Yan!Pantalone with fem childhood friend reader-

Sooooo this is actually my fave for me to write ( except that I write a lot of possibilities in the future with this but here goes one of my many thoughts)

What if, reader was there with Pantalone during their hard time as the 'mature figure' aka sister despite yourself in need of mature figure too. Taking care of him, always giving him the better options in food or clothes. Pantalone would remember how you'd always wrapped him with the blankets despite how you trembled from the weather (aight lets see what you got for us in the future after all the bs we've done for you snitch) But good times (not so good but) don't last long right? Especially with reader being famous for her bad lucks and stuffs. Basically, reader was trafficked, leaving Pantalone all alone. Reader knew they were in danger and just a day before this happened, reader shoo Pantalone away, asking him to look for a flower for her (which is super random, idk if he's willing or not, honestly up to you but he still did it anyway). Imagine the horror returning to his 'home' only find a blood trails that ended in the middle of the road. You were nowhere to be seen at all.

Time skip and here's one of the possibilities i really want to see you write it out QwQ

So what if Pantalone was striking a deal with a dude at a beauty house, one that could only be entered by the upper class people. Pantalone hated being there, he just hated how it made him look 'nasty' and he for sure didn't want you to see him like this (lol sike) Just when they were conversing with each other, you came to them, offering them drinks. Pantalone was about to shoo you away again like how he did to others but hell he didn't know how to feel about meeting you in a beauty house.

Obviously he's all sparked in joy to be able to see you again after years of searching for you but he's also internally panicking about his image now. Would you still acknowledge him after this? (Yup, overthinking at its finest but i'd like to pinpoint this as the main problem in his head)

So yada yada yada (up to you) at first reader had a hard time remembering him but after lots of thing and the mention of flower, reader remembered about him.

Soooo,it's a happy ending now right? *yeets* nope we wrote the yan tag for reasons

What happened to you? Oh he's punished people he suspected to be your captors, even the innocents are not safe from his overthinking (idk wht but u get it).

What about the people in the beauty house? Who touched you intimately? Oh how there'd be lots of people missing and dying in a short period of time after all of this.

Not even the people who watched you dance are free from his 'punishments'. Not dead but still, 'punished'.

Oh? The beauty house owner didn't want to 'sell' you to him? Fine he could do it the hard way. What happened to the beauty house? Its business slowly dropped down. Still holding tightly to you? Fine have this blow, a fire burnt down half of the beauty house. He was careful not to burn the area around your room, making sure you'd be able to run away just in time from the fire.

Right, what? The owner still held you tightly as one of his source of income? Fine, bye bye then. Tbh he had a love and hate relationship to its owner, on one hand he knew the owner took good care of everyone, protecting them from all those shady men and ensuring you're still alive up until for him to meet you. But why would he let you work not only as a dancer but also a 'bed warmer'? He didn't care the fact that it's your own willingness.

Either way, he didn't feel any guilt at all. He tried to end things peacefully but it just so happened that the man thought of him as a shady man. What a shame.

Welp, what matter now is that you're here with him now! Althoughhh that didn't mean his overthinking traits ended already. Welp, idk what happened next

Thank you for listening to my long ass ramblings too

*peaces out*

yandere! Pantalone x Childhood friend! AE! Reader

Usual tags, except this one has uh potential gore(?), sexual themes(ain't a yandere without a bit of it), power harassment, drug use, Minors do NOT interact. (Ps, tell me what tags I'm missing) yo this is 3.3 k worth of words.

@youyue

A Durak's little miss fortune

"Oh bubbles, what have you done? Opening a very interesting plot like that and almost little to no restrictions? I live for it. I hope you aren't too concerned about what fate has for this little flower. " - Scribe

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Shadows lengthen, dim streets darken. To most people crept back under their sheets, yet here he is. The man with the very definition of wealth weighed in his name. Sat on a chair of their booked room in the 'beauty house', honestly speaking; he could care less about the establishment that fattens decadence at the lap of luxury. But with his imperial image on the line, or someone's head will roll.

Avoiding eye contact with the wretched woman on stage of the velvet room, body bending and twirling in odd angles, giving an eyeful of imagination to her viewers. As if it is no big deal for her being gawked at.

"Yes, that is our proposition for you, Lord Harbinger Pantalone." Said the rotundan before looking over to the service lady dressed in rather obscene clothing.

"Thirsty, my good sirs?" The 9th Harbinger huffed, waving his hand at the girl attending them.

"How many times do we have to tell you, we don't need-...any… thing…" With an irked voice slightly raised. Stopped midway once he saw the placid woman before him, offering beverages on a stainless steel tray.

"Understood, good sirs. I shall notify my other sisters at once." The once gentle and loving look he misses so much now turned stone cold, bowing before being dismissed. So many questions raced in his mind, why are you here? How? For how long? Wait you're here, you must be disgusted at why he's here instead of finding you.

Pantalone was about to call out to apologise but he's in a meeting and you already disappeared in the sea of people. Sadness stung in his iced heart, yet he dared not show it. Especially when this fatso is in front of him.

"Fancy her, Lord Harbinger?" The well off man asked, curiously. "Can't blame you, Lord Harbinger. Everyone calls her Fortune, she usually sings and dances on stage around the weekends." Oh, he knows what this gross pig wants. Getting on his good side to make the deal a lot easier, unfortunately for him. It merely soured his mood, no one should talk like that to an angel like you. And he means NO ONE.

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Next thing he knew, he's at home. Thrashing some of the documents all the clues about his missing half, you. His seething rage would not go unnoticed as he thought of all the sickening situations that they have done to you to make you so submissive bending to the whims of those lowly men. Of how many times you've cried to have someone save you in your predicament, scared and alone.

That last memory he has of that consequential moment into his mind. The pile of rubble that is their home, made from bits and bobs that they happen to come across. Makeshift door broken, an undeniable red stain leading nowhere, followed by claw marks against the dirt and snow. It still haunts him, the day his only warmth in this cruel world is taken away so easily. If he hadn't gone to take that flower instead you would have been at his side… Then again, because of that flower he was able to be acquainted with people, make connections. Almost like you gave him your remaining luck.

"My lord, we have a copy of Orlestine's account book!" An agent reported to him from the door. Orlestine, a wealthy name that holds the yoke of servitude.

" Enter, and leave it on the table" the employee did as they were told. "And one more thing… make sure to keep tabs on her." Added the bifocal man.

"Understood, Lord Harbinger." Leaving the pride of the northland bank alone. Just like the others in his life, but not this time. Not when he has found his other half.

"Soon… I'll make those dastards pay a hundred- no, over millions of times with what they've done with you." His rage knew no bounds as he recalled all the terrible things he told you before you were whisked away from that dumpster fire of a shelter.

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"You're a terrible cuddler… " normally you would laugh at his cold affection. He notices your arms wrapping around him, pulling him closer to you.

"Maybe I am, but that doesn't stop me." Your voice trembled as you put your chin on top of his head.

"Always helping that girl at the church… She doesn't even help you." The pretty-eyed boy mumbled, noticing your body has a hint of perfume. He wasn't a fool, he knew that the church girl was taking advantage of your kindness.

" It's not always about getting help." Only you would smile, he hates it. How his chest ached and yearned to be with you, the only gold hearted person he knew.

" You're just going to get hurt." Not knowing of the danger that had instored for the next day, shivered slightly when he felt the draft from one corner.

" Even so, I just wanted to help. " You hugged him more, he could see the warm breath against the chilly wind." Do you want me to sing? " Noticing it's growing late, and knowing his fondness of your melody.

" No way, you sound so terrible." He wanted to bite his tongue at the moment, but he didn't want to sleep. He's scared, and doesn't know what the reason was.

" Alright, alright, I hear you. Rest up, I need you to go get something for me tomorrow morning. It's really important." Soot stained face pouted, looking up at you when he heard that.

" Ha? Didn't you hear what that guy said about a snowstorm tomorrow?" You laughed a bit before rubbing your cold fingers on his cheek trying to get the ash off.

"Please, it's important. " With how soft your voice was, he knew you really needed it. But for what?

" Pah, go find someone else to do that. " Again, he wants to beat himself up for being such an asshole.

" Oh, alright." You merely sighed and kissed his head. For being an understanding person just doesn't sit right with him.

" You're really annoying, you know?" Murmured, leaning his head on your chest. He truly despised the situation they're in.

" Yeah, yeah, just sleep you little munchkin." Pinching his cheek to get a reaction out of him and laugh.

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And that was the last conversation he had with you, he wanted to say something different at the time. Still his own mouth betrayed him, barred from showing his own feelings to her. Compared to you, always wearing your heart on your sleeve, a faint light that shines even the darkest and coldest of places.

"Count Kintis." Pantalone threw a knife at a picture on the wall, riddled with red strings. He needed to act fast before his beloved had gone too deep in this little hell of milk and honey.

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He wanted to confront you about it first. Going back would be a good start, he had booked a private room and requested you specifically. But got denied at a certain time since she's taken at that hour, he had no choice but to change the meeting a bit before seeing you.

Once Pantalone sat back down in the sinful establishment. He could only imagine what other torturous things they'll do to you. Snapping out of his thoughts when he heard a strikingly familiar voice

" If you had prepared twenty years ago// You wouldn't be a-wanderin' now from door to door//"

Honeyed voice rang in the faintly lit room, looking up to the stage where you stood. Dressed in a shimmery red tight fitting apparel accompanying a person with a piano. Men started to stare, undressing you with their gaze. It's sickening, all he could think of is; how DARE they dirtied your image. The sweetest and pure girl he used to know, reduced to such depravity all because of his mistake all those years ago..

He adores your soft voice that sings to him at night easing his worries. Bringing warmth despite the howling winds. Is the song dedicated to him abandoning you? Is this how you've felt when you wait daily to see if anyone would miss or even save you? He's certain of it… no doubt you have to be rescued.

After the stage, a roar of claps erupted from the audience followed by whistles. Which only further summons his ire. He attempted to follow the songstress to her dressing room for a little chat. But was stopped because some man decided to talk to you, so he had to step in.

"I've been looking all over for you." Pantalone put his hand on your shoulder.

"Oh- uhm.. sir." He hates to admit it, but seeing you a bit flustered is adorable but that's not the point!

"Eh? Do you know him, fortune?" The man seemed displeased with how well dressed and intimate he is with you.

" Yeah, he's my next customer." You bluffed, but that is the truth. The Regrator did book you.

His eerie smile directed at the harasser who seemed to get the message about what might go down, and left. Keeping a mental note on that fellow.

A heavy sigh of relief washed over her. "Thank you, kind sir." Now there's that smile he loves to see. You must be really scared to be here, which is why he's here to scoop you up and pay your debt off.

"It was no problem at all, darling." Despite their age being so close, he had grown taller thanks to your help.

"But I do want to talk to you if that is okay with you. It will only take a few moments of your time." He had practised and prepared for this moment of his life, yet his hands were shaking. Not out of excitement, but with fear.

" Of course." Normally you'd be happy helping someone.

" Excellent, is your name ____?" Asking, no need to be hasty, he needs every little and single detail burned into his mind.

You answered, and everytime he asked another. He was so sure you're that girl he met all those ages ago when he was just a pauper with no mora to his name. The conversation started to circle once there were answers that didn't match up or didn't satisfy him, but paraphrasing the first questions. Growing weary of this, he pulled out a pristine flower and showed it to you.

"You know, a poor friend of mine left me this one pitiful morning. She made me fetch a pathetic flower in hopes to ditch me and have a perfect life without me. She would always sing me these strange songs where twin black stars twinkle in the night to guide damnable souls like mine." Pantalone lied in order to get something out of you, noticing your distressed look. He stopped with his relentless questionnaires.

His face softened once tears started to roll down your visage, ruining your makeup.

"Little munchkin… ?" Using the nickname that you gave him, her hand on her head. It felt like it's going to split.

Gloved hand tried to touch your cheek "Oh, my angel-." But another voice called out to you, seeing you flinched at the sound and quickly put up a façade that everything's fine.

"Fortune… " The older looking gentleman came over to calm you down. Saying something before looking at Pantalone as if he had done something wrong.

He got kicked out of the building. For the first time, he was denied something by a mere commoner. But it won't be the first time he'll be persistent on getting what he wants.

He'll start negotiating, from time to time out of mercy. It would have worked if that old wind bag would just let him speak to you. No one would even look at him or even tell him to come back next time. It's insulting that they're treating him like he's the same beggar before he rose to power!

So he stopped going and began his next phase, fine if they didn't want to talk to them it'll be their own damn fault if ruin comes to them.

Sending some fatui agents around the area to keep tabs. One has reported that you kept singing your heart out of sorrow by yourself in the middle of the night. A tune that would always lull him to slumber… That quelled the voices in his mind that it's a plea for help. But first he has to feed the ever so ravenous knowledge seeker.

Your poor admirers met an 'accidental' demise one by one.. Others met a swift and painless death, another ended with accidents, some went missing, framed and tried in court. Though, he had kept a select few in a pen that ultimately disgust him. First when they devoured the rotting flesh of their leftover livestock. Still hungry, they turned upon themselves. All the while Pantalone watched from afar in the comfort of his opulent home.

Then there's that one time where someone had bumped onto you, they too weren't spared. Especially that girl with a jaded expression. One that threatened to sue you in court for causing her husband's infidelity.

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From days to months, the old crod of the accursed métier finally made his move. The stygian haired man found one of the batch being transported, the one that didn't have you in it.

"I gave you numerous warnings and signs, gaffer. Give my little angel back." Pantalone hissed with a sinister smile. He may be merciful to some degree, but there is a limit to his thinning patience with stubborn people.

"Over my dead body, Regrator! First, you harassed my child then proceeded to corner me to a wall. You're nothing but a coward hiding behind that pile of money of yours!" The bald man goaded, using his arms to imitate a shield the girls. It effectively summoned the heavy coated man's indignation.

"Sir, if I may." One agent talks.

"Permission to speak, granted. Be quick about it." He knows this agent would take pity on the old man.

"Thank you, how about a little gamble? A game of Durak." They suggested it, making the banker hum in curiosity.

Durak, a traditional game where the goal is to have an empty hand. Rather odd for the agent to suggest this, since this is one of the things that got him to where he is today..

"What do you say, josser?" The shaven head man looked at the girls and thought this'll be a trap. But what other choice does he have?

With the game set, cards from the beauty owner provided a bit of an advantage on his part..

The first round goes to the owner, then the next, and the next until the fourth when Pantalone had started to catch up. Comparing the two is like calling a zucchini a cucumber.

"l, won." With such triumph, not once did he open his eyes as the defeated player collapsed to his knees, salty tears leaked out of his eyeballs. Pleading the girls to let go as they have nothing to do with this.

"Please, Lord Harbinger, have a heart and leave my children alone!" Cried the loser, begging for the 9th's mercy at his feet after his inevitable defeat at the game of Durak. It was only a matter of time..

" 'Have a heart', you say? Well, I can arrange that." The young man smiled lightly like normal but to the old man that didn't want to hand over any of his girls or 'children' rather, felt the foreboding deal he verbally struck. The girls behind him huddled together, paled at the implications that come with it.

"Oh, he's going to love this patient." Laughed the Regrator as the agents took hold of the caretaker who was thrashing around. He had a plan for the other girls to be sent away, not bothering them… but did send a few other girls to be closely inspected by the doctor for 'analysis'.

"Tell him to take his sweet time with the others." Waving his hands away at the agents that rallied the girls in separate binds, their wails and pleas go unheard by them as they are being pulled to go under the scalpel.

"Lord Harbinger! We have uncovered the girl!" Reported another that just arrived. And now the real fun begins.

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Back at his home there you are, resisting Pantalone's kindness when he's trying to be patient with you. Each time returning with a gift covered in gilt. And declined once again. He's just as ruthless as he is merciful to you.

" If you love that vulgar job so much, then I'll be obliged to satisfy you in your needs…"

" Oh, come on… you could do better than that.."

"Look at you… So filthy, whoring yourself out like that...I can't believe you were manipulated into agreeing with those dunces."

Whispering those into your ear as you were chained and gagged to the bed. "My lovely, little angel, don't worry. I'll take good care of you this time. Don't give me that talk about being selfless, they're abusing it…" he ran his fingers through your hair.

" Be a good little munchkin for me instead, sing all those songs when we're young…" it's probably best for you to do as he says.

You had become his security blanket, the only thing besides money that can brighten his day. It's not complete if he didn't wrap your body up in a blanket and cuddle you.

If you did return his feelings, perhaps he'll let you out of the chains occasionally. That goes for accepting gifts from him. You must welcome it with open arms and display it upon your body for him to see. Only you would see that genuine smile on that face when he brushed your hair.

The obsession in his eyes grew darker with time. Mumbling how you don't need to lift a finger anymore for anyone. Just let him be the brains for both of you, and you just sit pretty like a doll for him.

Even after that there is one fear that hasn't been quelled within him. What if you found a way to revolt? What would he do to satiate your needs?

Thinking back, that flower you gave him had allowed him to befriend an alchemist, a pill was given after he shared his sob story.

"Fret not friend, for this is the solution you seek of.. have your friend consume it and then she is all yours until death."

Oh, to use or not to use. It all depends on how you behave, either comply willingly or comply forcefully. Either way, he doesn't want to hurt you. But if it's the betterment to get you to stay in his arms, he doesn't seem to have a reason to be guilty about.

"Dear… open your mouth." You didn't as he tried to push the pill in your lips, hands tried to push him away but felt weak since you tried to boycott by not eating.

"It's for your own good, you'll feel better once you eat it… EAT IT. " Pantalone threatens his darling angel to open her mouth by squeezing her cheeks, tossing the pill in your lips before kissing your lips to force the petite maiden to submission.

Moans escaped your mouth as hands gripped on his back, panting as your body felt sweaty. A black pill like size appeared on your ear. Whispering temptations into your ear and slowly bending to the greedy will of his.

Continuing his kisses down to your collar bone, giving love marks all over your body. For some odd reason it felt warm, light touches are enough to make your vision spin around.

"Ha..! Please… " Some drool dribbled down your chin. Your hands looped over his head pulling him closer to your chest.

"Mm, of course my little angel. Anything for you. Go on. Sing my little angel! "

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For some odd reason I feel quite unsatisfied with this. Or am I just being too harsh?

Side Tracks opinions part 1: Janus

(Yes I’m staring with Janus and going backwards, I just need to talk about this snake man right now!)

Alright, I’ve seen lots of people give their takes on each of the sides playlists, and honestly... I feel like they’re not all that similar to my interpretations. I mean yes anyone can interpret the songs how they’d like, but some people just flat out ignore canon to see the songs as their ship instead of what I believe they are actually meant to be seen as. Anyways... Janus! Yes let’s go through each song one by one 💛

1) Black Hole Sun: I’ll admit this one was hard for me. The song is obviously so Janus, with plenty of references to snakes and lying, but I can’t seem to put a finger on the exact meaning. If I had to guess, it’s showing Janus’ fist instance of fearing society. He’s realized that the world is not a safe place for Thomas and no one can be trusted (“Times are gone for honest men” “no one sings like you anymore”). He longs for the ignorance of childhood when society didn’t seem to pose a threat and Thomas wasn’t aware of the dangers and lies it held, but he knows that someone has to protect him from it, and that is Janus (“my youth I pray to keep” “hang my head, drown my fear”).

2) Seemed the Better Way: To me, this is a song about Janus knowing his place as a dark side and knowing that the others will not listen to him (“I better hold my tongue” “better take my place”). He initially trusts the core sides to do what needs to be done and take care of Thomas adequately, but when he realizes that it isnt enough, he finds it hard to keep in hiding (“Seemed the better way” “now it’s much too late to turn the other cheek”).

3) Anywhere: A BIG middle finger to society (“It’s a beautiful world, if youve been lied to” “No no no, nothing in this world is beautiful”). Janus basically trusts no one in society, not even the people closest to Thomas because he believes that everyone will do whatever it takes to get what they want (“Every man standing on another man’s back”). He also believes that society has been a huge detriment to Thomas and, AGAIN, is very dangerous (“It’s the world’s excuse for being disfigured and lying to you”).

4) Talking at the same time: This song is about Virgil. The song begins with explaining that a hard time for one person can be a triumph for another in multiple different metaphors (“Umbrellas cost more in the rain” “hard times for some, for others its sweet” “someone makes money when theres blood in the street”). The next part of the song practically shoves it in your face that it’s about virgil leaving (“Well she told me she would leave me, I ignored all the signs” “I know you're leaving and there's no more next time”). Janus was clearly hurt by Virgil leaving and it seems like he was almost in denial about it happening. A line near the end of the song that I found particularly interesting was “Well we bailed out all the millionaires, They've got the fruit, We've got the rind”. This line to me shows that Janus and the other dark sides let Virgil go, possibly in an attempt to get all of the dark sides accepted. Virgil capitalized on this opportunity and of course, got accepted, however, he left the others behind. Despite wanting Virgil to get accepted by the light sides, Janus remains bitter that Virgil was the only one. Virgil got the fruit, and the rest of the dark sides got the rind.

5) All the Good Girls go to Hell: Janus believes that Thomas needs to listen to him if he is going to stay safe and healthy. He thinks that his assistance, above all other sides, expecially Patton, is crucial for survival in this messed up world. (“And once the water starts to rise, And heaven's out of sight, She'll want the devil on her team” “Look at you needing me”). You’ll find it a common theme in this playlist that Janus refers to himself as the devil or an evil entity of some sort... Just thought I’d point that out.

6) Denial: Well, its in the title folks! Thomas is (or was) in denial. Janus is aware of the moments when Thomas thinks about consulting him or using one of his functions, but almost as soon as he gets the idea, he drops it and acts like the thought never happened (“Don't just shut your eyes closed” “You know that I can hear you thinking, I've heard you all the way from here, But if I look you in the eye though, It's like your thoughts all disappear”). Thomas is struggling for answers to questions that only Janus can answer, but he refuses to listen to consult him and Janus desperately wants this to stop (“I know you're looking for direction, I know where you wanna go” “Please don't turn the light out, I don't think the conversation's over”).

7) Trust in Me: Obviously, the original song has much more sinister undertones, but when listening to the song from Janus’ perspective, I get a different vibe. Basically, Janus just wants Thomas to trust him and give him more reign over decision making. Not much for this one.

8) Razzle Dazzle: JANUS IS EXTRA! Is anyone shocked? Also a HUGE showman. But again, no one’s surprised. Janus believes that the only way to get the light sides to listen to him is to practically put on a show to cover up whatever his true intentions are (“How can they see with sequins in their eyes?” “Razzle dazzle 'em And theyll never catch wise!” “How can they hear the truth above the roar?”) I could keep listing lines but theyre literally all just different versions of the same sentiment.

9) When the Chips are Down: The title right off the bat shows that, again, Janus believes that Thomas needs to look to him when important decisions are on the line. There are also a lump sum of jabs at patton in this song, lines like “Aim for the heart, shoot to kill” and “Cast your eyes to heaven, You get a knife in the back”. Theres also a lot of lines, yet again, of Janus practically begging Thomas to trust him and no one else (“Ain't nobody but yourself to trust” “Help yourself, To hell with the rest, Even the one who loves you best”).

10) Mandy goes to Med School: Soooo this one... Honestly, I don’t really have a lot. The original meaning of the song is not very applicable to Janus, so its a bit hard to pinpoint its meaning. The only thing I can think of is that Janus is again hating on society and the crazy things that people have to go through in it. If you weren’t aware, this song is about coat-hanger abortions.

11) I put a Spell on You: This one seems pretty striaghtforward to me. Janus knows that Thomas doesn’t want him, and it drives him up the wall, but he does what a snake boi does and slithers his way in anyways (“And I don't care if you don't want me, I'm yours right now” “I can't stand it 'cause you put me down”). I suppose you could argue that you could replace Thomas with Patton (mostly because daddy is used like 10 times in the song 😂) but a later song covers their realtionship extremely well.

12) Evil Night Together: Another toughie. My gut feeling is that this is a song about Remus and Janus just going out and having a wild night together. As I read into the lyrics more, though, it seems almost like Janus is doing this for Remus. Like he wants Remus to feel accepted and loved by him (something that can’t be said by Thomas). I just can’t read some of these lines without getting big Momceit vibes... i mean... theyre so supportive! “I'll hold your hand while they drag the river” “I'll cuddle you in the undertow” “I'll hold you close while they dust for prints”. Then theres of course this line... “Who's gonna make you a hero?” And to me, that is Janus saying that, if Thomas only sees Roman as his hero and not Remus, then it is Janus’ job to make Remus feel like a hero. Janus also saying “No need for cake or flowers” also feels like him reassuring Remus that he doesn’t need to be like his brother to be perfect and loved.

13) Don’t tell Mama: I think I’ve seen some people interpreting “mama” as Thomas in this song, but to me Patton seems like a better fit, especially after their interactions in the most recent episode. Basically this song is all about how Janus doesn’t mind people knowing about the bad things he does, but he can absolutely not have one person know. Janus seems to have grown a soft spot for Patton in the new episode and if you ask me, he would definately not want patton finding out about some of immoral things he’s wanted Thomas to do. I mean he literally waits for Patton to sink out and then the second he’s gone he starts scheming about pushing people down stairs and sabotage.

14) You’re a Cad: Another Virgil one, but this time it’s after Virgil’s acceptance. I think Janus has little faith in the beginning that Virgil would get far in his journey to the light side. Whether that is because of envy or just plain pessimism, I’m not sure, but he definately doubted Virgil would ever be able to escape his past (“So now you want the whole world to notice that you've come around, Now you expect, We'll see how you're really so much better now, But I know the truth” “What's the point pretending that you could be a better man, Just give in, since you always end up right back where you began”). Despite his reluctance to support Virgil’s endevors, Janus shows a softer side for Virgil that has gone completely untalked about in canon (“You're a rascal and a rogue, a villain and a crook, Still I tug at your line, I'm a fish on your hook” “Still I know the truth, but I have a sweet tooth for a Cad and a bounder, a dog and a cheap”). Janus really misses Virgil and I would go as far as to say that he regrets the things that he’s done to make Virgil want to leave (“I should be better, but I'm worse” “You're reckless with my heart, still I wait by the phone”).

15) As far as I can See: A sadie but a goodie. Janus doesn’t really understand love, but he’s sure that no one loves him (“As far as I can see Nobody loves me”). No one listens to him, no matter how much he shouts and cries. He doesn’t believe that anyone could love him if they are unwilling to hear him out and communicate with him (“As far as I can see, Nobody's listening” “And when I'm crying out, Nobody cries back for me”).

16) Criminal: AH MY FAVORITE SONG ON THE PLAYLIST! I LEGIT CRIED MY GUYS! Anyway. Janus LOVES Thomas. I would go as far to say that Janus loves Thomas more than any other side. Despite his lacking knowledge of love and what it feels like, he knows for a fact that what he feels for Thomas is the closest thing he will feel to love (“Because he's all I ever knew of love”). Now that thats out of the way, lets get to the juicy stuff... Janus feels like a criminal as he’s been taught over and over again that his opinions and thoughts are bad and harmful (“Cause I'm feelin' like a criminal” “I've done wrong and I wanna suffer for my sins”) This song is ultimately about Janus wanting to improve for Thomas, the one he loves the most. He knows that Thomas needs him, and the only way to get Thomas to listen is to get some help. Whose that help you might ask? Patton. Janus wants to be more helpful, but he doesnt know how. He’s envious of Patton’s ability to be accepted so easily, so he goes to him for advice (“I've come to you cause I need guidance to be true, And I just don't know where I can begin”). Janus wants to be redeemed in Thomas’ eyes, he wan’ts to escape the criminal appearance he’s been doomed to (“And I need to be redeemed, To the one I've sinned against”). He HATES some of the things he does to Thomas and some of the things he makes him think, but he doesn’t want to be forgiven, he believes that he deserves to be punished, but he still wants to get better for Thomas. He just doesn’t know how to do that (“Oh help me, but don't tell me to deny it, I've got to cleanse myself Of all these lies til I'm good enough for him”). Also, Janus sees Patton in a very very high place. He goes as far in this song to liken him to an angel while comparing himself, again, to the devil (“So what would an angel say, The devil wants to know”).

17) Change: The song is about, you guessed it, change! This to me is a continuation of the last song. Janus finally feels like things are changing in his favor (likely after the most recent episode). He was beginning to feel like there was no point in caring or trying, but now that he’s begining to see the light, he’s grown a bit hopeful (“Lately I've been thinking it's just someone else's job to care, Who am I to sympathize when no one gave a damn?” “Trying to find the power in me to be faithful” “Change is a powerful thing, I feel it coming in me”). With Patton’s help and acceptance, Janus is begining to feel worthy of Thomas again and begining to see the he has a voice (“Maybe by the time this song is done I’ll be able to be honest, capable, Of holding you in my arms without letting you fall when I don't feel beautiful Or stable”).

18) Devil in the Details: Janus worries again about his ability to help Thomas. He doesn’t believe that he can tell the difference between good and bad and he looks to Patton for that differentiation (“There was love I meant, there were accidents, So tell me which is which. 'Cause I just can't work it out” “I have, no way, of knowing,…”). There’s also an odd underlying message about doing something that he doesn’t want to do, but continues to do despite this and I’m not quite sure what that could be referring to (“And I know the cost, and I want to stop. But I can't do it, I just can't do it.”). It could simply be referring to him lying or deceiving others, but that seems too simple. I wish I had a better answer.

19) Come Little Children: ALSO MY FAVORITE SONG ON THE PLAYLIST! This is really big guys. This song practically confirms the fact that Janus was in charge of taking in and hiding the dark sides from Thomas (“Come little children, I'll take thee away Into a land of enchantment”). The song literally uses the phrase “My garden of shadows”, a clear metaphor for the hidden parts of Thomas’ mind where Janus keeps the dark sides. But it gets better... Janus pities these poor sides. He hates the way that society has forced them away from the light and into the shadows (“Follow sweet children, I'll show thee the way Through all the pain And the sorrows”). Not only does Janus feel bad for these sides and longs to protect them from the cruelness of the real world, but he LOVES them. He values every aspect of them and thinks they are beautiful and perfect. He cannot fathom why society wouldn’t also love see them this way and it frustrates him to hide such amazing traits from the world (“Weep not poor children For life is this way, Murdering beauty and passions”). Despite this sadness and dissapointment, Janus does his job and keeps the dark sides hidden away, knowing that society would never accept them for what they are (“Hush now dear children, It must be this way”).

20) Into the Unknown (no not the Frozen song): This song is VERY IMPORTANT. I have seen so many misinterpretations of this song, and granted mine could also be wrong, but please hear me out. This song comes right after the last song for a reason. The sides that Janus had once hidden away are now being shown to Thomas. He is literally going into the unknown (“Led through the mist, By the milk-light of moon, All that was lost, is revealed.” “Somewhere lost in the clouded annals of history, Lies a place that few have seen. A mysterious place, called The Unknown. Where long-forgotten stories are revealed to those who travel through the wood.”) Thomas is figuratively traveling through the wood by learning more about himself and traveling deeper into Janus’ previously mentioned Garden of Shadows. The song ends, beautifully framing Janus’ love for the sides he’s raised and hidden away, calling them “ The loveliest lies of all”....

(Ahhh! I’m sorry that was so long guys 😅 Thank you if you read the whole thing or evern part! I’d like to hear your opinions, so let me know 💛💛💛)

Addicted

Pairing: Jeonghan x Reader Genre: Angst Warnings: Implied smut, unhealthy relationship, manipulation, mentions of cheating, Language WC: 2k+ A/N: Soooo i didn’t have a lot of time this weekend to write something new. So I took a fic I wrote years ago on my old writing account and transferred it to this account! I’ve been debating on writing a follow up fic to it, now i might have the energy to do it.

Pop music screamed through the room, filling the once silent night air with it’s beats. He was calling you again, you knew it. No one else would be calling at….3am. 

Fuck it was 3am. Of course you knew better than to answer him again. He was drunk and needy, and you weren’t some whore for him to play with. 

Not anymore.

Finally the loud music ended, signalling that he had given up for now. Sadly, it was too late, you were wide awake at this point and regretting not blocking his number. You had decided to cut of any contact you had with him, hell you hadn’t even seen him in a whole week (which considering how close you had been before was a fucking miracle)

A groan escaped your lips, swinging your legs over the side of the bed and pushing your fatigued frame to stand up. You were gonna kill him if you saw him again, you had already been losing sleep over him and you didn’t need him actively helping the problem.

You felt pathetic. 

Grabbing your phone off of your nightstand, flipping the case open to see that he had called a total of 7 times. Honestly, he was usually more stubborn than that. Maybe he had finally gotten the message. You scoffed at the thought, this was Yoon Jeonghan we are talking about, he wasn’t one to give up so quickly.

With a sigh, you drug yourself into your kitchen with the thought of getting some coffee and attempting to start your day...albeit a bit early. Eyes focused on the coffee pot in front of you, as your mind wandered farther away.

Your apartment honestly felt rather empty now...2 weeks ago, Jeonghan would have been here with you. A arm wrapped around your middle, lips on your neck as he whispered sweet nothings to you. Which was exactly what those moments were, nothing. Jeonghan had proved that. You didn’t need him anymore, you didn’t need someone who didn’t actually love you. 

Your train of thought was derailed as a loud pounding sounded from your door, causing you to jump lightly. Glancing at the clock on your microwave, you noticed that it was only about 3:30am, way to early for guests. A sinking feeling made its way into your gut, you eyes staring at the door for a moment before another resounding knock echoed through your apartment.

“Y/N, I know y-you’re home babyyyyyy. Let me iiin!” The familiar voice had your heart sinking into your gut, your blood running cold. Why was he here? Sure you didn’t pick up his calls and sure he was drunk but there was no reason for him to come here! 

While you stood in your kitchen like a deer in headlights you heard a drunken fumbling at the door before it burst open revealing the face a face that you definitely didn’t want to see right now or hell, ever again.

Your feet felt like they were glued to the floor as you watched his drunken gaze move towards the living room as he entered. When he noticed you weren’t there his line of sight moved on to the kitchen, eyes locking with yours. It felt like a stone had settled inside your gut as he smiled at you. At one point, that smile would have made your skin flush and your heart race with excitement. Now it simply made your blood run cold….you really should have hidden your spare key in a different place.

“Under the rug still? Baby you’re so cute.” His voice slurred as he pushed the door closed, his inebriated body following the door as it shut. His eyes never leaving yours, looking at you as if you were his next meal. Jeonghan lifted his frame off of the door, and stumbled his way through the archway to join you in the kitchen.

Swallowing deeply, you set your gaze firmly on him. “You need to leave. I told you I didn’t want to see you again Jeonghan.” If you didn’t know any better, you would have thought that his eyes looked hurt by your words. 

But you had seen him, with your own two eyes, you saw him fucking that girl. It was an image that was burned into your mind. His arms firmly gripping the girl’s hips, hard enough to leave bruises (you knew from experience), his moans as he pleasured the woman. Just the memory of seeing that made your stomach turn. 

His hand clumsily reached out to stroke your cheek, and you couldn’t find it in yourself to listen to the rules that you had set for yourself when it had come to him. This was pathetic.

“But baaaabe.” a fresh whine left his lip as his thumb gently caressed your cheek. His lower lip had jutted out into a small pout. “I need a place to stay tonight. I lost my keys and Josh left the bar without me.” 

Coming to your senses ever so slightly you pushed his hand away, almost instantly missing it’s warmth. “So….you were abandoned at the bar, and instead of calling your roommate to come back and get you. You called me? And walked here? What kind of sense does that make?” You couldn’t stop the exasperated laugh from leaving your lips as he nodded his head, attempting to act cute. He always did that just to win you over, he really was something else. 

“This was the first place I thought of, I mean what’s an angel outside of Heaven?” His question hit you right where it hurt. When you were together, he had always called you his Heaven. It was cheesy and silly but you had loved it. Being Heaven for your beautiful angel. Fuck…

“A demon…” you muttered under your breath, answering his rhetorical question. Running a hand through your hair as a sigh escaped your lips. “Fine, just….just go sleep on the couch. You know where the bathroom is. Just leave me alone.”

Coffee long forgotten, you grabbed your phone and turned on your heel to return to your room. You just wanted to bury yourself under the covers and pray to whatever deity was out there that Jeonghan would be gone by the time you woke up. 

“Ahhh and people call me the Angel. Good night Y/N.” he slurred, his words making your heart clench tightly. You ignored him. After all, that was all you could do at this point. 

Returning to the warm comfort of your bed, you found yourself unable to sleep. You body pressed as close to the wall as you could comfortably stand, mind reeling with pain and irritation. Why did he have to come here? Why couldn’t he just move on to some other pitiful girl and leave you alone? Did he just...enjoy watching you suffer? Honestly, the last one might be true...schadenfreude might as well have been his middle name. 

As you lay, you felt your eyes begin to drop with sleep at last. You were almost so far gone that you didn’t hear the creak of your door as it was lightly pushed open or feel the shifting of your bed as a weight was added to it. 

Rolling over to face the intruder, it was exactly who you expected. But before you could sit up and order him out of your room, his arms had snaked themselves around your waist. Pulling your frame into his now bare chest. It took every ounce of control and reason in your body to will yourself not to relax into the familiarity of his embrace. This wasn’t a good thing anymore, this was very very bad and you needed to force him away.

“I miss you.” His soft voice seemed almost like a whisper in your ear. It was almost as if those three words had taken all of your strength. Leaving your hands shaking on his forearms, stopping their attempt to push him away once more. 

In all honesty, you missed him too. Hell you were still madly in love with him and he knew it. He had to, this had to just be a ploy to get into your pants. There was no way he actually cared about you, loved you, he never had in the first place. 

“So so much. My heaven was gone for so long.” He was still drunk, but it was quite obvious now that he had been overacting a bit earlier. It was hard to think about that fact though as he nuzzled his face into the side of your neck, soft hair tickling you as he did. “Please Y/N, please don’t leave me alone again.”  It was almost like you were a God and his words were a prayer to you. It was terrible, you couldn’t let him do this...not again. 

“Jeonghan, you can’t...I can’t do this.” You muttered, your strength finally returning as you gently pushed his chest away from you. “I don’t want you in my life anymore after what you did.” You vaguely wondered who you were speaking to at this point, Jeonghan or yourself. 

Even in the dark you could see the heartbreak pass into his expression. You couldn’t tell if it was real or not, he had always been such a wonderful manipulator. Using his words and expressions to twist the minds of others so that he could get his way. But that fact seemed to slip your mind when he pressed his forehead to yours.

“Then, can you just give me one last night? To be with you one more time?” That’s what he said last time, but you found yourself falling for it once again as you felt his lips ever so slightly ghost over your own, almost begging for you to fill the gap between them. That was his game, keep you wanting more. Keep you addicted to his touch, his kiss, his everything. You knew you had lost the second you found your hands gripping on his shoulders, pushing him onto his back while your lips firmly pressed against his own. Finding such wonderful solace in his embrace, and the long night that you had ahead of you. Your moans melding with his own, creating a symphony of pleasure that you knew you would come to regret once morning hit.

You were pathetic, and you knew it.

***

“You did what?!” 

You couldn’t look Jun in the eyes as he sat across from you at your local coffee shop. You knew he was upset, and as your best friend he sort of had a right to be. He knew how much Jeonghan had already hurt you and he was pissed that he wouldn’t leave you alone after all the heartache he had caused. 

“He...he came over last night. He um, he needed a place to stay. Said some sweet words and he just won me over.” Exasperated you held your head in your hands, explaining to Jun once again what had happened the night prior. Or...rather this morning. “But when I woke up, he was gone. 

You could almost feel the taste in Jun’s stare as you lifted your eyes to meet his finally, “Y/N, you can’t keep doing this to yourself. This is unhealthy for both of you.” For a moment, he looked like he was about to continue before his lips pressed into a firm line. His eyes didn’t meet your, rather they seemed to linger behind you where the door to the shop resided. With a tense feeling in your chest, you followed his gaze to find none other than Yoon Jeonghan with his arm wrapped around the waist of a rather petite blonde woman. All smiles as usual.

Your heart sank, he did it again. He used you. Of course you had known that before, but seeing that woman with him had just cemented that fact. He had played you like a damn fiddle. How stupid could you have been? Once again falling for his sweet lies and gentle caresses.

If you were being honest with yourself, which you rarely were, you would have realized that no matter how many times he came back...you would let him in. You weren’t over him, you were addicted and his was the sweetest of drugs.

So Close - S.S. XXXI

Summary: The universe has a funny way of putting the things you want right in front of you, but just out of reach. Stiles and Y/N have been best friends ever since Scott brought him home, but when Stiles realizes that he might want to be something other than best friends, she leaves to go to some fancy private school up North. Now that she’s back though … maybe he’s got a shot? A Teen Wolf AU in which the reader has always been so close to Stiles and yet so far.

Masterlist Prev. | Part 31

Word-count: 4k+

A/N: soooo uh some rambling ahead but you can skip this if you want!! i’ve been writing so close on and off since like august of 2019 which is a little insane to me. i loved the beginning of so close because it was just like whacky incidents, and i realise i can’t change the entire teen wolf plot but it’s my fic and i can make it lighthearted if i want to. so here’s to trying to fix the mess i’ve made and get back to the fun stuff!! hope you like it!!

Deaton wanted to keep you overnight for observation, but there was no way your mom was letting you stay in the animal clinic by yourself. Melissa was a force of nature when it came to her kids, and the only person who could convince her that it was okay to let go was you or Scott - and Scott was never any good at arguing. 

“Mom,” you said quietly, taking her hand in yours. Her voice was so loud and strained that she didn’t seem to hear you at first, so you gripped her hand more tightly and tried again. It was hard to focus with the lights so bright. “Mom, I can stay here. It’s one night.” 

“One night?” Melissa repeated, still strained but quieter. “It’s not one night. You haven’t been home in- Do you even know what day it is?” 

“Mom, it’s one night.” 

“Months. It’s been months,” Melissa argued, barely even listening. “You weren’t even here for your birthday! It is not one night. It’s- it’s-”

“One night.” Your voice was hollow but you needed to keep it together. For her and for everyone else. “You can stay here the whole time. I’m not going anywhere else. I promise.” 

Melissa was quiet. She looked at you, then over your shoulder to Scott, and then to Deaton. You could feel her heart rate dropping in your hand as she came to a decision. ���Alright. One night.” She sighed and rubbed her forehead with her free hand. “Do you need anything from home? I’ll bring you some pajamas, toiletries, your pillow… anything else?” 

You shook your head and Melissa squeezed your hand again, shaky as Scott pulled her back and helped her out to the car. Once you were sure they were gone, you put your head in your hands and started sliding down to the floor. 

“Hey, hey, hey-” You weren’t sure where he came from, but Stiles put his hands over yours and tried to get your attention. “Hey, look at me. You’re okay.” 

“Stiles, I’m not okay,” you whispered. Your eyes burned, maybe from the tears, maybe from the lights. You couldn’t tell. “I’m seventeen now. I- I missed my birthday and I’ve died at least twice in less than a year. And I’m- I hurt you. So badly. There’s no coming back from that.” 

“Of course there’s coming back,” Stiles said. He didn’t waiver, no matter how much you tried to push him away. “Y/N, I have done so, so much worse. And you’ve never given up on me.” 

“That’s different.” 

“How is that different?” 

“It just is!” You pulled your hands away from your head because it wasn’t helping anyway. It was still too loud. “Because you didn’t hospitalize Lydia. Or kill Scott. Or blow up-” 

“Well, I kidnapped Lydia. Maimed Scott. And I’m pretty sure I’m responsible for at least two shrapnel bombs,” Stiles said. “So. You know. It’s kind of the same.” 

You were quiet enough that Stiles took it as a sign that you agreed, or at least that you were considering it. He laced his hand through yours and it was difficult to focus on anything that wasn’t the blood flowing through his fingers. 

“Stiles,” you said carefully, “It’s different because we’re sitting here and I- I can’t focus on how guilty I am because all I can focus on is the pit in my stomach. I am so hungry, and it’s so selfish. All I can think about is-” 

“You’re still hungry?” Stiles asked. “You ate like an entire pizza an hour ago.” 

Somehow, you managed to avert your eyes when you were already avoiding eye contact. “The food made me feel sick.” 

“Okay, well, it’s not a full moon ‘cause that was a week ago. So maybe it’s just because it’s been a while since you had anything to eat,” Stiles said. “Your stomach just needs to adjust to normal again, that’s all.”

You wanted to believe him, you really did, but you couldn’t bring yourself to. All you could do was muster up a smile and let Stiles kiss your forehead, doing your best not to think about how badly you wanted to rip his throat out.

--- 

You weren’t sure what was worse: spending the night on Deaton’s exam table or knowing that your mom, Scott, Stiles, and Deaton were all watching you. They didn’t even take turns; all far too concerned for different reasons to sleep. To be fair, it’s not like you slept either, but that wasn’t out of concern. It was because they were too loud and you were too hot. 

A cold shower once you got home did nothing to help the pounding in your head. The water hit the shower walls so hard that it was deafening, and you couldn’t cool down no matter how low you turned the temperature. Just like the night before, it was insufferable. 

And you were still hungry. 

You dug through the fridge and stuffed all the food you could find into your mouth before one of your loved ones came to check on you. That’s how Stiles found you on the kitchen floor, drinking orange juice straight from the bottle. He got a weird smile on his face and you nodded at him. 

“I thought a couple of raccoons broke in,” Stiles said, head tilting to the side as he gestured to the trash can piled high with wrappers. “But I’m pretty sure raccoons are less messy.” 

“Very funny, Stilinski.” You rolled your eyes and patted the ground next to you. “Sit with me?” 

“I’d love to, but I can’t,” Stiles said. He rocked on his heels as he pretended to think about it. “Got a surprise for you that isn’t on the kitchen floor.” 

“A surprise?” you asked, pulling your legs up to your chest and setting the juice to the side. “What is it?” 

“God, do any of you know what the word ‘surprise’ means?” Stiles said with an exasperated sigh, clearly more at something or someone else than you. He held out a hand to you. “Come on. Come here and I’ll show you.”

You let Stiles pull you up but didn’t say anything else as he did. Whatever this surprise was, you were sure that you deserved it. So much had happened, even if everyone wanted to pretend it hadn’t. Even as Stiles led you through the house, you could hear your mom on the phone with the school upstairs. It made you feel sick. 

“Stiles, I think we should just-” 

And then he opened the door and you saw a very familiar, very beat up Porsche on the street with some very familiar, less beat up people leaning against it. 

“Oh, my god. Is that-” 

You looked at Stiles for a second and he nodded at you, then you made a run for it. Isaac caught you, but you’d sprinted into him at such a speed that you knocked the wind out of him and rocked the Porsche. He laughed and said something you didn’t process as you turned and wrapped Cora up in your arms. She was uncomfortable under your grip but she let you hug her to your heart’s content. 

“What are you guys doing here?” you rushed out. You were holding their hands to keep from drifting away. “I thought you were still in Argentina. The last time we talked-” 

“We were,” Cora interrupted slowly. “Then you stopped answering our texts, and a few days later Stiles called.” 

“And you actually answered?” you teased. 

A few months ago, that would have made them laugh. Now it made them smile in a way that didn’t quite reach their eyes and broke your heart. 

“So how much of it have they told you?” you asked. 

“Told us what?” 

“Don’t you dare, Lahey. You can’t lie to me for shit,” you said, pulling your hands back and crossing your arms over your chest. As the conversation became less ecstatic, you became more aware of the sun scorching your skin. “Cora, what do you know?”

Cora took a breath and looked at Isaac before speaking. “We know you were possessed by the nogitsune and then Scott turned you. Into what is unclear, but Derek said that if it’s you then it can’t be anything that bad.” 

It made you smile at least. Derek never would have said anything that mushy to your face. You took a breath and focused on relaxing your muscles. “Okay, okay,” you sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m a little-” 

“Crazy?” Isaac asked. 

You glared at him and he shrugged it off, but you still held his hand as you led him and Cora inside. They didn’t ask questions about what happened or how you were dealing with it, they just sat with you and talked about anything else. Scott and Stiles joined you guys after a few minutes, and so did your mom when she eventually needed a break from all the bureaucracy. 

Even though Isaac insisted he was fine, Melissa still came back with bowls of food and some drinks. She made his plate just like she did when he came over after fights with his dad and when he was staying with you. For the hour or so you spent together, everything felt normal. 

And then Stiles bumped over a glass during one of his stories and scrambled to pick it up, cutting himself in the process. It was like someone electrocuted you. Everything inside of you lit up and it took all you could not to attack him. A sickening feeling of not being in control flooded inside you - a ghostly reminder of being possessed - when you called out for Scott to get you out of the room. 

For a second, Scott didn’t look like he understood. He clicked but Cora was faster thanks to growing up with plenty of werewolves still learning control. She had you out the room and up against the stairs in seconds, claws sinking into your arm. You cried out and pushed her away but Cora was far stronger than she looked. 

“Hey, look at me,” she said, hand coming up to hold your head in place once Isaac took hold of your limbs. “Breathe. Stop focusing on the anger. Focus on the pain. Pain makes you human. Pain makes you heal. You understand?” 

“Let me go.” You didn’t recognize the growl that came out of your mouth. Everything about this was so disgustingly similar to being controlled by the nogitsune, so you did your best to listen to Cora. “Pain makes you human,” you repeated in a labored voice. “Pain makes you heal.” 

Isaac let go before Cora did, and she let go before you were ready for it. Your breathing slowed back to normal but your brain was pounding out of your skull. 

“Is that- Is that what’s gonna be like?” you asked. “On the full moon, I mean. Am I just going to … to lose control like that?” 

Cora looked over at Scott and Isaac shifted uncomfortably next to her. Scott sighed and sat next to you on the stairs. 

“Not always,” he said, very carefully choosing his words. “It’s going to take everything you’ve got on the first few not to lose control, but it will get better. You’ve seen it with Isaac and Boyd. With Liam. You know how to do this.”

“I don’t think I do,” you said in a small voice. You looked over Scott’s shoulder and between Cora and Isaac and your eyes landed on Stiles. He was looking at you too, but his eyes were full of concern for you while yours were full of something else. Guilt. You could have killed him. “I think you should take me back to Deaton.”

It didn’t take much convincing to get them to take you back. Scott and Stiles stayed with you while you explained everything to Deaton from the light and sound sensitivity to insatiable hunger and then losing it altogether. He was quiet for a few moments as he thought and then he retreated into the backroom. 

You did you best not to eavesdrop but it was difficult with the new hearing that you couldn’t control yet. Luckily for you, Stiles squeezed your hand and it was almost impossible to focus on anything else. 

Deaton came back with a metal drinking bottle. He set it down in front of you and gave you a smile. “You’ll feel better after drinking this.” 

“What is it?” you asked, untangling your hand from Stiles’ to grab a hold of the bottle. As soon as you unscrewed the top, you felt that electricity turn back on. 

“I think you know.” 

“Well, I don’t!” Stiles said next to you. “Is someone gonna explain to me what’s going on? What’s in the bottle?” 

“Blood,” Scott said. You should have known he could smell it. 

“Blood?” Stiles repeated. “Why blood?” 

“I was hoping that it wouldn’t come to this,” Deaton said. “But it seems Y/N spent too much time without a beating heart. She needs something to keep her alive and in control, and that’s what the blood is for.” 

“Does this look like control, Doc?” Stiles asked. “Black eyes and a death-grip on a water bottle?” 

“I think it looks like someone who’s trying,” Deaton said. “And who needs a moment alone to drink.” 

Stiles looked ready to argue again but either the look on your face or Scott’s hand on his arm got through to him because he closed his mouth. Then he wiped his face and nodded just before Scott led him out of the room. 

Deaton disappeared again and then it was just you and the bottle. 

The bottle full of blood. 

Blood that was sticky and warm as it slid down your throat. Blood that made your entire body tingle and feel alive. Blood made the light not feel blinding and finally, finally drowned out all the noise. Blood that fixed your hunger.

--- 

“Are we all good?” Melissa asked when the three of you got home again. She looked like she’d been pacing ever since you left, stopping only when she heard Scott unlock the door. “Or do I need to get Cora back in here?” 

“We’re all good,” you said, squeezing Stiles’ hand lightly. He still seemed freaked out from earlier but you knew he didn’t mean it. “Why do you look like you have bad news? Did something happen to Dad? No one’s said anything about him since I got back-” 

“No, honey. No, it’s nothing like that,” Melissa said. She was about to reach out but seemed to think better of it. “Why don’t you sit down?” 

“Mom,” you said hesitantly. Your hesitance didn’t stop you from sitting on the couch and holding onto Stiles’ hand with two of your own. “What’s wrong?”

Melissa took a breath. “So I talked things through with the school. They’re willing to let you finish summer school and test out with them so you don’t have to repeat sophomore year.” 

“Wait, that’s it?” Stiles asked. “Summer school?” 

“Because you missed the last few weeks of school, it’s either this or repeating the year,” Melissa said. When you didn’t answer, she continued, “The tests are at the end of this month.” 

“The end of the month?” you repeated. “That’s in like-” You stopped to frown. What day was it? 

“Three weeks,” Scott said, sounding awkward from his armchair. 

“Three weeks.” Every single thing that could go wrong in the next three weeks flashed through your head, as well as the realization that passing these tests would take up every waking moment of the next three weeks. “I can’t do that in three weeks. I- I just got back. I don’t even remember what I was doing before I was- you know. I can’t- Three weeks?” 

“Hey, hey,” Stiles said, wrapping his hand around yours. You didn’t realize how rough you’d been on them during your freak-out until he held them still in his own. “You can do this. Lydia can tutor you when you’re not in class and I can-” 

“Stiles, isn’t there a full moon in three weeks?” you asked. “You said the last one was a week ago.” 

“Oh, uh, yeah,” Stiles said. He shifted slightly and looked at Scott. “But we can figure that out.” 

“Can we?” you asked. 

“Of course we can,” Scott said, snapping your attention back to him. “We’re all here for you and we’re not going anywhere. Okay?” 

You bit the inside of your lip. He wasn’t going to listen to your doubts; that just wasn’t how Scott was. He believed the best in people. “Okay,” you said eventually. Taking a deep breath, you stood up and made a list of all the things you needed to do. “Okay. I’m gonna get my stuff together. When do I start school?” 

“Tomorrow,” Melissa said. “It’s Tuesday.” 

“Tuesday,” you said under your breath. You nodded and started heading for your room. “Tuesday. Three weeks. Full moon. I can do this.” 

You reached the top of the stairs when you heard them whispering downstairs. Despite how wrong you knew it was, you focused your hearing on the whispers. Somehow, it worked. 

“You really think she can do this?” Stiles asked. 

“I have no clue,” Scott said. “But I think she’s gonna try.” 

---

Apparently, spending ten hours a day locked up in your room studying and only taking breaks to train with Isaac and Cora wasn’t exactly how everyone pictured you spending your time once you came back home. They were worried about you, they said. You needed a break, they said. Come to the scavenger hunt with us, they said. It’ll be fun, they said. 

So now you were in Deaton’s animal clinic, sandwiched between your friends and thinking about the mountains of chemistry you had to get through when this was all over as you listened to Lydia explain the rules. 

“Okay, any questions?” she asked, hands on hips, after wrapping it up. 

Isaac held up a hand. “Uh, yeah, I’ve got one.” He jutted his chin out in Liam’s direction. “Who’s the kid?”

“I’m Liam. Scott’s first beta,” Liam answered. He looked at Scott before adding the ‘first beta’ part but he should have looked harder and talked less. 

“Oh, you are not his first beta,” Isaac said, pressing himself off the wall. 

Liam was getting ready to square up and you jumped out of your corner to put one hand on Isaac’s shoulder and wrap your other arm around him. “Okay,” you said, forcing a smile. “Isaac, this is Liam, the kid Scott and Stiles kidnapped. Liam, this is Isaac, turned by Derek but-” 

“What I meant was: any questions about the scavenger hunt?” Lydia asked, straining her voice to keep calm over the noise. 

“No,” you said, nudging Isaac lightly. “Right, guys?”

“No,” Isaac repeated after a few seconds, eyes not drifting from where they locked on Liam’s. “No questions, right, Liam?”

“Right,” Liam said after another few seconds. 

“Great,” Lydia said. “Grab your first set of clues and partner up. No cheating.”

You didn’t want to leave Isaac when he still seemed ready to pick a fight with Liam, but he was already skulking towards the table with the clues and maps. He picked one up and asked Scott to be his partner since Malia and Cora wanted to be together. Stiles grabbed the things and rushed over to you before Kira and Liam had the chance to scramble together the stuff to be your partner. The two of them looked very awkwardly at one another while you bit back a laugh. 

“Well, why are you all still standing there?” Lydia asked. “Go scavenge!” 

Not only were you and Stiles an excellent team, but the two of you were also extremely competitive. That’s why you were surprised when - after blowing through most of Lydia’s clues - Stiles pulled you into the alley that stood between the store and Jeep. 

You laughed as the two of you got tangled up and almost fell into the wall as a result. “And now?” you asked, holding onto his arm to keep you both steady. “I thought you wanted to win.” 

“Of course I wanna win-” Stiles was so close that you could have heard his heartbeat without the super-hearing. “Liam and Kira? They’ve got no chance.” He pressed a kiss to your neck and looked back up at you. “Scott and Isaac? Please.” Another kiss. “Our only competition is Malia and Cora and the emotional baggage on that team is-” 

“Nothing compared to ours?” you teased, lifting a hand to the side of his face. Your thumb traced his cheek and you leaned in to kiss him. “I miss this,” you said with a sigh after pulling away. “I miss you. These past few weeks-” 

“Yeah, I know,” Stiles said. He moved some hair out your face and dropped his hand to your neck. “We’ve barely seen each other.” 

“After my finals,” you promised. You leaned in and gave him another kiss. “Now let’s go kick some scavenger hunt ass.”

“Oh, you know it!”

---

Three weeks - that’s how long you had. Three weeks of awkward study sessions with Lydia because you couldn’t stop feeling guilty about hurting her. Three weeks of training with Scott and getting your ass kicked by Isaac and Cora. Three weeks of spending absolutely no time with Stiles. 

Your three weeks were up. 

After tossing and turning the whole night, slowly going crazy from the lack of sleep and the near-full moon in the sky. Sighing, you rolled over and checked your phone. Four hours until you had to be up to take your test. Hesitantly, you opened up your chats and clicked on Stiles’ face. 

‘Hey, are you awake?’ 

You put your phone on your chest and stared up at the ceiling while you waited for a response, but it turned out you didn’t need to. Not even three seconds later and your phone started vibrating. 

“Did I wake you?” you asked in a low voice. 

“No, I, uh- I don’t sleep that well by myself,” Stiles said, even though it sounded like he’d just woken up. “Are you alright?” 

“Nervous.” You stretched out and started fiddling with your covers. “Stiles, what happens if I show up today and someone gets a papercut? Am I just going to freak out and attack some poor kid?” 

“No, of course not,” Stiles said. You could hear him shaking his head. “Scott’s taught you how to control it, alright? And I’m gonna be right outside with a very special juicebox. Nothing’s gonna make you freak out except the Geometry Section.”

He always knew what to say, but something still didn’t sit right with you. It wasn’t something that you could explain, but Stiles was one of the only people who’d listen to you try. Listening to him breathe over the phone, you knew that tonight wasn’t the night to try to explain it. 

“Thank you,” you said softly. “I miss you.” 

“I miss you too. I feel like the only time we had alone was at Lydia’s scavenger hunt,” Stiles sighed. He stretched out in your mind and the thought made you smile. “Got any plans after your tests?” 

“Lunch with the most understanding boyfriend in the world?” you asked. 

“Okay, well, then he’ll understand if you cancel on him and go out with me, right?” Stiles asked. “Or, like, I could go with you guys and we could all pay separately-” 

“Shut up,” you laughed, tilting your head back into your pillow and trying to be quiet. The line went silent after you did and, even though you could still hear Stiles’ breathing, you asked, “Hey, you still there?”

“Always,” Stiles said without missing a beat. “I was just listening to you laugh.” 

Despite the fact that it made your heart jump, you said, “Weirdo.” 

He laughed and then it got quiet again. So quiet that you thought he’d fallen asleep again just before he asked, “You still there?” 

“Always,” you said quietly. “I should get back to sleep but, uh, will you stay with me?” 

“Of course,” Stiles said. “And I’ll be there at seven to take you to school, okay?” 

“Thank you,” you yawned. “I love you, Stiles.” 

“Yeah, I love you, too.”

Part 32

Episode 18: Scheherazade

This episode is wonderful. Here are my thoughts.

SPOILERS AHEAD.

0:12 - Sooooo did Malcolm convince Gil to let him take the Surgeon case files from the precinct?

0:32 - Malcolm was eating Chinese take out? IDK. That stuff is pretty greasy. Something tells me that Chinese take out is not a good food to eat if you have a sensitive stomach.

1:24 - To be clear - Eve and Malcolm are not dating in this moment correct? They broke up last episode? Am I wrong?

2:04 - So Malcolm did want to go to this thing right? He genuinely likes ballet and his mom decided to make it a mother/son date. Ugh. So freaking adorable. <3

2:10 - Listening to Jessica talk on the phone is really interesting here. You can see that she’s embarrassed that she’s there alone and annoyed that Malcolm stood her up. She’s trying to be quiet and discreet on the phone so none of the nosy rich people notice but - of course - you can see them all looking at/talking about Jessica  in the background. I feel really bad for Jessica here. She doesn’t belong in the average person world because she’s rich and she can’t hang out in the rich people world because they’re all a bunch of overgrown high schoolers with the bullying and cliques to match.

2:24 - Look at how excited Jessica is initially - when this woman b**ch starts talking to her. Jessica looks hopeful that someone is going to actually be nice to her. Her gorgeous face drops when this Cricket woman starts being a b**ch. Props to Jessica for dragging this woman about the admissions scandal though.

2:53 - Ok. I immediately don’t like Endicott. Why? He clearly only saved Jessica because he wants to get in her pants. However, I love the way Jessica looks at him. She’s hopeful, flattered, and grateful. She almost never looks this happy and it’s a damn shame.

3:35 - Quick side note: Jessica looks amazing in that dress. Blue looks good on her….wait. Do you think she wore a blue dress because it would look good with Malcolm’s eyes? Not in a creepy incest way - just in a “I’m matching with my son” because we have a close, non-sexual relationship way.

4:50 - hahaha Cricket got blood spatter on her face. She deserved it.

5:00 - “You know your Mom called this in right?” - I love this. Jessica didn’t call 911. Before anyone could even think of calling 911 - I promise you Jessica was on the phone with Gil. Because Gil has always protected her family. She trusts Gil despite the fact that - like her son - she trusts almost no one since Martin was arrested.

5:02 - Again. I LOVE THIS TEAM. Talk about character/relationship growth. Dani and Malcolm making lighthearted banter. JT being really forward about telling Malcolm to go and check on his mother (who just witnessed a murder). I love that we are now at the point in this team’s relationship that JT and Dani love Malcolm so much that they worry about Malcolm’s Mom. <3

5:16 - Props to Edrisa. She’s a little neurotic and often anxious. BUT check out the way she laid down the law with that dude who was touching evidence. This girl is great.

6:00 - “Welcome to 2020. Can’t rule anything out.” - Can we just appreciate this line. It was probably written in late 2019 or before the whole COVID-19 nonsense in 2020. What a timely, well-delivered line. They probably writers probably did it by accident too. They were probably trying to allude to the craziness that was about to unravel with Endicott for the rest of this season. I love this show.

6:15 - JEALOUS GIL ALERT. Honestly - this was amazing. Gil is so jealous (not hiding it well btw) but he’s trying so hard to be a professional.  ALSO - check out the way that Endicott is looking at Gil. Endicott knows that Jessica and Gil have feelings for each other. He also knows that Gil suspects him as a murderer (for this case and the 1x19 case). Yikes. If Endicott has Gil injured, maimed, or killed in 1x20 I WILL THROW HANDS.

7:07 - This is cool to me. Jessica is mad at Malcolm but she doesn’t call him “Malcolm Whitly”; she calls him “Malcolm Bright”. This implies that Bright might be Malcolm’s legal last name. If it’s not - it means that Jessica respects her son. No matter how angry she might be at him - she would never intentionally harm him. She’s a good mom. (ALSO EDRISA’s REACTION ahahahaha and the way that Malcolm closes his eyes when he hears Jessica’s voice like “Aww shit. I’m in trouble.”)

7:30 - Honestly, I think it was both. From what we learn in this episode - Malcolm likes ballet. He’s probably sorry he missed the murder (because you know he’s Malcolm) but I feel like he was also looking forward to the event. Even if it meant that he would have to schmooze some rich people and listen to his Mom be a little nervous and a lot extra throughout the night.

7:45 - YES. YES. This is the perfect reaction to Eve. One that I’m sure a lot of fans can relate to. Yes - we hate the fact that Eve manipulated her way into Jessica and Malcolm’s lives. We hate that she broke both of their hearts. However, we sympathize with her brutally dark childhood and the loss of her sister. You can hate someone’s actions without hating the person as a whole. AND RIGHT HERE you can see that duality on Jessica’s face.

8:08 - At least Malcolm isn’t lying to Jessica? But dang. He looks so guilty about telling his Mom that he’s planning on visiting Martin. Probably because he knows Jessica will worry about the meeting, Malcolm’s mental health, and all other potential fallouts of Malcolm’s “plan”.

9:15 - Look at Malcolm here. He’s staring at Eve with a mixture of fear and concern. For once - he’s not focused on Martin. Malcolm’s concern for Eve and Eve’s pain is overpowering the discomfort and anxiety that Malcolm experiences when he sees his father.

9:20 - “You’re prettier than I imagined.” Ugh. Go to hell Martin. Malcolm looks so freaking ashamed to be Martin’s son right here. Look at his sad little face. :(

9:38 - What a toxic parent. He’s a serial killer and he’s still trying to make his ex-wife seem like the bad parent. Martin needs therapy.

9:45 - Holy hell. Malcolm looks terrified…..actually Martin looks a little scared too.

9:52 - I love this. Malcolm is so afraid of what Martin might do to Eve that he jumps over that red line. Also - take a second to notice how Malcolm grabs Eve. It’s not intimate. Definitely not the way you’d grab a significant other or a close friend. His hands aren’t touching her. He has his hands clasped around each other and his arms wrapped around Eve’s shoulders. This is a very gentlemanly way to grab a lady - even in a panicked, dangerous situation when he’s probably acting on sheer instinct and fear. Malcolm’s not thinking of where his hands are positioned. This is how he reaches for her instinctively and I respect it.

10:05 - Malcolm looks so scared here. Eve slapping Martin was definitely not part of the plan. Eve is improvising.

10:40 - Again. Check out the way Malcolm grabs Eve’s shoulder. It’s not the way you’d put your hand on a significant other’s shoulder. They are not dating here.

10:43 - Look at Martin’s face. It’s twisting in disgust. Is he actually feeling guilt for being a terrible father? I thought psychopaths couldn’t feel remorse? Maybe he’s just disgusted that his son is in a relationship with a woman who would have the nerve to insult Martin to his face?

10:50 - “I’ve told you all I can.” Martin’s eyes show fear in this moment. After watching 1x19 - I see why.

11:09 - The way that Martin shouts “Malcolm” is haunting. You can see it upsets Malcolm too by the way he grips his head. I wonder if Martin used that tone of voice with Malcolm as a child? Martin supposedly acted like a perfect father but what if Martin was verbally abusive to Malcolm when they were home alone together? Maybe this is how he conditioned Malcolm - like with that “Boy!” in 1x14, right before Malcolm stabs Martin. What if he drugged Malcolm to make him forget then too? Is that why Malcolm looks like he’s having a traumatic response to his name being called in that tone?

11:16 - Malcolm is impressed by Eve but also a little scared of Eve. Her performance was alarming to him. He didn’t expect her to be that angry.

12:04 - Edrisa is a national treasure. “I disagreed” bahahahaha. OMG. Even Gil looks amused at this one.

13:15 - “To maintain a comfortable lifestyle”. Seriously - do the writers want me to suspect Endicott? I seriously pinned it on him the whole time I watched this episode for the first time. Now I know better - but he’s still a sleaze bucket who has killed people.

13:34 - I love how no one on the team is buying Malcolm’s “my rich Mom took me to watch ballet as a kid” act. They know there’s more to it than that. They know Malcolm well enough to know when he’s lying.

13:40 - Gil is like “I’ve known you since you were 10. Jessica did not take you to the ballet for as long as I’ve known you. I would’ve heard about it.”

14:05 - I wish Malcolm always looked that happy when he declines one of Martin’s calls.

14:26 - This is seriously disconcerting. This is the most sincere and serious behaviour that we’ve ever seen from Martin. Martin is scared. Now that I’ve seen 1x19, I understand it. He’s afraid for himself. Of what Endicott may do to him if this gets out. I still can’t quite figure out if Martin actually cares about what happens to Ainsley, Malcolm, and Jessica though. I don’t think he’s capable. I hope I’m wrong.

14:32 - Soooo Mr. David doesn’t know about this. That makes sense. Did Mr. David see Martin get slapped? Are these phone calls recorded? Is that why Mr. David gives Martin that look? To remind Martin to keep quiet about the slap because it could cause Mr. David to lose his job? Are they friends? Ugh. This relationship is so fascinating to me.

15:33 - Look at Gil. He does not like the catty attitude of these ballet dancers.

15:45 - OMG. JT looks like he’s watching reality TV. He’s amused, a little confused, a lot shocked, and he can’t look away.

16:00 - I don’t like this Joesph dude - because he’s a jerk. BUT he has a point. These ballerinas seems very unstable. In the emotional sense.

16:12 - Dang. This is brutal. I didn’t like the way this girl was acting - but no one deserves this.  

16:53 - “I’m right here. I’m right here.” UGH. Gil saying this is so freaking sweet. All I can imagine is Gil saying that to Malcolm as a kid when Mal wakes up from a nightmare. <3 Ugh. The thought is warming my cold, dead heart.

17:15 - It’s a little concerning that Malcolm looks so excited about being in the same building as an active killer. ALTHOUGH - he regularly visits his serial killer father. Maybe he’s so used to being afraid of killers that he doesn’t even register it anymore? He’s so focused on solving the case that his own safety doesn’t even register as a concern?

17:23 - Papa!Gil is angry. I’m picturing him giving Malcolm a lecture in this tone of voice after Malcolm did something stupid when he was a teenager.

18:00 - Malcolm is having the time of his life. Look at this boy go. He has a group of suspects to profile and they’re all standing right in front of him. Life can’t get much better.

19:30 - Yep. This dude is a jerk. Also - Malcolm looks tiny next him. How tall is that dude? I know Tom Payne is short but damn.

19:36 - Question: why wasn’t Fiona in this group that was initially being profiled? Was she not in the building?

19:55 - Look at this. Jessica totally wants to talk to Martin. She is so pleased that she finally has something to rub in Martin’s face to make him jealous/angry. Also - can we all just appreciate how Jessica picks up the phone?!? When she’s addressing Mr. David?!? hahahaha comedic GOLD.

20:12 - Martin is losing his marbles. He really is an attention whore. Dang.

20:18 - “Martin stop being a helicopter parent.” - Yo. Jessica, I love you but you are a hypocrite.

20:30 - And this was the moment that Jessica forgave Eve for betraying her and Malcolm. Hahaha look at how absolutely delighted Jessica looks when she finds out that Eve struck Martin. hahaha

20:35 - Look at the way Martin glances over at Mr. David as he asks Jessica if she’s paying attention to him. It’s as though he’s reigning himself in because he knows Mr. David will hang up the phone and leave the cell if Martin loses it. Martin is so desperate for attention that he’ll take a bad phone call with his ex-wife over being alone in his cell. I almost feel bad for him. Almost.

20:43 - Huh. Do you think Gil saw that photo? How do you think our jealous cop reacted?

21:03 - Ok. So, in this scene Martin is chained to the wall. He’s talking on the phone. Mr. David is in the room. NO one else. WHAT ARE THE PARAMETERS REGARDING WHEN MARTIN GETS CHAINED TO THE WALL?!?!? There have been so many scenes when Martin is not chained to the wall and he’s alone with Mr. David. I have so many questions about how this works.

21:06 - Martin’s toddler-esque hissy fit is freaking hilarious. This dude is unstable.

21:24 - Martin’s flashbacks have to be true. Right? So we can all say with 100% certainty that he took Malcolm to the cabin and held a girl (Sophie) in the cabin.

21:43 - Poor Mr. David. :( He looks so done with Martin’s nonsense. Why doesn’t Mr. David quit? He could easily get a position guarding a less insane prisoner. He’s been with Martin for 20ish years. At this point he’s either a) friends with Martin, b) developed some sort of twisted Stockholm Syndrome, c) working for Endicott, or d) getting paid a lot of money.

22:34 - Fiona is a nasty Queen B and I’m annoyed that Gil can’t arrest her on principle.

23:25 - “He upset some very powerful people. They made his escape from Cuba possible.” ….Soooo Endicott is definitely a shady dude. I still think he had something to do with Javier’s death.

23:40 - “Jessica’s friend?” - Dang. Gil, you’re jealousy is showing. <3 hahaha also he looks so freaking unsurprised. Gil’s like “I knew he was shady. I KNEW IT!!” And I find it really interesting that he refers to Jessica by her first name in front of Malcolm. Usually, he’ll say “your mother” or “your mom”. This indicates that Gil currently feels personally involved in Jessica’s life. This is a situation that is affecting him as opposed to Malcolm so he’s referring to her as “Jessica” instead of “your mother”.

24:02 - OMG. Gil, please stop being so obviously jealous of a woman in front of her son. Her son is a profiler. He can see through you and you’re probably making him uncomfortable (look at the way Malcolm looks down and smirks after Gil does this he knows). Regardless, this is the single funniest thing Gil has ever done on this show.

24:15 - Are Endicott and Gil really having a weird, not-so-subtle “guy-off” over Jessica while talking about the investigation?!? Malcolm looks hella awkward. He’s like “Fake-Dad vs. suspect/Mom’s crush. What do I do?”

24:43 - ENDICOTT DO NOT PRETEND THAT YOU DIDN’T KNOW MALCOLM WAS HER SON. Your shady ass has totally been keeping tabs on her whole family for the past 20 years.

24:50 - DANG. Check out that look that Jessica gives Malcolm. It’s like “Do not embarrass me in front of Nicholas. Do not tell your sister what you’ve seen. Do not discuss what you just witnessed with me. Ever. This did not happen.”

24:54 - Gil, buddy, I love you but looking at your watch is super obvious. Please reign it in. Your jealousy, while hilarious, it not attractive to a woman.

25:09 - I feel so bad for Malcolm throughout this whole scene. He’s clearly still interested in solving the case but he has this confused, slightly disturbed look on his face as he watches the whole love triangle fight go down.

26:06 - Once again, the whole “guessing JT’s name” is my favourite running gag on this show. Look. Even JT is into it now. He used to be super annoyed by it. This is how much JT and Malcolm’s friendship has grown. I’m so proud of these losers.

26:20 - OMG. hahaha “Posion.” Is Gil considering poisoning Endicott because he’s really that jealous?!!? I doubt it. More likely - Gil is suspecting Endicott of killing Javier. HOWEVER, I also think that this is a very subtle hint by the writers that Endicott is going to poison Gil in the season finale. I DO NOT WANT TO BE RIGHT - but I have a horrible dread that I will be.

27:00 - Seriously? Martin gets an iPod too? Is he really a prisoner?!? This dude lives better than me.

27:30 - So Martin is mad at Malcolm here. “Kids.” Huh. So did he actually try to kill Malcolm that night? Or did he chicken out when he got up to the cabin?

28:13 - HOW THE HELL DID MARTIN GET EVE’S PHONE NUMBER?!? Magic? Does he get internet access? A phone book? He has Mr. David find it for him?

28:25 - Check out Malcolm’s face. He looks longingly and sad as he stares at the ballerinas. He stares at them with respect too - not lust. He really likes ballet. <3

29:00 - Is Malcolm projecting here. “You took a chance on him when no one else would.” Did he quit dance because of how people treated him after Martin was arrested? Does Malcolm identify with Javier?

29:10 - Listen to how Fiona praises Javier’s work ethic. It almost feels like she’s talking about Malcolm. Of course, she isn’t, she doesn’t know Malcolm. BUT the writers know Malcolm. Is this a subtle hint that Malcolm is not a killer? That he’s incapable of being a killer? I mean - they even go so far as to have Fiona say that something about Javier’s performance was off - not his work performance but his personal performance. Is that a reference to Malcolm’s deteriorating mental health? Maybe I’m reading way to much into this…

31:14 - Does Malcolm even know he’s projecting here?! I don’t think he does. Gil sees it though. Damn. I’m surprised he didn’t challenge Malcolm on it. Or hug him. Ugh. My heart is broken.

33:05 - Is Malcolm so shocked that he doesn’t move? Or is this just Malcolm’s passive suicidality at work here? Watch Gil tackle him to the ground though. <3 I’m in love. This is the father Malcolm deserves.

33:36 - hahaha look at Malcolm’s precious little ballet jump. Gil sees it too. Gil is like “Wtf? This kid totally did ballet at some point. How did I not know about it?”

35:15 - Look at how freaking proud Gil is of Malcolm. Gil - a man who likes classic cars, has sports trophies in his office, and drinks fancy liquor. Gil is, in a lot of ways, stereotypically male. He finds out that his dorky pseudo-son did something as stereotypically feminine as dancing ballet (and enjoyed it) and Gil doesn’t bat an eye. He doesn’t get mad. He doesn’t tease Malcolm. He just looks at him with pride. We need more men like Gil in this world.

37:00 - Anyone else extremely upset by the idea that Martin put his son to bed like a Good Dad before going downstairs with the intent to murder a woman?

38:25 - I feel really bad for Sophie. :(

39:20 - Soooo is Sophie still alive? Or did Endicott have her hunted down and killed?

40:29 - This isn’t the first time in this series that Martin has bashed Jessica’s parenting skills. Or the first time he’s hinted that Jessica did something bad to the children. Given Jessica’s behaviour toward Ainsley and Malcolm - I doubt it. That woman adores her children. However, she does have a drinking problem and I’m starting to wonder what Martin thinks makes Jessica so bad. Is it simply because she divorced him? Or that she kept the children from him? Or is it something more?

40:50 - Well at least Malcolm knows Martin has been gaslighting him. :(

41:06 - Soooo Mr. David totally heard that conversation. Makes you wonder if Mr. David is working for Endicott. The things that Mr. David knows…

41:50 - So Eve definitely broke up with him here. Again? Honestly - I have no idea when these two were actually together.

43:21 - I do not like that monster inside the Whitly house. No no no no.

Well. Thanks for hanging out Prodigies. See you next time.

You never listen I Wooyoung

Genre: angst, action, fluff, badboy!au

Warnings: swear words, violence, mention of blood and death

Word count: 4k+

Summary: Resting at home after a tough day at work was the best before the doorbell rang

Long hard day at work now ended and was exhausting for you but that was so great you’ve got a job right after graduation from college.

«It’s time to relax and enjoy this weekend» you thought to yourself as you got into the car and drove home

Whenever you arrived home, you decided to grab some snacks from kitchen and watch your favorite show so you turned on TV and comfortably settled on the couch. An hour later the sound of the rain made you to feel sleepy and you were ready to go to bed but suddenly the doorbell rang. «Who the hell is this? It’s almost 2 a.m.» you mumbled and headed for the door

As soon as you came to the door, you hesitated to open it but another doorbell interrupted your thoughts. Unfortunately or fortunately, your curiosity and interest won so you opened the door and were extremely shocked.

《Wooyoung?》 you asked in surprise as you saw your old best friend from college

《Y/N! You still live here, thank God!》 he breathed a sigh of relief

《What's happening? Why are you here?》 you looked at him standing in front of you all drenched from the rain

《I’m sorry… May I come in?》 he seemed very tired

《Oh, yes sure…sure》 you let Wooyoung into the apartment helping him to take off wet jacket

《Maybe you want something? Are you hungry?》 you asked

《Water will be just fine》 he replied and sat on your couch

《Okay》 you walked into the kitchen still not knowing what was going on and what exactly Wooyoung was doing in the same state as you when he left this state 7 months ago

《Your water, sir》 trying to be positive you handed him a glass of water and he replied with “thanks”

《Soooo, what are you doing here after all?》 you asked and sat on the couch next to him

《I've missed you, we haven't seen each other since college!》 he gave you a little smile

《Wooyoung, cut the bullshit! You were the one who left me and haven't contacted me in months! Now, tell me what's the matter》 you noticed that his smile disappeared

《I have some problems, Y/N, I wanted to ask you if I could stay for a while, maybe one night?》

《What problems? Would you like to fill me in on what's going on?》 you still were confused

《Look, I'm really tired, can I tell you about everything tomorrow, please?》 he looked you in the eyes and had a pleading look

《You better explain this tomorrow or else…》

《That’s mean you're going to let me stay?》

《I'm not a bitch to kick you out in the rain》 you replied and got off the couch 《You can sleep in my bed and I'll stay here》

《What? No! This is your apartment! I'll take the couch》 he was insisting

《I still remember about your back issue so shut up and go lie down》

《If you won't let me sleep on this couch, then I'll sleep on your bed…》 he took a sip of water and put the glass on the table

《Hallelujah!》

《But only with you》 Wooyoung said that and you freaked out

《What?》

《You left me no choice, go ahead》

《God, why did I even open the door for you?》 you knew that Wooyoung has always had a difficult personality and in the end he will still get his way, because he never listens to anyone

《Fine, I'll get a blanket and pillows and you can take a shower if you want》 you agreed to that cause it's useless to argue with him

《As you may have noticed, I don't have any extra clothes with me》 he replied sarcastically

《I'll give it you》

《You have men's clothes in my size?》

《It was left after breakup so yeah, I have》

《Wait, you and Hongjoong broke up? How long?》

《Three months ago》

《Wow, that’s sad, you've been together for so long but you know he never…》 you didn't let him finish his sentence

《Aren't you tired? If you want to talk, tell me why you're here》 you said sharply

《All right, I'll go take a shower》 Wooyoung stood up quickly and headed for the shower

 While he was showering, you prepared clothes for him and made the bed. Along with that, you decided to change into pajamas: your favorite shirt and plaid pants.

《What have I done to deserve this?》 you sighed heavily and put your clothes in the drawer at the same time

《To deserve what?》 you flinched from the unexpected voice and turned around

《Damn, Wooyoung, do you want me to have a heart attack?》 you looked at him with a frown

《Sorry, I didn't want to scare you》 he apologized to you

《Forget it, the bed is ready so you can sleep now and I'll wash your clothes》 you were on your way to the washing machine but all of a sudden Wooyoung grabbed your arm

《You don’t have to, let it just dry, Y/N, you've done too much for me already》 he let go of your hand

《As you wish》 you said and jumped on the bed 《Are you waiting for a special invitation, Wooyoung?》 he stared at you for a while and then joined you

《By the way, that shirt looks great on you》 he complimented and you turned to him

《Thanks, yours suits you as well》 you complimented him back 《Oh, and don't you dare to hog the covers or I'll kick your ass》 you said while turning away

《I promise that I won’t》 he chuckled

《Goodnight, Wooyoung》

《Goodnight, Y/N》 he said and both of you fell asleep

  The next morning you woke up earlier than Wooyoung and saw interesting thing: Wooyoung was laying all over your bed with open mouth and the blanket was hanging from the edge.

«I believe at least he's sleeping well and comfortable» you thought and went to the bathroom quietly closing the room door

After the shower, you turned on the random channel on the TV so that you didn’t feel too lonely and began to make breakfast.

«Oh, the news! I hope the weather will be good today» expecting the warm weather you turned up the television volume

♫…yesterday morning and suspected of killing. Last seen wearing a dark blue denim jacket and ripped jeans, on the neck of the suspect there is a silver lock necklace…♫

«Killing? In my home state? That’s something new» you thought to yourself paying no attention and opening the fridge until you noticed similar necklace on your own table

♫ If you've seen this man or have any information that could help in the investigation, please contact your nearest office of the police or the Federal Bureau of Investigation ♫ you decided to look at the photo on TV

 «Fuck!» the plate slipped from your hand and crashed to the floor after you saw Wooyoung’s face on the news

 《Wow, Y/N! What's that sound?》 you heard Wooyoung’s footsteps near the kitchen

«Shit, he's awake! No! Why now? What I am supposed to do!» you weren't thinking clearly at the moment

《Did you drop the plate? Are you all right?》 he attempted to take you by the hand to see if you were hurt but you didn’t let him and moved your hands

《I’m fine》 you took a step back

《You sound strange, what’s wrong?》 he tried to get close to you again

《No! Please, get away from me!》 you raised your voice

《Y/N, what is happening?》 he didn't understand why you were acting like this

《I saw you on TV》 you replied coldly

《What? On TV?》

《On the news, Wooyoung, don't play dumb!》 you felt fear mixed with anger

《Fuck, this is already in the news?》

《What? Did you really kill that man?》 you couldn’t believe it

《No! Y/N! This is not what I meant, I’m not…》 you started walking away from him to the door

《Wait, Y/N!》 he grabbed your arm

《Let me go!》 you tried to break free, but he grabbed you too tight and pressed against the door 《I'll scream, if you don't let me go now!》 you were already yelling at him

《I'm just trying to explain to you what is going on! Can you, please, listen to me?》

《Explain what? That you're a murderer?》 you tried to free your hands one more time, but failed again

《Y/N, please! Just let me say!》 he squeezed your hands a little harder and you stopped moving and froze

《Now hear me out》 his voice softened 《I messed with really bad people because I needed the money, the money for my father and his surgery》

《Your father’s surgery? What are you talking about? I haven't heard anything about it》 you thought he was lying to you and didn't want to tell the truth

《Of course, you haven’t heard about it because I never told you about it! Your life was just starting to get better, your relationship with Hongjoong too, that's why I didn't want to drag you into my problems》 he loosened his grip

《What the hell? You should have told me, Wooyoung! I am your best friend and you kept that from me? What else did you hide from me?》

《I’m trying to tell you that! I made a deal with these assholes》

《A deal? What kind of deal? Kill people?》

《No! I would never do that! You know me, I'm afraid to even look at the blood!》

《Then what did you do?》

《I was just a driver and drove them to different meetings where they did bad things. I had no choice but to put up with it to get my money. Finally, I had to give them a ride for the last time and at that time, I've already been in this state, but everything went wrong, EVERYTHING!》 his voice started to tremble

《Hey, Wooyoung, calm down…》 you said and put your hand on his shoulder

《I wish I could, Y/N!》 he still seemed very nervous and you knew why 《So, one of them put a gun in my hand and just told me to shoot! I was so fucking scared and thought I was going to pass out! I didn't shoot, but instead this son of a bitch fired his gun right in front of me and shot that man! All I could do was run away and I don't even know how I survived this shitty night!》

《Oh my God…》 that's all you could say

《I haven't slept all day and I didn't really want to after what I saw. But then I remembered that you used to live here and I only hoped that you would let me in so here I am…standing here…》 he covered his face with his hand and was about to cry

《I’m sorry…》 his hands were shaking 《I am so sorry I dragged you into this…I don't want you to get hurt, Y/N》 he let you go and reached for his jacket to leave

《Stop, no!》 you blocked his way 《You need to go to the police cause you are not guilty》 he wasn't lying and you trusted him

《If they find out I went to the cops they will kill me! I need to meet the boss and sort things out but as long as I'm here, you are in danger too, I have to leave》

《What are you talking about, Wooyoung? You won't go to them!》

《With me you're not safe!》 he tried to walk away again

《DON’T YOU DARE TO LEAVE ME ALONE ONE MORE TIME!》 Wooyoung stopped and froze up as you shouted those words

《Y/N…》

《You might fucking die if you leave right now!》 you said

《YOU might die if I don’t leave!》

《I don’t care! If anything ever happened to you I'd never forgive myself!》 you said and he just stood there for a while in silence, looking at you

《Please just stay a little longer here with me…Please, Wooyoung》 you begged him

《Shit…that’s why I've always loved you, such a caring and kind person》 he said and you couldn’t believe that

《What? You loved me?》 he looked at you and realized what he just said

《Y/N, I’m not the…ah, fuck it, yes I loved you and you know what? Actually I still love you》 you were speechless 《I know you've always seen me as your best friend…God, why l even brought it up right now, nevermind, just forget about it and don’t…》 he was ready to turn around but you tenderly touched his face  

《And where do you think you're going, huh?》 you said that with a little smile although you were still scared

Wooyoung took you by the hand that was holding his neck and stared at you for a while then suddenly he crashed his lips against yours. He brought his hands to your face, cupping your cheeks.

《Why didn’t you tell me this earlier?》 you asked

《You were with Hongjoong, don’t you remember?》 he replied 《But now, I’m not going to give you up to anybody》 he said and placed another kiss on your lips

《I love you, Y/N》

《So does that mean you're staying here with me?》

《I guess…》

《I love you too, Wooyoung》 you kissed him

  The two of you didn't even notice how the day has come to an end because you were discussing everything that happened in the months that you didn't communicate. This whole situation still seemed like some kind of nightmare to you. It felt so unreal but you knew Wooyoung needed help anyway.

 《Do you want to get something to eat?》 you asked

《To be honest, I don't have much of an appetite》 he replied 《Besides, I already ate this morning》

《Wooyoung, eating once a day is not great, I'll order some pizza, just the one you like》 you got up to take your phone

《Y/N, do you know I really appreciate that you taking such good care of me? Once I get out of this shit, I return the favor》 he came up behind you and put his arms around you

《How can I not? And see, no one can resist pizza》 you smiled

《I remember we used this number to order food back then》 he put his head on your shoulder and looked at your phone screen

《Right time to bring back those good old days》 you said 《By the way, is your phone still working?》

《It’s dead and the screen is broken, but I hope so》 《We should check it later》 you said then call for delivery

Food was delivered fast enough and both of you could peacefully enjoy it. Later, as you promised, you decided to find out whether his phone was functioning or not and were truly surprised when the phone turned on.

《Geez, you have a lot of missed messages and calls》 you noticed

《Well, probably it wasn’t the best idea to do that》 Wooyoung said, turning off his phone 《Let’s go to sleep》 he dropped the phone on the couch and took your hand

《Alright…》 you agreed to go but were confused a little

 Only Wooyoung and you were lying in bed together. Even though you two were in danger, you felt safer with him. His voice seemed so soft and calm. The way he cuddled you and wrapped his arms around your waist made you fell asleep.

   On the following day, you woke up later than Wooyoung. He was sitting on the edge of the bed with phone in his hand.

《What took you from bed so early?》 you asked and hugged him from behind

《I had a good night's sleep》 he put the phone away 《But why did you wake up this early?》 he leaned over to kiss you

《I'm used to getting up so early for work》

《What, even on the weekends?》

《Yeah, even on the weekends》 you answered and saw Wooyoung’s sad look on his face

《Wooyoung, what is it?》 you wondered

《I ruined your weekend》

《That's okay, not that I would spend it fun and useful, so do not worry》 you gave him a kiss on the cheek  

  All day you were doing the usual things as if nothing had happened, but deep inside you knew that you have to do something about this, because it has already been 2 days since he came to you, but you didn't want to ruin the moment. With Wooyoung time flies too fast and another quiet night was waiting for you.

 《I'm so happy to have you in my life, Y/N》 he gave you a sweet smile and cuddled up to you

《You can't imagine how good I feel myself with you》 you were slowly falling asleep in his warm arms

《I love you so much》 he kissed you on the back of your neck and only soft breaths were heard

    Your sleep was interrupted by a loud, unknown sound, and your eyes were slightly opened.

It seemed like it was the sound of the door slamming.

《Wooyoung, did you hear that?》 you whispered to him but he didn’t respond Deciding to check if he was asleep, you sat up on the bed, but were stunned when you saw the empty side of the bed, his side.

《Wooyoung?》 you called out his name hoping that he would answer you, but that didn't happen

You were completely out of bed now and your glance fell at the nightstand, his phone was missing as well as your car keys.

«Aw, fuck, Wooyoung! This idiot never listens! He really decided to meet the boss! He will end up dead!» you thought about it and started to feel yourself bad

«No! I won't let that happen» you were thinking what to do now

《GPS tracker!》 you shouted and took your phone to track down the car, that was the only thing you could do

When you saw where your car was, you immediately began to dress yourself to go there. You had no choice and couldn't leave him.

Just after you called a taxi, you started to imagine the worst endings of this night, but arrived car distracted you from thinking. Without a minute to lose you got in the car and told taxi-driver where to go.

   Almost 40 minutes later, you were there, in a very strange place. Looked like it was an abandoned warehouse or something like that. Your heart was pounding like crazy but you kept going towards the building and noticed your own car.

«He's here! Please, be okay» you thought

Every new step you took made your heartbeat faster because your fear was consuming you but despite everything, you continued to go.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, you heard the voice, Wooyoung’s voice.

《…because of him! I didn't kill anyone!》 those were the words you could hear

Overcoming your fear, you came closer and saw Wooyoung but in front of him were standing another three men.

《You've let me down, Wooyoung. Did you really think after that I just pat you on the head and let you go?》

《It wasn't my fault, I was just sitting in the car!》

《Don’t try to play the victim. You knew what you were getting yourself into, you knew the risks, didn’t you?》

Your whole body went numb, while you were listening to the conversation but there is no turning back so you took a couple silent steps forward but all of a sudden you felt a hand on your shoulder and that hand was definitely not Wooyoung’s.

《The fuck are you doing here?》 he turned you around to face him and looked at you

《Hey, Boss, I got something for you!》 he shouted to the man standing with Wooyoung

《Who the fuck is this?》

《Y/N?》 Wooyoung looked at you in surprise and you couldn't say anything

《You know her?》 “Boss” wondered

《Don’t touch her! Leave her out of this, please!》 he pleaded

《She got herself into this》 said the man who stood next to you the whole time, aiming a gun at you

«What the hell is going on? This is the end? He'll kill us and I can't do anything about it» these thoughts were swirling through your head

«I’ll have to do something! I have to at least try!» you realized that your decision may be dumb, but there was no other way

Unexpectedly, you kicked on the knee of the man who was near you and his gun dropped from his hand and hit the ground. You tried to reach for it, but you didn't have time to even make a move as this asshole punched you in the face.

《Y/N!》 Wooyoung began to run towards you, but then you heard a gunshot

Everything got blurry before your eyes, you felt a little dizzy, all sounds got muffled, your nose started bleeding, and you had a feeling that you were going to faint.

《Why do you never obey my orders, Wooyoung?》 “Boss” asked and out of the corner of your eye you saw how Wooyoung fell

Although your head hurt, you found strength to look at Wooyoung again and noticed the blood, it was his blood.

《NO!》 you screamed

《How else can I explain to you that you MUST listen to me?》

《Please… Don't hurt her…she didn’t…》 Wooyoung tried to tell them but got hit in the face

《Then I'm going to beat the shit out of you》 Wooyoung took another punch in the face 

《PLEASE, STOP! I’M BEGGING YOU!》 you started to cry 《By protecting him, you're only making it worse for yourself》 someone pulled you up by the hair 

That was this fucker who hit you. He still held your hair and turned your head to his face.

《You have a pretty face though》he brushed his fingers against your cheek and you couldn't hold back any longer, so you bit his hand and ran straight to Wooyoung

Surprisingly, you were able to run up to him and looked at his shoulder that was bleeding. There was a lot of blood and you panicked by the sight of it.

《God, let it not be fatal》 you were leaning on top of him

《Y/N…Why? We are dead…You deserve a better end…》 he could barely talk

《Just hold on a little longer》 you said and heard laughter from the back 《What is that? A fucked up drama? Two fucking idiots》 “Boss” pulled a gun 《You want the bullet too, don’t you?》

《Kill me, not her…》 Wooyoung attempted to get up but couldn't

《You know, Wooyoung, I never wanted to kill you because you have potential but now you are no longer needed》 “Boss” pointed with a gun at both of you

《I’m sorry, Y/N…》 that was all you heard from Wooyoung before the loud shot

          A few seconds after you opened your eyes to see what happened and heard the sirens.

  《What the fuck? Is this the police?》 said the one of them

《HANDS UP! DROP THE GUNS RIGHT NOW!》 you looked at police officers and then saw the “Boss’s” unconscious body lying on the ground

《Did you call the police?》 Wooyoung asked 

《Am I really that stupid to come here alone?》 you replied and Wooyoung smiled at you but the blood wasn't stopping to bleed

《I fucking love you》

《Me too, but please stay awake, Wooyoung》 you were holding his head and your hands were shaking

 Police caught the rest of these assholes and the ambulance arrived, while you were just trying to stop the blood.

      Two months later

  《Wait! Let me help you!》 you said as you saw how Wooyoung struggled with grocery bags

《Nah! I'm fine on my own! Don't touch it!》 he replied pushing your hands away

《Wooyoung, your shoulder's still healing, you’re not allowed to carry heavy things》

《It's no big deal, I’m good》 he put the bags in the trunk of car and shut it

《The doctors forbid you》

《I don't care, baby》 Wooyoung kissed you and opened the car door 《Get it, princess》

《Ah, you never listen》 you got into the car and Wooyoung drove home

Rebound

All the tagged ships really are in here.

This is my first try at writing any of these characters, so don't be too hard on me. I really wanted to do a series of escalating moments like this and since I can't draw, I wrote it. Thus no scene is super long, but they are all very much linked.

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12715395/1/Rebound

Enjoy!

“I’m baaaaaack!” Star calls out to anyone who might be listening, Marco in particular. She prances across the room and towards the stairs.

Marco pops into view at the top of the stairs. “Hey, Star. You look happy.” He smiles as he makes his way down. “So how was it? Was it as miserable as you said it would be? Or did you,” he gasps and lays his hands over his mouth for dramatic effect, “have fun?”

Star swats at him, smiling despite herself.

Marco laughs. “Honestly though, I don’t know how you could not like that stuff. I mean…pretty dresses, free food, dancing, and-”

“Dancing!” Star’s eyes light up and she grabs Marco’s wrist. “Marco! Marco!” She jumps up and down. “Tom and I – we got back together.”

Marco’s face goes blank. “What?”

Star releases him and waves her hand about as she says, “Yeah, we had to dance cause royalty stuff and it was actually nice. Soooo much better than that Blood Moon Ball thing. So we decided we’d try again.”

“Oh. Really?” Marco’s brow creases as he contemplates her.

Star frowns. “What’s wrong?” A mischievous glint shines in her eye. “You jealous?” She nudges him.

“No.” Marco rubs the back of his neck. “It’s just that, it’s sudden. I mean, not for him, the guy’s totally in love you.” He half laughs. “But for you…you hated the guy just hours ago.”

Star shrugs. “Love’s a crazy thing.” She skips past him and up the stairs, her eyes lingering on him as long as she can manage before she goes around the corner.

Marco watches her go, thinking hard on her words, and as she disappears his frown lifts and he too shrugs. “I guess so.”

…

Marco steps through the portal and into Tom’s bedroom.

“What’s up, dude?” Tom smiles and looks to Marco with his third eye while keeping his others firmly planted on the video game in front of him. His fingers tap away as he completes combo after combo.

“That ball landed on our usual game day, so I figured I’d come today instead.”

“Yeah, sure, just gimme a second.” His tongue sticks out in his concentration as he mashes out another combo. Another. Another. “Yes!” He throws his hands in the air. “In your face!”

Marco snickers. “You get way to into these games.” He strides over.

“No, you don’t get into them enough.” Tom snaps his fingers and another chair appears besides him. “That’s why I always beat you.” He smirks.

“No, you win because you cheat.” Marco plops down next to him.

“Rude.” Tom swishes his hand and floats the second controller into Marco’s hands. “It’s not my fault my games are made for demons.”

Marco rolls his eyes but smiles anyway. “Just hit start.”

They play through at least ten rounds before Marco stops counting and loses himself in the fighting. After that he isn’t sure just how long they go back and forth, all he knows is he wins a grand total of one time. One. Well, it’s a record he supposes. Although he has a sneaking suspicion Tom let him win so he’d keep playing.

Tom grins. “Ready to give up yet?”

“You realize that for most people beating them into the ground usually ends with them not wanting to play with you ever again, right?” Marco raises a brow.

Tom chuckles. “Yeah, well you aren’t like most people, now are you?” His smile falters as a thought crashes into his brain. “I mean, most people wouldn’t have even forgiven me in the first place.” He drops his eyes to the floor.

Marco’s brows knit together and his eyes shine with sadness. Lingering on bad thoughts is never good, particularly not for Tom, so he doesn’t try and cheer him up, instead he switches tracks entirely. “So,” he stretches out the word, “you and Star, huh?” He tilts his head.

Tom pauses for a long moment, still caught somewhere in the moments before, and then his face lights up like a firework. “She told you?” He half laughs. “Honestly, I almost thought she was making fun of me at first.” He rubs the back of his neck. “I mean, before that dance I was pretty sure she hated me. But…that dance…” He smiles fondly. “It was just like before.” His heart beats a little faster.

“I’m glad you’re happy.” Marco smiles.

“You say that like you’re not.” Tom shoots him a dubious look. “What? You jealous?” His cautiousness shifts to humor and he grins.

“Oh my God.” Marco throws his hands in the air. “If one more person says I’m jealous I swear to Mewni. I am not jealous.” He scowls.

“Chill, dude.” Tom laughs. “I’m just kidding.”

“I just think it’s sudden. Just like you said. And I don’t want things to blow up, you know?” He shrugs.

“It’s okay. I’ll be okay.” Tom’s eyes muddy despite his words. “Even if we don’t last. I’ll be happy I got even this much time.”

Marco nods and smiles despite the feeling stirring deep within him.

“Still, don’t be so negative. That’s my thing.” Tom nudges Marco. “It doesn’t suit you.”

Marco chuckles and his smile turns genuine. “Just like winning doesn’t suit me apparently.”

“Now you’re getting it.” Tom bobs his head. “Another round?”

“Another round!”

…

“Double date! Double date!” Star bounces in place, her dress rising and falling with her. This time it is blazing red, a single simple color that makes her pop amongst the furniture around the house.

Marco walks down the stairs and falters as he sees her in her fancy dress and with her hair held back in a barrette. “Oh, um, you’re going like that?”

Star’s eyes flit to her dress and back to him. She puffs out her lip. “What’s wrong with my dress?”

Marco shakes his head. “Nothing. Just…was I supposed to dress up?”  He gives a nervous smile and tugs at his hoodie. “I thought this was gonna be more…chill,” he stretches the word out and slides his hands in a smooth line.

“Dresses can be chill.” Star waves her wand and a splash of pictures appear on her dress – bunny, dog, and cat faces, rainbows, clouds, and a heart right on her chest. “See? Chill,” she mimics his tone and movement.

Marco shifts from one foot to the other. “Well, I guess-”

“Good. Let’s go!” She snatches him by the wrist and races out the door. They run all the way to the restaurant where they find Jackie waiting.

“Oooh, nice dress.” Jackie smiles at Star. “Next time I’ll wear mine and we can match, yeah?” Jackie tilts her head.

Star beams. “Yeah.”

Marco eyes Star’s hand still curled around his wrist and he frowns. There’s no way she doesn’t realize it. Still, no need to fuss. He simply tugs his hand out of hers and brushes it off.

A trace of a scowl lights Star’s face as she notices Marco brush his wrist off.

Marco looks to Jackie, a renewed smile on his lips. “You, um, you look pretty. Even without a dress.” He smiles bashfully.

Jackie giggles. “You’re as sweet as ever.” She steps forward and kisses him on the cheek.

Star looks pointedly away and grumbles beneath her. No, it’s cool. Tom will be here any second now. He’ll-

A burst of flames appear and when it subsides Tom stands before them. “Hey.” He gives a slight wave.

“Tom!” Star leaps at him and throws her arms around his neck.

Tom catches her around the waist and draws her close. “Missed you too, Starship.” He leans his head down toward her.

Star stretches up and brushes her nose against his in an eskimo kiss.

Tom lowers her so her feet touch the ground. “Beautiful as always.” His smile is tender.

Star giggles, a soft blush coloring her cheeks. “You’re looking pretty spiffy there too.” She smiles coyly. He is wearing the same suit as the night of the Blood Moon Ball.

Jackie looks Tom over. “So, you’re the demon dude, right?”

Tom eyes her with uncertainty. “Uh, yeah. That’s me. And you are…?”

“Jackie.” She wraps her arm around Marco’s shoulder. “Marco’s girlfriend.”

Marco smiles sheepishly. He still isn’t quite used to her calling them boyfriend and girlfriend. It’s nice, definitely, but it never fails to knock him off kilter.

Star’s eyes snap open and her face lights up. “Hey! Marco!” She nabs her phone from her pocket and tosses it at him.

Marco yelps and scrambles to catch it, fumbling with it before finally clamping his hands around the device. He makes a face at her.

Star laughs and grins from ear to ear. “Take a pic of us, okay?” She leans her head against Tom and nuzzles into the crook of his neck.

Marco frowns, but he does as she says. He lifts the phone and snaps a shot, capturing their moment of sentiment.

Jackie peeks over his shoulder. “You two are super cute.” She nods to them. “You match and everything. Same as me and Marco. We’re like the perfect couples.”

“Power couples.” Star pipes, waving her wand. “We’ve got the powers.”

“And we’ve got the couples?” Jackie laughs.

Star laughs with her.

Marco opens his mouth to speak and reaches out to offer Star her phone back, but he doesn’t get a chance to accomplish either.

Star loops his arm through Tom’s and tugs him forward. “Alright, alright, enough of this. Let’s go eat. I hunger!” She throws a hand in the air.

“Yeah, come on Marco.” Jackie slips her hand into his and draws him along.

Marco tries to fidget with his fingers and is made all the more aware of the phone still in his grasp. He tilts the device and glances down at the image. It stares right back. What was the point of taking this if she wasn’t even going to look at it? Maybe the excitement of it all has affected her focus, causing her mind to flit from one thing to the next even quicker than usual. He’d like to think that. But it isn’t just that. She was unusually affectionate just now. He has never seen her dating someone, sure, but something about it just didn’t feel right. It didn’t feel like Star.

“Marco?” Jackie’s voice breaches his thoughts.

Marco blinks and shakes away his daze. He looks up to meet Jackie’s eyes. “Sorry, what?”

“Time for your order, dude.”

“O-Oh, right, yeah, for sure.” He shoves the phone in his pocket, shoves it out of his mind. He won’t let his weird insecurities mess this night up. So what if she forgot the phone! So what if she is being extra lovey! Love does crazy things. He has to believe those words.

…

Marco hops from his bed to go grab something to eat. Probably nachos so he can continue to play his video game. Plus it isn’t quite time for lunch. As he makes his way to the stairs he pauses halfway through passing Star’s room and peers in.

Star sits crisscross on her bed and right beside her is Tom. She has her hand held out to him as she stays more still than Marco has ever seen her.

Tom is intent, his gaze set on her fingernails as he works.

Oh. Fingernail painting. Marco smiles. Cute. He moves to keep going, but the slight movement is all it takes.

Star gasps and pops her head up. “Oh, Marco. Marco, look!” She jerks her hand away from Tom and tilts it forward so Marco can get a better look. “Tom’s doing my nails. Isn’t he the sweetest?” Her eyes shine.

Marco goes to answer immediately. Yeah, of course it’s sweet. Because of course it is. Only…those eyes. They stop him. There’s a hint of something there, and it isn’t happiness. Hope, maybe? A hope directed at him. Does she want his approval? It’s never seemed to matter one way or the other before…before…her crush. He stifles a grimace. No, stop it. He needs to stop thinking like this.

“Helloooo. Earth to Marco.” Star laughs.

Marco blinks and his creased expression smoothes out. He even smiles. “Yeah, it’s super sweet.”

Star giggles. “Right?” She lays a peck on Tom’s cheek.

Marco nods and with that continues past her room. While he is proud of how sincere he sounded, he can’t ignore the truth. That feeling has returned – full force. It gnaws at him and eats away at any joy he might have derived from Star and Tom being so happy. Why? Why won’t it go away? He groans and throws his head into his hands.

Maybe he is jealous. Just like they said from the start. But…is that right? He doesn’t think so. He loves Jackie, really and truly. And that feeling is just as powerful as the deep seeded wrongness lying within Star’s eyes and actions. Then what…? He can only pray he doesn’t find the answer, that this fragile piece of happiness everyone has right now doesn’t shatter.

…

“Ok.” Marco stands before their team. “It looks like we’re gonna have to split up for this mission guys.”

“Oh, Tom! Tom!” Star zips over to Tom’s side and seizes his arm. “I called him.” She rests her head on his arm and grins up at him.

Ponyhead shoots her a look. “Girl, this is like the millionth time. You don’t have to call it anymore.”

Kelly places her hands on her hips. “Seriously.”

“Pssh.” Star releases Tom long enough to wave a hand dismissively. “You never know guys. Janna likes to steal him sometimes. Right, Marco?” She leans into Tom more as she looks to Marco.

“Eh.” Janna shrugs. “I’m over it.” She has stolen enough of his books so she doesn’t have to ask him about any of his supernatural junk.

Marco narrows his eyes at Star and makes a sound beneath his breath. They’re right. She jumps on Tom at every possible moment. Not to mention it is becoming more and more over the top. What started as innocent pictures to remember a double date has escalated to something Marco finds increasingly hard to ignore.

“Marcoooo?” Star calls to him

Marco nods. “Yeah, right,” he realizes his voice is a bit tight, but there is nothing he can do about it. Nothing he wants to do about it. His suspicions have turned to ever rising agitation and he really just needs her to tone it down. Otherwise…he has a bad feeling. About her, Tom, and perhaps most of all himself.

…

It is late at night and Marco knows better than to venture out of his room, but he does it anyway. He does it knowing what will happen, maybe he even does it because of what will happen. He can’t be sure anymore. Either way he ends up walking to the kitchen, hungry for nachos, and on the way he must pass through the living room.

He steps carefully along the floor, tries his best to avoid all the boards that creak, but to no avail. He hits a particularly loud spot and goes stiff.

Star shoves herself up from her spot laying against Tom’s chest. “Marco?” She grins as her head appears over the top of the couch.

Marco breathes deeply out. He turns to her. “Yes?” He puts on a smile.

“Why don’t you join us?” She nods over and over, as if trying to silently prompt him to agree. “We’re watching a Love Sentence movie. Your favorite.”

Marco grinds his teeth. Yeah. His favorite. And one of her least favorites. She may be into Love Sentence, but when they watched the movie she complained about it for weeks. There is no reason for her to pick that besides to try and lure him near. He could choose to believe she did it for Tom, but he is done convincing himself of the pureness in her motives. It isn’t for Tom. It never has been. And he’s done with it. “Nah, I think I’m good. Kinda tired.” He shrugs.

Tom sits up and comes into view a moment later. “You sure dude? It would be really fun to see it with you again.” He smiles.

Marco stares longingly. Truth be told he would love to watch it with Tom – a true fan. It was their thing first. Not to mention he just misses doing things with Tom period. Ever since he and Star started dating again they haven't been able to meet up and play games or do…anything. But he refuses to play into Star's whims like some kind of puppet, no matter how much he'd love to chill with Tom. "I really am tired," Marco says weakly. Her expression sags, worn and helpless.

Tom’s brow creases and his smile falls. “Yeah, that’s cool.” He drops his eyes.

“Your loss!” Star pipes before diving at Tom and taking him down on the couch. She presses her lips to his, a strong deep kiss.

Marco clenches his fists and gnashes his teeth. But he says nothing. He turns hard on his heel and marches up the stairs, his hunger replaced with a roiling fire. That’s it. No more. He saw her eyes flicker to him as she kissed Tom and he. Has. Had. Enough. He refuses to let this drag on any longer. It may ruin what little he has left in his relationship to Star, but he barely cares anymore. What she is doing is wrong. She is wrong – the wrongness he has felt from the very beginning. And now he’s going to end it.

…

It’s harder than Marco thought it would be, but eventually he catches Star in a moment where she isn’t with Tom and they aren’t on a mission. He finds her in her room and he doesn’t give a courtesy knock or even pause so that she sees him, he just walks right in.

Star lays stretched out on her bed with her head in her hands. At the sound of the floor creaking she pops her head up to see who it is. “Oh! Marco.” She swings her legs around and bounces into a sitting position. “What’s up? Wanna hang?” She laughs.

“Star. You need to stop.” He crosses his arms. “Now.”

Star blinks up at him. “Stop what?” She frowns. “Trying to hang out with you?”

“Oh, stop it.” Marco stares stone cold at her. “You may be naïve, but you’re not stupid. And I’m not stupid either. I can see what you are doing with Tom.”

“Um, dating?” her tone is flat as she raises a brow and looks at him as if he is in fact stupid.

“Using him,” Marco snaps.

Star’s mouth gapes. “I’m sorry, what?” She half laughs, an edge curling around the sound.

“You heard me. I just can’t believe it took me this long to figure it out.” He sneers at himself. “I knew, I knew from the start that it all happened way too suddenly. There was no way you could have fallen for him all over again in the span of a night.” He starts to pace in a short line and throws his hands in the air. “But no, I couldn’t stick to my guns. I had to let your cliché ‘love does crazy things’ get to me. And every time after that – the picture, the clinging, the…everything. I let myself believe in your goodness, no, forced myself to.” He stops hard in front of her. “I wanted to believe the Star I knew wouldn’t do this. So I made it so. And that makes me just as wrong as you.” He shakes his head. “But don’t think it absolves you.”

Star’s eyes catch fire. “Ex-cuse you.” She shoves herself to her feet. “I’m sorry if hugging, kissing, and wanting to be around someone all the time offends you somehow, but that’s what dating is Marco. It’s exactly like you and Jackie.” She smirks.

Marco’s lips curl in disgust. “Jackie and I are nothing like you and Tom. I don’t parade her around like some prize and shove her down your throat to try and make you jealous. I treat her like a person – a person I genuinely care for. You…” He sneers. “You don’t even treat Tom like a human being. All he is to you is an object – a convenient tool to try and get my eyes on you. You kiss and cling and wave every little thing you two do around in my face, hoping that I’ll bite and suddenly want you as badly as you want me.”

“What’s the matter, Marco?” She leans forward, her eyes glinting with something between mischief and malice. “Jealous?”

Marco scoffs and takes a step back. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” He levels her with an intense look. “But I’m gonna tell you what I told Tom before – you can’t make someone love you. They have to want to.”

Star makes a soft sound of acknowledgement.

“So stop it. Stop using him. Stop toying with his emotions. And stop chasing me. Because you’re not making me jealous.”

“I can’t stop something I’m not doing.”

Marco shakes his head. “Keep telling yourself that. It won’t make it any more true.”

Star scoffs. “Same to you. Because just like you’ve seen me, I’ve seen you over these past months. There’s something rising within you. It started out as a simmer, but now it’s finally boiling over.” She crosses her arms and watches him with self-satisfaction. “You’re jealous.” She turns and walks toward the exit, pausing to shoot him a look over her shoulder and say, “I see it in your eyes.” With that she leaves the room.

Marco stands there for a long time. He doesn’t move and honestly he isn’t sure he even breathes. Thoughts fly through his head at a million miles an hour, tumbling over and crashing into each other in the frenzy. Him…jealous? No way. He has felt nothing but contempt toward Star over her actions and even in the beginning while he was giving her the benefit of the doubt he wasn’t jealous that Tom was the recipient of her affections. That wasn’t why the situation felt wrong. And he certainly knows his own feelings, and far better than her. Still…her words eat away at him, replacing the burden of the wrongness with something much more frightening. Jealousy...there’s just no way. He shakes his head and promptly leaves the room. Too bad those feelings can’t be abandoned just as easily.

…

Nothing changes. Because of course it doesn’t. Star is dead set on her objective, no matter how futile. Marco draws in a deep breath. Which means he’ll have to talk to Tom about it. It’s not that he is afraid of Tom or what he might do – he has gotten so much better about his emotions triggering his powers and they are too close for Tom to ever want to do him harm – it’s more about what this will do to their friendship. One wrong word is all it will take to set Tom on the defensive and cause their well-built foundation to crumble.

He tightens his hold on the dimensional scissors. He’ll just have to be extra careful. He opens a portal and steps through into Tom’s bedroom.

Tom starts and blinks up at him from where he lays on his bed. “Oh. Marco. What are you doing here?” They didn’t have any plans, did they?

Marco frowns and his eyes dim. It hurts to see Tom so surprised by his appearance. Used to he was over so frequently Tom wouldn’t even bat an eye when a portal popped up and he stepped out. How could it really come to this? Star or not, Marco should never have let it reach this point. “I…I need to talk to you.” He moves his foot in small circles.

Tom frowns. “Okay…”

“It’s about Star.” Marco looks anywhere but at Tom.

Tom stiffens and his grip on his controller tightens. “What about Star?”

Marco makes his way over to Tom’s bed and sits at the edge. He wants to find comfort in this familiar position, but what he gets is the exact opposite. He feels so much like Star. She sat just like this when he faced her. He sorely hopes this doesn’t turn out like that. “I don’t know if, I mean…I’ve been getting this feeling of-” He sighs. “Are you happy?” He can’t believe himself as he falls back on that question.

Tom sets the controller down and stands, walking toward Marco.

Marco swallows hard and ducks his head. Please don’t stop in front of him. Please don’t stop in front of him. Please.

Tom doesn’t hesitate, he takes a seat by Marco’s side. For some reason his friend is already squirming and he knows that feeling all too well. Facing him will only make him more nervous.

Marco lets out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding.

“What’s wrong with you, dude?” Tom raises a brow as he watches Marco’s profile.

Marco blinks twice. “H-Hey! I asked a question first.” He tries to puff himself up to look indignant, but he knows by Tom’s expression that he fails miserably.

“You look like you’ll freak out if I so much as touch you.” Tom pokes Marco’s arm.

Marco smacks at Tom’s finger. “Stop it,” he fusses. “I’m fine.”

“Yeah, ok.” Tom shakes his head. “And yeah, I’m happy with Star. Just like I said the last time. Why?” His brows knit together and he studies Marco intently.

“Sorry, but I…I don’t think she really loves you.”

Tom’s face goes blank. “What?”

Marco tugs at the sleeve of his hoodie. “I don’t mean to hurt you, really, but Star just has not been acting right from the very beginning. You have to have seen it too – how she flaunts you in front of me.”

Tom’s face loses all its creases and he clenches his fists. “Seriously?” he says flatly. There is no warmth in his eyes.

Marco straightens and looks dead into Tom’s eyes. “Tom, come on, don’t take it like that. I’m saying this because I care. I don’t want to see you get hurt because of how selfish she is being.”

“Selfish? Her?” He grinds his teeth.

Marco watches him carefully.

“You told me months ago that you weren’t jealous. And I believed you. But you…” He shakes his head. “You have the nerve to call her selfish?”

Marco gapes. “What?” His eyes bulge. “Are you kidding me? I told you. I. Am. Not. Jealous!” he all but shrieks it. His chest heaves. “I…I just want you to be with someone who really cares about you,” his voice gradually softens, “and I know it hurts, but she…doesn’t.”

Tom scoffs. “You don’t know anything about us.”

Marco makes a face. “I know everything. She lives with me for crying out loud – has lived with me for nearly a year. The same goes for you too. You’re one of my closest friends.” He lays a hand on his chest. “Please, don’t do this to yourself.”

Tom pins him beneath his blazing gaze. “I guess we’re not as close as you thought.”

Marco starts and his expression wilts, the words cutting so deep it’s almost physical.

Tom doesn’t react to Marco’s shift. “You had your chance.” He stands. “You can’t change your mind just because she wants me now. That’s not how it works.”

Marco swallows hard and musters up his sternest look as he stands to match Tom. “I don’t love Star,” he barely keeps his voice from wavering. “And you shouldn’t either.”

Tom gapes for a split second before his lips curl into a snarl. “A real friend would never say that to me.” Tom’s eyes flicker red.

Marco is crushed as Tom rubs salt in the wound. He takes a step back, slowly drawing the scissors from his pocket. “Tom…” He wants to say something – something that will take this disaster and turn it to his advantage or even just something to salvage what remains of their friendship. But he finds nothing. And he knows when Tom has reached his limit. He cuts a rift next to him, his eyes never leaving Tom. Only as he steps through and Tom disappears from his view does he let his gaze fall. Even then the image of Tom’s expression still burns into his brain. He sighs and hangs his head. Things will definitely change now, but not for the better. Now he’s lost both Star and Tom.

…

“I…messed up,” Marco lets his face fall into his hands. He hides his shame from the world and Jackie in particular as they sit on a bench in the park.

“You mean with Star?” Jackie tilts her head.

Marco mumbles into his hands, “Uh-huh.” Really that isn’t even the half of it though. He messed up with everyone involved. Well, at least he has Jackie.

“Wanna talk about it?” Jackie lays a hand on Marco’s shoulder.

Marco is quiet for a long moment, probably too long, but she doesn’t urge him on and eventually he sighs. He raises his head from his hands and looks to her. “Well-no, first…can I ask you something?”

“Sure.” Jackie smiles.

“Do you think Star has been acting, I don’t know, weird? Like…more weird than normal?”

Jackie taps a finger against her chin and lifts her gaze to the sky. She hums as she contemplates. “Maybe. I mean, she’s always kind of weird.” She half laughs, but when she drops her gaze to meet Marco’s she becomes completely serious. “But I guess you mean with Tom. So, yeah, she has been a bit…much?” She shrugs. “I don’t know what to call it.”

“Really?” Marco holds his breath and brightens ever so slightly. “Or…are you just saying that to make me feel better about the mess I made?” She is really sweet so she would do that for him, wanting nothing more than for him to feel better. Still, he wants the truth.

Jackie frowns and shakes her head. “Nah, dude. I mean it. I’ve felt weird about it for a while whenever we do the whole double date stuff, but it didn’t seem important enough to say anything. Everyone looked happy, so…” She shrugs. “Eh. You know?”

Marco ekes out a laugh. “Yeah…eh.”

“So,” she stretches out the word, “I guess you did say something then, huh?” She smiles knowingly.

Marco deflates. “Yeah…”

“So what happened?”

“Well…” Marco rubs the back of his neck and averts his eyes. “I thought I knew what it was, that weird feeling, and I thought it was that Star was trying to make me jealous by pushing her relationship with Tom.” He grimaces. “But…they both called me jealous. So…”

Jackie blinks. “Both?”

“Oh. Right. Um, after talking to Star I tried talking to Tom too.” He sighs. “Even dumber. I…I don’t even know if we’re friends anymore.” The light is extinguished from his eyes.

Jackie frowns as she contemplates him. “Marco, you and Tom are friends, pretty close by the way you talk about him all the time.”

Marco’s cheeks color. “I-I do not talk about him all the time!”

Jackie snickers. “Yeah, ok.” She quiets her expression. “But good friends don’t just stop being friends, not over something like this. He just needs time to think.” She shrugs. “Same as me after Star said she had a crush on you.”

“Oh…” Marco says softly. So that’s what she was doing while he was on Mewni.

Jackie chuckles and tucks her hair behind an ear. “Yep, I did that. But seriously, don’t get so down.” She gives him a peck on the cheek and smiles. “He’ll come around. Trust me.”

Marco smiles back. “I trust you.”

…

Marco isn’t sure how much time passes. He stops counting the days after a while. All he knows is that Tom and Star still haven’t talked to him since he confronted them. And with each and every day that passes the weight he feels increases. You sure Starred this whole thing up. Star’s words play in his head. Wow. That was so long ago. She didn’t have feelings for him, he wasn’t with Jackie, and he…hadn’t even met Tom. How is it that it came to this from such an innocent place?

Marco doesn’t notice the presence, not until a board squeaks from across the room. He snaps to attention and jerks his hands into a defensive pose, eyes wild and heart racing. He doesn’t know what he expects, but when he focuses he is stunned to see Tom standing before him. He stares blankly.

Tom doesn’t even flinch. He simply stands there and stares right back at Marco, the only difference is in his eyes there is a deep sadness. It’s etched in every crease on his face.

Marco grapples for the words to say. This is it. This is the moment he has been waiting for all this time. There is so much he could say, he just needs the right words. What comes out is, “You…did you…walk in?” He mentally face palms.

Tom blinks. “Oh, um, yeah…” He rubs the back of his neck. “I guess I did.”

Marco chews on the inside of his cheek. He fidgets in the silence as it wraps itself around them in a death grip. It becomes so unbearable he can feel his skin crawling. He has to break it. He opens his mouth, “I-”

“I’m sorry,” Tom blurts out.

Marco comes to attention. “Huh?”

“I’m sorry. You know…for what I said. That you weren’t a real friend.” He drops his gaze to the floor. “It was cruel.” He chuckles, but it is a bitter sound. “I should know that more than anyone. But I did it anyway.”

Marco swallows. “It’s alright.” He stands and walks closer. “I’m sorry too. And maybe…” He shrugs. “Maybe I was a little jealous. I mean, I wasn’t getting to spend much time with either of you anymore.”

“No, you were right.” He sighs. “I felt it too. The same as you said. I just,” he clenches his fists. “I didn’t want to believe it.” He shakes his head. “I wanted it so badly. Wanted to be happy, and with her. For as long as possible. I willed myself not to see the lies.”

Marco frowns. “You can still be happy. You don’t need her for that.” He looks hard at Tom. “You know that, right?”

Tom nods stiffly. “Yeah…but that doesn’t make it hurt any less. Not right now.” He bites his lip.

“It’ll get better.” He lays a hand on Tom’s shoulder. “It just takes time.” Like everything else. “Oh!” Marco glimpses his game console from the corner of his eyes. “So hey, how bout we play a round?” He motions toward the system. “Huh? Maybe I’ll win for real this time.” He grins.

Tom is thrown by Marco’s sudden shift, but most of all by how genuine his smile is and how bright his eyes are as they focus on him.  “Marco?”

“Hm?” He dials back his excitement, but he keeps a smile on his face.

“You…” He tugs at his sleeve. “You really forgive me? That easily?” He knows Marco isn’t one to hold grudges. He’s seen it time and time again. Still, something of this magnitude, he can’t quite believe it.

Marco frowns. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I?”

“But…aren’t you angry? I…I was so…” His face creases and his lips curl in disgust as he stares down at his own hands.

Marco smiles tenderly. “Tom.” He steps forward and engulfs Tom in a hug. “I was never mad at you, just hurt. Hurt and afraid you’d never talk to me again.”

Tom’s eyes widen and he stiffens. For a moment he swears he stops breathing and that maybe even time itself stops.

“Even if I was mad…you’re my friend. I care about you. So as long as you mean it, I’ll always forgive you.”

Emotion wells up in Tom and tears roll down his cheeks. He buries his face in Marco’s shoulder and wraps his arms around him, digging his fingers into the space between Marco’s shoulder blades as he holds on tight. “Everyone else would leave me,” he whispers.

“Haven’t you heard? I’m not like most people.” He pulls away and smirks. “At least that’s what someone told me.”

Tom puffs out a laugh and a smile lights his face. “Yeah, you’re not.” He wipes away the tears. “Which means I don’t have to feel sorry when I win a hundred times.” He runs past Marco and to the game.

Marco shakes his head and rolls his eyes, but the smile doesn’t fade. “I’ll win! You’ll see.” And as he sits next to Tom, for the first time in months there is no terrible feeling deep within him. There is only happiness.

No, a million times no I do not want this to actually happen in the show because if Star used Tom like this and was that jealous I would genuinely hate her character. I just really wanted to play with the idea and so I did. Also I already know that the dance won't play out like this in canon, it just served as a good jumping off point and I seized the opportunity.

I may or may not continue this, not sure. Either way I hope it still stands as a good complete piece even without another part and that you loved it as much as I loved writing it.

Have you gotten a FIGHT ME yet? I mean.... it's Chaleigh.... XD. Soooo.... FIGHT ME..... or NURSE ME

Leave a “Fight Me” in my ask, and I will write a drabble outone character fighting with/or against another.

Leave a “Nurse Me” in my ask, and I’ll write a drabble aboutone character healing another.

Mwahahahah, excellent! You get BOTH! Because it’s chaleigh, and we heckin LOVE it!

“I’m just saying–”

“And I said shut the fuck up, you fuckinghas-been!”

Raleigh ducked, resigned but still trying. He’d promisedHerc, who had damn near broken down with frustration and fear for his kid’sstate of mind. He’d promised to keep trying, no matter what.

Even punching.

“Will you please just listen for a–”

That punch landed,a right cross that knocked him back a step and left the inside of his cheekfeeling like raw hamburger. Dammit. It wasn’t a full-force hit, likely becausethe big ginger jerk had expected him to dodge, but it was bad enough that hetasted the copper tang of blood.

Gritting his jaw and ignoring the flare of pain in hischeek, he told himself he wouldn’t escalate this to an actual fight. Right now,it was just Chuck blowing off steam and trying to chase him off.

He would not punchback.

Unfortunately, he took a good, hard look at the asshole’sface and the smug, stubborn smirk all over his stupid, freckled face and…yeah. He would probably be punching back.

No. He had more control than this. He wasn’t the stupid,reckless kid he used to be. The stupid, reckless kid Chuck still was.

A stupid, reckless kid who was spinning out with survivorguilt and a loss of purpose and refused to seek help from the people who caredabout him or the professionals provided by the PPDC.

Dammit.

If he gritted his teeth any harder, he might actually breakone. “Chuck. I know you think you can–” Duck. “–handle thisyourself. I know–” Deflect and sidestep. “–you think it’ll go awayon its own. But it–” Dodge and fists in pockets, just in case.“Dammit, Chuck! Fucking stop and listen to me for a–”

Because Chuck had been a brawler in their hallway fight andhad been throwing heavy punches just now, Raleigh didn’t expect the big bruiserto drop down and sweep his legs. He was on his back like a flipped-over turtlebefore he truly knew what had happened, and his instincts kicked in before hisreason could throw up a protest.

The fight was fucking on.

He rolled away from the stomp at his chest and came upswinging. Now that he was fully engaged, he had no intention of losing. Therewas no world-saving mission waiting at the end of this fight to hold him back.This little prick had already punched him and landed him on his ass. Raleighhad no intention of letting him get any more.

Unfortunately, a few exchanged punches and kicks later, boththeir knuckles were split, and Raleigh landed a truly epic jab that could havebroke the brat’s nose. It was sudden and unexpected for both of them, becauseuntil then, they’d been surprisingly evenly matched. But Raleigh expected thekid to dodge and Chuck just… didn’t.

Blood pattered on the floor, loud in the sudden silence. AndChuck just… stood there. Made no move to cover his nose or stop the flow oreven really react to the hit.

Almost as if he’d wantedto be hit.

Well. Shit.

“Chuck?” He didn’t let his guard down, but he didstart to feel like a real asshole. “You okay?”

But the kid still just stood there, head slightly turned andbent down, blood all but fauceting from his nose. It was almost like Raleighhad somehow found his off switch and kicked it right through the wall.

Worried now, he stepped forward, half-expecting the whole pauseto be a ploy of some sort, but Chuck was gone. Not ready-to-pass-out gone butjust… out of it.

And his nose was still going like a low-powered geyser. Shit.

Luckily, he’d caught the brat on the way to the showersafter a stint in the jaeger bay, so it only took a moment to duck into the outerroom and grab a towel. He didn’t tilt the kid’s head back, just bundled thetowel under his nose and pinched the bridge with it to staunch the flow.

“Jesus, kid, I’m sorry.” And he was. Now.“Thought you’d dodge that one. I swear I didn’t track you down just tobreak your nose.” But he was still Raleigh Becket, so he couldn’t preventa hint of a smirk. “Again.”

It didn’t get a response. Chuck stood passive and stillunder his grip. The worry came rushing back, and he briefly debated walking thekid to the medical bay with the hopes of also sitting the kid down with one ofthe staff therapists. Unfortunately, he figured the big idiot would just cometo his senses and walk away with a few choice words. And maybe a few morepunches.

So, he carefully took his problem child by the upper arm,relieved when that big body followed along with a gentle tug. He didn’t daretake him to Chuck’s room, which was right by Herc’s. He doubted Herc wouldblame Raleigh for the fight, but the Hansen family relationship was still rockyand full of mines, so any possibility of salvaging the situation would probablyfly out the window as the kid deflected to a different sort of anger.

If he could just talk to the kid like this, alone, withoutthat hair-trigger attitude preventing even the start of a conversation….

So, keeping a careful eye on the vacant expression on thatusually arrogant face, he slowly led the way to his own bunk. He was prettysure he had ice in his mini fridge, which should at least prevent swelling andmaybe help stop the bleeding. And he could hopefully talk with the kid while heapplied the ice.

Soon enough, he’d settled that big body on the edge of his bedand lifted one of Chuck’s limp hands to hold the towel in place so he couldrummage up an ice pack. It was easy enough to crack a few ice cubes into a handtowel and wrap them up. It was slightly less easy to sit himself next to hisrival and gently urge the bloody towel down enough to press the ice pack to thebridge of his nose, but he did it.

He even reached up to cup the back of the kid’s head andkeep it from tilting back. The muscles in his legs felt as twitchy as a cat’swhiskers with the expectation that the fog would suddenly lift and Chuck wouldgo back to trying to knock his head off, but for now, he managed to play nursewithout incident.

“I really am sorry, you know.”

The big body heaved a sigh. “Yeah. I doh.”

He stifled an urge to snark at the nose-clogged tone. Thiswas definitely not the time.

“I’m just… worried about you. We all are.”

Another sigh, this time accompanied by rolling eyes inrapidly-bruising sockets.

So Raleigh sighed, too. “Chuck, c'mon. You think Idon’t have survivor guilt? You think I don’t have screaming nightmares and panicattacks and suicidal depression and PTSD?”

The kid shifted but didn’t respond. More importantly, hedidn’t jerk away from the ice on his face or the bloody towel under his nose.

“Can’t you just go to one appointment? What would ithurt? No one will think less of you.” He huffed, but held the pressuresteady. “Hell, we’re all goingto therapy. Even–”

Oops. Probably not a good idea to mention Herc right now.

Fidgeting at the near-miss, he shut his potentiallytraitorous mouth and called the conversation as good as it could be. Theyhadn’t exactly talked, but he’d at least been able to convey everyone’s concernand suggest a solution without interruption.

And all it took was a bloody nose. And several bloodyknuckles. And some bruises they’d both be feeling for a week or so.

Jesus, this fucking stubborn-ass kid.

Finally: “I doh, okay?” Another heavy sigh, andthe big jerk leaned a bit into the pressure on his face. “I doh I deed togo. It scares deh shit out of be, yeah?”

“I get that.” And he did. It had taken all ofMako’s persuasive powers to get Raleigh to go to that first appointment. Andall his own will to go to the second one. “And it’s not easy. I’m notgonna lie. It’s the single fucking hardest thing I’ve ever done to make myselfgo and keep going.”

Wounded eyes finally met his. “Does it help?”

He’d better damn well be honest. “Sometimes.” Acareful shrug. “Sometimes not. Sometimes, it almost feels worse.”

Damn if those big grey eyes looked more wounded still. Andscared. “Den why deh fuck do you keep going?”

The corner of his mouth twitched on something that wasn’tquite a grin. “Because Yancy would’ve wanted me to. And because recoveryisn’t linear. It isn’t even an upward arc. It’s a goddamn mountain range ofpeaks and valleys.” This twitch was a little closer to a grin. “Butthe peaks get higher every time, and the valleys aren’t always so low.”

Damn those eyes. Raleigh was fairly certain thatwould-be-trusting, still-scared look would haunt his dreams tonight. It was theexpression of a child seeing their parent open the closet door just before theyturn on the light to prove the monster isn’t really there.

“You swear?”

He was tempted to make a joke. But he wouldn’t.

“I swear.”

Chuck looked away and shifted, still not pulling away.“Could I baybe… sit in on one of yours? See how it goes? What toexpect?”

He hesitated, even knowing he might be undoing any slightprogress he might have made. Just… his therapy sessions were… personal.Painful, sometimes. Frustrating when he didn’t feel any progress. Did he reallywant to give Chuck Hansen, asshole extraordinaire, that kind of ammo to use onhim next time the mood struck?

But those broad shoulders started to slump, and, like hisyounger self, Raleigh did something impulsive and just hoped for the best.

“Okay.”

That got the kid’s attention, and fast. “Yeah?”

He finally managed an actual grin, crooked though it was.“Yeah. I’ll probably have to sign some consent forms, but I think mytherapist will be okay with it if she knows what it’s for.”

The relief all over the top half of the kid’s face wasextraordinary. “Thanks, bate.” The corners of those bright eyescrinkled, suggesting an answering grin. “Sorry ‘bout the cheek. And theribs.”

Surprised, he felt his eyebrows shoot up but managed to keepfrom snorting incredulously. Maybe they were past the point of cutting sarcasmand weaponized snark, but maybe they weren’t.

So: “Water under the bridge?”

The brat even went so far as to elbow him lightly withoutshoving him far enough away to mess up the nose treatment. “Good.”

Raleigh’s next appointment was three days away, so as soonas he was sure the bleeding had stopped and sent the kid on his way with theice pack and a promise to take care of the splits over his knuckles – and areturn promise to take care of his own – he sat down and typed out an emailexplaining the situation to his therapist and asking if Chuck could sit in. Theresponse was almost immediate: her assistant would have the paperwork readywhen they arrived for the session.

It was all but done.

And when Chuck knocked on his door later that evening,sheepish and shuffling his feet and bruised around the eyes, to ask if maybeRaleigh would sit with him at supper, he agreed without really thinking aboutit. They didn’t have to talk, the big dork hurriedly promised. He was justtired of sitting by himself or avoiding Herc.

Which was how he found himself sitting with Chuck at supperthat night and at breakfast and lunch the next day. Mako joined them for supperthe next night. Tendo for a quick chat over bagels and coffee the next morning.

Herc for lunch the next day. Chuck sat tense and quietbeside him… but didn’t get up and stalk away.

It was a start.

Raleigh would gladly take it.

THE END

Cradle Ch.4 (Thorgy × Violet and Trixya by Vanguard)

Thank you to the Anon that asked about my story. I REALLY hope that the formatting behaves!

Part 4 Katya woke up with a jolt and looked around. He had no fucking clue where he was. He sat up and looked around. Instead of being in his bland white hotel room, he was in a room with shades of oranges and browns in a giant bed with a mountain of soft pillows. He also had a pair of flannel paw-printed pajamas on.

Then the truth of yesterday and what happened to Violet hit him like a punch in the gut. Like he normally did when there were bad feelings, he looked for a distraction which came in the form of padding out of the room in his barefeet and following the aroma of coffee and bacon.

He still couldn’t remember where he was. He turned off the hall into the kitchen to see Lee, the girl from last night, sitting at the small scrubwood table, reading the newspaper with a somewhat serious look on her face. She looked up at the sound of the floor creaking and gave Katya a small smile.

She got up and bustled in the kitchen for a moment before thrusting a plate of bacon, eggs and toast with the largest mug of coffee he had ever seen into his hands.

He sunk down into a chair beside her at the table and realized just how ravenously hungry he really was. The last time he’d eaten was about 18 hours ago so as much as his stomach was churning, he tucked into his breakfast.

“I’m sorry, you must have been so confused when you woke up! I just couldn’t bear for you to go back to a cold hotel room in your state. I hope that is ok?”

Katya nodded, his mouth too full of egg and toast to speak. Lee gave him a moment, looking nervous like he was going to be angry that she had given him shelter when he was upset instead of being abandoned to fend for himself at a hotel.

“It’s ok, thank you. When do you have to work today?” Katya was going to the hospital today but he didn’t know if she was in a rush to leave. He didn’t want to make her late.

“I actually took the day off, I don’t want you to be alone and you will only be able to visit Violet for 10 minutes per hour in the ICU so I thought it would be good for you to have company when you aren’t visiting them. I would be surprised if they weren’t in the ICU with their leg alone. Actually I work there so I might be able to get you a bit more time with them. I have connections.” She joked and then became serious, “Sorry, this probably isn’t the time for joking.”

Katya shook his head, “no, actually now is a good time for joking. If I didn’t joke when things were serious, I would just be crying nonstop. I have to call my boyfriend before we go. Also, nice pajamas.” he said, pulling the collar of his PJs up.

Her laugh was musical, “You were freezing so I lent you a pair of warm PJs, you said you didn’t want to go back into your room at the hotel because you and Violet were sharing a room.”

“Oh yeah,” Katya whispered, faintly remembering the conversation, at least he changed on his own this time.

“I think I have a few pairs of men’s jeans and some polo shirts if you don’t want to go to the hotel. I am a stereotypical lesbian sometimes, I’m so butch.” She joked, holding her arms away from her tall yet feminine frame.

Katya let out a little snort of laughter, “that would be great if you don’t mind.”

“I don’t mind, later I’ll sell ‘em on ebay.” She teased. “I’ll go see what I have and throw it on the bed. There is a shower off the bedroom.”

“Ok.”

She left and Katya pushed his plate away, resting his elbows on the table and leaning his chin on his hands.

Last night was the most horrible night of his life, even worse than withdrawals when he first came off of drugs because it was happening to someone he cared about instead of himself. He couldn’t control the suffering someone else he cared for was feeling.

He remembered rushing into the hospital with Lee who probably broke the speed limit and A LOT of traffic laws on the way. She told him to sit and she went up to an information desk. She was speaking to the man behind desk for what felt like forever.

She was pale when she came back, and sat beside me, “So I may have told the guy that you were Violet’s brother because he’s new. Violet went into surgery for their leg and they are still running tests because they are concerned about a possible spinal cord injury.”

“Oh no! OH NO!” Katya burst into tears. Lee rubbed his back and he turned and hugged her and cried on her shoulder.

“Shhh I’m so sorry Katya, we can go up to the ICU when you feel ready. That is probably the best way to get notified when they wake up from surgery. If they know we are there, we will get updates.”

They had waited for 3 and a half hours before they suggested that we come back in the morning. By then it was 4:30 in the morning. Between the drive to Lee’s and getting into bed was a blur.

“Shit! Shit! Shit!” He muttered as he got up and reached his hand blindly around in his drag bag, he totally forgot to send a goodnight text!! Sure enough there were 4 texts and 5 missed calls.

Trixie: Hey babe! Just finished the show here.

Trixie: Is it cold in Canada? It’s nice and warm in Brazil so haha!

Trixie: Goodnight Brian, I hope you are ok! You must have been tired so I hope you are sleeping well. You realize you broke our 400 day goodnight message streak right? You’re soooo gonna pay for that!

Then this morning there was:

Trixie: Are you there? Are you ok? Please let me know.

He listened through all of the messages, Trixie getting more panicked every time he called.

He was just about to call when Lee came up behind him and said “there are a few different choices on the bed but I don’t mind swinging by the hotel.” Katya jumped at the sound of her voice, “Oh shit sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you!!”

“It’s ok!” Katya brushed it off, “I’m gonna make a call in the bedroom and then have a shower if it’s ok.”

“Sure, there are towels on the bed and feel free to use whatever in the bathroom.”

Katya put his hand on her shoulder as she turned around, “Thank you Lee. I think you are the first angel I’ve ever met.”

“Daww you are sweet! I’m glad to help!”

Katya swerved off of the hallway and into the bedroom, dialing without even looking at the phone.

“Hey Brian, it’s Brian!” Trixie answered cheerfully, a stupid corny greeting they thought was funny, because they were both stupid and corny together.

“Hi Brian, it’s Brian.” Katya said back half-heartedly.

“What’s wrong baby?” Trixie said, immediately concerned. He should have known that the only reason he hadn’t called or texted goodnight was because something bad had happened. Trixie’s mind went into overdrive. “Did you hurt yourself? Did you break your sobriety?” He hated to ask that question but he had know that Kat had had a bit of a rough spot at one point after Rupaul’s Best Friend Race.

Katya sat down on the bed and burst into tears.

“Aww babe, what’s wrong? Please tell me.” Trixie could feel the tears welling in his eyes at the sound of his beloved in such anguish. “Whatever it is, I will help you fix it.”

“It’s Vi, they had an accident.”

“Oh my God! Are they ok?” Obviously they weren’t if Katya was sobbing that hard.

Trixie could barely understand him, he heard “Violet….fell…doing aerials….really hurt….I don’t know…what to…do..”

“Brian, take a deep breath. Remember? In…1…2…3. Out…1…2…3…4…5…6.”

It took about 5 minutes til Katya wasn’t crying so hard that Trixie couldn’t understand him.

“Sorry.” Katya mumbled.

“Hey. You know you don’t have to apologize to me for being upset or anxious EVER right? I still mean it.”

“I know, I’m sor….” Katya took a shaky breath, “I think I can tell you now.”

Trixie sat down in the chair in his hotel room, he felt like he was gonna need it.

“Ok so, um, Violet was doing their aerials routine and you know the trick they do at the end where they drop?”

“The one that scares the shit out of me. Right?” Trixie asked.

“Yeah, that one. I don’t know if it was the way the fabric was hooked in or if they..if something happened with them but they fell from almost the top of the ceiling of the venue.”

“Oh my God!” Trixie said again, glad he was sitting.

“Yeah.” Katya said shakily. “So one of the fabric pieces fell down and I didn’t know what I was gonna find when I was pulling it off.” Katya was talking faster and faster, like he was trying to exorcise the memory out of his mind. “This nurse Lee was there and we didn’t move them and the ambulance came and took her and Thorgy to the hospital in two ambulances. Acid went with Thorgy but Violet was all alone.”

“Wait what? What happened with Thorgy?” Trixie asked, confused.

“Thorgy and Violet are DATING and I think he was in shock or something.”

“Thorgy and Vi eh? What an odd couple!”

“Don’t tell anyone! I would have had no idea if I hadn’t walked in on them kissing.”

“Ok so, what happened next?”

“Well I had Violet’s blood all over me because I was holding onto them.” Trixie felt a shiver go up his spine at the image in his head. “And I was shaking so hard, and so this nurse named Lee who happened to be at the show helped me change and then we went to the hospital.”

“Ok, what happened next?” Trixie coaxed after a minute or two of silence and crying from the other end.

“We got to the hospital and Lee said I was Violet’s brother so we could get information. Violet was in surgery so..”

“Wait. I’m lost. Why were they in surgery?”

“They broke their thigh bone very badly, their bone was sticking out of their skin and so they needed to put pins or screws or something in it.”

Trixie’s stomach lurched at the gory image in his head.

“Fuuucckkk! Did the surgery go well?”

“I don’t know, we waited for a really long time, 3 and a half hours before they told us that we should go home. I didn’t want to go back to the hotel and see all of Violet’s things so Lee let me stay here at her house. But I haven’t told you the worst of it.”

“There is more?” Trixie felt like he had molten iron in his stomach, heavy, boiling hot, angry and painful. He could hear Katya weeping again.

“They think that Vi might have a spinal cord injury.”

That’s when the molten lava in Trixie’s stomach decided it would like out NOW. He barely made it to the bathroom in time, his phone crashing to the floor as he hugged the cold porcelain.  

“Trixie? Trix? Brian!” He heard Katya calling from his phone but it was too far to reach.

Katya heard Trixie throwing up and wished he was there to hug him and rub his back.

“Ugghh sorry.” Trixie said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

“I’m sorry, it’s horrible news to get over the phone, plus if it makes you feel any better, I barfed all over the stage last night.”

“Of course it doesn’t make me feel any better! I’m so sorry hun.”

“Me too. I am sorry but I have to get dressed so we can go see how they are.”

“Please keep me updated!” Trixie pleaded. “Do you need me to call your manager to get some time off?”

“Yeah that would be great. I hadn’t even thought of that.”

“OF course you haven’t! That is the least of your worries. How long? I’ll text you when I know my flight details too.” Trixie said, writing himself a note on the hotel stationery.

“I don’t want you to cut your trip short. I will be ok!! I mean, I miss you but I don’t want you to lose out on gigs to come here and sit in some cold ICU waiting room with me.”

“I want to, I don’t want you to be alone and as much as Violet is a little bitch, they’re a lovable little bitch and one of my good friends. I want to be there for you AND for them. Ok?” Trixie said firmly, knowing that Katya would try to argue.

“Ok.” he said in the smallest little voice that broke Trixie’s heart.

“I will let you go but I will call or text when I have more information and you answer whenever you can ok? No trips outside just to check your phone. And you tell,” Trixie’s chin quivered and his voice got husky, “you tell Violet to hang in there ok? You tell them to…” He floundered for a moment, he wasn’t equipped to deal with a situation like this. Was anyone though? “Stay strong ok? You too. I love you so much and I will see you really soon ok?”

“I love you too. I’ll see you soon and hey Trix?”

“Mmhmm?”

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For understanding just how much I need you to be with me right now without me having to say it outloud. You always seem to know and I love that about you.”

“I love that you need me.” Trixie said in a broken whisper.

“Always. I will ALWAYS need you moya golubchik!” Katya reassured him.

“I love it when you talk Russian to me. What did you call me this time? A turtle? Rat dropping?” Trixie asked with a hint of humour in his voice.

“My little dove.”

“Aww I like that one! Ok you go! Call or text me when you can and I will do the same ok?”

“Ok, I love you.”

“I love you too, so much!”

Katya took the quickest shower of his life and managed to find a pair of jeans that were a tiny bit loose and a purple polo shirt.  

Lee was dressed when he came out of the bedroom and they hopped in her slightly beat up red Prius as they drove the few blocks there in relative silence while Katya’s brain ran rampant. They got up the the ICU and Lee steered him to a chair where he felt like he waited forever.

Lee eventually turned and beckoned him forward. He searched her face for a moment for clues as to what she was about to say but her facial expression was unreadable. He was going in blind, he wiped his sweaty hands on his jeans and stood up slowly.

“Here we go into the unknown.” He thought and gulped and followed Lee into the ICU and uncertainty.

lion heart | jungkook — part one

pairing : jeon jungkook x reader, reader will have platonic relationships with other members !

word count : 2.6k

genre : angst / a little fluff ?

summary : You live with an expert kidnapper, who takes daughters and sons from rich families to collect the ransom. You are too fearful to leave, or do anything much to help the hostages other than occasionally sneaking them food, until Kim Seokjin, Min Yoongi, Jung Hoseok, Kim Namjoon, Park Jimin, Kim Taehyung, and Jeon Jungkook come along.

a/n : okay listen I’ve never written angst before and I can’t tell if this is weird or ?? idk listen I’ve had a lot of time on my hands since I dropped out of school so I just wrote some shiz and I don’t really know what I’m doing with it so .. I mean … if you like it please leave me a message or something because really I would like to know if I’m any good at writing this , as I said this is my first time writing angst soooo .. idk I’m nervous but enjoy ? I guess ahh

You knew what Jinwoo did was wrong, you had always known. The problem was, you weren’t brave enough to leave. He didn’t lock you here, in fact, he would often let you leave, to get him things from the store. But you would always come back. He would only find you otherwise, and when he did, he would be mad.

One day, you returned from the store to find a little more new visitors than usual. It was only a matter of time before he did it again, you knew that. But you weren’t expecting this many. This was big. This was risky. Usually, he would take one or two. Guys, occasional girls, from rich families for ransom. And once the money had been exchanged, always in cash, he would return the person, or people, and move somewhere new, using the ransom money. He would get a job every place he went, so that he didn’t arise suspicion, and he would always wait a while before taking somebody else, so that the police didn’t link the kidnappings with his moving. He would travel miles looking for somebody new to take, and it looked as though he had hit the jackpot. Seven guys, all from rich families. Seven ransoms.

You walked downstairs into the lower story or basement of the house, a large area reserved to inhabit the hostages. This part was always the worst. You knew that there was nothing you could do for them. You didn’t have the courage. You took a look at them, and immediately your eyes welled with tears. Jinwoo was at work, and he wouldn’t be back for hours yet. He had left them some food, to keep them healthy, but it looked like none of them felt like eating. Who could blame them?

As they heard the creak of the wooden stairs, they swung their heads up, one of them cowering slightly in the corner. You took another step down, and you noticed how they shifted slightly away. Because of what Jinwoo had done, the captives were always terrified of you at first too. You didn’t know exactly what Jinwoo did to them, but you would guess from the blood staining their clothes, and gashes, bruises, and scratches across their face that it wasn’t anything comfortable. These boys were injured much more than anybody else you had seen, so instead of taking anymore steps down, you decided to take one up, and another, until you were at the top of the stairs once again.

You walked over to the kitchen, opening one of the cupboards and grabbing the first aid kit. You weren’t supposed to do this, but Jinwoo wouldn’t be home for a while, and he only ever went down to give them food and water. He never took much of a look at them. You told yourself that he wouldn’t notice. He never used the first aid kit anyway. He wouldn’t notice that anything was missing.

You headed back down the stairs, making sure that your movements were soft and gentle, as not to startle them. You looked to the food in the centre of the room, that still remained untouched. You made your way over to the huddle of seven boys, having only old tattered cushions to sit on. You could sense how fragile they were, how terrified, as no matter how soft your movements were, they still flinched at every one.

You knelt down on the concrete floor in front of them, putting the first aid kit on the floor in front of you. At the notice of this, the boys seemed to be a little less scared, though still terrified. You opened your mouth, finally gaining the confidence to speak. You never really knew what to say when you first met these people, what could you say? Anything to make them feel a little better about the situation, sure, but, what could fit into that category?

“..I..It’s okay.. He won’t be home for a while… I can.. I… I’m sorry…”

Those two words. They would always come up at some point. You felt the need to apologise for Jinwoo, but, you also needed to apologise because, apart from cleaning their wounds and showing them some kindness, there was nothing you could do for them.

“I’m so sorry. Please.. let me help.. You don’t want those scarring, I’m sure…”

You reached into the first aid kit, pulling out some rubbing alcohol, and a roll of bandages. Though, as soon as you pulled the roll out, it began to unravel when you almost dropped it, and you watched the roll as it rolled away the full length of the room, leaving a trail of bandage behind it, the end of which being in your hand. You hadn’t exactly had experience using first aid kits, but you thought it would be easy enough. Apparently, you couldn’t even hold a roll of bandages properly. You heard a light snicker, and you looked up, catching eyes with one of the younger boys, eyes you were sure would have shone brighter than all others before this ordeal. You swore you caught the slightest hint of a smile as he reached out his large hands to push the roll back towards you.

“Thanks..”

You pick up the roll, rolling it back up before shuffling up to the male nearest to the right. You picked up a small cotton pad, dousing it in rubbing alcohol before squeezing it out slightly when you realised that was way too much.

“This might hurt a little, but.. it’s better than having nothing at all..”

You started on a cut above the first boy’s eyebrow, pushing his hair back slightly. You pressed the cotton pad to the wound, earning a slight flinch from the male.

“S-Sorry..”

You stuttered, before continuing to clean the wound. Your gaze caught onto his, and your lips parted slightly, your breath hitching in your chest. It’s times like these when you realised that, even though you weren’t like Jinwoo, you were just as bad. You were allowing this to happen. But there was nothing you could do. You couldn’t risk it. If Jinwoo wasn’t getting his money, he could kill them. Your eyes blurred with tears, and you could barely see out of them anymore, the liquid distorting your vision as it covered every inch of your narrowing eyes.

“What’s your name?”

The question caught you off guard, shakily falling from the-boy-sitting-ahead-of-you’s lips. You had seen countless people caught up by Jinwoo and his hungry ploy to gain money, but they never spoke to you. They would occasionally bow their head if you helped them, but nothing more. And they definitely didn’t ask your name. You had already gained a smile from one of the boys, and that was a first too.

“..It’s Y/N… W-What’s yours?”

It had been a while since you held a proper conversation with anybody, and it was almost a relief to hear a voice other than Jinwoo’s, or the occasional monotone shop clerk.

“It’s Seokjin..”

The tears brimming in your eyes finally fell down your cheeks, and you could finally see clearly again. He was smiling. It was a small smile, but it was something. He grabbed your shaking arm from it’s place on his head, bringing it down before taking the cotton pad from between your fingers.

“You don’t have to do that. We’ll be okay.”

His voice was shaky, and he was shivering slightly.

“I want to.. I don’t.. I.. I have to do something.. Please.”

You pleaded, your eyes boring into his. If he didn’t let you do this, you knew that the guilt would tear you apart. He clearly saw this in your eyes, and allowed you to continue. You cleaned up the entire group, each one making small talk while you did so. It felt really good. Talking to somebody.

A few hours later, you were actually laughing with them. You had gotten to know them, a little bit, and for a second even they forgot the situation. You saw the youngest, Jungkook, shivering slightly, and so brought it upon yourself to go upstairs and fetch him a blanket. You found the thickest one in the house, bringing it down and handing it to him. He smiled widely, baring a set of bunny teeth, causing you to smile just as wide, for the first time in years. You forgot all about Jinwoo. About everything.

A few more hours passed, even though it seemed like only a couple of minutes. You heard the door unlock, and immediately, the panic that was present in your mind every second of every day returned.

“Oh god..”

You left the basement quickly, running up the stairs and leaving the group downstairs.

“Not quick enough, Y/N..”

Jinwoo whispered, twirling his keys around his finger before slamming them down on the kitchen counter, causing you to jump. He had only caught you visiting the basement once before, and you remembered all too well what happened then.

“Jinwoo, I..”

“What was it this time? Food? You know, if this is going to become a regular occurrence, I won’t be able to trust you anymore.”

He walked over to the basement door, slowly walking down the stairs and looking around. Although the boys had attempted to hide the blanket and first aid kit left down there, it was an unsuccessful attempt.

“Oh, Y/N… No, no… Haven’t I told you not to do this?”

He started back up the stairs, and every step he took forward, you took back.

“It’s okay. I’m not mad.. in fact… If you like it so bad down there, why don’t you join them?”

Your heart dropped in your stomach, and your throat went dry. You couldn’t even find the courage to open your mouth. You took another step backwards, and quickly turned to dash down the hall, but you weren’t fast enough. Jinwoo grabbed your arm, pulling you back towards him and pushing you with force through the basement door. You had no time to stop, and you fell all the way down the wooden stairs, your head hitting the concrete floor at the bottom. You just about heard Jinwoo slamming and locking the door, before the noise faded with your vision.

*******

You gradually opened your eyes to see Jungkook above you, your head placed in his lap. One of his hands was tangled in your hair, the other resting on your chest. His eyes were closed, soft snores escaping his parted lips. You turned your head to your right, catching sight of Seokjin. He was laying on the floor, head resting on a pillow, beside the open first aid kit. It was then you noticed the bandages on your legs and arms. You couldn’t remember how you got hurt, but from the last few things you could remember, you could gather.

You carefully lifted Jungkook’s hands from your chest and hair, before sitting up.

Taehyung, the boy who had pushed the bandage back to you earlier, was asleep on Jimin’s shoulder, who was asleep on Yoongi’s shoulder. Namjoon was sleeping beside Seokjin, and Hoseok was asleep beside Namjoon.

You carefully pushed Jungkook down onto the floor, covered with cushions, to make him a little more comfortable than his seated position. He stirred slightly, causing you to freeze, not wanting to wake him up. He stretched his arm out, grabbing you by the waist and pulling you down to lay beside him. Your eyes widened, and your cheeks flushed a dark red.

Once you had composed yourself, you reached out, attempting to feel around for the blanket with your fingers. Once you felt the fabric, you gripped onto it, pulling it over Jungkook to keep him warm. You looked over his features for a few minutes, frowning slightly at the various bruises and cuts littering his face. You found yourself wondering what he looked like before they were there. Just as beautiful, no doubt. His soft features relaxed you more than anything ever had, and before long, your eyes drooped shut, and you fell into a deep sleep.

When you woke up, Jungkook was no longer laying down in front of you, his arms no longer wrapping firmly around you. Instead, your eyes were laying on the wall. Not the most interesting sight compared with the last thing you laid eyes on before you fell asleep.

You blinked a few times to wake yourself up, before rolling over to the right. Everybody else was still asleep, but Jungkook was kneeling beside the first aid kit. He hadn’t noticed that you had woken up yet, so you took the time to admire his features as they remained concentrated on the objects in the first aid kit. It looked as though he knew as little about first aid as you. Seokjin wasn’t awake yet, and you guessed that he was the one to dress your wounds while you were out yesterday, given that he was asleep next to it and all.

“Jungkook-ssi..”

You whispered, not wanting to wake the rest of the group. Especially given the amount of stress they were under, and how they weren’t getting much food at all, you wanted them to have as much sleep as possible. Jungkook looked up, his lips curling into a smile once his eyes latched onto yours.

“Hey, Y/N-ah.. I was just going to redress your wounds from yesterday.. I watched Seokjin-hyung do it, so.. I figured I could probably do it too, but I can’t remember much of it now, and Seokjin-hyung isn’t awake yet.”

You went to stand, but a shooting pain stopped you, and you squeezed your eyes shut. You realised that you hadn’t tried to stand since waking up yesterday, so you didn’t even realise that you couldn’t.

“Ah..”

“It’s okay, I’ll come over there.”

You shifted slightly, using your other leg and arms to swivel to rest your back against the wall. This ended up being tricky when you realised that one of your arms was injured too.

Jungkook stood up, picking up the first aid kit from the floor and walking over to sit beside you. He started by unwrapping the bandage from around your leg, and you closed your eyes tightly shut at the sight. It was bruised, cut, and blood stained, and you didn’t want to look at it for anything other than a few seconds. Jungkook cleaned it up as best he could, and when you opened your eyes, you chose to focus your gaze on Jungkook instead of your leg. You focused on anything and everything, the way his eyes narrowed in concentration as he cleaned up your leg, the way he bit his lip occasionally. Even the way that he would sniff from time to time, scrunching his nose up like a bunny rabbit. With all of this to focus on, you barely felt anything in regards to your leg. Everything went numb for those five or so minutes. You had better things to think about.

Once he was done cleaning your leg, he dressed it before wrapping it up in a fresh bandage. After doing the same with your arm, which wasn’t as badly injured, he moved onto your head. You hadn’t even noticed that it was bandaged up, but were gaining vague remembrance that you hit your head on the concrete floor, so when you thought about it, it would make sense. He removed your bandage, locking eyes with yours. Your heart almost fell out of your chest, and you were almost sure you stopped breathing for a second. His eyes scrunched up as he widely smiled towards you, and you felt yourself smiling too.

You didn’t know how long you would be down here, but as long as Jungkook, and the rest of the boys were here, you didn’t think it would be all too bad.

Out in the Open pt. 6 || Neymar Jr Imagine

Note: Finally is out! I'm so sorry this took ages but its finally here! I hope you all like it! This might be the end of the series. Left it pretty open so if you guys want to see something else or want another part just let me know! I feel like this was rushed, but I wanted some jealousy soooo here ya go! A friend of Ney and Rafinha had picked you up from the Barcelona airport to take you to the training session where you were going to surprise Neymar. You didn't show it, but you were still mad over the fact that he and Bruna arrived together and that he didn't tell you anything when he called. It was getting on your last nerve as much as you tried not to think about it.   You are dropped off at Camp Nou and you can't help but grin excitedly at it. It was the first time you were there, and it looked so much bigger than it looks on tv. It was like a dream come true to be there and see it up close and personal. You are being waited for by one of the staff members that would take you to the field. At first, you thought why that would be since you were sure you could find the pitch rather easily, but then you noticed the several stairs and hallways and tunnels that the stadium had on the inside, you were grateful that he waited for you. Rafinha must've told him about your surprise arrival.   Once on the pitch, you sit on the benches as the players practiced their shooting on the far goal. You easily spotted Messi and you almost squealed too loudly at the sight. Your favorite club, your favorite players, right before your eyes. You spot Iniesta, chuckling at a side while Neymar jumped on Pique's back. Suarez and Messi talking to each other, Marc grinning while Rafinha pushed Sergi for some reason.   Rafinha spots you after a few minutes and he goes and slaps the back of Neymar's head before he points at you. You see your boyfriend's face turn from confused to grinning like a little kid. You grinned back, waving at him, but it didn't mean you had forgotten. It was...It was just that you couldn't really stay mad at someone like Neymar when his smile turned bigger and he looked at you the way he did.   He jogs towards you and you stand up. His hands quickly cup your face and he presses his lips against yours softly to greet you. "Hey..." he breathes once he pulls away, thumbs rubbing your cheeks, "I thought you'd let me know when you got here..." "I was...but Rafinha said he'd send someone to pick me up and take me here to surprise you..." You admit to him. "Rafa? You two are talking?"   "He called me yesterday because he didn't saw me around and wondered why" you say. You could sense Ney tensing, probably because he thought there could be something going on between Rafinha and you besides a good friendship, but you saw it as a brother and sister thing since he cared for you like if he were your big brother.   "Oh..." he says and nods his head before wrapping his arms around your waist.   "We need to talk" you say, patting his chest as he looks at you.   "I know, and we will. Let me just introduce you to everyone, they have been asking about you" he said with a grin before taking your hand and leading you to the pitch. "Guys" Ney called out and they turned to look at you both. Rafinha smiled at you, giving you a nod which she returned. "This is Y/N, my girlfriend" he said happily. "Finally we get to know who was crazy enough to date this idiot" Suarez says with a chuckle, holding a hand out to you which you take, "Nice to meet you" he says with a grin.   "It's my pleasure" you say, holding your fangirling on the inside.   "We've heard great things about you" Messi says and holds his hand out. For a moment you freeze, because you were face to face with the best player in the world and he was greeting you.   Your heart was beating loudly and you almost didn't know what to say because you were speechless. "She is a big fan of you, she won't talk for one more minute" Neymar says and you shake your head and slap his arm before you take Leo's and shook it lightly.   "He is right, but not that right" you say and nervously give a chuckle. "Big fan. You are awesome. I can't believe I am meeting you...personally" you say and you notice you are fangirling and at the edge of squealing. "Well, let's hope its not the last time we meet. Next time I can sign your jersey" he says with a shrug and smiling, and you grin.   "I'd love that a lot actually. I'd want everyone's if that's okay" she grins as she looks at the others. "Was about to say you forgot about the rest" you heard Rafael say and you giggle.   You talk with the other players as they approach to meet you. Marc was adorable and so was Denis. Jordi and Arda didn't spoke much to you but they were looking forward to seeing you again. Samuel joked with you for a few minutes while Neymar went to get ready and Lucas was around as well. Iniesta was a gentleman and was very nice, not like you expected anything less. He was just like the rest but a bit more mature, but he was definitely happier, and friendlier than what he appeared to be. Pique and Gomes came out to the field after changing and greeted you. Pique messing and joking about Neymar with Samuel while Gomes only chuckled. It was a good day. Too good. You were looking forward to the other training days to come. Neymar finally came out of the tunnels and took your luggage from the room the staff had stored them in and placed them in his Ferrari. "I can't believe I met the whole team. They were so nice and so...real" You rant as you both head to his house.   "Thought I played with a bunch of robots?" Neymar teased with a small chuckle before taking your hand in his. "No...but I just thought I'd never meet them. I did missed Dani and Marc, I had the feeling I'd see them and then I remembered they left...Just like Xavi" you frown.   "We all miss them, we miss the goof, we miss the team pet, we miss our captain" he admits, "but, we can always see them. We just need to plan things with time" he says and you smile.   "I hope I can get to meet them, or at least see them. They were my favorites...then again, they are all my favorites" you admit with a giggle and Neymar chuckles.   "But I'm your favorite favorite, right?"   "Not now. No. We need to talk about her..." you say, all happiness from your body slowly faded and even you noticed it happened the same to Neymar.   "I know..." he says quietly and nods before you two arrive at his house.   His house was huge, too huge for someone like him who spent most of his time alone or with Davi. This would be your home from now on, or so you thought of it as such. You had to think things through, finish your studies, get a job, not be a burden for Neymar.   "Do you like it?" He asks as he unloads the luggage and gets them on the floor, noticing your eyes wondering around the house.   "I do" you admit with a grin before your eyes land on a distant room, where the first thing you see, is a picture of Bruna. Its like your veins, instead of running blood, runs fire. You feel yourself tense and heat up, and just as you catch Neymar about to wrap his arms around your waist, you move away and forward into the room. "Y/N..." he starts.   "Why is there a picture of her?" You ask as you look at it. Bruna looked gorgeous in it. Too gorgeous, and you felt that jealousy creeping up your body... "She gave me that when we dated as a gift. It was my favorite picture of her so she gifted it. I didn't throw it away because it wasn't something I saw as bad?" He says, or more like questions at the end of the sentence. "I don't think many people have a picture of their ex on their wall...Not this big anyway" you say and frown. "Nor they'd arrive in the same flight, same day, at the same place" you add and glare at him. "I didn't know-"   "You never know anything about her, Neymar!" You snap and frown. "You didn't knew she'd be at the shopping place, you didn't know why she was calling you, didn't know why she was on the same flight as you. It can't all be coincidence" you say and slightly take a few steps, almost about to start pacing. "You did knew she'd be at the final, and you didn't mention anything to me" you say.   "It all happened so fast. She suddenly appeared" Neymar explains. "The champion speech was her, and I really couldn't just ignore her after I won the Olympics. Then she was with my friends and I saw it was normal because we have common friends. Then the calls...I don't know how to explain those and I guessed she came to Barcelona to watch the season but-" "But why keep all those things from me? Why hide them? You could've told me and I wouldn't be as mad as I am because I heard it from someone else" you say. "Neymar, I have to deal with people questioning our relationship because you are going out with your ex. I have to listen to all the theories and what else can I do than believe them when my own boyfriend doesn't tell me things?" You feel that sting in your eyes that only meant that you were about to cry, that knot in your throat was growing and there was nothing you could do about it.   "You could maybe not listen to them? Never believe them, Y/N, they just-"   "And who should I believe? You? Did that and you kept things from me" you say, trying to keep a steady voice.   "I only did it because it didn't seem like something bad and-"   "Not for you. Maybe your other girlfriends haven't been this jealous, maybe they don't care about who you go out with, but I do!" "Bruna knew better than not to believe rumors!"   "Oh, so you are comparing me to her?" Your tears had started to roll down your cheeks.   "I am not! I just said she didn't believe in those things!"   "Well, I'm sorry for not being her, Neymar! I don't know who to believe when my boyfriend just seems to be still into her by keeping all the things related to her a secret. Its like you would think I'd never know if you two were together or not. If you aren't doing anything bad, why keep it from me?!" "Then maybe I'm confused, Y/N!" You were about to argue, but those words changed everything. He might haven't even realized he had said them. "I don't know if I still have feelings for her and maybe I want to find out. Maybe I did go out with her just to test. Maybe I'll meet her after practice tomorrow" in a way, his voice sounded like sarcasm, pure sarcasm. In another way, even if it was sarcasm, that was a terrible, terrible thing to say right now. "Y-" you try to speak but your knot in your throat had grown too much and you could barely speak without sounding broken. "Y/N, I didn't mean-"   "Shut up..." You manage to say, holding your hands up. "Just, don't say anything else..." "I didn't-" "Stop..." You say and your lips press together to stop them from quivering. You move past him and you can feel his soft stare behind you. The puppy eyes that would make you forgive him anything, but not this time.   You go for your luggage and with shaky hands reach for your purse and look for your phone. Who you were going to call? No idea, but you were surely not going to stay there. Maybe a cab would do to take you to some hotel to stay the night. "Babe, come on. I'm sorry for what I said. I didn't meant to hurt you..."   "Oh, but you did, Neymar. You certainly did..." You scroll through the screen, finding the number of a cab company before you start dialing the number. "Who are you calling?"   "I'm not staying here. Not tonight" you say and place your phone on your ear before you hang up. This was stupid. You didn't know the address of Neymar's house, nor would you start up drama by having a cab pick up Neymar's girlfriend from his house.   "I can take you wherever you want...You can go to your room if you want. I won't bother you until you want me to..." he says and you frown before sighing and nod your head, feeling the tears coming again to your eyes. It was the second time in your relationship, after it was made public, that you have fought with Neymar and you hated it. It was why both times you have tried to get away, you have failed.   He picks up your things and takes them to your room, which you suspected wasn't meant to be your room as he planned, but his, but with everything that happened, he wasn't going to do that. After placing everything, you notice that he is wanting to say something, but holds himself and walks away, closing the door in the process.   You hated not knowing where to go. It wasn't like if you knew the city, or where exactly you were. You can't really call any cab because you didn't want anyone to come by and find out why Neymar's current girlfriend just left the house in a cab. You didn't want the attention on yourself or your relationship, it was enough with what they were saying about Bruna and your boyfriend.   What were you supposed to do now? Talk with Neymar? You knew he didn't really meant to say those things, but it was a bad choice while you two fought. What if he was really confused? What if he still felt something for her? You weren't sure what to say or do, but for the rest of the day, you will be stuck in your room until you cool down. You lay down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling before you fell asleep, finally maybe getting some decent sleep hours after your trip.   You wake up and it was probably past midnight because everything was too quiet around the house. You toss in your bed until you are resting on your stomach and you just let your mind think things. 'He does love you and won't risk anything stupid enough to lose you' Rafinha had once said when you were at the Olympics in Brazil after your first fight with Neymar. 'Maybe he doesn't want you to be mad when he is away' he said when you told him about Bruna and him arriving at the airport. 'Talk to him, he is new to this' and he meant to probably having a girlfriend who was so invested on him and was scared to lose him, or so Rafa made you think.   It wasn't long until you were on your feet and pulled some pajamas out of your luggage. You almost never went to sleep in normal clothe, so you felt uncomfortable sleeping like that. Shower will have to do in the morning. You change in the bathroom of the room and as you head for the bed you stop and look at the door. Chewing on you cheek thoughtfully, you move towards it and open it. Ney had his door open so it was easy to spot his room. You lean against the door frame and watch him sleep for a few minutes. He looked so peaceful and calm instead of his usual hyper mood that it melted your heart a little. Taking a few steps in, you stop as he stirs before you continue until you are on the edge of the bed. You get on quietly, trying to not push too much weight on the bed so it wouldn't shift and wake him up. You lay on your side looking at him before you notice he smiled and you hold your breath. Before you know it, his free hand is around you and pulls you close and kisses your forehead. You were about to say something but you stop yourself and turn around, his front against your back and you both fall asleep that way.   You wake up to the sound of the bell ringing downstairs and you groan as you open your eyes. Neymar wasn't around, that was given when you noticed the paper folded in half besides you, on the front the word 'Princess' was written on his handwriting. You were about to reach it before the bell rang again and you sigh. Who could be coming by at 10am in the morning?   Making your way down the stairs and to the doors you tried to fix yourself to look at least okay since you just woke up. When you open the door, your eyes widen before they squint in a glare. "Can I help you with something?" You ask at the female in front of you. Bruna. You notice she was with a driver and then turn your eyes at her.   "You must be Y/N. Is Ney home? He isn't answering my texts" she says. Did she actually had the nerve to admit she was texting him.   "Clearly not" you say and cross your arms against your chest. "Mind telling me why you want to talk to my boyfriend?" It was taking all your will power to not be rude.   "Right, your boyfriend. Forgot he was dating someone. Funny thing, he didn't mention you once the times I've been around" she says before shrugging. "Tell him I came by, its urgent."   "If its so urgent, why not tell me? Or why even bother coming here?"   "I hoped to find him here. I forgot he must be training. Why not take you with him, though? We always went together" at this point, she was just trying to get on your nerves.   "Long night, you know?" You wink and your face turns back to your glaring expression. "What do you want?"   "Just wanted to ask him if I could stay here while they fix something back at my house" she pauses, "but I'll just ask him later, or would you deliver the message?"   "Absolutely" you say and then add, "not. I'm sure you can stay at a lovely hotel. He doesn't want anything to do with you and less have you in his house."   "Does he? Does he still have that picture of me and-"   "You can go now, Bruna."   "One day here and already kicking people out. Didn't expect anything less from a fan" she says and shrugs.   "Didn't expect anything from you except for you to leave. Bye now" and with that you shut the door close before taking in a deep breath. You didn't realize your tears of anger and jealousy wanted to escape but you hold them back.  You lean against the table in the kitchen before you let out a frustrated groan. You know she was messing with you, and she did it. She got in your last nerve with everything she said and you hated her for that but hated yourself more for getting like this. It was evident she was doing it on purpose yet you let her rile you up.     After a few hours Neymar came home as you laid down on the couch watching TV. You just made a quick sandwich on the kitchen after your encounter with Bruna and didn't move from the living room ever since, so you were still on your pajamas, not in the mood to really change.   "Mi amor (My love)" Ney says as he jumps the side of the couch and land on the edge of it. He was smiling and was crawling on top of you now. You smile lightly as he leans forward to kiss you, but you move your head to the side.   "Bruna came by" you say and he stops in his track, lips puckered before he looks at you after pulling away slightly.   "She came here? I thought that after ignoring her messages she would stop...What did she say?" He was sitting up now. "She wanted to stay here...And other things, but that's besides the point."   "Stay? Here? Oh...Her house" he says and sighs, "I read her message. Wait, what else did she say?"   "Nothing" you shrug and look away to the TV.   "Wrong move. Princesa, if she was rude to you-"   "Typical girlfriend against ex girlfriend behavior. Not surprised."   He sighs and stays silent for a moment before he speaks, "You didn't read the note, did you?"   "Not really...I wasn't in the mood after such a lovely visit" you say sarcastically. "Why?"   "I was going to take you out around the city. Visit a few places, go out. I want to make it up to you after how bad I screwed up last night. I'm sorry for hurting you. I just..." he runs a hand through his hair, "I just get frustrated because you don't trust me. I'd never cheat on you. I'm just new to this. Having someone who does care, who feels like you do...I don't know how to explain it" he voices.   "I do trust you, but after you didn't tell me about her in the shopping, and then her coming here didn't help. At all" you admit to him and you sit up.   "Then you believe me when I say I'm sorry for everything?" He asks before adding, "I have never had to tell my girlfriends what went on with me, they didn't really mind and when they did they just got angry for a few minutes and then waved it off" he explains.   "I'm not like them. I care about you. About us" you say quietly. "Whatever threat I see against us, I'll react because I don't want things to get complicated" you sigh then, "Sometimes I wonder if keeping things a secret would've been better" you notice him eyeing you curiously before you add, "the biggest fights we have had have been after we made it public, maybe if-"   "No. I wouldn't have allowed it to get this far. I wouldn't just hide you, princess, I'm not ashamed of you or us. I know I have made really, big, stupid moves and said horrible things, but I love you, and I'm happy that I get to be with you out in the open and not worry about anything" he pulls you close and kisses your temple a few times making you smile.   "I love you, too, Ney" you whisper and he cups your face and places a soft kiss against your lips and you smile against it and so does he. It was a relief after everything that has happened.   "Now let's go and change, I'm taking you out" he says with a happy smile and you nod your head, both of you getting up to get ready. After you were both ready, you both start heading down the staircase, Neymar, at the end of it, picked you up and carried you bride style around the house making you laugh as he pretended to almost hit you with the walls and such. He pretended to trip and almost did which you both laugh at as you make your way to the door. He sets you down and starts putting on his coat while chuckling and he opens the door.   "Having fun without me?" A female voice said and both of your expressions went from laughter to a neutral expression. Ney's at least. You knew it was Bruna and your eyes glared at her.   "You know there is a reason why I haven't answered your texts, right?"   "Right, you are here with your new girlfriend but that's no excuse" your heart was beating loud now and you just wanted to push her out. "I came to stay with you since I don't want paparazzis all over the hotel I would stay at while my house gets fixed" she says. Is that a pout?   "Too bad for you, no space for you here in this house with about five guest rooms completely available" you say with a fake smile.   "Are you going to let her talk to me like that?" Bruna questions Neymar and he looks at you before turning to her.   "I believe so. You can't stay here. Isn't it common sense?"   "But Ney-"   "I'm sorry, Bruna. If Y/N doesn't want you here, neither do I. Besides, you have done enough already and I didn't know you'd even come here after everything." "Neymar I came here to see you-"   "And I didn't ask you too, now please, leave us alone" his voice was determined, and he reached for your hand to give it a light squeeze as he held to it.   "So you did change me for her?"   "I just fell in love for someone else who is different from you. She is nothing like you so I didn't change you like you say" Neymar says and a triumphant smile took over you as you see Bruna get angered by the answer. "I'm going to leave, but when this little temporary crush of yours is gone, you will be coming back for me" she says and sounds so sure of herself that you have to roll your eyes. At least she does leave and Neymar lets out a sigh of exhaustion. "I hope she stays away now" he says and closes the door and he turns to you, your expression neutral. "Neymar" you say and he arches an eye brow, he was reflecting an expression tyat asked if there was something wrong, and when he does, you wrap your arms around him, placing a kiss on his lips. His own arms go around you and hold you by your hips as he returns it and you pull away smiling. "That is all I needed. For you to show in front of me that you don't care about her like before" you admit.   "Of course not. I may have tried to keep things normal, but she crossed the line" he admits. "She was acting nice just to have her way. I'm glad things got settled now and hopefully she won't be a problem to us anymore" he admits, his forehead resting against yours.   "Thank you..." You whisper.   "Any time..." he pauses. "Still want to go around the city?"   "I'd love to" you say with a soft grin before kissing his cheek and he opens the door for both of you to go out and enjoy Barcelona.