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enchantedlokii · 4 years

Note

Potential irondad prompt idea: When Steve meets Peter he thinks that Peter is some spoiled smart brat that Tony took in just to make him look better but Tony finds out and he isn't happy about it. Hope you like it! Have a nice day! 🌟💗🌟💗

Publicity

Rating: PG-13

Warnings: language, mentions of death

Characters: Peter Parker, Tony Stark, FRIDAY, Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson, Natasha Romanoff, Bucky Barnes

Mentioned: May Parker, Thor Odinson, Pepper Potts, Bruce Banner

I’m sorry. This piece is really bad. I’ve been trying to write it for a week or more now and it’s just not turning out how I’d like it to. It’s not my worst piece, but definitely not my best.

Peter had been more than grateful when his mentor offered to take him in after May’s sudden death. He hadn’t even planned on telling the man, not wanting to bother him with his troubles, but his webshooters had sent signals to FRIDAY that he was in distress and Tony had showed up at the hospital not long after without Peter even knowing he was on the way. He had insisted that he could figure something out, that he would be okay in a foster home, but he hadn’t protested when Tony brought him to the car and drove him to the tower.

That had been two months ago, and Peter was starting to cope with his aunt’s death. He even found himself growing excited when Tony told him that the Rogue Avengers were coming back. “I can’t believe I’m going to meet them,” he said, bouncing on his heels as they walked to the elevator.

“You’ve already met them, Kiddo,” Tony reminded him, struggling to hide his growing anxiety at letting the kid around the rogues. They had already agreed to not out Peter as Spider-Man to them just yet, but it still made him nervous.

“I know but that was different!” Peter countered. “They’ve met Spider-Man, not Peter Parker. So I haven’t really met them.”

Peter continued to ramble excitedly as the elevator started taking them upstairs. He didn’t fall silent until it opened up and Tony led him into a room where the others were lounging on the couches. The only Avenger not present was Thor. “Hello, everyone,” Tony started. “Welcome back. For those of you who haven’t met him yet, this is Peter. He lives here now. Peter, I don’t think they need introductions.”

Steve raised an eyebrow at Tony’s words, watching Peter as he looked from person to person while they spoke to him. He was excited, Steve could see it in his eyes, but he was also nervous. “Not that it’s not nice to meet you or anything, Peter, — it is nice to meet you — but why exactly are you living in the tower?”

“Oh,” Peter seemed to deflate a bit, glancing back at Tony. The man nodded and he turned to look at Steve. “My, um, my aunt died a couple months ago. I-I lived with her. Mr. Stark and Ms. Potts took me in so I wouldn’t go into the system.”

Steve just nodded slowly, ignoring the angry glare from Sam. “We’re sorry about your aunt, Kid,” the other man said when he realized his friend didn’t plan on replying. “You have a nice family here.”

Peter smiled softly. “Thank you, Mr. Wilson, sir,” he replied.

“Alright, Pete. Ready to head to the workshop?” Tony asked from his spot in the doorway. “Let these guys have some time to settle in.”

“Woah, hold up,” Natasha started. “You let someone other than Pepper in the workshop with you now? Man, Peter, you must be a special kid.”

“Kid’s smart,” Tony shrugged. “Smarter than me, probably. He’s nice help.”

“Mr. Stark. . .” Peter’s face was red with embarrassment as he walked towards his mentor. Tony just grinned and pat his shoulder. Peter smiled at the touch and followed him out of the room. He could hear the others talking as soon as they left, but he decided to tune them out. “So what are we working on?”

Peter was climbing up the stairs towards his room when he heard it. He didn’t mean to eavesdrop, he really didn’t, but it was hard with his enhanced senses. And when he heard his name, he couldn’t pull himself away.

“It just doesn’t make sense, Sam,” Steve was saying. He sounded frustrated. Maybe a bit upset, even. “Tony’s never been a child person. There’s no way he just took this kid in out of the good of his heart and you know that as well as I do.”

Peter froze, feeling his heart rate increase. He tried to keep moving. He wanted to get away. He didn’t want to hear what the rogue Avenger had to say. But he was glued to his spot between flights of stairs. “People change, Steve,” Sam countered. Peter could practically hear the man shrug. “Maybe he just really cares about the kid.”

“I doubt it,” Steve muttered. There were heavy footsteps that Peter assumes was Steve pacing. “The kid is spoiled. Smart if Tony will let him in the lab, but a spoiled brat.”

What? Peter didn’t understand. He didn’t think that he was a spoiled brat. Sure, he knew that he could have anything he wanted now, but he didn’t ask for much. He hadn’t even asked to stay with Mr. Stark. The man had offered him a place to stay. Does accepting the offer make me spoiled?

“I doubt Tony even likes him.”

That’s when Peter can’t take anymore. He gets up and starts running up the stairs until he reaches the floor he shares with Tony and Pepper. His vision is blurred with tears, and he relies on memory to find his room. He doesn’t hear the footsteps coming after him as he shuts his door and collapses on the bed.

“Pete? Can I come in?” Peter buried his face in his pillow, his body shaking as he cries. He means to reply, to say no, but he chokes on his words. That’s enough for Tony to let himself in, coming over and sitting down on the bed, rubbing Peter’s back. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

Peter just shook his head into his pillow. Steve’s words echo in his mind. He’s nothing more than a publicity stunt. He’s being used for a boost of fame. “Please leave me alone,” he murmured.

“Kiddo. . .”

Peter looked up and glared at him. “Y-you don’t really want me here, do you, Mr. Stark?” he asked. “I-I’m just a brat a-and you’re-y-you’re just using me. I-it’s true, isn’t it? God, I’m such a freaking idiot.” He whipped around and buried his face in his pillow once again.

“What are you talking about? Kid, you know that’s not true,” Tony murmured, squeezing his shoulder. “Why in the world would you think that?”

“B-because I’m annoying a-and I’m just in the way and I’m a freaking mess and wh-why would anyone want me? Why would you of all people want me? J-just because of my powers? Is-is that it?” Peter asked. His words were a bit muffled, but he was sure that Tony could hear him. “I-If you don’t want me here I-I can leave.”

“Peter, look at me.” Peter sighed but lifted his head, turning back to look at Tony. He expected to see disappointment or even anger in the man’s eyes, but all he saw was concern. “I don’t want you to ever believe any of that, okay? I do want you here. I always want you here. Even if you didn’t have your powers. I want you, Peter. Not Spider-Man.”

Peter took a shaky breath, not completely sure. He wasn’t sure if he should believe him. He started thinking about May’s hesitance. How she wasn’t completely sure about letting Peter take the “internship.” How she didn’t trust Tony fully. Peter wanted to trust him. He wanted to believe him, but he wasn’t sure.

“Come here, Kiddo.” Peter’s eyes widened a bit when the man opened an arm and started to pull him into a hug. He had only hugged him once before, right after May had died. And Peter had assumed it was out of pity more than them being close enough for it. A lot of people hugged him then and the day of May’s funeral; some were people he didn’t even know. But now, he had no reason to hug Peter except that he just wanted to. Not because it was the right thing to do. “I know I’m not the best with this sort of thing, but I do care about you, Peter.”

“You do?” Peter whispered.

“Yeah, Pete. I do. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”

“You look stressed,” Steve commented, coming to sit beside Tony. He wasn’t exactly sure where they stood at the moment, but he hated to see his friend so upset. “Everything okay?”

“Kid’s got it in his head that I don’t want him here and I don’t know why the h*ll he thinks that now, after he’s been here two months,” he grunted after a moment. Steve could tell he was hesitant to tell him. “God, I need a drink.”

“Yeah, don’t do that,” Steve murmured. He took a minute to process what he said, then he remembered the footsteps he had heard running in the stairwell while he was talking to Sam. Surely Peter hadn’t heard him. “I mean, he is a bit spoiled, isn’t he?”

Tony raised his head and gave him a look that made Steve immediately regret letting the words leave his mouth. “Excuse me?” he asked. “Please tell me that I did not just hear you call my kid spoiled.”

Steve raised his hands defensively. “I mean, you do kinda let him in your lab. You never let us in your lab except Bruce.”

“He’s allowed in there because he’s a f*cking genius,” Tony growled. “Tell me, Steve, what else have you been saying about my kid? Because now that I think about it, that sounds a lot like something he sobbed to me about this evening. And let me tell you this; it takes a lot to make that boy cry.”

“I don’t have to tell you—”

“The f*ck you do have to tell me, Rogers. I’m letting you back in my home after you almost killed me. You realize you did that, or were you too busy with your murderous boyfriend to notice?” Tony’s face was red with anger as he stood up, moving closer to the taller man. “Either you tell me what you said, or you leave and never come back. You’re running out of chances with me.”

“Don’t f*cking bring Bucky into this,” Steve snapped. “This has nothing to do with him.”

“Just tell him, Steve.” The two whipped around to see Bucky leaning in the doorway, watching them. There was a bit of hurt in his eyes, but he blinked and it was gone. “If you don’t, I will.”

“Bucky—”

“Peter didn’t do anything to you, Stevie,” Bucky said softly. “What happened to looking out for the little guy? You were on the receiving end of this sh*t long enough to know what it does to people.”

Steve sighed and rubbed his face with the palms of his head. “Look, Tony, I didn’t mean for him to hear what I said,” he grunted. “I was wrong to say it and I know that. Just, I’m sorry, okay? Do I really need to tell you what I said? I think you know anyway.”

Bucky glanced up at Tony with a pleading look. Tony could see that he just wanted to avoid a fight. And really, he was right to. Fighting over this wasn’t going to change things. Not positively, at least. “Don’t speak to me until you apologize to Peter,” he muttered before turning towards the entrance. He stopped in front of Bucky, hesitantly raising a hand and putting it on his shoulder. “If you ever want to come upstairs and talk. . .”

Tony trailed off, grateful when Bucky nodded. He understood what he was implying. “Yeah, maybe sometime,” he agreed, giving him a small smile. “Thank you.”

Peter froze as his Spider-Sense warned him of incoming danger. He tried not to let himself panic, instead focusing on his senses. He could hear talking in the other room. “I thought, um, if he’s not busy. . .” That was Steve. He was asking to talk to him, and Peter prayed that Tony would say no. His hesitance made him nervous, and his heart dropped when he finally heard the familiar voice.

“FRIDAY, let Peter know that Steve’s coming to talk to him.” Peter didn’t need FRIDAY to let him know, and he was sure that Tony knew that. He was just keeping his identity safe. “Barnes?”

“I was wondering if you were still up for that talk,” Peter heard Bucky say before his senses focused on the sound of footsteps coming his way. He tried not to panic as they got closer and then stopped before a knock sounded at his door.

“Peter?” Steve asked. “Can I come in?”

“Y-yeah,” Peter murmured, bringing his knees up to his chest in an attempt to make himself smaller. He didn’t relax until he saw Steve. The man seemed upset. Apologetic, even. “H-hey, Mr. Rogers. Is everything okay?”

“Hey, Kiddo,” he replied. “I was actually. . . I, um. . . Sh*t.” The man shook his head. “I’m just going to be upfront with you, Peter. I know you’re smart enough to know why I’m here.”

Peter lowered his head slightly. He wondered how the man figured out he had overheard him. He could only guess that Tony had said something. “Oh. . .”

“I’m sorry,” Steve sighed. “What I said was wrong, and I don’t expect you to forgive me so soon, if ever. I just want you to know that I am sorry and that I would love the chance to get to know you. You seem like a good kid, and I hate that I hurt you.”

“I. . . I won’t lie and say that it’s okay or that I forgive you,” Peter started carefully. “But I accept your apology. And maybe. . . Maybe eventually, I can forgive you. I. . . I really am — er, was — a huge fan.”

Steve gave him a small smile. “That’s okay,” he replied honestly. “If you ever want to come hang out on our floor or anything, you’re welcome to.”

“Thank you, Mr. Rogers.”

“You can call me Steve, Kid,” he replied, earning a weak smile from Peter. “Thank you for hearing me out.”

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nightybreeze · 4 years

Text

Sound of Fury

Original female character/Billy Hargrove

A/N - I've created it with a Lady Macbeth/Macbeth dynamic in mind. I'm gonna try incorporate that into this fic as we go along. This is gonna be a long series. You could call it a slow burn but in terms of the plot. But I promise I'm pouring my heart and soul into this thing.

Summary: Action takes place in the season 2 of stranger things.

Word count: about 2 200 words

Chapter 1

Smash of the door. The twist of the key. Loud roar of the engine. Sudden rush of adrenaline that made goosebumps rise up on her skin. And then quick and daring take off.

The feeling was nearly invincible each and every time, but in its steadfast nature it never failed to bring a little bit of joy to her heart. As the machine accelerated it felt like taking a shot directly to the veins. And then what came next was just a steady, subtle drift that set her off into the wide blue. Mika in those moments was finally able to relax. Could forget about the sombreness of the reality that sourrounded her. Even if it was just a second, she could finally get a glimpse of how it felt to be truly free. The wind grizzled into the girl's ear and winnowed wildly through her hair to the beats of hard rock music coming from the radio. As the next track blasted out from the speakers, Mika was quick to recognize the piece. The song began with a distinguishable, descending tetrachord in a form of slow tremolo. It repeated itself a couple of times before the second guitar and the drums joined in. Soon enough, the lead vocalist started singing. Mika tightened the grip on the steering wheel and clenched her jaw in response. On paper the song seemed her type: full of energy and spark, quick-paced, with off the chain solos. If it was not for the lyrics, it would surely land on one of her personal cassette tapes. The persona came across as someone with real naive worldview and it was enough to struck her nerve. It didn't take a minute before she was speeding up.

𝘈𝘯𝘺𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘫𝘰𝘣

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘦𝘴

𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘯𝘰 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭

'𝘊𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰

𝘛𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘬 '𝘯 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘭

She pushed the gas pedal even harder placing her well beyond the speed limit. As the song was reaching an end, she pushed the brake and sharply turned the wheel. The car smoothly slid across the street, making a one-eighty, and with a screech of the tires came to a halt. Mika didn't bother to move it closer to the pavement, it was good enough. She turned off the radio, released the keys and heedlessly slammed the door after leaving the vehicle. The girl entered the liquor store. She didn't seem out of place. She's been here many times before and it was like she had had every right to it. She was confident that nothing would ever jeopardise the purpose of her being there. Mika grabbed a standard-sized bottle of cheap tequila and went over to the counter. She noticed that the man behind it wasn't someone she recognized. She quickly then grabbed the ID from her pocket and casually flashed it at the shopkeeper while handing him her drink. The salesman glanced at it.

𝘔𝘪𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘢 𝘑𝘰𝘩𝘯𝘴𝘰𝘯

𝘔𝘢𝘺 13𝘵𝘩 1962

Soon enough she was settling up the bill and on her way out of the store until suddenly a police officer entered the shop. He scanned the place with his eyes before giving Mika a suspecting glare. The girl tried to manoeuvre around him but the cop didn't let her.

- Woah, woah, woaaah there young lady. Not so quick - he said stopping her in her tracks - Is it your car outside the building?

It took her a second before collecting herself.

- Yes, sir, is there a problem? - she said calmly while fluttering her lashes and giving him the world's fakest smile.

The officer didn't seem to notice, she was a true pro.

- It's parked incorrectly. It's disturbing the traffic.

Mika looked above his shoulder. There was no traffic outside.

- I'm terribly sorry, I was just about to leave! It won't happen again, sir - she sighed dramatically.

She tried to take a step forward but the officer held her back.

- I'm afraid I'll be forced to check your ID

Mika's heart sped up a beat. She knew she could be busted. On the other hand her calm demeanour seemed unbothered. She glanced at him, smiled and quietly passed him the card. She took a peek at cop's badge and then noticed a couple of thick, white hair strands on his uniform. Just as the officer was about to get a closer look, Mika chimed in.

- Oh gosh, you've got a dog, Mr. Brown? - the girl asked cheerily, trying not to tip off her immense frustration.

- Am I that obvious? - the man chuckled while trying to examine the ID

- You struck me as the type - she said smiling innocently and after a short pause added - It's nice to meet a fellow dog person.

That was of course a plain, ugly lie - the best card she could play at that very moment. She figured the best way to distract a man is to have him start talking about himself.

- So what's his name? - she asked but she couldn't care less

- Her - Officer Brown corrected - Becky. A pitbull. Loyal little beastie.

Of course, she thought, what else could have she expected than a national pride that is a fighting ring dog.

- I sure hope she is.

The cop seemed like he was about ask something, but he was then quickly interrupted by another male voice coming from behind the girl.

- Jerryyy!! What's good, is your wife alright?

Jerry Brown looked up and Micheala turned around to see another man who freshly left the back.

- Old Nick! Yeah the migraines finally stopped and she's better now.

- Say, what brings you here today? - Nick said while eyeing the girl up with concern

- Nothing much, just duty, sir.

- Duty, ey? - shopkeeper gave Mika a knowing look - Did the girl do something?

- I think she's too young to be buying stuff here. And besides, her car isn't nowhere near the sidewalk.

- Awh you know how women are, their parking is horrible, they shouldn't be driving in the first place

Mika furrowed her eyebrows at Nick but the man just gave her a sheepish grin in response.

- Tell that to Sarah! - Jerry laughed, clearly entertained - She's insisting on getting a driver's license. Can you imagine?!

The two men burst out laughing in unison. After a couple of seconds they stopped and then carried on with their conversation for another good minute or two. Mika stepped to the side, clearly bored. She was considering running off to her car and just driving away.However she didn't want to get in trouble with the police again and besides, Jerry still held her ID captive. Nick saw that and that was his cue to finally get to the point.

- So whatcha gonna do about... - he paused focusing his eyes at Mika

- The girl? I don't know man. What if she's underage? - the cop Jerry raised the card with his hand, recalling that he still hasn't properly inspected it yet.

- I assure ye, she's not. Mika's my loyal customer since she hit 21! She wasn't showin' her ass here before.

The police officer looked at the ground lost in thought. Then glanced to the side at Mika and back again at Nick and sighed.

- You'd vouch for her?

Nick hesitated for a second but after that a wide grin crept onto his face.

- Yeah, I would.

And that was enough for the officer Jerry to resign from his witch hunt. He moved aside to stand in front of the girl and finally handed the ID back to her.

- Here you go Miss, sorry for the inconvenience.

He left the store and called out from the outside.

- Practice your parking!!

Mika was so done with this whole situation but she managed to put on a one last smile.

- Sure thing, officer!

And with that it was over.

She wasn't this close from being caught by the police since her late evening trip to the pub near the centre - a foolish decision on her part. This wasn't New York. Not only was she the only woman at the bar, she was the only young woman at the bar. She managed to talk her way out of it of course, but the encounter still left a sour taste in her mouth. "Cops" she thought. "Always acting like they're noble and benevolent. Like they don't have anything better to do than meddle with somebody else's fucking business instead of doing something that is actually important".

Micheala stood there seconds longer, following Jerry with her eyes. After a while she grunted at Nick.

- You should've let us be.

She had it under control, she didn't need his help.

- You're welcome? - the man raised an eyebrow at her visibly amazed.

- I had it handled! - the girl scoffed.

- Like shit you had! I've saved your sorry ass, some words of appreciation would be nice.

Mika looked at him with hateful eyes, her pride hurt.

- Didn't ask for your help - she murmured quietly under her nose as she turned around and pushed the door open.

She walked outside but Old Nick quickly rushed after her.

- Hey, hey, Mika don't be like that - Nick closed off on her, undeliberately catching the girl's attention - I know you don't do well with that kind of talk, I'm sorry, okay? I just wanted you to be safe. Wasn't too keen on getting in trouble for selling booze to a minor either. You understand that, right? - he looked at her with pleading eyes.

She did, yes. It was his store after all. Mika was a little mad at herself for snapping like that. She just really hated being given favours though. She sighed.

- Yeah.

Thanks Nick.

***

The girl arrived back home - a shithole that was looking same as always. Except at the house on the opposite side of the street were parked two cars. Which wouldn't be anything worth noting, but the 5280 Cherry Street stood empty since Mika came back from college a couple of months ago. At least it's what she recalled. So yeah. A bunch of new shitty neighbours. If her mother made her bring them a "welcome pie" she swore she was going to murder someone. Or she'll just end up throwing it in the dumpster as a big ol' "Fuck you". Or eating the thing herself. She's not decided which out of those three ideas appealed to her most.

Mika leaned against the trunk and lit up a cigarette. She spied some figures moving behind the window curtains.| "Please, don't borrow any fucking sugar". On a further inspection she noticed that one of the cars parked outside, the blue one, was a Camaro. "Right, another pathetic male playing macho" Suddenly a front door swung open. A boy came out of the house. He strot in a hurry. Mika took a nice, long drag of her cigarette. The boy was young, approximately her age. Pleasantly looking. She stared intently at him as he made his way to the blue Camaro. "Of course" - she thought as a slight grin crept onto her face. The boy wore the most generic bad boy hairstyle, a pair of tight, midwash jeans and a black crew neck. He seemed irritated, quite over the edge. But then again, maybe it was just his bad boy facade.

She let out a big puff of smoke.

Okay, yeah, he was handsome. He looked like taken out of a goddamn TV screen. The Boy was gorgeous. So gorgeous, Mika started wondering when was the last time she's seen a man so damn pretty? Ah, yes. 𝘕𝘦𝘸 𝘠𝘰𝘳𝘬.

What was he doing in Hawkins? He really must have been new. Was he there unpacking when she went out to that store? Guess she couldn't care less to notice.

No no, she would've seen him.

Probably...

The unnamed Boy took a large box out of the back of his car. He held it with his one hand while he slammed the boot door shut with the other. And then, unexpectedly, as Mika was about to take another blow out of her cig, the Boy's and hers eyes met. They held each others gaze for a split second. She breathed in the smoke and he adjusted his seemingly heavy pack. And then Boy disappeared behind the same door he so quickly came from.

Mika stood there, finishing her smoke. She threw the burnt bud on the ground and crushed it with her shoe.

Alright so maybe she wouldn't be so mad if 𝙝𝙚 was the one to ask for that bag of sugar. The girl decided she must make herself acquainted with this handsome newcomer. Yes, she was planning to get to know him real 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘺.

She grabbed the tequilla out of her car along with the cherry coke that was laying there on the floor. She wrapped the liquor in paper and wandered off into the nearby woods.

#stranger things #stranger things fanfiction #billy hargrove #billy hargrove fanfiction #billy hargrove/oc #billy hargrove/reader #billy hargrove/fem oc #is that all?#xdd

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nxrthmizu · 5 years

Text

-Lordbug, Robin and Kitty Noir- Chapter Six: In Which Marinette Befriends Her Ex-Bully

/Part One//Part Two//Part Three//Part Four//Part Five//Part Six//Part Seven//Part Eight//Part Nine//Part Ten//Part Eleven/

Description: Uhhh exactly what the title says + akuma attack but instead of being the cause of Chloe, it’s Lila

Warnings: Cursing, self-harm and suicidal feelings, bullying

---

“Alright class, settle down!” The teacher yelled, a scowl worn on her thin lips. “Today we’ll be doing your first assessment- A group project. I have already decided your groups, and they will be as followed- Rose and Juleka, Alya and Lila, ...” The teacher droned on, and Marinette blanked out, only listening for her name, hoping that she’d be paired with Damian. “... Damian and Adrien, Marinette and Chloe. That’s it. Now get to work!” She snapped, banging her papers on the desk loudly.

Damian turned to Agreste with a grim smile. Great. His enemy. Perfect.

“Good luck, angel.” He murmured to her, moving over to Agreste’s desk. He hoped she didn’t notice, but when he passed her, his fingers had accidentally trailed past hers, and now his cheeks were burning.

Well, she noticed. But it wasn’t really the top of her lists of things to deal with.

Chloe grudgingly moved up, sitting where Damian had been a few moments ago. Marinette cleared her throat awkwardly, drawing out a piece of paper. “So... Um, do you have any ideas for the project?” She asked meekly.

“Look, Dupain-Cheng, I’m... Sorry.” Chloe snapped. “I... Didn’t realize that bullying was that bad, and having experienced it with Rossi, I... I’m sorry.”

Marinette smiled softly. “It’s okay. We’re both Lila’s victims... Truce?” She smiled, extending her hand. Chloe’s eyes narrowed, catching a trace of some pale pink lines underneath the sweater sleeve, but she didn’t say anything and only shook her hand.

“This doesn’t mean we’re friends, Dupain-Cheng.” Chloe proclaimed. “Just allies.”

Marinette giggled a little at it. Who knew? Chloe reminded her of Plagg- Both really just soft kitties on the inside, just a little rough on the outside. “Alright, Chloe.”

Across the room, Damian had been glaring at Chloe. He had figured out some time ago that Chloe used to bully his precious angel... And he did not trust Chloe at all. His glare, if translated into words, would spell: If you hurt my angel, I will end you.

Chloe coughed awkwardly.

“Dupain-Cheng, could you please ask your... Boyfriend to stop glaring?”

Marinette giggled. “He’s not my boyfriend... And Damian’s just like that. You’ll like him once you get to know him.”

Chloe seemed to doubt this. “Right.”

---

“Um... Why are you following me, Chloe?” Marinette asked, curious as to why the blonde had insisted in following her the moment she stepped out of the classroom to get home.

“You need to do something about your clothes.” Chloe rolled her eyes. “You need a new style, and who better to ask than me?” She flipped her hair, flaring her ‘gorgeousness’.

Marinette laughed. “Of course, Chloe.”

A cough interrupted the two girls. “If you don’t mind, Bourgeois, I can walk Marinette home.”

The said girl blushed. There. That was the second time- That she could remember, anyway, he called her name.

“Nuh-uh.” Chloe refused. “She’s going home in my limo. Shoo. Go away. It’s girl time, boy.”

And that was how Chloe left Damian speechless, standing alone as Chloe dragged a giggling Marinette on to the car. Shaking his head, he figured that more friends would do his angel well- Although that still didn’t mean that he liked that the mayor’s daughter was taking his angel for him, he supposed it was for the better.

---

“Alright. We need to do something about... This.” Chloe huffed, pointing at all of Marinette.

“But you just pointed at all of me.” (Httyd anyone?) Marinette sighed.

“Exactly. Now take off that sweater and let’s see what other clothes you have.” Chloe instructed, already beginning to go through her closet.

No. If I take off my sweater, she’ll see my-

“Take it off. Don’t worry, I won’t stare. Quite sure that there isn’t anything to stare at, anyway.” Chloe mused, urging the other girl to take off the sweater.

“No!” Marinette refused. She can’t see my scars-

“What is this?” Chloe breathed, looking at the pale lines that revealed themselves when the sweater sleeve pulled up a little. The girl immediately pulled the sleeves back down defensively, but Chloe Bourgeouis wouldn’t take a no for an answer. She forced the sweater off Marinette, gasping at all the red lines on her arms- Some fresher than the rest- Recent marks.

“M-Marinette...” Chloe faltered, beginning to reach over to trail her fingers over the marks. When Marinette retracted, she angrily reached out, grabbing the dark-haired girl’s hand forcefully. “Do your parents know about this?” She demanded.

The girl shook her head feverishly, trying to yank her arm from Chloe’s grip, but since she’d been eating less and less, she wasn’t in any state to fight against the well-nourished daughter of the mayor.

Chloe shook her head in shock. “Where are... Your knives? Tell me where they are.”

After the blonde insisted fiercely for a few more times, Marinette revealed a drawer in which a few small kitchen knives lay hidden, wrapped with felt. Without a pause, Chloe reached out for them, shoving them into her bag. “I’m taking these from you.” She told Marinette sternly. “And from now on, every day, I will check your arms. If I see any new marks, I’ll tell your parents about this. You don’t want them to worry, right?” Chloe indeed knew Marinette well- She would never want to bother her parents with such a matter. “Then don’t do it.”

She nodded. “Sorry.” She murmured softly, looking guilty.

Chloe snarled. “What are you sorry for? Be sorry for yourself! This is pathetic. Don’t hurt yourself! You’re important, whether you believe it or not! You’ve organized so many things last year. Where’s our old class president? The independent, confident Marinette? That’s you.” Chloe pointed right at the other girl. “This- This isn’t you. You used to fight back when I bullied you. It’s the same thing with Lila. You fight back.” Seeing the girl shivering, Chloe softened, taking the girl’s hands into her own. “You aren’t alone.”

Marinette sniffled a little, nodding. “Thank you, Chloe.”

The blonde huffed. “Now. We need to do something about your outlook. Drop the pigtails. We’ve got to make you look more confident. If you look confident, you will be confident.”

“AKUMA!” A shrill scream from outside interrupted the two girls’ moment.

“I- Chloe, can I ask a favor?” Marinette murmured, her eyes pleading. “Please, please, please, go out there as Kitty Noir for me. I can’t.”

The blonde took a few seconds to process this. “You’re- Oh god, you’re Kitty Noir.”

The cat Kwami immediately protested. “Marinette! You can’t do that! You’re the only true cat!”

“Oh god.” Chloe was panicking now. No. She had to help. “Paris needs you, Mari. Get out there and kick some akuma butt.” She told her sternly.

“I can’t.” Marinette whimpered. “Paris deserves better.”

“I chose you for a reason! And I never make the wrong choice!” Plagg hissed. “So get out there. Say it, Marinette.”

“Plagg... Claws out.”

---

Moments after she transformed, she detransformed. “I can’t do this.” She sobbed.

“Maybe- Maybe we could get another miraculous,” Plagg suggested, eyes lighting up. “Come on, Mari. Robin and Lordbug are waiting!”

“Alright...” She sighed reluctantly. “Where do we get a miraculous, Plagg?”

“Fu’s place.”

---

When Kitty Noir and Chloe landed outside of Fu’s massage shop, Robin had already gotten ready and was jumping out of Damian’s bedroom. If he had been a second earlier, Kitty would’ve caught him coming out of Damian’s room- Which would’ve revealed his identity.

“You’re asking for this miraculous because?” Master Fu asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I... I can’t do it alone.” Marinette’s voice cracked. “I’m not deserving to be the black cat, sir. Please take the ring back.”

“Plagg has made his choice.” Master Fu answered, smiling in knowingness. “Besides, Robin needs you.” Realizing the mistake he made, he coughed and immediately tried to correct it. “And so does Lordbug.” Turning to Chloe, he scrutinized her a second before picking out the bee miraculous. “This is the bee miraculous. Secure it with your life.”

“Understood.”

“Now go out there and kick that akuma ass.”

---

“This is Queen Bee.” Kitty introduced, jumping in to block a blow from the akuma- An ex-classmate of Lila’s, who’d shown up in Paris for a vacation- But had accidentally found Lila, and in wanting revenge for what Lila did, gave into Hawkmoth’s orders. Don’t ask Robin how he knew that. He’s Robin. He just knows.

“Right. Help out, yea?” Robin grunted, kicking away another flying object that the akuma flung at him.

“I want revenge from Lila Rossi! Where are you, huh, you lying bitch?” The akuma roared.

“Woah.” Queen Bee muttered under her breath. “Guess we aren’t her only victims.”

A look of warning from Kitty reminded the girl to protect their identities. And honestly, if Robin had been paying attention, he’d have immediately guessed their identities.

“Kitty, Bee, go find Lila Rossi! I have a plan.” Robin growled, leaping away from a crashing car.

The two superheroes nodded, running off.

“I think he wants to use her as bait,” Kitty said, panting a little as they sprinted over the rooftops, Queen Bee still trying to get used to her powers.

“Well, I hope she gets killed in the process,” Bee muttered off-handedly under her breath, making Kitty laugh.

“Let’s not get our hopes up.” Kitty grinned, jumping off a building to where the girl had been spotted.

---

“Kitty Noir!” Lila gushed over the superhero, beaming. Kitty only stepped back from the girl before Queen Bee pushed her forward.

“We need your help.” Queen Bee smiled forcedly. “Come with us.”

---

Lila was placed on the tip of the building, in the perfect view of the flying akuma.

“I really hope she gets hit.” Queen Bee sighed, crossing her fingers.

“Honestly, same.” Robin sympathized. “She keeps hurting my angel.”

Queen Bee raised an eyebrow, smirking. “Your angel?”

Robin glared at her. “Marinette.” He sighed. “She’s perfect.”

Queen Bee nearly hooted before nudging Kitty Noir, who only blushed and stepped on her foot with force, earning a shriek out of the yellow superhero.

“Quiet!” Robin hissed, glaring daggers at Queen Bee, who only huffed, annoyed. “The akuma’s coming, take cover.” He instructed.

“Lila! Oh, we meet again, old friend.” The akuma cackled, tracing a finger creepily down Lila’s shoulder. “I’m going to make you vomit all those lies you omitted!”

Glancing over the ledge, the three superheroes watched as the akuma laced lines to Lila- Lines that were attached to a controller. Lila had become a puppet.

“Holy shit.” Robin breathed, watching the thing unfold. “That’s some badass villain shit we got. Alright. Here’s the plan.”

The two turned to him.

“Okay, we don’t have a plan.”

---

“I lied to Sancha and Molly. I said that you didn’t want to join them.” Lila confessed, choking as the akuma continued to cackle, pulling on the strings. Alya, nearby, waiting for the superheroes, looked on, horrified. “I lied. It wasn’t Marinette who threatened me. I threatened Marinette. I told Chloe if she didn’t chase Sabrina from herself, I would.” Lila continued to choke as a smoke substance left her throat, each lie she confessed getting darker and darker.

“Marinette was innocent. So was Chloe. So was Lily, Freya, Angelina, Pomeline-” The girl continued to spout the names of the people she’d destroyed.

“I think we know who the true villain is, here.” The akuma spat, jerking on a line that made Lila slap herself.

“But that doesn’t mean you have to hurt the villain.” Kitty Noir spoke up before Queen Bee or Robin could stop her.

“Hmp! As if you understand.” The akuma harrumphed.

“I’ve been bullied before. I know how it feels. Everyone turning against you, you’re alone. There’s no way out.” Kitty Noir continued, slowly stepping towards the akuma. “It doesn’t mean they’re right, but it doesn’t mean you need revenge. It makes you the same as them. It makes you the very person you didn’t want to become.”

“She destroyed my life. My friends all left me.” The akuma hissed, black tears falling down to the earth like stained rain.

“So did mine.” Her voice was quiet.

The akuma stared at her in stunned silence.

Take her miraculous!

“Hawkmoth.” Kitty began. “He’s a bully, too.”

“You said you were bullied.” The akuma sniffled. “What did you do? You said we shouldn’t take revenge. Then do we just stay quiet?”

“No, because your feelings matter, too.” Queen Bee interrupted, standing up. “I’ve been a bully before. I didn’t know, and for that, I apologize.” Kitty could hear the truly sincere apology right there. “You don’t stay quiet. You fight back.”

Kitty shot Bee a smile, taking her hand. “So, please. Hawkmoth is a bully. Give us your hand.”

The akuma slowly landed, Lila limp in her hands. Her fingers reached out, but before she could take Kitty’s extended hand, Hawkmoth’s voice grew louder.

Don’t listen to them! They’ll only lie to you, the way Lila did!

“Take my hand.”

She did.

---

Never in his life had Robin been that impressed. He had never seen anyone convince a villain out of, well, villainy. His whole life he’d been taught to fight and that was it. He’d never been taught to talk, to give chances. And for that, he respected Kitty, Bee, and most of all, his angel.

“It’s alright.” Kitty hushed as Robin ‘disappeared’, and Lordbug appeared to purify the akuma. “What’s your name?”

“Rachel Roth.”

---

(In this au, Raven isn’t in the teen titans. I’m planning to put Chloe and Raven in a relationship (It’s that or Chloe with Nathaniel, but I like the idea of Chloe as a bully growing with a bully victim as the love interest.))

(Tag list! @yin-390 @mysteriouslyswimmingfan-blo-blog @constancetruggle @the-navistar-carol @never-neverland @rayray384 @mystery-5-5 @black-streak @bluerosette23 @seraphichan @you-will-never-know-how-i-think @mikantsume @graduatedmelon @thebookwormfairy @crazylittlemunchkin @shizukiryuu @screamingtofillthevoid @serenacross200 @zestyzealot @redscarlet95 @roseinbloom02 @beautym3 @resignedcatservant @sizzling-fairy-oil @tinybrie @worlds-tiniest-spook-pastry )

#bullying isn't right #fight bullying #anti bullying #marinettedupaincheng #kittynoir #chloe bourgeois #queenbee #damianwayne #robin #lordbug #daminette #raven #teentitansraven #rachelroth #don't self harm pls #take care of yourself #you are important #lila rossi is the problem #chloe x raven/rachel

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jeontaeh · 3 years

Text

THIRTY THREE³³

✫ ✬ ✭ ✬ ✫

Jungkook walked into the dining room. The night before, Lavender had slept in Yoongi's empty room (because he slept with Hoseok) and Jungkook hated it. Hated how they just let some random girl into their ship. When Jungkook did it, everyone was livid. But when Taehyung does it, it's somehow fine?????

Jungkook felt his breathing get heavier, eyebrow twitch. Lavender was pouring tea into cups. "What're you doing?" Jungkook asked, and Lavender turned to look at him.

"Oh! Good morning Jungkook. Your hospitality has been more than kind, so I woke up earlier to make some breakfast for everyone." Lavender smiled sweetly.

Jungkook bit the inside of his cheek. He saw plates of bread and sausages and bacon and baked beans- and nodded. Jungkook felt like he was feverish all night until Taehyung walked through the doors of the dining room. Jungkook felt that icky feeling in his chest go away.

"Taehyung-" Jungkook let out, and saw Lavender pick her head up to look at Taehyung as well. "H-hi- um- how'd you sleep?" Jungkook asked softly, seeing Taehyung's darker grey hair and light eyes.

"Good." He said curtly and then looked at the dinner table. "Woah- Lav, did you make all of this?" Taehyung asked, and Lavender nodded. "Aw, you didn't have to go through all that trouble."

"That's okay! You've been so kind to me, I'm just doing whatever I can to repay you somehow."

"Don't worry about it," Taehyung said softly and then smiled. "Did you sleep well?"

Jungkook felt the feverish feeling coming back and played with his fingers. He was probably just talking to her to be nice, that's all; Jungkook waited until they finished their conversation, and then Taehyung turned around to look at Jungkook.

"Hey Jungkook, could you help set up the table a bit?" Taehyung asked, and Jungkook's heart bloomed.

"Y-yeah- sure thing, Tae," Jungkook squeaked, rushing to the table to help out. Jungkook felt his cheeks reddening as he placed the plates down, but when he did, he looked up and saw Lavender and Taehyung walk out of the room. Oh.

"I just wanted to show her the control room stuff. Thanks." Taehyung gave him an awkward friendly smile and then left before Jungkook could even think.

Jungkook sat down on the chair, confused and irritated. Jin walked into the dining room. "Are those some BEANS on the table-"

"Jin," Jungkook started, sounding powerless. "W-why's Taehyung acting weird?"

"What do you mean?" Jin asked, sitting down beside him.

"H-he's avoiding me and only paying attention to that big-eyed bitch," Jungkook mumbled.

"He's only paying attention to Jimin?"

"What? No- Jimin's not a big-eyed- no, I mean Lav." Jungkook said, grimacing in the end. Jin smacked his thigh.

"What did I tell you about respecting women and not using derogatory terms to address them?" Jin snapped, and Jungkook cowered his head.

"S-sorry," Jungkook said softly, and then sighed. "H-he's just... not acting like he used to. And I-I don't know what to do," Jungkook breathed, and Jin hummed, chewing on his bottom lip.

"He cares, Jungkook. You know he cares. Just- do something to make him realize how much he does care about you. He'll come to talk to you on his own." Jin said, and Jungkook's eyes grew bigger, gleaming.

"Good idea, Jin," Jungkook said, and then heard the commotion, and saw everyone else walk into the dining room.

Jimin, Yoongi, and Hoseok walked in, all discussing something about bread TRULY is man's greatest invention. Taehyung and Lavender walked in, talking about something in whispers, which aggravated Jungkook further. And then Namjoon walked in, looking a little sleepy.

Jungkook grinned. Yes. He had an idea.

Jungkook got up from his seat and saw Taehyung and Lavender sit together on one side of the table. Namjoon walked over to sit next to Jin. Jungkook cleared his throat.

"Oh my gosh, Namjoon~" Jungkook flared airily, and Namjoon looked at him with confusion. "You're literally the best captain ever." He said sultrily, which caused Namjoon to look a little taken aback but smile nonetheless.

"Oh- um, thanks, Kook," Namjoon said quickly, and then Jungkook saw Taehyung talking to Jin, so he rushed up to Namjoon and then sat down on his lap, practically draping himself over him.

"And you're soooo handsome," Jungkook continued, turning to check if Taehyung was looking. Jungkook placed one hand on Namjoon's cheek, the other raking through his purple hair. "Mm- so- so smart, Namjoon-"

"What the fuck is going on," Namjoon whispered in fear to Jin, who's eyes were widened.

"Oh my god," Jimin said, and Yoongi and Hoseok looked confused as fuck too.

"Wow- isn't it so cool that you have the biggest dick on this ship?" Jungkook said sultrily, lips tracing over Namjoon's cheek, all while Jungkook was looking at Taehyung to see if he was looking. God fucking damnit, he wasn't-

"Jungkook-" Jin started, and then Jungkook turned a bit so Taehyung would have a clearer view, and pressed his and Namjoon's lips together.

Namjoon hesitated through the kiss, grabbing Jungook's waist. Jungkook opened his eyes while kissing him, and then grinned when he saw Taehyung looking at them.

"What?" Taehyung let out, a little confused.

Lavender leaned in. "Did Jungkook have one of those brownies you told me about?"

Jungkook pulled away from Namjoon and looked at Taehyung, eyebrow's lifted. "You told her about the fucking brownies but not about me?!" Jungkook shouted, and Taehyung's eyes widened.

"There is so much happening right now," Hoseok whispered, and Namjoon just looked dazed and confused.

"I-I'm going to get more tea," Lavender said, getting up. Jimin snickered. "Girl, the tea is right here!"

Taehyung stood up, looking at Jungkook expressionlessly. "I'm gonna go help her out." He said, and Jungkook's shoulders dropped. He watched Taehyung walk out with nothing more to add, nothing to say, nothing to object.

But suddenly, Jungkook was pulled up by his ear and off Namjoon's lap. "Ow ow ow ow-"

"What is wrong with you?!" Jin snapped, and Jungkook tried pulling his hand off, whimpering in pain. "When I said do something to get his attention- I meant to give him fucking strawberries or some shit! Not kiss Namjoon!"

"Sorry- sorry-" Jungkook stammered quickly, and then Jin let him o. "I-I just thought he'd get m-mad and jealous a-and all possessive over me."

The boys looked at Namjoon, who looked a little dazed. "W-what just happened-"

"Sorry," Jungkook said. "I-I shouldn't have got you involved..."

"Yeah, you really shouldn't have. Give Tae time, he'll come around," Jin said, and then grabbed Namjoon and pulled him up from the chair. "Tell me, I'll talk to him for you if you need it," Jin said, and then grabbed Namjoon close. "Your bedroom. 5 minutes." Jin snapped in his ear, and then spun Namjoon around and gave him a little push.

"Yes sir." Namjoon said, and then walked out.

"Literally 47 events conspired in the span of 3 minutes. Jungkook, you really thought kissing Namjoon would get his attention?" Yoongi asked.

"Yeah! Taehyung knows I find him attractive, we've had a whole conversation about it. I said I'd let him fuck me, and Taehyung got pissed when I told him." Jungkook explained casually.

"You what?!" Jin asked, and Yoongi sighed.

"Me too, to be honest," Yoongi said.

"Same," Hoseok said.

"Yeah, me too," Jimin said, and all of the boys looked at him in confusion. "What- I'm allowed to have thoughts too. Plus, it's not like it'd ever happened,"

"Fair enough," Jungkook said, and then Jin sighed and walked out of the room, mumbling something about never giving that little bitch advice again as he walked out.

"Jungkook, you might be overthinking this. I mean, he was gone for a month. Just give him some time, he'll come around." Jimin smiled, and Jungkook hummed. "Yeah. Thanks, Jimin." Jungkook smiled and then walked out of the room.

He definitely wasn't overthinking this. His feelings were correct, and his anger was justified. Why the fuck was Taehyung ignoring him?

Jungkook walked into the control room and saw Taehyung standing by the window, looking outside in silence. Jungkook walked up to him, hesitant and frankly, a little scared. Jungkook tapped on his shoulder.

Taehyung turned to look at him. "Hey."

"Hi." Jungkook said softly and then giggled a little, trying to ease the tension between them. "Um- didn't you think that was weird? What- what happened in the dining room?"

There was a small pause where Jungkook was looking down, and then Taehyung snickered. "Yeah. That was weird."

Jungkook's eyes gleamed as he looked up, and then Taehyung continued. "I thought Namjoon and Jin were together?"

Jungkook smiled a little, trying to get the emotions he'd been missing out of Taehyung. "Well- y-yeah- but-but I kissed Namjoon, wasn't that weird to you-"

"Sure," Taehyung said, and then turned to look outside again.

Jungkook paused. "T-Tae," Jungkook let out, feeling weak, miserable. "W-what's going on?"

Taehyung continued looking outside. "D-did something bad happen on that other ship?"

"No," Taehyung said. "Everything's fine. I'm really happy to be back."

Jungkook grabbed Taehyung's hand. "Why're you- why are you ignoring me? Just- t-talk to me, Tae. You're being weird-"

"Jungkook-" Taehyung pulled his arm back. "-stop touching me," Taehyung snapped in a low voice.

Jungkook froze, and then looked up at him with his big eyes. Taehyung took a step back. "I- um- I need to go."

Jungkook felt moisture building beneath his brown eyes and nodded quickly, turning back to look outside. He dug his fingernails into his palm, trying to steady his breathing. He felt tears pricking his eyes and then hung his head low, letting a tear fall from his eye.

It hurt so fucking much.

✭

Hours had passed since then. The ship was moving again towards Lav's planet to drop her off, and then on route to the closest place where they could get help. Jungkook walked into the kitchen to get some coffee for himself, for he'd been cooped up in his bedroom all day.

He felt like he was bothering Taehyung. Stop touching me. Doesn't Taehyung feel that flicker of joy when Jungkook touches him? Doesn't Taehyung feel his heart racing faster every time Jungkook's near? Doesn't Taehyung feel like half a part of himself when Jungkook's away?

Why does Jungkook feel like that, but Taehyung doesn't seem to?

And why was all of this happening? So suddenly- so fast?

Jungkook walked into the kitchen, and then stopped when he saw Lavender there. She seemed to be putting strawberries on a plate. She tuned and smiled when she saw Jungkook there.

"Hello, Jungkook! Nice to see you!" She said. "I was making a snack, as you humans call it, for Taehyung. And- and Park Jimin told me that Taehyung likes hot chocolate, which is heated chocolate milk- not melted chocolate! And strawberries. So I am making that for him." Lav smiled.

"Why?" Jungkook asked, getting a little annoyed. She was everywhere and constantly doing things for Taehyung and he was giving her attention. Ugh.

"Because he is a really nice friend. And I want to pay him back by being sweet,"

"Got it." Jungkook mumbled, and then saw her with her hot chocolate mix in her hand, and then smiled. "You know, Jimin's a bad guy."

"What?" Lav asked, turning to face him. "No no- Jimin is so nice! Taehyung told me lots about him, and turns out it's all true! He has been very kind to me." Lav said.

"No, I mean, he lied to you. I don't know why... but he did. Taehyung doesn't like hot chocolate." Jungkook said, sighing dramatically.

"Oh... w-why would Jimin lie?" Lav asked in a small voice.

"I dunno. But I'll tell you what Taehyung loves. He loves alcohol and coffee. Maybe you should, like, mix it together or something. He'd love that." Jungkook said with a smile, eyes gleaming.

Lav smiled. "Oh! Really? Great! I'll make a concoction of that!" Lav chirped.

Jungkook nodded. "And, you know what you could do. Strawberries by itself is a little boring." Jungkook said, walking into the kitchen properly. Jungkook opened a cabinet and took out paprika. "Sprinkle this onto the strawberries. He'll love it."

"O-oh- wow! Thank you so much, Jungkook. You are so very kind. I don't understand why Taehyung didn't tell me about you. Your hair is very bright too." Lav said with a kind smile.

Jungkook hummed. "Well. He- um- he probably meant to say it, but forgot. 'Cause we had a little fight before he left. But we- we're dating. So. Yeah." Jungkook said, and Lav looked at him with big eyes.

"What?" She asked softly.

Jungkook nodded. "Yeah. We've been together for a really long time." Jungkook said, and then looked at her reaction to see if she reacted weirdly.

"Oh... I-I didn't know that..." Lav trailed, looking confused.

"Anyways. Get that meal ready and give it to him. He'll love it." Jungkook smiled, and then turned around and walked away.

Jungkook walked till Taehyung's room and then knocked on the door. The door swung open, and Taehyung stood on the other side, grey hair falling on his forehead, wearing a big black t-shirt and sweats. "Oh, hey."

"Hi." Jungkook said. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

"I'm busy," He said quickly, and Jungkook bit the inside of his cheek.

"Well- I-I just wanted to talk about Lavender," Jungkook said, and then Taehyung frowned.

"Lav? Why? Everything's okay, right?"

Jungkook frowned at that but then smiled quickly. "Yeah. Everything's okay. I just... I don't know. She seems a little weird to me."

Taehyung snickered. "She can come off as a little weird at times, but she's really sweet," Taehyung said.

"I dunno. I guess you do know her better." Jungkook sighed. "She just seems really fake. Like she's being really sweet, but beneath that, she's not, y'know, and-"

"You don't even know her, Jungkook. She's genuinely kind. You wouldn't know about that," Taehyung said, and Jungkook frowned. Before Jungkook could speak up, Taehyung scuffed the bridge of his nose in irritation, it seemed. "Why are you here? Is there something you need?" Taehyung asked, and Jungkook looked at him.

"N-no..." Jungkook trailed, scrunching his hand into a fist. "I-I just wanted to talk to you. I thought we were soulmates." Jungkook mumbled and Taehyung paused.

Before Taehyung could speak, both boys heard a loud giggle and turned their heads. It was Lavender, walking over to Taehyung with a mug in one hand and a plate of strawberries in the other.

"Tae!" Lavender called. "Look! I got you your favorite foods~"

"Oh- wow- thank you, Lav. Aww, this is so sweet," Taehyung smiled, and Jungkook just watched silently. Jimin walked out of his room and grinned.

"Oh, Lav- you gave him the stuff. That's nice." Jimin said, and Lav turned to face him and frowned adorably.

"Yeah, but you were a little meanie about it and decided to play with me! Jungkook helped me out, thank god." Lavender giggled, and Jimin frowned.

"What?"

Jungkook watched as Taehyung grabbed one of the strawberries and took a bite of it. He began chewing on it, but then his face slowly turned to a frown. "Why- why is it spicy?"

"Huh?" Lavender asked, and Jungkook stayed silent, and Jimin looked confused too. Taehyung took the green part out and then coughed. "Did- did you put spice on this or something?"

Lavender blinked in confusion. "I-I thought you put the r-red spice on the strawberries-"

Taehyung coughed a little more. "Oh jeez- I hate spicy food. It's fine, you didn't know. Um-" Taehyung said, but then grabbed the mug and smiled. "Hot chocolate- this should be fine," He grinned, and then took a sip. The moment he did, he spat it back into the mug.

"Oh, my- Jesus- what is that?" Taehyung let out, and Jungkook looked at Lavender, who's eyes widened in confusion. "Did you mix coffee with vodka? Lav, I hate both of those things. I thought I told you-"

"N-no- but-" Lavender started, and then looked like she was lost for words, her eyes growing bigger in confusion. "I-I'm s-sorry- J-Jungkook told me that y-you liked i-it-" Lavender stammered quickly.

"What're you talking about?" Jungkook said, and Lavender looked at him. "No, I didn't."

Lavender looked frazzled for a few seconds, but then her eyes grew with tears, and she turned around and rushed away, letting out a cry.

Jungkook stilled, and Jimin frowned at Jungkook- and turned to follow her and make sure she was alright. Jungkook looked at Taehyung, letting out a weak snicker.

"Told you she was weird. I mean, putting spice on strawberries? That's just-" Jungkook started.

Taehyung dropped the mug to the floor, it crashing into pieces, making Jungkook flinch from the sudden sound. He turned and saw Taehyung looked at him with darkened eyes.

"Do you think I'm fucking dumb, Jungkook?" Taehyung said lowly, and Jungkook's eyes grew big. "She was trying to do a nice thing for me, and you fucked that up just because you dislike her or something??"

Jungkook looked for the right words to say, but then just choked out- "I-I d-didn't-"

"Yes, you did!" Taehyung snapped, and Jungkook flinched, moving back. Taehyung grabbed his arm. "Did you think it was funny? To fuck with her like that? She's been nothing but kind to all of us since the morning, and you've done nothing but treat her like shit!"

Jungkook looked down. "S-sorry- I-I didn't m-mean to-"

"God, would you just grow up, Jungkook. This isn't funny, this isn't a game. People get hurt. People have feelings. You can't just fuck with that and then expect them to be okay," Taehyung said sharply, and Jungkook felt his eyes cloud with tears.

"I-I'm sorry." Jungkook squeaked.

"Clean this up, and then apologize to her. Got it?" Taehyung said, and then rushed over to go find Lavender.

Jungkook felt like he couldn't move, felt tears filling his eyes. Felt guilt creeping up his chest and confining him. He felt a black shadow surrounding his vision. Jungkook knelt down to the ground, scrambling his shaking hands to pick the broken pieces of the mug. Until he couldn't.

Until he realized he'd been sobbing this whole time. Until he realized he couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't move an inch. He had fallen to the floor, hands placed against the ground to help him up.

This was happening for the second time, this kind of panic, this anxiety filling him up and situating him to a state of unrest, nausea. This wasn't good. But he didn't want Taehyung to get mad at him. To get annoyed by him constantly having problems. Jungkook felt guilty. Didn't want Taehyung to think he was doing this for attention.

"Jungkook? O-oh my god, are you okay?" Hoseok said, and Jungkook heard it. He felt himself get picked up and held like a baby. A stupid baby who couldn't take care of himself and fucked everything up.

"Call Taehyung," He heard Yoongi's voice say.

"No!" Jungkook screamed, shaking his head rapidly, felt Hoseok, who was holding him tightly, carry him somewhere. "N-no- p-p-please d-don't-"

"Okay, okay Kookie, we won't call him. Jin, you help him please," Yoongi said, and Jungkook was placed on the floor.

Jin knelt down to face him, and Jungkook saw him through the blur of his eyes. "Jungkook, you need Taehyung for this, you know you do-"

"N-no-" Jungkook begged, fat tears rolling down his pale cheeks. "P-p-please- h-he'll get a-angry at me-"

"This happens every time, Jungkook. Every time you and Taehyung have a fight you end up getting hurt or having a panic attack."

Jungkook couldn't respond, just put his hands against his face. "L-Leave me alone, p-please-"

"I don't think that's good for you-"

"Please." Jungkook cried out softly, and then heard a grudging response, and footsteps move out, and the door close.

Jungkook sniffled, trying to control his breathing. Taehyung didn't love him anymore. That's the only explanation for this vast pain. Taehyung had stopped loving him.

Jungkook finally took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling. He kept looking, felt like he was looking at stars. Felt like this was meaningless. All of it was meaningless.

All of it.

✫ ✬ ✭ ✬ ✫

https://jeontaeh.tumblr.com/post/647229782344564736/thirty-four%C2%B3%E2%81%B4

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may8344 · 4 years

Text

The Journey of a Forgotten Soldier (Levi x OC)

Relationships:

Alana Frey (OC)Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin)/Original Female Character(s)Levi Ackerman/Alana FreyFurlan Church/Original Character(s)Furlan Church/Alana Frey

Characters:

Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin)Furlan ChurchIsabel MagnoliaAlana Frey (OC) - CharacterErwin SmithHange ZoëPetra RalGunther SchultzEld JinnOluo BozadoKeith ShadisSpecial Operations Squad | Squad Levi

Additional Tags:

Graphic Description of CorpsesBlood and InjuryViolenceMurder

Summary:

Alana Frey, a girl born in the Underground City, longed to see the true sunlight every morning that she would wake up. Alongside her comrades: Furlan Church, Isabel Magnolia, and Levi, Alana’s life as a thug continued with no way around it; until the sudden day she and her companions were offered the deal of a lifetime.

“Once you complete this job, not only will you be generously compensated for your work,

but you will also earn the right to live above ground.”

Word Count: 2.1k

---

Chapter 6: To Be a Soldier

“This is the military barracks,” Flagon introduced as he walked inside a decently spaced room filled with bunk beds. The quartet followed behind, admiring the area.

“There’s quite a few bunks, huh…” Furlan commented, carrying his small bag of belongings.

Isabel jumped up and down in excitement. “Sweet! So we all get to sleep in the same room!?”

“The women’s barracks are separate.”

“Aww! I wanna stay here, too!” Isabel whined, her enthusiasm dying out.

“That’s enough, Isabel,” Furlan scolded.

“Furlan, how could you!?”

“I didn’t make the rules!”

“This bunk’s for you two men,” Flagon cut off their bickering, obviously annoyed. Gesturing to the bunk bed in the corner, their leader crossed his arms, almost in disgust. “I know you’ve spent your whole lives living in a trash heap, but try to keep this place clean.”

Irked, Levi stomped his way over to the wooden framed bed and ran his hand underneath it. Little flecks of dust floated down, some clinging to the ravenette’s hand. He stared at his hand with disgust. His three companions turned to each other in fear of his reaction, but the squad leader appeared confused.

“What did you just say?” Levi threateningly asked as he marched over to Flagon, only inches away from him. There was quite a height difference due to Levi’s short stature, but that didn’t make him any less menacing.

“Hey! Don’t use that attitude with your Superior Officer, you little punk!”

“Anyway!” Furlan butted in before either of them decided to fight, “Don’t worry, Mr. Squad Leader, sir! We’ll keep it clean! Right, Levi?” He looked at his friend. Quickly doing his incorrect salute, he tried to make peace out of the situation.

After noticing it earlier, Alana quickly moved by Furlan and gently took his arm, turning his fist to have his palm upwards.

Flagon clicked his tongue with irritation, and turned on his heel to walk away. “When you’re done unpacking, come to the training yard. Chruch’ll beat you into shape, starting with a proper salute.” With that, he left, slamming the door in his wake.

“Levi! Didn’t I tell you not to cause trouble? We’re suspicious enough already,” Alana scolded.

“Didn’t you hear what that prick was spouting out of his big mouth?” Levi began wiping off his dirtied hand with a white cloth from his pocket.

Alana placed her hand firmly on Levi’s shoulder with a small smile on her face. “Look, I know this isn’t ideal, but once we finish our mission, then we’ll finally be able to live up here. We can stay in a warm little house together just like before. We’ll be able to see the sun everyday and breathe the fresh air. Isn’t it worth it?” Her gaze turned to the other two who were standing proudly. “We’ll all see beyond the Walls together.”

Levi grumbled but nodded. The cloth was clenched between his fingers, but he eased under Alana’s touch.

“We weren’t just caught by accident, you know.” Furlan put his hands on his hips and frowned. “I hope you haven’t forgotten why we’re here, Levi.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“In that case, until we get our hands on those documents, we’ve got to do everything we can to avoid arousing the soldiers’ suspicions!”

“The reconnaissance Battalion will likely come after you.” The mysterious man in the carriage added. “Be sure to put up a little resistance. There are two things I’ll have you do for me. First, you will obtain a certain document, which is in the possession of Erwin Smith.”

“Stop bothering Big Bro, Furlan! We can just beat the stuffin’ outta all of ‘em like we do Underground!” Isabel yelled as she climbed up to the top bed.

“Quiet. Idiots should be seen, not heard,” Furlan commented, annoyed by Isabel’s nonchalant words.

“Hey! Who you callin’ idiot!?”

“Fine. What’s eighteen plus twenty-two?”

Isabel paused before counting on her fingers. “Um… take eight plus two, carry the…”

“It’s forty, idiot.” Levi answered, slightly nudging the ginger’s head.

“Big Bro! Not you too!” Isabel whined as tears started to prick her eyes after her pride had been hurt.

Seeing the pain in her eyes, Levi sighed and ruffled the hair on top of Isabel’s head. “You’re such a pain in the ass, idiot. You don’t need to know how to add to go on living anyway. Let him try to live on numbers instead of food and see where it gets him.” He turned his head to the blond. “But Furlan, didn’t your plan call for us to join Blondie’s squad?”

“At least give me a small margin of error,” Furlan complained. “We made it into the Survey Corps. As long as we find it before the expedition outside the Wall…”

Levi slammed his fist hard into the wooden bed frame, anger flooding through him. “We still got to take care of him.”

“I understand how you feel, but that’s-”

The strange man continued his request, “And secondly, to kill the Scouting Regiment’s section commander, Erwin Smith.”

“Furlan.” Levi stopped him and walked towards the taller blond. “I’ll go along with your plan, but I will kill him.”

With a sigh, Furlan finally gave in. “Okay, fine.”

“But, before that.” Levi made his way over to the closed window in the room and pried it open. In record time, he tied a cloth on top of his head and one to go around his face. Taking a broom from one of the small closets, he turned to his three friends.

Alana stared at him with shock. “How did you know there was even a broom in there!?”

Ignoring her question, he turned and scowled to his friends. “Clean around the beds. Don’t leave a single speck of dust behind.”

“What? Now?” Isabel whined.

“You wouldn’t want me to cause trouble, would you?”

[~]

“Hiyah!” Isabel yelled as she urged her brown horse forward. A large smile was drawn on her face as she rode in excitement. She raced across the entire field as if she were a professional. Slowly balancing to a standing position on the saddle, she launched her ODM wires to attach herself to a nearby tree. Maneuvering her way up with a pump of gas, she cheered, hanging from the tree. “C’mere, you!” She yelled to her horse, which immediately galloped to the area in front of the redhead. Jumping off the tree, she landed back on her horse. “Woah, buddy!” She yanked the reins to bring the horse to a stop. Turning to her teacher, Isabel smiled, “How’s that?”

“I’m shocked!” Her female teacher responded with her eyes wide. “I didn’t think she’d get used to you so quickly.”

“Nah, living Underground I’ve gotten good with animals. The ones I have trouble with’re people!” She joked.

“The higher-ups and the other soldiers all put you down because you’re from the Underground, but it must’ve been hard on you, living down there, right?”

Isabel paused, a little in thought. Not letting her pride weaken, she turned her eyes away and mumbled. “Yeah, I guess. I was born and raised Underground, so for me, livin’ in a trash heap was normal. It got so I thought I was gonna die, but life’s a little better since Lana, Furlan, and Big Bro saved me from that.”

“Big Bro?”

“Yeah, Levi!”

“I see… Levi did that?”

“That’s right! He’s the strongest, even Underground!” Isabel stated, proud of the man she looked up to.

“Is Furlan the same?”

“Nah, Furlan’s…” She trailed off as she turned to where Furlan sat with another Scout member.

[~]

“I didn’t stand a chance,” Furlan sighed, speaking to his fellow soldier. “In the blink of an eye, every last one of my friends turned on me. Since then, about two years ago, I’ve always been with Levi and Lana. Though it might've been problematic making him any kind of leader.”

“Is he really that skilled?” The Scout member, who sat next to him, asked with interest on his face.

“Let’s just say you should stop trying to provoke him,” he laughed.

“Is Alana as strong, too?”

Furlan nodded. “Yeah, one of the best hand-to-hand fighters that I’ve seen. In some ways, she might be better at it than Levi himself.”

“I see.” The Scout’s eyes trailed up the building next to them. “Oops,” the member suddenly stood up from the wooden logs he and Furlan sat on and mumbled. “We’d better not chat here. Section commander Erwin’s watching.”

“From that room?”

“If we perform well, we can get private rooms instead of the barracks, too! Anyways, let’s get on with your training.”

Furlan mentally noted the exact room Erwin had stood in for later.

[~]

With a swift, high kick to the jaw, Alana was able to knock her Scout trainer to the ground. Though she remained in a fighting position, she looked at her opponent with a frown. “Are you alright? I didn’t kick you too hard, did I?”

The male Scout shook his head and stood up, rubbing his chin. “You got some moves, kid. I’m surprised. Is everyone from the Underground like this? I thought it was only filled with hungry, violent people.”

Though Alana had taken quite a bit of offense to this, she held back her remarks with a fake smile. “Not everyone, no. I’ve learned to defend myself over the years. It’s useful to know; to people who live on the surface, too.”

“Are your friends like that too?”

“All of my friends are strong. We all survived down there after all.” Alana relaxed her stance.

“I see,” he responded with a huff. Like most of his comrades, he didn’t see any of the four as humans; more as monsters. He clicked his tongue and put a hand on his side. “Well, you’re still not done surviving just because you made it above ground. Fighting against the Titans is no small feat, so don’t think you’re so high and mighty.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it, sir.”

[~]

“You punk… what do you think you’re doing, holding it like that?” Flagon scolded Levi. “They weren’t designed to be held like that! You wanna die the second you step outside the walls?”

Levi held his two, bladed handles securely in his grip. However, the one in his right hand was held backward. Instead of his pointer and middle finger, he used his ring finger and pinky to control the two triggers.

“You might end up that way,” he scoffed in response, swinging around his weapons. “All that matters is slicing through the back of the Titan’s neck, right? Let me do that however I want.” With that, Levi launched his gear and started swinging through the training field trees.

Flagon was ticked off at this point. With the rest of his squad, he set off into the trees after the ravenette. Wooden Titan dummies, with make-shift rubber napes, were spread out. Some were controlled with a rope by other Scouts to move, but the rest were non-controlled and stood still.

“Hiyah!” One of the dark-haired Scouts named Sairam screamed his battle cry as he dug his blades into the nape, successfully slicing through. Unfortunately, due to how deep he had cut, one of his blades were ripped out of the handle to his gear, remaining stuck in the rubber.

Behind him, both Levi and a platinum blond-haired Scout followed, blades in hand, and ready to strike. Levi zoomed ahead, prepared to make contact. The other watched and mumbled under his breath. “These mysterious thugs… These vagrants with no knowledge as soldiers… I’ve trained half to death, and these criminals think they’re better!?” Quickly catching up, both of them struck the same dummy.

Levi cut with perfection, but his fellow soldier’s was a little shallow. Bitterly, the blond looked around, finding an untouched dummy. Pushing off of a tree, he raced towards it, keeping his eyes on Levi. “Don’t get left behind!”

From the distance away, the dark haired Scout yelled back. “Hey, wait! look out! I screwed up!”

Suddenly, the prideful, light haired Scout was heading straight towards an open blade. Due to his acceleration, he wouldn’t be able to dodge it without at least a deep cut.

Seeing the danger, Levi launched himself off of one of the nearby trees towards the dummy. With near inhuman speed, he flew past the terrified soldier and dug his sword into the area with the stray blade, quickly getting rid of it before anyone could get hurt. The light haired soldier landed face first on the newly cut rubber area. His head snapped up and he stared at the black haired man in front of him. “How can he be… so fast?”

Levi spared the dumbfounded Scout a mere glare as he continued forward.

---

(A/N) Hello readers! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, because it was a lot of fun to write versus the previous one (a lot less military talk). I enjoy writing for these four so much, so I hope I'm able to convey this through to all of you. Thank you for reading and I hope you have a good day.

Thank you Brianna for editing.

Part 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13

#shingeki no kyojin #attack on titan #levi #levi ackerman #fanfic #levi x oc #OC #attack on titan fanfiction #levi ackerman x oc #furlan church #isabel magnolia #alana frey

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heywritersblock · 5 years

Text

gym bunny: JJK

a forgotten gym pass, first meetings, a flirty JK and a side of embarrassing tae.

(or the gym!au where a forgetful jungkook meets the girl of his dreams in the helpful receptionist)

contains all the fluff!

~9000 words

“Shit.”

The first thing you see when you look up from your desk to see where the voice has come from is a tall, toned man wearing black basketball shorts and a black hoodie. His backpack - black, of course - is hanging off one shoulder and the man is scrabbling in the front pocket, then wrenching open the main compartment. He’s jostled from the side by a man who pushes past him, scans his pass and pushes through the glass door to enter the gym. A defeated sigh pulls your attention back to the guy dressed in head to toe black. He’s glaring up at the ceiling, mumbling to himself and a small smile slips onto your face as you can practically see him cursing himself.

Taking pity on him, you call over, “Hey! You good?”

Your presence seems to make him jump and he turns his head to look in your direction. His wild, black hair is peeking out of a black beanie that he messes with on his head, pulling it further down towards his eyes.

“Uh - yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. Thanks,” he replies, voice deep but uncertain. You nod politely at him, offering a warm smile before returning your gaze to the paperwork you’re currently trying to complete for your boss. Rule number 6 from your training - don’t push the customer. Let them come to you. You fill in a few more of the details on the paper in front of you before you hear a whispered, fuck it.

“Excuse me? Sorry. I’m so sorry to bother you.”

You look up with a soft smile on your face. “Hey! Not so good after all?”

“Ha. You could say that. I uh- I appear to have left my gym card at home. I was kind of really hoping to work out some stress tonight and I really don’t wanna have to go all the way back home so I was wondering if maybe, well if you-”

“I can get you a temporary pass?” You offer, cutting off his rant and smiling when you see a look of grateful relief flood his face.

“Yes - yes. Is that possible?” He’s wincing like he hates asking for things even though it’s literally your job to help.

“I’ll see what I can do for you,” you say. He makes a little fist pump and he bounces on his feet like you’ve given him the best news he’s heard in a long time. You spin on your desk chair towards the computer and tap in your log in before finding the gym membership records.

“Name?”

“Uh, Jeon Jeongguk.”

“Okay. And date of birth?”

“September 1st ‘97.”

“Cool, I’ve got you. Wait, I think.” You pause and quickly raise your hand to your mouth to cover the burst of laughter that’s threatening to spill out. He looks confused, brow crinkled under his beanie, so you ask, “Um - is this you?” You laugh and move the computer screen to face him as much as possible. He braces his hands on your desk and leans over to see what’s made you question his identity.

“Oh for fuck’s sake,” he laughs, dropping his head into his arm. “My friends are the literal worst. I can’t believe I didn’t know about this,” he says when he’s finally lifted his head off where his arms are crossed on your desk. His cheeks are tinged with pink but he’s taking it in good spirits.

The picture of Jeongguk should be similar to that of a passport - neutral background, serious face with no expression, hair a natural colour so it’s easier to identify you - basically as boring as it should be to be kept on your record for the gym’s policies. This one, however. The background is white and seems to be a wall in a house or an apartment judging by the door frame, but that’s about as close to the guidelines this photo gets. Jeongguk stands off center in the picture, pinkish-red hair shining bright in the natural lighting. It’s pulled back off his forehead by his hand and his face is schooled into the most obscene expression you’ll ever see. In the corner of the photo is the head of another person - a friend, you’d hazard a guess - who’s bent over in laughter and gripping a beanie that looks very much like the one Jeongguk’s wearing today to his face, presumably to dry up his tears of joy.

“I feel like I need to explain,” he laughs. “So um, when I first joined, the guy who takes your picture for your records was off when I came in - I guess he was ill or something. The owner told me like, ‘It’s cool, just send us in a picture when you get a chance and we’ll just use that.’ I got my friends to take one of me like a passport, you know? He took it on his phone and it took a long time to get one that we could use and I guess must have sent this in instead, that bastard!” He explains and joins in with your laughter.

“Jeez, who needs enemies when you’ve got friends like that?” You joke.

“I know, right? God, I can’t believe I’ve been coming to this gym for like, half a year and that’s the photo people see every time I swipe in,” he fake cries, refolding the turn up on his beanie.

“Dude, me neither. If I’d seen this before, I’d have had it printed out and on the staff notice board within minutes. This is too good not to be seen!”

He lets out a loud laugh at the thought of this and watches as you push your chair over to the printer. He’s trying to get a hold on himself when you return back to him, handing him a printed piece of paper with a bar code on.

“Here - this is your temporary pass. It’ll let you in today and register that it’s you. It only lasts for a day so get rid of it when you’re done. I should’ve just sent you back home for it - we shouldn’t be encouraging laziness!” you joke.

He swipes the paper from your hand, giggling again at his picture in the top right hand corner below the gym’s logo and then bowing forward to you in thanks. “Well yeah, but then my roommate definitely would’ve distracted me and you’d never have got a laugh out of this,” he says, flicking his face on the picture. “How dull would your day have been then?”

“You have no idea,” you say with a pointed look. “Well, I guess I should thank you for brightening my day, Mr Jeon.”

You see his eyes flickering down to your nametag fastened onto your white t-shirt before he says, “The pleasure was mine. Thanks again for this!”

He walks backwards from your table to the entrance of the members only area, only turning around to scan the piece of paper you gave him. When the tell-tale beep sounds and the door clicks open, he turns to you offering another silent fist pump before disappearing through the door with a grateful nod of his head.

You send him a grin and an enthusiastic thumbs up and return your eyes to your computer screen, ready to exit the page and return to the paperwork calling your name when temptation strikes. Quickly pressing print, you grab the page fresh from the printer and fold it neatly so only the hilarious picture of Jeongguk is showing. Trying your best to hold in your laughter, you unlock the desk drawer to your right and pop it neatly down the side. You’re sure you’ll find a good use for it.

It’s two days later when you’re dealing with an angry customer on the phone who’s ranting about a rowing machine being out of order when they were there last night. They’ve been shouting at you down the phone for the past twenty minutes and you haven’t got the chance to tell them that there’s another seven rowers adjacent to them, all of which were working. You’re currently resting your head on your hand, trying your very best not to roll your eyes and throwing in the occasional, “Of course, sir. I completely understand how frustrating that must have been,” to show you’re listening. Which you’re not.

The automatic doors into the gym reception open and your eyes slide across to send a practised smile to whoever has just walked in the door when you see it’s Jeongguk from the other day. He’s wearing black shorts and a black t-shirt this time with his hair uncovered. It’s styled in a tousled curl that frames his face perfectly. He grins in greeting and waves his right hand at you, causing you to look closely at what he’s holding. His gym pass.

“Good job!” you mouth across the room at him as he strolls to the members only door.

He bows jokingly, pretending he’s soaking in applause before throwing you a wink and disappearing through the door.

The voice on the phone screeches in your ear, “Miss, are you even listening to me?!”

You jilt out of the reverie you didn’t realise you’d been lost in and sit up quickly on your chair, snapping your mind back to the customer on the phone.

“I’m so sorry, sir. Of course I’m listening, I just wanted to make sure you’d had chance to air your concerns. I’ve listened very intently and I agree with you that it was completely unacceptable that rowing machine 7 was out of order.” You can’t resist the eye roll this time. “Let’s have a chat and see what we can do to put this right for you, okay?”

An hour later and you’re finally off the phone having agreed to extend the customer’s gym membership for another week before he’ll need to renew it. Part of you was pleased that the customer seemed appeased, but the other part of you hated that this was the trivial bullshit that you had to deal with everyday.

Replying again to another monotonous email that springs to life on your screen, you take a sip of your caramel iced coffee and sigh at the sweetness that improves your day just a little bit.

“You know that’s not good for you, right?”

A voice interrupts your partial sulking and you look up to find a pink cheeked and wet haired Jeongguk leaning forward on your desk.

“Which one - the repetitive hum-drum of my shitty job or the only ounce of joy I get in a day?” You reply sarcastically, shaking the remainder of your drink at him when you say the latter.

“Woah, okay. I’m going to go with neither of those. And then I’m going to take my foot out of my mouth.”

“Good choice,” you smile, slurping the last part of your drink off. “How was the workout?”

“Great. Had kind of a stressful day at work and working out makes my head feel a little clearer,” he explains.

“Another?”

“Huh?” he asks, looking away from where he was running his finger along the grain of wood on your desk.

“Another stressful day? You uh- you mentioned you were feeling stressed when you forgot your pass and I just-”

“Oh, right. Well, yeah. Another stressful day. It’s always stressful at this time of year. You know, new tax year and everything.”

“Ah, I see. What is it you do exactly?”

“Accountant.” He watches you nod your head in understanding. “Yeah - what was it you said? Something about your job being repetitive and boring? Think I’ve got you beat there,” he laughs.

“Call it even. I’ve just had a guy yelling at me for a machine being out of order when there was another seven of the same machine right alongside it that he could use,” you shake your head in despair.

“Are you serious? Is that what you were dealing with when I walked in?”

“Yeah, he was ranting for a good thirty, forty minutes I’d say. Sucks but I guess it’s part of the job for now,” you shrug.

“Ah, that’s why you looked royally pissed off. Makes sense. What are your plans then?” He takes in the confused look on your face and smiles at you before explaining, “You said part of the job for now. What’s after now, then?” You pause for a moment in thought and when he ducks his head to regain your eye contact, you realise that your gaze has drifted to the scattered pens and pencils in front of you.

“I uh- well. I dunno, to be honest,” you mumble.

“Okay, that’s cool. Is there anything you’d love to do but you just haven’t got around to it yet? Or are you more of a I’ll try it and see if it’s for me kind of girl?”

“Kids,” you blurt out almost as soon as he’s asked the first question.

He looks a little taken aback, but he nods and then continues. “Okay - okay! Right. Kids! Of your own or-?”

“Oh god, no. No, no, no. Not for a long time. But kids. I love kids. I’d love to work with them but-”

“No! Stop there. We don’t need to hear that ‘but’. So you want to work with kids. That’s awesome. I think you’d be great at that.”

“Oh really?” you laugh. “From the twice that you’ve met me, you think I’d be good with kids.”

“Great with kids, not just good. And yeah!” He can’t help but join in with your laugh and he watches you warmly as you lean back in your chair, resting your hand on your stomach from where you’re laughing.

“Hear me out! I have my reasons prepared,” he laughs. “Listen, the first time I spoke to you, you noticed I was pissed without me having to say anything to you. Reason 1 why you’d be great with kids.” He starts holding out his hand in front of your face and checking off the numbers on his fingers. “Number 2, you helped me out when I finally asked for it. Kids forget things all the time, right? You’re well practised at helping with that. Reason 3 - kids have temper tantrums like, hourly. You deal with grown men throwing hissy fits about fucking rowing machines. A kid would be easy for you to deal with. Do you need me to continue? I reckon I have at least three more reasons including you not judging me about my picture-”

“Who says I didn’t judge you?”

“I’m ignoring that. As I was saying, you didn’t judge me for my horrendous photo, you have a super organised desk,” he peers over the ridge that’s higher than where you’re sat to check he’s correct, standing back up when he’s convinced he’s right. “You fill paperwork out all day long which - I don’t know much about this - but like, I’m sure you’ll have to do that if you work with kids, right? And you work in a gym. Think of how active kids are and you’ll no doubt be able to keep up.”

“Finished?” you ask with a raised eyebrow.

“Let me check. Um-” he taps his chin as if he’s deep in thought. “Yeah, I think that’s all I’ve got for now. But if you need more reasons, I’ll be sure to come in tomorrow with a fully prepared Powerpoint presentation to really make sure you’re convinced.”

“That won’t be necessary. I mean, I’d kind of like to see what you’d come up with for your presentation but, no. Thank you. I- Well. That was quite the speech. Thank you.”

“You’re totally welcome. I meant it. You’d be great at it. The kids would be lucky to have you.” You’re aware of the full feeling of warmth in your chest. “What have you got to lose anyway?”

“Right. You’re right. Just easier said than done, you know?”

“Totally. Just keep what I said in mind, yeah? If being here is really as mind numbing as you say, it might be worth a change,” he says. He’s smiling at you supportively. It doesn’t feel like he’s telling you what you should do, like when your mom tells you you’ve got too much potential to be wasting it here.

“Not every moment is mind numbing,” you say, partly trying to get the attention off you.

“Oh really? Tell me about the moments that are slightly less boring, then,” he flirts, leaning forward and wiggling his eyebrows.

“You know, some days, I just really look forward to this guy stepping through the door,” you start.

“I bet he’s super handsome.”

“Oh yeah. Arms of steel, too.” You can’t help you snort of laughter as Jeongguk comically lifts up his arm and flexes. You pull yourself together and continue, “Yeah, god. It’s my favourite part of the day. My mouth literally starts salivating as I see him step through those automatic doors and-”

His face looks shocked, like his mind has frozen and he’s trying desperately to keep up with the turn of the conversation. His eyebrows are pulled together in confusion and then he guffaws out a laugh that echoes through the reception area, earning him several shhh’s from other customers. He slaps a hand over his mouth and you can see his crinkled eyes as he leans further forward on your desk.

“You’re talking about the fucking Starbucks delivery man, aren’t you?”

“Of course I am. Who did you think I was talking about?” you ask innocently, unable to stop yourself from joining in his infectious laugh.

The phone rings loudly at the side of you on the desk and you glance at it with a sigh.

“I should leave you to it,” he says, pushing himself up and standing tall, almost towering over you. “Think about what I said, yeah? Have confidence in yourself.”

Your heart feels like it’s two sizes too big for your chest at how much confidence he has in you, and you nod at him. “I will. Definitely. Thanks, Jeongguk. Honestly, I- just. Thank you. For the pep talk.”

“Nah, don’t thank me. Think of it as a repayment for saving my ass from trekking home the other day. In fact - wait. Do you think you could thank me by changing my picture on the system?”

“Ha! No way. That’s staying for as long as I’m here,” you retort as you finally reach for the phone. He makes an oh, shucks movement with his arm, before turning around and heading towards the automatic door.

He smiles when he hears you greet the person on the other side of the phone, and he notes that your professional voice is different than when he’s spoken to you the last few times. He sends you a small wave goodbye which you return with a smile and a shooing motion that makes him laugh. The smile remains on your face throughout your phone call, and through the rest of your shift.

It’s just turned 10pm a couple of weeks after Jeongguk’s little pep talk. Your shift ended a little while ago and you’re on the final ten minutes of your work out, currently jogging on the treadmill and wincing at the ache in your calves as the machine tilts you up hill. Your playlist blasting in your headphones and you listen intently to the lyrics of the remix thumping through your ears in the hopes that it will make this torturous time fly by.

You’ve managed to concentrate on what must be two verses and a chorus when it’s suddenly time to sprint.

“For fuck’s sake,” you mumble what you think is under your breath. You fucking hate running. You fucking hate this gym. It could be the tiredness talking, but you fucking hate it.

Movement on the treadmill right in front of yours makes you open your eyes from where you’d clamped them shut to make it through the last four minutes of your workout. You’re about to start cursing whoever decided to take the treadmill facing yours when there’s rows of other available when you look up.

A devastating bunny smile is blinding you. Jeongguk. You huff out a laugh and shake your head as if to say I literally can’t speak right now before gasping in another deep breath, trying to remind yourself to keep your breathing steady.

He sends you an OK sign with his hands, smirk flooding his face as you roll your eyes at him. You can feel his eyes on you as you squeeze your eyes closed at the sudden incline of the treadmill. Two minutes to go, two more minutes. This is your least favourite part.

You open your eyes to find your water bottle, gulping down whatever is left as you drive into the final, thankfully flat sprint. Jeongguk’s effortlessly running on his machine, not seeming to break a sweat when you can literally feel the sweat dripping on the back of your neck.

He catches your eye as he sees you wince again and crosses his eyes, sticking his tongue out and trying his best to distract you. Your laughter blurts out of you and he mirrors you. He watches you as you check the remaining time and raises his eyebrows when you look back up.

“30 seconds,” you mouth across at him, shaking your head as if you can’t go on any longer.

“Keep going!” he mouths back, bunny grin in full force and two thumbs up in front of him. Part of you wants to tell him to put his hands back on the safety bars but that part is quickly distracted when he ducks to meet your eye line. Before you can question what he’s doing, he quickly pulls the face that’s on his horrifying membership picture and you guffaw in laughter. Your machine slows to a stop and you plant your feet on the strips either side of the conveyor belt, laying forward to rest your head on the screen of the machine until you can get a handle on your laughter.

When you finally look back up, Jeongguk has slowed to a walk on his machine and he’s smiling that bashful, devilish smile at you. You rip your headphones off your ears and rest them around your sweaty neck. He throws his hands up and mimes a mini cheer at you for completing your workout.

“You’re such a dork,” you laugh.

“It’s one of my many talents.”

“Thanks for that,” you say sincerely, gathering your belongings up from the treadmill as he hits the stop button on his machine.

“For being a dork?”

“For getting me through those last few minutes. Was it that obvious I was struggling?”

“Nah, I just fucking hate these things too. Avoid them like the plague normally. Couldn’t imagine being on one as long as you were.”

“You were watching me?”

“You’re kind of hard to not watch,” he confesses honestly, pink tinging his cheeks for the first time that night. Your heart thumps at the thought that an intense workout doesn’t affect him, but you do.

“Oh. So why were you on the treadmill tonight?”

“Because you looked fucking miserable. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’ve kind of made it my mission to get rid of some of the things that make you all gloomy,” he shrugs, coming around to meet you at your machine, shoving lightly at your back with the bottom of his water bottle to get you moving towards the changing rooms.

“Why?” you say, surprise having frozen your thoughts, and apparently your body too.

He shoves again with his water bottle, guiding his hand around to push at the small of your back when you still don’t move. “Come on, changing rooms are this way. And because, I dunno. You helped me out that day. You were kind to me and yeah, okay, maybe you didn’t know it, but you distracted me from what I was stressed about. It’s the least I can do to do the same for you. Okay?”

You’re pulled to a stop just outside the changing rooms where your locker is and you can’t help but stare at the man in front of you. He stands there openly for a moment, letting you, before he smiles at you as if he knows what you’re thinking. It’d be a miracle, sure, because you’re not even sure you know, but he looks at you like he can see right into your thoughts and watch them play out on a screen.

“I’m going to take this silence as an I’m trying to work out why I deserve this type of silence rather than an oh my god this fucking weird kid has attached himself to me and thinks I need a saviour which now that I think about it, it could seem pretty weird so please take comfort in the fact that this is not that-”

“Jeongguk. Stop. I- I appreciate how kind hearted you are, especially to an almost stranger. Let’s take my silence as a you’re kind of rare and I feel very lucky that you’re doing that for me and stop freaking out, yeah?”

“Yeah. Yeah!” He’s grinning now, shaking himself out of the moment of insecurity he’d just talked himself into. “Okay. Yeah. Also, anyone who has seen that fucking awful picture of me automatically gains friendship rights. I won’t have you calling yourself a stranger in this household anymore.”

“You’re not in a household.” “Then in this - gymhold? Either way, we’re buds now. You’re stuck with me being your cheerleader and I’m not sorry about it.”

You laugh softly, warmth flowing through your body at this boy in front of you. “Sounds awful,” you joke.

“See! You’re a sarcastic little shit. We’re going to be best buds in no time.”

You roll your eyes jokingly at his endless optimistic spin on everything and shove at his shoulder. “Go and get changed.”

“Back at you. Meet me out here? I’ll walk you out?”

You try and hold back the smile that threatens to overtake your face by biting at your bottom lip. “See you in a few.”

A loud slam on your desk makes you whizz around on your chair from where you’re filing random bits of paperwork in the correct drawers.

“What the-”

“I’ve brought you a gift,” Jeongguk states, then points with both hands at the tall Starbucks cup he’s just banged onto the desk.

“Uh- Did you take that off the delivery man outside?” you ask, turning to see your usual delivery guy stood at the floor to ceiling windows with a very confused look on his face. You send him a wave and he shrugs, walking back to his car without a backwards glance.

“Okay, maybe I did. I’m going to be honest with you, the other day when you said he was the best part of your day? Not good for my ego. So yes, I did take it off him outside. And yes, I did have to pay him a very large tip that I’m not proud of. But. Here.” He slides the cup across the desk to you with the most adorable look of focus on his face.

You reach across for it, taking a sip and groaning quietly at the sweet kick it gives you. “I thought you didn’t believe in sugary drinks? Some bullshit about them being bad for you?”

“They are bad for you and in 40 years time when you’re suffering with countless health complaints and I am a picture of youth, that will be my time to shine. I will preach and preach about how you shouldn’t have had those drinks when you were younger and you will say ‘Oh, Jeongguk. I should have listened to you. About that and everything else you ever said. You are so wise and so brilliant and no other man can ever compete with you.” He’s putting on a high voice now and your giggling only further encourages him.

“Oh so, we’re going to be friends in 40 years time?”

“Obviously. Or married. Whatever.”

You inhale a sip of your drink too fast at that, coughing and spluttering as you try to get your racing heart in check. When you finally stop, the smug look on his face makes your cheeks heat up.

“Oh? Right. So in that case, I will turn to you and say, “Jeongguk, baby. Honey. Sweetcheeks. Remember that day you stole my sweet, sweet, sugary drink from the poor delivery man? You encouraged my habits and for that I can never forgive you. I want a divorce!” You play along, mimicking the high voice he was putting on.

“Oh shit. Will you let me keep the dog?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Then no deal. You can’t divorce me. Give me back the drink,” he says, reaching over to take the cup from your hands.

You’re too quick for him, sliding back on your chair so you’re just out of reach. “Nuh-uh, you said it was a gift. No take backs on gifts. That’s the first rule in the friendship rule book.”

“Fuck, I forgot we were friends now. Wow, that was a bad decision,” he jokes, winking at you as you let out a disgruntled, hey! “Okay, whatever. I’ll let you keep the drink and when you’re old and infirm I will look after you because I will be the picture of health with a god like body and I will never mention the sugary drink addiction ever again. Deal?”

You huff out a laugh at the god-like body idea, but then agree, “Deal.” He waves you forward, holding his hand out to shake in promise. “Awesome,” he says as he holds your hand firm in his. The fit is perfect and tingles run up your arm as he squeezes lightly at your hand. “I can’t wait ‘til we’re old and married,” he teases.

You shove him off playfully, cheeks aching from the grin you never seem to be able to dampen when he’s around. “Go workout,” you instruct.

“Yes, dear. See, great husband material already, no?”

“Is this her? Oh my god it totally is. Your face is all-“

“Shut the fuck up, you foghorn!”

You might not have recognised the first voice but you definitely recognise the fierce whisper that followed it. You keep your head down, pretending to concentrate on the paperwork you’re completing when the two whispering voices appear in front of your desk.

“Tae, please-” you hear Jeongguk plead but he’s quickly interrupted by a firm hand to his chest.

“Excuse me, miss. I would like to join this gym on a trial basis. As in, just for today probably. I have been informed that this gym is the best around and that the customer service is unbeatable.”

You hear Jeongguk mutter from where he’s hidden behind the man, “Oh for fuck’s sake, Tae,” but you decidedly ignore him.

“Of course, sir! That’s not a problem at all. It’s great to hear that we’re being talked about.” You glance quickly at Jeongguk with a smirk on your face. “I’m so pleased that your friends are happy with the service,” you say as you start to load up the documentation you’ll need to complete on your computer.

“Oh believe me, they’re very happy. Very, very-“

A swift knock to the man’s ribs quietens him and Jeongguk stands at his side, glaring determinedly at the man’s face.

“Oh, hey, Jeongguk! Didn’t see you there. What a nice surprise!” you tease, faking innocence. His cheeks flush but he meets your gaze.

“Hey yourself. You don’t normally work on Tuesdays,” he notes.

“Were you trying to avoid me?” you ask at the same time the man gasps, turns to him and accuses, “You only let me come because you thought she wouldn’t be here!”

Another glare is sent in the man’s direction and the friend at least has the decency to look a little sheepish this time.

“Thanks for that, man. Uh- well, I just. Uh- I have no answer to that. Please let’s move along.”

Feeling a little sorry for the way his friend has just dropped him in it, you lend him a hand and say, “We had to do a little swap around next week so I was landed with today’s shift to cover.”

You turn to his friend once you’ve seen Jeongguk nod in understanding and ask, “So, are you ready to set up your trial membership or are you really just here to mess with him?”

“Ha! No, I will set it up, please. With the amount of ramen I eat, it would be a good idea for me to join at some point. Also, a little birdie tells me there’s a kick ass sauna here so sign me up!”

“Sure thing. I just need a couple of details from you, then you’re free to try out our facilities. I can grab a PT for you if you’re wanting a tour around or-“

“I’m good, thanks. I’ve got my own personal PT here,” he says, nudging an annoyed looking Jeongguk’s side.

“I know from personal experience he’s a great cheerleader. I’m sure you’ll be in good hands there,” you state, ignoring the wide eyed look Jeongguk’s friend is sending at him, the unspoken words of we are talking about this later you little shit clear for all to see, and diving straight into the form.

A few minutes later, Taehyung as you now know he’s called, is signing the last pieces of paper that you’ve printed out for him.

“Awesome! When you’ve signed that, you’re all done! So, if you do decide to join us, our photographer will grab you before your session one day and snap a picture of you to go on file. If you stick with us on a purely trial basis, then there’ll be no need for-.”

You’re stopped in your tracks by a devilish glint in Jeongguk’s eye, hands frantically gesticulating to you. He’s pointing at Taehyung, eyes wide, miming taking a picture. You’re desperately trying to follow what Jeongguk’s telling you, eyes flitting back to where Taehyung has almost completed his last signature when Jeongguk’s sigh grabs your attention again. He gesticulates one more time; he points at Taehyung, then makes the camera movement, points at himself, and then makes that obscene face that’s on his member profile picture.

Realisation dawns just as Taehyung slides the papers and pen he used back across your desk, quickly turning back around to face Jeongguk with a look of suspicion on his face when he realises that you are clearly trying your best to hold in a bout of extreme laughter.

Jeongguk - bless him - looks innocently at his friend and shrugs, then claps him on the shoulder, chatting to him about how proud he is that he’s made the move to maybe join a gym after his protests all of these years. You know deep down he’s trying to keep his friends attention off you before you get your shit together.

Taking a deep breath and holding in your remaining guffaws of laughter, you click around aimlessly on the computer to make it look like you’re busy before saying, “Oh, sorry, Mr Kim. I’ve just checked our updated policy and it states that all members must have a photo on file. It’s just for security reasons. Obviously, if you don’t decide to join us, we will destroy your file. Would this be a problem?”

“No, no. That’s fine. Where’s the photographer then? Do I need to pose?” he asks.

“Just a headshot will be fine, Mr Kim. Our photographer is currently unavailable so you can provide your own photograph. The guidelines are all in your member pack,” you state as you slide the folder to him. “If you’re unsure, just call into ask. Or I’m sure Jeongguk would be happy to help you. Right, Jeongguk?”

“Of course, Taetae. I’ll help you out. No worries at all. I just email it in, right?”

“That’s right! As soon as possible would be much appreciated. Okay, here’s your pass. Got yours today, Jeongguk?”

He pats his hoodie pocket for a second before pulling out the pass with a grin.

“Awesome. I hope you enjoy your workouts, and it was great meeting you, Taehyung. I’ll look forward to receiving your photo!”

It’s five thirty seven pm and you’ve been watching the clock for the last sixteen minutes. Your shift finished at six and you feel as though you’ve been sitting at your desk for at least ten hours, never mind the six that it’s actually been. Your eyes blink slowly as the clock ticks over to five thirty eight and you sigh, lips pouting in boredom.

“Wow, what’s that face for?”

“I can’t help my face. Rude,” you retort, silently hiding the smile threatening to let slip how pleased you are that Jeongguk is stood in front of you.

“Didn’t say you could. Must be hell walking around with a beautiful face like yours. I bet you never get anything done without people bothering you,” he jokes but his eyes are serious.

“Ha! If only!”

“Are you telling me someone like you doesn’t have an equally as gorgeous boyfriend worshipping the ground you walk on?”

“Are you asking me if I’m single?” “What if I was?”

“Then I’d tell you yes, I’m very, very single.”

“And then I’d tell you it’s a crime and I don’t believe you! But that I’ve also never been as happy to hear someone is very, very single before,” he grins cheekily at you and you can feel your cheeks heating up under his gaze.

“Well go on, then. If I’m sharing, so are you! Is there a potential Mrs Jeon whose devastatingly gorgeous and effortlessly stunning that I should know about?”

“Funny you should ask - there’s one sat right in front of me right now,” he flirts, all toothy grin and cheeky glint, making you roll your eyes at his cheesiness.

“Oh my god. You really are a dork!”

“I told you!”

“So, uh, no girlfriend then?” you prompt, your need to clarify this more prominent than you’d realised.

“If you really have to ask me this then I haven’t been as obvious as I thought. I’m proud of myself! And no, I am also very, very single,” he confesses.

“What a coincidence.”

“It’s a funny old world, right?”

“It is,” you reply, just for want of saying something, having the final word. You sit in your desk chair, moving restlessly from left to right on it as he stares down at you, soft smile on his face that you know is mirrored on yours. Another gym member walks past and calls out a greeting, making you snap back to reality with a small wave. You cough quietly and sit up in your chair, breaking Jeongguk’s eye contact and trying to ignore the loaded atmosphere that’s covering you both.

He wears a knowing smile on his face when he changes the subject. “So, uh, it was weird coming to the gym yesterday.”

“Was it?”

“Yeah. I walked in and imagine my surprise when a short, old man was sitting in your seat. Let me tell you, he was not as much fun to talk to.”

“Or to flirt with,” you tease. “That’d be my boss. He was covering for me - remember when you brought your friend in last week and I’d swapped shifts?”

“Yeah, he didn’t respond too well to my charm. I’m taking Tae’s photo tomorrow by the way. He’s booked in at the hair salon ready for his ‘photo shoot’ as he keeps calling it. I reminded him that he doesn’t even want to join the fucking gym, but he’s just that extra.”

“I’m so looking forward to receiving that picture, let me tell you. Revenge will be sweet, hey?”

“So sweet. Deliciously, sickly sweet. As sweet as your Starbucks order, I’d go as far to say.” He watches as your eyes roll into the back of your head as you play along with him. He definitely does not have any inappropriate thoughts about that. None at all, thank you for asking.

“Anyway,” he prompts, getting your conversation back on track. ��Were you up to anything exciting?”

“More exciting than this place? That could be literally anything. But yes, I’d say that it was.”

“But you’re not telling me.”

“But I’m not telling you.”

“Ouch. Consider my feelings hurt. No, no. It’s fine. I’ll just go and stew in self pity that my bud won’t tell me where she was yesterday even though it was - gasp - more exciting than this place.” He pretends to dab at streaming tears, letting out the occasional sob that attracts attention from other gym members in the reception area.

“Oh for fuck’s sake, you’re such a drama queen!” You laugh. “I’m not telling you.”

“I know.”

“Yet.”

“Oh. Oh. I can live with that,” he smiles. “Well, I’ll look forward to that day then.”

“Me too,” you grin.

It’s late - the end of your shift and you’re throwing your jacket on as you step out into the chilly air outside. You pull your phone out of your pocket to check on where your roommate is, checking her text when she said she was on her way to pick you up. You know her well enough to know that she’s not even left the house yet. You’re just about to text her to say you’ll get a taxi home when a body bumps into the back of you.

“Oh shit- I’m so sorry. Are you- Oh! Hi, you,” Jeongguk says as he finally catches a glimpse of your face. He’s holding onto your forearms to keep you steady from where he nearly knocked you off your feet, and he was frantically scanning your body to check for any serious injuries that could have been caused. Such a drama queen, springs back into your mind.

“Hi yourself. Nearly swept me off my feet there, Guk,” you joke.

“I mean, I’ve only been trying for the last month or so,” he retorts. “What are you doing out here?”

“I’m just waiting for my roommate to pick me up. We’re um, we’re heading out for drinks tonight, so.”

“Oh, sweet! For anything special?”

“Actually, that’s something I wanted to talk to you about,” you say quietly, shoving your phone back into your pocket purely for something to do.

“I’m all ears,” he says. And the thing is, you can tell he’s not lying. He looks at you with openness, eyes wide and truly a window into him, mouth positioned in an encouraging smile and your whole body feels warm. It’s bubbling in your stomach and rushing through your blood stream until you’re pretty sure if he looked hard enough, he’d see a glow appearing straight out of your thumping chest.

“Remember when I was away the other day?”

“And you wouldn’t tell me why. I remember. In fact, it’s burned onto my consciousness and it’s destroyed my self confidence,” he teases. “But yes, go on.”

“Well, I also remember saying that I couldn’t tell you, but there was a yet in there,” you hint.

“Is this ‘yet’? Are we at ‘yet’?” He asks excitedly, almost bouncing on the spot. God, this boy is so special.

You nod eagerly. “It’s yet.” He shuffles closer to you in anticipation. “I had an interview.”

“Oh my god. Yes! That’s awesome! Good for you,” he blurts out, brimming with honesty. “I’m so proud of you that you went for something!” You can feel the enthusiasm vibrating from him and you fight back the urge to place a hand on his solid chest to calm him.

“It gets better,” you smile.

“Oh my fucking god, don’t tell me-”

You don’t reply, simply nodding your head with a wide grin swallowing your face.

He lets out a loud whoop and grabs onto you, flinging his arms around your shoulders and tugs you into him. He’s bouncing now and you have no choice but to clasp your hands around his lower back and jump with him.

“This is incredible! I’m so excited for you! Fuck this place!” he shouts louder than he should, making you pull back slightly to slap a hand around his mouth to quieten him. His eyes widen and then turn apologetic as he realises what he’s just shouted with your boss and regular gym members still inside. “Sorry. Sorry I got over excited. But still,” he says, voice lower this time now you’re a breath away from him. “Still, this is such awesome news. How do you feel?”

“I feel free. Amazing. Nervous. Fulfilled. I don’t know. I can’t quite believe it still. You know you’ve not even asked what the job is?” you say, punching his bicep lightly, not quite able to stop touching him now you’ve started.

“Fuck you’re right! What is it? What is it?” he chants.

“You’re looking at the new teacher’s assistant at the pre-school downtown,” you say, heart thudding in your chest as you break the news.

“Holy shit, are you- Oh my god! Oh my god!” He grabs onto your forearms again and the grip even through your jacket feels addictive. He’s bouncing again, excited energy radiating off him. “You wanted to work with kids and holy shit, you’ve done it! Yes!”

“I mean, it’s only a teacher’s assistant to start with but there’s plenty of oppor-”

“Hey! No! Only a teacher’s assistant? No fucking way! You’re going to be working with fucking kids. I asked you what your dream would be and you said working with the little shits. Oh my god! I’m so pumped for you!”

You laugh loudly as he pulls you in for another tight squeeze. He’s swaying you both left and right in his restlessness and you inhale his scent as you gasp for air.

He only pulls away from you to shout to the patrons in the parking lot, “Hey! Excuse me?” You’re batting at his chest to tell him to stop whatever he’s about to do, but he only pulls you into his side, fitting you against him snugly as he carries on. “Hey! Hi! You see this girl right here? She’s just scored her fucking dream job! She’s amazing! She’s going to be the best fucking teacher’s assistant there’s ever been and-”

Your head feels dizzy with joy and giddiness as this wonderful man celebrates your news as if it’s the best thing he’s ever heard, as if it’s his news to be excited over. You look up at him as he screams across the parking lot, free of shame and exhilarated to share your news and the world around you suddenly drains away. He’s all you can see and you’re slotted so perfectly into his side and you’re so happy he forgot his pass that day all those months ago so you react how you’ve wanted to for months.

Your hand slides up to his sharp jawline and tugs him to face you. You laugh as he still continues his tirade of praise about you but his eyes are locked on yours. They widen a little as your eyes slip down to his gorgeous, delicate lips and you raise on your tip toes, pulling him to you until your lips finally meet. He quickly slides his hand to cup the back of your head, shocked by your sudden decision to kiss him but so, so contented as he can feel you exhale a shaky breath. You know that really, you should pull away from him - he’s already made a scene by shouting his excitement at total strangers in front of your place of work but fuck that - you’re leaving soon, anyway. You push back upwards to be closer to him and he gathers you in, arms resting at your lower back as you circle your arms around his neck, entangling your fingers into his fluffy hair. He nips lightly at your lower lip and you’re unable to hide the soft moan that slips out of your mouth but he quickly swallows it, sliding one of his hands up to the back of your head again where he can position your head where he wants you. It feels like reality and dreams and connection and desire and you can’t get enough. Neither it seems can he.

You’re vaguely aware of the automatic doors opening and closing behind the both of you but you don’t register any other presence, mind only on Jeongguk, Jeongguk, Jeongguk.

A burst of noise from a group of teenagers exiting the gym breaks you both apart breathlessly, reluctant to move any further away from each other than truly necessary. You can feel his uneven breathing on your cheek and he’s staring intently at you, eyes flitting around your face like he can’t quite believe what just happened.

“I uh- I’m sorry?” you mumble, making no move to separate yourself from him.

He huffs out a disbelieving laugh. “What part of that are you apologising for? Because believe me, no apologies are necessary.” He’s brushing his nose against your cheek and down to your jaw now and it’s making your legs feel unsteady. You’re even more grateful he’s got you solidly wrapped up in his arms.

“I- I’m sorry for - shit, stop that I’m can’t concentrate-” he grins at that, smacking his lips to your cheek once before returning himself to look at you. “I was apologising for grabbing you. And not asking. You just make me feel all-” you pause.

“All? All what?”

“Warm.”

“Warm?” he laughs. He steps backwards to let a group of women enter the automatic doors and he tugs you with him.

You nod shyly, laughing self deprecatingly. “Like, fuzzy and warm. And I just couldn’t not kiss you anymore. So. Sorry.”

“Apology accepted. And then returned with a note of thanks.” He’s so weird and you like him so much. “What?”

“A note of thanks. And maybe a bouquet of flowers. And one of those fucking Starbucks drinks you’re obsessed with. You know, just to say thanks for having the balls to kiss me because I was wrestling with myself to find mine.”

You giggle, resting your head in the crook of his neck for a moment to compose yourself. “Well then. You’re welcome. I hope you’ve found your balls,” you joke, shoulders wracking with laughter as he lets out a loud cackle.

“Don’t you worry. My balls are back in full force and ready to go. Wait- no- that sounded-. Okay, never mind. You see? You make me say stupid shit like this!”

“Now that I won’t apologise for. You’re literally the only thing that have made this past month bearable.”

“Me and the delivery guy.”

“Of course. I wonder how I should thank him?”

“Not in the same way as me,” he pouts and you can’t resist pressing your lips to his jaw before continuing.

“And you’re the one that pushed me to apply for something else. Without you, I might have been stuck here for who knows how many more months before I - to steal your words - found my balls and applied elsewhere.”

He’s smiling radiantly at you and the rest of the world blurs out again. He’s looking at you like you’re the sun and the moon and the stars and you feel dizzy with the weight of that.

He’s about to speak when a car screeches to a halt at the side of you, headlines illuminating the two of you so brightly you have to squint.

“That’s uh- that’s my roommate,” you explain, pulling your arms from his neck and smoothing them down the arms of his hoodie. He grips at your hands, intertwining your fingers with his own as he nods in understanding. Jeongguk’s like an open book and you can see his reluctance to let you go so you squeeze his hands in yours.

“Okay,” he says.

“Alright,” you say back.

He huffs out a laugh, pulling you into him one more time with an arm around your shoulder, one hand still entangled with yours. You feel him peck the top of your head once, twice before he releases you with a light shove towards the car idling next to you.

“Congrats again, superstar. Now go get drunk!”

“So,” Jeongguk starts, leaning against your desk in a way that is oh so familiar now. It’s Monday evening, two days since you’d finally given into temptation right outside of here. You hadn’t spoken to him since, only realising that night when you’d only wanted to talk to Jeongguk that you didn’t actually have his number.

“So,” you parrot back to him, not bothered to bite down on the grin that automatically blooms in his presence.

“How are you?” he asks.

“Pretty good, thanks. You?”

“Shit.”

“What? Why?”

“Well, see. Friday night was incredible. You see, this incredible - and I mean incredible - girl rocks my world. She tells me that she’s applied for this job and - get this - she only fucking got it. Not only that, it’s her fucking dream job.” You’re smiling at him, playing along with his dramatics, dropping in plenty of oh really’s and no ways. “She’s going to work with kids, you know? Naturally, I was on top of the fucking world for her. And then guess what?”

“What?” He leans closer to you, goofily pretending to check no-one’s listening, then whispers, “Then she fucking kisses me. I’m talking, grabs me by the neck and plants one on me. I felt like I was floating on air. Like, this could be the best thing that ever happened to me. In fact, no. It was the best thing that had ever happened. And then-”

“And then-”

“I get home. First of all, I’m teased by my roommates because I can’t wipe the grin off my face. They kept telling me I was glowing. And then? I go to text this dream girl, just to say have a great night, congrats, thanks for blowing my mind and so on. And then I realise.”

You gasp playfully, trying to control your giggling. “What did you realise?”

“I realised that I don’t even have her fucking number.”

“Wow. She kissed you like that and didn’t leave her number? She sounds like a dick,” you joke.

“How dare you, take that back! She’s the girl of my dreams!” he jokes.

“Well that sounds like an awful experience. I’m so sorry you had to go through that,” you say, patting his hand where it’s laid on top of your desk.

He’s quick though, and when you move to pull away he flips his hand and grasps yours, intertwining your fingers as best he can.

“Nah, I’d like to go through it again and again. But not the number part. That bit really was shit,” he laughs.

You hold out the hand he’s not holding and look expectantly at him. “Phone?”

He reluctantly lets go of you to pat at his pockets - first his shorts, then his hoodie before his eyes meet yours. “Um, let me check my backpack.” He roots in there, pointedly ignoring your peels of laughter echoing around him before he drops his bag on the floor and drops his head to your desk with a thump.

“You forgot your phone, didn’t you?”

He whines loudly and nods his head as best he can while he’s still resting it on the desk. You’re so enchanted by him and the natural way he makes the laughter race out of you. He’s mumbling to himself about what the fuck did I ever do to deserve this and how sending a picture of Tae passed out, shirtless and drunk for his member photo was only payback and I shouldn’t be punished for it when you reach for your top desk drawer and swiftly unlock it.

You reach inside, searching for the piece of paper you’re after and withdrawing it quietly so as to not attract Jeongguk’s attention. You quickly scribble your number and a small love heart across the middle of the paper and slide it next to where Jeongguk’s head is resting. You give the top of the desk three small taps to get his attention.

He obediently looks up at you and follows your eye line to where you’ve placed the piece of paper beside him. He takes one look at where you’ve scrawled your number and his head is thrown back in laughter, hands clapping loudly in the reception area.

“Oh my fucking god, you’re amazing,” he says quickly before bursting out into another round of loud laughs.

He picks up the piece of paper you’d slid to him and holds it firmly in both hands, staring at that fateful photograph from his member’s profile that you’d printed off on the first day you’d met him. You’d scribbled your number directly across the part of his forehead that was on show and he felt as if his heart was bursting with fondness for you.

“Please let me take you on a date,” he says breathlessly, leaning over you desk again.

“It’s in the employee’s guidelines that we can’t date gym members. Sorry, JK, you’re shit out of luck,” you shrug, throwing your hands up in an I don’t make the rules gesture.

“Ah, shit. That really is a shame. Hey, when’s your last day again?”

“Friday.”

“Ha! Looks like you’re shit out of luck then. There’s no getting rid of me now. I’ll pick you up at 9 on Friday then? Text me your address when you’ve got my number.”

He bumps the top of your desk with his fist once and then backs away towards the gym area doors. He slides his pass out of his shorts pocket - at least he’s remembered that - and sends you a devilish wink across the room as he scans his pass and disappears through the door.

Well shit. Friday can’t come soon enough.

Hi hi hi! I hope you enjoyed this :) I’m rather new to this fandom so please let me know your thoughts!

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all1e23 · 5 years

Text

Heart and Soul [Pt.18]

Chapter: Holding a Losing Hand

Pairings: Bucky x Reader

Summary: Things are starting to become clearer for everyone at the station but Bucky is unreachable.

Warnings: General foreboding

A/N: ***My fics are not to be saved or posted on any other sites without my written permission. Reblogs are my jam though! Thanks!**

Tony waited until Bucky and Sam had left before he made a move to leave. He didn’t want Bucky to worry when there was nothing he could do and knowing Bucky the second he though Y/n was in any kind of danger he would drop everything else and rush to her side It was probably nothing and Bucky didn’t need to risk his career only to find Y/n curled up on their couch safe and sound or cuddled up in her nest. Tony could slip out of the station, check on her and, take her to the hospital, then keep her company till Bucky got home and no one would have to panic.

“Listen, I’m going to down to Bucky’s and check in on Y/n.”

Steve arched his brow waiting for an explanation.

“I just wanna see how Y/n is doing. I remember what it was like when we had to be apart right after my first heat. Not exactly fun and this is the first time she has shared her heat with someone she actually cares about.”

Steve narrowed his eyes at Tony as he watched him. Steve knew his husband, he knew when there was more to the story than what was being shared. But he also knew Tony would tell him when he was ready to share those details. That didn’t mean Steve was going to let him deal with whatever this was on his own.

“All right.”

Steve stood up and grabbed his keys. “I’ll go with you.”

“Woah, there big guy!”

Tony shook his head and placed his hands on his shoulders pushing him back down into his chair.

“Thank you but no. If she is upset adding an Alpha to mix won’t help that. Plus, Bucky isn’t going to like coming home and scenting another Alpha in their space. Even if the Alpha is you. I’ll be fine. I can handle a well-fare check on someone who happens to be a good friend of mine without my mate following after me.”

Steve was conflicted and Tony knew that. He wanted to be respectful of the detective and Omega Tony was but he didn’t like the idea of anyone involved in the case against Rumlow going out on their own at the moment and Nat was nowhere in sight. However, he couldn’t lock Tony away any time there was a dangerous case. Tony wasn’t that kind of Omega and frankly, that’s not the Omega Steve wanted to be with.

“Okay,” Steve conceded but added on an addendum.

“I want to know where you are at all time though. It’s not a joke Tony. Don’t give that look. I'm telling you as your captain and your mate, I want to know when you arrive and when you leave.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Tony leaned in to kiss his cheek but quickly remembered the door was open and straightened up.

“Right-O. I’ll be sure to let you know when I arrive, captain.” Tony purred softly earning a soft growl from his husband.

“Get moving so I can have you all to myself.” Steve rumbled in only the way an Alpha can.

“Yes, sir.”

----------

The young Beta boy at the security desk was practically sweating and stumbling all over himself when Tony said he was heading up to see Y/n L/n. He started fumbling over his words as he frantically searching for the list of approved names Bucky had given him. Once he found the list he still had to get out the photocopies of everyone’s identification in order to make sure he actually was Tony Stark as if the entire world didn’t know who he was. Tony would have been amused at the fear Bucky put into this boy if this was just a normal every day, but he really needed to get upstairs.

After ten minutes of searching, the kid was able to confirm Tony was, in fact, Tony Stark and he was approved to go upstairs. He was going to have a serious talk with Bucky when this was sorted. Tony knew he was overprotective, but this was taking it to a whole new level. When he finally managed to get past the guards and got up to Bucky’s floor, he made sure to take a picture of himself in front of their door with the biggest smirk and if a thumbs up could be snarky his most certainly was. He sent it off to Steve and got a reply before he could knock.

Captain of my heart: You don’t have to be smartass, Tony.

Tony: I’m starting to wonder if you even know me at all.

He slipped his phone into his jacket and rapped his knuckles against the door. “Y/n? It’s Tony. Open up. I wanna see if you want to go grab something to eat? Maybe go see speed racer?”

Y/n was just as stubborn and proud as Tony was. There was no way he could tell her he was coming by to check on her and give her any indication that he thought she was at all incapable of taking care of herself. She would bite his head off, probably call Steve and Bucky to yell at them and then he would get chewed out by both Alphas. It’s easier if he lets her think he was just stopping by to spend time with her and then he can keep her busy until Bucky gets home.

Maybe Tony should see if the two lovebirds want to stay at their place till this is all over. It’s not like the place isn’t big enough. Hell, he could give them an entire floor. That question would have to wait until he could get her to answer the door.

“Y/n?” He twirled his keys around his fingers as he searched for Bucky’s key. “I’m coming inside, and you better have clothes on, or Barnes is going to kill me. You don’t want me to die, do you?”

Still no answer. Something wasn’t right.

“Okay. Coming in buttercup.” He slowly flipped the lock and pulled his gun from his holster as he nudged the door open.

“Lucy!” Tony sang into the still apartment. “I’m home.”

The door swung open into the quiet apartment. Nothing seemed out of place. There were still several piles of clothes hanging on every surface of the apartment. Dishes were drying on the counter from what he guessed was breakfast. Their bed was even made, despite what looked like her nest piled on top of the blankets. It was oddly quiet, but nothing was broken or looked as if anyone had a struggle.

Only thing missing was… Y/n.

It looked as if the place was empty. No one was in the bathroom from what he could see and unless she was hiding in the closet for a very elaborate game of hide and seek, Y/n wasn’t there. Tony really didn’t think she would leave the apartment again without someone with her, not after how terrified Bucky got and definitely not after Tony yelled at her. He closed the door behind and slipped his gun back into the holster, but what he saw when he turned back around made his heart sink.

Tony slowly walked over to the kitchen island and there next to the barstool only further proved his suspicion. He reached down and delicately picked up Y/n’s broken necklace that was callously thrown to the ground. He turned it over in his hand noticing the chain appeared to be snapped and clutched it tightly in his fist before slipping it into his pocket. There was no way she would just leave her necklace on the floor like that, even if the chain had broken on accident. She may not have had it long, but he saw the way she was clutching it. It’s the most important thing in the world to her. She wouldn’t leave it behind even if it was broken.

Someone ripped the necklace off her neck, and he knew just who that someone was.

--------

“What are you doing here?” Maria asked, not even bothering to glance up from the paperwork in front of her.

Ouch. Okay, he’s in a bit of hot water. Shit, Bucky was right. She was going to punch him in the face, knock him to the ground and probably step over him on her way out the door. It's okay. He can fix this. It's not like he was ditching her on purpose and if anyone understood work coming first on the rare occasion it was Maria.

Sam rested his elbows on the counter and tapped his fingers on whatever it was she was looking at until she lifted her head to meet his eyes, grinning once she did. “I came to see you and maybe take you to dinner. I did make you a promise if you recall."

She raised her brow and crossed her arms over her chest. “Yes, but you keep breaking those promises as of late. What if I have dinner plans with someone else now?”

His smile faltered just a bit as he stood up straighter. Sam did not like the idea of her having dinner with some other Alpha.

“That would be unfortunate but thankfully I know all the good places to hide a body.” As much as he was trying to play it cool, she could see the worry on his face, and it made her heart flip just for just a hot moment.

Why did he have to be so damn cute?

“Give me a few minutes. I have to get things sorted here before I leave.” She leaned over the counter and placed a kiss on his cheek. “Don’t get used to that. You get a pass because you looked so pathetically sad just now.”

He grinned. “I’ll take it. In fact, I’ll try to look more pathetic if I get more of those sweet kisses.”

Nick wandered out of the back causing the couple to jump apart even though his eyes were glued to his phone. “What are you doing here Detective? Shouldn’t you be on a call with your partner or is he at home with Y/n and you’ve come to steal the one person who keeps my shelter running?”

“No, Buck is handling a call out at--“ Sam froze as Nick’s words settle over him. How the hell did he know what Bucky was doing? And when he get the memo he was trying to bond with Y/n?

“Hold up a damn minute. How did you know Y/n and Buck were mates?”

“I know a lot of things, Sam.”

Nick finally looked up from his phone and smiled at Sam. “If I were you, I’d head back to the station. Brock is not someone you two should be playing games with. He needs to be dealt with.”

He nodded at Maria. “’Give him the letter.”

Sam looked back at Maria. “What letter?”

There was a moment of what looked to be some kind of silent argument between Nick and Maria before she finally caved and dug a somewhat wrinkled envelope out of the drawer behind the counter and handed it over to Sam.

“It’s a letter that Y/n left before the night Brock attacked her. It says she had to leave because Brock found out she was here. She said his dad, or adoptive dad I think? I don't know. Either way, he is rich and has connections. He has ways of finding her no matter where she goes. Something about him owning that Omega club in Queens. The one that got shut down this month.”

Sam nearly choked on his own tongue as the words flew out of her mouth. “Hold up. Alexander Pierce? The man who is under investigation for Omega-trafficking is Brock Rumlow’s adoptive father?”

“Like I said,” Nick repeated. “You better get your ass back to the station and figure out where your partner is.”

---------

Sam rushed into the station frantically looking for any sign his partner had made it back to the station after his last call. Bucky’s desk was empty and just as he left it and there was no sign he had dropped the squad car off. He rushed around the group at booking towards Steve who was talking to a patrol officer and completely cut off their conversation. He didn’t have time for the bullshit. His partner could be in trouble.

“Hey, Cap? Where is Buck? Did he get back from that call? The one about the kids.”

“Didn’t you go with him?” Steve asked, a hint of authority lacing his voice.

Yeah, okay. Sam messed up. He knew that and didn’t need it shoved in his face, he needed to fix it. “Uh, no. He told me to go see Maria and he would handle it on his own.”

Steve growled, “So you both deliberately ignored a direct order?”

Sam winced but nodded. “Yeah, kind of?”

The patrol officer slowly slinked away thanks to the anger rolling off Steve and Sam indiscreetly shooing him away. If Sam could he would shrink off right now, but he doubted Steve would let him away with that. The blond angrily scrolled through his phone as he checked with dispatch for updates and a small frown formed on his face.

“No one has heard from him for a few hours. That doesn’t seem right… He reported getting to the location, but he’s been silent for over two hours and dispatch can’t reach him.”

“Listen, we need to check in on Buck. I was at the shelter with Maria and she showed me this letter Y/n wrote. She left it the night that Brock… the night she ran from the shelter and I think Bucky might be in more trouble than we thought.”

Sam handed the letter over to Steve, letting him skim the letter as he continued on, “Pierce is his adoptive father or some shit. I’m guessing it’s not legal since there isn’t a record but… read the letter, man. Y/n talks about needing to run because of his connections and who his father is.”

Steve’s eyes scanned the document in his hand and he could feel his heart thudding against his chest with every word. His mate, his husband was off running around the city, tangled up in this mess and he was all by himself. He slapped the letter against Sam’s chest forcing him to take and stalked over to the front desk in two long strides. He whipped the phone around nearly knocking Natasha out of his way and he quickly punched in Tony’s number keeping his eyes on his phone for an update on Bucky from dispatch.

“Pick up. Pick up. Pick up.” He mumbled softly.

“You okay?” Natasha asked softly.

“Tony went to check on Y/n and he’s not answering.”

Tony’s voicemail played in his ear and he slammed the phone back down. He turned back around and started to head back towards his office. He knew he should have gone with him. He put his Omega in danger because he didn’t trust his gut and that won’t happen again.

“Nat keep trying Tony. I’m going to head over to Buck’s and make sure they are okay. Sam take a car out to the location of the call and see what’s going on with Buck. Dispatch can’t reach him on the radio, and I can’t get a hold of him.”

“Steve?” A soft voice called out across the station stopping him in his tracks. He slowly turned around to find Sharon Carter standing behind the front desk, looking nervous and… scared? She looked like she hadn't slept in days and something or someone had her terrified.

“Sharon... What are you doing here? Is everything okay?”

“I, um.” She glanced around at Sam and then Natasha. “I have some information that might help you with your investigation.”

“Wait. Wait.”

Steve shook his head and took a step towards her, needing to understand what she was getting at he asked, “What investigation? How do you know anything about any of my investigations?”

Sharon looked around at three Alphas who were watching her very closely. This might not have been a good idea. Natasha hated her from the moment she found out that Steve slept with her and Sam was looking at her like she was guilty of something. None of that mattered she supposed. They needed to know. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself if something happened to any of them and she could have stopped it.

“The one involving Y/n L/n and Brock Rumlow. He came to see me at my office. I think Y/n and Bucky are in trouble.”

Previous // Next

#alpha!bucky x omega!reader #bucky barnes x reader #Bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes x y/n #james buchanan barnes #Bucky Barnes #james bucky barnes #alpha!bucky #cop!bucky #bucky x reader #bucky x you #bucky x y/n #a/b/o dynamics #a/b/o au #a/b/o verse #a/b/o #alternate universe

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razorblade180 · 5 years

Text

Scrappy

[Lasting Embers universe]

Deep in the forest of of Menagerie an obstacle course as been set up for a group of individuals; all of them in black cammo pants and form fitting black t-shirts. Men and women crawling under wire, balance beams sprints, monkey bars, and worst of all a rope. This extended 75ft in the air with a bell that few can reach; including a sixteen year old white tiger faunus that was currently covered in mud.

Ilia:Come on rookie!!!!! You’re not even half way up there yet and I can tell you’re drenched and about to pass out. If you can’t do this then I don’t even know why you bothered showing up to boot camp!!!

Sienna:*inching up* Come on Sienna, you got this. So what if you’re tired? Doesn’t change the distance or the goal, just....keep....climbing.

Various recruits scream various things that are both positive and negative as instructed. Others toss small mud balls to add to the difficulty.

“You can do it!”

“Just fall already!!!!”

“Give it up runt! You’re the smallest here.”

“Show him what you’re made of!”

“Miner kid....”

That one caught her attention. She looked to her right to see a smug recruit on the ground staring at her with his red eyes. He was a stocky and in his early twenties. Brown hair and a scar across his face were all that really made him look interesting. Sienna would’ve gave him another one if she was allowed to.

Sienna:Of course Damon is trying to shoot me down. *climbs harder*

Damon:Aww don’t ignore me. Did I say something rude miner? That word should mean nothing to you right. *chucks mud ball*

Sienna:*blocks it* Fuck off......

Ilia:Language! You all might be thugs and mercenaries at heart but that doesn’t mean you get to act like it. Being apart of The Shadows means-

Recruits:Using ruthless lifestyle skills to uphold the honest living of others.

Ilia:I will give you all 50 more laps if you do that again.

Damon:That little mission statement is fine and all but does that even apply to kitty over here? Last time I checked this organization is supposed to have the most lethal people around and here we have a kid that doesn’t even a semblance. Can’t even smoke.

Sienna:Considering how my scores are better than yours, me not having a semblance should make you feel happy; it give you a chance to keep up with me. If breathing is still possible for you; might wanna quit while you can Mr. Mercenary.

Damon:*grits teeth*

Ilia:If you can talk then you can climb! Hurry up before I start chucking mud at you myself.

She did as she was told and picked up the pace as best as she could. Her arms felt like fire and the mud drying on her wasn’t helping. By the half way point things were slightly better; dodging mud was easier when none could travel that high up. Until one actually did make that far and landed right on her face; smacking her off the rope like if a baseball hit her.

Recruits:*catch her* Are you okay?

Sienna:Ow....what was up with the mu- *picks it up*

It’s as dense as a literal baseball and perfectly round for a moment before falling apart like normal mud. Her icy blue dart towards Damon as he tries not laugh; the recruits back up as they notice her pupils slowly get more cat like as they hear a low growl.

Damon:What’s wrong kitty cat? You seem a bit a bit ruffled. I’m just trying to bring out the best in you; a person with no semblance should work twice as hard to even get close enough to the same skill as someone who does. Think of it as real life experience.

Sienna:*gets up* The nurses will get real life experience stitching you up when I wrip out your-

Ilia:Enough! Both of you.

Sienna:Me!? But he’s the one who-

Ilia:Sienna, just walk away. I will handle this myself now go hit the showers.

Sienna:......*walks away frustrated*

Damon:That’s it? I expected more from you. I guess being oppressed and underground for so long made you used to being beneath others. Anyone else here would at least try putting me in my place. You however, I guess your just a runt after all. Bet your family pulled your weight in the mines.....

Sienna’s footsteps immediately stopped and pivoted around. Before Ilia could even register what was about to happen it was too late. The young Shadow in training was already passed her and swiping at the older man with close out and dangerously sharp. Each attack filled with rage as they failed to connect with her target that was reading her like a play book with ease. If she was thinking then it would’ve been clear a match with a seasoned mercenary wasn’t going to be some walk in the part. A quick jab to her nose and a foot ramming into her ribs made the message clear with obvious pain now shooting through her. His boots felt like straight steel.

Damon:Oh so you do have fighting spirit? Or at least try to that is....

Sienna:I’LL SHOW YOU FIGHTING SPIRIT!!!! *leaps at him*

Damon:*catches and throws her* Geez you’re like a rag doll. Light and totally flimsy. *puts boot on her* I’ll admit you have guts but that’s about all you-gah!!!!

Sienna:*clawing his leg* Do you ever shut up? Your voice is hurting my ears.

She manages to get her right leg in between both of his and wrap it around the punks leg from behind; her left leg does the same but wraps around the front of it like a vice. All of her wait is focused on driving her legs to the ground, causing the man to fall and put into a leg lock. Bone and muscle can be heard through the painful grunts from both fighters.

Sienna:I’ll break it, I swear I will.

Damon:*smiles* I believe you....

Suddenly the ground below them gets harder as he raises his pinned leg and slams it against the ground. Sienna’s head smacks the floor hard, everything gets blurry. Then everything got dark.....

[Oasis]

Jacquelyn:*watering flowers* hmmm hmm🎶

Jael:*running*Moooooom!

Jacquelyn:Hey there sweetheart *picks her up* why are you running? You know it’s dangerous for you.

Jael:Mom, I’m ten years old. I know my limits *pouts*

Jacquelyn:I know you’re upset right now but your pudgy cheeks are too adorable to take you seriously. *hugging her*

Jael:Agh, you’re squeezing too tight! I was running because you have a call!!!! *holds up scroll.* stop leaving your scroll around.

Jacquelyn:I got a call? That’s rare *answers* Hello, Jackie Frost speaking. Oh hi Ilia!!! How is training the-.....

Jael:???

Jacquelyn:SHE’S WHAT!?

[Infirmary]

Boot camp was a lot of things, unprepared wasn’t one of them. You don’t get together some of the most aggressive people the world has to offer without proper medical care. Breaking without consequences is another thing that isn’t tolerated as Sienna is learning. Only moments ago did she wake up to find herself with bandages around her head and in a hospital bed; also her left arm handcuffed to it. Everyone was about to be treated to a loud scream from the girl who wanted answers but thankfully Ilia walked in before Sienna got the chance.

Ilia:Well look who’s finally awake? The troublemaker herself.

Sienna:ME!? I- ow...*holds her head*

Ilia:Woah there...*leans her back* Try not to scream or move around idiot. Concussions don’t like those things.

Sienna:N...noted, damn that Damon. Slamming me into mud wasn’t good enough; he had to make it hard as stone. I wouldn’t be surprised if the fall off the rope caused this either.

Ilia:I hear you blaming Damon but yet not yourself. This could’ve been avoided if you walked away. He was already gonna be punished but you had to escalate the situation didn’t you?

Sienna:But-

Ilia:No buts Sienna!

Sienna:.......

Ilia:In a mission you are expected to follow orders to the letter without hesitation. No matter what he said about you, disobeying me was the wrong call. Again and again your temper clouds your judgement; can you guess how many times I’ve seen you get into a fight.

Sienna:.......are we counting my whole life or just boot camp?

Ilia:Sigh......I think I should opt you out of Shadow training.

Her blood went cold at those words. If it wasn’t for the concussion, Sienna would’ve been shaking her head in denial and protest.

Sienna:You....you can’t do that. I’ve passed all tests, making the grades, honing my skills, I-

Ilia:You are young and hot headed. Not to mention filled with so much potential to do anything with your life. Damon is right about you not being like everyone else. Yes you’ve seen the worst of what this world has to offer since you were six but only as a victim. These people are used to being the thieves, spies, and murderers. Hands like yours shouldn’t be tainted like that. Especially when your family-

Sienna:Foster family...... I love them but that title is very important to me; it separates the past from the present. Also, are you forgetting I already have one person’s blood on my hands? *stares at them*

Ilia:That was self defense.

Sienna:Don’t care, they’re dead and I have to live with it. Those mines.....those stupid isolation rooms and “treatment’ programs. *clenches teeth* No way I could just go live some ordinary life after that. I’m only alive because clung to it and killed the part of me that could’ve lived normally. Guess in that phrasing then it means I killed two people that day. If I become a Shadow then I can stop horrible people from causing pain before they get the chance. I can stop more people like me from being shaped by such trauma. So please.... *tears up* don’t take me out the program. It’s my dream.

Ilia:.....I-

“Let her stay”

Both of them look towards the door to see Adam standing there with his arms crossed and learning against the door frame. Instantly Sienna’s ears and head drop down in guilt; upset with herself for causing such a mess that the leader of the whole organization swooped by.

Ilia:Shouldn’t you be laying low and doing paperwork?

Adam:Everyone here is sworn to secrecy and it’s not like those papers are going anywhere. *walks forward* Sienna......

Sienna:*Looking away* Yes sir......?

Adam:What’s with the formalities? It’s just us in here. Let’s try this again *slowly turns her head* Sienna.....

Sienna:.....Yeah dad?

Adam:It’s starting to feel like we see each other during lectures than at dinner.

Sienna:Maybe because you’re not home half the time....

Adam:Fair point, but you get what I’m saying right? Take it from me, short tempers get you into nothing but trouble that could’ve avoided entirely.

Sienna:It’s just....all the things he kept saying I....I can’t stand being weak. I’m the youngest there, no semblance, and completely wet behind the ears like he said. Still, I hate how he looked down on me. I know my grades should speak for themselves but they don’t.

Adam:I see, respect is what you wanted. Validation of all the effort you’ve put in. Tell me, is something like that really worth it from someone like him? Not only is he also a recruit but his scores are lower than yours despite his advantages. Do you know why?

Sienna:I want it more than he does.

Adam:Precisely, in this world you got so far by having a hunger to keep going like no one else; it was press on or lay dead on the bloody floor. Not many can do what you did at such a young age. As far as I’m concerned he’s right about not being like the rest; you’re better.

Sienna:*red*.......

Adam:Not to mention you got a pretty big heart that genuinely wants to help the best way it knows how. As a parent the path you’ve chosen scares me, but as your future boss I hope when I’m long gone that someone like you can continue keeping things on the straight and narrow. Before all that though you still need to graduate. How will you do that?

Sienna:*takes a breath* Following orders.....and learning to keep calm like Ilia says. I’m sorry dad.

Adam:I’m not the one who needs an apology.

Sienna:Ilia, I’m sorry for being such a handful. May I please stay in the program?

Ilia:......You’ll be on leave for two weeks. Just enough time for all the work you’re gonna miss to be annoying; also enough time to put you through horrific drills after your head heals. But yes you can stay. One day for sure I’m gonna make a fine Shadow out of you.

Sienna:*smiles* There’s not a doubt in my mind you will ma’am!

Ilia:Ugh, I feel so old when you say that. By the way your punishment begins now; I called your mom.

Sienna:You did wha-

Jacquelyn:*runs through door* Sienna!!!! Oh thank goodness you’re okay and- *gasp* Is that my darling husband!?

Sienna:Wow mom, I feel the love and concern right now...

Jael:*runs in* Sissy!

Sienna:Hey there kiddo! Oh I’ve missed you while I was at camp.

Jael:*sits on bed* Well maybe if you wrote letters then you’d miss me less. You’re as bad as Father!

Adam:Ouch.....right here.

Jael:*smiles* I know, why is my sister handcuffed?

Sienna:Don’t worry about it. I was misbehaving and they had to.

Jael:Hmph! That’s dumb...

Jael grabs the chain and squeezes tight. Soon after, her hand glows and she snaps snaps it easily. Sienna is amazed every time she sees her little sister discover how to use her semblance. Gravity control is a very useful thing to have.

Jael:All better! Whoever did that to you has to face me!

Ilia:It was me you little rascal.

Jael:Aunt Ilia? Fine, I meant went I said! *puts fists up*

Sienna:Looks like I’m not the only one with fighting spirit.

Ilia:I hope she doesn’t have an explosive temper like her big sis. *smiles* the world isn’t ready for that.

Adam:I’ll say, me or the world isn’t ready for that force of nature yet.

Jael:Please, like I’ll ever be as hot head as you two. I’m as cool as they come.

[six years later, hospital]

Sienna:*watching over a comatose Adam* If you don’t head out soon you’ll miss your boat to Beacon.

Jael:I’m leaving now. *opens door*

Sienna:Jael......don’t do anything reckless you hear me? You’re as cool as they come remember?

Jael:.......I thought I was. *leaves*

Sienna:I don’t know if you can hear me dad but please watch over her. Guess I wasn’t a very good role model.

Nothing was said after that, it wasn’t like she expected a response anyway. She began to close her eyes and hold her hands together. Sienna was never one to pray often, but this was too important to take any chances with. Selling her own wouldn’t be a bad price to pay if she could.

Sienna:Please.....don’t let her end up like me or the rest of us. Keep her hands clean....

#rwby #adam taurus #jacquelyn frost #sienna frost #jael frost #ilia amitola #my oc’s

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mlovesstories · 6 years

Text

Uh Oh Part 1

Summary: Jared’s TV daughter is acting strangely, and the boys notice.

Words: 955

Warnings: language

AN- This is for my Jared!girl @find-sammys-shoe

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Right now this is a four part series. Enjoy!

Bella walked out of her trailer toward the makeup trailer. She entered through the door to see Jensen having his hair styled.

“Good morning, Jenny. Hair’s looking good today.” She snickered.

“Ass.” Jensen responded to her feminization of his name. “You take longer than me, idiot.” He rolled his eyes playfully at his TV niece.

“Whatever, old man.” Bella laughed. “Where is my father?”

“You mean Samantha? He’s coming.”

“Cool, I can’t wait to get him back for yesterday.”

“Good luck with that, kid.” He smirked.

————-

“Hello, father,”she smiled.

“Hello, daughter,” he laughed.

“You realize you two aren’t related, right?” Jensen entered the conversation.

“We should be,” Bella giggled.

“I really don’t like having two of you,” the oldest whined.

“You love us, uncle.”

“Whatever.”

———

“Hey, kiddo.” Jared walked into Bella’s trailer.

“Hey! What’s up?”

“Just checking on you.”

“Oh, nothing. Just reading through my lines.” Bella grinned.

“Cool,” he sat down next to her. “You just seem withdrawn, that’s all. You sure you’re okay?”

Bella shifted.

“Just a lot going on. I needed some me time before the next scene.”

“You’ll tell me if it gets too much, right? I love you.”

“Of course. I love you too.”

______

“Hey, Jared!” Bella walked over to her TV father on the set of Supernatural. Jared engulfed her in a hug.

“I missed you, Jelly.” He whispered into her hair with a laugh.

“You too, Bean.” Bella grinned at their nicknames, knowing they had seen each other the previous day.

“Hey, Bella!” Her TV uncle, Jensen walked across the set to say hi to her.

“Hi Jay.” She spoke into his shirt as he kissed the top of her head.

“You doing good?”

“Yep! Jelly!” She turned her attention back to Jared.

“What?”

“I missed Jensen more than you!” Bella smirked.

“I’m her favorite!” Jensen smiled and put a territorial hand on her shoulder.

“Whatever, Bella! I see how it is. Go bother him for a while. He’ll get tired of you and send you back.” He cackled.

“I would never get tired of my favorite cast member.” Jensen pulled Bella to him in a hug while they all laughed at the silly interaction.

———-

“Whatever, Dean. I was just trying to help. Excuse me,” Bella stomped away off camera in character.

“When is she going to learn that only I wash Baby? My girl has water stains everywhere now!” Dean roared and crossed his arms.

“You’re injured. She was trying to be nice. Now I gotta go clean up the mess you made with your niece.” Sam stood up from a chair and walked toward his daughter’s room.

“And cut!” The director yelled. “Great job, moving on!” Richard stated.

“I would hurt you if you ever left water stains on Baby, you know that, right?” Jensen said with a grudge to Bella.

“Yes, Jensen.” She rolled her eyes. “Because you’ve got a stick up your a-“

“Woah!” Jared walked back to the conversation. “Words, much?”

“You cuss all the time. What’s the problem with me doing it?” Bella raised an eyebrow.

“I don’t want my daughter to talk like that.”

“Oh really, Dad? Because you set such a great example.” She and Jensen snickered.

“Oh, shut up!” Her TV father dismissed them with a laugh.

“Let’s get some lunch.”

———

“You not hungry?” Jared saw that Bella’s plate was empty after going through the buffet line. “Stomach ache or something?”

“Yeah, not feeling too good.” She grabbed her midsection.

“You want some meds or something? Where’s your mom?” Jensen asked.

“I’ll be okay. Thanks. She isn’t here today. I’m eighteen, dude. I don’t need a guardian on set.”

“I know, it’s just that she’s here sometimes. You don’t look so good, kiddo.” Jensen reached up and felt her forehead. “I don’t think you have a fever though.”

“Why don’t you rest in your trailer? We’ll check on you later.” Jared nodded toward her on-set humble abode.

“Okay, thanks.” Bella picked up her plate and walked toward her trailer door.

“Hope she’s okay,” Jared sighed.

————

“Better?” Jared saw Bella walking over to him on set after lunch.

“A little. Nap helped.” She gave a small smile.

“Good, kiddo. Let us know if you’re feeling worse, okay?” Jared wrapped an arm around her.

“Yes, sir.”

————

“She’s acting weird.” Jensen noticed Bella hiding in the corner of the set.

“I know. She didn’t even go for the joke when I set her up to get Misha.” Jared stated, concerned. They walked over to her, and Jared tapped her on the shoulder. She turned.

“Hey, you okay?” Jared used a quiet voice.

“Yeah, I’m good. Why?” Bella quizzically asked. Jensen reaches up and felt her forehead. “Dude! Stop doing that! Gah!” She pushed his hand down. “Knock it off!”

“Woah!” Jensen put both of his hands up and backed away. “Sorry, Bella. We just-“

“Go away,” she whispered.

They finished their scene and ended for the day. After getting off work, the boys went for drinks.

“Now that I think about it, she has been acting different for a while now. Something is up. I just can’t put my finger on it.” Jared sighed in defeat.

“Yeah, I’m not sure. She hasn’t said anything. Tomorrow we need to ask her.”

————

“Jelly! Come here!” Jared called for Bella across the lot.

“What, Bean?” She walked up to him.

“Aren’t you hot? It’s like 85 degrees (29.4 C) and you’re wearing a huge sweatshirt.”

“No, I’m cold.”

“Are you fighting a fever?” Jared grew concerned.

“Maybe, not sure.”

“Go rest. One of the PAs will get you when we pick up for shooting.” Jared guided her toward her trailer.

“Okay, thanks.”

Weird.

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goldenworldsabound · 6 years

Text

Reunion

I was feeling really down and missing Spock so I wrote this bit. For some context, eventual the Enterprise drops me off on Vulcan after I get myself hurt on one too many missions since I don’t have real training. I get trained with the idea that they will come pick me up in about a year. Spock and I bond before that point, but during my stay our bond is attacked, which is traumatic for both of us.

Okay anyway this is at the end of that time and ;w; I LOVE HIM

The Enterprise was finally coming back to get Wendy from Vulcan. It had been an entire year and then some. She had changed a lot in that time, and while some of it she had told Spock about and some of it he could feel, she was thrilled to see him and show him all the hard work she’d done. And most importantly, to reform their bond and be together again.

Finding herself shaking her leg, she shook her head and smiled to herself, closing her eyes for a moment. She regulated her breathing, bringing her excitement at seeing her bondmate after so long under control. Her leg stopped bouncing, and she felt serene. She was still undeniably excited - but she didn’t need to make it so visibly apparent.

Amanda noticed the change and smiled at her gently in response. Wendy smiled a little wider. She was so grateful to have had the company of Spock’s mother all this time on Vulcan - she was like a mother to Wendy herself at time, although Amanda was closer to what typically would have been a grandmother compared to Wendy. Another human, bonded to a Vulcan.

“They’re here. On Vulcan.” Wendy said suddenly, fighting down the urge to laugh, to cry, a wave of emotions bubbling up. “I can feel him.”

“Let’s go see meet them.” Amanda replied, standing up. Wendy tried to get to her feet at a reasonable pace, but found she had jumped to her feet quickly. It was for the best that Amanda was elderly and as such not inclined to rush - it was all Wendy could do not to run down the hall to where her beloved Spock had beamed down. But she managed it.

They walked down the hall, Amanda holding onto Wendy’s arm and smiling. She was excited to see her son, as she always was. But she was more excited for her daughter-in-law to see him again, and for him to see her.

The doors at the end of the hallway opened, and there they were - Kirk, McCoy, and just a half step in front of them...Spock himself.

He met her gaze immediately. She resisted the urge to run to him. She could feel as she walked closer how happy he was to see her, how excited he was. How little he was working to suppress that.

They walked, slowly, in taking what felt like an eternity to close the gap. Wendy smiled softly at Spock, but kept herself under control. What was she even going to do when she saw him? Touch her fingers to his? No, that was, that was intimate for Vulcans, not appropriate, same for kissing-

Amanda squeezed her arm gently. Wendy met her gaze for a second, and calmed down. She would do whatever felt right. Then, Amanda let her grip loosen, until Wendy was freed from it. Without hesitation, Wendy jogged the remaining few steps, embracing Spock in a hug suddenly, burying her face in his chest. Their skin didn’t touch, at first. But being so close, and after the bond had almost been so brutally ripped from them, neither could stop from putting their fingers together, feeling their connection grow strong again. They would fully reform it later, in private, but for now, this was enough, sharing their feelings.

“It’s a pleasure to see you again, Amanda.” Kirk said, followed by McCoy with a similar sentiment as they shook hands with Amanda.

Hearing this, Wendy and Spock reluctantly pulled apart, hearts full of warmth, and went to greet everyone else.

“It’s so good to see you, Wendy!” McCoy said, tearing up as they hugged. “You really have been practicing that Vulcan emotion control hoo-ey haven’t you?” Despite the slightly bitter comment, he was still grinning ear from ear.

“I have, Uncle Bones. But it still took all my energy not to just run up to you all.” She laughed, hugging him again. “You don’t seem like you’ve changed too much since I’ve been gone!”

He scoffed. “Well, I can tell you things were a lot less fun without you around. Jim’s been driving me to the bottle with how hard he works me!” He leaned in, whispering dramatically, “I think he’s a bit softer when you’re around.” She giggled.

Kirk rolled his eyes and put his hand on Wendy’s shoulder. “You look like you’re doing well- woah!” Wendy turned and embraced him partyway through his statement, and he hugged her back happily. “Bones may not have changed, but wow, you sure have.” He ruffled her hair.

“Have I?” She asked, grinning.

“Sure have. Look at you now. Confident. In control of yourself. Just the way you carry yourself tells me you’re even more capable than you were last time I saw you. I can’t wait to hear what you got up to and see what you can do.” Kirk sounded like a proud uncle, even as Wendy blushed with his compliments.

“Aye aye, sir!” She replied jokingly. “I look forward to it.”

-----------------------------

They were to spend one night on Vulcan, as a brief shore leave for the Enterprise.

Finally, Wendy and Spock found themselves alone in Sarek and Amanda’s home, in Spock’s old room, where Wendy had been staying. Despite everything, Wendy felt uncertain what she should do, or say. She opted to talk. The bond had been weak for too long - she wanted to express herself with her voice first. But she was also dying to reform the bond as soon as possible - despite feeling nervous about it somehow.

“Did you notice, Spock? All of my training in emotion control.” She asked, smiling softly, her hand resting on his clothed arm.

He nodded. “I did notice. I was impressed. It’s...quite a change for a year. With the way the bond was, I didn’t realize how far you’d come.”

She sensed some reluctance in him - something he was holding back.

“What’s wrong?” She asked, frowning slightly. “Is something wrong?”

He shook his head. “No, nothing is...wrong.” He hesitated a moment. “It’s just...your emotions...I find that I miss them more than I realized. You won’t always shield them from me, will you?” He asked, blushing the slightest green, looking down at his hands almost shyly.

Wendy blushed as well, startled by the confession. “N-no, of course, I...I’ll only keep them under wraps when it’s important. Like when one of us is on shift or something is happening. I won’t lock you out, Spock.” She gently laid her head on his shoulder. “I always thought...well, I felt, I guess, like they were a bother to you.”

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “They were inconvenient at times, but having you with me is never a bother or a burden.”

She couldn’t help it anymore - she began to cry. “Spock...I missed you so much...and the, the bond!” Sobs wracked her and she clung to him. She knew that Sarek would feel her emotions from across the building at this rate, and she tried to reign it in after her outburst. The rawness of what she had felt, what they had felt. “Please, the bond, let’s-”

Before she could finish her sentence, Spock was pulling her hands onto his face in the correct position for the bonding, moving his own hands to her face after. She could feel him shaking, or was that just the strength of his emotion? The near shattering of the bond was raw for him too, she could feel as their skin touched.

“Say no more.” He whispered, eyes shining. “We will bond again. And I will never let anyone try to take that away from us ever again.”

They both closed their eyes and began to share deeply everything that had happened from before, facing the pain together, and closing the wound to begin the healing.

#love is fascinating #fic

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sofuckingchuffed · 6 years

Note

Coffee shop AU + amnesia Starisi

OKAY so this got a little out of hand and I wrote like 3 drafts of this before scrapping them all and settling on this.

This is 2k. This is not a drabble. Enjoy.

Peter was sure his heart stopped when he stepped into the cafe around the corner from his hotel and came face to face with sparkling blue eyes and a smile that could light up the sky.

It felt like a lifetime since he’d seen those dimples in the flesh, eyes crinkling at the corners. He knew he was staring, but it was as though time had stood still and the rest of the world had faded away, and it was just Sonny, smiling at Peter like he was seeing him for the first time, and nothing else mattered.

Until Sonny’s smile pulled downward and his head tilted in concern, and everything rushed back into focus, too bright, too loud, causing Peter’s heart to thump painfully in his chest.

“Sir? You okay?”

Peter sucked in a deep breath that didn’t quite reach his lungs as he felt tears prick at his eyes. He blinked furiously, trying to fight the feeling, but he didn’t dare drop his gaze in case he looked up and it was someone else in front of him, someone other than Sonny.

“Hey,” Sonny said softly, reaching across the counter to place a hand on Peter’s shoulder. “Rough morning?”

Peter opened his mouth to speak, but no words would come. He wondered for a moment if he was dreaming, or if he’d lost his mind and was trapped somewhere inside his own head while his body lay in a catatonic state. The latter once would have terrified him beyond belief, but if Sonny was his form of psychosis, he wasn’t sure he minded.

In lieu of an answer, he shrugged, and Sonny’s grip on his arm tightened. “How about you go take a seat, and I’ll bring you a coffee?”

Peter nodded dumbly, but a sense of panic ran through him when Sonny let go of his arm to move around the counter. He could already feel his chest growing tight, his breaths coming a little faster, by the time Sonny was by his side, guiding him to a table.

“I’ll be back in a moment,” Sonny said softly, and Peter felt all the grief he’d been holding onto for the past year bubble to the surface.

He tried to take a deep, measured breath and think about things rationally, but rationality told him Sonny couldn’t be here. He knew that Sonny had died undercover a year ago. He knew this didn’t make sense.

Missing, presumed dead, his brain supplied, and he let himself relax into the tiny glimmer of hope it provided.

It felt like forever and yet no time at all before Sonny was seated across from him, sliding a mug of coffee and a mini cannoli across the table with a soft smile that Peter recognized as Sonny’s victim smile. It made his stomach churn.

“What’s your name?” Sonny asked quietly.

“Peter,” he responded autmatically, before thinking to add, “Yours?”

“Dom.” Sonny grinned, and Peter’s heart thumped painfully.

Dominick Ricci. That had been Sonny’s alias undercover, thrown into an Italian sex trafficking ring importing and exporting underage girls. He briefly wondered if Sonny was somehow still undercover, but that didn’t make sense — he would have identified himself in some way if he had, let Peter know he was still working.

Peter liked to think Sonny also wouldn’t have gone an entire year without somehow letting him know he was okay.

“What brings you to Italy?”

Peter huffed out a wet sounding laugh and glanced down at his coffee. “Change of pace.”

When he looked back up, Sonny was still grinning at him, but there was an added softness to his eyes. “Yeah, I get that.”

“Where are you from, Dom?”

Sonny’s smile faltered, and he picked his own mug up in both hands, trailing his thumb across the rim. “It’s kinda a long story.”

Peter offered him a small smile, his stomach twisting in anticipation. “I’ve got time if you do.”

Sonny glanced back behind the counter, and after receiving a small nod from the elderly woman serving pastries, turned back to Peter with a sigh. “I don’t really know,” he admitted quietly.

“What do you mean, you don’t know?” Peter sat forward a little more, a restlessness filling him up with his growing need to know, to understand what Sonny was doing 4,000 miles from home instead of curled up beside Peter in bed on a lazy morning off.

“Exactly what I said. I don’t know,” Sonny offered him a weak, apologetic smile. “I woke up in hospital a year ago with no knowledge of who I am or where I was from. Thank God I somehow knew basic Italian.”

Sonny laughed at his own attempt at a joke, but Peter’s stomach dropped, and he felt suddenly overwhelmed by it all. Sonny, the absolute love of his life whom he’d been grieving the loss of for an entire year was sitting in front of him in a cafe in Italy and he had absolutely no idea what he’d put Peter through, what he’d put everyone through.

It wasn’t until Sonny touched Peter’s hand lightly that he realised he was shaking. He swallowed hard on the lump rising in his throat and pulled away from Sonny’s touch.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered as he stood, his chest aching so much he was sure his ribcage was actually shrinking.

“Peter, wait!” Sonny called after him, but Peter was already out the door, practically running to his hotel room.

He spent the rest of the day wrapped up in his own panic, his own grief, and the insane piece of hope that he’d taken from all of this. Because despite its insanity, Sonny Carisi was alive, and well, and living in Florence. And he didn’t even know who he was or what he’d left behind. Who he’d left behind.

——-

Peter had every intention of telling Sonny everything; of sitting him down, showing him photos, telling him facts, easing into stories, letting it all sink in. But when Peter saw Sonny the second day, he froze completely, and all logic flew out the window at the sight of Sonny smiling at him, looking relieved beyond belief to see him again.

And when Sonny asked him if he was free that afternoon, Peter found he couldn’t refuse.

It went on like that for weeks. Peter would visit the cafe, have a coffee with Sonny, and make plans for that evening. They would spend their evenings together eating good food, drinking good wine, laughing and dancing, and Peter was falling in love all over again.

Every night Peter told himself he would talk to Sonny the following day, but every day was the same pattern. It was nice, and comfortable, and it eased the ache that had been present ever since they’d declared Sonny dead. They would joke, and tease, and flirt, and it felt like the days before they fell in bed together, before they acknowledged how they felt, when everything was new and exciting and uncertain. It was their bubble, and Peter, despite knowing how selfish it was, couldn’t bear to ruin it for either of them.

“You’re going home soon,” Sonny said casually as they stepped out onto the sidewalk one afternoon.

Peter squinted against the setting sun to look at Sonny, giving him a small nod. “Three days. I can extend, though.”

“You’d do that?” Sonny asked shyly, dipping his head as he shoved his hands in his pockets. “For me?”

Peter didn’t even hesitate. “Of course.”

Before he knew what was happening, Sonny was swooping in, planting a gentle kiss on his lips, one hand cupping his cheek while the other remained in his pocket, likely fiddling with the inside seam.

Surprise let Peter enjoy the moment for a brief second before his heart threatened to burst out of his chest and his lungs decided to close up. He pulled away, gasping for breath as tears stung his eyes.

He closed his eyes as his head spun, and he felt Sonny’s hand settle on his shoulder, uncertain.

“Woah,” Sonny muttered, close to his ear. “I’m sorry. I thought—I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

Peter shook his head. He wanted to tell Sonny it was okay, but he wasn’t sure it was okay. He sucked in another sharp breath.

“I—“ he broke off with a shudder, a sob if he was being completely honest with himself, and he allowed Sonny to pull him in close, whispering soothing words that Peter couldn’t quite understand.

It was as though the dam had broke, and all that grief and pain and heartache he had pushed aside for this newfound blip of happiness had come bursting forth. He felt that familiar sense of shame that came with coming undone in front of another person fill him up, burning his neck, his cheeks, his chest, but he didn’t bother to fight the tears as they came hard and fast, his body heaving with sobs so hard he felt nausea bubble in his stomach.

It was only once his breathing evened out and his tears dried up that he realized he was sitting on a worn out lounge in an unfamiliar living space. He pulled away from Sonny a little to rub at his own eyes, and glanced away, swallowing hard.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered, voice raspy and worn.

“Don’t be.” Sonny placed his hand over Peter’s, linking their fingers tentatively. “You’ve clearly been dealing with a lot.”

Peter sighed, squeezing Sonny’s hand in return as he ran his other hand over his face, through his hair, trying to find some sense of composure.

“You don’t have to tell me, but—“

“Actually, I do,” Peter cut him off, releasing Sonny’s hand to reach into his own pocket in search of his phone.

He turned in his seat to face Sonny, forced himself to look into those baby blues, now tinged with worry. He fiddled with his phone, hands shaking, before he pulled up his album with photos of him and Sonny.

“I should have told you this the first day I saw you,” Peter began, offering a weak smile. “It’s a lot, but please hear me out.”

He brought up a photo of he and Sonny together, Peter’s arms wrapped around Sonny, chin resting on his shoulder, both smiling, both happy. He swallowed against the lump rising in his throat and turned his phone towards Sonny.

“This is us. On holiday in Australia.”

Peter let Sonny take the phone from him as he spoke, let him scroll through the photos that documented their time together, all the way back to before they had even put a name to what they had together. He filled Sonny in on the stories behind each photo, feeling a slight thrill under his humming anxiety every time Sonny laughed.

After a little while, he covered Sonny’s hands with his own, casting the phone aside. “Are you okay?”

Sonny lowered his head, squeezing Peter’s hands as he took a deep breath. When he looked back up, his eyes were shining with tears, but he looked happy, and Peter felt the tightness in his chest ease just a little.

“I feel crazy,” he whispered, and Peter huffed out a wet laugh.

“How do you think I felt when I saw you that day?”

Sonny shook his head, and the action shook loose a couple of tears that trailed down his cheeks. Peter reached out and brushed them away with his thumb before cupping Sonny’s face in his hand.

“Are you okay?” He repeated.

“I don’t know,” Sonny admitted, closing his eyes as he leaned into the touch. “It’s a lot.”

They were silent for a while before Sonny opened his eyes, covering Peter’s hand with his own, pressing it into his cheek a little more firmly. “I knew there was a reason I was so drawn to you.”

Peter laughed and shook his head. It still felt too good to be true. “I was expecting you to freak out.”

“I can’t promise that won’t come later,” he teased before giving Peter’s hand a squeeze. “It makes sense. I feel like I finally have the piece that I’ve been missing this past year.”

Peter felt his eyes grow wet at that, and he looked away with a cough. “Me too,” he said hoarsely.

“What happens now?”

“Whatever you want,” Peter said quickly, looking at Sonny again. Somehow he seemed closer. “There’s no obligations, there’s no rush, whatever you want, we—“

Sonny cut him off with a kiss, quick and chaste, but Peter melted into it nonetheless, some of the tension he hadn’t even known he’d been carrying easing from his shoulders.

“Can I spend the night with you?” Sonny asked shyly, a light brush dusting his cheeks.

“Of course,” Peter said in a breath, pressing a quick second kiss to Sonny’s lips. “Of course.”

“And then we’ll make a plan.”

Peter nodded, smile slowly taking over his face as he pressed his forehead against Sonny’s, and for the first time in a year his smile felt entirely natural.

#starisi #sonny carisi #peter stone #law and order svu #prompts #fanfiction #drabbles #but lets be real it ain’t a drabble #my writing #trope asks #i’ll put this on ao3 tomorrow cos i literally just wrote this on my phone

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mendesstg-blog · 6 years

Text

In My Blood

I watch her as she takes a sip of tea and sets it on the grey round table. Today it is a beautiful sunny day in Toronto. The sky is full of golden rays from the sun with a few dark clouds here and there.

“Hi, what would you like?” The barista says as he interrupts my thoughts.

“Can I get a vanilla latte?”

“Yup, coming right up.” This little coffee shop became my favorite when I was just walking the streets for inspiration. Lately I’ve just been in a shell trying to figure things out. Don’t get me wrong, I love where my life is going and everyone is so supporting of my career. It’s just that my girlfriend Rebecca has been spending time with her Ex-boyfriend and normally it wouldn’t bother me, but whenever he’s around I get anxious. “Here’s your vanilla latte, Sir.” he says as he hands me the mug.

“Thank you,” I say as I head towards the table Rebecca was sitting at. Then I look up and see him. Her face is lit up with laughter and he places his hand on her thigh. In those few seconds, I hadn’t realized that I dropped the mug on the hard floor and spilt the hot coffee all over the floor. I only realized after both Rebecca and him looked over at me. I crouch down so I can pick up pieces of the broken cup. Then one of the baristas working comes over to help me. “I’m sorry about this.” I say as I place the pieces into my hand.

“It’s okay, don’t worry about it. This isn’t the first time that this has happened. Here I’ll take those.” She says as she grabs the pieces from my hands and put it into a trash can.

“Will this be enough to cover it?” I show her a twenty dollar bill.

“You don’t have to do that.”

“I want to.” I say as I set it next to her before walking out the door. My hands find their way to my hair and push it back. I continue walking hoping just to get away from where I just was. I feel my body start to shake and my breaths begin to shorten, I don’t know what’s happening. Suddenly the sound of shoes running becomes closer to me.

A hand pushes my shoulder, “What the hell happen back there?” Rebecca begins to question me.

“Nothing I thought I was on a date with my girlfriend. But someone decided to surprise me by stopping by.”

She rolls her eyes. “Really. God Shawn, I didn’t know you owned that fucking cafe.”

“I don’t!” I raise my voice, then take a breath to calm myself before I continue. “I know what I saw back there, Rebecca.”

“Saw what? A girl laughing with her friend?”

“Daniel is not just a friend and I’m not going to be quiet about it anymore. You glow around him. You smile more around him than when you’re around me. This is how we used to act when we first started dating.”

“Well you’ve been busy with your singing job!”

“And I’m just supposed to drop my job? A job I love and like to believe I’m good at. I’m sorry, I’m not just going to drop my job for you.”

“You know what Shawn -”

“What? I’m not.”

“I think we should spend some time away from each other. Then maybe, when you have your fucking head back on and realize what’s actually worth fighting for, we can be together again.”

I just stand there speechless. She turns around and goes back to the coffee shop and left me standing there with tears beginning to run down my face. I slip on my sunglasses then walk down the street until I reach my apartment building. The streets are filled with people, so I keep my head bowed down and my hands in my pockets that way no one would really notice. Finally I get to my empty and quiet apartment - the place where I normally spend my time by myself. Honestly I’m tired of seeing this place, but I have no where else I can go. I set my keys on the dish on the counter then make my way over to the white fluffy couch. All that’s replay in my mind in Rebecca smiling while running her hand through her hair and tucking a strand behind her ear and Daniel placing his hand on her thigh. I can’t do it anymore, and I think I’ve reached my breaking point. I’m giving up. I find myself hunched over crying my heart out and pulling the hair at the back of my head. Music is what gives me happiness, why would I give it up? I just need someone to help me.

Three knocks sound at my door. I wipe away my tears and walk over to the door, slightly hoping that it’s Rebecca. Then I open the door and unfortunately it wasn’t her.

“Hey! I noticed that you got home around the same time and I was.. Woah are you okay?” It was my neighbor, Y/N. Y/N and I became friends shortly after I moved here since we both moved here and were new to the area.

I move back to allow Y/N inside. “Not really, you can come in if you want.”

She steps inside. “What’s wrong, Shawn?”

“It’s nothing important.” I say as I shut the door and go to the couch. Y/N sits next to me.

“The puffiness and redness in your eyes say otherwise. Are you okay?”

Once I heard the last three words of her sentence I completely lost it. I embrace Y/N into a hug and let out the tears. She rubs my back and doesn’t say anything.

Eventually I recompose myself and tell her what happened earlier. At this point it’s 3 in the afternoon and dark rain clouds cover the sky.

“There’s definitely something going on between them, but maybe they are just friends.. I do see her point though. You have been busy with your music, which isn’t a bad thing. Maybe she just feels a little left out?”

“I thought I’ve been giving her attention though. Relationships are tough.”

“Yeah, they do require a lot of communication.”

“I wish she could just talk to me about things as easily as you..” She smiles slightly. “Well I think I should probably go over and apologize to her.” We both head over to the door, I slip on my black sweater before opening the door.

“I’ll be right next door if you need me.” She embraces me in tight hug. “Good luck.”

I hug her back. “Thank you for everything.”

After we were done talking, I head downstairs and get into my car. Driving my way to her place, I didn’t have the radio playing. I just listened to the rain coming down while I gathered my thoughts on what I was going to say. Unfortunately I didn’t have enough time by the time I arrived. I parked the car in front of her apartment building by the curb. I run up to the building, hoping to avoid the rain. The rain came down even harder, which caused me to be soaked by the time I got to the door. Finally I get into the building. Fuck. What am I going to say? I stand in front of her apartment door that says “9″ on it and bring myself to knock on it. I fix my hair quick before the door opens.

Instead it was Daniel at the door with a white towel wrapped around his waist and I hear Rebecca say from inside, “Who is it, babe?” Then she comes to the door in a towel as well.

“Shawn…”

Part II

#In my blood #Shawn mendes #Shawn Mendes Imagine #shawn mendes fanfic #shawn peter raul mendes #im sorry #please don't hate me

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frolwriting · 6 years

Text

Pyramids of Mars Part 1

Hey guys! I am back with another chapter of Through Time and Space! I just came back from Walker Stalker Con Nashville, and it was the most amazing experience. I will be posting a video about it later talking about how it was working a con rather than just attending a con. Anyways, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

Fandom: Doctor Who

Series: Through Time and Space

Episode: Pyramids of Mars

Pairing: Fourth Doctor x Kate

Warnings: Blood and Injury

_______________________________________________________________________

When I woke up, the first thing I saw was a scarf. There was a scarf in my face. That could only mean one regeneration. "Kate, are you okay?" That confirmed it. I was with the Fourth Doctor! I moved the scarf out of my face to find the Doctor kneeling down beside me.

"Yes, Doctor, I'm fine." I said sitting up. There was footsteps entering the console room. I looked over and saw Sarah Jane! I got up and ran to her. This is a huge honor right now.

"Woah! Hello, Kate!" She said hugging me back.

"Sorry, this is just the first time I have met you, but I've heard so much about you." She chuckled.

"Hopefully all good things." She said looking over to the Doctor.

"Oh, great things I can assure you." I said. That was when I noticed she was wearing an old-timey dress. I was still wearing the clothes I got from the bar a few adventures ago.

"I am very much underdressed."

"Come on, we'll go change that." We headed back into the Tardis dressing room. We went over to an area labeled Edwardian. I guess that's a time period. We looked through the massive amount of dresses till we found a gorgeous green colored dress. It was simple enough to not get in the way, but this dress was so pretty! Sarah helped me into it. We headed back to the console room to find the Doctor messing around on the console.

"We're ready." He turned to me.

"You look beautiful." He said as he came over and kissed me on the cheek. It made me blush. I'm still not used to this future wife thing, but I'm sure it won't take me much longer to get used to it. "Sarah, that dress you're wearing was worn by Victoria, she travelled with me for a time." She looked down at her dress.

"Well, as long as Albert didn't wear it." He didn't say anything but went back to messing with something on the console. "Oh, come on, Doctor. That's worth a smile, surely. What's the matter? You should be glad to be going home."

"The Earth isn't my home, Sarah. I'm a Time Lord."

"I know you're a Time Lord."

"You don't understand the implications. I'm not a human being. I walk in eternity."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means I've lived for something like seven hundred and fifty years. Kate has been with me 95% of that time." I smiled.

"Oh, you'll soon be middle aged."

"Yes! About time I found something better to do than run around after the Brigadier."

"Oh, come on. If you're tired of being UNIT's scientific advisor, you can always resign." That was when the Tardis went dark and started to tilt. The console explodes and the lights come back on. I looked up to see a weird skull thing in the air, but as quick as it popped up it disappeared.

"What was it?" I asked.

"The relative continuum stabilizer failed." The Doctor said messing with the console.

"No, not that. I think she means the thing that was hanging in the air." Sarah said.

"What thing?" The Doctor asked suddenly getting a bit nervous.

"There was a terrible face just for a second, then it was gone. You don't believe us, do you?" I asked.

"Nothing can enter the Tardis, Kate. You know that. Unless-"

"Unless what?" I asked.

"Mental projection of that force is beyond imagination, yet it might explain the stabilizer failure. Let's see. Was it at this end of the spectrum?" The Doctor asked showing us something on one of the monitors.

"No, Doctor, don't! Whatever it was, I know it was totally malevolent." Sarah said. That was when we landed.

"We've landed." The Doctor said.

"Where? Where have we landed?" Sarah asks. When we walk out of the Tardis doors, we find ourselves in a storage room filled with what looks like Egyptian things.

"We've materialized at the correct point in space, but obviously not in time. A temporal reverse? Some vast impulse of energy has drawn the Tardis off course." The Doctor says.

"You're saying this is in UNIT HQ, but years before I knew it?" Sarah asks.

"Yes."

"But it's so different. It can't be the same house." She says going over to a sarcophagus.

"It must be the old priory. The UNIT house was built on the site." The Doctor says looking at one of the boxes.

"The old priory was burnt down, wasn't it?"

"Something's very wrong."

"Doctor, I don't like it here." Sarah says scared.

"Something's going on contrary to the laws of the universe. I must find out what." I go to the door, but it's locked. "Why bother to lock an internal door?" The Doctor asks noticing I can't open the door.

"Maybe this wing of the house isn't in use. It smells musty enough." I say.

"That isn't all must, Kate. Some of it's mummy. French picklock. Never fails. Belonged to Marie Antoinette. Charming lady. lost her head, poor thing." There then came a noise that sounded like someone was unlocking the door from the other side. Me, the Doctor, and Sarah all hid. "Of course, it would make an ideal headquarters for some paramilitary organization. This room could easily be turned into a laboratory." The Doctor said not paying attention to the person who just came in. "Oh, hello." He said turning to the man.

"Who are you? How did you get in here?" The man asked.

"Through the window. I understood the property was for sale. No?"

"Ah, you're not fooling me, sir. You came with Doctor Warlock, didn't you?"

"Did we?" The Doctor asked.

"He asked you to scout round whilst he kept his nibs busy. Listen, if you're a friend of Doctor Warlock, sir, tell him to watch out."

"Watch out for what?" I asked.

"The Egyptian. There's no knowing what he might do. He's got the temper of the devil himself."

"Egyptian, eh? Is this where he keeps his relatives?"

"It's no joke, sir. He's only been here a few days. I wouldn't be staying, but, well, situations aren't easy to find at my age."

"What are you afraid of?" The Doctor asked.

"He locked this wing. He didn't know there was a second key. If he were to find me along here, let alone you two, he'd go stark raving mad, sir."

"I see. In that case, we'd better leave." The Doctor said as we started walking out of the room.

"Oh, not this way, sir. Better go the way you came. He might see you."

"As you wish." The Doctor said as we sorta started going back to the Tardis.

"And remember to tell Doctor Warlock what I said, sir."

"Don't worry. I'll remember." We went out of a window and walk around the place where we landed. We walked around for a while, and then headed back to the window. We heard the man we met before scream. The Doctor went through the window and took off his scarf. He threw his scarf around the attacker and pulled him to the ground.

"Come on, quick." I exclaimed. A man in a doctor's outfit came out of the window as the Doctor held the other man down. The Doctor let the guy go and climbed through the window. The Doctor and I helped who I assume is Doctor Warlock to the gardens of this place. The man was shot.

"It's no good. I can't go much further." Doctor Warlock said.

"You must. We're sitting ducks if we stay here." The Doctor said.

"Get to the lodge. Tell Laurence-"

"Laurence?" I asked.

"Marcus Scarman's brother. He lives there. Knows me." Warlock says as he collapses. Me and the Doctor gently put him down on the ground.

"He needs help, Sarah. You go on ahead, find the lodge." The Doctor says to Sarah.

"What about you two?" Sarah asks.

"We'll be fine."

"Okay." Sarah says as she runs up the steps of the garden and through the gate. The Doctor bends down and carries Warlock as we headed off. We walked without problem, but I thought I heard something behind us at one point. When I was about to tell the Doctor that, Sarah came back with another man who I assume is Laurence.

"Oh, my dear chap. Is he badly hurt?" Laurence asked running up to us.

"He'll be all right if we can staunch the bleeding." The Doctor says.

"We'd better get him back to the lodge."

"Doctor, listen. I saw a mummy. A walking mummy!" Sarah said.

"Mummies are embalmed, eviscerated corpses. They don't walk." The Doctor said.

"Doctor, I think I heard something behind us as we were walking." I said bringing up my fear.

"Never mind about that now." The Doctor said as he walked off with Laurence. I shook my head and followed behind them up to the Lodge. The Doctor puts Warlock on a couch. Sarah goes over and puts a blanket over him. Laurence had put his arm in a sling.

"Well, in view of what you've told me, I going to fetch the police." Laurence says as he starts heading out the door.

"No! This is much too grave a matter for the police, Mister Scarman." I say.

"Too grave?" He asked confused.

"Yes. They'd only hamper my investigation." The Doctor says.

"Your investigations?"

"Yes. Why do you think I'm here? Something's interfering with time, Mister Scarman, and time is my business."

"Who are you?"

"Well, I'm Sarah Jane Smith. I'm a journalist." Sarah states.

"Journalist? Who are your companions?"

"My companions? Oh, that's the Doctor and Kate. We travel in time, Mister Scarman. I'm really from 1980."

"That is utterly preposterous, Miss Smith."

"Yes, sorry."

"Interesting contraption." The Doctor says as he goes over to a device by a wall in the room.

"Kindly leave that alone, sir. That apparatus is delicately adjusted, and furthermore is a receiver containing highly dangerous electrical current." Laurence says as he goes over to the Doctor.

"Yes, so I see. What year is this?"

"What year?"

"It's a simple enough question, surely."

"Are you telling me you don't know what-"

"If I knew I wouldn't ask. Don't be obtuse, man."

"Nineteen hundred and eleven."

"Ah. Splendid. An excellent year. One of my favorites. Yes. I really must congratulate you, Mister Scarman."

"On what?"

"Inventing the radio telescope forty years early."

"That, sir, is a Marconiscope. Its purpose-"

"Is to receive radio emissions from the stars."

"How could you possibly know that?"

"Well, you see, Mister Scarman, I have the advantage of being slightly ahead of you. Sometimes behind you, but normally ahead of you."

"I see."

"I'm sure you don't, but it's very nice of you to try. Now, why don't you show me how this gadget works?"

"Do you mean you want me to-"

"Please. Just a little demonstration." Laurence flicks some switches and pulls down a lever. There was a cloud of smoke, but then the wheel starts to spin. "Amazing. That's really amazing." Laurence disconnects the device, but the wheel only goes faster and faster.

"I can't switch it off!" Laurence exclaims as he tries everything he can to get the wheel to stop. Then something explodes and the wheel stops.

"Oh, very impressive." Sarah says.

"It's never done that before." Laurence says a bit scared.

"Fascinating. A regular pattern repeated over and over again." The Doctor says as he looks at the machine intently.

"Like an SOS?" Sarah asks.

"I wonder. Where was your aerial tuned?"

"Mars. Why?"

"I just thought I'd verify the signal." The Doctor then pulls out a small radio and extends the antenna on it. He must have the bigger on the inside pockets like the Tenth Doctor.

"What's that you have, Doctor?" Laurence asks.

"Well, in principle it's exactly the same as the gadget you've invented, only less cumbersome. Yes, it is the same signal. Obviously automatic. Well, if it's a message, it shouldn't be difficult to decipher. They'd want to make it easy." The Doctor puts his radio down and stars writing something in a notebook.

"Who would?"

"Whoever transmitted it." I say.

"Now, let's see. This pattern recurs three times in one line. Let's call that E, the commonest letter in the language." There was a pause. "Beware Sutekh."

"Sutekh?" I ask.

"Better known to you as Set." My eyes widen.

"Of course, Egyptian mythology. Set or Sutekh was one of their gods. He was killed by Horus, god of light." Sarah says.

"Yes, but Egyptology and Mars?" Laurence asks.

"If I'm right, the world is facing the greatest peril in its history." The Doctor says as he starts walking out of the lodge.

"Hey, wait for us." Sarah says as we start walking after him.

"No. The forces that are being summoned into corporeal existence in that house are more powerful and more dangerous than anything even I have ever encountered. Stay here."

"What about me?" I ask. Sometimes the Doctor lets me go with him.

"You are to stay here." The Doctor says. I sighed. "I'll be fine. I don't want to put you in danger."

"I've an old hunting rifle that might come in useful." Laurence says.

"I never carry firearms." The Doctor says as he leaves.

"What I meant was that I should feel better if I could bring it." Me and Sarah are almost out the door by the time he says that. We aren't staying. When has companions ever stayed?

"Bring it." Sarah says as we leave. We walk back to the house avoiding the Doctor. We enter a hallway where the Doctor is looking through a crack in the door. He gestures us to go away, but we don't move. I hear a voice coming from the room that the Doctor is peering through, but I can't understand anything the voice is staying. When Scarman showed up, we walk over to the Doctor to watch. There was the man from earlier who the Doctor held down and another creature. The creature puts his hands on the first man's shoulders. That man started to scream as smoke started coming from his skin.

"Die. I bring Sutekh's gift of death to all humanity." Welp, there goes another human who thinks they'll get something for helping a creature who wants to take over the world. The creature then turns into a very pale man.

"Marcus!" Laurence yells. I guess that might be what Marcus looks like.

"Shush." The Doctor says.

"Take up the generator loops." That's when I notice there was also mummies in the room that start to move and pick up jars. "Place them in position at the compass points. Activate at ground strength." 'Marcus' says.

#doctor who #dw #fourth doctor x reader #through time and space

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aurorjohndawlish · 6 years

Text

Who: John Dawlish and his muggle fiancée, Elena What: Significant moments from their relationship

First meeting:

Staggering down a side-street, John Dawlish knew he was in trouble. He’d been hit with some sort of dark curse, one he’d never heard before, but he knew it was bad. Something was wrong, he needed a healer, but his strength was fading much too fast and he was so very far from help. Grunting in pain, he forced himself to take just a few more steps toward the main road, knowing he would not be able to apparate in this state. While John Dawlish might not have been bleeding anywhere he could see, he knew his injuries were severe and that he would not be on his feet for much longer. Normally, his partner would have been able to assist him, but he had told her to chase down the dark wizard they were after without him, having assured her he was fine. Well, he most certainly was not fine, and now he might very well die alone on this eerily quiet street.

Leaning against a rough brick building in a muggle residential neighborhood, John managed to round the corner, his wand out and eyes scanning the street for any sign of life. Just ahead of him on the sidewalk, he noticed a woman leaving an apartment building. A muggle by the look of her clothes, he quickly shoved his wand into the pocket of his trench coat. John mustered the last of his strength to call out to her. “Miss!” He shouted desperately, sinking to his knees and clutching at the pain in his abdomen. “Help” Was all the could manage as the darkness in the corners of his vision closed in around him and he collapsed fully onto the pavement.

The next thing John Dawlish remembered was an incessant chirping noise and the shuffle of footsteps nearby. He couldn’t place the chirping sound, wracking his memory for all the creatures he’d learned about back in school. None of them had ever made a sound like this. Blinking his eyes open, he was unprepared for the brightness of the room around him, and his eyes rolled unfocused for a moment. His pulse quickened at the sight around him, the chirping noise quickening as well, or was that just his imagination? It was a clean room, devoid of pretty much anything except for the bed he was currently in. Some sort of privacy curtain limited his view of much else and he sucked in a breath at how it reminded him of St. Mungo’s and yet looked so different. It was then he felt something on his face and lifting a hand, he realized there was some sort of mask covering his mouth and nose. Quickly, he yanked it away, his chest rising and falling rapidly as it snapped back against his neck, something around the back of his head holding it in place and his grip too weak to pull it fully away.

“Woah. Careful.” A voice admonished him from his bedside and John’s gaze flickered toward it. A woman stood by him in strange clothes, her blonde hair pulled back out of her face, and John shifted away as she reached to put that thing back over his mouth. “Don’t” He croaked, his mouth and throat dry and he reached to shove her hand away. As he did so, he noticed something on his arm and tried to shake it off, but realized it was stuck to him. His eyes widened with panic and suddenly the woman’s hand was gently resting at his shoulder, the other on his arm to stop him from moving it. “Easy.” She said, her tone warm but firm. “Sir, do you know where you are?” she asked, easing his arm back down to his side. John struggled against her for a moment before her words resonated and he shook his head. “You’re at St. George’s Hospital. You’ve had an injury, but you’re alright. I just need you to relax.”

Her voice was smooth and calming, and John eased back as she spoke. The memory of the duel down that side street returned to him, the curse, and the woman in the street. He had been correct in assuming she was a muggle, but he had also been right to call out to her. She had obviously gone for help. The woman at his bedside reached to cover his mouth and nose once more and John turned his head away from her. “Stop. Who- who are you?” He asked his hand gripping her wrist. She frowned at him, her gaze flicking warily to where he held her wrist, but her voice remained calm and even when she answered him. “My name is Elena. I’m your nurse.”

Nurse. John knew that word. It meant she was some sort of muggle healer, but that was as much as he could recall. “What’s your name?” She asked gently, slowly turning her arm to loosen his grip. He released his hold on her, glad she didn’t reach for that thing again. “John.” He answered. The nurse gave a nod before a smile tugged at her lips. “Your last name isn’t Doe, is it?” She asked, her tone indicating some sort of joke that he didn’t understand. “No… Dawlish.” He responded, his brows pulling together in confusion. Elena cracked a smile, obviously finding some humor in his name. “Well, we were close.”

Breaking the Statute of Secrecy:

“I’m home!” John called as he pushed open the door of his apartment. Kicking off his shoes, he placed them next to Elena’s and shrugged off his trench coat, hanging it on his usual hook by the door. Elena’s raincoat was dry, meaning she had been home for quite sometime, and by the smell wafting through the apartment, she had made good use of her time. In fact, it was from the kitchen that Elena emerged, drying her hands on a towel and grinning at him. “You’re early!” She exclaimed, tossing the towel in his direction. John caught it easily, a smile tugging at the corner of his own lips. “Don’t sound so disappointed.” He teased, closing the distance between them and leaning down to kiss her hello. “Oh I’m not, now you can help me with dinner.” She joked back before reaching for the towel, but John held it out of her reach. “What are we having?” He asked even though he could already tell by the smell, grinning at her as her arms snaked around his waist. “Your favorite.” Elena hummed back, and John’s arms dropped to settle at her waist. “It’s not often our schedules let us have dinner together, I wanted to surprise you. Go change, and then you can help with the salad.” She pulled out of his grasp, taking the kitchen towel with her and John nodded his agreement.

Grabbing a pair of jeans and long-sleeved t-shirt from his closet, John marveled at how he had come to appreciate muggle clothing, and cooking, and so many other elements of this life he now shared with Elena. It was foreign to him, and yet comfortably familiar in some ways. Of course there were elements of his life as a wizard he desperately missed or had to hide from his girlfriend, but he had decided he didn’t want to hide them any longer. She had shared the joys of her muggle world with him for the better part of two years now and every single day John itched to share his world with her in return. Of course, as an Auror he knew better than to break the Statute of Secrecy, but with an engagement ring safely stored in his desk at work, he supposed it was safe to tell her. Technically, he should wait until after she agreed to marry him to share the secret, but John didn’t think he could take a second failed engagement. Best to tell her now and give her the chance to leave him before a proposal.

Heading back into the kitchen, John found he was actually nervous to tell her. No doubt she would think him mad at first. How should he tell her anyway? He would have to show her some sort of magic in order to prove to her that wizards really did exist and were not some sort of Halloween costume, fairytale fantasy that she currently believed they were. Luckily, Elena launched into a story from her shift at the hospital that day and John could chop vegetables without a word, nodding along with her story though his mind was elsewhere. He always had been a man of few words, and that never seemed to bother Elena, though half-way through dinner she seemed to catch on that something was on his mind. “Bad day at work?” She asked, setting down her fork and eyeing him from across the table. “No, not at all. Charlotte and I were able to wrap up an investigation quicker than we thought. It was a good day.” Elena nodded once, her brows pulling together “I see…”

“And you can’t tell me anything about this investigation, can you? Top secret, right?” She asked, a hint of frustration in her tone. If there was one thing that they struggled with in their relationship, it was John’s tendency toward secrets. He planned for all of that to change tonight. Clearing his throat, John set his own fork on the table and leaned back in his seat. He supposed now was as good a time as any. “Actually…”

The Proposal:

John supposed it wasn’t much of a surprise when he got down on one knee. He and Elena had spoken quite seriously of marriage for months now, so it wasn’t like she hadn’t been expecting it to happen sooner or later. If she wasn’t already waiting for it to happen, however, the events of the day surely tipped her off that he had planned to make it special. Early that morning, John had suggested they skip their chores for the day and simply enjoy being together. Elena had suggested going to breakfast and then for a hike, a hobby of hers she had introduced John to when they first started dating. He had planned to take her to dinner that evening, someplace special where he would officially ask the question, but as they walked hand in hand through the woods, talking and laughing with one another, John couldn’t wait any longer.

He’d turned to Elena, reaching for her other hand and giving it a squeeze before sinking down to one knee. He wasn’t even sure of all that was said, his careful speech completely forgotten in the moment as he professed just how much he loved her, and how terrifying that was for him, but in the end he knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. Thankfully, he’d had the good sense to keep the ring in his pocket just in case, and it was with shaking hands he slipped it on her finger when she said yes. He didn’t know how long they stood there, wrapped around one another with the sunlight filtering down around them through the trees, but he found that he didn’t much care. All that mattered to him was that they were together, and that they would spend the rest of their lives that way.

They’d decided to wait before Elena called her friends and family to announce the good news, or for John to send an owl to his parents. Instead, they’d taken the rest of the day for themselves as well. Celebrating just the two of them, and talking about plans for the future. John couldn’t help but compare the experience to his first engagement, a bittersweet reminder of his first love that had ended so terribly. Elena, unlike Jackie, spoke excitedly of wedding details and insisted on a short engagement much to John’s relief. He knew that every day waiting for the wedding would be agony, as he would be riddled with anxiety that she might leave him the way Jackie had.

Elena must have seen the worry creasing his face and heard the anxiety coloring his tone as he asked her over and over if she was sure it was what she wanted. Each time she assured him adamantly that it was exactly what she wanted, taking his face gently in her hands and kissing him until he forgot why he had been worrying in the first place.

Word Count: 2,076

Special thanks to Ashley for her medical expertise! <3

#john #drabble #elena #morsmordre points #caw caw

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redrobin-detective · 6 years

Text

The Long Way Around 14

It's Sunday across the world and I couldn't wait. I won't bore with an long speech. I just hope that you enjoy it! I'm quite excited to share and I'm excited to see what people think!

AO3/Fanfiction

Chapter Fourteen: The Boys Born with Nothing and Everything

Reminder from last chapter: Izuku won his fight with Shinsou but his quirklessness was revealed at the end of the match by Present Mic.

As soon as he steps off the field, Izuku is acutely aware of all the eyes on him, of the whispers behind his back. He's used to being stared at for being some sort of freak, a relic of a long forgotten age but the intensity of the eyes on him now feels much, much heavier. He swallows the lump in his throat and continues on like he isn't bothered by them.

The main worry now is that they'll try and pull him out of the matches. Heavens knows they normally don't have a problem letting kids beat the hell out of each other on live TV but, of course, it's different now that he's quirkless.

"Midoriya Izuku, would you please come to the commentator's box?" Comes from the loudspeakers in the tunnel and he takes a deep breath. Well, here it comes, they were going to try and talk him out of competing. His anger burns warm in his chest, well let them try to stop him. He knows his rights; Yuuei got rid of the ban on quirkless students three years ago so there's nothing but their own prejudices in his way.

Izuku holds his head high as he stalks up to the commentator's box. Present Mic is narrating another of the matches but there are several others up there as well. Izuku recognizes Class 1-B teacher, Blood King and Chiura-sensei is there too. Sitting next to Present Mic is a man wrapped almost entirely in bandages. Really? They're going to tell him he can't fight when this man clearly should be in the hospital?

"I'm not going to back out. I'm going to fight in the next round and nothing you say will make me change my mind," Izuku announces before they can say anything.

"Be reasonable, son," Blood King says in a grinding tone. "No one can deny you've done well so far but we can't guarantee your safety in upcoming matches."

"And you can for everyone else competing?" Izuku snaps back. Normally he'd be mortified to be talking to an adult, a pro hero no less, with such disrespect but he's too angry to care right now. "I've sweat and bled to get this far and you're not taking it from me. I'm going to fight and I'm going to earn that open seat in the hero course."

"Interesting," the dark haired man mumbles through his bandages. "You know Heroics has never taken a quirkless student before, right?"

"First time for everything," Izuku answers right back. "No one thought one hero could single-handedly decrease crime rates either and yet here we are." The man nods to himself before retreating from the conversation.

"Are you even aware of who you're going to be fighting? What kind of power you're up against?" Blood King hisses, kneeling down a little bit so he's closer to Izuku's level. "This isn't some Gen Ed punk, you're up against Todoroki Shouto, son of the second most powerful man in Japan. Even the fastest and strongest would have a hard time against him. You're a smart kid, you have to see your chances are impossible."

Todoroki? That's who he'd be fighting? Izuku admits the thought absolutely terrifies him; Todoroki's performance in the obstacle course and the cavalry battle had shown that he's incredibly skilled with his quirk. But Izuku couldn't back down now, it would mean that all of his hard work meant nothing, that Shinsou's loss had been pointless.

"I'll be ready," Izuku nods. "I'm well aware of the fact that it will be difficult but a real hero doesn't back down from a fight no matter how strong their opponent is." Izuku narrows his eyes, "with all due respect, sir, there isn't a thing you can do to stop me." Blood King wearily turns to Chiura-sensei who's got the barest hint of a smug smile on his face.

"I told you he wouldn't back down, let him fight. I guarantee you the boy will cause a bigger stir if you try to pull him out now. Besides, he might even show Todoroki's son a thing or two."

"Well I think you're mad, kid!" Present Mic says enthusiastically, spinning around in his chair as the previous match concludes. "But I gotta say I kinda dig it, don't you, Eraser?" Izuku gasps quietly, that was Eraserhead, the underground hero capable of temporarily erasing quirks, who also happened to be the homeroom teacher of 1-A and one of the teachers injured at USJ. "Sure Midoriya, you can compete, just don't sue us when you break all your bones!"

"Thank you," Izuku answers. "I can't promise to win but I can say I'll put on a good show." He walks out of the room with his head held high, ignoring the whispered comments behind his back.

The first round is still going on so he has time to plan for his upcoming battle. Izuku is lost in thought as he walks down the hall, still conflicted about how to feel about Todoroki. Izuku is, of course, in complete awe of the power the other boy possesses but he'd seemed so sad when he'd spoken to Izuku. He'd looked like Shinsou had the day those older kids were bullying him; like he knew that there's nothing to be done about all the awful things in his life. Izuku wonders if he could-

"So you're the quirkless kid everyone is talking about?" Izuku feels his heart skip a beat as Number Two Hero, Endeavor, rounds the corner and stares down at him with indifference. The heat and disgust radiating off the hero is almost enough to make Izuku step back but he forces himself to stand his ground. "Pathetic, I was hoping my Shouto would have a more impressive match-up to demonstrate his skills but I suppose it can't be helped."

"You couldn't possibly understand but my son is destined to surpass All Might himself; he shouldn't have to waste his time on people like you," Endeavor sneers. "I know I can't expect much from a quirkless brat but, for both your sakes, try not to lose so disgracefully." With that said, Endeavor moves past him with an aggressive stride.

"Quirkless or not, I still beat your son in the preliminaries," Izuku says harshly. "And Todoroki may not have beaten All Might but he's already surpassed you, not that it's difficult or anything. Excuse me, I need to prepare for my match." He turns and walks away before Endeavor can respond. Izuku makes sure not to hurry away, taking careful measured steps and keeping his trembling fists still at his side. He didn't want Endeavor to interpret his shaking as fear when all Izuku can feel is rage.

XxX

"And now folks, we've got what is sure to be an interesting, but ultimately short, fight!" Present Mic screeches. "We have in one corner, the boy who defied the odds, and the advice of his teachers, to be here. You all remember the quirkless General Education student who came out on top in the preliminaries, Midoriya Izuku!" Izuku stretches out his arms, letting Mic's words roll off of him like water. The old him would have been discouraged but he's different now; he knows who he is and what he's capable of.

"And then we have one of our rising stars in 1-A, the boy who turned this stadium into a giant popsicle in the first round and the son of the Number Two himself, Todoroki Shouto! Be sure to go easy on him, eh Todoroki?"

"Stop demeaning the students and let them fight," Eraserhead chimes in. "This match is far from over, Midoriya has proven himself to be a strong opponent and Todoroki would be wise to keep that in mind."

"Alright, moving on!" Midnight says, holding up her whip. She gives Izuku a pitying look. "Last chance kid, no one will think less of you if you bow out now." Izuku sighs with frustration as he reaches behind his back and pulls out his bō, whipping it out to its full length before settling it in his hands. "Well, it's your funeral. Start!"

During the time before his match, Izuku had carefully observed Todoroki's fight with the 1-A kid, Sero. Izuku's main advantage is the fact that everyone, probably Todoroki too, will be underestimating him. Judging by how Todoroki had appeared after he'd created that huge iceberg, Izuku would guess that was probably at or near his upper limit. But Todoroki most likely wasn't going to go that big against little, quirkless him if only because it's a waste of energy.

Besides all that, it takes Todoroki a few seconds to build up that amount of ice. And a few seconds is all Izuku needed.

Midnight barely finished announcing the start before Izuku is charging forward towards Todoroki as fast as he absolutely could. They aren't too far apart and Izuku reaches the other boy quickly, soon enough that Todoroki still hasn't finished forming his ice. Flinching at the sudden proximity, Todoroki throws a much smaller ice wall up, one which Izuku is easily able to climb using the cleats in his boots to get to higher ground.

Izuku raises his bō and whips it hard across Todoroki's face. Izuku ignores the quiet crack and the look of surprised pain on Todoroki's face. Rikimaru-shishou had been right, Izuku can't afford to play nice right now, not if he wants to win. Izuku hits the ground while Todoroki stumbles back a bit and he maneuvers the bō to hit Todoroki in the gut. Todoroki chokes and huddles over himself, taking a few more steps back.

Izuku hates himself a bit to keep hammering in on someone clearly in pain but this is his one and only chance to prove himself and Todoroki could wipe him out if Izuku hesitates for even a second.

"Woah! Are you seeing this? Midoriya is not going down without a fight and is really pounding in on Todoroki. This guy isn't playing around, he's here to win!"

He charges again and Todoroki has semi-righted himself, wiping some spittle from the side of his mouth. He eyes Izuku with a cold gaze, the same look he gave when he'd initially challenged Izuku. On the ground below them, a pillar ice begins to speed towards him rapidly. Izuku mostly is able to dodge but winces as part of the ice hits him in the head, scraping his forehead and part of his left eyebrow.

Ignoring the pain and blood dribbling down into his eye, Izuku pushes himself forward and closes the distance between him and his opponent. Todoroki has put out another stream of ice but, like before, Izuku climbs it and jumps down to confront Todoroki. He delivers a strong kick to his chest and Todoroki stumbles back into his own ice wall.

Todoroki steadies himself and brings up his right arm to shoot more ice but Izuku is already in his face. He slams Todoroki's head hard into the ice, with enough force to crack the wall before grabbing the front of his opponent's uniform and flipping him to the ground. Todoroki gasps as he hits the floor with a loud thunk.

"What is going on?" Present Mic announces even as the cheers in the audience begin to swell. "Am I dreaming? Am I actually seeing a quirkless kid slam Endeavor's son around like some sort of ragdoll? I have got to say, folks, I am starting to get excited, you go Midoriya!"

Izuku pants with exertion, wiping away the blood from his eye before making his way over to his opponent. There is no way Izuku is going to actually beat Todoroki in terms of skill. His only hope is to keep pounding on him, keeping Todoroki off balance so he couldn't get in any serious attacks until Izuku could get him out of bounds.

Todoroki is on his knees when Izuku is there again; he kicks him in the stomach and forcing Todoroki back down. But not before Todoroki gets the chance to ice the ground beneath him. Izuku yelps as he loses his footing and hits the ground with a painful thump, mere centimeters from his opponent.

They blink at each other for a second before Todoroki is scrambling up; he glares heartily down at Izuku, looking ready to end it. Luckily, Izuku's staff is within reach so he has enough time to grab it and smack Todoroki's hand away, causing the ice to go awry. The hit wasn't intended to harm so Todoroki recovers quickly but it gives Izuku time to get to his feet and charge him again.

"His strategy is sound, Midoriya knows he can't beat Todoroki on his own so he's continually attacking his stronger opponent so he's unable to produce a significant counterattack. His moves aren't random either, they're the product of diligent training as he makes the most of his equipment and his surroundings." Eraserhead comments.

Izuku grits his teeth as he pulls back and delivers a strong punch to Todoroki's face; he feels the boy's nose break beneath his fist. Todoroki growls and sends a column of ice into Izuku's gut. Izuku coughs and his bō drops limply from his hands and bounces on the ground. Ouch, he's pretty sure something broke there.

Todoroki rushes him again, bringing up his right hand to try and freeze Izuku in place but Izuku manages to dodge through sheer luck. However, the motion does cause him to fall to the ground again which aggravates his ribs. He looks around for his staff again, but Todoroki lightly kicks it away before Izuku can reach it. He also creates a large ice wall behind Izuku so he can't retreat, effectively trapping him.

"You're good, I'm sorry I underestimated you," Todoroki pants, bringing trembling fingers up to his broken nose. Izuku's frowns, Todoroki's whole right hand and bits of his face are pale and covered in ice. His breath is fogging in the air with a hushed chill. He's overexerting his ice, he hasn't been able to make anything big but between his efforts now and the last few events, it's clear Todoroki's starting to feel the effects of his quirk. "But I'm afraid this match is over now."

"You're using your ice too much," Izuku hisses, swiping at the blood in his eye as he shakily gets to his feet. "Why aren't you using your fire to regulate your temperature?"

"You know why," Todoroki says darkly. He spares a moment to nod over to the stands where Endeavor is an obvious, fiery presence. "I'm not going to give that man the satisfaction. I got this far without using his power and I'm not about to start now."

"That's bullshit," Izuku hears himself say as he rushes his opponent, fueled by a sort of righteous energy. Todoroki's movements have been progressively slowing down so Izuku is able to grab him by the front of his gym uniform and throw him into another patch of ice. "You won't give him the satisfaction? You claim that you're going to beat me when you won't even bring out all of your power?"

Izuku gets in close and pulls Todoroki forward before slamming him back into the ice, almost as if he could shake some sense into his opponent. The other boy responds with a punch to the jaw that manages to push Izuku back. Todoroki throws some more ice but it's smaller than it was before and it's easy to dodge. The quick movement is really aggravating Izuku's injuries but his fury keeps him going.

"Look at me!" Izuku shouts, gesturing to himself. "You've barely put a scratch on me! The quirkless idiot who dared to challenge the strongest kid in the hero class." Izuku gets in another punch, "All I have is my fists, my brain and my staff and I'm actually beating you." He yells as he runs forward but Todoroki is starting to get his equilibrium back and dodges, using the opportunity to get behind Izuku and kick him down to the ground. He rolls aside before Todoroki can ice him in place but not too far that he can't deliver another kick to Todoroki's knee which causes him to partially fall.

"You're the one who challenged me to give everything I had, remember? I've kept up my end of the bargain, it's you who's falling short!" Izuku scrambles to his feet, almost falling in his haste and kicks Todoroki across the jaw so he falls flat on his back.

Izuku reaches down and hooks Todoroki's right arm behind his back with Izuku's arm wrapped around Todoroki's neck as he starts to drag his opponent back over towards the edge of the ring.

"You think you can beat me using only half your power?" Izuku shouts because he's angry and he's pumped up on adrenaline and can't seem to stop. The arrogance of it all infuriated him, but not as much as the knowledge that Todoroki was hurting and no one else was doing anything about it.

"What happened to you wasn't right but you shouldn't let him get in the way of your dreams." Todoroki is struggling within his hold but Izuku is beyond caring right now. "If you want to beat me, you're going to have to give me everything you've got!"

Shouto wasn't really sure what he was expecting in this match but Midoriya Izuku certainly wasn't it.

He'd taken the green haired boy's success in the obstacle course as coincidence but he couldn't deny the other's skill once Midoriya had placed first again in the second event. Earlier that morning, Todoroki had announced to Bakugou that he intended to beat him but, somewhere along the way, Todoroki's opponent had shifted to the General Education student no one had heard of before.

But Midoriya had been different outside of the ring; quiet and kind and looking very much out of place. He'd been jumpy and emotional when Shouto had privately discussed his reasons for not using his fire. It was almost hard to believe this was the same person who'd ruthlessly rammed his foot into Shouto's gut just minutes earlier.

Present Mic's announcement after Midoriya's first match that he didn't have a quirk had surprised Shouto. At the time, he'd simply shrugged it off. His old man wouldn't care about his victory over some quirkless kid so Shouto could afford to go easy on him and save his strength for other, tougher battles.

He had never miscalculated something, someone, so badly in his entire life.

From the moment this battle started, Shouto has been kicked and punched and thrown around with terrifying precision. Endeavor made sure that he'd had the finest combat training, sure, but quirk training had always taken priority which meant Shouto focused more on distance fighting. Midoriya had obviously noticed this and taken advantage, getting and staying close so Shouto couldn't accurately use his ice. The fact that his vision keeps shifting and his thoughts are a bit muddled from a likely concussion really did not help matters.

Midoriya has him in something of a headlock now and is trying to drag Shouto out of bounds and out of the competition. He struggles in the hold but Midoriya's grip is strong and the only way out is to actually hurt the other boy. But the words Midoriya is screaming in his ear seem to slow him down more than any physical injury.

"If you really want to be a hero then you won't let me win!" Midoriya shouts as he continues to drag Shouto. He's so confused, Midoriya wants to advance, right? So why? Why is he poking at all the ugly, painful parts that everyone else has been content until now to ignore?

"You know nothing," Shouto chokes out and decides he's through being dragged around. His right hand is still trapped behind his back but he forms ice on it anyway.

Midoriya is close enough to him that Shouto can see one green eye widen in surprise and pain as the cold seeps into him. Midoriya wrenches Shouto's body to the side so his right hand is free. Before he can think, Shouto brings that frozen hand up to the one around his throat. This time, Midoriya yelps as he pulls his arm free, a coat of ice now covering that arm and part of his hand.

"You think I don't know what it feels like to be trapped in a life you hate because of how you were born?" Midoriya demands, swinging the partially frozen arm at his face. Shouto dodges and it hits one of the ice walls. Midoriya winces but most of the ice on his arm breaks off, revealing red, swollen skin already in the first stage of frostbite.

"But I'm here, Todoroki," Midoriya emphasizes as he breaks off to the side to grab his staff before charging back. "I didn't let all the people who said I was useless keep me down."

The staff comes down over his head but Shouto is prepared this time, he reaches up with his right hand and catches it before it hits him. Metal is an excellent conductor and it freezes easily; the chilled metal begins to crack under his frozen grip. Midoriya abandons it in his hand and pulls back to deliver a powerful kick to Shouto's chest. Shouto staggers backwards and the frozen staff partially shatters from the impact while Midoriya grabs the intact end of the staff and breaks it off. He then whips Shouto with it across the face, using it as some sort of escrima stick.

"Are you going to let that man control your life?" Midoriya demands and he continues to smack Shouto over and over again. Shouto is vaguely aware that they're nearing the edge but a larger part of him doesn't care. All the matters is what Midoriya is trying to tell him. "It's your power, Todoroki! If you think you can be a hero without giving everything you have then I'm going to drag you out of this ring and take your place!"

Shouto is so disoriented, he doesn't know what to think or what to feel. Midoriya is still smacking him around and Present Mic is getting more and more excited as the crowds begin to cheer louder. His body is half frozen and he's broken and bruised and terribly tired. But despite all that, somewhere inside, he feels warm.

When was the last time anyone had ever told him to do something for his own sake? People have praised him for his quirk, sure, but it always seemed in connection to that man. But now, it's his, isn't it? His to use, to save, to win. The warmth in him spreads until he feels his skin prickle as the ice on his skin melts and his uniform burns.

Midoriya gasps slightly and takes a step back as Shouto's left side blazes. Shouto has never felt so at peace when using his fire, his fire, in his entire life. And Midoriya, that absolute madman, he's grinning.

"Even though you say you want to win; you go out of your way to help your opponent." Shouto says, reveling at the warmth on his skin, like the feeling of the sun on a summer's day. "Which one of us is crazy?"

"You're going to be a great hero, Todoroki." Midoriya responds, wiping his bloody face into his shoulder and smoothing out his grin into a thoughtful expression. He's probably recalculating his strategy now that Shouto is using his fire. And Shouto just wants to shake his head. Who is this guy? This General Education student who beat him up and rubbed his face in his trauma until he brought out Shouto's full power? Now that the odds against him are worse than ever, he's still looking to win? Midoriya Izuku is unlike anyone Shouto has ever met.

"Shouto!" Endeavor shouts from somewhere in the stands. He hears his father go on about how Shouto will finally achieve his ambitions or something. But the words hardly seem to reach him, Shouto can't even bring himself to care. All that matters is the ice, the flame and the warrior before him.

"I hope you know what you're in for; I won't be going easy anymore." Shouto responds as he brings a hand up to wipe the gathering tears in his eyes. "You don't deserve anything less than my best." Midoriya smiles at that and charges again, his broken staff is held out in a manner made to deflect but, in the end, he goes low. But Shouto has finally learned, he shoots out some ice at Midoriya's feet causing him to slip and tumble to the ground. His staff rolls out of his hand as Midoriya quickly scrambles back to his feet while Shouto stalks forward.

"It's not over yet, I'm not backing down!" Midoriya runs up the jagged edges of one of the other ice walls and uses it to gain the high ground. He leaps down, avoiding Shouto but trying to kick his legs out from under him. Shouto manages to dodge it but it causes him to stumble backwards.

But that's okay because Midoriya has missed the fact that Shouto has been rapidly cooling the air around them. Shouto grits his teeth as he tries to dodge the flurry of punches while he lowers the temperature. Their breath is fogging in the chill as Midoriya punches him hard enough to put Shouto on the ground.

Shouto's forcibly reminded that despite his elation, he's in quite a bit of pain and his head injury makes itself known with stark clarity. His vision swims as three versions of Midoriya descend on him and it's instinct that has him igniting the cooled air around them. However, even he wasn't prepared for the explosion that occurs.

It booms, cracking the pavement beneath them and shattering the ice walls all over the stage. Shouto is forced down by the blast and he's not sure he has the strength to push himself back up again. His ears are ringing and his eyes burn so he closes them as he waits for the inevitable. That's it, he's done. When Midoriya recovers, Shouto won't be able to stop him from dragging him out-

"Midoriya is out of bounds!" Midnight announces, "Todoroki advances to the third round!" Shouto opens his eyes with a gasp and angles his head upwards. The smoke is still pretty dense but as it clears, he can see Midoriya shakily pushing himself up about just outside of the ring. His clothes are blacked and smoking but he doesn't seem too badly hurt. Shouto's head falls back to the ground as he wonders at the disappointment he feels. He won, that's good? Right?

"Not like we expected any other outcome; I knew this fight was a bad idea." He overhears Midnight say to herself as she tries to clear the smoke with her whip. How can she just-? Despite his injuries, Shouto gets angry; actually beyond angry, he's furious.

Did she not watch the fight? Did she not see Midoriya wipe the floor with him during the first half? He has more skill and determination than most people Shouto has met, including some pro heroes. And besides all that, Midoriya should have had the victory long before. If he hadn't insisted on forcing Shouto to confront his problems, he probably would have won.

It's completely unfair that Midoriya has to stop here; Shouto can't think of anyone more suited to be a hero. But because he lost, people aren't going to look at him twice. They'll say Midoriya's success so far was a fluke and let him float back into obscurity. That spot in 1-A will be filled by someone with a fancy quirk who may or may not deserve it all the while Midoriya is left in General Education, his talent wasted and unspent.

"Aw man, that's too bad to hear! I was kinda rooting for him too. Anyways, what a show! Put your hands together for our two contestants, especially to Midoriya who showed us the meaning of determination!"

"Todoroki," he hears Midoriya cough as he staggers back over to where Shouto is still sprawled. "Todoroki, are you okay?" One concerned green eye, the other is still squeezed shut from the blood, looks down at him as Midoriya kneels and looks him over with a stressed out expression.

"Oh man, your nose looks bad and I think you might have a concussion. I'm sorry, I just wanted to win so bad." Shouto fears for a second the boy is going to start crying but instead Midoriya pastes on a watery smile. "Let's get you to Recovery Girl, we need to get you ready for the third round. I'm sure your next fight will be a lot tougher but don't forget about what the quirkless kid was able to do."

"Alright, we need to clear off the stage for the next fight. Todoroki, can you stand?" Midnight says; she doesn't even look over at Midoriya. So he can blame it on his concussion or Midoriya's bloodied face that still manages to look kind despite his loss, but either way, Shouto isn't responsible for what comes out of his mouth next.

"No, I can't. I'm going to have to forfeit."

"What!?" Midnight and Midoriya yell at the same time. "You won Todoroki, you beat me! Of course you have to go on!" Midoriya says, looking more than a little panicked. He looks up at Midnight who seems quite flustered herself.

"Todoroki, you'll have time to recover before your next match. Please think before you make such a hasty decision! This is one of your only opportunities to show off your skills to get scouted. If you quit now, you'll be giving up your chances for the future," Midnight says sternly.

And what of Midoriya's chances? Shouto can't help but think bitterly. The fact is, if Midoriya stops here then he'll likely never get another shot at Heroics. Shouto had his father's connections and a seat in the country's best hero school. He could give up this opportunity to make sure Midoriya had his.

Even without all that, Shouto is severely injured. Even if Recovery Girl is able to patch him up, he'd be a poor showing in the next event. Not to mention he still needs time to sort through all his thoughts now that the rush is fading. His father will give him hell for this, he's sure, but his opinion seems to matter so little right now.

"I'm certain I cannot continue. Midoriya should go on in my place," Shouto slurs slightly through what's probably a broken jaw. Midoriya scrubs at his bloodied forehead and looks down at Shouto with glistening eyes.

"Hey, what's going on down there? We're starting to get restless!"

"Uh," Midnight says into the microphone, giving Shouto one last look. "Todoroki says he is unable to continue. Midoriya wins on technicality and will be advancing to round three."

The crowd absolutely explodes and Present Mic is going wild himself, shouting how unbelievable it is. Todoroki looks at the stunned expression on Midoriya's face as the crowd begins chanting his name. Present Mic was right, this boy is unbelievable; Shouto couldn't wait to see what he does next.

"Jeez, what am I doing," Midoriya says, shaking his head. "You're still hurt, you need to get to Recovery Girl. Are you sure you can't walk?" If he tried, Shouto probably could get to his feet. Instead, he shakes his head no and winces at the pain it causes him; Midoriya looks even more distressed. "Okay, just hold on. I'll take you there myself, let me know if I'm going too fast."

And before Shouto can ask what he means, Midoriya grabs his arms and hooks them around his neck. He lifts Shouto up a bit until he can put his hands under Shouto's knees. Midoriya grunts a bit, but otherwise is steady as Shouto is transferred to his back. And then he stands up and, completely bypassing the medical bots, speed walks off the field with a determined look while Shouto dazedly wonders what's happening.

"And will you look at that folks! Midoriya is carrying his wounded opponent off the field! We're seeing something real special here! What strength! What sportsmanship! Midoriya Izuku is just full of surprises! This Sport's Festival is going down in history, that's for sure!" Present Mic gushes as they exit the field. Shouto just sighs into Midoriya's back, feeling strangely peaceful despite the pain and the loss. But if he had to lose, he's glad it was to Midoriya.

"Midoriya," he mutters into the boy's back once they enter the tunnels leading away from the field.

"Hey, it's okay Todoroki, we'll be there in just a minute." Midoriya answers, huffing under Shouto's added weight and probably his own injuries as well.

"I expect you to win the next two matches," Shouto says sleepily. "And I better see you in 1-A when classes resume. Don't disappoint me," he feels Midoriya chuckle.

"I can't make any promises, but I'll do my best."

#fic: The Long Way Around #boku no hero academia #bnha #bnha fics #HYPE #I couldn't wait #I'm excited and nervous about what people will say #but please do enjoy #its one of my favs

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