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bitchiswild · 6 months

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On The Court

GP Huh Yunjin x F! Reader

Warnings: Smut, Exhibitionism, Creampie, and others things probs 🤷‍♀️

Word Count: 1.5k

A/n: Sorry if it’s bad 💃🏼 but enjoYyY

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"Got the hang of it now?" Yunjin inquired, leaning against the fence surrounding her private tennis court. She had just finished an extensive session. As the girlfriend of a well-respected champion, she was teaching you what you needed to know when it comes to tennis.

"Yeah, I think I've got it. Let's try a game, shall we?" I replied, eager to challenge my skills and elevate them to the next level. I got into position, ready for the ball to come right at me.

"Love!" Yunjin's voice echoed across the court, a playful twinkle in her eye as she tossed the tennis ball into the air. With graceful precision, she brought her racket down, sending the ball gliding over the net, its trajectory aimed squarely at my side of the court.

As the ball landed within my court, I ensured it bounced once before my swing. "Keep it inside the lines," I coached myself, recalling every rule and fundamentals Yunjin had taught me. Mindful to avoid the net, I prepared to strike. With precise timing and just the right force, I sent the ball soaring over the net, a blend of power and control behind my shot. It zoomed past Yunjin after a single bounce on her side, earning me 15 points.

Excitement bubbled up within me,Yes!" I yelled out in sheer glee. "Ha! In your fucking face!" My triumphant outburst echoed across the court, a mix of elation and competitive spirit driving my words.

"Pretty good, babe," Yunjin said, initially shocked, but the surprise quickly faded, replaced by a smirk.

"Game on."

As the game went back and forth, the scores kept climbing until we reached this critical moment where every point mattered. The tension thickened around Yunjin and I as the final round loomed, signaled by the ball tossed into the air. I focused hard, determined to win. I wanted to prove a point—to show Yunjin that Y/n L/n did indeed grasp tennis, despite just learning it.

I was convinced I could pull off a win. Crushing Yunjin's ego seemed like a golden opportunity, and I was totally up for grabbing it.

Surveying her position at the far-right corner of the court, I seized the chance to smash the ball towards her opposite side. The ball raced across the court at a blistering pace, catching Yunjin off guard. She dashed toward the ball on the other side, attempting to keep up, but by the time she reached it, it was too late for her to make a hit.

A surge of realization flooded my face as I witnessed the ball whiz past Yunjin. I had won the game—yes, I had actually won! My body erupted with excitement, and I couldn't contain myself. "Yes! Hell fucking yeah! In your face! Did you see that, Jen!? "I beat you!" I exclaimed in pure triumph, relishing the victorious moment.

Yunjin's faint smile revealed a hit to her usually unshakable ego. It was clear that losing had hit her hard, especially since she's usually the one who dominates in tennis. "Congrats, babe," she conceded gracefully. "That was a good game."

I rushed up to her, unable to contain my excitement about the win. "Did you see that? The ball just sailed past you! Oh my goodness, that was too good! I wish we had cameras for a slow-motion replay!"

"Alright, Y/n, we got it, you won," Yunjin said, her tone beginning to carry a hint of irritation.

I pouted teasingly at her. "Aww, is Yunny Hunny Bunny’s ego feeling a little busted because she lost to her girlfriend?"

“It is not. My ego is fine.” She huffed,trying to maintain her composure.

"Hmm, sure, whatever you say... my little loser," I teased, a playful smirk on my face.

“Can you please stop calling me a loser? I get it already” She said looking even more annoyed.

"Is Jennifer Huh mad now?" I exclaimed, feigning shock with a playful grin.

“No… I'm not now, please shut up.” She said with an embarrassed, frustrated look on her face.

You leaned up to her ear and whispered “Make me.”

Once you leaned back you stared at her face. Lust clouded her eyes instantly. Immediately she grabbed your neck and pushed you over to the fence roughly. You stared at her, knees buckling, while she looked at you up and down knowing that you will always be on your knees for her. She leaned down to your ear and whispered “Look at you, always weak for me. Always willing to be on my knees sucking my cock like the slut you are.”

You started breathing heavily as she kissed down my neck. One hand on your neck while the other slowly itches down to your skirt. You lifted your head up to make room for her. Yunjin finally reached down to your covered pussy, rubbing it slightly. Tightening her grip on your neck. You held in a moan.

“I want to hear you scream while I fuck you senseless. Let the whole neighborhood hear you, got that baby?” She husked. Too turned on to utter a word Yunjin gripped my neck harder

“I said do you get it” She said once again .

“I will,” You whimpered.

“Good”

She spun you around roughly making sure you were facing the fence, pulling your skirt down to your legs, she started rubbing herself against you, making you even more wet. “Fuck, baby” she moans. You were holding on to the fence, looking back at her dry humping you. She then pulls her own skirt down to her legs whipping her cock out. You reached behind, and stroked her cock in your hands. Her hands slide along the outside of your thighs, then in between them, sliding against your slit. Fucking you with her fingers.

“Mmm fuck Jen.” You moaned out.

She coated her fingers with your juices, sucking them clean. Her cock slid through your dripping pussy. “Please no teasing” You whined.

She chuckled, gripping your hips tightly “Anything for you baby.” She then pushed her entire length into your pussy. “Fuck baby, you’re so fucking tight every single time” She moaned out and started to thrust hard and deeply inside you.

“Oh my fucking god” You screamed.

“Yes that's it baby, scream for me. Scream so the whole neighborhood can hear how good I fuck you. How I can reach deep inside you and fuck you so hard, so you can feel me for days.” She husked. Thrusting into you hard, making your body and the fence move with each thrust.

“You feel so good, I'm so close.” You moaned out loudly.

“No. Hold it. Don't you dare cum yet” She said, slowing down her thrust .

“Please, Jen..” You whimpered.

Her hand goes back up to your neck and slightly grips it. “Who’s pussy is this?” Her thrust is still agonizingly slow making me ache to cum. “Yours! Fuck! It's Yours!” You whined tears threatening to run down your face.

“Please let me cum!” You cry out.

Yunjin smirked “That's my girl,” Her thrust quickens once again making you moan out loudly as you get closer to the edge. Yunjin felt your walls flutter around her, she knew you were very close to the edge. Her other hand reached over to your front to rub your clit. That is all it took to send you over the edge.

“Shit Jen I'm cumming,” You screamed out.

She kept up her thrusts “ That's it baby cum for me. Cum all over my cock, soak it.”

Euphoria washes over your body as you came. Gripping tightly onto the fence so you don’t fall down. Yunjin is still thrusting into you as you came over-stimulating your whole body. “Please no more,” You told her weakly.

Coming back to my senses she now pulled out of you and spun you around, you weakly faced her after being overstimulated. She rests her forehead against mine, breathing heavily, gripping one of my thighs and lifting it.

“One more baby I know you can do one more,” she says to you.

The head of her cock enters you again then her whole length causing both of you to moan. Her thrust starts slow then slowly increases. “Fuck baby I love you” She moans out. You felt her cock twitch inside you signaling that she is cumming soon.

“I love you too, I’m almost there” You moaned.

You bounced on her cock while she thrust in you. Our moans getting louder. You clenched around her cock as you came hard, making your whole body shake with pleasure. Yunjin's thrust quickens but it gets harder to thrust since your pussy is like a vice around her cock. Her hips stilled as she cums. Her warm thick cum fills your pussy and you moan at the feeling.

Holding on to each other as your highs came down, breathing heavily. Yunjin pulled out, making you moan now feeling empty. Her cum starts leaking out of you. She reaches down to swipe it up and shoving back inside your pussy. You moan at the contact.

She leans down to my ear “Just so you know baby, I let you win” she grins pulling up her skirt and walking back to the court, she turns around and stares at you while you were still leaning against the fence, catching your breath. “Now get dressed, we are playing another game.” she smirks.

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#huh yunjin x reader #yunjin x reader #le sserafim smut #lesserafim x reader #yunjin smut #huh yunjin #huh yunjin smut #bitchiswild #BIW.WRITES #GP huh yunjin #GP

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beenbaanbuun · 12 days

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Hey!! I just read your most recent Addams!MATZ fic and the angst is DELICIOUS. Your talent for writing is incredible and your creativity really shines through with each and every fic. The fluff, angst, and even the smut are so wonderfully well done, you're one of my favorite ATEEZ writers.

If you're up to it, and feel free to ignore this, but I'd love to see a part two to the angst Addams!MATZ where seonghwa talks to hongjoong and hongjoong comes to apologize. If that's not something you see yourself continuing, I completely understand!

Make sure to keep yourself healthy and hydrated and get plenty of rest.

thank you for the compliments!!! they mean the world to me. i’m glad that my passion for writing and my love for these boys shines through in my work. here is a continuation <333

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seonghwa doesn’t even bother to knock before barging into his husbands office. yes, he thinks anger is an ugly emotion, but that doesn’t mean he is immune to it. in fact, it’s the only thing running through him as he steps through the doorway and slams the heavy slab of oak behind him. hongjoong hasn’t shown you the courtesy of being polite; why should seonghwa show his husband the same.

upon hearing the bang of the door, the overworked businessman turns around, pen still in hand and glasses low on his nose. he was half expecting to see your feisty little self again, but instead he’s met with the sight of his husband. if it weren’t for the sneer that twisted up his husbands pretty face, he might’ve explained the same thing he’d tried explaining to you. something tells him that seonghwa wouldn’t have appreciated being told ‘i’m busy, i’ll come and talk to you when i’m finished designing these pieces.’

“what’s wr—” hongjoong doesn’t even get to finish before seonghwa cuts him off with a scoff and a petty roll of the eyes. it’s hardly like him to wear his emotions on his sleeve, and yet hongjoong can see each one of them clear as day. hurt, anger, disappointment; emotions that he never wants anyone he cares about to feel. his heart sinks just a touch as he realises who those emotions are aimed towards.

“you are a piece of work, hongjoong,” seonghwa spits, sounding beautiful even with venom laced through his voice. hongjoong knows that’s the last thing he should be thinking right now, but he can hardly help admiring his husband, even when he is seething. it takes the man a second or two to knock himself free of the love-induced haze and allow the words to sink in. “do you think you’re in the right for yelling at our darling? do you think that just because you’re overworking yourself it gives you the right to make her cry?”

hongjoong’s world comes to a standstill. the clock on the wall stops ticking, the heart in his chest stops beating, and most importantly, for the first time in weeks, the brain in his head stops thinking. finally, finally, it’s no longer filled with a myriad of complex ideas, each one overlapping yet individual in its own right. finally he just has one singular thought. it’s just a shame it isn’t a good one.

he made you cry…

hongjoong made you cry…

it repeats in his head, over and over like a mantra. it taunts him, the idea that he’d upset you so much feeling like nails on a chalkboard. his hairs stand on end and his breath catches in his throat. lord below, what has he done.

“where is she?” his voice is weak, pathetic, nothing like he usually sounds. seonghwa has to admit that his resolve takes a hit when he hears it leave his loves mouth. he reminds himself to remain strong; your pain is his priority right now. “seonghwa, please—”

“take a guess, hongjoong,” seonghwa replies, once again cutting his husband off. this time it wasn’t out of anger but of fear that he might cave if he has to listen to hongjoong’s heartbroken pleas for much longer. the pained look on his face is enough to send seonghwa’s heart into overdrive; he doesn’t need any more distractions from the real reason he’s here. “where might you usually find her when she isn’t with one of us?”

the rug in front of the fire—jongho.

hongjoong almost feels ashamed that he even had to ask; he should’ve realised the second you silently left his office that you’d gone to seek comfort in your favourite onikuma. realistically, though, he should’ve realised a lot of things. it hurts him to know that he was too focused on work to do so.

he stands, and he’s grateful when seonghwa shifts to the side to allow him past, even going as far as to re-open the heavy door for him. hongjoong isn’t quite sure he deserves the soft hand that’s placed against his back as he walks through the doorway, but he appreciates it nonetheless. now isn’t the time to be wondering how he ended up with such a beautiful individual as a soulmate, but he finds himself lingering on that thought as the two of them begin their journey to the living room. it’s hard not to when the warmth of seonghwa’s touch never once leaves him.

in fact, it’s only when the two of them step through the archway that seonghwa gives a small shove to the bottom of hongjoong’s spine before going to reclaim his spot on the couch. with a single nod in your direction, seonghwa redirects his husband’s attention and hongjoong lets his gaze flicker to the floor.

the first thing he’s met with is a glare from the mutt he’d been so reluctant to allow into his abode. normally, the beast would be scolded for being so bold as to openly disrespect his master, but he let it slide this time. he can hardly tell him not to give him the attitude he so clearly deserves. in fact, this is light compared to what he would’ve expected from the overprotective creature.

at least hongjoong knows he’ll make a wonderful guard dog…

“dove,” hongjoong coos softly as he dips down to your level. he can’t remember the last time he’d sat on the floor, but this feels necessary. the closeness is something that he finds himself craving, wanting nothing more than to have you next to him again. he won’t lie and claim that the sole purpose of this is to comfort you; he needs it too, to stave off the guilt that has begun to eat him alive. “can you look at me?”

there’s a certain element of pain in his voice that tells you he’s being sincere. that he truly does feel remorse for how he treated you. whether or not it’s seonghwa that forced it upon him, you don’t particularly care. all you want is to feel hongjoong’s warmth again, so you listen. you turn your head until your watery eyes meet his.

“there she is,” he gives you a humourless chuckle, a sad smile twisting the corners of his mouth up and the corners of his eyebrows down. the warmth of his hand as he places it on your cheek is comforting; more so than any words he could say. you just need him close. he seems to realise that as he turns to the werewolf, dangerously aware of the way his ears twitch angrily above his head. “may i take her, yeosang? i promise i’ll be gentle with her.”

“you weren’t gentle with her earlier,” yeosang growls, behaving more akin to what hongjoong expects from him. it almost has hongjoong flinching back in fear of yet another bite-shaped bruise on his hand.

“that’s true, but i would like i make it up to her,” hongjoong is soft as he speaks, less so for the sake of the angry mutt, and more for the sake of you. he doesn’t want you to see any more anger from him. “besides i really think it should be my little dove’s decision as to whether i get to hold her, don’t you?” yeosang snarls, huffing in dismay as he unravels his arms from you and lets hongjoong swoop you into his. manipulation never really has been the man’s style, but he has to admit that it works wonders with the mutt. use you as leverage, and yeosang will behave like a fully trained lapdog. he’s just like them in that respect; so desperate to make you happy that they’d risk everything, dignity included.

it’s not hard for you to let yourself be passed around like some kind of teddy bear as a pose to a real, living human. you’re tired from crying, not to mention desperate for the confirmation that you’re still hongjoong’s good girl. in fact, as hongjoong tugs you into his grasp like a rag doll, you find yourself leaning into his grasp. it’s so soft compared to his sharp words and cutting tone earlier, and his familiar scent of spices fills your nostrils. it dizzies you, but hongjoong is there to catch you…

“i’m sorry,” he whispers into your ear as he pulls you up to straddle his crossed legs, “my darling dove, will you forgive me?”

you don’t answer. you don’t find it necessary to. the way you see it there’s nothing to forgive; you annoyed him, he yelled at you. it’s give and take, and despite your emotions getting the better of you, you refuse to place the blame on hongjoong. not all of it, at least.

“only if you forgive me too,” is the answer you finally settle on, mumbling it into his neck. he squirms a little at the tickling sensation, and in your own mind, you find yourself thinking he’s cute.

“you have nothing to forgive, my dove,” he answers, “but if it will make you forgive me, then yes; i forgive you…”

#ateez x reader #ateez fanfic #ateez oneshot #ateez fluff #ateez scenarios #ateez fic #opposites attract universe #matz x reader #yeosang x reader #hongjoong x reader #seonghwa x reader

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vin-taege · 1 year

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requesting for chishiya !! i dont really see anything abt him being flirty, so i'd LOVE to see smth like after the game with king of diamonds when he starts to open up yk, maybe chishiya had feelings for op when they were at the beach but never told them that cause he didnt >want< to feel that way, but after all that talk with kuzuryu he wants to change but doesnt rlly know how so he just starts flirting with op at any given chance basically :]] like calling them pretty and holding their hand/waist yk and maybe just dropping some "wanna makeout?" but its SO CLEAR that hes trying really hard and has no idea of what hes doing (that man does NOT flirt usually

I AM FROTHING AT THE MOUTH FOR THIS !!

I am a firm believer that chishiya is definitely a huge antisocial dork outside of the borderlands and with his partner, so this request hits home

"A" for Effort

Summary: God, who would've thought Chishiya Shuntaro could fail at something so gracefully—alternatively, the one where Chishiya tries flirting for once.

Genre: fluff, aib!au, ooc chishiya (he's a dork in this one)

Pairing: reader x chishiya

Words: 1k

"You know, I can make a bomb out of that with enough batteries and wires." Chishiya mused, a hint of pride in his voice. You froze midway through your actions, the cola can you were holding suspended in midair, inches from your lips. "That's very cool of you, Chishiya."

"Yeah," he hummed. He slid his chair closer to you, making the old floor of the abandoned apartment creak. You'd be lying if you said his closer proximity didn't make your heart flutter.

Uncharacteristically, he slid an arm around you, seemingly aiming to land on the armrest on your other side. As soon as his palm hit the wood, it gave in with a sharp snap, making the blond jolt forward. His chin hit your shoulder, sticky soda liquid spilling as your arm jerked alongside it.

For a split second, he looked mortified, eyebrows raised slightly and his mouth agape. Quickly enough, he caught himself and slid back into his stoic expression. He cleared his throat, "I just have to cut that top part open. The wiring goes in and then the pull-ring after. It's really easy—I can teach you if you want."

His breath was on your skin, deep brown eyes burning into yours. When they're close enough, his eyes no longer looked cold nor judgmental. They were soft, gentle—they were windows to the vulnerabilities and brilliance hidden beneath his hard shell. His pupils seemed to dilate when he whispered, glimmering with wonder under the candlelight.

"You're really pretty."

Your breath hitched in your throat. Eyebrows raised, you let out a hum in surprise. What has gotten into him today?

"Sorry?" You couldn't help but smile. It was an awkward one, given how you were unused to interacting with him like this, but a smile nonetheless.

His arm was still around you, limply laying on the side of the chair before he decided to press it onto your waist. For the first time in his life, Chishiya's fingers trembled. He was praying you wouldn't notice the almost imperceptible way his fingers shook over the fabric of your shirt. You pretended not to notice.

"I think your lips are really pretty," he said as a matter of fact.

He didn't know why you were looking at him as if he just blew someone's head off. Truthfully, it wavered his confidence and he started to rethink his approach. You still hadn't said a word for you were trying to figure out if this was really happening, but he mistook this silence for rejection.

"I'll uh—" he moved away from you, standing up to go towards your makeshift bed of papers and pillows. The bed in the apartment came with questionable stains, and you were adamant about never touching it.

"Chish-"

"I'm going to sleep," he grumbled, frustrated at himself for failing at something he considered to be simple. Why was it suddenly so difficult to talk to you?

Whatever fire Kuzuryuu ignited in him has certainly dampened a bit. He felt defeated—stumped—that the perfect plan he concocted didn't pan out the way it usually would. He thought that now was the best time—he had just came off from beating a king, you found a place the King of Spades seemingly hasn't touched yet, and the both of you managed to unearth unexpired strawberry candies that actually tasted good. Today was supposed to be lucky.

He'd thought of all the variables, and processed the multiple backup plans he had up his sleeve, yet when that fucking armrest broke, they all went down the drain. He was curled up in a ball, back facing toward you. He didn't want you to see him in such an embarrassed—pathetic—state.

"Humans aren't formulaic," he thought.

Sighing, you stood up. You blew the candle, the resulting wisps of smoke trailing up towards the ceiling. Chishiya lay motionless, and if you weren't any wiser, you would've thought that he had actually fallen asleep already.

You sat crossed-leg next to him. The plastic of his earphones glinted under the moonlight, peeking through strands of bleach-blonde hair. You gently plucked the bud out and the blown-out bass of a heavy rock song greeted you. He tilted his head slightly in your direction.

You leaned down, bringing your lips closer to the curve of his ear. "I think you're pretty too."

For a beat, he was unresponsive. Then, he rolled onto his back, now facing you fully. His lips quirked up, giving you the smallest of smiles. He propped himself up on his elbows, cocking his head to the side. It's almost as if it was a challenge for you to continue.

"I don't know what got into you, but I do know that it gave me the courage to tell you this," you bit your lip. "I have feelings for you."

He cocked an eyebrow up, pleasantly surprised and almost in a teasing way. So the plan did work. Not in the way he thought it would, but it still came to fruition.

Your noses were almost touching. You wanted to close the gap, to meet his chapped lips that vaguely smelled of strawberries—he swore he wasn't using lip balm but you begged to differ. He was yearning for this as well. God, he was so mesmerized by you.

So pretty, so pretty, so pretty.

"If you're having trouble with getting the lid off, I can always help you with some pliers I found."

"What are you talking abou—is this about the fucking bomb again?"

He cut you off, finally pressing his lips against yours. Snaking his hand behind your head, he pulled you closer, deepening the kiss. You still hadn't quite figured out the intricacies of his mind. His behavior was sometimes erratic—although he was calm and calculative, he can also be unpredictable and warm.

There was a multitude of thoughts running through your mind, the loudest one being the drive for the both of you to make it out, to survive. And without saying it, you knew he wanted the same thing.

#alice in borderland imagines #chishiya shuntaro #chishiya alice in borderland #chishiya x reader #aib chishiya #aib imagines #imawa no kuni no alice #alice in borderland x reader #alice in borderland #chishiya imagine #aib x reader #chishiya shuntaro x reader #asks #requested

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xo-urban · 1 year

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ehe may I request an x male reader for Ghost?

Ghost x Male reader where male reader is a medic who is really gentle with people's wounds and quick on his feet, but is secretly hella aggressive?

One day the team is compromised when a mission fails and are surprised to see their medic rawdogging the enemies with just a knife and a pistol.

Had fun writing this! First ghost fic, enjoy! 🫶

Surprise Me, Pretty Boy

Pairing: Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley x Medic!Male Reader

Summary: Everyone knows that gentle you patching people up after getting hurt, but desperate times call for desperate measures and you have chosen violence.

Warnings: Violence

Word count: 412

You were Task Force 141’s medic, you were like a walking first aid kit, trained to work on the battlefield with chaos all around you. You had this gentle touch when helping others, yet you worked quickly and efficiently. It's what you’ve been trained to do from the day you joined the military.

Right now you were patching Ghost up after the two of you barely made it out alive from Grave’s men. You worked quietly, cleaning up Ghosts scratches and minor wounds.

“You aren’t doing too hot doc.” Ghost murmured lowly, watching you work for a bit, glancing back at the environment that surrounded the both of you in a bog of darkness. “Tired and winded, but I’ll make it out alive” You reassured in a soft whisper.

Ghost nodded, eyes widening at the snap of branch ruined your moment. You both tensed when you heard more than just one pair of footsteps heading towards your direction from all around. “Shit!” You cursed, finishing up Ghost’s last wound that you were tending, “Let those bullets fly Ghost!” You stood quickly, pulling him up as he grabbed his rifle with a huff, shooting as many enemies he could as they came into view.

“Keep them off our trail!” You commanded, pulling a pistol out of its holster, clicking the safety off as you unpocketed your beautiful knife in all of its glory. You were never known for violence, but desperate times need some way out.

You saw them approach, aiming their guns at you. You fired your gun, emptying bullets to their skulls with a damn near perfect aim. You threw your knife at a man, going straight into his throat, blood spurting from his mouth as you reloaded your gun in the process. You tossed the empty round to the ground, sliding over to the corpse you just killed, grabbing your knife from his throat as you kept on running, clearing a path between the enemies and bodies.

“Here!” You called as Ghost quickly followed you into a truck. You both hopped in, Ghost settling in the driver's seat. “You are full of surprises.” Ghost chuckled as he began to drive as the truck roared to life. “Expect to see more in the future darling” You smirked, “I’ll be waiting any day love” Ghost spoke, tone light and easy. You looked over at him, his eyes scrunched up like a soft smile was formed under that mask.

“Surprise me, pretty boy.”

#simon ghost riley x male reader #ghost x male reader #male reader #modern warefare 2 #fanfic #fanfiction #ghost x reader

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slutforsnow · 4 months

Text

As an apology for being dead as hell, i would like to provide this one-shot/oc fic of Billy the Kid from the TV drama series.

A Pretty Girl Playin' With The Big Boys

Inspired by Diva and Beautiful Liar

CW//saloon fight, western time period, poker, mild sa (like almost touches but nothing more), implied sh00ting threat, Billy is his own warning for being so hot, mentions of abusive ex, rape mention

She smiled to herself as she watched her brother Jesse play poker as she took a shot of whiskey sittin' in her chair like the cowboys so one caught sight of a woman planning to get in on the next game. What she didn't notice was that a man, around 2 years older than her, was watching her as he played. His gaze seemed predatory and observant as he played-like he didn't really feel like focusing on the game.

He took a shot of his whiskey as he showed his cards, and Jesse slowly set his down. He lost, and he looked pretty pissed about it. He frowned, clenching his jaw. He half-expected it but had some hope that'd bring home somethin' to his ma and Joe since Henry was injured. As Billy got up from his seat and place his hat on his head again, he noticed an oddly small cowboy take the seat that his opponent, Jesse, had been sittin' in as Jesse gathered his winnins.

"She's gonna get herself found out," Jesse murmured laughin' to himself. Billy snapped his head to Jesse, his brows furrowed in confusion.

'She? She who?' The brunette thought before turning his gaze to the mysterious she at the poker table. She had put a rather large sum of money on the table, causing Jesse to raise his brows, surprised. "She never bets that much."

'She's a regular poker player?'

As the game proceeded, the mysterious she kept quiet, only making noise to clear her throat or move away from one of her opponents that seemed off and tried to lay hands on her more private areas.

Billy kept a frown on his lips as he watched her discomfort, but every moment he went to go shove a man off her, she'd shoot him a glare as if to say 'if you expose me, I'll shoot you.'

As the game came to a close, she smirked, gathering her winnings as she won more than Jesse. The other men bet more in this game than the last one and were surprised to lose a quite hefty amount. The men were genuinely shocked, thinking they lost to a 15 - or 16 year old boy. One man, however, looked pissed and as the mystery girl began to stand after pocketing her winnings, he grabbed her arm pulling her down to the table, knocking her hat off and letting her lustrous curls unfurl from her messy bun that was tucked neatly under her hat. The curls fell around her face, and one strand fell in front of her face. Smiling awkwardly, she stayed still.

'Well shit,' She thought, freezing as the man froze. The gambler lost to a woman, and he was furious. A WOMAN beat his ass in poker, a men's game.

The saloon was dead silent as the sound of her hat hit the ground seemingly echoed.

"Now, sir, there's no need to violent its just poker," She said, trying to wiggle her arm free, only for the man to tighten his hold. 'Okay, maybe I'll need Jesse for this,' She thought, glancing to her brother and his friend.

"You beat me in my game. No one ever beats me," the gambler growled, grabbing his gun and bringing it to her temple. The man's words sent Billy's mind to the night Carlos was shot for winning and for being Mexican. He wasn't having a repeat of that. Before he could think, Billy spun his gun out of the holster, shooting the hole through a broken window, hitting an old crate which exploded due to the force of the bullet hitting such a delicate and old thing.

The sound grabbed everyone's attention, even the gambler who dropped his gun in surprise. The saloon was still in silence, watching Billy's next move.

"Let her go," He said, moving his gun and aiming it at the man's head. The mystery woman smirked in approval of Billy, liking how he was handling it. "I don't wanna have to kill you, so just let her go."

Out of pure fear, the man dropped his gun and let go of her, causing her to fall onto the floor with a hard thud.

Standing up, she brushed the dirt off her jeans and grabbed her hat, swiping the dust off.

"Gentleman," She commented after a moment of silence and bowing, exiting the saloon with Jesse behind her and Billy behind both of them.

As the three walked in awkward silence, she put her hat on, ignoring the stares from other women at her boyish appearance, aside from her cerulean eyes and ginger locks that had been pulled into a braid down her back.

"I suppose I should thank you," She uttered, smiling towards Billy and turning to walk backward, now following Jesse based on the sound of his footsteps.

"'S nothin'," Billy told her, shrugging as he walked behind her, but noticing her bruised arm as she pulled her over shirt off to check on the bruise. "You gonna be okay?"

"Oh I'll be fine," She answered, shrugging off his concern. "This ain't nothin' compared to my last man."

"Last man?" He repeated, staring at her puzzled. "What happened to him?"

"Jesse ran him out of town for trying to marry me while I was seventeen. Stopped him from rapin' me too," She commented. "Ex was awful."

Billy stared at her, surprised at how she could be so calm about it. Then he thought of something; she was so calm about it as if it was nothin' more than picking flowers by a river. It reminded him of how calm and unbothered he is to murdering, at least small animals and people who truly deserved it. He smirked a little before extending his hand to her to shake.

"Billy Antrim."

"Violet Evans."

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justagalwhowrites · 7 months

Text

Yearling - Ch. 14: Time

You and Joel go on your first overnight patrol. A continuation of Yearling ch. 1-13 found on Tumblr here.

Pairing: Joel Miller x Female Reader

Warnings: Violence against animals (not thoroughly described); canon-typical violence; canon-typical torture. No use of Y/N. Minors DNI 18+ Only

Length: 7.4k

AO3 | Chapter One | Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

September 15, 2023

Time.

What you needed was time, that’s it, you had to buy time, enough time for any of it to matter.

Hercules was your largest horse. Your fastest but the hardest to control, the one with the biggest stride, the one you thought it would take more than one shot to take down. So you’d taken him.

Time, you just needed more fucking time.

You whistled and Ruger howled back. You shifted Hercules, going for the sound. She’d have at least some of them in her sights. You pushed the horse faster, harder, feeling his heavy breaths from your position on his back.

He was running full tilt when the gunshot cracked through the air. It was sharp and clear and you could hear the bullet as it passed you. You slung your rifle from over your shoulder and shifted the horse with your legs and body weight, the reins falling to his neck. A bullet whizzed past where your horse had been just a moment before but it was enough to give you an idea of the source and you caught a glimpse of him, a man in forest green and brown but the white of his skin caught your eye. You lifted the gun quickly and shot. He dropped and you whistled again, another howl from Ruger in response. You followed it.

Your dog wasn’t far, tracking a group of about a dozen men from the trees. Her muzzle was bloodied which didn’t surprise you. You’d been tipped off to the attack by her sister, Gattling, running to the cabins with a chunk of flesh dangling from her jaws.

It felt like you hadn’t breathed since then, jumping into action to do everything you could to protect your home, protect what mattered.

But there was only so much you could do against numbers like this. All you could really hope to do was buy time.

“Ruger,” you kept your voice low, the men just 100 feet away through the forest. You doubted you’d even see them if you didn’t know the area, didn’t know how to hunt and stalk through the brush. Her head snapped toward you. “Heel.”

She slid obediently alongside the legs of your horse and you pressed Hercules quietly forward. You turned your horse so you could push him in another direction as soon as your shot was clear, took a deep breath, and fired.

The men reacted quickly, but you were faster, not waiting to see if your shot found its target. staying low on your horse and pushing him back behind the group. They didn’t see you cut around behind them and you were able to line up your shot more freely that time, taking aim at a man toward the center.

“There’s gotta be two!” One yelled as you took off around the other side.

“Nah, just the bitch,” another man said. The leader, you were pretty sure, the man who had showed up at the edge of your land just days before on a horse, asking to trade for more. But he rubbed you the wrong way, the way his eyes ranged over you, his entitlement. You weren’t going to invite him closer to your home, you weren’t going to trade with him.

You hadn’t expected him to come back with this many others.

“She’s a feisty one,” he said. “Ain’t ya, Texas?”

You ground your teeth, lining up for another shot.

“Don’t want us getting any closer to whatever set up you’ve got back there, do ya?” He called, taunting. You pulled the trigger. A man on the end dropped. “You really think you can outlast us? You moved too quick on those first two shots so you’re one in three and I got more men, Baby Doll. We’ll get ya, don’t you worry that pretty little head.”

“Fuck you!” You bit out, shooting another man, not bothering to move this time. The men were changing position, turning to face you, taking cover. You looked down at your dog, still glued to Hercules’ side. “Ruger, Attack.”

She launched forward, a bullet from the gun that was her namesake, snarling and racing for the man who was closest. She hurtled herself against him just as you got off another shot, dropping another man.

The man Ruger attacked screamed and you watched him go down.

“Someone get this fucking dog!” He shrieked.

“Ruger, kill!” You yelled to her, aiming again. But when you pulled the trigger, it jammed. You tried to force it again and again but it wasn’t going.

It was an old gun, you’d had it since the earliest days of the outbreak and it was hardly new then. You weren’t surprised that something had gone wrong. You just wished it had picked any other time. You hadn’t taken your handgun or shot gun. You were down to this and your knife.

You adjusted your hold on the weapon so the butt of the gun was facing out and roared, charging forward on Hercules as you heard the bloody gurgle of Ruger finishing her victim.

“There!” A man yelled, someone finally getting a bead on you through the brush.

“Want her alive!” The man in the lead yelled. “Just shoot the fuckin’ horse!”

You plowed forward anyway, you didn’t have much choice, landing a hit on a man with the butt of your gun, sending him flying with the force of it as you tore past on Hercules.

For half a moment, you wondered if maybe - just maybe - you could pull this off. Their numbers had taken a hit, if you could get through the group, send Ruger after another one or two, draw them to you on your terms…

And the first shot hit Hercules.

His steps stuttered and he let out a pained cry but he kept going as you raised your gun to strike another man. Then another shot caught him, right in the chest near the base of his neck, and his legs buckled, sending you flying forward over his head, tumbling onto the ground.

It only took a second for hands to be on you and you shrieked and kicked and swung blindly with your gun but it was quickly wrested away.

There was a vicious snarl and Ruger tore into the fray, latching her teeth around a man’s forearm. He released you and screamed, the sound earsplitting, followed by the crack of a gunshot and a sharp whimper.

“No!” You shrieked, trying to throw the men off you but they held you in place so you couldn’t even see her, just hear her pained, afraid sounds. “It’s OK, you’re such a good girl, it’s OK…”

The man who had showed up days before prowled forward and grabbed your chin, smirking as he leaned over you. Even in the dim light of the forest at dusk you could see the sickening look on his face. Like you were something he was about to consume.

“You’re even prettier up close,” he said. “Think you’ll be lots of fun.”

“Try it,” you hissed through your teeth. “Bite your fuckin’ dick off.”

“How about you cooperate,” he said. “Or we go see just what it is you’re hiding up at that homestead of yours.”

You just panted for breath glaring at him.

“That’s what I thought.”

You tried to think of how long it had been since Gattling ran up to you, part of a man’s body dangling from her teeth.

You just hoped you’d bought enough time.

August 3, 2026

“You really don’t have anything to be worried about.”

Ellie was perched on a rail as you worked with the last of the feral horses, Artemis. You’d gotten her to dumb broke but she still needed a little time to get her the rest of the way.

“I’m not worried,” you said, guiding Artemis in a zig-zagging pattern through the paddock.

“Oh, yeah, sure,” Ellie rolled her eyes.

“Shut it, kid,” you glared at her. “I’m not.”

“Well, you’re acting fucky,” she said. “From everything I’ve heard about overnight patrols, they’re basically like camping and shit.”

“The fuck do you know about camping?” You asked, bringing the horse back around. “Didn’t you grow up in a QZ as a sad little orphan?”

“Ha ha,” she rolled her eyes again. She was such a teenager. “I can read, you know, I know what camping was. And everyone who goes on the overnight patrols make them sound fun and shit. Get out of town for a night, be in the woods, maybe shoot an infected or two…”

“Sounds like a blast,” you brought the horse around to her. “Want to give her a go? She’s in a good groove.”

“Hell yeah!”

You dismounted and held the reins while Ellie got situated on her back. You gave her a quick reminder of the ways to guide the horse, telling her she might need a second to respond to commands or something a little firmer than she was used to giving with Shimmer.

“I’ve got it, geez Mom,” she teased. You mockingly mouthed the words back at her as you handed her the reins. You stuck close as she took Artemis around the paddock. “You worry too much.”

“Stop acting like a stupid teenager and I won’t worry,” you replied.

“Hey, I wasn’t even talking about that!” She said, indignant. You’d yelled at her the day before when you’d caught her climbing on the roof of the stable to get a frisbee down for some kids who’d been playing in the street nearby. She’d acted personally offended that you’d had the audacity to think she might break her neck doing shit like that. “I mean, you worry too much about shit like the patrol. I can tell you’re basically freaking the fuck out…”

“Am not!”

“And I’m telling you, you have nothing to worry about,” she said. “It’s cool. We haven’t lost someone on patrol in a long time. You don’t need to worry about that.”

“You realize that I lived, on my own, in the wild, for longer than you’ve been alive, right?” You asked, brows raised. “Watch your legs, you’re relaxing them too much, you need to keep your knees in closer.” She adjusted. “Being outside overnight doesn’t bother me.”

“So what’s got you all fucky?” She asked.

“Nothing,” you lied. “Will you focus on the horse, please? Gonna get yourself hurt because you’re not paying attention.”

“Whatever you say,” she said, skeptical of all of it.

She was right to be. You were freaking out but not about the patrol part. About being outside, alone, with Joel.

Things had felt… different with him since the Simon incident. You’d already been close, already took comfort in sleeping next to him when running down the feral horses, already liked having him close by and liked feeling his hand against your back or at your hip.

But it was different now. It had gone from a comfort to a need. He hadn’t slept over since the night he came back from killing Simon and Ben and you missed him there next to you. It was hard to sleep without him there, your mind kept drifting to what he felt like pressed against you, his hand on your skin. The way you felt when looking at him, wanting to press your lips to his, wanting him to put his hands on you and pull you tight against him.

Part of you wondered if this is what it had always been like when you wanted someone before. It felt bigger now, headier, more dangerous. How much of that was because it was Joel and how much you cared for him? How much of it was the thrill of fear that ran through you when you thought of your body under the control of anyone but yourself?

The fear didn’t seem to dull the hot, throbbing want that was starting to take hold of you the moment you gave it a chance to blossom. You’d try to fall asleep and the image of your hands on Joel’s face, pulling him in to more devour your lips than kiss them as he pulled at your clothes was there, ready and eager. He’d look at you to make some silent comment on something, his brows raised, slight smile on his lips starting to make the edges of his eyes crinkle and you’d feel part of yourself get tight and achy and you were suddenly imagining what it would feel like to have his mouth on your breasts, your stomach, your sex. You had to fight the thoughts away, alarm bells ringing in the one part of your brain that didn’t seem to be drowning in want.

It was easy to picture what you would have done before. Before the outbreak, before Mitchum, before you were who you were now. You’d have gone up to him and made some smart assed remark and asked if he wanted to fuck and he would almost certainly say yes. You’d never had a man turn you down. And then you would fuck him and be at least somewhat sated and you could move on with your life. Or at least have a regular outlet if you weren’t.

But that wasn’t an option. You weren’t sure it would ever be an option with someone like Joel, someone who seemed so capable of swallowing you whole, of taking your entire being into himself and remaking you into something you didn’t recognize anymore. But it really wasn’t an option now. The thought of throwing yourself at him only to panic once his large hands cupped your breasts, the idea of him seeing the brand at your hip and seeing you like property, the notion of someone you cared so deeply for being the cause of that much fear and it tainting one of the only good things you’d found in the last few years.

That was too big a risk.

Your body didn’t seem to understand that.

Being alone, outside, with Joel, nowhere else to go? It was dangerous. It felt dangerous. But you had to do it. You had no reason not to. You’d just have to figure it out.

You didn’t sleep well the night before leaving for patrol, something you were sure was going to bode well. At least you’d be too tired by the time you stopped for the night for anything else to sound even remotely appealing.

“Alright,” you said, riding alongside Joel away from Jackson in the cool morning air. The trees were shrouded in fog, the insects and birds still quiet. “Walk me through it one more time.”

“We have one path out to the ski lodge,” he said. “We check up on anything we find out that way. We’ll probably run into a few infected this time of year but not much else. Should get to the lodge in time for dinner. We spend the night there. Come back to town a different route in the morning.”

“Right,” you said, trying to relax as you sat astride Renaissance. “Easy enough.”

“Specially for a deadeye like you,” Joel teased. “Had to do this route with Tommy before, it’s a wonder we survived.”

You huffed a small laugh.

“You telling me he’s not shooting infected from half a mile off after walking to school up hill both ways through the snow?”

Joel laughed back.

“Afraid not,” he said. “And he has no damn excuse, not with that scope…”

It didn’t take long for you to wonder just what it was you’d been anxious about. It was Joel. Just Joel. Your best friend, the person you trusted more than anyone else, the only person you wanted to be around just about all the time. It was going to be fine.

It was close to ten when you came across a few infected, a group of three. They looked to be recently turned, a man, a woman and someone who couldn’t be any older than Ellie. They looked almost disturbingly human compared to the clickers you usually were taking potshots at. They looked like a family.

Joel sighed heavily.

“Hate ones like this,” he said, lining up his rifle. “We need to clear out the ones who are bitin’ folks like this. You take the man, I’ve got the woman and kid.”

You nodded grimly, taking aim and blowing the head off the man. Joel killed the woman just as she turned to roar and run toward you and she fell, leaving just the kid. He hesitated.

“I can…” you said quietly.

“I got it,” he replied, voice gruff. He took the shot and the girl dropped.

“It’s a mercy,” you said, watching him as he slung his rifle over his shoulder again.

“I know,” he sighed. “Don’t make it any easier shootin’ a kid.”

You looked back toward where you knew the bodies were, part of you wanting to dig graves for the people they’d once been.

You just pressed on, Joel quiet for a while, face drawn. After a while, you started humming Born to Run and he looked at you, smiling just a little.

“What?” You asked.

“Springsteen, huh?”

“Well,” you shrugged. “Tramps like us…”

He smiled a little bigger, seeming a bit more like himself.

You stopped for lunch in the early afternoon, tucked against the thick trunk of a tree, the forest floor cool and calm, the sound of birds and bugs on the air. You leaned against Joel’s side, your legs straight out ahead of you so that your foot drooped onto his shin as you ate a peach, wiping the juice on the back of your wrist.

“Fuck I haven’t been this far out from Jackson like this in so long,” you said, looking out at the plants. Everything was cast in a dappled green hue, the soft light filtering down through the canopy. “It feels… I dunno, different somehow. I’ve done patrol before of course but…”

“I get it,” Joel said after you trailed off. “Kind of like just going for a hike when you lived in the city before.”

“Right,” you said. “Like we’re so disconnected from everything back there. Might as well be another world.”

You pulled the last of the flesh from the pit of the peach with your teeth and sucked your thumb clean.

“I used to just… live like this,” you sighed, shaking your head a little before you dropped it to Joel’s shoulder. “Seems like forever ago.”

He paused for a moment.

“Do you miss it?”

You thought, turning the sticky stone over in your fingers, feeling the ridges of it against your thumb.

“I don’t know,” you said eventually. “There are things about it I miss but what I miss most I could just… pick up and move to Jackson. It’s not like I have to be in the middle of nowhere just…” You sighed. “I do miss being this close to nature sometimes. I was never a city girl. Jackson’s hardly a metropolis but every now and then I look around and think ‘fuck there are a lot of people.’”

Joel was quiet for a bit.

“But you’ve stayed.”

It wasn’t a question, more of a statement, but you nodded anyway.

“Yeah,” you said. “I have. I… I like Jackson. The people are good, it’s quiet, I get to work with horses and help people while doing it. I have you.”

You glanced up at him for a moment when you said it but looked forward again quickly, not sure that you wanted to see what he’d think of his inclusion on the list. You threw the pit into the brush.

“I’m glad you stayed,” he said quietly.

“Just because I’m not about to let Ellie get killed by a horse?” You teased a little.

He laughed.

“Doesn’t hurt. But no, definitely not just that.”

You smiled a little when you heard a twig snap. Your head shot up and Joel all but leapt to his feet, tucking you behind him once you were up, too.

Your heartbeat got faster. The patrols that had gone out to investigate the X you’d found on the tree couldn’t track any recent paths. There was no way of knowing if it was raiders or just a person or two passing through, looking for a place to settle. After a few days, they’d given up until there was more to go off of. You’d hoped that there wouldn’t be.

“Joel,” you said quietly, getting your rifle out from Renaissance’s saddle. “Have there been raiders on this route before?”

“Years ago,” he said quietly. “Could be nothin’ but… Stay behind me, let me do the talkin’.”

There was another snap and you were able to locate the sound better than the first time, now that you were on alert and your ears were listening for it.

Joel moved quickly, stepping around you to be between you and the horses you could make out through the trees now. You kept your rifle aimed at the ground and peered around him, watching as the seven men rode up. All middle aged, all large, all armed. They were slow, confident. You adjusted your grip on your rifle and tightened your jaw.

“Somethin’ happens,” Joel said, not looking back at you, his voice low and quiet. “Take a horse, get back to Jackson as quick as you can.”

“Joel…”

“I mean it,” he looked back over his shoulder at you. “Don’t do anything stupid. I’ll buy you time, get the fuck away from here.”

You leaned around Joel to untie Ares and Renaissance from the tree you’d bound them to, looping their reins over your arm, their large bodies feeling oddly hot at your back.

“Howdy stranger,” the man at the center called out as he approached. “Sure would appreciate you puttin’ that rifle down.”

“Gimme a reason to and I will,” Joel said. “Who are you and what are you doing here?”

“Just a group of friends passin’ through,” the man said. You fought to not go plant yourself next to Joel. You didn’t want to leave him standing alone but you knew that, regardless of how capable you were, if these men saw you as a commodity, you would be a liability. You stayed put. “Haven’t spent much time around these parts, know the area well?”

“Well enough,” Joel said. “There’s a river, about 20 miles east. You’re gonna want to find it, cross it and keep going. It’ll keep you outta trouble.”

“That sounds an awful lot like a threat for a man outnumber seven to one,” the man’s fake smile was fading.

“Seven to two,” you snapped, unable to stop yourself.

The man stood up a little in his saddle to take a better look at you before he smirked and sat back again.

“Don’t think your little deer there counts as extra muscle,” he said.

“Seven to one, seven to two,” Joel shrugged. “No difference to me. Like those odds either way. Head on over to the river and be on your way and we won’t have any problems here.”

“Seems like there’s plenty of open country for all of us,” he replied. “Unless you’ve got something you’re protectin’.”

“Something besides your little toy of course,” a different man spoke this time, the sound of heavy footfalls as his horse stepped forward. His voice was familiar, in a way that made your stomach turn. You swallowed and peered around Joel. The man leaned over on his horse and looked you up and down. Joel glanced behind him to you and adjusted again, blocking their view.

“Not going to tolerate you talkin’ to her like that,” Joel said, his voice strained and rough. “We’ve been around this area for a while. It’s ours. We decide if there’s enough room and there’s not. Move. Along.”

“You look familiar,” the second man said, adjusting his horse again and you could just see him, frowning down at you. You narrowed your eyes, heart pounding, praying to a god you didn’t believe in that he couldn’t place you.

“Last chance,” Joel growled.

The man’s face shifted, from questioning to recognition. For just a moment, it felt like you were going to throw up.

“I know you,” he said, smirking. “You’re Mitchum’s favorite doll! Oh, he’s been looking for you…”

“Shut up,” you hissed, teeth clenched. You dropped the reins and raised your rifle, stepping around Joel to get a clear shot. You fought to keep your breathing under control, to keep from devolving into the anger that was licking its way through your veins and trying to swallow you whole.

“She as good for you as she was for me?” He asked Joel with a laugh. He didn’t wait for a response. “Mitchum’s been looking everywhere for you. Bet he’d let me have another go if I brought you back…”

“Shut the fuck up!” Your finger moved to the trigger, but the man in the middle of the group rode up in between the two of you.

“Now now,” he said calmly. “No need for any bloodshed…” He turned his attention back to Joel. “Sure you didn’t mean nothin’ by it, but it sounds like your little… friend here belongs to someone else. We’ll take her back with us and…”

Joel shot before the man even finished speaking, the bullet catching him in the chest and sending him slumping over and off his horse with a thud.

The group was still and silent and you gaped at Joel, your gun still pointed in the direction of the man you recognized.

Joel turned his gun to the next man closest to the middle.

“She ain’t property,” he said. “I got no problems killing every last one of you. Could use the practice. Get the fuck out or I’ll kill you. Last chance.”

You looked back at the men, your rifle up, as they looked between each other, weighing their chances.

The one you recognized’s hand drifted to his side arm before he spoke.

“Think we’ll take the doll and be on our way.”

He started moving just as you fired and your shot went wide, hitting the man on the other side of him. Joel shot, too, before screaming at you to run.

You weren’t going to listen. At least, not at first. Joel threw you behind a tree and followed before he fired again, his shot making contact this time and dropping another man, already moving another bullet into the chamber.

The man you recognized seemed to change his mind about coming for you, instead turning his horse and starting to take off in the opposite direction.

You weren’t about to let him.

You shoved the rifle back into its spot on your saddle and jumped onto Renaissance, urging her almost immediately into a gallup to run down the man.

He had a decent enough head start and, when you were getting close to him again, you could barely hear the commotion behind you, just the crack of gunshots.

Catching him was going to be tricky. He was riding fast, looking back over his shoulder at you, pushing his horse. There wasn’t a clear route to him, you were having to guide the horse through it all while trying to keep pace. You tried to not let your rage be the only thing driving you, tried to let your logical mind take hold again.

If you took advantage of a sloping hill you thought was ahead, you’d be able to gain some ground on him. You split off from him and pushed Renaissance toward where you remembered the gentle slope down to be before it got steeper later on, something he’d have to slow up on.

You were right and you could hear him, not far away, the thundering hooves and the gasping breaths, even though you couldn’t quite see him through the thick of the forest. It was quiet behind you now and you tried not to think about what that might mean. You had to stop this man. If he knew where you were, he’d get more men and come after you. If Mitchum really wanted you back that bad, he’d come for you.

You weren’t going to let him take you, not again.

You broke through the trees, just feet behind him now instead of yards and he looked back over his shoulder, his eyes wide. He started fumbling for the gun at his waist but you pulled up alongside him and did the only thing you could really think to do. You jumped, leaping from the back of your horse and into him, slamming into him with all your weight and knocking him out of the saddle, both of you careening toward the earth until you landed with a heavy thud, the two of you tumbling through the undergrowth until you stopped, him awkwardly on top of you.

He smiled, eyes dark, down at you.

“So eager to come back home,” he panted. “Don’t think he’ll mind if I take my payment upfront…”

You roared and thrashed below his weight and he punched you across the face.

“Think your guard dog’s dead,” he said. “Not so tough are you now, baby doll?”

He leaned in close to you, so close that you could smell his breath and you slammed your head into his nose. You felt it collapse below your forehead and he yelped and instinctively jerked back from you, his hands clutching his face.

It was enough.

You wrenched your body over and he collapsed to the ground, still clutching his face as you all but jumped on top of him. You sat on his chest, ripping his hands back from his face and pinning his arms beneath your legs before you punched him the same way he punched you. He groaned and you smiled.

“Still think I’m good for you?” You could taste blood in your mouth as you panted for breath. You dug your nails into his cheeks until you felt his skin give and he shrieked and thrashed but your position was too solid, he couldn’t shake you, had no hope of reaching the most vulnerable parts of you as you dragged your fingertips through his flesh, leaving trails of red in their wake. “Am I your baby doll now? Huh?”

You pulled your hands from him, his skin below your nails, and wrapped your fingers around his throat, squeezing as his eyes went wide.

“Still think I feel good?” You couldn’t get your breathing to slow down but you didn’t care, your heart pounding against your ribs. “I remember you, you fuck, I remember all of you. Not so tough now that I’m not chained to a wall are you?”

His hands scratched uselessly against your upper arms, legs flailing behind you. He was gasping for breath, reminding you of a fish on a dock. His eyes were just as wide, his motions just as desperate, his being just as powerless.

“Bambi,” Joel’s hand appeared on your back, making you jump, loosening your grip on the man and he gasped for breath, sucking in air like a drowning man. You looked back at him, breathing heavy. Ares was at his side, you hadn’t even heard them approach. “Need you to stop.”

“Why,” you demanded, eyes narrowed, teeth clenched.

“Need information from him,” he said, kneeling beside you, his voice calm and even. You looked him up and down. He didn’t look hurt. “He’s the last one alive. Just need a few answers, then you can decide what happens to him.”

You looked at Joel for a moment, his eyes soft and open.

“Bambi,” he said quietly.

“Fine,” you snapped and Joel’s hand traveled down your back to your waist, guiding you off the man as he panted for breath.

“Help…” the man managed weakly, reaching for Joel, but Joel’s hand shot out, snatching his wrist out of the air. His large hands wrapped around the other man’s arm and he twisted until you heard a snap. The man screamed.

“Not here to help you,” Joel said, his voice almost eerily calm, so calm it sent a chill down your spine. “I’m here to get information and there’s only one way I know how to do it. You’re gonna want me to give you back to her by the time I’m done. So let’s begin.”

***

Joel dragged the man by his hair to a nearby tree and sat him up before he broke his other arm, too, just to be safe. He didn’t want to waste time tying him up but you knew he couldn’t throw many punches with a broken arm.

This wasn’t a part of himself he’d ever wanted you to see. It wasn’t a part of himself he was particularly fond of. Not of his willingness to do it to begin with, not of his skills, not of the way he picked it up to begin with.

But it was effective. And the important thing was keeping you safe.

Seeing you take off on Renaissance like that scared the shit out of him. Because of course you didn’t take off in the direction they’d been heading or even, really, back toward Jackson. No, you’d taken off after a fleeing man.

A man who said he knew you, who obviously horrified you.

Joel was desperate to get to you then. The way that man talked about you… he was not going to let him get his hands on you. If it was the last thing he did, he was going to protect you from him.

Thankfully, you were relatively easy to find. The man’s screams weren’t exactly quiet and he was able to find you quickly once he’d taken out the rest of the crew, leaving them dead on the forest floor.

“Look,” the man panted. “I don’t have to take her with me, alright? If you’re attached…”

“How many of you are there?” Joel cut him off. He wasn’t going to be able to get any answers out of this man if he heard him talk about you like you were nothing but an object, something to be owned and controlled. He’d kill him too fast.

“What?” He frowned and then winced, the bloody paths you’d cut into his face pulling and oozing.

“How many men,” Joel asked.

“I don’t…”

Joel sighed and freed his knife, thrusting it into the side of the man’s thigh. He screamed, so loud birds took off from nearby trees. Joel gave him a moment to catch his breath before he asked again.

“How. Many. Men.”

“About fifty,” he said quickly. “But miles from here, two days ride at least, we were sent out this way to scout…”

“Anyone else sent this way to scout?” Joel asked.

The man just looked at him, panting for breath. Joel twisted the knife in his leg and he screamed.

“Any. One. Else?” He demanded again.

“No one!” He said.

“How long was your team supposed to be gone?” He asked. The man hesitated and Joel pressed on the knife.

“Fuck, please! You can keep her, alright? I won’t eve tell Mitchum I found her, you can have her…”

Joel punched him across the face, his knuckles connecting with the cuts you’d made in his skin.

“Jesus Christ!” He managed as he gasped for breath. “Please…”

“Never understood why men like you think you’re gonna get mercy,” Joel said, grabbing his hair. “God washed his hands of your kind a while ago. I’m what comes for you instead and I don’t know mercy. So tell me, how long were you supposed to be gone?”

“A week!” He said quickly. “A week, we’re three days in and they won’t come looking for us if we all disappear, they’ll think we got infected or something, I promise…”

“What were you looking for?” Joel asked. “Lookin’ for her?”

“No,” the man panted and shook his head, wincing as he did. “No, we were looking for a new place to set up, maybe for the winter, I just know Mitchum’s been looking for her and offering…”

Joel cut him off.

“He have any idea where she is?”

“No,” he shook his head, quickly this time. “No, he has no idea, I swear he doesn’t know and I swear I won’t say anything, I promise I won’t…”

Joel laughed once, darkly.

“You’re not leavin’ here,” he said, ripping his knife from his leg. He actually looked surprised at that as Joel wiped the blood on the man’s jeans. “Told you, wasn’t here to help you.”

Joel looked around until he found you sitting against a tree, your legs pulled tightly to your chest. He looked back to the man for a moment. His legs were too intact. He stood and, for a moment, the man looked relieved. And then Joel brought all his weight down on the man’s shin, stomping on it, the bone snapping as the man screamed.

Satisfied, Joel went to you, sheathing the knife. Your eyes were wide and doe-like, afraid and watchful. He approached you slowly, keeping his hands where you could see them before he knelt a few feet away from you.

“Bambi,” he said, trying to keep his voice calm and even. “I’ve gotten what I need from him. You can have him now if you want him. He can’t leave here alive but how he dies is up to you.”

You nodded, pulling your eyes from Joel’s to look at the man. Joel glanced at his bleeding form, whimpering on the ground, before focusing on you.

“You’ve killed before,” Joel said.

“Yes,” you said quietly.

“Did it satisfy you?”

You stared into space for a moment, a dazed look on your face.

“No,” you said eventually, shaking your head. “I wanted it to but…”

“Did you like it?”

“No,” that you answered quickly. “No, it made me sick, I don’t…”

“Then tell me how you want him to die,” Joel cut you off. “And I’ll do it.”

“I want it to hurt,” your voice cracked. “I want him to fucking feel it.”

“OK,” Joel said gently.

“And I want to watch.”

“OK,” he said again, straightening up and offering you his hand. You took it and he pulled you to your feet. There was a cut at your cheek and he slowly, gently, reached his hand out and held your face, his palm curving over your wound. You closed your eyes and breathed deep, your hand covering his and holding it to you. “Come on, Sweetheart. Let’s finish this.”

He held your hand as the two of you went back to the man, who was still breathing heavily, still crying in pain.

“You don’t have to do this,” he said. “Please, I….”

“You hurt her once,” Joel cut him off. “She decides what happens to you now. And she said she wants it to hurt.”

He released your hand and freed his knife again.

“No,” the man shook his head. “No, I didn’t mean…”

He didn’t finish begging, Joel thrusting the blade deep into the man’s gut and he screamed. He twisted it before pulling it back out, looking up at you.

“Short or long?” He asked.

You looked at the man, examining him.

“Short,” you said after a moment. “I want to get the fuck out of here.”

Joel plunged the knife between the man’s ribs then, piercing a lung, and pulled it out before wiping it on the man’s clothes and sheathing it. He straightened up and stood beside you as you watched the man drown in his own blood, a cold and detached look on your face. After a few minutes, he was still and you were still watching him.

“Sweetheart,” Joel said softly, his hand delicately on your back.

You spat on the man’s body.

“Let’s go.”

***

Joel was right, you weren’t too far from the ski lodge. He helped you clean the blood from your face and quickly found Renaissance - who hadn’t gone far - before getting underway again. It only took another two hours to get there, much faster than going back to Jackson.

But there was the hot clutch of fear in you now, threatening to strangle you from the inside out, the tendrils of it reaching and threatening to take control. By the time you reached the ski lodge, you could hardly breathe. You jumped off Renaissance and Joel dismounted Ares, frowning as he came to your side. Your hand went to your chest, your neck.

“I can’t…” you managed, the first words you’d said in hours, fighting to get enough air to keep talking. Your heart was racing. “What’s happening? I… I can’t…”

“It’s OK,” Joel said, guiding you to a fallen tree and pulling you down onto it next to him. “Think you’re havin’ a panic attack, Sweetheart, you’re gonna be OK. Just gotta breathe deep, you’re OK. I’m going to touch you, alright?”

You nodded quickly and he delicately pulled you against him, his arms going around you, close enough that you could feel the rise and fall of his chest.

“Try to focus on my breathing,” he said gently. “Try to match it, OK?”

You closed your eyes and nodded as he took a deep, slow breath in and you tried to do the same. He held it for a moment before breathing out just as slowly and starting again.

“You’re OK,” he said gently. “You’re OK, I’ve got you. Not gonna let anything happen to you, you’re safe, you’re OK.”

You focused on his words, the sound of his voice, the feel of his breathing as you matched it to your own. After what felt like a small eternity, you felt like you could take a normal breath again, your heart no longer threatening to pound its way out of your chest.

Some part of you was still afraid. Afraid of how close you were to Joel, of how violent you’d just seen him be - violence you never would have thought him capable of if you hadn’t seen it yourself. Afraid of how out of control these feelings you had for him could be.

But that part of you was smaller than ever, a quiet whisper against the overwhelming sense of warmth and longing that you’d come to associate with Joel. He was so close to you then, he’d pulled you almost onto his lap, your legs draped over his thighs, your head tucked against his chest. In spite of everything that had happened that day, in spite of the fact that he was so big and strong that he could hurt you without even really trying, in spite of that part of you telling you that being this close to anyone was a danger, you felt safer than you had in years.

You pressed yourself closer to him, your nose buried in his neck.

“See Bambi?” He said gently, pulling away from you ever so slightly to look down at you. “You’re alright.”

He was so handsome. Maybe you just hadn’t seen enough people over the last 20 years but Joel was easily one of the most beautiful human beings you’d ever seen and he smelled like safety and home and you couldn’t help but reach your hand up to his cheek, your fingers dipping ever so slightly into his hairline.

“Joel,” you said softly.

“Sweetheart,” he breathed, his eyes searching your own. Your grip on him strengthened and you gently, slowly, tugged his face toward yours.

You couldn’t help it. It was something that was inevitable. Some part of it feeling like it was always meant to happen, like you’d been moving all your life toward specific points of time and this was one of them, a moment that was built into your genetic code.

You were always going to kiss Joel Miller. You’d been running toward it your whole life. There was no reason to deny it.

So you didn’t.

You kissed him then, his lips soft and gentle and warm on yours, his hands spreading wide over you to delicately, carefully, pull you closer.

And you knew, in that moment, your life would never be the same.

Next Chapter

A/N: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

THEY KISSED Y'ALL

FINALLY

IT ONLY TOOK 14 CHAPTERS OF WHAT WILL - EVENTUALLY I SWEAR - BE A FIC THAT HAS SMUT THEY KISSED.

I'M GONNA DIE!

Thank you thank you thank you for riding out this slow burn with me! I hope this felt right for these characters for you the way it did for me.

I do have an updates blog. Follow and subscribe for post alerts to get an alert whenever I post a new chapter! I promise I won't spam ya!

Thank you for reading and for interacting and for being here. I'm so behind on replying to comments but know that I've read them (they're some of my favorite pick-me-ups during my work day!) and I so appreciate them and I'll be getting caught up soon. I love you all so very much, thank you for making sharing this story so fun!

Taglist: @ashleymsnodgrass@planet-marz1@kalea-bane @juneswonderlust@ilovepedro @h-annahayy @starstruckmusiciansartghost@beccerjune@mumma-moonchild@netonetoneto@mellymbee@purplelye@n7cje@flugazi@evyiione@randomhoex@aliengirl99@orcasoul@reds-ramblings@pedropascalsbbg @fupoola @tinypotatothing @knopes-waffles @lilmizmoz @ayamenimthiriel@jenispunk@panda-pascal@sarap-77@flugazi@your-slutty-gf@daniegraceg@partyofone3413@cumberpegg@noisynightmarepoetry.@fifia-writes@grumpygrumperton @srmacaroni @txlady37 @bigboiseason123

#fanfic #joel miller x female reader #joel miller x reader #joel miller x you #yearling #joel miller x oc #slow burn

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m1d-45 · 1 year

Note

if my favorite characters wanted to kill me i would simply let them. my only request would be that they do it from up close so that their pretty faces get to be the last thing i see <3<3<3

on broken bones

a/n: you…. you are my target audience.

(P.S: please note that the full fic was too long for tumblr! this will be in 3-4 parts, but dw, they’re all already mostly written!)

word count: ~2.5k

-> warnings: minor spoilers for liyue archon quest, the most minor of spoilers for mondstat’s archon quest, you are literally about to die, and do so but it’s ok i get revived, uhh blood mention but no gore, imposter au things yk? reader is Down Bad for zhongli at one point

-> lowercase intended!

taglist: @samarill || @thenyxsky || @valeriele3

< masterlist > || next part >>

you never had the highest level of self-preservation.

when you’d come to teyvat, the world seemed so kind, so you never learned to fear it. bugs never stung, any allergies you had never really acted up besides a sniffly nose, and the sun never burned. if you tripped, you landed softly, in the hands of grass that would never dare to harm you, and a breeze swept by the soothe the sting of your palms. the wind carried you down from high places, the water always keeping you afloat, the entirety of the natural world at your side.

or, rather, nearly the entirety.

despite wandering constantly, it took a few months to actually run into anybody. in fact, the only way you knew you were in teyvat at first were the sunsettias, and the hilichurls when you finally came across one of their camps. you have a feeling the dense forests and overgrown paths knew something you didn’t, looking back on it.

maybe you should have listened.

you stopped in the middle of a well-worn path of yours, stilling the sweet flower you were twirling in your hand. a few feet ahead, a stunned amber mirrored your look of shock, though her recognition was tinged with something more… bitter.

“amber?”

the bowstring in her hands doesn’t lose its tension. “greetings.”

that’s not the knights’ prescribed greeting, your mind says. you tell your mind to shut up, because that’s not what you should be thinking about when you’re looking at amber.

you wave, trying for a smile, and emotions you can’t catch flash over her face in rapid succession.

“how do you know my name?”

whoops. “who hasn’t heard of the knights of favonius?”

“those from other lands.” for being so young, her voice is so tired. she sounds like she’s barely 18, yet she’s so worn out… nobody this young should be so exhausted.

after a moment’s thought, you step forward, extending your flower-

her arm moves faster than you ever could, raising, aiming, and letting the arrow fly before you can blink. her shoulders are tense, her chest barely moving despite how harshly she breathes, arms still posed around her bow.

it’s only then that you’re aware of the white-hot pain in your throat, the sting of icy numbness swiftly taking its place.

the sweet flower falls to the ground, your body soon following.

when you wake up, the first thing you do is press a hand over your throat, but all you feel is the chill of your own skin. no arrow. no blood. you check your shirt, but there’s no blood there either.

it’s like it never happened. but you know it did.

still keeping a hand to the area, you sit up, ignoring how your body protests. you’re in another field, unsurprisingly, green grass and blue skies and red birds all around. it’s hard to believe that your run-in with amber wasn’t a dream.

even if you know it wasn’t.

you rise shakily, feeling very much so like you’re relearning your body. how to stand, how to dig your fingers between the sections of bark on a tree so you don’t fall, how to breathe when it feels like all the air in your lungs was in a race to get out. still, you breathe.

still, you stand.

still, you move on.

the earth seems angry.

looking out from the jade chamber, this is clear. the skies are an irritated gray, billowing clouds heavy with rain. they had come from nowhere, suddenly washing in from the north in with no warning, but a single drop has yet to fall. the ground occasionally shakes, enough to make leaves quiver, but no earthquake has come. it’s odd, like the very rock is holding in its breath, waiting for the trigger to let loose what is certainly disaster upon the land above it.

even the tianquan’s gems, normally large, sterling rocks swirling around her fingertips, refuse to answer her call. as she flips over a small coin of amber, the most she’s been able to summon, she wonders why.

one of ningguang’s many assistants comes out of the chamber, telling her that keqing has a report for her, and she tells them to send her out with a wave of a clawed finger. normally, she’d come inside—normally she wouldn’t be out here to begin with—but this… oddity in the landscape has her attention.

the door behind her silently slides open and shut, the clicks of the yuheng’s shoes the only indication of her presence.

“it’s odd to see you outside at such an hour, my lady.”

it’s midday.

“what is it, keqing?”

“this letter came in for you.”

an envelope enters her periphery and she takes it, careful not to damage the paper as she inspects the wax seal. it bears the insignia of the favonian knights.

“that’s hardly a rare occurrence.”

“indeed, but this one carries significant importance.” she takes a breath, an explanation on her tongue, but it dies. she knows she shouldn’t let her biases get in the way of the tianquan’s work, but this situation feels so wrong. her vision burns at the back of her neck despite her attacks doing less damage, the electro that dances across her skin hurts more than it should. it’s wrong, horribly so, but she needs to-

“keqing?”

she meets the tianquan’s eyes. ruby red dissecting her every move, and keqing is quick to look away.

“apologies, my lady. as i was saying…”

the dead refuse to rest.

they have always been unruly, leaving behind legacies and lingering feelings, leaving the living and letting them deal with it. what would be known as the wangsheng funeral parlor was established to battle these lingering debts, and it seems that even after 77 generations, the current director still has to pick up that mantle.

she’s felt it all day. the rowdiness of the undead, the spirits dancing and twirling around where they shouldn’t be. her soul told her there was one too many around, and so she had set her mind on going.

the director adjusted the flowers in her hat, watching in annoyance as her consultant thought over her words. she thought the answer was quite simple, and had rushed to fix the problem, but he was adamant that she explain herself first.

“and you’re certain?”

hu tao groaned, squeezing her eyes shut so they wouldn’t roll. “yes, i’m certain! surely youve noticed too, or is that vision for nothing?”

a glimmer of irritation crossed zhongli’s calm eyes. “this is a matter of utmost importance, director. the dead refusing to die is a serious issue.”

“you think i don’t know that? i run a funeral parlor-“

“director-“

“no. i’m going to wuwang hill, and all i need you to do is take care of the parlor while i’m gone. that’s it.”

“director, please. you cannot throw yourself into dangerous situations and expect me to sit by idly.”

“what are you, my dad?”

“i would hope not, as your father is currently deceased.”

in the gaping silence that followed, hu tao couldn’t decide if she was more shocked at the fact that he brought up her father’s passing, or that he had borderline joked about it.

zhongli cleared his throat, the only sign of apology she would receive. “i will go alone if i must.”

“you want to go-“

“indeed. i cannot allow you to venture into such an unsafe area on your own, and i myself wish to find the answer to this. if you cannot find anybody to run the parlor in your stead, then i will simply go alone.”

names and faces of employees ran through her head, options brought up and discarded quicker than any decision she’s ever made before. something in her soul demanded she go to wuwang hill, her pyro vision an insistent press between her shoulder blades, urging her to leave zhongli and just go. it was illogical, irrational, and she knew that if he saw he’d be worried and when all she needed was to simply leave-

a name emerged from the clutter.

“ferrylady.”

though his jaw ticked, zhongli nodded.

wuwang hill itself is uneasy.

zhongli has seen many things during his lifetime, but few of his memories could compare to this. the ground quivered underneath his feet, only truly steadying where he, as the lord of geo, stepped.

in truth, he had felt the same disturbance as hu tao, but had wanted to preserve his reputation as zhongli, ignoring the cold sting in his soul from where his gnosis used to be. his plan was to go after hours, when the dark could shadow his form, but now that he was here he was glad he didn’t.

the forest’s canopy was denser than usual, it seemed, barely any light filtering through the leaves. the will-o’-the-wisps shone brighter and more frequently than normal, and not a hilichurl was in sight. it was strange, unnerving to walk the familiar path, and he found himself prepared to summon a stele at any moment. the air itself felt tense, his element not resonating right.

how can stone feel hollow?

hu tao stepped closer to him, eyes uncharacteristically wide as she looked around. “why does it feel so… empty?”

he moved a hand to her back, urging her on faster. “i don’t know, ms. hu. please, do hurry.”

her fingers play with the tassels on her shirt as she walks, speeding up at his side. she’s always been fond of the macabre, but this… this isn’t that. this isn’t slow and sticky, raw honey made of skeleton bees that drips through bones and pulls at the hair atop skin, this isn’t the abrupt hit of symbolism or the stop of a heart as you’re face to face with a corpse, the smell of rotting flesh mixing with the bile climbing up your throat.

this is sharp. angular. a spike with every step she takes on the familiar dirt, thorns clinging to the lining of her lungs and digging in to hide from the chilling air. the sense that she doesn’t belong here, that she should leave, is steadily growing in response to the drive to keep walking, and she wonders if and when it’ll balance before tipping over. regardless, she keeps walking, steeling her spine and forcing assuredness into her walk.

besides her, zhongli isn’t doing much better. the air reeks of the sweetness of the divine, and the thundering in his heart matches, but here? of all places? he knew his god—he prided himself on it—and knew that they didn’t like places like this. and the feeling of wrongness, the stone beneath him seeming to slip under his feet and forcing him to walk quicker to make up for it, the claws of tree branches and roots of bushes somehow larger than before. as they approached the stone steps, he didn’t know what to expect, for once. he was unsure whether to be on edge, or to scold himself for being tense over nothing.

surely, he thought, rounding the corner, it couldn’t be nothing?

you watched the water ripple from your safe spot on the edge of the stone path cutting through it, smiling at the way the fish followed your hand when you hovered it over the surface. they were beautiful, some kind of koi by the looks of it, and certainly not what you expected.

when you recognized the wisps of wuwang hill, you had initially been afraid. it was dark, even during the day, and filled with monsters. not to mention it held the barrier between life and death, something you were not keen on ever getting close to. but as the shouts of the qingce villagers echoed in your ears, you decided it was the safest option, at least for the moment.

and it was. there were no hilichurls, no cicin mages, and the wisps seemed to float alongside you, lighting the way for a while before another came up and took over. they’d guided you to the domain, whose stone was shockingly warm. it was the crimson witch domain from what you remember, so that checked out, but for it to physically affect the stone…

you wondered what the archaic petra domain would feel like if that were the case. could stone feel more stone-like? if you were to somehow break off a chunk, would it do more damage than a regular rock? would that even count as geo damage?

you let your hand trail across the water, feeling scales bump against the pads on your fingertips with another smile. you wondered where they got their food, as the pond seemed both shallow and fairly barren, but there seems to be more and more greenery as you look. were your eyes adjusting to the light better, or were they the kinds of plants that only bloomed under certain conditions? but no, that would be for flowers, not-

“who are you?”

the harsh voice makes you jump, the fish jerking back before crowding the water near where you’ve fallen over. your surprise nearly made you fall in, but as you see who’s approaching you, you think that might have been better.

boots stomp over the stone that’s been your tentative camp, not stopping until they land toe to toe with yours. eyes carved from cor lapis glare down at you, cutting any argument you may have had to shreds.

yes, partly because zhongli is intimidating, but…

lighter shoes click and draw your attention, but you don’t get to turn your head far before you’re met with the pulsing black and gold point of vortex vanquisher.

“do not interest yourself in that which is out of your reach.”

oh.

you swallow in attempt to remedy the sudden dryness in your throat, following the handle of the polearm up to meet his eyes once more. his eyeliner looks sharper than on his in-game model, you note, and he has an earring, the golden jewel on it a perfect complement.

his eyes narrow, the set of his jaw making you think he’d sneer if he were anybody else. he rips his polearm from the stone besides you, “what could you possibly be looking at?”

you know this is it. you know exactly why he hasn’t spun his weapon back around, you knew it from the moment his sunset gaze fell upon you. so.. why lie?

“you’re beautiful,” you whisper.

and for the second time that week, you die.

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ts1m1kas · 4 months

Text

Original Ask: hii idk if the requests are still open but i have an idea for a story... you are ofc free to ignore it 💞 so basically, yn is messi's only daughter and shes very known in the football world bc shes the barca's goat's daughter yk and jude who is rm's star boy rn has been in love with her for a long time... so its kinda romeo and juliet type of story but like its cute!! thank you sm and i hope you have an amazing day/night 💗 (anonymous)

Word Count: 601 words

(author's note: true to my word, here's a request i started a while ago and finished today !!)

Y/N grew up as a Barcelona fan. Her life revolved around the club as she spent many days at the Barça grounds with her father. To her, Lionel Messi was just a regular man. He was simply her father. He was a well-loved, well-known footballer to the rest of the world.

The media was obsessed with Y/N. No one grew up as a footballer’s daughter and stayed out of the spotlight. Everywhere she went, it was cameras, paparazzi, and reporters.

Another person who caught the media’s attention was Jude Bellingham. Real Madrid’s star signing was another favourite of the media’s. This led to the pair connecting pretty well behind the scenes. They understood each other's struggles and both fell head over heels immediately.

After getting to know each other without the knowledge of a single other soul, Jude and Y/N had begun dating. It had been many months and the pair were completely infatuated with one another.

The El Clasico matches were some of Y/N’s favourites. The atmosphere in the stadiums and the rivalry in the air made the game infinitely more enjoyable. However, hiding the love she had for her boyfriend was the difficult part.

She wanted to support her father, but in the back of her mind, she was rooting for Jude. Y/N knew how many years the rivalry had been going on for, and being torn between the two teams was a very unpleasant feeling.

Lined up in uniformed rows, the two teams faced the roaring crowds with winning being their only aim. The pre-match formalities were soon over, and the game began.

It seemed like today of all days was when Jude decided to play the best he possibly could. By half time he already had 2 goals under his belt and it was clear her was hungry for more.

What wasn’t clear to the fans was the wink Jude sent Y/N’s way after his first goal. Or the beaming smile he threw in her direction after the second.

Jude knew in his heart that he wanted the world to know about the love had for Y/N. While his teammates congratulated him during the break, he formed a plan in his head.

The game was back in full swing, and the opposition seemed to come back into the game with a new sense of ferocity. When his chance came, Jude struck the ball with all his might, sending it flying into the back of the net.

The Madrid supporters erupted into cheers and chants of Jude’s name. Feeling nothing but adrenaline, he ran to the Barcelona pitchside area, grabbed Y/N’s hand and pulled her out of the chair she was sitting in. He cupped her face, his hands trembling, and smashed his lips onto hers.

Y/N smiled into the kiss, knowing this was Jude’s way of making their long-secret relationship public. When they pulled away, the pair smiled at each other before Jude ran back onto the pitch. Once he was back amongst the players, Lionel made his way over to Jude and pulled him into a tight hug.

“If it was going to be anyone from the enemy team, I’m glad it’s you.” He patted him on the back and broke away to jog back into his position.

As the whistle blew to restart the game, the crowd was still erupting with cheers and screams. Y/N remained on the side of the pitch, a smile painted on her face. Her love for Jude radiated around the expanse of the whole stadium. It was clear as day.

#jude bellingham x reader #jude bellingham #football #fanfiction #fanfic #hot footballers #request #real madrid fc #by ts1m1kas

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thefrogsennaneverfound · 2 months

Note

I ask this question from a curiosity standpoint, and don’t mean to seem rude or anything, but why don’t you like Daniel Ricciardo? Am I missing something?

He’s far less offensive than a lot of the other drivers. He has a tendency to awkwardly laugh rather than say “that’s a shitty joke. Not okay”, which is frustrating, but not even in the same universe as something like Lance Stroll physically assaulting his trainer.

Like all F1 drivers, he wants to be WDC and talks a big talk, but he’s still nowhere near as obnoxious as a lot of the other drivers, who all think and say the same.

Maybe my understanding isn’t correct? As far as I know, his only really shit time as a driver was with McLaren in 2022, and words like “scapegoating” and “sabotage” get thrown around a lot. In 2021, he gave McLaren its only win in over a decade, and it wasn’t team orders based, and he hauled Renault back up into the podium as well, for their first time in almost a decade. I don’t think he should have left Red Bull, and I don’t think he’s necessarily an Alonso or Verstappen level talent, but he also made those Red Bulls and Renaults that he drove look a lot better than they were.

It's not just about what a driver's like on the track; it's his attitudes off the track too and Ricciardo has really bad form. As for dragging the Renault into the points, and the Red Bull when it was underperforming - that's his job and the cars weren't that bad. If he'd swapped with one of the back markers at the time, they'd likely have performed just the same. Plus, if he made the Red Bull look better than it was, why wasn't he the one winning championships in it? Why did Vettel get all that action when all Ricciardo got was a handful of race wins?

Anyway, here's (just some of) why I firmly believe that Daniel Ricciardo is every bit as obnoxious as the most obnoxious drivers on the grid. If you don't read right to the end, and I wouldn't blame you, please at least take in the part I've highlighted in red; it pretty much sums up the type of character he is and why I - along with many others - really do feel that he's most definitely obnoxious.

“I don’t watch the news and feel better about my day so I choose not to watch it.” Just one direct quote regarding his complete and shameless ignorance about the extreme humans rights abuses prevelent in some of the countries F1 travels to. What it amounts to is that the “drama and negativity” (his own words) of news reports on out-dated and abusive attitudes to women and LGBTQ people is a buzz kill so he’d rather not know about it, thanks all the same.

His attitude to the sexist objectification of the (now thankfully defunct) Grid Girls: "It's kind of like part of the attraction of the sport, fast cars and fast girls,". In his opinion, because it’s a male dominated sport it’s “a cool thing” so “let’s keep them”. If that's not obnoxious, I don't know what is.

On “Your Mom’s House” (a lowest common denominator podcast aimed at pathetic little boys who think they’re men) he laughed along with deeply sexist, misogynistic ‘jokes’ about women. There are plenty of drivers who would, at the very least, have kept their reactions neutral, making it clear they didn’t think it funny, but not Ricciardo; he was more than content to chuckle away at their vile comments about women.

Tricking Yuki Tsunoda into trusting him to come closer on a boat so he could throw him overboard, because it’s funny to force someone to face a very real phobia of sharks by throwing them into a body of water that’s widely known to contain them. I don’t care what Tsunoda’s reaction was to it (it's common for the victim of bullying to make light of their ordeal) or that Ricciardo threw himself into the water too; it’s still an appalling way to treat someone when they’ve been brave enough to be in such close proximity to one of their greatest fears. It’s the behaviour of a bully and Ricciardo is the worst kind of that particular species – a charming bully. The reason he gets away with so much of his crappy behaviour is because so many people are taken in by a cheeky smile, a twinkle in the eyes, and the friendly disclaimer that it’s just a bit of fun; they’re just trying to lighten the mood and make people laugh. It’s always at someone else’s expense though.

Given he was in a highly competitive Red Bull for all those years, he won precious few races, and left because he wasn’t getting the attention he thought was his right. I know athletes have to have an enormous amount of self-belief but to have looked at a racer like Verstappen and sincerely felt that he was his equal? That’s delusional. But is that really how he felt? Or did he – like so many who can’t face real competition when they know someone else is going to come out on top – jump ship because being a big fish in a small pond is preferable to being outperformed and therefore second best? I don’t know which it is but if he really, genuinely, sincerely thought he was on the same level as, first, Verstappen and then Norris, surely he’s just not very bright?

Monza 2021 absolutely was a team orders win for Ricciardo. Have you listened to Norris’s radio? He was faster; he wanted to pass; he asked if he could pass; he was told to maintain position. Either the team were concerned that the two might take each other out (although I am absolutely certain that Norris could have made that move with ease so was it more a case of Ricciardo taking Norris out if he tried to overtake?) or Ricciardo’s ego was so fragile by that point (Norris had been wiping the floor with him) that they decided he needed the win to boost his confidence and get a few more much needed points for McLaren. Either way, Norris was robbed of his maiden victory because he’s a team player who obeyed team orders rather than saying “screw this; I can win and I’m damn well gonna win”. I respect him for playing the team game but I hate the fact that Ricciardo got an undeserved win at his considerable expense (that’s not hyperbole; a driver’s first F1 win really is huge).

You're probably sorry you asked now.

#anti-Daniel Ricciardo #Yuki Tsunoda #Max Verstappen #Lando Norris #McLaren Racing #Renault racing #Red Bull Racing #just my opinion #Formula One

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myobsessionsspace · 1 month

Note

This is an assumption. But why do you think JK bought his property in Itaewon out of all places ? And now building a mansion there which means that will be his main house he decides to settle. I've seen all korean stars buying their homes to love with their family in more decent and high end areas like Gagnam, Hannam etc. No one really buys property in itaewon with an aim to settle there with family as it's like the party spot of SK. Itaewon is known for clubs, brothels, parties, drugs and prostitution, most only go there to party, have one night stands or do illegal activities. Someone visiting Itaewon often is eye brow raising enough so building a whole mansion there is sus af isn't it ?

Hey,

I understand tone can’t be accurately interpreted with written words, so I just want to make my tone clear first and foremost.

I’m speaking with no harshness, judgement or condescension.

DM me and we can delulu cutely together with no air of authority on the matter, cos we should know we don’t know shit, but can still want to coo and dream with others 🤗.

We’ve seen and been outraged by sasaengs and their stalking of members and called them out at times. We’ve literally seen Jungkook on live entering his apartment and being annoyed with sasaengs loitering outside of his building, he has even said in that same live that he knows people knows where he lives and posted online.

Put yourselves in their shoes, who wants millions knowing your full address and being able to turn up unannounced? Because they’re fans of your music, of your image? I’m gonna leave that there.

I will say in regards to Itaewon, I’m not Korean, I don’t have a Korean father, a Korean brother, a Korean bff who works at Hybe, nothing. I do have a friend who went on a program, studied there and lived there for years but that’s it. I don’t know anything about Itaewon apart from the Halloween tragedy and a K-Drama. So guess what I did, yup you guessed it, I GOGGLED💪

No one really buys property in itaewon with an aim to settle there with family as it's like the party spot of SK. Itaewon is known for clubs, brothels, parties, drugs and prostitution, most only go there to party, have one night stands or do illegal activities. Someone visiting Itaewon often is eye brow raising enough so building a whole mansion there is sus af isn't it ?

Incoming cheeky tone…I thought I said ‘genuine asks’? This right here sounds like laying down the groundwork to paint a certain picture of Jungkook?🤔🤨

Itaewon

You said: ‘I’ve seen all Korean stars buying their homes to live with their families in more decent high end areas like Gangnam, Hannam etc’.

I say: That’s a pretty bold, blanket statement 😬

Famous idol Rain and his actress wife and children have a home in Itaewon as do many other celebrities with their spouses, partners and families

Actor Song Joong-Ki and his British wife, who was pregnant at the time, moved to his Itaewon mansion along with her family from the UK. They welcomed a baby girl in 2023.

Chaebols like those belonging to the Samsung family also have homes in Itaewon

Doing my googles, Itaewon is known as ‘a multi-cultural commercial area located in Seoul, South Korea. It is one of the most popular neighborhoods in Seoul, known for its nightlife and trendy restaurants.’ ‘Seoul's International District’.

I know some other places that sound like the above.. London…New York…Paris…

I wonder where the prostitution, drugs and one night stands come into it for people who wanna buy or build houses in those cities?

Jungkook is currently a 26 year old multimillionaire, who is a member of one of the biggest groups in not just South Korea, but the world, so I guess he’ll have lots to do when he’s not working his ass off with his intense more than full time job. Settling somewhere with family…I’m sure he’ll take Bam into consideration in his plans, wherever it may be.

Something I did find cool when doing my googles 😁

‘Korean singer-songwriter JYP (Park Jin-young) and Yoo Se-yoon's hip hop duo UV released the song "Itaewon Freedom" in April 2011. The title alludes to (and the lyrics celebrate) a common Korean perception of Itaewon's "open atmosphere", in contrast with conventional Korean culture, which is more conservative.’

LGBTQIA+ ‘haven’ Itaewon

‘The 2020 South Korean Netflix television series Itaewon Class is set in Itaewon. The drama was praised for its diverse and inclusive cast and its realistic portrayal of subjects such as prejudice and discrimination against foreigners, ex-convicts and the LGBT people, as well as the portrayal of misbehaviors by chaebol corporations.’

Sounds like Itaewon is a cool, diverse, inclusive place, full of sites & attractions, shops and good food. If a 26+ year old man that’s been working and in the public eye since 13/14 wanted to build a home there, Itaewon sounds like a great place and a good investment.

I’d love to visit there, if I ever had the time AND money 🥲

Thanks for the ask, it caused me to learn something new!

💜

#Jungkook #Itaewon #Anonymous Asks #Jikook #the last tag just because…

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fcknstar · 11 months

Text

,, we're similar, dont you think? "

pairings : gf!ethanlandry x fem!reader

summary : what would you do for love?

content warnings : gore, killing, mentions of body parts out place, very morbid for some readers, possessiveness, jealousy.

**lowercase intended**

and there you were. squeezed by a few sweaty bodies but all you can focus on is him. and the way she flirts with him. your thoughts being disoriented, breathing heavy as you try to calm yourself down. how dare he, have the nerve to ask you to be his rightful date to this party, but flirt with another girl. not to mention, shes your friend.

the music changes with the way you think. eliminate whoever is stopping us from being happy. your calm facade broke with the way you broke her nose.

you pull stacy into the alleyway, pushing her down onto the rough floor that made her skin crack. her once soft skin is now full of dirt and cuts that you knew he disliked.

" you told me youd stay away from aaron! you promised, you whore! " you stomp towards her, before kicking her face. your high heel met her nose bridge which was so close to her eye, something you aimed for. if you had kicked her eyeballs in, she might not have the chance to ogle her eyes at aaron.

" i told you, hes mine! fucking mine! " you screamed, before looking around. you found a metal pipe, lifting it before smashing her face. you always hated how she tried her best to look better than you whenever shes around aaron. you liked how the sound of the metal pipe clanked with her skull, with the way her screams harmonizes with it.

" who's the ugly one now? " you whisper to her smushed face. one that didnt look pretty. her face was bleeding, skin torn apart like she had been eaten alive by a dog. she choked on her blood, her neck too, bruised and bleeding.

standing up, you stumbled backwards before registering what you had done.

" fuck.. not again.." you whispered before turning around. no one seemed to be near you.

★

ethan coulnt help but stare at you. clear rage in your eyes as he followed what you were looking at. you looked jealous despite your calm facade. he watched you pull the girl away from the guy, pulling her out of the bar. the bar had parties every friday and ethan decided to see what the hype was about. and he saw it. watching you kick the girl, fuck the girls face up was something he didnt expect to see. maybe he should come to bars often.

" fuck..not again.." he heard whisper. he was in the dark, hid quietly behind the large bin he just peered out from. he saw the way you pulled gloves out of your bag, as if you had planned this. you pulled stacy over to the bin he was at, before lifting her up and dumping it in. you knew the authorities will just assume this as another ghostface attack.

you then stumble out of the alleyway, running off into the night. ethan found it appealing, how incredibly attractive you sounded and looked. he knew this wasnt your first time.

★

" come on babe, we just talking. "

" didnt seem like talking to me aaron. "

" oh so we back on first names now? and you say youre the mature one. "

" says the one who told me that stacys someone i shouldn't worry about- "

" oh fuck off, you're just fucking insecure! " his voice ringed into your ear. you angrily hung up the call before heading to bed.

the next morning, you thought about what had happened. maybe shes not someone to worry after all. you decide to apologize to him to patch up your relationship even though your brain disagrees with it. you love him, after all, you would do anything for love.

" good morning babe.. i.. im sorry about yesterday. maybe i overreacted.. im coming over for dinner to make us something. how about that? " you left a voice note.

after getting ready for the day, your phone buzzed.

aaron<3

aaron : hey babe, i got your voice note. its fine, maybe i did too. sorry for saying such words to you, i don't mean any of that. id love that! see you tonight baby! <33

me : see you love!! xoxo

★

as you rummaged through your bag for the spare keys to aarons home, you realized you had left it at home.

" shit. uhh sweety? i forgot the keys, can you open the door for me? " you knocked on the door.

almost instantly, the door slightly open. you were confused, why didnt he just open in fully and engulf you in a hug like he usually did.

" babe? " you slowly push the door open, looking down as you wanted to remove your shoes. however you saw a silhouette of someone.

" aaron- oh my fucking god. " you step back as you watch you aaron dangling with his intestines wrapped around his neck, from the ceiling fan. blood spilled every where. by now the door behind closed to you pushing it shut.

as you take steps towards aaron, you cant help but cry out.

you tiptoed, hands on his bloodied cheeks and his eyes have been dug out, empty hollow filling the void. the once bright brown eyes you loved to look at is now gone. looking down at where his intestines would be, there was a note.. with his pair of eyes.

the note read : he should have kept his eyes on you.

" fuck.. aaron… please. " you wished and prayed that maybe, just maybe hed just wake up.

looking around, you wanted to pull aaron down so you could properly grieve. your hands move back and forward in the air as you hesitate to touch his intestines.

but then his arm moved, waving at you. you stumble backwards, falling to the floor as he spoke.

" i thought you liked touching me? " and a humorous laugh came after it. but his mouth didnt move an inch. before you know it, aarons body fell towards you, having you push yourself backwards. a figure, ghostface to be exact appeared before you.

" holy shit. " you cursed before lifting yourself to defend.

you run to the kitchen to find all the knives and scissors to be missing. nothing was there. you make a run to your shared room.

" fuck. " you realized you could have just ran out of the house since its still unlocked. once you locked yourself in the shared room, you knew this was going to be your last moment.

pounds on the door became louder with every passing second. you hid next to the door, where once he manages to open, itd hide you. then it happened, the door swung towards you, and you had a hand out to softly stop the door from hurting you.

when you peer your head, you watch as ghostface had his back turned to you. once you think its safe, you ran out the door, before reaching the main door handle. your hand touched it, held it, but your grip wasnt strong enough. ghostface was strong, too strong for you as he pulled you away from the door and pushed you hard against the wall.

you arched your back and moaned in pain in the process which made ghostface tilt his head slightly. your head felt like it was spinning.

" fucking kill me already. " you whimpered out, breathing staggered.

" dont you see? we both are the same. you killed your friend because she couldnt stop looking at aaron here because you love him. and i killed aaron cause i wanted to be the only one looking at you. just because. ill let you figure that your own. " he giggled, almost like how a shy boy would.

a.n : ta da!!! m very proud of this piece thank you very much, haha.

#imagines #oneshots #ethan landry angst #ethan landry x y/n #ethan landry imagine #ethan landry x you #ethan landry x reader #scream six #jack champion x y/n #jack champion x reader

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stuffandwonder · 7 days

Text

Here's the thing tho, whilst it's great that they took accountability and made some real immediate change on the back of feedback 'watcher would of gone-under if we just stayed on youtube' is a WILD statement

Like who the fuck is your business manager?! And sack them immediately.

There are numerous channels on YT that have (sometimes much) more staff, big studios, high production costs etc and manage to fund that completely with ads, patreon, merch, tours etc (the normal and all things watcher has/does). And these are channels I have no reason to believe don't pay their staff a fair and decent wage. They'd be bleeding employees if they weren't.

If you're not able to pay your staff a fair wage with current youtube income then clearly you've taken on more staff than is financially sustainable or sensible right now!

And as for wanting to make higher quality content, I don't begrudge them that if that's what they want, but it's pretty clear from the comments that generally their audience doesn't give a flying fuck about the quality, in fact they kinda like the low budget stuff! So why make 'high-quality' a business priority if its not a priority for your viewership? You could just aim to slowly move towards that as you hopefully increased the revenue you had available to do it, if you were still wanting to.

You wouldn't have needed to make this apology video if you'd just made some better fucking business decisions in the first place.

#watcher #i mean i don't work in accounting or business management but this is just fommon fucking sense isn't?! am i crazy?

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beomgyw · 1 month

Text

THE BOY IN THE DARK

you chose to say home

if you're new here, go back to the beginning !!

after saying goodnight to huening kai, who left the room stumbling around in a pretty hilarious state of tipsiness, you do your best to tidy up the mess you both left behind. but let's face it, grandma's got this uncanny ability to sniff out chaos no matter how well you try to hide it. with a shrug, you figure you'd deal with the inevitable scolding when the time came and finally head up to your room.

you're itching for a shower—it's the perfect remedy to shake off that lingering smell of travel and feel fresh and clean before going to sleep. it isn't all that late, and lucky for you, your room had its own bathroom. so, you decide to treat yourself to a late-night shower without worrying about waking anyone else up.

before cranking up the water, you do a quick sound check, making sure your playlist won't blast through the house. thankfully, the coast is clear, and you can shower to your heart's content with some music. as you shower, you don't hear a thing coming from any other part of the house... but the door bell rings without you noticing it. six times.

done with the shower and back in your room, you finally get comfy and snuggle up in bed. but then it hits you – you have those cigarettes tucked away in your bag. you hadn't planned on smoking inside the house, not really sure about which the consequences would be grandma-scolding-wise, but with everyone knocked out and your room leading to a balcony, why not?

so, you grab your smokes and throw on a hoodie, sneaking out onto the balcony for some alone time. you're glad to discover that, unlike in seoul, the stars are perfectly visible here.

however, as you're about to light up your cigarette, something suddenly whizzes past your face, making you jump. you flinch, thinking it could be a bird or some disoriented bat. but then, another object grazes your cheekbone, and when you look down, there's a pebble chilling on the ground. weird.

you're just about to lean over the balcony to see what's going on when you hear a voice, a bit desperate sounding, saying, "huening-ah, come on! i never ask for anything!"

and from the content of the message, it could've been yunjin. but the voice was male.

your curiosity all fired up, you lean in, trying to catch every word as the voice shifts from a whisper-yell to a full-on shout. "huening, i know you're awake! fucking quit ignoring me!" more pebbles come flying, this time with better aim, landing near huening's room, which just happens to be adjacent to yours.

then, a frustrated "screw it" is followed by rustling in the nearby tree branches. your eyes go wide as you see a hand emerge from the foliage, gripping the fence of kai's balcony. slowly, a figure emerges—a boy, his features all shadowed by the night. you squint, trying to see better, but all you can make out is his silhouette against the moonlit sky.

"are you trying to rob us?" you blurt out.

in the darkness, you get to distinguish his eyes going wide in surprise as he meets your gaze. all from the shock, he slips and disappears back into the foliage. you hear the unfortunate thud of his fall and his pained groans from the ground.

you lean over the balcony, trying to get a better look. "shit, are you okay?" you call out. "wait, i'm coming down!"

without wasting a moment, you dash down the stairs and out of the house, where you find the boy, grimacing and clutching at his knee.

"is it bad?" you ask.

he meets your gaze. "agonising."

"let me take a look," you offer, even though you know your medical skills are pretty much non-existent. it's just something people say, right? you breathe a sigh of relief when you realize it's just a bloody wound – painful, yeah, but nothing too serious.

"thank goodness," you mutter, "i'd probably pass out if it was worse, like a bone sticking out or something."

"oh, it was," he says, wincing a bit. "but i managed to shove the bone back in myself. a real man wouldn't shed tears over a scratch on the knee… it was major. like medieval torture kind of pain..."

you chuckle. "well, wanna come inside? i'm definitely no doctor, but I can at least offer some sanitizer or slap a band-aid on that."

"um… y-yeah. sure, yeah," he stammers before following you into the house.

as you step into the room, the warm glow of the lights falls gently across his face, revealing features you hadn't fully appreciated until now. that's when you recognise him. he got hot during our senior year. he's mellowed out since then. and there he stands, his deep brown eyes catching the light, bangs brushing softly over his eyebrows, pretty lips. this is isn't a normal type of hot. it´s manhwa character hot, or promising young actor hot, or disney prince kind of of. definitely not beomgyu, that one shy kid from middle school.

you see him standing there, kinda awkward, like he's not sure what to fo or where to go, probably waiting for a cue on where to sit down. It's kinda cute, you think, this boy dressed like he's in the bassist of an indie band, looking all lost. "please, get comfortable," you finally say, breaking the silence. "i bet you've spent more time in this house more than me in the past few years."

"you know who i am?" he asks, sounding surprised. he doesn't seem thrilled about it. like he doesn't like being recognised, specially by you, who knew him only during middle school. you get the feeling.

"yeah, i remember you swingin' by to help grandma with her garden when she got the injury... and we used to be in the same class. plus, yunjin mentioned you... she gave me a brief introduction to huening's friends, really. so I just kinda put two and two together..." you start explaining, but then you spot a trickle of blood on his leg. "oh, hold on, let me grab the first aid kit... i'm sure grandma keeps it in the same spot..."

as you shuffle your way to the kitchen, he remains standing still in the middle of your living room, mentally pinching himself at this reunion that means way more to him than it does to you. but, of course, you're completely clueless. he's some cute boy you met years ago.

"take a seat, take a seat..." you instruct him, pointing at the couch, and he obeys. he settles onto the cushions as you make your way towards him, rummaging through the first aid kit. your fingers skim over all sorts of stuff as you try to figure out what might help with his scrape. getting yourself situated at his feet, you plonk the kit down next to you for easy access to whatever you might need.

with a cotton pad and iodine in one hand and a wet cloth in the other, you pause, momentarily unsure of the proper procedure. "huh. do you have any idea how to tend to a wound like this?" you ask, but get no answer. you decide that the correct step is to clean it with water, selecting the wet cloth as your working tool. "beomgyu? did you hit your head too?" you ask, glancing up at him. but he seems lost in thought, his gaze distant and unfocused.

he breaks away from his trance, his eyes refocusing on you, perhaps by you calling your name, perhaps by the wet cloth touching his skin. "i... sorry," he mumbles softly, "i'm not usually this quiet. seeing you is just like... being the middle school me again."

"is that a good thing?"

"i don't know yet,"

"well, I'm not that fond of my middle school self either," you confess, a wry smile tugging at the corners of your lips as you focus on cleaning the blood from his leg.

he watches you work in silence, his thoughts swirling beneath the surface, until he finally speaks up. "you were cool," he says, his voice soft. "i always thought you were cool. i'm sorry nobody else saw that. It sucks, feeling so powerless… and getting picked on all the time. i should've stood up, done something but i was too shy. it sounds kinda shallow, but that's just... how i feel."

you offer him a reassuring smile. "they would've targeted you too. just like what happened to kai," you say, and your words keep coming out, fueled by the soju. "actually, the worst part wasn't even the bullying. it was everything that came after, how it changed me. i spent the rest of my life trying to prove to everyone that i was cool and smart and not the kind of person who should get bullied. but it broke me, all that work... striving for nothing. what good did it do? i stepped in here now as an adult and i felt just as small and helpless, like i was back to being a twelve-year-old girl again... i'm sorry, i kind of overshared...."

"you're good," he said, offering a warm smile. "and you're too hard on yourself. you know, huening and yunjin were always there to lay anyone out if anything happened..." he hesitates, then adds, "but now i am, too." he says, and you mutter a thanks, before he continues, "you probably don't remember me too well..."

"but i do–" you try to say, but he cuts you.

"not as much as i remember you." he says.

you're a bit flustered at this, not really knowing what he means, so you focus back on your medical duties. when you're done cleaning and disinfecting the wound, you tap his knee, "there you go, done. didn't even shed a tear, you're a tough guy… oh, and would you look at this!" you say, holding up a treasure you just found in the aid kit: a box of hello kitty band-aids. you slap two on his knee, forming a cross. "cutified war scars."

"it's a look, honestly," he replies with a smile, and he means it. and he does look pretty adorable, you think to yourself. but you quickly shake the thought away. you're not big on catching feelings. you grew up thinking nobody would ever like you, so you taught yourself not to like anyone. but funny thing is, he grew up with the same mindset. your coping mechanisms might've been different, but the sentiment was shared.

"anyway, i should get going. i've got work tomorrow," he suddenly announces, getting up from his seat.

"yeah, same here."

"oh, you got a job? where at?" he asks with sudden interest.

"just this bookstore near wavecrest beach..." you reply, noticing his face light up for reasons unknown to you.

"cool, that's cool! you gotta grab your coffee at the cuppa corner," he says with a sparkle in his eye. "they make the best one around."

"i will," you respond. "oh, by the way... not trying to pry, just curious... what brought you here in the first place?"

he tilts his head, a grin playing on his lips as he gestures towards his car parked outside. "oh, I was hoping to drag kai along to this... well, let's call it a spontaneous hangout."

you share a knowing chuckle. "well, he's completely knocked out. soju got the best of him."

his laughter fills the hallway, and you stare at him with a fool's smile. you think he's even more handsome when he's laughing. "it´s alright. i'll catch him next time," he says with a shrug, a twinkle in his eye.

"well, it was nice talking to you." you say.

"yeah, likewise. sleep well," he smiles, already making his way towards his car. there's a fleeting moment where he seems like he wants to say more, but he ultimately decides against it.

so that just happened.

so that just happened. you're gonna go to bed thinking of beomgyu, but you better fall asleep; first day of work tomorrow !!

(coming soon...)

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