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transvampireboyfriend · 1 year

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Had this “Steve only hates impersonal nicknames” idea in my notes for a while and then after seeing @cholvoq ‘s wonderful art I had to turn it into a real thing for Valentine’s Day. This is 2.4k, i’m SO sorry edit: you can now read this on ao3 :)

Eddie’s a nickname guy. It’s always Dusty this and Gare-Bear that and JeffJeff here and Bobbie there and it’s Mikey and Maxxii and Nance-pants and Johnny and… big boy?

Him being a nickname guy makes it near impossible to hide his crushes. Thankfully, Steve had been really cool about it. Sure, he seemed a little stunned, but Eddie still had all his teeth in place by the end of that interaction, so he had called that a win.

He hadn’t known then that Steve was… different. Or he was starting to see it but what he thought was shocking then had really been just the tip of the iceberg. He hadn’t expected Steve to be nice. Or funny, or caring, or protective, or understanding.

He had learned all of that after everything. During chats on Hellfire nights while the kids cleaned up after themselves, during hangouts at the diner with Robin and Nancy, during Saturday afternoons when he went to pick out a movie only to end up talking with Steve, their conversation flowing until it was cut short by Steve’s shift ending.

After some time, Eddie had gotten to know Steve even more during long weekday nights when one came over to bring the other something they left behind, or to share a record, or to demand the beers the other owes or to show the other a stupid article in a stupid magazine only to end up making dinner together and watching a movie afterwards.

They stopped making excuses about two weeks ago.

Eddie had asked “do youuu… wanna come over?” on Saturday night, while nervously twirling his keys as Steve locked the front doors of the Family Video.

The evening chill had cut right through Eddie’s leather jacket as his keys clanged against his rings. But Steve had nodded with a smile and asked “pizza?” on their way to their cars, and Eddie had forgotten all about the cold.

Point being, Steve had been just fine with ‘big boy’ when it happened. Eddie’s a nickname guy. Him and Steve are hanging out more now, and so, Eddie’s been calling him more nicknames. Some of them are very intentional, others come completely without thinking, and it turns out, Steve takes issue with a few of them.

The first time it happens, Eddie’s underneath his van trying to get the damn thing to cooperate, the recent winter was tough on it, and it keeps dying out on him.

Steve sits nearby perched on a little stool, wearing his Family Video vest since he came by right after finishing his morning shift to see if they could make plans for lunch. Eddie suggested they grab something at the diner if and when he finally gets the van to start back up and Steve had agreed to wait.

He’s been telling Eddie about tonight’s basketball- game? match? super bowl? Is there such a thing as the major leagues of basketball? Eddie’s not sure, but he adores the sound of Steve’s voice and he’s kind of invested in the drama of players switching teams and retiring and whatever else Steve wants to tell him about. So, he’s been listening, not really bothering with asking for clarification for what he doesn’t understand yet. He’ll figure it out as they go.

He's blindly patting the floor around his legs for his rag, when he feels Steve put it right in his hand.

Eddie’s relieved. "Thanks, bud!" he says, the nickname just rolling off his tongue effortlessly, no meaning attached.

It gets kind of quiet all of a sudden. After about five seconds of Steve not talking, Eddie comes out to check on him, and finds him frowning at his legs.

"Don't call me ‘bud’" Steve requests, looking up at his face, his tone just a tad harsh. Eddie would think he ran into King Steve if he didn't know any better.

As it is, Eddie gets Steve probably thinks the nickname is childish or patronizing, so he doesn’t think twice of it, just gets a little sheepish and says "sorry, Stevie".

Steve smiles at that, a little cocky. He does his little mean girl shaking his head thing like he just got exactly what he wanted. Eddie feels his face twist a bit in confusion, but he likes it when Steve gets a little mean so he doesn't say anything about it and just dives back under his van as Steve resumes their conversation.

The second time it happens, they’re outside the supermarket. The kids shot out of the van as soon as it rolled to a stop, Steve calling out a warning after them while still listening to Eddie explain why Star Wars and Star Trek are actually very different but really good in their own way. Their conversation carries on as they hop out of the van, lock up and walk to meet at the front.

“I’m telling you, Star Trek is great. You would love it,” Eddie says, “you just have to give it a chance”.

Steve rolls his eyes at him, but Eddie can see his smile.

“Ok, alright,” Steve answers, “you can show me tonight then”, it’s almost too nonchalant. Eddie has to hide his grin.

Steve’s been suggesting they hang out more and more lately, and he can’t help but feel a bit hopeful. They clearly enjoy each other’s company, their time together is never dull, Steve seems to be really comfortable around him and maybe, just maybe…

“Should we get beers then?” Eddie asks, excited at the prospect of some more time alone with him. They haven’t had a weeknight hangout since Eddie fixed his van last week. He kinda misses the very specific color of Steve’s eyes in the Harringtons’ yellow living room lamplight.

“Yeah,” Steve says, his eyes get soft in a way Eddie only started noticing a couple of weeks back, “we can watch it at my place” he adds. Eddie thinks he definitely hasn’t seen him look at anyone else like that.

To shake himself out of the spell of the prettiest boy he’s ever met making the prettiest eyes he’s ever seen at him and ONLY him, Eddie grabs Steve by the wrist and starts marching them towards the supermarket’s front doors.

Without thinking, Eddie says "c'mon man," as they go.

Steve, who started easily following him (like he always does these days), suddenly stops in his tracks. Eddie gets pulled back and almost stumbles on top of Steve. He'd get flustered if Steve wasn't frowning at him like he’d just said the most insulting thing he’d heard this month.

"Don't call me ‘man’" Steve says. Eddie feels his eyebrows raise a bit.

He debates asking why but doesn't question Steve in the end. He’d rather offer understanding than judgement to him any day.

So, Eddie takes advantage of Steve's wrist in his hand, and squeezes there a bit, says "I'm sorry sweetheart" sincerely, looks into Steve's eyes so he can see Eddie means it.

Steve blushes a bit then, not really used to the nickname yet, Eddie just got the balls to start using it last week. Eddie himself is not really used to seeing Steve blush, and at something he says? It’s too much power for one metalhead.

But he gets distracted from Steve’s blush because it happens again, Steve basically preens like a peacock once Eddie switches nicknames. Looks smug, like he has Eddie wrapped around his finger and well, Eddie guesses he does, so, no arguments there either.

He just smiles back at Steve, really, has no other choice, it’s not like he can control how he reacts to the most gorgeous fucking face the universe could ever come up with. But he tugs him along again, Steve happily following this time.

The next time it happens, Steve’s leaning against his kitchen island, with Eddie leaning across from him against the counter.

The party is watching a movie in the Harringtons’ living room and at some point, Eddie got up to get himself another soda, Steve not so subtly followed after him, taking the empty popcorn bowls to the sink. He struck up a conversation and there they stayed.

Eddie’s been turning the small gesture around and around in his head. Clearly Steve’s not shy about seeking him out, and he’s obviously good with the party knowing, which means a hell of a lot because those are Steve’s people, that’s his family.

Eddie’s honestly running out of excuses to not ask him out. Seeing him reaching out to bump his sneaker against Eddie’s boot when he says something funny, laughing just a little too hard at Eddie’s dumb joke; seeing his eyes widen a bit when Eddie compliments him; seeing him notice when Eddie is holding back from talking too much, and not letting it go until he thinks Eddie’s shared all of his opinions on the subject; Eddie thinks maybe he can be brave, when it comes to Steve.

And this week might be the perfect time.

Here they are still, the movie long ended and several easy conversations floating from the living room to the kitchen, where they’re still engrossed on their own.

“I mean I taught the kid how to do his hair for god’s sake!” Steve is saying, Eddie’s laughing easily, and he has a slight suspicion Steve’s acting way more annoyed than he really is because he knows Eddie dies laughing every time Steve roasts the kids.

“Just, if he’s gonna give me hair advice, he should work on that goddamn tone. At the Very Least.” Steve finishes, Eddie giggling all the while at his Annoyed Mom tone.

"Yeah, dude!" Eddie agrees, wanting to egg him on, but Steve's face suddenly falls and whatever remark Eddie had locked and loaded just fades away.

Eddie blinks perplexed; he’s getting déjà vu.

Steve frowns at him, says "Don't call me ‘dude’".

It’s eerie, only he sounds a bit annoyed this time.

Eddie thinks, maybe someone called Steve ‘dude’ before in an unpleasant way, so he doesn't pry. Instead, he takes the chance to call him a nickname he likes more, and says "Sorry, pretty boy", his heart fluttering in the milliseconds he has to wait for Steve’s reaction.

And it happens one last time: Steve absolutely beams at that one, his smile so bright it makes Eddie want to jump in place.

He leans further back on the counter returning the smile, not noticing the common thread in Steve’s reactions to him switching nicknames.

But then the glint in Steve’s eyes suddenly brightens a dim corner of Eddie’s brain. He gets this feeling that reminds him of a perfectly set up riddle or finding that one perfect note for his latest song. It’s like everything suddenly just makes sense.

Eddie feels realization dawn on his face as he pushes himself off the counter to walk right into Steve’s personal bubble, grabs both of Steve's hands.

"Steve" Eddie says, not even caring that he sounds like the name is dripping in honey when it comes out of his mouth. With how sweet Steve is, it might as well be.

Steve just looks at him a little stunned, but doesn't say anything. Eddie draws circles in the back of his palms to reassure him.

"Why don't you want me to call you ‘dude’?" Eddie asks, trying to find out if this whole thing is what he thinks it is.

Steve looks down at their joined hands,.

"You call Nancy that sometimes..." Steve mumbles.

His answer would sound inconsequential to the unsuspecting, certainly would have to Eddie as late as last week, but Eddie thinks he’s finally getting it, and he hums his understanding.

"How ‘bout ‘man’?" he asks

Steve replies "You call Robin that sometimes..." his eyes still on their hands.

Eddie nods his agreement.

"I call everyone those things" he points out.

Steve agrees. "Exactly" he says, finally looking at him again, sounding annoyed and confirming Eddie’s suspicions.

Eddie feels his face split into a smile. He wants to grab Steve’s beautiful freaking face and just plant one on him.

"Can I still call you sweetheart?" he ventures instead. The nickname brings the hint of a smile to Steve's face but then he seems to realize something not so pleasant.

"Do you call someone else ‘sweetheart’?" Steve asks in return.

"No one" Eddie says, shaking his head, his tone vehement.

"Then yes" Steve finally answers. Eddie's heart wants to beat right out of his chest.

He interlocks their fingers to ground himself, Steve looks down at their hands and smiles at the sight.

"So, you don't want me to call you something I call someone else?" Eddie states, more than asks, calling Steve’s eyes back to his again.

"Anyone else" Steve confirms, holding his gaze.

Eddie lets out a small shuddering exhale and feels his heart fluttering in his throat, he really cannot believe this boy.

"Steve" Eddie drawls, dripping in honey again, his hands coming up to cradle Steve's face because he really can't resist anymore "Sweetheart" he says.

Steve's eyes grow a little wide and he starts blushing so much that Eddie can feel it in his palms.

"Steevieeee" Eddie sinsongs, squeezing Steve's face a bit "Pretty boy" Eddie calls him. Steve just keeps looking at him and a small smile blooms in his pretty, pretty face.

"Would you let me take you out to dinner this Friday?" Eddie finally asks him, his fingers curling to the back of Steve's head to play with his hair there. Steve's eyes get even wider.

" 's Valentine's this Friday" he points out. Eddie knows.

"Mmhm. Want you to be my Valentine." Eddie tells him, tugs his hair gently, "How's that sound?" he asks, bold in a way he never has been before. Steve blushing does things to him.

"Sounds nice" Steve answers. He smiles and nods while his hands hook on Eddie's belt loops.

"Then it's a date?" Eddie asks, trying not to sound too eager. He thinks he fails spectacularly but Steve beams and pulls him in to kiss his cheek.

"It's a date" Steve tells him, his breath ghosting on Eddie's cheek and making him shiver.

Steve pulls back, lets go of Eddie’s belt loops and tugs on a strand of his hair gently, smiling like the cat that got the cream as he walks back out into the living room.

Eddie’s gonna make this the best Valentine’s Day date Steve has ever been on.

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dilfl0v3rss · 10 months

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this just came to me because I was arguing with my man but..

what about reader who has a problem with calling people all types of bitches; finally meets her match and he show her who the bitch really is !

(this my first ask btw🌸)

hey boooo!! so glad you sent a requesttttt. since you didn’t say who you wanted me to write for i felt like it was the perfect time to pull this out. i now bring forth………the baldiessss!!!

calling them a b*tch

𝑜𝑛𝑦

the two of you were going back and forth. it seemed like every time you got excited to be somewhere or do something, here come ony hating ass telling you you’re not allowed.

“i really don’t care ma. if i say you not going then you not going, so take allat shit off, put on your pjs and go study. got an exam on monday and you tryna party.”

you rolled your eyes while sucking your teeth. he wasn’t even your boyfriend and he damn sure wasn’t your daddy so you seen no need to be listening to this man. continuing your journey to the door as ony watched you with a keen eye. “you not even my nigga. you just a nigga i like to fuck, so you can take your bitch ass on somewhere tryna be somebody daddy” with that you turned around to grab your shoes that were at the door, only getting to put one foot in before you were snatched up and put against the wall. “we gon see about that”

it only took ony about ten minutes to have you screaming and crying in the middle of your bed. legs held high in the air as you grabbed tightly on the arm connected to the hand around your neck.

“o-ohh my goddd why a-are you fucking me like thisss” your whines went in one ear and out of the other while ony kept his brutal pace on your bruised pussy. “you know damn well why i got you like this. you may get away wit that shit when talking to your little friends, but over here we don’t use that bitch word y’hear me?” he took advantage of your parted lips, giving you a sloppy kiss before letting his warm saliva trickle down your tongue. you eagerly swallowed him, the action bringing the both of you closer to the edge.

“i hear you daddy….i hear you”

𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑛𝑖𝑒

“and oneeeeee!! y’all not fuckin wit me mann!” connie yelled as he won another game of 2k. y’all were at ony’s house chilling. well no….CONNIE was at ony’s house chilling. you were there against your will, tired, and in dire need of some entertainment since your man and his “brothers” left you out completely. “i’m ready to go con” you mumbled for what felt like the a hundredth time tonight, but of course connie gave you the same old excuse.

“ten more minutes”

he didn’t even look away from the screen as he spoke. you rolled your eyes before getting up and walking to the dining room where you sat down and called your group chat. “what it do bitchesss!” your friend eboni yelled as she watched the rest of your friends begin to pop up in the call. “heyy” you said with as much energy as you could, but they could all tell you were as dry as ever. “what he do now?” your other friend erika said as she looked at the tired look on your face. you sighed, dropping your shoulders as you turned the camera around towards the back of the guys heads and back towards your face. “been on that game wit them for like two hours while i’m just sitting here”

mumbles of irritation could be heard throughout the call as your friends grew almost as upset as you. “you told him you wanna leave?” eboni asked. you gave her a “duhh” look before replying. you didn’t notice that connie finished his game, getting up as he let ony and eren play while he went to the kitchen for a snack. he was within arm’s reach of you before you started talking your shit. “like why the fuck would you bring me here if you was gon be up in your friend’s faces the whole time? if i did that to him he would be whining to me like a little bitch saying he wanna go home.”

his eyes widened in surprise as your words. anger quickly running through his veins as he snatched your phone from your hands and hung up on your friends. “bring your ass up stairs, now” you rolled your eyes at him, earning you a hard slap in your ass before he lightly pushed you upstairs and towards the bathroom. “i be whining like a little bitch? you don’t get your way and now you think it’s okay to call me out my name?” you looked up at him, arms crossed as you leaned on the sink. your attitude was still very much there so connie decided to stop with the talking. turning you around and bending you over the sink. “turn the water on. if i hear your voice over it ima really embarrass you aight? don’t test me.”

he left you no time to answer before burying two of his fingers deep into your pussy, stretching you out so good you had to quickly cover your mouth to keep from screaming. “unt uh mama, this ain’t nothing. i’m a bitch right? this should be light work for you” he taunted you, inked hand yanking yours off your mouth while his eyes dared you to make a sound. your release was coming quickly and connie knew it by the way your eyes rolled in the mirror. he took this as an opportunity to move quicker into you. his gaze never leaving your face as he watched you open your mouth to scream. thankfully it was quickly muffled by by his strong hand, while you shook and came all over his inked fingers, but you weren’t finish yet. your eyes widened in surprise as you felt connie’s fat tip prodding your entrance.

“we gon see which one of us is really a bitch in here. and you bet not run”

𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑛

as the girlfriend of one of the most popular ace’s in the country, there were things you had to go through that regular women didn’t. not a day went by where there wasn’t a crazy girl trying to throw themselves onto your man, regardless if you were there or not. that wasn’t really an issue to you though since it was bound to happen given his talent. the real issue was that aran’s peanut headed ass never really dealt with that behavior the way he should.

“oh my goddd arannnn!!! please please please can i get a picture wit youuuu.”

“your muscles are so much bigger in person”

“you’re so strong i wonder how your body looks under the jersey”

you were thrown to the side once again after a game, the girls basically shoving you out the way before snatching your boyfriends attention from you.

“f’course i could take a picture wit y’all. cmon everybody get in!” he said, letting the swarm of women stand around him as he flexed for the camera. you didn’t even wait to let him finish, walking right out of the gym and towards his car. it took over half an hour for this man to finally get to the car before he looked at you leaning on the passenger side door. “why you ain’t wait f’me? s’mad dark out here and you all alone.” he said, looking around at the almost empty parking lot before looking at you.

“you looked a little busy entertaining bitches fantasies and ian wanna interrupt” you spit before turning around to open your door. of course his fast ass locked it before you could even touch the handle, waiting patiently for you to turn back around before he spoke. “you mad at me for taking pictures?” his confusion made you scoff. was he playing or was he really that dumb? regardless you were over it. “knew your bitch ass wouldn’t get it. got so many different girls heads up your ass you don’t got time to think about your girlfriend” aran leaned down towards you face, putting his ear closer to your lips so he could “hear you better”

“my what?” you looked up at him, challenging him as you repeated yourself. “your bitch ass. cant hear or sum?” a small smirk made its way to his lips before he unlocked the car doors. “nah i just needed to make sure”

you didn’t even make it to the front seat before aran yanked your ass up and threw you in the back. crawling in right behind you before teaching you your lesson.

“there you go ma, keep ridin that dick” aran groaned as he watched your ass bounce repeatedly in front of him. legs burning as you gripped the center console for support. “i l-learned my lesson pa pleaseee” you whimpered as you felt his large hand land a heavy smack on your ass, the skin already hot and aching from the previous slaps. “nah…nah ion think you leaned shit. we have this conversation almost every other week. these lil girls out here don’t mean shit t’me. they can take as many pictures they want because at the end of the day who do i go home wit?”

you mindlessly kept bouncing on his dick, too fucked out to even respond properly. “y’go home wimme daddy” a smirk made its way to his face as he listened to your slurred speech. you were fucked dumb. “that’s right mama. daddy goes home wit you…daddy only ever gon go home wit you” you nodded along to his words, feeling your release on the tip of your tongue as he continued to speak. “now apologize t’me for being mean. you know how i feel about that bitch word”

aran quickly pulled your back to his sweaty chest, kissing up and down your neck as he quickly fucked into you from the bottom.

“m’sorryyyy. won’t happen againnn”

𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑎𝑘𝑎

“fuckkk. you always suck me so well mama” he groaned as he watched you work between his thighs. two hands stroking his shaft as you quickly moved your mouth all over his tip. there was spit all over your face and hands, but that only turned tanaka on even more. it’s been weeks since the two of you got to have sex since your boyfriend is always out and about being the best personal trainer he could be.

you looked up at his toned body in adoration as you began to suck him sloppier, slapping his pink tip on your tongue before taking him fully down your throat. *ring ring* the sound of his phone snatched him out of his lustfull trance. you were too busy hard at work so you didn’t notice, but when you glanced up at him the sight made your blood boil. this nigga was on the phone.

“hello?….yea f’course….nah that’s not a problem at all. would the gym by mall work for you?….aight coo, see you then”

you let go of his dick with a pop, giving him a confused look as you waited for him to explain what the fuck just happened. “client just called. said they wanted an extra work out” your jaw was on the floor. there was no way he was serious. “and you took it?” tanaka looked at you with a blank look, as if you should already know his answer. “duhh i took it. he’s been making good progress and ion wanna mess that up for him now.” you scoffed, standing up from the floor before walking towards the bathroom to clean yourself up. tanaka followed you, looking dumb as ever with his dick still out of his pants. “you not gon help me finish?”

you gave him a death stare before pushing past him and making your way to your side of the bed. “go have your fucking client suck it. since you running to his beck and call like you his bitch or sum” as soon as the words left your lips you felt a strong hand wrap around your throat. tanaka kept his voice steady, but by the grip he had on your neck you could tell he was pissed. “don’t say that shit again.” he said quietly, using his other inked hand to lift your chin up towards his face. tanaka leaned down, lips almost touching yours before he spoke again. “where you learn that at huh? ‘cause i know i never let you talk to me like that and i still don’t. you forgot where you at ma?”

he spoke lowly to you, making a shiver run down your spine as well as wetness rush through your panties. you didn’t say a word, pretty doe eyes looking up at him as you waited for his next move. “spread your legs f’me ‘kay?” you obeyed him without question. fear coursing through your veins as you watched your man angrily rip your panties in the middle. you eagerly waited for him to fuck you, little whines leaving your mouth as you watched tanaka tease your clit with his tip. “say you sorry first mama. ion play that disrespectful shit and you know that.”

“m’sorryyyy” you dragged your voice out to show extra remorse as you kept your legs wide for him to take you. a small smirk crept on tanaka’s face as he watched you listen to each of his commands without hesitation.

“just made you listen to my every word all for some forgiveness” he mumbled as he sunk half of his long dick into you.

“so who’s really the bitch?”

2K notes · View notes

timetothirst · 6 days

Text

Almost

Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley x GN reader

Inspired by this post that hasn’t left my head since I first saw it

Tags: Canon typical violence, you almost die, Ghost is soft in his own weird way, confessions, everyone needs therapy, i’m not British but i’m using British slang because it’s Simon’s POV, if i got any military stuff wrong no I didn’t, sad Ghost

Rating: M for violence and language

—————

You were dying when Ghost realized he loved you.

It started the same as it always did whenever he had to meet someone new, with a quick handshake and a short introduction before he inevitably found an excuse to walk away as soon as possible. He didn’t dislike you, not necessarily, but he was no social butterfly. You were just another face to him, that was all.

Until you weren’t.

He was having trouble sleeping. That was nothing unusual, though. He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d got a full eight hours without some kind of interruption, whether it be an owl outside his window that wouldn’t shut up, an inability to get comfortable because of the countless aches in his body, his thoughts just being too damn loud, or something else entirely. Whenever this happened, he’d make his way to the common room and find some way to kill the time while he waited for everyone else, maybe even get breakfast started or put the kettle on if he was feeling nice.

It was on one of those nights, after he’d finished rummaging through the fridge looking for a decent snack, that he saw you. He went to sit on the couch, and there you were. He didn’t realize it was you at first and tensed up, instinctively reaching for his combat knife (which wasn’t there, of course, since he was in his sleep clothes). At first he was baffled. How did he not notice you coming in? He wasn’t losing his edge, was he? Letting his guard down?

But then he saw the half-eaten packet of crisps in front of you and realized you’d been there the entire time, sitting in the dark, in complete silence.

“Fuckin’ hell…say somethin’ next time, yeah?” He told you, finally allowing himself to exhale.

“Sorry, I didn’t know whether or not you were going back to your room, and I didn’t want to bug you, so-“

“S’fine.” He interrupted with a wave of his hand, sitting on the opposite end of the couch and grabbing the remote.

—————

“Am I missing something here? Why’s he acting so weird all of a sudden?” You asked, staring at the screen in confusion. This was the third question you’d asked in as many minutes, but Ghost didn’t seem to mind. At the very least, he wasn’t giving you death stares or walking away from you, so you figured it was okay.

“Pon farr.” He stated, not even glancing over.

“Am I supposed to know what that means? It sounds like a weird disease…” Ghost side-eyed you as you said this and scoffed quietly.

“No, it’s not a- look, just watch, will you? They’re about to explain it.”

You rolled your eyes, but did as he said anyway.

“Oh my god…so, he can only have sex once every seven years? And if he doesn’t, he’ll just…get really pissed off and fuckin’ die?” You laughed in disbelief, then ate the last of your crisps and tossed the empty packet into the trash.

“Nah, Vulcans can mate whenever they want. Pon farr’s just a biological thing that causes…well, s’ called plak-tow, but it translates to ‘blood fever.’ Means they’ll go mad if they don’t-“

You couldn’t help but snicker, slapping your hand over your mouth with a snort when Ghost’s head snapped toward you. He looked at you with an expression that could melt steel, which would have scared you shitless under any other circumstances.

“…Seen this one.” He grumbled as an explanation, looking away from you and back at the TV screen. He crossed his arms, his face hardening into its usual scowl.

“Yeah, I can tell.”

You spent the rest of the night asking Ghost increasingly complicated questions about the show, and despite his exasperated sighs and frequent eye rolls, he answered every single one.

—————

He just kept running into you, it seemed. Sparring, target practice, and of course, your late night binges of Star Trek, whenever the two of you happened to be up at the same ungodly hour. You sat on your designated couch cushions and laughed at the awful special effects as Ghost told you to ‘shut it and watch,’ though he was sure you could see him smiling through the fabric of his mask.

As much as he hated to admit it, as cliché as it sounded, his days really were a bit brighter with you around. You filled the silence when nothing else did, joked with him, spent time with him…he’d even noticed a few little things you had started doing, things that were specifically for him. Like the night he’d taken out a pack of smokes, only to realize that he’d lost his lighter. He groaned in annoyance and went to put them away, but then, there you were, holding out a lighter of your own, the small flame reflecting in your eyes.

“The lads and I must be a bad influence, eh? I swear I remember you tellin’ me that you don’t smoke.” He’d said to you after rolling up his mask just past his lips and taking a puff of his cigarette.

“I don’t. But you do.” You replied casually, shrugging as if you’d just said the most obvious thing in the world.

“And with the way you keep losing your lighters everywhere, you’re probably spending half your paycheck replacing them!” You added, giving him a playful punch on the shoulder.

Ghost rolled his eyes and told you to piss off, but he never bought another lighter after that.

—————

Price started pairing the two of you together on missions; citing the fact that you got along, as well as the way your combination of skills made you effective and deadly in the field. You were a good team, that was all. You got things done, and you got them done well, no matter the circumstances.

And then everything went to shit.

You had already suffered a dislocated shoulder and pretty bad slash wound, both to your dominant arm, so you were stuck clutching a pistol in one hand while the other dangled uselessly at your side. Almost all of the enemies had been taken care of at that point, but you were making a final sweep of the building in search of any stragglers.

Two seconds. Two goddamn seconds he looked away from you, but that was all it took. Five gunshots rang out in short succession, no doubt from an assault rifle of some kind. You screamed, shot a single round from your pistol, and two bodies thudded to the floor.

Ghost’s heart dropped. He charged into the room, looking around frantically. As badly as he wanted to rush to your side right that second, he knew he had to assess the situation first. He’d be of no use to you if he was dead, after all. The first thing he noticed was that you were breathing, and your attacker wasn’t, probably because they had a sizable hole in the side of their head. Ghost dropped to his knees next to you, trying to calm himself enough to properly check your wounds.

You looked so small lying there, curled up on your side with your face contorted in pain. A shudder wracked your body, blood beginning to pool as Ghost placed a hand on your shoulder. He gritted his teeth and turned you over. As expected, you screamed bloody murder, the movement causing your body to be jostled.

“Shit. Shitshitshitshit-” He muttered, his hands hovering over your body. Before he dared to do anything else, he reached for his radio.

“Bravo 0-7 calling for immediate medvac. Repeat, immediate medvac.” He spoke, unable to hide the tremor in his voice.

“Acknowledged. Requesting location.” A voice crackled over the speaker. He barked back your coordinates, along with an order to hurry the fuck up before disconnecting and turning his attention back to you.

“This is gonna hurt.” He warned.

He undid your vest, and his large hand immediately made contact with the most serious of your injuries, that being the bullet wound in your side. He pressed down hard in an attempt to staunch the bleeding as best he could, and your scream of pain was enough to make him feel as though he’d been shot himself. You seemed too shocked to speak, your breath coming out in short gasps, punctuated by anguished sobs.

“Shh. I know, I know…hey- look at me, yeah? Just keep lookin’ at me.”

Ghost couldn’t remember the last time he felt helpless. But here, now, as he stared down at you, it was the only thing he could feel. He wished he could be angry instead, but right now there was no one to direct that anger towards. Your attacker was lucky you’d managed to kill them before he got the chance to, or he’d have beaten them into a pulp with his bare hands and left them to rot where they fell as punishment for even fucking looking at you.

“Ghost-” You croaked out, your bleary eyes focusing on him momentarily. He shook his head.

“Simon.” He whispered, his own name feeling foreign on his tongue. You stared at him in confusion for a moment, but then your eyebrows raised and a look of realization appeared on your face.

“S…Simon?” You repeated. He nodded, tried to smile at you despite everything.

“Yeah…Simon.”

You smiled back through your tears and let out a laugh that quickly turned into a pained wheeze. “That bad, huh?”

Simon didn’t reply. He didn’t trust himself to. You’d see right through it if he lied, he was sure of it, but if he told the truth, he knew he’d break down on the spot. Instead, he gathered you into his arms and curled around you protectively, trying to keep your body warm to prevent shock.

With a start, he realized that this was the first time he’d ever held you.

“I think m’just gonna…rest for a few minutes, if that’s okay…” You breathed.

As he looked down at you, it was clear that you were struggling to keep your eyes open. He made a strangled noise in the back of his throat, clutching you tighter and burying his face in your hair.

“No, no, no…not you. Anyone but you.”

Simon Riley had never been a religious man, but he prayed then. He didn’t know to whom he was speaking, but it didn’t matter. He only asked for one thing.

“Don’t let them die. Not here, not now. I’ll do anything. Give them more time. Take me instead if you want. I’ll go in their place, just let them live. Please.”

He knew he didn’t deserve you. He always had, really, but that didn’t mean you should be taken away so cruelly. You should have something so much better than this, better than a cold concrete floor slick with your blood and a man like him trying to hold you together while he himself was breaking from the inside out.

“H-Hey…”

Your voice broke through the haze, and he cursed under his breath, quickly wiping his eyes and lifting his head to look at you.

“Fuck. Sorry, I- i’m right here, love. I’ve gotcha. Nothin’ to worry about, yeah?”

You just nodded. Your eyes were barely open now, your chest still slowly rising and falling with your breaths. You felt around for his hand and grabbed it, the silence seeming to last forever as you considered your next words.

“…I’m really glad I met you.” You finally said.

“Don’t. Don’t start sayin’ shit like that. Makes it sound like you’re-“ He exhaled and squeezed his eyes shut.

“I can’t fuckin’ do this, alright? I know I can be an ass, and I know i’m not the best at sayin’ it, but…I need you.”

Simon looked down at you. You weren’t moving.

His time spent waiting for medvac to arrive was a blur. He held you tight, begged you not to leave him even though he wasn’t entirely sure whether or not you could hear. And when the medics did finally show up, they practically had to wrench your limp body out of his grip.

He had to take a separate transport back to base. he sat alone and stared at his hands, watching your blood slowly dry.

——————

Simon lurked outside the door to your hospital room like- well, a ghost. When the doctors finally deemed you well enough to take visitors, he was at your side, like a loyal dog lying at its master’s feet. He held your wrist in a loose grip the entire time he waited for you to wake up, his thumb pressed against your pulse point so that he could be sure your heart was still beating.

It felt like ages that he waited for you. He didn’t even know quite how long he did, actually. He only left your side once, and that was for a shower in freezing water where he scrubbed his skin raw because he was unable to stop seeing the red covering it.

When you finally stirred beneath him, Simon thought he was dreaming. He stared at you with a mixture of disbelief and blind hope, and then you finally opened your eyes. After days, he finally felt like he could exhale. He let himself fall forward, his head coming to rest on your shoulder as he shook ever so slightly.

“God…don’t you ever do that to me again, got it? Thought i’d lost you.”

You reached up and started to rub circles into his back, choosing not to mention the fact that your hospital gown was damp with tears.

“Simon, I-“

He shushed you, rolled up his mask and pressed a lingering kiss to your temple.

“You made it, that’s what matters. You made it back t’ me.”

“And I always will.”

#call of duty #simon ghost riley #simon riley #ghost cod #ghost x reader #ghost x you #ghost mw2 #simon riley x reader #simon riley x you #simon ghost x reader #simon ghost x you #simon ghost riley x reader #angst #fluff #writing #swords’s stories

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rainsoakedphoenix · 5 months

Text

i love you

pairing: f!reader x chris sturniolo

wc: 1.6k

warnings: couple uses of y/n, chris ghosting you, i guess slight angst in the middle if you squint?? idk, not proofread bc i'm not entirely sure how i feel about this one and for some reason i'm lowkey embarrassed to read my works back

summary: chris realizes his love for his best friend goes beyond friendship

requested?/notes: nope! - i just love how in a looooot of sturniolo fics i read, if not all of them, nick is the middle man/the one reader goes to when there's an issue with one of the other two, it's so funny to me

"i don't think he should've made it through; his other performances were okay but that song didn't fit his voice very well, and i don't think he has a good chance of winning the whole thing considering who's on the other teams. what do you think?" you ask your best friend, who you were currently curled up to while watching a live singing competition.

"i don't really care." chris shrugs his shoulders, although his eyes were trained on the screen in front of you, lost in thought. "i guess you're right, he's not as powerful of a singer as the others, i don't think he's gonna win."

"you weren't really paying attention, were you?" you smirk. he turns his face toward yours, a sheepish grin taking over his features as he shakes his head.

"chris! this is our show, you're supposed to be more involved." you gently smack his chest as he chuckles, before turning your attention back to the tv even though you feel his eyes still on you, causing your face to heat up slightly. you hoped he wouldn't notice.

as if on cue, your favorite contestant appears on screen, preparing to perform for the judges. you briefly point to her, hoping to get chris' attention off of you. "oh, there's my girl. i hope she makes it to the top five."

you see his face turn towards the screen out of the corner of your eye, and you let out a breath you didn't realize you were holding.

"are you okay?" he faces you once more, having noticed your sigh, causing you to do the same.

"yeah, i'm good." you look back and forth between his eyes, hoping your voice and expression were enough to convince him.

"you seem a little on edge all of a sudden, i wasn't sure if-" he turns his head slightly to the side to let out a loud belch, and you couldn't hold back your laughter. on nights when you and chris watched your show together, there were always drinks and snacks involved, so you weren't surprised by him in the slightest.

"it's all that damn pepsi," you grabbed his jaw and gently turned his face a little more away from yours, giggling into his shoulder.

you felt his fingers graze over your wrist, traveling to your own fingertips before he interlocks them, slowly pulling your hand away from his face. holding hands wasn't exactly new for the two of you as you've been best friends for a few years now, but something about this felt different somehow. your eyes met his, and he quickly looks from your eyes to your lips and back again. there's a flicker of hesitation before he leans in, and before you can fully process what's happening, his trembling lips are on yours, both of your eyes closing just before they touch.

time seemed to stand still as your heart began to race, your mind finally catching up to the present. you started to relax under his touch, about to deepen the kiss when he suddenly pulled away. almost expressionless at first, chris' eyes slowly widened as he realized what he did. "i'm sorry, i wasn't thinking. i don't know why i did that."

"chris it's okay, don't-"

but before you could finish your sentence, he abruptly stood up from the bed, panic etched across his features. he hastily gathered the few items he had brought with him to your apartment, completely ignoring your reassurances.

"chris, please," you pleaded, already standing up from the bed and watching him walk to your bedroom door.

he paused for a moment, his eyes filled with a mixture of regret and fear, but he shook his head and whispered "i can't, i can't do this. i'm so sorry."

and just like that, he was gone. he didn't talk to you for about a week after. when he first left, you tried to go back to your show, although it proved difficult to pay much attention to it anymore. you didn't want to bombard chris' phone about what happened and you understood he needed space, so that's exactly what you gave him.

after a couple hours though, you figured you would shoot him a text to once again let him know you weren't upset with his actions. but he never responded. you waited another few hours and sent another text to ask if he was okay, and still no response. another text the next day, still nothing.

you thought about showing up to his house, but you didn't want to make him feel forced into a situation he wasn't ready for. as much as hurt to be ignored, you decided to just wait until he reached out again.

after a few days of still not hearing from chris, you decided to call nick and explain the situation to him, and to also see if chris had mentioned anything to his brothers.

"yeah, he told us what happened," nick had said. "he's been hiding in his room for the most part, until we have to film a video or go to a meeting. we've tried telling him he can't just ghost you like this and he needs to talk it out with you, but he's just not ready yet i guess."

nick and matt were aware of the feelings you harbored for their brother, but of course they would never say anything to him. you had actually almost worked up the courage to confess the night chris kissed you. your heart raced every time you thought back to the kiss and how it meant he might return your feelings, but the ghosting told you a different story.

you periodically checked your phone for a few more days after that phone call, still not seeing anything from chris. but after almost a week since the kiss, you found yourself getting ready to go out to dinner with friends. after all, you had nothing else to do, and you were tired of moping around your house. but just as you had put the last of your makeup on you hear a knock on your front door.

confused, as you weren't expecting company, you step towards the door and open it to reveal chris. your eyes widen slightly in surprise, and his do the same when he sees you all dressed up.

"hey," you say to him, opening the door and stepping out of the way so he could come in.

he returns your greeting just as softly as you did, biting his lip as he enters your apartment. "am i interrupting something?"

"not exactly." you shut your door, turning to face him. "i'm just going out to dinner with some friends, they'll be here to pick me up in about twenty minutes."

he nods, staring down at his feet for a brief moment before taking a deep breath and looking into your eyes as he talks. "i'm sorry for ditching you the other day. and for ignoring your texts."

"it's okay," you begin, but he cuts you off.

"it's not," he shakes his head. "i was just embarrassed after i kissed you, but that's not an excuse to treat you the way i did. you didn't deserve that."

it was your turn to look down at your feet as you nodded, dreading asking this question in fear of what he might say. "why were you embarrassed?"

he took a moment to answer, which initially made your heart sink, but what he says makes your heart skip a beat.

"i like you. as more than a friend. and i was scared that you might not like me back so i panicked."

you tilted your head in understanding, hesitantly stepping in front of him. "i like you too, chris."

he stares into your eyes then, smiling softly, and seemingly debating on his next words. "you're the most beautiful woman i've ever met."

your face heats up as you look back and forth between his eyes. he tentatively takes your hands in his as he continues. "from the moment we met, i've always thought that. i've always thought you were funny, and kind, and creative. i've always felt something for you but i tried to push it down because i didn't want to be heartbroken if i found out you didn't like me back, and i'm terrified to be with anyone. but i want to try with you, if you'll have me."

somehow, your face heats up even more, and you look down at your intertwined hands, eyes blinking rapidly. "don't make me cry, i just finished my makeup."

he chuckles, one hand reaching up to your chin, coaxing you to look at him. "i love you."

you breathed out a sign of surprise, throwing your arms around him as you bury your head in his neck. his arms surround you, hugging you tightly as his head goes to your neck. "i love you too."

you can feel the vibrations on your skin from his voice as he jokes. "and i won't ghost you again."

you laugh, before leaving a kiss on his cheek as you pull away. you smile at him before you turn to walk to your waiting friends, having heard the horn of a car outside.

chris grabs your hand, causing you to turn around and look at him expectantly. he gently pulls you back to him, his other hand reaching up to cup the side of your face. he looks between your eyes and lips, and you instantly help him close the gap between the two of you.

giggling as you pull apart, a look of amused confusion crosses his features. "what?"

your hand comes up to lightly scratch the stubble covering his cheeks. "it tickles."

he chuckles as he shakes his head at you, placing another kiss to your lips before gently ushering you to the door. "go have fun. i'll be here when you get back."

you did as he said, excited to come back home to him; the man you've had feelings for for the longest time and who you now know has feelings for you too. the man who you love, and who loves you.

#rainsoakedphoenix #sturniolo triplets #chris sturniolo #christopher sturniolo #chris sturniolo x reader

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josephquinnswhore · 7 months

Text

Fuckin’ Brat

Pairing: Joel Miller x female reader.

Summary: you’ve had a bad day and taking it out on Joel leads to primitive measures to fix your attitude.

Word count: 0.6k

Warnings: swear words, reader having a mental breakdown I guess, Joel using pet names like angel, brat.

alternative thoughts to the other little blurb I posted about this pic. Bonus pic for better effect.

You were so fucking tired, so worn and aching and sweaty and irritated. The combination usually wouldn’t have been that much of an issue on a normal day; you were great at handling your emotions and worked through them like a champ.

Today things had fallen apart; a handful of otherwise tiny manageable things that all add up in what becomes a cluttered mess that accumulates like a fire hazard. The more things that go wrong; the more flammable you become.

And fuck you were about to blow up.

First it was Janice, the old hag from down the street, complaining about your dog, burnie, a well behaved border collie, he was a bit stupid sometimes; he liked to chase the birds that flew through her garden. That became a you issue. She was lucky he didn’t chase her.

Then, as you get to the hall to start volunteering for the lunch service, cooking for all the guys coming home from patrol; nothing had been started. No prep, no cooking. No cleaning. You roll up your sleeves and pick up the slack; because you’re a fucking people pleaser who can’t say no.

Lastly, you get home, just wanting to relax and read a chapter of your romance book. Only to find it had tea spilt all through it; the pages were now a damp shade of brown, soaked and completely ruined. Ellie had looked at it last night after showing some intrest, neglecting to put the precious book back onto its respective shelf.

Ellie said she’d clean up after herself, you understood she was just a teenager and she probably just forgot.

But you couldn’t help but just explode, it was the final fucking straw. The match that had lit the impending internal explosion.

In that exact moment your brain had decided to short circuit into a fit of rage, Joel walks through the door, walking snow all through the house as he sits on the lounge, groaning loudly.

“Couldn’t even take your fucking boots off at the door?” You scold angrily, gesturing to the mess he’d walked though the house.

Joel stopped untying his boots to look at you; he raises his eyebrow, giving you an unspoken warning.

Don’t speak to me like that again.

But you got the message, you just push further, knowing he would snap eventually.

“Thanks for letting the damn dog out this morning too, now Janice is on my fucking ass as always!” You grumble, starting to pace a little.

Joel stood off the lounge, bending at the knees a little so he’s more your height and he rested his palms on the top of his jeans on his thighs. His head was tilted as he watched you ramble, waiting for you to realise you’d fucked up.

“She’s that obsessed with you, she’s got to take her shit out on me, maybe you should just go over there and stuff her full of your co-“

Your rambling is cut short by a large hand roughly gripping your chin, your eyes widen at the sudden action and he jerks your face towards his, you stumble forward two steps. He doesn’t take his eyes off you.

“Fuckin’ finish that sentence, angel.” He growls lowly, warning you against it. He waits, looking at you expectantly.

You freeze, blinking dumbly at him. He hums.

“You really want me to go over there and stuff Janice full of my cock, huh? Show her what she’s missing, why she’s rightfully jealous of you?” His tone was husky. His eyes hadn’t left your own.

Your eyes water at the thought, your shoulders droop as you shake your head no.

“‘S what I thought. Listen to me real careful now, angel.” His voice is softer, but still demands that you comply with his orders.

He softens his grip on your chin, but still maintaining that eye contact.

“You’re gonna come sit on my lap, tell me what happened today, and you’re gonna stop being such a fuckin’ brat. Understand?”

You nod frantically, tears welling in your eyes, Joel knew you needed him to put you in place, to break you down so you’d stop pushing all your problems down to bury them. So you’d finally open up and embellish in the support you needed. He would listen, and help however he could.

“Repeat it, baby.” He orders firmly.

“I’m gonna sit on your lap and tell you why I’m upset..” You trail off for a moment. “And stop bein’ a brat.” You mumble.

Joel let’s go of your chin, sitting back down on the lounge where he pats his lap. You sit on your throne and cry to him; about everything that had happened.

He spends hours with you; in his arms, letting you cry and rant about all the stress you’d harboured. You were thankful for the stern and loving man that was Joel Miller.

#pedro pascal #joel miller #tlou #the last of us #joel miller x reader #joel miller fic #joel miller x you #joel miller blurb

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angelltheninth · 1 year

Note

can I req kunigami fucking you in the locker room after his team loses? i feel like he hates to lose so he’d be more rough than normal

The cinnamon roll turning feral? Please that's one of my favorite things.

Pairing: Kunigami Rensuke x Fem!Reader

Tags: nsfw, smut, locker room sex, frustration, mostly clothed sex, rough sex, size difference

A/N: I love it when the soft ones lose their shit. It's so fun to watch. That makes me sound a little sadistic but you can't say I'm wrong can you?

Kunigami was a sweetheart since the day you met, a shy sweetheart at that. The first time you had sex he was afraid to touch you because he didn't want to disappoint you. Hell to this day he looks away sometimes when you're undressing.

You've rarely seen him go berserk other then on the field. Even when you ask him to be rough with you he still holds back some because he knows he's a lot stronger then you.

So... safe to say that being slammed against the lockers was a dream come true. His jersey and his tight suit coming off while you're the one still wearing clothes because he just couldn't wait anymore, and have his big, hard cock slamming into your wet pussy, slamming you against the lockers.

"Sorry." He choked out while pushing your breast into his mouth, licking over the nipple with his whole tongue as he did so. "This is the only... I can't... I... fuck!" He hardly even looked at you since you walked in to comfort him after you saw him lose the game. He couldn't look at you, the disappointment he felt in himself was too much.

"Don't be sorry Ren. I'm okay, we're okay." With your legs closing around his hips to pull him in deeper he couldn't resist temptation of going faster. He'd already made you scream his name in the game, and he failed to make it worth while. Not this time, this time when you scream his name he will make sure it's for a good reason. His body strained, his muscles still aching from the adrenaline and rush of the game, even so he lifted you up higher, your breasts right in his face, your arms locked around his head, fingers running through his sweaty, messy hair. From your position you could make out the blush on his face, all the way to the tips of his ears, the frustration in his eyes. Frustration that you were more the willing to take away. "You want to come don't you? You can do it inside this time. It's okay, I can-"

Kunigami didn't even allow you to finish what you were gonna say before he started dumping his hot load of cum into you, "Shit! So tight! So good, so good, so good! Squeeze my fucking balls dry, come on! Just take it all!" For the hoarse desperation in his voice and the repeated slapping sound of his body against yours it wasn't gonna take long for you to spiral over the edge with him. He held your smaller self up so damn easily, even now when he was beyond gone. So earnest, so needy, so caring, so damn rough, what more could you want in a boyfriend? Especially one so damn willing to fuck your brains out with his big, thick cock hitting your sensitive spot in such a mindless frenzy.

"Don't want it... dripping out so much." You panted and with a low grunt found yourself with your back on a bench, Kunigami gripping your ankles, cock drilling into your pussy. The show of strength and the sight of being filled so completely finally sent you tumbling over the edge, your body arching, hands gripping the edges of the bench for dear life. Kunigami slammed inside you one last time, going completely still to let your orgasms run its course, breathing hard, shaking, dizzy.

What made you dizzy was the sight of his cock pulling out, covered with cum, the same cum that flowed out of you in abundance, running down your stomach as he still held you in your folded position.

"Hm, I'd say you just scored pretty well big boy."

#blue lock x reader #blue lock smut #blue lock imagines #bllk x reader #bllk smut #bllk imagines #kunigami rensuke #kunigami x reader #kunigami smut #kunigami headcanons #blue lock #kunigami rensuke x reader #kunigami rensuke imagine #kunigami rensuke headcanons

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tarosunshine · 3 months

Text

ʚ HAIRSTYLIST

genre fluff‎ ‎ 𖹭 warnig none ﹗ pairing best friend shotaro x fem reader

— You dyes his hair.

You arrived a while ago at Shotaro's house, your best friend. And the two of you were in the bathroom of his house, in front of the mirror.

“Taro, this is the first time I've done this, so I don't really know how to do it.” You murmured as you ran the brush through his hair. He giggled as he watched your reflection in the mirror, seeing how you struggled to reach the top of his head.

“Let me sit down.” Shotaro smiled as he turned to look at you. You gave him space, and he sat on the toilet seat. “Now you can continue.” You nodded and continued to painting the last strands of hair. You admired your work still with the brush in hand and smiled when you saw him there, with a towel on his shoulders and wanting for you to continue. You couldn't wait to see him with his hair completely dry. “Done.”

“See? that was easy. Thanks for helping me.” He turned around again to look at you and smiled. Those crescent-shaped eyes made your heart race. This damn feeling again?. You just cleared your throat and started cleaning up the dye mess in the sink.

“Yup, it wasn't that difficult. And you're welcome. Plus, it was fun.” You smiled again as you continued doing your thing. You looked out of the corner of your eye as he stood up. “I'll go get myself some soda. Do you want some?” He asked before stepping through the door frame. You just nodded, finishing washing your hands and toweling yourself off.

Minutes later, Shotaro's cell phone alarm rang, letting you know that he had to go wash his hair to remove the remaining dye. “Okay, I'll be right back.” He got up from the couch where you two were and headed to the bathroom again. You nodded in his direction as you sipped your glass, then turned your gaze to the television, but you weren't really paying attention.

Seconds later, you heard the rain from the shower.

For some reason, you were very nervous. Sweaty hands, heart beating fast, your leg moving up and down with nervous.

You sighed and closed your eyes, leaning your head against the back of the couch. Staying like that for a couple of minutes until you felt cold drops fall on your face. You opened your eyes instantly, meeting with that pair of dark, pretty eyes. “Gosh you scared me!” You raised your head from the couch quickly, trying to get away from his face, but he was faster and moved away before your heads collided. Your heart beat quickly, both from the fright and from his sudden closeness. How did you not hear him?.

He laughed as he sat on the couch, stepping over it to get comfortable. “What were you thinking that I scared you?.” He asked already next to you as he looked at you. “I was just rest–” You finally took a good look at him and noticed his, now, blonde hair. “Wow... I really did a good job.” You messed up his hair with your hand. Shotaro nodded with a smirk.

“Yeah, I'm going to go dry it.” He says, showing you the dryer —which you hadn't noticed because you were so busy looking his face— in his hands. “If you want, I can help you.” You offered, moving your hand away from his head and extending it in Shotaro's direction.

“Oh, you don't have to. It's enough that you helped me before.” He shook his head with a smile. “It's okay, I want to do it for you. Besides, my job as a hairstylist will not be finished if I don't dry my client's hair.” You joked.

He nodded, convinced and stood up from the couch, plugging the dryer into the wall, and then sat down in front of you, turning his back to you. You had to separate your knees, giving him space between your legs so that both of you would be more comfortable.

You set the device and began your task, running your fingers gently through his hair so that each strand was dry.

You could feel his back vibrating with every giggle. “You tickle me.” He says in a whisper. “I'm almost done.” You answered, drying the last section. “All right!” You left the dryer somewhere on the floor and looked at him. He moved away from your legs and turned around, still sitting on the floor, to look at you. “You're the best.” He raised one of his thumbs and smiled at you. He then stood on his knees and leaned towards your face, resting both hands on your thighs to stabilize himself and planted a kiss on your cheek. “Thank you.”

You looked at him dumbfounded for a few seconds and cleared your throat, trying to dispel any strange thoughts. He didn't move from his spot . He stayed there a few centimeters from your face and just looked at you with that smile of his, waiting for you to say or do something. What was this atmosphere?. You swallowed and looked at him, trying to sound sure of yourself. “You’re welcome.” Your voice was shaky. He laughed at your completely red face. He was trying to tease you. He kissed you again, but this time on the lips. You reacted almost immediately. You didn't allow yourself to stay static, so you grabbed his face with both hands kissing him back.

When you separated, you two looked at each other in silence with a silly smile. “You know... I'm going to miss your brown hair.” You commented looking at his, now, blonde hair. He laughed at your sudden comment.

“Oww.” He gave you a fake pout before pounce on you again.

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security-chief-odo · 3 months

Text

The Fake Dating Job - Chapter 4

Elliot Spencer x Reader

Previous chapters: 1 2 3

Note: Thanks for your patience. My life has been crazy as of late. In exchange for bearing with me, I offer you, probably my favorite chapter so far of any of my fics.

Word count: ~3.7k

Description: You and Eliot pine for each other throughout the reception. Will your ex get in the way of your happiness?

• • •

After the ceremony, you and the rest of the bridal party are asked to hang back for photos. As the rest of the guests file into the reception hall for the cocktail hour, Eliot makes a brief detour to give you a peck on the cheek. “See you inside sweetheart.” he says softly before rejoining the rest of the guests.

Your mind occasionally wandered to Eliot throughout the photo process, whereas his mind never left you from the moment that he left the bridal suite this morning. You looked gorgeous in the dress your sister had picked out for you. Maybe he could blame the dress for why he spent more time focused on you than on the actual wedding.

Though that is the beauty of this whole plan, there would be nobody to explain it to as he was supposed to want to stare at you. There would be no moment where Hardison calls him out for staring at you for a little too long. There would be no explaining, rather lying, to Parker about how protective he gets over you on a mission. There would be no knowing look across the room from Nate or well meaning advice from Sophie. There would be nothing but his own thoughts and delusions that you would ever want him to be more than just your fake boyfriend.

When the bridal party finally makes their entrance into the reception hall, his eyes are searching for you. Despite how happy you are for your sister, a feeling of relief nearly consumes you once you find yourself by Eliot’s side once again. Though, as you make your way to the table, your relief falters slightly at the realization of who you’ll be seated near. Your ex is seated at the same table as you, only two seats away.

Eliot’s warm embrace calms you though. This is what he was here for ultimately, to be a barrier between you and your ex. To make the night go better for you. And in a small way, he was already doing just that.

After the couple shares their first dance, dinner is served. You desperately try to avoid giving your ex any attention, and Eliot makes that easy. He eats slowly, taking time between bites to shower you with little bits of affection. His hand rests on your thigh through much of the meal and you hope that the flush that crosses your cheeks isn’t too obvious in the dim lighting. You could get used to these casual touches, if only they weren’t for show.

“How’d you like the food?” you ask, hoping that a bit of small talk can keep your wishful thoughts at bay.

“It was alright.”

That response alone was very telling so you quietly finish the sentence he was too polite to complete. “But you could’ve done better?” You raise your eyebrow at him as he half nods.

“I’m just sayin’ I know what these wedding caterers charge and they should take a bit more pride in their work.”

You can’t help, but chuckle at this as the DJ announces the father daughter dance. You turn your chair towards the dance floor to watch your father and sister share this moment and Elliot does the same beside you. He wraps his arm around you and pulls you closer to him. You can’t help but lean into the touch. You probably don’t need to do as much as you are to sell the act, but damn it, if this is your only opportunity to be this close with Eliot, maybe relishing in it a little isn’t a bad thing.

After the dance, cake is served and this time Eliot has no complaints. The cake is as close to perfect as any cake could be. As you finish, you remind yourself to ask your sister where she got the cake from so you could maybe stop by the bakery on your own before you leave town.

As the dance floor opens up, you take this opportunity to go talk to your parents. You haven’t had enough time with them this weekend and you really have missed them. Ever the gentleman, Eliot insists on tagging along to properly meet them. He is far too good at this fake boyfriend thing.

You greet your parents with a warm hug. “I’ve missed you guys!” you say trying to be heard over the music. “It’s been too long.”

“And whose fault is that?” your dad asks.

Your mom nudges him and gives a disapproving glare at his bluntness. “You should visit more. Maybe then it wouldn’t have taken so long for you to introduce us to this handsome fella.”

“I’ve been telling her the same thing.” Eliot steps in with the charm offensive in full force. “I’m Eliot.” He shakes each of your parent’s hands. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

“All bad things I suppose?” your mom asks teasingly.

“Hardly. She’s told me so many fun stories about your family. Though maybe a few of those stories could be classified as embarrassing.”

It’s nice to see your parents get along with Eliot, though it shouldn’t matter to you. You will have a fake breakup in a few weeks and this will be nothing but a memory for both of you. A damn good one too.

You’re broken out of that train of thought when you hear your mom reply, “Oh, is that so?”

“She’s got plenty of embarrassing stories of her own.” your dad adds in. Eliot lets out a hearty laugh at the prospect.

“Oh? Any worth telling?” You bury your face in your hands in fear of the mortifying words that may come next from either of your parents.

“How about you buy me a drink and I’ll tell you anything you wanna know about our dear Y/N?” Your mom suggests.

“Gladly” Eliot guides your mom to the bar and out of your earshot as you sit with your father.

You sit in silence at first, just enjoying the shared time. Minutes pass before your father speaks again, without even looking directly at you, “He’s good for you, you know.”

You figure the best way to avoid being caught in a lie is to just stay as close to the truth as possible, so you tell your dad your real thoughts on Eliot. “I know, he’s a really nice guy. He’s funny and caring. I really love him.”

“That’s not what I mean.” He turns to fully face you. “I just haven’t seen you this happy in some time.”

“Oh.” you say, stunned. This statement catches you off guard but luckily your father continues, so you don’t have to fill the silence.

“You seemed so sad before, especially with James. You used to force those tight lipped smiles that you thought we didn’t notice. This new guy has brought back your infectious smile. The one you don’t even seem to notice, you just do it.” He pauses slightly, “I missed that smile.”

This conversation comes to an end as your mom and Eliot return laughing loudly. Once he approaches the table, he stops in front of you. “Care for a dance?” He offers you his hand.

You gladly accept and follow him out onto this dance floor.You dance through several upbeat songs, joking and laughing at each other’s goofy dance moves throughout. For a moment, you forget how painful going back to normal life may be because having this much fun with Eliot reminds you how important your friendship is. The heartbreak could never break this bond. The bitterness of pining could never overpower the sweetness of these moments you share.

He spins you around and holds you close to him, your back to his chest. As you sway together to the music Eliot whispers in your ear, “You know, your mom told me some interesting things about you.”

“Oh god. What did she say?” You brace yourself for whatever ungodly stories from your youth your mom may have dug up for this occasion.

“Nothing too bad. I actually thought it was cute.” You turn in his arms to face him and raise your eyebrow as if to ask him to elaborate. “First she told me about the time you cut your own hair.”

You let out a chuckle, mostly in relief at how benign of a story that was. “I can still remember the terrible bangs I had in my school pictures that year. It felt like it took forever for those to grow out.”

“So is that why you convinced your sister to do the same just two years later?” He looks at you accusatorily and you know that your mom had to have given him more ammunition if he’s already digging in on the teasing.

You raise your hands defensively, “I just handed her the scissors and told her I thought she’d look cute with bangs. What she did after that is not my business.”

You wrap your arms around Eliot as you continue to dance as you bicker. “Oh I’m sure it was all her own idea.” His smile only widens as he continues, “She also showed me this picture of you as a kid where you were laying face first into your plate of mashed potatoes. It was cute. You’re still pretty cute when you get all sleepy like that.”

This catches you off guard because it’s just one more moment that’s a step past friendly without any reason for it. Nobody could really overhear your conversation over the music. He said that just for your benefit, or maybe just to sell the act. Maybe in a different life Eliot could have been an actor, he certainly played the part of lovestruck boyfriend pretty convincingly.

Trying not to focus much more on his words, lest their implications consume you, you add, “Did she tell you how I used to fall asleep at my bedtime so religiously I would sleep sitting up at family gatherings or in the cart at the grocery store?” He shook his head in response. “Yeah I wish I was still that committed to my sleep schedule.”

“Well ain’t that the truth sweetheart.” There’s a softness about him that is so rare and nearly indescribable. It’s a nearly magnetic force and you find it impossible to look away from him. It feels like if you even glance away for a second, the levity will be gone and the weight of the world will once again return to rest on his shoulders.

Soon you have to shift your focus as the DJ announces the bouquet toss. The men clear off the dance floor as all of the unmarried women gather. Sure, it doesn’t really mean anything if you catch the bouquet, but you find yourself reaching for it nonetheless. Maybe it was fate or maybe just luck or maybe it was set up by your sister considering her earlier remarks, but regardless the bouquet is in your hand and you’re staring down at it in shock.

Your sister hugs you and you know it’s going to break her heart when you and Eliot “split up.” Though by now, you’re too deep into it and so you have to act excited about this turn of events. A small part of you is excited though, the part that has clung onto every romantic moment this weekend as if it’s more than a fantasy. Perhaps that part isn’t so small.

On the side of the dancefloor the excitement over your purely hypothetical future builds in Eliot too. Fuck it. He won’t have many more chances to do this. He makes his way across the floor to you and happily pulls you to him, first in a tight hug, then into a lingering kiss. One that he has to hope you can’t just feel the sincerity of his desire dripping from.

You could get used to being kissed like this. Though, as your family is currently about half of the room, you pull away from Eliot, you can’t convince yourself to go very far away. Your foreheads rest against each other and the tension is palpable. Damn. He really is committed to convincing your family. He would have you convinced if you hadn’t been the one to set up this whole ruse.

Around you the dance floor fills again as the DJ turns on a slow song. You and Eliot hold each other close as you dance. Eliot softly sings along in your ear. His soothing voice slowly erases every worry you’ve had about this night. You feel safe and at home in his arms, and even if it won’t last, you can’t help sinking further against him. Truly if your heart must be broken, there’s nobody you would trust more to break it kindly.

You and Eliot are lost to the world around you as you both relish in what little time you have left to hold each other. That momentary bliss comes to an abrupt halt as the song fades out and you notice a presence looming just behind you. Just then you hear James’ voice behind you as his hand touches your back, sending a chill down your spine at your own unease. Speaking to Eliot he asks, “May I have her for this next one?”

Something seems off to him, but you reassure Eliot that it’s fine with a polite nod. There’s a sinking feeling in his chest, of course this was never real so he should have been prepared for rejection, but it still stings seeing you in someone else’s arms. Maybe that’s why you invited him, not to avoid your asshole ex, but to make James jealous.

Eliot goes to the bar to drown in something other than his own self pity and insecurities, and is met with your mother inviting him to sit next to her. Despite his own feelings, he won’t ruin things with your family so he orders a drink and sits at the open stool she has offered him.

“You’re good for her, you know?”

“I try to be.”

“I mean it. She’s happier with you than she has been in a long time. She still thinks she doesn’t deserve you though.” your mom looks at him with a sad sort of smile.

“What?” he asks incredulously.

“She’s always been a worrier. You can see it in the way she holds you,” she pauses in thought before correcting herself, “in the way you hold each other. You’re both so scared the other will leave. You don’t think you deserve her either, do you?”

It’s a relief in a way to be able to be truly honest for once this weekend. “No ma’am. I can’t say I do. I’m happy to have her until she realizes that though, and that’s enough for now.” He waves to the bartender and orders a second drink.

“You’re both idiots, I swear.” Your mother lets out a long sigh. “Do you treat my daughter with kindness?”

Suddenly, under your mom’s gaze Eliot feels like he’s sitting in the principal’s office facing detention. He feels small. “Of course.”

“And you love her?”

“Yes.”

“So are you saying Y/N doesn’t deserve your kindness and love?”

“No ma’am.”

“Then pull your head out of your ass and stop acting like she’s going to leave you. That girl loves you, anyone could see that, so why are you sitting here with me at the bar, drowning your sorrows?”

He hangs his head in defeat, he couldn’t argue the point of your affections, not without ruining your plan, so he settles on the easier argument. “She already has a dance partner.” He gestures to the dance floor.

Your mom finally glances over to you and rolls her eyes. “God I’ve always hated that son of a bitch.”

Eliot can’t help the deep belly laugh that escapes him. Your mom cursing in anger is funny when it’s not directed at him. It’s then when you turn to where he can see your face, your features lined with sadness. His protective instincts finally kick in and he heads your way. He tries to hang back to get the full scope of the situation.

As Eliot was at the bar, your ex had been saying truly awful things. As Eliot reapproached, he continued. “He’s gonna leave you, you know?”

Eliot couldn’t make out any of what was being said, but he knew from the tension in your body that you weren’t happy. He’s kicking himself now for letting his own insecurities put you in the exact kind of situation he was here to help you avoid.

Not wanting to cause a scene, you plaster a fake smile on your face and through gritted teeth say “I fail to see how that’s any of your fucking business James.”

“I’m just looking out for you, babe.”

“Don’t call me that” you cut him off.

He continues, not acknowledging what you said. “I may have moved on, but I still care about you. You don’t deserve to be hurt when he finds a prettier girl and runs away with her.”

“Fuck off, James.” Eliot isn’t going to stay with you, but that doesn’t mean you need to tolerate James’ bullshit. You pull yourself out of his hold but he follows behind you.

Eliot quickly approaches as he sees this and is in earshot finally for the last insult James throws out. “You know, I don’t know why you bothered catching that bouquet. Nobody is ever going to love you, much less marry you.”

In an instant, James is grabbed from behind, turned, and pinned against the nearby wall. You barely hear the commotion behind you as you exit the reception hall and finally let a tear run down your face.

Inside all eyes are on Eliot and your family has gathered as he begins yelling at James, “What’s your fucking problem, man?”

All too cocky, James smirks, “Here to ask if you can have my current girlfriend when we break up? You clearly love my leftovers.”

That earns him a broken nose. Eliot’s fist makes sharp contact with his face and the blood from his nose quickly stains his white shirt. “You need to shut the fuck up and leave Y/N the fuck alone, or you’ll find out just how quickly I can break another bone.”

Ever the idiot James opens his mouth to reply, but, before he can, your sister yells at him, “Better yet, get the fuck out of my wedding.”

With the bride’s blessing, Eliot and your father drag James out to his car and, seeing he’s been beat, or perhaps fearing being beaten again, he leaves without another word.

He sees you sitting on a bench outside the reception hall and breaks into a jog, wanting to comfort you. He holds you to his chest as you gently sob. As much as you didn’t like that James was saying it, you couldn’t shake the feeling that he was right, but you let that insecurity burrow further inside your heart as you realize something far worse. You probably just ruined your sister’s wedding.

You sit up abruptly and wipe the tears from your face, “I need to go apologize to my sister.” You run inside, leaving Eliot to slowly follow, though he washes your ex’s blood off of his hand before re-entering the reception hall.

Your eyes scan the room and finally land on your sister. The anxiety makes the words practically spill out of your mouth, “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to cause a scene at your wedding. I know I can’t make it better, but I’m sorry for ruining your night.”

Both of you are crying now. “You didn’t ruin anything. I shouldn’t have let him come, even if he was dating one of the other bridesmaids. If anything you fixed the wedding by getting rid of that piece of shit.”

“Well I’m pretty sure the getting rid of him part was more Eliot than it was me.” you chuckle. He walks up behind you, as if summoned by the mention of his name.

He looks toward your sister and her now husband as he wraps his hand around yours. “I am so sorry for,” he pauses and gestures vaguely towards the spot he had pinned James, “well, all of that really.”

Your sister laughs, “No need. We’ll just call it dinner and a show, and it was quite the show.” she leans in towards you both and in a far more serious tone adds “I heard from some of the others what he was saying before. You did the right thing, you could’ve gone a bit further to teach him a lesson if you ask me.”

He looks to you, now remembering that your ex had plenty of time in his absence to say far worse than what Eliot heard. “Wish I would’ve.” he lets out a nervous laugh, still unsure where he stands with everyone else. “I��m just glad he’s gone though and can’t cause any more trouble.”

Your sister replies, “Agreed. Though maybe try not to hit anyone at the next wedding?”

“I think I can manage that.” He smiles, glad to see that everyone is still in good spirits.

The groom, also seeming to relax, throws in, “You’d better because if those flowers are anything to go by, it’ll be your own.”

Eliot wraps his arms around you, and with more sincerity than you were prepared for says, “Hopefully.”

Trying so hard not to get lost in your imaginary future with Eliot, you change the topic. “Your wedding was really beautiful by the way. Congratulations.” You hug your sister. As you pull away, you lean back against Eliot and say. “I think it’s time for us to go back to the hotel though. I think we’ve created enough of a story tonight.”

“Of course,” she agrees. “Have a good night. Thank you both for coming.” Then as you walk away, your sister calls after you, loud enough for about half the room to hear, “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, lovebirds.”

This leads to a few hoots and hollers from the other guests, just trying to tease and embarrass you further. You flip your sister off as Eliot guides you out of the room.

• • •

Next chapter

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withacapitalp · 1 year

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75 or 25 with Steddie for the writing prompts?

Me, chanting to myself: Write something short, Write something short, Write something short

Myself @ Me: Lol bet

Read it on ao3 here

25. “When you love someone, you don’t just stop. Ever. Even when people roll their eyes or call you crazy… even then. Especially then!”

“I love getting to show people my favorite movie, but I have to admit, I’m much much happier to have your pretty face all to myself,” Eddie chuckled, shutting the door of the trailer behind the last of the kids. He leaned against the wall, taking a deep breath in and closing his eyes. The whole place was warm in the best way possible, and the smell of fresh baked sweets was still hanging in the air.

Movie night was his favorite.

They had a very strict schedule for biweekly movie nights, a structured routine that Nancy had come up with to keep any and all arguments at bay. With the system working, everyone got to pick once every six weeks. Not ideal, but the closest to fair that things would get.

The best part was, Steve had decided to make a whole evening of it when he realized it was finally Eddie’s turn to choose. He spent hours cooking a nice meal for everyone, finishing it off with Labyrinth themed cupcakes for them to enjoy. He even used glass marbles as decorations, making the frosting look just like Sarah’s infamous dress.

Sure, Steve had fallen asleep halfway through, completely tuckered out from all the work he put into making things perfect, but somehow that only added to the charm of the moment. Eddie couldn’t think of anything more wonderful than having his boyfriend’s head in his lap while they watched a movie surrounded by their family. He had been excited for Steve to finally see his favorite movie, but things were best this way.

Well, he could think of one or two things that might make the night even better.

However, any intentions Eddie had of moving things to the bedroom died the second he got a good look at Steve.

His boyfriend didn’t just look tired, he was exhausted. Steve’s face was drawn in a stressed frown, and he was leaning his elbows heavily against his knees as he stared vacantly at the floor between his feet.

“What’s goin’ on, Sunshine? Still tired?” Eddie hummed, walking over and leaning down to press a kiss to Steve’s forehead.

But the second Eddie got close, Steve took a sharp breath in, pulling away like he had just been electrocuted. He got up and began to pace, running his hands anxiously through his hair and avoiding looking in his boyfriend’s direction.

“Steve?” Eddie said softly, watching him with wide nervous eyes. All of the happiness that had been filling him was leaking out like a balloon, a foreboding worry sliding into its place.

Steve paused, his entire body growing stiffer the longer he stayed silent. The tension was killing him, but just as Eddie went to break it, his boyfriend spoke first.

“I think we should break up,” Steve said in a rush, keeping his body turned away from Eddie.

“Hilarious, Harrington,” Eddie replied with a roll of his eyes, ignoring the stone that was starting to sink his stomach into the ground, “What’s actually going on?”

“We need to break up,” Steve repeated sternly, whipping around so they were face to face. His eyes were sparking and his jaw was set, but Eddie could see the growing shine in his eyes, and the way Steve’s hands were shaking.

He looked two seconds from completely falling apart, and Eddie didn’t have a single clue why.

“You’re serious,” Eddie stated.

“Yes,” Steve said, crossing his arms and clenching his fists to hide the tremors that Eddie had already seen.

Eddie had never been very good at school, but that didn’t really mean a damn when it came to being intelligent. He sucked at sitting still, and he couldn’t care less about subjects that weren’t interesting, but Eddie was smart as a whip when he wanted to be.

When it was something he cared about, Eddie made a point to know anything and everything he could, and he cared about Steve more than he had ever cared about anything in his life.

Shaking hands. Glassy eyes. ‘Need to’ instead of ‘want to’.

Hm.

Well, wasn't that interesting?

“Need to,” Eddie scoffed, striding past Steve. He flipped his hair casually, yanking the fridge open and rooting around in it, “Do you have some sort of explanation as to why?”

He heard Steve take a breath in, but Eddie interrupted it by throwing a beer can behind him, listening to Steve fumble with it for a second.

“Because this morning you were telling me that you’ve never been happier,” Eddie growled, cracking open his own beer with a hiss and gulping down half the can, “and now you’re saying you want to break up. Oh, no, I’m sorry- you’re saying that we need to break up.”

Steve was back to avoiding eye contact, but Eddie wasn’t having that. He crossed the room in three steps, getting in Steve’s face and practically losing it when Steve brushed past him and went to walk away. Steve knew that Eddie hated when people walked away from him. He knew that.

“I- I just wanna, okay?” Steve stammered, putting the can on the table by the door and reaching for the handle, “Look it was fun but-”

“No,” Eddie snapped, shutting the door just as Steve began to open it.

“No?” Steve said.

“No,” Eddie agreed, putting his foot down metaphorically and his back against the door literally. “Not unless you tell me why,”

Tell me why you’re doing this when you don’t want to?

Tell me what happened to make you think this was okay?

…Tell me why I’m not good enough?

“Because I fell asleep,” Steve muttered, self-hatred oozing from every word.

What?!

That was the big reason? That made no sense. They fell asleep watching movies all the time. Eddie had fallen asleep watching a movie two days ago.

“You fell asleep watching Labyrinth…and you want to break up over that?” Eddie sneered.

“That’s only part of it,” Steve sighed, “You wouldn’t understand,”

“Then please, enlighten me oh great King Steve,” Eddie snarled, hating the way Steve flinched away from him, “What exactly did I do?”

“It’s not you, it’s me,” Steve instantly shot back, both of them cringing at his word choice, “No I- god that sounds stupid. I’m-”

Steve cut himself off with a groan, hands back in his hair, pulling in a way that couldn’t have felt good. It took everything Eddie had to not reach over and take Steve’s hands in his own to stop him.

“I’m not good enough for you! Okay?” Steve exploded, his voice cracking even as he continued to try and mask his pain with anger. “I’m not good enough for you, and so I want to break up. That’s it.”

“I can’t believe this,” Eddie said, scoffing, “Steve Harrington, the golden boy of Hawkins is saying that he isn’t good enough for drug dealing trailer park trash Eddie Munson?”

“Don’t call yourself that,” Steve snapped automatically.

“In what world are you not good enough for me?!” Eddie shouted, grabbing Steve’s wrists in an iron grip and tugging his boyfriend close. They were nose to nose, and Steve, who had always been an open book, was telling Eddie everything.

The anger was gone, resignation taking its place. Steve tugged ever so slightly against Eddie, and he let him go, following the other boy as he walked towards the couch.

“In what world? This one,” Steve said softly, practically collapsing against the cushions. “Eddie, no one thinks I’m right for you. Your bandmates, Wayne… not even the kids,”

The kids?

Eddie’s brain was flying in a million different directions, and he couldn’t remember anything that anyone had said no matter how hard he tried. Steve hadn’t even been awake for most of it, he only woke up at the end to say goodbye to everyone. The kids had teased him a little for falling asleep, maybe joked that Steve must have thought the movie wasn’t that good, but nothing out of the ordinary.

Nothing that should have caused Steve to go this off the rails.

“Steve-”

“And they’re right, Eddie. They’re right,” Steve said, laughing incredulously, “I mean, why do you even wanna be with me? I can’t go to your shows-”

“Because you have PTSD from saving the world four times,” Eddie interrupted.

“-And I can’t listen to your music-” Steve continued.

“-because you have tinnitus from, oh yeah, saving the world four times!” Eddie pushed.

“Don’t use that as an excuse! Just- let me talk. Please?” Steve said, his eyes glistening as he begged Eddie to stop.

“Fine,” Eddie said, crossing his arms and sitting back, staring at Steve. The younger boy took a steadying breath, gathering both his thoughts and his courage.

“It’s everything,” Steve said, shrugging helplessly as he looked down, “I don’t understand dungeons and dragons, I get bored reading Lord of the Rings, and tonight I fell asleep watching your favorite movie. The kids were just being little assholes, but they’re right. It was crazy for us to think this was ever going to work. Why are we even together if we don’t like any of the same things? Why do you want to be with someone who doesn’t care enough about the things you love?”

“Stevie,” Eddie breathed, unable to understand how things had gotten this twisted in his boy’s mind, “Baby,”

“You said you’d let me talk.” Steve said over him, stopping Eddie’s protest in its tracks, “It’s just… Eventually you’re gonna realize that we have nothing in common. And when the novelty wears off, you’ll be bored,”

Bored?

Bored of the most wonderful person Eddie had ever gotten the pleasure of knowing?

“You’re gonna get tired of explaining things to me and you’re gonna find someone who your friends can actually stand being around without rolling their eyes every two minutes. You’re going to find someone better and- and you deserve that. You deserve a person who can cheer you on at your shows, who can scream along to your music when you’re driving. Someone who your uncle approves of,” Steve said, intentionally treading right on one of the sorest spots in their relationship.

Wayne was still wary of Steve, still overprotective. Eddie had thought that his boyfriend understood that it wasn't really about him, that Wayne just needed more time to figure out what Eddie already knew- Steve would never hurt him. Never.

Well, except for right now. Right now he was breaking Eddie’s heart right in half.

“You’re gonna figure out what everyone else already gets,” Steve whispered, his voice barely audible as his arms squeezed tight around his middle.

“And what’s that?” Eddie muttered dully, feeling a hollow ache start to grow in his chest. Steve’s lip curled in the worst smile Eddie had ever seen, wobbling as he began to blink rapidly.

“You’re gonna realize that beyond being a pretty face with a fancy house, and a nice car, and a hard head, I don’t bring anything to the table,” Steve admitted, with a tiny shrug, “I’m not really anything special, and you deserve someone special. So why don’t we both just cut our losses, huh? Before either of us gets too deep,”

Before they got too deep.

Eddie was already in the Marianas fucking Trench.

He was drowning in Steve Harrington, surrounded by icy black water that was burning his eyes and making it impossible to breathe. There was no way to come up for air, no rope to tug to be pulled up. Eddie was as deep as he could go, and he was finally seeing the Kraken that was looming over both of them.

Steve didn’t want to break up.

He wanted to be noble.

And that thought was the thing that pissed Eddie off more than anything.

“Nothing,” Eddie spat out, the word feeling poisonous just sitting on his tongue, too bitter to be spoken, “You think that you’re nothing?”

Steve dragged a breath in, the first few tears managing to slip past his defenses. He hadn’t said those exact words, but Eddie had, and they sat in the air and cut them both to the core.

“If that’s really all you were, then you’re right. We should break up,” Eddie said.

Steve let out the softest pain-filled noise Eddie had ever heard, moving to stand up, to walk out of Eddie’s life without so much as a goodbye.

Unfathomable. Unimaginable. Unacceptable.

Eddie latched his hand around Steve’s bicep, not just pulling him down, but also pulling him in. Their foreheads nearly knocked together as Eddie’s dark almost jet black eyes locked onto Steve’s.

“But you are not nothing, Steve Harrington. You are everything,” Eddie whispered harshly, his breath ghosting over Steve’s lips. He raised one hand and cupped Steve’s cheek, watching his fingers as they shook in anger.

“Eddie,” Steve pleaded, but Eddie just shook his head.

“No. I let you talk. Now it’s your turn to listen,” He ordered, keeping a tight grip on Steve, making sure there was no way he could wriggle away or look down.

“You really think that I give a single fuck what everyone else thinks?” Eddie asked rhetorically, barking out a harsh laugh, “I have spent my entire life bucking tradition and spitting in the face of what society says I should want. Dating you might be the most metal thing I’ve ever done, Sweetheart,”

A brief barely there smile flitted across Steve’s face, and a jagged part of Eddie’s soul smoothed out. His boy was still there, his sunshine, his sweetheart. He was just hiding, trying to protect himself in the worst way possible.

“I adore getting to explain things to you. Do you even get how much fun it is to tell you every single thing and know that you’re listening? You always ask me the coolest questions, give me the best ideas for potential plot holes.”

Eddie let his eyes slip shut, seeing the two of them in his mind. They were sitting together in Steve’s plaid monstrosity of a bedroom. Eddie was lying flat on his back on the floor, and Steve was on his stomach on the bed, listening with a look of pure adoration, holding his chin up on his palm as he watched Eddie’s arms swing to and fro in the air while he described the plan for the next Hellfire campaign.

“You think I’m gonna get bored of you? Stevie, we could spend a thousand years together, and I’d still say I didn’t get enough time. I don’t get how you don’t see everything you do for me. No, you don’t come to my shows, but you make me snacks before every rehearsal, and stay up late to listen to me talk about the gig after. You can’t listen to my music, but you got me the new Dio album the day it came out just because you knew I’d like it.”

Dream Evil. It was sitting in the case just across the room, proudly displayed next to a dozen other albums Steve had gotten for him, Just because. He was always doing that, getting Eddie little gifts just because.

“You try so damn hard. Wayne’s still scared you’re gonna hurt me, and I know that’s upsetting, but you still don’t stop trying to get him to see how much you care.” Eddie breathed, knocking their foreheads together.

Eddie knew he was going to have to talk to Wayne. Rather, he was going to have to argue with Wayne, because this really couldn’t go on anymore. The first few weeks it had been understandable, but they had been dating for almost three months now, and Steve was still getting the cold shoulder. Steve had said he was fine, that he understood, but Eddie could see how he let things go too far. He was not going to lose Steve just because his uncle was afraid.

But that wasn’t something he could fix now. Now he just had to keep talking. Eddie wasn’t good at much, but he was good at running his mouth, and he would talk for as long as it took to get this through his boyfriend’s beautiful thick skull.

“I think that might be the thing I adore most about you, you know? You never stop trying. No matter what happens, no matter how many times you get knocked down, you keep trying,” A smooth stone slid down Eddie’s throat, blocking the river of words. He swallowed around it, forcing himself to keep going.

“You brought me back from the fucking dead, Steve,” Eddie whispered, feeling the scars on his sides practically sing in harmony, “Everyone else gave up, and you kept going. They were trying to drag you off of me, and you kept going. You barely even knew me.”

Steve jerked away, moving just enough so he could bury his face in Eddie’s shoulder, wrapping his arms tight around Eddie’s middle and digging his fingers into his shirt.

“Couldn’t. Couldn’t leave you there,” Steve managed to choke out, practically in Eddie’s lap, “Not there. Not like that,”

“I know. I know,” Eddie soothed, holding his boyfriend close, “See? That’s you. That’s always been you. You saved my life because you’re you, and you never give up.”

Eddie lowered his voice bringing his mouth right next to Steve’s ear and loving the shiver that he could feel running down Steve’s spine.

“You never give up. So why the fuck are you giving up on me right now, Baby?”

Steve let out a strangled little gasp at that, clinging onto Eddie even tighter. He shook, silently falling apart in Eddie’s arms.

“Oh, angel,” Eddie murmured, holding them both together. Steve had done this for him a thousand times, soothed every nightmare, eased every panic attack. It was finally Eddie’s turn to do the same.

He had never realized how much it hurt to be on this side of things.

“Steve?” Eddie said, grabbing the other boy’s attention when he thought the worst of it was over, “You aren’t perfect. Not by a longshot. You get distracted easily, you can’t remember to turn on the dishwasher, you are stubborn as the day is long, you have a tendency to only listen to people who don’t care about you, and you’re forcing me to have this god awful conversation,”

Steve let out a soft breath of laughter at this and Eddie responded with his own indulgent little smile, rubbing his cheek against the top of Steve’s head.

“You’re a melodramatic fucking brat, Stevie. But. You are my melodramatic fucking brat,” Eddie said.

He leaned back, cupping Steve’s face in both his hands and marveling at the boy in front of him. Somehow even now with puffy red eyes and chewed on lips, Steve was still completely gorgeous.

Maybe Eddie was just drunk on how much he loved Steve..

“You’re mine. You have been mine since day one, Baby. I’m not just going to wake up one day and decide I don’t want you anymore. You seem to have decided that I will, and so you wanna get it over with, and I get that, okay? I get it, but I need you to hear me when I say this.”

Eddie waited until Steve’s eyes were lifted before taking a deep breath and biting the bullet.

“I am not Nancy Wheeler,” Eddie stated bluntly, ripping the bandaid right off Steve’s deepest wound. “And I am not your parents. I’m not Tommy fucking Hagan or Carol fucking Perkins or any of the other jackasses in this town who didn’t care enough to realize how absolutely fucking precious you are,”

“Eddie-” Steve started.

“Precious.” Eddie repeated, his eyes sparkling, “After everything you are still kind. You’re still kind, and you still let people in, even though so many people have hurt you. You let all of us in, even though that scares you more than anything.”

“I’m gonna promise you something now. I promise that I am never going to wake up and just decide one day that you aren’t enough for me anymore. I’m not going to turn on a dime and decide you aren’t worth enough to stick around, because I seem to know something you still don’t get.”

Eddie pulled him in close, kissing Steve’s forehead and swiping both of his thumbs against his cheeks.

“I know that when you love someone, when you really love someone, you don’t just stop. Ever. Even when people roll their eyes or call you crazy. Even then. Especially then!”

“You love me?” Steve croaked. Eddie’s eyes grew wide and he stiffened up.

Fuck.

The word had just slipped out. It was way too early to be saying that, way too fast to mean real genuine love. If Eddie wasn’t such a motor mouth he would have taken two fricken seconds to think about what he said without jumping too far too fast and ruining everything.

If he was smart he would say something, try to take it back. If he was smart he would do that.

But Steve was looking up at him like Eddie was holding the sun, the moon, and all of the stars, and there was no way he could backtrack. Eddie would throw himself into the Quarry before he did anything to make that look fade away.

“I just poured my heart and goddamn soul out onto the floor, and all you heard was the ‘I love you,’” Eddie said with a breathless laugh, “You also heard the part where I called you a melodramatic fucking brat, right?!”

Steve giggled. Honest to god giggled, reaching up and threading his fingers through Eddie’s where his hands were still cupping his cheeks.

“You love me,” Steve said again, grinning from ear to ear. Eddie shook his head, trying to hide his own extremely stupid smile.

“Yes, angel, I love you. I can’t remember loving anything or anyone the way I love you.” Eddie admitted.

In for a penny, in for an entire goddamn ton.

Steve hummed happily, surging forward and locking their lips together. Eddie immediately deepened the kiss, letting his hands slide backwards. He tangled the left in Steve’s hair, using his right to pull Steve properly into his lap. Once they were properly situated, Eddie let himself get lost in the kiss, slipping and sliding into Steve and the blooming bursting love that was growing around them.

“Still wanna break up?” Eddie joked when they broke away for air. Steve blushed, shyly shaking his head once, and Eddie grinned, nipping at Steve’s jaw.

“Good. Because next time you try, I’ll make a wish for the goblins to come and take you!” He threatened, tickling Steve’s ribs and making the younger boy squirm away from him.

“Goblins?” Steve asked once he was a safe distance away, raising a brow.

Right. Steve had fallen asleep. That was what started this whole thing.

“Okay we’re having a redo,” Eddie declared, jumping off of the couch and scampering over to the VCR to begin rewinding the tape, “You and I are going to sit here, and watch this movie. And when you fall asleep halfway through, you are going to put your head in my lap so I can play with your gorgeous perfect hair that I love so so much. You got it, Buster?”

Steve snickered, settling back into the cushions.

“Got it,” He called back, pulling his legs up so they were at his side on the couch.

Setting up the movie took barely any time, and before he knew it, Eddie was back on the couch, his boyfriend happily snuggled in his arms.

“Oh, and Eds?” Steve said quietly as the opening credits began.

“Yeah, Baby?”

“I love you too.”

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bypandoramaxum · 11 months

Text

journey through the reefs [an atwow series] chp. 5

summary: amidst the ordeal both you and Ao’nung had to deal with, he began opening up about something that forced you to make some difficult decisions, and with that, comes with a frightening realisation and discovery that you were not sure how to deal with.

[prev] [next]

pairings: ao’nung [25] x fem!human!reader [20]

word count: 3.6k

warnings: depictions of intensive military training, swearing, whaling, animal cruelty, betrayal.

taglist: @jakesully-sbabygirl @im-in-a-pansexual-panik @eywas-heir @myh3artttt @sweetirilly @fanboyluvr @henhouse-horrors @ghostlyworld @bratsukisworld @yevyyevs @erensbbg @zoetrope1997 @phoenixgurl030

a/n: apologies due to the long wait! I swear, I’m not going on a hiatus, the workload has been crazy for me this month and I also got caught up in other things. thank you so much for the support shown on the previous chapters, and I hope you will enjoy this chapter as much as the rest of it!~

»»————-　.　————-««

The chances of attaining self-autonomy had you feeling hopeful after Thomas’ promise on getting you and Ao’nung off the ship, away from the RDA’s radical authority, as it seemed. Though it wasn’t easy putting your trust in someone who worked directly for the organisation, it was your best shot at the current moment. You still held room for doubt in case this all backfired on you, which could help you notice any signs of betrayal as soon as suspicions of it fills your gut.

Ao’nung himself, while still sulking from time to time, and occasionally showing signs of aggression towards the staff if they pissed him off enough, he still somewhat kept his word when it came to being on his best behaviour. He was still getting roughed up here and there, you would sometimes be greeted with the sight of bruises on his body, but not as bad and dreadful as before, though it still made your heart clench in hurt and disappointment.

You, on the other hand, were forced to undergo some military training, and you had been going at it for a couple weeks. Never in your life would you have seen yourself in military gear, running laps on a massive battleship, having completing obstacle courses within a timespan of fifteen minutes, or even shooting your very first gun.

And of course, you had to be assigned to the most unforgiving and ruthless teachers ever. Who else would it be other that the colonel himself as well as that bubblegum-blowing bitch of a soldier, Z-Dog. Her temper and attitude clearly showcased why she was even given that nickname in the first place.

“Damn, could you be any slower, runt? Even my grandmother runs faster than that!” Z-Dog chastised as she watched you finish your final lap of the day.

You couldn’t bring yourself to answer her as you struggled to catch your breath while supporting yourself on your knees. They made you run ten laps first thing in the morning and had the actual audacity to look at you like you were crazy to even feel tired from that. A wet and cold sensation jolted you out of your rest as the colonel decided the best thing to get you going again was to pour a bottle of water onto your head. While it did give you the refreshing recharge that you needed, your irritation couldn’t be more evident than it was now.

“Now, now, sweetheart. Enough with that grump face. You still have that to complete.” Quaritch instructed as he pointed behind you, to which you look back, only to have the dread seep back into your soul as your eyes landed upon the jungle gym of an obstacle course that was waiting to be completed.

“You might as well tell me to swim with sharks.” you thought to yourself before reluctantly jogging to your next course.

»»————-　.　————-««

A whistle was blown loud and clear, signalling to everyone in the vicinity that it was break time, and you couldn’t be more grateful for it. The training had you drenched in sweat and smelling like sea water, and the next thing that you were looking forward to was a nice warm meal after a refreshing steam shower. You were promptly escorted back into your cell to freshen up, and had your lunch slipped into your room.

Just as you were about to dig in, Ao’nung had just returned from his own form of training, where he had to endure rather long hours of interrogation as well as lessons in the English language. Sure, he picked up some words here and there, just enough to get people off his back, but overall, he had no interest in fully learning the language of the sky demons.

“Ao’nung! You’re back! How did it go?” you called out to as you took a bite from your food.

“Hated it so much. The tawtute tried teaching his native tongue and had me speak it too.” Ao’nung complained, picking up a piece of fruit from the basket provided.

“Well, did you at least learn something from it?”

“There were things like ‘please’, ‘help’, ‘hello’ and ‘yes’. I don’t remember the rest.”

“Haha, yeah, learning a language isn’t really all that fun.”

The both of you continued to chat and bond over the strenuous training that these bastards put you through while also eating your meals together. The atmosphere really lightened up every time you met up with Ao’nung. He made the whole experience of being here just a little bit more pleasant despite your circumstances, to the point where you could really see him as a friend, perhaps a lifelong one.

After your meals were finished, you set your tray aside, allowing yourself to stretch your muscles and relax a little bit.

“You seem to be feeling more comfortable here.” Ao’nung piped up.

“Hmm, not exactly, but you got to find some peace amongst chaos, no?” you replied.

“I try, but my home is my only peace, it seems. Too many demon tools here and it is cold, too. Also, everyone is so loud, all this noise is making me dizzy.”

“I bet there’s so much beauty to witness, where you’re from.”

“There really is. The crystal clear waters, the wildlife, the magnificent floras, especially the Cove of Ancestors. The most sacred part of my clan, the Metkayina.”

Seeing Ao’nung gush about the wonders of his home was a really heart-warming sight to see as he spoke in almost a child-like manner, as if he just found something fascinating and wanted to share it with the world. You wished you could say the same for Mother Earth. A once great planet that was painted with azure and emerald, enriched with countless years of history, roamed by luscious floras and wonderful faunas, now polluted by the destruction of man. An abundant of terran animals and plants went extinct many years ago, even way before the colonisation of Pandora took place. The fact that your own kind are seeking out a moon and possibly other planets to destroy had you feeling dejected and disappointed. Why couldn’t humans live a peaceful and harmonious life, and appreciate nature just like how the Na’vi did? Sure, there wasn’t a way for humans to directly connect with nature, but the least that could’ve been done was to preserve the wonders of other living things, and be grateful for their very existence.

“Once a year, our spirit brothers and sisters come to our village, to celebrate the annual return for the tulkun festival. We would sing so many beautiful songs and swim beside each other. I always had so much fun with my spirit brother every year.” Ao’nung beamed as he reminisced those happy times.

“I don’t doubt that for a second. Have you celebrated it this year?” you asked, eager to know more about the Na’vi way of life.

“Yes, I did. Just a day before I was… you know. Although, this time, I didn’t get to see my spirit brother.”

“Oh. Why is that? Could he not make it?”

“I’m not sure, and I’m a bit worried. He had never missed a single return. I did ask other tulkuns about him, but all of them told me the last they saw him was a day before, and said that he was on his way to the Ice Point.”

The Ice Point. Looking back onto your parents’ journals and textbooks, not much was known about it, except for the fact that it had one of the deadliest temperatures, possibly in all of Pandora. There had been attempts at exploring the Ice Point in the past, but all of them failed due to the harsh conditions that the location brought. Many lives were perished during the expedition, which led to the RDA ordering an immediate retreat from the area.

“But, the air and ocean is at it’s coldest there, no? Why would he go there?” you asked worriedly.

“Not for tulkuns. They have strong bodies, and are able to withstand the harshest of temperature. Very few times would any Na’vi venture to the Ice Point, as it can be unbearable to linger too long. For humans like you, it is only a matter of time before death comes.” Ao’nung explained. “But tulkuns only swim to the Ice Point when a threat presents itself. That’s what I’m concerned with. What was he trying to escape?”

As worry continues to loom over him, Ao’nung turned around to walk towards his bed for some well-deserved rest. As he stood tall and broad, you couldn’t help but notice the tattoos that he adorned from the left side of his face which trailed to his chest, arm, back and leg. The designed was very intricate and detailed, considering that Na’vi technology was pretty primitive.

“That’s… a really nice tattoo you got there.” you commented as you admired the artwork.

“Oh, thank you. These tell stories of my life. I got the first one on my face, which signifies my coming-of-age ceremony.” Ao’nung proudly explained as he pointed towards the left side of his face. “But the one that means the most to me is the one on my thigh. This signifies the place I met my spirit brother.”

Though, for whatever reason, you couldn’t shake off the gut feeling that you saw that particular design on his thigh before, it was difficult to pinpoint exactly when and where you saw it. Even without a concrete reason, a sinister chill shivered down your spine, an uneasiness brewing cold in your heart.

»»————-　.　————-««

Next morning came by before you knew it, and here you were, in Dr. Aragon’s private laboratory, undergoing your weekly medical examination. He had you jogging on a treadmill for about thirty minutes at this point to test your endurance, and although you hate to admit it, you had Colonel Quaritch and his squad to thank for that. Thomas was right next to you, taking notes of your condition while giving you a look, indicating to you that he had some viable information to spill. But all that was cut short with Dr. Aragon piping up.

“Alright, it’s time to wrap things up here! Off of that runner, gal, and take a seat.”

“Yes, sir.” you switched off the treadmill and went over to sit on one of the lab stools.

“So far, you’ve been quite the stunner when it comes to your physicality. I’m impressed with how far you’ve come in your training with the colonel and all.” Dr. Aragon noted as he took of the nitrile gloves and chucking them into a bin. “Though, I’m going to need to see some more useful information. While the last video logs we had you do was somewhat notifying, it really wasn’t producing any leads for us.”

“I’m sorry, sir. I’m trying my best to talk to him in a way that doesn't rouse any suspicion. I’m still getting used to choosing the right words.”

“Well, it’s not fast enough for us. Our stock on amrita is running low, and the demand is getting urgent. If I don’t see any more from you, consider our next meeting your permanent sign off from the programme.” Dr. Aragon sternly lectured as he turned away to walk out the lab.

“W-Wait! There was something.” you exclaimed as you ran up to him. “Ao’nung mentioned something about the tulkuns and the Ice Point.”

Dr. Aragon turned back to you stared at you with a judgmental gaze.

“Oh really? And what else?” he noted.

“There’s also something about the tattoo on his thigh.”

»»————-　.　————-««

After sharing everything you had with Dr. Aragon, he left you alone with Thomas to go meet up with Quaritch to discuss the information you had conveyed, which leaves you sitting on one of the lab tables with your head hung low in shame and guilt as Thomas went over your vitals.

“Please tell me this feeling is only temporary and it will pass with time.” you mumbled pathetically without looking up.

“Sorry to break it to you, but nope. You’ll be thinking about this very moment for as long as you live. No one ever forgets their first act of betrayal, even if it’s in good intention.” Thomas just replied honestly. He knew that even though this wasn’t the truth you wanted to hear, he figured he shouldn’t sugar-coat the full experience of it. “Now, as much as this sucks, we need to focus on the task at hand. Save the moping for later, ‘cause I got something that you’re going to need to know.”

Now that managed to get you to perk your head up and hop off the table in anticipation, instinctively grabbing Thomas’ arm, eager to know what trick he had up his sleeve.

“Please! Tell me what you’ve found so far.”

Thomas gave a light chuckle before directing you towards his section of the lab, which had a big computer screen which allowed him to pull whatever file he needed to examine.

“We’ll start off by pulling up Ao’nung’s full profile right here to get a good look of his tattoos.” Thomas remarked as he opened up the file with just a swipe of his finger. “You mentioned that this one on his thigh indicates the possible location of his first meeting with his tulkun, yes?”

“Yeah, but I’m not sure which location contains a symbol like that, or if it even is one in the first place.” you replied.

“Well then, let’s do a little thinking outside the box. Maybe we don’t put our attention on the design first.” Thomas then did another swipe which then showed the map of Pandora’s oceans.

“What are we looking for?”

“I’m seeing if any of these islands match the shape of the tattoo, and mind you, there are like hundreds of these, some Metkayina and some Ta’unui. We’re going to be here a while.”

“Then why don’t we just focus on the Metkayina ones? That would cut down our work by almost half, right?”

“It would, but unfortunately, not all the islands have been explored thoroughly. We don’t know for sure if they belong to either clan, or if it’s just uninhabited.”

“Hmm...” you hummed in deep thought as you searched your mind for any possible solutions. “Do we have any info on which Metkayina islands are frequently visited or have the most activity detected? There’s a chance we could find the shape that matches the tattoo a lot quicker.”

“That... could be a good start.”

»»————-　.　————-««

Three hours later…

“There! That one looks like the closest match.” you exclaimed in excitement as you pointed towards an island on the screen.

Thomas immediately drew his eyes towards the island and his expression matched yours. Both of you jumped up and hugged each other in a mini celebration as the key to this whole thing was nearly unveiling.

“This is awesome! Now we just need to track its distance from the Ice Point and we can finally set the plan in place.” Thomas explained enthusiastically.

“I’m sorry, we haven’t really discussed what this plan really is? Mind filling me in on it?” you prodded.

Thomas then pulled up another file which required a password to open it. Once it was entered, a whole string of information revealed itself and you gave it a quick analysis, but it just left you baffled with even more questions than before.

“What’s all this? It’s just a bunch of code.”

“That is because we are in on this together, remember? I can’t have anyone else listening in on our plan or finding out about it. Hence why I made up a bunch of code words and symbols so in case this gets revealed, deciphering it is going to buy us some time.”

“For what exactly?”

“For the off chance we get thrown back in our cells.” Thomas specified as he began having all the information printed out. He also reached into his drawer for a small device and quickly handed it to you. “Unfortunately, it’s almost time for me to send you back, and it’s going to be a lengthy process to explain the plan and decipher the coded documents. But not to worry, ‘cause I have everything pre-recorded right in this earpiece, so once you’re in bed, put on the earpiece and listen while you read them. I’ll sneak them in later along with your dinner tonight.”

You nodded frantically as you tried your best to absorb every instruction that he was giving you. Now was not the time to be hasty or reckless, as one wrong move even for a split second could backfire horribly for everyone involved, you couldn’t afford a single slip up to happen in your watch.

»»————-　.　————-««

You returned to your cell and was about to greet Ao’nung like usual when you found him sound asleep on his giant bed, with a thin blanket wrapped tightly around him. You were guessing the air conditioner was on blast mode considering he was still slightly shivering from the cold despite being bundled up.

You know you shouldn’t, and you do feel slightly weird for doing so, but he seemed so at peace and serene in his slumber, you couldn’t help but study his features, and before you even realised what you were doing, you found yourself moving closer to the glass barrier separating you two to get a better look of him.

The way his voluminous curls mostly cascaded around his shoulders and down his back, with a few defined strands framing his face. The tattoo on the left side of it was perfectly etched according to his bone structure, adding the extra touch to his already masculine features, making him that much more...

Beautiful...

...and handsome.

Warm and flushed cheeks.

A quick beating heart.

»»————-　.　————-««

Metallic clanks interrupted your quiet trance, causing you to look towards the source of the noise, just to see Thomas standing outside your cell with a tray in hand, and under it was the envelope that held the coded documents. It looked like he was stifling his laughter, which flustered you even more.

“Just hurry up and get in here!” you whispered-yelled at him as to not wake the sleeping prince across from you.

“You should’ve seen that dreamy look you had on your face. Who knew you had a thing for our great giant here?” Thomas teased as he handed you your dinner with the envelope still under it.

“Whatever. It’s just a little crush,and he’s a little bit good-looking, nothing’s going to come from it.” You began eating your late dinner. “Care to give me a little preview of what I’m about to hear?”

“I won’t say too much. Just that we got a little extra helping hands on our side. Also, after you’re done listening, you can hide the envelope under the tile in the far right corner of your cell.” You shot him a puzzled look as your chewing paused. “Oh. I used to hide trinkets that Zäpe gave me in there.”

At that, Thomas stood up and left your cell, leaving you to your own thoughts. After finishing your meal, you pushed your tray to a corner and quietly took out the documents from the envelope, bringing it to bed. You then placed the earpiece firmly and pressed on the button. As soon as you did that, you could Thomas’ voice ringing through it.

“Okay, so now that you’ve got your hands on those documents, I want you to listen well and listen good. I’ve got a lot of crucial information that you’re going to want to know, so I cannot afford even a single moment of distraction. The papers are already organised in order, you should know when to turn the page.”

You skimmed your eyes over the documents as Thomas explained every part of the codes. You did your best to memorise every single detail of it, making sure that nothing got past you. The more you listened, the more amazed you were at the thought of Thomas risking so much just to overturn the RDA, you wondered how he even managed to do all of this without rousing any suspicion, but you felt that it was best not to pry.

But one thing was for certain.

You weren’t going to go down without a fight.

You were going to ensure that Ao’nung makes it out of here alive.

Even if that meant at the cost of your life.

After listening to Thomas’ recording, you decided that it was time to call it a day and get some well-deserved rest. You were hiding the envelope in the spot Thomas showed you when you heard Ao’nung turned over in his sleep, which caused his blanket to slip off slightly, revealing his tattooed thigh.

As soon as you laid eyes on the design once more, the memory of seeing it before suddenly hit you out of the blue, as if you had been hit by a fret train. You began sweating bullets at the realisation.

But nothing made you more enraged until you walked past a window that allowed you an outside view of the ship, where you could see a gargantuan creature, twice the size of the now extinct blue whale, being held in a large drilling station. Its large mouth was propped open by heavy machinery, and you got a clear view of the roof of it.

That tulkun…

“What’s happening to that animal?”

…had the same tattoo…

“They’re drilling a hole through the roof of its mouth.”

…where they first met…

…

…Ao’nung’s spirit brother.

How were you supposed to break that kind of news?

»»————-　.　————-««

a/n: ooh, it seems things are starting to tense up immensely! wonder what’s going to happen next? I’ll see you on the next update, and thank you for reading, as always!~

like and reblog if you enjoyed!~

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makeitastrength · 3 months

Note

Your top 5 favorite Chenford episodes and 5 worst Chenford episodes, because I love hearing everyone’s varying viewpoints, and yes— you walked right into it 😉

I knew this was going to be difficult, but holy crap, I didn't expect it to be that difficult! I’m glad you asked, though, because it was interesting to actually put my feelings about these episodes into words... and as it turns out, I have a lot of feelings and a lot of words. Buckle up, this is a long one!

Favorites:

2x11 Day of Death

I mean, do I really need to explain this one? It’s intense, it’s terrifying, it’s emotional, and the acting is phenomenal. I’ll never be over the fact that Tim dug her out of the ground with his bare hands and held her so tightly in the aftermath. Plus, Lucy is an absolute badass from start to finish. And then, of course, the ending scene is one of my all-time favorites. I could go on, but I think you get the point. This list is in chronological order, but if I had to actually put these in order, this episode would be #1.

4x09 Breakdown

I will forever love this episode because it digs into Tim’s backstory. Watching him slowly crumble as the episode progresses is just… I don’t want to say it’s amazing, because he’s in so much pain and it breaks my heart. But Eric acts the absolute hell out of this one, and we get a look into Tim’s childhood, which is such an integral part of who he is. But also, this episode emphasizes the depth of the Chenford relationship and, in particular, how much Tim has come to trust Lucy. When she tells him he can’t do the interrogation, he hands it off to her immediately. No protest, no questions asked. This case is deeply personal to him and he trusts her with it unquestioningly. And later, we see just how deeply he’s internalized Lucy’s slip of the tongue about the Tim tests, how that’s played into what is probably his greatest fear - that he’s anything like his father. But we also see him feeling safe enough with her to verbalize this fear. He’s as close to tears as we’ve ever seen him, and his walls are just completely gone. He’s so damn vulnerable with her, and I hate seeing him in this much pain but I love that we got this scene. And then, of course, the hug, which is my favorite of their hugs because we finally see Tim allow someone else to shoulder some of his burden.

5x01 Double Down

This is another one I probably don’t have to explain. I mean, literally everything about it is so great. We start with Lucy dreaming about their kiss and Tim being so discombobulated by it that he actually tells Angela what happened. We have the entire undercover portion in which very little is actually pretend. We have the hand hold and the completely unnecessary airplane bathroom kiss (which is so hot, oh my god; it’s definitely my favorite of their kisses). We have all the other touches (his hand on her thigh, his hands on her shoulders, her arms around his neck, I could go on). And while I’m glad they didn’t actually hook up, the fact that they both wanted it says more than any words ever could.

5x19 A Hole in the World

This is one of my favorite Rookie episodes ever, and I’ve written two fics based on this episode, so it’s possible that’s impacting my decision to place this one in the top five. But I also truly love the Chenford scenes in this one, for so many reasons. First off, I will never be over the fact that Tim got off work in the middle of the night and still came to Lucy’s apartment. And we get our first “babe” which makes me so giddy. Jumping ahead to the ending, obviously it’s awful that Tim was forced to take a life, but I do appreciate that they didn’t blow past it. We see Tim being surprisingly vulnerable in Grey’s office, which really just shows how much his walls have come down. He’s still far softer with Lucy than anyone else, but overall he’s a little softer in general now and more in tune with his emotions. And then we get worried Lucy wanting so badly to be there for him and support him through this. And lastly, we have the scene at the beginning that gives us the first little glimpse into the cracks that are forming in their relationship. Up to this point, they’ve been basking in the honeymoon period, but now for the first time we start to see how the long hours are wearing on Tim. We see how they’re struggling to balance their busy schedules and maintain the open communication that a relationship needs. And we see that their communication maybe isn’t quite so open. After all, Tim’s “we’ll figure it out” isn’t a solution. And while he’s supportive of Lucy’s efforts to make detective, we start to see signs that he’s struggling with her desire to work undercover. This sets up what will hopefully be some productive angst for these two in season 6 as they work through these issues, and I have no idea how it’s going to play out but I’m excited for the possibilities!

5x21 Going Under

I don't even know what to say about this one except just... the emotions. They're so flirty on the phone, but then shit hits the fan and it's so intense. Tim holding his breath until he sees Lucy is okay. Him being so shaken up that he nearly gets shot. Lucy calling him the moment she can. The way they cling to each other in the laundry room. The looks of concern on their faces. The hookup, of course. And once again, we see glimpses here of the issues they've been ignoring (though they do at least start to talk about it a little) and everything Tim, in particular, is suppressing. This episode tugs at my heartstrings in all the best ways.

Honorable Mentions

I know this wasn’t part of the original question, but I’m including it here because my final list of favorites turned out differently than I expected. It almost pains me to write all of this, because the episodes listed below have scenes that I absolutely love, but in the grand scheme of things, they just didn’t make the cut for a variety of reasons that I’ll do my best to explain.

1x20 Free Fall

There are so many things I love about this episode, but mostly it’s that it leaves both of them emotionally exposed. It’s the most vulnerable we’ve seen Tim with anyone other than Isabel, and we see Lucy trying her hardest to support him through the door and shedding a few tears in the process. This one was a definite contender for the top 5 but just didn't quite make it in.

2x02 The Night General

Obviously the last scene is the highlight of this episode (and is another one of my all-time favorite Chenford scenes). I really like all their scenes in this episode, though, from Lucy’s sassy editorialization of the book to their badass fight. But the audiobook scene is just… everything. I’m willing to bet no one has ever done something like that for Tim. You can see he’s just stunned in the aftermath and has no idea what to say. I remember the first time I watched it, just being amazed at the lengths Lucy would go to for him. He’s always been worth the effort for her, and I love that so much.

2x12 Now and Then

First off, I appreciate that they devoted an entire episode to Lucy’s recovery, because so many shows just move on as though nothing happened. DOD was such a traumatic event for Lucy (and, honestly, for Tim as well) and I’m glad we got to see the aftermath. We see Lucy struggling but we also see her begin to work through it with the love and support of the people around her. It's also really telling that the only person Lucy fully opens up to in this episode is Tim. She tells everyone else she's fine, but she allows herself to be vulnerable with him. We also get some insight into how Tim is faring in the aftermath. We see his feelings of helplessness as he’s forced to let Nyla take the reins, and we see how much sadness and guilt he’s harboring when Lucy asks him for a time machine. And then finally, at the end, we see him figuring out how he can be there for her… by opening up about his own trauma and using what he’s learned to offer her a new perspective. And, of course, let’s not forget him tossing back the ring and the soft smiles on their faces as he does. This is another one of my all-time favorite Chenford scenes. It's just a great episode overall, and it was really hard for me to bump this one out of the top five.

4x01 Life and Death

While I initially thought 4x01 would make the top five, I ultimately couldn’t justify it due to the limited number of Chenford scenes. Other than the hug, they don’t actually interact that much. And don’t get me wrong, I love their hug. But I’ve always felt like there was a lack of follow-up to 3x14 and this episode. It’s clear they both feel something in those moments. It’s not clear what exactly they each are feeling, or how they’re feeling about those feelings, or why they never talk about it again. I know we all have our own headcanons about this, but I just feel like it could have benefited from some follow-up insights. Without that, in the grand scheme of things it feels like a false start for them.

4x22 Day in the Hole

I so badly wanted this one to make the top five because that kiss, and the scene leading up to it, and the aftermath - it’s all just so good. Every single time I watch it I’m laughing just as much as I’m flailing. They’re so uncomfortable, and then so lost in each other, and then so stunned, and then so awkwardly dorky in the aftermath. And I will never be over how many emotions Eric manages to convey in that 5-second long hallway scene. It’s all so masterfully written and acted. But ultimately, this episode as a whole just didn’t quite make the top five.

5x10 Hit List

There’s so much to love about this episode. I love that when Tim can't decide what to wear, he just calls her. I love that despite their nerves, as soon as she answers the phone it’s clear they’re still them. I love how jittery and utterly obvious they are at the station the next day. But not once does any of this impact their work. They remain calm and focused, and Tim absolutely owns that hostage situation. And then, of course, we have their second date and their first real kiss, which is just so soft and perfectly them. The only reason this one didn’t make the cut is because the Tim and Aaron almost falling to their deaths storyline left a lot to be desired. There was so much potential there for fear or angst or really just anything other than, ultimately, a joke.

5x11 The Naked and the Dead

This is one of the most underrated episodes, I think because it’s caught between the Chenford goodness of 5x10 and 5x12. But I love it! For two people who claim to be taking it slow, they’re very much not. No, they’re not sleeping together. But they’re spending a lot of time together outside of work, and supporting each other in everything they do, and pretty effortlessly melding their lives together. And like Genny says, it’s clear why these two work so well together. We see that in action when Lucy notices Tim’s coaching style and learns why, and then just quietly steps in and takes on the role of co-coach. She doesn’t call Tim out, she doesn’t try to change his behavior. She just fills that role for him. It shows how well she knows him and understands his motivations and his fear of being anything like his father.

5x12 Death Notice

This episode really highlights the lengths to which these two will go for each other, and it’s just amazing. They always put each other first; it’s something neither of them have had before in a relationship, and I'm so glad they've finally found that with each other. And that final scene… I’ve watched it far more times than is probably healthy. It’s so fucking hot! I’m not entirely sure why, but I just couldn’t quite rationalize this one being in the top five either.

Least favorites:

Let me preface this by saying, overall I am happy with the trajectory of Chenford's relationship, and I try not to contribute to negative energy in the fandom. But no show is perfect, and this is just my opinion on the episodes I've never been a huge fan of.

1x05 The Roundup

This episode didn’t really bother me the first time around, but knowing what we now know about Tim, the way he treats Nell in this one is just… not good. I know that’s probably the point; he’s in a bad place, he’s desperate to feel closer to Isabel, which makes him desperate to win, so he bribes Nell. But never once after this episode have we seen Tim behave anything like this. Never once have we seen him hit on someone he isn’t interested in anyone. Hell, he’s usually the one getting hit on, and he never seems to know what to do about it (like… he’s so adorably awkward in those moments, and I love it). When I go back and rewatch the series now, I just cringe so much at these scenes with Nell. He literally says the words “I’m married” and then goes and flirts with her. Even with him basically at rock bottom, it just doesn’t seem in character.

4x07 Fire Fight

I’ve never liked this episode, for reasons that have nothing to do with Chenford (which is an essay I’ll have to write another day). But the more I thought about it, the more I realized I really don’t love the Chenford scenes either. While I thought the bet was fun in 4x06, in this episode it comes across as juvenile. Asking Grey to mediate, Tim complaining that it’s “not fair,” Lucy talking about the bet in the middle of a UC op. Not only are they being immature, but they’re not taking their job seriously when that’s something that both of them - but especially Tim - are always very cognizant of. And Tim never gives a reason for calling off the bet (though it could be because he’s realized it’s interfering with the job). It just… ends.

4x08 Hit and Run

It seems weird to put this one on this list when I just wrote an entire essay on 4x09 and why it’s a favorite of mine. But for as much as I love 4x09, I don't love the way we got there. I’ll preface this by saying, my opinion here is likely colored by my own personal experiences growing up with an emotionally abusive asshole of a father. So I might be more sensitive on this topic. But Lucy’s behavior in this episode really rubbed me the wrong way. I understand what they were trying to accomplish: building out Tim’s backstory and Lucy being excited to meet his sister learn more about him. But her empathy toward Tim in this episode was just… gone. It’s not even the Tim Test line that bothers me so much, because it’s clear that one was just a slip of the tongue as she was trying to make sense of what she was learning. And she instantly realizes her mistake when she sees Tim’s face. It’s the rest of it that I have a problem with, because Lucy knows. She knows from 2x12 that Tim’s dad was abusive. And yet, she's empathetic toward Genny when she learns the man is dying while apparently just completely missing the fact that Tim absolutely does not want to talk about this or think about it or have anything to do with it. And she absolutely is overstepping at the end of the episode. If someone pushed me back toward my childhood trauma the way Lucy pushes Tim in this episode, I would be really upset. Now, do I think Tim ultimately benefited from fixing his relationship with Genny? Yes. Do I think he benefited from finally getting some closure with his father in 4x09? Absolutely. Do I think it all could have been more carefully executed? Definitely. I know Lucy had his best interests at heart, but the lack of compassion shown toward Tim’s trauma in this episode is upsetting.

5x04 The Choice

This is also one of my least favorite episodes, and while I understand why the storyline had to be wrapped up quickly, it wasn’t wrapped up well. There were so many flaws (I’ll save my essay on that topic for another post as well), but it's the dynamic between Tim and Lucy that lands this one on the list. Rosalind and Caleb were traumatic for both of them, and that doesn’t get acknowledged here. In any other episode, Tim would have gently checked in with Lucy, probably more than once. I know things were still weird between them, but it doesn’t make sense to me that in this episode Tim can’t be bothered to ask how she’s doing or be more gentle with her at the end, yet in the very next episode he’s more concerned about her than himself. To me, 5x05 was proof that no matter what went down between them, they still care deeply about each other. That was completely missing from 5x04. @theflyindutchwoman wrote more about this episode recently as well, and it’s like she took the thoughts right out of my head. Couldn’t have said it better myself.

5x06 The Reckoning

This may be a controversial choice, but I don’t love the whole radio gag. Once again, to me this just feels like we’ve taken a step backwards. Tim thinking Lucy is doing it to punish him for how he treated her as a rookie, as if that wasn’t almost a year and a half ago? Makes no sense. And I know she was doing it to distract him, which… fine. But “I might be able to help you look for your radio if you tell me what’s going on.” No. Lucy knows Tim well enough to know that forcing him to talk doesn’t work. He talks when he feels comfortable and safe, not when he feels pressured. It’s why he ultimately opens up to her at the end of the episode, once she stops playing games and expresses genuine concern.

Phew! If you made it this far, thank you so much for reading my ramblings, and I'd love to hear your thoughts on my choices. Also, you should go read @queseraone and @roguetwelve’s answers to these same questions because it’s super interesting to see everyone’s thoughts!

#asked and answered #chenford #the rookie #episode analysis #oh my god this was so hard

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ziorite · 21 days

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me finishing season 1 of 911 and watching everyone’s arcs conclude in a satisfying if not completely final way:

idk do people warn for spoilers six years after the show came out ??? adding the break anyways in case someone’s also watching for the first time and also because it’s a long post whoopsies

I KNOW I KNOW ABBY AND BUCK DON’T END UP TOGETHER but they’re so sweet to each other… and he’s grown so much in their relationship and it’s so healthy… god i’m so invested in this rehabilitated fuckboy :’)))

and karen coming back to live with hen ???? ooooh girl ik she fucked up HARD but i was crying cheering punching the air for her this whole damn season that is MY comfort lesbian character !!!

now bobby and athena i wish i could say didn’t see coming but unfortunately i hopped on the wiki to look up someone’s last name and was immediately spoiled for shit. HOWEVER i will not let that distract me from angela basset’s back muscles dear GOD. bobby better treat her right because that dress had me on the FLOOR.

chimney might take the position of second favorite character purely because of how fucking funny he is. plus between the dating life and the fucking metal rod through the school the man just can’t seem to catch a break. but he’s still rolling with the punches and being such a support for everyone else and i DESPERATELY need the show to go deeper into his character and background !! someone appreciate this national treasure !!! (plus the fact that rebar is apparently an accepted nickname had me crying laughing for a solid two minutes— the way buck launched up those stairs and started in on him with absolutely NO hesitation ??? and chimney didn’t even question it ??? DONE.)

in conclusion i will be devouring the rest of this series with a furious appetite and having a lot of feelings about it. a lot. patricia’s death caught me by surprise and boy did it have me teary. kudos to the showrunners but also they owe me tissues.

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waitmyturtles · 10 months

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Turtles Catches Up With Old GMMTV: Until We Meet Again Edition

[What’s going on here? After joining Tumblr and discovering Thai BLs through KinnPorsche in 2022, I began watching GMMTV’s new offerings -- and realized that I had a lot of history to catch up on, to appreciate the more recent works that I was delving into. From tropes to BL frameworks, what we’re watching now hails from somewhere, and I’m learning about Thai BL's history through what I’m calling the Old GMMTV Challenge (OGMMTVC). Starting with recommendations from @absolutebl on their post regarding how GMMTV is correcting for its mistakes with its shows today, I’ve made an expansive list to get me through a condensed history of essential/classic/significant Thai BLs produced by GMMTV and many other BL studios. My watchlist, pasted below, lists what I’ve watched and what’s upcoming, along with the reviews I’ve written so far. In a LONG POST, I’m writing today about New Siwaj’s incomparable drama, Until We Meet Again.]

TW: suicide, suicidal ideation, psychological trauma

Gah. I am so psyched to be finally sitting down to write my thoughts on Until We Meet Again, but I’m actually at a bit of a loss on where to start. There is SO MUCH TO TALK ABOUT.

I think, where I can start, is to first say that this was, in my opinion, AN ABSOLUTELY SPECTACULAR SHOW. I did NOT expect this, at all. I’ve been around the way with New Siwaj, the UWMA screenwriter and director, a few times now for the OGMMTVC -- his writing on Love Sick, his work with Cheewin on Make It Right, and his work on MAME’s novel in Love By Chance have all been on the OGMMTVC list. I know that Between Us, the UMWA WinTeam continuation, was considered mostly a let-down for weak writing, and that New’s more recent shows, including A Boss and a Babe and Double Savage, were viewed quite critically (although I am a Double Savage apologist, for which I’ll explain my viewpoints later in this post).

So. What I did not expect from 2019′s UWMA was to experience so many layers in a drama à la the work of Aof Noppharnach. Yes, I cannot believe I’m going here, to compare a New Siwaj drama to Aof’s oeuvre, but damn if I will, because good lord, New took his magic hat of tricks, pulled out THE GOOD STUFF, and made it all work.

This is a list of themes that I saw in UWMA, that will help me structure this long write-up, but by no means should it be considered complete, as I’m sure I’m missing themes that you all likely caught in your watches and re-watches:

1) A new narrative structure for New -- balancing the impact of side couples by leveraging focus, equally, on two MAIN couples 2) The continuation and end of the 2019 trend of reincarnation and spiritual connections to love 3) Intergenerational queer trauma (micro-level) 4) Generational acceptance of queerness (macro-level) 5) Food and its Proustian effect on memory 6) Reflections on filial piety and the devastating effects of expectations -- and how children and parents seek redemption, particularly in New’s work

And before I even dive into THIS list, can I just say: MY GOD, FLUKE AND OHM. And Earth and Kao! But FLUKE AND OHM. Jesus, does New have an eye for talent -- from the Make It Right guys, to Perth and Saint, and then to Fluke and Ohm. I was seriously TAKEN with their chemistry. I did hear from a number of folks during my UWMA live-blogging that they can’t rewatch UWMA because of Fluke/Pharm’s rendition of the blushing maiden trope, but for my tastes -- I think the way he rendered the trope was really necessary to communicating Intouch’s story, history, and emotions, and just -- Fluke just ATE this role, my gawd. And Ohm/Dean responding in kind vis à vis Korn’s regret. YOW. It’s been a few days since I finished the show, in a total RUSH of drama hunger, and I’m still shaking my head and MARVELING at their performance.

Okay, back to the themes list. So, early in my Thai BL journey in the fall of 2022, after I had watched KinnPorsche and The Eclipse as my first two Thai BLs, I watched A Tale of Thousand Stars (way before the OGMMTVC was born), and noted that I appreciated the lack of side couples in the ATOTS storyline. I now realize, through the OGMMTVC, that side couples are both a BL trope and a byproduct of the drama styles from which BLs were born, the ensemble-based dramas like Love Sick, Senior Secret Love, and Kiss/Kiss Me Again.

New’s Make It Right -- while beloved in my heart, for the chaotic duos of TeeFuse and FrameBook -- WAS messy, with all the other couple stuff happening around it. That, along with Love By Chance, made me wonder -- why do BLs that center fabulous dyads with sizzling chemistry take away from that energy with all the side couple action? Even Together With Me, a non-New Siwaj and non-GMMTV drama, got sidelined in part with a VERY questionable side couple plot in BrightFarm.

Reflecting back on KP and The Eclipse, I had that question in mind as I started UWMA, and wondered where the Alex and WinTeam storylines were going to go. But, frankly, I ended up appreciating what NEEDED to happen with DeanPharm and KornIntouch, because -- the original novel storyline clearly demanded that these two couples, who were NOT side couples, but MAIN couples, needed a MAIN spotlight for their collective story to be told. @clairificusrex mentioned in a liveblog comment (THANK YOU, LOVELY HUMAN!) that New Siwaj benefitted in the screenplay from having a wonderful original novel to work with, and while I don’t read Y Series canon, I can only imagine that this was indeed the case.

So, New, in order to hew to the novel, had to perhaps hold back his usual instincts to muss up the main couple vibe, by centering DeanPharm and KornIntouch. With that control necessary to the story -- I think the narrative STRUCTURE of the drama just blew open. It was FASCINATING, it drew me in, and the structure allowed for another New predilection to be leveraged WELL, in his love for flashbacks. @lurkingshan, you mentioned that your taste wasn’t necessarily aligned with New’s fancy for flashbacks, which I totally understand -- I think flashbacks hurt the overall narrative structure of Double Savage earlier this year. But I think, here for UMWA, they were necessary, and I might very well be apologetic to that considering what I DID see in Double Savage by way of the story that New ended up screenwriting over there in regards to intergenerational family trauma (again, more on this later in the post).

This narrative structure lent itself handily to the next four themes on this list, all of which deal in memory, in spiritual roots, and/or in the generational passage and inheritance of trauma and emotion. 2019, as we know now, was a big year for shows themed around Thai spiritual culture and/or reincarnation. We have He’s Coming To Me, we have Dew the Movie -- we have art here, queer-centered art, that does not lend itself to happy endings, that depicts, through reincarnation or, in the case of HCTM, a ghostly purgatory, how DIFFICULT it had been to be comfortably queer and/or openly out in past and present Thailand.

And then UWMA comes along, telling TWO generational stories, intertwined by the red thread, but also, in the words of the WONDERFUL @bengiyo, connected by Korn and Intouch’s intergenerational queer trauma, the most PERFECT coinage of a theme for this show. In 1988, when Korn and Intouch die, they cannot be out. They cannot even be SECRETLY in love. Their bad dads use the foulest of language to describe their love (much like Phop’s dad in Dew). And Korn kills himself, and Intouch follows.

And what we learn, through Dean and Pharm, are the emotions, the regrets, the LEARNED BEHAVIOR that Korn and Intouch have picked up on in the afterlife, embedded in Dean and Pharm, that keeps Korn and Intouch’s love alive, with CORRECTIONS and ADJUSTMENTS made by Dean and Pharm that reflect on how not only Korn and Intouch’s love has changed and improved, but also how Dean and Pharm are learning how to love EACH OTHER, themselves, as they adjust to their OWN belonging to each other, in Pharm’s own words. GAH -- my aching heart. (Thank you to @lurkingshan for talking this through with me early on in my UWMA watch.)

I mean. THE DEPTH OF THIS. Intouch is a terrible cook, and Pharm is like, a restaurant-level chef?! Pharm is so resistant, and Dean is so FORWARD? (OHM THITIWAT, GAH!!!) (Listen. Pharm. P’Deeeean can grab MY butt, okay?) (See what I did there, @lurkingshan and @bengiyo? THANK YOOOOUU.)

And Pharm’s blushing maiden approach. Yes, I will also admit, that sometimes, it was a little cringey. But I think the blushing maiden trope was really necessary to the story -- ESPECIALLY IN THE CONTEXT of Intouch’s anger, ciphered through Pharm in the last episode. And I think that Fluke Natouch ultimately rendered the trope beautifully -- again, especially against the gorgeous ending of the show. Oh, THAT CONDO SCENE, PEOPLE. I LOST IT.

Of course, Intouch would want to hold back through Pharm in the present day. If Intouch DIDN’T hold back vis à vis Pharm -- he might lose Korn again, if Pharm missteps with Dean. Intouch may have felt that HIS forwardness lent to their troubles -- so Intouch holds back, through Pharm. And Intouch ultimately communicates his love for Korn differently in the afterlife, more hesitantly -- through a resistance to intimacy, and through food and cooking in Pharm, which itself was another amazing move in this show.

Listen. Even my pinned post says what I value in dramas, not just in BLs. You give me food in BL, and I give you my heart. But also, let’s talk about the meaning of food in Asian dramas for a second. It’s no coincidence that MANY Asian dramas and doramas center food, including my favorite BL of all time, Kinou Nani Tabeta/What Did You Eat Yesterday?. If you don’t know Asians, of any ilk -- let me make a BROAD continental and sub-continental judgement. ALL WE THINK ABOUT IS FOOD, lol. While I’m with my family, while I’m working, while I’m writing meta -- I’m thinking about food, I’m thinking about what I want to cook, what I want to order, how I can mix the cuisines I love (Thai-Indian curries, anyone? YUM). Malaysians literally boast about having multiple meals, way past three meals, a day. We Asians are proud of our cuisines, and we want y’all to be EATING, A LOT, and to try all our dishes. (ITSAY, your Hokkien mee is calling me...)

But, also: FOOD MEANS FAMILY. Let me say it again: FOOD MEANS FAMILY. You FEED the people you LOVE, with delicious food. Shiro and Kenji. Kurosawa and Adachi. The guys in Jack o’Frost. The guys in The Eighth Sense. Omg, even Kinn and Porsche. We’re seeing it in Tokyo In April Is... And Pharm, to Dean, Intouch to Korn.

And BESIDES Intouch/Pharm becoming a great cook, GOD, the story ALSO INCLUDED the Proustian reference of the madeleine and involuntary memory -- but in SUCH a stunning way, as to RECALL DEAN’S FAMILIAL MEMORY of eating his grandmother’s Thai desserts -- his grandmother, Intouch’s sister, and how Dean could get an indirect spotlight into Intouch and a depth of an understanding of Intouch’s happiness besides his love for Korn. And how Pharm EMBODIED that love for Thai desserts through Intouch’s family lineage. Oh, just get me MESSY, PEOPLE. FUCKING GENIUS SHIT.

Memory on memory on memory. Dream on dream, nightmare on nightmare, tears and red threads, inherited trauma, intergenerational trauma. The micro-level of what Dean and Pharm had to live with on a daily basis in their recollections of Korn and Intouch. The macro-level of what Pharm and Dean experienced when all of their parents accepted them for who they were as queer individuals, and their partners, as well. How Dean’s dad could ACTUALLY RELATE to Dean himself, because Dean’s dad had been rejected by Dean’s mother’s family. And how that ALLOWED Dean’s dad to accept Dean and his choice to be with Pharm. How that trauma was relieved, how Dean and Pharm DID NOT HAVE TO PHYSICALLY RELIVE what Korn and Intouch had gone through, and how those involuntary memories that Dean and Pharm carried vis à vis Korn and Intouch traumatized them until Dean and Pharm could RECEIVE their OWN familial acceptance.

The LAYERS OF THIS SHOW. Before I get to the last theme on my list, I really just need to metaphorically slam my palms on an allegorical table and give New Siwaj a huge hug, because THIS SHIT IS NOT EASY TO PROCESS ALL AT ONCE, and I can’t wait to do a UWMA rewatch to try to catch more (and I’ll likely need to write another meta, ha, when I do that). I mean, again, just to use food as an example of a kind of storytelling TOOL to INDICATE memory, especially in the context of lost and found love, of intergenerational trauma and relieving regret -- BRILLIANT. BRILLIANT.

And. The last theme on the list, the theme of filial piety, of Asian family systems and devotion and loyalty and expectations, and the devastating effects on the micro-individual level (and even the macro-social level as well) that those expectations can have.

So, I watched Double Savage, screenwritten by New Siwaj, out of order from UWMA. Very quickly, since many of you have likely NOT watched Double Savage because it’s not a BL (but it DID have Ohm Pawat and Perth Tanapon in a hose-off scene -- you can’t take the New Siwaj out of New Siwaj, amirite): Double Savage is about Korn (Ohm P.), a middle son who is branded a jinx by a HORRENDOUS Thai-Chinese father, and how the abuse leveled on Korn by his dad has intergenerational ripple effects across their family and community.

Let’s break this down. I now know that New Siwaj does bad dads from Thai-Chinese lineage very well. UWMA’s Korn is expected to take over a mafia business. His dad is disapproving that Korn doesn’t want to take over the business -- which is an UNQUESTIONABLE and EMBEDDED expectation in most Asian family lineages (hello, Jeng and Step By Step) -- AND Korn’s dad is ALSO disapproving in Korn’s love for Intouch and vice versa. Separately, Intouch’s dad is disapproving that Intouch is in love with Korn, a mafia scion.

Modern times are modern for a reason. 1988 was 31 years from 2019. I want to emphasize here the understanding that Korn and Intouch likely had -- that besides running away, there was no other existence for them to be together than to kill themselves and be together in the afterlife. And running away, and still living and existing, would have been a guilt-ridden and dangerous existence, for what Asian children are expected to do and live for vis à vis their parents. Korn likely HAD NO OTHER IMAGINATION for a life that he could live OTHER THAN to take over his father’s business and to be a heteronormative adult in the late 1980s. And, to top that all off, both of their dads were fucking assholes.

I really liked how this was juxtaposed to the relationship between Dean and his father. Dean was clearly set up to be as stubborn as his dad. Meaning, at least to me -- that Dean was FAR less likely to be told what to do by his dad, that Dean would and maybe COULD, stand up to his dad. We didn’t see it happen, but I could have imagined Dean not accepting “no” for an answer from his dad to accept Pharm. (Makes you think about Pat, Pran, and Ming, no?) Dean had Korn in him. Dean/Korn was NOT GOING TO TAKE THAT SHIT AGAIN, and that was CLEAR. I want to emphasize: THAT’S BIG. That was BIG on New Siwaj and the UWMA novel writer to include that in the story. That’s parental defiance. That needed to happen in order for Dean and Pharm to survive. As an Asian, that gives me a kick of welcome energy.

But I also really want to note what New Siwaj did at the end of the show, something so deft, it might have left non-Asian viewers wondering what was going on. In the condo scene, Dean and Pharm are ciphering Korn and Intouch -- and when Korn’s father shows up in the wheelchair, Korn’s father knows what’s happening.

And Korn apologizes to his dad. Korn had already apologized to Intouch, but Korn also apologizes to his dad, and to his brother, and to his nephew in Sin. This really gets me, y’all, I understand this as an Asian. Korn is APOLOGIZING for the PAIN he caused in his family AND in Intouch, because -- filial piety. He knows what he did to himself was devastating to the Asian family system he was born into, to the Asian society he was born into, and he apologized for the suicide he committed unto himself that caused that extra-social pain.

Like. As crazy as that sounds, it’s also an INCREDIBLY SOPHISTICATED way to ACKNOWLEDGE that Korn had broached a social boundary, and Intouch had followed him. THAT IS A HELL OF A LAYER TO ADD TO THIS STORY, ONE THAT I DID NOT EXPECT, and that SHOOK ME at the end of this series.

A similar situation happened in Double Savage. Despite the horrendous psychological abuse that Double Savage’s Korn received from his father -- an adult Korn ends up apologizing to his father for the trouble that HE may have caused. Now, what I appreciated about Double Savage was that THAT dad was like -- no, no, *I* should be the one apologizing. BUT, I want to indicate and emphasize here, that BOTH storylines acknowledge that Asian children NEED to know, SHOULD know, ARE BORN TO KNOW, that their actions have collective effects on a wider family system. We are born to understand and think like that. We are not dealing with an individualist Western perspective here. (I literally FLIPPED when I realized that New Siwaj has had MULTIPLE CHARACTERS NAMED KORN APOLOGIZING TO BAD DADS, and I’m an Asian over here UNDERSTANDING WHY, and I’m just like, pfffftt GGGAAAHHHH.)

Why am I harping on this? BECAUSE: vis à vis EVERYTHING ELSE that is lineage-based in this story -- from children being born, to intergenerational trauma, to reincarnation -- UWMA is structured around an über-macro theme of worlds being linked, by threads, by genes, by history, by spirit, by trauma. We are collectively linked. Babies are born -- we saw many babies in this show. Children belong to families. Lovers belong to lovers. Dean PHYSICALLY belongs to Intouch’s family, and Pharm to Korn’s family. A happy existence will be when a family accepts a child’s partner. Happiness is in a family growing, not a family shrinking. Warmth and growth and love happens when a happy family sits at a table and eats together.

As Pharm says at the end of the show -- oh, my HEART -- “I belong to Dean.” Yes, you do -- because you have become Dean’s family, and Dean has become Pharm’s family. Korn’s family BELONGS to Intouch’s family, and vice versa. They are destined, MEANT to be linked together, AND TO BE FAMILY, ALL TOGETHER.

Kurosawa and Adachi become family in the Cherry Magic movie. WDYEY’s Shiro and Kenji become family by way of living and eating together. Even if BBS’s Ming doesn’t acknowledge Pran -- Pran is Ming’s family. LOVE. MAKES. FAMILY.

What Korn apologized for was the impact his decision had on his family — WHILE HE WAS IN LOVE WITH INTOUCH, WHO KORN’S FAMILY WAS NOT ALLOWING KORN TO MAKE AS KORN’S NEW FAMILY in the 1980s. Korn was able to apologize in the afterlife — BECAUSE Dean and Pharm DID WHAT HE AND INTOUCH COULD NOT DO, by way of generations, by way of family acceptance, by way of inherited trauma and STOPPING that inherited trauma in its tracks -- very much like Pat and Pran banding together and doing the same for themselves. Dean and Pharm did the hard work of making the relationship a real one, in every aspect of their intimate, micro-level family lives, to a public, external existence in the world. Korn could FINALLY experience the release of GUILT he had towards Intouch and towards Korn’s family, now that Korn’s love for Intouch could FINALLY flourish outside the constraints of filial piety through Dean. THIS IS HUGE. I have no words to tell you what the BRILLIANCE of this means to me as an Asian. LOVE MAKES FAMILY, and LOVE THAT IS ALLOWED TO FLOURISH GIVES YOU THE RELEASE TO BE YOUR TRUE SELF.

Dean had learned from the inherited trauma that he got from Korn that he needed to stop the trauma train in his tracks, and he did, and he confronted his father, and his father blessed the union of Dean and Pharm. When Dean took the gun away from Pharm, and embraced Pharm, Korn and Intouch KNEW that they could finally be safe in the afterlife. Dean and Pharm were the ciphers that finally ALLOWED Korn and Intouch to exist happily together in spirit. Korn, especially, could exist freely, now that he was relieved of his guilt. Dean and Pharm were, LITERALLY, Korn and Intouch’s FAMILY -- the FAMILY that ALLOWED the FINAL RELEASE for Korn and Intouch to be together as their true selves and spirits.

And Dean and Pharm confirmed that in FRONT of the family member, in Korn’s father, that had originally caused all this pain. The intricate layers, communicated to a primarily Asian audience, of Korn apologizing to his father, and then of Dean embracing Pharm and confirming their love AND Korn and Intouch’s love, in front of that former barrier -- that is GROWTH and FLOURISHING in the face of generational defiance, and about as sophisticated and eloquent a communication of familial transcendence as I could possibly imagine seeing in Asian drama art. WHOA. I’m a little out of breath with this.

Wow. And speaking of being one’s true self: I deeply loved that Dean and Pharm took a three-month break. I loved that Pharm was smart and strong enough to demand a break to understand if DEAN and PHARM -- INDEPENDENT of ANYTHING they had INHERITED from ANYONE -- actually loved each other and belonged together. Fuck. Pharm was like, no -- this one’s on me. I need to see, outside of ANY INFLUENCES, FROM ANYONE, ANYWHERE -- if I love Dean, if Dean loves me, and if we belong together. Brave. Badass.

AND, I truly loved how Korn and Intouch -- DEAN AND PHARM’S FAMILY -- came BACK to Dean and Pharm’s dreams to offer thanks. I loved how, in the end, the past and his family came back to give Pharm that little contextual nudge to say to Pharm, it’s okay to love Dean for Dean, AND to love how you two came together, through Korn and Intouch. And Pharm could acknowledge, finally, that he belonged to Dean. God damn.

This story was so multilayered, SO complex, SO filled with a respect for love at its highest and most complicated levels. This story was filled with CRITICAL SCRUTINY towards Asian family systems and the trauma that those systems can render. This story was filled with an acknowledgement for the power of LOVE that those same family systems can offer unto children who NEED pillars of love and support (Pharm’s mom and brother, badasses!).

Y’ALL. I just, I DID NOT KNOW that New Siwaj could DO THIS! I know that UWMA is considered his best show, but like, this is his best show BY A LOT, A LOT. Double Savage, in contrast, had a lot of narrative and structural issues that detracted from the core stories of filial piety that were ultimately very important to tell.

UWMA did not fall into that trap. It was SMART, it MOVED (FOR SEVENTEEN EPISODES! I SLAMMED THIS SERIES! I could have watched MORE, I cannot believe I’m SAYING THAT!), it was. It was just BRILLIANT. It was an ode to romantic love, to family love, to the power of memory. In 2019, it joined He’s Coming To Me in a burgeoning echelon of cinema-influenced BLs in storytelling, soon to be joined by I Told Sunset About You, ATOTS, and others. It took the sad endings of He’s Coming To Me and Dew the Movie and said -- not today. Today, we will let love LIVE, let QUEER LOVE live, in REAL LIFE, in REAL TIME, and we will not let our lovers live in regret. We will take queer love, we will give queer love FAMILY, and we will give it the HONOR IT DESERVES.

Until We Meet Again is a must-watch of the highest order, and goes on the shortlist of shows that I will refer to as one that makes me proud to be an Asian. It was easily one of the most important shows I’ve watched in this project. All credit to New, Fluke, Ohm, Earth, and Kao for a PHENOMENAL experience -- my heart and mind have been bettered because of this show.

[FLUKE. AND. OHM. Fluke and Singto coming thru in Shadow the Series? Sign me the FUCK up. Actors on actors. WOW. Did UWMA ever introduce me to another crop of dudes who can fucking tear up a screen. I had SO much fun watching UWMA, whew!

And, yep. I had to follow this up with 2gether, ha. I’m going to spare myself a little pain, if y’all don’t mind, and combine my write-up of 2gether with Still 2gether. I know there’s a lot to be said about the lack of intimacy in 2G, which I can’t wait to dive into, but I can’t help but to also run into another wall of analysis with dear P’Aof’s work in S2G. I’ll make it all work!

After I get myself together with 2gether (HA) -- it’s ITSAY time. I will be planning on watching ITSAY TWICE before writing, as I’m preparing myself to catch EVERYTHING I can before I pen words. Stay tuned.

Status of the list below. As always -- if you have feedback, send it my way!

1) Love Sick and Love Sick 2 (2014 and 2015) (review here) 2) Make It Right (2016) (review here) 3) SOTUS (2016-2017) (review here) 4) Make It Right 2 (2017) (review here) 5) Together With Me (2017) (review here) 6) SOTUS S/Our Skyy x SOTUS (2017-2018) (review here) 7) Love By Chance (2018) (review here) 8) Kiss Me Again: PeteKao cuts (2018) (no review) 9) He’s Coming To Me (2019) (review here) 10) Dark Blue Kiss (2019) and Our Skyy x Kiss Me Again (2018) (review here) 11) TharnType (2019-2020) (review here) 12) Senior Secret Love: Puppy Honey (BL cuts) (2016 and 2017) (I’m watching this out of order just to get familiar with OffGun before Theory of Love -- will likely not review) 13) Theory of Love (2019) (review here) 14) 3 Will Be Free (2019) (not a BL or an official part of the OGMMTVC watchlist, but an important harbinger of things to come in 2019 and beyond re: Jojo Tichakorn pushing queer content in non-BLs) (review here) 15) Dew the Movie (2019) (review here) 16) Until We Meet Again (2019-2020) 17) 2gether (2020) and Still 2gether (2020) (watching) 18) I Told Sunset About You (2020) 19) YYY (2020, out of chronological order) 20) Manner of Death (2020-2021) (not a true BL, but a MaxTul queer/gay romance set within a genre-based show that likely influenced Not Me and KinnPorsche) 21) A Tale of Thousand Stars (2021) (review here) 22) A Tale of Thousand Stars (2021) OGMMTVC Fastest Rewatch Known To Humankind For The Sake Of Rewatching Our Skyy 2 x BBS x ATOTS 23) Lovely Writer (2021) 24) Last Twilight in Phuket (2021) (the mini-special before IPYTM) 25) I Promised You the Moon (2021) 26) Not Me (2021-2022) 27) Bad Buddy (2021-2022) (thesis here) 28) Bad Buddy (2021-2022) and Our Skyy 2 x BBS x ATOTS (2023) OGMMTVC Rewatch 29) Secret Crush On You (2022) [watching for Cheewin’s trajectory of studying queer joy from Make It Right (high school), to SCOY (college), to Bed Friend (working adults)] 30) KinnPorsche (2022) (tag here) 31) KinnPorsche (2022) OGMMTVC Fastest Rewatch Known To Humankind For The Sake of Re-Analyzing the KP Cultural Zeitgeist 32) The Eclipse (2022) (tag here) 33) GAP (2022-2023) (Thailand’s first GL) 34) My School President (2022-2023) and Our Skyy 2 x My School President (2023) 35) Moonlight Chicken (2023) (tag here) 36) Bed Friend (2023) (tag here) (Cheewin’s latest show, depicting a queer joy journey among working adults)]

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andy-wm · 10 months

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My thoughts on SEVEN, both the song and the MV, and what it says about Jungkook.

About the song:

My biggest take away from the song is that Jungkook has total confidence in his ability to keep his partner satisfied and entertained. Daily. He also has a good reason to do heaps of laundry.

Also, he gets to say Fu@k a lot (always fun) and his pronunciation has really improved since he collabed with that disrespectful a$$hole who's name i won't bother to mention.

Seriously though, i hope his adulthood will finally sink in for the people who still try to keep him in babyville.

From a musical point of view, he does get to use those magnificent pipes he has, and use them well. The song flexes his vocal range and has lots of dynamic movement. And he gets to rap. I can see why he would have wanted to sing it.

About the MV:

I have a few observations about the mv and the relationship represented. I know it's meant to be lighthearted but that doesn't mean it shows us a healthy relationship so i'm gonna say my piece. Sorry if it's a downer, feel free to skip.

The power dynamic between JK's character and Sohee's character is what i find interesting.

She's totally in control of their narrative the whole way through.

At the start, she's angry and berating him and he's just listening, his head down. Very submissive. Most of the time his hands are in his lap or on the table while she's gesturing to herself and even throwing her hands up. The only time his energy is up. Is when he pulls her away from the falling debris.

She's getting up to leave halfway through his response, too. She doesnt really give him a chance to respond.

Even though he tries and tries to talk to her, she's dismissive, rolling her eyes, ignoring him, constantly walking away before he can finish what he's trying to tell her. At one point she pushes him so hard he falls backwards. He's repeatedly risking his personal well-being to get her to hear his side, but even then, he's still completely submissive. He brings her flowers, he walks three steps behind her, he tries to make her laugh to break the tension so she will listen.

Theres only one point at which he is assertive and that's at 2.55 when he gets around in front of her.

When he does eventually get her to stop and hear him out, he takes the role of a supplicant. She is very much in control of the outcome. She eventually offers her hand, and then basically hauls him along behind her. He is trotting along behind her like a scolded child.

I found it a little hard to watch because JK isn't an actor. Not because his acting is bad but becuase it's really him.

I could be way off, i admit that, but i honestly feel that his character is responding exactly as he himself would respond. He's soft and sweet and gentle, but dammit he believes in them! He's trying his best to placate her even though she is giving him NOTHING back.

I hate that it reminds me of that damn hamburger incident (he's is a sponge cake. Pls dont hurt him, world.)

Anywayyyyy....

My take away is 2 things.

First one is, throughout the MV his character is "fighting *for* the relationship", which is different from fighting within the relationship. He wants this problem they have to be solved, and he's prepared to do the work. Go, you Jungkook’s alter ego.

Second one is, despite a lot of people seeing this as a,stalker situation, the power balance is very heavily weighted towards her. Also, she treats him pretty disrespectfully. If these gender roles were reversed, the comments would be very interesting...

Other than that i loved the aesthetic, the humour, and the energy.

But what does this overtly hereronormative MV tell us about Jungkook's sexual orientation?

I'll say it does not tell us anything about who he likes to do the horizontal boogie with.

He liked the song, and wanted to record it. I have no idea if he had any hand in the MV storyline. If he did, awesome. It's fun.

But let's be real about the likelihood of him coming out to the world through a MV. I'd say it's ZERO. Reality dictates that whatever his own orientation, the MV needed to represent the Jungkook (most of) the world WANTS to see. Dont forget, this song is more of a business decision than a creative decision for Hybe. We know SB had a big part in the processs, and that man is all about the dollar bills.

It's certainly not a personal statement from JK. Its a fun, summer song and he gets to say F◇CK a lot and flex his vocal chops. That's it.

Do i personally think JK is gay? Hell yeah. With bells on.

Do i think he would risk it all?? ('it' being a huge entertainment empire, his own and his friends' careers, social damnation, personal freedom, and the loss of his contact with ARMY)

No, absolutely not. Not for a song that he didn't even write. Not in his solo debut. Not in today's America (sorry American readers, the USA isn't a safe place to be queer right now).

An unrelated question:

Do i think he will show us something more substantial with his album?

I think he will. I truly hope so. I dont think he's going to sing about his orientation but i do think the songs will be meaningful and personal and I'll be quite suprised if there isn't a fair bit of queer subtext.

If he includes a hidden track and Jimin features on it, I will throw a party and sprinkle glitter EVERYWHERE.

Just for fun, here's some JK looking gorgeously gay...

Living his best life in the Butter MV

His gestures... so pretty

No words for this one (cr to photographer)

I mean he's not wrong...

#jikook #kookmin #국민 #jeon jungguk #jungkook seven

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nourrris · 1 month

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I'm happy there was no season 4.

This could either be a popular, or very unpopular opinion, I'm unsure as frankly I've only began watching two days ago, and finished the show already, (god it was beautiful).

Anyways, I very firmly believe anything after a season 3 would have likely ruined the storyline, it ended on such a beautiful note, something that's so perfectly them. I'm also in a way, happy they never actually did kiss, although realistically I had been rooting for it to happen, the fact it didn't doesn't bother me one bit, it really brings out all the intimacy in their prior actions, and words, I love that their love was batshit insane, that it didn't need a kiss or pda to believe it was reciprocated, frankly surrendering eachothers lives together was more than enough for a confirmation.

But continuing on, I believe a season 4 would have been too messy, they left s3 on a very difficult position to recover off, and a position that didn't need recovering either, it didn't need fixing or changing - not one bit. It was so perfect in my opinion, their last things they did was kill a man together to save one another, then kill themseleves together, literally how much more fitting could it have been for these murder husbands? It just worked so well, that nothing can be more intimate than death for them, in my opinion.

Latching onto the last part of the first section of the post, I really liked how they portrayed the reciprocity of Will's feelings towards Hannibal. When Bedelia ask's Will if he 'aches' for Hannibal too, and it cuts off to another scene, I generally already took that as a yes, as it was a big damn claim, I don't think it's something you easily hesitate on, not when the person in question is a cannibalistic murderer. When he chooses to save Hannibal, and jump off the cliff with him though, that is the real confirmation of course, choosing to leave his wife and son, all friends and absolutely every inch of the life he made - for Hannibal, a man he physically could not get over no matter how hard he tried.

It's perfect, sorry I just finished the show today (like a few hours ago) and I love it so dearly, I've never watched something where the ending felt so genuinely satisfying, even if it seemingly hadn't meant to felt like a finale in that manner, it worked amazingly, I'm very glad it wasn't a s2 situation with such an insane cliff hanger, or else I would have probably just.. never watched the show. Some say it does feel like a cliff hanger, but eventually you can come to terms and realize that their actions, a double suicide in the name of love(?) couldn't possibly surpass anything else they've done at that point, their action's have led them to either horribly idiotic situations, or blissful moments.

Lastly I wanted to mention my original assumption of the ending, I midway through season 2 found out Hannibal was actually a incomplete cancelled show, also prior to that I found through spoilers that will eventually has a wife. Those facts are important because I very weirdly am a person who cannot consume a media without spoilers, (my anxiety is due to that). So I just about know every ending of a show before I'm even halfway into it, although I tend to prefer to wait later, I wondered if finishing the show was worth it so i searched it up, and watched briefly the ending, It was very relieving as if it actually did truly end in a heterosexual way it would have immediately made me quit the show, as yes they are intimite but I still did want any type of closure, without it I would have felt at most pretty indifferent with the ending.

Anyways, the show is beautiful, I love it so so much, even if it's a complete change in genres for me, I love the characters, I love the artistry and creativity in the show, and god do I love the ending.

(edit a day later: guys i totally missed that last scene w bedelia at the end, i still prefer s3's ending but did not know it was implied they were alive!!??!)

#hannibal tv show #hannibal nbc #hannibal lecter #will graham #sorry if theres typos #tis 10:30am #ive been awake since 5pm #spent all day watching hannibal (whoops)

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buckysimp101 · 2 years

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Love at First Grade (18+) - 1

Single Dad!Bucky Barnes x Single Mom!Reader

chapter warnings: none

a/n: I am so excited to work on this fic. I am a sucker for a good singledad!Bucky fic and to add the teacher!Bucky to it as well? A dream! let me know what you think of this first chapter in the comments! I hope y'all enjoy!

Series Masterlist

“Becca, come on you have to get up,” Bucky whispered as he lightly shook his sleeping, six year old daughter. Becca’s face twisted up in discontent as she attempted to pull her blanket up to prevent having to go to school.

“Sweetheart, don’t make me turn on the lights,” Bucky threatened lightly, not wanting to turn on the lights himself but he needed her to get up. They had to be leaving for school in thirty minutes, he’d already been up for an hour and a half preparing for the day.

Becca groaned at that threat, knowing he’d do just that if it meant she’d finally wake up. She threw her hands over her face and peaked through them, her blue eyes catching his.

Becca was Bucky’s twin with her brown hair and blue eyes, she got way more of his genes that she did her mother’s. A fact that made Dot angry every time any of Bucky’s family brought it up. When Dot walked out on them Becca was two. She hadn’t known her mother long enough to miss her, but Bucky knew that there was a mom shaped hole that he would never be able to fill completely, but he’d be damned if he didn’t try.

“But daddy I don’t wanna go to school,” Becca whispered from behind the safety of her hands, trying not to make eye contact with her dad.

“Why not, Bex? You were all excited about going to first grade last week, what changed your mind?” Bucky asked quietly, trying to find out where his daughters sudden fear of the first grade had come from.

“Because you’re not my teacher,” she whispered, looking down at her hands and avoiding Bucky’s face. His heart dropped. He knew that Becca had been hoping he would be her teacher, but since he was her father that wasn’t going to happen. Their school liked to avoid the “my parent is my teacher” stereotype and placed the kids with other teachers instead.

“I know, sweetheart. But you know who is your teacher?” He responded, smoothing her brown curls as she looked at him with those big blue eyes, shaking her head no. So Bucky whispered, “Uncle Stevie.”

Becca’s eyes grew three sizes and next thing Bucky knew she was throwing off her blanket and running to the closet, “UNCLE STEVIE IS MY TEACHER!?”

Bucky chuckled as he watched Becca’s curls fly around her head wildly as she tried to find “the best outfit for the best teacher EVER!”, though that last statement hurt Bucky just a little bit.

“Alright Bex, calm down. Now. Let me see what you plan on wearing,” he said, his hands on his hips. He didn’t care what Becca wore to school but sometimes she liked to play dress up just a little too much. Becca showed him her outfit and he nodded his head in approval.

“Alright kiddo, I’ve got breakfast ready. Let's go eat real fast then you can get changed, brush your teeth and we’ll be off to see Mr. Rogers.” At that, Becca zoomed past Bucky to the kitchen and he swore he’d never seen a kid eat faster, and he’d had plenty of lunch duties in his day.

As Bucky finished packing their lunches and fixing his togo coffee, he listened to Becca chatter on about how excited she was to be in Uncle Steve's class and how she was scared that she'd forget to call him Mr. Rogers and how many friends she was going to make, the last statement making Bucky chuckle as he shook his head. Becca didn't know a stranger. She made friends everywhere she went. Suffice to say, she got that skill from her mother. The difference? Dot made friends at the drop of a hat, but she was terrible at maintaining those friendships. Bucky was physically pulled out of his thoughts by his six year old tugging at his slacks, "okay daddy! I'm all ready!"

Focusing on Becca, Bucky had to hold back a laugh. While his daughter had managed to put on her clothes correctly, right side out and everything, her hair was a different story. The chestnut curls looked like they hadn't seen a brush in days, and knowing how busy he'd been setting up his classroom and getting ready for the school year, it probably had been that long. "Okay, Becca Bug. We need to fix this hair, now run and grab your brush so we can head out. Daddy can't be late for the first day of school," he said with his hands on his hips trying to put on as serious a face as possible, the action nearly impossible with a giggling six year old running from him. He couldn't help but think, "this is gonna be a long year."

By the time the pair made their way to the school Becca was practically buzzing with excitement. Gone was the shy and somewhat scared six year old he found laying in her bed this morning, Rebecca Dolores Barnes "but you can call me Becca please" had taken her place. The pair didn't make it as early as they normally would today but Bucky had the opportunity to walk Becca to her classroom before returning to his own to greet his students.

Steve Rogers opened his classroom door as he heard the excited tone of Rebecca Barnes approaching. "UNCLE STEVE!! I'm in your class this year!" Becca shouted, practically flinging herself into his arms making Steve and Bucky laugh at her enthusiasm. The two offering a one-armed hug around Becca's small body.

"Remember what I said this morning, Becca- bug," Bucky said somewhat sternly, making sure to look her in the eye. Where her sudden sass came from, Bucky had no clue, because next thing he knew his daughter was rolling her eyes and sighing, "I know daddy, he's Mr. Rogers when I'm in his class and at school."

Steve tried his best to suppress his laugh with a cough. Steve knew where she got her attitude from. It was a perfect (read: deadly) combination of Bucky, Dot and Becca's namesake her Auntie Bex, Bucky's sister. Not him though....she definitely wasn't influenced by her Uncle Steve...not one bit.

Bucky cut his eyes at Steve, trying to get him to realize that he was serious about teaching Becca what she needed to know at school, when he recognized the slow flow of students entering the halls. The first day of first grade had started. Bucky turned to Becca and wrapped his daughter in a hug, "Alright, Becca. Be on your best behavior for Mr. Rogers, learn lots of things, make new friends, I'll see you at lunch. I love you to infinity and beyond, Becca-Bug."

"I love you to the moon and back a kajillion times, daddy!" Becca responded, squeezing her dad tight before kicking her feet to try and get down and enter her classroom. That was Bucky's cue. He gave Steve a final hug before heading to his classroom. As the kids approached, Bucky greeted them and the people dropping them off. Most of the kids were excited to see some of their friends from Kindergarten again, others were already in the process of making new friends. Bucky continued through the line of students and guardians, avoiding the occasional flirting by some of the moms thrown his way, when he reached the final student in line.

She was looking at her feet, suddenly preoccupied by the pink converse on her feet and trying to avoid his eye, her fingers finding interest in picking at the sequins on her pink unicorn shirt. A throat cleared from behind the young girl. Bucky saw black heels first, followed by a black pantsuit, a white blouse and finally a slightly concerned face looking down at the young girl. You bent down to get to her level and whispered something in her ear, the girl looking up at Bucky quickly but promptly turning her face into your shirt. You looked up at him with an apologetic look on your face. Luckily, Bucky knew what to do.

He bent down slowly, and stretched out his hand, "Hi, I'm Mr. Barnes and welcome to the first grade. We've got a lot of fun things we're going to do this year." The little girl poked her head out under your arm, looking at Bucky's outstretched hand as if it might attack her any second. You took that moment to nudge her, nodding your head when she looked at you like she wanted to say something.

The little girl took a deep breath, poking her chest out and thrusting her palm out to meet Bucky's, "My name is Avery Claire L/N, and I am six years old. It is very nice to meet you, thank you," she stated, stumbling over her words a little but when she was done she looked at you, almost for approval. You shook your head at your daughter's silliness. What Bucky didn't know is that Avery had been practicing for days how she wanted to introduce herself, she'd seen her mother do it a million times and she wanted to get it just right.

"Well, Avery, it is very nice to meet you, are you ready to go make some new friends and have a great year," Bucky asked, gesturing to the classroom door behind him where the other students were already talking and playing with each other. Avery poked her head around his legs to get a better look, obviously something sparked her interest cause the next thing you knew she was giving your legs a squeeze and yelling, "bye mommy! Love you!" as she ran into Bucky's classroom.

Bucky laughed at her enthusiasm, she reminded him of Becca. He turned to face you, extended his hand and said, "I look forward to teaching Avery this year, as I said I'm Mr. Barnes. It's nice to meet you, Mrs. L/N."

The corner of your lip twitched upwards, almost like you wanted to smirk at his assumption that you were married, and you reached your hand out to give his a firm shake before stating, "It's Ms. L/N. Y/N L/N. And I look forward to hearing all about the joys of first grade, Mr. Barnes."Bucky swore his face lost all color. The blood drained out of his face so fast the second he heard her full name. He'd heard of Y/N L/N. Who the hell hadn't. She ran L/N Enterprises and was known as one of the most ruthless executives in New York. Your smirk turned into a smile full of teeth, a smile Bucky was sure you'd perfected in all sorts of business deals and meetings over the years.

Or maybe it was one you reserved just for people when they found out who you were, your reputation obviously preceding you, Bucky couldn't help but think to himself. He opened his mouth to respond but you cut him off as your phone started to ring, "thank you for the introduction, Mr. Barnes. And thank you for your work this morning with Avery, she's a little shy and I'm not entirely certain where she got that from. I'm sure we'll see each other soon." You turned down the hall, heels tapping the linoleum flooring as you answered the phone with a harsh, "What?"

As Bucky watched you walk away he let out a sigh he didn't know he'd been holding in since you introduced yourself. "This really is gonna be a long year."

~~~~~~~

I don’t have a taglist for this fic yet, but if you’d like to be added just let me know!

#bucky barnes x reader #james bucky barnes #single dad bucky x single mom reader #bucky barnes x yn #teacher bucky barnes #bucky as a teacher and a single dad? all i ever wanted #original characters #rebecca barnes #bucky barnes fanfiction #BuckySimp101

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