I’m gonna need you guys to tag rabies tbh

I’ll put it up on my pinned. It’s a huge form of paranoia for me. My mind is constantly telling me that I have it and that I’m going to die, so it stresses me out a lot.

11-8-23

- august invited over bo leach, bodhi nadalin, and some person that didnt have a name but looked like el hanley to play some orgy game, aug was acting kind of weird the whole time and ended up going to bed. the vibes were very off and nameless chick dipped but i talked to bo and bodhi for a while, was trying to figure out if they were together or not. ended up making out with bodhi (felt v nice) and afterward he said a bunch of stuff about how he was glad we saw each other again and that he lives close and wants to hang out again soon. we were still living w/ aj somehow and they had a bunch of random ppl over i remember thinking i was glad i could prove i had other friends by having different ppl over even if they werent really. they were leaving and the other ppl were partying in the living room area and someone ended up giving me a drink so i sat down and hung out a little. it was this really tasty thick deep red cherry-cranberry vodka thing with a ball of hollow ice that had a little hole you could drink more beverage out of it from.

- dk if this was a continuation of the last one or not but walking through the city w a group of girls, being sort of dressed up everyone had on very avant garde fashion (one of them was cheyenne from water st? i dont remember the rest) and we ended up going to this art gallery that was all hallways with various forks in the road. got separated from half the group because they were basically sprinting through and not looking at anything. everything felt like it was moving very fast. came to another fork but on one side was this exhibit area w raised padded flooring and people sitting all around and a sign that said 'puppy naptime.' and. well. it was puppy naptime. there were a bunch of them and phoibe and mama kitty (not bean) were there also sleeping very sweetly and i was worried i would get in trouble for bringing my cats to puppy naptime. i saw a different very small very sleepy black and white dappled kitten and pet her a little bit. was no longer worried bc obv i was not the only one who brought cat. noticed this girl who had a necklace with a bunch of moss and a live snail on it and talked to her abt it and she said it was her pet and he just liked to sleep there too.

- again not sure if at all related but walking through these very bright almost uncanny paved suburban streets w you and coming across a house where you started telling me a story abt how you used to hang out with some boy there and the mom was wack and you would work on some sort of project that required these sharps and one day you accidentally brought some out with you and they (the parents) noticed and yelled at you and you were like little and scared of getting in trouble so you like ran back crying and put them back and were apologizing and then couldnt go back and hang out again. watching this memory play out in the driveway like a phantom in front of us. in present time next to the car in the foliage there were a bunch of varied types of blades and you said something along the lines of 'they feel awesome, btw' and there was one in particular i really wanted to take but we noticed that the people from the house were actually sitting in the car. left and walked the other way around the block to see if theyd leave, just sort of eavesdropped on them from around the corner. along the way there were various blades on the ground and in the little grass strips in front of driveways and i kept picking them up trying to see if they were sharp or new but they all were really flimsy or dull or covered in a weird waxy substances. you said something like 'my skin is thinner so you should just cut me instead' and it made me upset but i wasnt trying to show it and i said some upsetting shit i dont remember and you were like 'jesus christ, what the fuck' and got v distant didnt leave but sort of like hung back and did smth else. heard some sort of commotion from the people and saw the guy yelling at this fluffy, scrawny cat being like 'i hate that fuckin cat' and it ran over to us and i pet him and he was v malnourished and had fleas and scrapes and i felt v sad for him

- Really dont remember this one but some girl inviting us to go rock climbing and it was just this tiny room that was not even very tall and she was actively putting the rock wall together by just. nailing the holds into drywall in no particular order. no gear, no ropes. i was pissed. i remember yelling at her but i dont remember what i said

I really like writing out the little quotes things into an actual proper text. Also, it's Ms. Torres bc I think Cesar's dad is gone (not sure if its divorce or death he just doesn't exist)and it's only her and Cesar.

Uhhh, alternate's all just kinda have the it/it's pronoun on default but some might adopt identities and gain new pronouns. At least, that's my canon.

------------

"Hey mom? How much does it cost to adopt?" Cesar called for his mom as he shoved another piece of toast at the alternate he had found.

It looked exactly like him, all except for the black and white eyes instead of his brown ones, and was looking through the kitchen. It was completely drench.

Now, a normal person would freak out. Ever since the news of creatures that can shapeshift and are extremely hostile to humans, the general public has been on edge. several creatures being able to shapeshift and having an extreme hostility towards humanity, everyone has been terrified.

A normal person would try to hide, contact the police, just do everything else except for what he did.

The first thought that crossed his mind was a couple of box kittens he had found by the street years ago. He brought them in, convinced his mom to let him take care of them, and cared for the litter until he had to give them away since his mom didn't want to keep a cat.

The alternate just kinda reminded him of the box kittens. It was probably the wet clothings, or the way it rummaged through the fridge, or maybe the wide eyed look when they made eye contact. Whatever it was, it made him pity it.

So he did what a normal person wouldn't do and went to grab some towels to dry it then made some toast for it.

During all of it, the alternate didn't try to kill him, or leave. It just used the towel he gave and then sat on the counter as he mixed the eggs together.

"Well, I was wondering if I could." He stopped answering as he spotted the alternate trying to drink the eggs from the bowl. "Hey! You can't drink those, they're raw." He scolded, pushing the bowl away.

The alternate just looks at him with its creepy eyes and the bowl before trying to sip from the bowl again. It made a weird whining sound as Cesar grabbed the bowl away. He just shooed him and told him let him cook the eggs first before eating.

Cesar poured the bowl into the pan and set a quick timer for about 2 minutes. "Sorry mom, but as I was saying-"

He got distracted when the alternate somehow managed to knock over the fruit stand, which was thankfully empty.

"Cc? Are you okay over there?" Ms. Torres asks, now worried that something is happening over where her son was at. She stood up and rushed to the kitchen when she heard a bang from the kitchen as well as some cursing.

What she found was her son, and another son? One of them was lifting up the fruit stand save for the newspaper that fell out. While the other one picks up the fallen papers.

"Cesar?" She asks cautiously, two heads snapped to look at her. The two of them were practically identical, mirrored right down to the little bit of hair hanging under the cheek. The only difference were the eyes, her son's shocked brown eyes and the others-

She shrieked when she registered the sight of the other Cesar's eyes. Two pale white pupils standing out in the sea of void, unnerving similar to the eyes of a corpse.

The Cesar with the odd eyes didn’t react at all to her outburst at all while her son rushed over and asked if she was okay.

“Cesar, who was that next to you?” She shakily asked before remembering the alternate reports from months ago. Whatever was next to him, it has all the traits of the alternate.

“Is that one of the things from the news?!” She gasped. "Why is it in the house Cesar?"

"Can we keep him?" Cesar asks, hopeful. "Listen, he was wet, cold, and was trying to take our bread."

"You can't just- take an alternate in mijo!" His mom sputtered, waving her hands in front of his face. "Haven't you seen the news? La policía said that you shouldn't go near them."

“But look at him! he clearly needs some food and a nice place to sleep.” Cesar argues, as if he wasn’t trying to house a terrifying creature from satan.

Ms. Torres just looked at her son and alternate, not budging on her decision.

To the alternate’s credit, it hasn’t tried to escape or attack. Just kept its grip on Cesar’s suit, darting its eyes between mother and son.

"He hasn't tried to kill me yet ma, at least let him stay for the night." Cesar pleaded, pulling out his two weapons against his mom which was his baby voice and big eyes, "He could stay in my room, there's enough space on the floor."

"You are ridiculous hijo." His mom sighed, unable to resist Cesar's eyes. "Okay, he can stay but only for tonight and if he lays a hand on you, no more alternates in the house. Okey?" She said, giving a threatening look at the alternate.

“Okay, thanks mama.” He said, giving his mom a hug. Ms. Torres just gave an exhausted nod and hugged her son back. “Love you Cc.”

The alternate just stood there as Cesar and his mom hugged.

Unfortunately, that’s when the kitchen bell rang, reminding Cesar that the eggs were done.

He shot up and ripped himself away from the hug then ran to the kitchen to save the eggs. “¡Ay cagar los huevos!"

The alternate was about to go follow the teenager as well but getting stopped by Ms. Torres placing a hand on his shoulder.

“I’ll let you stay for now but if you lay a hand on my baby boy. I will find a way to kill you all.” She warned it, “Comprendida?"

Sar felt the familiar fear that he always got when Gabriel gets mad with his supposed to be victim's mom. Damn parents figures and their special ability to terrify anyone in the name of their kid. He nodded quickly, then quickly left to follow Cesar and the eggs.

----------------

Google translate Spanish translations cus I don't know Spanish at all La policía (police) Ay cagar los huevos (oh shit the eggs) Comprendida? (Understood?)

-sunglasses anon

shoutout to ms torres for being The Mom Ever(TM)(C) as sar out here fearing for his life fr LMFAOOO

One Last Time 02  —  Pjm. (M)

⇢ pairing: Jimin X Reader

⇢ Genre: Idol!Jimin, Exbf!Jimin, model!reader, sad au, fluff, tons of smut, angst

⇢ Synopsis: Your idol ex boyfriend Jimin cheated on you. You two have been broken up for a while now and the media has been keeping track of you and him. You’re trying to get over him, but the things that happen inbetween makes you re-think the entire breakup, and so does Jimin…

⇢ Song : xxxxx

⇢ Previous : 00   01

⇢ Word Count : 

⇢ Warnings: dominant jimin, makeout sessions, this is honestly a sad angsty au, cheating, pregnancy, unprotected and protected sex, a bunch of sex, no really a LOT of sexual themes too, I know I’m forgetting some but sorry in advance!

⇢ Copyright: please do NOT repost, translate, or modify my works in any way, shape or form, on any platform. If found doing so , it is considered as plagiarism and appropriate LEGAL action will be taken

⇢ Authors note: This is my mini series for the summer! Get your tissues, things to take your anger out on, and sit back and watch the drama unfold. Shall we begin?

Your eyes shoot open, chest heaving heavily as you let out a blood curdling scream. Not this again. The same dream over and over again each night. It leaves you sleepless. The time on the clock on your nightstand reads 3:04 am. Just only four hours ago is when you fell asleep. But a full night’s sleep hasn’t happened for a year so why would it matter anyways.

Once you catch your breath you unplug your phone from the charger and read some of the notifications. From your window, the night-time critters sing their songs along with the persistant owl that’s somewhere around the apartment complex. You’d only noticed him, the owl, just a few months ago when your cat started meowing with his hoots. 

A missed call from your uncle. 

Immediately you unlock your phone and dial the number. Bringing your index finger to your mouth you gently nip on it waiting for it to answer, The rings are agonizing to you. If something has happened you only wish and pray it wasn’t as bad as you think. He’s the only parental figure left in your life.

‘‘ Princess! Hello I was just calling to speak to you earlier. But I realized you are five hours ahead of me and you had probably went to sleep.’‘

His soothing voice calms your emotions making you let out a tiny breath of air. Thank god.

‘’Hey Charlie.” You sigh. Looking towards your left, you spot Clara purring quietly next to you. You can’t help but to smile while bringing a hand over to rub her head with your thumb.  She’s so small under the shining moonlight from your window.

Her white coat shines brightly amongst her, making you remember the first night you had brought her home. All she did was sleep, and it worried you because you had no prior expierence caring for anything, let alone a small animal. Clara only drank kitten milk and slept back then. Occasionally being awake enough to nip at your fingers whenever you pet or touched her.

Now she’s a bit bigger and walks around the apartment like she owns the place. Quite the little attitude she has, but its too damn cute for you to scold her whenever she does something wrong. 

“ Yes I did fall asleep from after a gathering at someone’s house.’’ You continue on, bringing your knees to your chest after opening the curtain of your window fully.

The moons brightness illuminates the entire room, but not so bright for you to complain though. ‘’ Oh- was it Jimin’s? Tell him I said hell-’’

You bite your lip hard at his name. He doesn’t know and you wont even dare to let him know. Knowing him, your uncle would have a fit and oppose to come back to Seoul to ‘set the record straight.’ to Jimin. That’s the last thing you want to do, cause trouble.

‘‘ It was his brother’s house warming party.” You say, lowering your tone in your voice. You look at the nightstand for a couple of seconds just before opening the top drawer of the wooden, polished piece. Your hands shakily pull out a picture of you two together.

It was taken at  Marne-la-Vallée, France right infront of Cinderella’s castle. That was the day that you and Jimin had to went to Disneyland in Paris, France. You cant help but to think, with the picture in hand, that it was one of the best nights ever. It was also the same night your virginity was taken.

‘‘ Oh.. I know that tone. Are you two arguing at the moment.”

You shrug, “ I mean you could say that.’’

No you cant.

‘‘ Alright alright I won’t talk more of him. Let’s change the subject.” He chuckles deeply into the phone.

‘‘ How’s Europe? Anything new happening on base?”

‘‘ Same old Same old. It’s been what? 2 years since I’ve left Seoul? The food is different over here. They don’t have kimchi pancakes sadly.”

You can only imagine the frowny face he makes at you whenever he doesn’t approve or like something. It always turns out to be funny.

You giggle into the phone shaking your head slightly, “ Of course. You are in Europe Charlie. Where are you getting food from anyway if you are on base?’’

‘‘ I can go off base to a certain mileage when I am off duty. I just have to report back in time. But you do know that you can always come live on base with me...’ He trails off.

Oh boy. Here he goes. He’s always talking about moving you on base with him. Hell, he’s been talking about it since before he had to go to be based in Europe. By then you were twenty years old and old enough to live by yourself. Growing up in Daegu, Korea since you were six, you felt as if Korea was home to you and you definately weren’t ready to leave yet.

Especially, after losing your parents here. Around eight years old, your aunt and mother were on the way to pick up your father from the airport. With your mom and dad also being military and based in Korea with your dad’s bestfriend, your uncle Charlie, your father had been called to take military leave to go and be based in Korea for the National Guard.

On the way back from the airport, a drunk driver had struck the car knocking them off the road and colliding head first into the railing of the bridge. All bodies were reported dead upon collision, including your aunt. Charlie didn’t take the news well at all, and so did you. Only eight years old and still a bit new to a foreign country. It was devistating for you and Charlie. Charlie did what was right and stepped up to be your legal guardian while taking some time off from the military. Till this day, he treats you like his sacred little daughter and you can’t ask for anyone better than him.

 “You are old enough to live on your own and housing is avail-”

You jump at his voice on the line again, being too spaced out from the tragic memory. Before he can go on any longer you cut him off. ‘‘ Im fine with the apartment you left me. Im paying the bills on time and taking good care of it.”

‘‘ Alright fine. But that option is always available you hear me? I will always be ready for you to come with me.’’

‘‘ Okay Charlie” You groan.

‘‘ Alright.. sweetie it’s getting late on this side and it’s already 3 am on your side. Get some sleep okay? Don’t you have a model shoot thingy or something? You have those a lot.’‘

‘‘ Yes i actually do in a couple of hours. It’s been a while since I’ve did a shoot. Please eat and sleep well. Don’t injure yourself.’‘

‘‘ I promise. You promise to do the same right?’‘ He says, rustling movements are in the background.

‘‘ Yes I promise. Good night sleep tight..’‘ You smile as you wait for him to finish the rest.

He chuckles one last time on the other end, ‘‘I’ll always love you, goodnight‘’

Beep Beep Beep

You in a racy light pink lingerie with white duvets and sheets is the concept of your comeback. It’s supposed to symbolize the “Night After’’. Camera’s click and directors yell and praise you in your subtle yet damaging moves and facial expressions. You want.. no need for this comeback to be successful. Not only did your manager schedule this, but she is making sure that they release this same very day.

Nobody in this company’s industry has ever did this before. But you, you are sort of the special one. The special foreigner as they say. It’s not like you don’t like it but you don’t like that they label you as that. Stylists, employee’s hell even anybody who works there treat you as a princess. It’s not bad, but it’s just weird.

‘‘ One last one. Give me a sexy yet innocent look mama.’‘ Elliot, the director says, smiling wide at you.

You slip a finger into your mouth and do a little pout with your lips.

Elliot busts out into a roar of happiness with his hands clapping furiously. ‘‘That’s it mama yes! That’s just what we needed!’‘

Adjusting his microphone earpiece, he turns around to greet and thank everyone, ‘‘ Alright everybody this concludes our shooting! You all worked so hard today. Make it home safe, eat well.’‘

Finally. You sigh out in relief and close your eyes. It’s been a long day. Almost 6 hours of shooting. Three Videos, and five swap outfits for each session of shooting for the ‘’ Night After’’.  As everyone heads out and starts cleaning up you bow your head slightly and thank them.

A stylist brings you a satin robe to cover yourself in. You thank her and put it on just before getting up from the bed and walking towards wardrobe. Once you are done putting on your clothes, your manager leads you straight out the exit. Outside awaits the car that drives you everywhere. Literally everywhere.

‘‘ Tomorrow somebody has put in a special request for you to appear as the main lead girl in their music video. It’s short notice and I told them I would have to bump some things around and notify you. But they are paying us and you good money to be in it.’‘

Money? Sounds like a plan.

‘‘ It’s fine. Who am I shooting for?’‘ You say, fluffing your hair just a little while inspecting yourself in the rear view mirror.

Your makeup is still intact with no ruins and the contacts they had given you suited you very well. A hazel with a slight bit of teal. Suddenly the car moves off into the busy streets of Seoul. You can’t help but to notice every couple that walks along the sidewalks. They seem so happy, glad to be around each other.

On the floor of the car lies your little mini backpack filled with all of your items and belongings. Picking it up, you begin to dig through it looking for some hand lotion to soothe your semi-dry hands. Once you find it you gently start to squeeze the tube.

‘‘ Kim Namjoon.’‘

You freeze. Namjoon? The same Namjoon from the group? Joonie? It’s been well… a year since you’ve seen him in person. Hell since you’ve seen all of Bangtan Sonyeondan together. Except for lastnight when Hoseok and.. that guy showed up.

You sigh already knowing the answer from the question you are about to ask.

‘‘ From…?’‘ You ask then put the lotion back in your bag. Slowly you rub your hands together to moisturize.

Your manager quickly flips through the daily planner, ‘‘ Bangtan Sonyeodan but this is for one of his mixtape songs.’‘

Thank goodness.

‘‘ That’s fine. What time will the car be arriving tomorrow?’‘

‘‘ 8 am on the dot. You need to be there by 8:30. I’ll be tending to one of my other models tomorrow so you will be alone. I can send som-’‘

‘‘ No no it’s truly okay. I know how to manage things myself. Besides, I learn from you.’‘ You reassure her with one of your winning smiles, laying your head on her shoulder.

‘‘ Aigoo what am I going to do with you?’‘

The day ends very well. The movies you’ve been watching have kept you occupied. But not occupied enough for you to keep crying at all the sad parts in the chick flicks. Breakups, someone had died, someone had even just spilled something onto the floor and that was enough to send you into tears.Only because when the main lead boy rushed to help clean it up, it reminded you of Jimin last-night helping Isabel.

‘’What is going on with myself.’’ You blow your nose into a tissue for what seemed like the thousandth time today. Clara lets out one of her meows beside you then goes back to grooming herself.

You place her onto your lap and begin to run your fingers through her fur over and over again. Such a soothing effect to you as you stare into space sulking in your thoughts.

Why is it that you weren’t enough for him? Why is it that every single little thing reminds you of him? You gave him your all and he gave you his but what happened? Where did you go wrong? Cooked, cleaned, satisfied his needs. You guys had even started to plan out what you wanted out of a family. When you wanted a baby and what you would name it. It was fun. The whole relationship was fun. Right until that scandal.

Ding.. Ding.. Ding.. DI-

You unlock your phone immediately to stop that annoying dinging noise. Not surprisingly it’s a text from Jeon Jungkook.

Kookie : Im coming over I’ll be there in exactly 3 minutes.

Kookie: Don’t think about leaving either.

Kookie: Im bringing someone with me.

Kookie: We need to have a serious talk babycheeks.

You roll your eyes at the nickname he’s given you. No matter how many times you tell him you want him to change it, he declines. There’s no point in asking anymore.

Why would he want to talk anyways and who is the person he’s bringing. Eh.. it might just be Ryan they seem to do everything together as a team.

As soon as you step foot out of your bed the sound the door clicking makes your head shoot up. How in the living hell does he know the password to your house? Rage takes over you. That’s something that you hate. When people invade your personal space. In this case, personal home.

‘‘ Jeon fucking Jungkook!’‘ You scream, abruptly stomping your feet all the way to and out your bedroom door. Suddenly you stop at the sight of the two faces staring back at you.

Jungkook’s expression holds a concerned yet upset face while the other just stands there calm and cool. But you on the other hand are way besides that level.

Your eyes must be filled with rage and the expression on your face is no good. How dare he disrespect you like that? Bringing him into your home, knowing the bad blood between you two. Oh, they both have something coming towards them. You begin to walk to them again making each step make the floor shake.

‘‘ Get out. Both of you. One you invade my personal private home..’‘

You grab both boys by their collars, making sure to grip the one on the right’s harder than usual. ‘‘ Two, you fucking invite him over here.’‘ You drag each of them towards the exit. Which is going good until Jungkook rips your hands away from his shirt and takes you over his shoulder.

You’ve had enough of him and his invasive ways. Pounding on his back with your fists, you make sure to scream into his ear. “ Put me the fuck down Jeon Jungko-”

You hiss at the stinging sensation on your ass. Did he just? Jimin stands there awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck. You make sure to make eye contact with him and roll your eyes. Something that always had and will piss him off.

‘‘ Hush. I told you all of us needed to have a deep talk about you.’‘

Jungkook plops your frail body onto one side of the couch in which he sits next to you. He motions for Jimin to come sit across from the both of you but you aren’t having it.

‘‘ Don’t you do it.” You glare at him. Jungkook sighs harshly only to pluck your forehead two times. You whine and rub it with your index and middle finger.

Jungkook shakes his head in disapproval, ‘‘ When are you ever going to learn? Jimin sit down now.”

‘‘ Truthfully.. I feel as though I shouldn’t be here so-”

“ Good. Get out you are unwanted.” You snap back causing him to give you one of his long stares with no facial expression at all.

Jungkook glares at you just before getting up to throw his hands in the air full of disappointment. “ Enough! “

Yelling. Something else you don’t like to hear being done at yourself. You finally sit still and quite avoiding any eye contact with the both of them.

He sits back down and clears his throat. Jungkook gives Jimin a look before continuing on.

‘‘ I gathered us here to talk about you..”

‘‘ Why. Im fine. How many times do I have to say it. Im fine im fine im fine im fucking fine!’‘ You exclaim, getting more mad by the second. When will people accept this?

‘‘ Baby.. ’‘

Your eyes shoot up to him and his soft voice. You didn’t want to but you did because his voice to you is like candy that melts into your mouth.

‘‘ Don’t call me that. You have a girlfriend at-least be loyal to her rather than what you did to me.’‘

‘‘ Fuck is anybody going to just sit here and listen? Can we at-least get to the source of the problem? Huh?’‘ Jungkook leans back into the couch clearly pissed by your attitude.

Jimin’s the first to speak and holds a firm eye contact with you, almost daring you to break away from it.

‘‘ Fine. Im just going to cut straight to it then. Why are you so jealous? You aren’t okay at all. I seen the way you looked at us yesterday. You wanted to break down so bad but you didn’t. It looks like you’ve been dropping weight day by day why aren’t you eating well?’’

You’re taken a-back by his jealous comment. Although you are you just cannot admit it. You are jealous. You do want him back. You cant bear to see him with another girl but you. But the fact that Jimin is concerned makes you really hope. Just hope that there is something left of you still in his heart.

‘‘ Jealous? Jealous tuh.” You scoff, leaning into Jungkook’s arms where you rest his head on your chest. You only do this just to see Jimin’s reaction and by the look on his face he doesn’t enjoy that move one bit.

‘‘ Yes jealous. I mean why else would you put almond extra-

‘‘ Woah. No need to go there. We established that it was a so called accident lastnight.” Jungkook does finger quotes into the air and looks down at you.

You lift your head up and furrow your eyebrows in annoyance, “ So called? So you really believe that I did it on purpose. Wow Jungkook. Escort yourself out.’’

He sighs, wrapping his arms around you securly in hopes of you settling down a  little, “ Honestly it’s not like that. I wasn’t there to see you bake them nor was I watching her eat it. Im just saying that you knew Jimin was coming and obviously his girlfriend was going to come too. It’s a little sketchy is all.”

There’s no fixing what he said. Him adding onto his explanation just made things sound worse than what he’s trying to say. You don’t have time to be ganged up on, nor like it at all. It’s best if they both just leave, to not turn nothing into something.

‘‘ Get out. Now. Before I call and tell Ryan what you said and then she’ll definitely deal with you.’‘ You say, removing yourself from off of him and onto the other side of the couch with your legs crossed.

Mad isn’t even the word to describe yourself right now. You’re just a mixture of all emotions.

Jungkook now looks of sorriness written all over his face. You bite your lip and shake your head while pointing towards the door. He sighs heavily and takes one last look at you while removing himself from the couch. You watch him slip on his coat and shoes.

Jimin gets up from his spot on the couch, ‘‘ I’ll be leav-”

‘‘ Sit down we aren’t done talking.” 

He looks at you with his eyebrows furrowed, sitting back down slowly.

Jungkook keeps his head down as he wraps his blue scarf around his neck. Poor baby, but he shouldn’t of said it. “Please better yourself and talk it out with each-other. Im leaving.”

‘‘ Make it home safely.. Kookie.” You sigh once the door closes behind him. Now you’re here. Face to face with Park Jimin.

The same Jimin who cheated on you. The same Jimin you haven’t seen in a while. You take a few moments to take in his appearance. He seems to have re-gained his muscles that are peaking through his black, longsleeve shirt. His thighs are still thick, just like his luscious lips. Of course he changed his hair color to black. But who knows, he might change it again.

‘‘ You’ve been doing well?’‘ You say, voice low but enough for him to hear. You drop your eyes to your lap instead of keeping intact with his.

‘‘ Yes. But you have not. Im disappointed in you. Why are you doing this to yourself? Don’t do this because of me.”

‘‘ Jimin you don’t know the feeling. You don’t know how it feels to be left wondering why you weren’t good enough for someone. Why they had cheated on you. You don’t understand at all and wont ever.’‘ Your voice cracks on the last sentence and you an feel the lump in your throat become sore.

He bites his lip unsure of what to say next. Those words had hit him good inside. ‘‘ Im sorry. I truly am. But you know the reason why we had to end it. I fucked up bad and the media was making the scandal bigger and messier day by day. It was better to just call it off.’‘

One by one your tears start to drop. You nose begins it’s running trip but you sniffle it back up.

‘‘ You could of denied it. You know you could of made a statement and denied it. But you felt something for her didn’t you? Didn’t you?’‘ You semi-yell, sobs already starting to take it’s way over.

He bites his lip once again and ruffles his fingers through his hair, “ Baby..’’

You wipe your tears with your hands making your face even more puffy from the crying. “ I am jealous. I am I admit it Jimin. But do you know i have been suffering for one year and two months? I can’t sleep at night because im so used to your touch at night. I look at every couple in Seoul and think to myself, Dang they seem so happy. What’s their secret?’’

Jimin sits up, making eye contact with you with tears welling up into his eyes. It hurt’s you more than yourself to see him crying. It always has.

‘‘ Please don’t do that. Don’t do this to yourself. Please get help from someone to try and move on. Please. I don’t like to see or hear you make yourself suffer.’ He begs, getting up from his seat and coming towards you.

Jimin sits next to you, hesitantly opening his arms up to you. Would it be wrong to embrace him? He’s being too sincere, but thats what you want right? You decide to just do it, and lean into him only for him to pull you in closer into his chest.You just lay there crying and sobbing while he runs his fingers through your hair. You shouldn’t be doing this. He has a girlfriend. But it feels so right.

‘‘ What does she have that I don’t? Why couldn’t you love me the same way you love her “  You cry into his chest, soaking his shirt with your tears. 

You’d been waiting for this moment to just let it out. Let everything out.

‘’ Please don’t make this harder than what it is right now. Just try and forget me and move on. Please.” Hypocritcal. How does he expect you to get over him when he’s the one whos holding you so tight right now. Soon enough his sniffles join yours in harmony.

You raise your head up and look him deep into the eyes while you wipe away his tears, “ Don’t cry Jimin. I’m the one supposed to be crying over you. Don’t cry.’’

He takes your hand away from his face and wraps his fist ontop of yours, “Please promise me you will move on okay?’’

You shake your head no, “ I can’t make that promise.”

He doesn’t say anything. He gently cradles you in his arms and lifts you up. You don’t think to where he is going. You just close your eyes and grab onto his shirt firmly not wanting to let go.

Soon enough you feel the cold sheets over your bed. He covers you in the duvet and leans down to your forehead.  A kiss. Your fist is still locked onto his shirt in which he tries to pry it away but you don’t want to let him go. He sighs and raises his arms up as he takes off the shirt revealing an extra plain white wife beater under it. Taking your other hand, he wraps your hand into another fist onto the shirt to where both of your hands are holding onto it.

‘‘ Please better yourself for me baby. Sleep and eat well. “

Is all he says before turning off the lights and walking out your bedroom door.  You can hear him putting on and zipping up his heavy coat but you just don’t make a sound.

The apartment door clicks and beeps letting you know he’s already gone.

1, 7, 18, 24 and 35, please!!!

Head's up! I'm writing on mobile do no cut so feel free to scroll^^

1. How did you choose your cat’s name?

Pouet: @nyliekeo , another friend and I had a running joke going about founding a Pouet club (normally the onomatopoeia for a squeaky toy, in this case more of a synonym for 'poke(ing friends in the shoulder)' I don't remember how exactly I decided to use Ppuet as a name but it definitely came from there xD

Gollum (the cat): she had the worst meow I've ever heard, what seemed to be quite the temper, and enormous eyes (that she later grew into) and LOTR is never very far from my mind xD

Am: She had two sister and the vet office asked me to put their names down. I thought of something that went in three's, and landed on Am, Steam, Gram, which is the French equivalent to Eenie Minnie Mainy (Mo). Gram has since been renamed but afaik Stram remains Stram to this day :)

Bichon: I was trying not to get too attached (and also not to use his potential name at the time, because it was Leo and I don't like people names on animals) so I called him "Petit Bichon" (a possible pet name for animals or kids) for three weeks. Then the vet told me he'd be with me for about six month and I figured well, might as well keep the same word xD

7. How did you meet your cat?

Pouet and Gollum were both found through colleagues. Pouet was pure luck, as she was wandering around all alone in the streets, whereas Gollum's mom and siblings used to hand out at another colleague's place for food. I'm told the rest of Gollum's family made an abrupt disappearance shortly after she came to live with Pouet and I though, so it seems she had a fairly narrow escape there.

Am I found on a parking lot on my way back from groceries. I literally picked a cardboard box up from the trash to put her and her sisters in and take them to the vet xD

Bichon was found at my work in early November, and I was the only one with the possibility to take him in, so I did.

18. Describe one weird thing your cat does.

I literally can't recall anything particularly weird that Pouet did x) I might biased or time has already erased her quirks (I got teary eyed earlier, thinking of her for no reason) but she was just an absolute gem who once gave me a massage when I needed one 💕

Gollum will attack the toilet paper as soon as she's feeling mildly anxious. I literally can't trust her alone with it more than a minute in these moments. (Bichon also attack tp, but I suspect it's more of a trauma response from all the eye cleaning we're doing xD)

Am wakes me up by poking me with her claws. Now meow until later in the process, she just pulls at me with her claw--she tries to be gentle! But. Sharp. XD

Bichon tried to jump at my face these days. Little shit gets awfully close for a kitten that can't see xD

All three of them also tend to sit on my shoulders when at the vet or when stressed, which judging from the Vet's reaction, is apparently unusual xD

24. What is your cat afraid of?

Well, no one's a big fan of rain or thunder (#monsoon) but Gollum and Bichon seem relatively well adjusted so no big fear.

Am, however, is terrified of stranger. She spends all of the DND games played at my place hiding under the bed. Last time it was over four hours xD

35. Share your favourite photo of your cat!

Pouet:

Gollum & Am:

Bichon:

Thanks for asking!

Fire Keeper: Chapter 15

Douxie x fem reader

Chapter 1

Masterlist in bio!

Series Summary: You are Jim’s older sister who is taking a break from college and has moved back home to Arcadia. You end up joining Jim and his friends on their adventures.

Chapter 15 summary: Just as you and Douxie get back to Arcadia the Eternal Night begins. 

You stroked Archie as Douxie drove the three of you back to Arcadia. It had been a pretty silent drive with you drifting in and out of sleep, but you were awake now and you and Douxie were singing along to some music you were playing via your phone.

It was a lot of fun and it made you even happier to see Douxie smiling again. You looked back out the window before he could catch you staring.

A new song came on and you began to sing, but your phone ringing cut you off. You unplugged the aux cord and answered it.

“Hey, mom. We just got back. We’re almost in Arcadia.”

“Y/n, something happened, can you come to the school?” She asked, her voice filled with urgency.

“Um, yeah. I’ll be right there.” You hung up and looked to Douxie. “That was my mom, something happened.”

“I can drop you off and then you can pick up your car tomorrow?” Douxie suggested and you nodded.

The two of you continued singing, but you were distracted by your thoughts. Your brain had decided to conjure up thoughts of all the worst possible scenarios.

Thankfully you didn’t have to suffer through the scenarios as you arrived at the school. You hopped out of the car and thanked Douxie.

You immediately sensed auras on the roof and while they all seemed relatively calm and a little anxious, you didn’t sense Jim’s.

You decided to forgo the stairs and you flew yourself up to the roof. You arrived to see everyone but Jim. Even Merlin was there, but you didn’t see your brother. However, you did see a troll in the eclipse armor. You stared wide-eyed at him and dove into his aura. If you peeled back a few layers you found your brothers.

“Jim?” You asked, alerting everyone to your arrival.

“Hey Y/n,” he greeted, smiling nervously.

“Are you okay?” You asked, concern for your little brother consuming you.

“Kinda,” he admitted and you ran over to hug him. Tears pricked your eyes when you realized how much taller he was now.

“What happened?” You asked as you pulled away from him, but you still held his hand.

“I needed to become stronger and Merlin did this.” He gestured to himself.

“But you were already great,” you whispered. You could sense the pain and fear and Jim’s aura and it made your tears run faster. The best word to describe your mood was ‘furious’ and the cause of your anger was Merlin.

You had been home for about three seconds and you were already ready to fight the old man. You were only holding back because you didn’t want to start something or upset Jim.

“Ah so this is the Trollhunter’s sister?” Merlin asked and you were seriously ready to throw hands. You had really expected Merlin to be cooler from what Douxie described.

You scowled. “I am, and not only that, I’m a sorceress.”

“Really?” Merlin asked, interest showing on his face.

“Yes, and what were you thinking? How could you do this to him?” You asked.

“I didn’t do anything. It was his choice, I just created the means. In the end you will thank me.”

You decided to be mature and ignore Merlin. It was the best way to calm down. It also helped when you remembered that Merlin was able to see the future. Maybe Jim becoming a half-troll was a good thing?

You turned to Jim. “Don’t worry Jimbo, you still have your looks,” you joked trying to make light of the situation.

He chuckled. “Thanks.”

You looked at the rest of the group and you noticed Strickler standing very close to your mom. You decided to be mature and read their auras before attacking Strickler and you were presently surprised to sense forgiveness in your moms aura and caring in Strickler’s. Maybe he wasn’t that bad.

You put on a small smile. “Why don’t we walk home and you explain everything that's been going on this past week to me.”

“There’s something you should know about our trip to find Merlin,” Jim said once you all had gotten down from the roof.

“What’s wrong?” You asked, sensing the sad shift in everyone’s auras.

Jim looked down. “Draal didn’t make it. H-he died back when we were getting Merlin’s staff. Draal took a dagger for me, Angor Rot killed him.”

You looked at the rest of the group and saw sadness shining in your eyes. You began to cry again and Jim hugged you. “I-I can’t believe it,” you sobbed.

“I know I’m sorry. But we are going to avenge him,” Jim promised. You sniffed, looking up at him. He was so grown up now and you were incredibly proud.

You took a deep breath. “I know we will.”

~~~~

Last night as all of you walked home the group recounted the events of the last week to you and you had to admit a lot had happened. Now it was time to defeat Morgana and Gunmar.

That morning you had gone over the plan and you had to say, while you were nervous and scared, but you were excited to end this. It would all be over soon and hopefully your brother and Merlin would come out victorious.

And while they did that, you were on crowd control with Douxie. You wouldn’t have regular civilians dying, not if you had something to say about it.

You stood on the sidelines with Douxie watching Aja and Krel play their music. The crowd seemed very excited for Krel’s DJ-ing, but you were a ball of nerves. Claire was supposed to arrive soon and tell everyone to go and find someplace safe.

You bit your lip as Señior Uhl announced Mama Skull and Claire walked onto the stage in her armor.

You barely listened to her speech, but you could tell nobody was understanding how much danger they were in. That is until the sky darkened and gumm-gumms appeared.

You tried to call everyone to you, but they just panicked. Unsure of what to do, you and Douxie just began to fight. The less gumm-gumms there were the less chance of people dying, right?

You summoned your sword and immediately sliced through one as you sent a magic blast at another. You heard someone scream on stage and you and Douxie ran over there. You noticed he didn’t have a weapon and you wondered what he was going to be able to do with just a guitar.

Apparently he could do a lot. He hit a gumm-gumm that was terrorizing Mary and Darci over the head, knocking it out cold.

“I've always hated those twits!” he grumbled. You went over to finish the job while he helped Mary and Darci.

You walked back over to Douxie who Mary and Darci were swooning over and you rolled your eyes. “Come on Romeo, we need to get these people to safety.”

“Alright, Ladies follow us.” Douxie took off and you followed him.

“Where should we take them?” You asked. “We need some place big enough to fit a ton of people.”

“The school!” Douxie responded. You turned the corner and found some gumm-gumms harassing some of the old guys who like to play chess in the gazebo.

You held out your sword and charged the creatures, easily taking them down while Douxie covered your back. The two of you made a very good team.

Soon the street was cleared of the black and green monstrosities, but you knew it wouldn’t last long. “We need to get going,” you said helping the old men up.

Your ever growing group made your way through the town with Douxie up front and you guarding the rear. Occasionally you ran into gumm-gumms, but you and Douxie took care of them easily.

Soon you made it to the school. You used your magic to unlock the doors and you had to admit you were proud of yourself.

You watched as Douxie led everyone across the street. Things seemed to be going your way for the time being and you hoped all of your friends were doing okay. You didn’t know how you would go on if you lost anyone else.

Another tremor hit and you wobbled on your feet. Tremors had been occurring all day, but this one felt different.

The cause of the tremor was soon revealed when you heard a roar. It was a roar you had only ever heard once before, and that had been in the Darklands. You watched everyone freeze in the middle of the street as a gigantic black and green snake thing turned towards all of you. It could probably smell the fear radiating off of everyone.

“Fuzz buckets,” Douxie cursed as the Nyarlagroth charged. There was no time to make any mistakes so you just decided to call upon your magic. An orange glow surrounded the Arcadians and they floated into the air. You heard shouts of surprise, but you didn’t have time to warn them as you threw them inside the school.

You went to chase after them, but you instead saw a kitten standing in the middle of the Nyarlagroth’s path. There was no way you were going to let something bad happen to the adorable ball of white fluff, so you did what any compassionate human would do. You ran towards the kitten and picked it up.

Unfortunately now both of you were in the Nyarlagroth’s path, but you weren’t there for long.

You and the kitten glowed blue and you were yanked towards Douxie who caught you. He carried you bridal style into the school, gently setting you down before the group of Arcadians.

“Um, thanks,” you mumbled.

“Anytime, thanks for getting the kitten. I didn’t see it.”

“Of course.”

“What now?” Someone asked and you turned to face them. You didn’t have to be an aura reader to sense that these people were afraid. But what you weren’t expecting was for them to be determined.

“I know you might not be happy to be stuck in here, unable to do anything, but in here you are safer. I also understand how scary this is. Right now Douxie and I need to take care of that giant snake thing so we can make this place safer.” You looked at all the terrified faces and sighed when you noticed that your speech didn’t seem to be impacting them. “Okay, look. We’ve all lived in Arcadia for a while and I’m sure many of you have noticed the weird things that go on around here. There are different creatures that live here who aren’t human, but this is their home too. Those bad guys out there have taken their home before and are trying to take it again as well as ours. There aren’t many people who can do something about it, but those who can are out there, fighting for you and they are going to win. But to do that, they need you in here where you’re safe so they don’t have to worry about you. It may seem scary now, but if we all do our part things will work out!”

You looked again and noticed that everyone seemed to be calmer and even more determined than they were before. “Good luck!” Someone called and you smiled.

“We’ll be back soon,” Douxie said, holding the door for you.

You reluctantly gave the kitten to Phil and Jerry, the two the old guys you had saved. “Now let’s go take care of that Nyarlagroth.”

~~~~

“I didn’t know you gave inspirational speeches,” Douxie joked once you were outside.

“It’s one of my many hidden talents,” you replied smiling at him.

You and Douxie raced to the top of the school to get a good view and you saw the Nyarlagroth circling the school.

“When Jim was in the darklands he stopped one by overwhelming it’s sense of smell,” you explained. “We need to find something that will do that.”

“This is a school, there’s got to be tons of  gross laundry here,” Douxie suggested.

You bit your lip. “I hope this works.”

“Me too,” Douxie sighed, looking one last time at the beast. His aura was buzzing with worry.

“We’ve got this,” you said, pulling him back down the stairs. The two of you went looking for the laundry and you plugged your nose as you levitated it out of the school. “This should be fine.”

“Good.” Douxie chuckled. “I hope these kids won’t be mad about us feeding their stuff to the Nyarlagroth.”

“I think they’ll be fine.” You set the hampers down to catch a breather. “Okay, I’ll go across the street and when the Nyarlagroth comes around be ready to fling this stuff into its mouth.”

“Yes Ma’am,” Douxie said, jokingly saluting you.

You gave a small smile before running across the street, levitating your baskets behind you.

You heard the Nyarlagroth before you saw it. Hiding in an Alley you levitated the hampers and got ready to shove them into the beast’s mouth.

It roared and you sent the disgusting laundry flying into its mouth. You watched as Douxie’s hampers flew in after yours.

It froze and you took it distraction as an opportunity.

“Douxie blast it, I’m gonna go stab it!” You explained, ever eloquent.

You leapt into the air and onto the Nyarlagroth’s back. You felt the beast shift as Douxie began to blast it. Quickly you located a space between its scales and you squeezed your eyes closed as you thrust your sword into it. You pushed it into the hilt and watched as it slowly turned to stone. You felt bad, but you knew it would kill everyone if given the chance.

You floated off the Nyarlagroth and down to the ground where Douxie hugged you.

“We did it!” He celebrated. “You did amazing.”

“Thanks, but we both did amazing.”

You high fived in celebration. The Nyarlagroth was now a pile of useless stones and the People of Arcadia were mostly saved.

However, the celebration couldn’t last long. You had work to do. You and Douxie placed anti gumm-gumm sigils around the house and then went to go look for more people. Soon you had gathered quite a few and you were bringing them back to the cool when you saw a horde of goblins.

Stood to challenge them while Douxie got the people inside. The goblins charged at you and you blasted a few before they got too close.

The leader leapt up at you and you sliced him with your sword. This only angered the rest of them causing them to fight with more vigor. But you were fighting for the safety of your town.

Soon Douxie joined you, bashing the goblins with his guitar that he had kept. It was a little battered by now, but it made for a good weapon.

You fought goblin after goblin, but there always seemed to be more of them.

They suddenly stopped attacking though and you noticed a change in the air. The goblins looked at each other then at you and Douxie who had your weapons arrived.

They turned and ran. You were tempted to go after them, but you realized that you couldn’t do much against that many goblins. You should have to save that problem for later.

“What do you think happened?” Douxie asked.

Red lightning came out of nowhere and hit a gumm-gumm which shattered into a pile of rocks. “I think Jim killed Gunmar!” You exclaimed.

Now that the street was clear you and Douxie went to check on the Arcadians. After you were sure they were good the two of you can off to the canal. The both of you were worried that the Eternal Night hadn't ended.

You didn't have your car so you wouldn't be able to drive. Instead the two of you ran.

You arrived to see Claire, Jim, Toby, Aaarrrgghh, and Blinky looking at a giant crack in the ground.

You looked into it and saw the heartstone, but it wasn't warm and happy orange anymore. It was a cold gray.

"What happened?" You asked, aghast. You had spent so much wonderful time in Trollmarket now it was destroyed.

"Gunmar happened," Blinky said, bitterly.

"What are you going to do now? " you asked.

"We're gonna look for a new Heartstone. Merlin mentioned that there would be one in New Jersey," Jim said.

"New Jersey?" You asked, shocked.

Jim avoided your eyes. "Yeah."

"I'll miss you," you said, hugging him.

"I'll miss you too," he said.

~~~~

After you had met with Jim Claire and Toby and they had told you their side of the battle and you told yours, you went to see your mom who was sanding on the cliff overlooking Arcadia. The two of you were waiting to say goodbye to Jimo. You knew he had to go to New Jersey, but it still hurt you to see him go.

Merlin arrived and he looked out over Arcadia. There was smoke billowing over some buildings and while it looked sad and hopeless, but you knew it would be okay.

You gently stroked the kitten you had saved from the Nyarlagroth. You had decided to adopt the kitten, though you didn’t have a name for the darling fluff ball.  

You were spooked out of your thoughts by some rustling behind you. You turned around to see Jim. You tried to hold back your tears.  You hadn’t even said goodbye yet and you were already missing him.

He went over to you and your mom and hugged the two of you. “I promised I’d never leave you,” he said.

“Honey, I knew this day would come, I just...never knew when,” your mom rubbing yours and Jim’s back. “I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

You heard your mom sniff and you knew she was crying. Your own tears began to fall. “Just call often,” you sniffed.

“Everyday. Twice. Text. Now and then?” Your mom added.

“Of course, guys. I love you,” Jim said, also sniffing.

“Not more than I love you kiddo,” your mom chuckled.

You heard more rustling and sawBlinky arrive. “Are you ready, Master Jim?” He asked coming over to you.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Jim sighed, letting go of you and your mom, but keeping your hands.

“I don’t know what tomorrow brings, but with our Trollhunter by our side, I don’t fear it either,” Blinky said,  putting his hand on Jim's shoulder. You smiled, you were glad Jim had someone like Blinky.

“I really appreciate that, Mr. Blinky,” you mom said.

You heard more rustling and saw Claire and her parents arrive.

She walked over to Jim. “Claire, I can’t ask you to—“

“You didn’t ask,” Claire said and you were so glad Jim had such a great boyfriend.

“She has enough credits to graduate early,” Claire's mom said. “We’re treating this as some time abroad.”

“As long as she comes back soon,” her dad said.

“Well, congratulations, Claire,” You said, high fiving her. You wondered how it was possible for a sophomore to have accomplished that.

Jim laughed and you jumped a little as Strickler came flying by. He landed by your mom. “Good luck, Young Atlas.”

Jim smiled at the three of you and slowly let go of your mom’s hand as he walked away.

“You did good raising him, Doc,” NotEnrique consoled. “Here’s a thousand new babies to raise.”

“What?” Strickler asked as NotEnrique handed your mom the cradle stone.

“Have fun with that, you two,” NotEnrique called, running away so they couldn’t give the stone back.

“Wait!” Strickler called.

“This’ll be fun,” you muttered and your mom patted your back.

“Wait! Wait for me!” Toby yelled as he came running up to the group in his War Hammer armor. “Boy, these goodbyes are tough, you know. Nana wanted me to take Mr. Meow Meow P.I., but he does not travel well. What?”

“Tobes...you have to stay.” Jim said, kneeling down.

“What?” Toby asked and you felt really, really bad for him. “You’re going on a quest. I love quests. We go everywhere together.”

“I’m hurt, Claire lost her Shadow Staff. We need you here to protect Arcadia.”

“No, Wingman,” Aaarrrgghh said, coming up to Toby. “I help. I stay.”

Blinky gasped then nodded, accepting it. Their air was thick with bittersweet goodbyes and you felt a few tears fall.

“So, you’re staying with me-” Toby gestured to you and Aaarrrgghh “-and you’re leaving,” he summarized, gesturing to Claire, Jim and Blinky.

“But we’ll be back. Someday,” Jim promised as you handed the kitten to your mom and walked over to them with Claire. The four of you were pulled into a group hug.

“You better,” Toby sniffed.

“And then we’ll get tacos,” Jim said, chuckling.

“And enchiladas,” Claire added.

“We sure found that adventure. Right, Tobes?” Jim asked and you smiled through your tears.

“I’m really glad we took the canal that morning,” Toby agreed.

The four of you stood. “Keep Arcadia safe,” Jim requested. “You’re its only Trollhunters now.”

Nomura walked over and hugged Toby. “I still don’t like you.”

“I know,” Toby cried. You began to quietly shed your tears as your friends and little brother walked away into the forest.

They stopped and you watched as Merlin pulled out the Eclipse Blade and you noticed that it was broken. “I believe this belongs to you, Trollhunter.”

Merlin used his magic to fix it and Jim grabbed it. They looked back one more time and you waved a sad goodbye.

****

Thank yall so much for reading and liking my writing!! It makes me so happy to see your positive feedback!! It was super bittersweet writing this chapter. I know there will be more, but it felt sad writing the scene where they leave. Anyways, I really hope y'all have a wonderful day/night!! And stay safe!! 💙💙

Also I haven't though if a name for the kitten yet, so if you have any suggestions I'm open.

P.S. if you want to be on the taglist feel free to ask. I hope it works and please message me if it doesn’t.P.S. if you want to be on the taglist feel free to ask. I hope it works and please message me if it doesn’t.

P.P.S. I'm totally open for requests on fluffy half chapters! If you have any ideas for the half chapters send them in and I'll do my best to include them.

Lost Boys Pt 1

Apparently I never posted this over here. Whoops! Enjoy some Adrien and Damian Found Family

Summary:

Like Father Like Son: Damian starts Adopting at a Young age Nature vs Nurture: Bat Fam Edition "I’m fully aware of your adopting habits, this one is suitable and I will call him brother and he shall be my brother." - Damian al Ghul Wayne (probably)

Inspired by Lost Boys by Ruth B

AO3

Damian had heard about his father's unfortunate habit of adopting unsuitable heirs, however he never understood it. Why choose someone so obviously unworthy to continue on his legacy. It would change when he met his father. Batman would finally have a worthy heir and the others could be dismissed.

Currently he was in Paris, waiting for his mother to finish a mission. While she was busy, he was scouting out escape routes. No matter what anyone might say, he was in no way exploring the city. He was Damian Al Ghul and he was an accomplished assassin; he did not explore. There was an added difficulty with Paris' Akuma problem, he was more than up to the challenge. The heroes of Paris' were currently dealing with an akumatized baby on the other side of the city.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw a black steak drop into a nearby alleyway. He crept closer, not making a sound in the empty street. In the alley stood Chat Noir, then in a flash of green light the cat hero disappeared and in his place was the model you couldn't escape in Paris and a floating blob.

"Cheese, I need cheese." The blob whined.

Agreste fished some cheese out of his pocket. "Eat quickly Plagg. I need to get back before anyone notices I'm gone."

"Kid, don't rush me. You have to appreciate the cheese. Plus, you might want to worry about the kid that just discovered your identity."

"Wha~, oh Ladybug is going to kill me," he said finally spotting Damian.

"Probably," Plagg added helpfully. "Tikki's chosen are usually goody-goodies."

"Tt, like I care about your identity Agreste." The blob, now identified as "Plagg", flew into his face. Upon closer inspection it looked like a cat.

"Listen closely kid, I'm thousands of years old. You become a threat to my kitten, you'll find out what happened to the dinosaurs firsthand. Got it?"

"I am the heir of the Demon's Head. Is that supposed to scare me?"

"Wait, why are you alone in Paris? Where are your parents?" Adrien interrupted.

In the background Plagg muttered, "So that old man is still alive. Need to talk to Sugar cube about that."

"Mother is… finishing some business and then we are leaving Paris."

"But you're left alone a lot? With a parent that only cares about how you perform in public?" At Damian's hesitant nod, Adrien smiled. "Same," he paused as if weighing the potential consequences of the next words. "Want to do normal kid stuff with me? Honestly, my dad probably won't notice and you're already out sooooooo…."

Damian quickly analyzed the benefits. His father was well known and had a prolific public life. If he could blend in with "normal kid stuff", while it might be tedious now, it would benefit him in the long run. "That is acceptable, Mother will call with a rendezvous point when she is ready."

"Okay first rule of being normal kids, use less words. Talking with proper grammar all the time is 'not cool'." The last bit was punctuated by air quotes. "Also, what's your name?"

Ah, a test. He had this. "Damian."

" 'kay Dami," catching Damian's glare he hurriedly continued. "Nicknames are important in friendships. They show trust and affection. We're going to meet my friend Nino to hang." As they walked down the street Adrien conveyed other bits of wisdom like "There's a whole group of food that you eat with your hands, using a fork and knife with those is considered weird," and "some people give hugs to show how much they care about you."

Damian half wished he could write these tips down. After all, everyone in the league had lived in the world and it was second nature to them.

"Yo my dude, what's up?" A boy with a red cap jogged up to them.

"Not much." Adrien gave the other boy a first bump. "This is Damian," be shot Nino a significant look. "His mom's like my dad."

"Hey little dude, welcome to Normal Kid land." He held his fist out towards Damian.

Damian quickly realized it was not an attack, but a greeting ritual and he bumped his fist against Nino's with only the slightest hesitation.

"Alright my dudes, let's go pick up the girls and get this chill sesh going."

Adrien turned to Damian as they walked towards Rue Gotlieb. "Every time we can hang out, we rotate who decides the activity. This time it's Marinette's turn, right Nino?"

"Yup Dudette's deciding and word on the street is there's a UMS 3 tournament happening at an arcade nearby. So, it's either going to be that or the new fashion exhibit at the Louvre."

They arrived at the bakery just in time to see Nathalie's car pull away and hear a screech of "Oh my God." They entered the apartment upstairs only to see Alya kneeling before Marinette.

"Girl you have to calm down."

"Alya do you understand how big this is? I have to start designing now. Oh, what will I wear?" Not noticing the boys entering the room she rushed to her sketchbook. "Okay, it's black tie formal." She started flipping the pages. "Sun dress, day dress, semi-formal, too casual."

The boys moved over towards Alya. "Babe, what's going on?"

"Adrien's dad just invited Marinette to accompany Adrien to the donor and VIP party for the new exhibit at the Louvre."

"Oh yeah," Adrien sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "I think Nathalie mentioned that to me."

"Sunshine," Alya said with her hands on her hips. "As my girl's bff I need advance notice of these things to avoid this." She gestured towards Marinette who was still frantically flipping through her sketchbook.

"Why do I have nothing black tie?" Marinette moaned.

During all of this Damian had made his way over to where Marinette was frantically going through her designs. "This one." He said with a commanding tone. "Make it longer and extend the embroidery on one side of the skirt.

Marinette screeched and clutched the sketchbook to her chest, while Damian looked on unimpressed.

"That was not necessary. You need to be more aware of your surroundings." Damian glanced at Adrien. "So, these are your… friends," the unfamiliar word heavy on his tongue. "What purpose do they serve?"

Adrien shot a panicked look towards Alya and Nino, when Marinette stepped in. "Friends don't need to serve a purpose. They support you when you're not feeling your best and you do the same for them. Friends are really just siblings that you choose for yourself.”

Damian was busy contemplating that thought when his phone beeped once, twice and then fell silent. Glancing at it he realized that Mother had finished her business and sent him the coordinates for their rendezvous point. He quickly left and it was only on the flight back to Namba Parat that he noticed the slip of paper in his pocket. Sneaking a glance he noticed a string of numbers and an email with a hastily scrawled note at the bottom that read “So we can keep in touch. -A.A.”

A few years had passed since that fateful day in Paris. Damian had been diligent in cultivating the relationship with Agreste. The biggest change came a few months after they met. It had been one of the few times Damian managed to get access to a web camera and slip away from his watchers for a few hours. He had quickly sent a video call request to Agreste. It had been the first time since they met in Paris and when the connection settled, he had used the title that only dwelled in the recesses of his mind. “Gēgē, I have been informed that I will be studying in London for the time being.” When he realized what he had called Agreste, he was quick to end the call. But his gēgē had not let him dwell on it and acknowledged the honor that came with the title.

Now, Damian stood in the shadows of the rooftop where Mother was confronting his father. As he surveyed the crowd before him, two fingers worried at that old worn piece of paper. The number it originally held was long faded from it's surface but forever imprinted in his mind. With a jolt he returned to the task he had been given. It would not do to miss Mother's signal and give Father a poor impression of his diligence, he thought. Father had only brought along his current Robin with him. That was fine. He could easily defeat him, and there was Mother's signal.

He strode forward with all the confidence he didn't feel. This was the easy part. All he had to do was defeat the charlatan in combat and claim his rightful place as his father's heir. Before he had time to prepare what he was going to say he was at Mother's side, her steadying hand on his shoulder. "Father," so far it was going well, "I thought you would be taller."

"Robin," his father's voice came out in a low growl. “Bring your brother to the Batmobile. I need a word with Talia."

Damian stalked past the impostor. Of course, Father would not have them fight there. There were too many potential witnesses. His face twisted into a grimace. Mother would never tolerate a beginner mistake like the one he just made. Father must be disappointed in him already.

He climbed into the black car Drake motioned to. He would correct his father's perception of him. He had to. Failure has never been an option for an al Ghul. Drake was talking to a Penny-One, who remotely enabled the vehicle's autopilot back to the "Cave".

The "Batmobile" parked just as two motorcycles roared into the cavern. One carried the familiar figure of Batman. The other, a bright red bike, carried another one of Damian's alleged brothers, according to the information Mother had given him. There was something about him, an important piece of information that Damian couldn't remember. Then Todd spotted him and hurled his helmet as hard as he could onto the cave floor with a sharp crack.

"Damnit Bruce! Another one?!" He roared as green started to tinge the blue of his eyes.

That was it. This was the one Grandfather permitted to use the Lazarus pool.

"Jason, Damian is my son."

"I thought we were all your sons you consarn sarding hypocrite."

"Jay-lad, I meant Damian is my biological son. With Talia."

Damian had used the momentary distraction of Todd losing his temper, -tt- amateur, to swipe Todd's phone. He raced into a sectioned off area of the cave. Not noticing his father's first ward descending into the cave. Dick quickly moved to calm Jason down. "Jay-bird, I get you're upset with Bruce, but we've got a bigger problem."

"And what would that be, dickhead?"

"Who's missing their phone? 'Cos the kid just ran into the changing room with one."

They all barreled after Damian, stopping just outside the door.

Inside Damian was listening to the ring of the phone, willing Adrien to pick up with every ounce of his body.

"Hello?"

"Gēgē, it's me."

"Dami, what's wrong?"

"I think I messed up." He paused, "Mother decided that I was ready to meet Father. To assume my rightful position as his heir." Adrien hummed and that was all the encouragement Damian needed. "I insulted him when I greeted him." He admitted. "Todd was angry about my existence and Drake is my competition. Grayson does not appear to be here. How can I possibly gain Father's approval now?"

"Dami, you're a good kid and no matter what happens you have me," he paused. "And I'm sure Mari would love for you to be her little brother. But why not try bonding with them over their interests. But if worst comes to worst, remember what Mari said friends are?"

"Yes, thank you, gēgē." Damian quickly deleted all traces of his phone call, before moving to rejoin his father and the rest. He opened the door only to see his father completely filling the frame.

"You have a brother?" He demanded.

"Due to your habits, father, I have a multitude."

"Who were you talking to?" He demanded again. “Your mother didn’t mention another child of ours.”

“That is none of your business.” Damian shot back, as his alleged brothers’ heads moved back and forth between the pair, looking like the strays they were. It appeared that Grayson had joined them while he was on the phone.

"Bruce, it’s been a long night for everyone.” Grayson started

“That is quite right Master Dick. This can all be discussed over breakfast tomorrow morning.” Pennyworth announced as he walked down the stairs to the cave. “Young Master Damian, if you would return Master Jason’s phone, I will show you to your room now.”

“That is acceptable, Pennyworth.” He handed the phone back to Jason and left the room after Pennyworth.

As soon as they were gone, “Jason, give the phone to Tim. Tim, trace who Damian just called, start looking for any connections to the League of Shadows.”

Fifteen minutes later Tim had to be the bearer of bad news. “Sorry Bruce, but according to the phone, no calls have been made on it all day. The only way we’ll find out who he was talking to anytime soon is if he tells us.”

“HA,” Jason barked out. “B, finally has a kid just as paranoid as him.”

“Damnit!” Bruce’s fist hit the table. “I need to know.”

“Bruce, why is it so important? It was his brother.” Dick questioned

“What if it was code? This could all be a part of Talia’s plot.”

“So, we keep an eye on the twerp. It’s not the end of the world.” Jason started to leave the cave.

The next morning, Damian descended for breakfast. Unfortunately, Father’s band of orphans had already assembled at the table. In addition to the group he had expected, a woman sat next to Father, laughing at something Grayson had said.

After he finished eating, the umbrage of questioning started.

“Who’s your brother?”

“It is not important to you; I am your only blood child.”

“Where does he live?”

“France,” Damian acquiesced. France was a large country, the odds of Father finding Gēgē were minimal.

“How is he connected to the League?”

Damian hesitated, if he did not answer this question, Father could ask Mother about Gēgē, which would endanger him. “He isn’t.” Damian used the resulting confusion to slip away.

He had been wandering the grounds for a few hours when Grayson found him.

After a while of walking in silence together, Grayson spoke. “So how’d you meet your brother?”

“Mother had a mission in France. She decided to test me on how well I could blend in. Gēgē found me while I was waiting for her to finish. He insisted on keeping in contact when I had to leave.”

“Any questions for me?”

“Who was the woman at breakfast?”

“Selina, she’s B’s fiancee. Why didn’t you want to tell B about your brother?”

“I’ve had to keep him secret for years from Mother and Grandfather. What does Father expect from me?”

“That’s complicated. Do you mean what does he expect right now, or what does he hope for from you?”

“Both.”

“B hasn’t said what he expects from you. I think he’s nervous about why your mom brought you here, now. But his hopes for you are the same as the rest of us. That you adapt to this change well and are happy here. Eventually, he’s hoping you trust him, but I think it’s a little soon for that.” They fell into silence again as Damian contemplated that answer. Eventually, Dick spoke again trying to steer the conversation into neutral territory. “What do you like to do?” Damian shot him a puzzled look. “In your spare time? What do you like to do?”

“I draw. When will Father set the trial by combat?”

“The what?”

“The trial by combat against Drake. For the position of Robin. It will be soon, correct?”

“Why would you fight Tim? That’s not how Robin works. When Tim is ready to become a solo hero, he will pass down the title.”

“I am Father’s rightful heir. It is my duty to fight by his side.”

“I’m pretty sure B doesn’t expect that.”

“-tt-,” Damian walked in silence back to the house with Grayson.

When they got inside, they separated. Damian headed back towards his room. Dick, however, walked like a man on a mission. “Alfred, do you know where Bruce is?”

“I believe Master Bruce went to the cave.”

“Thanks.” Taking the stairs two at a time, he rushed down to the cave. “Seriously, Bruce? You find out you have a son and instead of getting to know him, you’re down here doing the paranoid Bat routine?”

“Dick, this is important. Who knows what Talia is plotting? I can’t give him too much information.”

Tim looked at Dick and then at Bruce and quickly decided to make his exit.

“He has a name B. And maybe if you actually, I don’t know, talked to Damian, you could figure this out faster.” A bing came from the computer and Dick moved to investigate. “Really, a DNA check?” He picked up the file folder. “Well congrats Bruce, it’s a boy.” He threw the file into Bruce’s chest and stormed back up the stairs.

Just before Damian entered his room, that woman approached him. “Hey, Damian, right? I didn’t get a chance to introduce myself earlier. I’m Selina Kyle.”

“Yes, Father’s latest paramour.”

She chuckled but before she could respond Drake stormed by. “What’s wrong Tim?”

“Dick and Bruce are at it again. I’m getting out of the blast zone.”

“Well, why don’t we all go out shopping? Damian, I’m sure you need to pick some stuff up.”

“-tt- That will do.”

As Dick stormed out of the cave, the group of three pulled out of the manor driveway.

“Dick, Chum, I’m just trying to be careful. He already knows everyone’s identity, and maybe he’s not a part of Talia’s plot but I can’t just accept that. Talia doesn’t do anything without a reason.”

“Fine, but you could at least talk to him.”

“I-“

“Talk to, not interrogate him. I bet I know more about his brother than you do.”

“How?”

“We played 20 questions. Damian met his brother while Talia was on a mission in France. His brother insisted on keeping in touch, and Damian believes that Talia and Ra’s didn’t know about this brother.”

“Why wouldn’t he tell me this?”

“Because he doesn’t know you.” Dick was exasperated. “You didn’t even introduce Selina to him.”

“I didn’t?”

“No, B you didn’t. I get that it’s important for you to make sure we’re safe but you have to remember that he’s 10. His life has just been completely uprooted. On another note…”

“Jason?”

“Jason, you really need to let him know you don’t hate him.”

“I could never!”

“I know that, and you know that, but does Jay know that?”

At the mall Damian had selected some civilian attire, thanks to a surprise shopping trip with his Gēgē and Mari he learnt how to shop for clothes. That woman was well suited to help him pick out clothes. Then Drake dragged them into a nearby technology store. “What are we here for?”

“Well, you’re going to need a phone, Babs and I’ll make sure it’s secure tonight,” Drake started. “Plus, a laptop, for school, game systems, so you know what the other kids are talking about- “

“Wait,” Damian interrupted. “Father is going to send me to school. With children?!” He was incredulous and aghast.

“Well, yeah,” Drake replied. “It’s the law.”

“I am so far beyond whatever those incompetents could possibly teach. I have a Doctorate!”

“Then B will say it’s for social skills. Point is you’re going to have to go and the laptop will let you Skype your brother.”

“Alright, but I will fight Father about school.”

“Been there, tried that, have the commemorative Mug.” Drake continued as he peered at specifications. “One of the first things you’ll learn about Bruce, is that us appearing to be well-adjusted people is very important to him. If it helps think of school as being undercover. You need to convince people that you’re a typical 10-year-old, not someone who has a PhD.” With that Drake selected a laptop and moved on to grab a Switch system and some Pokémon games.

As they left the store, she asked, “Need anything else, Kitten?”

Damian hesitated. Should he trust them with this? “If there is an art store…” he trailed off.

“Sure Kitten,” Kyle said. “What type? Drawing, painting, knitting? Whatcha like?”

“Primarily drawing and oil painting.”

“Well if you ever want to try knitting…”

“Selina stop trying to induct another person into your knitting cult. You already got Jay, isn’t that enough?”

“Nope,” they walked into the craft store. “Kitten, I’ll be in the yarn section, just grab what you want.”

“You don’t even like the yarn here!” Drake shouted after her.

Selina ignored him as she walked off. Damian looked at him questioningly as he grabbed sketch pads and canvases. “Why did you not go with her?”

“She’s going to be over there for a while. Plus, I’ve spent tons of time with Selina, I haven’t spent time with you.”

“Why would you want to? I am a threat to your position. Unless, this is to learn my weaknesses. I see you possess a superior sense of strategy than I had originally suspected Drake.”

“Wha-No, why? You’re my new brother, I want to know more about you.”

Damian headed off to find Kyle with Drake tailing after him. “You can admit to the ruse. I have found you out.”

“You’ve found nothing.”

“Being disingenuous is unbecoming. I have discovered your scheme.”

“Damian, I literally just want to get to know my younger brother but go off I guess.”

Damian’s confusion from that statement only grew as they found Selina with a cart full of yarn.

“We left you alone for 5 minutes.”

“I have zero impulse control. I don’t know how you keep forgetting this.” She replied plucking Damian’s choices from his hands and adding it to the cart.

They drove back, only to be greeted by a very confused Bruce as Selina carried bags filled with yarn into the house. “Come on Baby Bat, you need to know where the craft room is.”

“What happened?” Bruce asked Tim.

“We took Damian shopping; I think we bonded but apparently he thinks I have some scheme to defeat him in a fight. Don’t know what that’s about, but I need coffee.” Tim replied going into the kitchen.

That night was the start of regularly scheduled calls between Damian and Adrien. Damian took extreme precautions to keep the calls private. They where never the same night of the week or the same time of evening, and while he locked the door to his room, he never called from there. Despite bets to the opposite, Jason was the first to find Damian while he was on a call.

“Yo, Gremlin, whatcha up to?”

“None of your business, Todd.”

“Dami, is that one of your brothers?” Came an unfamiliar voice.

“-tt-, it is no one important.”

“Aw, Gremlin, I thought we were closer than that.” He captured Damian in a headlock and got a good look at the screen. “Oh, you’re that teen model…” He snapped trying to remember the name.

“Adrien.” Adrien supplied.

“Yeah, that’s it! You’re the Gremlin’s brother?”

“Todd, remove your hands before I remove them for you.”

“Touchy, touchy Baby Bat.” Damian snarled at him, while Jason pulled out his phone and took a selfie with the computer and Damian.

“Delete that Todd.”

“No can do, you know how the others are. I won and now I have proof.”

“TODD,” Damian screamed, as Jason ran back to the house.

After that, all the Wayne boys made consistent interruptions in Damian’s calls. Grayson was the most frequent. Drake was second and the most annoying, constantly pestering Adrien with questions, that varied from how often he sees his father to how many hours he worked modeling for his father’s brand.

“Hey Dami, why does your brother keep asking all those questions?” Adrien asked one day.

“It is Drake, I try not to delve into his potential thought process.”

“Well, Damian, that sounds like a you problem.” Drake shot back as he continued to type on his laptop.

“Anyways, Dami school got out early today.”

“Oh, what was the reason this time?”

“Mr. Pigeon again. Poor Mr. Ramier, all he wants is to feed the pigeons.”

“Wait, what?” Drake interrupted again.

“Drake, Gēgē is trying to tell me about his day and complain about Hawkmoth. Stop interrupting.”

“Who’s Hawkmoth?”

“Wait,” Adrien interrupted, “You don’t know about Hawkmoth? Paris’ supervillain? Attacks at least 4 times a week for the past 4 years? His Akumas are always defeated by Ladybug and Chat Noir? None of this rings a bell?”

“No,” Drake said slowly.

“Ugh,” Damian rolled his eyes. “Here research away to your heart’s content and let me talk to Gēgē!”

Murder Under The Cold Moon

So, I wrote a short story for my creative writing class. Underneath the cut is like the third (?) draft of it. It sits at about 4.8k words at the moment and I think that there might be some more content that I could add to it. Other than that, I think that is it.

TW for depictions of violence-none of it graphic & mentions of underage drug use.

Duke was never one to find his place with the other children on the street. It not like he couldn't just go up to them and ask them to play. They would easily bring him into his group. But he never felt connected to any of them, honestly. The kids were a few years younger than him. Just starting first grade or kindergarten while he was nearing middle school. They were just other kids that his mom forced him to play with whenever she was in sight. But since she wasn't, he wasn't about to pretend to play with these children. The ones who really only played with him because their parents forced them to do so.

Rather, his pants were rolled up to his ankles and his sleeves pulled up to his elbows. His shoes were half a mile down the creek and his jacket a mere quarter of a mile downstream. The water neared body temperature and if you were already in the water by the time its temperature started rising, you didn't feel it at all. Duke's hands finished in the water for tadpoles. Each time he dipped them in, his hands came out as red as a tomato but only a few degrees warmer than his skin. Not too hot but just warm enough to feel a difference.

Duke rummaged around in the water for a few more minutes before he came up empty-handed again. He had heard the frogs at night, so why were there no tadpoles? Were they just too far away for him to get to them? The calls of the other children neared. His cue to pack up and leave even though he wanted to wade in the water alone for a bit more. Duke rushed back to his clothing. The mud clinging to his feet with every step he took until the mud-caked on his feet was nearly a pound of extra weight.

Duke pulled himself up the bank and to the top of the drop-off. His church jacket-a light beige in color and too thick for the weather outside-was in the place he last put it, hanging on a small oak tree branch that still had some bend to it. He stomped off the mud as best as he could, wiping what little was left of the mud onto the grass. Duke only had to walk a bit before his dress shoes came into view. Then, his house which lay on the right side of the creek a mile and a half from where Duke had been before the kids had come. Even from all the way back where he was, he could see the smiles on their still chubby cheeks. No more than four years younger than Duke right now.

"Duke," His mother chastised as he walked through the door and into the mudroom where he began stepping down to his underwear. "I thought I told you not to play in the creek today."

"No, you said not to play in the creek tomorrow. That's when Charlie is coming."

"I said Sunday, Duke. Sunday. Not Monday." His mother let out a sigh. "I'll go put out some more Sunday clothes for you but no more playing outside, do you hear me? I want you to look nice when your cousin gets here."

It wasn't like Duke needed to make a good first impression on Charlie. He had already made the first impression when the whole family had a reunion at Kings Island and he threw up on Charlie after one of those tilt-a-whirl rides. Even though he barely remembered the memory, only the stories, Charlie had still been old enough at the time that he would remember the incident with more clarity than he did.

Duke placed his dirty clothes into the washer with the rest of the clothes that waited to be washed. From there, he headed to the bathroom to wash what little mud remained on his body. His own room connected to the bathroom much like his mother and father's room was. Soon, the number of toothbrushes would go from three to four with the arrival of his cousin. He wasn't all too sure about how he felt. On one hand, he was excited to see the cousin that he had seen so long ago. On the other, he wondered if Charlie would even feel the need to come out of his room. That he really only needed to come out for mealtimes and that Duke wouldn't see him for the year that he stayed at their house. Like a ghost that they couldn't get rid of.

His father said he was a troublemaker. That he had been sent here to straighten up as a last resort before he was off to military school. Charlie could not have been that bad. The last time Duke saw him, he was still blonde-haired and blue-eyed. The spitting image of Captain America. They only really saw each other at family reunions and those stopped back when Charlie was around eight or nine. His mother and father wouldn't tell him why How bad could he have messed up in the year or two since he had last seen him? Duke knew he had been raised in nearly the same God-fearing household as Duke did.

Duke wandered into his room. His eyes fixated on the small suit that had been laid out in front of him on his bed. Duke didn't struggle with putting it on. He had spent too many Sundays he now spent putting one on for church. Ever since he could dress, he had been tasked with doing it himself. His parents are too busy to help him anymore. Even if he wanted help, he wouldn't be able to get it since there was going to be a new arrival coming to the house was so soon. His mom was portably putting

"Duke!" His mother called from somewhere in the house. "Charlie and his family just pulled up. Get to the door!"

Duke hurried to the front door. Did he look okay? He checked himself in the mirror that hung above the bench one last time before he turned to the front door. His hair did not have a single strand out of place. His hair was still gelled back from that morning's service. Would his aunt and uncle recognize him if he opened the door? They had to, right? He didn't think he had changed all that much between when they last saw him and now. The car doors slammed shut. A rush of adrenaline ran through Duke's body. Three shadows appeared in front of the frosted glass. Duke rushed to place his hand on the cool metal of the doorknob before they did. Duke flung open the door with a little more ferocity than he would have liked.

Charlie now sported long, black hair. His jeans ripped and his eyeliner muddied. The leather jacket he wore looked new as if he had just bought it. Long gone were the days of a weirdly patriotic love for America that his blue eyes and blonde hair once said. It looked like he would end up kicking a kitten while it was down instead of picking it up off of the ground and carrying it five miles to the vet as Duke had once heard about him. Charlie looked like the kind of man that Duke's mom told him to stay far away from when they walked through the city. A far cry from the stories his mother would tell him when His face hardened with the rebellious teen years that Duke was only a few years away from.

"Well hello there Duke." His aunt smiled down at him. Her hair was just as blonde as Charlie's once was. "We haven't seen you in a while, it's been what? Two years?"

Duke's mom and dad rushed in before he could answer and ushered his aunt and uncle into the living room which left only Charlie and Duke to ponder in silence while awaiting further instruction. Charlie didn't look all too rebellious. Nor did he look like he was worried about the possibility of being shipped off to military school next summer if he didn't shape up. His face was stone cold. Tired, almost. Even though the drive from his aunt and uncle's house wasn't that far. Duke's mother soon came back with a smile on her face still. Her smile was surely more painted on than real.

"Please show Charlie to the guest room. We'll have dinner at five."

Duke began his walk in the opposite direction as his parents. Charlie's footsteps followed a bit later. The guest room was right across from Duke's and had stood empty aside from a bed for as long as he could remember. Only a few months ago had there been additions of a bookshelf and a dresser. Duke flung open the door to the room with a smile painted over his face and gestured for Charlie to take a few steps inside. His suitcase landed on the bed as he passed it. His hands rested on it for a few seconds before he began flinging the clothes across the room towards the dresser.

"So you're going to be my new roommate for a while." Charlie turned towards Duke. "Or I am going to be your new roommate."

Duke forced a smile as he continued to watch Charlie unpack his only suitcase. His backpack was just as thick as his suitcase and filled with books and records. Though, he had no record player to play them on. Everything from Prince to Guns N Roses. Charlie placed them onto the desk with a smile as if they were his best friends and he hadn't seen them in a while. It was odd but Duke wasn't about to call Charlie weird for it. Duke was the one who didn't talk to the local children because he'd rather find tadpoles that were 'too icky' for him. Charlie turned back to Duke and gestured to them for Duke to flip through a few of them.

"You can take one and listen to them if you'd like." Charlie seemed so nonchalant about it. He flung the last of his clothes-all of them black in color-towards the dresser.

"Mom wouldn't like it if I listened to these. She says they're of the devil."

"So I bet she doesn't let you play one of these then, either." Duke turned to see what Charlie was talking about. He held up a Gameboy. Duke shook his head. "Well then, your parents really are no fun."

"Dinner!"

His mother's voice echoed down the hallway and towards the pair. He had lifted one to inspect it even further. Duke nearly dropped the record in that he had in his hands to the ground. Charlie jumped from his spot at the edge of the bed and crossed the room in a matter of milliseconds. He turned from the window with a speed that Duke had never seen. What? How did he move that fast? Duke had never seen someone move that fast before in his life. He didn't even think that it was possible.

"Come on, dinner is ready. Don't be late."

Duke moved towards his mother's voice. But Charlie wasn't behind him. Charlie did not leave his room. Duke didn't hear his footsteps behind him as Duke made his way into the dining room. He shrugged. Charlie would have to come out eventually since he would eventually get hungry. He would have to get hungry sometimes. Duke's mother sat down at the table after putting the finishing touches on the dinner table. The ham steamed as did the mashed potatoes and gravy. Duke didn't even think he heard his mother heat up the asparagus in the microwave. He guessed he was too busy talking to Charlie to hear anything else. He was just ready to eat but his mom outstretched his hand towards him. Duke took her hand without thinking. Now the real praying could begin. They all bowed their heads down in silent prayer.

"I knew he'd want to unpack." Duke's aunt rolled her eyes. "You'll have to excuse him. His manners have seemed to have evaded him as he's gotten older."

"He seems like a sweet enough kid. I wouldn't put it past him to just want to unpack and decompress from the car ride here."

Charlie's dad bowed his head over the food once more. His hands folded in front of him. His lips moved fast. Too fast for any

"He's definitely not sweet," Charlie's dad lifted his head from bowing it to pray over his meal since none of Duke's family had said the prayer out loud. They had all been distracted by conversation to do it. "You wanna know what the final straw was?"

"What was it?" Duke's father scooted towards the table and bowed his own head over his meal for a moment before digging in. "What are we getting into?"

"What?" Charlie's dad smiled. "The old ball and chain didn't tell you all about her nephew?"

Her nephew? Charlie was their nephew, his cousin. If his uncle was joking then Charlie certainly didn't pick up on it.

"So what did he do?" Duke's dad let out a sigh as he dug into the food and began passing it out to everyone. "What are we in for?

"He tried burning down the high school. He kept rambling on about how the students there were worthless and needed to die."

"Well, that doesn't seem so bad." Duke's mom chimed in.

"It's arson, Susan." Charlie's dad turned towards her. "He's also been investigated for kidnapping."

"Kidnapping too?" Duke's mom lifted her head. "You didn't tell me that he was being investigated for kidnapping!"

Duke wasn't as worried as his mother. Charlie was a good kid from what Duke had seen over the years. When it rained at King's Island the summer before Duke turned six, he had given Duke his jacket. He helped a young girl find her mother after she lost sight of her when she got off of the ride. There was no way that he had even been a person of interest in kidnapping cases.

"He was never charged and he was only a person of interest. You still have to take him. We're not bringing him back to town after he kicked up so much trouble there."

Charlie's father let his head fall and began making good on his food. The rest of dinner was silent. None of them spoke and the only noises were the forks and knives on the plates. Duke wasn't going to make much noise. He was ready to finish dinner and do whatever he wanted. His suit was now fitting too tight around his neck. Like it was strangling him. Charlie was a good person, he reminded himself. Charlie is a good person. He is not the reason those kids went missing.

Duke wandered back to the closed door about a dozen times between the end of dinner and now, as he walked to his bedroom. He had cleaned up the dishes and put them into the dishwasher for further cleaning. His parents and aunt and uncle had gone into the living to talk. He didn't care for his mother's gloating. He didn't care for his father's pride in his work. His aunt and uncle boasted about their own achievements as well as if none of them were proud of each other.

"Alright, I think we're going to head out. We don't want to be too tired when we go into work tomorrow." Duke's uncle's voice echoed down the hall. His figure appeared a few seconds later and waved at Duke in the hallway. "See you at Thanksgiving, Duke."

Did they make plans for Thanksgiving already? Duke waved back to his uncle with a smile. "See you then, Uncle Jim."

"See you at Thanksgiving, Charlie." Duke's aunt called down the hall.

Duke waved back at the two figures at the end of the hall before they disappeared into the front room near the front door. Charlie's own parents were now gone. Charlie would only have Duke's parents for the next few months. Duke's parents came back to the bathroom a few moments later and spent the next twenty minutes cleaning up before both their room and the bathroom light went dark. Duke went to his room but didn't feel the need to change just yet. He wanted to stay up a bit longer and changing into pajamas now meant that the day was over.

Duke turned around in his bedroom for a few moments. He waited until the snores of his parents echoed off of the bathroom walls back towards Duke's room. That's when Duke made his way to Charlie's room. He needed to know if Charlie was the one who had kidnapped those kids. If someone dangerous was living in his house. Duke raised a hand, ready to knock but the door swung open before he could even have the chance to open it himself. It was almost as if Charlie had known that he was there.

"What are you doing up so late?" Charlie asked as he leaned against the doorframe. His hair was now tied back into a ponytail and only his jeans remained. He smelled of something that Charlie could not place but had smelled many times before when passing by the bathroom stalls at school. Duke had immediately forgotten the questions he was going to ask Charlie. "Your parents went to bed like half an hour ago."

Even though it was later than Duke had stayed up on most nights reading books by flashlight or waiting long enough to sneak out of the house and look at the stars. Especially on the night before going back to school. It was only seven at night the light had faded more than Duke would have hoped. He was too scared to admit to anyone that he was still scared of the dark even though he was ten. Charlie's face was hidden mostly in shadows but Duke could still see the contours of his face. Here, he looked like one of the monsters that Duke had imagined crawling through his windows at night.

When Charlie stepped into the light of the hallway, Duke noticed how pale Charlie's skin had gotten. So pale that his white skin had seemed to turn grey. His lips had crusted over. His blue eyes had turned a deep shade of blue.

"I could ask you the same thing." Duke straightened his back as if that would make him taller.

"I was just about to go out for a walk. Do you want to come?"

Duke pondered on it for a minute. "Wouldn't mom and dad be mad at us? We're not supposed to be out past sunset."

"Well I'm going out," Charlie pushed past Duke and towards the front door. "Don't feel like you have to lie for me either."

~

Millie Report had been told to go straight home after Sunday school. That her babysitter would be waiting for her when she got home. Her parents left on a business trip Instead of picking her up all the way across town, they would just meet in the middle back at her house. After that, they would end up going to the local diner for a late dinner. Then she would be sent off to bed. She had told her parents that she was old enough to make it home. After all, she was nearly twelve years old. The town was small enough that she had eyes on her every time she passed a house and even a little bit past that.

Millie checked her County road J would soon turn into county road K. As soon as it became K, she would take an immediate right. That's what the piece of paper she had in her hands said. Even though she and her family walked to church and back every Sunday, she had never really paid attention to what kind of turns they made. She was always picking up rocks or sticks alongside the road and messing up her pastel-colored dresses. Don't you dare mess up another dress, Millie. Her mother's voice rang out in her head as she spotted another pretty rock on the ground. No. She would keep her dress clean. She would make sure that she could be seen as someone who could walk back home on her own.

The sun had already set behind Millie and the roads were getting darker behind her. The fall air whipped around her and she chastised herself for not bringing a jacket. Each footstep crunched underneath her. The gravel that her parents had told her had once made these roads had turned into dust after years and years of wear. But that was long before she had been born and long before her family had been born.

Millie kept walking on county road J for at least half a mile before someone else appeared in front of her. A dark figure that she had never seen before. She squinted into the distance and tried to make sense of what was right in front of her eyes. She paused in the middle of the road. Her eyes scanned the shadow for a moment before it eventually got close enough for her to see who it was. A young man who she had never seen before. Even in her twelve years of life, she had been introduced to every family that lived in the town. Every face had been burned into her nearly photogenic memory. Though, her way home evaded her every single time she tried to make the walk home alone. What a terrible memory she had then, she assumed.

The man-made his way towards her as if he were going to the church. Millie checked her watch. It was nearing seven at night and in the hour that it had taken her to get this close to home, she knew that it would be closed down by now. She cursed herself for staying back to help out the pastor clean up from the Sunday evening mass. Even if there weren't many children for her to help with Sunday school. A lot of people had already come and gone that morning when most of the town had service. But a lot of people came back just for the fun of it. Even if it was the same service as before.

His body was only lit up by a few lights that the townspeople had put out onto the road so that no one would end up in a ditch. His feet crunched the bits and pieces of old and dried-out wood that had covered the ground. Where could he have been going? He turned his attention to her, his face lit up in flickers by fire that had come out of his lighter. He turned his attention to Millie. His long, gangly face lit up just as much as the light that appeared to come from a lighter. She didn't get a good look at what he was wearing which wouldn't help her if he did anything suspicious.

"Well hello there." His smile had grown inhumanly large. He moved closer to her. His eyes flashed dangerously dark as he flicked the lighter off. "What's your name?"

"M-my name is Millie." Her name felt odd on her lips. She had rarely ever spoken it. Fear flushed her face. She shouldn't have given her name to a stranger."W-who are you?"

"Millie. I like that name."

The man flicked on the lighter once more.

"I asked you what your name was."

The lighter flicked off.

"The name is Charlie. But I ask the questions here."

"What do you...what do you want to ask me?" Millie's voice caught in her throat as she tried to keep her composure.

"Where you're going," Charlie said that in a more matter-of-fact tone than the tone of someone who was asking a question. "What you're doing out alone this late at night."

"I'm-I don't think I should answer any of your questions. My parents said not to speak to strangers."

"But we're not strangers." Charlie flicked on the lighter to show off his inhuman smile, now adorned with rows upon rows of sharpened teeth. Saliva dripped off of his teeth and onto his bottom lip. "We're friends."

"We-we're not friends." Millie took a few steps back. "I should get home."

"Oh no," Charlie dropped the lighter down to the ground. "You should come with me."

Millie tried going around him but he had wrapped around her quicker than she could get away. Her whole body shook as he held her close to his chest. His breath-warm, hot, and sticky-brushed against her neck. Each breath was deep and heavy. He hadn't even said a word before Millie decided that she needed to put up a fight. She kicked and screamed until her voice was raw and her legs were tired. Each kick only brought her closer to him and each scream only came to crush her lungs. Her screams echoed across the trees.

Finally, she dropped her attention down to the arms that restrained her. Her mouth opened and laid a bit down onto his arm. Charlie let out a roar. Millie sprinted off into the darkness. Her heart pounded in her chest as she made her way down to her house. The sound of her heart echoed down to her bones. Her whole body ached. Charlie's footsteps weren't far behind her.

"Don't you dare run from a friend." Charlie's voice was louder than thunder on a rainy night. "Don't you dare run from me."

The footsteps came closer and closer to Millie. Millie had nowhere to turn. Nowhere to hide. The open road is what faced both of them. Her attention was on the road ahead of her and not the road behind her. Nor the road below her. Her foot caught on a stick and she tumbled down into the earth. The dirt kicked up into her mouth. Charlie's hands wrapped around her and flipped her over. His teeth flashed in the moonlight. His face was long and garish. Millie's screams echoed throughout the night. His teeth sank into her neck.

~

"This morning is a sad day for Archbold Township as we are looking for one of our own. Millie Report has come up missing." The newscaster's perma-smile had faded. "She was last seen walking home from Sunday school at six last night. She took country road J home. She was seen in a yellow dress and a pair of white converse, freshly bought. The police have no main suspects right now but if you have any information on the whereabouts of Millie Report, please contact the police at the number below."

Duke's family always watched the morning news before they headed out for the day. During the week-only in the summer-Duke had to follow one of his parents to work. This week, he was going with his mom to her secretary job it was still too early for Duke to comprehend most of it. His backpack rested on the bench where his mom had put it the night previous. Duke flattened out his jeans a bit as he tried to wipe the sweat that had pooled on his hands. He knew Millie. She went to middle school but her younger sister was in the same class as Duke.

Charlie had been outside that night. Duke had seen him head out but he had never heard him come back inside so he had no idea how long Charlie had been out the previous night. He couldn't be the one who kidnapped Millie. He hadn't even been there a whole day. There is no way he would cause trouble that soon.

Charlie stumbled out of his room and into the living room. He wiped the sleep from his eyes. His jeans were covered in a maroon substance that only Duke noticed before Charlie rushed back to his room to change. His mother and father turned their faces towards the noise but didn't catch Charlie's form. Charlie came out a few moments later with a fresh set of clothes and a smile on his face.

"Neither of you are to leave this house until Millie Report is found, do you hear me?"

Charlie and Duke frantically nodded. Duke's mother turned back to the TV and wrung her hands in worry. Charlie turned towards Duke as he flashed him a deadly smile.

He bowed down to Duke's ear, "Maybe if you took the opportunity to come with me last night, Millie wouldn't have had to run away from me."

secrets

pairing: peter parker x female reader 

word count: 2.3k

warnings: attempted rape, attempted sexual assault, cursing, crying, fluff

you let out a sigh, putting in an earbud. it was a dark, rainy night in queens. the sky was a solid blanket of black, the lights of the city reflecting in puddles as you walked down the block. you were heading home from a friend's house, as you had to work on a presentation for your spanish class. it was well past nine o'clock, but you still had enough time to make it home before curfew.

luckily, no one was out since it was a tuesday night. it made your walk home extremely peaceful, as the city usually bustled with people daily.

a hand grabbing your elbow shook you out of your trance. wildly, you turned to notice it was a tall, hooded man.

"give me your wallet now!" he barked.

shakily, you fumbled for your keychain in your pocket, terrified. you had a can of mace on you, dangling from your keychain, but you weren't sure if this man was carrying a gun or not.

with a slight dread, you remembered you left your wallet at home. what were you supposed to say? anxiety racked your brain, sending waves of adrenaline over you. what the fuck where you supposed to do?

"i-i, don't have my wallet, sir," your voice trembled with fear.

"looks like you're going to have to pay me another way then sweetheart," he crooned, yanking you towards him.

"hey!" a new voice came into your field of hearing, "leave her alone!"

you glanced up, relieved to see spider-man standing on the rooftop of a nearby building. he swung down, shooting a web at your attacker. he was thrown into the wall, confined by a large mass of sticky web. you felt the tears overflow from your face. this man was about to take advantage of you and you somehow were saved by spider-man. what were the chances of that happening?

"are you okay?" his voice was gentle. remarkably soft for such a strong individual. you immediately inferred spider-man was a lot younger than you thought.

you nodded, your hands still shaking, "yeah, i'm okay."

"i'll keep you safe until the police arrive, okay?" you felt a gloved hand place itself on your shoulder, "you're safe as long as i'm here."

spider-man didn't leave your side until the police came. he even stayed as you conferred with the police, remaining quiet throughout the entirety of the procedure. once they drove away, with your attacker, he turned back to you.

"would you like for me to walk you home?"

you nodded, "i-i'm about to miss curfew. i'll save you the trouble."

spider-man offered you his hand, "i have a quicker route. do you trust me?"

you nodded, taking his hand. god if your parents found out about what happened tonight, they would never let you out at night ever again. as long as you made curfew you would be all right.

he wrapped an arm around you, slinging a web onto a building. you became frozen with fear, as you were scared of heights. spider-man must have sensed your fear, because he wrapped his arm tightly around your waist.

"don't worry, i got you. you're safe with me."

with your directions, you got home in time for curfew. you said your goodbyes to the masked hero, and he slung off into the night, disappearing into the glittering lights of the city.

as you slept that night, the only thought on your mind was how familiar that voice was. who was spider-man? was his identity easier to crack than you thought?

******

you slid your lunch tray onto the table, already exhausted with the school day. your best friends, peter, ned, and m.j., were already chowing down on their lunch. peter and ned were in a heavy discussion about their LEGO Death Star model, while m.j. was silently sketching in her notebook.

"so i was almost raped last night," you stated, your tone solemn.

"WHAT?" ned choked on his sandwich, "what happened? are you okay?"

you nodded, picking at your salad, "yeah, I'm fine. spider-man swooped in and saved me. he even stayed with me until the police arrived, and then took me home."

peter immediately perked up at the mention of spider-man, "i'm glad you're okay. maybe you should start walking home with somebody, just to be on the safe side."

you scoffed, "peter i have been roaming the streets of queens since i was eleven. my parents raised me well. i know how to protect myself. that's why i carry mace with me. but thank you, for the suggestion. last night was just some weird encounter with some weirdo. the good thing is that i am safe and without harm."

"yeah," m.j. agreed, "we've all been running the streets since we were in middle school, peter. we all know how to protect ourselves. i think last night was just weird for (y/n)."

peter frowned, "i just care about my friend, that's all."

"hey," ned began, "i was thinking that maybe we could all hang out friday night? my mom and pops are going to be out of town for the weekend so all of you guys could stay the night."

you felt yourself smile, "that sounds fun! can i bring some snacks?"

"you know i wouldn't turn down snacks," ned laughed, "but yeah, i think i'll order some pizza for us, and we can watch trashy romantic comedies all night."

"i won't be over till later," peter mumbled.

"how late is later?" you felt yourself frown again.

"like ten," peter replied, not looking at you or any of your friends.

"weird but okay," m.j. shrugged, "just means there's more pizza for me. you're going to be missing out parker but it's cool. do whatever you gotta do for that internship or whatever."

"see you guys tomorrow night," ned flashed us a wide smile, "it should be a lot of fun."

******

"hey, shouldn't peter be here by now," m.j. glanced at the clock. it was 10:08 p.m., and still no sign of peter.

so far you, ned, and m.j. were all having tons of fun. you guys had ordered pizza, watched a movie or two, talked about your future plans, and also made another time to hang out. the only person that would complete the group was peter, and he was nowhere to be found. he wasn't answering any of his texts or calls.

ned and m.j. didn't seem too concerned, as they were just chatting happily about what to name the kitten ned was about to adopt from a shelter next week. you sighed, "i'm going to go call my parents really quick, i'll be right back."

"okay," ned nodded, "take your time."

since they were in ned's room, you slipped out of the apartment, heading towards the roof. you just wanted some peace and quiet for a second. you also wanted to call peter and make sure he was still coming. ned was dying to eat the last few pizza slices, but you guys were saving those for peter.

once you were on the roof, you noticed a figure sitting on the edge. you felt your throat tighten, and you instinctively clutched your can of mace on your keychain. you didn't want wednesday night to happen all over again. the memory frightened you too much.

"hey," your voice was firm, "who are you?"

as you approached the figure, you felt yourself soften. it was spider-man, donned in his red and blue suit. he must not have heard you, as he kept his head focused on the city skyline.

"hey!" you called again, and this time he turned.

you felt yourself stiffen. there sat peter, a cut on his lip, along with a slight black eye. suddenly, everything clicked into place. you remembered why spider-man's voice was familiar. spider-man was peter parker, one of your best friends.

"oh my god," you choked out, "peter?"

he sprang up, "listen, (y/n), i can explain everything, i promise."

"how?" you suddenly felt guarded, "how are you going to explain to me this huge fucking secret that you've been hiding from everyone?"

peter's voice was quiet, "ned and m.j., they know. they both know."

you felt tears spring up in your eyes, how could they all be hiding this big secret from you? you guys had all been friends since middle school. the four of you had been through a lot: the first year of high school, the death of peter's uncle, a couple of divorces between parents. how could they be hiding something like this from you?

"great," that was the only word that came out of your mouth, "so how was i supposed to find out? because i assume you guys were going to just keep sneaking this behind my back. you guys are some pretty crappy friends you know that? it really shows what kind of friend you are, peter."

peter flinched, as if your words were pure venom, "(y/n), i didn't just tell them. ned was at my apartment, in my room, when he found out. m.j., she was smart enough to fit all of the pieces together. i didn't tell them just because i wanted to hide it from you. i wanted to keep this part of me hid away from everyone. it's a lot safer that way. no one is targeted or harmed."

"does your aunt know?" your lip trembled, and you wiped your nose with your sleeve.

the tears were spilling over onto your cheeks. a flash of embarrassment passed through you. this was the first time in a while peter had seen you cry. you felt like you looked like a wreck.

"she found out the hard way," he stated, "she walked in on me in my suit. i had to explain everything to her. besides, she's the only family i have. of course i'm close with the avengers, and tony stark, but she's my family. she had a right to know sooner, and i felt guilty for never telling her in the beginning. hell, i felt guilt everyday because you guys didn't know. you, ned, and m.j., you guys are my best friends. you guys deserved to know, too. but i felt safer hiding the truth because if other people find out, really evil people, you all could be the first to get hurt. and i don't want that. i don't want my family hurt. i don't want my friends hurt. i don't want the girl i love, hurt."

“and who’s that,” you sniffled, “m.j.?”

"no," peter shook his head, approaching you, "the girl i love is you, (y/n). i love you."

pink spread into your cheeks at his words, and you bit your lip. you had the biggest crush on peter, and you had feelings for him almost the entirety of your friendship. that's why you always cared about him so much and his disappearances. it worried you sometimes when he wasn't at school, or when he never showed up to hangout with the friend group. but now, you had an explanation to everything. and you weren't sure how to feel.

a part of you was extremely hurt that your friends hid this big secret from you. you guys told each other everything. you even talked about your previous boyfriends, sex life, etc. to them. the least they all could have done was sit you down and explain everything.

yet, a large part of you wasn't hurt. you were relieved that peter felt the same way about you. you wanted to start a relationship with him, but you were never sure how. now, was your opportunity, especially since he feels the same way.

"peter," you drew in a breath, cupping his cheek with your hand, "i love you too."

he smiled slightly, "that makes me really happy to hear."

"i'm still kind of upset about this," you admitted, your eyes locking with his.

"i understand why," he assured you, "it was wrong of me to exclude you from this part of my life. it's just all because i want to keep you safe. more than anything i want you to be safe. if something ever happened to you, god, i don't know what i would do. i would be so lost."

"you don't have to worry about losing me or anything like that," you reassured him, placing a gentle kiss on his cheek.

"something almost happened the other night," peter mumbled, "i was so relieved that i was able to stop that guy from hurting you."

"me too," you murmured, "thank you for saving me."

"you don't have to thank me for protecting you," peter chuckled, "i want to protect you regardless."

"peter!" a voice made you freeze. you both looked over to see m.j. and ned had found their way onto the roof.

"hey guys," peter waved, "how's the sleepover?"

"it's okay," m.j. shrugged, "i could tell (y/n) was going through a crisis waiting for you. she looked like a lost puppy."

"hey," your voice was indignant, "it's not my fault. i care about him a lot."

"so it comes out," ned teased you, "well how about you clean up, peter, and then we can start a movie. maybe i'll be nice and let you two share the love seat."

you four walked back to ned's apartment, peter's arm wrapped around your shoulders. once you guys were back in the apartment, he changed out of his suit. once peter was all changed and fed, you guys settled in the living room. peter let you curl up against him on the couch, and you guys cuddled all night long.

you felt safe in peter's arms, and you knew he would keep ensuring you felt safe for a very long time.

Idk if I already sent you this please ignore if I have but what would Kai do if he saw his s/o walking in the house with and giant box and ask him what would he do if she brought home 13 kittens and then he’s like what’s in the box and she’s like I think you know you can add kaito and Kin if you want it’s all up to you what you want after all you are the writer and I’m the one asking you for a favor

Kai hates cats... dear god this man is only suffering.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You silently entered in your house and cautiously closed the door in fear that someone might have noticed your arrival.

"Mom!"

Of course... it had to be your Kaito with Kin following right after him.

"What's in the box mam-" you shushed both of them with a desperate expression, putting a finger over your lips.

You looked at the halls to check if your gremlin of husband haven't acknowledged your presence.

"You two have to be very very quiet okay?" You whispered before indicating with your index finger for your children to follow you to another room... far away from Kai's office.

"What's this mystery all about?" Asked the boy monotonously as he tried to sneak a glance at the box you were holding.

Kin immediately shushed him, immitading your actions as Kaito only deadpanned at his little sister.

You settled down carefully the box on the ground and asked for Kin to close the door. The moment she got back and kneeled on the floor along with you and her brother, you smiled while opening carefully before saying.

"You two can't tell dad just yet ok? It's only temporary... maybe."

Both of them arched an eyebrow; at least Kin tried to; befofe going wide eyed at seing the thirteen little kittens inside.

"Kitty!" Kin whisper yelled while going to pick up one who had one blue eye and another one green.

"Dad is gonna kill us." Kaito pointed as he smirked down at one who sadly had one part of the ear bitten as he carresed his chin.

"He is not." You told as you looked down at the cute creatures "I found them on the street and I thought it was just to cruel to let them out... specially with that amount of snow..."

"Can we keep them all?" Asked Kin while giggling at the little licks the cat was giving at her cheek.

"I guess we won't convince dad to keep 13 cats... will we mom?" Kaito asked, remembering the first time he asked his father for a puppy.

The answer he received was a cold glare and a dark 'no, they are disgusting and gives too much work, also carry diceases'.

Kaito even shivered at remembering his father's face on that day.

A knock on the door made you three jump and yelp but immediately relaxed at seing only Kuruno and Haru.

"You two scared the hell out of us!" You whisper yelled at Chrono who only put his hands up in defence.

"Mrs (Y/N) why all the cats? Oh god look at this one who is all white dad!" Haru said picking up one of the cats and showing to her father who furrowed his eyebrows before looking at you.

"Do you know how Kai feels about pets... especially cats..." he pointed at the feline in front of him who pawed at his finger.

"Uh... interesting." The man muttered resulting a giggle from his daughter.

"Mom come on!" Kaito pleaded while finally picking up the orange kitty with the ear bitten off "Try to convince dad! You're the only one who can convince him!" Kin nodded already making puppy eyes at you, your older som catching her strategy imitated her actions.

Oh shit, karma is a bitch.

"Kiddos, conving your father on buying junk food is totally different then owing a pet..." you whisper.

"Maybe if we put some of them in adoption?" Chrono suggested "At least the amount of animals is less.."

"Not a bad idea... but we still have the cats..."

You all started a discussion on a strategy to convince the yakusa boss to let the kitties stay... not noticing the way the man himself was approaching the room, noticing the murmuring.

"What's going on in here?" His voice echoed in the room making all of the people in there frozen cold on the spot.

You slowly looked up and saw piercing golden eyes looking straight at the box.

"What. Is. This?" He ssked darkly.

You, already knowing you're fucked, just accepted your fate and looked at him before saying

"I think you know what this is..." you murmured, noticing that his gaze had only hardened.

"Out." He demanded, mentioning at the box.

Excluding you, Haru and Kurono he received whines as a payback.

"Dad no fair! You never let us have a pet!" Kaito proclaimed which Chisaki only lifted one of his eyebrows up.

"For a good reason. You already know my thoughts, and your mother as well."

"Please daddy! Look at how cute they are!" Kin entered the argument showing with her little ha d at the kitties.

"I see nothing but felines who are meant to grow to be a pest and carry diseases to this house." He said in disgust approaching even more his mask.

Kurono made a signal to Haru to leave along with him, the little girl showed the cat, silently asking what to do, which the only answer she got was her father pointing at a very irritaded Overhaul.

She agreed and slowly let go of the white kitty. She was more of a bird person anyway...

"I can list all the damn diseases and sickness those things can bring into this house if I want to. They are not living in here." He said sternly, trying not to give in on those fucking puppy eyes of his children.

"(Y/N)." He groaned impatiently while massaging his temple with his gloved fingers "Explain."

"They were out there in the cold Kai I couldn't just let them out in the snow like that!"

"Since when it was your obligation the lifes of some stray cats?" He asked in disbelief as you got up to be in his front.

"Honey, please. I swear I will put them to adoption. Just let them stay only for this night."

"And keep one." Kaito said while he scratched behind the bitten ear off orange cat.

"Out of question." Kai growled at his son who only glared back.

"Please daddy? Just one." Kin out her look up at him hugging the diferent eyes colored kitty in her arms.

"You tell her to stop with that look." He said to you while looking at ceiling in desperation.

Kin couldn't help but giggle at her father's actions.

On the other day, Kai was the first one to get out of the bed and demanded that you got up too, so in this way those creatures were out of his house as early as possible.

He ignored; at least tried to; his son and daughter gloomy faces as you and him left the house to the donation.

He noticed how a bit of sadness was at your eyes and he felt that weird knot forming on his stomach as he tried to reason with you... to not feel that weird fellow anymore at least.

"Thirteen cats... angel, no way we could take care of that... we already have those brats." You sended him a sad little smile as the woman took away the little kittens.

"Its ok Kai. You also don't like them, so is understandable." You started to walk towards the exit, but Chisaki only stared at you for a few seconds...

Goddammit... you weren't ok.

He could take a pout or a sad look from his childs, he wasn't going to pamper them to be spoiled brats... but just seing you in this state was torture.

You looked behind you and noticed your husband haven't moved a muscle and you tilted your head in confusion.

"Hon? We're not going back?" He nodded shortly after before following you outside, holding you close to at least win a smile of yours.

He was going to regret this so fucking bad...

~

"Angel. Brats. Come here in the living room." He said out loud.

He mentioned for his two kids sit on the couch while you to be in his sideas he kneeled on the floor with two boxes.

"Listen. You two had to reason between these two boxes to get a... earlier Christmas present. Choose wisely."

The eleven years old boy changed suspected glances at his younger sister before the two murmured about their choice.

One of the boxes was bigger than the other and it seemed to have more content as well.

"Earlier Christmas present?" You asked smirking at him "What are you planning my devil?" You whisper in his ear, giggling at feeling his shiver.

The only answer you got from him was pinch on your cheek as he murmured 'be patient'.

"The smaller one." Kaito said pointing at the box while his sister nodded.

"You both sure?" Kai asked, containing his smirk when the boy and girl nodded. "Alright then. Oppened it."

The children kneeled on the floor and opened the box, immediately gasping in awe at seing the orange kitty that Kaito had picked just the other day.

Your jaw almost hitted the floor as you looked in disbelief at your husband, whose only shrugged.

"I'm not, neither your mother the one responsible of them. You two will have to take care of it, and if someone in this house catch a diseace because of this feline he is out. Understood?" The kids nodded vigorously while playing with their new cat.

"B-But y-You-!" You tried to form words before Chisaki just patted your head.

"They would be whining around along with you anyway... but I'm going to be far away from that thing." He growled looking at the cat whose was bitting Kaito's sleeve as he played along.

"You softie..." you said in adoration towards your husband.

He scoffed, trying to hold back his blush.

"... are you... happy with it at least?" He asked with a bit of hope, not looking into your eyes.

You hugged him tight, noticing how his kuscles tensed for a bit but instantly relaxed at your touch.

"I'm always happy with you my devil." He hummed monoustly as he discretely gave you a kiss after he lowered his mask down to his chin.

"Its a good thing to hear this angel."

He suddenly jerked up to hsi feet getting a few steps back as he glared daggers at your direction.

You were confused until you noticed that your side was the kitty mewling at him.

"Get that thing away from me." Hee growled.

You giggled hopeless while Kaito; being Kaito; only picked the orange kitty and ran after his father in mockness while Kin ran right after giggling at her father discreetly desperation to get away from the cat.

You admired the scene, laughing. Chisaki maybe had just cabed his own grave with this but you loved him more than ever now...

Who are you kidding? You always did...

i don’t wanna talk about it (i don’t wanna think about it)

Billie walks her pride and joy down the silent Old Cherry Lane at 2 am, just far enough that it won’t wake up her mom or step-dad. Once she’s cleared the block, she hops on the back of her bike and speeds through a sleepy Hawkins towards Steph Harrington’s house. She would head to the abandoned quarry, but she can practically hear Steph’s insistence that Billie shouldn’t hide out at the quarry at night because there are bears or some shit. Billie thought her warning was ridiculous, but she was trying to be nice now, and straight up laughing at Steph, when her face was pinched in worry and her tone serious, was probably not very nice.

Plus, Steph had beer, which is exactly what Billie needs right now.

So she speeds across the tiny town of Hawkins, Indiana to the Harrington’s big, empty house in the middle of the night. Which was probably incredibly stupid, considering she and Steph weren’t friends or anything. Sure they had gotten closer after Billie had apologized about beating her face in last fall, but they weren’t friends. More acquaintances who got stoned together at parties.

Between Billie’s manic speed and Hawkin’s empty streets, she makes it to the Harrington household in record time. When she gets there, she pulls her bike around to the side of the house, and heads towards the back doors. She freezes up as soon as she rounds the corner though, because there in the pool, was Steph Harrington herself, swimming lazy laps in the pool.

Billie was transfixed. This wasn’t the first time she’d seen Steph swim- Steph had invited her to all her meets, and Billie had actually gone, once- but there was something so personal about this moment. Steph wasn’t swimming for a medal or a trophy, just swimming for herself, stretching her lithe body with every stroke, before diving under to flip over and kick off the wall.

Billie stood there, mesmerized, for a couple minutes before she came back to herself. She shook her head, as if to clear it, and walked forward to break the tranquil laps.

“Harrington!” Billie barked to get her attention. Steph stopped her gentle strokes and ducked under the surface, popping back up a second later and shooting a glare towards where Billie was leaning against one of the big glass windows, her short brown locks plastered to her face in a way that resembled a drowned kitten. Cute, Billie thought.

“What the fuck, Hargrove? You scared the shit out of me.” She quickly disappeared back into the water, emerging just as quickly, now with her hair slicked back against her head.

“I could ask you the same question, princess. Why are you swimming in the middle of the fucking night? I thought there were bears in the forest.” She couldn’t help but mock Steph a little for the irony of the situation. Just because she was trying to be nice didn’t mean she couldn’t tease Steph, right?

“It’s my pool, I can swim whenever the fuck I want. Now, what are you doing here?” Maybe Steph’s prissy tone would suggest otherwise. Oops.

Billie withdrew a little, her smartass smirk being knocked off in the face of Steph’s crankiness, replaced instead with a deep frown. Her eyes go from studying Steph’s face, illuminated by the pool’s underwater lights making her look almost ethereal, to studying the concrete below her combat boots with equal focus. She notices a new scuff on the toe.

“Forget it, I’m just gon-“ she spins on her heel, preparing to fuck off and go to the quarry despite Steph’s warnings. She knew this was a stupid idea.

“Wait!” Billie heard the sloshing of Steph pulling herself out of the pool, but didn’t look up at her as she called out, “You don’t have to leave, I just wanna know why you showed up at my house at 2 in the morning.”

“I couldn’t sleep. Told me it wasn’t safe or whatever at the quarry, so I figured I’d come here.”

“Oh, okay. In that case, you want pizza rolls?” Just like that, the annoyance in her voice was gone, replaced with a casual nonchalance.

Billie’s eyes shot up from the ground, looking skeptically at Steph, who had grabbed a towel she had laid by the pool. She was absently drying herself off, looking over and waiting for Billie’s response.

Billie was momentarily distracted by the sight of Steph in a black one piece, accenting the soft curves of her athletic form, from strong shoulders down all the way down to her narrow hips. She must have taken too long to respond, because Steph cleared her throat, impatient.

“What? You’re just gonna roll with me showing up at your house at 2 am, and offer me pizza rolls?” Scrambling for something to say, Billie fell back on her standard biting retorts. Damn it, she was trying to be nice now.

“Well, yeah. Everyone likes pizza rolls.” Steph shrugs, wrapping herself in the towel.

“Okay, sure. Fuck, let’s go eat pizza rolls.” And with Billie’s acceptance, Steph turned and walked through the open sliding door into the house, either not noticing or not caring about the small puddles she was leaving in her wake.

Billie trailed behind Steph as she walked through the massive living room into the kitchen, mindful of the water on the hardwood floor. She arrived in the kitchen in time to see Steph pulling out the small box of Jeno’s Pizza Rolls and going to preheat the oven.

Setting the box next to the stove, Steph tossed a casual, “Give me a sec, I’m just going to go change real quick.” Billie nodded and she hustled up to her room to change.

Billie studied the kitchen while she waited. It was oddly sterile, only the couple of dirty dishes suggesting that someone lived here, and it wasn’t just a kitchen in a magazine. There were no magnets on the fridge or pictures on the wall to break up the weird patterned wallpaper.

Steph came running down the stairs into the kitchen a couple minutes later, dressed in an oversized t-shirt that fell over her running shorts, making it look as if she weren’t wearing any pants. Her hair was still dripping water, creating small water marks in the fabric covering her shoulders. Billie kind of missed the swimsuit, but this wasn’t too tragic of a replacement.

Steph continued over to the stove, and popped the pizza rolls into the oven, setting a timer for 8 minutes. Afterwards, she turned to face Billie. An awkward silence fell over the two girls.

“So, uh. Got any beer?” Billie asked.

“Uh, yeah. I think we have a couple. Let me check.” Steph walked over to the fridge and began digging around, pulling out two Corona bottles. She grabbed a bottle opener from the drawer next to the fridge and popped both of the caps off. She handed one to Billie and took a long pull from hers, settling against the counter across from where Billie had decided to lean against the wall, just studying Billie’s face with an intensity that made her shuffle her feet. I really should have just gone to the stupid fucking quarry.

“Ya know, I’ve never had a Corona before?” Billie remarked, hoping to break the weird tension.

“Shit, really? It’s all my dad drinks.” Steph taking another pull from her bottle, finishing it. Billie noticed how her soft, pink lips wrapped around the opening and her delicate hands, so unlike Billie’s scarred and calloused hands. She quickly squashed that particular thought process as Steph grabbed another beer from the fridge, returning to her original place, and continued to study Billie’s face.

“Yeah, usually it’s just the cheapest beer I can get. This shit’s fancy.” She then took a long drink to stop her nervous rambling. Steph in her pajamas, looking so comfortable and still fucking studying Billie’s face, was really throwing her off her game.

They lapsed back into a stilted silence, as Steph just kept staring at Billie and Billie stared right back, a challenge in her eyes over Steph’s sudden fascination with her face. She resolutely ignored the chills that shot up her spine from meeting Steph’s big, brown bambi eyes.

The timer broke them out of their weird showdown, and Steph turned to pull the pizza rolls out of the oven. She pulled down two plates, and split the pizza rolls evenly onto each plate.

“You, uh. You mind if we head back outside? It’s pretty nice out.” Steph asked, even though it was decidedly not nice out. The Indiana summer, with all its disgustingly sticky humidity, had decided to start up, even though they had only just entered May.

“Sure, it’s your house amigo.”

They took their plates and beer back out to the pool, and Steph settled on the edge, dipping her bare feet into the water. Billie sat next to her, opting not to dunk her feet in, unwilling to get her fishnets wet. She does take off her heavy combat boots though in an attempt to get more comfortable, and settles in, stretching her legs out to where they were almost touching Steph’s bare thigh.

Steph picked at the plate on her lap for a minute before looking up at Billie.

“What happened to your face?” She asked in a quiet voice, as if hesitant to break up the ambiance of crickets chirping and the gentle waves she made from kicking her feet in the water.

“Eh, you know. Some asshole jock couldn’t keep his hands to himself and his girlfriend got pissy. She definitely looks worse though.”

“Was it Tammy? She can be a bitch; I’d love to see her get smacked for once.”

“Um, yeah. You know how she is about Carl.” Steph chuckled. Tammy and Carl were the reigning Prom King and Queen, both assholes in their own ways. They had tried to get Billie to join their little cheerleading squad, but Billie couldn’t give a fuck less about school spirit, so they eventually left her alone.

Steph stopped picking at her pizza rolls and turned towards Billie, a mischievous glint in her eye. Danger they seem to say.

“Hey, you wanna play 20 questions?”

“What are we, fourth graders?”

“I mean, it’s better than sitting here in silence all night, and besides I barely know anything about you except you love your bike and you’re really giggly when you’re high.”

“You’re never gonna let that go huh?” Billie remembered the moment Steph was referring to, when they had both been at Cherry or Sherry or whoever’s party and snuck upstairs to share a joint and Billie had started giggling at something stupid Steph had said. It had been a good night.

“Nope,” Steph said, popping the p. “That was some funny shit. Big, bad Billie Hargrove rolling around on the floor and giggling? Amazing. The highlight of my high school years. So you want to play or what?”

“Sure. What’s the worst that can happen?” Famous last words.

“Ok, starting easy. What’s your favorite color?” Billie snorted.

“Blue. What’s yours? I bet it’s like Barbie pink or some shit.”

Steph looked mock offended. “I’ll have you know, it’s actually purple.”

“Ah, going for the royal aesthetic. Classic princess. Your turn again.”

“What? You can’t ask the same question, that’s cheating.”

“How is that cheating? We’re playing fucking twenty questions, you can’t cheat.”

“Whatever. Fine.”

She smirked, and Billie felt anxiety begin to pool in her stomach. “What was your first kiss like?”

Shit. She’s definitely not telling Steph that her first kiss was a girl named Melissa in sixth grade, who wore strawberry lip gloss and always smacked her bubble gum in history class no matter how many times their teacher scolded her, even if it was fucking spin the bottle. “Um, I don’t really remember.”

“I call bull. Everybody remembers their first kiss. Come on.”

“Oh yeah? Then what was your first kiss, Queen Steph?” Billie deflected.

“Easy, Nick Johnson in fifth grade. We were playing spin the bottle in Viktor’s basement.”

“Really? You kissed Nick? The red headed douche bag?”

“Hey, he wasn’t as much of a douche bag back then, alright? And it was spin the bottle, no one takes that shit seriously.” She says as she knocks her thigh against Billie’s foot, oblivious to the irony of her statement.

“Right,” Billie says skeptically. “I bet he still dreams about it. ‘Oh Steph, you’re so pretty’,” Billie begins to dramatically moan and make vague sexual hand gestures.

“Oh fuck off Hargrove. I told you mine, so what’s really yours?” Billie drops her hands and racks her brain for a lie. Somehow, her bullshitting ability fails her, and she comes up empty handed.

“I really don’t remember Harrington,” her tone icy.

“Fine, whatever. Don’t tell me.” She pouts, sticking her bottom lip out. “You know that means I win right? Since you won’t answer my question”

“You can’t win 20 questions, that’s not how it works.”

“Oh, excuse me. I wasn’t aware I was playing with a 20 questions expert. I still say I won. What do you wanna do now?”

“I don’t know.” Bille taps her chin, pretending to think, before pulling out a dangerous smirk. “Oh, i know, how about this.” She says as she reaches the short distance and pushes Steph into the pool. She breaks the surface to glare at Billie, looking like a wet cat again.

“Oh fuck you Hargrove, really mature.” Her tone wasn’t pissy this time, more over dramatically pouty as she moved toward the wall to climb out.

“Maybe not, but your face was funny.” Billie states as she reaches out her hand to help her out, a shit-eating grin on her face. The cockiness is wiped off her face quickly though when Steph uses Billie’s outstretched hand to pull her in. She pops back up with a gasp and a deadly glare.

“What the fuck Harrington, these braids took forever. Goddamnit.” She laments, reaching up to touch her wet hair, praying the braids don’t completely die.

“Doesn’t feel so good, does it?” Steph lounges with her arms thrown over the side of the pool.

“I’ll show you what doesn’t feel good,” and Billie proceeds to swim over and dunk Steph underwater, leading to an all-out water brawl, the two girls wrestling each other for the upper ground.

They both stop eventually, out of breath and smiling. Billie finally notices how close they are, Steph practically panting in her face. She feels the weight of her daisy dukes and knows they’re going to be unbearably uncomfortable once she gets out, but she currently couldn’t find any regret in her. If the price of feeling Steph’s warm, firm body pressed to her, she would happily walk around with sopping wet denim every fucking day.

Billie hazards a guess that Steph isn’t wearing a bra underneath her oversized t-shirt, can feel her nipples through the soaked material.

Steph must notice how close they are too, but neither making any move to pull away. Minuteshoursdaysyears pass by with them holding onto each other, and Steph tries to keep looking at Billie, but her eyes dip down towards Billie’s mouth every couple of seconds, and finally she whispers, “Let me try something?”

Billie can only nod her head, caught up in the tender quietness of the moment as Steph leans down and catches Billie’s mouth with her own.

It’s just a soft peck at first, but Steph quickly gains confidence when Billie doesn’t immediately move away or push her under the water again, dipping back down to give her a longer kiss. It quickly turns heated, teeth and tongues battling for dominance, but before they can move past kissing, she feels Billie shiver against her.

Steph breaks away, panting, and suggests moving inside. Billie nods again, can’t believe this is happening to her, and can only watch Steph as she climbs out and walks back into the house, taking off her shirt before she steps in to the house and tracks more water inside.

Billie was right. She wasn’t wearing a bra.

Dinner and a Cat

The cat was nowhere to be seen when I got home that afternoon, and the back door was slightly ajar. I turned off the TV, put away groceries, and made myself a giant mug of hot chocolate.

Honestly, because I could.

A couple of friends had texted me while I’d been out, and I invited them over for dinner. Still, there was time to enjoy some delicious beverage in silence before I needed to start cooking. I wanted to savor the silence.

I work in the retail industry, and some people really have a thing about their morning drink. It’s scary, actually. It’s a coffee, lady. So, when I don’t have to work, I like spending my time with people and things that don’t turn into “Karen” at the slightest provocation.

A cool autumn breeze swept down the street as I stood on my front porch, cradling my mug like it was my first-born child. The forecast for the evening promised rain, which would quickly turn to snow — first of the season — so my mind wandered toward the cat. Would it end up spending the night outdoors? Worry settled in the pit of my stomach.

“If you’re out there, kitty, you’re welcome back anytime,” I said to no one in particular.

I mean, I talk to things. OK?

And a few minutes later, it hopped onto the porch as if summoned and sat on the welcome mat. In the daytime, it still looked like it could use about a month’s worth of decent meals, but when the black furball wasn’t shivering, it looked a lot more alive.

“Hey, buddy,” I said.

It hissed at me.

“Not a fan of ‘buddy,’ huh? Yeah, me neither. It doesn’t suit you.”

“Meow.”

“How about Kai? That was the name of my favorite cartoon character when I was a kid.”

“Meow.”

I nodded to myself. “For a cat, you’re basically a genius, so if you’re cool with it, I’m cool with it. I got some real chicken. I mean… I got cat food, obviously, but also actual chicken. I’ll make you some. It’ll probably taste better than kibble anyway.”

The cat got up from my welcome mat and walked into the house, at which point it walked around both floors once. I’d never seen a cat patrol its territory before; Tasha had been an entirely indoor cat. The idea of sharing with anyone had never crossed that kitten’s mind. Kai, on the other hand, took its sweet time and then settled down on the couch.

“Meow.”

Ah, right, the cat wants to watch Netflix. Good thing it doesn’t cost any extra to just have it going in the background all day. I restarted whatever drama was on — in Korean at that — and then headed to the kitchen.

***

Nat and Em came over around seven. By then, I’d cooked up a bit of a storm. I love cooking; it’s what I do when I need to relax. I am not much of an eater, though, so it was nice to have company over.

Nat’s a software engineer for a large aerospace company, and Emily basically performs magic with clay and her hands. We’ve known each other since we were in middle school, although we’d drifted apart when we all headed off to different colleges. It was sheer luck that all three of us now lived in the state and had time to see each other occasionally.

The doorbell rang, and Kai sat up like it was expecting trouble.

“It’s my friends,” I told it — like it was important for the weird furball to know who was at the door.

I wiped my hands clean on an apron and sprinted to let whoever it was in. Natalie Gomez stood on the other side, stunning as always. It doesn’t matter what the woman wears; she always looks like she’s got her shit together. That evening, Nat was wearing a fancy turtleneck sweater and hip-hugging jeans. And she has a lot of beautiful hips in need of hugging.

“Love the sweater,” I said as I gestured for her to come inside. We hugged because she’s a hugger, and there’s no escape. “How’s it going?”

“Eh, you know. Same shit, different day. Oh my god, your place smells amazing.”

I let go, and she bounced inside. Shrugging, I muttered, “You know me. Stress cooking.”

“Yeah, but you’re talented. And I’m not just saying that, either. Hey, looks like you got a new cat.”

I closed the door and followed Nat into the living room. “More like, it adopted me last night. I don’t think it’s dangerous, but maybe give it some space.”

“Does he bite?”

“I don’t even know that it’s a ‘he,’ honestly.” I grabbed a bottle of wine out of the fridge. “Want a glass of um… something red?”

The brown-eyed engineer came over and leaned against the cabinets. “Shit, yes, please. Sorry, it’s been a week. We’re releasing a new product, and that’s always stressful.”

“Well, take a seat, drink some wine, and food should be done in minutes.”

Nat accepted the offered glass and took a gulp. “What about you? How’s Iris doing?”

“Uh, just doing… I guess.” Mom had been on my mind all day, but I wasn’t going to ruin the evening talking about stuff I couldn’t change. “Work’s been busy, and I think I need to make time to go see my family this holiday season.” I tried a smile on for size. “But you know, good stuff, too. I got the library internship, and that starts in a week.”

“Good for you! I remember you gushing about that. I’m so glad everything worked out. Are you still going to work at the cafe?”

I frowned. “I’m not sure, to be honest. The money’s better at the cafe, but I can’t work eighty hours a week, either.”

“No, you can’t. And you have got to take care of you.” Nat smiled. “Look, even Mr. or Mrs. Kitty thinks so.”

Kai had gotten up from its comfy perch on the couch and came over to sit by my feet. I looked down at the curious furball and said, “I bet you’re hungry. How about some seared chicken?”

I’d always cooked for Tasha because I like cooking, and my princess of a cat had enjoyed eating the food I made. I remember spending hours on Google, looking at cat-friendly recipes. After I’d first adopted Tasha, Dr. Hopkins spent a week straight reassuring me that cats were carnivores and could survive on a steady supply of live mice.

So, cooking for Kai was pretty much a matter of pulling out the old recipe book, picking something that sounded interesting, and then making it happen. I arranged the food on a long, narrow plate and set it down on the floor in a kitchen corner, away from us humans. The furball sniffed at the food and then went for it.

“You said it adopted you?” Nat gestured at the cat with her wine glass.

“Something like that. I mean, it was out on my porch last night, and it’s come back into the house a couple of times now.”

“I think you should go back to the shelter and get yourself another pet.”

“I keep thinking about it, and I don’t know, I’m just not home enough to really give a pet the love it deserves.”

“I thought cats were independent,” said the human who never actually had any pets and didn’t want them. Nat had her husband and her girlfriend, and that was enough for her.

I shrugged. “I mean, this sweetheart, maybe. Most cats need at least some attention.”

From the corner, the cat hissed at me like it knew I’d called it a sweetheart. The doorbell rang again, and Nat waved at me to stay put. “I’ll get it. It’s probably Emily.”

A few moments later, a familiar wan face appeared in the kitchen doorframe. Sammy, age three, followed by his mother, Emily, who looked absolutely beat. I knew she worked crazy hours during the fall semester — she taught at a local art college, made pottery, and volunteered for a local nonprofit. And she had a little boy she was raising by herself.

“Hey, Sammy!”

“Good evening, Miss Iris,” said the polite, dark-eyed kiddo. “Ooh, kitty.”

“Can you do me a huge favor?” I asked the little boy.

“Yeah!”

“Can you give kitty a little space tonight? It’s shy.”

Kai hissed at me again but didn’t budge from its food. The boy looked at the cat, all wide-eyed and interested, but his mom put a hand on his shoulder. I handed Emily a glass of wine and gave her a mercifully brief hug. I hadn’t seen Em for the better part of two months, and I suspected she needed a girls’ night out.

“Thanks,” the redhead whispered.

I gave her a thumbs up and checked on the oven. “Well, dinner is basically done. Why don’t you three get comfortable on the couch, and I’ll bring over the tasty, tasty food.”

“Let me give you a hand,” Nat offered. “Meanwhile, Em can tell us all about her students this semester.”

From the living room, Emily groaned. “Don’t get me started. I swear college students nowadays can’t get their noses out of their cellphones long enough to look at fine art.”

I dished up some steamed and seasoned vegetables onto individual plates. I also decorated Sam’s plate while his mother regaled us with her horror stories. Kai finished its dinner but hung around the kitchen, not quite underfoot. I wondered if it didn’t like all the extra company. Tasha had been the star of the show, but I’d met shy cats before; not every animal liked being around humans it didn’t know.

We sat on the floor around the coffee table in the living room and had dinner. Nat shared with us some of her latest hiking adventures. Sammy demonstrated his ability to count to ten. Emily cheered him on. The cat settled down on the floor beside me, close enough that I could feel its warm presence, and stayed there for the duration of the evening.

For a brief moment, I could forget the troubles that haunted my waking hours and just enjoy some pleasant conversation.

And then, life went to hell, starting with the burglar-wanna-be.

Survey #262

WoW will probably start to take over my life again tomorrow oof so expect surveys to slow down some.

What do you wish people wouldn't call you? The only one I don't really like is Girt calling me "kid." He doesn't mean it in a derogatory way or anything like that; he's just always called me that since I was a high school freshman and he was a senior. Now as an adult that's been through things I don't believe anyone deserves, it's kinda weird but more so frustrating as, regardless of his intentions, I somewhat feel belittled. I've never said anything directly about my discomfort, though, so it's my own fault. I just don't want to make him feel bad for doing it for years lmao. What do people say about your name upon learning it for the first time? They don't say anything; my name is very ordinary. Why did you choose the hair length you have? I have a few reasons. The biggest is because I was just bored of average, long hair, and the fact I was at the time having a very hard time with self-care. My hair would get incredibly knotted to where it was hard to even brush it sometimes. Makes me shiver thinking back on it. For my own sanity and ease, it needed to be gone. Also, with how STUPID hot I get, cutting it all off helped with the weight of my hair (it's v thick) but more importantly how hot it made me it the warm months. Zero regrets chopping it all off, omg. If your hair could be ANY color, what would you pick? At this very moment, I really want silver hair. Do you wish your hair was longer or shorter than it is now? It needs a trim. Do you think you're attractive? (It's okay to say yes =P) No; I think I wouldn't look ALL to bad if I lost some more weight (I've literally been on a weight loss plateau for two fuckin years). When I was perfectly healthy, I didn't think I was very pretty even back then, but now that I look back, I feel I was decently pretty. Not gorgeous, but. What is your favorite band? Ozzy Osbourne. :') What is your favorite movie? The Lion King. The second one is like directly behind it. Finding Nemo is also very precious to me. What is your favorite book or magazine? The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton and Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo. What is your favorite song? Ugh, this is impossible. I love way way too many. I suppose maybe... "Death Inc." by Motionless In White? Idk. What is your favorite color to wear? Black, duh. If you could visit anywhere in the world, where would you go and why? South Africa because I want to spend time with and take pictures at the Kalahari Meerkat Project and especially pet a Whiskers meerkat. I WILL cry. Meerkats literally changed my life. So many people I wouldn't know... If you got the chance and wouldn't get caught, would you cheat on a lover? NOOOOO the guilt though. Someone drops a fifty dollar bill and doesn't notice. Will you tell them? Definitely. I'd feel awful otherwise. Would you ever pierce something on your face? I already have my lip and tongue pierced, and I did have my nostril pierced, too. I want more, particularly an undereye microdermal if I can switch to contacts... which I don't like. I think it'd look pretty dumb with glasses. Are you selfish? EVERYONE should be to a degree depending on the occasion. Doing what is best for you is not a bad thing. Are you mean to people who are different from you? Wow no. I find people "different" from me interesting. Do you make fun of obese people? By the BMI definition, I am one of those people. So take a guess? Do you eat when you're upset? I have to fight that extremely hard, because I usually do experience the impulse to comfort eat when I'm very depressed. I've gotten way better at it, though. What if you had to choose between feeding yourself or feeding your pets? I honestly don't know for sure what I'd do... but I think I would prioritize my pets, honestly. It would break me to watch them suffer and lose weight. What if you saw someone being beaten on the street? YOOOO I READ THIS AS "EATEN" FIRST. But anyway I'd call the cops ASAP. There's a possibility I'd intervene if I felt myself capable of taking on the assailant. What if it was you being beaten? According to the night terrors I've had beyond count, curse like a motherfucker and fight back while calling for help. Who's the most important person to you (related)? Mom. Who's the most important person to you (non-related)? Sara. What's more important to you, happiness or success? Happiness. What's more important to you, your happiness or someone else's? Depends on the person. List the ten most important things to you: Oh, yikes. No order: 1.) My peace of mind, health, and happiness; 2.) my family; 3.) my pets; 4.) my career future; 5.) my friends; 6.) a YouTuber I've never met lmao; 7.) my pebble from my partial hospitalization program; 8.) Teddy's ashes; 9.) the Mark mug Sara gave me sobs; 10.) and the RP site I'm on. Like if it disappeared tomorrow with all the profiles and history and stuff I would break the earth in half oof. Have you ever lived in a mobile home? No. Have you ever had your bedroom in a basement? No. How many times in the past week have you eaten fast food? Hm. I don't think once. In the house - shoes, socks, slippers or bare feet? Bare feet.\ Do you consider dogs inside or outside pets? Usually indoor, depending on the breed and the time of year. What’s your favourite piece of furniture in your house? ig my bed? Have you ever had a crush on a friend’s parent? Yikes no. Do you prefer carbonated or uncarbonated drinks? Sucker for carbonated over here. Favorite thing that you can see up in the sky? A full moon. Would you rather eat at the table or in your room? I'm so used to eating in my room. Do you like the sound of birds singing when you wake up, or is it annoying? I love it. If someone gave you a kitten, would you keep it? I'd love to, but it'd really be my mom's choice. What’s your ideal activity for a rainy day? Nap oh lawd. Favorite type of cracker? Cheez-Its. Banana sandwich... yum or yuck? Only yum with peanut butter. Animal you like to watch but sort of creeps you out: Spiders. Bagels or English Muffins? Bagels. Do you like to daydream about sex? I do it sometimes. Which of your parents do you laugh more with? My dad is really funny. Have you ever been to an open casket wake or funeral? Wake, yes. Who mows the lawn at your house? A family friend. Have you ever written a story from beginning to end? When I was little and was writing that meerkat story, yes. I started on the sequel but didn't get far. What’s a big turn on for you? Being genuinely interested in what makes me me. Actually wanting to know the littlest things about me. Just show sincere interest. Are you doing anything tomorrow? I do know I'm fuckin finally getting my laptop home. Does your car have a name? N/A Do you own clothes from any celebrity clothing lines? No, but a bitch is getting a Cloak shirt or hoodie at some point. Who was the last person you ranted about? My bitch of a cousin for being a disrespectful fuck when all my dying grandmother wants is to talk as a group with the whole family. I ranted to Mom though, not in the group chat because I'm actually mature enough to not talk shit when, again, all our grandma wants is peace and love between us at the end of her life. I was SEETHING. Know any magic tricks? I don't remember any. I LOOOOOVED those magic kits as a kid, though. Is there music in your head right now? Right now "Dirty Pretty" by In This Moment is on, so does that count as "in my head?" Would you like to become a dancer? It'd be very cool, most certainly, and due to taking dance classes so long, I tend to think of potential dances in my head when I hear like... any song, lol. I'd love to be one if I had the grace and endurance + no hyperhydrosis. Name one person of the same sex as you you wouldn't mind doing: Hunny I'm bisexual, there's a lot, lmao. Dream woman? Uhhhh. Maybe my friend Alon. She was like one of my first hints I wasn't straight, lmao. But idk, I find soooo many women to be attractive. What is the most gory film you've seen? One of the Saw movies. What a surprise, ik. Ever fallen down a hole? ZOINKS no. Do you work better in a clean or messy environment? Clean, durr. Do you know any vegans? Only online. Do you like bananas? I am VERY picky with bananas. They have to be perfect. My preferred ripeness lasts only like, two days. .-. What's a film you've seen that confused you? Oh boy, idk. I don't watch many films... especially if I'm confused and the plot isn't great, I'll stop watching. WAIT!!!!!! NO!!!!!!!! I went to see Warcraft when it came out and I was so fuckin lost just because the orcs' voices are so goddamn deep that I just sat there like "uhhhh sir come again????" I didn't play Classic, and I'm not great at remembering every aspect of the plot, so. I'm to this day p confused lmao. Do you ever wear black lipstick? I really only ever wear black. What is next to your bed? I have a white shelf to my left where I put my meds, a drink, the fan... that kind of stuff. My cat's food bowl is to the right of it on the floor. Are your fingernails dirty? Nope. Have you ever fell for someone believing you could "fix" them? Not for that reason, no. Describe a picture of yourself that you hate: LASKJDLKFJAOWJE my friend took a picture of me eating a hot dog once and joked she was putting that shit on Facebook and it was funny as shit but thank Christ she was in fact joking. Would you rather play a good or an evil character in a play? While I'd love to be the evil one, I'd probably make it too cheesy because I am a BAD actress. Has anybody ever lied to you just to impress you? Story of one of my "best" friendships. What's your favourite shade of blue? Baby blue, probs. Can you remember a world before iPods? I do indeed. On rides to school when I sat in the back, I would bring one of those portable CD players with me to play discs. Where did you go on your last date? I can't remember the place's name... Lume's? Something like that? Breakfast place in Illinois. Do people find you "cute"? It happens sometimes. Who does the best remixes? Oh idk, I don't pay much attention to this. Where do you get your news? Facebook, lmao. What social stigma does society need to get over? What DOESN'T it need to get over???? What was the last photo you took? Probably something funny on Facebook to send to Sara lmao. I will get memes to her some way. What mythical creature do you wish actually existed? As badly as I want to say dragons, I don't think it'd be a great idea, heh... Maybe dryads. What are you interested in that most people aren't? As of recently, TARANTULAS. I've fallen in LOVE with them. What's the most ridiculous thing you have bought? No clue. What sounds hit you with major nostalgia every time you hear them? The gem collecting sound from Spyro. It was my text ringtone on my last phone! I need to move it over to my current one. What was the biggest realization you have had about yourself? I was possibly the bigger villain than Jason in the breakup. But idk. What topic could you spend forever talking about? Gay rights. Which way should toilet paper hang, over or under? In the original patent, it was designed as going over. GMM knowledge. Therefore I find over as correct, BUT I ultimately don't care like... at all. I don't even really notice when I go in the bathroom. Are you usually early or late? Usually slightly early. What do you wish you knew more about? Politics so I could be a more helpful member of society alksdjfka;lw What is the most annoying question you've been asked? It's not really like, annoying I guess, but the closest would be just how frequently people see my lip ring and ask if it hurt. It's incredibly sensitive skin, and even if it wasn't, a needle went all the way through it. Like... guess. News flash: being stabbed hurts, lmao. Like I always explain that it's not awful, but duh, there is pain. What is your favorite milkshake flavor? Yummm chocolate. What was the worst phase in your life? 2020 thinks it's a bad guy, but lemme tell ya, shit's got nothing on 2016. Do you like sprinkles on your ice cream? I hate sprinkles on anything. Just an annoying texture with negligible flavor. The last time you went out to eat - what did you order? It was just a milkshake. Do you have all 32 teeth? I'm missing two wisdom teeth that just never grew in. Do you know how to do the moon walk? Never tried. What is one of your favorite comedy movies? White Chicks. Has anybody ever told you that you have a good singing voice? Yeah. I don't think I do. Onion rings or french fries? Fries. Not an onion ring fan. Who is the best cook that you know? Sara's mom is great, omgggg. She's cooked things I generally don't like yet I wound up enjoying. Can you name 3 different dinosaurs? Let's see: Spinosaurus, stegosaurus, velociraptor. I was a dino kid, man, just gettin' started. *finger guns* What's the largest amount that you can juggle at one time? I can’t juggle. What was your favorite thing to go on at the playground as a kid? I'd daaaash for the swingset. Do you know how much you weighed at birth? How much? Ummm I think 6-something pounds? 7? Where do you spend most of your time at? At home. In my bed. Exciting stuff, y'know. What noise does your favorite animal make? If my memory serves me right, they have over 40 vocalizations, but I'd say barking and chirping are the most ordinary/basic. Have you ever fallen in the toilet when you were little? lol I don't think so. What is the best kind of mac & cheese? I'm a basic-ass Velveeta bitch lmao. Who is your favorite oldies band? Boy oh BOY, you're asking a classic rock/metal addict. Of course it's Ozzy tho. But I love soooo many!! What is your favorite farm animal? Pigs! Do you like to play Monopoly? I'm not a big fan, no. What is the most fun restaurant you have ever been to? I like the vibe of Buffalo Wild Wings. Or I just have good memories there. What size bra do you wear? I'm actually not sure. I haven't bought new ones in a while and I don't think the ones I currently have are the right size anyway. Do you have a ceiling fan in your room? No. Who was your favorite Sesame Street character? I don't remember too well, but I think Cookie Monster? What about Muppet? Idr. What was going through your mind during the presidential campaign? I am sadly paying no attention. What do you think of the Duggar family ( 17+ kids )? Could you handle taking care of that many children? Ew, hell no. I don't believe the number of children warranted in a family should be legally monitored, it's much more difficult than that, BUT RATHER I'm very firm about knowing when it's more than enough. Population control is a thing. NOBODY needs that many kids imo, not even close to that. So far, what is the number one, best decision you have ever made? How has it affected your life? Letting go of Jason/accepting life without him. It has made my life much, much brighter and healthier. Have you reunited with any old friends recently? Was it awkward, or just like old times? No. When was the last time you talked to your first ex? February of 2017. Wow... been a long time. How different is your online personality from your offline personality? I am MUCH more outgoing and talkative online. What are your favorite holiday-themed movies? Jim Carrey's How The Grinch Stole Christmas, Hocus Pocus, The Nightmare Before Christmas, etc... Do you listen to Christmas/winter-themed music when the season comes around? No. Is there anything that you do that’s potentially controversial? Yes. What is your most recent obsession? Most recent, whew, tarantulas. I'm really gonna try talking Mom into letting me get one when/if we move. Do you say “merry Christmas” or “happy holidays”? To you, does it really matter which one is said/you say? Do you do your best to remain politically correct? Instinctually, I say "merry Christmas;" that's what has always been said around me. I personally see zero problem in calling it whatever... Like just appreciate someone wishing you well. You get the concept, and that's all you really need imo. As for political correctness, I'm kinda... down the middle? Like I feel it's been taken way, way too far, but I see some caution in wording as wise. If you could relive one week of your life, which would it be, and why? Would you do anything differently, or keep it all the same? Ugh, my first visit at Sara's. I just loved it so, so much. I think I wouldn't change a thing. It felt perfect. Is there a part of your life you wish you could remember, but can’t? Sometimes when I take these surveys and they ask "how old were you when...", ha ha. Frustrates me. What was the last thing/event to trigger a painful memory? It was last night, actually. The Final Fantasy VII remake is out, and I started watching a YouTuber I like play it. Jason got me to play the original, playing it a lot when we spent time together, but I only got a bit beyond half-way through before my PS3 broke. Cherished memories, so it was decently triggering indeed. I loved the game though and ABSOLUTELY want to see it played out in its entirety, so I shoved past the pain and am glad I did. Now I'm anxiously awaiting the next video aljkdsjfawe Y'ALL I wanna play more FF. What do you think of people that choose not to vote? I can't say anything, seeing as I never have voted before... Are you keeping anything from the people you love? Nothing important, no. Have you ever written a suicide note, whether joking or not? Yes, and that stupid novel is one of my biggest regrets. Who the FUCK would joke about that, though. When was the last time you let something ‘go to your head’? Not even like an hour ago. This happens allllll the time. When are you most likely to show off? Maaan Guitar Hero used to be good for that shit, ha ha. I was an expert at that back in its day. I haven't played it in forever, and on the rare occasion I do, I am suuuper rusty. Which would you prefer: spectacular view of the ocean, or of the mountains? MOUNTAINS!!!!!! Do you follow any dating rules/play any dating games? No. When was the last time you felt extremely confident about something? ME????????? CONFIDENT???????????? WHAT A CONCEPT!!!!!!!!!! When was the last time you blew the seeds off of a dandelion? Wow, not a clue. Probably not since we lived at my old house and I would go on walks down the path. What was the last thing that happened that you couldn’t explain? Oh I dunno. What do you do with all of your spare change? I just keep it in my wallet. Where did you hear about your all-time favorite band? He was and still is one of my mom's favorites! How many cans of soda do you drink in a day? AHHHHHH soda is my biggest nutritional weakness. I refuse to let myself drink more than one a day now though. It's funny and disgusting, when I was HEALTHY AND SKINNY I could on a rare occasion start a fourth can in a single day. Nowadays the thought almost makes me shiver. What is the oldest thing that you own? and the newest? The oldest thing, ummm. Not sure. Probably a stuffed animal in the attic. I just got two new books today! Is there anything you wish you had never found out about? Yep. A number of things. What is something that you refuse to believe in? Astrology. What is something you wish more people believed in? Gay rights. What food is your ultimate comfort food? Ice cream. Have you ever put anything inside a time capsule? What? OMGGGG I remember doing this in elementary school as a class! I don't recall what was in it, though. Is there too much violence on tv, or are people to sensitive? Too sensitive, but also negligent. It's got a lot to do with raising, imo. Don't show kids wild shit at too young of an age, and when they are shown this kind of stuff, you make it obvious that the behavior/content is unacceptable irl. Entertainment is not responsible for someone's shitty actions made with their own volition. What is something you used to fear, but no longer do? My first huge fear was thunderstorms. Now I enjoy them lol. Do you think it’s important to know a 2nd language? Not mandatory, no. Especially depends on if you're going anywhere. Do you know anyone that’s just naturally good at almost everything? My old friend Hannia IMMEDIATELY came to mind. She was the best in class GPA-wise, first chair for flute in band, and just in general STUPID talented. Do you know anyone that’s just bad at everything? BITCH ME What is one emoticon you use often? A sarcastic :^) or <3 What is one emoticon you almost never use? A lot, particularly ones with equal signs for eyes.

Feathers - Lee Know

Requested 💕

So for the Greek mythological creature, I chose the Peryton 💕

Fantasies were always your one of your favorites. And that’s what he was; a fantasy. The intimidating but sweet cafe barista that you saw every time you went in.

His family owned the cafe about six of blocks down from your house, and you went there often. It was also right across from your job, where you worked at a bubble tea bar part time, and he would come in and get some.

You both had made a habit of your fingers brushing while you gave/received the cash or cards from each other. At first he intimidated you, as he was very pretty and had what seemed like a resting bitch face. But one day he had given you such a beautiful smile that you knew the blush that heated up your skin was noticeable. His eyes were the most beautiful you’ve ever seen, holding galaxies in them. 

You walked into the cafe and made eye contact with him. He smiled as he began making you your coffee. You smiled as he placed it down.

“Maybe I wanted something else?” You said.

His eyes widened and you giggled.

“I’m kidding. It’s cute you remembered my ordered.” You laughed.

“You think I’m cute?” He asked, raising an eyebrow teasingly.

“The gesture is cute.” You said, rolling your eyes.

“So you think I’m ugly?” He gasped.

“What- no, I didn’t say that.” You said, your eyes widening.

He smirked and you rolled your eyes again and handed him the cash, which he pushed back into your hand.

“Since you think I’m cute, you can just take it.” He said with a wink, his bright eyes gleaming.

“Fine. Your next tea is on me then.” You smiled and walked out.

Minho scratched the back of his neck and smiled.

She’s so cute.

You filled up another customers drink with boba and handed it to them, before making eye contact with someone familiar. His bright smile made your heart flutter as you prepared his usual. You placed it on the counter and he raised his eyebrow at you.

“What if I wanted something else?” He asked.

“But you don’t.” You said, smirking.

He rolled his eyes and smiled as he went to take out his wallet but you stopped him.

“I said it’s on me, remember?” You asked.

“Okay.” He said with a smile. “I’ll see you later.”

“See you.” You said, smiling back.

When he walked out, your coworker turned to you.

“He was SO cute.” She said.

“I know.” You said with a laugh.

You walked out of your job after you finished and locked the doors. You turned around and almost bumped into somebody. You looked up and saw Minho.

“Oh, hey.” You said.

“Hey.” He said with a smile.

“What are you doing here?” You asked.

“I saw you closing up after I closed up the cafe. It’s late, you shouldn’t walk home alone.” He said.

“O-Oh, Okay.” You said, the confident facade you put on earlier long gone.

He smiled and his eyes beamed as he walked beside you as you both crossed the street. You felt self conscious as he walked with you. Did you smell from work? Was your make up messy? Did your hair look like a rats nest?

“You alright?” He asked.

“Uh, yeah. Just tired.” You said with a laugh.

“You should sleep when you get home, you worked a long shift.” He said.

“So did you.” You pointed out.

“I get a long break when I work those hours.” He said.

“Ahh, I see.” You said.

You looked over and saw a little kitten caught in what looked to be in a fishing net. You stopped and walked over to it.

“What are you doing?” He asked.

He walked over to where you were stopped down and saw you untangling the tiny kitten. After you got it out, you lifted it up and stroked its head as it purred.

“She’s so cute.” You giggled.

You looked up and saw the warmth in his eyes as he looked at you and the kitten and your heart skipped a beat. He reached his hand out and stroked the kittens head, causing her to purr louder and rub against his hand.

“I don’t know what to do with her. I can’t bring her home.” You sighed.

He slipped her out of your hands and into his arms with a smile.

“My mom and dad are gonna kill me, but I’ll take her.” He said.

“Your parents don’t like animals?” You asked.

“They love cats, I already have three.” He laughed.

“Really? What are their names?” You asked.

“Soongie, Doongie, and Dori.” He replied with a smile.

You smiled and stroked the kittens head.

“She’ll probably fit right in.” You laughed.

He slipped the kitten into his hoodie with her head poking out and continued to walk you home. When you got to your door he smiled as you turned over and kissed your finger before booping it on the kittens head.

“Keep her safe.” You said with a smile.

“Always.” He said, smiling back.

He turned and walked away with the little kitten and you giggled before walking into your house. You took off your make up and slipped into bed, falling asleep.

You sipped on your coffee as Minho sat down at the booth you were at.

“Slacking off?” You asked.

“Just a little bit.” He said with a wink.

You almost choked on your coffee when he did that, but you managed to keep yourself from looking like a complete dumbass.

“Sheesh, they should fire you.” You said with a smile.

He smiled at you as he took his phone out and showed you a picture of the kitten curled up with his other cats.

“You were right, she fits right in.” He said with a smile.

Your eyes brightened as you smiled, and his heartbeat quickened as your eyes beamed.

“Uh, maybe you can help me pick out a name?” He suggested.

“I’d love too.” You said, smiling brighter.

“I have to get back to work, but we’ll talk after our shifts. Maybe I can walk you home again?” He asked, trying to get back to work so his heart wouldn’t burst.

“Yeah, sure.” You said with a smile.

He smiled back and went back to work. You got up and headed over to the bubble tea bar and began your shift. It was pretty dead, so you decided to clean the place up real good. It was nice being able to just do whatever, so you thought about names for the kitten, but nothing seemed to really get you. Before you knew it, your shift was over and you had to lock up and meet Minho outside. You locked the door and looked around, seeing no sign of him. You looked across to the street at the cafe and saw the lights were out. You sighed and waited for about fifteen minutes before deciding he may have forgotten and started to head home on your own.

You got a weird feeling as you walked down the back streets to get home and felt quite eerie. It was too quiet, and you felt eyes on you constantly. After the second large block you heard something moved when you saw a huge, wiry, weird looking dog appear, its teeth bare. You backed away as another appeared, snarling at you.

“What the Hell?” You gasped. 

You closed your eyes as one leaped at you. You heard a yelp and when you opened your eyes, a weird creature stood its ground in front of you. It had the front upper body of a stag, and the back half of what looked like a peacock. It reared up and hit one of the dogs in the face, as the other leaped onto its neck and scratched at it. It hit it off with its hooves and slammed its hooves down on its head. The dog howled and ran off, followed by the other. The creature turned to you and slowly approached you. You looked up at it as it lowered its head to your height, and your heart stopped when you looked into it’s eyes. 

“M-Minho..?” You asked.

It stared at you before pushing its nose into your shoulder. You closed your eyes and wrapped your arms around his neck, burying your face into his soft fur. You pulled away and noticed your hand was sticky and saw blood on it. He had a gash on his shoulder and one on the side of his neck.

“Minho-”

Snarls interrupted you and he placed his back in front of you. You took a deep breath before hopping on as he took off running. You looked behind you and saw more large dogs coming straight for you. You clutched his neck tightly.

“They’re coming up fast Minho!” You yelled.

He leaped into the air and his wings spread as one of the hounds leaped up and just missed his tail feathers. You closed your eyes tightly as you clutched him tightly. His wings beat elegantly against the sky as he flew up high. You slowly opened your eyes and breathed in at the sight. The city was under the both of you and your eyes widened in fascination. You weren’t the biggest fan of heights, but you trusted Minho. He began to lower the both of you on a mountain (South Korea is full of mountains) and gracefully landed. You hopped off and looked down at the city below the both of you. You heard a weird sound and turned to see him standing in his human form. He had on a pair of black joggers.

“Are you okay?” You asked.

He nodded and walked over to you, wrapping his arms around you.

“I’m so happy I got to you in time.” He said.

“Where were you?” You asked.

“I smelled them and went looking for them.” He said.

“What are they? What are you?” You asked, your eyes wide.

“They’re hounds from the Underworld, Hades sent them.” He said.

“Hades?” You asked.

“The Greek devil.” He said.

“He exists?!” You gasped.

He nodded as he stroked your cheek.

“I’m a Peryton. Half Stag, half bird.” He said.

You closed your eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. This was a lot to take in, but your feelings for him remained the same.

“Your feathers are pretty.” You said suddenly, looking at him.

You saw him blush as he smiled at you.

“You’re okay with that?” He asked.

You nodded with a smile.

“There’s nothing wrong with it. I think it’s cool, actually.” You laughed.

He pulled you close and kissed your lips and you melted into his touch. You kissed him back and closed your eyes. He pulled away first to smile at you.

“I wanted to tell you how I felt, but I was scared because I didn’t think you’d accept me.” He said softly.

“I accept you, Minho.” You said with a smile.

He smiled back and went to kiss you again when you pulled away.

“Woah there Feathers, I almost had a heart attack already, don’t actually give me one.” You laughed.

“Feathers?” He asked with a laugh.

“Yeah, Feathers.” You giggled.

“That’s a good name for her.” He said.

“The kitten?” You asked.

“Yeah, her.” He said with a smile.

He pulled you into his arms and pressed a kiss on your head as you both looked down at the city below you. It felt strange, having to get used to being with the man you’ve had a secret crush on for months, and finding out he wasn’t human. But as long as he felt the same, you could care less.

I hope this didn’t suck ;-;

A prime real estate purrdicament

Summary: Garrus Vakarian has been through some real weird shit in his life. This one probably tops the scale. Really... it’s a 2 pound cat. Why the hell is he so annoyed? (Pre relationship ME2)

---

Yep. He was in hell alright.

“Hold still, Uncle Al!”

“Sorry, is this easier?”

Garrus felt something in him twitch as he sat there on the couch watching the scene before him. When Shepard had asked him to come help him with something, he should have been suspicious when he requested no armor or weapons as part of the mission.. He had been expecting some sort of intel gathering ,maybe a stakeout. Reality was worse – apparently, babysitting a ten year old human required turian interference in the matter.

Well... she was cute so he could maybe see why. Baby blues were dangerous like that.

His commander, his... well, he didn't really know what to call Shepard at that point besides, well, Shepard. Whatever he was, the human was currently seated on the floor in front of his niece, a small human girl who clearly had no qualms about entering people's personal space like she owned the place. She was in the midst of pulling – no, the translation on his visor clearly said braiding – her uncle's hair, which he didn't seem to mind much.  All the while, she was talking a mile a minute about school. In a weird way, she reminded him of his little sister,except she had more fingers and talked faster.

“Is Spectre bothering you, Uncle Al?”

“No, she's fine. She settled in a few minutes ago.”

Yes... the damn cat had indeed settled in while Shepard was sitting there on the floor, listening to his niece. She had secured a rather... comfortable vantage point in the space created by her namesake's folded legs. With her head against the human's knee, Garrus could hear her vibrating from his space on the couch some yards away.

She was mocking him. She had to be.

He shot her a glare at he watched to make sure she wasn't watching him. “Are cats supposed to make that sound?”

“It's called purring, Mr. Vakarian.” The niece – Kelly – hadn't spoken much to him, probably because he didn't have hair to braid. In her book, that was probably some great  tragedy. Garrus was good on that front. ”Cats make that sound when they're happy.”

Of course she was happy... anyone wold have been happy to be in Shepard's lap.

He struggled to find the words to cover for the ridiculous sensation bubbling up in his gut. “Oh. It sounded like a threat display to me.”

“Huh, really? Dad said he liked the sound.” Kelly didn't even pause as she reached for a bright pink elastic band to finish the braid. Garrus didn't know much about fashion, but even he might question pink and red. Then again, the shoes by the door were neon green and blue, so it wasn't like Shepard cared much about matching colors either. “You're weird, Mr. Vakarian.”

…

Somehow, that was worse than any insult hurled at him by a violent merc trying to kill him. No wonder Shepard had asked him to tag along.

“Remember  your manners, Kelly.” Shepard didn't sound annoyed, though. In fact, he was smiling as she inserted a matching clip into the hair that hung at the sides of his face. “We don't tell turians are weird-”

“To their face. I know, Uncle Al. It's bad for inter-species relations.” She beamed once she was finished. “All done! Though you might have problems getting up because of Spectre.”

Yes, the damn cat had fallen asleep there. Garrus grumbled to himself as he shot it another glare, trying to will it to leave. Honestly, he didn't know why this was annoying him so much – it was a damn cat. It wasn't sentient. He wasn't competing with it for anything...

Anything but a spot in Shepard's lap, that is.

Yes... he had to admit it. He was jealous of a ball of fur. Even he could see how ridiculous that was. But it just looked so damn comfortable laying there, making that weird sound of contentment. It was like the man's lap was made for resting there.

He had to wonder what it would be like to rest his own head there.

The thought made his heart skip a beat. He was lucky the girl's stepfather wasn't there – a fellow turian would have picked up the subvocals he was radiating off instantly. The two humans and damn cat were oblivious to it, which was perhaps his only saving grace. To them, he was just sitting there glaring at a ball of fur that had the gall to take up some of the galaxy's most prime real estate like it owned the damn place.

Not that... he had much claim to it either, but it was the  principle of the matter!

“So, where did you go this time?” Kelly was still sitting, happy as a clam as the humans would put it. Apparently, shellfish could be happy before they were eaten. “See anything cool while you were gone?”

Shepard blanched, and Garrus knew why. Omega wasn't exactly proper discussion topics for the under 18 set, especially if he had to talk about going into the planet's most famous strip club. Even the turian could see why that one was a bad idea, and he barely understood humans some day. He could practically see the human's gears working under that mop of hair as he tried to figure out what to say next.

“Well, uh...”

The front door opened just as he faltered. A human woman stepped in, causing the girl to jump from her seat and make a mad rush to the door. Their duty was over – Anora Shepard-Virius was home at last, just in the nick of time.

Shepard sighed in relief as he closed his eyes. Under his breath, too low for mother and daughter to hear, he muttered “Saved by the older sister.”

He reached down to pet the cat in his lap, but his attention was focused on Garrus. “That would've been a bit awkward, huh?”

“No, I can't imagine why telling a ten year old about Afterlife would be awkward.” Garrus dead-panned in return, eyes fixed on the lump of black fur so clearly enjoying the attention. Her purring was almost maddening, like a bomb about to go off. How did humans enjoy it?

The arrival of Shepard's sister should have been sign for them to get back to the Normandy, but the man made no attempt to move. Instead, he glanced down at the kitten snuggled up against his knee, and he almost looked sad as he patted her on the head. The gesture was so light, so tender, that it made Garrus' insides positively ache with jealousy. Why was that damn cat so lucky?

“You gotta get up, Spectre. Your mom's home.”

The kitten meowed, and eventually had to be pried gently from Shepard's lap to be placed on the couch. She kept sleeping even as the pair made their exit, stopped only by hugs and promises to return as soon as they could with cool stories.

Probably ones that... didn't involve strip clubs, if the look Anora gave her brother was anything to go by.

Garrus was able to breathe a sigh of relief as they stepped out onto the street and started back towards the Normandy. He glanced over briefly at his commander – the human was still wearing the bright pink clip.

“You know, you can probably take that out now.”

“I like it, and it keeps my hair out of my face.” Shepard's tone was matter of fact as they kept walking. “Spectre's getting big, isn't she? She's going to be huge when she's fully grown. Probably won't fit into my lap the next time I see her.”

Good.

The turian shrugged his shoulders in an attempt to play it cool. “Probably for the best. She had you trapped there with those claws. Seems a bit dangerous for a pet.”

He kept walking, eyes on the horizon as he felt his insides squirm. This was stupid. All of it was stupid – he was fighting with a cat, for spirit's sake! Maybe that was the worst part of all – he might have been losing to a 2 pound ball of fluff.

Compared to that and taking another rocket to the face... fire when ready.

Probably thanks to his mood, Garrus hadn't noticed that he was alone. It was only when he noticed the lack of shadow that he turned to see Shepard a few paces back, odd look plastered all over his face. It was a look the turian had seen before, though it was usually when he had some interesting piece of tech he was trying to take apart with those deft fingers.

Oh, did he wonder what else the man could handle well with those hands...

Still. Garrus played it cool. “Problem, Shepard?”

“If I didn't know better, I'd say you were sulking.”

Shepard kept walking, going straight past the turian doing his best to keep a neutral face as his entire body threatened to vibrate out of existence thanks to sheer embarrassment. The human's tone had been light, but his eyes said it all.

He knew. The bastard knew.

“I'm not sulking.” Garrus could practically hear the tone in his voice as he followed behind his commander. “I'm just saying, they seem sharp.”

“So do your teeth but I probably wouldn't mind those either.”

…

Wait. That had to be a translation error.

Garrus tapped his visor frantically with one talon, refreshing his communicator and kicking in the transcript he had installed months ago. Shepard's words read out on screen – the tone suggested he was... suggesting something.

Like the turian's teeth in him.

That time, his mandibles fluttered as he sputtered out, “Excuse me?”

The man stopped to look over his shoulder, blue eyes glinting in the light. “You heard me, Vakarian.”

He started walking again. “Now, come on. Let's get back to the Normandy before Joker leaves us behind.”

… Now, Garrus wasn't totally clear on Alliance or Cerberus regulations, but they probably couldn't leave without the commanding officer. Of course, his brain was a thousand light years away as he fell meekly in step behind the human. The transcript was still on screen, flashing possible cues to what the man had meant.

It was either violent or sexual – that was the general consensus. And he knew Shepard well enough to know he wasn't big on the former. That left the latter and... a lot of things unsaid between them as they kept walking.

Shit. He was going to become that stereotypical turian who fell for his commanding officer, wasn't he? Well, wasn't that just great? And suddenly, Garrus was jealous of that damn cat for a whole other reason as he wallowed in his own misery.

Damn things were lucky they didn't get crushes. Maybe that was the good part about not being sentient.

Our Little Eden

Note :I refuse to accept that awful ending that Ryan Murphy created. So, this is my take on the event after Michael “dies”.

Thank you for all the wonderful authors out there” You guys are my inspiration!

English isn’t my first language, I apologize for my errors.

                                       .  .  .

         The first memory I have of my life are not pictures, but a feeling, so powerful that stood by me for my entire existence.

         Loneliness

         Not by abandon or negligence; my parents were always kind and caring with me. Our home was usually filled with relatives. They came and went all the time.

          And yet, I always felt like I was the odd one out. Like a puzzle piece that didn’t fit.

          And, in time, the other pieces started to make sense to me; not thanks to my doctors my mom insisted on taking me every week, or the daily exams my dad made me do.

         “How can she already know how to read?”

         “How does she know that, Margot? Chess is a tricky game, even for adults!”

          “Where did she learn how to count? She can barely walk”

            No. It was from the conversations I picked on when the adults were in the rom. That’s where I heard from the first time words such as “study”, “immaculate” and “conception”.

            What did they meant?

             It was from during that time strange people start to come to our house.

               After they left, I remember sitting on my window’s balcony and look at each face; not a single adult was looking at me, their focus was on my parents. Talking as if I wasn’t present.

              “She’s such a delicate little thing.”

               But I saw them. Every single one. Inside out.

               That was when I realized. I was nothing like them.

 .   .   .

               It happened at night. It was pouring and the noise my window was making when the wind crossed it seemed like an howl. Except that wasn’t what woke me.

               It was the first time I dreamt of him.

A little boy, same age as me. He was alone, like me, crouching on the floor, next to a bed, playing with water. I wanted nothing more than to go and play with him.

               “Hi” Silence.

               “I’m YN. Do you wanna pla…” I stood beside him, getting a full view of the scene. It looked like he didn’t hear me.

               “You…”  my bile went straight up. TI still remember it: It wasn’t a pool of water he had under his hands. It was blood.

               There was a dead puppy under the bed, and he was just starring at it, still as a statue.

               I shouted and yet, he didn’t notice me.

               I woke up kicking and screaming from the top of my lungs. When my mother came to me and I told her about the little boy with bloody hands, she dismissed me, like it was something normal.

               “You’re a very special child, YN. There’s a lot going on inside that pretty head of yours.”

               Except, this wasn’t my creation. That much I knew. Which is why I couldn’t sleep on that room by myself after. I sat on the ground and, on it’s darkness, I kept staring the night sky from my window.

               I don’t know how long I was there, just that I wasn’t moving .My body felt frozen, still my mind seemed to float.

               “It’s alright YN”

               A voice, that was coming through me. Except, it wasn’t. It wasn’t like any voice I’ve ever heard.

               At same very same moment, a flash cut the sky and, if I had looked behind me ,I’d see a shadow of two silhouettes on my back.

.   .   .

               I don’t like people.

               No, that’s not true. I do. I’m just not interested on them.

               That was much certain to me when things started to change.

               To me was like an invisible pull and a whispering, showing me what  people wanted me to do.

               The first time, I was playing on our backyard while dad worked with the chainsaw. He fell, and when I got close enough, his body was in a weird position.

               “Daddy?” That was my first contact with death.

               ”Help him” It said “You can help him YN”

               My hands were drawn to his wounds and, instantly, it closed.

               “You did good” the voice said.

               But that was not what my daddy told me.

               “What did you do girl?”

.  .  .

               People are hungry.

               No matter how much they have, still is not enough.

               I could help people.

               I wanted to help them.

               Until, I didn’t anymore.

               From terminal illness, wounds, broken limbs, to venereal diseases and paper cuts.

               It was never enough for them.

               My parents opened our doors 24/7 to strangers. And they just couldn’t stop coming.

               “A gift” that’s what they called it “Must be shared”

               I was exhausted.

               And no one cared about me.

               I was three years old.

.  .  .

                 If I didn’t have a moment to rest while I was awake, I had when my parents let me sleep. And dreamt with the little  blond boy .It was reassuring, seeing him, there was something that brought me calm.

               Even knowing that he hurted someone.

               Every time I called, screamed for him, always. But he kept getting further and further away from me.

               My worst nightmare was to never be able to dream with him. The little boy I wanted so much to call my friend.

               Because, otherwise, I would be completely alone.

.  .  .

                 To me, it was something natural.

               I went to bed as  a little girl in my bed, and woke up with my parents screaming.

               “WHO ARE YOU?!”

               “Good morning daddy.”

               “MARGOT,GET IN HERE!”

.  .  .

              I was tall! Enough to reach thing on the top shelf; my legs allowed me to run faster through the backyard. I was even taller than my mamma!

              And the voices keep whispering to me.

             “What do you want me to do Lucas?” I heard my mom on the phone one day “Money? But we already charged…”

            “Excuse me, missy” I got my attention towards the person in front of me. And the line that followed. Each day it got bigger and bigger, and the voices just kept pushing me.

             “Be good. Have patience. Help them.”

             It was as if I was stuck inside a wheel. Give and give and give.

             And my parents charged from others?

            I found out when I was speaking to a woman that didn’t want to admit that her husband left her.

           “Ma’am, what can I do?” I didn’t understand any of that. How do I fix emotions?

           “I paid good money for your results, young lady !You have to fix this!”

           What?

. .  .

            Is that what you want me to do?

           I wasn’t allowed to leave my room anymore “Too distracting” my parents said. Every moment there was buzz downstairs. Clothes delivery ,new furniture, desperate people paying  a lot of money to talk to me about their “problems”. Futile and shallow.

           It was all my parents wanted.

            Is this humanity? Personal  and immediate interest ?Material rewards?

           I figured it out. The more I kept to myself, more I could absorb from others. It wasn’t just about mom and dad and their growing gluttony; it was everyone else. People were desperate about things that didn’t concern them; always blaming others for their faults; waiting for someone else to fix their mistakes.

         Yes

        I took one of my dad’s cigarettes, the ones he stashed from my mom. At night I could walk freely on the house without anyone disturbing me. They thought they could control me.

       “Argh, this is horrible” Why do people use stuff they know is not good for them?

       “Are they that dumb?” I stopped in front of their bedroom. Mom and dad looked so peaceful, swallowed by the materialistic opulence of everything they didn’t need ,but want. And me, their  golden goose.

       “This is not what I want” I whispered as my mom moved .She was still sore, plastic surgery does that to you, she said. And dad was also sore, from screwing his PA.

        “You are all so little” How could God allow such people to exist?

        “Don’t think about it ,YN. That’s not your job. Be good, help them” The voice spoke .Only, this time, for the first time, I noticed how it hesitated.

         Fuck you.

. .  .  

         I never looked back. That’s not where my life was going. I let go .Of everything.

         My parents ,that house, people.

          And then, my path was clear.

         It was as if an arrow guided me to my destination. The little boy, only now he wasn’t so little .He grew ,like me. And he needed help.

          Michael.

. .  .

         It was too late.

          He was stretched out on the ground. Blood all over, his body twisted in painful angles. That wasn’t suppose to happen.

         “No, no, no” I cradled his hand, leaning towards him. There was no one near .Please, please

          “Please, Michael. It wasn’t supposed to be like this.” I was sobbing uncontrollably. What was the point of all that violence? “Open your eyes, please”.

         I don’t know who or what made it possible, but he opened them and, for a split second, I couldn’t breathe. They were the bluest color I’ve ever seen.

        “Who…”He was choking on his own blood, and yet, something in his eyes said that he knew who I was. “I know…you”.

        “Yes! You know me, Michael! You’ve always know me” My whole body was shaking, he was coming back! His wounds were closing and the color of his body was coming back.

         “I couldn’t hear you. I wanted to. I saw you, but I couldn’t.”He was gripping me with such force, unnatural for someone who went through what he did, but I wasn’t letting go.

         “I know ,I tried to reach you. All this time I’ve been so alone” My tears mixed with his. It felt like a weight has been lifted of my soul.

          “So did I YN”

          When he said this, it was as if the wheel was broken. There was nothing or anyone more important in this planet.

         “Now we don’t have  to walk alone”

. .  .

Mallory’s POV

          It was another sunny day, and my sisters and I decided to enjoy. Madison wanted new clothes, and apparently an entourage/audience as well. Reminiscences of her Hollywood days, I guess. It’s not like I didn’t mind to go.

          Ever since I came back, I let go of petty things, fights that wouldn’t add up to my life. The world was safe, and all was well.

           I never told anyone about it. And that’s fine, because I know that what matters is preserved.

           I wasn’t really paying much attention to Madison and Zoe’s daily quarrel, nor Coco and Quennie wanting to go in a different direction, or even how bright and sunny it was.

           “Hey, watch it!” I was so absorbed in my mind that I only realized Madison was cursing at pets when they crossed the street.

            “It’s just kittens, Madison” A black and white one ran straight to a couple on the other side.

             “Yeah, well, contrary to popular belief, not all witches like cats”

              They’re an young couple. The man was tall, blond and wore black from head to toe. The woman was tall as well, long hair. She was wearing a blue dress. They walked gazing at each other, which is why I couldn’t see their faces, but from their body language, even a blind man could see they were in love. It seemed that the cats made wave for them.

              “I hate those furry things.”

               For some reason, I couldn’t stop to stare at them. The street was crowded, and it was not as if they stood out from everyone else. It looked like a simple sight: an young couple walking down the street.

               It was their posture. From the way they walked together, I couldn’t see where one started and the other ended.

                Something looked awfully familiar.

                Shit

. .  .

 Third Person’s POV

               “What’s the matter my love?”The man asked, tightening his hold on his companion’s waist.

“               You know what. The witch is watching us” The woman pouted. He loved when she did that. He loved everything about his love, and the fact she cared so much more about his safety than hers, only made him love her more and more.

                “I know, wife .But really, does she even matter to us?”He asked, his her forehead.

                   From the moment Michael met YN, nothing else mattered. Not his so called family, whom never wanted him; nor his father, who left him at mercy .Not even his “great purpose”, to bring destruction to the world. Nothing.

                   Only his YN. His  friend. His companion. His wife. His soulmate.

                  She helped him, accepted him as he was and loved him since they were children.

                  That’s real love .It’s what he always craved for, but never knew, until they found each other.

                  His true purpose.

                   Was to be with her.

                   “No” She sighed, leaning on him. Like always, words weren’t needed for the other to know what they were thinking.

                   “She doesn’t matter to us”.