#but then all of a sudden on this ski trip we no longer felt like a trio | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

iwaasfairy · 3 years

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𝚁𝙴𝙼𝙸𝚃𝚃𝙴𝚁𝙴

it’s with little things that futakuchi shines, it’s with little things that he breaks your heart. but with one single word he breaks open the skies and douses you in snow, and maybe that’s good enough. ✧ collab masterlist ✧ go support the amazing creators there!!

massive thank you to @tsumue for beta reading!! ily

.wordc. 8k+ fake dating!au, smut, angst

tw semi-public, thigh riding, fingering, daddy kink, but it’s sappy and sweet

It isn’t like summer came and left without consequences before. In the excitement of the warm weather, it wasn’t too uncommon to come back with a broken bone or a new scar, laugh about it and boys and silly trips over iced tea with friends. It wasn’t like summer was ever easy to swallow. It had always been violent and murky, thick with the overwhelming fervor of something that felt like it was over too soon.

Your last summers had been that way each time, coming back down to earth only to realize that the marks branded to your skin by clumsy friends or the excuse of love were never quite as pretty as you thought them to be in the orange evening light. You don’t really know why you’re surprised at the consequences again now, but you do know that this time— they genuinely scare you. The light here is low and murky, casting washed out versions of peach and yellow on your white, body-tight dress. Catching on the jewelry that dangles between your collarbones and bobs gently with the breaths you take.

The waves roll close underneath you, almost licking at the edges of the balcony from this angle, like jealous, grabby hands. You sigh, then take another sip of the expensive liquor that was pushed into your hands earlier. It hadn’t always been as flat and colourless, but the bubbles have long escaped. The slide of the door sets your hairs on end, but you don’t move, and you don’t drop your frown. In this way you prove that he is not above consequence either, at least to yourself. At least to the ocean as it looks on with sad eyes at the comedy playing out before it.

His weight feels heavy when he drops onto the metal seat next to you, a soft groan coming from his throat as he does. You still think you adore the sound, always curious as to how he looks when it comes. Sometimes with a pout, when he begs for excessive praise. He does it winding down from conversations, because Kenji is well-spoken only when the situation absolutely requires it. It’s one of the things that never fails to make you laugh. Sometimes, he groans with his arms around your waist and his chin on your head, asking you to come to bed. And as with everything else these last, stupid few months, you turn to him this time too.

In the little refuge away from the violent swell of summer, he looks restless. The soft, clipped way his hair exposes his handsome face for the world to smother; you like teasing him with it. Just briefly, to watch the slight curl to his lips when he spells out how much ‘you love it’. Inquisitive, hazel eyes that seem to unfold the world in front of him two steps at a time. He doesn’t move to take notice of you for a while, with the loud roll of the waves under you and the soft chatter in the background. For a longer while you don’t notice you’re staring either. Until you’ve counted every rise of his chest to a hundred. But it’s always been so easy to get lost in him, because even in the cold, depressing fall of the last day of summer, he’s beautiful.

“Didn’t think you still ran away from confrontation.” Your breathing slows when the breeze ruffles your dress and his dress shirt. “Just come to me next time, don’t sneak out,” he mumbles, the soft curve of his lips twitching up slightly when he finally looks at you. The weight of his eyes on you has always been a bit heavy for you to bear, but tonight it feels burning, and so does his hand when he drops it onto your thigh to drag little circles into it. “It’s not like we have to hate each other all of a sudden.” You don’t, it makes your frown dig deeper into your brows. He waits for your answer. When it doesn’t come he slowly pulls away from your warmth, mouth corners dropping slightly. “We can still talk.” This last one comes out more like a question than anything he’s said all day, and it makes you laugh, though you have to bite your lip to keep it down.

“Can we really, Kenji?” you ask him, looking away from him when he avoids your gaze. You turn back to the sea instead, letting the salty air stick to your lungs in case the drive back home hits you over the head with nostalgia early. “We were never meant to stay here so long. I wasn’t meant to get used to this. Because when we leave tomorrow, I won’t be able to come to you anymore. And I’m sure you’ll go on getting whatever you need out of your pretty, little life,” your voice softens when the sun sinks under the horizon, leaving you with only a few minutes of the last sunlight. “But I don’t think I want to see you grow away from me.” Again, you almost say, though you know it’s not fair to make him apologize for it a second time. And because it is not fair at all, you’re the first to leave the chill of the balcony. You hold your glass aside in one hand as you step over his feet and walk back into the shiny villa.

The cold, shimmering house you felt uncomfortable in doesn’t feel foreign anymore though. And you hate having to consider that maybe somewhere through it all, you really did grow as colourless. Maybe you grew used to pretending to fit, like Kenji did. Not that it’ll matter much once summer ends anyway. The wave you give the guests is a small one, getting a disapproving tut of his mother’s lips from a distance. You know that’s exactly why he asked you of all people, and by now it doesn’t bother you anymore. You don’t wait up for him as you move up the stairs. The spare room is— was yours for a while, and as much as you didn’t expect it to, you know you’ll miss it.

You know this is the place you’ll think of when remembering. You’ll remember the baby pink sheets you insisted on that Kenji mumbled he didn’t like even though he let you have them anyway, and the way your makeup was just a little more fun to do when he was watching over your shoulder in the rising light of the sun than in the dark corner of your room back home. The memories of this summer will replace the ones of past experiences, and maybe when you leave, you’ll think of Kenji as something excellent again. Like you did for so long. But for now… for now you don’t want to thank him for it. For now you want to be as angry as he was when he left you at the corner of the street at fourteen, tears in his eyes as he told you that he never wanted you to be hurt like that by him again.

And you know that he meant well, because despite his quick tongue and a hunger for breaking through people’s shells, he’s never had a bad bone in his body. But none of that matters, when it still leaves you alone. You don’t know why you thought any of this was a good idea.

“Just come with me. I told them it was someone who lived in the street with us before we moved and it’d be so much easier to have you there, not someone who I’m reading lines with,” he’d said, and you had laughed a little too hard at the absurdity of that. You’d put your white bag of groceries by your feet just to cross your arms across your chest and lift a brow at him, snorting at his pristine shoes and branded shirt once.

“Why the hell ask me, of all people? There’s plenty of pretty girls that lived farther down the street that work much better in the whole play you’re trying to sell them. Your parents hate me.” Your voice had been a little too sharp, too accusatory to have come from an objective place, but why the hell would you have been when it came to him? You’d known each other for years and then lost contact for just as long, you’d probably already been totally different people for a while. “What do you really want, Futakuchi? You’re not still rebelling against your parents, are you?”

“Is it so impossible to you that I just want to take you with me for this?” he’d huffed, running his long fingers through the shorter cut than the one you remembered him with, looking down at you. Always had been tall too, but now it seems almost mocking in difference.

“It is,” you’d snorted, picking up your groceries again. “Can’t believe you really came all the way back here to find me, honestly. I mean- of all the things you could have started a conversation with…” You’d taken a step from the sidewalk, fully intent on heading home. But his hand had been on your arm in an instant, a gentle, sturdy reminder that this wasn’t just some stranger. You’d bit your cheek and narrowed your eyes at him, before sighing. “Give me one good reason why I would.”

And the tiny, hopeful smile on his lips had been enough to remind you of every single memory you’d shared. “I’ll make it worth your while?”

He has made it worth your while, you think as you start packing your bag, not bothering to change out of the satin white present just yet. In all honesty, you don’t even know why you’ve let him in again. As most things that happen in summer, he’ll fade once it’s gone. Freckles do. Scars do. Memories do too. It’s the natural flow of things. So you don’t know why you still feel so saddened by the thought. The feet on the stairs are a bit too slow and careful to be completely thoughtless, something that makes the slight twitch of your lip feel comforting. The soft creak of the door is all the warning you get, and you take a deep breath to prepare.

Because whatever comes out of his mouth next won’t be easy to swallow either. You press the flowy shirts into your bag a little more, focussing on the way they get dented under your fingertips when you let your palm rest on the shiny silk. If you didn’t want to let him in why did you do it then, it sounds loud in your head, even though in your inner monologue it sounds strained too. Why? This high life isn’t you, the rumours and playing dress-up for everyone else’s amusement isn’t either. But maybe you wanted to try for Kenji. Maybe you wanted to see what it was that led him away from you and onto better pastures. The grass really might be a bit brighter, is all you can think, given how much sunlight it gets in the stretch of open space here.

“Is this really how you want to leave it?” he asks, calling your name from beside you. You continue with the clothes until it feels like your fingers are cold and the words have sunken into the floor. But there’s so little to say. “Come on, princess, you don’t have to…” he sighs, and you turn over your shoulder only to watch the line dig between his pretty brows and remain there for too long. His eyes roam along the curve of your face down to your neck, where the diamond necklace with his initials engraved still hangs. A present— fake present, to sell the whole dating thing. “Why are you trying so frustratingly hard to prove me wrong? I mean- just imagine you had fun this summer, and I did too. Would that be so bad?”

“Does it really matter, Kenji?” your mouth is quicker than your thoughts in moments like these, but you’re grateful for them, because otherwise you might freeze over in the lack of his glow. “We weren’t really together. All of this was a little performance, and we played it well,” you huff, putting on your bravest smile as you put your makeup bags away too, “but once we’re gone here you’re going to go back to all of those people and tell them we broke up, remember? It’s fine for us to have bad blood after a ‘breakup’. We held hands and slept in the same room, that doesn’t suddenly make us the best of friends again.”

“A whole summer and this is where you give up?” He huffs, chest rising a little too rapidly. “I think we need to have a talk about timing it out, sweetheart, because of all the times you could have given up on me—”

“I never gave up on you. You gave up on us a while ago, don’t put that on me. You’re the one who stopped responding to my texts when you left.” The grating of the zipper is loud when you close the bag, putting it next to the bed. Your feet hurt, and your head feels heavy in the silence, but it’s the shuffle of his feet that has you freezing over. Without a word he gently rests a hand on your hip, pulling you into him until your arm is squished between your body and his chest. Like that he holds you, looking at the ceiling while he speaks.

“I’m not good at this.”

It’s the soft sigh that comes out after his blank tone that has you softening until you’re barely anything but mush, his other arm wrapping around your front and keeping you locked in an embrace that you couldn’t crack if you wanted to. And in all truth, you probably don’t. As he leans his nose to your temple, his cologne fills the air you breathe and forces you to taste him before you’re ready to, making you swallow him whole with the soft beating of his heart against your skin.

And then you hear his father call his name, with a smile laced between the letters, like he’s the most precious thing. He is, to you as well. And it’s the shake of your head after his father’s call that reminds you it is the same for him, you both ache to burn up together, to be pressed so close to each other that the air has no room to go. It reminds you that this was never your spot to stand in. You swallow through the pressure of welling tears to place your fingers to his chest and push, stumbling back a step.

“Kenji, come say goodbye! Your friend can handle packing herself,” his mother calls from the hall. Friend. You’ve long despised the way she spits the syllables of the word, but you also know that to her, you, all that you have ever been, is nothing more than a cliff in the way of her son’s future. The brunet bites his bottom lip as he stares at the toes of your dainty, little heels; before slowly straightening out his shoulders and stuffing his hands into the pockets of his slacks. He doesn’t look back at you when he turns to the door.

“She’s my girlfriend, mom,” he shouts back, but even you can tell that there’s no fire left behind the words. In the end, he always would’ve lost that fight anyway. You can hear the soft murmurs of a conversation between his parents, but it stays quiet after that. And Kenji moves his jaw back and forth a few times in thought, before he rests his hand onto the doorknob. “I have to go see them out, just a second.” You lick at your strawberry lip gloss and brush your hand over your white dress a few times as you nod, crossing one foot over the other in place.

Before he leaves the room to go wave out his to-be fiancé and her parents, you let the words fall. If not for your good, at least for his. “Kenji, I know you’re trying to prove to your parents that you don’t have to listen to what they tell you. But you and I both know that you will anyway, because you care about them.” His shoulders rise and fall with each breath, but his back is the only thing you get to see. You’re grateful for it. And you can’t help but let a small smile slip on, because the woman they chose for him is beautiful. She’s kind too. He won’t have it so bad.

“If you really want to be friends still, come find me some time when you don’t need me to do you a favor,” you mumble.

He doesn’t say anything as he steps through the door and walks down the stairs, and you chuck the last of your stuff on the bed to put it away too.

And if summer is the time you leave with a heavy heart and the weight of the world on your shoulders, maybe it’s the universe’s way of finding balance making you meet him in winter. The hot glow of wine buzzes through your chest, black, beaded dress a tad too short for the cold weather. But you’re hidden out in the bustle of people in similar clothing and packed close together, laughing along with some of your classmates. It’s dim and dark and surprisingly trashed for what should have been a friendly gathering, but as students tend to do, everyone who got word showed up for the free booze. You lean into one of the girls. “I’m gonna go take a look around the front, I want to see the ice rink!”

“Okay, I gotta use the restroom but I’ll find you,” she nods, before probably relaying her boyfriend the same message. You squeeze through a few of the people with slow steps, goosebumps rising as soon as the packed people grow wider apart in the hall. The loud music is less overwhelming here, you notice, swaying slightly. And little sparkling snowflakes are hung with lights along the walls, making you smile. As you shuffle past a group of girls significantly drunker than you, the frosty air hits you. With flushed cheeks and noses they laugh and spread out among their friends like it’s the only thing winter leaves room for.

As you step out into the night, it’s easy to pretend that this isn’t one of those nights you try to forget. But even tipsy, you know better. The laughter out here is loud, some people squeaking at the cold as they slip around on skates, clinging to each other in drunk, off-balance groups. You wrap your arms tight around yourself as you walk through the grass toward the rink, shaking a little at the frosty air coming up from the ice. The gritty sound of the skates on the ice is barely audible over the chatter and laughter of all of the people, some generic Christmas playlist bouncing around the garden through the speakers.

You lick your bottom lip as you lean onto the banister and blow out a little cloud. A cursed thought of Kenji worms it’s way between your ears as you watch. So with pursed lips, you leave your spot to look around for the tables with booze. The guy behind the stand grins when you tell him to give you a double, though he doesn’t comment on it, and you place it to your lips with a second of preemptive regret, before downing the thing.

It burns on it’s way down, hitting the back of your throat with a nasty, bitter taste. You frown, and chuck the empty plastic beaker into the trash can. A soft chuckle catches you slightly off guard. “Going through it?” the guy asks before you turn to face him, hands in his pockets and broad frame cutting off your view of the people skating. Out of all the people you had to run into tonight, of course it’d be your ex. He must’ve come here for one too many drinks. As he leans past you to pick up one of the shots himself, you take a step back. You didn’t plan on being cordial to strangers tonight, let alone exes.

“Yeah, something like that.”

“I can tell,” he chuckles, sticking out his hand towards your face. “You always get that expression on your face when you’re lost in thought.” He sounds oddly fond at that, it makes your stomach feel heavy. You two didn’t end it great and though you didn’t date for long, you’d rather step on glass than pretend to be a good conversation partner to a person who never even bothered to remember your last name. You glance around the groups of people for anyone you know. Haru doesn’t take the hint when you sigh loudly either. But you don’t see the people you came with anywhere, so you drop your shoulders with a sigh. “Drink?” the black-haired man asks, and you shake your head.

“No, I think I’ve had enough for tonight. Will probably be heading home soon anyway.”

“Ah,” he grimaces at that, “already? And here I was thinking you’d like to talk to me again.” Anything but that. “You always skip out of classes so soon that I didn’t get to talk to you after we split, but that blondie tells me you’re doing well.” He downs his shot easily, and it’s then that you realise how flushed his cheeks and nose are, no longer from the cold. “You sure you don’t want another drink?” he says, as you look over his shoulder to the rink. There’s enough people here not to be worried about starting trouble, but the way he leans into your space is still uncomfortable enough to have you backing yourself into the wall.

“Yes, I’m good.” When you try to take a step away, he reaches for your arm, and out of instinct you snatch it back. “Stop, don’t touch me,” you snap at him, and he frowns for a second. Clearly too drunk to understand that you’re not interested in playing his games at all, even if he doesn’t mean harm. He huffs out an amused breath at your short answer and reaches out again, and you glare at him. “Haru, cut it out, I’m not playing this stupid game.” But it’s when he gives you a harder stare, lips drooping, that you remember why you only dated for a month. He doesn’t know when to stop, definitely not when he drinks.

“Come on, don’t be like that. We had some good chemistry, didn’t we?” He walks too far into your space, and gives you an up and down. “Why don’t we get out of here and try that again? You look really good tonight.” As soon as he reaches for the edge of your dress, his arm is caught in a tight grip, his face scrunching up.

“Keep your fucking paws off of her,” the person hisses, tall body suddenly right there for you to lean into. You don’t even need to look over your shoulder to feel the wave of safety that comes when he shoves your ex back a few steps and pulls you into him under his chin, sighing. Within seconds, every bit of his attention is aimed at you, dousing you in heat under his sharp gaze. “I was looking for you, angel. Don’t just wander off.” He smiles down at you, honey eyes glittering in the surrounding light. “Everything okay, are you hurt?” And your heart seems to swell twice the size at his handsome face.

The stupid stutter of your pulse reminds you just how much he affects you. Maybe even more now. “No, I’m fine,” you whisper back, so soft it barely reaches your own ears. But he must understand, because he turns you in his hold and places a kiss on your nose, then looking back at the guy. You do too, for just a second as he processes the situation, and you don’t really want to stick around long enough for him to get the chance. “Kenji, this is Haru. Haru, this is my boyfriend,” you say easily, not the first time you’ve had to play this role. It comes easily when you feel his strong arms around you, when you feel his breath dusting over your skin. He smells like holiday spices, and you allow your body to melt in a little more.

“Let’s go,” is all you have to say to make him giggle, letting you from his hold to walk you past the people and out of the mass of sloppy drunks. You stare at his back as he leads you on, fingers cold in his warm palms. When you come to a halt in a quieter hall, you gently pull back, and he stops. You’re both quiet, and your dress suddenly feels a bit too snug to breathe entirely comfortably, as his eyes roam your features quickly. You lick your lips, then take a deep breath. “Since when do you mix in with the loney seniors during the holidays?” The grin that comes to his lips is beautiful, widening when you continue. “I thought you graduated, Kenji. Don’t have anything better to do?”

“Am I not welcome anymore, princess?” he playfully bites back, and you try and hold in a laugh, failing miserably. He runs his hand through his hair, before leaning against the wall. “I was helping out a buddy set up that shit out there.”

You nod in understanding as you take him in, the Christmas sparkles filling his eyes with a shimmering glow, waiting for— something to give. Though you could stand and watch him forever. Until he cracks his lips open to giggle. “We have nothing to say to each other again?”

“Oh, I have plenty to say,” you respond, cheeks bunching up when he takes a step toward you to grab onto your hands. “Just… maybe not right now.” The hall here is mostly vacant, leading back further into the uninteresting part of the house, so the thump of the bass doesn’t overwhelm your chest. You’re so grateful for that when he stands toe to toe with you, and strokes his thumb over your fingers. “Kenji— I-”

“Wait,” he says though, leaning down to hover his face so close to yours it makes you dizzy. “I have things to say too. I’m sorry for,” he peeks out his tongue in thought as he looks away, and you use it to lean your face away from him a little. It’s not fair. The festive atmosphere is making your mind all twisted. “For taking for granted that you stuck by me. I think I was trying to prove myself so much this summer that I took too lightly that you were there for me when I needed you. And I’m sorry if I… hurt you.”

“It was a good memory anyway.” You pull your hands out of his when he eyes you down again, much too intense for a normal two people at a random party, but it seems appropriate only because it’s him. The way his cheeks are slightly coloured a peachier tone, his expression no longer the teasing grin you’ve grown to know. “Does this mean I’m invited to the wedding again?”

The amused gleam sparks over his face at that for just a second. “Eager are you, princess? If I were to ask you now would you say yes?”

You swat his hand away as he reaches for you again, grinning too wide. He always manages to leave you a bit too giddy. “I meant with the girl from this summer, you flirt.” He doesn’t take his eyes away from you for a second as he instantly replies, like he’s trying to commit your reaction to memory. It makes you feel so much smaller than you are, because like everything else with Kenji, he always leaves you vulnerable.

“I said no.” Your eyes widen. But the why must be visible on your face because he continues. “I said no because she’s not the person I would’ve stayed married to in the long run, she’s not someone I think about every single day. Someone who doesn’t get hurt when I inevitably flap out some stupid shit. Someone who knows what I’m doing even when I can’t admit it to myself yet.”

“Then you best find someone like that, huh.” You take a step away from him. This is too much. The moment, however perfect, is just too dreamy. You and Kenji aren’t— this, you’re messy and hazy and romantic confessions aren’t your thing. And you can’t help but think that this, this is what’ll break you most of all. You never wanted to think of your feelings for him as anything more than a little crush, so why do you feel this way? So shaky. “I should go home, it’s cold and I wasn’t going to stay for long anyway.”

Maybe it’s because you’ve made peace with being the thing that he clung to to rebel so long ago, that your feet move before your brain can catch up. All you know is that he’ll crack you wide open if you stay any longer, and you don’t think you can handle that. Before he can say anything else, and you know he does— you can read it in his widening eyes, you pivot on your heel and start walking away from the noise of the main room, towards the doorway. But his frustrated huff is loud behind you, and his footsteps close your heel.

“Stay,” he asks, shattering your glass cage into a thousand pieces. Because Kenji is only demanding when he is sure of what he’s doing. You don’t make it to the door before he reaches down to grab you by the edge of your dress, pulling you into the stairway, hidden from sight. You veer back like a spring because of his grip, as his other hand comes to keep you from falling.

In your attempt to turn, you stumble backwards, his arm caging you against the wall for balance. You stare up at him for several seconds squeezed against the wall. With a little frown, the brunet lets go of you, though the hand on your other side doesn’t have any intention of leaving. “Don’t chase me, you sap.” Before he can say anything, you blink up at him so cutely. “What are you doing?” There’s a slight fog in your eyes when you trail off. But you look intoxicating in the best way.

“Oh, shut up.” He grimaces, doing his best to keep the stubborn grin from crawling back to his cheeks. For a second, he wonders if this is out of line. Just a split second, where it seems like it’s not his place to intervene. One he has to wonder if you’re bothered by his unending indecisiveness. But as if on clue, you laugh. Full and genuine, with every fiber of your being you laugh, leaning your head to his chest in the process. Maybe you are fed up with him by now. But he wants to say it, anyway. “I said no because I can’t imagine doing this for anyone else, baby.”

When you take a deep breath in, you look at him from under your lashes. Your mouth curves prettily in the shine of the dimmed lights. “Don’t tell me you fell in love with me while we were playing pretend.” A warmth spreads on his cheeks at the teasing glint in your eyes. “Though I did that too, so I guess we’re both saps.” Your hand wraps around his larger, fingers cold against his warm skin. He takes a deep breath through his nose, at a sudden loss for words. The hall is much more quiet than the main one, lacking in people too. It’s chilly, but his body is warm. Your eyes are on him as he moves back to face you, softly regarding him.

“Was it the fancy button-ups?”

Your tongue peeks out to wet your lips again. “No.” Your finger softly taps the side of his hand, though he doesn’t know if it’s a comforting move or a concerned one. Though your fingers are noticeably colder than his, your touch is soft, like velveteen. “It was everything else.” His bright eyes bore into yours for an extended second, before the tenseness of his shoulders drops when you move back to press your weight into the wall, tilting your head to the side.

His laugh is one of surprise, slipping out like it’s been aching to do so for a long time and you also look surprised, if your raised eyebrows are anything to go by. It doesn’t last nearly as long as it should, but you seem to bloom at the sound, even joining with it after a bit. His laugh makes you flutter, and that almost sends him spiraling. Because it’s his laugh that makes you smile.

“Good. I— As fucking embarrassing as it is to admit, I miss waking up next to you.” Kenji’s hand moves from your side to glide over his thigh, a move to soothe his nerves. His gaze finds yours with more fervor this time. “I miss that thing you do when you cling to my arm or back or hand, okay?” His voice is deep when he talks. “I miss your goofy ass.”

It stays silent for a long minute, one where he can see every breath you take. Eventually you bite your bottom lip. “You’re a menace, Futakuchi Kenji,” you say, mouthing it eagerly as if his name is something grand. Something to be proud of, it makes his heart swell. Your lips look like they taste of candy floss. It’s distracting, even more when you smile. You’ve always been so beautiful to him, he feels like leaning closer to you just so he can hold himself up on the wall. It’s embarrassing how badly it renders him. “I should hate you by now.”

You huff out a small laugh, and place your hands on his chest, the pressure of your nails poking through his shirt. “But you somehow manage to rope me back into your schemes each time,” you smile, a playfulness dripping from under your lashes, “you’re lucky I love you.” A few seconds of pause. Kenji revels in the heat that dusts your cheeks when you realize what you just said.

Before you can bring out an attempt to cover up your confession, he leans closer, effectively trapping you between him and the wall. Before he can think about it, his hand finds your chin, tilting it up towards him so that you can look at him, and oh— are you looking. “Yeah? I know you want me just as bad as I want you.” He can almost see the pitter patter of your heart on your face, longing marking every inch of skin. With a firm hold on your jaw, he leans down to hover in your space, faces so close that he can feel your breath meeting his own. “Isn’t that right?”

When you give the tiniest motion of agreement, the length of his body finally finds yours. Your lips open to let out a small noise, so soft that it immediately gets swallowed by the room. But the brunet smiles at it, moving his thumb over the soft expanse of your cheek. “I could ruin you without trying, angel.” Again, you nod, warm and dark in the thick tension of the room. Though he didn’t start the night with this in mind, he’s wanted this for longer than he dares admit. Marking your body with blooming hickeys. The tightness of his pants seems to prove so.

“You could,” you bring out feebly, fingers tangling in his grey shirt to keep a hold on reality, “and I’d probably let you.” His free hand moves to grab your thigh, pulling you flush against him now, as the other goes to rest on the small of your back. Your eyes are dark like smoke, and though he can’t check to see, he knows his are too. Then you move one of your hands to grab at the hair at the base of his skull, willingly tilting your face upwards so that your lips almost brush his, and every string in his body is ready to snap. Every piece of clothing on his body seems too much, too warm. The friction is irritating. “Do you want to kiss me, Kenji?” you breathe.

Yes. He doesn’t wait for it. Lips on yours in a blink. Hands on your skin and under your dress and traveling up your thighs. It happens in a breath, so sudden that he might topple over if he wasn’t pressing you into the wall. Your lips are scalding, red hot like smoldering coals and maybe you could send him up in flames if you tried. Your hands grab him harder, closer, as if the non-space is still too much and he’d be inclined to agree. And his lips move harshly on yours, tongue meeting your own.

The kiss is hard and messy, fire surging from your body to his. “Fucking finally.” He bends down more to tuck you entirely in his hold, grabbing a handful of ass. When he squeezes hard, you squeak into his mouth, dissolving in a twirl of smiles and something more desperate. But you don’t ever stop kissing him, and he’s sure you two could keep going forever. Where your fingers were cold before, now they seem to trail sparks over his skin. You pull away for a second to take a breath, before kissing him again, his bottom lip, his jaw, under his ear. Your hand grabs desperately at his shoulder.

But he’s only just gotten a taste of you, so Kenji catches your lips with his again, sucking sharply on your bottom lip. It makes you melt into his hold, trying desperately to stay upright. “Fuck, angel.” The hand that is glued to the soft expanse of your back moves to grab another handful of ass, your hips pulled to his. Your tongue tastes like some candy flavored drink, melting with the barren taste of the hard liquor from earlier. Your chest brushes against his own with every breath.

Every part of you is piping hot, sweet and sour and holy fuck— his dick is so hard. Never once has a make out turned him on this much. “You want to do this here?” he asks, and you nod instantly. As in retaliation for the interruption of your kisses, you pull his lip between your teeth and bite it hard. The sting only serves as a temporary line down to earth.

Mouths and tongues a blur as they melt together. Again, his hands are moving on instinct. His fingers tangle in the bottom of your hair. “Want you so bad, Kenji.” You pull back to rest your head on the wall, allowing him a breath, before you blatantly moan at the feeling of his hands on you. Your eyes stay closed. Lips swollen and blurred at the edges. You look fucking heavenly, and the thought that it’s all for him to take makes every fiber in him shake. “Don’t be gentle with me,” you mouth, blindly grabbing at his neck to pull his face back to yours, “please.”

Your bottom lip seems to shake with how badly you mean it. “If you’re gonna do this, do it well.” Your whisper is faint, bringing a small smile to his lips. You don’t see it, but it’s okay. He too is overwhelmed with the undying urge to make you his. He kisses you with a small hum to join. When his lips break from yours, you do open your eyes, looking just as smitten as he feels. “I swear, you jerk. I won’t forgive you if you go soft on me now.” He stares at you for just a moment longer, before nodding. Dragging his mouth over your jaw. Down your neck, hard, open mouth kisses everywhere. And as soon as he adds teeth, you curl into his body, clinging desperately to his back. You moan, your noises sweet like sugar.

The thought of fucking you against this wall crosses his mind, but as fast as it comes, he knows that won’t sate him. He needs you on a bed, spread out for him once, or twice. Sweat drips down his neck and chest and joins the ruined floor of the party. The tightness of his pants is almost painful when your hips tilt to rub over him. It pulls a small laugh out of him, brushing over your shoulder. “Eager, baby?” he asks, though he’s not expecting an answer. Instead, he just digs his fingers into the soft skin of your ass again while you mumble some incoherent words. “Want me so bad, huh?”

“Yes, yes, want you.” Your whines turn into noises of clear impatience, so he pulls back to check his work. Your dress is pulled all the way forward, almost slipping off your one shoulder, and your mouth is open. The hickeys blooming on your skin only make you look more wrecked. He thought he was done, but fuck. Yet again, he has to lean down to grab your face in both of his large hands, and to pull your lips to his. You just whimper, and let him claim your mouth as his, looking too blissed out. “Want your fat cock.”

Your glowing body presses to his again, in an attempt to move things forward maybe, fuck if he knows. At this point, he’d do anything if you just asked. But he’ll do his very best to ruin you like you need him to. “You’re getting my hands now. Beg for my cock after that, pretty girl.”

His knee lifts to sit tightly in between your thighs, and you moan at the small act. “You’re so fucking pretty,” he breathes, mouth at the nape of your neck to bite down there sharply, as your hips stutter to drag over his thick thigh. It sends an unbearable amount of pressure to his center, enough to make him pause. You don’t let him though, squeezing and grabbing at any skin you can get your hands on, as you successfully roll your hips on his thigh. A high pitched noise trembles from your tongue. “Aren’t you a desperate, little girl? Look at you rubbing yourself all over my thigh.”

You just nod harshly, opening your eyes to look at the brunet with a heat-filled need. “K- Kenji,” you whisper, digging your nails into his bicep as he pushes his leg harder into your center, “fuck, holy fuck, please.” Your gorgeous expression right now is priceless.

“You’re soaking through your panties, aren’t you?” His one hand moves past the dress and under your bra to grab you without shame. Your eyes shut with a sharp breath in. “Aren’t you, angel?” he repeats, dark tone pressed to the softness of your cheek. You breathe a faint ‘yes’, probably, but Kenji’s not sure.

He maneuvers your chin sideways to access the untouched side of your neck, and sucks down there with a feverous breath of his own. Fucking shit, he wishes he’d done this a million times over already. You leave him starstruck. As your slicking cunt moves over his thigh in a punishing rhythm, he squeezes hard at your tits, and rolls your sensitive bud between his thumb and index finger. “Use your words for me, I know you can. You’re normally so mouthy.” It’s too much for you, you suddenly pull his head away from your neck and quiver in his hold.

“I— I’m,” his free hand moves to wrap your one thigh around him, not bothered by the interruption in the slightest, “I need to…” You don’t finish your sentence when he ruts his hips to your core, making the both of you moan. God, he wants nothing more than to have you right here, make you see who you belong to. But he’s too selfish to give in so easily. You try again, hooded eyes on him as you jut out your bottom lip. “Daddy— please, fuck— I’m close.” The words alone make his dick even harder, if possible. It might not be long or he bursts, with how tight his pants are wrapped around him.

The smile he gives you is a genuine one. “You wanna cum? You wanna cream all over me, have everyone know how good I can make you feel?” You wrap your hand around his forearm for support. “Do it then.” The desperate roll of your hips to his clothed dick speeds up, each bit of friction to your clit getting you closer. With a devilish smirk that fights its way to his face, he pinches your nipples, not letting your hips still on his thigh. When he bites down on the soft of your neck you buck against him and fall over the edge, nails digging into his back and arm hard.

“Fuck— fuckfuck oh-fuck, ahng, daddy!” You slump into him through the lingering high as he keeps grinding into you until you whine at the rough fabric of his jeans against your slicked, almost translucent panties. His free hand dips smoothly under your dress and past your ruined panties.

“God, you are soaked, baby.” Your wetness is sure to stain a dark patch on his pants.

“Ahg- daddy,” you whimper, “no- more t-teasing. Wanna be full.” The leg that is pressed in between your legs parts them wider, giving him the space needed to slip his fingers under you, first one, then two. You tilt your head back, allowing him the perfect opportunity to latch his mouth back on your neck. You’re effectively dripping, allowing his long finger to slide in without any resistance. He doesn’t hesitate to add a second, enjoying your soft noises of pleasure above him as his lips suck a hickey at the top of your breast.

“Do my fingers feel good in that needy pussy?” He thrusts them inside hard to accompany his words, sending you forward into a blubbering mess. The only thing he can make out is the word ‘yes’, that you chant a million times. You’re so responsive, it’s adorable. His fingers move smoothly in and out of you with a curl, leaving you moaning through the stretch. But he doesn’t stay this kind for long, needy in his touches as much as you are. He pulls back to watch you squirm on his hand and lock your thigh around his body, fingers thrusting in and out with obscene noises and delivering a slap to your clit every time skin connects to skin. “You’re such a little slut. I would’ve stuffed you each fucking night and morning if I knew.”

You’re pinned under his sharp movements, arms wrapped around his neck to keep him close and breathing hot and heavy against his skin. “Feels so good, your fingers -ahn- feel- amazing.” And every time he jams them into your tight hole, thumb rubbing over your clit, you seem to clench harder around his hand. He adds a third finger, smiling at the whines you let out, and curls his fingers as much as possible, until the rhythm becomes too much to bear.

Your body bends entirely under his will, as you whimper. “God— fucking shit, I’m gonna come again.” A soft whine, before your face tilts towards him with two shaky breaths. “Kiss me daddy, please— oh, please, don’t stop.”

He wouldn’t stop even if someone paid him to do so. He gives in, moving his free hand to your jaw to grab it tight, and pushes his lips back on yours harshly. His thick fingers spread you thin as you clench around him, and his thumb setting an unrelenting pace. It doesn’t take long until you’re coming all over his hand and thigh even harder, moaning into his mouth with an iron grip on his shoulders. You dissolve in his arms as he doesn’t let up on your clit until you’re effectively shaking, body jerking with aftershocks. His hand stills in you for a moment as you come down from your high, mouth hung open.

And then you open your eyes at him, and send him the world’s sweetest smile, and he’s totally lost for you. He’ll be yours, and just yours. He’ll make it worth the wait. “Good?” he whispers into your ear, covering your body with his as much as possible when he pulls his fingers out of you, and unwraps your thigh from his body. Your cum and arousal drips down your both thighs as you nod your head, still holding onto him for support. He nods in agreement once, before pressing a kiss to your cheek and pulling away from you. He slides his fingers into his own mouth to clean them off one by one, enjoying the shell-shocked look on your face as he does so.

“That’s it, pretty baby,” he says, “almost made me cum too.” He reaches down in between your thighs once more to swipe up the trails of your cum and reaches up to hover them over your lips, to which you respond by eagerly taking his fingers in yours, and cleaning those off with your soft tongue too. The visual only reminds him of how hard his cock is, and how badly he needs you. You finish off with a soft pop, before looking down at the floor with coloring cheeks. “Good girl.”

He looks around for a moment to catch his bearings, before looking back over at you where you’re fixing your dress back over your body. “Let’s find a room upstairs so I can fuck you stupid.” Your big eyes find his with a dark burning desire still. “I want to have you creaming on my cock too, before I confess my undying love.”

“Yes please.”

#futakuchi kenji #futakuchi #haikyuu smut #haikyuu x reader #angst #haikyuu #futakuchi smut #futakuchi angst #futakuchi x reader #💫ch.futakuchi

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nanamixxkento · 3 years

Text

Always (Nanami x Female Reader)

Rating: General

Content Warning: mentions of blood/injury.

Word Count: 2,827

A/N: I’m open for Nanami x Reader writing requests.

He was late.

It wasn’t uncommon for Nanami to work overtime but he’d never been this late. The hours ticked by sluggishly, until you were pacing your living room with your heart in your throat and your phone in your hand.

You knew something was wrong. You knew it when you didn’t receive his customary text to let you know he was heading out or working overtime today.

And now you felt it. He was not answering his phone.

The worry got the best of you.

Scrolling through your contacts, you sought out a different number.

“Hello?” Gojo answered on the third ring, nearly making your knees give.

“Gojo,” you breathed, voice wavering. “Thank god you picked up!”

“Y/N? Are you okay?” He immediately sounded concerned, no doubt hearing the anxiety in your voice. “Where are you?”

“I’m fine, I’m at home,” you quickly reassured. “But I don’t think Ken is. He’s late Gojo, he’s so late. And he’s not answering his phone and I haven’t heard from him all day.”

Gojo swore softly. “Give me five minutes, I’ll find out where he was sent and get back to you.”

You went back to pacing, now with a slightly more hopeful note in your chest. With Gojo on Kento’s case, surely you’d at least be able to relax knowing where he was.

However, another anxious thought found you before then. What if ... what if Kento was so hurt he couldn’t attend to his phone? What if he was dying?

Your breath hitched with oncoming tears. That couldn’t be happening. So lost in your grief you nearly jumped when your phone rang again.

“Yes?” You answered wobbly.

“Y/N, I know where he is. But I ... I’m not anywhere close, I can’t go check on him. I asked Ichiji to stop by and he’s on his way—“

“Where is he?” You demanded, now scared.

“Titan High, but it’s too dangerous, don’t you dare try to go there Y/N!”

It was too late, you’d already made up your mind. “Sorry, Gojo but I have to find my husband. Thank you for your help.”

“Y/N—!”

You ended the call, dashing to grab a coat and your keys. If Kento was hurt, if he was grievously injured, like hell you were going to sit around and wait for him to die or be rescued. You didn’t care what happened to you then, as long as you could be with him.

Outside, it was raining relentlessly, the skies the darkest grey. It rendered your vision awash with fuzzy colours but you couldn’t slow down, stomping the pedal and whizzing through the streets with your map giving instructions in the background.

Titan High was on the other side of the city, and you cursed everything alive and dead in the half-hour it took you to get there. It would seem you beat even Ichiji to the deserted location.

You stumbled out of your car, and rushed through the metal gate that was left ajar.

Immediately, you felt the lingering swirls of doom in the air as you drew closer to the doors. You noticed fallen chunks of concrete in the open field, and the deformed soccer goal post.

They were all signs of battle that made adrenaline course heavily through your veins. But if there was one thing you feared more than the invisible monsters Kento fought, it was losing him to said monsters.

You made it through the doors, ringing Kento again and again until you thought you heard the distant ring of his phone. It made you race for the staircase, breath puffing out rapidly and sweat beading on your forehead.

It was several degrees colder on the second floor. One wall was entirely blown out, several windows were completely shattered.

Traipsing through the crumbled wall into the classroom, the first thing you noticed was the dust still hanging in the air. The second thing you noticed was the absence of Kento. And finally, you fished out his cracked phone from under a toppled desk.

By now you were so frustrated and scared you could cry. You clutched his phone in a death grip, trying to breathe through the lump in your throat. He had to be nearby.

This time, you threw your reservations out of the window, opened your mouth and screamed his name over and over hoping he would answer.

Your feet carried you to the third and final floor where more signs of battle left the corridor with dents in the metal doors and shattered floor tiles. You struggled through the wreckage, the dust making you cough until finally you arrived at a broken down supply closet.

The yellow light bulb flickered eerily, casting out just enough light to see a heap on the ground.

“Kento!” You cried, falling to your knees by his bleeding figure.

He was propped up against the metal closet, a wad of tissue paper curled to his bleeding side.

He stirred at your voice, blinking slowly. “Hmm, Y/N?” His blood stained fingers pumped your cheek lightly, and he frowned. “Huh.”

Awareness seemed to slam into him moments later as he made the connection that you were real, and actually crouched there with him in the closet. “Wait—“ he struggled to righten himself, breathing strained and you lurched forward to help him. “What are you doing here? How did you get here? Have you lost your mind!”

He wheezed slightly, his hand clutched his side again as small rivulets of blood trickled out through the tissues.

You looked around wildly for anything to use to stifle his bleeding and got up to rummage through the closet and shelves until you found small packaged towels and rags.

“Please don’t talk,” you pled, distantly aware of the tears streaming down your face as you ripped open package after package and replaced the tissue with the towels.

He hissed as you pressed down on his wound, making your heart twist in your chest. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry,” you sobbed. “We have to stop the bleeding, please just— please hang in there. Ichiji should be here any minute.”

Kento clumsily used the back of his shaking knuckles to wipe your tears. “Hey,” he attempted, still sounding pained. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean ... to yell at you ... you’re okay ... please don’t cry.”

Ichiji found you several minutes later, still crouched over Kento who was thankfully bleeding less now with you there to apply pressure on his wound.

He paled considerably at the sight of the both of you covered in blood, your eyes puffy from tears and Kento’s squeezed shut.

It took the strength of both you and Ichiji to help manoeuvre Kento down three flights of stairs and finally to the backseat of Ichiji’s car.

“To the hospital Ichiji, quickly,” you said, crowding against Kento’s side to press on his wound again.

Half-way through your trip, Gojo called, sounding a little wild over the speakers. “Ichiji, tell me those idiots didn’t get themselves killed!”

“G-Gojo-san,” Ichiji swallowed thickly. “We’re on our way to the hospital—“

“—the hospital?!”

“—because Nanami-san is injured—“

“HOW INJURED?”

Ichiji was sweating bullets now, nervously flexing his fingers over the steering wheel. He’d never heard Gojo-san shouting before and it made him incredibly nervous. “We ... we don’t know yet.”

“Your location, now, Ichiji,” Gojo’s voice came out calmer with a hint of steel underlying it.

“Y-yes, sir!”

“Did you run into Y/N? I swear if something happens to her, Nanami will have me castrated.” Gojo muttered darkly. “Make sure she’s safe, Ichiji, you got that?”

“She’s um, she’s here with me and she can hear you,” Ichiji offered meekly but Gojo had already ended the call.

Silence flooded the car again, but for Kento's harsh, wheezing breaths.

You used your free hand to stroke through the damp wisps of his hair, tugging comfortingly at the crown of his head. “Ken, you have to stay awake,” you told him regrettably, tugging gently at his hair again. “Stay with me.”

He made a soft groaning noise but his eyes cracked open.

“That’s it,” you encouraged, barely managing to hold back a second wave of tears. “Focus on my voice.”

You talked to him about the trip you were organising for next month, where you planned to go, and all the ridiculous endeavours you vowed to pull him into. By the time you reached the hospital, he was struggling to keep his eyes open for a second longer but by then a squad of nurses with a stretcher rushed to his side and you felt some relief wash over you.

You were checked in too, even when you insisted all the blood wasn’t yours, but the elderly nurse in charge gave you one stern look and hooked you to an IV.

Ichiji stayed by your side, shuffling nervously and gulping at every sudden noise, no doubt fearing the appearance of Gojo.

When Gojo appeared an hour later, Ichiji did indeed jump a foot in the air. “G-G-Gojo-san! You made it!”

At least he wasn’t shouting, but something about his expression looked distinctly foreboding. “You,” he pointed a finger at you. “Are an utter idiot!”

You gave him a sheepish look but made no apologies whatsoever.

“What if Nanami hadn’t exorcised the curse, huh? You could’ve died.” He huffed, leaning his long limbs against the wall. “And then I would’ve had to spend the rest of my life avoiding him. Sheesh.”

You shrugged stiff shoulders. “You couldn’t have stopped me.”

“That’s because you’re as stubborn as him!” Gojo said. “And as dumb as him,” he pointed viciously at Ichiji who shuddered.

“I gave you one job,” he told Ichiji. “One. How the hell did she beat you to it?”

Ichiji was looking throughly chastised, sweating profusely with his gaze locked on the floor.

You used your foot to lightly kick Gojo’s ankle. “Stop bullying him,” you said. “It’s not his fault.”

Gojo huffed again, but heeded your wish.

A couple of hours later, you were allowed to see Kento when he finally awoke from his surgery. Gojo and Ichiji lingered awkwardly at the door while you dashed to his side to take his hand and pepper his face with grateful kisses.

Kento wrinkled his nose slightly at you but he was smiling. “Kisses won’t make me less mad at you for putting yourself in danger, Y/N,” he scolded, albeit gently.

“Shut up and accept my love,” you said unfalteringly, earning a laugh from Gojo who finally wandered into the room after you.

“Don’t they just warm the cold cockles of your heart?” He sighed fondly to Ichiji.

“You’re not off the hook either,” Kento threw him a mild glare. “I know you told her where to find me.”

Gojo cleared his throat and ignored him. “I think the moral of today is that we’re all alive. And that’s what we should be talking about. Of course that and the fact that Y/N called you her husband.”

You jolted, flushing as you realised that you did indeed call him that in the heat of the moment earlier.

It was easy to forget sometimes when you and Kento already shared everything. You’d been living together for years, you’d even discussed kids.

You cleared your throat awkwardly. “I think the true moral of today,” you said, “is that Jujutsu sorcerers should never be sent out on solo missions. And you really should invest in some location trackers and an earpiece.”

“Mhmmmm,” Gojo hummed slyly and clapped his hands. “Well now that the lovebirds are reunited, Ichiji and I will see ourselves out, right Ichiji?”

“Yes, sir,” Ichiji yelped, slinking out of the room immediately.

Gojo’s smile was satisfied but it quickly morphed into a serious expression as he gazed at the both of you through his blindfold. “I’m glad you’re okay, Nanami. And Y/N, if you weren’t, I might have had to bring you back to life just to kill you for being an idiot.”

“Yeah, yeah, we love you too Gojo,” you smirked teasingly at him and waved him out.

The exhaustion of tonight’s events were beginning to catch up with you. It was nearing three in the morning and all you wanted was to curl into Kento’s warmth and catch a few hours of rest.

He cleared his throat softly and scooted over. “Come on sleepy head,” he patted the space next to him. “Get in.”

You smiled gratefully as you slid into the cosy space beside him and carefully rested your head on his chest.

The lights overhead dimmed a few minutes later to a hushed warm colour that engulfed the room with shadows.

Kento stroked your hair lightly, his breathing soft but not yet asleep. “I’m sorry I worried you,” he murmured quietly, just as you were beginning to wonder if he was finally falling asleep.

“Ken,” you chided gently. “Go to sleep. There’s nothing to apologise for.”

He hummed contemplatively. “I knew what I was signing up for with this job,” he sighed. “But it never gets easier. Especially that I have you now.”

It wasn’t like Kento didn’t know your true feelings about his occupation. You supported him in everything he did, but that didn’t mean you had to like it. Constantly risking his life would never be something you agreed with.

“I know,” you sighed too, tracing feathery circles over his chest. “It’s not easy for me either. So you can’t blame me for what I did today, okay? Losing you is not an option, I don’t care what your job description entails.”

He squeezed your shoulder lightly, as if to acknowledge your words. “I promise I’ll always come home to you ... even if it means you might occasionally have to haul my ass there yourself.”

You cracked a smile and felt it mirrored against your temple as he pressed a gentle kiss to your brow. “That’s fine by me,” you declared and snuggled closer to him.

Silence descended again but for your rhythmic breathing and the warm thudding of his heart under your ear.

It was a much-needed peace after the storm. He was alive and breathing and in your arms, and you couldn’t have wished for anything more.

“Y/N,” he said a while later, stirring you from the first stages of falling asleep. His thumb was fluttering lightly over your cheekbone, and you suspected the innocent strokes were what was lulling you to sleep.

“Hmm?”

“Did you really call me your husband?”

A wave of butterflies, nerves and surprise cleanly banished any lingering sleep from your system. You attempted a calm, matter-of-fact tone. “Yes.”

You felt the ghost of his smile again. “Was it by accident?”

“Maybe,” you admitted, your cheeks warming. “Does it matter?”

“Maybe,” he echoed and you heard the light humour in his tone. “What if it matters to me to know whether you think of me that way?”

You swallowed. “Well ... we’ve been together for years now. I don’t see myself with anyone else and if it won’t be you, then it won’t be anyone. For me at least.”

The thumb on your cheek brushed lower to hook just under your jawline and tilt your head up. You looked up at him and were startled by the adoring look on his face. “It’ll always be you for me,” he said and pressed your lips together.

You melted under the loving ministrations of his mouth, your heart racing and racing. Everything always seemed too good to be true with Kento, even the overflowing affection in your chest.

Cradling his cheek in your palm, you pressed closer to him, lips lingering together for a long, wonderfully charged moment.

When he pulled back he was smiling faintly, but his eyes were serious. “Do you understand why it matters to me to know?”

You bit your lips shyly. “Well ... a girl can hope ... that it means you like it?”

He chuckled. “Close. Very close.”

“Okay, then tell me,” you pressed your thumb to his lips and tried to resist your smile as you felt his own grow under your touch.

“It means ...” he began slowly, letting the tension mount. “That I do like it of course ... but that I only like it because I feel the same way Y/N. I’ve been planning to ask you. I won’t now, not like this. But I will, soon. And when I do, I’ll hope your answer is yes... I’ll always hope your answer will be yes to me.”

Blinking away a tear, you buried your face in his throat and let out a shuddering breath. “Yes,” you said unequivocally, and cuddled closer to him.

He pressed his face into your hair and smiled. “Sleep?”

“Yes,” you said again, smiling wobbly.

“Do you love me?” He teased.

“Yes.” You replied fervently. “Yes, yes, yes.”

His palm pressed over the back of your head and held you closer, sighing contentedly. “I love you, too sweetheart. Always.”

#fluff #Romance #Nanami kento #Kento nanami #nanami kento x reader #jjk #jujutsu kaisen #my writings

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jjk-anime-horray · 3 years

Text

Call of Spirits

Megumi Fushiguro x Reader

Spirited Away Au

Chapter One:

Moving away from what you have known for most of your life is challenging for anyone. In your case it was moving away from the home you once lived, laughed, and cherished. Traveling away to live in a place far away from the house you once knew into a completely new one.

Thoughts of the unknown clouded your head as you travelled through the countryside, brushing by trees as your father drove over the land. You mother was in the front seat of your family van with a old map because of the lack of service in the land. It wasn't like it was bad, but it was just different from your home, it wasn't home, and frankly you just want to go home.

"(Y/n) dear you're going have to lighten up, the new town we're moving too it going to be full of new opportunities, and adventures!" That came from the voice of your mother, the same voice that was adamant on moving in the first place because she wanted a change of scenery.

"She's right champ, you can only enjoy something new if you're willing to give it a shot!" That was the voice of your father, deeper than your mothers, he was nice, but he loved to cut corners and take short cuts while he could.

Your parents were always overly happy and cheery like this, well most of the time, and while you found it a little bit annoying in this situation you ultimately knew that they were right, but even then moving on is way easier said than done.

The outskirts of the town outside of Tokyo was undeniable beautiful, green grass, blue skies, but due to your emotions it all seemed grey and brown in your mind, bland, not your home, but just a place you were traveling too.

"Oh, darn. We must have missed the turn off, well that's what four wheel drive if for."

"Dad what are you doing?"

"Hang on guy's it's going to be a little bit of a bumpy ride."

"Can you just tell me?!"

"(Y/N) you're going to need to sit down."

Just as your mother told you to sit back in your seat the car roared and rushed forward off the paved road and onto the forrest path ahead of you.

Something about this forrest felt familiar yet off to you, it felt eerie even though it was in the middle of the day. Cold even though it was sunny and warm out, but magnetic like the traveling tolkens you hang on your fridge.

The tunnel that your father was driving into hundreds of feet before you, the one lined with broken stone statue, and slight green moss was something that you probably should have just left alone, something that didn't seem like it belonged in this forest. Your gut telling you that is was out of worldly even though your parents didn't feel it like you did.

But as your father drove through the gate, even though it can be seen it feels unknown. Well, now you're going to have to find out of your stomach was right, and not just the product of being hungry.

"Woah, what's this old building?"

"It looks like an entrance."

That car haunted in front of an old shrine like archway, but you didn't really care what is was made of when you heard your parents debating if the stones were old or made of plaster, It just gave you the creeps.

"I think we should check it out you guy's it seems really cool, like and old amusement park or something." You father pitched to you and your mother.

"I think that would be fun hun.....(Y/N) why aren't you moving darling?"

"I'm not going!" You proclaimed. "It gives me the creeps."

"Don't be such a scaredy cat (Y/N)!"

"It's fine, the movers will just get to the house before we do. They have the key's anyway."

"All right just a quick look.'" You mother chimes, but you have other plans.

"I'm not going!"

"Fine, then just wait in the car."

When your two parents start to walk off you have the sudden realization that you don't want to be alone in this place so you scramble yourself out of the car as fast as you can, and run off after your parents.

"Wait for me!" You say while dashing after your parents.

"Watch your step everyone, it's slippery you might trip." You father warns as you near some mossy rocks.

"What is this place?" Your mother questions as all of you arrive a town like screen, buildings lining the streets however there was a complete lack of people. Cobblestone lined the ground and marked the paths for walking that compliments the older styled Japanese shinto architecture.

"Oh do you hear that noise, I think its a train."

"Oh I knew it is an old amusement park, didn't I tell you dear?"

"Yes you did, this place is cool we should continue exploring it."

"Hmmmm, do you smell that dear?"

"I do it smells delicious, we should check out where it's coming from!"

While your parents followed there nosed towards the scent you started to look around at the old building, and wander through the streets. You feet patted against the cobblestones while you wanders carefully though the mysterious haven. Noticing that it was later in the afternoon you walked to find your parents to give them the news.

When you found them they were sitting at a bar, and shoving there faces with food so much that it seemed obsessive.

"(Y/N) you need hmmph to grunidhchomp try this food is so gooodd." You mother and father said in unison as they shoved there faces with yakisoba, chicken, and many other treats. However you weren't hungry, and actually felt weary so you decided to adventure more through the supposed theme park.

The longer you wandered the day went by, and soon the sun was setting. You were currently walking on a wooden arch bridge, painted red, and then when you looked at the water underneath you noticed that they sun was starting to set.

Using your head you make the decision to find you parents again, and turn back to find them since it was starting to get late. But when you turned around you where met with the race of a creature that looked like a ghost and raddish combined into one. You help in surprised as you feel it brush by your form, and you started to panic as you saw more ghosts starting to appear when the day's light started to wane. All of the dormant street lights started to burst with colored light when they light of the day finally disappeared into the night, blasting attention onto the fully formed spirits travelling over the bridge you were standing on.

In a hurry you sprint past corners and fake street blocks to find you parents, bumping into more phantoms along the way scaring you even more than you would have thought.

Finally you arrived at the food bar that you're parents where at before, but when you arrived the sight you saw made you gasp and want to scream. You parents had turned into big fat pigs!

Wanted to move, run, scream, and shout you couldn't because your body was frozen in it's place like the stones under your feet had turned into quicksand trapping you where you stand.

One of the spirits around the corner, a dog spirit looking thing, raised it's nose and sniffed a big waft. In it's deep grumbly voice it gurgled the phrase out that made you know that you didn't belong here:

"I SMELL HUMAN!"

You know that the beast saw you, but you couldn't move. The weredog started to bound towards you, but you were swiftly pulled away by an unknown figure only saying a hurried "we have to go" in his boyish voice before dragging you over the red bridge into the unknown of the bath house with even giving you time to say a word. The spikey haired male dragging you behind him as he tried to get you away from the crowd of spirits and into safety without you knowing where you were even going.

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sxfik · 3 years

Text

wednesdays at 11 pm

read on ao3 • main masterlist • law school masterlist

summary: a progression in time, lives, and goodbyes.

a/n: best read while listening to dark red by steve lacy. this is very short but it was written for personal and therapeutic reasons lol!

dedicated and written for someone i had to say goodbye to, to someone i wish i could spend more time with. i'll miss every moment we had together, but we will still have our own time, just for each other. this distance is only temporary :)

reach out to me @chayenzo_sxfik on twt and @sxfik on tumblr! as always enjoy :)

Every wednesday at 11 PM, Han Joon Hwi, second round judicial exam passer and the star student of Professor Yang and Professor Kim, could be found sitting in the Hanguk Law School Library. Now, one would think, a man who is so effortlessly smart as him, wouldn't need to study that late, correct?

Well, what they failed to take into account was the girl sitting across from him, one Kang Sol A. Every single wednesday, without fail, students could find the two huddled in a corner of the library. The girl would scrunch her eyebrows at the textbook, the words turning into mush as she read and re-read the paragraph, whist the boy would sit, patiently at her side, on standby for her.

He sat in the seat next to her, rolling the chair and sliding closer to her as he'd patiently explain the concepts. He'd explain from the ground up, carefully as he could, checking in every couple minutes to make sure she understood the explanation. There were times where she couldn't grasp it despite his different examples, times where she was terrified that he would get frustrated and give up, finally realizing that there was no use for her here. Still, he sat by her side, with endless patience, determination and smiles, as he poured over the texts with her just to make it easier.

It was a simple tradition, meeting at that date and time every week in the library or at the cafe or grabbing late night snacks. Unspoken, yet somehow set in stone, it was clear that time was for them and only them. Despite 7 billion people, living and breathing through that exact time, that exact moment, Wednesdays at 11 PM was moment that belonged to the two students as they accompanied each other in silence, in conversation, in sadness and in happiness.

The two best friends grew up in the years that passed by, graduating from law students to lawyers. They worked through the failures, and successes, with law, as well as friendships and life. At every up and down, every change and unexpected circumstance, the two friends still had a simple moment reserved for them.

Despite being in their late twenties, they were just starting life together as they joined firms and the prosecutor's office. Days were long and hard, their bodies aging faster under the emotional stresses of the job. The pressure, as emerging stars in a competitive field where corruption is rampant and morals are stored away, was close to crushing. Despite graduating from the top law school in Korea, their life was no easier as they journeyed together, this time as partners and soulmates than friends.

Even though there was so much to pull them apart, their long hours and stressful lives, the trauma and weight of what they went through their 1L, it was never enough to pull them apart from each other.

They clung to each other, to their moments together each week, at a bar, at their apartment, at their office. They held each other firmly, in each others arms, in firm clasps and through the long nights. They clung to every day, every hour, minute and second.

Kang Sol had to say goodbye many times in her life. Some were by choice, some were by circumstance, and well, some were unforeseen. It was a simple constant in her life, the coming and leaving of her closest friends, the people she was surrounded by.

Her first goodbye, was to a man she had never known. Her father, an enigma of a man, someone who had left her mother before she was born. She had not known the man, how he looked, the cadence of his voice, the comfort of his arms. Still, she missed something that she never had, a goodbye to something she never knew.

Her second was to her sister, her twin Kang Dan. Her disappearance was mystifying, leaving her half of a set. It was sudden, and she could only lament for a proper goodbye, a last message, a last look. Soon, that lament turned into confusion, then pain, then anger. Still, it never turned into acceptance, because she knew that she'd find her other half one day, even if it took years.

As she grew, goodbyes were frequent, some angry and painful, some bittersweet and aching. Temporary or permanent, the wounds never truly healed, but the ache would dull with her repeated prodding. Slowly, goodbyes were something that was part of her, something anticipated.

Her final goodbye, she knew was inevitable, and it would be to the man she shared a life with, to the man who sat by her side.

It was still a week until her leave, as she packed up her clothes for her move. Sol was stood at the threshold of their closet, her fingers ghosting through the hangers as she catalogged the clothes she was taking with her and the ones she was leaving. She moved efficiently through them, her fingers knowing which blouse and which shirt was which just by the feel of the cloth.

Her hands finally reached for the last hanger, as her fingers touched the fabric of the old cardigan. The memory was instantaneous, her senses flooding with the fateful day.

It was evening, the summer air thick and humid, and it enveloped the two walking side by side. It was a long week, the two lawyers just settling into their positions at work. Still, the wednesday nights were reserved for just them, as they walked on the sidewalk leading to Sol's apartment.

The two were talked about everything and nothing, the years of familiarity with each other allowing them to read and guess each others moves before they were even made. Still, they yearned to learn more about each other: about the fears, and joys, and childhood memories.

It was no surprise that they also learned the feel of their hands held firmly in each other, the feel of soft loving kisses left on each other's lips, the feel of their hands on each other's warm body.

It was a simple matter of time.

Sol blinked, and hot tears rolled out of her eyes. Her throat constricted, her chest feeling tight as she thought about every moment that she would no longer share with him after her leave. There would be no more moments spent in bed, soaking in the sun as she lay across his lap in silence, watching him in his gold-rimmed glasses as he read. There would be no more moment spent in each others company as they took long trips, the conversation straying into the most mundane and the most unique topics. There would be no more moments, spent having conversations conveyed through their expressions across the courtroom. Nor would there be parties, where Sol could seek him out, joining his side as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, pulling her in.

That night, as she crawled into bed with him, she held him a little closer, a little tighter. She clung onto her Joon Hwi, her constant and her love.

Kang Sol sat in the front seat of his car, the trunk loaded with her bags for the next 6 months. The skies were dimming, as the sun disappeared at the horizon. The skies were colored with pinks and blues, the clouds light and airy, almost like cotton candy. What a beautiful day to say goodbye.

After a whirlwind year, she was offered a position in law research at a university in the UK. It was an opportunity of a lifetime, and with the support of her boyfriend and her family, she accepted. Still when she said yes, it was just a dream of a land so far away, a goal that seemed mythic.

There were days spent in joy and bliss, ones spent in sadness and frustration. Sol waited for the moment she could get closer to her dream, to the name and place she was working towards for years. Yet the months passed, time picking up momentum as they got closer and closer to her leave.

The car ride was spent in small conversations and chatter, the silence and pain developing within them as they got closer to the airport. They avoided talks of their destination, instead choosing to talk about all the mundane things in their life. The pain built in her chest, the tightness in her throat growing steadily as they grew closer and closer. She would refuse to look out the window, choosing to look at Joon hwi.

She forced her mind to memorize him as he sat in the driver seat. The angle of his jaw, the smoothness of his skin. The small birthmark near his collarbones, and the way his eyes would flit across the road and towards the mirrors. She memorised every small movement of his, the rhythm of his breathing and the light drumming of fingers on the steering wheel.

The drive that usually took half an hour, whisked by in what felt like 5 minutes. The time flew by too fast, as he parked at the side of the drop off lane in front of the airport.

They paused. For 1, 2, 3 seconds, they sat frozen in their seats, her eyes on him with his hands gripping the steering wheel tight, his knuckles almost white.

Joon hwi twisted in his seat to face her, the busyness of the world around them lay forgotten.

"I'll call you, sol" he said, his lips curved into a smile. his eyes crinkled, as he reached out to tuck a stray hair behind her ear. "Wednesdays at 11, right?" he asked her, his head tilting, his eyes sparkling with mirth but glistening with unshed tears.

She laughed, biting her lip to prevent the tears threatening to overspill, to hold down the part of her that desperately wants to beg to stay with him. "I love you, Han Joon hwi," she whispered to him and their eyes never left each other, their confessions private as they left soft kisses for each other.

Sol knew then.

Goodbyes would hurt entirely different when she was with him.

Goodbyes, even temporary ones, were a lot harder than they used to be.

#mine #law school #law school kdrama #law school jtbc #law school netflix #jtbc law school #kang sol a #han joon hwi #ryu hye young #kim beom #kim bum #solhwi #my fanfiction #my writing #angst

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flameohotwife · 3 years

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'Til We Meet Again

Aang has passed. Katara is heading to the South to start anew without him, and finally begins to process her grief along the way. Written for the @kataang-week 2021 prompt: the sea & the sky

Read on ao3 or ffn

Everyone who remained was gathered outside at the dock on Air Temple Island. Saying goodbye to the gang was always hard, but this time was different. This time they were missing one of their own, and he wouldn’t be coming back. Not as they knew him, anyway.

They’d held a private sky burial almost a week ago, and the public memorial the previous day, so most of the dignitaries had finally gone. Katara looked out to Yue Bay and willed herself to keep it together just a little longer. The low hanging clouds were pale orange in the early morning light, reminding her of when they’d bent the clouds together a lifetime ago. A sob rose in her throat and she hastily swallowed it. Not yet.

Her friends and family huddled around her. Toph, Sokka, Suki, Zuko, and even Mai came in for one of Team Avatar’s notorious group hugs. She closed her eyes when a breeze blew by, trying to pretend it was him. That he was still there. If she could keep pretending, she might be able to make it.

Bumi, Kya and Tenzin came out of the house and down to the dock, bags in hand. “Everybody ready?” Bumi asked. He fidgeted uncomfortably with his bag, unsure what to do with so much negative energy.

“There’s been a change in plans,” Katara said carefully. All eyes sprung to her. She hadn’t mentioned this to anyone, yet. “You all are going on the ship as planned with Sokka and Suki. Tenzin, dear, I’m going to take Oogi. We’ll meet you in the South Pole.”

Tenzin’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open comically. He had inherited the need to intricately plan every detail of their trips from his uncle, and this was surely throwing a wrench into his itinerary. “Mother, please, come on the ship with us,” he begged. “Or at least let one of us come with you. Are you sure you’re…”

“I’m fine,” Katara snapped, cutting Tenzin off and assuring everyone there that she was anything but. Sokka stepped forward to put a strong hand on his nephew’s shoulder.

“She’ll be okay, buddy,” he said. “She needs some time in the sky on her own.”

Katara smiled thankfully at her brother. Of course he would understand her grief. He had been with her throughout all her worst times, after all. She obviously hadn’t taken to the skies when their mother died, but she knew he remembered the nights she spent out by the ocean alone, after the chores were done and the family in bed. She’d often returned to find him waiting up for her, a pot of tea over the fire. And now, after a week of being smothered by friends and family and strangers alike, all bringing condolences, Katara needed some air. She pulled her babies--now so much taller than her--in for a group hug of their own.

“You’re all so strong,” she started, fighting the tears pricking at her eyes. Just a little longer. “We’ll be together again before you know it. And I’m going to make you all go penguin sledding, since your Dad won’t be there to do it.” She pulled back with a twinkle in her shining blue eyes, kissing them each soundly on the forehead in turn before heading over to where Oogi had been patiently waiting to get on the ship with everyone. She nuzzled his face affectionately. “Ready, boy?”

Oogi grunted and licked her and a laugh escaped her throat. “Toph, Zuko, Mai,” she said, turning to face her friends who wouldn’t be joining them in the South Pole, “Thank you. For everything, especially this week. I’m sure I’ll see you again soon.”

“Don’t be so sure about that, Sweetness,” Toph laughed, “I’m going back into hiding. That was too much people-ing for me. Maybe in another 66 years.”

“Well, you’re welcome at the palace anytime,” Zuko said. “We should get back to Izumi, though. Have a safe journey south, okay?”

“Yeah, don’t be a stranger,” Mai added dryly. Katara nodded, but Mai knew she wouldn’t be coming to visit the palace again. She and Aang had shared too many memories there. Maybe they’d see each other at smaller events, but it seemed Katara was going to retire from public view as well. She watched as her friend climbed up onto the giant bison’s head and Tenzin airbent her bags into the saddle for her. Her long hair, drawn up in a bun with her signature loopies, was more white than brown now, and Mai noticed far more wrinkles and worry lines on Katara’s face than she’d had the last time they’d seen each other, only a few months prior. Aang’s illness and subsequent passing had taken a physical toll on her, as well.

“Bye, everyone,” Katara waved one last time, sad eyes sweeping over each cherished face, and the place that had been her home for the majority of her life so far. That she had built with him. She could feel her heart squeezing in her chest, and knew she had to get out of there. “Yip yip!”

Finally, the wind whipped around her as they soared into the sky. It was such a familiar feeling, even though it had been months since she had left Air Temple Island while she tended to Aang, refusing to leave his side. But there was nothing tying her to this place--this home that they had dreamed of together and made so many memories in--anymore. Her children were grown and would be fine on their own, and her tether was gone.

Katara closed her eyes and just listened to the sound of the air moving against her ears. She had never felt as at home in the sky as Aang had, but after traveling with him so much throughout their lives, flying on a bison gave her a warmth in her chest that had been missing since he’d passed. She felt the walls she had built, trying to be strong for her children and friends, begin to crumble, and after keeping them in for so long, let the tears flow freely, sobbing to the sky.

Suddenly, she was 14, bending the clouds atop Appa with her best friend. She remembered being in awe of their ability to combine their elements to make something new, how much fun it had been; how it had felt like dancing, and how he had referenced that moment later, when they began to have children together, calling Bumi, Kya, and Tenzin their little “cloudbabies.”

She was soaring through the sky beside him on his glider to deal with the Harmony Restoration Movement. Learning to fly side-by-side on his glider with him had been something of an adventure, but when they did, it was like nothing she had ever experienced before. They were perfectly in sync, especially when they flew over the ocean. She remembered staring at the horizon, where the sea touched the sky, and the wispy clouds made from both of them coming together, and feeling so at home, like she had always been meant to be there, with him.

She was flying over the ocean with Aang, sitting back in Appa’s saddle and leaning into his warm chest. He was asking her to stay with him forever, and she was telling him she couldn’t live without him. Katara felt her heart shatter for the thousandth time since he passed, and he wasn’t there to glue her pieces back together again, like he always had been.

She knew she was resilient. That she had lost before, and would lose again, and that this pain--though it would never leave her--would become bearable with time. She knew her life didn’t revolve completely around Aang, and it never had, but she had spent so much of her life loving him so completely that now, with nowhere left for that love to go, she felt swallowed by it.

Alone, up in his element, without the people she always felt the need to be strong for (and the one person who had never made her feel that way), Katara let herself break. Again and again, as often as she needed to. The wind was comforting in an aching sort of way, and the crying was cathartic. She hadn’t felt this free since before Aang had fallen ill. Since the last time they’d flown together. She wanted to close her eyes and pretend he was sitting next to her, that the breeze was him teasing her, that this was all a dream. Instead she forced her eyes to the horizon, tears still streaming.

The sun had risen much higher in the sky since she’d left Air Temple Island. There was no more orangish-pink sky, but there was still a string of low-lying clouds that blocked her view of the sky and sea coming together. All of a sudden, that freeness she felt dissipated and an indignant anger rose in her. She was angry at those clouds and angry at the circumstances that caused Aang’s early death and angry that he wasn’t there to comfort her. It wasn’t fair. She felt cheated out of decades more time with him, of the chance to be grandparents together, or to really enjoy their golden years together. She erupted with a mournful wail, slashing at the clouds with her bending until they too exploded in a downpour.

Katara took some time then, to breathe, and to feel. To really, truly, deliberately feel everything she had been trying to avoid in the week since he died. Since he left her. She recalled another time her grief and anger had gotten the better of her, and how he had calmly, gently advised her, “let your anger out. Then let it go.” She could still hear his sweet twelve-year-old voice and see the concern in his grey eyes in the back of her memory. She took another centering breath, like he had taught her to do after the war when they were both haunted by nightmares and panic attacks, and as she exhaled, she tried to push out all the anger with the air. To rid her body and soul of any animosity surrounding her feelings about him.

She resolved to be at peace. To let her waves of anger and frustration flow like water, and let it go. She didn’t have a choice in the situation, after all; the only choice she had was how she responded.

“I love you, Sweetie,” she whispered to the sky. The tears were still tracing paths down her face, but it was calming, again like before. “I know you had to go. And...I know you would have stayed with me if you could. It’s just another Avatar trip--another Spirit World journey, only this time…” Katara paused, closing her eyes to allow the sorrow to pass through her in sobs before continuing. “This time, it seems so permanent. I know you said it’s not goodbye forever, that this will only last ‘til we meet again in the Spirit World, and then we’ll be together for eternity. But it just… it hurts so much more, being without you this time. I know I can be strong. I will be. I just miss you, is all.”

There was a gentle breeze that swirled around her hair and kissed her face. She opened her eyes in shock; it seemed so intentional, like bending, but he wasn’t there, of course. She smiled, though, and then she laughed, because she knew she would always find him. She had been destined to find him in that iceberg, and she would continue to find his spirit now in the playful air currents, or in the beauty of a field of flowers, or in the laughter of children, until she could find him in the Spirit World and they would be united once more.

She knew that as long as she could keep his spirit with her, she could get through this. That she could be happy again, for him, for their children, and for herself. She also understood that her decision to move to the South Pole was the right one, not only because it would be the best place to train the next Avatar in waterbending, like she had promised Aang she would, but because the open space would be perfect for her healing heart. Katara could live out the rest of her days there, surrounded by both their elements; by the sea and the sky.

#kataang week 2021 #the sea & the sky #SORRY for the sad!#katara #aang #kataang #atla #grown up gaang #cloud family #grief/mourning #i can't usually even read aang death fics but here i am writing one #I'M SORRY

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woah-were-halfway-there · 4 years

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Island In The Sun

A/N: Finally the highly requested little (very long) vacation one shotttttttt, enjoy :)

Word Count: 7.8k

To you, summer was the best time of the year.

The weather was beautiful, the days were long, and the best part, Auston was off. Although you had nothing against hockey, you always loved the offseason because it allowed the two of you to relax and be together without worrying about being separated. As a parent, you loved it even more.

One of your favourite things ever was seeing Auston and Mia interact together, and the summertime allowed you to witness that all the time. Whether it be them cuddled up on the couch watching a movie together, splashing around in the pool as Auston tried to teach your one and a half-year-old to swim, or even just the two of them walking ahead while you and Frank trailed right behind; you loved watching their bond grow. And there wasn't much more you appreciated than those special moments you got to share with your little family.

However, since Mia was born, it had been a bit harder to find time for yourself. Not that you cared, though, because you loved your daughter more than anything in the world, but compared to before, it was much more complicated to do things and not have to worry about Mia's wellbeing as you did them.

It was even more challenging whenever you and Auston tried to have some alone time together. Sure, the two of you would cuddle up on the couch and watch Netflix every once in a while after putting Mia to bed, but going out or doing anything that was just the two of you for more than a couple of hours, simply had not been doable.

Hockey season didn't help with that either.

With Auston consistently coming and going for roughly six months of the year, the two of you struggled even more with getting some alone time. When Auston was home, of course, he'd want to spend time with you, but he also would be determined not to miss any time he could get with Mia. Therefore, making that much-needed husband and wife time more challenging to achieve. Sure, the two of you always took what you could get, but leading up to the end of the season, your friends and family would always go off on both you and Auston how a night to yourselves was necessary.

Still, nothing extravagant happened. In complete honesty, the two of you were content with nights in that consisted of cuddling on the couch while Mia was asleep upstairs. It was simple. To you and Auston, it was perfect. Neither of you needed anything more than that, but then the opportunity to go on vacation with Auston's family came up.

The Matthews family had plans to go to Cabo San Lucas in Mexico for a week-long trip at the end of July. They had vacationed in the same area a few years prior, back while you and Auston were still dating and long before Mia arrived, but you couldn't tag along for the trip because of things going on at home. That was fine, though, you still loved seeing the pictures and hearing all the stories, but this time around, you were very excited to join.

Seeing as Mia was almost a year and a half old, it was the first time you and Auston were travelling outside of the US or Canada with her. You knew the flight from Phoenix to Cabo wouldn't be an issue seeing as she was ok on the much longer trip to Toronto, but you were still very interested to see how she was with being in a completely new setting.

You were most excited to see how she'd like the Beach, and luckily for you, she loved it.

The first half of your week-long trip flew by. The day everyone arrived mainly consisted of getting settled into accommodations and relaxing a bit before the fun actually started during the following days.

Speaking of accommodations, they were unreal and so lovely.

Along with some family friends, the entire family was set up in three different places within walking distance of each other along the Beach. The first house was a little bungalow where Brian and Ema stayed, giving them their own relaxing space to go back to after a long day with the fam. The next one was a much larger house that was able to accommodate more people. It had a pool, games and all different types of activities just there and ready to use. That was where Alex, Bre, as well as the friends that tagged along stayed. It was also where everyone spent the most time as a group unless you were all out doing other things.

The last house was a kind of villa type thing. It was a bit larger than where Brian and Ema stayed, but nowhere near as big as the house between the two, and was the perfect size for your little family. The villa had two bedrooms, one smaller one that wasn't even used but was stunning, and a huge master bedroom with a large ensuite and walk-in closet. It had a little kitchen and living room with massive floor to ceiling windows that overlooked the Beach and was the perfect little oasis for you, Auston and Mia. Sure, it felt a little empty without Frank roaming around, but you knew he was living it up back in Scottsdale while being watched by a close friend of Auston's.

Your first full day in Cabo was nothing short of amazing.

You started the morning off by meeting up with the rest of the group for breakfast at a restaurant nearby. Everyone discussed how things were as they settled in the night before, then moved on to talk about what the day's events would consist of. It was established that after breakfast, the guys and Bre were going to do a round of golf. As they did that, you and Mia decided to spend some time on the Beach with Ema and Alex.

It was super peaceful.

You spent a fair bit of time in the water, gently pushing around a standup paddleboard while Mia sat on it with her little lifejacket, smiling widely and giggling as you moved her around. After doing that for a little while, Alex said she'd watch Mia so that you and Ema could explore a little bit. That went on for a couple of hours before eventually being joined by everyone else.

"Hello, Miss Mia," Bre chimed as she sat down next to you on the beach blanket later that afternoon, immediately earning a response from your daughter from where she sat between your legs playing with a shovel.

"Look who's back, Mia! Is that your Auntie Bre?" You asked your daughter as she held onto your hands to pull herself into a standing position before wobbling towards Bre.

"Tee!"

"Hi, sweet girl," Bre responded with outstretched arms so that she could pull Mia in for a hug once she was close enough. Mia hugged her tightly and let out a happy squeal before Bre set her down in her lap and looked back to you. "How's it going? What have you guys been up to all day?"

"Good, we've just been hanging around here," you told her with a smile. "I explored with your mom for a bit, then Alex and I got smoothies a little while ago, now they're out on the jet skis. Mia has been absolutely loving the Beach, but I haven't taken her swimming just yet. How was golf? Did you kick their butts?"

"You know it," she said matter of factly, making you chuckle. "Auston was a little cheesed."

"Of course, he was. Sore loser."

"Always!"

She then explained how Brian had plans to surprise Ema with a little dinner that night, so he was back at their bungalow, setting up a reservation for just the two of them. She also mentioned how Auston had gone back to your villa to shower and should be joining any minute.

As the two of you chatted, neither of you noticed Ema and Alex as they docked their jet skis and began walking towards you until Mia got all smiley again.

"What's got you all excited, huh?" Bre asked as Mia started reaching towards something behind her aunt, making you glance in the same direction to see who it was approaching.

"She sees your mom," you replied while smiling and waving to the two women approaching.

"Ah, no wonder," she chuckled and stood up from her spot to go greet them with Mia.

"Oh, hello there," Ema said as Mia tackled her in a hug, indicating that she now wanted to be held by her grandmother.

"Wow, Mia, nice to know who your favourite relative is," Alex joked as she sat down next to you, nudging you with her shoulder. "You ready to go shopping?"

"Yeah, whenever you guys are ready!"

"Is Mia coming?" Bre asked as she, Mia and Ema joined you and Alex again.

"I don't think so," you replied. "Auston wants to take her for a bit to hang around the pool before she needs a nap, I believe."

"Fair enough," Alex nodded and watched as Ema walked with Mia to where the tide flowed onto the shore. "We probably have a few minutes before he gets here, do you mind if I take Mia in the water as we wait?"

"Not at all, I'll have her towel ready."

"Wait, I'm coming!" Bre called after her sister as the two walked towards the water.

You sat back and watched as your mother and sisters-in-law took turns wading into the water while holding onto Mia until a small waved formed and brushed passed them. It was so simple, but Mia loved every second of it. Each time she touched the water, Mia would let out a squeal of delight and laugh before splashing around a bit, earning some dramatic gasps from Alex and Bre.

As you watched, you couldn't help but smile as your heart swelled with so much love. These three women had become such important people in your life throughout your relationship with Auston. They always loved and supported you, welcomed you as one of their own, and built a significant and lasting relationship with you. That love was shared with your daughter from the moment she was born and had only grown ever since. You were well aware of how much Mia adored her aunts and grandparents, and it just made you so happy that she was going to grow up with these amazing people always watching out for her.

After a few minutes went by, there was a sudden presence of a person sitting on the sand behind you and pulling you close to them. You didn't need to turn around to tell that it was Auston with the way his arms instantly wrapped around you protectively, and his facial scruff brushed against your skin as he leaned his chin onto your shoulder, quietly observing his mom and sisters play with Mia as well.

"Hey, you," you said after a moment of just sitting there in comfortable silence, before looking at your husband and smiling. "How was golf?"

"Oh, I'm sure you already know how golf was," he responded with an eye roll.

"You lost that bad, huh?"

"Don't wanna talk about it."

You couldn't help but chuckle at the way he was acting, as he let out a huff and looked at you with a pointed glance. "Well, if it's any compensation, I'm glad that you're back even if you did lose to your little sister. Can't be better than everyone at everything, babe."

"Yeah, whatever, I'll take it," he replied with a grin. "Besides, I've got my prize right here, anyways."

He then leaned towards you, and you closed the remaining space between the two of you by meeting his lips with yours in a soft, sweet kiss. You could feel him smirk against you and had no intention to break away from him either until a voice interrupted.

"Geez, get a room," Bre spoke up from where she stood in the water, sticking her tongue out jokingly once you looked at her.

"Leave them be," Ema scolded her daughter before smiling at you and Auston.

"Way to ruin the moment, Bre," Alex scoffed and stepped out of the water with your daughter. "But, I do think someone's excited to see you, Auston."

"Daddy!" Mia exclaimed and reached towards you and Auston as she and Alex approached.

"Hi, baby," Auston grinned widely and reached up to take Mia from his sister's hold, not waiting any longer to snuggle her into his chest. "Did you have fun in the water?"

"Uh-huh," she replied as she leaned back to look at him and smile.

The two then started chatting, and you subtly moved from your spot between Auston's legs to grab Mia's towel so she wouldn't get cold.

"Are you ready to hang out with me while your mom leaves us to go shopping with your aunts?" Auston asked Mia, making you roll your eyes as you stood up. Alex gave you a knowing look as the two of you just shook your heads.

"Yeah!" Mia said and cuddled closer to you as you took her from her dad and wrapped her in the towel.

"Mia, tell your dad that he's a drama queen," you spoke up and pecked her on the cheek.

"'Rama, daddy."

"Yes, drama!."

Alex started chuckling from where she stood beside you, while Auston huffed and looked at you with a pout. "You make it seem like Bre, and I are stealing her from you."

"Uh, have you seen the way the three of you shop? You guys won't be back for hours."

"Like you're any better," Bre deadpanned and gave her brother a look as she and Ema approached. "We'll be back before dinner. You'll be fine."

"Whatever," he said with a sigh before standing up and walking towards Ema. "At least mom wants to hang out with me."

Ema chuckled and shook her head.

"I'm going with them. What do you mean?"

The look of absolute betrayal that washed over Auston's face as she said that was comedic and made everyone laugh but him. "Wow."

"Oh, babe, I promise next time you can come with us," you stated and walked towards your husband. Once you were close enough, Auston wrapped an arm around your waist, holding you close as he took Mia in his other arm. "We'll be back soon."

"Yeah, yeah," he replied and winked at you before glancing at Mia. "Looks like it's just me and you, baby girl. Is that alright with you?"

She didn't respond, just nodded before leaning against Auston's shoulder and knuckling at her eyes tiredly. You and Auston looked at each other knowingly after that.

"I think I'm just going to take her back to the villa, cause someone needs a nap," your husband stated and brushed a little curl away from Mia's face. "You tired, mini?"

Whenever he called her that, you couldn't help but smile because of how true it was. Mia really was Auston's mini-me, and you loved it so freaking much.

"Mhm," Mia replied before letting out a loud yawn. "Nemo, daddy?"

"Yes, sweets, we'll watch Nemo together," he said and leaned down to kiss her cheek before looking back to you.

"We'll be back soon," you assured both Mia and Auston, but earned yourself an odd glance from your daughter.

"Mommy, come."

"No, baby," you responded quietly, your heart breaking a bit thanks to how she looked at you with her tired eyes expectantly. "Mommy will be back in a little bit, ok? I promise."

"Ok," she repeated before cuddling closer to Auston, showing just how exhausted she was.

You then looked to Auston, who didn't miss a beat as he leaned down to peck your lips again. "Call me if you need anything, ok?"

"You know, I will. I'll see you soon," Auston said before giving you another quick kiss and then looking at his mom and sisters. "Have fun, ladies."

"Bye," the three of them said as you stood and watched him walk away with your baby.

A moment later, someone nudged you with their shoulder to get your attention.

"Ready to go?" Alex asked, already holding her folded up beach-blanket and other items.

"Oh, yeah," you stated and moved to pick up your things before heading back to the house she and Bre were staying in. "Lead the way."

It didn't take long for the four of you to get where all the little shops and stores were, and it took even less time for the actual shopping to begin. You found a couple of cute clothes for yourself and even more adorable things for Mia, thanks to Bre and Alex's help. After that, you and Auston's sisters helped pick out a new outfit for Ema and somehow convinced her that she should wear it to dinner that night, although she was still unaware of her little date night with Brian.

Once you finished shopping, the four of you returned to the Beach to get ready for the night ahead. Ema went back to the bungalow, while Bre and Alex helped you with the stuff you bought back to your villa. You were all excited to be back and see Mia again, but the house was empty when you entered.

"Where do you think they went?" Bre asked as each of you set down the bags you were holding and looked around.

"No clue," Alex replied and glanced at you. "Has Auston messaged you?"

"No, he hasn't," you told her and pulled out your cell phone to see that Ema had texted you instead. "But your mom did. She says to go over to your guys' place."

"That's where they must be," Bre said and started walking towards the door again. "Let's go. I wanna see my niece."

"I'm sure she wants to see you too," you chuckled as you followed after her and Alex back outside.

The three of you walked down the Beach to the two-storey house you assumed everyone else was. It was early evening, so the sun was still up and would be for a few more hours, and you couldn't help but wonder what Auston and Mia had gotten up to while you were away.

As soon as you stepped foot into the house, you got your answer.

"Y/N, go take a look by the pool," Ema said as she greeted you, Bre and Alex again. "I think there's something you might want to see."

Confused, you looked at Bre and Alex unsurely before walking by them and towards the back of the house. You could hear them and Ema following behind you and didn't know what to expect when you went outside, but your heart melted once you did.

Brian waded in the pool with the other guys, while to the left of the door, Auston was passed right out on one of the lounge chairs, with Mia asleep on his chest.

Mia was still wrapped in a towel, which made you think she mustn't have gone to sleep right away, so Auston brought her to the pool in an attempt to wear her out even more, but ended up making himself tired during the process as well.

"They've been like that for an hour and a half now," Brian chuckled as he climbed onto a pool floaty. "Didn't even make it inside the house, they were both so exhausted."

"Please, I love them so much," you replied and couldn't keep yourself from awing at how cute the two of them were.

"They are pretty freaking adorable. I must admit," Bre spoke up as she placed her elbow on your shoulder and leaned against you as she observed the two sleeping beauties as well.

"My favourite pair," Alex chimed in as she stood beside you and smiled.

"Mine, too," you stated. "I don't want to wake them up."

But just as you said that Mia began stirring awake and started looking around as if trying to remember where she was.

"Mama," she said with a yawn once her eyes landed on you, and Bre wasn't long in taking her arm off your shoulder so that you could go over to your little girl.

"Hi, baby," you responded as you ducked under the broad umbrella and sat down on the edge of the lounge chair beside them, making sure to gently brush away some of the curls that fell in your daughter's face and smile at her. "Did you have a good nap with daddy?"

"Mhm," she nodded while still leaning against Auston's chest, which gradually woke him up as well.

He stretched and groaned while wrapping his arm protectively around Mia before even opening his eyes, but when he finally did and saw you, he immediately grinned widely.

"Hey, you're back," he said and sat up straight, his voice husky as he spoke. "Did you have fun?"

"We did," you replied, smiling as well before looking to Bre and Alex and winking at them. "Looks like you and Mia had some fun too."

"I don't even remember falling asleep," he admitted before looking down at Mia. "I guess we were both tired, huh, little miss?"

"Yeah," Mia smiled before reaching towards you so that you'd hold her.

"I bet," you stated while hugging your daughter close and looking back at your husband. "What do you say we head back to the villa and get changed for dinner?"

"Tee!" Mia called once she noticed Bre and Alex standing nearby, no longer paying any attention to you.

"Well, I think that's a solid plan, but we may have trouble separating Mia from those two," Auston said as he stood up and glanced towards his sisters.

"Hi, baby girl," Alex spoke softly and crouched with her arms open as you set Mia down and watched as she wobbled to her aunt.

"You know, you could always leave her with us as you went and got ready," Bre suggested as Alex stood back up, holding your daughter, and gave her arm a little squeeze.

"Please, you'd never give her back," Auston scoffed, making you chuckle as you stood next to him and wrapped an arm around his waist.

"And what about it?" Alex challenged while moving so that Bre could hold Mia. "I swear, you two never take any time to yourselves. This vacation is for the both of you too, you know?"

"Yes, and we love it," you answered honestly. "But, it's a different type of vacation now with Mia here, which is fine. Wouldn't have it any other way."

Bre and Alex both sent you soft smiles after that, before glancing at each other as if they were silently planning something. Auston seemed to notice their plotting too and glanced down at you before looking back at them suspiciously, but Bre spoke up again before either of you could say anything.

"Fair," she shrugged and looked back to you and Auston. "But go get changed, we can watch her for twenty minutes. I'm sure you'll both be fine."

"But-," Auston started, but cut himself off as his sisters both turned around and headed back into the house with your daughter without saying another word, his eyebrows furrowing as he watched them go. "Did they just steal our daughter from us?"

"Looks like it," you giggled and turned around so that you'd be facing your husband. "C'mon, let's go get changed, and we'll have her back before you know it."

And so you did. The two of you headed back to your villa, telling Auston's family that you'd both be back in a few minutes. But what neither of you noticed was that both Bre and Alex came back outside with Mia and looked at their mom expectantly as soon as you and Auston were gone.

"How are we supposed to get them to have a whole night that's just the two of them with Auston being so stubborn?" Bre asked as she sat at the edge of the pool, still carefully holding onto Mia.

"I definitely think Y/N will be easier to convince that it's a good idea for us to watch Mia for a night than Auston will be," Alex stated from where she stood before looking at Ema. "But we need to. Those two haven't had a date night in who knows how long, and what better time to do it than on vacation?"

"Exactly," Ema agreed as she walked into the pool and waded over to where Bre sat with Mia. "We're going to have to just bombard them with the fact that they're going to be alone for a night. Don't give them a chance to argue. They'll be fine if they keep busy, and besides, it's their anniversary soon. They deserve some alone time."

Bre and Alex nodded in agreement, and both began thinking of ways to make their plan work, while Brian continued floating around and became curious about how their plan would work out.

~*~

The evening was relatively lowkey after that. You and Auston returned to the house after getting changed, and everyone headed out to dinner. Once you all at the restaurant, Brain and Ema went their separate way away from everyone else for their little date night. While they were gone, the rest of the group ate a massive meal before eventually calling it a night and heading back home with plans to meet at the big house the following morning.

The next day, everyone met up and went boating. Some snorkelled, some went tubing, and others just chilled on the boat and made the most of it before going back on land and doing other activities.

That was what each day consisted of.

There was always so much to do, as a whole or split up in groups, and being with Auston's family made it extremely enjoyable. Each busy day ended with everyone grabbing dinner together before going back to their respective homes to unwind and go to bed. But on one particular night later in the week, that changed.

Everyone had finished eating and was just getting ready to start walking back to the houses when Ema picked Mia up from her chair and started walking away.

"Are you going to stay with me tonight?" She asked your daughter as everyone started following after them, you and Auston being the last ones to trail behind.

"Yeah," Mia replied as she hugged her grandmother, making you and Auston come to a complete halt.

"Wait. What?" the two of you asked in unison, not noticing how Bre and Alex covered their mouths, attempting not to burst out laughing.

"What's going on?" Auston questioned, still obviously very confused.

"Mia is going to stay with your dad and me tonight," Ema said as a matter of factly while she glanced at the two of you over her shoulder, making sure to send you a wink before looking at her son. "You and Y/N can have a night to yourselves tonight. Mia will be fine with us. We'll keep her busy and then tomorrow after dinner; I'll bring her back to the villa."

"I think they planned this," you whispered as you leaned against your husband's shoulder while he stared back at his family completely dumbfounded.

"Exactly," Bre stated. "You two have barely had any time that was just the two of you since Mia was born. Go, have a date night. Be a little reckless. We've got Mia."

"But not too reckless," Brian chimed in, making everyone but Auston chuckle. "Have some fun. The two of you are on vacation, one night away from your daughter won't kill you. Relax a little bit."

"But-," Auston started until you cut him off.

"It's just a night, Aus," you told him, noticing how both Bre and Alex let out sighs of relief. "She's in safe hands. If anything happens, we're not very far away. I think a night to ourselves would be… nice."

"You should listen to your wife," Alex said while smiling at you and Auston. "We'll follow you back to the villa to get Mia's things, then let the two of you be."

"I-," he was ready to argue, but when he looked down at you and started thinking of how one night with you away from Mia wouldn't be too bad, he sighed in defeat before looking back at his family. "Ok, fine."

"Perfect, let's get going," Ema said and started leading the way back to the villa.

"They definitely planned this," Auston grumbled as he wrapped a hand around your waist and continued walking next to you.

"I know," you replied and shook your head while laughing. "Everyone has been trying to get us to have a date night, didn't know it was so bad that we'd have to be forced to do it."

"A date night with you isn't something I need to be forced to do. I'll take that any day."

"Good answer."

"Yeah," he chuckled too. "I've just gotten so used to being around Mia and not having to leave. This feels kind of weird, her leaving me for once."

"Oh, how the tables have turned," you teased and gave him a squeeze, to which he responded by leaning down and kissing the top of your head.

"It'll be nice getting you alone," he said huskily, not noticing that it was loud enough for others to hear.

"Ok, at least keep it PG until we get Mia's things and leave," Bre groaned.

"Hey, you can blame yourself for this," Auston replied before reaching down to squeeze your butt, trying to get a rise from his sister.

"Auston!" You scolded and stepped away from him. "God, you're such a pest."

"You love it," he responded cheekily as you let him pull you close again.

"Debatable," you told him with a wink, before standing on your toes and pecking his lips before linking your hand with his and pulling him after everyone else. "C'mon, it's getting late, and Mia is going to need to go to bed soon."

"Yes, dear," he said and followed behind you all the wat back to the villa.

Bre and Alex came over to help Ema gather Mia's things, but they didn't stay long. Before you knew it, they were all heading towards the door; getting Mia to blow kisses at you and Auston as they went.

"Bye, mommy. Bye, daddy," she said while waving goodbye.

"Bye, baby," you replied while leaning against Auston, suddenly feeling emotional over the thought of your little girl leaving.

"We'll see you tomorrow, princess," Auston said and held you a little tighter as you both said goodbye to his mom and sisters, and they eventually disappeared out the door. Once they were gone, you looked up at Auston curiously. "Guess it's just us now."

"What do you propose that we do?" You asked.

"Well, there's that jacuzzi tub in the washroom that hasn't been used yet. What do you say I pour us some wine, and we relax in there a little?"

"Sounds like a plan to me."

And that was how the two of you spent the night together. You relaxed in the tub, chatted, and just enjoyed each other's company before eventually getting out to shower off. However, neither of you made it to the shower because soon after wrapping yourself up in a towel, Auston was behind you, placing kisses along your exposed collarbone and holding you close. It didn't take long for things to get heated after that, and the night soon faded around the both of you as you made your way back into the bedroom.

~*~

When you woke up the next morning, the space on the bed beside you was empty. A few beams of light peaked through the drawn blinds and danced across the room, illuminating the area just enough for you to take in the clothes strewn all over the place, and the thin bedsheet that clung to your body.

The half-empty glasses of wine still sat on the bedside table, and your bra hung across the lamp on the other side of the room, but you didn't care. You were at peace as you snuggled into the pillows a little more and listened to the sound of waves as they crashed against the shore outside.

The waves soon faded into the sound of running water coming from the ensuite, and it was then you realized where Auston had gone off to so early on this day that was meant for the two of you to relax.

Wasting no time, you scrambled off the bed and wrapped the sheet around your body so you'd at least be a little covered as you greeted your husband and quickly made your way to the ensuite.

Once you entered the room, Auston immediately made eye contact with you in the mirror and smirked. His mouth was full of toothpaste as he finished brushing his teeth, and his eyes were very sleepy, indicating how much the activities from the night before seemingly wore him out. However, he still looked ridiculously hot to you as he stood there in nothing but a pair of basketball shorts.

Without breaking eye contact, you walked up behind him and placed some soft kisses on the back of his shoulder before stepping beside him and beginning to brush your teeth as well.

You kept sending each other glances as he moved on to shaving around his moustache a little, and once you both finished what you were doing, you were all over each other again.

The next thing you knew, you were sitting on the vanity with your back pressed gently against the mirror and hands tangled in Auston's hair as he kissed you hungrily. You could feel the sheet slipping off with each movement you made and were quick in pulling it back up before too much could get shown off, making Auston chuckle as he continued kissing you shamelessly.

A moment later, you both pulled away to catch your breath and look at each other knowingly.

"Good morning," you were the first to speak as you leaned up to peck his lips once again, noting how swollen your's were already beginning to feel.

"Good morning to you, too," he responded and gently tucked a stray piece of hair behind your ear as a smug grin danced across his lips. "Did you have a good night last night?"

"Cheeky," you responded while rolling your eyes at how he referred to what the two of you did once you got back to the villa. "But, yes, I did, and I think today will be even better."

"I don't know. Last night was pretty great. Pretty sure I'm going to have to wear a T-shirt all day to cover the scratches on my back."

"Auston!"

"I'm just messing with you," he laughed and leaned down to catch your lips in another sweet kiss, before moving away and walking towards the shower. "Well, we better start getting ready. We've got a busy day ahead of us."

"Busy?" You asked as you hopped off the counter and followed after him. "I thought we were supposed to, and I quote, relax. I mean, I'm down for anything. But I am missing Mia, though."

"Me too, which is why I think my family booked a bunch of things for us to do today. They want to keep us busy until we get her back tonight."

"What did they plan?"

"I honestly don't know," he shrugged and turned back around to face you. "I just woke up to a text from Alex saying we have to be down at the marina in an hour and a half, that's all I know. So I'm going to shower and get ready. Something is waiting for you in the kitchen if you want to check it out. Or you could join me in the shower, wouldn't be opposed to that either."

"Get in the shower, Matthews," you replied and rolled your eyes at his cheekiness again. "I'll make us some breakfast, then wash my hair."

You didn't leave much room for argument, because after that you were striding out of the washroom and back through the bedroom, not caring that you were still wearing a bedsheet dress.

As you walked into the hallway, you wondered what the hell could be waiting for you in the kitchen, and was unable to keep yourself from gasping as you rounded the corner and saw a huge bouquet of flowers sitting on the counter. It wasn't hard to spot the little card resting in the flowers that had your name written on it, but before you could walk over and read it, a pair of hands gripped your waist and spun you back around.

Auston's lips immediately crashed to yours, and you let out a surprised squeak, but quickly returned the kiss before pulling away slightly.

"Happy anniversary," he mumbled against your lips before stepping back and smiling.

But you were beyond confused and looked at him weirdly.

Anniversary? Anniversary of what? You raked your mind for ideas of what it was he talked about until something clicked, and your eyes went wide.

"Holy shit," was all you said before bolting back down the hallway towards the bedroom.

You could hear Auston following behind you, but he was quiet as he watched you walk over to where your cell phone was sitting on the table and check the date. Sure enough, the date was exactly what you thought.

July 30th, otherwise known as yours and Auston's first wedding anniversary, which you completely forgot about up until that moment.

Not a moment later, your phone chimed with a text from Steph wishing you and Auston a happy anniversary. Then came one from Mitch, then Alex, then Bre, then even more friends and family from home, which did not make you feel any better about the situation.

"Oh, my God," you groaned and ran a hand down your face before eventually glancing back at your husband, who was looking at you with pure amusement.

"You forgot our anniversary, didn't you?" He asked and stepped towards you.

"No," you lied.

"Yes, you did, or else you wouldn't be so flustered."

"Ok fine, I forgot," you whined and flopped onto the bed, completely ashamed. Auston chuckled as he sat on the bed next to you and watched you sulk for a minute before finally looking back to him. "I'm sorry. We've just been having so much fun during this trip. I knew it was coming up, but I completely lost track of the days and didn't realize that it was today. Wow, I'm a terrible wife."

"No, you're not," Auston stated while shaking his head at your dramatics.

"Yes, I am! Who forgets their first freaking wedding anniversary? Also, how are you so calm about this?"

"Because I'm not mad, Y/N."

"You're not?" You asked and lifted your head from the pillow to look at him better. "How? I mean, I would be. I suck."

"Because, babe, I get it," he told you seriously. "And no, you don't suck. Life gets crazy sometimes, and it's hard to keep track of things. Remember when I forgot Valentine's Day that one year?"

"Valentine's Day is not as important as our anniversary."

"Doesn't matter, I'm trying to prove that it's ok you forgot. I'm not going to hold a grudge against you over it."

It was impossible for you not to melt a little bit as he said that.

"Why are you so good to me?" You asked as he reached a hand towards you, and gently linked your fingers with his.

"Because I love you," he replied. "Simple as that. How do you like the flowers, though?"

"I love them," you stated as you sat back up and quit your sulking. "They're beautiful, Auston. Thank you. Are you sure you're not mad?"

"Yes, I'm sure," he chuckled and shook his head before standing up. "I may never let you live it down, but no, I'm not mad."

"God, I think that might be worse than you just being pissed off at me."

"Not my fault you forgot our anniversary, now is it?"

"Auston!" You groaned and leaned back against the headboard, knowing that he most definitely would never let you live this down.

"Love you," he singsonged as he leaned down to kiss you once more.

"Love you too, even though you're a pain in my ass," you pouted before returning the kiss.

"Your favourite pain," Auston stated as he moved back towards the ensuite. "But we really do need to get going, or Alex is going to be pissed that we missed whatever reservation she made."

Once the two of you were showered and dressed, you both made your way to the marina to see what the day had in store, but not without glancing at Ema and Brian's bungalow to see if you could see Mia as you went.

When Auston gave the man who was waiting on the docks his name, the two of you were told that he was taking you both on a boat tour to see The Arch Of Cabo San Lucas and other tourist attractions such as the infamous Lovers Beach.

"Fitting name," Auston said to you quietly as the two of you boarded the boat.

"This kind of thing has Alex written all over it."

"You think that's bad, Bre just texted me saying she booked us an hour at the driving range after this."

"Oh, god," you replied dramatically, but had to smile at how thoughtful and considerate it was of Auston's family to set everything up for the two of you. "As long as there's some type of alcohol, I'm game."

"Perfect," he responded as he sat next to you and the boat set sail. "Anything else you want to do before dinner?"

"I think I'll book us something at the spa," you told him with a smirk. "My treat."

"Sounds good to me."

The day couldn't have gone more perfect, and the fact that you and Auston spent it entirely together made it even more special. When evening came, you went to a dinner reservation for two, which was so lovely, but you were both a little antsy by the end of it.

"Think they'll let us take our daughter back now?" You asked your husband as you sipped on the last little bit of wine you had with dinner.

"God, I hope so," Auston said dramatically. "Not that I didn't love this time with you or anything, but I really miss her."

"I do too. This was needed, but I'm ready for us to get our little girl back."

"Couldn't agree more."

After you finished your drink, you and Auston walked hand in hand to Bre and Alex's house and couldn't wait to see everyone, especially Mia. Once the two of you arrived, it wasn't long before Ema opened the front door and pulled you both in for a hug.

"Happy anniversary!"

"Thank you," both you and Auston replied while returning the hug.

"Did you two have a good day?" She asked and stepped back to let you enter the house.

"It was amazing," you told her honestly. "Thank you for doing this, Ema."

"Oh, don't thank just me. There was no way I would've been able to do it alone. Now, come."

You looked at Auston suspiciously as Ema began leading the two of you down the hallway, but he just shrugged.

"Don't look at me," he started with a laugh. "They're up to something else, though. I feel it."

"Let's go you two," Ema's voice called from down the hall, not giving you a chance to respond.

"Guess we'll find out," you told your husband before making way down the hallway after your mother-in-law.

But neither of you were prepared for what you saw once you entered the living room.

"Happy anniversary!" Everyone who came on vacation exclaimed.

"'Versary!" Yelled Mia from where she stood between Bre and Brian.

It was then you were able to take in your surroundings finally. The room was decorated with balloons and banners all with 'Happy Anniversary' written across them. There was also a cake resting on the table in the corner with a framed photo of you and Auston from your wedding day standing next to it.

"You guys," you started as you covered your mouth and looked around at everyone with teary eyes. "Thank you."

"Yes, thank you," Auston said, and just couldn't stop smiling. He then looked down at you and pulled you in for a sweet kiss. "Happy anniversary, babe."

"Happy anniversary," you repeated before softly kissing him again, then pulling him in for a hug.

"Maybe I won't tell them that you forgot."

"Matthews, I swear to-."

You were ready to ream him out but were interrupted by a small force tackling yours and Auston's legs. Immediately, you moved away from your husband and looked down to see Mia hugging you both tightly.

"There's my girl!" Auston exclaimed as he bent down to pick up your daughter and hug her tightly, to which she returned.

"Hi, sweet girl," you greeted as Mia looked your way and was soon tackling you in a hug as well. "Your daddy and I missed you today."

"'Versary!" She replied excitedly.

"Yes, it's mommy and I's anniversary, princess," your husband said before leaning down to kiss her head. "Man, a lot has happened in a year. I just keep thinking of how small she was the day we got married."

"I know," you responded with wide eyes as you thought back to a year prior. "But, you know, although this past year was pretty amazing, I still think the best has yet to come."

"I think you're right," Auston agreed. "Can't wait to see what the next year brings us, and all the years after that."

"Me neither."

Both you and Auston were soon surrounded by everyone in his family, hugging and congratulating the both of you. They then went on to ask how yours and Auston's day went and had the biggest smile on your face as you relived it all. That smile remained for the rest of the evening as you mingled with Auston's, no, your family, and got even more excited with what the future was going to hold because you knew that with all of these amazing people in it, it was bound to be special.

// please let me know what you think! <3 //

#auston matthews fanfiction #nhl imagines #hockey rpf #nhl rpf #auston matthews imagine #auston matthews imagines #nhl fanfiction #nhl imagine #toronto maple leafs imagine #nhl headcanon #hockey fanfiction #hockey imagines

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eddieeatsass · 3 years

Text

On the Edge of an Avalanche

Summary: Graduation was upon them and Eddie Kaspbrak was eager to leave Derry behind. His one last hurrah would be the senior ski trip, earning him an escape from his mother and the looming stress of college admissions. It was supposed to be a relaxing vacation, until he got slated to look after resident pain-in-everyone’s-ass, Richie Tozier. Pairing: Richie Tozier/Eddie Kaspbrak Rating: E Chapter: 4/5 Read Chapter 3 Here / Read on AO3

Richie’s room was nicer than Eddie’s, way nicer. It’s not that Eddie’s room was bad, in fact he’d spent a good amount of time admiring it earlier, it’s just that Eddie’s room was like the discount version, and Richie’s was designer. Where Eddie’s room had gotten tall windows, half of Richie’s wall was taken up by a fireplace. Eddie supposed it was a trade, someone who preferred a nicer view might say Eddie’s room was the winner, but there was something undeniably romantic about your own fireplace. Richie’s room also seemed to have a newer TV, mounted on the wall across from their bed. The TV in Eddie’s room was older and hid behind two panels of wood in a cabinet. Simply put, Eddie was very glad Richie had decided to bring them here. Richie flopped on the bed immediately, overdramatizing how exhausted he was just from limping his way down the hall. Eddie hid a knowing smile and joined him. “Thank you for saving me, I was about five minutes away from dying of boredom.” Richie drawled. “Well, I can’t promise you’ll have any more fun here, but you’re welcome. ”Richie let his head loll to the side, regarding Eddie closely before speaking again. “No, I’ll definitely have more fun here. ”The insinuation was brash, Richie didn’t even bother trying to hide it behind a joke. It made Eddie’s gut clench in unusual ways. He brought his thumb up to his mouth, the habit of gnawing at his fingernails a hard one to kick, but was interrupted by his own gasp as his hand came into view. His knuckles were starting to bruise, tender to flex and even more tender to touch. He hadn’t noticed any pain earlier, too caught up in Richie to even think about anything else, but now that he was staring at his fist the ache began to echo under his skin. “You just notice that?” Richie asked gently, noting the horror in Eddie’s eyes. Eddie could only nod, his gaze fixed on the evidence of his breakdown. He wasn’t sure how long he stared at his hand, but when Richie’s entered the frame Eddie startled. He’d gotten a hand towel from the bathroom and wrapped some ice in it, which Eddie could only guess was provided in their minifridge. Richie guided Eddie’s hand down to his lap, placing the ice pack atop his knuckles gently and murmuring an apology when Eddie hissed at the sudden coldness. They stayed silent for a few minutes, simply sitting in each other’s presence as the ice dampened the cloth atop Eddie’s hand. Eddie was the first to speak, keeping his eyes downcast as he admitted his guilt aloud. “I’m not a violent person, you know.” He could feel Richie’s eyes on his face but didn’t give in to the lure. “Yeah, I know.” Richie reassured. “But Bowers is an exception-”“No, he’s not.” Eddie snapped. “If I sink to his level, I’m just like him.” Eddie wasn’t sure if Richie would get it. They had both been targets of Henry’s attacks, but Eddie never wanted anyone to feel the way he’d felt, not even Henry himself. Eddie’s mind was constantly replaying all the times he'd had his face shoved into the dirt, the way the gravel would stick to his wounds, the shouts he’d receive from his mother upon getting home. Henry was a god-awful human, but that didn’t mean he deserved to feel that same pain and sorrow. That wasn’t going to change anything; you can’t break the cycle with the same bullshit that fueled it. “I didn’t mean to do it.” Eddie whispered. “I just snapped.” Richie immediately scooted closer, an action Eddie wasn’t expecting or prepared for. He looked up and met bright blue eyes, tender and open and completely void of judgement. “You’re nothing like him; you didn’t want to hurt him. Bowers wants to hurt people. ”Eddie looked back down at his hand, flexing his fingers and watching as the makeshift ice pack slid off and landed on the sheets. “You know…” Eddie began thinking out loud. “I’ve felt the brunt of a lot of people’s insecurities. I don’t usually mind being projected on, it’s easy to see through the words and figure out what’s actually going on behind them. I’ve even gotten good at doing it with Henry, though he’s a bit of a different breed… But there was something about the things he said today... they felt more personal.” Richie listened intently, allowing Eddie to spill out into the space between them, his vulnerability a tender wound. “Whatever, it’s stupid.” Eddie was quick to dismiss his own feelings, covering them up with a shrug of his shoulders that attempted to pass as indifference. “It’s not stupid.” Richie insisted. Eddie stared down at his uninjured hand as it picked at a thread on the blanket beneath them. “Listen, I don't know what Henry said, but you're not suddenly a super villain for fighting back one time. The first time I was called a fag, I threw a mug at the dude’s head.” Richie admitted aloud with a chuckle. “We were in a coffee shop and I was on my first date with a guy. I ended up having to pay for the broken mug and my backtalk. ”Eddie perked up like Richie had just given him a straight shot of smelling salts. All other sound in the room fell away as Eddie homed in on Richie’s voice, trying to discern if he was dreaming or not. “Safe to say it was not a very good first impression.” Richie laughed lightly, completely unaware of the way he was flipping Eddie’s world upside down. “Anyway, all I’m trying to say is you’re not the only one who’s lost their cool before. You’re human, you’re allowed to get upset when people treat you less than.” Eddie was sure Richie was making a good point, was sure what he was saying held some wisdom that could potentially help, but he was guilty to say he hadn’t processed a word of it. He was too caught up on the fact that Richie had dated guys before. Stan’s words echoed in his brain ‘You might want to consider the possibility that this isn’t their first time eating a hot dog’, fucking Stan was always right, even with that stupid metaphor. Richie had begun talking again, but Eddie didn’t hesitate to interrupt him, this new revelation too significant to pass by. “You like boys?” Eddie blurted out, all grace and subtlety left behind with his spiraling thoughts. Richie froze in place, his hands up in a gesture Eddie was sure had something to do with what he’d been talking about, but now looked comically out of place. Slowly, Richie lowered his hands to his lap and regarded Eddie with a new look, one that held enough cockiness to knock the wind out of Eddie. “Grinding my dick on you didn’t send the message?” Richie teased, raising one eyebrow and swiping his tongue across his teeth. Eddie suppressed a full body shiver, averting his eyes from Richie’s intensity. “I thought you were maybe, like, I don’t know-” “This ain’t my first rodeo, cowboy.” Richie said with a twang that went straight to Eddie’s pants. He blamed Brokeback Mountain. “Well, it isn’t mine either.” Eddie defended instinctively. He watched as Richie’s eyes flicked down to his mouth and back up again, quick like a hummingbird and with all the same charm. “So, then what’s the issue?” Richie’s voice had lowered, taking on something much more intimate and sultry. It made Eddie’s heart rate spike. “I guess there isn’t one.” He breathed. “Good, because I’ve been wanting to do this all day.” Eddie barely had a moment to breathe before Richie captured his lips in a hungry kiss, his hand burying itself in the hair at Eddie’s nape to pull him in closer. The gesture almost made Eddie go limp, as if he were a cat being held by its scruff, submissive by instinct. He opened his mouth pliantly, allowing Richie in with a welcome of his own tongue. Eddie couldn’t believe that this was happening. Just a couple hours ago he was fisting his own cock, fantasizing about the way Richie tasted. Now he knew. Richie was a cold fire, stoking Eddie’s lungs with mint and cinnamon spice. He tasted like the frost outside, and the embers that kept you warm. It was comforting, enveloping in a way Eddie couldn’t describe. Eddie pushed against Richie, guiding him to lay down on his back so Eddie could climb atop his lap, resuming the same position they’d been in the night before. This time, however, there was clear determination between them. There were no longer hesitant touches or swallowed moans, every move was purposeful, made with intent. Eddie wasn’t shy to shed his sweater, wanting to move things along as quickly as possible now that they were finally happening. “Your body, god, do you know how long I’ve been wanting to get my hands on you?” Richie grabbed Eddie’s bare waist in near disbelief, awe shining in his eyes. “Less than 24 hours?” Eddie snorted, rolling his eyes and his hips in tandem. Richie groaned and tightened his grip, stilling Eddie forcefully. “Try years. You think I didn’t notice you until Mrs. Harrow forced us to sit together?” Eddie flushed even hotter, his skin reddening to match the fire that Richie was stoking. Richie grinned at Eddie’s speechlessness, pushing forward. “I noticed you for the first time in sophomore year. You were trying out for the track team at the same time as Mike and we were in the bleachers cheering him on. I was gone the second you walked out onto that grass. I tried to be respectful, but I couldn’t stop imagining myself squeezed between those thighs that your tight little track shorts did a great job of highlighting.” Eddie tried to recall that moment, tried to visualize Richie in the bleachers with his floppy hair and lopsided glasses, but all he could remember was the adrenaline he’d felt going behind his mother’s back, too busy to notice anything else. “I never stopped noticing you after that, in fact I’m surprised you never caught me looking your way during class…” Richie moved his hands to begin trailing up Eddie’s thighs. “But the second time I really noticed you, was at the end of that school year. We had a heat wave and the AC broke, d’you remember that? The school had no idea how to deal with it, so they just chucked us outside and gave us popsicles from the freezer in the cafeteria, probably because they were going to melt anyway. But you sat there in the middle of the field sucking on your popsicle like it was the best fucking thing you’d ever tasted. You might have been miserable like the rest of us, but you were too focused on your treat to pay any mind to the weather.” Eddie’s throat was going dry, his head beginning to feel light and airy as he listened to Richie talk. “That night I dreamt you were sucking my cock, that same euphoric look on your face as if it were that damn popsicle.” Richie’s hands reached Eddie’s hips and traced the curve around to his ass, causing Eddie to stutter a breath as his eyelashes fluttered against his cheekbones. “I’ve thought about fucking you for years, Eds, to see you cum on my cock and hear you cry my name. I would do just about anything you asked me to, just as long as I can make you feel good.” Eddie had never been this aroused in his life. Every single nerve in his body was buzzing like a live wire, his toes already curling just from Richie’s words alone. “What if I asked you to take your clothes off?” Eddie braved, his voice shaky. Richie sat up, bringing them chest to chest. “Anything. You. Asked.” Richie punctuated each word with a featherlight kiss to Eddie’s lips. The butterflies in Eddie’s stomach went wild as he watched Richie begin to strip off his shirt. He did it slowly, keeping his eyes on Eddie as Eddie’s own raked down the newly exposed skin. Richie's skin was pale enough to rival the snow outside, spattered with fewer freckles than Eddie’s, but enough to break up the milky complexion. He was thin but still held definition, especially as Eddie’s eyes reached the ‘v’ of his hips that dipped into his waistband. Eddie swallowed thickly and nodded towards the spot where Richie’s hands were already hovering over his waistband. Eddie had to swing his leg off Richie and move to the side to let him shimmy his pants down his legs, every new inch equally as mesmerizing. “Like what you see?” Richie’s voice was barely above a whisper. “Not sure yet, I think I need to see more.” Eddie whispered back, tension thick between them. Eddie could see where Richie was straining against the fabric of his boxers, tenting them to an intimidating level. The way his mouth watered at the sight made Eddie feel absolutely depraved, lewd in a way that only added to his arousal, made him want to spread his legs wide and offer himself up whole. The moment that stretched between them as Richie pulled his boxers down felt like an eternity. Eddie lived, died, and got reborn all in the span of that second. Richie’s cock was heavy, springing free for only a moment before falling back against his stomach. Eddie could see Richie moving in his peripheral, getting comfortable back against the duvet after throwing his boxers to the floor, but he couldn’t tear his eyes off his dick. He felt fingers carding through his hair, pushing it back from his forehead, and finally Eddie tore his gaze away from the challenge that sat before him. Richie’s smile was smug, but his eyes seemed vulnerable. Eddie realized he was waiting for his next command, unsure how they’d fallen into that pattern but not opposed to continuing it. Eddie felt powerful as he raised on his haunches and moved to where Richie’s legs were spread. He watched Richie’s face, noted the way his throat bobbed as he swallowed, and his fingers twitched as he tried not to move. Eddie lowered his head so it was level with Richie’s cock, pausing just a few inches away so his breath grazed against it as he spoke. “Fuck my mouth.” Eddie directed, lust overwriting his usual nerves and replacing them with boldness. Richie’s breath shook as he let it out slowly. “Jesus fuck, Eddie…”Richie’s hands travelled back into Eddie’s hair, gentle at first and then gripping at the base. He guided Eddie’s head the rest of the way down and shuttered when Eddie finally took the head in his mouth. Eddie instantly felt intoxicated, like Richie was the strongest absinthe man had ever made. He greedily gulped it down, laving at the underside of Richie’s cock as it glided into his throat. Drool was already pooling at the corners of his mouth, but Eddie paid it no mind, his only focus on drinking in as much of Richie as he could. He knew right away there was no reality in which he could take all of Richie at once, at least not without a lot of practice, so he committed his mouth to the top half and his hand to the bottom. His fingers barely met as they wrapped around Richie’s shaft and gave an experimental pump. Richie groaned, and Eddie took it as a good sign. He repeated the motion with a twist of his wrist, tonguing the slit of his cock where precum was leaking out greedily. Eddie could feel Richie’s legs tensing where he had his free hand splayed across his thigh. Every time he teased the underside of Richie’s head that muscle would jump, and it almost became a game to see how quickly Eddie could make that muscle twitch, his tongue moving faster and faster against that sensitive spot and causing Richie's legs to vibrate. “Oh my god- fuck, ahhhh-h-how are you so good at this…” Richie’s voice was wrecked, raspy and low and breathy all at once. Eddie just hummed in acknowledgement, sending vibrations up Richie’s shaft that made him hump up into Eddie’s mouth. The action caused Eddie to gag and he reveled in it, moaning like a whore in heat. He was so far gone he barely noticed when Richie pulled him off suddenly. “Okay you’re too good at that.” Richie panted, his chest heaving. Eddie’s head was cloudy, the only conscious thought chanting ‘more, more, more’. He blinked a few times, trying to shift the room back into place. “Why did we stop?” Eddie asked dumbly, his words a bit slurred. “I didn’t want to cum yet. I sort of thought… maybe, if you wanted to, we could-” “Finger me.” Eddie blurted out, his senses coming back to him but not all gracefully. “I mean…” He cleared his throat, face beginning to flush. “…please." Richie looked liked he’d just won the lottery and been slapped across the face at the same time, a dopey kind of smile accompanying his features. “You don’t have to be polite about it, Eds. I’m kinda digging this whole dictator thing you’ve got going on, actually.” Eddie giggled adoringly, calmed by the way Richie was able to dissolve his nerves so quickly with such a disastrously dumb joke, even at a time like this. “Gimme a sec.” Richie leaned forward, catching Eddie’s lips in a chaste kiss before he was springing off the bed. “I know that bastard has lube somewhere.” Eddie watched as Richie began searching through what he assumed to be Bill’s suitcase, throwing things to the side in a frenzy. He finally came across a toiletry bag and ripped it open, rifling around for only a moment more and emerging with a small bottle of clear liquid. “Will Bill mind if we use it?” Eddie worried his lip between his teeth, not so much caring about the answer but asking anyway out of respect for his new friend. “Nah, he’ll just be happy I’m getting laid.” Richie winked and those damn butterflies acted up again. Richie crawled back onto the bed, setting the lube to the side temporarily. He returned his attention to Eddie, a renewed twinkle in his lust blown eyes. He crowded Eddie’s space, towering above him but lowering his head so their lips grazed against each other. “Let’s get these off, hmm?” Richie’s fingers stroked lightly at the waistband of Eddie’s sweatpants. “I thought I was the one giving orders.” Eddie teased back, voice barely above a whisper. Richie hooked his fingers under the waistband and pulled, letting it snap back against Eddie’s stomach as he released it with a shuttering breath. “Alright Kaspbrak.” Richie let his body fall backwards, bouncing lighting as it hit the mattress. He brought his hands up behind his head and made a show of getting comfortable. “I am at your mercy.” That same emboldened feeling consumed him once again, a confidence only Richie seemed to instill in him. It was intoxicating, much like everything else about Richie. With a smirk, Eddie backed up off the bed and stood in the middle of the room. Eddie kept his eyes focused on Richie as he began to pull his sweatpants down, going painstakingly slow just to see Richie’s reaction. He saw his adam’s apple bob as he swallowed back his desire, a nearly imperceptible twitch making his cock jump in intrigue. Eddie kicked his pants to the side where they joined his long since discarded sweater, and then all his focus diverted to his neglected cock. All earlier thoughts of whether Richie would like his body were gone, he knew Richie liked his body, and he was planning on milking that for all it was worth. Eddie palmed himself over his underwear, letting his head fall back and his mouth drop open as he finally offered himself the stimulation he needed. He looked down and noted that the white fabric had gone translucent where his cock had been leaking against it, giving Richie a peek of the pink head underneath. He heard Richie whimper from the bed but paid him no mind, indulging in his own senses for a moment. He continued to tease himself through the thin cloth until he couldn’t take any more, finally allowing his hands to wander to the waistband and pull the underwear down his thighs. Richie was silent, watching so attentively that a pin could be heard dropping in the room. Eddie kicked the last piece of clothing off to the side and immediately let his hand wander back to his own cock, tugging it a few times and allowing himself to moan at the sensation. He heard the bed squeak and opened his eyes to see Richie crawling towards him. Gone was Richie’s passiveness and submission, replaced with a new hunger that made Eddie’s legs quiver. Richie reached his arms out and pulled Eddie in until his legs hit the edge of the mattress. Even with Eddie standing and Richie kneeling on the bed, he was still a good few inches taller than him, and he used that to his advantage while crowding into Eddie’s space. “You can’t tease me like that.” Richie whispered into the shell of his ear, kissing right under it and beginning a path down his neck. “I didn’t mean to.” Eddie answered honestly, succumbing to the warmth of Richie’s lips and letting his head tip back once again. “Just felt so good…” “I can make you feel even better.” Richie promised, ghosting his hand down Eddie’s torso and just barely grazing his cock. Eddie moaned, arching into the faint touch and whimpering as it left. “Please…” Eddie’s jaw was slack, the word falling out without a thought. Richie continued making his way down Eddie’s body, sucking marks against tan skin as he passed. He paused at Eddie’s nipples to give them special attention and Eddie keened, grabbing at Richie’s hair in sudden desperation. Richie swirled his tongue around one bud, allowing his hand to pluck the other until he switched. He nipped lightly enough to cause Eddie to shutter and then sucked to soothe the reddening skin. He continued his trail downwards, licking along Eddie’s hip bones and kissing the juncture between his thighs and his pelvis, avoiding Eddie’s cock purposefully. Pleas were falling from Eddie’s mouth steadily now; his hands tugging weakly on Richie’s hair to try and guide him towards pleasure. Richie swiftly gathered Eddie in his arms, catching him off guard in his haze of lust. He moved back up the mattress and laid against the bed board, situating Eddie so he was laying across his body. “I bet your pretty little hole is just begging to be touched.” Richie murmured, reaching for the bottle of lube and hastily pouring a generous amount on his digits. Eddie moaned at the lewdness of the comment, his hips moving against Richie’s and causing their cocks to grind against each other. He could feel a wetness smearing against their bellies, similar to the wetness Richie was spreading between his fingers. He watched as Richie’s hand disappeared behind him and then he felt the warm press of a finger at his entrance. The feeling was somewhat familiar; Eddie had fingered himself countless times before, he wasn’t new to pleasuring his prostate. But this was the first time anyone else had ever touched him there. It was difficult not to focus in on every small sensation, to not grind up against Richie like a virgin being touched for the first time. Richie teased the pad of his finger around his rim and unsurprisingly, Eddie fluttered in response. He could hear Richie’s laugh reverberating in his chest where Eddie laid his head. He closed his eyes and spread his legs a bit wider, silently ushering Richie to continue. The first slip inside was uncomfortable. It always is, no matter how turned on you are, but it was also euphoric in a way Eddie was never able to make it for himself. Richie’s fingers were thinner than Eddie’s, but significantly longer, and soon enough Richie was already in to his knuckle. Eddie breathed steadily, allowing his body to get used to the intrusion. Richie followed his queue, stilling for a moment until Eddie nodded minutely against him, signaling him to continue. The next finger wasn’t too much harder than the first, and soon the discomfort ebbed away to make room for pleasure. Richie worked his fingers in and out, scissoring them to stretch Eddie open as much as possible before a third was added. It felt way better than Eddie had ever imagined it would. Richie’s fingers weren’t clumsy or unsure like Eddie would have thought, they were precise with their pressure and quick to find the spots that made Eddie melt. He went at the perfect pace, allowing Eddie his time to adjust but not waiting too long to lose their momentum. Arousal bubbled hot in Eddie’s stomach, searing his skin at every spot where they were connected. His breathing had become labored, and his hips had begun their own little rotation where he ground himself down into Richie. Every time he did, he felt Richie’s cock twitching against his, eager to escape the slot between them and burry itself inside Eddie. And in that moment, Eddie wanted that more than anything. “Fuck me, now.” Eddie demanded breathily, holding no more space for patience. “You sure you’re ready?” Richie checked, his own breath seeming to stutter. Eddie whined indignantly, raising himself up on shaky knees and grabbing both of Richie’s wrists. He pulled them away, deft fingers slipping out of him easily and falling to the pillow beside Richie’s head where Eddie pinned them. “Now.” Eddie repeated, grinding his ass against Richie’s cock and coating it with lube. “I’m gonna die here and it’s gonna be the happiest day of my life.” Richie rushed out, eyes squeezed shut and face flushed a blotchy red. Eddie removed one hand and reached down to grasp Richie’s cock, marveling once again at its size. He was sure he was going to feel a stretch, but he craved it at this point. With determination and just a little too much arousal for rational thought, Eddie lined himself up and began sinking down. The stretch was… a lot. Eddie let out a pained whimper as Richie’s head breached his rim, and suddenly there were hands all over him, cradling his face, petting his hair, steadying his hips. “Hey, hey, you’re okay.” Richie rushed to comfort him, kissing the spot between Eddie’s eyebrows where he hadn’t realized he’d furrowed them. “We can stop at any point. You want to stop?” Eddie was stubborn, he knew this about himself. He was aware that his stubbornness had gotten him into trouble in the past, but it had also earned him some of the best moments of his life. He didn’t want to end this prematurely and look back on his first time with remorse, but he also didn’t exactly want to rip his asshole open on a high school ski trip. Eddie decided he just needed a minute, so he shook his head and told Richie as much. Richie continued to rub his back, his hair, anywhere his nervous hands could settle. He seemed on such high alert Eddie wasn't sure how his dick wasn't flagging. Eddie winced as Richie inched down the bed carefully, lying himself flatter and pulling Eddie back down to his chest. Eddie closed his eyes and focused on Richie’s heartbeat, feeling Richie moving above him but paying it no mind. He jumped in surprise when Richie’s hand joined his dick, but his body relaxed instantaneously as he felt those soft fingers begin to massage extra lube around his rim. As the seconds passed Eddie could feel himself opening up under Richie’s touch, his muscles relaxing and his temperature rising. Richie was clearly feeling the heat himself, as he’d started to rock his hips gently beneath Eddie’s. The action was gentle, inching him further into Eddie in torturously small increments but not pushing him past his limits. It was beginning to drive Eddie crazy as his craving for more became overpowering, all the pain from before having subsided. Without warning, Eddie pushed himself back on Richie’s cock, feeling his fingers flutter around his hole at the sudden movement. He was quick to use his hand to steady himself at the base of his cock, holding it still for Eddie to fuck back on. Richie let out an elongated breath, swearing profusely at the end of it. It made Eddie blush and move faster, his hips taking on a rhythm of their own. Eddie was on cloud fucking nine. His body lit up like a live wire, electrifying him with every move he made. Richie appeared to be just as affected, his mouth stuck open in an orgasmic ‘o’, his eyes practically rolled back into his skull. Richie had been quick to match Eddie’s pace, thrusting up into him feverously, hands clamped on to Eddie's hip as tightly as Eddie was clamping around his cock. "You're so fucking huge." Eddie moaned, the statement coming out honestly despite sounding like a script from a bad porno. "Holy shit, you can't say stuff like that or I'm gonna blow my load." Richie responded, chest heaving. "I'm serious, it feels like I'm being split open, god Rich." "That mouth of yours is going to get you in trouble." Richie's thrusts were speeding up, becoming more erratic. Eddie almost felt like he was riding a bull, clenching his thighs in a desperate attempt not to be bucked off. "Then shut me up." The response was instantaneous. Richie flipped them over, pressing Eddie into the mattress as he pounded into him mercilessly. He brought one hand up to Eddie's mouth and shoved two fingers against his tongue, forcing Eddie to suck on the digits. Eddie gagged on them like he would Richie's cock, saliva dripping out of the corner of his mouth and mixing with the tears that had escaped without notice. He was completely fucked out, his brain unable to process anything besides Richie. "I'm gonna cum." Richie warned, his orgasm approaching rapidly after being so on edge for so long. Eddie didn't mind, his own release not far behind. "Cum inside me, please, want to feel you." Eddie begged, unaware of his desire until it was suspended right in front of him. "Fuck, unnnf- god, Eddie." Richie said his name like a prayer, bringing his hand up to stroke Eddie's neglected cock. The sensation was downright sinful, the best thing Eddie thinks he's ever felt in his entire life. It caused his toes to curl, most of the muscles in his body seizing up at the pleasure. Richie's hips stuttered a few times and then he was overwhelmed with a warmth deep inside him, Richie's cock pushing through it to press diligently into his prostate. Eddie came with blinding lights in his eyes, his body convulsing as waves upon waves of euphoria flooded his senses. He's pretty sure he screams, but he could have been completely silent and it would have sounded the same to his deaf ears. Eddie's not sure how long he lays there in fucked out bliss, his mind completely separate from his body, but when he finally tunes back into the world around him he's alone in the bed. He looks around to find Richie and spots him crouched on the ground by the fireplace, tinkering with the button to light it up. Electric flames suddenly burst alive behind Richie's silhouette, highlighting his long legs as he stretches back up and turns to regard Eddie. "Hey." His voice is gentle, not quite a whisper but close enough to one that the greeting still felt secretive. "Hi." Eddie matches his tone, his throat appreciating the low register after being abused not too long ago. "I thought I lost you there for a minute." Richie crawled back into bed, pulling the thick duvet over them. "I think you did." Eddie admitted sheepishly. "That was fucking... wow." Richie laughed at the advanced vocabulary Eddie was able to implement at that moment. "Wow is right." Richie agreed, welcoming Eddie as he crowded into his space. The silence fell upon them naturally, their bodies and minds too exhausted to bother with much else. It was a long while until Eddie pipped back up. “Was that your first time?” Eddie asked quietly, his eyes having drifted closed from the comfort of being satiated in such a new way. “Mm-mm.” Richie answered carding his fingers through Eddie’s hair. “First time was with Ally Mae Espin. It was a mess.” Eddie hummed for Richie to continue, too content to respond vocally. “It was in Bill’s garage in 8th grade. It lasted exactly two minutes and neither of us finished. I had blue balls for the rest of the night, but honestly, I didn’t even care. I’d realized as soon as we’d kissed that I wasn’t into her the way she was into me. I don’t regret it, but as far as first times it’s pretty anticlimactic. Literally.” Eddie giggled, nuzzling closer into Richie’s warmth. He felt fuzzy all over, invincible to the evils of the outside world. He thinks he could probably survive an avalanche right now, completely safe inside Richie’s arms. “What about you? How was your first time porking the hog?” Eddie scrunched his nose in disgust, peering up at Richie judgingly. “First of all, ew. Don’t ever call it that again. And also… this was my first time.” Richie’s eyes widened a fraction, an unreadable but unmistakable softness within them. “Shit, Eds. I wish you’d have told me, I would have at least tried to perform better.” Predictably, Richie was trying to hide his vulnerability with humor. Also predictably, Eddie could see right through it. “It was perfect. You were perfect.” Richie seemed to gnaw on the inside of his cheek, so Eddie continued. “Ten out of ten, would pork again.” That earned a surprised laugh from Richie, and Eddie considered his mission accomplished. He could work on Richie’s insecurities more later, but for now, at least he knew Eddie didn’t regret what had happened. They fell back into another stretch of silence, the crackle of the fireplace background noise to their steady breathing. Eddie had almost fallen asleep when Richie spoke again. “Did you always know you wanted to be a mechanic when you were younger?” It took a moment for Eddie to fully re-inhabit his body, wondering why his slumber had been interrupted for such a random question. “Huh?” “You know, kids are so indecisive. One minute it's 'I'm gonna be a doctor' the next it's 'I'm gonna be an alien superstar princess'. Did little Eddie have lots of dream jobs or was it always a mechanic?” Eddie took a moment to think, having to dig through all of the expectations and responsibilities that had piled on top of him over time, shielding his passions and replacing them with pragmatic plans for the future. "I always wanted to be a mechanic. Actually, I even wanted to open my own garage when I grew up." Richie listened intently, allowing Eddie to continue. "My dad was a mechanic. I learned a lot just from watching him, and then when he passed away I continued learning under a guy named Isaac, until mom decided it was too messy and too dangerous for me to be in the shop. I always believed I would grow up, open my own place where my mom couldn't ban me from being, and name it after my dad." Richie's face fell at the mention of Eddie's dad's death and he cursed himself for bringing it up. People always felt uncomfortable at the mention of death, and even though Eddie had long since accepted that his dad was gone, he always had to suffer through people’s weird grief reactions that, more often than not, made him feel worse. However a few moments passed and Richie still hadn't said anything, so Eddie braved a look upwards. "What's your favorite car?" Eddie was taken aback, already in the process of mentally preparing himself to field the same old questions he'd long since memorized his answers to. He blinked a few times, a smile creeping up on him without his permission. Richie continued to surprise him at every turn, and Eddie was absolutely giddy about it. "You're gonna make fun of me." Eddie sighed, infinitely grateful for Richie somehow always knowing exactly what to say and when not to say. "I absolutely will." Richie nodded. "1966 Volkswagen Type 2." Richie seemed to contemplate it, nodding slowly before bursting into a side splitting smile and letting a little laugh go. "You’re right, that's hilarious." Eddie laughed along, but still slapped his chest playfully to at least act offended. He snuggled in closer, settling his head on Richie’s chest. "It's just that the hippie lifestyle doesn't exactly match the Eddie Kaspbrak I've grown to know and lo-" Richie cut himself off just as Eddie's heart skipped, both of them falling silent for a moment before Richie cleared his throat and marched onwards, his own heart beating rapidly in Eddie's ear. "I'd have guessed you were a smart car kinda guy." "Why? Cause I'm small?" Eddie challenged, trying (and failing) to return his heart rate back to normal. "Yeah. Small, compact, can fit a surprising amount in its backseat." Richie moved his hand down from where he'd been rubbing circles into Eddie's lower back and tapped one of his cheeks. "Careful! I'm still tender." Eddie pouted, unknowingly looking far too cute for Richie's fragile sanity. Richie kissed the top of Eddie's head and Eddie kissed him back between his collarbones, absolutely smitten with the way Richie handled him. "I like the freedom of it." Eddie admitted, picking the conversation back up. "I've always felt trapped in this town, it's comforting to think of owning something that can take me anywhere." “Technically anything with two wheels can accomplish that.” Richie pointed out. “Yeah, but with a van I don’t have to worry about where I’m gonna sleep. I can live out of it for as long as it takes me to get to my destination.” “Where is your destination?” “New York.” Eddie answered automatically, surprising the both of them. Richie’s arms tightened around Eddie, erratic laughter falling from his lips. “EDDIE!!!” “WHAT!?” Eddie was being jostled now, Richie’s happiness contagious even though Eddie had no idea what was happening. “NEW YORK IS MY DREAM!” Eddie finally connected the dots, realizing a little late what that meant. If Eddie wanted to move to New York, and Richie wanted to move to New York, then they could theoretically move to New York together. The notion made Eddie’s belly do flips. “Oh, yeah, I guess that is kind of perfect huh?” Eddie answered, far more bashful than he'd expected himself to sound. “We can get a little apartment downtown where you can open your own garage and I can work at whatever coffee shop will hire me while I practice my standup routine on the weekends! We'll be a dynamic duo, running the streets of New York together. It’s FATE!” Eddie couldn’t deny that it did feel like something cosmic was at play. Richie was this boisterous, loud, chaotic puzzle piece that somehow fit perfectly into the slot on Eddie’s board. He pushed Eddie’s boundaries, encouraged him to challenge his world and rethink the ways he’d been taught to live. Being around him was invigorating, but it also felt like home. Eddie realized with terrifying clarity that he didn’t want to spend another day without Richie in his life. He couldn’t fathom how he’d done so before; looking back felt like watching a black and white film in contrast to the technicolor movie magic he was living in now. Richie had lit up a spot in Eddie’s life that he hadn’t even realized had been dark before. Eddie trailed his hand up Richie’s chest and found the back of his neck, tilting his head down to face Eddie. He moved slow, bringing their faces close together so their lips barely touched. Richie’s skin was soft, his lips plump and inviting as they trembled beneath Eddie’s. They breathed each other in as Eddie nosed at Richie, watching as his eyes fluttered closed and his brain took a backseat. Eddie hummed a nearly imperceptible laugh and finally slotted their lips together, lingering in place for just a second before parting. It was teasing, but not in the sense of arousal. Eddie left Richie with a million thoughts on his mind and nothing but big brown eyes as answers. “I think I passed out for a second there.” Richie breathed shakily, effected in exactly the way Eddie’d intended. “You’re going to take me to New York one day.” Eddie decided aloud. Richie was all shy smiles, dipping his head low to try and hide his blush. “I sure fucking hope so.” Richie responded quietly, looking back up at Eddie through inky curls. Eddie pushed his hair to the side, tucking it behind Richie’s ear and letting his hand fall back down to his chest. “You will.” They fell asleep like that, wrapped in each other’s arms with thoughts of the future fueling their dreams. Eddie knew that nothing was guaranteed. Two days can’t rewrite your whole life, and once they left the resort and re-entered Derry, he was sure that all the expectations and pressure he’d superseded were going to come back full force. But somehow, he felt more prepared to face them. They didn’t hold the same weight as they once had, because now Eddie knew he had a whole world outside of the one his mother had built for him to exist within. That world might just be Richie Tozier, but it was a thousand times bigger and brighter than the solitude he’d lived in before. For once, Eddie was excited to live.

#reddie #richie tozier #eddie kaspbrak #reddie fanfic #reddie fanfiction #reddie smut #reddie lemon #my posts #my writing #OTEOAA

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spidersfanfics · 3 years

Text

Snowed In

Sova x Reader | Hurt Comfort | Cyborg Trauma | Self Indulgent

Despite having recently lost your leg in an accident, you insisted on joining the other agents on a wintery vacation. Today's chosen activity had been skiing and although you were becoming fairly confident on your new leg, you weren't sure if you wanted to risk it against a mountain quite yet. So you stayed behind and your long-time crush volunteered to keep you company. However, you end up getting more than you'd bargained for when an unexpected blizzard keeps the others away for longer than anticipated.

You peered out of the cabin window and shivered, "The storm's really kicking up out there. Do you think the others will be okay?"

"I'm sure the ski resort will be very responsible," Sova reassured you, sliding up next to you at the window.

"Yeah, you're probably right, I just worry you know?" you turned away and headed towards the kitchen. "I guess it's a good thing my leg stopped us from going with them. I'm making some hot chocolate, you want some?"

Sova followed behind you, eager for something sweet, "Sounds good to me." He sat at the kitchen island while you drifted about, preparing drinks for the both of you. "How *is* your leg, by the way?"

You shrugged and shifted your weight back and forth between your left leg and your newly robotic right one. "It's getting easier to use. And Breach has been trying to help me but either robot arms and legs are less similar than we thought or I'm just bad at this."

"I'm sure it's the former," Sova offered reassuringly.

You just laughed and slid him his mug of hot chocolate. "Thanks," you told him dryly, "At least it doesn't hurt anymore, you know, so I could actually come on this trip."

"You're surprisingly chill about all of this," he commented as he sipped carefully at his drink.

He winced as the drink scalded his tongue and you clicked your tongue in disapproval at his impatience. "What's there to not be chill about? Most of you have mechanical parts of some kind. So I got my leg blown off, it happens in our line of work."

Sova shrugged, and glanced hesitantly at his mug. "I suppose. When I lost my eye I was out of commission for months. And using the replacement gave me a headache."

You tapped your fingers against the counter, "Well actually-" but whatever you were about to say got sidetracked by the fact that the two of you were suddenly plunged into darkness.

Well, not total darkness you suppose. As your eyes adjusted to the far dimmer lighting, you hurried over to a window to look outside. What had earlier been just the start of a bad storm had turned into a full blown blizzard, and you could only assume it had knocked over a powerline somewhere.

Almost instantly, the cold started to seep in and you shivered. "Well, power's out."

"Seems like it," Sova frowned. "Come on, and bring your drink, lets head to the living room and try to start a fire.

He led you over to the fireplace which was, perhaps fortunately in this case, a genuine fireplace and not an electric prop. After all the cabin itself typically had heating and so the fireplace had never been upgraded to give the place more of a rustic feel.

Sova knelt next to the place and grabbed a stick.

"Do you know what you're doing?" You asked, standing over him.

"Probably," he replied, twirling the stick about uselessly. "Phoenix tried to show me once. Told him it was easy for him to say, being a radiant and all. But he insisted saying it was good for me to know as the "survivalist" of the group."

As he rambled on, you dug around in your pockets for a moment and managed to find a pack of matches. "Here, these might be easier."

Sova looked up and for a moment seemed embarrassed to see what you were holding but he took it gratefully. "Yeah, maybe. Why did you have these?"

You just shrugged and sipped your hot chocolate, "I like to be prepared."

"Maybe Phoenix should try coaching you as the survivalist instead," Sova laughed as the fire caught and flared up in a burst of heat.

You settled in eagerly next to it, feeling the warmth envelop you. The sudden change in temperature made the connection between your thigh and your prosthetic ache. You noted with dismay that despite the bugs you had been warned about, pain receptors were definitely fully functional.

"Everything alright?" Sova asked, noticing your discomfort.

"Was it that obvious?" You ask, "It's nothing really. Just the new leg, giving me a bit of trouble as expected."

Sova was on it in an instant, grabbing a throw blanket off the nearby armchair to put over your leg and repositioning you so your prosthetic was further away from the fire.

"If it's the temperature giving you issues that's probably a sign of bad connection," he muttered. "The metal is more sensitive to temperature than your regular skin and instead of filtering that, it's just sending the signals straight to you. Common problem with Kingdom tech apparently. I think they do it on purpose."

You raised an eyebrow, "You sure know your stuff."

Sova blushed, "I did some research."

"For what? It's not like your eye gets cold, does it? I didn't think it was even metal."

"No, no. My eye's not even Kingdom," Sova said quickly, shaking his head. "I did the research for you actually," he coughed.

You were actually stunned for a moment, "Oh. Well, thank you. I think."

"It's nothing," Sova said looking away awkwardly.

The two of you finished up your hot chocolate in a soft silence and once you put your mug down, you cleared your throat, getting Sova's attention. "Do you ever feel like your eye makes you a cyborg? Or less human?"

Sova blinked, "I... guess I've never really thought about it. Why? Do you?"

"A little bit," you said, running a hand over your metal leg as you spoke. "It's weird. But I guess I shouldn't because everyone else seems so casual about it."

You flicked a piece of lint off of your blanket, "I tried to talk to Breach about it once but he just told me to "man up" and started telling me stories about how he lost his arms. I know he means well but it wasn't really helpful."

Sova chuckled, "That sounds like Breach alright." He hesitated visibly for a moment before sliding closer to you, "But you're allowed to feel weird about it. Legs are a much bigger deal than an eye."

"It's not even just the leg," you explained, "If it was just the leg that would be fine, but Kingdom was so goddamn eager to weaponize it. To weaponize me. Do you know how many times I was given things that could "be upgraded later to help me in the field"?"

You hugged your knees to your chest and rested your chin on your knees. "If I get hurt again. And again and again and again. Do I stop being human? Am I just another weapon?"

"I know I said I was fine with it, but I guess I'm not really."

Sova stared at you for a long while before he spoke. "I think," he said slowly and carefully, "That as long as you have people who love you, you will never be just another weapon. And I know that the team loves you just the way you are. Well, at least I do."

"You do?" you said, looking up at him.

He nodded, "Yeah. Umm, romantically, to clarify," he coughed, "Sorry was this a bad time to confess? I thought it might shake you out of it."

For a moment you stared at him, dumbfounded, before you burst out laughing at the absurdity of it all. The two of you, sitting in the dark, the only light source a slowly dying fireplace,. Surrounded by a blizzard with no where to run.

"I think I love you too."

Sova laughed in relief, "You do? Despite the eye?"

You stuck your tongue out at him, "I'll manage." With a sigh, you leaned over and rested your head on his shoulder, "Thank you, Sova. Getting all of this off my chest really helped."

"Any time," Sova said softly, just above your head. He shifted carefully, putting one arm around you.

Just then, the lights flickered on and you blinked, momentarily blinded. "Oh good, the power's back. The rest of the team might be back soon too then. What do we tell them?"

Sova looked out a nearby window and shook his head, "The power may be back but the storm hasn't stopped. I think we have a little more time to ourselves."

"Oh. Well good then, I like it here," you let yourself relax once more, resting your head on Sova's chest.

"I like it here too," Sova agreed.

The rumble of his voice against your ear was comforting, the beat of his heart a strange confirmation of your own humanity. And you felt safe.

#Sova x Reader #Gender Neutral Reader #x Reader #Sova (Valorant)#Valorant #Video Game Fanfiction #Video Game #Cyborg #Cyborg Trauma #Prostetics #Hurt Comfort #Stranded in a cabin trope #Call me cliched #Self indulgent #Like seriously no one asked for this #And of course this is some of my best work in a while #Cause why not am I right

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prettywordsyouleft · 3 years

Text

I Suppose

Prompt: “Sometimes I wish you would disappear.” -- @challengingwords prompt #36

Pairing: Cha Hakyeon x female reader

Genre: guardian angel au / fluff

Warnings: there’s a tiny bit of angst but it’s quickly resolved. Also, apparently, I can’t stop writing about saints/angels/demons it seems *shrugs*

Word count: 890

“Are you really going to eat that?” a voice inquired as you pulled a glazed donut up to your mouth. Hakyeon didn’t even let you take a bite. “That would be your third today.”

“And the problem with that is?” you asked with an impatient sigh, your hand hesitating with its delivery. You could smell the baked goods and also his disappointment at your decision-making.

“Well, there is no immediate problem, no. But weren’t you complaining about how your clothes felt tighter the other day-”

Shooting Hakyeon a dark look, the man held up his hands in front of him and chuckled. “By all means, eat the donut, Y/N.”

“Really. Today of all days?”

“What is it now?” you implored, and Hakyeon’s gaze washed over you before shifting back to the window he had been staring out of with disgust. You nodded curtly. “I can see that it’s raining outside.”

“I don’t much like the rain.”

“What you like and don’t like shouldn’t stop me from living, now should it?”

“No, I suppose it shouldn’t.”

Hakyeon didn’t seem as if he was finished, and you waited for the rest of his statement. “I don’t like the rain upon my wings.”

“So keep them concealed. Or even better, stay home. Keep cosy. I’ll go meet with Taekwoon without you.”

Hakyeon was quick to leave the windowpane behind him. “Alone? I think I’ll accompany you today.”

You smirked. “But the rain will get on your wings.”

You could sense Hakyeon was going to voice his opinion yet again, and you groaned, turning to point at the angel in protest. “Don’t say anything.”

“I believe I ought to.”

“Why? So you can cast negativity on the situation yet again?”

“I don’t always cast negativity, Y/N. As your guardian-”

“You know sometimes I wish you would disappear,” you stated, and Hakyeon blinked rapidly, his mouth falling ajar.

You didn’t know how to respond to your own words, shock enveloping you at speaking them. Did you really mean such a thing?

Hakyeon was your longest friend. He had been at your side since you were a child, having quite an accident-prone lifestyle even back then. You had thought him to be an imaginary friend, except when you grew too old to have one, he never disappeared. You were a teen by the time you realised he was your guardian angel.

Now, you felt as if you could live in this world without his constant guidance.

“Very well,” Hakyeon managed to say, swallowing down a lump in his throat at the same time.

“Wait, Hakyeon, I didn’t-!”

Before your sentence was finished, he was gone.

Looking at the donuts in a bakery window, you smiled sadly. You had no appetite for them today. Walking along the sidewalk sluggishly, you felt the heavens opening up above before a loud crash followed the sudden downpour. Stopping, you stared up at the skies, accepting the punishment desperately.

If only Hakyeon would come back.

It had been three days since you had said those hurtful words and three long days it had been. You always wondered why Hakyeon stuck to you like glue. Surely, you could cope in the world without him at your side.

You were learning very quickly how much you depended on him.

How much you loved him.

Shivering as the rain soaked you to the bone, you blindly turned to move off again, tripping over a storefront’s sign, and gripping onto the first thing you could grab.

It felt feathery, and you snapped your focus up, squinting against the grey light.

Hakyeon moved so the brightness stopped blinding you, and you didn’t hesitate to dive into his embrace, holding on firmly.

“I always have hated the rain,” he mentioned, and you laughed against him, snuggling him tighter.

Hakyeon equally had a firm hold of you.

“Let’s go home then. I don’t want your feathers to get too fluffy. You’ll need to sit with your wings out for hours to dry if we stand here much longer.”

“It will be worth it if you want me around you.”

“I never wish for you to disappear again!” you concluded as you looked up at your angel.

Hakyeon smirked. “Really? You were so certain you didn’t need me the other day.”

“Even if you nag me daily, I’d much rather listen to that than not hear or see from you. I can’t cope without you.”

“You’re lucky I’m too committed to you, Y/N. The last three days have been hellish, and I shouldn’t know about such dark places, being an angel and all.”

“You’re not that innocent,” you teased as he took your hand, and you both began walking.

Hakyeon chuckled. “No, I suppose you’re right.”

“Angels aren’t meant to have feelings for their charges, for one,” you reminded, and he gave you a pointed look. “What? Just because you can read my mind, doesn’t mean I don’t know how you feel about me.”

“Humans are more trouble than they’re worth,” he muttered, glancing back at his wings now folded against his back. “I never had to worry about my wings when I didn’t have you.”

“Now, you have to worry about your wings and me.”

Hakyeon grinned, nodding once. “I suppose you’re worth it.”

You laughed heartily, swinging your linked hands back and forth. “I suppose so.”

_________________

[VIXX Masterlist] | [Main Masterlist] | [Request Guidelines]

#kwritersworldnet #kdiarynet #hakyeon fiction #hakyeon fanfic #hakyeon fluff #hakyeon au #vixx fiction #vixx fanfic #vixx fluff #vixx au #kpop fiction #kpop fanfic #kpop fluff

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cloud9in · 4 years

Text

Hazel

Summary: Ava decides that in order to win Hazel’s heart, she’d serenade her outside of her window...in the middle of a snowstorm

Pairing: Ava x Mc (Hazel) (based on the song Hazel by Lloyd) (I recommend listening to it)

Warnings: NONE, just a lot of fluff...and some angst?

Word Count: 2.4k

Permanent Taglist: @samanthadalton @satrinadia I’m also gonna tag some Ava stans: @kamilahsayeet2063 @dopeyouth

The soles of Ava’s boots softly sink into the powder like snow that had begun plating the ground a few hours ago. It was now midnight. The moon sparkled brightly even through the flurry of snow that poured from the sky. Ava brushes off the thin layer of snowflakes that coated her face, and puffs out a breath of air. She knew that she probably resembled an apple, but that wasn’t the most important thing to think about in the moment.

The cheerleader stood below Hazel’s window with a black and silver Sony boombox that she borrowed from Mack. Ava had made a mental note to thank her best friend's sister properly, after (hopefully) succeeding with her plan. To be fair, Mackenzie didn’t take it too well when Ava first came to her with the idea.

“Why do you want my boombox? There's plenty of ones available for whatever you have planned, which is what by the way?”

Ava visibly stiffens, her fingers curling into the hem of her plaid skirt as she spoke, “Well...there’s this movie that Hazel and I used to watch...”. Mackenzie rolls her eyes dramatically as she flops onto her bed, “Oh that movie...hm what was it again.” The blue-haired girl strokes her chin thoughtfully before speaking, “oh right ‘Say Anything’.”

Ava glances at her with a look of surprise, her fingers slowly loosening the hold on her skirt. Mackenzie takes it as a sign to elaborate, “it’s practically all Hazel talks about, she’s drilled it into my brain at this point and now here you are bringing it up again. Can I ever catch a break?” She visibly huffs with a hand over her heart before shooting Ava a wink. An awkward silence sits in the room for a moment until Mackenzie sits up in thought, her eyebrows knitting together before speaking, “I thought you two weren’t on speaking terms?”

Ava frowns at her words and turns her head to look down the hall at Hazel’s closed door. “Well...yes we aren’t. But I want to apologize to her in a way that is meaningful for the both of us. I think that...this is the perfect way.” The brunette displays a hopeful grin on her face as she looks in Mackenzie’s direction.

“...You do know that the whole ‘puppy eyes and please look at my charming smile’ thing does not work on me right? I am not my sister”, Mackenzie deadpans.

“Huh, so it does work on Hazel”, Ava smiles to herself silently as she makes a plan to tease her best friend about it.

“As a matter of fact...Hazel seems to drop everything and run to you whenever you use that damn look..”. Mackenzie tilts her head to the side and gives Ava a weird look.

The brunette tries not to fidget in front of the girl. Mack didn’t know of Ava’s attraction to her big sister, and she wanted to keep it that way for now. Ava didn’t want to picture what Mackenzie’s shovel talk would consist of...the girl could be unpredictable.

“What happened between you guys anyway?”

Ava moves her gaze down to the floor, contemplating her answer. She couldn’t tell Mackenzie what really happened after the ski trip...

But the truth is that Hazel and Ava had gotten closer, sharing their first kiss in her car. The cheerleader had dropped her off that night after practice and before she could stop herself, Hazel was pulled back into the car by her arm, and their lips locked. It felt so perfect...Ava never felt that way when kissing Bayla. Her heart sped up every time she caught a glimpse of the girl's pink hair in the halls. There were moments where Ava had to walk away so she wouldn’t make the mistake of tangling her fingers in Hazel’s hair, burying her perfect lips with her own. The only thing stopping her was Bayla.

Even after the kiss, Ava couldn’t make the decision to fully leave her girlfriend, not until Hazel was sure she knew what she wanted as well. The brunette refused to ruin her own relationship in fear of her best friend picking someone else in the end.

The two shared glances occasionally but neither one has spoken to each other after a huge argument one day in the locker room. All of those bottled up emotions had spilled in that moment, but it only left a rift too big to seal up with a simple “I’m sorry”. It seems like the best option would be to sit down and talk it all out, but what teenager is capable of such civility?

Ava breathes out quietly as her mind starts to cloud with thoughts. Why am I still with her? Hazel is the one I want.... No, need. She couldn’t get neither Hazel nor Bayla out of her head. Is this the way her best friend feels about Mason and Noah?

She blinks back to reality after a moment and looks up to see Mackenzie staring at her expectantly. “Um...well it's just some school and girlfriend drama”, Ava says nonchalantly, hoping to convince the blue-haired girl otherwise. It's clear that Mack doesn’t fully believe her, but she drops the topic and walks towards her closet, pulling out the shiny new boombox. She hands it over to Ava but not before staring directly into her eyes, “You break my baby and we’re going to have a problem Lawrence.” The brunette gapes at her for a split second and then nods her head carefully.

Yeah she definitely didn’t want to hear that shovel talk now.

Ava smiles at the little memory as she dusts more snowflakes from her face. She looks up at the grey sky and shields her eyes from the falling snow. The light flurry was beginning to accelerate into a storm and the many layers Ava had on wouldn’t be able to protect her for much longer. She had to get a move on, it was now or never.

Funny that out of any time of the day, Ava had picked during a snowstorm to confess her love to Hazel. Was it love? Ava knew deep down that she was crazy in love with the girl but didn’t want to scare her away. So instead of saying “I love you, be my girlfriend”, the cheerleader decided that bringing a boombox and blasting an old school love song while serenading Hazel from below her window, in a soon to be blizzard... would be the best idea ever.

She positioned the boombox onto her shoulders before reaching up to hit the play button, a deep yet melodious beat encompassing the air as the singer hummed sweet words

I'm beginnin' to see

The more we hang together

Baby girl, I like you

'Cause you're better

Ava’s arms shook intensely but it wasn’t because of the weight of the box. A surge of nervousness had fluttered in her stomach and seeped its way into her bones. Is this stupid? Is she even awake? Will she be angry that I woke her up? The brunette had started to doubt her actions as she stood there. There was no hint of a silhouette behind the transparent curtains in Hazel’s room, and Ava had almost switched the song off until the lights turned on.

Hazel had settled under her thick blankets for the night, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep. The fight she had with Ava constantly replayed in her head, but not nearly as much as the kiss did. Hazel still felt the brunette’s lips on hers, the tingling sensation seemed to never go away. She lightly touched her lips and closed her eyes, reliving every touch and feeling Ava had caused that night. Her heart started to beat rapidly, and it was the only thing she could hear before a sudden commotion invaded her thoughts...

Hey Hazel

I like you

Can't see myself without you

My sweet Hazel

'Cause I think I'm in love (I'm in love)

Hazel’s eyes shot open as she sat up abruptly. Was that my name? She thought to herself as she peered towards the window. Down below she could see a figure standing but the blowing snow made it hard to make out who it was. Hazel steadily slipped out of her covers, immediately wrapping her arms around her abdomen for warmth. She cautiously slipped below the window and squinted her eyes to see the intruder, but to no avail. She couldn’t see who it was, which meant that turning on her bedroom lights was the only option. Hazel sighed to herself before flipping the switch up and creeping back to her spot. What the hell am I doing? She thought again, deciding to stand up and face the man who sang her name shamelessly.

Except it was no man.

...It was Ava

Hazel does a double take as her jaw drops open at the sight below her. Ava holds a boombox above her head as Lloyd sings his heart out. When the brunette notices Hazel, a gorgeous smile appears on her face, eyes twinkling with delight. They looked like snowflakes themselves and Hazel felt as if she was in trance.

Ava began to sing along, her voice belting out in the most incredible way possible, as the snow shined heavily behind her. It was the most stunning thing Hazel had ever witnessed.

Can't see myself without you

My sweet Hazel

Girl, I think I'm in love (I'm in love)

She hums the background vocals while never breaking eye contact with the girl above her. It was sensual and Hazel felt her face flood with heat as she covered her mouth. Ava puts the boombox down and points her fingers up at Hazel as she continues the song, whispering her name

...Hazel

Hazel...

Lloyd’s vocals croon in the background as the two girls just stare at each other. Ava didn’t fight the urge and allowed herself to sink into the deep pools of honey that were home to Hazel’s face. The light in her room added an extra sparkle to her eyes as she laughed with joy. Hazel was relieved that her dark complexion couldn’t reveal a deep redness that only Ava could cause. Her whole body felt like it was on fire, the cold didn’t bite at her skin anymore. Excitement runs through her veins as she dashes out of her bedroom, down the stairs, out through the front door, and right into Ava’s arms. The cheerleader yelps in surprise as she steadies her hold on Hazel, holding her up midair. She giggles into Hazel’s neck as they hug each other tightly.

“Couldn’t resist me eh?”

Hazel laughs, swatting playfully at Ava’s padded shoulder. She leans in for another hug, enveloping herself in all of the warmth that the brunette provided, despite the chilly air. After a minute of just holding each other, Ava reluctantly pulls away and cups Hazel’s cheek, turning her head to look down at her. “Hazel...I’m really sorry. For everything.”

The giggles and laughter are put on pause as Ava sets her down. Hazel doesn’t let go of the brunette no matter how much her brain protests to step back. She couldn’t. This is what she desperately craved for ever since she lost her best friend. Now that Ava was back in her arms, Hazel held on tightly, like she feared that history would repeat itself if she let go. This time would be different, this time they were going to talk it out.

“Listen Hazel I-”

She doesn’t let Ava continue, putting a finger against her mouth to shush her.

“We can talk about it tomorrow..”. Hazel gestures to the white snow blanketing around them, “When we’re not in the middle of a snow storm”, she claims.

Ava looks around with her and nods her head in agreement, a small smile playing at her lips. Tomorrow they’d solve this problem, but for now, Hazel is going to enjoy every last bit of this experience. So many ideas flooded her mind, maybe she’d throw a bunch of snowballs at Ava, or push her into the snow. Maybe she’d just hold her hand and let the snow plummet and build around them.

My sweet Hazel

Girl, I think I'm in love (I'm in love)

She gazes into Ava’s eyes lovingly, pulling her flush against her smaller frame. Hazel watches as small snowflakes trickle down onto the brunette’s rosy cheeks, and leans in to kiss every individual freckle that painted her face. Ava pulls back after a good five kisses and chuckles down at the girl, “you know if you keep that up, we’ll be standing here all night.”

Hazel sways gently in her arms, a cheeky smile invading her dark features, “and who says that wasn’t my plan all along…?”

Ava giggles and swiftly picks up Hazel once more, this time spinning her around in the snowfall. They’re bodies were drenched with the white coating, but they didn’t mind it. Hazel looked up into the sky as she screamed with happiness.

Girl I think I’m in love

I’m in love

Ava peered up at her best friend, the smile on her face looked like a million dollars. She pulls her down into a searing kiss that completely shuts out the blizzard around them. As soon as their lips connected, Ava felt like all was right in the world. She could taste the sweet cherry chapstick that Hazel always wore. God it was even better than last time.

She gently sucks on Hazel’s lower lip, watching her every gasp and the way her nose scrunches up when she squeezes her eyes shut. God she is so perfect.

They both eventually pulled back for air, the heat between them seemingly growing hotter and hotter. If they never stopped, the whole neighborhood would be melted of snow.

“You know you are my whole world Hazel…”

“Just shut up and spin me around again”

The two girls howl with laughter as they collide together in the storm.

...From out of her window, Mackenzie shouts down “KNEW IT!!!”, her fist pumping in the air.

...Noah sits on his motorcycle in the storm and watches them kiss, an ache growing in his heart.

...Mason turns back in the direction he came from, refusing to witness the scene before him. The flowers he once held in his hand, now laid peacefully under the blanket of snow.

...and Ava’s phone that's lodged into the snow lights up for the third time: 3 missed calls from Bayla.

It rings one more time before going silent.

I’m in love

#playchoices #my two first loves #ava lawrence #ava x mc #If you want to be added on to my perm taglist just let me know #or any specific w|w ship #just a whole lotta fluff #well..maybe not in the beginning heh

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shuatoyou · 4 years

Text

one last summer - l.c

[day 38 of a tct summer collection]

✗ pairing; chan x reader

✗ genre; fluffy fluff and angsty angst :p

✗ wc; 3900

✗ summary; each day is spent counting down until the end of summer, you do this every year but this time around, its harder to watch the days go down knowing once the count hits zero, its time for him to go.

✗ song; pink skies by LANY <3

✗ a/n; i cant believe this is my longest fic yet ?? i hope u guys like it !! i chose to write for chan kinda on a whim bcos i dont do that a lot and he is just the best angel ... also i thought i should involve a little bit of my signature angst for my first writing collab with my best friends if u wanna see amazing stuff click below to travel to . . .

A TCT SUMMER COLLECTION *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

the alarm ringing at a time you would never find yourself awake during summer, it could only mean you had an important day to look forward to.

today was the beginning of the countdown to the last day of the last summer you had together.

“chan, wake up,” you mumble sleepily at the boy, who was in a deep sleep at the foot of your bed. he scrambled about for a second before going completely still. of course he was back asleep.

you groan at the sight of him cuddling into the blanket, even more in spite of your attempt to wake yourself up and him at the same time. although, it was cuter than you wanted to admit. perhaps your heart went slightly crazy... but that was another issue for another day. or never.

“fine don’t wake up loser, i’ll eat pancakes on my own.”

hearing that, he jumps straight up “i don’t think so.” he glares at you while you sit under the warm blankets amused at his reaction.. he sighs in defeat once he realises it was all a play for him to wake up. of course you wouldn’t indulge in a beautiful breakfast without him.

morning flies by, and before you know it noon comes around. the clock reads three pm and you’re both sprawled over the couch binging ‘a silent voice’ for the nth time. the entire movie makes you sad but after watching it so many times you become immune to the tears.

chan on the other hand, doesn't. like always he finds himself getting teary at the same scenes every time. perhaps that was one of the qualities you adored in him: he never hid how he felt even if he hated the teasing that came with it.

after deciding on a whim you didn’t want to waste the day inside, you switched off the tv and threw a box of tissues at the emotional boy.

“what was that for?” he whines, throwing the tissue box off him.

“wipe your tears. i wanna go out,” you smile cheekily before skipping off to get your shoes on, shortly followed by chan.

“we’re going out in sweats?” he questions, pointing at the lazy attire you had both become accustomed to everytime you were together.

you shrug, grabbing the keys off it’s special hanger. special because it was made by chan himself when you were both in the second grade and making matching key hangers for each other's houses was sentimental you could say. or as your parents said.

when you were both younger, they were convinced you two would grow up together and maybe get married in the future. the two of you became inseparable over a short amount of time - all because of the one day he offered you his juice carton after yours had been stolen by the class bully in the first grade. that was almost twelve years ago now and that same boy was still standing in front of you.

“what are you thinking about?” chan nudges you as the two of you walk down the same road to your usual frozen yoghurt place.

“just some stuff,” you shrug.

“like?”

“pre-school.”

he hums in response, and you take this as an indication to go on.

“our parents really dealt with our crazy friendship the daily playdates... imagine if we ended up how they wanted us to.” you smile fondly, the thought of it all was enough to plaster an expression on your face.

“don’t remind me, they would’ve married us the moment we turned 18 if we left it up to them.” he chuckles. “they think we were meant together”

“do you?” you retort.

“do i what?”

“think that?” you ask not facing him. you would rather not have him fully see the crimson building up on your cheeks.

“i don’t know, i guess. we've been friends for so long, i've never thought about it.”

you nod understandingly and walk the rest of the way in silence, a comfortable one at that. there was never anything else when the two of you were together.

maybe that’s why you didn’t want to let go yet.

“BEACH DAY!”

“ugh, do you seriously have to scream that down the entire hallway, y/n?”

“yes because it’s beach day!” you yell one more time, forcing a reaction out of him but your amusement quickly dies down after feeling the soft impact of your pillow in your face.

“heh”

chan proudly walks out the room leaving you dumbfounded but you quickly scramble back onto your feet and chase after the boy jumping on his back earning a grunt from the much taller male.

“you suck.” he groans

“be careful you are in my territory little boy” you snicker signalling to your house which had been the location of the endless sleepovers for the summer holidays.

“speaking of, i really should go back home and pick up some more of my stuff before we leave for the beach.” he mentions as he lets you down from his back and the two of you take your seats by the kitchen island.

“oh that’s fine, want me to come with you? i miss your mom anyways.”

“don’t you have your own beach bag to pack?” he asks, grabbing a plate which mimics his actions and starts piling up your plate with his favourite breakfast stuff before passing it over to him.

“i can do it later” you smile now making your own breakfast plate. chan looks down hesitating with it.

“nah it’s okay, i’ll be back quick anyways” he mumbles, picking at the food making you lift a brow without saying anything as you delve into your own happily.

he didn't want to upset you but the small little things you had been doing for him had been harder to let go of as time went by.

however it's not long before breakfast is over and chan waves a quick goodbye before leaving for his own home for the first time in ages. it was quite normal for the two of you to spend a large amount of time at one and others houses both families gave up in trying to send you two back to your respectable homes.

meanwhile you spent the time he was gone packing your own beach bag consisting of the usual tower, sunscreen and one of the disposable cameras you bought for summer memories documenting. chan had laughed at the big box that arrived at your house a month ago especially when you told him it was a box of eight disposable cameras.

“you have your phone plus a polaroid camera, why do you need disposable ones?” he asks curiously prodding at the box.

“these ones come out cuter don’t judge. plus i’ll give you one or two that we use during the many adventures for you to process and hang up the pictures in your new room” you look up at the boy hopefully as he sighs in defeat.

giving yourself a little round of applause you open up the box and immediately grab one of the cameras pulling chan closer to get a selfie.

“this one is to mark the start of our summer adventures documented by a disposable camera.”

shaking your head you pull yourself out of your daze right on time as the doorbell rings. you only assume it’s chan and you’re right as you open up the door to the boy with his hands filled.

you take one of the bags from his hand letting him into the house.

“what’s all this?” you ask curiously trying to look at the bags as best as you could through the little openings.

“extra clothes, stuff for the beach and snacks my dad brought back from japan for you. he said he forgot to give them the last time”

excitedly you rush over to the bag he held up to you, japanese snacks were one of your favourite and chan's father had made it a regular occurrence to always bring you back some after his long work trips away in osaka.

which was where the family would be moving by the end of summer hence why the two of you spent each day doing something new counting down the days till the moment he stepped onto a plane without you.

noticing the sad look on your face while you looked at the snacks longingly chan threw an arm around your shoulders.

“what’s with the look? come on we’ve got waves to catch y/n”

“i'm gonna miss you” you pout and his gaze softens pulling you away from the bags and into his embrace allowing you to relax in his arms for a bit. he thought this would happen one way or another but he only expected it when it was the last day.

“are you ready to go?” he whispers while rubbing your back and you almost wanted to say no just to be able to stay like this a little longer but nevertheless you pulled a way nodding beginning to walk over to the bags so you could put them away into the car.

the drive to the beach was only peaceful, which was normal when it came to you two. just endless music and comfortable silence but you knew the tension in the air would not decrease anytime soon due to the nature of this entire summer.

“will we still talk when you leave?” you blurt out, failing to face the boy currently sat in the driver's seat.

“why the sudden question?” his face evidently changed to the questioning look he’s always had when he was confused about something.

you shrug and he doesn’t question furthermore which you appreciated because it would’ve been tough having to explain the endless worries in your mind.

reaching forward for his phone you scroll through his playlists until you find the one song that the two of you often found comfort in when together or apart.

“we have seriously got to get over this song”

‘shut up, i love you’

you laugh at his statement but that doesnt stop the two of you from singing along to the lyrics like it was your own song. you occasionally turned to the other watching him nod along to the song, your heart was in pain. how could you let go of him so soon?

‘you're my best friend’

another morning, another day crossed off till chan had to leave by the end of summer. the thought of him leaving soon made your stomach churn to the point you wanted to scream. so many unexplained feelings and yet you had to act like everything was okay and making the last few memories this summer would be nothing. you had no energy to get out of bed and do anything today even if you knew that the day would just go to waste.

“so what are we doing today? making more memories?” chan asked right on point with your thoughts almost teasingly.

“you ask that as if i have no reason to do this.” you mumble turning away from the boy and nuzzling further into your blanket.

“there's still time before i leave y/n”

“not enough though, chan.” you finally turn back to him, frustrated that he couldn't understand why you were so keen on spending time with him.

“yeah but i don't want to do all this just for the sake of time, i want to do it because we both love spending time together. don't we?”

you nodded pitifully, struggling with the real reason why it was harder to get through summer. your feelings were a factor in it all but you couldn't find it in you to tell him.

“can we just spend today at yours?” you asked softly, scared if you raised your tone it might betray you somehow.

this time it was his turn to nod before moving closer to you, unsure of what he was going to do. you looked up at the boy who only brought you into his embrace once again, causing your heart to do countless backflips.

“you’ve been giving me a lot of hugs recently.”

“mind your own business”

you giggle, letting your breathing steady at the pace of his. your mind drifts to the fact somehow you only felt this way when he was the cause of it.

he couldn't help but smile to himself when you let go in his arms, allowing him to hold you, physical affection was never a common thing in your friendship.

‘i think our hearts are starting to show’

“let's get ready to leave, hm?” he spoke, almost in a whisper as you pulled away and met his eyes. they had that usual sparkle in them. the one you adored.

his house, you were always warmly welcomed by mrs lee who treated you like her own child, perhaps that's why you and chan’s friendship was able to last as long as it had, your families ordered each other as much as the two friends did.

“i was wondering when he would bring you around again, how’s summer been so far?” his mom asked as you took your seat on one of the island chairs like you usually would while chan went to grab a bottle of water for you and him.

“it's been okay” you smiled at the woman now sitting across from you with a kind smile waiting for you to continue. “we’ve just been chilling you know how it is.”

“has he confessed his undying love for you yet?”

“mom! what the hell?” chan exclaims in shock trying not to choke on his sip of water and you sit there stunned.

“i'm joking sweetheart” she reassures the two of you noticing the red on either of your faces, giving you a knowing smile before turning away which lingers on your mind slightly longer than you would have wanted.

it takes a moment for chan to calm down and when he does he drags you out of the kitchen to his game room hoping to get away from his mother's endless teasing.

“god, i'm sorry i hate when she does this.” he runs a hand through his hair expressing his frustration and you chuckle nervously.

“does she say this stuff all the time?” you wonder, taking your seat on chan’s gaming chair making him sit on the bean bags on the floor. but he doesn't seem to pay any attention to it while he recovers from the past events.

“sometimes, it's always stuff like when am i going to ask you out or confess or something crazy you know?” he explains, fanning himself.

something crazy… the words stung momentarily as you thought about anything happening between you guys would be crazy to him. nothing would happen anyways, not now.

he shakes his head while walking over to plug in his monitor, “my mom truly believes we’ll end up dating.” he laughs to himself but you only go red at his statement, turning around on the gaming chair dangling your legs trying to distract yourself.

he frowns at the way you turn around but does not question it any further, instead, he picks up two of his game controllers and puts one in front of you before settling back down into the beanbag.

“what are we playing?” you ask finally turning back around

“mario kart?” he states more like a question though and you agree, leaving the gaming chair to sit beside him on one of the other beanbags.

you couldn't help but think how much you were going to miss this, zoning out as you think of the last time you two played.

“if i win, you have to fulfil one of my wishes, and if you win then… whatever you want.” chan writes it all down on paper kind of like a mock contract and you laugh as he slides it over to you to sign.

“please don't wish for anything crazy or expensive” you beg jokingly.

the only response you get from the boy is a simple wink which directly sends the butterflies into your stomach like every other time he does something.

you guys start your game and immediately the tension rises as the two of you compete for first class, occasionally nudging each other to throw the other off.

“i am going to win this, i promise you.”

your words lose all meaning as the big number two appears beside your character and you huff, mad at the fact you lost to chan once again who had managed to secure first place. it was frustrating how good the boy was at this game.

“what was that?” he lifted his hand to cup his ear teasingly waiting for you to repeat your previous statement.

you shove him away from you and cross your arms still salty at the loss.

“i think i choose to use my wish now.” he looked at you now.

“fine, what is it lee chan?” you kept your arms crossed as you also turned your body to face him.

“i’d like a kiss.”

you never expected to kiss him that night, and even if it didn't make things too awkward afterwards it only made you sure of the feelings that grew for the boy.

“wanna make a bet if one of us wins?”

you look at the boy stunned at his suggestion.

“did you forget what happened last time?” you ask fiddling with your fingers.

“yeah we kissed, no big deal right?” he turned away to turn on the game and you sat with your face evident with disbelief.

“really? no big deal?”

“huh?” he looks at you, puzzled.

“friends dont just kiss…” you try your best to explain but it felt like it was going over his head from the way he looked at you with so much confusion.

standing up, you unwantedly raise your voice “all summer you keep filling your head up with these things like we can never date and all of that rubbish after we literally kissed not so long ago, does that not mean anything to you?”

“it wouldn't matter anyways, i'm leaving. i’ll be gone soon.”

“that doesn't mean we won't stop talking. you said so yourself.” you fretted with a pleading look.

he looks at you saying nothing and you can only scoff feeling all the blood rush up to your head in anger before opening the door to leave. staying would only make things worse and you knew he wouldn't try and resolve anything if you did.

“where are you going?” he calls out as you’re about to go down the stairs with tears of frustration filling up your eyes.

turning around, you respond quietly to the boy, “is that all you’re going to ask?”

“what do you want me to say, y/n?”

you laugh in disbelief and struggle to keep yourself from choking out any tears, “i’ll give you time to think about it.”

with that you make sure to compose yourself enough to wave at mrs lee with a big smile by the time you’re down the stairs and she responds with a pitiful one, she most likely had heard you both. letting yourself out, you also let out the breath you’d been holding, leaving your childhood best friend all alone for the first time this summer.

walking home all alone was the worst part because your overwhelming emotions would not stay inside of you causing you to spill every sadness filled tear onto the pavements you walked on.

you made your way inside your house and without greeting your parents you locked yourself away to wallow in your sorrows for that entire weekend occasionally letting your mom in to comfort you without telling her the reason to your sadness unaware that at one point your parents worriedly notified chan you weren't feeling good sometime, it was only till you heard your mom softly knock on your door to tell you the said boy was waiting for you downstairs.

your heart wouldn't quit racing in your chest as you opened the door to her soft eyes begging you to talk to him after realising whatever happened was something to do with him. so you follow her downstairs, making your way into the living room where chan was sitting uncomfortably on the couch hoping for you to show yourself. you walked as slowly and quietly as you could trying not to notify him of your presence but that didn't work when you heard his voice call out your name making you shut your eyes tight in pain.

“i know you’re there y/n please talk to me”

freezing on the spot you decided not to go further into the room in fear of bursting into a sob at the sight of him. so you sit on the floor behind the wall separating you two.

“im listening.” you call out as quietly as possible.

“i'm assuming you’re not going to come in, that's okay.” he nods to particularly no one, perhaps himself.

it was silent as chan inhaled deeply, thinking about how what he was going to say would change things.

the atmosphere got more awkward by the second which was a new feeling for the both of you, never once had there been such a moment together.

“i'm sorry”

“i’m sorry we never sat down to talk about our feelings much lately. i feel like everythings been about me and the fact i'm…” he stopped mid sentence he was hesitating although it was inevitable one way or another you would be hearing this out loud again.

“i'm leaving y/n and i don't want to leave without telling you that you do mean more to me than just a best friend.”

your eyes widened in shock as you stood up hoping to run away from this situation but chan was one step ahead of you as he held onto your wrist, a gentle but burning touch that pulled you back towards him.

“maybe i'm too late but i'd like you to know later than never. so please say something?” he pleads, searching your eyes for some sort of a non verbal answer while waiting for you to speak up.

“you’re leaving next week… good luck.” you whisper, straining your voice enough so it wouldn't break. “im sorry too.” you pull out from his grip and walk off to your room without making eye contact with your mom who stood by the staircase with a pitiful look, all meant for you and the boy you left standing alone in your own house.

and when he left you knew that was the last time you’d see him.

“chan? you’re home quite early. how was y/n’s?”

he looked at his dad with a blank expression and shrugged his shoulders, his mom hadn't told him she saw y/n leave upset.

“it's going to be tough but i hope you’re both ready to say your goodbyes soon,” he smiled, giving his son a pat on the back.

if only it was like that and if only he could go back to reverse all the stupid things he said.

the blank feeling burdened you also as you caught a glimpse of the photos you had already gotten processed from your disposable camera.

letting go now would make it easier for the two of you when the time came though in your heart he would still be the most important person for a while until he wasn't. maybe in another world something would be different so the two of you wouldn't be where you are right now, instead in a much happier place.

perhaps in that happier place you would’ve said goodbye…

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twicepinkmeup-imagines · 4 years

Text

Park Chaeyoung / Rosé ; so easy to fall in love.

writer’s note : so absolutely love this request because i’ve lived in melbourne for a couple of years so writing this is bringing back goooooood ass memories 🥰 wanted to keep this short and simple, no angst no nothing. ALSO THANK U FOR THE 100 oVER FOLLOWERS?!?! It hasn’t even been a month!!!!

warning : mate, it’s fluffy and its gay

words : 2,510 words (short & sweet fluff)

tips : So Easy by Phillip Phillips was such a GOOD song to write this fic to and is such a perfect song to listen to while reading this 😭❤️ Give it a try if you don’t mind it and let me know what you think! ❤️

xoxo

Was she in a dream? To be quite honest, she wasn’t sure herself.

After a long flight from Seoul, Y/N just wanted to sleep in and call it a day. She just want to catch up on the sleep she lacked because she wasn’t going to spend her vacation in Melbourne like an old grumpy grouch who hasn’t gotten enough sleep in her system.

But right now, she wasn’t sure if the kisses that she’s feeling at the moment, were a dream or not.

Fluttering her eyes open while she instinctively stretched on bed, Y/N’s eyes landed on her beautiful girlfriend, Park Chaeyoung who’s also known as Rosé to some.

The recently awaken girl smiled at Australian native before she softly cooed, “Good God, I don’t know what I did in my previous life to wake up to such beauty.”

Rosé rolled her eyes at her girlfriend’s cheesy comment as she grinned while shaking her head before she caressed Y/N’s face and said, “I won’t be such a beauty if we’re not up and getting ready to go to the beach in half an hour.”

This caused for Y/N to groan playfully as she whined, “Babe, we just went through an 11-hour flight from Seoul to Melbourne; I think we deserve a day’s worth of sleep.”

“Y/N, we’ve only got a week here and tomorrow, I’ve promised Alice that we’ll spend our time with her,” Rosé reasoned with a small pout before she suddenly sat up and straddled her girlfriend’s waist while softly pleading, “Pretty please, baby? I just want today to be us.”

Y/N knew that her girlfriend was very well aware by the fact that she was absolutely weak for Rosé’s pout and her adorable baby voice. It worked everytime whenever the Australian native wanted something and Y/N knew it wasn’t going to change anytime soon.

Placing her hands on her girlfriend’s hips, Y/N sighed and chuckled in amusement as she breathed out, “You, Ms. Roseanne Park, are playing a dirty game.”

Rosé giggled before she placed a quick kiss on the tip of Y/N’s nose as she teased, “Yeah, but I win every time and that’s all that matters, sweets.”

As the Australian rolled off of her girlfriend, Y/N could only sigh as she forced herself to sit up and gaze aimlessly around the room. She’ll admit it, she was definitely in a daze and she knows she could sleep for another few more hours but at the same time, Y/N loved seeing her girlfriend happy.

With that said, Y/N got out of the covers and immediately made the bed as she then made her way to the bathroom to freshen up. Thankfully, it didn’t take her long to get ready but they still needed to pack for the short trip.

While Y/N was brushing her teeth, the girl could feel slender arms going around her waist and as she looked at the mirror, she could see Rosé leaning her chin on the crook of Y/N’s neck.

“I love this,” Rosé sighed out before she chirped, “Waking you up, planning a trip to the beach then spending the week with my sister; it’s like my life is normal.”

With her mouth full of toothpaste foam, Y/N spit some out before she gargled her mouth with water and said, “Baby, if your life was ever normal, you and I would have never met.”

The Australian giggled as she then tightened her arms while softly saying, “I still have yet to thank Soojin for introducing us both when she did. If she hadn’t had urged Alice to bring me along to the party, you and I would be non-existent right now.”

Y/N smiling lovingly towards her girlfriend through the mirror as she quietly chirped, “It’s funny how fate works huh, babe?”

Rosé just nodded with a gentle smile before she placed a quick kiss on her girlfriend’s cheek while slowly untangling her arms around her waist and said, “Best hangover I’ve experienced.”

The Australian then teasingly pat her girlfriend’s butt while the latter laughed in response as the both of them continued to do their errands for the the daytrip.

For the couple, the trip to Melbourne was rather unexpected but because Rosé felt a bit bored being at the dorm with no schedules at all, she impulsively thought a trip back home would be a great idea for a much needed distraction.

Of course, she needed approval from both the group and the label, which included the approval of her managers. It was hard at first and Rosé expected no less. They were already reluctant on letting her go, let alone letting her go with her very hidden girlfriend.

It was no surprise to anyone that any relationship that Rosé would be in, would have to be hidden from the eyes of the public. However, it wasn’t because she was embarrassed or ashamed by the fact that she was dating a girl but it was merely because some fans wouldn’t accept the fact that their number one bias- was actually taken.

She’s seen it with her fellow bandmate, Jennie and she’s also seen it with her other friends in the industry. It’s not that idols aren’t allowed to date; no, nothing like that.. but they were to stay quiet regarding the relationship for the entire time to avoid fan disapproval.

“Rosie, don’t forget to bring a blanket later! It’s gonna be chilly by the time we arrive!” Y/N yelled out from the room as Rosé was out in the living room, looking for a spare bag.

“And don’t you forget to bring my plushie for when I sleep on the car!”

Creasing her brows, Y/N entered the living room with one plushie in each hands before she questioned, “Shall I bring Milly or Peaches?”

Turning around to face her girlfriend, the sight absolutely melted Rosé’s heart as she giggled and shook her head with adoration. With her girlfriend still sporting a serious expression on her face, the Australian walked towards her before she placed her hands on her girlfriend’s hips while saying, “Hmm, why don’t we bring both?”

“Yeah, I figured,” Y/N said with pursued lips as Rosé looks at her curiously before the girl clarified seriously, “Well, that way none of them gets jealous.”

The Australian laughed loudly as she quickly cupped her girlfriend’s face and unconsciously caressed her cheeks while softly saying, “You, my dear, are the cutest person I know.”

Brows creased and cheeks slightly red, Y/N questioned adorably, “.... Are we still talking about Milly and Peaches?”

xoxo

Rosé missed this.

She missed the smell of Australian air and how the cold breeze completely compliments the heat of the sun. It was something that she grew up with and has never forgotten- even after she moved to Korea.

Don’t get her wrong, she absolutely loves Seoul and the people there but there was something about Melbourne that gave her a sense of calm. She was even more content now, considering that she was in Melbourne with the person she’s so in love with.

“I remember you telling me that one day we’d go to Brighton beach together,” Y/N chimed in softly as she glanced at her girlfriend before looking back at the road as she continued to drive and said, “You were so excited by the thought of it, I knew it must’ve been amazing.”

Smiling contently at her girlfriend, Rosé leaned the side of her head against the head rest as she nodded and quietly chirped, “It was on my bucket list growing up; to go to Brighton beach with the person I’m crazily in love with.”

“And I’m the person who you’re crazily in love with?”

The Australian giggled before she took Y/N’s free hand and placed a chaste kiss on her knuckles while saying, “Yes and I have been for the past 11 months.”

Y/N looked at Rosé temporarily, at the same time as the sun hits her face and emphasizing her gorgeous brown eyes as the former sighs contently and breathes out, “God, I have no idea what I did in my previous life to deserve someone like you, Park Chaeyoung.”

As her girlfriend looks back at the road, Rosé leans over the center console before she leans her head on Y/N’s shoulder and said, “Sweets, as long as we’re together in this current lifetime, nothing else really matters.”

That instantly made the driving girl smile as she leaned her head on top of the Australian’s head while they continued to drive to Brighton beach. The drive didn’t really take that long but due to sudden traffic, the couple finally arrived at the destination 35 minutes later. Because it was a weekday, the beach was rather empty but honestly, the couple enjoyed it that way.

Stepping out of the car with all their items in their hands, the couple looked at the gorgeous sky that were a mixture of yellow, orange and a hint of magenta. It was so picture perfect that Rosé couldn’t help but take a deep breath and released a sigh of content.

“This almost seems unreal.” The Australian whispered, loud enough for her girlfriend to hear as she added, “The color of the skies are just... wow.”

While Rosé gazes at the sky, Y/N gazes at her.

She’s experienced this multiple times whenever she’s with Rosé because she can’t believe that such a person exists in her lifetime. Not only was her girlfriend a multitalented human being, but she was one of the kindest and most caring soul too.

Rosé then looked at Y/N and realized that the latter was shamelessly staring at her before she teased, “Why don’t you take a picture, sweetheart? It’ll last longer.”

“Photos don’t do your beauty justice; how the color of the sky hits your skin and makes your eyes shine a little bit brighter than before; God, this is what I dream of everyday.”

Out of the complete blue, tears were threatening to leave Rosé’s eyes as she hears the sweet words before she abruptly looked away and croaked out, “Let’s go hang out by the beach before the sun sets.”

The couple then made their way to the empty beach, sitting at the steps at one of the colorful houses that were known to tourists all around the world. They laid out everything that they’ve brought, Milly and Peaches enjoying the sight of the scenery themselves as the couple hugged each other while a blanket covers their shoulders.

Their eyes were locked on the skies as the colors of orange, yellow and magenta began to darken slightly and the breeze of cold air were more blatant than they were before. The sound of the currents and the loud squawking of the seagulls making its appearance as shades of gray entered the warm colored sky.

With her arms wrapped around her girlfriend’s waist, the Australian leaned her head at the crook of Y/N’s neck as she took a deep breath and released a content sigh before saying, “Can’t believe we’re finally here.”

“Who would’ve known that I’d be sitting at Brighton beach with the one and only, Roseanne Park?” Y/N questioned rhetorically as a small smile formed on her lips before she continued, “Sometimes I feel like this is all a dream and in five minutes, I’m going to wake up and realize that it was all a dream.”

Rosé then looked up at her girlfriend before she whispered, “Well, we can’t have that now, can we?” She teased before she joked, “What can we do to change that, Ms. Y/L/N?”

Chuckling softly at her girlfriend, Y/N hummed before she pretended to think while suggesting, “I’m not sure myself, Ms. Rosie; do you think a kiss would do?”

The Australian then grinned adorably as she nodded slightly before saying, “I can’t think of a better solution, Ms.”

With that, Rosé then scooted closer before she gently connected her lips with her girlfriend’s, both of their eyes fluttering shut at the contact as the sound of the whistling air fill the atmosphere.

Slowly pulling away, the tips of their nose were slightly touching before the couple smiled affectionately at each other as Y/N whispered teasingly, “It is definitely one of my favorite solutions, that’s for sure.”

The Australian then laughed warmly before she rolled her eyes playfully and stood up with the blanket around her shoulders as she faced her girlfriend while saying, “You better cherish it, my love; I don’t give out my solutions easily.”

And in that moment, when her girlfriend was simply smiling at her with that beautiful smile of hers, Y/N knew that she was screwed forever.

Rosé was not only beautiful on the outside but after dating her for so long, she knew that her girlfriend had one of the most beautiful souls she’s ever known.

She loved the fact that her girlfriend was sensitive and could easily cry to a heartwarming video; it told her that Rosé was insanely empathetic.

She loved the fact that her girlfriend loved her pet fish like crazy and would do anything to pamper it; it meant that she was loving to the one she cared, regardless of who or what they are.

She loved how Rosé would eat all the food that she cooked, even if it was burnt because the Australian said that the effort was what matters; it meant that she was appreciative of the smallest things.

Long story short, Y/N loved Rosé entirely- it was as simple as that.

“You make it so easy.”

Rosé looked at her girlfriend with slight confusion as she chuckled softly and asked, “Huh? I make what so easy?”

Y/N then stood up, cupped her girlfriend’s face with both her hands before she lovingly admitted, “You... make it so easy for me to love you.”

As expected, Rosé teared up slightly before she wrapped her hands around her girlfriend’s wrist as she whispered, “Y/N-“

“I can’t explain in detail on how much you affect me, Rosie because every time I look at you or think of you, my mind just goes wild,” Y/N revealed as she gently caressed Rosé’s cheek before continuing with, “And whenever you’re sad or angry, all I want to do is to make sure you’re gonna be okay and that you’re letting it all out instead of bottling it up.”

Finally, a tear finally fell down Rosé’s cheek as she grabbed onto her girlfriend a little bit tighter before Y/N continued, “Yeah, we may have our bad days and we may have our disagreements but I know for sure that there is no one else I’d rather have bad days with... because with you, Park Chaeyoung, everything makes sense,” She whispered as the pads of her thumbs wipe away the fallen tears, “I have some doubts about my life in the world but you, my darling, are the one thing that I’m absolutely sure of.”

Rosé then sighed in content before she leaned herself against Y/N as she whispered, “.... I’m so in love with you, Y/N Y/L/N..” She lovingly admitted before she pulled away slightly and looked into the eyes of her girlfriend as she added, “I hope you know that you’re stuck with me for a long time.”

“Oh baby, I’m yours for a lifetime, if you’d like.”

#blackpink #blink #blackpink imagines #blackpink scenarios #blackpink reactions #blackpink imagine #blackpink scenario #blackpink reaction #park chaeyoung #rose #blackpink rose #roseanne park

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ghostiewriter · 4 years

Text

chapter one | tale of a slightly unstable teen hero

Summary: JJ is starting to gain recognition around New York as the new hero in town. However, some complications arise with his new chemistry partner. Oh, and turns out he isn’t the only bloke around here with powers.

Warnings: John B is a simp, I feel like that needs a warning tbh. Umm there’s a lot of swearing (I’m Scottish, don’t judge), again some violence and fighting, also some cute ass moments between JJ and his mum so enjoy that

Word Count: 8.1K

A/N: Sooo there’s finally some Jiara in this chapter!! Hope you enjoy👀and I’m not responsible for any feels caused by JJ and Georgia Maybank!!

masterlist // taglist // ao3

“Spider-Man does it again! Report of our favourite web-slinging hero saving the day once again after a fatal accident left an apartment complex on the corner of 5th and 36th street in flames. The teen hero arrived at the scene not long after the distress call was made to the local fire department and managed to rescue over twelve people that were trapped on the top floor. New York thanks Spider-Man once again.”

JJ grinned as he leaned back in his seat, sparing a smug look towards John B in the driver’s seat. JJ didn’t usually carpool with John B but it was getting colder and his extra-curricular activities were wearing him exhausted by morning. Plus, the last time JJ skated to school when he was half asleep, Pope had to pull him out of a trash can. Turns out raccoons can be very territorial and did not appreciate the blond taking a small visit into their home. He was pretty sure he still had scars on his back from some of those little bastards.

“Three weeks on the job and you already have a little fanbase,” John B commented, reaching over to turn the radio down a little since the reporter moved onto some irrelevant news neither of the boys cared about. “Soon you’ll have a swarm of fangirls chasing after you while you fight crime.”

“Don’t be jealous, JB,” JJ grinned, both arms behind his head as he looked at the passing view. “I’m sure one of my groupies will slum it down for you.” He teased, only laughing when he felt the flick on his forehead.

As much as he hated to admit it, JJ had seriously enjoyed the past three weeks. They were intense, impulsive and unpredictable. Just how JJ liked his life to be. It wasn’t easy at first though, it took a good few attempts before the people of New York actually labelled him as a hero. Maybe it was because he was some young bloke who popped out of nowhere with abilities that no could really understand. Or maybe it was because he was going around in a red ski mask, blue shirt, a red vest with an awfully drawn spider on it and some blue joggers. He looked like a right on idiot, especially with the chunky goggles Pope added to his costume. But if it kept his identity secret, then so be it. The last thing JJ wanted was a bunch of journalists swarming his apartment, especially since he wanted to keep this whole alter ego away from his parents. In fact, he wanted to keep it away from anyone who wasn’t John B or Pope.

It was safer that way.

“At least that’s one more that Pope.” John B said nonchalantly.

“As if, dude!” JJ scoffed, grinning at the distressed—and fairly high pitched—‘WHAT’ that came from the brunette. “Oh, c’mon, Pope created a whole ass bat signal for me! You just sit there and look pretty! Pope gets at least two groupies.” He said with a shrug.

It was true. JJ knew Pope was smart, but this was next level. After realising that JJ wasn’t getting the recognition he needed to be labelled a ‘superhero’, Pope had come up with the ingenuous idea to infiltrate the police radio stations. Not only did they have full access to updates on crimes around the city, but Pope even felt a little fancy and made it so JJ would get a notification sent to his phone the second there was a job for Spider-Man. That boy was way too smart for his own good, but JJ was grateful for it.

“Aw, you think I’m pretty?” John B asked with a teasing grin.

“Yeah,” JJ smiled, reaching to place his hand on John B’s shoulder with a squeeze. “Pretty fucking ugly.”

John B’s smile instantly dropped as he scowled at JJ, who was happily snickering at the sudden change in mood. “Whatever, Spider-boy.”

“Yikes, low blow.”

The rest of the journey was spent in a similar vibe, except with JJ checking his phone every five minutes. He couldn’t help it, but the past three weeks had been some of the most exciting in his life. JJ had been labelled the troublemaker his whole life, the one that was throwing pencils into Mrs Ramirez’s curls because they looked like little hoops. Or even just doing his damn best to avoid the work he was given. It was a force of habit. JJ’s brain was running at a million miles a second. Nothing could hold him down, keep him entertained for longer than thirty minutes at most. And his teachers had constantly reminded him that his impulsive nature and high energy would lead him nowhere good in life.

All JJ had to say to them now was a massive ‘FUCK YOU!’ because how wrong they were. It was those qualities that made JJ the perfect hero. He could react quick to a sudden change, he was always on his feet, he had found something that not only could he channel all his energy into—but he was damn good at it as well. John B and Pope had warned him that it was best to keep himself humble, to not get too arrogant. But who was he kidding? JJ made a pretty fucking bomb superhero and everyone loved him. It seemed like he deserved to feel arrogant, to soak in his time in the spotlight. He enjoyed every single second.

So, can you really blame JJ for checking his phone, wanting an excuse to put that mask on and do the one thing he is good at? Except for skateboarding. Everyone knew JJ was the best skater in Queens.

Unfortunately, there was no sudden crimes that JJ could use as excuse to ditch school. A true tragedy, if you asked him. It seems like he will just have to suffer through another day of learning things that either happened way too long ago, didn’t make sense to him or he just truly didn’t care about. Which just happened to be basically every subject—excluding wood-shop. Except he was taken out of the class because apparently making mini bongs for birds is not okay. Who would’ve thought.

“I don’t see what the issue is—it’s a fool-proof plan!” John B argued as the two boys made their way through the corridors of Midtown High. Only stopping once they reached John B’s locker where he exchanged his books and JJ checked out the hallway for anything that caught his eye.

“Bro, you have a ten-year plan to end up with Sarah Cameron,” JJ stated bluntly. “And even then, you end up as her second husband—“

“No one can prove what happened to the first.”

“It’s fucking sad, JB.”

“It’s a solid plan.” John B stated simply and shrugged his shoulders, deciding to ignore JJ as he rolled his eyes, muttering something about John B being a ‘hopeless fool’. John B only grinned wider and glanced at his watch before whispering a small ‘shit’ to himself. “I gotta go, see you at lunch.” And with that, John B was zooming his way down the corridor.

“You know it’s really creepy that you plan when you bump into her!” JJ called down the corridor, but he doubted John B heard him. “Like really fucking creepy…like restraining order level creepy!

Once he noticed John B’s head turn the corner, undoubtedly on his way to ‘coincidentally’ bump into Sarah Cameron, JJ calmly made his way to his first period class, not in a big rush to get there.

**********

You see, after the incident in wood shop and many others after that, the school had taken the decision to move JJ into a class they deemed more valuable of his time. Chemistry. Stick the ADHD kid in a room full of chemicals…seemed about right. However, JJ was being transferred half way through the term with absolutely no knowledge in chemistry other than how to make a Molotov cocktail. Therefore, he didn’t really see an issue in showing up to a class he was already hopeless in. His teacher disagreed.

“Mr Maybank, it’s nice of you to finally join us.” Mr Marino—a middle-aged bald man who had looked as though he had been through one too many divorces and contained most of his knowledge in the form of his beer belly—commented as JJ entered the class.

“Oh, you wouldn’t believe what happened to me!” JJ sighed dramatically.

“Let me guess: your alarm didn’t go off.”

“It was my pet monkey, sir. Has a mind of its own.”

“Your pet monkey?”

“Yup, his name is JB. Nasty wee guy but I keep him around, he’s a good laugh. Could do with a shower though.”

“Take a seat, Maybank.”

“I can feel the love.” JJ grinned before he turned to look at the class. It was set up with eight workbenches, two seats at each. His eyes scanned over each one before he caught an empty seat at the back-left workbench, the only empty seat—and just his luck it was next to the curly haired beauty for the trip.

JJ was starting to think he might actually enjoy this class.

“We just keep meeting, sweetheart. I think it’s a sign.” JJ whispered to her as he took his seat next to her, definitely sitting a little closer than he had to. He tried not to smirk when he noticed her subtly moving away from him. JJ always loved a challenge.

“Or a punishment.” She replied bluntly, not even sparing JJ a glance.

“Aw, is this how it’s going to be for the rest of the year, princess?” JJ muttered with a pout. He tried not to smile when she finally turned to look at him.

“Rafe got a concussion.” She hissed.

“So?” JJ frowned.

“So? You caused it!”

“And I should care because?”

“He is banned from the football team for six weeks!”

JJ stared at her blankly. “And…?”

“He is the captain!”

“Boohoo, they’ll survive without him.” JJ shrugged, leaning back in his stool as he flashed her one of his usual girl-charming smiles. “But hey, if you’re really stressed out about it, I’m sure I can help you find a way to relax.”

“You’re a pig.” She stated with a small huff, stubbornly turning to face the front, planning to not even give him the chance to redeem himself. Trust me when I say Kiara is an open person, always there to give people a second chance. But JJ Maybank was not one of those people. In the three times she had met him, he had been nothing but a shameless flirt who had no care for the world beyond his sex life. She could be judging him too quickly, but in her defence, he hadn’t given her anything else to work with.

However, Kiara assumed her behaviour was clear enough that she didn’t want to talk to him, that she could gladly go the rest of the year without willingly speaking to him. But this is JJ. Hyperactive, unable to sit still JJ. He didn’t get the hint.

“So, do anything interesting this weekend?” JJ asked her, that classic smirk of his on his lips. But she didn’t answer him. Instead, she kept her gaze on Mr Marino and his oh-so interesting talk on bond orbitals within an atom.

JJ raised his eyebrows when he received no reply from her. “Giving me the silent treatment now? That’s a bit rude.” He commented.

“So is giving someone a concussion.” She stated.

“Do you want to know what I did?” JJ asked.

“No.”

“Geez, princess, no one ever taught you manners?” He teased, taking the pen he was spinning between his fingers to gently poke her arm. She only huffed and moved her seat further away.

“Okay, alright, fine! I get it…” JJ trailed off, and Kiara couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief. But she spoke to soon. She heard the scrape of a chair and suddenly she could feel the warmth of JJ right beside her, their elbows just touching.

“Is there an issue, Mr Maybank?” She heard Mr Marino call out but the boy next to her just shook his head, that mischievous glint shining in his eyes.

“No, please carry on, Alan.” The blond replied, his fingers tapping against the worktop counter.

Kiara sighed. She knew very well that she could put her hand up and complain, or even ask Mr Marino to change seats after class ended. But she was stubborn, and she would be damned if she gave JJ that satisfaction of knowing that he got under her skin.

This was going to be a long year.

**********

“She called me JB! That basically takes three years off my plan!”

“Dude, I don’t know if this is really sad or creepy now…” JJ grimaced. He had spent the last fifteen minutes listening to John B and his ‘coincidental’ encounter with Sarah Cameron. And if he was being honest, he was concerned for his friend. And his stomach…this boy needed to let JJ eat his lunch before he had to hear one more comment about how ‘yellow is totally her colour’.

“I mean, it just compliments her complexion so well! C’mon, how many people do you know that can pull of yellow and not looked totally washed out!” John B argued. But JJ just met him with a blank stare.

“When the fuck did you become a fashion expert?” JJ spoke up, his nose scrunched in confusion.

“I took a class once.”

JJ looked at him with his mouth agape. “Who the fuck are you?”

“Piss off, I wanted to learn how to dress better.”

“Says the guy that wears horrible thrifted Hawaiian shirts.” JJ deadpanned. John B only rolled his eyes and turned his attention back onto Sarah.

JJ followed his line of sight towards Sarah Cameron and her group, and he was shocked at the sight. He noticed the usual people in their uptown outfits and obnoxious laughs he could unfortunately hear from his seat. But it was the sight of his chemistry partner looking quite cosy under Rafe’s arm that caught him off-guard. His eyebrows furrowed a little, but hey, JJ should have seen this coming. The uptown kids like to stick with each other. Yet, JJ couldn’t help but find the sight quite uncomfortable to look at—Rafe had that effect on people. It was a surprise he managed to score…JJ paused. He had spent a whole hour with her and yet, he didn’t even know her name.

He nudged John B, yet neither one of them looked away from the group. “Hey JB, who’s Sarah’s new chick?”

“Who?”

“The pretty curly haired one standing next to her, dumbass.”

“Oh…I don’t actually know—“

“—Kiara Carrera. Relocated here from Kernersville, North Carolina. Her father owns a large chain of restaurants around the country. She is also the only junior other than yours truly doing three AP classes, including environmental science, biology and English.” Pope finished, panting a little considering he had literally just ran into the cafeteria and heard the last few words of their conversation.

JJ looked up at Pope with a mix of awe and fear. “What, you forgot her national insurance number as well? How the fuck do you know all that?”

“The school files.” Pope answered easily as he turned his laptop around and with the screen facing them, JJ decided he was definitely a little scared of Pope.

“Those are meant to be locked away in some super, secret network thing!” JJ hissed, only to be met with a smirking Pope.

“As if, it’s easy as fuck to hack something as amateur as the school’s firewall. Could do it with my eyes closed.” He grinned at the two of them. “Why, JJ? Hiding something from us like…I don’t know…your middle name being Belinda.” He snickered.

“YOUR NAME IS BELINDA?!” John B gasped, looking at JJ with wide eyes.

“Shut up, would you!” JJ hissed at the both of them, leaning over the table to flick John B on the forehead. “I was named after my grandmother.”

“Aww, Grammie Belinda.” John B cooed. JJ only glared at him.

“Hey, Grammie Belinda was a saint, don’t disrespect her like that.” JJ huffed, pointing a finger towards John B. He then turned to Pope who had made himself comfortable in the seat next to him.

“Why were you asking about Kiara?” Pope asked JJ, snatching a few chips from his plate. JJ swatted his hand away but didn’t stop Pope from doing it again. “Does JJ have a little crush?” He teased, pouting a little.

“Piss off,” JJ laughed as he nudged Pope with his shoulder. “She’s just my chemistry partner.”

“Ooh, so you guys have chemistry together?” John B grinned, wiggling his eyebrows.

“Fuck off, JB. Go back to stalking your little uptown princess.” JJ commented, returning the grin as both friends shook their head. They both knew the other meant no harm.

“Well, if you two little lovebirds are done having your moment,” Pope piped up, both boys looking over at him. “I need you to meet me on your rooftop at nine sharp tonight.”

“Damn, Pope, finally taking me out?”

“You wish, Spider-Boy,” He grinned, but the look he was giving made JJ a little nervous for what Pope had hidden up his sleeve. It could honestly range from a pet raccoon he befriended to creating some weird Frankenstein bug. “Just be there.”

John B pouted. “What about me?! Is this where I become the third-wheel?”

**********

“Mama?”

“In here!”

JJ dropped his bag by the couch as he made his way to the kitchen, the soft sound of the click telling him the door shut behind him. He sniffed the air as he walked in, seeing his mum at the stove and grinned a little, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

“What’s for dinner?” He asked, peeking over her shoulder.

“Spaghetti,” She hummed, a soft smile on her lips as she peeked a glance at her son. “How was school?”

“The usual,” He answered with a shrug as he made his way to the fridge, grabbing a bottle of water before heading towards his usual spot on the counter. “Teachers still don’t appreciate my comments, Pope said smart things I didn’t understand and JB was a love-sick puppy.”

She grinned, shaking her head a little. “I find John B’s attempts to woo that girl quite admirable actually,” She commented. “It wouldn’t kill you to be a hopeless romantic every once in a while.” Yet, she only laughed when she saw JJ’s face scrunch up in disgust.

Despite JJ’s reputation for being an adrenaline junkie who loves to live life on the edge, these were actually his favourite moments. The little moments he shared with his mum, just the two of them. It is one of the few moments in his life where he feels relaxed, no expectations or pressures. And as sappy as it sounded—and no offence to John B and Pope—but JJ wasn’t ashamed to admit that she was one of his best friends, one of the few people in his life he truly cared about. People like her are the reason he enjoys being Spider-Man, because despite the shit people in the world, there were some genuinely good people out there, like Georgia Maybank.

It was hard to believe JJ and Georgia Maybank were related. She was a sweetheart, the type of woman who would take time out of her own life to volunteer at local food shelters despite having just done a twelve-hour shift at the hospital. She is the type of woman to buy flowers and hand them to strangers on the street just to brighten someone’s day. She is the type of woman who would work her ass off to give her son all that she could, despite the struggles she faced with the bills and rent because her son was her life. She was the opposite of JJ’s hyperactive self.

But boy, did they look very similar. From the sandy blonde hair the two of them shared, to the bright blue eyes, to even the exact same smile. JJ really was a carbon copy of his mother. And there was a small part of her, one she would never outwardly admit, that adored the fact JJ looked so much like her. Like a primal mother instinct, she loved her son and she loved that everyone knew he was her son. She would be damned if someone ever asked her to hide that.

Georgia was the type of mother that had that warm aura around her, the one that made you just trust her with your life. The hugs she gives just makes you want to stay in her arms forever, because everything is just better with Georgia Maybank. JJ knew that and he always reminded himself of that. No matter what shit he gets into, no matter how much he may envy the uptown kids—none of them will ever have Georgia Maybank and he would gladly flaunt that.

He may not have designer clothes or a fancy car to drive to school. But they don’t have Georgia Maybank, dancing around barefoot in the kitchen while she badly sings along to some old 80s song that is playing on the radio, just to make him crack a smile.

JJ grinned as his mother grabbed his hand, pulling off the counter before they jokingly began to waltz around the small kitchen, some classical song playing from the small radio that sat on the counter by the stove. JJ only laughed as he apologized for stepping on her toes again, but she didn’t mind. She just smiled and continued to dance.

“Why do I have to do this? I’m starving, woman!” He whined playfully as he twirled his mum around a few times.

“Because, JJ, one day you’re going to have a beautiful girl—or boy, I won’t assume—that will somehow fall for that charm of yours,” She spoke softly, placing a hand on her son’s cheek, a proud glint in her eyes when he rolled his eyes at her statement but still had a small smile on his face. “And I will be damned if I don’t teach my son how to sweep a girl off her feet.”

“Nothing says romantic like stepping on a girl’s toes.” He stated bluntly.

Georgia only laughed and ruffled his hair before she turned back to the stove. She grabbed two plates, putting in a larger portion for JJ—which with his new transformation wouldn’t actually be enough but he will sneak out during the night to eat the leftovers when she’s asleep—before placing them on the small dining table in the corner, gesturing for him to join her.

The rest of the dinner was fairly uneventful, simply just JJ telling her about John B’s updated seven-year plan with Sarah Cameron and Georgia sharing any particularly interesting stories about patients she had to deal with during her shift. JJ really let this dinner sink in. As much as he loved his mother, her inability to say ‘no’ and be so giving kind of bothered him. Because she had taken up extra shifts for a few of her colleagues due to something about the ‘stress of wedding planning’. JJ had been seeing her less and less—and though it was good for his recent Spider-Man shenanigans—this dinner made him realise just how much he missed her. Just a nice, wee dinner with his mum, nothing else. And everything seemed to be going well, until he heard the radio presenter’s voice flowing through the kitchen.

“Locals say that Spider-Man is the next best thing to happen to New York since deep-fried pizza! But I don’t know, Janet. I mean, who is this kid? Where did he come from? There just seems to be a lot of unanswered questions with this so-called hero. Can we really trust some prepubescent boy who probably spends his day with his head in a textbook? It just doesn’t seem—“

The radio presenter was cut off by Georgia turning the volume down. “People can’t appreciate a good gesture anymore.” She huffed. JJ watched her closely as she finished off washing the last of the dishes before turning to face him, a small frown on her lips.

“I think he’s doing the city a favour.” JJ said half-heartedly with a shrug.

Georgia nodded, her fingers gently fiddling with chain around her neck, well more specifically the gold ring attached to it. “I know but,” She sighed. “What a shame, putting all this pressure on a poor teenage boy. Oh, I feel bad for his parents!”

JJ coughed a little. “It could be his decision, you know.”

Georgia continued as though she hadn’t heard him. “I could only imagine how stressful it would be have your son out there, throwing himself at danger.” She shook her head as she made her way to where JJ still sat at the dining table. “Promise me you wouldn’t do something so careless?” She asked sweetly, gently cupping his face in her hands as she looked down at him.

Now, JJ knew there was a teasing tone to her words. She wasn’t being serious because, how could she? Her son being a superhero with crazy powers? Not possible. She and JJ shared everything and it was because of that he couldn’t help but feel a wave of guilt wash over him. He hated lying to his mum, he hated keeping secrets from her. They were always close, JJ never felt the need to hide things from her. There was always such a comfortable vibe between them. But he knew how she would react if he told her the truth. He knew she would freak out and make him stop. And JJ didn’t want to stop. As much as he hated the guilt that bubbled inside him, he pushed it away and gave her a grin.

“Of course not, I would come up with a better name than Spider-Man.” He joked lightly and closed his eyes when he felt his mum press a kiss to his forehead. He nuzzled his head slightly as he wrapped his arms around her, resting his head against her stomach. He smiled softly when he felt her hands running through his hair, just like the way she used to do when he was younger and struggling to fall asleep. He tried to hold back a yawn.

“That’s my baby boy.” She said with a gentle laugh.

“Mama, I’m a not a baby! I’m a man now.” He whined but he didn’t pull away from her grip just yet. He missed his mum’s hugs, sue him.

“You’ll always be my baby boy.” She commented with a small shrug.

“Yeah, yeah,” He murmured. After a few moments of silence, he looked up at her, giving the best puppy-dog eyes he could. She was always a sucker for those. “Can I go hang out with JB and Pope tonight?” He asked with a sweet smile.

She rolled her eyes but nodded. “Just be back before your father gets home.”

**********

JJ rubbed his hands together as he stared at the view from the roof. New York looked absolutely stunning this time of year, especially at night. The sky was pitch black, and it should’ve seemed daunting. But the bright lights of the city illuminated everything. It was mesmerising, a sight that JJ would never get tired of seeing. And with his newly discovered powers, he found something therapeutic about swinging around the city and being surrounded those bright lights. It felt like he was swinging through the stars—he obviously didn’t share that with the boys, they would take the piss out of him. Speaking of which…

“Where the fuck is he?” JJ hissed, turning to look at John B who only shrugged in response. As much as JJ liked New York at night, it was cold. The lower body temperature caused by the spider bite really didn’t help the situation. He had a hoodie and a jacket on and still the light breeze was making his teeth chatter.

“I don’t know.” John B shrugged. JJ rolled his eyes in annoyance. It was 9:15pm and JJ was about five minutes away from freezing to death.

Just then, the rooftop door opened and a wild Pope was sprinting towards then, panting heavily as he ripped his backpack off and quickly unzipped it. Words were leaving his lips but between the panting, neither of them could work out what he was saying.

“Dude, calm down, breathe!” John B exclaimed. Pope nodded and took a minute to catch himself.

“Your lives are gonna change forever!” He grinned before looking at JJ. “Strip.”

JJ raised his eyebrows. “What?”

“Strip.”

“Dude, it’s like fifty fucking degrees, I am not gonna fucking strip!”

“Stop whining and do it!”

JJ huffed and started to take his clothes off, muttering some very…colourful phrases towards Pope. However, he didn’t get much time to question his friend’s demands because the second he was stripped down to his boxers, he had a bunch of fabric thrown at him.

“Wait…is this…?” He trailed off, looking at Pope with a new look of excitement shining in his eyes.

“You bet,” Pope grinned. “Say hello to your brand-new suit, Spider-Man.”

JJ excitedly began to pull the suit on, suddenly forgetting all about his theatrics with the cold. But Pope wasn’t done with his surprise.

“The suit is a total upgrade!” He began, his hands moving wildly as he spoke. “The fabric is strong but flexible. I have added small web-shooters to go over your spinneret glands so you can have a more direct shots. There are a few extra things I’ve added like a small heater to keep you warm and a few sensors, so we can keep track of your vitals. Oh, and for us—” He paused before handing John B a silver bracelet.

John B looked at the bracelet in confusion. “Uh, thanks?”

Pope only grinned and showed John B that he was wearing a similar bracelet. He slipped it off before unclipping a small oval shaped device from the middle of the bracelet. “This is the coolest part,” He nodded for John B to copy his movements. “To be honest, these took the longest. I had JJ’s suit done like two weeks ago but—”

“And you made me wait this long? Dude, I looked like a weirdo running around in joggers!” JJ groaned, but there was no real hostility in his voice.

“Just put on your mask, dude!”

JJ rolled his eyes but didn’t answer as he slipped the mask over his face. He was a bit surprised at how easily he could see through it, way better than the goggles he had before. The suit was a perfect fit—props to Pope after it took an hour to get all of JJ’s measurements. The material was tight and breathable, practically clinging onto JJ like a second skin. Oddly enough, he felt far more comfortable in it than his last costume. Pope clearly liked the colour scheme, having kept the red and blue palette but with a massive spider on his chest, with lines wrapping around him to look like a web. He looked totally badass, he felt badass. He felt like a proper hero from one of those comic books and posters Pope has around his room.

“So, how do I look?” JJ asked, flexing as he gave the boys a little spin. Pope only grinned, proud of his creation. John B gasped, clearly just as hyped as JJ was.

“Dude, your ass looks great.” John B commented, causing JJ to snort.

“When does it not look great?”

“Guys! The last surprise!” Pope piped up, causing both boys to stop staring at JJ’s ass and instead turn to him.

“These little guys,” He said, nodding between the small oval devices in his and John B’s hands. “Are gonna help us keep in contact with you while you’re swinging around. Little ear pieces so we can help you out and keep tabs on you if you need any help.”

“Where’s my bracelet?” JJ frowned beneath the mask.

“You don’t need one, dumbass. Your ear piece is connected into your mask!” Pope grinned proudly. JJ let out a scoff, shaking his head.

“Pope, you fucking genius!” He yelled, and he pulled his friend into a tight hug. John B, feeling a little left out, quickly joined the hug.

“This is so cool, dude, now we are like an actual team!” John B grinned.

Pope was the first to pull back, looking at JJ with a wild look in his eyes. “I think it’s time for Spider-Man to show the city his new look.”

JJ grinned under the mask, already beginning to take a few steps back. “I think you’re right.” And without a second thought, he left himself fall off the edge of the building.

On that October night, New York watched their own hero swing through the streets, letting the cheers and whoops of the strangers sink in. They watched their hero in a new light, a more professional one. The next day, he was no longer that kid running around like some wannabe. He was Spider-Man, the new saviour of New York and a beloved hero.

It was wild what a good new suit could do for your reputation.

**********

“Did you see the pictures The Daily Bugle released?”

“He looked so hot!”

“I’d let him save me any day!”

“You don’t even know what he looks like…”

“So? Have you seen those arms? Nothing else matters!”

JJ couldn’t help but let the smirk on his face grow as he walked through the corridors of the school. It was the day after his new suit reveal and he wasn’t going to lie, he was soaking in all the attention. He was particularly enjoying the twitter thread that was made about his ass. John B didn’t lie, his ass did look good in this new suit.

He continued his way through the sea of students before he made it to his chemistry class, not surprised that people were still talking about Spider-Man. His eyes instantly glanced over at Kiara, who was sitting at their workbench scrolling through her phone.

He grinned as he quickly past the other students and sat quite comfortably in his seat. His eyebrows raised slightly when she didn’t react at first to his appearance. His curiosity got the best of him as he leaned towards her, peeking over her shoulder to see what she was looking at. Now, JJ won’t lie to you, but when he saw her staring at pictures of Spider-Man, his ego definitely inflated a little. Okay, maybe more than a little but you get the point.

“You a fan?” He couldn’t help but ask, trying to keep his smirk to himself.

Kiara quickly snapped her head to look at him, slamming her phone down screen first onto the desk. “Can you mind your business?” She huffed, trying to calm her heartbeat a little. She didn’t even hear him come in, which is odd since usually you could hear JJ from a mile away.

“Aw, c’mon, Kiara! I thought we were besties now.” He grinned to her, wiggling his eyebrows a little. He leaned forward on the desk, bringing him a little closer to her. His forearms were pressed against the desk, his body leaning on them. She noticed how close their hands were. But after yesterday, she refused to left JJ get under her skin again. Or at least let him see how much he is bothering her. So, she stayed where she was, not moving back like he expected.

“You know my name.” It wasn’t a question, more a statement.

“Surprised?” He whispered, smirking a little when he noticed he wasn’t moving away. JJ risked it a little more and moved a bit closer.

“Took you long enough.” She replied with a shrug. JJ’s grin only widened.

“Oh yeah, counting down the days, princess?” He raised an eyebrow. He noticed her lips quirk a little, like she was fighting back a smile.

“You wish, pretty boy.”

“You think I’m pretty?”

“Shut up.”

“I think someone has a little crush, Kiara.” He grinned at her, only to witness her roll her eyes and push him away.

“In your dreams, Maybank.”

“Oh, you’re definitely in my dreams, Kiara.”

She rolled her eyes again but didn’t bother replying this time. She instead focused her gaze on the front of the class as Mr Marino entered the room, beginning the lesson. But if she had glanced over to the blond sitting on his right, she would’ve seen he was smiling throughout the whole lesson.

**********

“Thank you, dear!”

JJ nodded his head a little in acknowledgement and gave the older woman a small salute. “Always here to help, ma’am.” He said, handing her the small handbag that he had just rescued from the hands of some man who had tried to steal it from her.

“Aw, you’re really starting to win over the senior citizens.”

JJ rolled his eyes when he heard Pope’s voice through his earpiece. “Dude, I think she pinched my ass.”

“Lucky you, older woman, that’s hot.”

“JB, shut up.”

JJ snorted a little at the bickering, extending his arm out before he was swinging between the buildings with no trouble. He had been using any free time he had lately to be out in his suit, getting used to all the cool, extra bits that Pope had added. And he won’t lie, the boy really outdid himself. JJ felt like a total badass, being able to swing around and save people and feel like a real hero. He also enjoyed the change in attitude people had with him. He was Spider-Man, the city hero. He was appreciated. He was wanted. Not something JJ felt very often.

“Anything happening around town?” JJ asked, his eyes scanning the streets below, waiting to see any conflict. He couldn’t help but feel as though there was a part of him that was on edge. He couldn’t really explain it, it was like a bad shiver down his spine. It was a similar feeling he felt before that bank robbery fiasco a few weeks ago. It was a nasty wee feeling, one that had him on alert. Something was wrong, he didn’t know what. But he could sense it.

“Nah, everything seems to be fine. Maybe you should take a break, you’ve been swinging around for, like, three hours. You need to rest, dude.”

“What?” JJ muttered, so quiet that the boys on the other side barely heard him. That couldn’t be right, he can feel it. Something isn’t right, something bad is going to happen. “Guys, are you—”

He was cut off by a series of screams.

JJ’s body was reacting way before his brain did, like his hero side just leaped into action at the alert of any distress. He was swinging as fast as he could, his arms burning a little as he got closer and closer to the sound of those screams. He could hear his blood pumping in his ears, could feel his heart rate pick up. The adrenaline coursing through him, making him forget about the burning in his muscles from the three hours of patrolling he had done.

“That’s fucking weird, there is no police reports coming through.”

JJ ignored the voices coming through the earpiece, his whole body feeling rigid as he crouched on top of a building, looking at the carnage below. There, in the middle of the square stood what looked like a moving black cloud. Civilians were screaming and running away, but the black cloud just remained. His eyes narrowed slightly, like he was waiting for it to do something, to lash out. But it didn’t. He opened his mouth, ready to ask Pope if he was just imagining something when he heard the black cloud speak.

“Spider-Man, oh Spider-Man! Come out, come out wherever you are!” It spoke in a raspy, demonic voice. Whatever this way, it wasn’t human. JJ may have failed biology, but he knew that for sure.

“JJ, don’t. We are have no idea what this thing is. It could be a trap—”

“I got this, Pope.” JJ muttered, ignoring his friends’ pleas to think this through as he swung down, landing a couple of feet away from the black cloud. “You called?”

Suddenly, in the middle of the cloud, JJ swore he could see lips begin to materialise. He frowned beneath the mask but didn’t move away. His fist was clenched at the side, ready to react if the cloud tried anything.

“Ah, we finally meet, Spider-Man.” The cloud spoke again. The voice sent shivers down his spine. JJ pushed away that feeling of discomfort. Something about the cloud felt familiar, but he couldn’t tell what. It was like an annoying itch he couldn’t reach.

“Am I supposed to know who you are?” JJ questioned. “Look, dude, if you’re a fan, I appreciate it, but you don’t need to scare away a whole block of people to get my attention. You can just ask for an autograph like everyone else.”

“JJ stop provoking it!”

“You’ll know me soon enough.” The voice replied ambiguously. JJ furrowed his eyebrows together. Whatever this cloud was, it was being far too vague for JJ’s liking.

“PEOPLE OF NEW YORK, I SPEAK OUT TO YOU!”

JJ winced, clutching his ears. His body was on high-alert, his ears sensitive to pick out any small noise or rustle. He looked at the cloud and then at his surroundings, noticing how every screen—every phone, every billboard, every electrical compliance in this vicinity that he could see—was projecting the black cloud. It was broadcasting to the whole city. JJ couldn’t help but wonder where the fuck the hidden camera was. How was it doing this?

“YOU LABEL THIS KID AS YOUR HERO! YOU TRUST THIS CHILD WITH YOUR LIVES! YOU ARE FOOLISH!” The voice boomed, suddenly the black cloud began to form tentacles that were slithering from whatever was at the centre of it. “LET ME SHOW YOU THE TRUTH! LET ME SHOW YOU WHO YOU HAVE TO PROTECT YOU!”

JJ was a little too distracted by the concept of a cloud broadcasting to the city that he didn’t even notice one of the tentacles slithering towards him. It wrapped itself around his leg before swinging him into the nearest building.

JJ let out a small oomph as his body made contact with the brick wall. He could hear yelling in the distance, the sounds of people screaming. But nothing was overpowering the ringing in his ears as he slowly dragged himself to stand up.

“JJ, GET UP! JJ!”

“Jesus fucking Christ,” He muttered, blinking a few times before he turned back to look at the cloud. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise and quickly rolled over to the side, the tentacle that threw him smashing into the wall not even a second later. That rush of adrenaline hitting JJ again as he quickly swung out of there, not even looking behind him until he knew he was a good distance away to assess the situation.

“IS THIS WHO YOU WANT PROTECTING YOU? A COWARDLY TEENAGER? C’MON, SPIDER-MAN! LET’S SEE WHAT YOU’VE GOT!”

JJ swore under his breath, trying to catch up with his thoughts as he watched more tentacles appear from the cloud. “Where the fuck are they coming from?” He muttered before swinging down to a lower building rooftop, crouching at the edge. He narrowed his eyes as he extended his hand out, shooting a web towards the centre of the cloud. There had to be something solid within this thing, something he can grip on to, something he can fight. But he was met with nothing. “Fuck.” He frowned before he began to crawl down the side of the building.

“You seem a bit jealous, mate!” JJ called out, watching as all eight of the tentacles seemed to snap their attention towards him. God, that was scary. “Don’t you have to tell me some wild origin story before you kill me?”

“MY AIM ISN’T TO KILL YOU, SPIDER-MAN. NOT YET!”

“Oh, that’s really reassuring, thank you so much.”

“I WANT NEW YORK TO SEE HOW PATHETIC YOU ARE. HOW USELESS THEIR SAVIOUR IS.”

“A bit of an odd wish, if you ask me.” He murmured to himself, quickly snapping his wrist before swinging around the black cloud. He watched as the tentacles reached out for him, just grazing him as he swung between the buildings.

“JJ, FIGHT BACK!”

“How the fuck do I fight something that isn’t solid? Get a vacuum? If you have one big enough, please do share. Call the ghostbusters or something!”

He heard more screams, some closer than he expected. He assumed everyone ran off, but when he turned his head to the side, he noticed a man standing there, frozen in fear. More importantly, he saw a car heading straight towards the scared man.

“Shit, shit, shit,” JJ yelled as he quickly yanked his web, spinning around and landing in front of the man, his hands extended out in front of him. Seconds later he felt the impact of the car, the weight and momentum it came crashing in at hit him strong enough to make him slide back a few feet. “Go, dude!” He yelled at the man, who had finally come to his senses and thanked JJ profusely before sprinting away. JJ groaned and threw the car away from him, huffing slightly.

“HOLY SHIT, JJ! THAT WAS A CAR!”

“Oh, no shit, Sherlock! I thought it was Barbie’s Dreamhouse.” Only JJ would be sarcastic while his life is in threat.

But it was that sarcasm that distracted him long enough for one of the tentacles wrap around his ankle, yanking him down from the small jump he had taken so the web he was currently gripping snapped with ease, preventing him a quick escape like he planned. He didn’t even have time to scream before he noticed the tentacle bringing him closer to the middle of the cloud, his eyes widening slightly.

He wiggled around in the tentacle’s grip, trying to find a way out but it was relentless. He wasn’t sure what was real or not, not sure if he imagined screaming in his head or if he actually did as he was dropped into the centre of the cloud.

Then, he felt nothing.

JJ was vaguely aware of his surroundings. He didn’t know if his eyes were open or not, but it was dark. He tried to move his arm, but it felt constricted, like he was swimming in something really thick. His brain was screaming at him to call out for Pope and John B, to move his hands and swing out of here, to do something. But another part of JJ felt completely content in this situation. He couldn’t explain it, but something washed over him, like a massive electric shock that made him aware of just how…familiar this seemed. It was similar to the feeling he had earlier.

He felt safe, understood.

And then that feeling was gone.

Suddenly, JJ found himself being thrown around in circles, something holding a tight grip on his ankle. But soon enough, that let go too and JJ was soon flying through the air, too out of it to even react fast enough to web onto something or soften his eventual crash.

JJ felt the air be completely knocked out of him, his body bouncing off the concrete a couple of times before he rolled over. It took him a few attempts to finally open his eyes, take in his surroundings, to see he was in some dingy alleyway. He turned his head to the side, briefly seeing a black blob in the distance. He could hear some muffled yelling.

“HEED THIS AS A WARNING, SPIDER-MAN. NEXT TIME WE MEET, IT WILL BE OUR LAST!”

JJ vaguely furrowed his eyebrows together before turning his head to stare at the blue sky above instead. When the ringing and the muffling was over, he could hear the screams of his friends coming through the earpiece.

“JJ! JJ, PLEASE FUCKING ANSWER, DUDE!”

“JJ, ARE YOU DEAD?!”

“WHY WOULD HE FUCKING ANSWER IF HE WAS DEAD!”

“SHUT UP, I’M FLUSTERED!”

JJ frowned a little, his whole throat felt dry and numb. There was also a metallic taste in his mouth that told him he must’ve bitten his tongue at some point. God, he hated the taste of blood. “It…It felt…”

“OH MY GOD, JJ!”

“IT FELT LIKE WHAT BUD? YOU GOOD?”

“It felt just like me.” He finally got out.

Then everything went black.

#jiara #outer banks #obx #jj maybank #kiara carrera #jj maybank x kiara carrera #outer banks fanfiction #jiara fanfiction #spiderman au #marvel #tale of a slightly unstable teen hero #obx fic #my fic

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wangxiangiftexchange · 3 years

Text

Winter Solstice Gift for vedrividia

Thank you @vedrividia for giving an amazing prompt to work with!

Read On AO3

*****

Let the right one in

Let the right one in,

let the old dreams die.

Let the wrong ones go,

They cannot do

what you want them to do.

–Morrissey, Let the right one Slip In.

There are three thousand rules that are part of his family tradition. His mother had liked to break them as often as possible.

That wasn’t the important part, though she had said it was the thrill of it that made her do it-- the important part was that it was a secret. Their secret, his and hers.

Lan Wangji’s family was important. It had survived for generations. It was large and prosperous; and it was all owed to the rules, that’s why it was important to uphold them. They showed the way of living a fulfilling life: marking a clear path for what is good, just, and true.

“Sometimes rules are meant to be broken,” she had told him with a wink when she had taken him past curfew to the city. It had really thrilled Wei Wuxian to learn of this, to be the only other person in the whole world who knew Lan Wangji’s secrets.

His mother had been punished for breaking them before he had been born, a long time ago, he had explained.

He remembers kind eyes smiling at him, a careful hand holding his,

“Can you keep a secret, A-Zhan?”

That’s how it usually went; they didn’t get to sneak in or break rules all the time, or his uncle would find out.

After she left, something in him had cracked; he knew he came back a different person. Uncle and brother wouldn’t talk about it, but it had made him into someone else, something else.

Lan Zhan could tell now that his mother hadn’t been perfect, that she had made mistakes, but being with her had been the one joyful part of his insipid life. When he was with her, the sky was bluer, the sun shone brighter, the world was a wonderful place they could explore at whim.

The bath water was scalding hot, making the whole bathroom stuffy and warm.

His mother had combed his hair, then did her make up. He had watched cartoons while she filled the tub.

Lan Quiren had managed to find the best specialists in the field, a parade of white coats to cure Lan Wangji. Therapies, procedures and colorful capsules to swallow by the hour—it had only managed to make it worse.

He had felt sleepy after dinner, he hadn’t eaten much, it was not even that late really and yet—

“Come, Lan Zhan, we are taking a bath...”

After several episodes, as his uncle liked to call them, which resulted in him passing out in the student’s hall, the school counselor advised him to return home. To return to familiar patterns. Lan Wangji could read between the lines: We don’t want you to be our problem anymore.

She had promised him that if she was ever to leave, she would take him with her. Even though it meant that he would never again be able to see Xichen or his uncle… It hadn’t mattered to Lan Zhan if it meant he could keep seeing the world as his mother painted it, blooming with light.

In the end, she broke her promise.

What his uncle and his brother don’t understand is that, when he breaks, when he collapses to the floor, the air in his lungs frozen, it is because that is the most acceptable outcome to the rage that seethes beneath the layers and layers of good conduct and three thousand rules made to be written over and over and over; of speech therapy and socialization his uncle had forced on him as a kid.

The fact is that Lan Zhan had seen what the world could look like when you were with the person you loved, with the person you trusted. The fact is that Uncle forbid both Lan Zhan and Lan Xichen to speak about her.

-- And his life had gone on like she had never existed.

His brother had asked him once if he remembered something from the day his mother died.

Lying is forbidden in his family, but he doesn’t have the heart to tell him that he remembers too much.

She had left without him, and all the colors, the wonders, the joy, and brightness had left with her.

***

The incident makes it clear that living in the dorm rooms wasn’t such a good idea. But with the semester already started and at such short notice, what he could find instead, hadn't been exactly ideal. The building was a mere fifteen minutes’ walk from campus. Despite being close, it wasn’t in a good part of town; the area was made up of mostly students and families that couldn't afford the more residential areas.

Lan Xichen could sigh all that he wanted; Lan Wangji refused to back down on this. He could do it; he could live on his own.

***

It is supposed to be a mingle party for the freshmen. Lan Wangji wonders how people are supposed to hear each other through the noise, the music starts, and the bass is loud enough to make his skin itch. He tries to escape to another room, but they're all too full, the air too stale, and people are starting to look at him intently which means he's probably having another episode right now. He knows how he looks when they start-- he gets pale, his eyes bulge, his jaw clenches-- he has to find a dark room and soon. Suddenly there’s a hand on his back and someone is pushing him away from the living room, to the entrance hall. Lan Wangji would panic about the unwanted touch except he’s trying too hard to control his breathing and count backwards to even realize that the person is taking him through the parking lot and into the woods next to the university building.

His next breath dispels in a thin mist in front of him. The stranger guides him into a tree, boxes him in and whispers something to him; Lan Wangji of course can't hear over the static that are his thoughts right now. A hand guides his face up, deep black eyes are looking at him, pupils blown and glowing threateningly red. He feels his thoughts scatter at the intensity of that gaze; he feels his breath catch, then he hears the words as clear as a bell in the silence of the woods: "Breathe."

And Lan Wangji does. Once, twice; the stranger’s hand pressing to his chest--he feels the weight of it like a rock, somehow guiding him to clear his head. His vision clears as he keeps breathing, his mind returning to him bit by bit, until he can take in his surroundings, the quiet of the night in stark contrast to the sounds he hears himself making as he shivers and makes stuttering exhales. He feels his shoulders drop as he goes boneless into a crouch. Coming down from an episode can be as terrible as getting caught in one. He feels too exposed, and all he wishes he could do is curl in his bed and cover himself with his sheets.

How fitting that they meet that way, he and Wei Wuxian -- or Wei Ying, as Lan Wangji will get to know him later, the way things go in the end.

He wakes up propped up to the front door of his apartment, cold and sore from his uncomfortable position. The sun streaming through the window and filling the dingy hallway with light. He vaguely remembers strong arms helping him up, someone laughing as he was pressed to them, and he has no idea how he got from the party to his doorstep.

He goes inside and figures he will call Lan Xichen later. He gets himself in his bed and dreams of deep red eyes the color of a burning forest.

***

Lan Zhan is proud that he has managed to avoid his new neighbors so far by opting to study in the library, thus requiring him to leave his apartment early and arrive home late. But today has been different. He had woken up with a pressure in his chest that wouldn't go away, his hands numb at his sides, too cold to even hold the mug of tea he had served himself. His brain is screaming at him to go, his movements frantic because he's late for class, he's late to catch the shuttle, he's embarrassing himself, he needs to keep to his schedule and go through the motions or he will lose-- something. What he could lose is uncertain. Maybe it’s his sanity.

By the time his heart starts beating normally, and he can focus, the sun is setting through murky skies casting a soft glow over the snow settled on the ground and Lan Wangji notices his lack of fresh food too late; he braces himself to make a trip to the deli store a few blocks away. He’s double checking that he has all his essentials with him as he hears the door next to his open and close. Lan Wangji freezes on the threshold, as his door closes in front of him with a quiet click. He doesn’t dare to move, waiting, hoping that the neighbor is entering his own apartment--except that he isn't, he knows, because someone chuckles next to him. He takes a second too long to move. The stranger moves to the end of the hall where the stairs are, Lan Wangji felt for a second there like his neighbor was going to try to talk to him. He sighs, grateful for small mercies hearing the other man’s receding steps.

He hasn't even left the complex and he's already feeling tired to the bone, he forces himself to open the entrance door. The cold air hits him head on, making him curse for not planning to buy some groceries while the sun was out. He clenches his teeth as he opens the door.

He starts to make his way down the street when a sudden burst of students rounds the corner, coming Lan Wangji's way, he freezes in his spot. His breathing stutters and picks up pace; he can hear them approaching, yelling to each other, laughing out loud and suddenly the cold air, the voices, and the streetlights feel too much, chafing with the quiet of his apartment. He's about to turn around and hurry back inside when he notices the students have stopped shouting and are backing down around the corner, hastily retreating to one of the walkways connecting to the street--he has a second to feel relief until he looks at his shadow, stark on the pavement, and then notices another, longer shadow a few feet away. He turns around quickly and has a second to feel lightheaded when he notices that it is the man that lives in the apartment next door. His neighbor also looks startled by his sudden movement as he takes a step back. There is a pause as they both stare at each other, until his neighbor gives him a shy smile.

"Sorry for startling you. I was just going that way," he says as he points towards where Lan Wangji is heading. "Erm, the lady in the lobby told me there was a convenience store nearby?" He angles himself to look across the street, giving Wangji the chance to admire his profile. Lan Wangji is assaulted with the feeling that he knows this man, that he has seen him somewhere, and is suddenly struck with a longing to learn where he could possibly know him. He's sure he has never seen him in the complex before; he would've remembered him.

"Anyways," the man continues after a beat, "I should get going." He nods and gives Lan Wangji another tight lipped smile.For some reason, Lan Wangji doesn't want him to leave yet. Something in the now empty street makes him shiver, when before it had been a respite.

"I can accompany you." Lan Wangji hears himself say, and he has the luck of seeing the stranger's eyes go from shock to a heartening warmth as he throws a real smile his way.

"Aiya, you're too kind. That would be wonderful!" he says as he steps towards Lan Wangji. Lan Wangji can only nod, his mouth going dry.

"My name is Wei Ying. I just got to this part of town," the man says nonchalantly, as they head to the deli. The stranger, no--Wei Ying--keeps a stream of conversation going despite Lan Wangji's silence. He doesn't mind; it helps to relax him and dulls the other sharp sounds of the street. Lan Wangji manages to relax when they reach the store, thinking the endeavor is almost over. He enters the deli and manages to find some vegetables and packets of ramen that would do for tonight’s dinner. When he turns around to wait for Wei Ying to pay, he realizes the man is outside, a bag already in his hands. Lan Wangji lets himself look at Wei Ying for a second and notices how still Wei Ying is, almost blending in with the falling snow and the people passing by. The stillness is broken as soon as Wei Ying catches Lan Wangji staring, turning and smiling at him again.

Lan Wangji walks outside, and Wei Ying walks over to join him.

"Time to head back?" he says to Lan Wangji. Lan Wangji nods again; Wei ying just keeps smiling at him. The familiarity of the gesture shouldn't bother him that much, but it does.

Before Wangji notices, they're back inside the apartment complex, shaking the snow in the lobby and trying to avoid bringing too much inside with them. His movements feel clumsy and as he tries to reach for his boots and keep his groceries on the other hand, still tired from this morning. He feels himself losing balance--his vision goes blank for a second and when it clears, he feels a hand on his shoulder, his own holding on to the other man's, Wei ying's arm. You don’t like to be touched, a distant voice in his head reminds him. Except this feels different, soft and hesitant.

"Careful there." Wei Ying’s voice has suddenly dropped a whole octave, sounding incongruously hoarse.

Wangji wants to say he's fine, that he can manage by himself from here, but his words get stuck in his mouth, as he manages to shake his head. Wei Ying takes a step back, letting go of his shoulder. He remains in Lan Wangji’s space, he notices he's still clutching Wei Ying’s arm, he lets go as if scalded. He can feel the tip of his ears and cheeks burning; he hopes the frost of the night had kept his skin red so Wei Ying wouldn't notice.

"Well, I suppose I should head back first.” Wei Ying pauses to adjust his coat. “It was nice to have your company, neighbor," he says cheerfully. And he looks so young and beautiful this close, Lan Wangji can’t help but notice.

It is at this moment that Lan Wangji notices that he hasn't introduced himself to Wei Ying. It doesn’t matter, does it? The less we interact, the better, the same voice as before tells him in his mind; how inappropriate that he aches to keep the company of Wei ying for just another moment. "Lan Zhan," he says, shocked at how desperate he sounds, and also alarmed that his traitorous mind had chosen his given name, not the more formal one.

No way to take it back now; he would have felt mortified, except not even a beat later, Wei Ying says, “Lan Zhan," eyes glinting with glee.

Lan zhan has to take a gulp of air, completely enraptured by how right it had felt his name in Wei Ying's lips.

***

He keeps bumping into his neighbor throughout the season. Usually in winter his energy levels are low so he makes more use of the deli; it comes to the point where he starts waiting for the door next to his to open, for Wei Ying to poke his head out and ask him if he wouldn’t mind some company. Lan Wangji would mind, usually. But since it’s this time of the year and he’s still unfamiliar with the area, he agrees. Besides, he likes how Wei Ying’s monologues’ lull him into a trance; it’s almost like all the other noise and people around them disappear from Lan Wangji’s world. He welcomes the respite, especially since winter usually leaves him feeling bruised and exposed; he can’t stand many things when he gets like that. It seems Wei Ying is one of the few exceptions.

It’s his own fault when once again, the weekend is over and he hasn’t gone grocery shopping. He decides to head to the deli, Wei Ying in tow, when they’re stopped by police at the lobby.

“I’m sorry boys, but I’m afraid you’re gonna need to head back inside tonight,” The officer says.

Lan Wangji is particularly mute this evening so he's relieved that Wei Ying speaks up from behind him. “Why, did something happen, officer?”

The officer squints in Wei ying’s direction as he answers. “Well, I don’t know if you’ve seen the news, but there’s been a couple of disappearances on campus these past few months.”

Lan Wangji frowns as Wei Ying says, “Huh. But I thought they happened out of town? Has something else happened?”

The cop opens his mouth as if to speak but thinks better of it. He looks at Lan Wangji and then back to Wei ying. “You guys live here? This is a little bit far from campus, so if you need to go back to your dorms a patrol car can escort you…” he says and he starts to approach.

Lan Wangji gives a step back--his hand is suddenly caught by Wei Ying’s. “Don’t worry officer, we’re going back inside. Thank you for your time.” He pulls Lan Wangji back to the stairs and up to their floor. As they ascend, Lan Wangji remembers how his classmates mentioned something about people going missing a few weeks ago. He vaguely remembers something about two students who didn’t come back from their homes on the weekend; had it been last week? This month?

He remembers that he’s heading back to his apartment, but there isn’t really anything there to eat. He starts thinking whether he knows the numbers of any delivery service places nearby, or if delivery can even happen with the curfew in place-- when Wei Ying tells him as they reach their floor, “Wait here.”

Lan Wangji goes to unlock his door, ready to shed his stuffy clothes once he’s inside since he’s not leaving his apartment tonight.

He enters and starts the slow process of removing his coat, his gloves, and his oversized sweater. He’s sitting down on the bench placed in the small hallway that connects the entrance to the rest of his apartment when he notices Wei Ying in the doorway. He’s holding a bag from the deli, looking at Lan Wangji from across the threshold. In the light of his hallway, Lan Wangji notices how pale Wei Ying looks tonight. He doesn’t know why he hadn’t noticed it before, but something about the light coming from the single lightbulb illuminates the bruises under his eyes all too well, as well as the gauntness of his face.

Wei Ying is for once not speaking. He’s just standing there watching Lan Zhan.

“You can leave your things on that table if you want,” he says to Wei Ying, who is still motionless on his front step.

Wei Ying’s movements are suddenly unnerving as he turns to look at the dinghy table Wangji has pointed to; an eternity passes before he answers, “You need to invite me in.”

Lan Wangji is suddenly aware of his small studio apartment and how stark it looks, how quiet the hallway behind Wei Ying is, and how now that he thinks about it, he really doesn’t know the man standing on his doorstep. For some reason it hadn’t occurred to him that Wei Ying has never been inside his apartment.

“It’s alright, just take off your shoes. It’s clean.” Lan Wangji says as he stands up.

Wei Ying is still staring at him even as he relaxes his posture and smiles. “I’m sorry but you have to actually say the words, Lan Zhan, if it’s alright with you.”

Lan Wangji walks slowly towards Wei Ying, who still hasn’t moved from the doorway. He stops standing close enough to see Wei Ying’s cracked lips, his dark brown eyes gleaming. He stands there for a minute studying Wei Ying, “And what happens if I say no?”

Wei Ying’s smile does not reach his eyes this time. Something in it makes Lan Wangji want to step back, close the door and bolt it. He refrains from doing so, curious in spite of himself. Wei Ying shoves the bag he was carrying to Lan Wangji’s chest, making Lan Wangji falter backwards from the force of the push.

“Here. I didn’t like these candies so I figured I could share with Lan Zhan tonight!”

Lan Wangji looks inside the bag to see an assortment of lollipops and hard candies. Is this what Wei Ying had been buying all the times that they had gone to the store? He has the sudden realization that, except for that first time, he hasn’t seen Wei Ying enter the store when he accompanies him to the store.

“I’m sorry Lan Zhan, but maybe I can join you another time? I’m going to my place. See you next time!” Wei Ying doesn’t wait for an answer as he retreats. Lan Wangji, still frozen in place, hears the door to Wei Ying’s place open and close.

He closes his door and crosses the space to slump on his bed. He takes a few of the hard candies from Wei Ying’s bag. It’s not until much later as Lan Wangji is falling asleep, that he considers the uneasiness he had felt, he could swear he hadn’t seen Wei Ying blink in the few minutes they had been talking.

When he sleeps, Lan Wangji dreams of statues coming to life and singing him to sleep.

***

The snow is covering everything when Lan Wangji wakes up. He wonders if classes are going to be cancelled as he looks at the snow falling steadily outside. He should take advantage of the early day to finally stock up on something more than convenience store food, maybe return the books that are due for tomorrow, or even perhaps restart his workout morning routine. But he still feels stretched too thin.

It’s been ten days since curfew was instated; time seems to have passed slower since then. He could blame that fact on being unable to follow his schedule, but he knows the real reason. He hasn’t seen Wei Ying since that night.

It’s rare that he would grow so attached, but something in Wei Ying makes him feel perceived, like he could look at Lan Wangji and see through him and inside him. His brain has always been filled with static; the cadence of Wei Ying’s voice had managed to silence it. Wei Ying tends to easily avoid people too, which in turn makes Lan Wangji less likely to have to deal with other people. Even when there’s silence between them, he feels the companionable tranquility of being with someone who understands him.

What had happened that night was an exception, and though it had been frightening, Lan Wangji finds himself strangely curious to something he’s sure he shouldn’t have witnessed, but Wei Ying had tried to show him anyway.

He hears movement from time to time in the apartment next door, hears the door closing and opening, but he can’t bring himself to confront Wei Ying. Something had changed from that last time. Their friendship—if Wangji can call it that— a fragile new thing, and he feels as if he had treated it too roughly and something had come undone.

It’s a few nights later when something wakes Lan Wangji. It’s still dark outside, the streetlight coming through his window the only thing illuminating his room; he hears thumping from the side of his apartment connected to Wei Ying’s—and more concerning, someone crying. He doesn’t register moving, but in a flash he finds himself in front of Wei Ying’s door. He debates whether he should knock-- what if it was all just his imagination? Or a bad dream that had made him hallucinate the noise. As if on cue, he hears a distant sob coming from inside Wei Ying’s apartment. He steels himself and knocks, trying not to sound too frantic and failing. As he knocks, the sobs stop. With the eerie silence echoing in the hallway, he tells himself that he could always head back to his apartment, he could just go back inside and put on headphones and some classical music and forget about ever being outside Wei Ying’s door in his night clothes, palms clammy, his breath condensing in the cold air of the hallway.

He doesn’t hear footsteps, but the next moment he hears Wei Ying’s voice through his front door. “Go away, Lan Zhan,”

He sounds so distant and small; it makes something break inside Lan Wangji’s chest.

“Wei Ying, I heard…” But what can he say? ‘I heard you crying’ would sound disrespectful, he shouldn’t have been eavesdropping, and he shouldn’t for that matter care what Wei Ying does in the night in his own space. “I wanted to make sure you’re alright.”

He hears a soft chuckle on the other side of the door.

“Can I come in? I would like to help, if possible.” He says reaching for the doorknob, he doesn’t try to turn it.

There is a pause. Wei Ying’s voice, when it comes, is flat and hard. “And what happens if I say no.” It takes a moment for Lan Wangji to realize his own words are being thrown at him.

He moves away from the door, cheeks flushed and fists clenched. He doesn’t know what to say to that. He goes back inside his own apartment.

***

Lan Wangji didn’t sleep well that night. When the alarm goes off the next day, he doesn’t deliberate too much on skipping classes. The semester is almost over, his projects have already been delivered and revised, he still feels the guilt of once again shrugging off his responsibilities.

And that’s how, as he lies motionless and heavy in his bed, he distinctly hears the crash coming from the apartment next door, accompanied by what could only be screaming. He once again finds himself in front of Wei Ying’s apartment door. This time he doesn’t think twice about pounding the door and shouting, “Wei Ying! Please open up!”

The sound of fighting only grows worse. He is trying to figure out if he has the time to call the cops, or if someone would have called them already, when he abruptly remembers that they’re the only tenants on this floor; the other two apartments have already been vacated, since most of the students in the building decided to head back home for the winter break.

“Wei Ying!” he shouts again. He can feel his heart start beating faster, his vision swimming with the black spots that warn him he’s about to have another episode, except this time he knows what to do with that urge. He throws his entire weight on the door; it doesn’t budge the first time, but he’s frantic and on the third time he hears a loud crack, just as pain starts flooding his senses from the shoulder with which he pushed the door.

The first thing he notices is that beyond the weak light that comes from the hall behind him, the apartment is pitch black. The second thing he notices is that the noises appear to come from the bathroom. The shouts had stopped, but he can still hear something gurgling and thrashing in there. The door to the bathroom is wide open; it only takes Lan Wangji a few steps to look inside.

“Wei Ying?” he calls, taking tentative steps towards the bathroom door. “Is that—” he almost slips on something wet on the hallway’s floor; he can’t tell what it is but it shines dark on the wooden floor. “I’m coming over,” he calls from the foyer, inching closer to the doorway.

“Lan Zhan, can you keep a secret?” He is five and his mother is the most beautiful person in the whole world.

The water is hot, too hot, as his mother brings him in with her, sinking into the bathtub.

“Just go to sleep, my love, it will all be over soon.”

He remembers waking up shivering, the sun already set, the light of the TV dancing in the dark of the hotel room. He remembers hearing pounding on the door and his uncle shouting his mother’s name. He tries to turn around and ask mother if they were leaving already— but all he sees are her closed eyes and her hands, limp in the water. The water itself is too dark and murky. He remembers his Sunday sweater being stained with dark splotches, his arms and legs feeling heavy. He remembers flinching when the door is broken into, his uncle being the first one to storm inside. He remembers closing his eyes as he wonders why his mom never took him away like she said.

He has seen blood before; the stark contrast to the white tiles is nothing new. He has seen it clinging to his clothes, to his shoes; he has seen it drained from another human form. What he’s not prepared to see is the pair of red eyes staring back at him from the darkened bathroom, hunched over what is unmistakably a body. Lan Wangji has a moment to wonder if this is what insanity feels like until suddenly time unfreezes and he sees, really sees, the figure still moving, blood staining a dark mouth.

He doesn’t register that he’s moving, but in a flash he’s outside, in the hallway, rounding right into his apartment. He turns around to close the door, and in the last moment a hand darts between the door and the lock. Lan Wangji hears the sickening crunch of something breaking as he continues to try to close the door; for an insane second, he feels sorry for hurting Wei Ying. His hand is holding the door open as Lan Wangji pushes with all his strength to close it all the way.

“Wait! Let me explain—” Wei Ying calls out from the other side of the door.

Lan Wangji feels himself hyperventilate. He can’t speak so he keeps on pushing.

“Please, Lan Zhan, just let me, you need to look at me so I can—” Wei Ying shoves the door open abruptly. It throws Lan Wangji back, he lands on his ass, sliding across the wooden floor of the hallway.

It’s already day and the pale light of the dawn is streaming in from the bedroom window, streaks of it almost reaching the hallway It’s enough for Lan Wangji to see Wei Ying flushed and covered in blood from head to toe, his hair dripping with it, dark and red and—

His mother is filling the bathtub. He remembers how excited he was to go on a secret trip, one that not even Lan Xichen gets to go to. He’s the only one who knows about the things his mother tells him and that makes him feel special in a way he has never felt before.

He is on his hands and knees when he opens his eyes, a puddle of his own bile on the floor in front of him.He can’t breathe. He hears the pounding of his pulse on his temples; Wei Ying is talking; he feels loathe to listen to him.

“Lan Zhan, I need you to look at me, to let me help you,” Wei Ying says in a litany of more senseless words. Wei ying is—he doesn’t know but he can’t concentrate on that right now. He looks down and realizes that the puddle he stepped on as he entered Wei Ying’s apartment had been blood, and he had trailed some in the rush to go back to his apartment. On the wood next to his hand, his shoe print is dark red. He feels his strength finally giving in as his vision fades to black.

He wakes up slowly, his head still swimming, his eyes puffy and throat parched. He is lying on his side, curled up, joints locked, and the sun has started to set. As he’s trying to stand up, he suddenly remembers what he had seen, and feels like keeling over again. He closes his eyes tighter, makes his hands into fists.

A voice from the doorway turns his blood cold.

“Lan Zhan, I think it’s time for you to invite me in.”

***

He’s too tired to have another episode, or he should be, but the way spots dance in his vision as he turns around and starts shuffling backwards tells him otherwise.

Lan Wangji looks at the man standing on the threshold. Wei Ying has a new pair of jeans and a black hoodie on; his hair is wet, a few strands clinging to his face and neck. His cheeks are flushed. He looks beautiful. Lan Wangji can’t stop thinking about that mouth, red with blood, and the glowing eyes that looked back at him from the dark.

Wei Ying leans against the doorjamb, looking at him through hooded eyes. He looks more relaxed than last time—though perhaps satiated would be a better word. As Lan Wangji looks down and tries to clear his throat, he can feel tears start to stream down his face.

Wei Ying crouches in Lan Wangji’s line of sight. “Look at me, sweetheart,” Wei Ying says, and even his voice sounds clearer than last time.

Something tells him it would be a bad idea to listen to that voice at this moment; Lan Wangji resolutely keeps staring at the floor as he tries to avoid passing out again.

Wei Ying sighs and sits down. “I'm really trying to make an effort here, you know?” He crosses his legs. Lan Wangji looks at him from the corner of his eye. Wei Ying’s flexing his injured hand, and Lan Wangji remembers the sickening crunch he had heard as the two of them had struggled with the door. In spite of himself, he turns to look. The middle finger is twisted at an unnatural angle, and as Wei Ying turns it, Lan Wangji can see a deep purple bruise across the back of his hand. Then Wei Ying flexes his hand and Lan Wangji watches the bruise fade, until the skin there is just a shade darker than the rest of Wei Ying’s hand. He gasps and Wei Ying’s gaze turns toward him.

“The perks far outweigh the downsides of this too,” he jokes. He proceeds to take his crooked finger and snap it back into position, emitting a crunching sound that makes Lan Wangji flinch.

“Does it hurt?” he asks, still avoiding looking at Wei Ying fully.

Wei Ying smiles and shrugs. “Not really. I mean, I’ve had worse.” His lips are red and plump and Lan Wangji can’t stop staring, cataloguing the differences between the creature before him and the man he had got to know and grow fond of.

Lan Wangji swallows. “What happens if I don’t—” He exhales, trying to form the words in his mind so they come out easier. “You said I had to say the words…”

To this Wei Ying goes still. Now that he knows what to look for, it is so easy to spot the switch: how his movements start looking aberrant; how he stops blinking, how his chest goes absolutely still. A flash, and Wei Ying is unfolding, standing up, still staring straight at Lan Wangji, who has stopped caring and is shamelessly staring back. Wei Ying removes his hoodie, showing a strip of his navel, the skin there as pale as everything else. He throws it aside, then squares his shoulders.

He gives a step towards Lan Wangji, then another; then he is inside Lan Wangji’s apartment at last, his posture unassuming and incongruous among the stark furniture in Lan Wangji’s room.

Lan Wangji stands up with difficulty, keeping his gaze locked with Wei Ying’s. He’s about to say something when Wei Ying gives another step, this time unsteady, and blinks a few times. That is when the blood starts to pour, first from his nose, then his hairline. Wei Ying blinks again and red streaks start to fall from his eyes.

Lan Wangji lunges for him, alarmed. “Wei Ying!”

Wei Ying’s white t-shirt is also stained with blood from what looks like different cuts that bloom in front of Lan Wangji’s sight. He takes him by the arms and Wei Ying holds on to him as well as he hunches over, clearly in pain. He opens his mouth and more blood starts pouring out.

“Please stop! You can come in, I consent to you coming in!” Lan Wangji holds onto Wei Ying as he collapses into a coughing fit. Lan Wangji goes with him, unable to let go.

It takes a few minutes for Wei ying to stop hacking. Lan Wangji notices the blood has also stopped pouring out. Wei Ying is still clinging to him as he examines him, the bruise from earlier has reappeared on Wei Ying’s hand. When his gaze travels to Wei Ying’s face, he is looking back at him intently. How could Lan Wangji not notice how otherworldly Wei Ying really looks, now that the pretense is gone, his posture resembling that of carved marble.

Another liquid smile parts Wei Ying’s lips. “Well, looks like I also made a mess of your place. Now I can see why you didn’t want me to come over.” Wei Ying has blood staining his teeth, his skin is starting to look paler with each minute that passes, and Lan Wangji can’t stop thinking that he looks devastatingly attractive even like this.

***

“Would you let me tell you a story?” Wei Ying asks him.

Both of them are lying on the floor. Lan Zhan is half sitting, supported by the wall, Wei ying next to him, close enough that their legs are touching. Lan Wangji is vaguely alarmed by the amount of blood that is rapidly drying on his floor, on his clothes; he feels numb and too tired to try to move, so he lets it go.

“The thing is, my memory was never good, even before… yeah, I really don’t remember a lot, but I don’t think that is such a bad thing., I’m pretty sure I’m better off not knowing the details.” Wei Ying slouches, bringing their bodies closer together Lan Wangji is surprised to find that Wei Ying feels warm.

Wei Ying talks about being a boy growing on the streets, about the family that took him in as one of his own. He talks about the brother and the sister that had made his days so bright he didn’t think he could’ve been happier.

Then, he talks about how the war had come and torn everything apart. How it forced men into becoming killers, and families into taking sides. His family was not the exception.

“You remind me of someone,” he says. By now it is well into the night, and the only source of light is the one coming from the streetlights through his window. If Lan Zhan doesn’t look too closely, the blood looks just like shadows scattered around his floor.

He hums in interest. They’re so close Lan Zhan could count Wei Ying’s eyelashes.

“I think he was a good man,” Wei Ying says. “He tried to help me.”

“Did he succeed?”

Wei Ying shakes his head, a strand of hair falling on his face. “I don’t think so, no. But,” he turns to look at Lan Zhan, “he had this quiet presence to him, just like you.” Wei Ying is beaming as he says this.

Lan Zhan’s speechless at such a soft look being directed at him. He reaches out and moves a strand of hair away from Wei Ying’s face; his hand lingers, cradling Wei ying’s cheek. Wei Ying takes his hand and brings it to his mouth, locking eyes with Lan Zhan as he deposits a kiss onto his open palm, light dancing in his eyes.

***

He thought that cleaning blood would be harder, but like everything, it’s just a matter of having the right items and being thorough.

Getting rid of a body is harder, apparently, though Wei Ying doesn’t let him help in that department, at least not this time.

***

After a while, Lan Zhan muses, people start looking alike‒their faces start blending into one another, they have the same stories, they live in the same boring towns, one after another; they have the same troubles, the same prejudices. And there are also the same creatures that wait in the dark for unsuspecting victims. Wei Ying always tries to go for the ones that will be forgotten, that can easily disappear. Sometimes they find monsters, but not the same type as him. But simple humans who have chosen to exercise malice, to abuse those that are weaker. Wei Ying likes to take his time with those.

Wei Ying is like nothing Lan Wangji has ever seen. There is no match for the strength and power he so casually displays. But most of all there is no match for the brightness of his soul, shining through, despite everything. Lan Zhan grows tired of towns, of the people in it, of the snow and the ocean; in time he will even forget to keep count of the nights spent in Wei Ying’s company, bright and eternal by his side.

#vedrividia #wangxiansolstice20 #*fic20 #*gifts20

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