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demigodreading · 3 years

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Saving Mini Benson Pt:1

Request: From @youngjusticeimaginesus: Hi, I was wondering If maybe you'd be willing to do a oneshot where Olivia's daughter gets kidnapped by Lewis instead of Olivia?

Summary: That’s right my favorite peoples... This is going to be a two part mini series because there was no way everything that I needed to say could be done in a one-shot! I won’t go into much because I don’t want to give it away but please note THIS PART IS A DOOZY! The next one may be worse but still this arc made me cry in the show and I cried writing this

Characters: Olivia Benson, Fin Tutuola, Amanda Rollins, Nick Amaro, William Lewis, Donald Cragen, Reader

Relationships: Olivia Benson x Daughter! Reader

Warnings: MAJOR Violence, Guns, Cigarette Burns, Episode Spoilers, Alcohol, Smoking Weed, Mentions of Shootings, Death, William Lewis, Mentions of torture... (I Think that covers it but if it doesn’t please let me know)

Word Count: 2320 (Like I said.. there was no way this was gonna be just a oneshot.)

And with that all being said: Let’s jump into it.

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Olivia and her daughter rarely fought but when they did neither one wanted to admit the other one was right. Olivia loved and hated her daughter for being so similar to her. Even now as she watched the miniature version of herself stalk the interview room the exact same way she would send her heart racing. Usually the similarities would result in a smile but not today. Today Olivia’s vision was a deep red as she confronted her daughter.

“Y/N you were caught smoking weed underneath the bleachers during class! So not only did you break one rule you broke two!” Olivia shouted, folding her arms.

“Wow glad that you know how to count,” Y/N mumbled looking out the window.

“What did you just say to me?”

“Look mom I just don’t get what the big deal is? It was one joint. One class!” Y/N retorted, throwing her hands up, “I am a straight A student who has a full ride scholarship to Harvard.”

“Yes, because Barba stuck his neck out on the line for you and put in a glowing recommendation,” Olivia spat, “What you did was careless. You could have ruined everything that was given to you.”

“You know for once in your life could you ever be fucking proud of me! I do everything that I can do to make you proud and yet at the end of the day I am never fucking good enough for you.”

“That’s not…” Olivia went to argue but was interrupted by Cragen opening the door.

“Olivia we got a problem. I need you right now,” He said, then shut the door without waiting for an answer.

“Just go save another poor unfortunate soul mom. Don’t worry about your daughter. I’ll pick up my own pieces like I always do,” Y/N said, wiping tears from her face as she grabbed her coat.

Y/N stormed from the room before Olivia could stop her. She made her way through the precinct eyes trained to the floor as her mother’s voice rang out, “You better head straight home Y/N! We are not done having this conversation and you are grounded!”

Choosing not to say anything, Y/N merely raised her hand in the air flipping her mother off before the doors shut with a loud slam behind her. Tears made dark spots on the concrete as Y/N made her way back to their apartment. Even the noises of the constant car honks and people screaming couldn’t drown out the voices in her head today. Failure. Waste of space. Stupid. No one. Unwanted. Unloved.

It was the repeated song that kept her feet moving forward until she finally placed her key in the lock. She threw her bag by the kitchen island and threw her keys on the counter. She was about to turn on the living room light when a noise caught her attention.

“Hello? Hello?”

As she turned the corner her vision was filled with the sight of a gun pointed right at her temple. A smirk crossed William Lewis’ face as he looked at Y/N, “Ah welcome home Little Benson. I was hoping that it would be your mother who was walking through the door but I guess you will have to do.”

Y/N went to scream but instead Lewis jammed the gun against her throat, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. One small slip of my finger and your mom will be left with a new kind of art all over her walls.”

Y/N let a single tear roll down her face before Lewis’ gun made contact with her skull and the whole world went black.

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Olivia had already tried to call Y/N twice but it kept going straight to voicemail. The last known location had been their apartment so at least she had the sense to head straight home. The guilt in Olivia’s stomach was insurmountable. Watching her daughter explain that she never felt like she lived up to her standards. Olivia had promised herself when she had Y/N she would never end up like her mother. Yet there she was shaming her child for one mistake. Y/N was more than just a good kid, she was excellent. She was smart, beautiful, humorous, kind, and so much more. She was everything Olivia could have ever hoped for. Knowing that her daughter thought she wasn’t proud was the worst pain she could have.

After the third call Olivia finally decided to leave a voicemail, “Y/N I know you are mad but I need you to know something. I am proud of you and will always be proud of you. You are the best daughter and the most amazing human. I was rough on you early. Please let’s talk through this. I’ll be home soon with your favorite Chinese. Just don’t do anything stupid? I love you.”

When she hung up the phone she placed her head in her hands and let out a large sigh. Fin placed a reassuring hand on her back, “Liv, it is going to be okay. She is just being a teenager.”

“No Fin, you should have seen her. It was like I was physically taking her heart out and ripping it in front of her. I should have never said those things. I didn’t mean any of them… I was just upset.”

“She knows, they always know.”

Olivia merely shook her head and began to gather her things to head home. She walked out of the precinct without a goodbye and headed down the street to Y/N’s favorite Chinese place. They knew what she was going to order as soon as she walked in the door asking where Y/N was. Liv pushed off their question and scrolled through her phone as she waited for the food. Y/N’s phone was still off giving Olivia an eerie feeling as she finished the walk to the apartment.

Once inside she noticed Y/N’s bag on the floor and her keys on the counter. There was a sudden rush of cold air that made her notice the window that was open to the fire escape. She shut it quickly and then moved to Y/N’s room. The door was still open with everything the way she had left it that morning. Once her calls were unanswered Olivia opened the window again crawling onto the fire escape. Sometimes Y/N would go to the roof to watch the sun slowly crawl behind the buildings.When she reached the top however she was met with an unsettling emptiness.

Olivia reached for her phone to call the only person who was able to calm her anxiety lately, “Amaro, Y/N isn’t here. I can’t find her. What if something happened to her?”

“She probably just went to a friend’s house to get away,” Amaro replied stirring the contents of his drink, “She will be back in the morning just to relax. Sleep off the anger and come back with a clear head tomorrow.”

Liv pondered this suggestion over and over deciding what she should do. When the silence became too long Amaro interjected again, “Liv, I’m serious. You two had the biggest blow out that I have seen in awhile. Give her time to be mad at you and think. If you smother her she might only push further away from you.” She thanked her partner for the advice and then shoved her phone back in her pocket taking a sweep of the roof once again. Finally she slowly made her way back to the apartment shutting the window with a slam before locking it. Olivia wandered over to the kitchen moving the cereal that covered the top of the fridge to get to her secret cupboard. From the opening she pulled a large bottle of her favorite red wine. She popped the cork and decided to forgo a cup taking a long swig directly from the green glass. A large sigh escaped her lips as she plopped down on the couch going over the events of the day in her head.

As the contents of the bottle slowly drained till there was nothing else Olivia realized her fears were all coming true. She was becoming her mother. A woman she never once wanted to be. Three empty bottles later she finally curled under Y/N’s sheets crying into her pillow until she finally was able to fall asleep.

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The next morning when Y/N did not return and her phone was still shut down all bets were off. Olivia was furious but more importantly she was terrified. Something was horribly wrong. Her morning was spent talking to Y/N’s two best friends and searching their houses for her. When that search was unsuccessful Olivia went to the school hoping Y/N had gone there. However, she had been absent all day and there hadn’t even been a call to excuse her from the day.

When the morning bled into the afternoon Olivia was running around the city to all of Y/N’s usual hangout spots. The search of the library told her that Y/N hadn’t been there in over a week. The local bakery hadn’t seen her in three days. The coffee shop where Y/N always bought Olivia’s coffee when she came to see her at work had seen her two mornings ago but nothing since then. Even the old lady that had Y/N over twice a week to help her with errands and chores around the house hadn’t seen her.

It was dark by the time that Olivia fell into her desk chair at the precinct. With her head in her hands she let the tears fall. A whole day was gone and there was still no sign of her daughter. If she had been kidnapped they were running out of time and losing it quickly. The longer she was out there the longer the person had to get away with whatever they wanted.

The squad huddled around in Cragen’s office looking at Olivia curled over her desk. Rollins was the first one to speak, “I bet you Lewis has something to do with this.”

“And what makes you think that?” Amaro asked, “There are plenty of people who could have a vendetta against Liv.”

“It’s just a feeling.”

“Yeah well have you ever considered the idea that maybe Y/N just ran away,” Amaro retorted.

Fin, Cragen, and Amanda all turned towards Amaro, shocked. Cragen was the first one to speak, “I know you haven’t been here long Amaro but this isn’t Y/N. Something is horribly wrong and we are going to figure out what is going on. Fin and Amanda go check out Lewis’ usual hiding spots. I’ll take Liv through her apartment once again to see if we missed anything.”

“And me cap?”

“Amaro… you stay here and set up a tip line,” Cragen responded curtly and then they all disappeared to find where Y/N had disappeared to.

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Y/N woke with a jolt as she felt cold water splash her face. She was met with Lewis staring only a couple inches away from her face. He grinned and grabbed Y/N’s chin as she tried to look away, “Well well there. Looks like someone is finally awake. Feeling thirsty?”

Y/N nodded her head yes waiting to scream as he curled his fingers around the edge of the duct tape. As he was about to pull it away he jammed a gun against Y/N’s throat, “Make any noise and I will shove this gun straight down your throat.”

Finally when he pulled the tape away Y/N spit right in his face, “Just shoot me already if you are going to threaten me with it.”

“And miss out on all of our fun Mini Benson. I think not. There is plenty that I want to do to you before then.”

Y/N began to panic as Lewis lit another cigarette. She remembered the way the others had burned against her chest and sides. She had lost count after twenty perfect circle burns and after the second pistol whip to the face she had passed out a second time, She couldn’t go through all of that again.

“My mom knows I am missing and she will be out looking for me. Just let me go and she will never have to know that you did it. Please,” YN begged.

“What is she going to think about that bruise on your face? Or the marks on your skin? I can’t let you go… plus I know that you both fought before you came home. I bet you that she thinks you just ran away and are leaving her,” Lewis chuckled.

“How.. how did you know that we fought?

“This lovely voicemail your mother left you,” Lewis said, placing your phone against your ear.

Tears began to run down Y/N’s face as she heard the apology her mother had sent her. Damnit! Why did I have to fight with her? We could have avoided all of this. Is the mantra that ran through her head as Lewis slammed the phone against her head and threw it at the wall.

“She isn’t coming for you,” Lewis snickered.

“Please… just let me go. I will do anything.”

Lewis pulled his gun and placed it against Y/N’s scalp, “You are still bargaining with me? Really. We are way past that baby.”

“I am the daughter of an NYPD detective. A decorated well known detective. My mother, her partner, her squad, the entire department will hunt you down. You think that you’ve put people through hell. It will rain back down on you.”

“You know what… let it rain,” Lewis said and then hit Y/N once again making her world go black for a third time.

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ptergwen · 3 years

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from one kid to another

w/c: 6.0k

warnings: mentions of drinking, lots of swearing, implied smut, and angst at times

summary: it was a mistake, a beautiful one that you didn’t make on your own

a/n: this genuinely is my favorite thing i’ve ever written :,) i say that a lot but this time i mean it, it’s really special i think and i so so so hope y’all do too <3 enjoy my loves

there’s only one thing in life that testing positive for is actually positive.

depending on the situation, obviously. yours isn’t ideal, or planned or a blessing or whatever people say. it’s a gigantic mistake that you didn’t realize you made until a minute ago.

you’d noticed something was wrong when your time of the month came and all you experienced was the symptoms. cramps, cravings, everything except your actual period. as everyone is pretty much taught to do, you ran to the closest drug store for a pregnancy test. what the hell else could it be? you messed around a few weeks ago, so there’s a possibility.

your heart felt like it was going to explode out of your chest the whole time you waited for the results. you’d thought of calling tom over for support, but there are a couple of reasons why you couldn’t do that. you realized you made the right decision when your timer for the test went off.

two red lines. you’re pregnant. you’re pregnant, and your best fucking friend is the father.

where do you go from here?

the test falls from your hand and hits the floor with a mocking clank. you slide down until your back is against the bathtub. well, you’re fucked. what an ironic word choice.

the fact that you aren’t ready in the slightest to be a parent when you’re still growing up yourself is one thing. it’s another that this could ruin the most important relationship you’ve ever had.

no, tom won’t be mad. he’s never once fought with or even raised his voice at you. in your times of need, he’s been the one to uplift you and kiss your puffy cheeks dry. no matter how he takes this, you know it won’t be out on you. he is half responsible.

but, with how you left things the last time you spoke, you’re not sure you’ll be able to get past it.

tom is alarmingly good at hiding how he truly feels. you always tease him that it’s because he’s a gemini. he’ll come back with shut up, i’m an actor and stick his nose in the air to give you the full image. in all seriousness, it does take a toll on how well he can communicate.

you’ve seen it in small ways, like when he brings you along for press days and uses unenthusiastic smiles to cover up his yawns. how he’ll be polite in a conversation with people he’d rather not speak to, then mumble about it once you’re home. he tries to put forward the “appealing” parts of himself even though he’s more than them.

tom’s biggest communication issue is that he’s been in love with you since year nine and hasn’t said a word about it. you’ve yet to figure that one out.

you two became friends while tom was starring in billy elliot. his schedule was so scattered between shows and school, so he struggled to balance both. he often had to stay late for extra help on the lessons. you’d also been there a few times. you worked better in the classroom, and he was grateful he didn’t have to be alone with the teacher.

most kids made fun of tom for his interest in theater, to his face and behind his back. not you. you thought it was just incredible that someone in your own classes worked at the west end. you’d told him on your way home one night.

he’d heard you before he saw you. “you’re tom, right?” you asked from behind him, the two of you making your way through the hall. the question sounded friendly, and it wasn’t every day kids were nice to him. tom stopped walking so you could catch up. “yes, and you are?” you gave him a small smile, books clutched to your chest. he instantly returned it.

“y/n. i heard you’re in billy elliot?” you laughed at your understatement, then corrected yourself. “that you are billy elliot, i mean. that’s so cool.” “oh, i am. thank you,” he chuckled back, a full grin taking over his face. you were both walking again, you by tom’s side. “i was hoping to come see you soon.” your voice got quieter as you told him, like you were nervous.

tom never had much luck with girls, not at this point in his life. this was an opportunity to change that. at the very least, to make a new friend. he offered something you said yes to without a beat of hesitation. “what if i got you the tickets?”

from then on, you began talking during class and not only when it ended. tom really knew how to keep the conversation going, telling story after story that left you laughing so much your teacher would shush you. you’d eventually moved to hangouts at either of your houses. harrison came into the mix at some point, the three of you forming your own group.

the difference between tom and harrison was that while harrison linked with other girls, tom was only interested in you. he’d gotten a crush on you pretty fast, if he was being honest. it might have been your shared sense of humor or the way you said his name.

thomas, when he was being cheeky. tommy, which took the place of a pet name. even regular tom. that might have been his favorite. he loved how it rolled off your tongue. he loved, and still loves, you.

you’d gone to all of tom’s performances you possibly could, the ones for school theater included. you also gave him the push to take his talents to hollywood. tom was afraid he wasn’t cut out for the big screen, that he needed more practice and experience first. you told him that if this was what he wanted to do, he had to start somewhere. why wait?

tom then landed his first movie role in the impossible at the age of fifteen. he’d received tons of praise and almost gotten nominated for an academy award, all because you convinced him to audition. you played a huge part in keeping him grounded when he was between films, and caught him up on whatever schoolwork he’d missed.

you practically zoomed to tom’s house when he was announced as the next spider-man. you’d been constantly refreshing every social media platform marvel was on since tom became a finalist for the part. that process was probably the most difficult experience he’s ever gone through. you’d know, having heard all about it from tom.

the two of you celebrated along with the rest of tom’s family that night. you kept giving him little proud of you squeezes on his shoulder or knee. tom is eternally indebted to you for being the most supportive of everything he does.

he of course sends the support right back. although he went down the movie star path, acting wasn’t for you. you’d gone off to university and studied hard as hell and aced all your shit. tom quizzed you on material whenever you needed. he wanted to help you somehow, and this was all you’d let him do.

he’d offered to pay off your loans and any other expenses necessary because he had the money to do that now. you refused every single time, not trying to become dependent on him. he admired your drive, yet hated it at the same time. everything you’d done for him, it was his turn to be the caretaker. it should’ve been.

whenever tom wrapped filming for the holidays and came back home, you were always preparing for final exams. he kept you company, content with simply being in your presence. you typed away on your keyboard and read over notes until your eyes burned. tom occasionally brought you snacks, tea, asked how you were and what he could do.

sometimes, he would have to cut your study time short. he’d say it wasn’t healthy or you were overdoing it and to come relax with him for a bit. other times, tom let you be. he didn’t want to get in the way of your already stressful assignments. those were the nights you’d fall asleep in front of your laptop. drool on your chin, hunched over at your desk.

tom made sure to tuck you in, press a light kiss to whatever part of your face wasn’t covered in spit, then let himself out. he knew where your spare key was, so he used that. you’d wake up to a “Fell asleep studying again. Rest today x” text the next morning.

when it came time for you to graduate, tom was on the first flight there. it was during another round of reshoots for chaos walking. he respectfully told doug that he’d have to work around his schedule or replace him, which couldn’t be done so late into filming. tom didn’t care that it made him seem like a prick. he was getting to you no matter what he had to do.

he’d earned plenty of stares and whispers from people as he took his seat in the crowd. he was a proper celebrity now, so he expected it. his solution was to ignore everything and chat with your family about how proud they were of you, tom the most. he saw you go from a kid attempting algebra equations to an adult at her uni graduation. you’ve really grown up together.

it was why he teared up hearing them call your name, seeing you beam as you walked across the stage. your mom grabbed his hand and nodded at him, like she could tell exactly what was going through his head.

you ran right up to tom after the ceremony was over, leaping into his arms. he let out a couple of chuckles as he spun you around. “i didn’t think you’d make it,” you’d admitted, happy yet sad tears in your eyes. tom put you down so he could pull you in for a real hug. “i’ll always be wherever you are, y/n,” he said into your ear, rocking you while you gripped at his suit collar.

flash forward to a year later, your career is finally taking off, tom’s is flourishing like it has been for years, and you’re pregnant with his child. you’re trying to recall the series of events that led you to this moment.

you were both drunk, blackout drunk because the only reason you remember sleeping together is that you woke up naked in the same bed. harrison’s bed.

he threw a housewarming party for himself, having recently moved out of tom’s and the other boys’ place. the three of them, sam, and you were all in attendance, along with a lot of others you hadn’t met.

neither you nor tom could figure out where he knew all those people from. he’d clinged to you two for the most part, more so you now with tom usually away. they could have been from work. harrison is breaking into the business himself, small roles here and there. tom actually met him in your school’s theater program, then he introduced him to you, ten years ago already.

sam entertained himself by making concoctions with the snacks harrison set out. harry got together a playlist for the party. harrison and tuwaine struck up a conversation with some of harrison’s actor friends. that left you and tom alone, out of stuff to do, and with one way to fix it.

“drink?” tom had asked you, a smirk playing on his lips. “love one,” you hummed back and set off for the kitchen. the two of you raided harrison’s liquor cabinet, grabbing his biggest bottle of wine. he’d dumbly pointed it out during the house tour he gave you before the other guests arrived.

you were about to search for glasses, but tom’s fingers threaded through yours. he gently tugged you away and nodded behind him. “let’s bring this upstairs. seems much more fun there,” he’d murmured over the music, a grin breaking across your face.

tom is big on clubbing and socializing, however, you aren’t. he comes up with ways to get you out of these events, just in case.

“we can break in harrison’s bed for him,” you said as a completely harmless joke, no intentions of that becoming your reality later on. spoiler alert: it did. “and how are we gonna do that?” tom quirked a suggestive eyebrow and breathed out a laugh as you dragged him towards the stairs. despite yourself, you’d giggled at his words.

not one drink in either of you yet, and you were stumbling and cracking up as you ran upstairs. you’d pulled tom by your still attached hands into what you remembered as harrison’s room. tom shut the door, locked it, saying under his breath that would be a “convenient investment” for him to make as well.

he took out a bottle opener that he must have put in his pocket at some point and got to work on your wine, you getting comfortable on the new mattress. the two of you passed it to the other after every sip, tom licking the taste of your lip gloss off his own lips every so often.

the equivalent of three drinks in, you were making out. both of you were just tipsy at this point, tom holding you by your hips as you lied down, your legs around his waist. god, he could’ve done this sober. he’d dreamed about kissing you, really kissing you since he was fourteen. you’d always felt like you two had something more. ah, there it was.

halfway through the bottle got you past the next two bases, and you were ready for the fourth and ultimate one by the time you shook the last few drops onto the tip of your tongue. tom groaned at the sight of that, drawing your half naked body in closer to his.

you two had forgotten to use protection in each of your drunken states. without a doubt, you both would’ve agreed to a condom had your minds not been everywhere but where they should have.

you’d woken up first the morning after, panic immediately coursing through your veins thicker than blood. a fully nude and sleeping tom had you in his embrace, arms secured around your middle, facing you. you gasped when you made the connection, loudly enough to wake tom up. his long eyelashes tickled your face, a confused pout on his lips. uh... um...

“did we fucking...” you trailed off, no words to describe whatever unfolded. “fuck?” tom finished for you. a very blunt explanation, but true nevertheless. “looks like it,” he rasped, pout changing into a smile. your face fell at the vague memories of how you spent your night.

you definitely wanted to do it. just, he’s your best friend, who’s seen you at your least sexy moments over the years. when you were sick, had breakdowns from stress, you name literally anything, tom was there. it took one bottle of cheap wine for him to forget that?

the real answer was no. tom is entirely in love with you, for a decade at that. you were beginning to discover you feel the same, only you had no idea he already loves you. you’d assumed this was meant to be merely a hookup. from the frown your face held, he’d thought you were regretting it. oh, were you both so wrong.

“um... we don’t have to talk about it,” tom told you halfheartedly, under the impression that’s what you preferred. you physically felt yourself get weaker in tom’s strong arms. he’s not interested. “yeah, that’s probably for the best. i...” you were lying. his heart shrunk, shriveled up inside his chest. she doesn’t love me like that.

“you have to go. aren’t you behind on some emails?” tom hoped you didn’t hear his voice strain from the tears pushing at his eyes. “right. almost forgot, thanks.” you’d plastered on a smile, slipping out of his grasp. a tear rolled down his cheek, so he wiped it away before you noticed. you’d already gotten out of the bed and begun picking your clothes up off the floor.

“i’ll drive you home, then.” he rolled on to his other side, you thought so he could give you privacy to change. it was that, and also because he was crying. he couldn’t hold it in. tom is naturally an emotional person. imagine finding out the love you’ve had almost half your life is unreciprocated. it’s soul crushing.

you two found harrison snoring and on top of tuwaine as you left the house. no silly remarks or shared glances for the first time in ten years. tom couldn’t muster anything up, and you felt numb.

the drive was painful. you’d said your goodbyes after tom pulled up to the curb, which held an odd weight to them. once you were out of the car, a sob wracked through him, banging on the steering wheel and not giving a shit about the loud horn going off. you collapsed face first onto your bed. hours passed by while you stared at nothing and contemplated everything.

since it happened, you haven’t spoken much. small talk over text every few days or so, both of you pretending things are normal for the other’s sake. about a month later, today, is when you found out you’re pregnant.

there’s no use wallowing in any of this. you need to figure out your next move, one that should probably involve tom. first, you want to talk to someone else. you want other opinions and a voice in your head that isn’t your own. harrison gets a text from you saying to come over now, the now in all caps. he does.

you let him in after the second knock, his eyebrows furrowing in concern. however torn you are, you must look it. shirt balled in your fists, lip quivering. he keeps his eyes on yours as he steps inside, pushing the door shut behind him. this is all becoming too real. “y/n, are you okay?”

you’re about to cry in three, two...

“haz, i fucked up,” you choke out, tears unable to stay at bay. he takes you into his arms for a hug. half your face is hidden in his shoulder, hands clutching at his back. he lets you cry it out, holding you until your heavy breathing steadies. “what’s happened?” harrison asks quietly, both of you leaving the hug.

“if- if i tell you, you can’t freak out. you can’t tell anyone else, either,” you instruct, searching his eyes for certainty that he won’t under any circumstances. “i won’t, y/n/n,” he assures you and puts an encouraging hand on your arm. your heart pounding abnormally fast, you spit it out. your first time saying it aloud. “i’m pregnant.”

harrison flinches and doesn’t even try to conceal it. he takes his hand off of you, worry swimming across his features. he blinks at you, unsure of what to say. you’d react the same way, maybe worse, so you don’t blame him. a discussion you, him, and tom had a couple years back replays in his mind.

the three of you were talking about your futures, seeing as you were close to living them. when tom asked you two where you stood on having your own families, you didn’t hesitate to answer. “nope, the factory is closed for a long ass time.” until you were in your thirties, you aimed to focus on yourself. harrison distinctly remembered because of how you phrased it.

“you’re... you... wow,” is all he replies with. you head over to the couch, more tears welling up in your eyes. do the pregnancy hormones act up this early? harrison follows you over and sits down next to you with an awkward clearing of his throat. “do you want to be pregnant?” he has to ask because he’s not sure if he should congratulate you or what.

“i don’t know,” you answer honestly, voice airy. your eyes are fixed on the wall in front of you. you haven’t given yourself time to think about it. there are so many reasons you don’t, and a single one you do. “do you, um, know who the dad is?” harrison glances over at you. “yeah.” your voice cracks. you’re both afraid for him to ask what he does next.

he shifts so he’s sitting up. “can i know?” a sniffle passing through you, you finally look at him. “it’s tom,” you say it before you lose the nerve to. harrison’s face doesn’t change this time. he isn’t surprised you and tom went there. he’d seen your friendship growing into more the older you all got. what he can’t believe is where it took you.

his best friend pregnant, and his other best friend responsible for it.

“when did you...” “at your party,” you explain, bringing your legs up so they’re criss cross on the couch. “i thought you were gone a little too long.” he says that to try cheering you up. you appreciate the effort, but it doesn’t work. you’re not in a joking mood. he’ll stick to the main issue. “so, have you told him?”

“clearly not,” you scoff, not at him but at what you two have gotten yourselves into. “y/n... i think you should tell him,” harrison sighs out, then adds, “whether you keep it or not.” “why? that would ruin everything, it already has.” you’re getting angry now, which plunges you into angry crying, voice unsteady as you go on.

“the last time i saw tom was that night, and i guess it meant more to me than it did to him because we haven’t talked about it at all. he didn’t want to.” you swipe the back of your hand across your eyes, gaze stern compared to harrison’s soft one.

he drapes an arm around your shoulders, you curling into him with another sniffle. he doesn’t say anything for a minute, then he tries again. “i know you, y/n, and i know tom. you’ll kill yourselves not talking about this.” he’s right, no shit he is. avoiding telling tom how you feel, and your pregnancy on top of that, it’s eating you up inside. it’s swallowing you whole.

“what if he doesn’t want to be a dad? or- or i’m a shit mum?” you croak out, your doubts getting the best of you. “i can barely take care of myself. what am i supposed to do with a baby?” you’re leaning forward with your hands pressing into your temples. harrison’s hand moves to your upper back. “i- i don’t think i should have them. i... we can’t,” you conclude.

“tom loves kids,” he gives you a gentle reminder. “why would his own be the exception?” another good point, yet you still have rebuttles. “right, he’s a godfather and he’s really good with them and all that, but i’m not the right person, and it’s a terrible time,” you tell him all at once, in a rush to get your words out before harrison’s sway you.

“he’s never around, i’m doing my own stuff. we’re not meant for this.” you lift your head out of your hands and sit back on the couch. harrison returns his hands to his lap. he’s frowning at you, which you see from the corner of your eye. “i’m not going to force you to have the baby. just saying you have options.”

yeah, really shitty ones.

“either way, talk to tom.” harrison says this more like a demand so you’ll take his advice into actual consideration. “at least about the hookup.” your teeth sink into your lower lip, eyes watering for the nth time already.

you have no choice because he’s right again. you’ll never move on from what happened unless you and tom address it.

the next morning, you do what harrison told you to and invite tom over. he replied saying he was on his way maybe a minute later. he’s nervous to see you because yeah, but more so looking forward since it’s been so long. you’re so nauseous you barely have room for nerves. it’s morning sickness with a hint anxiety.

it feels almost normal when he first gets here, no how’ve you been and what are you up to these days? being as close as you and tom are, you’re not capable of such a dry conversation. personally, you still feel uneasy while he recounts a golfing incident him and harry got into the other day. you know something he doesn’t.

“when i tell you we flew, we flew,” tom makes a pushing forward motion with both hands. “right into the tree. i think harry, like, dented part of his face.” he lets out a breathy laugh, you forcing out one of your own. you’d be more interested without the fact that you’re expecting a child, his child, at the back of your mind.

tom exhales, shifting to face you on your couch. it’s funny how different things were when you and harrison sat in these same spots yesterday. so much has and is about to change.

“they had to send another golf cart to come get us. it was wild.” “it sounds wild,” you hollowly agree. he can tell you’re not too invested in hearing about harry’s terrible driving skills, so he changes the subject. “anyway, harrison told me he came over last night?” your stomach drops, heat coming over your whole body.

“did... did he say why?” you murmur with a look of urgency in your eyes. tom shrugs a shoulder, and casually. there’s no way he knows. “no, was he supposed to?” his tone stays playful, which you can thankfully tell. that puts you more at ease. “no. no, never mind. i would’ve asked you to come, but...” you’re searching through your catalog of excuses.

thank god tom says something else because you can’t find a good one. “it’s alright. i actually, um, had a work call.” a small smile spreads across his face, a proud one. intrigued, you raise both eyebrows. “what’d you talk about?” tom twiddles with his fingers in his lap. “i’ve been offered an audition for this really amazing film. everything works out, it’ll be huge for me.”

you’re smiling back this time, putting a hand over one of his. “woah, that’s incredible. i’m so happy for you, tom.” you lock your fingers with his from the back of his hand. he looks down at them, humbly shaking his head. “when is it?” “a few weeks from today. it films in brazil...”

oh. you can’t tell him now. it’s not worth him missing out on a milestone in his career for a baby you’re not sure you should have. that would be so unfair of you to ask. what are you going to do, not support his dreams for the first time in a literal decade? and, you’d call yourself his best friend through it all?

you guess this also means the way you feel about tom is one sided. he’s okay with leaving you after the most intimate moment you two have ever shared. you’ll dance around it the rest of your lives. better yet, act like the night never even happened. that’s not so easy to do when you’ve got a permanent reminder of it.

the thought makes you sick to your stomach. so sick, you could...

while tom is talking more about what the audition entails, you suddenly bolt up from the couch. you run for the bathroom, a hand cupped over your mouth. his face twists up in confusion from your disappearance. tom calls, “y/n/n?” out to you, but you can’t respond because your head is in the toilet. he rushes in when he hears you retching.

he gets onto the floor with you. you’re bent over, puking your guts out, back in another place where your life changed forever less than twenty four hours ago. tom pulls your hair out of your face and into a makeshift ponytail with one hand, his other on your back. that’s all you have in you. you stay over the toilet just to be sure.

saliva drips from your mouth, making you cough roughly, the sound echoing. tom moves so he’s next to you, keeping his hand in your hair and not caring one bit about the smell because he loves you and he’s utterly concerned about what he witnessed.

“love, are you sick?” he coos, searching for your eyes. they water from the intensity of everything. “morning sickness,” you answer without thinking first. shit. shit, shit, shit. it came out of you like more vomit, word vomit. there’s no going back now.

tom lets go of your hair with his eyes still on yours. his hand on your back then leaves you, fingers trailing down your body as they go. “morning sickness,” he repeats, putting it together. “you’re pregnant?” guilt taking over your features, you sit across from tom. you’re once again leaning against the bathtub, him against the counter.

“this isn’t how i wanted you to find out,” you admit and bring your knees up to your chest. “i took a test yesterday. it was positive.” your arms wrap around your legs, you now tearing up because tom figured it out. a shaky breath passes his lips. “i haven’t gone to my doctor or anything yet, but i-“

“are you keeping the baby?” tom cuts in. not to judge you for your choice, to find out what the fuck is going on before he travels across the world. you tighten your arms around yourself, grabbing your wrist. “i haven’t decided.” he gives you an understanding nod and reaches out for you. you dodge him. he might not want to do that after what you say next.

“tom, i... there’s more,” you whimper out. “yeah. i’m... i’m listening,” tom croaks, unable to hold in his infinite amount of emotions for a multitude of reasons. he’s losing you a second time. more tears spill from your eyes as you break the news, the news that will destroy what he’s been working towards his entire life.

“the baby is yours.” his face relaxes, looking almost relieved when you confess it. “when we slept together, uh,” you’re sure it’s obvious enough that you don’t have to go over the details. he’s tearing up himself. you reluctantly continue. “if you still want to audition, i get it. we don’t have to do this.”

“fuck the audition. fuck the whole movie. all of my movies, really,” tom surprises you by blurting out. he moves in until your legs are touching. “i’m staying. even if you don’t have the baby, i have to be here.” you watch in disbelief as he wipes away what are actually happy tears. “really? i was scared you’d resent me for it, or hate me even,” you mumble to him.

“y/n, what? why would i ever do that?” tom places a hand on your cheek, touch gentle and filled with love. you part your legs so he can be closer to you. he takes the space between them, thumb brushing over your skin. “i didn’t think you’d want to deal with all of this. i thought that night was only a hookup for you.” your voice wobbles under his gaze.

“no, are you kidding? i thought that’s what you thought.” he’s smiling now, eyes twinkling along with it. what he’s been meaning to tell you since you were only kids finally comes out. “i’ve loved you as long as i’ve known you, y/n. i always imagined myself doing this with you.” his words draw a quiet laugh from you, a happy one. “i know we were drunk, but i meant it all.”

the sincerity in his voice, the warmth in his eyes, they make you cry all over again. you’re getting used to it.

“i love you, tom,” you lean into him with a sniffle and a grin, his forehead now resting on yours, using his thumb to catch one of your tears. “i really do.” “i love you forever. i always have,” tom speaks lowly, breath fanning across your face. your hands grab at his shoulders. “so, you’ll stay? you’ll do this with me?” he reminds you of what he said before, this time a promise.

“forever.”

you ended up having the baby, and tom held your hand through the entire labor. nikki was holding his other hand, your mom holding your other hand. harrison had originally been in the room as well. when you started to push, he got freaked out and had to leave. your support system remained strong either way.

despite his repulsion of your daughter’s birth, you and tom decided to make harrison her godfather. he eventually became the godfather of your other two children also, which you had a few years later.

tom took a paternity leave from the industry so he could be with you and jamie. he’d also used his time off to propose to you, something else he fantasized about since year eleven in school. it wasn’t anything too grand because the whole world was already buzzing about you two, and a big gesture felt too impersonal with everything you’d been through together.

he did it in the form of passing a note, something you often did in class to avoid being scolded by your teacher for talking. the note came with a pencil to check off either the yes or no box, “will you marry me?” written above them. anyone else would have found it so unromantic, but you giggled as you checked off yes before your lips crashed into his smiling ones.

you were married shortly after the proposal, jamie as your flower girl and all your friends and family in attendance.

to do what he loved and stay with the people he loved, tom created his own version of hollywood in london. he took it upon himself to assemble a team and make a production company. harry behind the camera, harrison and tuwaine in the films, and tom either starring alongside them or directing. they give so many young actors tons of opportunities.

you eventually went back to work, too. it was like you’d never left, coworkers offering endless hugs and going over what you missed, not that you struggled getting into it. tom was there to celebrate every promotion, every compliment from your boss, every part of your life. jamie was also there, then liam and lucy.

all three of them are running around the house right now, putting on shoes and collecting their supplies for school. you take a sip of the orange juice liam didn’t finish with a lighthearted eye roll. tom chuckles as he passes you in the kitchen, getting the kids’ lunchboxes for them to minimize the chaos.

“you have that pitch meeting today, right?” he slips his hands through the lunchbox handles and walks over to you. “mhm,” you hum, mouth full with juice. his lips press to your temple, giving your waist a one handed squeeze. “you’ll smash it. always do.” “thanks, tommy.” putting down the cup, you reach up to button whatever parts of his shirt he didn’t have time to.

“aren’t you doing a casting? for the new script they sent?” you wonder aloud and smooth down the cotton material. “me and harry. should be interesting,” he remarks, you giving him a quick kiss back on his chin. they tend to have their artistic differences. “good luck with that. you do drop off, i’ll do pick up?” you pat one of the lunchboxes around his arms.

“deal.” tom goes in for a kiss on your lips, then a chorus of dad, we have to go led by jamie rings through the house. with a knowing smile, you push at his chest. “see you later. love you.” “love you, holland,” he bites back a grin of his own. his last name, now yours, suits you perfectly.

#tom holland #tom holland fluff #tom holland smut #tom holland x you #tom holland x reader #tom holland x y/n #tom holland fic #tom holland fanfiction #tom holland imagine #tom holland au #peter parker #peter parker fluff #peter parker smut #peter parker imagine #peter parker x reader #marvel

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bts-reveries · 3 years

Text

wishlist

characters: Yoongi x OC!Sohyun and Hana [ft. Yuna and Hoseok, mentions Huimang, Hana’s friends, and Taehyung(the group as well)]

genre: family and fluff

request: [anon] Hi there! My suggestion for the drabble series is maybe Hana puts down getting a baby brother/sister on her birthday wish list, and neither she nor Yoongi knows that Sohyun is already pregnant, so Sohyun gets to surprise her husband and daughter? 💛

a/n: hana is turning eight here (WEIRD.) i know it’s a big age gap, but she turned four in daddy diaries and she was seven by the end of the tmbmil series asdfghjkl this is assuming jungkook and rina got married right after taeyang was born and yoongi proposed right after their wedding and then got married in a few months and then hana’s birthday rolls around after and sohyun is already pregnant by then : D also my sister and i are seven years apart so it’s not tHaT bad~

➳➳➳➳➳➳➳

Hana’s birthday was nearing and it was always a special time for the couple.

Not only is it almost their daughter’s special day, but also the anniversary of the first time they met and the anniversary of the bakery’s opening.

Hana was only three when she came crashing into the grand opening of 24/7 Heaven, meeting Sohyun for the very first time. She was looking for the perfect birthday cake then. Now, four years later, the bakery owner became Hana’s mom and the wife of her dad. Yoongi and Sohyun got married not too long ago.

He proposed to her in the most perfect way actually.

A cake, made by him and Hana, with the words ‘will you marry me’ written on top.

So it was a special time. It’s their first meet-aversary as a married couple. The bakery was having an event for it’s fourth birthday. And of course, it was the start of getting Hana’s wishlist checked off.

As always, she had the general wishes.

As she got older, they started to change more and more.

“Have you done your list yet?” Yoongi asks his daughter, peeking into her room. Hana scrambles out of her bed, where she was reading a book, and goes over to her desk.

“I finished it last night, I forgot to give it to you,” she said, pulling out the list from under her other books. “Here you go daddy. Do you and mommy need any help for the bakery’s fourth birthday by the way?” Yoongi was happy to know that as she grew up, she got sweeter and sweeter.

Maybe it’s the effects of being in a bakery almost 24/7.

“Yes, mommy and I will need help later, but we’ll call you out then. For now, mommy and I will be looking at this,” he says, holding the list up. Hana smiles up at her dad, giving him an ‘okay’ sign.

Yoongi turns and walks out the door, already scanning the list.

“Why do you have that look on your face?” Sohyun asks her husband, watching him frown at Hana’s wishlist. Sohyun was on her laptop on the couch, ordering last minute party supplies for Hana’s birthday.

“She wants to invite boys from her class,” Yoongi says, looking up at his wife who starts to laugh at him.

“Let me see,” she says, reaching out her hand for the paper. Yoongi hands it to her as he sits next to her.

“It says: invite friends.” She turns to Yoongi with one eyebrow raised. “It didn’t specify whether it was all girls, all boys, or both.”

“Assuming it’s both, I’m sure her boyfriend is in there. She wouldn’t just write ‘invite Taeoh’,” he huffs.

“Even if it did, you’d still invite him because it’s on your princess’ wishlist,” Sohyun says, knowing she was right.

“I guess. Let’s look through it and see if we can get some done today. I’ll ask her for the names and make the invitations later.”

“Sounds good. Now let’s see,” Sohyun says, humming as she goes down the list. “Typical Hana, a lot of this is her general wishes. Party, perfect cake, all her friends and family~”

“There’s a back side!” Hana yells from her room. Both her parents look up, turning the paper around and their eyes widen.

“Baby brother (or sister! That’s okay too)”

“Hmm,” Yoongi says. “Well that’s a hard one.” Sohyun laughs nervously.

Little did they know.

That’s already one check done off of the list.

It wasn’t too long ago that Sohyun found out that she was expecting. She figured that it would be perfect to announce it to both Yoongi and Hana on the night of her birthday. Once everyone’s gone and right when Hana thinks the presents have stopped coming.

- hana’s birthday -

“Is that the kid?” Hoseok asks, watching a little boy hand Hana a gift. Yoongi glares at them.

“Mhm,” he says.

“Thank you Taeoh,” Hana says, taking the gift her friend was giving her. Boyfriend as Yoongi says.

Hoseok laughs at his hyung, but that smile quickly drops when he sees his own daughter standing next to her boyfriend. Huimang and Hana take taekwondo together and share the same friends. Which is why her ‘boyfriend’ was also at Hana’s party.

“You boys okay?” Sohyun asks, raising an eyebrow at the two. They both look away from their daughters.

“Fine, why do you ask?” Yoongi says, giving her a close lip smile. Sohyun laughs at the both of them, turning to look at their daughters.

“They’re just kids, don’t worry,” she says. “It’s just a baby crush.”

“Speaking of babies,” Hoseok says, suddenly remembering what Yoongi had told the boys previously. He mentioned to them about Hana’s birthday wishlist. About how this might be the first year he fails giving her everything.

Well, until the boys reminded him that four years ago when Hana wrote mommy on her list and he ended up breaking up with Sohyun.

That was something.

“What are you two telling Hana,” Hoseok says with a small laugh. “Should’ve told her to give you the wishlist 9 months ago.”

Yoongi sighs. “I know, I should’ve expected it. She’s been asking for one for so long.”

“I’m sure she’ll be understanding,” Sohyun says, trying hard to conceal her smile. She was pretty excited for the party to be over so she can spend some quality time with her family.

“Hey!” Yuna calls, rushing over to Sohyun and giving her a hug. “You’re telling them today, right?” She whispers, glancing down at her stomach. Yuna knew about Sohyun being pregnant.

Actually, all the girls did.

Only because Sohyun threw up at their mommy hangout and the girls had a feeling and told her to take a pregnancy test.

It was Sohyun’s first test and she was nervous. So of course the girls all helped her out and taught her how to use one. It ended with all of them screaming three minutes later and Sohyun sobbing with tears of joy.

“Yes, tonight right before her birthday ends,” Sohyun answers. “I’m like 95% excited and 5% nervous.”

“Ah!! I’m so excited, tell us everything after,” Yuna says, holding onto Sohyun's arms tightly. Sohyun laughs, nodding her head.

“I will, definitely.”

“So, did you enjoy your birthday?” Yoongi asks Hana, laying in her bed. No matter how old she turns, Yoongi promised to give her birthday cuddles before she slept. Hana cuddles into her dad’s side.

“Yeah, it was fun,” Hana says sleepily. It was nearing midnight, just about 10 minutes before. The group had stayed longer than everyone else (of course). Hana played with her cousins and was given extra hugs and kisses from her aunt and uncles before they left. Even Taehyung was crying, not wanting to let her go because, in his exact words: ‘Aigoo, you guys growing up is making me feel so old, I'm so sad. How are you already eight?’

“I’m sorry we didn’t get to check off everything on your list,” Yoongi tells her, rubbing her arm. He hugged her tightly, pressing his cheek to her head. As much as he just wanted to fulfill all of her wishes, he wanted Hana to have a sibling as much as she wanted one.

“It’s okay, I still loved everything you gave me. I’d be happy with anything,” Hana tells him, looking up at her dad with a smile on her face. Yoongi pouts, raising his hand up to caress her cheeks.

“How are you the sweetest girl ever?”

“Knock knock,” Sohyun says, peeking her head into the room. “Can I join?” The two smile up at her, motioning for her to come in. Sohyun reveals herself, holding a cupcake with a lit candle on top.

“Oh?” Hana says, sitting up in surprise. She smiles widely as she stares at the cupcake.

“Another candle to blow?” Yoongi asks. His wife nods, careful sitting beside her daughter.

“Your birthday ends in like 5 minutes. Is there one thing you really wanted today that you didn’t get?” Sohyun asks Hana. She knew what wish she would make. Hana looks up at her and nods.

“Okay make the wish then,” Sohyun says. Hana closes her eyes, intertwining her fingers in front of her.

She whispers quietly.

“I wish I could have a little brother or sister.”

It was just loud enough for her parents to hear. Yoongi looks up at Sohyun as Hana blows the candle.

“Done?” Sohyun asks. Hana nods and Sohyun puts the cupcake on her side table, turning back to her two loves.

“So that completes everything from the list right?” Sohyun says, looking back at the two. Both Yoongi and Hana looked at her confused.

“Oh didn’t I tell you two?” Sohyun says with a smile that she could no longer contain. “I’m pregnant.”

Yoongi’s eyes grew big and Hana smiled so wide, her cheeks turned pink.

“Mommy you’re pregnant?” Hana repeats, putting her hand gently on her mom’s tummy. Sohyun nods, putting her hand over hers. She looks up at Yoongi and laughs.

“Are you okay, hun?” She says, reaching out and pushing his hair back.

Yoongi’s face broke into a smile.

“Are you serious? Are you really pregnant?” Yoongi asks, hesitantly putting his hand on her tummy as well.

“Yeah, I found out about three weeks ago,” Sohyun laughs. “I figured I’d surprise you two before midnight.”

“You did it, you completed my wishes,” Hana laughs, leaning onto her mom and hugging her tightly. Yoongi couldn’t stop smiling as he joined in the hug, wrapping his arms tightly around his two girls.

At that moment, the clock struck 12 and Hana’s birthday was over.

They couldn’t help but think that at this time, next year, there'll be another person included in this hug.

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youvebeenlivingfictional · 4 years

Note

Can you do Will being jealous over a guy b chatting his GF up at a event and the guys having to talk him through it bc ironhead is showing a little and when she realizes she reminds him it’s only him for her. And a little smutty (if you write smut?) hope that’s not tooo specific but thank youuu 🥰 there’s not enough ironhead on tumblr !

o listen i write smut i wrote a whole Andy Barber smut series in ten days

Will prides himself on being a levelheaded guy. Now that he’s stateside, when the going gets tough, typically, Will stays calm. He did have some anger issues when he got back from the service, but he’s got a handle on those. He put in the work. That's why he cannot figure out, for the life of him, why seeing some guy cozying up to you, is making him feel so heated. It had started as a typical hangout. The two of you had been thrilled to learn that your friend groups meshed pretty well, and now and again, you get everyone together, go out and grab a drink. Things were fine, until you and your friends got up to order another round and didn't come back for a while. When some of your friends came back and the others didn't, he asked them where you were. They had pointed out where you and the rest of your friends were still at the bar. He didn't really care about your friends, though - he was more concerned with the fact that there was a guy next to you, leaning in to speak to you, murmuring in your fucking ear. It’s a knee-jerk reaction. Suddenly every single part of him is tight - his jaw, this shoulders, his throat. His ears are hot; his head is buzzing.

Benny, who's already a little tipsy, just laughs aloud and went, "Ruh-roh," as Will gets up from the table without another word. But that's only because, at first glance, Benny doesn't think this is that serious. Frankie is up right after Will is, rounding the table, getting an arm around Will’s shoulders, and muttering, "Deep breaths, man, come on-- No, don't tell me you are breathing deeply, that's bullshit and you know it. Hang on. Just stop-- Stop for two seconds."

Frankie manages to steer them to an empty tall table, turns Will so that he isn't looking at you and that guy anymore.

"Have you taken a deep breath yet?" Frankie asks, looking over Will's face, eyeing the tightness in his jaw, and the intensity with which the other has zeroed in on the salt shaker. He's seen that look on missions - it is not good if it was showing up on a night out. Will considers the question before shaking his head slowly.

"Okay. That's--" Frankie stops and whistles back to the table to draw Benny's attention and to get him the hell over there before he turned back to Will, "We can take it together man, but you've gotta take at least two for me."

They take two. Will's shoulders drop away from his ears a little bit. Benny gets to the table, finally, and Frankie gives him a look.

"I was gathering intel," Benny says defensively, holding his hands up in front of himself.

"And?" Frankie asks.

"And he's a coworker from an old job. One of her friends said there used to be some flirtation, but it never turned into anything."

"And it's not going to turn into anything now," Frankie hurries to reassure Will, "I mean, she's with you, man. She cares about you, you know that. Look, I know it might," Frankie glances over at where you've spotted the three of them huddled, "It might look bad. But do you trust her?"

"... Yes," Is Will's tight answer.

"Well going over there guns blazing will signal to her that you don't," Benny points out. Will takes another few deep breaths, and lets his head drop forward, closing his eyes.

"Babe? What's happening, what's wrong?" He lifts his head when he hears your voice. He waits until Frankie and Benny have headed back to the table to get a better look at you. You tuck yourself into his side, sliding your hand up and down over his shoulder.

"I was... I was having a moment," Will excuses, scrubbing his hand over face.

"What kind of moment?... Will," You press him gently. He looks at you, then turns back to where the guy still is at the bar. You follow his line of vision, and your brows raise.

"I--... Are you-- Really? Because of him?" You ask, stunned. It's never occurred to you that Will would ever get jealous; he's never seemed the type.

"Oh," You soothe, sliding your arms around him, "Babe, there is no one else here that I want. Dennis is just a guy that I used to work with, that's all."

Will nods, pushes a breath out through his nose. “That’s what the guys said,” He mumbles. “Well, the guys were right. We were just talking...And I was reminded that he's insanely fucking boring," You add. You smile when Will finally does. You lean up, pressing kisses to his cheeks and the corners of his mouth as you murmur, "I came here with you... And I don't wanna leave with anyone but you."

Will's lips catch yours as you make to lean away. You smile into what starts as sweet kiss. The thing is, it doesn’t stay that sweet. Will isn’t a particularly handsy guy when it comes to PDA; he’ll hold your hand, sure, and or put an arm around you, but he isn’t particularly grabby. That’s why you’re so taken aback when he winds an arm around you and pulls you flush into his side. His teeth are nip at your lower lip, and you can’t help the shocked little moan you let out. You lean back to look up at him, a little dazed, definitely flushed. Will’s eyes travel over your face before he’s reaching down to take one of your hands in his. “Will,” You can’t help that you’re giggling a little as you let him pull you along - you’re not even sure where. You just know that as the two of you pass Dennis, the man refuses to look at either one of you. Will pulls you into one of the empty bathrooms. He shuts the door behind the two of you before he presses you up against it. “What has gotten into you?” You breathe as Will begins to line your jaw and neck with kisses. He doesn’t answer, save for the mark he begins to suck into your neck. You groan, sliding a hand up into his hair and tugging it. “Fuck, Will,” You whine. He hums into your skin as his hands slide up under your shirt. Once Will is satisfied with the mark he’s left on your neck, he lifts his head, nudging his nose against your cheek. You turn to kiss him, wrapping your arms around his shoulders to keep him close. “Do you remember...What I said...About you being...The one...That I leave with?” You mumble between kisses. Will hums in affirmation. “Can we do that sooner than later?” You ask, leaning away to get a good look at him. Will grins, ducks his head and murmurs, “Whatever you want, sweetheart,” Before leaning in for another kiss.

#Will Miller #william miller x reader #william miller imagine #will miller imagine #William Miller x You #prompts #requests #asks

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artxyra · 4 years

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I have another request. Mari and Damian go to the same school. Suddenly a gas enters the school. Girls become a cat for 3 days. Boys are tasked with taking care of the cats and Damian gets Mari. 1st day they bond. (He calls her Angel) 2nd day she makes a robin costume (her logo has angel wings) and secretly goes with Robin on patrol. He gets attacked, she saves him, they love her. 3rd day when fam is out she makes Damian a cake. She turns to normal they become really close. Btw I love your work!

Note: I literally had nothing planned going into this, but once I started writing the story took in the direction that I never had intended but I do like.

Damian Wayne was already on edge that day. He came to the school with an aura that was dark than the usual don’t mess with me. One dared to go near him, though a series of classmates wanted the school’s sunshine to ease the mess, she was nowhere in sight. In fact, the school is pretty sure they will never meet seeing as she’s been here for over a couple of months and never once had she met a person named Damian.

For Damian, he was on edge because of the night before. Batman and Robin had a run-in with this mysterious new villain and that has everyone on edge. There was no record of this villain and at first, they thought it was Selina, but she was out of the states and no one has heard from her in a while. The only clue they have is that the villain was also enthralled by cats.

So, when a mysterious yellow gas, Damian’s mood went beyond anyone could imagine. The gas spreads through the windows and into the classroom. Panic rose as the gas begins to cover only the females of the school. One-by-one they all shrink to an unbelievable size. Cat’s meow echoes from the gas and as the males swipe away the lingering gas remnants, they are faced with an unbelievable sight.

In the placements of every female in the room are cats wearing the school’s infamous uniform that apparently also shrinks to fit the cat’s bodies. A series of meows to hissing breaks the shock faces of the males.

Immediately, the school heads started to investigate. Using the cats as a base they found out that the girls could stay in this form for at least three days, if not more. After contacting the proper guardians/parents, it came down to those who couldn’t be able to return home due to strict reasons, such as living alone, or strict landlord rules about pets. Those that couldn’t go to their families were immediately assigned a caretaker regardless of status.

Damian at first was conflicted. Yes, he loves animals, but at the same time, there was a risk, his family’s secret. What happens if whoever he gets remembers their time as a cat? Was it that big of a risk? The appropriate answer is yes, but the animal lover in him said no.

“Here you, Marinette, meet your temporary caretaker.” The attendance persons say to the cat dressed in a pink vet with blue trim and the school’s logo on the pouch. He hands the cat version of Marinette to Damian, who was unsure of how to hold her. It’s not this cat is a normal cat, like Alfred.

Marinette squirms in Damian’s arms, he quickly readjusts her before opting to set her down. She flicks her tail across his legs and nods her head. Damian sighs, but not before the attendance person gives him a reassuring smile.

‘C’mon Marionette.” He grumbles walking towards the entrance of the school. Examining his peers, he can tell that some are way too happy about this predicament while others are completely nervous. Marinette, once again, meows gaining Damian’s attention. He looks down to see her playing with his pant legs. Unsure what she means, he picks her up and cradles her to his chest.

“Young Master,” He hears Alfred greets to him. Turning to give the family’s butler attention he tightens his hold on Marinette, who hisses in response. “The school has informed us of our newest visitor, I take it that you have a plan against your brothers.” The look on Damian’s usually stoic face says it all.

Upon entering the Wayne manor, Damian is grateful that his older brothers, aside from Tim, live outside of the manor. He knows that he couldn’t handle the constant amount of teasing that would ensure once word got out.

“Alfred tells me we have a visitor.” Damian sets Marinette down so that he could face his father. Bruce eyes the dark-haired cat before turning his attention back to his son. “Are you sure that is a good idea?”

Damian huffs, absently petting Marinette’s fur. “Of course, it is father. Why wouldn’t I bring her home? She needed a place to stay and after a long hard thought I decided that this was the best fit.”

Bruce curtly nods. “Just keep her away from the family’s hangout.” Damian acceptingly nods.

“C’mon Marionette, I’ll show you where you’ll be staying at. Be warned, that you are not the only cat here. Alfred can be very territorial.” Damian gestures for Marinette to follow. She meows and tots over to Damian.

They walk in silence. Damian was unsure what to say to a person he barely knows, and Marinette just eyes her surroundings.

That night, Damian went out as Robin once he triples checked that Marinette was sleep, but when he came back, he was greeted with Marinette yowling at him to go to sleep. He glares at the female cat as he swears, he heard Alfred the cat laughing at her commands.

The first day with cat Marinette was eventful. Damian was woken up by the lack of air as Alfred the cat was resting on his head. Once he had pried the black and white cat off of him, he is then greeted by Marinette’s sass. She flicks her tail and pries open the door before disappearing down the halls. Damian calls out to her, but it fades with the meowing from Alfred.

Once he made it downstairs, he sees Marinette sitting outside of the kitchen, she is eyeing the sleep-deprived nature of Timothy Drake. Tim was only seconds away from passing out with the steaming cup of coffee in hand.

Marinette jumps onto the table before anyone could scold her and push against Tim’s hand. He absently pets her thinking that it was probably Alfred annoying him. Marinette takes this moment to use her paws to push the coffee mug away from Tim. She looks around the room before jumping off the table and trots over to a cabinet.

Alfred, the human, appears behind Damian humming, he is intrigued. “It seems that Miss Marinette is on a mission. What would you like for breakfast young master?”

Damian murmurs his answer before he is quick at awe with how Marinette was mixing ingredients into a cup. With her nose, she nudges the cup over to Alfred, who picks up but not without petting her head. Handing the newly tainted cup to Tim, they wait patiently with baited breaths. Tim takes a long sip. Light snores then escape his lips as his head fits the table.

Damian stares at Marinette amazed. She lets out a meow and walks over to Damian, who picks her up and exits the kitchen area. Taking a seat on the couch, he begins to play with Marinette. Tapping her paws as she swats at him. Alfred, the human, quickly snags a couple of photos before proceeding with breakfast.

“How did you do that? Getting Drake to sleep?” Damian mentally slaps himself the moment the words left his lips. Marinette meows in response and snuggles closer to Wayne heir. “Maybe you’re not so bad as they say, Marionette.”

Marinette hisses at the male, her eyes becoming slits as she playful claws at him. Damian winces upon the nails attaching to his skin.

“Sorry, Angel.” He freezes in his spot. Never once had a nickname came out so capturing. Sure, he had called people by their last names, rarely their first, but nothing as meaningful as Angel.

He didn’t know how long he kept Marinette in his arms reading a book; however, what he does know it lasted enough time for Alfred to finish breakfast and call everybody down. Marinette’s purrs quickly turn into yowl as she felt her body move from its comfortable state.

Damian pats her head before entering the kitchen.

“Damian!” Bruce shouted upon exiting the dining room. In front of him is Marinette chasing Alfred the cat at high speed. She was jumping and dodging as Alfred was sliding and jumping past the future. Damian had to hold in his laugh when he saw the two cats running amuck. He could hear Marinette’s hissing, which made him wonder what Alfred did to upset the poor cat girl.

“An—Marionette,” He calls out ignoring his father’s Bruce Wayne version of the bat glare. Marinette meows, coming to a stop before jumping into Damian’s arms. She purrs as he slides his hand down her fur.

“Damian, please keep your friends under control.” Bruce then disappears down the hall probably to one of the many secret entrances to the cave. Damian doesn’t speak until he knows he is alone.

“Angel, what did Alfred do to you?” He asks the cat in his arms. Marinette looks to him and meows. “You want to do outside?” Unsure what she wanted, but the head gesture towards the window stated otherwise.

Marinette purrs in delight the moment her paws touch the ground outside the manor. Damian stares at her, curious as to what she’ll do. This was supposed to be the sunshine of their school anyway. Marinette trots off over to a bed of flowers. She sniffs them before letting out a sneeze. Damian holds in his breath, hoping that it would keep him from smiling or awing over the adorable sneeze. Maybe it was the fact that she’s a cat that making him feel this way?

Together they stay outside the manor until it was near lunchtime. Marinette teases him with her tail every chance she got meanwhile Damian was holding in the urge to yell or awe at her. It was becoming a dance of emotions.

“Young Master, your father is in need of your help.” Alfred calls out to him. Damian knowing what that meant, hands Marinette over to Alfred] before dashing off to become Robin. “He’ll be back Miss Dupain-Cheng would you like something to eat?” Marinette nods as Alfred hums his way to the kitchen.

Still sleeping in the same chair as earlier was Tim and right beside him with claws out is Alfred, the cat with a devious look in his eyes. Marinette squirms in Alfred’s, the human, arms. Tim moves just enough to avoid the incoming claw. Marinette hisses at the black and white cat, waking up Tim in the process.

“Uh, how long was I out for?” Tim looks around, wiping the sleep from his eyes. “Uh, who’s the cat?”

“Master Timothy, you’ve been asleep all morning, now would you like anything to eat or join your father and brother?” Alfred asks hoping the third oldest male would choose food over crime-fighting. Tim’s stomach growls in response sealing his fate.

When Damian had returned that night after hours of crime-fighting, he was greeted with the sight of Marinette sleeping on his bed with Alfred, the cat, on the opposite side. Little did he know was that Marinette had wondered around the manor as Alfred, the human, began cleaning.

That night Damian swears he heard voices as he slept.

“Alfred, no~” It was feminine something that the unusual in the manor unless his sister or Selina came by. What follows quickly afterward is a series of meows.

Slightly awoken by the noise he darts upward; a daze looks in his eyes. In front of him are a pair of dark cat ears and long dark hair. Thinking that it was Marinette, he goes back to sleep for the night.

At the start of the second day, Damian was woken up by Marinette purring rather than Alfred smothering him.

“Morning Angel.” He greets the smaller of the two dark-haired cats. Marinette meows sliding her tail against his arm. It was then that he had noticed the change in the outfit the female cat was wearing. No longer was it her school uniform but an updated version of it with a pink ruffle skirt around her waist. Confused, Damian wasn’t sure whether he should question the new information or integrate the cat. Choosing to ignore the outfit change, he begins to get ready for the day.

Marinette sneaks out of the bedroom and down the halls.

When Damian sees Marinette later that morning, all he could do was groan at the sight before him. It had to be Dick that had entered the manor for the day. Didn’t the oldest Wayne had a job?

“Grayson, what are you doing here?” He asks glaring at the fact that Dick had Marinette in his arms.

“Baby bird, why didn’t you tell me that you had gotten a new pet. I’m sure B wasn’t too happy.” Marinette meows loudly in his arms.

“Tt, she’s a guest, for the time being, Grayson, now put An-her down. She doesn’t like to be held by strangers.” Damian was quick to catch himself saying her nickname. Dick pouts and reluctantly puts the cat down.

“She’s already better than Alfred, the cat. Which reminds me, Alfred the butler says that breakfast is done if you want any. Timmy already ate and ended up disappearing.” Dick’s reply instantly causes Marinette to run in the direction of the kitchen. Damian narrows his eyes feeling a slight sense of betrayal.

Dick turns to Damian and wraps his arm around the younger’s shoulder and laughs, “C’mon, baby bird.”

That night as Damian was getting ready for patrol, he doesn’t realize the makeshift smaller version of the Robin uniform being pulled out by the teeth of Marinette’s mouth. She tugs against the uniform and slowly puts it on. Trotting over to the mirror, she checks herself out and sneakily follows Damian to the Bat cave.

For a cave full the world’s greatest detective, them not noticing a small cat wearing a cape that has the Robin emblem with addition to having angel wings was the most face-palming feat they have ever done.

Marinette snuggles her way into a hidden compartment on Robin’s motorbike. She waits until she could feel was rumbling of the engine. The engine soon cuts off, popping her head out of the hidden compartment, she looks around. Nothing felt out of place for her. Though she could feel the pulsating effects of the magic with her.

She could still hear Damian checking out the buildings. There is nothing to report on, something she knows the feeling all to well with her time being Ladybug. Late-night patrols were her worst nightmare.

Staying put, Marinette knew she couldn’t move, not just yet. There needs to be the ultimate reason for her to reveal herself. That lasted until the growing sounds of someone grunting and punching filled her sensitive ears.

“Oh, how the little birdy is struggling against someone like little old me.” A voice says off in distance.

Turning her head, she finally sees Robin in the midst of what looks like hand-to-hand combat with this new cat-obsessed villain. She could also see that Damian was struggling to maintain the upper power over the villain.

The villain places Robin and locking hold.

Marinette jumps out of the hidden spot instantly transferring into the catgirl form. Her ears perk at the sound of grunts, she moves quickly to the fighting scene. Incepting the hold, she frees Robin who falls backward.

“It seems my magic has evolved or you’re just a magical being.” The villain murmurs but she was able to pick up.

“It was you that turned the school into cats.” Marinette accuses as she felt her emotions go into over-drive. With heighten senses she engaged in combat with the villain.

The villain taunts her as Robin struggles to readjust himself. The paralyzing effects of whatever the villain holds over him fading away. He could barely hear the sounds of his family over the earpiece as he watches in shock seeing the Angel, he had been taking care of fighting the villain that turned females into cats.

She could feel the magic he was wielding pushing against her own, telling her to revert into her cat form. Pushing against the call, Marinette holds herself firm against the incoming blows.

“Augh, I got no time for this.” The villain waves his device. Marinette hisses feeling the shrinking feeling taking over again.

With a mighty blow narrowly defeats the villain just as the magic turns her back into a cat. Licking her paw, she trots over to Robin and brush against his legs. He is too in shock to do anything.

The next thing the pair knew, Red Robin was cuffing the cat villain as Nightwing and Batman make their way over to Robin, trying to get him to speak. Robin was unsure how to answer any of the questions, he simply just gestured to Marinette.

Marinette’s eyes twinkle as Nightwing takes her into his arms gushing about how great of a cat she is; however, the same couldn’t be said for Batman.

“She saved me, father if it wasn’t for her who would have known what the Cat-caller would have done to me.” Damian finally speaks placing his foot down against his father’s better judgment. Batman tried to up the fact that she knows their family secret, but even he couldn’t deny the possibilities.

Finally patting her fur, everyone knew that she had won over the famous Batman and Bruce Wayne’s appreciation.

When Damian and Marinette had returned to the manor, he couldn’t help but be at odds with her. He didn’t know what to say, to ask even. This cat had saved him, knows his family's biggest secret, and could fight. This was not something he normally deals with within a single day. He watches her as she slept in her little area, wondering what to say to her when she becomes human once again.

Damian falls asleep never noticing the sincere look one eye open of Marinette.

Today was supposed to be the last day for all the females in their school to be human. The girls were excused from the classes however the males were not. It was Tim that left the manor first, then it was Damian and Bruce followed not long after. Alfred, the human, needed to run some errands living the animals alone in the manor.

Marinette could feel the magic effects of the gas waning off. She chased Alfred, the cat, around the manor because he ended disrupting her relaxing time only to be followed by Titus soon after. She had barely spent any time with the other animals over the course of the two days.

Waking up after a quick catnap, Marinette began to realize that she was no longer in her cat form, but in her catgirl form instead. Her ears perk up with an idea. Maybe she should Damian a thank you cake for everything he has done for her. Yup, that is exactly what she is going to do.

Calling for the animals to follow her, she makes her way into the kitchen. Quickly locating the ingredients, she immediately got to work but not before believing she is on a cooking show giving instructions to her audience, the animals.

They all watch Marinette, intrigued by what she’ll make. Titus had nudged her hand a few times reminding her that Damian was a vegetarian allowing her to make the changes quickly before mixing them together.

As the cake baked in the oven, she began mixing a vanilla vegan frosting, a recipe she remembers her parents making when the customer was strictly a vegan. The buttercream came out nice and silky. It wasn’t long before the cake was done and put in the chiller for cooling. Marinette knew that she only made hours before anyone would return to the manor. Hopefully, by then she would have fully reverted to a human.

The cake was done and fully decorated before Alfred had returned with Damian behind him. Marinette, now fully human, smiles at the two with a joy that could defeat all darkness.

“I made you a cake as thanks for handling me as a cat. You didn’t have to, but you did.” Marinette place a quick peck on the youngest Wayne’s cheek before cutting him a slice.

“Uh...” Damian was speechless. Little did he know was that Alfred was filming the encounter with a knowing smirk. Maybe this would be the person that thaw out the ice prince’s cold heart.

“Don’t it’s vegetarian safe, you can thank Titus for reminding me and thank Alfred, the cat, for not attempting to sabotage it while I was baking,” Marinette adds when she saw the look in Damian’s eyes and the way his body language spoke upon being handed the slice of cake.

Together, against all odds, they sat in silence eating their own slice of cake. Alfred even takes one and appraises the young woman about her craftwork. She then explains that her parents owned a bakery growing up and that she’s been baking ever since she could remember.

Properly meet the rest was of the Wayne family was at dinner, when Damian begged her to stay the night to which she turned down on the basis that she needed a change of clothes and that she should go, check out her dorm apartment and make sure everything was okay.

In the weeks that follow, everyone at their school was in shock seeing the ice prince and sunshine incarnated hanging out with one another. No was surprised when the two began dating a couple of months after the cat situation. They were a match made in heaven.

Tag List: *View my Tagging System guidelines for how to to be properly tagged or removed.

#daminette #maribat #damimari #cat marinette #ml x dc #mlb x dc #marinette x damian

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anothertimdrakestan · 4 years

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Set In Stone - Choose Your Own Love Story Prologue (Tim Drake or Bart Allen x Reader)

Words: 2k

~ AH!!! Welcome to my newest multi chapter fic! Except there’s a twist! It’s up to you dear reader. I’ll be writing two different stories about each path, like a choose your own adventure, except you choose how your love story progresses to the eventual end! There will be a private masterlist specifically for this series where you can choose the way your personal love story unfolds. Just know that the future is never cemented, meaning you can always go back and try again! Think of this as the prologue to the actual event, but your first decision drops tomorrow, meet Bart or dig deeper into Tim? Hope you enjoy! ~

Seeing teenage heroes was really something else. They were your age, and they weren’t grumpy and old like the Justice League. “Okay well this is fun and all but I wanna hang with people my age!” you groaned following J'onn down the never ending corridors of the Watchtower. “You know your powers are not fit for the type of missions the Young Justice team attempt, you are arguably weaker than the regular human” he reminded you. That was rude. “Am not! I’m an asset! I can’t get hit cuz I know where they’re gonna swing so who cares if I have a mental breakdown every once and while!” J'onn knew you weren’t wrong, you taking a hit was a rare occurrence, but the Justice League refused to risk you even taking one hit, you’d protected thousands by scanning the infinite number of different possible futures.

“Everything you need is here” you replied “I knew you were gonna say that, like I literally knew it” you also knew you had to prod J'onn just for about two more minutes until you met Nightwing. “Oh my god Nightwing fancy seeing you here!” you grinned at J'onn who now understood your goal. “Hello, I didn’t know the YJ team had a new member?” Dick glanced at J'onn who shrugged. “Do not blame me Nightwing, Flash found her and the team agreed she stays with us” you rolled your eyes before starting with Dick Grayson, but he didn’t know you knew that yet.

“Hi! Y/N, no last name. Flash found me when he ran into the future and I was totally feeling the mode because I got these powers [ you tapped your head as Dick smirked ] and I can like see different parts of future when I’m super focussed, so like short time is kinda easy but far away and hard and I don’t remember anything from my past. I’m like a future only kinda girl.” you sighed, hoping you’d made sense. Dick’s eyes lit up. “So you don’t have a family, and they’re just keeping you here?” you nodded, crossing your arms to try to look more emotionally secure.

“Dibs” and something sparked in your head, this was a new future. It hurt. You sunk to the ground clutching your head as a new future bounced around your consciousness. Trying to shake out of it you realized you’d been carried to a med bay, Dick and J'onn stood above you looking concerned. Pushing them off you as you got up you explained “sometimes people make big decisions that change the future, I’m guessing you calling ‘dibs’ on me changed something, but I’m a little too tired to check if that’s okay, also what does dibs even mean?” and Dick smiled, “you’ll have to come find out!” and against J'onn’s protests he pulled you towards the Zeta Tubes.

Flash zipped in front of you and Dick. “No.” and Dick waved him off. “I’m taking her to the manor, get her to meet the family maybe I’ll get a sister if Bruce is in a mood” he waggled an eyebrow at Flash who was focussed now on you knowing he couldn’t get in Dick’s way. “I know you don’t know him yet but if Jason Todd asks you to do anything that seems dangerous say no. And watch out for Damian’s swords. I guess just look for Tim Drake, he’s a good one” and he patted you on the shoulder. “Go feel the mode kid” and you face palmed. “Flash you mean crash the mode oh god don’t even try to be cool” you groaned. “You totally have to meet Bart” Dick mumbled before he cleared you for zeta tube access.

You appeared in what can only be described as a man cave. There was a giant computer where a tiny boy sat covered in leather typing. There was a teenager looking about your age punching dummies while another boy was shooting literally guns at the dummies. “Welcome to the batcave!” Dick announced loud enough for the three boys heads to turn. The smallest boy stopped typing and stalked over to you. “A little young for you Grayson, stolen her from the baby justice team?” you knew this was Damian Wayne, and you couldn’t contain yourself.

“OH MY GOD BATMAN HI!” you screeched pulling him into your chest. “You’re totally crash like so cool but you’re so little right now! Last time I saw you, you were like super tall but you totally got moded or something - oh I wasn’t supposed to say that don’t worry!” Dick nudged you “this is Robin, Batman, Bruce Wayne, is in his office” and you slapped a hand over your mouth. “Right, no spoilers” and Damian stood still, processing his own future. “Moving on, Tim and Jason!” the two older boys had come down to get a closer look.

“Hood, Drake, this is totally cool!” you exclaimed, shaking their hands. “Why is he Red Hood and I’m Drake? Not Red Robin?” Tim looked puzzled. Best not ruin his life like that, this was one of the few things you planned on changing. “Because I know you’re Tim Drake! So does the world, Drake is a good LAST NAME right? Red Robin is totally crash for a hero name!” and Tim looked a little confused, but brushed it off. “What the demon said, she new?” and you shook your head, explaining your story again.

“20 bucks says adoption papers” “50 says she gets a room” “75 on a new animal persona” the boys started screaming bets as soon as they heard the “family trauma emotional instability” part. “Why can’t she be in Young Justice? Or the Outsiders? She’s still a teenager” Tim looked confused. “I dunno man, she’s been with the JL for a while because she’s apparently delicate which is bullshit” Dick explained and you strongly agreed. “None of you could even land a hit on me” you puffed out your chest. “Care to defend that claim?” Damian unsheathed a sword. “No! J'onn sai-” you cut Dick off. “Absolutely ”.

Now you were dodging and ducking Damian’s advances. You’d swung a couple punches but it means undoing some focus which allows Damian to get his own shots in, so you mostly stayed on defense, letting him get frustrated and tired. “I think you’ll get better with practice baby Batman” you teased him. Next was Jason, bullets were hard to avoid because you didn’t have lightning fast reflexes, although that would be nice. But Jason wasn’t as calculated as Damian so you could play a little dirtier. Knocking his guns out of his hands you let up, “this is boring I’m done” you raised from the ground where you and Jason had tumbled down on.

“So you really have powers. Your moves are all the most probable choice mathematically, you can’t be running the numbers in your head that quick!” Tim was toying with a tablet, shocked at your prediction abilities. “That’s right Boy Wonder, that was fun but I’m feeling kinda diz-” and then you realized you’d overworked yourself a little bit, and it all faded to black.

You woke up to fully aged Batman. “Oh god no I’m back. How am I back! Damian you were just a kid like ten minutes ago! How long have I been out?” you began to throw blankets off yourself, blankets? You were in a bed in someone’s room. “Calm down, Y/N, Y/N! It’s okay!” and the Older-Damian just enveloped you in a hug. You couldn’t remember the last hug you’d had. Literally couldn’t remember. And it was a welcomed comfort. Pulling away you got a closer look, and it wasn’t Damian Wayne, but Bruce.

“Bruce right? Current Batman?” you whispered, trying to wrap your mind around what had just happened. “That’s me, I see you’ve met my son, at multiple ages too” his eyes were smiling but his mouth wasn’t, it showed concern. “Yes, I did, I’m sorry for being a nuisance, it’s a pleasure to meet you but clearly I’m a bit moded so I should head back to the tower” you explain beginning to get up. “Actually that’s something I wanted to talk to you about, if you feel alright? [ you nodded, your powers were still a little too weak to peek ahead at what he was going to say ] Well, as you can see, I’ve got a couple of children, and you haven’t even met all of them. And I take them under my protection and I train them, and it seems to me you want training. Now you’re not ready for field work but you can start with me and my team, and maybe do a couple visits with the Young Justice team when Tim heads over. I think I can help you, and give you a family, would that be something you want?”

A family, you had one of those. And you knew the word brought you warmth, that had to be a good thing. “I think I’d like that a lot, but I’m kinda already with the Justice League ya know? Their personal magic 8 ball.” and Bruce shook his head. “They won’t be a problem for me, you’ll fit right in with my family” and you felt a smile spread over your face. “Then it’s a deal!” and you stuck out a hand, Bruce clasped it, pulling you in for another hug.

“We’ll talk later about what this means logistically, but there’s someone really excited you’re here.” and Tim Drake came bursting through the door, holding cookies. “Welcome to the team Y/N! You don’t know Alfred yet but he made these! I’m so glad you’re here!” he was beaming with excitement. And blushing? “Hi Tim, I’m glad to be here!” you chirped. Bruce mumbled something about paperwork and left the room as Tim continued. “This is totally cool, if you want I can call Bart I think he’d totally want to meet you! Or, you and I could hangout just the two of us!” there was that blush again. “Yeah! Can I just sit and think for a minute before I catch up with you?” this was a decision you wanted to read into, it felt important.

Tim left, and you sat back into the plush bed, diving into the future. And it was something you hadn’t seen you. There were two futures, still fuzzy from the infinite decisions to be made securing the future, but it was clear enough to see that it was your wedding day. Down one path you saw a beautiful wedding with someone you haven’t met yet, and you looked beyond happy. You heard yourself whisper “if only Tim were here to see this” wiping a tear away in the arms of your lover. Recoiling back you knew this future wouldn’t do, not at Tim’s expense. So you went towards the other. Same set up, but this time it was Tim that you were marrying, but the same tear slid down your cheek “if only Bart could be here” you recognized the name. Bart, the guy you’re supposed to be meeting.

And you were stuck in the middle no matter what. Like yin and yang you couldn’t find a future where you didn’t end up in the arms of one at the other’s grave. Or worse, in the futures where you tried to pick them over yourself both lost their lives saving you. So how you do pick? Who gets to be your future and who has to perish to secure it?

“Y/N you ready yet?” Tim called from down stairs. It was years out, but you knew every decision you made from now on was one step closer to the loss of a hero. And there was nothing you could do about it.

First Decision:

Get To Know Tim Drake First

Meet Bart Allen

~ I really hope you’re excited to make your own fic! The masterlist with the choices goes up with the actual start tomorrow! I can’t wait!!! ~

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joon-ipersgirl · 3 years

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O5 - “airplane pt. 2″

genre: strangers to lovers!au, angst, fluff

pairing: jimin x reader (f)

summary: they say home is where the heart is. you’re convinced yours was taken the day your father died. until you meet jimin.

you believe in love but after watching men cycle through your mother’s arms, rocky relations with ex-boyfriends, and broken friendships, you no longer see it in your future. so much so, you never settle in one place long enough to call it home, choosing a job where you’re always on the go and on your own.

on a chance encounter on a flight from new york city to bali, indonesia, you meet. flustered by jimin’s flirty advances but understanding and good-natured tendencies, you start to fall. what starts off as a work-trip soon blossoms into a budding romance, but will jimin’s secret destroy the relationship before it’s had the chance to truly begin?

word count: 5.4k

warnings: cursing, mentions of anxiety, talks of heartbreak

a/n: i thought i should post this while i had the motivation lol. this has a lot of background for their past relationships with a lil twist so i hope you enjoy it. this is the last part i have completed so updates for this story might be a while but winter break is coming up so i should have more time. i just really want to do the next part justice you know? anywhoo. as always, thank you vi for reading this beforehand and pls leave any comments and thoughts in an ask. i’m curious to the reactions of jimin’s relationship history. enjoy everyone and think you for reading!

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There were no thoughts of Tiago when you woke up that morning. Your cheek was pressed against Jimin’s back as your arm was draped over his upper body and your leg slung over his lower back. His breathing was deep and even as he slept peacefully beside you. You realized you’d technically only taken a nap as no sunlight peeked under the curtain, only the artificial lights from the street signs gently illuminating the room.

The events of last night came rushing back to you and you pulled away from Jimin, surprised at just how bold you’d become.You’d truly felt comfortable enough to share a deep part of your life story with a man that you’d known for two days. A man that you had a crush on. A man that had almost kissed you in the middle of a dive bar in the middle of Hong Kong. Jimin was encroaching on dangerous territory.

A ping! came through on your phone which you realized was across the room with the rest of your things. You groaned at the thought of having to leave the comfortable confines of the bed. Another loud ping! dragged you from the warmth of the sheets, choosing to crawl over Jimin’s legs instead of his lap, remembering the previous morning’s antics. Checking your phone, you saw three unread messages from Michael.

Michael: Good afternoon Y/N! Have you any word on when you’ll arrive in Bali? [1:09]

Michael: So I haven’t received a call or text from you. I assume everything is fine, or Park Jimin has killed you. I hope it’s the former [4:17]

Michael: So clearly he’s killed you. I’ll be sending his name and social security number off to the authorities [4:19]

You snorted at Michael’s messages as you inched your way back into your spot though Jimin had claimed the majority of your space in his sleep. He didn’t stir as you slipped under the covers, but rested his head against your chest as you laid on your back; you didn’t have the heart to move him as you responded to Michael.

You don’t have his social security number Michael. I’m fine. We just had a long night. And our flight is leaving some time this afternoon. I’ll get the details from Jimin and send them to you

[4:22]

Michael: You don’t know that. And a long night? Y/N, don’t tell me you were in the arms of this man when you’ve only known him for at most 2 days [4:24]

So what if I was? You’ve definitely done worse

[4:25]

Michael: You’re right. But this is one of the areas where I don’t lead by example. Please tell me you used protection at least [4:26]

Gross, Michael. Nothing happened. We just went to the museum (I saw Garland Sans) and then went for dinner and some drinks

[4:27]

Michael: A museum, dinner, AND drinks? In ONE night? Sounds like a date. A classy one at that since you said there was no fucking [4:29]

Michael: AND YOU SAW GARLAND SANS WITHOUT ME?! WITH HIM?! HOW DARE YOU! [4:30]

You’re honestly so crude. There was no fucking. It was just a casual hangout, nothing crazy. Also, I didn’t know his work was going to be there. I don’t think it’ll be the same exhibit in New York so we’re fine

[4:33]

Michael: A casual hangout where you forget to text me back? I beg to differ. Spill [4:34]

You chewed on your lip as you stared at Michael’s message. It wasn’t that you didn’t want to tell him what happened; Michael was more than just a manager, he was also like a best friend. The problem was you didn’t really know how to describe last night. You barely understood what had transpired yourself. Throwing caution to the wind, you laid out all the details of the previous night.

Michael: … [4:53]

Michael: Y/N, this man did NOT wine and dine you and you left him hanging out to dry! Have I taught you nothing? [4:54]

Michael: I just - I cannot believe you got lucky like this. Well, not that kind of lucky. Either way, he didn’t actually kiss you so maybe he deserved that. An art curator at that. And he lives in NYC? You really are living in the moment. I’m so happy to hear after that S.O.B. [4:55]

Michael: Wait, does this mean you’re in bed together now?! [4:55]

It wasn’t that type of night! Like you said, I’ve known him for TWO DAYS. We can’t just have sex. And

I guess so; Tiago hasn’t been on my mind as much lately. Yes, Michael. We’re currently still in bed. Jimin’s sleeping

[4:58]

Michael: It’s the 21st century, Y/N. Live a little. You’re a modern-day woman. It’s been a year and a half love, I would hope he wasn’t. Not when you have a man that sounds like he’s sex on legs wrapped around your finger. [5:01]

Michael: Please send a pic. Thanks! [5:02]

He is not wrapped around my finger! And I’m definitely not just going to send you a picture of him sleeping! That’s weird!

[5:05]

Michael: Booo! This would be for the authorities Y/N. Think about your safety [5:07]

I am. So safe from you and your antics when I’m on the other side of the world. I’m going to shower, I’ll text you later

[5:09]

Michael: Oh you’re a dirty girl! Ask Jimin to join you. Remember to text me the flight details [5:12]

You chuckled at Michael’s attempt to make you uncomfortable. There was no way in hell you would do that. Jimin wasn’t wrong when he said you could barely look at him with clothes on and you blushed as the increasingly inappropriate thoughts tried to break through the barrier of unconsciousness and consciousness. You felt Jimin tug you closer as you tried to slip out of his grip again.

“Where are you going?” he mumbled, still half asleep.

“To go take a shower,” you said while trying to push him off you.

“No,” he whined. “Don’t leave me.” He snuggled closer and you laughed.

“Let go, Jimin. I smell gross; I’m basically leaking alcohol from my pores at this point.”

“I don’t care. You’re warm and I want to sleep more.”

“You can still sleep while I go and shower.” You pinched his side and he jerked away from you. His glare was comical as he struggled to locate you with sleep-heavy eyes. “So you’re ticklish? Good to know.”

“You’re mean,” he pouted as he rolled over onto his stomach after you’d successfully vacated the bed. “And it’s early as fuck. Wake me up when it’s a reasonable hour to be a human being.”

“You don’t even know what time it is,” you mumbled as you closed the door on any reply Jimin could make.

You welcomed the sting of the hot water against your shoulders, soothing the knots in the back of your neck. Letting the water run through your hair, you smoothed it out of your face. Massaging your scalp was therapeutic nowadays, especially since it was so much shorter. You hadn’t grown it out in a year and a half, now enjoying the short dry time and the new woman you were; Tiago would have hated it. You sighed as he resurfaced and you washed him away again with the simple smelling body wash. By the time you were dressed in your last clean emergency clothing, your hair was already drying.

The smell of coffee welcomed you as you sat down to add the final touches to your Saipan video. It wasn’t hard to get lost in editing, your brain working overtime to adjust the exposure of the film, fade out the titles, and sync up the music. You relished the peacefulness of the early morning quiet, your life seeming to return to its normal rhythm even if just for a few moments. Your moleskine journal with edited itinerary notes sat next to the steaming second cup of black coffee just as the breakfast rush started to roll in and along with them an extremely flustered Jimin.

“Y/N!” he crashed into the seat opposite you. “I thought you left!” His backpack sat beside yours on the floor as you stared at him confused.

“Where could I have possibly gone, Jimin?”

“I don’t know. You weren’t there when I woke up and neither was your stuff. I thought I overstepped last night and made you uncomfortable,” he said. Droplets of water fell from his hair and onto his white t-shirt. Your face softened.

“I needed some coffee. And to get some work done. You really thought I would have left you?” you asked curiously.

He shrugged and pushed his hand through his damp hair. “What reason would you have to stay?”

You opened your mouth and closed it. Jimin was right. You didn’t have to stay. It was possible that you could have just gone to the airport, given them your name, and be set - though that would have made for an awkward conversation whenever Jimin arrived as your seats were next to one another. You watched him head over to grab some food, greeting Sonia in passing, as he piled his plate high. He returned shortly after with Sonia and handed you a plate of fruit.

“She says you’ve been down here for hours and haven’t touched a thing; you need to eat. And she wanted to know if you enjoyed yesterday.” Sonia stood at the end of the table expectantly.

“It was really great. The museum was incredible. I really can’t thank you enough. And Jimin was a great tour guide. Did she see the pictures?” Jimin shook his head, his mouth stuffed with food as usual, before he thumbed the polaroids out of his wallet. Sonia cooed and the two of them chatted again, a slight blush overtaking the tips of Jimin’s ears.

“She said you look really beautiful and she’s happy you enjoyed yourself so much.” You thanked her as you chewed on a grape, wondering what else Jimin had left out of his translation. Too much was said for it to be condensed into a two-part sentence.

“What time is our flight leaving, Jimin? Michael wants me to send him the details.”

“So flight leaves at 1:40 pm and we board at 1:10 ish -“

“Holy fuck Jimin!” You slammed your laptop shut. “It’s 12:17! We have to go. Now. Fuck!” You shoved your journal into your backpack, the chair almost tipping back as you shot up from your seat. It took a few seconds for Jimin to realize just how far away from the airport you were before he too was out of his chair and shoving the last piece of pastry into his mouth. Sonia looked alarmed as you tried to return your dirty dishes until Jimin explained and she grabbed the plates out of your hands and yelled for William.

You bounced your leg as you watched William weave through the midday traffic. The leather of the seat bench stuck to the underside of your thighs. Lunch hour traffic in Hong Kong was just as bad as in New York and you willed yourself to remain calm as you cruised down the highway. The wind roared through the open windows and whipped your hair around your face. It was torture leaving the fate of your on-time arrival in the hands of a man you had literally met yesterday in a pickup truck that you were sure was a few years older than you. You envied Jimin’s ability to look peacefully out of the window at the bustling city while the coil of nerves bundled tight in your belly rolling like the waves of the deep sea.

Michael had not texted you back and you worried that somehow your phone service had been cut off again. An irrational thought because it was nearing 1 am in New York, but your brain had seemed to have left rationale back with Sonia. The comfort that your early morning wake up had given you in addition to the previous night’s adventures had been ripped away from you. It was no longer only you and Jimin in the back seat; anxiety had squeezed in beside you. Tears pricked your eyes in frustration as you prayed you wouldn’t have another delay in finally getting to Bali.

“Don’t worry, Shutterfly. We’re going to make it. You’re not missing this flight. I promise,” Jimin said to you as William followed the signs for the departure terminal. You could barely offer him a smile as the looming structure that was Hong Kong International Airport grew closer.

William pulled his truck over to the sidewalk between a Kia and a Buick, the vehicle looking extremely ancient compared to the other two. “Have a safe flight. And Sonia expects to see you both again soon okay?” William declared. Jimin hopped down and turned to help you out of the truck.

“We’ll do our best,” Jimin muttered, glancing at you. “Thank you for everything, William. I’ll let you know when we land.”

“Thank you, William. It really meant a lot, you taking me in and stuff,” you added and he gave your shoulder a squeeze through the open window as Jimin shut the door.

“You two should hurry. Go,” he shooed you towards the terminal doors. Jimin said goodbye once more and then was pulling you through the automatic doors.

The two of you breezed through the other passengers checking their luggage as you used the machine kiosks bypassing any potential cheery airline workers. Jimin trailed behind you as you zipped through the slow-moving passengers, your eyes focused on the glass doors leading towards the security checkpoint.

“Hey! Slow down, Shutterfly. We’re going to make it, even if we have to run,” Jimin said as he picked up his pace to catch up with you. You did not want to have to run. You had never run for a flight in your entire life and you did not want to start now. You bounced from side to side as you moved painstakingly slow towards the immigration officer perched on her high chair. It was already 1 pm, but no one else seemed concerned, probably actually on time for their flight. You rolled your shoulders, trying to loosen the tension nestled between them.

“It’s okay, Y/N. It’s okay.” Jimin slipped his hand under your hair, his thumb rubbing gentle circles between the base of your neck and shoulders. You sighed and removed his hand, turning to face him.

“It’s not okay, Jimin. I don’t even know if they have my bag,” you huffed. You stepped forward to hand your passport and boarding pass to the officer.

“I’m sure they do, darling. As long as you have your -”

“I remember what you said about the tag, Jimin. That doesn’t change the fact that I could land in Bali without my bag. I don’t even have enough time to ask someone about it,” you snapped while placing your camera bags into the grey bins, your shoes following after. Jimin said nothing further as he emptied his own backpack, the book he had been reading more dog-eared than when you first saw it along with a leatherbound book.

Just as you were passing through the body scanner, an announcement blared through the terminal. “This is the last boarding call for passengers Park Jimin and Y/N Y/LN on flight 7860 with services to Bali, Indonesia at Gate C9. Again, would passengers Park Jimin and Y/N Y/L/N please report to Gate C9 for flight 7860 to Bali, Indonesia? Thank you.”

“Shit,” you exclaimed, shoving your hands through your hair as another TSA officer looked over your scan. “Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!”

“Alright, you’re good.” You didn’t wait for the last word to spill from his mouth before you were back in front of the conveyor belt waiting for your stuff to pass through its own scanner. Quickly and as carefully as you could, you zipped your cameras back up and tucked them into your backpack. Your hands were shaking.

“Don’t worry, Y/N! I got you!” Jimin called out as he moved around you. He was already packed up and taking off by the time you’d secured your things. You stared in disbelief as you watched him run through the departure terminal, not caring how many people stared at him. It looked like you would be doing the same.

You chased after him, clutching your passport and phone in your hand, chest heaving as you watched Jimin’s head disappear further into the crowd. Fuck, he was fast. You dodged the small children that waddled along with their parents and the elderly couples that squinted up at the screens to find their correct gates. Your legs burned as you pushed through the pain, the hallways of the airport being much longer than you remembered. You couldn’t afford to miss this flight.

Rounding the corner to gate C9, the seats were empty. The rest of the passengers had already boarded the plane. A few of the airline employees milled around getting ready to close the gate. One was arguing with Jimin who refused to walk through the doors so they couldn’t close it.

“Look! There she is. I told you!” Jimin was standing in the doorway leading down the aircraft gangway, blocking the airline employees from closing the door. They looked highly irritated.

“Miss Y/L/N?”

“Yes, that’s me. I’m so sorry!” you apologized while handing over your boarding pass for it to be scanned. Your face felt hot from all the attention but you pushed it down. There was nothing else to worry about.

“Have a safe flight,” the employee mumbled as he handed you back the pass. You smiled, relieved.

Jimin grinned at you as he jogged towards the plane, his hair bouncing with every step. “I told you we wouldn’t miss the flight, Shutterfly.”

Ignoring all the nasty looks you received as you walked down the aisle of the plane, you and Jimin flopped down into your respective seats, tired from your sprint to the gate. The usual airplane routine started up as the plane left the gate and you relaxed in your seat as you watched the tarmac roll by through the window. Running was not your forte and you wondered if you should have considered Michael’s offer to be his plus one at Planet Fitness more seriously. You could feel the sweat bead around your hairline. A shower would be great once you reached your accommodations. You sat up abruptly.

“Fuck,” you whispered, grabbing your phone.

“What’s wrong?” Jimin asked, fastening his seatbelt.

Scrolling through your numerous email notifications, you saw the one you were praying wouldn’t be there. Airbnb reservation canceled in the subject line. Fuck.

“Ma’am, could you please turn off your cell phone or switch it to airplane mode? The plane is getting ready for departure,” a stewardess chided you. You nodded and tucked it back into your pocket, dazed. In 5 hours and 5 minutes, you would be landing in Ngurah Rai International Airport with nowhere to stay for 9 days. Shit.

“You’re chewing your lip again.”

“Huh?” You looked over at Jimin who was still reading The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, his body feigning disinterest but you knew he was paying attention to you.

“You were chewing your lip. It’s your tell-tale sign that something’s wrong,” he replied as he turned the page. You opened your mouth to protest but closed it quickly. He was right.

“How did you know though?” you asked, tucking your hair behind your ear, now extremely conscious that he had been observing you.

“What are you worrying about? Your project? Y/N, it’s going to be amazing. This is what you love doing, right? You can do it,” Jimin encouraged, bookmarking his page and looking at you.

“I don’t know, Jimin. A romantic getaway? That displays passion and love? Those are things I haven’t felt in a very long time,” you noted. The memories of Tiago swirled at the corners of youe mind and you sighed in frustration that you thought about him again.

“Bullshit,” he said. Jimin tucked his book into the seatback pocket in front of him. “Love doesn’t have to only be romantic, Y/N. There are so many incredible forms of love out there. The love people have for their families, for their jobs, for their - I don’t know - neighbors they only see on Sundays because they do laundry at the same time. We love just because. There really doesn’t have to be a reason,” he finished. You stared at him. His brown eyes were bright with passion and his face was set in determination to convince you what he was saying was true. You were amazed at his belief in his own words.

“Do you think you could say that again? On film, though.” He laughed at you as you went to pull out your camera but he stopped you.

“I keep telling you, Y/N. If you want me to be your muse, all you have to do is ask,” he said with a smirk. You rolled your eyes as you rested the camera in your lap. “But if you really do want my help, I’ll be happy to work with you on your project.”

“Seriously?”

He nodded and smiled. “Seriously. This is important to you. I want to help.”

You tried to hide your smile. Though it was something simple, Jimin supporting your craft was something you hadn’t experienced in years. People didn’t believe in the arts as much as they liked to consume it. “Thank you, Jimin. That really means a lot to me.”

“Remember I told you I’d show you what love is? This is a great way to do it.” Jimin grinned as you laughed at him.

“And what do you know about love, Mr. Park?” you asked jokingly. Jimin averted his eyes, his smile less vibrant than before.

“You’d be surprised,” he said with a shrug.

“More lessons from Mr. Park Sr.?” you joked again, poking his shoulder, trying to lighten his sudden change of mood. He chuckled lowly.

“Some. A lot I learned on my own.”

“A lot? What’s your favorite one?” you posed. You were intrigued about a Jimin who had seen these many sides of love. Who was he beforehand? How had he changed? “Have you ever had your heart broken?”

“Yep,” he said, popping the ‘p’. “A few times. I guess you could say the last one was the worst,” he commented.

“Would you like to share?” you asked gently, not wanting to overstep your boundaries.

“I can. Especially if it’ll help you believe in love.” He wiggled his eyebrows and you shoved his shoulder gently. “I assume you’ve also had your heart broken?” You nodded. “Hmm. Well, Shutterfly. Sit back, relax, and let me tell you the story of Alexandria.” Jimin eased his seat back and turned his head to face you, his fingers laced and resting in his lap. He looked as though he was in a therapist’s office to talk about his trauma and the feelings associated with them. Depending on the nature of the story, he might need to go and see one.

“Lexa and I met during my Freshman year of college. She was tall, slim figure, very ‘plain Jane’ except for her copper-colored hair. She was really a brunette, but in certain lighting, it looked red. Then she started toning it - it doesn’t matter. Anyway, I was hanging out with a bunch of friends in the library studying for this major test when she walked by and that was it; I was a goner. We ended up having a class together the following semester where I found out she was a Sophomore -”

“Ooh! An older woman?!” You perked up in your chair at the new detail. “I never would have -”

“Pegged me for the type? We’re back on that, Y/N?” he asked with a wry grin. You blushed at the memory and sank back down.

“Continue,” you whispered sheepishly.

“So she was a Sophomore studying Psychology with a minor in Creative Writing. She was a force to be reckoned with and I thought I had no chance with her until she asked me to hang out. I honestly couldn’t believe she was interested in me. We didn’t start dating until my Junior year of college, both of us traveling abroad the previous year, and we were really happy together.” Jimin smiled fondly as he recalled the memories and your heart fluttered in anticipation of what went wrong. “I proposed at my graduation while she was -”

“Excuse me? What?!” you exclaimed, staring at him in shock. “You proposed?!” He laughed at your reaction.

“Of course. I loved her and it was the right thing for me to do at the time,” he replied. That couldn’t be it.

“You got her pregnant, didn’t you?” He laughed again, this one vibrating through his entire body as he clutched his stomach; he didn’t seem concerned about the noise level.

“No, Y/N. I proposed because I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her.”

“Wow,” you breathed, amazed at his level of commitment at such a young age. To know who you wanted to spend the rest of your life with and be ready to take that risk? He had to be crazy. “Wait. How old are you?”

“I’m 26. This happened around 2 and a half years ago, I think. Well, it’s been 2 and a half years since she called off our engagement,” he added matter-of-factly.

“Fuck,” you grimaced. “What happened?”

“She fell out of love. She wasn’t there when I woke up the following morning - we had moved in together while she worked on her thesis and I started grad school. The ring was placed on a neatly written note and all of her things were gone. Said she needed a man that had a little more - she ‘couldn’t put her finger on it’. Less stoic, more spontaneous. Something like that.” Jimin shrugged, the smile no longer reaching his eyes.

“But she knew how you were when you first got together. That’s some bullshit,” you muttered. Anger flared deep in your gut as you thought about this Alexandria stealing away in the middle of the night leaving Jimin alone to deal with the consequences of her actions as the sun rose.

“No need to crucify her, Shutterfly. She made the best choice for her -”

“But she hurt you,” you interrupted, frowning.

“I don’t disagree, but she taught me my favorite lesson: love freely and without expectations. I lost myself trying to prove that I could be this manly man. That I was man enough to deserve a woman as incredible as her. I lost her because of impossible expectations I placed on myself. We were both at fault; she could have said something sooner. I just wrestle with my own transgressions more. At the end of the day, it made me a better man.”

Love freely and without expectations. How could he say that when the woman who he wanted to spend the rest of his life with left him? Alexandria was foolish to leave someone as admirable as Jimin behind. Your heart ached at him waking up and her no longer being there, having to read that she no longer wanted him. You guessed some explanation was better than having the door closed right in your face.

“And you survived all of this?”

“I’m here, aren’t I? Broken hearts aren’t as bad as they seem, Shutterfly.”

“To you, Jimin. Though I don’t know how you got through that,” you said shaking your head in disbelief.

“The same way you got through yours,” he replied seriously. “Tell me about him. Why don’t you believe in love anymore?”

“It’s not that I don’t believe in love anymore. I just don’t expect it to happen to me for a very long time,” you said pushing your hands through your hair. Jimin waited for you to continue expectantly. You sighed and threw your head back against the seat. “Alright, fine. His name was Tiago. I met him when I moved to California with my best friend. He was a TA in one of her classes and she introduced us. He was tall, Hispanic, with the tight ringlet curls. They were sun-bleached because he spent so much time at the beach. He had the most beautiful hazel eyes too,” you added. You don’t think there was a woman alive who could deny how attractive Tiago was.

“He was smart too, attending law school - Gould School of Law at USC to be exact. I was working as a photography assistant in a studio downtown and he seemed interested in my work. We started hanging out and after a few months, we started dating. Things were really good for a while. I thought I had found my home in him, especially after leaving Milo back in New York. I thought he understood what I was going through. He didn’t.” You closed your eyes as you breathed through the memory of the pain.

“After a year of good times, things started to get weird. Some random phone calls he started taking in other rooms, less planned dates, less attention overall. I ignored it, especially after we had a conversation about possibly moving in together. That was a little too far for me so I was thinking of giving him a key to my apartment - I had gotten a promotion at the studio I was working at and could finally afford my own place,” you said with a grin. “I went to his apartment with the key in a little box and when I knocked on the door, a woman answered.”

“Shit,” Jimin whispered. He rested his hand on your knee and you looked at him with a small smile.

“Yeah. She asked who I was - if she could help me, and before I could answer, Tiago appeared looking fresh out the shower and said I wasn’t ‘anyone important. Just a friend of a friend’s who was supposed to take their anniversary portraits’ and closed the -”

“What the fuck, Y/N?! Please don’t tell me that he closed the door in your face.” Jimin’s grip tightened as his jaw clenched. You nodded with another small smile. “That fucking asshole!” he roared. The lady in front of you turned to hush him. He ignored her.

“Mhm, he closed the door in my face. I think I stood there for 2 minutes before I called an Uber and headed home. A few days later, he texted me and told me that we couldn’t be together anymore - like no shit, dumbass. I found out through the grapevine that she had been his girlfriend for 2 and a half years on and off. They were very much on when we were dating. Remember that friend I told you I moved to Cali with? Apparently she knew but didn’t know how to break it to me. I packed up and moved to San Diego which is where I met Michael. He had seen some of my short films from a little exhibit we had on campus and thought he could help me get more work. That was a year and a half ago,” you finished.

“Y/N, I’m so sorry. He was a fucking dickhead to do that to you.” You waved Jimin off.

“Michael says the same thing - actually he calls him a son of a bitch. It’s fine though. But that’s the story. I’m still healing and building up trust with people. So I believe in love, I’ve just had some bad luck with it,” you said with a shrug. “I try not to dwell on it because -”

“It makes you anxious?” Jimin suggested. You gave him a tight lipped smile. His thumb stroked over your knee in soft brushes. “Well, we won’t talk about him then. Fuck him,” he grinned.

“Thanks, Jimin,” I laughed.

“And we’ll get this project done, yeah? Together?”

You looked at Jimin. He was smiling at you, his front tooth a little crooked but gleaming nonetheless. Tiny dimples appeared around the corners of his mouth - something you hadn’t noticed before. The little sun you had been in while in Hong Kong had started to turn his skin a caramel brown and you remembered the smoothness of his skin as you laid in bed. As the corners of his eyes wrinkled with warm affection and you smiled.

“Together.”

full masterlist // series masterlist // previous // next

joon-ipersgirl, 2020

#jimin fanfic #jimin x reader #bts fanfiction #jimin fluff #bts fanfic #fic: bitter and beloved

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prettytoxicrevolver · 4 years

Text

Bless The Broken Road | Woodland Demars

Warnings? broken past, mentions of abusive ex, mentions of a hospital trip, little bit of angst

Requested? Yes indeed! I’m sorry it took so long!

Summary: You had been set out on a narrow path to hopefully find your one true love for years now. However, after an ex makes it so you don’t want to live in your hometown anymore, you move to LA where you meet Woods. And he helps you pick up the pieces.

Word Count: 2,078

“Are you ready to go?” Woods asks and you look over your outfit once more. He comes up behind you in the mirror and wraps his arms around your waist. You smile and lean your head against his.

“You look, marvelous darling,” he says and your smile widens. “Are you nervous?”

“Very, but it’s gonna be fine.”

“They’re gonna love you.”

Today you were meeting the rest of Woods' coworkers and awaiting a big surprise from him. You had met most of the Hi5 crew previously through visits to the studio and hangouts with them and Woods, but not everyone. Woods wanted to take this party as an opportunity for you to meet his work family. Naturally, you were scared they wouldn’t like you all that much.

You had met Woods three years ago when you moved to LA. Sam was actually your childhood best friend and she had been talking about LA and Hi5 for ages now. She knew about your situation back home and offered for you to move in with her. After settling in a bit, you two met one night when she and a few more Hi5 people were hanging out at the apartment.

You had just gotten home from a shift at the library you were working at at the time and honestly you were exhausted. You found Woods sitting in your living room at home and instantly became a little worried.

“Hi!” He greeted and when you still gave him a confused look he remembered that he’s the stranger in your home and not the other way around.

“Oh yeah! I’m Woods. I'm one of Sam’s friends from work,” he continued before standing and walking over to shake your hand.

“I’m (y/n),” you said and he awkwardly smiled and walked back over to the couch.

You were intrigued by him from the start but you never really knew why. That night you said a couple of more words towards the older boy but your past kept up with you and you couldn’t do much to keep the thoughts away.

One of the main reasons you moved from home was to escape your past. Everything that happened there felt like it lurked around every corner and being surrounded by that constantly did a number on you every day. When you moved, as cheesy as it was, everything was new and it helped.

Back home you went through a series of rough breakups and tough family problems that eventually would take a toll on you. The worst was Jacob.

You two were madly in love for months. You spent every second possible with Jacob and thought he loved you just as much in return. Until things started changing. He'd make comments on your weight, ask you to change clothes if he didn't like the outfit, keep you away from friends. The list went on and on and on.

You tried to convince yourself that he did it out of love. That he wanted what was best for you but you couldn't see the issue. However, one night you came home from work a little late after consoling a friend and Jacob snapped.

You fought for what felt like hours, Jacob accused you of cheating and plotting against him. You stepped towards him and with one shove you were sent tumbling along with a glass vase that would end up slicing your hands and the side of your face so deep you had to go to the hospital. Jacob was left behind from that day on.

While the physical wounds healed in a couple of weeks, to this day you were still recovering emotionally. You stayed in your hometown for as long as you could bear but it quickly became too much. You knew that moving was the right choice and it had been for a long time now.

Moving to LA would eventually help you start to refocus on yourself and get back on track as you healed. Therapy, your new friends, and a new job all helped tremendously with that. Woods was a blessing through it all.

After that first night, Woods was around a lot more. He’d come to visit Sam or you’d seen him for a friends night out. You tried to talk to him for a bit but it never worked as your anxiety often got the best of you, until one night after your shift at work.

You loved your job at the library but after this shift you had spent the day dealing with a couple of frustrating parents, getting snapped at by your boss for not getting all of your work done, and overall frustration at the mistreatment of beautiful novels.

Woods was sitting just where you found him the night you met when you walked into the apartment. At this time, you had become comfortable enough to collapse onto the couch near him and relax until you got enough motivation to get up and change.

“You okay?” He asked when you looked like you practically could cry the minute you sat down.

“Yes,” you responded instantly, as your instincts told you too. However, a steady stream of tears betrayed your words and made their way down your cheeks.

“Okay no. I’m sorry,” you apologize. You’ve always hated other people seeing you cry even when it was your family. It was something built into you and while it certainly wasn’t your best trait you couldn’t help it.

As more tears rolled down your face you tried to frantically wipe them away as you apologized through a thick voice.

“It’s okay,” He said coming over and taking your hands from your face. You’re shocked by the action and everything in you ceases for a moment.

“Bad day at work?” He asked slowly letting go of your hands and you find yourself wishing he didn’t.

“Yes, very. I’m sorry it was all just building up and so many things went wrong today and I-”

“(y/n) it’s okay,” he reassures you once more before placing his hand over yours and rubbing circles on the back of your thumb.

You both sat up talking for a while, you explained the events of what felt like a nightmare day from the worst of your imagination and he told you about his day and how it actually wasn’t too bad. The conversation developed and before you knew it you were both just talking. Talking about nothing and everything and about if aliens are real and why the sky is blue and where we came from and why we are the person we are today.

It was the best conversation you had had in a while.

Every time after Woods would come to the house, you and he would end up in a long conversation. It was always easy going and started off about something and you never know where or how you got to the next topic but you did and it just flowed.

And one day, he ended up asking you out. You were beyond nervous at first, expecting things to change or to even end up like things between you and Jacob had but it was the same just in fancier clothes and with food. Everything with Woods was easy. He made you feel free and easy. He was safe and comfortable.

He was there when you still fought with nightmares about Jacob and those insecurities.

You had decided to spend the night at Woods house as you had stayed much later than you expected and he didn’t want you driving so late at night alone. You woke up in a cold sweat from a horrendous nightmare about Jacob finding you here in LA and ruining the happiness you found.

You rose from Woods bed and carefully tiptoed out into the kitchen to grab something to drink before settling into the familiar couch cushions. Your eyes wandered around the room to try and focus on something else instead of the nightmare but you couldn’t help it.

“(y/n)?” Woods called quietly as he entered the living room and you looked up to him standing in the doorway. You smiled at him half-heartedly and he met you on the couch, wrapping you up in his arm instantly.

“What’s wrong my darling?”

“Just a bad nightmare is all,” You insisted but he only half-believed you.

“Like a Jacob nightmare?” He asked. One of the nights you spent talking, you had told him the reason, the real reason, why you moved here. He had been a light through it all.

You nodded and he pulled you even closer till you were sitting in his lap. He reached a hand up to push your hair back behind your ears before leaning and pressing a kiss to your nose and then one to your lips. When he leaned back to look at you he searched your eyes for some kind of answer.

“I just wish I was able to give that time to you my dear,” You admit and he smiles that smile that reminds you that he already knew that. He knows you inside and out and that everything is okay.

“I know. But we’re here now and that’s all that matters.”

You look across the car at that man now, the one who loved all of your broken pieces till you picked them back up and you’re thankful. You take his hand in yours and press a kiss to the back of it and Woods smiles widely at you.

“We’re here,” he announces when we pull into the studio parking lot. He turns off the car and runs around to open your door and extends a hand to you.

You take it and together the two of you walk into the warehouse together where everyone is waiting. With Woods by your side, you quickly realize your nerves have fallen away. At the end of the day, all that matters was you and him.

After making your rounds and meeting everyone in the studio you hadn’t met before, you take your seats as Domarina begins to speak. Woods takes your hand in his underneath the table and squeezes it lightly, a silent communication between the two of you.

“And now our very own Woodland Demars has a few words he wants to say,” she says and gestures to your boyfriend. You look over to him as he stands and offers you a wink in which you give him a confused smile.

“Hey guys, as you know my lovely girlfriend (y/n) has joined us tonight,” he says pointing to you and you wave shyly. “And I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to talk about her for a bit so darling can you come here?”

You make your way up to the makeshift stage with suspicion running through your mind. Woods is practically beaming at you when you reach him and he takes your hand and faces you as he continues talking.

“(y/n) always likes to say that I am her true love and over the course of every long lost dream, and broken heart, it was a northern star pointing to me,” he continues practically reciting the two of yours song God Bless The Broken Road by Rascall Flatts.

“And while the road to finding each other hasn’t been easy, I thank God every day for blessing it because I found you, my love,” he says now talking directly to you.

At this point he’s let go of your hand and he reaches into his pocket and your mind is going a million miles an hour. You freeze as he slowly moves so he’s kneeling down in front of you and you’re rendered speechless as he keeps talking.

“You’re the light of my life and I’m so thankful that I met you on this broken road. And I want you here for the rest of my life. I love you so much and I want to ask if you would do me the honor of marrying me?”

“Yes, of course.”

Woods stands and you dive straight into his arms as he wraps his around your waist tightly. You lean back only for a second to meet in a chaste kiss. When he lets go he slips the most beautiful but simple ring on your finger and you feel like you’re floating on air.

“I will love you to the end of time,” he says pressing another kiss to your lips.

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thdorkmagnet · 4 years

Text

Prison Break (Star is Rapunzel part 5)

Summary: A series of one-shots and multi-chapters proving why Star Butterfly should be considered a Disney Princess, as Star and company take over the roles of all your favorite Disney Princess characters! (Starco inevitable)

Check out my other stuff on Fanfiction!

Disclaimer: Star vs and all its characters are owned by Daron Nefcy and Disney. Frozen belongs to Disney. All rights go to their respective owners.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

Marco stared sadly out the window of his lonely prison cell, the gloomy atmosphere almost a perfect match to the young thief's depressing thoughts. He was worried sick about Star, Ludo's harsh words ringing through his head on an endless loop. Who knows what had happened to her, all because he had been stupid enough to fall into such an obvious trap. Of course, it had been a trap! One that Marco had walked right into and the boy had been beating himself up over it since he got thrown in here. If anything happened to Star it would be his fault. He just hoped that Star had somehow managed to get away, but the fact that he couldn't be sure terrified him to no end. And what was worse was that he had no way to help her stuck here in prison.

He had tried multiple times to explain his plight to a passing guard, hoping to send his friend some kind of help but no one listened, his pleas falling on deaf ears. So all he could do was stare out the window and think about the events leading up to this point, wishing he had seen through Ludo's schemes to avoid this whole mess in the first place.

The last thing he remembered was falling unconscious at Ludo's feet before waking up tied to the mast of a ship, the crown on the ground next to him. He had struggled in vain for a few moments but the boat had apparently been spotted by the guards because the vessel was soon dragged to shore and he was hauled, none too gently, to the prison cell he now sat in. He had tried to fight back, to escape their grasp and go save Star but the grip was too strong. He had failed Star... again.

Marco had tried reasoning with them, trying desperately to tell them of the danger Star was in but no one believed them. Not that he blamed them. Why would anyone trust a thief? His stupid reputation was going to get the one person in this world he cared about killed. Or worse.

Marco shuddered. He didn't want to imagine what Ludo had in store for Star but he swore he wouldn't let it happen. He would save her. Somehow.

"Well would you look at that," came a cynical voice behind him and Marco turned to see Kelly standing just outside his cell, her arms crossed and giving him a superior look. "The great Marco Diaz sitting behind bars. Not so smart now, are you?"

"Kelly, thank goodness," Marco said, happy to see a familiar face (even if it was one that hated him) rushing over to the bars and gripping them tightly as he gave the girl a pleading look. "You have to help me!"

Kelly gave a sarcastic chuckle, before saying bitterly, "Yeah, right. I don't have to do anything except escort you to your hanging."

"No, wait. Please, it's not like that! My friend is in trouble, I think she's been kidnapped, you have to save her!"

Kelly scoffed and rolled her eyes before saying, "Yeah right, you think I'm dumb enough to fall for that."

"No, no, it's not a trick, I swear!" Marco pleaded. He had to make her listen, Star's life depended on it. "It's just like I told you when I tried to turn myself in... well okay, that actually wasn't you, it was a scarecrow made to look like you, but still! The only thing that matters to me right now is Star's safety!"

Kelly gave him a long, hard stare, an eyebrow half-raised, before she muttered, "You're crazy."

"Kelly, please, I know it sounds crazy but I'm telling the truth, I swear. All I'm asking you to do is double-check that she's okay and then I'll never ask for anything again! Just, please, if Ludo has her, then-"

"Wait, Ludo?" Kelly said, her eyes widening as she took a sudden interest in the conversation.

"Y-Yeah," the boy in red replied, hope filling his chest.

"As in Ludo Avarius?" The girl asked.

"Uhh, I think so," Marco replied hesitantly, not sure where this conversation was going, worry starting to fill the pit of his stomach.

Kelly paused, thinking over her decision to tell him or not before finally, seeing the desperation in the boy's eyes, said, "A couple of guards picked him up just this morning."

Marco's eyes widened, his brain struggling to comprehend this new information. "D-Did they say anything about a girl being with them?!" He asked panic in his eyes, his heart pounding as he waited for her response, pressing his face as far against the bars as he physically could.

His heart dropped as Kelly shook her head in response, saying almost apologetically, "No, nothing about that. Apparently, they found him unconscious by the lake, no idea how he got that way."

Marco stared down at his feet for a moment, letting that all sink into his frazzled mind. Ludo didn't take her? Did Star knock him out and escape? Where was she? Was she okay? Did she know what happened to him? Finally, he looked up, locking eyes with Kelly, before declaring, "I need to talk to Ludo."

"What?!" Kelly shouted. "Nuh-uh, no way, not happening."

"Please Kelly! I need to talk to him, he's the only one who knows what happened to Star!"

"Not my problem!" Kelly yelled back. "My job is to escort you to you're hanging! Nothing else!"

"Come on, Kelly! This is important!" Marco begged.

"Why should I even listen to you? You've never given me any reason to trust you before. I bet this whole thing is just a trick for you to try and escape."

"It's not, you gotta believe me! Look just give me five minutes with him and then I'll let you- y'know, without a fight," the boy said, not bothering to hide his desperation. He didn't care if he had to get on his knees and beg, he had to make Kelly say yes. Even if Ludo was in jail, someone had told him about Star's ability and he had to know who.

The green-haired girl tried to hide her weakening resolve as she frowned at the imprisoned thief. "Not. Happening."

"Look, I know we've had our differences in the past but you have to trust me on this. I'm not asking you as your friend. But as someone who respects you."

Kelly was silent for a moment, as she internally debated her options, looking into the boy's begging eyes. There was no way that Marco could escape, especially with her watching him, so what was the harm in letting him clear his conscious before death. But then there was the slim chance that someone would find out about the visit. She could lose her job. Finally, the girl let out a long sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose as she said, "Fine. I'll take you to Ludo. But you get five minutes and then I'm taking you to the gallows, got it!"

The boy nodded, trying not to let his fear show at the mention of his fate, a small shudder jumping up his spine. "Okay," he said in a small voice.

Kelly moved to unlock the cell pulling a set of keys from her pocket and then attached handcuffs to the boy's wrists. She practically dragged him out of the cell holding his arm in an iron grip as she led him quickly down the corridor. "For the record," Kelly snapped after a moment or two of silence, keeping her gaze straight ahead. "I'm not doing this because I care. I just didn't want to listen to you whine the whole way."

Marco doubted that, but didn't say anything, instead focusing on calming his nerves. His stomach was churning with worry, his skin practically crawling at what was about to happen to him. But none of that could compare to his fear for Star's safety.

At least before he died, he'd get some answers and that small comfort was all he had to cling to as he marched slowly closer to his death.

…

"I've got a dream, I've got a dream. And I know one day romance will reign supreme," the scratchy, off-key voice of Lobster Claw rang clearly through the Snuggly Duckling, causing the rest of the pub's patrons to cringe as the Monster continued his solo for the 150th time that day alone. Buff Frog was still happily playing the jaunty tune on the piano, a lighthearted smile on his face, while the rest of the Monsters all lounged around, resisting the urge to cover their ears but most too tired to even raise a claw.

All except Tom that is, the half-Monster boy sat annoyed at his own table, fuming with anger at the lobster Monster's endless solo, his fingers drumming away on the smooth wood surface. Finally, he could take no more, slamming his hands down on the table and jumping to his feet as he shouted, "Lobster Claws, enough! The joke is dead already!"

The Monster finally ceased his ballad for a moment as he gave Tom a hurt frown. "But what about my adoring fans?" The crustacean whined. Buff Frog too stopped his piano solo as he locked eyes with the hot-headed teen.

"You put them all to sleep!" Tom shouted at the top of his lungs, gesturing over to a group of sleeping Monsters, passed out on the table next to him, snoring and some even drooling on the wooden surface.

"We are so unappreciated in our time," Lobster Claws sighed dramatically to Buff Frog, who nodded in agreement.

"Da, we will achieve dream someday, friend," the amphibian replied, putting a reassuring claw on Lobster Claw's shoulder.

Suddenly, the door to the pub busted open, the loud noise waking the group of lazy Monsters as they all jumped to attention turning to see the intruder to their hangout. Only to stare in shock as the same horse from the other day trotted into the room, looking around the dirty room with disgust. "Oh great and now this guy is back!" Tom shouted in annoyance, the Monsters around him all tensing up as they went on guard. "We already told you, we don't know where Marco Diaz is, so leave us alone already!"

But to the half-Monster's surprise, it wasn't Kelly who jumped down off the horse's back but a new girl altogether. She had a cocky smirk on her face as she casually strolled into the room, looking like she belonged there. Tom was taken aback by the girl, especially the intensity in her bright brown eyes, a mischievous twinkle in them that made Tom feel weird... almost intimidated. Still, he tried to hide his discomfort as he shouted, "Who the heck are you?!"

The girl casually approached him, the other Monsters backing away suspiciously and nervously, standing just a little too close for Tom's liking as she replied, "I'm a friend of Star and Marco."

A gentle murmur filled the room at this declaration, Buff Frog moving closer to the pair so he could hear better, the Monsters all intrigued to see where this went. Tom's interest was peaked as well, but he did not best to hide it with a suspicious glare, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "Oh yeah, well where are they then?"

"That's actually why I came here," the dark-haired girl responded, not missing a beat. "See, our mutual friends are in a bit of trouble at the moment. I left them alone for one second and Marco goes and gets himself arrested and Star just up and vanishes to who knows where." There was clear concern etched in her voice but Tom couldn't tell if it was fake or not.

Buff Frog's eyes flashed with fear, while the other Monsters gasped at the news, nervously muttering amongst themselves again as they worried about the fate of the two teens. Tom, however, hid his own concern behind his stony demeanor, as he retorted, "And what does that have to do with us?"

"Simple, I got a plan to bust Marco out of jail but I'm gonna need some help to pull it off," Janna explained, burying her hands in her pockets. "That's where you guys come in."

Tom scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Yeah, right," he spat sharply. "Like you expect us to buy that. This is clearly a trap."

Janna cocked her head slightly to the side, before asking with a small smirk, "And what would make you think that?"

"Well, for one thing, you have no proof that you even know Star or Marco," Tom continued, shooting her a suspicious glare. "And last time I checked, that crazy horse over there wasn't exactly on good terms with them." Tom gestured over to Pony Head, who neighed angrily at the insult.

"Yeah, she's kind of a new addition. I'm not too sure about her myself," Janna replied, with a shrug and Pony shot her a death-filled glare, which Janna ignored. "But I'm not asking you to trust me or her, I'm asking you to help out your friends. Isn't that what you want?"

Tom still looked unconvinced, his eyes flashing with suspicion, prompting Janna to try a different tactic. "Look I get it, you just can't trust me, that's fine." The girl shrugged innocently before turning on her heels and heading for the door. "But y'know when Marco ends up in the gallows don't come crying to me about it." The girl continued, keeping at a steady pace for the door, hiding her smirk from view as she heard the Monsters shift uncomfortably behind her.

The Monsters were all giving Tom a lost look, seeing how he would respond, Buff Frog with his hands clenched at his side, staring off into space. The boy tried to hide his uncertainty behind an iron mask but he could feel the emotion crushing his chest and threatening to escape.

Janna, seeing the boy's weakening resolve out of the corner of her eye, added sneakily, "Come on, Pony. It's clear these guys are just too afraid to help us."

Her trick worked wonders as Tom instantly glared back in anger, his eyes full of fire and determination as he growled, "What was that?"

Janna smirked before turning to the boy with a blank look. "Look it's okay that you're afraid-"

"I'm not afraid of anything!" Tom shouted, completely losing any sense of rationality as anger burned through him. He stormed over to the girl, his fists clenched tightly as he crowded Janna's personal space. "Least of all facing those idiot guards!"

But Janna, didn't seem bothered by the dark glare of the feisty teen, keeping a cool head as she said, "Then, you'd be up for helping me out with my little plan?"

"Hah, like that would even be a challenge!" Tom continued with a confident smirk, his eyes still blazing with anger. "I can handle anything you could come up with."

"Good, then welcome aboard," Janna said, shaking his hand before he could even think to argue. "Glad to have you."

Tom paused, his anger dispersing as he finally realized what he had just walked into. "W-Wait, what just happened?!" Tom screeched, his brain spinning as he tried to comprehend how he ended up agreeing to her crazy scheme, after all.

"Nothing, you just volunteered to help me out is all," Janna said with a wink, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

Tom flinched at the close contact, his cheeks flushing and causing his mind to grow even more befuddled. But he recovered from his shock, violently shaking his head before shouting, "Only cause you tricked me.

"Guilty as charged but it's for a good cause," Janna said, completely unaffected by the boy's harsh glare or grating teeth. She turned to the rest of the patrons of the bar before asking pleasantly, "So anyone else interested in lending a hand and saving our mutual friends?"

The cursed girl was not surprised when Buff Frog was the first to step forward, determination in his eyes as he said proudly, "Da, I help save Star and Marco."

Lobster Claws followed after with a very serious (for him at least), "Me too." Soon followed by another Monster than another until every single Monster in the bar had loudly proclaimed their willingness to help.

"Well looks like it's unanimous then," Janna said with a quick look over to Tom who was still fuming in her grip. The hot-head met her eye then looked gloomily over to his fellow Monsters before muttering bitterly, "Fine."

The Monsters all cheered in celebration, before quickly racing out of the bar, eager and ready to go save the two helpless teens, some even shouting battle cries on the way out. Soon only Janna, Pony, and Tom were left. "Come on, bud. You can ride with me," Janna proclaimed, leading the boy over to Pony Head, who was still giving them a very annoyed glare for their comments. "Oh, come on, Pony. Lighten up, I just said all that stuff to get them to agree," Janna said, but Pony just turned her head away, ignoring the pair.

Janna didn't mind though, her focus on other things, as she climbed up on the horse before reaching a hand out to the half-Monster who flushed in embarrassment, for some reason feeling flustered around this strange girl. "Come on, I won't bite," she said in a teasing tone, the slightest hint of a smirk on her face as she sensed his hesitation.

Tom's eyes narrowed at the comment while his heart did flips in his chest. "Yeah, well I still don't trust you." He tried to act angry and suspicious but it was halfhearted, especially as his voice cracked against his will.

"That's fair," Janna replied with an understanding nod. A few seconds passed before the girl added, "So are you gonna get on or are you walking?"

Tom hesitated for another second, before rolling his eyes and reluctantly taking her hand. "Can't believe I'm doing this," he muttered under his breath as he was hauled up into the saddle behind the creepy teen, the boy flushing at the close contact, keeping his hands stiff at his sides, afraid to touch her in any way.

"You can put your arms around me, y'know," Janna said in a teasing tone.

"Don't push it," Tom snapped, ignoring the part of him that wanted to take her up on that offer.

The girl just shrugged. "Have it your way," she replied calmly, before directing her attention on the horse. "Let's go, Pony."

The horse snorted an argument, keeping her hooves planted firmly in place, refusing to budge even an inch, and Janna rolled her eyes. "Look, I'll get you a whole bushel of apples once this is all over with, okay. Would that make you happy?"

This seemed to do the trick as Pony finally got into action, trotting out of the abandoned pub in half a second, galloping off toward the Kingdom of Corona as fast as she could. Tom was bouncing badly in his seat but refused to hold onto the girl to keep him steady, the mere idea of doing such a thing causing his heart to do all kinds of crazy things. "So what is this brilliant plan of yours anyway?" The boy asked via shout, the wind whipping around them making it hard to hear.

Janna smirked, as the gears in her head started turning, the perfect plan of escape already in mind. "Glad you asked."

…

Marco felt his breath hitch as Kelly unlocked the door to Ludo's cell, the loud clank nearly causing the young thief to jump. His nerves were on edge, both out of fear for his fate and for the answers he was about to receive. Regardless of what Ludo told him he would be of no help to Star, he just hoped he could live with it... well for as long as he had left to live, that is.

Kelly turned to him with a distrusting glare, silently warning him against any attempts to escape. But really, what could he do to escape anyways? He was in the middle of a heavily guarded and fortified prison, escape almost felt impossible at the moment. Marco had been in some rough spots before but he couldn't see a way out of this one, much to his dismay and horror. "You get five minutes," Kelly said firmly, her voice leaving no room for argument.

Marco swallowed thickly and nodded. Kelly pulled the door to the cell open, letting Marco inside and the red-clad teen took a shaky step closer. This was it. Do or die. The boy cringed at his mind's poor choice of wording before stepping into the cell, the metal door closing behind him the second he was inside.

He looked over at Ludo, who seemed unaware of his presence, the small Monster perched in the window of his cell, using a small, dull knife to cut away at the thick bars that prevented escape, muttering under his breath the whole time. Marco was caught off guard by the odd sight, but remembering his mission he pushed past his surprise and loudly cleared his throat.

Ludo flinched, whipping his head around with a guilty, startled look before his eyes widened to see the red thief of all people standing there in his cell with him. "Oh, it's you," he said dismissively, turning his attention back on his project. "Go away, I'm busy."

"Not until you tell me what happened to Star," Marco said firmly, anger towards the small bird Monster bubbling in his chest and causing him to scowl. But he did his best to hold this feeling in, he couldn't afford to blow this, he had to get the Monster to open up to him, and losing his temper, no matter how justified it was, couldn't happen.

"How should I know?" Ludo replied in annoyance, still not looking up from his pointless task.

"Because you were trying to kidnap her!" Marco screamed, his hands clenching into tight fists.

"Oh right," the bird Monster mumbled uncaringly. "Are you still upset about that?"

"Yes!" Marco hissed heatedly. "You tricked me, knocked me out, got me arrested, and then tried to kidnap my best friend!"

"Look, I saw an opportunity and I took it, it was nothing personal," Ludo responded coldly.

"Nothing personal," Marco repeated in disbelief, before practically roaring, "Nothing personal! You ruined my life and attacked my friend. That is not okay!"

"Well there's not much you can do about it, is there?" Ludo replied, finally turning to face the boy with a vicious smirk. "Since you're stuck in prison, ha!"

"You're stuck in here too, Ludo," Marco deadpanned.

"Not for long, I'm gonna be out of here in no time." The bird went back to cutting at the thick metal bar, his thin knife doing absolutely nothing.

The boy doubted that but didn't bother arguing as he instead demanded, "Well, regardless, you're still gonna tell me what happened. Where is Star? What did you do to her?"

"Why should I tell you?" Ludo scoffed, dismissively.

That was the last straw, Marco's patience finally wearing out as the anger he was trying to hold back exploded, the young thief rushing forward and ripping Ludo off the window, slamming him against the stone wall as he glared dangerously into the small Monster's face. "Because I told you too!" Marco shouted, his face mere inches from Ludo's. "And you're gonna tell me right now!"

"Okay, okay, geez," Ludo said frantically, rolling his eyes in annoyance. "You didn't have to get so worked up about it."

Marco said nothing, waiting for the Monster to speak, giving Ludo a warning look. "Well, look I don't really know where she's at myself. It's all a little fuzzy for me, see I was about to capture her after I told her you abandoned her-"

"You what?!" Marco screamed, fear filling his features. Poor Star, she had been terrified he'd leave her, and then he and Ludo had just confirmed that in her mind. She must be heartbroken. And the fact that he had no way to ever explain what actually happened to him made his heartache. He would die with her hating him and there was nothing he could do about it.

"Look, I needed her weak so I could capture her, it made the most sense," Ludo argued, clearly not seeing the hurt he had caused the two teens.

"So you broke her heart!"

"Yes, keep up, geez. Anyways, as I was saying, I was about to knock her out like I did you when something hit me on the head. Next thing I know I'm waking up here."

Marco's eyebrows scrunched up in confusion. So Star hadn't been kidnapped? But then, where was she? And what had happened after Ludo fainted or passed out or whatever. If that was even the truth, for all Marco knew Ludo was lying about the whole thing. Not that he would put it past the little Monster, considering he had tricked him before. "And you're sure that's what really happened?" Marco asked suspiciously, his eyes narrowed in warning.

"Yes, yes, now put me down already," Ludo whined unhappily.

Marco obeyed, dropping the Monster, who landed hard at his feet and groaning in pain. "Ouch, you didn't have to be so rough, you jerk,” Ludo snapped, shooting him an annoyed glare.

But Marco ignored the little Monster, shuffling backward as his knees threatened to give out on him, a million unanswered questions making it difficult for him to breathe. His breaths become shallow and ragged as his fears threatened to consume him. He still had no idea where Star was and no way to reconcile with her. The little remorse he could take was that Star was not likely in danger if what Ludo was telling him was the truth. Which brought back an even greater question, one that nearly stopped Marco's heart as he remembered it. He looked over at Ludo, ignoring the Monster's silent attempts to guilt trip him as he asked, "How did you know about Star's power?"

"What?" Ludo screeched in surprise, looking uneasy for the first time since their conversation began. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Back in the forest, you said Star was the real prize," Marco reminded him, keeping his voice down just in case Kelly might overhear. "And you wouldn't have done all this without a reason, so don't try and lie or squirm your way out of this. I know you know about her healing ability. And I want to know how you found out."

"I-I don't know anything about that," Ludo muttered unconvincingly, but Ludo's body betrayed him as he began to sweat nervously, his eyes darting left and right in a guilty attempt to hide the truth from the boy, which only proved Marco right. The boy crossed his arms, waiting to hear the Monster's answer, his hard glare cracking Ludo's resolve. Finally, the bird just sighed, throwing his head back dramatically before declaring, "Fine! It's true, are you happy? Someone told me she had special powers and that if I helped them, I'd be rich."

Marco's mind was buzzing now with questions, his heart racing, as he asked desperately, "Who? Who told you?" Who besides him and Star knew about her powers? It didn't make any sense. And if there was someone out there, then they could be after Star, too. Which meant she may not be as safe as Marco hoped.

Ludo just shrugged through, saying simply, "Some old lady, called herself Eclipsa or something like that."

"Eclipsa," Marco whispered under his breath, trying desperately to put the pieces together. "Old lady." Finally, the answer clicked into place and he gasped, his eyes widening in disbelief and fear. There was only one other person who knew about Star's power besides him and Star, someone who she had mentioned multiple times. Someone Star seemed openly conflicted about. "Star's mom," he whispered in dread.

A rattling from the cell door interrupted the tense moment, snapping Marco out of his troubling thoughts as he turned to see Kelly unlocking the door to his cell, her voice back to being harsh and impersonal as she declared, "Time's up."

"No, wait!" Marco started to scream but Kelly ignored his protests, gripping his arm in an almost death-grip as she yanked him none-too-gently out of the prison cell. "You don't understand, Star's in trouble!"

"Yeah, yeah," Kelly scoffed, rolling her eyes. "You've said that already."

"But I think she's in danger right now! And she has no one to help her!" Marco shouted, desperate to get the captain to listen.

"Fine, I'll tell my men to be on the lookout for this Star or whatever, happy," Kelly said in annoyance, clearly tired of listening to his incessant whining.

"But she lives in a tower in the middle of the forest," Marco explained, fighting forcefully as the girl dragged him through the stone hallways, needing to escape, to do something.

"Uh-huh and I live in a house made entirely out of hair," the green-haired girl sarcastically replied. "Now look, we had a deal, you talk to Ludo and then let me take you to the gallows without a fight, remember?"

"But-"

"Hey, Kelly is there a problem?" a boy said behind them and they turned to see Tad, Oscar, and Justin staring at the two in confusion and concern.

"Nope, no problem," Kelly replied immediately. "But since you're here..." She pushed Marco over to them. "...help me get the prisoner to the gallows. I'm tired of dragging him around."

"Yes, Ma'am!" the three shouted, Oscar and Justin gripping his arms firmly before practically carrying him along behind Kelly.

"You're making a big mistake!" Marco tried, hopelessness beginning to flood his chest as he squirmed as much as physically possible.

"The only mistake anyone made here was you, for deciding to mess with the crown," Kelly replied dismissively, not even bothering to turn as she led the group to their destination.

"I thought you were different, Kelly!" Marco screamed accusingly and the green-haired girl tensed but still didn't acknowledge the boy, deliberately staring straight ahead so she wouldn't have to face the young thief.

Marco fought back as much as he could, shouting out useless warnings and pleas but they fell on deaf ears, no one was listening anymore. "Hey, just give it up, dude," Oscar told him. "We're just doing our job, okay." The boy felt all the fight drain from him, hanging his head limply as he realized the guard was right. It was useless. He wasn't getting out of this. No matter what he said or did, his fate was sealed.

The group stopped at a sealed door, making too distraught to even raise his head to stare at it, knowing what waited just on the other side of the door. He felt a million regrets wash over him, an immeasurable sadness filling his chest as he thought of Star, a pair of crystal blue eyes haunting his memories. I'm sorry, Star, he pleaded in his head, wishing so badly to see her just one more time. Please forgive me.

Kelly raised a fist, banging on the door, before proclaiming, "Open up, we have a prisoner to deliver."

A small eyehole flipped open, revealing a pair of beady eyes. "Sorry, we're closed," a voice said from the other side, Marco's head raising as he recognized the goofy tone. Lobster Claws?

"What?!" Kelly exclaimed in surprise. "We weren't told anything about that!"

"Sorry, orders are orders," Lobster Claws said apologetically. "You'll have to take it up with the boss."

"I am the boss!" Kelly shouted angrily.

"Oh, well then you might want to look into that, I think someone's out there pretending to be you." They eyehole slid closed and Kelly growled under her breath.

"Seriously?" Kelly hissed, before banging on the door again. "Open this door, right now. That's an order!"

"Sorry, no can do," Lobster Claws deadpanned.

"You are gonna open this door right now or I'm busting it down," Kelly commanded, her voice scolding as if she was talking to a child. There was no response this time and Kelly's eyes narrowed. "Alright have it your way." The girl captain turned to the group and shouted, "Tad, come bust this door down for me."

"Wait, me?" Tad exclaimed, his voice shaking in worry.

"That's an order," Kelly said, her eyes narrowing on her ex's form. Not seeing any way out of it, Tad reluctantly walked over to the door, stopping just a few paces away. He sucked in a deep breath before charging at the wood frame head-first, yelling loudly as he prepared himself for the impact. But just before his fragile body collided with the thick wood, the door flew open, Tad running inside and unable to stop before he hit a wall, falling to the floor unconscious before the door slammed closed again.

"What?!" was all Kelly had time to say before three forms dropped down from the ceiling, Buff Frog, Tom, and Janna. Kelly didn't even have time to react as Janna gave her a hard shove, pushing her into an empty cell, the metal door slamming closed, locking instantly. The other guards were met with similar fates, all shoved into identical cells by Tom and Buff Frog, quickly locking the doors behind them. In a matter of seconds, Kelly's whole squad was dispatched and Marco could only blink in disbelief.

"Tom! Janna! Buff Frog! Lobster Claws!" Marco screamed, in complete bewilderment. "What are you doing here?!"

"We came to rescue you, duh," Tom said with a confident grin, Janna stepping over to pick the lock on Marco's handcuffs.

"Yeah, you didn't think we'd just let you die, did ya?" Lobster Claws added.

Marco felt tears welling up in his eyes. He hadn't thought anyone would risk a rescue mission for him, much less people he had known for less than a day. And yet here they were, three allies he didn't even know he had, in the middle of the most secure prison in the kingdom, saving him from certain death. And with that thought, Marco felt a sudden weight float off his shoulders, knowing his life was no longer close to its end... he hoped. And the relief he felt in that moment was indescribable, no words able to accurately portray the sense of hope and joy he felt flooding his system. And it was all thanks to his friends. "I-I can't believe you guys came for me," Marco muttered, shooting them all a grateful smile.

"You can thank us later," Tom told the young thief with a smug grin.

"It weird girl's idea, we just following her," Buff Frog said much more humbly.

Marco gave Janna a surprised look, who raised her head up enough from her work for their eyes to lock. "You did this for me. I-I don't know what to say."

"Eh, don't mention it," Janna replied with a smooth wink. "I'm only doing this for Star, anyway."

Marco smiled at his friend, rubbing his tender wrists as the handcuff finally opened with a click. But the boy didn't let the pleasant moment last long, focusing his attention on the more pressing matter as he declared in a commanding tone, "Star's in trouble. We gotta go help her."

"That's the plan," Janna said with a nod.

Meanwhile, Kelly rose to her feet with a groan, rubbing at her aching head from where it had hit the stone ground, her senses coming back to her slowly. But the second they returned she stormed over to the bars of the cell, shaking them wildly as she shouted, "Hey, what do you think you're doing?! Let me out of here!" She spotted Marco and her eyes narrowed dangerously. "You! I knew I couldn't trust you, you tricked me!"

"Technically I'm the one who tricked you," Lobster Claws pointed out, raising a claw to gain the captain's attention.

But Kelly ignored the Monster, shouting angrily, "We had a deal!"

"Sorry, Kelly, but Star needs me," Marco said, no hesitation in his tone. He turned his back on the green-haired girl, feeling no regrets for his decision as he asked the group. "So what now?"

"Follow me," Janna said with a smirk, before running off, the others quickly jogging after her.

Kelly screamed after them the whole way, yelling at the top of her lungs, "You won't get away, Marco! There's no escape for you, after this! You will pay for your crimes!"

Once the group had rounded the corner though, the girl let out a groan of annoyance, slamming her head against the bars of the cell. Just perfect.

The group hadn't gotten very far when they ran into more guards, who all stood in shock for a moment, not expecting to run into the group of teens and Monsters alike. But they all recovered quickly, growling before running at them, yelling for them to stop or surrender. "Quick, this way!" Janna shouted, tugging at Marco's arm before pulling them down the opposite hallway. But the shadow of the guards appeared down that hallway next and Janna quickly muttered, "Nope," directing the others a completely different way altogether.

It continued this way for a while, Janna leading them in a crisscross pattern, avoiding guards at every turn, leaving Marco completely lost on what direction they were even headed, the maze-like structure of the prison causing the young thief to grow disoriented.

"Are you sure this is the right way, Janna?" Marco asked, starting to pant from exertion.

"Relax, Marco. I know what I'm doing," the cursed girl replied, only for the group to be immediately cut off by more guards, who all held their weapons menacingly out in front of them, sneering at the escapees with disgust.

"You were saying?" Tom sarcastically quipped, giving the beanie-wearing teen a knowing look.

"Okay, so slight change of plans," Janna replied, still keeping her cool despite the dire situation. "We just have to fight our way through these guys first."

"Works for me," Tom smirked, slamming a flaming fist into his palm.

Marco and the others got into a battle-ready stance, preparing to engage the group of guards, all of them poised and confident for the fight ahead.

…

Ferguson and Alfonso sat in their lonely prison cell, bored out of their minds, the latter trying to entertain himself by bouncing a ball against the wall but it did very little to help at this point. They had been stuck in there for over a day now and the two already felt like they might lose their minds if they didn't find something to do other than stare at the stone walls of their prison. The two let out mutual sighs, feeling restless trapped in one place for so long, wishing they were anywhere but there at the moment or at the very least that something exciting would happen to break up the monotony.

As if their wish had been granted by some unseen force, a loud racket sounded from farther down the hallway and the two boys shared a look before racing over to the locked door to see what was going on outside the four square walls of their trapped space. They saw a group of teens and Monsters bravely facing off against a group of guards, somehow winning the battle as they all worked together to fight off the highly-trained knights. They were making their way slowly toward where Ferguson and Alfonso were, all of them looking completely in control of the situation, no signs of fear or worry on their faces as they fought as a team. And in the lead of this rag-tag group was none other than Marco.

Ferguson and Alfonso gasped, upon recognizing their partner, the latter screaming, "It's Marco! He came to rescue us!"

"About time!" Ferguson added, gripping the bars tightly in anticipation, a goofy grin on his face. Finally, they were going to be freed from this boring place and the chubby thief was itching to get out and do something.

"He didn't forget about us, after all," Alfonso commented. The two had been sure Marco had just completely erased their existence from his mind but it seemed they were wrong as their friend drew steadily closer to them, his new allies helping him every step of the way.

Finally, the last of the guards were defeated and Marco and the others all panted heavily, tired from the long, intense battle. But there was no time to rest as they ran toward Ferguson and Alfonso who grinned ear to ear. "Marco!" They both shouted as the boy reached them at last... only to keep running right past them, not even turning to acknowledge their existence.

In fact, none of Marco's friends even noticed that Ferguson and Alfonso were there, the group just running ahead undeterred from whatever mission they were on. The two trapped thieves could only watch stunned as their only chance of freedom disappeared down a hallway, leaving Ferguson and Alfonso alone to their thoughts once more.

For a few seconds, neither teen said anything, their faces set in annoyed frowns before finally, Ferguson commented in a deadpan, "Never mind, he did forget about us."

"Yep," Alfonso replied, no emotion in his tone. "I'm kinda getting used to it at this point, honestly."

Finally, the two let out deep sighs, before returning to their previous task of trying to fight off their ever-growing boredom.

…

Marco and the others, with Janna in the lead, finally came to the entrance of the prison, the large metal door thrown open by the beanie-wearing girl. Magnificent sunlight flooded Marco's senses, the boy blinking as his eyes struggled to adjust. He could hear the tell-tale sounds of clashing metal and grunts as some sort of battle took place and the boy's mouth dropped open as he finally got a good look around the large courtyard. The rest of the Monsters were engaged in combat with the knights, doing their best to fight off the trained warriors and somehow holding their own so far. The Monsters all turned to Marco with large, goofy smiles, looking completely out of place in the life or death struggle they were all currently in, greeting him in an almost sing-song voice. "Hey, Marco!"

The boy numbly waved back to the Monsters as they each returned to their struggle, their faces morphing into that of terrifying warriors as they relentlessly beat on their opponents. "Well, I was not expecting that," Marco muttered in shock. It was jarring to see such polar opposite versions of his rescuers, Marco unsure which side was more troubling to him.

"Yeah, I know," Janna replied, sounding impressed. "Who woulda thought these guys were actually capable in a fight."

"Guys, we gotta focus on the plan," Tom reminded them, sounding slightly annoyed. "They can only hold the guards off for so long."

"Right," Janna agreed instantly, a mischievous smirk lighting up her face.

"So what is the next part of the plan, exactly?" Marco asked, suddenly not sure if he wanted to know judging by the cursed girl's reaction.

"Oh you'll see," Janna said cryptically, which only worried Marco even more.

The boy watched as Buff Frog and Lobster Claws grabbed a large plank of wood and barrel, the former carefully setting the board against the barrel. Marco gulped, finally seeing their plan, they were planning on launching him into the air... again.

"Uh, isn't there another way for me to get out of here?" Marco asked nervously. One that didn't involve him being flung precariously in the air, preferably.

"Oh relax, Marco," Tom said dismissively, him and Janna pushing him onto the end of one of the boards. "You'll be fine."

"Yeah but-" Marco started to argue, only to be interrupted by Janna.

"Just remember to keep your head down," the creepy girl said, pushing him down into a scrunched position.

"And keep your arms tucked," Tom added, folding Marco's into his chest.

"Don't forget to keep your mouth closed, otherwise you might accidentally swallow a bug," Lobster Claws helpfully supplied.

"Oh and most importantly, whatever you do, make sure to keep your knees apart," Janna casually added.

"Wait, knees apart?" Marco repeated in a questioning tone. "Why do I need to keep my knees apart?"

"Okay, Buff Frog!" Janna shouted up to the Monster who had climbed up onto a high spot, before launching himself into the air, doing a flip, before landing expertly on the other end of the board.

Marco panicked, asking once more in a loud shout, "Guys, why do I need to keep my- Aaaaaaahhhh!!"

The boy was flung into the air at breakneck speeds, ignoring the crustacean's advice as he screamed at the top of his lungs, the feeling of weightlessness and the cold bite of the wind, causing his stomach to drop. He somehow managed to stay in the exact position his friends had told him too, but as he saw his form heading toward the castle wall, he squeezed his eyes shut, preparing for his body to be squished like a pancake on the smooth stone.

Instead, he landed hard onto something, letting out a breathless oof, he fell forward, his arms flailing to try and balance himself. He gripped something soft, his eyes slowly opening as he saw the smug face of Pony Head staring at him. "Pony?!" he squeaked in disbelief, his voice still choked from the near-death experience. He looked down to see himself sitting right in the middle of her saddle, the groups confusing instructions finally making sense to him now. "You came to help me, too," he muttered, locking eyes with the horse.

The horse let out a dismissive neigh, before turning her head forward again. Don't let it go to your head.

But with his escape now out of the way, he focused his attention on the most important step now, finding Star. "Star needs our help," Marco told the horse, gripping the reins tightly. "You up for a little rescue mission, Pony?"

The horse neighed, her body tensing as if to say, Heck yeah, as if you even had to ask.

"Then let's do it!" Marco shouted, leaning forward in his seat, determination fueling his being.

The horse galloped across the stone walls of the large castle, easily clearing the jump onto a nearby rooftop before making her way to the busy street below.

Tom and Janna watched as Marco and Pony disappeared from view, leaping off the large stone structure before sharing a smile of victory. "Well looks like we actually pulled it off," Tom commented, crossing his arms in front of his chest proudly. "I'm impressed your plan actually worked."

"Naturally," Janna responded, lightly tapping into his side with her own. "Next time you'll know better than to doubt my skills."

Tom looked around at the crowded courtyard, watching as the guards started to arrest his fellow Monsters, who surrendered the moment Marco had successfully escaped. "Well, looks like we're going to jail, fantastic," the half-Monster muttered, rolling his eyes.

Janna shrugged nonchalantly. "Eh, I'll figure a way out, I'm sure." She eyed the boy hintingly as she added, "Who knows? We might even be able to escape together." She then wagged her eyebrows for emphasis.

Tom blushed beet red, looking anywhere but in Janna's direction, coughing into his hand to try and cover his nervousness. He tried to think of something to say to change the subject before the two got dragged away but couldn't think of anything.

"There is still one thing left to do," Janna said, breaking the moment of silence.

Tom turned to her with confusion, an eyebrow slowly raising. "What?"

Janna smirked, before reaching out and wrapping her arms around Tom's waist, who squeaked in surprise. "This," she said cryptically, before dipping the boy low, holding him suspended above the ground and planting a firm but gentle kiss to his lips. Tom's startled mind stopped for a few seconds and he closed his eyes melting into the kiss.

As soon as it started it had finished, Janna pulling away and lifting Tom back to his feet, the half-Monster nearly collapsing as his knees threatened to give out on him. He stumbled in place for a few seconds, his eyes wide and full of stars and a bright, goofy grin on his face. Finally, his brain started processing again as he exclaimed loudly, "What was that?!"

Janna shrugged but the smile on her face showed her own joy. "Just something I always wanted to try. Seemed like a dramatic way to go out."

"You can't just kiss someone out of nowhere like that!" Tom shouted, hoping anger would hide his blushing cheeks and fast-beating heart which he was sure Janna could hear.

"What? You didn't like it?" Janna asked, the playful smirk returning.

Tom froze, words failing him for a second as his cheeks grew hotter than the sun. "I-I didn't- I-I mean- it's just-"

Janna opened her mouth to say something, only to stop her eyes widening out of nowhere, "Oh no, time's up," she muttered, concern in her voice for the first time since Tom had met her and it startled him even more than the kiss had.

"Time's up for what?" Tom started to ask, only to nearly scream in shock as before his eyes he watched Janna shrink, in a matter of seconds a small purple bat taking her place. The bat stared up at him with the same, chocolate brown gaze of Janna and the smile on its fangs was reminiscent of the beanie-wearing girl as well. Tom's pupils couldn't grow any smaller as he stared dumbfounded and slack-jawed down at Janna's new form. "What- How did- I have so many questions!" Tom screamed, clutching his salmon hair in his fists.

Marco and Pony, meanwhile, had almost escaped from town, the horse racing across the smooth stone streets while dodging around citizens and guards alike, never once slowing down as they reached the large bridge. As they crossed it, Marco looked up at the treeline above him, his thoughts jumping to his amazing best friend. He just hoped she was alright, that he wasn't too late. Hang on, Star, he thought, willing Pony Head to run faster as they entered into the wooded area, the boy already guiding Pony on the quickest route he could think of.

I'm on my way.

#star vs #Star vs AU #My Writing #Star is a Disney Princess #Star is Rapunzel #Starco #Jantom

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goodnightkisseu · 5 years

Text

Time To Heal - Chapter 6

→ pairing: sehun x reader

→ genre: fluff, angst, struggling musician sehun x rich reader

→ word count: 3,231

→ warnings: none

→ summary: you had your life planned out for you ever since you were a little girl. However, when your friend, Baekhyun, takes you with him to his old hangout, you meet someone, someone you were willing to risk your parents’ criticism to be with. His name was Oh Sehun. But, in the end, what you really should have asked yourself, was if Sehun was ready to face your parents…

→ masterlist // exo masterlist // time to heal masterlist

→ [prologue] [ch.1] [ch.2] [ch.3] [ch.4] [ch.5] [ch.6] [ch.7]

→ updates taglist~: @chanyeolol @meryljill-111192 @sehunscutiepie @hi-cupid @lilian235

note: this chapter was a really interesting one for me to write. Portraying awkwardness is a bit of a struggle for me, but hopefully it comes across here. We are more than half way through with this series now, I almost can’t believe it ;A;

Also, please let me know if you would like to be tagged in this story~

- ash <3

There had been times when you thought of seeing him again, but never did you believe that you would actually be sitting in a small restaurant across from Sehun. On occasion, you had dreamt about meeting him, though. On those nights when you slept a healthy amount, and your subconscious decided to wander back to him. Your paths would cross in some convoluted fashion, leading both of you to confront each other and your past. The thing was, those encounters, even if they were a dream, never went well. You would often wake up in a cold sweat, with a heavy heart. So, not having a great run with the dream version of him, having the real Sehun sitting in front of you, filled you with dread. In your eyes, there was no way that this was going to go well, but you had already agreed to be here.

"You... you look... well," Sehun finally said, being the first to break the silence that had fallen between the two of you. His words were slow, his brain thinking of about eight different things he could have said to you, but with each word uttered, this was the statement he landed on. He watched as your eyes looked up at him, though he noticed that they failed to make direct contact with his own. They were looking in his general direction, yes, but they never looked into his own. Understandably, this situation was an uncomfortable one for you, and Sehun was well aware of that. He was equally as nervous, though he knew that it would have been hard to believe that.

Time made Sehun realized that he screwed up with you. He wasn't sure if the two of you should have stayed together, but he did know that he handled the situation poorly. He became painfully aware of this after all of his friends gave him a mouthful the moment you showed up at the club that night. He had told them that he broke everything off cleanly, but when they saw you, they all knew that it was a lie. Also, once Baekhyun found out and almost beat Sehun to a pulp, he knew how bad the situation was. But at the time, he didn't care. He was so upset with the way that your parents treated him. He felt belittled and mocked. He felt inferior, and this was what made him lash out.

Years later, he realized that it must have been painful for you. That, the moment that you showed up at the club, the moment that you met Seohyun, it must have shattered your heart. His sharp words towards you were likely like daggers. It took time to realize that, and as more time passed, he had thought of apologizing. But he was also afraid that you didn't want to see him, that it would only hurt you more. Yet, the moment he saw you in the crowd with Baekhyun, he acted on impulse. Once Baekhyun went in to talk to the guys, Sehun slowly snuck out to see you. His mind was racing, he had so much to say to you, and that drove him to ask you to share a meal with him. And now you were here, in front of him, the adrenaline drained from the both of you. The space between you filled with awkwardness.

"I-I've... I've been okay," you managed to reply, the words having a harder time taking form than you had anticipated. In the past, you wouldn't have been this nervous around him. The words would have flowed effortlessly as you knew that the person in front of you wouldn't judge what you had to say. But with the way that things were left between the two of you were, you were uncertain, and that uneasiness had you on edge.

Still, you saw Sehun perk up a bit the moment that he heard your voice. You remembered him well enough to know that he had remained quiet as a way to allow you to speak when you were ready. He often did that before, when you were having a hard time communicating how you felt. You appreciated it then as much as you did now. "I've heard you - I've heard that things have been going well. Baek told me that everything has been on the rise for you and the guys. I'm glad."

Your response was... well, it honestly wasn't what Sehun had expected. In his mind, he had played through a handful of scenarios of how meeting you again would play out. Each one usually ended in you yelling at him, telling him to go away. Something as simple as a comment on his career wasn't really high on the list of possible conversation starters. But he supposed it was because he painted your entire situation so negatively that it spilled into these hypothesized situations. He always imagined harsh words and spite.

Sehun had forgotten your natural kindness, and he never thought that it would still extend to him. But this is how you always were. Your words were always very gentle, and not being one that liked lulls in conversation, your nervous habit would always try to fill the space with any type of topic. Maybe, right now, that was the best thing for both of you. Perhaps it was good that you hadn't changed.

"Well, if I'm going, to be honest, I feel like we've just been insanely lucky," Sehun admitted, his hand sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. "We had sent out so many demos, but none of those companies ever got back to us. I don't know if you remember this, but back then, there was this scout that kept coming to the music store. He and I talked on a pretty regular basis, and one day he asked if I knew of this band. They had sent in a demo, and his boss asked him to seek them out. Turns out, it was one of the ones that we had sent out. He asked when our next show was and came to see us perform in person. It seemed like he liked what he saw because things moved pretty swiftly after that. About a month later, we signed the contract. We've been pretty fortunate since then…"

You nodded along as Sehun spoke, and he wasn't wrong. That was quite the rollercoaster of events to happen. Baekhyun had never gone into details about it with you, but you were glad to find out that it happened rather quickly and seemingly for the right reasons. It felt like their company recognized their talents, and that was leading to good results. "That does feel rather fast, but I'm also not surprised that they liked you. You guys have always been amazing, and it was just about catching the eye of the right person. And it seems like that's exactly what happened," you said gently. "And look at you now. You're playing actual concert halls, and not in rundown buildings that the police used to chase you out of. It's all going wonderfully as far as I can see."

"T-thanks..." he said slowly, managing to give you a small smile. He felt himself loosening up now, the tension between the two of you slowly dissipating. Hearing your words made Sehun realize something else that he had forgotten about you. He had forgotten how supportive you had been of his musical endeavors. Unlike your parents and their condescending view of musicians, you had always been supportive, singing their praises, pushing them to keep pursuing their goals. Maybe it was because he had convinced himself that you hated him. But now it hurt his heart to know that, no matter what he did, you still showed him warmth and kindness. He really didn't deserve any of that.

"I heard that things were going great for you too. Baekhyun had mentioned once that you work for your parents now. Your last job was so successful that you managed to apply directly for a leadership position was what he said? That's really incredible. You always were extremely talented."

You gently waved your hand, dismissing his overly exaggerated compliment. You did your job well, yes, but you wouldn't quite say that you were endowed with the same level of talent that Sehun was suggesting. "You know me, I just worked hard. I don't like seeing good things go to waste, so I put in endless hours getting that small company back onto its feet. They had a lot of talent; they just needed to use it correctly," you replied. "Baekhyun is right, though. I am working for my parents now, which is... an interesting challenge in and of itself. I did get the job of my own accord and was lucky that the interview went well. They were actually considering a different person for the position, so I'm rather relieved that they chose me in the end..."

"But, you know, Baekhyun likes to hang around, and new employees keep asking me what he's doing there. They ask what his job is, and I have to stop myself from being too sarcastic with my answer," you jested, getting a chuckle out of Sehun. You felt comforted that you were able to make this situation a bit lighter. Hearing his laugh told you that he was having a decent time. Back then, you always loved the sound of it. It always brought you so much joy. Even now… it still did.

"You should honestly just tell them the truth. Say that Baek is your friend from college who’s still mooching off of you," Sehun teased, hearing the light trill of your giggles. He knew you would never actually do something like that, but the thought was amusing. "But really, only Byun Baekhyun could have so much free time even after working as hard as he does. What a little shit..."

"Truly, it's very Baek, isn't it. Even in college, he was like this. You could imagine how frustrating that was," you replied, seeing a smile cross Sehun's lips. It looked... genuine, and you were honestly relieved.

"I'm glad he's able to be there for you, though. I -"

However, before Sehun could even get to his apology, he was interrupted by your food, finally arriving. The older woman that ran the restaurant stuck around to talk to you two for a bit, and by the time she had left, Sehun felt like he had missed his opportunity. Instead, he kept it to himself, focusing on his meal, the silence only broken to make comments on how delicious the food was. Still, the silence killed him a bit. Before, your conversations with each other were so effortless. It was natural and comfortable to say what was on your mind. Now, even though the conversation was still decent, it wasn't the same. The two of you… were just acquaintances now.

"So, when does the new single come out? I'm sure that you've been working hard on something new," you said, breaking the silence as you picked at the remainder of your food.

"Oh... I think it's slanted for the end of next month. From the last planning meeting, it sounded like the company wanted to start pushing us more, as one of their main acts. So they're reducing the time in between singles so that we got more exposure overall. Chanyeol's been putting in endless hours for this new single, since I feel like he thinks it’s a make or break situation. Honestly, the only time I ever see him anymore is when he wants to go get drinks when he's hit by a creative block," he replied. He heard a chuckle leave your lips, and he smiled knowingly.

You were no stranger to what happened when Chanyeol had a creative block. He was an exceptionally talented writer, but when he hit a block, he couldn't do anything for days. According to him, the only way to re-inspired himself - which was just a fancy code for needing to blow off some steam - was to go drinking. And Sehun was usually the unfortunate soul that had to go with him. You knew this well because, on more than one occasion, you had to retrieve both drunken men from the establishment they were at, but not without some assistance from their other, sober, bandmates.

"I'm guessing that Kyungsoo still has to come and get you when both of you are too drunk to walk straight?" you mused, seeing a small node from Sehun. You knew that he couldn't deny it at this point. "I guess some things never change..."

"We're a pretty predictable bunch. I mean, the only difference now is that we all live together. So every time Kyungsoo brings us back, he just throws us into the living room, and we have to fend for ourselves from there," Sehun explained, unable to stop himself from laughing.

"I'm glad that you still have Kyungsoo looking out for you. I know that for a while, he wasn't sure if he wanted to make music his career. He had other plans, and the band was only supposed to be for fun. I'm glad he didn't give up on it. He's a good friend," you stated.

Sehun nodded, your point opening it up for him to state what he wanted to earlier. "I... I was actually going to say something similar earlier," he started, watching your brow furrow slowly. "But about Baekhyun. I'm glad that you have him to check in on you all of the time. I know... I know how hard you always work, maybe sometimes a bit too hard. So, it's good that he's around to pull you away every once and a while, to make sure that you take a break."

You smiled softly. "Well, Baek isn't always successful. More often than not, he isn't, but tonight he was. Actually, he was the one that suggested that I come out and see you guys perform since it's been so long..."

Sehun had been unsure if he should say what was on his mind, but he suddenly felt brave. Well, it was a feeling between bold and guilt, a need to be honest with you, regardless of the outcome. So, he went for it. "To be honest, I'm glad he brought you tonight. I... I've wanted to talk to you for a long time..." he confessed. His eyes had been fixated on the remnants of his meal, and slowly, he chanced an upward glance. For the first time that evening, your eyes met. His earlier nervousness was back, but he knew he would only have one shot at this, so he was going to say it.

"Look, you don't have to accept anything I'm about to say. You don't even have to stay here to hear it all, but I would like it if you would. I want to... I want to apologize to you. I know that this probably seems ridiculous. It was a long time coming, and I know that I'm to blame for most of it. But I need you to know that I'm sorry for how I treated you. I should have been more transparent with you, and I should have chosen my words better. You didn't deserve to be ridiculed like that, to be humiliated like that…" he told you. "I know these words don't mean much now, but I've thought about it a lot, and I just had to let you know…"

When Sehun told you that he had something to say... you never thought that this was where it was leading. His admission had surprised you. Though you were aware that he hated misunderstandings, you also didn't expect him to apologize for something that happened so long ago. Sure, it was a painful moment, it was something that defined the end of your relationship with each other and ultimately the end to all of your communication, but to bring it up now... it took a lot of courage. Though there was no excuse for what happened, you could understand him lashing out back then.

You supposed that he was not trying to clear it all up, and though you appreciated the sentiment, your heart was still broken. It wasn't ready to fully forgive him. Life didn't work like that. "Sehun..."

"I can guess what you're thinking, and it's okay. It's okay if this doesn't change anything between us. I just want you to know that I have thought about it, and I know I didn't handle it well." Sehun was aware of how his words sounded, and he wanted to reassure you that he wasn't trying to force change. He just... needed to say it. "I know I won't get another opportunity like this, so now was the right time."

A soft, 'okay' left your lips as your eyes finally moved away from his, focusing on your phone screen. You became aware of the time, and though you knew it wasn't a graceful exit, this was probably a good time to leave. "I should probably get going… I have work in the morning…"

It hurt him somewhat, to not get a direct reply to his words, but he knew he shouldn't have expected it. That confession wasn't going to change years of pain. It was going to take more than that. "Ah, I've kept you out pretty late, haven't I. I'm sorry about that," he replied sheepishly, trying to brush off the awkwardness. He was trying to give you an easy out. That was the best he could do at the moment.

"One of the unfortunate things of working a regular office job. But, the night is still young. I'm sure that you could call the guys, and the lot of you could have a nice post-concert wrap-up. You don't have to see me home," you him, but in turn, he offered to pay, much to your displeasure. He was always like this, trying to find ways to compromise.

Slowly, Sehun stood from his seat. "It was good to see you again," he told you earnestly.

"It was good seeing you again as well. Good luck with everything, Sehun. I know that you'll do well," you told with a small smile. You had turned to leave and had every thought of getting out of there as fast as you could, but something stopped you. You didn't turn around to face Sehun, but you felt like you had to give him some closure as well. "Thank you for telling me, by the way. I don't quite know how I feel at the moment, but I'll let you know…" you added vaguely, knowing that you couldn't walk out there without letting him know that you would consider his apology.

He didn't know what to say in response and only uttered a quiet, 'thank you' before he watched you exit the restaurant. He knew that was the best he could have asked for. As his fingers slid across his screen, texting Chanyeol to ask where the band was, he couldn't help the sense of emptiness that overcame him. It all of a sudden felt strange, sitting at this table, without your presence across form him. Sehun didn't think that he felt anything for you anymore... but maybe... he was wrong...

#oh sehun #sehun #exo #exo scenarios #kwritersworldnet #exo fiction #exo fanfic #exo imagines #sehun scenarios #sehun imagines #kpop scenarios #goodnightkisseu series #gnks: time to heal

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joonsrack · 5 years

Text

+Pairing: Kim Seokjin x Kim Namjoon

+Genre: One shot, college au, fluff, kind of established relationship but not.

+10-31, nonhyeon dong series: Part I | Part II | Part III

+Word count: 8.3k

+Summary:

"Hyung...you- you two kissed?" Seokjin freezes for a half a second, then rolls his eyes nonchalantly, going back to his task. "Yes, it was part of the plan, remember?" He feels the room fall silent around him. "What?" He asks and catches Namjoon’s expression that's getting redder by the seconds from where he's looking past Taehyung's shoulder to the phone in his dongsaeng's hands. "What?" He tries again. "We talked about a peck... This-..." He says gleefully, turning the phone towards Seokjin who squints to make senses of what's inside the small screen. "This is not. A peck"

+Warnings: SFW, Stalker (not between the same pairing), bad dad jokes & sarcasm.

A/N: Apology to VIXX fans, i didn’t know who they were back then and just picked a random celebrity name. Lee Jaehwan just happened to be there, i don’t hate him or anything.

Kim Namjoon 21h 43:

whrr thr f ar u

Kim Seokjin 21h 43:

I forgot to feed the cat.

Kim Namjoon 21h 43:

ur almoat ahour lte .

ANd we dnt hava catr .

Kim Seokjin 21h47:

You’re the person with the highest IQ I know, yet it takes a PhD to make sense of your text, honestly.

Kim Namjoon 21h 53:

(...)

You've been shining by your absence for almost a hour now , your club members have been throwing me weird looks for the most part of it because they do not know my business here .

Also , ywe do not own a cat.

Kim Seokjin 21h 54:

No need to get your underpants in a twist, Shakespeare. Just make it readable .

Kim Namjoon 21h 54:

Y ou're late . Your club members are w e i r d.

Kim Seokjin 21h 55:

Tell me something i don't know.

Kim Namjoon 21h 59:

It would take 10,000 helium balloons to make your ass fly over here.

Hurry . the fuck. up .

Kim Seokjin 22h 03:

Roger that .

Hey you want to hear a joke about helium ?

Kim Namjoon 22h 04:

Hyung.

No.

Kim Seokjin 22h 04:

Almost.

The correct answer is Na, though .

Kim Namjoon 22h 04:

hyuNG .

******

‘Best friends’ is what most people would use. Sometimes, there's the odd ball that calls them soulmates.

Honestly, Seokjin thinks neither apply.

The rest of their misfit roommates calls them oemma and appa. They also talk about their wedding as if it already happened. As a joke, of course.

Because they're not married.

He thinks to himself, as Namjoon spends most of the night with his arm wrapped around his waist. For his defense, they're acting like a couple to discourage a creep from Seokjin's club that's been becoming increasingly annoying in the last few weeks; Seokjin is never having drunk sex with kind-of-friends again, however horny he might get. Nothing good ever comes out of it, and now he's gotten himself the worst kind of STD: a stalker.

It only took a passing mention during their weekly TV Thursday night for their roommates to plan out a way to get Seokjin out of his awkward situation.

(It got past awkward territory when he asked you for the fifth time if you were sure you didn't want to go on a date with him Friday night, Yoongi said.

He might have been right.)

The solution they came up with then is to pretend Seokjin’s eternal Uni celibacy is a thing of the past, Namjoon being the logical choice as a fake boyfriend since the whole University already think they are dating.

Namjoon is also the logical choice since their noisy friends seem hellbent on having them married with five kids ever since Jungkook and Taehyung put their big boys pants on (or off) and confessed to each other. Now it's like it's their four friends goal to get Namjoon and Seokjin together next (Yoongi probably doesn't give a shit about anything else other than his music and Jimin's ass, so Seokjin isn't counting him in).

So yeah, Seokjin wouldn't exactly use the term best friend or soulmates to describe his relationship with the younger man. More something in the line of puzzle pieces; they're different yet they fit.

It's chance that brought them together (or more commonly named: being bad dancers). The only thing they had in common back then had been overbearing mothers; one who wanted her son to gain control over his limbs and stop breaking everything, and the other having high expectations for her son's handsome face. Being the worst of their hip hop dance class, they bonded over always being put in the back during choreography.

They don't take dance classes anymore, but 10 years down the line and Seokjin couldn't see his life without Kim Namjoon's face in it.

Living together for university had been only natural, and along came the five other weirdos.

They drew the line at sharing the same room to have a break of each other's face from time to time. But if it comes down to it, Namjoon is probably the only person, other than his parents, who knows almost everything about him.

(More than his parents, actually.)

So, kissing him to make their act all the more believable doesn't feel as weird as he thinks it should.

Awkward, maybe, but not weird. He spent the best of the last few years trying (and failing) to avoid looking at Namjoon's pout, so it's safe to say he's already familiarized with it; well before Namjoon chuckles awkwardly and goes in for a peck under the gleeful look of his club members. He's pretty sure bet had been going on about them.

Of course, the only one who doesn't think so is Lee Jaehwan, stalker extraordinary.

No, he seems extremely surprised by this turn of event, and has the audacity to look affronted. He doesn't budge though, just press his lips together and raises an eyebrow, as if to say: you're not fooling anyone.

Of course it wouldn't be that easy, Seokjin thinks, irritated.

"Come on boys, we're all adults here, we're over the peck-on-cheek stage" someone throws from the back. Once Seokjin finds out who, he's cancelled.

It's too late though, and their club members are calling obnoxiously for an encore. The rest of the patrons at the bar are looking at them like the bunch of annoying kids they are, bringing a faint blush of embarrassment to his cheeks. Seokjin smiles nervously, his excuse all set and ready to go; but it gets lost in Namjoon's mouth.

There's a hand on his neck keeping him in place, but it's not strong enough that he couldn't push it away, if he wanted. Namjoon is just that considerate.

It takes him a moment to remember he can (and should) breath through his nose.

He has a split second of clarity to thanks god Taehyung and Jungkook couldn't make it to their club hangout tonight, before he wraps his arms around Namjoon's neck and sells his soul to the devil. He's already in love with the dude, what is it going to change to get a taste of him?

Once he relaxes into the kiss, it becomes all the more natural. Puzzle pieces, Seokjin's mind provides again. His mind has always been too noisy though, so he shuts it off. Namjoon kisses him like it's a challenge, and Seokjin knows he already lost. He lost well before their lips ever connected; he doesn't feel like a loser, though, once he realizes that he’s not the only one breathing hard.

Seconds becomes minute and his club members chants become catcalls, and when he opens his eyes again, disoriented but holding on to Namjoon's frame, he can see from the corner of his eyes Lee Jaehwan storming out of the bar.

"Mission accomplished" Namjoon whispers to him once Creepy McPants is out of sight.

He lets out a relieved sigh and sags a little in Namjoon's embrace. His dongsaeng passes a reassuring hand down his back, knowing him too well. Anybody else and Seokjin would be putting on an indifferent front, but it's Kim Namjoon standing before him.

"Since we're here, might as well drink something? I think I need to relax a little." He says and tries to meet Namjoon’s eyes but the younger man seems to be looking at everything but him.

"Sure" Namjoon shrugs, "I'll go get us something, just to escape from their crazed looks for a few."

"You snatched the prettiest one around, of course they'll be noisy about it, it's the drama club." Seokjin says, playing up the arrogant attitude to try and get rid of the awkwardness surrounding them.

"You're so modest"

"Tell me something I don't know"

Namjoon looks pensive for a second, and Seokjin can only regret his comeback before his dongsaeng speaks again.

"We just shared 80 million bacteria" He answers, their eyes finally meeting.

Seokjin signs heavily, looking unimpressed with his friend. Of course, he's going to act as if they just didn't share some life changing kiss that's going to make it 300% harder for Seokjin to get over his infatuation.

That thing he did with his tongue?

He's ruined.

"You're not the only that can be a smart ass, Hyung." Namjoon shrugs again, then goes toward the general direction of the bar, probably to get him his favorite drink.

Because there's no reason why Namjoon wouldn't know Seokjin's favorite drink, is there?

******

"So how did your date go, hyung?" Jimin asks from where he's perched over the kitchen counter, licking a spatula full of what looks like thick white cream.

Yoongi standing frozen over the remains of a broken cup makes a lot more sense now.

Hoseok is whipping up cake batters for who knows what reason, and Jungkook and Taehyung are doing their weird foreplay rituals that includes playing violent video games and telling each other to eat shit.

Youngsters these days have weird ways to set the mood.

"Namjin 1; Jaehwan 0" He answers with no inflection. He just can't wait to be alone in his room to analyze every tiny detail of his new-found knowledge; Kim Namjoon aka Professional Mouth Licker.

"He looked pretty pissed though, when he stormed out" Namjoon says with a worried crease forming between his brows "You should probably be careful for the next few weeks... Try to avoid being alone with him".

"It's not like I have much control over that, we're in the same club, we're in the same play. He might have a pretty minor role put the mailman is a key character"

"Don't worry Hyung," Taehyung says from where his head is now pillowed on Jungkook's thighs. They've stopped playing to listen in, apparently. "We'll keep an eye on him. With Jungkook's muscles and my..." He looks down at his own body, frowning. "I won't be much help but Jungkook's muscles will do, I guess."

"But you do have muscles, hyungie" Jungkook says, trying to subtly shove a hand under Taehyung's T-shirt. 'Trying' being the key word here.

"Oh for fuck sake" Jimin says, fake gagging. "We should never have helped them get their shit together. I'll regret it eternally."

"Yah, when have you ever helped them," Yoongi squints. "You only wanted first row to the drama."

Jimin doesn't even bother looking affronted, sauntering off the counter with a smirk.

"You gotta admit Hyung, the tea was pretty good."

Taehyung and Jungkook get-together-story kind of became this year's running gag, generating hours of teasing and laughing from the rest of their hyungs. But they took their revenge by becoming gross. Grosser than when they were simply crushing on each other, as if that was possible.

Which is why Seokjin knows it's Taehyung's phone that starts making a racket as he pours himself and Namjoon a glass of water, since his different notifications sounds are recordings of Jungkook's various weird laughs.

(Once, Taehyung "forgot" his phone in his room, and he spent the whole night waking up to the Maknae's evil laughter. Seokjin still believe the phone had been purposely hidden there. Revenge had been written all over Taehyung's face when he came to collect his phone the next morning.)

But now he's so used to it that he barely reacts, until a loud gasp from behind startles him.

"Hyung...you- you two kissed?"

Seokjin freezes, then rolls his eyes nonchalantly, going back to his task. "Yes, it was part of the plan, remember?"

He feels the room fall silent around him.

"What?" He asks and catches Namjoon’s expression that's getting redder by the seconds from where he's looking past Taehyung's shoulder to the phone in his dongsaeng's hands.

"What?" He tries again.

"We talked about a peck... This-..." He says gleefully, turning the phone towards Seokjin who squints to make senses of what's inside the small screen. "This is not. A peck"

It's a little blurry, but you can clearly see Namjoon's tongue shoved down his throat.

Seokjin takes a deep breath, brain going a mile a minute to come up with a good excuse.

He can feel five hungry stares looking their way, and he's coming up blank; all he can focus on is the thought of his bed calling on to him.

He does the most sensible thing; grabs Namjoon's hand before anyone can react and runs for it.

"I'm sorry hyung, I wanted to help you out, but now we will never live this down." Namjoon whines from between his hands covering his red face, once they are safely hidden away in Seokjin and Yoongi's room.

"Tell me something I don't know"

Namjoon goes to open his mouth despite his embarrassment, but this time Seokjin is faster.

"Don't.”

He can hear giggle from the other side of the door that he gratefully locked, thanking god for Min Yoongi and his appreciation of social interactions.

"You can't hide forever hyungie~" Jimin muffled voice calls out sweetly.

"Yes we can~" He answers, matching in sweetness.

"No you can't, not in my room."

"Shut up Yoongiyah, you go sleep in Namjoon's bed for the night." he says, since being the oldest has advantages. "Or better yet, I'm sure Jimin has some space to spare for your skinny ass." he adds as an afterthought.

There's a few choice words thrown his way, until he can hear Hoseok tell Yoongi to shut the fuck up and sacrifice his room to blossoming love.

A disgruntled sigh is all he needs to hear to know they won't be disturbed for the reminder of the night.

*****

The signs that escape his mouth is enough to shake mountains, but not Min Yoongi.

No, Yoongi ignores his arrival, still a little bit mad for having been locked out of his room couple days ago. Jimin is there as well, lazing on his hyung's bed with a pair of earbuds cutting him off from the world. Seokjin's catches a few seconds of what seems to be some studio dance practice.

He sighs again, this time his whole body melting into his bed.

"What." Yoongi's snaps. Because no matter how hard he tries, he'll never be able to hide the fact that he cares.

"Lee Jaehwan has yet to give up, it seems."

It doesn't take half a second before Namjoon's head pops into the room.

"I knew he'd be hard to shake off" he muses out loud, cocking a hip against the door frame

"If you two keep acting like a couple he'll get over it some days" Yoongi says, not stopping the rotation of his chair. It's making Seokjin dizzy.

"What acting?" Jimin adds from his spot, one of his earbud now dangling.

Ignoring his comment, Namjoon's takes place on the space left on the bed and puts a reassuring hand on the small of his back.

"My point" Jimin mutters again, but a pillow is thrown into his face.

"What happened?", Namjoon asks, and Seokjin groans once again.

"Nothing too dramatic... he asked me if I was serious about you and he got all mad when I said yes. Then he was just there, in the background. I could feel his wrath, literally. He made everyone tiptoe around him."

"He acted like a dickwad" Jungkook adds from the door frame, balancing Taehyung on his back. "The biggest dickwad around"

"Not to me" Taehyung says, and the room focus on him.

"He acted overly sweet and asked If I knew of anyone planning to move out of the apartment. And how much the rent was."

A grim silence fills the room, even Yoongi stops spinning.

"For fuck sake" Seokjin whines.

"Of course, I told him no one was leaving and he couldn't afford the rent. Then he acted like the biggest dickwad towards me as well."

"Well this Lee Jaehwan problem will not go away as easily as we thought" Jimin says, all business like.

Namjoon's chin is starting to protrude; he's getting serious.

The front doors screeches, and Hoseok erupts from the hallway a few seconds later, drenched in sweat, finding the six of them crammed into the medium sized room with a mix of worried and irritated expressions on.

"What'd I miss" he says, eyebrows joining his hairline, trying to squeeze past the two men combo blocking the door. "Why' we all crammed in here when the living room is perfectly sized to accommodate all of us?" He asks, but he joins Jimin on the bed anyways, to Yoongi's displeasure. They both ignores his protest as they get into a more comfortable position.

"The disrespect- I swear to god if my bed smells like sweat... How can you touch him right now Jiminie?"

"We're both dancers, we're used to it." Their matching indifferent look are enough to shut Yoongi up.

"What should we do next." Namjoon's puts the conversation back on track.

"Seokjin-hyung could act mean to him?" Jungkook proposes.

"Have you seen him? He doesn't know how to be mean. He's an eomma down to his soul"

"I can be mean," he defends himself against Jimin's jab, "I could tell him his... body proportions are bad?"

A groan spreads through the room. Even Hoseok who doesn't even know what they're talking about. He must be getting the idea, though.

"Tell him his acting sucks" Taehyung proposes. "Because it does. Then you're not being mean, you're telling the truth and saving him from a future of job rejections. It's a win-win.”

"We're not trying to destroy his self-esteem, just trying to make him see that Seokjin-hyung is not the one for him."

"Then tell him he doesn't fit your standards"

"I tried, but he laughed it off." He says, irritation permeating his words.

"It's like nobody here knows our university has campus security" Jimin sighs.

"Luckily for us or our precious Jungkookie would be in jail~" Hoseok singsongs.

The maknaes couple blush and escapes the room, Taehyung still perched on his boyfriend's back.

"They will never live this down" Yoongi's grins, then hits a couple of keys on his keyboards and jumps to his feet. "Alright, I'm gone"

"Hi gone, I'm Seokjin", he answers as an automatism, because he knows his classics. Dad jokes are life.

Yoongi stops in his track as a resounding groan crosses the room again, stares at him with the blankest look of disappointment possible, then leaves without saying anything else.

The sound of the door closing seems to startle Hoseok and Jimin into action as well.

"Didn't you say the studio was free today? I need you to look at a new movement I want to fit in for the next showcase."

"Sure, everything for my cute dongsaengie" Hoseok coos. Coos.

In a flurry of movement only flexible people can afford, they both leave the room with a goodbye thrown behind.

And they were two.

"Either my bad joke scared them away, or none of my dongsaengs care that I might be kidnapped and put into a cage only to be fed dry ass chicken by a creep that's counting on Stockholm syndrome to make me fall for him."

Namjoon scoffs but frowns again.

"You want to give a shot to extra PDA? I could come and fetch you after your club meetings? We could try walking together in the morning?"

“It’s not like we don’t already do that most of the time.” Seokjin sighs to the sudden quietness of the room. “But sure, ’cause I'm getting too old to put my back through the trauma of being restrained in a cage."

He pats the empty spot next to him and Namjoon takes the cue and lays down.

They wake up hours later disoriented and limbs tangled to the flash of a camera.

These damn youngsters, he swears silently.

*****

The next day, everybody seems to have a new lock screen.

Everybody but Yoongi of course, but Seokjin doesn't take it personally; Min Holly has been his phone screen ever since he had to leave his puppy with his parents while he was off to University.

And by the way he smirks at Seokjin first thing in the morning, he at least downloaded the picture into his phone.

It's a cute picture he has to admit, with him and Namjoon so entangled it's hard to tell which limbs belongs to who. He wishes he could find a way to subtly ask someone to send it to him. But that would be weird, right?

Right.

His paper on the influence of dramatics art on the development of kids is staring blankly back at him. He's supposed to hand it back in a few days but he can't bring himself to stay focused for two seconds, he's got too many things on his mind; like Namjoon's tongue down his throat or the borderline stalker walking towards him.

"Hey, Seokjinie!"

Lee Jaehwan is waving, and Seokjin debates acting like he didn't see or hear him, but being in the school library kind of makes it hard to play that card. Also the fact that they shared a nice and awkward eye contact.

"Jaehwan, hey" he answers, hoping his irritation isn't showing too much.

"You're working on the paper for Park Seonseangnim's class?"

"Yeah... Or I'm trying to. I'm having a hard time focusing here." Seokjin says with a small bite, hoping for the man to take the cue. Which he doesn't.

"Oh well, you want to take a coffee break? I'll buy.” he says, with a big smile full of teeth. Like a wolf in disguise. That wants to kidnap him.

And then put him in a cage and feed him dry chicken.

Seokjin closes the lid of his laptop just on the side of too hard. Here he was hoping to fit in a couple of lines, but that won't be possible now.

"Actually, I have to go, I'm meeting up with Namjoonie in a few."

"Right. Kim Namjoon. Your Boyfriend." He says with something close to disdain in his voice, the capital "B" clearly voluntary.

Seokjin starts gathering his things as Jaehwan carries on.

"You know it's funny because when I think about it just a few weeks ago you told you didn't want to date before finishing your degree."

He's still smiling and it's so fake, Seokjin can see right through. He can see the irritation and self-righteousness, and it's starting to get on his nerves.

"You're right, I remember thinking that. But I also remember being an adult who can take his own goddamn decision without anyone butting in, thank you very much."

He roughly shoves his books in his bag, struggling when the zipper gets stuck. Jaehwan takes the opportunity to grab him by the wrist and halt his movement, and it takes Seokjin everything to contains his rage at having this guy trying to invade his life.

"Wait, I didn't mean to make you mad. I'm just trying to figure out why you rejected me. You haven't even left me a chance. After that night you just acted as if nothing happened..."

"Honestly, I've told you in so many different ways that you don't interest me, if you still don't get it by now, then you're just plain stupid. I like them smart, so all the more reasons for me not to date you.” he hisses.

With that off his mind, he yanks his arm free and walks away. Some students stare as he storms out, but he's too irritated to feel bad for his loudness.

There's strange sense of satisfaction that comes with not acting nice. Is this how it feels to be mean?

******

That night when he gets home he starts whipping up a meal. It happens when he's stressed. Frying rice somehow helps him get his mind off things.

There's only three pair of shoes thrown hazardously by the door, but he always makes enough to have leftovers, so he cooks something for seven. By the time it's almost ready, Namjoon, Taehyung and Jimin come sniffing out of their room, drawn out by the smell of his kimchi fried rice.

Namjoon takes one look at him and at the meal he's cooking.

"Is something wrong, Hyung?"

Seokjin answers with a noncommittal sound and the subject is dropped, for now. Jimin takes the hint though and pops a chilled soju bottle and a couple of beer out of the refrigerator.

"Someak! Someak!" Taehyung exclaims, and gets the shot glass and beer glass from the cupboard.

They eat in relative quietness, talking in low voice of the highlights of their days and enjoying a few drinks. By 8pm, Jimin's and Taehyung's cheeks are reddish, and they laugh much too easily. Namjoon is telling them a story in a slower and deeper drawl than usual, and Seokjin is smiling at nothing. Or maybe he's smiling at Namjoon stupid handsome face, and low voice, and adorable dimples. Whatever.

Jimin and Taehyung offer themselves for the dishes, Namjoon having been banned from the task since the first few months of their cohabitation.

"You wanna watch something on my computer?" He offers Seokjin instead.

"What are my options?"

Namjoon thinks for a second, booting up his laptop.

"Are you feeling more something like Train to Busan or 100 days with Mr. Arrogant?"

"As much as I enjoy my fair share of teen classic, seeing zombies eating their way through humanity seems pretty ideal for my state of mind right now."

"Train to Busan it is." He says, and search through his files until he lets out a triumphant sound, the movie studio animation playing a few seconds later.

They settle more comfortably on Namjoon's bed, still a little buzzed from their drinks. The laptop is safely positioned on a nightstand, strategically moved to be the perfect TV stand.

He makes it through the first half relatively alert, but the screams of terror are lulling him to sleep, and he burrow a little deeper under the blanket. Namjoon throws a casual arm over him, like it's the most natural thing for them to cuddle. It probably is.

He doesn't know how he ends up the little spoon, but he's not going to complain; Namjoon's breath is ghosting over his neck, making goosebumps breaks out all over his skin.

It should probably make the whole experience uncomfortable, but it doesn't, truth to be told. This happened countless times over the last ten years, and it will probably happens again. They both know each other’s body by now, and he does know why he ended up the little spoon. He always is, probably because he ends up complaining whenever it's the other way around.

His lanky arms are just not made for Namjoon's head.

There's a finger rubbing circles into his skin, probably more unconsciously than anything else. The shape they're drawing is getting less consistent as Namjoon's breath evens out. Soon enough, Seokjin's eyes are losing the battle against the drowsiness weighting over them. There's a weird noise somewhere in the house, but he pays it no mind as his breath evens out as well.

With Jimin and Taehyung being the only one home, it's nothing new. But there's a weird feeling to it all. Nevertheless, he knows if it's anything major they'll come knocking.

It ends up being kind of major, but there's no knocking, and it's not who he thought it would be.

God, he wishes they had chosen his goddamn room to watch the movie, then he could have locked the door and wouldn't need to open his eyes to Lee Jaehwan's face.

"What the fuck." Is all he manages to say.

There's Jimin and Taehyung struggling to hold him back with pink latex gloves on, but they clearly kept on drinking so they don't seem to be the most efficient defence line.

Namjoon makes a confused noise when Seokjin's warmth disappears, following him as he sits up on the bed.

He looks confused by Jaehwan's presence, until he sees the door of their apartment gapping open down the hallway and his maknaes’s distraught states.

And then, he doesn't look confused anymore.

The only time Seokjin saw Namjoon looking like that was years ago, when one of Seokjin's ex cheated on him, gave him a STD, then called him on the phone to break up with him. That had been a funny night. That evening, Namjoon silently went out and came back hours later hiding his hands in his pockets. Seokjin never asked.

"What do you think you're doing here?"

Calm and composed is, and always will be, the scariest kind of Kim Namjoon. He gets to his feet in an intimidating motion, ready to block off any attempt to get to his Hyung.

"Seokjinah, I need to talk to you"

"He's got nothing to say to you. Get out."

"I'm not talking to you." He tries to side step Namjoon but he's having none of it. He grabs him by the arm, hard enough to earn him a whine, and pulls him out of the room into the hallway and out the door of their apartment. He’s got his two hands holding on roughly to Jaehwan’s shirt collar, probably planning on slamming him into a wall, but before they can create a bigger disturbance, Seokjin stops him with a gentle hand.

"Go back inside." He tells Namjoon, his eyes on Lee Jaehwan

"Hyung..." He tries to argue, not letting go.

"I got this."

It's probably the look of steel on Seokjin's face that convince Namjoon to let him handle the situation, and after throwing a last look between the two, he reluctantly lets go and withdraws inside.

He's probably spying through the peephole, though.

"Let's walk." Seokjin, throws over his shoulder, walking towards the exit without looking if Jaehwan is following. The last thing he wants is noise complaints from his neighbour. He doesn't even know what time it is, but the last time he checked, it was pushing 10, so it's probably getting late.

They walk down the staircase and out of the building in total silence, the only thing confirming the other man following being the sound of his steps close behind.

Once they step into the air outside, Seokjin takes the direction of the nearest subway station.

Jaehwan hurries his steps to be level with him.

"I know it's rude to barge in like that but I really needed to talk to you... and your roommates refused to go and get you."

"Reasonable, as they knew I was busy.”

"I didn't have a choice, you've haven't responded to any of my text. I couldn't find you after you left the library."

"Probably because I didn't want to talk to you. But we're here, so let's talk." He stops and turns around." I don't know how to make you understand that I don't have any interest in you, any intention to date you-"

Jaehwan tries to interrupt but Seokjin raises his hand and stops him.

"I'm at the point where I don't even want to try and stay friend with you. You're making me hate you."

"But the night we spent together-" he says, grabbing his wrist, again.

"Meant nothing. We slept together. That's it. I was drunk, you were drunk. We had a one off and honestly, I don't even remember half of it. From what I do remember though, you weren't really memorable. We're just not a good match."

"I was drunk, if we tried again-"

Seokjin snaps his wrist away and takes a step back.

"There is not going to be an 'again'. There was never going to be one since there's nothing between us."

"Seokjin..."

"You're making yourself look pathetic, and you're making my life hard. Just please, stop it. Don't talk to me outside of club duty."

"Why, because your boyfriend won't like it?" Jaehwan, says, taking a step forward to stay close, invading his personal space. Again.

"No, because I don't want to talk to you, that's all. Namjoon has nothing to do with this."

"Oh, come on Seokjinie, I know you're not dating him for real. You’re just trying to make me jealous.” Jaehwan says with a smile, as if he's gotten the upper hand. Seokjin hesitates a second but decides it's not even worth to try and defend the lie they crafted to discourage Jaehwan’s advances. Clearly, it failed.

“No, I told everyone we were dating so you would give up, but your head is so far up your ass that it didn't matter to you."

"Yah Kim Seokjin," he says, and take a couple of steps again, until he's standing in Seokjin's face. "I've let a lot of insults slip by because I know you're just playing hard to get, but don't cross the line. You keep calling me stupid and stuff, and it's not cute anymore. Let's just stop this game, ok? We don't have to tell anyone if you're scared for your image, we can just date in secret."

Seokjin is shocked frozen by the thickness of Jaehwan's skull. He's so deluded, and he's starting to regret not letting Namjoon handle him. No, he had to go and get them alone, at night, with no one around.

"I'm not playing hard to get. I don't like you. Leave me alone. How many times do I have to say-"

Lee Jaehwan grabs both of his shoulders and goes in for a kiss, shocking Seokjin who braces himself for the impact. He struggles to push the man away, but he's never been the muscular type, giving Jaehwan an advantage that he takes to keep a tight hold on him.

He can feel fingers digging uncomfortably into the meat of his shoulder, making it hard to avoid Jaehwan's attempt to plant one on him.

Seokjin is considering a nice and well timed headbutt, desperate times and all that, but it proves itself unnecessary as two muscled arms pull the man off him and make quick work of throwing him to the ground in a mess of limbs.

Never in his life Seokjin has been this happy to see Jeon Jungkook, modern day hero.

He's standing tall in all of his post workout glory, a gym bag hanging from his shoulder and his tank top showing off his impressive biceps.

Once Jaehwan sees who it is, he exclaims in anger, opening his mouth probably to shout about respects and social conventions.

Before anything makes out of his throat though, Jungkook interrupts him.

"Sunbae," He says, voice honey-sweet. He carefully places a foot on Jaehwan's hands, putting a light pressure. "I don't think you're showing a good example right now, with the bad touch and the lack of consent" Seokjin bites his tongue, knowing now is not the right time to bring up Jungkook's romantic history. "You should go home and reflect on that for the night." He says, and then add just a little bit more pressure on the hand squished between his shoe and the harsh cement of the side walk. "And If you ever touch Seokjin-Hyung again, I will break every single joint in both of your hands. Understood?"

His smile doesn't match his words nor his action, succeeding in creeping even Seokjin out.

He will never fight Jungkook for the last chapseolttoek ever again.

Jaehwan jumps to his feet, looking like he wants to run for his life, but he still takes the time to pull his clothes back in place, patting himself down while huffing out in displeasure.

"That's no way to talk to your sunbae. You better learn some respect Jeon Jungkook." he tries and fails to look intimidating.

Jungkook only cocks an unimpressed eyebrow, taking a step and prompting Jaehwan into backtracking. He walks away half running, throwing a worried look over his shoulder every few meters until he's a dot in the distance.

They stand in place in silence, looking at where Jaehwan left, until Seokjin snaps out of his shocked state and seeks the closest bench to sits himself on, head falling into his hands with a humourless laugh.

Jungkook takes the hints and sits by his side, putting a reassuring hand on his neck and gently massaging the tension there.

They stay like that a few minutes until his phone starts ringing, the line It’s gon’ get you in trouble resonating into the night and pulling him out of his silence.

Kim Namjoon is shining back at him with a picture of his friend holding up a small crab, excitement noticeable by his facial expression. It usually brings a smile to his face, but this time he signs before answering.

"Hyung, is everything ok? You've been gone for a while" He says the second Seokjin hits answers.

"Yeah I'm good, he's gone,” he says trying to sound normal.” but I walked into Jungkook so I forgot to text you back..."

"You sound weird, did anything happen?"

He takes a look at Jungkook, and the maknae stares back, probably having heard Namjoon's question in the quietness of the night.

"No, I'm just tired. But I think it's finally over, he got it. He seemed pretty... Deterred" he finishes, thinking about Jaehwan's scared face as he ran away.

Namjoon hesitates on the phone, probably not believing him one bit. He can hear Taehyung and Jimin anxiously asking for news, but Namjoon ignores them, probably overanalysing the way he sounds from the few words they exchanged and dressing hypothesis on why he sounds like somebody told him his jokes suck.

"Just... get home safely hyung" He ends up saying.

"Don't worry about me, I've got Mr.Muscle here guarding my ass." he says throwing a smile Jungkook's way.

After he hangs up and he and Jungkook are on their way, he takes a moment to put a hand on his Maknae's shoulder.

"I would appreciate if you could keep what happened tonight to yourself. I don’t know how Namjoon might react, but I don’t want him getting into trouble with the school."

Jungkook thinks for a second but seems to agree.

"He's going to be really angry if he finds out we kept it from him, though."

"I'll deal with him if it comes to it, alright?"

Jungkook raise an eyebrow, but Seokjin knows he can trust him.

"Aigoo~! our cute maknae is now a man capable of saving a damsel in distress" he says, changing the subject, pinching Jungkook's cheek.

"You're aware that you're describing yourself as a damsel in distress in this context, right?" He says as he slaps the hand away from his face.

"Whatever."

*******

Life without worrying about stalkers and fake relationship is... Regular. Back to normal.

He goes to school, goes to theater club, goes home, sleep, rinse, repeat.

Also, he tries not to think about how almost nothing changed about his relationship with Namjoon, going from normal to fake dating to back to normal. If he let his mind wander, he'd overanalyse how they acted as they usually did to make people believe they were dating. Huh.

Exhibit A.

Namjoon gets home to find him finishing a 10 funniest Britain's got talent auditions video.

"Hyung, not again. We talked about this. You should be writing your paper. You know when you watch one of these you can't stop."

"It's a rabbit hole, I swear to god. Plus, YouTube knows. It knows, and it just keeps showing me more and more recommendation of audition's video. They got me by the Balls, Namjoonie."

Namjoon's sits down on the couch next to him, and Seokjin does the most natural thing, which is, reclining back until his dongsaeng passes his arms around him to hug him to his chest. Then, he presses on the button for the next video.

Exhibit B.

Namjoon is in one of his mood where nothing can disturb him of the song he's working on, not even hunger. He's been sitting in front of his laptop for at least eight straight hours. Seokjin knows, he counted.

Namjoon's got his headphone on and his clavier out, and all of his mixing equipment he saved for years to acquire are spread out across his desk. He's bobbing his head one moment, then growling in irritation the next.

Seokjin puts the rice cooker to good use then, preparing some slim kimbap that he cuts into small bite size.

Yoongi watch him cook from the kitchen table where he's working on a cup ramen, slurping obnoxiously. He raises an eyebrow, scoffing when he sees Seokjin disappear into the room Namjoon has yet to come out since that morning.

He doesn't bother trying to win Namjoon's attention, just grabs the first piece and feeds it in his dongsaeng's mouth. Or more like shoves it. He's not against manually making Namjoon chew, but thankfully, even in his hyper focused state, Namjoon’s reflexes make quick work of the pieces Seokjin feeds him. Then, once the plate has been emptied, he swats at the rice stuck to Namjoon’s lower lips, just as Hoseok steps into the room.

His roommate takes two steps back and gets out the way he came in.

Exhibit C.

Namjoon's overhear Jungkook telling what transpired that night to Taehyung and all hell break loose.

Seokjin is not even mad at the maknae, who probably only wanted to brag to his boyfriend. But maybe he'll put a little extra gochugaru in his spicy cold noodle next time.

It's Saturday night, and before he has to give his soul back to the university, he's playing a little DS to relax. He's got his favourite DS-and-chill outfit on, and nothing can ruin this night.

Except.

He hears the front door slamming, then somebody running, then his door burst open to his maknae whose face has gone comically pale.

"Seokjin-Hyung, he- he Knows. Namjoon-Hyung knows."

That's all it takes for Seokjin to jump to his feet and run at the door, trying to stop Namjoon from getting himself into prison. He's pretty sure it’s not as glamorous as prison playbook made it seem. And Namjoon is not even a star player.

He attracts looks from passerby, maybe because the shoes he has on don't match. Taehyung's faux-fur moccasin do not go well with Jungkook plain puma trainer. It might also be because he didn't take the time to get out of his pink onesie. It even has a bunny tail.

"Namjoon! Stop!" He shout-whispers once he's a few meters behind him. Namjoon ignores him, power walking towards the subway station.

"Yah! You better stop right there Kim Namjoon!" He says a little bit louder. Suddenly, Namjoon takes a right turn into a smaller street. Dumbfounded, Seokjin turns the corner to follow after him, only to stops abruptly inches from the man's face.

He looks livid, and Seokjin almost has the reflex to take a step back. But this is Kim Namjoon we're talking about.

"Why didn't you tell me." He sounds cold and angry, but most of all, disappointed.

Seokjin crosses his arms, giving the younger man the sassy eyebrows treatment. The bunny tail makes it all the more credible.

"Namjoon, you're hellbent on whopping some asshole's ass when you're still in your slippers and haven't even heard the whole story"

Namjoon looks down at his slipper clad feet. Monstrosities Seokjin bought him as a joke a few years ago, when he dropped Cheonggukjang broth all over his old ones, rendering them a brown and stinky mess. The panda shaped slippers had been a fixture since then.

"If Jungkook hadn't been there he would have-"

"While I am truly grateful for our precious maknae's intervention, I am not as powerless as you make me seem, and I had a very powerful and teeth shattering headbutt up my sleeve that I would have used otherwise. Now; Let's talk about how you were about to go get your ass kicked out of school for something that did not happen."

"I-... Hyung."

"You need to learn how to control your anger. It's an issue; whenever something set you off you just spring into action without thinking. It's going to get you in jail someday."

"Hyung"

"Don't 'hyung' me right now, I’m being serious. You have a brain, and I know for a fact that you know how to use it, so use it." He says, poking a crocked finger into Namjoon's chest. The younger man grabs his hand as a whole, stopping his probing. He doesn't let go, leaving them in a weird hand holding position.

"I would gladly go to jail for you, Seokjinah" he says, avoiding his eyes once he speaks.

"Yah, I'm the hyung here, I'm the one who should do the protecting." Seokjin answers to Namjoon weirdly intense declaration.

"As if, you only use the hyung card when you want to win an argument, you're the tallest toddler I know."

"Kim Namjoon, you wanna die?" He says, irritation plaguing his tone. But his dongsaeng carries on.

"You're the biggest coward I know, even worse than Hoseok. So, I know for a fact that you aren't a natural born protector. I've known you for so long I also know that you would go to scary height to protect those you love. But you also tend to forget yourself and your own safety. And that's why I feel like it's my job to take care of anyone that fucks with you. So please, don't hide this kind of stuff from me."

"That's sweet, but I raised you better than for you to solve problems with your fist. You've been hanging out with yoongi too much recently."

Namjoon rolls his eyes but grabs Seokjin's other hand.

So, yeah. They're just standing face to face, holding hands. The silence stretches on, until Seokjin runs out of details to map out on Namjoon's face.

"Well." He says, more to put an end to the silent staring contest than to start an actual conversation. "This has been weirdly informative." His hands are getting moist the longer they stand around like a couple of love sick kids. Namjoon still doesn't say anything, just stare at him. "Moral of this story, don't go beat up anyone in my name, please". More silence.

"Alright, so we're doing this weird staring into each other eyes while swinging our hands around, not awkward at all. Nope."

"You know hyung,-" Namjoon starts, voice steady, but with a weird nervousness to it.

Seokjin waits patiently.

"You know, I never told you this before but-"

Seokjin blinks, now curious about what is about to be said.

"You're very pretty."

Namjoon’s face flush a dark red after the comment leaves his mouth.

Seokjin thinks it's adorable. He also thinks hearing Namjoon compliment him is his new favourite thing in the world. But of course, his automatic answer is sarcasm.

He scoffs, and he could probably find a better comeback if he wasn't so busy trying to hide his matching blush. "Tell me something I don't know." He answers dryly.

There's a heavy silence hanging over them, and Seokjin wonders for a second what kind of weird knowledge Namjoon is about to drop on him this time.

"I really fucking love you, Kim Seokjin." Namjoon answers, squeezing his hands harder.

If he hadn't been shocked out of his mind, he probably would have been self-conscious about the river of sweat accumulating between their palms. But his brain has been frozen still, as the rest of his body.

"I've been in love with for so long, I can't for the love of god remember since when. And if you don't feel the same, I think we're all mature enough to not destroy ten years of friendship over it."

Seokjin opens his mouth but nothing comes out, and he just lets it hanging slack. It matches his eyes perfectly; just on the edge of popping out of his skull.

"But I really needed to say it. Because every time I look at you shoving food in your mouth, or hear you say a new dad joke even worse than the last, or doing that weird shoulder dance that makes you look like a moron, I fall a little bit harder in love with you. And I needed to know if I had a chance, because if I don't put a brake to my feelings soon, I'm scared I won't be able to love anyone else as hard as I love you."

It takes a moment for his brain to comeback online, and then Seokjin thinks about everything this could change, break and ruin. But it's only for a fleeting second, because he also thinks about the puzzle pieces. How him and Namjoon have fit from day one. How they've been each other's support system since the beginning.

Also how they've basically been married without legal contract or physical perks for the better of the last few years of their relationship. Being Facebook Official with the man he loves doesn't sound so bad.

"The kids are going to give us so much shit when we tell them we might finally make their marriage goal a reality." He answers, and Namjoon chuckles with a smile so wide his face might crack. They swing their hands still clasped together, looking at each other fondly.

"Sooo, are you going to kiss me or do I have to do all the work?" His boyfriend-future husband asks.

Seokjin snorts, grabs him by his stupid face and smash their mouth together.

*******

"Does that mean we can call you eomma and appa without you getting mad?" Taehyung asks, picture of innocence.

"That's hyung for you Taehyungah." Seokjin says. He's not about to be disrespected by his favorite dongsaeng.

"Alright, eomma-hyung.".

"These youngsters" he swears quietly.

#magicshopnet #bts fanfic #namjin fanfic #kim seokjin #kim namjoon #this was supposed to be straight up non established established relationship fluff #but i ended up using it to work through some issues lol #bangtanscenery

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reach4themoon · 4 years

Text

The Society

Requested: Dystopian! O.V

a/n: I may have been a little too excited with this request lmao, I started writing and kept thinking about how I wanted it and then realized I didn’t know how to put it together fluidly. That’s why it took me so long to write this (Also, I know you asked for Hunger Games but I am not as familiar and decided to go with more of a dystopian and I love the Giver so that’s where a lot of my inspiration came from) I am planning on making this into a mini series, that’s why there’s an open ending

Word Count: 1438

You could hear the cameras buzzing as they turned to focus on you, this wasn’t one of the Common Grounds, you shouldn’t be back here.

The alley way you were walking down wasn’t dark, but you could still feel your blood rush and your palms growing sweaty.

You don’t even remember how you got here, or why you came, but you were here so why not explore?

You took a deep breath and looked around, not noticing the man beside you. It was clean with little to block the pathway and few doors led to the alley, ‘As per the regulations’.

You flinched as a hand snapped in front of your face and a laugh filled your ears, “Am I losing you already?”

He had dark hair, with the shade it seemed black but when the light caught him you realized it was blue. It was shocking to see someone with the unnatural hair color and it was more so when you remembered you were walking in an alley with someone you didn’t know.

“C’mon, don’t want to be late.” Seeming to not need a response he quickly continued down the alley and made a sharp turn to the left. You didn’t like being in this place, but you didn’t like the thought of being alone more and ran to catch up with him.

He was standing in front of a door, nothing seemed odd about it, it was just like all the other ones you’ve seen but his mischevious smile told you it was more than what was showing.

“Are you ready?”

You woke up to the sound of your alarm blaring. Groaning you sat up and slammed your hand against the button to shut it off and quickly recoiled it when you felt the pain. ‘I better not get a bruise from turning off a stupid alarm.’

The day was just like any other, everyone went to school at the same time and left at the same time only to return home and work at the same time. The government was very strict about schedules, believing that people were most productive when following the same schedule and that left no room for errors. These restrictions were also put in many other aspects of your life, especially your emotional one.

According to many scientists and officials, emotions held society back from doing their best meaning that every newborn child had a chip put in their head to moniter and regulate these “despicable feelings.”

You on the other hand didn’t like the restrictions and learned ways to deceive the chip while still doing everything else you were told to.

. . .

You finished your work early and decided to enjoy the sun by spending your evening in the park. The little kids were walking around quietly discussing their days while parents enjoyed their time together sitting on park benches, leaving you with no where to sit.

You sighed and decided to walk around the neighborhood instead when you spotted a familiar face. You were about to call out to him when you stopped, ‘Who is he?’

You knew you had seen him before, but you didn’t recognize him and you couldn’t pinpoint where you had seen him.

Your eyes trailed the features of his face when you noticed the dark hair color, the blue tinge wasn’t obvious but it was unique considering everyone else only had brown, black, or blonde.

He seemed to feel the holes in the side of his head as he turned and made eye contact with you. Your heart raced, but you refused to look away and instead walked over to him.

He looked at you suspiciously but smiled politely when you walked up to him. “Hi!” You inwardly cringed as you realized you didn’t even know what to say.

“Hi?” He chuckled seeing your flustered state.

“So how did you get the blue hair?” From the look on his face, you realized what you said and how loudly you mentioned it. The two of you glanced around before facing each other again.

“Wanna say that louder for the OffGov to hear?” You quietly apologised thinking maybe you shouldn’t have talked to him.

After a moment, he finally sighed, “From the fact that you noticed and asked me rather than telling the OffGov, I assume you know?”

You looked at him confused, ‘Maybe I missed something?’ You tried to think about everything you had learned and recent events you heard, but nothing came to mind.

“Okay, so you just always walk up to strangers and ask them about their hair?” His sarcastic tone made you relax and a smile crept on your face.

“All the time.” You lifted your hand and he gladly shook it.

“I didn’t catch your name?” He quirked an eyebrow and you quickly fumbled with your words, nearly forgetting what your name was.

“Y/N, and yours?”

“Sang Chan, I came here waiting for a friend but I guess I found another.” He smiled at you and seemed as if he was about to say something else when someone walked up.

The new guy seemed to be his missing friend and had the same caution Sang Chan did. “Who’s your friend? I thought we were going to go hangout?”

You awkwardly stood there, not wanting to leave before learning what your dream was about but also catching onto the friends displeasure of your presence.

“Oh yeah, uh well...” Sang Chan looked at you unsure of what to do, he turned to his friend who quickly caught on to what he was thinking.

“Oh no! We’re not going to! All of us have to agree and you don’t even know her!” He tried to stay quiet, but his voice still came out aggressively catching the attention of a few people in the park.

“Well, we’re meeting up with them anyway? Maybe it’ll be good for us.” He flashed his mischevious smile that you saw in your dream while reasoning with his friend.

“What are we debating again, I think I got lost somewhere in this?” The two of them looked at you, glanced at each other, and back at you.

“We can’t say what’s going on, it’s either yes or no. You also won’t be able to tell anyone else about this.” Despite the whines from his friend, Sang Chan gave you the option.

You remembered your dream, you had been standing in an alley with him about to go through a door when you woke up. ‘There is no way, it’ll be the same thing...”

“How are you supposed to trust me?” His friend gave him a pointed look, hoping Sang Chan would think reasonably.

Instead he smiled, “Should we be worried when you’re asking that? Who would ask the stranger they just met, about trusting them?”

“Well I say yes then.”

. . .

You had been walking with them for several minutes now, none of you had talked since leaving the park.

Sang Chan explained that his friends name was Hyunwook and that he was always protective of their group of friends. Meaning even if everyone else was okay with it, it’d still take a while before he trusted you.

Finally, both of them stopped in the middle of the empty street. “Gotta move fast, don’t want OffGov to see us.”

Before you could say anything, Sang Chan and Hyunwook ran across the street, hopped a fence, and landed in the alley way. You looked around, feeling the adrenaline and anxiety kicking in before sprinting after them.

You could hear the cameras buzzing as they turned to focus on you, this wasn’t one of the Common Grounds, you shouldn’t be back here.

It was clean with little to block the pathway and few doors led to the alley, ‘As per the regulations’.

You flinched as a hand snapped in front of your face and a laugh filled your ears, “Am I losing you already?” Sang Chan laughed at your expression.

“Everyone always freezes coming down here for the first time.” You nodded and was about to look around more until he caught your attention again.

“C’mon, don’t want to be late.” Seeming to not need a response he quickly continued down the alley and made a sharp turn to the left. You followed after him, the idea of being left alone in the alley sending chills down your spine.

He was standing in front of a door, nothing seemed odd about it, it was just like all the other ones you’ve seen but his mischevious smile told you it was more than what was showing.

“Are you ready?”

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swshadowcouncil · 5 years

Text

“Predictable” Is Not A Four-Letter Word

Well, looks like it’s that time again. That’s right: it’s time to talk about our good friend, Subverted Expectations™.(WARNING: Game of Thrones spoilers below the jump)

Hey, who’s super excited for the upcoming Benioff and Weiss Star Wars trilogy now?

I’m alluding, of course, to the latest episode of HBO’s Game of Thrones, in which, after an 8-season-long journey learning to own her own power, master her fate, lead armies, free slaves, and reclaim her family’s place on the Iron Throne, Daenerys Targaryen evidently got just a wee bit too much girl power and decided to become…bad? I guess? Boy, who could have foretold such a stunning subversion of expectations?

(I mean, a woman gaining power, being gradually resented by the men around her for her ascent, and eventually being viewed as a megalomaniacal villainess who needs to be taken down a peg is kind of the opposite of a subversion, it’s actually pretty much what happens to most women in power, fictional, or non-fictional, but I digress)

Fan response, needless to say, has been…mixed. Generally, folks seem to be unhappy with this course of events, given that, aside from some allusions to “Targaryen Madness” throughout the series, the buildup to Dany’s heel turn has been widely seen as rushed and somewhat arbitrary. True, she’s suffered a lot in the past few episodes, but the series has also put quite a lot of effort into making Dany a sympathetic character. Complicated, yes, and flawed, as most GoT protagonists are, but still heroic and generally good. Even as a conqueror, she holds her armies to a code of conduct, shows sympathy to the downtrodden, and overall seems to want to be a good, ethical ruler even after she’s taken the Iron Throne. So, uh….what gives?

Those of us who were Star Wars fans during the release and aftermath of The Last Jedi will recognize this feeling all too well. And, much like with TLJ, the backlash itself spawned a backlash. “Actually,” declared the internet masses, “It’s good that Rian Johnson subverted our expectations. To follow through on what Abrams set up would have been obvious and boring. The whole point of storytelling is to be unexpected!” But if this is the case, why did so many people walk away from TLJ, or this past episode of GoT, feeling so unsatisfied? And why, for god’s sake, do we find ourselves constantly having this argument any time a new piece of media comes to an end?

The internet certainly provides many examples of the attitude that objection to an incongruous shock ending is somehow weak, entitled, emotional, and juvenile. There’s a sense that true fans of a franchise are tough enough to absorb an unsatisfying ending, that they actually find satisfaction from the dissatisfaction, and that to want an ending that ties up loose ends and closes character arcs (dare I say, even happily, at times) is to want one’s hand held, or to be incapable of handling nuance or bittersweetness. “Life isn’t always happy!” the internet masses cry. “Life doesn’t always make sense! Life is disappointing too! Deal with it!” But stories aren’t vegetables we’re supposed to choke down before we can leave the dinner table. The purpose of storytelling, for adults, at least, is not just to condescendingly remind the viewer that bad things happen sometimes, and force them to suck it up. Which, of course, isn’t to say that all endings have to be neat and happy, either–there are stories with dark endings that are deeply satisfying (Breaking Bad) and ones with happy endings that are deeply unsatisfying (How I Met Your Mother). There are even stories with subtle, unclear endings that still feel logical and satisfying to many viewers, albeit not all. The ending of The Sopranos, for instance was famously controversial for its ambiguity, but even this ending was tied to themes and concepts planted earlier in the series, and several perfectly cogent arguments have been written to explain this quite persuasively.

But what satisfying endings tend to have in common, that unsatisfying ones don’t, is a feeling of appropriateness and completeness. Most fans who hated the finale of How I Met Your Mother did so not because they resented that it was “happy,” but because they felt it was a 180-degree turn from the arcs of all the characters and storylines up until the last few minutes of the last episode. Conversely, people didn’t love Breaking Bad’s ending because it was “difficult” or “dark,” they loved it because it was a believable, complete, fitting ending to the story that had come before (funny enough, I would wager that more people guessed the ending of Breaking Bad than guessed the ending of How I Met Your Mother, though that’s neither here nor there). But in the current cultural environment, a person can gain quite a bit of attention for boasting that unlike those blubbering fake fans, they LIKED that this ending didn’t conclude the arcs that had built for years, didn’t pick up dropped plot threads, didn’t allow protagonists to learn anything or achieve their goals, and so on and so forth. That they, by virtue of some unspecified quality, didn’t NEED an ending like that in order to enjoy what they were watching. Do I believe people who say this? Well, maybe. Human opinions are varied, and I don’t allege some conspiracy where everyone secretly hates the same things I hate. Nonetheless, I often find a degree of disingenuousness in these statements. A good ending can be obvious, unexpected, happy, sad, or even ambiguous–but more often than not, what makes it good is that it is satisfying. And loving an ending because it is unsatisfying, because it gives the audience nothing it wants, runs counter to this instinct, like it or not.

To use one example of a satisfying ending (albeit not a true ending, since it comes in the middle installment of a trilogy), Darth Vader’s revelation that he is Luke Skywalker’s father has gone down as one of the greatest plot twists in cinema history. Indeed, if you didn’t know that a mystery like this was building, you’d never think to put the pieces together–the ominous references to Luke having “too much of his father in him” or having “much anger…like his father,” the Chekhov’s gun of Anakin’s murder that goes unaddressed throughout A New Hope, and so on. But this twist is somewhat unique in that much of the buildup to it was done retroactively. During the writing of A New Hope, there was no plan for Vader to be Luke’s father–instead, the decision was the result of looking back at what the story had built, and following it to a coherent, unexpected, yet somehow totally natural conclusion that set up compelling stakes for the subsequent chapter. That is why the Vader twist works–it wasn’t chosen purely so the audience couldn’t guess the ending of the film, it was chosen because that was a compelling direction for the story to go, because it complicated and heightened the stakes, and because it deepened the existing text through unexpected means. In other words, arguably the greatest movie twist in history wasn’t great just because it was hard to guess, it was great because of the emotional impact of looking backwards and realizing how well it fit into the framework that was already in place despite the twist being unexpected. The surprise on its own is only a surprise; the surprise filling in the blanks of the story so effectively is what makes it sublime.

So why, then, do we find ourselves sucked into a maelstrom of hot takes every time we say we dislike a shock-value ending? And why does this trend seem to have gotten so much worse in recent years?

Well, it should come as a surprise to nobody that fandom culture to begin with is notorious for the ways in which elitism, gatekeeping, and all-around dick-measuring feature in its social interactions. Anybody who’s spent time in a major fandom has undoubtedly encountered this bizarre form of competitiveness, whether it’s being quizzed by strangers on their knowledge of canon or listening to boasts of “I was into it before it was cool” that would make a Brooklyn vinyl store owner blush. What has changed in recent years is the increased integration of the larger internet into these fandoms, shifting fan discussions from the confines of in-person hangouts or small online chat rooms, into massive public forums such as Tumblr and Reddit. Suddenly, said dick-measuring is not only happening for a far larger audience (including the general public, not just hardcore fans), but likes, reblogs, gold, and upvotes actually give fans a metric by which they can “win” or “lose” these competitions, further incentivizing them as a go-to mode of interaction among fans.

Now, with longform franchises, such as Star Wars, Marvel, and Game of Thrones, this who-is-the-nerdiest-of-them-all dynamic runs headlong into another common form of fan interaction; that is, speculation. When fans of a certain TV show or film series gather together, it’s only logical that one of the main topics of discussion is what they think might happen to their favorite characters next. These two dynamics in conjunction with one another form a fertile breeding ground for the almost gladiatorial style of fan speculation we see in most major forums nowadays. One person theorizes about a certain future plot line and receives a shower of upvotes, likes, favorites, and so on. Another comes back with a biting critique, and is given even more praise. Eventually, what might otherwise be a simple discussion becomes an outright competition, complete with points and ranking systems to keep track of who is “winning.”

This paradigm, in turn, incentivizes a very specific style of speculation. If I begin telling you a story about a girl named Cinderella who lives with her wicked stepmother and two wicked stepsisters, who asks to go to the prince’s ball, and leaves a shoe behind on the steps of the palace, your inevitable prediction that the story will end with a shoe fitting and a royal wedding may be correct, but it’s hardly cause for bragging. Of course you could predict how the story would end, because the ending was obvious. However, if I gave subtle clues in my story that the ending would go a different way, and you were the only one to predict that in this version, Cinderella was actually a vampire the whole time, and the story would end with her turning all the other characters into vampires, you could get praise for your attention to detail and ability to pick up on clues others had missed in this (absolutely bonkers) adaptation of Cinderella. Those of us who have followed the Star Wars online fandom since the release of The Force Awakens will recognize this pattern of behavior, especially in the areas of Snoke’s identity and Rey’s parentage. Though most agreed immediately on the heels of TFA that Rey was heavily implied to be Luke Skywalker’s daughter (or possibly Han and Leia’s), it only took a few weeks for the tide to shift to increasingly fantastical theories. First, the relatively mundane theories that she was a Palpatine or a Kenobi, then the slightly more perplexing suggestions that she was a Lars or Naberrie, and eventually theories that she was an immaculately conceived Force baby, or a clone, or a reincarnation of Padme Amidala.

The simplest explanation for this progression is just that people get bored of talking about obvious theories and want to mix things up with more unusual “what if” scenarios. But it’s hard to ignore the way that the competitive nature of social media fandom fosters this paradigm as well. Like someone betting on horse races, the lower the odds, the higher the reward and the sweeter the victory. Guessing that Rey is Luke Skywalker’s daughter, immediately after The Force Awakens, would be like guessing that the story of Cinderella ends with a wedding–yes, you’re likely right, but so is any schlub off the street who watched the movie once and made an idle guess. However, if you guess that Rey is the reincarnation of Padme Amidala, conceived through the Force, and you’re right, you may well be treated as some sort of prophet. Cue the showers of fake internet points.

I should be clear here–I don’t think there is anything wrong with wanting to guess the right answer to a mystery, or come up with a particularly clever solution to a problem that nobody else has thought of before. To the contrary, these are very normal human desires, ones that anyone who follows my writing knows that I myself engage in. The problem is, again, that this incentive to up the stakes of speculation with increasingly nonsensical, out-of-left-field proposals, purely to outdo others, makes it so that cohesive storytelling without shock value is stigmatized in fandom discussions. Which, of course, makes it harder to call content out for being unsatisfying without being accused of being childish, unsophisticated, or foolish. And so, we wind up in a self-perpetuating cycle. When we set up a paradigm where guessing the plot of a story is a competition, any predictable, reasonable, ho-hum answer becomes “too easy.” We expect content creators to structure their stories to make our guessing games harder, because after all, what’s the point of consuming media if the sweetness of “victory” is undercut by a simple, obvious answer? And if setting up these unexpected endings comes at the expense of a satisfying story, the response from many fans is “so be it.”

Which brings us to an even more pressing issue: the actual impact this discourse has on media itself. Content creators are praised by this subset of fans for creating endings that viewers didn’t expect, because, as established, this style of writing enriches the “game” that they play with one another in various forums. Consequently, fans begin to assume it is in longform media writers’ best interest to structure stories this way–to build a story that seems as though it will go one way, only to pull a U-turn at the last minute just to ensure nobody guessed the ending. Fan discourse, in other words, is normalizing bait-and-switching as a core pillar of storytelling, rather than one of many techniques writers can use to build a compelling story. And, as more people who came of age in the internet era grow up to become content creators themselves, I fear that this recent spate of shock-value media is going to become more of a trend than an aberration. Much has been said about the internet creating political echo chambers, but so too can it create artistic ones–and without dissenting opinions at the table, those reverberations will only get stronger.

So, am I advocating that people fearlessly defend “predictable” storytelling in its common connotation of “boring” and “unoriginal?” Of course not. But even if a story isn’t predictable, an audience member with a keen eye, a good instinct, and some time and attention, should in theory be able to predict it. It shows that the writer has put thought into foreshadowing, thematic congruence, consistency of character and motivation, and overall cohesion. Great, surprising endings are not created by building false decoys of these things. Instead, they’re created by rendering them subtly, slipping them in under the audience’s nose so they’re not aware of a surprise building; or sprinkling in deceptively contradicting information so the audience has to struggle to reconcile these conflicts in their minds. To expand upon a metaphor from our own HypersonicHarpist, a good storyteller–like a good magician–may disguise what they are doing with sleight of hand and misdirection, but ultimately they don’t stop mid-act, set down the hat and wand, and then pull a rabbit out of a nearby air duct vent instead. Put quite simply, we are hard-wired to want stories that leave us feeling satisfied. And the beauty is, we all have different ideas of what that looks like–that’s where good, productive discussion comes in.

But when we let disingenuous, performative internet groupthink make us doubt our instincts that something is amiss, for fear of appearing uncultured or childish, we do ourselves and our media a disservice. Bad-faith criticisms of “predictable” story arcs have poisoned fan discourse to the point where even genuine appreciation for certain shocking endings are drowned out in the cacophony of hot takes. And until more people begin to honestly admit it when they don’t see the Emperor’s new clothes, discussions on media will remain that way. As fans in the age of the internet, we have unprecedented voice and access to content creators, and more tools at our disposal to create content ourselves than any generation before us. Now more than ever, the way we talk about media guides media. It’s up to each of us to make sure we have a voice in that conversation.

#daenerys #daenerys targaryen #gameofthrones #jaime lannister #got #got spoilers #tros #star wars tros #subversion #longread #analysis

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mydearestreaderfanfics · 6 years

Text

Viral (Pidge x Reader) 2/4 YouTube AU

Warnings: None, I think

Word Count: 2,251

Prompt/Request: None

Summary: Continuation of Livestream Mishaps. After a messy meeting, Pidge and the reader become friends. After a visit from Lance, the reader realizes that their feelings may be more than platonic. Misunderstandings and hilarity ensue.

Author: Mod Alex

Chpt. 1

As promised you led Pidge to a quaint little coffee shop you frequented. The cafe wasn’t particularly well-known and had bookshelves lining several walls on both of the floors. Since the last time you’d been there, they seem to have added a few more plush antique armchairs and couches, all adorned with eclectic throw pillows. You turned to an awestruck Pidge with a smug grin. “You like?” “How have I never been here?” You laughed softly. “Not many people know about this place since it doesn’t look like much from the street. That’s part of the reason I like it so much.” While you loved your fans, sometimes you just wanted to go somewhere where there wasn’t many people and the people who did go there had no idea who you were. “I get what you mean.” “Besides that, they’ve got great coffee. What were you wanting?” She glanced up at the board displaying the menu. “Vienna roast?” Surprise spread across your features, you hadn’t taken her for a dark roast drinker. That surprise was quickly replaced with a smile, somehow it was endearing. “Great!” “Thanks, I’ll go get us a table.” “Sounds good!” When you got to the register, you order both your drinks along with a slice of tiramisu to share with Pidge. You hoped she liked it. “Your total is $8.82. By the way, you and your girlfriend look absolutely adorable together.” You handed the barista your credit card, blushing brightly. “She isn’t- I mean we aren't-” “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry. I just figured.” “Don’t worry about it.” You smiled sheepishly, glancing back to see where Pidge had sat. Did you two really make a cute couple? Your fans and now the barista seemed to think so. No. You shouldn’t even be thinking that you had just met her after all. “Name?” For a second you were wondering why the barista wanted to know Pidge’s name, then you realized, with a fair deal of embarrassment, that she was asking for your name for the order. “(Y/N).” “Thanks! We’ll call your name so you can pick up your order.”

You walked back to the table, strategically balancing both coffees and the tiramisu on your arms. Taking her coffee, Pidge offered her thanks. “I wasn’t sure if you'd eaten or not. Either way, they have really good tiramisu; I thought you might want to split it?” She nods. “Sure that sounds good.” You make idle chat over coffee, swapping editing tips and talking about how you started making videos and what you did besides videos. Eventually, the conversation shifted to your personal lives. “Yeah, Lance and I are actually friends, we met back in high school. A lot of people think we’ve dated, but he just came from a really affectionate household, besides he’s like my brother.” You laugh, remembering the weekends spent with Lance’s large family. “That’s the same way it is with Hunk and me. It’s crazy to think our friends have been friends and never bothered to introduce us.” “I know right? Although I won’t lie, it does feel like I’ve known you forever.” “I was thinking the same thing actually.” A baby grandfather clock rang from within the cafe interrupting your conversation. “Is it already that late?! I am so sorry, I have to go.” “Oh, yeah. I’m sorry too, I must’ve lost track of time. Let me walk you to your car?” “Scooter actually, but sure.”

When you got home that night, you crawled into bed, the events of the day going through your mind like a slideshow. Had the most dramatic series of events really taken place within the past 48 hours? It felt hard to believe. You felt restless and giddy. Despite how terrible this morning had been, you were happy to have met Pidge. Curiosity and restlessness spurred you to grab your phone and see what exactly the content of PidgeonPlays was. The large 6:00 flashed in fluorescent blue as your alarm went off. You barely heard it over your uncontained laugh. Oh no. You really hadn’t meant to binge watch. You tried to rationalize it. Her videos were lengthy and you obviously had to finish the series once you started it. You couldn’t just watch as she began playing Papo & Yo and not watch to see the conclusion. She was witty, clever, and had a knack for incorporating dry humor into her videos. You couldn’t wait to see her newest upload. The very one that she had left your coffee date- er coffee hangout for. You sighed, you couldn’t go back to sleep now, you had promised you’d help Lance with a video today. Might as well get ready. You put on a pot of coffee before hopping in the shower with hopes of it waking you up a little. The no sleep was really starting to creep in. By the time you were out of the shower, dressed, and on your second cup of coffee, the doorbell rang. And rang. And rang. Only one ridiculous friend of yours was known to do this. Lance. “It’s open!” Lance strode into your kitchen, pouring himself a cup of coffee. “I figured you were sleeping still.” “Hey! That happened one time and it was only because you had me go to a con with you and then an after-party afterward. It’s your fault if you think about it.” You stuck your tongue out childishly making Lance laugh. “Fine, I guess not all of us are blessed with the grace to be an early riser like me.” You nearly spit out your coffee from laughing. “Grace? You? Sure Lancy-pants. Whatever you gotta tell yourself.” He threw a piece of his toast (stolen from your pantry might you add) at you before pulling your laptop up. He clicked open the internet, your laptop directing him to YouTube: your homepage. “Oh-ho-ho. What do we have here?” “What are you going on about?” “Maybe the fans knew more than you wanted to let on.” “Lance, seriously, stop being cryptic, what are you talking about?” He turned the computer so the screen was facing you. Much to your embarrassment, PidgeonPlays filled up more than half of your recommended videos. “It’s not like that, it’s just um. Well, you see, she um, I mean we- She’s just a really good youtuber and since we met I just wanted to see what her channel was about. Hah, yeah.” Lance gave you an ‘I-don't-believe-you’ look. “You wouldn’t have this recommends if you were just checking her channel out.” He did finger quotations for emphasis. You went red with chagrin. “She’s funny, okay? We just met anyway.” He laughed again, though, he thankfully decided to drop the topic in favor of starting to record.

“Okay, so you have to play the catty instructor. She was super mean, so do your best Lotor impression.” “You got it, boss.” You flipped your hair and did your best sneer making Lance burst into a fit of giggles. “Perfect! Just like that.” Two hours later, you had finally filmed all the material needed for Lance’s ‘How I Became an Aerial Silk Performer’ skit video. There was plenty of editing to be done still, and you figured he would likely post the bloopers in a separate video in a few days. “Alright, so now you can get out of my house right?” You both knew you were joking. “I thought you enjoyed having me over, I’m hurt, (Y/N).” “Oh shush, I guess you can stay.” Your phone pinged. It was a text from an unknown number. Hesitantly you opened up the message.

Unknown Number Hey, this is Pidge. I got your number from Lance. I hear you watched my videos. [emoji of Pidge laughing smugly]

You What? Nope, never seen your videos before. Never. Not one

Pidge If you say so. [emoji of Pidge winking]

That’s it, Lance was a deadman. “Lance! You told Pidge I binged her videos?!” The guilty party lifted his hands in surrender. “She thought it was sweet. Here look.” He passed his phone to you. The messages in question were all there, as he had said.

Lance hey! #5

Pidge What do you want Lance?

Lance you know (y/n), right? she likes your videos she says it’s for research but i don’t buy it

Pidge Really?

Lance have i ever lied to you before?

Pidge Yes. I just messaged her. You were telling the truth?

Lance i told you [exaggerated frown emoji]

Pidge That’s kind of sweet. Did they like the videos?

Lance [smug emoji x3]

Pidge Nevermind!

You handed the phone back to Lance, a slight blush dusting over your features. “You suck.” “Aww, you’re blushing.” “Shush or I’ll tell Allura that you’re basically in love with her.” “You wouldn’t dare.” You gave him a pointed look and he frowned. “Fine. Blackmailing is not a good look on you just so you know.” You shrugged. “Just giving you a taste of your own medicine.” “If you two do get together, I will be expecting a thank you.” “I said shush!” Your blush had worsened considerably.

A week had gone by since then and while you still didn’t appreciate Lance interfering like that, you were thankful to have Pidge’s number. You two had been talking every day since then. Mostly about nothing too particularly important.

Pidge Hey!

You Oh hey

Pidge I have some bad news

You Oh no! What happened? Are you okay?

Pidge Just take a look for yourself [link to tumblr page]

Worried, you clicked on the link. At first, you felt relieved, it wasn’t a picture of Pidge’s leg in a cast or any other horrible scenario your brain had conjured up. Instead, it was a picture of you and Pidge at the coffee shop from the other day. You weren’t sure why the image had distressed Pidge until you saw the caption. ‘Looks like PidgeonPlays and OneUpGames are closer than they want us to think ;)’ Oh no, indeed. Why couldn’t you just live in peace? Clicking back to your messages, you typed a hasty response.

You Oh no

Pidge I know! They just don’t quit, do they?

You I’m sorry This is all my fault

Pidge No. You didn't’ set this up. I just don’t know what to do.

You I don’t know

Pidge’s text bubble popped up and went away a handful of times, effectively putting you on the brink of an anxiety attack. Finally, her message popped up.

Pidge What if we did a collab?

You You think that would help? Wouldn’t it just make them assume worse than they are now???

Pidge Well yes. But not if we do this right. It should be a four player game. And the commentary would explain everything better.

You Can’t get worse than it already is, I guess

You and Pidge got Lance and Hunk to join you. While their channel’s had nothing to do with gaming, they did enjoy playing games and were more than willing to help you both out. You sent out a tweet letting people know that you were doing a collab and would be going live on YouNow in a couple of minutes. The four of you were getting hooked up to the streaming platform while waiting for the time you posted to roll around. You really hoped this would work.

“What’s up multiplayers?! (Y/N) here with some special guests.” “Hey! Hey! LanceALot here!” “Hi, guys. I’m here too!” “It’s me again, rovers.” “Now that the guests have introduced themselves, let’s play.” Between scrambling through a digital kitchen, the four of you banted. “Pidge, you’re burning the burger!” “It’s not my fault, we were supposed to trade stations like two minutes ago, Lance.” “Uh, hey guys. The kitchen is on fire…” “Hold on, I have the fire extinguisher. Move, move, move!” You ended the round with two stars. “Before we keep going, let’s check out the audience’s messages.

FirstMultiplayer: asdfghjfddusb this is the collab of my dreams!!! roundtableknight: can you guys turn the music down we can’t hear you talking SinnamonRoll: I didn’t know you played games, Hunk :O Katie Kate: did you guys see the picture on tumblr? shhhh753: Yes. :( My poor OneUpLanceALot shipper heart is broken. PidgeonGamesfangirl: I SAW IT!! i’M THRIVING!!

You turned down the volume of the music as requested and read the messages out loud. “Wow, guys. We aren’t dating, (y/n) just bought me coffee to apologize for the misunderstanding.” “Haha yeah. Because some of you can’t seem to drop it. Pidge is a great person, but we are just friends. I promise. And to answer some of you, no Lance and I am not dating either. I am a single pringle for the time being, okay.” Hunk laughed at your expression. “We have time for one more round before we have to go. Let’s do a super difficult one,” Lance interjected before you could read any more comments. “SOunds good! Let’s do this!” You failed miserably and had a few good laughs before finally ending the stream.

That night after the stream, you looked through the comments. Several fans were disappointed while others held onto the hopes of you secretly dating Pidge. You sighed. Their persistence was not making your growing feelings for Pidge any easier to bury away. She wanted to be friends. That's it. You should want the same, right? But no, your stupid heart had to go and fall for the damn mystery girl.

#voltron #pidge x reader #fanfictions #pidge gunderson #katie holt #katie x reader #mod alex #youtube au

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zalrb · 7 years

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TVD 1x04 Review

Hi all! Welcome to the fourth review of TVD season 1. Considering that I haven’t like sat down to watch a full episode of the past seasons of TVD in a few years and my memory might not be the greatest I think I will start with my usual disclaimer: I write my thoughts in real time so if I make a mistake at the beginning of this post, it will be corrected by the end. There will be anti-Damon and anti-Delena sentiments (I’m only mentioning these two because it’s the beginning of the series), and in light of recent events I feel the need to say that there may be some anti-Jenna sentiments too. I will probably bring up other shows and call attention to misogynoir, racism, anti-blackness etc. Ready? Let’s go.

1. I always wonder how these dreams work, like how much detail does Damon have to put into it? He has Elena wearing the necklace, Logan Fell is on the TV, he has the details of her room and her kitchen, like how does he create these dreams to terrorize Stefan with? Or does he go into Stefan’s head and Stefan has all these details already there so then Damon just manipulates his memory?

2. You know, sometimes I watch teen shows I watched when I was younger and I can go, yeah I can see why people went crazy for this guy even though he’s a dick. I don’t get that, I cannot see why with Damon.

3. His hair is back to be thoroughly offensive. When do they fix it for good?

4. Stefan throwing a knife at Damon’s chest is still, like, my favourite Defan moment.

5. Damon is so petty, like all he does is hangout in Stefan’s room and terrorize him!

6. “Believe it or not, Stefan, some girls don’t need my persuasion.” Damon, you compelled Caroline, you compelled Andie, and it took a sire bond for you to actually get Elena. Who are you fooling, fam?

7. Another Stefan shirtless shot! Seriously, they totally exploited his abs in season 1. Lmao.

8. OH MY GOD, STEFAN STOP WITH THE VOICEOVER.

9. Lol Jenna and Jeremy are in the other room and Elena just grabs Stefan and kisses him like ok my room upstairs RIGHT now.

10. And I didn’t realize Stefan’s reaction, he has a grin on his face but he’s lookng around like ... Really? Omg they’re adorable.

11. In every makeout/sex scene SE do there’s always a moment where Stefan or Elena pause to look at each other, even if it’s brief, just to have that eye contact.

12. Nina’s sighing pretty hard.

13. I also like how when Elena is like “Maybe we should press pause” and Stefan agrees, he has to go and sit on the other side of the room, like they cannot be on a bed together because it’ll just get that intense again.

14. Also an anon was talking about how they find it interesting the psychology behind a vampie who is in love with someone but still has the urge to feed on them and I responded that Paul was really interested in that dynamic with SE as well and you really do see it in this scene. They’re getting to a very visceral place with the physical contact so that viscera shifts into his vampirism and hunger so he has to press pause, it just adds to a whole other level of angst.

15. “I would be honoured to accompany you, Miss Gilbert.” 1864 Stefan making a comeback.

16. And Elena is fucking loving it.

17. “No yellow, jaundice go for the blue.” “I don’t like the blue.” “Well, I do.” The problem with Damon is that he doesn’t come across as a vampire, he comes across as an abusive boyfriend. With Stefan, he’s a vampire in the simplest things like the fact that he can become a fucking statue when he’s angry or the fact that he will speak a little old-fashioned and of course the fact that his veins appear when he gets too close to Elena, showing that he hasn’t mastered being in society that well. Damon just has the dialogue and the fog and the crow, he just seems like a guy who has a bunch of tricks and murders people because he feels like it so the Daroline dynamic doesn’t even feel like a predator playing with his prey, like it doesn’t feel non-human and human, he’s just abusive.

18. It’s also really sad watching Caroline look at Damon’s bite marks in the mirror.

19. “You can be very sweet when you want to be.” This is legit just an abusive dynamic, I don’t even want to say relationship anymore because Caroline has no free will.

20. “And Damon’s not dangerous, he just has a lot of issues with his brother, like major, deep-rooted drama” listening to Caroline speak is like listening to Delena stans.

21. “This country’s dumbed down in the last hundred years.” Oh yeah because enforcing enslavement was the pinnacle of American genius. Fucking writers.

22. Zach was unnecessary and the actor is AWFUL.

23. “I got your punk.” What does that mean exactly, Jeremy?

24. I like how everyone is blaming Stefan for Katherine when Damon is, like, 23 or 25.

25. Elena being like hmm, how do I know if Stefan is a calculating, manipulative lying and Damon is the victim, maybe Bonnie is right, is ridiculous considering that Damon tried to kiss her last episode and she experienced Damon being manipulative and called him out on it saying that it was his intention to make her feel uncomfortable. Like this is so fucking manufactured.

26. Paul’s arms though. And then Ian walks in topless like ... *rolls eyes* put your shirt on.

27. Damon, you would drive anyone to drink, you’re annoying and homicidal.

28. "If I go online will I find it [the pocketwatch] on ebay? Is that how you pay for your pot?” I know she was making a point but like how expensive does she think weed is?

29. “Yes, being a 150 year old teenager has been the height of my happiness” lol Stefan’s dry wit kills me each time.

30. “I’m not some drunk sorority chick, you can’t roofie me” that is a seriously disgusting line. And people want to argue that Damon isn’t a sexual predator?

31. Ian’s hair is OK again, I guess he, like, brushed it.

32. Tyler legitimately brought Vicki into his house through the back. Like that’s rude.

33. Caroline is rude to Liz for no reason, which is why in the later seasons, when they tried to act like she and Liz always had a wonderful relationship I side-eyed it.

34. Elena reading the registry makes me laugh because I remember the bloopers when Nina couldn’t get one name, like she just couldn’t move past it so Paul and the crew made a joke like, think of it as gonorrhea. And that name isn’t in the final cut.

35. “My therapist says I’m acting out... trying to punish Stefan” are you 16?

36. See Damon telling Elena how he and Stefan died without saying how they died and his clear pain over what they did to him and to Katherine would’ve been a storyline I would like to follow more. If he came back to MF to destroy it because of how much he hated it and he chose Caroline to get back at the Founding families, if he was still devastated by what they did but then throughout the season started realizing that Caroline and Tyler and Jeremy and Elena, essentially the descendants of these families, were actual people and developed from that, I think they could’ve had something interesting. And the show has like remnants of this idea throughout season 1 but it isn’t an actual arc for Damon because his arc is supposed to be Elena and he terrorizes the town because he feels like it, it isn’t a statement so he’s just a dick.

37. “Doesn’t it always come down to the love of a woman?” No. And this is Damon’s entire problem.

38. “That’s what you get when you bring the trash into the party” ... Carol, what? Vicki actually did nothing a “respectable” young woman wouldn’t do. Like it just doesn’t even go.

39. Yeah Bonnie is hardly in this episode. Shunted to the sidelnes for no reason. Caroline and Elena haven’t even gone over to her table to see what’s happening. Caroline I forgive because she’s Damon’s puppet right now but Elena, really?

40. I love the way Elena stares at Stefan when they’re dancing and then she giggles to herself because she’s just so happy being with him.

41. “I hope Damon didn’t drive you too crazy.” “No actually, he was on good behaviour” manipulation, Elena, that is what manipulation looks like.

42. Yes, Stefan, Damon is trying to get Elena to turn against you but you not saying anything about yourself isn’t helping matters either. I mean, it makes sense because you’re still fucked up about what Katherine did to you but you gotta budge a little, honey.

43. Oh hey Elena, talking to Bonnie who you left alone all night to bitch about your boy problems?

44. Carol didn’t even say hi to Bonnie.

45. There’s actually no reason why Damon had to bring Caroline to this.

46. I also don’t care at all about Jenna and Logan.

47. “I’m sorry, I take it all back, you are completely right about Damon”, but like Elena wasn’t even defending Damon in the previous scene, so ... what?

48. “I’m handling it.” “Handling it? Stefan, you should be having him arrested.” Elena, why don’t YOU have him arrested? You saw the bite marks and you told Damon to stay away from her OR you’ll tell her mother, what is with the show and having characters threaten to do something they should just DO? Like, I would understand it if Elena doesn’t quite know what to do in the situation and thought she did a good job by telling Damon to stay away from Caroline because she IS 16 but her getting mad indignant at Stefan is like ... or you could do what you’re telling him to do?

49. Vicki and Jeremy, is just. Ugh.

50. Seriously this scene between Damon and Caroline is fucking terrified, rewatching it really just emphasizes just how awful the show is for the Daroline friendship.

51. And Damon being broken hearted over Katherine does not excuse this behaviour.

52. I just, how does Elena not remember hugging Caroline who was breaking down in her arms saying “I’m fine, I’m fine” every time she’s with Damon? Like how she does she just block that out?

53. Oh, ending it on the utterly useless council.

I don’t know, man, these early episodes just reaffirm my hatred for Damon.

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