#it tickled me then and it’s sending me now since somehow!!!!!! i’ve become the same lol | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

luxaofhesperides · 3 years

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stealing clothes

college au ft. domestic joongdok. i am so predictable.

also on ao3.

Kim Dokja is extremely lucky to have Yoo Joonghyuk as his roommate. Not just because Yoo Joonghyuk is the campus heartthrob and Kim Dokja is the one who gets to see him everyday, and not because Yoo Joonghyuk is the perfect house husband, cleaning and cooking because he banned Kim Dokja from doing both.

While both those things are nice, the best part about having Yoo Joonghyuk as his roommate is stealing his shirts.

Not to do anything weird! They’re just… comfortable.

He even got permission! For the first few, at least.

It all starts because Yoo Joonghyuk was going to throw out perfectly good shirts that have been worn and washed enough to become soft, the type of softness that even the most high quality shirts can’t capture. They weren’t dirty, or torn, just old. So Kim Dokja protests this and tries to get Yoo Joonghyuk to keep them, only for him to scowl and throw the shirts at him.

“You keep them then,” he said, then left. And Kim Dokja did.

He’s well aware that wearing his hot roommate’s shirts might be (is) weird, so he only wears them on long nights when he needs some extra comfort to get him through his last assignments, or when Yoo Joonghyuk isn’t home. He never wears them when Yoo Joonghyuk might see. He’d rather die.

And because his wonderful roommate is out for the night, no doubt at a party celebrating his latest gaming tournament win, Kim Dokja is settled in for a long night of reading, curled up on the couch in one of Yoo Joonghyuk’s old shirts. It’s long enough to reach down past his thighs, so he doesn’t bother wearing pants, and a blanket over his shoulders helps with the chill his exposed collarbones bring.

The apartment is quiet, most people out or sleeping, and the latest update of his favorite web novel is a long one. And should he get hungry, there’s dinner in the fridge, courtesy of Yoo Joonghyuk who is very determined to get Kim Dokja eating more regularly.

It’s been too long since he was able to be so relaxed and comfortable. No urgent deadlines, no projects to stress about, no tests in the near future hanging over his head like a guillotine.

He’s so comfortable that halfway through the chapter he’s reading, Kim Dokja begins nodding off. The living room is gradually getting darker as the sun begins to set, and he sees no reason why he shouldn’t take a nap; his sleep schedule is fucked anyways, a little rest won’t hurt him at all.

The sound of the door opening rouses him.

Distantly, Kim Dokja hears a lock click and a heavy sigh, but half-awake, he can’t be sure if it’s real or part of a dream.

He opens sleep-heavy eyes to a dark living room; he must have been sleeping for a few hours, long enough for the sun to fully set and the moon to shine brightly. His entire body feels heavy and slow.

Slowly, Kim Dokja sits up, the blanket falling off his shoulders to pool around his hips. He stretches his arms up above his head, arching his spine a bit, drawing out the stretch as he shakes off the last of his nap.

Behind him, someone chokes.

Startled, Kim Dokja drops his arms and turns to see Yoo Joonghyuk standing in front of the hallway, staring at him with wide eyes. He’s… shirtless. Kim Dokja quickly looks away.

“When did you get back?” he asks, trying to break the strange tension that suddenly fills the apartment.

Yoo Joonghyuk is silent for a few moments before Kim Dokja hears him step closer. “Just a few minutes ago. I thought you were asleep.”

“I was. Is it late?”

The light turns on suddenly and Kim Dokja winces, blinking to clear the spots from his vision.

“It’s only nine.”

Huh. He wasn’t asleep for too long then. He feels the couch dip and looks up to see Yoo Joonghyuk sitting right next to him instead of anywhere else on their rather large couch. He’s staring at Kim Dokja’s chest, which makes him shift uncomfortably.

He glances down to see what has Yoo Joonghyuk’s attention. There’s no stains or anything…

Then his heart stops for a solid minute. He’s wearing Yoo Joonghyuk’s shirt. And Yoo Joonghyuk knows it’s his old shirt because it’s way too big for Kim Dokja!

Please don’t bring it up, Kim Dokja mentally begs, trying to send the plea into Yoo Joonghyuk’s head.

“Isn’t that one of my old shirts?” he asks. Telepathy has failed. Kim Dokja changes to Plan B which is Fake His Death And Start A New Life.

“Uh. Yeah. You gave it to me,” Kim Dokja answers, hoping Yoo Joonghyuk won’t think he’s weird and kick him out. He’s not willing to give up the best roommate he’s ever had! He just can’t go back to living with the worst people in existence, who treat him horribly and steal his things. He just can’t.

“I’ve never seen you wear them,” Yoo Joonghyuk says instead of demanding that Kim Dokja move out.

“I don’t wear them often.”

Yoo Joonghyuk’s eyes dart farther down. “You’re also not wearing pants.”

Kim Dokja pulls the blanket over his legs and tries to pretend Yoo Joonghyuk didn’t just say that. “Well, you’re not wearing a shirt! You’re only wearing…” he trails off, finally letting himself look at Yoo Joonghyuk. Those sweatpants look familiar. They look just like the ones he thought he lost months ago. “...Isn’t that mine?”

“...Our laundry must have gotten mixed up.”

That’s a lie. Yoo Joonghyuk is not one to mix up their laundry. They’ve never accidentally taken each other’s clothes.

Kim Dokja smiles and Yoo Joonghyuk looks away, his ears turning red. “Joonghyuk-ah,” he says sweetly in a way that Yoo Joonghyuk knows is a threat.

“I don’t see why I can’t have some of your clothes if you have mine.”

“My clothes don’t fit you! And besides, isn’t it strange for us to be sharing clothes?”

“No. You should wear my clothes more often. You look good in them.”

Kim Dokja has no response to that. He freezes, then ducks his head, trying to hide his quickly warming cheeks.

Yoo Joonghyuk, the bastard that he is, doesn’t let Kim Dokja hide. He wraps an arm around Kim Dokja’s waist and pulls him closer, hard enough to send him falling against his side. “Stop being so shy and wear my shirts while I’m around.”

“Shut up. Aren’t you supposed to be at a party?”

“I got bored and left early. I prefer being here with you.”

“Don’t think sweet talking is going to make me forget about you stealing my sweatpants.”

“Oh?” Yoo Joonghyuk runs a large hand down Kim Dokja’s spine, making him shiver. “What should I do then?”

“Nothing!” Kim Dokja hits his chest, but makes no moves to put any space between them. He is not going to be thinking about why. “Anyways, aren’t you tired? You should go to sleep since you spent hours at that tournament. Congratulations on another win, by the way.”

Smiling, Yoo Joonghyuk leans closer, forcing Kim Dokja to bend back a bit, putting more of his weight on Yoo Joonghyuk’s arm. “You were watching?”

“I always watch when you compete. What’s the point of having a popular gamer for a roommate if I can’t brag about him?”

Without another word, Yoo Joonghyuk collapses on top of him, crushing him against the couch.

“Hey!” Kim Dokja flails, then smacks Yoo Joonghyuk’s shoulder. “What’s that for!”

“You’re right, I am tired.”

“Then go to bed!”

Yoo Joonghyuk tightens his grip on Kim Dokja’s waist, then nuzzles into his neck. The feeling of his hair brushing against his neck makes Kim Dokja shiver, not quite tickling him but just enough to have the sensation send sparks down his spine.

He sighs softly, and feeling it against his skin brings a deep blush to Kim Dokja’s cheeks. “I’d prefer to stay here for the night,” Yoo Joonghyuk says. Kim Dokja grumbles about being squished beneath the heavy weight of his body, but ultimately decides to indulge himself and stay.

They stay like that, sleeping on the couch, all through the night. They both wake with stiff necks in the morning, but Kim Dokja doesn’t mind at all when it lets him stay in Yoo Joonghyuk’s embrace a little longer.

Things change after that.

Kim Dokja wouldn’t call them friends, per se. Not before That Night. Roommates, yes. Acquaintances who get along well, yes. Friends? No.

But now, he’s not too sure what to call their relationship. They live together so they have to spend some time together, but school keeps them both busy and Kim Dokja often spends his time at the library with Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sangah while Yoo Joonghyuk streams and goes to tournaments.

It’s more accurate to say they exist in the same space, than to say that they spend time together.

They get along well enough, which is why they’ve renewed their lease together for another year, but somehow, after That Night Yoo Joonghyuk is suddenly… sticky.

He’s constantly making food for them. More so than before. He asks for Kim Dokja’s preferences instead of just silently handing him a plate?

Kim Dokja stares at the box of pasta in his hands. He doesn’t understand why he’s grocery shopping with Yoo Joonghyuk, but he’s gone with it for too long and can’t ask any questions now.

“Did you want pasta?” Yoo Joonghyuk asks, appearing behind him without warning. Kim Dokja jumps a little, then glares at him, annoyed by how amused he looks.

“I don’t know. Maybe. I can just buy instant noodles.”

Scowling, Yoo Joonghyuk grabs the box of pasta from his hands and adds it to the cart. “Absolutely not. I’ll make noodles for you later.”

“You can make noodles from scratch?”

“It’s not hard.”

Kim Dokja would marry Yoo Joonghyuk right that very second if asked. He also doesn’t understand why Yoo Joonghyuk is suddenly spoiling him, but he’s not going to question a good thing. He’s going to get as much as he can out of this, because who knows when it will end?

So he bumps his hip against Yoo Joonghyuk’s with a smile as they walk down the aisle, and asks, “Can we get ice cream?”

Yoo Joonghyuk does not answer for a long minute, then glances at Kim Dokja’s hopeful expression and sighs. “Fine.”

He really is getting spoiled.

Kim Dokja fully intends to use this knowledge for evil.

Another thing that’s changed: clothes.

Since Kim Dokja didn’t complain enough about his sweatpants being stolen before he fell asleep, Yoo Joonghyuk decided he could just take Kim Dokja’s most comfortable sweatpants and wear them whenever he wants. So what if he looks really good! They’re still Kim Dokja’s and he will hold this grudge for as long as he needs to.

He intends to steal more of Yoo Joonghyuk’s shirts as revenge, except he doesn’t need to steal anything. Because Yoo Joonghyuk just leaves his shirts in Kim Dokja’s room. So he wears them and tries not to get flustered when Yoo Joonghyuk stares at him each time he walks out of his room wearing something Yoo Joonghyuk left him.

It’s a losing battle.

On the bright side, he no longer has to hide it. It’s still embarrassing, but he’s getting more and more used to lounging in the living room in Yoo Joonghyuk’s shirts.

The hungry look Yoo Joonghyuk gives him is also nice to see.

Kim Dokja may be the king of denial, but even he can’t lie to himself with how obvious Yoo Joonghyuk is being. Nor can he pretend that he isn’t doing this for that exact reason, or spending more time at the apartment to be with him.

They’re both pushing in little ways, but it’s not enough for him to be willing to push their relationship out of the cloud of ambiguity its currently in.

Before he knows it, half his closet is Yoo Joonghyuk’s clothes, and he has to go to Yoo Joonghyuk’s room to grab a pair of sweatpants to study in because all of them got stolen. The rude bastard really has no shame.

“Why don’t we just keep our clothes in the same room?” Yoo Joonghyuk suggests after Kim Dokja complains to him about this.

“Whose room?”

“Mine. Just take all your things into my room. I’ll make space for you.”

And so Kim Dokja suddenly finds himself sharing a room with Yoo Joonghyuk. And then sharing a bed. And then waking up with him to his absurdly early alarm.

They’re not dating, and he says as much to Han Sooyoung when talking about this; she just rolls her eyes and calls him and idiot for not realizing what’s going on.

She has absolutely no room to talk, being in a friends-with-benefits relationship with Yoo Sangah instead of just asking her out on a date like normal people would.

They’re not dating, but Kim Dokja leans into him when they watch a movie together after rejecting a party invite. They’re not dating, but Yoo Joonghyuk kisses his cheek each morning before he gets up to make breakfast. They’re not dating, but Kim Dokja will settle into Yoo Joonghyuk’s lap while wearing nothing but one of his shirts to finish a reading for one of his classes.

They’re not dating, but he certainly wants to.

However, Kim Dokja would sooner pass away then actually talk about his feelings, so he bottles it up, greedily hoards all the affection he gets from Yoo Joonghyuk, and hopes he makes his move soon because Kim Dokja is starting to get impatient.

In the meantime, he’ll steal another shirt and pretend he didn’t do it on purpose just to get Yoo Joonghyuk to look at him.

#orv #omniscient reader's viewpoint #joongdok #orv fic #kim dokja #yoo joonghyuk #my writing

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yesokaythatsfine69 · 3 years

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Heavy Dosage (Levi Ackerman x reader)

Description: after getting hurt during a scouting mission, y/n is given quite a heavy dosage of medication. Will her secret crush on her squad leader remain secret?

Character(s): Y/n, Hangi, Levi, nurse, eren

Pov: 3rd person

Warning(s): pain, broken bones, kissing, no spoilers

A/n: hello! I took a little break earlier and recently I've been watching two new animes, AOT and Kakegurui (both r completely different lmao) so I decided to add more fuel to the fire that is the Levi Ackerman x reader tag. Don't worry there aren't any spoilers I just wrote a cute thing.

*none of the gifts used are mine. Full credit goes to the maker.

"Shit!" That was the last thing y/n had said before she disappeared from the view of her fellow squad members. Levi watched, fear causing him to freeze. One moment she had been calling him a "old slow poke", her smile dazzling and eyes brighter than diamonds- and in an instant she was gone.

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Pain had seared through y/n's skull when she finally landed from being thrown. The titan had grabbed a line of her odm gear and flung her, snapping the line and causing her to fall straight down and into a tree. Her body had tumbled through the branches, each branch snapping with the weight of her body and the force she had been thrown from.

Y/n was usually proud to say that Titan's couldn't touch her- she was fast, faster than almost any person in her squad- and that usually meant that she was untouchable to them. She was the one who helped the other members of her squad survive. Today, however, had been different and not even her speed had saved her.

The pain in her skull forced her eyes open. The area in which she laid was dead silent, but she didn't feel scared or worried. It was peaceful and almost poetic. She focused on her breathing, and tried to register where she had been hurt. Her head hurt, her back hurt, and her legs seethed, but she could at least feel pain.

She tried to move but only whimpered when the pain in her legs intensified. Her eyes watered. She couldn't get up and what she thought had been luck that she experienced from not dying from her tremendous fall- had suddenly become a curse. Now, she would be easily found by a titan and just as easily eaten.

"you've...got to...be fucking kidding...me." she wheezed between hot tears. Suddenly a zipping noise broke the silence around her and a small thumping sound caused her tense up. "Y/L/N!" Her eyes widened at the sound of her squad leader's voice. Then, Two arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her up. Captain Levi was above her, on his knees before her- not in the ways she had always dreamed about either.

"What did you do, Brat?" His silver orbs narrowed as he searched her face. Any other time being this close to Levi would've been similar to Heaven, but now, it carried a strange and dangerous weight. "Captain Levi, I-" His expression cut her off. His face was blank, eyes were narrowed, mouth drawn up in a thin line. He was angry, she could sense his emotions beyond what he showed with his face. That had been the reason they worked so well together- y/n could read him like a book.

He seemed to notice she had been crying, and wiped away a stray tear. "I-I'm sorry, Captain Levi I-" He said nothing and hoisted her up in his arms, pressing her head against his chest. She could feel his heartbeat- constant and comforting in her ear. For several moments they trampled in the woods in silence.

Finally he spoke. "I'll get you to the wagons and you'll be okay, y/n, try to be still." His voice seemed tired and his movements were oddly weary. Y/n frowned as she looked up at him.

Somehow she felt like he had said these words not for her benefit, but for his own. He hardly ever used her first name, preferring "brat" and "y/l/n" to order her around with. Now, as his grip on her tightened, she buried her face against his chest, deciding it was best to leave her thoughts unsaid.

As she snuggled against him, he relaxed, his shoulders releasing the tension they carried since he saw that bitch titan thrown her out of his sight. Levi had been angry- but not angry at Y/n. Angry at himself for not protecting her, angry at those fucking Titan's for taking away the people he loved from him. He felt y/n adjust slightly and that's when he realized she had fallen alseep. Her breathing evened out, and she seemed limp against him.

When he reached the clearing Petra ran up to him. "Y/n! Is she okay?" Levi said nothing, and Petra watched in worry as he pushed past her.

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Sometimes lines get blurry. The separation between two distinct things gets combined and those two things once so distinctly different are now seemingly the same. Y/n stared straight ahead, boards on the walls combining and shape shifting. They had given her medicine for her pain, that fact was that her leg had been broken, along with a fractured skull and a few other twisted and mangled bones, so anything was deemed worthy to give her.

The medicine, whatever it was could definitely be considered "that good stuff". She giggled, watching as the nurse adjusted her covers. "You're trying to tickle me!" "Y/n?" Y/n's head slowly bobbed to the side, where Hanji was standing. Her arms were crossed, but a smile shown on her face.

"You look better than I was expecting." Y/n smiled widely. "It's the drugs!" Hanji mimicked her smile. Y/n, was for the most part a lively a fun person. She wasn't anywhere near as loud of bouncy as Hanji herself was- mainly because y/n had a better sense of timing. Now however, Hanji noted that her personality seemed to come on quite strongly.

"I just came to check on you, considering what I heard had happened you are very lucky." Y/n only giggled. "lucky-smucky. Luck had nothing to do with it. It's a skill to hit every single goddamn tree branch in the world and still be kicking." To empathize her point she kicked out the leg that wasn't broken.

"woah, maybe you shouldn't move too much." Hanji put her hands up. "It's okay I don't feel anything!" Y/n lifted her hand up and smacked herself right upside the head. "No pain!" Hanji smiled, "Right, I'll be sure to tell Levi how well you are doing."

Y/n shot up at her captains name. "You should tell him to come see me! It's been too long since I've seen that hot piece of ass!" Hanji frowned. "I- um... I don't think that's for the best...you seem pretty uh... preoccupied." Y/n opened her mouth to most likely say something else unexpected when the nurse reappeared, nodding to Hanji.

"I better be leaving y/n, I'm glad you are doing well. I'll see you later, yeah?' y/n nodded excitedly and Hanji let herself out.

She laughed, nodding her head. "Hot piece of ass...Levi Ackerman?" She snorted. Then, quite quickly the pieces for together and she stopped. "Oh no. Oh no. I should...wait a second, this could be quite an interesting experiment..." She smiled and turned in the direction of the lunchroom.

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"She is doing very well. So well infact she told me not to send you, she doesn't want you to worry. She'll be out before long." Hanji spoke gently to Levi who stared at his tea, his face expressionless. "What do you mean she doesn't want me to visit her? I'm her squad leader." Hanji shrugged and smiled.

"She's doing very well. You'd be wasting your time. She'll be back before you know it." Levi's eyes flashed to his friend, narrowing. The rage he had experienced when he had found her broken body...the way her teary y/c/e looked up at him... He could've exploded with rage. but he needed to stay with y/n, and that's what he had done, making sure she was safe...And now he was being told to stay away from her? His fists clenched.

Hanji seemed to see the conflict. "Why don't you try and take of yourself now? You've done enough for her." Levi only stood up, the sound of his chair scraping against the floor caused those in the lunchroom to look up at him. Leaving his tea, Levi, in his own Levi way, stormed out of the room. Hanji sat there, stirring her tea.

She raised it to her lips and smiled.

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Levi's feet practically moved on their own to the infirmary, each step more angry than the last. In angry flashbacks he felt her head pressed against his chest, her warm breathe tickling his neck, her warm orbs searching his own icy pair- he felt all of that and more...and yet she didn't want to see him?

Had those affectionate moments just been something he wished had happened instead that had actually happened. No. It couldn't have been. But the why would she try to shut him out?

He pushed open the door to the infirmary. He stood in the shadowy doorway for several seconds doing what he did best- watching.

Y/n had spent four consecutive hours counting each board- one by one. Every time she got to twenty though, she got distracted and had to start over. "Twenty-one!" "Y/l/n?" Slowly y/n's left hand, which she had used to count the board, lowered to her side. "Damnit! Lost count! At least I got to twenty one this time." Her head slowly turned to the side where her sexy captain stood, peering down at her. He looked absolutely peeved and y/n giggled.

"Well hello beautiful? Long time no see!" Levi's eyes widened the tiniest bit- but he quickly played it off. "You didn't want me here? Your own captain? Unless you forgot-" Y/n purred. "Damn you're sexy when you're mad! I don't have a clue what you're talking about but-" she shrugged. "It wouldn't be the first time!" She reached up and tugged him closer.

"I- y/n-" a finger placed itself over his lips. "Shhhhh..." The finger lifted then hit him again. "Shhhhh...shhhh." y/n stared up at him with a dazed, but delighted expression. She gently stroked his face, reaching up and flicking her hair from his eyes. She smiled at his slightly dazed expression.

"how'sithangingbabey?" Levi blinked out of his daze and grabbed her wrist, pulling her hand back from his mouth. "What is wrong with you?" His eyes were fairly wide and his stared at her in both worry and confusion. "I'm in love baby!" She shouted. "In love with youuuuuu!" She sang out flailing her arm and hitting him in the head.

"tch! Ow! Will you-" He paused, his brow furrowed. "You...love me?" She giggled and pressed a finger to her lips. "Shhh. Don't tell Levi." He stared at her. "I am Levi, you brat." Her eyes widened. "Whoops!" She laughed. "My bad!" Levi opened his mouth to speak when the nurse appeared. She gasped upon seeing him. "Captain Levi! I didn't know you were coming!" Y/n lifted her head up to look at the young nurse.

"hey, layoff! This Raven haired beauty's taken!" She yanked him forward. The action caught him off guard and he had to catch himself before he fell. Levi grumbled before detaching himself from her. "I'll speak to you later, y/n."

"You're leaving!?" Gently he ruffled her hair, and in the most soothing voice he could muster, he said, "I'll be back later, don't worry brat." Levi Nodded to the nurse to walk him out. As the nurse turned to follow him she glanced at y/n who mouthed aggressively "he's mine!"

At the door he turned to the nurse, "y/n was in large amounts of pain, so we gave her some medicine to dull it. It seems to have a worked a little..." The two turned back to y/n who had restarted counting the boards again. "Too well."

"tch, right." The end of lips upturned into almost a smile. "Keep me updated." The nurse nodded, "Right, sir."

Casting one last glance he left the infirmary, humming a new tune softly to himself.

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Y/n sighed happily. She had finally been released, given a brace for her leg to help her walk till she was 100% and around fifteen get well cards. Her first move was definitely to go to her room. She missed her room.

She visited with Petra and the other members of her squad, making sure to show off her cool ass brace. She also made sure to say hi to Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Sasha, Connie, and Jean. She hadn't seen Captain Levi yet but she figured she'd find him soon- or he'd find her. The nurse mentioned that he'd visited a few times, none of which she remembered- but the thought that he cared enough to do so warmed her up.

Y/n entered the lunchroom, coming face to face with her captain and his fellow squad leader, Hanji. "Oh hi Hanji! Hello, Captain!" Hanji immediately jumped up and hugged her tightly. "Y/n! Congratulations!" Y/n smiled brightly, and hugged her back. "Thank you! I'm feeling pretty good!" Her eyes turned to Levi, who had been watching her intently. He nodded. "The squad has been waiting for your return, y/l/n." Y/n smiled. "Well, you guys won't have to wait much longer. The nurse said just a little while longer then I'm ready to go."

Levi nodded, his expression remaining stern. "I am pretty excited to finally get some sleep in my own bed though, so I'll see you all later." She turned, but a hand wrapped itself around her wrist. Levi had stood up, and was behind her. "I'll walk you there." Her eyes widened and her cheeks flushed, but she nodded. "The more...the, uh, merrier."

With curt goodbyes the two began their walk to y/n's room. Hanji had watched the interaction without surprise, sipping some tea.

She laughed to herself as the two went out of view, pushing up her glasses. "This experiment- a definitive success."

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"How do you feel?" Levi matched his pace with y/n, careful to make sure he wasn't moving too fast so that she wouldn't have to walk faster on her leg. "I feel good, itching to go back out there." The two stopped walking and turned so that they were right in front of each other instead of side by side.

Levi only made a clucking sound at her response. "Be sure not to push it, brat. You may be feeling fine now but-" He stopped talking when she put a hand on his chest. He frowned slightly and looked up at her from where his gaze had been.

"Thank you, for everything. I- I'm sorry I wasn't more careful. Next time I'll-" He placed his hand over her own. "Tch, there better not be a next time you stupid brat. If there is I do not I think I could handle it."

Her cheeks darkened. "Captain-" "Just Levi." She smiled at him. "Okay, just Levi." The slight upturn smile Levi had worn vanished at her bad joke into a frown. Lifting up his index finger he placed it directly over her lips.

"shhh..." She tried to speak. "shhhh." Y/n raised a brow at him. "I have lost enough in this life, y/n." Her eyes widened at the use of her first name, and his finger remained on her lips. "But, I cannot lose you, too...please." Her eyes glistened a, a familiar wetness clouding them. Slowly, Levi lowered his finger, and soon as he do so she pounced, pulling him into the tightest hug she could administer.

"You couldn't get get rid of me even if you wanted to." He hugged her back. "Good, because I do not want to." She pulled back. It was now or never, and this maybe the only chance she has left. Braving up, y/n swallowed thickly. "Hey...erm, uh Levi...I-I love you, okay?"

Levi smirked, his eyes twinkling with something close to mischievousness. "I know...you, kind of...told me already." Y/n pulled back. "No I didn't." "Tch, you did, y/n." She rolled her eyes. "I think I would remember telling someone I love them."

Levi frowned. "Are you calling me a liar?" Y/n laughed sharply. "Well, I'm not calling you a truther." She turned and began to walk away. "Even if I did, you could at least say it back you jerk!"

With reflexes faster than a blink of an eye, Levi had pulled her back and into his arms. She stared at him, wide eyed. They were mere inches apart now. Never had she been this close to him, and she could clearly see every inch of his face. The silver twinkle of his eyes, his long lashes, the pretty pink of his thin lips. He was so beautiful, like a statue of a god. Y/n blinked, realizing she had been staring a bit longer than innocent and met his gaze.

Levi only raised a brow, seemingly unaffected by their closeness. "I love you too, brat." He said finally, and Y/n relaxed into his arms, much like before. "Good, good. It makes doing this a lot easier." She placed her hand to his cheek, closed her eyes and then she closed the gap.

He sighed into her, clutching her tighter to him. It seemed as if he had been waiting almost as long as y/n had because it was if the flood gates had opened. She dipped her head to get to more of him and he grunted softly, easily letting her. She reached up, finding his soft undercut. She ran her finger threw his soft locks (just as soft as she imagined) and gently tugged. Levi opened his mouth a bit more in response, and she quickly took advantage of his action. Her tongue slipped in, and despite himself and who he was- he gasped.

Maybe this was all a bit quick but hell, she'd been around the man for going on a year now with nothing but this to show. It was quite upsetting, especially because it seemed as if Levi had no idea his effect on women, especially y/n. You can bet on your life, however, she was going to take advantage of it now and teach him exactly what he meant.

He grunted again and pulled his arm to her neck, clutching it softly. She hummed into his mouth, biting his lip and pulling. She loved him, everything about him, and almost as much as that- she wanted him. Now, in almost every way she could've imagined, she had him.

She was so wrapped up in him, y/n put her unbraced leg around his waist, trying to get somehow even closer than before but unfortunately she neglected to remember that her braced leg couldn't handle that much pressure yet and it collapsed under their weight. It sent both her and her lover crashing to the ground.

"oof!" "Tch! Hell!" Levi landed on top of her with a thud. The two shared a look. Levi had messy unkept hair, flushed cheeks and red, abused lips- all thanks to y/n. But she doubted she looked much better. "Are you okay, brat?" "Yeah, sorry. Looks like you made my legs weak." She smiled crookedly.

Levi only sighed and lifted her up. "Tch', Keeping you alive will be much harder than I expected." Y/n laughed and wrapped her arms around him, she was beginning to enjoy him carrying her around bridal style. "What can I say? I wasn't built for the weak."

"No," He hoisted her closer to his chest. "No, you are not."

They resumed their journey to her room. "But at least you are mine, brat."

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A/n: whoo! That was a lot more than I expected to do. I hope y'all like it and don't forget that comments and critism are always welcomed. I tried to make this to where it doesn't really involve any timeline and it's just kind of an extra thing. Thanks for reading!

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#captain levi #levi ackerman #levi ackerman x reader #attack on titan #aot memes #aot headcanons #levi aot #aot imagines #aotc #x reader #imagine #eren x reader #aot x reader #levi x y/n #levi x you

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reminisce05-20 · 3 years

Text

Dazai - The Book - Double Black

Dazai couldn't remember being a child, one of elementary age. He had only started to remember when he was around 14, which was when he first met Mori.

Sometimes, he wondered if he should be searching for answers, of who his parents could've been or where he came from, but he had easily moved on. Perhaps too easily, but he had no regrets. After all, the past didn't define him. He could write his own story from the present.

Only after words started to be written on his pale skin did he start to wonder who he really was.

Long sleeves could suffice, but just in case, Dazai wrapped bandages around his arms. Then his torso. Then up to his neck and finally his eye to give the air of an injury. The words hadn't spread quite that much, but it made his stomach crawl whenever he saw the squiggly lines all over his body. It was simply a precaution in case more words suddenly appeared.

Dazai soon met Chuuya, who was loud and angry and short, which made it even funnier when Dazai riled him up. Chuuya insisted that he was still young and growing. For the first time, Dazai wanted to laugh at the words he had seen yesterday on his elbow. Chuuya will never grow.

Although the words brought occasional joy, when he was 18, he saw words on the back of his left arm that said, Sakunosuke Oda will die. Sakunosuke couldn't die. His ability allowed him to see things moments before they actually happened, and Sakunosuke wasn't dumb. He would be fine.

He never had allowed the words on his arms and body to ever affect him. Words, in general, had never affected him since Dazai believed actions could speak much more.

"Be on the side that saves people. If both sides are the same, then choose to become a good person. Save the weak, protect the orphaned. You might not see a great difference between right and wrong, but... saving others is something just a bit wonderful."

For once, he took the words to heart.

Once, long ago when he was still young, not in the Detective Agency nor even the Mafia, Dazai had written something on his arm, something that tattooed itself to his arm for just a second before it burned away with terrible pain.

Dazai experimented. His ability, "No Longer Human", obviously canceled out abilities with no exception. The words were things to happen, things that were happening, and things that had happened. The timing for when the events actually took place differed, from as small as a minute to as long as a year. Dazai couldn't change events that were going to happen or create an entirely new one. It was probably a strange mix of the words and his ability.

Dazai had considered going to the President to inform him of the words. He was fairly sure that everyone else in the agency believed the bandages to be a fashion choice, excluding Ranpo and the President. He walked in front of the office door for a few minutes, pacing, before walking back to his desk. Perhaps the talk could be moved to another time.

The words were often too ugly to be shown to others.

Dazai was good at planning things, which made it entirely his fault that he hadn't prepared ahead for this.

A few days ago words had appeared on his collarbone, ones that said, "Chuuya will unleash Arahabaki once more. Secrets will be revealed." If Chuuya was going to showcase his powers, Dazai would no doubt be sent along unless Chuuya had managed to somehow subdue his powers effectively. Sure enough, he was sent to settle a dispute that would benefit both the Mafia and the Agency. It was always nice, seeing the top of Chuuya's hat, showing that he had indeed not grown a single bit.

He had misinterpreted the "secrets" on his arm. Dazai had expected it to be Chuuya's secrets, of how he stayed so short all the time.

In Arahabaki form, Chuuya had never attacked Dazai, at least not to kill. He had to have some semblance of control to not kill the only person that could bring him back, even if Chuuya hated him. But this time, right after defeating the enemy, Chuuya turned on him in an instant, giving Dazai no time to nullify his ability.

It would have been fine. Dazai only took a few hard hits before he tapped Chuuya on the head, nullifying his ability. They both staggered for a moment before Dazai laughed.

"Well, that was awfully close wasn't it, Chuuya?"

Chuuya huffed, angry but too tired to anything about it.

"Only if you had touched me a little earlier maybe you - hey what's that on your arm?"

Dazai froze before he looked at his left arm, bandages slightly unraveled, revealing the inky text on his arm.

"Some tattoo shit? Or maybe weird scars..."

Chuuya took a step forward while Dazai hurriedly rebandaged his arm with a hopefully winning grin.

"How observant of you."

Chuuya scowled for a second before staring at Dazai.

"Seriously, was it just some weirdo tattoo? Show me what you have written there."

Dazai made a mental note to seriously work out and train with Kunikida. Then again, it probably wouldn't bring him near Chuuya's level for a long time. Even after using Arahabaki, Chuuya stomped forward, grabbing his arm and unwrapping the bandage with unreasonable strength and speed. His control must have actually been getting better. Or maybe they had just defeated the enemy faster today.

"What the - what the heck is this Dazai?"

He didn't have the strength to stand properly, staggering a little bit while unsuccessfully trying to get out of Chuuya's iron grip.

"An occult tattoo I got when I was 14. It says 'fuck off Chuuya'."

"It literally says 'Sakunosuke Oda will die'. I've heard of that name before... who was that again?"

Out of all the sentences Chuuya could have seen, it had to be that one. Why not the one about Atsushi dropping his ice cream, or maybe the one about Chuuya's height? They could have laughed over that.

"This actually happened didn't it Dazai? Like, a few years ago?"

At this point, Dazai simply didn't care enough to wrench his wrist away from Chuuya. He had wanted to tell someone about this for so long. Chuuya and he didn't have the best relationship, but they could certainly trust each other. After all, they had been partners, right?

"It tells me things that are going to happen. Well, at the time of course. This already happened a while ago."

Chuuya simply stared, unsure of what to believe.

"I tried changing history once. It hurt really bad, I think it's got something to do with my goddamn ability, I hate seeing the words every day and having to bandage them - "

"Um... Dazai, calm down."

He hadn't realized he was breathing so heavily. His chest felt like it was burning.

It felt like it was burning just like when he was young - why was it like this when he hadn't written anything down on his skin?

"Dazai, what's going on?"

Dazai turned away from Chuuya before throwing his jacket off, then his vest, then his shirt to reveal the mass of bandages covering every inch of his skin.

"What the fuck Dazai, stop stripping in front of me - "

Dazai for once ignored Chuuya instead of sending back an angry retort. He unwrapped the bandages, not caring if Chuuya saw the words or not since the pain was burning as if he was dying and he wanted it to just stop. Stop stop stop.

The bandages were off to show the mass of writing on his back and arms and stomach and even up to his neck. Chuuya's breathing became softer, more confused and curious.

Chuuya will never grow.

Dazai will trip and fall on the doormat before meeting Akutagawa for the first time.

Sakunosuke Oda will die.

Atsushi will drop the ice cream Dazai bought for him and will be horrified.

More evil will soon come in Yokohama.

Chuuya will unleash Arahabaki once more. Secrets will be revealed.

Chuuya simply stared, dumbfounded, trying to read everything written on Dazai's back. Dazai on the other hand, looked down at the center of his chest to see just a few words.

Yokohama's Page - By Osamu Dazai.

The words were a gleaming gold, burning his skin before suddenly cooling into the familiar black, only a small golden border on the edges of each letter. Chuuya had now walked in front of him, kneeling, reading the words that had just appeared.

"So. You're some special shit."

Dazai let out a flat laugh. Indeed he was.

"It says 'More evil will soon come in Yokohama'. Right, Dazai?"

Dazai nodded blindly. He couldn't remember that one, but maybe it was because it was on his back. It was hard to read from a mirror.

"You should tell your agency this. Have you told them?"

Dazai's silence was the same as a confirmation. Chuuya mumbled something about how he always had to make his life worse, although Dazai knew that it was halfhearted.

After Dazai put on every single one of his bandages, thoroughly covering every inch of skin along with his other clothes, Chuuya and he walked in silence for a little. Usually, they would've been arguing all the way back, making the silence feel even worse.

"Oy. Dazai."

Chuuya growled when Dazai didn't make any move to answer before sighing and backing down. Dazai blinked, seeing that for the first time, Chuuya had backed down from an argument.

"We were partners before. Are we still partners?"

Dazai smiled.

"If we're partners, I'll be annoying you all day! I think that'd be pretty nice ~ "

"Well fuck you too!"

It was nice, feeling the usual annoyance flowing through Chuuya, the same remarks they always passed forth to each other.

"So you're saying we are partners, Dazai."

Dazai's eyes narrowed. What was with Chuuya being overly... nice all of a sudden? Being so calm?

Chuuya, catching Dazai's eyes screeched again before kicking over a trash can.

"I'm saying I can help you with this goddamn book shit! Words! Partners! The fuck is wrong with you?"

Dazai stared as Chuuya knocked over a few more trash cans while screaming about how utterly dumb Dazai could be for someone that was supposed to be so smart, so crafty, and so manipulative.

The familiar tickle of more words caused Dazai to flinch, hand moving toward his neck where the words seemed to be. Chuuya, who was done with his little fit, stopped for a second before walking over, no doubt intrigued. Dazai tugged the bandages down a little bit while Chuuya read the words out loud.

"Fyodor Dostoevsky is looking for another part of the book in Yokohama."

Dazai's eyes widened when he heard the name, and Chuuya no doubt understood that this man was someone dangerous if they could elicit such a reaction from Dazai. They looked at each other, understanding passing through their eyes.

"Well, I guess we're partners again Chuuya!"

"Only because I fucking have to!"

Dazai supposed that he would also have to tell the Agency about this. And as more people knew, the news would inevitably spread to the Mafia too. He only had to make sure that Fyodor didn't receive the information, and that was if Fyodor didn't already know about him.

"Fucking Dazai."

Chuuya grabbed Dazai's hair and pulled, forcing Dazai to yelp while batting Chuuya's hands away.

"We're going to crush this bastard Fyodor."

Dazai laughed at the sheer amount of determination in Chuuya's name, laughing like he never had ever before.

Indeed, Double Black would crush the enemy like they always did.

___________________________

Kind of an abrupt end, but you get the idea :>

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highfaelucien · 3 years

Note

Hmmm maybe lucien and elain playing with nyx and elain marveling at how good lucien is with children...

@bow-dawn also requested "give us elain watching lucien playing with nyx and that warms her heart enough to have a talk about their mating bond 😭" Everybody wants Lucien with babies because they know he's baby catnip. And I have no idea how children work but an attempt is gonna be made!!!!

send me ship prompts! platonic or otherwise!

Elain's arms were starting to get sore. Even with her being fae now. Arms that had stabbed the King of Hybern were somehow unequal to holding one small Ilyrian baby.

He was a very important baby, to be sure. Since he was her nephew. And the son of the two most powerful people in Prythian's history. Or so everyone kept saying.

Maybe he knew that. He was certainly doing everything in his power to make sure the whole of the Night Court, maybe the whole of Prythian, was aware of him right now, with the racket he was making.

They weren't sure which powers of his parents' the babe would inherit yet, he was too young. But he had an incredibly potent pair of lungs, of that she was sure of.

She'd been holding him for what felt like decades, bouncing him in her arms and trying to soothe him. He had managed to wear through her considerable patience, and she was now bordering on the edge of desperation.

This was her first time babysitting by herself. Feyre and Rhys had trusted her with their son, and she couldn't get him to stop crying! She was a terrible aunt. What kind of mother would she be? Unable to comfort her flesh and blood.

That thought made her stomach plummet. Had she lived out that other life, the one she sometimes saw reflected mockingly back at her in mirrors and pools, and married Greysen...She'd likely already be a mother. Would probably have at least one baby of her own.

She pushed that thought away before she joined Nyx in his crying.

"Cauldron boil me, Feyre!" A voice called from the stairs leading up to the roof where she'd taken Nyx hoping some fresh air might calm him. "What in the name of the Mother are you doing to that hellspawn child to make him scream that way?"

The voice was familiar, but unexpected. But she barely had a moment to process that before the door banged open and she found herself staring at Lucien.

"Oh," they said simultaneously.

Then Lucien, his cheeks changing colour to match his hair, said, looking abashed, "Lady Elain, please forgive me. I, I expected to find Feyre up here."

"I can tell," Elain said, giving him a little smile, "By the way you were shouting her name."

"Yes, well," Lucien muttered, looking rather flustered.

She found she quite liked that look on him. She always tended to see him as the polished, silver-tongued courtier, always composed and prepared to handle anything.

"I, I'm sorry, I didn't expect you to be up here. I would not have spoken to you that way if I'd known you weren't Feyre," he said, with a bow.

"Why not?" Elain said, cocking her head to one side, "I'm not some delicate flower that can't handle hearing curse words, you know," she told him, almost defiantly, "Amren has taught me many new ones. Cassian showed me how to do it in Illyrian. Rhys can be quite inventive when he's grumpy. And when all that fails, I can always just fall back on the word fuck."

He blinked at her, then grinned broadly, "Shockingly, I don't make a habit of cursing at people that I don't know all that well. Feyre and I are good friends, so she has earned my fragrant cursing at her."

"She's also High Lady of the Night Court," Elain said, raising her eyebrows, "With more power than anyone in Prythian's history has held in a long time."

Lucien waved an idle hand, "I knew her before she became all Made and Rhysandish," he told her, "Once you've seen someone puke faerie wine into a fountain of the mother at the Solstice it's hard to see them as too grand to curse at anymore."

Elain giggled at that, then winced, as that apparently seemed to upset Nyx even more.

Lucien raised an eyebrow at them, "Cursing aside," he said, leaning idly against the wall, "My question about that one still stands - what by the Cauldron have you done to him?"

"Lots of things!" Elain said, her voice snapping a little bit, "I've fed him, and I've changed him, and burped him. I've tried to put him down for a nap. I've tried to rock him, and bounce him, as swoosh him side to side. I've talked to him, and I've sung to him, and I've begged him and he still. Won't. Stop. Crying!"

Lucien smiled slightly, which made her want to smack him, because this was absolutely not funny, and she felt tears of frustration starting in her eyes.

"Feyre and Rhys trusted me to look after him on my own and I can't get him to stop crying! I don't know what I'm doing wrong," she confessed hopelessly.

"May I hold him for a moment?" Lucien asked.

Elain hesitated a moment. But Feyre had let him hold her son before. She had seen tears in his eyes when he'd done so, and it had bridged some connection between them that had never fully healed since the war. She didn't think her sister would protest, as long as she was still here.

And she was so tired. Her arms were so sore, and Nyx was becoming a very heavy and dense weight in her arms. So she nodded gratefully, eagerly pushing the little bundle into Lucien's arms.

Lucien held him with a surprising ease, as if he'd done this thousands of times before. A broad, genuine smile spread across his face as he peered down at him, bouncing him slightly in his arms.

Nyx peered up at him. Elain expected this to trigger an increase in the volume of his howling, but, incredibly, he quieted almost at once, seemingly entranced by Lucien's face, his glinting metal eye.

"There we are," Lucien said, smiling, but raised a finger as Nyx started grumbling again, "Now, now, we won't be having any of that," he told him calmly, "Ah, you have wings, don't you? Let's see then..."

Lucien carried him over to the table, unwrapped his blankets. Before Elain could protest about the cold, he rewrapped him, but gently extended his wings first, and curled them around his little body, securing them in place around him with his blankets.

"You know about babies with wings?" Elain asked, bemused.

Lucien nodded, "Certainly," he said, then seemed to consider, "Not Illyrians, and not Rhys-spawn," Elain giggled against her will, "But I'm hoping the principles are the same."

He scooped him up and bounced him. Nyx actually giggled at him, the little monster.

"How did you do that!?" she demanded, peering down at the baby, who was now lifting his chubby little hands and grabbing, as if trying to catch the glinting eye above him.

Lucien smirked, "I have a known gift," he said, sounding entirely too pleased with himself. Elain would have whacked him for that, if he hadn't been holding her baby nephew.

"You, you've been around a lot of babies?" she asked.

Nothing in his history, though admittedly she knew little of it, had implied that babysitting had been a big part of it.

"Oh yes," he said, very seriously, "Fae with troublesome younglings came to me from all over Prythian, every court, lesser and high alike so that I could use my gifts and soothe them."

Elain put her hands on her hips and growled at him, "Don't you bullshit me Lucien," she said, as sternly as she could, poking a finger into his chest.

He snickered, still grinning at her, shifting Nyx slightly in his arms as he started to fuss again, "I have a very big family," he said, shrugging.

"I thought you were the youngest of your brothers," she said, frowning.

Lucien nodded, "True," he confirmed, "But I have lots of aunts and uncles and cousins, and friends," he added, with a flicker of some emotion she couldn't quite read. He took a breath and added, "Regardless, they all felt that, as the Lord's seventh son, I didn't have anything better to do with my time than babysit all of their offspring. I've had a reasonable amount of practice."

"Well you saved me today," Elain said, collapsing into the seat that Rhys always liked to sit and brood in, overlooking the Sidra, "I don't know what I did wrong," she muttered, bracing her chin in her hands and sighing dejectedly.

Lucien cautiously approached, Nyx still cradled in his arms, and sat in the seat next to her, also glancing out over the city. "If it helps," he said, "You did everything right. Sometimes babes are just tricksy little bastards," he said with a shrug,

She frowned, trying to determine if he was patronising her.

"They like to be dramatic and seek for attention," Lucien told her calmly, "Especially when they have Rhysand, Night Discomfort, Death Irritate, the most dramatic bastard to ever spread drama, as their father" he added in a lofty voice that acutally sounded uncannily like Rhys.

Elain stuffed her fist in her mouth to stop herself snorting as she laughed.

"He is very dramatic," she agreed, tickling Nyx's tummy.

Lucien smiled down fondly at the babe, and for all his comments about him being dramatic, there was a tenderness in his face she had never seen before from him.

It made him look younger. His face was still scarred and strange, with that mechanical eye, but there was a gentleness in him she hadn't seen from most fae in her time in Prythian, it made her feel safe and calm.

Nyx started fussing a little again, and Lucien hushed him, and fluttered his fingers in the air above him. Little lights appeared above him, circling like a mobile and flashing different colours.

Elain let out a little gasp of delight watching him, which was echoed by Nyx.

Lucien glanced up at her, a wry smile on his lips as he said, "My magic isn't particularly powerful or impressive, but it's very good for entertaining infants."

"I think it's beautiful," Elain said, quiet, but sincere.

Lucien smiled.

Then he turned his head back to Nyx, tickling him with his free hand while the lights continued to circle, swooping down and booping the child on the nose, causing him to giggle.

Elain felt a sudden pulse of warmth and joy blossom in her chest like a swelling rose, and she let out a little, "Oh!"

Lucien glanced up at her, startled, "Are you alright?"

She put a hand to her chest, without breaking eye contact with him, "I, I fel you," she said quietly.

"I apologise," he said, looking truly sorrowful, "I usually keep better control of myself, but being around you makes that more difficult."

The little river of his joy faded away as he closed off the bond on his end.

"No!" she cried, with a desperation she couldn't quite explain, reaching out and putting a hand on his arm, "No," she repeated, more quietly, "Please don't, don't close down on me."

He raised his eyes, and held her gaze, unwavering, unfaltering. She felt that river again, the joy at holding the babe still there, but also excitement, anxiety, and almost unbearable anticipation. Though she had the sense he was trying to keep her from the worst of it.

"It's good," she whispered, "It feels good. I've, I've had dreams of you," she told him, "So much pain. So much guilt, and sadness, and hopeless need."

He ducked his head, turning away from her, seeming ashamed, "I'm sorry that you-"

"No," she said, quiet but firm, cupping his face in her hand, tracing his scar with her thumb, "No. You don't apologise to me for the things that others have done to you. You never do that," she said, with a fierceness that surprised even her.

"I shouldn't have let that touch you," he said quietly, "I, I don't want anyone to feel that, least of all you."

Elain held his gaze and, for the first time, she tentatively tapped at that string inside her, on her bottom rib, that one that extended beyond her in a way even her newfound Sight did not.

Through it, carefully, she pushed all of the depression, all of the pain, and all of the grief, and hopelessness, and even the darkness that had almost claimed her, caused her to step into it and never return.

He started, and his eyes filled with a thin veil of tears. But not because of the emotions she shared, but the fact that they were twin to his own. The fact that, as he looked into her eyes, he knew that she had felt what he had felt.

"We are the light for so many," she said quietly, "The sun that they grow towards, the thing they reach for in their own darkness, when they need hope, and someone who will always find a smile for them."

Lucien nodded, and picked up that thread she'd left dangling for him, causing one of his orbs to circle close to Nyx. The baby tried to catch it, giggling, and Elain saw that, but also the shadow it cast on his soft skin.

"But where there is light, there is shadow," he murmured, eyes not leaving hers, "That is the quiet burden we bear to be their light."

Elain nodded, and together they looked back down at Nyx, and let the warmth and joy at him flow, tentatively, between their bond.

***

thank you!! I hope you enjoyed!!!

#elucien #lucien vanserra #elain archeron #Nyx archeron #acofs #acotar series #acotar fic #elucien fic #my fic #mine #answer post tag #fic prompt fill #taryn fills prompts #IM DOING IT OKAY IM DOING IT #IM MAKING MY WAY #THERE'S JUST A LOT #AND I CANT STFU #long post

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ahkaahshi · 3 years

Text

our place [fushiguro megumi x reader]

pairing: fushiguro megumi x gn reader

genre: fluff with sprinkles of moments that might make your heart go :’)

warning(s): n/a

word count: 1.7k

overview: you’re not particularly fond of mornings, but you think you could grow to love them if you spent every one of them with megumi

Through bleary eyes threatening to take shelter behind the comforting darkness of your own eyelids and give in to the fatigue weighing heavily in your body, you watch your feet lazily trudge through dewy grass that wets your shoes. Your palms are warm from the fresh cup of coffee you’re nursing, but your knuckles are slightly numb from the brisk air your clothing’s barely able to fend off. There’s a deafening silence in the air aside from the crunching of grass beneath four sets of feet—two of which are a set of four paws—and you ponder the oxymoron that the absence of sound somehow seems louder.

Your foot catching on the root of a large tree when your eyelids flutter shut for a moment brings you to attention and your boyfriend’s hand to your arm. It’s as if he knew in that moment you would stumble, but you figure the connection isn’t hard to make, given you’re a night owl being taken out of a warm nest for an unexpected flight in the cold, early hours of the morning. Your eyes meet for a moment, a subtle flash of gratitude in yours that he acknowledges with a nod before the two of you continue your trek through the forest.

“Megumi,” you sigh, “how is it I’ve downed half this cup of coffee and still don’t feel a thing yet?”

He shrugs. “Maybe because it’s decaf.”

His words have your jaw slackening and a small scoff of disbelief leaving your throat. The way he looks at you over his shoulder, a twinkle of mischief in his deep blue eyes that reflect what little light there is, shows he’s expecting the reaction you give him. “I trusted you.”

“Then why are you so shocked?” he asks, “I didn’t give you caffeine so you wouldn’t be too energized to nap again before classes start.”

Though you’ve felt too tired to show any emotion since you’d been awakened by the man walking by your side, you can’t help but smile and chuckle in response. “Fine. I’ll let it pass since it’s actually considerate of you—even if it’s in an indirect way. I’ll just make my students read or do something quiet while I wait for the caffeine from the next cup of coffee I make to kick in.”

“I’m sure they’ll love that.”

“I really hope you got me out of bed for a reason other than to frown upon my teaching methods.”

Megumi’s lips curl into a small smile and you swear he seems to glow just a bit amongst the silhouettes of the tall trees surrounding you, their branches heavy with leaves and moisture. His happiness is like a breath of fresh air filling your lungs; so much so that you’re reminded to take another deep one in an attempt at keeping yourself awake. His divine dogs—one a shock of white and the other seemingly its shadow—draw your attention when they approach him with a large branch in their mouths they’ve taken a shining to during your walk, and that he launches off into the forest for them to chase down again.

Something about the moment seems so surreal. Maybe it’s because the times the two of you get to spend together in peace outside of your home seem to be so few and far between, or maybe it’s because you normally scoff at the idea of being up and active before the sun rises. But, whatever it is, it creates an undeniable warmth in your chest that prompts you to push away any thoughts of yearning for the coziness of your bed, and reach out towards your partner instead.

“Try not to trip again, alright?” he murmurs, shoving his hands into the pockets of his joggers while you slot an arm between one of his and his torso, “I actually like this sweater and would prefer not to get coffee on it.”

“But it’s decaf!”

His lips pause in their action of forming a rebuttal presumably about how his sweater would stain, regardless of the presence of caffeine, and he simply shakes his head with a sigh upon realizing you’re joking.

The same silence that had once filled the crisp air returns, only interrupted by paws pounding the damp earth, but it feels more peaceful now. It’s calming, given the normally hectic lives you and your boyfriend lead as special grade sorcerers and teachers, and very much appreciated. Megumi’s pace is a bit slower and more relaxed than usual, as if he wants to stay immersed in the quietude with you and his dogs at his side. But you know he has a destination in mind with the definitive nature of his steps.

At the top of a hill whose grassy slopes had been decorated with worn stone steps that would indicate many a visitor had travelled up them, sits a stone bench you’ve never seen before. And, in front of it, a clearing where the leafy spires part just enough for you to see the small flicker of light burning at the edge of the horizon decorated with the distant buildings of Tokyo’s bustling cityscape. Your eyes remain fixated on the gentle colors the sun’s impending arrival starts painting across the dark canvas the sky provides as Megumi leads you over towards the bench so you can take a seat and bear witness to nature’s awakening.

You find yourself lost in it for what feels to be a long stretch of time until his voice brings your gaze to him instead. “Well, this is where I go.” The eyebrow you raise at his statement provided without any context coaxes him to elaborate, “You know, on those mornings I leave for a bit and come back, and you ask me where I went? This is where I go.” His long fingers card through the furry coats of his dogs where they sit on the grass between you.

Nodding slowly, you take another sip of the drink in your hand. “So, why’d you decide to take me here, considering it’s probably the only place where you can get away from the madness of everything?”

As the sun ascends skyward at what feels to be a faster pace than expected, you notice the most beautiful pools of cerulean form in his eyes more brilliant than you think you’ve ever seen them before. His hand finds yours, and your fingers intertwine. “Because I wanted you to be here with me.” There’s a pause, and his gaze shifts away from the sunrise to meet with yours instead. It’s an action that unwittingly reaffirms your importance given the beauty of the scene ahead. “I wanted it to be us here instead of just me.”

Gently, you squeeze his hand, relishing in the comfort of his touch that always brings a smile to your face. “So, what are you saying? That you think I’m actually gonna change my sleep schedule entirely just for you?” is your teasing reply.

“No,” he sighs, narrowing his eyes at your jest, “but maybe every now and then, we could go to sleep at a decent time so we can come here and watch the sunrise.”

Moving your face closer to his shortens the gap between your lips, but you stop before they can meet to answer, “We can do that.” Oftentimes, you find that Megumi’s straightforward manner of speaking doesn’t always match the true intensity of his emotions, but his kisses never betray how he’s feeling. They’re soft and tender, as if his intentions are to give you a few pecks and nothing more, but he’s always quick to chase your lips when they separate from his, even for a moment.

When your eyes flutter open once more, you watch his flit back and forth between each of yours in miniscule movements before pecking his cheek and resting your head on his shoulder. A long expanse of peaceful quietude follows, save for the chirping of newly awakened birds and the secretive whispers of the breeze through the trees.

“Do you think this could be our place?”

The sound of his deep voice reverberating in his chest sends subtle vibrations through your head, and his words bring small prickles of heat to your cheeks. “You want it to be?” A wet nose brushes against your unoccupied fingertips, guiding your hand onto a fuzzy, black snout that you give an affectionate rub.

Megumi nods and his cheek comes to rest against the crown of your head. “Yeah,” he answers, slinging an arm around your shoulders and pulling you closer to him.

“Better make sure none of your nosy students ever find out you’re coming up here, then,” is your warning delivered with a chuckle.

“They’re so desperate to be done with classes for the day that I doubt they’ll want to spend their free time tailing their teacher. Your students are the nosy ones, wanting to follow you on social media, or whatever.”

Each of your laughs permeate the cool air slowly becoming warmer with the sun’s expanding reach—from which you take shelter by burying your face in his neck.

“Megumi?”

“Yeah?”

“Can we just… stay here for a bit?”

You feel his arm move as he checks his phone. “Classes start in an hour.”

“Just a little bit longer?”

A notification appears on his screen, but he turns it off and tucks the device back into his pocket. “Sure,” he murmurs into your hair before pecking your temple.

He says it so nonchalantly, but you know he’s hoping whatever time he’s set in his head to leave doesn’t arrive for an eternity. Because it’s the same hope that settles deeply into your heart as the two of you hold onto one another and watch waves of light slowly wash over the dark sky, doing everything you can to cherish your company rather than agonize over the moment when you’ll have to let go.

In an exhale that tickles your skin, Megumi hums, “I’m glad you came here with me.”

#jujutsu kaisen x reader #jjk x reader #megumi x reader #fushiguro megumi x reader #fran writes jjk!!

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devotion · 3 years

Text

shittin' it → t.h

summary: haunted houses aren't your thing and you regret ever stepping into one. but tom tries his best, eventually, to put your heart at ease.

warnings: making out, a bit steamy?, suggestive behaviour, swears here and there but all round fluff.

requested: yes

notes: i don't know how haunted houses work so let's just say you enter whenever you feel like it. @fallinfortom beta read the beginning 🖤 thank you, hun! x

word count: 1.5k+ | masterlist

───✦

tagging along with tom and his fellow cast members for filming spider-man 3, in your mind, was the best plan your boyfriend had for you. and adding to that, obviously, by seeing this movie's secrets and revelations before the rest of the public possessed a thrill you thoroughly enjoyed. until the big surprise tom had said he arranged for you let slip out of your mind.

unfortunately.

probably everyone that knew you was aware of the fact that you hated ─ loathed even ─ horror movies. since many had asked you for a night out to the cinema to watch one. in which you always reasoned against them: why bother scaring yourself? it honestly didn't make any sense to you.

though, unknowingly being dragged to a warehouse, far too vast for your vision to perceive, was a total contrast to what was said as an 'evening at a restaurant'.

"where are we exactly, tom?" you questioned, walking alongside him to this yet-to-be-revealed building; zendaya and jacob in tow. when he gave you no answer, you glanced to your side and the look on his face was solely a pure smirk.

your jaw dropped as he took out a mask that appeared to be the infamous killer clown. you grimaced as you stared at it, the prospect of what was about to come dawned on you. realising this, after you gave him a slight push, you pulled him back to yourself, your head finding it's way into his neck as you whimpered.

"awh, babe," tom cooed, bringing his hand to stroke your hair, "you'll be fine. there's nothing to worry about. i've been here before and even i survived."

you looked at him, eyebrows raised and whilst mimicking the same stance he does when he's getting ready to punch someone, you said: "you call that being fine?"

tom's smug face dropped into a deadpan, "no, darling-"

"-don't call me anything. you're paying for this."

you felt a smack on your bum just as you try to walk a little faster than him, making you stop in your tracks whilst he rubs your ass a little more, "we'll see about that, babe."

you flare your nose in annoyance, pushing away the slightly inappropriate thoughts invading your mind at his actions.

fuck tom and his antics. fuck him.

your trail of thought was summoned not long after upon entering. and it was a giggling zendaya who took your hand to bring your hesitant self forward. then instantly, a scream emitted your lips as a baby doll's head popped out of the wall into your view. jacob bent over, cackling, at your reaction.

you sighed, a hand over your chest in an attempt to slow down your heartbeat. but to no avail. you were scared shitless already and in no way prepared for what was to come.

the room went dark all of a sudden as you stood against the wall, your friends' laughs coming to an abrupt end.

"now that's for laughing at me," you piped up.

of what you recognised was zendaya's voice, you heard, "nah, we knew that was happening. we're excited to show you what's next."

out of nowhere, your ears pick up the sound of an evil laugh - or dare you say, many evil laughs - all coming from every direction where you were standing. and all you can do is slap your hands over your ears and squeeze your eyes shut. but before you can even do that, torches are turned on and all of them are held by your wonderful friends.

another scream from you.

"for fuck's sake!" you shout, scurrying away from them into the nearest hallway.

bad idea.

it was dark. and in many places, there were led lights in the shape of eyes covering the wall. you felt a chill against your spine as you ventured further.

"you think we've gone too far?" tom asked jacob and zendaya, his gaze directed where you were heading, "it's only been 5 minutes."

"nope," was zendaya's abrupt response to that, fetching a mask that resembled the ghost from scream.

deciding it was best to look at the floor and focus on where you were going, you had found out that the same creepy eyes were on the floor too.

you breathed out. your mind chanted that they were indeed fake- fake- fake-

and yet you let out another high-pitched screech as you felt the presence of another figure close by, scaring them away. but all you did was glare at them when you felt no harm done, as they came towards you, realising that the owner of the mask was just tom.

immediately, he took it off as he noticed he was still wearing it. given that there was no way getting away from this hell hole, you put your arms around yourself in an effort to calm yourself, ignoring your boyfriend. you progressed onwards without him.

as soon as you've reached the door at the end of the passageway, you're pulled back into tom's embrace. though, you stiffened to show no emotion. but his hands began to massage the base of your back and he whispered, "sorry, baby."

you decided to lay your head onto his shoulders, giving up on being mad at him. obviously, not entirely.

tom went on to open the door, but paused as the two of you heard a chuckle from afar. you dismissed it quickly. then, he gestured his hand to signal that you get in first.

"nope. not this time, buddy," you spoke up, "ladies first doesn't work at all right now."

without thinking any further, you get ahold of tom's bicep and push him in the almost pitch-black room. with all the strength you owned to make that hefty man fucking move.

you didn't hear him say anything for a while until he finally informed that there was nothing to worry about there.

to convince you to come closer, he added, "honestly, hand on heart, last time we came here, nothing happened. it's just a little break from the beginning."

still uncertain and tentative, you step forward and you wait a few moments to wait for anything to pop out. and tom was right.

now registering that you were both alone, tom beamed at you. but you weren't having any of it. you might have been a little pissed at him for bringing you here.

you were already standing near a wall and because of this, tom had plans racing through his mind. he decided to draw nearer to you.

with him now within arm's reach, undeterred, you seized tom's hip with your thigh, bringing him closer to you and pressed him to the wall behind.

he felt like the wind got knocked out of him, and before he could think straight again, your lips met his. almost forcefully. he never knew how electrifying it felt for you to kiss him so deeply as you did.

even though you appreciated the fact that kissing tom stole away your worries, you swatted his hands away as they tried to find your waist. at this, he pulled back as he suppressed a moan at the dominance you were emanating.

tom panted as he tried to get out in clear words, "come on, y/n. please don't be like that."

the light in the room was still dim. so, when you caught sight of the two real spiders making it's way to tom's head, you knew you were in for a good treat. but because you picked up a few tricks from tom's acting, instead, you looked at him with batting eyelashes. and tom was losing it at how innocent you looked.

it was your turn to laugh as tom finally let out a gasp when he felt something tickling the back of his neck.

"shit!"

he was flailing his arms everywhere, almost tripped over nothing, and rolled on the floor whilst he tried to 'free' himself from the spider.

minutes later and reassured that there was nothing crawling in his shirt or boxers, tom came to you. he felt better now that you looked much at peace. except you had stitches from all the laughing.

"really not cool, love," tom said, sliding down next to you on the wall you leant on, "you know I have arachnopho-"

"-it was rather funny if you ask me," you intervene and send a smile his way.

tom pouted, in which you gave him a confused look in return because of how close he was becoming towards you. befote you knew it, his sudden grip on your shoulders forced you to the ground.

on the spur of the moment, you were lying on the cold floor, tom somehow already on his knees and inbetween your legs. you didn't know why you giggled as he started to come down, a mischievous smile playing on his face as he laid a hand on the wall for support in order to kiss you.

but he was interrupted as he shouted at the same time you screamed. near your head, a bloody hand had punched the wall in swift motion, startling you greatly.

the hand slowly retreated, and in place shortly after, zendaya's head appeared from the hole.

"go fuck afterwards, we're tryna have fun here."

───✦

@fallinfortom @duskholland @amorhollands @t-lostinworlds @alydawson @theamazingtomholland @musicalkeys @satanswitchings 🖤🖤

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imkylotrash · 3 years

Text

Black And White (5)

Pairing: Saul Silva x reader

Summary: You go on the date letting Harry know that there was nothing between the two of you but you’re not ready to forgive Saul so you become petty. Contains a request given a long time ago regarding sparring partners. I won’t be writing the request because it would give away the entire chapter.

Series Masterlist

Tagging: @grey-girl @intoanothermind @anreeixcobra @kingunder221b @lflores2008 @alexiapayne12 @quuenofblacks @quarterback-5 @estelmei @bitchwhytho @music-of-melody @artsyle @baueoud

All the way through getting ready for the date, you feel absolutely sick to your stomach. You don’t want to go on a date with someone else but your ego is hurt badly from Saul telling you to go. You wanted him to tell you the opposite, you wanted him to get upset at the mere thought of someone looking at you the way he does. You never expected him to tell you to go. Once again, your phone buzzes letting you know that another message from Saul ticked in. He’s been texting you every five minutes since you left his room but for you his decision to stay away from your room says more than any text message he might send you.

Once you finish getting ready, you wait another 5 minutes giving Saul time to come stop you but he doesn’t. You try not to feel too hurt but it’s hard not to when your partner won’t even fight for you. Instead you text Harry to let him know that you’re good to go. He texts back the meeting spot and a bunch of inappropriate smileys that you can’t help but laugh at. He’s a little bonkers that one.

“Hey, I’m Y/N.” you introduce yourself to the stranger waiting for you out on the lawn. He smiles showing all his pearly whites and somehow, you already hate him. He’s too slick knowing he’s objectively pretty and thinking it’ll substitute for an actual personality. You see why Harry would like him though. He’s probably one of the lads always up for a good chat about the ladies.

“I’m Jared. Can I just say you look absolutely stunning tonight?” he starts and it gives you the creeps. It’s not so much what he said but the way he said it. He’s been with you for two minutes and it feels like he’s already picturing you without your clothes on.

“Should we get going?” you ask deflecting the question ungracefully. He holds out his arm to lead you through the portal to Solaria. It’s a beautiful restaurant and the food is amazing but you predicted his personality so accurately it’s almost painful. He doesn’t ask you a single question but goes on and on talking about himself and how he always considered himself better than what Alfea could offer which is why he transferred to private tutors right here in Solaria. The wine glass seems to empty quite often in order for you to survive the night.

“I’ve had a great time tonight.” I bet you have, you think to yourself panicking when he leans down for a kiss. In a moment of complete brain freeze, you decide that a sneeze is the best way to avoid it.

“Sorry, I should probably get inside.” You hurry away leaving him hanging outside. Rather than going to bed, you head to Harry’s room and knock on the door.

“What the hell were you thinking?” you ask once he opens the door. Luckily, his room appears empty so you push past him ready to take off your shoes and get comfortable. It’s been a while since the two of you had a sleepover but tonight, you could really use it.

“You didn’t like him?” he asks closing the door before coming over to sit next to you on the bed.

“Like him? How could anyone like him?” you ask making Harry laugh.

“Honestly, I have no idea. I never thought you’d go through with it,” he chuckles confusing you even more. Why would Harry set you up with him if he doesn’t even like him? You narrow your eyes looking at your best friend with a suspicious feeling growing in your stomach.

“Why wouldn’t I go through with it when you vouch for him?” Does he know? How could he know when you and Saul have been so careful not to reveal anything in public? Everything seems a little backwards right now and what you really want is to cuddle up next to Saul and forget all about this but your pride won’t let you do that.

“You tell me?” he smirks and he definitely knows.

“Saul told me to do it.”

“Saul?! You’re dating Saul Silva?!” He’s so shocked that you quickly realise that he definitely didn’t know you were dating Saul.

“I knew you were dating someone and hadn’t told me but... You’re dating Silva?” He can’t believe it and you can’t believe you just told him that you’re dating your teacher. Could tonight get any worse.

“Whatever I just said, I blame it on the wine.” But the damage has been done. There’s no way Harry will let you forget this and while you worry about what Saul might say, you have to admit that it’s really nice to be able to tell someone. You get keeping it a secret until graduation, but you wish you didn’t have to. And lately that feeling have only gotten worse.

“You can blame admitting it on the wine but not the fact that you’re dating our teacher.” He goes to high five you but the look in your eyes is enough for him to abandon that idea.

“So, you sent me on a date that you knew would be horrible to make me confess I was already seeing someone?” you ask trying to figure out exactly what went down tonight.

“I really thought you’d back out before you guys even left Alfea. I felt a little bad.” He holds up his thumb and index finger to indicate the measurement of how bad he felt. It’s not much.

“You’re a dick,” you laugh deciding that you won’t be upset about this. If you hadn’t been fighting with Saul, you might even have thought it was a fun prank. Instead you opt for climbing under the duvet and going to sleep. Harry stays on the floor not even considering the idea of you two sharing a bed which you really appreciate. He can be a gentleman for the right person.

“Wake up.” The sun has made a reappearance way too soon but you know you can’t go back to sleep. Classes will be starting soon where you’ll have to face Saul.

“I have a plan that might make up for last night. But it’s very petty.” Your ego likes petty at the minute. He fills you in as you head towards the training grounds. When you arrive, you don’t even look in Saul’s direction instead focusing on Harry.

“Have you been working out?” you ask touching his biceps even though everything in you is screaming for you to stop, you keep going. Harry is like family and while this feels so wrong, his smile tells you that someone else is definitely annoyed by it. Your back is to Saul but that means that Harry can watch him.

“Tightening his grip in the staff,” he informs you at the same time letting you know that you can up your game.

“Fight me,” you whisper crawling into the ring. It’s the silliest training you’ve ever done. Instead of actually trying, you and Harry just roll around laughing and having fun. None of you put anything more into it than wanting to piss Saul off but it’s still weird.

“I surrender,” you scream when he starts tickling you.

“You two, my office!” he snaps and you have to bite your lip from laughing. Harry’s plan worked a charm and while you probably should feel a little bad for agitating him like this, you’re mostly just satisfied that you finally got the reaction you wanted him to have when you told him about the date.

“I’ll be expecting to see you in detention for the next three Saturdays. Training is not a joke and I refuse to let anyone behave the way you two did out there.” You can’t even look at Harry in fear of laughing out loud while Saul is screaming at you. He’s clearly very upset but you don’t feel bad. He started this.

“Harry, you’re excused.” He sends you a look when he gets up to leave which you return with a wink.

“See you,” he says letting his hand rest on your shoulder for just a second longer than necessary. Don’t laugh, you tell yourself wanting to enjoy jealous Saul a little longer before you admit what really happened out there.

“What the hell was that?” he sneers very upset.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. Harry is my best friend, we were having a laugh.” You try to ask innocent secretly swooning over just how hot he is when he’s jealous.

“Don’t play dumb with me. Why were you flirting with him?” There’s a fire burning in his eyes that you’ve really missed. All you want is for him to admit that you’re his and he’s yours. You know it’s wrong and that no one can claim another person but somehow, you and Saul have anyway.

“Sorry. I just thought it would act as a good cover. You know, so people don’t ask any questions.” You’re enjoying this far too much but really, it’s just your bruised ego talking.

“Well, that little stunt just cost you me.” That wipes the smile of your face.

“What?” you ask thinking that you can’t have heard him correctly. He can’t seriously mean that he’s willing to end things over this. It’s an argument and sure, it’s one of the big ones but you figured you’d get through it like you have with anything else.

“I’m not doing this childish thing you’re trying to do,” he says with a hollow tone.

“I’m done.”

#saul silva x reader #saul silva blurb #saul silva gif #saul silva imagine #saul silva #winx saul silva #fate the winx saga #fate winx club #fate the winx club #winx saga #winx club #fate winx #fate

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tallstars-rewrite · 3 years

Text

Chapter 8

chapter list / previous / next

Tallpaw padded behind Dawnstripe, struggling to see over the long grass and stifling a sneeze as it tickled his nose. “But I’m confused,” he said. “Why did Heatherstar suddenly change her mind?”

Dawnstripe shrugged. “I don’t think Heatherstar ever changed her mind, it hadn’t been decided to begin with. The council makes an official decision the night before the ceremony about how an apprentice will train, and with who.”

“My father sounded so sure about me being apprenticed to Woollycloud…”

“Well, parents always have hopes and preferences, but it’s never definite. I suppose Sandstone decided that on his own.”

“Do you think Heatherstar really only did it because she doesn’t like him?”

“Of course not! Heatherstar would never do that. She made you a moor runner because she thought you wanted to be. You look so miserable trying to dig, and you're such a natural runner. The deputy, medicine cat, and elders must have had an agreement as well.”

I doubt Whitetooth did… But the others...they really thought that? Tallpaw was silent for a moment.

Dawnstripe paused and looked at him “Do you want to be a tunneler? Heatherstar made the call, but if you really wanted to, she wouldn’t deny you. Cats have changed before. If you want Woollycloud to train you...”

“N-no it’s…” Tallpaw fumbled, still trying to piece his feelings together. “I guess...I’ve never actually thought that much about what I want. I thought it was just what I needed to do.”

“Think about it now. I’d love to train you, I’ve always wanted an apprentice. But it’s your path, Tallpaw. What do you want?”

Tallpaw looked up at her. “I...I don’t want to be a tunneler,” he mewed, a twinge of shame nagging at the back of his head as the words left his mouth. Yet, as soon as he said them, he knew they were true. “I don’t like it...I’m not good at digging. I’m not built like Plumclaw or Woollycloud. I never feel like I’m making progress, and I keep hurting my claws, and I hate feeling cramped in the dark, and...and…”

Dawnstripe purred and rested her muzzle briefly on his head. “Then say no more. This is your first day as an apprentice Tallpaw! Get excited! From today, you start to become a real warrior. Your father may be upset at Heatherstar, but surely not at you. I’m sure he’ll understand if it’s what you want. You are a warrior to your clan, not just to one cat. Now save your worries for later, I want to show you something.”

A real warrior… The thought warmed him from nose to tail tip. It didn’t matter what he specialized in. They were all warriors just the same, that was surely enough.

“Where are we going?” Tallpaw huffed. He hadn’t realized how tall this hill really was until he was climbing it. Dawnstripe shot a wide grin at him as they neared the top.

“The top of Outlook Hill. You can see everything from there. The wind can be heavy without the hill to block it, so brace yourself. It’s blowing hard today.”

Tallpaw leapt up beside her as she finally paused at the top. She wasn’t kidding about the wind. As soon as he’d peaked over the ridge, he was afraid he’d get knocked off his paws as the gust blasted him in the face and flapped in his ears. He ducked back down, fastening his claws tightly into the ground until it died down.

“Don’t be afraid,” Dawnstripe encouraged. “You’ll be ok, it’s nothing to be frightened of. I’m right here with you. Come see!��

Tallpaw hesitantly straightened back up, braced this time as another gust hit him straight on, he pinned his ears back flat and squinted. When he could blink open his eyes, the sight before him nearly took his breath away. The other apprentices weren’t exaggerating. He really couldn’t believe the world was so big.

The sun was cresting the horizon behind him, lighting up the parting clouds in brilliant warm hues and bathing the moor in rosy light. The long swaying grass dropped below him in a steep downward slope and spread out almost further than he could see, stretching into a wide expanse of heather and gorse bushes dotting the fields, sparkling and heavy with last night's rain. Hills and mountains he’d never known about lay beyond, tinted blue in the distance, their peaks lit up in gold as the sun's rays touched them. Standing here at the highest point of the moor, he was suddenly aware of how tall this hill really was and almost felt unsteady on his paws at the thought of the wind force sending him tumbling back down. He found himself wondering if birds felt a similar way while trying to fly for the first time.

“No other cats in the forest can have a sight like this.” Dawnstripe said. “Remember wind isn’t your enemy. It is part of us, and we move with it. It guides our paws over the moor and gives us our swift step. Fierce, but also gentle, a constant presence. If you listen, you can hear her singing.”

As the frightening gust died down a bit, he pricked his ears hesitantly. His whiskers were pinned back and his ears whistled. “I only hear it whipping my ears.”

“Be still for a moment. Close your eyes, and focus on just feeling it.”

He was still as she asked, and just when he was afraid he wouldn’t understand, the gust turned into a more gentle breeze. It whistled down the hill side, ebbing and flowing in strength. A gentle ruffling past his fur, almost like a clanmate brushing along his side. As he closed his eyes, he pictured it moving down the hill, weaving past the sage brush, around the gorse and the scarce scraggly trees. It was all so far away, but letting the scents sink in as they were carried to him, the heather on the far moor sweet on his tongue, a rabbit somewhere foraging in the thistles, it was almost as if he could picture every groove and flower clearly, even the parts of the moor out of sight. All of it connected. And then, quietly at first and then growing in volume, he heard a low whistling. High pitched, and then lower. Almost a hum as it whisked through the fields.

“I think I hear it.” Tallpaw murmured. The moor really was singing to him.

Dawnstripe brushed her tail against him. “It doesn’t always happen, but when the winds are just right, they say the matron of the moors returns to the hills. She lives on in the winds and sings to her children still, always running beside them. You are part of this place after all, the same way it will always be a part of you.”

Tallpaw could hardly believe such a view had been just above his head, towering over camp all his life and he never knew. He only barely heard Dawnstripe laugh over the whistling in his ears. “I never forgot my first sight of the moor. Isn’t it beautiful?”

“How far does it go?” Tallpaw breathed.

“The forest's edge is below those far hills. We’ll head in that direction and then make our way around. I just wanted your first view to be from the best spot, especially since the rain clouds were nice enough to part for us. You can see most of the territory from up here.”

“All of it? This is all ours?” How would he ever memorize such a large place?

“Everything between the tree lines. We’ve got a lot of ground to cover.”

The wind blew from behind Tallpaw, as if it was tugging him forward, and a thrill ran up his spine as he was eager to let it. Fixing his eyes to the farthest point in sight he felt a leap of kit-like energy bouncing around inside him, a near irresistible urge to let that energy out and spring forward, race the wind, let it carry his paws, cross the open stretch and not stop until he reached the other side. This was nothing like looping the camp. Nothing to get in his way at all, he could fly down the hill if he wanted to, and in that instance he’d never wanted anything so badly.

A greeting meow broke him from his trance and he turned to see Briarpaw and his mentor Meadowbreeze trotting towards them. Dawnstripe waved her tail in greeting.

“Good morning, Dawnstripe!” Meadowbreeze called. “We were hoping to join you for a bit on Tallpaw’s first territory tour before hunting practice, if you don’t mind!”

“Not at all Meadowbreeze.” Dawnstripe nodded at the pale tortoiseshell. The two mollies greeted each other as Briarpaw came to touch noses with Tallpaw.

“It’s a lot to take in, isn't it?” Briarpaw purred, looking out at the endless sky. “I almost fell down the hill during me and Shrewpaw’s first day. The wind was much stronger, not to mention a lot colder.”

Tallpaw let his gaze drift back to the hills. “I feel like I could get lost just looking at it.” Now that he’d seen how big the world was, he was somehow greedy for the sight of more of it. This was only WindClan territory and it looked like so much.

After a moment's silence, Briarpaw cleared his throat and said, “so...moor runner after all, huh? Who would’ve thought?” Tallpaw’s ears set back in slight discomfort. “Y-yeah, I guess so…”

“I always thought you’d be suited for it, you know. I didn’t say anything because I didn’t think you’d be interested. But you used to be faster than both me and Shrew, even though you were younger.” He paused for a heartbeat. “How, uh...how are you feeling?”

Tallpaw knew what he was referring to, though neither of them wanted to directly acknowledge the uncomfortable spat Sandstone and Heatherstar had in the middle of it all. He tried to remember what Dawnstripe said. Now wasn’t the time to worry. “I’m fine. I’m going to be a warrior, right? That’s all that matters.”

“That’s the spirit.” Meadowbreeze broke in. “We’d all better get a move on if you want to finish by sundown! You're starting at the northern border first right?”

Dawnstripe nodded and pointed her nose to the shorter hill. “Yep, it’ll be just over that rise, up the Swift-Step hills.” She winked at Tallpaw. “You can run there if you like. I know you want to.”

Tallpaw did want to very much.

“Well then, race me there!” Dawnstripe called as she took off in a flash.

Tallpaw instantly forgot any lingering anxiety as he streaked after her without a second thought, straight down the steep drop. He reveled in the wind whistling through his whiskers, letting gravity carry him down as much as his legs. The sharp incline of the hill made him feel like he was falling with each bound when his paws weren’t touching the earth, but the feeling was more exhilarating than frightening. If anything, it felt more like flying. I’d like to see Shrewpaw try to outrun me! he thought gleefully. The smug brown apprentice would be in for it now. He didn’t even care that the dew in the grass had left him soaked.

Tallpaw was proud of himself for almost managing to match Dawnstripe’s pace to the next hilltop, even if part of him knew she was probably intentionally keeping pace with him. Not too much farther ahead, the ground sloped down again into a thin strip of woodland. Faint rumbles in the distance made Tallpaw’s fur stand on end.

“Is that thunder?” he looked up in confusion. There wasn’t a dark cloud in the sky.

“That would be the Thunderpath.” Dawnstripe said. “Let’s go a bit closer. It’s important for you to know about it.”

Tallpaw wasn’t sure he wanted to. Briarpaw brushed against his side. “It’s not scary so long as you don’t touch it,” he said.

Once they reached the towering row of trees that Tallpaw had seen from the distant hill, he realized they were much bigger up close. WindClan’s camp didn’t have anything that tall. Tallpaw craned his neck up, but he couldn’t even see the tops of the pines past the snaring branches. Through the sparse undergrowth lay a long, black path of what looked like strange flat stone. A horrible acrid stench reached his nose. A rumble of thunder echoed in his ears, coming closer and faster. Tallpaw cowered instinctively and tried to turn, but Dawnstripe held her tail in front of him.

“Don’t be afraid, we’re safe here,” she said.

A massive shining beast came hurtling across the stones, so fast Tallpaw couldn’t even make it out clearly. It streaked past them and over a rise on the path before vanishing into the distance.

Tallpaw didn’t realize he’d been holding his breath until he let it out.

“That would be one of the twolegs monsters. We understand little about them other than they always stay on their path, and they can kill a cat with their feet if you ever get in their way.” Dawnstripe pointed ahead with her nose. “Do you see that flat smudge on the path? That was what appears to be a small squirrel.”

This close, Tallpaw could almost smell the scent of old rotting prey, but the red of its flesh was blackened and completely flat. If Dawnstripe hadn’t told him it was a squirrel, he wasn’t sure he’d even be able to tell.

“That is why you must stay well away from those creatures' paws. They just run down everything in their way. Even something as big as a deer isn’t safe, and neither are we.”

“Do they eat cats?” Tallpaw’s voice shook slightly as he spoke.

Dawnstripe shook her head. “They don’t eat anything. They aren’t like animals. The good news is they are so loud, you can always hear and feel them coming. But it’s still best to stay well away from this place, and don’t ever chase prey onto the Thunderpath.”

“But...what are they? Are they like the bad spirits the elders talk about sometimes?”

“No, not like that. Even the elders aren’t sure what they are exactly, we only know they are tied to the twolegs somehow, and nothing good ever comes out of anything that's been touched by twolegs. Sometimes you can even see them inside. There was a time seasons ago when the clans never had to deal with twolegs or their monsters at all, and this path wasn’t here, but then they came in noisy droves and after some moons, the Thunderpath and the monsters were here. That's how the elders tell it anyway.”

“If the monsters aren’t really animals, does that mean twolegs aren’t either?”

“If they had a proper name, we wouldn't dignify them with it,” Dawnstripe curled her lip in disdain. “They’re tall, awkward, and ugly things with no fur. They can’t be killed, as far as we know, and the animals they keep are often as dangerous as them. Dogs, for one. They bring destruction and danger wherever they go and they don’t behave in any way we can predict or understand. They are no friends to cats.”

“I heard cats live with them,” Briarpaw said.

“Some cats do, those are the kittypets you may have heard the warriors talk about.” Meadowbreeze explained. “I feel sorry for them really, they must have been brainwashed to stay docile and locked up the way they are. Twolegs try to capture a cat's heart so they lose all sense of their natural wild spirit.”

“Would twolegs ever come into our territory to try and make us kittypets?” Tallpaw asked nervously. Dawnstripe rested her tail on his shoulder reassuringly. “We are luckier than ThunderClan and ShadowClan that the nearest twolegs to us live on a farm further to the north, beyond that farther treeline. Twolegs have been edging closer to the other clans' territories for seasons, but StarClan has kept us safe from them so far. We never see them or their kittypets come as far as the moor, so you don’t have to worry. Besides, I heard they are very slow, and we can outrun them easily. Tallpaw didn’t need to be told twice. If he never had to meet a twoleg or their captive animal servants for as long as he lived, he would be perfectly happy with that.

“But that’s not the only thing to be wary about here,” Dawnstripe said and flicked her tail motioning for her apprentice to follow her as she padded along the woodland stretch.

The Thunderpath was high above them now, and underneath the hill was a long narrow opening that led to the other side. The ground in front of it was squishy and wet, dotted with drowned brown plantlife. Through the other side, thick dark trees tangled together. A disgusting scent reached his nose, not as strong as the monster stench, but strong nonetheless. It smelled of wet moldy dirt and soggy prey he couldn’t quite place.

“This,” continued Dawnstripe, “is our border with ShadowClan.”

ShadowClan. This was where those cats lived, tangled in those shadowy trees. It looked suffocating, almost as bad as how he pictured the tunnels themselves. In the dark undergrowth and tree branches twining together above them, he imagined the air in there was as wet and muggy as the ground at his feet.

“How can cats be content living in there?” Tallpaw asked. He remembered the elders' tale about how ShadowClan was banished to the dark swamp lands. No wonder they had been jealous of WindClan’s moor if that was where they lived. “Can they even get fresh air?”

“Not really. They must like it, I guess.” Briarpaw shrugged. “They’re a weird bunch.”

“Not a nice bunch either.” Meadowbreeze added. “Some say the heart of their territory is so dark, you can hardly tell the time of day. It must be horribly dreary.”

“This border is dangerous to wander on your own right now. We have no idea what ShadowClan is up to.” Dawnstripe warned. “They seemed to be sniffing around some moons ago, but it’s been quiet since. They’re very stealthy, so we have to keep a lookout for them.”

Tallpaw imagined the dark fox-muzzled cats he’d heard about peering at him from the far shadows. He shivered involuntarily and was grateful when Dawnstripe motioned for them to keep going.

“We shouldn’t stay here long. We’ve got a lot farther to go. But now you know ShadowClan’s scent. Remember it, and keep an eye out.”

Dawnstripe and Meadowbreeze began padding away, but Briarpaw dragged a bit behind, staring through the tunnel at the darkened tree line. Tallpaw turned back to him. “Briar? What’s wrong? we have to catch up.”

Briarpaw nodded absentmindedly and followed after Tallpaw, his fur prickling along his neck.

Tallpaw looked at him quizzically. “You didn’t see any cats did you?”

He shook his head. “Not cats no...those woods just give me the creeps. I mean, more than usual. It’s like I can see the shadows of the trees stretching out toward us like claws, and covering the moor territory. I get such a bad feeling from them.”

The sun wasn’t bright enough to cast such dark shadows from what Tallpaw could see. He hooked his long tail around Briarpaw’s and led him onward. “Any sensible cat would get a bad feeling from there. Well lucky we don’t have to live in it. Let’s just get far away from here--and quickly.”

***

Tallpaw’s march around the territory had gone through the day into dusk. They’d only paused briefly for a short break before they were out again. He’d never walked so much in a day and his head was still reeling with all he had to take in. Dawnstripe assured him he would learn it bit by bit over time.

The other apprentices greeted him and Briarpaw when they got back into camp.

“Sorry we couldn’t see your first time around the territory with you. We’re nose deep in our training right now since me and Fawn are getting ready for the newleaf race.” Fallowpaw chirped.

Tallpaw cocked his head. “The...newleaf race?”

Shrewpaw snorted. “Yeah, duh! They’ve been talking about it for moons! You spent so much time splashing around in the mud that you didn’t even hear about it?”

“It’s a tradition,” Briawpaw explained. “You know, at the start of every newleaf we celebrate the return of the warm winds by having a whole clan-wide race across the territory.”

“Like our old course around camp, except way bigger and the winner gets a feast and doesn’t have to do the bad chores for two sunrises!” Fawnpaw said. “Mostly it’s about being the fastest, though.”

Tallpaw remembered now, he had heard something about the newleaf race. But his father had told him not to be concerned about it. Just moor runner frivolities.

“It doesn’t mean as much to the tunnelers. You’re already mature for your age, I don’t expect you to get caught up in silly games to see who gets to laze around for a day.” Sandstone had told him.

Tallpaw hadn’t thought about it as being a big deal. But I’m a moor runner now...so I suppose it is something that matters to me? Frivolous stuff... It was right then the thought he’d been putting off came violently pushing its way to the front of his mind. Sandstone. A familiar feeling of unsheathed claws turning his stomach in knots came back to him. I have to go talk to him.

“Tallpaw?” Briarpaw nudged him. “You look like you’ve just stared down a monster, what’s the matter?”

Tallpaw blinked at him with a start. “Sorry. Nothing’s the matter at all. Have um…” He shuffled his paws. “Have any of you seen my father?”

All four of them looked at each other awkwardly. Their discomfort crept into him, intensifying his own all the more.

“Sandstone? Didn’t Heatherstar put him in time out?” Shrewpaw said.

Briarpaw smacked him on the leg as Tallpaw flattened his ears in irritation. Why did Shrewpaw insist on talking about Sandstone that way?

“Never mind, I’ll find him myself,” he growled, turning away.

Briarpaw hissed at his brother. “Stop being rude!”

“What? I just said what happened. It’s not my fault he’s such a--” Tallpaw didn’t want to hear the rest. He was tired of feeling like he was being pulled in three different directions. I just want the cats I care about to get along. Is that so much to ask?

Part of Tallpaw was relieved he couldn’t find his father right away. Would Sandstone be angry at him? Surely he would, he practically hated moor runners. Perhaps I should bring him food...That always puts him in a better mood. Moles were his favorite, and Tallpaw prayed there were some on the freshkill pile. To his immense relief, a hunting party had returned recently. He nosed through the pile absentmindedly and picked up the biggest mole he could find.

He looked around, still unsure of where to start looking. Where would Sandstone have gone? Perhaps to the eastern tunnel he was always talking about. He always said working calmed his nerves. But Dawnstripe hadn’t covered much about the tunneling system, and Tallpaw could only guess the general area it might be in. He was hoping his father would have already made up with Heatherstar and come back by now. Tallpaw hadn’t even noticed he was pacing anxiously in a circle until he nearly ran muzzle first into Woollycloud, causing him to stumble back and drop his mole.

“Ah--! Sorry Woollycloud, I-I didn’t see you.” Tallpaw struggled to meet the tunneler's face, afraid of what expression he’d see.

But Woollycloud mostly looked tired, and he regarded Tallpaw with more sympathy than disappointment. “It’s quite alright Tallpaw,” he said. “Are you… looking for your father?”

Tallpaw nodded quietly, unsure of what to say.

Woollycloud cleared his throat “Well, you’re in luck. He’s talking with Reedfeather now.”

“Is he in trouble?” Tallpaw mewed nervously.

“It’s nothing you need to concern yourself over Tallpaw, its…'' He looked down. “Well, it is all certainly very unexpected. We’re in a rather tough spot at the moment. The project Sandstone and I have been planning for so long has hit a snag, and on top of that Heatherstar just got news again that ShadowClan may have been seen lurking outside their territory on the other side of the Thunderpath. Everyone is on edge, is all. Sandstone and Heatherstar have a bit of a tense relationship, and this came at a bad time. But this is really very normal. Reedfeather and I will smooth things over. Here they come now.”

Tallpaw saw Reedfeather’s brown tabby pelt pushing through the long heather that bordered the camp. Tallpaw dipped his head respectfully as the deputy walked by. Woollycloud started whispering something to him, but Tallpaw’s attention was fixed on Sandstone.

His father lay stiffly next to the sunning stones near the elders' den. His tail was wound tightly around his body, and his eyes were closed like he was trying to appear at ease, but Tallpaw could plainly see his thin fur ruffled around his neck and his whiskers twitching in the way they did when he got into a bad spat with his mother. Tallpaw knew this look very well, that his father was angry, even if he wouldn’t say it aloud. Like a dangerous undercurrent hidden beneath a deceptively gentle looking stream.

Picking up the mole he’d dropped and ignoring the heaviness weighing his paws down, Tallpaw forced himself to walk forward. It was like Dawnstripe said, Sandstone was just surprised. Maybe he wouldn’t be angry with him for not wanting to be a tunneler. There would be other cats! He tried to go over what he would say and how to make his father understand, but he didn’t even believe his own encouragement. Before he knew it, he was standing a tail length away with his tongue feeling very dry and useless in his mouth around the mole’s dusty fur.

Sandstone opened one dark amber eye to regard him. Tallpaw remembered dimly the warmth that used to light up his gaze whenever his father saw him as a kit. He’d lived for that expression. Now those same amber eyes looked fiercely cold and hard, like frost covered stone. But after a couple heartbeats, Sandstone's tail flicked to the side, leaving an open space beside him. Tallpaw let a small bit of relief flood through him. Maybe they could pretend like nothing had happened, and they could just sit and eat together like they often did before.

Tallpaw carefully placed the mole at his paws. “I brought you some prey. I uh...I thought you might be hungry.”

Sandstone eyed the mole, his nose wrinkling a bit. Tallpaw suddenly noticed the slobber that he’d left behind on the ruffled brown fur. He’d unknowingly been anxiously chewing a hole through the side of the tiny animal during his pacing, leaving it looking ravaged and soggy. He winced and scolded himself, Ugh, you useless absolute mouse-brain!

Sandstone cleared his throat and tentatively rolled the mole over. “Did you catch this?” he asked. His tone sounded casual, but there was strain behind it as his whiskers still twitched and his ears were slightly set back with displeasure.

Tallpaw was taken aback. “Well...n-no. We spent all day touring most of the territory, so…” Tallpaw was suddenly second guessing himself. Was he supposed to have been on the lookout for prey during the tour? Was that expected of apprentices? Maybe it was a test, and I didn’t even stop to look once! Did I already mess up my training on the first day?

“Hm.” Was all Sandstone said in response. Tallpaw suddenly wanted to vanish as he wound his anxiously flicking tail around his hind paw to keep it still while his father continued, “If you’d been training in the tunnels with me and Woollycloud, you’d have already caught prey by now. I caught two moles on my first day of training. Mole hunting is a tunneler specialty.”

Tallpaw didn’t reply. He just focused on his tail, curling around his back leg.

Sandstone sniffed. “That’s not your fault, Tallpaw. It’s just how moor runners train. They take things so slow and their apprentices take ages to toughen up into warriors. You got bad luck is all.”

“Yeah, that’s it…” Tallpaw mumbled. “But I can still be a good warrior as a moor runner, right?”

“You just won’t stand out as much is all, with so many moor runners.” It wasn’t the same as the encouragement he used to give. Sandstone always said his son would be the best warrior in the clan. “But it’s only for right now.” Sandstone added.

Tallpaw glanced up, clearly confused. His father stared at him like he should know what he meant as he continued, “Heatherstar wants you to start training as a moor runner, and that’s fine. There’s nothing wrong with learning other skills. But you can tell her you want to train in the tunnels with Woollycloud. She can ignore me if she wants, but it’s your training and you’ll never be any good at something you weren’t meant to be.”

Tallpaw curled his tail even tighter around him. “Do you want me to tell Heatherstar that I want to be a tunneler now?”

Sandstone blinked in surprise, then his gaze narrowed at Tallpaw’s hesitant tone. “Isn’t that what you want? You’ve been working so hard practically ever since you first left the nursery!”

Tallpaw opened his mouth, but he just couldn’t think of anything to say that would make this go well. He remembered what he’d told Dawnstripe. I don’t want to be a tunneler, I hate it. It’s stuffy and dark and exhausting, I just want to learn how to run and hunt on the moor.

But Tallpaw didn’t say any of that, instead he said: “I’m just...not good enough to be a tunneler. I’m not as strong as you and the other tunnelers, and my paws aren’t as tough, that’s why...that’s why it’s better for me to settle for being a moor runner.”

Sandstone’s posture immediately relaxed ever so slightly, his familiar rumbling purr rising in his throat that momentarily eased Tallpaw’s dread.

“Nonsense Tallpaw, tunneling is in your blood! Your mother struggled as a tunneler at first too you know, but when she worked at it, she became a fine tunneler! That’s all it takes. Why, if I knew that was what you were concerned about, I would have pushed Heatherstar harder.”

Dumb mouse-brain, you shouldn’t have said it like that, say something else!

“B-but now I've…” Tallpaw faltered, “I don’t want to offend Dawnstripe, she was so excited about getting an apprentice and it’s only been a day. I can’t just leave now, it would be an insult.”

Sandstone rolled his eyes “Oh she’s young, she’ll have another apprentice soon enough and probably forget all about it. But I suppose you’re right…”

Thank StarClan…

“Even so,” Sandstone continued, “you can’t hold off training for too long just to spare her feelings, it’s better to build your muscles up while you're young.”

He still thinks you want to be a tunneler, just say you don’t!

Why couldn’t he make the words come out? His father’s eyes were lit up again in that encouraging way he remembered so well, looking more pleased than ever. Tallpaw had to focus hard on stopping his tail from lashing with distress.

“Well I...I will train in the tunnels soon. Shrewpaw’s mentor, Hareflight, told me all apprentices learn a little bit about the tunnels, perhaps...perhaps after the newleaf race?” He said quickly.

“The newleaf race? I’d forgotten all about that silly event.”

“Yeah, er--Dawnstripe wants me to train for it. She thinks I’ll be good at it, and maybe after I’ll have more time…”

Maybe if I show him that I'm just better at being a runner, he’ll give up on the idea and I won’t have to tell him I don’t want to tunnel at all…

Sandstone seemed at least a bit satisfied with that. “After the newleaf race then, we’ll talk about it more. But just remember Tallpaw, born tunnelers usually don’t do so well in those sorts of competitions. It’s just a moor runner's way to show off since they think pure speed is all that matters. It doesn’t do much to show your skill and strength, so don’t let it get to you if you don’t win. I know that little moor-kit Shrewpaw likes to boast about racing and what-not, but it’s just vanity. He really doesn’t have anything else going for him, unlike you. So much like his father in that way.”

Tallpaw just nodded. Sandstone seemed happier, and he even began to eat the mole Tallpaw had brought. Surely this topic could be held off for a while yet. The newleaf race was at least a quarter moon away, maybe more if he was lucky. He wouldn’t worry about it now. The rest of the evening with his father was pleasant enough as Tallpaw stuffed the clawing grip at his belly further down like he would a thorn under his nest.

chapter list / previous / next

#FRU8 #chapter 8 #gonna go back and start putting the next/previous at both the top and bottom bc im not sure where is most convient

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fullmetalscullyy · 3 years

Text

hold my girl

summary: the prompt used is “shh, it’s okay. it was just a dream” and it comes from this prompt list (feel free to send me more if you’d like!)

an: i've not written young royai in so long and the mood struck me this afternoon so decided to roll w it and see where it took me! a wee bit of hurt/comfort was nice too. bby riza deserves all the hugs. listening to hold my girl by george ezra didn't influence this at all. nope.

rated: t | words: 2835 | tags: hurt/comfort, young royai, nightmares, pre-canon, angst with a happy ending

read on ao3

There are two people calling out to Riza in her dream, but she finds their cries are overwhelming and loud. It feels like an assault from multiple fronts. She doesn’t know where to look, who to answer, and feels like she is being pulled in so many different directions by each of them as they fight for her attention. The worst part is they become angry or offended when Riza doesn’t give her full, undivided attention to them. But it’s impossible to please them both.

Her mother’s face flashes before her eyes. She’s pleading with young Riza, begging her to save her from the illness that’s ravishing her body so unfairly. But she’s quickly removed from Riza’s sight. Her father muscles his way into view, expression irate that she isn’t good enough to get a grasp of alchemy. He raves about how useless she is because she cannot transmute anything. She’s of no importance to him if she cannot perform such a simple task.

Both parents are fighting to be heard over each other, both deafening and commandeering.

Suddenly, they’re gone. Riza is left reeling and gasping for breath in the sudden silence. The ringing in her ears from the raucous noise prior is piercing and painful, making her flinch.

She does not get to rest in her dream though, which has turned into a nightmare.

There’s a faceless stranger looming over her. They cast a long, dark shadow as light illuminates them from behind in the empty, white room, devoid of any defining characteristics. She hears her name being called, but it is muffled and distorted. She doesn’t recognise the timbre, cannot assign it to anyone she is acquainted with. Riza shields her eyes as she turns her head upwards, to try and face them, but the light in the room is so impossibly bright, she cannot manage it. She catches glimpse of a moustache and glasses before it becomes too much to bear. The light sears her eyes, leaving her in pain. Eyes are squeezed tightly closed to try and give some kind of reprieve. It helps a little, but not by much.

After she recovers, the person shakes their head in disappointment. They turn their back on her and walk away, leaving her alone.

Her parent’s cries for attention are gone. Their faces are nowhere to be seen, leaving only the echoing footsteps of the mystery person’s retreating form. The two features she’d managed to pick out sparked an inkling of recognition within Riza, but it was not enough to grasp on to and make a connection. She cannot place them anywhere. Still, their departure feels just as crushing as her parent’s, and Riza doesn’t know why.

She’s left alone while the light from above starts to blind her. Even behind closed lids, it fights its way through. It heats her skin slowly, leaving her sweating and uncomfortable. When it becomes too much to bear, she starts to cry. There’s something gripping onto her chest tightly, squeezing at her heart relentlessly.

Loneliness.

Someone else is calling to her, but it’s too much to bear to try and figure out who. The pain is too much, blazing across her skin. The light is quickly fading while Riza is left on the cold ground, alone and afraid.

“Riza!”

Something jerks her upright. There’s a heavy pressure on her shoulders and in her disorientated and agitated state in the darkness, she fights against it. The pressure doesn’t move though, and another sensation joins it. There’s something – no, multiple things – digging into her skin, but it is not sharp or intended to harm, just hold on and not let her escape as she struggles. It doesn’t help Riza though. She continues to fight the darkness invading her.

“Let go,” she gasps.

“Riza, it’s okay!”

She recognises the voice. It was the same voice that had been calling to her as her world started to darken, after the shadow figure had left her. The recognition causes her to pause and slows Riza’s movements for a second, and that was the opportunity this new person needed.

“It’s me,” they reveal, but Riza still doesn’t know who it is –

“Riza, it’s Roy. Stop fighting, you’re safe. You were dreaming,” he adds. “I’ve got you. You’re all right.”

The fight is starting to leave her. It’s Roy? It’s Roy. It’s okay, it’s him. It’s her father’s apprentice. It’s someone familiar, and someone who isn’t yelling at her.

Her shoulders sag with instant relief.

She likes him. He hasn’t said a bad word to her face yet, but she cannot trust him so easily. Not going by what everyone else around her whispers behind her back. Still, he always shoots her a smile and takes the time to say hello and tries to strike up a conversation with her. He’s friendly, but still. Riza is wary.

As reality returns to her slowly, Riza realises she’s in her bedroom. She’s out of that bare, white room with the impossibly bright light where her parents were shouting at her so loudly. Her skin tingles but there’s no heat or pain like there had been in her nightmare. Taking stock, she realises her body is covered in a cold sweat. Her hands are clammy as they grip onto Roy’s upper arms tightly.

Her grip is so tight. She must be hurting him.

She flinches back, but Roy doesn’t let her go. In the dim light of her room she can see him scrutinising her face closely. He is concerned for her. He looks worried.

Looking down at her hands, she loosens her grip. She wants to run away from him, to hide. She feels completely exposed, ashamed after her show of weakness, and wants to burrow underneath her bedcovers and never show her face to Roy again.

He shouldn’t have witnessed her nightmare, and Riza scolds herself for probably being so loud that she woke him up. He needs his rest to practice and study with father. He doesn’t need Riza interrupting that or diverting his attention elsewhere, like father warned her not to do.

Besides, this was not her first nightmare, and Riza doesn’t think for a second it will be the last. She is used to them, but has to admit, they are starting to wear on her. She doesn’t know what to do, though. She doesn’t know how to make them stop. Exhausting herself with chores throughout the day so she falls into such a deep sleep works sometimes, but not every time. And that leaves her even more fatigued the day after. It is turning into a vicious cycle that will only end badly for her.

She feels lost and alone, struggling to keep a lid on it all.

“Are you okay?”

No, she’s not. She wants him to leave, to let her deal with this on her own and in private –

Her face screws up involuntarily at her silent admission to herself, that she is not okay, and hasn’t been for a while. Suddenly overwhelmed, the familiar feeling of loneliness creeps up on her, unbidden. Its cold fingers wrap around her heart and squeeze, making her gasp.

“Hey,” he calls to her gently in sympathy. His voice is calming, reassuring, and welcoming. A stark contrast to the tone used by those in her dream.

Roy shifts on her bed and makes himself comfortable. As soon as he starts to move, Riza immediately fears he has somehow heard her thoughts, or she accidentally voiced them aloud, and he really will leave her alone.

Suddenly, she’s pulled tight against his side.

She’s frozen as Roy gently lays her head on his shoulder and wraps an arm around her back. His free hand rises and comes to rest against the side of her head. He cradles it and holds her in place against him, quietly reassuring her that she’s all right.

“Shh, it’s okay,” he soothes her, “it was just a dream.”

In a move that Riza never would have expected, Roy runs a hand through her short hair in an attempt to calm her. His hand starts its journey by almost cupping her face. His palm is warm as it partly covers her cheek and temple. Then, his fingers travel up and back, burying themselves in her sweat soaked tresses, unafraid and undeterred. As soon as he runs out of hair, he repeats the motion.

Riza is frozen on the spot, surprised at the sudden show of… affection, she realises, and comfort. They were not things she was used to. It has been a long time since someone was so kind to her… Riza squeezes her eyes closed tightly in an effort to not let her tears fall down her flushed cheeks. It is not entirely in vain, but a few do escape.

“It was just a bad dream,” Roy murmurs softly into her hair. She feels the vibrations on her scalp, and it tickles her. Now, her hair feels like it’s standing completely on end.

His movements are calming her more than she’d ever like to admit to anyone. Her heart rate is slowing, and her breathing is becoming easier with each passing stroke of her hair. A few more tears escape but neither mention it. She thinks Roy expects it. He pauses when he feels one hit the back of his hand. Riza’s eyes still remain closed, unable to face him just yet, but pop open as soon as his thumb swipes across her cheek, removing the wetness. She glances up at him in surprise, but also almost fearfully. She doesn’t want to see any disgust in his eyes at her show of emotion and weakness. But there’s nothing of the sort in his dark eyes. Only sympathy, understanding, but also wild concern.

“Are you okay?” His voice trembles slightly with worry.

The temptation to nod her head and lie is right there, but Riza stops herself.

She shakes her head. She cannot speak just yet, afraid that her voice would fail her.

“Do you want me to stay with you?” He is earnest, and while she appreciates his offer, she could never ask him to do that for her.

“No,” she croaks, her fear of a failing voice temporarily leaving her, “it’s okay. You don’t have to stay.”

“What if I want to,” he ventures slowly and carefully. He doesn’t quite meet her eyes, but after voicing his question, he turns to look back at her with confidence and surety. He is deadly serious.

Riza blinks at him, not quite understanding. “You… want to stay?” Her voice is barely above a whisper.

Roy nods eagerly. “Of course. Nightmares are not good,” he adds grimly. “I don’t want you to be alone if you’re not ready to be.”

“Why?” She can’t help herself from asking. It shocks her that he would even offer such a thing.

“Because…” He doesn’t have an answer for her. He looks stumped, but a frown draws his eyebrows together. “No one should have to go through a nightmare like that alone. It looked bad,” he comments.

Riza almost shrivels in on herself. “It was,” she whispers, her voice becoming impossibly quiet.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

It would be nice to do so… It would be a welcome change, and liberating, almost, to share her worries and fears with someone. To take some of that weight off her shoulders. It’s something Riza has dreamed about a few times. And Roy offers the opportunity to her so openly and without reservation. He’s ready to listen to her, actually listen to her, and offer support.

His face is expectant when she looks up at him. There’s no disgust or disappointment. He wants to listen, just like he said. He doesn’t seem to be lying.

But of course, she feels like she would be burdening him. Riza couldn’t do that.

Riza shakes her head.

“Okay.” Again, he’s not disappointed. He’s respecting her decision.

Roy scoots forward and quietly stands up from her bed. He walks over to the chair that resides across the room by her vanity and lifts a spare blanket from it.

“What are you doing?”

“I… I want to stay with you.” His cheeks turn pink in the twilight filtering into the room from outside her threadbare curtains, but Riza doesn’t know why. “I mean, I don’t want to leave you alone. I can stay with you while you sleep if you’d like, and keep you company?”

Now, Riza’s cheeks turn crimson. He can’t stay in her bedroom with her overnight!

“I’ll just be here,” he gestures to the end of the bed, “and if you ever want to talk about your nightmare, please let me know.”

“You can’t –” The words catch in her throat. “You can’t stay in here overnight.” Riza is mortified. “Please, it’s okay. Go back to your bed, I’ll be fine –”

“You want me to go?”

No, she doesn’t. Her mouth opens to lie and reply with the affirmative, but she pauses. Her eyes widen with fear of being left alone by someone else after her dream, and the hesitation costs her. Roy sees it, as clear as day, even in the dim light.

Slowly, he settles on the end of her bed. The blanket is wrapped around his shoulders as Riza watches him, still unsure. Once comfortable, he leans his head back against the wall and turns to look at her. His smile is kind and gentle as she watches understanding blossom over his features.

“I’ll be right here, Riza, okay? If you want me to go, just let me know.”

“I…” She doesn’t want to be an imposition or a burden… But –

“What do you want, Riza? Do you want to be left alone?”

When it’s worded like that, the answer comes easy to her.

“No,” she breathes. It’s impossibly quiet, but it’s finally out there in the world. She has expressed herself openly to someone else. Someone she doesn’t fully trust, but in a way, after the comfort and kindness he has shown her so easily and readily in a time of upset, Riza finds herself being a bit more open to the possibility of it.

“All right then,” Roy nods. “I’ll be right here.”

Again, he grins at her. It’s bright, like the light from her nightmare, but it has a soft and warm glow. It is not overbearing and blinding. It’s like sitting by a warm fire on a cold winter’s day. It’s cosy and kind. It’s welcome.

Awkwardly, she lies down in her bed. She tucks the sheet right underneath her chin and curls into a tight ball. It will be weird having him in the room with her as she tries to sleep, but Riza can already feel her eyelids drooping. The fatigue from her numerous nights of interrupted sleep and the exhaustion that comes after waking from a nightmare doesn’t give her much choice but to give into it.

Without realising it, she slips away into sleep once more.

When Riza wakes a few hours later, she remembers the night she had and feels embarrassed. She’d gotten so worked up and had woken up Roy –

Her head jerks up, also remembering his promise to remain by her side through the night. She expects him to be gone but is proved wrong. Instead of what she had secretly feared, she finds him still at the bottom of her bed. His head has lolled to the side and it looks uncomfortable, but he’s sound asleep.

In the night, her body had relaxed from its tightly wound ball and stretched out. Looking down the bed with a frown, Riza discovers the reason for the strange sensation near her ankle. One of Roy’s hands was laying atop the sheet, covering her leg. She can feel the warmth and comfort of his touch through the bedsheet.

Her leg twitches and she’s at a loss of what to do. Something is telling her to move her leg immediately, to jerk it away to rid herself of the feeling, but it’s also… pleasant. The weight is calming and a reassurance that he really is still here for her.

After a few more moments of deliberation, Riza relaxes. She doesn’t fight it. She smiles at the gesture and the knowledge that he’d kept his promise. He really was there for her last night. The pleasant feeling creates a warmth inside her chest, and it spreads from her heart up to the crown of her head and makes her scalp tingle.

He’d been so good to her through the night. He hadn’t left her alone after she’d asked him not to.

Her lips tugged upwards again, happily.

She appreciated that more than he would ever know.

Perhaps her father’s apprentice could be someone she could learn to count on and trust.

The sleepy, but bright and pleased smile that Roy greeted her with when he finally woke up started to slowly solidify that thought inside her mind.

#royai #royai fic #royai fanfic #royai oneshot #young royai #emma writes #keeping it basic (bitch)#i've missed writing 🥺#oneshots are always so fun to dabble w so hopefully i can work on some more soon!!#emma talks

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belovedstill · 3 years

Note

gavin/mc 221: I love you. I’ve loved you since the moment I laid eyes on you and- Oh screw it!

of first impressions and love confessions (ao3) | mlqc | gavin & mc

summary: Gavin’s planned to confess his feelings to MC for months. What’s a better occasion than Valentine’s Day?

thank you for sending me the prompt 💕

It was here, the day Gavin had been waiting for—and dreading—for weeks. It’d never mattered to him before, full of hearts, chocolates, love; neither of those he’d ever had somebody to gift to—or had enough courage to believe he could.

...Well, things had changed. He had changed, all under her soft smile.

He sat there, on his couch, the chocolate he’d bought for her waiting on the table, his heart cautiously open, his feelings brimming to spill.

"I've been wanting to tell you something for a while now." He swallowed and shook his head. "No, that's not right. I've been wanting to tell you—ever since we met."

The silence of the room grated Gavin’s nerves and made his skin itch. With a nervous breath, he ran his hand through his hair. The room felt hot even with the winter breeze making the curtains dance.

Focus, he scolded himself. It's today or never.

If he had to pinpoint the exact moment he’d fallen in love, he didn't know he could do it. There’d been so many moments, so many occasions when he’d thought That’s it, she must be the one, each one stronger, more intense than the previous one, that he’d completely lost track.

He closed his eyes and burrowed his face in his hands.

MC wasn't even here yet. 15 minutes to go, and he stuttered on his words like a schoolboy with a crush.

...He very much felt like one, still. He'd never stopped, not since that very first time he saw her. He still remembered it so clearly…

The ginkgo leaves were drooping on the tree branches, heavy with rain droplets; the chilled wind helped shed some of the water. The raindrops fell and splashed against the hard concrete of the school grounds, darkening it from near white to dark grey in seconds. Nobody was around.

Nobody but her.

Her hair was almost completely wet, it didn't dance on the wind like girls' hair usually did on sunny days. Not that he ever paid much attention.

She had an umbrella; she was holding it firmly and proudly, but not over herself. When he looked over, he saw why.

There was a cat curled and shivering on the sidewalk, unmoving but for its head turned towards the girl and hissing at her. Before Gavin even noticed, he got closer, close enough to hear the girl's voice over the patter of the rain.

"—it's okay. I'm not going to hurt you, I just want to help."

Her voice shivered, quite possibly from the cold as the rain kept soaking through her clothes and the wind chilled her to the bone even if the day wasn't that cold.

"Let me touch you and I'll take you somewhere safe and comfy."

But the cat was distraught—and soon Gavin realised why; its hind legs were lying on the ground lifelessly, twisted in an unnatural way. He winced.

It desperately needed help.

And so did the girl, he realised when she sniffled and offered the cat her hand again, only to be met with another hiss.

"I promise I'll help—"

Before Gavin’s brain caught up to what he was doing, he was by her side.

"Let me."

She jumped at his voice which only startled the poor cat, and immediately startled apologising to it. She still didn't touch it, though.

Gavin squatted down and was just about to reach for the cat but the girl's face made him stop in his tracks. Her eyes were red, brimming with tears that nobody could mistake for the raindrops. The sight was so—pitiful. His heart gave a somehow familiar twinge.

Do something, something in him whispered; the same something that used to scream fearlessly in his heart whenever Shaw was bullied by other kids. Protect. Fix it.

So he took off his jacket while the girl was hiding her face, hiding her tears, and he gently put it over her shoulders.

"Just for now," he muttered, not knowing whether she could hear him through the rain or not. "Let's take it somewhere warm."

He took the cat into his arms as delicately as he could, not minding the claws and teeth and hissing.

And together, they ran towards the shelter.

Their first meeting. He hadn’t even known her name back then. What he had known was that the moment he’d spotted the selfless kindness in her teary eyes, he’d wanted to see more.

(And he had. He had, he had, he had—)

She’d looked at him like he mattered. She’d talked to him like he wasn't broken and useless and a mistake. And really, at that time it hadn’t mattered quite as much when their casual forming friendship had abruptly ended without a sign from her. At that time, it’d hurt, of course it had, but he’d taken it as a given. Of course he’d messed up somehow, of course he’d put her off him, of course he’d made a mistake somewhere, and maybe she hadn’t even liked him half as much as he liked her—

"No," Gavin muttered and shook his head. Those times were in the past—those 14 hours spent alone, waiting, not getting to say goodbye in person, it had all been a misunderstanding. It didn't matter anymore, not now when they'd become such good friends.

"I love her," he whispered into his hands, his heart hammering in his ears so loud he barely heard his own voice. "I love you."

Thump. Thump. THUMP.

"I've loved you since the moment I laid eyes on you."

THUMP—THUMP—THUMP—

"I—Oh, screw it—!"

"Gavin?"

One second, he was sitting on the couch, head in his hands, heart thundering in his chest so hard it couldn't be healthy—the next, his body stood upright and he was staring wide-eyed at none other than MC—

—MC, standing in the doorway to his living room, keys in her hand, eyes wide, sparkling, as though she’d stolen all the stars from the sky before nightfall could take them for its own.

He couldn't care less about stars right then; what he saw in her eyes was the very same kindness from all those years ago.

"I love you," he breathed.

Easy as breathing, it came.

And MC… She didn't turn away. She didn't leave.

She found her way into his arms, and stayed there, hearts beating fast, together, chasing each other's rhythm.

Her ears were red. Her hair tickled his chin. Her cold nose poked adorably against his collar bone.

And her soft, quiet words—

"...Me, too."

—her words made him the happiest man alive.

#mlqc #mlqc fic #gavin #mlqc gavin #valentine's day #my writing #thank you so much nonnieeeee <3 sorry it took me so long c:#Anonymous

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nct-jungjaehyun · 3 years

Text

[1:28am] “i’m sorry,” you apologized, followed by a small giggle and frustrated sigh, “actor!jaehyun, i can’t lift up your hoodie, what the heck?” the seats in this theater-set were clamped together, barely allowing any movement without tickling the person beside them.

if one fast forwards a few more months, in the front of a television screen, the audience will see a theater, where the main couple are the only ones in there, cuddling into each other’s embrace. to them, the characters and the actors become one.

right now, it was still a drama in production, and you were starring as the female lead, a university student. your cute mistake led to an explosion of laughter from all around, including the director’s, whose voice channeled from a walkie-talkie. the little machine was far enough to not be caught on camera but close enough for his orders to be heard. “let’s try one more time...”

suppressing your laughter as elbows tickled your sides, you leaned back to give your partner some space to sit up. "use both hands, like this,” he demonstrated, gently guiding your hand behind his head to bring up the hood.

your fingertips brushed the top of his dark hair, “i don’t want to ruin your hairstyle.”

he leaned forward and pretended to bite down on your hand, at the spot below your thumb. his furrowed eyebrows turned into crescent moons when you giggled at his playful attempt to be angry.

his cute antics and lovable personality made him an easy partner to work with, especially for new actresses like you. on the surface, thankfulness and gratitude overcame you when work was done for each day. he offered you many tips and guidance and answered all of your questions.

however, there was one question you have yet to ask him, and it concerned the kiss scenes. it was your first role and realizing that there was going to be not one, but three, kiss scenes in the span of twenty episodes was enough to scare you away. somehow, the combined efforts of your manager and the scriptwriters convinced you that there was no one other than you to better fit this character. the final push that persuaded you to accept this role, however, was jaehyun.

jung jaehyun. the moment you laid your eyes on him, you were astonished by his beauty. how can anyone be this perfect from up close when they were already a prince from a distance? jaehyun earned all of your adoration and affection, but most of all, it was his words that captured you. from his own experiences, he shared that opportunities don’t come by so often. ‘when the treasure is right in front of your eyes, take it,’ he had said.

nonetheless, accepting this role was no easy job. there were still many small details you lacked as a new actress. you still shudder at the recollection of the eating scene from last week. stuffing bowls and bowls of popcorn down your throat is not as satisfying and fulfilling as one might imagine. now came another challenge you must overcome, the kissing scenes. simply thinking about them brought an ocean of sweat to pool in your palms.

jaehyun must have felt you tensing beside him, because he sent another signature wink your way. but rather than calming you down, it only made the excitement gauge from somewhere deep inside your chest elevate.

you made a scowling expression, “what are you doing?” gently smacking the right side of his chest.

“just remember, we are no longer jaehyun and jaehyun’s favorite actress. we are now ren and yun, the campus couple who are going to steal everybody’s hearts.” he made a gesture as if collecting himself into a more formal composure.

following his lead, you did the same. “that’s right,” he praised, “we are now ren and yun”

falling into character was easier said than done, but after a few weeks with your character, you’ve grown to fall into her shoes pretty comfortably. her quirks and habits became your own as soon as the cameras begin rolling.

the moment you heard the key word “action,” you were yun. in front of your eyes, a few inches away, was ren, your crush. ren’s eyes were like stars, twinkling under the bright lights flickering from the huge screen. the both of you paid no mind to the movie in front reaching its climax. slowly and gently, you raised both arms to reach behind him and raise his hood over his head. your hand caressed the side of his face, index finger dragging down lazily along his jawline. his lips were peachy and plump like a strawberry. leaning down, you pressed your lips into his. your face went flush as he urged closer to you, pushing back and controlling the movement of the kiss. small tingles of electricity seemed to dance along your skin.

“cut! nice work, you two. that was great!” the director’s voice echoed through the set. within seconds, talking and rustling filled the stage again.

the kiss scene did not end there. they requested a few more redos with cameras set from different angles and lighting from another corner. you lost count how many more scenes it took, a considerable amount of them was jaehyun or you breaking into fits of laughter.

breathless from another kiss, the director finally got the angles he wanted and called it a day. standing up to thank all the staff, you bowed and shook hands with every one of them.

you lost jaehyun somewhere in between the ruckus of it all, but a small tug on your ponytail told you where he was.

twisting around, you stood on your tippy toes to flick him on his forehead. “that went really well,” you coughed.

he rubbed the red spot on his forehead while nodding slowly, “told you so. no one can underestimate the love between ren and yun.”

you scoffed, “anyone can say that! we all know the ending of the drama.”

just as you were about to turn away to your own dressing room, you felt a hold on your wrist. looking down and then up at jaehyun, you asked him what he wanted.

“i want to tell you something.” his hands wrapped into fists in the air.. “ren and yun will get their happy ending. i want mine, too.”

you lifted an eyebrow at him, “okay?”

“i’m saying i like you. there, i said it. i like you.” he buried his face in his hands, embarrassed to face you any longer.

you reached up to untangle his hands from his face, carefully peeking through the windows formed by his fingers to meet his eyes. “where did your winking and blowing kisses go?” you joked.

he slapped his cheeks a couple of times, harsh enough to send you a step back. “i felt lighting bolts all through my body during the scene earlier. d-did you feel it, too? i, uh, i’ve been crushing, is that how i should say it, i’ve been crushing on you ever since you took this role.”

your body rocked back and forth, led by your small feet that can’t seem to stay put on the ground. “jaehyun, i felt it, but what if you’re mixing me with yun? i hear about actors who do this all the time. they fall in love with the roles their partner played, not the one who they truly are.”

“what about you? do you like me, as me? how are you able to tell me apart?”

your rocking slowed, “you’re different from ren. aside from the kiss, all the moments that i fell for you have been outside of acting-”

your hand flew to cover your mouth but it was too late. your next words came out muffled but audible, “oh my god, did i just confess? technically i already did, but i just full out confessed just now.”

jaehyun laughed, the confident and charismatic side of him returning, “i fell for you the moment i laid eyes on you at the script-reading table. or maybe even before then. i like you for you, i’m sure and i promise.”

“i did, too,” suddenly you gasped, “our love is even more unrealistic than ren and yun. we were love at first sight...”

#nct 127 #nct jaehyun #jung jaehyun #jung yoonoh #jaehyun #nct u #jaehyun fluff #jaehyun scenarios #nct jaehyun blurbs #jaehyun imagines

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selfwriting-sugarquills · 3 years

Text

Something more infinite Chapter 7 [FINAL]. If your last words aren’t “I love you too,” I’m personally gonna go to the afterlife, bring you back and kill you again.

Chapters: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |

A/n: Sorry this took literally months to get finished. What a ride it's been. Hope you're all well.

warnings: Oh it's angsty. Descriptions of death, injury and violence.

word count: 2.6K

This was really happening. You have to remind yourself for the third time just tonight, here huddled together with dozens of your former fellow students and friends in the room of requirement. You’d known it was coming, the end of the war. It had to end at some point, and your family had kept up with the portable radio you’d brought with you on the run (you’d taken to wander the surroundings of your tent and have your father relay the information to you, as to avoid listening to the voice of George, which caused a flurry of emotions in you that you simply didn’t have the time or energy for in the freezing English countryside)

Once ‘River’ had started to hint at the coming battle, you’d dug out your old DA coin. You’d grown quite attached to it, as it reminded you of a simpler time, where your biggest concern had been coming up with witty comebacks to George, not how to survive should you be caught by a snatcher or death eater. And when said coin began to heat up in your pocket, in the wee hours of the morning on May 2nd, you knew it. It was happening. The directions on the coin were plain and short:

Get to the Hog’s Head. Seek Aberforth.

You didn’t really feel like you had a choice in the matter, though something tugged at you as you climbed through the portrait hole. George. There was no way he wouldn’t have gotten the call from the DA too. Would he be there? and if he was, would he care that you were? Trying to push your more sentimental thoughts of the ginger to the back of your mind, you focus instead on trying not to fall as you feel your way through the tunnel until there’s a smell of coffee and heat from a fireplace and the murmur of voices greeting you as you reach the room of requirement. Friends greet you, make small talk and embrace you. More people arrive after you, and there’s a nice moment of relieved sighs and laughter as friends speak face to face for the first time in months. It’s quiet but the most genuinely happy most of you have felt in a long time. Finally, resisting the urge to ask for him, you look around to try and spot him.

But he’s not there. One of your friends must have noticed you looking around, for they inform you that him, Fred, Lee and other members of the order won’t be here until later, something had held them up, you don’t hear much through your disappointment, which was silly, you knew that. But a part of you had really hoped to be able to see him before everything goes down.

As Harry, Ron and Hermione arrive with Neville there’s an even bigger wave of emotion going through the room, one big enough to break the silence completely with cheers and applause for the scruffy-looking kids who look more tired and wrung out than anyone their age ever should in your opinion. They ask for your help, all of you, to help them find the Horcruxes. The last pieces of the puzzle.

What are they? They don’t know.

Not good.

Where are they? They don’t know that either.

Really not good.

“We think it’s hidden somewhere in the castle, but that’s all we have to go on, for now, so we’ll just have to search everywhere,” Says Harry, clearly unhappy with the conditions of the hunt himself,

“Well that’s not exactly going to be easy,” Says Seamus,

“No but it won’t be impossible,” counters Ginny, who looks determined. And so you all split up, searching everywhere, you ended up talking to a portrait for possible clues at the hospital wing,

“Well fancy seeing you here,”

You pull out your wand by pure instinct. Months of being on edge have made you somewhat jittery, your fingers knowing the motion of grabbing your wand and pointing it at any unexpected noise all too well.

It’s only when you take in his face, his eyes, the bright red, unmistakable hair that you let your hand fall to your side.

“George,” You say, heart pounding.

And there he is, in the flesh. He looks a little scruffy, very tired (as do you and you really can’t blame him) but he’s there! He’s breathing! And now you’re slapping pathetically at him while tears of rage fill your eyes,

“Ow! Y/n- Hey!” He wrestles himself free from you, holding you at an arm's length,

“Months!” You shriek, “It’s been bloody months since we’ve spoken and that’s what you say?!” Maybe it’s the fatigue or the paranoia or maybe the unresolved business between you but you’re sobbing now, wiping at your face with your sleeves, sure that they only smudge the dirt on your face. He tries to pull you toward him but you jerk away from him, you don’t want him to be soft now, you don’t have time for the conversation you both need to have right now, you remind yourself to pull yourself together, there’s a war going on for Godrick’s sake!

“Don’t worry about me,” you tell him courtly, though your sniffling makes it less credible, his brown eyes are soft as they look you over,

“Just,” you gesture around you, “not now,” he looks confused for a split second, then nods.

“What are you doing?” He asks then and it’s clear in his intonation that he really wants to ask how you’re doing, you pretend you don’t notice that and instead point to the painting,

“We’re searching for the last Horcrux, I’ve been asking the portraits if they know anything,”

“Any luck?” He asks, crossing his arms,

“Nope,” You pucker your lips in annoyance,

“Would you like some help?” He asks, a ghost of the sly smile that’s haunted you for months sneaking onto his lips, You sigh,

“As much as it pains me, yes, George, I could use your help,”

He looks far too pleased with that response, you think to yourself as he begins to chat with a portrait further down the hall.

Asking the portraits leads you nowhere, and so you end up back in the room of requirement along with several others who’ve had no such luck either.

You and George wait together while people file into the room announcing that they’ve not found anything.

“So, about that night,” He begins, though he halts at the look you shoot him, his brows raise, “not yet?”

You gesture around, “does it look like the war is over yet?”

“Well, we don’t know how long that will take,” He counters, “So I think we should talk about it now before it’s too late,” You roll your eyes, you’d once heard him use a similar excuse to chat up a girl at a party once, “What if the world ends tomorrow?” it hadn’t worked then, and it wasn’t working now,

“I’d rather we don’t, George,” You say,

“Why not?” He asks, grabbing your attention with the sudden change of tone in his voice, which is now quiet but demanding, “Are you so against us being happy together? Really?”

“Yes, I am,” You say, feeling heat rise to your cheeks,

“Why?” He demands,

“Because, George, we don’t do happy, we’ve hated each other for years, I don’t think one shag is going to change the fact that we haven’t been compatible for nearly a decade,” you say,

“Oh I wouldn’t say we weren’t compatible,” he grumbles, and when you’re about to ask what the hell that’s supposed to mean there’s a voice booming through the room announcing that you all need to come to the great hall,

“Something’s happening!”

The next moments are difficult to place, hazy through the adrenaline fog that fills your body and brain, the great hall, Snape leaving, Voldemort’s voice echoing through the halls like an angry phantom haunting the castle’s inhabitants, the sullen look you share with George as it becomes clear to all present: This ends tonight, and it’s not going to be pretty.

Somehow George stays by your side as the fighting starts, you don’t know how he manages to keep track of you. You move at a fast pace from place to place, hoping it will help you stay alive but somehow there’s never a moment where you’re caught in a fight where George isn’t there, it’s first later that you realise it’s because he knows you, he knows all your routes through the castle.

You shoot a jinx at a death eater, paralyzing him before you,

“Nice one,” he says,

You allow a quick smile at him, “thanks,” then as if on queue, a sharp pain hits your chest, and you fall to the ground, the pain pounds and seems to vibrate inside you, sending waves of pain out through your limbs like an electric current. From the cold stone floors of the corridor you used to wander so often as a child, you hear the echoes of shouts and the sound of curses and spells being thrown through the air, the impact of them hitting flesh and the impact of bodies hitting the ground,

Then he’s by your side. You’re laying hopelessly and it hurts, even more, to see his expression as he examines your body, a look of exasperation on his face. He grabs your hand, and places his other hand behind your back, pulling you closer to him. You’re sure the battle isn’t over but somehow it’s quiet in the corridor there, with just you and him together, the same you had been for years and years, the thoughts of yours and his rivalry only makes the tears flow easier,

“I really wish I wasn’t crying,” you say behind gritted teeth, “I want you to remember me as the cool person I was, the one who could fully kick your ass not... this,” you gesture vaguely down your body. George lets out a quiet laugh as a tear trickles down his face leaving a trail of clean skin through his sooted and dust-covered face,

“oh, not you too,” you say as more warm tears spill out down your cheeks, they tickle your ears and caress your hair and you don’t try to stop them anymore, you find you somehow don’t have the power to fight them, which sends a wave of anxiety through you. Your breath hitches and you gasp for air, trying desperately to keep your breathing steady, but it feels as if someone’s put a foot on your chest letting it bear more and more of their weight, and George’s eyes widen,

“Oh no, you don’t get to die on me, not now, not like this,” he says, grabbing at your body as if hoping to find a cure hidden somewhere, “Y/n, I mean it, don’t-” his voice breaks off and he bites his lip hard, he doesn’t even sense how hard until he tastes his own blood,

“Don’t leave me,” if you weren’t already crying the sound of his voice sounding so fragile and desperate and almost childlike certainly would have you bawling by now but you’re more occupied with your eyes which insist on closing despite you wanting to look George in the eye more than anything,

“It can’t end like this,” he says, pleading to no one in particular, “it’s not supposed to be like this. You’re supposed to be here always, we were supposed to be together,” he says, sniffling to contain the sobs that are aching to burst from his chest, you muster a small smile at the dark blob with ginger hair in front of you, eyes half-closed,

“Gee, Weasley, if I didn’t know any better I’d say you love me or something,” you don’t recognise the wispy voice that speaks but you know the teasing intonation is your own,

“I do,” he says, you feel a large hand tighten on your shoulder as he pulls you even closer to him, “I love you so bloody much that you can’t even fathom it,” now he sobs as the reality of the situation settles on him. Your lip quivers somewhat uncontrollably, and you want to reach up and touch his face because of course, this stupid boy loves you, just like you love him, even if he’s also your worst nightmare he’s yours nevertheless, and you wouldn’t want to live a day without him annoying you endlessly. Yes. That’s what your relationship is supposed to be: endless. Endless teasing, but just beneath it a more infinite affection, a love as endless as your bickering.

“Do you? that’s funny,” you say, your head falls back onto his arm. You can’t see anymore, something tucks at your navel, something unlike like how apparating tucks at you, where it pulls you in hastily, this feeling gropes at your very core, beckons you to come with its long fingers, seducing you into its darkness. Infinite darkness. Weren’t you just thinking about something infinite? a loud, almost animal cry echoes through the dark to you and you free yourself from the tugging feeling just enough to feel George’s chest shake as he weeps,

“Because I love you too.” You say before you succumb and dive into oblivion.

***

The first thing you hear is a beep. Then another. Again. Beep. Beep. Beep. it speeds up as you think to yourself just how irritating that beep is. Just like the darkness tugged you into itself, it seems to have spat you out again. No matter how much you long to escape the beeping and snuggle back into the vast darkness, you find yourself just staring at your own eyelids instead. Much less interesting darkness indeed. You open them, blinking a few times before you realise that you’re in a hospital, which explains the beeping but doesn’t make it any less annoying.

“You’re awake,” the sound of his voice startles you. You lock eyes. Yours wide in shock, his are swollen and tired. You let yourself rest back onto your pillow with a sigh, closing your eyes again to shield them from the stark hospital lighting,

“You always were sharp, George,” you say, your voice grainy and raw. Speaking brings tears to your eyes and you realise how thirsty you are. You feel the mattress dip under his weight as he sits down on the side of your bed. You feel his fingers move a piece of hair away from your face and most unusually, you don’t slap his hands away or scowl at him. You smile. When you do open your eyes he’s smiling at you too, and you take in this different version of George. This George is not young, bursting with energy with a gleam in his eyes. This George is older, somehow aged beyond his 23 years of age, with ginger stubble on his unshaven, pale face, his eyes are dark and covered by a shadow of exhaust. His hair is ruffled and messy as if he’s run several hands through it. You long to touch it, to touch him. You have hardly touched him in an affectionate manner and it’s all too exciting,

“You look like shit, Weasley,” you say, smirking. He looks shocked for a split second before a ghost of his old grin shapes itself on his face,

“And I was just about to offer a truce,” he says,

You stick out your tongue at him, “I shall never stand down, you know that by now,” he leans in, and just before your lips meet, he whispers, “Believe me, I know.”

_____________________________________________________________

taglist: @schlongbottom-neville @cardboardbenmazzello @unseensilver @mochamiilk @quie-pls @sarcasticalphaofthelooserspack

#george weasley x reader #george weasley #fred and george #weasley twins #fred weasley x reader #weasley twins x reader #george weasley oneshot #hp #harry potter #george weasley x y/n #fred and george weasley #harry potter imagine #george weasley imagine #george weasley fanfic #george weasley headcanon #harry potter fanfiction #hp fanfic

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dc41896 · 3 years

Text

Extra Help

Pairing: Teacher!Chris EvansxBlack Reader

⚠️: None, all fluff💕!

You weren’t quite sure what to expect when your best friend called needing you to fill in for her at the monthly parent teacher conference. Ronan wasn’t a bad kid by any means, so you doubt that it was about him being disruptive or getting into a fight. Then again, like any 10 year old boy, he could have his moments, bringing you back to square one wondering what would be discussed at this meeting.

Reaching the wooden door, you turn the handle revealing a childlike, decorated classroom brightly lit from the remaining sun shining outside before it was due to set. Various drawings from stick figures to flowers littered the walls along with scholastic posters showing the water cycle and how to use the infamous PEMDAS, just to name a few. There were also posters of superheroes and even some of puppies that made you softly smile.

“Auntie Y/N!,” Ronan smiles hopping up from his desk to hug your legs. “Mom’s not coming?”

“Not this time, she had to work late. Now what did you do that we have to have this meeting?,” you ask eyeing him suspiciously making Ronan giggle.

“Nothing bestest auntie.”

“Bestest auntie? Now I know you definitely did something,” you respond tickling his sides.

“Hi! You must be Ronan’s godmother.” Red plaid button up hanging over his dark jeans, a man who you assume to be Ronan’s teacher emerges from his office with black frames resting on his cheeks and impeccably clean white sneakers on his feet. His gold pendant gleaming in the light only brings more attention to his broad chest, and rolled up sleeves display his muscular arms. “I’m his teacher Mr. Evans.”

His hand envelopes yours in softness and warmth as he greets you with a handshake. The bright smile on his lips not only captures you, but somehow brings comfort even though you only just met. Ronan had told countless stories of his favorite teacher, Mr. Evans, and how he was so cool, funny, and smart.

The figure standing in front of you now compared to who you envisioned then, though, was definitely not the same.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Y/N,” you smile back. “Nina apologizes again for not being able to make it.”

“She doesn’t have to apologize, I completely understand. Please have a seat at my desk and we can get started.” Pulling up one of the bigger chairs for you as Ronan gets one of the student chairs for himself, you both sit in front of the mahogany desk soon meeting with his welcoming blue eyes.

“Is everything okay with Ronan? He hasn’t been any trouble has he?”

“No! No, behavior wise Ronan’s one of the best in my class! He’s polite, always tries to help out, follows the rules.”

“That’s great!,” you smile lightly nudging his arm making him shyly look down to his feet. “And what about his work?”

“For the most part it’s good, but that’s the main thing I wanted to discuss. In his other subjects, Ronan completes his assignments with no problems and participates in our class discussions answering every question I give him. However, I’ve noticed with science he struggles a bit and will kinda close off, not even wanting to try when he doesn’t understand something.”

“Why don’t you ask for help Ro? That’s part of the reason your teacher’s here.”

“I know, but I want to try to figure it out on my own. By then, everyone’s moved on though so then I can’t catch up.”

“Well that’s when you ask for help. And if you don’t want to ask in front of everybody ask after school or during downtime. Or you can always ask me or your mom. Does she already know about his science grades?,” you ask looking back at his teacher who was lightly scratching his thick beard.

“That’s um the other thing I wanted to discuss...”

“Mr. Evansss,” Ronan whines attempting to talk in a hushed tone clearly forgetting you were sat right next to him and could hear every word. “You said you wouldn’t tell.”

“I said I wouldn’t tell your mom bud, not your godmom,” he replies in the same hushed tone nearly making you laugh from their interaction. “If any of the kids have a C or lower, I make a note on their progress report or report card and they have to give it back to me signed. The last report card and past two progress reports Ronan brought them back signed and everything was fine. I ran into his mom at the store one day and she asked why did we switch to having grades online rather than physically handing them out, which confused me until I put it together and realized someone had been forging his mom’s signature.”

“Ronan Michael..”

“You do it all the time though auntie!”

“Yea to send off bills your mom may forget to sign or to get packages for you guys, which she knows about me doing! You signing for your grades is definitely not the same and wrong Ronan, you know that.”

Guilt apparent from his deep brown eyes to his pouted lips, he lightly swings his legs back and forth with hands placed under his thighs. “I was gonna bring my grade up so then I wouldn’t have to do it anymore and then mom wouldn’t know. No harm done.”

“While that’s a nice plan, you still weren’t getting any help though. So what would’ve happened if your grade didn’t get better?”

“....I uh didn’t really think that far ahead,” he answers shrugging his shoulders.

“Okay well since we don’t have a plan for that, here’s what I think. Everyday after school, you meet with Mr. Evans to go over your science lesson and do that until your grades get better and stay that way,” you suggest before once again meeting the soft eyes of his teacher. “But what do you say Mr. Evans? I don’t want to take away from your personal time or home life.”

“I don’t have a problem with it. Plus it’s just me and my dog, who I’m sure wouldn’t mind me not being there to annoy him,” he lightly chuckles making you smile. “And in fact, you and Nina are both welcome in to hear how it’s going so you don’t have to wait outside for him.”

“Thanks, I’ll be sure to let her know. Mostly it’ll be her coming, but the days she can’t make it I’ll be here.”

“Sounds good,” he smiles drumming his fingers on the desk. “Well that was pretty much everything I wanted to discuss. Do you have any questions for me?”

“No, at least not right now.” Scribbling his information down, he peels off the sticky note containing his number and email address before handing it to you.

“If anything comes up just give me a call, or you can email me. I usually respond back the same day if I have time.”

“Thanks, I could’ve gotten all this from Nina though. You didn’t have to waste a stick note on me.”

“Um right,” he sheepishly states, cheeks turning a light pink as he nervously chuckles to himself. “Well one less step then.”

Looking between both your laughing faces, Ronan wasn’t quite sure what was going on between his favorite teacher and bestest aunt, but he didn’t like it.

The weeks that followed, he met with Mr. Evans as he was told usually being joined by his mother who would sit beside him making sure he really understood what was being taught. You would show up sometimes also sitting next to him making sure he got everything, but he couldn’t help but notice Mr. Evans smile a little brighter when you walked in the room. Similar to how he would get excited when his mom would say they were having pizza for dinner. And he was more talkative too, asking about her day which would eventually turn into a random conversation about things they liked or some other topic.

“So, um we’re having a field trip to the planetarium next week and I was wondering if you wanted to come along?,” he asked one day trying to be quiet as Ronan answered his last couple questions.

“To chaperone? I’d love to help out but honestly if I have to look after more than five kids, it’s gonna be a disaster,” you answer making him laugh.

“You don’t have to worry, on paper yea you’re a chaperone but really you’ll just be with me. And since we’re not having class after and the kids can go home as soon as we get back, I was thinking we could go grab dinner at that place I was telling you about.”

You tried to hide your face so he wouldn’t see the giddy smile forming on your lips, but from his own deep chuckle and his fingers briefly grazing yours resting on the table you knew you weren’t quick enough.

“I’m hoping that smile means yes?,” he whispers.

“Done!,” Ronan interrupts before you can answer, quickly gathering his backpack before pulling your hand. “Cmon auntie I’m starving.”

“Hold on Ro, we have to see if your answers are right first then we can leave,” you giggle.

“But I know it’s right! I’ve been doing really well, even Mr. Evans will tell you.”

“Yep everything’s right, and that is true he is doing much better.”

“See? Now time for food! Bye Mr. Evans!,” Ronan rushes pulling you behind him.

“Bye Ronan,” he chuckles before looking at you. “I’ll see you next week?”

“Yea, I’ll let you know if anything changes though.” With a final wave, you feel your heart swell with excitement for your upcoming date as you walk down the hall. Ronan, on the other hand, hoped for anything to stop you from going with his teacher next week.

———

“Hey what’s up with your godmom and Mr. Evans?,” Sarah, one of friends, asks as they watch the two giggle while going over the constellation map shining on the wall.

After getting all the students organized in their groups with their chaperones, and saying everything he needed to, the both of you had been connected at the hip walking around and exploring everything the exhibits had to offer. Ronan wanted nothing more than to go home so he wouldn’t have to see you two together.

“Nothing.”

“Because they look at each other the way my parents do. All lovey dovey and cutesy like.”

“They’re just friends,” he answers, a little annoyed by everything going on around him.

“Well if they do get together,” Zach, his other friend begins, “say bye to your aunt.”

“Say goodbye?”

“Yea. It’s like with my older brother, he got a girlfriend and now I barely see him.”

“Ooh and if Mr. Evans becomes your uncle, he’s gonna be tougher on you,” Sarah adds. “My grandma was my mom’s teacher and she said she was so hard on her she couldn’t even make a B and if she did, she got in trouble.”

Ronan knew his teacher and he’d never do that. He was like a friend and friend’s wouldn’t be mean to each other. Plus his godmother would never let him treat her precious godson that way. Watching the two of you walk to another exhibit, he began to think though, what if you forgot all about him now that you had Mr. Evans?

What if his friends were right and you dating him caused all these bad things to happen? He didn’t know how he would do it, but he had to stop this quick before things got worse.

———

“Did you know Jupiter is so big, 1000 Earth’s can fit in it?,” Chris asks as you both walk through the life size replica of the solar system.

“No, I didn’t know that.”

“And the sun makes up 99% of the solar system’s mass, which is crazy since what can be seen in the sky is just a small dot. And although we know about our own galaxy, there are so many more we’ve discovered, and have yet to, possibly with various planets of their own that have their own unique properties, which just astounds me and-.”

Hearing your slight giggle, he turns to see your brown eyes on him now realizing how you probably felt like you were back in elementary school yourself from his information dump.

“S-sorry about the rambling. I know it’s probably boring, and I’ve been told I really need to stop-.”

“Don’t be sorry, it’s not boring at all! I’d actually like it if you keep going,” you shyly smile holding onto his hand. Thumb rubbing against the back of your hand, he slowly steps closer to you stopping inches from your chests being pressed together.

“Okay well let’s see. Both Neptune and Uranus have rain storms of solid diamonds. And while I’m sure that would be a beautiful sight, it’s nothing compared to what’s in front of me right now.”

Before you can speak, you both hear approaching small footsteps making you separate to find Ronan grabbing his stomach as if he was in pain.

“Ro you okay? Why are you holding your stomach?,” you ask walking up to him with Chris following close behind.

“No, it hurts auntie. I think I need to go home.”

“Well the bus is our ride back, do you think you can hold on until it’s time for everyone to go?”

“No, I think I need to go now,” he groans rubbing his stomach.

“Alright, let me call your mom and see if she’ll come get you.”

“I want you to come too though,” he whines hugging your mid section as you dial your friend’s number.

“Ro your mom can handle it. I’ll come by and check on you later though okay?”

“No, you have to leave when I do!,” he protests hiding his face in your abdomen as you rub his back confused by his outburst and sudden clinginess.

Clearly something else was going on here besides an upset stomach.

“Hey, can you give us a minute?,” you ask Chris, to which he nods his head giving you a sympathetic smile.

“I’ll be outside if you guys need me.” Sneakers squeaking against the tile floor, you wait until he leaves before squatting down to meet Ronan’s red eyes and tear stained cheeks.

“What’s really going on Ro? Is somebody bothering you?,” you ask wiping his tears.

“Yea, Mr. Evans.”

“How is he bothering you?”

“Because he’s gonna take you away and we’re never gonna see each other again. Then he’s gonna be mean to me for making less than an A and-,”

“Whoa whoa where is all this coming from?”

“Well...i-it’s what my friends said,” he responds making you softly laugh.

“Honey no one will EVER take me away from you. Not Mr. Evans or any other guy that may come along. And your teacher would never be rude to you like that, he cares about all of you guys and just wants to make sure you do your best. Look how much he helped you get your science grade back up.”

“Yea but that’s before you get married and he changes,” he sniffles.

“What all do these kids talk about?,” you wonder as you shake your head. “Buddy I can promise you marriage is definitely a far far FAR off topic that isn’t in sight anytime soon,” you softly smile. “But from what I’ve seen, even if we did get married, he would still be that fun teacher you always say is your favorite. You don’t need to worry about that though okay? You keep focusing on being the funny, smart, amazing kid I know and love.”

“Okay, and you promise nothing’s gonna change?,” he asks with those big brown eyes that could turn stone into the softest powder.

“I promise with every breath in my body.” Hugging him close, he giggles as you repeatedly kiss his cheeks squeezing him tight.

“Auntie I can’t breathe!”

“Too bad because I’m not letting you go,” you both laugh as you hug each other.

“Hey they’re about to start loading up the buses soon so we can go back to school,” Chris says walking up to the both of you. “Your stomach still hurt Ronan?”

“No, it’s better now. Just a false alarm.”

“That’s good, if it starts again though let one of us know and we’ll call your mom okay?”

“Okay,” he smiles up at the much taller man. “Um Mr. Evans?”

“Yea bud?”

“It’s okay if you and my auntie like each other. I’m fine with it now.”

“Oh, um, well thank you for your blessing,” he chuckles looking at you softly laughing yourself.

Proudly nodding once, he walks to the door with you and Chris not that far behind.

“What was that about?,” he asks still amused by what he just witnessed.

“I’ll tell you later,” you giggle joining hands as you both walk out side by side.

Taglist: @fumbling-fanfics @honeychicanawrites @honeychicana @lady-olive-oil @themyscxiras @melinda-january @lovelymari4 @maxcullen @literaturefeen @damnitaa @curlyhairclub @plokyu23 @fullofmelaninsarcasmandepression @nunubug99 @felicity-x0 @ellixthea @jnk-812 @jojolu @brwn-sgr @captainsamwlsn @wildfirecracker @nina-sj @iammyownlover @chaneajoyyy @scoop93535 @secretmysteriousperson

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taeken-my-heart · 3 years

Text

Revenant Chapter 3

Summary: You’d always been told that when you died that you’d walk into the light towards Heaven. Only problem is, you died and the light never showed up. Now you’re attached to a handsome but grumpy and sleep deprived medical student and neither one of you knows what to do to get you to finally cross over.

Rating: PG15

Pairing: Namjoon x Reader

Genre: Fluff, angst, Ghost!au, MedicalStudent!Namjoon

Word Count: 5433

Warnings: Mentions of physical abuse and one seizure in future chapters.

The rest of Namjoon’s shift, you spent in a daze. He worked shadowing his nurse, Sasha, quietly and efficiently, occasionally sending you worried glances.

His concern was sweet, but made you feel a little annoyed all the same. You didn’t like feeling so out of control, like a damsel in distress waiting for someone else to solve her problems for her. The good news was that you weren’t dead…the bad news was pretty much everything else.

Where was your family? Were you truly alone there in that bed? Did no one claim you or did they not know? You’d heard of comas before, of course you had, but your knowledge on them was limited. It seemed like people were either in short comas, a rare extended coma for years at a time…or they eventually died.

You wondered, not for the first time, what you had left behind when you’d suddenly…well, you couldn’t explain what you were experiencing currently. Perhaps the “between” of life and death. Regardless, you wondered if anyone was missing you; if anyone even noticed you were gone. If you slipped away, perhaps no one would even notice. Or, and maybe worse, perhaps you’d wake up and find that there was no one there waiting for you.

Maybe Namjoon would stick around. Maybe Jimin would actually be excited to see what you look like. It was all speculation and it really wasn’t getting you anywhere except for a reality you weren’t sure existed for you anymore…but somehow, it made you feel a little better.

. .

The subway ride home was silent. All seats taken, both you and Namjoon stood by the doors. His hand wrapped around the leather strap above his head and you leaned against metal bars as the train lurched to a start. Being with him was almost like being alive; the familiarity of the screeching wheels across the tracks almost bringing back memories. That tickling familiarity of something you can’t quite remember but is scratching right at the surface. It was nice.

You took time to study the passengers in the same car as you. All tired from a long day of work; the air was stuffy with the heat of their exhaustion. Namjoon himself leaned into his arm; eyelashes fluttering against his cheeks as he stared blankly through the glass of the windows. His fatigue was palpable and you found yourself wishing you could reach out to him. To rub the weariness from his eyes.

You followed after him quietly at his exit, moving towards the direction of his apartment. The crowds thinned the further you got from the station until it was just the two of you walking along the sidewalk under the hanging leaves of maple.

The evening had cooled into pleasant warmth by the time you’d reached Namjoon’s apartment building. You almost regretted having to go inside when it felt so nice out, but you coveted the company of the one person who could see you so you followed him through the lobby and into the elevator.

Jimin arrived home not long after Namjoon had finished his shower. He watched his friend shuffle around the room looking cozy and warm in flannel bottoms and a long white t-shirt, drying his hair with a towel. You watched as Jimin surveyed the room curiously, eyebrows creasing at the silence.

You sat at the loveseat by the window, staring out into the quickly darkening evening, deep hues of crimson electrifying the sky one more time before the dark finally silenced it. “Is Y/N not here anymore?” Jimin asked his friend.

You watched from the corner of your eye as Namjoon’s eyes shifted to you before he mumbled an explanation to his friend. You didn’t need to be close enough to hear; you knew he was telling him about today.

“That’s good news, isn’t it?” Jimin asked loudly, eyes bouncing around the room as though he might find you. “Where is she?”

Namjoon looked towards you, nodding in your direction and Jimin’s eyes shifted your way. Once again, you found yourself wishing you weren’t invisible. “That’s good isn’t it, Y/N? You’re not dead, just in a coma!”

Namjoon groaned softly, shaking his head. “It’s never “just” a coma, Jimin. Be a little more sensitive; I’m sure it was shocking for her to see.”

Jimin muttered a soft apology and you sighed. Namjoon looked back at you. “It’s not even that, it’s just…no one was there with me. What if I died and no one cared? Or…what if I woke up and no one cared?”

“I would care!” Namjoon said and Jimin startled at his volume. “No matter what happens, you’ve got me. You wouldn’t be alone.”

“Me too!” Jimin said, nodding enthusiastically. “That made sense with what she said, right?” He whispered to his friend who nodded and you smiled.

“Thanks.” You mumbled before standing, making your way over to where they stood. Jimin’s eyes were still trained on the window and you grinned, looking over at Namjoon. “What are you guys having for dinner tonight?”

“She wants to know what we’re gonna eat tonight.” Namjoon said.

“Oh!” Jimin said with a hum, “I was thinking steak and potatoes.”

“You don’t have to shout.” Namjoon chuckled as you flinched away from his volume. “She’s standing right in front of us.”

Jimin smiled bashfully, rubbing at the back of his neck. “Sorry.”

“Do you mind if I sit with you? I know it’s hard having a conversation because Jimin can’t see or hear me…but I’d like to have the company right now.” You said softly, looking between the two.

Namjoon nodded, “of course you can join. Jimin, you want me to take potatoes?” Jimin nodded, patting his friend on the arm before heading to the fridge, pulling out a package of thawed steaks as Namjoon made his way to the pantry, pulling out a bag of potatoes and throwing some into the sink to wash.

“Jin should be home in an hour so if we time this right, we could be getting finished right when he gets back.” Jimin said, clattering around under the hob in search of a decent pan.

“I’m sure he’d appreciate a warm dinner.” Namjoon hummed and you moved to stand beside him.

“Who’s Jin?”

“He’s our other roommate,” Namjoon said, glancing at you from the corner of his eye. “He graduated college last year; works in investment. He’s been on a business trip the last 5 days and his flight is actually probably landing right about now.”

“How long have you guys known each other?” You asked, leaning your back against the counter beside him. His eyelashes were surprisingly long; long enough to make any woman jealous. His cheeks dimpled as he drew his bottom lip between his teeth, chewing softly. He flipped the water on, scrubbing the potatoes one by one as he answered.

“Actually, we’ve all been friends since elementary school. Jimin and Jin are cousins and when my family moved to the same neighborhood as Jimin’s, we just kind of met organically.”

“I wish I could tell you about my own life.” You bemoaned, “But unfortunately I don’t remember really anything.”

“Someday.” He said, turning to you with a smile, cheek dimpling in once more and your heart fluttered wild. “Someday you can tell us all about your life.”

You stood chatting with them for the next hour while they cooked, wishing you could help. As it was, everything seemed to be going straight through your hands these days. When you’d first arrived in this in between place, you’d almost been able to move things. Everything had felt a little more solid, a little more concrete, but now it seemed like the world was becoming like the wispy memories of a dream.

Jimin was just pulling the tray of roasted vegetables from the oven, when keys in the front door alerted you to the arrival of the final roommate. You moved towards it, enjoying for once the ability your “in between” gave you to be a creeper unseen. Aside from Namjoon, of course.

The front door swung open revealing an extremely handsome man in a dark blue business suit, ebony hair pushed back and away from his face. “Is there a website where you find all these good-looking roommates?” You quipped lightly, “Hotguy.com? Maybe I can search for a boyfriend on there if I wake up.”

Namjoon gave you a tight-lipped smile before turning his attention to his roommate with a loud greeting. It seemed that you would be going back to invisible now that Jin was home. You didn’t really mind, though; you understood. Having to explain to Jimin had been trying enough, he didn’t need to risk another person thinking he was crazy for your sake.

“My bro’s!” Jin shouted loudly, leaving his suitcase by the door and coming in to give hugs. “Steak? You guys are the best! I’m starving.”

“Yeah, grab a plate and load up. Everything is ready.” Jimin said, sending Namjoon a look.

Jin filled his plate with steak, mashed potatoes, and roasted vegetables before sitting heavily at the table and taking the knife and fork Namjoon handed to him with a thank you. “How was your trip?” Namjoon asked, coming to sit down beside him with his own plate. He’d made a well in the middle of his potatoes, filling them so full of gravy that it had gone spilling over the rest of his plate.

It looked delicious and you pouted sadly at the sight. What you wouldn’t give to have a bite. “Trip was good,” Jin said, cutting off a huge chunk of sirloin and shoving it in his mouth. “Different way of life out there, man. Everyone’s just really slowed down, taking things one moment at a time. And the women…I’ve never seen so many gorgeous women in my life. I spent most nights lounging out on the beach, taking in the view.”

“I heard they’ve got a great club scene.” Jimin said excitedly, scooping potatoes up with his spoon and sending his cousin a look.

“Definitely, though I only went out one night. Too many early mornings to make clubbing on weeknights reasonable.”

“Old man.” Jimin scoffed playfully. Jin smacked him hard and Namjoon chuckled.

“Ya, have some respect.” Jin scolded and you watched enviously as he polished off the last of his steak, moving on to the pile of potatoes. “You won’t be in your early 20’s forever. Besides, I’m only three years older than you!”

“Did you bring me something back, mom?” Jimin teased. Jin scowled then sniffed, shaking some hair out of his eyes.

“I might have brought you something.” He mumbled begrudgingly and Jimin tore from his seat to grab his cousin’s suitcase and drag it into the kitchen. “Hey! The wheels are dirty!” Jin complained, but Jimin paid him no mind.

Tearing the zipper down, he laid the hard-shell suitcase on its side, opening to an explosion of clothes and a couple gift bags rumpled in the center. “Which one’s mine?” He asked greedily. Jin pointed to the small blue bag, reaching over to grab the green one next to it and handing it to Namjoon.

“This is for you,” he said bashfully, “they’re nothing big, just little trinkets from a beach side hut I was passing one night. Reminded me of you guys.”

Jimin tore into the wrapping in his own bag, pulling out a puka shell necklace before shouting out an excited exclamation of appreciation. Namjoon was much more composed as he opened his own. He pulled a small wooden turtle keychain from the packaging, examining it carefully.

It was beautiful and intricate, made from rich koa wood and looking like it had been hand whittled with a pocket knife. As Jin began to explain his conversation with the owner of the small hut, you decided that it probably was hand made.

You moved closer to Namjoon, examining the workmanship over his shoulder. “Thanks, hyung.” Namjoon said, smiling at his friend. “If I ever get to go anywhere, I’ll make sure to bring something back for you.”

Jin waved him off, pulling the empty plates from the table and running the water in the sink as it turned from cold to warm before plugging the drain and squirting globs of soap. He slid the plates into the water to let them soak. “I don’t expect anything from you guys; besides, I’ve already got a great job, decent pay, a nice apartment, and an incredibly handsome face, it’s my duty to treat you guys as a thank you to the universe for truly giving me it all.”

Jimin scoffed loudly, rolling his eyes as he fiddled with the clasp of his new necklace. “Talk louder, hyung, they can’t hear how obnoxious you are in Antartica and the whole world truly deserves to know.”

“I just gave you a really nice gift!” Jin complained loudly to their laughter, but you could see the smile in the corner of his lips and the glint of humor in his eyes. “And zip my suitcase back up, you slob. You dropped my Ralph Lauren shirt on floor!”

Jimin laughed, leaning over and shoving everything back into Jin’s suitcase with little to no care before zipping it back up and sitting it back on its wheels.

“I think I’m gonna get ready for bed.” Namjoon said, standing and stretching his arms over his head. A sliver of skin came into view, in between the flannel of his pajama bottoms and the soft cotton of his t-shirt and you found yourself suddenly thirsty. “Didn’t get much sleep last night and I’ve got another early morning tomorrow.”

He exchanged goodbyes with his roommates before sending you a final soft smile, retreating to his bedroom and closing the door.

. .

Seeing your body again in the morning light was as strange as it was the day before, though you were more prepared this time. You moved back towards the top of your bed, watching as your chest rose and fell. Namjoon stood on the other side, stethoscope attached to his ears and lingering over where your heart was.

You could almost feel the chill of the metal as it glided across your chest, searching for whatever he needed to fill in notes on his clip board. You reached towards yourself, fingers gliding across wisps of your hair. “Namjoon,” you whispered, and he looked up at you. “I can feel my hair. It’s faint…but I can feel it.”

“Really?” He asked excitedly, “maybe being beside your body is a good thing. Maybe it will help you to wake up.”

You were about to say something more when conversation from the hallway distracted you and a group of people suddenly entered the room. An older woman, perhaps in her 50’s, a man not so much older with an athletic build and thinning hair, two younger men, not much older than yourself, and a young girl, clinging to the dress of the woman.

Namjoon looked from you to them, but your vision suddenly tunneled as the little girl ran towards your bed. You followed her with your eyes, as she rushed out to hold your hand, tear stained face pinched as she cried out a soft, “mommy!”

“Mommy?” You murmured as all the noise of the room ceased and like the whistle of a kettle, loud and screeching in your brain, all memory came flooding back. Your parents, your brothers, your abusive ex-boyfriend- your daughter. “Cora.” You exhaled, watching as she clung to your hand, holding it up to her little face.

You remembered it all. The bat he’d brought with him, the anger, the excuses, the pain of a beating you’d thought for sure would kill you. You reached up to touch the side of your face, finding tears in place of blood as you watched the rest of your family greet Namjoon.

He explained to them briefly how you were doing this morning, chancing glances over at you, but your gaze had returned to that of the little girl standing beside your bed. Your daughter. How could you have ever forgotten her? The spitting image of you, you once again thanked the heavens she hadn’t inherited anything from her father but his height.

She was tall for a four-year-old, usually lively, and happy. Tear-stained cheeks were whiplash for you and you longed to reach for her and hold her in your arms. When you’d first found out you were pregnant with her, it was a hugely bitter pill to swallow.

She wasn’t unwanted, but the permanent connection to her emotionally and physically abusive father left you feeling like a sinking ship. You’d felt overwhelmed by the decisions you faced, especially daunting due to your young age. The situation was terrifying, but you were not one to depend on others and you immediately rose to the challenge.

It was difficult at first. No, it was still difficult…but she was worth it. You only regretted that the time it took to make money to keep the two of you afloat was time you were unable to spend with her. You felt cheated as you looked down at her; of all the time you could have spent with her up until this moment that was all now gone.

Things could have been different, if you had waited, if you’d been patient enough to find a man worthy of being her father. Someone responsible and loving. Like Namjoon. You looked over at him as he stood by the door. He nodded at you before stepping from the room and you appreciated him now more than ever. You needed this time to be with your family, even if they couldn’t see you.

“Oh, my darling.” You heard your mother say from the other side of the bed and you turned to face her as she leaned down, dropping a kiss onto your forehead. “I’m sorry we couldn’t be here yesterday, but we’ve got good news! As you know, Tim was arrested and we’re moving forward with the charges. We had to talk to our lawyer yesterday and that’s why we couldn’t be here. They found the weapon, though. He won’t get away with this. He won’t.”

The tremble in her voice broke your heart. You wanted to tell her that it was all ok, that you were there and could hear her…but of course it wasn’t all ok, you weren’t even sure you’d ever wake up, though you felt a lot more hopeful today. You had something to live for; people who loved you and wanted you back with them. You weren’t alone like you’d feared.

“It’s good to see you here, Y/N.” Your brother, Luke, murmured, rubbing his hand up and down one of your legs and you could feel the tingles of pressure. It made you want to cry from joy. That had to be a good sign, it just had to be! “For a while there you really scared us…we weren’t sure…well, we just didn’t know what would happen. You being here is good, though. This is a move in the right direction.”

“When will mommy wake up?” Cora sighed and you turned to look down at her. She was clinging to the limp hand at your side, pressing it up against her cheek and your heart hurt.

“Come here, lovey.” Your mom said, waving her over and Cora let go of your hand with a pout, making her way to her grandmother’s lap and allowing herself to be coddled.

You were so grateful to have such a good family. If you were to die, you knew Cora would be taken care of, that she would be OK. That thought gave you a lot of peace and you sat down on the edge of your hospital bed to hear them all talk.

It was strange to not be able to contribute to their conversation, but you were glad to at least be hearing and seeing them. You could say your piece later, when you woke up. Luke told you all about his girlfriend, how he was thinking about proposing soon, but he wanted you to be awake first. You wished you could tell him to just do it! They’d been dating for five years now and Emma was like a sister to you.

Your other brother, Ethan, told you he’d recently broken up with his girlfriend. You didn’t mind that so much since she’d been a prima-donna and you knew your whole family agreed. He smiled when he said it so you had the feeling he wasn’t really hurting from the change of relationship. Your dad was thinking of retiring. Then again, he’d said this once a year for the last three years, so you weren’t so sure about his follow through on this one either.

You sat with them until they had to go. Cora was complaining of hunger and your mom looked like she needed a nap. You followed them to the door and walked with them as they made their way to the elevator. You knew if you went any further, you may not be able to get back to your body, so you watched as your family stepped into the elevator, pushing the button for the 1st floor. It felt strange to wonder if you’d see them again. The doors closed slowly and you kept your eyes trained on your daughter until the very last second when the polished steel shielded her entirely from view.

You wandered the halls after that, looking casually for Namjoon, but mostly enjoying the solitude. You had a lot to think about at the moment and didn’t mind so much being alone. You were kept company by the whirl of the air conditioning and chatter of nearby doctors and nurses.

There was something appealing about being here. To watch people helping other people, people like you, through difficult times in their life. You could only imagine it was fulfilling. Difficult, but really made you feel like you were doing something good. It was probably too late to go to college now, but maybe you could do something like this if you ever woke up.

Your mom always liked to say, “now’s not the time for never.” As a child, it made absolutely no sense to you, but as an adult you could appreciate the sentiment. There was always another day to try something new. You weren’t sure what that would be yet, but it gave you another thing to look forward to for when you woke up.

When Namjoon’s day was over, you followed him back towards home, welcoming the air conditioning of his apartment. Jimin nor Jin were home yet, so you moved towards the living room to sit down. “How you feeling?” Namjoon asked gently from his place on the other side of the kitchen island.

You looked over at him, his perfectly styled hair still in place. He was wearing glasses now, pushed right up against his face and he looked tired from the long day. “I’m alright.” You murmured. “Actually, I’m better than alright. I’m good; great even. I remember everything, my family, my daughter, my beating, unfortunately. But remembering is good; it gives me something to fight for.”

“So that was your daughter?” Namjoon asked, coming to sit down beside you.

You nodded, pulling your feet up underneath you on the couch. “Yeah, she’s four. She was, of course, a surprise. It’s unfortunate that her father is who he is, but I’ve never regretted her. She’s always been a blessing.”

“What’s her name?”

“Cora.” You smiled and Namjoon’s head tilted in interest, grin peeling his mouth upwards.

“Didn’t you think you had a cat named Cora?” He chuckled.

“Yeah,” you laughed, tugging at the end of your shirt. “Turns out it was my kid.”

“Do you mind if…can I ask about what happened? Why he did…what he did?” Namjoon asked carefully.

You paused a moment to think; to remember the details of the last few years. “Tim…he’s always been present in Cora’s life, mostly at least, but the last few years he was becoming more irresponsible, a little more unhinged. We haven’t been together for years, since I was pregnant, and so she was with me a majority of the time. Recently she started telling me about things he was doing while she was there that made me feel concerned.”

“I started dating him when I was going through a rebellion phase. I felt like my parents were too restrictive and he represented everything they opposed so I was drawn to him. Stupid, yeah, but I was 17. Anyway, when I got pregnant and decided to keep the baby, I just realized that everything he was doing was not the right environment for a child so we broke up. Problem is, even when Cora came along, he kept doing those things and it got worse every year.”

“So, a few months ago I started seeking full custody and we got in a big fight about it. He said I was wrong to try and take his kid away from him and I told him if he cleaned up his act, I wouldn’t have to do it. Of course, I want Cora to have her dad in her life, but he’s a mess. Anyway, he didn’t like that, so early one morning when I’d gotten off work and he knew Cora was with my parents, he came by to “talk.” We both know how that ended up. I guess he thought that if I were dead, there’d be no custody battle.”

Namjoon’s expression was hard to read as he stared down at the carpet, absorbing the information. His body language was anything but. Shoulders bunched stiff and hands squeezed white in his lap, he looked up at you with a scowl. “He deserves to get what he gave.” He muttered angrily and you smiled, reaching out to touch his hands.

“I imagine he’ll get a taste of his own medicine when he goes to prison.” You soothed.

Namjoon stared down at your hand on his as though entranced and you began to wonder if the sensation was too strange to handle. Extracting your hand, you moved away slowly, but he reached forward as though to grab it back. “I could feel your hand more this time. It was still…different, but it felt like it had more presence.” He said in amazement.

“That’s got to be a good sign, right?” You smiled.

“I would think so. I mean, there’s not documented cases like ours, though perhaps they’ve happened before. I can’t imagine many people will admit it out loud. But having a strong grasp of your senses seems positive!”

You hummed, leaning back into the couch cushions. “So, tell me about yourself, Namjoon. What’s your life been like? All I really know about you is that you’re studying to become a doctor and you think Eunae is the bee’s knees.”

“What are you, 80?” He flushed, running a hand through his hair and dislodging the gel holding it. “I just think she’s pretty, but we don’t really know each other. We talk sometimes in the hallways, but honestly, I think she might be into Hoseok.”

“Oh?” You asked at his shrug, “why do you think that?”

“He’s just so nice, girls really dig him. He’s completely oblivious, but I’ve seen the way she looks at him.”

“Do you think he’d be interested in her?” You asked carefully, watching his expression, but he was guarded in this moment.

He shrugged again. “Maybe. She’s nice and pretty and fairly outgoing. He likes that type of girl, but he’s also a loyal friend and he’d never make a move if he thought I wouldn’t like it…I don’t think I’d mind, though.”

“You wouldn’t mind him making a move?”

“Not really. I mean, don’t get me wrong, she’s still pretty and nice, but I don’t know, over the last few days my interest in her specifically has just kind of…waned.”

“Well, I guess that can be good.” You said with a smile, “I never liked being hung up on someone if it wasn’t going to move forward. Not to say you guys couldn’t move forward!”

He chuckled, waving off the comment. “I know what you mean. Besides, I tend to like the girl I could never have.”

You frowned, watching as he stood and moved back to the kitchen. “I think you could totally go on a date with her, if you asked. You’re handsome, smart, and nice. What’s not to like?”

“Thanks.” He flushed, pulling some juice from the fridge and going to grab a cup. “I’m not talking about Eunae, though. I just mean in general…I tend to like the girl that’s…untouchable.”

“On purpose?” You asked, bewildered and Namjoon laughed at your expression.

“No, of course not on purpose!” He huffed, sliding the bottle of juice back in the fridge and grabbing his cup. He made his way back to the couch, sitting back with a sigh. “It just ends up happening that way.”

“Well, what about your family?” You asked, turning to face him.

“Would I date them?” He smirked and you scoffed, smacking your hand against his shoulder.

“Ew, no! Just tell me about them, you weirdo.”

He laughed, eyeing your hand again as it settled in your lap before he resumed talking. “My parents live a few hours north, enjoying being empty nesters, I think. My little sister is in her second year of college and loving life. Studying criminology. I’ve got one amazing dog that is the true love of my life, and on weekends I like to do crossword puzzles on my phone.”

“Really?” You asked as he sipped at his juice.

“Yeah, really.” He chuckled. “It keeps my mind active.”

You sighed, comically loud, before turning to smile at him. “Well, I guess you are just as big a nerd as I thought.”

“Hey!” Namjoon scolded loudly and you laughed. The room returned to silence once more as you stared out the windows as the sky darkened. Namjoon finished his juice and placed it on the coffee table before he spoke again. “What do you think you’ll do when you wake up?

“When, huh?”

“Seems like a good chance of it, all things considered.”

You nodded with a smile. “I hope so. I suppose the first thing I’ll want to do is cuddle my baby. After that, I don’t know. Depends when I can get out of the hospital bed.” You thought for a moment about what you’d really like to do before something occurred to you. “Actually, what I’d really like to do is get a new job. I have two jobs right now that take the majority of my time and I don’t get to see Cora as much as I would like.”

“That’s my priority. After that…well…maybe I’d want to start dating again.”

Namjoon looked at you in surprise. “Oh? Do you have someone in mind?”

You shrugged, looking away from him. “I have someone in mind that I’d like to go on a date with, sure, but no point in getting hopes up about it now. I’ll wait until I wake up and go from there.”

“It’s Jimin, isn’t it?” He said it teasingly, but something in his expression was pinched and it didn’t look so much like he liked the thought of that.

You scoffed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” You didn’t really want to play a guessing game about it; weren’t ready to admit it was him you were talking about. “How about I tell you when I wake up?”

“Fair enough.” Namjoon replied, rolling his eyes good naturedly. “I’m gonna hold you to it, though.”

“Sure.” You smiled.

Just then Jin and Jimin came banging through the front door, arms full as they made their way into the kitchen. “We brought the goods!” Jin hollered loudly as Jimin went back to close the front door.

“Chicken and beer. Come get some, Joon.”

You spent the rest of the evening huddled in the living room with them as they snacked on fried chicken and drank themselves to giggles. You wondered, not for the first time, why you couldn’t have met them before. Why you couldn’t have gotten to know them as someone real and tangible? Not some strange in between being. Why you couldn’t have been around Namjoon sooner. After all, when it really came down to it, he was now half the reason you wanted to wake up.

Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed and thank you for being patient. I’ve been home sick for the last two days so I was able to finish this chapter finally. Please let me know what you think, it means the world to me!

Next (finale)

#btsbookclub #namjoon scenario #namjoon fanfic #namjoon x reader #namjoon fluff #namjoon angst #bts namjoon #bts rm #bts rm x you #bts rm x reader #rm scenario #rm angst #rm fluff

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come-on-shitty-boys · 4 years

Text

//new beginnings. bokuto koutarou//

Warnings: some mild swearing.

Word Count: 1.5K

Notes: i straight up said, “forget my french paper. Papa bokuto and his owlets.”

*Part 2 to Next Chapter*

“Alright, do you three think you can handle this box? It’s kind of heavy,” Bokuto asked, picking up one of the final boxes from the back of the moving truck.

“Yes, Papa!”

“Okay, you three. Show me your big strong muscles first. I gotta make sure you’re strong enough.” He lifted his arm, flexing his bicep to show off his toned muscles, flashing his kids a bright smile.

The triplets all raised their arms, copying their father’s pose to prove that they were more than strong enough to carry your box of clothes into the house. Bokuto hummed as he looked at them, nodding slightly at the sight of their five year-old noodle arms. “Dang, you guys must’ve been working out. You look stronger than me! Okay, can you take this box into Papa’s room?” He asks, leaning down to hand the kids the box.

Three heads nodded vigorously as they grabbed a hold of the box and cautiously started carrying it in the house. “Woah! Is your dad making you guys do all of the work?” You ask, laughter etching into your voice as you step out of the front door to get another box.

“Yeah!” Koujirou huffed.

“Well, that’s not very fair. Why don’t you just set that one down there and go take a break? We can make your dad carry it the rest of the way.”

They don’t have to be told twice. The box is dropped without a second thought and the triplets are racing inside to feel the relief of the cool house. “You know, I’m pretty sure child labor is illegal,” you tease, picking the box up from the ground.

Bokuto rolled his eyes, tucking the final box from the moving truck under his arm. His hand reached out to ruffle your hair, pushing your head away playfully as he approached you. “Oh, come on, one box wasn’t going to kill them. Besides, did you see their muscles? They take after their dad for sure.” He beams brightly at you, holding his arm out so you feel his muscles flex and relax under the fabric of his t-shirt.

You simply hum, pushing the door open for the both of you. There were piles upon piles of boxes strewn throughout the living room, the most obvious sign of the laziness that overcame you half-way through your move-in. It still felt so weird, knowing that your apartment was now sitting completely empty and would remain that way until your lease was up, but it was worth it. You were taking big steps in, not only your life, but your relationship with the man you loved. To be frank, it scared you. It had only been a few short months since you first met Bokuto’s children and now, you were moving in, becoming an even bigger part of their lives. It was one thing for you to spend weekends over, to sit up in the stands with the kids during MSBY games, to sit and laugh with them for short periods of time. But, to be with them full time? It had your heart racing with anxieties.

You didn’t know how to be a parent, let alone how to be a parent to children that weren’t even biologically yours. What if they didn’t want to listen to you? Would they just see you as some glorified babysitter who just happened to be living in their home? There were a million questions running through your head. Would your maternal instincts ever kick in or would you constantly be in a state of not knowing how to handle what was going on around you?

One by one, boxes had been carried to their respective rooms and their contents were slowly but surely put away. The triplets had had their eyes trained on the television as brightly colored cartoons rolled across the screen ever since they were released from their moving duties. And now, as you sat on your now-shared bed, unable to find the will to finish putting away your clothes, everything felt so wrong. You shouldn’t be here, not yet, at least. How were you supposed to take care of three little kids when you could barely look after yourself? The shirt in you had been folding became balled up in your fists as all of those doubts clouded your mind. You had been moved-in for less than a day and you were already on the verge of your breaking point- what an impression.

“You’re stressed,” Bokuto states simply, eyeing you from the doorway. His hair sat messily against his head, droplets of water dripping down onto his shoulders, an indicator of his recent shower.

You meet his golden irises that somehow look even more radiant in the low lighting of the bedroom, melting your heart the same way that they always did. You just shake your head. “No, I’m fine, Kou. Don’t worry about it.”

The bed shifts behind you as he takes a seat, pulling you back into his chest. “Too late. What’s on your mind?” His fingers trail delicately up and down your arms, sending soft shivers throughout your body.

“How did you become a dad?”

His fingers stop and you can feel his chest shaking with laughter. “I think someone needs to go back to sex ed.”

“Ha ha, very funny, Kou,” you tease, reaching behind you to playfully smack his arm. “I mean, how did you know how to be a dad? Did you always just know?”

He snorts slightly. “Hell no. I spent the first six months of their lives barely being able to tell them apart. You really think I knew how to be a father?”

“I don’t know. . . You’re so good with them and it’s really obvious that they love and look up to you. What if I’m not able to be a good mom to them?”

You can feel your body relax as his long fingers move towards your hair. If you were able to see his face, you would’ve seen the most beautiful smile to ever grace his features cross over his face. “Y/N, if I thought that you weren’t going to be a good mom, I wouldn’t have asked you to move in with us. Hell, I wouldn’t have even introduced you to them. It’s scary. Trust me, I know, but I promise, one day, it will all just click and you’ll know exactly what to do. But, when I see you with them,” he pauses, unable to stop the grin that overwhelms him as he speaks, “I realize that this is what’s been missing from our little family. Madori’s been missing someone who actually knows how to braid her hair. Fukurou needed someone who could ease him out of his shell better than I ever could. You’ve taught Koujirou so much! Damn, that kid was obsessed with dinosaurs before you came in, but now that you’re around, answering his questions a hell of a lot better than I ever could? He’s going to be one smart kid. But, me? I’ve been looking for someone who could make me as happy as those little shits do. I never thought I would be able to find it, but then you just, quite literally, came crashing into my life-”

“You ran into me, don’t get it twisted.”

“Wow, here I am, trying to be sentimental and you get caught up in the specifics,” Bokuto sighs, resting his chin on top of your head. “As I was saying before someone interrupted me, if I didn’t know that you would be the perfect fit for us, we wouldn’t be here right now. It takes time, but I’ll be right by your side the entire time. We’re starting something new and beautiful and I can’t wait to see how the rest of our life unfolds.”

Silence fills the room as you stare at the ceiling, captivated by the blades of the ceiling fan spinning in their predestined circle. It’s boring, living life in that straight-forwarded, molded way, but it was always the life that you thought you’d be living. You believed that it was always: fall in love, get married, have children. But, you had been given an alternate route to your story. One that had children already in the mix when you fell in love, but he was right. It was new and exciting, but more than anything it was beautifully yours. It was a story that was unique to the two of you and one that you couldn’t wait to continue.

“Hey, Kou?”

“What’s up, babe?”

“I can’t wait to spend my life with you.”

That contagious smile spread over his lips all over again, grey locks tickling your cheek as he nuzzles his nose against your shoulder, planting loving kisses against your skin. “I’m going to make you happy, I promise. And all of those worries about being a part of their lives? We’re going to make them go away. Together, okay?”

{Taglist because I literally always forget when I initially post: @nicka-nell @moncymonce @nekxrizawa so you can have the sweet sweet Kouddi content}

#haikyuu #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu!!#bokuto x reader #bokuto #bokuto koutarou #koutarou #bokuto fluff #haikyuu fluff #haikyuu imagines #x reader #imagines #domestic #papa bokuto #he will always have my heart and soul byeeee #it's also like four am and i crave death #and sleep #but mainly death

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