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ahundredtimesover · 3 years

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Inevitable (03) | JJK

Pairing: Jungkook x (f.) Reader (ft. ot6)

Genre/Tags: exes au, parents au, baseball player!JK; angst, fluff, smut (18+)

Series Warnings: foul language, alcohol consumption, minor character death, explicit sexual content in future chapters (oral, unprotected/protected sex but be safe please!)

Chapter Word count: 7.7k

Summary: You convinced Jungkook to break up years ago so he could pursue his lifelong baseball dream. Now he’s back home, staring at you, and the little boy next to you who looks unmistakably like him.

A/N: I do love me some angst but I enjoy writing soft moments just as much. I hope you enjoy this one, too! Thank you for the appreciation for this story :) Also, you can message me if you want to be part of the taglist (or if I missed tagging you)!

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The place that Jungkook chose is a little French cafe that has a light and airy feel to it, and you think it’ll help Jungwon feel a little less intimated. There also aren’t many people around, which is surprising for a Saturday brunch hour.

You make out the table far back, by the glass window where you can see the flowers outside. Next to Jungkook is Jin, then Namjoon and Ara. The empty seats reserved for you and Jungwon are those in front of Jungkook and beside him.

You approach them, with everyone except for Jungkook - who just nods at you - standing up to give you a hug, with Jin spending more time than usual. With everything that’s happened, you didn’t realize how much you’ve missed your friends, too. They were collaterals of this whole ordeal; now you’re glad that you feel like starting over with them as well.

Jungwon stands behind you, arms wrapped around your waist when Jin comes close. He’s an unfamiliar face so it’s natural for the little one to be shy and hide behind you, like what he usually does, but he loosens up when you talk to him and make him feel comfortable, so you excuse yourself because you want him to feel comfortable around Jungkook.

You find an empty chair by the wall and sit Jungwon there.

“Hey sweetcheeks, we’re going to meet some of Mama’s friends, okay? They’re new people but they’re very kind and funny,” you say, kneeling down in front of him.

You get the brown backpack he’s wearing and take out his stuffed elephant, one of his many playmates that he likes to bring around. You place Mr. Choochoo in his arms, explain to him what you’ll do and that he can have some sweets later.

“Okay, Mama. I want some cookies,” he says in his tiny voice.

You tell him you’ll order some and pinch his cheeks, then you kiss his forehead, causing him to giggle, and you kiss him some more because you know this also makes him feel relaxed.

Jungkook watches from afar, the pang on his chest reminding him of the time lost, and he wonders if he’ll ever be like that with his own son. Jungwon is at a critical stage where trust is being developed, and Jungkook wants to be someone whom his son can trust.

The feeling in his chest grows as you approach them again. You give him a smile and help seat Jungwon next to his father.

“You remember the other day when you broke your airplane? Someone fixed it for you, right?” You ask.

Jungwon nods, eyes still focused on you.

“Good, because he’s here. Look,” you say, pointing to Jungkook. “He’s the kind man who helped you.”

Jungwon turns and looks at Jungkook, who returns his curious gaze with a grin. The little one is probably familiarizing himself with the man in front of him, as he nods and shyly smiles.

“Hi, buddy. I’m Jungkook,” he says and waves. “What’s your name?”

“Jungwon,” he whispers.

“How old are you?”

He responds by raising his hand to show four fingers.

“And when’s your birthday?”

“July 6!” Right as he answers, it registers to him, causing him to beam, the kind that reaches his cheeks and Jungkook’s heart is soaring. And just like that, the pang in his chest is gone.

You mirror Jungwon’s smile, knowing that’s enough of an icebreaker. He’s a sensitive kid who remembers kindness, and that day at the grocery, he saw it in Jungkook. You could chalk it up to some father-son connection if you like, but you also know that Jungwon tends to gravitate towards other gentle people, too.

The brunch goes surprisingly well, with Namjoon directing the conversations, knowing that it would still take some time to really settle into what was once familiar.

Days like this used to be a weekly engagement filled with jokes and unfiltered comments and hand holding between you and Jungkook, but everyone seems to be careful, reserved, almost unsure, like the glass will break at any wrong move.

Perhaps you’re all just giving this time for both father and son to be familiar and comfortable with each other. You know it will take a while but it’s something you don’t mind at all.

Jin is talking about his recent trip to Japan and his new ideas for another restaurant and you’re engrossed in his stories, until soft laughter catches your attention.

You turn to Jungwon, who’s laughing at Jungkook as he uses the macarons for eyes and makes weird faces, the latter pulling the sweets apart into smaller pieces and giving them to Jungwon who easily chews them. He offers Jungkook pieces of his cookies too, who dramatically devours them.

“My cookies!” Jungwon giggles.

You soften at the sight and excuse yourself before tears pour out and you will yourself to get it together in the washroom. You knew it was going to be a heartwarming proper meeting of the two but you weren’t ready for that kind of moment.

For all his shyness, Jungwon seems to be really comfortable with Jungkook, who’s doing so well, too, letting your child take the lead, not forcing anything, and being his usual sweet self.

Soon enough, brunch is over and you inform them of having to leave right away to make it to Jungwon’s dentist appointment in time. You place him in the car seat and turn to Jungkook, who’s now able to properly look at you, probably for the first time this whole day.

He opens his mouth to say something but his eyes lock in on your neck instead, a familiar piece of jewelry gracing the delicate feature. He stills and you’re confused, until you realize he’s looking at the necklace you’re wearing, the one with the moon and stars that he’d given you on your first year anniversary.

He told you that it was because you light his darkest nights and you squirmed at the cheesiness, smacking his arm and threatening him of getting rid of it if he ever spewed disgusting shit like that again. He loved that reaction, but deep down, you both knew that he was telling the truth.

It was that piece of him you could keep to yourself, one you didn’t have to share nor explain to anyone else. Out of everything you kept of your time together, the necklace was the only thing that didn’t make you break down every time.

You keep your thoughts at bay then nod at him and ask him what he meant to say.

“I’d really like to do this more,” he utters, eyes on your face now. “And not just on weekends. Whenever we can work out a schedule, that would be great. I mean, he and I have so much to—“

“Of course, Jungkook,” you cut him off, knowing he meant to say that there’s so much time to make up for and you don’t want today’s meeting to end on that note. “Let’s work something out, I’m sure Jungwon would love that, too.”

You exchange numbers, as well as awkward smiles, like you’re some teenagers saying goodbye on their first date. It’s a little refreshing though - way better than the last time when he was shouting and crying in front of you.

Any passerby may think it’s the makings of a romantic relationship, but if they only knew. You loved this man, and quite frankly, you’re unsure if you ever stopped.

“I’ll see you again, yeah?” You finally say.

“Okay then. I’ll see you.”

It’s not lost on you and Jungkook that you’re both on very unfamiliar territory.

During your time together, you’d had moments wherein you weren’t particularly fond of each other or weren’t in the mood yet had been comfortable in the silence. The tension was never overwhelming and you just let the moment pass until all was good again.

The longest fight you had lasted for 3 days. Yoongi called for a celebratory dinner over his song making it to the top of the charts and you were ignoring Jungkook, who sat next to you talking to your other friends.

It was an hour later when he eventually pulled you in a hug, and whispered that he missed you and won’t be drinking banana milk for a whole week as punishment for accidentally deleting your entire midterm paper. You caved in then, laughed and deemed it punishment enough, and spent the rest of the night working on said paper in your dorm, a behaved Jungkook playing mobile games next to you.

When it came to both of you, no silence was too loud, no conversation was ever unwanted, and no moment was ever too tense and uncomfortable.

Except for that time in your apartment.

And maybe now, when you’re both seated in front of each other, Jungwon to your left and of all times, decided that he just has to finish coloring the butterfly from his art class. There are two seats that have been empty the past 15 minutes, and you and Jungkook have been engulfed in the most awkward silence there is, even with the background chatter of the restaurant you’re in.

Days after the brunch and official meet up almost two weeks ago, Jungkook had asked to grab dinner - you picked up Jungwon from daycare after you were off at 6PM and headed to the restaurant with Taehyung in tow, only to find Jimin accompanying his best friend. Two days later, the same thing happened, only with Namjoon and Jin that time.

The Sunday after that, you had both Namjoon and Taehyung with you - because your brother wouldn’t confirm immediately and you needed a backup - as you and Jungwon walked to the park, only to find Jin and Jimin there as well. Everyone, of course, burst out laughing but neither you nor Jungkook found it funny.

“What are we, your chaperones?” Jin had asked then, laughing at the whole situation upon realizing what you and Jungkook had both been up to, calling up friends to join you on the weekly father-and-son dates. “You’re both adults who can very well manage conversations, don’t you think?” Jin continued.

You and Jungkook had shyly stolen glances at each other, nervous to be caught looking at the other’s reaction, because Jin had been right. You can only wonder what Jungkook's reasons are but you were calling them up to accompany you because you don’t actually know how to carry a conversation with Jungkook anymore.

You don’t know what to say that isn’t an apology, you’re nervous to talk about Jungwon and make Jungkook feel bad again for how much he’s missed out on, and you can’t really talk about yourself because this isn’t about you - it’s about your son and the relationship he needs to develop with his father.

Never mind the feeling of longing, of the curiosity over what made Jungkook come home, of the interest in his life in the US and how he’s been doing.

Never mind that you want to hug him because everything has been overwhelming and Jungkook always knew how to make you feel better with his hugs and caresses. You don’t have that right anymore, you think. You don’t have the right to ask about his life after you broke his heart, you don’t have the right to miss him, nor to get to know him all over again.

You need your brother and your best friend not just to carry conversations but also as support when you feel weak, as you observe Jungwon be so natural around his father.

Jungkook had only introduced himself by his name but Jungwon had taken to calling him Cookie Monster since their moment during that first brunch. No uncle, no anything, and you hope it stays that way.

Jungkook had also been bringing different brands of chocolate milk and you’d overheard him describe the taste and texture like a 4 year old would understand, and Jungwon had been asking you to buy each brand that Jungkook had introduced.

You'd heard him ask your son about his favorite animals, what he likes to eat when he’s sad or happy, and what his favorite bedtime stories are. You’d felt your heart balloon in size at this, how careful and thoughtful Jungkook still is, how gentle and caring, and how careful, seeing as he stops himself from ruffling Jungwon’s hair or engulfing him in a hug.

You felt like crying when you’d seen your son answer every question with enthusiasm then ask Jungkook the same things, too, and even more when he finishes coloring and tugs Jungkook to ask if he likes it.

It’s those moments that break and hold you up at the same time. It hurts to be reminded of what you deprived them of but it’s also comforting to see how natural everything has been for them.

Jungwon is shy but gravitates towards those he connects with, that he feels comfortable around, people who are like him. It’s why he’s very fond of Taehyung, and why he runs to Namjoon to be carried on his shoulder or to be tossed in the air because your brother may be serious yet clumsy but he’s careful and gentle when it comes to your son.

You used to think that if you hadn’t been a single parent, Jungwon wouldn’t be as close to you, seeing your lack of gentleness. You’d only learned to be so because you’d treated him like a fragile being, out of the fear of what would’ve happened if the fetal distress wasn’t detected as early as it was. If anything, your son has taught you to be more tender, affectionate, more loving.

You cried so many nights in the room you shared with him, and you wanted to believe that his lack of crying as an infant was because he was giving you the time and space for it, that it was okay. He was quiet, barely caused trouble, and you also believed it was his way of telling you that you can depend on him not to make things too hard, too. You’d held him so tightly every night as he grew older, and he learned to do the same.

In the moments that he'd caught you breaking down because of work or other things, he’d climb on your lap and hug and kiss you until you stopped crying. Like that one time when you randomly went on social media and saw the engagement rumors between Jungkook and Korean-American model-actress Maia Park. It was two years ago. It’s what also convinced you to finally, finally let Jungkook go and move on.

Jungwon hugged you until he fell asleep, and you hugged him even tighter, as the hope of you three being a complete family died that day. Since then, you’d stopped checking social media and stopped religiously following the Dodgers’ games, only using them as background noise since Jungwon somehow found throwing and hitting balls amusing. Like father, like son, you used to think.

You don’t realize you’d reminisced again until your phone beeps, the same time as Jungkook’s does. You’ve been in this restaurant for over 15 minutes and your friends are never late.

“Jimin says that he was asked to stay for costume fitting,” Jungkook says, reading the text message.

“Taehyung says that he tripped on a block and ended up splashing the entire paint can he was holding on his wall and it looks like the shape of a pretty tree and now he’s filled with inspiration and wants to repaint it,” you say in one breath, causing Jungkook to laugh at your deep exhale after.

“Hmm, very original,” he says.

“Very Taehyung, you mean. At least Jimin’s excuse is more believable,” you answer back.

“Well, they pulled the stops tonight, didn’t they? Reminds me of that time when Yoongi treated all of us because his song topped the charts. He said that he actually just had a minimal role and that wasn’t a cause for a celebration,” Jungkook shrugs. “You’d been mad at me for days and I kept complaining so they admitted setting it up so we could see each other.”

“Are you serious? All this time? I was so proud of Yoongi for that, kept bragging to my friends that he was big time because of that song,” you laugh, willing your heart to not go overboard with its beating because the most that Jungkook has spoken to you when he wasn’t angry, it’s to recall a memory of you together.

“Well, they tricked us then but they’re very transparent right now.”

You laugh again and you pinch yourself for overreacting to not-so-funny statements. You hate that even after all this time, Jungkook still makes you feel giddy. Now, there’s just an added desire for him to pay attention, for you to impress him, a complete opposite of how you started years ago.

It’s silent for a while, and you and Jungkook turn to Jungwon at the same time, probably thinking the same thing that the kid will be your distraction but his eyes have been focused on the butterfly, and he’s not budging. Not even when you ask how he’s doing because he just replies with a hum and you know that’s code for don’t disturb me, I’m busy.

“We should order,” Jungkook finally says, and it takes another couple of minutes before you both decide on what you’ll have.

With no other source of distraction, Jungkook settles on making the first move.

“So… how are things? How’s work?” He asks, sipping on his glass of water like it’s the tastiest thing in the world.

“Good. I, uhm, work for an events management company so we do parties, fundraisers, bazaars, things like that. It’s a lot of work but my boss is very kind and lets me take some days off to compensate for working on weekends and stuff,” you respond, willing yourself to be more comfortable.

“Oh, so it’s not the marketing firm anymore, that’s great. Namjoon said you worked over 12 hours then and I can’t imagine how tiring that must be.”

“You talked to my brother… about me?” You ask, trying not to read into it much. You assumed they only talked about meeting Jungwon, but Namjoon never mentioned anything more and you wonder why.

“Yeah, I just, uh…” Jungkook stammers, trying to come up with an excuse but he knows you’ll see right through him.

“I just asked how things were for you during uh, the pregnancy, and after.”

“Why?”

“I just wanted to know if there were any issues with Jungwon’s birth, you know? Wanted to know if he got everything he needed…”

You wince at the insinuation that you wouldn’t make sure that Jungwon would get everything he needed and Jungkook picks up on this and tries to save himself before it’s too late, before you think he’s an asshole for making such an assumption.

“I mean, of course he did. Not that I don’t think you didn’t make sure he got the best of everything.”

“I tried my best, Jungkook, and you’ve spent time with Jungwon. He’s doing well, I’d like to think that has much to do with how I raised him,” you say, your tone a mix of sadness and anger. You never had to defend yourself for how you raised your child, especially not to his father. But you also can’t blame Jungkook, especially when you’re the one who didn’t make him a part of your son’s life.

“I know, he’s such a smart and kind child. I didn’t mean to imply that you didn’t do your best. That came out wrong, I’m sorry,” he says, and you believe him. “I guess I just wanted to ask if there was anything lacking or that needed extra attention so I’d know what to compensate for, like medical bills or vitamins or other things?”

He’s right, and it makes sense. It definitely has nothing to do with him asking how you were doing, how the pregnancy and the aftermath was like for you.

“What about school? Other activities like sports or art clubs? Maybe he’s into music, we can enroll him in—”

“Jungkook…”

“Please don’t tell me not to help financially because you know I will. Not just because I’m obligated to but because I want to,” he sighs.

“Yeah, I guess we need to talk about that…” You say nervously.

“I can cover everything he needs. Does he need to switch to a better school? He’ll be in primary school next year, right? Are there other toys he wants? Maybe I can—“

“I’m doing perfectly fine in providing those, Jungkook. He doesn’t need ‘more’ or ‘better.’”

“I’m not saying you aren’t, I’m just saying I can help so that…”

He holds your gaze, knowing he can’t make you feel like he’s antagonizing you. When he asked Namjoon what you went through, he admits he wanted to feel some form of pity, as if to mask or replace the overwhelming feeling of pain and anger. Anything would’ve been better than those.

After that, the feeling turned to sadness, to helplessness, like defeat, knowing there was nothing he could’ve done to make it easier for you, to make you understand that you didn’t have to do it all by yourself just because you made a decision all on your own.

Having spent even just a short amount of time with Jungwon, he knows that his son was very much loved, was given all the best things in the world and that’s because of you - you who refused to give him less, you who worked so hard and gave everything you could, running on the sheer amount of love you have for your child even if things were difficult. Jungkook doesn’t want you to feel alone, especially in providing for Jungwon.

What Namjoon said hit him, how you only ever asked help if it was about your son, but never when it was about you. Jungkook knows you still wouldn’t, so he’ll make sure to ease the financial burden, the worry, the stress, the amount of time you spend taking care of your child that’s taken away from the time you spend taking care of yourself.

Because he’s noticed - he’s noticed the bags under your eyes, the slight shaking of your hands that’s probably from the excessive amount of caffeine intake, your work phone that constantly buzzes even when you’re off the clock, your consumption of sodas that signifies your heightened stress.

There’s a droopiness to your face, a mark of tiredness that’s laid permanent residence in your whole being. He doesn’t even wanna ask when the last time you had proper rest was.

“I’m saying I can and want to help so you can have time for yourself, too,” he continues. “So you won’t feel the need to clock in extra hours or take extra jobs, so you can have actual time of not worrying about anything. I mean, kids can sense if their parents are stressed and they can acquire that...”

Your eyes widen at his statement again, causing him to pinch the bridge of his nose in frustration because he’s really not saying this the way he wants to, but then he also doesn’t know how to tell you these things without him sounding like he believes you’re not good enough for Jungwon. Because you are, more than he can imagine.

“I’m terrible at this,” Jungkook says.

But you laugh. You laugh because he looks stressed and worried over what he’s telling you but you get him. Mad as he was a few weeks ago, you know he’d never harbor such terrible feelings towards you to the point of doubting your capabilities as a mother.

You wish he means more, though, but you settle for this. He will help in all ways he can because he doesn’t want you to be too stressed out. Jungwon is at the age where he can pick these things up; your habits are things he can acquire and you don’t want that.

“It’s okay, I understand,” you smile, and it’s the softest one you’ve given Jungkook since he’s arrived.

“Jungwon will be starting primary school next year so there’s this kindergarten I saw; they balance the learning with the arts really well and they do a lot of field trips and I think it’s a good transition to first grade.”

“That sounds really good. So that’s where you plan to enroll him this fall?”

“Yeah. It’s private though, and it’s affiliated with the primary school I was hoping to enroll him in next year, that’s also private. I was gonna get a loan from the bank and—”

“I’ll take care of it, don’t worry. I can take care of his fees in kindergarten and daycare too, if you don’t mind.”

“That’s too much, Jungkook.”

“It’s not. You’ve worked too hard the past 5 years. You can take care of the other essentials because you know him best. Let me take care of the others, and vitamins too and check ups and stuff. Please.”

He’s insistent and you know he won’t budge. You also know it’s his right and obligation to do all this.

“Okay, then. Whatever I save can go to his college fund.”

“Which I’ll also be contributing to…”

“Yes, that’s correct,” you smile.

The food arrives and the silence isn’t as suffocating. It’s a first step, deciding on the financial aspect of raising your child. You know there are many others, but there’s definitely one very important one to discuss.

Jungkook clears his throat and peeks at Jungwon who’s busy with his stew, mindless of the others around him, with you constantly wiping his cheeks and reminding him to drink his water. You turn to Jungkook with a curious gaze.

“When can we uh, tell him about me?”

Of course. When will you tell your son that Cookie Monster is actually his father?

“Oh, uhm. Well. He’s definitely comfortable around you already. But I think it’ll take some more time. I don’t wanna rush him because it’s big news since it’s just been me and his uncle Taehyung and uncle Namjoon for a long time and…”

“No one else?”

“What do you mean, no one else? I mean of course there’s Jimin but they don’t see each other as much and…”

“You know what I mean,” he says softly, as if he doesn’t want to directly say it.

“Oh. Uhm. Well, I dated someone before but like, it wasn’t—“

“Did he want to be Jungwon’s father? Did Jungwon like him?”

“I don’t introduce men I go out with to Jungwon, Jungkook. I mean, the men know I have a son but I never introduce them.”

“Why not?”

“Why do you need to ask? It’s only you. It’s always just gonna be you.”

“Has he asked about… me?”

“Just twice. He’s curious but he doesn’t dwell on it.”

Jungkook just nods, taking everything in.

“I always planned on telling you, Jungkook. I hope you know that. I just needed the right time, and I had to figure it out especially after your en…” You pause, hoping not to open this can of worms because things are already going well.

“My what?”

“Your supposed engagement with…”

“Those were rumors, ___. We were never engaged, never planned on it,” he corrects.

“So you two aren’t…?”

“We broke up over a year ago.”

You let out a breath you didn’t realize you were holding in.

“Relieved?” He smirks.

“Just thought that, you know, Jungwon will have another mother and he’ll call her like, Mommy or Mother or something and she might be more fun and gorgeous and—“

“Hey,” Jungkook interrupts your rambling. He chooses not to comment on your now glassy eyes, which stare at his hand that’s found itself on top of yours. He immediately removes it and calls for you to look at him.

“That’s not happening, okay? And if I did marry someone else, that woman will just be a stepmother by name. You’re Jungwon’s mother, the only one. No one will be more fun and gorgeous in his eyes, you got that?”

“Yeah,” you mumble. “Thank you.”

You decide to dial it back before your thoughts go elsewhere. “But going back to your question, let’s play it by ear, is that okay? He’s very attentive so he’ll maybe ask more about you one day. I also don’t want to rush him.”

“Sure, I mean. I don’t wanna scare him away too. We’ve been making progress.”

“I know! He’s very natural around you.”

“Doesn’t mind me when he’s coloring or eating, though,” Jungkook pouts.

“You’re not alone in that,” you laugh. “This one time, he was coloring this picture of a unicorn and I was trying to get his attention because it had been a long day and I wanted a hug and he shushed me and told me to be quiet. Like, this little kid really shushed me, huh?”

“Is he really as sweet as we believe him to be?” Jungkook laughs.

“Actually, when he was finished, he went to my lap and hugged and kissed me, told me not to be sad anymore.”

“Okay I’ll never doubt him again,” he smiles.

“And then there was one time, I baked muffins and I asked him to try so he was nibbling the edges, then the crown. And he was taking his time! And I kept asking if it was good and he was just humming until there was just the center left that had some chocolate custard and he ate it in one bite and was just smiling at me then…”

You pause at Jungkook’s longing smile, the kind where he’s happy but also wishes he’d been there.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t…”

“No, no. Please. I wanna hear these stories. Don’t hold back. Don’t mind how I react,” Jungkook explains. “At least I won’t have to imagine how he was like growing up.”

Your heart warms at this, at the shift from the angry man the other week to one who’s now softening at the stories of your son, something that’s making you feel a hundred times better.

Jungkook meant it when he said that he just wants to focus on what happens next. He’s spent so many sleepless nights thinking about the night of the break up, what went wrong, how different things would be, all the what if’s in your relationship, and in his relationship with his son.

He has let himself feel all the negative emotions towards you and he didn’t like it, didn’t like that he could feel all that for the woman who’d been his world, his light, the love of his life. He doesn’t want to focus anymore on the time lost but on the time he can make up for, for the time that he now has.

You indulge him, tell him stories about Jungwon, how he was a little late with talking and used to write letters from right to left, how you worried about this but how it was easily addressed, being that Ara is a developmental pediatrician and had taught you different practices to ensure his speech and cognitive skills are in tune with his developmental stage.

You talk about his first steps, his first trip to the park, and how he’s afraid of the water - just like his mother, Jungkook says. You talk about how he likes fish so much so he doesn’t eat them, but that he loves vegetables and would only throw tantrums if he doesn’t get to eat sweets.

And you talk about how respectful he is, charming in his own shy and soft ways but a fighter all the same, how he’s very smart and can do many things on his own.

“He really took the best parts of us, don’t you think?” Jungkook says, as he looks at Jungwon who’s coloring a ladybug this time. “Strong and independent like you, charming and cute like me?”

You burst into laughter. “You think those are your best qualities?” You ask.

“I mean there’s more and I could definitely list them all now but also, look at him! He’s so adorable, and he got that from me!”

“He is, and he did get that from you, I won’t lie,” you say, something that you always thought about, how the universe was cruel and wonderful at the same time for gifting you a child who looks just like the man you loved with all your heart, who reminded you everyday of what you lost and of, ironically, what you still had.

“He has your lips, though, and those scrunched eyebrows when he’s focused,” he points out, and he says it with so much affection. “I’m sure there’s more he got from you and I can't wait to discover them all.”

“Me, too, Jungkook. Me too,” you say, ignoring the thrumming of your heart.

It’s Jungwon’s yawn that forces you and Jungkook out of your bubble again, not realizing the time that’s passed. You’re glad you had an early clock out today so at least it’s not yet too late and the little one can make it to bed on time.

The dinner ends and Jungkook walks you and a sleepy Jungwon to your car, the silence a welcome one this time.

“So, I have a busy rest of the week so uhm, can we meet on Saturday? There’s a park with this cool playground near my apartment; I think Jungwon will like it there. We can have lunch after,” Jungkook says as you close the backseat door.

“Of course! Just text me the address and the time and we’ll be there,” you respond, liking this new dynamic between the both of you, texting each other on when and where to meet, freed up schedules and all.

You both stand there awkwardly though, unsure how exactly to end the night, given that your friends had ditched you both. Your phones beeping saves you this time.

“How was it?” You and Jungkook say at the same time.

“They’re not even being subtle about it,” he laughs.

“I bet they’re actually together right now, thinking of the best time to message,” you say.

“Probably not expecting we’d go on this long, too,” he mumbles, peering up to look at you with that shy smile of his, and you hope there’s no physical manifestation of how flushed you are right now.

“It was a good night. Thank you, Jungkook.”

“Thanks, too. So, uh, I’ll go ahead,” he says, then nods and turns away. It was a good night, and it was the first time that he felt comfortable, light. Like things were okay, like things are really going to get better.

His mind goes back to weeks ago at your apartment - how he acted, the anger seeping through him, and how you looked - tears falling helplessly down your cheeks, a sight he’s never seen before, and one he doesn’t want to see again. He couldn’t hold you then, he didn’t have the mind nor the heart to. He’s not sure if he’s ready now, so he settles with words instead.

“___,” he calls out.

You turn around, not really expecting anything else, and for a moment, your heart stops beating.

He walks towards you with a shy look on his face, although his eyes avoid yours.

“I just, uh. I just wanted to apologize for that day at your apartment when I—“

“Jungkook, you don’t have to—“

“Just let me, please,” he interjects you this time, his voice soft, and a long breath escapes him. “I’m sorry.”

“I won’t accept it. You shouldn’t be sorry for the things you said because they’re what you felt. They’re warranted and—“

“Then I’m sorry for how I said them. That’s, that’s not who I am. You didn’t deserve that,” he stammers.

“I did,” you respond, and there’s a pang in his chest at your resigned tone. “And it’s okay. I would’ve reacted the same way.”

“I know I’ll never truly understand why, but it doesn’t mean that I don’t appreciate everything you’ve done for him.”

“He might’ve been unplanned but it doesn’t mean he’s a mistake. He’s the best thing that ever happened to me,” you say, meeting his eyes.

It’s a moment you share that needs no words, and Jungkook nods and leaves it at that because deep in his heart, he knows that Jungwon is the best thing that’s ever happened to him, too.

“Text me when you get home, okay?” He says.

You mumble an okay and head out, forcing yourself to stop smiling like an idiot the whole drive back home.

[To: Jungkook] We’re home. Thank you again.

[From: Jungkook] Alright! I had a really good time tonight. Sleep well, you two. Good night :)

And with that, you don’t stop smiling like an idiot until you fall asleep.

You trip over trains and dolls on the floor, hastily putting them in the box that houses most of Jungwon’s toys. You place all the laundry in the washing machine, quickly fix your bed, and remove the clutter on the coffee table.

By some not-so-great turn of events, you had a client schedule a 2PM meeting on a Saturday that you couldn’t turn down, which meant that you then had to meet your team at 11AM to prepare.

You’re glad that Jungkook didn’t make a fuss about it when you called him in the morning, saying that you can’t make it to the park like you agreed to do. You trust him dearly but it’s still too early in the getting-to-know-you stage, so you’re not sure how Jungwon will take it if he spends the day with Jungkook without you. You expected him to reschedule but said his Sunday is full and asked if he could just go to your place instead.

“He and I can just play or watch cartoons, is that okay? I was really hoping to spend today with him but if it’s too much, that’s fine,” Jungkook said over the phone.

You didn’t have the heart to turn him down so you agreed.

You tried to do whatever cleaning up you can manage because you didn’t want him to judge you for still being a little messy and you wanted everything organized while you focused on your meetings.

With Jungwon bathed and with snacks placed on the table, you think you’re ready for your guest, who should be arriving right about now.

The doorbell rings and it’s a familiar sight, but a welcome one. You lead Jungkook in, tell him it’s just a humble one-bedroom apartment and he waves you off. He settles the lunch he bought on the table - noodles and seafood pancakes, Jungwon’s favorites, you'd mentioned.

“He’s in the room, I’ll go get him,” you say, and walk the several steps to your bedroom.

Jungkook looks around and takes it in. He was too angry the last time he was here so he didn’t pay much attention. It’s pretty clean, he thinks, and laughs at the thought that you probably did a quick clean up before he arrived since you’re not usually this organized. Or maybe that’s changed with you too, as with other things.

“Hey, buddy,” Jungkook greets. He kneels and tells Jungwon that they’ll be spending time today while Mama works and Jungwon says he’s excited. He leads Jungkook to your not-so-grand living room and takes out some dinosaurs from one box, mumbling about them being in trouble, then opens another one.

“Then Ironman saves them all!” Jungwon announces.

The look on Jungkook’s face is unrivaled, the kind you secretly have been hoping for, hence why you deliberately kept this from him; you wanted Jungwon to be the one to reveal his undying love for the superhero. You’re surprised he’s never mentioned it before, but you also think that he wanted to show-off his toy collection first.

“You’ve been holding out on me!” Jungkook tells you. “He… We… We both believe in Ironman supremacy, ___. He’s really my—”

You nudge his shoulder before he prematurely reveals the truth, and you laugh at his expression and his wide eyes as he goes through the Ironman box because of course it has its own, as all the toys are delicately placed inside.

Jungkook is in awe but really, it’s not much. They’re all just different versions of the same dolls and cars. You’ve tried to limit this because Jungwon will outgrow them at one point, but thinking about Jungkook’s continued love for the superhero, you think Jungwon actually might not.

The two get in their groove immediately and sit side-by-side, Jungwon introducing each of his toys because each Ironman has a different name. Jungkook indulges him and starts making sounds and Jungwon joins him until it’s just a chorus of pppshssss and bangbangbang and pfffffftpboom and you can’t help but laugh along.

Taehyung always deemed those superhero movies to be too loud so he wasn’t into the toys either, and Namjoon would always end up explaining the science and ethics of superpowers as if his nephew is one of his college students, so for Jungwon to have someone who just gets him, even if it’s just about making sounds and making Ironman toys fly and protect the dinosaurs from a meteor, you’re happy that the little one is happy.

You leave them for a while and set the table, asking them over to eat with neither one standing up.

“Kids,” you call their attention, hands on your waist now. “Can we have lunch now please before Mama has to get ready for work?”

This feels so domestic and so real. You miss the way Jungkook’s lips form into a smile as you refer to yourself in third person and sound as if you’re reprimanding them. Since Jungkook has found out about Jungwon, he never imagined he’d actually get to experience this.

You clear your throat and it’s a sign for Jungkook that he has to follow, as the adult, so he gets the little one’s attention and brings all the toys on the table to join you three as you eat.

It’s hilarious as they both converse with their toys and essentially leave you out but you let them, choosing instead to bask in this scene and the joy painted on both their faces. You wish this moment together wouldn’t end, though, but you also know that may be too much to ask. Jungkook is here to get to know your son, and that’s that.

You let them settle in the living room as you go from one meeting to another, stealing glances every once in a while just so you’ll have another memory of them bonding seared in your brain, for times when you need to feel better, when you want to feel happy.

The rest of the afternoon goes that way. They go from saving the dinosaurs, to watching cartoons, then playing with blocks, earning them scowls and laughter every time those tip over and crash, creating loud sounds and distracting your work. But you smile immediately at their panicked and guilty faces, until they proceed to do the same thing.

It’s around 5PM when you finish, exhaustion creeping up on you. Jungwon surprisingly still has energy, but you see him forcing it because he wants to keep playing.

“Let’s go for an early dinner, yeah? I can order some pizza then you two can start preparing for bed,” Jungkook offers.

You mindlessly nod from the dining table as you put away your laptop and notebook. “That sounds good, Jungkook. Thank you,” you respond.

“And maybe you can take a nap first while we wait. I’ll help him clean up the mess, too.”

You smile at this. Despite everything, he’s still the same thoughtful and considerate man you met all those years ago. You nod and head to them, kneeling in front of Jungwon who’s now sitting so closely to Jungkook.

“Hey, sweetcheeks. Mama’s tired so I’ll just get some rest, okay? You’ll be fine with Cookie Monster over here?” You ask.

“Yes, Mama,” he says, and proceeds to hug you and kiss your nose.

“Okay, love you my little bug,” you say, and head to your room for a quick nap, not before you call out that Jungwon only eats cheese pizza.

It’s the knock on your bedroom door that wakes you, signaling that the food has arrived.

You head to the dining room, still clad in your leggings and pink sweatshirt, and Jungkook does a double take at your sleepy eyes, scrunched up nose, and messy hair. You’re still so adorable after a nap, but he shakes off the thought before you catch him with a silly smile on his face.

It’s Jungwon’s elephant and tiger stuffed toys having dinner with you this time, and unlike earlier in the day, there’s less theatrics and you all settle on small conversations, definitely tired but satisfied.

Jungwon is busy munching on the cheese and the soft parts of the dough, Jungkook is watching him in amusement, and you’re watching Jungkook in awe, thinking of how he pulled through today, coming over to make sure that he got to spend it with his son, taking care of everything like the food and cleaning up because you were too busy and too tired to do so, even if you know he’s had a tiring week too.

You never doubted his desire to get to know Jungwon but his patience and attention to everything have really surprised you. He listens carefully to the little one, asks what he thinks and feels, lets him lead and decide games and shows to watch, and talks to him like an adult. You wonder if he’d asked Taehyung or Namjoon for tips or he’d done some reading. But regardless, you appreciate it so much. You might not have had the start you wanted but it’s definitely going the way you want it to.

And as Jungkook giggles and wipes the cheese off Jungwon’s face, as he fills his glass with water and asks if he wants more, you see the affection on Jungkook’s whole being, you see the care and the warmth. You see the love.

It’s familiar; it’s similar to how he used to look at you. And it’s this moment that you wish that he learns to look at you that way again.

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#jungkook fic #jungkook x reader #jungkook angst #jungkook fluff #jungkook smut #jeon jungkook #jungkook fanfiction #parents au #exes au #baseball player jk #inevitable #series

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xcrystalzero · 3 years

Text

last friday night

characters included: childe, kaeya, diluc, zhongli

summary: some genshin boys and how they spend a friday night off.

note: i wrote something! that being said, i probably should have waited until friday to publish this...

Childe:

- Spends time with his family.

- Family is extremely important to him and yet, he is often busy with work that takes him far away and often feels like he is neglecting his family. So, when he does get a chance to go back home, he makes it a point to hang out with them as much as he can.

- Plans a whole night full of games and activities he makes with pieces of defeated ruin guards and random trinkets he picked up during his travels. It's honestly kind of scary when you offer to help him decorate and then realize that the flashy little pieces he's mounting here and there are actually treasurer hoarder insignias.

- Ends up fulfilling his teapot promises and does in fact, pair with you in a snowball fight against his siblings and for the first time ever, you get to see the Harbinger intentionally lose at something just to see the triumphant looks on his siblings' faces.

- Helps out Tonia with cooking up some fantastic dishes for a full family dinner and the night ends with a warm meal, good conversation, and a whole lot of stories told around the dining table.

- When the rest of his family has gone to sleep however, he bundles you in one of his many jackets and herds you back outside to roast marshmallows with him. It's way too cold and you're already stupidly full but when he flashes those puppy dog eyes he saves only for his family and you, who are you to refuse.

Kaeya:

- Where is he going to be other than the tavern?

- Seriously though, the man definitely has a drinking problem but he's also a pretty fun drinking partner so honestly it's fine.

- He sashays into your office at the Knight's headquarters all suave and smirking as he asks you if you'd like to join him for some nighttime excursions. When you bluntly ask him if he's just asking you to get blackout drunk with him and he affirms as much, you can't really do anything but join him.

- Half of the time when Kaeya drinks, there's an undeniable grief that seeps into his very being and the conversation he makes and the drinks he downs are just ways to avoid thinking about it. Tonight however, he is determined to have fun.

- He does do anything outrageous but he does sing along to the bard's songs, clapping along when everyone else does and gossiping cheekily with the people next to you two. As he gets drunker, he also gets more verbally affectionate, reminding you on multiple occasions how absolutely gorgeous you look and how happy he is that you came with him.

- Eventually, you guys leave but instead of going straight home, decide to just wander about the nearly abandoned streets of Mondstat just talking and enjoying each other's company. And then he falls off the bridge into Mondstat and you have to fish his drunk ass out of there. Still a fun night though.

Diluc:

- Probably honestly just wants to take a nap but ends up giving in to your requests for a little midnight picnic.

- After the rest of the staff has gone to sleep, the two of you creep into the kitchen and grab a few leftover treats from that night's dinner, stuffing them into a basket with blankets and tiny bottles of grape juice.

- You set up camp on one of the hills overlooking the rows of grapes planted around the winery, spreading out a blanket to sit on and then wrapping yourselves together in another to shield you from the night breeze.

- The night isn't particularly cool but you remain close either way. At some point, Diluc drops his head into your lap in a rare display of vulnerability. His stunning red eyes flicker up to meet yours and you forget how to breathe for a second.

- So instead of facing the situation like an adult, you evade and point out how beautiful the clear night sky looks tonight. Diluc chuckles at that but plays along. It's fine, you two will be alone with each other for the entire night. you can't brush his off forever.

Zhongli:

- Decides that he should probably check out the revered Liyue nightlife that has popped up in the harbor over the past few years.

- You're very amused when he suggests as much, wondering how much this old man can take of the youths now days before he becomes scandalized beyond belief.

- Not much apparently because his mouth drops open the moment he sees some of the new fashion and dances of the times (I stand by worried asian grandpa Zhongli).

- Within 20 minutes, he is just absolutely horrified and mildly suggests that the two of you get some tea before all of the shops close for the night. You humor him of course and the two of you head over to the pavilion.

- The night is a lot more peaceful after that now that Zhongli is back in his comfort zone. You two stop for a cup of tea at a stand that overlooks the harbor. Even from here, you can still hear the sounds of music and shouting but it feels better as background noise, almost adding to the ambiance of the night.

- It turns out that your company trumps a crowd in Zhongli's opinion and enjoying good conversation and your company is actually his favorite way to pass the time.

#genshin impact #genshin x reader #childe #genshin childe #kaeya #genshin diluc #diluc #genshin zhongli #zhongli #childe x reader #kaeya x reader #diluc x reader #zhongli x reader #kaeya alberich #diluc ragnivindr x reader #diluc ragnvindr #genshin tartaglia #genshin hcs #genshin headcanons

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violetsoju · 3 years

Text

airport

kuroo tetsurou · fluff · 2.2k

warning: slight suggestive theme, mild language, characters are aged-up

a/n: did i write this on impulse because i still can’t believe i was actually in this situation? maybe. did i write this as a manifestation of having a kuroo to bitch about and assure me? maybe too. did i get more encouraged to write this after reading a discussion in a server on bra sizes and brand recommendations a few days ago? maybe three.

“Kuroo, I’m serious. Stop laughing.”

A distinct cackling laughter from the speaker of your phone fills the four walls of your bathroom, along with a lazy lopsided grin flashing on the screen that’s perched on the wall mounted shelf next to the sink.

“But you’re making it so hard not to! Plus, you’re supposed to brush your teeth for two minutes, not talk and brush your teeth at the same time for two minutes.” Kuroo reasons, laughter turning into soft chuckles.

“Sorry babe, but I didn’t catch anything you said just now because you sounded like a fish blubbing underwater, except you’re blubbing white foam instead of bubbles.”

He finds it hard not to grin like a fool at your figure from his side of the screen, hands on your hips with a toothbrush stuffed in your puffed-up cheeks, hair pushed back with an elmo headband that he finds ugly yet cute because of the two ridiculously huge eyes dangling on top.

You mumble something yet inaudible while wiping away the drool of toothpaste dripping down the side of your mouth, a small pout dotting your lips.

“Rinse up and tell me from the top again once you’re done, alright?” Kuroo sighs, shaking his head adoringly as he manages to make out a ‘fine’ out of the string of muffled sounds from you.

And do you listen to him completely? Of course not. So he rests his left cheek on his palms, humming to the bits of information you try to squeeze in without accidentally swallowing tap water while cleansing your face.

The white tiles in the background shift to cream walls shakily, along with the shuffling sounds of room slippers against the wooden flooring. “Then as we were walking towards the karaoke place, I somehow fell behind the rest and ended up beside him. And guess what happened?”

“He confessed to you?” He jokes, oblivious to where this is heading, yet.

“God, I’d rather that happen.” You take a seat in front of your study desk filled with skincare products tucked on the side, placing your phone against the wall. “Instead, he called out to me, which I turn to him and find him looking at my boobs, saying ‘oh, its nothing’,”

Kuroo visibly flinches a little, eyebrows furrowed in disgust, eyes widening slightly, like he just tasted a sip of milk that has gone bad. “Excuse me?”

“He was looking at my boobs, Kuroo. My boobs. Shamelessly. Saying ‘oh, its nothing’. What the heck?” You mentally thank yourself for not opening the cover of the toner in your hand, to save the mess you would have made from all the expressive hand gestures.

“And you were wearing your usual tank top, right?” He smacks his lips together, as if trying to get rid of the bad aftertaste.

“Yeah, the usual square neck rib knit tank top that I always wear.” He tilts his head to the side, eyebrows knitted in confusion. Your wardrobe of tops flashing through his head. “The one that you don’t understand why I own a several pieces in different colours. That one.” A long ‘oh’ resonates through the speakers, the particular top emerging from the sea of clothing.

Kuroo processes the image for a few seconds. “That’s not revealing at all.”

“Exactly! It’s like the most basic thing? There’s tons of girls out there who wear the similar thing as me too.” You tap your toner onto your face with your hands. “And I was even wearing a jacket on top of it? It’s not like I was fully exposed or something. But even if I didn’t have my jacket on, I don’t see how it’s taken as a sign to stare brazenly like that. I wear whatever the heck I want to make myself feel and look good, not for someone else to ogle at, unable to keep their raging hormones in check.”

He hums in agreement. “What did you do or say to him then?”

“Honestly, I don’t know what made me so pissed at that moment either.” You sigh, reaching out for your wash-off mugwort mask. “I snapped at him, telling him that when he talks to girls, he should be looking at them in the eye, not at their boobs.”

“That’s my girl.” Kuroo flashes his signature cheshire-grin. “What did he say then?”

Your lips purse together, recalling the situation. “I don’t think he even heard me. Partly because you know how I rush through words like I’m rapping when I’m mad.”

“Told you to apply for that rap competition show on tv.”

“Kuroo.” Your glare earns an apology and light-hearted chuckles. “Another reason why I don’t think he heard me was because he actually had the balls to sit next to me during the karaoke session.” His eyebrows arch at the statement. “To which I dragged Mizuki to sit next to me and he got pushed to the side with the other guys.”

He huffs through his nose with a tinge of frustration, fingers running through his dishevelled hair. “How old is he again?”

“20, I think. But still, that’s no excuse for being so disrespectful towards girls and women. He’s already a full-grown adult for crying out loud.” You set the timer to 15 minutes on your phone, shuffling to your bed. “Out of all the boys I’ve met that are of his age or back when we were his age, I’ve never met such a disrespectful guy. In this area of discussion, I mean.”

“You mean you haven’t met such a horny monkey before.” Kuroo summarises. You snort at his remark, making yourself comfortable under the covers while waiting for the mask to work its magic.

“So you’re mad that he looked at your boobs.”

You place your phone between your folded knees, slouching against the bed frame. “Of course I am. It’s a violation against my body. How the fuck does he think he’s entitled to look at someone blatantly like that? Imagine someone staring at your dick like its nothing.”

The stupid cocky smirk appears on screen again. “Not gonna lie, but I would be proud. Or amused.”

“Freak.” You scoff, scrunching your nose at his reply.

His amber eyes gleam under the dim lights through the screen. “You sure you’re not mad at anything else?” He prods, not letting you off the hook.

“I guess I’m so mad because I never expected this to happen to me. I mean, look at me. What’s there to look at when I’m basically as flat as an airport?” You gesture to your breasts, ignoring his ‘you’re exaggerating’ interjection. “I would understand if he was staring at someone voluptuous or well-blossomed. But what’s the point of staring at a wall so flat there’s no cracks or dents in between?”

Kuroo’s sharp yet soft features settle into a knowing look. “So there is something else that you’re mad at.”

You narrow your eyes at him. “That is?”

“You’re upset that your boobs are small.”

Your eyes take a 360-degree turn, huffing exasperatedly. “I’m not. I’m happy with the way they are.”

“No, you’re not.”

“Yes, I am.”

“You’re not.”

“I am.”

His firm discerning expression in the 10-second-long stare off has you heaving a long sigh in defeat. “I mean, there are times which I wish they would be just a little bigger…” You hesitantly admit, biting the inside of your lips. “So I don’t have to rely on push-up bras that much. And they would look nicer in wireless bras… Or in deep v neck cuts… Or plunge dresses…”

“Babe, they’re perfect with the way they are now.” Kuroo’s words doesn’t come out as pity or consolation; it’s filled with raw honesty and sincerity.

You glance down at the soft flesh beneath your oversized t-shirt that once belonged to Kuroo. “I know, but sometimes you can’t help but want more, right?”

“I understand, it’s natural.” He nods in acknowledgment. “But we have to be grateful with what we have, don’t we?”

A soft smile tugs the corner of his lips at the sight of your pout. “You’re right. Why did I get myself so worked up just because of one horny monkey when I have such an amazing and supportive boyfriend?” His lips curl up with a little more pride at you remembering and reusing his little remark.

“At your service, always. And ever ready to chase off any horny monkeys in sight.” He places his hands to his eyebrows as a salute dramatically, earning a hearty laugh from you.

“Question time. On the bright side, don’t you save more on bras because they require lesser fabric than bigger sizes? Less fabric, less production cost?”

“If only it were like that, Kuroo. You know what, we’re going bra shopping for our next date.”

“May I be granted the honour of choosing the fine piece of garment?” He places his hand over his right chest.

You hold onto your imaginary ruffled dress in the air, dropping into a mid-curtsy. “If I have the honourable chance to be blessed by your gracious kindness to pay for it, be my guest.”

“Of course, m’lady.” He bows curtly, giving you a flirtatious wink.

You giggle at his sappiness. “Okay my turn. Aren’t you jealous that you don’t have the chance to hold them like other boyfriends do for their busty girlfriends when their boobs swell and get sore during their periods?”

He shrugs like it’s no big deal, but the glint in his eyes says otherwise. “It’s not like that’s the only time I get to touch them.” He wiggles his eyebrows at you suggestively.

“Pervert.” You gasp, covering your breasts with your arms.

The timer on your phone beeps, signaling it’s time for you to wash off your mask.

“Didn’t take you to be a boob person. Thought you were more of a butt person.” You place your phone back on the wall mounted shelf in the bathroom, turning on the tap water to run.

“I’m neither. Because I’m a you person, your person. A person that loves you as a whole, not by parts.” You swear you can see him giving you that smug grin of his with your face submerged with water, washing off the remaining residue.

“You know, maybe God deliberately blessed you with a lesser amount in this aspect.” His voice echoes through the speakers.

You reach out to your face towel hanging next to the sink and place gentle pats on your face. “And why is that?”

“Because God knew that you’d be unstoppable if you were blessed in all aspects. I mean, look at you. You’re already slaying it despite your fun-sized boobs.”

You nearly choke on your own saliva from the fits of laughter at his comment. “What the hell, Kuroo. No one calls a C cup and below fun-sized.”

“If people call those below the height of 160cm fun-sized, I don’t see why I can’t do the same with breast sizes.” He reasons with a nonchalant face.

“Fine, fun-sized boobs they are.” You give in, switching off the bathroom lights. “Your drop-dead gorgeous kick-ass girlfriend has fun-sized boobs.”

“And I love it. That’s what makes her special too.” He adds, face full-on smitten with love.

“Shut up, cheesy conman.” You chuckle softly, your face a mirror image of his.

“Well, you chose one yourself. No refunds.” The coolness of your moisturizer helps soothe the warmth blossoming across your cheeks, but not the warmth spreading throughout your chest like a cosy fireplace on a cold winter day.

【☾】

Zero and one digits flash on the top right of the screen, signalling it’s way past your bedtime. You’ve been on the phone with Kuroo for close to two hours, no wonder you feel yourself drifting to sleep each second. Kuroo senses it too, from the way your eyes twitch and lose focus.

“Alright, last question before we wrap up for today. When are you hanging out with them again?” He asks, stifling a yawn.

You let out a yawn as well, stretching your arm over your head, popping a few bones. “I don’t know, but I may skip if he’s tagging along.”

“Nope, we’re going together. Me and you.” Kuroo states matter-of-factly with droopy eyes.

You rub your eyes that has been lidded with sleep. “What if you’re busy on that day like today?”

“Then I’ll just clear my schedule for the day. Gotta show the lil boy who owns this airport.” His deep voice croaking through the speakers of your phone.

“Airport?” You question, confused at his statement, wondering if sleep has started to take over your sense of hearing.

“Airport.” He gestures at his tiddies sleepily.

“Kuroo…” Your distressed groan doesn’t stop him from his babble.

“Gotta show to him that it’s a private one too, not some public area that’s available to any common folk like him. Right, babe?”

a/n: in Chinese, there’s a saying of calling flat chested girls or girls with small boobs as 飞机场, which means airport because the airport runway is flat. so it’s like one’s chest is so flat that it can run the plane lmao. all sizes are precious, don’t get me wrong. this is purely for entertainment purposes

shoutout to @moonboohoo for being my irl Mizuki that day ily ❤️

#haikyuu #haikyuu!!#kuroo tetsurou x you #kuroo tetsurou x y/n #kuroo tetsurou x reader #kuroo tetsurou #kuroo x y/n #kuroo x reader #kuroo x you #kuroo fluff #kuroo tetsurou fluff #haikyuu imagines #haikyuu oneshot #hq imagines #dont worry guys im not bothered by the incident anymore #i just thought it would be funny to write about #small tiddy gang unite #and i finally have a piece thats not over 3k words omg #mini achievement unlocked 🔓

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burntmcnuggies · 4 years

Text

A Good Sidekick

Manipulative Hawks x Reader

Warnings; sexual content 18+, thigh riding, oral sex (receiving and giving), possessive hawks, manipulative behavior, slightly yandere if you squint, and strong language.

Word count: 9.3K

It was finally happening, you were finally becoming a sidekick, and to your favorite hero Hawks no less! It was the happiest moment of your life when you heard his receptionist happily congratulate you on your new position. You were practically bouncing off the walls at the news. You were quick to text all your friends, especially Rumi knowing that she sorta knew the winged-hero. She warned you briefly about how manipulative the pro was, and how lazy he could be. She even told stories of how she had to team up with him and he never did any of the paperwork. Poor Rumi went on an hour spiel about it, still irritated at the higher ranked hero’s negligence for his important paperwork. Besides that, you were still over the moon about meeting him!

If only you knew how dangerous that was.

Your first day rolled around and you walked into his agency, vastly spacious and lively with other pros and staff. Everyone greeted you kindly, introducing themselves and giving you a pathetic good luck once you made your way to the front desk. The receptionist looked up at you, her eyes trailing up and down your body with a slight furrow in her brows. “Oh, you must be Ms. (L/N).” Her snobby attitude rubbed you the wrong way, but you decided to keep your mouth shut about it and pretend you didn’t just hear anything. You nodded, telling her you were there to see Hawks. Her lips twitched in annoyance, showing you that she was indeed one of his thirsty fans. “Let me ring him, make sure he’s-“

“Ah! There’s my new sidekick!” As if on cue, the number two pro hero sauntered over with his hands in his pockets, large wings tucked behind him to make him more approachable, less intimidating. Your eyes cast upwards hearing his friendly voice, a smile creeping it’s way to your lips. “Good morning, Hawks.” You greeted politely, standing in front of him while the receptionist quickly stood and blushed, greeting Hawks with her hands in front of her. He grinned and gave her a wink and wave, giving her a morning greet as well. “So, are you ready to go, birdie?” He asked with smirk, wings twitching and slowly unfurling to show you a sneak peek of just how large they were.

“Yes, I hope we work well together!”

——

After about a month being Hawks’ sidekick you were absolutely exhausted. They weren’t kidding when they said he was too fast for his own good. The man could make it all the way across Japan in seconds without breaking a sweat. You also learned fairly quickly that a lot of his time was spent lazily patrolling, giving fan service and autographs, and stuffing his face full of junk food and chicken. This wasn’t at all how you expected to spend your first month as Hawks’ sidekick to be like. You were hoping you’d take down some villains, have Hawks praise you and have that feeling of knowing you helped people. But all you got was being the background character for Hawks’ show, his one man show. You began to wonder why he even wanted a sidekick.

“It’d look good on my reputation. Takin’ in a fresh new hero and bein’ a mentor. It bodes well with the approval ratings don’tcha think?” Well, that made you feel like absolute shit. Of course you were expecting that kind of answer knowing the winged-hero and how he loved to push peoples buttons occasionally. You just weren’t quite ready for it yet. “Awe, don’t look so sad, birdie. You’re my favorite side kick.” You were his only sidekick, his first one to be exact. So, you cut him a little slack judging by this was his first sidekick as the 22 year-old continued to rise in popularity and recognition. “Oh I’m not upset, Hawks. Just tired of doing this lame paperwork you should be doing yourself.”

“But I really appreciate you doin’ it for me!” He gave you a cheeky lob-sided smile and kicked his feet up on his desk. A heavy sigh left your lips, reluctantly going back to breaking your wrist over doing his paperwork for hours. After a couple minutes you heard the shifting of clothes and movement from Hawks’ desk. You peered up to see him walking over to you with a smile. “C’mon birdie, we’re goin’ out.” You quickly stood and followed him out of his office, an excited expression smearing over your face. He shoved his hands in his pockets and flared his wings out behind you. “S-So what’re we doing? Are we going to kick some villain ass? Are we going to meet up and help some heroes out? Oh! Or are we going to help the police!”

“You’ll see, birdie.”

——

“Man! I sure was starved! Thanks for treatin’ me out to lunch, my amazing sidekick!”

Oh, so you were treating him out to lunch now? You’re paying? Even though he’s the one who brought you here? You were starting to lose respect for him every moment you spent with him. A small tick mark appeared on your forehead, and you sent the winged-man a harsh glare snatching the menu off the table before looking over the food. Might as well go with it, he is the number two hero, you couldn’t afford to go to a new agency when you’re this far along. Your eyes almost bulged out of your head at the expensive prices. “Hawks! I-I don’t have this kind of money! I-i can’t afford anything on this menu except water!” Your heart was sinking to the pits of your stomach, already envisioning your wallet producing cobwebs in a matter of seconds once he drained you of every penny you owned. You were broke out of your panicked nightmare when his laughter pierced your eardrums. “I’m just playin’ birdie. I thought I’d treat you out to some food since I haven’t been the best boss to you lately. Get whatever your little heart desires!”

You looked up at him surprised, not really knowing how to take in his offer of buying you lunch. It was definitely true you were working hard, so having Hawks treat you to lunch wasn’t too bad... right? No way, then you’d owe the bastard a favor. “Thank you, Hawks. But really, I can’t. I’ll just have a water and pick up something on my way-“ He silenced you with his index finger, smushing your lips against your teeth. A suggestive smirk spread across his lovely pale pink lips, thumb slowly caressing your bottom lip before he gripped your chin. He brought his face closer, eyes staring directly into yours. Furious flurries of golden clashing with the sea of (E/C) that was fading as your pupils dilated in surprise. “I said I was treating you didn’t I? So just order whatever you want, or I’m gonna order the most expensive thing on the menu for you whether you eat it or not. I’d choose if I were you, birdie. Wouldn’t want an empty stomach before patrol would we?”

Damn, how manipulative he could be. Hawks knew how to push people’s buttons to get what he wanted in the end, and that’s exactly what he was doing to you. Forcing you into a situation to guilt you. After you reluctantly agreed and ordered something small, he began to talk your ear off. His hands flew here and there, his smile widening with every word that spewed out of his mouth. You had no idea Hawks could talk so much, and about nothing at that. Most of his one-sided conversation was about how much he loved chicken and food in general, then brief mentions of his modeling career on the side. One thing that interested you during his spiel was how much he admired Endeavor. Why had Hawks became a pro instead of becoming a sidekick?

“Why didn’t you go to Endeavor’s agency and be his sidekick instead of starting your own agency? Seems like you’ve admired him even before you started it.” His eyes widened in surprise, a bit taken aback by the question. The feathers in his strong wings rippled slowly, twitching as they tightened against his back. You’d made him uncomfortable. “Endeavor wouldn’tve accepted me no way! Our quirks are totally incompatible. Plus, it’s more fun being in my own agency where I can do as I please!” His smile faltered for a moment, before he brightened it forcefully, laughing it off and taking a sip of his drink. You frowned. You were no idiot. You knew he was lying. “If you didn’t want to tell me the truth you could’ve just said so instead of lie.”

“Ah, so you saw through my lie?” A teasing smirk plastered his lips, cementing itself there like that just to tease you. You couldn’t force down the light blush that dusted across your cheeks at his smirk, but you shook it off quickly, remembering your professional relationship with the pro. “It wasn’t that difficult. Judging by the look of surprise on your face I figured you’d tell me a lie.” He laughed and shrugged his shoulders back throwing his hands up in defeat. His eyes closed and he showed off a charming grin. “Didn’t think you’d notice that! You’re pretty smart birdie I’ll give ya that.” Was that an insult or a compliment...? Who cares, foods here! Time to dig in.

“Thanks! Looks delicious as always, my compliments to the chef.” He winked at the waiter charmingly and she bowed respectfully leaving the two of you alone. He immediately began digging in, stuffing his face until his cheeks looked like a chipmunks. “Geez Hawks... you act like you haven’t eaten in weeks. You’re making a huge mess.” Leaning across the table with a napkin in your hand, you wipe his cheek and dab his lips, frowning at the mess he’s making. He mumbled something with his mouth full, making your frown deepen more in disgust. He swallowed and laughed. “Ya know, you should just be my wife instead of my sidekick. You already take care of me so well!”

“Haha, very funny Hawks.” An eye roll is given as a response along with your words, digging into your own small meal you got for half of what Hawks got his. He stayed silent while he ate, letting you enjoy the small serene moments of silence with him before he was back to teasing you and asking you to do his work for him. “Come on, Hawks. I think I’ve been good, can’t you do your paperwork just this week? Please? And then I’ll do it next week?” Oh how he was spiraling into a dangerous field of temptation. Yeah, you have been a good girl, so good he wants to bend you over his desk and fuck you. He knew it wasn’t the right time though, you were still getting adjusted to him. Maybe a few more weeks... if he could hold out that long.

“Alright, alright, fine. You’ve twisted my wings, birdie. You tricky little minx you are.” He smuggly smirked and looked over at your food, eyes staring a little too intently. He was staring at your breasts, playing it off as staring at your food. “You gonna eat the rest of that? ‘Cause I’ll totally eat the rest.” You smiled shaking your head and slid the remaining bits of your small meal over to him, letting him plumpen his belly. Afterwards, he was a gentlemen, and took you back to your house, not wanting a pretty, fertile girl like you to walk by herself. “Thank you, Hawks... I really needed that. I was beginning to feel down.” He cocked his head to the side in confusion, his poor birdbrain becoming jumbled.

“Why would you feel down? You’re doin’ a good job! I’ve never met anyone who could keep up with me as good as you can!” His usual heart stopping smile spread onto his soft lips, pearly white teeth showing. Your heart soared at the praise from your favorite hero, doubts slowly washing away like the tides. “Oh... w-well all I did was do paperwork and just walk with you... I’ve never been a sidekick, so I wasn’t sure if I was doing something wrong or not.” Hawks let out a held in sigh, his shoulders slumping with his lip sticking out in thought. His hands went behind his head as his walked down the street to your home with you. “To be honest, I don’t know either. I’m just doin’ my thing with someone else! Nothin’ too different.”

“And I’m really glad to spend time with you, Hawks. I was just hoping my time as a sidekick would be more... exciting ya know?” Hawks didn’t respond as you both neared the entrance to your low budget apartment. You stopped in front of your door, fishing for your keys before he spoke. “Tell ya what, tomorrow I’ll see if I can trade patrol routes with someone, and we’ll go patrol somewhere with a lotta crime. Sound fun, birdie?” He didn’t miss when your eyes sparkled brightly at his proposal, smiling genuinely at your pure excitement. Taking hold of your keys tightly, you grinned ear to ear, nodding enthusiastically. “Yeah! That sounds great! I’ll see you tomorrow Hawks, thank you so much for buying me dinner and talking to me... it really meant a lot.”

“No problem, baby girl. Get in, get some rest, we’ve got a busy day ahead of us!” He smirked and gave you a wink, waving as he lifted his wings and took to the skies outside your apartment complex. You stood still briefly, thinking about what he’d said. ‘Baby girl’? What did that even mean? He usually called you ‘Birdie’ but baby girl? He sure was getting more cocky and flirtatious with you. Yet again, Hawks was a huge flirt with everyone, mainly to keep up his reputation as a friendly supportive hero. His fan service is what made girls swoon for him. However, you weren’t really affected by it, you wanted to remain professional with Hawks, nothing more, nothing less.

He had other plans.

—

Two more months past easily. You were starting to get more and more used to Hawks’ antics and behavior. He hired two more sidekicks, primarily to clean up after his messes so he could drag you along to the next distress call, all to see that smile on your face. Other than finally being able to work a lot more, you grew closer to Hawks personally. You discovered his favorite coffee, favorite food, restaurant, places to go, and what he enjoyed doing in his free time. The wall that divided friendship and a friendly co-worker relationship remained established by you, becoming uncomfortable when he would start to casually touch you inappropriately. In a way co-workers shouldn’t be doing.

The relationship between you both was complicated in the eyes of others, especially when Hawks was so persistent. He would come behind you and swing his arm around your shoulders, fingers occasionally brushing gently over your breasts. Then you had the slight PDA. If you were on patrol and some guy walked a bit too close to you, Hawks would place his hand on the small of your back, his thumb stroking slowly, dangerously close to touching your ass. It didn’t help when his wing would cover your body and shield you away from everyone. His flirting became sexual fairly quick, and you were beginning to become more and more uncomfortable by the day. Just like now.

Hawks ordered you to lay down on the couch in his office while he cut your nails. Why? Who fucking knew. He explained it was a bird thing. His hands were bare of gloves, jacket discarded to rest over you to keep you warm in his slightly cool office. His rough fingers glided across yours gently, trimming your nails like an expert. “Do you trim your nails a lot, Hawks? I feel like I’m about to get a professional manicure.” He laughed and rose his hand further up your hand to your wrist, golden eyes admiring your fingers closely. His warm hand carefully began to glide up your forearm, then back down, caressing your skin. A chill ran down your spine at his lack of response. “H-Hawks?”

“Ya know birds preen themselves and their mates? The males...” He began to lean in closer towards your face, pupils dilating while he focused solely on you. You attempted to pull your hand back away from him but he continued. “They’ll preen their feathers to look their best to court fertile females.” That word made your stomach twist in fear. The word ‘fertile’ was such an animalistic and carnal way of viewing a significant other. You could now smell the heavy musk of his cologne, the minty scent of his breath, and the hot gaze he had fixated on you. He was intoxicating. “And the males will preen the females, and feed them, and take care of them while the females raise the chicks.”

“W-What’re you s-saying all of a sudden...?” He only stared into your eyes with a smirk, wings stretching out behind him while his other hand finally came to rest on your thigh. His wings began to close in around you both, before his phone rang. Tearing himself away from you, he plucked his phone from his pocket and gave off a cheesy smile. “Hawks here, whatcha need?” You were struggling to regain your composure from what had just happened, but the shock would settle into your brain somehow. You should’ve expected this from Hawks, he was a flirt sure, but to the extent of explaining avian courtship with you? What was he even getting at? “We’re on our way.” He hung up the phone abruptly and slung his coat off you and onto himself. His gloves slid on easily, looking at you in confusion.

“What’re you doin’? Let’s go! We’ve got work to do, birdie.”

——

“Man that was boring. At least I got to stretch my wings out a bit, right birdie?” Hawks grinned and looked back at your dizzy form struggling to stand due to the speed and harsh jerks while Hawks was flying you to the distress call. You propped a hand against the wall and covered your mouth briefly before swallowing thickly and coughing. “Y-Yeah... right... not like I almost died flying with you or anything...” He let out an obnoxious heart fluttering laugh and walked on over to you, smiling smugly as he handed you his stack of paperwork from the distress call. You stared at it for a moment, then looked back up at him, tempted to wipe that smug look right off his pretty face. “Well... to repay you, I’ll just go on ahead and give you my paperwork, then you can have the day off tomorrow. Sound like a plan?”

A grumble came from your lips in response, sitting on the couch and looking through what was needed to be done. There was no way Hawks was actually going to let you have a day off. The last one you did have he came to your home and told you to get dressed, that you both were going on a mission. Sadly that mission ending in chicken nuggets, a lowly robber trying to rob a gas station, and more paperwork for you. “Like you’re gonna give me a peaceful day off tomorrow, Hawks. Might I remind you that my last day off you dragged me out of my house the entire day? The time before that you wouldn’t stop texting me about how bored you were, and spammed me every time I didn’t answer.” A small huff is directed towards him, and he only laughs in response, shrugging his shoulders dismissively.

“What can I say, I miss you baby girl. I always like havin’ my favorite side kick by my side, fightin’ crime... and helping me get one step closer to my dream for this world.” Your eyes softened at Hawks’ kind words, a smile spreading over your lips. Maybe Hawks genuinely did think you were a good sidekick. Maybe you were a bit too hard on him, a friendship could actually work between the two of you. “You’re the best fucking side kick ever, birdie. Ya know that?” He questioned, wings slowly expanding while he came around beside you and plopped down. His wings came behind you, his legs spread wide apart and nudging your knee. “But there’s still more room to improve, birdie. You wanna know how to be an even better side kick?”

“How?” You tilted your head in curiosity, momentarily stopping your assault on the pile of papers you had in front of you to look him in the eye. Hawks turned his body towards you, wing covered your bodies from the door so no one would see. His eyes had once again filled with carnal desire, his tongue sliding across his lips. “By kissin’ me. Right now. Right here on the lips.” He pat his soft pale pink lips, a devilish smirk spreading over his lovely pretty face. Your eyes widened in shock, freezing in your tracks as those words processed in your brain. “Wh-What?” You thought you heard him wrong, did he actually just ask you to kiss him? You must be hearing things or he must have flew into a window, cause there was no way in hell, the Hawks just demanded you kiss him. “I think you heard me baby girl, you’re just playin’ with me aren’tcha?”

“H-Hawks that’s very inappropriate... I’m your sidekick... we shouldn’t-“ He cut you off by grabbing your chin, his deep golden eyes burning holes through your skull as he stared at you with a predatory gaze. You swallowed thickly, feeling utterly trapped by his hypotonic gaze. “There’s nothin’ inappropriate about it. You’re just a good lil’ sidekick, who wants to show her hero how much she appreciates him, right? That’s what we’re doin’ love bird, unless... you’re not a good girl? And you don’t appreciate everything I’ve done for you.” This was definitely peer pressure and sexual harassment. One kiss couldn’t hurt right? Then he would leave you alone, let you finish your work, and you could be on your merry way back to the comfort of your bed. “Just... one kiss okay?”

“That’ll depend on how good ya kiss me.” He smirked smugly and brought your faces closer together, his head slowly moving to the side. Your noses brushed together, the contact making your whole body shudder under his touch. His eyes scanned yours, a smirk still tugging at his lips as he waited for you to lean in the rest of the way. Swallowing thickly and trying to calm your racing heart, you rested your hands on his chest, slowly leaning in and molding your lips together with his. You were going to pull away, but he harshly grabbed the back of your head and jerked your head back by your hair, deepening the kiss. Your eyes jerked open in shock, hands clenching together against his chest, weakly trying to push him off.

His wings spread wide around you both, feathers rippling and shivering under the pleasure of your lips finally against his. He had only dreamed of having you like this. Hawks knew he needed to keep himself contained for the moment, he wasn’t done playing with you just yet. His tongue slid over your lips, digging his slimy muscle between your plush lips, grazing your teeth with his tongue. You slowly opened your mouth, deciding it would be better to give him what he wanted than to have him whine and manipulate you for more. His tongue was hot, spit exchanging between your mouths as hot breathes were exhaled into each other when you parted for air. There was something that was keeping you glued to him —much to your disliking. His touch felt too good to let go of.

“Fuck, baby.” Hearing him curse like that made your legs twitch in your seat, a sudden rush of heat making your love parts tingle in excitement. Spit ran down your chin as he continued his assault on your mouth, thick gloved hands roughly grabbing your shoulders and moving down your chest, giving your breasts a firm squeeze. This was when you pushed him off, his tongue lulling out of his mouth, both your saliva coating his dripping muscle. “J-Just that one kiss! That’s it! N-Now can I... c-can I go home?” His only response was the dispersing of his wings to shrug his jacket off, dark vermillion feathers coming back to bring his intimidating wings back to life. He wiped his mouth on his now bare hands, smirking with a knowing grin. “Nah, I ain’t satisfied yet. I think I need s’more kisses from my good sidekick.”

The blush burning your cheeks only grew more prominent when he pulled you over to the couch in his office, plopping you on his lap before running his hands over your waist. His eyes roamed over your body lovingly, biting his lip in anticipation once he looked back up into your waiting eyes. “Kiss me everywhere, baby. Show me just how much you appreciate me, yeah? How much you love your brave handsome hero.” You shifted uncomfortably on his lap, clothed sex slowly brushing against his thigh while you leaned in close to his lips. Your fingers glided over his cheek, kissing him once again before trailing slow tender kisses across his cheek and down to his stubble. That small patch of hair that made him look more like a man than a pretty boy. “Yeah, love bird. Your lips feel amazing on me, keep goin’.”

Spurred on by his praise, you continued to kiss down his neck, biting gently near his Adam’s Apple and give it a nice lick. Your kisses fell to his clothed collar bones, kissing over his shoulders and down his sternum. Your body was growing hotter by the second as Hawks piercing gaze remained on you while you moved to the floor between his legs. A low groan rumbled in his throat when you began to kiss his abdomen while running your fingers down his slim waist and over his lovely abs. “Fuck, birdie. This ain’t your first time is it? I bet you’ve done this plenty of times. I can smell your arousal all the way from up here, damn.” His husky words sent more warmth between your legs, feeling a noticeable wetness start to build up in your panties. It made you ashamed at how wet your boss was making you.

“N-No, sir... I’ve only done this... once or twice...” Hawks’ sadistically cruel smirk widened upon hearing you voice your vague inexperience. He ran his fingers through your hair, slowly running over your cheek before he pushed your head away from his lower abdomen with his palm. “Well... you’re acting like a total slut. A slut for me, yeah? You’d spread your legs for your hero wouldn’t you? It’d make you the best sidekick in the world.” His deep manipulatively sultry voice echoed in your ears, turning your brain into mush. Hawks slowly brought his hands away from your face and moved his tight shirt up his abdomen, hands immediately going back to fumble with his belt. Two large H’s hung loosely to the sides while his fingers slowly pulled the zipper down, bright crimson wings fluttering in excitement. “Hawk got your tongue, love bird?”

You swallowed and answered quickly. “Y-Yes sir... wait, I-I mean no. I don’t... I don’t want this Hawks.” Your arms lowered to covered your chest defensively, a blush rising against your cheeks. Still, you couldn’t ignore the wetness that gathered between your legs. Now Hawks was getting forceful. “Why not? I can smell how aroused you are down there. You want it too, you can’t deny that, birdie. What’s holdin’ you back from letting me fuck you so fuckin’ hard against my couch, huh?” His question was poisonous, daring you to say one word of rejection before he would pounce on you and infect your body with his lust. You shifted under his harsh pressure, squeezing your arms tighter against you. “I... I don’t know...“

“Then stop resisting, and be a good girl. Wouldn’t want me to punish you, right?” His thumb lightly ran over your bottom lip, ever so slightly pushing your top lip up to hook his thumb in your cheek. You swallowed and obediently parted your teeth and lips to suck on his thumb, succumbing to your arousal and his persistent advances. “Awah, there’s my good girl.” Hawks lightly smacked your cheek with his other hand, growling lowly as the tent in his pants grew. He pulled his thumb from your mouth, smearing your saliva back onto your lips before palming his erection. “Mmff... C’mere baby girl, come gimme a kiss real quick, huh?”

You shakily stood, legs almost giving out from the amount of heat swimming around your head. You leaned down, obediently kissing your boss’s lips sweetly before he pulled away to snap out your next order with authority. “Strip. Now.” His deep gravely growl sparked an unknown fire inside your heart to please. You’d always been somewhat of a people pleaser, and right now, you wanted to please the fuck out of Hawks. You stood from the floor, staring straight into his eyes while you unzipped your hero costume, the sound exciting the pro more. His lip caught between his teeth, eyelids hooding over his gorgeously animalistic golden eyes. He groped and grabbed at himself, groaning lowly when you started to slip the material off your shoulders and down your waist, revealing your lovely clothed breasts to him. “Fuck, birdie. You’re so fucking gorgeous, damn.”

Once you had unzipped it all the way, you peeled it off your body, showing him inch by inch of your smooth plush skin. He watched carefully as your feet slipped from the last parts of the costume, excitedly watching you reach behind yourself to unclip your bra. “There ya go, birdie. Gimme more.” The fabric slid off your shoulders, nipples hardening at the cool air hitting them. It didn’t help that Hawks wings beat aggressively at the mere sight of your breasts in front of his avian eyes. His jaw clenched harshly, his palm crushing harder onto his hard cock, aching for some sort of relief from the tightness. “Oh fuck, C’mere love bird.”

He roughly grabbed you and yanked your panties off with one harsh jerk, shamefully making you wetter at his roughness. His hands shakily shuffled to push his pants down to his knees, instantly attaching up to your hips and pulling you onto his thigh. Hawks attacked your lips once again, rubbing his hands up and down your sides before harshly pulling you back and forth against his muscular thigh. Your nimble fingers tangled into his messy golden hair, your head tilting back in ecstasy at the amazing friction of his thigh on your sopping cunt. “Mmm... so wet for me, you like ridin’ my thigh? Yeah? You like me shovin’ you back and forth, grindin’ my thigh against your cute little pussy, achin’ to be filled by my fat cock. Ain’t that right?”

“Yes, ahhh... mhm! F-Feels good, sir...” His hands smushed your cheeks together, forcefully bringing your face towards him and sloppily kissing you. A deep groan went into your mouth while his tongue worked wonders to your own mouth. Your hands slowly slid up his other thigh, resting your thumb on the underside of his clothed cock. It was so warm, and hard, you couldn’t help but let your eyes roll back into your skull as you imaged how good it’d feel inside. “You want it? Tell me...” He leaned close to your ear, groaning deeply at how good your sweet pussy felt against his thigh, slick with your arousal all for him. He breathed huskily in your ear, nudging his cheek against yours. “Tell me how fucking bad you want it.”

“I... I want it, Hawks... I want it... s-so badly, sir...” He chuckled against your ear, the vibrations of his deep voice sending goosebumps down your spine. His semi-large warm hands pressed you harder down on his muscular thighs, his thumb coming down to rub harshly on your clit. “What is it you want, baby girl? What d’you want? I won’t know unless you tell your hero properly.” The egotistical smirk returned, his teeth peeking from between his soft pink lips, teasing you. He pulled you close to him, slamming your lips together against for another passionate sloppy kiss before he yanked you away with your hair. “Say it, right fuckin’ now.”

“I-I want your... f-fat cock Hawks...” He pondered for a moment if he even wanted to accept. He snaps his fingers unexpectedly and points to the floor. Immediately understanding what he wanted, you got on your knees between his legs, staring lewdly at the bulge in his boxers, mouth already salivating at the thought of pleasing him and hearing praise. “You’ll take it in your mouth first, right? Make it all nice ‘n wet for that slippery pussy.” His dirty words had a sinful effect on you, urging you and plaguing your mind to try harder. Your hands moved up his thighs, his warm skin making your body all the more hot. “Y-Yes sir, anything for you...” Once your finger tips met fabric you slid your pads over his raging hard on, slowly hooking over the hem of his boxers, pulling them down slowly.

Your face lit up in embarrassment once he was displayed all for you. His cock sprang free from its confines, lightly hitting his abdomen as small pearls of his sweet pre cum oozed from the tip. His wings fluffed up at the chilling air sweeping over his steamy cock. “Well? What’re you waitin’ for baby girl? Go on and suck your hero’s cock.” You could practically hear his grin, his cockiness shining through his lack of embarrassment to hide himself. He knew he looked good, Hawks was very attractive, but he was also well equipped down under all his baggy clothes. You carefully leaned forward, anxiety shooting through your veins as you gave his ruby red tip a kitten lick. “C’mon birdie, you can do better than that can’tcha? I thought you wanted to be a better sidekick. Guess I was wro- Oh fuck!”

You didn’t let him finish before you grabbed the base a little firmly and took him into your mouth, teeth slightly grazing his cock. “N-No teeth baby! Ahah fuck! Your mouth is so fuckin’ warm baby girl... you damn slut.” Your eyes instinctively squeezed shut hearing his degrading comments. It made you ashamed how much he turned you on. You were dripping and aching to be filled by his hard cock, but you also loved the passionate fore play. “Yeah, suck my cock harder, yeah birdie oh fuck yeah!” His hands shifted through your hair, messing it up in the process. You obeyed him, turning your head to the side and taking him in deeper. Inch, by inch, his steamy cock disappeared into your hot mouth. His head threw back momentarily at your harsh sucks, mouth gaping and panting loudly. “Ahgh! Yeah! Just like that, just like that, oohhoo fuck...”

Drops of pearly pre cum smeared over your tongue and the back of your throat, the sweet taste making everything hazy. His tip grazed your uvula, making you slightly gag, but you forced it down, taking his cock all the way down till your nose bumped against his pubic bone. His musky smell only became more clear, your nose buried in his curly blonde pubes, chin brushing briefly against his plumply perfect balls, full of potent cum to knock up fertile little birds like you. His hands suddenly fisted your hair into a tight grip, pulling you back and then back down, a gagging sound resonating in your throat. “I’m almost there...! Shit!” He jerked your head back and forth, tears prickling at the sides of your eyes. He threw his head back, growling through grit teeth as his dick twitched inside. “Cumming! Fuck!”

He shoved your face flush against his crotch, salty spurts of white shooting to the back of your throat. His head hung low quickly, panting and rasping out a few curses. Your eyes fluttered open, a few stray tears falling when you go to look up at him. His sexy golden eyes are squeezed shut, his lip caught between his pearly white teeth, cheeks flushed a soft pink with some sweat trickling down the side of his head. “Fuck, fuck, fuck. Ahh... good girl... so good baby... mmngh.” He slowly opened his eyes, pupils blown up with lust and need. His feathery blonde hair a mess in front of your face stuffed with his cock. He wiped your tears away and pushed your forehead back slowly, groaning as he watched his cum drip down the side of your chin. “Yeah, birdie. Swallow it, swallow all of my sweet nectar. It’s all for you, ya know?”

You sucked on his tip once he got that far pulling it out of your mouth, milking the last bits of cum from his slippery cock. Your tongue moved around the thick liquid, squishing it and mixing it with your own saliva before you shakily swallowed, shivering at the thought of swallowing the number two pro hero’s cum. A low cough burned your throat the moment it struggled to go down your throat, amusing the man above you. “Such a good girl... you deserve a reward don’tcha think? Well, it just so happens I know just the thing to give ya. On the couch, birdie.” You nodded. He pat the couch, smirking smugly when you obediently got on the couch and laid on your back. He quickly stepped out of his underwear, leaving him now completely naked just like you. “Feet on my shoulders, now love bird.”

“H-Hawks what’re you gonna do? I-I’m not ready for that...” You were under the sole impression he was going to stick his cock in you right now, raw, without any preparation or anything. You were happily mistaken. He chuckled, animal-like eyes staring straight into yours while his lips moved from the inside of your knee caps down to your inner thighs. “Oho no, baby girl. I told you I’d reward you didn’ I? And ‘m gonna do just that... by eating out this sloppy pussy of yours.” Without another word, he pushed your legs apart and gave your most private parts a lick with the flat of his tongue. Your back arched, hands flying to the couch to grip onto the expensive leather. “Ahh! Hawks! Wait-!”

“No time for waitin’ birdie, now that I’ve got a taste I want more.” He growled out the last word with a snarl of his lips, sharp canines showing themselves to you as he dove right back in. He gave your wet lips a few kisses, licking small circles with the tip of his tongue, tasting your sweet love juice. “Mmm! Hawks! Stop teasing me you a-assho- Oh! Mm, yes!” Your head unexpectedly lulled backwards, toes curling once he pushed his tongue inside your sopping cunt. Wet and lewd noises came from below you, slurping sounds coming occasionally as Hawks ate you out so good. His teeth mashed against your folds as his tongue pushed deeper inside, sucking your tasty arousal into his mouth. His stubble slightly grazed your pussy, making you squirm.

“Ahh, Hawks, Hawks ngh! It feels so good...!” Your sweet moans spurred him on, his nose bumping against your clit as he ate you out so damn good. His tongue was like magic, your thighs were becoming all the more hot with his large hands pushing them apart. “Mmff~ yeah birdie, keep lettin’ out all those sexy noises. Moan out my name, better yet, scream it. Let everyone know who’s gonna fuck you real nice, and that you’re my birdie. Fuck you taste so damn good.” He growled against your pussy, becoming more ferocious and desperate to taste your cum. Your hands shook harshly against the leather couch, breathing heavy and ragged as the knot in your stomach came close to snapping. “Hawks I’m cumming! Oh god I’m going to cum...! S-So hard, Ahh!”

“Yeah baby, cum on my face! Fuck I want it! Cum for me, oh fuck cum for your hero!” He seemed just as desperate as you are for you to cum. He wanted to taste all your sweet arousal for him, to pride himself in making you cum from his tongue. His thumb harshly pressed and rubbed against your clit, the bundle of nerves making your body twitch in ecstasy. The coil finally snapped, throwing your head back and cumming on his face. “Hawks! Mmm! Hah!” His hot hands grabbed your hips, smushing his face further between your legs, tongue fucking you through your blissful orgasm. Your eyes caught sight of his massive red wings beating weakly and twitching ever so slightly. “Mm, fuck, baby girl, you taste amazing. I can see myself becoming addicted to you... good thing you’re about to be mine~”

He pulled his face away with his lips dripping with your sweet juices, some smeared on his pink cheeks. He clambered on top of you, kissing you passionately, his hands coming to rest against your face in comfort. His tongue weaved it’s way through your swollen lips, letting you have a taste of yourself. He pulled away briefly to pant and stare down at your dripping sensitive pussy while he pushed his fingers in. “Gotta stretch you out the right way, yeah? Gotta make sure your cute little pussy is ready for my fat cock.” He panted softly against the top of your breasts, his hair in your face as he intently watched his fingers disappear. He could feel the ridges of your fluttering walls, the sloppy mess of his saliva and your cum inside making his wings shiver.

“Hawks, wait! It’s s-sensitive! Mm!” His fingers thrust into your core faster, making wet squelching noises while his other hand rubbed against your clit again. He spread his two fingers, stretching out your walls to prepare you for his big cock. “Stop! I’m gonna cum again! I’m-!” He pulled his fingers out quickly and brought his fingers up to his mouth, sucking away your juices before grabbing your hips and yanking you towards his lower half. He growled lowly, his lips now grazing against your ear, his hips rutting against yours, rubbing his already hard cock against your folds. “I want you to cum on my cock... crying out my name, grabbin’ at me and beggin’ me to let you cum... so fucking hard.”

“Y-Yes, Hawks...” You whispered obediently.

“Keigo.” He corrected softly.

“Huh...?” You asked in confusion. His smile turned sad and he pecked your lips, wings coming to cover the both of you. It was his way of telling you and reassuring himself that you were both safe with each other. “It’s... my real name. Keigo Takami. And you can’t tell anyone, okay? Only you can know. I trust you, (Y/N).” There was no ‘baby girl’ ‘birdie’ or any other nickname he’d given you, just your first name, displaying his seriousness. You parted your lips to test his name on your tongue. “Keigo...” You smiled a little, heart warming at the amount of trust Hawks—Keigo had in you. His cheeks darkened with a flustered smile. It was clear that it’s been a while since anyone had ever said his real name. “Yeah baby, feels good hearin’ you say it. Say it s’more.”

“Keigo Takami.”

“Again.”

“Keigo Takami.”

“Fuck, I love you.” He attacked your lips again, not giving you any time to process or respond to his confession of love to you. It had to be a spur of the moment thing. There wasn’t any way in hell he loved you. Your brain barely registered what he had even said when you felt something hot, wet, and hard brush against your entrance. Your fingers ran up his arms, grasping onto his shoulders before he pushed himself in slowly. He parted his lips away to moan in unison with you, panting lightly against your face as he struggled to contain himself. “So damn t-tight... feels so good, fuck.” The hero’s blunt nails dig harshly into the leather couch, his teeth coming to rest in his lower lip, trying his hardest to resist fucking you as hard as he could right now. He need to make this moment memorable. The first time you had sex with him.

“Keigo it’s... it’s so hot... ahh, I-it’s still going!” You hook your arms under his and pull him closer, his own arms collapsing beside you to have his elbows near your head. His golden eyes focused on your lewd expression, drinking in every detail with his sharp avian eyes. “Almost there, love bird, almost there. Fuck, you look so damn sexy gettin’ stuffed with my cock, hah~ Do you like it? You like my cock slowly goin’ inside you baby?” Your head nods eagerly, blunt nails digging crescents into the hero’s back. Finally he stopped his hips, panting against your face as his golden eyes searched for any signs of wanting to back out. When he saw none, he let out a breathy chuckle. “Damn, you really are a slut... I wonder, if you were Endeavors sidekick, would you let him do this to you?”

“H-Huh? N-no- mmm! Keigo!” He pulled out and slammed it back in unexpectedly, the sound of leather being scrunched in his palms echoing beside your ear. Your passionate hero slammed his hips against yours, harsh pants beside your ear with a sliver of a groan. “L-Liar... hah, you’d let... anyone do this to you wouldn’t you? You just want a big... fat cock buried inside you! Ain’t that r-right, love bird?” Your hands were clawing at his back, desperate for something to hold onto so you wouldn’t be forced away from him. It definitely helped him slam his cock deeper inside. Your head frantically shook, hands shifting to run through his hair and to touch his face, trying to stare into his golden eyes. “N-No Keigo! Mmm! I only want you! Please! Ahh!”

“Yeah, yeah that’s right baby, you’re fucking mine! All mine to... tease and p-please all I want! Yeah? Yeah?! Ohhh yes baby, yes.” The air around you was becoming thick, a steamy tension that you could probably cut with a knife. Your eyes were already rolling back into your skull at all of the blissfully sinful stuff Keigo was doing to you. He was hitting all the right places, the rigid movements of his cock making you go wild. Keigo was soaking in all of your lewd moans and cries of his real name, loving the way your body ached to keep him close. “Such a good girl. What a good, ahhh... sidekick you are, hmm? Lettin’ your favorite hero... shove his cock inside you like this. Ahh, hah, yeah... so good.”

He slowed the rolling of his hips to a steady, deep pace. He would pull out only to push harshly back inside until his balls painfully pressed against your curvy ass. Keigo watched your body shudder harshly under him, smirking as his teeth grit together attempting to push his cock deeper inside. His slicked up cock head met the opening of your cervix, a moan slipping past him once he felt the entrance to your fertile womb. “Ooohhh fuck. Baby you’re driving me fuckin’ wild!” He leaned over your head, his breath gently hitting your face before he sucked in a breath and smashed his lips against yours in a fiery passion. He moved his hips up and down, the friction of his skin on yours burning your sore thighs more than they already were. “Mmm, K-Kei-... go~”

The call of his name between sloppy kisses urged him to pull out only to thrust back inside a bit more shallower. His lips parted from yours and he began to kiss your neck while he picked up his pace. Hickeys soon blossomed over your neck, indicating you were his. The large red wings on his back were twitching and flapping in tension. Smaller feathers fell to the floor as they shook loose from his avian limbs. Your breasts bounced with every thrust he made inside, slowly jerking your body up and down the leather. The couch weakly moaned at the weight and rapid movement of the hero’s hips. “Mmm, do you hear that? Hah... the wet sloshing of your p-pussy... gettin’ fucked by my cock so deep...”

“Yes... yes I hear it! Oh, Keigo!” He continued, slamming inside of you aggressively and possessively, making it his soul goal to make you cum all over his hard cock. His wings were twitching and spreading wider, flapping harder as he neared his climax. Papers went flying as his wings knocked them off the coffee table, a couple nick nacks tumbling to the floor. “Tell me, mmm! How good of a sidekick you are... how good It feels being pumped full of cock... ngh, fuck! And how much you need me! C’mon birdie say it!” His hips were beginning to falter and become clumsy and organized, his moans getting louder. You were beginning to feel a tight knot forming in the pit of your stomach, walls clenching around his cock.

“Keigo! I’m a good sidekick! It-! It feels so-! Ahhh! Feels so good inside! I need you so bad! Oh fuck! ’m gonna cum!” He moaned deeply into your face, biceps shuttering beside you as his muscles began to tighten with tension. He fucked through your tightness, moaning uncontrollably and babbling about how close he was. “I’m close, oh fuck I’m close. I’m so close. You’re m-milking my cock so fucking good! Yeah, mmm! Milk my cock! Squeeze every... bit of my cum out! Y-Yeah? C’mon baby! Cum for me!” It didn’t take much more before you were clawing at his back with your thighs trembling, toes curling wildly. Your head threw back, back arching with a very loud shout of ecstasy as you came all over his warm cock. “OH GOD! KEIGO!”

“Yes, yes, fuck, yeah, yeah, yeah, FUCK! Oh shit! I’m cum- NGH!” Keigo’s wings shot towards the ceiling, sharp feathers scattered and flying away as he lost control of his body, mind hazy and incapable of controlling his quirk fully. He sheathed his hips inside, gooey head smushing against your cervix to give you his potent seed. His mouth hung open with stuttering raspy gasps and pants. “I love you, I love you so much, love bird.” He weakly rolled his hips back into yours, cum soaked balls pattering against your ass softly. With his cum pathetically fucked back into your pussy, he pulled out and sat up on his haunches, staring down at the mess you both made. “F-Fuuuuck... that was... amazing, birdie. You’re the best sidekick in the world... you know that? Spoilin’ me like this.”

“Sh-Shut... up you winged... bastard.” You panted between your uneven breaths, trying to calm your racing heart and staggered breathing. The air was still thick around you both, the smell of sex still evident. There was worry swirling around your head at what had just happened. Your first thought was to go home, clean up, and buy some plan B since the bird brain had mindlessly came inside you. But that wasn’t the biggest concern. What was Keigo going to do now that he had gotten what he wanted? He’d manipulated you into having sex with him, praising you like a lover would. You couldn’t help but wonder if all of this was just some game to get into your pants. What you didn’t know was that he was waiting for a response to his confession. Now, he needed to confront you. “What’s with the look, love bird? You seem stressed. Regretting sleepin’ with me? You don’t have to be afraid of tellin’ me how you feel! I know it’s intimidating but no need to be afraid.”

“Keig- I-I mean Hawks...” He felt a pang in his heart at the way you corrected yourself from his real name, something he trusted you with. He didn’t regret what he’d done, but this was not the outcome he was expecting. In his slightly delusional thoughts, he figured you would’ve fallen in love with him the moment you kissed. His poor ego would be his downfall. “I don’t know what you were trying to gain from this... well, this wasn’t entirely your fault, I gave in, and I shouldn’t have done that. You’re my boss. And-“ Now he was getting frustrated and impatient. Of course that’s what you thought. He did use his authority and manipulative nature to weave his way into your pants and sprout insecurities and worries within you. “Enough with that already. Who cares if I’m your boss, I thought I’d made it pretty clear I have feelings for you.”

“But- But-“

“And you wouldn’t have slept with me if you actually hated me that much. There’s still a lot you don’t know about me, but I’d be glad to enlighten you.” His golden eyes were becoming more intense and steely, dangerously glinting in a threatening way. If you wouldn’t willingly love him, he would manipulate his way to your heart, exploit you and make sure you believed you love him. Cause if you believed you did, he knew you would eventually love him for real. “Don’t you want to know the secrets of your favorite hero? You wanted to be special? Wanted to rise in the world of being a hero? Let’s face the reality here, you fear of not being successful.”

He was right, and he was slowly breaking you down.

“I’ve done so much for you, (Y/N). So damn much. I think I’ve sacrificed a lot of my time and efforts to try and make you better.” His hands ran over your cheek, slowly trailing his hand down and over your breasts causing your breath to hitch. You were frozen into place as his perfected behavior settled in your heart, churning your stomach. “You’re nice, ya know? A little too nice sometimes. But I think I deserve a little more of a reward for bein’ such a good hero and mentor.” Tears welled in your eyes, a stray salty streak coming down and slipping down your neck. He smirked and leaned down, licking up your neck and your cheek until he kissed your eye softly. “And what I want... is for you to be mine, and love me just as much as I love you.”

So you had heard it right, he loved you.

“I know you want to be successful love bird, and I know all you wanted was to fight beside me. But... I want more than that.” He gave you a lob sided pure smile of his. It wasn’t one of his fake public smiles, a real genuine one. You slowly looked away from him, biting your lip as he continued to shower you with how much he wanted you. “C’mon, just admit it. Tell me you’ll be mine, love bird. You’ll be mine, and we’ll be unstoppable together. We’ll make my dream come true. That way... we can experience a world of peace together.” He was talking from his heart. You didn’t know it, but after being trapped by the commission, he desperately wanted to be free so he could fly without a care in the world. He wasn’t done yet though, he still needed to complete his ultimate mission. And he wanted you beside him the whole way. “Say it.” He pressured passively.

“I... I’ll be yours Keigo...” He chuckled in response.

“Such a Good Sidekick.”

#hawks smut #hawks x reader #hawks-x-reader-smut #bnha hawks #pro hero hawks #my hero academia #sidekick #feral hawks #slightly yandere hawks

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some-kindofgnome · 4 years

Text

Kinktober #27: The Lake: Bakusquad

In which you and Kirishima take a trip to the lake for a little class reunion.

Characters: primarily Kirishima / f!reader, but also Jirou, Sero, Kaminari, Bakugou and Mina / f!reader AND background Kaminari / Jirou

Warnings: smut (18+ please!) aged-up characters, pro-hero Kiri, Bakugou, Denki, Jirou, Mina and Sero, group sex, polyamory, brief mentions of drinking, not a whole lot of attention paid to protection (sorry...)

Notes: Today’s prompt was “Orgy.” You can probably tell by how many fcking PEOPLE are involved lmao. I... had trouble with this one! This was tough. There are a lot of limbs to keep track of. But I wouldn’t be opposed to re-visiting this dynamic again soon, with more time to play around a little.

I know it says 1-A on the masterlist, but it really did turn out to be more of a Bakusquad thing, sorry!

Kinktober Masterlist

You’re folding one last sweater into your weekend bag and zipping it up when Kirishima swings by to pick you up.

After a very long, hot summer week at the office, your boss let you go a couple of hours early on a slow Friday afternoon- just soon enough to catch the early train home. It turned out to be very lucky indeed, since Kirishima’s already here and you’re just finishing up your packing.

Then again, it’s not your fault you’ve been agonizing over what to bring.

The buzzer by your door sends your heart leaping into your throat, but it only takes a quick peek out the front window to confirm that it’s Kiri. He knows that you’ll look before you head for the door, so he’s stepped back from the front stoop a little and shoots you a bashful wave with one hand shoved into his pocket.

You melt. He’s cute enough to put your nerves to rest.

“Good afternoon, milady,” he greets with a sweep of charming enthusiasm when you pull the door open for him. He bows playfully before stepping into your apartment. “I will be your escort this weekend. Show me to your luggage.”

“I don’t think there’s enough of it to be called ‘luggage,’” you giggle. You slip an arm around his neck and push a kiss against his cheek.

“Hi.”

He gasps, pressing his fingers to the spot where your lips touched.

“Such unprofessional behaviour. I’m going to have to report this, you know.”

“Shut up.” You bat at his chest. The bastard, in all his well-muscled glory, barely flinches. “Let’s go before I change my mind.”

The threat’s playful, but you’d be lying if you said you didn’t consider it, it in the darkest hours of the night before.

Every year, on the last weekend in July, Kirishima gets together with some old friends from UA. They rent a little cabin out by the lake, drink, party, and catch up. You’ve been dating just under a year, so you’ve never been to one of these before. Even though you’ve met everybody who’s going to be there individually, it’ll be the first time you see them as a group.

And Kirishima’s known them for ten years. You like to think you know him pretty well, but compared to them, you’re strangers.

“It’s not too late to,” he breathes, pausing to glance at you with a moment’s sincerity.

“No,” you brush. “No, I’m fine.” You put your hands on his forearms and squeeze gently. “Nervous, but… that’s what the drive up is for, right?”

“Yeah.” He flashes you a grin that steals your heart over and over again, sweeping you and your little suitcase out the door.

The drive is breezy and surprisingly quick, given the expected level of weekend cottage-country-traffic. You blast the radio and turn it down during the commercials. But you can’t help the sinking dread that pits in your stomach when the ETA in your navigation app drops from an hour and a half to forty-five minutes to five minutes.

The drive was supposed to be your chance to settle your nerves. You’re not ready to be here yet.

When you pull down the sloped gravel driveway of the cabin, there are already three cars there. You recognize Bakugou’s sleek Audi, but you can only assume that the other two belong to the rest of the crew.

So everyone else is already here. Makes sense. Nobody else works 9-5, so they probably cut off early to get here.

Doesn’t make you any less freaked out.

Kirishima insists on grabbing both of your bags. He shoulders his way into the cabin with excitement building in every muscle. You can see it from ten feet away. He’s thrilled to be here. That thought honestly helps, for a hot minute.

Until you hear the voices that drift from inside.

The whole cabin’s lit up with savoury, beautiful smells when you step inside. The kitchen’s crowded- Bakugou’s chopping vegetables and doing his best to shoo everyone out of his way while he sautés and chops and glazes and bakes.

“Jesus Christ. Finally. Will you get these assholes outta my way?” Bakugou snarls, waving his knife around as soon as he catches sight of the two of you.

Before you can even laugh properly at Bakugou’s temper, there’s a high-pitched squeal of your name from behind him, and he’s abruptly shoved against the edge of the counter as a bright pink blur streaks around the island and launches herself at you.

“Hiiiii,” Mina coos, pressing a kiss to your cheek after she’s given you a tight squeeze.

The rest of the party filters in around you- Sero and Denki crowding not-so-subtly around the new addition to their little crew while Jirou makes her way over at a respectful pace. It becomes obvious to you almost immediately that you’re the first girl Kirishima’s ever brought to one of these.

You want to let that feel special. Instead, the intimidation only spikes.

You need to relax.

“Here, babe,” Mina sighs, shooing the boys away from you. “Kiri’ll take your bags upstairs. Let’s get you a drink.”

She grabs your hand and drags you toward the bar cart in the living room. Kirishima disappears up the stairs, but before you know it, he’s re-appearing. So is everybody else. The smells from the kitchen are growing unbearably tantalizing.

Bakugou hollers when dinner’s ready.

He’s done glazed pork chops with some kind of gorgeous mango slaw- indulgent and delicious, but light enough that none of you will be too stuffed at the end of the meal. You sit between him and Kirishima and everybody catches up.

Mina and Sero are starting an agency together. Denki and Jirou found a place together just outside of the city. And Bakugou, of all people, has just taken on his first U.A. intern.

You feel sorry for the poor kid already.

Once the dinner dishes have been cleared, you’re starting to feel more at ease. The conversation flows easily between the group of you, and you’re kind of killing it with the one-liners. Even Bakugou gives a dull chuckle when you land a particularly good one.

But the real purpose of this weekend can’t be put off forever.

“Babe,” Mina coos eventually, leaning over Kirishima to settle a hand on your thigh. “I am so excited that you’re here. Do you know how long it’s been since we had anybody new to play with?”

“Mina,” Kirishima scolds. “Don’t scare her.”

“What?” Mina sits up. “You said you were gonna tell her before you brought her here. Kiri, tell me you talked to her.” She looked up at you with wide eyes. “He told you, didn’t he?”

“Yes,” you promise, holding your hands up to settle her. “He talked to me. I agreed to come knowing full well what we’re here for. But… I’m still nervous as hell over here.”

“Don’t worry,” Mina promises. “We’re gonna take good care of you, sweets. Besides, you and Kiri and Bakugou have before, right? So between them, it’s basically like you’ve already slept with all of us.”

She’s got a point. But that doesn’t change the fact that your cheeks are like molten lava just thinking about it.

Every year, on the last weekend in July, Kirishima gets together with some old friends from UA. They rent a cabin out by the lake, drink, party… and fuck. You’ve shrugged monogamy with him before. Mina’s right- Bakugou’s joined you on a few different occasions. But this is something you’ve never even thought of trying before.

Still, Kirishima makes you want to take risks. He’s always been good that way- encouraging you to push your comfort zone without compromising your boundaries. When you first talked about this weekend, he’d framed his little pitch with the promise that if you weren’t comfortable with it, he was happy to miss out on it, too.

But you know his friends. You know his character. You trust him.

So you jumped.

“She’s so cute when she’s embarrassed,” Denki chuckles, propping his chin in his hand. He’s got his other palm on Jirou’s thigh under the table. In fact, everybody’s starting to get closer, now that dinner’s been taken care of.

“Let me kiss her. Please, Kiri?” Mina leans over again, resting a palm on Kiri’s lap as she bats her eyelashes at you.

“You’re gonna have to ask her yourself, Mina,” Kiri chides. He folds his arms behind his head and leans back in his chair, ready for the show.

Mina purrs your name again, smiling indulgently as she leans a little closer.

“Can I kiss you? Pretty please?”

You’re suddenly bashful, biting your lip. But you want this. You do.

“Sure. Okay.”

You release your lip from your teeth as Mina leans forward. Her lips are soft and so plush, and she’s a careful kisser. Out your right ear, you can hear Kirishima give a little sigh as he watches, and he rests a hand on each of your backs, rubbing soothingly.

“Come on,” Bakugou grunts as the two of you break apart. His chair scrapes harshly across the tile when he stands. “Get your asses to the living room before shit gets messy.”

Before you know it, you’re in a tangle of bare and sweaty limbs. You started out between Bakugou and Kirishima- the two boys you’re most familiar with. You’re stroking both of their hard cocks while they kiss each other, then you, then each other again. All the while, in the background, Mina, Sero, Denki and Jirou are stripping each other down, sprawling across the couch, letting a symphony of moans and sighs drift across the living room to your ears.

Before long, you’re pulled backwards into Denki’s lap as he fucks diligently up into you. Your pussy’s sloppy, slick from Mina’s tongue, and she’s perched right next to you, riding your boyfriend’s cock as the two of you let your hands drift.

You can see that Kirishima has a tight bond with all of these people. But you feel no jealousy towards them. If he can be so closely bonded with so many from his past, then why not you, too? Every time he catches your eye, no matter how many bodies there are between the two of you, he shoots you a loving little wink.

And at the end of the night, it’s you who’s going to be falling asleep beside him.

At some point, Bakugou pulls up a nearby chair, stroking himself while he watches the six of you drive each other to the edge, over and over and over again. By the time you’re all finished, you’re certain at least two dozen orgasms have passed between the lot of you.

And it shows. You’re exhausted.

After sharing such intimacy, you’re reluctant to break from one another. But inevitably you do, separating into your respective beds for the night. As you get ready for bed Kirishima’s full of energy.

“Holy shit, babe,” he raves, grabbing you by the waist and pulling you in for a tight kiss. “That was so fucking hot. You did such a good job, god damn.” He cups your jaw between both his hands and pulls your gaze to his.

He looks down at you with the Milky Way lit up in his eyes, fathomless love all for you.

“You looked so perfect,” he confesses, kissing your forehead, “in the middle a’ all my friends like that.”

You fall into bed together, feeling sore and spent and very loved, and sleep better than you have in weeks.

The next morning, in a haze of woodsy dawn, everybody fights over what to make for breakfast.

#my hero academia #kinktober #kirishima x reader #eijirou kirishima x reader #bakusquad x reader #bakusquad #mha fanfic #bnha fanfiction #bnha #jbbkinktober2020

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reidingandwriting · 3 years

Text

Chapter Three: “Your Obedient Servant”

“You’ve kept me from the room where it happens for the last time.”

Word count: ~2450 words

Warnings: Shitty parent, verbal abuse from mother, language, bullying, brief mention of alcohol, mention of guns, implied murder, typical Criminal Minds-esque details towards the murder but nothing graphic.

Characters mentioned: Neutral!Reader, Jennifer “JJ” Jareau, Aaron Hotchner

Original characters: Reader’s mother and father, Este and her family, Lara, Andrew Walker, and Abby.

Mentions of: David Rossi, Erin Strauss, and Penelope Garcia

A/N: And here we are! Chapter three! I think I have marked all warnings but if there are any I’ve missed, please feel free to let me know! As always, feedback is always appreciated. This chapter is kind of background of reader focused and I’m so sorry for that. I hope y’all can enjoy anyways and enjoy the turn made towards bringing everyone in. Next chapter will fully bring the team in and I’m excited! That’s enough out of me, enjoy the chapter!

Previous chapter

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Eight years old…

“What in fresh hell are you doing?” A voice came from your doorway, one that belonged to your mother. You didn’t look up from where you laid on the floor, a colored pencil in your hand and a coloring book was spread out in front of you. Your room was illuminated by the lamp on your bedside table, it being well past your bedtime.

“Coloring. Couldn’t sleep.” Footsteps got louder as your mother approached and you flinched as she snatched the book up.

“What time is your bedtime?”

“Eight-thirty.” She cleared her throat. “Ma’am.”

“And it’s midnight. So your ass should be where?”

“But I wasn’t making any noise.” Your eyes met your mother’s and her harsh glare made you look back down. “In bed.”

“That’s right.” She grabbed your arm and pulled you to your feet, and you tried not to wince. “If I come check on you and catch you out of this bed again, you’re gonna be in so much trouble, kid.”

“But what if I can’t sleep?” You asked as you climbed back into your bed.

“You’ll fall asleep eventually.” Your mother turned off your lamp, the warm glow of the room now being replaced by total darkness. “I’ll see you in the morning.” Your mother walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her. You listened for a minute to make sure she was really in bed before you pulled your stuffed animal to your chest and screwed your eyes shut.

“Unfortunately.”

Sixteen years old…

“Happy birthday, kiddo. The big sixteen.” You smiled as you held your phone, sat on the bench outside of school as you waited for your mom to pick you up. Your dad was on the other end of the phone, and you had to admit you missed him. “Still up for your visit this weekend?”

“Are you? You pulled a Mom and bailed on me last time.” Your words could sound harsh to anyone passing by, but there was no malice behind them, just a teasing smile. And you could practically hear your dad rolling his eyes.

“Brat.”

“Yours truly.”

“I promise, nothing will stop me from seeing you this weekend. It’s not every day your only child turns sixteen.” A sigh from the other end makes your heart clench. “I miss you, kid.”

“I miss you too, Dad. I can’t wait to see you.” “Ditto.” Muffled voices were heard in the background before your dad spoke again. “I have to go, but I expect to hear all about your birthday extravaganza Saturday.”

“You mean my trip to the bookstore with Este and dinner with her family? Mom’s too busy with her new fu-”

“Uh uh. It may be true, but don’t finish that sentence.” You could hear the smile in your dad’s voice, mixed with irritation. “I love you, sunshine.”

“I love you, Dad. See you Saturday.”

“See you then.” You hung up and tucked your phone into your pocket, opening the book that sat in your lap to read as you waited for your mom to pick you up from school.

You were delved deep into your book, the sound of the athletes practicing in the nearby fields fading into silence as you let yourself become entranced in your book. You didn’t notice the looming shadow of Lara standing over you.

“Well, thanks, Y/L/N! I’ve been looking for a new book.” You jumped when you heard her voice. She snatched the book from your hands and you reached for it, but she was quicker.

“Give it back!”

“Really? David Rossi?” Lara scoffed and tossed the book over her shoulder where it landed in a pile of mud by the sidewalk we were on. “Whoops.” Lara walked past you, her shoulder knocking harshly into yours. “It’s too easy with them.” Lara said to herself and you ran to your book, and your eyes watered as you knelt down to pick it up, the book being covered in mud.

“Don’t cry, don’t cry, don’t cry.” You whispered to yourself as you held the book and tried your best to wipe the mud off it. You sighed in resignation and walked to the trash can a few feet away and set the book in. You were going to the bookstore tomorrow, you could replace it then.

You were snapped out of your thoughts when a car honked and you looked up, noticing your mother’s car. “Come on, we’ve got places to be.” Your mother yelled from the open window and you nodded.

“Coming.” You called out and jogged over to the car, throwing your backpack into the backseat before you got into the passenger seat.

“What’s wrong with you?” She gestured to your red eyes before she noticed your dirty hands. “Gross, how old are you?” She slapped the back of your head and you digged for napkins in the glove compartment while apologizing repeatedly.

“I’m sorry. Lara threw my book in the mud and I tried to save it.”

“Those were weird books anyways. She did you a favor.”

Twenty-two years old…

“Look at our college graduate, Jess.” Este’s father, Phil, smiled from the head of the table. “Look out, world, you’re not prepared.”

“I will not be taking over the world until Y/N is. They still have one year to finish their master’s degree. So I’m taking a gap year. Maybe I’ll go husband hunting.”

“Or, you know, do something that’ll look better on your job applications.” Este’s sister deadpanned.

“Where’s the fun in that?” You nudged Este with your foot and gave her a playful warning look. Este stuck her tongue out at you and you mirrored her expression.

“I wish Y/N would have majored in the same thing as you, Este.” Not even fifteen words out of your mother and the whole atmosphere was brought down. Why couldn’t she be with Joe? Jonah? J-something. “Instead of aiming for the FBI, where you’re not even guaranteed a job.”

“Which is why I majored in criminology. Minored in digital forensics. And I’m earning my masters in forensic psychology.” You responded, not sparing her a glance.

“And if you still don’t-”

“I think my credentials will be impressive regardless.” You paused as the waitress stopped by, setting everyone’s plates down. You thanked her as she left, before looking at your mother. “Even if I don’t immediately get offered a job, I don’t mind. I can work my way to the FBI. I don’t get bored of something within a month.” Bella’s eyes widened and Este smirked to herself as she took a sip of her drink.

“I would sure hope not! College would have been a bad idea if you couldn’t work at something for a month.” Jessica, Este’s mother, tried to joke but your mother was relentless.

“I hope you fix your personality before you apply or they’ll never let you in through the door.”

“You don’t like it? I learned from you.” Your mother stood from her chair, the chair scraping loudly against the floor.

“I’m done.”

“Drive safe.” You called out to your mother’s retreating form and rolled your eyes as you turned to Este. “Drinks?”

“Drinks.”

Twenty-five years old…

“So, you’re about halfway done with your training at the Academy.” You sat across from your field counselor, Abby. “How have things been?”

“Andrew and I had some… creative differences with firearms training.”

“Creative differences?” Abby asked and you thought back to the day.

You had missed the vital shots multiple times, and you and Andrew both were getting irritated at each other. What was meant to be motivating turned snarky, which had started to turn condescending. You started off getting close to your vitals, and with each negative comment, your concentration turned to frustration which led to further off shots.

“If you could make these three shots so I can leave, that would be great. Come on, how are you going to ace rifle training but not handgun? I might as well talk to our program director and tell her your future in the Academy and FBI is a deadend. But if she ever needs a sharp-shooter…” And something snapped inside you, and you shot the five targets in front of you perfectly. Alternating between head and chest shots, straight in the middle. Bullseyes. You turned to face Andrew, walked towards him and set your gun in his hand.

“You may leave now.” You walked towards the doors of the firing range and called out. “See you tomorrow.”

“I see.” There was a hint of a smirk on her face as she spoke. “You know you can’t let people get to you like he did. It may have benefitted you this time, but there will come a time where you’ll reach your breaking point and lose your temper at your superior and risk your job.”

“You know about my parents, it’s kind of genetic.” You sighed. “But I will work on it. I know I need to.”

“Good. And I’ll have a word with Andrew about his motivational methods.” You let out a laugh before your session continued.

Thirty-one years old…

You sat in Hotch’s office and your body language screamed ‘angry.’ Your arms were crossed over your chest, your foot tapped against the floor, and if that wasn’t enough, the saying if looks could kill truly applied to you right now. If looks could kill, Aaron Hotchner would be a pile of dust in his chair. But like usual, Hotch’s body language was as usual. Professional, stoic, cold. He’d warmed up to the rest of the team, surprising you that he wasn’t truly emotionless after all. But that persona never came out around you. All that came out was indifference at best. Disapproval at worst, often paired with anger. Disappointment. That’s all you’d ever be, huh?

You had been called to Hotch’s office after you got back from your latest case. You’d never seen Hotch as mad as he was then. To anyone else, it might seem like he got mad because he cared about you and your wellbeing. But that was not the case today. You didn’t follow his orders, and now you were to pay the consequences.

“I am slow to anger, but I toe the line as I think about the effects of your choices on the team. I look back on where we failed, but in every place I checked, the only common thread?”

“Let me guess, me?” You interrupted.

“Your disrespect.” Hotch narrowed his eyes at you.

“You call me inexperienced, a danger to the team.” You leaned forward as you began to speak.

“Agent, if you’ve got something to say-” You raised your hand, cutting him off.

“Name a time and place, face to face. Then we can really talk.” You rested your hands on his desk, matching the expression he was giving you.

“That is enough, Agent Y/L/N.” Hotch spoke after a minute of your stare-down, and you settled back into your seat.

“I’m just an agent, trying to do my best for our team. I don’t want to fight but I won’t apologize for doing what I believe was right.”

“Careful, Y/N, or it’ll be the end of your career at the BAU. Not mine.”

“I won’t apologize for my actions, if that’s what you’re looking for.” You shrugged.

“Then be prepared to meet with me and Strauss tomorrow morning to discuss your placement on this team.” Hotch leaned back in his chair.

“Are you fucking serious? Every agent on this team has gone against orders. Even you have given the middle finger to direct orders several times. I make one call that goes against your orders, one that allows us to save the hostage and take in the unsub, and now you’re threatening my career?” You scoffed and looked your boss in the eyes as you stood up. “Unbelievable.”

“Nine sharp, agent.” Hotch kept eye contact with you as he spoke.

“Oh, I have the honor to be your obedient servant, sir.” You turned on your heel and stormed out of the office, slamming the door as you left.

Today…

You sat outside Andrew Walter’s house, lying in wait. Andrew lived in Baltimore now, having quit his job to work at a local FBI field office. You think a federal agent would have been more private about his life; it didn’t take Penelope Garcia to figure out where he worked. Where he lived. You had been waiting for the perfect moment to revisit him, and now you had it. Now was all waiting for the window of opportunity to hit. The window to open just enough for you to seize your chance and show him what all you had become since you graduated from the Academy.

The last light flickered off in his home and you looked down the street. No cars moving, no sounds of laughter or conversations could be heard from your spot. It was almost eerily silent, but there was a rush of an unknown emotion flooding through you. You tucked your gun into your waistband, snapping your gloves into place, and adjusting your hood over your hat. You got out of your car and walked up to the house, a smirk on your face.

---

“Come in.” Hotch glanced up from his paperwork, JJ standing in his doorway.

“I know we don’t typically take cases only involving one person.” JJ said as she walked over to Hotch’s desk. “The detective thinks there is a possibility it could be related to the Fairfax murder.”

“And do you?” Hotch held his hand out for the file and JJ set it in his hand before taking a seat.

“The possibility is there, but the similarities are basic. Both victims were men who died by gunshots. But our Fairfax victim was married, this guy is single. And in Baltimore. There’s a bit of distance between the two cities, but definitely a doable drive.”

“We’ve seen further.” Hotch opened the file and his brows furrowed. “And he died by gunshot?”

“There was some blunt force trauma involved, but the M.E. says the cause of death was the gunshot wound. All the other injuries were sustained antemortem.”

“Personal?”

“Or was our unsub physically incapable of subduing him before injuring him?” A beat of silence.

“Everyone else is here?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good. We have a case.”

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zevlors-tail · 3 years

Text

Home For The Holidays

A/N: Cheesy title, I know. I wanted to write something sweet for my fav comfort character for the holidays. Shinsou and reader are in a platonic relationship in this. “I love you” is said but again, it’s all platonic. Unless of course you would like to read it as otherwise. Enjoy!

Pairing: Shinsou x Reader (Platonic), Roommate/Modern AU

Summary: Holidays are stressful, and you just need a break.

TW: None. :)

***

Drained. Tired. Exhausted. None of those words can even begin to describe how you feel right now. After two long days of lengthy driving and barely getting any sleep, you’re ready to collapse into your bed as soon you open your apartment door- or you would be, except your mind doesn’t seem to agree with your body. Physically, you want nothing more than to flop face first into your pillow and be done for the night. Mentally…not so much. Your brain just won’t quit, just won’t give up on trying to render you helpless. It won’t shut off, memories of the last two days replaying and continuing to stress you out even when it’s all over already. The holiday is essentially done, all of your goodies stuffed away in the back of your car still (you were too tired to even think about bringing most of them inside for the night), and you don’t have to see any more family. In fact, you cut your stay short and left early, and you sure as hell don’t have any plans to go back there any time soon. But after all is said and done, after you sink down on the couch beside your roommate, you still aren’t able to find enough peace of mind to rest or go to sleep.

Hitoshi shifts to make more room for you on the couch, and you gratefully curl up in the opposite corner from him and stretch out your legs a little. They ache from being cramped up in your car for hours on end. A comfortable silence settles between the two of you for a while, broken only by the sound of metal scraping against…porcelain? You look over to see Shinsou with a bowl of what looks like Kraft mac n’ cheese in his hands, eyes fixed on the TV while he absentmindedly shoves forkfuls of it in his mouth. Suddenly you feel extra tired and hungry, and you can’t help but remember that the last time you ate was this afternoon while you stare longingly at the bowl. If your car clock is correct, then you got back sometime around midnight; that’s at least a full eight hours or so since you’ve last had food. It’s not that you hadn’t been hungry at the time, but you were in such a hurry to pack everything up and make sure you didn’t forget anything before the drive home that you’d forgotten to have something for dinner. And if you're being honest with yourself…you might have been in a rush to leave after the events that transpired. Regardless, you're currently starving, but you lack the energy right now to get up and make something for yourself.

“Want some?” Shinsou shuffles around in his blanket so that his back is resting against the couch while he’s facing you, one hand outstretched to offer the bowl of macaroni and cheese to you. There’s still steam coming from it; it’s still hot and it smells heavenly. “I don’t mind, I was pretty much done anyway.” He must have caught you staring.

As much as you want to say no, your stomach growls loudly before you can even open your mouth, and Hitoshi is all but shoving the bowl into your hands before he moves closer to you and throws half of his blanket over your shoulders to share that too. He’s always so kind to you.

“But you’ve barely even touched it,” you reply flatly. It feels like all of your energy has been sapped. Even talking is taking a toll on you, but still your mind is awake.

“I was just bored. I ate dinner an hour ago.” When he sees you hesitating still, he gives you a thoughtful look and asks, “Would it make you feel better if I shared it with you?”

“Yeah...” It’s an honest answer. Even if he really did have dinner an hour ago, you still feel a little guilty about taking his food. At least this way he can have some too.

Shinsou takes a bite for every five that you take. You’re pretty sure he’s only eating for your sake, but you don’t mind that. You pass the fork back and forth between each other, his warmth at your side a welcome feeling after braving the bitter cold during the short walk to your shared apartment earlier. At some point you realize the utensil never left your hand after he passed it back to you however, and before long the bowl is empty.

“I thought you weren’t supposed to be home until Tuesday,” he prods gently. His eyes roam over your face for the signs he knows so well by now.

“I wasn’t.”

You choose not to elaborate, and he accepts your silence for a valid answer. He’s good at reading between the lines and recognizing cues. It’s what you don’t say, rather than your actual response, that tells him you’ve had a rough time while you were away. The bags under your eyes, much heavier than usual as of late, tell him the same.

As far as you know, Hitoshi doesn’t visit his parents around this time of year. While you went to stay with some of your family, he’d chosen to stay home instead, and you had no qualms with it since it meant you wouldn’t need a house sitter for your numerous plants around the apartment. Now, you’re especially glad he doesn’t go anywhere during the holidays; you really don’t want to be alone right now. After having food and warming up, you feel absolutely beat. You’re achey, weary, beyond fatigued, and finally ready to relax your brain and go to sleep- and Hitoshi’s warm arms seem like the perfect place to do so. You lean into him, eyes already closing in defeat.

He sets the bowl on the coffee table before maneuvering the two of you around so that you’re lying on top of him, head resting just under his chin and his arms wrapped securely around your form. Over time, you've decided there’s no safer place than the lavender-haired man beneath you. Nothing brings you more solace than the strong beat in his chest and the warmth he radiates under the blanket, than his soft gaze that’s so full of care and his genuine smiles that you adore. There are no expectations to meet here, no standards to be held to, no facade to keep up. It’s just the two of you as you are- nothing more, and nothing less. You know Hitoshi will never judge you for anything, will never try to make you be someone you’re not. You can rest easy knowing you’re at home in his embrace.

“Hey…Toshi?” you breathe, your voice barely above a whisper. He makes a soft hum in acknowledgement and runs a hand lightly over your upper back, a motion that soothes some of your aches and relaxes you further. “Can you play with my hair?”

He chuckles softly but runs a hand through some of your loose strands, none the less. You lean into his tender touch, his fingertips gently massaging against your scalp as he does so. His touch feels nice; it melts away the stress of the past two days and eases your mind into a more relaxed state- one where you’re not constantly on overdrive with your thoughts and memories. Things finally slow down, and you start to drift off.

The blanket keeps the both of you warm as you cuddle each other, old reruns of a show you vaguely recognize playing on TV in the background. It’s the only source of light in the apartment- that is, until Hitoshi reaches over for the remote and turns it off for the night. After that, it’s completely quiet. The only sound you can hear is the strong beat of his heart in his chest and his hand running through your hair still. Both of your eyes are closed for the night, and you’re not moving any time soon.

“I’m glad you’re back home,” he whispers against you. “Love you.”

“Love you too.” It’s so quiet you’re almost unsure if you say it out loud, but the way Hitoshi snuggles up closer to you says otherwise.

All those places you visit over the holidays? All the family you interact with? It’s hard to call those home sometimes. But this? Right here?

Hitoshi Shinsou is a home if you’ve ever seen one.

#shinsou x reader #hitoshi x reader #shinsou hitoshi #hitoshi shinsou #shinsou hitoshi x reader #hitoshi shinsou x reader #hitoshi #shinsou #platonic!shinsou #platonic!shinsou x reader #bnha x reader #platonic shinsou #bnha christmas #sweater writes

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themadlostgirl · 3 years

Text

When It’s Cold (5)

*I had different, spicier, plans for this chapter and then the characters took off with the plot and had fluff instead.*

~~~

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! FUCK!

I had been way louder than I meant to. My body was pleased with the after effects of masturbating but my mind was paying the price. I had been peacefully asleep until another naughty dream of Felix entered my subconscious. It was late so I figured he was asleep and I could get away with being a little loud if I got a tad overwhelmed but I had thrown caution to the wind right at the end when I screamed his name.

Hopefully he hadn’t heard but it did nothing to assuage my worries. I need to get a handle on these hormones. Maybe I would feel more in control if I got something. The store sold condoms. At the very least if it turns out that he does want to have sex one day I can be prepared. I set out early that morning before Felix woke up and grabbed a box of condoms as well as some feminine products. I had forgotten I even got a period until I came to Storybrooke and time started its toll on my body which meant my bloody, crampy, moody friend was back to wreak hell upon me.

Maybe that’s why I had been so horny lately. PMS can be a hell of a hormone tornado.

I got back to the house and was happily walking back to my room to drop off my purchase when I heard music coming from the kitchen. Damn. I didn’t think Felix would be awake yet. I tried to sneak past but he caught me halfway through.

“There you are,” Felix said, “I thought you were still in bed asleep. Where’d you go?”

“Quick run to the store,” I waved the plastic bag in my hand.

“I’m making eggs, do you want any?”

“Oh sure, I’m gonna go drop this stuff off in my room first.”

“Okay.” He shrugged, “Oh wait,” he gestured for me to come back.

“Yes?”

He pulled me in for a quick kiss. “Just wanted to do that.”

“Sap.” I tweaked his nose.

I raced up the stairs and dropped the condoms in the drawer of my bedside table and stuffed my feminine products under the bathroom sink. There. Now come period or play time I was ready!

I went back downstairs and sat down with Felix for breakfast. The snow outside had really piled up. On my trip into town I saw a lot of kids out in their lawns making snowmen. Felix and I have stayed cooped up inside this entire time. Maybe we should go have fun outside too. Our entire lives used to be spent outdoors before we came here after all.

I mentioned as much to Felix and he shrugged saying it sounded like fun. We got dressed in our winter attire and I raced out into the snow. “Felix, help me roll!”

“Roll what?” he asked.

“I’m trying to make a snowman. I’ll get started on the lower section, you get started on the middle.”

“Alright then,” Felix stooped down and started rolling a ball.

I got a pretty big base done and Felix came over with his slightly smaller ball to stack on top of it. Felix started rolling the head while I gathered some rocks and sticks to decorate it with. “Arm here, and here, rocks for eyes and a nice rocky smile and ta-da! Snowman! Isn’t he a handsome devil?”

“He’s a pile of snow and rocks, darling.”

“Well how about this,” I dug my finger into the face of the snowman and dragged it down. “There, now he looks like you.”

“You’re hilarious.” Felix rolled his eyes, “He’s a little too short to be me though.”

“Nope. He’s a perfect copy.”

“Well you know what this means.” Felix started backing up, “If there are two of me that means one of us has got to go.”

“Felix! Don’t you dare!” I yelled, “Don’t kill Felix Junior!

“There can only be one!” Felix ran and tackled the snowman breaking all our hard work in half. “I reign victorious!”

“You are a terror!” I grabbed a handful of snow and threw it at him. “I will avenge you Felix Junior!” The snowball hit him right in the head. He stood up and gawked at me.

“You really wanna have this fight, little girl?” He asked as he picked up the discarded head of Snowman Felix. “We’re gonna have this fight!”

“No!” I started running away as Felix raced after me. The severed head of our snowman held high above his own head. I felt the force of it hit me in the back and I went tumbling to the ground.

“Gotcha!” Felix was already forming another snowball.

“Oh no you don’t!” I quickly made another ball and hurled it nailing him in the face. “For Felix Junior!” I started making more snowballs as I got up and started pelting him.

I was laughing my head off as Felix and I dodged around one another throwing snowballs. I got too close once and he grabbed me shoving a clump of snow to my exposed neck! “No! No! Cold! Cold! Cold!”

I dropped to the ground and Felix fell with me. He was hovering over me, that wide smile that only I ever got to see, bright on his cold stung face. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him down for a kiss. Our battle lay forgotten as we sunk into it. His face was cold but his mouth was hot as he kissed me back.

“Truce?” He asked.

“For now.” I shivered, the cold and wet of the snow starting to get to me.

“Cold?” Felix smirked.

“A tad.”

“Can’t have that, can we?” He stood up and helped pull me to my feet. “Let’s get back to the house where I can keep you warm.”

“I like the sound of that.” I held close to his arm as we made our way back to the mansion. I changed into my comfiest and warmest clothes and heated up some hot chocolate for Felix and I. We sat down in the living room where Felix already had a fire going. A bunch of cushions and blankets littered the ground.

I sat down and cuddled up next to Felix. We sipped our hot chocolate while the fire crackled and music from the record player played softly in the background. Outside the snow fell in delicate flakes. It was a moment of pure bliss.

“Did you ever think we’d be like this?” I asked.

“Like what?”

“Cuddled together like we’re old lovers.” I smiled, “I certainly didn’t when I first met you.”

“A lot has changed since then though, hasn’t it?” He matched my smile and planted a kiss to the crown of my head.

“Yes, a lot has changed.” I sighed, “It almost makes me not want to go back to Neverland. I’m just so happy being here...with you.”

“You don’t want to return to Neverland?” Felix really looked at me now. “But it’s our home.”

“I’m not saying that I never want to go back to Neverland I’m just saying that I am really enjoying this time where it’s just the two of us. No other loud boys getting in the way. No hunting for food or sleeping on the hard ground. No bathing in a pond. It’s comfy here. Safe.”

“The privacy is nice,” He traced his thumb along my cheek, “I like having you all to myself.”

“Home can be anywhere we make it. Why not make it here?”

“Is that what you’d want?” Felix said, “To stay here and grow up? We’d become boring adults. The one thing we hate more than anything.”

“I don’t think either of us could be considered boring, adult or not.” I chuckled. “I don’t like the idea of growing old and dying but if you’re there along with me getting wrinkles and grey hairs then I fear it a little less.”

“That’s a big change. A big commitment. Are you sure you’re ready for that?”

“I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready. I don’t think anyone is ever ready to grow up. It just sorta happens. It’s the passage of time.”

“Does this mean you’re done looking for a way back to Neverland?”

“We’ve been searching for weeks. We’re going on two months and we have made no progress. Absolutely none. I think it has to do with the fact that we’re happy here. We’re not looking as hard as we should because we have a good thing going already. Tell me, Felix, if we found a way back to Neverland tomorrow, would you want to take it?”

“Would you be coming with me?”

“That’s not fair. You’re asking that cause you know I would come with you regardless. I am asking if you would stay here regardless of if I was here or not.”

“Wherever you go I go. I know that’s not the question but that’s my answer. You want to go back to Neverland we go back to Neverland. You want to stay here and grow up then I’ll be right by your side for that too. We’re in this together now.”

“Felix, I--” my brain tried desperately to catch up to my heart. What was I feeling? Was this love? I don’t remember the last time I felt love. I can’t even be sure that what I’m feeling right now counts but it is the closest to love I know I have ever felt. That didn’t mean I was ready to say it out loud though. “I am so glad that I have you.”

“I’m glad I have you too.” He kissed me slowly.

The rest of our day passed in a warm haze of dreamy sighs and feather soft kisses. We barely moved from our spot in front of the fireplace. Felix got up to heat up some leftovers for dinner and came to sit back down. The night was growing late and I felt myself nodding off. I didn’t want to return to my lonely bed though. I wanted to remain right here.

I rested my head on Felix’s shoulder and shut my eyes.

~~~

Felix hadn’t meant to fall asleep in the living room. But he didn’t have much choice after you fell asleep on him. He hadn’t the heart to wake you up. Not that he would have dared move from that spot in the first place. It was such a stark contrast to the hormonal hours of makeouts you and he had engaged in over the past several days. Today was all soft touches and meaningful words.

He was surprised when you said you wanted to stay in Storybrooke but what was more surprising was that he wanted to stay here with you too. Wherever you went he would follow. If that meant staying here and growing old then he was proud to do it.

He played with your hair as you slept. You had cuddled up right next to him and next thing he knew you were fast asleep. He gently reclined so he was laying down as well. You curled into him even more. Your head resting over his heart like a pillow.

What he wouldn’t give to go to sleep like this every night. Maybe he could. From the way you talked and how easily you fell asleep next to him maybe you wouldn’t mind sharing his bed. He didn’t even think about how else that could be misconstrued. Sex was an afterthought to the peace that was having you next to him. Your face relaxed and soft snores escaped past your lips.

“I adore you.” he whispered to you as you slept. He pressed a soft kiss to the top of your head and fell into a dreamless sleep with you in his arms.

---

(Previous) (Next)

#felix imagine #felix x reader #ouat felix #ouat #neverland #peter pan ouat #roommate au

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bestbonnist · 3 years

Text

Chapter 141.2

Izumi backstory! IZUMI BACKSTORY!!

OK before I begin analyzing the actual content in this chapter, I'd like to discuss why Fushi is so lenient with Izumi in particular despite having talked to her only once for two seconds. This could be explained by Fushi's tendency to view all humans as fundamentally good, or their wish that Mizuha has a happy life surrounded by supportive people, but I think an exchange from Chapter 125.2 leans towards a different interpretation. After Mizuha shares how Izumi lied about where she got the new hairband, Fushi says this:

Mizuha quickly shuts them down, but when they take Izumi's side it implies that they relate more to her than they do to Mizuha. They later prove that they personally believe this is a reasonable decision when they hide the fact that the world isn't peaceful from their friends later in the manga.

I thought Satoru left in the previous chapter, but no, he's really been dragged to a fast food place at 12:00 A.M. Sumika must be having a fit. He hasn't really done much since he appeared in the previous chapter, but before they disperse for the night he'll probably have something to say.

Yuuki is really, really pushing to do what Hirotoshi did. It suits his optimistic personality but "making Mizuha want to live again" isn't possible. I've said this before, I'll say it again: Mimori was put in a position where she was forced to say she wanted to live, or else someone would die. That's not a choice, and it's not the "living for herself" that Hirotoshi said he wanted her to do. Mizuha and Mimori both lived for the sake of their mothers instead of themselves, and it didn't turn out well. Replacing one botched relationship with another won't change a thing, as Fushi has successfully proven. The relationship between Mimori and Miyabi never developed at all, we were given context and then Mimori was stuffed back into her old life with no elaboration.

The flashback of Fushi's talk with the Left Hand from Izumi's perspective is intriguing, because I think it's from the moment when Fushi was talking with Mizuha, when she asked them to love her and for a hug. Izumi saw that and realized that (1) her daughter has a desperate need for comfort and affection and (2) said need comes from the absence of those things from her family. That's when she had her big revelation, processed it quietly, and then continued to follow Mizuha until the confrontation in the rain where she decided that Mizuha was too far gone to bother saving.

And so we get Izumi's backstory. Fucking FINALLY. So first thing is that she's talented but unable to connect with others just like Mizuha is, but while Mizuha never stops trying to make friends, Izumi doesn't bother being cordial with her classmates. They're both very aware of their pride and look to others to accept it. Izumi's latched onto Mizuha as the only one who can affirm her, and Mizuha's done the same with Fushi.

A little bit of lore surrounding the knockers and Hayase's descendants is sprinkled into the story: "everyone says they were mankind's enemy" means that most people believe that the knockers, at one point, existed, unlike Fushi who's considered a legend or maybe an exaggeration of a real person. The Left Hand has been elevated to a position of power within the Defense Corps. too. Instead of something kept around to serve Hayase's descendants it's now considered holy. Interestingly, the focus of the Defense Corps. also seems to have shifted from Fushi to Hayase. Kahaku has not been completely erased from the narrative like I thought he was, but the way Izumi's dad describes things it sounds like the Left Hand was the one defending Renryrr side by side with Fushi with Kahaku tagging along, when in reality the Left Hand was an impediment. His phrasing also implies that the Left Hand going to Paradise was a chosen ascension to a higher plane of existence instead of Kahaku's effort to destroy it for good that it desperately tried to avoid.

As we see how Mizuha was initially raised, it looks like there was a healthy separation between her and Izumi unlike what they had before she died. Mizuha enjoyed trying lots of different things but it doesn't look like she was particularly skilled at any of them, she was putting her all into it and Izumi was proud of that.

I've been wondering why Izumi ended up marrying a white guy. Visually, it adds contrast to a character who hasn't really done anything other than exist in the background. At first I thought it was to add to the distance between Mizuha and her peers: most of them are of the same ethnicity while she is not. But as I began inferring more about Izumi I also thought she chose to marry someone as far removed from the Defense Corps.—a cult that hasn't garnered enough influence to spread outside Yanome—as she thought possible, which was apparently not far enough. Either this man was raised in Yanome but lied about it, or is a foreigner who moved to Japan, meaning the Defense Corps. got him hooked really quickly, or they do reach outside of Yanome and Izumi never knew.

Although Izumi's husband insists he didn't marry her solely on her dad's orders, his first move after she finds out is to take advantage of Mizuha's distress to get Izumi to back down. Maybe he really does love them, but preserving his position in their family matters more to him than their happiness.

So now we understand a lot more about who Izumi is as a person, and even if the next chapter doesn't finish this flashback we can still infer what happens next. Izumi and Mizuha were quite similar when they were younger. But the key difference, and what caused Izumi to raise Mizuha in the way she did, was her stubbornness. She needs Mizuha to be the proof that she's in the right, which she thinks will give her hope to live, by having Mizuha follow in her footsteps and succeed where she failed. Anything else would be akin to admitting defeat, and Izumi will not. If Mizuha's running into a brick wall, she shouldn't change direction: she just needs to push harder.

The final panel where Izumi's clinging on to Mizuha mirrors the one where her father grabbed onto her in their cluttered house on an earlier page. I think that says enough on its own.

#fumetsu no anata e #to your eternity #to you the immortal #fnae #fnae spoilers #fnae manga spoilers #fnae anime spoilers #present era #new world arc #chapter 141.2 #izumi #fushi #immo #mizuha

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kahans · 3 years

Text

(so the background behind this is basically that it’s the night before/of finnick’s 16th birthday and a week before snow held an auction to see who would get to sleep with him first. don’t ask me for that scene because it hasn’t been written yet)

title: victor’s crown book ii: lover’s war (title is a wip shhhh) status: incomplete word count: 1284 fandom: the hunger games characters: finnick odair, mags flanagan, random capitol ocs warnings: nonexplicit allusion to child prostitution other notes: don’t be expecting a whole lot from this lol it was not beta-ed and it was written in like a half hour

o-o-o-o

They come for him at midnight.

Finnick is lying on the couch with his head in Mags’ lap, doing his best to calm his unsettled nerves. He feels a little foolish, curled up next to his mentor like a small, frightened child, but he can’t bring himself to move. His proximity to Mags, the one person anchoring him to his composure in a storm of anxiety, is no longer a privilege. It is a necessity. Her hands, thin and lined with sinew, card through his hair. He tries to focus on the sensation of her fingertips against his scalp instead of the vicious whirlpool of trepidation stirring in his gut.

An hour earlier, Aurelia had come in bearing an armful of supplies to prepare Finnick for his big night. While she assembles her station of makeup, she gives Finnick a list of exercises to perform, for which he is grateful if only because it gives him something to do. He runs a couple of laps around his quarters. He does a few pushups. At Aurelia’s behest, he lugs a few weights up from the gymnasium and works with those until she tells him to stop. He isn’t quite sure what the point was if she wasn’t going to let him get in a full workout, but he suspects his first admirer won’t want to meet him smelling of and drenched in sweat.

While his flesh is still warm and his blood quick, Aurelia begins applying makeup with a swift but deliberate hand. She lines his eyes with a dark pencil and dusts his eyelids with brown. To Finnick’s dismay, she pinches his cheeks and instructs him to bite his lips. When he protests, she says, “I could apply lipstick instead,” and he hurries to comply.

Once his skin has been sufficiently prepared, she gives him an outfit to don: An elegant evening jacket dyed the deep blue-green hue of the sea hangs neatly over a crisp white dress shirt, accompanied by a pair of black pants. His shoes are equally shiny and also look brand new.

“Calliope sends her regards,” Aurelia says. Of all the outfits Calliope has stuffed him in in the past, this is certainly not the worst. Nor the best. Finnick wonders who ordered this made; surely this suit didn’t spring from her wild imagination.

His question is answered when Vesper arrives exactly at midnight. Unlike Aurelia, he is almost glowing with frenetic excitement, bouncing on the balls of his feet like a child who just won a prize. His expression crumbles when he spots Finnick curled up on the couch, suit rumpled, hair in disarray, eyes shadowed and hollow with worry and lack of sleep.

“What in the world are you doing?” he demands, scurrying over to where Finnick is sprawled. Mags’ hand moves from his head to his shoulder, innocuous to Vesper, but protective to Finnick.

“It’s late, Vesper,” Mags says coolly. Something about her countenance must warn Vesper that arguing could end very badly for him, so he rounds on Aurelia instead. “Why did you let him lie down?” He flaps a hand at Finnick. “Get up! Get up before your suit gets wrinkled!”

Finnick doesn’t obey immediately. He glances up at Mags, who looks down at him, expression ever unflappable but indubitably compassionate.

Head up, my boy, she reminds him, not with her voice but with her eyes. You are victor, and you wear the victor’s crown.

“There’s my beautiful grown up victor!” he crows at the sight of Finnick, gleaming and adorned like some kind of relic. They do not allow statues to be erected of anyone except notable Capitol figures in the districts, where their only legal objects of worship are Snow and the ideology his administration represents. But in the Capitol, Finnick has seen dozens, if not scores, of figurines and synthetic replicas of past victors, bronzed and painted and perfect, in every corner and cove of the city. “Aren’t you excited?”

It’s my birthday, he thinks somewhat dumbly. I’m sixteen years old. He should be home right now, celebrating with his family. His father should be letting him try his first taste of District 4′s prized champagne. His mother should be sewing on an official sailor’s patch onto his uniform to designate him as a full crew member of the fishing fleet. Perhaps she would make him the lovely fish-shaped cookies he once so loved, one for each year of his life.

“Well done, Aurelia,” Vesper says. “It’s just what Miss Poppywright wants, I’m sure. Is he ready? Have you gone over expectations with him?”

“Expectations?” Finnick echoes, at the same time as Aurelia says, “Of course.”

Vesper shoots Aurelia a scathing look, but her defiant expression remains unchanged. “He’s already frightened enough, Vesper. Why make him more nervous? He’ll figure things out when he gets there.”

“Yes, and have him be the laughing stock of the Capitol,” Vesper replies sarcastically. He turns and fixes Finnick with an appraising glare. “Finnick, it is your duty to make this night spectacular for Miss Poppywright, do you understand? No mistakes. Just pure charm from you and absolute enjoyment from Miss Poppywright.”

Mags makes a noise of protest in the back of her throat, half rising from her spot on the couch. “Vesper--”

“Margaret,” Vesper interjects, and Finnick coughs back a noise of surprise at the use of Mags’ full name. “I hope you remember that Finnick’s conduct tonight, and for every night after this, will reflect back on all of us.” He makes a little circle with his finger to illustrate his point.

It takes a moment for the implications of Vesper’s warning to sink in, but when they do they sit in Finnick’s gut like an anchor and do nothing to quell his mounting dread. Whatever he did tonight would have an effect on everyone from Aurelia to Mags to his loved ones back home.

A familiar sense of apprehension flutters in him now, of a weight and intensity he has not experienced in years. The last time he knew this kind of panic, he was playing for his life in an arena, where his every decision had been like dipping a single finger in surface of a still pool of water: Even though the initial point of contact was small, the ripples, the effect of the action, could still be clearly seen. From simple disquiet, alarm rises unbidden, a tidal wave gathering out to sea. He instinctively looks to Mags.

“It’s all right, Finnick,” she says, rising from the couch. She stands in front of him, and even though he’s been taller than her since before she became his mentor, he’s never felt smaller. “You’ll be all right. Just remember what Aurelia told you. Listen to what they have to say, and say what they want to hear. That’s all they want.”

Be who they want you to be, not who you really are. The advice offered from Finnick to a nervous tribute seemed to have been spoken a lifetime ago. Look at how much good it did him, a little voice in his head pipes up.

“It’s after midnight,” Vesper says, breaking Finnick’s reverie with a wave of his manicured hand. “It’s not like he’s going off to war or something. He’ll be back tomorrow.”

Mags swallows, inhaling a deep breath through her nose. “Go on,” she says softly. “I’ll see you soon.”

Though it’s almost painful to muster, Finnick manages to put on a confident smile. “Don’t worry about me, Mags,” he tells her. “These people can’t help but love me.”

With a goodbye wink to Aurelia and a half-hearted salute to Mags, he turns and follows Vesper out the door.

#thg #lit #mine

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jcmorrigan · 3 years

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I saw the tag- I am gonna ask you about the crossover universe- (omg I’m literally gushing about this)

OH, IT IS TIME!

So you can find a lot of this on the “What is the WHAM ARMY?” page on my blog – I’ll try to remember to link it; I’m drafting this in a word processor first so I don’t use it. Essentially, this is the universe I’ve created for my fanfic “Taking Back the Crown,” which is about…basically my favorite villains all moving into the same house and trying to take over the multiverse. And then it got lore. And more lore. Because I cannot write anything normal. The fic is nearing its 150th chapter and I’m nowhere NEAR exhausted of all the ideas I want to put in it – it’s just my big playground for hyperfixation fun. Anyway, here’s a rundown of the major points of it!

THE CAST

The main characters are the eight villains who are the founders of the WHAM ARMY. The faction name is an acronym of their first initials. They’re my ultrafaves, the villains I always get fluttery heart for, and probably the biggest collection of losers you can imagine. I’ll put them in order of the acronym and give you some background on how each entered the team.

Wuya (Xiaolin Showdown) – So the connecting factor between these people is that Mozenrath (his name is a few slots down) is their team leader and the one who decided to build a team in the first place. Wuya was recruited when Mozenrath found her puzzle box in an ancient vault. This is set post-series for XS (and Chronicles is not at all canon), so what had happened is in the big Showdown right after Raimundo was named team leader officially in the finale, the Xiaolin Monks won ALL the Shen Gong Wu to their side and stuffed Wuya in the box. So Mozenrath found her and let her out so they could be pals. A magic potion let her regain human form fairly early on, and her power isn’t even nerfed either the way Chase Young would’ve done.

Huntsman (American Dragon: Jake Long) – ADJL is also post-series in this timeline. Mozenrath has the power to resurrect people from the dead at will because he’s memorized an ancient and incredibly complex ritual that he can execute mentally (note that this means you can remove this ability from him by tampering with his memories). The Huntsman was resurrected so as to show Mozenrath around the old Huntsclan vault (which is where they found Wuya’s puzzle box). No other Huntsclan member survived the purge except Rose (and 88 and 89, but they don’t count and aren’t in this story), so the Huntsman is starting from square one.

Ayam Aghoul (Aladdin: The Animated Series): Basically just got sick of losing. He’d teamed up with a few other rando Aladdin rogues to try and pick a fight with Maleficent, and she sent him packing. So he ended up finding one of the few residents of the Seven Deserts who was powerful enough to match him AND had a similar grudge against Maleficent.

Mozenrath (Aladdin: The Animated Series): The man of the hour and the creator of the entire team. He starts the fic by crashing Maleficent’s KH Disney Villain alliance and trying to add himself to it, but…ends up being such a disrespectful nuisance that Hades just drags him straight down to the Underworld. That moment inspired him to get his OWN band of friends and start making a name for himself.

Archibald Snatcher (The Boxtrolls): Met Mozenrath in the Underworld after his death in film canon. Annoyed Hades one too many times by claiming that he wasn’t actually supposed to die, seeing as he isn’t allergic to dairy (he is), so Hades threw him in the same cell as Mozenrath and…

Roman Torchwick (RWBY): I started writing this fic in 2016, immediately post-V3, so it’s canon-divergent after the last episode of V3 (but I got all the later-game characters to show up eventually). Which means Roman is ALSO dead at the start of this fic. He ALSO comes storming up to Hades insisting he’s not even supposed to be dead. At the same time as Snatcher is already pestering him. Which is how Mozenrath, Snatcher, and Roman end up in the same jail cell in Tartarus and get the idea that maybe they should break back into the world of the living and try to build something BETTER than what any of the three had beforehand.

Mad Madam Mim (The Sword in the Stone): Mozenrath, immediately after breaking out of the Underworld, attempted to take over Arthur’s kingdom by just walking in and throwing magic around. It backfired horribly when Merlin showed up. But then Mim showed up to counter Merlin and realized that maybe she had a potential friend here who was as blackhearted as she.

Yzma (The Emperor’s New Groove): Post-TENG, no KNG or TENS (but I reference things from TENS every now and again). Merlin turned Mozenrath into a rat, so Mim brought him to Yzma’s Secret Lab to change him back. There, they found Yzma as a cat, and she so desperately wanted out of her living situation that she added herself to the team. She was also restored to human form shortly thereafter.

There is a potential ninth member of the core in the form of Vexen (Kingdom Hearts). KH is canon-divergent after DDD and basically ignores almost every game that comes out after Fragmentary Passage. Vexen, as Even, was trying to integrate into life as a hero in Radiant Garden, except everyone annoyed him way too much, so he decided to go be with people that would give right back any insults he dished out. And then realized he was much happier being on the evil team and doing mad science with no ethics. However, he will not be promoted to the upper ranks because 1. it would spoil the acronym and 2. he is unanimously agreed-upon to be the biggest wet blanket of the group and nobody wants him at the founder parties.

(Imagine my disbelief when the actual canon arc for Vexen was THE REVERSE ONE IN WHICH HE JUST DECIDES TO GO LIVE AT RADIANT GARDEN AND NOT BE ANNOYED BY ANYTHING and that’s why JC doesn’t like Kingdom Hearts III)

Anyway, this crew is a bunch of silly friends who enjoy partying, singing, dancing, drag, indulging in vices, causing mayhem, taking over cities, arranging for mass murder, piecing together smear campaigns…but they’re all pretty much ride or die for each other. And that goes double for the ships of the set: Mozenrath/Huntsman, Mim/Aghoul, Wuya/Yzma, and my favorite ship to end all favorites, Roman/Snatcher (RedHatBlackHat is the ship name).

From there, you have a B-Squad of, like, seventy other people based on my faves. Nonnie, I know you saw this because of Vincent Edgeworth, Victor Blake, and Albert Krueger, and they are three of COUNTLESS examples. It’s a found crime family that keeps getting bigger as I get more fave villains and there’s hardly a rhyme or a reason. Currently, they live in a floating fortress designed when they stole Terra Cyclonia (Storm Hawks) and hefted it out into the aether between worlds with crystal technology.

They have a rival hero faction in the form of the Cinnamons: a gathering of people who they’ve wronged who turned out to make pretty good friends themselves. While the WHAM ARMY are the villain-protag team that you feel slightly bad loving the escapades of, the Cinnamons are the rainbows, fluff, sunshine, (secret crippling depression and anxiety), and pep-talkers of the multiverse. They’re the deuteragonist team as opposed to the “villains” of the story. They also have eight “leaders,” but they were picked up a little less quickly than the WHAM ARMY founders, instead coming together over the span of a much longer quest. These people are:

Sora (Kingdom Hearts): Heart of the team and the person who pulled them all together, because Sora loves everyone. He, Riku, and Kairi witnessed the WHAM ARMY wreaking destruction on both Radiant Garden and Disney Castle, and Sora decided no one gets to treat his homes-away-from-home like that and get away with it! Between Mozenrath and the still-looming threats of Maleficent and Xehanort, he’s now collecting pals from all worlds to fight against evil and do as much good as they can do! (While having sleepovers.)

Ruby Rose (RWBY): Before she, Nora, Ren, and Jaune could get into Mistral, Sora interrupted them on their path and directed them right back around to Vale with the news that Roman Torchwick was back in action. After an incident involving the Destiny Trio and Team RNJR having to team up and actually kill the massive Grimm unleashed in the V3 endgame, they all headed out to Radiant Garden together to continue their mission.

Papyrus (Undertale): Sora found him while exploring worlds and they clicked immediately as pals. Then the WHAM ARMY, who was living in Mt. Ebott at the time, sparked an anti-monster racist sentiment through the town, and Papyrus was advised to leave the world for his own safety, so he went traveling with Sora.

Stork (Storm Hawks): Maleficent, who is also an active player in this game, made a power play by destroying the Condor with the entire Storm Hawks team onboard while they were on the Far Side of Atmos (post-series). Stork, believing himself to be the only survivor, attempted to take his own life – only for Sora to show up just in time and offer him something better: hope that his friends survived, and new friends to tag along with until they could prove either way.

Jasmine (Aladdin): The Cinnamons came looking to Agrabah for more information on Mozenrath. When Jasmine heard he was causing chaos, she decided to get personally involved.

Katara (Avatar: The Last Airbender): Post-ATLA, no LoK. Sora made a trip to the Fire Nation to see if he could head off the WHAM ARMY’s latest scheme, and ran into the Gaang along the way. After helping Katara, Aang, and Zuko protect the Fire Nation from a very near miss, Sora invited them to come travel with him. Only Katara accepted at first, the other two wanting to clean things up on their homeworld.

Kazuichi Soda (DanganRonpa): Post-SDR2, no DR3. Xehanort requested Izuru Kamukura be used as a vessel, and Kazuichi went in Izuru/Hajime’s place so his buddy didn’t have to. But the first chance he got, Kazuichi turned and ran from the Castle That Never Was…where Sora had just crash-landed. Kazuichi patched up Sora’s ship, and immediately became part of his crew. (Worth noting: in this AU, the Remnants of Despair were never brainwashed and were completely aware of what they were doing. Kazuichi is basically a redemption story, trying to be a better person to make up for the hell he caused. Also, while on the Despair side, he’d hacked off his leg to sew Junko’s in its place, disabling himself – that leg goes through an arc regarding what prosthesis is in its place.)

Rapunzel (Tangled): After the Vardaros arc of S2 of Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure. Rapunzel was targeted by the WHAM ARMY because she was essentially a living MacGuffin for one of their spells. Sora showed up, and Rapunzel decided to go along with him for safety AND fun, leaving Cassandra to continue the pilgrimage to the Dark Kingdom. (Wrote this before KHIII was out. And before the Evil Cass twist.)

And just like the WHAM ARMY, these folks have a huge B-squad that lives in the Radiant Garden castle and helps them deal with the various tragedies they have to clean up after. Riku, Kairi, and Jaune Arc in particular get a decent amount of stage time.

As you can see, Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty/Kingdom Hearts) and her forces are another big set of chess pieces on the board! After she sent Mozenrath to gay baby jail and it didn’t stick, she’s been trying to continue plans for domination as usual but ALSO wipe the WHAM ARMY off the face of the multiverse. She, Jafar (Aladdin), Ursula (The Little Mermaid), and Hades (Hercules) all came straight here from KH. But I’m working to model that team’s inner circle on the team in “Quite a Glittering Assemblage,” the sister fic by gavillain (it’s basically this premise but Maleficent gets a team to start instead, but similarities end there, his is a whole different, fresh, and fun flavor). I’ve just gotten all these characters intro’d instory, but the other biggies are Loki (Marvel – I based him in the Cinematic Universe but he’s kind of just an amalgamation of Lokis), Dr. Doom (Marvel), Captain Hook (Once Upon a Time), Russell Edgington (True Blood), and Fish Mooney (Gotham). Currently, they operate out of the Forbidden Mountain in the Enchanted Dominion.

There’s also a very new addition as of the 140’s chapters: the Heathens. This is a squad of villains with moral lines in the sand (and some antiheroes or corrupted heroes). Basically, these aren’t your killers for fun. These are the people who steal candy from the gas station and think they’re slick, but the point is they’re enjoying themselves so just let it happen. The four founders of this one are Harley Quinn (DC – based on The Batman but an amalgamation of Harleys that leans sympathetic), Yang Xiao Long (RWBY), Giovanni Potage (Epithet Erased), and Velvet Crowe (Tales of Berseria). Currently, they operate out of the old mansion in Twilight Town.

The Xehanorts are here, and that team is largely who you think it is – though I stripped away Vexen, Demyx, Marluxia, Larxene, and Luxord in order to replace them ALL with Xaldin. More crossover shenanigans to come on this front. This team isn’t very active – they’re waiting for the Keyblade War – but they’re operating out of the World That Never Was.

There’s also another side villain faction: the Morbians, led by Mirage (Aladdin: The Animated Series). These are the demons of fear, the stuff that lurks in your nightmares, and…the villains I really like but who I don’t quite think fit in with the WHAM ARMY or any other more prominent group. But to give you an idea of what the flavor of this team is, she’s recruited not one but TWO Boogeymen – Pitch Black (Rise of the Guardians) and Oogie Boogie (The Nightmare Before Christmas).

There will be more villain factions to come, and I kind of want to splinter the Cinnamons to multiple bases as well. Obviously it’s easier to split villains up because they’re fun to write at war with each other – when I have hero teams come up against each other, usually they end up becoming best buddies instead of fighting, and that’s how I like it, but that’s why there’s just ONE BIG HERO TEAM as opposed to the many villain squads rattling around.

THE SETTING

So as you have probably gleaned, the multiverse setup is largely based on Kingdom Hearts, which is one of my favorite things (in the KH1 through Fragmentary Passage era anyway). There are many worlds that can be visited either by Gummi Ship or Corridor of Darkness. Basically any evil-aligned sorcerer can use Corridors in this ‘verse – they’ve opened their souls to Darkness and have magic, so they can do so.

The implication is that every world represents a separate “story” or part of one. As in if it’s a work of fiction HERE, it’s a world THERE. Some characters are actually savvy enough to know they’re fictional (e.g. Megavolt from Darkwing Duck, Xayide from The Neverending Story). Most of them aren’t built to handle the news, though, and just shrug it off if told. (No, really, the cosmic order prevents them from taking that news seriously if they’re not from something that regularly leans on the fourth wall anyway.)

But sometimes, things get AU’d in without their full worlds. I was inspired by how Final Fantasy is treated in canon KH, and once I started bringing in more FF stuff by the same method, I felt motivated to do that with MORE fandoms if I felt the characters could be divorced from their settings and histories easily. I’ve done it for most Disney Channel non-animated properties as well as Satellite City (ain’t that the worst combo you’ve ever looked at). I’m planning to do it for Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn because I’m coming up on a location I want to delve into the civilization of but don’t have many canon characters for, so guess what, you get the FE cast now.

Major worlds or relevant locations in play are the Cyclonian warship, Radiant Garden, Twilight Town, and occasionally the Enchanted Dominion, but we move from plotline to plotline with journeys to many, many, MANY worlds of things I want to play with the settings and casts of. Also, the Cyclonian warship is about to get replaced with another WHAM ARMY base; we’ll get there.

THE STORY

For the first major “book” of TBTC, the WHAM ARMY has found a spell that they think will let them conquer the entire multiverse by giving them control over Kingdom Hearts itself. All they have do to is collect a bunch of MacGuffins that correspond to twelve elements: fire, water, earth, air, light, darkness, life, death, time, space, entropy, and aether. In order to do this, they visit the worlds of KH, RWBY, Avatar, Storm Hawks, Okami, Undertale, Wakfu, The Legend of Zelda, The Neverending Story, My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, and many many more. The Cinnamons catch wind of what they’re doing and start assembling. Meanwhile Maleficent is on the hunt for the Book of Prophecies and starts hiring villains on her team as well. After many madcap adventures and some devastating tragedies near endgame, the Cinnamons accidentally put the Book of Prophecies in Maleficent’s hands at the same time that Maleficent finally captures Mozenrath and gets him under heel. The WHAM ARMY and Cinnamons both launch attacks on Maleficent’s forces, and each walks away with what they came for. This is also the part where we slowburn up to the four major WHAM ARMY ships and many Cinnamon ships. In the end, the WHAM ARMY actually gets all the ingredients for their spell, but what they don’t know is it will actually cause the DESTRUCTION of the worlds. So an outside force intervenes (Discord from MLPFIM, who later joins the WHAM ARMY because he wants friends who actually appreciate him as a villain and won’t make him change) to stop them, and the next thing they know, they’re starting from square one.

We’re now in the second “book” of this story. The Cinnamons are gathering up all lost friends – the rest of Team RWBY, the Gaang, the Storm Hawks (who did in fact survive the explosion), the lost KH characters. The WHAM ARMY, on the other hand, is gathering up more villains to bolster their forces for a new evil plan: to conquer the worlds one by one, starting with Atlantis (Disney’s Atlantis: The Lost Empire) and using portals to link to other territories of interest. While the WHAM ARMY is essentially working through a to-do list of what they need before they can launch such a massive invasion, the Cinnamons are finding strength in numbers because the writing’s on the wall that between Mozenrath, Maleficent, Mirage, and Xehanort, things are going to get worse before they get better, and as evil builds, good will need to rise to protect the innocent. As for Maleficent, she’s no longer able to chase the Book of Prophecies, and so, because she’s got Hades, Loki, and Salem (RWBY) there and they’re all like “Even though we’re pretty godlike, we are not that happy with how the gods we knew have run things,” Maleficent’s new goal is to slaughter the gods of all pantheons (minus those in her care) and replace them with her allies.

Anyway, as I had said in the post you saw, Anon – I basically take everything fictional I love and shove it into this AU for daydreams because it lets me imagine my faves having CROSSOVER INTERACTIONS and doing cool epic stuff on a multi-world scale. (But as much as I’ve talked up the epic aspect, a lot of it is just…like…people fucking around and hosting karaoke nights.) Anyway, I hope this gave you a good sense of the madness, and I hope it serves as a reminder to everyone that they can and should just. Make a daydream and/or fanfic universe that’s indulgent as hell. Just do it.

#wham army #tbtc #long post #i considered a read more #but i hate the tiny text on my blog #i need a new blog theme

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cordonian-literature · 4 years

Text

The Aftermath - Ch. 3

More Visitors

Summary: The Beaumonts find out about Riley’s condition

A/N: I know the last chapter was Liam and Drake, but their first encounter with Riley is actually here, in the preview. Check it out if you haven’t yet!

Word Count: ~3.4k

Warning: Mention of character death

*All characters belong to Pixelberry, except those that are unique to my story (I’ve also used some characters and fictional instances from Donna Tartt’s “The Goldfinch”)*

Catch up here!

Tags: @captain-kingliamsqueen @marshmallowsaremyfavorite @gkittylove99 @lovablegranny @loudbluebirdlover @mom2000aggie @kingliam2019 @queenrileyrose @shanzay44 @cordonianroyalty @hopefulmoonobject @hopelessromanticmonie @cinnamonspongecake

- Maxwell -

“If it be true that thee shall not cease insulting mine own family nameth, then I dare thee to a battleth!”

“A hurlyburly thee sayeth? Well, then I'll seeth thee on the dueling ground!”

“Ah, but this isn't a normal battleth, because I dare thee to a breakdance hurlyburly!”

“But I knoweth not how to doth the breaketh danceth!”

“Thou art a blinking idiot, and were bound to loseth!”

“Uncle Max, why do I always have to play the character that loses?” Bartie tosses his copy of the script on the coffee table.

“Because I’m the one with the killer dance moves!” Maxwell strikes a pose. “You only get to where I am after a lifetime of practice, muffin, and you’ve still got a long way to go.”

“But can’t you lose to me at least once?” Bartie picks up the booklet and starts flipping through the pages. “Like how you pretended to lose to Count Appleton in a rap battle, but then won against him in another rap battle in the next scene!”

“That was to catch him off-guard! I gained his trust and then his respect,” Maxwell argues

“Don’t you want my character’s trust and respect?”

“Your character keeps insulting my character’s family name!” Maxwell cries.

“Whatever.” He throws the booklet back down. “I’m going go to my room for a little while.”

“Wanna run through your fork placement again?”

“No, I’m okay. I’ve got it down. Thank you, though.” Bartie heads up the stairs towards his room.

“I’ll see you at dinner, muffin,” Maxwell calls. He plops onto the couch and begins to reread his script as Savannah walks into the room.

“So how was rehearsal?” she questions. “Did you get a chance to teach Bartie that move you were talking about?”

He shakes his head. “No, we didn’t get to it. Don’t think the little muffin is interested in breakdancing, so I won’t bother him anymore.”

Savannah doesn’t say anything. Maxwell had started working on his breakdance opera years ago after he tried to finish his novel but then gave up on it, claiming the topic was too depressing. He tried his best to get Bartie interested in his opera, even though Bertrand said it wasn’t appropriate for a boy of his status to be learning how to breakdance instead of perfecting the Cordonian Waltz. In the beginning, Bartie was thrilled that he got to spend more time with his Uncle Maxwell, but as time went on the boy became bored and started to look more towards Uncle Drake for some fun — which Bertrand thought was even more inappropriate (”My boy should be learning how to properly host the royal family, not learning how cut wood or put up a tent!”), though he allowed it after Savannah insisted — and so Maxwell felt increasingly alone at Ramsford.

He could spend some time with Liam and Drake in the capital, but both men were so closed off lately that the air around them would become stifling. He wanted to plan a trip to Shanghai so the Beaumonts could visit Hana, but Bertrand was always so caught up with maintaining the estate — and he never let Maxwell help him — that a moment to relax as a family was uncommon.

At dinner, Bartie half-heartedly explained to his father how his lessons had gone. Bertrand asked Bartie if he wanted to do some work with him tonight, just to get a feel of what it was like to run the estate, but Bartie simply shrugged and walked off without finishing his dinner.

Bertrand was about to go after him and demand Bartie to return to his seat, but Savannah put a hand on his shoulder and told her husband to let the boy go.

“He’s not feeling too well lately,” she reasoned. “Let him go. If he wants to talk to us he will.”

“There is no reason for him to be behaving in such a manner. I will remind him tomorrow morning, and I will make sure he sits with me... he needs to learn how to run the house sooner or later, and the former would be most preferable.” Bertrand took a sip of his wine.

Even though House Beaumont’s finances had improved tremendously over time, Bertrand was still obsessed with keeping everything in order, almost desperate to make sure there was no chance of any sort of decline happening again. He wouldn’t hear anyone who tried to tell him that he should take a break or loosen up a little.

“Go easy on him,” Maxwell suggests. “He’s been working really hard on his lessons and barely gets any time to go outside.”

“He needs to spend his time learning all he can so he can be a reputable duke when the time comes!”

“Bertrand, please,” Savannah says. “He’s just having a couple bad days. It’s normal.”

Bertrand sighs. “I don’t understand why he feels this way. Just last week he was fine. What happened now?”

“He went to Drake’s this weekend, so maybe he misses him,” Savannah speculates.

“I’ll call him up later,” Maxwell declares. “It’s been a while since I’ve talked to my old pal. I kinda miss him, too.”

The three finish their meal in quiet, but Maxwell sits impatiently for the moment he could jump up and go call Drake.

After their plates were taken away, Maxwell said his good nights to Savannah and Bertrand and raced up the stairs towards Bartie’s room.

He knocks on the door and waits for Bartie to unlock it. “Yes?” Bartie says.

“I thought we could give Uncle Drake a call! It’s been a couple days since you’ve seen him and it’s been a while since I’ve talked to him.”

“It’s barely been two days,” Bartie scoffs. “But alright, I guess.”

Bartie goes to sit next to Maxwell on the edge of the bed and leans in while they wait for Drake to answer the FaceTime call.

He declines the call. Maxwell calls again, Drake declines again.

“Maybe he’s busy?” Bartie wonders aloud.

“It’s more likely that he just doesn’t want me bothering him.” Maxwell’s phone vibrates. “He texted me!”

On flight. Will call in morning.

“He’s traveling? Where? Do you think His Majesty sent him away again?” Bartie asks.

“I don’t really know. Hopefully he’ll keep his promise and call back in the morning. Until then there’s not much we can do.” Maxwell sighs and stands up, ruffling Bartie’s hair. “Good night, muffin. Sleep well.”

In his room, Maxwell lays in bed thinking of all the places Drake could be going. Olivia was the one who led independent investigations and never told anything to anyone else until she was sure of what she had, so it was unlikely Drake had gone to find something upon her suggestion. Maxwell had tried to reach out to Riley through social media, but soon after he contacted her, she’d deleted all of her accounts, blocked his number, and blocked his email — then when they tried to trace her number through Olivia’s phone, they reached a dead end.

Drake on the other hand, did work together with Maxwell and Olivia, but also with the division of the King’s Guard that Liam had made to search for Riley. Their king was constantly sending out people to thoroughly examine every place that yielded even the smallest hint of a lead. Rarely was anything found, and when it was, it was either useless or highly questionable.

Recently, they were having difficulty finding new leads — they had already checked so many places around the world that it was hard to think of any place they may have disregarded. That was when Liam and Drake started distancing themselves even further. Maxwell knew they usually spent time together near the end of the week, but when Drake suggested Bartie visit over the weekend, Maxwell knew that both men had started losing hope.

The next morning during another quiet meal, Maxwell noticed Savannah stealing glances at her son.

“Did Uncle Drake call you back yet?” Bartie directed his question towards Maxwell.

“No,” Maxwell said, his mouth stuffed with blueberries and waffles. “I’ll check in on him in a few.”

Bertrand continued the conversation by telling everyone what he planned to do for the rest of the day. Maxwell could tell that he was trying to get Bartie to want to work with him. He was glad Bertrand wasn’t pushing Bartie too much, and was sure that Savannah had probably talked to him about it last night.

After breakfast, Maxwell gave Drake a call, but it went straight to voicemail. Maxwell left a message asking Drake to get back to him.

In an attempt to get Bartie out of the house before his tutor showed up, Maxwell went to his door and tried to persuade his nephew to go on a jog with him.

“Maybe later,” Bartie called out from inside his room. “I’m a little tired right now.”

Some time after noon, Drake still hadn’t called back. Finishing his lunch, Maxwell decides to give Drake a call to make sure everything was alright.

The phone rings for so long Maxwell thinks Drake isn’t going to answer, but then hears his voice from the other side: “Hey, Maxwell.”

“Drake!” Maxwell shouts. “What’s happening? You said you’d call this morning but then you didn’t.”

“Sorry about that,” Drake’s voice doesn’t seem directed at Maxwell, who can tell that he’s distracted. “Got caught up.” There’s people talking in the background, but Maxwell can’t tell who it is or what they’re saying.

“So where did you fly off to?” he asks.

Drake doesn’t answer. The people in the background keep talking. After a few seconds, Drake’s voice is more purposeful when he says to Maxwell, “Listen. Liam and I are in New York. We’re with Riley.”

The rest of Drake’s monologue cuts out as her name echoes through Maxwell’s mind.

Riley? Our Riley? They found little blossom? How long has it been? Ten years? Almost eleven? Feels like a hundred.

Are they there to bring her back? Does she even want to come back? Would she want to see me, the person who set in motion the series of events that led to her name being dragged through the mud, to her disappearance, to heartbreak?

“New York?” Maxwell finally brings himself to speak through the lump in his throat. “Little blossom’s in New York? When did you find out?”

“Like I said, we found out just last night.” Maxwell didn’t want to mention that he wasn't listening when Drake had said that.

“Is... is she alright? Have you talked to her? What did she say?”

“Pay attention, Maxwell,” Drake scolds through his teeth.

“I was paying attention! But if you would be so kind as to repeat what you said....”

“She was visiting a museum and there was a bomb. She’s in New York Presbyterian, and we’re here, too. She got a serious head injury and had surgery on Sunday. Her legs are pretty beat up, but the doctor says some rest will help her get back on her feet within a few weeks.”

“Where is she?” Maxwell yells. “Are you with her?”

Drake sighs. “No, not at the moment. The doctor and a nurse checked her and said they wanted to take her for another CT scan to see if there was anything they might have overlooked.”

“So you... you didn’t speak to her at all?”

“I didn’t, no, but Liam did before they took her away. He won’t tell me what she said.”

“So she is talking, right? She’s alright, technically? Nothing permanent?”

“I don’t know, Maxwell. I’ll let you know what happens when they bring her back.”

“Let me talk to her. I want to see my little blossom,” Maxwell requests. Drake says something, but his voice is far away. He’s talking to someone else, and doesn’t bring the phone back to his ear. “Drake? Hello?”

The line disconnects. Maxwell stands there, shocked. His feet were rooted in place as he stares down at his phone.

Did they really find Riley? If they did, could they convince her to return?

I was the one who convinced her to come to Cordonia in the first place. I should be there helping bring her back.

“BERTRAND!” Maxwell shrieks, running out the room towards the study.

“What happened?” Savannah screams as Maxwell flies past her.

“BERTRAND!” he calls again, announcing his arrival.

When he opens the door to the study, Bertrand is on the phone, staring at Maxwell with a grim face. “My apologies, sir, but I will have to call you back,” he says to the person on the other end, hanging up. He stands. “What on Earth was that Maxwell? I’m on an important phone call and you come dashing in, screeching my name like a banshee! Do you understand how incompetent that looks?”

Maxwell knows he’s about to be at the receiving end of another one of Bertrand’s never-ending lectures, but he doesn’t care. He’s jittery and out of breath, but in between pants manages to say, “Liam and Drake found Riley. They’re with her right now. We have to go.”

Stunned, Bertrand takes a step back. “Riley?! Uh, er... Lady Riley?” He clears his throat, composing himself, but can’t get the words out. “They’ve... they’ve.... Where is she? His Majesty is with her?”

“In New York. Yes, he's there with Drake.”

Bertrand blinks. He finally manages a solemn voice and asks, “She is well, I hope?”

Maxwell shakes his head. Moments pass, with Bertrand deep in thought. Maxwell worries about what his brother will say next.

“Everything alright in here?” Savannah walks in. “Saw Maxwell run past and wanted to make sure that nothing was wrong.”

“His Majesty and Drake have found Lady Riley.” Bertrand’s voice is more prominent now.

“What?” Savannah brings a hand over her mouth.

Confidently, he declares, “Maxwell and I will be joining them in New York as soon as possible. I am sorry to leave you and Bartie, my dear,” he sighs, “but we must go. She is still House Beaumont, after all.”

After a moment, Savannah says, “We’ll come with you. I want to see her, too, and I know Bartie would enjoy the trip.”

Bertrand’s mind is already racing, and he doesn’t have the heart to tell his wife that he wants her to stay here. She seemed certain of herself, and so he would not dissuade her. “Alright then,” he replies.

“Aw yeah!” Maxwell cries. “Family vacation!”

“Yes, yes, now go pack,” Bertrand commands. “I’ll prepare a flight for us. We must go quickly. Time is of the essence.”

...

On the flight, Maxwell and Bertrand anxiously look out of their windows. Savannah talks to Bartie about the appeals of New York — after him and his mother had come back from Paris, the family had never taken Bartie out of Cordonia, and since Bertrand was persistent in having Bartie receive his education at the hands of tutors, the boy was never given the time to travel with his family, nor did he have any friends who could either relate to him or tell him tales of their travels.

Eventually, Bartie gets tired and takes a nap. Maxwell feels tired as well, but the excitement to see Riley again doesn’t stop sending jolts through his body. They were so close to her. So close to having her with them, and having everything be the way it should have been from the beginning.

Hours later, he wakes up Bartie and tells him that they’ve landed.

Once they’re out of the airport, Bertrand manages to tag down a driver. They drop off Savannah and Bartie at the hotel where they got a last minute reservation. When Maxwell and Bertrand are outside the hospital, Maxwell jumps out of the car and races inside.

“Maxwell!” Bertrand calls in a stiff whisper. Maxwell slows down and matches Bertrand’s pace. They walk up to the receptionist, who’s having a discussion with a doctor. They wait for her to notice them, and after a few moments Maxwell debates running off to try and find Riley’s room himself, but Bertrand clears his throat and asks, “Excuse me, could either one of you direct me towards Miss Riley Brooks? She’s a patient here, I believe.”

The doctor looks up. “Are one of you her designated support person?”

“No, not exactly—.”

“We’re family.” Maxwell chimes in. “We just heard what happened and flew in from Europe.”

“Visiting hours are over,” the doctor says. “You fellas can come back at nine in the morning. ‘Til then I can’t help you.”

“You will tell me where she is or you will face the wrath of House Beaumont’s lawyers!” Bertrand shouts.

“Beaumont? That your last name?” the doctor interrogates.

“Yes and—.”

“The lady’s last name is Brooks. Clearly, you guys aren’t family. I’m gonna need you two to leave. Unless you want me to get security?”

Bertrand looks at the doctor, fuming, ready to give him the worst tongue lashing the man has ever experienced, but someone grips his and Maxwell’s shoulders.

“They’re with me, Doc,” Drake says. “I’ll take them to Miss Brooks and there’ll be no more trouble. Sorry for the inconvenience.”

Drake leads the two of them away from reception and towards the ICU.

“Drake!” Maxwell exclaims, putting an arm around his friend’s shoulder. “Thanks for that. We really needed it.”

“Yes,” Bertrand adds. “It was much appreciated. Now, where is Lady Riley?”

“Did they find everything alright after the CT scan?” Maxwell asks.

Drake sighs. “Riley’s asleep right now. Today must have been stressful for her, I imagine. You guys can talk to her in the morning.”

Maxwell is about to repeat his question when he notices Liam sitting in the ICU waiting room, looking at the floor. “Liam!” he calls.

When Liam looks up, Maxwell looks in shock at his red, swollen eyes.

“What happened?” Maxwell breathes. The air in his lungs is suddenly painful.

“She—,” he looks back down and speaks slowly, as if every word sent a stab to his chest. “She didn’t remember me. She looked me right in the eye and asked me who I was.” His voice cracks, and he puts his head in his hands.

Maxwell takes a seat next to Liam, but says nothing. Bertrand stands in shock, staring at his king breaking down. Brows furrowed in confusion, he looks at Drake. “What does that mean?”

“She lost her memory.” Drake answered in a quiet voice. Every word seemed to break him. “The doctors didn’t tell us everything, but they told us that they doubted she even knew who she was. After they brought her from the CT scan and explained everything to her, she started crying. Her mother was there, too. She’s actually a nurse here. They’ve decided to question her tomorrow, to try and figure out what she remembers and doesn’t remember. Some detectives are also coming in to question a couple victims. They’re hoping to find some information, or at least something that’ll help them connect some dots.”

“Little blossom doesn’t know who we are?” Maxwell asks, as his shoulders begin to shake.

Bertrand manages to maintain his composure, though his voice cracks a couple times when he says, “Well. There’s nothing... there’s um... nothing we can do at the moment.” He clears his throat. “Have you two been able to acquire any accommodations?”

Liam sits up, his face wet. “Yes.” He sniffles. “Though we haven’t actually been to the hotel yet. We’ve been here for... oh, a little less than ten hours.”

“Your Majesty I believe it would be wise to spend the night at the hotel and rest. Tomorrow’s going to be a long day. Perhaps the doctors will let us ask questions as well.”

"Thank you, Duke Bertrand, but I would rather stay. Drake, if you want, you can go and get some sleep. I'm sure you need it. I'll be fine right here."

Drake, Maxwell, and Bertrand share a silent look, then take a seat near their friend. Bertrand sends Savannah a text, telling her that him and Maxwell will not be returning to the hotel tonight.

#the royal romance #cordonia #liam x mc #liam x riley #kingliam #liamrys #drakewalker #maxwell beaumont #olivia nevrakis #trr #trr riley #rileybrooks #choices fanfiction #trr fanfic #trr fandom #theroyalromance fanfic

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sethrine-writes · 4 years

Text

Daughter of a Devil, Ch. 21

Main Characters: Father!Dante & Daughter!Reader

Words: 850

Warnings: Fluff, Sweetness

Story Summary: Being a parent wasn’t easy, nor was there such thing as being perfect at it. Good news for Dante, seeing as how he doesn’t have the slightest idea in hell what to do with a child. Sometimes, he was certain that fighting off a horde of demons was a far better match than keeping up with his own daughter. Well, at least he wasn’t going down without a fight.

A/N: Just some sweet Father-Daughter moments. Also early upload because I have no control of my current sleep schedule. Enjoy!

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Chapter 21 - What Only A True Man Can (5 yrs.)

Silence was a very rare, very uncommon thing to occur within Devil May Cry.

Usually, there were people of all sorts coming in and out of the shop in hopes that the infamous Dante would be able to help them with their current demon problems. Sometimes, even demons would come barging in and wrecking the place before Dante had the chance to cut them down.

Then there were those days that Lady came over; those days had to be the worst for the half-demon, especially when you found out she was there for a “visit.” It was hard enough getting the woman to leave on her own merits, but when you were involved and so very much happy to have Lady’s attention, it felt as if he would never get her out of his hair.

That day, however, things were different.

Lady wouldn’t be coming by until much later that night instead of the usual late morning trips she liked to make. No demons had dared to enter the establishment, be it through the front door or the roof. Dante had put up a dusty sign in the front of the shop that said CLOSED: Come Back Tomorrow in bold, green letters, something he had never done before since starting the business. He had even so much as unhooked the phone from the wall so as not to be disturbed by any phone calls that would surely be coming his way.

That very day was different, because you had asked him with big puppy dog eyes to take a day off so that you could play together. And who was he to deny such a request from his own daughter, the one and only girl that could make him do damn near anything she wanted with just the slightest pout of her lips and the biggest crocodile tears the world had ever seen?

So, with a charming smile, he had patted your head and agreed to take the day off, just for the two of you to have some fun. Little did he know of the exact “fun” he had gotten himself pulled into.

Currently, he sat on the freshly swept wooden floor of the main room, just in front of his desk. In front of him was a wide display of things you had pulled out in order to start off your little play date with your father, gifted toys from Lady and Morrison and even a few clients wanting to pull at his fatherly heartstrings. There were three dolls lined up neatly together surrounding a faux china tea set and a plate of actual cookies he had ordered from the bakery a couple blocks away, your favorite.

You were standing just beside him, tying off yet another spotted ribbon in his hair and adding a bright red clip to pin his bangs back, the ends sure to be sticking up at odd angles. You stepped back a few steps to look at your father and smiled, clapping your hands together happily.

“Daddy looks so pretty!”

Dante smiled back as you moved to sit right across from him on the floor. He knew full well that his hair was nothing short of a disaster and had more clips and ribbons than any doll could handle. But he continued on without a care as you proudly puffed out your little skirt and pulled your braided hair -a braid he had done himself, thank you very much- over your shoulder.

“And you, my darling, are looking quite lovely this afternoon, I must say.”

You giggled at your father as he reached forward and took hold of your hand, giving it a small little kiss as a gentlemanly salutation.

“Thank you, good sir!”

You then proceeded to point to each of your neatly aligned dolls and stuffed toys, telling Dante their names and basically their whole background history. He had even gone so far as tipping his head to each one and giving them a compliment. It was all part of the atmosphere of the game you had pulled him into, a game that would last for the next couple of hours with tea, cookies, dancing, and a crash course on etiquette as explained by your five-year-old mind.

Dante was sure that most anyone who was to enter the front door would give him a once-over and simply double over in laughter, taking him more as a joke than the infamous devil hunter he was known for. Some would perhaps even question his sanity. There would be that one, however, who would understand, because he would have been put in a similar, if not the same, situation.

‘Let them laugh,’ he thought as you giggled and twirled about the hardwood floors, your eyes shining with mirth and a bright smile lighting your face. You were happy, and that was what mattered to him most.

It took a true man to be with his children, to understand what they needed most from him and how he could best provide for them. Well, it just so happened that Dante was that kind of man.

#dmc #devil may cry #dmc dante #devil may cry dante #reader #reader-insert #female reader #Daughter of a Devil

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athingthatwantsvirginia · 4 years

Text

Catherine, Heathcliff, and Shangri-la

PART TEN OF THE DO YOU SEE HER FACE? SERIES

Pairing: Jess Mariano x Original Character (Ella Stevens)

Warnings: mentions of death, smoking, plentiful pop culture references

Word Count: 4.9K

Summary: Though she plans to spend her birthday alone, Ella ends up passing time on the late August evening with Jess, eating old pie and playing cards.

She looked like a dream in her sundress. Late August light bathed the crowds at the summer festival, and Ella practically glimmered when Jess spotted her from across the square. It made him feel like an idiot thinking the way he was, but she had an effect on him which he’d previously only read about in books. He wasn’t sure exactly when the tipping point had been, when he’d truly fallen in love with her, passed the point of no return. But he had. And he was. He loved a girl who didn’t believe in love, who wasn’t into dating, who didn’t feel the same. It had never been so complicated before, and he’d never been so completely screwed. There were moments, times when his heart nearly burst from the hope. When she laughed at one of his wiseass remarks, or ran her fingertips over the notes he’d left in the margins of her poetry books, or let her eyes linger on him for just a second too long. But each time, she would brush it off, act like nothing had happened. And he’d be forced to wonder if he’d imagined the electricity passing between them.

Slowly, over the course of the summer, he was beginning to come to terms with it. Maybe they could just be friends, coworkers. Maybe all he needed was to make out with Shane until his lips were swollen and his mind was blank and his memory would be wiped clean of all the times Ella had made him feel deeper than he ever had before. Besides, he had never fallen in love before, had never uttered the three fateful words in all his seventeen years. A small part of him believed he could snap out of it easily.

He took his eyes back from her form, concentrating on the girl in front of him. The girl who wanted him and nothing more. Who meant nothing but ease and pleasure. Sliding his hands down in her back pockets, Jess closed his eyes and placed kisses down Shane’s neck, the bark of the tree they leaned on rough against his back.

. . .

“She’s back with a vengeance!” Ella exclaimed, wrapping her arms around Rory in a gleeful embrace.

They stood together near a flower stand, the fragrant display adding sweetness to the air. Despite the barber shop quartet droning on in the background, Ella felt her spirits lift at the sight of Rory Gilmore, her confidant missing in action over the summer at an internship in Washington. In the back of her mind, Ella couldn’t help reminding herself that soon, she would have to deal with the constant separation. Rory would be off at Harvard, Lane would be touring with her band (hopefully), and Ella would be stuck. As she always had been. She’d have to fill Rory in on how the college applications were going later.

Rory laughed happily, pulling away from Ella and holding her at an arm’s length. “Yes, and with all the hot DC gossip.”

“I’m intrigued,” Ella said, raising an eyebrow.

From behind them, Lorelai beamed, her own face painted with joy, her daughter back in town. Ella loved that about summer. It had a special kind of magic no other season could manage, positivity radiating from everyone, dampened only by the occasional rainy day.

“Alright, let’s go find Lane, and we are in for a movie night of epic proportions!” Lorelai announced, strolling around the square with the two teens in tow.

Before they departed completely, however, Rory followed Ella’s distracted gaze to the old oak where Jess stood, eating his girlfriend’s face.

“Oh, God!” Rory exclaimed, scrunching up her face in disgust.

Ella blushed, Rory having noticed her staring. She hadn’t meant to. But seeing the two of them together, considering the many fights with Shane the summer had brought, gave her a feeling of irritated uneasiness. Like a car crash she couldn’t look away from. Morbid interest feeding morbid interest in a vicious, voyeuristic cycle.

Tilting her head to the scene in question, Lorelai scoffed. “Guess he’s got his ‘What I Did This Summer’ essay all planned out.”

“I know,” Ella groaned. “America’s youth really does have such admirable modesty.”

Snorting a laugh, Rory shot a knowing look at her mother. “Have they been at that a lot?”

Ella nodded, speeding up in her stride a little to get out of view of the display. “Yep. It’s now part of the Early Bird Special at the diner. Dinner and a show.”

Lorelai faked a gag. “I told you. The kid gives off major Sid Vicious vibes.”

“Looks like he’s found his Nancy,” Rory added.

“And he’s been so weird at work lately. He barely talks to me, just sits on his little stool. Reading, brooding, scaring off small children. Maybe I pissed him off. I don’t know,” Ella said. She fiddled with the chain of her necklace.

“Um….Ella?” Rory began, bringing a hand to the blonde girl’s shoulder. “Do you not realize you’re the Catherine to his Heathcliff?”

Ella scoffed, laughing breathily. “What?”

“He’s totally into you!” Lorelai exclaimed.

Raising a brow, Ella rolled her eyes and kept walking. She crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. “Very funny.”

“Every time he looks at you…” Lorelai said, feigning a swoony look. “It’s sickening.”

“Yeah, right. I bet it’s Rory he’s into,” Ella argued, shrugging them off once more.

“Oh really?” Rory asked skeptically. “Then why does he make those notes in your margins? In the poetry books he said he hated when he first got here?”

“It’s mutually assured destruction,” Ella explained. “If he stops taking a chance on poetry, I’ll stop taking a chance on the beats. The arguments would ensue, the diner would descend into chaos. In an effort to avoid certain death during our shifts together, we compromise.”

“Ah, the key to a strong relationship’s foundation,” Lorelai retorted.

Snorting a laugh, Ella shook her head. Without the flowers and the serenity of solitude, the less desirable aspects of the festival began to wear on Ella’s psyche. The barber shop quartet spun around and around in her head, making her dizzy, and the sun beat down on them. Stray strands of hair, fallen from her bun, began to stick to her damp forehead.

Suddenly, an idea occurred to Ella. “Rory, my dear?”

“Yes?” Rory answered with suspicion.

“You know how you always give me presents on my birthday even though I tell you not to?” Ella asked.

“I’m aware of the annual birthday commiseration,” Rory said, nodding.

“Well, I’d like to request, as a birthday present for your favorite waitress, a moratorium on the Jess talk until I am seventeen years and one day old,” Ella suggested, fluttering her eyelashes jokingly.

Sighing, Rory linked her arm with Ella’s. “Alright, but only because you asked so very nicely.”

“Good to have you back, Thelma,” Ella smiled fondly, pulling her friend a little closer.

“Same to you, Louise.”

Lorelai chuckled and shook her head, watching as the girls ascended the steps to Lane’s door.

. . .

Mercifully, Ella had made it through the day with minimal birthday wishes and no attempts at gift-giving. Lorelai and Rory had teased her about a surprise party, but she knew they wouldn’t truly dare. Instead of going home, where she knew she’d have to brave Fiona’s pathetic attempts at celebration, she wandered around town aimlessly. It made her feel guilty to snap at the woman so much, but she just couldn’t help herself. Watching Fiona, only twelve years her senior, traipsing around in her house, humming the Dixie Chicks songs she knew her mother would’ve hated. Before she could apply any rational thought to the decision, she found her way to the bridge. The greenish-black water sparkled in glowing moonlight. Crickets sung and cicadas buzzed, a low summer tune. She hung her booted feet over the edge, the black cotton of her dress pooling around her knees. Rifling through her shoulder bag to the side, she found a copy of The Grapes of Wrath. A perfect book to sustain her gloomy mood. She laid back against the wooden planks of the pier, holding the novel above her face, blocking out the view of the clear night. The humidity had dissipated, and a cool breeze blew past her.

A few peaceful moments had passed before she heard footfalls thumping heavily, vibrating beneath her back. She sighed as the noise got closer, letting the book fall to her chest and rolling her eyes.

“Stealing my spot, huh?” Jess spoke up as he approached, shoving his hands in the pockets of his jeans.

“Sorry, didn’t realize you’d bought the property.”

“Touché.”

Though Ella still hadn’t looked over at him, she heard him sit down next to her. She could smell the subtle mixture of hair gel and pine.

“By all means, sit down,” she snapped, sitting up again, placing her scrap of construction paper back in the book to save her place. She stuffed it back in her bag to the left. Fiddling with the end of the loose braid which hung over her shoulder, she sighed again.

Jess scoffed. “Jeez, Daria. Don’t pull your punches.”

“Bite me, Jess,” she replied flatly, staring out across the water. In the light, she knew she would’ve been able to watch schools of tiny grey fish whizzing by. As a child, she’d imagined small mermaids living in a crystalline village beneath the surface of the dull silt and sand.

“Feelin’ pithy tonight?” he drawled, an eyebrow raised.

“You could say that.”

He only nodded, leaning back on his palms. Silence stood between the two of them, heavy in the nighttime air. Ella almost put her nails to her mouth, then thought better of it. When Jess still didn’t speak, she huffed out a big breath and finally tossed him a glance.

“Don’t you have someone to verbally abuse at the diner or a girlfriend’s face to suck or something?” she asked.

Jess shot her a look. Before he could even respond, Ella spoke again.

“As long as you’re here, could you loan me a cigarette?” she asked, a shameful blush coloring her cheeks. As much as the request embarrassed her, she couldn’t stand the way her skin was crawling.

“What?” Jess blurted out, eyes wide. “What happened to the periodic surgeon general’s warnings?”

She sighed, dropping her gaze to her lap and clearing her throat. “I’ve gotta keep you on your toes, don’t I?”

Though slightly flabbergasted, Jess’s eyes shone fondly, remembering the carriage ride they’d taken at the Bracebridge dinner so many months ago. After a moment, he produced a crumpled packet and a lighter from his pocket and handed them to her.

“Thank you,” she muttered, placing a cigarette between her lips. It surprised her that he actually obliged, considering how stand-offish he’d been at work lately. The lighter struck on the first try, the small orange flame flickering warmly in the darkness. And Jess could tell immediately it was far from the first time she’d smoked. She handed the supplies back to him.

He took a cigarette of his own and lit it up.

“Don’t tell Luke,” she said, voice slightly husky as she exhaled the first puff of smoke. Her words came out in dim blue clouds.

“I wouldn’t dare,” he replied, tapping ash into the lake and watching it burn out. “Your secret is safe, Stevens.”

“Thanks. I’ll consider it a birthday present,” she grumbled, feeling the familiar burn of smoke in her chest. She knew she would regret the decision in the morning.

“It’s your birthday?”

“Yep.”

“Happy birthday,” he said reflexively, eyebrows raised.

Scoffing bitterly, Ella flicked ash off her cigarette with her thumb. “Thanks, Mariano.”

“Is that why you’re gonna bite my head off at the next wrong move?”

She laughed humorlessly. “Yeah, birthdays aren’t my thing.”

“Huh. And I guess that’s why no one said anything at work?”

Ella nodded. “Yeah, after a few crying customers last year, Luke ordered the diner a birthday-free zone.”

“Wise of him.”

“It was.”

Regarding her in the moonlight, Jess sighed. “Any particular reason for the birthday allergy?”

Swallowing harshly, Ella brought her free hand to her necklace and a smirk formed on her face. “It’s just...my mom was a big birthday person. Without her here, it just all feels a little artificial. It’s weird. The anniversary of the day she died never hits me as hard as Mother’s Day, or today.”

He nodded, solemn as she continued.

“I try to spend as little time at home as I can. And Rory and Lorelai always try to get me to do something,” she said, pausing to inhale deeply and blow out a stream of smoke. “But I am nothing if not pertinacious.”

“Nice. Ten-cent word.”

“Thanks. Used it in the crossword this morning. I’d say it’s at least twenty cents,” she said, scoffing in mock offense.

Jess chuckled. “Alright, I’ll cave for the birthday girl.”

“How kind of you.”

Crushing the smoldering butt of her cigarette on the weathered bridge wood, Ella exhaled out her nose and crossed one leg over the other. She smoothed her hands over her dress. Somewhere, a loon cried. Jess sat quietly beside her, the last of his cigarette glowing as he inhaled. When he put it out, he stood up and made to leave. Ella didn’t say a word, didn’t even look at him. After a second of thought, he held a hesitant hand out to her.

“Let’s go back to the diner,” he proposed with finality. “We can eat the leftover pie. There will be no birthday talk whatsoever. I promise.”

Looking at his hand, Ella thought of the book in her bag. The hours she could spend alone with nothing but Steinbeck to entertain her. But then, she felt a sudden rush of courage at the thought of Luke’s. Free of people, with pastries under the glass domes on the counters and stale pies in the back fridge. And Jess. She heaved a sigh, then slung her bag over her shoulder and grabbed his hand.

. . .

“No way,” Jess said, shaking his head doubtfully as he took another bite of the pie.

Ella smiled, nodding. “I swear. I was named the worst dancer out of all the little girls ever taught at Miss Patty’s by the Gazette. I was responsible for the domino incident of 1992 which caused two sprained ankles and one broken arm. Suffice it to say, the arm was mine.”

“Jesus,” Jess laughed, his eyebrows raised.

“Yeah, I’m Patrick Swayze’s worst nightmare.”

Jess rolled his eyes and threw his head back with a dramatic groan. “I’ll never understand your fixation with those cheesy eighties movies.”

“You bite your tongue, heathen,” she said lightly, digging another bite from the cold apple pie in the tin between them.

“Well, at least we can agree on Steinbeck,” he shrugged through a laugh.

She nodded and sighed tiredly, brought a hand to her necklace.

The diner shone brightly against the otherwise dark landscape of Main Street. Ella could hear Luke snoring from all the way upstairs, but it was almost comforting if not amusing. With the leftover pie between them, she and Jess sat alone amongst chairs stacked on tables and cutlery put away. It smelled vaguely of disinfectant, but the pine was still there, making her heart feel just a touch less broken. Maybe being alone wasn’t the best way to pass one of the hardest days of her year.

“I’m surprised she still even lets you step foot in the studio, leaving that much carnage in your wake,” Jess said, smirking at the way the tension slowly released from her shoulders.

Snorting a laugh, Ella took another bite of the pie. She could tell it was made from her recipe, heavy on the cinnamon. “Well, the years have improved my coordination a little bit.”

“But have they?” he teased.

“Shut up,” she retorted, good nature in her voice.

A comfortable pause filled the air. Jess’s eyes caught her thin fingers still rolling the silver chain of her necklace. She blew up a long breath and straightened up, putting her fork back down in the tin, the half-pie almost all the way gone.

Nodding, Jess swallowed dryly and bit at his lip. “Why do you wear that necklace every day?”

Eyes widening, Ella couldn’t help but feel taken aback by the question. She let out a self-conscious scoff and her hand immediately dropped away from her collar. The small silver charm, a key, glinted in the yellow diner light.

“My grandmother gave it to me,” she explained, her tone even though she avoided his eyes. “It’s the key to the jewelry box she had when she was little. The box got lost, but the key stayed. She was a singer. Friends with Miss Patty. Pretty fucking cool.”

Jess smiled a tiny smile. “Sounds like it.”

“Yeah,” she replied, the word a sigh. Then, after a beat, she regained her direct nature and looked him in the eye. “Okay, since we’re asking questions tonight: why the hell are there bongos on the shelf above your desk?”

Jess laughed, but his cheeks reddened a touch. “Those were there when I moved in. Scout’s Honor.”

She rolled her eyes. “You are the last person in the world they would ever let into the Scouts.”

“Wow, that one hurt.”

Ella smiled. “Then what’s Luke doing with those bongos?”

“Preparing for a Matthew McConaughey,” Jess shot back knowingly.

“Ugh, that image is gonna be burned in my mind forever,” she groaned, nose scrunching up in disgust.

“You’re welcome.”

“Fuck you,” she said, grinning.

“Right back at ya.”

Suddenly, a loud snore came from the floor above them.

“Speaking of,” Ella grumbled, only in mock irritation.

“Like you don’t snore.”

“Only when I’m drunk,” she said, then looked up at him, accusatory. “But you. Oh my god, it was all night long. Really, the two of you put together could probably break some sonic records.”

Instead of retorting, Jess retrieved his weathered deck of cards from one of his jean pockets. He raised his eyebrows as a challenge and began shuffling. “Just for that last comment, you’re about to be massacred at Rummy.”

. . .

A knot of anxiety sat in her stomach, but work was helping her keep it at bay. It was the last Saturday of summer, Monday the start of senior year. But the waves of butterflies fluttering around in her chest weren’t ones of nervousness, more only of dread. The constant drudgery of school work, the monotony of the day. She liked summer for more reasons than the mood and the weather. Free time to read, to draw, to paint. And she much preferred painting the full greenery over the desolate landscapes of a Connecticut winter. The fact she hadn’t seen Jess since the night before, when she left the diner satisfied with herself for winning three hands in a row, was doing nothing to calm her either. After cleaning up from the breakfast rush, Ella was mindlessly reorganizing the mugs on the cubby shelf to the left of the counter by color and size.

“Alright, this is ridiculous,” Luke admonished, walking up behind her.

She scoffed. “It’s not my fault these mugs haven’t been reorganized since Reagan was president.”

“Because they were the last ones you hadn’t got your hands on. You’re starting to sound like Taylor.”

Instantly, she turned and narrowed her eyes at him. “The next time you say that to me I’m turning in my apron and never looking back!”

Luke scoffed in disbelief at her dramatics. “Just take your break, Ella.”

“You think I’m bluffing,” she warned, untying her apron and leaving it on the hook near the kitchen window, “but I’m dead serious.”

“I’m quaking in my boots,” Luke replied flatly, gathering some receipts from the side of the cash register.

“I bet,” she shot back, rounding the corner and going to dig through her bag, hanging by the front door. “Is Jess here? I’ve got a book for him.”

“Upstairs,” Luke said shortly.

Retracting her hand from the shoulder bag, with a worn collection of Dorothy Parker, she rolled her eyes. She tucked her hair behind her ears and prepared to disappear behind the checkered curtain on the way to the stairs.

“Has anyone ever told you you’re a master conversationalist?” she asked.

“Shaddup,” he groaned, waving an annoyed hand at her in the direction of the apartment.

Ella snickered, then bounded up the stairs, the soles of her old converse a little slippery on the creaking wood. She heard the TV droning on from inside, daytime Saturday shows. Only a couple short knocks sounded on the door before she let herself in, as she had so many times before when fetching random items during her shifts.

“Hey, Jess-” she began, turning to the left, Jess’s room.

Cut off by a sudden flash of noise, she watched Jess stuff a blue mesh vest quickly into the top drawer of his dresser. Eyes wide with surprise, he faced her with a scowl, brows scrunched up.

“Ever hear of knocking, Daria?” he snapped.

Processing the scene before her, Ella blinked a couple times and bit the inside of her cheek. “Sorry. Guess I was too quiet.”

“Apparently.” He crossed his arms over his Punk Planet t-shirt and looked at her expectantly. “You need something?”

Ella cleared her throat, looking down at the book in her hands. “Yeah, I had that Dorothy Parker I was telling you about last night and…” she paused, glancing at his dresser. “I’m sorry, Jess, but I simply can’t ignore this. Was that a Walmart vest?”

“What?”

“You heard me.”

He straightened up, defensively. “No.”

“Really?”

“You heard me,” he shot back.

Pursing her lips, she nodded, unconvinced. She stepped a little closer to him, one hand on the hip of her skirt. “So, what was it?”

“A shirt.”

“A shirt with a Walmart logo on it?” she asked, her voice gaining a teasing lilt.

Jess scoffed. “I think you need glasses.”

A momentary staring contest ensued, and she watched him squirm under her hazel gaze. “Do you work at Walmart, Jess?”

Sighing through his nose, Jess glared at her. Then, he ran a hand through his hair and side-stepped Ella, making his way to the kitchen. “Fine. Yes. You happy?”

Instantly, a smile spread wide on her face. “Oh, so very happy.”

“Glad to hear it,” he growled, avoiding eye contact as he popped open a can of soda. He sat down at the kitchen table, facing the I Dream of Jeannie rerun.

Biting back her giggles, Ella came over to take the rickety kitchen chair next to him. Clearing her throat, she put the book in her hand on the table between then. She smoothed her slightly wrinkled Patti Smith t-shirt and tried to appear nonchalant, a smirk ever-present on her lips. Jess sipped his soda, eyes dark and moody, embarrassment underneath a thin layer of irritation. Nearly five minutes passed on the oven clock in the small kitchen, both of them watching Barbara Eden’s foibles in silence. Ella bit a little at her nails, but only to mask her amused expression.

“So...all this time...Shangri-la was Walmart?” she asked.

Jess sighed, rolling his eyes. “Eleanor-”

“You work at Walmart,” she repeated, chuckling a little.

“Whatever. You smoke,” he countered.

“Like, twice a year,” she said defensively. “When did you even start that job?”

Bowing his head slightly, Jess finally dropped the act a bit. “June. When you were in New Britain.”

She sighed, nodding, then brought a hand to his arm. “I’m really proud of you. I mean, you can’t waste all your people skills at the diner.”

Jess shook her off and rolled his eyes again. “Shut up. I move stock around on a fork-lift in the back.”

“Okay, tough guy.”

“And don’t tell Luke,” he said, finally looking her in the eye.

She shrugged. “Fine, I won’t. Cross my heart.”

“Thank you,” he snapped.

“You’re very welcome,” she replied, still grinning. “Seriously, though, it’s not that lame. Trust me. I think it’s cool. You have your own thing going, y’know?”

Jess scoffed in doubt but said nothing more.

Clearing her throat, Ella shifted her eyes down to her lap for a second, the tone of her voice changing. “But enough about your double-life, Mr. Bond. I just wanted to bring you that book. And also thank you for last night.”

Jess raised a brow, eyes on the TV screen. “For what?”

“I don’t know. If you hadn’t come along, my plan was to read Steinbeck at the lake, then sneak home and listen to Nirvana through my headphones,” she explained. “But instead I got to eat old pie and kick your ass at cards.”

“Such a sore winner,” he muttered, cracking a little smirk.

She laughed quietly, her fingers finding their way to her necklace. “And sorry if I was...I don’t usually talk about my mom. Not exactly a crowd-pleasing topic. Just on Mother’s Day and my birthday, I...You didn’t have to listen.”

“Don’t worry. I don’t do things I don’t wanna do,” he said, casting her a momentary glance, a small, lopsided smile on his face. It was more genuine than she was prepared for, and she had to look away as her cheeks heated up.

Rising from the table, she made to leave, hoping not to overstay her welcome. “Anyway, thanks. It was the best birthday I’ve had in awhile.”

Running a hand over his mouth, Jess blew out a breath and faced her fully again. “Anytime, Stevens.”

He looked as though he were about to say something more, but she could practically see him swallow it down. Instead, he got up from his seat and switched off the TV. Going over to his side of the apartment, she watched him grab a CD from the top of a small stack on his dresser. She couldn’t quite read the cover, but could see it was filled with shades of black and red.

“How long do you have left on your break?”

Ella looked down at her watch then back up at him. “Still have about twenty minutes.”

He nodded, gesturing to the CD. “I get fifteen percent off at the store, so I picked this up the other day. Just came out. It made me think of you. I thought you might wanna listen?”

“Oh,” she said dumbly, surprised. She nodded. “Yeah, yeah, sure. As long as it’s not jazz.”

“It’s not,” Jess assured her, chuckling.

As he opened his closet and brought out the small stereo, she took a few steps closer, arms crossed. She couldn’t help the fluttering in her chest or the way her cheeks flushed with heat. In all the time she’d known Jess, she couldn’t remember ever feeling quite so anxious around him. Quite so antsy. She almost couldn’t explain the feeling, but it wasn’t one she minded.

“I would’ve shown you last night if I knew it was your birthday,” he mentioned as he pressed play.

As the music started, he suddenly didn’t know what to do with himself. Sit on the bed? On his desk chair? Instead, he leaned on the desktop itself, hands stuffed in his pockets. He regretted the decision already, showing her the music. He’d meant to do it at some point, during one of their friendly book exchanges. But then the air between them had become charged again, and she was about to walk away from the moment. He wanted it to last just a little longer, time with the one person in Stars Hollow he actually enjoyed being with. Even if she didn’t feel quite the same as him, even if she never would.

Ella felt the slight vibrations of the music in the soles of her soles as she stepped closer to the stereo, picking up the CD case from his dresser. She turned it over in her hands. Turn on the Bright Lights by Interpol. It surprised her she hadn’t heard of them before; Lane usually kept her in the know about such things. They must have been very young, very new. But she liked it, the echoing guitars and the drums. Judging from the back cover, the song to which they now listened was simply called “Untitled.”

“They’re good,” she said, putting the case back down. “Different. I like it.”

Jess shrugged. “Figured you would. What with all that sad shit you listen to. The other songs are a little more lively. They’re no Fleetwood Mac, but…”

Walking closer still, she stopped when she was only a couple feet in front of him. Her heart beat with the music, and she swallowed dryly. Something was clicking in her head.

“Jess?”

He looked up, and his brown eyes locked with hers. “Yeah?”

Before she could rethink it, before she could talk herself out of it, before she could silence her heart with her head, she brought a hand to the back of his neck and kissed him. His shock was sudden but brief. Almost immediately, he wound his arms around her waist. And he was kissing back, sweetly, gently at first, then deeper. She was flush against him, smiling into it. The music beat quietly around them, and his grip was warm, and his lips felt exactly right. Ella wanted it to never end, for the moment to last forever, alive, and never cross over and turn to mere memory.

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