for just two sentences the other day.  

But I'm always up for at least one more good fight,  I suppose. Especially since I'm so convinced I'm right. Therefore, I am putting advance notice to all my anons - most of whom were associated with the Bethyl fandom so long ago - that my blog is fixing to take us back "a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away" so that we may explain this new phenomenon commonly termed "Reylo."   I enter into this endeavor ever in awe and absolutely inspired by my much more dedicated Relyo-ers around the web. Some of what I believe to be true, they've already picked up on and explained a very long time ago. These people are so brilliant they have been quoted in countless videos and articles everywhere. Seriously, they rock! So I'm not even trying to repeat what they have already said, just add my own thoughts and insight into the already existing conversation. Because they are so perceptive, some of my examples will no doubt mirror others, but rest assured that my conclusions are all my own independent of outside influence.

And my first conclusion is this...

The one thing that TLJ made crystal clear to me is: This is not a trilogy about a mysterious force-filled girl found on a junk planet destine to save the universe from a mighty Dark Prince with Skywalker blood. That's just not what we are really watching. The same way TESB changed the original trilogy from about a young boy completing his father's work by saving the universe from the evil Emperor and his Dark Sith, like it first appeared. The second movies' most important job in the Star Wars universe is to completely change the direction of the entire project and confuse the crap out of everybody - hence why many fans are so...well...confused.  

In actuality, this isn't even just about Rey at all-  but rather TLJ revealed it was a story about two equal main characters: Rey and Ben Solo. While I immediately took all this away when I left the theater, I hear it has been further spelled out by Rian Johnson in subsequent interviews to those who just aren't used to rooting for a power-hungry dark force bearer too, I guess.  What we have here is two protagonist whom I believe are connected in a way than many fans can’t even imagine because it’s so new.

But in an effort to keep this meta from becoming a book, I will explain what I believe that connection to be later.

As for now this has to be continued............

May the Force be with you all!

[protect--globelamp-blog]

The article Nylon deleted  about Globelamp and The Right To Protest

Elizabeth le Fey didn’t expect 140 characters to be so loaded. Given social media metrics, the 27-year-old knew it was likely that only a handful of her almost 3,000 Twitter or 8,000-plus Instagram followers would even see her call to protest Desert Daze, a popular psych festival held every year in Joshua Tree, California.

It wasn’t the first time le Fey had used social media to speak out against Foxygen. Back in 2013, when she had only started making music under the name Globelamp, she was a member of the group. After exiting in the wake of acontroversial Tumblr post,in which she called into question the toxic environment she had endured while with the band, she revealed that band member and ex-boyfriend, Sam France, hit her during an argument, knocking out several of her teeth. This is where, by le Fey’s own estimate, things start getting complicated. France retaliated with a restraining order and court hearing. Le Fey opted to represent herself; confused when the court trotted out lyrics she had written before she had even joined the group, she feels like she fumbled the case, and a gag order was quickly put in place in addition to the already extensive restraining order. Foxygen would go on to release their sophomore album and write her out of the group’s history.Le Fey laughs ruefully when she recounts this. Her mistakes are obvious now. She should have sought legal representation. The final time she was slapped wasn’t France’s first act of physical violence—she should have concentrated on creating a paper trail rather than being so quick to forgive. (“You never think about it because you never think you’re going to be dating someone like that,” she says. “That’s a big regret of mine. If someone touches you, file a police report.”) She acknowledges that because she has a legal strike against her, public opinion isn’t very forgiving. “People say to me online and on Twitter, ‘Well you didn’t win the court case, so you’re wrong!’” she admits. “People don’t win in court cases all the time. Look at the cops killing people and getting off. Look at Brock Turner who raped a girl and got three months. The system isn’t a great example of where we need to be, morally.”The tweet calling for a boycott of Desert Daze—one of le Fey’s many attempts to reclaim her narrative over the last of three years—might have gone unnoticed if wasn’t for Sean Lennon. As a fellow psych musician, le Fey had already approached Lennon via Twitter direct message about sharing her story back in August. When he politely declined, their conversation laid dormant until he contacted her shortly after with a request: Please stop calling for a boycott against Desert Daze. In Lennon’s eyes, it wasn’t fair that the organizers—friends of his—should be threatened with loss of revenue because of “one asshole.” When le Fey declined, posting the private message to her feed, Lennon retaliated, going on to defend his right to tell her how she should speak about her experience for the next several days. It didn’t matter that he was addressing a victim of domestic abuse—his statements got progressively more pointed, with little regard for the fact he was talking to someone who had experienced trauma and been silenced in the recent past.   “I know that if Jimi Hendrix had slapped his GF boycotting all of Woodstock would be ridiculous!” he said in

a now-deleted tweet

. “It’s not like I’m Beyoncé and can say, ‘Okay everyone let’s not do this!’ and people listen,” says le Fey of the response, which kicked off a multiday string of abuse from Lennon’s fans. Having only just released her debut album, The Orange Glow, she has no delusions about her place in the musical pecking order. “It’s weird that anyone feels so threatened by a small group of people. It’s not like we’re a huge majority. I’m an indie artist, a DIY solo musician.”What le Fey is asking—the removal of a band or the boycott of the entire event—isn’t wholly unprecedented. Earlier this year, Crystal Castles were dropped from Tumblr’s feminism-celebrating SXSW lineup when former frontwoman,

Alice Glass, called out the band on Twitter

after Ethan Kath alleged she wasn’t a driving force behind the band.

manipulative statements about my contributions to the band only reinforce the decision I made to move on to other things— ALICE GLASS (@ALICEGLASS) April 17, 2015

Similarly,

Northside Festival dropped the band Good English

from its lineup after drummer, Leslie Rasmussen, petitioned the court on behalf of convicted rapist Brock Turner. It would be easy to paint both instances as people choosing to do the right thing—but doing so would ignore the commerce element of the music industry. In both cases, businesses risked losing money if they supported unpopular opinions by proxy. As le Fey says, it’s the job of the people to make organizations aware of the potential fallout. Le Fey further points out:That’s what a protest is. It makes the facility or cooperation think about what they’re selling. If Forever 21 started selling fur, protesters would inform people shopping there about what they’re buying. Sometimes those stores will stop selling fur and issue a statement saying that they’re sorry and change their product. If people make a scene, things will change. People are telling me that it’s unfair because that store gives people jobs. With that mentality, there would never be a protest. Because it’s always going to be something… I felt like I had no acknowledgment of my story. They just kept going on. It seems like people are more willing to listen this year. The media seems a little more feminist lately. They act like they care. This is a serious topic. I didn’t make it up. Who would? My whole story is available everywhere. He meant to hit me. That’s not cool.An activist at heart who once stood outside KFC in a chicken suit (for her trouble she had chicken thrown at her), le Fey can see her situation in the broader sense. Her story isn’t unique.

The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence estimates that 10 million women

and men experience domestic abuse every year—and this is just projection based on reported data. As le Fey experienced, many victims are assaulted multiple times before filling a police report. Putting parameters on how a woman should speak out about her assault, or insisting that she only do it when there’s no risk involved, solely undercuts the severity of experience.  “It’s turned into a protest of ‘You’re not going to keep me quiet,’" le Fey confirms. “I’m not going to be quiet just because you guys are all telling me not to. It’s insulting to me. And to any woman! So many girls have sent stuff to me. It’s made me feel like,

‘Okay, this is more than just my story.’ They want me to take the stage for it. I will because I’m not scared of what people think of me.” Regardless of the outcome of her boycott, le Fey has already scored a major victory—her story is being heard. Now comes the hard part: trying to figure out what her actions mean to victims of abuse. When asked what she hopes to accomplish next, she takes a long pause, trying to wrap her mind around it all. She then muses:I want to help women to stand up and use their voices more. It’s not revenge. I want people to know what happened because I think it can happen to other women too. A girl reached out to me and told me she was crying as she wrote this, not because she was upset but because she was so happy this conversation is on blast. She had been abused a bunch of times and never stood up or said anything. Maybe I can help other women… I’m glad the internet got a hold of the conversation. The feminists started coming out. It’s really cool that there’s that community. We have to make that community. What else do you do when you get denied justice?

[myselfinserts]

“Well I can’t afford that.”

Luci kept quiet as they were lead around the theater. Itfelt less like a performing arts center and more like a second home. Livingquarters and an onsite doctor? They’d only seen this for the lead act withtheir current employer. The fact that the entire troupe had access to thesefacilities on the daily? The beautiful costumes made of soft materialsthat didn’t itch or ride up? The good lighting and latest audio equipment? Theyhad to admit, they were a little jealous. 

Not that they’d admit it out loud.

Étienne and Ceri continued on with the tour, lettingLuci have a moment to properly explore certain areas. It was all they could donot to show excitement.

“And of course, this is our main stage. Perfect forperformances. Everyone gets a chance to be the main attraction in our shows.Everyone has a specialty.”

And then Luci’s heart began to sink. They heard thatline before. They believed in it once.

And look where it’s gotten me.

The tour ended and everyone seemed to have gatheredaround them with welcoming smiles.

“So,” Ceri finished. “What do you thinkof our little home? It’s not everything, but it’s part of a lot.”

“It's…” Luci looked around, noticing theexpectant faces around them. They felt welcome, and yet…

What is this feeling?

“It’s amazing,” they settled. “I wouldn’tmind performing here sometime.”

Étienne smiled. “That’s just what we wanted tohear.” He turned to one of the other troupe members. “Chris, can youand Sam go get the contract for our new friend?”

“Contract? Whoa there, pal. Who said anything abouta contract?”

“A contract is standard when someone joins ourteam-”

“I never said I was joining.”

Everyone seemed to freeze. The atmosphere growing tense.Luci watched as everyone looked between themselves, whispering quietly. Theycould see Marianne and Aizawa coming out from the back, looks of confusion ontheir faces. Luci remained calm as their host turned back to them.

“I'm…sorry?” Étienne started. “Wediscussed it last night-”

“Yeah, I hardly remember anything about last night,remember?” Luci shook their head. “You caught me at my lowest. Iagreed this morning to come with you, but I never agreed to sign on.”

“…I suppose that is a very fair point. Myapologies.”

Ceri stepped forward, smiling and extending a hand.“Still, the offer is on the table if you’re interested.”

Luci let out a sigh. “Listen…no offense, but Ihaven’t seen any of you dance. I only heard about a couple of you word ofmouth. I haven’t seen anything today skill wise and that’s ultimately going toaffect my decision.” A light bulb went off in their head. “So…howabout a dance contest? You pick your best dancer, I pick the song, and if Iwin, I get the choice on if I stay or go home. If you win, I’ll sign on and work for you however the hell you want.”

The tension grew tighter. Shizuka (at least, they hopedit was Shizuka. They were still learning names), crossed her arms, giving themthe death stare. “A dance contest? You mean to waste our time withsomething so trivial?”

“I agree,” Étienne grumbled. “That’s acomplete waste of time.”

“Not to me,” Luci argued, pacing slightly.“Normally, after my big Saturday Night Show, I relax until no later thanten the next day. I get up, get cleaned up, eat, and then spend the rest of myday booking practice space at the public dance studio, whose wait list is hell,and picking music for the following week. Normally, I’m done by five.”They looked at their watch. “It’s almost 2:30pm now. There’s no chance ofme booking space until tomorrow, since the place closes at three.” Luciturned back to Ceri and Étienne, eyes narrowed. “Now, you all can probablyafford to practice wherever you want. Well, I can’t afford that. I’m barelygetting by as is with my Saturday Nights. I’ve agreed to talking and the tour,the least you can do is give me this. Give me the chance to show my stuff,while I see what your group is made of.”

Ceri looked at Étienne, raising a brow. “They havea point, Étienne. We were the ones who approached them after all.”

“And it’s not like I wouldn’t be able to clear the stage,” Regi added. “Get the music started. We keep it under three minutes-”

“And who the hell are we gonna get to be a judge?” Inkwell piped up. “No offense, but we all know we’d pick L for this. And all of us are biased to her because, let’s face it, we love her to bits.”

L giggled softly. “Thank you, uncle.”

“I’ll be the judge.”

Everyone turned around, staring in shock at the bodyguard, who remained completely calm. Aizawa stepped forward, giving his arms a stretch. 

“I’ll judge the contest,” Aizawa repeated. “I’m new. I’m unbiased. I can be the impartial judge. But…one condition.”

Luci gave a shrug. “Name it.”

“Ballet isn’t a solo sport. Partners are vital. So it’d be pairs dueling.”

Tanith smiled in excitement. “I think that’s more than fair. Why don’t we put it to a vote?”

Étienne let out an exasperated groan. “Fine.”

In the end, the decision was made by a single vote. The dance contest would start quickly. Pairs, freestyle, no more than three minutes long would the song be. And it would be recorded, so that the dancers could see exactly what everyone else saw. 

While the rest of the troupe cleared the space on stage, Luci sat with L, who was allowed to pick the pairs. She’d be dancing with Phoenix, while L decided on Regi to be their dancing partner. The four sat down and gave the song a quick listen. 

“A little different from what we normally do,” Phoenix noted. 

“My teacher once told me,” said Luci, “that the best dancers can improvise to any song. I’ve been thinking of doing a number with this for a while. Why not give it a shot?”

L smiled sweetly. “I think we can work with that.”

Regi nodded, but kept his eyes low. He couldn’t seem to look them in the eye. Luci put a hand on his shoulder, giving him a reasurring thumbs up. “We can do this,” they said.

Once the stage was cleared, the pairs made their way up, watching as the others went to work preparing the speakers. Aizawa was sitting near the front, close enough to get a good look at the acts, but far enough that he could see them simultaneously. 

“Alright!” Toni called. “Music in 3…2…1…”

The music began, and no sooner did the first words begin did both dancers pull their partners close. A few steps front, a few back. A quick spin. And then Luci lost themself to the rhythm. They could just barely make out L and Phoenix out of the corner of their eye. Their attention was focused on the music and their partner, who was keeping up perfectly with their steps, but his face was bright red. And seemed to grow more so with every brush of the hand. 

Yes, they thought, as they lifted him in their arms. 

Yes, they thought, watching as Regi began to lose himself to the music, pulling his long, dark hair out of its ponytail and tossing the hair tie aside.

Hell yes! they thought, feeling control of the duet shift so they were being twirled around. They managed to hook their right leg around their partner’s thigh, raising the left up high in a gentle, fluid motion that got excited gasps from some of the audience. 

Yes. Yes, this is it! This is what I’ve been waiting for!

The music drew to an end, and it ended in Luci being dipped back in a smooth, sturdy motion. 

Aizawa stood up, giving a quick clap signalling for the dancers to rest. “Alright. Now let’s get the playback up.”

Luci took a seat and watched as the stage grew dark, a large screen projection appearing on the curtains as they closed. They smiled in anticipation, excited to see the routine. 

But the moment it started, they felt the run pull from under them. While it was clearly their best performance to date, and their partner was talented, the two they faced off against moved with a grace and flexibility they’d never seen before. Body movements in perfect sync, with bends and twists that were practically inhuman. 

“As you all can see,” Aizawa explained. “Both acts have their merits, but ultimately, I went with tone. And frankly Adaire, while you’re a fantastic dancing pro, L has you beat in capturing the sensation of the song. Not just in capturing the lyrics in movement, but also in the fact that your blue hair made it very hard for me to take serious parts like ‘headed for the guillotine’, ‘black and poisonous’, and ‘fifty words for murder’.” He motioned for the lights to come back. “It was a close call, but ultimately the win goes to L and Phoenix.”

The troupe cheered, giving their fellow members pats on the back. Luci smiled and stood up, giving them space to enjoy the victory. They weren’t sure why, but this loss actually felt nice. And they were craving more.

Étienne approached them, a look of pride on his face. “See?” he laughed. “Didn’t I tell you that I could provide a challenge?”

Luci rolled their eyes, but they couldn’t stop smiling. “You were right. That was a challenge.” They held open their arms, giving a slight spin on the heel. “So, Monseuir Allard. What will my fate be?”

“Fate?”

“A deal is a deal,” they said. “I’m at your troupe’s mercy. What will you have me do? Become a pack mule? Or perhaps a new janitor?”

“…how about,” he answered, holding out his hand, “we discuss it over dinner tomorrow evening at your apartment? Gives us a chance to get the paperwork done and the doctor can do your health check at home. Say, 5pm?”

Without any hesitation, Luci accepted his hand. 

“I’ll see you then.”