#was procrastinating on the phone to my sister and doing these

[uselessnocturnal]

silly little tma doddles i did instead of studying </3

[boyfhee]

ㅤ ꣑୧ㅤㅤ:ㅤCANDLELITㅤㅤ𝒻t.ㅤㅤ성혼

﹙10097﹚ SYNOPSIS . . . the dating scene sucks, especially when the only person you want to be with is your roommate.

꣑୧ GENRE . . . roommate au, 'i hate them but they're hot' kind of energy

꣑୧ WARNINGS . . . profanities, drinking i mean lots of drinking we need alcohol shortage here, sunghoon smokes, mentions of one night stands, one very suggestive make out scene in the fourth section, undertones of cheating but not from sunghoon or reader, implications of sex although it's very light

꣑୧ NOTES . . . hi ( _ _; ) drowning in nervousness as i'm posting this. it's my first long fic after months ... i think the last one was in may or june 23 ... so please be nice >< don't know why but this didn't turn out how i wanted it to and it's definitely not one of my proudest works, but i hope u guys like it nonetheless huhu TT happy reading and please rb and drop feedback, it's highly appreciated ^_^

001. WHERE THERE’S HEAVEN THERE’S HELL

sunghoon is spiralling again. 

a part of it is because of the endless assignments from classes, but that’s no news. he knows it’s his fault for procrastinating and waiting till two days before the due date to even think about working on them— unlike jake who somehow attends classes probably four times a week and is seen in the football fields instead, and still manages to be the first one to submit his essays. it’s admirable, annoying at most. when he sat down to do his sports science project three days before it was due, sunghoon realised why his professor gave them two months to finish it. 

but realising your mistakes and working on them to be a better version of yourself are two different things.

for one, sunghoon believes those assignments are useless. no one cares about the impact of sports on society, maybe except heeseung and jake but again, in sunghoon’s mind, those two are never important. second, he’s too perfect to be working on himself. sunghoon is the best version of himself. he was born the day his uncle died, and his dad inherited the entire chain of restaurants his family owns across the country. he’s too amazing to be worrying about getting a degree he can buy— he thinks the university should be honoured he’s choosing to study— but that’s simply because his mother doesn’t want him to turn out like his sister. 

back to the matter at hand— as he puts the beer can on the table and sits back on the couch, his eyes travel to the door yet again. seventh time in just a minute, he’s keeping a record of how you make him wait. 

if there’s one thing he hates is being irresponsible ( coming from the great king of irresponsibility himself. ) you said you’d be back by twelve, and it’s half past one in night and not a soul knows your whereabouts. thirteen texts, seven missed calls, his phone is at forty-one percent and sunghoon is at his limit. if it wasn’t for your mom he wouldn’t give two flying fucks about where you are and how you’ve been.

sunghoon is actually surprisingly obedient and well-mannered, as opposed to the popular belief. he gave you and your mother the whole tour of the apartment the day you moved in. even made some coffee which isn’t much but your mother had loved him. he could see it in the way she looked at him with those sweet eyes, holding his hands as if he was her own son, and asking him to look after you. 

‘please take care of my daughter,’ sunghoon thought he was getting married. instead of a wedding bell there were warning sirens going off. to this day he doesn’t know why she asked him that, minutes after she saw a dead cactus in the balcony that he killed by overwatering. he couldn’t even say no to her and just nodded, looking over at you briefly and noticing how you look like you were a bit embarrassed. sunghoon doesn’t know why he’s so serious about ‘taking care’ of you. he thought it would be easy, but you had to be devil’s favourite spawn and sunghoon happens to be your target.

however, he can’t take this anymore. he has a morning class and waiting till two am while drinking beer has done more damage to sunghoon than it should. he gets up from the couch with a sigh, leaving the empty cans unattended for a night as he makes a mental note to clean tomorrow. it isn’t until a click from the door stops him in his tracks. 

“i’m back,” your voice is quiet, a yawn following immediately after your words as you look down while taking off your shoes. you’ve been drinking again, sunghoon can tell it from a mile away. 

“you’re late,” he speaks over the silence, hands on his torso as he’s giving you those squinted eyes and doubtful looks. if sunghoon didn’t know any better, he would assume you fucked someone at the club with how messy you look at the moment.

“yeah well, we had to take gigi to the hospital,” your lazy voice isn’t much louder than a whisper. you stumble towards your room, a hiccup followed soon after by the same quiet and slurred tone. “she ate something weird,”

he huffs at your words, knowing it would very well be just another excuse. “you could’ve at least texted,”

“my phone died,”

“i’m sure your friends would be happy to lend you their phone,” he pauses when he feels himself getting a bit annoyed. a soft sigh falls off his lips as he looks down at the tiled floor before looking up and speaking in a much calmer voice. “i’m just saying it’s not exactly safe to be out alone on the streets this late at night,”

“i wasn’t alone,” that piques his interest. “jay drove me back,”

and sunghoon felt his whole world stop. “jay?”

“yeah, jay, park jongseong,” your voice is surprisingly sweet when you take his name and it bothers sunghoon for some reason. his face scrunches up when you bite back a smile, hoping it’s the alcohol not because of what he thinks it is. “he’s nicer than i thought,”

sunghoon is not unfamiliar with the name park jongseong.

he hears it every day on and off the campus, more often than he likes. first things first, he’s just as popular as jake, for being american, which brings sunghoon to the question— why in the world would he leave america to study in korea when jay could have attended one of the ivy leagues with his face and money?

and the second and more important question, why in the world is park jongseong dropping you home at two in the night?

sunghoon only watches you in disbelief and astonishment as you stumble to your room, mumbling something incoherently. your words ring in his ear like sirens. ‘he is better than you’ jay is better than sunghoon. he scoffs almost offensively in your direction. that has to be the biggest lie of the twenty-first century.

he follows you to your room, reaching out to grab your arms when you almost trip but you manage to balance yourself. he opens the door and turns on the lights for you. “why were you with him to begin with?”

“oh, you don’t know?” and you turn around with eyes wide open as he shakes his head like a deer in the headlight. “he asked me out,” 

sunghoon didn’t get a single ounce of sleep last night. 

it’s your fault, clearly. had you been back earlier on the time, nothing would’ve happened. and jay— sunghoon sights at the thought of him, eyes narrowing as he grits on his pen as if he’s going to break it into two. 

“dude, are you hungry?” jake pokes sunghoon by his shoulder, dragging the latter out of his trail of thoughts. 

“what?” sunghoon shoots a blank look, one that makes his friend sigh in concern. afterall, it’s not everyday he sees sunghoon chewing on a pen. “i’m not,”

“you’ve been out of it since the morning,”

and sunghoon has been out of it since jay’s name fell from your lips. 

he’s not your friend, definitely not the first guy you’ve called by his name after sunghoon. but something doesn’t sit right. even after tossing and turning in bed for the whole night, he can’t figure out what bothers him more— the fact you said jay is better than him, or the fact that he asked you out on a date.

it’s the first one, he convinces himself. who you date is none of his business, he can’t be arsed enough to care about your love life or relationship status. ( although, he does care a little because he’s nosy. ) what bothers him more is that jay is, to put it in simple words, a player. all that face and no empathy for emotions is a waste, and to think you don’t know this— or maybe you do and yet still chose to go out with him, is beyond sunghoon’s comprehension. 

“what do you think about jay?” he asks abruptly, catching jake’s attention, looking at him a little too intently for an answer. 

“he’s a nice guy,” a casual reply before he gets back to his assignment before jake looks back at sunghoon with newly found interest. “he turned in my spanish essay last week, oh and drove me back from the bar a few days ago after you ditched me. why?”

sunghoon simply shakes his head, getting back to his books even though his focus is nowhere near studies. at this point, he doesn’t know if it’s jay distracting him or you. even your words keep playing over and over again in the back of his head. jay and nice in the same sentence doesn’t seem fit. sure, he helps his friends and drops his girl back home, but that’s only three days before there’s a new girl in his arms. 

002. RUNNING OUT OF SANITY

sunghoon doesn’t hear the door click open when you come back from your classes, too busy in the balcony while humming a tune that you recognise immediately. you take off your shoes, noticing how he taps his foot along with the melody, and it’s quiet in the apartment, apart from the sound of traffic and wind rustling through the trees around.

“i don’t like people who smoke,” smoking is not on your list of likes, but you find yourself next to sunghoon whenever he’s with a cigarette. just like now, when you return from yet another one of your dates— or meet-ups as you prefer to call it right now— with jay. it wasn’t really planned. you bumped into him after classes and he was on his way back home, so you asked him for a coffee. 

he almost jumps at your sudden voice but manages to compose himself, scowing at the distaste in your expression before scoffing, the cigarette still dancing between his lips. “good think, i’m not looking forward to be liked by you,”

he studies the frown on your face, glares as if your eyes are shooting daggers in his direction. it’s amusing to him how easy it is to get on your nerves. he leans against the metal railings, hair falling over his forehead. his eyes stay on your for a few seconds before he holds the cigarette between his index and middle finger, putting it away from his mouth and blowing out the smoke in your directions. he laughs mockingly when you step back, fanning out the smoke with your hands, cursing under your breath.

“are you crazy?!” you exclaim in annoyance, coughing slightly at his poor attempt at entertainment. your frown deepens when he mumbles a quiet apology although not meaning it, from the looks of it, and lifts the cigarette back to his lips. 

“you’re back early,” he states casually, tapping the cigarette butt and watching the ash fall down from the balcony before a taunting chortle falls off his lips. “did jay dump your ass or something?”

your nose scrunches up at his actions, although mostly at the tobacco you can still smell in your air. you look down at the road, watching a mercedes passing by. “no, he had to go somewhere so he left early,”

“i knew it! he’s good for nothing,” and he drops the cigarette to the floor, crushing it with his foot even though at the back of his mind, he knows you’re going to yell at him for cleaning that up. “what kind of guy can’t even spend time with his girlfriend?”

“we’re not dating,”

“that’s worse!” he emphasises, and a pause follows as he looks at you with a confused expression. “wait— didn’t you say he asked you out?”

“he did, but he said he wants to wait until exams are over,” there’s a hint of displeasure in your voice. his eyes travel down to your fingers, especially the ring you’re fiddling with before they’re back on your face when you speak again. “we just decided to hang out,”

he practically scoffs at your words, quite literally in disbelief. a knowing sigh comes out of his mouth as he stands straight, this time standing with his back against the railing, feeling the cold metal though his thin white t-shirt. a part of him wants to laugh at your stupidity and point at how naive you are, while another part of him wants to find jay and beat him to pulp. he doesn’t know why there’s anger pooling in his stomach at the mere thought of jay just messing around with you. 

“what a sick bastard,” he huffs with a tincture of annoyance in his tone. “how much do you want to bet he’s playing with you?”

“you’re the one who’s sick,” and even though it clicks with him that you’re referring to a few minutes earlier when he smoked all in your face, sunghoon still frowns when you call him sick. “he’s just prioritising his studies, there’s nothing wrong with that. at least he doesn’t smoke while being all up my face,”

you two just bask in silence after that.

he doesn’t have much to say— actually he does, but he doesn’t know how to put it in a decent, coherent way. of course, your reaction won’t be the most pleasant if he told you he wants to punch jay’s good for nothing handsome face. he wonders what you’re thinking when he looks over at you. you seem happy whenever you talk about your supposed ‘future boyfriend,’ yet it’s evident that you’re upset. he likes to think you’re having your doubts too. it's reassuring to him for some reason— because that’s good for you, of course. if you’re upset, you have your doubts, and if you have your doubts you might not fall victim to whatever sick game jay is playing. 

“oh, actually, he doesn’t smoke,” but then you speak in a matter-of-fact way, as if comparing him to jay before giving him a mocking smile. “he’s better than you,”

those words ring in his mind for a good while. 

you go back inside and he hears you shut the door to your room as an annoyed sigh falls off his lips. hearing that jay is nice from jake was another thing, but hearing to say he’s better than him leaves a bitter taste on his tongue. and he doesn’t know why he’s feeling this way, these little changes in how he usually is, it’s new. it’s frustrating him out. 

it isn’t until his phone vibrates that he’s dragged out of his ocean of thoughts. his brows furrow when he notices the time, having realised that he basically wasted the entire noon even though he didn’t attend classes after giving heeseung an excuse that he’s sick. his eyes squint at the sender, and then a groan escaping his lips when he opens to read it. 

noh chaeun  4:15pm hoon! my last two classes have been cancelled are you up for some coffee?

sunghoon doesn’t reply, rather leaving his classmate’s messages on seen, too bothered by his inner turmoil to spend time with her. it’s not like him to be this way, to be so bothered over something that doesn’t concern him. you’re definitely not someone so significant and jay is definitely not the first guy you’re with. in fact, he has seen you kiss that guy from one of your classes— as much as he hates to recall that incident now— and had sneaked up to tell your mother about it over the phone when she had called you.

you’ve never had a serious relationship, not after meeting him. in his head, you always came back to him and he’d be lying if he hadn’t joked about it with his friends during the initial few weeks after you had moved in. when he had mentioned to jake that you’re pretty and his friend had teased him a few days later, saying his ‘crush’ was with this other guy, sunghoon, did in fact, say he doesn’t care because you always come back to him; or rather his apartment, actually, but whatever fits the joke. 

that day, he had a good laugh out of it and the joke died back then itself, more so after he started complaining about you to his friends. your habits, your actions, the things you say that tick him off, your quirky and quick remarks— everything. perhaps, even about your habit of arriving late on weekends from parties and ruining his sleep because you forget the key most of the time, so he has to wake up and open the door for you, but not guys, never guys. 

it hurts his head to even try and figure it out, to find the reasoning behind the pang in his chest every time you mention jay. he likes to think it’s just harmless competition although for no reason, even though both of them have done plenty of things to piss each other off just for the fun of it. sunghoon thinks he can live with it and walks back inside to the living room, until he sees you walking out of your room on phone with someone, the name of he who shall be mentioned rolling off your tongue again, and he finally pulls out his phone with a frustrated sigh. 

sunghoon  4:21pm sure, i’ll pick you up in ten

“actually, my mom wants to invite your family over for dinner this weekend,” the girl in front of him speaks with a smile after muttering a quiet thank you to the waiter after he gets their order. “she’s very grateful  for the donation your dad made for our art gallery and wants to thank properly,”

“talk to my parents, then,” it’s a simple reply, too bland and forced for her liking.

sunghoon hasn’t spared her a single look in the past ten minutes that they’ve been sitting together at the table. firstly, he doesn’t know why he drove to a restaurant when she asked for a coffee. it’s not even close to dinner time, and the awkward yet sweet smile on her face didn’t make it better for him, so he ordered starters and drinks to drag their little impromptu dinner out. 

“sunghoon, to be honest,” chaeun tries to strike up a conversation again, despite the constant lack of effort from his side. “i want you—”

“hey, isn’t that jongseong?” and he cuts her off immediately, finger pointing outside the glass panes beside them as he stares in the direction behind her with brows knit together in shock. “who’s that with her?”

“jongseong?” she repeats the name before turning her head, forming an ‘o’ when she spots a familiar figure through the multitude on the streets. “ah, that’s myung jihye. she has been pursuing him for a while. i guess he finally agreed,”

“they’re dating?!” his voice is full of surprise and disbelief unlike hers, so seemed to be happy for the girl instead. he stares outside with a heavy silence as the couple disappears between the crowd before looking at the girl in front of him.

“oh, i wouldn’t say that…i don’t know but it’s possible they are.” it doesn’t miss her attention how sunghoon’s fingers tighten around the fork. “everybody in our major knows jihye has crush on him and they’re probably a thing by now,”

and he wishes you were here with him right now so that he could show you the true colours of the dear guy you’ve been going out with, the one who’s supposedly ‘better’ than him. he wants you to realise that his words weren’t false and he isn’t sick, after all, and if you’d cry, he would be down to tell you it’s not the end of the world. that there are a hundred other guys better than jay, ones who won’t even breathe in front of another woman, who’d treat you better— hell, i can treat you better if you ever give me a chance— and then a pause in his train of thoughts.

he looks at chaeun, who’s looking back at him with a perplexed look and her own set of questions. his mind replays those words yet again, and he screams internally.

what the heck?!

surprisingly enough, sunghoon has been thinking about jay for the whole evening now, obviously not in a good way. his eyes keep travelling to the knife stand on the kitchen island occasionally and every single time, he has to convince himself that murder is not the right answer to anything. 

for some reason, he can’t stop imagining your smiles while on date with jay. not that he has ever seen those— wish i could— as he slaps himself out of his state of mind yet again. not only that man is playing with you but on jihye who’s apparently his girlfriend? he lets out the ugliest scoff known to mankind, because in sunghoon’s head, jay is a sick joke made by biology.

he waits for you to return from your shopping spree for about an hour, having beer as a company. he tries to stay awake although his eyes get droopy, and then every ounce of sleep leaves his body when he hears the door unlock. 

“yn,” he practically jumps out of the couch, it almost scares you. he accidentally bumps into the living room table on the way, knocking an empty can of beer to the floor but too busy to bother picking it up. “i have to tell—” his eyes go down to the eleven shopping bags in your hands, as he counts them. “— wait, what did you shop so much for?” 

“oh, i have to attend a family wedding next month,” his chest feels warm when he sees you smiling and looking so excited, and it’s making him go crazy on the inside because he doesn’t know what is happening to him. for some reason, he starts imagining you in a gown, like the one you wore for the fresher’s party, but then he forces his mind to get back to the point. “i’m thinking of asking jay to be my date,”

and his heart drops down to his stomach.

this has to be a fucking joke, and he tells himself. for a split second, he thinks he didn’t hear you properly. maybe you said jake because, well, jake did tweet a ‘date for rent’ form five months ago when he needed money to buy tickets for a post malone concert that cost more than his gentle monster glasses ( not that he got any money but at least they got a good laugh out of it. ) 

you remove your shoes and put the shopping bags on the couch before sitting down as well, letting out a heavy sigh. “you look like you saw a ghost,”

“a ghost would’ve been better,” he catches you looking at him when he mumbles under his breath, sort of grateful you didn’t hear him before sunghoon would rather not have another argument with you over how jay is not only a bad choice, he’s the worst choice. 

he looks over at you when you pull out your phone, fingers fluttering over the screen as you text someone with a giddy smile. he considers telling you what he had seen earlier, but god, he loved to see you smile like that. the way you press your lips together to suppress a grin, looking ever so happy as if you have won a lottery. he doesn’t think you’ve ever smiled like that at him, and it aggravates him even more when he realises that you probably smile like that every time you see jay. 

jay is getting everything he isn’t deserving of, and it pisses sunghoon off down to his bones. 

but again, he can’t bring himself to tell you the truth. you look too happy for your own good, it pains him physically to even imagine your reaction when you’ll come to know the truth. and then he pulls himself together, telling himself that it is your fault in the first place to trust someone like jay and ignore the warning signs he was giving you. 

in the end, he leaves without having any further conversations with you, going to bed two hours earlier than usual even though he knows he isn’t going to get any sleep. sunghoon is convinced he’s losing his mind, faster than a day ago actually. he lets out a frustrated groan and covers himself with his blanket, hoping to catch some sleep. 

it’s going to be yet another long day tomorrow.

003. A CHANGE OF STANCE

sunghoon thinks you’re hot.

what the fuck?

“i asked something,” you remind, pulling him out of his trail of thoughts and he flinches slightly, making your brows furrow in confusion. “how do i look?”

“huh— what? oh,” he takes in your appearance again. hair down, make up done— you’re wearing your favourite lip tint? and the best dress he has seen you in so far, looking so mind blowing it actually blows his mind and short circuits his brain. 

even your favourite lip tint … sunghoon doesn’t know why he’s looking at your lips in the first place but little does he know he’s fucked. 

absolutely. completely. fucked.

nonetheless, he manages to compose himself, clearing his throat and sitting up ever so elegantly on the couch, legs crossed, the magazine still in his hands. “you look…t-terrific,” 

you can’t help but get even more confused at his words, wondering if it was a bad idea to even ask him for his opinion, even though you play along. “like in a good way or a bad way?”

“in a terrific way,” he blurts out, eyes wide open as panic settles in slowly inside his stomach, and he’s stuttering, shocked, surprised, fucked, again. “you look terrific in a terrific way…so terrifically terrific in the most terrific way possible,” 

“are you high?” 

well, he would say he is! never in the two years that he has known you did sunghoon think he’d find himself floored, figuratively, and speechless, literally, at the sight of you. and he’s not saying you look bad on other days. you look good, in fact. good as in plain and presentable, but never in a good good way and definitely not in a hot way, of course. 

“anyway, i’m going out. receive my parcel for me if it arrives,” you move to put on your shoes, taking a few seconds to pick between the two you think would suit your outfit. for a moment, you consider asking him to help you choose— as you look at him up and down peripherally, and he looks terrified. and you shrug it off, grabbing one of your loafers.

“where are you going?” he asks after a good minute of silence, sounding calmer than earlier as he gets off the couch and walks up to you. his nose scrunches up in disapproval as your hands move to one of your jimmy choos for a brief second, before you decide to go back to your initial pick.

“date,” he takes a moment to register your words, despite this happening many times.

a date. he scoffs softly, looking away, arms crossed. 

a date, again. sunghoon doesn’t give a fuck. 

“with jay,” you continue, this time with a sweet smile on your face that makes his heart flutter for some reason. maybe, he does give a fuck. 

now, sunghoon should feel bad for his fellow friend of a friend because he’s on a date with you, but instead he wants to snap his neck in two. the name is starting to give him an ick— jay this, jay that. you’re hanging out with jay, having coffee with jay, going on a date with jay, shopping with jay, next would be going to bed with jay— he pauses immediately, shaking his head. he doesn’t really like the sound of that.

“whatever,” he tells himself when you walk out of that door, looking all pretty and excited. he doesn’t know why he’s getting so worked up over a date, that too with someone who— according to sunghoon and chaeun— is dating someone else. he would pay to see you back home all miserable and he would point fingers at you and laugh, saying he told you already while you had your conscience and rationality clogged up with the possibility of getting dicked down. 

but that doesn’t change the fact that you’re on a date with jay fucking park. and you’re looking hot. 

he sighs, slouching back on the couch, looking outside at the bright blue skies and then sighs again. he needs to be lobotomized.

it’s three in the noon and sunghoon is drowning himself in misery and pity. and soju.

a glass after another and then another, along with two empty bottles already on the table. even the owners are giving him a weird look and heeseung can only let him ruin his reputation so much.

“there, there,” the senior takes the half empty bottle of soju from his hand and puts it aside, sighing pitifully at sunghoon. “that’s enough for today. you need to stop drinking,”

“heeseung,” sunghoon looks up at the guy in front of him, looking horribly pitiful, eyes a bit unfocused from the alcohol settling in his system. “do you know yn?”

and heeseung pauses for a few moments, not knowing what prompted him to ask this question. more so when you and heeseung went to the same highschool and even were in the music club. he nods slightly in doubt, raising his glass to his lips. “of course,”

“do you think he’s pretty?”

“of course,”

“do you think she’s hot?”

“of course,” it takes heeseung quite a few seconds to respond and sunghoon sort of wants to punch him in the face for agreeing because he feels a certain way when others find you hot— but he would claim it’s soju giving him heartburns. “why are you even asking this suddenly?”

“she went on a date with jay,” he responds in the most miserable and sullen voice known to mankind. his shoulders practically slouching at the mention of he-who-shall-not-be-mentioned, finger tracing the rim of the glass in front of him with incoherent whines falling off his lips.

“so what?” jake interjects, beckoning the owner for yet another bottle for soju. it was necessary, as heeseung had warned earlier while arriving at the restaurant, considering sunghoon’s impromptu text about wanting to meet up. 

“jake, did you hear what i said? she’s on a date with jay. park. jong. seong,” the youngest spells out every syllable, sitting up straight as he gets defensive. “she thinks he’s madly in love with her or something but she’s wrong! the day i went out with chaeun, i saw him with jihye and guess what? chaeun said everyone knows they’re a thing but apparently, yn doesn’t know this. i’ve told her so many times that he is not worth it but she won’t understand she’s fucking dumb oh my god,”

and…silence.

absolute fucking maddening silence that made sunghoon go even more insane before jake finally decides to speak, albeit in disbelief. 

“that monologue was unnecessary,” the foreigner pours in another glass for the three of them, filling them up completely, knowing this is going in a new direction yet a one that has been anticipated by both him and heeseung. “besides, since when do you care about her?”

“she’s my roommate,”

“you like her,” heeseung exclaims, and silence follows again for a few seconds before sunghoon gasps scandalously, slamming his glass down on the table which turns a few heads in their direction as jake mutters an embarrassed apology for it.

“i don’t,” sunghoon speaks in a voice much calmer than his previous tone, even leaning in towards the table to put emphasis on his words. jake pours himself another glass, scoff at his words while shaking his head mockingly which only pisses him off more.

“i knew this would happen,” heeseung continues, stating it as a matter of fact while nudging jake to pour him a glass as well. “saw this coming from a mile away when you cried over her going on a blind date the last time you got drunk,”

he can’t point out when that must’ve happened, but he doesn’t refute his words, simply letting his eyes travel across the room for a few moments. the frown on his lips deepens when he meets jake’s knowing gaze as he gets defensive once again. “i’m telling you, i don’t like her,”

“you said that about hello kitty but she’s everywhere in your room now,” he turns his phone with the screen up when he feels jake’s eyes on it, or particularly on the hello kitty sticker on his phone cover as the boy nudges him for another glass. “go on, you’ll need it.”

and sunghoon does, drinking more than he usually does thanks to jake filling his glass again and again for the sake of his sob story. the cab drops him in front of his apartment and he stumbles his way to the elevator. the silence sobers him out for some reason as he leans against the walls of the elevator and thinks about you.

perhaps you’re still with jay, sharing smiles and stories, kisses if you’re brave enough. he likes to think you are not, that you would chicken out— it makes him feel better about himself. he imagines you holding hands with him and then shrugs that thought off his mind just as quickly, huffing at the bitter taste it leaves in his mouth as he walks out of the elevator once it reaches his floor.

sunghoon planned to take a shower and sleep, but every thought water downs to nothing when he spots you crouching next to the door with knees pressed up to your chest. he can’t see your face, but he knows you’re sad, and it makes him stop in front of you, his heart accelerating when you look up at him with glistening eyes.

you look miserable.

and sunghoon has no reaction. he’s frozen, hands on his side as he stares at you. he was supposed to laugh at you for your stupidity. but you look so utterly sad and heart broken, god, he wants to punch jay in his throat. yet again, every single thought leaves his mind when his eyes fall back on your face, his hands instinctively opening out to you as he speaks in a voice as soft as a feather.

“let’s go inside,”

004. CANDLELIT 

“he said it was a bet,” you speak over the silence, fiddling with your fingers. you look up at sunghoon— who’s sitting with legs crossed in front of you while you’re curled up in one corner of the couch. “and that he never meant to drag it out for so long but he didn’t know how to tell me,”

“a bet?” he scoffs bitterly, looking away for a fraction of a second before his eyes are back on you. “what an asshole,” 

it’s not the first time sunghoon has said that. in fact, asshole is all and the only word he uses to define jay. you still think it was a stretch, for jay isn’t that bad. sure, he lied to you and played with your feelings— which you will never accept that you had feelings for him because you don’t want to look pathetic— but he wasn’t rude. well, at least he paid for all the three dates you two went on with the locations being some high end restaurants or bakeries. 

on the other hand, sunghoon stares at you in silence. his eyes trace over your sullen face, and then to your fingers. for a second, he considers holding your hands…roommates can do that at least, right? to comfort one another, but then he catches you looking up at him and he averts his gaze to a distant corner. “don’t start crying now!”

“i’m not! i didn’t even like him that much…” and he can’t help but suppress his smile at the pout on your face as you refuse to look at him. it’s adorable, he never thought he would ever say that, but it’s true. your mannerisms are cute, you’re cute, and it’s eating his brain cells.

“is that so? you talked about him like you two were in love or something,”

“stop it!”

he stares at you quietly for a few seconds again. even though you’re being defensive out of embarrassment right now, trying to prove to him that you’re not heartbroken, sunghoon knows you’ll be crying the moment you’re behind the closed doors of your room. on other days, he wouldn’t care so much. not more than giving a few pats on a back and telling you to suck it up despite the concern in his voice. today, however, he feels differently.

you got played. it’s your heart that’s broken. you feel like a fool, and yet sunghoon is sitting in front of you, trying to find words amidst awkwardness and hesitation. his heart feels heavy for you. it’s unfathomable on his part.

he suddenly remembers the day you mentioned that jay is better than him. he almost scoffs at that, again. well, you might harbour feelings for the american guy but at least sunghoon never had you holding back your tears. and he swears it would never come to that, if you ever have feelings for him because sunghoon would be a better boyfriend— and then he comes back to his senses as soon as those words register inside his brain, cheeks heating up at the sudden thought before he clears his throat. 

“do you want ramen?” he manages to change the topic ever so swiftly, getting up from the couch and already walking to the kitchen without waiting for your response. apparently, getting away from you would ease his heartbeat, although hearing your voice has just as much effect on him as your presence or a mere thought of you.

“are you cooking?”

he lets out a breathy laugh at your words, getting two packs of ramen from the shelf. “of course, do you think i’d ask you to cook when you look like you went through a divorce and lost the custodies of all your three kids?” 

you frown at his words, although ending up laughing at them just a second later. it’s hard to not laugh at how silly he is sometimes, if you ignore his annoying tendencies. sunghoon puts the water to boil, fighting back a smile at the sound of your laughter. it’s better than seeing you all sad over a guy who doesn’t deserve you.

you get off the couch as well, making your way to the kitchen, wanting to help him since he listened to your sob story. it’s quiet, and you hear slight rumbling outside as you take a quick look at the weather outside through the windows and then within a few seconds, thunder pierces through the silence hanging in the room. 

sunghoon flinches visibly, freezing in his stance before the sound of heavy rain fills the kitchen. he turns on the electric stove and it blows out. all the lights in the apartment go out, darkness settling in and disturbed just as quickly as the room fills with bright flashes of light, illuminating your face for a short second before it’s dark again.

“wait, i’ll get my phone— oh,” you reach out for the back pocket of your trousers, quickly get your phone and turn it on for the flash light before it powers off. “out of battery,”

he takes a blind step into the darkness when it thunders again and he notices you standing with your arms around yourself when the light surges in the room for a moment again. he hopes you won’t push him away if he puts his arm around you, but then you two bump into each other. a quiet apology finds its way out of your lips, and he can tell you’re flustered. 

“where are the candles?” he asks to distract you from the fact that he’s holding your hand and pulling you aside gently, so you don’t crash into each other again. your hands feel oddly warm in this cold weather, and it only flutters his heart even more.

“second shelf from the right i think,” your voice is interrupted by thunder again and your hands instinctively tighten around his fingers. and then a loud thud follows, causing you to gasp slightly. “are you okay?”

“i can’t fucking see,” his voice is strained, oozing off pain as he lets go off your hands. you open your mouth to speak before he bumps into something again. something falls off the counter, perhaps the spoon by the sound of it and he apologises shortly after. it’s harder to navigate around his own apartment, more than he had imagined.

sunghoon manages to find the candles, setting them on the counter with pure intuition before lighting one of it up with the lighter he always carries around in his pocket. he turns around, almost bumping into you and before he could say anything, he sees you pressed up against one of the counters, face illuminated by the dim candle light. 

you’re close, too close, he’s afraid you can hear his heart going crazy at the proximity. his mind is telling him to step aside but he’s too lost looking in your eyes, ( as you are too ) with you looking so impossibly beautiful under the faint golden glow. 

“is this okay?” he whispers softly and you simply nod, not a word coming out of your mouth as you find yourself entranced by his face. sunghoon has always been aphrodite’s son, as his admirers would call him, and now that you’re seeing him so closely, you’re realising he’s something much more beautiful.

it doesn’t slip your attention how his gaze settles on your lips for a quick second, your body tensing up at the sudden movement. your breath hitches as he leans closer, dipping his head down. your heart is racing while he feels like his heart has stopped— it’s timeless, as he finds himself just a few centimetres away from your lips, not wanting to stop even though he gives you a chance to pull back, whispering softly, “can i?”

you nod. and sunghoon doesn’t waste another second, capturing your lips with his. 

it’s still at first, with your lips only pressed up together for a few seconds. it’s only a few seconds after he pulls back ever so slightly, and then tilts his head to the other side and goes in for another kiss, this time moving his lips slowly against yours. he feels you tense up for a brief while and then melting as you kiss him back, your fingers lacing around his tenderly. you flinch when it thunders again, breaking the kiss, but feeling shivers down your spine as you feel his breath on your lips. 

he takes a few seconds, fingers ghosting up your hands to rest on your waist, tugging you closer as he brushes his lips against yours. “focus on my lips,”

and he kisses you again, this time a bit more firmly, albeit it’s slow and gentle at first, his lips moving against yours in a way that's both comforting and exciting. but as the moments pass, he presses in deeper, more insistently. he lets his body press more firmly against yours, his chest touching yours as his tongue gently teases at the seam of your lips. it was working, the way his lips move against yours, it calms your nerves from the thunder but lights them up again when he nibbles gently on your lower lip, his fingers digging into the skin of your waist as he continues to kiss you so fervently. 

it takes a passing second for you to realise what you’re doing. it surprises you, however not enough to pull back, or maybe the way his tongue feels against yours stops you from doing so. you’d be lying if you say you hadn’t thought of kissing him before— as early as two days after moving in. and now that you’re actually kissing him, everything feels like a fever dream.

he tucks your chin up with his fingers, pulling you in closer to deepen the kiss. he is a good kisser, sunghoon uses that to boast about himself, he has always been good at this— kissing, bragging, making your knees weak, and all you could do was melt into him wet and sloppy kisses that he plants on your skin. 

he dips his head down to your neck, pressing sloppy, open mouthed kisses down the column of your throat, pulling your blouse aside to get a better access to your collarbones and shoulders. it felt like his body has a mind of its own, and he’s only following right behind. when a soft gasp leaves your lips, he moves back to your lips again, wanting to swallow every little sound you make that makes his mind haywire. 

your breaths are heavy, hands around his neck with fingers grazing the skin of his nape. a movement that makes him moan softly in the kiss as he presses you against the counter, holding you between his arms. his hand that's resting on your hip moves up, tracing the curve of your waist and then sliding under your shirt to rest on your bare skin, lips curling up in a subtle smirk as he hears you gasp yet again. 

“sunghoon—” you pull back, getting a quick glance at his half-lidded eyes when the lightning from the thunderstorm fills the room. he can still feel your laboured breathing on his lips and it does nothing but pull him in even more. after all, sunghoon would be lying if he said he didn’t imagine doing this with you.

“we’ll stop,” he pecks your lips, then trailing his lips down your jawline and to your neck, leaving a trail of gentle kisses along your skin. “when the candle goes out,” 

005. WHERE THE LINE FADES

when sunghoon wakes up the next morning, he’s met with cold empty sheets on the side and the memories from last night start flooding his mind. his heartbeat accelerates at the mere thought of you, especially how you were last night and every time his name fell off your lips in bliss and pleasure— he would’ve preferred waking up to you rather than emptiness. 

he lays idly for a few minutes and stares at the ceiling, looking for where it all had started. was it the day you told him jay asked you out? maybe not, he doesn’t like to think of himself as a jealous person. it must’ve been when you asked for his opinion on your outfit, he tells himself, you looked too good to be true that day. a few seconds more and he sits up with a soft groan, seemingly unable to find answers to any of his questions.

the weather seems to have improved as he notices the cosy sunlight outside. he slips on this shirt before walking down to the shared bathroom, rubbing his eyes softly and brushing his fingers through his hair with a sigh. he puts his hand on the door knob and looking up in surprise when it opens on the other side.

“oh,” the slight hint of shyness on your face doesn’t escape his gaze, just like how enchanting you look this early in the morning with hair wet from the shower. you bite slightly on your lower lip before the awkwardness in the air is disturbed by your voice. “morning,”

actually, it must’ve all started the day you moved in.

“morning,” he replies back, rubbing his nape and looking away. the weight of questions lingering around makes it hard for him to look in your eyes. “would you like to have breakfast?”

you nod and follow him into the kitchen after making a short trip to your room. 

you steal a few glances at him while eating your breakfast, feeling your palms sweat at the thought of bringing it up to him. you avoid it for a few minutes, tossing the question around in your head while trying to make small talks about the ketchup, as bad as it could get. it feels a bit suffocating until you finally decide to address the elephant in the room. “so about last night—” 

“it was a mistake,” he cuts you off immediately, a heavy pause following shortly after. he looks up in your eyes for the first time since the morning. “let’s just forget it,”

and his words leave a bitter taste in your mouth. it could’ve been just another one night stand for you had it not been with sunghoon— your roommate, the person you see everyday, the person who managed to give you butterflies the day you moved in. your fingers tighten around the spoon and you consider arguing back for a moment before you push that idea further back in your head.

it could be just another thing added to the lists of things that have been buried, like the time you and sunghoon almost kissed in the elevator last year.

“right,” you nod quietly, convincing yourself that it’s not a big deal. that he’s just another guy in your life like jay. actually, you don’t feel like wanting to compare them anymore. you don’t know where the line marking the difference fades. “of course, yeah,”

you don’t even like the sound of that.

“yeah,”

you don’t wait another minute before leaving your unfinished breakfast on the table and going to your room. his eyes follow your movements, conscience nudging him to chase after you. he contemplates it for a while, and then you walk out with your bag. “i’ll see you after classes,”

and then sunghoon doesn’t see you for the rest of the morning.

or the day, in fact. usually, you two end up bumping into each other at least once, but sunghoon doesn’t see you around for the whole day. he skips spanish, deciding to go back to his apartment earlier than usual. he turns on the tv, deciding to watch a football watch with beer on the side while waiting for you. an hour passes, then another, and another.

there’s no sign of you.

it isn’t until he rings up a few of your friends that he hears that you’re staying over at giselle’s for the night. he wouldn’t blame you, couldn’t, not after everything that went down a night ago. you needed some space and so did he, but somewhere inside he wondered if he should’ve been honest with you when you brought up that topic during breakfast instead of saying the first thing that came to his mind and dismissing it.

but, he dismisses it again, letting you be on your own for as long as you need, knowing you’d come back soon.

which you do, the very next day, much to his surprise. he had expected you to avoid him for at least a week. he notices the way you look when you return early in the morning, tired and exhausted as if you hadn’t got a single ounce of sleep. there’s silence engulfing him but you walk to your room before he could even open his mouth to speak. and then you ignore him for the rest of the day.

he starts feeling annoyed at some point, trying to come up with a reason for your actions. he tries striking up conversations with you and you give short responses, or just nod. when you walk away without answering him when he asked about your day, sunghoon wanted to grab your wrist and pull you back for a second, but he dismisses that idea just as soon as it pops up in his head. he doesn’t even realise how quickly time passes in silence, not until he returns from heeseung’s apartment after spending two nights and one day with him and jake and checks his phone, realising it’s already close to being a week till you’re gone radio silent. he notices a few texts, mostly his study group that have been planning meet-ups to study, one that he rarely attends. his eyes especially squint in confusion at the texts from your mother, saying she had been trying to get in touch with you but getting no response. 

he was on his way to his room when he heard the door unlock. a pause, the click of the doorknob strikes through the silence, followed by your footsteps. he takes a few seconds to sort out his thoughts before speaking. “your mom texted me since you weren’t picking up her phone,”

“my phone died,” you give a simple response, almost too quickly for his liking. he lets his eyes follow your movements as you take off your shoes and jacket, putting it on the couch. 

it takes him back to the day you told him about jay asking you out. 

it was exactly the same— you arrived late, your phone had died. he was asking the same questions, albeit laced with annoyance. today, it’s hesitation, maybe slight doubt. sunghoon can’t stop you from seeing jay, but the idea of you being with him bothers him more than expected. so, he follows up with yet another question. 

“where have you been?” he asks, wanting to maintain a casual demeanour even though his heart is pounding in his chest just from being near you. he isn’t expecting any response, actually, however he’s met with surprise when you actually reply. 

“with jay,” the words fall from your mouth as if you’re used to them, used to saying his name. there’s an awkward pause before you clarify. “we had dinner together. he wanted to apologise properly,”

“that’s— that’s great,” he manages to squeeze out, but sunghoon thinks jay could’ve left you alone instead of meeting you if he wanted to apologise so bad.

you definitely had feelings for jay, even though they didn’t go as deep for you to come home sobbing your eyes out the day you learnt the truth. to sunghoon, that is enough of a reason to hate him even more. just the mere thought of your heart sinking whenever you’d even think of jay made him fist his hands, nails almost digging in the palm of his hands. 

sunghoon doesn’t have much experience with girls. in fact, none at all. flings are one thing, and girlfriends another. he has had both— none too serious. the first time someone asked him out was in highschool, although he’s surprised it didn’t happen much earlier. that time, just agreed to go out with her because his friends were in relationships too and he didn’t want to fall behind. it wasn’t soon before it turned into a competition after he got into university. not his best self, it isn’t something he’s proud of now that he thinks about it. 

and sunghoon isn’t half better than jay in that aspect, although obviously not as bad as to bet on going on a date with another girl while he already has a girlfriend. however, if you had feelings for him— as he thinks while watching you walk to your room— he wouldn’t let a single tear fall from your lips. 

“about that night,” he follows you into your room, practically hearing his heartbeat echo through his ears. he gulps nervously when he notices you looking at him with a sliver of hope in your eyes. “it wasn’t a mistake,”

“oh,” and you stop in your tracks, having no idea how to respond. an awkward pause follows as you bite your lower lip habitually before speaking, feigning a casual tone. “well, we can still put it behind—”

“i don’t want to,” he blurts out, cutting you off mid sentence. you notice how his voice is quiet as always, yet there’s panic and anxiousness behind those eyes. “i mean, i tried to, but it’s difficult. you’re always on my mind,”

there’s a silver of determination behind his voice. it’s surprising and equally anticipated. sometimes, he feels like he thinks of you every minute no matter what he’s doing. it was never this bad, these days even the regular banters between you two give him butterflies. and sunghoon understand that he might be far from your type in men. perhaps, you actually prefer someone like jay, who treat you to a fancy dinner to apologise, or maybe that guy from a few months ago who can’t remember the name of. 

you and sunghoon can be polar opposites and he would still be standing here, fingers fidgeting nervously with the hem of his denim jacket, looking so uncharacteristically out of place. he would choose to have this talk again, as much as he hates confronting, because it never about who your type is and always about the fact that you’re sunghoon’s type— as he realises this when you tuck a loose strand of hair behind your ear, looking at him with lips pressed together. you look cute, more so when you’re awkward, and he can’t believe he’s coming to terms with this but god, he is falling for you. 

he is falling hard, and falling deep. it’s nothing like him, you make him nervous, almost as if knocking him out of air whenever your eyes meet, and he would gladly suffocate to death. it was quiet with too many questions hanging above his head, and he noticed the way you fiddle with your fingers with the cutest expression known to mankind and sunghoon knew he was screwed. 

“i’ve got it so bad for you, yn, really,” —he speaks as if he’s out of breath due to the nervousness— “really bad. i tried to keep you out of here,” he said, pointing at his chest, cheeks flushing red as the words fell off his lips. “but you won’t go, you just won’t.”

and sunghoon has never been so…out of place, for the lack of better words. it’s amusing, even to you, the way he is right now. the sunghoon from three weeks ago wouldn’t even care but he, now, is pouring out all of himself, as if stripping him naked of his emotions and letting him see what lies behind the suave smiles and prideful words. as if showing you how easily you have him going crazy, right out of his mind and how he can’t help but just stare blankly as his eyes travel down to your lips occasionally— as they do now— and it leaves you in a frenzy when you notice it. 

“i can’t stop thinking about that night— not in a weird way, just…” and you’re just standing in front of him, trying not to laugh at his antics. he’s cute, a pause, what the fuck. and then you just go along with it, knowing there’s no point denying it anymore now that you two are having this conversation.

you notice his little mannerisms, like how he can’t look in your eyes for the life in him, how he keeps shifting his weight from one leg to the other. it’s adorable, especially the way he can have all the attention in the room with just his mere presence. that’s sunghoon for you, with a presence so heavy it’s loud even when he’s silent. it’s so loud you can practically hear his mind, of all the words you know he wants to say but can’t. there’s a hitch in his breath, his eyes meet yours for the first time in the past few minutes— i like you— they say, and the next thing sunghoon knows is that you’re kissing him. 

“i like you too,” you whisper against his lips after pulling back, your lips brushing against his. sunghoon feels like every single nerve in his body has been sparked, giving him goosebumps when you slowly intertwine your fingers with his.

of course, you know how he feels even before he could say it out loud. maybe, he just made it obvious for you to guess, otherwise sunghoon likes to think of himself as someone who can hide his feelings well. he lets go of your hands as soon as he feels you lace your fingers with his and instead, cups your cheeks ever so tenderly and leans down to capture your lips with his, smiling in the kiss. “i love you,”

˃ᗜ˂ : if you made it till here, i'm sending each one of u kisses >< thank u for reading, i hope u liked it. ps i had to put my heart aside and write jay's name ... never again will i put my man thru this huhu TT he's too good to do these things

[ilovelovewithallmyheart]

Your older brother Suguru always brought his idiotic best friend from the basketball team around after school. 

He would always get on your nerves. Not only was he loud and annoying, but he was also stupidly attractive. Whenever Satoru was around, you knew that you would not be getting any work done at home.

He somehow knew what effect he had on you. He would wink or blow you kisses when he saw you around the house, but always behind Suguru’s back. If Suguru knew that Satoru was flirting with his younger sister, he would lose his mind. 

Unfortunately for you, procrastination decided to be a real pain and you had a lengthy essay that was due tomorrow morning. 

It was time to fully lock in. The blinds were drawn, your phone was hidden from arms reach and your noise cancelling headphones were in. You were ready for battle.

You could barely hear the knock on your door. You turned around, saying “come in!”

Your older brother peeked his head through the door. “Hey sis. Just letting you know that-“

You nodded, brushing him off. He always gave you a heads up when Satoru was visiting. Satoru was always hanging out with Suguru in his room, almost every day of the week. 

It was a common occurance now, so you didn’t bat an eye when Suguru notified you of someone coming over.

For the next eight hours you were in full focus. Your noise cancelling headphones were expensive, but boy were they a good investment. You couldn’t hear Satoru’s pitchy voice, or his raucous laughter. 

It was now nearly midnight, and you were starving. You made your way to the kitchen, noise cancelling headphones playing music from your phone, when you sensed a pair of eyes staring at you from the living room.

Rather, multiple pairs of eyes. 

You failed to notice that Suguru had invited his entire basketball team over today, instead of just Satoru. 

You startled and dropped a glass cup of water, the entire thing breaking in two in what felt like the loudest possible way.

You were suddenly conscious of the comfortable form fitting shorts that you had outgrown years ago, and the tank top that dipped a little bit too low for comfort that you were wearing. It was even worse now that you were blushing beet red and bending over to scoop the glass up.

Where was your brother when you needed him? He was nowhere to be seen!

“Don’t do that.” Satoru now stood crouching in front of you, his broad shoulders covering you from his teamates veiw. “You’ll hurt yourself.” He swept the shattered glass into a dustpan and brush. After he was done, he gently held your wrists and inspected your hands. “You’re lucky you didn’t cut yourself.” His blue eyes pierced yours. Suddenly his gaze dipped downwards, onto what you were wearing. You felt the colour return to your cheeks immediately. “I-I’m fine.” You snatched your arms out of his grasp. You stood up immediately and he did too, casually trying to cover you up.

“Suguru never told me that his little sister was hot.” Naoya, the captain of the basketball team commented. “If I knew that I’d have hosted more get togethers here.” The rest of the basketball team snickered, and white hot rage turned Satoru’s blue eyes into a stormy grey. “Shut the f*ck up Naoya.” His voice was lethally low, the complete opposite of his usual pitchy keen.

Naoya whistled. “Sorry. I didn’t know she was taken.” 

Satoru glared in silence.

“I-Is she actually your girlfriend?” Naoya bursted into laughter. Condescending, rude laughter that sounded like forks scratching against plates. “So what if she is?” All the anger had dissipated from Satoru’s face. There was now a cool mask of indifference with a hint of playfulness. 

“Seriously? The school playboy Satoru Gojo is dating her?” 

“You say it like it’s a bad thing.” He challenged.

You stood there, face whipping back and forth between Satoru and Naoya. “Hey Satoru!”

Your voice sounded unnaturally stiff. “Why don’t we continue watching The Office in my room? We still haven’t finished off the episode we were on!” Your voice cracked at the word ‘still’, and it looked like Satoru was fighting tremendously hard to keep himself from laughing.

“Sure thing sweetie.”

**

“Okay why the f*ck am i only now hearing from Naoya, f*cking Naoya that you’re dating my sister?”

Suguru was angry.

Murderously, terrifyingly angry.

*planning on making this a fake dating kinda thing, part 2 coming...*

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

All In 4

No tag lists. Do not send asks or DMs about updates. Review my pinned post for guidelines, masterlist, etc.

Warnings: this fic will include dark content such as noncon/dubcon, age gap, power imbalance, low self esteem, and possible untagged elements. My warnings are not exhaustive, enter at your own risk.

This is a dark!fic and explicit. 18+ only. Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Warnings have been given. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Summary: you meet a mysterious man on a night out with your sister. (petite!reader)

based on the winning option for this poll

Characters: casino owner!Bucky Barnes

Note: It's Rebecca Black day

As per usual, I humbly request your thoughts! Reblogs are always appreciated and welcomed, not only do I see them easier but it lets other people see my work. I will do my best to answer all I can. I’m trying to get better at keeping up so thanks everyone for staying with me.

Your feedback will help in this and future works (and WiPs, I haven’t forgotten those!) Please do not just put ‘more’. I will block you.

I love you all immensely. Take care. 💖

As expected, your mother is waiting anxiously for your return. It’s not often you’re at the mercy of her disapproval but she has some choice words for both you and Roxie.

Why didn’t you call? You forgot to, everything was so chaotic. Why would you make me worry like that? You know how I am, it isn’t fair to not answer your phone. I was about to call the police. You’ve heard the same aimed at your sister dozens of times but it’s much different to be at the end of it. 

Once she’s done and you feel thoroughly guilty, you retreat to your room. That’s all you wanted. For the last day, all you wanted was to hide away. Yet, now that you’re safely behind familiar walls, you still feel unsettled. 

That’s enough excitement for a lifetime. How does Roxie think that is fun? It’s terrifying. 

You take out your laptop, your most prized possession, and sink back into your virtual cave. It’s safe there. The things you see on the internet are distant and often times fake. Fanfiction and streams and discussion boards. It’s all so menial and unimportant. It’s not finding a job and dragging your butt to work five days a week or disappointing your mother. 

Mm, well, you should check the job boards again. Something’s going to come up eventually. That’s what everyone says and those people have jobs. Even Roxie works, even if it is at a night club. It’s work and she brings home some impressive tips. When your mom asked her to get you a gig, she just laughed. 

You interviewed at Taco Bell a few weeks ago but you haven’t got a call. That’s probably not going to work out. Move on, try again and again and again. 

The computer doesn’t keep your focus as usual. Maybe it’s that you’re overtired or that your mom was so upset or everything that happened last night, but you just can’t rein it in. You close your laptop and lay flat on your bed. You close your eyes, exhaustion hot on your eyelids, but you can’t sleep. You’re no good at napping. What are you good at? 

You sigh and kick your feet. What are you going to do? You can’t spend another summer like this. You’re not like everyone else. You didn’t get into your school and you didn’t get some lofty job from your uncle’s company. As much as you can blame it on other’s luck, you have to acknowledge you’re own shortcoming. You procrastinate, you get nervous, and sometimes, you just avoid things altogether. 

You get up and grab your purse. The strap catches on your sweater and knocks it onto the floor. You search for your phone and pull it out. You bend to retrieve your cardigan and toss it with your purse back onto the dress. You look down as something flutters onto the carpet. 

You didn’t forget about the little note. It’s the weight that been on your shoulders. You take your phone and the paper and sit on the side of the bed. You can rip it up, crumple it and toss it in the bin, pretend nothing ever happened. You should. Just forget about the worst night of your life. 

You can’t. It’s not about your sister’s drunken display or your embarrassment. It’s about a job.  

You hang your head as your nose tingles. Your mom works her butt off and she’s so giving. You want to return the favour. Even if it’s small. Even if it’s just you paying for some of the groceries or a bill or giving her a few bucks. If you don’t try this time, you won’t be able to forget. You’ll always know that you are the reason you came up short. 

You unlock your phone and key in the number. You drop it and let the paper fall too as you stand. You pace around in circles until you’re dizzy. You hate making phone calls. The sound of your own voice is grating. Ugh.  

No, you have to do it. You can do this. It’s one phone call. What if that’s the job? What if you’re answering a phone? Get over yourself. Grow up! 

You pick up your phone and hit call. Your chest locks up. You can’t breathe. Oh god. If you can’t breathe you can’t speak. You hang up and squeak. Frig. No, don’t give up. 

You try again. This time, you force out an exhale and shakily hold the phone to your ear. There’s an answer after two rings. 

“Barnes,” a voice declares from the other end. 

“Erm, oh, Bucky? It’s... me,” you stutter out, giving your name as you realise he won’t recognise your voice. 

“Ah, hi, doll, give me a moment, one sec,” he says and you hear a scuffing on the other end and a muffled ‘excuse me’. His movement rustles and he clears his throat directly into the speaker, “there we are, doll, all yours. How are you?” 

“Uh, alright, I’m fine, er, oh... you?” You close your eyes, Just melt into a puddle and absorb into the carpet.  

“Doing great now, hearing from you,” he purrs, “I’m very happy you called.” 

“Mhm, well...” you put your hand to your neck. Your skin is burning. “I... was calling about the job. In the note.” 

“Of course, doll, so you’re interested?” 

Desperate, but you won’t tell him that. “Yes, please, I mean--” you cringe. You’re not ordering ice cream, “would... what would be... would there be an interview?” 

“Sure, doll,” he says. His tone is light and airy. Is he making fun of you or are you just self-conscious? Both, probably. “How about you come by the casino tomorrow at noon? Does that work for you?” 

“Yeah, uh, whenever,” you agree, “I can get a ride.” 

“Sounds like a plan. Can’t wait,” he coos. 

“Right, uh, okay, yeah, I’ll see you,” you babble dumbly. 

“Mm, yeah, see ya then, doll,” he intones. 

“Yep, er, bye.” 

“Bye--” 

You hang up in a half-panic. You did it. You made the call and you got an interview. You think. The conversation wasn’t what you expected but you think it went well.  

You blow out through your lips and grip your phone tight. Your heart hammers again. You march to the door and stop just before you can grip the knob. You’re excited but scared to tell your mom. 

You swing the door open and clammer through. You hear her in the kitchen doing dishes. It’s Roxie turn so of course your sister is sitting on the couch nursing another coffee. 

“Mom,” you slow and tap your phone against your leg as you stop by the counter, “I... I got an interview.” 

“An interview?” Her surprise is genuine, both in her expression and her voice as she looks at you. Her face blooms in a smile. “That’s wonderful. When?” 

“Tomorrow,” you utter. 

“Tomorrow?” She echoes. 

“At noon.” 

“Noon, okay, I can come home from work and drive you, but you’ll have to get a cab home. I should have enough for the fare.” 

“Ah, yeah, okay,” you clutch your phone in front of you and sway, “thanks.” 

“No problem,” she chimes, “where is it?” 

“What?” 

“The interview.” 

“Oh, at the casino.” 

“The casino?” She turns back to the sink and stares into the water as she scrubs, “hm, interesting. What will you be doing?” 

“Hm, I... don’t know yet. Maybe a cleaner.” 

“Oh, that’s not bad at all,” she says, “think I have a shirt you can wear. Maybe I could hem a pair of my pants for you tonight.” 

“Mom, you don’t have to--” 

“You should look nice,” she undercuts, “it’s not a big deal. Besides, it would be really good if you got a job.” 

You nod. You can hear the thinness in her voice. She tries to hide it but you know it’s not easy around here. You saw the red notice in the mail box and heard her on the phone with the landlord. The bough is close to breaking. 

“Thanks, I’ll... I’ll do my best.” 

“I know you will,” she trills. 

You smile and go back to your room. You shut the door and shudder. Great, now you’ve hurdled over the phone call, you can dread what comes next. Not just venturing out into the general public but going to an interview. It’s one thing after another. It feels like a lot after so long of nothing. 

🃏

Your mom lets you out in Lot 4. It’s far from the main entrance but she’s in a hurry to get back to work. You won’t keep her. You can walk a bit. 

The sun has you sweating along with the polyester trousers. The belt is pinned and the legs have been hastily hemmed. The blouse doesn’t breathe either but you managed to iron the wrinkle out of the sleeve. 

You come to the front doors and steel yourself. Your mascara sticks as you feel the perspiration around your eyes. Oof. You did your best to follow the tutorial with your sister's borrowed makeup but you skipped the eye liner; it only ever turns out smudgy. 

You enter and the air conditioning cools the heat in your cheeks and chest. The woman behind the counter greets you with a smile and a ‘how are you’ before asking if you’re checking in. You’re almost speechless at the sight of her. She’s so pretty and she can do the contour the way those girls on Youtube do. You wouldn’t be good for that job; not gorgeous like her. 

“Um, yeah, actually, I’m here for an interview,” you say. 

“An interview?” She tilts her head, “I didn’t see anything...” she clicks around with the slim mouse on the desk, “who were you interviewing with?” 

“Bucky, uh, Mr. Barnes,” you say. “Well, I spoke with him. Maybe I’m supposed to talk to someone else?” 

She says your name and glances from the screen to you. You nod, “yeah?” 

“Right, okay, I see,” she keeps her shining smile, “Mr. Barnes has a car waiting for you.” 

“A car?” Your brows pop up. “Alright.” 

“If you just want to head back out, it should be waiting there. You’ll see Merv, he has white hair.” 

“Okay, thanks,” you reply then gulp as you turn around. 

You turn slowly and go back to the doors. What is going on? He said to meet him here but he isn’t here? He would be a busy man. You just hope you don’t blow it. 

You pull the doors open and come down the shallow steps. A man with white hair stands by a dark car. One more mountain to climb. 

“Uh, hello, are you... Merv?” 

“That’s me, miss,” he stands straight, “you must be the lady.” 

“I... guess.” 

“Come on then,” he turns and opens the door, “Mr. Barnes doesn’t like to wait.” 

“Okay, sorry,” you step off the curb and climb into the car.  

The door shuts and you buckle up. At least the interior is cool. You snap the belt into place as Merv gets in the front. He rests a hand on the wheel and points with the other. 

“You want this up or down?” He points to the barrier between the front and back. 

“Oh, I don’t... whatever you like,” you shrug. 

He chuckles, “miss, you’re a lot sweeter than the other ones.” 

Other ones? Of course there would be other candidates. You wonder if this is a test. If maybe Merv is going to tell Bucky that you’re too quiet. 

“Do you like Springsteen?” He asks as he slowly pulls out. 

“Don’t mind him,” you answer. Honestly, you don’t really know any of his music.  

Merv flips on the stereo, “I like you even more.” 

[imaginespazzi]

Forget jealous Paige, how do we think poor KK's dealing with the fact that her father and sister were literally vibing to her song WITHOUT her 😭

Alright unserious unedited chaotic family drabble because I feel like procrastinating. Like I'm not even joking this is the most random thing I've ever written so read at your own discretion:

It's way too early in the morning when Paige's phone rings, making both her and Ice groan.

"KK what the fuck," Paige asks groggily, wiping at bleary eyes as a furious KK's face fills her phone screen.

"You said you didn't have a favorite child. LIAR," KK yells.

"Oh my god KK," Ice whines from across the room, "please shut the fuck up. My head is pounding."

"GOOD! TO MY SONG?" KK pays no attention, still as loud as ever, "HOW COULD YOU? BOTH OF YOU FUCKING TRAITORS."

"Bro you knew we were going," Paige sighs, sitting up properly.

"That's not the point. You know what give me one second. AZZI. AZZI. AZZI," and then KK's off running, blurry on Paige's screen as she yells for Azzi.

"Oh my god what? What?" Azzi's concerned voice comes through the phone, a smile replacing her frown when KK thrusts the phone in her face, "oh, hi P!"

Before a now grinning Paige can reply, KK cuts her off, "no! Don't hi P her. Did you see Ice's live? They been having the time of our lives without us. THEY WERE VIBING TO MY SONG. MY SONG AZZI!"

"Uh they're quite literally there to get drunk and party, we knew this," Azzi says, trying to hide a smile.

"Again not the point," KK sighs exasperatedly.

"What is the point KK," Paige asks with a tired yawn, "get to it then."

"The point is that you two are getting divorced and I'm finding myself a new stepfather. I will not be tolerating this disrespect," KK says firmly.

"Excuse me," Paige says shrilly, "I do not agree to a divorce."

"You don't have to. Mothers do what's best for their children and Azzi's gonna do what's best for me. Right Azzi?" KK glares at Azzi who sighs exasperatedly.

"You're both aware that you're not actually my husband and child right?"

"Excuse you," Paige screeches at the same time as KK gasps dramatically and Azzi has to mentally prevent herself from sighing again.

"Okay alright, divorce yes okay," Azzi gives in, KK squeals and this time Paige is glaring.

"Wow. It's that easy huh? Guess all of those years meant nothing to you."

Azzi shakes her head, trying to hide her smile at Paige's mock offense.

"And now to find a stepfather," KK says triumphantly and then her eyes light up with a glint as a blonde walks in, "KATE!"

Kate looks like a deer caught in the headlight as she walks cautiously towards an over-excited KK and a slightly mortified Azzi, "uhhh hi?"

"I have a very important question for you Kate," KK says with all the seriousness of the world, "are you married?"

"Uh....no?" Kate answers, confused at that line of questioning, as Azzi hides her face in her palms.

"KK what the fuck are you doing?" Paige yells at her phone, suddenly very unamused by this whole thing.

"Ssssh P-boogers, I'm about to perform a wedding."

"Umm what?" poor Kate asks, looking at Azzi for help, not used to the insanity that is the UConn women's team. To be honest, she's not fully sure if all of this is a joke.

"You and Azzi are getting married and then you're going to adopt me," KK says firmly.

"I swear we're normal people....most of the time," Azzi tries to reassure Kate.

"Dearly beloved, or unbeloved since it's Paige and Ice, I guess, we are here today to marry these two women," KK begins and then looks at Azzi and Kate who are standing a feet apart, "uh hello? You have to hold hands."

Paige splutters, "Martin I don't know you that well but if you hold her hand I swear to God."

"Oh calm down ex-father," KK fires back, "let me get my new parents married in peace. Now since there are no objections-"

"I OBJECT," Paige yells, turning to a sleeping Ice who's trying to block out the noise using a pillow, "ICE your mother is getting married to someone else, get the fuck up and come here and object with me."

"Your objections don't count because you're liars and traitors. MY SONG. MY FUCKING SONG."

"Bro you're all I was thinking about I swear," Paige pleads, "after every Bow, I was like oh my god KK would have loved this. I missed you every second I'm sorry."

"Sorry is not good enough," KK says petulantly.

"I got you a signed autograph. It was gonna be a surprise but you need to know. I swear KK, I would have had so much more fun if it was with you bro. It just wasn't the same."

"Oh that makes me feel great. Thanks Paige." Ice mumbles from under the sheets.

"ONE MAD CHILD AT A TIME THANK YOU," Paige says exasperatedly.

KK contemplates Paige's words for a moment before turning to Kate.

"I'm sorry Kate. It looks like this wedding can't go on. It's not you. It's us. Hope you understand," she says with a solemn expression, "but I already have a father and she's great. A little stupid sometimes but great."

Kate nods dumbstruck, unsure what had just happened in the last couple of minutes but she's pretty sure she's just been dismissed.

"FATHER," KK yells turns her face back to her phone, "I missed you. Let's never fight again. That was the worst 10 minutes of my life."

"SON SON," Paige shouts with glee, "let's never do that again."

Azzi pinches the bridge of her nose, wondering how she'd let this become her life.

"If the two of you are done, can I go back to rehab now?" she asks with a raised eyebrow.

Paige narrows her eyes at Azzi through the phone, "were you about to get married to someone else?"

Oh boy here we go again

[blackswan446]

worth it. - five

→ pairing: yan!knj x reader

→ wc: 2657

→ cws: drugging, scars, mentions of murder/body disposal

→ notes: i procrastinated this so long and i don't even like it but i just want to get it done 🫠🫠 guyssss im so sorry this story was not planned out in the slightest and i feel like it's so boring and lame and run-of-the-mill but i hope you guys enjoy anyways! truly sorry for publishing this bullcrap but look out for more (and better) work in the future. <3 oh and also if you somehow enjoyed this pls like reblog and comment because it makes my dayyyy!! okay love ya enjoy

--

for the first time in days, you finally felt peace.

when you were shut up in your room, rotting in your bed, jumping at every slam of a car door, and falling farther and farther into the murky depths of your own anxiety, jiwon had tried to make you leave. everyday, he'd sit outside your bedroom, and plead for you to get some fresh air with him, to go for a walk, or to just sit outside in the sunshine.

every day, he'd show up, and beseech you, and stay outside your room, and every day, you'd ignore him. it was starting to become more of an expectation than a chance, that was, until he came back with a new proposal.

one day, after many long days of jiwon's lone voice echoing off the walls of your house and being met with silence, he came to the door with a suggestion that piqued your interest. "what if namjoon went out with us? he said he wouldn't mind. maybe you'd feel better being around more people."

on one hand, you didn't really want to go out yet, you were still too shaken up by the incident to even stomach the thought of facing other people. on the other hand, you felt kind of...obligated. namjoon was offering his free time to hang out with a kid he's only known for a month and his hideaway sister. who would want to do that? he probably just felt bad, you thought. he probably felt like he had to do it. yet when jiwon assured you that it was his idea, and his idea alone, it only set in stone the compulsion you felt towards the whole scheme.

so, you agreed, albeit very reluctantly. it was only when the three of you planned out where to go, and you saw the genuine expression on namjoon's face, did you start looking forward to it. the more you thought about it, the more you realized just how kind he was. he always made a point to ask about your day, and listen to your thoughts, and he even brought over some cookies he made himself, because "you're going through a hard time and you deserve them"(although you couldn't eat them, because you were allergic to the ingredients, it's the thought that counts!)

all was well, until the day of your long-awaited outing, when you woke up to a feverish jiwon, plagued by what seemed to be some sort of food poisoning. "don't worry about me, [name]," he shouted from inside the bathroom, "i still want you to go out. you'll still have fun, i promise." the sounds of him vomiting followed shortly after, and you found yourself sitting on your bed and staring at the wall mindlessly, wondering if you should even go. would namjoon still want to go if it were just the two of you? should you cancel? would he cancel first?

grabbing your phone and biting your nails anxiously, you searched for the contact you had saved as 'namjoon', and took a deep breathing before hitting the 'call' button. putting the phone up to your ear, he picked up surprisingly fast, the phone not even ringing a full time.

"hello?" he said, voice calm and casual.

"hey, so, i have some bad news. jiwon's really sick right now, and he won't be able to go today." you said sadly, bracing yourself for him to call off the plans.

"oh, that sucks. but we can still go, can't we?" he asked, like it was the simplest thing in the world.

surprised, and with excitement running through your veins, you searched for a response. "i..uh, yeah. yes, we can. are you sure you don't mind?"

he chuckled fondly, his deep voice ringing in your ears. "do i mind? i should be asking you that!" all you could do was laugh in response, his willingness to go regardless of the situation still slightly shocking you. "of course i don't mind, silly. trust me, i'm more than happy to go with you, as long as you don't mind either."

you smiled at his eagerness and good attitude. "alright, that sounds good. see you later, then." you concluded, body flooding with relief and a spark of excitement burning in your stomach.

--

all of those events led to now, where you were sitting comfortably on a dock overlooking the inky waters of the ocean, legs dangling off the side and namjoon right next to you. the day was just great, and was nowhere near as awkward as you were anticipating it to be. you started off with checking out some dusty antique shops and second-hand clothing stores, then you grabbed lunch at your favorite place to eat before going to see a new movie that had released last week, and wound down by grabbing some ice cream and heading to relax by the beach. all the while, namjoon was right there, being an absolute gentleman. he didn't complain about anything, didn't let you carry your own bags or open your own door, and didn't let the conversation die down and become bland. all in all, it was the textbook definition of a perfect day.

as for namjoon, he had been on cloud nine since the second he woke up. everything had went just perfectly. everything from his scheme with the cookies (which had effectively kept your brother out of the way - who knew using expired ingredients would work so well!), to the conversations, even the weather, was flawless. and as the day drew to a close, and the sun sank below the horizon and was replaced by it's mysterious counterpart, he knew that you thought the same thing. which is why he felt so confident moving onto the final - and best - part of the day.

letting out a sigh, and turning to look at your relaxed figure, namjoon set out in his mind what he was going to say. "today was..the best day i've had in years. you're a special person, [name]; you're like nobody i've ever met before." his words made your heart race, and you glanced down at the clapping waves below your shoes.

"it was amazing. i can't thank you enough, for everything. i needed this day." you blushed, mind replaying the day over in your head like a romance movie. "i..." he started, stopping as if he were carefully considering his next words, "sorry, i've never really said anything like this before. it's just..." he continued shyly, "you are - i think - you're the type of person i'd like to spend forever with."

at this point, your heart was racing, and the butterflies in your stomach had turned to full-on pigeons, flapping around violently. your eyes met his, and before you could respond, he took his hand in yours gently and kept talking. "come on, [name], think about it. think about everything that happened today. wasn't it amazing? just think. that could be our future. every day, spent together, just like this. doesn't it sound beautiful?" he explained, the look in his eyes falling somewhere between enamored and desperate.

taking a minute to consider your response, namjoon watched you the whole time, his...loving...gaze not faltering for a second. "namjoon, i...i definitely think there's something here, a connection, or something. but we've only hung out alone once. shouldn't we give it more time?" you suggested, eyes downcast and looking at your hand wrapped in his.

this part wasn't in his script. it wasn't part of the narrative he had set in his head for this. no, this was the part where you'd agree, and then he'd take you away from this shitty little town, and you'd live happily ever after. just what went wrong?

namjoon chuckled, a weird look of relief coming across the place. "oh, princess, you don't get it, do you?" he said fondly, heart swelling at your confused face. "that's my fault. i should have been more clear with you. let me try again." he said, shifting to have both his hands on your shoulders, holding you with a grip as strong as iron.

"i. love you. okay? i love you, more than i've loved anything before and more than i'll love anything else, ever. alright? do you understand now?" he laughed. your brows knitted together at his erratic behavior and random profession of love. you shook your head. "no, you don't love me, namjoon. not yet, you don't. we haven't known each other for long enough..."

he scoffed, like the words you were saying were nothing but bitter, poisonous lies. "i don't love you? that's a ridiculous thing to say, darling, of course i love you! if i didn't love you, do you think i'd do this?" he said as he released the grip on your shoulders. if only you had listened to the voice that told you to run while you could.

he yanked at the long sleeve of his black jacket, pulling the cuff to his elbow and bringing his shirt sleeve with it. "this hurt like a bitch, [name], but for you, i'd go through hell and back." he sighed, before turning his exposed wrist to you. and on there, marking his clear skin, were the letters of your initials, scarred on his flesh like a carving made into a wooden table. he smiled as he showed you the mangled letters; he smiled sickly, like he was proud of what he did.

the air was sucked out of your lungs, the glow of moonlight on the water blurring as your head started to spin. a wave of nausea hit your body, and everything in your stomach threatened to come right back up in that moment. "do you believe me now? because if you don't there's something else i want to tell you." he prodded, picking up your chin and roughly turning your head to look at him. "you want to know, don't you? i know you do, i know it'll nag you, and eat away at your brain if you don't." he smirked, the sick smile still plastered on his face.

"don't worry, darling, i'll tell you anyways. i'll still tell you, because i love you." he said, releasing the grip from your jaw and moving his head close to your ear, so the sinner could confess his wrongdoings under the cover of a whisper.

"i killed daekwan, and i fucking loved it."

he leaned back from your ear and smiled proudly. "and i'm going to tell you all about it, alright? don't you want to know how i did it? don't worry, sweetheart, i'll tell you. just look at me, okay?" he said, pushing your chin up to force his maniacal gaze onto your own terrified one.

"so first, i knocked him out, with a big brick to the head. then i dragged him into this alley, right? a creepy old alley where nobody else would dare to go - look at me, baby - and i just went at him with a huge bat, and i'll spare you the gory details, but he looked more like a piece of meat than a human being when i was done with h-look at me. i'm trying to tell you something. and then, alright, i threw him in a big bucket with a bunch of chemicals, and watched him fizzle away into a big bunch of nothing, and then-fuck, look at me. pay attention. then i dumped him out." he paused, waiting to see if you would ask the question, not just any question, but the question he knew was banging on the walls of your brain, screaming to be let out. when you responded with nothing but a scared stare into the water, he knew he had to make it easier for you.

"you want to know where he is?" he finally finished, asking the question like an excited child asks about the whereabouts of a mystical creature. his deep brown eyes still searched for your own, and no matter how many times you tried to look away from the acidic burn of his gaze, the chill that ran down your spine whenever he commanded you to look at him was enough to make you tremble in fear and meet his eyes once again, even if it were only for a minute.

"he's right in front of us."

the words took a minute to process, the meaning behind his cryptic confession not reaching your brain right away. the truth, when it finally hit you, did so like a ton of bricks. clasping your hand over your mouth in shock, the tears that were brimming in your eyes fell heavily and continuously, matching the stormy waves of emotions crashing through your body.

curling up into a closed up form; knees to your chest, arms resting on top of them and head buried in your elbows, you felt his arms wrap around your crying figure. you swatted him away, shouting some variation of "don't touch me". you saw out of the corner of your eye how his arms reeled back gently, resting awkwardly on the dock. one of his hands reached slowly into his left coat pocket.

he sighed. "[name], listen to me. i know you're scared, and surprised, and upset, and i get it. but i did it for a reason, hm? you get that? i did it because i love you. everything i do, is because i love you. you need to understand that. as soon as you do, you won't be afraid anymore. i promise." he explained softly, contrasting sharply with the psychotic and unhinged tone he took earlier when describing his heinous actions.

"i'm telling you this-" he said, swiftly looping his free arm around your shoulder with a tight grasp-too tight for you to break free from, "because what's about to happen probably won't help your nerves. so just stay nice and calm for me, alright? nice and still. i won't hurt you, sweetheart."

with that, namjoon pulled your trembling figure close to him and turned you to lean against his chest, his brawny frame partially shielding your tear-stained face from the sudden chill in the wind. he removed his other hand from the depths of his pocket, only now, it was holding something. a flash of white caught your eye-which only sent you further into your panic.

namjoon stilled your shaky arms and shoulders by moving his hand from its spot on your arm to around the front of your shoulders, pressing you further into his chest. by now, garish sobs were escaping from your lips; what a shame there was nobody else there to hear them. to see you, and swoop in like a superhero.

too bad.

"you're going to have to be quiet, princess, alright? sooner or later someone's going to hear you. besides, the crying won't get you anywhere. your fate was sealed the moment that blade hit my arm." he warned, his tone of voice doing more than enough to tell you that he wasn't amused or affected by your cries.

"i'm going to give you something now, and you're going to get really tired, alright? don't be scared, darling. you're just going to go to sleep for a little while. you'll wake up, and everything will be alright. remember, i'm doing this because i love you. got that?"

before you could flail your arms, or kick your feet, or make any (futile) attempt to wriggle out of his suffocating grip, you saw a familiar flash of white, and felt yourself inhale a sweet-smelling odor that sent a chill through your veins. as the grip on this reality nightmare you found yourself in, the last thing you saw, through blurry vision and a dark night sky, was the face of your unrequited lover, the one whose vines wrapped around the stone walls of your tower, and before you could stop it, fully consumed it, blocking out the windows and locking the door.

--

taglist: @teugiie

[x-aefx]

ONE TIME THING - BELLA RAMSEY (PART5)

Pictures above are not mine

Summary: unbeknownst to you, you meet actor Bella Ramsey. You two hit it off but your paths lead two different directions.

Bella Ramsey x female reader

Taglist: @evieguhbyebroski @amberputh @assgardangod @niwritespoetry @mainslutsblog @obsessedmunson @guacala @that-one-little-soybean

Warnings: none (?)

A/N- I am sorry this took so long, I've been studying for my exams and only finished them on the 1st. Not proofread.

Part one⬇️

★★

It took you the entire journey home to register what was happening, the moment you stepped into your home the wheels in your brain started turning and you realized you were about to get ready to meet with Bella.

Bella Ramsey. Mildred Hubble. Lyanna Mormont. Bella fucking Ramsey.

You wouldn't ruin this for yourself. You wouldn't over procrastinate or stress so much that you end up convincing yourself not to go. You would calmly get ready and have fun.

You cringed slightly. You knew that wasn't going to happen.

Aware of the time you ran upstairs to your bedroom.

Choosing an outfit has never been a worry before. A graphic tee would be your go-to in this heat, was that too casual? You didn't even know where you were going.

You continued your search.

Your hands dived deeper, everytime they moved another shirt that was one size too small, or a too revealing dress, your determination grew. Simple was the best option. You doubted Bella would show up dressed to the 9's, they seemed more laid back. Your fingers clung to the soft white fabric of a sleeveless tank top. Your head turned to your window. It was sunny today, not a single cloud in the blue sky. Last time you checked it was 21°C, you were sure it had gotten hotter. You decided that would be the top to wear. Standing back from your wardrobe you moved to your drawers.

Pulling the first drawer opened your hands rummaged through the folded trousers until you saw the familiar trusting blue high waisted jeans.

You wanted to put together a fancy outfit, and you were surprised you didn't, but it was just so hot and your mind was still processing today's events.

When your hair was brushed and your eyelashes curled you turned to your mirror. This would have to do. Taking your phone from the desk you checked the time. You were disappointed when you seen you still had plenty time. Bella had texted you an address, which lead to you typing it into Google maps.

The results were a nice looking vegan restaurant, one you had never heard of before and was only a ten minute walk from your home.

A simple lunch. Don't overthink it.

To keep your mind occupied you watched a few of Bella's past interviews. Somewhere along the way you had found one from when they were on the Worst Witch, you had to admit they were adorable and their long hair suited them.

When the interviews weren't enough to keep your anxiety at bay, you decided you would continue reading your book. You were quick to realize the words were not registering in your head.

Sighing you left your room and made your way to the living room to find something to put you at ease.

There wasn't anything worth watching on the tv, food didn't seem appealing as of right now, you didn't even have any chores to do.

Plopping down onto the soft cushions of your couch, your hands rested on you stomach as you tried to relax. You had seen your mum do this after every shift at work, it seemed to help her.

"Ugh" you groaned. You dug your hands into your pocket and pulled out your phone. Relaxing might be your mum's thing, but not yours.

You had a new message from Aaron and two from your sister. You were still mad at your sister so you decided to open Aarons instead.

You bit your fingernail, a nervous habit you had developed. You hadn't told Aaron about how you had ran into Bella multiple times since sitting beside them on the bus. You didn't know if you should tell him or not.

Aaron was your bestfriend. You told him everything, and trusted him completely. You didn't know why you were so hesitant to tell him.

You didn't want Aaron thinking the situation was anything more than what it was. You stared at the text and thought about your options. Finally your fingers began moving across the keyboard.

You leaned back into the couch. You hated lying, especially to Aaron.

It wasn't a complete lie anyways, you were almost sure that was why your sister had messaged you. She barely texted you for anything but favours.

You watched the three dots move. What if he knew I was lying?

You smiled thankful that he didn't seem to pissed.

You spent the next hour scrolling aimlessly, rotating from social media to online clothing stores.

★

4:48

You jumped from your position on the couch once you realized the time. You wouldn't be late.

Grabbing everything you needed you made your way out of your home, google maps opened on your phone and Mac Miller playing from your earphones.

What would you even say to them? What would you both talk about?

You tried to focus on your music.

With every stop the restaurant got closer and your nerves grew.

Why did you agree to this?

This was way out of your comfort zone.

Suddenly you wished you had told Aaron. He would give you shitty advice, but it always managed to calm you.

You guessed what he might say if he were with you.

You won't be able to marry them if you can't go on one single date.

Pretend its Granny.

If you don't want to talk or don't know what to say, shove your mouth with as much food as possible.

Pretend you don't speak English

Maybe it was for the better that your best friend wasn't here.

You sighed, the music was becoming annoying so you took your earphones out and safely tucked them into your trousers pocket. The restaurant was up a head, you could just about see it so the Google maps wasn't in need anymore.

You fiddled with your hands, sometimes your finger would play with one of the many bracelets on your arm.

Please don't be awkward

Don't mess it up

You calmed your breathing.

The restaurant was nice. It was a red brick building with a large wooden door. Flowers were overgrown from their plant pots above the door and at the bottom of the building. Ivy was growing on the side.

From the large windows you could see the wooden floor and tables inside. The fairy lights creating a soft glow. There were a couple of people inside, not completely busy.

You passed a red fiat car parked at the side and made your way to the wooden door and inside.

Here goes nothing

Pushing the door open your eyes began searching for the familiar brunette.

"hello miss, how can I help you?"

You looked to the smiling waiter.

You smiled back, "I'm fine, just looking for a friend." The waiter nodded.

You then seen those dark messy curls, black t-shirt that had writing you couldn't make out. Their head was ducked as they typed on their phone but you knew it was Bella.

You slowly walked over.

"hope I didn't keep you waiting too long."

★ ★ ★

Bella sighed. They didn't know why the person they chose to confide in was the 40 year old man who still was mentally 13 years old.

"walked right into that one." Bella muttered.

They didn't want to admit it, but they arrived twenty minutes early, hoping time would speed up and you would be here already. That wasn't the case. It only gave them more time to stress. Bella began typing out their response.

"hope I didn't keep you waiting too long."

Bella's head snapped up from their phone to the voice, to you.

In that moment Bella felt all air leave their lungs. They didn't know what to say or how to say it.

★ ★

You watched as Bella's confused face disappeared and a smile formed on their lips.

"Hi" Bella breathed out.

You chuckeld at their nervous state.

"hi" you replied back as you took your seat across from them.

It was silent for a moment, but it wasn't an awkward or uncomfortable silence. You both took the time to take in each other. All your previous meetings felt rushed and observed, but right now it felt like time slowed. The few people in the restaurant weren't paying any mind to the two of you.

Bella put their phone away and sat straighter.

"you know, I was worried you wouldn't show up. Actually I think it's concerning that you did. I am basically a stranger after all." Bella teased.

You faked offence.

"you know your right. I think I should get going-"

As you turned your body in your chair and was about to stand up you felt another hand on top of your own from across the table.

The feeling of their cold rings on your warm skin sent goosebumps all along your body.

You turned to look at Bella's hand holding yours and then to their grinning face.

"you wouldn't." Bella squinted their eyes and you could see their lips were trying to conceal their laugh.

"oh I would." You threatened teasingly. You turned to the table beside you, "but man does the food look good here."

Bella finally let out the laugh they were trying to contain. Their hand left yours and suddenly you wished you had savoured the feeling of it more.

You sat back into your seat. The same waiter who had greeted you at the door walked over to your table, pen and paper in hand. He smiled at the both of you.'eric' his name tag read.

You quickly opened the menu and scanned through your options whilst Bella told the waiter what they wanted.

You decided on the Vegan carbonara pasta.

"I'll have that brought out for you in a few minutes"

The waiter left and it was just you and Bella again.

"how long have you been working at the café?" Bella was the first to start the conversation.

You pondered the answer in your head."I'm not sure exactly, can't be over a year though. It's only until I start college."

Bella listened intently to every word you spoke. They gave you their undivided attention.

Once you finished talking about your hopes for college you decided to ask Bella a question.

"aren't you studying environmental science?"

Bella raised a brow, that familiar grin back on their lips."were you stalking me online?"

You scoffed. Their teasing tone and their face full of pride making you embarrassed.

"No" you mumbled as you drank the water from your glass.

Bella laughed, "you definitely were."

"you would do the same if I were super famous!"

Bella laughed again at your words.

"oh definitely"

Your food was eventually brought out. Bella and you ate, still you chatted about each of your lives and what you had in common. You had to admit it was probably one of the best conversations you've ever had.

★

The food was ate and time had passed, the sky had darkened and the restaurant gradually emptied, only a few lingering at the bar area.

It never got awkward between you and Bella, no silences. You found talking to them easy, always having something to say and them having a response.

But all good things had to end.

You glanced at the clock on the wall across from you.

You knew it was meant to be raining later and you didn't want to have to walk in it or the dark either.

Bella must've noticed your disappointment.

-

Bella noticed your eyes wander to the wall behind them, knowing there was a clock there due to the amount of times they had visited the restaurant.

Their cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry if I've kept you too long, I didn't notice the time move by." Bella apologized. They rubbed their hands on their thighs, a habit that came with nerves.

"no-no it's not that, I walked here and I'm aware it might rain later." You explained. "I wouldn't mind staying longer. I've had fun. Getting to know you and all "

Bella smiled. No one would ever know that inside their heart was about to explode from their chest, and their mind was coming up with thousands of scenarios and hidden meanings to your words.

"I'll walk you" the words left Bella's mouth before they could register what they were saying. They don't know why they said it, but part of them was glad they did because they knew normally they would never have the courage to ask.

You stared. You didn't know how to respond.

"yeah sure-i'd like that." You smiled.

Fuck you and your awkwardness! You thought to yourself .

Before you knew it both of you were exiting the restaurant together after dividing the check.

Bella was reluctant to let you pay even a penny, but you could be stubborn.

Bella paid no mind to their car as both of you passed it. They didn't want to tell you they drove here and could easily drive you back to your home, because that would mean they would have to say goodbye to you sooner, and they wanted to stall that as much as possible.

Bella walked with their hands in their pockets and you with your arms at your side.

The walk was quiet for the most part, bella would sometimes tell a cringy joke or recall a funny story from working on set. You enjoyed listening to them talk.

Bella didn't notice how close you were getting to your home, but you did. You wanted to be selfish and stall for as long as possible to avoid saying that dreaded goodbye.

"I'm glad I accepted your offer to get to know you better. " You avoided eye contact, choosing to play with your bracelet.

"I'm glad you did too." Bella smiled at you and watched you fiddle nervously. You met their eyes briefly before looking away, Bella's smile widened.

"I have interviews and meetings for majority of the week except Friday, maybe we could meet again?" Bella asked almost shyly, they felt like a kid again the way they got all giddy inside.

You frowned. "As much as I would love to, I'm meeting with an old friend on Friday." You apologized.

Bella masked their disappointment with a smile

"another time?"

"absolutely."

The rest of the walk to your home was quiet.

"I'd invite you inside but I don't want you walking in the rain." You said when you reached the door of your house.

"I wouldn't be able to stay long anyways, I have an early appointment tomorrow." Bella reassured you.

It was silent until bella spoke up again

"I had fun today. Text me, yeah?"

You agreed to and the both of you said your goodbyes when you couldn't stall it anymore.

The smiles on both your faces remained long after you said your goodbyes.

__

Part 6⬇️

A/n: I'm so excited for the next chapter, I have such a cute idea-

[notjuststardust]

"Rat!" Shoyo Hinata (pre-timeskip)x Childhood Neighbor Reader

A fluffy (and slightly angsty) fic where the reader employs Hinata's little sister (and her pet rat) as a distraction to avoid embarrassing herself in front of Hinata and his friends. Keep in mind, Hinata and Reader and MINORS so their reactions and thought processes might be less mature than if I wrote this when they were older!

 Well, Hinata had found his people and you your isolation. You were happy for him, exuberant even. You remembered the days in middle school where he would settle for your company just to get a hit of volleyball even if it was a short drag after you’d both done your schoolwork. Now, those days were long behind you and Hinata hadn’t looked back, hadn’t considered that you were still there. Watching like a jailbird through a window as he had his volleyball friends over for some weekend practice.

 To be frank, you could have just gone outside to meet them and force yourself into the fray but you knew teenage boys and how their perception could be… skewed. You didn’t want to give anyone the wrong idea by associating yourself with him. God forbid the decoy hate you for simply trying to be included.

 You couldn’t stand the idea of embarrassing him.

 However there was one quite considerable problem in your wake. You’d procrastinated on all your outdoor chores and it was nearing dark. If you didn’t get them done by sunset your mother would surely ground you.

 There was also the issue that it was a Saturday and all of your outfits for next week were in the wash. This left you in something less than flattering, some hand me down sweats from a cousin and a t-shirt that said ‘Virginity rocks’ on it.

 Hinata had seen you in worse but his teammates seemed a bit… terrifying.

 The thought of them commenting on your attire while you were busy watering the garden was less than ideal. So you improvised. With about 2 hours left of daylight you scrambled to your house phone, dialing the Hinata residence. It rang once, then twice. Another for good measure and Natsu picks up.

 “(Y/N) will you come play with me-”

 “If you do me this one favor I’ll come over tomorrow, but not today.” As always, the 8 year old takes this information in stride. You can practically hear her grinning through the phone.

 “What’s my mission?”

—

 You didn’t think Natsu couldn’t pull it off but you sure were surprised how fast she had. The boys had run inside like there was some sort of monster lurking out in Hinata’s backyard and you had taken the chance to start running through your chores. Water the flowers first. Which you do and somehow inconveniently spray yourself in the face trying to turn the faucet off. Then you sweep the back porch until the only dust that touches it is glued to toe bottom of your crocs. That alone takes you 15 minutes. 

 Natsu had promised you 30.

 With one chore left to spare you wipe the sweat of your brow perfusing from the pure idea of the adrenaline of embarrassment you had conquered and take to the recycling bin. You just had to sort a couple things and then-

 “I hear it!” You freeze and drop everything, literally. Recyclables clunk to the floor. Your feet move for you. The trumpet of hounding teenage boys not far behind the corner. Whispering a platoon of words you’d get grounded for saying without a doubt, the adrenaline possesses you in some sort of athletic prowess you’d only seen from olympians, leaping head first over the gates of your front porch for the door.

 That would have worked if you didn’t crash land into someone on the way.

 “Oh, (Y/N). I was just knocking for you!” Hinata grins from ear to ear as if you aren’t caging him to the floor from above. You scramble to your feet and he’s tugging your wrist like a nagging puppy staring at you with big curious eyes. “Hey, you look pale. Everything alright?”

 “NO!” You squawk, pulling your hand to your chest only to look up to an audience. This could seriously not get any worse.

 “Hey, nice shirt! I’ve got the pink one!” The bald one pipes before getting jolted in the gut by the boy with silver curls.

 “Not the time Tanaka.” He grumbles afterward, clearing his throat and straightening up like he’s some proper gentlemen and wasn’t just leading some manhunt for you. “Ms. (L/N), have you seen a rat around? We were supposed to trap it but unfortunately it got away-”

 “A rabid rat.” Kageyama (the only one you had known the proper name of) corrects but unlike the pictures he’s covered in some beige powdery substance. You can’t hide your look of befuddlement. 

 “For the last time, it's not rabid if it didn’t bite you when you grabbed it by the tail.” The scariest one of them all trods over with a juice box in hand. Somehow that single statement is enough to send the entire group of boys into sheer screaming chaos. Not even Hinata can convince them to stop fighting. Its absolute discord. That's when you yourself lose it. You laugh so hard you fall clean off Hinata, clutching your stomach as if your appendix needs removing. 

 That brings the majority of the squabble to a halt.

 “Wait, did Natsu tell you guys there was a rabid rat in the house?” Hinata cocks his head and nods at you.

 “Yeah, it broke into the pantry and ripped open the flour. There's a mess everywhere!” So Natsu had really planted an entire scene just to get you 30 minutes of freedom outside. The thought sounded ridiculous but even Hinata had confirmed that there had been a real rat. Where had she even found that thing?

 “Wait,” you say after Hinata’s explanation, wiping your eyes from the amused tears. “Why were you knocking for me then?”

 “I figured it would come back out if you came over, animals like you.” He shrugs as if he'd talking about the weather, dusting himself off as he stands back up. He holds out a hand which you take but not before a very befuddled Natsu comes running over. She’s bathed in flour.

 “I-I’m sorry. Henry was supposed to stay in the house! I didn’t mean for Shoyo’s friends to escape and see you!” The poor little girl is nearly in tears. “I know it was only 15 minutes but please come over and play with me tomorrow, Shoyo’s always busy with volleyball and doesn’t have time for me anymore!” She bursts into tears, crashing into your chest and hanging on to you like her life depends on it. 

 “It’s okay Natsu. A promise is a promise. I’ll come over and we can clean up and bake cookies, yeah?” You murmur, sympathy making your heart ache as hands stroke her hair. Hinata shoes his teammates and crouches down beside you both.

 “Natsu, I didn’t know you felt that way. Why-” Hinata freezes when he sees a tear free falling your own face. You shrug it away in hopes he’ll consider it a fluke. Natsu pulls away and snorts back the wad of snot dripping from her nose.

 “Well, you never asked and it seemed rude to steal your thunder now that you’ve got your team and all. Right (Y/N)?” The siblings both share stares with you, expectant. You hesitate and Hinata flinches as if he’s been shot.

 “Yeah..” It was odd how an 8 year old was better at advocating for herself emotionally then you. He swallows and breaks eye contact to look to Natsu with a gentle smile, explaining to her that she should have told him earlier and promising that he would help find Henry the rat before sundown. Natsu, satisfied now, trots home.

 You know its coming but it doesn’t stop you from trying to delay it, from trying to flee before confrontation beats with its brutal awkwardness. “Night.”

 “Wait,” You freeze at the conflict in his voice, the tightness in his throat. “Do you feel like I love volleyball more than you?” Hinata has never been this serious in the 16 years you’ve known him, not once but you can tell he’s not going to let you walk away.

 “That's an… extreme way of putting it.” You answer slowly, eyes downcast. You hear him start to pace, fingers running through his hair on compulsory as he tries to shake some idea from his head.

 “You do,” he sounds like a washed up record, playing despite the fact it sounds absolutely wretched. “You feel that way and you didn't tell me?” He sounds almost angry now but you know better. This isn’t anger, it's his bitter cousin. Betrayal.

 “When was I supposed to Hinata-” he looks like hes going to cry, no, he is already crying. “Hinata what-”

 “Shoyo. I’m still Shoyo,” he sniffles, wiping at his eyes like a little kid. “Do you hate me now? Is that why you hired my little sister to distract me so I wouldn’t see you?”

 “No, no-” you gentle, helping him wipe his tears. “That's not it. Not at all I just thought you’d be embarrassed of me and I had to do chores-”

 “Embarrassed?” He stops crying instantly. “Why would I be embarrassed of you? You’re my friend, I love you.” He says with conviction. He rethinks his words when you just stare at him, pink coating his cheeks. “Not like that!”

 “No, no I know!” You mirror his fluster, looking away before you start bawling. “I guess it was stupid of me to think that.” You mutter, sniffling with a small giggle. That makes Hinata soften up.

 “Heck yeah it was!” He hums, stepping closer to ruffle your hair. “I’m glad the guys got to meet you. They’ve been asking for a while.” Hinata murmurs, a sheepish grin on his face that quickly morphs to horror when he catches the tears lidding your eyes. “Hey, hey! If you start crying i’ll start crying to and then-” your hands wrapping around his waist is enough to shut him up. You hug him despite his friends watching from the kitchen window and the water still wetting the top of your shirt. You hold the embrace in spite of the voices telling you not to and oblige the quiet ones pleading for a crumb of reciprocation from the ginger.

 For a minute all is quiet. 

 “Shoyo.” He mumbles dangerously close to your ear. You go to say his last name one last time just to mess with him and he pokes your belly button.

 “Shoyo!” You shriek on instinct and he bursts out laughing.

 “Thats better!” He chirps before looking at your pantleg. You’d been so distracted by your emotions you hadn’t felt the weight climbing up your pantleg. Hinata turns on his heel and darts for his house. “Natsu! We found Henry!”

[luvhughes43]

The Boy Trap | Luke Hughes x reader

request: Heyy i really loved your luke fic could i maybe request an imagine where the reader and Luke are dating but she has a twin sister and everyone can’t tell them apart except Luke? 🥺

word count: 0.5k

the boy trap masterlist🌷

It was a friday night, meaning that there was a house party that everyone was going to. Unfortunately though, you had an essay due tonight that you had left to do till the last minute… so you promised your boyfriend Luke, your twin sister Hallie, and your friends that you would just meet them at the party after you submitted your assignment. 

Luke hated going to parties without you. He always felt awkward and he hated standing around watching his friends play beer pong or whatever drinking game they’d drag him into. suffice to say, the boys were on the lookout for when you would arrive at the party so their boy would stop looking so gloomy. 

they didn’t have to wait long however, as they saw a familiar figure walking through the living room. “yo Luke your girls here”, Duke's voice cut through the loud music. Luke lifted his head up from his phone and his small smile was quickly replaced with a frown. “That's not y/n'' he replied, looking back down at his phone.

“literally what are you talking about? i swear that’s-"

“no that’s Hallie” Luke spoke up as he continued to scroll on his phone. 

“Hey guys!” Hallie greeted the boys as she walked up to their group, “is y/n here yet?” Duke frowned. “Why do you guys look so glum?” Hallie questioned the boys as she took a seat near Luke. 

“I thought you were y/n. it’s literally impossible to tell you guys apart” Duke joined the rest of the group on the couch, sitting next to Hallie. 

“you guys should get your foreheads tattooed with your names or something,” Ethan joked. 

“I can't believe Luke's the only one of yous that can tell us apart” Hallie said exasperated. She and y/n had known the guys ever since y/n and Luke started dating. Their relationship was about to reach the 1 year milestone and the fact that their friends still couldn't tell them apart... was a little annoying.

“You guys don’t even look alike” Luke said and all the others boys groaned. 

“they look the exact same Luke! there’s no way you can tell the difference” Duke started up again. 

“I literally just told them apart?” 

“Lukey! Hallie, guysss what’s up? what did i miss!” you said as you made your way into the living and sitting on Luke’s lap. he wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you in close. “Finally you’re here! next time you’re procrastinating on an assignment i’ll help you” Luke told you as he buried his head in the crook of your neck. 

you smiled, “so.. what were you guys talking about?” 

“the boys were just talking about how they can’t tell us apart” your twin Hallie replied. 

the boys started getting into a heated debate on how you and hallie looked so similar, and how it was impossible to tell you two apart. 

y/nuser

Liked by lhughes_06, edwards.73, and others

y/nuser: hallie and i🤞💗

load more comments

edwards.73: lhughes_06 which ones y/n quickly!

lhughes_06: why do u guys keep trying to test me i know who my gf is😭

mackie.samo: lukey we’re only asking because we don’t know who’s who

lhughes_06: it’s literally so obvious…

edwards.73: and yet you haven’t answered the question…

bestiegirl: hottest sisters ever

hallie04: loml what’s up😎

lhughes_06: look at my beautiful gf on the right, and on the left❤️

y/nuser: love you😭🤞

hallie04: when he can tell u and your twin apart🤩

y/nuser: only boy to ever do it🤞

[slowlydifferentbluebird]

Karina x reader; reader is one of the other aespa leaders sister and is strictly off limits to the other members but Karina can’t help herself from having feelings for reader and reader feels the same way so they secretly start dating and readers sister finds out and she forbids them from seeing each other but she soon accepts it after noticing that both Karina and reader are sad and depressed

sorry if it’s too long bestie 😭

Hey bestie, sorry for making you wait, but the title "master of procrastinating" is something I'm proud of lol. Also, I want a secret love with Karina too🤭

~~~

Karina X Fem!Reader

Jimin knows well what it means to be the youngest and the oldest in a group of people: she's the youngest daughter in her family and the oldest member in Aespa. However, the sense of protection towards a younger sister is an unknown feeling for her; on the contrary Gigi knew it so well at that point. It was not a case the fact that the two of them had a huge fight over you...

But let's take a step back. Who are the characters of our story? Aespa members obviously, and also you, Giselle's younger sister. As her sibling, meeting the other girls, becoming their friends and spending time with them alone was only natural. But maybe having feeling for one of them was not in the plans.

Karina was fast in entering in your heart. Maybe It was because Gigi talked about you to her, but Rina seemed to know you perfectly since the first moment. She was not just an incredibly beautiful girl, she was also a splendid person inside. Always ready to cheer you up and making you have the time of your life.

On the other hand, you completely took over Jimin' mind. The fact that you were so kind, fun and supportive in such a natural way made Karina think about you 24/7. But thinking was not enough for her, so you two started to hang out more and soon the hangouts became dates.

Now, all of this sounds awesome, right? Yes and not. Even if Karina was just following her heart, her mind was telling her that it was wrong. Aeri clearly told them that you were off-limits for them. For her you were still a child, and one of her best friend dating HER child was just unacceptable.

Rina tried to interrupt the dates, but you two were too whipped to each other to really do something about it, so you just chose the worst option: dating secretly. You and Jimin really tried her best to be sneaky on it and it was kinda working for a period of time, but sometimes just a breath of wild is enough to destroy a Castle of cards.

In fact one day you and Rina were in her room, just cuddling and having a nice time, when out of nowhere you simply started to make out. The problem is that you were not alone at their dorm..."Hey Jimin, did you see the last episode of...WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?", Gigi shout so loudly making you two shake in fear.

"Go out, NOW!", she ordered to you, making you basically run away from their dorm. "And you, Jimin, you are a Snake. Using my sister in that way...you make me sick! Don't talk to her ever again!", she was furious with Karina, her screams could be heard in all the building.

The next weeks were...so tense and sad. Both you and Rina tried to explain the situation to Aeri, telling her that you two really loved each other, but she didn't want to listen to any reason, making you so upset and the leader so sad. You then decided to not speak to your sister and Karina left to Ning the lead of the group until she was able to do it again.

However over time, doubts started creeping in Giselle's mind, wondering if maybe she had been too quick in judgement. And soon the doubt become the truth, knowing the both you and Rina cried every night about that story. She had to do something about it.

You were talking on the phone with one of your best friend, Somi, when you heard knocking on the door of your room, before seeing your sister came in. "Hey, sis, what are you doing?", she said, trying to sound casual about it. "I'm talking with Somi, did you want to ban me to talk to her too?", you rudely answered her. Oh boy, you were still so angry. "No, sis, listen, I just want to talk to you...I have something to say", she softly spoke, coming to see on your bed next to you.

Gigi hardly remembers you hugging her so tightly like when she gave you the permission to date Karina again. And also, it was a first time seeing Jimin so affectionate like when she met you again after all that time. Karina was holding you like you were the important thing in her life...and probably you were.

Seeing you two hug look at each other made Aeri fell only more guilty. Maybe it was time to apologize. "Sis, I'm sorry...you are old enough to decide who date", she said, on the verge of crying. "And Jimin, I'm sorry for the horrible things I said to you...just...treat her nicely and give her a lot of love, she's still my baby sister after all", she added, starting to sob.

You two ran to hug her and stayed in that position for a while, making her calm down. It was just a nice and wholesome moment of reconciliation. Soon the sad period became something to joke about, a fun memory, because now all was in the perfect place.

You and Jimin were openly dating, well, maybe not open to Dispatch and the media, but at least you didn't have to hide from your own sis. It was nice for Karina to finally hold you in the dorm without the fear of Gigi, even if she still insisted in not wanting to see you two kiss. And talking about Gigi...how funny that soon she started to date Somi.

~~~

Finally it's done, bestie. I hope you like it, maybe it's more angst than fluff, but at least we have a good ending, right?🙈❤️

Zazá

[edai-crplpnk]

Some Team 8 + Sand Sibs chara sheets

I procrastinated writing yesterday by doing little chara sheets for my polycule AU.

Kiba and Shino have been dating since they were teens. Shino and Hinata have been dating since college. Kankurou and Kiba start dating at 22/25 (I am writing this fic). Hinata and Kankurou may or may not have some queerplatonic relationship going on eventually.

I used this picrew for the sheets!

Additional facts!

Kiba:

Inuzuka Kiba isn't his legal name, he is still officially registered under his deadname and his father's family name. He might change it once his father's dead, probably not before that since he doesn't want him to know about it. The rest of the polycule handle most of his mail so he doesn't have to deal with it unless necessary.

He is Japanese through his father and Filipino through Tsume.

Hana is his half-sister (different father).

He transitioned in his late teens and has been on T + post-top surgery for some years now.

He got a hysterectomy for endometriosis.

He doesn't smoke much anymore, mostly vapes, which allows him to control CBD/THC levels and ratio better.

Kankurou:

He doesn't identify as trans, but might identify as non-binary somewhere along the way. He's fine with being seen as a man and conveniently goes by he/him, but is honestly a bit too psychotic and dissociated to really have an opinion about his gender and gendered body.

He is Jewish through his mother, but was raised by Baki (here, Rasa's half-brother) so most of his relationship with Judaism and Jewishness is self-taught reconnection.

He had only one brief relationship before Kiba and had sort of settled for the idea of not trying to look for partners (both romantically and sexually) because it was a lot of work and socialisation and it didn't feel all that too important for him, but hey, shit happens. (Kiba happens, and it's good shit.)

He gets a colectomy and stoma bag for his ulcerative colitis around 25 (again, the KankuKiba fic is about that). He probably won't try to get a reversal surgery in the future because he hates surgeries and hospitals.

Shino:

He mostly uses Makaton and text-to-speech as AAC. The former is easier for short indications and requests in daily life, and the latter for more complex conversations.

He gets on opioid replacement therapy sometime during his teens, although still injects occasionally as an adult.

He was initially assigned male at birth, and then reassigned female during his childhood, which he (very understandably) did not live well. Shibi defended his right to choose his gender presentation and refuse further intersex surgeries after that, and he's been mostly living as a boy/man since then. He half identifies as a cis man, half not because dissociation and plurality and trauma make gender complicated but he's sort of working through it. He'd still consider his relationship with Hinata straight, and his relationship with Kiba gay.

His parents broke up when he was a kid (in part over the decisions made about him) and Shibi raised him for the most part. He sometimes sees his mother as an adult, but they're relationship is not very good.

Hinata:

It's been a bit of a struggle to slowly acclimate Hiashi to her being part of a polyamorous relationship, but he does like Shino a lot, so that helped. (He doesn't have an excellent opinion of Kiba but they also mostly never see each other and they're happy with that.)

She has a fairly ok relationship with her family now, but being able to move out and live in group with way less hierarchy and a whole lot more community support has been very healing and helping with having more resources to maintain her relationship with her family too.

Kankurou does all her phone calls (as that of about everyone in the polycule, to be honest).

And the sibs!

Gaara:

He's had a lot of autism-related struggles as a child/teen, but functions much better as an adult now that he understands his needs better and has accommodated his daily life to them. He works as a landscaper but has a lot of at-home work hours.

Lee is his first relationship (I also have a fic about that) and he does think he's gay? But also never has thought about neither his orientation nor the idea of dating and who he would want to date much before that, so he's not sure. He's going with that for now.

He waxes his eyebrows because he compulsively plucks them otherwise. Dying his hair also helps with trying not to pluck them.

He was mostly raised by Yashamaru, who is Jewish and raised him Jewish, but has a bit of a complicated relationship with that because there was a lot of projection on Yashamaru's end, and difficulty to see him as his own person and not just his late sister's baby. He's not religious although he sort of still observant out of habit. (Ex: he doesn't necessarily care about eating kosher, but it's also the food he's used to make and eat, so he will still go for that most of the time.)

Temari (in pyjamas mode in this picture because I didn't have something less casual that fitted her style in the picrew):

She works as a diplomat and is very much a workaholic. The trauma is strong but the grind is stronger.

Just like Kankurou, she was raised by Baki and her connection to Jewishness and Judaism are mostly self-taught. She is a bit less observant than Kankurou.

She has chronic pain that she probably ignores a bit too much, but who can really stop her. (Kankurou should try and probably does.) Compression stockings enthusiast.

She has a motorcycle that Kankurou is very afraid to ride. (Gaara is okay.)

I'll probably do more in this AU later!

[sugdenlovesdingle]

Here it FINALLY is, even though it's well and truly the 15th here, my @tarlos-secret-cupid valentines gift for @carlos-in-glasses

As usual time and my tendency to procrastinate aren't friends and it's way too damn late (or early) and I really needed to go to bed about... 5 hours ago... but I hope you like it!

It's a combination of one of the tropes you said you liked - Alternate first meeting and a pre-valentines date/first valentines day together.

Luisa gets her hands on Carlos' phone and decides to take matters into her own hands to fix her brother's love life.

Love online (AO3)

It wasn’t like Carlos hated spending time with his family, or even really minded. He liked most of his relatives just fine, especially his nieces and nephews and younger cousins. The problem was that all of them in one place at the same time was usually chaos and downright exhausting.

The kids always wanted him to play with them, while his mother and tías made it their mission to find out everything they could about his life.

Even his non-existent love life.

Still, he was nothing if not a good son, and he didn’t want to upset his mother by cancelling on her for Sunday dinner with the family, and definitely not one that doubled as her birthday party.

So he turned off his car’s engine and made himself get out and walk to the door.

He rang the doorbell and mentally braced himself for the usual madness that ensued whenever the family was together for any kind of occasion.

“There you finally are. Why are you dressed like that?” Luisa stepped aside after opening the door. “Are you moonlighting as a stripper?”

“Funny.” Carlos rolled his eyes at her and walked into the house. “I came straight from work. I didn’t want to drive home and then all the way back here.” He took off his jacket. “Where is mom?”

“In the kitchen, gossiping with tía Lucy and tía Carmen. And the rest of the family is…” she waved a hand around and Carlos nodded.

“I’ll go say hello to mom and then get changed.” He told her. “By the way, do you have a charger? My battery is almost gone and my charger is at home.”

“I think I have one in the car. I’ll get it and plug your phone in.” She held out her hand and Carlos reluctantly handed it over. “Don’t read my messages.” He warned her.

“Why? Got a secret boyfriend we’re not allowed to know about?”

“Yeah, right.” Carlos mumbled. “Just don’t go through my phone, ok? It’s called privacy. You might have heard of it.”

“Like you when you used to read my diary, you mean?”

“That was one time! I was seven!”

“One time I know about.”

“You used to read Ana’s diary all the time.”

“You have no proof of that.” Luisa said and slipped past him, out the door to her car.

Carlos sighed and went to greet his mother and tías.

“Hola mama. Happy birthday.” He said and leaned over to give her a hug and kiss her cheek. “Did you get my flowers?”

“Yes, they were delivered this morning, they’re beautiful mijo, thank you.” She noticed his uniform. “Did you come here from work? You work too hard cariño.”

“It’s fine mom, it was a slow day. And I’ll have a few days off from Tuesday.”

“Maybe you should talk to your father, let him talk to your captain to not make you work so hard.”

“I’m fine mom, I promise. Nobody needs to talk to anyone.” He insisted and let her fuss over him for a few minutes before making his way up to his childhood bedroom to change into his regular clothes.

By the time he made it back downstairs, his mom was distracted so he quickly grabbed himself something to eat and went in search of his sister, and more importantly, his phone.

He found her in the living room in her favourite armchair, scrolling through her phone.

Only when he took a closer look, he realised it wasn’t her own phone in her hand, but his.

“Hey, what are you doing? Give me my phone!” Carlos tried to grab his phone from his sister's hands but she quickly moved out of his reach.

“I will, when I'm done with it.” Luisa replied. “Don't you have any sexy pictures of yourself on this thing?”

“Why would I? And why do you care?”

“Nobody is going to be interested when you look like any random guy in the street.”

“Interested? What? What are you doing?”

“Wait, I think I have some cute pictures of you from tía Lucy's birthday party last summer.”

“Cute pictures? What do you need cute - oh no. No you’re not.” He tried to grab his phone again but she stuffed it in her bra and turned her attention to her own phone.

“Ana come here and look at this. What do you think of this one? Does this say boyfriend material?”

Ana came over and looked at her sister's phone screen.

“Are you trying to find him a boyfriend?” She turned to Carlos. “You can't find your own dates now?”

“I can but she stole my phone.”

“He needs to get laid.” Luisa explained. “He's way too wound up and stressed lately. A hot guy in his bed would take care of that.”

“And you're going to find him one?”

“I'm going to give him a push in the right direction. Come on, help me out, it's for a good cause.”

“To get Carlos a boyfriend?”

“Yes! If mom finds out he's seeing someone, she'll obsess over that and stop fussing over us. She'd stop making digs at your parenting style.”

Ana considered her sister's words for a second and then pulled out her own phone.

“I still have pictures from when we went to the waterpark with the kids. If we crop them out those pictures are definitely going to get him a guy.”

Carlos ran a hand through his hair and sat back on the sofa, wondering how this was his life.

“Oh that one is nice!” Luisa said, looking at Ana’s phone. “If you crop it like this, the guys will be fighting to get in his bed.”

“Have either of you considered that I might actually be seeing someone already?”

The two women paused what they were doing.

“Are you?” Ana asked.

“No he’s not. I ran into Iris a few days ago. He’s single. She told me.”

“Iris doesn’t know everything about me.” Carlos argued, wishing once again his sister didn’t know his best friend that well.

“Ok which one should I put as profile picture? The waterpark one?” Luisa asked Ana. “Or maybe one in uniform? Is that allowed?” She briefly turned to Carlos but didn’t wait for a reply.

“This one is nice. He’s actually smiling in it.” Ana said and sat down next to her sister. “We need to do something about that profile too. Just Carlos, 28, Austin, cop isn’t going to make anyone take an interest.”

The two of them spent the next half hour working their magic on Carlos’ profile until they were satisfied.

“Ok, so, what kind of guy are you looking for?” Ana asked. “Does he have to be Latino?”

Carlos shrugged.

“I don’t know. Maybe.”

Luisa frowned.

“What kind of answer is that?”

“I don’t know, Lu, I don’t really think about that. If I like a guy, I like him, but not because he is or isn’t Latino.”

“Fine.” She sighed and turned her attention back to Carlos’ phone. “Oh ok this guy is cute! Originally from DC but lives in Austin now. What do you think?” she showed him a picture of a fairly attractive guy who looked like he’d just stepped out of a tanning salon.

“He’s ok.” Carlos replied with a shrug even though he could tell neither of his sisters were actually listening to him.

“Oh he wants an open relationship. Are you ok with that?”

“Does it matter? You'll decide for me anyway.”

Luisa rolled her eyes at her brother and went back to swiping through the app.

“Oh look at this one!” she quickly flashed him the phone screen again. “He's cute! And he has a dog! You like dogs.”

“Hmm.”

“Oh he's from NYC. Wow. And he's a firefighter and paramedic.”

“Good for him.”

“Wait, do I swipe left or right for yes? Never mind, I found it. Ooh he's swiped on you too! He likes you hermanito!”

“Let me see.” Ana told her. “Oh he is cute. Nice eyes and kind to animals. What more do you want?”

“To actually get a say in anything to do with my own love life?”

“Is that his name? TK?” Ana asked.

“Yeah. Looks like it. Probably a nickname.” Luisa replied.

“Who goes by a nickname on a dating app?”

“Someone with something to hide. He’s probably married with three kids and a golden retriever.” Carlos commented.

“You don’t have to marry the guy, Carlitos. Just hook up with him once. Or twice if he’s good in bed.” Luisa said with a wink. “Oh he’s messaging you! He’s keen!”

“He’s messaging you more like.”

“Should I reply?”

“No, no you need to reply yourself.” Ana said to Carlos.

“I said hey back.” Luisa said, getting up and dropping Carlos’ phone in his lap. “Thank me in your wedding speech. Or name your first born after me.”

“I thought I didn’t have to marry him?”

“You don’t. But this guy is your type and I know you.”

“What does that even mean?”

“That you should probably talk to the guy.” Ana said, pointing at the phone in his lap, before getting up and following her sister into the kitchen.

Carlos reluctantly picked up the phone and unlocked it. He looked through the guy’s profile and had to admit he was cute. He had a nice smile and there was a hint of mischief in his bright green eyes.

And he’d be lying if the picture with the big fluffy Bernese Mountain dog wasn’t one of the cutest things he’d seen in a long time.

Suddenly he remembered Luisa had started a chat with him and he tapped out of the pictures and back to the conversation.

So you’re a cop?

Carlos read the line over and over, not sure how to reply. He wasn’t interested in satisfying the guy’s uniform kink, or get a lecture on why all cops are assholes.

 - Yeah. Is that a problem?

Not to me. I do have one question though.

- Have I ever shot anyone?

No. Do they let you take the handcuffs home with you? 😉😇

Carlos laughed and decided to keep talking to this TK guy. He told him about himself a little, and TK told him he’d only moved to Austin a few months ago and could do with someone to show him the best places to go in the city.

And I don’t just mean your bed. Though judging by your pictures, I wouldn’t hate that.

Carlos blushed a little but found he wouldn’t hate that either. In the end they decided to meet up for a drink that Wednesday on Carlos’ day off.

Which he was definitely not telling his sisters about.

He spent most of his Wednesday cleaning his house and his bedroom, and put clean sheets on the bed, even though he’d only changed them a few days ago. He didn’t want to assume, but it was in his nature to be prepared for anything.

Especially if that anything would turn out to involve TK in between his new clean sheets.

His phone buzzed in his pocket and when he checked the notification, he saw a new message from TK.

A picture of himself in front of a mirror in a bedroom with the caption What do you think?

He was wearing a black button down shirt with some kind of print on it and dark jeans. He looked great, yet all Carlos’ brain managed to come up with were three fire emojis.

Careful with those fires officer. You don’t want them getting out of control.

- It’s ok, I have a date with a fireman tonight. I’m sure he’ll keep me safe.

Carlos shook his head as he reread his last reply.

“Congratulations, that’s the worst reply anyone ever sent.” He mumbled to himself.

Though TK didn’t seem to mind. He sent him a laughing emoji and a firefighter one.

Firefighter. It sounds more badass.

- You run into fires for a living, you don’t need a word to make you more badass.

TK didn’t reply and Carlos decided to look through his own wardrobe to find something to wear. He’d just decided on a green t-shirt that was maybe a little too tight across the chest, when his phone buzzed again.

This time TK had sent him a short video of himself standing in front of the same mirror in the same bedroom, but undoing the buttons on his shirt with his free hand.

“One button? Or two? Or three? Or more?” the TK in the video asked and all Carlos could do was stare at the exposed skin.

 - Two is probably the limit. Or else we’ll never make it to the bar.

And that would be a bad thing?

- We’ve never even met. I could be an axe murderer!

Good thing I know how to handle an axe.

TK sent him another winking emoji and told him he’d see him in a few hours.

Carlos got to the bar early, and found a table close enough to the door so he’d see TK when he walked in, but hidden from view enough that he wouldn’t get stuck talking to someone from work if they’d happen to come in.

When TK arrived a little while later, Carlos’ mouth went dry at the sight of him. He’d looked good in the pictures and the video, but he was even better looking in person.

He looked like a model and Carlos felt severely underdressed.

“Hey, Carlos right?” TK walked up to him with a smile on his face and Carlos got up to greet him, letting TK pull him into a hug.

“Actually, I’m Raul, Carlos is my evil twin.” He joked and immediately scrunched up his face and shook his head. “Sorry.  I don’t know why I said that. That was my attempt at a joke. I’m not usually this much of an idiot.”

TK laughed and sat down at the table.

“It’s ok. You’re pretty cute, you’re forgiven.”

They talked for a while, sharing stories about their lives, jobs, families and friends, but the conversation soon turned flirty when TK noticed the mechanical bull on the other side of the bar.

“Have you ever ridden one of those?” he nodded at the bull.

“Once or twice. But I grew up on a ranch, I could ride a horse before I could ride a bike.”

“Really? So you’re a cowboy?”

“Yeah I suppose.” Carlos leaned over the table so TK would hear him without having to shout over the music. “I could teach you how it’s done.”

TK looked at him and the mischievous spark Carlos had seen in his profile pictures was back.

“Lead the way cowboy.”

Carlos managed to convince the guy operating the bull to forget about their one person at a time policy and let them ride together.

TK climbed on first and held out his hand for Carlos who wanted to climb on behind him, but the other man stopped him.

“I won’t know what to do if you sit behind me, will I?” TK said innocently. “You better sit on the other side.”

Carlos hesitated for a second but quickly climbed onto the bull when the next person in line yelled at him to get a move on.

And instead of facing the bull’s head, he sat facing TK.

“Hello cowboy.” TK grinned. Putting the hand that wasn’t holding onto the saddle on Carlos’ thigh.

“Hey.” Carlos replied, slipping an arm around TK’s waist, not bothering to hold onto the saddle.

“Ok, ready? 1… 2… 3…” the guy operating the bull said and pushed a button so it started moving.

Slowly at first, spinning around and bucking only a little.

“This isn’t so bad.” TK commented and Carlos laughed.

“It’s only just getting started.” He said and an unexpected movement from the bull pushed TK forward and had him grabbing Carlos’ hips with both hands for support. “Just go with the flow.” Carlos told him.

“Easy for you to say!” He protested but didn’t seem to mind when Carlos held him a little tighter.

“It’s all in the thighs. Just squeeze and let the rest of your body move with the bull.”

The bull started moving faster and bucking wilder, making TK all but move into Carlos’ lap, which neither of them minded in the slightest.

Only trying to hold onto both TK and make both of them stay on the bull proved to be too much for Carlos’ cowboy skills, and soon they were thrown off and ended up in a pile of limbs on the mats surrounding it.

The spinning bull had made them dizzy and they laughed as they tried to get up.

Carlos managed to get to his feet first, but when he held out a hand to pull TK up, the other man stumbled and ended up pulling them both down on the mat again.

TK had somehow ended up half on top of Carlos, but instead of trying to get up, he put his hands on Carlos’ face and kissed him.

Someone yelled at them to get a room but Carlos couldn’t even begin to care when TK was kissing him like that.

“I’ve been wanting to do that all night.” TK admitted when they broke the kiss.

“Me too.” Carlos replied, the dopey smile on his face matching the one on TK’s.

“Alright fellas, move along please. You aren’t the only ones wanting to have a go at taming this beast.” The bull operator said and looked like he was about three seconds away from dragging the both of them off the mats.

They got up and Carlos wanted to go back to their table but TK pulled him into a dark corner, pushed him against the wall, and kissed him again.

Kissed him in a way that wasn’t entirely suitable for a packed bar.

Especially not when his hands slipped under Carlos’ t-shirt and Carlos’ own hands had somehow undone two more of the buttons on TK’s shirt.

“Wait, wait, wait.” Carlos managed to clear his mind enough to speak when he felt TK’s hands on his belt.

“Don’t you want to?”

“I do… I really, really do… but… not in public.”

TK suddenly seemed to remember where they were and took a step back as he looked around.

“Right… sorry.” He looked embarrassed and Carlos swore his cheeks were turning red.

“My place is close.” He said and kissed TK again, hoping he understood everything Carlos was trying to tell him.

It turned out TK was really good at reading him and within half an hour, Carlos discovered that TK without any clothes and in his bed was by far his favourite version of him.

And he was actually really good at riding.

* 4 years later *

“Are you happy?” TK asked softly, wrapping his arms around his new husband’s waist and resting his chin on his shoulder.

Carlos smiled and turned his head slightly for a kiss.

“I’ve never been this happy in my life.”

TK moved to stand beside him.

“Me too. I never thought I’d meet the love of my life when I ended up here.”

“Hmm.” Carlos agreed, resting his head against TK’s. “I’m glad you ended up here and didn’t stay in New York.”

They watched their guests dance and laugh. TK’s dad was dancing with Ana, while Carlos’ mom was talking to TK’s mother and entertaining Jonah, and his dad in the middle of a serious conversation with Mateo.

Though Carlos had heard him laugh and call him chico a few times throughout the night.

“We should say a few words so we can get out of here and start our honeymoon.” TK said. “I’ll go drop Lou off with my dad.”

Carlos looked down at his husband’s hands and only then noticed the bearded dragon they’d bought a while ago, and TK had insisted be their ring bearer, looking more content that ever before.

“Wait, he’s part of the family, he should be here when we thank our guests.” Carlos said, grabbing his glass off the table and tapping it with a fork. “Can I have everyone’s attention please?”

“You can all go back to enjoying the free bar in a minute.” TK joked and some people laughed.

“My husband and I just want to thank you all for coming.” Carlos started and smiled at TK when a few of their friends jokingly booed him for being too cheesy. They hadn’t stopped referring to each other as husband ever since they’d said “I do” earlier that day.

“Really guys, it means a lot to us to be able to share our day with all of you. But we also want to get out of here and start fully enjoying the honeymoon suite.” TK said and laughed. “So shut up and listen.”

Carlos laughed.

“I second everything my husband just said. But I also want to give a special shout out to Luisa, since none of this would be happening if it wasn’t for my dear sister’s utter disregard for privacy.” Carlos said and paused for laughs. “She stole my phone and told me to thank her in my wedding speech or name my firstborn after her…” He paused and looked at TK holding Lou. “An actual child might be a while away… but our lizard child is proud to share a name with you, Lu. Only since he’s a boy, we decided to call him Louis instead.” He grinned and stroked Lou’s back with one finger. He wasn’t entirely comfortable around the animal, but TK adored him so he’d learn to love him too.

And he’d be damned if he was going to let a little phobia get in the way of getting one over on his sister.

“Wait… you named your lizard after me?!”

[buckysgrace]

3. Passionate As Sin

Part three to Every Little Thing! :)

Gator Tillman x oc

“What are we doing?” Daphne questioned as she walked leaned against the counter, trying to figure out why everyone was bustling about. She’d overslept a lot longer than she’d meant to, but she’d been up in the early hours of the morning thinking of Gator. Her fingers didn’t feel the same, didn’t hit the right spots that he did. She felt guilty, but it was like she couldn’t stop. 

“Fish fry,” Noelle said as she wrinkled her nose up, apparently still not keen about meat, “They caught a lot of fish yesterday.” She said as she shook her head, looking irritated suddenly. Daphne paused, glancing at the phone that was resting at the end of the counter. 

“Are we doing it here?” Daphne asked in confusion, feeling an itch growing in her fingers as she inched her way closer to the discarded phone. She was too embarrassed to ask anyone for what she needed, knowing that it would bring up an assortment of questions and a ton of teasing. 

“Tillman’s,” Noelle answered simply, “What color am I wearing for your wedding again?” She asked offhandedly as she put her kindle down on the table. Daphne glanced away from the phone, surprised at the sudden question. 

“Green,” Daphne said softly, “I think. I don’t know, I'm still trying to figure it out.” She admitted truthfully, feeling like nothing in her wedding was set in stone other than the date. Every time she thought about the wedding she was filled with dread, but she just continued to procrastinate. Hugh didn’t seem to care either. She wondered how badly he wanted this wedding, supposing that he had to care a little bit as he had proposed. They hadn’t even discussed marriage before he popped the question.

“I can tell,” Noelle said slowly, pointedly as her lips curled into an amused grin, “I don’t suppose there’s a reason for that?” She asked slowly, fishing for information just like everyone else. Daphne remained stoic as she gave her sister a slow blink.

“No other reason than my terrible habit of putting everything off at the last minute.” She mumbled, thinking that her procrastinating was fairly bad. Nobody even seemed too surprised at her lie, as forgetting to tell everyone that she had a trip coming up was something that she really would do. 

She waited until Noelle left the room, before she gripped her their mothers phone and quickly unlocked it. It was always the same. 10455, the month that each of her kids were born. She leaned against the counter as she scrolled through Ruby’s contacts, sighing at the messy way none of them were sorted by names. She had an unhealthy obsession with emojis. 

She finally found the one with the alligators, her heart beating rapidly as she clicked on it. She breathed out softly, a small smile creeping onto her lips as she realized Gator had never changed his number. She wondered if there was a reason, or if it was just out of habit.

She quickly typed it into her phone, her heart beat vibrating against her insides before she discreetly pocketed her phone again. There was nothing wrong with what she’d done. Her and Gator were friends, she was allowed to have his number. 

She took a long second, debating with herself before she finally found the courage to type him out a short message. She shook her head before she deleted it, biting down on her thumb before she started again. 

Hi

She sighed, dropping her head into her hands as she couldn’t understand why this had to be so hard. She knew Gator most of her life, she didn’t want to feel so awkward around him now. Even if there could be something else hidden deep down. She shook that thought away, knowing there wasn’t allowed to be anything else hidden. She was with Hugh. 

Did you fix your tags yet?

She smiled as she read the message on her screen, her heart skipping roughly inside of her chest as her eyes scanned over the message a few times. It was simple, but it still made her giddy.

She put her phone away, chewing on her bottom lip before she headed upstairs to the bathroom she shared with Noelle. She turned the shower on, waiting for it to get hot as she planned on looking her nicest tonight. She wasn’t necessarily doing it for Gator, she was allowed to look nice if she was seeing people she hadn’t seen for a while.

She scrubbed herself clean, the shame growing smaller and smaller as she thought more about looking nice than removing the scent of Gator from her skin. She hated how badly she wanted to taste his tongue against hers again, how she wanted to breathe in the bay rum that he sprayed over his body.

She wrapped her hair up in one towel, using the other to cover her body before she headed up towards her room. Her feet slightly slipped against the wooden floors, still wet from stepping out of the shower. 

She pulled out one of her new skirts, a neat white that was covered in light purple flowers and ended underneath her knees. She figured she’d need something to hide the bruises from last night. She pulled out a white sleeveless shirt. It dipped down just enough and left her abdomen slightly exposed. She figured Bruce would be a little opposed to the style, but she was a grown woman now. She sat both down on the bed before she removed her towels and began to brush through her hair. The bottom of her hair was always a little bit more difficult to brush through, due to the bleach. 

Daphne paused as she let her partially damp hair rest on her shoulders. She looked in the mirror, running her hands through the straight strands until it was positioned in a way she liked. She thought for another second before she opened the piece of paper that had the stickers for her license plates.

She hoped she wouldn’t ruin the sticky adhesive, but she took the risk as she peeled the green stickers off and placed them over her hardened nipples. She could feel her cheeks burning as the scandalous feeling filled her. 

She gripped her phone as she stood in front of the mirror, trying out a few different poses until she found one that she was happy with. She inhaled deeply, trying to ignore the nerves that had settled over her as she took the picture.

She attached the picture, staring at it one last time as she tried to make sense of her actions. She couldn’t believe herself, felt disgusted at the way her body trembled as she wondered how Gator would react once he saw it.

Just have to attach them ;)

//////////////////

“This is very strange.” Hugh mumbled to her in the backseat. She turned towards him curiously, wiggling her boots back onto her feet as the ranch came into view. 

“What?” She asked him curiously, trying to gain sense of what he was speaking about. She had left her phone behind at the house, shut down as she was too nervous to even see how Gator had responded to her message. 

“That you claim these Tillman’s live so close, yet you have to drive there to get to their house.” He said in confusion as he glanced out the window. She looked at the little scar that was forming on his cheek, feeling bad that he had gotten snagged in such a way. 

“It’s a hefty walk.” She agreed slowly, hiding the fact that Gator used to make trips at night to see her. She clasped her fingers over her lap as she rested her hands over her abdomen. She could feel her stomach twisting with nerves, hoping that she didn’t see Gator but then also praying that he would be there at the same time. 

“America is odd.” Hugh decided at last, whispering a little softer so Bruce wouldn’t hear him from the front seat. Daphne laughed softly as she gave his hand a soft squeeze. She waited to feel some sort of spark, some sort of jolt. She felt nothing.

She peered out the window, watching the way the smoke was pouring into the air from behind the house. She chewed on her bottom lip, feeling a little anxious as they pulled into the driveway. She couldn’t tell if the vast amount of people were good or bad. Perhaps it would be easier to disappear with Gator.

She shook that thought away, reminding herself that she shouldn’t imagine those scenarios. Especially with Hugh sitting so close to her. She unbuckled her seatbelt, lingering for just a second before she pushed the door open and hopped out.

It was still early as she settled into the house with Hugh, following behind her parents as her palms grew sweatier and sweatier. She felt on edge, kept expecting to see Gator peeking around each corner as she helped set things up in the kitchen.

Hours passed before people finally began to arrive, the sun slowly lowering so the air wasn’t so hot and unbearable. She still lingered in the cool house, hoping that she may eventually see Gator emerging from his room until she realized there was no point in waiting. 

She felt like she was getting passed back and forth again, recounting her engagement story and showing off the ring that Hugh had bought for her. She was growing tired of saying the same thing over again, of smiling too tightly and acting like it was a great thing. She feared that everyone could see right through her. 

She couldn’t imagine how she’d handle her actual engagement party. She didn’t want one, but Bruce insisted on doing so. It didn’t seem necessary in her opinion, but Bruce had sent her a look that kept her from saying anything else. 

She glanced around, watching as people conversed as she fell into her own little world. She felt like an outsider for the first time, but that was her own fault. She didn’t know them the way that she used to. She’d left, she’d changed and so had everyone else. 

She stood on her tippy toes, rocking in her boots softly as she tried to search for the familiar face she was hunting for. She felt disappointed, not seeing the pair of brown eyes that she was desperate to catch. She figured that maybe he was working, that he wouldn’t be here at all. Perhaps that was for the best. 

“You know,” Daphne said softly as she looked at the twin girls in front of her, “I’m a twin too. That’s my brother.” She said sweetly as she pointed over towards Oliver who was entertaining Hugh with something funny he’d said. All of her siblings had the same features, except for August who favored their father. Many times when they were younger, Noelle was mistaken for a triplet for how much smaller she was at the time. 

“Ollie.” Maude spoke up slowly, still looking shy as she held one of her shoulders up to her cheek. Daphne grinned at her, still shocked at how big they had grown in the past few years. She thought of how Gator had been less than pleased to find out he would no longer be an only child, but slowly grew to like it. She wondered how he acted around them now. 

“Mhm,” Daphne said as she nodded her head, “I used to babysit you both when you were really little.” She told them quickly, thinking of the rare nights that Roy would take Karen out. She liked those nights, however. Usually she was allowed to spend the night in one of the guest rooms, even though she’d find herself in Gator’s bed a few hours later. 

“You did?” Maude looked at her with wide eyes, her lips parting like she couldn’t believe what Daphne was saying. Daphne suddenly wished she had pictures to prove that she had known them for a long, long time. 

“Well I’m going to need some flower girls,” Daphne said playfully as she looked between Jessica and Maude, “Do you know anyone who might want to do it?” She asked them, feigning a serious look as she knitted her eyebrows together. She tapped her finger against her chin, pretending to be deep in thought. 

“Yeah!” Maude spoke up as she twisted her dress back and forth. She brought her thumb up to her mouth, looking at Daphne shyly before she turned away again. “Oh you do?” She questioned them teasingly, “Who?” She asked as she bent over to meet them at eye level. Both of the twins giggled before they looked back at one another. She thought of the way her and Oliver used to look at each other in a similar manner, like they could speak their own language. 

“Me and Maude,” Jessica giggled as she rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet, “I like flowers.” She said with a nod of her head, like she was trying to convince Daphne that it should be them. 

“Oh my,” Daphne grinned as she looked between the two of them again, “I’m so glad that I found you then.” She told them excitedly, happy that she was getting somewhere with the twins. She had been so excited when they were born. She’d always wanted a baby brother or sister.

“You want two flower girls?” Hugh asked her a few minutes later, once the twins had gripped each other’s hands and raced away. She nodded her head, thinking it would be cute to watch the two of them skip down the aisle. 

“Yes,” Daphne said softly, “I can’t ask just one.” She told him quickly, furrowing her eyebrows as she looked at Hugh seriously. She had shared a flower girl position with Noelle once at their uncle's second marriage. 

“Just pick your favorite.” Hugh said, shrugging his shoulders like it was easy. She looked at him stunned, about to tell him how horrible that was when she noticed the grin that was forming on his lips. She shook her head a second later, unsure of how she fell for his trick. 

“Hugh,” She pushed at his arm, her eyes wide as she hooked at him in disbelief, “That’s horrible.” She said, joining in with his laughter. It hit her like a punch, the comfortable feeling that reminded her of why she had picked him in the first place. She could feel her gut twisting so tightly in guilt that she felt like it was hard to breathe. 

She excused herself a minute later, walking inside of the quiet house as she tried to stall her nerves from becoming too much. Her throat was burning, raw as she tried to take a deep breath. She was beginning to regret the picture she sent, wondering if there was some magic way to unsend it before he saw it.

She found the desire to scrub her hands in the sink, hoping somehow that the soap and burning water would wash away the fresh guilt that was settling inside of her. She patted them dry a second later, staring at the ring that occupied her finger. She twisted it around softly, feeling like she’d lost part of herself. 

“That was a nice picture you took earlier,” Gator mumbled as he stepped behind her, pressing his large hands against her waist as he inhaled deeply, “You looked sexy.” He whispered as he bit down on her earlobe.

“Don’t you policemen need proof?” She questioned him softly, teasing him as she tried to play off her own actions. Her body felt warm, but she was unsure if that had to do with how close he was to her or with how her own lust filled her body. 

“I don’t think you sent it for proof.” He replied as he gave her flesh a soft squeeze. She chewed on her bottom lip, feeling a soft sigh leave her lips as his hands traveled further up her body. He brought his lips down against the curve of her neck, dragging his lips slowly as he breathed in the scent of her. 

“Gator, we can’t right now,” She told him briskly, whispering in case anyone was lingering around, “Someone could see.” She replied weakly as he cupped his hands over her boobs and gave her a soft squeeze. She sighed, resting against his body as his teeth grazed over her neck. 

“Is that bad or something?” He chuckled against her skin, peppering soft kisses up to her cheek again. She closed her eyes softly, soaking against his warmth for another second before she was pushing him away. 

“I’m getting married.” She reminded him softly as she tried to find the strength to drop his hands completely. She paused, admiring how long and nimble his fingers were as she situated their palms together. 

“But you’re not married yet.” He shot back, his eyebrows slightly cocked as he gazed for her reaction. She sighed softly as she shook her head, wishing his words could be that simple. “What’s that got to do with anything?” She asked him seriously, knowing that she was supposed to be loyal while she was in a relationship with someone regardless if she had a ring or not. His lips curled up softly, looking at her in amusement. 

He took another step forward, dropping her hands as he took a hold of her waist again. She felt her breath stall in her chest, freezing as she admired the warmth that radiated off of him. She had a strong urge to fall to her knees again. 

“It’s not a crime then,” He replied gently as he rubbed his fingers up and down her slender curves, “You haven’t signed your life away yet.” He said a second later, smirking as he looked quite proud of his statement. 

“I can’t just-,” She paused for a second, ensuring no one was around as she spoke up quietly, “I can’t cheat on him.” She said quickly, feeling a burning sensation traveling through her body. She puffed out her cheeks softly, feeling ashamed as she admitted what they had done out loud. 

“You already have.” He cocked an eyebrow, his eyes traveling over her features in enjoyment as if he really thought that she had forgotten that. She breathed in deeply through her nostrils, shaking her head as she felt her jittery nerves rising. 

“I can’t do it again.” She replied back, her cheeks burning as she knew how hypocritical she sounded right now. She felt like she was in a constant state of being awake and then asleep. It was hard. She liked dreaming of Gator and what they could’ve been. 

“You didn’t miss me?” He asked simply, looking like he really wasn’t sure about what her answer would be. She paused, in complete disbelief that he would even question such a thing. She had missed him more than the stars missed the moon when the sun was out. 

“I missed you,” She said softly with a nod of her head, “But we were just friends. Remember?” She reminded him softly, wondering if he was picking up on his words that she was throwing back at him. He tilted his head, a smile creeping onto his lips. 

“Doesn’t feel like it,” He replied huskily, “You keep ignoring me for some reason. You worried about something?” He questioned her, digging around a little deeper. She raised her eyebrows at him, her fingers lightly beginning to tap against her thighs. 

“What would I be worried about?” She challenged him, sticking her chin up a bit to get a better look at him. His eyebrows raised with hers, a soft chuckle leaving his lips before he shook his head. He tapped the bottom of his first against the counter, like he was trying to think of the right way to phrase his answer. 

“I don’t know,” He puckered his lips out as he spoke, “Maybe this guy isn’t who you thought you wanted.” She stared at him for a moment, her eyes tracing over the marks on his face. She felt her walls lowering a bit, knowing that Hugh really wasn’t the one that she pictured marrying. But he cared for her, he wanted to marry her. That was the difference between him and Gator. 

“You’re ridiculous,” She said quickly, shaking away reminiscence that may have lingered in her features, “Stop bringing him up.” She replied softly, feeling like she should defend Hugh. He was kind. He hadn’t done anything bad to her, ever. 

“Why?” He took a step closer, his eyes flickering over her features slowly, “You didn’t seem to care about him when you sent that picture.” He pointed out as he brought his fingers against her midriff. She felt her breath catch in her throat as warmth spread through her body. She chewed on her bottom lip, ignoring the goosebumps that formed as he traced his finger around her belly button. 

“Maybe I was just testing you,” She responded slowly, her eyes latched to his lips as he slowly exhaled, “Trying to see if you were a gentleman or not.” She shrugged her shoulders softly, trying to build the restraint to pull away from him. 

He moved even closer, stealing the air from her lungs as he inhaled deeply. She could feel her heart racing inside of her chest, beating to his same rhythm as the air between them grew hot. She flicked her eyes across his warm brown eyes, then slowly trailed them down to his pink lips. She stared for a moment, opening her mouth to find some sort of protest.

He dipped his head down further, hesitating like he was waiting for her to push him away. She tilted her mouth up just as eagerly, her fingertips twitching as she desperately wanted to wrap her arms around his shoulders. 

She inhaled the smell of watermelon on his tongue, hoping that she’d taste it against her mouth. She felt her eyes flutter shut as his bottom lip dragged against her mouth slowly. She moved her lips in response, savoring the slow way their mouths met. 

He kissed her passionately, roughly as he pressed her up against the counter. She gripped him just as tightly as he hiked up one of her legs and pressed up against him. She felt like horny teenagers again, sneaking around and kissing whenever they could.

He rutted his hips into hers slowly, drawing a moan from her mouth as she gripped a hold of his shoulders tightly. His tongue dipped into her mouth, licking away the pleasant melodies as he pulled her closer. 

She dug her fingertips into her skin, not caring at the way her lungs were burning as she rubbed her tongue against his. He licked languidly at her mouth, his large hands cupping her ass as she pressed up against him more frantically. She pulled at the loops of his jeans, fully intent on letting him take her on the hard kitchen tiles. 

“Gator?” Daphne panicked, pushing him away quickly. She could feel how wide her eyes were as the panic spread through her. Jessica walked into the room, a gleeful smile on her face as she approached, “You said you’d bounce us on the trampoline.” She pouted her lips out as she gripped his hand, oblivious between what had happened between the two adults. 

“Not now,” He said quickly as he glanced back towards Daphne. She busied herself in the fridge, pretending to find something, “I’m busy.” He said a second later, trying to gently shoo her away. 

“But you promised,” She whined as she tugged on his hand, “You can’t break a promise!” She squeaked out, looking like she was horrified by Gator's answer. Daphne paused as she scanned the full shelves, suddenly feeling sick to her stomach. 

“You shouldn’t break your promises,” Daphne said softly as she pulled a can of Coke from the fridge, “You’ll make a habit of it.” She responded slowly, catching his eye for a moment. She wondered if he was thinking of the same thing as she passed him, heading back towards Hugh.

She felt Gator’s eyes on her the rest of the night as she tried to busy herself by settling next to Hugh. She tried to pay attention to his stories, to keep him up to date on the family gossip but her mind kept wandering. She knew she had started digging herself into a deeper hole. She was beginning to sink deeper, unable to tell the difference from the top and the bottom. 

“Daphne, look,” Maude giggled as she threw fistfuls of grass onto the ground, “It’s like what a flower girl does!” She exclaimed happily before she threw another fistful into the air. Daphne crossed her legs on the picnic table she sat situated on, her heart beating roughly as Gator approached with the twins.

All of them had slightly reddened cheeks, their hair disheveled and slightly static from rolling around the trampoline one too many times. She pulled her fist up to her cheek, hiding her smile as Gator lazily placed one of his legs through the bench. He paused before he pulled Jessica up, letting her rest on his lap before he passed his can of Mountain Dew to her. 

“You’re already so good at it,” Daphne gushed, turning her attention away from Gator before she could meet his eye again, “We’ll have to pick out a pretty dress together.” She told Maude, a little excited as she took a hold of Daphne’s hand, bearing a bright smile.  

“I wanna be a cake girl,” Jessica declared as she pressed her finger against Gator’s nose, pushing it hard until he pulled away, “I can throw cake.” She giggled as she leaned against him, clearly in awe of her older brother. Gator shook his head, but his eyes sparked amusement like Jessica had given him some sort of idea.

“Mhm, what kind of cake?” Daphne asked, “We need suggestions.” She asked as she crossed her arms over the table. She let her eyes draw back towards Gator, her heart thumping harshly in her chest as she watched the careful way he pulled Jessica’s hair out of her eyes. 

“I think we should have a peanut butter cake,” Hugh said lightly. Gator wrinkled his eyebrows together as he snorted, shaking his head, “What?” He looked over offended, like he was angry with the way Gator was treating him. Daphne shifted in the wooden chair, trying to decide the best way to handle the situation. 

“Daphne hates peanut butter.” Gator replied quickly as he pointed towards Daphne, motioning to the way her nose was curled up in distaste. She quickly shook her head, trying to rid her features of any evidence of her being against it. 

“I don’t hate it,” She said softly so she wouldn’t hurt Hugh’s feelings, although she knew for certain she had mentioned it more than once, “I just don’t care for it.” She said as she shrugged her shoulders, trying to make it as casual as she could. 

“You’re allergic to peanuts.” Gator replied dryly as he pulled his drink up to his lips. He held eye contact with her, like he was daring her to say otherwise. She let out a nervous laugh, glancing towards Hugh’s wide eyes as she tried to talk control of the situation again.

“Yeah, but sometimes it’s worth a trip to the hospital,” She said as she scratched the back of her neck, “Gator likes to draw too. He does really well.” She said a second later, trying to build a connection between the two guys. Their art styles were vastly different, however. Hugh used bright oils that settled into a happier picture. Gator’s were darker, usually sketches that were always done in black and white.

“Yeah?” Gator asked, sounding a little bored as he tilted his head away so the twins couldn’t reach his vape, “I heard you do that more for a job than a hobby.” He replied, grabbing both of the twins hands with his one so he could take a hit from his vape. Daphne breathed in softly, enjoying the watermelon taste that floated over towards her. 

“I do what I love.” Hugh said simply, his eyes narrowing softly as he watched Gator. Daphne paused as she glanced between the two of them, hoping that she hadn’t made the situation worse. She didn’t necessarily want them as friends, but figured it would be easier for her if Hugh at least knew him. 

“Right,” Gator said slowly, “I’m afraid you won’t find many jobs for that around here.” He said as he pocketed his vape again, giving each of the girls a stern look as they tried to reach into his pocket. 

“There’s not much out here at all.” Hugh replied, his eyebrows raised softly as he looked forward unimpressed. She breathed out of her nose, trying to not get irritated. She knew that Hugh wasn’t used to being somewhere so small, so spacious. But she loved her hometown. He had been the one to ultimately decide that they should move back anyways. 

“You’ll get used to it,” Daphne smiled as she squeezed his bicep, “It won’t take that long.” She reassured him as she nodded her head, glancing back towards where Gator was watching her. She drank in his deep brown eyes, noting the golden halo they gave out as the sunlight dipped against him. She rubbed her palms against her thighs, wondering if his stomach flipped the same way hers did when he looked at her. 

She doubted it. She tried not to think about how she already knew what he thought about her. It was the reason they were so distant now, why she was worried to let him back into her life. She knew it wasn’t smart to start fooling around with him again, but he was like a drug. She couldn’t give him up, no matter how hard she tried. 

She distracted herself back into the kitchen a little later, feeling the need to get away from everyone else as she kept beating herself up over her own thoughts. She knew she was being dumb, being irrational. She just couldn’t keep her mind from racing, her heart from aching. 

She was still left with the memory of his skin against her own, the way his lips would brush against the crook of her neck and how he’d whisper the most filthy things into her ear as he rutted his long fingers into her. She breathed in deeply, feeling a rush pouring in between her legs. 

“What did you bring back for me?” Gator asked, looking at her curiously as she bit into her blackened marshmallow. She paused, quickly licking the stickiness from her lips and swallowed quickly. She winced, furrowing her eyebrows together as the food hit her stomach hard. She looked towards him, forcing up a smile. 

“I didn’t,” She said at last, “I figured you wouldn’t be interested in anything I brought back.” She admitted a second later. It wasn’t necessarily the truth. She hadn’t really sought out gifts to bring back to him. At first, she had been too bitter and angry. Once those feelings had chipped away she was too hurt, no longer wanting to make her heart ache anymore. 

“Well you’re wrong,” He replied back as he leaned against the counter, “There’s one thing I want.” He drew out slowly as his eyes flickered across her features. She stalled for a moment, her heart racing roughly in her chest as she tried to remind herself that he had probably said this to plenty of women. 

“Marshmallow?” She asked softly, offering it out to him instead of asking him what he wanted. She feared that if he flirted with her in just the right way she’d give up everything again. His features knitted up in confusion as he glanced down at the marshmallow, then back up to her.

He took it from her, quickly discarding it in the sink to her surprise. She opened her mouth to protest, to shout about how she’d finally gotten her marshmallow to the perfect consistency when he brought her gooey covered fingers up to his lips. 

He licked it away from her fingers, swirling his tongue between her digits as he sucked away the sticky white material. She gulped, pressing down on his tongue softly as he wrapped his long fingers around her wrist. He moved his warm eyes down towards her, holding eye contact as he slowly dragged his tongue across her fingers.

He released her then, a light trail of spit connecting between his lips and her fingertips as she tried to find the courage to breathe. His eyes felt too warm, too intense as she felt a rush forming between her legs. 

“Ya know,” He leaned forward, looking quite smug at her reaction, “If you keep your window open tonight, I might just pay you a visit.” He suggested slyly. She parted her lips as a flush spread over her body. She was tempted, itching to take up his offer. She wasn’t sure that she could face the repercussions of what would happen next. 

She leaned in a little closer, examining the flush that spread over his cheeks as she spoke lowly, “Goodnight, Gator.” She denied him softly, enjoying the sweet scent that rolled off of his tongue before she slowly pulled away. She gave his wrist a light squeeze, smiling breezily as she left him on his own. 

[bluenet13]

All My Love Is Gift-Wrapped - Read on AO3

For @silverskull

@chenfordsecretsanta

Angela and Wesley open their home for the ultimate holiday bash, welcoming the team to an unforgettable gift exchange. For Tim and Lucy, it's a moment that is as familiar as it is new—filled with joy and the unmistakable feeling of being surrounded by a chosen family.

Tim and Lucy arrived at Westfield Century City early on a Wednesday morning. They had planned to avoid the Holiday crowds by going midweek on their day off, but parking alone took them half an hour and another 15 minutes were spent just getting from their spot to the mall's entrance. Lucy smiled apologetically up at Tim as they stepped inside, greeted by screaming children, overwhelmed parents, and every other procrastinator in LA who had left their shopping for five days before Christmas. She rose on her toes to press a chaste kiss on his cheek.

His lips parted to say something, but the familiar argument fell on deaf ears as Lucy waved at him and took off running up the stairs to the second floor of the shopping center. Seeing her practically gliding, the crowd seemingly parting to let her through, an enamored smile broke on Tim's lips. It quickly turned into a frown when two boys collided with his back and didn't even bother to apologize as they ran off again.

They really should have ordered off Amazon; there was a reason they paid for Prime after all. But Lucy had looked appalled at his suggestion and told him in no uncertain terms that, quote unquote, you had to put in the time and effort to find the perfect gift, not just browse an app for 5 minutes.

Tim would do anything to make Lucy smile, so he had begrudgingly accepted, and here they were. They were supposed to each get a half-hour on each floor to look for gifts before they met back by the car to go get Kojo for a run then to lunch at the outdoor cafe with the Avocado toast Lucy liked and the ice cream place next door that always gave Kojo two pup cups.

Tim looked at his watch and made a bet with himself that he could get it all done in 15 minutes without even needing to check the second floor.

Twenty minutes later, Tim was a lot more frustrated and still had no gift. He had tried Lululemon first, figuring he could knock off one of the gifts quickly, but the line had lapped around the store twice, and he had gone running back out. Then he tried H&M, but that was even worse. He even tried Macy's, hoping the many checkouts would give him a good chance to be quick about it, but most of them were closed.

After the failed fourth store (Vineyard Vines this time, which made him shudder just by crossing the threshold), Tim plopped down on a bench and reached inside his pocket for his phone. He scrolled through Amazon in Private Mode on his browser and found five possible gifts in less than a minute. He added two items to his cart then looked for apology gifts for Lucy, finding at least three good options in seconds of searching.

Tim added all three to his cart and sighed when the total was less than the cost of most single items he had seen today. He was about to create a new account so Lucy would have less of a chance of figuring out what he had done when he considered asking Genny to order them for him. But his sister, his only sister, always sided with Lucy ever since they had met in that Little League game where she figured out they were dating, so he quickly discarded that option. He went through the whole process of creating a new account only to hit a brick wall when the delivery time without Prime was too close for comfort.

Defeated, Tim closed the browser (after saving Lucy's gifts to his bookmarks for later) and rose unsteadily to his feet. He breathed a sigh, steeling himself for another round with the mall, silently wondering what it said about him that he'd much rather face a perp with a gun than anxious Angelenos at a mall five days before Christmas.

As he was about to enter another store, his phone pinged with a message from Lucy, and he smiled automatically.

'Heading down now. Got both gifts for the party and a few others I was missing, but I still want to see what I find on this floor. Love you.'

Tim responded with a thumbs-up emoji and a smiley face, a stark contrast to the scowl currently adorning his face. Of course, Lucy had gotten who knew how many gifts already while he was still looking for his first.

Tim's second attempt at not failing spectacularly at gift shopping went better than the first. He ended up with a City Police Lego Set (the one with 172 pieces because the adult Legos were decidedly not cheap, and he figured if nobody else wanted it, Lopez or Harper could try to win it for their kids) for the White Elephant Exchange and a Shacket from Bloomingdale's for Nolan.

Because, of course, the team had decided to do both a regular Secret Santa and a White Elephant Exchange, if only to torture him further by not only having to attend a Holiday gathering at Angela's but also having to brave the mall in search of two gifts.

And really, he loved his best friend dearly, but this was all Angela's fault. She had been the one to invite them over then quickly point out how she wanted to do the White Elephant, because it would be completely out of character if she missed an opportunity to mess with them. Not surprisingly, Lucy had pouted and said she preferred the more personal and heartfelt Secret Santa, with Wesley and Nolan agreeing with her, and surprisingly, Harper agreeing too. With James also voting for that option (after a glare across the bar table and a well-placed kick to his shin from Harper), it was obvious Tim and Angela were hopelessly outnumbered. But his dear best friend had played the Hostess Card and roped them all into doing both games.

Thus, he ended up shopping for two gifts the week before Christmas while he had already gotten all his gifts for Lucy, Genny, his nephews, and a few friends, weeks before, online, like normal people were supposed to do in the 21st Century.

With the torture over with, Tim went to meet Lucy at the car, instantly lighting up when he saw her already there waiting for him.

"I missed you," he whispered, sliding up to his girlfriend and wrapping his arms around her small frame.

Lucy sighed contently and burrowed deeper into the embrace. "I was only gone for an hour," she said against his chest.

"And that was a second too long," Tim replied seriously, playing with the tips of Lucy's hair.

"You're cute." Lucy giggled and kissed the tip of Tim's nose before wiggling out of his arms, reminding him they had to pick up Kojo for their hike and they were already running late.

T.O. Tim would have been appalled at being called cute by his rookie, but this Tim was happier than he had ever been before, happier than he ever thought possible, so he just smiled loopily at her retreating form before setting his gifts on the trunk and following her inside.

-x-x-x-

Four days later, on Christmas Eve –because Angela and Wesley had promised their mothers they would spend Christmas morning and afternoon with them, respectively– Tim and Lucy exited his house, looking like they were leaving for a week instead of going to a friend's house for a Holiday gathering.

"Why the hell do we have to bring this when we already have four gifts and enough food to feed a small army?" Tim asked as he tried to close the front door while juggling said poinsettia plant, a bottle of wine, a bottle of eggnog and a six-pack of his favorite IPA.

Lucy sighed again and tried to bump his shoulder playfully, hissing when the gesture almost pushed all three dishes she was holding to the floor. "One," she started, awkwardly lifting a finger in the hand that had a death grip on the maple-glazed ham. "The gifts are for the Secret Santa and White Elephant. Two," she paused when she almost dropped said gifts and tried to hide the near mishap from her boyfriend, "it's polite to bring a gift to whoever is hosting the party. And third, the food is for the potluck," she finished, somehow managing to rearrange everything in her arms in such a way that she could maintain her grip while rising on her tiptoes to kiss Tim's cheek.

Tim rolled his eyes, but the way they were shining totally betrayed the gesture, and he obediently followed Lucy to the car. After shoving everything inside carefully, he got in the driver's seat and pulled out of the driveway.

Making the walk up to the Lopez-Evers front door was another exercise in patience for Tim as he somehow found himself with most items shoved into his arms while Lucy poked her earrings into place, rearranged her hair around them, and checked her makeup before taking the carefully plated dishes back from him and clumsily ringing the bell with her elbow.

"Tim, Lucy," Angela shrieked as she opened the door, the pompom on her Santa Hat bouncing on her head making the red monstrosity tip dangerously forward.

"Hi, Ange," Tim mumbled, wincing internally because his best friend had clearly already had a few drinks, and he was way too sober to deal with a tipsy Angela. "Wes," he acknowledged with a nod, handing over the drinks, bags, and tin of Christmas cookies.

"Wow." Wesley whistled in appreciation, taking in the spread Lucy was holding. "You guys shouldn't have bothered. One dish would have been fine."

"It was no bother at all," Lucy said instantly, throwing Tim a warning look that dared him to disagree.

Tim gulped and promptly swallowed his I-told-you-so. He'd rather wake up in his girlfriend's arms on Christmas morning instead of on the couch with Kojo after pissing her off.

"This is for you. Thanks for having us." Lucy handed the poinsettia to Angela and followed her inside. She set the dishes on the kitchen counter and accepted a drink from her friend then walked further into the house, sharing hellos and hugs with everyone.

Tim watched Lucy disappear among their friends, and stayed behind, quietly leaning against the kitchen table as he took the bottle of his favorite beer that Angela offered.

Thanks to the open layout of the house, he could see from his position that everyone was already there. Harper and James were lounging on the couch, Lila and Leah playing a little farther away with Jack and his baby sister. Nolan was talking animatedly with Aaron, while Celina and Bailey laughed at something they were watching on one of their phones, and Grey helped Wesley lit the fire pit in the yard.

The image in front of him was the complete opposite to what he remembered of Christmas growing up –demands and accusations because the turkey was burn, beer bottles crashing against the wall when the opposing team scored a touchdown in the game playing on the TV, fists and shouts flying every which way– and it was enough to steal Tim's breath away.

"Who would have thought we would get to have this," Angela whispered as if reading his mind. She had moved and was now standing at his side, shoulders brushing, and Tim looked at her out of the corner of his eye. The contented smile on her face was surely reflected on his own, and he nodded because ain't that the truth.

Unlike him, Angela might have grown up in a big, loving family, but they had been the same kind of lonely, overachieving, adrenaline junkies when they had met the day she started at Mid-Wilshire. It had taken her less time to get this, but Tim was happy he had finally followed in her footsteps.

"I still can't believe you're dating a lawyer, but I'm glad Wes makes you happy." Tim looked at the aforementioned man, and Wesley was already looking at them, his eyes soft and sparkly as he stared at his wife from across the room.

Angela rolled her eyes and punched his arm affectionately, mumbling under her breath, "And I can't believe you're dating your rookie."

"Touché." Tim took a swig of his beer and turned to look for said girlfriend, but he couldn't find her.

Angela looked at him knowingly and giggled, she outright giggled, the quiet sound too cheerful, too wistful, and un-Angela-like. "She's playing with the kids in the backyard. Jack couldn't stop mentioning Tía Lucy all day and how she was going to show them all a new game." She left momentarily to top off her glass and Tim wondered briefly if he should cut her off for now. "And for whatever is worth, I'm also glad she makes you happy. You deserve it, you both do," she said when she returned, suddenly appearing completely sober if not for the extra note of emotion in her voice.

Tim sighed; he'd been doing that a lot lately, his mind momentarily caught up on everything they had gone through these last few years and nodded. "We all do."

Angela squeezed his shoulder in quiet support and left to check on and entertain the rest of the guests. Tim took another gulp from his bottle and continued to stare quietly at his friends, feeling a sense of peace that had been foreign to him until meeting this group of people.

That peace increased tenfold a moment later when he felt a small body slide up to the spot next to him, and a familiar arm wrapped around his shoulder. "I've been looking for you," Lucy said softly, resting her head on his shoulder.

"I haven't moved from this spot since we arrived," Tim answered matter-of-factly, placing a kiss on Lucy's temple.

Lucy clicked her tongue and when Tim turned to stare at her, her face had a strange tilt to it, her look a mix between frustrated and amused. As if he'd just said the most ridiculous, yet adorable thing in the universe, and she couldn't decide who was the greater idiot. Him for saying it, or her for loving him anyway.

"That's not what you're supposed to do at a holiday party," she said eventually. And case in point, Lucy took the bottle from him, placed it on the table, and grabbed both his hands, pulling him with her towards the living room.

The next hour was spent laughing with friends, listening to music and dancing in Angela's living room, playing games with kids and adults alike, and just enjoying life and being alive. The highlight of the evening had surely been the Secret Santa exchange, with Nolan changing into the new Shacket he had gotten from Tim right away while everyone else gushed and aww'd at the heartfelt gifts.

Tim had gotten five tickets to a Dodgers game from Aaron and his eyes had widened comically as he opened the envelope. "This is too much", he had whispered in Aaron's ear when he hugged him thanks, and Aaron had just shrugged, patted him on the back, and whispered back "No worries, Sarge; just a little something for you and Lucy to have fun with your sister and the boys''. The gift was anything but little, but Tim had just grinned and thanked him again.

Lucy had gotten a boxed book set from Wesley, and Tim could already see her huddled under a blanket on the couch, reading until the early hours of the morning during her days off. The rest of the gifts had ranged from a hardcover of 'The Mixology of Astrology Cocktail Recipe Book' from Angela to Celina, to a digital picture frame from Lucy to Grey, and all in all, it had been a great time.

After everyone had opened their gifts, Wesley had called them to the kitchen as dinner was served. Dinner had gone as well as the rest of the party, and everyone had eaten so much that afterward, they all collapsed on every couch and flat surface around the house with what felt like a post-dinner food coma. Only Lucy and Grey stayed behind, helping Angela and Wesley clean up the kitchen and plate leftovers for everyone to take home, a little extra for Grey and Lucy since Luna and Tamara hadn't been able to come.

Now, they were all gathered back in the living room ready to start the White Elephant gift exchange. All the gifts were pushed together on top of the coffee table, and they all lounged comfortably around the room. Tim sat on the floor, his back against the armchair where Nolan and Bailey were squished together, his bent knees on either side of Lucy as she snuggled against his chest.

As the host, it had been decided that Angela would go first, and now she looked inquisitively at the gifts, a finger on her chin and a pensive look on her face. She finally settled on one and opened it quickly, hoping the size and shape of the box meant it was a puzzle, some sort of game or something else equally harmless. Instead, she revealed a set of fuzzy handcuffs in varied shapes, and she blushed furiously, trying to hide them from sight as everyone crackled.

"Who the hell thought this was a good idea?" She hissed, but the spark on her eye revealed that she was only mad because it hadn't been her idea.

"I don't know why you're complaining; I sort of like th-" Wesley was cut short by Angela's murderous look, and he shut his mouth before he was thrown out of his own house.

Next was Lucy, as determined by the drawing, and she instantly moved away from Angela and her handcuffs, going for a small box wrapped in red paper with a green bow. Seeing the legal decision-making paperweight, with options such as lie, beg and insanity plea all eyes turned to Wesley, and the man in question did a small curtsy to everyone's delight.

Harper also ignored the previously opened gifts and chose a bag with a Snowman in a police hat instead. She hummed approvingly at the expensive bourbon, but the happiness was short-lived because the next person was Bailey, and she decided to steal the gift instead of picking a wrapped one. Harper sighed dejectedly and mouthed to Nolan that 'he would pay for that'. She picked a similarly sized bag and got a wine bottle puzzle. She smiled and laughed when James mumbled that 'she sure knew how to pick her alcohol'. With this one, it would take a little longer to get to the prize but at least it was still booze.

When it was Wesley's turn, he stared pensively at the pack of gifts for a long time. His eyes shifted from the unwrapped presents to the ones still on the table, until he seemed to come to a decision. Choosing to forfeit self-preservation, he stretched from his spot next to Angela and took the handcuffs from her.

Everyone burst out laughing even as Angela's blush reappeared, and she smacked Wes softly across the head. "Ouch," he mumbled, rubbing at the spot before wrapping his arms around his wife when she tried to move away from him.

Wes only let her go momentarily so she could get up to get a new gift. This time her grin was blinding when she ripped the paper open to reveal a journal with 'HR Approved Ways to Tell Coworkers They're Stupid' written on the cover. In a faux-threatening tone, she declared, "If anyone steals this one, you're not invited to the party next year."

Conveniently, Tim's turn was next, and he momentarily considered stealing the journal just to mess with her, but ultimately settled on stealing the bourbon from Bailey. Bailey's next gift was a moon lamp, and she turned to smile sweetly at Celina because who else could have put that there?

When it was Grey's turn and he didn't steal the bottle from Tim, he figured he must have been the one to get it, which made sense given that it was the expensive kind. Instead, he chose a new gift and frowned when he revealed a pink unicorn neon sign.

At a loss, everyone turned to each other trying to figure out who got that one and, more importantly, why. Eventually, James broke and threw his hands up in the air, "I went shopping with Lila, and she insisted I get that one. I told her nobody would want it, and she just smiled and said that way I could make sure to bring it back for her instead."

"Smart girl," Tim said approvingly.

"I know," James replied, without missing a beat, "she takes after her mom."

Harper positively melted in the spot and climbed over James to press a kiss to his lips as the room was divided between a chorus of "awwww's" and murmured "gross" coming from some others.

The moment was broken when Aaron got up to take his turn. He turned to Tim briefly, clearly wanting the bourbon, but in the end, he shook his head and picked a small box that sat alone on the corner of the table. The gift was a St. Michael Medallion, and as the chain dangled in his hand for everyone to see, the room suddenly got really quiet, and it felt like the temperature dropped a few degrees.

During Tim's deployment, he had encountered people from all corners of the world, and a French soldier, who had lost his brother in combat, had shared a phrase with him. It roughly translated to "An angel just passed," signifying a moment of eerie silence that causes a lull in conversation. Tim had never heard the phrase in the States, but it had been common overseas. Now, he couldn't help but think about it, images of Jackson, Captain Andersen, and so many other lost friends flipping through his mind.

Just as quickly, that solemn moment too was broken by Celina's turn. Without hesitation, she snatched the neon sign from Grey, murmuring something about how a girl is never too old to enjoy a cool neon sign in her room. Glad to be rid of the unicorn, Grey got up and selected one of the last unopened gifts—a police station Lego set that elicited laughter from everyone. It was both silly and perfect, and they all knew nobody would have the heart to steal it from him, especially as they caught the Sergeant smiling fondly at the box.

Next up was James, who decided on the spot that he would get his daughter a new unicorn sign because Celina clearly loved this one, and he wasn't about to take it from her. It turned out to be a great choice, and a delighted 'sweet' left his parted lips when he opened a desktop cornhole set that would look great in the Community Center.

The last participant was Nolan, and never one to cause discord among the group, he swiftly grabbed the last unopened gift, revealing a set of handmade succulent cactus candles. He initially frowned at the box, but that expression quickly transformed into a contented smile.

In the final round, most people opted to keep their gifts, only Nolan switched with Lucy. He said it was because the candles would fit perfectly in her apartment (pointedly ignoring everyone's confused stares at the statement), but secretly thinking the legal paperweight was pretty cool.

After the gift exchange, the group settled into a comfortable rhythm of laughter, shared stories, and additional gushing about their gifts, making the room feel alive in a way that it hadn't before.

As the night wore on, Tim found himself drawn to the twinkling lights of Angela's Christmas tree. The ornaments sparkled with memories, some that he had experienced himself since Angela always invited him over, and some from stories he remembered hearing of holidays past, before they had met. Staring at a small wooden star, with a picture of Angela and Wes with the kids in the center of it, Tim couldn't help but feel a twinge of nostalgia for his own childhood, a stark contrast to this night and the newfound warmth surrounding him.

Lucy, feeling the cold of his absence and sensing the change in his mood, joined him by the tree. She slipped her hand into his and squeezed once.

In their secret language of gestures, touches, and shared looks across crowded rooms, they had unconsciously created over the years they had known each other, it meant I'm here if you needed me, and even if you don't, I'm still here. It was a small gesture, but it carried a warmth and certainty that reached his heart.

They had been doing it for years, again and again, since before they were dating, since before they were even aware of the feelings quietly developing between them. They had done it in the suffocating stillness of waiting and briefing rooms, in the nerve-wracking moments before major ops and raids, after countless tragedies when all they knew was the crushing silence of defeat and loss, and every time they faced a problem, big or small. They had never acknowledged it, but it had always been a comfort, even back then, when they wouldn't dare admit it to each other or themselves.

"Hey," Lucy whispered eventually, her breath creating a small cloud in the chilly air. "You doing okay?"

Tim nodded, his gaze moving from the tree and lingering on her face, her eyes reflecting the soft glow of Christmas lights. "Yeah, just thinking about how different things are now."

Lucy rubbed the back of his hand, and this time the gesture meant I know what you mean. Still, she asked, "Different, but good, right?"

He smiled, grateful for this unspoken connection between them. "Yeah, definitely good."

They stayed like that for a while, quiet but for the whispered words coming from their friends in the other room. It was a moment that was as familiar as it was new, filled with joy and the unmistakable feeling of being surrounded by a chosen family.

"Merry Christmas, Tim," Lucy said after a while, when the clock struck midnight, and everyone prepared to leave.

"Merry Christmas, Lucy," Tim replied, pulling her back into a tender kiss.

Moments later, they walked to the car, each one holding a small bag with the gifts they had received. This time around, their hands were empty, but their hearts were full.

[krikeymate]

Yess! Thank you for the delicious angst. I feel like we need so,e Tara hurt and comfort after the attack with Sam panicking holding Tara’s hand in the back of the ambulance, the video of the attack going viral. Core four at the hospital. Kirby adapting into her angry protective form and tracking down the assholes who did this, Gale going out her way to cover up the video of tara getting hurt, protecting Tara and Sam and preventing her traumatic moment constantly in her face.

Part 1.

They take Tara away. Sam begs them not to, but the police officer holds her back. It makes her panic, she begins to struggle in his grip, and one of the paramedics makes him let go. She still won't let her see her sister, standing in Sam's way and putting her hands on her shoulders. She tells her to calm down and to breathe, but how can she breathe if she doesn't know if Tara is alright?

Sam doesn't calm down, and the paramedic shares a nod with the officer, then there's a hand on her back and a prick on her arm, and then things begin to feel a little blurry. She sags forward, legs unstable, and the officer hurries forward to grab her under her arms.

"It's going to be alright ma'am," he reassures her, "your sister is in good hands." He sounds young, naive, like the world hasn't broken him yet. "I'm sorry about all this, but we just need you to calm down. You were getting in the paramedics' way. I'm gonna sit you down in the back of my car here, and we'll wait for you to calm down a bit, and then we'll take your statement, yeah? Then I'll take you straight up to see your sister, how's that sound?"

"Fuck you," Sam mutters, scowling. The officer doesn't take it to heart, giving a cheery "alrighty then," and helping her to the backseat of the squad car.

~

They didn't get what they wanted. There was no confession, they didn't even have a chance to fight back and make themselves look bad. It was pathetic really, maybe they shouldn't have gone in so hard. They should have thought about it really. The footage just makes them out to be the aggressors, the bad guys, harassing and attacking two girls. This won't get them what they want. Some of his brothers and sisters are already expressing doubts. They're weak-willed, convinced by a few fake tears. He'll need to remind them of what they've done.

They thought they could get a confession from the little sister, but it's clear she's been brainwashed, she'll never say a word against her sister. Or maybe she's scared, maybe the others are right, maybe all they need to do is get her away from her. Then the truth can be revealed.

~

Someone leaks the footage, too disturbed by what they saw. This wasn't what they signed up for.

~

Gale's just settled down for a long night of editing when the video crosses her feed (she wasn't procrastinating... just, taking a break). Her phone is in her hands within seconds of it starting, ringing and ringing and going straight to voicemail. She can't get hold of either of the girls. The twins it is.

They say they're on their way to the hospital, they don't know what happened, just that Sam called them from the back of a police car, asked them to meet her there.

Gale tells her that she'll join them. She calls Kirby on the way.

~

Sam doesn't explain anything to the crowd of her family, leaving an overwhelmed police offer behind. He'd only wanted to check on the girl, to make sure she was ok. He was new to the job, fresh out of the academy when things went down a month ago. It stuck with him. Now Detective Reed is grilling him. She's more than a foot shorter, and so much more terrifying than anyone he's come across.

~

While Sam's been stuck narrating the events for a statement, Tara's been in surgery. She had internal bleeding, the doctor tells her, but that it's all been fixed and she'll be right as rain. Oh, and also she has a grade 3 concussion. She'll probably be confused, he says. She may even have some memory loss, he says. He says a lot of things, but Sam can't focus on any of it, too busy taking in the sight of her baby sister, battered and bruised on the hospital bed, through the window.

He finally stops talking and Sam gets to enter the dark room. The blinds are drawn, and she's careful to shut the door quietly, despite her urgent need to be at her side.

"Hey," Sam whispers, pulling up a chair and perching on the edge. She takes Tara's hand, watches as her head flops on the pillow towards her.

"Sammy," she murmurs, smiling tiredly at her. "Missed you."

"I missed you too, sweetheart," Sam replies, her heart breaking in two. She lifts her free hand to Tara's face, to stroke along her cheek, and push her hair behind her ear, desperate to provide any small pieces of comfort she can. "How are you feeling?" It feels like a stupid question.

"Mmm ok," she mumbles, "sore. Better now that you're here."

"I am here, I'm sorry it took so long babygirl, I wanted to be here."

"I know."

Tara's eyes are beginning to droop, her blinks becoming longer. "You can sleep sweetheart, I'll be right here, no one is going to get to you, I promise."

"I know."

[dandelionpixels]

carol danvers + reader

(platonic/familial)

ask: Hi :))) can I request a Carol Danvers older sister figure fic please where she takes R in as a surrogate sibling, but they're not used to people looking out for them. And just moments of Carol helping them out and maybe they struggle with negative self talk?

- It’s weird when you notice Captain Marvel helping you out so much. First she’s stopping your bag from getting stolen, then dropping an umbrella next to you when you’re stuck walking in the rain, then un-subtly following you home when you’re out after dark.

- It almost makes you suspicious, no one’s ever been so careful about making sure you’re okay. Especially not a flying, glowing, superhero. You assume it must be a coincidence, or maybe a plot to gain your trust and then kill you.

And then one day you drop your coffee, and your shoes get covered in mud, and the lunch place you were walking to closed early. So you just sit on the curb with your head in your hands and procrastinate having to walk home.

There’s a brush of wind next to you, snd when you look up, she’s sitting beside you on the curb. You can’t bring yourself to be excited, or scared, or anything. Looking over at her, you just wave slightly, “Hey.”

She cocks her head, flashing a bright smile, “Hey! What’re you doing, if you don’t mind me asking?”

Taking a breath and glancing back at the restaurant, you gesture vaguely, “My lunch place is closed. I should’ve called to check before I came, I was being stupid. Why are you here? And why am I always seeing you? No offense.”

Smiling again, she shrugs, “None taken. I guess I just think you’re interesting, you remind me of me, a little bit.”

You both sit in silence for a moment until she stands up, and offers an outstretched hand, “My name’s Carol, by the way. It’s nice to actually meet you! Do you want to go somewhere else for lunch, as an apology for stalking you?”

- You take her hand and the two of you go to a cute diner that Carol says she used go to all the time. You both spend hours talking to each other, and it’s more fun than you’ve had in a while.

After that day, you only see her more and more.

- She leaves breakfast at your door a couple times a week, from the diner you went too. Always your favorite, though you’re not sure how she knows.

- When the bus is running late, she somehow appears and offers to gove you a ‘lift’

- When you’re sitting outside, studying in a panic for a test you’re sure you’re gonna fail, she lands nearby, cautiously asking if you want help.

- Every time she offers help, you insist you’re fine. This isn’t how your life’s been, you’ve been taking care of yourself for years. But she just waves you off and helps anyway.

- She leaves her number with you, which you never intend to use.

But then you have a semi-formal event to go to and you’ve never been able to do your hair the way you like, and you can’t find any nice clothes, and you need someone’s help. So with tears pricking at your eyes, you call her. The phone only rings once before she picks up with up a cheerful, “Yello?”

You’re silent, not sure what to say, petrified of being annoying. After a long pause, you sniffle, “My hair’s being stupid.”

“I’m on my way, okay?”

You mumble a thank you and within minutes, Carol is at your door with food and drinks and a sympathetic face. You open the door and almost burst into tears, wiping them roughly, clearly annoyed at yourself.

She closes the door behind her, grabbing your hands, “It’s okay, I know you can handle it yourself. I just don’t want you to have to. Alright?”

You nod reluctantly and she spends the next couple hours sitting on your bed and offering thoughts on your various outfits. She sits on the bathroom counter while you adjust your hair, only jumping in to adjust bits and pieces until it’s perfect. After she insists you eat something, you admit running on nothing but an orange might’ve been part of your meltdown.

She waves you out and insists she’s gonna stay and clean up. When you come home, she’s conked out on your bed. You change into your pajamas and clamber in, smiling softly. It’s been a while since you had someone try to stay up until you come home, to make sure you were okay.