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softomi · 4 years

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Catfish

prompt: mother says to be wary of people you meet on the internet, especially since you never know who’s on the other side of the screen.

pairing: atsumu x reader

the unpaid extras: osamu, suna

general taglist: @graykageyama

Osamu liked to mess with his brother and lately he’s been planning the largest prank. It originally wasn’t supposed become a huge thing, but then Suna just kept edging him on; adding more things one by one and it just spiraled. Osamu was catfishing Atsumu with your pictures.

Now, Osamu knows that it sounds bad but technically you were in on the prank. You had never met nor even knew Atsumu, heck, you didn’t even know who Osamu was. You had been part of the prank merely through text messages and the occasional meet up with Suna.

To put it simply, Suna met you through one of his teammates; coincidentally you ended up in one of his classes and the two of you built a tiny friendship. Which was why, when Suna was thinking of the perfect person to catfish Atsumu with; your face lit up in his head.

You were the perfect candidate, exactly Atsumu’s type literally to a tee. When Suna pulled up your contact, the first thing he did was offer to pay you. Every picture you sent used for the prank, he’ll send you cash through an app and as a broke college student who needed cash fast, you agreed as long as the photos weren’t used for anything weird or sexual. He made sure to send you proof of each photo in use.

This brings it all back to dear Osamu catfishing his brother. He had created an entirely new Instagram for you, complete using your name and a cute description that him and Suna had spent two hours thinking of. They decided to even spend a few days perfecting it, posting pictures a few days apart with captions, following random groups, liking posts, essentially creating a whole new personality using your photos. Osamu had even developed a fake occupation for you; a foodie blogger to which some posts were dedicated to food reviews for restaurants Osamu deemed worthy of a post.

And when Osamu says that the prank spiraled; it fucking spiraled. Originally it started with Suna and Osamu following the account, suddenly Suna’s teammates began following the account. Osamu made the mistake of tagging Onigirl Miya in one of your photos, ultimately adding a few random people to follow the account. Suddenly after two weeks of having the account, you gained over two thousand follows.

It was no worries though, because Osamu can quickly catfish Atsumu, take down the account, and call it all good.

Safe to say, Atsumu accepted the friend request rather quickly. Osamu and Suna snicker to themselves, it took Atsumu less than five minutes to accept and he was already liking all of your photos. Not even ten minutes pass and he’s sliding into the DM’s.

The two men looking at the phone and burst into laughter. They spend five minutes cackling at Atsumu’s random ‘hey’ message that followed with a smiling emoji.

Osamu was absolutely entertained, it was hilarious that his own brother had fallen for his catfish and honestly, Osamu was ready to give up the act after three days but then Atsumu said something that just really pissed him off. He doesn’t remember what it was, he just suddenly ended up two more weeks later still having the fake Instagram account and still having Atsumu believe that he was falling in love with some girl.

Somehow the account ended up with over five thousand followers, Atsumu messages the account religiously, and Osamu for some godly reason is still managing the account three months later. It’s spiraled.

“I have a girlfriend!” Atsumu doesn’t know why his friend and brother are laughing. He’s scrolling through your Instagram, the catfish Instagram.

Osamu almost chokes on his food, “So what, have you guys gone on a date? Have you even seen her in real life?” Suna snorts into his drink, he coughs when he accidentally inhales the water sharply.

Atsumu slumps in his seat, his voice small, “No, but we talk every day and she likes me!”

Suna is coughing even harder now, tears threatening to leave his eyes to the point that he excuses himself to the bathroom. Osamu has a shit eating grin on his face, “How do you know she’s actually not some old dude catfishing you?”

“She’s not!” Atsumu stutters, “She’s real!”

“Prove it.”

Osamu was about to learn a harsh lesson about the world; the world loves to bite you in the ass when you least expect it.

Atsumu leans forward, an eerie grin on his lips, “Happily.” Atsumu whips out his phone, quickly presses a number and holds the phone to his ear. He holds a finger up to his brother, even gesturing for the returning Suna to remain quiet. The phone picks up, “Hey babe, you wanna meet me here at Onigiri Miya?” Atsumu looks at the watch on his wrist, “Twenty minutes? Perfect.”

Osamu’s believing his brother is bluffing. There was no way in hell he’d be able to somehow magically bring the catfish to life, heck, Atsumu would be a god if suddenly he could. Thirty minutes pass, Osamu is exchanging looks with Suna. It’s absolutely silent between the three.

Osamu is suddenly feeling guilty, Suna is uncomfortable to the point that he’s even texting you to make sure you weren’t actually coming, and you confirmed with him that you weren’t.

“Should we tell him?” Osamu whispers when another five minutes pass.

Suna is deadpanned, “I don’t know, we’re kind of reaching a sad territory now. Let’s just break up with him and ghost him.”

Osamu groans, “But do we want to deal with a sad Atsumu, I’ll take getting my ass kicked over him crying in my apartment.”

The door chimes and their jaws smack the floor. You walked through the door, eyes roaming the place before landing on the three huddled into the corner. Is he a fucking god? Atsumu stands from his seat, he meets you halfway, pulling you into a heartfelt kiss that has you swooning.

The closer you approach with Atsumu’s arm around your shoulder, the more they truly begin to believe that Atsumu is a god.

“Guys, this is my girlfriend.” This time it’s Atsumu who has a shit-eating grin, “Ain’t she a beauty, the pictures don’t do her justice.”

It takes everything in Osamu to not scream, “But, you said you’d never even met her before.”

Atsumu gazes into your eyes, hearts practically floating above his head, “I mean I guess technically this is our first-time meeting, right?”

You nod, a puppy like expression on your face, “I’m sorry, I haven’t introduced myself yet. You must be Osamu.” You point to him then your fingers drag to the other male, “Suna.”

“Oh.” Suna sits straight up, “Oh!” He catches the glint in your eyes, the conniving little minx of a look. Suna was no longer calm, “We’ve been double crossed!”

There’s screaming, fingers are being pointed at each other, Atsumu is gripping Osamu by the neck of his shirt, Suna is literally calling your phone to make sure that it’s actually you, Osamu is pulling his brother’s hair. The customers of the restaurant stare with their jaws dropped at the scene.

Everyone is squished into Osamu’s small office. Suna is sitting on the desktop, Osamu in his chair, Atsumu in the spare seat, and you lean on the arm of Atsumu’s chair. His arm dangles around your waist, pulling you to lean on him with a cheery grin.

Atsumu leans forward, taking in the expressions of the two bewildered boys, “I guess let’s start at the beginning.”

While the story technically began three months ago with Suna asking for your cooperation, the story of you and Atsumu began two months ago.

The extra cash from all the pictures you sent Suna was giving you enough to be able to go out and live a little on the weekends. Originally the bar was dead, you and your friends were tucked into the corner in a booth when a rowdy bunch of men came in. Your friends gasped having recognize them as members of a sports team and with their excitement, they must have won a game.

It didn’t affect your group that much until it came to split ways; being in your last year of university, you excused yourself, insisting that you needed to go home to finish a project. As you stood at the register, card tapping against the counter, that was when he showed up.

At this point, Atsumu had spent the past hour believing the gods were on his side. He practically walked by your table ten times just to make sure the face matched the one in his instagram’s DM. After forty minutes of the constant back and forth, your quick gazes at him walking by the table seem to do nothing. Were you unable to recognize him?

He took his shot watching you stand alone at the counter. He finishes off his drink and smoothly strides to you.

“Hey!” Atsumu leans on the counter, flashing a smile despite alcohol dripping from the side of his mouth, “Wouldn’t you consider this fate?” He gestures between the both of you.

You’re confused, shooting him a puzzled gaze, “Sorry, you must have me mistaken for someone else.” You hand the card to the worker, anxiously eyeing the male who’s increasingly invading your space.

Atsumu places a hand on the small of your back, it was something Instagram you had mentioned you liked, instead it triggered a fight or flight. Your hand makes harsh contact with his cheek, he retracts his hand immediately.

“Don’t touch me!” You bark at him, “Perv.” You’re aggressively signing the receipt, storming out of the door while other men seem to ooh at Atsumu’s situation.

“Hey!” Atsumu catches your figure outside of the bar, you’re waving a hand to catch a cab, “I think we got off on the wrong foot there.”

You don’t give him a second glance, “Look, I don’t know who you think you are.”

“Atsumu.” He stands right in front of you, blocking your sights for a cab. He’s got the widest smile on his face as he holds out a hand, “Miya Atsumu. Volleyball player. Setter for the Black Jackals.”

“Okay.” You run a hand through your hair, oddly taking his hand into a shake while eyeing him, “Miya Atsumu, volleyball player, setter for the Black Jackals.”

You step to the side, arm out still trying to catch a taxi but he blocks your way once more and he looks at you with such wonder. His eyes practically having stars coming out and his smile warm and inviting. He was wondering if you were a twin, maybe he had actually gotten the wrong person.

“You are?”

The wind is causing your hair to blow in your face, he wants to so bad to brush the strands behind your ears but the way you gave him a slap earlier makes him think that’s a bad idea. Your fingers pull your hair back, “Y/n. I don’t have a fancy title like yours but, I guess I don’t know, senior to be graduating at the university.” You sidestep him once more, “I’m just trying to catch a cab home.”

Once more he blocks your way and you look at him with defeat. He was persistent. He laughs, “Sorry, last time, but do you not know me?”

You’re still as confused as ever, “Look if you’re going to pull some cheesy line about seeing me before, it’s not going to work.”

“Wait, just hold on a second.” Atsumu pulls out his phone, his fingers are shaking as he presses onto the app. He pulls up your profile, handing you his cell phone, “This is you isn’t it?!”

Your eyes scan the social media page, your mouth falling open, there’s a hidden laugh itching in your throat. These were all the picture you had taken for Suna and somehow, you’re being shown by a stranger your fake profile.

“We’ve been messaging for like a month, I can’t believe you don’t recognize me.”

I don’t recognize you because I’m not the one talking to you.

You’re perplexed, you weren’t sure what you were supposed to do, if you told him he’s being catfished you’d lose the flow of side cash you’ve developed but if you didn’t, isn’t that just wrong. And the more you look at him from under the stars, he’s rather cute; you suddenly feel bad for slapping his face earlier.

“Do you want to get some coffee?”

Your offer sends him over the moon, he’s walking alongside you to the nearest convenience; Atsumu is rather talkative, bringing up topics of everything and anything that comes to his mind. As the two of you look over drink options in the cooler, his hands pull two cans of black coffee.

“You’re favorite right?” He holds one out to you.

Your actively smiling, biting your lower lip and wondering if you needed to play along with the role but as he stares at you with such adoring eyes, it makes your heart skip a beat just taking in the fact that he would remember something trivial over text.

“Actually.” You place the drink back, opting for a sweeter caramel macchiato, “I would say that this is my favorite.”

Atsumu quirks a brow, “Are you saying you were lying to me?” He places a hand over his heart, “And here I thought we were soulmates.”

Your hand smacks against his arm, “Shut up.”

“So what are you studying for?” Atsumu sips his drink, the two of you leaning against the windows of the convenience store. There’s a slight sway in his body and you’ve unknowingly followed his movements.

“Literature. Once I graduate, an internship is probably where I’ll start but I’m hoping I can get hired into a publishing company.” He’s comfortable to be with and you aren’t sure if it’s because he thinks he knows you or because his presence is just like that; comfortable.

Atsumu finishes off his canned beverage, “And you do that, all on top of running a foodie Instagram.”

From what you gathered on a quick skim of the account; they have your occupation as a lower level food blog; it’s rather funny. You can only nod to him, “It’s just a side hobby really.”

“Well maybe I could join you on one of your little adventures.”

You try to suppress the immense grin that wants to grow on your lips, there’s an internal battle happening of whether you should tell him or not but once again, the way he looks at you, the cute doe eyed look; it puts butterflies in your stomach.

“How about tomorrow?” He lets out a small gasp, your hands pull out your cell phone and offer it to him, “Your number?”

“I’m free for lunch, just text me when and where.”

You press the number he’s inserted into his contact; in a second his cell rings and he’s showing off his screen, “Don’t message me on Instagram though, I’m detoxing from social media for a bit. Just, text my number.”

He walks you to the curb, helping you flag down a cab, and you give him one last gleeful glance before getting into the car. As you sit, you’re quick to dial Suna’s number. You know he’s probably sleeping but the light feeling in your heart overrides his sleep schedule.

“What?” He’s groaning.

“Suna listen to me carefully. The prank that you guys are doing.” You hear a small snore, “Suna!” He jolts awake and you groan, “You know what, go back to sleep.”

“Thanks.” He hangs up immediately.

Your phone dings, Atsumu’s name pops up. Can’t wait for our date. You bite on your thumb, a smile on you before you respond.

Although having just seen him forty minutes ago, you two text back and forth. First he wondered if you arrived home safe, next he sent pictures of himself insisting it’s for you to choose for his icon, then he proceeds to narrate his way home. You wonder if you’re responding like catfish you but the more he brings up random topics, the more you forget about that stupid prank.

Wait let me call you.

Your heart beats faster, your phone lighting up with his name. You press the answer button slowly, “Hello?” You giggle.

“You’re telling me that you like spikers more than setters.” His voice is nearly screaming and you lean back on your chair laughing into the phone.

The quick research you did on his team had you watching short videos, and while you had to admit it was amazing to watch, your eyes drifted more to one of his teammates than him, “What’s his name?” You lean to look at your computer screen, “Bokuto Koutarou?”

“No!” He’s whining out into the air, “If I had known you were a spiker girl I would have changed positions.”

Your eyes catch the time on your laptop, “Woah. It’s three in the morning.” That meant you had spent over four hours total texting him and now you were on the phone with him, “What are you doing awake?”

He blows out a breath of air, “I could ask you the same thing.”

“Well.” You draw out the word, dragging your self to your bed, “I’m going to go to sleep now.” There’s a pause on the line, “Atsumu?” He hums tiredly, “Good night.”

There’s a small snore from him before he shifts around, “Good night.”

The morning light urges you awake, for a second you peak at your phone’s time and it nears ten in the morning. You’re about to throw your phone back onto the bedside table until Atsumu’s name catches your eye. For having gone to bed at three a.m. he shot you a text at seven.

Morning beautiful.

It was sweet, simple, and it made you smile; giving you the extra push to get out of bed. You stalked your own catfish page, there hadn’t seemed to be any updates so there was still time. A quick search of the internet has you picking out a random restaurant nearby and you send off a text to Atsumu about a meeting time.

You were late, pushing through the doors of the restaurant, your eyes scan the place to see him raise a hand for you. He’s dashingly handsome despite being in casual wear, you wonder if he spent time like you did just trying to pick out an outfit or if he spent forever gelling his hair as long as you tried to get your strands into the perfect waves.

“Sorry, did you wait long?” You pull into the seat in front of him.

He’s smiling and you hope to god that when you break the news to him, he’ll still smile for you, “I just got here not too long ago too.” He looks over the menu quickly, “What do you think you’ll get?”

You inspect each dish, a light hum on you as you dance around the option, “The spaghetti sounds nice.”

Atsumu tilts his head, “It has red meat in it.” You stare blankly at him, “Aren’t you allergic to red meat?”

“Oh.” You set the menu down, “Actually.” He follows your actions, you’ve become nervous at what you’re suddenly about to do, “There’s something you should know.”

“Fuck this!” Atsumu throws the napkin on the table, you jump as he harshly stands, throwing the chair back.

“Atsumu.” You stand.

“No! Don’t. Were you just messing with me then? Did Osamu tell you I was going to be at the bar last night?” Atsumu’s fist ball, “You know what, whatever.”

“Wait.” You follow him behind, “Atsumu. I’m sorry.”

He harshly turns to you, god, even in sunlight you were beautiful to him. He wants to laugh, the month he spent talking to the fake you; yeah that was all bullshit to him but honestly when he saw you last night, when he spent over four hours actually talking to you; he actually felt that maybe this could be something deeper.

“I’m really sorry, I know I should have said something right away.” You have a soft pout on you and it makes him outwardly groan.

He runs a hand through his hair, “Okay, it’s fine. I probably deserved this prank too anyways; must have pissed him off somehow.” He waves a hand, “You can just go back to doing whatever.”

Your hand pulls on his wrist, “I owe you a meal.” You bat your eyes with a cheeky grin, “If you take pictures of me, we can send them to Suna and use the money for our food.”

“Oh.” He begins to smile, “I like that idea.”

Back into Osamu’s office, Atsumu has now pulled you onto his lap, your head resting on his shoulder with arms hanging around his shoulders. The two bachelors stare at the sickly loving sight.

A lightbulb goes off in Suna’s head, “Wait! My money!”

You snort a laugh into Atsumu’s shoulder, “Hey, I earned that fair and square. You paid for goods.”

Osamu is having a staring contest with his brother, “So you two have been actually dating for two months? Why would you still message the catfish account then, why not just kick my ass when you found out?”

Atsumu taps a finger on his chin, “Well, I was just originally going to ghost you guys but then babe here and I discovered that we could fund all of our dates with Suna’s money. We even started setting aside leftover cash from our dates to plan a trip.”

You giggle, “We’re going to Disney next weekend.”

“All the pictures.” Suna whispers.

There’s an amused hum in your throat, “Honestly I’m surprised you guys didn’t figure it out. We were dropping hints in the photos.”

Indeed, the two males looked at the pictures you sent them. If they backtracked to two months ago, there wouldn’t be any hints but the closer they get to the present; it was painfully obvious. They were just too caught up in their excitement to even notice. In one photo, part of Atsumu’s shoulder and hair was just barely in the picture; another had his reflection vividly displayed in the window of the restaurant, and somehow Osamu and Suna missed the obvious Black Jackals jacket sitting on the back of the chair next to you.

The two boys were having a mental breakdown.

You shifted on Atsumu’s lap, leaning forward to tap against the top of Osamu’s phone, “Now, if you’d please deactivate the account since this whole charade is over.”

Osamu ended up not deleting the account. He set the account to private because seeing how his brother was so deeply entranced by you, Osamu had a feeling this one was going to last and he was right; on Atsumu’s wedding day, his little best-man speech had him whipping out the catfish Instagram to display on the monitor for everyone to see.

#haikyuu #haikyuu scenarios #haikyuu x reader #atsumu x reader #atsumu scenarios #osamu #suna #atsumu

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lilyrachelcassidy · 3 years

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Birthday Cake

A/N: Suprise folks!!! *me laughing maniacally* The whole scenery for this fic somehow appeared in my head and I just COULDN’T let it slip away, so... My biggest inspo for that was @drawlfoy!! Remember her posting the fic where Draco and Reader work at McDonald’s and are total suckers in their job (arguing with the customers; preparing wrong orders; etc.)? Dee unfortunately, deleted this precious, but it’s stuck to my head ever since (lol lol, it’s the moment where Dee wants to get rid of something, but I kindly remind everyone it existed). Therefore I present to you the next Draco x Reader fic related to our fav fast-food rest. This time, however, they’re not working at the same workplace but... I'm going to stop here cuz I don't want to spoiler :P

**The second thing that triggered me to write this fic is the YouTube video I recently saw with a lady who orders the 'specials' appearing to be out of the menu list of McDonald’s, through the Drive-Through. She asked for a birthday cake, was laughed at a few times, but eventually got what she wanted. Applause for the attitude!!

About the fic (context, my bitches): ofc it’s the modern AU, non-magical world. Draco’s the worst boyfriend ever but always manages to turn things into their righteous place.

Summary: The birthday is upcoming, and Draco is in a rush to think up an idea for a perfect gift. His ingenuity fails, however, and leaves Y/N very unsatisfied with a disaster that has been forged.

Word Count: 3.6k

Warnings: my brain playing a total psycho, language, alcohol, sexual undertones/allusions to sex, Pansy being too much of her self... deal...

Tags: @drawlfoy @eltanin-malfoy

Such an unrestrained desire to strangle somebody you hadn't felt in a long time.

Really.

Today was your birthday, which you had been widely announcing for almost a whole month to people you might have accidentally forgotten about it. Having your boyfriend, Draco, on your mind in particular.

You doubted he would have the guts to omit your big day, though as repeatedly as he had done for a few years back. But something between foresight and the second sense of prevention told you to keep reminding him every day of the upcoming event, with a heap of birthday-themed emojis and uppercases in the messages.

Everything was planned out in your head: him picking you up from your house with the sharp-red cabriolet that he used only for special occasions; him driving the two of you to the fanciest restaurant he could find in town; him bestowing you with a nice-looking, golden necklace or a different piece of jewelry you had been suggestively pointing out in the store's exhibition; him booking up a hotel room for you two to celebrate.

Either way, that was much beyond your expectations, as it turned out. And now you were sitting in the front yard of your house, waiting for him to show up.

'If he was going to at all.' This thought invaded your mind for the last hour, try as might to subdue it. An hour you had been sitting tight, hoping it was only a delay caused by a traffic jam or other irrational explanation he could come up with. But you were deceiving yourself, you eventually presumed -- you had been checking up your phone every one minute, only to see if any message notification popped up on the screen, other than birthday wishes from friends who actually cared for you.

2.02pm: Nothing.

2.03pm: Susan 'Happy birthday bitch!'

2.04pm: Instagram notif. (Someone liked your photo, which you had posted before leaving your room, posing in front of the mirror in the best cocktail dress you could find in the wardrobe.)

2.05pm: Nothing yet again.

2.06pm: Still... Peace and quiet.

"Fuck it...Enough," you muttered under your breath, an annoying disillusionment falling like a heavy mile stone on your chest. Tears suddenly started sprinkling in your eyes at the regret, and you were very reluctant to admit that your friends were right -- Draco Malfoy was an egoistic, negligent, self-absorbed pri--

"Hi." You heard the raspy, panting voice says. "Sorry for the delay."

You blinked slowly, stupidly. You raised your head to assure yourself it was him. That his expression actually corresponded to his words and showed some kind of remorse for standing you up. But no... There he was: standing in front of you, plainly confident and unashamed, with his cocky smirk provoking you to slap him.

Oh, how much you craved to slap him right now. "Where to the fuck have you been?"

"I've tried to pick this up," he explained, simultaneously lifting up the paper bag he'd been carrying in his hand. The big, exclaiming letters 'McDonald's' with the brand's logo were printed on its exterior, and it was fully stuffed with something inside.

Not quite comprehending, you furrowed. You attempted to hide the venom in your voice, but somehow it found its way to leak out. "Couldn't you do that in advance?"

"Nope..." It was his turn to furrow, looking almost shocked with the question. And thanks to all those years of your relationship, you knew it was his piss-poor estimation of time taking over. "It was a last-minute surprise."

"Sounds like it," you commented irritably. "What's that?"

"Your birthday present, sunshine," he drawled happily, ignoring your remark. He sounded positively delighted and satisfied with himself at surprising you with that because he saw a slight crease of shock painting on your forehead. "Here you go."

You took his deposit out of his grasp, still quite unsure. What if his gift would only make a situation worse? Can it get any worse with Draco's total lack of tact? Yes. But it was only one way to find out.

Without even stealing a second glance at him, you ripped off all of the packaging that had been folded around, protecting the contents. You tried to do it carefully and without any impact of emotions revealing the way you felt inside, but your hands were shaking with rage, and you couldn't quite contain yourself. You had been highly aware you shouldn't have expected much from him, but still...

You wondered if the universe was playing against you.

There was a moment of tense silence as you struggled to deal with all the wrappings. Rather unfortunately, you wished you hadn't put so much effort in opening your so-called 'gift' because as you finally did, it only angered you more, seeing as the disappointment laughs at your face. And yes, as a matter of fact, the universe was against you today...

"Are you kidding me?" you asked in disbelief, fury reappearing in your eyes. "A birthday cake?! From McDonald's?" Ugly, little cake with the creepiest smiley face of a clown. It wasn't even fresh, you realized, when you smelled it and felt a musty reek of a freezer, it probably had been kept in. A confusing sense of sadness in your chest couldn't reach any higher at this point.

"Don't you like it?" he asked, detecting the wrath in your eyes. At that, you felt the dumbest urge to laugh and never stop. "I thought it'd be something original."

"Oh, I love it," you said sarcastically, a faint voice of hope telling you it was only a very bad joke was still lingering in your head. But it wasn't a joke.

"It's not just--" He struggled to form a coherent sentence. "I've been asking Blaise and Theo about any ideas. I told them, what you had said to me -- 'you didn't want anything fancy.' So we decided it's... something."

"Of course I didn't tell you I want anything, you dolt!" Your voice raised up almost two octaves, and the pulse sped up so fast it entailed a headache along. A neighbor from the opposite garden who was watering the flowers looked at you, startled, and eyes widened your exasperated tone. You didn’t care. "It's how it works: you don't tell other people you expect them to buy something!"

"But I'm your boyfriend. You shouldn't -- er-- feel uncomfortable to tell..."

"Exactly! As my boyfriend, you should have known!"

"Well... I didn't. If that's what's bothering you, we can...we can..."

"Stop." Listening to him and his pathetic excuses was the last thing you were going to do now. "What – why would you even – " You sputtered out, unable to process or express exactly what you were feeling. There was definitely anger and indignation. Curiosity, for another, as to why Draco would even fall for such foolish and ill-considered idea, and -- to the top of it -- hope it would make a good fit. And possibly, the last and most satisfying part, was the wicked impulse to throw the cake directly into his arrogant face, letting him taste his own medicine he had been serving you for years on each failed birthday.

"You know, for once, you could pay more effort and try doing something nice for me," you told him firmly, deflating to calm down your buzzing nerves.

"I've been tr--"

"Do you realize how much it costs me to pretend to be happy when you forget about me? Last year, I organized a big-ass party for your birthday, inviting over all of your friends and buying the best booze I could find to celebrate it properly," you said harshly and pretentiously, as you intended. "The best part is, you didn't even thank me." You stared at him, wringing your hands and expecting to perceive any trope of shame in his eyes. For the first time, you actually did.

"Listen, about that--" he calmly attempted to cut off your monologue.

"No, you listen..." Did you really want what was upcoming next? Maybe it was about time. "Today, I decided I'm standing up for myself. So, for the last time, get out from my porch."

He bristled, the thunderstruck air hanging around him. "Because of the stupid cake?"

"What?! No! It's just... I feel like you don't give a damn about me anymore." Gulp formed in your throat, and the tears finally left your eyes at the consciousness of what was happening. "I think we both deserve some time."

Your eyes moved to his, and you almost wished you hadn't looked. He was watching you, with pursed lips and a pure mixture of every emotion: anger, sadness, resentment, pretension, dejection. The faintest of his flustered blushes appeared on his cheeks, and you suddenly wished you could hug him. "So you are putting us..." His finger pointed at him and you as if expecting clarification. "...on a break? Is that what it is?"

You were truly torn, to be honest. Becoming single on your birthday was the last wish you had for this day, but you felt a strong sense of adequacy and pride for building up the boundaries of tolerance. Besides, seeing as it was heading nowhere, it was only a matter of time that your relationship came to an end.

Although, it hurt. A lot. "Yes."

You darted your eyes from him, not wanting to study his reaction in case it caused you to meltdown and jump to his embrace, apologizing endlessly for your words. You loved him. But you didn't regret what you had just said.

Something like a dry chuckle of disbelief escaped out of his mouth. "Is that what you really want?"

'No,' your thoughts prompted you instantly before you could even contemplate. 'I want you to say so many things you're never willing to say. But you don't know.'

So instead, you lied: "Yes."

All expressed, you spun around without peeking back and rushed into your room, already knowing there was no more sense in strives to make this day any better; all of it would bring only bad associations. It would be depressing, even more than it already was.

God, was it how the break-up pained? Because if so, you wanted to be deceased. The world spun suddenly, and you sank to your knees, shaking madly and doing your best to find your way back to your bed, located a few mere meters from you. Part of you felt numb, but your head was wide awake and alarming you that something in terms of a disaster had just happened. Because it did. The clutching in your chest was unbearable, and tears were dashing out of your eyes like a living waterfall, which made you bury your face in your hands. Never have you ever wanted to be so drunk before.

And so many questions rung up in your head at once.

Did you make a good decision? What if you are going to miss him, yet knowing you could never call? What about college -- are things about to get awkward?

No answers.

But you knew someone who would be able to reply to them.

With the blurred by tears vision, you struggled but managed to find your phone in the purse, and then clumsily scrolled through and tapped in your list of contacts before holding the phone to your ear.

Please answer, you begged. Please, please…

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" Pansy's voice roared from the other side of a line, as always, enthusiastic.

"Pansy." You tried to sound less brokenly than you were, feeling marginally worse at the reminder of your birthday. "Is Daphne around?"

"Ouch, you're a really nasty bitch sometimes, you know. I'm not goin' to point out today, but since you didn't let me end my wishes, I'll note that for the future reference." You were sure she was grinning at the teasing, seeing as much as she liked that. Normally, you wouldn't mind, but... "How--"

"Pansy, please..." you sobbed out, almost desperate to have someone to consult and share emotions with. Daphne -- contrary to Pansy, who could be very judgy sometimes -- was someone you had especially on mind now. "I need to talk to her."

You heard her sigh; the kind of sigh she used to either prove her resignation or concern. But, as much as it surprised you, she suppressed her curiosity and, without a second word, obediently handed the phone over to Daphne. At least, that's what you assumed because you heard a pause and subdued mutters in the background.

"Y/N?" the milder tone spoke up, and you felt suddenly very strange as if submerged in water of relief; relief to hear the familiar voice. That released you from keeping a distant attitude, and yet again, a sadness washed over you, triggering a loud wail to come out of your mouth. "Y/N, is everything alright?"

"No..." you sniveled, unable to collect yourself together. "I-I... We br-brok-e up."

"You and Draco?" Daphne asked, astonishment evident.

You nodded but then remembered she couldn't see you nor read your expression. So instead, you forced your vocal cords to work again. "Mhm..."

"What happened?"

Restoring the story in your brain again, you told her everything, still tearfully but much more coherently this time. You avoided the details, briefly skipping from one utterance to another, as your conversations had gone, and you were very much thankful she didn't press for more information about the prospect of the situation. If it hadn't been her sporadic gasps or loud inhales of breath, you would have almost presumed she wasn't listening. However, she was, and as soon turned out, Pansy was as well.

"That's bananas!" Pansy shouted somewhere from the back as you had ended, and despite your gloom, you giggled quietly at her comment.

"Shush," Daphne tried to silence her, covering up the fact she had put you on the speaker. You didn't mind because you knew Pansy, who would definitely expect Daphne to cite the whole conversation if needed. But knowing Daphne as well, you could bet she flushed more than she would want to at that point. "So it all started because of the cake?"

"And the delay," you added. "But it's not just about that, obviously. It feels like... he completely stopped caring. And I don't want to be stuck in a relationship where everything is about sex and having fun only. Draco wasn't looking for a commitment, which..."

"Sucks,"ended this time Pansy unhesitatingly, who wasn't now screaming from the other part of a room but openly participating in the discussion.

"Yeah," you agreed.

"As for me, I think he might love you more than you know, Y/N." It was Daphne talking again, and she sounded positively convinced about her view as for someone who had hardly exchanged any word with Draco for the past few years. As if reading your thoughts, she continued. "I've observed you a lot. I know he might seem unemotional, but it's you who discovered him. That must require a lot of trust, you know."

You contemplated, and some of the memories and images from your first encounter run across your brain, try as might to suppress it: spotting each other at the party; binging some whisky shots together; flirty teasing; the very masculine scent of cologne; and then... more spicy recollections -- eager lips pressing against each other; against each others' necks; against other parts of the body; stripping off the clothes in the passionate haste...

Receiving a long moment of silence, Daphne took a second chance and asked. "And what's with you? Do you want to end it?"

It felt like standing before the oracle of truth. Therefore, you couldn't deny it in front of yourself. "No."

"So what're you still doing there?" commented Pansy impatiently, and you could imagine her rolling the eyes. "Get out and find him!"

She was right. You will.

XOXOXOXO

"I thought I'd find you here..."

No. Actually, you didn't.

You had tracked Draco's phone with your own one with some help of an app that, as the two of you had established still in the relationship, would be a good idea in case of an emergency. That in itself proved to be more than helpful, believing that your argument may be pinned as something in terms of an emergency, right?

So having access to his location, you had found out he was in the park where he had taken you on the first date, shortly after dinner, to watch the sunset that, as he had described, 'was a typical cliche from every romantic movie.'

But you had fallen for that. So much.

You hadn't been aware the place had actually some meaning for him until now, and that... God, that he had even remembered it. Time showed, however, that it indeed did, to which your heart reacted with a happy jolting. But also with a nasty sting of nostalgia following shortly after.

Yet, that only had encouraged you to make up your mind and go looking for him, which hadn't been such a difficult task per se. He was sitting on the bench, in the shade of a tree, and hiding his a little too delicate skin from the sun rays. As soon as he had heard your voice, his gray eyes flew up to see you standing a few meters away.

"What are you doing here?" was the immediate question that tumbled out of his mouth. He arched his eyebrow, and to your surprise, he didn't even look angry or sad with you. Nothing near the edge; actually, almost something like the amusement was painting on his face.

"Aren't you mad with me?" you asked intrigued, completely forgetting about his question.

He frowned. "Why would I be?" His tone was so mild that you weren't sure if he was referring to the double meaning; but then he smirked playfully and said, "Besides, I knew you were coming."

"Wha-- How?" you asked, eyes dilating a fraction, in shock.

He smirked, pointing at his phone in an explanatory manner. After a moment, you finally figured out what he meant: the app must have registered he had been tracked and that your phone was trying to find his. At this notice, you reacted with a wave of flush, suddenly regretting your previous lie. His smile only widened at your expression. "Wanna sit? It's plenty of room here."

"Mhm..." You nodded, pleased to accept his offer, and walked over to the bench, doing your best to hide the evident embarrassment on your face. You felt strange he had taken you with such ease, seeing as merely two or three hours ago, you had burst at him like a cram-full volcano of unspoken emotions.

Draco shifted a package from his side, making more space for you to sit, and it took you a moment to realize it was a McDonald's cake from earlier. Everything started from that -- a stupid, little piece of cake which stood up between...

You shook the thought away, taking a seat next to him, close enough to smell his sandalwood cologne. "You didn't answer my question," Draco reminded you. "What's so important to make you track my phone?"

"I'm sorry, okay?" You rounded your face to him, flustrated, leaning at the backrest of a bench. "That's why I came. I wanted to apologize."

"Oh... Couldn't you call?"

You sighed. "I figured you wouldn't want to talk to me after...you know... our quarrel," you said half-despondent, half-desperate, watching your feet as if it were the most interesting thing to peer at now. "I didn't mean what I said earlier."

"I know," he said. Out of nowhere, he was gently grasping your palms which forced you to look up directly into his intense gaze. His eyes were swirling like molten silver at you. "But I should be apologizing, love. I made a mistake, okay?" His hands traveled all across to your tense shoulders, squeezing them lightly. "I know I should be more... affectionate with you. And this was...dumb. A dumb mistake. With that cake. But I'll try to be better if you give it another shot."

He looked so serious that you instantly believed him. You wanted to actually, with all force of longing, which grew up too rapidly in you when he wasn't around. Draco was a fool, you could easily say. But he was your fool, which was a thing you couldn't be more proud of.

Peeking slowly in the other direction, you asked, out of the topic, "You remembered the place?"

"Of course," he puffed jokingly, smiling. "Our first date. Officially our place from then on."

"Right..." You smiled back.

Honestly, the mere fact that he had called this spot 'yours' warmed up your heart, and you felt yourself grinning at his never-before-discovered emotionality. To assure yourself you weren't the only one caring, it was all you needed to hear.

The whole moment was intense, and now, you realized, is when you should have hugged him. Kissed him. Said something back at his sincere endearment.

But instead, spotting plastic cutlery next to your 'gift', you asked, "So what's the taste of the birthday cake?"

And you knew he had caught the subtext of your playful inquiry. And you knew that soon you would work things out again. But, as for now...

"I thought you would never ask."

XOXOXOXO

A/N: Looooooool. Such a drama-comedy, right? And I could easily say It feels like 50% Draco-x-Reader / 50% Draco-x-BirthdayCake... But whatever (2am is working like a drunken bud, folks). Happy beginning of August :)

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jebazzled · 4 years

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troubleshooting: common quandaries and thots to overcome

It's no surprise that people whose major hobby involves writing, the internet, and fandom are often people who carry a lot of anxiety and tension around with them. For many of us, writing is something we do to escape, relax, unwind, and flex creative muscles we might not get to use at work or school. I get it.

For many of us, however, it also seems like forum rp is a stressor, a cause of great anxiety and insecurity. We've all seen or known people who go through a major rp-related crisis.

Sometimes, these crises are truly major - catastrophic falling-outs and permanently damaging rumor mills and etc etc. But a lot of the time? Well. It's not that it's "in your head," because obviously what you are feeling is very valid. But I think sometimes the way we think of internet spaces fuels dysfunctional thinking.

This isn't quite a tutorial; it's more in the vein of my tough love re: writer's block. I'm going to talk through some common scenarios, anxieties, and other issues I see in the rp community, and offer my (fully unsolicited) thoughts and advice. As always, your mileage may vary, but I'm trying!

Topics covered, because this one is a LONGBOI:

Insecurity & thread reactions

Insecurity & completionism/ Being Liked

Jealousy (especially ship-related)

The server is not therapy.

So here's the thing about the internet: for better or worse, it's for everyone.

On the far end of the spectrum, this means that the internet is a great incubator for toxic garbage. See: right-wing radicals, etc. But for most of us, this means that there is room on the internet for weird little me and my weird little hobby. You can find a community to talk about virtually any interest. You, for example, found the rp community.

So here's the thing about the internet: for better or worse, it's for everyone. This means that while you can find a community to talk about virtually any interest, you are never going to find a community that is completely without flaws.

There will always be people who annoy you, rub you the wrong way, or who you think are mean-spirited and negative. There will always be someone you don't get along with. There will always be people who disagree with you.

I have been in servers where members come to me time and time again to complain about other members, as though I am going to boot someone for wanting to talk about x just because they, personally, are sick of hearing about x. I am not going to tell someone to change their personality because someone else, personally, finds it annoying.

Offline, you wouldn't tell your manager at Starbucks to fire Susie because you don't like talking to her. You would simply not talk to her outside of a professional context. You would simply not take your break at the same time as her. You would simply not make small talk with her when the store is quiet and would instead, like, read the liner notes on whatever CD is at the register. (Does Starbucks still sell CDs?)

There will always be people in your community who you do not like and whose logic does not make sense to you. If they are not doing anything genuinely abusive, they have as much right to be in your community as you do. There is, in fact, likely someone in your community who finds you somewhat annoying. C'est la vie.

A community is not an environment custom-curated to your exact specifications. It is a community. You are not entitled to it being perfect. You are entitled to a space free from harassment and bigotry. If the space is free from harassment and bigotry and you cannot enjoy the space because someone else in it is existing harmlessly in a way that you dislike or find irritating, you have the option to leave the community. Discord server links are not a binding contract!

This is all to say: I think a lot of us expect far more of our online communities than is fair. Remember that every single person in your server is an individual human being with an interior life as rich as your own, and a list of neuroses possibly as extensive. None of them, yourself included, are perfect.

Oh, speaking of that list of neuroses! Let's tackle it, babe.

Your neuroses are not anyone else's problem.

It is on you to work through and overcome your anxieties and insecurities.

It is kind of other people to accommodate your growth, or to modify their behavior so as not to trigger your anxieties and insecurities. They are by no means required to do so.

Note: they do need to respect your triggers, if you have them and list them.

So here we go: troubleshooting frequent freak-outs. Buckle up!!!

Insecurity & thread reactions (or lack thereof)

Some people experience a lot of anxiety and insecurity around how their writing partners react to their threads. This might surface in the form of feeling unappreciated/disliked if the thread partner doesn't drop an emoji react on the link in your server's tag channel, or in feeling like no one likes your writing because they aren't swooning over it in #affirmations/ #thread-shoutouts/ #quotables/ etc.

You are serving as both texters in this meme.

So... you don't actually know what's going on with your thread partner at any given moment, you know? Personally, here are some possible scenarios with me as your thread partner:

You tag me and I put a passage from your post in #thread-shoutouts: I am at my desk, on my computer, not engaged in active DM conversation with anyone, and your post either made me cackle or it made me emo

You tag me and I DM you to gush about it: there's a lot happening in the server right now/ I don't want to derail a public conversation

You tag me and I react with an emoji: I am at date night with my girlfriend and she is in the bathroom. I have had time to read your post. I probably haven't put it in my tracker and will try and remember later, when I find it in one of 100 tabs open on Safari on my phone.

You tag me and I don't react at all: I am swamped with work and read your post in between emails. Instead of taking a second to react I immediately jumped into my tracker to log your reply, and now I am back to emails.

You'll notice none of these rationales are: "I don't react at all because I dislike you as a human." "I actively chose to quote Susie in #thread-shoutouts and not you because I want to hurt you." "I don't DM you about our thread because I hate our thread."

It doesn't have to be that deep! Stop hurting yourself. Let yourself assume the kindest option. After all, don't you want people to assume the best of you, too?

If your thread partners know you value emoji reacts or thread shoutouts, it is kind of them to do them. But it isn't inherently unkind for them not to, either. You're better off trying to kick that need for public validation.

Overview for addressing thread reaction insecurity:

If your server has a thread shoutout/quotables/etc channel, mute it. Don't look at it. Stop giving yourself something to fixate on.

When you are worried that someone hates a thread because they aren't giving emoji reacts, instead of building a narrative in your head that may or may not be true - communicate! "What beats do you want us to make sure we hit in this thread?" is a good introductory question to see if a thread is doing something for either or both of you, and gives your partner a chance to say something if they do want it to go in a different direction and would be more excited.

If someone is continuing to write with you, regardless of whether they post an emoji, it is probably because they enjoy writing with you!

Be deliberate about your thread premises! In my experience, threads done "just because" without a specific purpose (e.g. building chemistry between ship partners, introducing a subplot about a cursed hairbrush, kidnapping a house elf) are the first to lose steam and lose interest. It's entirely possible that someone likes you, likes writing with you, and simply doesn't prioritize this thread above their others because there's nothing meaningful to prioritize!

Keep your eyes on your own paper and stop reading so much into what other people do or don't do. It's probably not that deep!

Insecurity & completionism/ Being Liked

You would not be the first person to exacerbate their own problems because of a sense of duty to the spirit of completionism. Here's the thing, friend:

You do not need to write with every member.

You do not need to plot with every character.

You do not need to be in every subplot.

You do not need to have a character in every member group.

People fall into this trap thinking that if they can be everything to everyone, it will make them popular/important/beloved/a truly included member of the site.

But quantity is not the same as quality. You might have a thread with every character onsite but if half those threads are under a "they're on the same bus" premise, then yeah, people aren't going to want to keep up with that thread, and it's going to contribute to your thread reaction anxiety!

Write characters you are excited about. But more importantly: write plots you are excited about. Write threads you are excited about. You can be friends with people in your server without writing with them! You are better off writing a smaller number of really well-plotted, juicy plots that everyone involved feels heavily invested in than in writing a lot of watery threads for the sake of writing with every single person. It's hard to believe, but many people would rather NOT have a thread and wait until there's a juicy reason to than write a thread that doesn't have any development relevance simply for the sake of it.

If you're finding that it's hard to find juicy or plot-driven reasons to thread with many people, that might be a hint to write different types of characters. While yes, people exist who are very self-contained and isolated, the purpose of rp isn't to be a direct mirror of real life. It's to have fun while writing with other people. If your character is not fun to write with other people, they are probably not a good fit for an rp setting.

RP is not a popularity contest. This is not high school. No one is voting for prom queen. Be kind and be open to ideas and collaboration and people will like you. People will enjoy writing with you! People might even go out of their way to write with you. And they will be writing things that matter to both of you. That's winning, dude.

You might be tempted to pinpoint a "popular group" in the server and fix your sights on becoming one of them. This is also a failing proposition: often the "popular group" you might first identify is incorrect, and you are mistaking "exclusivity" for "importance." Sometimes sites have a small, tight-knit group with intricate inter-group plots and a very visibly closed-off dynamic. Since that dynamic mirrors the popular girls you were raised watching in teen movies, I can understand why you would assume that these people are the most important people to befriend on a site. They're not. They're cliquey and exclusive, and trying to get them to make room for you when they have intentionally and performatively set themselves aside from many other members is like... lmao, dude, it's not going to work.

Not only that, but the fact that these people are hard to pin down? It's not a selling point! The most beloved members on any site are not the ones who make you beg for a scrap of their attention. The most beloved members are the people who are friendly and kind. THAT is who you want to Get In with.

Overview for addressing completionism tendencies and "what if I'm Left Out" woes:

This is not a popularity contest, and you are a grown up. Focus on having fun and enjoying writing. That is not something you can do if your first priority is Getting In with the people you think are a site's "Popular Crowd."

You do not need to be everything to everyone. You cannot be everything to everyone.

In fact, everyone will appreciate you more if you do less and you do it well.

Focus on the positive. Who cares if Susie and Sally won't write with you? Sarah and Sam love writing with you! Yes, it would make sense for Susie to plot with you because your characters work together - but again, this is a hobby, not real life, and if you and Susie don't vibe, your characters don't need to interact! Why write with people who make you feel insecure? Trick question; there's NO reason to!

I understand the drive to be well-liked. Trust! I, too, desperately want to be well-liked. You'll have better luck if you don't try so hard. Be yourself and make friends with people who genuinely like you. Stop worrying about what the site's yearbook will look like. There isn't going to be a fucking yearbook.

Jealousy (especially ship-related)

Do you ever find yourself feeling a spike of anxiety or resentment when one of your favorite writing partners writes with someone else?

This reaction is especially common where ships are concerned: when one partner writes AU ships with their character, or has a plot with their character's previous partners before their OTP, etc.

It's a bit territorial, and it's not a good look, friends!

Your writing partners get to write with other people. How much they enjoy writing with other people has nothing to do with how much they enjoy writing with you. How much they write with other people has nothing to do with you. What they write has nothing to do with you. It's not all about you!

It truly doesn't matter how anxious you feel when your writing partners write with other people. They are entitled to write with whoever they want! What makes you nervous about them writing with other people?

In a forum rp environment, the best way to secure fulfilling, satisfying character arcs for your character is to plot with multiple others. That includes you, on both fronts: your writing partner needs you for their character's development as much as you need them! They aren't going to just stop writing with you arbitrarily.

If they do stop writing with you, there is probably a reason! Are they still on the site? Are they still writing? Are they going through something in real life that might impact their muse? There could be a hundred reasons why they are writing more with Susie now than they were with you, and they could be anything from "Susie is out of town this week so I want to give her a lot of replies to come home to" to "a ladder fell on my head and I am recovering from a concussion" to, possibly, "your territorial behavior makes me uncomfortable, and I would rather write with people who do not make me feel bad about writing with other people."

This behavior is especially weird in a ship context, and is something worth unpacking. When you write ships, do you resent/get anxious about your ship partner writing AU ship threads? About their character having previous partners? About their character having crushes that they do not act on?

An AU ship is an alternate universe specifically because it is not real. Susie and Sally shacking up in a space AU has no bearing over whether or not Susie and Marco end up together as finals.

Just like human beings have romantic history, it makes sense for characters to have romantic history, and these plots give your writing partner an opportunity to write plots that they might not get with you. For example, your writing partner might want to write a breakup plot with weird friendship tensions, which might not be a relevant vibe for Susie and Marco. But your partner can explore that with Marco and Sally. Again: it's not all about you, and your writing partner gets to write what they want, and you do, too.

Sometimes I think we can trace the territorial side of ship-oriented plotting to toxic monogamy culture, as described here. Particularly relevant are the below:

the idea that you should meet your partner’s every need, and if you don’t, you’re either inadequate or they’re too needy

the idea that commitment is synonymous with exclusivity

the idea that your insecurities are always your partner’s responsibility to tip-toe around and never your responsibility to work on

the idea that your value to a partner is directly proportional to the amount of time and energy they spend on you, and it is in zero-sum competition with everything else they value in life

Your writing partner is not cheating on your ship by giving their character other ships. If it feels that way to you, you are getting too emotionally invested, and you should probably back off of ship-oriented plotting for a while to unpack why you are feeling this way.

That said, of course be clear about boundaries. This applies both to M-rated content and to parameters of plotting. For example, you might tell your partner that you are not interested in a plot whose core conflict is "will they or won't they." You want to write these characters with the longevity of their relationship never in doubt. You might not want a plot where one character is cheating on the other. You might want these characters to be monogamous. That's fair! It's not fair for you to expect your writing partner to limit the plots they do that do not actually involve your character to avoid triggering your insecurities.

Overview for dealing with jealousy:

It's not all about you! Your writing partners deserve to have a good time as much as you deserve to have a good time. They can enjoy writing with you AND writing with someone else.

Be very clear with your boundaries. If there are plots between your character and another character that you cannot write, let your partner know before they accidentally step in a minefield.

Be willing to step away from ships. There are plenty of plots that do not involve ships. If ships make you a jealous and anxious mess, you should stop writing ships and work on that journey. It is more important to be a good writing partner than it is to write romantic ships.

Writing is such a personal thing, and we all of course connect very deeply to our characters - it only makes sense that we be invested in their outcomes! But if your gut reaction is one of jealousy, this is something that you need to work on, not something your writing partners should need to tiptoe around.

The server is not therapy.

Because rp is an online hobby, it can be easy to forget that every person you interact with in the server or forum is also a whole ass person on the other side of the screen. Which is to say, your rp friends do not exist to be your emotional support.

Of course they can be supportive - some of my closest friends are people I have met through rp! But online as in real life, you need to remember that everyone is always going through something. You are never the only person in the world who needs support, and you need to be thoughtful in how you engage with your friends here.

Do you listen when they share their problems, or do you immediately change the subject to talk more about your own? Do they not share their problems at all - is this a one-sided close friendship? Are the majority of your DMs to them seeking comfort, advice, affirmation, validation?

If you need a text-based counseling service, BetterHelp can connect you with a therapist. A therapist is a person whose job is to listen and ask nothing from you for their own personal emotional needs.

Your friends - online as in real life - are not therapists. They will not always have the bandwidth to help you. They will not always feel comfortable helping you. The internet breeds a sense of intimacy, the idea that regular chat conversation makes for a deep knowledge of another person. And of course this is sometimes the case! But in many cases, the person you are asking for psychoanalysis in the DMs on Discord doesn't actually know you very well. And if you have been relying on them for emotional support, you might be wearing them out.

Overview for not treating your rp friends like therapists:

Be thoughtful. If you have something heavy you want to talk about, first ask if they have the bandwidth. For example: "Hi Susie! Do you have the energy to give me some advice on x work issue?"

Listen. If your friend wants to talk about their issues, stop thinking about how you can relate and it sounds just like that time you... and just LISTEN. If you want to offer advice, keep it about them. If you don't know how to help, commiserate. "That's rough, buddy."

Self-check. Look at your chat history as though it's between your friend and someone you've never met. What do you think of this person? Are they a good listener? Do they reciprocate the support they get from your friend? Do they remember things your friend tells them about their own life? Or is this a one-sided conversation? If you're realizing that you're leaning too much on this friend, give them some space. If you're realizing you've gone way overboard leaning on this friend, maybe apologize and promise to be more conscientious going forward.

Be considerate. Remember that every person you know from the internet is so much more than what you've seen - I don't mean that in a "all internet users are creeps" way, I mean that in a "even if you've chatted in a server with some every day for six months, you still don't actually know them super well." Think of other people you've spent Some Time with. Think of your lab partner in 8th grade bio. You shared a desk with them for an hour a day five days a week for two thirds of the year. How much of your life did you share with them?

This tutorial got LONG - sorry, friends! Lots to talk about. I'm always happy to give Real TalksTM like this one. Feel free to drop into my askbox if you have a topic you'd like me to cover. I'm full of thoughts and feelings, and it would give me great joy for y'all to ask for them for once.

I hope this is helpful, and wish all y'all the best. Happy writing!

#rp guides #resources

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ubemango · 5 years

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commission 4: slow burn/best friends/college au w/ jin

(+or: we’re best friends and you’re literally So Great and i suck at knowing what i want but anyway i’m starting to think i like you ??????? au)

note 1: For my very very sweet and understanding friend @yeuj who helped me out when I needed it most .... I hope you enjoy 🥺🥺💕!!!!!! And thank you to Micah + Clove for helping me with my questions—thank you for your thoughtfulness, insight, and love!!!!! 🌷🌷🌷

note 2: I tried to make ramen-making as unboring as possible but it really is just....water and spice. If you’re confused about eating ramen at convenience stores please search that up on Youtube, I’ve exhausted my link resource skills (except for when I want you to listen to songs.) Also, the songs I mention are titanic/the end by cehryl and Subside by Eloise. I actually listened to Sweet Night on repeat while writing this so if u wanna listen to that... ;_;

note 3: everything about this story is in medias res. I realized I had no proper beginning or conclusion and I didn’t wanna change the flow of the story by concretely adding one or the other... so if the story feels incomplete/fragmented then please understand that this was a conscious and intentional decision done on my part :,) It’s slow burn!!!! I Love you ha ha!!

(i)

The library is open twenty four hours. The convenience store in the student centre is not.

“Please use your car,” you assert.

Seokjin huffs. “Then pay for my gas.”

It’s an empty threat. He’s got no business driving hard bargains when he has capital in the form of a rich CEO dad. He ignores your glaring, calmly closing his laptop, shoving it into his bag. Closing up shop after a derivative crisis you’d called him up for because he lives on campus, plus he never sleeps early. You appreciate that he gives into you so easily.

“Fine.”

So you go, searching for a convenience store that has those instant noodles you suddenly came up with a craving for this late at night. Seokjin’s used to it by now. You get things done when you want to, even if it means making a home of the pillowy chairs in the library you’d claimed for studying purposes.

The mathematical theory of chaos. You don’t want to think about it, and you click your seatbelt with a yell, throw your bag in the backseat with as much strength your anger allows for. “I hate school!”

“Please don’t scream in the car.”

“I hate it!”

Seokjin slots the key in. “Can you look up where the convenience store is?”

He tosses you his phone to unlock. You jab at the screen with more grumbling and colourful cursing, pulling up whatever Google Maps says is the nearest store open.

“Plug in the AUX cord,” Seokjin urges next. He merges into traffic, which is really only one car and the late night bus. A quiet night for your suffering.

“Can I play my—“

“Nope.” You sneer. Tapping open his playlists, you pass under orange lamp post after orange lamp post and scroll in silence before Seokjin groans. “I made a new playlist, pick that one.”

“What’s it called?”

You can see that he’s stiffened up. You don’t comment. “The one with the three heart emojis.”

Simple enough. You don’t care to sift through the songs, and the first one plays with one more indulgent tap of the screen.

Why don’t you tell her? I think you should. You know how you’re feeling, you can’t fight the truth…

Google interrupts the soft voice with the indication of the next right. Seokjin eases on the gas pedal. You watch him nod his head to the softness of the stereo. “I can’t pay for your gas.”

“I know you can’t.”

“I can pay for your ramen,” you suggest. Seokjin makes a quiet noise, like he’s amused by your generosity, or maybe he just thinks you’re dumb. You think it’s the latter.

“I don’t want you to pay for my ramen.”

“Then what do you want?”

The lamp post light striking Seokjin’s face gives way to the harsh red of the stoplight. In the stillness, he sends you a hard look. It makes you feel weirdly vulnerable, like he’s stripped you bare.

To make things worse, Seokjin says:

“Nothing you don’t want to give me.”

He doesn’t heed your confusion because he presses on the gas, looks straight ahead. You do too, and you try not to contemplate the cool brevity of his attention you suddenly want back. You push your uncertainty aside.

(He has a handsome face, you think.)

Seokjin interrupts, “So why’d you wait till now to study?”

“You know me.” Procrastination. The complete and utter mistake of underestimating the allotted time needed to get a successful grasp of concepts for your midterm. In not so convoluted terms, this class sucks ass.

“Yeah but that was—a lot of notes.”

It was. You probably pushed five weeks of material in the span of three hours. You can feel the very tips of your nervous system frying up as you pass through gas station-lit intersections. But there’s a real answer to his question, and you have the intense need to curl in on yourself in this leather seat.

“Well I would have started yesterday, but I was busy,” you counter.

“With what?”

“So you know Hyukjae from Psych?”

Seokjin pauses to listen to Google’s instructions, and immediately makes a left onto another main intersection. “Sure.”

“We went out yesterday,” you admit.

He hums a tight sound, tapping on the wheel. “Hm. How’d it go?”

It wasn’t bad. You shared butter tarts and laughed at his anecdotes and Hyukjae-from-Psych paid for your Uber home. He gave you a very weak hug before you slipped into the car. It was in that seat you’d decided you wouldn’t be sending him an I had fun! text that night.

“It was okay. Like, nice to me and stuff. But nothing…”

“…Worth revisiting.”

“Sure,” you mimic, and you wonder why he’s right.

“The guy’s okay,” he says. Almost like it’s with relief. “It’s—not to sound rude, but. Uh. I think it’s, uh—good. That you weren’t… interested.”

You think he’s gripping the steering wheel a little too tight. “Why?”

“Can’t trust guys with bad handshakes.” Seokjin chances a glance at you, and laughs at the confused scrunch of your eyebrows. “I met him during that networking conference in third year. Limp-wristed me. Like a chump.”

“Ew.” You can’t say he’s wrong. That hug Hyukjae gave you really was weak. The dude has noodles for arms. “But yeah, I guess you’re right. Wasn’t really my type.”

“Hm,” is all Seokjin comes up with. You watch him pass right through the turn Google tells him to take. “Oh shit. Sorry. I’m just. Thinking. About… limp… men.”

You snort. “What?”

“Like a man. A limp man. Hyukjae. Not me,” he clarifies fast—proudly— “just. Anyway! Back to you saying what your type was.”

“I wasn’t,” you accuse.

“Yeah well now I’m asking because I don’t wanna think about limp men. Your type, please.”

He sounds weirdly inquisitive. Demanding, almost. You chalk it up to the near-delirium of being awake past 1AM.

“I—don’t know,” you start. Somehow you feel like you’re messing something up. “He was kind, I like… kind. And soft. Sweet. You know Kim Taehyung? From Neuro? Like, almost big shoulders but not really. I like big shoulders. Yeah. Guys like Kim Taehyung-ish.”

Seokjin just hums again. There’s another song playing, and you don’t know how many you’ve rotated through in this playlist. You didn’t think it’d take this long to get to the store.

Google says it’s just two minutes away now. Seokjin says, “Cool,” and then sings along to the stereo.

You got me losing sleep over you… I usually sit still but now I can’t help but move… When I see you, I don’t know what to do…

(ii)

“Spicy or not spicy?”

“Whatever keeps my stomach lining intact,” Seokjin says.

You don’t say anything more and grab two of whatever ramen packaging isn’t scarily red. The convenience store is void of any customers, and the cashier rings you up with a very sour face for interrupting the show he’s got playing on his phone. His face shrivels up even more because all you can pay with is coins. Seokjin laughs behind you when you apologize for clattering the dimes too harshly on the counter.

“Enjoy,” the cashier announces, and he doesn’t mean it one bit.

The hot water machine at the back is a very intimidating thing next to the tiny display of cookies. Too many buttons and knobs you don’t understand, so Seokjin takes on the chivalric role and prepares everything for you. He rips the plastic open with gentle hands. Dumps the powder with too much conviction.

You both watch the water stream hot into the noodles. “Do you like macadamia nuts in your cookies?”

“I guess,” you say.

“Wanna split a cookie?” He hands you chopsticks to stir the ramen with, gestures at the cookie display with a jut of his chin.

“Are you paying?”

“Can you imagine if I made you pay after I asked to split,” Seokjin spits at you. “Yes I’m paying.”

“Then I want chocolate chip.”

He freezes, then jabs smartly at his noodles for a tense ten seconds.

“You make me mad,” he finally answers. “Should we eat in the car?”

“The bowl is too hot to hold.”

The counter at the window it is. You’re sad that you didn’t buy pickled radish, but your coin purse has weeped all its coinage out. Seokjin leaves you as Noodle Guard, going off to pay for that bonus cookie with a crumpled five. In the next second you contemplate the evaporation of ramen soup, the cookie is duly dumped right next to you, and Seokjin takes a huge bite of what still appears to be extremely hot noodles.

He promptly chokes, and makes sputtering noises.

“Holy shit,” Seokjin cries.

You take a much, much slower bite. “You’ll be fine.”

“I thought I could be cool for you,” he cries some more.

“You don’t need to be cool for me. Who eats ramen in a cool way?”

Seokjin nods his approval, that tear of theatrics sliding down his cheekbone. He eats carefully. A noisy car roils on outside, and passes quickly outside your periphery.

“Thank you for bringing me here,” you remember to say.

“I love standing at counters and eating things hot,” Seokjin retorts. He dodges the fist you aim at his abdomen with swift ease. “It’s no problem.”

“I—“ You don’t really know why but you need to talk. “You know—you’re really, um, kind.”

Foolery. Absolute foolery that sentence was, and the cashier probably heard that foolery, and Seokjin definitely heard that absolute foolery, and he’s laughing. Like really laughing, caught with the noodles dangling from in-between his teeth. That’s all you had to say? The guy drove you out to get cup noodles out of his own volition. That’s kindness maxed out, and he deserves better than you fumbling between your teeth. Your nerves have fried up so bad, you guess.

Seokjin’s giggles dwindle down. “Thanks,” he says, smiling small.

You blame the heat of your cheeks from the heat of your soup.

Neither of you are desperate to get to that last quarter of noodles to broth ratio. The knots of your shoulders loosen with the sound of your slurping combined, and silently you are reminded of Seokjin’s warmth, standing so close to you.

The easiest path to a nice ending involves a happy belly and Seokjin driving you home with nothing more than a goodbye and a thank-you as you slam the car door shut. This is not unknown to you, because you and Hyukjae-from-Psych took that easy path yesterday.

You just don’t do this often, contemplating all the routes of romance. When is it appropriate to laugh at a joke, to wipe your mouth on the napkin? To smile and peel at your heart and grant that person access to all your inner workings? You belatedly notice that Seokjin did not bring napkins.

(The moment in the car—nothing you don’t want to give me—you want to laugh at his jokes, and smile, peel and peel and peel at your heart, but slowly. Slowly, you put your chopsticks down.)

How funny it is to come to very sound conclusions within a split second, because all you know is that it feels good, being with him like this.

Seokjin, in your quiet realization, takes it upon himself to decide the cookie-eating rights.

“Want the first bite?” He asks, propping the chopsticks horizontally on his bowl.

You nod. Desperately you try not to look at him because you might make more realizations, and you don’t think you’re ready for any more unleashed and unknown emotions. “Please.”

He gives it to you. The right side decidedly has more chocolate chips, and it’s a very nice explosion on your tongue. So nice you groan into it. “Oh that’s really good.”

He snatches the cookie away before you can take another bite. “I get bigger bites because I paid for it.”

“That—? Uh, that’s not how sharing works.”

“Yes it does,” Seokjin argues. But he just takes as normal a bite as ever. You can’t say you don’t focus on his mouth for too long, though—

—And you immediately seize up at the thought. Horrified, you shriek: “Actually just—have the rest of it!”

He looks alarmed. “O…kay?”

“You’ve got a nice mouth,” you blurt out next.

An absolutely awful feeling settles heavy in your stomach. Because almost immediately you realize that this is a kind and soft boy with nice anecdotes that have yet to be uncovered this night (he likes telling you stories) and he’s got wider shoulders than Kim Taehyung and you’re not sharing butter tarts but you’re sharing a cookie with him.

Another realization: does Seokjin have limp arms?

He puts the cookie down. (His arm looks very strong, doing that.) “I—thanks?”

“I think I’m losing my mind,” you note.

He watches you slump over the counter. Purposefully burying your face in your elbows to muffle your betraying mouth. “It’s late,” is all he says.

“Did that make you uncomfortable?”

“Not at all.” You don’t think you’re breathing. Your lungs have evaporated, like those steamy ramen noodles you just ate. Seokjin probably notices you’ve stopped moving, so he says, “Really.”

“Okay.”

“Did it—did it make you uncomfortable?”

“Not at all,” you say.

“Cool. Do you wanna go—“

You stand up straight, grab all your garbage before he finishes. You don’t look at him. “Yep, yep, please.”

(iii)

He puts the key in the ignition, and doesn’t budge.

“Somehow I feel like you wanna say something else,” Seokjin says.

You curl your hands into fists. “It’s late.”

“I’m aware.”

“I’m—I’m sorry.” You are acutely aware of how garbled you must sound. It’s starting to get on your nerves, how flimsy you’re being. “I’m not… thinking.”

“For what it’s worth, I think you’re being pretty articulate for someone with an empty brain.”

“Are you making fun of me?”

“Don’t put words in my mouth,” Seokjin sighs.

The seat squeaks where you tense up. “I don’t want to think about your mouth.”

“Do you wanna know what I think?” You nod. Jesus. You’ll just let him do the talking from now on because your tongue can’t be trusted this early in delirium, late in the hour. “I—I…”

Seokjin struggles some more, then deflates. He starts laughing.

“I… don’t drive just anyone out to convenience stores at two in the morning for ramen. You have to know that.” He clears his throat. His eyes are shiny with the harsh glare of neon signs. “I guess I just—wanna know… what you’re thinking.”

“I’m thinking…” Your lips part. Searching for words feels like a physical thing—your stomach is swimming with what feels like a billion thoughts but nothing comes up for air. “I’m thinking I—don’t want to say the wrong thing.”

Seokjin turns to look at you. “I won’t make fun,” he whispers.

“I think. I think, you look—um—really… Good. Um. R-Really… good, right now.”

“Thanks.” He looks up like he wants to say something but his eyes harden where he gazes, locking in on the dust motes of the windshield. Your lungs swell small in the quietude. “I think you really look good, too.”

If baser compliments already have you burning then you don’t know what you’d do if he tried anything more romantically complex. Some people are meant for loud love stories and grand gestures and you—all you can do is think too much and you want to say more but Seokjin understands. He understands your silence, your ineptitude.

In a fit of controlled passion, you reach over the console, grasping at his knuckles till he flips his palm right into yours.

“Feels… ”

You wait for something to come to mind. A phrase, a proper thought to give utterance to, all the failures and successes of the night. Faithfully, nothing comes.

It just feels.

And Seokjin seems to agree. He holds tight between the grooves of your fingers.

“You’re very pretty and it hurts,” he says, and he doesn’t try to meet your gaze, and one feeling comes resolute: it feels right.

#bts scenarios #seokjin scenarios #jin scenarios #bts #jin #seokjin #ubemango fic #f: commissions

201 notes · View notes

rune-writes · 4 years

Text

Sentimental Coffee

Fandom: Persona 5

Ann Takamaki Week 2020 » Day 3: Free Day

Word Count: 2897

Rating: G

Summary: On a blazing summer morning, after a photoshoot that ended early due to the scorching heat, Ann found a new coffee shop that just opened on Central Street. As she sent Ren a picture of her cake and blended chocolate drink, she recalled of a time when Ren taught her how to use the siphons a month before he returned to his hometown. When winter was almost over, but a chill still hung in the air.

Note: This was supposed to be my piece for the digital Persona Love Webzine, but since that project was cancelled, I decided to post this on Ann Week 2020 :)

Read on AO3.

~*~*~*~*~

“One double chocolate chip frappe and one slice of cheesecake.” The waiter, having recited her order, glanced up from his note. “Anything else, Miss?”

Ann stared at the list of cakes on the menu. The red velvet and fruit tarts looked tempting. Or maybe she should add the quiche. But her manager’s voice rang out in her ears—to cut down on her snacks and sweets—so Ann closed the menu and smiled at the waiter.

“That’s all, thanks,” she said.

A faint blush. The waiter nodded and jotted down on his notepad before scurrying off to the counter on the other side of the shop. He spoke to his friends behind it, who then glanced over their shoulders to look at her, only to duck their heads again when they found her staring back. Ann couldn’t keep herself from giggling.

She had been on a shoot nearby, and even though it was only 10 AM, the sun had already been blazing hot that the shoot ended early. The staff had said they would continue in the afternoon, hoping the heat would have cooled by then. So as Ann drifted away from the crew and wondered if she should wait at home, she spotted the little café tucked between a clothing store and sundries shop—a newly opened coffee shop on Central Street that was featured in last month’s magazine. She had been wanting to visit the place, but with gigs, interviews, and college, Ann hadn’t found the right time to go.

Sweat rolled down her temple. Ann was already sitting beneath the air conditioner, but even that only helped so much. She took off her cap, tied her hair to a tail, and fanned herself.

“I’m sorry for the wait.”

The waiter from before came with her cheesecake on a tray. A slice of yellowish-white goodness with a whipped cream and cherry on top that made her mouth water. He set the plate down in front of her.

“It’s quite hot today, isn’t it?” he went on. “Do you want me to turn the temperature down?”

“That’s fine, thanks,” Ann replied. The sight of her cheesecake was enough to cool her down. She couldn’t wait to dig in. “I’ll just rest for a bit.”

The waiter nodded but didn’t seem to move. When Ann looked up, she met his expectant gaze. “I’m sorry if this is rude of me, but I can’t help but notice,” he began after a moment of fidgeting on his feet. There were only a few other customers present, but he leaned his head down and dropped his voice to a whisper. “You’re the model Ann Takamaki, right?”

Ann blinked in surprise. Then again, she hadn’t put the effort to disguise herself. Only a pair of sunglasses and a cap—which she was using as a fan. Her lips parted into a practiced, effortless smile.

“Could you keep it quiet, please? I’d rather not draw attention to myself,” she said with a finger to her lips. The waiter nodded, too eager for his own good. He said something about her frappe being ready soon and that he hoped she enjoyed her stay before leaving for the counter again.

It felt strange, watching the waiter talk animatedly with his coworkers, who occasionally spared her glances between putting coffee beans in a grinder or pouring blended drinks into cups. Was it because she had been putting more effort into her modelling lately? Ann couldn’t walk down the streets without being noticed anymore. Her cap and sunglasses had become her best friend, but with summer on the way, there had been no way she could have hidden herself beneath a cowl or some sort.

Ann grabbed the small silver spoon the waiter had set for her and sliced into her cheesecake. Soft and creamy, the cake melted the moment it entered her mouth. Still cool, fresh from the refrigerator. Ann squealed in delight. Who was it who said she shouldn’t snack in the morning? Though would this count as a snack? How many calories would she have to burn today, including her frappe that had yet to come?

“Here’s your double chocolate chip frappe, Miss.” The same waiter placed a glass of blended chocolate in front of her. Look at that whipped cream! Topped with chocolate syrup and sprinkled with chocolate chips.

Ann thanked the waiter before sipping her drink, pulling the straw out to swipe at the cream along with the syrup and chips. She broke into a jubilant grin. So cool. So sweet. Just the perfect thing she needed to ward off the last of the summer heat from her skin. What her manager didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him.

She fished for her phone from inside her bag and positioned her frappe and half-eaten cheesecake in front of her. She set to take a picture, but then opened her messaging app and clicked on Ren’s chat at the top.

‘What are you doing?’ she typed. Ren was on an out-of-town trip with his college friends for an assignment. Ann wasn’t jealous, not when her boyfriend was trekking through a village in this scorching heat.

His reply came not a minute later: ‘Taking a break.’ He followed it with a picture of him and his three other friends in a Japanese-style restaurant. Mount Fuji soared into the clear, cloudless blue sky, its snow-capped tip just visible beyond the square window panes. ‘I’ll be back this afternoon.’

Ann took a picture of her frappe and cake and sent it to him. ‘Jealous?’ She added a lot of smirking and grinning emojis.

‘Heh. It’s not as hot here as it is there.’

Ann could almost see him smirking. Jerk. She couldn’t help but giggle.

‘A café just opened in Central Street,’ she said. ‘They have these siphons too, like the ones in Leblanc.’

‘Ahh, yeah, I think someone mentioned that before. Remember how you messed up Leblanc when I taught you how to use them?’

Ann paused. ‘What?’

‘The siphons.’

It took her a moment to remember. Something that happened before Ren moved back to his hometown. When winter was almost over, but a chill still hung in the air.

***

Ann sat at the counter with a magazine in hand. The quiet hum of conversation filled her senses. An anchor spoke in a news program while Sojiro sat by the cash register, reading a newspaper.

Ann flipped through her magazine, trying hard to make sense of the words. She skimmed through the pages, stopping only at the pretty pictures of far-off islands and expensive resorts. A yawn threatened to swallow her face, but she held it in, eyes blinking back tired tears as she flipped another page.

A snort came from up ahead. Ren, now standing by the siphons, was masterfully navigating the intricate device. Ann pulled her lips into a scowl.

“What?” she said, her voice clipped.

“You can take a nap upstairs if you want,” he replied with a chuckle.

She would, but Ann didn’t want to waste what’s left of her precious time with Ren napping in his room. Even if that precious time was only her sitting there and watching him work. She picked up another scent of coffee as Ren added tablespoons of soft grounds into boiling water. After quick, gentle stirs and all the coffee grounds submerged, Ren set the paddle down and lowered the heat.

“I can’t concentrate when you’re staring like that,” he said, setting a timer on his phone. His tone was firm, but he was smiling.

Ann blinked, then smirked, propping her elbows on the counter and leaning her chin between her fingers. “What, did I make your heart flutter?”

“Stupid.” Ren gave her forehead a gentle flick. “My heart’s been fluttering since the moment I saw you.”

Maybe if he’d grinned or snickered or showed any signs that he was teasing, Ann would have taken it in stride and laughed it off. But Ren was serious and his voice matter-of-fact, as though it was an indisputable, universal truth. Ann’s face burned. Before she could come up with a reply, Sojiro’s stern voice broke through their banter.

“Can you kids please keep the flirting to a minimum? We still have customers, you know.” The middle-aged proprietor spared them a glance from his seat, one corner of his lips tugged into a teasing grin.

Right. Ann dropped her gaze to her magazine, but not before catching Ren’s smirk. She gaped at him. He was teasing her!

“That’s alright, Boss,” the old lady said. The elderly couple were the only customers left in the otherwise busy day. They had been sitting at the table behind Ann for almost an hour with nothing but a cup of coffee. “It’s nice seeing young love blossoming in front of you. Isn’t that right, Dear?” she asked her husband sitting across from her.

Her husband nodded, mumbling “right, right,” though his attention was fixed on the television. Ann shared a glance with Ren and was glad to see she wasn’t the only one feeling embarrassed.

“Ah, but I heard you’re leaving soon, son?” the old lady went on. Ren looked up from the siphons. “Boss told me.”

“Oh…” A slight widening of his eyes, Ren’s gaze wavered for a fraction of a second before he resorted to a quiet nod. “Yeah.” He stirred the coffee in the siphon and removed the heat source from the bottom chamber. “I’ll return to my hometown after the semester ends.”

“It’ll be lonely here,” the old man added, sipping his coffee. “It was nice having a fresh face around, unlike the old grump who runs this place.”

“Keep badmouthing me and I’ll charge you twice for the coffee, gramps,” Sojiro chimed from the kitchen.

They all laughed.

The couple finished their coffee and asked for a check. While Sojiro handled the cash register, Ann found her gaze drawn toward the siphons, where the coffee was now making its way back to the bottom chamber. It had always fascinated her—the way they worked. Ren had tried to explain the science behind it, but Ann could never truly grasp it. Something about vapors and pressure and vacuum. Ann enjoyed seeing the water rise to the top beaker before falling back down after the heat source was extinguished, extracting all the essence, aroma, and taste from the grounds. And once everything was finished, a small dome-shaped mound formed over the filter.

“Your coffee, Miss,” Ren said, pushing a cup of the freshly brewed coffee toward her. Ann stared at it, perplexed. She hadn’t ordered a coffee. But before she could ask, Sojiro had cut her off, asking Ren to watch the store while he went out to buy groceries for the evening. The elderly couple had left, and Sojiro was already untying his apron, setting it down on the chair by the register.

Ren replied with an “alright”, but even after his guardian had left, he still didn’t look at her. She followed him with her eyes as he wiped the counter clean, wondering what thoughts hide behind that beautiful poker face. It was not until he stopped and asked, “What?” that Ann shook her head and mumbled, “Nothing.”

I heard you’re leaving soon.

Right. There was only one month left. The coffee swirled dark in her cup. Ann brought the rim to her lips and sipped the thin liquid. Bitter. But satisfying. Ren’s coffee had never failed to put a smile on her face.

“I’m gonna miss your coffee,” she murmured.

A pause in his movements. She felt it more than she saw it, the way his gaze fell on her. He studied her, and for a moment she refused to look up. Ren always had that piercing glare, as if he could see right through her to the deepest, darkest parts of her mind, and right now, Ann didn’t want to feel naked in front of him. But then he called her name, so soft, his voice just above a whisper, and it was an instinctive gesture—the way her eyes met his. The look she saw on his face rooted her to the spot. Gone was the poker face he so often donned. His dark gray orbs were drawn, his lips pulled into the most tender smile she had ever seen on him.

“Want me to teach you how to make them?” he asked.

It was such an unexpected offer that Ann had to take a moment to understand what he meant: the siphons. But… why? What brought it up? Ann tilted her head to the side in puzzlement.

Ever since the first moment she met him, Ann could never guess what Ren was thinking. One moment he was the convicted criminal on probation. The next, he became one of the few people in her life who ever reached out to her, when all the world saw her as nothing but a nuisance. He’d become so dear, and she would not trade him for any other men in the entire world.

Then the tender smile disappeared, replaced by that cheeky yet endearing smirk that pushed her heart to near-bursting.

“Might as well,” Ren added, “so you don’t come crying to me every night on the phone.”

Ann rolled her magazine and slapped him hard on the arm.

“Between you and me, we both know who’s gonna call the other every other night,” she retorted.

“Wanna bet on that?”

He was grinning, and so was she. The next thing she knew, both of them were doubling over with giggles and laughter that neither of them could stop. She drank her perfectly brewed coffee, which, in her opinion, was already better than Sojiro’s, and Sojiro’s was a tough bar to pass. If only he could stay…

Ren quirked an eyebrow when Ann looked at him. “Well,” she said, getting up to her feet. She moved to the other side of the counter and stood in front of the siphons. Blue eyes met gray, and Ann hoped her smile was bright enough to hide her melancholy. “What’s the first step, chef?”

***

How could someone mess up a place just by brewing coffee?

It was supposed to be easy—or, Ren said it was supposed to be easy. “Pour water into the bottom chamber, let it boil over the heat source, see it transform into vapor as the rest go up the siphon into the top chamber. Add coffee grounds, stir, and wait.” The worst she could do was probably the uneven ratio, or the stirring method, or the timer, resulting in a too-thin coffee or too thick. So how had it ended up with coffee splattered all over the counter and a slight blister on Ren’s hand?

‘It was mostly your fault,’ Ann replied in her text.

‘“Mostly” being the key word.’

Ann had been waiting for the timer to go off when suddenly, arms wrapped around her from behind. Ren had rested his chin on her shoulder, making her heart skip a beat.

“Ren?”

“Let me stay like this for a while.” His voice was soft against her ear, and maybe it was the slight tremble she had noticed that made her give in. She’d covered his hand with her own.

“It’ll only be a year,” she’d said. His arms had tightened. “And we have phones. And internet.”

“Are you saying you won’t miss me?”

“Stupid.” A quiet thing, accompanied by a breathy chuckle. Her breath caught in her throat. “Of course I’ll miss you.”

They had stayed like that until the timer went off in a sudden blaring noise. Ann jumped, jerking Ren back a step. Her shoulder knocked his chin.

Between his hiss of pain and Ann’s hasty apology, Ann had turned around in an attempt to check on him. But her elbow bumped against the boiling siphon, and it swayed, then tumbled, but before it could crash, Ren’s hand had shot out and grabbed the handle. Coffee had splashed across the counter and the back of Ren’s fingers burned from grazing the bottom beaker. They’d rushed him to the sink and poured cold tap water over it.

‘You were getting touchy-feely when the coffee was still brewing,’ Ann went on.

‘And you didn’t?’

She had. It had been her precious last month with Ren before he returned to his hometown. Who wouldn’t have gotten sentimental? She could almost hear his laughter. Ann smiled.

‘Anyway, what does that have anything to do with our conversation?’

‘Nothing.’

‘Jerk.’ Ann laughed.

‘Let’s go there sometime,’ came his reply. ‘Together.’

Together. Ann fought hard to keep her smile at bay as she typed in her reply. ‘Let’s.’

Ren had to go, so they bid each other goodbye. Ann stared at her phone screen, exhaling a quiet, contented sigh. It had been a while since their last date. With college and part-time jobs, their quality time had been reduced to movie nights or dinners at her home or his apartment.

Ann couldn’t stop smiling as she sipped her cold blended drink, eyes fluttering upward toward the siphons on the counter. The barista was now brewing coffee to a small group of spectators. Ooh’s and ahh’s erupted from them, and for a moment, she was back in Leblanc, sitting at that counter, watching Ren work the coffee siphons. Her smile grew. It had always been a captivating thing to watch.

~ END ~

#ann takamaki #ren amamiya #shuann #persona 5 #persona #fanfiction #persona fanfic #p5 fanfic #annweek2020

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baekhypnotized · 4 years

Text

☆— [four]

summary: Baekhyun is just a man who doesn’t believe in romance as much as Byul, who is trying to give herself to him. But day by day, he will soon realize that her fleeting actions are breaking down his cold-hearted brick wall, no matter if it takes her a million years.

warning(s): -

word count: 4.1k+

author’s note: please let me know what you guys think about this chapter!! if you would want to be tagged for next update, do tell me!! enjoy reading :)

tag list: @iloveagain @xlxbaekhyuneex @catboyseni

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As promised, I come to the cafe early to pass the keys to Senior Hana. I offer to help her with the opening procedure which includes setting up the coffee machine and displaying desserts, so it would be easier for my other colleagues to start their work in the morning. Ever since last night, Baekhyun hasn’t replied to my text, up until now. I’m just hoping he wouldn’t forget our discussion that we had agreed on last night because I don’t want to screw any of my plans for today.

I make myself a serving of chicken sandwich and a cup of latte for breakfast while waiting for him. At least I can kill time before he arrives. Having done preparing my breakfast, I bring the tray and sit at the table by the window, at his usual spot. I devour the sandwich while watching the customers enter the cafe once Senior Hana opens the cafe for business. They must be the type of people who needs caffeine in order to start their day.

My phone rings, signalling a new notification. I put down my sandwich and grab the device. Finally, it’s a text from Baekhyun.

[Baekhyun]: I just woke up from my sleep. Am I late?

[Byul]: No you’re not. It’s 10:10 in the morning and you still have time.

[Byul]: Don’t rush yourself because I can wait for you though.

[Baekhyun]: Nah, I hate making a woman wait for me so I’ll be there soon.

[Byul]: Drive safe, Baekhyun.

[Byul]: I don’t want to meet you only with one hand.

[Baekhyun]: Haha, funny. Anyway, good morning.

[Byul]: Good morning :)

A wide smile is plastered across my face after replying to his texts. His replies are always so cute to me. I lock my phone and put it on the table before continuing to munch my sandwich and enjoying my hot latte. I love how today’s morning is peaceful with only a few people walking pass by the cafe. I’m also quite grateful that the class is cancelled.

I bet Soomin is still sleeping soundly on her bed as I don’t know any of her plans today. She might go out for shopping with Sehun or prefer to stay at home and watch Netflix. The differences between us are pretty visible. Soomin was born into a wealthy family, whereas I came from a humble background. My parents were divorced and my dad just went missing after the separation. My mom, on the other hand, decided to remarry. Even though Soomin and I came from different backgrounds, I’m still grateful that we are friends, because more often than not, we complete each other with our opposite personalities.

Suddenly, I get startled by a few knocks on the window that I accidentally smudge the sandwich across my cheek, leaving a streak of mayonnaise. I turn my head towards the cause of my surprise and is met with Baekhyun, the man is giggling to himself watching my funny reaction. I roll my eyes and pick up tissue to wipe the smudge off as he enters the cafe and joins me.

"Sorry I’m late,” Baekhyun apologies and I shake my head, telling him it’s fine as my mouth is full with the sandwich. He realises that I’m busy eating my sandwich. It makes him chuckle.

I quickly swallow the food in my mouth and ask him, “Have you had your breakfast?”

"My breakfast is coffee,” he answers and I nod my head. Once I finish eating my sandwich, I grab my cup of latte and sip it slowly, feeling uncomfortable with the sight of Baekhyun watching me.

I pull away from the cup, “Why? Is there any problem?” I ask.

"I want a cup of latte that you make,” he says. I scoff after hearing his request.

"Really, Byun Baekhyun? All the latte tastes the same!”

"But not yours,” Baekhyun grins widely, showing his white teeth. I sigh in surrender and stand up from my seat. He passes the money to me and I roll my eyes at him, causing him to chuckle. Heading back to the counter, I key in his order into the system and prepare his latte only in a few minutes. I use my skills to draw an angry emoji at his latte as a sign of revenge. As I head back to the table, Baekhyun has his legs crossed while he’s busy scrolling his phone.

I place the cup in front of me before settling down in my seat. “Baekhyun, your latte is there,” I inform him but he does not move any inches. I release a scoff while taking out my laptop from my bag. I don’t even know why he seems surprised to see that I’m back from making his latte.

"Yeay!” He beams. “Thank you, Hanbyul,” Baekhyun continues as he displays a sly grin to me before lifting the cup from the saucer plate and sips it.

I ignore him this time, rolling my eyes to the back of my head. Without wasting any time, I turn on my laptop for the discussion, expecting Baekhyun might need some time before he is done with his breakfast.

"Do you bring your laptop? Or any notebook to jot down?” I ask him and he replies with a nod. He finishes up his latte and begins to prepare himself for our first discussion by taking out his laptop.

After we reassure ourselves ready to begin the discussion, both of us starts by reading the statement and question given by our lecturer. Baekhyun looks smart when he shares his opinions regarding this project. I suddenly remember the first time we met at the cafe, he wore a fancy suit to order a coffee and I assume he's someone who already got himself a job. Because right now, Baekhyun looks like a professional, like someone who is a master in this course. Maybe, there is a reason why he decided to further his study in the Master of Business Administration.

Throughout our discussion, Baekhyun contributes more in giving his ideas. At the same time, I list down every point that we need to add or do research before starting the assignment. His hand gestures when explaining the details manages to distract my focus from the topic which causing me to keep on staring at it. Baekhyun’s long and slender fingers, hands with a few visible veins popping out shows his masculine side. His attractive silver wristwatch positioned on his left wrist gives an extra point.

"Hey, missy. Are you lost in your dreams?” Baekhyun snaps his fingers right in front of my face that cause me to jump in surprise in my spot.

"I’m sorry. Where are we again?” I tighten my grip around the pen as I lift my head to look at his face. Baekhyun chuckles at the astonishment on my face.

"Let’s continue this, huh?” He suggests and I reply with a hum. Baekhyun shakes his head, probably remembering my face when I was spacing out while he was talking. I admit, my face looks funny. Biting my lower lip as I try to forget that embarrassing moment, I continue to listen to his explanations diligently.

After spending hours at the table, I realised it’s already passed at 12 o'clock noon. We were too busy up until we didn’t have the time to even hold the discussion for a rest. Baekhyun already looks exhausted when he rests his back by the backrest. I turn off my laptop and keep it back in my bag, gathering all the used cups and saucer plates to bring it back to the kitchen.

"Tired, Baekhyun?” I ask him.

"Kinda, my brain isn't working good now,” he expresses.

I snort softly. “Now, you can go home and rest. I need to get ready for my next shift at 2. Great job for today.” Getting off from my seat, I carry the cups and plates to the kitchen.

But before I get to move, Baekhyun calls. “Hanbyul.” I turn around to face him with a curious look.

"About our date,” He stops for a second, “can you empty your schedule for this Saturday? I’ve booked a restaurant for dinner. We can go anywhere you want before that, if you want to.” Baekhyun speaks. My heart drops for a second when he mentions the date.I thought he had forgotten about it, not expecting him to be serious about his invitation the other day.

I think of the plans I might have for the day, hoping I will be able to clear it for the date. “Yeah, sure.” I give him an answer, remembering that I am free on that day. Baekhyun beams brightly upon hearing it.

He keeps all his stuff in his bag while I wait for him. Baekhyun gets ready to leave as he plasters a soft smile on his face.

"I’ll see you this Saturday, then?” He confirms back as I nod. Baekhyun comes closer to me and gives one last smile before he leaves the cafe without turning back. I swear, my heart is about to jump out of my chest at that moment.

Baekhyun doesn’t text or talk to me after the day we met for the discussion. We didn’t encounter each other by chance either since our Friday’s class was also cancelled by the lecturer. Now I am pacing around in my room on Saturday. I’ve done all the chores in the house today, from doing the laundry to washing the dishes and mopping the floor. I am determined to free my schedule today just for the date. But, I’m not sure if it’s going to be happening at this rate. I don’t have the guts to text him.

I even refuse Soomin’s invitation to go to the mall because I was waiting for him. In the end, she leaves the house with Sehun and I hope he will cheer her up. I’ve been scrolling my Instagram last night and I encountered his account that practically got me to sit up abruptly from my lying position.

Indeed, he’s not the type of guy who loves to post pictures of himself. Most of the pictures were random scenery and I found them aesthetic. Maybe, he just doesn’t like to share about his life and somehow, I think it suits his personality.

Baekhyun is a mysterious guy.

My desire to get to know him, every side of him is getting stronger day by day. He’s… irresistible. There is something different about Baekhyun, something that he hides deeper, away from everyone else. I’m sure it’ll take me some time to figure him out.

Finally, my phone rings after a few hours sitting in silence. I literally run to get to the phone. When I check the notification, a grin makes its way to my face. It’s really him! Like finally! Unlocking the phone, I open the text with a click.

[Baekhyun]: Hey, miss me?

I chuckle. Baekhyun is really an annoying guy, expecting that I will be missing him.

I don’t miss him. I’m just expecting his text. That’s all.

[Byul]: Ha ha. Obviously not, Byun Baekhyun.

[Baekhyun]: Ouch. That hurts.

[Byul]: Serve you right. So, why are you texting me?

[Baekhyun]: You must’ve forgotten our date tonight, huh?

I thought you’re the one who forgets it, Baekhyun.

[Byul]: Date? What date?

[Baekhyun]: Stop playing around, Hanbyul.

[Baekhyun]: I’ll pick you up at your house if you’re okay with it.

[Byul]: My house? But, I can go by myself to the restaurant.

[Byul]: No worries.

[Baekhyun]: Hanbyul, it’s unpleasant to let a woman go by her own for the date.

[Baekhyun]: I’ll pick you up at 8. Send me your address later.

[Byul]: Okay then…

[Baekhyun]: See you.

[Baekhyun]: And I’m expecting a real address.

I text him the address of my apartment before he replies to me with a curt 'okay'. Looking at the clock, I realize I still have a few hours left before the date. I stand in front of my wardrobe, staring at the few dresses that I have hanging in it. Going through some dresses, I sigh realizing I don't have any dresses that could be suitable to wear on a first date. He did mention about booking a restaurant so I figured he wouldn't bring me to somewhere I can simply wear my ordinary dresses. After contemplating between a royal blue coloured dress and a black dress for more than a few minutes, I decided to settle with a wine-coloured dress. The dress is short but it ends nicely above my knees. I then take my bath and get myself ready despite having an hour left till 8. I choose to put on natural shades make-up before putting on my dress. Finally, I style my hair with my hair curler and let them fall loose on my shoulders.

I inform Soomin about going out, omitting the fact that I'm going out for dinner with Baekhyun. As usual, she tells me to take care of myself, to not come back too late and to call her if anything happens. I agree with all of the things she told me and tell her to have fun with Sehun. She must be having a splendid day with her boyfriend. I envy her.

When the hands on the clock move to 10 minutes before 8, I receive a text from Baekhyun.

[Baekhyun]: I'm almost there. You can come out now.

It’s time. I bring my purse together with me when leaving the house. Riding the lift to the ground level, my heart couldn’t bring itself to pump normally. I wait for him at the entrance, my toes curling in anticipation. A few minutes later, a familiar black car stops right in front of me.

The driver rolls down the window, peeking his head from the inside, “Hop in, Hanbyul.”

I take a deep breath before getting into the passenger seat, buckling myself up. Baekhyun watches me settling down and when I turn to look at him, I was awestruck. The car may be dark right now but his charming look is visible.

"Ready to go?” He asks as I nod my head. Baekhyun presses the pedal and drives the car to our destination. Believe me, I just stay still like I used to, fingers gripping tightly around the seatbelt. The urge to look at him, the way he drives, is strong but I fight the desire. I realise he is stealing a few glances at me that makes me blush quietly.

We finally arrive at the restaurant after nearly half an hour. As expected, he brings me to fancy, and most probably, expensive restaurant. I follow Baekhyun from behind as the waiter brings us to the private room that he had reserved for us. He helps me pull my chair out, letting me take my seat before he does and I thank him softly. Baekhyun only replies to me with a smile, as sweet and charming as ever.

The waiter hands out the menu and I get surprised seeing the prices that make me gulp. Baekhyun must have saw me reacting to them as he chuckles softly.

"Would anything be okay for you? Any allergies or requests?” He asks concernedly.

"Yeah… I’m okay with anything.”

"Good. I’ll order the same thing as usual,” Baekhyun tells the waiter before he leaves the room, leaving me and Baekhyun alone.

"So… how are you?” Baekhyun initiates the talk first.

"I’m fine, as you can see. How about you, Baekhyun?"

"Quite busy handling something.” He replies. My mouth turns into an ‘O’ shape and we both get into silence again. I’m so nervous to look at him straight into the eyes and at the same time, I just don’t know what topic should we talk.

"Hey," he calls, making me lift my head up to face him. "You're usually so talkative at the cafe, why are you being quiet now?" He muses, followed by an amused grin.

"Baekhyun, how old are you?” I ask after contemplating for a few seconds.

"28. Do I look too old?” He questions me back and I chuckle with a shake of my head.

"I’m 2 years younger than you,” I confess.

"Yeah, I can see that.” He chuckles huskily this time.

A waiter comes into our room with a bottle of wine, pouring it into our glasses. I thank him politely before continuing the conversation.

"Regarding our assignment, when do you want to proceed? Are you free after we have our classes or—”

"Hanbyul, can we talk about anything else aside from the project?” He orders. My breathing stops for a second, hearing him speak in such a serious tone. I bring my head down to look at the table, fiddling with the napkin as I try to think of another topic to converse.

"How about you tell me about yourself? Maybe your family or anything?” I purse my lips together, waiting for his answer. Baekhyun smirks slightly, fixing his sitting posture.

"My family isn’t interesting at all. Let’s talk about yours. Shall we?" Baekhyun taps his fingers while staring at me with the same smirk. My stomach is about to flip all over because he's making me nervous with that look. I take a glass of wine and drink it slowly, tasting the alcoholic drink that is foreign in my throat. The wine somehow causes me to make weird facial expressions and I guess, Baekhyun sees it. Because he laughs softly.

"Does it taste weird?" He asks with concern.

"Kinda but it's tolerable. Thank you for asking," I reply. At least, the wine can calm my nerves after being so nervous in front of him. Baekhyun plasters a smile before he drinks his wine, waiting for me to start telling him about myself. I take the opportunity of the silence between us to calm myself down.

"So… here it goes.” I start telling him about my background honestly. I tell him about me being an only child with divorced parents; my dad disappeared since then, while my mom got the full custody of me. A few years after the divorce, she remarried another guy, my current stepfather and decided to move in with him at New Orleans. I also have an older stepbrother named Suho. Suho is two years older than Baekhyun.

"Don’t ask me whether he has a girlfriend or not because he hasn’t talked about it with me,” I warn Baekhyun. He only chuckles to my statement and asks me to proceed with the story.

It goes on from my life in New Orleans, with my new family. He listens to me diligently while waiting for our main courses to arrive. I tell him the reason I’m continuing my studies and it’s because I would love to run my own business. But, would definitely apply for a job at any company once I graduate from this post-graduate study.

"So, you’re telling me that you work at the cafe to pay for your study?” Baekhyun asks once he sips the wine as I nod my head slowly.

"I applied for a loan for my study because I had to,” I confess with a soft tone. Realising how tough my life is when I’m trying to be an independent person for my own future. I may belong to a modest family but I have been told by my mom that living without trying to achieve one's dream are useless.

Baekhyun hums. Finally, our meals arrive on time and I am glad for the distraction because I couldn’t bring myself to tell him more about my struggling life. He thanks the waitress that served us the food before she leaves the room. We’re having steaks for dinner tonight.

"Let’s eat, shall we?” He says and I smile. Both of us start to devour the juicy and thick steaks as I leave myself stupefied with the rich taste of the meat. It’s really scrumptious and no wonder it's one hella expensive food at a 5-star restaurant.

Baekhyun notices my reaction as he asks, “How does it taste? Good?”

I bob my head up and down, carrying on to eat. He seems happy watching me eating so well as a wide smile appears across his face. Baekhyun gives me one last glance before he continues to eat.

"How about you? What made you decide to continue into this course?” I blurt out, asking him a question.

"Well, I want to expand my knowledge in business. Who knows, I might be given the opportunity to handle a big one, one fine day,” he stops, making eye contact with me. I just bob my head a few times as a sign I’m listening to his explanation.

The conversations go on and on, but the difference is the awkwardness between both of us has vanished. Baekhyun literally tells lame jokes but it’s still funny when he expresses it. It manages to make me almost choke myself while eating.

Those crescent eyes, bulging cheeks and endearing smile when he smiles caught my attention. It’s a good view to be able to witness his another side apart from his manliness. Manliness was my first impression of him when he stepped into the cafe with a well-tailored suit. Not to mention, the way he talks and behaves, he must be a great person to befriend with.

We have chocolate lava cakes for dessert. Baekhyun has been asking my favourite flavour as I answer him, “Chocolate. How about you?”

"Strawberry flavour. Gosh, I’m willing to eat them 24/7 rather than kill myself with cucumbers.” Baekhyun explains.

I scoff while giving him an unbelievable look. “You don’t like cucumbers?”

"It’s not just I don’t like it. I hate it.” Baekhyun replies with a serious tone that makes me giggle. He may look like a sulking boy right in front of me, eating the lava cake with a slight pout.

"Come on, Baekhyun. It’s just a cucumber and delicious too when you eat just like that.” I give him my own opinion.

"Na-ah! Still, I hate it.” He retorts with a scowl on his face. I chuckle lightly and eat the lava cake. Suddenly, his phone rings loudly. He digs out his phone from his pocket and looks at the dialler. Instead of answering it, he lets the rings continue as he silent his phone.

"You can answer the call, Baekhyun. I don’t mind at all, it might be important.”

"It’s okay. Not important at all,” he says. “Let’s finish this up and then I’ll send you home, okay?” I hum and continue to eat quietly in my seat. I’m curious about the caller because the phone is still ringing and vibrating as he places his phone on the table. It does look like it’s important but he insists to ignore it so I am left to wonder quietly on my own.

Baekhyun pays for dinner and we go straight to my apartment with silence lingering in the car. Without having any courage to initiate the talk, I decide to stare at the window, looking at the Moon shining brightly in the dark sky. There aren't many stars tonight, only the Moon decorating the lonely night sky. The journey to my apartment is short, basically, he drifts the car at the empty road swiftly like a professional. When we arrive in front of the lobby, he offers to help me get out of the car by opening the door and lending his hand. Which successfully makes my cheeks go red.

"Thanks for tonight and the wonderful dinner, Baekhyun,” I thank him politely.

"No problem. Rest well and I’ll see you on Monday,” he says and I nod my head. Baekhyun gets back into his car, rolling down the window and bidding the last goodbye before he leaves. I sigh in relief, grateful at the same time for the great time I spent with him tonight.

I head straight home quietly without making any noises to avoid awakening Soomin who is probably sleeping in her room. After taking a quick shower, I hop on my bed, staring at the ceiling. I reminisce the moment I had with him. It’s almost 11 pm when my phone receives a notification and I bet it’s from Baekhyun.

[Baekhyun]: Asleep already?

[Byul]: Nope. Have you arrived at your home yet?

[Baekhyun]: I’m dropping by somewhere because I promised someone to meet tonight.

[Byul]: Oh… I see.

[Baekhyun]: Hanbyul, I forget to tell you something.

[Byul]: What is it?

Baekhyun doesn't reply to my question straight away that leaves me curious on my own. I decide to switch off the lights and gets ready to sleep when suddenly my phone rings again. I unlock it and look at the text. That text manages to make my heart and my mind has gone crazy when I read it.

[Baekhyun]: You look amazing in that dress, Hanbyul.

[Baekhyun]: Goodnight and sweet dreams, beautiful.

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darkficsyouneveraskedfor · 5 years

Text

Fiction is the lie through which we tell the truth

Warnings: noncon sex (oral, m&f, intercourse)

This is dark!Steve and explicit. 18+ only.

Summary: The reader is a fic writer and her number one fan can’t get enough.

Note: This is probably the most meta shit I’ve written but for all the fic writers out there, this one if for you. Hope y’all get the good d you deserve but until then, here’s this!

Please let me know what you think in a reblog/reply! <3 please and thank you.

You let out a sigh of relief and hit ‘post’. It was almost pathetic but it was the best part of your day, or most days. Having something to share with others was nice. The fact that they enjoyed your work and your boredom-induced work made it worth the frustration.

It wasn’t real writing. You knew that. Fanfiction was a genre to be laughed at. You didn’t admit it to anyone but there was a sense of pride to go along with the shame.

That part of you was kept online. The darker parts; the lust, the angst, the fear. It all went hand in hand and no one would guess that the bookshop assistant was stevies-doll. It felt almost scandalous to have a virtual alter ego.

You closed your laptop and checked the time. More than enough to get ready for work. Plain blouse, grey pants, mary jane flats. You were the typical bookish girl with dreams that would never come true.

The bus was late. Oh well. You’d still be there in time you’d just have to forego your usual espresso. Afternoons were draining and you often needed the boost to keep from nodding off in the last hour. You really weren’t sure why the shop stayed open so late; not many came out after five for books but traffic was relatively steady in the hipster village.

Nina met you with a frown. She preferred you at least ten minutes earlier. Tardiness had seen several other clerks fired and you had been the only to make it more than a year in the shop. Three in fact. This place was like a second home. A garden of ideas to plant the seeds of your mind.

When Nina left, you rearranged the desk. You moved aside her ledger and replaced it with your notebook, two pens to the right of it. In between the chime of the door and the rare customer queries you did most of your writing. When you reached a block you’d read, but today you felt particularly inspired.

The world was saved again. The news reports had shown footage of the daring rescue. As grim as the situation was, you couldn’t help but fantasize. The first avenger with his golden hair and sharp jawline was every woman’s Adonis. At least, you thought he was the very picture of perfection.

It wasn’t obsession. That was your mantra. You often argued with yourself. As much as you thought of the great Steve Rogers, it was only admiration. It wasn’t the possessive infatuation often found on social media. It was a hobby. An escape from the world.

You bent over the notebook. The shop was empty. The dulcet tones of indie folk floated along the shelves. You set pen to paper and waited for the ring to draw you away from the world behind your eyes.

You leaned on the counter and scribbled the first line in ink. That was always the hardest part. Then again, the beginning was always more exciting than the end.

‘The day the earth went dark, there was but one beacon left to shine…’

It was amusing at first. The thought of another person spending so much time writing about him. That someone would fabricate an entire universe in which he was entirely different. Somewhere out there was a woman who wore the pseudonym ‘stevies-doll’.

Steve knew he should have been perturbed by the fact. The idea of another so consumed by him that they would post almost every other day about him. He couldn’t remember how he stumbled on the small blog. A decent following but nothing close to viral.

The first story he read was cute. It even made him feel warm. The second was very much the same. He clicked through to another, this one more serious. Grey and daunting. A few more and he stumbled upon one he found most interesting, the letters NSFW emblazoned across the top. He googled the acronym and clicked back to the tab. Excited almost.

When he finished, he was warm in another way. Hot, almost. The things he read, the idea of him doing them, was almost arousing. Of course, he had never done any of it. Had never been more than the perfect gentlemen. Sweet and doting. That was how love should be. But that wasn’t love, no, that story was sex. Pure, unadulterated fucking.

He forced himself away from the computer after that. He needed to sleep. He had intended to browse his email quickly but he often found himself in the oddest rabbit-holes. That was definitely the deepest. He shook his head and chuckled. It was funny.

The next morning he awoke and went about his usual routine. He was out the door by seven. Off to save the world. Or wait around for it to need saving. At Stark Tower, he listened to Tony with his eyes on his phone. It wasn’t anything important. Some recounting about how he had scared Pepper with a nano-spider.

Steve gave a half-hearted chuckle and Tony went back to his screen. “Tough audience,” He muttered to Bruce who merely shook his head.

Steve leaned against a stool and squinted at his phone. He stared at the google search. Why had he typed it in? Somewhere in the tedium of Tony’s chatter, he had keyed in the name. He hit the first link and his phone loaded slowly.

His own face stared back at him. The banner was a press photo he had taken over a year ago. His bright eyes were staunch beneath the mask as he stared off into the distance. She had posted again. His thumb hovered over ‘read more’. Did he dare?

He looked up to make sure he was not being observed. The two scientists were too distracted to care about his online activity. He stood straight and cleared his throat. “I’m gonna hit the gym,” He lied. A grumble from both scientists as they squinted at the floating screens. “Right, have fun.” Steve said dryly as he left them to their work.

He stepped out in the hall and pressed his thumb to the screen. He bent his head over the phone as he walked blindly down the halls. Neither Tony or Bruce noticed through the window that he had gone entirely the wrong way. Steve didn’t either as his eyes flitted over the screen.

‘The day the earth went dark, there was but one beacon left to shine…’

You couldn’t believe how much your blog had grown in the last few months. You didn’t know if it betrayed your unexciting life or your one-track mind. Both, maybe. But it made your everyday responsibilities a little less tedious.

And the messages were even better than the hit count. Several had messaged to say they loved your work and went so far as to call you an inspiration. It was flattering but it was easy to remember who you were. No Stephen King or JK Rowling. You wrote silly one shots with limited development.

Today your inbox had been steady. Every time you found yourself bored at work, you opened the app and you had another message. Most of them short or even just emojis but nice nonetheless. And there was one you were waiting to answer

So long and in depth you had to give it more than just a thanks. You opened it several times and reread it.

‘Your story is really interesting. I think the way your portray Steve is believable. In this type of writing you rarely find anything realistic but your writing feels genuine if not entirely accurate. I would say you capture the essence of Steve perfectly and his actions at least make sense.

I always enjoy your updates and even look forward to them...especially the NSFW ones. ;)’

It was one of the few users who didn't use the anonymous feature and also left a complete comment. It was refreshing and you had come to look forward to their commentary. They went by CapUSA. Another Steve fangirl who was surprisingly inactive outside your blog. Her page was almost a clone of your own. They liked every post, reblogged, and commented. What more could a writer ask for?

Original characters maybe and not just fantasies of someone who’d never know of her existence. You closed your laptop and sighed. It felt like time. You could feel the block at the back of your head. The little thrill you got was wearing off and it felt like a phase better left to fade with your emo days in high school and that month in university when you dyed your hair purple.

You readied for work. Back on days that week. Opening was always easier. It didn’t feel so drawn out. Nina would be in at one and you’d keep her company until four. It meant little time for writing. Maybe that was for the better. You needed to start planning. For the future. For something truly your own. A fantasy so detached from reality that it would make market and maybe even a dime.

That was your dream. You didn’t want to be the listless fangirl forever. Ugh, how you hated to even call yourself a fangirl. No post today, you resigned. Maybe none tomorrow. You’d have to work up the courage to announce your hiatus. Life was calling and for once a sliver of genuine inspiration.

And the bookstore. It was Shakespeare’s birthday, which conveniently was also his death day. This meant two for one on all of his works. Nina also hired actors to stand outside the shop and re-enact famous scene from the playwright’s repertoire. They wouldn’t arrive till noon but you had a lot of set-up to do. Enough to keep you from thinking of the disappointed messages that would fill your inbox.

Steve scrolled through the pale pink blog for the dozenth time that morning. It had been two weeks since stevies-doll posted. The longest two weeks of his life. He wasn’t sure when it had become a staple in his life. A ritual almost. He’d read her latest fic as he laid down and try to clear his head of blood and grime. Lose himself in the person she dreamed he was. The man he had come to envy. Fictional but all too real in his head.

But there was nothing. At first he re-read and read again. But that grew old. He knew almost every story by heart at this point. He could recite the intro line to most and he fell asleep as his imagination reconstructed the things he had never done.

Her banner flashed across his sight when he woke, the image of his blue eyes staring beyond him. He’d come to think of her Steve as an altar ego. The beast buried deep inside of him. He was tired of being the nation’s golden child. Their unwavering moral beacon. He wanted to be him and she had helped him figure out who he truly was.

But she was gone. No green dot above her name in the chat window, her last post dated fourteen days ago, her blog like a time capsule. The ice that had preserved him for seventy years. Where was she?

Then a thought struck him. A devious one. He had been on enough missions to know his way around a computer. He considered himself quite savvy after living nearly a decade ahead of his time. It was simple enough. He tracked down many a drug pin this way and they were often concealed behind walls of encryption. He doubted she had more than a store-bought antivirus, if that.

He climbed out of bed and booted his computer. His leg shook impatiently and he tossed his phone just beneath the corner of the monitor. He rubbed his palms together as the home screen loaded and he clicked on the browser.

Her IP was simple enough to find. Right-click, inspect. When he found it, he felt his heart jump. This was a line. A very clear one. If he did this, there was no going back. He let go of the mouse and leaned his chin in his hands. He stared at her page, split by the window of code, and his jaw ticked.

He hit back and went to the messenger. He clicked on her name and his fingertips ran over the space bar. He didn’t know what to say. He’d send her little asks about her fics but he never messaged her directly. Would she respond?

‘Hey,’ He typed slowly, his fingers sped up with each key, ‘I’m a fan of your work. I think it’s excellent. I just wanted to check in and see if you were still writing for this blog.’

He hit enter and waited. He focused on the grey dot beside her name. If she saw this, it likely wouldn’t be until morning. He checked the time and sighed. It was late. He had an early briefing with Tony and he should try to sleep.

He hovered the cursor over the x but the dot turned green and he paused. The little ‘...’ blipped in the bottom of the chat box and the ding of her reply was music to his ears.

‘Hey, sorry. I know I’ve been quiet lately. I’ve just been so busy with work. I’m a bit behind at the moment. Thank you though for following me. I always enjoy your comments :)’ He read it several times before he could reply. Before he could even think of the words to.

‘It’s okay. We all have responsibilities. Take your time.’ He wanted to tell her to hurry up but who knew? She might be someone important, like a lawyer or teacher. He could wait. As long as there was hope.

‘Thanks. I appreciate that. Really.’ That response was quicker. Curt, almost.

‘I don’t want to overstep but are you okay?’ His cheeks were hot.

‘Ah, you know, life.’

He scratched his chin as he leaned back in his chair. Slowly he sat forward and typed. It took him three tries to get it right. Concerned but not pushy. ‘Anything you wanna talk about?’ He waited. The three dots appeared then faded. Several times before her answer blipped up.

‘I don’t wanna trouble you but I appreciate you asking. Nothing I won’t get over.’

‘Ok, no problem. Just know that if you need it, I could listen. It’s could to talk about stress.’ He laughed at himself. He should take his own advice. He had a horrible habit of letting things pile up until he burst at the seams.

‘Thanks again. I’ll ttyl. I gotta get some sleep. Have a good one.’

‘You, too,’ He replied a bit too quickly. ‘Talk to you then.’

You were ready to post again. It had been almost a month since your last fic and you had been reluctant to return. You couldn’t help checking in daily to see your notifications and scroll mindlessly through your own content. And your offline writing had come to a halt. You were stuck and you didn’t know how else to cope but fall back on what you knew.

Your new friend had helped too. CapUSA had quickly become a stalwart of your blog. She, or he, you still weren’t sure, spoke to you almost everyday. They encouraged you to try one more fic as you mulled over a certain prompt. Why not? It would be like a writing exercise. Maybe it would help you with your original writing. Take some of the pressure off.

And you didn’t just talk about writing. You talked about the bookstore and Nina’s incessant complaints. You talked about the stresses of your lives. Friends, or lack thereof. Cap seemed a popular person and recounted stories of the latest drama. A close knit group of friends who acted more like adversaries. It was amusing and made your forget that your life was rather empty.

You hit post and smiled. That familiar rush rolled over you and you snapped closed your laptop. You were already dressed and ready for work. You crammed in the quick editing session before the bus was due and now you’d have to run for it.

Back on afternoons. It was rainy and you were soaked by the time you got to the shop. The weather always helped traffic and you ducked behind the counter where Nina was tending to the line with Cara, a new addition. The curly-haired blonde reminded you of old Hollywood. Her high cheekbones and rose lips rivaled Monroe’s.

“Do you want me to start early?” You asked as you tucked your bag under the counter between them.

“You better. I’m gone in ten and Cara’s only on til three.” Nina muttered. “We got a new shipment. Boxes are at the end of the aisles. We’ve not had a chance to touch ‘em.”

“Okay, I’ll get right on it,” You pin your name tag on and stepped back around the counter. She was in one of her moods and all the better that you avoid her until she left. You went to the end of the history aisle and opened the box against the wall.

‘You working?’ The vibration drew your attention from re-arranging the non-fiction section. The message floated in a bubble on your lock screen. You smiled. This faceless stranger felt like more. Of course, virtual friendships were often fleeting.

You glanced down the aisle, both Nina and Cara were squinting at the computer as a customer waited patiently for them to figure out their conundrum. You swiped away the lock and typed swiftly with your phone hidden behind your leg.

‘Closing. Here all night.’

‘Oh :( you got company at least?’

‘For a couple more hours. But no shortage of work. :/’

‘Damn. Should I leave you alone?’

‘Up to you. My responses might be sporadic. Boss isn’t very pleasant today.’

‘Cool. I just read your new fic.’

‘Yeah? Sorry I haven’t checked my notifications just yet.’

‘No problem. I left a comment is all.’

‘What are you up to?’

‘Taking a break from driving. I should actually get back to it. It’s a long trip.’

‘Where are you going?’

‘To see a friend.’

‘Ah, ok. Well, drive safe.’

‘I will ;) See ya later.’

‘ttyl :)’

‘Nina’s Nook’. Steve read the crooked moniker several times over. He couldn’t believe he was actually there. That she was inside. He made good time on the road. An eight hour trip in six. Of course, he hadn’t exactly abided the speed limit. His impatience had turned to recklessness. So unlike him.

The sky was dim. The summer nights came later and later. She’d be done in an hour. The streets were dying down and the door hadn’t chimed in almost as long. He felt nervous all of a sudden. He tried to shrug of his anxiety and took a breath.

She wouldn’t know it was him. Well, she might recognize him but she wouldn’t know he was CapUSA. He couldn’t wait to see her reaction. Steve Rogers in her bookshop. In this town. It would be a story she would recount for the rest of her life. An encounter she would never forget.

Oh, he’d make sure she remembered it.

He crossed the street. A single car passed as he stepped up on the curb. It was much quieter than New York. No honking, no shouts, no hissing sewers. He liked it. It was quaint. He stood before the door and peeked through the glass. There was no one behind the desk. But the sign read open and the lights shone in welcome.

He pushed down the handle and slowly opened the door. The bell announced his entrance and a small voice called from the corner of the shop. “One moment, please.” He heard the shuffle of books and light footsteps. She emerged from the far shelves and his lips parted at the sight of her.

He had seen her before. Her few photos on Facebook and Instagram. He had found those shortly after he ferreted out her IP. He couldn’t see much but her privacy settings allowed him a glimpse into her real life. Her smile was nicer than in her pictures.

“Sorry, I was--” She stopped short as she saw him. She blinked. He closed his mouth as hers fell open. Her voice was higher when she spoke next. “I was just sorting some stuff out. I--How can I help you?”

“Um, a friend recommended a book to me and I was passing by, I thought maybe by chance… you might have it.” He kept his voice even. The same one he used for his press conferences.

“Do you have a title?” She asked. He could see her fingers tremble. The guilt as her eyes rounded. She was thinking of all the things she had wrote about him. He was thinking of those too.

“Jeez, you know, I’ve totally forgotten but the author was, uh…” He pretended to think and his eyes drifted down her body. Her flowered blouse was boxy but her pants hugged the curves of her hips and legs. She clasped her hands together and the gesture pushed her chest together between her arms. “Margaret Archer--er, Atwood.”

“Hmm, she’s done a lot. Do you know what it’s about?” She pulled her hands apart and wiped her palms on her dark pants. His eyes followed the movement. He wanted his hands there. Wanted to feel her thighs against him.

“Something about an apocalypse...um, a character named...Snow--Snow something.” He acted like he coudn’t remember. Couldn’t recall that it was stevies-doll who had recommended the very book.

“Oh, Oryx and Crake, I think it is. It’s an interesting one.” She smiled, proud to have figured out the riddle. “If you will, it should be with our most popular books.”

She hesitated as she passed him. He followed her as she went to the shelf just beside the counter. She hovered her finger before the titles as she read them. She bent as she got lower. He admired her ass as she did. He tucked his hands in his pocket before he could reach out.

“Yeah, I think it’s in sci-fi.” She stood and peeked over her shoulder. “It’s just over here.” She led him down the narrow aisle to the end. “Starts just here so Atwood…” She scanned the shelf, “Here.” She pulled out the book and held it out to him. “We have it in hardcover too.”

He took it and felt the raised letters on the cover. “Thanks.” He didn’t even acknowledge the book in his hand. The aisle was so tight she was trapped between him and the wall. She gave a sheepish smile and he turned to press his back to the shelf. “Sorry. Go ahead.”

She nodded and squeezed past him. Her chest brushed against his torso and she pretended not to notice. Once past him, she cleared her throat. “If you need any help, I’ll be up front.” She turned before he could respond and her watched her go. He never would’ve guessed the mousy shop assistant would have such a lurid imagination.

You were in disbelief. It couldn’t be. Steve Rogers in your book shop? No, you were dreaming. Or was it a nightmare? Oh god, why had you written all that stuff? You needed to delete. Now. You could hear him. The floor creaked as he moved slowly down the aisle. You hoped he would’ve taken the book and gone. The longer he stayed, the worse you felt. Your cheeks were on fire.

Your phone vibrated. You swiped the screen and found a new message from CapUSA. You sighed and rubbed your eyes. You should just pretend you didn’t see it. You unlocked the phone and read the message.

‘Hey, how’s work?’

‘It’s fine.’ You answered. What could you say? Who would believe that Steve Rogers had walked in your door?

‘I just was thinking about your last fic.’

‘Oh yeah?’ You peeked over at the far aisle. The floor no longer whined with his weight.

‘Yeah, I’d love to re-enact the last scene.’

‘Sorry?’ You sent the message and it went unanswered. ‘I don’t get it. What do you mean?’

‘The one with the girl on her knees. Begging to be fucked.’

‘Okay? I still don’t understand.’ Your heart jumped. This was really weird.

‘Or maybe and I could fuck you on that counter you’re standing behind.’

You hit close and locked the phone. You dropped it and looked around the shop. You rushed out from behind the counter and glanced out the window. You turned the latch and the floorboards groaned. You turned and pressed yourself to the door. You forgot he was there.

How could you forget something like that?

“Sorry, uh, we’re closing up,” You felt around for the lock, “I was just--”

“That’s okay. I think I’m just about done.” He slapped the book against his palm and placed it on the corner of the counter. He set his phone on top of it with a flourish. “Why don’t you flip the sign and we can get started.”

“What are you--”

“Do you prefer I call you by your real name or stevies-doll?” He leaned against the counter and smirked. “Or I can just call you doll. I know you like that.”

“No,” You exhaled shakily, “Y-you can’t be…”

“You’re not happy to see me?” He asked. He didn’t sound like the hero you saw on the news. Barely looked like him now. His pupils dilated to darken his blue eyes and the shadows of the shop cast his face in sinister tones. “You can call me Stevie if you like.”

“I...What I wrote, it was just...” You spluttered. “I’m s-sorry.”

“You don’t have to be.” He pushed himself away from the counter. “I’m not mad. Intrigued really.”

He stepped closer and your ears pounded as the adrenaline coursed through your veins. You turned and fumbled with the lock. The door opened an inch before his hand slammed it shut again. He easily flipped the lock back into place and spun the sign with a flick of his thumb.

“You can close early and we can have some fun...maybe inspire a new fic.” His arm was around your waist and you grabbed onto his thick wrist.

“They’re just stories.” You kicked as he pulled you away from the door. He tugged the blind down over the window. “Stupid fantasies.”

“Well, consider this a dream come true, doll,” He spun and let you go. You collided with the desk and gasped as the air was knocked from your lungs. “I think you remember this scene.”

“What do you want?” You clung to the desk as you turned to him.

“You know, I’m everything people think I am. Straight-laced, valiant, boring.” He planted his feet and stared you down. “Or was...until I found your blog.” His tongue ran across his bottom lip. “It gets lonely on the road. At first, your blog was like a secret companion. It gave me something to look forward to but then it made me think. So many things I never even knew I was missing out on.”

“Please, I don’t know what you want from me,” Your voice cracked. Your fear surged and left you shaking against the counter.

“I want…” He tilted his head and his eyes flashed, “You.” He paused and pushed his shoulders back. “On your knees.” Your eyes rounded, “Oh yes,” He raised a finger, “Naked.”

You stared at him. You were frozen in place. The counter your only support from melting into a puddle. His nostrils flared as he exhaled; long and drawn out.

“Don’t make me repeat myself,” He snarled and his hand balled into a fist.

You gulped and held yourself with one hand against the counter as you bent to unlace your oxfords. You kicked them off with your socks and mustered your strength. You stood on your own and unbuttoned your shirt. You kept your eyes on the aged carpet stretched across the hardwood.

You dropped the blouse onto your shoes and unzipped your fly. The wool trousers slid halfway down without help and you untangled your legs from them. You added them to the heap and stood straight.

“Look at me,” Steve ordered. Your eyes snapped over to him. “Good.” You reached back and he raised a hand. “Stop...I wanna do it.”

He waved you forward and slowly you stepped away from the counter. He bared his palm in a gesture for you to halt and you hung your head. “Eyes up.” He corrected as he came closer. He walked around you and stopped just behind you.

His thick fingers touched the band of your bra and ran along it until they met at the hooks. He carefully unclasped it and the cups fell loose. He tickled your arms as he pushed the straps down them. He took it and flung it away from him. His hands came up to cup your tits and he pushed himself flush to your back.

“You always wrote so vividly of me but...I never knew how beautiful you truly were...how good you feel.” He squeezed and slowly lowered his hands. He dragged them to the side of your panties and slipped his fingers beneath the elastic. He bent as he guided the panties down your legs. “God, that ass.”

You shivered and his hands cradled your ass. He ran his rough palms along your cheeks and up your back. They settled on your shoulders and he pushed down firmly. “On your knees.”

He stepped back and you unsteadily got to your knees. He walked another circle around you. You could hear his dusky breaths. Glimpsed how his hand ran over the front of his jeans.

“Now ask, like a good girl,” He stopped before you and stared down with a smirk. “Go on, doll, I know you want it.”

You closed your eyes and swallowed. You grit your teeth and gather what was left of your wits. A story. That’s all this was. The letters could be backspaced and no one would know better of it.

“Please,” You recalled the last scene you had posted. The tingle which had flowed through you as you hit the button. What had she said? You opened your eyes. “Please, I want to...I want to make you happy.” You shuddered as the words whisked from you. “Can I?”

“Can you...what?” He taunted.

“Can I suck your dick?” It was barely a whisper.

“Oh, well, since you asked so nicely,” His hands were on his belt as he spoke. “But I have a different scene in mind for tonight. A new one.” He unbuckled his belt and cracked his neck. “I want you on the counter. On your back.”

You made to stand and his hand went to your head. He held you down.

“Crawl.”

You weakly dropped forward and turned. You crawled on hands and knees as he followed, stopping just in front of the desk as you followed his pointed finger to the other side. You stood and lifted yourself onto the counter and laid on your back. He guided your head over the side as he pulled you close and his hands found your tits again. He tweaked your hard nipples and you bit your lip.

He rescinded his hands and finished unzipping his pants. You tried not to watch as he pushed his pants down, his briefs too. The blur focused and you gaped at the size of him. He gripped himself and you snapped your mouth shut. He grabbed your chin and squeezed.

“Now, now, don’t act like this isn’t what you wanted,” He pressed his cock to your mouth and you were forced to open as his fingers threatened to crush your jaw.

He slid inside and your gasp was stifled as he met the back of your throat. He forced himself further and you threw your arms out. A clatter of books and papers as you swept them off the counter. He lingered at his limit and wiggled his hips. You arched your back as you choked and he grabbed your tit, kneading it as he slowly pulled out.

He pushed back in just as you gulped down air and you writhed atop the desk. He thrust in and out of your mouth. You gagged and groaned. The noises only fueled his fervour and he sunk in over and over until your head pulsed. The spit smeared around your lips and his balls.

He pulled back and slammed back in suddenly. His motion slowed as he came. He grunted, his breaths stuttered by the staggered rock of his pelvis. You clawed at the counter top and kicked until you could breathe again.

He slipped his cock from between your lips and his cum leaked from your mouth. You sat up and coughed. His hands were on your shoulders again. His fingers danced along your throat as if to ease your struggles.

“Come on, that’s just the first act,” He drew away and you glanced over your shoulder. “Turn around.”

You turned on the desk and he pulled your legs over the edge. He pushed your knees apart and stepped back to admire the view. You dug your nails into the lip of the counter to keep yourself from closing your legs.

“I know you’ve been dying to see this,” He grinned and pulled his shirt over his head.

His cock hung out of his pants. It twitched as he tossed his shirt at you. You caught it. It smelled like him. He shoved his pants down without pause and he hardened again. You dropped his shirt and looked away guiltily.

Had you not written this scene a dozen times over?

He was completely naked when you looked again. He came close, his hands on your knees as he knelt before you. You tried to pull your legs together but he held them apart. He shook his head and tutted.

“Just sit back and enjoy,” He licked his lips. “Trust me, it’s better than you could ever imagine.”

Your shock took over completely. You watched as he bowed his head and you felt his hot breath on your thighs. When his tongue met your pussy you gasped. He delved between your folds and swirled around your clit. Your nails went deeper into the wood and your thighs shook. It felt good. It shouldn’t, though.

He buried his face deeper and you watched his golden locks from above. He reached over blindly, his large hand found yours, and he guided it to the back of his head. He held it there a moment before letting go. You clung to him as he hands glided up your thighs and he framed your vee with thumb and index.

You arched your back and moaned. It was your declaration of surrender. You couldn’t resist it any longer. The heat stirred inside of you, the flames licking at your thighs and back. You urged Steve closer though he couldn’t possibly go any deeper.

His hands slipped down to the outside of your thighs. Your legs closed around his head and held him there. He tipped you slightly and you curled around him as he continued to lap. Your breaths mixed with throaty hums and you fell back.

You had one hand still on his head and the other in your hair as you cried out in a mighty climax. He didn’t stop until you were shaking across the counter. When at last his mouth left you, you shivered. A sudden coolness washed over your body. He stood and you looked at him through the haze.

He grabbed your waist and pulled you to your feet. You wavered and he spun you quickly. You caught yourself on the desk and he slapped your ass. “That’s it,” He purred. “You’re getting it now.”

He nudged your shoulder until you were bent entirely over the counter, your toes barely met the floor. He rubbed your ass and pulled your cheeks apart. His cock poked you as his hand slipped lower and he tickled just below your ass. You squirmed and he chuckled.

He felt around and his cock slipped lower as he bent his knees. He dragged his tip along your folds before prodding at your entrance. He shoved his hand between your legs and forced them apart.

He pushed inside and slowly stretched you around him. Your head shot up at the strain. A mix of pain and pleasure as he got deeper and deeper.

You whined as he bottomed out and his hips bucked almost instinctively. He hit your cervix and you cried out. He eased out and pushed back in. He repeated this again and again, his motion careful. Deliberate. He brought his pelvis flush to your ass and groaned.

“Fuck,” He slapped your ass again.

He drew back and slammed into you all at once. All restraint was lost and he thrust mercilessly. His pace was wild. You reached out to grab at the edge of the counter, your hips hitting the other painfully. The spark had caught and you felt the flame about to burst.

Your orgasm was surprising. More agony than pleasure. You whimpered and pushed your head into the counter as you heaved. You could barely breath as Steve never wavered. He fucked until you until your walls ached. Until they turned numb and you were nothing but a mewling fool before him.

He bent over your, his muscled torso against your sweaty back. He rutted atop you frantically. His hips jerked as his grunts deepened. His breath caught and he swore. He lifted himself off you and you felt the warmth spill down your ass and thigh.

You laid breathless as he panted behind you. He rubbed his cum into your skin with two fingers and you shook. You tried to push yourself up from the desk. He caught your hip and shoved you back down.

“Oh, we’re not even close to the finale,” He pinched your ass and you squeaked. “Not to mention the epilogue.”

tags to be added in reblog

#steve rogers x reader #dark!steve rogers x reader #dark steve rogers x reader #fic #steve rogers fic #au #marvel #mcu #captain america #dark!steve rogers #dark steve rogers #steve rogers #dark!fic #dark fic #dark!verse #darkverse

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autisticlalna · 4 years

Note

AND ALSO, i know you went to bed please stay there and have a good sleep and address this whenever you next feel like it,

but like. im listening to airfield, right? AND LIKE. esp the poison line, and talking about there being no reason for things happening, like, it all gives me vibes of, like, karl returning from so many tales having just watched everyone die, and often dying himself, and only one time in all the tales having actually helped make a positive difference, the wild west. and he started time travelling in the first place hoping to make a difference, right wrongs, make a better future!! and nothings coming of it but karl filling books he doesn't remember and losing what he cares about!! and so eventually hes just asking, if my travelling isn't helping people, what Is the point?

and then that striking a parallel with honk, who at first was on the same page as karl, all for him traveling and doing good and recording it all afterwards. and then over time him noticing the corruption from the inbetween, and seeing that the traveling is hurting karl more and more, and with everything hes dealing with in catching all karls dropped memories, he can't justify the inbetween trying to help karl anymore. so he Also starts asking, if karl's travelling, and the inbetween, and honk himself on his current path, arent helping karl, What is the Point?

and both of them trying so hard to reason, what does the inbetween want with them? why does karl have to record all these stories? what is the purpose of all of it, what is the gain?? and like. I dont actually know what its gonna be in canon but the whole "just cause you're down on your luck dont mean you're out" line, like!!! like even though they're both being pushed around by the inbetween it doesn't mean they can't fight anymore!! it doesn't mean they can't find their own purpose in the travelling and the tales!! it doesn't mean they can't still do good and care about people and stuff!! like. bruh, i'm just. the song gave me feels, its such a good and fitting song

seeing "please stay there" in my inbox when i woke up made me crack up ilu anon. I SLEPT DW

AAAAAAA FUCK THATS SO GOOOOOOOOOD im like, wigglin irl while trying to make coffee. FUCK. hello my only available words rn are screaming bc that is an excellent analysis and basically putting my own thoughts into words like you're some kinda wizard

im on mobile so i cant post the actual custom emoji i use but i am currently :keralisweep:. wait hold on

THERE WE GO. ME RN

#shadow people au #good morning im crying /pos #meta analysis stuff #leo.txt #leo.msg

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dearyams · 5 years

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wanted to send you a prompt i was gonna do but i am too lazy prompt: mike and will have been dating but havent said i love you, mike is going on some trip for a week where cell phones dont work (obv future fic) and so Byeler is having a phone convo before mike arrives at his destination and they wont be able to talk to each other a week and will says tells mike he loves him but before mike can respond the phone disconnects as Mike arrives at the destinationn

[ crossposted on AO3 ]

“Finished packing yet?”

Mike turns from his suitcase and the clothes piles spread about the floor in his room and grins when he spots Will leaning on the doorframe a few feet away. He’s got two iced coffee cups in hand, indicative of finishing his part-time hours at the local coffee shop a few blocks north from the Byers residence. Mike wonders if Will biked his way over or took a lift with his brother to come visit before the Wheelers make their way on an impromptu trip to upstate New York at a cabin his dad had recently inherited.

The kneeling boy waves his hands at the disorderly state surrounding him and shrugs. “I’m trying and failing at packing the right clothes for this venture, I’ll say that.”

Will chuckles and walks fully into the room. He passes along Mike’s coffee, shoving around haphazardly folded pants to find a seat on the floor beside the other boy. Mike watches him grab a sweater and toss it aside. “It’s summer so you don’t need to pack heavy. Just grab some t-shirts and jeans; that should do. Shorts too if you’d like.”

“Sure,” sighs Mike before sipping from his cup. “I don’t want to make the visit miserable if I’m wearing the wrong clothes. Wrong for the weather and wrong for looking tolerable in the photos I know Mom is gonna force on me.”

Will laughs, a gentle breeze in the summer’s heat. “You’ll look good in whatever you put on.”

“As my boyfriend, you’re kind of obligated to say that.”

“Not really.” the brunette leans in to kiss Mike’s cheek. “I’ll let you know when you look bad if only for the sake of my own eyes.”

“And when you won’t be next to me, how will you judge my outfits properly?”

Will checks his watch and hums. “When’s your departure? If you have time, you can try out some of the outfits and I’ll let you know what works.”

Mike grins as he reaches over Will’s lap and snags a band t-shirt. “Sneaky aren’t you; tryna get me undressed.”

“I’ll cover my eyes.” Will places his unoccupied hand over his eyes but spreads his fingers between his middle and ring fingers to peek through the opening. Mike scoffs, tossing a stray pair of shorts at his face which makes the brunette laugh heartily. Mike already misses Will, the knowledge that they’ll be separated for a week squeezing his heart dry with romantic despair. He wishes Will could come with but the trip was pretty unplanned and though Mike's “job” as a blog writer and editor doesn’t require a remote location, Will’s job doesn’t allow the same ease when taking off work.

(Though Mike thinks he’ll probably still be working offline on an article if his mom doesn’t steal his laptop for “family bonding in the forest” time.)

Mike’s sudden fashion show lasts for about an hour and while Will does offer good input, most of that hour is spent playing around and Mike sneaking in as many kisses as they can get away with whenever Mike peels off a shirt and struggles to get his head through the tight collar of another. Afterwards, Will helps finish packing and when completed, they lounge about on Mike’s bed as Will discusses the customers he met earlier in the day.

Though he knows packing just mere hours before departure isn’t a habit he should develop, especially when the plans for his career require frequent traveling, he spent the night before editing a movie review scheduled for posting during the drive. Mike doesn’t regret his momentary time mismanagement if it means he spends more time with Will before the trip. The article can wait—he’s posting it early anyway—but time spent with his boyfriend is always coveted.

When Mike’s mom knocks on the door, Will pulls away from Mike’s chest where he rested his head as they page through Mike’s hard copy of The Golden Compass which he wanted to review in line with the show’s release. Shaking his head and straightening his hair as best as possible, Mike struts to his door and opens it with raised eyebrows. His mom looks up from checking her phone and offers Mike a tight smile before looking past him to wave at Will.

“I’m sorry to interrupt you two,” she starts warmly, “but Mike, we have to get going soon. The traffic through the city is getting dense thanks to an accident on the 70.”

“Got it,” replies Mike as he turns back to Will, who walks to his side with both their empty cups in hand. “I’ll see you in a few days, Byers.”

“‘Course.” Will grins and leans up to press a gentle kiss to Mike’s cheek. “Call me when you’re getting close to your destination.”

“Sure, worrywart,” he teases but turns his face to kiss Will’s lips one last time before he has to depart. He watches Will nod bashfully at his mom and give her a short goodbye before making his way downstairs. Mike doesn’t look away until he hears the front door closing and then he casts his gaze on his mom. “Are Dad, Nancy, and Holly waiting outside?”

“Yes,” she nods toward the front of the house. “We’ll all just waiting on you now.”

It doesn’t take long for Mike to join his family at the car, and as his dad pulls out the driveway, Mike turns in the direction of the Byers and smiles when he sees Will on his bike a little ways down the road watching. He sticks his hand out the window, his wave only growing more frantic when Will waves back. Holly giggles and Nancy makes a side comment about love sick teenagers as if she wasn’t one herself during her escapades with Steve, Jonathan, and now Robin. The first hour and a half fills with Holly saying “moo” every time they pass a cow on the way to the interstate and Mike feels like smashing his head against his window when they pass a farm and Holly moos until she nearly passes out. Pulling out his phone, Mike shoots Will a selfie of himself despondently looking out the window and groans when his cell service takes its sweet time sending the message along. Mike gets a reply a reply twenty minutes later: Will laughing at his misery with a short additional, “you’ll be there before you know it,” and a bunch of kiss emojis.

The next hour passes with Mike flipping through his ever growing Will gallery, a digital photo album filled with selfies and candid shots of Will, both solo and with Mike. He’s not one for being in photos himself but Will manages to drag him into a few selfies here and there. He doesn’t mind snapping a selfie either by himself or together—cheeks squished as they both attempt to fit in the frame as Mike holds the phone up and out—because Will always asks him to send the photo along and then makes it his lock screen until the next time he convinces Mike it’s photo time.

After settling on a candid shot Mike snapped when he and Will visited Lovers’ Lake and the sun framed Will like a bright halo of fire, Mike settles on playing a mobile game for about another two hours before staring out the window until the trees blend together and his eyes find themselves sliding shut. He wakes up a few times here and there when the family stops at gas stations and picks up snacks—he definitely remembers his mom arguing with his dad about stopping at a hotel which they ultimately don’t do—but he wakes up for the final time to his phone buzzing in his lap, startling him out of a dream he quickly forgets upon waking. Caller ID tags the number as Will and he immediately answers as he scrambles for his headphones in his pocket.

“Hey,” he begins, shoving the headphone plug into the slot at the bottom of the device, “Is everything okay back home?”

“Everything’s great,” Will’s voice crackles on the line and Mike peaks outside in the darkness to notice the forest surrounding him. They must be close to the cabin destination already. He didn’t think he had slept for that long. “Just checking in since it’s about time you’ve arrived if your dad didn’t take a rest.”

Mike laughs. “You’re cute, you know, checking up on me like this.” He hears Nancy snorting and reaches over Holly to pinch her bare arm. She glares at him and covers Holly’s eyes to flip him off. “Nancy says hello by the way.”

“Hello back to her.” Mike can hear Will’s grin and his heart clenches in sorrow at the current distance between them. “Are you doing okay there?”

“Yeah, peachy.” Mike yawns and covers his mouth. “Is it too cheesy to say I already miss you?”

“Maybe, but I miss you, too, so you don’t have to be embarrassed about it.”

A sleepy smile curls itself on Mike’s lips. “One week, Byers; one week and then I’m back.”

“Yeah, but don’t spend your time counting down the days, alright? I’ll do that for us both; you just have a great time at the cabin.”

Mike would kiss him if he could. “I’ll try my best but you know how my brain works.”

“Are you telling me it actually does work?”

“I’m breaking up with you.” Will laughs heartily. “Why are you laughing; I’m serious this time.”

“Sure, Wheeler.” Mike frowns as the last bit of his name gets caught in static. “Hey, I know this is probably something that should wait until you’re back but this separation made me realize I should tell you either way.”

“This sounds pretty important.”

“Yeah. I, uh, you probably already know this though but,” and Will takes a deep breath and releases it, though Mike hears it in short, split crackles. “Mike, I love you.”

The clarity in those four words stuns Mike into speechlessness and his mouth dries as his heart thumps speedily in his chest. Will is right, Mike already knows Will loves him, but this is the first time Will has ever said the fact out loud. I love you echoes in Mike’s head at the reverb levels of a rock guitarist. It takes far too long for his brain to come back online, but by the time it does, the car speeds past a brush of trees and the call suddenly drops. Mike looks down at his phone screen as the loud call dropped tone passes through his headphones. His home screen—a playfully disgruntled selfie as Will kisses his cheek—stares him back in the face as Will’s voice continues to bounce about in his head.

Mike, I love you.

Mike quickly calls back but his phone spits back the message that he has no service. “Nancy,” he hisses even though the entire car heard his part of his conversation with Will anyway, “do you have any service on your phone? I need to call Will back and my phone is being homophobic.”

Nancy raises her eyebrows but checks phone and shakes her head. “Looks like you’re straight out of luck.”

“Ha; you’re quite the comedian, aren’t you.” Mike reaches forward to tap his mom’s arm. “Mom, can I borrow your phone to finish a call?”

“Sorry, sweetie, I’ve lost service, too. I don’t think any of us can use internet on our phones.”

“Does the cabin at least have wifi?”

“Nope,” snorts Mike’s dad as he drives the car down a dirt road further into the forest. “You kids these days need to learn what life is like without cell phones anyway.”

Mike rolls his eyes and mumbles under his breath, “Okay, boomer.”

“What was that, young man?”

“Okay, bummer.” Nancy bites on her bottom lip and Mike sends her a grin before settling in his seat.

Their mom reaches a hand back to rest on Mike’s knee. “It’s only 7 days, Michael. I’m sure both you and Will can last that long without contact.”

He told me he loves me, Mom, he wants to explain but Will’s words are too fresh and far too private to blurt out in front of the whole family. He crosses his arms silently and turns to stare out the window, hoping that Will can wait out these next few days and hoping he doesn’t think Mike hung up on him after such an important conversation. I love you, too, he thinks to himself, smiling as he presses his hand against the chilly window and imagines Will on the other side as if the car window is the window in Will’s room and Will’s inside watching Mike with that ever so lovestruck grin filled with appreciation that Mike came over despite the cold night to comfort Will from the nightmares that occasionally plague him to this day.

I love you, Will, he repeats inwardly, wait for me.

#byler #byeler #mike wheeler #will byers #fluff #drabble #request finished #sidenote: i call the book 'the golden compass' because that's the title in the states!#on ao3

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craniumhurricane · 5 years

Text

sometimes you have to break a few

Based on a Tumblr post I saw like forever ago and thought I took a screenshot of but can’t find:

I was in Publix and saw this woman buying a shit ton of eggs in front of me, she turned and looked at me and said “I don’t actually like eggs, my daughter’s boyfriend cheated on her and I’m going to egg his car.”

Because Clarke would be that mom.

On AO3!

It's later in the night than Bellamy would usually be doing his grocery shopping but it's the only time he was able to carve out during his busy week. The Ark High Spring Fling dance was tomorrow and somehow he was roped into signing up to help on the party committee. (Scratch that, he knows how, it's because he can't say no to Miss. Vie.)

There's only two registers open and since one is reserved for customers with 10 items or less, Bellamy opts for the other. He's zoning out and going over his mental checklist for the next day when the golden hair of the woman in front of him comes into focus. He watches her as she attempts to juggle about a dozen cartons of eggs from her hands to the conveyor belt. There's something familiar about her hair…

And then he hears her cursing and mumbling under her breath and all at once it clicks.

“Clarke?”

She startles and Bellamy is honestly shocked she doesn’t drop any of her eggs. She turns around, eyes widening as she takes him in, “Bellamy?”

He smiles, can't help it, “Holy shit, it is you. What's it been? Six years?”

She's smiling too, “Give or take but who's counting.”

He hasn't been counting, not really, but Bellamy knows he hasn't seen Clarke Griffin since she and his little sister graduated high school. She went off to some prestigious college and Bellamy stayed in Arkadia. He tried to keep in contact with her but she must have gotten a new number and then his Facebook was hacked and he didn't see a reason to set up a new one. Basically, it just seemed like they naturally drifted apart.

Except here she is. Standing in front of him in line at his supermarket at 9:30 at night purchasing approximately 144 eggs.

He feels like he's been staring too long, all his thoughts and questions jumbling together, so he asks the first thing his brain sends to his mouth...

“Come here often?” and cringes immediately but Clarke snorts out a laugh so maybe it didn't sound as bad as he thinks it did.

“Wow, that was awful,” she answers for him, but she's smirking. “Is that your way of asking if I've moved back to town?”

“Yeah, that's the appropriate way to word that question.”

She chuckles, “I've been back almost 2 years now. I got a job over at the physical therapy and rehab facility on Second.”

He tries not to let it show but he's surprised she's been back that long and he didn't know about it. Clarke was the same age as his sister but the two of them were always closer. He always thought that if she ever did come back that she would reach out. She must see something on his face though because she continues.

“I didn't know you were still in town, though!” she says in a rush. “I follow Octavia on Instagram and she seems to be as far from Arkadia as she can get. I assumed you'd be with her."

He shrugs, “Arkadia was always more my home than it was her’s.”

She ducks her head and tucks some hair behind her ear, "Yeah that seems right."

The cashier is done ringing up the eggs and calls for Clarke's attention; the poor woman only looks mildly alarmed by the purchase. Now, Bellamy’s seen enough movies to know that the cool thing to do in this situation would be to tell the cashier to ring up everything together and he’d pay for all of it… But that's a lot of fucking eggs.

Clarke pays and then to his surprise she waits for him at the end of the checkout line.

“I would ask if you were baking enough cakes to feed an army,” he says on the way out to the parking lot, “but for the Senior Year bake sale you definitely brought store bought brownies.”

She purses her lips at him for a second before exhaling in a huff, “No, these aren’t for baking. My daughter’s boyfriend cheated on her and I’m going to egg his car.”

The first thing he registers from that sentence is that she has a daughter. It’s only been six years so if she had a kid right after she left for college then at most they’d be in Elementary School. Egging a 5 year old’s car seems a bit excessive. And then the rest of the sentence hits him and he laughs.

“Finn Collins?”

"Old habits?” she smirks. “Clearly I haven't matured with age… and to be fair, that time it was Raven's idea."

He chuckles and shakes his head. "So you got a kid?"

He can see Clarke's face visibly light up at the question, despite the fact that it’s growing dark out.

“Madi, yeah," she says, "I fostered her for about a year and it was rough at first but we got through it and I think we both realized just how much we needed each other. I started the adoption process after that and then moved back here once it was finalized.” She pauses for a breath, thinks about it, and then adds, “She goes to Ark High actually."

He stops walking which makes her stop too.

“Wait, Madi Griffin?” he asks and when all she does is tilt her head in confusion he clarifies, “I teach freshman at Ark High.”

She gapes at him. “You’re Mr. Blake!? Madi talks about you all the time.”

“She’s never had a class with me," he says, dubious.

“Yeah well, you’ve always been able to make an impression.”

And suddenly it feels like old times. Clarke saying something nice about him and him not quite knowing how to accept it. She used to do it often, and adamantly, and he never felt like he deserved the praise but it never stopped her from giving it. Just like before, he feels warmth spread through his chest.

“So,” she shrugs, “you want to come with me? For old time’s sake?”

He doesn’t normally believe in signs but it feels like the universe is definitely trying to tell him something. He wants to keep hanging out, wants to catch up on the last 6 years and see if any of those lingering feelings are still there. He considers her offer for probably a bit longer than he should before reasoning finally sets in.

“Tempting but unfortunately it’s a school night,” he says, mostly as a joke but it's true. “Besides, I don’t think it would look good if a teacher gets caught egging one of his student’s cars.”

“You don’t even know if he’s one of your students.”

“And if I’m not an accomplice to vandalism then I’ll never have to know.”

“Wow, look at Bellamy Blake all grown up.”

“Well, one of us had to,” he teases and then before he can chicken out, “Let me give you my number though. In case you need bail money.”

“Wow. Smooth,” she smirks but she starts juggling her bags so she can take his phone.

“The smoothest,” he says when she hands it back. He sends her a quick text so she has his number and after that there's nothing left to do but leave.

“I'd give you a hug but,” she lifts her hands, laden with bags. And then he suddenly feels the weight of his own bags digging into his wrists.

“Next time,” he promises with a smile. “It was good to see you, Clarke.”

“You too. Bye, Bellamy.”

He almost makes it all the way to his car before he has to turn around and take one more look at her. It might be wishful thinking, but he thinks she's just turned back around from doing the same.

He contemplated texting Clarke all night but figured that would be creepy and make him seem eager, which he wasn’t. She texted him a thumbs up emoji while he was putting away his groceries, which he assumed meant she made it home alright. He hadn’t known how to respond to it last night any more then he knew how to respond to it the next morning.

So he just ignores it, or at least tries to. He has work and then the dance, so in theory plenty to keep him occupied.

Apparently, he had no reason to worry about social norms and the proper etiquette for responding to an emoji because Clarke shows up to the Spring Fling dance that night. She doesn't notice him so he avoids her and asks Maya about it instead, like an adult. Apparently she signed up to chaperone. He really should have paid more attention to this thing.

He’s about to go over and talk to her but Maya stops him and requests his help rehanging some decorations that fell down. After that she sends him off to his position at the refreshments table for the night and he completely loses sight of Clarke. He wants to go look for her but that would require abandoning his post and he doesn't trust these kids not to spike the punch bowl.

He’s not sure how much time has passed since time seems to speed up and yet stand still at these things. He also gets absorbed in his job and even chats with a few of his students as they stop by. He’s just confiscated a flask from Ethan Hardy when there’s a commotion over to his left.

“I know it was you!”

When Bellamy turns, he finally finds Clarke again. Unfortunately, it looks like she’s pissed off Nia Winters.

Nia Winters, or Queen Nia as many teachers call her behind her back due to the fact that she constantly gives this “I’m better than you and I have the attitude and money to prove it” vibe, is a long time parent of Ark High and tries to get her hands in every committee. Her eldest already graduated years ago, but now she has two more that go to the school. Bellamy will honestly be happy when they’re done with her and her overbearing “my child can do no wrong” parenting.

“I know it was you that threw eggs at my son's car!” she’s yelling at Clarke now and it doesn’t take long for Bellamy to connect the dots.

It must have been Nia’s son that cheated on Madi. Now that he thinks about it, he vaguely remembers hearing about them dating.

“I have no idea what you're talking about,” Clarke replies, expression completely cool and unreadable.

“The hell you don't!” Nia gets right up in Clarke’s face. They’re starting to draw a little bit of attention so Bellamy slowly makes his way over, ushering kids to get back to the party as he goes.

“I wasn't near your son's car last night,” Clarke says, complete with a straight face that even Bellamy would believe if he didn’t know otherwise. And then she looks Nia right in the eyes and adds, “Though whoever did do it was probably justified.”

Nia rears back like she’s been slapped before settling into a position that Bellamy can only describe as a predator ready to pounce. “How dare-”

“Sorry to interrupt,” he says as he closes the distance with two long strides. There’s still a few students looking but at least they’re trying to be discreet about it. “Can I help with anything?”

Nia whirls around to look at him and thrusts a finger out a Clarke, manicured nail just inches from her chest. “I want this woman to admit what she's done and be removed from the premises so I can press charges.”

Clarke looks like she's about to say something but Bellamy cuts her off. “I'm sorry, but I'm afraid she's telling the truth.”

Both women turn to look at him, each with their own look of bewilderment and shock.

Nia looks from Bellamy to Clarke and back. “And how would you know that?” she asks defensively.

Clarke’s looking at him with that quizzical head tilt again. He meets her eyes for a second, hoping they’re still able to communicate without speaking and then turns his attention back to the other woman. “Because she was on a date with me last night.”

Nia’s jaw drops and out of the corner of his eye he can tell Clarke is biting the inside of her cheek to try and suppress a grin.

“W-Well,” the woman stutters.

“Maybe check with one of his other girlfriends,” Clarke says as she steps forward and puts her hand on Bellamy's arm. “From what I understand, it's a pretty extensive list. You might want to get started.”

And with that Clarke leads him back over to the drinks table, leaving Nia absolutely fuming. He’s afraid she’s going to try and follow them but she just stands there for a few minutes before marching towards the doors of the gym.

When they reach the table Clarke doesn’t remove her hand from his arm. “Thanks for the save,” she says, looking at the dancefloor, purposefully not meeting his eyes.

“Anytime,” he half shrugs. “But if you had told me that Madi was dating Queen Nia’s son last night then I probably would have helped you out.”

She finally turns and smiles up at him, “You got to help me out tonight though.”

There’s a pause again as they lull into a slightly awkward silence. Or maybe he just thinks it’s awkward. He’s afraid if he doesn’t fill it then she’s going to leave and then he’s right back where he started with a stupid thumbs up emoji.

“You know,” he starts to say and she looks back up at him. “Maybe we should grab dinner sometime. To make this whole dating thing more believable.”

“Wow, smooth,” she teases, but the effect is lost by how bright her smile is.

“We already established last night that I was smooth.”

She laughs and moves her arm to lace it properly through his. “Dinner sounds great.”

#no one cares ashleigh #bellarke fanfiction #my fanfiction #bffnet #i'm going to post this and run away because omg #this actually hits two of my bellarke bingo squares but idk if i want to use it #i've been affectionately referring to this as my 'distraction fic'#cause i was working on this instead of editing cops and robbers #hey i don't like my choices either

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kathillards · 5 years

Text

rangerstop 2019 memories

every convention i think “it can’t get better than this” and then every convention it DOES!!! anyway this was the year of #brodysbitches click the read more to check out all the good times we had:

so first of all we all got a booth! and by “we all” i mean abbey @kimberlyannharts and ben @brodyromero to sell their art, it was called super mega art and it was super mega fun! we all hung out there a lot but we also walked around to meet the rangers and lot of them stopped by to hang out with us too which was so sweet :’)

(if you’re interested in our rangerstop 2018 memories, check out tabby @operationoverdrive‘s post here; i’m gonna steal her format and go in chronological order by season because ohmygod so much happened all the time!!)

carla perez / rita repulsa, mmpr

carla is literally the nicest warmest person in the world i’m ready to lay down my life for her! she exudes fun mom energy and she’s so pretty and she was so happy to talk with us about rita, i think we visited her booth pretty much every day and also said hi every time she passed by our booth

we told her that we loved rita and stan villainesses!! and she loved it! and that we loved her portrayal of rita as more fun and childish and full of energy and she said yeah, the directors asked her to take rita in a new direction when she was cast while still staying true to who rita was so she decided to make rita more childish and fun with the sticking out her tongue and everything and we told her it was perfect bc rita with her tongue out is literally iconic

tabby asked how she felt about rita turning good and she said she liked it bc she got to be on screen without all the rita makeup/wardrobe but she also loved playing evil rita! i asked her if she heard about thrax and she was like OH YEAH I HEARD THEY GAVE US A SON but she definitely had not watched it (respect) and we were trying to figure out how thrax could exist and we collectively decided (mostly tabby and carla) that thrax was adopted and rita and zedd were trying to turn him good, which she loved

tabby showed her the mean girls video and she fucking loved it so much!!! she was SO impressed by how tabby manipped rita and tommy making out and she went around telling everybody “she made me kiss jdf!!” which was sooo cute and when abbey and i went to see her on our own and i was like “i heard you saw the mean girls video” she said “i did!! she’s so cute and talented!” about tabby, we love a tabby thunderpunks stan!!

we went to get a video message from her and melody for kels (cassiechans on twitter) because kels is the og villainess stan and they were so excited and REHEARSED what they were gonna say (we just asked them to do “the voice” and say “live fast die young bad girls do it well”, they came up with everything else!) and here they are, aren’t they the literal cutest things on the planet?!?!

she loved abbey’s zedd/rita design and wanted a shirt but we didn’t have her size so she told abbey to dm her when her online store is open!!!! she also signed my zedd/rita print with “bad girls do it well” bc i asked and i would DIE FOR HER

catherine sutherland / kat hillard, mmpr/zeo/turbo pink

so the first night we get to the hotel, tabby tells me to close my eyes and come over and she hands me A PINK ZEO RANGER FUNKO POP, custom made by jalenv515 on instagram (check his stuff out!) and i lost my mind because its SO good and it’s my girl and i love it and tabby and katherine so much <3 the guy who made it asked her to ask me to get a pic with it so ofc i had to do that and show catherine

she definitely did not remember us from the last two cons we saw her at but you know what i respect that! queen of being too popular to remember faces (brennan mejia take notes) but i think she did remember me after this time :’)

i said “so tabby actually got me this as a gift because i literally love kat hillard so much she is my entire soul” and she was SO touched and delighted to see the funko pop she was like “oh my god this is so cool!” and i was like, she’s going on the center of my power rangers shrine for reals

we asked her which season she liked better for kat and she said zeo but me and tabby were like “no, turbo rights only” and listed off the amazing kat episodes in turbo and she agreed with us that the episode with the ballerina and the weight gain episode were so good! i think she says zeo automatically bc it’s her only full season and dudebros love it so she was probably surprised that we were like fuck zeo lives turbo is skinny but... turbo IS skinny :)

i asked if she read soul of the dragon and she said she did! and i said it was the only comic i read bc i have to read everything kat is in and she laughed and she said she liked it and i said i loved that kat and tommy were a partnership but i was mad kat didn’t get to morph! and she was like “i know! but it has to be all about tommy as ALWAYS” with an EYE ROLL and me and tabby were ascending THE SHADE...I LOVE HER SO MUCH

we took a pic with her holding the funko pop and then i posted the pic on instagram w/ a cheesy caption of how much i love kat and she commented “aww you are too sweet” with a pink heart emoji... my actual mother who raised me

AND THEN at the end of the last day when we were standing around waiting to say goodbyes, she was heading out and we all started saying GOODBYE QUEEN and she stopped when she saw me and said she loved the pic and the pop on instagram!!!! she remembered me!!!!! and i told her the guy who made them was really happy she liked it and he’s working on more kat pops including unmorphed kat and turbo kat and she was so thrilled!!

nakia burisse / tanya sloan, zeo/turbo yellow

so because the originals are kinda super overpriced we do not get pics w/ most of them ever dfgjkdfd IM SORRY NAKIA I <3 YOU FOREVER but she looked so beautiful in all her outfits this con im gay

but anyway i was walking around the con by myself in my yellow shirt and i passed her booth and said hi and she said she liked my shirt!! and i was like thank you its for the yellow ranger culture

she was selling these rangers as infinity war t-shirts and i asked if she designed them and she said she did!! they were so cool i almost bought one but deadass i had no fucking room left in my luggage lmao

anyway her handler was looking at me and he goes “aren’t there like..... three of you?” and im like yeah they’re not here rn but we are codependent so i cant buy anything without them dfhgkfhd and hes like “yeah i worked other cons and i remember seeing y’all as a unit” which dfhjgkdfhgd HE WAS NOT THE ONLY HANDLER TO REMEMBER US SPECIFICALLY and i said “ur right we cant function without each other” and nakia was like “aww i love that” queen of supporting our codependent dumbasses!!

melody perkins / astronema, karone, lost galaxy pink

she is soooo nice she has this high-pitched voice it’s so sweet i always feel so soothed whenever she speaks near me she is also so pretty!!

the others talked to her without me on day 1 and melody said she liked astronema’s purple wig best and didn’t like the white wig w/ the black things in it bc they kept getting in her way, and she loved karone’s outfit because it was easier to fight in

i went with abbey to drop off her astronema doodle for melody and she loved it!! shes so cuuuute

she was so excited to do the video message for kels and it was so adorable when she messed up the first time (live fast die well bad girls do it young!) lmaoo and we showed her kels’ reaction later and she was so flattered!! she also looks so cute in her reading glasses and she LOVED the mean girls video too!!!!!!!

we told her that we hosted a villainess appreciation week online and so many people picked astronema as their faves and she was so touched <3 a literal angel sent from heaven

ann marie crouch / princess shayla, wild force

only there saturday and sunday, limited edition queen! we met her on saturday so kat could get her fanart from gazbot signed and she was ofc in her princess shayla dress and looked soooo pretty

she was so impressed by gazbot’s art that she asked we take him over to her booth and we were all like OKAY PRINCESS COMING THROUGH MAKE WAY FOR THE PRINCESS and took her over to meet him and he was so happy and she was also happy and it was just so nice.... god i love ranger cons! everyone loves power rangers! its the dream!

and then after that we took her to our booth bc it was just two away from gazbot’s and she loved it everyone always loves ben and abbey’s art bc its the greatest in the world :’)

glenn mcmillan / dustin brooks, ninja storm yellow

first of all, ben abbey and i saw him passing by while we were having dinner at gatorville and we all GASPED and he noticed and grinned and waved at us while he was walking by.... an angel literally an angel

he’s so cute and sweet! he wore his yellow shirt w/ dustin’s logo on it all three days, king of branding

i got abbey’s dustin sticker signed by him and she gave him one of his own and he loved itttt

tabby asked him about his role in zenon z3 and you could tell his brain was processing loading while he tried to rmr what the fuck that movie was but he got into it and actually answered her questions about it, it was so sweet

i overheard him telling another fan he was trying to get “sally and the others” to morphicon for a reunion!!!!!!!!!!!!!! come to pmc next september pasadena california to see if he succeeds

john tui / doggie cruger, spd shadow, daggeron, solaris knight

LITERALLY THE STAR ATTRACTION every time we passed by his booth his line was a mile long, meanwhile all the originals’ booths right across from him were like [crickets chirping] it was so funny lmao

so we only got to see him on the last day bc his line was so long and nobody wanted to stand in it but tabby wanted to meet him! and then she got scared and almost walked away but a really nice girl (i think part of chris khayman lee’s team??) stopped her and was like THIS IS UR MOMENT and it was!!!

he is literally so sweet and handsome and cuddly he’s just a big teddy bear and he’s soooo charming and nice, he was wearing a manbun and like a full suit w/ a dress shirt, absolutely flexing on all the other boys in their t-shirts and jeans

tabby asked if he would do a pose holding her hand like he’s about to kiss it and he laughed and was like “okay but don’t show my wife!!” loyal king

he also hugged her twice hes so cuddly!! and we asked him about his other roles (he was in solo!) and he said he really enjoys expanding his filmography and stuff but power rangers is close to his heart and he also really likes doing parts that his kids can watch... it was the cutest thing

and we said how cool it was to see him represent his culture and he said he loved that too ugh rangers of color only valid rangers tbhonest honestly

richard brancatisano / xander bly, mystic force green

ok so firass is really hot and at one point he stopped by our table (bc richard called him over to look at abbey’s nick and fireheart print) and he was really nice but he’s. he’s so hot. we did not go to his table all weekend bc we were so intimidated hfdghfgd so thats why he doesnt get a section. but i do still love him i just cant speak w/ him or my brain will turn to jello probably

nic also won’t get a section bc i didnt really interact w/ him much but he stopped by the table twice to talk w/ abbey he loved her and her art!! chip squared!! he ranted about how hard it was to say fireheart in an american accent for all of them it sounded cute go talk to abbey for more details

anyway back to richard: somehow we just attract green rangers like bees to honey and idk why but i’m not complaining he’s so nice and handsome and funny! and he just LOVED talking with us like we stopped by his table every day and i dont think we even talked about mystic force or anything in particular, we were just chatting and he just loved it and like never wanted us to leave basically

i did ask him a question about xander’s personality and he legit went “uhh idk” and then started talking about himself???? KING OF NOT KNOWING SHIT ABOUT HIS OWN CHARACTER love that for him bc i also dont know shit about xander

he stopped by the table a couple times (well mostly we yelled HEY RICHARD and he came over) and he was so sweet and also when we told him we didn’t have xander art at our booth he jokingly rolled his eyes and said “of course” but then ben and abbey both doodled xander and came over to show him and he was SO TOUCHED

he hugged us all goodbye individually and then at the end we were waiting to say goodbye to aljin, richard was leaving his booth and abbey waved at him and his eyes LIT UP and he switched course to walk over to us and say goodbye again!!!! he loves us and i love him so much!!!

dwayne cameron / tyzonn, operation overdrive mercury

OPERATION OVERDRIVE IS WIG!

hes so fun to talk to, we went to him on day 1 to get my tyzonn print (from gazbot) signed and we were just talking to him about all his roles and tabby asked “was that ur real hair” and he was like lmao no can’t you tell?? and was talking about how they originally were gonna dye his hair platinum blonde but he thought it looked awful so they went w/ the ugly wig and he said they wanted to differentiate him from his previous two power rangers characters so tyzonn had to be blond

and then he kept saying wig and we kept giggling about it and we had to explain to him that wig is teen slang for something really cool and awesome and he said to try it out and gestured with his arms and it was SO funny... king of memes

my first suggestion for a video message was to have him say “operation overdrive is the best season ever and if you dont like it go suck a dick” but he vetoed that (but he was laughing) lmao

and HE’S the one who suggested he say “operation overdrive is wig” and it was perfect go check out the video on my blog

he hugged me so tight and kissed my cheek after our pic together and i love him so much

aljin abella / theo martin, jungle fury blue

SHORT KING!!! literally the kindest nicest sweetest person ever i just wanna be in his presence all the time he’s such a ray of light he’s so smart and remembers fucking everything about his season KING OF JUNGLE FURY

his fiancee was there with him!! her name is lyndie she’s sooooo nice and she LOVED abbey’s shirts and bought an alpha one and wore it two days in a row! i fucking loved her she was so much fun to talk to and she told us about their proposal story it was so romantic and sweet

he told us so many things about jungle fury behind the scenes and how it was filming stuff and everything i honestly cant even rmr but i loved how much he knew, he told us that the actress who played fran was dating the actor who played master swoop at the time of filming and we were all like omfg (how random?? but cute)

he said he thinks theo and lily are probably still together but even if they’re not they’re still bffs bc they have such a rich history between them :’) brennan mejia take fucking notes

he said he thought they were gonna leave the theo/lily plot hanging after dance the night away and he was surprised it coming back!! but he really enjoyed it and he loves anna and i told him to get a jungle fury reunion together at pmc

he told us that this is just the first time he’s ever been properly invited to a con (i think he was sponsored by one of the toy booths or smth); people would ask him casually “hey would you wanna come to a con” and he was down but nobody ever actually officially invited him till now so @ PEOPLE WHO SPONSOR ACTORS TAKE NOTES INVITE MORE DISNEY ERA PEOPLE thank you

at the end we went to say goodbye to him and lyndie, he had been saying goodbye to some other ppl so we waited in line politely and as soon as he turned around and saw us he smiled so big and was like YOU GUYS! GROUP HUG! and he only group hugged the five of us because he loved us so much and he was so cute!! i wanna hug him forever, literally a blue angel sent from heaven

rj cyler / billy cranston, reboot blue

TALL KING!! his section goes after aljin specifically so i could say that

he is soo tall and SO handsome and FUNNY and CUTE and charming and he hugged EVERYONE AS SOON AS HE SAW US he’s so bouncy and excited and just. good vibes. so many good vibes!!!

the energy around his booth is just so much fun he’s ALWAYS laughing and joking and talking with literally anybody he sees, sometimes he did get distracted like when bl*ke f*ster (vomit.emoji) or walter jones would come up to his table and he was also late a lot but i would wait forever and ever.mp3

as soon as tabby walked w/ her blue ranger plushie he goes OH MY DAMN and immediately asks to hold it and just spends five minutes bouncing around cuddling it TEDDY BEAR PRINCE CHARMING <333

he said he already owns 3 and was like “i dont wanna own EVERYTHING w/ my character because that seems weird?” and kat was like “no that’s king behavior” and he was like u kno wat... ur right

tabby talked to him about scream and abbey talked to him about swamp thing when we went back to him on sunday bc my friends are fuckin nerds go ask them about their convos w/ him!! abbey asked him why he was always dying in water and he was like I KNOW and he said he didnt like death scenes bc they made him be still and he’s so bouncy and hates being still and quiet dfgjkkdfdgk

we got two super cute polaroids with him and our whole group i will post them later maybe on twitter? THEYRE SO CUTE I LOVE HIMMMM

james davies / chase randall, dino charge black

ohhh my god he’s so sweet.... he also looks So good w/ a beard.... he’s literally just so nice! he always smiles so big and looks right in your eyes when he talks to you and he’s just...so sweet. when we went back and watched true black in the hotel room we were so weirded out by chase being such an asshole bc its sooo different from james’ entire personality lmao

showed him ben’s chase print and he loved it <33 he signed mine “chase the hotshot” bc i asked him to and i love it

idk what we talked about tbh he’s so pretty.... he started interviewing kat when she asked him to sign her print which was super funny bc we were all like For Why djkfghdg he just wants to get to know everyone...its cute

he asked us “whats the difference between a pillow and a cushion” and we all had a mini existential crisis trying to figure it out

idk what else to say hes just really cool and i hope he comes back bc i would love to see the whole dino charge cast vibing together

brennan mejia / tyler navarro, dino charge red

what a man what a man what a mighty good man.mp3

first time he passed by our booth on day one we all gasped BRENNAN and he waved hi :D he’s very easily distracted he was only at his booth like half the time lmao

i also called him over later to show him ben’s print and he was like omg this is so cool and i was like do u remember him (ben) from last year and he was like of course! idk if he was lying but hes cuuuute

we yelled at him for saying tyler/shelby would break up last year and he laughed but he REFUSED to take back his WRONG opinion even after kat made him sign “tyler + shelby forever” on her print, king of being stubborn

kat asked him if he wanted to make out w/ her tiny pink dino charge figure and he was like i really DONT wanna do that, he was laughing but it was cute bc he didnt even try to humor us at all (the way other actors do when we say “oh we loved this part!” and they go oh yeah totally same lmaoo) just kept joking around with us like we were FRIENDS

WE ASKED HIM TO SING FOR US first i asked for the triceratops song and he was like ummmmmmm so then we suggested the n-zed boys song and he was like ok but i dont rmr the lyrics so ben had to teach them to him and then he asked if ben would sing it with him and i told him to ask nicely and he made PUPPY DOG EYES at ben and well #bennanfirstwin

(we tried to get james to sing after that, and brennan begged him to sing too BECAUSE HE’S A PROFESSIONAL SINGER and actually got cast in hairspray??? omg? but he started blushing and refused every single time we asked dfhgjdd hes so cute!!! he also apparently choreographed the tyler/shelby dance in that episode, multitalented king of the arts)

we talked to him about pokemon and he said he’s getting shield but he hasnt picked a starter yet bc he hasnt seen the evolutions and we (me and ben) were like, well do u wanna see the leaks? and he was like JSUT the evolutions so the next day i saved some pics and went back to him and he looked thru them and he said he liked them all but he really liked the grookey final evo so for all you pokefans out there, that’s where he stands (he also let us add him on pogo altho he does not open gifts ever so far so what is the POINT of you brennan)

he also played smash on the switch w/ our friend jobber and apparently CRUSHED HIM, nerdy ass bitch. love him so much

we mentioned we loved tyler’s og curly hair in s1 and he says it was so hard to maintain bc curly hair does whatever it wants so he likes his new straight hairstyle better bc he can make it do what he wants and like, same, but also :(

he also vibe checked tabby’s phone and it was fucking awesome

literally every time we were talking to james or will or anyone else and he was around and we locked eyes w/ him he would grin or make a funny face god he’s soooo cute. he also commented on my insta post of him doing a handstand and i lost it hes SO CUTE!! the only man in the world except for.......

william shewfelt / brody romero, ninja steel red

BRODY ROMERO FIRST, GOD SECOND

literally the first thing i blurted out was i love you thank you for brody romero i love seeing a desi character on power ranger SO much and he was just completely shocked that we all KNEW he was desi and he was like, yeah my mom’s indian but my dad’s caucasian and i was like so what bitch you STILL COUNT

he was, like, so touched that we knew and cared about him being desi and was like “wow you guys really know a lot” and kat the traitor was like “yeah they stalked you to figure out who tf you are” dfgjkdfhgd and we mentioned jasmeet and ppl thinking he was the first indian ranger and will was like “yeah i heard about that and i didnt wanna make it a big thing but...” LIKE HONEY PLEASE WE GOT SHOOTERS OUT HERE FOR BRODY ROMERO

its so overwhelming to even think about bc brody romero is literally LITERALLY my favorite ranger of all time and we spent SO MUCH time talking to will and all of it was fucking amazing i’ll try to point out the highlights but god there was just so much i love him SO much

he talked a lot about the time he spent in new zealand (bc zali and nari were there from australia and talking to him about it) and he told us a lot of stories about the cast getting drunk and having fun, he told us about the time he and the boys went w/ jordi to his home and learned about maori culture and he had to eat bugs and about the time nico got blackout drunk at star casino and made out w/ a completely random girl and they all gave him hell for it later lmao

he was having so much fun talking to us that at one point a random dudebro came up and brennan was around the booth and we were like “oh did you wanna buy something” and dudebro was like “no i just wanted to show them my comic” which literally was just an mmpr comic and he wasn’t even paying for anything what the fuck?? and will took one look at him and his comic and went “uh one second man” and turned back to us and completely ignored him until he went away and we all DIED laughing i love him SO much (sorry to brennan for leaving him w/ the dudebro lol)

at some point he was talking about other actors that he’s met and i asked if he’s seen other seasons and he made the :grimace: emoji and was like no and i was like good keep it that way ninja steel is the only season :) and he started laughing and was like COME OVER HERE AND HUG ME i could stay wrapped in his arms forever tbh

he called himself daddy once and everyone yelled at him

he said everyone in the ninja steel cast would just kiss each other on the mouth, but platonically, and kelson kissed all of them at least once and he kissed nico twice and it was just like, a thing they did and we were all like okay.gif but it was so cute

he said he felt bad for chip bc the cast was always asking him to adjust things and bringing up their own ideas for writing (things we know from peter complaining about chip’s writing and trying to get his own ideas in...) and said he preferred to not annoy him w/ all of that BUT he did say he got annoyed himself when chip would direct episodes and be VERY particular about exactly how he wanted them to act and we were like fuck him is he an actor??? and he laughed... he literally thought we were so funny even tho we are not at all lmao

at one point he was talking about how jordi was shirtless a lot and had big boobs (his words) and i said, on instinct, “tits out for ninja steel” and he goes what?? and asked me to repeat it and i had a brief moment of panic but i did repeat “tits out for ninja steel” thru my giggles and he burst into laughter again dfhjkgdfd TO BE CLEAR i should not have said that pls dont say that to actors’ faces he so easily could’ve made it uncomfortable or creepy (some actors...not mentioned in this post...are fucking creepy) but he didnt bc hes an angel so i guess its fine

every time we were hovering around brennan’s table on day 3 tabby says will kept looking over in our direction i think he missed us bc we were actually fun to talk to and not fucking dudebros trying to tell him the plots of seasons he does not give a shit about bc he wasnt in them (literally u do not need to explain the plot of dino thunder to actors who were not in dino thunder, pls calm down) and also bc he loves us :)

we all went in to save him from a dudebro at one point by just asking him random questions and the dudebro KEPT HOVERING like trying to be in the conversation as if we were FRIENDS with him (dont do this unless ur paying the actor for his time!!! he wasn’t even buying anything he was like “i’m just here to talk” bitch get his autograph or GO) and the dudebro tried to flex on us by being like “oh were you guys at th power morphicon with the yoshi and peter hug” and tabby got confused (bc we were at the next pmc and said yes) and kat just lied and said yes bc she hates dudebros and ben (the only truthful person) said no and abbey said yes and then will turned his head all the way around to me on the side and was like “were you there?” and i mean... i wasnt....but he wouldnt stop looking at me WHAT WAS I GONNA DO, DISAPPOINT HIM? so i said yes :)

after the dudebro FINALLY fucking left kat was like “oh thank god we can leave now” and will was so confused until he realized “were you guys just trying to save me from talking to him” and he laughed and was so touched he was like “thank you guys you can see how my face just goes dead when they talk to me” dfhgjkdfg and we were like literally send up the bat signal any time you need us to save you and he said we were the best people to talk to the whole con and he loved ussss

at one point we were talking about indian rep in power rangers and he looks at ME and goes “so what do you think of jazz as desi rep” and idk will what am i supposed to think when you’re staring into my soul??? i said he was cool and i liked ravi but he wasn’t red and i’m red ranger ride or die so :) i just love brody romero so fucking much idk what else i was supposed to say.... ur literally ingrained in my soul william NOBODY ELSE CAN COME CLOSE

i asked “how much money do i have to pay to get you to arm wrestle brennan for me” and he was like “i dont know if there’s enough money in the world but you can ask brennan” and i called brennan over like “brennan will you please arm wrestle will for me” and he DID and it was so fun they were having such a good time, in the second round we all started chanting NINJA STEEL NINJA STEEL and you can see brennan getting shook by that for a second and then later will told us he appreciated our chanting so much and we were like yeah man, ninja steel FOREVER anyway here are the videos: one and two :) (they did not make me pay for it, generous kings)

(and the next day when we went to brennan’s booth like the first thing he does is whip out his phone, show us a video his handler took of the arm wrestling match and go WILLIAM CHEATED. me: and what about it?.gif)

we got a polaroid of all of us + brennan + will (brennan had to phone will to get him to come back to the booth at our request, ty king, and will came right over and brennan was like “sry if we interrupted something” and will was like nah not at all, idk what brennan said but i like to imagine he came running bc he heard it was us lol) and then he refused to let me pay when i came back to get him to autograph it GENEROUS KING OF MY HEART.MP3

brennan signed the polaroid first and his signature took up the whole bottom part of the polaroid and we yelled at him for not leaving any room for will and he was like “oh whoops....well he can sign THE BACK” i love it when he sasses us; so then we went to show will and he was like wow brennan and then signed his autograph EVEN BIGGER in sparkly silver pen all over the top so basically they had a dick-measuring contest over my polaroid and it was awesome, will’s is bigger tho B)

he also followed me and ben on instagram after day 2 and then EARLIER TODAY (11/13) he was stalking and followed ben’s personal acct and also reposted his ninja steel art onto his story and tagged him so in conclusion, brody romero first god second

WAIT IM NOT DONE when we went to say goodbye we were like “oh are you packing up soon” and he was so sparkly eyed over us chilling at his table he was like “nah im not” and then he looked at his phone and it was half hour till the con closed and he was like “oh wait never mind i guess i am” lmaoo king of not keeping track of time AND THEN HE HUGGED US ALL GOODBYE IN A BIG GROUP HUG and his biceps almost crushed abbey

(btw brennan did not hug us goodbye this time i think he was jealous we spent all our time gushing over will) (im kidding we still love you brennan)

william shewfelt i would die for you

phew ok i think that’s pretty much everything??? we also made a lot of cool friends w/ artists and stuff!! we talked to gazbot a lot and that was super fun, the girls next to our booth made custom power rangers pillows and they were really cool! i think kat, tabby, and ben all bought pillows from them they were really soft and cute, we talked to ceevee a lot (he actually gave me his extra exhibitor badge bc his brother couuldnt make it and then a different artist saw my badge saying “ceevee illustrations” and gave me a sticker for free because “you work for chris and he’s awesome” dfhgjdfhd i went back and paid him tho bc you dont take free shit from artists, kids! pay them for their work!) spent a lot of time yelling (nicely) at ceevee to make a poppy pin and he said he would bump it up the list for me :)

other cool stuff:

catherine posting me on insta

jessica replying to this post of super mega art + azim liking it

mike ginn replying to this tweet thread even tho he hasn’t been online in 12 days

check out our twitters for even more details that i undoubtedly missed in this post: me / tabby / kat / ben / abbey

in conclusion: POWER MORPHICON 2020 LETS GO LESBIANS LETS GO

#hell clique takes rangerstop 2.0 #oh my god that was so fucking fun i can die happy now #william shewfelt... i care you

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grahamslecters · 5 years

Note

Your opinion on - the 100 season 6 😊

Anon, I am sorry it took me this long to answer. I just knew I wanted to answer this properly and that it would take me a while to do so. Although, technically, I could answer your ask with a single emoji:

🤯

Seriously, this season has been crazy and I have loved every minute of it. But, I am going to break it up a little to help me. (sorry if you were expecting a short answer- I’m not very good at those lol) Everything will be under the cut :)

The new world and Sanctum storyline

I love it! What better way to really show you are starting a whole new book than to take your characters and place them on a whole new planet moon? It helped bring originality to the show because there isn’t just grounders and people from space. Now there is a whole new colony of people with their own, albeit strange, customs who can bring a new angle to the show. And a shows us a colony where they don’t make radios out of left over parts but live like people would if everything wasn’t destroyed. It also means that we can meet new characters because they limited it so much by ending the world at the end of season 5. Also, the fact that this showed me that dogs didn’t get wiped out makes me so much happier.

The ‘Enemy’

My favourite thing this season is that you can’t really tell who the enemy is at the beginning. It really, for me, helps to highlight the fact that earthkru (or whatever they are being called now) are not the ‘good guys’ they are just people trying to survive and live. When the season first starts we think it is the Primes who are the enemy but then they make a truce and suddenly it is Gabriel’s children who are the enemy before we find out that they aren’t so bad and the Primes are the enemy because they are body snatchers who ‘killed’ Clarke. The bouncing between everyone really makes you pay attention and keeps you hooked because you don’t want to miss a thing.

Body Snatching

Amazing. I mean it really isn’t. It is actually quite horrible but the storyline is amazing. The fact that we saw the main character die (I stand by my point that she did die- she just saved her consciousness). I thought it was extremely sad even if I knew she would survive (as Bellamy says: she is a fighter. Nothing could kill her that easily). And then we met Josephine who is a character who I’m sure I would love (albeit begrudgingly) if she was in her own body. She had good one-liners and was just very sassy and self-confident. The only thing she couldn’t do well was pretend to be Clarke. I also felt very bad for her when we saw how different she used to be. I saw a post somewhere that showed how the fact that there was someone so heartless in Clarke’s body really highlighted this difference between Clarke’s actions and the actions of someone who really doesn’t care about others. So, I won’t get into it any more that I already had. This post is already soooo long and I have lots left to say.

Madi and the chip

Let this storyline die. She is a child not a commander. That is all I have to say.

Bellarke

I’m a Bellarke blog, I’m going to talk about Bellarke- sue me. Bellarke this season could warm even the coldest, deadest hearts. They have been so so pure and kind to one another. Except for the time when Bellamy was literally in an eclipse-induced psychosis, they have not argued or fallen out. Not even once. This is, I might be wrong here, the first season that has ever happened. So yeah, they are definitely getting their bond back that they had before s5 and are even making it stronger. Leading into official canon status if I say so myself.

The Blakes

yes. yes. yes. yes. yes.

The way this has been dealt with is so realistic and so heartbreaking. I loved or at least loved to hate every moment of it. For the first couple episodes I was just praying that Bellamy would forgive Octavia even if I realistically knew he wouldn’t. And then we saw them separated at Bellamy’s hand I was a big ball of tears but ultimately it needed to be done. Bellamy couldn’t forgive Octavia while she was still hateful towards herself. She needed to remember who she is and what her purpose was before becoming the Red Queen above all else. And one she did, and she knew what she needed to do, they bonded- just a bit in 6x11 and then a bit more in 6x12 and slowly they are becoming the iconic-ness that is the Blakes again. And my heart could not be happier.

The Anomaly

I LOVE IT. The anomaly is the show’s way of expanding it’s boundaries while keeping it realistic to the type of show it is. Sure, it is a sci-fi (kind of) but it doesn’t have magic. So the anomaly being this thing that can’t be explained properly gives the intrigue an unexplainable magical object would give without the magic actually being there (At least I hope so- as I said it can’t be explained and I am only a teenager with a laptop so I don’t know).

Overall

LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE. This season has been incredible and I enjoyed it so much that I even made my blog because of all the content we were getting.

Again, sorry this is so long. I am very good at going off on tangents but thank you for the ask 💜 This was actually quite fun to write.

#katie answered stuff #thank you for the ask 💜#anon 💕#The 100 #The 100 season 6 #Sanctum #The Primes #The Children of Gabriel #josephine ada lightbourne #Madi #The Chip #Bellarke #Bellamy Blake #Clarke Griffin #Octavia Blake #The Blakes #The Anomaly #my opinion #Katie's ramblings

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alittletournesol · 5 years

Text

Sing Your Soul {JongKey} part 5/6

Part 5

The ovation wasn’t as loud as in some stadium during a worldwide sports event, but the few applauses whose sound resounded in the bar were more than enough for Jinki’s smile to enlighten his features. He was rarely performing more than two new songs every time he was to be the artist of the night at the Blue Night, yet he always recognized some regular customers who showed no boredom in listening to the same pieces over again.

Respectfully, he bowed for as long as he was celebrated and when he straightened up while approaching his mic from his lips, all hands ceased their clapping. It was like everyone was already prepared to hang on his every word even before a first sound escaped his mouth.

“Thank you for listening to me, I hope you enjoyed the new song.” The singer said, smiling and his eyes travelling to meet every face in the audience. “You will have the opportunity to hear it again and as much as you wish to, in a few weeks when my next work will be released.”

As he was speaking a bit more about the aforesaid song, the lyrics and their thematic, rhythm, meaning… Kibum got his attention drew to his left, where Jonghyun was sitting and staring at the artist on stage. His eyes were literally shining and his lips half open as he focused on the explanations, sometimes mouthing a wow and nodding when he felt some words. The event planner couldn’t help but smile with pride as he realized what a good idea he had to make the blonde man come that evening.

“Unfortunately, I have been asked to keep my other songs secret until the release.” Jinki ended up confessing, earning a few whines. “I’m just as disappointed as you are, obviously, but although I don’t have anything left to sing for tonight… I would like to offer you a surprise. Actually, I’m not offering, more proposing an alternative that I think will impress you.”

“And before our artist’s clumsiness spoils everything, let’s take a short break to get ourselves prepared.” Minho suddenly climbed the stage to stand up by his boyfriend’s side, a second mic in hands. “I see some glasses are empty, please allow me to come take your next orders and feel free to use this pause to use the smoking room.”

Once he finished his speech, the bartender switched both mics off and went to pull the curtain himself to hide the stage for the time of break. Customers started chatting or stood up to go take a smoke or just breathe some fresh air in the back street of the bar. Minho was quick to come back and before he went back to work with clearing and new orders, he waved towards his best friend and showed the small, hidden backstage, mouthing something.

Kibum had always been good at reading on one’s lips despite his work mostly consisting in phone calls ; he got the information right away and stood up, gently tapping the subway singer’s shoulder to quietly tell him to follow. The latter didn’t wait to be asked twice and wove in and out between the tables and standing people, his eyes never leaving the silhouette leading him. In his chest, his heart was beating faster with each step he took until he found himself behind the stage’s wall.

It was long and narrow, certainly the entire length of the bar’s wall, but a couple of lamps lit a comfortable double sofa, a tea table and all electric boxes and cables. Eyeing everything, Jonghyun eventually noticed Jinki who stood up from his seat and walked towards him with a reassuring smile.

“So, tell me.” He said, crossing his arms above his chest. “Did you choose your songs since the break ?”

“I think I have a lot that can fit tonight’s atmosphere, yes.” The blonde singer nodded but his nervousness was noticeable in the way he scratched his nape while talking. “Though I don’t want to steal your spotlight or something.”

“Man, my part is done tonight, so take the damn spotlight. Will you sing covers or…?”

“One cover, but actually I compose songs so I thought I might give a try to two of them. If I can ?”

“Of course you can, you can do whatever you want on stage. We gotta work on that self confidence of yours, huh ?”

“I’m on it.” Kibum spoke in, winking at Jonghyun when the latter looked at him and smiled in return. “Do you think Ming will like him enough to hire him ?”

“He’s clearly going to pretend thinking, considering, all that business man’s stuff… but trust me, he already got the papers ready.”

“Really ?” The subway singer raised his eyebrows, honestly surprised. “You’re kidding, he didn’t hear me sing yet !”

“You will learn that Minho is someone who hides his thoughts and emotions, even the positive ones.” The event planner smiled. “But first of all, he watched those videos of you I sent to him and allowed me to find you. He drove me to your subway station himself, on last Sunday, but he couldn’t make it to Yongsan with me.”

“He entrusted you with finding me and bringing me here ?”

“Second thing to know about him.” The eldest man snorted. “He can’t refuse anything if it comes either from me or Kibum. And we both stood up for you so he got defeated.”

“That totally sounds like a scheme.”

“Yeah right ? Now it’s your part, I’ll take your seat !”

With one last wink and thumb up, Jinki wished the other singer good luck and disappeared in the audience, leaving both Kibum and him alone and quiet. The younger man’s eyes shifted as soon as they locked gazes and he pretended to check something on the electric box — though he didn’t understand a single connection in this thing. But the silence quickly went awkward and when Jonghyun cleared his throat, he had no choice but look up and talk.

“So… you’re ready ?” He asked. “It’s not completely like a station but it shouldn’t feel that different, right ?”

“Every place conveys a different feeling, I can sense these things.” The blonde singer smiled. “But I like it here, though I feel on the nerves, you know…”

“Stage fright ?”

“I guess so, I mean, they’re here to listen. In a station, I’m mostly a background noise except for the few people who stop for a minute to focus a bit more on me. They don’t come to listen to me but to take their train, while here…”

“Maybe you feel like you’re a background noise, but people remember you. I wouldn’t have been able to find you if it hadn’t been for this little girl to know your name and her mother to know where you sing. I’m sure they’re not the only ones who know about the white haired guy who sings at Sindang. You were being noticed, now you will be listened to.”

“Can I ask you something ?”

“Sure.”

“The other time, you told me I moved you. Among all my songs you’ve heard, could it be at the stations or in these videos… is there one that moved you more than others ?”

Kibum cocked an eyebrow, he hadn’t expected this question and hadn’t really thought of ranking the songs he had heard. He didn’t even know the titles and was unable to humming them even if he wanted to — he was too scared of ruining it in front of its creator. Instead, he grabbed his phone and opened his favourite app, tapping the screen until it opened a folder of saved posts with a musical note emoji as its title.

He scrolled a bit and his thumb stopped, seemed to hesitate between two videos, and Jonghyun noticed his trouble. As he approached, the other man turned his phone towards him and eventually showed him both.

“This one was the one you were singing when I saw you the first time and it’s stuck in my mind since then.” The brown haired man said, his voice surprisingly low and his eyes still on the screen. “But I like this one too. Do they have titles ?”

“Of course, the first one is MONO-Drama, it’s a particular one.” Jonghyun answered before the tip of his finger selected the second video. “And this one is Beautiful Tonight, you can hear me sing it.”

“Yeah, that’s true. I like Beautiful Tonight more, it has something special that speaks to me, I couldn’t say why.”

“I see. You saved a lot of videos, I didn’t know I got filmed so much.”

“You never looked for yourself on social media ?”

“I don’t really use social media.”

“You wh—”

“Sorry to interrupt you, but the show will resume soon.” A voice caught their attention and they met with Minho who had his head coming out from behind the wall. “Time to get on stage.”

The bartender disappeared as fast as he had shown up and both men left their conversation on hold as Kibum led Jonghyun to the stage, even joining him there to adjust the mike for him. Within the few minutes the customers took to find their seat back, the blonde man grabbed the high stool that was leaning against the wall, since his predecessor preferred standing. He slowly pulled the synth closer to him and connected his music player to it, opening a playlist of three instrumental songs.

While the event planner made sure the instrument and the sounds control console were linked up, he asked the other man if he needed anything more. He could already hear his best friend drawing the audience’s attention for the last, exclusive part of that evening. The confident smile on Jonghyun’s lips was enough of an answer and Kibum raised his fist to wish him good luck, before he walked down the stage and discreetly joined his seat.

From behind the curtain, the blonde singer took a short moment to regulate his breathing, closing his eyes and focusing on his lungs filling and emptying themselves until the sensation of all his organs quivering stopped. When he heard people applauding, he looked up and waited for the large piece of fabric to be pulled to the side, revealing the dozen of tables being now in the dark as the lights were all on him.

They were all looking at him and he scanned the whole room until his eyes met with a familiar face, the event planner smiling at him and nodding to give him strength. Returning the smile, Jonghyun eventually leaned on to have his lips closer to the mike.

“Good evening, my name is Kim Jonghyun.” He said, and his smooth talking voice already prepared everyone for what would come next. “I’m gladly standing, or should I say, sitting in front of you tonight to introduce you a few of my works. Before starting, I would like to thank the owner of this beautiful place for letting me in, and for Lee Jinki who you heard previously, for proposing me to come on stage after him. I will do my best to be worthy of this spot he was standing on earlier. Please welcome me well.”

He shyly smiled when the audience applauded once more to salute his speech and encourage him, and straightened up while pulling the mike, clearing his throat and pressing the play button on the synth. A melody immediately resounded in the loudspeakers and faces lit up as it was extremely recognizable to most of customers ; smiles appeared and some even whispered to each other as they enjoyed the surprise.

“I will start with a cover of a song that is really a favourite of mine.” The singer said before he playfully smiled. “Let’s try not to ruin it.”

No sooner said than done, Jonghyun’s fingers closed on the mike and his voice started following the instrumental. He had chosen to perform a cover to let people get used to his so uncommon timbre, and the song he was singing was indeed one he held dear in his heart. He was a romantic person, and the lyrics inspired him on writing his own ; the story of a man who was in love with a woman but feared her turning his confession down. As he longed for her, he experienced insomnias filled with endless thoughts and worries.

The song’s rhythm alternated between low and high pitches, but Kibum found himself impressed by how the singer handled these changes smoothly, with no apparent effort. Even the way he managed to give the same emotional vibe but with a different colour, his colour, during the chorus, gave shivers to everyone. Could it be when he willingly broke his voice on certain words to give the impression of being breathless, or when his throat vibrated as he held a note on the word insomnia, everything was beautiful.*

It was the first time the event planner heard him sing a song he already knew, and it had nothing to do with when you sing your favorite song while showering ; it was mastered, from vocals to emotions.

“Thank you for listening.” Jonghyun eventually said, making the brown haired man realise he was done with the song as soft applauses welcomed his performance. “I could say this song is the one that made me want to sing, and more than that, to try writing and composing my own songs. I still lack a lot but I hope you will enjoy the next song, which is my own creation.”

Bowing his head, the blonde singer sat better in front of the synth and arranged the mike horizontally so he could use his hands on the keys. As he pressed play on the second piece, the distant sound of rain falling slowly raised from the loudspeakers, until customers made out what sounded like a repetitive ringtone. Before their surprise had time to reduce, a melody started while the man’s voice came out, yet not from his mouth ; it was like the phone had been picked up and he was the one talking.

One could only hear his voice, not the other person’s, the conversation about Jonghyun being on his way to join his friends for a drink after work. After a last ok, it was like the phone got hung up and the man started singing for real, while his fingers were gently hitting the synth’s keys to accompany the instrumental. And just then, with the only power of his voice and lyrics, he told a story of his own to every single soul in the room, his timbre fitting so much to the sweetness of his words.

Meeting friends, drinking and laughing as they reminisced their friendship. The curious but familiar way they became kids again, whenever they made time in their respective schedules to gather all together and talk… it was all about remembering and making new memories in a comfortable atmosphere, their heart warming up thanks to this moment of reunion just as their body heating up because of alcohol.

While he listened just as everyone else, Kibum had his eyes staring at Jonghyun’s facial expressions ; it wasn’t just any story, it could only be his. Through a song, he was talking about his late night meetings with longstanding friends who grew up together, getting together for a drink. It was so noticeable on his features that he was feeling every single word he sang, that every sentence every question intended for a friend had once been told in real life. The atmosphere of this moment was conveyed through the rhythm and the tone, making the audience immerse in it with him.

And as if he wanted to confirm his every questioning gaze, the song ended on another distant conversation, as if coming from a phone again. This time, it wasn’t him talking to a friend, but a record of several voices chatting all together that continued for a few seconds even after the instrumental stopped. The last sound they heard was cheering, clinking soju glasses.*

“Cheers.” Jonghyun eventually said as he pretended to raise a glass, drawing a few smiles in the audience and some even responded to his gesture before drinking. “You know this feeling, right ? I hope you liked it. Shall we go with the last song ? Someone here heard it already and appreciates it, so let’s dedicate it to this person, hmm ? Let’s go.”

Kibum got startled when he caught the blonde man glancing at him when talking about the person who knew his next song. But it was quite brief, just quick enough for him to understand he was this person, what made him blush and shyly smile as he focused even more. Jonghyun pressed play for the last time that evening, but he didn’t show any intention to accompany the melody again ; instead, he removed the mike from its stand and brought it to his lips, while crossing his legs.

It was clear that the new instrumental had been made with a synth, with the piano’s sounds modified to give a different vibe. It was a steady, regular rhythm that introduced a peaceful atmosphere, it made one want to take a calm walk on it. When the singer opened his mouth to tell another story, the message seemed to have changed ; it wasn’t a friends topic anymore but about a man taking the woman he loves home, and willingly saving time on their way to stay with her longer.

This time, it was like Jonghyun was talking to the woman herself, his voice more whispering than singing, low and gentle, soft and intimate. But the story was short, as he eventually started repeating the same words, beautiful tonight and oh say, accompanying them with slow whistles.

A smile was drawn on his lips for a second, disallowing him to properly whistle and forcing him to get himself together, when he noticed that after a few times, some customers had their lips shaped in a o as if whistling with him. Some others were slowly moving their head on the piercing yet soft sound’s rhythm, and it filled his heart with joy… especially when his eyes fell on Kibum, who was part of this second type of listeners. The latter smiled at the blonde and slowly nodded, quietly notifying him of how well he was doing.

A song had never seemed so short, but when it ended, Jonghyun’s disappointment was quickly replaced with gratefulness as he bowed his head, people applauding and even standing for some. He kept his head lowered as he stood himself to bow even more, and he joined his hands together when straightening up, his eyes shining while he couldn’t realise what he had just done. Even when Minho climbed on stage and politely took the mike to announce the end of the small concert, he only had eyes for whoever was in front of him.

He didn’t notice the curtain being pulled in front of him, and the last thing he saw before he needed to sit backstage for a moment, was Kibum still standing and applauding without ceasing to look at him.

_________________

“They want to hear more stories.”

Jonghyun didn’t even hear the bartender as his eyes were stuck to the guest book that had been filled by almost all customers who had attended that evening’s concert. It was an usual thing, he had been told, and really dear to Minho : on every Wednesday, he would place this book in front of the bar’s door, on a music stand, for people to leave their impressions about the performances they had heard.

Sometimes it was just a short message of congratulations, but there also were talkative ones with personal thoughts on a song they liked better, praises and promises to come again… though this time, it seemed Jinki had been quite forgotten, for almost all words were intended for the new blonde artist with a silky voice. It was unbelievable and the concerned man was unable to talk.

“Oh, look there.” Taemin said as he pointed at a message. “See hyung, someone mentioned you before praising him. Here, at the beginning.”

“I still have one fan here, thank God.” Jinki heartily laughed. “Though I understand them, I rarely heard something as beautiful as what you offered tonight, man.”

“They really… liked me ?” Jonghyun eventually asked, looking up and his eyes looking for any form of assent from any of the four men surrounding him. “I mean, I felt that they were liking the songs but… the messages are all about me, they call me an artist…?”

“I told you you would be listened to and not remain a background noise.” Kibum smiled. “To think you rejected me at first ! I know how to recognize potential when I see it.”

“Come on dude, it’s no time to praise yourself.” Minho rolled his eyes and paid attention to the blonde man. “They really liked you, and your songs. Some were event disappointed that you couldn’t sing more, they told me themselves when coming to the counter to pay.”

The subway singer stood gaping for a moment, before he leaned against the sofa’s backrest. He didn’t know what to think nor what to say, too many things were happening in his mind right now, and he was feeling like his chest was going to explode.

“I think tonight might not be a good moment to talk business.” The bartender ended up saying, slowly taking the book back and standing up. “What about we meet tomorrow when I close and discuss your next performance ?”

“My… my next performance ?” Jonghyun repeated, looking at the tall man. “Do you want me to come back ?”

“And I will pay you for it. Customers liked you, and I can’t deny you’ve got a real talent, also you’ve got three men right there who will drown me in the Han river if I don’t hire you right now.”

“I can’t believe it…”

“That’s why I suggest you to come back tomorrow to talk about it with a clear head. But if you want to, consider yourself hired already. Our next three Wednesdays are booked already but if you can wait, I will make sure you get the one after. That leaves you almost a month to prepare, sounds good ?”

“Sounds damn good. Where do I sign ?”

Both laughed and exchanged an enthusiastic handshake, under the extremely content stare of the three other men. Kibum was the proudest, standing with his arms crossed to give himself a nonchalant attitude, but deep inside, he was feeling all excited. Although he knew Minho couldn’t refuse him anything, he couldn’t say he would have hired Jonghyun if it hadn’t been for the latter to have potential.

The Blue Night’s owner only hired artists. And the event planner had brought him one he would never regret hiring.

___________

to be continued

#jongkey #jonghyun #key #kibum #shinee #multi shot #sing your soul #singing in the subway #live entertainment bar #music #onho

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