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mirohlayo · 5 months

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hello lynaa!!

could you do (any driver) x reader where they just spoil em rotten with all these never ending very expensive gifts and reader gets emotional and he comforts her?

i love ur work btw <3

hello !! i literally LOVE this one, thanks for requesting it :)) i really struggle to choose between charles and oscar but i decided to go with oscar yeah (also thank u so much it's so sweet 🫶) hope it's okay !!

YOU'RE MY BEST GIFT | OP81

( despite the fact you don't like it, oscar can't stop spoiling you because you deserve everything )

warning : none just reader getting emotional, fluff and fluff

word count : 2.8k

!! english is not my first language !!

you are for sure the most precious person ever for oscar. being his partner means that he constantly makes sure you're always happy. he literally puts all his being into your relationship, he tries his best to keep everything perfect. if you're not satisfied enough then he's not either, and he always manage to do his best to make you feel fulfilled by his love and affection.

it also means that he obviously likes to spoil you. it's kind of his love language. he needs to buy you something, whether an object that reminded him of you or tons of expensive stuffs like perfumes, clothes, shoes... money doesn't matter for him, as long as he makes you happy with his little gifts then everything is good. plus he earns a pretty good amount of money, so he doesn't wait a single to waste it into gifting you lots of things.

so of course he notices the little stuff you were always looking at, whether on your phone in your shopping cart or when you would stare a bit too much at some storefronts during your dates. he often catches you looking at this pair of shoes that you really want for a while now, this oversized hoodie which reminds you of your boyfriend because there's literally the number 81 on the back, or also those cute pastries you always talk about how good they look.

but you know you'll never buy these things, maybe later in months but they're just too expensive for you. you can afford them but you can't all buy them in one seat, you also need to save money because you share your apartment's spending with oscar. you agreed at the start of your relationship that both of you will take part in renting, shopping and getting all the stuff and furniture you need to live together.

and your job pays you very much less than oscar's job so obviously you don't have the same income and money to spend it on extra expensive things you like. but it's okay, you actually like earning money little by little and when you finally have the good amount of money you're always happy to buy these little gifts you dreamed about.

now you are sitting comfortably on the couch, your laptop on your laps. your favorite playlist is playing on the loudspeaker in a low volume and you just have finished a schedule for your next week of work. "are you okay love ? do you want something to drink ? or a snack ?"

your boyfriend's voice comes from behind you, where the kitchen is. you turn your head and smile to him "a glass of water then please" you gently ask "no problem" he replies and opens one of the kitchen closet to grab a glass. you move again to go back to your laptop, and while you delete open pages on google, there's your shopping cart that appears. you forget to delete it last time.

you hesitate to delete the page, but your eyes gaze at the pretty things you put in your cart. you really want these cute shoes and this hoodie for a while now, and you'll be lying if you said you didn't dream about them everyday. you're so envious of those people who own them, sometimes you bump into some girls who are wearing them and it makes you even more excited about getting the shoes and the hoodie.

oscar soundlessly comes behind you, a tray with your glass of water and some fruits on it. just for you, because he's simply the most caring and sweet boyfriend you ever had. he approaches you in silence and you don't hear his steps, too occupied by the clothes on your laptop screen. but obviously he notices that you are once again staring at the same shopping cart. the same one as months ago.

he knows how much you want these items. maybe you're a bit desperate now and oscar doesn't like that. if you really want something then you'll have it. he likes to spoil you. he likes to buy you things because it makes you happy and he just needs to see your smile. but you're aware of the importance of money.

money is something very important for you and you know its value. so despite the fact you like receiving gifts, when oscar would spoil you too much with so many expensive things you can't help but get a bit angry. because you don't want him to spend all his salary for you. you're actually very reasonable and rational. you're humble and expensive gifts are like very precious to you because you value things

and oscar loves you for that. he thinks you're just so respectful and you never ask for anything, he don't even think you ever ask him to buy you something over your relationship. you always try to afford things by yourself and your hard work. and your boyfriend admire this. so when people or his "fans" would call you a scrounger, a girl who is here just for oscar's money, he get so annoyed. because if there's one person who doesn't count and don't care on his money at all, it's you.

he sighs and sit down next to you. "here's your water, princess" he says and he hands you the glass. you quickly change the shopping page to an other one with a youtube video, you panicked a bit because you don't want oscar to see you looking at these things. because you know he'll tell you that he can buy you it, and you always end up by scolding him gently, saying that if he dares do it you'll be mad for weeks.

"thanks love" you smile and take a sip of your water. he wraps one of his arms around your shoulders and pull you closer to him. "you finished your work ?" he asks against your hair, planting a soft kiss on it. "yes, i can finally take a break" you nod. "good then. i can have your attention" he hums and he's quick to move your laptop from your laps to place it on the table.

"cuddle me for a while" he says and he lay down on the couch. he makes you shift and you lay down too, your head on his chest and your legs crossed together. he wraps his arms around your back, rubbing it softly. "you work hard y/n. i'm so proud of my pretty girl" he smiles wide as his looks fall on you. you giggle and he can feel your laugh vibrates against his body, making him smile even wider. "i know. i'm such an amazing woman" you state with a tone of irony. "of course you are babe" he genuine knows it, he's proud to be boyfriend.

he starts placing lazy kisses on your head, sometimes on the back of your hand, still stroking your back. he run his hand under your hoodie, and his fingers rubs your soft skin softly, like you're a piece of porcelain. he's just too caring and he doesn't want to make you uncomfortable. but his soft touch makes you feel sleepy, and it doesn't take too long before you start to sleep.

he notices it because your breathing is slower and more regular. he places an other kiss on your hair. his eyes shift to your laptop screen. there are still your google searches on it, and he can't help himself but stretches his arm to move the touch mouse. he clicks on the page of your shopping cart, and knows he has a good look of the products you genuinely want.

he grabs his phone out of his pocket and he quickly takes a picture of the screen. he smiles to himself, proud of what he's going to do later this evening. now he knows what he needs to do.

"and i'll take the strawberry one too please" oscar says as he waits for the seller to wrap the ten pastries he just finished to order. the seller hands him the little red box with the white ribbon around it. the blonde grabs his credit card and pays without looking at the price. he's not even bothered, because a silly smile is playing on his lips.

he bought you these pastries which you talk about every time you found a tiktok about it, rambling about how sweet and delicious they look, and oscar was listening to you. he finally bought plenty of them today for you, ten pastries to be sure you'll have enough. and if not then he'll go back again at the bakery to buy more. until you're satisfied.

now he's going back home, already excited to see you and your expression when you'll discover all the things he bought today. he told you earlier that he needs to get some groceries, which was a lie because he used this time to purchase all the stuff you so want. he literally went to all the different stores of the mall : perfumery, bakery, jewelry store, plushies store and more.

he knows he has spent a huge amount of money just for you but he absolutely doesn't care at all. you're his princess and you must receive princess treatment. so that's why he bought this cute plushie you genuinely adore, and also your favorite set of perfumes even though you already have an extra double at home. buying you jewelry was inevitable, he chose two bracelets and two necklaces, also several pairs of earrings. and the cherry on top is the matching bracelet he carefully chose for you and him.

but nevertheless he got some groceries, most of them just being your favorite food and snacks. he totally spent a lot of money, he may not even have a penny left in his bank account but it's absolutely fine, as long as it's for you he doesn't pay attention to it. he's simply happy to treat you well. to treat you like you deserve it.

he parks his car and run to the door. he's carrying all the gifts and bags in his hands. he's completely full. he rings the doorbell and seconds later he's meeting with your pretty face. "i'm back" he simply says and you let him go into the house.

first you didn't notice all the bags he was carrying, because there are two packages which were delivered during oscar's absence and which are lying around the door. you are sure you didn't ordered anything, and oscar didn't tell you either that he ordered something so why these two packages are lying on the floor ?

"oscar, what are these packages ? i didn't ordered anything and you didn't too" you start and frown looking at the boxes. your boyfriend take off his shoes and he was going to speak when you finally notice all the bags in his hands. "and why are you carrying so many bags? there are around ten of them !" you say shocked, your eyes dart out.

he only smiles to you and hands you all the bags "surprise princess ! the packages are for you and these bags too". you don't realize, you just blink. is this real ? you look at him completely lost and he laughs seeing your confused expression. "you ordered the packages ? you really bought me all of these gifts ?" you ask still not realizing what he did.

your boyfriend nods rapidly like a child, a wide smile stuck on his face. "i wanted to please you because you deserve it love" he replies. "but oscar..." you start and he knows you're going to get mad at him because maybe he did too much. but he doesn't want to hear that so he doesn't wait and guides you to the couch. he makes you sit on it and he brings all the gifts around you. "now open them. it's all for you".

you sigh and look him in the eyes. "baby i appreciate it but do you realize you bought too much ? like it's an incredible amount of things" "of course i am aware of it and i don't care at all." he shrug and sit down next to you. you look like you're going to refuse all the presents and oscar doesn't want that. he places a kiss on your cheek and put one the package on your laps. "open now. i know you'll thanks me later for that"

you can't do anything but open all the boxes and bags in front of you. you cut the cardboard and open it. the beautiful pair of shoes you so wanted is meticulously wrap in the box. you don't realize. you're clearly shocked. you pick up them carefully and admire them. they're so pretty. and oscar knows he wins everything when a big smile come up on your face. "i don't even know what to say. i wanted them for so long. they're so pretty oscar"

"they'll look perfect on you" he states and a second later he feels your lips on his cheek. he giggles at the sudden touch "next gift baby !!" he says and either him can't hide his excitement. you can't help it too, you forgot for a while your dissatisfaction towards him because you're like a kid at christmas in front of all of the gifts. you open the second package and your look fall on the white and orange hoodie which reminds you of oscar.

it looks perfect. perfect like your boyfriend. the hoodie is clearly making you smile wider, though you were already getting cheek cramps. "how it looks ?" he asks in a nervous tone. "just incredibly beautiful and perfect" you says as you touch the soft fabric. "good. but we are not done. they're still the bags here" he points out the remaining bags on the floor.

and you open them all. the perfumes, the jewelry, the plushie, the snacks and even the pastries. you don't know how much they all cost but you're sure it's very very expensive. but you can't hide your happiness, you're so grateful for that. all the gifts are just more than enough. and your dissatisfaction turned into thankfulness.

all of these gifts, the way he bought you everything you wanted because he wanted to please you, all of that makes you emotional. and you can't help but let some tears fall down on your face. oscar notices it and he starts to panic. "wait- are you okay love ?" he asks cautiously. you wipe a tear and nod to reassure him. "yes don't worry i'm okay. it's just... it's just..."

you let a sob and he can't take it anymore. he pulls you into his arms, pressing soft kisses on your face. "tell me y/n" he says softly. he don't want to push you, just so caring. "it's just that i don't want you to spend all your money and buy extra expensive things to me. i'm okay with what i already have, i don't care if i can't afford what i want. i just don't want you to waste all your money only for me"

oscar smiles softly and pulls you closer. oh how his heart pang from love. from affection and adoration. he's so in love with you. he rubs your cheek with his thumb and place a soft kiss on your lips. "but you know that i don't care princess. i want the best for you and i want to treat you well like how you deserve to be treated. i like to spoil you. i like to buy you gifts" he explains to you. "but you're already my best gift oscar"

his brain stopped to work just as his heart skipped a beat. he can't hide his smile. "and you are too. that's why i genuinely want to pleasure you, because you're a princess that deserves all the love in the world. money doesn't matter. i know you don't like that but i'll never stop myself to spend money for you. you are the only person I would do anything for and all you have to do is ask me what you need, i'll give it to you right away"

you let another snob out of your mouth. the boy starts to peck all your face. "i don't deserve you oscar. i'm so lucky to have you." "no, i'm the lucky one. i don't even know how i managed to pull someone like you" he laughs and you giggle. "i love you oscar. so much"

he smiles and leans in to kiss you tenderly. his lips move perfectly on yours. he pulls back and look at you with heart eyes. "i love you too my girl". you hide your face in the crook of his neck and you stay like that for a while. until he gets up. "now i'm gonna make some coffee for you to drink with the pastries"

and he'll put on the table a tray of pastries, a cup of hot coffee next to them. you'll share the strawberry cake with your boyfriend, and you'll remains him of how perfect he is. because after all he's clearly the best boyfriend in the world...

#f1 imagine #f1 x reader #f1 fanfic #oscar piastri x reader #oscar piastri x you #oscar piastri fluff #oscar piastri fanfic #op81 x reader #op81 x you

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1d1195 · 1 year

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Traditional I

Inspiration is funny, ya know?

Definitely multiple parts. Hope you like the idea, wasn't part of my list, but appeared in my brain without warning. Couldn't ignore it. Enjoy!

Main Character messages/Harry messages

Do you not want...a traditional relationship? If you’re paying me, how do you know I’d be a real companionship?

Because only the sweetest person on earth would send a profile out to a bunch of multi-millionaires to pay her a measly 1500 a month AND turn down a higher offer all because it’s more than she wanted.

There was a prominent frown on her face. She could sort of make out the sad, nearly disgusted face of the reflection in the back of half her computer screen. She looked over her profile again and again making sure it wasn’t too desperate but wasn’t overselling something she couldn’t produce. “Ahh...” she felt herself wincing at that reflection and bit her lip nervously as her cursor hovered over the submit button. “Ugh,” she sighed.

When Louis suggested it, she thought he was joking.

“Babe, someone would pay good money for your ass,” he told her.

“What is wrong with you?” She deadpanned.

But here she was. Making the profile to find someone willing to pay for her companionship. That’s what all the websites said. But it was a Sugar Daddy. That’s what it was called. It wasn’t ugly or distasteful. She didn’t care what people did with their lives at all. It wasn’t something that she thought she would have to do for herself until it was her last resort. That didn’t mean it wasn’t something to look at with disdain. She was all for women getting paid to be themselves simply for being lovely.

She didn’t want to do it because she didn’t think she would be good at it. She wasn’t sexy or wild, she didn’t feel beautiful, and obviously her ex didn’t think she was much fun if he was looking elsewhere for quite some time for entertainment both in and out of the bedroom. A stranger with a lot of money probably wouldn’t find her exciting like the other profiles she perused before completing a questionnaire of her own.

In all honesty, it seemed like it would be a second full-time job trying to convince a man that she deserved the money she was asking for and she wasn’t sure she could do that on top of all the other tasks she had to deal with these days. She told herself she wouldn’t let Louis convince her. But she needed the money—a good chunk of money at that. Best case scenario, there would be no takers to supply her with money. She would remain in her needy financial state and would find some other low paying job and try to manage the seemingly endless pile of obligations.

Louis was kind enough to let her stay with him and Eleanor until she figured out her shit. It wasn’t her fault that the guy she was dating cheated on her, broke her heart, and kicked her out of their shared house all in one swoop. She was living for free because they had been together for so long and it was his aunt’s old house near university. She had money and scholarships to pay for classes, so she didn’t need to manage a job while also getting an internship.

It was her final year before she would be awarded her master’s degree. Nothing could go wrong.

Except she returned early from visiting her mom and didn’t tell him.

So, there he was, moaning into another woman’s mouth on their bed.

She would have kicked herself out if he hadn’t done it first. “You could use a better dick in you too, love,” Louis had joked.

With a deep breath, like she was about to jump into a pool, she held her finger over her track pad. One last bout of reasoning ran through her mind. Her full-time internship would pay crumbs. Not enough to afford rent or a place of her own. She needed to get out of Louis and Eleanor’s hair. It was just one year.

Submit.

Blowing out a breath she smacked her laptop shut and headed to Eleanor’s kitchen—she would have said Louis and Eleanor’s kitchen, but Eleanor had a strict “no Louis near the oven” rule. One hand on her box of cereal and another on the silverware drawer to grab a spoon, she was shocked to hear her phone pinged with a message after two minutes. “Shut up,” she muttered to herself. She could almost hear Louis saying I told you so.

She ignored it. The first taker was probably not the way to go—too eager. She wasn’t a prude but the idea of having sex for money wasn’t really what she wanted to sign up for this last year of her program. But then there was another ping. And another.

“What the fuck?” She whispered.

“What is that dating app?” Louis called from the door. The pinging was incessant. “I’ve never heard that one,” he said as he meandered into the kitchen. She turned the volume down and Louis snagged it from her hands.

“Lou—”

“YOU DID IT,” he gasped, practically cheering as he unlocked her phone without her permission. “HOLY SHIT! You’ve got like fifteen takers already, babe. I told you that ass was worth it.”

“Louis, please give—”

He gasped. “Love, are you that dumb?” He asked gazing at her screen.

“What do you—”

“You can’t ask for a crummy fifteen hundred dollars a month,” he rolled his eyes. “You’re going to get all kinds of creeps and people that will make you do despicable things.”

“But I don’t—”

“A fifteen hundred dollars a week would be a lot better, don’t you think?”

“Louis, I just need a little bit of help. I don’t want to take someone’s money if I’m going to be bad at—”

The pinging stopped. “See?” He rolled his eyes placing her phone back in her hands. “Much more selective clientele...and you won’t be bad at it. I’m telling you that ass is going to pay for anything you want.”

“Louis,” she groaned and rubbed her hand over her face.

“Eleanor thinks so too, don’t you love?” He called down the hall.

“You’re home?” She called to her friend supposedly down the hall.

“Is it your profile that you've been whining about all this time? I would have helped you,” she said. “He’s right; your ass is going to be a great selling point,” Eleanor didn’t leave her room.

“I don’t want a ton of money. I just need to get by...” she explained to Louis.

“Yeah, but if you’re going to get paid for sexual activities you need to be compensated appropriately,” he said seriously.

“Why do you know so much about this?” She rolled his eyes. “Eleanor, you know he doesn’t have money, right?”

“Unfortunately!”

Flicking her cheek, he finished pouring the cereal for her (he was only allowed to touch kitchen items that didn’t involve cooking. He only recently upgraded to having microwave privileges again—especially after the baked potato incident). “I just know some girls from my dorm a few years ago talked about it a lot,” he rolled his eyes.

She was quiet while Louis slid the bowl in front of her and she took a few bites. She was still mad and upset about her ex. But she had bills to pay and quick. She frowned. “This is not what I wanted,” she mumbled.

Louis frowned grabbing a second bowl to join her cereal party. “I know, babe, but it’s okay. You’ll do great. Let’s see what your serious options are now.”

She shook her head. “I don’t want to look right now. I’m too nervous.”

Louis chuckled around a bite of his food. “You don’t have to do sexual favors y’know.”

“Based on my research, I think I have to if I want this kind of money.”

He smirked. “Then we better find you a guy with big hands.”

“Jesus Christ.”

She didn’t look the next day or even the day after that either. It was too much to think about all at once. Submitting the profile and having her best friend talk about her ass and sexual favors was a bit much. Eleanor eventually came out from the other room and gave her gentle encouragement that Louis often lacked.

There was a bunch of remote training she needed to do before she started her internship on Monday. A company she had never really heard of; it was a good company. Not one that was plastered everywhere, but the research she did on it seemed to show it was a good place that made a good amount of money. She was emailing her supervisor, Niall, who had interviewed her for the position at the time. He was extremely nice, and she was grateful it was one less thing she had to worry about when the rest of her life seemed to be falling apart. She would be Niall’s assistant and learn the ropes of his job that entailed, “really two jobs in one. I just know the owner, so I often get stuck in two roles,” he joked to her.

Good morning Mr. Horan,

You’ll see that I’ve completed the training required. I’ve attached all the certificates and approvals and sent them to HR as well. This was just for your record. Please let me know if there’s anything else I need to do. I’m very excited to start, is there anything I need to do specifically when I get there to make your life easier? Please let me know.

Have a great weekend!

Her phone pinged yet again with an alert that someone was interested in giving her money for companionship. She frowned slightly, almost wishing that it wouldn’t ping anymore. She didn’t want Louis knowing and she was really wishing that it didn’t have to be like this. She didn’t want to do this. She wanted to be with her ex and live happily ever after the way she had planned for so many years.

For all the shit to hit the fan in the last, busiest year of her life, she was incredibly sad.

Hello!

I’m glad you’re excited. You don’t have to do anything special. I’ll show you around on Monday. Don’t stress, you’re going to do great.

Have a lovely, relaxing weekend as well.

Best,

(Please call me) Niall

She smirked at his response. This seemed like the least of her worries, but she had heard others didn’t typically last long at this company. Niall probably knew that as well as she did. He probably had to be polite to the rotation of interns coming through his office when his boss didn’t like them.

Another ping.

She sighed and figured it was now or never.

She deleted the creepy pick-up lines and anything that had a picture attachment noted on the message threads. That narrowed her choices down to four. She read through each of the opening messages and only one particularly stood out.

I’d like to give you five thousand dollars a month.

The only reason it stood out was because it was the only thing that was said. The other messages, while kinder than the ones she deleted, talked a lot about themselves and said they liked her profile. You seem cheap, lol wasn’t exactly what she wanted to hear. But there wasn’t a lot to go off of the one negotiating for triple the amount she was asking for.

She looked at the username for a moment trying to make heads or tails of his name. Coming up short she sighed quietly. “Louis? Eleanor?” She called.

With no response she decided she was on her own and clicked on his message thread again.

Thank you, that’s very kind, but I really don’t need all that much. I’m just...a little down on my luck and need enough to afford a place and whatnot. I couldn’t possibly use all that every month.

Hmm... The reply was almost instantaneous. Been waiting for you to reply, love. Can’t say I expected you to say that. You must be new to this whole arrangement.

She frowned. Appearing inept made her feel grumpier than she already was.

I am but I’m not greedy. That’s all. I just want what I need.

I appreciate that. But then you’re on the wrong app love. I want to give you five thousand a month AND pay for your place.

She was really glad Louis wasn’t around. She was blushing madly and there was no way he wouldn’t make fun of her nor take her phone from her himself and send messages she didn’t want to send. Taking a deep breath, she pursed her lips and nodded. I think you’re right...I don’t know. I really need the money. I just...I don’t want to take what I don’t EARN...and I’m not sure I’m comfortable with this arrangement, after all.

You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to, love. I make a lot of money. More than I know what to do with. I give to a lot of charities, and I’d just like to have a bona fide companionship that wasn’t about my money.

She snickered. Maybe you’re on the wrong app.

Sorry, I guess I am new to this. Do you not want...a traditional relationship? If you’re paying me, how do you know I’d be a real companionship?

She didn’t respond for a while. A few minutes turned into half an hour. Then before she knew it two hours had passed, and she felt like she hadn’t done anything in that time yet somehow no time had passed and the man at the other end had enough of waiting for her reply.

I didn’t mean to scare you. I spend a lot of time scouring these profiles. I want someone GOOD for my money. You hardly want anything. I could pay you what I want and any apartment you wanted before breakfast for a whole year because my company already has that money transferred into its account. I could pay your student loans if you wanted. I just want someone real, and you have the most real and lovely profile I’ve ever seen.

Sucking her lip into her mouth she kind of wanted to share this text with Louis but maybe it was too private. Maybe it was too ridiculous to believe that on her first attempt, her first profile and site she found someone so sweet.

If you don’t want to, I understand. But please be careful. If you’re not interested in traditional relationships this isn’t the site for you.

Then why are you on this site?

To find someone like you.

She frowned. Seems a little predatory :)

He sent an eye rolling emoji. Just trying to help you out, love.

She waited only a few moments this time before replying. You don’t want a traditional relationship?

It’s not a make or break it for this deal. I’m willing to work up to it if needed. I think you’re lovely and would like to spoil you however you see fit.

If she wasn’t careful, she was going to fall in love with his messages. That definitely couldn’t be part of the deal. Pacing in front of Eleanor’s refrigerator, she looked over the message that caused a flutter in her heart. Even her ex didn’t talk like that about her.

I think I’m interested. She messaged. What’s your name?

Harry. Harry Styles, love.

#harry #harry styles writing #harry styles fluff #harry styles blurb #harry styles blurbs #harry styles smut #harry styles angst #harry styles imagine #harry styles imagines #harry styles fic #harry styles fanfiction #ceo!harry #harry styles x y/n #harry styles x reader #one direction #one direction writing #traditional

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daydreamsandcrashingwaves · 3 months

Text

KICTTC 5

I'm BACK helloooo! Oh my goodness friends! I have so much to tell you all! So I kinda was collar grabbed by this story so my edit of chapter 4 is SO different from what I posted here, SOOOOO I'm posting a bit of the edited Ch4 so no one misses out on plot! ahhh I've been so excited to share this all with you!!!! Transference chapter 3 is in the works as well as a secret WIP! I really wanna focus of my first two stories though so Idk when that will be up or what an update schedule might look like.

Anyways the Angst is strong, the trauma and body horror is as strong as the blasphemous tea I brew, read at your own leisure I aint yo mama lol

Stay safe, give yourself grace, take your meds, get some sun, burrow in a blanket nest, drink water and eat a snack lovelies!

~Ren

Once Danny makes a decision he throws himself in head first, this will be no different. Danny has to start at the beginning. He must tell them everything to have a hope of them understanding how Danny ended up dropping through a portal to his brother’s side. For… their family to understand what true danger hunts him even now.

Dick sips his cup of coffee only to look at it betrayed when it’s bitter and cold. He has been in Bruce’s study watching the live feed of the recovery room for hours. He managed to drag himself to bed when Alfred had insisted but his dreams had been plagued with Danyal trembling on the floor, knife hilt deep in his small neck, the sight of them in the doorway had made him panic and then he was bleeding out, his breath gurgling in his throat as he died. It was an awful way to wake up and he couldn’t even go check on Danyal in person! Damian had cashed in a lot of the blackmail he’s kept on them to keep them away. While Dick was proud of his little brother’s emotional growth, seeing their youngest in person would go a long way for Dick to shake off his nightmare. He is a bat though so he will endure, especially because this involves his family, his brothers.

As the sun started dipping below the horizon behind the curtains Tim walked into the study with two large cups filled to the top with coffee, one with a ton of sugar and cream the other plain black coffee, “Awe Timmy! You brought me coffee!” Dick snatches the plain one up with a smirk.

Tim just grumbles at his grabby hands and relinquishes the cup. He shuffles over to the couch and pulls out his laptop to work on something- Dick isn’t sure where Tim had managed to safely carry the computer with two fresh coffees- and promptly ignores the others as they file in the next ten or so minutes. Judging by the dark circles under everyone’s eyes, sleep was hard to come by.

Bruce is slumped into his chair watching the twins. No one breaks the silence. Dick eyes Jason from where his brother has propped himself against the wall out of the way Their father’s shoulders are tense in anger. So Talia is probably giving him the slip. He can’t help but feel resentment for the woman who keeps secrets that hurt his family. She knows that people don’t always stay dead. When Jason died, the only reason Dick had to face it, recognize that his little brother was dead was because they had his body as sure proof he had been murdered. Dick has seen many times how Bruce grieves and it’s never good. Adding in a twin? Bruce is holding himself together with sheer will power and meticulous training. Bruce might be almost impossible to read but he was the first boy to be adopted. He has more Bruce experience than anyone else in the family but Alfred. He can see the cracks.

Turning back to the screen Dick lets out a little coo at the image. Damian is awake and is looking at Danyal like he’d disappear from under the blanket they share. The boy carefully extracts himself to use the restroom that’s tucked away in the corner. When he comes back onto the screen he is changed into his sweatpants and a t-shirt Dick recognizes as his own. He also spots a change of clothes for Danyal in his arms, which he sets on the side table next to the bed before Damian goes around refilling the water pitcher and glass to be ready for use, setting fresh towels out.

Turning his attention to the younger boy, he can see how sickly the boy is when they’re side by side to compare. His pale skin shows off the dark veins underneath, his cheeks are caving into his face, all his baby fat eaten away, dark bruises under his eyes, and with how injured he was… it’s not telling a pretty story. Dick is confident that if Danyal hadn’t dropped out of the rafters in that warehouse they’d never know he could’ve been out there. He desperately needed help even if he hadn’t realized it yet. Bruce and Dick watch Damian crawl back into bed, Danny doesn’t wake but he does turn towards where Damian has frozen owl-eyed. An arm snags the bottom edge of Damian’s shirt and like a signal the rest of his limbs follow to entwine them together. It’s very cute. With a smirk Dick takes out his phone and snaps a quick picture. It’s unlikely to truly upset Damian since it’s probably the only picture that they have of the twins together right now, but however Damian responds when he knows the picture exists will be satisfying.

“Are we gonna get on with it or just sit in silence with our thumbs up our asses?” Jason glares, looking significantly more tense. He stares down the room while crossing his arms across his chest.

Dick sees Bruce’s shoulders square up like he’s bracing for a physical punch instead of the verbal jab. Batman has an almost obsessive need to know everything he can about a situation, it was one of his many lessons that they as his children made into muscle memory. Knowledge made carefully crafted contingency plans that kept their family safe on and off the streets. Something to hold, to have in reserve for when they need it. To be thrown so many unknowns in the shape of a brother was unsettling them all.

“Jason.” Dick throws him a disappointed look from where he stands by Bruce, placing a hand on his shoulder to diffuse the argument that would shortly explode. “Danyal hasn’t been conscious, he hasn’t had the chance to explain anything yet, has he?” He raises his eyebrow at his brother. The family might not always reach an agreement on, well most things, but Dick knows his younger brother cares. He does. He won’t admit it but he’s here. Red Hood sticks to Crime Alley, looking after his people and- though he won’t claim them- his kids. One glance at Danyal’s wounded, still form was all it took to gain his loyalty. Red Hood liked to take his aggression out on those who disrespect his claim. Jason’s impulse to run off and hunt the monsters who could harm a child this way was poorly hidden. Dick understood the feeling so he didn’t push further.

Jason sneered at his words but didn’t bite back, just turned his impatient gaze towards Tim. “I’m sure Tim has been doing more digging than sleeping.”

Bruce inhales sharply drawing all of their attention. He’s looking at the monitor, hitting the unmute, Damian’s voice floods the room. “I simply meant you only have to tell me what has happened since we were separated… Once, here. I-We had thought you would prefer what privacy we can afford while we determined who had made the grave mistake of harming you. The family, while well intentioned, can be overwhelming. It is difficult gathering everyone and having them sit quietly for extended periods of time and our family is… large.”

Damian’s description brought a small smile to Dick’s face. Danyal’s quiet reply dimmed the edges because he sounded so young.

The whole group shifted and was laser focused on their new family member. Dick can’t think of any way to describe this whole situation as wrong as he took in what he could see.. It had nothing to do with Danny himself, or maybe it was more accurate to say whatever made his newly claimed baby brother look like that was what was firing off all his finely honed warning bells. A glance around at the others makes it clear they’re all, for once, on the same page.

If Bruce’s glare could kill the poor monitor would’ve been smoking at this point. Danyal was clearly at the end of his rope. Dick will admit as much as it irks him Damian was right to sequester the recovery room and keep Danyal in a calm area. They watch in horror as Danyal starts to speak. He was hesitant and nervous at first but slowly gained confidence when Damian didn’t react adversely.

The rest of them didn’t have to restrain themselves.

“What the actual fuck?” That’s Tim’s angry voice, Dick shutters. He sounds like he’s already started on researching his shit list by the furious tapping that comes from the couch. Drs Fenton, the Ghost Investigation Ward, and Vlad Masters can’t possibly know what is coming for them. Dick isn’t sure whether to step in when Jason sinks down into the couch next to their younger brother and they immediately start whispering between themselves.

He decides after a long look at the twins murmuring to each other that he would rather check on Bruce. “B?”

The man that stands firm against Gotham’s most unsavory rogues, looks back at him lost. His eyes get drawn back to his sons on the screen, “He’s so small Dick. I-” It’s rare Bruce breaks in composure and Dick’s chest squeezes. His father looks haunted.

“We’re here for him now, B.” He says gently. There are no words he could say that can erase what is already done.

They listen to Tim and Jason in the background while watching Damian help Danyal get out of bed. Once on his feet Danyal waves his twin away. He’s weak and shaky but they breathe a bit easier when his legs don’t give out underneath his body weight. The short walk to the bathroom door seemed to have winded him. Danyal reaches for the wall and presses into it while he pauses. And pauses.

Damian hasn’t rushed to his side so Dick tries not to panic. He probably needs a moment to gather himself. “Do you think we need to send Alfred down?” He asks Bruce.

“What?” Tim and Jason both looked up at him in tandem.

“Danyal! He was- well he is- fine. But look! He’s all hunched like he can’t breathe right? Why is Damian just watching?” Dick frets wringing his hands.

Attention diverted from their plans of destruction the two leave the couch and crowd around Bruce’s desk.

“Oh fuck!” Tim curses, roughly rolling Bruce’s chair away from the keyboard. “I don’t know how they did it but I think the feed was paused, or spliced or looped. I’m trying to override it- Ah! I got it!”

The feed clears and they all blink at the empty room. The bathroom door is open and Danyal’s things that were by the door are gone.

Bruce jumps out of his chair. “What were they doing right before?”

Tim pulls up the saved file and finds the moments right before the glitch. “They’re hugging?” A few lines of code and Tim has the background volume boosted. A hushed conversation in Arabic reaches their ears.

“Okay Danyal, I understand and will help you,” Damian studies his brother for a moment, “how can I help you best in this moment Danyal, what is it you want.”

They watch Danyal look around at the room, fear leaking in now that he’s not focused on the boy with him. “I can’t be here. I won’t heal.”

Bruce flinches like Danyal had hit him.

They embraced, and whatever else was said was too muffled to pick up.

They watch entranced, like a bruise you can’t help but press on, as the scene plays out and ends with Danyal leaning against the wall.

“They can’t have gotten far, the demon brat wouldn’t risk hurting his precious twin, Dickie-Bird and I can fetch the chicks that flew the nest.” Jason sighs.

Bruce’s phone rings and they all look at it with reluctance. That’s Oracle’s ringtone so it’s important. Dick swipes the device and answers with a quick, “O, we’ve got a situation, please tell me this is important.”

“Yeah it is,” Barbra agrees, “if you guys were gonna patrol why wasn’t I looped in, huh?”

Dick exchanges a confused look with the others. “Uh no, O, we agreed no patrol tonight, Black Bat, Signal, and Spoiler were our covers.”

“Then why is the Batmobile headed towards the edge of town?”

They, with years of experience fighting side by side, spring in sync for the hidden entrance and pile into the elevator to the cave to change and to track down their brothers.

~~~~~~~

Gotham was unusually muggy this evening. Bruce could feel the sweat drip down his scalp and his suit was already damp. Breath blazed through his lungs yet brought him no warmth. He had to suppress his instinct to shiver. Fear was all he could feel. It was bone chillingly familiar. Nothing like Scarecrow’s toxin yet he was still sinking deeper into glacier littered water. As Batman, Bruce has taken many hits, faced the cruel underbelly of Gotham from the shadows and had said enough. Birthed from vengeance and relentlessly courting justice, he gets back up, keeps moving, doesn’t stay down even when he probably should. No one else had managed to stand against the city’s rogues. Every night he embraces their seething rage that blistered the streets and exploded buildings. Batman turns towards danger, not away. He is the shield that protects his city's people from the impact the best he can. It’s never enough. Batman has flung himself head first into a race that had long since started.

In the rare hours he is alone surrounded by the soft glow of the Batcomputer and the quiet rustling of sleeping bats he can admit, those first years, he had enjoyed the vicious fights. Tangoing with death each night. He was entranced, he would dance until the curtain dropped. It was a destructive cycle he couldn’t escape. As he’s aged his compulsion to run off has cooled, and it was only after the first time Dick got more than just a few bruises did he realize the true cost. Even if he couldn’t stop them, perhaps he should’ve tried harder to work with his children to ensure their safety. A family of vigilantes was a double edged blade. His curse to bear. The curse he spread. Every night his heart is split into pieces and goes with them as they stalk their prey from within the shadows. His children amaze terrify him in how they’ve all risen to fight back the miasma that threatens to swallow Gotham whole.

He doesn’t know Danyal, has never learned what his favorite breakfast is or seen him off to school. They have never shared late night training sessions. His youngest has never fallen asleep sequestered away in his own world working on a case and for Bruce to find him and tuck him into bed like he has with all of his children at least once. No. He was never given a chance. Danyal’s existence was hidden from him. His death was a secret Damian was manipulated into thinking he had to carry the weight alone. And people believed Batman to be some sort of legendary detective. If Bruce was less controlled he might scoff at the thought. He missed things, big and small, all the time. Most often it was his children that were affected by his carelessness, his lack of understanding.

He knows what it is to lose a son. In death and because of his own parental ineptitude. Bruce knows what it is for his world to spin out from under his feet and to let his rage blindly guide him. Bruce risks a glance at Jason, his walking, talking, breathing miracle. Why couldn’t he just say that to the person who needed to hear it. Jason had died, it was awful, truly awful. As an adult he has never felt so lost. Jason was only a child. A brilliant, bright, life snuffed out in the cruelest way only for some universal hiccup to thrust his soul back into body and for Talia to pick him up. They’ve never talked about the Y-incision that spans his entire torso. Jason hadn’t intended for him to see it. Bruce doesn’t know who is responsible. He doesn’t know if they dare breathe another breath on Earth. He’s afraid to ask. He’s afraid of what he’ll do if they aren’t already dead. No, the only thing he knew about it was what Jason had deliriously shared with him while sick with whooping cough. The cut may have happened but that was as far as they got. His ribs remained intact, his organs undisturbed. Bruce has to trust Jason told him the truth. Bruce hadn’t had the strength to imagine alternatives.

He has no choice now. Whatever Danyal’s journey has been, wherever he’s been. Bruce despairs that his youngest’s life journey has been too similar to Jason’s. Danny had listed off to Damian the multitude of injuries he had and Bruce just knew. Two of his sons have been dehumanized, valued as objects for other’s use, to state their curiosity. His youngest didn’t just get cut into, as despicable as that already was, no, he was awake, aware, alive as some sick fuck rooted around behind his ribs. (Half-alive. His gut rolls at the implications yet it brings none of his usual suspicions to draw his attention to what his son was hiding. Only he wasn’t hiding, not from the Wayne family. No, he had shared everything with very little prompting from Damian. Danyal was running from them) Bruce could only stare at the screen in his office in horror. How fast did his regenerative ability work to regrow his harvested organs? Did he have to break wrongly healed bones and had to hold them in place until they healed enough for him to escape or did his bones snap forcefully into place on their own-

It’s a race against time now. Danyal is in no condition to be on the run. It would crush him to send him away but Bruce would. He can find a secure place away from him for his son if that’s what it took to make him feel safe enough to rest. Recovery needs to be his number one priority, he had been slowly relaxing with Damian yet as soon as he wasn’t disoriented he fled. What does that say about how he thinks they’ll treat him? What does it say about Bruce that Damain felt he could better protect his twin alone?

Bruce forces himself to reach for his comms and connects to the main comm line they use for patrols. “Everyone, change of plans, keep your eyes open for both boys. They fled from the cave in the Batmobile, hail the line immediately if they’re sighted, I don’t expect Robin to linger once it stops.” Bruce internally curses at himself that he didn’t think to have some sort of code for his youngest. He’s known for creating contingency plans for his contingency plans, yet he is not prepared for this. He could’ve never prepared himself for the knowledge he had not one blood son but two, twins. He couldn’t be too revealing incase someone was listening. “We’re in pursuit of the Batmobile now. Remember the boys are both League trained, Robin likely will have some tricks he’ll play.. The boy’s full capabilities are still unknown and he is heavily injured, proceed with caution, the boy is likely running on instinct, resistance is expected. We want to avoid making them feel cornered.” His tone is tight with worry, He doesn’t blame Danyal for being suspicious. He may be their father, but as far as he knows it wouldn’t be safe. Well, Bruce can’t blame either of them, they’re children, his children. He will blame their mother though. “We want them to get them home safe with no further injuries.”

Some very distant part of him is proud of Damian for unequivocally having his brother’s back, if only they could bond over things that didn’t shave years off his life. Bruce has never been more stressed. Some day soon he’ll just have to embrace the grey that was sprouting in his black hair and give Alfred relief from helping him hide them.

“Copy that B-man! Our eyes are peeled!” Spoiler responds “I’m currently in Burnley, Orphan’s got Somerset covered and Signal is in Old Gotham! If they’re out here we’ll find them.”

“From what Oracle sent, I think I should be able to pick something up with my powers, I’ll keep trying while we move, B.” Signal pipes in.

“Thank you Signal.” Bruce is flooded with relief. He really is lucky to have them, there’s no one else he’d rather have at his back. They’ve all grown into their own. He tries not to sigh.

Discovering the twins missing had sent them scrambling, even Jason had looked worried and tucked away his instinct to question him or to argue, his second son had simply followed them down to the cave. At this rate he may get an ulcer. He had felt panic steal his critical thinking, as he led his boys south towards where the Batmoblie was speeding away faster than they could grapple. He had to find them. Gotham isn’t safe at night and Danyal’s movements will be restricted if he deems it important not to rip his stitches.

Moving through the air usually calmed him but tonight grappling wasn’t moving him around fast enough. Taking the Batmobile was smart of his sons, he begrudgingly had to admit, not only was it faster, the boys would be hidden inside. If Robin had driven his bike he’d have superior maneuverability even though Batman could’ve followed them faster, but if the boys had impacted something during a high speed chase to flee? They’d both be thrown. Danyal is already severely injured anything additional.. Bruce couldn’t make himself focus on that.

His Trouble Twins probably planned it this way to slow them down. To throw them off their tracks. It was working, the boys had a 10 minute lead on their group. They’d left as soon as they had suited up but they still were too far out of reach. Away from the protective shadow of his cape. He couldn’t protect them now that they left the safety of the manor. Jason was cursing underneath him on the street racing past buildings on his bike, he was slightly ahead of Batman and Nightwing’s position in the air, on the bike next to him Tim was working with Barbara to try and get eyes on the boys. Quiet suggestions on what to look for. Shadows that move unnaturally, flashes of color there and gone, how they needed an algorithm up to analyze all of the feeds simultaneously. With the many cameras in Gotham-more than half Bruce had bought for the city to install- they wouldn’t be so hard to find. They shouldn't be so difficult to find, but Damian was particularly slippery when he put in the effort. Bruce glanced at his eldest besides him.

Dick was one long string pulled too tight. He, of course, was still chatting happily with Barbara but his smile was strained at the edges, his movements too careful and precise. He hasn’t joked once. The possibility the man would snap increases the longer the twins are missing. It’s rare to see Dick outwardly expressing something other than the pure sunshine and patience. By the time Jason had come around he had curbed most of his bloodlust, it was a faint memory by the time Tim weaseled his way into their lives. It reminds Bruce too much of Brucie. The persona that he developed to hide from the vultures that would’ve taken everything from him as a child when tragedy struck. Before Bruce had decided to be active in Gotham’s social scene he knew it was better they underestimate poor orphaned Bruce Wayne. Brucie hid Batman, a shield to protect his family from those who would expose their secrets. He was necessary, even if Bruce felt suffocated most of the time. Was Dick hiding from him?

He has to suppress a shutter. All his children to some degree, whether on or off the streets, have adapted to Batman’s mannerisms and habits. It was essential to survive facing the threats they do. Dick though fell more into Bruce’s habits. His eldest son, who with a smile looked after his siblings while Bruce was distracted by some crisis or another.They both often blamed themselves for things they couldn’t stop or foresee. That heavy invisible weight that sits on their shoulders because they claimed it. Bruce knows that he’s failed his children, Dick.. Dick in particular has had to step up on his behalf to smooth things over between family members. Forced to become another parent to the kids he brought home. It was never Dick’s responsibility and it’s taken time and a lot of effort but Bruce is making steps forward, trying to stop repeating the same mistakes. It was only Alfred’s guidance and help raising the boy that he excelled instead of crumbling under Bruce’s incompetence. Bruce was trying though. Even if it was hard to talk about casually, he was in therapy, it was.. Helping. He’s not putting so much of himself onto his children these days. He’s been processing his thoughts and feelings instead of bottling them inside and letting his anger rule him.

Words though, they still escaped him on the best days. Today was shaping up into an absolutely horrible one. Bruce wanted to say something to reassure his sons that things would be okay. None sounded right. He let them choke him. If they could just find Danyal. As much as it would pain Bruce, his youngest doesn’t have to stay with them-with him. Bruce could never trap him here. He… He just wants Danyal to recover. Recover and be safe, whatever that looks like. The boy looked so small next to Damian. They’re twins and Danyal was so small on that bed next to his brother, all skin and bones, his skin stretched over his face making him look years older and the blood, oh God, it took a second but once they realized all that green was coming from inside of him, Bruce was sure they were going to be planning another funeral. The Y-shaped wound was gruesome and he had stared in shock. Another one of his children getting cut open, violated. Vivisected. He was going to mourn another child. He was going to puke. He was going to destroy those who dared to touch Danyal. A heady mix of vengeance and justice for a boy he’d never properly meet. Somehow though, the boy had stabilized. His boy, another one. He’s too old for surprise kids. Only to be spirited away by Damian behind layers and layers of traps that had made the family hesitate and then they were gone, on the run with Alfred’s careful stitches being the only thing holding Danyal together.

What were they thinking? Why wasn’t I? Why didn’t I fight Damian harder when he locked them out of the recovery room? No…Danyal was already compromised. Damian saw this and ran from his family because he didn’t trust them to protect Danyal, didn’t trust them not to set him off. Maybe they would’ve made it worse, maybe his son was right even if Bruce didn’t want to admit it. Damian was saving them from an error. The boy who he had only met unconscious or through a screen, would’ve lashed out at himself again and they would’ve caused his-

“B? The Batmobile’s tracker has stopped moving on the edge of Burnside near the Craig Bridge. I can’t get a clear view.” Oracle reports

“Hn.” He adjusts his trajectory and his sons follow suit, adjusting their positions to be out behind him in a V-shaped formation. If someone were to see them at this hour they’d see the vigilantes and would draw parallels between them and their namesakes, in normal circumstances it might bring a ghost of a smile across his face, they were a mixed bag flock. His flock. His family. He was thankful to have them at his back tonight. They’d find the boys, they had to. They still had nothing on the threat that was nipping at Danyal’s heels. If they were caught…

“Why would the Demon Brats go there?” Jason grumbles. They’re three blocks away now so Bruce has to fight his nausea down. They might have to subdue the boys if they won’t listen to reason. The idea of injuring Danyal further or obliterating any chance to build a relationship because he sees them as a threat rather than family. He has to stay firm though. He might have not been allowed in the room but between Alfred’s worried fretting and the security feed Bruce is very aware how Danyal shouldn’t be moving let alone going on the run with Damian. If Danyal would just let him explain he had options maybe he’d come back on his own.

“Hood, Red Robin, hang back and spread out. Start searching. I’d like to have our newest addition to Agent A within the hour. Nightwing with me.”

His grapple connects to the next roof and he leans into the arc so his path can wrap around the corner. Just ahead the Batmobile is stopped. The doors were open, no signs of the boys or of a struggle. Bruce knows they won’t find anything inside the Batmobile, Damian is efficient and clean in his work, but they look anyway. Bruce shares a look with his oldest and sighs.

“Nothing in the Batmobile, Hood, Red Robin, report.” He shoots his grapple at the closest roof to get a better view of the surrounding area, Nightwing follows closely behind him.

“Nothing that I can see.” Hood grunts.

“Nothing here either, no alerts from the cameras.” Red Robin sounds frustrated, “You don’t think they bailed in a dead zone, do you? Robin wouldn’t have him jump from a speeding vehicle, right?”

“Hn.” Bruce refuses to acknowledge that thought. Even if it was a likely option, if they felt it necessary to throw them off to that degree. Dick is quiet next to him. He wants to say the right thing to ease his worries. Bruce has never been good at finding the right words, to reassure without false promises but will always try, “We’ll figure out what happened, Chum.”

Dick looks at him for a long moment. Bruce lets him and tries not to shutter himself away. Dick needs Bruce more than Batman right now. “Yeah,” It comes out grim, “before or after my youngest brother reopens something?”

Bruce squeezes his son’s shoulder before turning away and shoots his grapple at the next roof. Right before he jumps he says, “We can only hope the boys are being careful and try our best to find them.”

#daydreamsandcrashingwaves #dc x dp #jason todd #tim drake #dick grayson #bruce wayne #batpham #demon twins au #danny fenton whump #danny and damian are twins #Keeping it close to the chest #fic writing #KICTTC fic #KICTTC update #my writing #lets just say this is more of a sneak peak ;3 #danny fenton #damian wayne #WHERE DID THEY GO BWAHAHAHHAHa

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rogerswifesblog · 11 months

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A/N: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO @jamneuromain here’s a little gift for you. I hope you’ll enjoy the first one shot of the little kinda series. It was supposed to be a one shot but I didn’t finish it on time so…now it’ll be a two/three chapter series! I hope you’re enjoying your birthday. I wish you the best. I won’t specify what exactly because everything what happens should be the best! Meet the best people, make the best memories and the best experiences!!!!

Between the bookshelves

My Masterlist

A/N: it’s not beta read:) there’ll be mistakes, be prepared:)

Pairing: Mob Ari Levinson x bookshop/café owner reader

Series Summary: You’re a small-town-girl living in a big city, owning her own (somewhat successful) book- and coffee-shop, a dream you had been following for years. Some of the books are little works of your own, but nobody really knew it and nobody really read them, being just small stories between bestselling novels.

And yet there was a specific client that couldn’t put down your books.

The Saturday mornings were mostly quiet and got a bit more busy in the noon, where people start waking up or curing their hangovers-for some reason you had noticed everyone liked doing it in your little coffee shop. The quiet atmosphere, smell of coffee, cake and books was calming for the people. It was just good for their headaches. Just some time to themselves. Just some…peace. That’s how you could describe your shop. Peaceful.

Most of the time they would buy a coffee, maybe a sandwich or something sweet and would sit for a while, sometimes with their headphones on, sometimes with their eyes closed or other times watching the people walk past the windows.

You enjoyed watching people.

The older people that came by because your place had an older aesthetic, the walls made from old brick stone, the shelves and tables dark wood, the couches, loveseats, armchairs and chairs all being rather vintage than modern. Always ordering the apple pie from your grandma’s recipe. Could they taste like it was an old recipe? Did it taste differently from the other pies?

You also liked watching the business people rolling their eyes during calls or while typing something on their laptops. It was really entertaining. You also always gave them a free muffin if they spilled their coffee on some (probably important) documents.

So to say, everyone liked coming here, for whatever reasons. Maybe to drink your coffee, maybe to have some peace or forget what was happening in their busy lives, instead wanting to escape in one of the books. In your cafe was everything possible, they could just drink their coffee and enjoy some snacks or disappear in a fantasy world with witches, mermaids and vampires or into a simple romance or thriller. Whatever they wanted.

And then there was him.

He came here to see you smile. To hear your voice. To get to know you.

But until now he never actually spoke to you. Not unless it was to tell you his order.

And that’s it.

Ari was the head of the mob and yet he got cold feet when it came to talking to a pretty girl.

Usually he had no problems with talking to women, even targets or other dealers but you ... .it's like he was his teenage self again (or even worse, because he actually wasn’t that nervous back then.)

He didn’t want to mess it up too soon, since you seemed like a very nice person and probably wouldn’t approve of his work. So he wanted to show you his best side-even though he didn’t know how long he’d be able to hide his true identity.

And more important, how long he’d manage to keep you safe. That was his biggest concern. That’s also why he didn’t know if he should approach you.

For now it was enough to sit in your café and watch you from afar. Like a total creep.

Ari sighed, hitting his forehead on the table with a quiet thud. What the hell was he doing? He was making a total fool of himself? He’d now go to the counter and ask for your number.

Determined he stood up and did as planned. “Hi, may I ask for-“ “Y/N, the muffins are ready!”, shouted someone from what he assumed was the kitchen. You smiled apologetically. “Give me a minute”, with that you disappeared for a moment, coming back with a plate filled with muffins.

A bright smile crept once again onto your lips when you saw the beautiful stranger still waiting at the counter. He was one of your regulars and yet you never catched his name. Nor anything else beside his usual order. “Another cappuccino?”, you saw him opening his mouth, before nodding. “Yeah, another cappuccino, thank you”, he smiled, brushing his hair behind his ear before taking out his card.

He definitely noticed the muffin decorated with heart sprinkles to his coffee, that he hadn’t ordered. Also, he got your name. This was more than he had actually expected.

And this muffin definitely meant something, right?

You watched him for a second from behind the counter, before needing to go clean up a table. You hoped he had seen the number written on the handkerchief.

He didn’t. He threw it away.

But you didn’t know that. You imagined he threw it away on purpose. Maybe he felt awkward? Or even uncomfortable? God, you have messed up. What if he’d never come back again?

Sighing you looked out of the window imagining the beautiful man talking to you about something different than just his usual order.

Two weeks. Two whole weeks Ari couldn’t go to your café and it made him crazy. Even though he didn’t know you, he missed your sweet smile. The słuchały oversized pink hoodie you liked wearing, especially when it was a bit colder, how you always wore your hair in a bun or ponytail, showing off your beautiful rosy cheeks. The way your eyes lightened up when you talked to him-he didn’t know if it was something that happened with every customer, but he liked imagining this sparkle was just for him.

Maybe it was.

Maybe it wasn’t.

But he hoped it was.

When the quiet bell sounded as he entered the café you lifted your head, having been caught up in messaging someone while there was some quiet time in the shop. There were only a few customers busy with eating and drinking, some others reading some books.

He walked up to the counter, opening his mouth to greet you, but his voice broke when he saw your slightly rosy cheeks, the soft smile on your lips. “Hello, the usual?”, you smiled at him, making him even more speechless so he just nodded.

For fucks sake what was happening to him. How the hell could you make him speechless with just a smile even though he was able to talk to twenty men with guns in hands and files longer than some restaurant menus.

Sighing, he walked to his usual table, hanging off his jacket over the chair before walking to the shelves, looking for a new book.

He found one about a complicated love story between a college student and her professor, from what he could read in the summary-but it wasn’t the plot that surprised him.

It was your picture.

You were the author.

Ari immediately took it and walked with it over to his table where he immediately started reading. He wasn’t really into romance stuff, but it was your book. It was a piece of you, in a way, and he wanted to know something about you. About the relationship you seek, the gestures that made your breath hitch and what made your heart flutter.

So he started reading.

Within a few pages he was already pulled into the story, completely losing himself in the story, interested in the problematic relationship the main characters had. Just when the main character was supposed to meet with her professor you walked up to his table with a coffee and muffin that he hadn’t ordered.

When he looked up at you and slightly closed the book you could see he was reading your book. Your cheeks turned a dark red color. Usually it wouldn’t matter who read your book but him-not him. He wasn’t supposed to know about the things you liked, about your desires and-about your sexual preferences! Jesus. Maybe he hadn’t read who the author was?

At this point you’d rather just go to bed and never leave it again. Like, really, never.

Sighing you walked back behind the counter, not noticing the lingering gaze on you.

Three hours later, Ari was still busy with the book. At this point the story was so addictive he couldn’t put it down. The main character was a total sweetheart and the professor-god what a dick he was. Such a liar. Even though he had already messed up once, he didn’t tell his lover he still had a wife. Okay, yes, they were divorcing soon but still-he should’ve told his girlfriend about it. It’s a detail you should mention. Preferably from the beginning and not letting the girlfriend find out because the wife walked into his apartment?? Jesus!

He scoffed at the book and wanted to turn the page when his phone rang. “Levinson”, he listened to his friend about having found out who had stolen guns and other weapons from him. Ari could tell his frown deepened with every second, the vein on his forehead already pulsing from anger. Fury, even. He tried to be a good man. Really. Holding back all the time-but having one of his men betray him…this was too much. It was-

“Do you want a refill?” Your sweet voice interrupted his racing thoughts, his nerves immediately calming down, the frown disappearing. Instead a smile reappeared on his lips. “I can’t. I have to go and get some …business stuff done”, he said, already standing up. It was the first time you two were so close to each other.

His Perfume smelled overpowering, but in a surprisingly good way. It made you crave this man even more than before. The smell was just heavenly. You couldn’t stop yourself from breathing it in deeply, nearly closing your eyes to enjoy it for a bit longer but instead you looked into Ari’s bright eyes. He was taller than you, bigger than you. He towered over you, but you didn’t feel threatened. You felt safe.

Fuck. Your crush was turning into something much worse.

Little did you know that’s exactly what Ari thought too.

It’s not really unusual for him being taller or bigger than someone, but with you it’s like something inside him awoke. The need to keep you close. Keep you safe. He knew how dangerous the world could be, especially for a woman like you. But he could take care of you.

He’d love to wrap his arms around you, bury his nose against your neck and inhale your sweet smell, feel your soft skin…

He had it bad. So, so bad.

A last smile crept onto his lips before he grabbed his jacket and walked over to the door, looking once again back at you meeting your gaze. You blushed at that, making Ari’s heart pound.

He’ll ask for your number. Next time when he’ll be here.

But he didn’t. The next time, two days later, he just drank his coffee and read the book. Ari was Never this curious about a book but yours was just…incredible. The love story, the whole plot. Unbelievable. And also…thinking you had such a…interesting view of sex made him curious if you’d do the things in real life, too.

Were you into the same things as the main character? Spanking? Dom and sub dynamics in real life? Being called a good girl? Fuck, he really tried not to think about these things at night. (He failed sometimes.)

“Would you like some apple pie?”, you sweet voice made him lift his head. “Oh, sure, how much-“ “no, no, that’s on the house…it’s a gift. From me.” Your gentle tone made his heart throb, while he nodded. “Thank you.”

While he watched you walk away he wasn’t sure what to do next. You were such a kind and sweet person. And he was…he wasn’t good. Far from that, actually. You two couldn’t be more different. While you were a gentle soul that gave away the food that was left after a shift to the homeless, he was capable of torturing people without blinking an eye. He was cruel, cold and furious.

He wasn’t good enough for you. He knew. And he knew he’d only make your life miserable and dangerous. Maybe he already did with spending so much time at your café. Your worlds were too far from each other for you to date. Or even be friends.

“Here you go-enjoy”, once again did your voice pull him out of his thoughts-and a gentle touch on his shoulder. “Thank you, sweetheart.”

Fuck. It just slipped. From all the reading-he forgot. It was unbelievable how your whole being influenced his behavior, how you were able to make him forget about his whole being.

Just when he wanted to apologise a shy but bright smile formed on your lips, a slight blush slowly creeping over your cheeks. Without saying anything else you squeezed his shoulder for a second before stepping away from his table, being called over by an older couple.

Even though he really wanted to read more, his phone was getting blow up with messages about the recent thefts. They knew who caused them but not where he was hiding. The fact that it was one of his men still angried him, even more because nobody could find him.

But he needed the stolen things back. ASAP. Otherwise even he could get in trouble-which didn’t happen often.

He looked at the pie, smiling as he noticed the little heart you had drawn with whipped cream. The thought of not being able to have you made his heart crumble a little.

Why couldn’t he be just a simple man with a simple life?

Because he liked the luxurious life he had.

But maybe he could try the simple way of living for once?

Oh who was he lying to, everyone he knew would say he’d never have a standard live. He liked having an expensive car, the newest phone, eating out especially in nice restaurants or nice vacations somewhere far away.

He was curious about what you liked. Maybe he could invite you to his favourite restaurant? Seeing you in a elegant long dress, your beautiful neck exposed…maybe covered in some little hickeys, marks ... ..or maybe a simple and decent day collar. Just a neck with a little ring…only the people involved would understand-and maybe some people would even compliment your necklace, not knowing what it meant.

Ari’s whole chest tingled with need.

But he didn’t want to destroy your life by pulling into the mess he was in.

Sighing he took a little bite from the pie, immediately closing his eyes in pleasure. It tasted incredible. Perfect even.

He hadn't had such a good pie in a long time.

Ari ate the pie within a few minutes, not having enough time to eat in peace since his phone was ringing all the time.

Once again when he left he could feel your lingering gaze on his back.

Next time. He’d talk to you next time.

You promised the same thing to yourself…and your best employee-well, best friend, because she couldn’t handle listening to your venting about Ari anymore.

This time he couldn’t come to your café for over two weeks, since he was after Alex, the thief. And he didn’t have much time to relax. Especially not in your café, also he didn’t want to come closer in case someone was following him-which he believed was possible seeing what was happening.

But he really missed you, even though you hadn’t had a real conversation yet. It’s just…your smile could brighten his mood, it didn’t matter how bad the day was.

When he finally visited your place again the first thing he noticed was how your frown disappeared and how you leaned over the counter slightly. “Hello! Long time no see”, you grinned at him.

Ari chuckled at your enthusiasm, immediately feeling how your presence cheered him up. “Yeah I had a lot of stuff going on…it’s complicated. I’m just glad I can finally drink a coffee here…sit, enjoy the atmosphere here…it’s probably the only place where I feel like I can forget about the whole mess with-…you know, life”, he mumbled, shaking his head slowly.

When he took out his wallet your hand touched his and you slowly pushed it away. “It’s fine, this one's on me…maybe we could…sit a bit together? Talk?”, you smiled gently, seeing how the gears in the man’s head started doing their job.

“Sounds very nice, yes. I’d love to sit and talk a bit…”, he didn’t sound entirely sure about it, but you believed him anyway. Maybe he really had a bad day. “Perfect, then you can go sit down and I’ll be with you in a minute.”

After he did what said you started preparing the coffees and a piece of brownie for each. He’d definitely like it. At least you hoped he would.

“I’m pretty sure we never really introduced-I’m Y/N, nice to meet you”, when you finally sat down Ari turned his phone around so the screen wouldn’t be visible. You really hoped he wasn’t hiding a wife or kid. Or both? Let’s not be paranoid…but still…

Ari smiled at you, pushing his phone even further away. It’s not like you’d grab it and read his messages? This guy was a bit suspicious…but you knew not to judge a book by its cover. “I’m Ari, it’s nice to meet you. I wanted to talk to you for a while now…I couldn’t never really get myself to do it”, he chuckled, making you unintentionally but your lip a bit.

Did it mean he liked you just as much as you liked him?

“I’m glad. I was curious if we’d ever say more to each other than your usual order”, your words made him chuckle again and he shook his head a bit. “Yeah that…I don’t really like changes and besides, your coffee is really good. When I find a place I like, I don’t like changing things.” Ari took a sip from his coffee to prove his point-and once again the coffee was as good as always.

He noticed how seemingly pleased you were with this simple compliment. Wasn’t it obvious how good everything here was? Especially the barista…which he wouldn’t say out loud, but he’d think about it.

“What will happen to them? Will they have a Happy End?” Ari lifted the book he had once again taken from the shelf. One of your first pieces you had tried to write and actually finish. But you were still slightly insecure sometimes-especially when the person reading was someone you’d rather like to impress.

You shrugged slowly, a teasing smirk creeping over your lip. “I guess you’ll have to come here often and finish it yourself. I won’t spoil the ending for you. What’s the fun in reading it then?” Ari shook his head amused.

“I rather like knowing what’s coming, you know? To prepare myself for it, the same in real life-especially my business. It sucks to know that you’re being lied to”, he had no idea why he was telling you this but it felt good. It’s like his heart was speaking for him, even though his brain was screaming at him to shut up and preferably leave you alone.

But he listened to his heart, for once. He wanted to listen to his heart this one time.

You placed your hand over his, squeezing gently. “I understand. It must be hard having someone close betray you…if I may ask, what did he do? And where do you two work?”, you asked. Curiosity was never your best trait, but to your defence ari was the one speaking about it first. You had the right to ask…right?

Ari stilled for a second, looking down at his phone, then his coffee, hands, back at his phone and finally back at you. “It’s office work, but I can’t tell you much more about it”, you could tell he was lying right to your face.

Did you care about it? Did you see the red flags and decided to ignore them?

Nobody ever said you always made the right choices.

“I understand. Still sucks being lied too by someone important”, you squeeze his hand again.

At least he wasn’t wearing a wedding ring. Maybe this weird gut feeling was from nervousness and not…something else. He seemed like a nice and charming guy.

On the other hand…

So did Ted Bundy.

You quickly shook those thoughts away…for now.

To your surprise you two talked for nearly two hours, before the café started to be flooded by customers and you had to go back to work. Ari left you his number, telling you to call him when you’d need any help…or just to talk.

Happily you enjoyed the rest of the shift, already thinking about texting Ari later in the evening.

Thank you for reading!

I Hope you liked it! Let me know! Support your content creators by reblogging and leaving feedback:)

Taglist: @magnificentsaladllama @jaqui-has-a-conspiracy-theory @lilsiz

#ari levinson x you #ari levinson x y/n #ari levinson #ari levinson x reader #ari levinson one shot #ari levinson series #mob ari levinson #mafia boss ari levinson #café au #coffee shop

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hoes4hoseok · 1 year

Text

txt reacts: you’re preparing for finals

boyfriend!txt x gn!reader requested by :: @unlocktxt (thanks for requesting, babes!) beta reader :: @goldenhypen (thank you for your feedback :) author’s note :: writing this was genuinely so fun and managed to relax me while i was actually losing my mind over finals 😭. dhmu about how inconsistent the tenses are i know they're bad HAHA i hope you guys enjoy and good luck to everyone taking finals now or soon! warnings :: a lot of food and eating habits talk,, i think that's it though. lmk if i need to add anything.

soobin

soobin would be so sweet while you were prepping for finals

if you were struggling with something that he didn’t understand, he’d literally spend 15 minutes on the computer with a pen & paper in hand trying to figure it out

&& then he’d call you over to explain it but get confused in the middle

but by that time you’d understand & explain it to him (◡‿◡✿)

you’d probably have many visits to the library since it’s more quiet (& less messy) there than the dorms

you’d also share earbuds while you worked

every once in a while, amongst the slow tracks, a random banger like ‘that that’ by psy would play & the two of you would be sent into a fit of laughter that you tried so hard to contain

luckily, the librarian never busted you

although it did earn a few looks from elsewhere in the room (whoops)

he’s also definitely the type of boyfriend who makes you really good tea

&& it probably became a very important part of your day (because how could it not?! the tea was amazing)

he would prioritize sleep quite a bit, so lights are off for him by 11 every night during finals week

&& that rubbed off on you!

the days would end with an episode of your favorite show playing on his laptop while you drifted off to sleep on his bed together (。-ω-)zzz

stress be gone!

yeonjun

if you were in a long distance relationship with yeonjun, you & him would have planned for him to fly in the night your finals ended

but yeonjun found a cheaper flight for the week before :) so naturally, he bought it!

he was so excited to surprise you, especially because he knew how stressed out you were from the several late night facetime calls you had

&& you were indeed happy to see your boyfriend at your doorstep with takeout from your favorite restaurant in hand

it improved your week tenfold just seeing his face (ꉺᗜꉺ)

he, on the other hand, while happy to see you, was shocked to see how poorly you had been taking care of yourself

considering the dark circles under your eyes & the fact that you were in pajamas at 3 pm,, he knew something was off

&& you, as every student does at one point or another, were living on instant ramen & cereal — he could tell from the state of your dorm alone (╯•﹏•╰)

you didn’t plan for him to find out because he tends to worry about you a lot <3 (SORRY JUN)

&& the ‘less than 6 hours of sleep during finals week’ thing was pretty standard for people at your school

“eat with me” ( •_•)

he set the bag down on your table & looked at you with the playfully threatening stare that you had missed so much

“then i’m getting groceries while you nap” he continued, looking over at your kitchen area

oh wow had you missed your boyfriend

it only came to you when you felt as helpless & overwhelmed as right now

but you needed him. & so, you pulled him in for a tight hug, cutting off his mumbles about the lack of fruit in your kitchen (づ ◕‿◕ )づ

oh, how he loved you <3

beomgyu

beomgyu would not want you to overwork yourself. obviously.

but,, if you were gonna be pulling all nighters & working your butt off, so was he

y’all are in this TOGETHER (｡-_-｡ )人( ｡-_-｡)

he strikes me as the type to know those random life hacks so he might come to you excited with studying ones HEHE

like he’d tell you to chew a different flavor of gum while studying & then chew it again during the exam so you can remember the content better

&& ofc you’d comply to make him happy, but a few of them definitely helped you!

you two probably made plans to go on a little getaway together after the semester ended

so whenever you seemed particularly down, he’d remind you that you’d be miles away from all this in just a week :)

beomgyu is 100% the one making ramen runs to the kitchen (he made sure to stock up before finals week!)

&& he makes yours with the little modifications that you like, whether it’s extra spice, an egg, or some chopped vegetables – he’s got it all

he’s got flashcards, he’s got tea, he’s got hugs…& he’s also an absolute pain in your side when it comes to sleep

ಠಿ_ಠ “it’s 1:30…you said you’d sleep at 1:00”

he’d have to physically pull you away from your work sometimes

it wasn’t hard either because you were so tired that your eyes were closing

he’d probably sleep in the mornings of your exams,, but would slice some fruit for you to eat before going to bed

&& leave a little note of encouragement on a sticky note with a couple sticks of gum next to it :)

“good luck. you’re gonna ace this test. love you ♡”

taehyun

you & taehyun had a whole finals prep schedule planned out. this man was not about to let you fail any of your classes or fail any himself

so, your finals prep started at least a month early

he’d be up at seven am shaking you awake & threatening to pour his water on you ʘ‿ʘ

even though he knew you’d tackle him to the floor if he actually poured it

once you finally rose, he’d give you a quick forehead kiss & push you off towards the bathroom to brush your teeth

you’d eat breakfast & start working relatively quickly

the two of you quickly realized that the pomodoro method worked best for you – finishing a task in 25 minutes, taking a five minute break, & repeating three times before taking a 20 to 30 minute break (y’all should try it frfr)

by noon, you’d be internally thanking him for waking you,, bc as much as you hated to admit it,, you are definitely more productive in the morning

&& on taehyun’s plan, you were actually getting enough sleep somehow?

&& he definitely had special allocated time slots in the schedule for personal time & date nights so that you two wouldn’t get burnt out

the routine definitely got harder to keep up with as finals inched closer & he could tell

so he took you for a much-needed massage the day before finals started to destress (°◡°♡)

&& as expected, y’all would CRUSH finals week

he’d be so proud <3 but also he knew you would succeed bc of how hard you worked!

[honestly this is such a dream. i made taehyun my dream bf in this LMFAO but hey he already is so…]

hueningkai

hueningkai would be there for you during your breaks. sure, he’d help you with the flashcards if you asked him, but he’d support you most by making you smile!

he’d make sure there’s always food in the fridge, especially if your schedules didn’t line up & he couldn’t eat with you

hueningkai would also give GREAT back massages & it’s all because he would NOT hold back ᕙ(⇀‸↼‶)ᕗ no knots would be left when he’s done

&& he’d probably also put on your favorite show or music while he did it which would be really odd at first, but you’d grow to appreciate it hehe

he’d also go on a walk with you every night to help you unwind

that would always do you wonders, especially after being cooped up inside all day

it would also be a time when the two of you could finally talk about something other than everything stressing you out (because boy, had it become all-consuming)

on the mornings of your finals, he’d walk you to class & buy you your favorite drink with a bagel or donut on the way

if you got really anxious before going in, he’d hold your hand tightly & tell you to take deep breaths

&& to remember that you’re prepared & that one test will not matter in the grand scheme of things

he’d also send you in with a hug & a peck on the cheek. (´ ᴗ｀✿)

masterlist

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starlostastronaut · 8 months

Text

━ THERE'S NO ONE ELSE

PAIRING: idol!chan x reader

GENRE: angst with happy ending, hurt/comfort

WC: 1.8k

CW: f-word (3x), use of y/n (4x), both cry at some point, reader gets called baby (1x)

SUMMARY: you and chan have been hapily dating, keeping your relationship a secret from the world. but it was only a matter of time before someone would make a mistake

the long awaited chris fic is finally here! it was inspired by i scare myself - beth crowley, title is also from it. i know this type of fic has been done a lot of times, but i wanted to take my own spin on it. and huge thank you to ven and clover for beta and saving my grammar <3 enjoy reading! <3

masterlist here

It was not like any of you had planned it. It just happened during one of Chan's Rooms. Jisung had crashed Chan's broadcast, which was not the issue itself as he had done it in the past. The real problem arose when Chan began reading STAY's pick up lines out loud like usual. After a couple of especially flirty ones, Jisung uttered something along the lines of "Not sure Y/N would like that."

Jisung had half the mind to immediately clasp his hands in front of his mouth. With panic in his eyes, Chan tried to change the topic immediately, but it was to no use. The chat was flooded with comments asking who you were and why Jisung mentioned you. After an intense and desperate silent debate through eye contact with someone off camera, Chan abruptly ended the live.

You were watching the whole scene unfold in the comfort of your bedroom. When you got the notification that Chan was going live, you had not expected this in the slightest. You were excited to see his face again and maybe send some flirty comments in the chat only for him to understand.

Yet there you were, helplessly staring at the screen of your laptop. You felt tears beginning to come down your cheeks. What you always dreaded was now becoming a reality. With your name out there, it was only a matter of time before someone would connect the dots and realize that you are dating Chan.

Your phone went off next to you. When you looked at it, you realized it was a Bubble message. Chan was apologizing to STAY for ending the live due to his internet connection crashing. You stiffened a laugh. It was such a weak excuse and no one would ever fall for it, but you had to give Chan points for the effort.

Despite cheering you up a bit, the message only served as a reminder of your current situation. You contemplated calling Chan, but you ultimately decided not to. You were sure he had a lot to deal with at the moment. You could talk to him in the morning. For now it would be best if you just went to sleep, because there was nothing you could do to help, not right now at least. You turned off your phone before putting it away for the night, knowing that if you don’t, you would be tempted to check the internet for any updates.

Though the questions and thoughts had not ceased even after you were in your bed, your Wolfchan plushie soundly lying next to you.

What is going to happen now?

Will you and Chan have to break up?

What will this mean for his career?

☆ ☆ ☆

To say Chan was panicking would be an understatement. As soon as the broadcast ended, Jisung began apologizing, but Chan was only half listening.

He just sat there, looking at the dark screen, his thoughts racing. Absentmindedly, he sent a quick apology to Bubble before trying to concentrate on the manager, who was talking to someone on the phone. He realized Jisung wasn't here anymore; his manager must have sent him away. His mind, however, eventually brought him back to his relationship, and he began sending texts, hoping you would be awake. Or not. Another part of him wished that you were sleeping and that you were allowed to stay in the bubble of happiness you two built just for a while longer.

"It's not good, Chan-ah," the manager said as soon as he hung up. "The name is out. There's not much we can do now."

Chan stopped the rapid tapping of his fingers. "What... what does the company say?" He looked at the manager with fear in his eyes.

"Legally, you've earned the right to a relationship. The ban is over, you know that. It's your choice. But I'm telling you this as a friend; don't make the wrong one." The manager patted him on the shoulder before walking over to the door. "Go home, Chan. Staying up won't do any good."

The door clicked shut, and Chan was left alone in the studio room. Glancing over at his phone, he decided to stop the wave of messages for tonight. He promised himself to try calling you tomorrow, but for now, he should let you sleep. The manager was right; the solution wouldn't come to him by helplessly sitting in the studio. And he probably had a distressed Jisung back at the dorm, who thought he had fucked everything up.

As he packed his things and got ready to leave, the thought of what he had to do suddenly dawned on him. Wiping a tear from his eye, he turned off the lights in the studio.

☆ ☆ ☆

In the morning, you woke up to a series of loud bangs on your front door. You rolled over in the bed, a groan escaping your lips as you picked up your phone, looking at the time.

It was barely past six in the morning, and you had fifteen missed calls and triple the amount of new messages. All from the same number. Chan.

Realizing it must be him behind your door, you got up. Grabbing a hoodie (Chan's, he forgot it there about a week ago), you headed out of the room to greet the visitor.

"Chris, it's so early, what-" you said, opening the door. You barely got a sentence out before his arms wrapped you in a tight, desperate hug, Chan burying his face in your neck.

"I'm so sorry, Y/N. I'm so fucking sorry," he kept whispering into your skin, pressing you closer to his body. You were hit with the realization that this must have been about yesterday's slip up. Fuck indeed. Not knowing what to do at the moment, you just maneuvered the two of you to your couch. You let him hug you, cling to you like you're a lifeline keeping him from drowning, one of your hands rubbing his back while you murmured that it's okay, again and again. You would let Chan calm down on his own before talking about anything.

You didn't know for how long you sat on the couch, but at some point you cleared your throat, asking Chan if he wanted some water. He nodded, prompting you to untangle yourself from his arms and make your way to the sink.

As you handed him the glass a moment later, you noticed his wet cheeks. He was crying. You sat down next to him. "Oh Chris, it's okay. I promise," you said sweetly, bringing your hand to his hair. Your fingers slowly carded through his hair, soothing him. You knew it always helped him and this time was no different. The corners of your mouth lifted a bit when you felt Chan softly lean into the touch. When he put the glass on the coffee table, you leaned in to press a chaste kiss to his temple. Chan reached for your hand, intertwining your fingers in a firm hold.

"You know," he said. It wasn't a question, rather an observation.

You nodded. "I watched." It was just a whisper, but with the silence of your apartment and the weight of the situation, it almost felt the same as shouting.

Chan let out a sigh. "Then… You know what I have to do." He squeezed your hand tighter. "I hate doing this, but I can't… I can't protect you otherwise. Y/N… I love you so much, baby. Please remember that." Chan leaned forward and pressed his lips to yours, one last time. It was a passionate, desperate kiss. He tried to put all of his love for you in that one moment of contact, because he knew he wouldn't have a chance to again.

When he pulled away, his eyes stayed focused on your hands. He couldn't do it. He couldn't look you in the eyes after what he just did, knowing that if he did, he would take it all back. But he had to protect you and this was the only way. Chan hoped you knew. He took a deep breath and then stood up, pulling his hand from yours.

As he walked to the door, you were left sitting there, reality slowly sinking in. Chan just broke up with you. It was for your own good, you knew that, of course you knew that. He was just trying to protect you and this was the only way he knew how. That didn't mean it hurt any less.

"No." Your voices echoed in the room, Chan freezing with one hand on the door handle.

"They'll hunt you down, Y/N," he whispered. "Hell, they already started." He was still turned away from you, the pose all too familiar. He did that every time he had to deliver bad news. You knew it meant that if he looked at you, the dam would break.

"I don't care. I don't care, Chan," you said, surprising yourself with your boldness. "I can take it. I knew what I was getting into when we started dating and I know it now. And I know I'll be alright as long we go through this together."

You watched Chan's hand slowly fall from the door handle, curling into a fist at his side. His other hand came to rest on the door and he placed his forehead on his forearm.

"You don't know that," he whispered. "You don't know what the fandom is capable of. I love you so much. I'm doing this for you, as much as I hate it."

You stood up. For a moment the only sound was your soft footsteps. You stopped behind Chan, keeping him at arm's reach. "Look, Christopher," you said, trying your best to hide the shaking of your voice, "if you really want to break up with me, I will accept it, because it's your choice and I’ll respect it. But please, please don't do it if you believe there's even a tiny chance of this working out."

You took a deep breath and wiped away the tears that were starting to come out. "I don't want to lose you. I can't lose you," you muttered with a quivering voice.

Chan turned around, showing you his puffy eyes and tear-streaked face. "Are you sure?" he asked, desperation lacing the tone of his voice. "Are you absolutely sure you can do this?"

"No. But we can."

Chan sighed. He gestured for you to come closer and enveloped you in a hug. "Good. I can't lose you too," he mumbled into your hair. He pulled away to place a gentle kiss on your forehead before pressing you close again. "You know I'd do anything to keep you, right? I just wanted to protect you."

"I know, Chris," you hummed. You felt your heart slowing down its rapid beating and your whole body relaxing. The side effect of being in Chan's arms. "We'll protect each other."

©starlostastronaut 2023 | do not repost/translate my work without permission

#bang chan #bang chan x reader #stray kids #stray kids fanfic #bang chan fanfic #angst #angst with a happy ending #hurt/comfort

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ronearoundblindly · 1 year

Note

Hello 😇 I'm not sure why but heart would MELT upon seeing Steve giving Precious some of ⛑ oooooor Ari and his girl getting/giving some 🥰 Hope you're doing well - and no pressure (those scenarios already live rent-free in my head)

(Steve and Precious will be posted separately and linked back here when it's done, but I got too excited because I pretty much just eased myself to sleep by writing this...Enjoy!)

Ari Levinson x best friend!reader

Post-Nightmare Cuddles, a Bedrock and Blueprints drabble

Warnings for mild suggestive language. WC 620

It’s been a long, long time since Ari had a nightmare.

He’s not sure how he managed it. Perhaps work and personal things just took over his mind for so long that thoughts back to life in the military were kept at bay. Perhaps he ate something too spicy tonight. Who the hell knows.

You certainly don’t. You don’t know because you’re not in bed when Ari jolts awake covered in sweat and shivering.

He fixed the A/C a week ago and you both have been basking in the frigid glory, piling blankets on, using it as an excuse to snuggle up close skin-to-skin, but not now.

It takes him a long minute to catch his breath. He can’t tell if he shouted, if he made any noise at all, or honestly, if he’s even in the place he thinks he’s in because it’s dark and he’s disoriented and alone. He sleeps over, but none of Ari’s stuff is in your house. His one set of clothes on a chair to his right is the dead giveaway.

He tries to call for you. Nothing comes out of his vice-gripped lungs, so he tosses the bed layers aside and fumbles around the not-quite-familiar layout until he approaches the living room light, squinting.

He didn’t hold back his heavy footsteps, and you’re huffing before looking up from your laptop.

“I’m almost done, I swear. There’s just one thing I—“

The instant your eyes land on Ari it’s as if a completely different type of bomb goes off, something silent but no less devastating.

You don’t close the laptop. It’s haphazardously tossed to the opposite corner of the couch and the throw across your lap drops to the floor.

You’re in his arms lightning fast, and Ari’s just…grateful.

He drapes the full weight of his arms over your shoulders and back, resting his chin on your head, taking in how you’re there and real and warm compared to the empty, cold air everywhere else. He heaves out a breath he didn’t know he was holding and feels lighter, more human, almost magically.

He’s grateful still when you don’t ask him anything else. You just squeeze him gently and run your hands across his bare back, letting him breathe, making him live.

Finally, when his heart rate slows a little and he shifts to kiss your forehead instead, his beard soft and scratchy all at once, you give a sweet little tap to his butt.

“Let me just turn this stuff off. I’m right behind you, okay?”

Ari hangs on for a few more seconds before releasing you and shuffling back down the hall. He hears the snap of the laptop and click of the light switch prior to his foot even crossing the bedroom threshold, and you hustle in so fast that you both pull back covers at the same time.

You follow his lead on getting situated, Ari choosing you to hold him now, on your sides, your arm beneath his head, his face nuzzled to your chest, and your leg thrown over his hip. His top hand roams your waist and back for a minute as you feel everything around slow. His chest rises less and falls farther, his arm gets heavy and stops. Your own heart beats like uneven clockwork, lulling him into a softer pace of reality.

It can be reality, he thinks, and not be a nightmare. Those aren’t his only memories.

He can see the good ones more clearly when you’re here though. You are the good memories, and you’ll be in his good dreams, too.

Ari falls back to sleep with your fingers gliding through his hair, happily smothered in your sleepy comfort.

from this game of "Comfort My Characters."

Thank you for asking!

Taglist: @supraveng @1950schick @patzammit @whiskeytangofoxtrot555 @yiiiikesmish

[Main Masterlist; Light Masterlist; Ko-Fi]

#ari levinson fanfiction #ro answers #ask game #ari levinson x reader #ari levinson x you #ari levinson fluff #ari levinson fic #bedrock and blueprints #ari levinson drabble #best friends to lovers #best friend!reader

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octuscle · 1 year

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Tim and Tim swap lives

When he started his traineeship at the local newspaper, Tim had rather hoped to report on exhibition openings or opera premieres for the feature section. That was more his world. But his first job was an interview with a heavy-metal singer who had become a bit of a has-been. The singer had made headlines recently for his marital violence and his drug and alcohol excesses. Tim had had a fetish for heavy metal in the past. Sweaty singers in tight leather pants. To the Twisted Sisters video of "We're not gonna take it" he had jerked off more than once. Good suburban boys who become rock stars. That had already been to his liking. But everything he'd researched about his interviewee beforehand indicated that he'd been hot a long time ago. Now his best days were long gone. Oh well, it was a job. And he was just the volunteer. He had probably also been chosen only because the singer's name was also Tim.

For the interview, Tim had picked out some hopefully suitable clothes from his brother. And so he waited in the backstage area to finally be able to conduct the interview. The manager had led him to the dressing room, put a Coke in front of him, and walked out angrily ranting. "Where is that drunken piece of shit again?" heard Tim yelling him. After more than an hour, the door opened and the band's lead singer staggered through the door. He grunted something like a hello and disappeared directly into the restroom. Tim heard his interview partner vomit first. And then snore. Tim carefully opened the door. And the singer was lying in a puddle of vomit and urine, blissfully asleep. Shit, what was he supposed to do now? Wake him up? Seemed inappropriate to him. So Tim did something he should have done an hour ago: He answered his own written questions himself.

Question: They say your career is over. What do you plan to do to get back to your old successes?

Answer: Over? Now it's just getting started. I've been sober for a year, eat healthy and spend every free minute in the gym. I'm far from being at the end.

Energy coursed through Tim's young body. His muscles grew visibly.

Question: But financially you are at the end. Is it true that the private bankruptcy had to file?

Answer: Fuck, I've spent a lot of money on shit in the last few years. The tattoos alone have cost me a fortune. And I've had bad advisors. But with my new manager, things will pick up again. I also have a responsibility for the band, which is my family.

Tim's flawless skin began to discolor in various places. Tattoos formed and began to cover his entire upper body.

Question: Why this late change of heart? You've been in the business for decades, right?

Answer: Decades? Kid, you're exaggerating. I've been living heavy metal body and soul since I was 16. That's not even 20 years.

Tim aged in seconds. He was no longer 22 but 34. His hair had grown into a long mat. His skin definitely showed traces of many excessive parties. But he still radiated a lot of energy and masculinity.

Question: A final private question: What do you say to the accusations of violence against your wife.

Answer: (Loud laughter) Are you kidding me? I married that bitch for the press. Never touched her. For years I've only fucked the asses of hot reporters like you.

Of course Tim couldn't write it like that. No one would believe it. But only snoring continued to come out of the toilet. Tim didn't think he would be able to do the interview. He pressed save and closed his laptop. At that moment, he heard the toilet flush. His young and crisp interview partner came out. "Any more questions, boy?" he asked. "No, thank you very much for this very frank interview. I wish you all the best as you restart your career." replied the lad from the local paper. Tim had needed to get that off his chest. That felt good. Now the tour could go on. But before he went on stage, he desperately needed to relieve some pressure. "All the best to you, too, boy. Now come and get your reward, groupie." Tim unbuttoned his leather jeans. And the other Tim got down on his knees.

The concert was a huge success. A legend was back. But the sensation was the article by a young local editor about the singer's coming out.

#age progression #male tf #muscle tf #tank top #body swap

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red-man-of-mustache · 2 months

Text

I managed to get my old blog back! Last time I contacted Tumblr support they basically shrugged their shoulders like they couldn't/wouldn't do anything. This time it only took ONE message and bam, I have access again. It feels good to go back and reminisce. See a bunch of old ideas I had for Mario and whatnot. I'm gonna get a little feelsy under the cut though, I just wanted to tell someone about this. I won't be going back to it or anything as I've already started over here but it's nice to have possession over it. Two-factor authentication did it's job(a little too well) when I lost that old phone number.

I made that blog when my then girlfriend suggested I do so. Tumblr wasn't even in my sights at the time. I was fresh out of High School and the tumultuous time I spent there was horrific to my general inspiration to write. What I mean is, I began Freshman year full of hope and vigor. I even wanted to write a book. I still have about six or seven chapters of it somewhere in my laptop but I gave up around sophomore year as I was an outcast, dealing with an alcoholic parent, and all around just not having a good run of things IRL. Thusly I moved further and further from certain hobbies I enjoyed, like writing/role-playing.

As stated, I graduated High School in June of 2014 and my girlfriend suggested I make a rp blog for Mario in July of that same year. I thought nothing of it. I made the blog, followed a bunch of people, and sat back for a bit to see how it was done. I learned some of the terminology and then got right to it! To this day it was the most fun I've had just goofing off, making random jokes with people across the fandom, and not having a care in the world to drag me down.

It was an escape.

If any of you were around, you'll know I spoke about follower count a lot back then. That wasn't to brag, rather I was amazed that people would follow my dumb ol' blog whether it be to watch me write or write with me. The concept still amazes me to this day really. I started going to college shortly after, and admittedly I would often be blogging when I should have been doing homework or even in the middle of class. I loved(and still love) what I was doing. I enjoy writing Mario because I grew up with him and I find comfort in his games. Mario represents a part of me that feel as though I've lost touch with in recent years. The bravery, the happy-go-lucky. The optimism.

As I wrote through the years, on and off through to 2018, I met a lot of people and more often than not I'd vanish on these newfound connections because just to be blunt I am horrible at keeping in touch. Absolutely dogshit at it. If I go too long without speaking to someone I just would figure why bother? Then never say anything again. A vicious cycle really if you feel like an outcast because you reinforce those feelings through inaction.

I was in an especially horrible slump the year I lost that blog. I had a job I hated(but paid well) I was smoking constantly to escape the pain, and I was in a very unsavory living situation. From almost every angle I felt suppressed and tumblr was my only escape. But I started letting it affect my time here as well. Another not so glamorous fact about me: I have trouble letting go of things. Paradoxical with what I just mentioned about keeping in touch I know but people, things, experiences, I cling to the good in my life given the trials I've had to endure. So, I contacted support and tried to hash things out. I was turned down and although I felt at the time it wasn't fair I could just pick back up and do as I used to do, for once I resolved to not give up and made this blog here. I still had access through my old phone(the app specifically. That was the only place I was still logged into it on)) it just didn't have service or the phone number assigned to it for me to receive the Two-factor authentication code.

It hurt at the time to archive my old blog and just go about my day but that was a practice in letting go. Sort of. I'm still using the same name, same character, and my method of writing is just a little bit spruced up. But I needed it. I needed to move on because there was just as much pain associated with that blog as there was good times. I needed to grow and move past it. And I did.

Of course, I took an extended hiatus on this blog as well. At the time I was financially in the gutter, emotionally I was volatile and my physical health didn't help either of those things. It's not all bad though. I've made a lot of good progress recently. The past year really. Unfortunately at first, my weed consumption got to the point where I could hardly function in day-to-day life without it and I was simultaneously worse off mentally for it. It almost drove me to suicide. I did attempt it, once. But that was my breaking point. May of last year. I decided I cannot go on this way and I checked myself into a mental hospital.

After a short stay I came out with a new resolve to fix my life and get over the time I wasted burying my feelings in THC. I had quit, after smoking daily from 2015 until then(2023) I stopped cold turkey. That jumpstart being away from it for a week helped a lot. I'll be a year clean in two months. Afterwards I started seeking better job opportunities, even working two jobs at one point to maximize gain. The truck my uncle helped me get had broken down in November and well, I decided that it would take an exorbitant amount to tow and fix it. I took THAT money and went to the dealership, got a used car I loved. First time I've had a car note in my adult life and I was 27 at the time. My mom (who deserves her own post really. She's not been the best person and that's putting it lightly) ended up in the hopsital around that same time for dry bronchitis. Still an alcoholic by the way, but I actually had hope for her. If I could kick my habit then she should be able to as well, right??

Wrong. She got out the hospital and got even worse. I came back home to look after her tentatively for a bit but planned on going back with my roommate afterwards. Her belligerent drunken rants had gotten markedly worse and if I were to guess it was that brush with death. She claims she went to the hospital because she couldn't breath. I wasn't around at the time to get her there but someone luckily was. Fast Forward to the end of January. My mom and I get into an argument. Usually that doesn't happen because I'll either let her speak her piece and move on or I legit just ignore her. But tonight she was trying to get physical with me, a grown man. Throughout my childhood she was physically, verbally, and emotionally abusive and always used threats to keep me in line but she realized none of that worked anymore and was especially angry.

She was poking at me, trying to land punches on me and eventually I shoved her away. I tried multiple times to walk away by this point by going to other parts of the house but she would follow me, block my way and again try to get physical. Things simply boiled over. After shoving her she grew angrier and we got into things physically. I didn't hit her the entire time. Not a scratch was on her because(and this isn't my ego talking) I was only trying to control the situation. I mostly pushed her around while she clawed at my face, threw things, and she ended up hitting me with an air fryer. When she did that I called the police.

The police came and saw the two of us. Me bleeding with cuts on my face and her unmarked. They spoke to both of us and took me to the hospital and her as well to get examined. I was able to go home that night. She went to jail.

My brother heard what happened and stole my car that night, but again that's a story for another time.

I'm putting all this out there about me because I returned to rping Mario a little bit after all this happened(January 31-February 1st is when it all went down). I was going through a lot on my old blog but I still chugged along because life has it's ups and downs. That's something Mario would say. This past year I've won more than I lost. I've been getting therapy as well to try and pin down if I have anything going on in the ol' noggin so, really, I'm in a place where I think I can sustain this hobby again. At first it felt like life crushed my optimism and hope for a better future but that was because I let it.

I say all this to say, that I'm glad to be back. I'm glad all of you no matter if we write together everyday or every other day gives me a chance. It warms my heart to write these posts even if I'm not here everyday. Sometimes I get busy, sometimes I don't have the energy but I refuse to give up as I've done in the past. That will never happen again.

So bear with me is all I ask. I wouldn't give this up for the world.

#ℳ ➙ Player One | OOC |#tw:suicide #tw: abuse #tw: alchohol mention #tw: substance abuse #tw: blood #tw: violence

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lyon-amore · 4 months

Text

Time Trial Chapter 13- ''The weight on my shoulders''

Chapter 12

I try to fix the location program, meanwhile, Albert walks around the room, making his footsteps loudly heard. The noise it makes bothers me and makes me lose focus. I squeeze my eyes shut and turn in my chair, frowning.

“Do you want to stop? Your steps bother me” my voice sounds tired, but my mind is active.

“Sorry, but you're taking too long.” he responds, sitting on the bed.

"Well, I am sorry, but I have never come across something like this," I turn around again, returning to writing, "not even at work. What if you go to bed now? I will be busy all night.”

“Will you let me know if something happens?”

“Yes, yes.” I release the heavy air that I had in my chest because of everything I am enduring.

The code of my program is not the same as the one I use in the offices, I am not allowed to use it if it is not for work. But I have no choice but to modify it if I want to be able to find the signal. Will they be able to detect it? It is one of the biggest protections we have, if they manage to break the protection, I will be screwed. And Katherine dead. I do everything I can, trying to improve it. I know I am good, but... I think changing the codes and wanting a program that was already working may delay the search, how long can it take? I will even have to work on it at university. I try to stay awake by running my hand over my face, trying not to fall asleep. I will also have to bring forward the meeting with Mr. Beinh if I am going to be busy with this.

“And the questions I want to ask Sally.” I murmur without taking my eyes off the computer “One week… We have one week left. We have to do something.”

I hope she also manages to see something important in everything Bianca was investigating. Will they know that Sally has followed her? No, it cannot be, their account was still on Twitter, so that means they did not know of its existence, but someone must have been watching her because she must have made a mistake and knew that she was going after that group, but how? Maybe I was asking too much? And like us, they watched her. They are the same questions as before but more interested, because I doubt she would tell Katherine anything. So it is true, she must have seen Bianca being returned dead to the apartment, and why is that? Why let her find her dead in her apartment?

"I suppose sick people, seeing the kind of people who were on that live show, I would not be surprised if someone asked for it to be returned, like a sadistic thought of..." A chill runs down my spine, these are the thoughts of a psychopath and I do not want to think about it. It makes me sick that people like that exist.

At six I stopped working with the program and slept a little until it was time to get up. I sent a message to Mr. Beinh to see us and wrote a note to Albert telling him that I was having breakfast out.

I wait in the cafeteria, with the laptop in my backpack ready to continue with the program. Mr. Beinh enters and greets me as he approaches. I stood up from the chair, shaking his hand.

“I'm glad you accepted, Jacob.” he tells me, sitting down in the chair “Although I'm surprised it was so soon.”

"Sorry if this delays you at work Aaron, but I also have a busy day and now I can meet you." I answer quickly, while they bring us the coffees “I have also allowed myself to ask for you, I hope you do not mind that it is the same as mine.”

“No, it doesn't bother me, don't worry,” he looks at the waiter, thanking him and then looks at me. He has the same tired eyes as me or even more so. I hope my head does not fall on the table because I didn't get enough sleep “You're probably wondering why I want to talk to you.”

“The truth is yes.” I take a sip of my coffee. The aroma and flavor comforts me at least "I do not think I did anything suspicious to want to talk to me."

“No, it's not because I suspect you.”

He puts his hands together on top of the table, looking down. It is like he is preparing to know what to say. Or he may already have the speech. I try not to seem impatient or nervous about being with Katherine's father, but I would really like to finish the conversation as soon as possible so I can work on the program.

"Mr. Beinh, I have a little—"

“I'm dying, Jacob.” he says without further ado, looking me in the eyes.

Those words make me shut up. I swallow nervously, trying to process what he told me. Me and loss do not get along, I have always felt that misfortunes follow me, just like death. And now, even though I do not know this man, he still has a connection with me. Death continues to pursue me indirectly, as if he were laughing at me. I have not taken this news well since I was a child.

“I…” I look at him nervously, not knowing exactly what to say “I am sorry.”

'I'm sorry'. That is the only thing I know how to say. I do not know how to take it in or why hr trusted me to tell me.

"Oh, don't be sorry." he says with a laugh, although he doesn't seem to really find it funny "I'm slowly assimilating it."

“Does your daughter know?” I ask curiously.

“Not yet.” he answers and stirs the coffee around before taking a sip "That's why I wanted to meet you to tell you first." His eyes are shining, he looks like he is about to cry “To ask you that, when Katherine is found, I would like you to take care of her for me when I am gone.”

I open and close my mouth to say something, but the words do not come out. I try to calm down before speaking.

“And what about his wife?” That is the only thing I can think of to ask.

“She is in France working as a reporter.” he answers with a smile “I haven't told her anything yet.”

<<That is not what I was referring to...>>

I clench my hands tightly, trying to calm myself. I cannot say no to someone who is dying, especially when it comes to his daughter. I am surprised that he trust me with my care when taking care of myself is already difficult for me. Is this really okay?

“With you I know that she will be very happy if I ask you.” he continues speaking with that sad voice and I, increasingly nervous “I know that you care about her and that you would do anything for her to appear, and that, when you are together, you will make her happy when I am not there.”

Well, it is not that I think we will be together all our lives if I still do not know what I will do in the future, but saying no to a dying person does not seem right to me either. I nod slowly, trying to relax. It is the only thing I can do for him as a last wish.

“I will take good care of your daughter, Mr. Being.” I respond slowly, noticing that the coffee has gone cold “I... promise that I will be with her, no matter what happens.”

“Yes, of course.” I accept his hand and squeeze it tightly, almost as if we were making a deal.

When he leaves, I stare at the two cups. His is completely empty, I had not noticed that he had been taken because the surprise of the news. I look at mine, seeing the dark brown contents. I see my reflection, an expression between doubt and concern. Have I done well in accepting? I also did not want to tell his that I am not going to take care of her as her boyfriend. What kind of image was that going to give? Although now it's a lot of pressure. The cell phone rings. A Facebook chat notification. Well, it is time to ask the important thing. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sally Good morning Jareth 😄 I was surprised to see your message

Jareth Hey.

Sally Oh...? ‘Hey’? Is everything alright? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I blink in surprise at her question. Can she tell that I am in low spirits with just one word?

“She is better than I thought...” ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jareth Sorry, my head is busy right now. Good morning :)

Sally Aha… Anyway, I have time while I have breakfast What do you need from this incredible and charming detective in the morning? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“ 'Charming'?” I pronounce in a low voice a little with sarcasm “Of course…”

<<At least I am glad one of us is keeping our spirits up now.>>

I shake my head and forget about it. At least it is good that she has high self-esteem. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jareth Have you managed to find anything else?

Sally I couldn’t, they sent me to sleep ☹️ Can you believe it? I’m not eight years old! >>*

Jareth Yes, I believe it.

Sally ……… Well, what do you want to ask me?

Jareth I want to know if the people who did not participate in that live event have ever felt persecuted. Do you think you can ask it?

Sally Clear! And how are you doing with the tracking? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I bite my tongue as I put down the payment for the coffees and get up from the chair, grabbing my backpack. I cannot worry her after knowing that there was a camera monitoring the place. If she finds out that I myself have been tracked, she might be scared by my situation. I wanted to talk to her about the theory that we are possibly being recorded, but it is too dangerous here. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jareth There was a small setback, it still needs to continue searching.

Sally Setback?

Jareth Yes, a little problem with the program, do not worry :)

Sally Okay Well, let’s continue with our assigned jobs and then we’ll talk

Jareth Of course. Good luck in your classes.

Sally Thanks 🙂 Goodbye Jareth

Jareth Goodbye Sally. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I get on the bike as soon as she disconnects, trying to calm down a bit. The conversation with Aaron Beinh cannot get out of my head.

<<I will take care of Katherine, no matter what I went through. Promise.>>

I have already missed the first class and if I go in now, maybe I will attract attention. I should go to the library to wait for the next one and continue with the computer.

I hear some screams down the hall as other classes leave. One of them came from the journalism classroom. Then I recognize one of the voices. Albert. I run when I notice that from the tone of his voice, he seems angry. Upon entering, I find him arguing with Professor Begum and her ex-husband. Meanwhile, the director of the university was sitting at the professor's table, almost looking like he wanted to flee the room.

“You just can't ask for that!” Albert shouts, looking at Mr. Fetcher, then at the director “Director Koch, you must not accept his request!”

“And let's let him hurt another girl?!” Mr. Fetcher raises his voice more “If you don't expel him, I will even talk to the minister of education so that this can be taken to court!”

At those words, he entered at a fast pace, stopping Albert in time from going after him. Albert tries to get away from me, but I keep holding him back. His eyes shine with anger looking at Bianca's father.

“See? First the fight at the bar and now this.” He points out, making a disgusted face “Is this really what we want for this university? Admit criminals?”

I watch Professor Begum massaging her temples. I can imagine her being in favor of her ex-husband's words, but I see her so tired that she does not even talk about herself. As if she left the job of speaking to Mr. Fetcher. The director clasps his hands together, placing them under his chin. His glasses are dirty, I do not understand how he can see with them.

"Mr. Fetcher, I will think about your proposal." looks at Albert, almost as Mr. Fetcher has done “I also do not approve of our students being in danger.”

“You have to be kidding…” Albert walks away a little, putting his hands to his head.

I cannot let them get away with it like this.

"With all due respect, Mr. Koch, but without proof that Albert is really the one who... ended Bianca's life, you cannot expel him from the university for no reason" I try to stay calm defending my friend “Mr. Fetcher and Professor Begum have only been after Albert because he and Bianca went on a date, he would never have hurt her.”

“The devil's advocate spoke.” Fetcher now looks at me with disgust, crossing his arms “He also gets into fights, it's dangerous to have him here.”

“I couldn't agree more.” Professor Begum nods “At this university we have always accepted people with high class and people... normal. But we have never wanted criminals like them.”

I now clench my fists tightly, trying to control myself. If we cannot be here, then he cannot be here either.

“Then the rule only works for those who pay to hide their records like Paul Bailey.” I counterattack.

“You shouldn't worry, that happened when he was a minor, he is currently renovated.” Begum explains the situation with that guy to her boss. Incredible that he defends him “I know his parents, he is a good boy.”

“Do you know the problem here?” Albert raises his voice a little, pointing to Bianca's parents “That if you had been more attentive to your daughter instead of your status, she would not have been in danger investigating.”

“Doing research?” Bianca's mother blinks in surprise at Albert's words.

Instead, his father's jaw tightens, as if he was angry at what he had said.

"Mr. Koch, I hope you think carefully about this conversation." Fetcher fixes the cuffs of his suit, then grabs his jacket from one of the chairs “I'm leaving, I don't plan to stay here to be insulted.”

Fetcher puts on his jacket, leaving the classroom. Begum stares at us, but this time I cannot say how, although her eyes are cold.

“I will think about the future of our great and wonderful university.” Mr. Koch rises from his chair, looking at the three of us with his chin raised “I don't want it to be stained by crime. Is that clear, gentlemen?”

“Very clear.” I respond, avoiding defending ourselves a little more so as not to have more problems.

Koch walks away from the table, leaving the three of us in an awkward silence. Begum comes to her table, arranging her papers.

“I have a class to prepare, so leave.” that phrase is clearly to indicate that we could leave.

I signal to Albert, who looks at her uncomfortably. It is clear that he knows that he was wrong to say those words to a mother who has lost her daughter.

When leaving, other classes end. I would have to go to the next one I have, but I also do not want to leave my friend alone after another argument because he is the main suspect.

“We have to find Katherine as soon as possible.” he says between his teeth “Jake, not only is his life at risk, our lives are also at risk.”

“I know.” I pinch the bridge of my nose, letting out a sigh.

“You have to fix that program as soon as possible-“

"Albert, I know." I respond calmly "I do what I can."

“We only have one week, bring out your star computer skills or what do I know, anything.”

He walks away nervously, at a fast pace. The situation last night has made his mood worse. And mine too. More the news from Beinh. Maybe I should accept Sally's idea and talk about all this calmly.

I feel distant from everyone, taking out the computer to improve the program and sometimes taking notes as well. Meanwhile, my cell phone vibrates in my pocket. Surreptitiously, I take it out and read the messages. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sally Bianca had a link to some documents she had been writing for years I had been researching since before she even entered university There's a lot to read, but I think I'm starting to understand it all

Jareth You mean she got into trouble on purpose? What was the reason for the investigation?

Sally I’m not quite sure yet, but It could I’ve only looked at it too There have been many years of collecting so many things, I don't understand how she has achieved all this

Jareth Maybe she has gotten all that information like you.

Sally No, I don’t think so… The files are written by her irregularly, it doesn’t contain so many analytical details It will be interesting to read it Anything new from you?

Jareth Bianca's father wants to kick Albert out of college.

Sally What? Why?

Jareth He knows what happened at the bar. Which has made him attract attention as a criminal.

Sally He knows?

Jareth Yes.

Sally How odd… Although if the bar is a fairly popular place, I wouldn’t be surprised if everyone found out Still, I'll see if he informed Bianca's parents for being suspicious

Jareth Do it please. Anything, no matter how small, is very important.

Sally I know, don’t worry You seem nervous

Jareth I am not.

Sally Well for me yes ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I pinch the bridge of my nose, this time in stress. It is like I know myself better than anyone just by writing a few words. Have I written it too quickly? Is that why she noticed it? I try to calm down so that no one notices what I am doing, although for the teachers as long as you do not bother them, they do not care what you do in their classes. It is your responsibility if you do not attend. But I am attentive. As strange as it may seem. And doing so many things at the same time plus the worry I have in my body is pushing me to the limit. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jareth You do not miss one…

Sally As usual ;) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I avoid laughing, noticing that she is copying me. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sally But I’m not going to burden you like I always do Just don’t ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I raise an eyebrow, wondering how she sent that sentence without finishing it. Seconds later, she writes. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sally Just don't do anything strange that might attract their attention You worried me with your question this morning

Jareth So you know something?

Sally There is nothing I searched for keywords in the topic, page by page And nothing There is nothing to indicate that they felt they were being watched.

Jareth And why do us?

Sally Bianca It’s the only answer I can think of It is because of your connection with her that they monitor you

Jareth I understand. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I look at the time. One moment… ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jareth Should not you be attending classes?

Sally I’m getting bored I already taught the topic they are teaching at my old high school Also, I just wanted to inform you You are the one who is distracting me and I’m sure you are also writing during your class 😛 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

<<I hate when she thinks she is better than me. It is like she likes to make fools of elders.>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sally What would your parents say about having such an irresponsible child? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I stare at the phone screen, not knowing what to answer. What would they say? I am not sure what my mother would think and I do not know if my father would care either. If he knew I existed. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sally Oh… Sorry Jareth, I shouldn’t have said that without knowing your situation

Jareth Ah, so you guessed it from my silence...

Sally I don’t want to lie, but… Yeah

Jareth Right. I disconnect.

Sally Goodbye Jareth…

Jareth Goodbye. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

She is not someone I should tell my life to. Or rather, she is not the right person.

<<What would my mother say? I probably would not tell her anything about what I am doing so as not to worry her, I would lead a normal life when I was with her.>>

I also do not know if he would be proud of how I lead my life, what he would think of my friends, if my work is good, if he would like Katherine... It is incredible that, for a simple phrase, each and every one of those thoughts spins around.

After finishing classes in the morning, I decide to go to the library to continue with the program. I am sure Albert will understand that I am not going to eat with him if he is also so worried about getting this over with.

"Jake?" I turn when I hear Jeremy's voice. His eyes are red, did he cry? "How... How is everything going? Did you manage to get anything out of... What Alice gave you?”

True, Jeremy was with them. It is incredible that he did not tell us anything by message when he told us that he was not going to class, he hid it from me.

“Not here.” I make a sign for him to follow me and we enter the library.

We went upstairs, sitting away from some students. When I sit down I take the computer out of my backpack and place it on the table. Jeremy sits in front of me, clasping his hands across the table. I wait for the conversation to start while I deal with the program.

“Yesterday―“

"You forgot to tell me that you were with Sally and Alice on Bianca's Street." my tone of voice seems almost cold. I cannot deny that I am angry at him for letting her go. Both Alice and Jeremy are to blame for not being more responsible and refusing to do so. They are the adults. Why agree to the requests of a teenager?

“She proposed it to me.” his voice sounds shaky “Sally, I mean... It's not like I had a choice― “

"Yes you did, Jeremy." I close the computer screen a little, resting my head on my joined hands "You could have refused and tried to convince her not to go. Do you know that now the three of you are in danger?" I try not to raise my voice so as not to disturb anyone who is studying.

I see how he pales, with a look of fear. Since he told me about Bianca, I am quite worried about all the decisions that have been made since Katherine's disappearance, it only makes him more suspicious than before. And Jeremy is on that website, how do I know he has not lied to us all this time? What if he is exposed Sally on purpose because he is investigating?

<<No, he led you to her, why doubt him? Besides, he is your friend, is it right to suspect a friend?>>

He still does not answer, he just looks at me. I continue with the program, releasing the heavy air that I had in my chest after saying those words.

“No, I didn’t know.”

“Of course no.” I respond with more annoyance “No matter how good she is at investigating, you are not police, you could not protect her if something had happened.”

“Jake, I'm sorry.” I see him run his hand through his hair, nervous “Next time we will be careful.”

“Do not worry, there will not be a next time.” I shake my head, without taking my eyes off the computer “Sally has said that she is not going back to Colville.”

"You care a lot about her, don't you?" I raise an eyebrow when I hear him speak “I mean…”

"Keep talking and I swear I will leave."

My stomach turns just thinking about it. It is like the message I got from Hannah before I stopped talking to her. People have twisted minds.

<<And I just see that joy of Hannah in Sally, that is why I do not want anything bad to happen to her.>>

“Is it because of Paul's words?” I ask, remembering that he called him depraved “Did he insinuate something?”

"Yes, but... I guess it bothered me that you implied that and it came to my mind, sorry." He bows his head, regretting his words “Luckily Sally defended me from that accusation.” he lets out a small laugh “She has guts, that girl, for being so young.”

"Which will one day get her into trouble..." I say with annoyance. "Going into the lion's den, so to speak, does not mean you can come out of those experiences unscathed."

“Curiosity killed the cat, I understand.” he nods slowly. Changing the subject,” he leans a little more on the table, looking carefully around us “Did you manage to get something out of that doll?”

I nod making a noise, but I do not look away from the computer.

"There was a transmitter inside." I lowered my voice as much as possible so that they would not hear us “Which they managed to locate when I was trying to find out what position they were sending the images to, which caused them to ruin the program.”

“And you are now in danger?” he asks quickly.

“What if not?” he raises his voice and they tell him to shut up “Jake, this is serious, don't you care about yourself?” He speaks again in a low voice.

“Now, my only concern is the great researchers of my friends” I say in an ironic tone “I try to fix the program, improve it” I smile, although not in a real way. I just want to calm him down “and when it ready, I will know where they are hiding.”

“And it hides it from you?”

"Then I’ll stay calm." he leans back, giving small touches to the table “Also... I have gone to the police, to tell them that I saw Bianca for the last time.”

“Strange that they did not want to arrest you.” I comment with a bit of curiosity.

“As long as this helps Albert be clear of all suspicion, I don't care.” I look up a little from the screen and see him with a smile “I've heard rumors that he's had another fight with Bianca's parents.”

“They want to expel him.”

I return to the computer screen, wanting not to get angry because I, too, am on the list of those who will be expelled next. When I have the location, I will send it to the police and everything will be solved.

“Bianca's parents don't give up...”

“That is why it is so important now to focus on the program.” I feel a little better in the chair, feeling it more and more uncomfortable “The sooner we find the creators of that website, the better. We must stop this.”

“And find Katherine.”

Should I talk to Jeremy about Bianca's investigations? I feel like if I give him too much information I might put him in more danger. We are being watched. Talking about this topic here would not be good. We should meet and talk about this with Alice too. It will come in handy to get to her police station.

"Wow, I have to go now." Jeremy looks at his phone and then at me "I've already skipped the morning classes, I don't want to skip the afternoon classes."

"I do not think I will go." I see that the program gives me an error and I delete the last code "I have to continue with this. I will have to ask for notes.”

“Seriously, I don't know how you do it.” I look at him confused “How do you get good grades later? I know you're not gifted.”

“I am just good.” I respond with a bit of pride.

Jeremy walks up behind me, pulling my hood down to cover me forcibly. I laugh, relaxing myself a little.

“We will see you later, Jake.” he says goodbye as he leaves.

“Yes, I will see you later.” I reply, raising my hand in farewell.

I do not like having to skip classes like this, but what choice do I have? Tomorrow I will recover the time I lost today by being on the computer. If they do not expel me for hinting at kidnapping, they will if my grades drop. And I cannot let Malcolm know or he will tell me off for sure.

After hours trying to improve it, I realize that I have made small mistakes. This still needs to be perfected. I get up from the chair ready to go look for Albert. I have to talk to him about everything that is happening, I cannot let his nerves put us in the spotlight too. I hate to think this way about my friends, but the more they argue and talk about everything that is going on, the more problems we will have with those watching over us. I enter the programming classes and see that he is alone looking at the screen, with a lost look. I sigh before approaching him, which makes me catch his attention.

“What's happening?” He asks quickly “Do you already have it?”

“Not yet, I have a couple of bugs to fix.” I answer calmly “Come on, we have to talk.”

“Aren't you going to break up with me?” He responds in a joking tone, getting up from the chair to grab his things.

"Do not say those things, they will think badly of us."

“Not here, I have a better place.” I answer, walking towards the door.

“And this is how the attractive and charming young Albert Fisher will end up dead at the hands of the also attractive and mysterious Jake Miller, who everyone is crazy about him but he doesn't know it.”

“Thanks for the compliment” I roll my eyes and he laughs “and that is not true.”

I deny, but I laugh. I think part of the reason I have an ego is because of Albert. Having a friend like him makes you always full of compliments. I have to admit, I think that without my friends, I would be much worse off. Sometimes I need these jokes to remember that I am not alone and that I have people to protect, it makes me move forward in the investigation and not sink. I will also have to prove Jeremy's innocence after his confession to the police.

Chapter 14

#duskwood #duskwood jake #duskwood mc #duskwood everbyte #duskwood game #everbyte game #everbyte studio #duskwood fanfic

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pk-freezer-burnt · 8 months

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Epic Yume Nikki - Dream Diary - Review

Five years ago a reboot of the cult classique video game Yume Nikki was released into the world at the tender age of zero. I have recently completed the game in its entirety, and today....... I share my thoughts.

I remember shatting myself when this game got announced on Steam. I got it on release day! However.... my laptop back then was not strong enough to run it - like I couldn't even move Madotsuki at all and my laptop was torching up. So, super duper sadly, I had to refund it......

And then.... I felt even more disappointed when the initial reviews came rolling in for the game on Steam and they were "Mixed" - and if you are familiar with Steam game reviews, if a game manages to have a mixed reception, it's p much synonymous to shit. I was shocked bro. So since then I was under the impression it was a failed reboot that didn't get the same feel as the original game, or just too new to be seen as Yume Nikki.

Fast forward to recently, when I figured I'd pick the game up again (and now able to play it since I've gotten a new laptop within the past 5 years) and.... I SERIOUSLY wish I didn't listen to those reviews, because now I get that they were probably the crowd that gets too repulsed by reboots/remakes that are too different from the original (Pokemon fans know what Im talking about). Like cmon guys it was made under the supervision of the dude who made the original Yume Nikki themselves

Anyways. HOLY shmoley. I'm serious. This game was SO GOOD!! The art... it was just BEAUTIFUL! In the reboot, you actually get to see Madotsuki's diary (which is full of sketches and concept art as you progress thru the game) and I went ahead and collected ALL the drawings because I love them so much.

I do remember being a little sad that there were less doors (I think?) compared to the original. Number World in the og was my favorite place because somehow seeing a really really long number on the floor was somewhat unsettling. Sadly it wasn't there, but the way the worlds were intertwined and different areas were referenced were SO genius.

Shout out to le new creature made by the original creator, thanks for throwing up blood everywhere when I played hot cross buns on my recorder I mean flute

Ok so I figured out his name is Wrapi :]

Likewise with the worlds, there were only a few effects present in the game instead of 20+. Although I do like the Eye with Hand effect being remade into a Hamsa ^___^ I don't usually see that amulet in media which is awesomesauce. And it's fitting.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Fisherman, cup boy at the mall filled with blood or juice who tripped and spilled everywhere, AND.....

Also, ironically, the scariest part of the game for me was after you make Mado stab the monster on the highway. and she wakes up. And your controls stop working and she stares at you. Yeah I shat myself bro not even gonna sugarcoat it.

Second scariest part was when the last achievement I had to get was to score 5000 POINTS ON SUPER NASU ARRGHH!! (i did it tho).

Ok so now IT'S ENDGAME TIME.

The game actually has two endings and neither of them are the same as the original. And I think I like that. The main ending... it gave Madotsuki more hope, i think - Like escaping those nightmares and getting back to living life happily. Even though the majority of the game is in the dreamworld, the further you progress, the messier Mado's room got and the more she woke up upset. Seeing the main ending made me happy for her :] I also liked the secret ending (had to look up how to do that one), I think this one implied more of an escapism ending. So not as much closure but yeah.

Overall, I really liked this game. It was a great homage to the original, had engaging puzzles, beautiful arts, and lovely OST remixes.

IN CONCLUSION:

#yume nikki #yume nikki dream diary #the ice cubes speak #my epic game reviews

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sardonic-sprite · 2 years

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Rocks Under Tide

written for Whumptober 2022, days 1, 27, 29 (see tags)

author's notes on ao3

"Hey, Dad," Tim called, sloughing his backpack off his shoulder and onto the kitchen table. "I'm home!"

No answer, which was unsurprising. Jack wasn't one to acknowledge Tim's existence unless that existence was beneficial.

He wandered into the living room, frowning when he found it empty. The TV was off, which meant his dad wasn't on a simple bathroom or snack break.

Tim slid into a fighting stance.

"Dad?" he tried again, creeping out of the living room and hoping he wasn't about to find his father crumpled on the floor, "Are you here?"

The study was empty, but it looked the same as when Tim had last seen it. All of the rooms looked the same, actually, which fairly debunked Tim's Intruder theory.

"Hello!" he hollered. "Dad?"

"Timothy?"

Tim would have sighed in relief if not for the ice in his father's voice.

"Come up here, now."

Tim swallowed tightly. "Coming!"

He tried to stifle the flood of anxiety, telling himself Jack was just... volatile, and was probably annoyed Tim hadn't cleaned his room or something. Maybe today had been rough for him physically. It didn't necessarily have anything to do with Tim himself.

Tim's bedroom door was wide open, light on.

He took a deep breath, pressing his hands against his thighs to keep them from shaking.

He probably just saw my report card or something.

Tim had meant to get help with English, really, but his essay - which would make a good 35% of his grade - was supposed to be on To Kill A Mockingbird, and the one time he brought it up, Dick cried and Bruce could only explain that it was one of Jason's favorite books. Tim couldn't ask them to pore over it with him after that.

He meant to go for a casual What's up?, but when he stepped through the doorframe his voice died.

His room was utterly, completely trashed. Dresser drawers all open, contents strewn around the room. Posters torn down, hamper overturned, even his mattress yanked half off the bedframe. His desk had been pulled away from the wall, and everything down to his pencil case had been spilled on top. His laptop was open to his browser history, blessedly clear of anything damning.

Only, that didn't matter.

Because Jack was holding Tim's Robin uniform.

"What. Is. This?" he hissed, brandishing the kevlar at Tim.

"A cosplay." Tim didn't know how he managed to keep his voice even. He couldn't quite stop himself from blinking too many times. "Forgot I had it, I haven't worn it in--"

"Bullshit."

Tim flinched as the uniform made a loud thwack against the wall. Jack stalked closer, and Tim backed up, tripping over a broken picture frame. Jack pulled him back up by his shirt collar, and Tim had to force down the instinct to strike his attacker and break free.

"Robin, Timothy? What the hell do you think you're doing? At least if it was a gang, there's ways to get out of jail, but--"

"If... what?"

"Did you really think I wouldn't notice you sneaking out of the house every night? For god's sake, how blind do you think I am?"

"I don't--"

"You explain to me, Timothy, you explain to me right the fuck now, what the hell were you thinking? Running around with a madman every night, getting into fights, and getting fucking shot at?"

Tim swallowed hard. "I think I'm helping people."

"'Helping people?'" Jack sneered. He kept walking, pushing Tim in front of him until Tim's back hit the wall. "How naïve are you, Tim? No, how stupid are you? Is that what Batman's been filling your head with?"

"I'm not naïve. And I'm not stupid. I'm saving lives." Under his breath, Tim added, "Some people call me a hero."

"I call you a goddamn idiot! So puffed up on the glory you can't fucking see that that... thing is just using you to give the freak club something else to shoot at. How long did you think you were gonna last, boy? The last Robin fucking died! You're just gonna throw your life away to save one drunk from another?"

Tim tried to blink away the sting behind his eyes. "Batman didn't want me to fight at all, let alone to use me. But I wanted to do something worthwhile, and if I do die--"

"You're sixteen, Timothy," Jack snapped, shoving Tim harder against the wall. "You will not say another word about dying or so help me--"

"Don't tell me you'd miss me," Tim hissed. "Be honest, Dad, you'd be glad if you never had to deal with me again!"

A burst of pain against Tim's cheek and his head whipped to the side. He was still frozen in shock when Jack grabbed his chin and forced them face to face again.

"Timothy Jackson, don't you ever speak to me that way again, do you understand me?"

Tim... Tim... slowly nodded, staring at his father's white face. His cheek was starting to throb. It would probably bruise.

Jack finally let him go and backed away, shoes crunching on several CD cases.

"Good. And this Robin nonsense ends now, do you hear me, Timothy? You're grounded indefinitely. You go to school, you come right the fuck back here and you do not leave this house until school again. If you ever try to sneak out again, I swear to god I'm going to take a belt to you. Count yourself damn lucky I'm not doing it now."

Jack was half out the door when Tim found his voice.

"No."

"No?"

Jack slowly turned around. His eyes were darker than Tim had ever seen them. Tim stepped away from the wall, fists clenched at his sides, and this time when Jack stalked closer, he stood his ground.

"No," he repeated. "I'm not going to stop being Robin."

"This is not a choice, Timothy. I am your father and you will obe--"

"No!"

This time it was Tim who stepped forward. His breath was coming fast, and his body felt hot and flushed.

"You don't get to call yourself that. Maybe you made me, but then you left me. You never once acted like a father unless it benefitted you, so don't expect me to give up the one thing that's ever made me feel worth something just because you say so!"

"You will never," Jack roared, spit flying, "go out at night and play superhero again!"

"I'd like to see you stop me."

Tim saw the shift in his father's eyes a second too late. An unnerving mixture of resolve and calculation piercing the pure rage.

And he didn't react in time.

Jack lunged, tackling Tim to the ground. Tim's head struck something hard, and by the time he blinked the stars away, Jack had turned him over, knee planted squarely between Tim's shoulder blades.

"You want me to stop you?" he muttered. "Fine. I'll stop you."

"Get off!"

Tim bucked, trying to throw Jack off, or get his hands planted to lever up. Jack dug his knee deeper into Tim's back, grabbing his wrists hard as he flailed. He wrenched Tim's arms behind him and shifted to pin them against his back. Tim grunted at the weight.

"You will learn to respect me, Timothy," Jack growled, accompanied by the jingle of a belt buckle. "And I don't care what I have to do to get through to you!"

"Newsflash," Tim snarled back, still squirming and kicking, looking around at the debris for a weapon, "if beating me worked, I'd have quit the first time I ran into the mob!"

"Dear god, boy, do you fucking hear yourself?"

Tim yelped as Jack yanked his wrists back even further, and froze for a fatal second when he felt leather wrapping around his upper arms. His heartbeat kicked up five gears as his father wrapped the belt around and around his arms, tying it off around his palms.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"If this is what it takes to protect you from your own idiocy--"

"FUCK you!"

Tim finally landed a kick against Jack's back. He grunted and toppled right, and Tim tried to roll left only to be blocked by the mattress. He scrambled to get his feet under him and stand, swaying for a few precious seconds before he could stumble towards the door.

He made it a quarter of the way before a sharp tug on his ankle felled him with a cry. Jack clawed his way closer, despite Tim's continued kicking.

"You... Will never... Go out... there... again!"

Tim's knee jabbed Jack's throat, making him gag, but he was too late. Jack had one hand fisted in Tim's hair. He jerked his head up, then backwards, slamming it into the dresser, and everything went dark.

Tim's head was pounding. His arms and shoulders ached, and the rest of his body felt stiff and sore. He lay on a hard floor, pitifully cushioned by... a blanket?

He opened his eyes, seeing nothing but a sliver of light just in front of him, coming underneath a door and illuminating a hardwood floor identical to the hallways in Drake Manor.

Oh.

Fuck.

Tim bowed his head against the ground, making the throbbing worse.

That had really happened.

His father had found out Tim was Robin, Tim was stupid enough to openly defy his order to stop, and... and Jack had attacked Tim, tied him up with his belt, and locked him in a closet.

Tim bit his lip, not sure if it was to stop a sob or a scream.

His dad was never supposed to know. Never, because Tim knew he would be livid, knew he would go completely off the rails.

Yet he'd never imagined something like this. Being kept prisoner in his own home under the excuse of protection.

How had it gotten so bad that Jack locking him up to 'keep him safe' was the only way he could show something like love?

Tim's eyes burned. He bit his lip and kicked at the door, then kicked it again, over and over until his toes were throbbing.

"Stupid," he hissed. "Stupid, stupid, stupid."

Yes, Dad. Whatever you want, Dad. I'll quit, Dad. Then wait for nightfall and go out anyway.

Then maybe he'd at least be tied up by somebody he could hate.

He shut that thought down, following it immediately with Robin's thoughts, with the process Bruce had drilled him on over and over and over again: what to do if you're captured.

Tim knew where he was, and that he was alone. He didn't know how close his d- captor was, or what his plan was. Keep Tim locked up until he broke? Even after? Forget he ever existed and then stumble on his corpse years later looking for spare linens?

Tim took a deep breath. That line of thought wouldn't help anything. The next step was to determine what was keeping him trapped, and how best to get out of it.

The belt was his most immediate problem. It was tight enough that his arms were starting to tingle. His fingers were already numb.

Tim closed his eyes and breathed, focusing on what he could still feel. The belt was actually fastened just above his elbows, with the tail wrapping around his forearms and hands until it knotted in his left palm. He picked at the knot with his fingers, hoping it was big enough and loose enough that he could pull it free.

It took longer than he wanted, but Tim did manage to untie the knot at his hands. The tension around his forearms slackened, and he was relieved by the sting of bloodflow coming back into his fingers.

Only, he could do nothing about the buckle. Tugging the belt's tail failed to do anything other than hurt his arms, and the blanket confounded any attempt to drag the loop against the ground. And not even Dick could have contorted himself to undo it with his hands.

And just like that, Tim was powerless again. The only answer Robin had was endure and wait for rescue or for a better opportunity.

So Tim waited in the dark, unsure how long it would take for anyone to realize he was missing. Unwilling to hope anyone would, because it only ever made his disappointment worse. Unable to turn off the memories of everything that had gone so wrong.

Uncaring to stop the tears streaming silently down his face.

By the fifth time Bruce checked his phone and set it back down with an anxious Hn, Dick had had enough.

"For the love of God, just call him!" he pleaded.

Bruce raised an eyebrow. "Tim never answers phone calls, you know this."

"He would for you!"

Bruce's next hum was considering. Dick waited for a short eternity before one of Bruce’s anxieties overrode the other, and he opened his phone to contacts.

After a minute of ringing, the line beeped and Tim's voice said, "Hey, you've reached Tim's cell. Please leave a message, or text if it's urgent."

Bruce sighed and hung up. His eyes slipped to the seat across from him. The empty one where a different boy would sit. Until he stopped answering his phone. Until he was too far away for help to reach him. Then too far for any force on earth to reach him.

Dick stood up.

"I'm going over to check on him," he said.

Bruce looked up at him and nodded silently. Dick didn't wait any longer before hurrying out the back door from the kitchen and starting across the lawn. Logically he knew getting a car or his bike would be faster, but he needed to move.

Speed-walking became jogging became running became sprinting, until he reached the wall between the properties and had to brace against it, breathing hard. He wished he could go up and over, climb in through a window, but with Tim's father around (for once) that would raise too many red flags. So he walked along the wall until it turned the corner and the driveway came into view.

Drake Manor was as imposing and forbidding as ever, too white and square and filled with priceless things to be anything but a museum. Certainly not a home. Dick didn't know how Tim could live alone there so long and not be insane.

He rang the doorbell, bouncing slightly on his heels while he waited. And waited. And rang again. And waited some more, worry building with every second. He was about to go around and find a window when finally footsteps beat towards the door and it swung open.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Jack Drake snapped, glaring.

Dick didn't like the look in his eyes. Fortunately, he was good at charming people he didn't trust.

"Hi, I'm Dick Grayson. My father owns the house next door? We took care of Tim while you were, ah, unable."

"And?"

Drake's expression shifted from outright hostile to wary, probably triggered by the aside to Bruce Wayne. Every so often Dick was glad to have a famous father.

"Well, traditionally, Thursdays are game night. I just came over to see if Tim was planning to come, since he hasn't been answering his phone."

"Timothy is grounded."

Dick blinked. "Grounded."

"Yes." Drake started to close the door. "Some other time, perhaps."

"Well, could I just say hi?" Dick tried, very nearly sticking his foot in the doorway.

"No."

And with that, the door shut and the lock clicked.

"Damn," Dick whispered.

He didn't like it. He couldn't pinpoint what exactly was setting him off, but there was an uncomfortable twist in his stomach, which only got worse as he turned back down the driveway.

Was it so impossible for Tim to be grounded? No. Dick loved the kid, but he was wild. He was reckless and independent and never quite knew when to shut up. All reasons Drake could have grounded him.

Taking away Tim's phone with the grounding also made some kind of sense, and Dick knew Drake didn't much like him or Bruce, so it wasn't surprising he'd shut Dick out, but...

The nagging feeling wouldn't go away, whispering over and over that he needed to see Tim safe or risk failing him the way he'd failed Jason. By not being there when his brother needed his help.

Dick waited until he was out of sight of the house, then doubled back around the side towards Tim's room. He climbed up the oak tree outside the window and dropped down onto the eaves to look inside.

Tim's room looked like a hurricane had hit it. There wasn't a single surface not littered with personal debris. Clothes, books, papers, CD cases, school supplies. The furniture had been yanked away from the walls, and the mattress was half off the bed frame.

The pit in Dick's stomach sank deeper.

He pulled open the window and slipped inside, consciously calming his breathing. He had to stare at the ground to avoid tripping on or breaking anything, and the view showed him that other people had not been so careful.

"Tim?" he called softly. "Are you here?"

He knew Tim wasn't. Tim wasn't a neat freak like Jason, but even he would never just leave his room in such a state. Dick could try to hope he was just... getting a trash bag or dust cloth, or, or in the bathroom. But then he saw an all-too-familiar shade of red.

Robin. Robin's suit just crumpled against the wall, and Dick could feel his heart speeding up because Tim would never treat his and Jason's legacy that way.

"Tim!"

Dick yanked open the door and started into the hall. He didn't much care if Jack Drake found him. In fact, he'd like to ask the man a few questions.

Timothy is grounded. No, you can't see him.

Was he trying to cover up that some villain had found out Tim's secret and kidnapped (not killed, not killed) him?

Or was he the reason Tim was nowhere to be seen?

"Tim, can you hear me?"

"What the hell?"

Jack Drake came storming up the stairs, face scarlet when he saw Dick.

"How the hell did you get up here? This is private property!"

"Where's Tim?"

"I'll call the police--"

"And explain to them why your son is missing and you're not doing anything about it?"

"What are you talking about?" Jack sneered.

"This!" Dick pointed to Tim's open door and the trashed room inside. "It's nothing short of a warzone, and Tim would have been right in the center of it! What are you hiding, Jack? Where is Tim?"

"My son is not your problem anymore. Leave. Now."

"Tim!" Dick hollered, staring Jack in the eyes and daring him to make a move. "Tim, if you're here, answer me!"

"Dick?"

The horrible twist in Dick's stomach finally relaxed, even as he narrowed his eyes at Jack.

"Dick, I'm here!"

Tim's cry was distant and muffled, but Dick could tell he was farther down the hall, behind Jack. Jack clenched his jaw and curled his hands into fists as he hissed, "Get. Out."

"I will fight you," Dick warned. "And I will win."

Jack yelled and threw a punch. Dick pivoted and let Jack's force carry him on, sweeping his legs out from under him with one kick. Jack snarled and tried to get up, but Dick pinned him with one foot against his back.

"If Tim has been hurt or violated because of you," Dick murmured, "I will make you pay for it, no matter what it does to me."

"Who the fuck do you think you are!?"

Dick leaned down, Jack grunting at the shifting weight, and whispered, "Well, if Tim is Robin..."

Jack went utterly still. He didn't move even when Dick let him go. Dick scoffed and turned back down the hall, running towards Tim's voice.

Tim kept yelling, "Here! Dick, I'm here!" and kicking the door until he could hear Dick just outside calling, "I got you, Tim, I got you!"

He stopped kicking and a minute later the lock clicked and the door swung open.

"Tim?"

"Down here," he sobbed.

Dick's knees folded to reveal his face. Tim had never seen it so tight and angry.

"Hey, kiddo," he said, voice incongruously soft with his expression. "Let's get you out of there."

He took hold of the blanket and backed up, sliding Tim out of the closet. He snarled when he saw the belt binding his arms.

"I'm sorry," Tim stammered, "I couldn't get it off--"

Dick shushed him, leaning over to fuss with the buckle. Tim bowed his head to rest it against Dick's knee, soaking his jeans with tears. He felt the tension give, and seconds later was swept into a bone-crushing embrace, Dick stroking his hair and whispering, "It's ok. It's gonna be ok."

"I didn't... I... How did you...?"

"You weren't answering your phone," Dick breathed. He pulled back, taking Tim's face in his hands and turning it side to side, then taking his arms and squeezing his hands to warm up his fingers. "We were so scared, baby bird."

"I'm ok," Tim tried, "really--"

But Dick was shaking his head.

"Tim," he said slowly, forcing Tim to meet his gaze. "Has your dad hurt you like this before?"

"It's for his own damn good!"

Tim jumped at his father's voice, shrinking behind Dick as he stood up, squaring off with Jack, fists clenched.

"He's a child, my child, and I refuse to let him out on those streets again."

"Tim hasn't been your child since you took that first flight to Cusco," Dick hissed.

Jack flinched.

"And if you hadn't given up your right to him then, you sure as hell did when you tied him up and locked him in a goddamn closet."

Dick reached down a hand to Tim, never breaking his stare as he pulled Tim to his feet and nudged him behind.

"I'm taking Tim home now."

"You can't just--"

"For his sake we'll give you the chance to sign over custody quietly."

Jack gawked, mouth hanging open despite the fury in the rest of his body. Tim shrank against Dick as he carefully led him around his father and down the hall, never letting go of his hand.

"You're gonna be ok," Dick promised again.

"Did you really mean--"

"I'll tell!"

Dick yanked Tim behind him again as he whirled to face Jack, recovered from his shock and with the same crafty look in his eyes that had ended with Tim bound and imprisoned.

"You take him away, I'll tell the whole city your secret!"

Tim's breath caught, but Dick squeezed his hand.

"Try it."

Jack's smugness faded to confusion. Even Tim glanced up at Dick anxiously, not knowing where he was going.

"Tell the whole city. See how many Rogues and mobs all come after you, asking how you found out and what else you know. See how long they'll bother to ask nicely. See how long it takes them to recognize Tim and go after you as bait. See if he saves you after everything you've done."

Tim shivered. When Jack's eyes slid to him, suddenly fearful, he wanted to throw up. He pressed even closer to Dick to steady himself.

After a minute of silence, Dick scoffed, "That's what I thought," and gently tugged Tim onward again, leaving Jack standing stupefied in the hall.

"Dick, I-"

"It's gonna be ok, Tim. We'll make sure he doesn't--"

"Did you mean it? About taking me back?"

Dick stopped and turned to him, putting his hands on Tim's shoulders and looking straight into his eyes.

"Tim, we never wanted you to go in the first place. Bruce was ready to adopt you outright before your father woke up." Dick tugged him into another tight embrace. "And you have always been my baby brother."

Tim blinked hard, but it still couldn't stop the tears from spilling down his cheeks.

"Oh, sweetheart," Dick sighed, brushing away the tears. "C'mon. Let's go home."

#whumptober 2022 #no. 1 #no. 27 #no. 29 #unconventional restraints #this wasn't supposed to happen #muffled screams #pushed to the limit #defiance #batman #fic #child abuse #tim drake #dick grayson #angst

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haesunflower · 1 year

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Hi tee 🤗

How have you been? I had a marketing-related question in my mind for a bit but I don't know how to word correctly or if it even makes sense (I don't have an excuse, I live in a country where English is one of the two official languages so in conclusion, I'm just illiterate or don't know how to communicate).

I don't know much about the marketing field but if you were working on two "projects" or campaigns that were "competitors" to each other, how would you go on about it? I'm asking because Wakeone (W1) is managing ZB1 and survivors of the W1 trainee layoff and although it's not certain, I'm hoping they have plans to debut the three known survivors (lolol).

Like It's nice of them (referring to W1 trainees) to do covers or post pictures daily (for the time being) so they don't lost momentum but I don't know why but I feel like it's not enough for me 😂 I don't know if this is weird but at least for kpop groups that I will gladly throw my 💸 at, I much prefer watching behind the scenes content (applies to Boys Planet and ZB1; think Bangtan Bombs for BTS if you know about that), something like the Boys Planet Top 18 Pyjama party, or the W1 trainee live (I kid you not, I've watched that live three times with english subs...to be fair, I'm trying to learn Korean 💪). Anyways, apologies for the ramble but I'm also curious if you have any theories about this lolol.

Have a good one 🫶 Don't forget to take care of yourself 🌻

hey moni! this question got me excited, i pulled out my laptop to type my response hihi

long marketing/business ramble under the cut lol

honestly, i've been thinking of that too! I was pleasantly surprised to see wakeone promoting their korean trainees and keeping their presence online alive whilst preparing for ZB1's debut. I do agree that it would be nicer to have more personalized content for them - we're literally being fed crumbs with their cute little dance covers and photos and what not. Maybe something like The Boyz' Flower Snack? They had a pre-debut show where they served in a cafe.

Going back to the initial topic of working on two separate projects that are in competition to one another: it honestly seems like a conflict of interest at first. But, we have to remember that wakeone (legally) "owns" the wakeone trainees and has invested much more in their training. Whereas ZB1 members are not bound by a longer contract, and there was little to no investment in the training of these members (except Taerae of course) because training came from the members' respective companies.

Thus, it would make sense to keep their in-house talent like the korean wakeone trainees active and relevant for as long as possible - making sure the general public and star creators know that they're still in wakeone. This builds up anticipation and support for the company from the fandoms of wakeone trainees. I think it's no coincidence that they started posting more around the same time woongki and haruto announced their departure from the company. It seems that wakeone has no plans with them at all, so they did the sensible thing and just left.

Going back, keeping their in-house talent relevant is important NOW given that zb1 is actively preparing and documenting their debut journey. Because when zb1 disbands, wakeone's source of money will be their in-house talent.

On a marketing perspective, these two groups (should they debut at around the same time) MUST have two differentiating branding. This means they must target a different target audience, embody different concepts, and dominate in spaces where they would not conflict with one another. I honestly think a boy-group trio hasn't been popularized ever (unless it's a unit like exo-cbx or nct dojaejung), and I wonder if wakeone is going in this direction. If ZB1 gets a darker group concept, wakeone's in-house group should go the opposite direction.

However, it is also possible that they might be applying SM's strategy when it comes to company promotion. SM groups are uniquely distinct from one another. But do you ever notice how more than 1 SM group seems to promote at the same time as another SM group or soloist? Lee Sooman's previous strategy was like "I'll make my artists comeback at the same time so all the charts are dominated by SM. doesn't matter which SM artist you choose to support at that time, it won't matter, because SM artists will dominate all the charts". SM takes a "company" approach when it comes to dominating the market.

On a business level, I don't know if Wakeone is staffed well enough to handle another full functioning group ON TOP of their current workload with Kep1er. Thus, I think it would be smart for Wakeone to focus on the quality of their management, rather than the quantity of their groups. In short, they're not prepared for this type of artist expansion.

But as a phanbin voter :') i hope he gets to debut tho. I believe he'll make it big one day! hoping for his success and happiness

also hope you're doing well Moni <3 love conversations like this!! make sure to sleep well and eat all your meals mwah

#moni💸#tee posts #haesunflower rambles

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acourtofthought · 1 year

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Just here to tell you, coming from the hateful blog managed by, what I assumed is a grown ass woman (I'm 28, so it's not a dig at their age, it's a dig at their immaturity) that they continue to vague your blog on their posts.

I hope you never let them get to you. I'm someone who came into the fandom thinking it would be a fun place to interact and talk about our favorite characters, sure, I'd expect disagreements, but I never in a million years thought I'd come across women who act this childish over a ship and bully, harrass and send death threats. Are there Gwynriels and Eluciens as toxic? Sure. I've seen it but it's mostly in response to them... and they somehow act superior and only dish it but can't take it. But no one should have to take any of this.

This unhealthy obsession to be right and bully others, who disagree, can't be good for them IRL. There's feeling passionate, then there's them. The comments I've seen them leave all over Instagram, it's so transparent because it's the same accounts. It's to the point new fans on tiktok are calling them out. Not gonna lie, I feel a bit validated to see videos on tiktok calling out their shitty behavior, but it shouldn't be the case at all. No one, under any circumstances should be bullied over fictional characters.

Ship your ship, no one cares they love Az and Elain, but imagine when all this is over and the embarrassment if they are wrong in their reading predications. No wonder they keep their accounts anonymous. I would never act so narcissistic and gloat before the series is even over, I can HOPE and WISH, but I never go around with 100% certainty and bully people over it only for it to blow up in my face. I'm not SJM and elriels need to be reminded neither are they. I hope they can eat their humble pie, if the day ever comes and apologize for their behavior. But that's me wishful thinking. Sorry to vent, just hate seeing how they used your post to manipulate their follwers into trying to bully you. They seem to have a problem with popular accounts. Wonder why. Jealousy perhaps?

Vent away because sometimes you need to get the thoughts out of your head so you can move forward without them!

I think people forget to keep things in perspective.

I enjoy this fandom and these books and I'm having a good time coming up with theories. Sometimes I'll even get in heated debates over differences of opinions and while that part is never the most fun, I vent or fume for a hot minute than move on.

But my real life exists outside my laptop or phone and when I'm sitting on my deathbed (at what is hopefully 100+ years old because I want to live as long as possible 😂) Lucien and Elain are not going to matter to me. E/riel is not going to matter to me. Blogger XYZ who hated me is not going to matter to me (at least in terms of the opposite opinions within the fandom sense, as a real person they will matter in terms of my wishing happiness for them).

I love the thought of Elucien and I don't think E/riel is matched based on the information I have so far. And sometimes my post are going to be harsh........about E/RIEL and AZ. If that is my big crime to blogger XYZ to the point that they feel the need to write posts about me and encourage others to bully me then.....................what can you do, right?

The one benefit of being older in this fandom is to not be as affected by a strangers opinion of me. Honestly, at this point, I'm not even all that affected by someone in my family's opinion of me. I struggled with that for a very long time. My father is not a part of my life and for a long time I wondered what I'd done wrong that was so bad he didn't want to know me. My mother is in my life but I'm a disappointment as a daughter because I got tattoos, am not proper enough for her and don't believe in the God she does and again, I felt this constant need for approval from the people that didn't like me for me and spent a lot of time doubting myself and caring what they thought. I've dealt with a lot of bullying from my older sibling over the years and finally stepped away from that relationship even though I had always felt guilty not keeping her a part of my life, that somehow I was the bad person for cutting her out. The older I've gotten, I started to realize that just because specific people had an opinion about me didn't make them the right opinions. If you don't respect someone as a person than you shouldn't be listening to their thoughts on you.

I love animals and reading. I LOVE traveling but am afraid of flying. I feel most at peace sitting in front of an ocean or driving around in my car listening to music. I love coffee and desserts and I rarely sit on chairs the right way because I get fidgety. Stick me in a bathtub and leave me there for an hour and I'll be extremely happy. I have a very sarcastic sense of humor, love Broadway musicals, action movies, hate cooking and love going out to eat. I never really wanted to be a mother and left the decision of kids up to my husband but they turned out to be the best thing I've ever done in my life. I'm never the best at anything but above average at a few things like drawing, singing (but have extreme stage fright), and dancing. I always tip 20% even if the service was poor and can only drink one alcoholic beverage at most unless I want to have the worst hangover the next day. People might think I'm social and outgoing upon meeting me but inside I'm sweaty and dying, thinking over every single thing I've said and whether I sounded stupid. I am extremely introverted and tend to make plans only to desperately wish I could get out of them that day (though I usually end up having a good time).

I am a lot of things outside this fandom but if someone wants to base everything I am in my life on who I ship in an SJM book, if they decide I'm stupid or a terrible person because I like a specific pairing and in this particular fictional world don't think two other characters are matched then I realize I just have to let it slide. I believe that one day, they will come to realize none of it actually mattered all that much and until then I guess I'd rather them target me than someone who struggles with the opinions of others on the internet as I might have once done years ago.

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