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okageshadowkingfannovel · 4 years ago

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Book 1. The Boy Meets the King

Chapter 1.

In a normal unsuspecting kitchen, a former adventurer stands before a stove, stirring the contents of a pot and humming to herself. In her early forties, she’s a warm, pleasant looking woman with pony-tailed reddish brown hair and soft brown eyes. She might have been the hero of this story about two decades ago, but her adventures are long since passed. The only adventures for her today are those of being a devoted wife and mother, and that means preparing dinner.

It’s just after lunch and suddenly, the younger of the woman’s two children bursts into the kitchen. She is a slender pretty girl with strawberry blond pigtails and vibrant green eyes. She is Annie, a teenager, but also, not the hero of this story. In fact, she has very little interest outside of keeping herself popular amongst the teenagers of Tenel village and finding a satisfactory boyfriend.

“Hey Mom, what’s for dinner?”

“Oh Annie,” Mom starts while casting a smile over her shoulder, “you just had lunch not too long ago and you’re already thinking about dinner?”

Annie twists a dainty finger into the strands of one pigtail. “I was just asking. It smells so good. Tell me, Mom. I wanna know.”

At this moment, the woman’s eldest child enters the kitchen, but it takes her and Annie a too long moment to notice him.

“Well, I’ll say that- Oh! Ari!”

“See? Ari’s come to find out too.”

The boy called Ari is 16 years old. He has a sapling like frame - slender, scrawny, almost seeming bendy. Shaggy red hair falls in long locks around his face and across his forehead, and his large eyes are emerald green. He’s wearing a blue striped sleeveless shirt, a black vest with gold clasps and a skull patch on the chest, and long khaki trousers. He doesn’t speak up much for himself and the whole town of Tenel agrees that his most notable quality is how unremarkable he is.

That being said, this quiet ordinary boy is the hero for this peculiar tale.

“Come on, Mom! What is it? It smells like stew … or steak?” Annie carries on.

“Well, what do you think it might be, Ari?”

Ari courteously sniffs the air, shrugs, and answers. “I don’t know.”

Mom looks slightly disappointed that her son gave no guess, but she smiles anyway and says, “well, tonight’s dinner is … a secret!”

Annie rolls her eyes. “Mom! That’s so unfair.”

“Oh! That reminds me, Ari. Your dad found a funny bottle on his way home last night. It’s right there on the table.”

She gestures towards the kitchen table where, seeming very out of place upon the normal white table cloth and next to the three branched candelabra, there indeed sits a strange looking bottle. It is a gaudy purple with an intricate green pattern necklacing the thinly tapering opening. Two handles spring out and curve down to the bottom to make for easy carrying. Four large, candy like turquoise gemstones are embedded into the bottle’s curves.

“We can’t get the cap off,” his mother admits, “don’t you think it’s strange?”

Observing more closely, Ari notices the cork very firmly shoved into the opening.

He reaches out a finger and pokes it.

A low muffled moan sounds from deep within the bottle.

Ari leans in and sniffs at the cork.

All he catches is an overwhelming waft of mold.

Finally, he firmly grasps the neck of the bottle and pulls at the cork.

But it won’t budge, not even a wiggle.

“See?” says his mother, abandoning the stove to draw closer to the bottle, “I wonder what’s in there.”

There’s a sparkle in her eyes, a far off wandering look, a hint of the curious adventurer she used to be.

“Mom!” Annie breaks her mother’s reverie, “it’s pointless to keep a bottle we can’t open. Throw it away.”

To strike her point, Annie flips a pigtail on the last word.

“Ah! Well, let��s see … What should we do?”

Their mother hesitates a moment in thought. And then, she lights up with realization.

“Oh! That reminds me! I forgot to pick up bread! But I can’t leave the stove. What should I do?”

Before Ari can make any sort of suggestion, his sister steps over him.

“Oh darn, I wish I could help you out, Mom, but I have a test tomorrow and I really need to study. My future is on the line!”

With that, Annie turns around and makes a dash out of the kitchen.

Unsurprisingly, Ari notices the sounds of her footsteps are heading out the front door instead of up the stairs to her room where her school books lay waiting.

“Well then, Ari,” says his mother, “go down to the bakery in the village and pick up a loaf of bread for me. They’ll just put it on our tab, so you can just run in and grab it. Thank you, dear.”

His mother turns back to her stove and her humming. Ari is about to leave the kitchen when she whips around again.

“Oh! While you’re out, why don’t you stop by Town Hall and see your father.” She turns back to her cooking, wistfully, “ah, my love, hard at work. If only I could see your father in action. Such rapture …” she trails off to herself.

Feeling repulsed and uncomfortable with his mother’s personal musings, as teenagers ordinarily do, Ari finally leaves the kitchen.

The family home is a mansion that lays like a sprawled out reptile just south-east of the village of Tenel. It sits fatly in a clearing of pine trees, just a stone’s throw from the village road. It wears jagged stones in various states of grey, reaches tall, dizzying pointed towers up to mingle with the tree tops, and caps itself with crooked blue shingles. It keeps itself company with a dried up fountain in the front courtyard, a tiny, but ancient ancestral graveyard, and a huge, thick, wooden gate at the entrance to keep all of it in.

Ari steps out into the courtyard, shielding his eyes from the sunlight already beginning to sharpen through the trees as afternoon slips into evening. He notices Annie waiting for him at the top of the stone steps that snake down to the front gate.

“So, did she tell you what’s for dinner?” she asks, blocking his path, “come on, tell me.”

“What happened to your homework?”

Annie starts to tease her pigtail with a wiggling finger.

“Well! I’m going out on a twilight date with Morris before dinner. To polish my feminine airs, I have to build up experience while I’m young. My book says so too …”

“What kind of book says that?”

“It’s one of Mom’s old books. What was the name again? … Oh! ‘Controlling Guys Made Easy.’”

Before Ari can protest, Annie spins around and skips on down the stairs.

“Anyway, enjoy your errand, Ari!” she calls before disappearing through the wooden gate.

Ari sighs, figuring there was little he could have said or done to make things play out differently.

With hands in pockets, he lazily makes his way over to the small graveyard by the pathway. He likes to say hello upon passing the three residents. The stones are so old that most of the lettering has been worn away, but Ari makes out what he can and makes up the rest:

‘RIP Nameless Hero - Well, we think he must have a name, but nobody asked him.’

‘Man who drank, gambled, and died from poisonous fish - just as he planned. RIP’

‘Person who touched the knowledge of the Library.’

After 16 years, Ari still knows nothing beyond these half-deciphered inscriptions, but he gives his regards all the same. When satisfied, he heads on through the big wooden gate that leads him to a meandering dirt path. It winds through the grass, between rotted logs and small rocky hills, untangling Ari from the clusters of trees until it finds the main road. A nearby sign helpfully points out to any casually passing tourist:

‘North: Tenel Village/Church

West: Tenel Field & Madril

East: Nameless Dwelling’

Ari wonders if his family will ever decide to name their house so the sign could be a bit more specific.

“Hmmm, Nancy? Or Connie?”

At the crossroads stand two boys about Ari’s age, Levi and Nathan. Dark haired Nathan is the pudgier fellow, while Levi is lanky and alight with flaming orange hair.

“Huh?”

“Whoa!” Nathan exclaims, his fat frame jumping, “Oh! It’s you. You scared me, Ari! When did you get here? I didn’t even notice.”

“Ari, you look real gloomy,” says Levi, “hey, you know what? The circus is coming to the field over there tomorrow night!” He gestures vaguely in the direction of Tenel Field.

“Really?” Ari replies noncommittally.

“I, I, I’m definitely gonna ask Julia out this time! I, I, I will do it! And me and Julia are gonna go out on a romantic date!”

“I wonder who I should ask out,” Nathan muses in the face of his friend’s determination, “Ari, why don’t you ask somebody out too? It’s the circus!”

Ari chuckles and shrugs his shoulders in what he hopes is a ‘cool, but not caring too much’ display. “Sure, I’ll just narrow down my list a bit and ask one out.”

It doesn’t come off as cool as he hoped.

“Ha!” Levi bursts, “I bet he doesn’t have the guts to ask a girl out! Ha ha ha! Chicken!”

The skinny boy goes the extra mile and begins flapping his arms and clucking.

“Anyway, I better get on over to the village,” says Ari before the soul crushing embarrassment can descend, “got an errand to run.”

“You’d better go quick then,” says Nathan, “they’re closing the town gates earlier and earlier. The ghosts and monsters from Tenel field have been wandering closer to town, I heard.”

The hauntings and prowlings of Tenel Field are nothing new to Ari’s ears. All his life, he’s heard the townspeople complaining about the beasts and deadly things that roam wild and how it’s getting worse every year. Ari hears most people, especially the older ones, blaming it on something evil going on out West in Madril that’s driving the wild things nutty. It’s gotten to the point where Tenel’s posted a sentry on the path between Tenel and the field to keep kids and the like in town and to warn everyone if something should wander in. Ari never gives the matter much thought, reasoning that interesting things like monster encounters only happen to interesting people. And it’s so rare to see ghosts come floating in out of the field.

But the sun does seem ever so slightly lower than it was when he first stepped out of the house.

“Right, I’ll be quick.”

With that, Ari leaves them to their great girl debate and heads toward the main gates of Tenel. For now, the entrance is wide open, yawning its welcome to any passerby bored enough to visit the little town. But later, as it gets darker, the gates will eventually be shut and locked, as Tenel residents cling to the illogical belief that doors and locks can keep out ghosts.

As he enters, he notices a pretty blond girl in a white dress standing by the inn and looking absentmindedly off into the distance. Further putting his errand on hold, Ari walks up to her.

“Hey Julia.”

She doesn’t respond.

Ari waits patiently.

It’s alright. I’m used to being ignored.

Julia looks on for another moment or two. Ari continues waiting.

Any day now …

“Huh? Oh, Ari!” she says, her gaze finally shifting onto him, “I was daydreaming. Sorry about that. Hey, did you know the circus is coming tomorrow night?”

Julia and Ari have been friends since childhood, and though time and puberty have pulled them in different directions, they still consider themselves at the very least good friends. Typically, Julia isn’t so spacey - it’s just an ‘Ari thing.’

“Yeah, Nathan and Levi mentioned it.”

“Isn’t it great? It’s the circus!”

“Yeah, it’s pretty great.”

She looks at him, blue eyes wide and expectant.

“I mean,” he continues, “really great. Very exciting.”

She still says nothing. He waves a hand in front of her eyes, wondering if she’s sunk into another daydream. He does have that effect on people sometimes.

“So, aren’t you gonna ask me to go to the circus with you?” she says suddenly.

“Oh! Well, yeah,” Ari stumbles, “um, I mean, I need to check in with my folks, but … would you … would you like to …”

Before Ari can finish his bare minimum of a question, Julia takes a step back and giggles.

“Sorry, Ari.”

Without even knowing the rest of the sentence, Ari can tell she doesn’t seem very sorry.

“Somebody else already asked me. If you’d have asked me earlier …”

Ari thinks about maybe saying something in protest or in his own defense, but decides it’s not worth it as she makes her way past him.

“Um,” she says, pausing before she walks away completely, “Some time soon, Ari, I … I need to tell you something important … so … see you.”

She takes off running, disappearing fast into the town - an impressive feat given its small size and even smaller populace. Ari isn’t sure what to make of Julia. Teenagerdom is difficult enough to navigate for himself without the complex enigma of teenage girls thrown into the mix. As with most problems, puzzles, and peculiarities, Ari shrugs and carries on with his business.

As he passes it, Ari notices the sign on the Parm Inn door:

‘CLOSED due to water shortage - not that we get any guests anyway. Ha! - Parm Inn Landlord.’

The posting has been there for several weeks. Similar notices decorate the doors of ‘Tinkers,’ the blacksmith and ‘Gulp,’ the bar:

‘Can’t do business without water. I’ll be sleeping. - Tinkers Owner’

‘Closed due to shortage! And for those who owe me money, PAY UP QUICK! - Gulp Hostess.’

Ari can only wonder how much longer before these places will have to close for good. Tenel is already pretty small. Any smaller and they’d have to start calling themselves ‘a small cluster of houses and shops’ instead of a town.

“Ah! Ari!” someone suddenly exclaims.

Ari turns to see the butcher standing outside his shop, just across from the inn. A man with an egg like figure and neatly parted brown hair, the butcher breathes out a heavy sigh as he clutches at his chest.

“You gave me a fright, Ari. I didn’t notice ya standing there at first.”

“Sorry, Mr. Kellogg.”

“Shame about the water shortage, isn’t it? Thankfully, we’ve got some stored up for emergencies like this, but we’re getting mighty low. Can’t say how much longer we’ll be able to stay open.”

“Yeah, I wonder what’s caus-”

“You like beef, Ari?”

He is a little startled by the question.

“Oh, well, I don’t dislike it, sir.”

“I’ve got a great deal on ground beef. One pound, 20 sukel. Figure you might not be able to get any tomorrow - if we can’t open, I mean.”

A few minutes later, Ari walks out of the butcher shop with a wrapped up pound of ground beef under his arm and his wallet 20 sukel lighter.

“Pleasure doing business with you,” calls Mr. Kellogg as he locks the door to his shop to leave for the day, “get home safe.”

Ari waves as the butcher turns to make his way home. He doubts he’ll have business there, but Ari hopes the butcher is open tomorrow. As he makes his way towards the bakery, he passes by two men deep in conversation and nervousness.

“Oh dear, this just won’t do. The water supply has stopped and almost all the stores are closed. It’s under investigation now … do you think it might be related to ghosts?”

“All I know is they’re saying there are tons of ghost problems in Madril. And they’re a big, machine town. Totally different class than Tenel. If they can’t handle the ghosts and monsters, we don’t stand a chance.”

The other man nods weakly, looking very pale. “We’ll be in big trouble.”

Ari remembers his mother’s suggestion couched in wifely affection and decides to go visit his father. He passes Gulp, Tinkers, the miscellaneous shop known as ‘The Other One’, and several homes. All the way in the back of town, atop a small hill, is the church and right beside it the Tenel Village Office. The church sits quietly and patiently, having been unused and unvisited for several weeks now. Ari thinks the cream color of the tall rounded church towers is starting to look like spoiled milk. Green stains are creeping up the sides and the forest surrounding Tenel is starting to reclaim it.

A sign before the tightly shut door reads:

‘Until further notice, please do not enter the church. - Tenel Village Office’

Feeling helpless in the face of such a polite, pathetic notice, Ari walks over to the Tenel Village Office.

Inside, the village office is busy and hectic. Immediately, Ari spots his father sitting behind his usual desk at the front, but all around him, people rush and run and flitter about like a swarm of frustrated, inconvenienced bees. Even their talk sounds like buzzing.

Ari carefully navigates his way towards that front desk. Ari’s father is a short, stringy sort of man. He parts his dark brown hair straight and neat down the middle, and he looks at the world through thick, soda bottle glasses. He has the look of a man who believes in aliens and psychic phenomenon. If one were to ask him about such things, he could easily go on for hours. Ari can attest to it. His father stares intently into a stack of pages in the middle of his desk. He stares as if staring hard enough will burst the pages into flames or cast them into an alternate dimension where he doesn’t have to look at them anymore. Ari is sorry to see these efforts aren’t working.

“Oh! Hello there, Ari. Here to see your cool father at work?”

Ari rolls his eyes, but still smiles.

“What d’ya think? Too cool for words, huh? I redefine ‘cool.’ Ha!”

Now the smile is starting to fade. Ari’s father has perfected the art of being too corny.

“Sorry, sorry,” his father chuckles, “as you can see, the office is in a bit of a panic over the water shortage. We’re doing everything we can to find the cause, but …”

As his father trails off, Ari sees his shoulders slump and behind the happy-go-luck dork that is his father, Ari can see the exhausted Assistant Manager.

“On top of that, the Classification Tables will be arriving soon from the Royal City. That always puts the office on edge.”

Ari knows vaguely about the Classification Tables. His father has cursed it multiple times throughout the year. Supposedly, the village office sends a character report of each Tenel resident to the Royal City and then the city sends back a huge packet of tables that identify and categorize each and every citizen. Ari frequently asks his father how he is ‘classified,’ but his father usually responds with some corny joke.

‘The Assistant Manager’s son.’ ‘The eldest child at the Nameless Dwelling.’ ‘Some Shady Guy.’

So, Ari doesn’t really ask about it anymore. He just accepts that the Classification Table causes his father a lot of headache and woe. Once, Ari tried asking one of his father’s coworkers what the purpose was of the Classification Tables. Her response was unsatisfactory.

“Oh! I didn’t see you there! You’re the assistant manager’s son, aren’t you? Well, the Classification Tables, they … well, they … they maintain order of course! They help the town run smoothly. Why else would the Royal City have us do all this? Now, please leave me alone. I’m quite busy.”

So, Ari understands the weight when, on top of the water shortage problem, his father says he also has to deal with the Royal City’s Classification Tables.

“Anyway, what’s for dinner?” his father asks suddenly, the joy lifting his shoulders back up from their slump, “Ah, I wanna go home. I miss your mom.”

Ari chuckles. “No idea. She wouldn’t tell me. Says it’s a surprise.”

“Ha, yeah, that sounds like your mother.”

“She asked me to pick up bread.”

“Oh! Well, you better get moving, son. It’s getting dark out. The town will be closing soon.”

“Great seeing you, Dad,” says Ari as he turns to leave, nearly crashing into a speeding intern.

Ari steps back outside and, just as his dad said, the dark is noticeably beginning to descend on the town. He rushes down the hill to the Bakery, hoping the owner hasn’t decided to close doors early due to the dark looming in. The bell above the door clangs to life as he rushes in. Despite that, the husband and wife who run the Bakery carry on with their personal business, not seeming to notice Ari standing in the doorway. He steps up to the main counter where the wife stands, her back to Ari as she sorts through the baked goods on the back shelf.

The smell of freshly baked bread is intoxicating, filling Ari with warmth until the harsh pang of hunger in his stomach drives it away.

“Excuse me,” he says.

The portly Mrs. Bakster is singing to herself as she counts and pokes at the remaining pastries. It’s not a very good song and Mrs. Bakster isn’t very good at singing it.

“Hello? Mrs. Bakster?”

“Huh?” Finally, she whips around. “Oh! It’s you, Ari! Don’t I always tell you? A boy should speak up!”

These types of reprimands are nothing new. Mrs. Bakster has many opinions and is very keen on sharing them.

“Now, now, don’t harangue the boy, dear,” calls Mr. Bakster from across the shop, “don’t mind her too much, Ari. She’s got a sharp tongue, but a soft heart really.”

Ari smiles good humoredly, simply wanting to get the bread and get home for dinner.

“You’ve come to pick up bread for your mother, right?” says Mrs. Bakster as she reaches over to a shelf and pulls off a fine, golden colored loaf. With speed and finesse, she neatly wraps the loaf in paper and then, gently hands it to Ari. “Here you are. Don’t squeeze it too much. Don’t want to crush it.”

“Yes, Mrs. Bakster, thank you.”

“By the way, Ari, before you go, I wanted to ask - anything bothering you?”

“Now, dear!” chides Mr. Bakster.

“Come on! Keep your chin up, boy!” Mrs. Bakster carries on, ignoring her husband, “girls like the assertive ones, you know? And I know you’ve got a lot of potential, Ari. You can be anything you want. You just got to assert yourself, and girls will be all over you.”

Ari smiles and nods, backing away slowly.

“Alright, alright. Get on home and get that to your mother. I’ve got a dinner to get ready and a husband to feed, you know.”

“Yes … thank you, Mrs. Bakster. You too, Mr. Bakster. Have a good evening.”

Ari turns and whips out the door before the baker can be inspired with another round of opinions. Once outside, Ari is surprised to find Annie waiting.

“Ari, you done with your errands? You’ve been gone forever.”

“Sorry, yeah. I’m done.”

“What’s the matter?” she asks, and then eyes the bakery, “oh, did she lecture you again?”

Yeah, sure, make me relive it, why don’t ya?

The thought translates into a shrug.

“Let me guess,” says Annie playfully, “Oh, Ari, you’ve got to speak up for yourself more. You practically blend into someone else’s shadow.”

Ari gives her a brotherly glare.

“Oh well, at least there are some people around here who see some good in you … Julie, for instance.” Annie giggles mercilessly. “You lucky guy.”

All the way home, Annie teases her brother about the baker woman’s “advice” and Julie’s “affections.” But Ari takes it all without a word, wondering to himself about lots of different topics from that busy afternoon. He thinks about the water shortage and about his classification from the Royal City and about Julie picking someone else over him and about what it actually means to ‘blend into someone else’s shadow.’

Chapter 1 • Chapter 2 • Chapter 3 • Chapter 4 • Chapter 5 • Chapter 6 • Chapter 7 • Chapter 8 • Chapter 9 • Chapter 10 • Chapter 11 • Chapter 12 • Chapter 13 • Chapter 14 • Chapter 15 • Chapter 16 - Finale

NOTE: Okage Shadow King is owned by Sony Computer Entertainment and Zener Works. This novelization is purely a fan-work and the writer claims no ownership over the characters, general plot line(s), etc.

#okage shadow king #osk #playstation 2 #video games #novelization #boku to maō

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ralphspina · 5 years ago

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The Sound of Your Voice, The Sound of Your Laugh

The sound of Roe’s voice is something Luz simply can’t get enough of.

Taglist: @gottapenny @itisjustmethistime @indigosandviolets

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George Luz collects impressions the way others might collect rocks or coins or stamps. His imitations include everyone from his first grade teacher to the clerk at the corner store back home to the likes of Major Horton. He takes a certain pride in his peculiar collection - the sheer span of accents, dialects, and speaking quirks is downright impressive (or so he likes to think). And after only a few months at Toccoa he has damn near his whole company down pat., There’s a few voices he’s not interested in learning - they’re either too plain or too similar to ones he’s already picked up. There is, however, one voice that he’s dying to collect like an auditory version of those butterflies pinned in frames. And it’s slowly driving Luz up the wall that he hasn't yet captured this particular butterfly-

Eugene Roe.

The man just doesn’t talk enough. Luz can count on one hand the amount of times Roe’s talked to him. Hardly enough for Luz to perfect any sort of impression but more than enough for the Cajun accent to capture his full attention. Roe’s voice isn’t anything like Luz has heard before. There’s nothing like it in Luz’s repertoire of stolen voices and Luz can feel a growing desperation to add the warm Cajun lilt to his hoard.

And then there comes the day he manages to get a laugh out of Roe after an offhand comment during one of their night marches and the desperation grows. It wasn’t a chuckle or one of those breathy huffs of amusement, but a real, honest to god, laugh - a laugh that spreads a sunshine warmth through Luz’s body. And, oh, now there’s a laugh he’d love to stash away in his memory forever, replaying it whenever he needed to feel that particular warm glow again - if only he could hear it once more so that he could properly engrave it in his mind.

Over the following weeks, Luz, being both desperate and determined, does what he can to insert himself into Roe’s life. Using his abundance of charm, Luz gets himself assigned to the same duties around camp as Roe. Luz also makes sure to plant himself next to Roe on marches and runs. When meal times roll around, Luz makes sure to grab a spot at the same table as Roe. Slowly but surely Luz becomes a front and center daily fixture in Roe’s life.

But even with his constant presence, it still takes a surprising amount of time for Roe to open up to him. Roe isn’t shy, just slow to let himself get attached, and Luz approaches it as a challenge. That makes two challenges now - impersonating Roe’s voice and getting him to open up - and, well, Luz does enjoy a challenge (or two).

It’s been over a month now and still Luz has no grasp on that unique Cajun accent. He’s had more conversations with the man than probably anyone else on base and yet no dice. Every time he tries his ever-evolving Roe impression out in front of Perconte or Skip or one of his other friends, it elicits nothing but laughs but not for the reasons he wants.

As time passes, the laughs slowly change over to moans and eye rolls - being bombarded almost daily by less than stellar attempts at a Cajun accent can get tiring, even if they love Luz dearly.

Luz and Perconte are making their way back to their barracks one afternoon, Luz complaining yet again about his inability to capture the particular smoothness of Roe’s voice, when Perconte interrupts with an annoyed sigh and a mumbled “Jesus Christ.”

“The hell’s your problem?”

“You think maybe you can’t get his voice down ‘cause you don’t wanna?”

“What?”

“I’m just sayin’, maybe you don’t really wanna get his voice right ‘cause then you ain’t got an excuse to talk to him all the damn time.”

“What? No. That’s not... no. I just…”

Suddenly his own voice, and every single voice he had ever collected, fails him and he’s left with no words.

The next day Luz stares hard at Roe during breakfast. He doesn’t mean to stare like he does but his mind is working overtime, chewing its way around what Perconte said the day before. Because maybe Perconte was right. Maybe what Luz is doing has to do with more than just trying to perfect yet another impression. More than just adding to his already expansive collection. Maybe there really was more to this than the way he enjoys how a certain Cajun accent rings in his ears and curls its way along his spine...

Over the course of the rest of the day, Luz begins to slowly realize just how often Roe crowds his thoughts. He seems to occupy a spot in Luz’s mind almost constantly, maybe not always at the forefront but always there, hovering in the background. He also catches how often his eyes wander to where Roe is, as if they have a mind of their own and know what they like to look at. And the fact that almost every time Luz’s eyes glance over at Roe only to find Roe is looking right back? Oh, that certainly catches Luz’s attention too. It has already happened a handful of times that day when Luz and Roe lock eyes as they step up to the obstacle course, only inches away from each other this time. Luz can feel an odd sensation in his stomach, as if the entire thing flipped over and got itself all tangled up. The thought that perhaps he shouldn’t have eaten that mystery meat at lunch today crosses Luz’s mind.

(The mystery meat has nothing to do with the feeling in his stomach. Even if Luz doesn't acknowledge it at that moment.)

The following morning, as Luz is quietly marveling at the way the word Louisiana sounded as it left Roe’s mouth during a story about home earlier, he’s startled by Roe’s sudden grip on his arm.

“You alright, George?”

George. Roe used his first name - the thought makes him feel something he can’t quite put his finger on.

Blinking up at Roe, George stumbles over his response, “Yeah, yeah I’m alright. I’m… I zoned out a second I guess.” Luz smiles as brightly as he can, a little too aware of just how much of his mind had just been dedicated to simply thinking about the way Roe says Louisiana. He can feel his cheeks warm at the thought.

“Alright, then.” Roe smiles back, nodding, and although he says nothing further there’s a hesitation before he finally lets go of Luz’s arm and turns back to stacking crates.

Luz goes back to stacking crates as well, his arm still warm from where Roe’s hand had just been.

It’s a Tuesday when it happens. Luz finds it a bit funny that something so significant would happen on a Tuesday of all days and yet…

Roe heads to a quiet spot under a tree to get some field medicine studying done. Luz follows along under the guise of needing a quiet place to get a nap in. As they settle into their respective spots under the tree, Roe gets right to studying while Luz picks up a stick and starts poking at some monstrous bug. A few moments pass in peace before the bug decides he’s had enough of being poked at and flies off, making a quick detour to fly straight into Luz’s face before going on his way. In a panic, Luz slams the side of his head against the tree as he tries to veer out of the bug’s path.

“Ow! Fuck!” Luz rubs the side of his head, wincing.

Roe reaches out and gently rubs the side of Luz’s head, his lips twitching up involuntarily in amusement.

“Big mean bug almost get you, George?”

In faux seriousness Luz responds, “It was a close call, Gene. Could have gotten taken out before I even got my jump wings.”

“Hmmm, that would have been a shame. Hate to celebrate gettin’ our wings without you.” Roe leans over and presses a soft kiss to the side of Luz’s head. Luz can hardly hide the surprise on his face at the gesture and it seems neither can Roe - the look on his face as he sits back makes it clear that he surprised himself with the action as well.

They stare at each other in silence, shocked and unsure of what to do or say. The building tension drives Luz to do the one thing his suddenly overloaded mind can scramble to come up with - kiss Roe. The kiss is a bit rough and quick, over in seconds, but the mere press of their lips together is enough to leave both their hearts racing wildly in their chests.

“Oh.” Roe looks almost… awed at the unexpected contact of Luz’s lips against his own.

“Yeah,” a smile slowly spreads across Luz’s face, “Oh.”

The days melt into each other - each one filled with running, barely edible Army food, Sobel’s screaming, marching, and more marching. Roe and Luz steal time whenever and wherever they can, which doesn’t amount to much in Army training, especially Army training under Sobel. But the time they can spend together is spent with a new closeness, with talking, with laughter, and with plenty of (hurried) kisses too.

They’re cleaning the barracks one hot and sunny afternoon, just the two of them, when the previously chaste kisses become something more. In the blink of an eye, Luz is pinned between a wall and Roe’s warm body. Their kisses are hungry and impatient, speaking volumes in and of themselves. Luz’s hands are curled into the front of Roe’s shirt, holding him close as Roe’s hands slip beneath the hem of Luz’s shirt, fingers running curiously over the skin he finds there.

Their intimate moment is interrupted by the grating sound of Sobel’s voice, complaining to an unknown second party, as he walks by the barracks. The kissing stops immediately but the two men freeze in place like deer caught in headlights as they listen to Sobel pass by. As soon as Sobel’s voice fades in the distance, Luz grins up at Roe and in his best Sobel impression says, “Is this what you call cleaning, gentlemen?! Because what I see is not Army standard cleaning!”

Roe collapses against Luz in a fit of laughter, face buried in the crook of Luz’s neck. The sound of his laughter reverberates through Luz’s body, spreading an indescribable joy deep into his bones.

Roe’s laughter is his favorite sound of all.

It’s during one of their many, many runs up Currahee just a few days later, that they manage to attract the ire of Sobel. Sobel is already turning red in the face, yelling at the company non-stop, when Roe and Luz make the mistake of sharing an inside joke that gets them both laughing. As punishment for their merriment, their weekend passes are revoked and they’re assigned the task of spending their Saturday inventorying and reorganizing the stuffy, overcrowded supply shed behind the barracks.

(It’s hardly a punishment.)

Saturday rolls around, dawning clear and bright, and finding Roe and Luz, alone and unsupervised in a dusty supply shed, an entire day stretching before them.

The aloneness is a rare opportunity and it’s quite clear that neither wants to waste it. They are almost immediately glued together, moving as one, towards the back of the supply shed. Luz is so enraptured by the way Roe’s body fits against his own and the taste of Roe in his mouth, he hardly even notices when they go from vertical to horizontal. It’s not until the sharp corner of a metal buckle digs into his back does his mind start processing semi-coherent thoughts again.

Roe is here. On top of him. Kissing him. While they lay on a bed of reserve chutes.

Luz pulls Roe closer, fingers curling into the hair at the back of Roe’s head as he slams their mouths together greedily. More is all he can think now - more, more, more. He hooks his legs around Roe’s as he tightens his grip in Roe’s hair. The move elicits a soft moaning sound from the back of Roe’s throat. The sound sends a shock wave of pleasure through Luz’s body. It’s a sound he knows he'll never replicate on his own (it’s too innately Gene, much like his voice) so he settles for doing whatever he can to drag that sound out of Roe again, just so he can hear it again and again and again.

Within the space of a few breaths, Luz is already discovering a myriad of new Roe sounds and all the ways he can move his hands and mouth to induce even more. It’s a game, a challenge - What will Roe sound like when I move my hand here? When I kiss him there?

Luz is making his own sounds too, although he hardly notices because he’s far too absorbed in the quiet sounds Gene is making. Only when Gene whispers, “shhh, gotta keep it down” does Luz make an effort to swallow back his own moans and exclamations.

When they do finally break apart, Roe’s face hovers inches above his own and suddenly Luz isn’t sure his heart is working right anymore. Some distant part of his brain wonders if maybe he should see a doctor because he can feel his heart both completely stop beating and yet beat far too fast all at once.

“I can’t do your voice,” Luz is slightly horrified that he blurts the statement out, seemingly out of nowhere. He doesn’t know why he says it or what he was thinking - or perhaps that’s the problem, he isn’t thinking at all right now - there’s far too much Roe, far too close, for proper brain function.

“What?” Roe looks utterly confused at the sudden confession.

“I, uh, I can’t mimic your voice. Can do everyone else’s but not yours. I’ve been practicing too, since we met. Don’t know what’s taking me so long.” That last bit is a lie and Luz knows it - he knows damn well why it’s taking so long and has known the reason quite clearly since Perconte pointed it out, even if he didn’t want to admit to himself at first. ”But you might be stuck with me until I get your voice right.”

“An’ how long will that take?” Roe presses a kiss to Luz’s temple. “Weeks?”

“Definitely.”

Roe presses another kiss to Luz’s cheek, “Months?”

“Maybe.”

“Hmm,” this time there’s a kiss to the corner of Luz’s jaw, “years?” The word is mumbled against Luz’s skin, sending spikes of goosebumps down his body in an electric wave.

“Possibly.” Luz barely gets the word out, hardly recognizes his own voice in the whisper quiet way it slips out.

“An’ the more I talk, the faster you’ll pick it up?”

Luz has to clear his throat before he can respond. “Yeah. Need to hear it to learn it,” Luz, face flushed, grins up at Roe, “Guess you’ll have to tell me all those old Cajun stories after all.”

“Mmm.”

“Like that one about the louie garoos. Lou garooies? Shit. What’re they called again?”

Roe makes an amused sound at the back of his throat but doesn’t respond.

“Gene?”

“Mmhmm?”

Luz’s eyes meet Roe’s and he can see the mischief that fills them - it’s a playfulness that extends down to the smirk forming on Roe’s face.

“Oh, so no more talking then?”

“Mmm-mm.”

The delight that explodes through Luz’s chest makes its way out in a sudden fit of laughter. Luz manages to gather himself quickly and cups Roe’s face in his hands, pulling him down into a series of kisses, breaking them only long enough to get out a teasing “Well, I guess we’ll just have to do other things then.”

#happy birthday to me!#i was a dork and wrote myself something very self indulgent #band of brothers #eugene roe #LuzRoe #george luz #i wrote a thing

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beakami · 5 years ago

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The Force and Love Series (04/04): Listen To The Force (Obi Wan x Reader, no y/n)

Hello! This is the final chaper for the moment. I will focus on some One-shots if my mind lets me, and maybe follow up on a Mandalorian series I started but got stuck pretty soon. Hope you enjoy the series and have fun <3

Summary: Reader is rescued from a life of servitude when Obi Wan and Master Joda find her while on a very important mission. Her connection with the Force is deep and quite different from the one the Order is used to. She is now free but, what will it be of her life? Will she follow the path of the Jedi? Will feeling get in the way?

Warnings: Will change in furute chapters but for now just some angst and mention of slavery. If there is anything else you see and think I should add here, please, do tell me and I will do so gladly. Enjoy

Word Count: 3019

Chapter 4: Listen to the Force.

>>It took all you had in yourself to not break down. An hour of being completely still, your Force signature buried as deep as it could were needed to just being able to stand up. Not even Yoda would feel your energy, though hiding wasn’t why you did it, you just didn’t want them to worry…you didn’t want to bother anyone, because that is what you felt…a bother. So you dragged yourself across the garden and into the Temple, trying not to be seen until you reached your quarters. You didn’t even know what to do or what to say; so you just sat there, on the floor, back against the foot of the bed, knees wrapped with both arms and pressed against your chest until you felt like you couldn’t breathe, and your face sank, forehead resting on your knees.

>>It had been quite a while since you felt to empty, so…hollow. All those feeling came rushing back to you; you didn’t deserve Obi Wan’s kindness, you were just a bother, a stupid woman filled with stupid ideas and desires, that thought she could get all those wonderful things when she already had her freedom.

-You should have been happy with just that. Begged to be accepted, begged to be a Jedi. But…but you had to dream…stupid…they were right…you are just so stupid.

>>You whispered to yourself. Your voice braking as you cried more and more. Sobs made it harder and harder to breath, and you ended up having to throw your head back against the wood at the foot of the bed. You cried for what felt hours and your eyes hurt so much you couldn’t keep them open. Your mind was too tired and your body almost as much, that you ended up passing out right there.

>>The meeting had ended too late for them to call upon you that day, so they decided to wait until morning, all happy and unaware of your pain and of Obi Wan’s turmoil, except for Yoda, of course, he had noticed that your force signature was missing, hidden, and he could only guess why.

>>No, Obi Wan didn’t leave like that to hurt you or because he despised you. Not in the slightest. But he was about to lose control over himself, over his energy, and that couldn’t happen. He had to go and put himself together, control his emotions that had almost exploded there and then for all Master Jedis to feel. He had walked and once out of your field of view…he had run; he ran until he was locked alone in his room, out of breath, and trying harder to meditate and calm himself down than he had ever tried before. Not even as a new padawan did he have such problems. But he had never felt like this, so vulnerable, so troubled about his own feeling and what he should do, and…so worried about you.

>>And it was only then, after a couple of hours of meditating, with his mind still racing but at least capable of some rational thinking, that it came to him. What were you doing? What were you thinking? Would you believe he hates you…? Have you cried for it, for how he just disappeared? Would you have left because of his words? And as those questions poured inside his head, making his heart race again, he stood up, trying to sense your energy and…there was no trace of it, it was as if you had never been near him. It couldn’t be, you couldn’t have left the planet, how? When? It hadn’t been so long…but of course, almost three hours were enough for you to be gone, they definitely were.

>>He felt his stomach turn upside down and he ran, ran to your room hoping that you were there, that it was just his own unstable state that didn’t allow him to sense you. But someone clearing his throat made him stop half way there. He turned on his heels and swallowed thickly when he saw who it was.

-Master Yoda…

-Out of breath you seem. Has anything happened with sweet Beatrice?

>>Obi Wan sighed, he knew, of course Master Yoda knew, and yet, he was just asking, letting the younger one decide what to say. It took him a moment but he ended up nodding.

-I might have…made a mistake…

>>He didn’t really know how else to put it and Yoda hummed pensively.

-A mistake you say…some wrongs easy to right are, Master Obi Wan. But others…not so.

-I know…I just hope it is not too late but… -he wondered if he could just tell him, tell him his doubts…maybe if not said directly, being Master Yoda how he was, he would just follow his game- Can I ask you something, Master Yoda? -he nodded slowly, a neutral expression on his green face- What if…the Force ever tells you something that…if followed, would go against the code of the Order?

-An interesting question that is…hmmm hmmm, very interesting. -he smiled softly, knowing what he meant, he had sensed it from the beginning and knew it from the futures he saw, which were only ever filled with light if you two were together. Something Master Yoda found quite peculiar.- Well, we are bound to the Force, to respect it and protect its equilibrium, to listen to what it wants to tell us, are we not? -Obi Wan nodded- That is why we train, so…if clearly to you it is speaking, unwise it would be not to listen. Don’t you think?

>>Obi Wan drank slowly from his words, analyzed them, tried to find a flaw in at least one of them but…nothing. Yes, it would be going against the code, but if he ignored the Force he would be breaking it too so…there was no correct answer there, and it left Obi Wan feeling uneasy and completely lost.

-Uncertain is the future, Obi Wan. But…something I can tell you without doubt…by her side you should stay.

>>Obi Wan’s eyes widened slightly and a little blush creeped to his cheeks.

-W-what do you mean, Master Yoda?

-Darkness I see, Master Obi Wan. Such darkness in our future there will be…only with you two together do I see some light…in you and in the world. To the Force listen you must.

>>Obi Wan swallowed again as he nodded and Yoda just answered the same way and left, a slow pace that allowed Obi Wan a moment to think before he was completely gone. He…still didn’t know what to do, but it was as if all the signs brought him to you. Even Master Yoda told him to stay by your side, and he could swear that his face was burning.

>>It took him a good ten minutes to get out of it and be able to resume his run towards your room, that time with all his might. And even if the run was short, he was out of breath when he reached your quarters. He quickly knocked on your door, though there came no answer from the other side. He feared he was too late, sighing before trying another set of knocks, knuckles tapping anxiously against the hard wood, and yet…nothing. He knew it wasn’t right nor proper, but he needed to know, he had to make sure you weren’t really there, instead of ignoring him, so he could go and look someplace else. He turned the knob of your door and entered as quickly as he could, closing behind so no one could find him there.

>>At first, he didn’t see you, and he was on the verge of failing to mask his panic, when his eyes fell on your form, just a little ball of a person on the floor at the foot of the bed. And the image broke his heart but let him breath again. You were there, you hadn’t left, you hadn’t left…him. Your cheek rested on one knee, and your face was half hidden by your arms and hair, but he could still see how swollen your eyes were, and how the dry trails of tears made your face shine. He took a few steps and kneeled next to you. How tired did your crying leave you that you didn’t wake up at his knocking? How betrayed did you feel that even asleep you kept your energy hidden? He had to take a deep breath while studying your sleeping face. You insisted on how kind he was, how gentle and caring… and even if he tended to worry about everyone and always tried to be polite, he had to admit that he had felt specially protective over you, ever since the first time he laid eyes on your soft smile back in your home planet.

>>He could deny it, fight it, and…well, make a decision, even though his decision was supposed to be made a long time ago, but…he had always expected to feel something for a woman and having to deny it. He never thought it would be a problem, a little painful but…he assumed that if he only moved away when the feeling started, it wouldn’t be that much to handle. Of course, such a strong bond from the very beginning wasn´t something he had even imagined possible. How in the world could he ever think of something as wonderful and awful at the same time? A kind soul, the very Force telling you to be together, binding and entwining your energies, feeling what the other feels…and being impossible. Yes, because he couldn’t just break his oath, there was no way he would throw away all those years, all the principles he had based his life on…

>>He couldn’t, and at the same time, how would he endure making you suffer? Could he just push you away? No…he wouldn’t even have to… you would already stay aside, not trying to “bother” him. And the idea that you would think like that made him sick of his stomach, especially because he knew it was his fault. You had opened your heart to him, expressed your fears, and even said it couldn’t be, and he…the “Master Jedi” had run away like a scared kid. He couldn’t just leave it like that but…what to say? He knew what he wanted. It grew clearer the more he looked at you, sleeping so peacefully. And at the same time, he knew his duty. Could he break an oath and still be a worthy Jedi? Could he lie and hide and…? Could he do it even if Yoda had told him that…he should? He wondered if it was possible as he observed your beautiful profile, until your calm slumber became not so.

>>Your peaceful expression turned and twitched into a pained one. A tear rolled down your cheek and a whimper escaped your lips.

-I’ll leave…please…leave Obi Wan…It-it’s n-not his fault…

>>The words were a broken sob and it was Obi Wan’s time to feel small. He knew good judgement would deny it, but you deserved to be loved, to be cared for, and he couldn’t just let you suffer in that dream, especially not because of him. The Force was telling him to love you, his whole being was telling him to do so. And even Yoda spoke of a future of darkness if he ignored what the Force was telling him. Would all that be enough to not feel like he was betraying all he believed in? He wasn’t sure, and he wouldn’t be until he tried so…he just let his own energy decide, and found himself hoping it would choose to be with you. He let his Force free and in the blink of an eye it was reaching towards you, trying to find yours and bring it out. The need and urgency left him speechless and he knew he had made a decision even if it would be a hard one to follow, and…that you had to make yours, of course, and he could just hope it would be matching with his.

-Tris…

>>He murmured, softly caressing your salty cheek with the back of his hand, his knuckles trailing down to your jawline. He moved it to put a lock of hair behind your ear and then carefully moved you by the shoulder to wake you up.

-Wake up…I am sorry, please…wake up.

>>You were tired and so deep in dreams, that even with that awful nightmare, it took a moment and a couple of soft shakes for you to open your eyes. Your eyelids seemed too heavy and your brown eyes still hurt from all the crying, but the image in front of you soon focused into a very close and worried Obi Wan. You blushed and then remembered what had happened and sadness came rushing to your face.

-Master Kenobi…

>>That you called him in such a formal manner and moved away even if just a little, made him sigh, knowing you were hurt and that he had to explain himself as soon as possible to save you from any more suffering.

-I am deeply sorry I left like that but…Not all of us can control our feeling like you do…I…didn’t want everyone in the temple to feel my confusion my…I don’t even know what I was feeling to be honest.

>>You raised an eyebrow, confused, and shook your head once.

-You needn’t apologize…it was me who overstepped and…made you feel uncomfortable and…I just couldn’t bring myself to lie or pretend in front of you. Though it seems I better should have.

-No -he was so quick to answer that it surprised even himself- I want us to be sincere with each other. You were before and…now it’s my turn. -you nod and let him speak, your expression softened though it was still too obvious you had cried yourself to sleep.- I feel it too…since I first saw you. But I couldn’t allow myself to focus on those feelings, it…was too dangerous…and yet…there I was, always trying to help you, being by your side. You said I was kind and caring but the reality is that I was just being selfish, looking for excuses to be close to you.

>>Your mouth opened and then closed without making a sound, not knowing what to say. You didn’t even dare to move. Was he saying what you thought he was saying? It couldn’t be, not when you weren’t anything special, not when you two couldn’t be together.

-Obi Wan I…

-With you I feel home, I feel we have known each other forever, at least…as if our Forces had…And yet there is no right answer, because either I let myself feel and be with you and I break the rule of not having attachments…or I shut all those feelings down and I break the most important rule of all…listening to the Force.

-Obi I…really don’t know what to say. -your eyes started to burn as tears started to pool on them, still damaged from all the previous crying to handle any more of it without “complaining”- I just…never thought I…

>>He hushed you softly, a hand cupping your cheek and cleaning away a tear with his thumb.

-But I’ve made a decision…though only if you want the same. If not, I’ll still be there for you as a friend and teach you of the force, so do not worry over being alone, because you won’t ever be alone again, not while I breath.

>>And you couldn’t keep a soft sob from scaping your lips, nor the tears from falling, not when those words hit you so deep inside your chest. They fell from your eyes like cascades, at the same time your Force was let free again, though you made sure to contain it within you two, inside that room.

-So…what decision have you made? -you said in a soft sob that you tried to suppress without much success-.

-Isn’t it obvious, my dear Tris? -his voice was so filled with love that it made you shiver and you shook your head-.

-I…want to hear it…I don’t want to be wrong and…be made a fool.

-I would never do that. -Obi took your hands in his, caressing the back of them with his thumbs- I want to be with you, even if we have to hide it, even if they could discover us and that would lead me to having to leave the Order. It is a high price but…I cannot ignore my heart and the Force all at the same time. If I didn’t allow myself to be with you, I would be lying to myself and to the Force and that…that I couldn’t live with…as I don’t think I want to live without you.

>>You pressed your eyes closed tightly, tears running down your cheeks, but you smiled, and laughed, and he knew they were now tears of joy, tears he couldn’t help but join when your Force and his seemed to embrace. He wanted to feel your warmth, a reassurance that he was making the right decision, and as if you knew what he wanted, your arms wrapped around his shoulders and you went from sitting to kneeling on the ground so you could reach.

-I…Of course I want this…you…how could I not? I am not crazy, I have never felt like this, this…in your arms…this is home.

>>You buried your face on the crotch of his neck and he pulled you closer, a hand splayed on your back and the other hidden in your hair and caressing just ever so lightly. You sobbed again, your happiness almost too much to contain withing those four walls, and he squeezed you a little tighter moving to sit on the edge of the bed with you on his lap.

-Deep breaths, my dear…try and relax.

>>He whispered and you nodded. Knowing there was still much to talk about, much to know and share, but also feeling like it was at that moment, that your second chance had really began.

_________________________________________

This is the end for now. I hope you have enjoyed it and I will come to add to it in a future or maybe make a following serie ^^

#star wars #obi wan x reader #obi wan kenobi x reader #obi wan #obi wan kenobi #Fic #fanfic #star wars fanfic #The Force And Love Series

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andtails · 5 years ago

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A Prelude to Chaos Control - Chapter 10: Open Your Heart

Click here to start from the beginning. You can also read this story on FanFiction.Net or Archive of Our Own.

*****

“Oh Cheese…what should we do?”

Cream sat against the rusted bars of the portable birdcage dangling from Dr. Robotnik’s Egg Mobile, flying high over the green hills below.

“Chao chao…” Cheese gave the distraught rabbit a hug, wrapping its small body around her belly.

“Thank you, Cheese.” She turned her head to the side, watching the land below as she allowed her arms to fall to her sides. “I guess there isn’t anything we can do right now.” Pulling herself up by the bars, she planted her feet on the metallic surface and furrowed her brow, a new sense of determination washing over her.

“Sonic will save us…I know he will.” She looked over at the chao, who since found a spot on her shoulder to rest upon. “We just need to have faith. I’m sure momma’s already called Sonic and is waiting for us at Eggman’s hideout.”

“Quit your yappin’ down there! I’m trying to enjoy the view!” Eggman’s angry voice startled the young chao, but the bunny remained as determined as ever.

“You’re not gonna get away with this, Eggman! Sonic will stop you for sure.”

“Oh really?” Eggman gave a bellowing laugh. “We shall see about that!” The evil doctor flipped a switch in his Egg Mobile and cleared his throat as a holographic video image appeared before him. A small, blackish-blue robot was lying on a table, reading a comic book as his hand plundered an open box of Mobian Scout™ mint chocolate chip cookies, bopping his head to the music through his earbuds.

“What is this? Bokkun! Are you slacking off on the job?” The robot didn’t respond, instead taking a sip of soda through a straw as his beady, lime green eyes remained glued to the book. Turning the page with his gloved hands, the small robot laughed in a high-pitched voice before burping rudely and filling his cheeks with several cookies.

Eggman’s face grew red with anger.

“ARE YOU DEAF, BOKKUN!?”

The robot blinked a few times as he looked forward, crumbs covering his face.

“Ahh, Doctor Eggman!” Bokkun said in a muffled voice, spewing cookie bits out of his mouth as he stood up, kicking over his soda while giving his creator a salute. The large yellow M on his torso gleamed in the artificial light of his monitor, his large, pointy ears stiff, and his red boots clasped together.

“Now that’s more like it.” The vein on Robotnik’s forehead receded. “Prepare the camcorder. We have a special message to deliver Sonic and his miserable friends.”

“Aye aye Doctor!” As Eggman’s image disappeared from the monitor, Bokkun sat back down on the table, eyeing the dark, sticky beverage dripping to the floor below. His attention then turned to the half-eaten box of cookies. He grabbed a few more, shoving them into his mouth before leaping off the table, allowing his body to hover with the jetpack attached to his back. He gleefully gave a muffled laugh as he flew down the hallway, entering a storage room full of small, yellow CRT televisions.

“Hmmm…” He raised a finger to his chin as he scanned the room. “Which one should I use today?” Taking a few more seconds to ponder, he decided on the identical television nearest him. Carrying it with his small arms, he nearly fell backward as he began to walk out into the hallway. Wobbling to the side as he strode onward, Bokkun made it to a small recording studio, complete with overhanging lights and sound dampeners covering the walls. Setting the television down, he floated up to the video camera already stationed on a tall tripod.

“Let’s see…” He stuck his teal-colored tongue out the side of his mouth as he configured the settings, rotating the focus ring mounted to the lens. Spinning the small preview monitor around, Bokkun floated into view of the camera. After sticking out his tongue, flexing his arms, and performing mid-air somersaults in front of the camcorder, he got out of the shot, chuckling to himself as he turned off the device to preserve battery.

As Bokkun turned to the door, Eggman stepped inside with Decoe and Bocoe following behind, pushing the caged bunny and chao on a dolly. The small robot winced at the sight of the captured rabbit, his mechanical heart beginning to pound as a drop of perspiration formed over his brow.

Cream…

“Hey Bokkun?” Decoe asked, waving his metallic hand in front of the small robot’s face. “You need a reboot or something?”

“Hello?” Bocoe added, tapping Bokkun’s spherical head, nudging him back into reality.

“W…what?” He looked up at the two taller robots and the evil doctor standing above him.

“Go man the camera before I disassemble you for parts!” Eggman barked, pointing toward the camcorder he had set up moments ago.

“R…right.” Bokkun flew up to the video camera, adjusting the focus as he stared through the lens with a beady eye. He sighed to himself as he positioned the camera so Robotnik was front and center, Cream’s portable prison in the corner.

“All right Bokkun, let’s get this show on the road.” Eggman cleared his throat, adjusting his red jacket as the small robot pressed the record button, shuddering at the sight of the distressed, imprisoned bunny. The small robot could hardly pay attention to the evil doctor’s words or turn the camera to match his movements; his eyes focused on Cream shaking in her cell, a sense of sadness filling his heart.

As Eggman continued giving his speech, Bokkun turned his face away from the eyepiece, instead pulling a heart-shaped locket out from inside his glove. With sad eyes, he looked at the happy picture of Cream within before sighing once more, slipping the locket back into his glove as he returned his attention to the recording at hand.

*****

The sensation of something against his black nose woke Sonic from his peaceful slumber. Slowly opening his eyes, he watched as a butterfly rested against it, fluttering its wings as if to give him a show. Smiling to himself, the blue hedgehog raised a gloved hand toward his nose, allowing the butterfly to hop onto the tip of his index finger, staying in place as Sonic pulled his hand toward the side.

As the insect flew away, Sonic drew in a deep breath, allowing the moisture-filled air to fill his lungs as he sighed heavily, looking off into the distance to witness the sun glistening over the ocean surrounding Angel Island.

“What a morning.” Sonic placed his hands behind his head, looking up into the cloudless sky before noticing a slight pain emanating from his face. He winced as he inspected the bruise with a gloved finger.

What do I tell Amy when she sees my face?

Sonic looked up at the blue sky, taking in the pristine view as he wondered how to fib to the pink hedgehog.

Surely I can’t tell her the truth. That’d be too embarrassing for Tails.

After a few minutes of aimlessly studying the horizon, an idea popped into Sonic’s head.

I know! I’ll just tell her I tripped in the storm last night. Yeah…I…hit my face while climbing the stairs. She’ll definitely believe that!

The blue hedgehog chuckled to himself as his gaze turned downward. He observed as his younger brother slept against his chest, breathing softly, his namesakes wrapped snuggly around his torso.

“Heh…okay little buddy…a few more minutes.” Sonic closed his eyes, his hands supporting his head against the Master Emerald as he went back to sleep.

*****

Tails found himself in a white void, nothing distinguishable within his field of vision.

“This is odd.”

The orange fox peered around as he walked forward, his shoes clicking against the invisible floor as he seemingly made no progress in reaching his unknown destination. Before the young kitsune could further question this eerily familiar location, though, he heard a beeping sound coming from his utility belt. Fishing within its deep pockets, Tails felt what was making the noise.

“No…it can’t be.”

He peered down at the circular object, cracks all across its glass casing. Despite the damage, a dot was blinking on its screen.

“Hmmm…the radar is detecting an emerald a few hundred yards away.” The fox kept his eyes glued to his tracker as he marched onward, no thoughts on his mind other than reaching the location indicated by the device.

As if out of nowhere, the young fox walked face first into a stone wall. He rubbed his head only to find no pain. Taking his hand off his undamaged face, he looked up.

“Ah, must be the backside of the Master Emerald shrine.” Proving his hypothesis correct, the orange kitsune walked along its perimeter to reveal the same stone steps he had used numerous times in recent memory. Taking a deep breath, he climbed the stairs until he reached the top.

“Huh? What is this?”

The Master Emerald was sitting in its normal place, but leaning against the mystical gem was Sonic the Hedgehog, sleeping against the side with his hands resting behind his head, a smile on his face.

“And that’s…me?” Tails studied what appeared to be himself sleeping against Sonic’s chest, his namesakes blanketing him as he rested peacefully in the care of his older brother.

“Tails…Tails…”

“Who’s there?” Tails looked around as he tried finding the source of the high-pitched, feminine voice calling out his name. Taking a few steps forward, he heard a crunching sound beneath his feet. Moving his foot away, he gazed in horror at the broken detector he had smashed the night before, components and bits of glass strewn all around. Pulling out the detector from his utility belt once more, he visually compared the broken mess on the stone floor with the tracker in his hand, the blinking dot hovering in the center of the screen.

“Tails…listen to me…”

“Show yourself!” Tails yelled, putting the working contraption back in his pocket as he looked around frantically, hoping to find the source of the voice.

“The servers are the seven Chaos. Chaos is power…power enriched by the heart.”

“W…what does it all mean? Who are you?” Tails circled the Master Emerald, finding nobody hiding.

“The controller is the one that unifies the Chaos.”

Tails flew upward, planting his feet on top of the mystical gem before spinning his body around, scanning the void surrounding the shrine.

“Nothing…” The fox placed a gloved finger to his chin as he heard the voice once more.

“Open your heart, and your path will be made clear. Believe in Chaos…and yourself…”

“Believe in Chaos…and…myself?”

Tails pondered these words as he sat down on the Master Emerald, his namesakes fluttering as he stared up into the white nothingness above, propping himself up with his hands.

“Heh…if that’s all, I’m ready to wake up now.” He laid down with a smile on his face, his back cool against the top of the mystical gem, placing his hands behind his head for support.

“Wait until Sonic hears about this one.” As he thought about his older brother, recent memories flooded his mind, a tear escaping his eye as he wore a warm smile. Drying his face with a gloved finger, he stood up once more, cupping his hands around his mouth.

“Listen up…ummm…lady! Me and Sonic will crack your riddles and fix the detector! Just you wait!” Yelling into the empty void, he caught himself nearly slipping off the shiny surface of the gem before regaining his composure and continuing his speech. “I’ll believe in myself and Chaos and anything else too for that matter! With Sonic by my side, anything is possible!” He put his arms back to his side, his voice no longer echoing through the abyss.

“Anything…is possible.”

As he was about to fly off the Master Emerald, the ground beneath him began to shake. Balancing on one foot, Tails used his namesakes as additional support as the emerald emitted flashing green lights, static appearing all around the kitsune as dark clouds formed over the white emptiness above.

“Ahh!” Tails slipped backward, landing on his behind as he slowly slid off the front end of the Master Emerald.

“At this rate, I’ll fall on top of Sonic!” The orange fox tried using his hands to prevent himself from slipping further, but it was a futile endeavor; his fingers could not gain traction with the gem’s smooth surface.

“If this is a dream, then Sonic should be fine…but still!” Tails dangled off the side of the mystical gem by one hand, looking down to see the blue hedgehog and himself still sleeping peacefully below, except the base of the Master Emerald was much further away than he remembered. He shook his head as the ground stretched downward until he could barely make out a blue and orange dot below.

Looking back at the edge of the gem’s surface, he gritted his teeth as he attempted to pull himself up, a few more fingers losing their grip as he struggled to keep himself from falling.

“I know! I’ll use my tails!” Spinning his namesakes, he attempted to flee the shaking Master Emerald, but to no avail; a force beyond his control or understanding prevented him from taking flight.

“Figures…I hate dreams.” Tails closed his eyes as his pinkie finger slipped from the Master Emerald. Taking in a deep breath, he accepted his fate, allowing his body to fall back first with arms outstretched.

“Believe in Chaos.”

“And believe in yourself.”

These were the final words the young kitsune heard as the Master Emerald drew further away, his body falling into the endless white chasm below.

*****

Opening his eyes once more, Sonic was nudged awake by the rustling of his younger brother against his chest. The blue hedgehog looked down, feeling the kitsune’s heartrate rise against him as his breathing became labored.

“Hey little guy, it’ll be all right.” Sonic combed his hands through the namesakes still wrapped around Tails’ torso. The orange fox’s breathing and heartbeat returned to normal as he slowly opened his eyes.

“Wakey wakey, sleepy head.” Sonic patted Tails’ legs as the young kitsune rubbed his eyes, his sight still adjusting to the sunlight.

“W…what time is it?” His voice was groggy as he slapped his hands against his furry face in an attempt to wake himself up.

“I dunno.” Sonic raised his wristwatch communicator so both of them could see the large 11:00 AM figure blinking in and out of existence through the glass casing. “Heh, I guess we needed the sleep, huh buddy?”

“I suppose.” Tails was the first to pull himself up, unfurling his namesakes from his chest and he planted his feet against the stone surface of the Master Emerald shrine. The kitsune turned around to see his older brother stretching his arms upward, still sitting against the mystical gem behind them. Sonic paused as an outstretched hand hovered in front of him, smiling as he grabbed hold of Tails’ palm, allowing his younger brother to pull him up.

“I could go for a chiro appointment, though.” Sonic stretched his back, cracking sounds emanating from the blue hedgehog’s bones before placing his hands against his hips, looking into the clear blue sky.

Tails smiled up at the tranquil blue hedgehog, not a worry in the world. Noticing something out of place, though, he squinted his eyes, studying Sonic’s muzzle.

“Hey Sonic, your face!” The orange fox pointed up at Sonic’s cheek as the blue hedgehog looked down, raising a hand to touch his muzzle.

“What about it?” Sonic felt around until he reached his bruise, except the dull pain he expected to feel was nowhere to be found. “What the…” Sonic dashed down the stone stairs of the Master Emerald shrine and bent over to look into a reflection of himself in a puddle along the dirt pathway leading to Knuckles’ cabin.

“Well I’ll be darned…” Pressing his fingers against his chin, Sonic moved his face around, eyeing his reflection intently as he tried to find any sign that the welt had ever existed.

“Hey Tails!” Sonic yelled from the base of the shrine, cupping his hands around his mouth. “My bruise is gone! Strange, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, strange…” The fox rubbed his chin as he looked across the valley in thought.

But how? The bruise should have remained on his face for at least a week, if not longer. I know Sonic recovers from injuries relatively quickly, but nothing quite like this. Unless…

Tails turned himself around, staring at the Master Emerald glimmering in the sunlight.

“Is this…the power of Chaos?”

“Power of what now?” Sonic asked, zooming back up the stairs and standing next to his younger brother, as if materializing out of thin air.

“…I think the Master Emerald healed you.”

“Huh?” Sonic looked at the orange fox with a dumbstruck expression. “Can it even do that?”

“Well,” Tails began, rubbing the back of his head with his hand, “I had another dream last night…about the Master Emerald.”

“And you think this dream helped fix my face?” Sonic ran a hand through his blue quills.

“I don’t know.” Tails stepped toward the Master Emerald, placing his palm against the mystical gem. “I hate to admit it, but it almost feels like magic.”

“Magic? You of all people believin’ in magic?” The two shared a laughed, Sonic rubbing the base of his black nose as the orange kitsune smiled up at his older brother.

“Mobians throughout history have attributed unexplainable phenomena to some sort of mystical, godlike, magical power. I’m sure there’s a logical explanation, though…if I’m ever gonna get my detector working, I’ll have to find out what it is.” Sonic stepped over to the orange fox, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“I’m sure you will, little bro…but remember what we talked about last night.” The blue hedgehog gently pointed his index finger in the young kitsune’s direction.

“Yeah, I know…don’t be too hard on myself n’ all.” Tails replied while nodding, giving the blue hedgehog an additional level of reassurance.

“Right on!” Sonic gave him a thumbs up, which he returned in kind. “Now let’s say we get some grub, huh?”

“Now that you mention it,” Tails looked downward, rubbing his belly as his stomach gurgled, “I am getting kinda hungry.”

“I’m sure Knuckles has a cure for that…let’s just hope it isn’t made of pumpkin this time!” They chuckled once more as the blue hedgehog began his descent down the shrine. Tails was about to take his first step as well, but he froze, turning back to face the Master Emerald once more.

“Thank you…for healing Sonic.” Tails returned to the mystical gem, rubbing it with a gloved hand, a feeling of warmth radiating through his palm.

“Hey, you comin’ or what?” Sonic yelled from the base of the shrine.

“Coming, Sonic!” Revving up his namesakes, Tails flew down the stairway, joining Sonic as they made their way back to Knuckles’ cabin, enjoying the sun against their fur and the light wind carrying the scent of the trees and the ocean to their nostrils.

As they entered the red echidna’s abode, they found everyone else was up as well.

“Hey Knuckles! What’s cracki—” Sonic’s question was cut off as he watched Amy yelling into Knuckles’ face.

“What do you mean you don’t have any breakfast?!” Amy’s face grew red as she glared menacingly at the red echidna.

“Well I don’t exactly keep a whole lot of food around the house, you know.” Knuckles kept his cool, choosing to keep his eyes closed, his forehead facing the floor. “And besides, even if I had food, my kitchen is a total mess! It’ll almost be noon by the time I clean it all up.”

“…Okay, fair enough.” Amy turned around, frustration still emanating from her.

“Amy’s got a point, though,” Rouge said, sitting at the kitchen table, keeping her head held up with her arms. “We can’t plan our next move on an empty stomach.”

“You’re gonna help us after all?” Amy asked, confusion written on her face as she turned to face the bat.

“Yeah…why not?” She shrugged he shoulders. “I don’t want Eggman to collect all the emeralds just as much as you guys, and anything to get me closer to Knucky here is a win-win for me.” The jewel thief gave the red echidna a long wink, her eyelashes fluttering as Knuckles’ face turned red.

“Yeah, think whatever you’d like,” the red echidna replied. “As long as we have your help, that’s all I care about.”

“Suit yourself, Knucky.” Rouge smiled at the red echidna as Sonic laughed from the entryway. Tails covered his mouth as he snickered alongside his older brother.

“So what are we gonna do about food then?” Amy asked.

“I think I know!” The party turned to Tails, who raised a finger upward, closing his eyes as he wore a bright smile. “I happen to keep a supply of provisions in the Tornado 2, as well as basic cooking equipment just for such emergencies.” The fox turned to Knuckles. “Why don’t you start a campfire so we don’t dirty up your kitchen even more.” He then turned to his older brother. “Hey Sonic, wanna race me back to the plane?”

“Would I?” Sonic’s lips broadened into a smile at the prospect. “You know me too well.”

“Heh, I know.” Tails itched the base of his nose in satisfaction, unintentionally imitating the blue hedgehog. Sonic smiled back at the orange fox, feeling truly hopeful about his younger brother for the first time in what felt like ages.

Glad to see you back, Tails.

“Last one there’s a rotten Eggman!” Tails bolted out the entrance, leaving Sonic behind.

“Hey, no fair!” The blue hedgehog shook himself from his stupor before running after his younger brother, leaving the cabin door wide open as the two made their way back to the biplane.

“Those two are something else,” Rouge observed.

“Yeah, I’ll say,” Knuckles replied, snorting as he left the cabin, walking along its perimeter until he came to the wooden awning on the opposite side, fetching a pile of logs kept dry from the evening rain.

*****

As Knuckles prepared the bonfire, Sonic and Tails were racing neck and neck, rapidly approaching the Tornado 2’s resting spot. Skidding to a stop, the blue hedgehog rolled himself into a ball, charging a spindash that would help him overtake the young fox.

Sonic launched himself forward, but instead of seeing the orange kitsune running in the distance, he watched as Tails remained still directly in the middle of the narrow path, his namesakes fluttering as he tightened his fists.

The blue hedgehog was rolling too fast to stop his momentum or dodge around the young fox. As he thought he was about to careen into him, Tails stepped to the side, charging his namesakes before whipping them toward the blue hedgehog, launching him back the other way like a tennis ball.

That clever lil’ kid.

“Sayonara, Sonic!” The orange kitsune snickered as he sped onward, widening the gap between them.

Sonic gradually flew back down the path, a slight curve in his projection causing him to careen higher. Holding out his arms at just the right time, the blue hedgehog grabbed onto a thick tree branch, his body twirling around several times before letting go, allowing himself to launch forward once more, rolling rapidly toward the unsuspecting fox.

“Huh?” Tails looked backward as his namesakes carried him closer to the Tornado 2, watching as a spherical blue form approached him. “Impossible! How could he have recovered that quickly?” Turning forward once more, the young kitsune increased the speed of his rotary tails, matching Sonic’s velocity as the blue hedgehog unfurled himself from spherical form and ran alongside his little brother.

“That was a clever move you had there, little guy.” Sonic smiled at Tails, giving him a thumbs up.

“Heh, not as much as your speedy recovery. How’d you do it?” Tails was huffing under his breath while the blue hedgehog showed no sign of exhaustion.

“Let’s just say you didn’t account for tree branches and my hands.” Sonic waved his palms forward, bits of bark still stuck to his gloves. The two chuckled under their breath as they picked up their speed.

“Almost…there…” Sweat formed along Tails’ brow as he reached his hands forward. “Whoever…touches the…plane first wins…”

“Right.” Sonic’s face turned serious, running with his arms behind his back as the two nearly closed the gap between themselves and the aircraft. “Time to finish this.”

As Tails blinked, he noticed a blue streak speed by, Sonic disappearing before his eyes.

“What the heck?” Tails jumped through a set of bushes, entering the clearing containing the grassy landing strip. The fox looked on as Sonic waved at him, lying on one of the plane’s wings, keeping his head upright with his other arm. Finally reaching the plane himself, Tails placed the palms of his hands against the metallic side of the Tornado 2. The orange kitsune breathed heavily, sweat rolling down his brow as he allowed himself a much-needed break.

“Ya did good, Tails.” Sonic jumped off the wing and patted his younger brother on the shoulder. “To be honest, I was worried there for a sec.”

“Heh…thanks...” Tails cracked a smile between labored breaths as he looked up at the blue hedgehog.

“You’re one of the only ones who can even come close to my speed. Just think how lazy I’d get without you ‘round!” Chuckling once more, Tails wiped the sweat from his forehead before fishing around his utility belt. After allowing his hand to search every pocket contained therein, the fox’s eyes turned wide, his jaw dropping in shock as his pupils shrank.

“What’s the matter, lil’ bro?”

“…I forgot the keys.”

*****

The sun was high in the sky, morning giving way to afternoon as the dynamic duo returned to the cabin for the second time. Sonic and Tails carried sealed bags of flavored oatmeal, a pot, small bowls, a set of spoons, and a ladle. Boiling tap water over the bonfire near to the edge of the floating island, Tails dumped a large packet of instant oats into the water, allowing the contents to cook and absorb. After stirring the pot, scooping a ladle-full of the oatmeal and lifting it to eye-level for a more thorough inspection, the young kitsune poured the breakfast into each of the small bowls before filling the pot with another container of water, placing it over the firepit once more, as he anticipated the group would be hungry for seconds.

“Wow Tails, this is really good!” Amy exclaimed, her face filling with color as a new sense of vigor pulsed through her.

“Yeah, way to go!” Knuckles added, giving the orange fox a hefty fist bump. Tails retracted his arm, blowing against his knuckles as he chuckled nervously.

“Now this is a meal fit for a hedgehog!” Sonic took several large, rapid bites before freezing, his face contorting as he pulled the silverware from his mouth.

“Water, water!” Sonic yelped as Tails handed him a bottle of H2O. The blue hedgehog gulped it down rapidly before sticking his tongue out and licking the palm of his gloved hand.

“Eww, gross Sonic!” Amy gave her boyfriend a pointed look, Sonic stopping mid-lick to match her glare.

“Whaa? ‘eye ‘oug ‘urs.” Sonic turned his face around, blowing air out of his mouth with the hopes of cooling down his burnt tongue.

“What he was trying to say,” Tails said, raising a finger in the air, “was ‘What? My tongue hurts!’” The friends laughed merrily as Sonic ran around the perimeter of the bonfire several times before finally setting himself back down on a makeshift log chair, picking up his warm bowl to continue eating.

“Well, if there’re no objections,” Knuckles began, looking out across the fire, “I think we can finally start planning our next course of action.”

“Before we do that,” Tails stood up, scratching the back of his head, “I…had another vision last night.”

“Another vision?” Knuckles raised a gloved finger to his chin.

“At least I think it was.” The young fox told the party about his dream, describing every last detail of his experience and the mysterious lady’s cryptic message.

“I wonder what it all means?” Sonic asked himself, looking toward his equally puzzled little brother.

“I think I know…” Knuckles stood up and walked toward the edge of the cliff, taking in the sight and sound of the ocean waves below.

“You do?” Tails walked toward the red echidna, observing him as he carefully studied the oceanscape stretching as far as the eye could see.

“I think you’re approaching the Master Emerald all wrong.” Knuckles turned to the orange fox. “You’re trying to study it scientifically. To unlock its secrets, you have to go beyond logic and reason.” He grabbed the kitsune’s hands, who gasped in surprise. “Trust the Master Emerald. Place your faith in the Master Emerald. Treat it like a friend instead of an experiment.”

Tails sighed to himself, allowing his hands to return to his sides as Knuckles let go of his wrists. Turning toward the ocean view, the fox sat down, holding his head up with his hands as he lost himself in thought.

How do I even begin to understand something so…illogical?

The orange kitsune knew in his heart Knuckles was right, even if he couldn’t provide a suitable explanation.

Knuckles placed a gloved paw against Tails’ shoulder.

“It may seem difficult, but as long as you open your heart, the Master Emerald will guide the way.”

Tails turned his head to face Knuckles once more before his gaze wondered down to the red echidna’s worn red and yellow shoes. Finally, the young kitsune furrowed his brow, looking back up at Knuckles with determination in his eyes.

“I don’t pretend to understand it all, but there’s one thing I do know.” Tails stood up, walking back to the bonfire, his friends staring back at him. “I’ll keep on trying! I’ll ‘open my heart’ a hundred times if I have to!”

Sitting back down on his log seat, the fox was greeted by Sonic’s hand patting him on the shoulder. Tails returned the gesture with a determined smile before picking up his bowl, eating as he enjoyed the company of his friends.

I’m so lucky to have them. I’d be lost without my pals…especially Sonic.

He looked up at the blue hedgehog, whose pinkie finger was wedged between his molars.

“Here, Sonic.” Tails withdrew a toothpick from his utility belt and placed it in the palm of Sonic’s free hand.

“Ah, you’re a life saver!” The blue hedgehog replaced his pinkie with the pick, dislodging an oat from between his back teeth.

Tails smiled back at him as he grabbed his spoon. Before he could take another bite, however, he heard a familiar ringing sound coming from the opposite side of the bonfire.

“Oh, hold on a sec,” Amy said, raising her wristwatch communicator to her face.

Ah, that was one of the ringtones I programmed into her phone.

The fox blew into his spoonful of oatmeal as Amy pressed a button on her watch, Vanilla’s name blinking in bold letters across its screen.

“Hey Vanilla! How is it going?”

“Amy…please…help me…he…Eggman…took Cream…please help…”

“I don’t understand.” A look of worry struck the pink hedgehog’s face as the rest of the party listened in to the call from around the campfire. “Are you saying Eggman kidnapped Cream?” The elder bunny didn’t immediately respond, too overcome with tears and grief to remain coherent. Finally, after blowing her nose into a handkerchief, she spoke once more.

“Y…yes. Cream was so tough…so fearless for someone her age. She destroyed many of Eggman’s robots before her capture. I tried to stop him, but…” A new wave of sobs interrupted Vanilla’s explanation.

“There, there, it’ll be okay.” Amy tried to soothe the motherly bunny as much as anyone could from such a long distance.

“…he even tricked me into throwing him a Chaos Emerald. I’m such a fool…”

“A Chaos Emerald?” Knuckles asked, speaking over Vanilla’s crying. “Know where he went?”

“I already know where Eggman went.” The party looked over at the jewel thief, who sat quietly on the opposite side of the bonfire, studying the fingers on her outstretched hand. “He took the Chaos Emerald back to his fortress. Where else?”

“So that means Eggman has at least three emeralds now.” Knuckles folded his arms, looking down at the smoldering fire.

“And more importantly,” Amy added, giving the red echidna a stern glare, “Eggman took Cream! We need to do something.”

“Ames is right.” Sonic stood up, clenching his fists as he turned to face Rouge. “Can you lead us to Eggman’s lair?”

“Why certainly.” She gave the blue hedgehog a smile as she crossed her legs. “As long as I can come with.”

“The more the merrier!” Sonic replied as he turned to Tails. “How ‘bout we go save Cream with the Tornado 2?”

“You bet!” Tails tried to hide his excitement. He knew that he’d be engaging in an important mission to save his friend, but he simply couldn’t lie to himself; he really wanted to save the day with his older bro.

He needed this.

“Well? What’re we waitin’ for?” Sonic turned to face the path leading back to the biplane. “Let’s go!”

“Right!” Just as the brotherly duo were about to dash off, however, the gang heard something up above, the sound of high-pitched laughter getting closer.

“What’s that?” Amy asked, squinting up at a small, dark figure slowly making its way toward the camp.

“It’s Bokkun!” Sonic looked up at the tiny robot, his beady, lime green eyes and M-shaped yellow belt buckle glistening in the afternoon sun as he descended to the camp, a cubical television in his arms. After he landed, Bokkun placed the television on the ground and stood next to it.

“All right everyone! Watch clo—” The messenger robot stopped as he took a whiff of the air. “Is that…is that oatmeal?”

“Ummm…yes it is?” Tails replied, a confused look on his face. “Why?”

“It’s just that…” Moisture began to fill Bokkun’s small eyes. “…Eggman doesn’t feed me very well, and his cooking is disgusting. I’d die for some good, sweet, delectable oatmeal.” The tiny robot approached Tails’ bowl of half-eaten breakfast, picking it up as he grabbed the metal spoon from within.

“Ummm, sure…help yourself.” Tails and the gang watched as the sad robotic henchman put the utensil in his mouth. He stopped mid-bite, the flavor almost causing him to glitch out as he opened his beady eyes as wide as they would go.

“This…this…” A smile appeared on his face, tears gushing from his eyes. “This is the greatest thing I’ve ever had in my life!” He began eating faster, matching Sonic’s speed as he wolfed down much of Tails’ leftovers.

“Oh no you don’t!” Amy grabbed the bowl away from Bokkun, the small robot reaching his arms out in a feeble attempt to snag it back. “First you’re gonna tell us what an Eggman robot like yourself is doing here, then maybe we’ll let you have some more.”

Bokkun wiped the tears from his eyes with the back of his hand.

“…Promise?”

Amy sighed heavily as she looked down at the pathetic robot peering up at her with shimmering eyes, his hands clasped together as if begging for more nourishment.

“…Promise.”

“All right!” Experiencing a sudden mood shift, Bokkun flung himself backward with his jetpack, landing in front of the yellow CRTV as he prepared to give his pre-rehearsed introduction. “Listen up, folks! I’ve got a special message from Eggman you won’t wanna miss!” Stepping to the side of the television, Bokkun pressed a button near the corner of its curved screen.

The party watched in horror as an image of Cream and Cheese flickered across the monitor, the two clasping the rusty bars of their birdcage-like prison. Bokkun turned his face away, a slight blush appearing on his face.

“Sonic…Tails…anyone…please help us.”

“Chao, chao…”

*****

I hope you enjoyed chapter 10! I have a few updates and announcements below:

I slightly altered the ending of chapter 9 to make the amount of time Vanilla spent lamenting in the backyard over Cream’s kidnapping more ambiguous. This was to fill the inadvertent plot hole I almost created where Bokkun arrives to Angel Island shortly after the kidnapping. #CrisisAverted

Also, if you have the time, I’d appreciate it if you checked out the poll I posted on my Fan Fiction account; I’ve been tossing around a follow-up to “A Prelude to Chaos Control” since I began writing this story which would inevitably be a reimagining of the events of Sonic X, except with an emphasis on Tails, taking away money as a superpower, swapping around some human protagonists, and making a bunch of other changes which would divert enough from the anime to make it interesting. If this is something you’d be interested in reading, or if the idea seems lame, feel free to take the poll! I’d like to hear your opinions, as this’ll help guide my projects as I get closer to finishing this one.

Update: Chapter 11 can be found here!

#Miles Tails Prower #Tails the Fox #Sonic the Hedgehog #Sonic Fanfiction #Tails fanfiction #Sonic the Hedgehog Fanfiction #Fan fic #fanfic #Fan Fiction #Sonic X #anime #fluff #angst #action #adventure #Chaos Emerald #writing

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beacon-sanctuary · 5 years ago

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Chapter 2: Class decisions and dorm warfare for the win!

introduction, Ch.1

Note to self: next time Bean and Merlin fight, get popcorn, and maybe grab wall rubble, I’m not a hoarder, scouts honor~

I looked up at the teachers with stars in my eyes, everyone was so cool! Plus, I got a head pat-so that’s even better! Ugh, why’d you guys have to make so hard to choose a class, hmmm let’s put our suspects, up shall we? Looking at the professors, I saw the grumpy Alchemist guy, his pale wood patterned skin shone in the lights above as once more those dang amber eyes of his bore into my mind. Like chill man, how can putting a baton in your jacket be mind warfare?! Huff, he looked so cool during the show but ehhh, too strict for me.

Well, Rasputin’s a no I guess, number 2, Louis Armstrong, seems like a fun guy, buuut I have no musical talent, got two left feet, voice sounds like a banshee bleh, ain’t a good fit. It’s not you Louis it’s me, sorry man. Onto suspect 3, Hobo Billy the kid, chill, kinda dusty, but I’m not stealthy, wouldn’t have light-up shoes if I was after all. Suspect 4 come on down! Here we have Joan of Arc, awesome sword wielder and dealer of cherished head pats, 9/10 we might have a winner here people.

Now onto suspe-oh no megaphone man’s back, just in case, I pulled my beanie over my ears, no hearing loss for me.

“Ah, jolly good show everyone! It was quite a sight to see, I must say, now children, if that display did not solidify your choice-well buck up! We’ve decided to allow our professors the chance to remind you of their profession and the meaning behind each class! And remember no class is better or worse than the ot-”

“Guerillas are best, don’t listen to the loudspeaker” Izusa jabbed in

“Heheheh, Izusa I am glad for your class pride still runs deep, but we are headmasters, after all, we need to be unbiased! Let our bright youths decide for themselves!”

“Unbiased, you have your freaking Knight necktie on” She fired back motioning to his stripped blue silver tie which he straightened.

“Well, of course, one must never forget their roots after all, and even though I myself favored our knights here, this is not-” Before he could finish, a sharp “Shush” interjected. Professor Blum strode forward hand massaging his temple.

“If we listen to this squabble any longer, we shall not move anywhere, and I would like to return to my facility before night comes if you don’t mind.” Fixing his overcoat, the amber eyes of the earth magi quickly returned to the crowd, piercing them with a cool stare as he began to speak once more.

“To you lot” he admonished us snapping his arm, “Listen well, for I shall only say this once. Despite what the news or the media has led you to believe, Alchemists are those who study and pick apart the gears of magic and the world for all its worth.” When he said news and media he spat out each word as if it were venom in his mouth, and as he began to go on, the methodical style of his speech began to ebb more into a stately passion.

“We are no mere scientists, we are alchemists! The fusion of creativity and scientific reasoning to understand, this little thing we call magic. Despite the moniker of “Youngest class,” Human, Magi, or whatever in between that’s shuffled about on this rock has always been curious of this force in our world. Whether you trace our origins to the wizards and warlocks of old, or to the Alchemists of which we’ve gained our title, we are both and neither of our predecessors!”

Pacing a bit, he calmed his voice back down as he continued on, “Were our ancestors simply explored the capabilities or tried to pick apart magic for their own uses, we have a different goal. We carry the light of knowledge, illuminating the unknown for our fellow people so that they may find comfort in said findings. If you choose this path, burn this into your mind! If you have no passion or hunger for finding the secrets of magic and our world, then as soon as you enter my facility, you. shall. be. Gone! I do not want to hear your complaining, “Oh it’s too hard,” or, “ Oh, it’s too boring” for if I see one hint of uninterest in your eyes, I'll throw you out myself! For if you have no passion or drive in your field what is the point of you? Now then,”

After a long sigh, he quietly composed himself, “if you feel this is right for you, step forward now.” he crooned out. And to my left, I felt a rustle beside me Orion groaned up and walked towards the old magi, he gave me a two-finger salute and lazily walked forward. And as everyone saw him go, bit by bit more people stood in front of Rasputin, as each was handed some black clothes in a bag. And as if on cue, a sharp whistle broke the silence, bringing all our eyes on Billy the kid.

“Alright, kiddos eyes on me for a sec’. Thanks to ole grandpa given that essay, I’ll be straight with ya. Guerillas are the rebels, outlaws, anarchists, or whatever they call us now. Where there's some rules we break 'em, were there's laws we go past 'em. We be the judge of those in power, that roarin' flame under they feet that keep our leaders in check. And if they go too far, well, this lil' fire finna burst into an inferno I'll promise ya that. If ya got freedom and rebellion in ya chest. We yo people, see a riot, we in there, see a protest, we in there, and if you see a revolution? Hoo boy, you sure as heck know we in there! We carry the light of freedom and change, always there to stop a leader if they go too far and if they do, we gon' hold 'em accountable and make somethin' new. If my words struck home, we be happy to have ya, welcome to the family kiddos.” legs dangling over the stage the professor watched as the future Guerillas approached, heck even one girl flew up and gave a high five to him. Thanks to her wings, she was an air magi, had some golden-brown wings and storm grey hair, and perched atop the stage as her classmates rushed up too.

At my right, I heard a grunt as freaking Joan of Arc hopped off her pommel and kicked the sword in her hand like it was nothing! Yup, definitely joining her I don’t care what anyone says-Imma be a knight!

“Heh, alrighty, may as well start, hmph” She grunted, holding her sword in a rigid pose. If I’m being honest her face looked like she was constipated “to be a knight you be gallant, focused measured precise and powerful, my children take up arms your calling is nye it is time for a crusade! We shall take back the holy land,Deus vult, DEUS VU-pfffft, heheheh, sorry I had to” she chuckled leaning on her sheath “Oh, that never gets old, ok serious time now” she took in a breath to speak but

“Ah, it seems the impossible did happen, you being serious” Rasputin interjected walking past her, to this he received a light snicker

“Listen I can be serious sometimes, on occasion, when I feel like it, every few years. But, as I was saying before mister essay interrupted me, Knights are old as heck alright, we’re the first beacons, defend people for generations, all that good stuff. But just cause we got knight in our name, don’t mean we’re Chivalrous, glistening warriors who vanquish evil to the ends of the earth that’s only a third of the pie, we’re not just warriors, we’re healers and guardians kids. The sword, shield, and healing hand, we become that light. We guard against the dark and give people a haven. In more than one way! So,” she said resting her sword over her shoulders,

“If you want to be a knight, grab some chainmail and a tunic from the stage and come to my class tomorrow. I’d be happy to have you” She winked strolling out. Yeeep, I’m all in let’s freaking go! I cheered in my mind, but I had a feeling I had a dopey smile on my face all the same.

After that, not much else happened, learned about the other two classes, Artificers, basically artists, builders, and all that fun stuff that entertains or helps people. And seekers, explorers, and stuff, always run headfirst into the unknown and hard to pin down. But by the end I got some bag of clothes and a rune stone. It was a smooth navy-blue rock with a messed-up F burnt into it. It felt warm and hummed a bit in my hand as I turned a bit, it was like a weird magic compass to my dorm I guess, this is so cool! Welp, into your prison-I mean my bag little guy. As I was putting my stone back in my bag, a gun shot made me nearly drop it on the ground.

“Gah! what is this, give Eir a heart attack day?!” I mumbled clamping my stone as Headmaster Ortiz cleared his throat.

“Knights, Alchemists, Seekers, Guerillas, and Artificers, thank you all for continuing in the protection of Human-Magi kind. This is the first step of your journey as Beacons! For even having the courage to step up this far, you should be proud! Bully indeed for you! I already can see great potential in all of you, all I can say is good luck, and may your lights always shine bright.” He finished his final speech and gave us all a hearty laugh and warm smile before walking into the back as Izusa made her way to speak.

“Alright Torches, like the headmaster megaphone said, this is your start, remember you all wanted this, so get ready, tomorrow starts four years of hell, have fun~” she sang away into the darkness from whence she came.

After the speeches of fluff and doom we all dispersed to our new dorms, which for some freaking reason was on the of the fort! School’s in the middle, makes sense, access to everything, but the dorms. At the very edge of the freaking coast, who designed this and where can I smack them with my bag? I’m going helicopter them so bad won’t know what hit them. But still, I walked to my dorm. Weird F rune dash 5 as the stone in my hand vibrated more and more the closer I got to my door. The jade-gold rune patterned carpet sat atop a shining wood floor and the air had a scent of strangely chocolate, and fire?

“Who’s burning something?” I thought aloud, but right as the words came out of my mouth, the wall right across from me shattered as a flaming girl bulldozed through while a hand patted me on the head. Whirling my head from side to side I saw Orion standing besides me snickering at the dragon girl. She had two jagged black horns sticking out of her messy flame like curls. She was short but had a stocky frame, I think I even saw a few muscles if I’m being honest. And as I saw her gold eyes stare daggers at Orion(nickname still pending) a wicked smile seared across her face, disrupting the red scales upon her cheeks.

“Orio get back over here so I can hit ya!” She growled in her rough voice, to which Orion strolled across from me with a playful shrug

“nahhh, don’t really feel like it sunflower, good offer though, you’re getting’ better at em, I’m proud!”

“Tsk, I told ya before, I ain’t no little flower, I am the sun!” she yelled crouching down for probably another charge. Orion chuckled as he held his free hand at his ear

“Uh, say that again white dwarf, I ain’t hear ya~” he teased, and at that my eyes even glared at him,

“Please don’t my ears have suffered enough for a day!” I groaned,

But as at the girl, it seemed like she physically had a tick mark on her head as the whole room heated up to 90 degrees. I had to take off my hat and fan myself, what the freak did he say to make her that mad? But unfortunately, I got no answer as the girl barreled forward with a battle cry. Careening towards Orion before I saw him poof out of existence in a blue flash before reappearing behind the solar magi. He placed a hand on her back and caused it to steam, but what instantly caught my attention was two words that slithered from his mouth.

“Liga Hostem” he said, and yanked his hand back as multiple black and blue chains wrapped around the girl, battling against the fire and the light she gave off. Making the hallway as wicked battle of heat and cold. Gasping from excitement I rapidly said

“You used a binding spell! It’s not the full incantation but that’s still awesome! Wait, your element doesn’t usually go into that unle-“

“let’s save this for later, I ain’t tryin’ be bbq magi over here” to further his point the girl took in a deep breath and bellowed out a stream of flames in the boy’s direction, cursing under his breath Orion slammed his hand on the ground and cried

“Fortifico!” as a black and blue hexagon of swirling void, blocked the incoming flames, and as soon as the barrier was released, the girl charged forward with an knee aimed at Orion’s fac, he rolled back and threw a punch at her stomach, but she brushed it to the side. Back and forth they parried and dodged each other’s blows like clockwork. Oh I wish I had popcorn, this is so good, but sadly before the fight could continue, the door behind me slammed open as I saw a baby face looking Asian guy with, a long, rat tail… Oh its him, time to give him a piece of my wait why is he my dorm mate?!

“QUIET” the pale faced boy roared, on his face was now a pair of jade, metallic looking goggles, and as soon as he looked at the two magi his face grew a face of sheer disgust. “Ugh, just typical of their kind, arrogant and loud beyond measure. You two, cease this disturbance immediately, I am trying to work. “ he screamed in his childlike voice waving a large wrench at the two.

“Hey, angery baby man, shush.” Said angery baby man looked agasp and was about to say something before I said

“Oi, ya owe me an apology from earlier, what was your deal?” I demaded looking over my shoulder

“just my luck, of course I’m roomed with you of all people.” He rolled his eyes

“Me of all people?! Square up baby man, lets go!”

“First of all, I am not, a baby man. My name is Lin Su-Wang, and I am not fighting a munchkin.”

And this is how this went for like thirty minutes, four people either fighting or yelling at each other before, nothing, I really can’t remember what happened afterwards, only thing is I woke up with a pain in my neck for some reason. Weird, buuut yeah, this was one interesting first day.

Day one-completed! :)

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pocket-bunney · 6 years ago

Text

Educational | An Overwatch story

‘Gabriel, Gabriel, Gabriel’ - Moira said, each word rolling off with more delight from her tongue ‘You have really outdone yourself this time.’

She picked up the tablet from the table and a wide smile spread across her face. Unintentionally, she let out a strange little chuckle of excitement, one she usually reserved for significant scientific breakthroughs.

‘We must bring him here at once so we can start our research.’ she said, her voice matter-of-fact with a dash of that lingering delight.

‘Tomorrow evening at 2200. I heard you two know each other?’ Gabriel growled and turned around and headed to the exit ‘Spare me the whole story. Just be ready. I heard he is unstable, our best bet is that he will react favorably to a familiar face.’

Moira looked at him leave but did not say anything. Then she carefully lifted up the tablet again, looking thoughtfully on the profile picture of a man in his sixties.

‘Siebren… you’ve really done it this time, old fool’ she muttered, then discarded the tablet and turned around to make preparations.

***

It seemed like a lifetime ago when she first met him, even though it must have only been 15 years or so, but her life had taken quite many turns since then.

Back then she was still working on her paper about DNA alteration, but skill, knowledge and diligence - as she had to find out - did not bring progress after a certain point in the scientific community. You needed connections, mentors and sponsors, the more influential, the better.

Moira in her younger years was never quite good at socializing. There were a few peers she could tolerate from her long years of studies, but that network only got her so far. Her funding, and hence her research, was halted for good without some influential backers.

Therefore, albeit unwillingly but she started reaching out to other colleagues across the globe and got to attending some science conferences. These were mostly bland and boring, bound by the shackles of ethics, not a true innovator among any of the people she met. Even worse, all that socializing, small talk and fruitless network-building were making her sick to the stomach.

She was in Rotterdam now at a conference where the overarching theme was gravity. Physics were normally not in her field of interest, but she was quite intrigued by the biological findings of the Horizon Lunar Colony, and anyway, the event was just a short plane-trip away.

‘I should be up there’ she thought to herself annoyed, standing in one of the lobbies by one of those tall, skinny tables and taking yet another piece of dry salty pastry form a bowl while glancing up at the sky with the pale moon up. ‘I should be up there, making actual, daring research, not those pansies with breeding monkeys and hamsters.’

‘Excuse me, madam’ someone said, stepping into her line of sight. She looked up unamused - it was a surprisingly tall man about a decade older than her. He had muscular, broad shoulders and a friendly expression on his face ‘I saw you were here all by yourself so I thought you could use some company. Please let me introduce myself, I am Dr. Siebren De Kuiper, astrophysicist.’

‘‘Dr. Moira O’Deorain, genetic engineering.’ Moira offered restrained and held out her hand. Dr. De Kuiper had a nice handshake - Finally someone, Moira thought - not too aggressive, not too limp. She was not a short one herself but she found she needed to tilt her head up if she wanted to look into his eyes.

‘So, Dr. O’Deorain, what brings you to this conference, if I may ask? Surely not the awful break-time snacks.’ he said, taking a piece from the bowl.

Moira snickered, but instantly checked herself.

‘I mainly came for the session about the Lunar base and to hear the findings about the genetic level influences of low- and zero gravity.’ she offered in a measured tone ‘But I don’t want to bore you with the details. Surely, an astrophysicist has a broader interest here than me.’

‘Oh, good Doctor, but that is the thing! The theme of the conference is Gravity. Such an overarching power, so many fields influenced... From the very stem cells we all come from, until the super-massive black holes at the center our our Galaxy… Gravity is everywhere, governing our existence, our very fate!’ his blue eyes sparkled with enthusiasm as he was talking and gesturing ‘Such a force to be reckoned with, uniting so many people… I must admit, it makes me quite happy colleagues from other fields also find interest in this event today. But-- forgive me, I am rambling. Dr. O’Deorain, do tell more about your research.’

Moira took a slight breath and gave her elevator-pitch on her current research about custom genetic programs. She had several of these speeches perfected out for each type of listener - one for patrons who knew little of science, one for scientists from other fields and the most elaborate of course, for genetic engineers. She thought the pleasantries would end after her short speech, but to her surprise de Kuiper was very inquiring and before long they struck up quite the conversation. He was a strange person: wise and thoughtful, yet also eccentric and quite jovial - and above all, very polite and thoughtful.

Moira felt intrigued and, after the last year or so full of long and tedious of forced networking, she found herself enjoying the conversation about their researches just for the sake of it.

A bell rang somewhere and Siebren perked up, then quickly apologized and told Moira to come to his seminar that was the last one of the day.

‘I really hope you will come. I’ll do my best to make it interesting’ he added with a smile, and Moira caught herself smiling back and nodding.

Once he was out of sight, she angrily bit the long nail of her thumb, contemplating why the hell she agreed to go. It was not like she had to gain anything from this connection.

Why would she even be interested in something else than her own agenda?

And still - some time later, there she sat in the seminar room with the rest of the crowd. Just to observe him, she told herself. There was something to learn from this elderly man.

Siebren was commanding the small stage with his posture, gestures and charismatic but friendly voice. He sometimes stammered just a bit, looking for exactly the right words, like a teenager confessing his love, and wanting to get the feelings across just right. He had a simple, old-school whiteboard behind him and scribbled some equations Moira did not grasp at all, and now and then used some impressive holographs to prove a point. Amidst all the gravity-related puns (of which there were more than what Moira was comfortable with as a geneticists) Moira couldn’t help but think how the power of harnessing a black hole’s energy was quite as exhilarating and a morally grey area like her own research of DNA alteration on the cell level.

If one could create black holes at will… maybe even use the immense power of gravity to shield oneself and to assault enemies… Surely it could be done, with the right circumstances. But the issue of stability…. well that was agreeably the greatest risk of this hypothesis.

Moira found herself feverishly noting down some raw ideas, mixed with observations she made from Siebren’s presentation. He was captivating everyone’s attention in the room with his words, tone and gesture - and she wanted to possess such a power as well.

There was a roaring applause once the Dutchman finished and several members from the audience went down to shake his hand and speak a few words with him. Moira lazily scribbled in her notebook as the line in front of Siebren just got longer and longer.

She stretched and let her thoughts run wild in her head - not quite sure how much of these she could actually include in her current research, but it was a refreshing change to be considering new possibilities after being bogged down in her laboratory for such a long time. She found she was not tired at all, and was not in the mood to return to her dull hotel room just yet.

At one point a strange chill struck her, and she looked up, seeing Siebren staring directly at her from the podium with a wide smile.

‘How did you like it?’ he asked cheerfully. They were the last two people in the enormous hall.

‘It was… educational’ Moira said teasingly as she gathered her notebook and slowly walked down the flight of stairs next to him.

‘Educational?’ he seemed a bit disappointed ‘O mijn God, even my completely stoned students have stronger opinions than that, Doctor. Was it that bad?’ he asked, stepping next to the whiteboard and wiping it off with a concerned look.

Moira stepped next to him and picked up a whiteboard marker.

‘It actually made me think of a few new things.’

Siebren’s face instantly lit up. ‘Happy to hear that!’ he exclaimed ‘Do you wish to discuss?’ he asked eagerly, gesturing towards the whiteboard.

‘Before we do, Dr. De Kuiper…’ Moira started in a silken voice ‘I am quite inclined to ask you about your views on ethics. Both you and I seem to be exploring quite the moral grey zone, wouldn’t you agree?’

‘Hmmm’ the man replied at first with a light smile as he looked thoughtfully into the heterochromic eyes ‘I can of course give my opinion… Under one condition.’

‘Yes?’ Moira frowned. She did not like conditions.

‘Let’s be on a first name basis, Dr. O’Deorain. Such conversations are more suited with closer acquaintances’ he said with a warm smile, and she smiled back at him.

‘Very well... Siebren. So, your views?’

‘Well, Moira, twenty years ago everyone thought me for a fool for even mentioning harnessing black holes’ Siebren chuckled and sat down on the table on top of the podium ‘It took some convincing, some funding and a lot of work to change how people perceived it. Let me put it this way - gravity and ethics both keep something together. Only the latter is not absolute, it is not a rule of the universe. You can slowly chip away at it. Two hundred years ago women in science were unheard of. And now, here you are. Ethics change. We are the ones changing them, Moira.’

They talked for hours, discussing hypotheses about utilizing black holes and gravitational force on a cellular level. There was no topic too daring, no idea too unethical for their conversation. He even promised to get her in touch with some important people.

Around 2 a.m. he called a taxi for her, holding out an umbrella until she got into the car.

The contacts he introduced her to ended up being the founders of Oasis, which, after the fall of Blackwatch provided to be a stable means to fund her research.

Later they emailed each other a few more times, but never quite managed to meet up again. She occasionally read articles about him, but in the last few years, all but forgot about him - until today.

***

The facility was unassuming on the outside, but a fortress on the inside - but it all mattered not with Gabriel’s planning and Talon’s sheer force.

‘Daaaamn, this security is top-notch’ Sombra pouted ‘Just sayin, I ain’t goin’ in there to see granpa if this is the level of security he gets.’

‘Just get this thing open and disable the alarms’ Moira snapped at her ‘I’ll take care of the rest.’

‘Be sure you do, Doctor…’ Sombra replied, giving out a little snicker.

The door to the cell was a huge one, protected not only by electric locks but also a huge mechanical valve. After the screeching alarms went down, Akande tore off the whole door and flung it to the side as if it was made out of paper, then glanced into the small room beyond it, padded from floor to ceiling.

‘Not going in?’ Sombra teased him.

‘Doctor, this is your specialty’ Akande gestured towards the room, but as Moira passed him, he grabbed her arm and whispered into her ear - ‘I want you and him BOTH in one piece and in a usable form.’ The woman removed her arm from his grip and brushed it off with an annoyed expression. Then, with a sharp inhale, she stepped into the confinement room.

It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the dimly lit room, but once they did, she saw a figure standing in one of the corners, hunched and muttering something inaudible. The silhouette she recognized but it has changed, the broad shoulders and confident stance broken and shaking. He looked like he was on the verge of imploding on himself.

‘Siebren.’ she called out softly. The figure twitched but did not turn her way.

‘It’s all the same! Life, death… it doesn’t matter!’ he suddenly said, then fell abruptly silent.

Moira took a step closer. Suddenly, the floor gave away beneath her and the air was instantly pressed out from her lungs. She slowly fell to her knees - the floor was still there, but the sinking feeling in her stomach just kept getting worse. She was panting, trying to fight this invisible force, somehow.

So this is his power, she thought to herself. She needed to get closer, within reaching distance… but it was impossible to stand, so she resorted to crawl towards him inch by inch - she would have felt immensely humiliated if she wasn’t completely oxygen deprived and fighting for each and every breath.

‘It’s me Siebren... Moira… Dr. Moira O’Deorain. You need to calm down for me… Siebren, can you hear me? Do you remember me?’

‘I don’t remember what went wrong’ Siebren muttered ‘My calculations… my life… everything was coming down to that moment…’

A bullet swished through the air, abruptly stopping right before Siebren’s head, then it bounced right back where it came from with a loud PANG. Moira couldn’t decide if she felt relieved that this ragtag group of idiots were looking out for her or disappointed that their efforts were worth absolutely nothing.

‘THAT MELODY, I CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE, WHAT IS IT?!’ Siebren suddenly yelled out. Moira felt her body rise uncontrollably and then be abruptly smashed back into the floor. She growled; every inch of hers hurt like hell, her head was spinning and she was on the verge of throwing up, passing out, or worse enough, both. She needed to end this, now.

With her last bit of strength she hoistered herself up onto her forearms and saw De Kuiper collapsing a few feet away from her. He was completely silent now, just slightly twitching and staring up at the ceiling, never blinking.

Moira slowly crawled next to him and felt the pressure on her lungs lift with every passing second. Gently, she held out her left hand above his head and released a tiny amount of healing biotic energy. Then, she placed her hand on Siebren’s forehead.

‘I’m here’ she said in the gentlest tone she could muster. He twitched a couple more times, then slowly closed his eyes.

‘Doctor O’Deorain’ he muttered, only half opening his eyes, his gaze unfocused. ‘May I ask, what brings you to this conference? Surely not the awful break-time snacks.’

After her initial shock, Moira forced a smile on her face and while whispering a reply, carefully reached into her pocket for the tranquilizer she’s stashed away.

‘I came to see your seminar on gravity, Siebren. I heard it was quite the event.’

‘Someone once said it was... educational’ Siebren chuckled to himself, then tensed a bit as Moira pressed the tranquilizing shot onto his neck.

‘Well, we can’t all be great astrophysicists like you’ Moira said lightheartedly, leaning back a bit.

‘I have a great experiment lined up…’he said, dozing off, then twitched, and looked at her sharply ‘Help… m-’ then another twitch ‘So nice you ca…’ and then he closed his eyes and remained still.

Moira felt her hand weighing down on his forehead heavily, as if bound by a tiny but powerful gravity field.

#overwatch #sigma #moira #fanfiction #siebren de kuiper #moira o'deorain #sigmoira

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justkending · 6 years ago

Text

Knock, Knock. Chapter 29.

Chapter Summary: The parents have arrived. Also, how do people see so much detail in such a little picture?

Pairing: (single) Jensen x Reader

Warnings: Cussing, Fluff.

Word Count: 3100+

Series Masterlist

A/N: Ok this gif has nothing to do with this chapter other than the parents, (aka Mom and Dad) but I came across this gif and had to do it. I mean look at him. Is that allowed???

Part 29:

Mackenzie and you had already stopped at a few stores getting items for your school. Conversation seemed to flow extremely easily for two people who had just met. She was telling you about her life, and you were telling her about how you came to meet Jensen. Then you explained about your ex-fiance and all the trouble of having to move out. You told her how you were close with the Padaleckis and how they took you in at the beginning. Needless to say after hearing your stories of your ex, she was definitely on your side. Then you let her in on how her brother and you came to be roommates.

“So teaching? What made you want to be in that career field?” she asked as you headed to get groceries at your last stop.

“Umm, I’m not sure really. I guess I’ve always had a heart for it. When I got to college, and was helping mentor younger girls in my church, I realized counseling was a major part of my life. So after graduating with my bachelors, I hopped right back into school to get my masters.” you smiled looking at her then back at the road.

“That’s so sweet.” she gushed. “Also extremely brave.” she laughed.

“How so?” you laughed with her.

“I know I couldn't handle all that drama and work. It takes a special someone who can sit down with younger kids and listen to their problems. I feel like I wouldn’t have any good advice to give.”

“Well, you’re not wrong by saying a majority is just drama. Especially since I work with younger kids, but I get my fair share of more intense things family wise. Plus, sometimes it’s not just about giving advice. Sometimes they just want to be heard, and allowed to have a voice.” you shrugged like it was that easy.

“Hmmm, never really thought of it that way.” she processed.

“A lot of people don’t, but the more people you tell? The more people will be able to help.”

She turned to you while you were focused on the road. A grin formed on her lips. She liked you. You were a good fit for her brother. The world needed more people as calming and understanding as you.

“Ok, we’re here.” you said pulling in a parking spot at the farmers market. “I like to get the fresh stuff here. Anything else we need, we can get at the grocery store.” you smiled taking off your seatbelt, and grabbing your purse.

“Farmers market? Oh my God! I didn’t know there was this close to Jay’s house!” she said getting out and walking around the front of the car meet you.

“Yeah, it’s great isn’t it?” you smiled as you both started making your rounds around the stands.

You were about 10 minutes into your shopping when you noticed a group of teenagers staring and talking to each other.

You slightly nudged Mackenzie as you picked up a fruit and fake examined it.

“Hey at my 3 o’clock. Does that group of kids look like they’re studying us?” you whispered.

She secretly moved her head just enough to check it out.

“Yeah, actually.” she answered picking up a fruit with you and looking at it too. “You think we got spotted?”

“Not sure. Could just be teenagers being teenagers. I don’t know exactly what they could have spotted. My face still isn’t in any tabloids that I know of.” you said moving on to a new fruit. “You don’t think they could possibly recognize me even with the sunglasses do you?”

“There’s no telling with people. Some people get so into it and really pay attention to detail. But hey. If you want to head back to the car, I can grab a few more things and check out and meet you there.”

“No, no. It’s fine. I’m sure I’m just in my own head.” you said taking a deep breath and looking back at the group of teenagers. “Let’s just grab the last couple of things, and head out.” you said putting an uneasy smile on your face.

“Ok, sounds good. But if we need to go any sooner. Let me know.”

You continued your walk around the market trying to ignore people's eyes. You were paranoid that someone was going to say something, when really you had seen half of these people every weekend for the past 2 months. All the owners of stands practically knew you like a friend with how often you came. This was one of your safe places. Hopefully that wouldn’t be taken from you.

As you were both headed back to the car, you thought your were in the home stretch of not getting caught. Then a teenage girl, and her friend approached you and Mackenzie just as you were loading up the food.

“Hey, I hope we aren’t bothering you two, but we just had to ask.” the shorter red head said.

“Yeah, our families own some of the booths so we usually just hang around here. We noticed you two and you both look kinda familiar.” the taller blonde one added.

“Well, I come here almost every weekend, but that’s about all that I think you would recognize me from.” you said simply hoping they would move on and not ask any more questions.

“I thought I had seen you around. It’s just... something else stood out to me though.” the redhead said furrowing her eyebrows.

“Wait a minute.” the other said making your heart skip a beat. “You.” she said pointing to Mackenzie. “Are you Jensen Ackles sister?” she said with excitement.

“Umm,” Mackenzie laughed. “Yeah, yeah that’s me.” she said kinda unsure of how to approach it. Clearly though the girl knew, so denying it was no help.

“OMG! Wait, if you’re his sister…” you could see them mental tally up all the facts. “You look a whole lot like the girl that was in all those news reports about Jensen maybe having a girlfriend!” she said a little louder than you wanted her to.

“I’m sorry girls, but you have the wrong person. I’m just one of Mackenzie's friends that lives in town.” you said quickly lying.

“But you have the same hair, and looks! You have to be-”

“There are a lot of girls with Y/H/C hair, and looks like me. I mean the world is a big place.” you shrugged going to open your front door.

“But the coincidence-”

“Hey girls. I promise this isn’t the girl in all the pictures. She hasn’t even met my brother before.” Mackenzie said stepping in to defend you. “She’s just an old friend that I’m meeting back up with. Now if you’ll excuse us we have to run some more errands.” she smiled opening her door as well. “It was nice meeting you two, and I hope your families booths do well.” she waved as she got in the car that you quickly put into reverse and drove out of the parking lot of.

“That was close.” you breathed out once you were a ways away. “Do you get noticed that often?”

She shrugged. “No. Maybe once every month or so, but other than that no one really knows who I am. Except the really big fans of my brother. The ones who dig deep I guess.”

“Interesting. Well sorry about that. I didn’t even think about-”

“What are you apologizing for? It’s not like you asked them to come over and interrogate us.” she laughed.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“Plus, you handled it really well. I’m happy to see you aren’t dating my brother just for the stardom.”

“About that. Jensen mentioned that too. How many people have used him for that?” you asked.

“Well, you would be surprised. Even already famous people have used it against him. Danneel being one.”

“Danneel? Isn’t that his most recent ex?”

“Yeah, she had us all fooled. I mean she was sweet, and loving and everything you want for your sibling to have, but then one day… She flipped a switch. Told him she was only doing it for screen time, and the press. He found her later-” she cut herself of when she noticed she was spilling all the secrets of Jensen’s love life. “You know what? That’s not my story to tell. I’m sure you and Jensen will talk about it soon enough. I mean you’re what? Couple of months into the relationship?” she asked turning to you.

You let out a short laugh.

“Actually, about just a little under 24 hours into the relationship…”

“What?” she shouted. “But the way- I thought that- How-”

“I know. I know. Like I said before. We we were roommates first, then I brought him home for Christmas since your family was celebrating later, and then feelings were eventually shared. It took us a while, but we finally put a label to it.” you chuckled under your breath.

“Well, you could’ve fooled me. By the way he looked at you, I wouldn’t have been surprise if you had been hiding your relationship for years.”

“Really?” you said turning to her shocked.

“Oh yeah. He has the look.” she said looking straight ahead at the road.

“What look?”

“Oh you know, ‘the one’. But I shouldn’t say anything. I’m just picking up context clues here and there.” she shrugged with a cheeky smile on her face.

“You’re sneaky.” you said throwing her a smirk. “I like that.”

She raised her shoulders like she didn’t know what you were talking about, and then you both broke into laughter, and talked small talk the rest of your ride home.

You came in laughing about something you and Mackenzie were talking about, so you didn’t notice the new people that were standing at the island with Jensen.

“You’re kidding.” you laughed, as you turned the corner with multiple bags in hand.

“Dead serious.” Mackenzie answered before looking behind you.

You followed her stare, and saw Jensen’s parents. He had showed you pictures so you knew exactly who they were.

“Oh, hi!” you smiled.

“Y/N, these are my parents Donna and Alan.” he smiled motioning to them.

“Oh my gosh. It’s so nice to meet you two.” you walked over going to shake their hands, but realizing you didn’t have any open hands to do so.

Jensen was quick though and picked up on the struggle, and rushed to your side.

“Here. Let me get those.” he smiled taking them with ease and going to relocate them.

“Thanks Jay.” you smiled before turning back to his parents. “Sorry about that. I’m Y/N.” you said offering your hand once again. Jensen’s dad taking it first and giving you a sturdy handshake which you reciprocated.

“Nice to meet you Y/N. Jensen’s been telling us all about you since we got here.” he said with a friendly smile which eased your nerves a little.

“All good things I hope.”

“All good things.” he chuckled. Jensen definitely got his looks from his father. They had the same structure and everything. Of course his dad just more aged.

You moved over to his mom, and she already had this huge smile from ear to ear on.

“Hi Donna, it’s nice to finally meet you.” you greeted.

“The pleasures all mine darling. Jensen can’t seem to stop talking about you, and I must say you are even more beautiful than he’s said.”

“Mom-” Jensen said joining back with you guys and standing close to you embarrassed.

“Thank you so much. Truly you’re too kind.” you said hugging Jensen from the side and placing a hand on his chest to ease his embarrassment.

“So lunch?” Mackenzie interjected coming around the two of you. “Mom wanna help make some pasta? Y/N and I went to the farmers market to get some fresh ingredients.”

“Yeah, for sure! Whatcha got to make?” she asked.

“While you guys figure that all out, I’m going to pull Jensen away for a second.” Alan said putting a hand on his son’s shoulder. “We’ll be back in a second.” he said sending you a reassuring smile.

As they walked out Jensen shot you a thumbs up and a wink. You were nervous, but his family had a calming presence, so you weren’t as scared as you normally would be. You turned back to the women in the room and patted your legs.

“Well I wasn’t sure what you guys would want, so I just kinda stocked up on a lot of things. I can work on the vegetables and sides, if you want to do the main course.” You said going to the grocery bags. “Mackenzie said you make a mean chicken pesto pasta.”

“She’s not wrong there.” Donna smiled going over to the bags to help unload. “You sure you don’t want any help with the sides?”

“No, no! I got that. I feel bad already asking you to make the pasta. Mackenzie just insisted that you make it since it’s supposedly taste like heaven.” you chuckled seeing Mackenzie grin as she ducked her head away. “I don’t want to ask you to do it all. You are the guest after all.”

“Of course Mackenzie asked you to buy stuff for this meal.” Donna smiled while rolling her eyes. “It’s her favorite, and she only eats it when I make it.” she said nudging your shoulder playfully as she got the ingredients out. “Besides, usually when we come here we cook anyways. It’s no biggie.”

“Well then, let me join in on the tradition. I would love to help where I can.” you smiled taking out some pots and pans before turning to Donna with a friendly grin.

“I would love that sweetheart.” she grinned back. “Mackenzie you’re in charge of boiling the pasta.”

“What’s up dad?” Jensen asked his father as they got situated on the back porch on the nice sunny day.

“So listen son. I was just wanting to check in with you.” he smiled.

“If this is about-”

“It’s not. I’m just wanting to see how this is going.”

Jensen gave his father a look. One saying he didn’t really want to get into the whole Danneel thing.

“Dad it’s not like that-”

“Call it a father looking out for his son.” Alan said putting his hands up in surrender before looking back at his son. “You didn’t think it was like that with Danneel and look what happened there. She broke your heart, and you were a mess.”

“I know, but trust me when I say this. Y/N is not like that. She doesn’t care about the fame aspect of this relationship.” Jensen said slumping onto the banister on the steps. “She-she’s different. I know it.”

“What makes you think that?” Jensen shot him another look. “I’m just trying to get the facts. Don’t hate me for asking.”

Jensen sighed as he looked out onto the yard.

“Where to begin?” he said with a soft smile as he thought about you. “For one, she’s known Jared and Gen for longer than me almost, and she has always been down to earth with them. Never once tried to jump in the spotlight with them. Only in it for the friendship.”

“Ok. Good start.”

“Then she was even hesitant to move in with me. Most girls would jump at the opportunity for exactly the reasons you’re worried about, but she actually took almost a week just to decide on it. The deciding factor being she didn’t want to live off of Gen and Jared anymore. Hell, she was even looking at apartments while living here so that she wouldn’t be in ‘my way’ as he put it.” he chuckled lightly.

“Hmm mmm.” Alan said thinking it out, but Jensen kept going.

“Then when she invited me to her family’s place, she-she-” he stopped and smiled thinking back to it. “The first things she said to her family was, ‘He is a normal man. Who just wants to have a normal time. Treat him like the human being he is.’” he started playing with his hands as he smiled thinking about you. His father catching on. “She was constantly putting her family in check, and making sure that I was just like them. Not famous, not any different from them. It was humbling. It was nice for a change.”

“I see.” Alan said bringing his son’s attention back from the dream land he had escaped to. “So you love her?”

That definitely made Jensen snap his head to his father.

“L-Love?”

“Yeah, love. It’s not that hard of a word.”

“I wouldn’t say love just yet-”

“You don’t have to say it. You’re showing it.” Alan smirked. Jensen just gave him confused eyes. “Listen, at first when you mentioned her I immediately went into defense mode, and was ready to think of all the worst possible outcomes. But… After seeing you talk about her, and look at her.” a small grin pulled at Jensen’s lip. “This isn’t like other girls Jensen. This one seems different.”

“Thanks dad.”

“Don’t thank me. Thank whatever person brought her into your life. Gen I’m assuming?” he said standing from their spots and Jensen following.

“By complete accident.”

“Well accidents can be a miracle in disguise.” he said patting his son’s back before pointing to the house. “Wanna see what they decided on cooking? I think I already smell something good.”

“Sure. Y/N’s a great cook too, so I wouldn’t be surprised.”

“Add it to the list of reasons I already like her.” Alan smiled as they walked back in.

When they came in, you three girls were laughing all together over something the boys didn’t know, but apparently it was hilarious the way you were leaning on the counter for support.

It was like time froze. You were smiling so big, and it was like a glow was surrounding you. The laughter that was coming out of your mouth was angelic sounds sent straight from heaven from Castiel himself. The way your hair had fallen just a bit more from the long day so far was capturing your natural beauty just right with how the light was filtering into the room.

You slowed your laughing when you noticed Jensen walk in the room, and he watched as your smile turned to a soft one when you looked to him. It showed you were content, confident, and happy where you were. All the nerves that were there the night before weren’t showing at all now. You were breathtaking while in your element. Everything about you was.

Maybe this was love. And if it was, he never wanted the feeling to leave.

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@shamelesslydean @sleepless-sin @unabashedsoul97 @sandlee44 @gripmetight-raisemefromperdition @cabbagewithissues @supersleepygoat @anotherwaywardsister @spnwoman@ravengirl94 @carryonmywaywardcaptain @ezilyamuzed @thosekidswhohuntmonsters@purpleskiesandcherrypies @anise-d-castle6 @adoptdontshoppets @casper57x @tailsoflightning@spookycowz @eve05glee @snffbeebee @angelessquirrel @deans-baby-momma @natura1phenomenon@tftumblin @gh0stgurl @screechingartisancashbailiff @kersumgen @herscrunchiehairtie@dreaminemz @staradorned

#SPN series #SPN #Jensen Ackles #jensen x reader #jensen ackles x reader #jensen ackles x y/n #jensen ackles series #knock knock #knock knock series #justkending #supernatural #supernatural series #spn reader insert #jensen ackles au

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xxsovereignsarayaxx · 6 years ago

Text

Elizabeth Mikealson - What If? Chapter 4

The following morning Elijah had arranged with Jenna to have a tour around some of the most historic places around Mystic Falls, at present we we're walking on the old Fell property.

"The old Fell property actually starts just beyond that fence." Jenna says to us.

Myself and Elijah were walking hand in hand while Jenna was in front of us carrying all sorts of rolled up pieces of paper.

"Ah, the Fells. One of the Founding Families." Elijah says with a hint of sarcasm.

"Why do you say it like that?" She replies.

"Well the research that we have done so far has shown us that this area was actually settled almost two full centuries earlier. It was a migration of townsfolk from the northeast. Salem if we're wanting to be precise." I say with a smile.

"Massachusetts? As in the witch trials?" She asks.

"Indeed, which means the ever-lauded founding families...didn't actually found anything." Elijah explains.

"Well, I bet it was the men who made a big deal about being founders back in 1860. Men are very territorial." Jenna replies.

"Yes, they are." I tell her, while looking at Elijah and gently squeezed his hand smiling.

The sound of crunching leaves diverts my attention, I turn to look at who is approaching us.

"Elijah, Elizabeth. This is my friend, Alaric Saltzman." Jenna informs us.

"Nice to meet you." Elijah and I say to him.

"Yeah, I got your message about walking Elijah and Elizabeth through the old property lines. I thought I would tag along. You know being a history buff and all. Where to next?" Alaric asked us.

"I'm pretty curious about the freed slave property owners. Some say, you know, the descendants of the slaves are the true keepers of American history." Elijah says.

"Well, I only brought the surveys. I got that list in the car. Just give me a sec." Jenna says as she starts to leave.

"How about I come with you? Leave Alaric and Elijah to it for a few moments?" I suggest.

Jenna nods and smiles towards me and we both head over to her car. "So how did you end up meeting Elijah?" She asks me.

"Well before I moved to the States I used to live in England, I met him there and well the rest if history we've been happily married ever since." I tell her.

"Was it love at first sight?" She asked me, I let out a small chuckle.

"It was anything but that, I used to think he was very arrogant. But he won me over.". Jenna lets out a laugh as well.

"Well I think he is very charming, your both a good match for one another." She tells me. I give her a smile and hear footsteps behind us.

"I'm ever so sorry but we must cut the tour short. Thank you your time though Jenna." Elijah says to her.

"See you soon Jenna" I say to her and with that I take his hand and walk away.

Later in the afternoon we agreed to meet back up with Jenna at the Mystic Grill, take her for a drink as a way to apologize for having to leave early. Seems that Elijah and Alaric had a 'good' talk. We were waiting outside for Jenna to arrive.

"Did you enjoy bonding with the teacher?" I tease.

"He has been informed of the deal but also seems protective of Miss Sommers." Elijah tells me ignoring my teasing.

"Protective? Don't you mean jealous?" I say with a wink.

"Don't worry Elijah, I know innocent flirting when I see it." I teased and pecked him on the lips.

"There is nothing of the sort." He grumbles.

"Hi, sorry I'm a little late!" Jenna says out of breath.

"We were early, your right on time." I say to her with a smile.

We headed off inside. "Ah there's Jenna with her new boyfriend and crazy wife, heard three-ways are all the rage." Damon says with a smirk.

My hearing had picked up on the comment and once again I would need to put Damon Salvatore in his place, myself, Elijah and Jenna walked up the table. Sat with him was the history teacher and another girl.

"Hey guys." Jenna says to the group.

"So I hear that you three had quite a meeting of historical minds today." Damon says.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that" Jenna says back.

"Well, as much as I's like to continue this, I've papers to grade." Alaric says.

"I'll follow you out, I need some fresh air." I say out loud.

Alaric puts down some money to cover his share of drinks and food and gets up to leave. "No, you know what? We should continue this. Let's have a dinner party." The girl sat with Damon says.

"Ooh, my girl, full of good ideas. I'll be happy to host. Say tonight maybe?" Damon says to us.

I look at Elijah and he looks at me and we nod at each other.

"It's good for me? Jenna?" The girl asks.

"I don't know if tonight works..." Alaric starts.

"Yeah, I'm free" Jenna continues after him.

"It'd be a pleasure." Elijah says for the both of us.

"Great." Damon says with a smile.

Alaric finally leaves the table and I gently rub Elijah's arm and made my way outside following the school teacher.

"Alaric? Can I have a moment?" I ask. He turns and looks at me and sighs.

"Sure."

"Look, please know that Jenna won't be harmed in all this. I give you my word that I will help keep her safe. I actually really like her, and I hope that we could be friends also?" I say to him with a simple smile.

"Well lets just see how it goes." Alaric says, and with that he turns away and leaves.

I stand at the entrance just watching as the teacher leaves, Elijah joins me outside.

"What is your take on this dinner party then?" I ask him, I interlace my hands with his and we headed off in the other direction and towards the car.

"I'm not sure entirely if I am being honest, but when we arrive I will perfectly make it clear of our intentions if we are crossed." Elijah responds and places a kiss on my head as we were walking.

A few hours later myself and Elijah arrived at the Salvatore's residence. Elijah wearing a suit and myself wearing a casual yet smart dark blue dress paired with a thick black belt and black heels. Elijah holding my hand using his free one to knock on the door, we wait patently. Damon opens the door moments later.

"Good Evening." Elijah says to the younger vampire.

"Evening Damon." I say to him.

"Thank you for coming. Please come in." Damon says to use and gestures for us to come inside.

"Just one moment. Can I just say that if you have less then honorable intentions about how this evening is going to proceed, towards myself or Elizabeth. I suggest you reconsider." Elijah threatens.

"No, no nothing dishonorable. Just getting to know the both of you." Damon says reassuring us.

"For your sake Damon you better be telling the truth." I say to him in a low voice.

"Hmm well that's good." Elijah says and we made our way inside.

Elijah makes his way over to Jenna while I stop Damon from walking by simply just pressing my hand on his chest. "Although Miss Gilbert has this deal with myself and my husband. If you so much as make a move to cross me or Elijah. I will kill you and I will kill everyone in this room. Have I made myself clear?" I continue my threat.

"Crystal." Damon says and offers me an arm, which I hesitantly took and we walked into join the others.

"Jenna! We really should stop meeting like this." I say playfully and walk over to her and give her a small hug and a kiss to the cheek.

"Nice to see you Elizabeth." She replies to me.

"You look fabulous." I say to her.

The new girlfriend of Damon walks over to join us. I look over to see Elijah talking with Damon, Alaric and John. Jenna had mentioned about him before. "You're Andie Star? Right? I've seen you on the news." I ask her.

"Yeah that's me." She says with a giggle.

"I just though I would let you know that dinner is ready." She adds.

Damon sits at the head of the table and Elijah sits to his left followed by myself John and Alaric while Andie and Jenna sit the other side. Jenna pours some wine for everyone, I pick up the glass and swirl is around sniffing the aroma.

"I hate to break it to you Damon, but according to Elijah and Elizabeth your family is so not a founder of this town." Jenna teases.

"Hmmm, do tell." Damon says as he take a bite of his food. The sound of the small clang as he teeth and fork collide.

"Well as I mentioned to Jenna earlier a faction of settlers migrated from Salem after the witch trails in the 1690's. Over the next hundred years they developed this community where they could feel safe from persecution." Elijah explained.

"Hmmm. Because they were witches." Jenna thinks out loud.

"Yeah, but there's no tangible proof there were witches in Salem." Andie counters.

"Andie's a journalist. Big on facts." Damon adds. I take a sip of my wine and place it back on the table.

"Lore says that there was this wave of anti-witch hysteria. It broke out in the neighboring settlement, so these witches were rounded up, they were tied to stakes in a field together and well... They were burned alive. Some say you could hear their screams for miles as the flames consumed them. Elijah could you pass me the wine?" I say.

"I wouldn't repeat this to the Historical Society if I were you." Jenna giggles while Elijah tops up my wine glass. Smiling at him as a thank you I take another large sip.

"It's starting to sound a little like a ghost story to me." John says to which basically everyone ignores him.

"So tell me, why do you want to know the location of these alleged massacres?" Damon asks us.

"Both Elizabeth and myself share a healthy historian's curiosity, of course" Elijah says.

"Of course" Damon replies. Elijah glances at Damon and smiles at him.

The rest of the dinner was eaten in peace with the odd bit of small talk.

"Would anyone care for some cognac? I have a bottle that I've been saving for ages." Damon asks as he gets up from the table. The rest of us get up from our seats.

"The gentlemen should take their drinks in the study." Andie says.

"Let me get a glass and I'll join you ladies." I say holding Elijah's hand.

"I have to say the food was almost as wonderful as the company." Elijah says.

"I like you." Andie replies she flashes him a smile. I gently squeeze his hand, I could feel myself starting to get a little jealous over Andie flirting a little too much with my husband but to not try and spoil the evening I pushed the feeling away.

Myself, Elijah and Damon head over to the study Damon starts pouring the drinks for us. He hands myself a drink, I take a small sip. "Think this has aged to perfection." I say enjoying my drink.

"This isn't the only thing that's aged with perfection." I added whispering into Elijah's ear. He smiles and kisses my temple.

"So, let me guess. In addition to the moonstone, the doppelganger, the lion, the witch and the wardrobe, you need to find this witch burial ground." Damon asks.

"Because I feel as though we've grown so close, Damon, I'll tell you yes. Do you know where it is?" Elijah replies to him with a smirk.

"Maybe. Tell me why it's so important?." Damon asks again handing Elijah his drink.

"Damon we're not that close. Nor foolish enough to tell you." I say to him.

"Are you not meant to be with the ladies?" Damon asks in a slightly angered tone.

"Am I not allowed to simply enjoy a drink with my husband and his friend?" I reply sarcastically.

Whilst me and Damon were bickering Elijah had turned away from us to study the vast array of books. "Quite the collection you have." Elijah says impressed.

"It's a funny thing about books. Before they existed, people actually had memories." Elijah continues.

Damon was fiddling with the glasses and bottles on the table. Suddenly Alaric and Andie come into the study. "Gentlemen, Elizabeth. We forgot about dessert." He says to us.

I raise my eyebrow but shrug my shoulders and though nothing of it and started to walk up the stairs. "Elizabeth may I have a quick word?" Damon asks.

"Sure." I reply to him.

"Elijah..." Andie says offering her hand to him. He hands his drink to Damon and takes Andie's hand.

"Miss Star." Elijah replies and twirls her around and follows her.

Leaving Alaric in the doorway presuming he would follow Elijah and Andie.

"So what did you want t...." I start to say when a needle pierces the skin on my neck and I feel this sharp pain ruin through out my body which goes weak and I briefly feel someone catch me, and lay me on the floor. I moan quietly in pain confused what was happening.

"Oppsi daisy" I faintly hear Damon say.

I felt my body being lifted, I felt like I was a dead weight and everything was like sandpaper. It hurt to breathe let alone try and open my eyes. I was far too weak to do anything, but what happened to Elijah? Surely he noticed I was missing. Unless they hurt him. My body was placed down onto a chair and it felt like I was being wrapped in ropes they burnt as they touched my skin. However I was far too weak to try and fight back.

"E..e..lijah." I softly called out as my head lulled about. I tried to force myself to open my eyes but I couldn't do it. I hated myself when I was this weak. What seemed like hours I heard the sound of shuffling.

"You said there wasn't going to be any violence." A voice said.

"Says the person who did the killing." A arrogant tone said.

"How much vervain did you put in her? Shes completely out of it". The sound of shuffling stopped and a thud was heard and I felt the air of the impact on my legs.

"Enough to put her down Ric, remember shes stronger then me and Stefan put together, but considering he is still chasing Bambi.."

"Hey, I took the shot because I saw an opening, not because I planned to do this with Jenna in the house. Damon, you can't lie to me like that." Alaric interrupts sternly.

"I am your friend, damn it. And you don't have any friends. So, no more lying." Alaric continues and with that they closed a door and left.

Using what little strength I had mussed I forced myself again to open my eyes and the sight shocked me. Elijah was laying on the floor desiccated, they must have gotten hold of one of Niklaus' retched daggers. But I noticed that the dagger wasn't there now they obliviously didn't realise it needed to be kept in.

Again what felt like hours the sound of a mix of shock and pain escaped from Elijah's mouth as he chocked on the air that started to fill his lungs. The sound of the noise brought me back into consciousness.

"Elijah..." I said weakly.

He looked at me his eyes wide shocked at the state of me "What have they done to you?" He rasped.

As fast as he could he picked himself up, he was weaker and I could tell he knew that as well. I watched as he tugged the vervain soaked ropes from my wrists and ankles, hissing slightly as the corrosive plant burned his hands. He scooped me up in his arms and held me closely as we escaped.

Elijah bursts open the door to the male witches house.

"What happened to you both?" He asks. Elijah tries to wake me.

"Huh?" I slowly said as he gently set my feet to the floor encouraging me to walk.

I lean myself against him while he does the same.

"I need you to find Elena. Now!" He says angrily.

I shake my head trying to focus. "Shes at her families lake house." Jonas tells us after performing a quick location spell. With that Elijah turns to me and presses a kiss to my forehead.

"Stay here and rest.” I look up into his eyes

"No way, I'm coming with you. I have been betrayed for the last time." I say weakly. I almost lose my balance trying to stand my ground, Jonas comes up to us and hands me a blood bag.

"It's not much but it should help you both a little bit."

We arrived at the lake house, we had shared the blood on the way and I felt a little better, I knew that we both needed to feed but we would do that after this small loose end had been tied up. Slowly approaching Elijah bent down and picked up a handful of the small stones that made up the driveway. He drops the stones from hand to hand, however I was livid and picked up a handful myself and threw they directly at the door, watching it break off its hinges.

"We might not be able to enter but we've learned to be very patient over the years." I spat as I stormed over to the house only being stopped by the threshold.

Elijah follows closely behind me. "They shouldn't have done what they did." Elena pleads.

"Too right they shouldn't!" I shouted.

"The deal is off." Elijah states bluntly.

"I'm renegotiating." She says to us.

"You have nothing left to negotiate with." Elijah says.

Elena pulls out a knife she was concealing. I look at her amused.

"I'd like to see you lure Klaus into Mystic Falls after the doppelganger bleeds to death." She states.

"Mr Salvatore won't let you die." I say to her smirking.

"No, he won't. He'll feed me his blood to heal me, and then I'll kill myself and become a vampire, just like Katherine did. So unless you want that to happen again, promise me the same as before...promise me...You won't harm anyone that I love. Even if they've harmed you." She says to us hoping that we would show mercy.

"HA! We kept our end of the deal, it was your side who broke it, so go ahead I'm calling your bluff." I say in a low tone.

There was pure anger radiating from my body and Elijah didn't know whether to try and calm me down or let me run my course. Elena breathes out shaking in fear as she turns the knife to put it at herself, she hesitates but then plunges it into her stomach, the blood is gushing everywhere and suddenly the veins reveal themselves and my fangs pop out from my gums, her blood smelled so sweet I just wanted to have a taste.

But Elijah knew what was happening and he quickly removed me from the close proximity and returns back to Elena. I hear the quickly negotiating a new deal as I try and calm my shaking breathes and the hunger that was growing quicker by the second.

"You have my word." I heard Elijah cry out. Elena falls into his arms and Elijah is about to give her his blood when I hear the sound of his voice go pained and falls limp, a dagger stuck out from his chest.

"NO! Why!" I shouted tears falling from my face. I sped over about to attack when Stefan pulls Elena into the house and hands go around my neck snapping it and once again I fall to the floor.

#elena gilbert #Kol mikaelson #klaus mikaelson #rebekah mikaelson #elijah mikealson #elijah x reader #elijah mikaelson x reader #elijah is a dreamboat #elizabeth mikealson - What if?#Wattpad #Mystic Falls #Stefan Salvatore #damon salvatore #Damon the eternal stud #bonnie bennett #bonbon

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lunarimagines · 7 years ago

Text

WHEN I HAD YOU...

Summary: It started with a bet from his friends: date the cold-hearted girl for a month, if you can even get that far... you just happened to find out about it at the wrong time. But really, would there ever have been a ‘right’ time to tell you?

[original request]

Word Count: 15k+

Warnings: language, mentions of sex

A/N: It shifts pov often, but hopefully it doesn’t become super confusing!!

Park Jimin could get anything and everything that he wanted. He had six different cars, his own house, and a new girlfriend every week… and he was only a senior in high school. Park Jimin was the stereotypical heartthrob and he was very well aware of this fact. He flaunted his good looks, his well defined body, and his talents in and out of school. Park Jimin could get anything and everything he wanted, and he did.

His friends were always making bets about how long he would stay with his girlfriend - Namjoon was the reigning champion when it came to guessing that - and how long it would take him to get with the newest “it girl” at the school once Jimin had destroyed the last one by breaking up with her. It was always the same. “He won’t last more than three weeks with her. She’s easy, but she’s not that easy.” “He’ll get with her in three days. She’s been eye fucking him for months.” And usually, it all came true.

----

“I told you that he wouldn’t last more than three weeks with her,” Namjoon scoffed, “because she was way too clingy for him.”

He shook his backpack off of his shoulders as he sat down next to Taehyung in the grass. Midterms were coming up and due to the nice weather, the boys were taking advantage and studying outside.

“Hmmm,” Taehyung hummed in response as he flipped the page in his notebook. “I’ll give you the money tomorrow when I get my allowance.”

Namjoon nodded and turned to Hoseok who had plopped down on the other side of Namjoon with a defeated sigh. He leaned back and, using his backpack as a pillow, he covered his eyes with his arm.

“Get the money from my bag if you want. I’m taking a nap. I’ve never studied so hard in my life,” he complained, rolling to the side so that Namjoon could dig in the front pocket of his backpack for his wallet.

“I heard we lost the bet,” Jungkook grumbled as he and Yoongi joined the group.

Yoongi sighed deeply as he dug out his own wallet and threw the money at Namjoon haphazardly, Jungkook following suit. Namjoon craned his neck to look behind them, hoping Jin would came next to pay him for winning the bet. Instead, he saw the one and only Park Jimin strutting towards their group, his hands shoved casually in his pockets and his hair slightly disheveled. His lips were more plump than usual and slightly bruised. There was no doubt in Namjoon’s mind that Park Jimin had just received one of the best blowjobs in his life and have given a little something back in return.

“Hey! Thank you!” Namjoon joked, waving his money in Jimin’s direction.

Jimin smirked and shot him a wink in return. Yoongi sneered in disgust and Hoseok - from underneath his arm - rolled his eyes. Taehyung and Jungkook giggled like little schoolboys as Jimin sat down softly in the grass beside them and pulled out his own textbook.

“I’ll study with you Tae,” he said smoothly, flipping to the page Taehyung was on.

If there was one big secret about Park Jimin it was that he cared a lot about his grades and his school career. He nearly never missed a day of school, was always to class on time, turned his homework in when it was due, and maintained straight A’s. He may have messed around with his fair share of girls and he may have gone to his fair share of parties and he may have had his fair share of hangovers, but Park Jimin was not one to disregard school. Not that he’d really let anybody know. It would ruin his image.

“Just once can you let one of us win? Had you lasted three more days I would have won and Namjoon wouldn’t look so smug right now. I hate his smug face,” Hoseok grumbled.

“He won again? Jesus, how much is it this time? I’ve lost track,” Jin said as he joined his friend group.

“$150 this time,” Jungkook mumbled as he worked on a review sheet, one of many he had spread around him.

“No shit,” Jin mumbled as he dug in his pocket to produce his wallet. He handed the money to Namjoon who feigned counting it before adding it to the rest of the money he’d gotten and shoving it deep within his pocket. He wiggled his eyebrows at Jin who was glaring at him as he tossed his own backpack on the grass.

“Sit, sit,” Namjoon joked.

“No way. These pants were expensive. If you think I’m going to risk getting grass stains on them you’re shitting yourself,” Jin grumbled, shoving his hands in his pockets as he squinted across the grass to watch the girl’s P.E. class playing soccer. “Damn she totally got a boob job! Those things don’t even move when she runs!”

Hoseok and Yoongi snorted. Namjoon rolled his eyes. Taehyung and Jungkook looked up to see who he was talking about. And Jimin kept working on his review, going over his notes and the book at the same time.

“Tae, what did you answer for question seven? I don’t think what I wrote is correct…” Jimin mumbled. Reluctantly, Taehyung tore his eyes away from the soccer field and leaned over to help his friend.

“Didn’t you date her?” Jungkook mumbled finally.

“Hmmm? Probably. I think I remember one of them having a boob job…” Jimin said absently.

Jin clucked his tongue. “You’ve had so many girls you can’t even discern between them? Wow, you’re a dick.”

Jimin simply chuckled in response before turning his full attention to Taehyung who was explaining where Jimin had gone wrong with his physics problem. Jimin’s bottom lip poked out as he listened intently. If somebody passing by hadn’t known Jimin at that moment, they would think he was the most naive boy in the world.

The harsh clanging of the bell signaling that break was over startled the boys. Hoseok groaned, lifting himself off of the grass in annoyance while Taehyung, Jimin, and Jungkook packed up. Jin took one last look at the girls playing soccer before turning and walking inside with Yoongi and Namjoon.

“I’m going to fail,” Jungkook groaned as Hoseok threw an arm around the boy’s shoulders.

“Ahh, me too Kookie. Let’s drink our woes away afterwards, yeah?”

Jungkook’s head was hung low as he walked back into the school, Hoseok chuckling and pushing him around playfully. Jungkook stumbled and slammed into a row of lockers. In retaliation, he shook Hoseok’s arm off of him and shoved Hoseok roughly, snorting as he went flying backwards.

“Hey, you punk!” Hoseok said through gritted teeth, pushing Jungkook back roughly.

Jungkook stumbled back but instead of hitting lockers, he slammed into a warm body, both of them crashing to the floor. Jungkook found his elbow in the stomach of a mystery person underneath him.

“Shit, Jungkook,” Hoseok mumbled, pushing Jungkook off of the other person. He held his hand out in an offer to help the other person off. From the ground, the other person - a girl, Hoseok duly noted - glared at him before climbing to her feet on her own.

“Are you okay?” Hoseok question, shooting her his award winning smile.

The girl rolled her eyes in response and sneered.

“You wouldn’t have to ask me that if you cared about anybody else other than yourself,” the girl replied smoothly, the sneer falling off of her face as she brushed by the two boys.

Both stared after her, dumbstruck. No girl had ever treated them like that before, no girl had dared to do so. They were known for ruining reputations… and yet…

“Was that kind of hot?” Jungkook mumbled, gripping his backpack tightly as he adjusted it.

Hoseok nodded in response.

“So fucking hot.”

----

You really needed to turn your form in before the deadline, otherwise you wouldn’t be able to partake in the internship your physics teacher was offering. You thought that really wanted to go into that field, and participating in the internship would look good on a college transcript. You wove in and out of people in the hallways, checking your watch frantically. Two minutes. If you picked up the pace a little bit you would make it.

Suddenly a warm body slammed into you and knocked you to the ground. Your butt hit first and you knew you would have a bruise the next day. An elbow landed a blow to your stomach and you tried not to double over at the pain. The body was quickly pushed off and you looked up at the perpetrators, annoyance written across your face. You recognized the boy looking at you right away. Jung Hoseok. Part of the seven member group that had apparently made it their mission to break girl’s hearts left and right. You were not in the mood to deal with them today. You had… one minute left.

“Are you okay?” Hoseok asked you. He flashed you a cheesy smile. You figured that smile made many girls swoon. You couldn’t have cared less.

Sneering, you got to your feet slowly. You couldn’t help but roll your eyes. Not even a “sorry.”

“You wouldn’t have to ask me that if you cared about anybody else other than yourself,” you said slowly.

You caught sight of the clock on the wall above Jungkook’s head. 30 seconds. You desperately needed to get to the office. Brushing by the two boys, you hurried to the office, sliding through the doorway and plopping your application down on the secretary’s desk. She smiled pleasantly at you, her eyes filled with nothing but pure kindness.

“Here to turn this in?” she questioned, already reaching for the paper to check the name on it. “I’ll make sure it gets into his mailbox.”

Thanking her profusely, you let out a breath you didn’t know you’d been holding in. Your stomach and butt hurt and you mentally cursed the two boys again as you tried not to limp. Now that the adrenaline had worn off you were feeling every bump and bruise on your body. Letting the tension release from your shoulders you wandered to class. You still had five minutes before class started and you were so grateful for the ten minute passing period for once. Walking leisurely through the hallways, you arrived in your seat in physics just as the bell rang.

Eventually you forgot all about Jungkook and Hoseok as you focused your attention on what the teacher was going over. You were determined to ace the physic midterm.

----

“Can you guys turn that down please?” Jimin asked from the kitchen island.

The boys in his living room were shouting as they played some new game Jungkook had bought for the Xbox. Not only were they shouting but the game was also turned all the way up so that they could hear the directions over their shouting. Jimin normally wouldn’t have minded but he was truly struggling trying to study. He just couldn’t focus with all of their yelling.

“Yeah man, no problem,” Hoseok said before he went right back to shouting. The T.V. never got turned down.

Jimin sighed as he gathered up his books and headed upstairs to his room to try and drown out their noise. The door to his bedroom muffled their shouts and Jimin sighed at the relative silence. It seemed that this was going to be his best hope at getting anything done.

Hunching over his desk, he began trying to focus on the math equation he was trying to solve. It was only hours later a message notification from Taehyung had popped up wondering where Jimin had gone. Jimin rolled his eyes. He wasn’t surprised they’d forgotten about him. They did that quite often in Jimin’s opinion.

tae: where did you go??????

Jimin huffed and put his phone on silent as he tried to focus back in on his textbook. Minutes later there was a knock at his bedroom door.

“Hey… can I come in?” Taehyung whispered.

Jimin swiveled around in his desk chair.

“Yeah, what’s up?”

Taehyung slipped inside Jimin’s bedroom and closed the door softly behind him.

“Sorry we were so loud. I think it’s time you take a break though. We’re having your chef make us something. Seriously, man… you need to take a break. You look like shit.”

Jimin sighed in defeat. He did have a splitting headache. A break would definitely do him some good, so without any qualms he followed Taehyung downstairs and into his living room. The rest of the boys were spread out across his furniture, all on their phones. It was silent except for the soft reality show playing in the background and the chopping sounds coming from the kitchen as the private chef prepared dinner for the seven boys. Jimin plopped down in his usual chair and pulled out his own phone. Unsurprisingly he had no messages other than the one from Taehyung asking where he was. Jimin didn’t give out his number to any of the girls he had flings with. In fact, the only people who had his number were the boys, his parents, and the private staff. His contact list was relatively bare.

“Dude,” Hoseok sighed.

All six boys looked up at him, not sure which “dude” he was referring to. He didn’t elaborate but instead looked at Jungkook. Jungkook simply nodded and let out a sigh to match Hoseok’s which left the rest of the boys confused.

“Care to share with the rest of us?” Jin questioned.

Hoseok and Jungkook shared a look. Finally, Hoseok spoke up.

“Dude, there’s this girl-”

The boys around them him and Jungkook groaned. They fully expected the two boys to be fighting over her. It had happened with a girl before and they were sure it was bound to happen again. Truthfully, there were secret bets between the boys about who would get into a fight over a girl. Jimin and Taehyung had the most money placed on them with Hoseok and Jungkook following closely behind.

“Would you all shut the fuck up for once? I pushed Jungkook into this girl and she fell right? But when I tried to help her up she was so cold, like dude the temperature in the room literally dropped,” Hoseok explained. Jungkook nodded enthusiastically.

“And get this,” Jungkook said, picking up Hoseok’s thought. “She didn’t even care about either of us. Like, I shit you not, she literally didn’t even care that Hoseok was trying to help her up or that I fell on top of her.”

“Well, to be fair… you elbowed her in the gut. I wouldn’t be super enamoured with you either,” Hoseok snickered.

“Please,” Jungkook scoffed, “she’s wouldn’t enamoured with you either. You’re the one who made me fall into her.”

Yoongi rolled his eyes at the bickering boys and cleared his throat. The two stopped bickering instantly and focused back in… on Jimin. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat underneath their intense gazes.

“What?” he laughed nervously.

“I bet she wouldn’t even date you,” Jungkook said, his mouth twisting upwards into a mischievous smile. Hoseok smirked as he eyed Jimin, waiting for his response.

“Bullshit! She totally would,” Jimin replied, confident in his abilities to wow girls. “The only reason she didn’t like you two was because you made her fall.”

Namjoon seemed to ponder the idea.

“I want to meet this girl before I place any bets,” he said finally, his eyes catching Jungkook’s. “I think the two of you just caught her on a bad day.”

The two boys chuckled in disbelief. Even though they had only encountered the girl once they knew that she wasn’t just “having a bad day.” They had a hunch that she was always like that. And for once, they were determined to win a bet against Jimin. For once, Jimin was going to lose.

“Fine,” Jungkook replied. “Tomorrow we’ll track her down and you can meet her.”

Hoseok nodded. The others seemed skeptical, but nonetheless the five other boys agreed to Jungkook’s plan. The sound of the chef calling their names was enough to snap them out of their conversation. Immediately the tension in the room disappeared as they got up to eat dinner. But in the back of Jimin’s mind he couldn’t help but make up scenarios for when he met the mystery girl, even going to far as to imagine what she looked like. To the end he would be confident that he could get her to go out with him.

----

You tapped your foot nervously as you sat in one of the office chairs. For some reason, you’d been chosen to do the interview that could lead to you getting the internship. You couldn’t believe you’d actually been one of the six chosen, not when hundreds of other kids - some who were much more capable than you - had applied. You tried not to doubt yourself, but you were a bit skeptical.

“Y/N? I’m ready,” your physics teacher said, coming out of the conference room that the interviews would take place in. His smile was warm and friendly and you felt some of your panic disappear as you got up and followed him into the conference room. He motioned for you to sit in the chair across the desk before sitting behind the desk himself and pulling out a folder… your application folder. You swallowed hard as he flipped through the pages, nodding as he skimmed over the words.

“Truthfully, your application was very impressive. The paper you wrote was - and this might be somewhat unprofessional to say - but it was incredibly well written and accurate and one of my favorites. This interview just tells me more about you as a person. I’m going to ask you questions like what your weaknesses are, or what you feel most confident in. I know I have you in my class, but I’d still like to to know,” he said, closing your folder and placing his hands on top of it. You smiled nervously before sitting up straight in the chair. Hell yeah you were going to get this internship.

Twenty minutes later, you walked out of the conference room laughing with your physics teacher. You felt confident with that interview and confident that you were being very seriously considered for the internship. You shook his hand before exiting the office. Your head was held high and a minuscule smile graced your lips. You should know if you got the internship in less than a week, but you figured that even if you didn’t get it you had at least given it your best shot and you were happy with your effort.

“Don’t you have any friends? You’re always alone whenever I see you,” a voice jeered from across the hallway. You knew that voice. Jeon Jungkook.

You didn’t bother to stop walking. Instead, you faced forward and focused your eyes on the end of the hallway. To you, it felt better to pretend that you didn’t know the jeer was made towards you. Maybe Jungkook would get the hint with that thick skull of his and leave you alone.

“Hey babe, it’s okay if you don’t. We can keep you company,” another voice called. Jung Hoseok. The jeer made his group of friends snicker.

Finally caving, you called back over your shoulder, “Oh don’t worry. We’ll have plenty of time to spend together in Hell.”

You heard a snort from one of his friends before Hoseok continued shouting at you down the hallway.

“So you really want to spend time with us that badly, huh?”

You scoffed, finally stopping and turning to face the group of boys. Again it seemed that they were wasting your time, and if there was one thing you hated more than anything, it was people who wasted your time on such childish nonsense.

“Satan’s already punishing me by making me talk to you,” you stated calmly. “What’s to say he won’t punish me the same way after I die? It truly would be eternal torture… and not the kind I like.”

You watched Hoseok’s eyes widen at your comment and held your tongue. Wiping any emotion off of your face, you turned on your heel and took long strides down the hallway. You were suddenly desperate to get away from the group of boys. You could feel their eyes on the back of your head as you turned left and you had to duck around a corner to get out of their line of sight. It had felt like they were burning holes through you.

Letting out a deep breath, you decided you’d try and get your 10,000 steps in by taking the long way and avoiding that group in any way possible.

----

Hoseok and Jungkook had dragged the five other boys to the office doors, claiming that they’d seen her walk into the office just ten minutes ago. Jimin was skeptical. Half of him felt like they were messing with him, like all of this was some kind of practical joke. The other half of him really wanted a challenge.

“If I win the bet, I want something,” Jimin blurted out suddenly. “You guys always get stuff whether I do something or not, so I want in on it this time. I want something too.”

Taehyung raised his eyebrows in surprise before looking around at the rest of the boys. It was the first time Jimin had even mentioned wanting something. They had all assumed that he was simply content getting the girl they all couldn’t. But it seemed Jimin was never quite satisfied.

“Calm down Jimin. We haven’t even made a bet yet,” Jin chuckled, grabbing the impatient boy’s shoulder. “But if that’s what you want, I guess we can’t say no.”

Jimin crossed his arms indignantly. Recently he had felt that the boys were gaining things at his expense. For once he wanted a say in his own affairs.

“Then let’s change the bet a little bit,” Namjoon suggested. “If she really is like these two morons say she is, then let’s say half of us bet you can’t even get a date with her with the rest of us bet you can’t date someone like her for a month. Then, if you get her to date you, you get something from them and if you date her for a month or more, then you get whatever you want from the rest of us. To make up for us always betting money and you and you never seeing it, you know? Does that feel fair?”

Jimin blinked. The offer was much more than he was hoping for. If he was able to win both he would be able to get the things he wanted most from the boys. Any rational person would never turn down a bet like that and Jimin liked to think that he was a very rational person. Slowly he nodded, accepting Namjoon’s offer silently.

“Great, now shut up! She’s coming out of the office,” Hoseok hissed before moving to the front of the group of boys.

“Don’t you have any friends? You’re always alone whenever I see you,” Jungkook suddenly shouted, his face going a light shade of pink.

Jimin scoffed at how gutsy Jungkook had become in the last two years. Two years ago, Jungkook never would have shouted at someone… so beautiful. Holy shit. Jimin lost his train of thought the second he caught sight of her. She was beautiful in a way he had never seen before. She looked so sure of herself and so unbothered and honestly? It was the hottest thing Jimin had seen in a some time. For once Jimin wasn’t so sure in his abilities to get any girl he wanted. He shook his head. No, he’d definitely gotten with girls like her before. This would be a breeze. Plus, the more he looked at her, the more he worked to convince himself that she wasn’t really “all that.”

“Hey babe, it’s okay if you don’t. We can keep you company!” Hoseok called.

The boys around him snickered but Jimin couldn’t help but roll his eyes at how hard Jungkook and Hoseok were trying. The girl was clearly very uninterested and very annoyed.

“Oh don’t worry. We’ll have plenty of time to spend together in Hell,” she suddenly called.

Jimin snorted and elbowed Hoseok in the ribs. The other boy jumped and glared at Jimin.

“So you really want to spend time with us that badly, huh?” he continued. If there was one thing Jimin knew about Hoseok, it was the Hoseok never knew when to stop.

The girl stopped and turned to look at the group of boys. Jimin couldn’t tell exactly what she was thinking which unnerved him. He cleared his throat.

“Satan’s already punishing me by making me talk to you,” she stated calmly. “What’s to say he won’t punish me the same way after I die? It truly would be eternal torture… and not the kind I like.”

Jimin felt his eyes go wide at the last part. Torture? She was into BDSM? No shit… this girl was like Jungkook and Hoseok had said. For once the two boys weren’t being complete morons. He scoffed as he watched the girl turn and continue down the hallway. Jimin knew he was facing a challenge to try and get this girl to go out with him even once. He knew he’d have to change his entire personality for her. But if it meant that he could get whatever he wanted… well, he was willing to take the bet.

“See, we told you,” Jungkook grumbled.

“I’ll take the bet,” Jimin blurted suddenly.

The boys turned to look at him. Namjoon looked smug, but the rest of the boys looked shocked.

“You’re really that confident,” Yoongi mumbled, snorting.

Jimin nodded and winked at him before turning and walking in the same direction the girl had gone.

“Where are you going?” Jin called after him.

Jimin shrugged casually. “To win a bet.”

----

It had been an unusually quiet week. Hoseok and Jungkook seemed to have gotten bored with teasing you and nobody had bothered you. You waited anxiously in the front office as the secretary retrieved the letter that would tell you if you got the internship or not.

“Here it is sweetheart,” the secretary said, smiling as she handed you the letter. You thanked her quietly and walked out of the office, too nervous to open the letter right away.

School was over for the day and the halls were empty. You trudged outside and slumped down on a bench in front of the school. Fiddling nervously with the letter, you finally sucked in a deep breath and tore it open. Your eyes scanned it and suddenly you felt as though you couldn’t swallow. Congratulations. Congratulations. You’d gotten the internship.

You couldn’t help but jump up in excitement and squeal. Looking around shyly to see if anyone was around you clasped the letter the more tightly in your hands as you walked towards your car.

“Good news I hope,” a voice behind you said.

You jumped and whipped your body around to face the owner of it. Park Jimin. He was smiling and you could have sworn the smile looked almost… shy. His hands were shoved deep in his pockets and he looked up at you through his bangs.

“You just… I don’t even know what-”

“Yeah, it’s good news. Thanks,” you mumbled, turning away and walking towards your car quickly. His friends had just stopped bothering you and you weren’t about to give them another reason to start teasing you again.

Sliding into your car you were relieved Jimin hadn’t followed you. Letting out the air in your lungs you finally called your best friend to tell them the good news. You knew they wouldn’t act obnoxious. You half wondered what Jimin would have said if you’d told him about getting accepted for the internship and beating some of the smartest kids in the class. You figured he wouldn’t understand or else wouldn’t really care. Yet you couldn’t help but wonder. So you did something stupid.

Slipping out of your car you noticed Jimin walking to his own car. He wasn’t too far away.

“I got the internship I wanted,” you hollered to him.

He stopped in his tracks seemingly surprised that you’d answered. Turning to face you he flashed a cheesy thumbs up and a genuine smile.

“Hey that’s awesome! Congrats!” he beamed. Giving you a small wave he unlocked his own car and hopped inside. You stood frozen in your spot. You could not believe you’d just done that. You were an actual moron.

Slumping into your car you plopped your head on the steering wheel. Your car gave a honk and you jolted upright. Looking around frantically you noticed that Jimin was gone. You silently thanked the heavens. He would have thought you were a loser for sure if he’d known you’d just done that.

Starting your car you gave one last sigh before shaking your head. You weren’t going to think about him. He wasn’t as nice as he seemed… You wondered when things had gotten so complicated to you. You were perfectly fine having no close friends at the school. You had plenty of close friends who went to other schools anyways. Maybe it was just that Jimin’s kindness seemed so real to you that you wondered if perhaps you had a real friend in the school, or at least the beginnings of a real friendship starting. The only problem was his friends and-

Why on Earth were you thinking like Jimin actually liked you? You mentally scolded yourself for thinking such foolish thoughts. Jimin wasn’t trying to be your friend. You had drawn his attention to you by making a racket after reading the letter. No, you probably wouldn’t have any other encounters with Park Jimin for the rest of your high school career. You tried to convince yourself that you were okay with that as you drove home. There was no way Jimin would actually like you as anything other than a fellow class member. You weren’t his type.

Parking in your driveway, you grabbed your phone only to see that you had three new notifications. One was a text message from your mom, another was a missed call from your other best friend - most likely to congratulate you for getting the internship… you would call them back - and the third was an Instagram notification.

park_chim has sent you a request.

Your eyes bulged as you reread and reread the notification. You weren’t sure why he’d want to follow you. You’d had your account for a few years and yet you only had a few posts. Mostly you were on Instagram to keep up with your friends from other schools.

You decided to ignore the notification… for now. You would definitely get back to it, most likely when your heart stopped trying to beat right out of your chest. What was this boy doing to you?

“When did I get so weak,” you mumbled to yourself as you went inside your house. Plopping down on the couch, you turned the T.V. on for a nice distraction. You told yourself you would do homework after catching up on your favorite show because you’d only missed one episode after all… but you couldn’t even concentrate on your show. It felt as though your phone was burning a hole in your pocket. He had found out who you were and had sent you a follow request. Maybe you weren’t as wrong in your thinking as you thought you were.

You pulled your phone out of your pocket slowly and let your finger hover over the notification from Instagram. You felt childish like this and eventually clicked on it. Suddenly, you had a thought. Did Park Jimin really want to be friends with you or did he want to get into your pants once and then leave you humiliated? It sounded very Jimin-like and who was to say you weren’t just another girl to him. A little part of you wanted to not be just another girl to him, but you knew Park Jimin didn’t do the “girl friend” thing, let alone the “girlfriend” thing. Without thinking much more, you hit deny. You weren’t going to be another play-thing for Jimin.

You let your phone fall onto your stomach before covering your eyes with the hand that was previously holding it. No, you were going to focus on your favorite show and school only. Park Jimin who? And this plan would have worked wonderfully if Park Jimin himself hadn’t sat down across from you at lunch the next day….

“It’s Y/N right?” he asked, setting his backpack on the bench beside him.

You looked up from the homework assignment you were getting ahead on. You blinked a few times to make sure that what you were seeing was real. It was. Park Jimin was sitting across from you with a shy smile plastered on his face.

“Why?” you asked and instantly cringed. You hadn’t meant for it to come out so harshly. Thankfully Jimin simply laughed. God, his laugh was beautiful and you felt yourself smile when you saw his slightly crooked front teeth. They were cute, just like the rest of him.

“I just feel like I should know the name of the girl I’m congratulating,” he replied smoothly as he reached into his backpack to bring out a small - and somewhat poorly wrapped - gift box. He handed it to you across the table and stared at you expectantly. “You can open it now if you want.”

You nodded slowly as you undid the wrapping paper. Inside was another box and inside that was… a pen? You gave Jimin a quizzical look which simply made him laugh.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh at you. You’re just… you’re cute. Sorry. I was just thinking, an intern takes lots of notes right? Well, what if you’re too busy writing and miss something? The button on the side of the pen lets you record up to 2 hours of information that you can download anywhere- and I’m rambling. I am so sorry,” Jimin stopped suddenly and looked down. He clasped his hands in front of him to stop them from fidgeting.

“I mean… thank you. That’s really cool. I didn’t - no offence or anything - but I didn’t think you cared that much,” you mumbled, putting the pen back and carefully sliding it into your backpack. “This must have cost a lot of money… I can repay-”

“Do you know how a gift works?” Jimin asked with a chuckle. “I really don’t want anything in return.”

You looked at him, skeptical. Park Jimin always seemed to want something in return. The stories you had heard about him at parties… the girls he was with always gave him something in return. It was hard to believe he wouldn’t want anything from you.

“Are you… are you sure?” you asked quietly. “I feel bad not repaying you… This gift- it was really thoughtful.”

Jimin pushed out his bottom lip slightly as he thought. For a brief second, the thought of sucking on his bottom lip when you kissed him crossed your mind. You blushed as you mentally pushed it out of your head.

“You could… go on a date with me? Nowhere fancy… But yeah. If you really want to repay me… How does tomorrow night sound?”

You stared at him suddenly unsure of yourself and of your feelings for Jimin. But he looked so sincere and-

No, you couldn’t go out with him. That would mean breaking your promise to yourself and as much as you were beginning to like Jimin because of how kind he was, you valued yourself more. Then again…

“One date, that’s all,” you replied before you could stop yourself. Your eyes widened as you watched Jimin smile gleefully.

“Great! Here, put your number in my phone and I’ll text you when I’ll pick you up. I’ll need your address too…”

You nodded as you punched your number into his phone, double and triple checking to ensure you hadn’t messed it up in any way. Handing his phone back to him, he purposefully brushed his hand with yours. You knew it was cheesy but you couldn’t help but blush. He simply smiled softly as he stood up. You didn’t bother watching him walk out of the cafeteria. Instead, you went back to doing your assignment, or at least back to looking at it. Somehow, Jimin had made his way into your thoughts and was being very intrusive. You knew you wouldn’t get anything done until tomorrow if you didn’t snap out of it. God, you felt stupid. Why were you acting like this? He was one dumb boy who was very kind and beautiful… There were probably hundreds of other guys like him.

Taking a deep breath, you got back to work. For the next 6 hours you completely forgot about Park Jimin.

----

unknown: hey it’s jimin

unknown: wear something comfortable for tomorrow

unknown: i’ll pick you up at 7:30

You sighed deeply. Maybe it was stupid for you to trust him but you also wanted to know what the “Jimin Experience” really was. Girls who had been with him said that it had changed them… for better or worse. Personally, you thought that was a load of bullshit. Yet, you wanted to know for yourself. You figured that was why you were giving Jimin a chance.

you: k

you: i’ll send you my address

You curled deeper underneath your bed sheets as you waited for him to reply.

unknown: cool! see you then :)

You thought about changing the name and making it something cute for the cute boy, but you refrained. You weren’t going to get attached to Jimin no matter how badly you wanted to understand the “Jimin Experience.” You knew people called you cold-hearted but in reality you were terrified of being hurt. You’d seen your best friend after a break-up and it had convinced you to never fall in love with anyone. It just… wasn’t worth it.

You locked your phone and set it on your nightstand. Turning your back to it, you tried to force your eyes closed. Sleep just wouldn’t come. Your heart was racing, the sound of blood pounding in your ears making it impossible to sleep. You giggled as you thought of all the places Jimin could take you. Though sleep finally came, it was three hours late. The next day you looked like a zombie but a quick after school nap fixed that. By the time Jimin rang your doorbell at 7:29, you felt more refreshed than you had all year.

“Hey,” Jimin greeted. He was wearing athletic shorts and a t-shirt and you suddenly felt overdressed in your jeans. “Ready?”

You nodded, slipping on your shoes and following him to his car. Ever the gentleman, he opened your door for you before closing it softly after you’d gotten in. As he climbed in the driver’s side, you finally spoke.

“We could have driven separately…”

“This is a date. Plus you don’t even know where we’re going,” Jimin whined. You had to admit that you found the cute side of him endearing.

To be honest, you’d never really paid attention to Jimin before his friends had started bothering you. You knew of him but you didn’t know a thing about him other than his reputation with girls. He did always seem to be on the honor roll but other than that your paths never really crossed. Even then they didn’t cross much. Your last name had you situated in a different section of the gym during honor roll assemblies. All you knew was that when his name was called everyone seemed to scream. Basically, you knew Park Jimin by the rumors associated with him and the gossip you heard in the hallways.

“Y/N?” he asked suddenly, pulling you from your thoughts.

“Hmm? Sorry I- wow I don’t know what just happened,” you mumbled nervously, running your hands down your thighs. You hadn’t even realized Jimin was talking to you.

“I was just asking about your internship. What it is, why you wanted to go for it, what you want to do in college. That sort of stuff,” he said cooly.

You couldn’t help yourself. Immediately you began to tell him everything about the internship and why it had caught your interest. Your voice was higher than usual and your hands gestured wildly as you explained. You couldn’t seem to wipe the smile off of your face. Jimin was silent but you could tell that he was listening. He had a small smile gracing his plump lips and he nodded from time to time. And-

Oh my, God you were rambling. Quickly, you stopped talking and cleared your throat. Looking down you decided that maybe it was time for Jimin to tell you about himself.

“What about you? What do you want to do after college?”

Jimin seemed to think for a moment, his lower lip jutting out slightly.

“Mmmm, I think I want to study dance. I really like dance,” he replied quietly, his cheeks turning a light crimson color. You smiled softly at the boy beside you. For someone with a reputation like his, the last thing you were expecting was for him to tell you he was passionate about dance.

“We, uhm, we’re here,” he said suddenly, jerking into a parking spot. You winced as your elbow hit the door.

Looking up you saw that Jimin had brought you to… laser tag? You didn’t take him as a laser-tag-lover. He seemed like he would enjoy something more like rock climbing or going clubbing. Laser tag?

“Sorry, did that hurt you?” Jimin asked, sounding concerned.

“No. I see your plan. You want to debilitate me so that I can’t win at this. It’s okay. I’ll go easy on you,” you teased.

“Hey no way! We’re going to be on the same team so that you don’t get sad when I win!” Jimin said indignantly. He gave your shoulder a light shove before getting out of the car and jogging around to open your door.

In your defence, you hadn’t had anybody open your door for you ever. Swinging it open, you clipped Jimin’s leg as he reached your side of the car. He let out a grunt as he fell to the pavement. Your eyes widened in shock and you scrambled out of the car, landing on the pavement beside him.

“Holy shit I am so sorry Jimin. Oh my, God, I didn’t see you there holy shit holy shit holy shi-”

Jimin was laughing? You couldn’t believe he was laughing after you’d just clocked him with the car door. He stood up and held out his hand for you to take as well. Shyly, you did so. You did everything you could to avoid Jimin’s eyes. His hand suddenly grabbed your chin gently and he guided your head up to look at his face. He didn’t seem mad in the least. You let out your breath in relief.

“I guess we’re even now. Let’s hope the other teams suck,” he giggled, letting go of your chin and taking your hand in his. You smiled at him as you followed him inside.

“Are you the final team?” the boy working at the counter asked.

Jimin nodded and gave him his information.

“Okay, well the rules are simple. You two cannot shoot each other - friendly fire is off - but you can shoot anyone else. When you get shot, your vest will vibrate. It takes 30 seconds to restart. You can shoot as many times as you’d like, however your gun can run out of charge. There are charging stations around the course, some hidden, some in plain sight. If you have any questions or need any assistance just hit any of the red buttons on the wall by the door you enter through. The first round lasts 15 minutes. Good luck teams.”

“Ready Y/N?” Jimin asked as he tightened his vest. You nodded. Both you and Jimin looked completely serious.

“We need a plan. Should we split up?” you whispered.

“Mmmm, let’s stick together. That way we can defend one another too,” he whispered back.

You nodded as you checked your vest. You were determined to win this game.

“You’ll have one minute to spread out,” the boy working stated as he opened the door.

Immediately, you and Jimin sprinted towards the back. The course was like a maze and you knew you wouldn’t have been able to find your back to the door had there not been neon arrows on the wall pointing towards it. You were suddenly glad that you’d chosen to wear darker clothing because the black lights picked up on any color, including the white stripe on Jimin’s athletic shorts.

“3… 2… 1… Go!”

The only sound was the music playing and the harshness of your breath after running. Jimin crept forward slowly and you followed him. The place was so big that you wondered if you’d ever be able to find any of the groups. Suddenly you heard giggling from behind you. Whipping around, you shot blindly. The buzzing sound of the vest deactivating meant that you’d hit someone.

“Good shot,” Jimin whispered as he ducked into an alcove, pulling you with him. You watched as someone’s shoes passed you before Jimin reached around you and shot upwards. The buzzing sound meant 20 more points for your team.

He wiggled his eyebrows as you as he ducked back into the alcove. You nodded back to him before ducking out of your hiding spot. You knew Jimin was right behind you. You could feel his warm presence and it felt very comforting.

It wasn’t until the second round that the other teams began working together against the two of you. You and Jimin found yourself losing the game. The entire car ride home Jimin didn’t let it go. He complained about how unfair it was that they had all teamed up on the two of you just because they were losing. As he put it, “It isn’t our fault we kick ass at lazer tag.” You couldn't help but giggle at how indignant he sounded.

“Thank you. I think you still treated me, though. It’s not like I really repaid you,” you said once Jimin had parked in your driveway. Unbuckling your belt, you slid out of the car and Jimin followed suit. He walked you to your front door, grabbing your arm before you could go inside.

“Let’s do this again okay?” he suggested.

You raised your eyebrows at his words.

“Are you asking me to go on another date with you?”

Jimin shrugged and gave you his signature smile, a smile you’d grown to love over the last few hours.

“If you’d like to.”

You stared at him not quite comprehending what he was saying. Was he asking you to date him or was he simply asking you out as a friend?

“As a friend?” you questioned, curious and insecure.

Jimin shook his head and moved closer to you. You rolled your eyes at his actions and he giggled. His hands held yours as he stared at you.

“If we go on another date and you have fun, maybe we can make this - make us - official,” he said quietly. He leaned closer to you and you simply let him. His soft lips placed a kiss on your cheek before he pulled away. “Thank you.”

You nodded. Jimin let go of your hands and gestured for you to go inside. You smiled and went inside your house. Immediately you slumped against your front door. Your heart was pounding and you couldn’t wipe the stupid grin off of your face. Little by little, Park Jimin was charming you and you were positive that you liked it. The smile stayed on your face as you climbed into your bed that night. Even in your sleep you were smiling. What was Park Jimin doing to you?

----

“Rock wall climbing?” you asked. Your mouth was open in shock. First laser tag and now rock wall climbing. Park Jimin was full of surprises.

The pamphlet Jimin had thrown down in front of you during lunch had been for rock climbing because, true to his promise, Jimin wanted to take you out on another date. You couldn’t believe he was serious.

“Yeah. Unique right?” Jimin teased.

You shook your head.

“Very.”

“So…” Jimin asked, wiggling his eyebrows. “How does after school work?”

You raised your eyebrows.

“I know, it seems soon. But I really want to make you mine so I want to take you on a fun date as soon as possible.”

You scoffed.

“I have a life and things to do,” you complained.

You watched Jimin’s face fall and suddenly you felt guilty. It was a fair idea. If you didn’t have fun you wouldn’t have to see Jimin anymore and, over time, you would forget about how he made your heart race. And if you did have fun… then you could allow yourself to feel your heart race each time you saw Jimin and spent time with him.

“Fine,” you finally sighed.

Jimin’s face lit up and he wiggled his eyebrows at you. You expected him to pack up his bag and leave you for the rest of the lunch period, but instead he pulled out an assignment of his own. You eyed him as he began reading through it.

“What?” he mumbled, not looking up at you. “I do my schoolwork…”

“I know. You’re always on the honor roll,” you replied matter-of-factly.

Jimin looked up at you with surprise evident on his face. You simply nodded at him before going back to your own school work assignment. You could feel Jimin’s eyes boring into you and you tried your best to ignore him. Eventually, he too went back to doing his own work.

“You’re interesting,” he said, scribbling something on his paper.

“Is that good or bad?” you questioned.

Jimin stayed silent for a few minutes. He idly doodled on the side of his paper as he thought. You finally looked up at him. His eyes locked with yours and you could tell he was unsure and curious at the same time. You wondered why he cared so much.

“Good. I like it. I like you,” he finally replied with a nod. He went back to his homework, leaving you staring at him like a fool. FInally, you snapped out of it and went back to your own assignment. Your heart was racing and you tried to stop the smile that was making its way across your lips.

The lunch period was over too quickly. It wasn’t like you hadn’t finished your assignment, you had, but you found that you enjoyed spending time with Jimin. Even if the two of you weren’t talking you felt at peace around him.

“I’ll meet you at your house after school to take you to the place okay?” Jimin said as he packed up his bag. You nodded and smiled at him before turning and walking briskly to your final class.

You heard him chuckle from behind you but you kept walking. You didn’t want him to know how much he was making your heart ache with happiness. There was something about Park Jimin that made you want to stay near him and talk to him and share all of your thoughts with him.

Sitting down in your regular seat in your last class, you prayed the time would go as slowly as it always did. You needed to prepare mentally for your date with Jimin. What did one do on a rock wall climbing date? Did anyone really go on those? You were nervous to say the least. But you were also very excited. Being so close to Jimin, seeing him in his athletic clothing, being able to talk to him… You bit your lip to hide the smile forming on your face.

The smile got wiped right off of your face when the bell suddenly rang. You had had no time to mentally prepare yourself. Instead you’d daydreamed about what dating Jimin would actually be like. You felt foolish.

You gathered up your things as slowly as possible. Walking out of the class, you were met by none other than Kim Namjoon.

It was no secret that Namjoon was smart. It was also no secret that he always offered to tutor “those in need” in the library and that his price was steep. If you didn’t have the money to pay for a tutoring session, well… Kim Namjoon had many other things one could do to make it up to him.

“I heard you have another date with Jimin. Are you dating him?” he questioned you as he followed you down the hallway.

You shrugged in response.

“Why? Do you think I’m not good enough to date him?”

Namjoon shook his head as he peeked at you from the corner of his eye. He seemed to want to say more. The way he kept opening and closing his mouth as he looked from you then up to the ceiling made you want to scream. You finally stopped him, grabbing his arm lightly and pulling him out of the middle of the hallway to allow other people to pass by the two of you.

“If you have something to tell me, then just do it,” you said firmly, looking him in the eye.

He sighed deeply and moved closer to you. He dipped his head down by your ear and when he spoke his warm breath sent shivers down your spine.

“I just wonder what you think of him, that’s all. I would hate to see him get hurt,” he whispered.

You pushed him back slightly with your hand. His chest underneath it was surprisingly toned and you almost forgot to take your hand off of it. Namjoon simply smirked at you.

“He’s one of my best friends… I just don’t want to see him hurt. You’re the only girl that has ever acted like this so you can see why I’m concerned…” he continued, looking you up and down.

You rolled your eyes and slipped away from him, continuing down the hallway and out the front doors to your car. It seemed to you like Namjoon was playing with you just as Jungkook and Hoseok had. But it had made you feel that perhaps you shouldn’t date Jimin… He wasn’t really your type the more you thought about it and his friends were quite possibly the rudest people you’d ever met. Perhaps they’d be nicer if you were dating Jimin, but you really didn’t think that was possible. The entire drive home you contemplated cancelling your date with Jimin.

You didn’t though. You couldn’t. Especially since he was already waiting on your front porch when you got home.

“Hey! Take your time changing. I changed at school,” he greeted you, smiling brightly.

You nodded and unlocked your front door. Taking a deep breath you turned to Jimin.

“You can come in and wait if you want… I don’t think it’ll take me that long but it’s better than standing outside.”

Jimin grinned and you couldn’t help but smile back. He looked so young and childish and innocent, and for a moment you forgot all about his friends and the trouble they were giving you.

You dashed up your stairs with your heart pounding because oh my, God Park Jimin was inside of your house. Slamming your door closed, you sunk against it. You tried to control your breathing but only in vain. You were too happy and too excited. Shit, what was Jimin doing to you?

Changing quickly into athletic shorts and a t-shirt, you ran back downstairs. The last thing you wanted was to keep Jimin waiting for too long. When he saw you, he simply smiled and it felt like a repeat from the last date. He opened and shut the car door for you and turned on his radio and simply let you ramble on about everything and nothing. Occasionally he would urge you to sing along with him to whatever song was playing and you couldn’t help yourself. The people in the cars beside you probably just laughed when they saw the two of you dancing and yelling in Jimin’s car. The date hadn’t even started and you already felt light and happy. Jimin had that effect on you. Everything he did made you feel important, something that contrasted starkly with the feeling his friends gave you.

“This is it,” Jimin said as he pulled into the parking lot of the complex. Parking his car, he allowed you to open your own door.

“I didn’t want you to think you had an unfair advantage again,” he joked with a wink. You punched him lightly and he gripped his arm dramatically. His face contorted in mock pain. “Ahh, you really don’t want me to do well?”

You rolled your eyes as you opened the door for him. He giggled as he walked through and grabbed your hand to drag you behind him to the front desk.

“Park Jimin,” he told the girl working at the desk. She smiled at him as she checked his name.

“Yep. We have you down for an hour?”

Jimin nodded as a young male instructor walked through the door.

“Are the two of you ready?” he asked, looking between you and Jimin, his eyes drifting down to your clasped hands. You shook your hand out of Jimin’s grip. Jimin didn’t say anything, but you could tell that his smile had turned artificial.

Jimin’s smile stayed artificial during the entire date. You tried to brush it off, but you couldn't ignore the glares he was sending to the instructor. It wasn’t the instructor’s fault he had to tighten the harness around your waist after all. Jimin, however, seemed to think that the instructor was being too touchy with you. His eyes had grown dark and he didn’t even thank the instructor when the hour was up. He simply sent a grimace his way as you thanked the poor boy and allowed yourself to be led out of the complex by Jimin. His grip on your arm was tight and his eyes were focused straight ahead. He finally stopped in front of his car.

“I hope you at least had fun,” he finally said with a sigh. He placed another fake smile on his face when he turned to look at you.

You huffed out a breath.

“It wasn’t bad. It would have been better if you’d had fun too, though,” you complained to him.

His eyes softened at your statement and he gently took both of your hands in his. He leaned closer to you and you found your back pressed up against his car with nowhere else to go. You didn’t mind though. The warmth from his body against yours was pleasant and even though he’d been sweating he still managed to smell good. You found yourself tugging on his hands to draw him closer to you. He complied. Resting his forehead against yours, he looked down at your intertwined fingers. You did the same after finding that you were going cross-eyed trying to look up at him.

“I did have fun because I was with you,” he mumbled softly, “and I want to go on many more dates, even if they’re just casual and we sit on my couch or yours and watch T.V.”

“I would like that too,” you replied.

Jimin lifted his head up to look at you. He smiled and leaned forward more but you stopped him by turning your head to the side.

“I just- the only thing is that… your friends. They don’t like me… and I don’t know them very well - you just seem really close to them,” you rambled.

Jimin shook his head. His eyes boring into the side of your face forced you to look at him. The second your eyes locked with his you regretted it. The last of your resolve faded and you found yourself suddenly wanting to kiss the boy in front of you. His lips were so plump, pink, soft, and inviting.

“That sounds like it’s their problem. I like you Y/N, and I really want to date you… can we make this official?” he whispered softly.

You swallowed thickly before nodding. Jimin leaned closer to you but stopped just short of kissing you. You used the last of your strength the resist the urge to close the gap between the two of you and press your lips to his.

“Can I kiss you?” he asked softly, his lips barely brushing yours.

You pressed your lips against his in response. Your resolve had wilted.

Jimin’s hands let go of your hands in order to wrap around your waist. You let your hands trail up his chest before you wrapped your arms around his neck. Your hands played with his hair while his played with the hem of your shirt. His hands slipped underneath it slightly to tickle to the skin on your lower back softly. You sighed into his mouth. His lips were curved up slightly into a smile as he kissed you.

Finally you had to pull away for air. Your cheeks were flushed and your heart felt as though it would pound right out of your ribcage. Jimin sighed in content.

“We are officially dating. That means no other guys can kiss you like that or hold you like this, okay?” Jimin said.

“Hmm… no other girls can do any of this with you either,” you half-joked. A part of you still felt insecure as to why Park Jimin would choose you out of the many other girls at your school. It still felt unreal, especially the lingering feeling of his lips on yours. You wanted another taste.

It seemed Jimin had the same idea. His lips suddenly met yours again. This time, the kiss was more passionate. His lips moved against yours softly and he moaned lightly against your mouth. You parted your lips slightly to chew on Jimin’s lower lip. His hands pulled your closer against him though you were already flush against his chest. It wasn’t enough for him it seemed. Your hands tugged at his hair lightly as he kissed your roughly.

Jimin was the one to break the kiss this time.

“I’ll… I can take you home now if you want,” he mumbled shyly, his eyes not quite meeting yours.

You nodded and allowed him to open and close the car door for you. You didn’t have anything else on your mind other than that you and Park Jimin were dating. And Park Jimin had kissed you. That too… You smiled to yourself, forgetting your previous worries. You had everything you wanted.

----

“Holy fuck, you actually got her to date you,” Taehyung whispered incredulously.

Jimin nodded with a prideful smirk plastered on his face. Hoseok sneered at him and clucked his tongue. Both he and Jungkook were sulking because they’d lost the first part of the bet.

“You must have totally changed for her,” Jungkook grumbled.

Jimin seemed to think for a moment. Had he really changed for her? Sure, he’d been nicer to her than he usually was and he always smiling around her. She made him happy. He felt like he could joke with her as much as he wanted. He found himself staying up way too late at night talking to her and texting her. Though they’d only been officially dating for a week he felt happier with her than he had with anyone else. The rest of the bet would be a breeze. The only problem, Jimin thought, was that he wouldn’t be able to remain her friend after he broke up with her because he didn’t plan on dating her for more than a month.

“Not really… I kind of treated her like I would a friend I guess… She’s really easy to talk to,” Jimin replied finally as he plopped down on his couch beside Taehyung.

“How far have you gone with her?” Jin called from the kitchen.

Jimin shrugged.

“We’ve kissed a lot but that’s it. I don’t really think we’ll get to sex. That’s okay… it’s not part of the bet anyway,” he said, grabbing some of Taehyung’s snack. Taehyung swatted his hand away and put the snack on the other side of his body.

“Three more weeks and you’ll be free again. How does it feel to be in a ‘relationship’?” Yoongi asked. He held out his hand in front of Jimin as if he was holding a microphone.

Jimin cleared his throat and sat up straight.

“It’ll feel good. Thank God three weeks isn’t that long,” Jimin said into Yoongi’s hand. Jungkook snorted and Hoseok rolled his eyes.

“In all seriousness though,” Jimin said as he sunk back down into the couch, “I think it’ll be hard to break up with her. She’s nice which makes it hard, you know?”

“Do you actually like her?” Taehyung asked, eyeing Jimin.

Jimin didn’t say anything in return. Instead, he shrugged and turned his attention back to the show playing. Sure, he liked her and his heart raced each time he saw her. It just felt different from all of the other relationships he’d ever been in. He wasn’t as sure of himself, yet he found that he could talk about more things with her. He could talk about his stress with school and his stress with his friends and his family. He could tell her about his fears and his dreams and what made him happy. He really felt like she was the missing piece in his life. He knew his friends could see that he’d become happier - Namjoon had commented on that the other day. But liking her and “liking” her were two very different things. He decided to let future Jimin deal with the problem. For now, he was going to enjoy her company.

----

“Y/N… Y/N… Y/N… hey, ugly,” Jimin whined.

You couldn’t help but roll your eyes. Jimin was the one who had wanted to come over even though you’d told him you had to study. He had insisted which was how he ended up laying your bed as you sat at your desk trying to finish an assignment that was due in three days. You had been ignoring him for the last ten minutes and apparently he’d had enough.

“Hey, pay attention to me,” he whined again.

You sighed and clenched your teeth. He was making it very difficult for you to get any work done. Truth be told, you really wanted to curl up beside him on your bed for a few hours and take a break. But your ambition and current drive were keeping you rooted at your desk.

You heard your bed springs squeak lightly. Not paying any attention to it, you continued reading through the textbook in front of you. Suddenly you felt his warm lips against the side of your neck. You jumped sightly at the sudden contact. You let him work his way up your neck, however. It felt too good and you didn’t want him to stop. He nipped at a spot lightly before sucking the area. You tilted your head to the side to give him better access and sighed.

“Can’t you take a break?” he asked quietly, his lips finally detaching from your neck.

You nodded and got out of your desk chair. Jimin pulled you towards your bed and pushed you down gently. You fell onto the soft mattress. Jimin crawled up on top of you, his arms resting on either side of your head. You wrapped your arms around his neck, your fingers going straight into his hair. He sighed before dipping down to kiss the side of your neck. He sucked harshly and you groaned at the sensation. His hand ran through your hair softly. You pulled his body closer to your own as you sighed contentedly.

His lips worked their way up to meet yours. His lips moved roughly against yours and his hips began to grind lightly against you. Your hips bucked up to meet his. He sucked on your lower lip and you took it as a hint to part your lips further. His tongue slipped inside your mouth, further deepening the kiss. He groaned into the kiss and you sighed deeply. Being like this, being in his arms, felt so right. You held him tightly as he kissed you deeply.

Hooking one leg around his waist, you flipped him over to take away his dominance. He let out a surprised grunt as his back his the mattress, but his lips stayed on yours. Your teeth hit slightly and you giggled into the kiss. Jimin’s hands roamed lower, hovering over your ass. He broke the kiss only to ask for permission to touch you. You gave him permission gladly. His hand cupped your ass and pulled you against him. You rolled your hips against him without thinking too much. Everything that was happening just felt… right. Your hands moved to the side of his, cupping his cheeks. You pulled away to catch your breath before pecking his lips once more. Rolling off of him, you moved back to your desk to continue studying.

Jimin groaned and you heard the bed springs squeak again as he sat up on his elbows to look at you. What you didn’t know was that he had a soft smile on his face as he watched you go back to work, running a hand through his disheveled hair to make it neater.

“You’re such a fucking tease. It’s a good thing I like you,” he quipped.

You smiled to yourself as you tried to focus your attention back on your textbook.

“Do you have a crush on me?” you joked.

Jimin scoffed and got up from the bed. He placed a kiss on your forehead before coming around your desk chair to lean against the side of your desk.

“I’d better… we’re dating after all.”

You smiled as you continued to scan the pages of your textbook. The chunks you had highlighted weren’t making sense to you and with Jimin so close to you that it was nearly impossible to concentrate on the text. Finally, you closed your book. You had a few days and you just had to make sure you were citing the correct source. You mentally scolded yourself for not keeping your sources in order.

“There’s a party at Jungkook’s this weekend. I know you don’t like him but I’d really appreciate if you’d go with me,” Jimin said, clearing his throat. “I know it’s our one month and maybe it should be a little fancier, but I think with the circumstances… I mean, you have so many projects due by Friday and I just thought it would be a good way to let loose a little.”

You raised your eyebrows at your boyfriend, spinning your chair to look at him. He looked nervous and you wondered if he took you for some kind of prude. Sure, you didn’t go to a lot of parties but you had gone to a few. You didn’t get wasted at parties, that was true too, but you did have a drink if you weren’t driving.

“That’s fine. I just don’t know Jungkook well… You’re really the only person I would know at that party,” you mumbled.

Jimin leaned down to press another kiss to the top of your head.

“Don’t worry about it, okay? We don’t have to stay for long if we go.”

You nodded before telling him that you’d think about it. Truthfully, the thought of spending time with Jimin’s friends made your stomach twist. They didn’t seem to be particularly fond of you and you weren’t particularly fond of them.

Then again, Jimin had done a lot for you. In the first month of dating he’d stayed up late to talk to you and study with you. He’d driven you to your internship when your car had broken down on just a moment's notice. He’d taken you on dates or stayed in for date nights when you didn’t feel like going out. He’d been kind and compassionate and…

“I’ll go.”

Jimin’s face broke into a smile and he tilted your head up with his hand to kiss your lips lightly.

“Good. I’ll text you what time I’ll pick you up. I have to head out now. Good luck on your project. You’re going to do so well babe,” he said, kissing you one last time before leaving your room. You peeked out your bedroom window as you watched Jimin walk to his car. He looked up and waved at you. You couldn’t help but smile as you waved back.

Settling down in your chair, you stared at the mess of papers in front of you. Your mind was focused on Jimin and how he made you feel. Nobody had made you feel like this before. It wasn’t love, but it sure as hell was close to it. You found yourself looking forward to the party on Friday as you had decided you were going to try and connect with his friends. After all, any friend of the guy you liked was a friend of yours, especially when they were the few people he spent a majority of his time with.

You sighed as you packed up your books. Stuffing them into your backpack you pulled out your phone.

you: what should i wear to the party?

Minutes later Jimin texted back.

chim <3 : sorry

chim <3 : just got home

chim <3 : anything you’d like!

chim <3 : anything you wear will have all the guys looking at you so wear whatever makes you feel good… you look good in everything anyways :)

You chuckled at how cheesy Jimin was. Texting back a simple “ok,” you locked your phone and fell into bed. The text messages with Jimin had convinced you that you needed to get on good terms with his friends. It wasn’t fair to him for you to complain about them. He was so kind… it was the least you could do for him.

----

“Jesus Y/N,” Jimin breathed out as you opened up your front door.

You wrapped your coat more tightly around your body. Jimin’s eyes were focused completely on you as you stood in your doorway. You didn’t think you looked all that great either. A simple pair of shorts - though they were short enough that they didn’t leave much to the imagination - and a simple low cut top. You’d thrown a jacket over it at the last second. It wasn’t your classiest outfit nor was it your sexiest you supposed, but Jimin seemed to love it.

He finally shut his mouth and offered you his hand. You took it slowly and allowed him to lead you to his car. You noticed vaguely that he’d washed it. He opened your door and closed it, ever the gentleman. The ride to Jungkook’s was mostly silent. Jimin kept glancing at you out of the corner of his eye and swallowing thickly. You wondered why he was so nervous.

By the time the two of you arrived at Jungkook’s the party was in full swing. Bass could be heard from down the street. Jimin parked his car in Jungkook’s driveway - a perk of being friends with the host.

“I’ll stay by your side tonight, okay?” he shouted over the music and laughs from people who were already drunk. You nodded slowly and grabbed his hand. He gave your hand a squeeze before starting up the long driveway. You followed, dodging red solo cups and drunken couples. As soon as you and Jimin stepped into the house Hoseok was there greeting the two of you and shoving a cup in Jimin’s hand.

“Ayyy, you’re both here!” he shouted. His eyes were slightly unfocused and he smelled so strongly of alcohol. He was wasted.

Jimin discreetly handed you the cup and you placed it with ten other cups on the stair banister. Hoseok’s face dropped at the action.

“I drove,” Jimin called to him over the music. Hoseok booed before turning to you.

“Do you want something else to drink?”

You stepped back slightly. The stench of alcohol coming off of him was overwhelming.

“I think you’ve had enough for the both of us,” you called back. Hoseok simply shook his head and downed another drink.

“You’re probably right,” he slurred. “But hey, come in. You’re blocking the doorway.”

You and Jimin complied. Further inside the house was an even bigger mass of people. Couples and strangers alike were grinding on one another to beat of some electronic song you’d never heard. The bass was making your head pound and the smoke in the air was sweet and sickly. You wanted to get out of the house and Jimin seemed to sense that. He dodged people, pushing you in front of him so that he didn’t lose you in the crowd. You had no idea where he was heading until suddenly you were standing outside on the back deck. The fresh air that hit your face was like a god-send and you sucked in a deep breath. The sound of boys snickering behind you made you whip your head around.

“Jungkook’s parties aren’t really our thing either,” Taehyung chuckled. He scooted over on the bend to allow you and Jimin to sit down.

Yoongi chuckled as he took a sip of something from his solo cup. Both boys eyed Jimin who simply slung his arm around your shoulders. You shrugged him off and he chuckled at you before discreetly grabbing your hand. Your intertwined fingers were hidden from the Taehyung and Yoongi’s views. It wasn’t that you didn’t like Jimin showing you off, you just didn’t think he needed to show you off to his friends. They all knew the two of you were dating.

“No offence Y/N, but I didn’t think I’d see you here,” Yoongi commented, looking your outfit up and down. He gave his head an approving nod and Jimin glared at him.

“You and me both,” you mumbled. “But I wanted to get to know you guys a little better so I figured this was a good place to start. It’s not like we would have to do a lot of talking.”

Taehyung smiled at your answer and elbowed Jimin. You didn’t understand why Jimin seemed so nervous. If you had to guess you would say he was nervous because he wanted you to get along with his friends. But you knew him enough to know that that wasn’t why he was nervous. You began to get nervous as well and your palms beginning to sweat. Quickly, you pulled your hand out of Jimin’s grasp. He looked at you in surprise. The two other boys seemed to have a silent conversation with one another before both standing up.

“We’ll leave you two alone for a little… congrats on one month,” Taehyung said as he followed Yoongi back inside the house.

Jimin stayed silent. Your heart began to race but for the first time it didn’t make you feel light and airy; it made you feel heavy and uncomfortable. You were nervous that Jimin was about to say something that would hurt you, though you didn’t understand why you felt that way. He had given you no indication and yet…

“We need to talk…” he said quietly. His eyes wouldn’t meet yours and his hands fiddled in his lap. He picked at a hangnail as he waited.

“About?” you said. Your throat went dry and a lump formed in it. You weren’t sure why you were feeling so emotional.

“I… I really like you. I just, Jesus how do I say this…” Jimin continued. He swallowed thickly.

You held your breath as you waited for him to continue. The weird looks the boys had all given on another had meant they all knew something you didn’t and now you were starting to understand. Jimin was going to break up with you. You looked down at your lap before standing up. No, you weren’t going to let yourself get hurt like this.

“Y/N - fuck it - I love you,” Jimin blurted out.

You froze. Jimin walked towards you and grabbed your wrists. His eyes finally met yours and you felt your face flush.

“I know it’s only been a month but I really - holy shit I can’t believe I’m doing this - I just, you mean a lot to me and the thought of losing you occurred to me the other day and I - God - I don’t know what I’d do without you. I love you Y/N,” Jimin said. He searched your face for something, anything.

“Do you mean it?” you asked hoarsely.

Jimin nodded and leaned in to press a kiss against your lips. You fell into him and his hands let go of your wrists to wrap around you. You allowed him to hold you. Breaking the kiss, you rested your head against his shoulder.

“I love you too ugly,” you mumbled.

Jimin scoffed and kissed the top of your head softly.

“But I said it first which means I love you more, ugly.”

You snuggled closer to him, wrapping your arms around his waist in the process. It was the most comfortable you’d been in a long time and the last thing you wanted to do was leave his embrace.

----

“Holy fuck he didn’t break up with her,” Namjoon whispered as he peered over Jin’s shoulder to look out the kitchen window and onto the deck.

“I think he actually told her he loves her,” Jin mumbled back.

Namjoon scoffed and turned to Taehyung beside him.

“I can’t believe we have to give something to him,” he grumbled.

Taehyung just shrugged.

“Just be happy he’s in love,” Yoongi hissed at the small clump of boys.

“Oh, Yoongi, when did you get so sappy!” Jin exclaimed, pushing Yoongi.

Yoongi simply glared at the taller boy before shrugging.

“You have to give her props. She literally tamed the boy in a month,” Taehyung breathed out. “Let’s leave them alone… we have a lot of wallowing to do since we all lost the bet.”

----

“Y/N! Come in!” Taehyung said as he opened the door to Jimin’s house. He ushered you inside with a grin on his face. Out of all of Jimin’s friends you’d come to like Taehyung the most. “Guys! Y/N’s here!”

You heard the patter of sock clad feet as Jimin jogged towards you. He picked you up slightly and planted a kiss on your lips. You couldn’t help but scoff at how cheesy he was being. He only ever acted like that in front of his friends but you didn’t mind because to you it felt like a show of affection and a show of pride.

“Hey babe. Come in. I’m going to finish making the food with Jungkook then I’ll be out,” he told you, giving your lips one last quick peck afterwards. You smiled as you watched him disappear into the kitchen.

“Three months has got to be some kind of record,” Namjoon said as he watched Jimin disappear into the kitchen.

“I can’t believe he even got you to go out with him,” Hoseok mumbled.

Taehyung eyed him and Yoongi cleared his throat.

“Have you ever seen this movie before?” Yoongi asked in a desperate attempt to change the subject. Before you could reply, Hoseok was talking again.

“I wouldn’t have agreed to the bet if I’d known I’d lose this badly. He literally asked to share my vintage car!” he whined as he sunk down in the chair beside you. You turned to look at him, blinking slowly. The boys around you groaned.

“Bet?” you whispered. Half of you didn’t want to know what the hell Hoseok was talking about.

“He… he didn’t tell you?” Hoseok asked slowly. His eyes suddenly darkened. “Shit, okay. Forget I said anything.”

“No, tell me,” you insisted as your curiosity got the best of you.

Yoongi sighed before getting up and leaving the room. You didn’t blame you. Even though you had asked Hoseok the question you also wanted to leave the room and not hear the explanation.

“We bet Jimin three months ago that he couldn’t get a date with you, let alone date you for a month,” Hoseok mumbled.

“We?”

Taehyung cleared his throat. Hoseok looked at him with pleading eyes, asking him silently to save him.

“Yeah… we didn’t know you at the time Y/N and if we had we wouldn't have-” Taehyung started.

“Jesus Christ! I was a bet? Are you shitting me?” you yelled which attracted the attention of the boys in the kitchen. Jimin poked his head around the door to look at you. Feeling someone watching you, you whipped around to see him staring and after sending him a death glare, you continued.

“I’m sorry you guys lost. I don’t want to be a part of whatever new bet you have going. Let me guess what it is: you can’t date Y/N for more than five months? What does he get if he wins this time? I hope it’s something as valuable as a car!” you cried, near hysterics.

“Y/N-” Jimin started as he walked towards you.

“Don’t bother. I’ll let them win this time. We’re done. Don’t - ,” you took a deep breath, “don’t ever talk to me again. Delete my number.”

You turned on your heel and slipped on your shoes before exiting the house and slamming the door behind you. You heard Jimin calling after you but you didn’t turn to look at him. If you did he would get the satisfaction of seeing you cry. You were trying to swallow your tears but you were so hurt that they fell on their own. You wiped your eyes as you got in your car. Quickly starting it, you peeled out of his driveway and drove home. You had to pull over at least twice because of how hard you were crying. You felt stupid and pathetic and used. For the first time ever you wished that you’d never gotten to know Park Jimin.

Flopping onto your bed you allowed yourself to cry freely as you stared up at the ceiling. You weren’t sure how much time passed, but eventually you stopped crying and the room around you had grown dark. You sniffled before grabbing your phone to call your best friend. 22 missed calls from Jimin, 37 unread text messages from the same boy. And four unread text messages from his best friend.

taebuns: if you’re going to be mad at anyone, be mad at us

taebuns: we’re the dicks

taebuns: please talk to jimin i’ve never seen him cry this hard

taebuns: don’t tell him I told you he was crying

You wished someone were there to console you. Jimin could deal on his own. You had better things to do anyways and there were plenty of other nice people at your school. Besides, you only had a few months left before you wouldn’t see any of the seven boys ever again.

You rolled over onto your side and tried to fall asleep. Your head was tight though, too tight to allow you to sleep. You sniffled and hiccuped before curling underneath your covers. Closing your eyes, you allowed your mind to go blank. Evening your breathing you practically forced yourself to sleep. There was no use adding dark circles to your appearance. At least, that’s what you told yourself as you drifted to sleep.

----

“I have a temp of 105 degrees Fahrenheit… otherwise I would love it if you came over… I really need someone now. Just… have a good day, okay? Thanks. Love you,” you said, hanging up your phone.

You had texted your best friend the next morning when you’d woken up with a headache and a raging fever. There was no way you were going to school and you thanked your body and immune system for allowing you to be sick. You’d already called into your internship and told them of your sickness. They had wished you a speedy recovery. You hoped you would recover soon too, the only thing was that when you recovered you’d have to face Jimin and his friends again. You just weren’t ready to do that… not yet. It had literally been a day and you weren’t even close to getting over it.

You slumped further underneath your bed sheets and let out a sigh only to be jolted by the ringing of your doorbell. You groaned and closed your eyes. Perhaps if you ignored whomever was calling they would eventually go away.

To no avail. After ten minutes of the doorbell ringing you forced yourself out of bed and down the stairs to answer the door. You froze the second you met the visitors eyes. The next second you were slamming the door in his face.

“Y/N, please. Tae said he didn’t see you at school and I was worried,” Park Jimin called through the door. You didn’t reply. Instead, you locked the door and walked back upstairs to your bedroom. For the rest of the day you ignored Jimin’s incessant ringing of your doorbell. Until it stopped around 4:40.

A knock on your door pulled you out of your sleep. Peering out from underneath your covers as the door open, you were met with the sight of a ragged looking Jimin standing in your doorway.

“Your mom let me in,” he said. His voice was raspy and his eyes were bloodshot.

He walked over to your bed and sat down on the edge, as far from you as possible. You were too tired to even fight him on where he sat. You were also too tired to glare at him. Instead, you stared at him blankly.

“It’s true they bet me date you. But I don’t regret the bet. I was stupid to not tell you about it, that’s true, but the bet let me meet you and get to know you and come to love you. I love you Y/N, so fucking much, and I can’t lose-”

“I’m sorry you needed a bet to figure all of this out,” you snapped. You didn’t care what Jimin’s reasons were. You were pissed beyond belief that he’d have the audacity to tell you he loved you when it was a stupid bet that had brought you two together. He would never have loved you if not for the bet, therefore the love didn’t seem genuine.

“Yeah, me too. But now that I have - figured this out, I mean - I really want you to forgive me… I know it’s a lot to ask. I - shit - I was supposed to break up with you at Jungkook’s party but the thing I told you about thinking about losing you made me physically ill. I had this dream and I realized that I couldn’t - I couldn’t lose you Y/N. You mean so much to me and I fucked up so badly, and-”

Jimin broke down, not even finishing his thought. You watched in shock as the boy at the end of your bed sobbed. His shoulders shook and he kept choking. The sight was pitiful and heart wrenching. Maybe… just maybe you could forgive Jimin. Because you loved him too. The thought of coexisting with him again made your stomach clench. You loved what you had with Jimin and you could get through the pain of the bet if…

“Give back all that you won in the bet. If you really love me…” you trailed off, unsure of what else to say.

Jimin nodded his head as he wiped his eyes. You beckoned him closer to you. He complied, snuggling up to your side. You loved this soft side of Jimin, though you wished you had seen it under different circumstances. His arms wrapped around you and peace fell over you. You needed Jimin to hold you and you needed to hold Jimin. In just three short months you’d fallen hopelessly in love with an idiot who stayed up too late listening to you and who cheered whenever you told him about your internship and who made stupid mistakes.

“Don’t make any more bets either,” you ordered. Jimin chuckled sadly and pressed a kiss to the top of your head. His gaze fell to your lips and you closed the space between the two of you to kiss him. His hand came up to grip the back of your head as he deepened the kiss. Your lips moved slightly against his as he moved to hover over you.

He pulled away and placed a soft kiss to your forehead before falling into your bed beside you again. You rolled on to of him and you felt his heartbeat underneath your hands. It was quick and hard, matching your own perfectly.

“I love you. Thank you for forgiving me… I won’t do anything stupid again. I’ve already given back what I won from the first bet, but I never took anything from the second. I didn’t need anything else when I already had you.”

You smiled at how corny he was before snuggling closer to him. You loved Park Jimin, flaws and all and you felt peace at the fact that he loved you too… flaws and all.

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kevkesblog · 6 years ago

Text

Jannis Brandt Interview (spring 2018)

I’m sorry for misspelled words, but my laptop automatically changes english into german (or attempts to do that).

note: this interview was recorded before the World Cup 2018 in Russia.

youtube

N: Who is your brother?

J: My brother is Julian Brandt. He plays for Bayer Leverkusen and the national team.

N: How does it feel if you say something like that?

J: Hm, it’s big. Especially the national team, because we used to watch the games of the national team on TV in our childhood and youth.

I have also followed everything around him during his youth – all the youth teams. That was already big. But now that he plays for the national team makes it even bigger.

N: Did you - or Julian had posters of certain players in his room or so? Did he have role models or idols?

J: Hm, I think Julian’s room was full of posters. Ronaldo, Messi the real big players – even back then. But his idol – which I think is already known – was Diego, from Werder Bremen.

N: And your idol?

J: Mine? I never really had any idols. No football player.

N: But?

J: Not really others as well.

N: Singer? Actor? Comic figure?

J: No. Not really.

N: Sometimes people do have a certain indiviual. Even if it’s pikatchu.

J: (laughs) No, Julian was more of an anime fan – I would say. Whether it was Dragonball Z or whatever… I usually never watched those shows. He was more that type of person. Hm, idol? I dont know. Sure, the big names Ronaldo and Messi where you were looking up and say „Ok, those were the players of our time“. But no, not really an idol.

N: But since we are talking about the national team. Has there ever been a german national player who was admirable?

J: Back in the day or today?

N: Yes – but especially in the past. I mean you named the big international stars of football, but do you think there is at least one german name on that list or not?

J: There wasn’t. (laughts)

N: (laughts) OK, clear answer!

J: Well of course there were big names. Players like Schweinsteiger who now reached an age were they played many years for the national team. Including world cups. Yeah and if you see how these players are still playing now. Or Lukas Podolski who played one final game with Julian – his last one. This it’s big sure. Especially since Julian used to have posters with Podolski in his room and then suddently they play together. I thinks it’s big – even for him, playing with so many experierenced players and that sometimes he tries to look what tricks of them he can copy – yes.

N: When I looked at this from the outside, if somebody is very young and somebody who is older as player on the pitch. Sometimes it’s about body mass. Or your body develops over a certain while. Do you think there is a sense of inferiority as a young player?

J: Ahm, physically as a player I wouldn’t say that you are inferior. I think you do have some edges. I know Jonathan Tah. I think its pretty difficult to get past him – even though he is young. I think Julian is doing pretty good by now. He is not a player who looks for every one-on-one on the pitch. But I wouldn’t say he is inferior in those situations. Sure you have to watch your body as a young player and be carefully, in order to stay on the same level with the other guys - but no, not inferior.

N: How did you view Julians development through his youth? Football was on your brothers mind all the time. Was he like „Hey Jannis, lets go and shoot some goals. Do some passing.“ Was it like this?

J: It was really like this. It was still common throughout our childhood or youth– in a positiv way – to play outside from morning till sunset. We had a big public lawn in front of our house. And so there were like 40 something people on that lawn. Thats something that doesn’t exist anymore today – which is sad. So we used to play in front of our house until our mother was calling us.

N: Dinner!

J: Exactly – so everyone went back home. But no, we were out on the lawn many times. He played together with friends. I always wanted to join the older guys. That’s what often happend. (laughs)

N: Did you and Julian tried out other sports as well? Or was it always clear that football is the main thing.

J: I think Julian always stayed with football. I used to be a goalkeeper first – then I went for handball. Went back to football as a field player. I stayed there until U-17. I think I also did judo but that was just one course. No, Julian by contrast was much more focused on football and I was the one that tried out many different things.

N: Nice. That’s not bad right?

J: No. (laughs) The only thing I can add is: Julian just recently became interested in golfing. He seems to be motivated about golfing – but let’s see how long that will last. (smirks)

N: Especially in terms of time right? I mean he does have a very tight schedule? Training, games…

J: I wouldn‘t say that (laughs). I mean he does have practice - sometimes twice a day, but if you go golfing before or after training it could be a certain way of compensation for him. Or a certain peace you need. So I think its acutally good.

N: Thats nice! Did you join?

J: (laughs). I have only been with him on the golfing range once. I was just there observing and taking pictures. But I realized with him that golfing isn’t easy. Or at least thats what it looked like when he played (laughs).

N: It’s practice.

J: Yes it is. And I think he will continue to do that.

N: But do you think its just because you are a different persona than Julian? Didn’t you want to dive into the football world as well since you played many years yourself?

J: I would say about myself, I’m not fully talented in one area. Or there is no area where I want to focus completely. I’m a guy that likes to try out many things first. Whether its sports or something else. And I’m quite decent in many areas and so its different than with Julian. He is a talent in terms of football – but he drags his feet about other things in life. (laughs)

N: School too?

J: With him?

N: Yup.

J: He was really lazy! He claims he still could have gotten a high school diploma (Abitur). I thinks he only has a minor school diploma (after 10th grade). But I dont know if thats only big words from him or if he is serious about it.

N: But does it really play a role anymore? If you are so clear about what do you want to do. Is it really worthwhile to get an Abitur?

J: Thats difficult.

N: Did you get an Abitur?

J: I’m still working on my Abitur in media design. But I would say on one hand its important because you never know, how safe you really are being a football player. By that I mean, you have a sense of security with an Abitur. Only if you reach a certain point in your career it starts to become less important whether you have an Abitur or not. For me its just learning – Abitur. You really have to commit yourself doing it. You need to have a clear head, but other than that its not a world wonder getting it.

N: In what areas do you do your Abitur?

J: Design, media and art.

N: Do you have an idea, what you want to do with your life? Lets say over the next five years?

J: Hmmm, well… generally speaking: media. But thats a huge terrain. I had days were I was thinking about studying film after my Abitur. I was already looking around for schools. Photography is also something I like – but those are big areas and the best way for me would be to filter everything. But I dont know where I will end up persicely. I haven‘t made a decision yet. And thats fine.

N: Nice. So without any jugdements. Because there are also people who exactly know where they want to go.

J: No. No – I was never that type of person! I’m a guy who makes quick decisions and want to deliver quick. But I’m never that person who says „I am doing this now, this the next year and so on“. And I dont want to be stuck in a three-year apprenticeship program where I dont know if thats really something I want to do for the rest of my life.

N: Well, you often dont know whether its the perfect job for you.

J: Exactly. That why currently I’m trying out many things. Gather experience. I want to filter between things that dont match my interest and by that I will find out what matches mine. Thats my current situation.

N: Sounds good! In your relationship, Julian was your big brother. You have a younger brother. The big brother than left the house since he got special training. How was that moment for you, when he left the house? Did you suddently become the „big brother“. How did you feel?

J: I remember him being 15 years when he moved out. And everything went very quick. Suddently all his bags were packed and he went to Wolfsburg. And the beginning was especially difficult for our mother. But thats normal. But yeah, you could sense that something was missing - also in our daily lives. But I had a little brother and we spent alot of time together. (laughs) Generally speaking, our childhood was like this: usually Julian and Jascha bonded together more – whenever I was teasing Jascha, he needed support and he got it from Julian. But our bickering was nice – we never really argued alot.

N: Does your father maybe had an influence? Since he was a football coach as well. Because I read that people say „Well I dont want my dad to give me special treatment – or give you a disadvantage“. Was that weird or okay?

J: Well I never really got to know it any different. Dad was active in football since I was little – as a player for his hometown team. And he coached Julian and his best friends since they were little, I think it was good for him to have a certain person that he could relate to. But our father never gave him special disadvantages or better treatment. Whenever it was about football he was coach and not father – and once the game was over he was still our dad. So in my opinion they did everthing right in that regard. And it is strange that a father is coaching Julian since he was a little kid until he left for Wolfsburg.

(13:05min)

N: What’s interesting to know: how did you feel when he was on the pitch in a big stadium for the first time? What kind of feeling was that?

J: That was – if I can remember correctly – in Hamburg. When he already was playing for Leverkusen. It was a special game for me since I never liked Hamburg, from my childhood on – as a guy from Bremen. I didn’t know before the game that he was supposed to be a subsitute player. At some point you see him warm up next to the pitch and you start to think „Ok, will he now be put into the game?“. Yeah but it is something special when you hear his name over the whole stadium for the first time. Now you heard it a hundred times and it became normal, but it was special the first time. And you suddently get a lot of text messages. But its normal.

N: Did you get goosebumps?

J: I rarely get goosebumps (laughs). For that matter I didnt have goosebumps. But yeah you are really into it and you dont think about other stuff in that moment.

N: And you had the parents sitting left and right to you.

J: Parents are sitting left and right to you – yes and they are nervous as well – the first game wasn’t against Hamburg, it was his first goal. I have to correct myself. (smirks)

N: Maybe you can recall his very first goal.

J: The first goal he scored when he was seventeen, which he did against Hamburg. I remember him having the ball and he was still far away from the goal. He shoots – and it wasn’t really his best shoot, but the goalkeeper seemed to have had a bad day and so he scored. Then everybody was happy because nobody expected this to happen.

N: Nice! And how did you live together as brothers? Did you have a playstation at home and played together?

J: Since we were little kids we had playstations – multiple ones everyone that was avaliable. Whether it was playstation, Wii – ok, we didnt have X-Box.

N: But did you play FIFA?

J: We did play FIFA – very often. He was always the guy that was better at video games than I was. And the one investing more time playing it.

N: (laughs) So he really put a lot of time into it.

J: (laughs) Yeah… and long hours. Me too. And even today we play together and yeah, thats what a boy does in his spare time.

N: Maybe its a weird question, but: can you choose him as a player?

J: Yes.

N: Then, do you choose him whenever you play or do like you tackle him?

J: (laughs) No, its not that extreme. I’m not playing that much FIFA but back in the day you took him, when he appeared on FIFA for the first time as a new player. Ok, he wasn’t the best and you would say „Ok, well leave it if you want to win.“ But now you can choose him more often playing FIFA if you want to win. Yeah, I didn’t tackle him in the game. I think he picked himself and played FIFA with himself once.

N: Weird isn’t it? I mean you played FIFA over all these years – every year there’s a new edition and then suddently your own brother is part of a video game.

J: Well yeah, but you don’t notice it as much as you think, since you already have to deal with other surroundings that come as a football player. And so it’s just a logical consequence. The one leads to the other.

N: Did you brawl over food as kids?

J: Brawl?

N: Yeah… Was there yealousy about food? Did you eat alot?

J: Hmm, I think he almost ate twice as much as I did. He was always good at eating. Even back in the day, between tourmaments he used to eat a Bratwurst instead of something else. That’s what he needed in order to play good. (smirks) Well we actually never really brawled about stuff back when we lived together in Bremen – well we did have arguments.

N: Well I didn’t mean brawl in a physical sense. I mean like…

J: ….Oh, I see… but we did that too (smirks).

N: (laughs)

J: But that‘s normal that you brawl as brothers. Or that you wrestle. Thats even fun a bit. Even now he sometimes does that with my little brother. To wrestle on the bed. Yeah… but it‘s all show (smirks).

N: Like at WWE, right.

J: Yeah exactly. We used to do the WWE entrances. Our little brother wanted to get a wrestling belt for his birthday a couple of days ago, so he can hang it in his room.

N: Sounds professional…

J: …well, we used to watch WWE on TV back in the day. Which was always in the evening – so we were sneaking down to the livingroom and watched it, even though we were supposed to be in bed…. that was when we were very young… (laughs) But yeah…

N: Music? Is there a song which has a special meaning or a special bond with your brother?

J: (laughs) Ahm, well there isn’t ONE special song. There is no singer or band. We listen to the same music. We listen to a lot actually, whether its German, Spanish, English, French sometimes Brazilian when it’s more quiet… and ehm - I mean Portugese (smirks).

N: (laughs) How come? Did your parents listen to a lot of music?

J: Hmm, no. With us its more like: if we listen to Spanish or French in the beginning we dont know what the lyrics are about…

N: Execpt if you know the language…

J: Yes, execpt you know the language or you’re reading the lyrics. But its the music itself – most of the time. Music that just lifts your mood. And we are pretty much the same in that regard. We have the same music taste.

N: Your brother was very young when he started and then with his first Bundesliga match suddently his career accelarates. And then there a moments were you stagnate. How was that for you when this happend to him? Or have you noticed how he felt? Was it difficult? Or normal – because he still belived in himself?

J: I think what he knows now, or maybe for a while now ist that, you get hyped if everything goes great and you get back to the ground if you play poorly. And he doesn’t have to like that – and I think he really doesn’t like that. Yeah but this hyping of players is something he absolutely doesn’t like. And he is just doing his thing. Yeah but if he has a low – he is not that person who…

N: …wallows…

J: Yeah, who remains low too.

N: But do you think it’s a special challenge? Because he isn’t really that old. I mean you are even younger than him – but anyway, when you live through something like that. There are thousands of people chanting your name – and then the pressure. You have to be good and show skill...

J: Sure. First, you have to find a way to deal with pressure…

N: Does he have something to cope with that? Does he do something in his free time? Meditate or something?

J: (smirks)

N: I mean it could be!

J: In the end, as stupid as it may sound: he just plays playstation to distract himself. In his free time football isn’t as much of a topic of discussion. It’s not like he talks with his friends alot about football. Maybe a bit, but as long as you catch him in his free time talking about something else other than football it’s positive for him. Just distraction. I mean he has to deal with football multiple times over the week or weekends. And he has to get his mind somewhere else in order to cope with pressure. But he has found a good way dealing with pressure…

N: That how he seems to look like. I mean I watched a couple of interviews and he looked very solid and unimpressed…

J: Yeah, he is kind of very open. And honest! And he tells you directly what he thinks if there is something he doesn’t like. He never pulls of a great show – or in front of somebody. So that makes it into style of football. He listens to his stomach. You have to put him on the pitch and say „Just go ahead!“. Maybe you need to tell him „here you have to do a bit of this and a bit of that“… then he knows „ok“ and he plays his style. And I think it’s what makes him a great player. Because he withstands pressure – always very relaxed. And thats why he can perform.

N: Name one trait of him that really annoyes the hell out of you?

J: (smiles)… well I have to think a bit.

N: Well thats good, if there’s nothing. Or is there something that you really appreciate about him? Something you really like?

J: What I like…?

N: Well, its good if there’s nothing annoying about him.

J: What I admire is his honesty. He never tells – well he is my brother, but – that he always says his honest opinion. And that he’s very easygoing. Thats always good.

N: Will you visit him in Russia?

J: Well, first of all he has to be there. I think thats gonna happen – or I hope he will be there. And…

N: But there was an announcement or not?

J: (pauses)…. No I mean when he makes it into the final squad. Thats going to be announced on May 15. Then they travel to Russia – and as far as I’m concerned finally three players then will fly back home. And…yeah. If he makes it and he – let’s say make it into the quarterfinals or semifinals. I guess, me and my family will eventually fly over to see him.

N: Do have a wish for him before he leaves?

J: A wish? I always wish that he doesn’t get injured! Thats the most important thing. Because you can get „out“ of the game very quickly if you get injured. Health is everything. And that he get some expericence. No matter how often he plays, if he playes, how long. And that he has fun in what he is doing – and that he doesn’t force himself on doing stuff.

N: Do you have a nickname for him?

J: For him?

N: Yes.

J: I either call him „Julian“ or „Juli“. Many call him „Jule“. And he gives me a death stare whenever I call him „Jule“. (laughs). Nobody in our family calls him „Jule“, but I think that name originated in Wolfsburg. And the guys in Leverkusen continued to call him like that and since then. So he is sometimes refered to as „Jule“.

N: Especially because of the fans?

J: Even now because of the fans – yeah „Jule“. I think it’s a weird name. (laughs).

N: Maybe other names?

J: A nickname he actually has is „Skipper“ from penguins of madagascar. Dad is „Kowalski“ the little brother is „Private“ and I am „Rico“.

N: (laughs)

J: We adapted the characteristics of the cartoon. I think Julian had the initial idea. Because I think „Skipper“ is more the leader and the cool guy.

N: So everyone got their roles then!?

J: Yeah, sometimes we text over WhatsApp like „Hey Skipper how is it going?“ or „Kowalski when do you get back home?“ … so yeah those are our nicknames we carry for quite sometime now.

N: Are you in regular contact with each other? Daily? Every second day?

J: Actually we never write each other over the whole day constantly via WhatsApp. We facetime sometimes. But we dont talk about special topics if we do facetime, just to hear from each other. Mostly whenever somebody of us doesn’t have anthiny to do and goes online. Other than that, I always go to his home games. Away games - depending where it is. And if it fits into my schedule. I see him and spend some time in his apartement in Cologne. Whether its because I have school summer break and over the week we do stuff before or after the practice sessions. Which is good for him, so he has something to do and to get outside, since he lives on his own. And I think it benefits him as well as myself.

N: Do you have a feeling that he misses things because of football? Because he has to set priorities? Or do you think he can live free?

J: No, absolutely not. I mean you do have priorities in a sense that you dont have enough leg room – like I have – to go out with friends over the weekend. Thats time he rarely has, when officials tell him „You can go out and have a good time“. But even if he does go out with friends, he has boundaries. Because he is a person who is in the public eye. So yeah, that is one of the differences between us both. I’m more relaxed in that regard and he has to give it a pass since his youth basically. But I think thats something – given his position, he likes to sacrifice.

N: Thats something he likes, isn’t it?

J: Yeah, I guess so. I dont think thats something he is mourning about.

#jannis brandt #julian brandt #footballplayer #interviewtranslation #german nt #bravertz #bayer leverkusen

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minsugasnerd · 7 years ago

Text

Just Friends...? 2

even

Genre: Fluff

Word Count: 3,521

Pairing: Taehyung x reader

Even though he lived next door, I hadn’t seen much of Taehyung outside of school since his dad left. His mom wasn’t forcing him to stay at home, he just didn’t want her to be alone. He was caring and sweet like that. We had mainly been talking through text. Graduation was only a few days away and that meant parties by the dozen were being planned.

[TaeTae]: You know Jongup is having a graduation party right?? :D

[Y/n]: Tae -.-’ no

[TaeTae]: Awww why not?

[Y/n]: You know how I feel about parties, especially after...

[TaeTae]: You can’t be serious! Shit happens Y/n!

[Y/n]: Shit happens sure...but I threw up all over Jackson and he still hasn’t spoken to me! It was embarrassing Tae!!!

[TaeTae]: Like I said shit happens! It was like a bazillion years ago!

[Y/n]: It was last year Tae...

[TaeTae]: Semantics...it happened. You can’t do anything about that now.

You thought about it and before you could even message him back, he sent you another text.

[TaeTae]: PLEEEEEEASE! Don’t make me go alone :/

You would do nearly anything for that boy.

[Y/n]: Fine

[TaeTae]: Yes! You wont regret it!

‘You wont regret it!’ Bullshit you thought.

On the day of graduation, it was bright and sunny so I dressed in my best dress, not that it mattered anyway since it was going to covered by the gown. First the principle gave a speech which seemed to go on forever. He talked about the importance of a good education and staying on top of your studies for those who were entering college. His monotone voice nearly put me to sleep, if it weren’t for everyone politely clapping at the end, I surely would have. To make matters worse, we had to painstakingly sit through the Class President’s speech. Nayeon also served as this years valedictorian. Not to mistake her as a boring person, cause she wasn’t she was just trying too hard to earn the few chortles of laughter from the audience. Her jokes and puns were cringe worthy, but if I had to choose who’s speech to sit through again I’d pick her over the principal.

One by one my peers were called up to the stage to receive their diploma. Friends and family cheered and clapped for their loved ones. When it was my row’s turn to walk up the few stairs and across the expanse of the stage, I paused to look towards the bleachers in search of my dad. Once I laid eyes on him, his face held a look of immense pride. He brought his hand up to swipe something off of his cheek, a tear you assumed. Such a big softy. I turned my attention to the person in front of me, their name was called out next and they graciously accepted their diploma.

Y/L/N Y/F/N.

As I accepted my own diploma, a voice rang out above all of the clapping. Taehyung. He was hollering louder than my own dad did, my eyes found his and he gave you a wink. Feeling a tinge of warmth shoot across the apples of my cheeks, I turned to the principal and shook his hand. Holding the piece of paper that I worked so hard for gently in the palm of my hand and made my way off of the stage. Once I settled back into my chair I let out a big breath I wasn’t even aware I was holding in. I did it, I actually did it.

Not more than ten minutes after my name had been called, it was Taehyung’s turn.

Kim Taehyung.

Never having spoken too loudly, and definitely never having screamed out before, I surprised those around me.

“WAAAY TO GO TAAAAAAAAE!”

His whole body spun around and his boxy grin graced his handsome face when he realized I was cheering for him. He quickly shot me a heart made out of his long fingers and blew me a kiss.

‘Well someone definitely has a crush on you,” Jiyeon leaned over and whispered while simultaneously nudging your shoulder with her own.

“Nah, we’re just friends. Best friends,” I replied trying to convince myself more than I was her.

“You blushing says otherwise,” Jiyeon retorted. She sat back into her chair dropping the conversation.

I watched Tae exit the stage and thought about what Jiyeon had said, what my dad had said, even what the hair stylist had said, Just friends didn’t look at each other like that. They really didn’t. I noticed the way his gaze seemed to linger lately, the way he would grip my hand a little tighter whenever he reached out to you, the way he would slightly bite his lip when words fell from my own. When he kissed me the night his dad left, if felt different than the innocent pecks he gave me over the years.

Things had shifted in our friendship but I weren’t sure when and I didn’t want to act on them in fear of ruining my relationship with Taehyung. I couldn’t lose him, he was my only real friend. I continued to think about all of the moments that proved everyone right in the fact that my best friend may or may not have a crush on me. Suddenly I was pulled from my thoughts when Nayeon stepped back up to the podium and shouted congratulations graduates and threw her cap into the air. Everyone followed suit, including me.

After having their caps back in their possessions, everything seemed to be moving in a slow motion blur. The crowd of graduates dispersed across the span of the football field towards their awaiting families. Many exchanging yearbooks for others to sign and taking tons of photos to last a lifetime. Which reminded me, Taehyung never returned my yearbook after I asked him to sign it. He claimed he didn’t have time to sign it right then and there in the middle of the hallway and he promised to return it to me as soon as possible. I didn’t mind though, everyone else that mattered to me had already signed it.

I stood in place like a statue trying to find even one of the two familiar faces; either my dad or Taehyung. A slight panic began to set in when I couldn’t locate either one of them, before I could even fish my phone from the depths of my bra, a pair of arms wrapped around me from behind.

“We did it Y/n. I’m so proud of you,” Tae’s breath ghosted my skin and sent goosebumps across my body when he whispered in my ear.

“I’m proud of you too Tae. Yah! Now let me go.” I playfully grumbled and twisted around in his embrace so that I was now facing him. Gulping as I did, I eyed him, pure elation graced his features. I loved seeing him happy, that’s all that mattered to me.

He dipped his head down, his fringe tickling my skin, he was slowly closing the space between the two of us. He’s gonna kiss me in front of everyone, I thought. Licking my lips in anticipation, I could feel tufts of heavy air wash over me as they left his lips. His arms held me tighter and I closed my eyes waiting for the kiss that never came because someone shouted and interrupted the two of us.

“Yo! Tae!” Bobby yelled for him over the buzzing sound of numerous conversations that took place around us. Taehyung groaned and put some space between the both of us, he turned to glare at Bobby who was waving him over.

While trying to return my pulse to a stable pace, I smoothed my hands down the front of my gown. I chuckled when I heard him mumble something about pummeling the poor boy. Before he left to see what Bobby wanted, the two of us made plans to meet up before the party that was taking place that night at Jongup’s.

“See you later.” Tae said leaving me but before he reached Bobby, he turned and winked.

Moments later I saw my dad making his way towards me with a bouquet of lilies.

“Congrats! I’m so proud of you kiddo!” Your dad beamed and pulled me to him.

“Thanks dad!” I said slightly out of breath from his bear hug. “You’re squishing me and the flowers!”

When he released me, he gave me an apologetic look. “Ready to go?” he asked. I simply nodded my head. I reached my dad’s truck and climbed inside slamming the door closed as he inserted the key into the ignition. It took a few minutes to back out and exit the parking lot. Memories of my time at that school played in my mind as the building’s image grew smaller and smaller in the rear-view mirror. Your dad’s voice shook me from my thoughts.

“Y/n?” he questioned.

“Huh - what? Sorry I spaced out.” I replied and it made him laugh.

“It’s okay. It was a big day for you, for us. I know your mother would have been proud.” He carefully spoke.

Sighing at the mention of my mom, she was taken from me early in life and obviously wasn’t there for all of the momentous events in my life. My double digit birthday, when I started middle school, when I started the monthly pain in the ass period, when I started high school, my first kiss, my first school dance, my first time with Changkyun shortly before he moved. She missed all of that.

“She would have been huh?” I murmured.

My dad reached over and squeezed my hand. For some reason my dad decided to take the long route back home, but for the rest of the drive, us two remained silent.

Once we got home, I went to put the flowers in a vase.

“Y/n?” my dad shouted from the living room. “You wanna go grab a bite to eat?”

My stomach grumbled at the mention of food.

“Yes! Let me go change first okay?” I replied as you retreated towards my room.

“No rush!” he shouted back to me.

I stopped dead in my tracks once I saw my yearbook sitting on my desk. Hmmm he must have snuck it in before graduation, I thought to myself. I walked over to my desk and opened the cover, trying to mentally prepare myself with what he had written. I never got the chance to read it before my dad called out saying that he was ready when I was. I shut the yearbook closed and got changed as quick as I could.

I tied my hair back and exited my room. Upon entering the living room my dad ended the call he was on.

“Ready?” my dad questioned. My stomach answered for me when it growled with hunger. “I guess so,” he chuckled.

He let me drive while he gave me instructions on where to turn left and where to turn right. Before I knew it, the scenery looked extremely familiar. He was directing you towards my favorite restaurant; Mommy’s Dumpling House. It was a bit on the pricey side and it was always jam-packed with customers.I pulled into the parking lot and saw that there were many other cars.

“It looks like they’re full. Maybe we should eat somewhere else.” I said observing the movement behind the window shades.

“Nahhh,” he drawled out. “I think we’ll be just fine.”

“Whatever you say,” I retorted, wary of his optimism. The silver colored bell chimed when my dad opened the door for me.

A somewhat tall boy who looked like he was just a few years older than me looked up. His blonde dyed hair slightly fell onto his brow line after he tried sweeping it back with a push of his hand.

“Welcome to Mommy’s Dumpling House, I’m Namjoon. How many today? Just the two of you?” he asked.

“Yep just us two,” my dad had a funny tone to his voice but I shook it off. “Celebrating my daughter’s graduation today.”

A knowing look fell across Namjoon’s face. “Ahhh okay,” he smirked. “Congratulations!” He said to me.

“Thanks,” I replied trying to keep the puzzlement out of my voice.

“Right this way,” he said and guided the both of us towards the back where they had sliding doors that closed off the rest of the restaurant. It was usually reserved for parties.

“Why are we going all the way back here?” I asked as you passed up a few of the empty tables we could have been seated at.

“Those tables are reserved,” Namjoon replied to me.

The three of us quickly approached the sliding doors. I noticed that another waiter stood at one end of the doors, Namjoon stopped at the other end. They pulled the doors open and my jaw went slack with shock.

“SURPRISE!” Everyone shouted. I looked at all of the familiar faces that were there to celebrate this big day with me. My aunt and cousins that I only got to see a few times during the year, a few other friends from school including Bobby, the librarian I bonded with over the years at school, my dad’s best friend and his kids who were basically family to me, smack dab in the middle was Taehyung and his mom.

“Dad...?” I looked at him and he shok his head.

“This was all Tae’s idea. He planned all of it.” he laughed at the incredulous look I gave him.

My eyes fell on the boy who meant the world to me. He had planned this amidst everything going on at home. He took the time to bring everyone together for me. My chest tightened and tears threatened to fill my eyes.

“Tae...-” I began but quickly stopped when he walked forward and pulled me to him. I was enclosed in his embrace and I swore it felt like it was just the two of us, just for that tiny moment. “Thank you,” I whispered.

“Anything for my best friend,” he whispered back.

The moment he let go of me, everyone started to settle into their chairs around the table. The waiters came and took everyone’s orders and soon enough plates upon plates of ambrosial food were placed in front of everyone. The room was graced with laughter inducing conversations. I looked around, seeing everyone I loved brought together on this big day made me happier than anyone knew. My eyes rested upon the image of Tae laughing and joking around with Bobby and I couldn’t help but think of how gorgeous he was, the sun that seeped through the shades hit him in the right way. His dirty blonde hair made his skin glow like honey, the lines that danced around his mouth when he laughed, the way his tongue poked out quickly to swipe his lips. Everything about this boy screamed ethereal.

“Earth to Y/n,” my dad said, waving his hand in front of my face. I shook those thoughts from my mind and saw that Taehyung was staring at me. A slight panic spread through your body, making me wonder how long he caught me looking at him.

“Yeah dad?” I mumbled.

“You okay?” he questioned.

“Yeah, I just got lost in my thoughts for as moment,” I sighed.

“Ahh okay. Eat up kiddo.” he replied.

For the rest of the meal I tried to keep my gaze off of Taehyung but every so often I looked at him, only to find that he already had his eyes on me.

Before everyone went their separate ways, they had each given me a hug, some sort of gift, and a small speech at how proud they were of me. It definitely made a few tears spring loose. I let my dad drive home so I could open the cards and gifts.

“Is there anything going on tonight?” my dad asked.

“There’s this party Jongup is having at his parents house,” I said absentmindedly while you read the card that came from my aunt. She had given me a small box that told me to wait to open it until I was alone.

“Tae is taking you?” he asked.

“Yeah he is,” I replied. “And yes I know, no driving if I’m going to have even one sip of alcohol, no drugs, no sex. Call if I need a ride or if something happens.” I stated because it was the one thing he said every time I went out.

“Good girl,” my dad laughed knowing he had told you over and over until it stuck in your mind.

Upon returning home I told my dad I was going to take a quick nap before Taehyung was due to pick me up. Shutting myself away from the rest of the house, I sat on my bed with the tiny box my aunt had given me. The tiny box creaked at its hinge as I lifted the lid. Inside laid a very simple, yet beautiful silver locket. I opened the heart-shaped necklace to find a picture of my mom and grandmother on one side and me and my mom on the other. My eyes began to fill with tears as emotions washed over me. A note was fitted into the top of the lid, I carefully slid it out of its place and opened it.

“My dearest daughter,

I was given this on my own graduation day from my mother. Today is the day you graduate and I know you will make both your father and I very proud. I’m so proud of you already my sweet girl. I know that whatever you decide to do in life, you will excel at it and achieve all of your hopes and dreams. Don’t forget, I love you.

Always and Forever, Mom”

I couldn’t have stopped the tears even if I tried. I unclasped the hook and reached up to put on the silver gift. It rested right above my heart and slightly to the right. Right in that moment I missed her so much it hurt. It was weird growing up without a mom when all of the other kids did. My dad felt like he had to make up for that and bought me things I didn’t need. I needed a mom. Nonetheless I was happy she wasn’t in pain anymore and for that I was so grateful. I laid my head on my pillow, my fingers toyed with the heart locket and tried to remember everything I could about my mom as I slowly let sleep take over.

My phone buzzed repeatedly until I picked up. “Hello,” I grumbled, voice heavy with sleep.

“Y/n were you sleeping?” Tae nearly shouted.

“Yah! Shhh. Yes I was. I was tired.” I said finally opting to sit up and wipe the sleep from my eyes.

“I’m coming over in an hour to pick you up for the party.” He said without giving me a chance to say anything before he hung up.

“Fucker,” I mumbled, getting up to put my half depleted phone on the charger. I washed up in my bathroom and made my way over to my closet.

“What to wear...” I said out loud to no one but myself. The hangers clinked against one another as I rifled through my options.

Almost an hour later, just as Taehyung had promised a soft knock sounded on my door.

“Come in!” I shouted from the bathroom where I was putting the last minute touches on my hair and make up.

“You ready yet?” Tae asked as he plopped down onto my bed.

“Yeah just let me get my bag,” I answered him. Grabbing my little back bag to hold my phone and wallet and slinging it over my shoulder. I turned to see him eyeing me with a big grin. “What? I look hideous? I knew it,” I huffed going to my closet to find something else, but he stopped me.

“No you look great!” He said and the look on his face told me he really meant it. “Let’s go.” he pulled me out of my room and into the living room where my dad was waiting.

“Remember the rules?” he asked looking at me, his eyes dipped down to the necklace and he fought back emotions at recognizing who it used to belong to.

“Yes dad,” I rolled my eyes sarcastically. “We know the rules.” I stood up on my tip-toes to place a kiss on his cheek.

“Just saying,” he retorted. “Keep my baby safe Tae.” he said clapping a hand down on his shoulder.

“Will do sir.” he said before exiting my house right behind me. He opened the passenger’s door for me on his car door. “M’lady.”

“Such a gentleman you are,” I laughed. Closing my door he walked around the front of the car and sat in the drivers side.

“Ready for the best night of our lives?” he asked grinning at me before turning up the music and backing out of the driveway.

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amazingphanisnotonfire-imagines · 7 years ago

Text

Dan and Phil (Phan) Imagine: Strawberries and Cigarettes

I recommend listening to Troye Sivan’s ‘Strawberries and Cigarettes’ while reading this.

“Do you remember when we first met?” Dan asked quietly and lifted his head off Phil’s chest.

“Yeah. Why?” Phil asked confused and looked down at Phil who was staring intently at him.

“I’m just wondering. It was a while ago.”

“How could I forget. You approached me trying to look all scary and badass and asked me if I could ‘light my cigarette’ and then I looked at you like ‘do I look like the type of person that would have a lighter’ and then you laughed when I didn’t answer and gave me your number.” He laughed at the memory and Dan laughed too. “And then I lied to my mum and dad and jumped the fence of the back garden so I could meet you in the fields behind my house.”

“You did not! You never told me that!” Dan exclaimed and lightly hit Phil’s chest.

“Hey! I was feeling adventurous. I liked you and I wanted to impress you. But then when I found you in the completely wrong place to what you told me, we couldn’t go anywhere because you had locked your keys in your car, so we sat on the hood of your car.” Phil teased him. “And I could see you staring at my lips even though it was dark. But if we are being completely honest I could already feel your kiss. Does that sound stupid?”

“No. That makes complete sense, because I felt the exact same. You may say that I was staring at your lips but I know you were staring at mine too, so don’t try to act all innocent with me.” Dan argued playfully. “I remember you’re black jeans that were definitely too tight for you, maybe you wore them on purpose.” He winked. “And your blue eyes. How could I forget your blue eyes that stared straight through me. They still do, and they still send shivers down my spine. And remember all of the long nights that we would spend together, when you would tell your parents that you were studying at a friends and I would tell mine that I was staying at my friends house because he needed help babysitting. You know that friend was an only child and I’m pretty sure my parents knew that.” He laughed and Phil giggled. Dan lay his head back down on Phil’s chest and smiled.

“Why are you smiling?” Phil asked.

“Just thinking.”

“About?”

“Us.” He sighed peacefully. “I am so tired.” He sighed.

“Same. It will be all of the traveling and the shows. Plus I don’t think we can get much sleep in the beds of the tour bus. I can’t wait until we are staying in a hotel. I’m going to sleep the entire time we are there.” Phil complained and Dan laughed slightly. “Can you remember when you finally took me on that date and you tried to impress me by going 60 on a 30 road so you could drop me back off at my house before it started to look suspicious to my parents.”

“Yeah and you were screaming because you thought you were going to die and then I asked which one would be better if your parents did find out.”

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Can you remember our first kiss?”

“How could I forget. In the back of the cab on the way back from a party, and your hand was in mine as you kissed me and then they started to wander and the cab driver coughed to interrupt us and then it was so awkward the rest of the way home. I remember I tipped the driver a lot.” Dan laughed and Phil blushed as he remembered what had happened. “But before that you asked the driver to stop outside of the shop on the way back to yours because you wanted strawberry laces and then when you came back out you had bought cigarettes for me and I looked at you and thought ‘yeah, he is the one’, and that was the moment I knew that I loved you and I wanted to be with your forever.” He smiled fondly and Phil rolled his eyes.

“Thanks. You love me because I helped your bad habit.” Phil replied annoyed.

“No. You know what I mean. Like, I hadn’t asked you to get them but you saw them and thought of me and that made me smile. Even if they were bad for me. And anyway, I stopped smoking ages ago soooo. And the next day you didn’t even call me, I was so worried that I was rubbish at kissing and that I had ruined it, and then you posted cigarettes through my letterbox with a note saying that you wanted to meet at your house that night because your parents had gone away for the weekend, and well you know what happened that night.” He winked.

“Shut up.” Phil blushed.

“Make me.” Dan smirked and Phil kissed him quickly. After they pulled away Phil looked at down and smiled.

“What?” Dan asked.

“Can I tell you a secret?”

“Sure.”

“I tried smoking after we started dating.”

“What!” Dan asked shocked. “Why!”

“I wanted to impress you.” He admitted.

“Aww. You were smitten from the start.” Dan teased.

“Stop it.” Phil blushed.

“You are adorable.” Dan giggled and hugged him tightly.

“Can I tell you another secret?”

“Hmmm. No.” Dan joked and Phil rolled his eyes again. “Yes dear. Anything.” He smiled and Phil moved closer to him, there faces almost touching.

“Strawberries and cigarettes always taste like you.” He whispered and kissed Dan softly.

#dan and phil #dan and phil imagine #phan #phan imagine #phanfiction #dan howell #daniel howell #phil lester #amazingphil #daniel howell imagine #phil lester imagine #phan fluff #imagine

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hard-satin · 8 years ago

Text

Muted (4.03)

Masterlist

I was on the field for tryouts. Liam was doing really well in warmups. I told him so and he blushed profusely before tripping over his own two feet. Malia and Kira were in the stands to support me and the boys. The boys who were running late as per usual.

I leaned against the stands with my girls watching as Liam dominated in goal. I let out a low whistle as he stooped everything sent his way.

“Nice Liam, you could be our first ever freshman captain.” I listen to one of his friends praising him. I smirked as I looked over to see Scott and Stiles with worried looks on their faces.

“Maybe we should just practice a little bit.” Stiles told Scott. I laughed at my two moronic friends.

The first day went well. Coach wasn’t really marking or scoring. It was just to loosen up and get us back in the grove for more rigorous tryout. I met up with Liam while he was sitting on the bench taking his pads off. He looked sad.

“Hey what’s got you down? You did really well today.” I told him as I sat down beside him.

“Nothing.” He told me quickly.

“Come on Liam. You can talk to me.” I told him.

“I failed my last two english tests. I’m afraid even if I’m good enough coach isn’t going to put me on the team just because my grades suck right now.” Liam confessed. I could sympathise, Scott had been in essentially the same situation last lacrosse season.

“Tell you what, english is one of my best subjects. How about I help you out. I have some free time right now. Do you wanna get changed and meet me in the library? I’ll let coach know I’m working with you so he knows you’re serious about your grades.” I offered.

“You’d do that for me?” Liam asked in amazement.

“Yeah. Meet me in twenty.” I told him getting up and gathering my equipment.

“Alright.” He told me before I turned away and jogged off to the locker room.

Liam met me fifteen minutes later. I had my books already spread out across a table in the library. He came over with a weird look on his face.

“What’s up? You look weird.” I told him as he took the seat next to me.

“It’s nothing just some weird juniors. They cornered me in the locker room and started asking me weird questions. One of them said something about the full moon. It was just weird.” Liam told me. I closed my eyes and let out a controlled sigh of anger.

“I’m sorry Liam. Scott and Stiles are my friends and they can be assholes sometimes. Especially Stiles.” I told him.

“I noticed.” Liam said.

“Just ignore them okay. We have a lot we need to go over.” I told him before we got started on studying. Liam picked it up really fast. Almost too fast.

“Hey Liam?” I asked as he packed up his things once we were done with studying.

“Hmmm.” He answered focused on zipping his backpack.

“You didn’t really need help in english did you?” I asked knowingly. He looked up at me sheepishly, the familiar blush covering his cheeks.

“No. I heard it was your best subject. I thought it would be a good way to spend time with you.” Liam confessed.

“We’re going to be on the same team together. We will be spending time together everyday.” I told him.

“I wanted to spend time with you alone.” Liam told me. My face fell at his words. Void’s voice ringing in my ears. I was a true omega, cursed to live a life unloved. This little freshman had a crush on me because I was older and nice to him.

“Oh Liam.” I said sympathy in my voice. His eyes fell as he read into my rejection. He turned and walked away.

“Just forget it. Thanks for the lesson.” He tried to cover the pain in his voice, but I was a werewolf. I heard it all.

“Hey, just listen all right. You’re great. As a person and a lacrosse player but this just isn’t going to happen.” I said pointing between us.

“I get it.” He told me tightly.

“No, you don’t. It’s not because you’re younger or anything about you. I just can’t do this with anyone. I don’t have it in me and I’m sorry if I lead you on but I do want to be your friend. I would really like to be your friend.” I told him. He seemed to soften at my words.

“Yeah, I’d like that.” He told me I smiled at him opening my arms for a hug. He accepted and I headed off to class.

“Where you just with that junior girl?” I heard one of his friends come up to ask him as I walked away.

“Yeah, that’s Jamie. She’s really cool.” Liam told him. I smiled at his kind words.

“Wait, are you friends with her?” The boy asked.

“Yeah.” Liam answered him.

“That’s so cool man.” His friend praised, I giggled under my breath before rounding the corner.

I was walking to math when I saw Malia retreating from the room. Stiles intercepted her before she could escape and lead her back into the room with me following close behind.

“What’s up Lia?” I asked her.

“I hate math. It’s pointless.” She told us as Stiles forced her to a desk. I plopped down in front of her and across from Lydia.

“It’s school. School is important and math is essential.” Stiles assured her as he took a seat behind her.

“For knowing how much to tip at restaurants.” Stiles told her with a cheeky wink that went right over the confused brunette head.

“And less important things like medicine, economics, engineering.” Lydia added sending Stiles a disapproving look.

“Tipping.” He repeated giving Malia a thumbs up.

“Alright volunteers to the board. Lydia, Jamie, Malia.” Our teacher called out. I joined Lydia at the board. Malia stayed in her seat.

“I didn’t volunteer.” Malia informed our teacher.

“You did now. To the board.” Our teacher told her. Malia joined Lydia and I reluctantly.

“Didn’t you go over the notes I gave you?” Lydia asked as Malia stood in front of the blackboard like a deer in the headlights.

“I didn’t understand them.” Malia confessed.

“X equals 25.” Lydia told her.

“Oh, and Lia. Put away the claws.” I told her as Lydia and I finished our problems and headed back to our seats.

“An axe murderer?” Kira asked Stiles as he tried to explain to her, Scott and I about the killing spree that had taken place last night.

“Family murdering axe murderer.” Stiles clarified in a way that didn’t help much.

“I already heard about it.” Scott confessed to Stiles.

“Wait what? Yeah, my mom called me. She didn’t want me to see it on the news.” Scott told him.

“Perfect. Let's go.” Stiles told us before turning to leave.

“Whoa, we have econ in five minutes.” Scott told him.

“Did you forget the part about the family murdering axe murderer?” Stiles asked.

“Did you forget the part where your dad’s the sheriff? They want us to stay out of it.” Scott told him.

“Are you guys kidding me? There’s a family murdering axe murderer and we’re not going to do anything about it?” Stiles asked genuinely shocked.

“Maybe we should just let the adults handle it.” Kira told him.

“So the three of you just want to stay here. School. Go to class.” Stiles asked looking between us all.

“Yes.” I told him firmly.

“I’ve never heard something so irresponsible in my life.” Stiles told us before walking off in a huff.

“See you at tryouts.” Scott called after him. Then the bell rang.

“Come on Scottie. We gotta go.” I told Scott bumping his shoulder.

“So you know that thing you wanted to talk about?” Scott turned to Kira.

“Yeah.” She told him happily.

“Do you mind waiting until after tryouts? It won’t be that long.” Scott asked her as I bounced anxiously behind him.

“Sure.” She told him somewhat reluctantly.

“Great, see you then.” Scott told her before leaning in and giving her a quick kiss and rushing off to econ. I followed behind him in utter shock. I took the seat next to him still staring at him.

“What?” He asked noticing my stare. I didn’t say anything and watched as what he just did dawned on him.

“Oh god.” He said out loud.

“That barely covers it my friend.” I told him before turning my attention to class.

Coach came and got me from the girls room when all the boys were decent. He brought me into the locker room before blowing his whistle to get everyone’s attention. I spotted Liam when he waved to me. I smiled and joined him on the bench as i listened to coach.

“As a reminder, It’s an open tryout today. All positions available. This is a rebuilding season people. Jackson’s gone, lahey’s gone, Greenberg the guy I actually wanted gone was held back, again. Get your asses on the field!” He yelled I grabbed my stick to head out but I noticed Liam was hanging back.

“You coming?” I asked him.

“Yeah, I’ll meet you out there.” He told me. I nodded before running off.

I chatted with Malia and Kira while I waited for everyone to get outside. We were starting with laps. I knew I was going to do fine. Even before I was a werewolf I was fast. Liam jogged up to take his mark beside me.

“Think you can keep up?” He challenged looking over at my with a smirk. I laughed at him.

“Give the boy a pretty junior girl for a friend and he suddenly has the balls to take her on. Let’s see what you got Dunbar.” I taunted as coach blew the whistle and i took off. He was hot on my heels as we ran. The two of us actually lapped everyone else as we ran. I looked at him with a smile as we neared the finish before I kicked it into high gear throwing in some supernatural speed just to make sure I beat him. I grinned at him as we both panted, everyone else ran by us with one more lap to go as I gave him a high five.

“Well done.” I told him before dropping down to do some pushups. Working out my upper body to help me get in the zone for the rest of the tryouts. Liam sat down next to me as I busted out fifty.

“What, to tired to do pushups?” I taunted him as I got back up. He smirked at me before rolling over to bust out some pushups of his own. I jogged over to Scott where he had just finished his run.

“Is that everyone?” Coach yelled scanning the field. Just then Stiles ran up to the end point breathing hard and sweating like a pig. He collapses as Scott ran over to help him up.

“Yup that’s everyone.” Coach said sadly as Scott struggled to keep Stiles up.

“Who came in first?” Stiles asked. I scoffed at him.

“Who came in after you?” Stiles corrected himself. I nodded to Liam who was still doing pushups on the grass.

“Is he even human? What is he, like a werecheetah? Does that even exist? Is that a thing?” Stiles asked still fighting for breath.

“I think he’s just that good.” Scott told him.

“I’m going to puke take me somewhere.” Stiles told Scott. I laughed as Scott dragged him away.

We lined up for shots. I went first, nailing the goal with ease. Stiles stepped up next. It was hard to resist laughing at him with everyone else as he struggled to even get a ball in his stick. THen he launched it right into the goalies stick and I couldn’t help but let out a low chuckle and he joined Scott and I in the back. Liam was up next.

“You know maybe he’s only good in goal. Totally useless everywhere else.” Stiles said hopefully. I knew otherwise. I watched as Liam launched the ball into the back of the net with ease. Coach cheered as he jogged back.

“Maybe he’s just perfect at everything. I hate this kid.” Stiles told us.

“You don’t have to hate him. The team needs new players.” Scott pointed out.

“What about a new team captain?” Stiles asked. I high fived Liam as he ran by and Scott stepped up to take his shot. Stiles looked at me in shock.

“What?” I asked him.

“Traitor.” He told me. I rolled my eyes at his juvenile pettiness.

I watched as Scott launched his shot and it bounced off the metal edge of the goal. The team laughed. The rest of the shots went pretty much the same. I had no problem scoring and Liam had an even easier time, but Scott and Stiles were struggling big time.

“Dude what is going on with you?” Stiles asked as Scott missed his tenth shot in a row.

“I’m having a really off day.” Scott told him.

“Off day? You’re dying out there.” Stiles told him.

“I didn’t see you making any shots.” Scott pointed out.

“That’s because I am terrible.” Stiles told him.

“He’s not wrong.” I assured Scott. Stiles gave me a you’re not helping glare before turning back to Scott.

“You are the alpha.” Stiles told him.

“Not on the field. I’m human on the field.” Scott told him.

“Jamie lets the wolf out on the field.” Stiles tried to tell him.

“No I don’t.” I informed him.

“Not even a little?” He asked turning to me. I shook my head.

“Well either way human you is kind of sucking at the moment, so do you think there is anyway you could use like a little tiny bit of wolf power?” Stiles asked turning back to plead with Scott.

“It’s cheating.” Scott told him sounding conflicted.

“I know it is. I just hate to see this little freshman coming and stealing all your glory after you worked your tushy off. I hate it.” Stiles told him.

“He’s not going to steal all the glory.” Scott assured him just as Liam made an extraordinary shot and the team went nuts for him. I turned to look at Scott as his eyes lit up red. Coach blew his whistle before Scott could do anything and we all jogged over to him.

“McCall, Stilinski, grab the long sticks. You’re covering goal for two on ones.” Coach told them. I sighed as they picked up the sticks.

I was first in line and made quick work of getting around my friends and scoring on them. Using Stiles to trip Scott up. I raced to the side to watch as the rest of the team went up against them.

One of the new kids went next and Scott and Stiles knocked the ball from his net. Coach and the rest of the team cheered. The knocked down player after player. Coach was getting more and more excited. Then Liam stepped up. I watched as he ran at the two boys, he easily dodged Stiles and then when Scott ran at him he pulled of an impressive spin move to get past him and charge the goalie. His shot was flawless as it soared into the back of the net.

“That was luck. Do over.” Malia yelled from the stands.

“Sweetheart there’s no do overs this is practice.” Coach told her.

“Ten bucks on Scott and Stiles.” Malia yelled.

“I’ll take that action. Hey get back in there Liam.” Coach ordered. Liam stepped up again and a bad feeling washed over me. Liam charged in and Stiles flailed around him, again Liam passed him with no problem but when he reached Scott he was flipped and landed hard on his back. I didn’t need supernatural hearing to know that his leg was messed up. I ran across the field to Liam's side.

“Don’t move. Don’t touch him.” Coach yelled as Liam tried to struggle to his feet. I ignored coach and wrapped Liam’s arm over my head to support him as he stood.

“I’m okay coach, I’m alright.” Liam insisted as he limped around.

“We should probably take him to the nurse.” Stiles told coach as he and Scott followed us off the field.

We ended up needing to take Liam to the hospital. I glared at Scott and Stiles through the rearview mirror the entire time. When we arrived Stiles tried to help me help Liam but I shooed him away and followed after Scott.

Melissa showed up a second after we made it to the front desk. SHe brought a wheelchair and I followed behind her as she wheeled Liam to an examination room. I sent one last withering glare over my shoulder to Scott and Stiles before I rounded the corner and they were out of sight.

I held Liam’s hand as his stepfather examined his foot. He was squeezing it hard but I barely noticed the pain. I even tried to take some of his. Only a little at a time when he wasn’t looking so he wouldn’t notice.

“Okay. Take it easy.” His stepdad warned him as he flinched again.

“It’s broken isn’t it? Liam asked clearly upset.

“It’s definitely going to need an x-ray.” His stepdad told him.

“It’s broken and it’s my fault.” Liam said sadly.

“Liam, trust me this was not your fault.” I tried to reassure him but he wouldn’t meet my eyes.

“You want to tell me what happened?” His stepfather asked him.

“I went up against two juniors. One of them’s captain of the team.” Liam told him.

“And they’re both idiots.” I told him.

“Who are you?” Liam’s dad turned to me.

“I’m Jamie SIr. I’m friends with Liam and unfortunately both of the morons that got him hurt.” I told him, extending my free hand. He shook it and nodded at me.

“Well you know what I always say son, play smarter not harder.” Liams stepdad said turning back to him and placing a hand on his shoulder.

“You mad at me?” Liam asked.

“No, of course not. Your mom might be mad at me for getting you into Lacrosse but I think we should both wait for the x-ray before we panic. And trust me I have more reason to panic than you.” His stepdad told him before leaving to go attend to other patients. Liam looked really down but he hadn’t let go of my hand yet. So I just held onto it and stood next to him in silence. I was still with Liam when I heard screaming and growling. Liam heard it too. I tried to tell him to stop but he insisted on getting out of bed to see what was going on. I threw his arm over my shoulder and helped him into the hallway.

“Hey! Did anyone hear that?” Liam yelled but no one was around. He turned to me.

“I thought I heard something.” He said apologetically. I was about to help him back inside when I saw his eyes widen in fear. I turned to see a boy with rows of razor sharp teeth covered in blood. I dropped Liam’s arm preparing to fight but before I could shift the kid threw me into the wall. I felt the plaster crack beneath my weight. The last thing I saw before my world went black was the monstrous kids dragging Liam off as he screamed out for me.

#malia tate #malia hale #lydia martin #scott mccall #stiles stilinski #kira yukimura #liam dunbar #derek hale #jordan parrish #teen wolf

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fantasticliesandwheretofindthem · 6 years ago

Text

Origins and Breedings Grounds

Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field that the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat of any tree in the garden?’”

At a debate, John Lennox, an outspoken Oxford professor and Christian apologist was asked by an audience member, “Wasn’t it unfair that God created a tree of knowledge and ordered Adam and Eve to stay away from it? Why would a loving God keep his “loved ones” away from knowledge?” Professor Lennox smiled and replied, “That is an excellent question. It’s an excellent question because it’s the same one the serpent asked in the garden.” The whole auditorium erupted in laughter and then “Oooohh’s” as the weight of his statement hit them.

Much can be said about the nature of the serpent’s question and how ingeniously it was crafted (which will be discussed later) but our focus will be on where such lies are birthed. If we can identify where lies originate, we can better be lay those areas at the feet of Jesus for healing and repentance.

Simply stated, lies are birthed from two locations; others and ourselves. This is shown most clearly from the beginning at Genesis 3:

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Here at first glance, we see the obvious; the serpent lies to Eve. It’s been told in kid’s stories and cartoons multiple times. I suspect one of the reasons why it’s been told that way is because it makes us feel victimized; we respond emotively when lied to and thus are more likely to engrain such event in our memory[1]. A few years ago, I was on my way home when a stout man approached me asking for money. He began to tell me how his car got towed, how his family was waiting at a precinct, how he needed money to take the subway downtown to retrieve his car. His story moved me to say the least and I considered giving him more than enough to help him—however, I asked to see his family first. He at first explained that his family was several blocks away and that he wouldn’t want them to be a bother; I insisted that it wouldn’t be. He then pleaded to my face for help and teared up. I continued to ask him questions to learn more about his situation. Finally, I went to an officer nearby and asked if they knew of his family. “I wasn’t here when that happened.” the officer said. “Oh, there was another officer who was here to help me”, the man replied. “Hmmm, I think Jerry was on duty then.”, she replied, “Did you see a tall male officer with blonde hair? Was he the one helping your family?” “Yeah, yeah! That’s him!” the man exclaimed. “Ok, then yeah!” the officer turned to me and said, “There was no Jerry. You can take that as you will.” “Thank you.” I stated and turned swiftly away, feeling anger reeling in my head. I had just wasted twenty minutes trying to help this guy and now he was cussing me out. The crazy thing is this happened again several years later with someone else when I moved to upstate New York!

Although it has been several years, I still feel the bitter outrage whenever I recall that moment. I felt like I was almost used; in that man’s eyes, I was another sucker to catch and fry. Did he even see me as human? Did he not realize that I actually had compassion for him? But the hard fact that he had almost used my empathy for his own gain wasn’t even the worst thing I had to face; it was that I too had done the same thing to others.

Looking back at the Genesis story, we see that the serpent wasn’t the only liar in that garden.

Look closely Eve’s response. “…and you must not touch it, or you will die.” Flipping to a few lines before, we find that God says nothing of a sort to Adam and Eve! Therein lies the ugly truth. We aren’t just victims but are perpetrators as well. As a child, I once stumbled upon what I thought was an amazing discovery; if I did something wrong and told the truth, I would be punished. However, if I did something wrong and denied wrong doing, I increased my chances of avoiding punishment! And so began my childhood string of non-stop lying. At one point, my mother even had told me she couldn’t trust me anymore and my response was “So does this mean I’m in trouble?” Congratulations to me. Before any man had ever lied to me, I had succeeded in deceive even myself; that punishment free fun was all that mattered, not the relationships I had.

And it is with that, I believe we find the crux of the origin of lies; our fractured relationships, not only with others, but God himself.

“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” (Emphasis mine)

When the serpent tells lies, it’s not just telling lies to deceive Eve into sinning, but it’s actually distorting Eve’s understanding of who God is. God is no longer a trustworthy benevolent father, but a selfish insecure being, hoarding his knowledge and power. Eve’s lie is no exception to this distortion. In Mike Cosper’s Recapturing the Wonder, he writes,

“What [God] prescribed for righteousness – don’t eat from that tree—they trusted, believed and obeyed. But when the serpent shows up, they make an attempt to take their righteousness even further—we don’t even touch it—and present themselves as “unimpeachably careful”. It’s a goodness that is independent of God , that doesn’t need him, and it’s a break from union with him.”[2]

Adam and Eve knew only the God of “very good”. After giving them dominion over all creation, God only asked for trust and faithful obedience in return. Instead, Eve’s lie revealed a new self-made commandment that required self-righteous action. That there was even a possibility of something --or someone-- you can trust more than God was enough of relational fracture to which the rest of sin blew wide open.

A few years ago, I was introduced to this model as a way to help children to reflect on sin as more than just “doing something bad”. Instead, it gave a wider view of how it affected one’s relationship with their Maker. It was called the “shark chart”. It was called so because the danger of a shark isn’t the top fin that you see but rather it’s the jaws underneath the surface that can really hurt you. Likewise, the danger of our sins lies truly in our tattered relationship with God. Like a naive swimmer who thinks that since the fin is gone means the water is free of sharks, so is the sinner who thinks that since they “stopped” doing something bad, means their life with God is going well. (Idols simply offer the lie with which we replace God’s character and promises with.)

Figure 1.

Here are some case studies: Abraham gave his wife to Pharaoh (sin) because he believed that his safety depended on him and his strategy and possessions (lie). At his core, he failed to believe that God would keep him safe and fulfill his promise to “fill the earth” with his descendants. Annas and Sapphira lied to the apostles and to God (sin) because they loved wealth and social attention (lie was that no one would find out and that wealth and attention would make them secure). At their core, they didn’t believe that God was more than enough for them nor that he would know their hearts. Adam and Eve ate the fruit (sin) because they trusted in their own abilities to know right from wrong and to be righteous (lie). At their core, they failed to believe God’s loving tenderness and that he wanted their best.

Lies come from within and without but ultimately, they are found in brokenness of relationship. “What if I can’t trust him? What if I can’t get what I want? What if they hurt us?” are just the tip of the icebergs that can sink our relationship with others and give us cause to justify acting and speaking dishonestly. Broken relationships that birth lies can be categorized into three; relationship with ourselves, relationship with others and relationship with whole communities and systems.

Lies from ourselves

For many of us, it may seem easy to recall the lies that have been told to us, and although that will be addressed, we need to start off right-- By recognizing that the breeding ground of lies come from our own heart, or as the prophet said in Jeremiah 17:9, “The heart is deceitful above all else. Who can understand it?”. If we only perceive the lies coming from our relationships, systems and our spiritual enemies, then we play the Pharisee, failing to see our fractured relationship with God while pointing out everyone else’ issues.

I won’t forget when a student once pulled me aside and expressed his displeasure that he was passed over for a leadership position. He insisted that the leadership selection team had made a mistake and that since he was older than the appointed leader, he should have been given “the honor” of at least being interviewed. He then proceeded to share the pain and distress he’s experienced because we passed him over and he suggested that since he was not seen fit to lead at the executive level, he shouldn’t serve or lead at all. As we talked more, it became apparent to me what the real issue was; he valued himself based on his popularity and his titles. It’s what drove him to stay up late looking for job applications and gave him well paying internships, it’s what drove him to serve and lead in the fellowship and gave him a position where others looked up to him. Now that a coveted title and leadership image was denied to him, the lie saw its chance to hurt him; they think you are worthless. They don’t realize how much you’ve put into this fellowship. They look down on you and you don’t belong here. In that moment, I called out the lie and told this student the truth; that who he was is someone dearly loved by Jesus. He’s not loved less, nor is he a failure nor is he worthless because of his lack of leadership title. His worth and status was in who Jesus saw him to be; someone worth dying for.

Confronting lies from ourselves also requires development of emotionally healthy self-awareness. More than once in my student team meetings, it was shared that students were too “burnt” out to do ministry. The team would feel disheartened and voice temptation to give up on our goals. Then we started to ask, “Who feels burnt out?” “People” would not be allowed as a valid answer. The more we drilled down, the more we found that it wasn’t actually everyone who felt burnt out (A lie! Oh my!). We narrowed it down to students in a class year which then got narrowed down to two students who were taking a difficult class that semester! The process of spreading anxiety in an organization results from members unable to self-differentiate- or as Friedman defines “knowing where on begins and where one ends.”[4] Without understanding that someone’s situation and feelings are different from our own, we can easily adopt their attitudes and postures. Poor self-awareness resulted in individual members adopting the feelings of a few to the generalization of the whole. Too many times in my ministry have I seen individuals take up the belief or opinion for no other real reason than it got spread around. Three people do indeed create a tiger! Effects like this only emphasize the need to grow in self-awareness to unearth our unsaid beliefs and values- whether it’s implicit expectations or subtle emotional responses, these need to be uprooted so that we can bring them to be reconciled before God. Helpful tools my regional staff use are the significant incident report and the situation behavior impact debrief. Both resources are shared at the end of this chapter.

Lies from our relationships

Examples for this category are probably most unneeded. As stated above, we all have experienced being lied to in our relationships, whether those relationships are with our parents and elders (About Santa, tooth fairy, or Korean fan death or taking shower after eating if you’re Asian), from our siblings, or from strangers (like my example in the introduction). It’s so common, in fact, researchers has argued it’s almost even natural as we age.

According to a National Geographic article, a social experiment was conducted on children and lies:

To study lying in children, Lee and his colleagues use a simple experiment. They ask kids to guess the identity of toys hidden from their view, based on an audio clue. For the first few toys, the clue is obvious—a bark for a dog, a meow for a cat—and the children answer easily. Then the sound played has nothing to do with the toy. “So you play Beethoven, but the toy’s a car,” Lee explains. The experimenter leaves the room on the pretext of taking a phone call—a lie for the sake of science—and asks the child not to peek at the toy. Returning, the experimenter asks the child for the answer, following up with the question: “Did you peek or not?”

Most children can’t resist peeking, Lee and his researchers have found by monitoring hidden cameras. The percentage of the children who peek and then lie about it depends on their age. Among two-year-old transgressors, only 30 percent are untruthful. Among three-year-olds, 50 percent lie. And by eight, about 80 percent claim they didn’t peek.

Kids also get better at lying as they get older. In guessing the toy that they secretly looked at, three- and four-year-olds typically blurt out the right answer, without realizing that this reveals their transgression and lying. At seven or eight, kids learn to mask their lying by deliberately giving a wrong answer or trying to make their answer seem like a reasoned guess.

Five- and six-year-old kids fall in between. In one study Lee used Barney the dinosaur as the toy. A five-year-old girl who denied having looked at the toy, which was hidden under a cloth, told Lee she wanted to feel it before guessing. “So she puts her hand underneath the cloth, closes her eyes, and says, ‘Ah, I know it’s Barney,’ ” Lee recounts. “I ask, ‘Why?’ She says, ‘Because it feels purple.’ ”[1]

But even if we learn to lie from a young age and it’s “natural”, an interesting question arises; why don’t we lie all the time? And why do we tend to believe people even though we know all of us have lied before? What another researcher in the same article found

“… interesting is not why so many lie, but rather why they don’t lie a lot more. Even when the amount of money offered for correct answers is raised significantly, the volunteers [in her experiment] don’t increase their level of cheating. “Here we give people a chance to steal lots of money, and people cheat only a little bit. So something stops us—most of us—from not lying all the way,” Ariely says. The reason, according to him, is that we want to see ourselves as honest, because we have, to some degree, internalized honesty…”

We are built by God to be in relationship; no man or woman is an island and relationships require trust. It’s something we can never get run from. When those relationships are betrayed, it pains us greatly because it affects one of our core purposes- to be loving relationship with one another.

[1] https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2017/06/lying-hoax-false-fibs-science/

Lies from our systems and organizations

These lies are usually trickier to identify because they stem from a whole group rather than just one person (although one person can influence the whole group to believe it!). Lies from systems or organizations usually affect the group’s culture and unsaid beliefs. The narrative of “burnt out” wasn’t just discovered when I started ministry as staff but much earlier when I was a student. In my undergrad years, there was a large belief that everyone was tired and no one wanted to reach out to newcomers and unbelievers. It was something everyone accepted as true and something everyone planned around. “We can’t reach out to people, we can’t ask them to do this, we can’t ask them to come. Why? Because they’re probably all tired and burnt out and tired, so why bother asking them? It wasn’t later till my staff worker started to ask the question “Who? Who is tired and burned out?” the truth was revealed.

Other systemic lies are harder to find and can result in very angry and hostile responses when called out. One such lie is the equality of all people in America.

When I was younger, my mom used to watch the ABC news at 5pm without fail every weekday. My siblings and I would hop on over, and simply watch whatever was on (I even memorized the news anchors names and could imitate them if I wanted to!). On a particular news segment, helicopter footage showed chaos in city streets as a majority Black protestors were clashing with police. The footage would cut to Rev Al Sharpton as he would blast against discrimination and mistreatment of the Black community. “They’re crazy.” I told myself. “They’ve been here for years. They know English and have access to education but my uncles and aunties have come to this country knowing nothing, and they can survive and do well without blaming anyone or shouting in the streets. Why can’t these people be responsible and do the same?” I’ve read in my history books how America was a great country founded by people who wanted to start over, to work hard and achieve anything. Sure, there were some bad things that happened, slavery and mistreatment of Native Americans, but those things were history. We’re coming to a brighter future. Surely things are different now right?” As I’ve come to grow older and listened to experiences of my Black brothers and sisters, I’ve come to realize the how simplistic and outright wrong those thoughts were. People were still being prejudiced implicitly if not explicitly and with alarming effects. It was only a generation ago when Black men were punched for speaking to White women or when Black children forced to sit away from white children as if they were some disease. But the lie- that anyone can become anything in America- had broken my view and relationship with the Black community. Rather than seeing them as people were voicing their pain and fear, I saw their protests as a nuisance on unjustified grounds. And I had failed to love them.

Not everyone agrees with this however, and it has resulted in death threats, mockery and alienation from such communities. I believe that’s because for some people, confronting such a lie costs too much; it may cast further doubt on teachings past down from parents, teachers and other authority figures and that their very identity and value as rich hard working Americans is all a façade, built on something untrue and possibly evil.

If lies from relationships hurt the most, then lies that originate from organizations, communities and systems are perhaps the most powerful. Part of this is due to our own tendency to stabilize our own belief’s systems and values and when others affirm that, we will take all the support we can get.

“Researchers have shown that we are especially prone to accepting lies that affirm our worldview. Memes that claim Obama was not born in the United States, deny climate change, accuse the U.S. government of masterminding the terrorist strikes of September 11, 2001, and spread other “alternative facts,” as a Trump adviser called his Inauguration crowd claims, have thrived on the Internet and social media because of this vulnerability. Debunking them does not demolish their power, because people assess the evidence presented to them through a framework of preexisting beliefs and prejudices, says George Lakoff, a cognitive linguist at the University of California, Berkeley. “If a fact comes in that doesn’t fit into your frame, you’ll either not notice it, or ignore it, or ridicule it, or be puzzled by it—or attack it if it’s threatening.””

Systematic lies can take years if not decades to remove but it’s possible. The fall of Nazi Germany revealed to many Germans the resulting horror and consequences of their once proud nationalistic (and false) beliefs. Nonetheless it is a challenge, but there is hope.

Jesus has confronted each of these origins of lies. He confronted each and every one of the devil’s lies about himself. He called out the lies of how relationships were ought to be between peoples of different ethnicities, institutions and class. He called out systemic lies that the Pharisees enforced upon the Jewish people. And he set them free. More will be spoken on how Jesus empowers us to spot and take on these beastly lies later.

Books to consider:

Spiritual disciplines- Recapturing the Wonder

Self-awareness-Emotionally healthy spirituality

Systemic Lies: 12 lies that hold american captive and the truth that sets us free

[1] http://www.memory-key.com/memory/emotion

[2] Cosper, Mike. Recapturing the Wonder, pg 43

[3] Cosper, Mike. Recapturing the Wonder, 15.

[4] Friedmans, self leadership link here

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