#and the fact that out of the few times the story did make me emotional almost all of the moments were arcee related
Text
mind over matter pt. 4
synopsis: witness how your marriage was bound to fall apart with you on the front seat and your husband gojo had missed the show—now, he gotta figure out the story on his own.
content: arrange marriage au, angst, husband!gojo, mean!gojo, mention of blood, strong languages, some unsettling scenarios, emotional trauma, read at your own risk
a/n: ok, im such a bad author now huhu, i always broke my promises about updating the new chapter :((( should've just wrote in advance but i'm afraid i don't have that enough free time oqsjjanswjaj anyways, here's the anticipated chapter!! THANK YOU FOR Y'ALL PATIENCE <3 MWUHEHEHHEEHHE
previous / masterlist / next
the next day comes and you've got yourself some visitors. megumi, yuuji, nobara, maki, and inumaki was in your room and they were all seated around you as you talk.
panda and your two third years were not around at the moment because this is a non-sorcerer hospital and people would freak out to see a big ‘talking’ panda. during your two third years, they were out of town and were on a mission but they still text you to get well and even send you some fresh flowers.
“wait, i still can't believe that he's your husband.” nobara couldn't explain his shock at the revelation. out of all, she didn't think that her goofy teacher was someone's husband.
you chuckled at her reactions as you turned your gaze on megumi, who's still his mouth hanging. “megumi, i thought you're getting a hint?” you tease the boy. although it was true, you actually thought he already had an idea because you've known him for almost his entire life and even once lived with you as a kid.
“no…” was only his answer.
“so, gojo-sensei was the one you're talking about when you said that he was a busy man. most of his job requires being out of town. but he never fails to shower you with love and he is making sure that you two would still communicate despite his busy schedule?” your eyes widened when yuuji literally just said what you had said from before, word-by-word!
“i—i supposed he is.” everyone in the room sweat dropped at your answer.
what do you mean you supposed?!
“y/n-sensei, is it okay if we ask your baby?” maki chooses the gentlest approach because she heard that post-pregnancy can make the mother quite crikey, sensitive, and is prone to depression. but to her relief, you respond to her warmly.
“oh, the baby is being treated since they're premature. i really can't wait to meet them once i get better. but right now, shoko was the only one who had seen my baby.” you smiled softly at the thought of your baby.
“gojo-sensei still hadn't seen the baby?” maki’s eyes went wide.
you nodded. “yeah, he said we should go together so i must heal quickly for that to happen.”
the door suddenly opened and it revealed your husband with food in his hand. you smiled at the packages not because you're hungry, but because you had finally persuaded satoru to go out and leave you even for just a few minutes.
how did you do it? well, you just give him an earful after what he did yesterday night and he's like;
“i don't know how you did it but you should've just gone to the convenience store or the hospital canteen just for an oatmeal and eggs. and look, i'm not upset over the fact that you just had the ‘very easy to get’ food delivered on this doorstep. what concerns me is you seem not to trust me very well to handle myself— well in fact i've been doing it since i was a kid and blah, blah, blah, blah…” it was your turn to yap but a little longer than he did. you even probably bought up some of his minor mistakes like not taking out the trash on random sunday night.
and he was like, “i'm sorry. i won’t do it again ( •̯́ ^ •̯̀)”
“y'all done backstabbing me?” satoru teasingly smiled at you all.
“oh, we're just getting started. so why don't you take a seat and hear us out?” you patted the empty space of your bed beside you.
satoru playfully huffed and gave the foods to his students and let them distribute it themselves. sitting beside you, he gave you the separate plastic with food and helped you feed yourself. the two of you had your moment with you telling satoru to just let you be and stop feeding you like a kid, but satoru was like nuh uh—and it goes on and on.
meanwhile, the students watch you two with surprise in their eyes. they still couldn't digest the fact that you two had managed to hide your marriage for like five years or so. and out of all spouses out there, they couldn't believe their eyes that you married a guy that is a total opposite of you.
“i still cannot really believe that you're married and have a baddie wife.” nobara almost never tears her gaze towards you two.
“yeah, much more is that they look so in love!” yuuji agrees to what nobara said as his words made you two stop bickering instantly.
like a cold water being poured, you two were suddenly experiencing a reality check that this so-called in love was very far from the two of you actually is. coughing slightly to hide his awkwardness and nervousness, he just let himself chuckle. while you? you're an expert at this, you maintain a smiley expression and wordlessly (and also forcefully) agrees to what the boy said.
“oh my, do we?” putting a hand on your cheek, you smiled with your eyes closed. your act looks so legit but satoru has seen this multiple side—he knew this facade was all fake.
maki suddenly puts herself into attention by calling your name. “anyway y/n-sensei, i've noticed you two don't have a ring—” before she could even finish her sentence, you already beat her to it.
“that's because the two of us, mostly him, are constantly fighting curses and both involve using our hands when we use our techniques. it would be risky to wear it and we're scared that we might get it lost or damaged.” you explain meticulously.
you watch the students agree to your explanation, while satoru is looking at you with meaning. you stared back at him too, hoping that he would get your telepathic message.
“alright guys, your y/n-sensei needs to rest now. we'll just see you guys soon or you can all just drop by tomorrow after your training.” satoru called everyone's attention by clapping his hands then started to playfully shoo the students.
you watch them pack their things and wave you a happy goodbye, in which you return their enthusiasm as well. when they all left, you let out a sigh and started to gently lie your body on the bed. satoru, who was done cleaning just now, sit at the end of your bed and carefully massage your legs.
“did you have fun with them?” you just lazily hum at his question and proceed to rest your eyes.
“i…i'm surprised you managed to convince them about our marriage.” satoru continued quietly.
opening one of your eyes and looking at him, you said, “of course, i've been doing it to a lot of people for the past five years.”
that alone made him shut up.
satoru looked down to his hands, which were still busy massaging your legs. you've noticed that his eyes were casted down and his behavior was somewhat familiar to you, he's feeling something that is related to guilt and regret.
clicking your tongue, you're in no mood to deal with his behavior today. so to find a solution to this problem, you just put yourself to sleep and let all of this just go on without a single care.
it has been two days and you're getting better day by day. today was probably the bestest day so far because you're about to finally see your own baby!
“calm down, mama. do you want your stitches to open again?” shoko holds your knees to stop it from shaking anxiously as you were currently sitting just right outside the neonatal intensive care unit (nicu) where your baby was.
you understand that the doctors need to prepare the room first before you all come in, but you wished that they speed it up.
“but sho, i'm finally seeing my baby!” you squeal at your friend who just ruffles your hair and tells you to be patient—in which you definitely can't.
meanwhile, satoru, who was standing beside you while you and shoko were sitting together, has been eyeing you since this whole waiting. he understands that you're excited about seeing the baby because he is too, he is excited. but he couldn't help but to feel a sensation that you would rather share your excitement with others than him.
he knows that he sounds ridiculous and undeserving to say that in the first place after what he did to put you through, but he still couldn't help it and he wouldn't even dare to say it to you.
the door of the nicu just opened and it revealed the doctor who was wearing protective gear to keep bacterias and viruses from entering the room and harm the baby. before he lets you all in, he first instructs you all to change the same gear as him and then proceeds to give you all some explanation in which you actively listen and take notes.
and after that, he finally lets you go inside.
the moment your eyes traveled on a crib, you saw your child laying down there with some breathing apparatus that is connected to their little body. you could feel your eyes swell with hot tears as you inch yourself towards the bundle of joy who's their crib was also protected with glass and only small holes on both sides were there.
satoru and shoko watched you with pure warmth at your sight—it was a nice scene of mother's love. finally, a tear escapes your eyes the moment you get a whole view of your child.
“isn't he pretty?” shoko said beside you, someone who you didn't notice had come near you.
you gasp, “he? m-my baby is a boy?” your cries go even harder, but it was just pure happiness. you couldn't bring yourself to tear your gaze away from your child even though he looks fragile for being premature but you love him dearly.
“can i touch him?” you look at the doctor who assisted you earlier without caring that you might look like a crying mess. you're far more thrilled to be with your child than to be pretty at this moment.
the doctor smiled at you and he agreed. he pointed out the small hole on the side, telling you to stick your hands out to feel your baby. you do what he said with your shaky hands, and when your fingertips touch his warm skin—you feel like you could die from the burst of euphoria.
“my b-baby, my baby is n-now here!” you really can't hold your emotions back as you keep on passing your fingers through your baby's arm until it reaches his closed hands where you slightly and gently open it for him to grab index finger. and when he does, your smile becomes even wider.
“hi baby~ this is me, your mommy. it's so nice to finally see you.” you whispered softly, hoping that despite the glass, he could hear your words.
this is the bestest day of your life. your baby was here and that's all you need.
the scene continues to unfold with you still getting emotional and shoko was just watching you with a smile on her face. while satoru, the father of the child, the husband of the mother, was a little distant but he could still see the baby. he was all quiet and couldn't bring himself to utter a word but he's not speechless.
his eyes behind those glasses were trailed on the child, but most of his gazes were on you. satoru watches you become all smiley—this is probably the happiest smile he had seen on your lips for the past years of your marriage.
and he would absolutely never forgive himself if he breaks it—but he already did.
shoko notices his odd behavior and promptly leaves your side for a while (but you're busy having a baby talk with your baby to notice her leaving) to go talk to him.
“what? you're just gonna stand there and watch y/n?” yup. still the same as before, hostile towards the man. satoru let out a sigh and didn't give her attention. instead, he walked towards y/n and just focused on his family.
“you’re so tiny!” you continue to cooed at your son who keeps on moving slightly which is a good sign that your son is responsive and fighting. you also noticed that satoru was now right beside you and is looking at your son too with adoration tinted in his eyes.
“i don't think i could let myself be away from him anymore.” you said. your cheeks were now hurting from constant smiling but you don't mind.
satoru only looks at you briefly because his attention was now on his son, fully. “hello, it was nice finally meeting you.” his eyes trailed on his own flesh and blood with the most care of all.
on the other hand, you're not dumb to not notice that satoru was acting hesitant towards this scene and you knew what his reason was. you think that satoru thinks that he was undeserving to be here, and you're correct about his assumption.
but as a woman who grew up with an experience of being inside a shattered family, you absolutely would not want that to happen to your own child. and as much as you would also like to satoru be away at least for now because you're still that sensitive about what he had said during those conversations in the clinic and hallway, you respect his role as a father.
you'd give him a chance to prove his worth as a father to your child, but he's far worse to have a chance to prove his worth as a husband to you. if he messes this up real bad and without any proper explanation, this will be all over—satoru would no longer have you and your child as his own family.
“stick your hand on his hole, that way you could feel him.” you guided his hand towards the hole that you had said before and watched his hands turn shakey as he reached for the baby.
once satoru had finally experienced a skin-to-skin touch with his baby, he wanted to cry so badly but he didn't allow himself to, at least not yet. he felt like this was one of the best moments in his existence.
satoru would like to punch himself for questioning the baby for his plans as he seemingly thinks it would affect him. but just when he look and touch his baby, all of his recollection about the mixed emotions he felt when the baby is on the board has suddenly vanished and it was replaced with gratefulness and adoration for both of you.
it was like a full 360 degrees turn was done after the early birth of his first born. plus, he had seen you be ever so happy that you are with him. and deep inside him, satoru deniably hopes that this kid, this child, can at least help him save this marriage that was destined to fail and doomed.
because he now finally realizes that you're slowly wrapping him around your tiny fingers.
your tears had made him be a better person, your recent experience had made him behave. it almost cost you and your baby's wife just for him to realize the importance of your five years of marriage, and he's planning to tell you that soon.
“have you finally decided what name we should give him?” shoko asked you and she didn't fail to see your eyes sparkle at the mention of name.
ah yes, baby names.
that was something that a mother and father should decide together because it comes very crucial because the name that your baby will get is a symbol of you two's relationship. but the thing is, you and your husband hadn't talked about a single thing or just anything related to this matter.
that's probably why you're still embarrassed whenever you think about nanami accidentally seeing you open a website into one of the school's computers about unique baby names with its meaning.
you're four months pregnant at that time and you're spending your free time in a teacher's lounge. you're very invested in your mini research to the point that you didn't notice an old friend peeking at your screen. you actually only notice his presence when you're about to stretch but accidentally bump his torso, and to your surprise, he was there.
and then the rest becomes a story and history. nanami helped you pick baby names for both genders or even unisex until you came out with…
“kazuki. let's name him that.” a soft smile was decorated on your lips as you watched satoru, who's looking at you, plays with the hands of your son.
“kazuki…that's a nice name, y/n.” satoru said happily. however, you can see his disappointment behind those words and you know why. you didn't even invite him to search for your baby's name because why would you?
“does it have any special meaning?” shoko asked you.
you nodded and said, “of course, kazuki means hope of peace—and i really need that.”
taglists: @mistymuii @kalopsia-flaneur @sherryuki-callmeyuki @aish777 @tttttttf @slyhersophia @rirk-ke @labelt-san @shinruo @testrella @sad-darksoul @kurookinnie @mountvesuvu @chwesuh-imnida @cole-silas @elernity @maddie-jayne @yozora7154 @kawaiivillainess98 @forourpoets @aishies-stuff @numblytemporary @souyasplushie @catarinemirandax @aerithsthingss @h1gh4ru @ssetsuka @jskodn @khoiyyu @the2ndl @vebbiewuzhere @kouyoumarryme @dreamyescapesfromreality @local-mr-frog @haesify @blkmystery @bleppt @leavem3al0n3 @arminloverlol @megumisthirdog @shirabane @sheismaryy @tragicgirl444 @vampsins @miizuzu @kurobo @anxious-chick @p1nkliquor @mshitachin @chxrv @lolsasuke @username23345 @netyxms @lvstru @roscpctals99 @buttermilktea11 @berenevenstarzetaestelar @jiupark @hotsauce247 @veryverysadauthor @skepticalleo @opentheyoor01 @slowlyshycomputer @babybarbs12 @thickemadame @yaninnaacu @foggypostshark
[part 5 will be just there right around the corner — ©luvvixu2024]
#gojo satoru#anime#gojo satoru x reader#fanfic#gojo satoru x y/n#gojo satoru x you#gojo x reader#luvvixu#jjk gojo#jujutsu kaisen#gojo satoru angst#satoru angst#gojo angst#jjk angst#angst#arrange marriage
118 notes
·
View notes
Text
the old college try
summary: you reconnect with an unexpected guest at the creator of your scholarship’s dinner party.
pairing: patrick zweig x reader
warnings: stanford era, sassy reader, situationship, a touch of family drama, mentions of putting an etsy love spell on someone, arguing, emotional immaturity, maybe not the best decisions from our lovely characters, kindaaaa open ending
word count: 4.6k
author’s note: i am absolutely addicted to all things ex!patrick. i hope you enjoy reading this!
“This is my son, Patrick.”
Your stomach dropped the second the woman’s son turned around, familiar light eyes and scruffy appearance immediately taking you back to your tumultuous third semester of college.
You remembered it like it was yesterday—the extended periods without contact followed by a surprise appearance at your dorm room, or the drawn out arguments on the phone that left every passerby giving you—the angry woman on the phone in her pajamas on the sidewalk—a strange look, and even the few good times you had with him.
You blinked once to make sure your eyes weren’t deceiving you, then felt an onslaught of realization hit you at once. Despite your several month on-and-off situationship with Patrick, you never learned much identifying information about him, including his last name. In fact, that had been something you’d argued about multiple times. The two of you barely knew each other, save for each others’ bodies, which you unfortunately both knew very well.
Had you known that Patrick was the son of Mrs. Zweig, donor to your scholarship, you wouldn’t have accepted the invite to this family event.
Mrs. Zweig seemed to recognize the shock and confusion on both of your faces. While you didn’t think your mouth was agape, there was certainly a high chance that it was. “You two already know each other?” she asked, looking amused.
“No,” you quickly replied.
“Yeah,” Patrick said, his words coming out at the same time as yours.
“Yes,” you tried again, trying to get your story straight.
“No,” he said this time, your voices overlapping once more.
She glanced between the two of you skeptically before humming aloud. “Hmm. Well, I’ll let you two chat and connect, or reconnect, whatever it is you’re doing.”
She was off without much more fanfare, leaving you very flustered in her wake.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Patrick asked you, getting right in your face like he always did when the two of you argued. It was almost slightly nostalgia-inducing.
“What are you doing here?” It was a stupid question, given that he had been introduced as the son of your beneficiary. Of course he would be at a family function. This was his family, after all. But you were flustered, as anyone else in your shoes would be, and words were currently failing you.
“Zweig doesn’t ring a bell?” he asked. When you responded with a wordless shake of your head, he chuckled in annoyance and disbelief. It all felt very familiar. “What was it that you always used to say to me? ‘You don’t even know what my middle name is?’”
You crossed your arms over your chest and rolled your eyes, not knowing where the discussion was going, but not liking it regardless.
In response to your non-verbal response, he leaned in close to your ear, clearly not trying to let on to the rest of the attendees the level of drama that was currently occurring in their midst.
“You hypocrite.”
The words he spat were simple, but effective—leaving you simultaneously filled with rage and oddly, a little aroused.
He walked off after that, using self restraint that you weren’t actually sure that he had. Knowing Patrick, he would be back and spewing vitriol in your face or in your ear whenever he next had the opportunity.
You were taking a very different approach to the situation. Now that you knew Patrick was at the event, you were determined to do everything humanly possible to avoid bumping into him.
You talked to any and everyone you could find, trying to ignore the fact that you could feel Patrick’s eyes searing into you, no matter what part of the room you were in. He was clearly waiting for the moment he could pounce on you once again, evidenced by the way he seemed to start going on the move whenever you stopped talking to someone.
Somehow, you were still one step quicker than him, quickly maneuvering yourself into new conversations or inserting yourself into the conversations of others.
You weren’t sure what Patrick so badly wanted to tell you anyway. Maybe taunt you about some new conquest he was with, or to beg you to come home with him after dinner. Unfortunately, the latter proposition didn’t sound all that bad.
Other than your issue of avoiding conversation with Patrick, you were also facing another challenge: People trying to introduce the two of you to each other. You weren’t sure what it was that made people think that the two of you needed to meet so badly—from Patrick’s mom, who had been insisting for weeks that you meet her son, to a random cousin who happened to think that you’d like each other. You wished you could tell them that you’d already met each other, and that you’d magnificently crashed and burned.
Briefly wanting to get away from the repetitive small talk and questions about if you’ve met the person you were in a messy situationship with, you found your way to a bathroom—but not without being followed in.
“What the fuck?” you said immediately as the door behind you shut.
“We need to talk,” Patrick said plainly, locking the door behind him.
“Unlock that,” you demanded, not because you were all that afraid of your safety, but because you wanted a quick exit plan if he started to really piss you off.
“Fine,” he conceded, unlocking the door. “But don’t act weird if someone walks in on us.”
“Walks in on us?” you laughed, parroting his words. “There won’t be anything to walk in on. I mean, you can’t seriously think I’m going to fuck you at a family dinner.”
You were about 95% sure of your words, but that other 5% was thinking about the logistics of getting your tight dress off in that small bathroom.
“I didn’t come in here to fuck you,” he explained.
“Then what are you here for?” you asked, confused about what else he could possibly want from you.
“We need to get our story straight. I can’t have a repeat of that conversation with my mom.”
“Why does it matter? I’ll just stay away from you for the rest of the night. I’ll expect you to do the same, then there won’t be any issues.”
“That won’t work. Have you seen the seating chart for tonight?”
“Seating chart?” you scoffed. It seemed ridiculous, but it made sense. For people rich enough to create and fund scholarships, it made sense that a large dinner for friends and family members would come equipped with a seating chart. Besides, you were sure there were people with dietary restrictions in your midst. “How would I have known there was a seating chart, let alone look at it ahead of time?”
“Well, a little spoiler: you and I are sitting next to each other.”
“What the hell? Who did that?”
“I don’t know! Stop looking at me like this is my fault.” Now that he mentioned it, you were currently glaring at Patrick. “It must’ve been my mom. I swear she’s been telling everyone that you and I need to get together. Everyone’s been telling me all night that we need to meet.”
“God, I thought it was just me. Is this a family of matchmakers or something? Or are they trying to help you out with your fear of commitment?”
“I don’t have- can you just focus instead of trying to be funny? We’re gonna be next to each other all night and people are going to be asking us questions. So what are we going to tell them?”
“You don’t want to tell them about you leading me on for months?” you asked innocently, not trying very hard to hide the contempt behind your words.
“No, you’re right,” Patrick agreed with you, fake thoughtfulness in his tone. “Now that I think about it, maybe we should tell them about the love spell you paid some Etsy witch to put on me.”
You instantly felt your cheeks warm at the mention of such an embarrassing action.
“That was a joke and you know it.” It wasn’t a joke. It was a dark period of time for you. “So what do you suggest we tell them?”
“That we’re just friends,” he said simply.
“They aren’t gonna be suspicious that you’ve never brought me up before?” you probed, part of you wondering the logic behind his decision, and the other part of you wondering if he’d ever brought you, his situationship, up to his friends or family.
“Doubt it,” he dismissed with ease.
You were only a little disappointed, but not at all surprised. “So what’s the story?”
“That we met when I was visiting Stanford.”
“That’s true, though.”
“Just leave it at that. We met once or twice through mutual friends,” he directed.
“Okay,” you shrugged. “Anything else I should know?”
“Just that you look really hot tonight,” he said, biting his lip and unabashedly checking you out.
“Okay. Goodbye,” you didn’t bother humoring him, though his words did satisfy you. You left the bathroom and didn’t spare a glance back, even as you heard him leave a few minutes later.
After the torture that was socializing with people whose sole purpose seemed to be setting you up with your ex fling, you’d all been summoned to sit down for dinner. Just as Patrick warned you, you sat down at a seat that was directly next to him. You wished you could switch seats with someone else, putting their nameplate next to him and hoping that no one would be any wiser, but you couldn’t see a world where that would work out for you.
Eventually, Patrick sat down next to you, clearly trying his best not to look at you too closely, lest someone catch on to the fact that you two knew each other.
You did your best to be a fly on the wall in the conversation that the people around you were having. You poked around at your salad and wondered if you focused hard enough on the leaves, if you’d be able to disappear.
“So, have you two had the chance to meet?” someone asked from across the table, directing the question to you and Patrick. Clearly, your plan of disappearing hadn’t worked out after all.
“Yeah! We actually know each other already,” you explained, directing a friendly smile towards whatever cousin or family friend you were speaking to. Clearly, Patrick didn’t trust your answering abilities, as he butt into the conversation before you could finish speaking.
“We have some mutual friends, so we’ve crossed paths once or twice,” Patrick clarified, attempting to give more context to your relationship. Technically, it was true. While you weren’t necessarily friends with the man who inadvertently set you up, you’d been invited to a party being hosted by some tennis player in your accounting class who played with Patrick at some point, and met at that very event.
Despite the many partygoers, Patrick seemed instantly drawn to you, or at least, was instantly attracted to you, based on the way that he openly checked you out as he approached you. Normally, that kind of thing would make you roll your eyes and walk away, but you’d been intrigued by his looks and his shameless demeanor. If only you could go back in time to tell yourself to roll your eyes and walk away.
“But we don’t know each other very well,” you added. That, you firmly believed was true. Patrick may have known what position made you cum quickest, but he didn’t know a thing that actually mattered about you. He probably couldn’t even tell you what your major was.
“What a coincidence you ended up here, then,” the other man, whose name you couldn’t remember, commented. “Did Patrick help you get the scholarship?”
“What?” you tried not to sound too offended, though you very much were. You tried to remind yourself that saying the wrong thing could cost you your entire higher education, and ended up laughing off the very rude allegation. “It’s really just a funny coincidence.”
To your surprise, Patrick jumped to your defense. “Unlike you and your seat on the board, there’s no nepotism here. We met long after she already got the scholarship, which she earned. She’s one of the most dedicated students I know.”
His words surprised you. The argumentative ones calling out his relative, not so much, but you were a little impressed by the way that he stood firm on the fact that you were a good student. Sure, he witnessed you studying for midterms in your dorm room every now and then—even if at the time he’d been trying to distract you from your work to get some attention—and now that you were thinking about it, he did bring you flowers after he found out you’d made it onto the Dean’s List.
Maybe Patrick hadn’t been all that bad of a… you didn’t even know what, after all. But that was certainly a thought you were only entertaining due to his sweet behavior he was currently exhibiting. The fact that you were a whole year out from your entanglement and still couldn’t define what the hell happened between the two of you was a testament to how much of a mess your relationship was.
“Not that you know too many students,” his relative laughed in that stuck-up rich person's laugh they all seemed to have. You tried to ignore how you were already getting caught in family politics, getting your academic ability called into question in the crossfire of an easy insult Patrick dealt to his family member. “Pat’s too busy going around the world hitting balls. How’s that going, by the way?”
From what you’d observed in your own efforts to see what he was up to, they weren’t going great. Notably, after you’d cut things off with him, his performance decreased significantly.
“It’s going well,” Patrick said with false confidence that you saw right through. If you could see right through it, you were sure that his family members were able to do the same. A brief glance at the woman in front of you who was clearly attempting to suppress a laugh confirmed this for you immediately.
It was almost a little pathetic to see, watching Patrick lie so obviously to an audience that couldn’t even pretend to believe him. Seeing how he stepped in to help you out, it was only fair that you did the same for him. Even if he hadn’t done so, you were starting to become embarrassed for him.
“Have you been to any of his matches recently?” you asked, interrupting their mockery of Patrick. “He did a really great job at the French Open. I mean, even making it to the French Open is really impressive.”
Not that you’d been at any of the matches, but you occasionally Googled his name to see what he was up to. Even more occasionally, you turned on ESPN to see if you could catch any footage of him playing. But it wasn’t like you even really cared.
Okay. You cared a little bit.
Most of the time, you were rooting for him to fail, as is the right of all bitter exes. But now was not the time for you to share that information. Not when Patrick was looking at you like you were crazy, and his family members were eyeing you suspiciously.
That was when you remembered that the two of you weren’t supposed to know each other very well. You instantly tried your best to cover up your tracks. “But I don’t know a lot about tennis, that’s just what our friend told me.” Considering that you hadn’t spoken to Art since Accounting 223 ended, he did not actually share this information with you.
“Huh. Do you guys talk about Patrick a lot?” you were trying your best not to fold under the skeptical look she was giving you.
“Only when he’s doing something cool. Which isn’t very often,” it was a good save, which left the rest of the table laughing at your little dig at Patrick. You were starting to understand his family dynamic a little more, and it didn’t exactly seem like a pleasant one.
You could practically feel his betrayed gaze searing into you, but you did your best to ignore it. You were already feeling guilt gnaw into you about hanging him back out to dry with a family who already liked to pick on him.
“You know, that actually reminds me. You said you don’t know much about tennis, but I remember seeing you play a little bit. How’s that going?” Patrick asked you, his question obviously trying to reveal something embarrassing about you. You instantly felt the blood drain from your face at the mention of your attempt to play the sport.
Your brief stint with tennis was mainly born out of your desire to see Patrick more often. After your run-in at his friend’s party, you were determined to put yourself in the type of situations that would allow you to ‘accidentally’ run into Patrick.
You started off simple, going to the tennis matches for Stanford’s men’s team, hoping that Patrick would eventually show up in the stands to support his friend. Despite your incessant searching of the stands, you were never able to find Patrick amongst the crowd of students, fans, and supportive family members.
Never one to give up easily, you decided to take matters into your own hands. Maybe if you were a little sportier, Patrick would take an interest in you, reaching out to you so you wouldn’t ever have to make the first move. You spent the evening perusing sporting goods stores with your roommate, putting cute tennis outfits and equipment that you couldn’t really afford on a credit card.
The next morning, the two of you got up bright and early to hit the tennis courts before anyone else arrived. The game seemed simple enough, but proved to be far more difficult than either of you anticipated. After half an hour of attempting to play with frankly awful technique, you decided to call it quits and do a photoshoot instead.
Feeling satisfied with pictures that featured your best angles and the slightest hint of breeze blowing up your skirt, you decided to post your photos on social media with a caption about how much you loved tennis. That was sure to get Patrick’s attention.
Just as you’d suspected, not long after you posted, you received a message from Patrick, casually asking about how things were going with you. Your faux interest in tennis had been promptly abandoned.
Surprised at the fact that Patrick was bringing up your very blatant bait of him, you were caught slightly off guard. “Oh, I was never really super into it,” you attempted to dismiss.
“That’s news to me,” he chuckled. “I swear, you told me about how you were super into tennis. Was that just a phase, or…?”
He eyed you mischievously, clearly challenging you to a match of whatever mind game it was that he wanted to play with you. Unluckily for him, you were in the mood to play–and win.
“Something like that. I guess I just figured out that tennis really wasn’t for me. But you know, college is a time to try out new things. See what you like, what you don’t like. And man, I really didn’t like tennis.”
Obviously, you weren’t talking just about tennis. You hoped that Patrick was able to catch onto the not-so-subtle subtext.
“I don’t know, I thought you liked tennis a lot. Thought it was good for you,” Patrick commented casually, going back to his food before looking back at you.
“It was surprisingly pretty toxic,” you replied easily.
“Are you sure you didn’t share a part in that toxicity? With a sport like tennis, you really get out what you put in.”
“Sure, but I didn’t put in nearly as much toxicity as I was getting from it.”
“Of course you’d think that,” Patrick murmured.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” you asked.
“It means that you think you’re so guiltless, but you played a bigger role in… tennis not working out than you’re acting like you did.”
“Please, enlighten me on how I could’ve made tennis work out better for me.”
“I just think maybe you’re being a little too hard on tennis in comparison to what really happened.”
“Just because you have a nice racket and a little more experience than me doesn’t mean you’re an expert on how bad things were for me. Seriously, Patrick. You actually don’t have a clue about what I was going through.”
“Are you guys still talking about tennis?” someone asked with a forced laugh, breaking the thick tension at the table. There was a stiff, awkward chuckle from your fellow dinner companions. It was almost as if you’d forgotten that you were at his family’s dinner, bitterly arguing with Patrick in loosely coded language. You should have the shame to feel embarrassed, but you mostly felt agitated with Patrick.
“Obviously,” Patrick replied. “What else would we be talking about?”
“Oh yeah. Obviously,” they said stiffly. “So like, are you sure you two don’t know each other that well?”
“We really don’t,” you quickly replied.
“Why would we lie about that?” Patrick said, your voices overlapping.
As if arguing about something that was very obviously a metaphor for your relationship wasn’t suspicious enough, this reaction certainly didn’t help your case. It was ridiculous to attempt to keep up this façade when it was becoming more and more clear to anyone at the table with eyes to see and ears to hear that you two were more than casual, mutual friends.
“Actually, we did lie. We were friends for a little while,” you confessed.
“Friends?” Patrick parroted with a scoff. He looked at you with disbelief before shaking his head. “Excuse me,” he announced before standing up and walking off from the table.
The rest of the table looked at you expectantly, which you took as your cue to follow Patrick to wherever he was sulking off to. “Sorry. Excuse me.”
The two of you said nothing as you followed Patrick out to his back patio. The fresh, cold air felt nice after a suffocating, stressful evening. As Patrick sat down on a piece of comfortable furniture, you wordlessly sat across from him.
“Just go. Back inside, back home, I don’t give a shit. I don’t have anything to say to you.”
“Clearly you do,” you replied, watching him dig in his pocket for a cigarette to no avail. He finally found a loose cigarette and brought it to his lips, ignoring you as he lit it up.
“Don’t blow it in my face,” you warned him, though you wouldn’t mind taking a drag or two from it.
“I won’t,” he replied, words muffled around the cigarette at his lips.
The two of you sat in silence before he spoke once more. “Do you seriously feel like we were just friends?”
“Jesus,” you laughed at the question, unbelieving that Patrick would think all of your desperate acts to try to get him to commit to you could be interpreted as anything but romantic. “Of course we weren’t just friends. But you try describing what we had to someone who wasn’t a witness to the train wreck that was our relationship.”
“We were…” he trailed off as he thought about how to describe your relationship. “Friends with benefits?”
“Sure,” you replied, though you obviously disagreed with him. “You know, this is exactly why things didn’t work out. I wanted to be with you so badly and you refused to acknowledge that we had a connection any deeper than physical until it was convenient for you.”
“Did you expect me to spell out how I felt about you when I was showing you how I felt?” he asked as if it were the most obvious question in the world.
“Actually, yes. Clearly we were not on the same page about how we felt if you thought that you were being so obvious while I was over-analyzing every single word you’d ever said to me to try to figure out how you felt about me.”
“Are you serious? You were the one who was impossible to understand. One day you wanted me to take you out on a date and hold you in your little twin sized bed afterward, and the next you didn’t want to speak to me. How was I supposed to interpret that?”
“Patrick, you were doing the same thing to me! I was just so mad at you. Like, constantly. Even though I had feelings for you. My friends were always telling me I’m an idiot for letting you treat me that way, so obviously I tried to start pushing you away. But even with everything, I still really liked you, so I couldn’t fully stay away from you,” you explained, hoping that your disjointed words would make sense to him.
It truly was a very complicated situation. Part of you wondered if you had communicated this earlier, if things might have ended differently for you.
Patrick seemed to be thinking deeply about your words before he spoke again. “Do you ever still think about me?”
You had two options for approaching his question. You could lie, like you hadn’t made it abundantly clear earlier that you still, at the very least, pay attention to his tennis career, or you could tell the truth and risk having your feelings hurt again.
“Sometimes,” you confessed, going with the latter. “I’m mostly still really annoyed with the way you treated me, and the fact that I let you treat me that way. But sometimes I miss you, anyway.”
“Then let’s do things differently this time,” he proposed as if it was the best and brightest idea he’d ever had. “I miss you, too. It shouldn’t have taken us breaking up for me to realize how much I need you in my life, but it did.”
“What are you saying, Patrick?” you asked, trying to make sure that you fully understood his proposition. Was he trying to get you back?
“I want you to be my girlfriend,” he spelled out for you. “I want to treat you better than I ever did before. I’ve thought about everything that went down between us, and I think that we can make it work this time if we just try to be honest with each other. What do you think?”
You were shocked at the offer. If someone had told you going into this dinner that you would end it with your former situationship asking you to be with him, you would’ve laughed in their face. Yet, his proposition, and the fact that you wanted to say yes, didn’t exactly feel like a laughing matter.
You paused as you stopped to consider your options. Your gut instinct was to say yes—you’d wanted him for so long, and he clearly wasn’t over you. You obviously had some things you needed to work through before you really made this relationship work, but the feelings were there. The more logical part of your brain was telling you to say no—Patrick had hurt you so many times before, that there was no telling if he would hurt you again.
“Sure. Let’s try it,” you said, ignoring all of the logic in your head and fully following where the passion in your heart wanted to take you.
You couldn’t be sure if this would end in another heartbreak for you, but you weren’t so sure that you cared either.
#patrick zweig x reader#patrick zweig#patrick zweig x you#patrick zweig imagine#patrick zweig fic#art donaldson x reader#art donaldson imagine#challengers#challengers fic#josh o'connor x reader
141 notes
·
View notes
Text
johnny & randall analysis / manifesto
in taking a little break from other things and deciding to rewatch monsters, inc., only to then find out about monsters at work on my way there, i've ended up thinking about these guys a lot lately — and since there's not a lot of stuff really digging into these characters, i wanted to share all the thoughts i've had over the past few weeks as an exercise.
as such, this'll be an analysis of johnny and randall's characters in relation to each other and their position as antagonists in the series, as well as how i'd personally go about extrapolating from their dynamic as a fun thing to explore if there was more time to expand upon and rewrite what we got! (as well as just having a little dubiously-healthy relationship fun along the way, you know how it is... give me and inch and i'll take a mile)
to me, the fun of filling in the blanks of them together is about how they've changed so much, and yet so little, falling back into old habits, feelings, and dynamics with an older and modern touch to them.
confused about the line of randall saying him and johnny were "besties"? not to worry, my friends. i got you.
“It’s easy to think that these characters can’t possibly have any depth or feelings because they’re monsters, but they do,” says Crystal. “They’re young men figuring out who they are and what they want in life—and then what life actually has in store for them."
general character / story analysis
all the way back at the beginning, we have the events of monsters university — in my opinion, the movie with the most to chew on in an emotional sense, and the one that really sets the stage for everything that comes after (probably a recommended thing to have as a prequel, to be fair). i want to start off with a few quotes from the art book and production notes about the story's themes...
If Monsters, Inc. was about what happens when a new and strange door opens, Monsters University is about what happens when the door you’ve been headed towards unexpectedly slams shut. It’s a question every one of us has had to deal with at one time or another: What do you do when your dreams run into the roadblocks of real life? (art book)
Producer Kori Rae recalls that when Dan Scanlon decided that the film was really going to be about Mike Wazowski and his story, "he was really attracted to the idea of how we deal with failure. What happens when what we thought we were going to do or who we were going to be changes, and we end up in a totally different place? When you ask someone 'How did you get where you are today?' very seldom do you hear 'I went to school, studied what I planned on studying, and then went immediately into that field of work.' This film delves into that in a really powerful way.” As Scanlon explains, "Mike basically realizes he needs to let go of what he thinks he has to be in order to be great, so that he can make room for what truly makes him great. That is the real story of the film. His friendship with Sulley comes out of that, and Sulley changes and becomes a better person because of that." As it so happens, this arc is not so different from the arc of the story process itself. "You fall in love with these things that you think the story is about, and then you realize the story is about something else," says Scanlon. "Then you have to let go of those things, and it's painful a lot of the time. But, it's always for the best." (art book)
According to the filmmakers, Mike’s story—and the fact that he doesn’t accomplish what he sets out to do—not only makes the story more interesting, it makes it more relatable. “A big part of this film is facing reality,” says story supervisor Kelsey Mann. “Sometimes it’s harsh and unfair, but that’s okay. It just means you were meant to do something else, something that ultimately might be more rewarding." (production notes)
"It’s during these years, whether in college or not, that we tend to learn who we are. And it’s not necessarily who we thought we were." ... "We don’t always get what we want, including life-long dreams. It’s perhaps the hardest lesson for any of us to face, but it’s the benchmark of maturity." (production notes)
"To me, this movie is for anyone who has dealt with failure. We all come face-to-face with it at some point in our lives." ... "I think it’s these missteps and misdirections that make us stronger and make our life’s story more interesting. I love movies that inspire us to believe that if we try hard enough, we can be anything we want. The truth is, sometimes as hard as we try, as much as we believe, things just don’t work out; it happens to all of us. But in hindsight, these 'failures' often turn out to be nothing more than detours leading to wonderful discoveries of a life, a career, a love we never would have thought possible." —Dan Scanlon (art book)
a lot of my thoughts had sparked when reading passages like this, connecting it back to their own character arcs, as we start to pick up on a few questions: how do we deal with failure? what happens when things don't work out, and what we thought we were going to do or who we were going to be changes, and we end up in a totally different place? when the door you’ve been headed towards unexpectedly slams shut? and how do the character's reactions to these things set them apart from each other?
"This is a story about a guy who loves something desperately but can’t have it. So what do you do when that happens, when you can’t have what you want?" —James Robertson, story artist (art book)
“College is the time when we all have so much optimism and confidence that we can change the world. We have dreams and goals. We’re unstoppable. And then reality sets in and we start hitting closed doors. It’s what you do when you hit a closed door—it’s what you do when your dream is shattered that really formulates who you are." —John Lasseter (production notes)
in doing a lot of analysis of the story's themes for me, this is the start of how these characters — mike and randall, sulley and johnny — are foils to each other.
james p. sullivan is a casual, laid-back guy who's just barely skirting by academically, as he believes his natural talent and family name are all he needs to succeed in life. johnny worthington III is already a popular and successful top dog with a legacy of his own to live up to, so he works to maintain his status and fraternity's image no matter the cost. mike wazowski is full of ambition, eager to make his dream of becoming a scarer at monsters, inc. a reality, with the assets at his side being hard work, wit, and determination. and despite his nervous and insecure personality, randall "randy" boggs wants to get in with the popular crowd to get a taste of recognition even if that means going down a different path completely.
breaking them down to the very basics, johnny and sulley are both Cool Guys/Nepo Babies who come from a long line of revered scarers, and who keep their fears, insecurities, and true feelings buried underneath of their outwardly shallow demeanor, while mike and randall are both Nerdy Guys without a lot of friends, making it out alone/together in the world, but with untapped potential and a very personal sense of mission for their years at university. they're each put in very similar positions, where sulley and johnny want to maintain what they have and use that to their advantage, and randall and mike want to surpass what they are into something bigger than themselves. sulley is everything mike wants to be as a natural-born scarer, and johnny is everything randall wishes he could be as the cool, popular guy. at the beginning of the movie, sulley gets paired with johnny, and mike with randall, but they end up swapping by the midpoint — sulley teams up with mike, and randall teams up with johnny. mike and sulley stay together by the end, but johnny and randall are ultimately split up. you get the sense that these duos are meant to be together with how they're divided, and, eventually, the results of everything, and how the characters deal with the prospect of failure color their positions as protagonists and antagonists, respectively.
"When it all goes south, it’s not pretty,” says Rae. “They get kicked out of the Scare Program by the Dean herself and their dreams are crushed. But as fate would have it, they’re forced to work together to make things right. The unlikely bonds they form with a group of misfits, and how they grow—individually and as friends—results in a very funny, very touching story that at its heart is completely relatable to people of almost every age." (production notes)
when mike and sulley get kicked out of the scare program, they're not about to give up just yet. after a lot of hardships, but also unexpected success along the way, they land themselves at the very last event of the scare games, and sulley goes the extra mile to secure a false win through cheating for mike, only for it to be a breaking point for the both of them — it drives mike into doubling down on his ambition, and then into disillusionment at his own inability to achieve what he's been so desperate to reach the entire story, as well as sulley into finally letting down his unaffected façade and admitting he has no idea what he's doing either. he knew how someone like mike would take the loss, after he's worked so hard for everything, but in the end... the measures taken to prevent that from happening only ended up making things worse. at the end of the day, the true victory they get to have is in a personal sense, since they do get kicked out of university and have to continue working hard to get what they want... and they're also to be able to prove something to themselves in an honest accumulation of their efforts, through what they've learned and gone through together despite them not coming out on top. by the end of the movie, they accept their fate in stride — even (especially) mike, who sulley helps to realize that he has other avenues to explore, not just that one defined path he set out so desperately to chase. after they come to terms with the failure they went through together, they're able to grow and become better friends and people because of it, and it doesn't stop them from working as hard and honestly as they can... and eventually, they end up where they are today!
on the other hand... the way johnny and randall take their shortcomings end up being the exact opposite!
getting into it ✨️
JOHNNY WORTHINGTON has reason to be supremely confident—he’s the top Scare student at Monsters University and president of the best fraternity on campus, Roar Omega Roar (RΩR). Voiced by Nathan Fillion, Johnny comes from a long line of MU Scarers and respects the school’s legacy, traditions and most of all, the system by which Scaring excellence is judged. He may have been born with a silver spoon in his jaws, but this monster’s no softie. (production notes)
"Johnny runs RΩR, so if the look of the house is designed around any one character, it's him. The RΩR interior gives you this feeling of tradition and entitlement, sort of 'Don't touch anything.' [There are] walls of trophies, walls of history, and pictures of past classes. It should give you the feeling that Johnny has something to lose, too. It's not just Mike and Sulley who have things at stake. Johnny has a tradition to live up to, and he's afraid of failing." (art book)
"[He] was probably raised by a dad who was a real jerk to him, who 'didn't raise a loser', where winning's the most important thing..." —Nathan Fillion (interview)
it's that idea of success, of staying on top and maintaining that image, position, and legacy that came before him that has shaped his worldview and that johnny's character is all about. for johnny, to not live up to tradition is failure.
johnny worthington already had it made by the time he was born, clearly growing up wealthy and with connections in life lined up for him in advance, where even in school he's popular and well-liked for his highly-ranked natural talents and "charming" personality, despite still being a shallow, manipulative asshole at heart... and all he has to do is to hold on to that silver spoon, which is at the same time, is a lot of pressure on his shoulders...
and with so much importance put on appearances, it's his tendency to read books by their cover that leads him to completely underestimate what mike and sulley are capable of together in monsters university. an emphasis is put on how big of a deal it'll be if RΩR loses the scare games to a team of underdogs like OK, since, as mike puts it... no one will ever let him forget it. not only does he care a lot about maintaining that status as top dog, but he wants to ensure nothing gets caught up in the process, as he takes precautions earlier in the story by putting sulley's place in RΩR on hold until he can live up to what he says he is... and when it comes to OK's unexpected success throughout the scare games, there's a sense of him starting to feel threatened, which leads to pulling stunts like the "cute-ma kappa" prank. johnny goes out of his way to try and take them down a peg through methods like "cutting remarks, taking shots at [their] confidence, and humiliation," as nathan fillion puts it in regards to johnny's more "insidious" bullying techniques. we don't get a lot of time to linger on how he takes the "loss" in the end (other than it very clearly shaking his entire world) before he later goes to offer sulley his position back, and then is rejected even further. what i enjoy very much about the situation is how RΩR didn't actually lose to OK, on account of sulley's cheating — it's just enough for it to appear as if they do for a while and to make an impact on johnny at first, and it kind of leads to a perfect uncertainty of how he really takes things in the end... even if he's no sore loser on the surface.
and i think it makes a lot of sense in how exactly johnny's changed over the years when we see him again in monsters at work. on the outside, it absolutely looks as if he's now humbled, as if maybe that sliver of defeat put enough of a number on him... and yet on the inside is someone still clinging to the importance of the legacy he has to maintain. i don't think johnny is heartless by any means — it's not like he's been nefariously plotting over the last 20 years or anything, as he's already set and successful as a CEO as well as a husband, a father, a family man and a charitable force of his community... and in a lot of ways, he has changed, softened around the edges, and is living life as everyone else is... right?
after knowing him first in monsters inc., we can easily see through sulley's character in monsters university where the façade ends and james p. sullivan begins, as he's long grown past the need for something like that, paving the way for him as the kind-hearted and humble guy he is today... and johnny, on the other hand...? over the years, it seems to have become a little hard to tell where exactly that point is, of what part of the act is really "johnny" under all of that flourish, benevolence, and self-restraint. with how he would play it up in university, it was quite obvious for him too that he was putting on a show... and yet now the moments in and out of it are few and far between, where it almost feels as if the mask is glued on until he gets pushed to his furthest point, only showing cracks of a different face... and in all that time, johnny clearly has been honing his skills — a constant performance with anyone and everyone, polished to perfection even with whom he lets in on his little scheme. as a businessman, i think it makes sense that his manipulative tendancies never really went away, as that's something that would benefit him a ton. he's come to veer out of "smarmy" and back around again into "charming", with less of that outward swagger and leaning even more into the extra subtle approach — he's a lot more down to earth even when he's still got that glint in his eye. a picture of performative altruism, yet is still doing good nonetheless... and it sort of puts him in a strange position of everything he does being simultaneously fake and real and the same time, superficial in an all-new way. how much is what he said to tylor is true, especially when he does have genuine reason to see himself in him, to respect the scaring legacy and see how tylor's potential is being wasted? what would johnny with no filter on a regular day even look like? how much does randall see, or even claire, or his kids? who even is johnny worthington, really...?
and i have to wonder if there's a fundamental issue in how johnny approaches the world, of someone born with a silver spoon in his mouth — really honing in on that nepotism of someone very privledged, and how his background in an environment like that might've shaped him in ways like this. and when his prize jewel is threatened — the precious legacy of what came before — that's when he starts to act again, all under the cover of the rock solid image he's created...
with laugh power on the rise, johnny has to think about what it would mean to adjust to a changing world, of something so far off the path you're on, to start from the ground up in a completely different way for the greater good in terms of both efficiency and in a moral sense... and of what it would mean for his company, of the kind of light it would paint him in within the world he's grown up in (a lot of very relevant political views we get a peek of in the whole laugh power vs scream power debate!) and what we know of the looming figures of those that came before him — monsters who are very clearly not made for being jokesters. considering what we know about him, and the lessons we never actually get to see him learn and grow from... the choice he'll make is clear. for a guy like johnny, there's no easy surrender to something like that. all of this is a lot bigger than little competitions in university. laugh power may as well be the future (and boy, does he know it!) but it's scare power that made his family business what it is. and there's a resurgence of image first and foremost when it comes to the underhanded way he goes about it, where whatever's going on behind the scenes (such as outright stealing laugh power sources from monsters, inc. and with a total disregard for the moral side of it all) may as well not be relevant as long as that outside picture is kept clean and the appearance of tradition is being maintained, which makes it very clear where exactly his priorities lie.
(even someone like waternoose almost had a more benevolent goal at the end of the day — everything he did may have been something he was doing for the sake of his company, but it was also for his people, to quite literally "keep the lights on" all while he really did care about monsters like sulley! i'm willing to bet that if laugh power had been effectively realized in his time, he wouldn't have even needed to do all that, as it all seems like a "desperate measures call for desperate solutions" thing... while johnny is a lot more concerned with holding onto what's already his, for his own sake, rather than everyone else's — at the end of the day, he doesn't actually care about the city's power situation at all... he really plays into the weight of the "family business" side of it all.)
"One of the themes in [Monsters University] is seeing a person’s hidden value—a skill Johnny certainly lacks. He takes people at face value, and he’ll never know them. That’s a hurdle Mike and Sully have to overcome with one another." —Nathan Fillion (production notes)
a core of him remains the same, still concerned with image and legacy, and possibly still... "unable to see people for what they're really worth", as what's described as his fatal flaw in the monsters university days. i've been trying to wrap my head around what it means to say that exactly, as clearly, he can see through people well enough to manipulate anyone well enough, to even pick at their spceific weak spots and see why they may be useful to him, all to exploit that as he pleases... maybe tylor and randall are just particularly easy marks for him, or maybe that is the point of it all. i have to wonder if it's because he sees most people — not just tylor as part of the plan — in terms of what they can do for him, and how they and the relationships he forms can be used to help further his own goals and agenda, since... he's sort of been doing that for a long time now. business as usual, you could say. a very transactional measurement of worth, always looking out for the best of the best, but it leading to still missing key features in people's MO as he's still biased in his own certain ways. and to be fair... that is sort of how relationships work in general. we're both here because we get something out of it, even if it's for something as simple as companionship... yet i can imagine it as being a lot more mechanical, calculated, and in focus for someone like johnny, when he's never not playing 5D chess. he may act friendly with everyone, but i bet there's a degree of distance between the relationships johnny has with his employees and the ones sulley and mike do.
over the course of monsters university, the trait as johnny's fatal flaw — maybe improved upon over the years, maybe not — plays into his downfall, as another theme of the movie (as well as carried on into monsters at work) is about seeing people's hidden strengths beyond what they appear — and so he completely underestimates mike and his team. in monsters at work, i get the feeling they're playing with that again on purpose, a testament to how he hasn't really changed, by still falling victim to the same motivations as before.
as self serving as it seems... throughout the season, we do get to see through his company and characters like rosie how it's not just him grappling with these changing times, but a lot of people — and that's why a very similar thing is reflected in tylor, who is dealing with the same situation! tylor has graduated college, expecting to go down the path of scaring, only for the rug to be torn out from underneath of him. ("what happens when things don't work out, and what we thought we were going to do or who we were going to be changes, and we end up in a totally different place?") tylor is face to face with changing times, threatening to completely upheave what he knows, forcing him into and to consider situations he isn't sure he's meant for, and he's struggling to adjust to the path and new world around him... and when johnny is already on his way to push back against that narrative, that's why his story gets intertwined with tylor's — they're in a similar predicament, and that's also why he reminds him of himself, playing into the "you can't escape who you are, so embrace it" angle (something i bet he really does believe when it's his father who told it to him) all while narratively, everything in the season plays with the motifs that both movies have explored. ("what happens when the door you're heading towards unexpectedly slams shut?" and "what happens when a new door opens?") and yet... we know tylor's here to be manipulated, and has been picked out from the start. tylor's worth to him in all of that is (primarily) measured by that role, where in the heat of the moment, he even says himself the only thing he can see tylor being good for is a pawn on his chessboard... and i think it's (part of) why it looks like johnny is written a little "stupid" in the finale episodes, in that they're trying to play with this weakness of his. johnny overestimates everything he's done to tylor, through severing all those ties, appealing to his own ego, giving him a reason to come crawling back to him and him only... he thinks he's got tylor fully hooked and already reeled in, and maybe for anyone else, that plan would've worked out flawlessly, but... tylor is our ProtagonistTM. he doesn't understand what tylor would even have left to his name, how his moral code may be shaken awake in scaring a kid he knows, how his friendships could prevail despite it all... all of these things that make tylor ultimately still sympathetic and able to turn things back around, even when he's fallen so hard for johnny's bait and in such an awful situation. johnny may be good at this game, but he's not an expert, and he still doesn't fully see tylor, only what he picks out in him, what's useful to him... and how much does that extend to everything else in his life?
as the head of fearco., of course johnny is still stuck in that old mindset and fear of failure when he's got even more at stake — he's always trying to stay one step ahead, using his position to keep control of what he's afraid of and manipulating the people around him and their circumstances. in a lot of ways, johnny is a bit different now, but we know that he never really went down a path of acceptance, to start to let go of the fear he has, so he's the same old johnny at heart, even if under a slightly different cover... and what better to lead him down the path he's on?
(compare all of this to sulley, who, in contrast, feels like he's moreso capitalizing off of his family name, rather than it really being what's at stake for him... and in his situation, who is able to move past the crushing idea of having to live up to what came before him, to be more true to himself, and to help embrace the new path forward, not only in terms of efficiency for his own people, but for everyone, as he embraces the laugh power and monsters, inc.'s new CEO...!)
Monsters University freshman RANDY BOGGS has big aspirations for college life. The peculiar lizard-like monster with his host of gangly arms and legs plans to major in Scaring and lead an active social life filled with fun, friends and fraternity parties. “He’s not the Randall that we know from ‘Monsters, Inc.,’” says Steve Buscemi, who once again provides the voice of the iconic character. “He’s a little insecure and he wants to fit in, so he works toward pledging the coolest fraternity.” Story supervisor Kelsey Mann says he thinks audiences will be surprised to see Randall’s humble beginnings. “He’s super happy and positive. And, just like Mike, he’s always dreamed of becoming a Scarer.” He certainly seeks inspiration. One of Randall’s most memorable lines from “Monsters, Inc.” finds its way into the prequel. Hanging above Randy’s bed is an inspirational poster that reads “Winds of Change.” Audiences will get the inside scoop on just what sparks Randy’s competitive spirit—but the future top Scarer at Monsters, Inc. will first need to get his embarrassing disappearing habit under control, because Randy’s not sure how he’ll ever be a great Scarer if nobody can see him. (production notes)
"In Monsters, Inc. Randall has a real problem with Sulley and being second-best to him. So we thought, let’s see that happen for the first time in this movie, in a big public event. That’s why we have Sulley and Randy go head-to-head in the final competition." (art book)
as of now, randall doesn't actually have as much screentime as johnny does to talk about — although, his time may very well be coming soon! even with the amount he does have, i think randall also shines especially well in his response to failure.
in the midst of humble beginnings, randall "randy" boggs is a sweet guy, although a bit naïve on top of being timid and insecure as someone who hasn't really figured out his place in life. at the bottom of the food chain, he wants to fit in and get in with the cool, popular crowd, the people who have already had it made.
by the last half of monsters university, randy's finally gotten what he's wanted — he's in with the "cool kids", he's getting attention and recognition as they push through ahead with his dream team in the scare games... until his match-up with sulley, where he accidentally messes up randy's camouflage and therefore his scare attempt, which ultimately ends up getting him kicked out of RΩR. we see earlier in the movie how embarrassment is something he wants to avoid ("if i do that in scaring class, i'll be a joke!" and "whoops! that could've been embarrassing...") so to top it all off, it's also in an utterly humiliating, public moment. not only is this is randy's big taste of failure, but he also gets something very important taken from him, severing that chance, those connections, everything he was aiming for by no fault of his own... and what he's left with is a grudge, where in his own inability to accept and move on from the event, it digs its claws in deep. he may say that'll be the last time he'll ever lose to sulley, but we know randall goes on to lose to him over and over and over again — and it ruins him!
by the time of in monsters, inc. randy has continued down the path he was already on the way to, molding himself into a completely petty, spiteful and arrogant jerk. as randall, he's a loner who runs hot and cold, where he's got that sleazy underhanded smugness, but is also incredibly tempermental and becomes hot-headed and irritated on a dime, especially when he lets his ego get the best of him... he's got a no-nonsense tolerance for stupidity, but still finds time to be snarky and play it up every once in a while. he's grown the confidence he wished he could've had before, and now he's the one bossing the nerds (fungus) around. with an unrelenting and ambitious ruthlessness to him, randall is one lizard who never learned his lesson. he's still trying to climb to the top, not only to beat sulley, but to have him beneath him... all over something that happened so long ago!
when it comes to randall's motivations, and between him and sulley, there's a bit of a "chicken or the egg" situation in monsters, inc. where you wonder if the personal aspect of despising what sulley has done (and in his eyes is continuing to) to him and wanting to put him in his place once and for all or the desire to be #1 is more important, but they're pretty much intertwined... with a lean in the personal direction, in my opinion.
at the end of the scare games, it's only sulley who messes everything up for him, and he decides that he'll never lose to him ever again — not just in general, but specifically to sulley, and that's something he keeps with him for a very, very long time. throughout monsters, inc., there's definitely a very personal way he goes about his competitiveness and interacting with him, where he won't so much as offer him a friendly handshake. when he talks to mike about revolutionizing the scaring industry, he even singles out how it'll finally make sullivan beneath him, and when he gets banished — kicked out, you could say! — he states that's what he deserves, anyway... for what, exactly? when waternoose tells him how sulley, the guy he treats like a son, is twice the scarer he'll ever be, you can tell that really gets to him. even the way he talks about him is very off-topic ("you stupid, pathetic waste!"), and after all... "you still think this is about that stupid scare record?"
to be fair, though, the goal of his from the beginning was to cruise with the popular crowd, so clearly that's a big factor in everything, but what we see just makes you think that he wouldn't be nearly as crazy about everything if it wasn't james p. sullivan on top, always being second best to him, the guy who ruined everything for him in the first place. he's clearly a man of grudges and petty revenge... and yet, if it's just attention or achievement he wants, he's already crazy high on the scoreboards which isn't a bad spot to be in at all! he's still excelling in his field (i do wonder if his awful personality gets in the way of attention) and yet that isn't enough, he's never satisfied even when he would be getting the very thing he wants, because it's sulley he has to take down once and for all in order to prove he's the best... and he loses, and he loses, and he loses.
especially with everything that happens in monsters, inc., it's no surprise to anyone that randall is back in the way he is for monsters at work, even more hellbent on getting revenge against mike and sulley, except this time with the connection that had been lost to him before... and who knows how everything will turn out next time?
(mike is an ambitious over-achiever from the start, and yet, even as stubborn as he is, he eventually realizes the worth in his true callings and is able to start a new journey. on the other hand, randall's persistance paints him as someone who never learned when to quit... even for his own good.)
for both of these characters, the message is clear: "It’s what you do when you hit a closed door—it’s what you do when your dream is shattered that really formulates who you are." to not face the reality of everything... look at where it's left them.
as we can see, it's in mike and sulley's ability to humble themselves after everything and to eventually accept, learn from, and move on from the failure they go through even when it changes the trajectory of the journey they're on, that they find their strengths by the end of monsters university, leaving the doors open for new paths ahead of them... and when we see them again, johnny and randall are still caught up in long unresolved hang-ups and shortcomings and stuck with old problems/habits that never really went away in the first place. as long as they persistently hold onto the past (in randall's case) and in maintaining control over what they fear losing the most, unable to move on in a different way (in johnny's case), it's these kinds of things that prevent them from growing and from facing the reality of everything, as they only go on to become the bad people they are today... all that is what drives them as antagonists — their reaction is anti-thetical to the story's themes and messages.
and now that we know the characters and their deal, what about how their stories intertwine with one another's...?
dynamic in university
before we get into my thoughts about johnny and randall in the present, let's go back to the start again, to the time spent together at university. (with the days between the scare game events that we see, under the assumption that most of them were spaced at least a bit evenly, i like to think randy was in RΩR for about a month... give or a take a week or so.)
"stay outta trouble, wild man."
we never get to see how johnny became how he is, but it's not too hard to figure out how it happened. on the other hand, we get to know firsthand how randy transforms, and the moment we first meet him actually says a lot! when randy accidentally uses his camouflage ability in front of mike, we can see that he's uncertain and self conscious about it until mike tells him what he thinks, commenting on how he could pull it off if only he didn't have the glasses to give it away. and even with something as small as that interaction, the guy just... stops wearing his glasses altogether, even though he (clearly) needs them to see! of course, this is a fun retcon explanation of why randall is always squinting as he does (along with all the other ways the dialouge here is ironic considering what later becomes of him) but it's also something that almost immediately gives off the sense of him as a young, impressionable guy who's easily influenced by other people... it's just kind of funny to think about how he'd willingly make life harder on himself on the evaluation of someone he just met, if it means he can pull off a neat trick of all things, isn't it? and it makes sense as we learn about how he wants to get in with the popular crowd, the "cool" kids, in the chance of finally being accepted and recognized, to get the attention and power he's never really had, and to get a sense of being seen in an active and fun social life.
we see randy go from someone who always faded into the background, a bit nervous about being invisible, and after a shift of perspective... now he's adapting to and changing himself to blend in to what's around him, and in order to cover up what he once was in the process, randy sheds his former skin. (he's not beating the lizard boy allegations, i'll tell you that.)
everything leads to him falling in with the wrong crowd, and as he's welcomed into RΩR, he begins to pick up on the sort of attitude and behavior he feels he needs to "fit in" — he turns on his friend mike, he joins in on the cruel pranks they pull, and his mindset starts to change...!
The ROAR OMEGA ROAR fraternity is made up of the best of the best. They’re the smartest, most skilled, scariest monsters at Monsters University, and come from families with a long, proud history of Scaring. While the RΩRs may be preppy in dress, they are ferocious in action and downright ruthless if necessary. Self-declared as the most elite house on campus, the RΩRs are lead by Johnny Worthington who presides over the house like an all-powerful monarch. Eager to continue their Scare Games winning streak, the RΩRs will do whatever it takes
to stay on top. (production notes)
the fact that johnny let him into RΩR at all is fascinating/a little wild, cus he's still got that nervous, nerdy disposition at the start, and it feels as if he absolutely doesn't have the attitude to fit in with them especially when johnny is all about appearances... so i have to wonder what happened to land him in this position in the first place! (and i'll be honest — what we actually see of them in the movie and in general isn't really all that interesting, since a lot of it is either off-screen or the plot is busy covering other, more important stuff in its runtime rather than giving them much of a chance to shine... but that's why we're here right now, to speculate on that dynamic. and because i'm insane!) (it's also not something we're even supposed to think about too hard, but when do i let THAT stop me?)
the question here is definitely about what he can get out of having someone like randy on the team, in what he can use him for, and in a way, it sort of has the same energy as getting asked out as a joke... i can imagine the rest of the RΩRs were pretty skeptical at first, so for johnny to reassure them he knows what he's doing is fun to think about, although... i'd also expect some backhanded comments comparing him to sulley in his time there — a little salt in the wound for later. given how it's randy's ability to "camouflage" that got him into all of these situations, good and bad, i like to think he accidentally managed to scare johnny with it at some point, and while randy's response was to panic because he just bumped into Johnny Worthington III... it's still something that does catch his attention and he thinks it's a cute enough trick. outside of being a little one-trick wonder for them, i could also imagine he noticed randy's association with mike and purposefully had an eye on him for that reason, in a similar fashion to how johnny plays with tylor's relationships in monsters at work, where he picks tylor specifically to turn him against val in the softball game and put another bad mark on their relationship status ("y'know, i sorta had trouble figuring out which team you were REALLY playing for...") and all that... even the fact that randy is willing to switch sides on a dime at the offer (something that tylor certainly takes a while on) is all johnny needs to hear. with the scare games coming up, and having just lost sulley on the team, i can also imagine he might be a little desperate...
after all, randy is a pretty rounded guy — he's still doing well academically, while he also isn't as much of a stick in the mud as mike is, yet we see he's already got the potential to be scary in utilizing his camouflage, and... he's also easy to manipulate, eager and even desperate to do anything if it means he gains the approval of someone like johnny...!
and johnny is playful in such an alluring way, and even if other characters like mike can very clearly see the fakeness in johnny's demeanor, he's outwardly "kind" enough for a naïve randy to truly mistake it as all genuine, and can't help but to be easily drawn in by johnny's charm. i can imagine him getting kind of teased in there without even realizing it but johnny a bit facetiously getting others to back off a bit, which leaves an impression on him... on the outside, it kinda looks like johnny's taking him under his wing, but for the most part... it's more like johnny playing with his prey. a test run on using people as he does nowadays. a little pet... of course, all of this to randy? to not only be noticed, but also picked out of everyone else by someone like johnny worthington...? what a sweet taste of validation. no one like johnny has ever recognized or noticed him, and to seriously give him a chance. maybe he wasn't as socially awkward or as much of a loser as he thought he was! randy genuinely wants to impress johnny, to hold the attention he gets from him, to feel like he's accepted and truly part of the crew, and even be... friends...?
i want him to be fascinated with johnny, to idolize him, of the symbol of what he stands for, of what he has to teach him and of what randy has to learn from everything. after all, johnny's always been everything randall wishes he could be, both past and present — johnny is confident (as he compliments mike on), suave, and talented, already set-up at home and in his future career paths, he's got power and endless attention/validation and all that through his popularity... truly, he's the "coolest" of the "cool" kids.
and if this is what he wants, with johnny included in the mix... i want to highlight that, to carry it on and see how it'll change in the present time. in this way, you kind of concentrate a dynamic and person into symbolizing a desire, and warp it into something else, which inherently makes it a little... dangerous to chase. and i feel like it's something that makes a lot of sense of what could exist off-screen, y'know?
(in designing my gijinkas for these guys, i give johnny a classic slick-backed hairstyle, only for randall's monsters, inc., design to mimic it along with a popped collar for himself — a carrying over of that inspiration in a subtle way, where you might not even notice unless you put them side by side. i see a lot of people design randall as a bit more formally-uptight, but in my opinion the vibe he gives off is definitely a "corporate sleazy wannabe cool-guy" rather than just "office worker")
even with as brief of a time as he's with the RΩRs, i love thinking of what he must've picked up from it all... in order to stick around, he's got to play johnny's game by johnny's rules, lest the idea of getting kicked off hovers over his head damocles-style. to start as a baseline for his personality shift, all then compounded with his growing cynical bitterness and with his grudge piling on itself over the years. he seems pretty straight-laced when we meet him, after all — the guy starts out trying to get in with the crowd by making them cupcakes of all things, which may be very cute, but it seems a little off of the target demographic he's aiming for... and it's fun thinking of them engaging in a lot more rowdy and mature of things than he's used to (congrats to randy on the first underage drinking experience) since he's also the freshman to a lot of their seniors. even when he is finally in with them, a lot of his body language throughout the movie is still very nervous/to himself, so it's fun to imagine him trying despite that to imitate their behavior and join in on the chaos... to give him a little bit of experience. (honestly, he's so susceptible to peer pressure at this point he might as well be on an ad campaign talking about it...)
i've also played around with the idea of randy being offered to rejoin RΩR after sulley turns down johnny at the end of the movie, because i absolutely would love for him to have more time in there, but i think the idea actually takes away from the impact of things a Lot... the point of things here is that randall feels personally victimized by having something taken away from him, as if he's truly LOST everything here, by no fault of his own... since, at this point in time, johnny is also a lot more shallow in his judgements, so i feel like randall's place in humiliating them and in being the "weak link" of the team means i find it hard to believe that johnny would ever let him back in, but, as i said... i've still played around with an avenue for it anyway. i can imagine he got teased for the incident for a long time, and bringing it up in present day would REALLY hit a nerve...
and by the end of things, he's under the impression that johnny genuinely thought he was on the same level as everyone else, and how it's sulley's fault — all from one little slip up — that his dreams were ripped from him... and maybe, that randy and johnny were even... friends...!
dynamic in monsters at work
i'll start off this part of the essay by saying i don't really enjoy how they've written randall in monsters at work so far. there's a certain balance of his character that feels off to me. and they do sort of accomplish the energy he has (the voice is also really throwing me off) but they also really play up his general snarky attitude/mischievousness in a way that's written really... lame. it's not good! i think he'll need to have more screentime to really say for sure how well they've done him overall, and as usual, the fault is more in the execution of the ideas rather than in the ideas themselves. the actual building blocks they've given me are very interesting, as we'll see, and i really hope the writers step up their game again and know what they're doing with him if they give us another season... on the other hand, i think how they've written johnny is nearly perfect, as i feel like it's a very logical continuation of his character, and the way they ramp up his subtle manipulation is excellent. there's so much to him that looks completely normal on the surface, and is enough to effortlessly fool the viewer if they're not paying attention, but is all apart of the long game and absolutely woven in there tightly if you're looking close enough. and when johnny's character has circled around so well into utilizing the original unresolved motivations he had in mind from the start — of wanting to maintain the legacy before him — personally, i feel like it's only fair for randall's character to do the same in a new, twisted way, as neither of them continue to learn their lessons... and if you're gonna pair them up again, how the past affects them now is an utterly unavoidable topic, so i'm going to LoseTM my mind if johnny's relationship and influence on him never comes up again in a future randall storyline.
even so, i think we can all agree that the way johnny and randall meet up was completely fumbled, and it's something i would adjust and change to be completely different if i could. sulley and mike were able to find their way out of banishment just fine, and randall could easily do the same by finding another door eventually. (i've heard someone suggest that johnny was just happening to be scaring at the time and randall is interpretating it as johnny outright coming to save him, and as much as i love that sort of thinking for randall, as we'll see, i still think that's a bit too unclear and coincidental...) i have no idea of a better alternative at the moment of writing this, though. EDIT: i do like this as a starting point!
all that aside, what is actually going on in their relationship here, anyway?!
we're going to have to wait and see, but i can imagine a world in which the writers take a route of randall having planned to backstab johnny in some way, and i feel like something like that is... predictable. maybe he's secretly wanting to get back at johnny for underestimating him. maybe his tendency to go so far he loses track of the whole point of it all has him lean even further into the desire to be #1 and eventually wants someone like johnny beneath him too, under his control. maybe there's an echo of competitiveness, where mike and sulley lift each other up, johnny and randall end up tearing each other down. i don't know! and yet, the way this all of this plays out, with johnny now in jail, doesn't really leave any room for anything like this to actually go and happen in front of us at least...
and really, it all depends on what randall's goal even is at this point — as i've talked about in the past sections, i get the feeling how in his case it may actually be more about the personal grudge and response to those who've wronged him, and the following desire to put them in their place once and for all. especially after monsters, inc., he's very much honing in on the revenge angle before anything else and will be especially going forward, which, at this point... could use some spice to it, y'know? (<- scared)
i also can't buy the idea that they would secretly hate each other, and especially not outwardly so. i think it's only natural for them to get on each other's nerves a bit as part of the dynamic, even if just through their natural clash of methods and attitudes — randall's got an awful temper, so he'll be complaining no matter who he's with, but johnny is also incredibly good at maintaining his cool as he wants to keep people wrapped around his finger... still, if sulley mike fight like an old married couple, they should too. i think part of the fun in them together is how randall is usually the straight man in a lot of his other dynamics, such as with mike or even fungus, but when paired up again with johnny he's got a great opportunity to be the one reeled back in, which we don't usually get to play with... and so they complement each other in a fun way. short fuse vs almost unshakable demeanor, openly hostile vs openly friendly, defensive, fragile ego vs genuine confidence...
we've also got a final question here in terms of "using" one another, and what they have right now is a mutually beneficial situation — an already established "you scratch my back, i'll scratch yours" deal. johnny's clearly looking for a good asset in randall, which is enough for him to consider a team up, and randall is looking for a good way to get revenge on monsters, inc., so working in johnny's overarching scheme is great on that. so in a way, of course they're "using" each other! (it's also fun to think about how they must really enable each other to not be able to really grow past their issues and into better people, very unlike what mike and sulley's friendship does for them, as the goal of everything is both of their hangups intertwined as they're stuck chasing the past... if the storyline goes on, it's only going to be more of randall refusing to let go)
okay, okay, okay — so if randall wasn't planning to backstab him for any reason, and they don't secretly hate each other, and they really did just happen to be working together in the awareness of a mutually beneficial relationship, then...
we have a guy who believes johnny went out of his way to save him (with the fact that he apparently cares enough to help him out at all being notable in itself) and now they've been working together since he "owes him one" (a doubtfully binding contract for mister randall boggs, I Know What You Are). randall is written as extra mischievous, even to the point of being kind of juvenile about it... and to top it all off, he thinks him and johnny were friends in college, actively referencing that period in their lives. joined at the hip. besties. when all of this is coming from a guy who's held a grudge for the past 20 years over the incident that severed the connection they had in the first place, and when we take the rest of the concepts i've been building up to for the entire post, doesn't it all just scream a regressive denial of the past?! if the whole "besties" thing isn't just a weird side-effect of bad writing (and really, i would like to trust the writers here...) i feel like there's a perfect avenue here???
i wouldn't be surprised if any of this was how they went about it, and we know what his main focus is at the end of the day, but it's the idea of randall genuinely still wanting johnny's praise and approval, companionship, and to be his little henchman again in this era that appeals to me the most to play around with.
think about how much value must be placed on what happened at the scare games for it to domino effect so hard into what he is now, after all this time! and its just so... wonderfully naïve of him. randall, who's a cynic, now jaded beyond recognition of what he once was and practically a different person these days, a loner and an asshole with no real connections anymore... who still can't resist the craving of a connection, and deep inside it all, still has a piece of what randy wanted in his heart... all through his boss, johnny — in part the starring idol symbolization of past aspirations, something he's lost but has now reclaimed, the only person who could ever hope to understand him, all wrapped up into someone deviously charming as he is... isn't that compelling? an opportunity like this, where he can work together with johnny worthington and also get his revenge on monsters, inc. at the same time... it's all coming up RANDALL! i want to take his character, put him in a container, shake him around, and tell him You Are Not Immune To Very Real Human Emotions regardless of how self aware he is about it. it kind of takes things back around in a satisfying way for me, where despite how much they've changed, they fall back into a similar, yet different dynamic, in which old habits die hard. i think it'd be so interesting to really play it up!
despite the mutual awareness of the relationship, there's still a very recurring imbalance here as there was before, where johnny's his boss, and randall is the henchman... and if randy really does still think they're friends above all else, and the part of him despising being second-best is still relevant in a general sense, that opens up a lot of fun perception-shattering paths...
my favorite tidbit about the two is how they address each other — johnny is on a first-name basis with nearly everyone, as it's apart of his own personal brand of manipulation in his openly friendly and casual demeanor to open up a sense of familiarity, in order to keep other people's guards down. on the other hand, randall calls people by their last names, usually dripping with scorn while he's at it (fungus, sullivan, wazowski...) and yet, with each other... it's the complete opposite. we only ever see johnny refer to him as "boggs", again, despite even his other employees being first-named, and randall calls him a more familiar and respectful "johnny" in return, despite him being his boss, which is... an absolutely insane detail that i hope stays intact, because what the fuck. when johnny is as calculated as he is about stuff like this, very purposefully insisting on that first-name basis, to call randall of all people "boggs"... i like to compare it to how one might withhold a kiss from someone nonverbally asking for it. a little ah ah ah. despite how close they may get otherwise, it's a tool of leverage, a way of keeping him at arms length all the same... he knows randall wants something like that, but he doesn't let him have it. (although, i'm thinking about the idea of him on a very special occasion calling him Randall, maybe even a Randy to butter him up/get something from him/keep him from doing something impulsive because it really gets at his attention...)
and i think that kind of sets the scene for how i imagine randall is more invested in this than he is, as he always has been... randall truly addresses him like a friend after the introduction, referencing the past in a pretty notable way, and yet johnny sticks to the formality...?
you still got it, boggs!
even so, i also want to avoid the bit of overlap with chet's situation, who still feels completely unacknowledged by johnny. i've always thought it was a bit weird that johnny's front isn't extended to chet, so i have to wonder if he's always been a bit of a subtle punching bag, an outlet for annoyance, since he knows — or rather, thinks — that after all of this time, chet won't stand up for himself or leave no matter what he does, even when he doesn't really care for him all that much. and i don't think that extends to randall at all... with how johnny responds to him going up to jumpscare tylor, where he shoves chet off of him and then immediately goes to play it up and throw a bit of praise in randall's way... i can imagine he gets a bit of special treatment! even the loyal chet wouldn't get to drink afterhours with johnny in his stupid mancave. (imagine the jealousy angle they could've played up here... maybe even with tylor and randall too? he'd fucking HATE tylor's ass...)
i have to admit, i am a little too obsessed with the idea i proposed earlier of randall as being like johnny's little "pet" and enjoying it as such. after all, they must've been working together for quite a while now, and randall would honestly be REALLY good at being the evil cat on the villain's lap... he should put that on his resume or something, because he's gonna do such a good job at being johnny's henchman, something both normal to want and possible to achieve. curling up to him for attention and praise, and johnny keeping him close as company on top of it as someone he can really let everything in on... like a confidante of sorts. a best friend. a... silly little lizard. (randall is this comic to me)
while i do keep getting a bit mad at the writing for him in the show, it's also kind of hilarious how petty and juvenile the stunts randall pulls are, even if i don't think he's nearly as sly as he should be. in monsters, inc., he absolutely is a little impish, as well as insanely petty... but is overall still trying to keep on the down-low and be cautious about everything, openly scolding fungus the whole movie. and yet, i do genuinely adore the idea of him being more excitable, unhinged, and mischievous when he's working with johnny, sort of bringing him back around to those glory days, chasing old highs... even getting kind of playful, which is another side of him we don't really get to use very often. maybe even... a bit happy for once in his life? C'mon, Johnny, it'll be just like we used to!
i can imagine him wanting johnny to see him in a new light and validate what he's become once and for all, as if to say, Look at me, Johnny — I've gotten rid of my ooey-gooey interior just like you wanted! You'll take me back now, right? he's not that same nervous young guy from before, still in the process of leaving his old pink-and-white polka-dotted hearts self behind... now he's a capable and underhanded perfect henchman for the job, now he's off the rails, and he's still got something to prove all over again, since... apparently, his ego's not as rock-solidly immovable as he thinks it is. in fact, in comparison to johnny, his ego is pretty fragile and he can get very sensitive and defensive at times... an echo of not truly having ditched that early insecurity. so when things like praise and bribery are tools in johnny's toolkit, i can imagine him being effective in sort of taming randall at times, calming him down... after all, wouldn't that make it all worth it? deep down, the idea of for real private attention and praise??? from johnny worthington????? now finally being able to appreciate his efforts again, to forgive him and accept him back? the college boy buried inside of him is very satisfied with this situation, to say the least. he finally feels more on johnny's level, less like an apprentice in training, he's got the experience of his own... and that leaves him wide open for johnny to have him wrapped around his finger all over again. (i love a villain who earnestly thinks they've gotten rid of feelings like that, casting aside vulnerability, but in reality there's still a part of them who really hasn't)
and johnny is, in fact, impressed in how he's changed, even if he thinks he could be a little more subtle in his methods. (i can imagine that's something they'd bicker over, of randall bringing back his spoils of victory but johnny wanting him to play it safe... even though, hey, he never gets caught, does he?!)
i really do think it's fun for him to be entertained/amused by having randall around, especially in a world where he's got to keep things a secret from most people in his life and keep things up on friendly terms first and foremost... randall gets to see a side of him that no one else gets to see — not even his family! sure, it was a lot easier back when randall was mild and eager to please, but, in a way, someone who could really bite back brings a bit of excitement to it all... who can tease him in return... y'know, i bet that's part of what makes johnny like claire, except with randall he can still always knock him down a peg if he needs to... and i'll get back to that in a second. the weird fondness that can arise from that shared company, that only they in this position can really have, the lines between being under his thumb and genuine compansionship blurring... is so good to me. even with how convoluted the plan was, they're a real power couple at the end of the day!
in a way, johnny needs randall more than randall needs johnny when it comes to accomplishing what they want... and outside of that is another story. if you think about it, johnny is a LOT more intertwined in randall's arc than randall is in johnny's, when during the recap of things, it was always a lot more about randall's side of it all. johnny could still easily move onto new endeavors, where everything that happened to randall involving RΩR has kind of changed the whole trajectory of his life. johnny could've not even met randall and probably would end up in a similar position as he is...
since, unfortunately... we do have all that about johnny's "fatal flaw". when johnny is the person he is, when randall is the person he is, there's always going to be something off here.
what johnny's looking for is a capable asset, and randall pulls through in that — he's a good henchman at the end of the day, as long as he's a good henchman at the end of the day. johnny's a star figure in randall's past, but randall's shoes could still be filled by anyone else who could do the job better. i do think there's something very transactional about how he goes about the given relationships we see, where he often places a value on people through what they can do for him and how he can use and manipulate them... and that very likely extends to randall, where he is definitely more invested in the personal aspects of it all than johnny is. i can imagine them both underestimating each other, where randall thinks he's capable of turning the tides at any right chance when all's said and done if he wants to (maybe even thinks he's gone a bit soft!) and johnny especially knows he calls the shots around here, with there still always being ways he sees him as the same young and impressionable guy as before...
after all, if randall were to get a redemption arc, he'd have to let go of his grudges, and let go of johnny and what he symbolizes for good... maybe even having tylor confront him and break it to randall that johnny doesn't — and never has — cared about him in the way he wants him to. there's a lot of ways they could still maybe play with that even without johnny actually in the picture, even though imagining otherwise is interesting, and i wish i got more time actually spent with them because if left to my own devices this is what starts happening to me...!
check out how johnny looks at randall when shows up though ⬇️
the claire affair
alright, just for fun and to close everything all off... you probably knew it was coming, but the idea of a sort of weird gay thing going on and/or affair situation between johnny and randall here is pretty funny. not as funny as tylor and johnny, and of course is not something that lasts, but what else do you think i was leading up to present here?
i do think that johnny loves claire, but you kind of have to speculate about them a little bit, y'know? in a narrative sense, i think he's married and has a family and all that in part to make him look better, as if to point at him and say, Look at this guy with his loving wife, maybe he really has changed if he's found someone he loves and she loves him back! Look! They've got a nice little family together! and yet, they do feel a bit thrown in there at random, and i hope claire has a presence at all next season, where we get to see how she reacts to and deals with everything, cus they're going to have to cover what happens to FearCo... or, i would hope so, anyway. (😳)
when it comes to johnny and claire, i like to think with johnny's way of interacting with the world, after everything, it's an attempt for him to be more in tune with these things and really, genuinely try (although maybe not even consciously) to be more Normal about it all... his vices slip through on occasion, but it is just enjoyment of companionship while he's navigating struggling with being genuine and letting walls down and all that, at least part of an attempt at being a better person in all those years of life going on as usual... and yet, when he's always keeping everyone at a distance, there's still just something kind of... intangibly missing in the end? even claire can't really place it, because in the end, everything really is normal enough to not think about it too hard at least. i can imagine he fell for her over the years, maybe after meeting again after college, they got hitched, and even though the honeymoon years were fun, in current times it's almost sort of going through the motions, in a way, for both of them, really. We don't need to think about it too hard, this is what we do, we are a Married Couple, we have a Normal life, i'm satisfied, aren't you satisfied, Claire? We get along, and we like each other, and its Good 👍 its Okay 👍 We are a Normal Family. (and if everything's a secret to them too, no doubt he still puts up a performance with them...)
and yet, she's got her kids at work and is always seen as a unit with them, and johnny's always busy, they're both always pretty busy, so who knows how much is delegated to her while he's also off scheming with randall in his little mancave or trying to win tylor over? i know i mentioned earlier that johnny is usually on a first name basis with people, and it seems to be a pretty intentional little detail that sticks out like a sore thumb with randall... and yet, we never actually see him call her by only her first name, either. the most we get out of him is "claire worthington", last name attached, and in public, it's always "mrs. worthington" even when he's just... chasing after her to go and talk to her like a normal person??? you would think his wife of all people would get a first name pass at least once, so it almost feels like an active reminder of how he's a Married Man under His Name...
and i think there's a very hilarious and potent concept in the fact that claire and randall are both snarky as hell, even having a very similar vocal inflection as their casual speaking voice, just a little drawn out... as well as her character being taken to utilize in monsters university led to her being described as "something of an achiever" herself. so considering what i said about someone who could bite back and tease him in return... i think the second you cross over into "reminds me of traits of my wife" territory with a new, exciting spin to take you away from it all, it's like... Over.
trying to figure out how something like that would spark and who initiated it is also interesting, and my bets are on randall. it was johnny who was sort of guiding him around in the college days, but randall, who's got reason to be a lot more invested in this, being the one to tempt him into that reflects in an interesting way with how they've changed... and i think it would be funny if it actually took a bit for randall to get him to crack, for him to even feel Guilty about it as a pinnacle of self control, but... all of this is already such a secret, and randall's already his little secret in more ways than one, so what's one more if no one finds out?
that's how he plays, isn't it...?
anyway they suck blowing them up forever and so on and so forth
#talk#movies#disney#monsters at work#randall boggs#monsters inc#SOMETHING CAME OVER ME OKAY#i'm probably gonna edit this later too for some alternative interpretations and like what else could be done with them in another world#i wanna do an analysis of how they write johnny's manipulation throughout the season because it's really well crafted and i love it#i gotta go and finish all my other shit though i've been slacking on having anything at all organized#back to the shuro essay...#actually i gotta like clean up everything around me first
56 notes
·
View notes
Note
yk the thalia fics you made ages ago?? could you do platonic headcanons for the relationship with thalia and the reader in that fic? like someone who ran away and found thalia, luke and annabeth. the reader being a child of hades or poseidon idm!!
⋆⭒˚.⋆ platonic! thalia grace x daughter of poseidon! reader hcs
𝜗𝜚 content…platonic! thalia grace x daughter of poseidon! reader hcs
𝜗𝜚 warning…language, slightly angsty near the end
𝜗𝜚 letters from the author…this was so silly goofy until the end bc i got SAD okay i APOLGOIZE YALL- it's minor angst trust (im a liar it is GUT WRENCHING) yall will be fine (i am not fine) don't worry (worry, i fear)
it's actually not bad, im legit just hyping it up bc the silly vibes came back lmao-
ALSO you can find the series anon is talked about HERE
────────── ౨ৎ ──────────
༄.° billie eilish wrote birds of a feather about them (not clickbate)
༄.° just two big sisters fighting to be the big sister to the other girl lmao
༄.° so so close, there is not a single secret between these girls
༄.° the lore between them runs deep, i fear
༄.° "do you remember that one time-"
༄.° "of course i do!"
༄.° black cat and orange cat coded like no other
༄.° also one of the few things that gave thalia pause about becoming a huntress was that she'd never get to grow old with you like you guys talked about after running away
༄.° you, of course, comforted her over this and told it would be okay
༄.° oh and moTHERFUCK THE BIG THREE IT'S JUST THESE TWO FRFR
༄.° scary when they fight together
༄.° even worse when they fight each other
༄.° it rarely happens and is over petty shit but like natural catastrophes are happening all over the planet bc of them
༄.° "can you just give thalia her shirt back? i think england hasn't seen the sun in a week."
༄.° "fuck the british and fuck her shirt, which she gave to me!"
༄.° "I DID NOT!"
༄.° "YOU DID TOO!"
༄.° "girls! you could wipe out a nation with your emotions, calm down."
༄.° they fight like siblings, which means they also love like siblings
༄.° like, yeah, yall could be screaming at each other one second but by the next your crying in each others arms bc you guys thought about the fact that one day your family won't be thalia and annabeth but rather your husband and kids
༄.° on that note, i'd like to introduce the president and vice president of the 'annabeth chase protection' club
༄.° both sat percy down for a very intense (and totally not threatening) talk about how if he so much as mistreats annabeth for a second they will make him disappear with a trace
༄.° bro left that convo shaking lmao-
༄.° you two have sweet (and sour) nicknames for each other
༄.° you like to call thalia 'birdie' when she's nice and 'thunder pants' when she's not so nice lmao
༄.° she likes to call you 'beach bum' when you don't piss her off and when you do she calls you 'conch cunt'
༄.° both are feral children, your honor
༄.° that's what living in the woods at a young age does to people idk what to tell ya
༄.° if these two see a tree, TRUST, they will be climbing it
༄.° tho, only a few branches bc they are both scared of height lmao
༄.° there is no love like a girlhood love and lemme tell ya, these girls got it alright
༄.° and one day, thalia will be without her favorite beach bum, her bird of a feather, forever sixteen whilst the other grew old and withered
༄.° one destined to stay the same forever while the other is destined to change until the end
༄.° this is a very old story, written in stones and stars
༄.° there is no changing it, i fear
#postcards from covey ౨ৎ#all my love ౨ৎ#pjo#pjo fandom#percy jackon and the olympians#thalia grace#luke castellan#annabeth chase#hoo#heroes of olympus x reader#platonic! thalia grace x reader#platonic! thalia grace#pjo fanfic#toa#the titan curse#heros of olympus
25 notes
·
View notes
Text
Fujin x Adopted Reader: Movie
(Don't ask why I had this image saved)
Oh wow, a third fic of reader being Windwolf's child? (1. Special Guest 2. Flashback)
Context: Nightwolf had to leave the house and thinks it's a good time to socialize you with the other father.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"...and she's still not quite... used to people. Try not to overwhelm her." You pretend to not hear Grey Cloud say that as you were seated on the couch watching yourself in the black screen of the television.
"Don't worry, Nightwolf, she will be safe with me." Fujin softly reassures him. Afterwards, you hear the door close and the anxiety creeps in. As an awkward person, you hate awkward moments. You just hoped Nightwolf would be back soon.
The friendly god sighs and walks in the living room where you were and delivers a smile to you. "Hello, Y/n."
"Hi."
Fujin already knew you'd be shy, though this isn't the first time meeting. No worries. He'd try to make you feel safe and comfortable around him as time goes on, but as of right now, he knows a way to began the bond. Young ones like you like TV, right?
"Soooo, I may have a proposal on what we can do while Nightwolf is away."
You look at him to see what it is he has in mind. You now realize he has something behind his back. With his excited expression, he presents to you a movie case. Though rarely anyone uses discs, you knew he's trying his best. You read the title on the case. Ninja Mime.
"Have you heard of Johnny Cage? Your father and I've worked beside him previously." Fujin asks. He seems very enthusiastic. Maybe he's a huge fan? A lot of people are, but it's surprising even a god would fangirl over him.
"Yeah." You shrug. "I don't think Nightwolf likes him too much."
"Well, he's not here at the moment. Why not watch this film? It's very entertaining!" The wind lord urges on. Screw it, if that's what he wants to watch with you, how could you say no to a face like that?
"Okay." You agree and watch him look at the TV set up with confusion.
"... So how do I set the film up?"
Right, he wouldn't know how to work a disc console, let alone turning a TV on.
"Oh, my bad." You sprung up and helped him set the movie up. As the film starts, you rush to the kitchen. Fujin is confused at first but he shrugs it off, beginning to watch the TV. A few moments later, you return with a bowl of popcorn.
"For you." You set it in front of him. You then took your seat next to him.
"Oh, thanks Y/n." He looks at the huge snack bowl. "We're sharing, right?"
You nodded quietly before facing the TV.
During the movie, you were very quiet and rarely reached for the popcorn, meanwhile Fujin, he cracked up at certain parts of the movie, other parts sighing with whatever intended emotion any audience were to feel. You felt awkward you weren't that expressive like he is.
But it wasn't unnoticed how dead quiet you were throughout the whole hour. As the credits rolled, you paused the movie, and that's when Fujin spoke up.
"Was the movie good? You're so quiet." He looks at you with care.
"Yeah. I was just focused on it."
"Very well... Are you okay?"
You held his gaze there for a moment. "Yeah... I'm just introverted. Why?"
The handsome white haired man looks to the side. "I recall attempting to ask Nightwolf about your story. I only remember him telling me a second time he took you out the Black Dragon... He wouldn't tell me anything else."
Your brows furrowed and you looked to the side. "Yeah... I don't wanna talk about it."
Fujin softly rubs a hand across your back. You could use the comfort. "Very well. But you know you can talk to me too right? If Nightwolf isn't available, or you need someone else. He wants you to have someone else other than him, you know."
You only just nod at his reassurance. It's helpful for you however.
"Do you have any questions or concerns?"
Thinking briefly, you in fact did have a question. You turn to him with suspicion.
"Are you going to be my mom?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'll let you guys choose Fujin's reaction to that question ;)
Anyways question for everyone: How y'all liking the series?👀I may do shorts
#mortal kombat 11#mortal kombat#mortal kombat x reader#mk imagine#mortal kombat imagines#mk headcanons#mortal kombat headcanons#lord fujin#fujin#nightwolf#nightwolf x reader#windwolf#mk fujin#goddesswritings
24 notes
·
View notes
Text
to be like frank here, redemption is an ever going cycle. when youve been the problem, the toxic ex, the abuser, you have to know you will have to apologize for that for the rest of your life. you will always have to live with the guilt and conscience of knowing how you hurt that person, or mutliple people. and you have to constantly CHOOSE to not repeat that behavior, and its not easy.
when you meet a new friend the topic of who you used to be will come up eventually, and if you have changed youll be honest with who you were. you cant run from it. you cant try to round the corners and make it seem like the other persons fault, or like it wasnt as bad as it was. its really really scary. because everytime you open up about it, its not just the wound of guilt but its also the fear that theyre going to look inside and not like what theyll see.
but you have to keep moving on and you have to keep being honest. and you have to remember that everyone is applicaple for redemption, you just have to work for it and admitting you were wrong with no buts is the first step.
#anyways cna u tell im kinda going thru it LOL#ive always been a toxic person thats why ive sort of secluded myself from society i avoid human contact w non household members as much as#possible bcuz i feel honestly like im a ticking time bomb that just hurts everything i touch#i dont think its fair to have to have someone deal w my shit when its such an emotional turmoil so even though i want friends im making my#peace w the fact that i like honestl dont really deserve rhem? ik this seems MOPEY but its like this is my geniune non like baiting thoughts#i was an abuser in high school and in an abusive relationship where for the first half i was the perpetrator. i hit my ex and u know i dont#even have anything to add to it other than it was fucked up. i was selfish in bed and sex addicted and sometimes did anything for my fix.#i will and cannot lie about my past as being a shitty person. its scary to say and post but i have to be honest thats who i was that IS a#part of my history as much as i wish i could i cannot erase.#i dont rly even know what to add here honestly. just watching mias vid got me thinking u know#there is more to this story ofc the same ex i was abusive to was also abusive to me it was just split into segments. like i was the problem#for the first year and a half then it switched to them but its not rly rhe best place 2 share that story when im talking about my mistakes#im not trying to detract here i just want 2 get this shit off my chest again. ive talked about it before but not since remaking a few times#anyways i dont have any excuses well i mean i can pull a bunch out but im not going to cuz at the end of the day i shouldve known better#than to be a bitch when i knew i was being a bitch u know?#being the bad guy is a constant struggle where u will have to really really fucking fight yourself tooth and nail to change and i want to be#that person. i want to be someone who can be 100% honest about how shit i was to myself and others (which i do already do to my friends)#hopefully this makes sense idk anyways if ur struggling with being abusive or toxic im here for u. u can get through this and you can be a#good person it is within ur hands i promise u#ok love u goodnight#personal
21 notes
·
View notes
Text
I have an incredible love-hate relationship with Barber's writing because I literally do think the themes of his writing and the way he keeps the lore tight-knit is better than JRO, but at the same time the actual experience of reading his comics was so average/boring that I struggle to actually recommend that anyone read them.
Like holy shit so many of the things Barber wrote are conceptually good and are literally vital to a good read on IDW1 as a whole, but are his stories actually interesting or fun to read? Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
#squiggposting#the experience was like 10% good and engrossing stuff#and about 90% literally only reading because i'm waiting for something interesting to happen#and also my immersion got broken a lot by certain writing decisions he made#like most of the human/earth plot falling apart because i simply can't accept the STUPIDITY of humans working with the decepticons lmao#and the fact that out of the few times the story did make me emotional almost all of the moments were arcee related#like thank god arcee was there because if she wasn't then the story literally WOULD have no emotions or character attachments to work with#because like. barber's writing feels like it's just a sequence of events that happen one after another and you get very few feelings of lik#being invested in what's going to happen or getting any feeling for how the characters interact with each other#not like you're missing much because it feels like everyone just hates each other#and pretty much every time i read something and went 'wow that's cool i want to read more about that'#nothing ever ended up happening with that
1 note
·
View note
Text
Mr. Take Your Bitch
Pairing: Idol! Jungkook x Reader
Word Count: 8.2k
Content Warning: jk is a little cocky, player! jk, reader gets flustered so easily, jk is such a tease, smooth talker jk, clubbing, ft bts, interviews, reader is small (like 5'1), insults, alcohol consumption, infidelity, readers boyfriend is an asshole, mentions of smoking, impulsive jk, what happens in vegas stays in vegas, messyyy, suggestive themes, sweet gestures.
Other Content: hair pulling, manhandling, oral sex (f! receiving), squirting, missionary, jk splits reader in half, big dick! jk, doggy style, dacryphilia, praise and degradation, cream pies, minor possessive jk, unprotected sex (be better than them), recording.
"How do I look?" Sunny tosses the perfectly sculpted curls in her hair once more, pouting in the dressing room mirror, making sure that not a strand was out of place.
"For the eighth time, you look great, as always." She stands, her red off-the-shoulder top accenting her white pencil skirt and perfect figure, she really did look gorgeous. "Great isn't enough. This is the first time I'm interviewing THE BTS. I need to look perfect."
"You do. I promise." You reassure with a comforting right hand on her shoulder while you center her necklace with your left. "Y/n, we need you out here to help set up." Your manager cracks the door open to call for you briefly before leaving.
"I still cannot believe you dragged me into this coffee girl job just for you to get close to Namjoon." Sunny's full lips stretch from ear to ear showing off her million-dollar smile, "What's so wrong about me wanting you nearby for emotional support? But at least I got you a job out of it, 3 weeks ago you were on the brink of poverty.'' Her arms crossed and you had to admit, she did have a point.
"What was the whole point of this again?" You simply had to ask, remembering the midnight phone call Sunny surprised you with about a month ago when she landed the Hybe interviewer position.
"Remember the story I told you about, in Junior year, me and this boy from math camp snuck out 6 miles away with fake IDs and got shitfaced at the nearest bar then hooked up but I never got his name and he was in the middle of signing my journal we were interrupted and I never saw him again until-"
"You saw Namjoon's face on a billboard in Seoul, and you took this opportunity to get close to see if it was him or not. Yes, I remember now, it's all coming back to me." You finish her story for her.
"Exactly, and-"
"--Y/n, sometime today would be great." Your manager interrupts once again and you leave, apologizing frantically for making them wait, not wanting to lose this job. It actually paid pretty well considering all you did was make drinks.
Walking out of the dressing room, ignoring the buzz in the back pocket of your jeans as you followed your manager to the coffee cart offset. Although from here you had a perfect view of where the interview would take place.
They set it up to be very stylish and modern with BTS albums and concept photos placed strategically around the set within the camera shot. Along with a small coffee table, one chair on one side where Sunny would sit and seven on the other side.
It almost gave you chills to think about. The fact that in a few moments, the most popular boy band in the continent would be sitting right there. All seven of them, including the tempting one.
The one who makes you stumble over your words every time he comes down to the first floor to get a coffee even though there's a gazillion other places to get something to drink in the building.
Every time you see him, he's displaying a new style. Sometimes he comes down stacked with complex layers of clothing and covered in jewelry, or with nothing more than a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, although the latter was possibly the worst of your few interactions. He's just so handsome, it made you want to squirm.
That day he was saying all the right things, yet saying nothing at all. Asking you simple questions like when you started working here, and if you liked coffee, meanwhile all you could mutter was an embarrassing 'yes'. What exactly you were saying yes to? You may never know.
You turned your back to the set and focused on making the pre-ordered drinks the members had sent down with their manager beforehand. By the time you turned back around Sunny was sitting in her place, anxious but ready.
You've been best friends since the 6th grade. She's incredibly outgoing and sociable, a balancing contrast to your more introverted nature although you could be a little extroverted with some alcohol in your system.
She was born for this job, you're sure she'll kill the interview. She mentioned that she'd bumped into a few of the members since she started working a month ago, but not Namjoon.
She definitely underestimated how hard it would be to 'bump' into a man who is guarded by security constantly and extremely busy, not to mention rarely in the country.
Hoseok was the first one to walk in, looking sharp as ever in casual attire but he he made it look incredible. Next was Jimin, and you noticed the way Sunny's eyes nearly widened when she finally saw Namjoon walk in behind Tae.
Finally, they were all inside and all greeted Sunny with a friendly hug and you can see she enjoyed her hug with Namjoon a little too much. Somehow finding something small to laugh about with him as they pulled away.
With an empty cup in your hand, you watched the most handsome group of men you've ever seen, file into the room and take a seat. "Go set these down before cameras start rolling." You feel a tap on your shoulder from another worker.
Did you zone out?
You placed a firm hand on your chest, taking a deep breath before placing a sturdy grip on the handles of the cart and bringing their beverages over. 'One foot in front of the other' you remind yourself, doing your best to ignore the feeling of their gazes turning to you as you got closer.
Unable to look any of them in the eyes as you set down their drinks on the table saying the name of each one so they know which one is theirs.
You could feel his gaze on you whilst Sunny got to witness it first hand from where she sat. The way his jaw slowly clenches with each passing moment, watching you with dark, intense eyes. In that moment, the world around him blurred, and all that remained was the captivating image of you.
It was while you were placing down the final cup that you felt bold enough to finally look up from the table, glancing at Jimin who was talking to Hoseok on his right. Slowly your line of sight inches up and over his head to Jungkook who was sitting on a taller chair behind him.
He was looking right at you.
And that was more than enough for you to return to the cart and retreat to your station. The boys reached for their cups as the countdown to the interview began.
You watched with engaged eyes from the sidelines as the interview began, going through basic introductions and standard questions, you were listening along to the jokes made along the way.
It seemed they were having a great time out there, but you couldn't focus on all of them for too long. You wouldn't be doing your duties as Sunny's best friend if you didn't watch Namjoon's every move; including how he seemed to be the first one to answer almost any of her questions.
The questions were flying by and the discussion was so entertaining to watch but it was over before you even registered it. Sure, cameras had stopped rolling but they were all still talking.
You felt another buzz in your pocket, finally deciding to check.
Daehyun: Are you still mad? It's been 2 days, you're being dramatic. 12:02 pm
Daehyun: Why aren't you answering my texts? 1:12 pm
Daehyun: Fine. Keep ignoring me. Real mature, Y/n. 1:13 pm
You scoff at the messages.
Unbelievable.
Your boyfriend has left you astonished. Again!
You put your phone back on silent, secretly wishing you'd never checked it in the first place. Muttering under your breath about what a jerk he's been to you lately but you stop yourself. Because he's still your boyfriend, and sure, he fucked up a few times, bad. It doesn't change the fact that you're in a relationship with him.
If you could even call it that.
You've slept together twice. Well- 1.5 times if you wanted to get specific. The second time was so bad that you simply had to stop it altogether and make up some excuse so that you didn't hurt his feelings.
Shaking him out of your head and focusing back on your task at hand which was collecting the empty mugs from the table. Repeating the same process as before, avoiding all eye contact, but this time you didn't look up.
You didn't bother because you already knew he was watching you.
You were intimidated but you weren't oblivious.
-
"Y/n! Y/n! Y/n!" You hear her from around the corner before you see her running towards you at your coffee station on the first floor. Sunny was practically bursting. You would think that she had captured the sun between her hands but it was something that would take your life for a spin, but you didn't know that yet.
"You're interview went so well!" You slip in your comment first knowing that once she says whatever she has to say, it'll go on for years.
"I know right! After you left to pack up, I was still talking to the guys and they really seemed to like me so they invited me and any +1 I want to invite on their weekend in Vegas trip tomorrow night! All expenses paid for!" Jaw-dropping wasn't the word. Knee buckling may be a better fit as you had quite literally stumbled and dropped a mug, thankfully it didn't break.
"No. No no no." You say, backing up and her entire demeanour deflated like a devastated puppy. "Why not?" You lean in close, whispering, "Because Jungkook is gonna be there--" She interrupts you, practically exploding with emotions. "Oh my god, he wants you so bad. Did you see the way he was looking at you?!" She whisper shouts.
"I know!" you plain shout out, realizing your volume needed adjusting and leaning forward onto the counter. "But he's Jeon Jungkook and I have Daehyun-" The most disgusted look runs across Sunny's face.
"I cannot believe you are even comparing the two right now. You said it yourself, one is Jeon Jungkook, and the other is Daehyun, a man you should've left in the dust months ago." Here we go again, you sigh.
"C'mon Y/n. He's an asshole, he's childish, he's bad in bed and honestly, the list should end there but no, he humiliated you in front of your family and he was caught in your sister's dm's on Christmas!!"
"It's May for god's sake and he's still stressing you out, and seeing you stressed makes me stressed. So why don't you come tomorrow, I'll keep you away from Jungkook if it comes to that, but please, you need to let loose a little and forget about him for just the weekend." She begs.
She could see you were starting to consider it.
"Please?" She pouts, giving you those same puppy eyes that convinced you to work here in the first place. "Please don't look at me like that, stop." You try to avoid her sorrowful gaze but It's like it intensifies to a point where you just can't look away, nor can you deny.
"Fine, fine. Okay, I'll go."
--
Considering you only just found out you were leaving the country yesterday, you think you did pretty good packing light but efficiently.
That's what you were thinking as you stepped behind Sunny onto the empty private jet. She'd already made arrangements to sit beside Namjoon.
She was crazy but you had to give the girl credit, she worked fast.
You weren't taking in a single thing, part of you was still in disbelief you had even seen the boys up close and personal yesterday.
This would all sink in for you in 5 years and then you'll be hit with a numbing regret of not doing things differently.
Or maybe it'll sink in for you right now, Jimin's full head of brown wavy hair is the first one you see to pop up on the plane and he flashes you a kind smile, taking a seat beside you.
He introduces himself as if you and half the world don't already know him but you engage anyway, giving him your name and the rest is history.
The flight was 11 hours so there was a lot of ground to cover between the two of you for the first 6 hours. Jimin was just such an easy person to open up with, any time you said something crazy you felt like he would have an even crazier story of his own to share.
He'd told you all about his first impressions of the guys to his first scandal that the label somehow managed to cover up because even you were in shock. It would have been over for him.
Then it was your turn, telling him about your exhausting boyfriend since it all started seven months ago.
"On Christmas?!" He shouts, "Why are you with him again?" You groan, "God you sound just like Sunny!"
The two of you were clearly enjoying your conversation while Sunny worked on getting Namjoon to talk a little bit about his past, trying to see if he really was the boy from all those years ago, but he seemed occupied reading his book and she wasn't going to interrupt him any longer. She sighs softly, looking out the window, watching the clouds fly by like art.
Meanwhile, at the front of the jet, Jungkook typed away on his laptop, sometimes blurbing some possible lyrics, but mostly keeping himself busy with a thousand rounds of Tetris. He tuned out the sound of your angelic laughter with his headphones, but it couldn't stop him from glancing to the back of the plane where you sat with Jimin every so often.
Only about an hour left before you landed and you really needed to pee but Jimin was in the way and fast asleep. You looked around, it seemed that everyone was fast asleep, but you really had to go.
Lightly tapping Jimin and asking him to let you through, he moves, half awake, just giving you enough time to pass before going back to his original position.
You exited the bathroom, nearly falling to the ground in horror when you came face to face with the man you'd nearly forgotten was on the jet. He smiles that classic bunny smile that the fans go crazy over.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He says it so sweetly, and in this hushed tone due to the late hour of the night it was making your head think things. Things that you should not be thinking about.
"You okay?" Checking in, seeing that you seemed to have zoned out mid-conversation. Shit. You were doing it again. "Y-yeah." You hated speaking to him it made you feel like you couldn't speak at all. He was just so tall, and his eyes were so big and endearing and-
"Really? Cause it looks like you've got something on your mind." It comes out in such a way that brings heat to your face, suddenly hyper-aware that everyone is asleep, and the two of you are out of sight in the narrow hall of the bathroom.
"Yeah, just excited for tomorrow." You lie, you felt sick to your stomach. He made you sick to your stomach. He gets a little closer, now close enough for you to be able to smell the soft cologne on his clothes. "What's got you so excited?"
It felt like you were watching yourself fall from the sky, it was slow but graceful, but you knew once you hit the bottom, things would get ugly. So you grew wings. "My boyfriend. We're planning on Facetiming tomorrow." It was like a repellant, the way he stepped back.
"Oh, that's nice." He mumbles and you take this opportunity to run back to your seat, hopping over Jimin and strapping yourself back in your seat, shaking your head over and over again.
This was a bad idea. You should not have come on this trip.
-
"She has a fucking boyfriend." Is the first thing Jungkook says to Yoongi and Jimin while the three sit in the back of the taxi that is en route to the hotel. Yoongi wasn't listening, still half asleep after only waking up 30 minutes ago. He would need a repeat of it all tomorrow.
"Pfft. Barely." Jimin mumbles. Triggering quite possibly the fasted head turn known to mankind, Jungkook looks at him with intrigue, "What do you mean by that."
"He's an asshole. Like a literal piece of shit, but she's still with him for whatever reason. It's gotta be Stockholm syndrome." Jimin shrugs. "But you can't tell her I told you this, I think she's pretty cool, so before you get your dick wet, think with your head first."
Yoongi hums in agreement with that one statement. He may be asleep but he knows a good statement when he hears one.
-
Jungkook did think. He thought about you all night. From the cab to the hotel, until he fell asleep and again when he woke up. Sure, you had a boyfriend, but it sounds like you shouldn't be with him, or at least deserved someone better.
The morning sun seeps through the curtains, casting a warm glow on the lavish surroundings. You and Sunny share a glance, a silent acknowledgment of the incredible experience that awaits. Or at least that's what Sunny thinks.
Instead, you retreat under the covers of your bed with an unpleasant sound. "How could I let you bring me here." Your voice is muffled and scratchy from it being the morning still. "Because you love me." She runs from her bed and jumps onto yours.
"Should we get room service?" She proposes and you slowly pull the covers down, revealing an interested expression. "Who's paying?" You ask. "Who cares! It's not us." She springs up and bounces for the phone.
By the late afternoon, you'd gotten an invite from Jimin, inviting you guys down to the pool, it was reserved just for them. "We're going, this isn't up for debate, Y/n. You said you would relax on this trip, so it's my job to make sure you do!" She pulls out the violet two-piece you'd packed in your luggage and shoves you into the bathroom, throwing the clothes in there with you after and shutting the door.
"I hate you y'know," you say from the other side of the door.
"You'll thank me one day, Y/n. One day."
-
There was a roar of cheers from the guys as the two of you walked into sight, the sun was beaming down on you and you were glad you brought your sunscreen.
Jungkook tried to be respectful to the sham of a relationship you were in but what was he supposed to do? You looked so hot in your bathing suit, you were so small but you still had curves in all the right places.
He just wanted to break you in half. Pin you down and-
A splash of water hits him in the face, "Stop eye fucking her and act like you've been neutered for once." Yoongi warns, swimming away before Jungkook could retaliate.
Jin calls Sunny into the water, and she just about jumped in while you were working on unwrapping your new bottle of sunscreen. Jungkook uses this as an opportunity. Looking down at the white shirt that was now soaked through, sticking to his abs he slowly steps out of the water.
Looking you right in the eyes as you shook the bottle. Now you were staring but you didn't care. You were looking at the son of Adonis, or maybe the god himself.
In the warm glow of the poolside sun, Jungkook emerged from the sparkling water, droplets cascading down his glistening skin. The pool's rippling surface bore witness to his athletic grace as he approached the pool chair where you reclined, still shaking the bottle.
His steps were confident, each one leaving a trail of water on the tiles beneath his feet. As he neared, he held your gaze with an intense, playful glint in his eyes. The air between you became charged with a magnetic energy, and a sly smile played on his lips.
With deliberate movements, Jungkook reached down to the hem of his white shirt, clinging to his sculpted physique. The fabric peeled away, revealing the contours of his toned abs. Beads of water followed the curves of his body, accentuating every defined muscle.
As the shirt came off, the sunlight caught on the droplets clinging to his skin, creating an ethereal effect. The sensual eye contact between the two of you intensified, creating a moment suspended in time. The poolside ambiance seemed to hush, allowing the connection between them to take center stage.
Your fist clenched, the sunscreen blurted out of the bottle, some landing on the smooth skin of your thigh but most hit the chair.
Jungkook's expression hinted at a playful confidence, acknowledging the allure of the moment. Your little accident told him all he needed to know. You wanted him.
Even if you didn't know it yet.
Wiping desperately at the sunscreen that had landed on you, a bigger hand comes to help. Gently rubbing the soft flesh of your thigh, Jungkook was crouched to your level with nothing more than a sincere smile as he helped you with your sunscreen.
Your mouth gaped like a fish out of water as you watched him from beside yourself. Unable to believe what was happening. You could feel your heart beating in your ears, and other places but you shook your head.
"Wh-what-" Jungkook looks up to you, moving his hand away. "My bad. I didn't mean to overstep, I just noticed that you'd spilt some of your sunscreen," He inches just a little closer so that you looked down at him from where you sat on your chair. "I'd hate for it to go to waste."
That mischievous tongue of his makes an appearance briefly as it swipes over his bottom lip before retreating; leaving behind glossy plump lips. It's not what he says, but how he says it.
Almost as though he wanted you to break.
You hated how he made you feel without saying anything out of the ordinary.
"You have to be shitting me," Yoongi curses to no one in particular as he watches Jungkook lean up towards you from where he was floating in the pool on the flamingo inflatable.
"You've gotta admit, the boy's determined." Jin adds while Hoseok shakes his head, "He just doesn't know when to give up."
--
Opening your hotel room door to see Jimin leaning against the wall waiting for you. He looked incredible in his black button-up with the sleeves rolled to the elbows. His hair swooped to perfection.
"About time." He kicks himself off the wall as you scoff, "Don't blame me, blame the dress." Your freshly manicured nail points to the red, velvet dress that left your chest exposed before it went under the halter neckline.
There was so much skin offered to anyone that looked at you. You looked absolutely stunning. The way the dress clung tightly to your curves was almost ungodly but made you seem even more angelic.
Twirling on your toes slowly to showcase the full rotation of your outfit and Jimin failed to suppress his gasp. The back- Your back was completely exposed safe for where the halter crossed behind your neck.
"You look hot, and I'm not just saying that." You grin, leading the way to the elevator and waiting for it to come up.
While you were watching the elevator screen, Jimin was watching you. Not lustfully or anything since he really did see the two of you becoming close friends in the future but his gaze was full of.. fear?
Jungkook was going to eat you alive tonight, and he was willing to put money on it.
The man has been able to show limited amounts of self-control since the trip began, and his little shirtless stunt at the pool earlier that day was proof.
The elevator dings and the doors open.
You step in, hearing your phone vibrating from within your maroon chain side bag. Digging through your various lipsticks, mini perfumes and hair pins you finally grab your buzzing device.
Daehyun: When did you go to Vegas?? and how did you get there? 4:33 pm
Daehyun: Baby, I'm sorry. I mean it. Stop Ignoring me. (now) 8:12 pm
You sigh, scrolling through your messages sadly. "Am I being too hard on him?" Jimin leans over to look at the messages, his face turning sour at Daehyun's messages. "I bet you he doesn't even know what he's apologizing for."
The elevator doors close, and Jimin presses the star symbol for the nightclub on the first floor where you would meet the others.
Shaking your head repeatedly, "No. That's impossible. He knows, Jimin. Trust me." He doesn't seem convinced in the slightest,
"Okay. Since you're so sure-" He snatched your phone from your grasp, his fingers moving at the speed of light and you panicked, reaching for the device but he held it high. "Jimin No-!"
"I said 'What are you apologizing for'. I won't send it if you don't want me to. But It seems like he's only apologizing because he knows he's in the wrong, but doesn't know what for."
The elevator dings, going down floor by floor, the silence slowly creeping up on you, "Send it." You say, and his thumb hits send.
The doors open.
You and Jimin step out into the club. Before you sprawled a vast expanse of vibrant colours. Neon lights adorned the walls, casting a kaleidoscope of hues that danced in rhythm with the music.
The dance floor, surrounded by elevated platforms and VIP booths, was the epicentre of the vibrant spectacle. Mirrored ceilings multiplied the dazzling display, creating a sense of endless sin.
"Do you know where they are?" You ask while Jimin leads the way into the crowd of hot bodies and blasting music, he glances down to the text from Tae, "Tae said they're in section 9." Maneuvering your way through the swarm of people until you meet up with the others.
Jimin walked up the steps first, the group's cheers blending in with the roars coursing throughout the rest of the club as he joined them with you closely behind, the cheers continuing for you with whistles once you reached the platform.
"Oh shit!" Sunny curses, rushing to your side to shower you with compliments. "I guess being 30 minutes late pays off, you look great." Tae welcomes you with a side hug and an invitation to sit beside him.
"You need to cool it." Jin pulls Jungkook in by the collar so that he could hear him over the music. Jungkook finally pulls his hungry gaze off of you and looks to his elder.
"You're making it way obvious, and obvious is not what you want. She has a boyfriend. There are hundreds of other girls here, find someone else." He lets him go and Jungkook shakes his head.
How Jin even found out that you had a boyfriend didn't phase him. The seven of them were as close as brothers, it was hard for him and Jimin to keep anything to themselves.
Hundreds of girls but they weren't you. He couldn't just switch it on and off. This wasn't as fun and playful as it once was before, he was starting to get addicted to the thought of you.
"You have any pre-rolls on you?" Jungkook leans over to Namjoon who was deep into a conversation with Sunny. Namjoon reaches inside the pocket of his blazer, "Never leave home without them."
"Great. I need a smoke." Jungkook huffs, standing, purposefully avoiding your gaze. God you looked so fucking fine in that dress, it made him crazy, sick to his stomach.
He's Jeon Jungkook for god's sake.
The concept of want is so unfamiliar to him. Any girl he wants could easily be in his bed the same day, but you-- he shakes his head bitterly-- you were giving him a hard time, all over what? some lame-ass boyfriend.
"Namjoon you comin' ?" He looks over his shoulder to see both him and Sunny standing, "Mind if I join?" She asks, "The more the merrier."
You watched as the three of them disappeared into the bustling crowd vanishing out of sight. "Where did they go?"
Tae leans forward looking at where the trio had just walked through. "Probably went to go ball up." Tae shrugs, "Which means it's time to really get this night started. First round on me."
It wasn't until three shots later when Jungkook had finally come back, this was the first time you really got a good look at him. He was wearing nothing but a black jacket that had the most delicate body chains striping across his abdomen, giving you a clear view of his sculpted abs and-
Your phone buzzes.
You: Why are you apologizing? 8:13 pm
Daehyun: Because you're upset. (now) 9:27 pm
God, Jimin might be right. He doesn't have a clue.
You: Do you even know why I'm mad? 9:27 pm
Daehyun: Is it because of the nudes I sent Soo-Min? I was drunk, I promise. It was a mistake. 9:28 pm
You gasp. You had no idea what he was talking about. You were referring to him standing you up when you told all your family that he would be coming. You never knew this had even happened.
You: What the fuck are you talking about? 9:29 pm
You: I cannot believe you right now. 9:29 pm
You: Stop fucking texting me. 9:30 pm
You weren't even sad or disappointed. You were used to him letting you down constantly. "Looks like you need another shot." You look up from the screen in your lap, making eye contact with ringed fingers wrapped around a shot glass with your name on it.
You take the shot in your own grasp, looking Jungkook in the eyes as you down it. Your face wincing a little at the burn in the back of your throat but you were beginning to feel that exciting warmth in your chest.
The strobe lights turn red as Chris Brown's Take You Down begins to play through the loud speakers all around the club. "Wanna dance?" He offered you his hand, your brain was a little hazy and your cheeks were flushed but Jungkook was too hot to resist.
"Love to."
The two of you walk off to the dance floor with the rest of the crowd.
Taehyung looks to Jin who looks to Hoseok who looks to Yoongi.
Yoongi sighs, shaking his head slowly taking another shot. "It's out of my control. Once they step on that floor, their fate is sealed."
It's true, the moment Jungkook's hands were on your hips that swayed to the music you knew you were screwed. You had every right to be apprehensive about going on this stupid trip in the first place, but deep down you knew it was inevitable.
This very moment was destined from the start.
"You look fucking perfect tonight." He whispers in your ear from behind you, subconsciously pushing your hips back on him and Jungkook could swear he's never wanted someone as badly as he wanted you at this very moment.
"Says you," You spin in his hold, now face to face.
His grip on your hips tighten, body unable to maintain its façade for much longer. Your hair was up in a bun tonight, showing off the industrial piercing he never even knew you had.
There were so many things he wanted to know about you, and not just physically. He wanted to be able to sit with you over a cup of coffee and talk about everything and anything.
His tight hold on you prompted a breathless whine to escape your lips but he heard it. "Stop it." He says and your eyebrows scrunch, genuinely confused. "Stop what?"
"Stop tempting me. I'm trying to be respectful." Astonishment wipes over your features. "You're telling me to stop? It's been you all along, making me trip over my words, and being so shirtless and hot all the time, making me forget I have a boyfriend." He chuckles.
"So you admit it. You think about me too?"
You step back.
"Yes, Jungkook. I cannot stop thinking about you and that's my problem. I need to get you out of my head." Your mouth was saying one thing, but with the way he was looking at you, your heart wanted him between your legs.
The almost forgotten feeling of lust finally coursed through your veins. It'd been so long since you'd gotten any action, you needed this.
But you couldn't.
He steps towards you, even closer than before. You could feel his firm body crowding against your own. The way he towered over you made you feel dizzy. He leaned down, ensuring that you could feel his warm breath on the shell of your ear when he spoke "Tell me you don't want me and I'll walk away."
You don't want him. you lie to yourself.
Trying to put these thoughts into words, your mouth opens.
"I need you, Jungkook." Finally admitting it.
There was no going back now, his lips crashed against yours with nothing less than an animalistic desire. It was fast-paced and messy but you loved it.
The dam finally broke.
You kissed with more than your lips, his hands on your waist, squeezing tight as he rolled his hips into you with the rhythm of the music.
This was so so wrong, but it felt so right.
The way his tongue rolled over your bottom lip with such skill made your thighs clench, you could only imagine the things he could do with it--
"Y/n!" Sunny screams your name from behind you, not even processing what you and Jungkook had just been doing while Namjoon was busy enjoying the music behind her.
You turned around, a little breathless and bothered after being disrupted but you were immediately occupied with analyzing Sunny's appearance. For starters her hair was ruffled and looked like it'd been put through the wringer, her lipstick (what was left of it) was fading and a little smudged.
And last that you checked she was wearing lashes when the night began but they were nowhere to be found. "Sunny where did you go-- Oh my god- Did you and Namjoon-" Her non-stop nodding causes you to clasp your hand over your mouth.
"It's him! He remembers me!" The two of you have your moment, squealing before Jungkook whispers in your ear. "Meet me at the elevator in 5." Sunny actually does catch on this time.
"Oh my god!? Are you gonna-"
You think about it, "I don't know!! Should I?! Daehyun just voluntarily admitted to sending nudes to Soo-Min god knows when and-" Sunny groans. "Leave him, for the love of god y/n stand up!" She yells.
"I can't just leave him he's my boyfriend, and it wouldn't make me any better than him." Sunny's eyes roll. "It won't be cheating if you plan on breaking up with his ass tonight. Just hurry up and decide, Jungkook's waiting for you." She winks and it gives you butterflies.
He was waiting for you.
The moment you turned the corner of the hallway, you saw Jungkook waiting outside the elevator as he said he would be, finally pressing the button. "I was afraid you wouldn't come," he laughs internally to himself at the double entendre, knowing Jungkook's track record, this has never been an issue for him.
The two of you step inside the elevator, it would be a long ride up to the 21st floor, the two of you did your best to stay to your respective sides of the elevator until there was a crowd of people that entered as well, pushing you into him.
Completely oblivious to the way your ass was pressed flush against his crotch, he looks up to the ceiling, wondering what he'd done in his past life to deserve this kind of punishment.
A beautiful girl pressed up against him but he couldn't do anything. As the crowd moved, so did you he hisses and your body stills, finally aware of what you were doing.
On the 13th floor the elevator empties completely, leaving just the two of you and you try to move away from him but his grip holds you in place. "Didn't think you'd be running from me so soon." You'd never heard his voice like this. It was deeper, bass full of wants and desires,
He spins you around, he had you cornered.
Looking up to him with that doe gaze of yours. His index finger gently rests under your chin, your gaze was practically begging him to kiss you, but in case he was hesitating you nodded just a little, permitting him to open your lips with his.
This kiss was a lot slower and deeper than the one before. It was soft and sweet, but slowly turned into a full-blown make-out session by the time the elevator made it to the 21st floor.
He leads the way to his room at the end of the hall, beside Hoseok's room.
Jungkook worked on unlocking the door while you chewed on the tip of your acrylic. Were you really about to do this?
"I'm going in my room, and you don't have to follow, but I'm leaving the door unlocked." He says, disappearing behind the door. Looking over your shoulder, your room was 4 doors down.
You could still back out now, it wasn't too late.
All you would need to do is have a long talk with Daehyun.
You scoff, even his name irritated you. Your heart knew things weren't going to work out between the two of you once you got back home, regardless of whether you slept with Jungkook or not.
He's broken your trust far too many times, and besides, Sunny was right, he is an asshole.
You walk into Jungkook's room and make sure to lock the door behind you.
"That's my girl," He purrs as he steps towards you, taking your face in his hands before gracing you with a heated kiss, the kind of kiss that made you stumble as he walked you back to the door.
"Hope you put that phone on dnd." He whispers, kissing down your neck, skillfully managing to take your hair down at the same time. You looked like the epitome of sin, hair falling over your shoulders as if it fell from grace while your neck was littered with hickeys, your plump bottom lip tugged between those perfect teeth of yours.
Your dress was the first thing to go, he loved it on you, but it served its purpose, and it did it well. Soon his jacket was finally off revealing his muscular build that you'd seen in the fan cams but it couldn't compare to the real thing.
You kissed him back desperately as your legs were wrapped around his waist while he made his way to the bed, dropping you down to your back watching the way you bounced.
Your perfect tits are the first victim of his passionate affection. Leaving tender kisses on the soft flesh, "Jungkook-" you gasp feeling him wrap his lips around your nipples, tongue working hard to push you towards that edge that you'd been inching closer to since you got in here.
He groans as he feels your hands roam over his back, anticipating the feeling of your nails scratching his skin. Finally moving down from your breasts once they were covered with his kisses and hickeys.
You could feel yourself practically soaking through your under, not to mention the way it was sticking to you. "Looks like someone's worked up," he teases, slowly peeling you out of your ruined underwear.
"What's got you so hot and bothered, is it your boyfriend?" You sit up so fast almost getting a head rush and he laughs. "Jungkook." You say and he gives you a look of lust. "What? Say it baby, use your words. Tell me who makes you this wet. Is it me or him?"
You press your legs together, unable to believe that this was turning you on more. "He couldn't turn me on." He looks up to you with wide eyes. "Is that so?" Nodding your head slowly, letting Jungkook gently push you back down to the bed.
On his knees he takes a deep breath at your core, a guttural sound rumbling in his chest as he was face to face with your dripping core. "So you're saying it's me?" he asks, letting his tongue run a flat stripe against your soaked folds.
"YES! It's you Jungkook please, stop teasing, please I can't take it. I'm already so close." You beg, body thrashing around enough for him to pin your legs over his shoulder and to keep you still.
You were stroking his ego, telling you you were already so close and he's barely touched you. Your boyfriend must've been shit in bed, and he was determined to make it up to you. He was going to show you what you've been missing.
Finally eating you out to his heart's content, ignoring the way your feet continued to move frantically over his shoulders he lapped up at your core, flicking his tongue over your clit until your body spasmed uncontrollably. "I'm-" Unable to even finish the sentence before you were blinded by an earth-shattering orgasm.
It ripped through you like a storm and came squirting out of you just like one too. "You've got to fucking kidding me," Jungkook murmurs to himself and you froze. Was he mad?
He stands up, "Of course the hottest girl I've ever seen squirts on my tongue. Good fucking hell, Y/n. It's like you want me obsessed with you." Who was he kidding, he was already obsessed.
He picked you up so carelessly, bringing you to the balcony where it overlooked the Las Vegas strip. You could see the hotel's illuminated pool and all the car lights as they zoomed on the highway far in the distance.
"Hope you're not scared of heights."
Your stomach twisted at the thought of being so high up, but it was all forgotten once your leg was propped up and you felt your folds being prodded open by the fat head of Jungkook's cock.
"No- fuck! Wait." you cursed feeling him push in just the tip, the sweet burn of his size nearly causing you to fall but he held you steady against the railing, bulging biceps on either side of your body, caging you in safely.
Jungkook knew better, this should be the last place he should be doing something like this but with your pretty ass right in front of him it was such a beautiful sight, and the scenery was cool too.
"It's too much," you pant, arms bracing yourself on the fence that kept you from falling 200 feet below. "It's only the tip baby, you sure you can take the whole thing?" You pause in thought, you needed him, all of him. "I can take it. keep going." You say and he pushes in slowly, feeling his cock fill up every nook and cranny of your womb.
It felt like he was in your lungs, you were knocked breathless, and he didn't move. Your body went limp in his arms, exactly what he feared would happen. He quite literally split you open, but you were determined to take it.
You clawed at the railing desperately, looking for any kind of relief from what you were feeling. "Deep breaths baby, I'll go slow." You nod, eyes squeezed shut as his hips slowly roll back pulling out about halfway before rocking back in.
"Oo-oh. fuck. Jungkook, keep going." you moan, head falling onto your hands; feeling what was once pain morphs into an addicting, sweet pleasure, over time his pace picks up until he was fucking into you with no remorse.
Even if no one could see you from this high up, they sure as hell could hear you. The way you cried out his name like a prayer over and over while Jungkook's brain was short-circuiting with the sight of you creaming on his dick and the obscene sounds it created.
"Does your boyfriend fuck you like this, huh?" He angles his hips, resuming his brutal pace even though you've already come twice now. Your body jolts with each snap of his hips.
You shake your head, but that isn't enough for him, flipping you around so that you're facing him, he pushes himself back in, your eyes fluttering shut almost immediately.
"Use your words Y/n. You're my smart girl, look me in the eyes and tell me that your boyfriend could never fuck you like I do." Your eyes snap open, "He c-could never fuck-!" Jungkook slowed down his thrusts to something so much deeper, your eyes rolled and Jungkook nearly came just at the sight.
"Shit, I'm gonna come." He pants, and with a few more erratic thrusts you feel his warm cum fill you up. He slowly lets you stand but your legs fail you immediately. Scooping you up in his arms effortlessly he brings you to the bed, clearly not done with you.
That's how you found yourself on the brink of your third orgasm while Jungkook plowed into you from behind, obsessed with how his cum seeped out of you and around his cock.
Your arms had given out long ago hence why your cheek was smushed into the sheets of the bed while you whimpered like a whore. "God you should look at yourself," He laughs almost maniacally from behind you.
Feeling himself approach his climax, "Jungkook- please!" you cried out, the friction only adding to the stimulation, "m' gonna-" you try to get back up on your arms but you couldn't move.
"I wonder what your boyfriend would say if he saw you like this,'' A wicked smile spreads across his lips as he reaches for your phone that was forgotten somewhere on the bed, hitting record.
Pulling you up onto your arms, tugging your hair by a makeshift ponytail, the flash highlights the various bruises all over your body left by yours truly. The audio was picking up his soft groans and your pathetic whimpers, and if the room was quiet enough you could probably hear the welt squelch of your cunt sucking in his length with each push.
"Shit, shit, shit!" You cry out, coming once more and your body goes limp, Jungkook ends the recording and tosses the phone to the side while he chases his own high finishing soon after you.
He pulls out slowly, "Y/n, baby? Are you with me?" He taps your cheek gently, and your eyes barely open, "I think you fucked the soul out of me," He dares to flash you a nervous smile as if he hadn't just fucked you dumb.
"Come, let's get you cleaned up."
-
"That was one hell of a trip." You mumble to Sunny on the phone as you wheel your suitcase down the hall to the door of your apartment where there was a big bouquet of flowers.
"Oh my god," You say, crouching down, wincing a little as you did to read the card. "What?" Sunny asks and you explain what you were seeing.
"Do you think they're from Daehyun?" You scoff, "Fat chance."
You open the envelope to read the card aloud,
'To the hottest girl. We should get donuts sometime, I heard you like them cream-filled ;) Text me sometime xxx-xxx-xxx. -J.K'
Sunny squealed in your ear.
"I'll call you back." You say, dialling Jungkook's number.
"Hello?" He answers.
"You got me flowers?" You couldn't stop the smile from spreading across your face, and he could hear it. He closed his fridge and leaned on the counter, "You like 'em?"
Holding the vase in your hand you take a deep sniff, "I love them."
He shakes his head. "This is so sad. You're too easy to impress. Let me treat you better than that jerk, Y/n." Your mouth falls open-
"How- What?"
"Jimin mentioned the details to me but don't get mad at him; it doesn't change the fact that the guy is an asshole." You sigh.
"I know."
"So?" Jungkook starts, waiting for you to say something.
"I think you mentioned something about cream-filled donuts. When and where?"
He smiles.
#bts#jungkook#jungkook smut#jungkook ff#jungkook fic recs#bts one shot#bts jungkook#jungkook x reader#jeon jungkook#btssmuts#bts scenarios#fluff#bts smut#smut
3K notes
·
View notes
Text
I've seen a lot of people talking about how Barbie talks about how the patriarchy affects women and how well it does that, so I wanna talk about how Barbie talks about how the patriarchy affects men and how well it does that. Because it does that really well tbh.
At the beginning of the movie, it's made very clear that the Kens are constantly competing with each other, and trying to prove their worth, their Ken-ness, to both the Barbies, and more importantly, to the other Kens. In fact, multiple times through the movie it's shown that Ken seems to find the opinions of other Kens as a motivator for him to do things. He tries to show off to Barbie only after he sees the other Kens saying hi to her. He only starts dancing with Barbie when he sees the other Kens dancing with her. He only goes with her to the Real World after another Ken accuses him of cowardice and he decides to prove him wrong. Barbie says "Ken's not cool!" and Ken responds "He is to me."
This shows so damn well what the patriarchy is like for men. Because for the Kens it's not necessarily about Barbie, it's about what other Kens think of you. Being a man you are constantly, incessantly trying so damn hard to prove to the other men around you that you are a man, the manliest man to ever man, the best Ken to ever Ken. Literally doing backflips trying to prove yourself. And this is before patriarchy is even officially introduced to the story, there's no undertone of power yet, this is just what it's like to be a man around other men. It's toxic masculinity.
And when the patriarchy is introduced, that's increased tenfold. At first it looks like they've banded together to take power, but really they're still competing with each other, they're just doing it differently. Rather than competing to see who can get Barbie to fall in love with them, they're competing to see who can be the manliest, have the manliest stuff, wear the manliest clothes, have the manliest house and decorations.
And then they literally go to war. War is considered one of the few places where it's socially accepted for men to be more emotional, form deep and personal bonds with other men, and that's exactly what happens in the movie. They go to war, and there's an entire song where they bond and learn not to fight with each other anymore.
And that I think is the message from the Kens. For men, the way the patriarchy affects them is it forces constant competition and animosity, even around people that are supposed to be your friends. It makes it impossible to express your feelings unless they're with a romantic partner, and all of this turns you into a pent up ball of emotions with nowhere to go.
Which means that the message is: In order to fix the way the patriarchy oppresses men, men need to learn how to form close bonds with people, especially other men. Because like Barbie said to Ken, he needs to discover who he is without her. Men have learned to lean on women as a crutch, using them to figure out how to Be A Person and express emotions in a healthy way, but this can very quickly turn into a woman feeling like she needs too be his mother and teach him how to do these things. And Ken was 100% doing this, or at least he was trying to throughout the movie. Ken was so desperate for Barbie to be in love with him, not necessarily because he loved her, but because he needed a person he could just exist as himself around. Because he couldn't do that with the other Kens, the only person he could be himself around was Barbie.
And what's so great about the end of the movie is that the Kens did eventually figure out how to form close bonds with each other! They went to war, argued and fought, but by the end of the song they were holding hands, kissing each other on the cheek, telling each other they were enough. Even when Ken is up in the dreamhouse, crying and saying that he looks stupid, all the other Kens start shouting back up to him, saying that he looks cool. And Ken responds by giving one of his new friends his coat, which was clearly very important to him.
What the Kens did, that's what men in the real world need to do. They need to form close bonds with other men and stop competing with each other. Hopefully not by going to war the way the Kens did, Barbie isn't a blueprint for solving the patriarchy lol.
I'd be happy to do it through a song though.
#barbie#barbie 2023#the barbie movie#ken barbie#barbie movie#greta gerwig#ken#barbie ken#meta#barbie meta#barbie movie spoilers
5K notes
·
View notes
Text
Tutor for Time
Theodore Nott x gryffindor! reader
summary: Theo is terrible with his words, and reader already had some presumptions about him. So when Theo takes an opportunity to spend time with the reader it is their friend Pansy’s responsibility to fix both of their assumptions.
Warning: this is my first time writing for Theo so idk how good it is but lmk! <3
You’d never actually spoken to Theodore Nott and you never planned on doing so. No matter how good of friends you were with Pansy, Blaise and Enzo, Theodore Nott was unapproachable.
“No, absolutely not.” Pansy frowns at you.
“He’s not actually that scary. He just has a resting bitch face.” You glare at her and shake your head.
“It’s not that. In fact, he’s quite handsome, it’s the fact that he notoriously hates anything having to do with Gryffindor. He’s also a notorious fuck boy, and seems to take extra pleasure in breaking the girls hearts in my house. I’ve heard to many stories to even think of asking him for help.” You shake your head and start reading the read annotations Snape had left all over your paper.
“He’s your best chance at passing.” You glare at her and glance over at Theodore again on the other side of the room. She was right, he did have a resting bitch face. He always looked like he hated everything, and his gray eyes were perpetually fixed in an expression of annoyed indifference. While his friends laughed around him, the only hint of emotion he showed was the slightest smirk.
So, yes, Theodore Nott was unapproachable. But also incredibly attractive. Which might have said more about you than him.
“I can ask him for you if you like. Or at least mention that you’re looking for a tutor,” Pansy offers, slightly more gentle than previously. You look at her again, chewing on the inside of your cheek. When you glance down at your paper covered in red marks again, you sigh.
“Yeah, alright,” you finally concede. Pansy grins and goes back to her work, unnervingly excited at your agreeing. And when you look up at Theodore again, you find him already looking between you and your friend. When he sees you looking his eyes seem to harden before he looks away.
Oh, he definitely hates you.
***
You finally walk into the library five minutes late, and Theodore is waiting for you at a table in the back corner. You have to take a deep breath before walking up to him and taking a seat across from him.
“Thanks for finally gracing me with your presence.” You blink at him. His accent is thicker somehow when he is speaking directly to you. You would think living surrounded by the English for the past five and a half years would have depleted the accent a bit, but it’s still very prominent.
“I got caught up with some friends. I’m only a few minutes late.” Theodore finally looks up at his books and his dead eyes meet yours.
“And that makes wasting my time alright?” You blink at him and have to bite your tongue to remind yourself that he is actually taking time out of his day to help you. So don’t be a complete bitch.
“No of course not. Sorry. Thank you for meeting me, though.” He just shrugs looking down again.
“Pansy wouldn’t leave me alone. I didn’t have much of a choice.” You clench your naw again and nod.
“Right.” Theodore jumped right into the reading after that. You had to scramble to get your book at, which he didn’t seem to care about in the slightest. By the time it was almost curfew, Theodore didn’t show the slightest sign of being any more tired than when you had sat down with him. You, on the other hand, had earned at least three kicks in the leg when your eyes would start drooping shut.
Finally, you found your out when Madame Pince yelled out that the library would close in ten minutes. You quickly sat up for the first time in over an hour and watched as Theodore just kept rambling on about the importance of some herb.
“Are we almost done?” You finally blurt out. That’s when he finally looks up again. He raises an eyebrow at you, not looking amused in the slightest.
“Do you understand more than you did the last time you got a question wrong?” You scowl at his response and deflate a little in your seat.
“The library closes soon.” He nods and snaps his book shut, making you jump a little at the sudden change.
“Perfect. Then I can have a break of your stupid answers until tomorrow.” You gawk at him. Once the words finally process in your head, you stand up, grabbing your things.
“Just because I have one sore subject doesn’t make me an idiot, Nott. I’m smart enough not to waste my time with an ass like you again.”
“Ouch.” His smirk and sarcastic tone makes you all the angrier, and you send a final glare his way before starting to walk off. “You need me to pass the next test on Thursday.” You turn around to see him gathering his things as if he hadn’t just said anything. For a moment you thought you’d imagined it.
“I can find someone else to help me. Someone who actually wants to and isn’t just here to be a condescending ass who likes to make me feel bad about myself,” you snap. Theodore looks over his shoulder at you and studies you for a moment.
“I admit my last comment was a bit harsh but I just spent the last five hours trying to teach you. Who else is going to do that?” He turns, leaning on the table as his arms cross over his chest. You pause for a moment. That almost sounded like regret from Theodore Nott. You didn’t think there was such a thing.
“Fred’s quite good at potions. I’m sure he’d help me.” Theodore raises an eyebrow.
“Weasley? Sure, he’d help you for ten minutes before distracting himself and you with something else.” You clench your jaw, sad to admit that he had a point. Neither Fred nor George were very academic and even when they were they were terrible at staying focused.
“Why do you want to help me? Is Pansy paying you or something?” Theodore shakes his head, turning back to grab his bag and sling it over his shoulder. He walks up to you, the ass having the gall to tower over you after everything else.
“No. She’s not, nor is anyone else. I’ll see you here same time tomorrow.” You blink at him, and he’s walking away. Unfortunately, he’s right. You will see him tomorrow.
And the next day.
And finally, on Wednesday night, you’re staring at the review Theodore had created for the test the very next day with your head in your hands.
“How am I supposed to remember all this?” Theodore shrugs as he works on his own work across from you.
“The same way the rest of us do. You study.” You glare at him and kick his shin like he’d done to you so many times, which manages to earn you his attention.
“I’ve been studying. I’ve spent more time with you in here than I have in my own bed the last few days and I still feel like it’s all going to leave my head the second I leave.” Theodore tilts his head and studies you as you slouch back in your seat.
“What helps you remember when you’re here?” You bite the inside of your cheek. You know the answer and yet you hate to admit it to the boy. However, the truth was the truth. And that was that you had grown attached to Theodore’s praise. Well, about as close as he came to it. Whenever you were right, he’s award you with the smallest of smiles and a little nod. And if he was reading over your papers, you liked watching as his eyes skimmed the words and sometimes you could tell you were right when his head tilted down a little more to hide the smile you liked so much. He didn’t like admitting you were right despite being the reason for it.
Eventually, he gestured for an answer and you had to sigh. “You, I suppose,” you finally admit, neglecting to tell him why you like being right with him so much. Theodore seems to like that answer, though as he gives you one of those small smiles that are nothing like his usual smirk.
“Well, lucky for you I happen to be just across the room, incase you haven’t noticed.” You blink up at him. “So, you should be just fine.” You smile a little and tilt your head.
“Careful, Nott. I believe you just comforted a Gryffindor.” Your sarcasm doesn’t go unnoticed by Theodore. He smirks a little and his eyes go back down to his work and his quill.
“If I’m your good luck charm you could at least call me Theo.” His blatant ignoring of your comment still shocks you.
“Fine, then. Theo?” He lifts his head again and hums in response. “Why are you helping me?” He tilts his head in a way that reminds you of your friend’s cat when you hold catnip.
“Pansy gave me an excuse to sit with you and I took it.” Your brows scrunch together and it is your turn to tilt your head and his to study you. “We have mutual friends, and I never wanted them to be the reason that I got to be alone with you.”
He tilted his head back straight and you continued to stare at him. “Is that one of your lines?” He brings his hand up to rest his chin on. It’s the first time you’ve seen him lean on the table.
“What are you talking about?” You roll your eyes and wait for him to crack up but he doesn’t.
“You don’t like me, or anyone else that has anything to do with my House. Everyone knows that. And I’m not the idiot to fall for it.” He just stares for a moment before shaking his head.
“I’ve definitively had my fun, just like Mattheo, and definitely Enzo have. How does that make me a worse person than them?” Your throat runs dry and you can’t think of a good way to word your thoughts.
“I didn’t say you were… Enzo is terrible to girls and I am well aware of that. You’re not better or worse.” He rolls his eyes and starts gathering his papers.
“I’ve never told a girl I’d be hers and then not followed through. I’m always honest, unlike some of my friends who love false promises because they think it gets them better head. And it’s not my fault if girls think that just because I’ve been in their bed means suddenly I’ll want to go out with them.” You watch as he stands up, looking more annoyed than you have ever seen him. “Before you think about me being an ass again, maybe think that you only hear the side of delusional girls who have also fucked half of my friends. And I didn’t want to meet up with you to get into your pants I could’ve gotten that much easier from someone who tries much harder to get into mine.” He shoves his things in his bag and starts walking out of the library without so much as looking back at you, and your left staring at an empty chair trying to process the words of the boy you’d clearly hurt.
Pansy watches as you flop on her bed and continue to ramble about the weird conversation with Theo. She scoffs and rolls her eyes. “You’re an idiot.”
You shoot up. “What?”
She gives you an unamused look. “Yes, Theo fucks around. But who doesn’t? And he’s the nicest about it. He doesn’t give any false pretenses.” You frown as you cross your arms. “He’s never dated anyone, you know? He doesn’t like the idea of falling for someone. And he’s never lied to girls about that. Besides he’s liked the same girl since first year. He’s quite attached to her, though he’s probably never going to admit it.”
You sit up a little straighter, waiting for her to continue. “Theo… Theo’s been through a lot. He needs someone who will listen to him, really listen to him, because it’s rare he talks about his feelings at all.”
“Why don’t you date him then, if you know him so well?” She rolls her eyes and gives you that same blank stare.
“Like I said. He’s down bad for a girl he’s barely spoken to but watches almost every second of every day. And I like girls.” You smile a little at her though you do have an odd clench in your chest as you look down at your hands. “Are you seriously that oblivious?” You snap your eyes back up to hers.
“What?”
“Theo has liked you since first year, you idiot! And the one time I finally got him to talk to you, you tell him you think he’s an unemotional ass?” You are taken aback by Pansy’s snapping, yet find yourself thinking about the times you’ve caught him staring. Normally it’s with Pansy and you’ve always just assumed he was annoyed at her for being friends with you, but the more you think about it, you remember how it’s always happened. Even before you and Pansy were friends.
“Oh.”
Pansy rolls her eyes again. “Yeah. Oh.”
The next day you find yourself sitting next to Pansy taking the test you’d been cramming for all week with Theo. Midway through your hand is in your hair and you find yourself drifting off in your mind. It’s only when your eyes land on Theo do you remember how little time you have, and look back down at your paper.
A few times, you find yourself glancing up at Theo. Trying to remember the numerous questions he asked you and the answers you said in order to earn his soft smiles. At one point he looked over just as you did, and caught you staring. His brows knit together for a moment, and he glanced at the quill twirling in your hand. He gave you a small nod before looking down at his own test again, and you allowed yourself to do the same.
The next day when Snape handed back your papers you were shocked to find an E at the top of your paper. Exceeds Expectations.
You’d never gotten more than a Poor, or the one or two Acceptables. You stare at the paper and Pansy elbows you, finally drawing you out of your head. She nods at your paper and then toward the other side of the room where Theo was standing up and getting ready to leave. “Least you could do is say thank you,” she says before grabbing her own stuff and leaving.
Theo starts walking out alone seeing as Pansy had stolen Blaise and Mattheo hadn’t dawned the class with his presence that day. So you find yourself running after the tall boy alone in the corridor towards the slytherin dorms. “Nott!” He didn’t even flinch or acknowledge your presence so you call after him again. “Nott, come on!”
Finally you stop running and let out a breath. “Theo, please, just a minute?” This time he pauses and turns to face you.
“Will you stop yelling obnoxiously?” You smile a little and quickly walk up to him.
“Yes, in fact, I will.” You hold out the test for him, and he stares at you for a moment longer before taking it and assessing it. You see the small smile dawn his features and can’t help but smile a little wider as he tries to hide it. “I just wanted to thank you. For spending that time with me.”
“And being your good luck charm?” He looks back up at you and holds out the paper for you to take back. You do, but take a step closer to him as well.
“Yes, that too.” You chew on your lip for a moment before clearing your throat. “And I also need to apologize. I didn’t mean to make you upset the other day. I didn’t realize how bias I sounded until afterwards.” He clears his throat and looks anywhere but at you.
“Pansy talk to you?” You nod a little.
“Yes. But I’m glad she did.” He glances at you but doesn’t seem convinced. “And what Snape started talking about today already has me lost, so maybe you’d consider helping me again?”
His confusion is evident. “You want me to help you?” You nod a little and tilt your head.
“Does being alone with me sound that bad?” His jaw works for a moment, but you swear a small smile appears for a moment. “I’d like to spend some more time with you, if you’d like.”
“Careful, Y/L/N, it almost sounds like you want to hangout with a slytherin. And a fuck boy one at that.” You smile a little more and nod.
“When has that stopped me before? Enzo is much worse than you.” Theo smiles a little more again, and this time lets you see it.
“I’ll see you at the Black Lake tomorrow, the same time as usual.” You raise an eyebrow.
“The Black Lake?” Theo just nods and starts backing away.
“Yes, the library’s a bit stuffy. I’d never take someone I like there.” You can’t hide your surprise and Theo just waves you off. “Don’t act like I just proposed.” You laugh a little and shrug.
“Not yet but give me another week and I’ll have you on your knee.” Theo’s eyebrows raise and he smirks.
“We’ll see about that, love.”
#theodore nott#theodore nott x reader#theodore nott x you#theodore nott x y/n#slytherin#gryffindor#theodore nott fic
646 notes
·
View notes
Text
Mama's Boy
Pairing: Simon Ghost Riley x Reader
Summary: Holding and seeing his daughter for the first time
a/n: Did I almost cry while writing this? Yes, I almost did. But I really hope you all will like it. The story about Simon's mother is made up by me, but I just thought it would explain why I thought of naming Simon's daughter Daisy.
“She has your eyes.” He whispered softly under his breath.
You smiled as you sat down beside him. Daisy did have your eyes, but the rest of her resembled Simon.
"She looks more like you, though," you said quietly as you looked at your daughter.
It was the first time he had held and seen her since his mission a month ago.
At first he had hesitated to hold her, but now that she was in his arms, he seemed to relax slightly as he admired her.
Daisy was more of a mini-Simon, her features almost identical to his.
Your beloved husband was still a man of few words, and looked more like a wall of ice at first. But you knew how to see past that veneer of stoicism, his beautiful eyes were always filled with a wealth of unspoken emotions.
Daisy was his everything, and as he sat there holding their little bundle of joy, he silently thanked the heavens for leading him to you.
Was it all a stroke of fate, or destiny? Nobody could say for certain.
"What did you name her?" Simon whispered, not wanting to disturb Daisy's peaceful expression as he still kept his eyes on her.
"Daisy," you said softly, almost being too afraid to utter it out.
And for a moment, everything seemed to freeze. Simon's eyes widened slightly as his shoulders tensed.
You were afraid of how he would react. The two of you hadn't talked about baby names before, but you had one in mind.
Simon didn't usually talk about his past, only when it really ate him alive, and one thing that stuck with you was the story he once told you.
Simon's mom loved flowers, especially Daisy's. She always kept some in a little vase. She used to tell him that whenever things got bad at home, she would take a few of Daisy's home with her because they meant new beginnings.
It was a silly thought, but it gave her hope. If the new beginning wasn't meant for her, at least she wanted it to be for Simon.
You remembered tearing up at the story, and from then on you knew you would name your daughter Daisy.
His eyes widened slightly as he looked back at you.
"Daisy." Simon repeated slowly as he took a moment to absorb what you had said.
Your husband was a private person by nature, but you noticed that he was beginning to show signs of emotion. His face softened, revealing the faintest smile as his lips formed the words...
"Thank you."
His lips trembled slightly as he bit his lower lip, while a single tear made its way down your face.
You kissed his cheek and watched him hold her. You hadn't named her after his own mother, knowing how sensitive the subject was for him. But you had chosen Daisy because it would make it easier for him to look at her and remember a good memory his mother had left behind.
Simon still held his tears back as he looked at Daisy. His precious daughter.
And he knew that for a fact, his mother was watching from above, with a smile on her face.
#cod x reader#ghost x reader#ghost x you#simon ghost riley x reader#simon ghost riley x you#simon ghost x reader#simon riley x reader#simon riley x y/n#simon riley x you#ghost x y/n#simon ghost riley imagine#simon ghost riley oneshot#simon ghost riley x male reader#simon ghost riley x gender neutral reader#simon ghost x you
2K notes
·
View notes
Text
life has been lifein’ haven’t been posting for a while but hopefully i’ll have stuff to post soon.
without getting into the full rollercoaster of misery, health problems abound in my loved ones and every year for the last 3 years we’ve lost at least one family member. my gramma Rosezina died on July 1st after 83 years of being A Problem. her funeral was on the 8th during a day so hot that we couldn’t be at the graveside for more than a few minutes, fitting weather for a woman nicknamed Hot for her good looks and spicy temper. i loved her very much, i love her very much, and the emotional strain of everything that came after the Big Stroke fucked me up a little bit.
here’s one of my favorite stories about her, stop me if you’ve heard this one:
my gramma was schizophrenic, a fact i didn’t figure out until i was told by a family member at some time during my preteen or early teen years because the way schizophrenia was depicted on tv or movies was so different from what she was. she was an amazing quilter, gardener, cook, baker (i’ll never have a caramel cake that rivals hers), and general gold star deep country grandmother who was always sweet to me, her first born granddaughter, even when she stopped remembering who i was exactly in her later years.
also, she never liked being told what to do.
also, also, she hung out with the devil for a while.
she said he’d just show up sometimes, the most beautiful, angelic, enchanting man you ever did see. he’d come to her when she was feeling overwhelmed, upset, or lonely, and offered words of comfort and a gentle listening ear. she had a hard life, and that comfort was very valuable to her even if it was coming from the devil, so over time he became her friend and she trusted him right up until the day he told her to kill her kids and free herself from all the problems constantly weighing her down.
need i remind you, she did. not. like. being told what to do. (especially when the thing she’s being told to do is murdering her own children)
so of course, she told all her kids to walk up the road to my great gramma’s house, and when they were gone Hot dragged the couch the devil was sitting on outside into the front yard and set it on fire with him sitting on it.
from what i was told he seemed very irritated but didn’t get up as she stared him down and watched him burn.
afterwards some other family members put the fire out and she returned to her chores like nothing happened. as far as i know the devil never talked to her again.
and that’s why i grew up knowing that the, ‘the devil made me do it’ defense is some bullshit. if the devil is real he can’t make you do shit. he flounces off if told no (and set on fire) once.
weak bitch.
#talkin#grief#family death#i come from a long line of feral forest women who could break you in half and i hope i can keep up this legacy#edit: she died in july not june. my brain is still set to when the stroke happened and i totally missed that i wrote down the wrong date
2K notes
·
View notes
Note
hellooo.
I have been reading your stories for a long time, I am totally in love with your writing, and I was wondering if you could accept my requestI've had this story in my head for a while.
basically Miguel is secretly sleeping with the mechanics of the spider society, because they have a "deal" where Miguel can use it wherever he wants, but without any feelings involved of course.
but Miguel ends up falling in love with her, and one day when they fuck, he confesses to her in desperation, because he sees how other spiders are starting to flirt with her, so he decides to confess to have her for himself, which she accepts.
that's all, you can add more things if you like, thank you very much :""
no matter how long you have to wait, take your time
Hello!! Hello! Thank you so much for reading my stories and enjoying them!!! It means a lot to me~
Sorry it took so long for me to get to your request, I was on a small hiatus, (still am actually haha)
Warning: MINORS DNI, smut, p in v, jealousy, rough sex, dirty talk, possessiveness
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The atmosphere felt stiff. Normally the basement of the Spider Society did have a thick and sweaty undertone, but this was different. Miguel was standing at the entrance of your shop, watching a few other Spider men flirt with you.
You were the local mechanic at the Spider Society. In your universe, you got bit by a radioactive spider, but instead of fighting crime like everyone else, you built equipment. You were known as The Spider, in your world, a genius mechanic who made tools and gizmos that stopped crime without you getting your hands dirty.
When Miguel recruited you, he immediately requested that you help him with his Spider Society. You agreed on one condition.
Just a simple fuck.
You were still a Spider, you had your own version of a funny bone. It was crude and a very lewd sense of humor, but it helped stick you out from the rest. You didn't expect Miguel to say yes. Hell, no one ever took you seriously when you made your jokes.
It was the best sex of your life, you couldn't just stop there. So, the two of you made an agreement. You would have free range in the Spider Society to do as you please and Miguel would fuck you when he needed to destress.
No emotions involved.
That seemed to be easy for the both of you. Seemed. So, the fact that you felt a wave of guilt wash over you as you made eye contact with Miguel hurt. You were just harmlessly joking with some of the other Spider people who were flirting with you. It was all harmless, but why...
Why did Miguel have to give you such a look?
You didn't have time to call out to him since he left. You could feel your heart ache. You weren't supposed to have feelings for Miguel, but how could you? The endless meet ups for sex turned into deep conversations between the two of you. You fell for Miguel and now you were worried that he believed your 'no emotions' agreement.
---------
Miguel scoffed as he stormed into his office. His hand rushed to fix his hair as he tried to make sense of the scene he just saw. How dare others try to get near you? You were Miguel's and his alone. Just watching you smile towards another man irked Miguel.
This 'no emotions' agreement had to come to an end. You belonged to Miguel and no one else. Inhaling deeply, Miguel waited to calm down before sending you a message. He needed alone time with you to fuck the sense back into your mind.
Once you responded back to him, Miguel couldn't help but smile. It pleased him when you listened. Now, you just had to listen to his demand for you to stay away from others.
----------
A heavy sigh escaped your lips as you finished tightening up one of the reactors. The amount of strain that they got due to all of the Spiders working out in the Society was insane. You could handle the work, but Miguel was far too busy to make more.
"(Y/N)? Is now a bad time?" Miguel asked as he casually walked into the basement.
You walked down the wall you were on, "Ah, welcome to my humble lair. For what can I offer you this time, my lord." You teased, enjoying a little cult joke here and there. Miguel, once again, was unamused,
"You always make me seem like the bad guy," He hummed, glancing in your direction, "I suppose I am to you, huh?"
"If I recall correctly, I made the advance." You hummed, approaching Miguel and pressing your body against his, "Are you here for business or pleasure?"
"Both,"
You felt your heart begin to race as Miguel gripped your waist, pressing you against the wall. His lips roughly sucking against your neck as you felt his harden erection grind against your clothed cunt. Oh, how you loved his rough sex.
Miguel was like a feral beast whenever he fucked you. The man was clearly touch starved and he released all of his stress with you. It was a blissful moment for you. Never had you been so rough handled before, but shit, it felt good.
You gasped sharply as Miguel's hands already worked their way into your suit. Unlike the other Spiders, you had the basic mechanic pants as your bottom half of your spandex suit. It just felt more comfortable for you when saving the day.
"Already so wet. We're you getting off on the idea of others flirting with you?" Miguel hissed into your ear as his fingers feverishly rubbed your clit.
"Hah~ Ah~ N-No!" You gasped and moaned, gripping onto Miguel as he abused your sensitive bud.
"Could have fooled me." Miguel whispered harshly as he nibbled against your ear, "Your pussy is so wet and I haven't even touched your slutty hole yet."
"M-Miguel, n-not so-Ah~" You cried, twitching as you felt your climax approaching fast.
His fingers were rubbing and pinching your clit, making your body shiver in estasy. You moaned in his ear as you felt yourself cum against his fingers alone. Your vision was blurred for a second as you tried to regain composure.
"We're not done yet." Miguel huffed.
With a yelp, you felt your self being lifted. Miguel made quick work of your pants and smirked at the sight of you. Your pussy dripping for him, just waiting to be ravished. You were clenching to air, waiting for Miguel to give you what you wanted.
"Who does this pussy belong too?" Miguel asked as he took out his dick.
"You," You whimpered, biting your lip as you eagerly awaited for him to fill you.
"Who?"
"You, Miguel! Please, just...just fuck me already." You begged.
Miguel scoffed as he slowly poked his tip against your hole. His grip was tight against your waist, watching you tremble against him. Your poor hole just begging for him to shove his dick fully inside you. Miguel could barely contain himself. With a grunt, he started to thrust into you,
"Fuck, (Y/N), why can't you listen to me?" Miguel cussed as he slapped his hips into yours, "You are mine alone. This agreement was just for the two of us."
"I-It is!" You cried, holding onto Miguel as you felt his dick hit all the right spots.
You flung your head back, gasping and moaning as Miguel's tip kept kissing your cervix. His thick dick stretching your pussy into his shape. Each rough thrust making you see stars. You could already feel another heat building in your core.
"You aren't allowed to flirt with anyone else. You are mine. I don't want to see my girl with another man. Do I make myself clear?"
"Y-Yes! Ah~ Y-Yes!" You cried as his thumb pressed against your clit, "I-I'm only yours~"
Miguel hummed as he watched your face contort with pleasure as you cam against his dick. His lips curled into a smile as he continued his rough thrusts into your needy hole. Miguel inhaled the sounds of your moans,
"I love you, (Y/N). You're all I ever need and want. So, I'm changing the agreement."
Grunting, Miguel pressed his head against your neck, rutting deeper into you. His thrusts starting to grow sloppy as he reached for his own high.
"You can still do whatever...nh...you want, with extra bonuses," Miguel panted as you clenched around his dick, "And in exchange, you will belong to me and no one else. I will fill you with every drop I have, just to make you mine."
"H-Hah, M-Miguel~"
"Unless your slutty pussy wants to be put on display for everyone to watch me fuck. It's your choice (Y/N)." Miguel scoffed.
You were too fucked out to even register what Miguel was saying. All you were understanding was that he was going to fuck you more if you agreed. Your cock drunk mind already knew the answer.
"Y-Yours. I-I'm all yours~" You cried out.
"Good girl," Miguel whispered and he filled your with his cum, "I knew you would agree. This pussy wouldn't let me go." He said with a chuckle.
You were a panting mess, relaxing from the sex session Miguel gave you. Feeling your back against one of your tables, you whimpered as you tried to squirm. Miguel kept you in place, his dick still firmly inside your abused hole.
"Miguel," You whimpered, finally coming back to your senses, "You know...my sense of humor is fucked...I've only ever had eyes for you," You admitted.
Miguel just smiled. He hummed lowly as his hips started to thrust inside you again slowly.
"A-Ah~ W-Wait, t-too much..." You pleaded, feeling him push back his cum into your womb. Miguel held your legs over his shoulders,
"Have you already forgotten what you agreed too? You belong to me now and this pussy doesn't want to let go of me just yet. Don't you want me to fill you to the brim?"
You felt a shiver run down your spine towards his words. Miguel was always a bit cruel when it came to sex, but goddamn. Such a threat turned you on so much. With a whimper, you just nodded and accepted the abuse your cunt was about to recieve.
"Good girl. I'll treat you nicely for behaving for me."
This was nice? Miguel was pounding you like a flesh of meat. His dick twitching inside you and filling you up with each thrust. You felt your mind go hazy from cumming again. This felt more like Miguel making sure that you knew that you were his.
You weren't sure how long Miguel fucked you for since you blacked out. When you came too, you were sitting on Miguel's lap as he worked on a new reactor. Your mind was still a little fuzzy and your lower half was sore.
"Damn....Miguel...could have been a little gentle?" You whispered, winching as you tried to move.
"You didn't ask," Was all Miguel said before returning to work.
"Fair enough," You replied before sighing softly, "I love you too, Miguel."
Miguel stopped working once more before facing you. His eyes were soft as he leaned down to kiss you. This was one of the agreements during your 'no emotions' contract. No kissing. So this was really, really nice.
"Mhm, you couldn't have gotten jealous sooner?" You chuckled lowly, wrapping your arms around his neck, "I like this evil side of yours~"
"It's not evil. Stop joking like that," Miguel grumbled before leaning towards your ear, "Or else I'll have to punish you."
A punishment well worth.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope you enjoyed!!!!
#miguel o'hara#miguel o'hara x reader#miguel spiderverse#spiderman 2099#miguel o’hara x reader#miguel spiderman#miguel o'hara smut#atsv miguel#miguel x you#across the spiderverse#miguel x y/n#miguel x reader
526 notes
·
View notes
Note
Hear me out…
1610! Miles comforting reader after she get jealous because of how much he’s been around Gwen and he’s just touching and kissing her in all the right places and makes sure that reader knows that he loves her and only her 🙈💕
Thank you for the great prompt! I had lots of fun writing this. :p <3
---
It was truly infuriating.
You hadn’t seen each other in a week due to school work keeping you busy, and there had been a surge of criminal activities in New York, which is why Miles had been occupied most of the time as well.
And now, when the two of you were finally able to hang out again, he kept talking about someone else entirely.
You were lying on the bunk bed in his dorm room, listening to him ramble on about the adventures he had lived through last week.
“You should have been there, the way Gwen incapacitated the guy was like something out of a movie.” He gesticulated frantically with his hands as he vividly described last night’s care chase.
"That sounds really fascinating," you grumbled.
After hearing your unfazed (and slightly sarcastic) tone, he looked up from his chair. "You don't sound very impressed, though."
How could you have told him that his constant stories and songs of praise about Gwen were starting to annoy the heck out of you?
Jealousy was an ugly emotion. To confess to it was shameful, exposing; you wanted to be the easy-going, cool and confident kind of girlfriend, but Miles was making it really hard for you to not seethe with anger and discontent.
"Everything okay?" he asked, and you avoided his gaze. Lying was easier when you didn’t look him into his eyes. They always were too honest and seemed to notice too much.
"Sure," you said.
He saw through your charade immediately, and climbed onto the bunk bed to be closer to you. "There's something bothering you. I can tell."
"You can't tell shit," you said before you could stop yourself. There was anger in the pits of your stomach threatening to take over.
"Did I say something wrong?"
Yes.
"No."
"Then why are you frowning like that? It looks like you’re ready to kill someone. It better not be me."
Fuck. Were you really scowling that obviously?
"You and Gwen get along great, huh?”
"We certainly do." He tilted his head. You recognized that look on his face – it was the same one he had when struggling to solve complicated math problems. "Why’d you bring her up?"
"Why do you keep bringing her up?" you snarled. "We weren’t able to have a single conversation in the last few weeks without you mentioning her a dozen times. Not to mention the fact that you spend way more time with her than you do with your actual girlfriend.”
Shoot. Now you had done it; you had shown weakness.
Miles stared at you incredulously. "Wait a minute - are you jealous?"
You crossed your arms and looked pointedly at the ceiling.
"Absolutely not."
"Nuh-huh. That's why you're pouting." He grinned, and his lighthearted reaction only intensified the nauseating feeling of jealousy. "You know, part of me wishes you could come with us when we're patrolling, just so you could witness how much I talk about you when I'm with Gwen. But the other part of me is terrified of you being with us, as it would be incredibly dangerous for a civilian.”
"Yeah." Biting sarcasm. "I'm sure that's what you talk to her about."
"It is!" He scrambled over to you and leaned in close. "You don't have the faintest idea how important you are to me, do you?
"Can’t be that important, judging by your behavior.”
"Not that important!" he repeated indignantly. "I think about you all the time. How you're doing, what you're doing, if you need anything - always. You're the first thing I think about when I wake up, and the last thing when I go to sleep!"
"Well, you sure as hell don’t act like it,” you mumbled.
“What do I have to do to make you believe me?” He brushed an unruly strand of hair from your forehead, and the gentleness of his touch loosened the knot in your stomach the jealousy had caused. You had only recently started dating, so every little touch of his felt all the more exciting.
You looked at him, and his wide eyes were filled with worry.
“Do you guys have to hang out so much?” you asked reluctantly. “How would you feel if I suddenly spent all of my time with an attractive guy who was single?”
He furrowed his brows. “Well, I wouldn’t be thrilled,” he began slowly. Then he shook his head. “Okay, scratch that, I’d be really pissed.”
You almost laughed. He was just like you.
“Then you know exactly how I feel.”
He kissed the corner of your mouth. "You really have no idea, do you?"
The almost-kiss had distracted you, and it took a moment for you to reply. “No idea about what?” you asked, a little breathless.
"About the things I'd do to make you happy." With a tender gesture, he took your face in his hand and caressed your cheek. "I love you more than anything in this world." The kiss that followed made any doubt you had disappear in an instant. He was telling the truth, that much was evident. “Next time, you can just straight up tell me what’s bothering you. Although I have to say, I kind of like it when you’re acting all jealous and cute.”
“Fuck off,” you said, but it was with a smile. You playfully tried to push him off of you, but he buried his face in your neck.
He was stronger than you, and his weight was pressing against you in a way that made it impossible for you to escape. Not that you wanted to - not when his lips had found your neck and left a sensation so new and good that you couldn't help but let out a sigh of contentment.
“I love you,” he said, His voice was so full of affection that it warmed your heart. “Only you. Always you. I won’t be patrolling with her as much in the future, I promise.”
At times, you wondered how someone as great as him had ended up with someone like you. The room was bathed in the warm glow of the afternoon sun. His eyes shimmered with an amber-like hue; the smile that graced his face was a breathtaking image.
He appeared radiant in the sunlight, and in his presence, you felt a profound sense of peace and trust overcome you.
#miles morales x reader#miles x y/n#1610 miles is the cutest i love him so much <3 <3 <3#miles morales x y/n#miles x reader
1K notes
·
View notes
Text
Shanti
Blade | M. Reader
----------
"I’ve got the perfect job for you, so come and follow me."
----------
Blade remembers the day he officially joined the Stellaron Hunters all too clear.
It was a day he could never forget.
"Oh? a new merchandise?"
The man said with his head slightly tilted. He looks at Blade with full interest in his eyes like someone eyeing an item at an auction, a "merchandise" he said.
The man welcomed him with open arms.
There never was an instance where he would lash out in frustration or annoyance. He always has a confident smile on his face, he never voices any of his negative emotions as if he's someone who's working in an industry. A customer service smile always plastered on his face. Day in day out.
After a few days, Blade would rather call him a merchant rather than a Stellaron Hunter. His behavior speaks for itself. He even speaks with merchants as if he's one of them and is sharing stories and advice he learned in his journey.
That got him wondering.
How could this "merchant" be a Stellaron Hunter? It confuses him to no end, someone so warm like that doing something like this? It's quite questionable. That is... Until he was partnered with the man on a mission.
That man... That once merchant-like man who always has a confident smile.. Shows his true colors...
He sees everyone and everything as nothing but items. He showed it repeatedly like how he said. "If it's alive, it’s a customer. If it's dead, it's merchandise."
He didn't even bother to call them with a more fitting word. He just straight up calls them "it." They're all nothing but customers and merchandise to him.
"No flaws, no waste, it’s a business of buying and selling." He said with a wide grin on his face. 'It's merely business. So no hard feelings right?' That's probably what crosses his mind every time he is given a mission by Elio. People are nothing but items in an auction to him as he raised the bid, it just goes to show how valuable you are to him as an item. The higher the bid.. the more valuable you are to him..
"Night in Aurum Alley never sleeps. It's all my turf!"
"So you’re selling blood, makes sense."
"Shut up and sit down. Punch them. Tie them up. Dismember them."
Such words are said with the sweetest and softest voice you'll ever hear, it's like honey, and you can't help but do what he says.
It works like a charm.
How could a man like this posses such a honey-like voice? Such a cursed man...
.
.
"Oh Bladie~"
"What."
[Name] only smiles at Blade's response, aside from Kafka, he is the only one that can call him "Bladie" and the man clearly took pride in it. "Oh nothing~" The man looks at Blade and eyed him up and down as he opens his mouth to say something Blade already cut him off. "No." "But I haven't say anything!"
Blade glances at the other as if he's silently judging him. "You've asked the question many times already."
"Which is?"
"Come work for me."
[Name] groans at Blade's response, that was so not him! He didn't just say it like that, who did he think he is? A barbarian? Where's all the other sweet honeyed words? "I did not say that."
"It's the point of it." "How harsh~"
Blade remain silent as [Name] continues to pester him. This is an everyday thing to him. If not for the fact that [Name] is a valuable member he might have killed him long ago.
----------
"Hello Mr. [Name], I see you got a new "merchandise"... is it---" "My apologies, but he's not for sale."
"He's a merchandise meant for me and me alone~ and I don't like customers who takes what's not theirs~ do anything funny and you'll be my next merchandise."
"Don't worry~ I heard a coat rack out of bones sells well in an auction~"
#seme male reader#top male reader#x male reader#honkai star rail#honkai star rail x reader#honkai star rail x male reader#hsr#hsr x reader#hsr x male reader#hsr blade#blade x reader#blade x male reader
577 notes
·
View notes
Text
It's A Wrap!
Working on Attack on Titan as a makeup artist has irreversibly changed your life. As the end rapidly approaches, you find that letting go is harder than you’d thought. After years of harbouring feelings for Levi that you can’t divulge, his final day on set arrives. You know it’s time to say goodbye to him and part ways—but maybe you don’t have to.
Pairing: Levi Ackerman x GN!Reader
Tags & warnings: Actor!Levi, Makeup artist!Reader, fluff, confessions, friends/idiots to lovers, alcohol consumption, briefly implied sexual content, AOT finale spoilers
Word count: 6.9k words
A/N: I’m back, happy Levi month everyone! I wrote this over the last month to cope with the fact AOT was ending and also life stuff. This is incredibly self indulgent, also I would love to tell more stories and scenarios in this AU, so this probably won’t be the last one-shot I write for actor!Levi and MUA!Reader hehehe. Disclaimer that I don't work in film or TV or makeup, sorry if there are any inaccuracies. Also please forgive me for the uncreative title, lol. Hope you enjoy the fic!
Levi’s last day on set is bittersweet.
For the final time, you lean against the wall and count down the seconds on your watch. The trailer door swings open to reveal the man of the hour. On par for the course, Levi arrives fifteen minutes on the dot before his scheduled arrival time. He’s holding his usual steaming flask of tea in one hand, with a nondescript rucksack (save for a Badtz-Maru keychain gifted to him from the Sanrio collaboration) slung over his shoulder.
“Hey,” you greet him, pushing off from the wall, moving towards him like a moth to flame. He sets down his things in the sitting area and meets you halfway, letting you pull him into your arms. After years of working alongside each other, you’ve both grown accustomed to greeting each other like this in private, especially after the stress the two of you had put yourselves under during the Season 3 shoots.
“How are you feeling? It’s your last day.” You ask him as the two of you part. To your dismay, you’re already missing the warmth of his embrace.
“I’m fine. I’m not going to get all sappy about it.” His face is placid.
“That’s what Hange said when they filmed their death scene, and we saw how that ended,” you say lightheartedly. Hange had sworn to remain jovial and upbeat throughout their last day, but after seeing the several other actors cry at their phenomenal acting, they had promptly broken down. “And I bet you anything that Eren’s going to say that when he and Mikasa do the cabin scene next week, and we all know he’ll be the first to start crying and the last to stop.”
Levi rolls his eyes before he enters the wardrobe area, but you know he’s not serious. “If you think I’m going to break down in tears like Hange and the kids did, you’re dead wrong,” he continues, out of sight.
You smile. “Sure. It’s alright, you know, if you do end up crying. It’s an end of an era, we’re all going to get emotional.”
A few moments later, Levi emerges in costume, sans the bandages. He sits down in front of the mirror at the vanity table. “Yes, but I’m satisfied with what I’ve done here, and I have no regrets,” he muses out loud, continuing on from before. “And it’s not like I’m done with the show. There’s the wrap party, then the press tour and all that. So don’t expect me to get all worked up today. I’m not saying goodbye to Attack on Titan just yet.” His voice softens towards the end.
But it is goodbye for us, you wish to say. And I don’t want it to be. You haven’t been contracted for any of their press events. After you finish with Attack on Titan, you’ll have a handful of weeks before your upcoming contract for a new show begins. It’s a wonderful opportunity; the show is airing on a major streaming service and requires you to push your SFX skills to the limit. Sasha had been cast in one of the main roles and both Onyankopon and Nifa will make appearances too, so you’ll see some familiar faces on this new project. But selfishly, you aren’t ready to let go and move forward. Selfishly, you aren’t ready to part ways with Levi.
Sure, the two of you will make an effort to talk every now and then. You know him far better than to assume he’ll stop talking to you the moment Attack on Titan is finished; despite him being standoffish at first, it’s clear Levi cares deeply about everybody he’s ever worked with, cast or crew alike. But the chances of your demanding schedules ever lining up again are close to zero, and sooner or later, your frequent messages will fizzle out into a conversation lost to the ages. You’ll drift, until the two of you are strangers once more. It’s inevitable; you’ve seen it happen before with your actor friends from old projects. No doubt it’ll happen again.
You consider addressing the elephant in the room, wondering if it lingers on his mind, too. But instead, you hum in agreement and pass him a headband to hold his hair out of the way. He puts it on, clearly content to not bring it up just yet.
Levi chews on the inside of his cheek as you sort out your equipment on the vanity table. Your eyes are immediately drawn to his lips, which are a little more chapped than usual. It’s clear there is something else that’s bothering him, but you decide to let it go for now. Sometimes Levi just needs to sit with his thoughts for a moment. You’ve learned that being pushed just makes him close himself off even more. A life in the limelight can be unforgiving. Kuchel Ackerman had been the brightest star of her generation, but behind the scenes, her personal life was far from glamorous. It doesn’t surprise you that her son keeps his heart and feelings well-guarded.
As he sits and stews, you apply chapstick and some basic ‘barely-there’ makeup on his face, before creating the illusion of a hard-fought battle by adding a light layer of grime to his face. You’ll add more after the scar and bandages. As you work, Levi takes out a folder from his bag, which is embellished with a small cat sticker that Hange had stuck on years ago. From it, he takes his copy of the script, nary a crease in the sheets. Brow furrowed, he reads it over and over, mouthing his lines with the fervour of a prayer.
Now, that is odd.
“There is something on your mind, isn’t there?” You’ve also read the script for today’s scene. The director had decided to save Levi’s most poignant scene—where his character salutes the ghosts of his fallen comrades—for the very end of his shoot. (Levi’s epilogue scene had been shot a week prior.) This would be his most challenging scene yet, for it would be the first time he and his character will ever cry on screen. “You can tell me if you want. Anything you need to help you focus. There’s still time.” You give him a quick squeeze on his shoulder.
Stormy eyes glance up at his reflection, than up at yours. He puts down the script and sighs, voice subdued. “I just want to do the Captain’s ending justice, and I don’t think I can.”
“I think you can,” you murmur. You gesture for him to close his eyes, and pick up your finest brush. Willing your hand and heart into steadiness, you bring the brush up to his forehead, where the largest scar begins. You’ll never get used to how infuriatingly gorgeous he is. “No. I know you can. There is no doubting just how much you care about portraying him correctly.”
He swallows. “Well, I’ve never cried on camera before.” He stops, giving you a moment to work.
With the utmost care, you begin to draw the main line of the largest scar, the one that passes through his eye and lips. As the brush passes over his eyelid, it twitches ever so slightly, his long lashes tickling your hand. Smiling, you brush away a stray lash that had fallen onto his cheek. As you extend the line down his cheek, you try to reassure him. Levi’s usually so steadfast, but it makes sense that something like this would grow heavy on his mind.
“You’ve been practicing it with your coach, though, right? I mean, I’ve had to cover up your swollen eyes a number of times this season.”
“Yeah. Thanks for that, by the way.”
“Don’t mention it.”
The brush reaches his lips. He opens his eyes, looking up at you through lowered lashes. Your heart aflutter, you staunchly ignore any and all thoughts of kissing him. Doing so has become more and more difficult with every passing day. Especially when every now and then, you think you see him glancing down at your lips whenever you lean in close to examine a detail of your work.
It’s more than likely that you’re imagining it, though.
Finally, the brush reaches his chin, finishing the outline of the first scar. You lean back to admire your work. After many instances of painstakingly painting on the scars and agonising over continuity, you don’t have to look at your old reference pictures to know the exact shape and curve of them, down to the millimetre. But you do so anyway, and smile in satisfaction when you compare today’s line to the pictures from the first time you drew them on him for practice. A perfect match.
“I know you’ve been working hard at it,” you continue assuring him, putting down the reference photos. “You’ve definitely come a long way.”
“Yeah, but I’m shit at it, actually. All those times we joked about how Eren would take forever to conjure a single tear every time he needed to cry, and now here I am in the exact same position. He’s going to rub this in my face should he ever find out.” He chews the inside of his cheek again, looking down. “Damn it. Don’t know what’s wrong with me today. I’m not… I don’t get nervous. I don’t show up to work feeling unprepared. That isn’t me. But today, it is.”
It’s unsettling, to see him so unsure of himself. His nerves are understandable, as he came into the show with more of a stuntman background and little actual acting experience. But anybody who’s worked alongside him could easily tell you just how dedicated he is to improving his craft, and that nobody else could play the Captain with the same quiet subtleties that Levi brings to the screen.
You hope your smile is somewhat reassuring to him. “And that’s okay. You know, crying on command really isn’t easy. I’ve worked with countless actors and many also find it difficult.” In your experience, most actors need a while to work themselves up to cry. The most obvious exception is Armin, who has the unnerving ability to turn it on and off like a light switch. “For you, all you need to do is make one tear out of one eye. You’ve managed to do that before, right?”
He nods, but the firm clench of his jaw and the crease between his brows don’t fade.
“So, it’s nothing that you haven’t practiced. And on the off chance that you can’t do it today, that’s perfectly fine. I have eyedrops in my bag.”
“Yeah, but…” He shakes his head in frustration. “This is going to sound dumb, but it… I don’t know, that feels like cheating. I know you’re thinking I’m being an idiot, and I probably am. I know eyedrops are common practice. It’s just… This is my character’s last moment before the epilogue, and I want it to be real. I don’t want to take the easy way out.”
“No, it’s not stupid. There’s no shame in needing to use eyedrops if you end up not being able to cry today, but it’s really admirable that you want to do it as authentically as possible. I think that since this is your final scene, and so many people are returning this morning, it’ll be easier than usual to muster up those tears.” Reaching for a set of different brushes and paint, you instruct him, “here’s what we’re going to do. I need you to just listen whilst I do the rest of your scars. I don’t want you to get trapped in your head about this, okay? Overthinking will just make it harder to get into character. Isn’t that what you said to Mikasa all those years back? It worked wonders for her. I often forget that this show was her first ever gig, with how good she’s become.”
He scoffs. “Really? You’re using my own words against me?”
“Well, what use is your own advice if you can’t follow it yourself?”
After a moment of hesitation, Levi sighs in defeat and closes his eyes again. “Shit, you’re relentless. Fine, then. I’ll trust you.”
You get to work, drawing the outlines of the second scar parallel to the first, then the smaller ones on his other cheek. As you add in the details, such as the texture of the stitches, you remind Levi of another story that he himself told you. He’d never worked with horses before being cast in this show, and yet was one of the quickest learners. Unsurprisingly so, since he’s incredibly kinaesthetically intelligent. To this day, the cast insists he looks the most at ease atop a horse, only second to Erwin, who actually used to ride in his childhood. You remind him that every single time, his hard work has more than paid off.
Somewhere down the line, you go off topic. Levi makes no move to stop you. In fact, he seems content just to listen to you talk about anything, everything. As the wounds take shape on his face, you reminisce on anecdotes from set, on the time the two of you spent together. With fondness, you recall your first meeting. Back then, you were an lowly assistant on the SFX team, transforming an unassuming man into the wounded soldier who, in his dying moments, listened to the Captain’s vow to eradicate the titans and bring meaning to his sacrifice. You talk about how the two of you grew closer during the filming of the second season, when Levi had a lot more free time to talk. How difficult the third season had been to film due to both of you being spread thin by additional responsibilities.
You skim over that time Levi mentioned you in an interview when asked about a favourite memory on set, and how warm it made you feel. You don’t talk about how you’d genuinely teared up after watching the final cut of the scene where Hange discovers a half-dead Levi by the riverbank, despite knowing that his ‘injuries’ were nothing more than your own handiwork.
And, with your heart clenching painfully, you certainly don’t dare to bring up the almost-kiss at last year’s cast and crew Halloween party.
———
“Cut! Perfect! Aaand that’s a wrap for Levi!”
The set erupts into thunderous applause. You clap heartily alongside the rest of the cast and crew. A deafening symphony of whoops and cheers fills the air, and if not for the growing lump in your throat, you’d join in too.
A standing ovation. Levi deserves it and more. Just as you expected, every angle the director wanted to capture had needed one take each, not a single one more. No eyedrops needed.
From your position, you can see Levi still sitting by the rock. Strangely, he makes no move to get up. Curious as to why, you peer past some crew members that had moved in the way, but you’re greeted with a sight that pulls at your heartstrings. Your eyes sting with new tears.
Curled up by the rock, Levi has his face buried in his hands, his shoulders heaving with quiet sobs.
Something in your chest aches. You knew that he would get emotional at the end—there was no way he wouldn’t, especially considering that his character cried too—but you didn’t expect him to feel so overwhelmed.
On instinct, your feet propel you towards him, but you’re promptly cut off by a few other crew members moving around. Through your rapidly blurring vision, you can only watch as several of the returning cast members rush forward from the smoke. Hange reaches him first, and pulls him into a bone-crushing hug. Erwin is second, kneeling next to the duo and rubbing Levi’s back comfortingly.
Sniffling, you quickly wipe away your tears, remembering suddenly that you still have something to do. Unnoticed, you slip away from set.
There is a tradition amongst the cast that whenever a character dies, the actor receives a bouquet of flowers from the cast and crew. (A size limit had to be enforced after a very emotional Gabi had presented Sasha with a bouquet so large it couldn’t fit through the trailer door.) For this final season, the tradition has expanded to gifting the actor a bouquet when they wrap, for the characters that survive all the way to the very end.
The door to Connie’s trailer is unlocked when you arrive, just as he said it would be. Inside, you find a vase full of vibrantly coloured flowers on the kitchenette counter in the exact spot where you’d left it earlier this morning. Several weeks ago, the cast and crew had all nominated you to put in the order for the bouquet and present it to Levi on his final day, and Connie had offered to help you hide it from Levi until it was time. Careful to not drip water all over the floor, you pick up the flowers and jog back to set.
The fog machines are being carried out by the time you return. You immediately scan the set for Levi, but it seems he has been completely buried under a massive group hug with the veterans cast, no doubt Hange’s doing. You can’t help but smile at the sight. Most of the crew members appear to be taking a break before clean-up, as it is the end of the day. The air is filled with chatter, but a hush descends upon the crowd as you approach.
The actors peel away from the hug one by one. A smiling Petra helps Levi get to his feet. The bandages on his face are halfway unravelled. With one hand, he yanks them off, leaving both of his eyes to gaze at you unobstructed, ablaze with an intense emotion you can’t quite place. With his other hand, he quickly wipes away the half-dried tears on his cheeks.
“On behalf of the cast and crew,” you say hoarsely, “I give you these.” You step forward and present him the bouquet. “It’s been an honour. Thank you for everything, Levi.”
His fingers gently graze yours as he takes the flowers from you. Tenderly, he holds them close to his chest.
“I was wondering where you went just now,” he says. Of course he’d noticed. “Should’ve known you’d be the one to give me this…” His voice wavers towards the end. He scoffs and wipes at his eyes. “And to think I was done blubbering like a baby. Damn it. You were right.”
He pulls you into a hug without a second thought.
———
Somehow, you’ve been roped into taking photos for everyone. Levi unwraps the bandages around his hand before he begins. He first takes a photo with the director and producer, who both thanking him dearly. They part with a handshake. Almost immediately after, the cast members of the Alliance, along with Eren and Zeke, all swarm forward for a big group photo. They’d all come to watch in support, even if several of them weren’t scheduled to come in today. Connie confesses that he’d helped hide the bouquet by letting you into his trailer. Levi makes a light-hearted remark that he should’ve figured that out too, considering Connie also helped hide Hange’s bouquet—which Levi himself had been responsible for ordering and retrieving.
The veteran actors come forward next. Fitting them all into the camera frame was a challenge, but you manage to do it after one of your makeup assistants finds you a stool. Somehow, Erwin manages to persuade Levi into doing the Scout salute with the rest of them. (“I just did it in the scene, though… Fine, I’ll indulge in your corniness for today, you dorks.”) When he presses his fist to his chest one last time, the veterans erupt into cheers.
Hange and Erwin both stay back for a little longer. The trio pose for more photos, all grinning widely, though you decide to put a stop to the mini-photoshoot when Hange attempts to pick Levi up bridal-style and almost drops him.
(“When I said ‘put me down’, I didn’t mean for you to drop me with no fucking warning!”
“I didn’t mean to drop you. Besides, I caught you, didn’t I? You’re fine, see?”)
After that fiasco, Levi asks to take one with the original Special Ops Squad, as it had been years since they’d managed to meet up.
Zeke comes back for another photo, slipping one arm around Levi’s shoulders. As you meet the taller man’s eyes over the top of his phone, he winks mischievously, holding two fingers up in bunny ears above Levi’s unsuspecting head. Say nothing, he mouths to you. With a herculean effort, you suppress your laugh. Zeke has made it his personal mission to photobomb every main cast member from the finale. After months of shooting, Levi is the last one standing, and it’s incredibly entertaining how hard Zeke tries to finish his mission, even now.
“Hand down, Zeke.”
“Damn it, how did you know?”
“You’re about as subtle as Reiner is when he pretends he hasn’t broken a prop.”
Zeke laughs. “Nothing gets past you, Levi, does it?”
As the two continue to playfully bicker, more jokes than actual verbal barbs, you open the photo you’d managed to take split seconds before Levi called Zeke out. “Mission accomplished,” you say, and a delighted Zeke reaches over Levi’s head to high-five you. Looking mildly betrayed, Levi whips his head back around to face you.
You grin sheepishly as you pass Zeke’s phone back to him, the photo on display. “Sorry. I had to help him.”
“Why are you two like this?” Levi says, shaking his head, barely holding back a smile. He and Zeke part after a hug and a promise to get drinks soon.
Levi’s promptly joined by Falco and Gabi, and after their photo is taken, he ruffles their hair affectionately, which makes Gabi yelp. He really has stepped into the ‘cast dad’ role, a development that you find endlessly endearing. Soon after, their parents arrive to take them home— the kids have quite an early start tomorrow to film their scenes with Annie and Kiyomi on the boat.
Jean and Connie take the chance to snatch a couple of selfies with him, before the latter asks if he could join them to film a TikTok for the show’s official account. To Levi’s utmost relief, it isn’t a dance challenge. Connie instead asks him a few questions about how he feels about the show ending, and what the show means to him—he’s putting together a montage of every cast member’s responses.
On the sidelines, just out of view, you watch Levi give his answers. An ember of warmth kindles in your chest.
Soon after, Levi’s approached by the stunt team, headed by an old friend of Levi’s from his stuntman days. She’d made a cameo in the third season as Kenny’s lieutenant. You happily take a group photo for them.
After you hand Caven’s phone back to her, Hange taps you on the shoulder, having finished catching up with the other cast members. You smile as they hug you tight, swaying on the spot; today is the first time you’ve seen them since they filmed their death scene a few months back.
“It’s so good to see you!” They say, linking arms with yours. “Sorry it took so long to come and find you.”
“Don’t worry! It’s lovely having you back. How are you finding your return?”
“It’s great! I’ve really been missing this, even though it hasn’t been that long.” They pout.
“Oh, we’ve all missed you too, Hange,” you say, smiling. “Have you been up to much since you left?”
“Well, I visited my dad for a bit, then I sent in an audition tape for this thriller movie that my agent thinks I’ll be a good pick for. I also got a few other offers, but I’m a little on the fence. I’ll consider those if I don’t get that thriller role, but who knows when I’ll hear back from them?”
“I bet you’ll get it. Thrillers are right up your alley.”
“You flatter me, dear,” They grin. “Anyways, I am here to say that you are the only one left who has not taken a picture with Levi. And that needs to change. The two of you need something to remember this day by!” You realise they’ve been guiding you towards the rock, where Levi, Mikasa, Armin and Eren are deep in conversation. The younger actors are laughing boisterously at something Levi had said, heads tilted back, sporting wide grins. Levi’s still cradling his bouquet carefully, a soft smile as he speaks, looking up at his younger cast mates with endearment. Your heart warms at the sight.
The quartet look up as you approach. The younger actors wave goodbye, disappearing into the crowd. Hange quickly ushers you and Levi together, their phone already out of their pocket. “Alrighty, here we go!” They cheer. “Oi, look lively now, Levi. It’s the last photo!”
“Was about time we did this,” you whisper to him as you come close. At first, you settle into your usual stance whenever you take a photo with a cast member, but Levi is not just any cast member. Not to you. Gnawing on your lip, you grapple with yourself for a fleeting moment. Your professional side barely puts up a resistance, and so you lean in to whisper a question. Briefly, you wonder what it would feel like to kiss the delicate shell of his ear. You banish the traitorous thought, best as you can.
“Hey, can I put my arm around you for this?” As close as you and Levi have grown over the years, the two of you save your brief hugs for behind the scenes, in private. Physical affection is rare with him otherwise—whilst the cast tend to be very touchy with one another, Levi is usually seen on the sides, watching them with a quiet fondness in his eyes. That hug from earlier—it had to be a fluke, right?
And yet, he sighs, and bridges the small gap between you. His free arm moves behind you, a warm, firm hand comes to rest at your back. “You don’t have to ask, you know,” he murmurs in return. “I hugged you earlier, didn't I? Quit worrying. Go ahead.”
Warmth blooming inside you, you lean sideways towards him on impulse. You slide your own arm behind him, and Levi leans into your touch. “Just so you know,” he continues, “it was an honour working with you too.”
Hange starts to count down from three. A wave of emotion hits you, almost sweeps you off your feet. This is it. Your last day of working with him.
Still so much left unsaid.
Straining to keep your composure, you offer a wide, bright smile for the camera.
———
The next few hours are spent tidying and cleaning up. Most of the actors have gone home, but Levi stays behind to help out the crew, as he always does without fail. With how emotionally taxing the day had been, it’s a wonder he didn’t go back to his trailer immediately to crash. As if you couldn’t admire him any more.
Your eyelids are heavy by the time you finish up and arrive at Levi’s trailer. When you enter, he is slumped in a chair in front of the vanity mirror, already changed out of his costume.
Neither of you say a single word as you carefully wipe away the scars and the grime. Your traitorous hands linger for a split second too long whenever they brush against his smooth skin. In his stormy eyes are that same intense look he’d given you when you first appeared with the bouquet.
You wonder what it means.
Sooner or later, one of you will have to break this fragile silence. Levi decides to take the matter into his own hands, catching you off guard. “I guess this is it.”
The sting in your eyes returns with a fierce vengeance. You turn away for a moment, rapidly blinking your oncoming tears away. An invisible vice clamps down, mercilessly clenching your chest.
You choke on your words, but you get them out somehow. “I’ll miss you.” Not the three words you’ve been yearning to say for the last year, but it will have to do. “I’m going to miss you. So much. It’s been…” You wrack your brain, but there is no singular adjective you know of that could truly describe the past few years working on this show with him. “You know what I mean. Right?”
“I know what you mean.” Levi stands, turning to face you properly. The troubled crease between his brows return. “Look, I… I have to tell you something. Hear me out?”
Your heart thunders in your chest. You nod. “Yeah. Of course.”
His Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows. “Remember this morning? I said I was satisfied with my work here. That I have no regrets.”
Barely able to breathe, you can only manage to nod.
“But that isn’t true. Not really. There is one thing I regret,” he says, slowly, cautiously.
Voice barely a whisper, you ask. “What is it?”
“That we never talked about what almost happened at Halloween last year.”
The world comes to a halt.
Dimmed lights. Bass reverberates through your bones. The aftertaste of a Bloody Mary lingers on your tongue. Levi is just centimetres away, his chest almost flush with yours. His eyes valiantly fight to stay focused on the intricate titan-shifter makeup on your cheeks, before he gives in and his line of sight drops to your lips. Unconsciously, he leans in slightly, seemingly gravitating towards you.
Devastating. That is the first word that comes to your mind. It is high time you realise that he will be the end of you; he could ask anything of you and you’d do it. Your heart beats for him.
Caught in his orbit, your face tilts towards his.
A drunken crew member barges past, jostling your shoulder. You yelp, stumbling to the side, before Levi’s hands—warm, steady, safe—catch you. The spell broken, he lets go the moment you are upright, averting his eyes from yours. Levi takes a step backwards—a small one, because there is barely any space in the corner of the room the two of you are tucked into. But to you, he suddenly feels so distant, that he might as well be on the other side of the universe.
“I need some air,” he says, stoic mask falling back into place. Before you can ask him what’s wrong, Levi turns on his heel and disappears into the crowd, taking all the warmth of the room with him.
No. This is dangerous territory. Since that night, the two of you had constructed an unspoken agreement to pretend nothing had ever happened. Levi had never made any impression that it was anything other than a drunken lapse in professionalism. For a while, you wondered if he even remembered that moment, or if it had all been in your head, a result of you projecting your own desires onto him.
Regardless, he had never brought it up. You’d been content to do the same. It was—and still is—impossible to fathom that Levi would ever want you.
“Tell me,” he says hoarsely, “that I wasn’t imagining things that night, and every day since. Tell me I’m not imagining that you’ve been looking at me like…”
Your breath hitches in your throat. “Like what?”
“Like that!” He snaps. His hands tremble in a way you’ve never seen before as he gestures towards you, voice tinged with desperation. “Like how you’re looking at me right now. I-I don’t know how I didn’t see it sooner. Because if I had… maybe I would’ve…”
The staggering realisation of what he’s trying to say sinks in.
Choking back a sob of relief, you reach out for his hands, and he offers them to you with no resistance. A light blush sweeps across his face as he stares at your interlocking fingers with something akin to wonder.
Breathlessly, you dare to ask. “Do you mean it? That if you had known how I felt, you… you would’ve kissed me?”
“Yes. I would’ve. I wanted to, more than anything.” With that, Levi finally looks up from your joined hands. The burning look he’s been giving you all throughout today—you recognise it, now, plain and simple.
His earlier words ring in your mind. I don’t know how I didn’t see it sooner.
“Oh, Levi,” you whisper.
He continues on. “And if I had known how you felt, I wouldn’t have upped and left you like that. I was being a shitty coward, for running away and pretending it never happened, and never giving you an explanation when you deserved one. I was scared, I think, of ruining what we already had. You didn’t imagine anything on my part, it happened, and you didn’t do anything wrong that night… I’m sorry.”
Smiling, you squeeze his hands; warm, steady, safe. “You aren’t imagining things on my end either. I’m in love with you, and have been for a while now.” You don’t need him to say those precious words back for now—Levi’s endearingly clumsy attempt at confessing means more to you than he’ll ever know. “And I forgive you for running out on me that night. We both thought it didn’t mean anything to the other person. For so long, I thought that even if you did, things would never work out, that today would be goodbye, because I have a new contract on the other side of the country, and you’ll be going back to stunt work, a-and…” Your voice trembles, so you force yourself to stop, and breathe.
“It will work. I swear it, I’m not saying goodbye to you. I don’t care what’s coming next, we can make it work.” He seems to muster his resolve, tugging you closer. “No more dancing around this like idiots. We have enough lost time to make up for.”
Smiling so widely your cheeks ache, you playfully poke his cheek. “Well, you can always begin with the kiss you owe me, yeah?”
“You smart-arse.” Levi chuckles, before gently cupping the back of your head with his hand. In a swift movement, he leans in and captures your lips with his.
It’s nothing short of divine.
Levi kisses you with years worth of yearning behind it. His other hand moves to cradle your face, thumb brushing against the curve of your cheek, wiping away a stray tear of happiness.
Eyes fluttering shut, you deepen the kiss. Tongues move in tandem, and it isn’t long before hands begin to roam, exploring the terrains of each other’s bodies with an almost innocent curiosity. Heat simmers underneath your skin, a carnal flame yearning to be stoked, to devour.
For now, though, you’ll have to temper it.
Coming up for air, you close your eyes, resting your forehead against his. As much as you desperately want him, you don’t want your first time having sex with Levi to be in a trailer on set, with multiple crew members still milling around outside and packing up for the day. You tell him as such, and he murmurs his agreement after kissing you once more.
“Glad we’re on the same page about that, so…” Realising what you’re about to say next, you choke back a grin at your own cheesiness. “You wanna go back to your place or mine?”
Levi rests his forehead on your shoulder and chokes back a laugh. “Fuck, that’s such a cliché line.”
You roll your eyes good-naturedly. “Yeah, yeah, laugh all you want, but the question still stands.”
He looks up at you, mirth dancing in his eyes. “Yours, then.”
The time spent packing up and driving back to your home crawls by agonisingly slowly. The moment the two of you cross the threshold onto your home, he’s closing the gap between the two of you, kissing you breathless, thoughtless, until only your longing for him remains. So much so that you almost forget to stop and get a condom out from your drawer—in fact, Levi has to remind you.
The rare few times you had allowed yourself to think about it, you’d pictured Levi as a tender lover, gentle despite his coarseness. He is all this and more. At his fingertips, you come alive. As he makes love to you, laughs and sweet nothings fill the air between the deep kisses you share. You should’ve expected just how generous he can be in bed, but it still takes you by surprise, the way he worships your body with a deep-rooted reverence, determined to pleasure you over and over. In turn, you reciprocate eagerly, honoured that Levi trusts you to take care of him in return, that he is so readily vulnerable with you.
Once the two of you are finally, utterly spent, Levi nudges you awake before you can fully slip into a deep doze, cosy and comfortable in his embrace. “Hey. Gotta clean ourselves up, sleepyhead.”
You chuckle drowsily, and miraculously muster up the strength to crawl out of his arms, out of the warm sheets. “The bathroom is just down the hall,” you yawn, trudging towards a cupboard not the other side of your room. “You can shower first whilst I change the sheets and find you a towel and some spare clothes, ‘kay?”
“Or,” Levi says, voice hoarse with the same kind of contented exhaustion that makes you yearn to curl up beneath the sheets in his arms, “you could come with me.” He pulls you back in, peppering gentle kisses along your neck and shoulder, which tickle slightly.
Euphoric, you close your eyes and laugh. “Okay.”
Showering together is an incredibly sweet, domestic affair. Long after you’ve rinsed off all the lather, you’re both hesitant to leave the warmth of the running water, content to cling onto each other and relish in the feeling of skin against skin.
After the two of you dry off and change the sheets, you climb into bed. Half awake and basking in each other’s presence, you pull him close, nestling your head on his chest. When was the last time you had felt so cherished, so happy?
Sleep claims you swiftly, but not before Levi kisses the top of your head and tells you what you already know:
“I’m in love with you, too.”
———
Several weeks later
The wrap party is well underway by the time you and Levi arrive.
The lights are dim, and the music reverberates through your bones. Levi’s hand finds a home in the curve of your waist as he guides you through the crowd of drunken cast and crew members. His touch anchors you, and you find yourself smiling giddily.
After helping yourself to a cocktail, the hours fly by. Apparently, the entire cast plus half of the crew (including all of the makeup assistants under your command) had been rooting for you and Levi to get together. Tonight when you finally revealed you were in a relationship with him to your juniors, you were subjected to an intense barrage of questions. This, however, paled in comparison to Hange’s reaction when Levi held your hand in front of their very eyes—they’d launched an interrogation so brutal you wonder why they didn’t enter law enforcement instead.
Soon after escaping Hange’s interrogation, you two both get another drink. “Everybody seems far too invested in this development than they should be,” you sigh, still frazzled. “How long do you reckon they’ve been shipping us?”
A look of exasperation flits across Levi’s face. “I don’t know, and I hate that I even know what ‘shipping’ means in this context. Also, I saw Zeke give Erwin money when Hange was drilling us. Fuckers had some kind of bet running on us. Don’t even wanna know how long that had gone on for.”
You tip your head back and laugh. “Colour me unsurprised. That sounds very on-brand for Zeke and Erwin. You know, I think I saw Armin and Connie do the same. Guess Armin’s not as angelic as he looks.”
“That’s been known, sweetheart. The kid’s a menace in disguise.” He kisses your cheek. “Just like you, actually, now that I think about it.”
Playfully, you swat him away. “Hey, who are you calling a menace?”
Eventually, the two of you find yourselves catching some air outside, needing a moment to sober up and recalibrate after a whirlwind of social interaction. Levi’s hand returns to your waist and tugs you closer to him, seeking out your warmth. Melting into his touch, you do you best to commit the feeling of his embrace to memory. Soon, you’ll move away for a few months for your next contract, but you no longer fear it. Levi had sworn to you that this would work out, and there is nobody’s word you trust more than his.
Your love for each other has endured for years in the past. A handful more months is nothing.
Levi shifts slightly to get a better look at you, and cups your cheek. Meeting his gaze, your heart stops; his eyes are a breathtaking silver in the moonlight. Easily the most expressive feature he has, you could get lost in them for hours.
Caught in his orbit, your face tilts towards his.
This time, Levi meets you halfway.
Do not repost, modify or claim as your own work.
Masterlist
#levi ackerman#levi ackerman x reader#levi x reader#levi ackerman x you#levi x you#levi ackerman x y/n#levi x y/n#aot x reader#attack on titan x reader#snk x reader#shingeki no kyojin x reader#reader insert#x reader#gender neutral reader#aot actor au#actor levi x makeup artist reader
814 notes
·
View notes
Last Seen Blogs
fictionandotherwork
Hanna van Twillert
sirkogane
saved for future reference
kairunatic
Too lazy to come up with anything
themortalinstitute
The Mortal Institute
sulugozum
Egeninincisi