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chosonore · 3 years

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part one | calmness

calmness [noun. the state or quality of being free from agitation or strong emotion]

pairing: kamo choso/f!reader

summary: falling in love with choso was a gradual and slow process, creeping up on you so inconspicuously that you don’t realize until the feelings hit full force. he’s become a constant in your life, your sun, your home. but does he return the feelings?

wordcount: 8k

content/warnings: roommates au, friends to lovers, fluff, slice of life, mentions of alcohol, language, some pining but not really, the amount of oblivious reader and choso will kill you, slow burn, characters are aged up if not already obvious, lowercase intended, [UNEDITED]

a/n: [hello this is a re-post because my blog was banned for a few days! so if you’ve seen it before, i’ve had to delete it i am so sorry if you’ve saved it. but it’s here to stay now!] here it is, the long awaited roommate!choso series wehfuhuehw if you’ve lurked around on my blog before, you would’ve seen the little drabbles i’ve sent suki a while back. this idea has been floating around in my head for so long and there isn’t really a lot of plot to it, it’s really just a really long slice of life thing. wanted to explore falling in love with choso, i just... love him a lot ╰(*´︶`*)╯♡ i’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how he would be in situations like this and i hope you enjoy!

masterlist - next

you were pretty sure that you’d scared all the costumers away with your constant sighing – even yuuji was looking at you concerned now although you’d told him that you were fine hours prior. the entire apartment hunting issue was now getting to you; a few months prior, your landlord had announced that he would be selling the apartment, leaving you with no other option than to find a new apartment. but rent was astronomically high and you were already struggling as is. even finding roommates was proven to be a difficult feat, you weren’t sure why but you kept attracting weird people and now two weeks before the moving out date, you still didn’t have a place to stay. worst case scenario, you’d have to rent a storage space and crash at your friend’s place.

“y/n, are you okay? you look… very stressed,” yuuji asked gingerly, after he’d closed the store and helped you clean up the cash register area. “uh if it helps, you can vent to me! we’re friends right? so what’s bothering you?”

you were hesitant. sure, despite not knowing him so well since he’s only been working at the store for a month or two now, you would consider the two of you friends. but you felt bad just dumping the entirety of your worries onto him. so you opted to tell him the… short truth.

“ah it’s just- i’ve been looking for a place to stay because, essentially, i’m getting kicked out of my place but it’s been pretty unsuccessful,” you sighed, scrubbing at the counter more vigorously now. “i need to move out in two weeks but i haven’t found a place yet and the people looking for roommates just seem to be people who would drive me insane.”

“oh really?” yuuji sounded hopeful- wait, why did he sound hopeful? “my older brother is looking for a new roommate! his former roommate recently moved in with his boyfriend so the room is vacant right now. if you want, i could arrange a date for you to look at the apartment and meet him? i promise my brother isn’t weird or anything, he’s pretty diligent with chores and is always up to hang out.”

your jaw dropped; yuuji was your lifesaver. he was incredibly friendly and polite, always helping others and looking out for everyone. you were overwhelmed with joy and relief, maybe you were naïve and too hast in trusting his words but his brother had to be similar to him, you couldn’t imagine them being polar opposites. it couldn’t be that bad and at this point, you were desperate. “i would love that! when are you guys free?”

“ah we could actually head over to his place after clocking out,” yuuji put the boxes and pens back into place before ushering you to the staff room and turning the lights off. “he’s been home quite early lately, so i can just let him now right now if you’re free?”

you nodded in agreement, almost too eagerly, as you threw your jacket on and grabbed your bag, waiting for yuuji outside of the store. it was already dark outside and you almost felt bad for taking up his time like this but he had offered after all. yuuji was furiously texting as he stepped out of the building, screen lighting up his face in a comical way. in the dim light of the street lamps, you clumsily fumbled with the keys before finally being able to lock the door.

“you’re in luck, he’s home right now!” yuuji announced, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his red sweater. “said it’s okay if we drop by real quick.”

you hummed in thought, matching yuuji’s pace as you walked across the street. “does he live far away from here?”

“nope, it’s basically around the corner.”

thankfully, the apartment was within walking distance so you had a slow stroll while talking about work, friends and uni. although you shared the same friend circle, it was almost impossible to have both of you in the same room – yuuji was often busy with club activities while you were constantly studying or working. it wasn’t until he started working at the store that you finally got to know each other, immediately getting along much to your friends’ relief. he had never talked about his older brother before so you were surprised that he had siblings at all. but he sounded genuine when he said that his brother was cool so you didn’t think much of it.

“okay so this is the place,” yuuji stopped in front of a building, pressing the doorbell. “please don’t be too intimidated when you meet choso, he looks unfriendly and unamused sometimes but that’s just his face.”

turning around, you took a closer look at your surroundings. it was an apartment building that looked rather cozy, surrounded by tall, expanding trees. to your relief, it wasn’t a sketchy neighbourhood - you’d always felt wary about walking home by yourself after a late shift. in the distance, you could see a playground and screaming, laughing children. it was harmonious and peaceful, easing your soul and initial doubts.

“oh okay,” you bit your lip in nervousness as the buzzer went off, following yuuji into the building. the closer you got to the apartment, the squirmier you got, anxious about meeting his older brother. the door was already left ajar so you could enter, the smell of food wafting out of the apartment to the hallway. you peeked inside before entering, immediately feeling more at ease upon seeing that the apartment was organized and clean. coats and jackets hung up on the coatrack, shoes lined up neatly along the wall. several photos were stuck to the wall - one of a younger chubby-cheeked yuuji, one of what looked like a garden party, another one of a happily smiling group of people. your heart was warming up; yuuji’s brother seemed like a rather attentive person who appreciated his surroundings and close friends and family.

“choso! did you make dinner for me?” yuuji called out as he kicked off his shoes and stormed inside before you could stop him, leaving you to your own devices as you awkwardly stood in the hallway of the apartment after closing the door. you took your shoes off slowly, stalling as much time as possible. should you just wait for yuuji to come back? or should you come in and greet them with the same energy that yuuji just exuded? but then his brother might think that you were weird and reject you straight away. you froze when a deeper voice rang out.

“didn’t you say you’d bring a friend? where are they?”

you hastily took off your shoes and tiptoed deeper into the apartment, hiding behind yuuji as you looked at the taller man in front of him. his brother looked at you curiously, placing the cooking utensils he was holding onto the counter. so yuuji and him did look like polar opposites. yuuji, for the lack of better terms, looked like a soft peach while the man in front of you had tied his dark, long hair in twin tails and was sporting a huge white shirt with sweatpants but perhaps the most striking thing about him was the face tattoo. you hadn’t expected that at all. he spiked your interest, you couldn’t deny that he was attractive. you had to snap out of it, this was your potential future roommate and you did not need to have any further thoughts. not of that kind.

“hi,” you greeted quietly and held your hand out for him to shake. “i’m y/n, nice to meet you.”

“choso.” he shook your hand, giving you an approving nod.

maybe you stared at his hand a little too obviously, admiring his long fingers, his nicely shaped fingernails and the veins on his hand. yuuji cleared his voice, slightly elbowing you in the side. you gasped in embarrassment, jerking your hand from his and hiding it behind your back. choso didn’t seem like he had caught onto your staring. and if he did, he had enough mercy to not bring it up.

“let me show you your room first,” choso explained unfazed, patiently waiting until you followed him. he walked across the living room, pointing to the side. while yes, he was attractive and seemed to be an enjoyable person to be around with, you couldn’t shake the wariness in your bones. choso switched on the lights, letting you step into the room first. it was empty for the most part, aside from a few boxes that were neatly stacked and placed in the corner. the room had a comfortable size, big enough to fit everything that you owned but not too big so that you’d feel uncomfortable with the empty spaces.

“sorry about the boxes,” choso apologized, turning to you. “i’ve been storing some of the stuff from our studio here, since i sometimes work from home and it was more convenient to have it here instead of my room.”

“i see…” you nodded, trying your best not to peek at the contents of the box. “if you don’t mind me asking, what do you work as?”

“some of my friends and me, we’ve opened a tattoo and piercing studio earlier this year. i only do tattoos though, some of the others do piercings additionally,” he explained to you, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. your mouth fell open, making you look like a fish. you couldn’t hide your excitement, eyes gleaming like you’d just discovered the biggest treasure you’ve ever seen.

“really? that’s so cool! yuuji never told me you were a tattooist, i would love to see your works someday,” you grinned from ear to ear while choso looked away from you, not being able to handle the praise. although he appreciated the sentiment, he didn’t know how to respond to compliments - the feeling was foreign to him.

"yeah, sure," choso replied with a strained voice. in the dim light, no one would be able to make out how the tips of his ears reddened and choso was thankful for that. he cleared his voice, slowly trudging outside of the room to show you the rest of his apartment.

when yuuji had mentioned that he’d found a potential roommate for choso, he didn’t tell anything else. choso didn’t expect it to be yuuji’s co-worker, much less someone whose energy was so bright and happy unlike his gloomy self. he briefly wondered whether you were okay with living here - even if you were desperate to find an apartment, surely you'd at least want someone who was… more open and less intimidating than him.

you trailed behind his broad frame, carefully taking in the entirety of the apartment. it seemed like there was nothing to worry about. even though you've only known him for a few minutes, you felt at ease with him and that gave you a better feeling about moving in with him. yuuji was innocently sitting on the couch, spooning the soup choso had prepared earlier while watching tv. his eyes followed the pair, relieved that there was less awkwardness than he anticipated but slightly suspicious because… there was something.

as choso showed you the rest of the apartment - kitchen, living room and bathroom - he comprehensively explained expenses and house rules to you. there weren't many rules to begin with; choso simply disliked clutter and expected everything to be put back to its original place after use, being noisy was a no-go as well. everything in between was negotiable. by the end of the apartment tour, you joined yuuji in the living room. he shot you a questioning look, raising his eyebrow in curiosity. you were certain that you'd take the offer. there was no way this opportunity would go to waste.

"thank you for showing me around, choso," you smiled at him gratefully. "if you're okay with me moving in, i'd love to become your roommate. i think we'll get along well."

the last box was haphazardly tossed in the corner of your room, earning you a disapproving glare from choso. exhausted, you flopped on the bed and spread across it like a starfish. choso placed the remaining boxes on the floor. moving day was, despite choso coming to your rescue, utterly chaotic and tiring. your muscles were aching from overexertion and there was no remaining energy or nerve for you to attend to unpacking. you felt like a jellylike mass.

"i'll cook something for us. do you have any preferences or dislikes?"

you lifted your head slightly to peek at choso who was standing in the doorway, on his way out. “you’ll cook for me? what are you, an angel?”

choso didn’t reply, simply stared at you. he was used to such antics - it reminded him of his childhood when he was still living with yuuji and taking care of him. lethargically, you shook your head and planted your face back in the pillow. "no, i'm okay with anything. will inhale anything as long as it's edible," though your voice was muffled, choso understood you nonetheless. he made a confused, albeit affirmative noise before disappearing. a long exhale left your lips. truthfully, you were lucky to have an amazing roommate like choso. even though you didn't know each other well and he wasn't very talkative, he was very much willing to help. with time, you were sure he would warm up to you and become great friends. your eyes were slowly drooping, the exhaustion settling in your bones. within minutes, you dozed off into a deep, comfortable slumber. you didn't wake until a knock roused you out of your sleep, startling you in the process.

"huh? yeah?" you scrambled hastily, trying to fix the bird's nest that was your hair. choso did not need to see you in this state - delirious from being woken up from your deep slumber, feeling as if you'd woken up in a new century and with imprints of your pillows and blanket on your skin. before you could make yourself presentable, choso had already opened the door and stared at you unabashedly.

you blinked dumbfounded, staring back at him.

“food’s ready. you coming?” choso gave you a questioning look, waiting for a reaction. so apparently, he did not care what you looked like after waking up. he didn’t even bat an eyelid at your messy state, unfazed by it.

“uh yeah, give me a minute,” you replied after a few moments passed, sitting up tiredly. choso nodded before closing the door behind him as he returned to the kitchen. grabbing yourself a fluffy blanket, you wrapped it around yourself and waddled outside. whatever he had prepared, it smelled divine. you hummed in content as you took a seat at the dining table. the table was already set, dishes still steaming and looking so inviting that you had to stop yourself from drooling. choso padded to the table, placing some drinks on the table before taking a seat as well. as he described the dishes he'd cooked for the two of you, you inconspicuously looked him up and down. this time, without yuuji catching wind of it.

you knew choso was tall and very broad but you only realized the full extent of it seeing how the chair seemed tiny in comparison to his frame. his hair was down for a change, falling just above his shoulders. as usual, he was wearing comfortable clothes; a big shirt, big enough that you could admire his arm muscles and hands every time the sleeves moved. not only was he attractive, he was incredibly attentive and helpful as well, not expecting anything in return.

"thank you for cooking, i really appreciate it. looks really good," you complimented choso, taking a bite from the dish. you hummed delighted, wiggling in your seat happily. "oh my god, this is so delicious! where did you learn cooking like this?"

"i used to cook for yuuji and myself a lot."

"i wanna return the favour too but now i kind of feel inadequate," you joked lightly, smiling at him sheepishly. while you weren't the worst cook, you weren't outstandingly great either. choso however, was probably the best cook you knew.

"i don't mind. as long as you do your best, it's the thought that counts."

you nodded in agreement, taking a sip from your drink. silence fell over you; a comfortable silence however, both of you just enjoying the food. you supposed it wasn't too bad if you took your time getting to know each other - after all, choso seemed like someone who would quickly recoil if cornered. it wasn't too much of a concern.

after finishing the meal, you helped him clean up and wash the dishes. nudging him gently, you asked: "do you want to watch some movies after? yuuji recommended me a few that i have yet to check out."

choso took the plates, drying them with the towel before placing them back to their designated spots. "sure, you're responsible for the movie selection then."

spending time with choso was easy, almost too easy. you were glad that the two of you were off to a good start, he didn't seem to mind your company and you enjoyed his. cheerfully, you put the movie on, snuggling the blanket that was wrapped around you. the way you were laying on the couch was reminding choso of a little burrito. unbeknownst to him, the corner of his lips lifted a little at the sight. he waited until you noticed him and shuffled a little so he could sit on the couch as well. the movie you had chosen was a lighthearted comedy, one that yuuji had highly praised and recommended you watch first.

midway through the movies, the exhaustion was creeping up on you, making you feel heavy and sleepy until you slumped against choso's side. he glanced to the side, observing you to see whether you would wake up. soft and steady breaths left your lips, already asleep within seconds. choso pondered whether to wake you now, worrying that you would miss out on the movie that you were so eager to watch. you looked so peaceful that he felt bad, deciding to wake you once the movie was over. but even choso couldn't shake the tiredness, gradually slumping against you until sleep overtook him as well.

as the sun was rising, light was flooding the apartment, filling it with warmth. you scrunched your eyebrows at the brightness, attempting to move so it wouldn't blind you. the first thing you noticed was your strained neck - probably because of the weird position you had slept in - and the second thing was that something heavy was laying on your lap. blinking in confusion, you peeked, groaning inwardly at the blinding light. black hair was splayed across your lap, connecting to… choso? oh no. oh no. you must've fallen asleep while watching the movie and judging how choso was comfortably using your lap as a pillow, he did as well. embarrassment spread throughout your body; this wasn't supposed to happen, much less with someone you didn't know so well.

now that you were unintentionally watching him, you felt creepy. the situation was too perplexing to you - should you wake him now? or just wait… until he woke up? but what if you had to pee. what if choso wasn’t going to wake up until a few hours later? what if he woke up and saw you staring at him like a creep? though you did think he looked vulnerable and peaceful in this state, unusual from his intimidating, unwavering self. it made your heart tingle with an unknown feeling, softly bubbling with curiosity.

beneath you, choso was moving slightly, shuffling around until he felt comfortable. you stayed still, tensely watching his next movements. he remained still for a while, making you exhale in relief. until he didn’t. choso blinked a few times, trying to make sense of his surroundings until his gaze fell onto yours. and you stared back, frozen in fear. even if he was the one laying on your lap, you felt anxious.

“uh i… we must’ve fallen asleep last night, ha ha…”

“you fell asleep early on and i was going to wake you after the movie ended but fell asleep myself, i’m sorry for making you feel uncomfortable,” choso apologized sincerely and sat up right away, rubbing his eyes sleepily. even though he looked rather deadpan, there was a trace of embarrassment on his face.

“oh no, it’s okay! we both fell asleep after all… ah, since we’re roommates, we’re sort of friends now, right? so don’t mind it too much, it happens!” you gave choso a reassuring smile, showing him that there was no bad blood between you.

choso nodded slowly. “i guess so. i’m glad you don’t mind. "

an awkward pause.

"do you have classes anytime soon? i can make breakfast for us.”

and just like that, the tension between you was alleviated. not completely gone, but barely noticeable. choso stretched like a cat, yawning quietly before he got up. you couldn't help but glance at his toned stomach, eyes almost bulging at the sight. turning to the side, you hid your face and cleared your voice. "i don't have classes today but i have to go to work later. so i won't say no to breakfast if you're making it."

"how's living with choso?" yuuji questioned you curiously, leaning against the counter. lowering the pen and writing board you were holding, you hummed in thought. in the past few weeks, the two of you had settled into a comfortable routine. there were minor hiccups here and there but the issues were easily resolved - somehow, you silently understood each other, an important foundation for a good friendship.

"pretty relaxing, to be honest. he's a good roommate and friend," you replied, clicking with the pen which earned you an annoying glance from yuuji. "you should've told me he was a great cook! i don't think i've ever tasted any dishes that were as good as his."

"he cooks for you?" the surprised tone in yuuji's voice startled you. was that out of the ordinary? you just thought he was being a good friend when he prepared dinner for you whenever you had a late shift.

"uh yeah? mostly when i come home late or when we have movie nights together. i always tell him that i can definitely help but he insists that he's fine doing it himself."

"i see. choso just doesn't like people messing with his cooking routine, that's all. i'm not even allowed near the kitchen, even though i'm not that bad of a cook either," yuuji laughed, scratching his head sheepishly. he wasn't going to tell you why he was perplexed by the fact that choso willingly cooked for you. it was too early to make any assumptions; he just couldn't shake the feeling that there was something at play. no one knew his brother better than him - choso would never do any favours for persons he didn't care about, persons that weren't family or extremely close friends. while they had talked about choso's thoughts about you, he never mentioned anything more than getting along well and often spending time together. for choso's standards, you were a quite close friend.

"oh, and here i was, thinking that he must really hate my cooking skills. so it's just that," you concluded, grinning happily. he was weirdly persistent about it but knowing this detail about him, you'd stop pestering him in the future. "hey do you wanna come over tomorrow? it's movie night again, i'm sure you'd enjoy it too."

"hmm, sounds tempting. if you can convince choso to cook, i'm in."

"pff, who would say no to this face," you retorted mischievously, showing yuuji the best puppy face you could muster up. he groaned, pushing you gently.

"show off," he told you jokingly and rolled his eyes. "i don't know how choso tolerates you."

"you're just jealous, huh? didn't think you had that emotion in you. choso and me are the bestest of friends, of course we get along well," you stuck your tongue out at yuuji before leaving him to his own devices as you bolted to the cash register to help a customer. as you animatedly conversed with them, yuuji shook his head. it was obvious that there was some attraction but that was something he'd let you figure out. cupid wasn't a well-fitting job for him. friends, my ass.

"huh, did you say something, yuuji?"

"no, not at all."

soft, melodious music was playing in the background as you silently sat at the counter, watching choso prepare some meals before yuuji was visiting. this time, you heeded his advice, not pestering his brother about needing help and instead just opting to watch him and make light conversation. choso seemed to have noticed as well, mood ever so slightly lifted when he saw you simply taking a seat and asking about his day. he liked this routine, being able to go about his day without someone unwantedly poking their nose into his business until he felt comfortable enough to talk about it. as you absentmindedly doodled on a napkin, choso casually told you about his day at work. about squirmy customers who were getting their first tattoo done, about those that had interesting ideas that he was still trying to find ways to implement, about how noisy his co-workers were and that they wanted to have a night out soon.

“do you wanna join us? you said you wanted to meet my friends,” choso asked, briefly glancing up at you as he was dicing the vegetables. it was true, you did inquire about his friends at some point, more so jokingly and out of curiosity - although he complained about them every now and then, you could tell that he deeply cared about them. choso was the kind of person who acted like a mother hen around friends and sometimes nagged a lot more than you anticipated. but then somehow, miraculously, every minuscule task that would stress you was completed and topped with a freshly made, warm dish by the end of the day. he wasn't good with words but his actions made up for it.

you didn’t expect him to offer you to tag along. he was comfortable enough to introduce you to his friends, even seemed to trust you with them. it felt… strangely heartwarming. "i would love to join you but i have quite a lot of assignments piling up; i'll have to do some night shifts to finish them," you replied and sighed ruefully, putting the pen away. "i'll tag along once i've finished everything, okay?"

choso frowned slightly. "but don't overwork yourself. you'll end up frustrated and burnt out," he told you earnestly, reaching out to pat your head. you gaped at him, the fond gesture making you feel flustered. it was nice knowing that he was looking out for you. choso stared back at you, seemingly startled by his own gesture as well. his hand had moved faster than he could react - he didn't know what to make of it.

the ring of the doorbell interrupted every trail of thought and you jumped up quickly. "i'll get it!" you sprinted towards the entrance, letting yuuji in. perhaps you greeted him too overzealously, yuuji looked at you like he knew something was up. nonetheless, he didn't mention anything, instead presenting you the bottle of wine and some dvds that he brought. choso gave his younger brother an acknowledging grunt, too absorbed in his tasks. taking in his surroundings as he got comfortable on the couch, he noticed some subtle changes in the apartment - the numerous pillows and fleece blankets littered across the couch, the set of matching mugs as well as choso's sketchbooks and, presumably, your textbooks on the coffee table. it was obvious that the two of you spent a lot of time together.

even throughout dinner, yuuji realized that choso had taken a liking to you, more than he probably realized and let on. he almost felt like a third wheel watching how you animatedly talked about trivial things and even more so when it was movie time. like a little burrito, you were wrapped in a blanket, leaning against choso. though it surprised yuuji to see his older brother opening up to you so rapidly, he was happy about it. although chaotic and clumsy, you were a good person and a positive influence. having witnessing how choso had closed up and how hurt he had been after the break up of his previous relationship, yuuji was glad that he wasn't cautious around you and welcomed your presence. even though… both of you were painfully oblivious.

"should we wake her?" yuuji asked as he saw you snuggling into choso's side, peacefully sleeping while the movie was still on.

"no, it's okay. she often falls asleep midway through movies, i just let her sleep. probably exhausted from uni."

yuuji looked at him as if he grew three heads. "so you just let her sleep? and you… sleep on the couch too?"

"hm? yeah, kind of. i feel bad about waking her and we're friends so it's not that big of a deal," choso replied innocently, shifting slightly so he was comfortable while keeping his arm around you. ever so slightly, he leaned onto you.

yuuji buried his face in his hands, silently screaming. don't comment on it, don't say anything, it's none of your business. you might have pink hair but you're no cupid.

utterly exhausted, you made your way into the apartment. you flopped onto the couch, grunting in irritation when you heard choso calling your name. staying put, you just laid there and listened to his footsteps nearing. "you okay? did anything happen?" he questioned, leaning over the couch to look at you. you weren't even sure what to answer, whatever you were feeling at the moment was an accumulation of stress across multiple weeks. you were frustrated with your projects, feeling like you weren't making any progress and not having time for yourself whatsoever. all you needed was a break, a pick me up.

"do you wanna talk about it?" choso repeated again but you shook your head, lifting your head slightly to look at him. he almost felt bad for thinking that you looked adorable, the way you huffed in frustration with a little pout on your lips. you shook your head, hugging one of the pillows.

"not now, later maybe?"

"okay. i'll make you a cup of tea." he disappeared from your field of vision. you listened to the sound of the kettle, closing your eyes as you focused on it. slowly, your erratic thoughts came to a halt. your breath and heartbeat steadied and you gradually felt more calm. clack. choso placed the cup of tea on the coffee table, taking a seat next to you. he was hesitant to touch you just yet, waiting for another reaction from you. sniffling quietly, you sat up and thanked him quietly.

"choso?"

"hm?"

"can i have a hug?" you inquired meekly. he didn't reply, simply pulling you into his arms. without hesitation, you wrapped your arms around him, nuzzling your face in the crook of his neck. he smelled nice, like freshly washed laundry and the shampoo he was using. it reminded you of home, making you feel more at ease. gently, choso rubbed your back; wherever his fingers moved, it left a trail of goosebumps on your skin. not that he noticed anyways, fortunately. for a few minutes, only the sound of breathing resounded. it was calming and warm - choso was warm, so warm - you almost fell asleep. humming quietly, you moved closer to him.

"today was just really… bad. everything went wrong," you confided in him. "it made me feel like shit, like i couldn't do anything right. i guess i just feel really stressed so i can't concentrate on anything."

choso leaned forward, reaching out to grab the cup of tea. you squeaked in surprise, holding onto him so you wouldn't drop backwards. his left arm snaked around your waist, keeping you in place as he leaned back again. you moved back a little, as far as choso's arm allowed you to, and took the cup from him, taking small sips. "i think you're doing okay," he told you, drawing patterns on your back. "it's only natural to feel this way when everything's been piling up. what you need is a good rest and have a reset, you'll feel more refreshed and inspired to work on your projects. and don't hesitate to ask for help, no matter whether it's a professor or classmate."

"i also told you not to overwork yourself, didn't i? and don't think i can't tell that you've been pulling all nighters," he scolded you, pinching your cheek playfully. it made you giggle, tilting your head to get away from his hand.

"yeah i know, i know. just couldn't help it, it's a bad habit. i'll try to get better at it," you promised him, giving him a reassuring smile. "thank you for listening to me."

"it's the least i can do."

a comfortable silence fell over you. choso continued to rub your back in an attempt to soothe your nerves while you sipped your tea. you were grateful for him, he was an amazing friend - you didn’t even know how to show gratitude to him. awkwardly turning to put the mug back on the table, you then leaned against him. “choso?” you hummed against his chest, snaking your arms around his waist. “you know you can talk to me about problems too, right?”

“what do you think we’ve been doing these past few weeks?” he retorted and chuckled in amusement. “you should try to go to bed now. get some rest, you’ll feel better tomorrow.”

you pouted, not wanting to move. fortunately, he couldn’t see the face you were making - you weren’t ready to let him go just yet, wanting to memorize the expanse of his chest, his warmth, the way his arms felt around you. it made you feel safe, like a temporary relief to your anxiety. “can we… can we watch a movie maybe? i’m not sleepy yet.”

of course, choso saw right through you. “you always say that and then you fall asleep midway. you just don’t want to move, huh?”

“okay, you caught me,” you giggled hysterically as he stood up slowly and pretended to let you fall, catching you before you fell. clinging onto his shoulders, you wrapped your legs around his waist. you refused to let go. unbothered, he held you by your thighs as he waddled across the living room towards the console to choose a dvd to watch. while clinging onto choso, you could hear his heart beating rapidly - you chalked it up to how strenuous it must be to carry you around. choso, on other hand, couldn’t put a finger on the warm, tingly feeling inside of him. did he like having you around like this? stupid, of course he did, you were good friends after all. spending time with you was relaxing for him as well. back on the couch, he let you use his lap as a pillow, absentmindedly combing his fingers through your hair. the two of you remained in this position until both inevitably fell asleep, movie still playing in the background.

“y/n. earth to y/n. dude, can you hear me?” nobara was frantically waving papers in front of your face, rolling her eyes as you snapped out of your trance and took them from her. to your delight, the two of you shared quite a few classes this semester which meant that you could usually share the workload as well. you copied some of her notes, hastily scribbling them in your notebook.

"sorry, i was lost in thought. what did you say?"

"i asked you whether you wanna go out later? the whole crew is coming, it's been a while anyways," your friend repeated, placing her little cosmetics bag on the table to check her makeup and apply another layer of lip gloss.

"ah sorry, i already have plans for today, maybe ano-"

"with whom?" she asked pointedly, narrowing her eyes at you. in recent times, you've been rejecting her offers to hang out a lot; whether it be because of studying or hanging out with… "wait, are you having a date with that roommate of yours again?"

"it's not a date!" you briefly paused, giving her a dirty look. nobara was weirdly persistent about this dating thing, claiming that you would never get anywhere if you didn't make a move. "his name is choso, yuuji's older brother. i told you a million times already. he's been a really good friend and taking care of me when i feel stressed, so i thought it would be time for me to do the same for him."

"a really good friend?" a doubtful look was shot your way.

"yeah, i mean yuuji cooks for us all the time, how is it any different? anyways, i'll join you guys another day, okay?"

nobara stayed still for a moment. you truly didn't realize how much you's been mentioning choso. choso this, choso that, choso here, choso there. even yuuji had confided in her that he thought you might have developed a crush on his older brother though he wasn't certain. nobara, however, was sure. but operation make y/n realize things proved to be more difficult, considering you hadn't had a crush before as you were never interested in relationships.

"fine. but in return, you have to tell me about choso. what do you think of him?" nobara stuffed her belongings into the impossibly full handbag. propping her chin on her hands, she leaned closer to you with a shit-eating grin. you sighed, putting the papers away. it was no use trying to focus on your assignments when she was in an investigative mood. she wouldn't let go of the issue until you gave her a satisfactory answer. and for some reason, it irked you that she was inquiring about choso. why was she so curious about him? couldn't she have asked yuuji instead? it was his brother after all. maybe nobara was… interested in choso? you narrowed your eyes at her.

"i think he's great. might be intimidating at first and not very talkative but when he opens up to you, he's actually a softie. very respectful and polite towards people, always thinks of others first. and not to mention, he's really talented too! he often acts like he's annoyed by people or minds his own business but he really does care a lot. you feel comforted by his presence when you're close with him," you rambled, trying to list all the positive points about him that you could think of. nobara nodded slightly as she was listening to you, making it difficult to gauge her stance on him. was she going to confess now? maybe you should confront her about it. yeah, she would never admit it otherwise. "nobara, are you interested in choso? if you wanted me to introduce you to him, you could've just asked."

nobara stared at you with an open mouth. checkmate.

"you know i wouldn't have judged you at all! after all, choso is handsome too. so really, you don't have to sneak around about this," you concluded triumphantly, patting her arm in reassurance. it filled you with pride to be able to catch nobara off guard for once - usually, she was very composed and ready to give you a sassy answer.

"y/n, sweetie. you're so very wrong." nobara sighed, dejectedly pushing your hand away. you were incredibly dense when it came to feelings and relationships. maybe it would be more amusing to just watch everything pan out. “i don’t really care about choso, that’s your man after all.”

“yeah, yeah, i- wait what?”

thankfully, you arrived home earlier than choso did - for once. and for once, this friday was going to be a relaxing one, seeing as you’d finally finished your projects and assignments and could finally engage in a much needed self care day. placing the groceries bags on the counter, you went through the ingredients again just to make sure you didn’t forget anything. yuuji had given you a recipe for his famous meatballs recipe, claiming that it was one of choso’s favourite dishes. in recent times, choso seemed to be exhausted and sometimes even easily irritable after work - considering how much he did for you, it was only fair for you to treat him as well. surprising him seemed to be the best course of action.

making quick work of the ingredients, you took your time to clean the apartment while the soup was still cooking. yuuji was kind enough to lend you a few dvds, not even asking you whether you were going to watch them with choso anymore. while you felt bad about turning your friends down yet again, you promised yourself to make it up to them in the future by inviting them over for a sleepover or movie night. though knowing them, they would not let you stay in the comfort of your home but drag you to a party or club again. especially nobara would always insist on dragging you along, while megumi and yuuji didn’t really care about where they would be going for the night. her excuse was to find you a partner, claiming that it was about time you realized how cute you were, which you vehemently denied. even maki had told her to pipe it down at some point. all the more, it made you suspicious that nobara had not brought the topic up anymore. you couldn’t imagine her giving up so quickly, considering how persistent she had been for almost a year now.

the jingle of the keys and the soft click of the door made you stop whatever you were doing, peeking around the corner to see choso coming in. giggling quietly, you watched as he stopped in his tracks and sniffed the air, seemingly confused about the scent of the soup. he turned around upon hearing you, a small, almost unnoticeable smile on his lips. “up to no good?” he questioned you teasingly, placing his bag and jacket in the wardrobe. huffing, you stuck your tongue out at him and shook your head. you padded over to him, softly tugging at the sleeve of his shirt to make him follow you to the kitchen.

“since you always cook for me, i thought it would be time for me to do the same for you. yuuji showed me your favourite dish but i’m not sure if it turned out as well as he always makes it,” you sheepishly explained, showing him the pot of soup and the bowls and cutlery that you’d already laid out. choso hugged your side, squeezing your waist gently before patting your head and muttering a quiet thank you. your chest filled with pride, finally being helpful to him for once. if you weren’t careful, it would burst - he fuelled your ego even more as he complimented you, telling you how well the soup turned out and that he really appreciated it. you knew he wasn’t lying, for one because he was a sincere person and always offered heartfelt compliments, and because of how eagerly he was eating, practically inhaling the soup in one go. he even looked like he was in a food coma by the time you finished dinner, making you ban him from the kitchen to take a rest on the couch.

after washing the dishes, you came back to the living room to see him lie across the couch, eyes closed and calmly breathing. he looked like he was taking a nap, until he opened his eyes to peek at you as you approached. giddily, you joined him on the couch, showing him the hair products that you’d already placed on the coffee table. “can i give you a massage and do… uh hair stuff? i really like it when people brush my hair and stuff and i thought you might enjoy it too,” you explain to him. choso contemplated for a few seconds before shrugging nonchalantly. yes! you signaled him to sit on the floor in front of you as you pressed play. with the sound of the movie in the background, you focused on choso’s hair and took off the hair ties first. he got comfortable, turning towards the tv and learning his head against the edge of the couch. gently running your fingers through his hair, you made sure to detangle rough knots before massaging his scalp gently. you could tell that choso was beginning to relax by the way his shoulders were slowly sagging. in silence, you worked through the entirety of his scalp before moving on to brush his hair.

if you didn’t already know that choso was a naturally withdrawn person, you would’ve been concerned by how quiet he was and how he didn’t show any reactions to the movie. you were glad that he seemed to like the entire hair spa ordeal; he didn’t even seem to mind that you were using your hair products on him, the soft floral scent now emanating from his hair as you massaged it through the tips and then brushed it in slow strokes. by the time you were done, he looked utterly relaxed, struggling to keep his eyes open as he climbed back on the couch and sat next to you. without having to ask, he wrapped his arms around you. yawning quietly, you moved closer to him, turning your attention to the tv. habitually, his hands moved against your back, drawing shapes and patterns. slowly, choso could feel the heat in his body rising and chalked it up to the close proximity. it did make him feel a little uneasy however; he shifted you around on his lap until he felt comfortable. abruptly halting his movements, he froze as you turned to him, ass grazing his groin. an electric shock ran through him. subconsciously, he jolted at the friction. the tips of his ears turned red in embarrassment but he reassured you he was fine when you looked at him concerned. what the hell was that? was his body now not listening to him after being so relaxed?

“choso, can i ask you something?” you leaned back slightly to look at him.

“you already did. but yeah, go ahead.” choso grinned at the little huff you let out, grasping your hand in time as you tried to hit his chest and intertwined your fingers so you couldn’t move.

“uh this might sound weird but i think a friend of mine is interested in you. nobara, do you know her?” you squeezed his hand, moving it around with yours. “she asked me about you the other day.”

“huh, really? isn’t that one of yuuji’s friends too?”

you nodded in agreement. “yeah, we’re all friends. i only told her good things about you, of course.”

choso hesitated. he wasn’t sure what to tell you, not wanting to say something about your friend that could upset you. but the truth was, he wasn’t really interested in anyone right now. the recent breakup had done a number on him and he felt like he hadn’t properly moved on just yet. not when the thoughts were still obsessively circling in his head. but when choso was with you, they miraculously seemed to disappear, making him feel more at ease. “i’m not really looking for anything right now, sorry. i don’t really want to disappoint her, i’m just not really up for a relationship right now,” he told you truthfully, giving you an apologetic smile.

you stopped in your movements, nodding slightly in understanding. and still, it made your heart seize up for an unknown reason.

ps.: the story of how it takes reader and choso ages until they realize their feelings or alternatively: nobara and yuuji unwillingly turn into cupids

#jujutsu kaisen #choso #kamo choso #choso kamo #choso x reader #kamo choso x reader #choso kamo x reader #choso x you #kamo choso x you #choso kamo x you #choso imagines #choso kamo imagines #kamo choso imagines #jujutsu kaisen fluff #jujutsu kaisen imagines #fic: home #writing

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h2bakugou · 3 years

Note

Hiii hope you are doing well 💖💖💖

Can I please request HC's x fem or gn is cool with Bakugou with a s/o who decides at the end of UA they don't want to be a hero any more? Maybe his s/o just wants to pursue a normal degree or something and goes to university & how Bakugou would react /how he spends time with them despite they're busy schedules etc

a/n: oooo of course!! this is actually a really interesting request and i hope you like it hun!! i hope you’re doing well too <3!! i kinda branched out at the end and touched on like after college stuff, was also lowkey just crying happy tears writing this idk why i just said ‘ight really cute fluff’

pro hero au (there’s some pre pro hero au at the beginning!!)

headcanon: them with a s/o who decides they don’t want to be a hero

key: (y/n) - your name / (f/n) - first name / (l/n) - last name / (e/c) - eye color / (h/c) - hair color / (y/q) - your quirk

warnings: fluff, swearing

;cut for length;

»»————-　★　————-««

katsuki bakugo

»»————-　★　————-««

Throughout your time at U.A. things had always seemed sort of out of place.

You had loads of fun, you’d met your current boyfriend, Bakugou, and you had made so many memories.

But as time carried on, the dream of pursuing a hero career seemed less and less like what you really wanted.

You started looking into colleges and universities, looking into careers that didn’t revolve around heroism.

For the first couple of weeks, while doing so, you battled telling Bakugou or not. You were already third years now, and your plan was to finish out at U.A. and then head onto higher education in a normal career.

But as you battled telling Bakugou your plans, you also struggled with whether or not this was a good idea. It felt selfish, like you were too focused on your own life to care about those who needed heroes.

But after heavy thought, it was more logical than it was selfish. You wanted to pursue something else than what you had originally intended, and that was okay.

When you finally told Bakugou, you were nervous. You’d both grown since you started U.A. and it was crazy to think that you’d been together for nearly two years now.

The sky was clear as you sat at the outdoor table on campus. Bakugou had prepared a lunch for you as you took a stroll, having arranged a little date.

“I wanted to talk to you about something.” You broke the peaceful silence which caught Bakugou’s attention.

“What’s up?” He asked, resting his arms on the wrought iron table. You sighed, taking in a deep breath before looking at him.

“I’ve decided that I want to go to college and pursue a different career.” You admitted, feeling a weight lift from your shoulders. Bakugou was silent, still registering what you’d said.

“Alright. Are you dropping out to attend a regular high school?” Bakugou questioned, completely confusing you.

“You’re not mad? And no, I’m gonna finish out here at U.A., I’ve already found a college willing to take me in after.” You answered his question while asking the one that had boggled you after hearing his response.

“Why would I be mad?” Bakugou huffed, a small smile on his lips. You shook your head, laughing as you twiddled your fingers.

“I guess I was just worried you would be upset. I’m sorry. I am really happy about everything, and I don’t regret coming here, or being with you.”

“Don’t tell me you’re breaking up with me too.”

“No! No! I was just saying, that even though I don’t want to pursue a hero career, I wouldn’t trade this experience for a different one. I’ve loved every second here.” You smiled, reaching across the table to hold Bakugou’s hand.

“Good. I love you, dumbass. And thanks for telling me.” Bakugou sighed as he rubbed his thumb over the back of your hand, brining it up to his lips, placing a gentle kiss on your skin.

“I love you too.”

When you finally leave off for college, all your friends are cheering you on. You’re going to miss the ragtag group of friends you’d made, but you of course would spend time with them whenever they could.

Bakugou and you stay close for a while. Even when it’s hard to see each other, with busy schedules, you always make time and arrangements for dates, even if it just includes you swinging by his patrol area with some takeout.

When he’s on break or has a day off, he might come visit you at college, drop by with some food and ask about your day, how your classes are going, etc.

Sometimes he dresses like a college dad with like those university hats ‘cause he doesn’t want the few minutes of alone time he has with you to be swarmed by fans or paparazzi so he goes terrible undercover.

You occasionally get recognized as Dynamight’s partner in your profession.

Throughout college, you received a bunch of questions about U.A. and why you left. The one classmate that questioned you the most, who often called you ‘hero’ became a close friend of yours.

Also fangirled when Bakugou showed up to bring you lunch out of disguise.

“You’re dating Dynamight and you just left that part out???” They whispered at you, face flushed from embarrassment.

“Hey I’m dating Dynamight.” You teased.

Bakugou is supportive of you, just as you are of him. When you graduate college, he’s there, along with most of your U.A. class, including Mr. Aizawa who promised he’d be there for the day you walked across the stage at your university. (a true dad *cries*)

Okay speaking of your college graduation- they rented an entire section and it’s legit just Class 1-A and everyone’s just like staring at them and then you walk across the stage and they lose their minds.

Kirishima and Kaminari are like screaming.

Aoyama, Uraraka, Toru, and Momo are sobbing, they’re so proud of you, waving little flags with your name on it.

There’s a big reunion class photo at the end of the ceremony where Bakugou’s holding you in his arms while you kiss his cheek, showing the camera your degree.

It’s framed and hung in the center of your new shared home with Bakugou.

Bakugou never once hated you for your decision, and he’s always shown his support and love for your strength and perseverance to do something else.

He’s honestly kinda jealous about your big degree that’s framed in the hallway.

I also totally see him wearing like your school’s t-shirts on like his days off. They’re a little faded and maybe a bit too small for him now that he’s a little older, but he’s just so proud of all you’ve done, he loves to be domestic sometimes.

He’s just so proud of you. A true hero.

»»————-　★　————-««

masterlist

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atc74 · 3 years

Text

Eye of the Beholder

Warnings: Poor body image (?), slight angst, a little envy, a lot of fluff, and implied sexy times

Summary: Jensen is feeling less confident in himself lately and you think you know why. He has always been there for you, now you just need to show your husband he has no reason to be.

Pairing: Jensen x Reader

Word Count: 1470

Written for: @breakthezone first quarter challenge, which was to choose one of two prompts. Mine is bolded below.

Beta’d by: @amanda-teaches, cause she is the best

A/N: So you know the pictures, the spread, the article in THAT magazine, featuring that beautiful soul, and that would cause any man to think less of himself, but I thought, what would go through Jensen’s head and how would I help him through it.

Like Jensen’s Warmth? Buy it here from @scentsfromthebunker!

The cold snowy mountains were a stark contrast to the warm flatland of their home state, but Y/N was loving the quietness and solace of the northeast. Y/N pulled into the snow-covered driveway and started unloading the groceries. She planned accordingly and for weeks at a time; they didn’t have many delivery options out there.

“Honey, I’m home! What do you say you come help me carry in and put away all this food and I make you a nice, juicy porterhouse for dinner?” Y/N called from the kitchen as she dropped the load on the counter. “Honey? Jay?” The house was mostly silent but then she heard it. The distinct smack of fists and feet hitting the heavy bag Jensen installed in the home gym. She sighed knowing this was the third day in a row Jensen had spent hours in the gym, working out until he was ready to drop.

Y/N brought in the rest of the bags, stored the food, and changed her clothes. If she was going to join him in the gym, at least she could participate. It wasn’t like it was a hardship watching her husband in only a pair of shorts, his freckled skin dripping with sweat.

She brought fresh water with her, setting it on the weight bench. He was breathing heavy, sweating, and red-faced. Jensen was not out of shape by any means, but he somehow had gotten it in his head that he needed to get into better shape. Maybe it was the pressure of becoming Soldier Boy, maybe it was that he was approaching his “mid-forties”, it could have been a few things, but Y/N thought she knew exactly what had prompted this new obsession. “Hey, honey.”

“Hey, babe,” he rasped, his breaths heavy with exertion, his hair soaking. “Just a few more minutes.” He landed another two punch kick combo.

“Jay, you have got to take a break. You can’t keep going like this, hours a day, day after day,” Y/N pleaded with him. “This is enough for today.”

“Yeah, okay. Maybe you’re right.” He stopped, hugging the bag tightly, holding on as he tried to catch his breath.

“Go shower, I’ll get dinner started, okay?” Y/N smiled, kissing him softly.

“You got it. I’m pretty sure I reek anyway.”

Leafy greens and brightly colored vegetables covered the kitchen island as Y/N chopped and sliced away. The cuts of meat were sitting out to warm up before grilling, and a nice bottle of a full-bodied red was breathing on the table. Jensen emerged from the hallway leading from their bedroom about thirty minutes later, looking a little worse for the wear. He pressed a sweet kiss to her cheek, swiping a handful of peppers, too.

“I saw that mister,” she smiled, leaning into his touch. “But I’m gonna let it slide just ‘cause you smell nice.”

“Better than before?”

“Oh, way better,” she laughed, turning and wrapping her arms around his neck. “Want to tell me what’s going on in that pretty head of yours?”

“Nothing, babe. Just trying to stay in shape. I gotta get in that custom suit in a couple of weeks, and I ain’t getting any younger.” Jensen looked down, running a hand over his face, scratching at his beard.

“That’s all, huh?”

“Yeah, just running isn’t gonna cut anymore. I have to keep up.”

“Keep up with…?”

Jensen pretended he didn’t hear Y/N as he started helping with the salad. If he ignored the question, maybe she would let it go. It seemed to be working, for now, so he went with it, and continued to help her with dinner.

“Jay, these look perfect!” Y/N gushed as she cut into the steak. She placed the bite in her mouth, the flavor exploding, and she moaned around it. “Oh my god, it's practically melting in my mouth!”

“You made it easy with a superb cut of meat, babe,” Jensen shrugged, digging into his salad and grilled vegetables.

All through dinner, Y/N noticed how he barely touched his meat or wine, but took extra helpings of the healthy stuff. She decided she would let it go, wanting to enjoy their meal, but soon enough, the dishes were cleared and leftovers stored.

“Jay?” Y/N asked, rinsing the plate in her hand before handing it to her husband. “Can I ask you something?”

“Babe, you can ask me anything, you know that.”

“And promise me you won’t get mad?”

“I won’t get mad, but now I am a little suspicious,” Jensen raised one eyebrow, looking over at his wife.

“Does your new workout regimen have anything to do with Jared’s spread in Men’s Health?”

“No.” Jensen protested immediately.

“Jay…”

“Maybe,” he sighed, throwing the towel on the counter, then he turned, leaning against it. “Am I...soft?”

“Soft? I think you are the kindest, most generous, loving man I’ve ever known,” Y/N replied honestly. “I am lucky I found you and even luckier that you love me.”

“Well, thank you for that, babe, but I was asking about my physical appearance,” Jensen hung his head, his voice getting quieter as he talked. “Do I have a ‘dad bod’?”

“Jensen Ross Ackles, you listen to me right now. You have never looked better and you are in the best shape of your life. You just completed a 15 year run on the most successful sci-fi television show in history, you are stepping into an iconic role that you were hand-picked for, and if a ‘dad bod’ looks like this, then yes!” Y/N gestured to her husband while rambling on trying to make her point. “No, you know what? Come here, come sit down with me. Bring the wine.”

Y/N sat down with her laptop, intent on showing her husband the proof he needed to believe her and believe in himself. Jensen sat down next to her, handing her a fresh glass, as she pulled up photo after photo on the screen.

“Do you see what I see?”

“No, I see a skinny kid from Texas with no hair on his chest and barely-there abs,” he scoffed.

“Okay, you still don’t have chest hair, but what else do you see?” She prompted him again.

“A pudgy mid-section and that was before I turned 40!”

“Do you want to know what I see?”

“You’re biased.”

“You’re damn right I am, but I do know that your fans, the Dean-girls, well, they’re not wrong. Did you know that according to several fan sites, you and Dean have way more fans than Jared and Sam? And are you telling me that millions of people are wrong?”

“Millions?” he asked skeptically.

“Okay, well, maybe not millions, but a lot! But I see a man that is in better shape than he was twenty years ago. I see a skinny kid from Texas too. But I also see a man who now is in the best shape of his life and way sexier than that skinny kid.. What is it that you’re always telling me when I complain about my baby muffin top or my thunder thighs?”

“That bodies come in all shapes and sizes, and beauty isn’t defined by your body shape; it’s defined by your soul and you are the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on.”

“Okay, and I usually argue with you when you do, but that doesn’t mean you’re wrong. We are our own worst critics, you know that. But I see a healthy body and strong arms. Arms that hold me better than any others on the planet. Arms that hold our children and comfort them when they are hurt. I see a sexy mind and a stunning soul, one that was made for me.”

“Okay, I think that is enough wine for you,” Jensen reached for the glass, but you moved it out of his reach.

"Have I entered an alternate universe or did you really just crack a smile for me?"

“Fine, it could have been a smile.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah, my exceptionally sexy wife made a pretty good point.”

“Oh? Tell me more.”

“Well, she may also be the smartest person I know. She always knows just what to say when my dumbass is being, well a dumbass.”

“Yeah, I am pretty damn smart. Because you know what else I did? I made arrangements for your visiting parents to keep the children overnight so they can swim until they pass out.”

“Wow, that is pretty smart. You know, I’ve been working out and I bet I could carry you all the way upstairs without breaking a sweat.”

“Oh, you’re on Ackles, but you are wrong about one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“We will definitely be working up a sweat!”

The Whole Enchilada: @iwantthedean @dolphincliffs @mrswhozeewhatsis @flamencodiva @blacktithe7 @amanda-teaches @hannahindie @kickingitwithkirk @wi-deangirl77 @hobby27 @gh0stgurl @alleiradayne @idreamofplaid @manawhaat @crashdevlin @fangirlxwritesx67 @winchesterprincessbride @waywardbeanie @jensengirl83 @anathewierdo3467 @winchest09 @michellethetvaddict @magssteenkamp @waywardbaby thewinchesterandreidwhore @anathewierdo

The Jensen’s Jamboree: @jerkbitchidjitassbutt @dean-winchesters-bacon @adoptdontshoppets @supernatural-jackles @fandom-princess-forevermore @akshi8278 @thing-you-do-with-that-thing @deanwanddamons @rockhoochie

#BTZ #jensen ackles x reader #jensen x reader #jensen ackles flangst #jensen ackles fluff #jensen ackles fanfiction

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thefinalcinderella · 3 years

Text

Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru Chapter 10 - Shooting Star (Part 1)

We finally made it...we’re in the endgame now...

Full list of translations here

Translation Notes

1. My Grandfather’s Clock is a popular song written by Henry Clay Work in 1876. The 2002 version by Ken Hirai was especially popular in Japan

Previous | Next

January 3rd, 5 a.m.

Yuki was in a dimly lit room in the Ashihara Ryokan. He changed into his Kansei University uniform and jersey and picked up his bench coat.

Two hours had already passed since Yuki woke up. After breakfast and a bath courtesy of the ryokan that took place at a time that could be better called late night, Yuki returned to the room where he had spent the night once the food in his stomach digested properly.

It was a night where he wasn’t sure if he had slept or not. However, his mind was clear and lucid. Excitement and tension became sharp blades that pared his body, and he felt somewhat light.

My energy is high, Yuki thought. He had felt the same way when he passed the bar exam. He read the questions for the essay exam and wrote his answer. It was almost funny how the meaning of the questions soaked into his brain, and before he could even think about how to answer them, the answer sheet was filled with words; it was just like automatic writing. He had never been able to output so smoothly what had been inputted into him until that moment, as though his consciousness had become clear and his sixth sense was working.

He knew that the same moment of elation and focus was about to visit his body and mind.

The return leg of the Hakone Ekiden started at 8 a.m. Yuki would slowly warm up over the next three hours, in order to build up his energy levels. It was Yuki’s method to relax and relieve his nervousness for two hours, and then concentrate on warming up for the remaining hour. Ever since the time when he was confronting his bar exam, Yuki preferred to increase the intensity of his concentration at this pace.

The six-mat guest room was completely occupied by the three futons laid out on the floor. Shindou, wearing his mask, was breathing faintly in his sleep. Yuki gently put his hand on his forehead and found it was still a little hot. The landlord was grinding his teeth as he slept soundly.

Yuki lightly folded his futon and put it in a corner so as to not wake them. Standing by the window, he quietly pulled back the curtains: the cozy garden of the ryokan was covered with a light dusting of snow, and ashy snowflakes continued to fall from the dark sky.

Yuki had never been skiing before. He didn’t understand going to the trouble of sticking boards to your feet in a cold place in a cold season. He thought it would be better to spend that time on one’s studies, and more than that, living with a single mother, they had no money to spend on fun.

Can I run down a steep, snow-covered slope? I can’t say I don’t want to run in the sixth leg at this point. Should I have at least experienced skiing if it’s like this?

The window was immediately fogged up by Yuki’s breath. The room was slightly warm from Yuki, Shindou and the landlord's combined body heat.

It’s not just me, Yuki reminded himself. In the past few years, there has never been snow on the roads of Hakone at New Year’s. Most of the runners—no, maybe all of them—have never gone down the mountain roads of Hakone covered in snow. Everyone lacks experience. I can run. I can run.

Chanting that in his mind as though to convince himself, Yuki picked up Kansei’s sash from the alcove. It seemed to still be damp from absorbing the sweat of the five people who had run in the outbound leg.

After carefully folding the sash and putting it in his jersey pocket, Yuki quietly left the guest room.

He walked through the corridor to the front door and saw the ryokan’s proprietress holding a newspaper.

“Oh, you’ve already changed?”

“Yes. I’ll be warming up from now on.”

“Outside?” Looking at the still-dark front of the building, the proprietress furrowed her brow in concern. “It’s minus five degrees right now.”

Yuki had planned to go outside, but he quickly changed his mind. He would have to wait until the temperature rose a little, or his muscles would stiffen up from the cold.

“May I borrow this space?”

He pointed at the empty lobby, and the proprietress graciously said, “By all means.

“Do you want to read the paper? I asked them to deliver it earlier today.”

While reading the newspaper, Yuki sat down on the floor of the lobby and began to stretch. He exhaled and began to relax his muscles and joints.

The paper had a big spread on the outbound leg of the Hakone Ekiden. Bousou University won the outbound leg by a narrow margin. It was a close race where it was impossible to tell if Rikudou University would make a comeback in the return leg, or which school would take the overall victory.

There was also a mention of Kansei under the headline “A Challenge with Only Ten People”. There was a photo of Shindou, unsteady and desperately trying to run on the mountain roads. Yuki opened his legs and brought his upper body down while reading the article.

“With only ten members, Kansei University unexpectedly put on the brakes in the fifth leg. They dropped down drastically in the rankings and ended the outbound leg in eighteenth place. However, with ace runners such as Kurahara, a freshman, and Kiyose, a fourth-year, in the return leg, there are still plenty of opportunities for a comeback. All eyes will be on the development of this small team’s great challenge.”

At the end of the article, there was a signature (布). It’s Nunoda-san, Yuki thought. The reporter Nunoda, who had come to Lake Shirakaba during summer vacation, had continued to keep an eye on Kansei.

There are still more than enough opportunities. We believe that, but it’s reassuring to have a third party say so as well. Yuki put the newspaper on the rack in the lobby and silently worked on stretching.

It was 6 when Shindou appeared in the lobby. He was wearing Musa’s bench coat and a mask. “Good morning,” he said in a hoarse voice, and pushed on Yuki’s back to help him stretch.

“You should be sleeping.”

“I asked Musa to give me a wake-up call because I knew you would be thoughtful like that.” Shindou sat down next to Yuki. “It’s snowing.”

“Yeah.”

The two watched the fluttering snow through the lobby window.

“How are you feeling?”

“Good. What about you?”

“I’m feeling much better.”

Yuki began doing sit-ups. Shindou lightly held his ankles still.

“To tell you the truth,” Yuki murmured, “I’m getting uncomfortably nervous. I want to run away, if I could.”

“I was the same way,” Shindou laughed under his mask. “Why don’t you try listening to some music? I took it from your luggage without asking.”

Yuki took the iPod Shindou gave him and put the earphones in his ears. He listened to his favorite songs for a while, but today, the world of sound was no comfort to Yuki.

“It’s no use.” Yuki tore out his earphones. “When I’m running, it feels like music I don’t like is playing through my head incoherently and endlessly. And it’s music that you can’t even get into! Like My Grandfather’s Clock (1) and stuff like that!”

“You hate it?”

“I don’t like irritating things.”

“I think it’s a good song, though,” Shindou said, and Yuki stood up with a “hmph.” Looking up at Yuki, who was rotating his ankles, Shindou made a suggestion.

“No matter what song plays in your head, you can always arrange it so it’s up-tempo.”

“Shindou, you’re amazing.” Yuki was deeply impressed. “I’m filled with worries. All I can think about are bad things like, what if I fall down the slope, or what if my shoelaces get torn off.”

“Yuki-senpai, you can even aim for the sectional prize.”

“Why do you think that?”

“Because you’ve always accomplished what you said you would do. Whether it’s the bar exam or the Hakone Ekiden, you said you’ll do it, and you did.” Only Shindou’s eyes were smiling. “So say it this time too. That you’re aiming for the sectional prize.”

As though pushed by Shindou’s quiet force, Yuki said, “I am.”

“Yes, then it’s fine now. You will definitely run a good time.”

Yuki looked down at Shindou, who was nodding in satisfaction, and couldn’t help but laugh.

“I know how useless I was yesterday,” Yuki said. “I knew you were experiencing this pressure before the race, but I couldn’t support you like this.”

“No matter how much support I get, in the end, I’m the only one who can bounce back from the pressure.” Shindou also stood and prompted Yuki. “Let’s jog.” The two put on their shoes at the door and went outside. There was no sign of the sunrise anywhere, but birds were singing in the mountains. The fine snow felt dry against their cheeks.

“But yesterday, you stayed by my side until the very last moment before I started running, Yuki-senpai. That gave me a lot of strength.” Shindou pulled down his mask and breathed in the cold air. “That’s why, I’ll stay with you today. I’ll stay with you until you start.”

Yuki didn’t have any words to respond. He was simply happy, and watched Shindou put his mask back on.

“We’ll freeze if we stay in one spot. Let’s run.”

“By the way, how’s the landlord?”

“He said he’s going to take a morning bath.”

“He’s in a sightseeing mood, that person.”

“His nighttime teeth grinding was very loud, wasn’t it?”

They chatted about trifling things as they jogged, and Yuki and Shindou's white breaths flowed shakily along the dark, snowy lakeside path.

---

Kakeru was feeling restless.

Kiyose was acting strange. When Kakeru invited him to go jogging after breakfast, he refused, saying, “Go ahead. I’ve got a lot of calls to make.”

It’s definitely strange that Haiji-san didn’t do his morning jog. He didn’t seem to sleep well last night either. I wonder if his leg hurts.

After running around Yokohama Station for about thirty minutes, Kakeru decided to go back to the hotel. He could still warm up at the relay station. He had never cut a jog short before, no matter how sick he was, but right now he was worried about Kiyose. He wondered if he was planning on pushing himself too hard. As if spurred on by a bad premonition, Kakeru ran back to the hotel.

In the lobby of the small business hotel, Jouji was opening a sports newspaper while watching the weather forecast on TV. Noticing Kakeru running across the lobby and pushing the button for the elevator, he came up to him and said, “You’re early.

“Your jogging time was unusually short today.”

“Where’s Haiji-san?”

“I think he’s in his room. Prince-san and Hana-chan are organizing their luggage together. I was chased away. I can sense that he’s trying to keep me away from Hana-chan.” Jouji pouted in dissatisfaction, but Kakeru wasn’t listening anymore. He rode the elevator to the fifth floor. “What’s going on?” Jouji asked as he followed him.

Kansei had three rooms: Kakeru and Kiyose’s room was at the far end of the corridor, Jouji and Prince’s was next to theirs, and Hanako’s room was near the elevator.

After exiting the elevator, Kakeru passed a man in the hallway. He was in his late thirties and carrying a large black bag in his hand. Thinking that it looked like a house call bag, Kakeru turned around with a start. The doors to the elevator the man got into were just about to close.

That wasn’t a guest just now. That was a doctor. Kakeru had a hunch. He must be the doctor who came to examine Haiji-san’s leg.

“Haiji-san!”

Kiyose was sitting by the window near the two beds. He looked up in surprise at Kakeru’s menacing attitude, and Kakeru sprang at him.

“Let me see your leg, let me see it!”

Kiyose fell down onto the bed, pushed by the momentum. Kakeru didn’t care and tried to pull up the cuff of Kiyose’s track pants.

“Just calm down, Kakeru! I’ll explain!”

Jouji was standing in the doorway of their room, watching in amazement as Kakeru and Kiyose grappled with each other. Noticing the commotion, Prince and Hanako came out of the room next door.

When Hanako asked, “What’s this all about?” Jouji tilted his head to the side.

“Uh, I have no idea.”

Kiyose finally pulled Kakeru off of him and beckoned everyone in the doorway to come in. The group that had stayed in Yokohama gathered in the room and sat down on the beds and chairs of their choice.

“Haiji-san, there was a doctor in this room a while ago, wasn’t there?” Kakeru sat on the bed and questioned Kiyose.

“There was,” Kiyose admitted as though he could see that there was no way out of this. “It was the doctor who always examines me. I asked him to make a house call and he gave me some painkillers.”

“The leg you said you injured—did it not heal?” Prince asked in shock. Jouji and Hanako had never even heard that Kiyose was injured, and they looked at each other in disbelief.

“What are you going to do?” It was all Kakeru could do not to let his voice tremble.

“Of course I’m running.”

“Are you okay with being so reckless?”

“If I’m not going to be reckless now, then when?”

“If…” Kakeru hesitated to put it into words. He was afraid that if he said it aloud, it would become reality.

“What if you can’t run for the rest of your life because of your recklessness today?”

He saw Jouji gasp and Prince hanging his head. Hanako didn’t move, only watching the course of Kiyose and Kakeru’s exchange.

Kakeru stared fixedly at Kiyose and waited for a response.

“It would be very painful,” Kiyose’s voice was quiet, and Kakeru knew that he had been thinking about that for a long time already. “But I won’t regret it.”

There’s no stopping him, Kakeru thought. If he were in Kiyose’s position, he would still choose to run.

Kakeru made up his mind. If that’s the case, then there’s only one thing I can do: to put as little burden on Haiji-san as possible, I should gain as much time as I can in the ninth leg.

The silence that enveloped the room was broken by Kiyose's phone ringing. He hung up after a short conversation.

“That was Shindou. The final entries were announced at Lake Ashi. Just as expected, Rikudou put Fujioka in the ninth leg.”

Jouji looked at Kakeru with both anticipation and worry in his eyes. “Okay,” Kakeru murmured. Blood was rushing through his body, and his heart was beating with joy and a fighting spirit; the day had come when they could finally compete in the same place. At the TSU meet in spring, he had only chased Fujioka’s back, but it was finally time to test how fast and strong he had become since then.

“Kakeru, don’t lose the race,” Kiyose said. Kakeru nodded determinedly.

It was past 7 in the morning.

They had to leave the hotel now. From now on, they were to split up: Kakeru and Jouji were going to the Totsuka relay station; Kiyose and Prince were going to the Tsurumi relay station; Hanako was going to Otemachi, the finish line.

“Are you okay with Jouji attending you? I can go with you, if you’d like,” Prince asked Kakeru, but he didn’t understand the intention of his question at all.

“Why? It’s fine as we planned.”

Even though his generous consideration was turned down, Prince didn’t seem offended at all, instead laughing and shaking his head lightly as though to say, “Good grief.”

When they reached the Yokohama Station premises, Kiyose said to Kakeru, “About what you said earlier.

“The situation isn’t as serious as you think. The painkillers are working, and I’m not beyond recovery.”

“Is that really true?”

“Have I ever lied?”

“Quite a lot.”

Kiyose frowned at the sky for a few moments, seemingly recalling his past acts.

“Don’t worry. I’m telling the truth this time,” he smiled. “I’m looking forward to seeing you run at Tsurumi.”

He felt like he wanted to say something to Kiyose—his gratitude, worry, and determination. But they were feelings that would never take shape no matter how many words he spent on them, so Kakeru only said, “I’ll hand you the sash not a second late.”

The group raised their hands a little to say goodbye, and then headed up the stairs to the platform to go to their respective places.

---

8 a.m.

As the starting gun sounded from Lake Ashi, the Bousou runner started running first. One minute and thirty-nine seconds later, the Rikudou runner followed.

One after another, the runners from each school left Lake Ashi with their sashes, with a time difference reflecting the times they had finished at Lake Ashi in the outbound leg. This time, the return leg of the Hakone Ekiden was beginning, heading for Otemachi, Tokyo.

Schools with more than ten minutes of difference from the outbound leg leader, Bousou, would start together ten minutes after Bousou began the return leg. In this year’s race, five schools had to start at the same time: the federation selected team, Eurasia University, Kansei University, Tokyo Gakuin University, and Shinsei University.

Kansei had a time difference of eleven minutes and fifty-three seconds with Bousou. Even though they would start the race simultaneously after ten minutes, the extra one minute and fifty-three seconds would not be discarded and would be automatically added to their overall time. Because of the simultaneous start, the visible order in which the runners were running and their orders by their times might differ from each other for the return leg.

In the return leg, especially for lower ranked teams, the competitors must not only look at the race’s development before their eyes, but also keep in mind the complicated time calculation, and try to fight calmly to raise their actual rankings as much as possible.

I’m made for this, Yuki thought. Rather than competing against others, he preferred to think about how to achieve his goals by developing countermeasures and how to show off his abilities while doing that. The sixth leg of the Hakone Ekiden, the mountain descent, suited his personality; he didn’t have to be misled by the apparent rankings, he just had to use his skills to run down the winding slope against the invisible enemy called time.

Just as he had declared, Shindou stayed by Yuki’s side the entire time before his departure. He helped him stretch, massaged his calves to prevent them from stiffening up in the cold, and conversed with him casually. Thanks to him, Yuki was able to calm his mind and focus on the race.

When the time came to set off, Yuki took off his bench coat and left it with Shindou. The temperature at Lake Ashi was minus three degrees Celsius. There was still powder snow in the air. The road surface was covered in snow and the ruts were frozen. Even with a long-sleeved T-shirt under his uniform, there was no way to prevent the cold from pressing down on him. The lack of wind was the only saving grace.

Jounan Bunka University was the last team that was able to start according to its time difference with Bousou. After being called by the staff member, the teams hurriedly lined up at the start line to start simultaneously.

Yuki looked at the crowd of people next to him. Shindou was almost swallowed up by the waves of spectators, but he was watching Yuki firmly.

“We’ll meet at Otemachi,” Yuki said. It might not have reached him, having gotten lost in the cheers, but Shindou was nodding.

Ten seconds after Jounan Bunka, the runners from the five teams started running at the same time on cue. Yuki’s glasses immediately fogged up from his body heat, but he soon regained his clear vision thanks to the cold wind blowing.

The road surface was covered with a thin layer of snow, making it nerve-wracking to even walk on flat surfaces, but running on it, there was no time to check your footing. Every step he took, the sherbet-like snowflakes bounced off his legs. Even the lightest shoes with the latest features couldn’t prevent the soles from slipping slightly as they kicked the surface.

The first four kilometers from the lakeside road to the highest point of Route 1 were mostly uphill. Of the five teams that had started at the same time, Eurasia was in front and Yuki didn’t hesitate to follow him. When he checked his watch at the first kilometer, his pace was less than three minutes and twenty seconds.

On the way up, he was a little too fast considering the poor road conditions. But if he didn’t go all out here, then there was no way Kansei would be able to improve their ranking in the return leg. Besides, Yuki thought, among the runners assigned to the sixth leg, the Rikudou runner was the only one who has a record of twenty-eight minutes for the ten-thousand meter. In other words, the runners in the sixth leg don’t put much emphasis on speed.

From the highest point to the town of Hakone-Yumoto, almost the entire sixth leg was downhill. Even if your time on flat surfaces wasn’t good, you could still go fast on the downhill if you gathered momentum. What was important was the dexterity to change your running style depending on the ups and downs, a sense of physical balance, and the boldness to run downhill without fear.

Even if he entered the first uphill slope at a somewhat fast pace, he would be able to conserve enough stamina. With this judgement, Yuki didn’t recoil.

They left the lakeside and headed up the path towards the mountains. There was one small up-and-down right before the highest point. As they approached the first descent, Yuki looked at his watch again. Kiyose had instructed him to run at a pace of three minutes and twenty seconds per kilometer on the way up, but he was now going at a pace of three minutes and fifteen seconds per kilometer.

I can do it. He was convinced. His body felt light and he was able to asjust his footwork according to the ups and downs without even thinking about it.

Tokyo Gakuin University and Shinsei University were already about to be shaken off from the lower-ranked group, which was now composed of six schools as it had absorbed Jounan Bunka, who had departed ahead of them.

All Yuki could think about was overtaking as many schools as possible in front of him. The cold didn’t bother him anymore. He climbed to the highest point in one go.

The downhill slope, which stretched for nearly fifteen kilometers, awaited him, meandering on and on beyond the falling snow.

---

“Isn’t he going too fast?”

Watching the portable TV, Kakeru arrived at the Totsuka relay station with Jouji. The screen showed Yuki and the others passing in front of the main gate of the Flower Center, the five-kilometer marker.

“But I heard that the normal pace for the sixth leg is five kilometers in around thirteen minutes?” Jouji said in his usual carefree way, but it didn’t ease Kakeru’s concerns. It was the pace after you got into the descent in earnest—it was hard even for a runner himself to hold back his speed once he was completely going downhill. Once your body got into the rhythm of the descent, it wasn’t impossible to run down a hundred meters in fifteen seconds. In the sixth leg, despite the long distance of 20.7 kilometers, the speed in some places was comparable to that of a short distance run.

However, even though the first five kilometers were uphill and the road conditions weren’t good, he was running in sixteen minutes. Even with Yuki’s running ability, it seemed to Kakeru that this was clearly an excessive pace.

“I’ll call Haiji-san.”

Kakeru took out his phone from his jacket pocket.

“You worry too much,” Jouji said, shrugging a little.

“Yes, this is Kiyose.” The phone immediately relayed Kiyose’s voice along with the bustle from outside. It seemed that he had already arrived at the Tsurumi relay station.

“Are you listening to the radio?”

“Prince’s phone has a TV function. He also found out about it just now. We’re watching it. It’s amazing what you can do with a cell phone these days.”

“Yes. No, not about that…” Prince’s slow pace and Kiyose’s hopelessness with technology made Kakeru feel dizzy. “Isn’t Yuki-senpai running a little too fast?”

“Yeah. I would call the landlord, but there’s no point—the coach cars don’t stay close to the runners on the mountain roads of Hakone.”

“What should we do?”

“There’s nothing we can do. The rest is the descent. It would be foolish to slow down now, so we can only pray that Yuki doesn’t slip and fall,” Kiyose let out a light laugh, as though he had gotten over all his worries. “Anyways Kakeru, make sure to jog and warm up properly. I have to get in touch with Nico-chan-senpai and King now, so we’ll talk later.”

The call ended, and Kakeru let out a sigh.

“I told you it’s fine,” Jouji took the phone from Kakeru. “You need to trust us a little more.”

“Trust, huh,” Kakeru began to rotate his ankles and prepare for a jog. “Come to think of it, Katsuta-san said that too.”

“H-Hana-chan?” Jouji immediately turned red. “Why are you bringing up Hana-chan?”

“What do you mean why?”

“Are you doing that on purpose or are you really that airheaded?” Growing impatient with Kakeru’s pointless reply, Jouji turned to him again. “Hey, you know, I like Hana-chan.”

“I know.”

“You know!? How?”

“Nico-chan-senpai said it on the phone yesterday.”

Even when we’re apart from each other, we can still be overheard just as well as when we’re in Chikusei-sou, Jouji grumbled.

“What about you, Kakeru?” He asked the question he wanted to ask the most: “Is it okay if I confess to Hana-chan?”

Why do you need to check with me for that? It seems that the residents of Chikusei-sou are convinced that I like Katsuta-san. Kakeru, pondering up to that point, felt a jolt to his heart like the feeling of falling during the first stage of sleep.

I like Katsuta-san.

It was partly because he was so dense that he couldn’t even laugh at the twins, but it was a feeling that had been in his heart so quietly and naturally that he hadn’t been aware of it until now.

Kakeru had always kept Hanako’s figure carefully in his memory. The color of her scarf on the night they walked together. The profile of her face when she watched them train under the sky where summer clouds were rising. The first time he saw her, her thin back as she pedalled her bike through the shopping district.

Kakeru was looking at Hanako. And all that time, her eyes and thoughts were solely on the twins.

“Now I get it.”

Kakeru was shocked at his feelings that had finally become clear.

“…What are you talking about?” Jouji nervously asked, seemingly thinking that it was creepy how he had suddenly zoned and then nodded to himself.

“No,” Kakeru shook his head. “I think you should just confess to her.”

It wasn’t an act of bravado, but a feeling of clarity. He was sure that Hanako would be happy to know Jouji’s feelings. Perhaps she would be equally pleased with a confession from Jouta, and there might be a quarrel there. But that wasn’t Kakeru’s business.

This wasn’t a competition. Hanako’s heart belonged to her. Jouji’s heart belonged to him as well. It was the same as how Kakeru’s heart only belonged to him. It was a domain that was free from all standards and measures, something no one could steal or bend.

It was satisfying to know that there was a gentle but strong feeling within him that had nothing to do with speed or victory or defeat. Hanako, who taught him those feelings, seemed more and more important to him. Kakeru would be happy if her love was realized.

Also, I’m used to long-distance running. I’m good at patiently waiting for an opportunity. Even if Hanako has feelings for the twins right now, you can’t state definitively that it’ll be forever.

“I see, I guess it’s better to tell her. Uwah, what should I do, I’m so nervous.”

Jouji was determined to confess his feelings to Hanako without any hesitation, not realizing that Kakeru, who was patient when it came to the important things, was chewing on his first realization of love like a ruminating cow.

---

Yuki was smoothly descending the mountain.

In the beginning, he tried to run on the ruts because he was afraid of slipping on the frozen snow, but then he couldn’t steer a good course through the turns. Too much concern about slipping would cause him to put pressure on his muscles, which would make it all come to nothing. In the end, Yuki decided to run and take the course as usual.

Running downhill is fun, Yuki thought. To be able to feel such acceleration with my own body. His speed was so fast that even the soft snowflakes hitting his face from the front hurt like pebbles. While balancing with his whole body, he followed the slope as it led him forward. His fear of falling down didn’t cross his mind at all in the face of the pleasure of speed.

The front of Kowakien was the ten-kilometer point of the sixth leg. It was also a TV relay point. Even though the weather was bad and it was early in the morning, there were spectators along the roadside cheering for them. Following the Eurasia runner, Yuki turned to the right, and he could hear the watery footsteps of the Shinsei runner right behind him.

Yuki, of course, had no way of knowing, but the announcer and the commentator Yanaka were watching the live feed and commentating on the running of the athletes from each school.

“The footage of the lower-ranked teams at the ten-kilometer mark is coming in. What do you think, Yanaka-san?”

“They’re going at quite a fast pace. I thought that the section prize for the sixth leg would go to Manaka, who is steadily improving their rank from twelfth place, but there is a possibility that it will go to one of the lower-ranked teams.”

“According to the data at hand, except for Tamura-kun of Rikudou, all the runners in the sixth leg have an official record in the twenty-nine-minute range for the ten-thousand meters.”

“When it comes to the mountain descent, the time on flat surfaces is not that important. If you can run ten-thousand meters in the twenty-nine-minute range, then the rest is all down to guts.”

“Guts, you say?”

“Yes. The speed and incline the runners experience is much more than what you see on the screen. It’s like pedalling a bike down a steep slope with both hands free. And today, the footing isn’t good. It’s crucial to calmly keep your balance and have the guts to keep your momentum going.”

“Which of the lower-ranked teams do you think is closest to the section prize?”

“I still don’t know yet, but I like Iwakura-kun of Kansei. He has a very stable lower body. His upper body doesn’t sway unnecessarily, and he doesn’t flinch from running down bad roads at all. He is an excellent example of how to run downhill.”

“I see. The rest would depend on their persistence when the road becomes flat after Hakone-Yumoto. They've passed the ten-kilometer TV relay point.”

As they descended in altitude, the snow turned into sleet mixed with rain and the road became covered with a sherbet-like muck. Yuki realized that he had crossed the width of the crosswalk in two steps.

The current crosswalk was probably four meters wide. If he had crossed it in two steps, then that meant he had gone two meters in one step. Yuki was once again shocked at himself—his acceleration was incredible. He had gained momentum and was literally running as if he were flying, and his stride was widening as a result. He glanced at his watch: for the past five kilometers, he had been running downhill at a pace of two minutes and forty seconds.

One kilometer in two minutes and forty seconds. It was a time Yuki couldn’t achieve on flat ground. As far as he knew, the only person who could sustain such a pace for five kilometers on level ground was Kakeru.

The branches of the cedar trees on the roadside were piled with pure white snow. The trunks were black and wet, and the mountains had been transformed overnight into a beautiful, monochromatic world. As soon as they appeared in the corner of his eye, they streamed backwards, smoother and faster than in a movie.

So, this is the world Kakeru normally experiences. Yuki had a lump in his throat.

Kakeru, you’re in a very lonely place, aren’t you? The wind rumbles loudly in your ears, and all the scenery passes by you in an instant. It feels so good that I never want to stop running, but it’s a world you can only experience alone.

For the first time, he understood why Kakeru was so devoted to running, sometimes to the point of overdoing it. If Yuki were allowed to run at such a speed, he would certainly indulge in it like an addict. He wanted to see the world in quicker, even more beautiful instants. Perhaps that was a momentary experience, almost like an eternity. However, it was too dangerous—it was a world that was too beautiful, too harsh to challenge with a flesh and blood body.

Now I’m just looking at the gate that would lead me there from a distance, with the help of the mountain roads of Hakone, Yuki thought. He knew that he wouldn’t get any closer.

Dragged in by Kiyose’s enthusiasm, Yuki’s life had been centered around running for the past year. But that life was coming to an end today. I have my own way of life. I don’t want to aim for momentary beauty and exaltation, sharpening my mind and body day after day. I want to choose to live among people, even if I’m covered in filth. That’s why I passed the bar and am trying to become a lawyer.

Today’s the end. But I’m glad I experienced this speed for the first and last time. Yuki smiled slightly as he sped along the mountain road. Kakeru, don’t go too far. What you’re aiming for is a beautiful place, but it’s lonely and quiet. So much that it doesn’t suit a living person.

It would be nice if there’s something to tie Kakeru’s soul to the earth, Yuki thought. In people’s lives, in people’s joys and sorrows. It’s only by planting his feet on the ground that Kakeru would definitely become even stronger. Balance was essential. It was the same as running down a snowy mountain road.

As Yuki entered the Miyanoshita Hot Spring Village and passed in front of the Fujiya Hotel, he saw something unexpected and let out a short cry.

“Uwah!”

In front of the hotel, there were many guests waving Hakone Ekiden flags. Some of them were dressed lightly in yukata and padded kimonos, shouting their voices hoarse even as they shrank back from the cold. Among them, Yuki saw his mother, his younger sister who was only half related to him, and his mother’s second husband.

“Yukihiko!” his mother shouted loudly.

“Onii-chan, do your best!” His young sister leaned forward, and his stepfather, who was holding her, nodded firmly.

“This is so embarrassing…”

He passed by the hotel in a few moments, but Yuki ran for a while with his head down. Did my family elegantly spend the New Year’s at that hotel? Yuki snarked inwardly to cover up his embarrassment. They probably knew I wouldn’t be able to come by even if they invited me, so they planned to surprise me by not saying anything. Even so, it’s too bad for my heart. I hope the TV and radio didn’t pick up the voices and figures of Mom and the others. Nico-chan-senpai would definitely make fun of me if he knew. Well, he should only have a radio, so I think I’ll be fine.

Yuki suddenly felt happy. That look on Mom’s face just now. She looked desperate and tearful, like she was the one running.

Yuki didn’t remember his biological father. He had died in an accident right after he was born, so his only memories of his father were in his mother’s words and photos. Since his father’s death, Yuki had only lived with his mother, and he treasured her very much. His high school girlfriend had once said to him, “Yuki, you’re a mama’s boy, aren’t you?” Of course I am, Yuki thought. A son who doesn’t take care of his mother isn’t a good son.

Perhaps because he grew up watching his mother work late into the night, Yuki set his sights on his goals early on. He wanted to get a steady job so that he could make his mother’s life easier. Fortunately, he had confirmed during his school life that his brain wasn’t half-bad. If that was the case, then it would be easy to aim for the bar exam, which was called the strongest qualification. He thought that being a lawyer, where he could work between logic and emotion, would be suitable for him, and more importantly, it seemed to make a lot of money. As soon as Yuki entered high school, he began preparing for the exam on his own. He studied hard and worked on his stamina. He thought that he should be well-versed in the inner workings of relationships between men and women, so he went out with girls.

However, something happened that made Yuki’s efforts all come to nothing: his mother remarried. Her new husband was an office worker who earned a decent wage, so his mother didn’t have to work anymore. She loved her new husband and seemed to be very happy. His stepfather was easily able to do more for her than Yuki had ever wanted to do for his mother.

Yuki couldn’t help but feel devastated. He had his pride, and when he decided to do something, he had to finish it, so he didn’t give up on passing the bar exam. However, it was all in vain now. The following year after his mother remarried, she had his little sister. This was also a situation that made Yuki, who was in his late teens, feel awkward and uncomfortable. When he got into university, he left home and rarely came back, even at New Year’s.

Seeing his family cheer him on made the trivial pent-up feelings he had melt away. As though to match that, the snow had completely transformed into rain.

Both his stepfather and his sister had always cared for Yuki as a member of the family. And most importantly, his mother was happy. That’s all that matters. That’s exactly what I’ve always wanted. It would be childish of me to keep sulking about the fact that my mother became happy in a slightly different way than I envisioned.

Yuki laughed, unnoticed by anyone else, in the midst of his white and billowing exhalation. Before he knew it, he caught a glimpse of the Teitou University runner's back at the end of the turn. He couldn’t sense anyone behind him; he seemed to have pulled away from the lower-ranked teams he had started the race with.

He looked at his watch and confirmed that he hadn’t slowed down his pace at all. His mind and body felt light. He could go the rest of the way downhill at this pace. What was important was whether or not he could keep up this running for the last three kilometers of flat ground after Hakone-Yumoto. Kiyose had given him advice yesterday.

“After a downhill slope, even flat ground feels like going uphill. That’s when the real battle begins.”

I think I’ll be okay, Yuki answered in his mind. I have no intention of losing today—to the battle between me and my body and mind.

---

The drums were still beating at the Odawara relay station. In front of Kazamatsuri Station, there were many people crowded into the kamaboko company's parking lot, waiting for the arrival of the sixth leg athletes.

“Did you see that, Jouta? Yuki’s face was there just now!”

Nico-chan had directly witnessed the scene in front of Fujiya Hotel with the TV function of his cell phone. It was only when Haiji called him earlier that he realized he could watch TV on Jouta’s phone as well. Even Nico-chan, who was knowledgeable about computers, only used his phone for calling, and Jouta only used his for texting. Perhaps it was because he wasn’t interested in the evolution of machines that he could be satisfied with the rundown apartment.

“Yuki-senpai’s mom is young and beautiful,” Jouta said, biting into a rolled omelette. “By the way, he’s going to win the section prize at this rate, isn’t he?”

“Yuki doesn’t seem to be aware of that fact, though. The Manaka guy is just as fast as him, so it's hard to tell.”

“Ugh, I’m so frustrated! I want to tell Yuki-senpai his time.”

“How?”

“I’ll use willpower or telekinesis or something,” Jouta put the omelet he was partway through eating away in his sports bag and began to look at his phone intently. “In less than twenty minutes, it will be Nico-chan-senpai’s turn.”

The screen showed Bousou in the lead, and Rikudou chasing behind with a difference of about one and a half minutes. They were about to finish their descent and head towards Hakone-Yumoto Station. The Manaka runner, aiming for the section prize, had improved his position and was now in eighth place. His pace hadn’t slowed at all.

“How’s Yuki?”

“He’s not on the screen. Until they go out to Hakone-Yumoto, the lower-ranked teams won’t be shown much.”

Nico-chan told Jouta to keep an eye on Manaka’s time and began his final adjustments. He ran lightly in the parking lot to loosen up.

Nine o’clock in the morning. The Bousou runner arrived at the station in the lead. His time was sixty minutes and forty-six seconds. Rikudou and Yamato were the next to receive their sashes. Nico-chan hurried back to Jouta, who was near the relay line.

“Amazing!” Jouta was excited. “Even on flat ground, his speed hasn’t slowed down. Keep going, Yuki-senpai!”

On the screen of his phone, he could see Yuki sidestepping the Teitou runner at the crossroad with New Hakone Road. Kansei, in fourteenth place, had a clear view of TSU in front of them.

“Yes, that’s it!”

Nico-chan took off his jersey. Now it was time to see if Yuki could get the section prize.

“Manaka?”

“We'll be able to see them with our own eyes soon.”

Jouta raised his head from his phone. “They’re here!” he shouted.

The red uniform of Manaka, running along the railroad tracks, was just about to turn off the road and enter the relay station. They knew he was a candidate for the section prize, so the cheers were even louder. Manaka’s sash was handed over.

“What’s his record!”

“Sixty minutes and twenty-four seconds.”

Jouta read the information on the TV screen on his phone out loud. It was a good time for running on snowy roads. Even Rikudou’s Tamura, whose ten-kilometer time was in the twenty-eight minute range, had a time of sixty minutes and forty-eight seconds.

At the relay station, the schools relayed their sashes one after the other. The TV screen showed that Yuki was almost there.

Yuki, just a little more. The staff member called Nico-chan to stand at the relay line. All that was left was a race against time. Next to him, the TSU runner received his sash and started running. He could hear Jouta’s voice as he timed Yuki on his watch.

“Sixty minutes and seventeen seconds, eighteen, nineteen…”

Yuki entered the relay station. He was gritting his teeth and holding the unfastened sash in his right hand. He might have learned Manaka’s time from the spectators along the road and was trying to summon up all his strength in the final stretch.

“Yuki!” Nico-chan howled. “Sixty minutes and twenty-four seconds,” Jouta screamed. There was a stir from the spectators. The sash still hadn’t been passed to Nico-chan’s hand. Yuki was a step short of the section prize.

But at that moment, Nico-chan forgot about the existence of times. Yuki’s eyes were looking straight at him. He wasn’t thinking about the section prize at all, he just wanted to give the sash to Nico-chan as soon as possible. That was the only thing he was thinking about as he made it through the last three flat kilometers. Nico-chan understood that. He could see that in Yuki’s fingertips, which were still hot and damp despite being exposed to the cold wind.

“Good job,” Nico-chan muttered.

“I’m tired. I’m leaving the rest to you.”

Yuki clapped Nico-chan on the back, managed to step firmly on his trembling legs, and prevented himself from falling over.

“Yuki-senpai!” Jouta snatched a towel from a staff member and ran up to Yuki to support him. “It's disappointing, but you were incredible!”

“Disappointing? What is?” Yuki drank water from a plastic water bottle and finally found his voice.

“The section prize. Yuki-senpai’s time was sixty minutes and twenty-six seconds. If you had been two seconds faster, you would have tied for the section prize.”

“Really.”

Two seconds. Yuki laughed. Only two seconds. Such a short amount of time that passed in a single breath. Did I miss out on being the best in this leg by such a small margin?

“Oh well,” Yuki said. “Those two seconds were like an hour to me.”

Jouta almost cried when he saw Yuki’s soles after he took off his shoes. The blisters at the base of his big toes had peeled off and there was blood welling up, even though the skin on his soles had grown so thick over the past year. He realized just how hard it was to run down the mountains of Hakone.

“Of course it was enough. You were so cool, Yuki-senpai.”

After patting the tearful Jouta on the head, Yuki looked at the road leading toward the town of Odawara.

I’m leaving the rest to you, Nico-chan-senpai.

Previous | Next

#Kaze ga tsuyoku fuiteiru #kazetsuyo #kazetsuyo translations #run with the wind

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glitterge1pen · 3 years

Text

Have You Ever Considered Craft Supplies Instead Of Drugs? Then This Might Be For You.

Kyōtani Kentarou x reader, sfw, fluff, 1,691word count

His room for the most part was clean. It’s main function was for sleep though. This was apparent. His clothes, which were mainly basketball shorts and blank t-shirts, were scattered about in a way that told you he threw them there when going to bed.

Kyotani had told you to give him a few minutes, while he was in the bathroom brushing his teeth and struggling with the cap of his eyeliner pen. You felt comfortable enough in his apartment to check the fridge and see if anything was worth your while. But still you felt a bit like an intruder in his bedroom, which is where you had wandered off to.

The walls were white, mostly bare. There was a poster up for some band you didn't recognize, and another one advertising the Sendai Frogs that looked like he had ripped it off one wall to get onto his. You smiled at the thought of him stealing the poster from the grocery store display window or stadium parking lot.

You give his room one last once over before turning to leave. On your way out you trip over a shoe box. You would have just ignored it but a few tufts of paper flew out from the lid. You bend down to collect them but find that these aren't just trash from the shoe box. Quietly, and with a tinge of guilt, you kneel down to gently put the papers back in the box. The little scraps of paper you had found were actually sticky notes, you couldn't decipher the writing on them because of how faded and old the paper was.

You get one quick glimpse inside the shoe box on Kyotani’s floor. There are dozens of papers, printed photos, receipts, tickets, and what you assume are old keys. You feel like you've seen something very private of Kyotani’s and when you turn around to find him standing in the doorway, you gasp in shock.

“What are you doing in here?”

He seems more concerned and confused about you versus the fact that you are in his room. You decide sarcasm is the best choice of action.

“What? You embarrassed about me being in your bedroom?”

“Shut up and get out!”

Kyotani puts his hands on your shoulders and tosses you out into the hallway.

“Hey, hey, what time is it because we might actually be late to the movie now,”

You say pulling out your phone to get a glance at the clock. There was only twenty minutes before you were supposed to be at the theater.

“We’ll be fine, the trailers always play for too long anyways”

He says leading you out the front door.

☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾

When the team wins a game and you head out to eat with the guys afterwards, your eyes don't usually follow Kyotani’s hands so closely. You hope that no one else has picked up on your new habit. But last week's venture into his bedroom has left you reeling in thought.

Kyotani doesn't really like to be hugged. During movie nights he sits separate from the pile of pillows and bodies. He tolerates head pats and high fives. When he hangs up the phone you can feel how difficult it is for him to say something like “bye I love you” platonic or not.

You hadn't really considered it before, at least not so intently in relation to Kyotani. Most people were easy to understand in their affections and how they garnered it. Or if they weren't so obvious, they made some sort of distinction, a simple “I don't like when people do this” or “I prefer this”.

Being friends with Kyotani you had assumed that he was content with what people gave him because he never asked for more. He didn't hug you when you two parted ways, and you never forced him to. He didn't ask or push on others boundaries but now after seeing that shoe box you wondered why he had never advocated for his own. You thought perhaps it wasnt that Kyotani disliked those other forms of affection or care, but rather he didn't regard those other acts as affections at all.

The sounds of the restaurant fade back in as your thoughts simmer down. You feel Tsukishima and Yamaguchi next to you. Enthralled in a conversation about some show they had been binging together. Apparently Yamaguchi had watched a few episodes without Tsukishima and everyone found the annoyed, bitter expression on Tsukishima hilarious, the table erupting in laughter.

“You good? You've been staring at nothing for five minutes,”

Kyotani said to you before taking another bite into his food. He sat across from you, his elbows propping him up over his plate of food.

“Yeah, just tired today,”

You say shaking your head as if trying to wake yourself up.

As the evening wears on, your eyes still follow Kyotani’s hands. Trying to catch the moment of thievery in action. To see if your contemplations are grounded in Kyotani’s actions or rather thoughts with nothing to hold as they pass you by.

But as everyone files out of the restaurant, the bill already split, the copy of the receipt abandoned on the table, you watch as Kyotani lingers for just a moment, to pocket the slip of paper.

☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾

You couldn't remember the last time you had attempted to burn a CD. Was it you who did it or a friend? It was years ago though that was for sure. You had made three playlists on spotify, checking and double checking that they were private playlists. After arranging them and finding the songs that fit just right with each list you started finding youtube videos of each song. From there you converted the links to MP3 audio.

While your computer whirred and the audio filed loaded onto the disk you thought about decorating the CD cases. Of course covering the clear plastic case with glitter gel pen and cute stickers was very tempting. But you weren't sure that was Kyotani’s style. At the same time this was supposed to be a gift from you. You met yourself halfway. Decorating one CD case like how you would have wanted, and the other with more of a Kyotani flair, the third somewhere in between the two.

When the CD’s were done you carefully placed them into their new plastic homes. Grabbing a black sharpie to scribble the playlist names onto each. You felt like wrapping them would be too extravagant so you settled for tying a ribbon around the two.

☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾

“What the hell do you want?” Kyotani says as he pulls up next to you on the curb outside your place. You had texted him earlier while he was at work, asking if could stop by after he got off. He has the window rolled down and you take it upon yourself to unlock the passenger door and climb inside.

"I wanted you to test these out"

You were hoping that you had done everything right with the computer.You hand him the CD's, he flips them over in his hands inspecting them.

“Is it cool if I take these ribbons off?”

You nod and he turns the car radio on to insert the CD’s. As the first song starts playing you turn to him.

“This is that band you like right? The one on that poster in your room?”

Kyotani is visibly flustered by this.

“Yes? Did you...did you make these for me?”

You throw your head back in a laugh.

“Yes, I made them for you,”

“Oh,”

He says in a rather soft amazed tone.

“Look, I didn't mean to, but when I was in your room the other day I tripped over that shoe box you have,”

You keep your eyes trained on the street outside the dashboard window. Unsure and a bit nervous to see what Kyotani is thinking. Tempted by curiosity though, you do look at him for a brief moment, only to find him also intensely staring off into the street. His face lit up red with embarrassment.

“I’m glad that I saw it though. Because that stuff is important to you and I want to know what you think is important”

The air in the car feels like it is clinging to your skin with tension. You think the pressure will start to crack your bones when Kyotani’s voice splinters the suspense.

“It's easier to feel something when its tangible, when you can hold it, it's why people still buy polaroids and go to museums and shit”

You nod, a jovial ease overcoming you as he continues to speak.

“I don't really like, uh, I guess physical affection or even talking or it’s not like talking, people call it words of affirmation or whatever,”

You hold the smile of your lips down, you don't want him to think you’re teasing him in this moment. You're just happy that he is comfortable enough with you to say such things.

“I know lots of other people like to have those types of things though, and I worked really hard to get used to stuff, but I don't know, this is what I like,”

He says gesturing with the CD case to you.

“I mean so like, birthday cards, post-it notes, bus transfers? Things that are directly attached to memories and people? Anything else you want me to know about?”

While it hurts a little that he’s struggling to talk about this matter, you can't help but revel in the unusual brash shyness of Kyotani. He does mutter something, but when you lean in closer to signal that you didn't hear him the first time he repeats himself.

“Event pamphlets. I know it's trash but I like it”

“Promise you won't get mad?”

You drawl your voice out and make it sweet so he knows you're messing with him.

“Hm?”

He says, eyebrow quirked in question.

“I think you'd be really into scrapbooking”

“Shut the hell up before I kick you out of my car”

☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾

A/N: Took a break from my current writing obsession to spit this out .

#kyotani x reader #kyōtani kentarō #kyoutani kentarou #haikyuu!!#haikyuu x reader #haikyuu x gender neutral reader #kyoutani kentarou x reader

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melismaticmadness · 3 years

Text

STOLEN

Request: “Request for a Owen x reader: Owen and the reader have been best friends forever and both confess their feelings when the reader helps Owen get settled in his new apartment”

Hope you like it!!

Description: the cutest FLUFF

1775 words

Warnings: kissing, very mild language

Owen Patrick Joyner x Reader

***********************************

“Miss Dinah, let me take that.”

“No, it’s okay honey! I’ll just put it in his truck. Are you two sure you can take this last load yourselves?”

“Yeah! We’ll be fine, it’s like four boxes.” Miss Dinah patted me on the shoulder and left to put the last box into Owen’s truck. It was brand new, and honestly, a godsend for him right now. There is no way he would’ve wanted to take a thousand trips to move all his stuff in his small car.

“O,” I yelled to him upstairs, “anything else up there?”

“Uh, I’m not sure…” his voice trailed off. I started up the stairs and could hear him pacing in his childhood bedroom.

“Think I should take the extra blanket?” he asked.

“You took, like, four. You can always come back for it if you decide you want it later. I’m sure your mom won’t trash the stuff you leave behind.”

He was still pacing but was definitely thinking pretty hard about something.

“It’ll be so weird...obviously this will always be home, but now at the end of the day I won’t be coming back here…”

“This room will always be here if you need it, and your family is less than 30 minutes away. You can come chill with Bindi anytime you want. You’re just taking the next step for yourself.”

“Yeah, it’s definitely time. This is a good thing, but tonight will be hard to sleep. Ugh,” he sighed and threw his arm over my shoulders.

“Let’s go, y/n - before my mom cries.”

We both laughed and said our final goodbye to his childhood room. Nothing would be the same now, even if the room was still there. His drums were gone, his hats were gone, his photos, everything. We played so many games on the floor of his living room, listened to musicals over and over again in his room, and definitely took advantage of his mom and dad making snacks for us. It was here, in his house, that I cried into his arms when a bully in middle school made jokes about my appearance.

His room was the place I first realized I had feelings for him. We were thirteen and it was in the summer after a day of swimming and a night-time bonfire with our friends. I was allowed to stay the night and we had a blast. The two of us were inseparable and unstoppable. Those feelings never went away, no matter how long we were apart, or how much our lives changed. It’s crazy to think that those two little energetic, slightly sunburnt kids were leaving the same house years later, still best friends.

Out in the driveway, his mom was talking to a neighbor and we were making sure everything in the bed of his truck was secure before we hit the road.

“Got everything?” Miss Dinah said.

“Yeah, Mom, if not I’ll come back during the week. Are you sure it’s okay that I’m leaving some stuff in my room? I just don’t know what to do with it yet.”

“Don’t worry about it. Have a safe drive and let me know when you’re finished.”

“Will do, Mom. Love you.”

With a kiss and a hug from Owen’s mom, I threw myself up into the truck and we were off.

*****************************************

There were so many things to set up at the apartment. It makes me glad that it was Owen moving and not me. He has a lot less stuff than I do.

We spent hours setting up closet organizers, deciding how the decorative couch pillows should look, cleaning windows, hanging curtains, folding towels, everything.

Hours went by and we had just finished anchoring a really heavy mirror to the wall when Owen mentioned calling it a night.

“I just can’t do anymore today, y/n. I don’t even want to put the sheets on my bed, I’m so tired.”

“Let’s just hurry up and do it really quick and then we can warm up the food your mom sent and watch a movie.”

“Ugh, fine. I guess I do need a bed. Crap, what time is it? Do you need to be home?”

“No, I’m good. If you’re too tired later to drive, my mom said she’d come to get me on her way home from work.”

“Fantastic. You warm up the food, I’ll start on the bed.”

I headed to the kitchen and started warming up our dinner. I even made some popcorn for our movie later. When I got back to Owen’s room, he had made the bed and was laying on it in total darkness.

“Uh, your order is ready..”

“Thanks.”

“What are you going to do in, like, a day when your mom’s food runs out?”

“Starve probably,” he replied sarcastically, “I think I’ll use this magical device called the stove and cook something.”

“Remind me to write down Poison Control’s number before I go then…” I laughed.

“Haha so funny. What do you wanna watch?” He said sitting up and scooting right next to me. Owen was so close I could feel his body heat, but I wasn’t complaining. It did make my stomach do flips and my heart race though.

“I don’t care. Whatever you want.” He knew I meant that and so he picked Baby Driver.

We ate mostly in silence, and then we were laying down, heads touching on his bed, just watching the movie. Laying there with him was probably the closest I would ever get to be with him as anything more than friends. I was fine with that though if it meant always having moments like these.

The movie had 20 minutes left so I reached over to his nightstand for my phone that was charging, so I could text my mom for a ride. I knew Owen was too tired to drive me all the way home.

“Hey, no phones during movies. That’s a rule,” he whispered as he reached over and put my phone back on the nightstand.

“Sorry, I just had to text my mom to let her know she should come to pick me up!” I said, grabbing his arm and play-fighting him for my phone.

We were both laughing hysterically as he tried holding my phone over our bodies out of my reach until my phone fell out of Owen’s hand and onto the floor.

“Oh shit, is it okay?” We both reached over the same side of the bed to get it, our bodies completely touching as his chest leaned over my back.

“I got it. It’s fine.” I hit send on my message to my mom and locked my phone as the credits rolled past on the screen.

“What if you didn’t leave?” We were both lying on our backs again, but this time my eyes flew over to meet his. I wasn’t sure that I heard him or if he said what I thought he had said.

“O, you’re too tired to drive me later.”

“No, No. I mean what if you just stayed here tonight,” he rolled over to face me, “if you wanted to…”

“Really. Owen, it’s okay. I can have my mom come, it’s no big deal.”

Owen sat up and had his head in his hands. “Y/n, I don’t think I’m doing this right.”

“Owen, what are you talking about?” My mind was racing. Could he be trying to say what I hoped he would say for years? I couldn’t even think straight and if he kept going I think I might have thrown up.

“God, I’m sorry, I just- I’m very scared to mess this up.”

“You’re not messing anything up..I’ll stay if it makes you happy, I am totally cool with that, but I’m stealing a blanket for the couch.”

“Y/n, look at me,” Owen said, taking my arms in his hands, “I have- I- Okay, so here it is: I don’t want to ruin what we have because you’re literally my oldest and best friend, but I can’t keep doing this. I want to kiss you when we have to say goodbye from now on, I want to take you on cheesy dates, and make breakfast together in my nice new apartment. And I’m sorry if this messed things up between us, but I couldn’t hold it in anymore. I have wanted to be with you for years and spending all this time together this year just made me realize I never want to worry if you’re still mine when I leave and come back again.” Owen sighed with what was probably a mix of relief and anxiety.

“I don’t know what to say. I-,” I started.

“You don’t have to say anything..” He let go of me and now was sitting further away from me.

“No, I do. Owen. I have wanted to hear you say that for- god I don’t even know how long- definitely years, possibly even my whole life. I never seriously went after other guys because no one could compare to you. Even when you were shooting a show thousands of miles away and I didn’t know if you had found someone, I couldn’t find anyone who made me feel like you did. I still can’t.. So I guess what I’m saying is I want all those things too. I don’t think it’ll ruin us.”

Before I could even get up or move, Owen’s lips were on mine. He was so soft and gentle. How was this happening to me? The little blonde boy who played with me in kindergarten, and danced with me in the snow when we were ten, and let me cry into his arms, was kissing me.

He released me from his hold and our foreheads touched.

“Hi,” I whispered.

“Hi.”

“So, I’m staying here tonight…”

“Only if you want to. We can put The Office on and just hang out. Then tomorrow I have an idea for a date,” he said tapping my nose as he moved away.

“Wow, you sure do move fast, Joyner.”

“FAST?! It’s been like 15 years! I was dying here!”

“You were dying?! Try having to watch you go off to LA and knowing you would be around so many beautiful people who could steal you away from me…”

“I never could have been stolen away. I’ve always been yours.” He said, planting a chaste kiss on my forehead.

“I guess I should tell my mom not to come. Since I’m staying with you, do you think we could try that kissing thing again?” I smirked.

“Hmm, I think I can arrange that…”

#owen joyner #owen x reader #owen joyner imagine #owen joyner x y/n #owen patrick joyner #charles gillespie #charlie gillespie #charlie gillespie imagine #julie and the phantoms #jatp fanfic #jatp

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asimper · 3 years

Text

A year and a day

Inspired: Lord Huron - "The Night We Met"

Pair: Bruce Wayne x reader

Warnings: none

POV: you will understand from the context, some romantic drama here

***I am sorry, this is my first writing here. I was just thinking for a long time about this scene and decided to put it somewhere... Sorry 💔 ***

I had been waiting for him for hours. He booked this place a long time ago, where was the first date, saying a lot of lovely words about how wonderful it would be... He forgot it... He forgot and didn't come. I am so stupid to think that he will take it seriously. Of course, he had other things to do, more important than to spend this night with me. Huh, just a day, nothing significant. But I bought him the most expensive watches, ordered with "It will stop when my heart will end loving you", with the unlimited power of working. 300.000$ for a thing. Y/N, you are a serious woman, run a business, but hoped that this man will change from an adventurous bachelor to a lovely man ready for relationships... Stupid woman... I am so stupid...

-Master Wayne, what date is it today? asked Alfred walking into the cave and looking at a dark blue box.

-The 15th, he was working on a new system of security around the city, that will manage to determine the robber in some seconds.

-Actually, it is the 21st, he gave him the box and looked with disappointment at him. She came early in the morning, refused to enter the house, just gave me this box, and said that she understood you and your intentions to her. Oh, and she named you an asshole, but I would name you worse, he took off his glasses, smooth over the nose where had been the glasses. How could you forget?

-I... I didn't forget it, okay? We both know that these days I was working and sleeping. And... Was she crying? Bruce was worried, looking at the box with an uncomfortable feeling.

-No, but we both know that she did it yesterday. You are going to lose her. She makes you happy, but you make her cry.

Bruce took the box from the table and opened it. One of the most expensive watches... Petek Philippe Grand Complications. On them were written, "Look on their back".

-It will stop when my heart will end loving you, said loudly and he fell on the table in pain. How could I lose the time?

-I can buy you something to give her. I saw a very beautiful necklace that... Alfred didn't finish, looking surprised how he took from nowhere a light blue box.

-I was going to purpose her. I know, a year is too early, but...

-Her flight to London will be in 4 hours, you can take a shower before going and stop your air-jet.

He hugged him and run away.

They met a year and a day ago, at a gala. Bruce and Y/N are the people that rule with Gotham but didn't know each other until that night. They lovely talked, discovered that Y/N has 40% of the Gotham's airport, Bruce 45%. She owns a company of cybernetic prostheses, she could literally make from a dead man in a healthy and strong, thanks to engineering degree and mom's lessons of neurology. After that gala they met again, he asked her on a date in that restaurant. He gave her red roses, of course, he found everything she likes and dislikes. They talked, and walked, and laughed... He was never so free to someone as with her, even if everyone said that Y/N is a severe woman. At the end of the night, they kissed. Bruce didn't want to spend a night with her and forget, he wanted more, even if she was ready to go with him that night. She was often traveling from Gotham to London, where her company had the main building, but she always tried to spend her time with him, even when he was full in work. Y/N knew that he is Batman, she always knew it, and she took care of his injuries whenever she was in Gotham.

She gave her luggage and went to her flight. Disappointment. Heartbreak. She should expect it... She laid on the chair, reading her book, something about the human body.

-Why we are not taking off? she asked neutral and when she looked up, she saw Bruce. What are you doing here?

-Y/N, he sat in front of her and tried to take her hands in his, but she pushed him away, looking with hate. I didn't forget. I know that we were supposed to go to that restaurant on the 20th. I was working and I... I lost the track of time. I thought until Alfred came that is the 15th.

-Don't lie to me, Mister Wayne. Be honest, you didn't even pay attention to our "meetings", she was full of anger, almost ready to cry from a breakdown. You don't love me, but I couldn't see it before.

-Don't say it, you know it is not true.

-I want you to leave, said but Bruce was sitting next to her, continuously looking at her. Bruce, leave my fucking plane.

-It is mine also, 5% more than yours, he said with a little smile. Don't be a dummy, you are a wise woman.

She saw her gift on his hand, but instead of happiness, she felt disgusting.

-In this case, I will leave, she took her book and stuff, arranging everything in her bag. We are going to meeting separately, not even talking together. We have never met in a public place. We say that we are single. I am not even a girlfriend to you, Bruce. I need to shut up when young reporters flirt with you, but if someone is touching me, you are ready to burn the entire planet, her nerves were done, tears laying on her cheeks, trying to handle her sobs. For sure you cheated on me already. God, I am so stupid that I thought that you, a bachelor that slept with more women than I can imagine, will stop on me, a girl with not a manipulative personality, not a model or ballerina, and with a gap of 20 years. SAY SOMETHING! she shouted at him and stopped in fear of the light blue box.

It was open and... Tiffany & Co. Schlumberger, Two Bees, Engagement Ring... She froze, still sobbing in silence.

-Y/N L/N, I planned to say it yesterday, but... Will you marry me? he stood up and went closer, gently taking her left hand. I hope it is the right size. Of course, it is, I took the size of the rings you are wearing when you went to the shower at your house, he smiled looking at her hand.

-You were last time in my house half a year ago, she murmured staring at him.

-And? he started to clean her face from mascara and salty tears. I was sure that you are my perfect woman from the first met, from the night we met, darling, he sat down. I wanted it to be perfect, but I messed up, as usual.

-Bruce...

She kissed him, feelings of happiness messing with anger, butterflies in the stomach, and a lot of things, like where are they going now. He took her thin body in his big hands, hugging her like it is the only reason to live.

-Y/N Wayne, she whispered in his lips and giggled. The best gift you could give me. I love you so much.

-I love you too, my lovely wife. You know, he kissed each finger from her hand with the ring, meanwhile, she is looking at it, it was pretty hard to take that size, I sized with my finger.

-Dummy, she laughed and kissed him again. Where are we going now?

-To our ceremony, Mrs. Wayne. We are going to Bali, where it will be the dress that you wore in London for fun and liked a lot, and we will get married at the seaside. We will take a lot of photos and post them everywhere, to know who you belong to.

-More precisely, who YOU, playboy and millionaire, belong to, they laughed and kissed again...

#batman #batman x reader #bruce wayne #bruce wayne x fem!reader #bruce wayne x reader #wayne x reader #dc #batman imagine #bruce wayne imagine #asimper

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stxrrywildflower · 4 years

Text

intern

pairing - bau team x teen!reader

summary - you intern for garcia at the bau

warnings - mentions of case

word count - ?

note - takes place during season 7 around 2011

you knew penelope from the minute you were born.

both of your parents were extremely close, living just a few short blocks away in san francisco. penelope was only 17 when you were born, you instantly becoming her new favorite person. her mom was even named as your godmother.

when penelope’s parents had died, yours had looked after her even though she did go underground as a hacker. despite how much penelope had changed, she was always there to check up on you and your parents.

and then she had gotten caught by the fbi of all people.

you were far to young to even comprehend what was happening. all you could remember was penelope hugging you tightly before she left. the two of you kept in contact by letters ever since that day.

now 17, you were an expert with computers. penelope was your guide, helping you learn to hack everything and anything as well as your way with all technology.

adding on to that, you were incredibly smart, taking all advanced placement courses at school. one of your classes was an internship, you had to find a local company to spend a certain number of hours a week in order to earn credit.

when penelope hears the news, mostly since she had access to your course schedule, she pulled a couple strings.

before you knew it, you were booked to have an internship with the behavioral analysis unit in washington d.c. under penelope garcia. aaron hotchner would be your ‘boss’ as he was the unit chief.

your parents were incredibly supportive, working out the details for you to stay with penelope for the semester and possibly part of the summer.

with multiple bags packed and a plane ticket booked, you were set to leave for washington d.c. in just a few short days.

____

arriving at quantico, you were more than nervous.

a car was arranged to pick you up from the airport, an agent named anderson picked you up to bring you to the bau. from there, you would be able to see penelope, meet with hotch, and get your proper paperwork and badge.

you could tell from the second you stepped in that your presence was out of place. a teenager was rarely in the bau, nonetheless one few people could connect to someone on the team.

“alright this is the floor you will be working on. garcia’s office is down the hall but through those doors over there is what we call the bullpen. that’s where the main teams desks are as well as where they do briefings,” anderson spoke, giving you a mini-tour.

“and the staring?” you asked. “that will stop soon. once they see you with agent hotchner they’ll back off. as much as i want to defend your case, i can’t say i wouldn’t act the same. this is the first teenager working at the fbi ever,” anderson informed you. “oh wow, didn’t know i was making history.”

“yeah you are, and I'm sure-” he was cut off.

“penny!” you exclaimed, rushing forward to hug the tech analyst, your luggage remaining behind you.

anderson smiled to himself, waving towards garcia before heading back to work.

“i’ve missed you so much sweetie,” penelope grinned, matching your enthusiasm. you hugged her for a little longer, overjoyed to see her after months.

morgan was next in the hallway, hugging you once penelope let go. “hey kid, how are you? school okay?” he questioned, ruffling your hair. “everything’s good derek, i’m just stoked to be here,” you grinned.

the rest of the team, to say the least, was extremely confused. there were a ton of questions running through their heads as the scene played out.

“maybe it’s morgan and garcia’s secret love child,” emily snickered, spencer and j.j. laughing too.

“i can take your bags down to my lair and we can bring them to my place after work,” penelope offered. “and i can take you in to meet hotch,” morgan piped in.

you kept your backpack with you, the three of you splitting up. morgan stayed by your side, guiding you into the bullpen.

the two of you couldn’t have been in the main roof for more than a few minutes before who you assumed was hotch was down to greet you.

“welcome y/n y/l/n, it’s nice to finally meet you,” hotch greeted, extending his hand for you to shake. you took it, nodding with a “nice to meet you too sir.”

“please, call me hotch. we can talk up in my office,” with one final smile towards morgan, you were following the into chief up for your meeting.

“so how do you know garcia?” hotch first asked.

“she’s pretty much my godmother, her mom was my official one before she passed. our parents were friends so i’ve known her for most of my life,” you explained, a smile on your face. “she taught me to hack when i was only 10.”

hotch nodded, “and you’re seventeen, correct? have you committed to any colleges?”

you shook your head no. “not yet sir. i’ve been accepted to a few but haven’t made any final decision. pennelope is pushing me to go to school around here though.”

“i’m sure wherever you go will be a good fit. but now, we have to get into some of the more official stuff. how are you managing school with this inteenship?”

“my teachers moved all of my classes online with virtual lessons and work. penelope and i have already worked out a schedule so i can focus on my work here and do schoolwork at night,” you explained.

hotch was obviously satisfied with his answer so he continued, “now with your internship, we don’t expect you to work cases with us right away. it is mostly just learning under garcia. once you feel comfortable enough and get a recommendation, you can move up.”

you nodded along, taking in the information about your job. “i can take you down to get your badge and then you can meet the team,” hotch offered. “sounds perfect.”

photos and paperwork didn’t take more than twenty minutes. you were back up, a crisp new badge clipped on your jacket, soon enough.

“my team,” hotch called. “conference room.”

with his usual ‘unit chief’ tone, no one bother to argue with him. adding on to your interaction with three out of seven members, changes were obviously happening.

you were seated on top of one of the file cabinets, morgan beside you and penelope next to him. your conversation died down once more people entered the room.

both you and morgan quickly got down, wanting to look at least a little bit professional.

“everyone, i would like you to meet our newest team member, y/n y/l/n. she’ll be interning under penelope and helping out on cases,” hotch inteoduced.

you waved to everyone, a slight smile forming on your face. “from left to right is reid, prentiss, rossi, and j.j. and your already know garcia and morgan,” hotch pointed out each individual member.

“wait i’m not following. you know morgan and garcia?” rossi asked.

“my parents knew penelope’s for a long time. i grew up with penelope pretty much as an older sister. and i know morgan since he’s visited home a few times,” you explained.

the team was already eager to get to know you, having a fresh face around, nonetheless one that was only 17, would definitely be nice. so, for your first day, you were pestered with questions. you already fit well with the team, a new member being added to their little family without problem.

____

your first week was pretty much just learning the basics of how the computers in garcia’s lair actually operated. you had your own little station in one of the corners, a few computers and monitors set up for you to work with.

two weeks in, you had your first real assignment.

it wasn’t by choice, you were supposed to start working with the gory stuff in two weeks, or a month of working there.

you absolutely loved the job with the team. oftentimes, you found yourself hanging out with either emily or j.j. for dinner and time with sergio and or henry. you went on morning runs with morgan, the two of you constantly sending each other new routes to run on. spencer helped you with your homework, planning a schedule for the idea work time like it was no issue. if you ever had a problem with school, he would always help you figure it out.

rossi found a new sense of joy in teaching you to cook. you grew up in san francisco, eating a lot of sea food and not much else. rossi changed that, making you various pasta dishes to try as well as the recipient. and hotch, hotch became an overall mentor and pretty much another dad to you. while spencer helped you with work, hotch would keep you in line with everything.

the latest case was pretty intensive on you and penelope. you did as much work as you could, you still weren’t officially clear to handle crime scene information just yet.

the one time penelope was out of her office getting coffee for the two of you, her office phone had started ringing. you quickly pushed away from your desk, your chair rolling across the floor until you were in front of hers.

“office of the most talented and magical members of the bau here. how may i help you?” you greeted. “man garcia is really rubbing off on you,” you chose to ignore that comment.

“speaking of garcia, where is she?”

you sighed, “getting coffee. what do you need?” hotch was quick to answer, “i need you too look up an unsub. name is roger clark.”

in lightning speed, you clicked away at the computer as you dug up information on the man.

“ah here his is. clark rogers was born to a frank and mary rogers. was a normal child, played sports and graduated with honors. did have a case of aggravated assault in college though he got off free since his dad was a lawyer. oh shoot, his mom died a few weeks ago,” you quickly explained.

something about a possible trigger as barely audible in the background of the call. “we need a location asap,” emily spoke.

“oh i’ve has the location sent from the minute you called,” you leaned back in your chair, most of your work already done.

hotch actually had one of his rare smiles on his face after that. “thanks so much,” he spoke. “stay safe,” you called before hanging up the call.

little did you know, your work was more than helpful. though it was minimal, small details you had provided actually proved to be useful in taking down the unsub. even penelope, who heard news of everything once she returned, was thoroughly impressed. it wasn’t super easy finding out that information as fast as you could.

all you knew is that you were guaranteed a job once you graduated.

☆ ☆ ☆

tags - @tinylumpiaa @sapphicspence @itsmyblogandillreblogifiwantto @change-the-world-someday @ah-blossom @dr-reid-ismyspiritanimal @kissessforharryyy @garcias-batcave @spenceneedsahug @jjandreidsgirl @zoseph @spencerreidxoxo @marvelxmendes @kissessfordraco @ogmilkis @cm-is-kinda-cool @ssa-morgan @matthewgublerswife @spencerslatte @babyangellee @agentshortstacc

#criminal #criminal minds #spencer reid #spencer reid x oc #spencer reid x reader #spencer reid x you #spencer reid x y/n #aaron hotchner #derek morgan #emily prentiss #jennifer jareau #david rossi #penelope garcia #luke alvez #matt simmons #tara lewis #bau team #bau team x teen reader

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prettyboy-asmo · 4 years

Text

Aquarium Date

Pairing: Diavolo/Reader(Gender Neutral reader)

Pure fluff/attempt at humor- SFW

Summary: Diavolo asks about your favorite things to do in the human realm, and you tell him about aquariums. He decides you should go to one together.

Huge thank you to @jugodeflores for motivating/ encouraging me to write this and also beta reading for me!

“MC,” You look up Diavolo from your D.D.D, wondering when he’d stopped doing his own paperwork. Instead, his gold eyes focused on you as he propped his chin on his hand, “What’s your favorite thing to do in the human realm?”

“Well, I guess it depends,” You tell him, smiling a little as he listens to you speak with intense curiosity, “Do you mean day to day, or special occasions?”

“Special occasions?” He questions, leaning forward in his seat now.

“Yeah, Like vacations, day trips, or dates and stuff.”

“I’m interested in special occasions,” He answers.

“Okay, Well, I never really went on vacations or traveled much,” Which in a way, is what had prompted you to sign and mail the mysterious exchange forms that had found their way in your mail one day, “But I liked taking trips to the cities I lived near, just to explore and find new places and stuff. There were a couple of water parks around, and some carnivals during the summer, along with an amusement park a few hours away, a few museums too. I think my top favorite was the aquarium though, alone or for a date.”

You watch the Prince tilt his head slightly, his expression urging you to continue. “There’s just something about the experience that never gets old for me. Seeing all the different creatures that I wouldn’t see otherwise, and it’s more than just looking at fish too, sometimes they have live feedings for certain animals, and the one I went to had penguins and sea otters and A jellyfish tank. I could watch the moon jellies for hours. And there’s information on everything housed in there, so you can learn about them while you observe them. I went for a field trip in second grade and I fell in love with it.”

“That does seem like it would be an entertaining experience.” he grins warmly at you, “Let’s go to one.”

You blink at him, processing his words, “Huh?”

“Let’s go to a human realm aquarium. I want to experience one with you.” You feel your face flush when he laughs, “I’ll make all the necessary arrangements.” He already looks so excited that you can feel your heart melt. It’s not like you’d have said no in the first place, but you nod your agreement anyways.

So a week later you’re visiting the human realm, Your hand gripping Diavolo’s as the Demon Prince led you along to the aquarium he’d chosen to visit. It wasn’t very often you got to see him in casual clothes, So while he was focused on your destination you took some time to admire the way he looked in the dark red button down and black slacks. It was kind of unfair, really, how good he looked.

Soon, though, you had reached the doors and Diavolo was paying the entry fees, taking a map and leading you into the building farther before stopping and turning to you, “What should we do first?”

“Well,” you pondered, glancing at the pamphlet he held out to you, “There’s a show with the dolphins in two hours if you’re interested in that. Until then, we can start here and work our way through the building, unless there’s something you want to see right now.”

Diavolo shook his head, “I want to see it all.” and with that he sets off again, his enthusiasm drawing a laugh from you as he leads you in the direction of the exhibits. His eyes light up as you walk into what you note is supposed to be an exhibit on the Amazon, and the look of wonder that graces his features is something you want to commit to memory for the rest of your life.

You move along the tanks, and he leans in close to each one. Sometimes, you’re able to point out a specific fish and give a few facts about them, and sometimes you read him the trivia posted around the exhibit.

“It kind of reminds me of Leviathan,” Diavolo says suddenly, prompting you to turn from the sign of facts about Piranhas you’d been reading. You can’t help the laugh that you let out when you see he’s observing a rainbow boa that’s draped lazily on one of the many large branches in its enclosure. The pattern along its body does indeed remind you of Leviathan’s demon form. You don’t have time to respond as Diavolo takes out his D.D.D, double checks the flash is off and snaps a picture.

You try to peer over his shoulder to see what he’s doing, but with a grin he finishes typing and turns the phone toward you. The Picture of the snake is there, soft iridescent sheen on it’s skin visible along with the pattern, under it is a short message that simply reads, Is this you? And you can only imagine how Levi will react when he opens that message. The thought is amusing but it quickly drifts to the back of your mind as Diavolo starts moving toward another enclosure, attention captured by something there.

You follow him through the rest of this exhibit, letting him lead you around the rooms and take as much time to observe everything he wants. You’re glad he’s so tall, otherwise you might be afraid you’d lose him in the crowd with how suddenly he seems to take off to other exhibits when something catches his eye. The interest and child-like excitement that continues to shine through him rubs off on you, and soon enough your hands are intertwined once again as he pulls you gently along. You make it through a freshwater fish exhibit before you decide it’s time to head to the show.

As you’re heading there you pass a group of young children clearly on a field trip, and apparently heading to the same show you are. A few of them stare at you- or, more accurately, Diavolo. One of them whispers to their friend, a not so quiet- “He’s really tall, like, as tall as a superhero!” You feel the soft chuckle Diavolo lets out, biting back your own laugh. Diavolo though turns back slightly, sending a wink at the pair before guiding you to your seats for the show.

Now, instead of his grip on your hand he wraps his arm around you, pulling you flush against his side. It causes a slight blush to dust your cheeks, but you lean into his side anyways, enjoying the closeness of the moment. “Are you enjoying your day so far?” he asks as people continue to find seats, shuffling around and settling while waiting for the show to begin.

“I’m having a lot of fun,” you tell him honestly, your own smile bright, but your conversation is cut short by the show beginning. You both give it your attention, though every so often, after a dolphin performs a particularly impressive trick or amusing maneuver, you glance at the demon beside you to see his reactions. Each time he laughs in delight you can feel it move through him, and you can feel the way his arm tenses around you during tricks, can see the awe in his eyes when the trainers explain some of the mannerisms of the animals, the relationships they form with one another, and efforts to help the earth’s environments to help the natural habitats of the animals.

After the show, you end up at the touch pools- something that sets off a whole new level of excitement in Diavolo. He’s extremely careful when he reaches in, fingers gently grazing the creatures sitting in the shallow water. “It’s fascinating,” the Anemone his hand brushed against swayed gently with the movement of the water.

“You don’t expect them to feel so...squishy, right?”

You go through a few more exhibits after that, and you even manage to sneak a few photos of Diavolo, your favorite being the one where he’s nearly leaning against the glass of the beluga whale enclosure, one of the creatures on the other side staring right back at him, the delighted expression on Diavolo’s face is priceless. You also manage to send it to Lucifer, knowing he’d appreciate it as much as you do. A while later, Diavolo takes your hand in his again.

“The Aquarium is hosting a jellyfish exhibit for a limited time,” he says, leading you along to a staircase that has another attendant standing at the top, “I got us the passes because you said you liked them.” He hands the attendant the passes, who nods as you continue on down the staircase. Even in the dimmer light as you reach the bottom you can see the faint tinge of pink on his face.

“You didn’t have to do that,” you squeeze his hand, smiling up at him, “but thank you, I love it.”

The pace you took around the exhibit was slower now, moving along the dim rooms and taking minutes at a time to watch the strange creatures drift through the lit tanks. It’s quieter here than the rest of the aquarium, and less crowded, probably due to the fact that it required additional passes- but it feels almost serene, despite the low chatter of the other guests roaming the rooms.

“I believe I understand what you meant when you said you could watch them for hours,” Divaolo says next to you, his golden eyes are tracking the movement of the Jellies, his features bathed in the blue glow of the tank’s lighting- it makes everything feel softer somehow, the way his lips are curved into a smile, how his hair falls just slightly into his eyes, even his gaze.

When he turns to you there’s something else in his eyes that makes your face heat up. “They really are beautiful,” he says, and you realize he’s leaning in closer, as he continues, “Almost as beautiful as you,” he finishes, and even though there’s sincerity in his voice- even though you know he doesn’t lie- you have to fight the urge to roll your eyes.

“That’s...so cheesy.” you say, but you can feel your own grin on your face, your hand squeezes his tighter, and you lean up, almost completely on your toes to meet him in a soft, quick kiss. “Thank you for this,” you say earnestly, “I’m happy we got to come here together.”

“As am I. I should thank you for putting up with me dragging you around all the exhibits, I’m sure you are used to a more relaxed atmosphere than that.”

“I think it’s cute.” You answer, satisfaction washing over you at the blush that covers his face, “I like how excited you are. It means I can tell you’re having a good time.”

He chuckled slightly, “I would say any time spent with you is good.”

The two of you lingered in the Jellyfish exhibit for a while, silently admiring the displays.

When you finally emerge you have to blink at the sudden increase in light, but Diavolo is already leading you along again. “I was told that these sort of trips aren’t complete without a visit to the gift shop.”

“I guess that is kinda true,” you admit, following him into the shop. Immediately, something catches your eye. “Dia, look!” You hold up an almost perfectly round stuffed seal in your hands, squeezing it’s soft sides slightly, “It’s so cute!” It’s little flippers dangle slightly as Diavolo looks at it- and you- with unveiled amusement, “Feel it!”

He takes it from your hands, squeezing it slightly. “It is incredibly soft,” he turns it over in his hands, squishing it again, “Do you want one?”

“Wait- really?”

“Why would I ask If I didn’t really want to know?”

“I do like it,” you admit- “Reminds me of you, in a way.”

Diavolo looks at the Seal’s face, then back to you, “It reminds you...of me?”

“Nice to hug. Cute.”

“Is that so?” Diavolo’s cheeks are flushed pink again, and even though your own face feels warm you can’t help but admire the ability to make the Prince of the Devildom blush. He tucks the seal under his arm without saying anything else- and then it seems that a display of t-shirts catches his eye. “All proceeds go to charity. MC, do you know this charity?”

You glance at the sign. “I do! It’s a good one, they support a lot of rescue habitats and environmental efforts- and they actually use their money for what they say they do, unlike some.”

Divaolo’s eyes shine as he takes in the shirts, Colorful cartoon fish decorate the fabric, and bold, bright letters declaring “Don’t be Shellfish, Protect our Oceans,” are written on the front. He moves to the display, rifling through the shirts before pulling out three different sizes.

"Three?"

"One for Lucifer as well!"

You laugh out loud at the mental image of Lucifer wearing the shirt and nod, "Good idea." Diavolo wanders around the shop a bit more, when another stuffed animal catches your eye. A beluga whale. Your mind flashes back to the delight on his face when you’d snapped that picture of him and the whale earlier that day. You pick the stuffed beluga up, it’s large and, to your delight, is just as soft as it looks. You glance over at Diavolo and see that he’s distracted by a book display, so as stealthy as you can you make your way to the cashier with the whale.

You pay, thanking the cashier, then make your way to the door before calling out, “I’ll be waiting outside, Dia!”

It’s not long after he exits the gift shop with a curious expression, multiple bags gripped in one hand and the seal tucked back under his arm. “MC?”

You hold the whale out to him, “I thought you’d like this,” you say, pleased by the fondness obvious in his expression, he frees the seal under his arm, handing it to you and taking the gift.

“I adore it. Is this why you left before me?”

You grin, squeezing the seal with one arm and linking your free hand with his, “I wanted it to be a surprise, as well as a thank you for all of this.”

You feel like you’re half asleep when you get back to the Devildom, eyes drooping and legs slightly aching from all the walking you’d done that day. You eat dinner with Diavolo, and then you insist on joining him in his study when he says he has some paperwork to finish before he goes to bed.

You’re curled up in one of the armchairs, the stuffed seal Diavolo bought you under your head like a pillow as you watch him do paperwork. You feel your eyes droop, slower to open them each time. Eventually you decide it’s easier to give into sleep, figuring Diavolo could wake you before he went to bed for the night.

“Dia,” You mumble, waiting for him to look up from whatever paperwork he was pouring over now, “Thank you for today. I love you.”

He smiles softly back at you, “I love you, sweetheart.” You give him one last smile before curling up tighter and letting yourself fall asleep.

#long post #obey me shall we date #swd lord diavolo #diavolo x reader #diavolo x mc #fluff #aquarium date #swd obey me #gender neutral mc #gender neutral reader #it's soft

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taetaespeaches · 4 years

Text

“Thank you for not giving up three years ago.”

hoseok x reader (or oc) genre: fluff word count: 2.7K

a/n: I’m not even gonna lie, lovelies, this is a bit of a mess lol. But it’s hectic and so is moving into a new place, so I guess it’s fitting? This takes place pretty much where “Wherever we go, we’ll be home” left off. Hobi and Petal/reader are moved in to their new place but they are far from unpacked and yeah. It’s random but I hope you all enjoy, and thanks for reading! :))

(brief moments of kookie and poopsie in here as well.)

p.s. holy shit this is the last fic of the two-week uploads for each member?! What the fuck?? Thanks to everyone who rode this out with and waited for every fic and supported me throughout and ugh I just love you all so much. Thank you, lovelies <3

TAKING a moment to scan the piles of boxes scattered across the mostly unfurnished apartment, you lifted one of the box flaps before pulling a face of disgust, flipping it back shut. If only the cardboard cubes could unpack themselves.

“You look overwhelmed,” your boyfriend suddenly spoke just moments before his arms loosely wrapped around your shoulders. A kiss was pressed to your cheek bone as you turned to look at him, the man quickly pushing his lips to yours as you turned in his arms, wrapping yours around his waist.

“I think I have too many things,” you thought out loud, Hoseok smiling softly as he shook his head.

“Nah, you just have a lot of things,” he teased, you giggling as you pressed your lips to his once more.

“Remind me, why did we decide to do this to ourselves?” You jokingly complained about the task of unpacking and moving in.

“Mmm,” he hummed in thought. “I think it has something to do with you being obsessed with me and wanting me around all the time,” he smirked.

“Ohhh,” you responded, dragging the word out as you nodded. “Right,” you noted in an unconvinced tone. “Something like that,” you agreed, Hoseok giggling as he pecked your lips a few times quickly.

“We just about have it all unloaded, Jungkook should be able to haul the rest of it up,” he informed you, your eyes widening in surprise, though your response was contained to a simple nod. “I’m gonna go down and check on everything,” he told you, placing a sweet kiss to your nose before stepping away, you allowing him to slip out of your embrace as you watched him leave.

Moving may be an overwhelming task but goddamn that man made it all worth it. Looking around the apartment, with your mind stuck on Hoseok, you decided indefinitely that you would move a million times for him.

Having decided together to replace most of your old furniture with new stuff you picked out together, the space was rather empty, the carboard boxes being the only things filling the room. To make the living area feel more like home, more like you and Hoseok, you were hit with the sudden desire to set out a photo. One particular photo. The first photo you two had ever taken together, which was on your first date at a carnival. Searching the boxes, you tried to find the one that was labeled with ‘picture frames’.

Wandering around the entire living area, you couldn’t seem to find the box anywhere. “Well fuck,” you sighed to yourself, a sudden giggle sounding to the side of the room, your eyes darting to find Jungkook smiling in amusement.

“All good?” He asked, you nodding with a faint smile.

“Have you seen a box with the words ‘picture frames’ on it?” You asked, the man squinting as he thought to himself.

“Uh, no,” he concluded apologetically, still carrying the box in his arms that looked increasingly heavy. “I’m assuming it has picture frames in it,” he smirked, you widening your eyes to feign impression.

“How did you kn-”

“Kookie, are you carrying dishes right now?” Jin’s girlfriend asked him as she stepped into the room from another area of the apartment. Jungkook looked at her with a guilty smile making you giggle lightly. Apparently, he and his accomplice Taehyung had broken almost all of her dishes when helping her to move into her new apartment a few years ago and she was making it her mission to keep the same thing from happening to your own kitchenware.

“Have you been in here this whole time?” You asked her in confusion, the girl looking at you with a serious expression.

“Yeah? You and Hobi are cute,” she noted nonchalantly, you staring at her in disbelief. “I banned you from carrying those,” she reminded Jungkook, the man shooting her a mischievous grin as he walked to the kitchen to place the box on the counter gently.

“I’m redeeming myself,” he informed her before gesturing to the untainted box with a wave of his arm. “Consider me redeemed,” he joked, you lightly chuckling as you looked back to the room, searching for that one specific box among the disarray.

“Is there more to bring up?” The girl asked, you looking back to them to see Jungkook shake his head.

“No, that should be it,” he noted. “Pretty much everyone is gone already. And when I left them your freak and my weirdo were stealing the moving truck keys from Yoongi and threatening to drop it back off at the garage themselves,” he giggled, Jin’s girlfriend smiling as she shook her head.

“Why are they like this?” She asked as you laughed lightly at the thought of them tossing the keys over Yoongi’s head, including him in unwanted game of monkey in the middle.

“Is Hobi down there?” You asked Jungkook, the man shaking his head.

“He went to get you guys dinner,” he informed you, you pulling your eyebrows together in perplexity.

“He did?” You questioned. “We should be buying you all dinner,” you told them guiltily, feeling bad that they had used up most of their day helping you and Hoseok to move. However, both of your friends instantly shook their heads as they started negating your comment in a back and forth that would have seemed rehearsed if you didn’t know better.

“Absolutely not,” the girl told you.

“That’s ridiculous,” Jungkook spoke.

“You already bought lunch,” she said.

“Don’t be silly,” Jungkook finished.

Smiling in amusement at the two, you rolled your eyes. “Ok, well Hobi and I are having you over for dinner soon,” you reminded them as they began making their way to your new front door. “As soon as this place is put together,” you gestured to the mess of yours and Hoseok’s belongings.

“Looking forward to it,” the girl said sweetly as they prepared to exit the apartment. “You’re sure you don’t need help with anything else?” She asked, you shaking your head as you shooed them out.

“You’ve done enough, just go and enjoy your evening.” Looking to Jungkook, you found him smirking, making you eye him skeptically.

“Your dishes should be in good shape, I only dropped them once,” he joked, you instantly laughing at him as Jin’s girlfriend groaned.

“Jungkook,” she warned as he began jogging down the hallway away from her, an adorable but bratty giggle leaving his lips. “Oh, that picture frame box is in your guys’ bedroom,” she informed you, and maybe you should have been surprised by her random intuition and knowledge, but you’d known the girl long enough to know not to question her. Without another word she began running after Jungkook, leaving you as you called out one last thank you.

Shutting the door, you smiled to yourself, a sincere sense of gratitude and happiness settling in as you took a deep breath, slowly letting it out. This was your home. You lived with Hoseok. This was your life.

Hauling a bag stuffed full of blankets, you made your way to the living room as the front door opened, Hoseok stepping inside, his hands full with a pizza box and a… fish bowl?

Cocking your head at him, you set the bag and blanket you pulled out on the floor before slowly walking toward him.

“Petal,” he greeted cheerfully, “I’m home! With food,” he added, nodding his chin down toward the pizza box. “Whoah, home,” he realized the words he spoke as he looked around the room, his eyes landing on you, his gaze full of love and contentment.

“Uh, are we having fish with our pizza?” You asked jokingly, though the man appeared lost in thought as he stared at you fondly.

“I can’t believe we live here together,” he spoke softly, your lips curving up at how cute he was.

“Hoseok,” you called out to pull him from his thoughts, his eyes widening to show his responsiveness. “The fish.”

Your boyfriend followed your gaze downward to the fish bowl with a little gold fish swimming around it. Chuckling at himself, a bashful glow meeting his cheeks, he nodded at it for you to take off the pizza box.

“Well,” he started, you stifling a smile as you held the bowl in your hands in front of your face, looking at the little fish swimming around energetically. “It’s your housewarming gift,” he told you, an endeared laugh leaving your lips.

“You got me another fish?” You asked, cooing at how fucking cute he was. The combination of his disbelief over the new state of your relationship and living arrangement, along with getting you a new pet goldfish had you wanting to reach out and pepper kisses all across his face.

“I just thought, you know, you loved Luna,” he explained shyly. “I don’t know, a new home, new family member,” he shrugged, you pouting at him as you peered at him from around the fish bowl.

“I did love Luna,” you told him, the man smiling more fondly than ever at you. He won you a fish in a carnival game during that damn first date and it ended up being your flat mate for a year before its eventual passing. You smiled shyly as you thought back to day Hobi came over to visit you only to find you crying at the discovery that your little fish Luna had died while you were at class.

“Why are you so thoughtful?” You asked him, walking to the kitchen counter to set the fish tank down, bending down to continue looking inside the tank. Setting the pizza box on the counterspace next to the fish bowl, Hoseok crouched down with you, both of you peering at the new ‘family member’. So fucking cute.

“What are you thinking for a name?” He asked, you turning toward him as you smiled.

“Maybe,” you thought for a moment, “Yue? Like in Avatar,” you suggested, referring to the princess who sacrificed her life, becoming the spirit of the moon. Looking back to the fish, your boyfriend continued staring at you lovingly.

Leaning toward you, he left a kiss to your cheek, you leaning into the simple gesture of affection. “Is that paying homage to Luna?” He asked, you smiling without looking at him as you stood up, Hoseok looking up at you for a moment. “God, you’re fucking cute,” he told you.

Standing up straight, he grabbed your face between his hands gently, bringing his lips to yours as he kissed you sweetly, the touch lingering as he pulled away. Clasping your hands over his wrists, you ensured he didn’t move his hands away from your face as you looked at him fondly.

“Thank you for this,” you pouted. “I love it,” you referred to the fish. “And you,” you informed him, Hoseok leaning forward once more to kiss your lips slowly and sweetly. “You know, I got you a housewarming present too,” you told him, piquing the man’s interest as his eyes widened. “It’s a bit different than this though,” you gestured to the fish, Hoseok smiling in amusement. Pulling his hands from your face, you left a sweet kiss to the inside of one of his wrists before leaving him to go to the bedroom to retrieve your gift. “We can eat on the rollout mattress,” you called out as you disappeared momentarily into the the bedroom, Hoseok’s eyes landing on the living room floor where you had set out a sleeping pad.

By the time you reentered the living room, Hoseok was seated on the mattress with the box of pizza, his gaze directed to the side of the temporary bed where you had placed the framed photo of you both on your first date. His eyes slowly left the picture to look at you standing a few feet away with a bottle of champagne in one and and a gift bag in the other.

“I figured we should celebrate,” you smiled, Hoseok chuckling as he nodded. “I don’t know where our champagne flutes are, but we can just drink it from the bottle,” you decided as you admired your boyfriend’s stunning smile.

Gesturing to the picture frame sitting on the hardwood floor, he beamed at you. “Do you know how much I love you?” He asked you, you smiling with a nod.

“Yes, Sunshine,” you confirmed, “I do know.” Holding his hands out to gesture for you to join him on the mattress, you handed him the bag. He raised it to his eye level, curious of its contents.

“Good,” he said simply, lowering the gift to the mattress. “Also, this set up is cute, it feels like a sleepover,” he added, you giggling fondly at the comment. “Except we live here,” he realized once again, both of you smiling excitedly over the fact that you actually lived together.

“Your family is dropping Mickey off tomorrow, right?” You asked suddenly, the man nodding as you took the hand he offered you, allowing him to help you onto your knees, you kneeling next to him. “Good, I miss him,” you said, Hoseok smiling widely.

“I know, me too,” he agreed. “Do you want me to open this?” He asked you, gesturing to the bag, you humming in confirmation. The man wasted no time in pulling the tissue paper out of the way, reaching inside to feel the soft, sheer material. Cocking his head, he lifted his hand out of the bag, the brand-new lingerie set slowly appearing as he held it between his fingertips.

“Oh,” he breathed out, his eyes glued to the pretty white material, embroidered with flowers, the set a lot cuter and daintier than your typical choice. “My god.”

“I thought we could break the place in,” you told him softly before biting your bottom lip.

“This is different,” he noted dumbly, pointing out the stray in your typical choice of sexy undergarments.

“I know,” you smiled. “I thought you’d like it,” you noted, leaning in to place a chaste kiss to his lips.

“Fuck,” he breathed out, causing you to giggle as you kissed his cheek.

“Do you want to eat first?” You teasingly asked, the man giving you an incredulous look as he shoved the pizza box off the mattress until it landed on the wooden floorboards, you laughing as he then rolled atop you, kissing you deeply. Your fingers found themselves tangled up in Hobi’s hair as you kissed him back passionately.

The lingerie didn’t even touch your skin that night, both of you too eager and excited and so fucking in love to bother with getting all dressed up. But each round was perfect as you made love throughout the apartment, taking pizza and champagne breaks between climaxes. And the beautiful thing was that you had endless opportunities to wear that lingerie for Hoseok. Because you actually lived together.

You had a lifetime of possibilities together. Without a single doubt in your mind, you knew moving in together at that exact point in time was the right move to make in your relationship. Three years earlier, you would never have believed a single soul who told you that you would be living with Hoseok. But there you were, celebrating your new home with him, the love of your life, feeling beyond thankful for him and his persistence three years prior.

Exhausted on the rollout mattress, bottle of champagne pressed to your lips as you eyed Hoseok’s nude form, glistening with the sweat of several rounds with you, you chuckled to yourself. The man’s eyes found your own, his hand moving to take the bottle from you.

“What are you laughing at?” He asked fondly before bringing the bottle to his own mouth.

Shaking your head, you moved to straddle the man, his free hand easily wrapping around your lower back. “Just thinking,” you told him just before placing a kiss to his forehead. “Thank you for not giving up three years ago,” you told him, Hobi’s lips slowly curving up into a fond grin.

“Well,” he chuckled bashfully. “The displeasure’s been mine,” he teased, you scrunching your nose as you took the bottle from him again. “You’re still mean, but fuck, I love you,” he playfully told you.

Taking a drink from the bottle, you nodded. “And you’re still obnoxious, but I love you too,” you replied. “So much, Sunshine.”

A lifetime of possibilities with Hoseok was something you’d never take for granted, and you would forever be thanking him for winning you over; for allowing you to fall in love with him.

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gamerwoo · 3 years

Photo

Hongseok: Bittersweet (part 3 -- mommy hui)

Summary: You were looking for a sugar daddy to make more money. Hongseok was looking for a sugar baby to get his friends off his back. But once you find out what he’s using you for, you don’t want anything to do with him. Unfortunately, you love his money more than you hate him.

a/n: timestamps don’t matter!!! i also have no idea what like decent prices are for this shit so just roll w me here lmao

Previous | Next | Bittersweet Masterlist

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Of course Hongseok wasn’t actually going to get a girlfriend. Luckily for him, he was not only handsome, but also smart. He quickly came up with the idea that he could simply just make his friends think he got a girlfriend so they’d get off his back. But he also knew he didn’t have any friends who were women who would agree to help, and he knew any girl he had spoken to previously would just tell him to go fuck himself if he asked any of them -- and there was no way in hell he’d let any of those girls think they were actually his girlfriend. He needed to find a way to get a girl to go on dates with him while still making sure no romantic lines were crossed.

Again, Hongseok was a smart man, and he had money to spare, so his plan didn’t take long to come up with.

He wanted to get some assistance with his plan, but he had nobody he could tell. Hui and Jinho couldn’t know for obvious reasons, Wooseok, Shinwon and Yanan would just tell everyone else to get him in trouble, Changgu probably wouldn’t listen anyway, and Kino and Yuto were a no-go because they’d just be disappointed in him and would probably eventually let it slip to everyone else. This was something he’d just have to do on his own.

Hongseok searched up a few sugar daddy websites before picking one he found to be the most reliable and least sketchy. This one seemed to have better options, stronger background checks, and overall just seemed to be the safest bet. So he made a profile under sugar daddy and waited for a message or whatever.

It didn’t take long for him to get some inquiries, but he didn’t like any of them. They either weren’t his type or were interested in things he wasn’t looking for. Or they just came on too strong, which was automatically a no from him. He wanted someone he’d consider ‘normal’. Basically wasn’t overly-sexual, was just looking to go on a few ‘dates’ or whatever, and wouldn’t actually call him daddy. But they also had to be someone he’d consider cute or good looking, and it seemed like those two things he was looking for didn’t come hand-in-hand.

At least, not until he got one message around 7:30pm a few days after making the account. He was just hanging out in his apartment and doing what he usually did when he had finished his classes. Then he saw the email notification come up that he had a message from the sugar daddy website, so he went over to his laptop and opened the tab he left.

snflwr: hi!! um i don’t know how to really start this but my name is _____. i feel weird saying i’m interested in like your profile and stuff but i guess that’s basically what it is. uhhhhh yeah lmao i’m sorry i’ve never done stuff like this before

It honestly seemed to be the most normal message he’d gotten. Every other girl was always very straight-forward, but this one seemed to come from someone who was nervous and unsure about what to say. Somehow, he liked that over the overly-confident ones.

He clicked on the little circle for the profile picture to make it pop up on his screen. Not everyone used photos of themselves -- most of the sugar daddies did for obvious reasons, but not a lot of the sugar babies did -- but he always just asked for selfies if that were the case. In this case, the one he was looking at was a photo of their lips.

He went to the profile and read over it. _____ _____, 2 years younger than him, lived in the same area, liked to play video games, and was just looking for someone to spend time with. So far, so good. But it was still such little information that he still couldn’t tell if this person would be normal or not.

yanghong: That’s okay, I’m new to the sugar daddy thing as well lol. Do you mind if I see a photo of you first?

The photo that was sent was at least pleasing to look at. He thought the girl was very cute, actually, but he still had to be positive it was actually her. He could easily be catfished. He wasn’t stupid.

snflwr: can you also prove that’s you in the pfp? lmao

snflwr: no offense but i wouldn’t put it by some old dude to use a younger good looking guy w a six pack to catfish women

Hongseok couldn’t help but chuckle at that. She was funny, too. That was good.

yanghong: Would you want to Facetime? That would definitely prove we’re who we say we are.

It took longer than before for snflwr to reply, but he eventually just got a ‘sure’, followed by her information to contact her. He grabbed his phone to start the call before another message popped up.

snflwr: i’ll be honest, i’m really nervous, so my friend is gonna talk to you first. so like don’t hang up when you see a dude answer lmao that’s not me

Hongseok had to admit, that seemed just a little sus, but sure. So he started the Facetime call and waited.

Sure enough, when they picked up, there was a guy with a black baseball cap on, his blonde hair peeking out through the sides.

“Oh damn, it is him,” he chuckled, looking off camera before looking back at Hongseok. “I’m ______’s friend, Soonyoung. I wanted to make sure you were legit first. She’s...well, she’s shy.”

“But she’s looking for a sugar daddy?” Hongseok chuckled. “Why would she want to go hang out with a stranger if she’s shy.”

Soonyoung just shrugged, “Can’t be too picky in this economy.”

“Lemme see!” another male voice called before a second boy popped his head in frame. This one had cotton-candy-blue hair, and was wearing a brown visor with the name of a local cafe embroidered on it. “Whoa, you are real. I really had my money on you being a creepy old guy.”

“Okay, well now that you know I’m legit,” Hongseok began, “can I actually see that _____ is?”

“Oh, yeah, sure,” Soonyoung replied before handing the phone over.

Hongseok only saw a few empty tables in the cafe before he suddenly saw your face on screen, your eyes still looking up at the two boys from where you sat. You were laughing a little timidly at someone one of them was doing behind the phone before your eyes settled on the screen.

Thank god, it was the same girl that was in the photo.

“Hi, sorry about that,” you said. Your voice wasn’t necessarily what he expected, but it wasn’t like it was anything bad. It was just...normal. Nothing annoying to listen to or anything. “But uh, yeah. I’m real.”

“Good,” he chuckled. “So tell me a little more about yourself. What do you do for work?”

“Technically, I’m a streamer,” you shrugged, “but it’s only because I’m a full-time student. But obviously it’s not making a lot of money since I’m here doing this.”

Hongseok laughed, “Yeah, I don’t even have a job right now. My parents just make a lot of money, and I’m supposed to take over for my dad when he retires. I’m also a full-time student.”

Neither of you decided to ask where the other went to college because that seemed too personal, especially considering what your arrangement was -- well, hopefully would be.

“So you’re just looking to spend time together?” Hongseok checked. “Not offering anything more?”

“Nope,” you replied. “I don’t really want to do any of the stereotypical stuff you hear about. I’m not...comfortable with that, if that’s okay.”

“That’s perfectly okay,” he nodded. “So...I guess we should talk about how it would all work out then?”

“Yeah, what’s the deal?”

What Hongseok was looking for was proof. Proof that he had a girlfriend, so he needed to make it seem like he did. Going out on dates, texting, stuff like that. Stuff where he could give photo evidence that you existed if his friends asked.

“Just go out with me like, once a week if your schedule allows it,” he explained. “You don’t have to call me or anything, but some texts would be appreciated. You don’t have to talk to me everyday, but don’t just like, ignore me for a week, y’know?”

You shrugged with a nod, “That seems reasonable. I’m down.”

“Okay, so we should talk money, then,” he chuckled. “I was thinking like, $800 a week -- assuming we do go out every week -- and I’ll pay for all of the dates on top of that. Otherwise, just $300 for talking to me every week. Sound fair?”

For a second, he thought he lost connection because you were just frozen on screen. $800 a week? That seemed too good to be true to you.

“U-um, yeah,” you stammered finally, making Hongseok smirk. “That sounds good.”

Perfect.

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agustdef · 3 years

Text

First Encounter

Pairing: Jin x Black!Reader

Genre: Fluff

Word Count: 2.2k

Warning: None.

Rating: PG

The last shoot while they were in LA was supposed to start promptly, but when the boys arrived they witnessed the photographer rush away and then his assistant return saying that he had been taken to the hospital and they were going to get a replacement.

That left the group worried and annoyed for over an hour as they awaited their new photographer. They were concerned for the previous one, but also hated the idea of waiting for who knows how long for another. It was a professional shoot after all and those usually had back up photographers ready, but the one time it was useful it wasn’t the case.

While they waited they got ready in their clothes and the make-up done. Then they were free to sit around for a while. After twenty minutes of doing it Jin got antsy and went to walk around.

He walked around the area they were to shoot in. It was an old warehouse and they were to get some shots amongst the decaying building. The main shots were supposed to be around a space where the floor had given way in one area. He walked up to it and stared down to see that they could fall three stories down if they weren’t careful and the nerves kicked in hard.

Photoshoots got him nervous enough without the thought of plunging to his death trying to get nice pictures.

“Uh, please step away from there,” a soft voice called out.

It startled him a little, but not enough to have him accidentally tripping and fulfilling the thing he feared. He stepped multiple paces away before turning to see the owner of the voice. When he did Jin was met with a Black woman who was carrying several bags and looked disheveled, but cute. Really cute.

“I’m sorry,” he said.

The woman's eyes widened as she seemed to panic, but then a second or two ticked by and she smiled at him. It was gentle and genuine, one that lulled Jin into a sense of comfort.

“Oh, no need to apologize. It’s just unsafe, I wouldn’t want you to fall. I have no clue why they set up there. We’re definitely not doing the shoot near that,” she said in Korean.

Her speaking his language through him off, but he didn’t have time to focus on that. Jin found himself unsure of what she meant about not doing the shoot there, but before he could question it or even come to his own conclusions someone approached her and began to speak.

“You got here quick,” they said.

The woman rolled her eyes. “You told me to get here quickly. You’re lucky I hadn’t left my last shoot earlier because I would've been home and that’s even further away. I just barely missed rush hour.”

That answered the question about who she was. Their new photographer had arrived for the shoot and though most of him was focused on how cute and kind she was, he also felt a sense of relief of her finally getting there so they could get it done.

“Also, we’re not shooting near that hole. I’m not risking them. I don’t care what measure you had in place for safety, but I refuse to tempt fate. The ground floor gives me a great angle to work in the hole if need be and out back has some great spots. And no this isn’t up for debate, so you can tell Alvin that his whining about it will not change my mind.”

Jin found himself laughing at that. She spoke a little fast, but he managed to keep up and could tell that Alvin person was a pain in the ass.

“Jin there you are,” Sejin said as he walked up.

His manager looked tired and a tad distressed, though he relaxed a bit when he made eye contact with Jin. Not that that lingered for long, because the moment he was in distance he grabbed Jin’s hand and carted him off to where the other boys were. Everyone was grabbing their stuff to head down to the ground floor and Jin was rushed along to do the same.

It happened relatively quickly and before they knew it they were set up in a room down there, all their stuff deposited in its respective spots.

“Why couldn’t we just stay up there? What’s the point of even coming down here,” Jimin grumbled.

“Safety,” Jin remarked without thinking.

“What?” Namjoon asked.

A few seconds passed before Jin realized what he’d said, which meant that all eyes of his group were on him. He hadn’t even intended to say anything and just let Jimin be grumpy, but something in didn’t allow that.

Jin cleared his throat. “I ran into the new photographer while walking around. She said she didn’t want to do the shoot up there near the hole because she didn’t want to risk our safety. Something about being able to do shots down here and outside fine.”

That sated them all, including Jimin. There were even murmurs about how she was better than most who just pushed them towards whatever, no matter how uncomfortable or unsafe it could be.

After that everyone settled in, getting their make-up retouched, clothes looked over, and just relaxing. About ten minutes passed before they were called out of their makeshift dressing room.

When they emerged they found the magazine’s staff all surrounding the photographer with a mix of happy and blank expression, not including one man who kept glaring at her every five seconds and who Jin assumed was Alvin.

Once the boys were front and center she stepped forward and smiled at them.

“Hello, I’m YN. I’ll be the head photographer for this shoot. I apologize for all the waiting you all had to do. I would’ve been here sooner if I could’ve been. But I promise to get these photos taken and you off to do whatever you had next in a timely manner. Again, I apologize for the delay,” she said in Korean.

The boys held the same shocked expressions Jin did when he’d heard her speak it the first time, but it didn’t last for long. Everyone could see how much more relaxed they got with her after that and it showed more as they individually introduced themselves and shook her hand.

“I’m Jin,” he said when it was his turn.

YN smiled. “Nice to meet you officially, Jin.”

Without hesitation Jin returned the smile and released her hand sooner than he wanted to.

Upon their parting everyone moved into action. YN had them in place and began shooting. She let them dictate movements and occasionally shouted out something in Korean if she wanted something specific. The group shots were done quickly and she switched to some solo and unit ones, which also flew by. Before they knew it they’d moved outside to get in a few more pictures. Their YN got a little more specific on what she needed but was still rather chill. Even when Jin looked at her instead of off to the side as she’d asked five times in a row.

By the time they were done it was midafternoon and around the time the shoot would’ve originally ended. Everyone was clearly happy to be done and wanting to leave, but then someone wanted shots with different arrangements, so they had to be obliged.

Not without a break though.

YN called for a thirty-minute break so everyone could breathe and eat something since they’d gone non-stop for the most part.

Everyone dispersed, but moments later all ended up around craft services trying to get something to nibble on; Jin included. Though after he grabbed some random sandwich and a bottle of water he noticed how YN never approached the table. He turned his head to find her, only to see her seated near the back doors of the building with her head in her hands and alone.

Something in his said to go talk to her, which was strange because he was never the one to go start up conversation during shoots. At least not ones that weren’t being run by BigHit and surrounded by staff he was familiar with. And he definitely didn’t ever just feel it based off the person being cute. He’d encountered many cute people in his line of work. But something pulled him towards YN, so he grabbed one of the premade bagel plates and a bottle of water before walking over to her.

Since YN had been in her own world she didn’t see him coming at all, so when he tapped her shoulder she was so startled that she almost made him drop their plates.

“Oh, my goodness, I’m so sorry,” she said.

“It’s okay,” he said as he held out the plate and bottle. Seconds passed before she put two and two together and took it, but she did so with a smile and a soft thank you.

With that said and done Jin plopped into the chair next to her and took a bite out of his sandwich. Out of the corner of his eye he watched her nibble on the bagel, completely ignoring the cream cheese on the side. He found it adorable but refrained from saying anything or being too obvious. Or at least he hoped he wasn’t obvious.

For several minutes they went on like that before Jin broke the silence.

“Thank you,” he said.

“For what?” YN said, frowning.

“For making sure that we weren’t doing anything dangerous for a picture and still managing to make them look cool.”

“Well, it is my job to make sure I take all the cool pictures, but it’s you guys who make them cool.”

That made Jin laugh, which in turn made YN laugh. The way they’d responded showed they both knew they played major parts in the magic but refused to fully acknowledge how much.

“Do you enjoy your job?” Jin asked as they calmed down.

As the words left his mouth he scolded himself for the horrible choice in question, but YN didn’t have an adverse reaction to it.

She nodded. “Yes. I’ve wanted it since I was little and was lucky enough to be good enough at it that I caught the eye of people in the industry who wanted to further me in ability. I’ve even managed to get a job at my dream magazine.”

Jin didn’t know what to say, so he merely nodded along and appeared interested; which he was.

“How about you? You enjoy your job?” she asked.

There was a teasing lithe to her words that made Jin crack another smile.

“I do. Want to do it as long as I can,” he said.

YN gave him the same reaction, though there was a clearer smile on her face.

“Well, I’m sure that’ll work in your favor. You’re doing so well right now.”

“That is true.”

From there Jin thought the conversation would fizzle, but it didn’t. In fact, he grew more comfortable and became more open as they continued to talk. The subjects were all over the place, but also answered some questions he’d had when he first saw her. Namely how she appeared so fluent in Korean. They had such a good talk and were so in their own world that it took YN’s assistant reminding her of the time to break them apart.

Sadly, that meant they got right back to work and they were in front of the camera and then done so fast that it made Jin’s head spin. Before he knew it he was changed into his clothes and ready to head out with the boys, but all he could focus on was finding her. Which didn’t happen or at least didn’t until he’d been practically shoved into the car by Jungkook who’d wanted to get back to the place where they were staying so he could play video games with Yugyeom.

Jin’s last glimpse of YN was as she got into her car and drove off, though their car soon followed.

“That was faster than I thought it would be,” Yoongi said.

“Yeah. The pictures she did were amazing and she didn’t drag it on forever. I want her for all of our shoots if she’s that good and always that fast,” Namjoon mumbled.

There was silence for a moment and then from the front seat Sejin spoke up.

“Well, you’re in luck. If I remember correctly she’s the name of the person you’ll be dealing with when we get back to Korea. They said they were bringing on their talented, new hire for your shoot.”

That made Jin’s head snap up so he could look at Sejin in the rearview mirror and that’s when he noticed the man looking directly at him as he said it, a smirk playing on his lips.

Never had such a burst of joy filled Jin like it did in that moment and while everyone responded positively he merely sat back and imagined how he’d approach YN the next time he saw her. That thirty-minute break had him wanting to know more about the cute girl.

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