#once again mina you are the best character
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giving the dutch doctor who’s helping you find the vampire that terrorized your husband and killed your girl best friend your notes in shorthand because he insinuated that you were dumb because you were a woman is the ultimate fuck you
#once again mina you are the best character#never stop the slay <3#dracula daily#september 25#mina harker
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It's Not Living (If It's Not With You) | JJK
At thirty-two, you thought you had your life figured out. That is until you received a call one day:
"You need to go to Gangwon Police Station now. There are two people here: One thirty-something male claiming to be your husband, and the other is a three-year-old girl claiming to be your daughter. They say they won't leave unless you, the mom of the family, pick them up."
Or alternatively,
a series of events where you fall in love with Jungkook, become a mom, solve your dead best friend's case, and wriggle out of old money's grasp, but not necessarily in this order. (Maybe all at once. Who knows?)
Genre and warnings: enemies to lovers, idiots in love, mutual pining, OMG there is only one bed, forced proximity, cohabitating, enemies to friends to lovers, co-parenting, angst, fluff, implied smut, kissing, minor character death, slight getting back together, car accidents, law, this fic is originally written as an AOT au, but i've changed it to a JJK one, so please pardon any Japanese terms mentioned (they're not too relevant anyway) some of the characters are from aot too. i'm too lazy to change them haha
Pairing: Police Lieutenant! Jungkook x Lawyer!!Reader
Word Count: 45.5k
Spotify playlist here
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It's Friday.
Unlike others, you considered Friday just like any other day—it is a hectic time where you're deeply engrossed in reading what seemed to be an unending stack of files.
People working under you had already gone home. You allowed them to clock out an hour earlier, not hesitating to hand them your card so they could dine at whatever restaurant they liked.
Your employees deserved it after working 45 hours this week. It's the least thing you could do, though they wished you could extend the same treatment to yourself. Unfortunately, being a lawyer didn't give you the luxury to have a fun Friday night out.
You're stuck in the office, finalizing the cases you'd present before the court next week. Some might think you only needed to endure this day before fully giving yourself a break, but that's not true. Your weekend wasn't any better as you'd be spending it taking pro bono cases to help lower your taxes and prove to others that you did not fully succumb to this cruel, capitalistic world.
Speaking of capitalism, you've heard a quick but shy knock on the door. The person outside knew too well not to disturb you on a Friday night, but some things were inevitable.
"Come in," you ordered casually. Your eyes were still trained on the paper on your desk.
The door flew open as you heard your secretary's pointed heels hitting the cold tiles. Timidly, she said, "Sorry to disturb you, Attorney. We have an urgent case concerning your top client."
You hadn't heard the details of the case, yet you could already feel the veins in your head pulsating. This couldn't be any good. Your top client was the Braun-Grice family. The past months had already been too troublesome. What could those brats have done this time?
"Let me guess," you lazily highlighted the paper with red marks before staring at your secretary. "It's Gabi and Falco again, isn't it? Did they vandalize some rich man's house again?"
Your secretary wished it was that simple. She shook her head, "I'm afraid they've done worse than that." Her voice turned solemn. "The teens are involved in a car accident."
You were startled, immediately letting go of your highlighter. The boredom in your face completely disappeared as you questioned your secretary seriously. "What did they do? Let me see the file."
Mina was an obedient employee. She chose to stay in the office with you but with no intention of beating around the bush. She handed you the file immediately, "Ms. Braun called me earlier and said she and Falco need to see you now. They're in Busan Police Station."
Your hands on the file froze. Busan? What were those brats doing in your hometown? Gabi and Falco were both from Seoul. It's also still a weekday, meaning they had classes. Did they skip school to fuck around?
Mina filled in the blanks for you, "Ms. Braun is remorseful over the other line. She said she and Falco were super stressed in school, so they thought, why not try throttle therapy to ease their minds?"
You laughed derisively upon hearing that. Throttle fucking therapy, my ass. You bet it was Gabi's idea. She had always claimed to be fearless and unstoppable because she knew her family was affluent not just in Seoul but all over Japan.
"So what? Did their car crash into something? How much is the damage?" You finally opened the police report. The incident happened approximately three hours ago. Gabi could only reach your secretary after her medical check-up and giving a statement to the traffic police.
That brat! You had told her countless times to keep her useless mouth shut and wait for you to show up. Why did she never learn!?
"That's the thing. The damage isn't convertible in monetary value. Mr. Grice drove the car because Ms. Braun induced him to do so. Unfortunately, they hit two pedestrians before crashing into a tree."
Numbness crawled from your feet to your face. There was ringing in your ears, and you could've sworn your heart stopped beating when you saw the crime scene pictures.
"The victims are a married couple on their way home. Falco immediately called the police to report the incident. The paramedics came at once, but the victims were proven to be dead on arrival."
It's a miracle you could still hear Mina talk despite the nausea attempting to envelope you whole. Tears began to pool in your eyes, and before you knew it, they were already falling straight to wet the cuff of your long-sleeved shirt.
It's black.
The color of your top was black. Its design was similar to the one the dead victim was wearing. Only the color was different. Hers was white, making the blood staining her shirt so bright that it hurt your already bloodshot eyes.
White and black. She wore white because you claimed it fit her innocent personality more. Black was yours because it was as dark as your soul. The shirt was the perfect Christmas gift. Only two pairs were made by the designer. You paid a huge sum of money for these clothes.
You couldn't be mistaken.
You knew the victim all too well.
"The victims have been identified. The woman is named Sora Kang; the other is her husband, an Italian citizen named Niccolo."
That's all you need to hear before you clamp the folder shut. You stood up, "Cancel all my upcoming cases—Pro bono or not—I don't care. I'm going to Busan tonight."
"Yes, Attorney." Mina handed you two tickets. "I've already contacted someone to buy the bullet train tickets for us. It's the fastest route to Busan."
If this was any other day, you'd probably praise her for being the most reliable secretary, but this wasn't like your typical busy Friday.
You were still as busy as ever, but one thing had changed.
Sora, your childhood best friend, had died.
"I'm going to Busan alone." You tossed the keys to your house in this city to Mina, "I need you to go to my place first. There's a brown box under my bed. Pack it along with my other things—clothes and necessities. You already know that. Send it to Busan. The address is written on the lid of the brown box. I expect you to finish your job in two hours. I'll see you then."
Mina had no objections. She practically ran out of the office after you gave your orders.
Your train would leave in twenty minutes. The short time was not enough, but you forced yourself to gather your wits and temporarily bandage your broken heart.
After that, you went straight to the train station with one thing on your mind:
Clean this mess up.
***
It was quiet at the police station when you arrived. As expected, the Busan Police Division was not idle. Chief Police Kim Namjoon probably stationed his subordinates all over the city. Only Officer Park Jimin was at the front desk.
You wasted no time and showed your license to him; Jimin immediately directed you to the interrogation room where Falco and Gabi were being mentally intimidated.
As a seasoned lawyer, your head was held high as you barged inside the room, ignoring Jimin, who was anxiously coaxing you to calm down.
Of course, he'd tell you to calm down. Jimin was one of your childhood friends who had always been calm and rational. He didn't like solving things with violence, but he was smart enough to know you would not listen to him—not after you saw from the interrogation room window how the interrogator raised his fist to punch Falco. It was the typical intimidation to force a confession out of a suspect. You had encountered this scene many times, so your mind and body seemed to be on autopilot when you faced the interrogator.
You grabbed the devices used to record Gabi and Falco's confession and broke them. At once, all proof gathered in the past hours vanished into thin air.
Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Gabi, Falco, and the interrogator were dumbfounded by your sudden action.
"You dare!?" The interrogator was the first one to recover from the shock. He quickly turned to you. Intense fury painted his pathetic face as he clenched his hands into tight fists.
His reaction did not faze you one bit. In fact, it only prompted you to say your piece, "Article III, Section 19 of the Constitution states that the employment of physical, psychological, or degrading tactics against a suspect to force out a confession is punishable by the law."
Reciting a provision of the law verbatim was one of your favorite hobbies to defeat opponents. It usually leaves your heart with joy and pride whenever you see their faces morphing into anger and embarrassment. However, none of those exhilarating feelings envelop you.
There was only grief and nostalgia gripping your already broken heart. It was a shame none of these harrowing emotions could be traced in your face—as expected of a ruthless lawyer.
You continued with your attack, "If I remember it right, this is your seven years in public service, so pray tell, Police Lieutenant Jeon Jungkook, how can you not know this basic law even student police knows?"
The mockery in your voice was palpable. Only fools wouldn't realize your intention to humiliate the interrogator. Unfortunately, Jungkook didn't give you the satisfaction of winning this game.
He soon caught up with you, "I didn't realize you keep track of my position and years of service, little miss esquire."
The burning fury was still visible on Jungkook's face, but it was now mixed with disgust. Jungkook was the type of person who'd proudly wear his heart on his sleeve, especially if it meant getting a jab at you.
It worked. A bubble of anger rushed in you when Jungkook refused to say your name and used your title as a lawyer instead. It's a poor attempt to rile you up, really. He acted as if he didn't remember your name—couldn't care less to remember it. It aimed straight at your pride—his subtle mockery crushed you, but he didn't end it with just that.
"Is it part of your schemes? Knowing what your enemies do, I mean. Do you keep track of us so you can use it to fuck us up?"
Jungkook folded his arms across his chest and jutted his chin out. He was already tall, so his current stance only made him look bigger—like he could swallow you in one go.
That's what Jungkook did in the end. He chewed you out, "I wouldn't be surprised. Seeing that your greed won against your dead best friend."
It was a low blow and Jungkook knew it, but you getting hurt never deterred him from hurting you further.
"You know, don't you?"
You could keep your face impassive all day, but you couldn't fool Jungkook. One look at you, and he already knew you had gone from Seoul to Busan in haste. It sparked Jungkook's abhorrence even more.
"You know, and you still went here for them." The sharpness and accusation tinging his tone made you and the two teens flinch. That's when you came back to the realization that you and Jungkook were not alone in this room.
This always happened. You and Jungkook seemed to lose sight of your surroundings whenever you started fighting. Seeing Falco and Gabi's worn-out faces brought you back to the cruel reality.
This wasn't like your usual bickering with Jungkook during your high school days. This time, you two were barring your fangs and claws out, full of displaced hatred and pain because Sora was dead.
It took everything in you not to cry. Your legs were turning soft like you were about to pass out any moment from now. Jungkook's red-rimmed eyes felt like the blood that was sucked out of your heart.
"You disgust me." This was Jungkook's final words before walking away, leaving you with only a loud slam of the door.
"A-Attorney..." Gabi tried calling for you until your attention was focused on them.
You did not respond to her call but stomped in her direction. Every click of your pointed heels shook Falco and Gabi's hearts. Gone was the smug look on Gabi's face that appeared every time you came to bail her out of jail.
This case was different. She couldn't make it all go away with money. Gabi looked helpless. Her lips were quivering when she tried calling out for you again, "A-Attorney, please help us—"
Slap!
Gabi's ear hurt. In her nineteen years of existence, this was the first time someone dared lay a hand on her. Gabi was baffled yet couldn't look you in the eyes. Her head remained tilted to the side, allowing you to see the tears cascading down her left cheek.
It was Falco who tried to stop you. His eyes were full-blown panic as he tried to talk some senses into you, "Attorney, don't. Please calm--"
Slap!
You laid a hand on Falco's cheek, too. Naturally, Gabi tried defending her lover by grabbing your hand. You let her grip your right hand because it wouldn't deter you from using your other hand to slap her again.
The teens were teaming up against you. When you slap Falco, Gabi will rescue him, and vice versa. All they did was grab your hand, though. They didn't dare fight back, making it easy for you to alternately slap them until your hands ached.
In the end, the two resigned to their fate and simply allowed you to numb their cheeks with pain.
But it wasn't enough.
No amount of physical pain could equal the lives they had taken because of recklessness. The same goes for you. No amount of pain would justify dereliction of duty. As of now, you were left with no choice but to continue doing your job as a lawyer. You fished a calling card from your slacks' pocket and threw it across Falco's chest.
The calling card fell on the floor. The teens did not dare pick it up or even look at it. But your following words made their bodies tremble.
"If I were you, I'd pick that up and start calling my new lawyer, as I will no longer be representing you in court."
Gabi was wise enough to bend and reluctantly pick up the card. You wanted to step on her fingers and crush them with your pointed heels. But you did not.
Seeing tears form in Gabi's eyes when she spotted the name of the new lawyer you recommended brought you more joy than stepping on her fingers.
The new lawyer was Reiner Braun. He wasn't supposed to be a lawyer in the first place. Reiner was Gabi's cousin; their family's connection made it easy for Reiner to pass the bar despite his lack of knowledge and power. Frankly speaking, Gabi knew this. She tried to argue with you, but you cut her off with another resounding slap.
"You have the audacity to still ask me?" Unadulterated anger settled at the pit of your stomach. You were so mad you ended up laughing. You balled your hands into fists and hid them behind you. It's for the better; otherwise, you would also end up in prison because of an assault.
"Your idiocy harmed my best friend. She and her husband died while you two fuckers remain in my line of sight—alive." You emphasized the last word with so much hatred, "So don't think even for a second that I will still be representing you in court. Because if I was..." The corner of your mouth turned up as you trailed off.
You looked at Gabi and Falco from head to toe. Only the blind couldn't see the threat dancing in your eyes. "I'll make sure you won't just lose the case. You'll get the maximum penalty, and I'll leave your ten next generations in shambles."
Falco's eyelashes fluttered. Gabi, on the other hand, gripped the card as if her life depended on it. They were resigning to their fate once more.
Good, because you could only take so much in an hour. There were still many things to patch up, and so you turned to leave, following the trail of footsteps Jungkook left.
***
Jungkook thought he was going crazy.
One would think that being in service for seven years would already desensitize his heart from crimes. He supposed that, to some extent, that was true. Unfortunately, no one had prepared Jungkook for all the negative feelings welling up in his chest as he dealt with the suspects involving the death of his loved one.
Sora.
A wave of nausea hit Jungkook as the image of Sora's dead body flashed in his mind. The feeling of helplessness was the worst punch in his gut, leaving his fist aching to beat the two teens in front of him.
Falco and Gabi remained rooted in their spot. Jungkook did not know what to do with them anymore. Whenever Falco confessed his crime, Gabi would refute it by saying it was all her fault. Jungkook couldn't care less about their heroic act; he just wanted someone to pay for Sora's death, but Falco had no plans of condemning Gabi either. He looked at Jungkook with tears, saying that Gabi was innocent.
Fucking brats! Jungkook couldn't take it anymore. He raised his fist to punch Falco; unfortunately, you barged into the room and ruined everything. It's bad enough that Jungkook didn't get to beat up Falco. How dare you destroy his evidence, too!?
"Damn it!" Jungkook kicked the pebbles outside the station. He initially left the interrogation room to cool down a little, but Jimin, his comrade, stopped him from getting back inside. Apparently, you told Jimin about that bullshit called the Bill of Rights.
"I'm sorry, Jungkook. Captain Yoongi called. He told me to get you out of the station as soon as possible. You're barred from participating in this investigation. Captain Yoongi is on his way now. He'll be the one interrogating the suspects."
"You can't do this to me, Jimin." Jungkook shook his head, refusing the Captain's order. "Sora's my best friend. You are her friend too! We need to avenge her!"
Jimin surely loved Sora, too, so he understood Jungkook to some extent. But he knew Captain Yoongi's decision was for the better. Jungkook was currently not in the right state of mind. He was grieving. Bloodlust was apparent in his eyes. If he wasn't careful enough, he might ruin this case.
"Go home, Jungkook." Jimin held Jungkook's shoulder firmly, "Or help Taehyung with the arrangement. He's alone and hurting, too."
Right. Jungkook's heart throbbed painfully in his chest as he thought about Taehyung. If anyone's hurting beyond repair right now, it had to be Taehyung. The latter and Sora were like inseparable twins.
Jungkook wanted to see Taehyung after interrogating Falco and Gabi—a form of consolation, if you might. Regrettably, it wasn't possible now, and it was your fault. Nothing ever went Jungkook's way when you were around.
You and Jungkook have known each other since you were kids. You were from the same street in Busan, so it was almost impossible not to see his face daily. You two were even classmates in your schooling days. In fact, you and Jungkook were pretty popular in school, but not for a good reason.
You two made people want to pull their hair out as you took being rivals too seriously. You argued about the smallest thing, wanting to appear as the stronger one, the smarter one, and the braver one.
But the thing was, your fights with Jungkook were never serious. It was more like teenage bickering. Admittedly, the whole school knew you, Sora, Jungkook, and Taehyung as the Idiot Quartet. Sora and Taehyung played pranks on everyone and did not care much about their academic performance. Meanwhile, you and Jungkook were academic rivals who went out of your way to win against the other. It was so petty that the other students thought you were idiots.
The anger Jungkook felt for you years ago was still apparent today, but he couldn't deny that it changed into something worse.
Hatred.
He'd known you for an ambitious woman who never backed down. You weren't content with your life in Busan and thus moved to Seoul. That part was naturally acceptable. What Jungkook couldn't accept was you casting aside your friendship with Sora for money and power.
You truly exceeded his worst expectations of you. Jungkook clenched his jaw and hands, swearing that you were his enemy from today onwards.
***
Contrary to popular belief, Sora was not an idiot. She had planned not just her life but also her death. This ensured that the living wouldn't be burdened by her passing.
Admittedly, you were involved in the preparations she made. As a lawyer, Sora sought your service to make writing her will easier. It happened three years ago:
Sora recently gave birth to a baby girl named Hanni. The child had blond hair like her father. She was too cute for her own good, so you didn't understand how Sora had the heart to think about death when she had a growing little angel by her side.
It wasn't fair to leave Hanni without a mother in this world.
"This is called safeguarding my baby's future." Sora reasoned out while writing down her 'will.' Her tongue was sticking out, and her brows were pinched together, indicating that she was serious about this ordeal.
It made you sigh.
"Okay! I've finalized the distribution of my...what do you call it again? Estate?"
"Assets." You corrected her firmly. Assets were for the living, and the estate was for the dead. You refused to associate your best friend with anything related to death. It was evident by the way your lips protruded into a sulky pout. You hated having this conversation with her.
"Asset, estate, or whatever you call it. I don't really care as long as it's done. Now, come here and notarize it. I've heard I need a witness when finalizing my will. You are my witness."
"I refuse." You turned away from Sora and busied yourself, caressing Hanni's tiny fist. "Your mum is cruel, isn't she, little one?"
Sora rolled her eyes and huffed, "It's for her sake, you know. Can't you see my situation now? I'm an orphan. My parents died when I could barely say a full sentence."
Sora always felt she inherited the curse of her parents dying young. It was unfair to disregard this thought as she was sure Hanni would be the lonely one carrying the burden once it happened.
"I'm assigning legal guardians for my child. Niccolo is number one, but I can't be too complacent." Sora released a deep breath. She wasn't sure if it was a good thing that her husband was crazy in love with her. It felt like he was willing to follow her even in death.
"Hear that, Hanni? Your mum is giving you away. Say bad, mummy, bad!" You carried Hanni into your arms while glaring at Sora. You couldn't believe your best friend traveled to Seoul with her little child just to say this bullshit.
"Stop being so dramatic," Sora lost count of how many times she had rolled her eyes. "It's not like I'm giving her to a stranger."
"Huh." You wiped Hanni's drool before casting a curious look at her mom, "Who are you naming her guardian, then? Jongsuk and Ji-eun?"
"Nope." Sora sounded disappointed. "I wanted to, but you know how busy they are with their two kids."
"Jongsuk is fucking rich. I'm sure they can afford to feed one more kid." You decided to humor Sora after realizing you couldn't change her mind.
Unfortunately, Sora deflated. "You bet. They have three more children coming."
"What the fuck?" You laid Hanni back in her crib, afraid you'd drop her after Sora dropped a bomb on you. "Are you telling me Ji-eun is pregnant again? And triplets?"
Sora's grin was wide. She wiggled her brows in excitement.
You were dumbfounded. "Seriously? What the fuck is wrong with Jongsuk!?"
Didn't Ji-eun just give birth last year!? What did Jongsuk plan on doing?
"Ah, duh? Have you seen Ji-eun? If I were Jongsuk, I'd do the same."
You pondered for a second. It didn't take you long to agree with your best friend. Damn right, Ji-eun was hot. If you didn't have the unfortunate curse of liking straight men, you bet you'd be pursuing Ji-eun relentlessly. She wasn't just a pretty face. Ji-eun was tantamount to what people called 'The Man.' Perhaps even better than the phrase.
Suddenly, you understood why a certain someone was head over heels with her.
"You're thinking about Jungkook, aren't you?"
You whipped your head up and met Sora's teasing eyes. You were about to refute her absurdity, but she beat you to it.
"Don't deny it. I know your 'I'm thinking about Jungkook' face. It's so obvious! Your brows become one, and your frown couldn't be any deeper!"
"That's right," you relaxed a little. "It's cause I hate him. I can't even crack a fake smile whenever I think about his stupid face."
Your disgusted face wasn't fooling anyone, though. But Sora didn't expose you. She just riled you up, "Well, at least his stupid face is popular with girls. Did you know? Niccolo has been setting Jungkook up with his foreign friends. Ah! Right!" The spark in her eyes was blinding.
"Jungkook has a blind date tonight. I've heard he's meeting a supermodel from Italy. She's the same—hey, hey! What are you doing!?"
Sora's eyes dilated upon seeing you gripping her baby's toy tightly. She snatched it from you and gasped, "What's gotten you so worked up? You broke Hanni's toy! This is her favorite!" And Jungkook was the one who gave the baby that toy. Sora didn't dare tell you as you might destroy it further.
You wouldn't do it, though. You actually felt guilty for letting out your inexplicable anger to the toy, "Sorry. I'd buy Hanni a new one, yeah?"
"You better!" Sora let it go and went back to drafting her will. She continued pestering you about some law jargon until your head hurt.
"Okay, okay. I'll stop now." Sora put the documents inside a brown box and handed it to you. "Here it is. My final will. I'm giving it to you for safekeeping."
"Huh," you snorted but still accepted the box. You handed Sora a similar package. "I gave you a Christmas present, and I get your will in return? Unfair."
You couldn't help but toss the brown box under your bed. You hoped there wouldn't be a time when you'd be forced to open that damn box.
Sora's eyes creased, "I'll buy you the prettiest present next time, okay?" Then she kissed your cheek, "Thanks for this lovely shirt! I love it so much."
"White suits you the most." You're like my angel, Sora. "I got mine in black so we could match."
"Cool!" Sora turned to her daughter. "You hear that, Hanni? Your Godmother wants to match with me. You need to find someone like her in the future, okay?"
Hanni giggled as if she understood her mother. It warmed your heart seeing them like this. Unfortunately, this precious moment would soon be taken away from them.
Come to think of it, everything that transpired three years ago was like a sick premonition of what would happen tonight. Wasn't it funny? Sora died wearing the clothes you'd gifted her, and now here you were, forced to open the brown box you hated with passion.
Sora prepared everything. Inside the box were her will and handwritten letters for her daughter and friends. Unsurprisingly, she didn't leave a note for Niccolo.
It's like Sora knew.
"I hate you," you whimpered lowly as you hugged Sora's letter. I hate you for leaving me. I hate you for being right. I hate you. I hate you so much, Kang Sora.
***
Since Sora was an orphan, Taehyung, as her friend, was qualified to make the arrangements for her and her husband's remains. This was also because he was the one who registered their death after Doctor Kim Seokjin announced the time of their passing.
Jungkook wanted to help Taehyung out, but Taehyung said he could handle it himself and that it would be better for Jungkook to care for Hanni instead.
Hanni was at home with her temporary babysitter. Niccolo was a chef at his restaurant, while Sora was the head manager there. They usually didn't have enough time to care for Hanni, so they hired a nighttime caregiver for their kid. Hanni attended daycare in the morning, which was one less worry for her parents.
The babysitter's shift ended a few hours ago, though. Jungkook had no choice but to rush to the Kang' residence.
Jungkook had an apology ready at the tip of his tongue and thousands of won to appease the babysitter for working overtime. He was surprised when he didn't see the cute babysitter and instead saw a temptress wearing a suit.
"What the fuck are you doing here?" Jungkook spat as he raised his guard up. Who else could he be talking to besides you? You were the only person who could annoy him until steam came off his ears.
Weren't you just at the police station? Jungkook quickly glanced at his wristwatch. The time was 10:15pm. You arrived to wreak havoc in the interrogation room at around 9:00pm. Were you that good of a lawyer to escape Captain Yoongi's inquest in just an hour?
Looking at you, it seemed you had been here for quite some time now. Hanni happily snuggled in your arms while sucking on her milk bottle. The baby looked sleepy, unaware that her parents had already crossed the afterlife road.
Jungkook felt his heart tighten. Did you go here to use Hanni as leverage to help free those damned murderers? Thinking about your menacing schemes, Jungkook couldn't help but raise his hand to snatch Hanni away from your embrace.
"Let go of Hanni now!" Jungkook gnashed his teeth, deliberating on calling the police on you, but then he remembered he was also a police officer. Right. If he wanted to, he could arrest you for using an innocent kid to your advantage.
"Will you stop being so dramatic?" you recognized Jungkook's intention, so you rolled your eyes at his stupidity. You also laid Hanni back inside her crib but didn't do it to appease Jungkook. It was because your arms were starting to get numb from carrying her—not to mention that your chest was covered in Hanni's spilled milk, too.
Jungkook's line of sight focused on your chest, not knowing what to make out of it as you gently wipe the milk with your bare hand.
You pretended not to see him swallowing thickly and struggling to look away from you. "Relax, will you? Your tiny brain might not comprehend it, but I'm telling you now. I am not here to harm Hanni. I'm her godparent, after all—just like you."
Your busy work schedule did not allow you to see Hanni all the time, but Sora made sure to video call you whenever she had the chance. Frankly speaking, seeing your goddaughter after a tiring day calmed you down. Hanni was your sweet butterfly. You loved her to death.
"And for the record, I am not representing Gabi and Falco in court."
Your sharp tone made Jungkook stop. His intense gaze studied you. This time, your face wasn't devoid of emotions. He could see fire in your eyes—as if you were ready to burn anyone who dared oppose you.
"T-Then," Jungkook's Adam's apple bobbed, "Why'd you destroy my evidence?" It took him hours to force confessions out of those bastards. He doubted that was enough as Falco and Gabi kept protecting each other, but still...
"How are you even a police lieutenant? Did Chief Kim bump his head before promoting you?"
Jungkook was offended and wanted to argue, but you gave him no chance.
"The evidence you've gathered is inadmissible to court. It's fucking illegal, idiot. Those brats could've filed a case against you if I hadn't destroyed the evidence of your idiocy."
Simply put, you had protected Jungkook from incrimination. "What happened to the Jungkook I know? Didn't you always hate Jongsuk Lee for being a suicidal maniac?"
The Idiot Quartet was good friends with Jongsuk and Ji-eun, too. You had known them since childhood. If your group was called the Idiot Quartet, then Ji-eun, Jongsuk, and Jimin were known as the Powerhouse Trio. The three were good in academics and sports, but Jongsuk fell short of a good attitude. Jongsuk was ridiculously impatient that he would not hesitate to charge recklessly, even at the expense of his life. Jongsuk was a police officer like Jungkook. It was just that Chief Namjoon Kim assigned Jongsuk to the special operation squad.
Jongsuk was a sore spot for Jungkook as it seemed like whatever Jungkook wanted, Jongsuk had.
Truth be told, Jungkook scoffed at the mention of Jongsuk's name. He glared at you, "I'm nothing like that suicidal maniac. Don't compare me to him."
You shrugged and did not push it. Fighting Jungkook tonight was not worthy of your time. There was a more pressing issue to discuss.
"Anyway, I'm not involved with Gabi and Falco anymore. You can rest assured."
Jungkook didn't want to fight you either. He was tired. He only wanted to honor his dead best friend. "It's good that you didn't completely stray the wrong path."
Surprisingly, the seed of hatred Jungkook planted in his heart had been dug up at the speed of light. You see, he wasn't muddle-headed like you claimed. Jungkook got irritated by your mere presence and sharp mouth, but hating someone without apparent reason was beyond him.
Maybe he could trust you? Thinking about this, Jungkook tried to push his luck, "So, if you aren't going to be those brats' lawyer, does it mean you came here to represent Sora and Niccolo?"
You just said you did not want to fight him, but on God, was he testing your patience. It took everything in you not to mock him, "I am a defense lawyer, smart-ass. This is a criminal case; it's those brats against the general public. Sora and Niccolo must be represented by a prosecutor. I trust you know the difference between a pro—"
"I know! I get it already. Stop it." Jungkook's cheeks turned crimson when he realized his mistake. His brain must have short-circuited because of the awkwardness and the milk on your chest—damn it, there was still traces of milk in your cleavage.
Jungkook forced himself to look away, making the corner of your lips turn up.
"It's Ji-eun." You said abruptly and without context. Jungkook looked at you, confused.
You sighed, "Ji-eun is a prosecutor, which I'm guessing you're very familiar with."
Of course, Jungkook knew precisely what Ji-eun did for a living. It was the main reason Jungkook fell in love with Ji-eun—he thought she was cool for upholding justice.
Jungkook had this illusion that he and Ji-eun complemented each other, mainly because both their line of work involved helping ordinary people. It was the complete opposite of what you do. In Jungkook's vocabulary, you were a scum—defending criminals who ruined the balance of the world.
"I called Ji-eun earlier. She agreed, but we have yet to discuss the details. The legalities of the case can be postponed for now. There's something urgent we need to address first." Jungkook recognized the seriousness in your tone. He furrowed a brow and listened to you intently.
"Sora named me as the executor of her will." Your face turned solemn, side glancing at Hanni, who was sound asleep. Your heart ached for her. "She has written notes to everyone, including us."
Jungkook watched you pick up a brown box on the floor. That's when he noticed the suitcase next to it.
Wait—Jungkook's eyes shrunk. Is that your suitcase?
His question was soon answered when you handed Sora's letter to him. Jungkook immediately tore it open, skimming through its contents.
His eyes widened comically upon reading the most ridiculous request of all times:
Sora was leaving Hanni in your and Jungkook's care.
What the fuck.
***
Taehyung felt floating as he took the way to Sora's house. It was past ten in the evening, meaning it took him hours to arrange Sora and Niccolo's funeral.
He was physically exhausted from having to go from place to place. Fortunately, he had a bit of time to rest since Sora and Niccolo's bodies were still at the mortuary. Taehyung thought he'd check up on Hanni first, then ask Jungkook to tidy the Kang' residence to make it a decent place to hold the wake. Sadly, Taehyung's plans went haywire as soon as he stepped inside the house.
"Oh, yeah? Why don't you tell that to yourself, you mama's boy!? I'm not the one who has an Oedipus complex!"
Taehyung watched as Jungkook's complexion turned red because of anger. He rolled the sleeves of his police uniform, seemingly ready to fight you.
"Well, fuck you and your mommy issues. Just admit you're jealous I have a kind mom. It's not my fault your mom only loves you whenever you achieve something that will boost her ego!"
Violence was never the answer, but you couldn't help but pick up one of Hanni's toys and throw it at Jungkook's broad chest. You screamed at him, "What the fuck is wrong with you!?" He was hitting you where it hurt.
"No, what the fuck is wrong with you?" Jungkook threw the question back at you. You were the one who pissed him off first.
Sadly, Taehyung did not care whose fault it was. He just wanted this petty fight to end, so he screamed before you or Jungkook started going at each other again.
"What the hell is happening here?" Taehyung was the type of friend who goofed around a lot, though no one could deny he was the most scary when angered. Just the sound of his voice was enough to stain your and Jungkook's back with cold sweat. Almost at once, Jungkook kept his mouth shut.
Conversely, you smiled awkwardly at Taehyung and acted oblivious, "Hi, Taehyung. Didn't see you there."
Jungkook held back a scoff at how fast you changed your annoying tone to a saccharine one. Your eyes even crinkled with fondness. Damn it. You were such a great pretender! Weren't you just acting like a dragon and breathing fire in Jungkook's direction? Taehyung saw it, too, preventing you from escaping this mess.
"How can you see me when you're busy fighting Jungkook again?" Taehyung huffed and shook his head in disappointment, "You two never changed, do you? To think of fighting in the presence of your dead best friend's kid. Have you no shame?"
As said, it was common knowledge not to anger Taehyung, yet no one warned you how scary he was when he couldn't bring himself to be angry anymore. Right now, Taehyung was just tired of your bullshit.
Remorse seeped into your heart. Truth be told, you knew where Taehyung was coming from. You and Jungkook were both adults, yet you failed to act like one. You didn't even know how your fight started. All you remembered was Jungkook vehemently opposing Sora's decision to leave Hanni to you and his care.
He thought you were undeserving of looking after a small child. You got mad, saying he had high expectations for female guardians because of his weird relationship with his mother.
Of course, it wasn't true. But you were so pissed you couldn't stop spouting nonsense. Truthfully, you could have gone forever with your insults had it not been for Taehyung's arrival.
"Don't take it seriously, Taehyung. We're just fooling around to cheer up Hanni. We thought some loud noises would divert her attention to something else." Jungkook added unhelpfully.
Taehyung pressed his lips into a thin line and looked at Hanni, who was sleeping peacefully: "...."
"Haha," You laughed in embarrassment and were forced to playfully smack Jungkook's biceps. "See? Our loudness helped Hanni sleep. Didn't Sora always sing her a goodnight song? We did it too!"
"Yes!" Jungkook gathered some files on the floor. The both of you had thrown them in the midst of fighting. The Kang' residence was a mess because of you two's silliness.
"Anyway, didn't you say the wake will be held here? Why don't you rest first? We'll take it from here. Right, Jungkook?"
Taehyung watched the two of you for a while before resigning to the guest room. He heard your whispered sighs but didn't mind as you quickly resolved it with a temporary truce.
Taehyung sighed and looked at the white ceiling. The tears he had repressed all night finally cascaded down his cheeks.
He sobbed quietly and thought about the dead, "You really have idiots as your best friends, Sora."
***
Sora and Niccolo's wake would be held for one day only. Tomorrow was the scheduled funeral, so all the departed's friends gathered at the Kang' residence for the final goodbye. You and Jungkook behaved this time—your temporary truce helped you welcome the guests without hiccups.
Ji-eun and Jongsuk arrived in the morning with their five children. It was a blessing in disguise, really. Jongsuk took care of the kids, including Hanni, while you and Ji-eun discussed the legalities of the case filed against Gabi and Falco. Captain Yoongi joined the discussion, too.
Yoongi lived in your neighborhood as well. He used to teach kids your age some self-defense tricks. He was specifically fond of Sora as she made unconventional defenses easier to execute. Looking back, you realize Sora was the glue holding the group together. There were moments you couldn't tolerate the extremity of Captain Yoongi's training, but Sora persuaded you and the others to be more patient and courageous.
"Thanks for doing this, Captain." You smiled softly at Yoongi. He merely raised a brow, drank his tea, and said, "Not a problem. This isn't a formal discussion."
The Captain didn't want to disrespect the solemnity of the wake, so he invited you and Ji-eun to talk in his office after the funeral. He only joined today's talk to say some urgent matters.
"I thought you should know beforehand that we have a strong case, mainly because the incident was captured by cameras. However, we have a formidable opponent. Annie Leonhart is defending those brats in court."
Your stomach knotted with bitterness upon hearing that. Annie Leonhart was indeed a formidable lawyer. However, you couldn't deny that your heart felt at ease when you met Ji-eun's unyielding gaze. Yes, you couldn't forget that this prosecutor never lost a case. She would do Sora justice.
It wouldn't be too difficult as long as dumb people didn't interfere.
Jungkook. Your brain immediately thought of Jungkook as he was the only one you could associate with the word dumb.
Just like now, Jungkook was standing in the corner of the room while staring at your group dumbly—scratch that, it was obvious he had his puppy eyes focused on Ji-eun.
You rolled your eyes. Of fucking course. How could you forget that this dumbass was in love with Prosecutor Lee? Did the fact that she was already married ever stop Jungkook from pining after Ji-eun? No.
"Attorney, Captain, will you excuse me for a moment?" You gritted your teeth while your gaze was still trained on Jungkook. The two Mins did not hold you back, making it easier for you to instantly trudge over Jungkook's direction.
"Hey, loser. I wanted to quote Article 333 of the family code for you, but then I remembered Ji-eun will never commit adultery, more so if it's with your sorry ass." You smirked at Jungkook, rage still boiling within you.
You were not the only one annoyed, though. Jungkook looked at you in disbelief; his eyebrows pinched together as he huffed, "What is it this time? I'm not doing anything!"
"You're not fooling anyone here, asshole. Don't think for a moment that I don't see you looking pathetically at Mrs. Lee."
"The heck are you on?"
"That you're in love with Ji-eun? That's the only reason why you're looking in our direction." You rolled your eyes, looking smug. "Unless you had a change of heart and are now pining after Captain Yoongi—which I'm not opposed to, by the way. I'm all for gay rights. You might be too late, though. I think he's a little too in love with your Chief Police Kim."
You shook your head in pity for Jungkook. Ji-eun and Yoongi were cousins. Why did Jungkook seem to only like Mins, who were already in love with someone else?
"Will you shut up?" Jungkook's jaw ticked. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead. He looked panicked.
You snickered, "Oh, no. Is Jungkook-boy shy��"
"I'm looking at you, damn it!" Jungkook seized your wrist and pulled you closer to him. From the outside's point of view, it looked like Jungkook was some gang leader bullying a helpless girl. But that's the thing. Only his looks were imposing—Jungkook's grey suit perfectly hugged his toned body. His hairstyle drastically changed since your teenage years, too. Per the police officer standard, Jungkook was now sporting an undercut that made his jaw look more chiseled. His aura was intimidating, but only you knew how gently he had pulled you close to his body.
Jungkook whispered into your ears, "I'm worried, alright? I need your help. Can you see those two women sitting by the window? They've been here since morning, and they're watching you and me—us. I don't seem to recall their faces. Sora and Niccolo were not related to them in any way either."
Jungkook had met the people around the married couple. He knew even the customers in Sora and Niccolo's restaurant. This was the first time Jungkook was seeing these women.
You were alerted, too. It was uncommon for strangers to attend the departed's wake, so these two women could either be from Falco and Gabi's side or...
Your eyes widened at the sudden realization. Unfortunately, before you could warn Jungkook, the two ladies had already noticed your gaze and immediately walked in your direction.
"Hi there. My name is Frieda, and this is my coworker, Ms. Kiyomi. We're social workers assigned by the local government to check on orphans."
"It's nice to meet you." Thankfully, you had no problems switching gears. Being a lawyer taught you to fake pleasantries despite shaking on the inside. As expected, these two women were social workers here to see Hanni's condition. Regrettably, you had failed to discuss this earlier with Jungkook.
"I know this is not the best time to visit, but we're just concerned about the little girl. Hanni, that's her name, right?" Kiyomi was an old woman who appeared strict and conservative. Her smile made your eyes twitch. "I take it you're the host of this wake. Do you mind sharing with us if Mr. Niccolo and his wife assigned a legal guardian for Hanni?"
"Legal guardians, actually." You mirrored Kiyomi's smile. "I'm the family's lawyer and Sora's childhood best friend. She has left her notarized will with me. I can send you both the hard and soft copy any time."
"That's good to hear," Frieda answered, "But right now, we want to personally meet the assigned guardians. Where is Hanni, by the way?"
"Hanni is sleeping in her room with SWAT officer Lee's children, right, babe?"
"Huh?" Jungkook asked dumbly when he felt your hand encircling his biceps. To say he was shocked by your term of endearment would be an understatement because what the fuck? Did you just call him babe?
"A little absentminded, are we?" You chuckled awkwardly and pinched Jungkook's biceps 'lovingly' Damn, was he ripped. "Forgive my fiancé, lovely ladies. He's just a bit tired after pulling an all-nighter to arrange our best friends' wake and trying to pacify little Hanni."
"Oh," Kiyomi's eyes lit up. "You're the assigned guardians, I suppose?"
"Yes, we are." You felt Jungkook stiffen when you leaned your head onto his biceps. You originally wanted to lean on his shoulder, but he was too tall. You guessed it didn't matter as long as you had skin contact with Jungkook.
Kiyomi didn't seem to be convinced, though. Her keen eyes wandered over yours and Jungkook's empty ring fingers.
"Ah!" You grabbed Jungkook's left hand and intertwined your fingers with his. "We removed our engagement rings for now. You know, Hanni's at the age where she just likes sucking onto everything. You can't have a kid swallowing a diamond, can you?"
The two women laughed at your lame joke. Meanwhile, Jungkook's face still couldn't be painted. Every part of his being urged him to push you away, but he had a hunch that would be unwise.
Jungkook looked at the two ladies before side-eyeing you. He felt like losing to a sick game, which didn't sit well with him. Jungkook hated it when you were one step ahead, so he played your game despite not knowing the rules.
He grabbed your interlaced fingers and kissed them. "Don't worry, hon. The ring is just for aesthetic purposes. I am still yours without it."
"Oh, my. What a lovely couple!" Kiyomi finally fell into your gimmick. She rubbed her chest as if what she saw warmed her heart, "It's getting late. People are coming, why don't you go and welcome them? Frieda and I are just leaving."
You calmed your beating heart before answering the old lady, "Don't you wanna see Hanni first?"
Frieda and Kiyomi fell silent and seemed to be hesitant. Hearing SWAT officer Lee's name actually scared them. They were afraid of offending Jongsuk. Kids were especially fussy when their nap was disturbed, yes?
"No need. We have already imposed too much. Why don't we schedule a meeting after the funeral?" Frieda raised her brow.
"Sounds lovely. Wait a second. We'll give you our contact information."
The two social workers finally left after exchanging contact details and a few more pleasantries. Your hand was still enveloped by Jungkook's big, warm hand. He took this as an opportunity to lightly drag you into an empty room.
"What the hell just happened there?" For someone who's confused, Jungkook sure enjoyed holding your hand. His grip tightened when you laughed mockingly.
"You called me hon—cringe, by the way—but you can't grasp what happened there? Are you for real?"
"Just answer the damn question!" Jungkook's ears were red. He swore he wasn't stupid. You were just making him appear to be like that. "And as if you're any better. Calling me babe, really? And fiancé? Who the hell wants to marry you!?"
"Let go!" You wriggled out of his grasp, yet Jungkook did not let you go. He pulled you close to him and stared at you intently.
"No." Jungkook jutted his chin. "Not unless you explain what that was all about."
Looking at Jungkook's eyes made you shudder. You knew him. He was stubborn. Seeing the determination in his eyes, you realized it was wise not to tease him any further. Jungkook was many things, but he never joked about romantic feelings. Call it old school, but he already regretted playing your game. How could he forget how much of a menace you were?
"I'm not making fun of you, alright? I had to pretend we're lovers, for Hanni's sake." You explained to Jungkook that most social workers were vicious when doing their jobs. Kiyomi was an old lady. Of course, she'd prefer to see Hanni with a loving and complete family as her guardians. She had the power to manipulate the judge's decision. You were afraid she would suggest assigning Hanni to strangers who could give her an illusion of a 'happy family.'
"So are you saying we have to pretend we're dating in front of those social workers?" Jungkook wasn't unreasonable. He was willing to hear your ridiculous idea if this meant keeping Hanni in a safe space.
"Well," you sighed in lament. "Not just in front of the social workers, unfortunately. Kiyomi and Frieda might interview anyone in our circle. It will be bad if they find out we're lying, worse, that we hate each other."
"I don't hate you, though." Jungkook's response was immediate. He creased his forehead as if not understanding what you said. "But I find you extremely annoying."
"The feeling is mutual." You exerted all your energy to wriggle out of his grasp.
Jungkook smirked and thought of getting back at you for getting him all flustered before those social workers, "Eh? Are you getting sick of my touch already? Careful. We might have to do more than hold hands to convince people we're to be married."
"You are so..." You trailed off because of irritation. "Irrational and a hypocrite! Don't you hate faking romantic things with me?" And aren't you in love with Ji-eun?
Jungkook shrugged nonchalantly; a smirk was still plastered on his lips. "I adapt fast. I can tolerate your annoying face, for Hanni's sake."
He pinched your cheek.
You slapped his hand away and squared your shoulders. Damn you, Jungkook Jeon.
"Bring it on, then."
***
Bullshit.
Your claim against Jungkook to 'bring it on" was complete and utter bullshit. Not only was it difficult, but it was also unrealistic and close to being impossible. Truthfully, you two did not feel it at once, mainly because you were busy with the funeral and had your other friends help you with Hanni.
Now, however...
"Terni, I'm sorry," Hanni's bright eyes glistened with tears as she stared at you. She was only three, but surprisingly, she could already pronounce words clearly—except maybe the word attorney.
Sora told her daughter to call you 'Attorney' so the little one could brag to people about having a cool godmother who was a lawyer. Hanni was an intelligent child. Admittedly, you suspected she could actually pronounce the word attorney correctly. She simply preferred calling you Terni as it was cuter and perhaps because it was easier to escape your wrath.
Hanni accidentally spilled a full glass of her favorite chocolate drink on your work documents. These were all related to the cases you told your secretary to cancel when you found out Sora died. Unfortunately, your words held no weight as you still needed to take on these cases—whether you wanted to or not. Besides, your mourning period was coming to an end. Sora and Niccolo had found their resting place already. Your only worry was Hanni and your pending cases.
"It's okay, darling." The side of your upper lip twitched while you threw the files in the trash bin. You kept reminding yourself that lashing out at a three-year-old kid was unreasonable.
'But it's not unreasonable to displace your anger to a certain police lieutenant.' The voice inside your head supplied. You smirked, feeling enlightened. Obviously, you were going to listen to the voice. Every chance you got to annoy Jungkook was gold.
"Why don't I put you in your crib first? Terni will just talk to Jungkook-boy, okay?"
Because she knew she was at fault here, Hanni nodded and let you carry her back to her room. The Kang' residence was quite big. You, Hanni, and Jungkook each had your own rooms. The master bedroom remained untouched, though. You didn't have the heart to invade the late couple's personal space. Besides, you were only temporarily residing here. This was not your house, and Hanni was not your child—you weren't even fully recognized by the court as Hanni's guardian. This could all be taken away from you sooner or later.
It was better not to get attached and keep things as they were. Taking this into consideration, you went to the kitchen to annoy Jungkook. Unfortunately, you were only able to say a few words before your face and mind blanked out. Clearly, no one prepared you on how to react seeing Jungkook buzzing around the kitchen while washing dishes—the same dishes you and Hanni used for breakfast this morning.
Jungkook wore washing gloves; soap suds painted his left cheek while pots and plates surrounded him.
"What'd you say again?" Jungkook spared you a glance, washing the mug you used for coffee earlier.
You swallowed thickly and forced your eyes away from the dishes. You originally wanted to chastise him for slacking off and not bringing Hanni to the daycare center on time. If Hanni was at the daycare, then your files wouldn't get soaked up in a chocolate drink in the first place. You couldn't blame him now, could you? Not when he was busy cleaning the kitchen after preparing breakfast for you and Hanni.
In your defense, you did not ask him to cook for you, too. You woke up with the smell of pancakes, bacon, and eggs wafting inside your room. Of course, you got up to scold him for not turning on the exhaust hood.
"You're awake?" You remembered Jungkook raising a brow upon seeing you. Hanni was already sitting on her high chair; her mouth was watering because of how good her breakfast smelled. "Come on, join us for breakfast."
You swallowed the insults at the tip of your tongue as Jungkook placed two big plates and a small one on the table.
"I don't eat breakfast," you said indifferently. It was true. When you reach your office, your secretary will have a cup of macadamia-flavored coffee ready. That was the only thing you had for breakfast. It had probably been years since you'd eaten anything solid during the morning.
Jungkook seemed to misunderstand your response, though. He thought you just didn't like to eat what he cooked. He taunted you, "There's no poison here, Empress. Your lowly male concubines have tasted the food for you."
To demonstrate, Jungkook swallowed a spoonful of bacon and pancakes.
"You're mistaken. You are no concubine of mine." You sneered but took a seat to eat. "You're merely my eunuch."
Teenager Jungkook would have turned red-faced and just cussed you out, but he grew up, and those blind dates with countless supermodels had improved his confidence. Jungkook pressed his hand on the table and peered down at you. His broad chest was inches away from your face.
"Now, that would be misleading, Empress. Can a eunuch have this?" He didn't use words, merely gesturing toward himself, particularly on the lower portion of his body.
The teenager you would have turned pissed and just cussed Jungkook out, but despite maturing into an adult woman, you still couldn't handle jokes like this, causing your face to turn scPark.
Jungkook chuckled at your reaction but didn't push you anymore. He liked pressing your buttons, though not to the point of making you uncomfortable. He was not an ass.
"Let's just eat, alright?"
Jungkook happily agreed and put some food on your plate. You merely glanced at it before playing it cool by opening up another topic, "It's your turn to send Hanni to daycare today, right? Her class is at 7am. Her teacher said she could go back to class but is welcome to extend her break."
Hanni's parents just died, after all. Besides, it wasn't a formal school. The daycare was established as a consideration for children who had working parents.
"Yes, I'll bathe her today. too, then we'll go to the center after." Jungkook smeared maple syrup on Hanni's pancakes. He had added finely cut grapes on top of it as he was afraid Hanni would choke on the circled fruit.
"Good. I'll finish some work today," you said as a form of respect.
You and Jungkook decided to co-parent Hanni and see if you could commit to it. Jungkook was assigned to take care of Hanni from Monday to Wednesday. Meanwhile, your schedule was from Thursday to Saturday. This included sending Hanni to school, feeding, bathing, and playing with her. Sunday was your only free day, as Hanni would be in the care of your friends. Captain Yoongi and Chief Namjoon said they'd bring Hanni out to play this Sunday.
It was a relief, really. You need to go back to Seoul this Sunday to finish some work and formally announce to your subordinates and clients that you will be moving to Busan for the time being. Your schedule this week was jampacked. Fortunately, Kiyomi and Frieda postponed the meeting and said they would inform you at their earliest convenience. As it turned out, those social workers weren't utterly heartless as they intended to give you and Jungkook a breather until the settlement of Sora and Niccolo's case.
Right. That was another concern of yours. You turned to Jungkook, "What time is your lunch break? I'm meeting up with Prosecutor Lee and Captain Yoongi this afternoon. Wanna join us?"
You and Jungkook played well when you were teaming up instead of being rivals. He shook his head in lament, "I can't. I have to finish some work at the station too. Just fill me in with the details later."
"Alright." You continued eating after that. Surprisingly, the breakfast with Hanni and Jungkook went well. Your morning would have been perfect hadn't been for Hanni messing up your files—which led you back to staring dumbly at Jungkook, who was still busy cleaning up the kitchen.
It was past seven in the morning. You were busy working and weren't able to track time. "Didn't you say you would send Hanni to daycare today? Why haven't you?"
"Oh." Jungkook scratched the back of his head. "I called the teacher and informed her that Hanni isn't coming today." Jungkook let Hanni walk around the house and find you. He guessed it was his fault for having too much confidence in a three-year-old kid. Of course, giving Hanni a chocolate drink wasn't a guarantee that she would be able to tell you she wasn't going to school today. Jungkook was too much of a pussy to tell you himself. He knew how you were when working. You would breathe fire at him for disturbing you.
"Why, though?" You puffed out air, "We can't keep doing this, you know? Hanni needs to socialize with other people." It wasn't that you wanted Hanni to forget her parents, but lately, Hanni had been asking where her mum and dad went. You and Jungkook hadn't discussed a healthy way to go over such a sensitive topic. Besides, you and Jungkook were working adults who needed time to do their jobs. You couldn't spend all day looking after Hanni.
"I know, but she sneezed twice this morning. It's already so cold outside. What if she catches the flu?"
"Oh, my gosh, you overprotective dumbass." You rolled your eyes at Jungkook, but the latter shrugged it off. You could call him whatever you wanted. However, he couldn't risk his goddaughter getting sick.
"I'll go to work in a while and drop by Hanni's doctor after my shift. I'll inquire about her medical records and see if we can get her a flu vaccine. Don't worry," Jungkook's eyes were thoughtful. "It's Monday, so I'll take care of everything myself. You can go to work today. I'll just text you if something comes up."
The day wasn't even halfway done, but you found yourself agreeing to Jungkook without a need for a fight. This was new, and you found it surprisingly refreshing.
"Fine." You acquiesced as the urge to blame him for your soaked files disappeared. Maybe you were wrong—maybe, just maybe, co-parenting Hanni with Jungkook wasn't as bad as you imagined.
***
Your afternoon turned out to be hectic, so the meeting with the two Mins was pushed to 3pm. Captain Yoongi invited you to a tea shop as it was quieter there.
"I personally think we have no shot in filing a murder case against those brats." Chamomile tea wasn't enough to calm you down as you looked at the crime pictures again.
Sora was sprawled on the cold ground; the pool of blood made you wanna puke. It didn't help that Ji-eun was drinking a strawberry-flavored tea.
"You're right. Given the elements of a murder, two are not present. Mens rea and actus rus," Ji-eun voiced out the legal terms. According to Captain Yoongi, Gabi and Falco gave consistent explanations during the interrogation. It was similar to what they told your secretary.
The teens did not intend to kill Sora and her husband. They were merely trying throttle therapy, which, unfortunately, went wrong.
Falco said he switched lanes to avoid crashing into a car maneuvering into a U-turn. It just happened that Sora and Niccolo were crossing the street before Falco could step on the break.
"I think that's what Jungkook did when he forced confessions from the brats. He wanted them to admit to murdering Sora and Niccolo so they could get the maximum penalty. However, I can tell it was an accident. We can only file for reckless imprudence resulting in multiple homicides." Captain Yoongi held his cup tightly, an indication that he was angry at what happened but couldn't do anything about it.
"That's my plan, but I think Annie Leonhart will reduce her clients' charges to manslaughter."
Manslaughter? Yoongi's brow creased. He wasn't a lawyer, so naturally, he couldn't immediately follow the logic behind the prosecutor's words.
You explained it to him, "It means Annie is a bitch, Captain. Based on my assumption, I bet she'll fake some medical records and say Falco took some kind of drug to help with his mental health issues." She would make it appear that Falco was unaware the drug given to him could cause hallucinations, confusion, and probably a loss of energy. "Or she'll have the clients' families pay a random person to confess tampering with Falco's car, hence the break not working. Either way, Attorney Leonhart will find a scapegoat and make it appear that what Gabi and Falco did was unintentional."
"You're so familiar with these tactics, aren't you?" Yoongi knitted his brow. In return, you tilted your head to the side as if to show a 'what can I say' attitude. The Captain was not wrong. You were also familiar with the techniques you mentioned because you were a defense lawyer.
Ji-eun wasn't bothered. She figured out the logic behind your tactics. She clasped her hands and said, "Captain Yoongi called me on the day of the incident. I've sent some people to subject Falco and Gabi to medical examinations. No need to fret. The results will show if they've taken any drugs. There were two more independent examiners, so they can't accuse us of faking the results."
Good. Your shoulders relaxed upon hearing that. Ji-eun continued, "We must pay attention to the other excuse Annie might choose." Prosecutor Lee emphasized how affluent the Braun and Grice families were. It would be easy for them to fake 'dispute' with people, forcing them to tamper with the car Falco drove. "Captain, my cousin-in-law is good friends with this case's judge, correct? I need your help with evidence submitted before the trial. I need time to study the witnesses, too."
"Cousin-in-law?" Ji-eun said many things, but this was the only thing Yoongi grasped. The Captain was not married yet. Who could Ji-eun be referring to as her cousin-in-law?
"Chief Police Namjoon Kim." Prosecutor Lee said with a face vacant of any emotions that even the hard-to-faze Yoongi almost spit his tea. You laughed heartily. Oh, men and their poor attempt to conceal their feelings. It was hilarious when boys fell in love. They looked like idiots who seemed to forget how to navigate life.
"Namjoon is not your cousin-in-law...yet," Yoongi cleared his throat. "But yes, he will be...helping you with anything you need with the case. Just send either one of us a text or go to our house. Make sure to bring Rin when you visit."
Rin was Ji-eun and Jongsuk's eldest son and Yoongi's favorite. He spoiled that kid rotten. You adored that kid, too. Admittedly, your topic switched to the Lee kids, and you also took this time to ask Ji-eun for tips on caring for a small child.
The sun had already set by the time your meeting ended. A fond smile was still plastered on your lips long after the Ji-eun and Yoongi left, but it didn't take long for your smile to disappear once you heard your phone buzz.
Someone had sent you a message. The number wasn't saved in your contacts, but the previous messages gave you a clue about who it was.
Unknown number:
Seoul is colder now that you're not here. I miss you.
You stared at the message for some time, then sighed as if accepting defeat. You scrolled through your contacts and called the one named 'Eunuch Jungkook.'
"What can I do for you, Empress?" Jungkook answered after two rings. His tone carried some teasing, which eased your heart a little.
"Something came up. I'm going back to Seoul tonight. My secretary said she needs help—"
"Alright," Jungkook responded softly before you could finish your excuse. You did not need to explain to him. Jungkook understood your line of work. He couldn't hold it against you. Besides, it's Monday. He could care for Hanni himself. "Just text me when you'll be back. And don't you dare forget to bring back some monjayaki for me and Hanni!"
"Fine, fine." You rolled your eyes, feigning irritation. "I'll see you soon."
"Good. Take care." Jungkook had you talk to Hanni for a few minutes before hanging up. After that, you booked a car to drive you back to Seoul. This was better than a subway. After all, you need to conserve energy to talk to that one person.
You sighed. This would definitely be a long night...
***
Mina bombarded you with workloads the second you stepped foot in your office in Seoul.
"I'm sorry, Attorney." Mina was apologetic when she handed you the documents. "You need to attend to one more hearing tomorrow."
"Another business dispute?" You looked at your secretary in disbelief. Seriously? All the cases you have been handling these past couple of days were related to businesses dealing with trademark infringement and violating the labor code. It was a surprise that these business owners still trusted you. Admittedly, you thought most of your clients would withdraw now that you didn't have the support of the Braun and Grice families.
"Yes, your client refused to settle as they did not want to pay the amount demanded by the other party."
You scoffed. Those greedy assholes. They had the nerve to ignore the labor law but couldn't face the consequences of their actions?
"Tell my client I'm meeting them in an hour. Either that or they can go find another lawyer." You would 'persuade' them to settle out of court today as you couldn't attend tomorrow's hearing. You were in a hurry to return to Busan since it was already Sunday. Jungkook had been caring for Hanni the whole week, which made you feel guilty. Jungkook had another role he needed to fulfill aside from being Hanni's guardian. What kind of person were you if you kept on holding him back?
Besides, there was still another person you must meet today. Thankfully, you were able to convince your client to settle, although you were not proud of the method you used to persuade them. Eh. You guessed it didn't matter because you finally told Jungkook you were heading back to Busan tonight.
"Who're you texting?" The last person you met tonight was him—him, as in the one who claimed to 'miss you' but whose number was still unregistered to your phone.
"Work," you replied indifferently before switching off your phone. You will read Jungkook's message later. For now, you had to deal with this annoying bastard.
"You'll go back to Busan tonight?" He sounded unhappy. Rico Braun had always been like this—too clingy—too whiny. You'd think he was obsessed with you if you didn't know any better. But that's the thing. You were aware of what kind of guy he was. He liked having a successful woman by his side, someone he could brag to his family and friends. You fit his criteria well—a beautiful woman who worked hard for a better life. It was a bonus that the Braun family liked you for Rico, too.
"I already told you," you pushed Rico's hand that was about to encircle your waist. "I'll be staying in Busan for a while. I only went back here to finish some work and to say some things to you."
Rico's eyes sparkled in anticipation. He claimed to be wise, but he couldn't even detect the coldness in your tone. You did not want him. "I've said this before, and I'm saying this again: whatever romantic idea you have about the two of us will never manifest. I can't be your girlfriend, okay?"
Rico wanted to argue, but you cut him off.
"It's not an invitation for you to ask me to be your wife. I don't like you anymore, Rico." Sometimes, being honest was the only way to save your future self from more trouble. Rico had been bugging you since your college days. There was one time you considered dating him—thinking it was for the better—that a ruthless lawyer like you was perfect for a narcissistic boy like him.
"This is also the last time I'm meeting with you. From now on, do not bother me. Your family is not connected with me anymore, either. They probably hate me." Rico was Gabi's older brother. How this person still had the audacity to meet you after what his sibling did to your best friend was beyond you. "Are we clear on this matter?"
Rico's face was impassive, acting as if the news you dropped did not concern him. He crinkled his eyes, "Well, then. It's getting late. I can't have you take the train at this hour, right? Come. I'll drive you to Busan."
"No need." You were about to walk away, but Rico seized your wrist.
His lips twitched. "I insist. Please? For old time's sake."
There was no winning when it came to this blockhead. You relented when he promised this would be the last time he'd ask to drive you. He said he was going back to the U.S. next week, anyway.
The drive back to Busan was fortunately short. Rico drove safely and did not insist on talking while on the road. You imagined being friends with him after what happened with Sora, but you just couldn't do it.
You and Rico had a fair share of understanding each other before, though all those memories were now buried deep in your heart. You did not want anything to do with them anymore.
"Thanks for the ride." You hopped off Rico's car the second it stopped in front of the Kang' residence. You felt nauseated and couldn't help but feel guilty that someone related to Sora's murderer was here. You used to think guilt by association was nonsensical, but now you understand it was a way to ease an angry person's pain.
"You're welcome." Rico rolled down the window and smiled at you. "Have a good night."
You immediately went inside the house after that short exchange. You and Jungkook both had duplicates of the key's door, so you got inside without calling Jungkook.
It was already late, so Hanni was most likely asleep. Maybe Jungkook retired for the night, too. Thinking about this, you tiptoed inside and made sure not to make any loud noises.
However, you were shocked when you saw Jungkook standing by the floor-length window and looking outside it like some predatory bird.
"Did you promote yourself from being a lowly eunuch to an empress' royal guard?" It was meant to be a sneer, but your tone made it seem like gentle teasing.
Jungkook whipped his head and met your eyes. He was shocked to see you, too. "I'm not waiting for you." He denied vehemently. He even crossed his arms. "I just thought it was Hanni who arrived."
"Oh?" You checked your wristwatch. "It's past nine. Hanni's still not home?"
Jungkook shook his head, "Not yet. Captain Yoongi called. He said Hanni's enjoying herself too much in their home. Apparently, Chief Namjoon built a playground for her." Ji-eun and Jongsuk's children were there too. "Who drove you here? Your secretary? A friend? Your colleague?"
Jungkook saw the flashy car outside and how fast you hopped out of that vehicle. He wondered why. Was it because the driver did something to get you all flustered?
Jungkook found himself clenching his fist. It did not help that you were avoiding his question. Admittedly, you did not want Jungkook to know that Rico drove you here. Luckily, you found a way to divert the topic when you looked at him directly.
"Huh?" You squinted your eyes. You didn't catch it earlier since you were meters away from him, but now you could clearly see the bruise on his face. "Is that a black eye?"
It was Jungkook's turn to avoid your question. He looked away and kept his mouth sealed. What the hell?
"What? Are you playing deaf now? I'm asking you, asshole. Is that a black eye?" You trudged toward him and grabbed his jaw so you could examine his face. You were right. Jungkook had a black eye and a cut in his lips.
Looking at him made your temple hurt. You gritted your teeth in anger.
"What are you up to these days, huh? Did you go around fighting civilians? Aren't you in public service? What the hell is wrong with you?"
"It's not a big deal." Jungkook shook his head to wriggle out of your grasp. "There's a guy at the station who pissed me off."
"That's it?" Wow. He was really an idiot. "Do you go around punching people who pissed you off? What about me, then? Since you piss me off so much, should I just punch you to death?"
You pulled Jungkook to sit on the couch and grabbed the first aid kit to clean his wounds. Jungkook was not even bothered with his cuts. He just displayed them as if they were some kind of Christmas decorations.
Jungkook endured how hard you pressed the cotton swab in his face. He was like a docile kid listening to an adult talk. His posture was relaxed, though. Jungkook had his arms spread on the armrest while his legs were wide apart.
"When did this happen, anyway? Did Hanni see you like this? How did she react?" You couldn't bear seeing Hanni cry and questioning why her precious Jungkook-boy was hurt. Hanni was softhearted. How could anyone talk to her about stinky men fighting? It was disgusting.
Jungkook sighed when he realized you would not let it go. "It happened earlier, alright? Captain Yoongi and I met at the police station to discuss something before he went home with Hanni. It's his and the Chief's day off today. Ji-eun dropped by at the station, too. She came bearing bad news..."
Apparently, the one who impounded Falco's car was negligent. He let some people check the vehicle without proper documents. Now, these people were claiming to be car mechanics and that they found Falco's car to have a faulty break.
Damn it. Your premonition had come true. Jungkook was so mad he punched the negligent asshole until he was crying and shaking on the ground. Captain Yoongi saw what happened, so he stopped Jungkook by punching him in the face. He didn't want to, but he had to act 'fair' in front of other police officers. Besides, if he didn't stop Jungkook, there was a big probability that Jungkook would end up killing that negligent officer.
"Why didn't you call me?" You whispered. You couldn't bear to press the cotton swab harder on Jungkook's face after finding out what happened.
"Why?" Jungkook hmphed. " So you can stop me?"
"No." You met his eyes. "So I can punch that asshole too."
Jungkook clearly did not expect that response from you, yet he couldn't help his lips from curling up. Right. You told him before not to worry—you loved Sora so much that you wouldn't let go of those who hurt her.
"Nah," Jungkook shook his head and grabbed your hand. It was close to his lips. You could feel his hot breath on your hand. "You're just gonna hurt your hands. Empresses shouldn't fight lowly people."
Jungkook managed to make you laugh before dropping the bad news to you, "The guy is sent to the hospital and broke a few bones. Serves him right, although..." He smiled in embarrassment, "Captain Yoongi suspended me. I am jobless for a month."
What?
Before you could react, Jungkook stood up to defend himself in case you punched him, "Isn't it great? Now, you have more time to work! I can take care of Hanni the whole day. Yay?"
"Jungkook, you idiot!" You took off your shoe to throw it at him. Unfortunately, the doorbell rang.
Jungkook rushed to the door, "Hanni's here! Don't hurt me, Terni. You can't teach a three-year-old violence!"
The door opened while your shoe was flying in the air. Captain Yoongi was the first to enter the house, causing the shoe to hit his chest.
"Captain!" You and Jungkook snickered. Namjoon was behind him, carrying a sleeping Hanni in his arms. He saw what had happened to Yoongi. The Chief didn't react, though. In fact, he seemed to be holding back a chuckle.
Yoongi glared at Namjoon before throwing a daggered look at you and Jungkook. He loosened his tie and said, "Come here while I'm still asking nicely."
You seemed to teleport back to when Yoongi was training you and the other kids in martial arts. The traumatic memories prompted you to back away and wave your hand in a hurry, "Well, then. It's getting late. Jungkook, you should put Hanni to bed. Captain, Chief, it's nice to see you. Good night!"
You ran to your bedroom after that, ignoring Jungkook's incessant call to you. Captain Yoongi pulled the collar of Jungkook's shirt. He was about to teach him a lesson but backed off when he saw the bruise on his face.
"You're lucky I don't want to touch your face anymore." Yoongi pushed Jungkook and gestured for Namjoon to hand Hanni back to Jungkook. "Take back your kid. She ate all the candies at home. I'll buy more tomorrow and feed them to her next week. Good night."
Jungkook was dumbfounded as he carried Hanni into his arms. He smiled awkwardly at his bosses. "Good night, Captain. Good night, Chief."
Namjoon patted Jungkook's back before following Yoongi outside. "Good night, Jungkook."
Jungkook stood there for a few minutes before blinking back to reality. His bosses were long gone, but he still felt he was in a fever dream.
"Huh," Jungkook muttered to himself as he made a beeline to Hanni's bedroom. "What a strange night."
Indeed, it was a strange night.
***
The strangeness of that same night didn't end instantly. At 11pm, you and Jungkook jolted awake and rushed to Hanni's room when you heard her loud wail from each of your baby monitors.
"Hey, sweetheart. It's okay." You took Hanni's small frame and rubbed the back of her head. You were panting from being forcefully woken up to attending to Hanni in a matter of seconds.
Jungkook was also worried about Hanni but wasn't as disoriented as you. You guessed it was because his work forced him to deal with much more dangerous things. He assessed the situation by languidly looking at you as you pacified the child.
"Bad dream?" Jungkook caressed Hanni's hot cheek. Tears were still falling down her face. The little kid nodded and nuzzled her cheek to Jungkook's finger as if finding comfort in his soft touch.
"Can you tell us what happened, Hanni?" You continued rubbing her back and called her by her given name. You just needed to make sure she was present and that she knew you would listen to what she had to say.
"Let's sit for a while, yeah?" Sleepiness could still be traced to Jungkook's eyes. He didn't seem to have fully woken up yet, but ironically, he was aware of his surroundings.
One look at you, and Jungkook's hand had already made its way to fix the strap of your lingerie that fell on your shoulder.
Goosebumps pricked at your skin. Jungkook's palm was unbelievably warm—it calmed your shaking body as if telling you Hanni was safe. There was no need to worry if Jungkook's attention could stray to a petty matter like the strap of your dress.
But damn it. Was this really a small matter? Your face was flushed red, and your heart felt like it was about to explode because of embarrassment. You were wearing a sexy nightgown, after all. This was your secretary's fault! Why'd she pack these clothes for you?
'No. This isn't about me.' You scolded yourself as you gently helped Hanni sit on her crib bed. You sat on the floor, and Jungkook, the attentive man he was, retrieved a blanket you could use for cover. He sat on the floor, too, gently coaxing Hanni to talk about her nightmare.
The little girl said she saw her parents in her dream. She kept calling for them, but Sora and Niccolo never looked back. The couple just walked farther away from her.
"I miss mummy and daddy," Hanni said through whiny sobs. Your heart ached for her.
You knew you hadn't given your best for this godchild of yours. Your attention was mainly focused on work and Sora's case. Could you even call yourself a guardian at this point? Hanni was a small child who needed protection without asking. Why did it take you so long to comfort her? Why did you think skipping over an important topic was okay just because you were afraid to see how she would react?
Hanni was nothing like you. She was not an adult who could understand her emotions. She was a child. She needed to feel. She needed to understand what emotions were.
"Do you like rabbits, Hanni?" You spoke with bated breaths, but your smile was wide as ever. You couldn't break down this time. Hanni needed you.
Jungkook didn't steal your spotlight, either. He sat quietly and listened to how you would explain things to Hanni.
The child looked confused and lost, yet she nodded her head at your question, "I like rabbits. Mummy and Daddy brought me to the zoo before. There are so many of them."
A small smile cracked Hanni's lips, but her heart felt heavy as she hugged the rabbit toy in her bed.
Admittedly, you didn't know where this topic would stray at first. The rabbit toy simply caught your attention, and before you knew it, you were already using it as a euphemism for Sora and Niccolo's passing.
"Yes, sweetheart. There are so many rabbits in this world! Your mummy and daddy didn't hear your call because they're busy looking after the rabbits."
"I-I don't understand," Hanni pouted her cherry lips.
You patted her head, "Well, do you remember what it's like to be at your mummy and daddy's restaurant?"
Hanni said yes and briefly described the place and experience to be lively. She really enjoyed watching everyone enjoy eating their food.
"Your mummy and daddy are currently on a mission, Hanni. They are in a faraway place trying to feed rabbits. Your daddy cooks delicious food, right? Mummy is with him to make sure every rabbit has a full belly and a cute smile."
"Really?" Hanni's eyes glistened with astonishment. "Mummy and daddy are making sure all rabbits are happy? They're superheroes!?"
"Yes!" You laughed merrily. "Aren't your mummy and daddy great? They know you love rabbits so much that they want them to live a long and happy life."
"That's good." Hanni seemed happy initially, but she knitted her brow in confusion afterward. "But when are they coming back?"
You looked at Jungkook and signaled him to help you. Regrettably, the dumbass appeared to be deeply engrossed by your story too. He shrugged and mouthed for you to continue.
You rolled your eyes at him before grinning at Hanni, "There are many, many, many, many rabbits in the world, so it's gonna take one hundred years before you can see your mummy and daddy again."
"Hundred years?" Hanni stared at her palm and attempted to count using her fingers. She had only counted one to three before completely giving up.
"I don't know how to count to a hundred, Terni." Hanni was frustrated. Thankfully, Jungkook finally interjected the conversation.
"Don't worry, little one. Terni and I will help you count every day, okay? We'll take care of you for one hundred years until you're reunited with your mummy and daddy."
"Really?" Hanni's fear and sadness were not in sight anymore. She raised her tiny arms enthusiastically, "Hanni's very happy. I love Terni and Jungkook-boy so much!"
You and Jungkook both squeezed to fit Hanni's embrace. The little girl was excited about the possibility of spending time with her new guardians, so you let her talk until she fell asleep.
It didn't take long as Hanni was already exhausted from overplaying at Captain Yoongi's place. You guessed this was also the reason why she had a nightmare. Kids weren't supposed to overexert energy and sleep late, so you thought this was the right time for you and Jungkook to make a new schedule for Hanni's daily activities.
The next morning, you got up early to prepare breakfast. It wasn't only Hanni's schedule that you needed to fix. Her eating habits must be taken into consideration, too. Jungkook brought Hanni to her pediatrician last week and sent you the doctor's findings and suggestions.
Sora and Niccolo used to feed Hanni anything under the sun. It didn't help that your friends, especially Captain Yoongi, were a bunch of softhearted fools who always bought sweets for the little one.
You figured you'd cut Hanni's sugar intake and feed her a full meal twice and a bottle of formulated milk at night.
Today's breakfast was a simple avocado toast and random fruits you'd found in the kitchen and threw into the blender. You were not used to doing this as your secretary took care of all your meals. Fortunately, almost everything was searchable on the internet already.
It didn't take you long to follow the recipe you found online. In fact, you even had time to make Jungkook breakfast, too. It was sort of a 'thank you meal' for handling all matters related to Hanni last week.
You thought Jungkook wasn't so bad. After all, it was hard to hate someone who was soft to kids and respectful to women. Although you knew he was like this from the beginning, the younger version of you would not appreciate it because, hey! You were a regular teenager back then. You had a phase of liking walking red flags and had the "I can fix him" attitude.
You didn't want to indulge in the past anymore, though. You thought one of the few beauties of this world was a person's metamorphosis. You were far from perfect and still had many things to improve, but you were also far from the teenager willing to sacrifice herself for a fraction of someone's affection.
However, you were still a human and craved validation. You waited for Jungkook and Hanni to wake up so they could tell you what they thought about the food you made. Unfortunately, Jungkook seemed to have woken up on the wrong side of the bed.
You didn't notice it at first as he was still all smiles when he greeted you good morning. He even happily played with Hanni before placing her in her high chair. Now that you thought about it, Jungkook's mood only soured when he was checking the mailbox.
"What's wrong with you?" You couldn't help but ask. You were about to eat breakfast. Hanni's starry eyes were excitedly looking at the food you made. You didn't want to start eating while Jungkook's mood was this sour.
Jungkook was surprised that you noticed his bitter expression. He attempted to smoothen his crumpled face and said casually to you, "Nothing's wrong with me. I just find these flowers ugly."
You were so focused on Jungkook's reaction that you didn't notice the bouquet of baby breath flowers he placed on the kitchen countertop.
You winced, "Where'd you get that?"
"Outside. Someone must have left them for you." There was a small card with your name on it. Seeing the handwriting, you instantly knew who it came from.
That damn Rico sure did not know how to give up.
"Serious question, are you dating somebody?" Jungkook asked out of the blue, watching as you picked up the white flowers.
You were still wincing, "Why are you asking me this question again?"
Jungkook shrugged his shoulders to appear nonchalant. Unfortunately, he looked more like he was sulking than uncaring. "I just think it's fair for me to know. I mean, we are co-parenting Hanni. What if other people misunderstand? What if they think we have a secret baby cause we fucked around years ago? I don't want some random dude or woman punching me in the fa—"
"Okay, first of all, shut up." You cut Jungkook off. "Secondly, what the hell? You're acting weird, asshole. I'm not dating anyone. And if I am, do you really think I'll start my relationship being all dishonest? If Hanni's my child, I'd tell my partner immediately. I can't date someone who can't love me and my child. Hello? Is the world turning backward?"
"So you're single?" Jungkook disregarded your speech and only focused on one aspect. Gosh. He still hadn't changed. Jungkook would always get on your nerves. He was an idiot.
"No. I'll kill my boyfriend if he gives me baby breaths. Seriously?" You looked at the flowers in disgust. "This looks like popcorn."
"Exactly my thoughts! It's like an impostor. Why don't you throw it away?"
You glared at Jungkook and shielded the flowers, "No way. You can't throw away things just cause they're ugly. What are you? Four?"
"I'm three!" Hanni raised her right hand and giggled. She had been watching you and Jungkook converse. She found you two amusing and thought it would be cool to be a part of it.
"Yes, darling. You're three. Still a baby—our baby." You kissed Hanni's cheeks and said to Jungkook, "I'm displaying these flowers until they wither. Now sit your ass here and eat."
"Haha, Terni. Look at Jungkook-boy." Hanni chuckled and pointed at Jungkook, "He's pouting like a silly boy!"
"I'm not pouting!" Jungkook was defensive. He pursed his lips and forced himself to sit down. He harshly took bites of his avocado toast.
"Hey, you greedy fool. Is this Empress not feeding you enough? Slow down. Geez, there's more." You pushed another slice of avocado toast in his direction.
Jungkook drank his smoothie, "This is pretty decent. I didn't know you were good at this."
Well, you didn't know either. "I'll make our breakfast from now on. We can't keep feeding Hanni random foods. We should go grocery shopping, too."
"We should," Jungkook gently wiped Hanni's mouth. The kid was eating so well. "And oh, have I told you already? Kiyomi and Frieda called last night. They said they'd be visiting on Thursday. We need to prepare."
It was good that you brought up the topic of grocery shopping. Jungkook planned to buy some ingredients to cook a hearty meal for the social workers. His mind was simple: he wanted to thank Kiyomi and Frieda for attentively ensuring Hanni was in good hands.
However, you were different from Jungkook. You agreed about the meal preparation for those social workers, but not with the same logic as him. You only agreed because you wanted Kiyomi and Frieda to think you and Jungkook could handle the basic things parents must do: prepare food for their children despite being committed to work. This would allow you to appear as the perfect guardians.
"It's settled, then. I'm taking half a day off work. We can go shopping after breakfast." You worked your ass off last week, barely having the time to sleep. This week would be less hectic. Besides, this was akin to a transition period, as you wouldn't be accepting complex cases in the meantime. You would opt for clients willing to settle their matters out-of-court. As said, your top priority was Hanni and Sora's case. You trusted your team in Seoul, especially Mina. They had minds of their own. You also disliked micro-managing your subordinates.
Everything was falling into its right place. Jungkook thought so, too. A huge grin decorated his lips as he thought of how he'd prepare for tomorrow's visit. The first on Jungkook's list? Make sure the Kang' residence was tidy and homey—and what made a house homey if not flowers?
Jungkook smirked. Yes, he'd buy flowers and get rid of those stupid popcorn pretending to be pretty flowers. Hah!
***
The day of the social workers' visit had finally arrived. You and Jungkook woke up early to prepare. Hanni still needed to go to the daycare, so you dressed her and sent her to school. Fortunately, her class was until 4pm today, giving you and Jungkook ample time without worrying about the little one.
Jungkook stayed behind as he was occupied with cooking and decorating the house. He might have gone overboard with the decorations, but it was worth it once everything fell into place.
You were bitchy about it, though. You teased Jungkook by playfully asking if his motif for today's lunch was a memorial place. The Kang' residence was spotless, though it had flowers almost at every corner of the house.
Jungkook didn't engage with your poor attempt to fight and just stuck his tongue out at you. You could say everything you wanted, but he knew deep down you liked what he had done to the house.
He was wrong, though. You didn't just like it. You loved it. The flowers Jungkook bought were different colors of daisies—which, coincidentally, was your favorite type of flora. But you'd be damned before you admitted it. You knew how smug Jungkook could be when praised—just like now.
"I can't believe you've cooked this, Mr. Jeon. It's very delicious." Kiyomi was enjoying some nikujaga. You were the one who suggested that Jungkook cook this. The soy sauce had a slightly sweet taste, which was good to dip in the vegetables. Kids like Hanni would surely enjoy this meal.
"It's rare to see a man, more so a Police Lieutenant, cook," Kiyomi added. Jungkook blushed, relishing the compliment. Truthfully, he did not cook often since he still lived with his parents. Jungkook never really grew up in his "mama's boy" phase and still enjoyed the meals she cooked for him. In fact, the nikujaga recipe came from his mother. Jungkook informed the social workers about it and said, "Besides, I don't cook often. My fiancée does."
The social workers' attention switched to you upon hearing Jungkook. You cracked a smile and rubbed the back of Jungkook's hand.
Jungkook's fingers were long and bony, making anyone think that Jungkook could break one's neck in just a snap of his finger. It was probably true, especially with how arduous his training was at the police academy. Jungkook had wielded heavy weapons and smashed bottles on criminals' heads more than one could count.
However, looking and feeling were two different things. Surprisingly, Jungkook's hand felt soft under your touch. The protruding veins in the back of his hands pulsated a little, their light green color perfectly contrasting with his silver Versace wristwatch.
"Cooking is the least I can do for this family, really." You spoke, watching as Jungkook's eyes drooped when he felt your fingers languidly drawing circles on the back of his palm.
You had been cooking their meals these past few days, but that was only because Jungkook had a soft spot for Hanni. He'd indulge her sweet tooth, relenting every time Hanni requested overly sweet pancakes and candies. That wouldn't work for you. Your priority was Hanni's health.
"I work a lot, so Jungkook mainly takes care of Hanni. I just support the two of them."
"Oh? Aren't you busy with work, too, Lieutenant?" Frieda enquired. Jungkook's lips quivered, and for a second, he looked as if he wanted to divulge why he wasn't working. You saved him from his idiocy at the last minute:
"He's currently on a one-month leave." You continued tracing circles on Jungkook's hand until your action forced the social workers to look at Jungkook's hand. They spotted a fake engagement ring. You and Jungkook bought it to make your acting more convincing. "Jungkook's initially saving his leave credits for our honeymoon, but Captain Min forced him to get some time off work. This fiancé of mine is so hardworking. Can you believe it? He hasn't filed for a leave in years!"
The key to a good lie was mixing it with the truth. Admittedly, Jungkook hadn't filed for a leave for many years now. His coworkers often teased him, saying he wouldn't find a wife to marry if he focused his time working. However, Jungkook wasn't bothered anymore. He grew tired of spending his weekends going on blind dates. The girls were all pretty and nice, but he didn't feel more for them. He was stuck in the attraction phase. It was as if something was missing. Jungkook wasn't an asshole, so he cut connections with those girls so as to not give them false hope.
There was this one girl who was head over heels for him, though. The woman even brought her parents to the station to cajole Jungkook into marrying their daughter, but the parents gave up halfway because Jungkook seemed oblivious to what they wanted. It was Jimin who told Jungkook about the parents' plan, but Jungkook doubted it. He thought the girl's parents were just being nice.
"Has he not?" Frieda wondered how often you and Jungkook see each other every week if you're both busy with work. She also started asking about your first meeting with Jungkook.
"We've known each other from a very young age. We lived in the same neighborhood and studied in the same school. Though, we only started dating after college." Jungkook lied.
You and Jungkook faked this story together. You two had to make a believable scenario to avoid suspicion. You told more lies, "Yes, as you can see, we started as rivals. Cute, isn't it? Our romantic story is similar to what you see in books."
You brought out your phone and clicked an album in your photo gallery to prove your point. There were a bunch of pictures of you and Jungkook taken in the past. You showed them to the social workers.
"Wow, you've really known each other for so long!" Kiyomi was impressed. There was a photo of a drawing competition during your elementary days. It was captured by your father using an old model camera.
It was one of the worst days of your life. Jungkook was good at drawing, so he was expected to win. He got first place while you were the second placer. Naturally, you could not accept it—especially not after Jungkook mocked you by drawing himself wearing a golden medal. On his feet was a drawing of you kowtowing at him. In a fit of rage, you kicked his shin, causing him to stumble on the ground. Jungkook did not hit you back but told the teachers and your parents about it.
Your mother held a high position in school, so it was embarrassing for her to see her daughter bully kids. She scolded you and forced you to apologize to Jungkook. You did not want to do it, so you cried and kicked your feet.
Jungkook's parents were understanding. They did not get mad at you and instead told Jungkook to apologize first. It was his fault, anyway. You would not kick him if he did not make fun of you.
Since Jungkook feared his parents, especially his mother, he was left with no choice but to mumble a reluctant sorry. His apology only became sincere when he saw your red eyes. For some reason, Jungkook hated seeing you cry, and so he took off his golden medal and let you wear it.
That was the moment your father captured through a photo: Jungkook was giving you his medal while you looked expectantly at him.
Seeing this, Frieda and Kiyomi couldn't help but feel their hearts softening. They scrolled through your phone and found more pictures of you and Jungkook. All of them were taken mainly by Sora since she used to like photography.
"I now understand why you called yourselves rivals," Frieda crinkled her eyes. She found it endearing rather than annoying, "You compete about almost everything, but I gotta say this one's the most interesting."
Frieda showed a picture of you and Jungkook outside your university. You two were wearing formal clothing while protesting. You were holding a "Be fair to all your students" placard written in red bold letters. Meanwhile, Jungkook had a placard that said, "Kim Mingyu is innocent."
"We didn't know you two were activists. I know who Kim Mingyu is. He's classmates with my younger sister Historia before. Mingyu's case was pretty controversial, wasn't it?"
Kim Mingyu was one of Jungkook's best friends, so it was natural for you to be acquainted with him as well. There were many moments when the Idiot Quartet shared meals with Mingyu. In fact, Mingyu once helped you with an academic project during your freshman year.
Everything was going well until your last semester in college. Someone tipped the school officers that a student from Room 509 was possessing illegal drugs. All students present that day were brought in for investigation. Their things were confiscated, and unfortunately, the only student who had unlawful drugs inside his bag was Mingyu.
But that's the thing. Mingyu might have been possessing the drugs, but his medical records showed no signs of being under the influence of any drugs. There was one student who tested positive in the drug test, though.
It was Mingyu's seatmate. Regrettably, this person was from an affluent family in Seoul whose connection extended to Busan. It was obvious that he planted the drugs inside Mingyu's bag so Mingyu could take the fall.
Mingyu initially tried to appeal, asking his friends and classmates for support. However, no one dared help him. The real culprit was powerful, after all. They did not want to get themselves involved in stuff like this.
It was only you and Jungkook who had the courage to protest. Even Sora and the others were hesitant. They told you not to be reckless and to find another way to help Mingyu without revealing your identity.
Looking back, you realized you didn't have any right to mock Jungkook and Jongsuk for being a so-called suicidal maniac because you were just like them. You were very passionate about upholding justice until one day:
A man in a black suit visited you. You just got home after another unfruitful day of protesting in school on behalf of Mingyu. You didn't really feel like talking to anyone that day, but the man made a promising proposal:
He told you he saw your potential and was willing to fund your law school education until you graduate. Everything would be provided by this man. Starting from your tuition fee up to your personal allowance. All he asked was that you move to Seoul as soon as possible, and...
"So that's it?" Jungkook's spiteful face was clear in your head as if the memory had happened recently—except it wasn't. This was after your conversation with that man in a suit. Heck. It didn't even take you an hour to decide.
You have already made a decision.
"I'm going to Seoul next week. I don't have time to protest anymore." You said simply. Your voice carried no hint of regret or sadness.
You were just indifferent.
Jungkook scoffed at your reaction—or the lack thereof. His heart had gone cold, and there was no trace of affection left on his soul after your temporary truce for Mingyu's sake.
"Yeah, as if I'm going to believe that. You're saying it's a coincidence that the Braun clan is sponsoring your studies, right? Hah. Sorry, but I call that bullshit." For a moment, Jungkook looked like he would spit on your face, but he didn't. He just balled his hands into fists and looked at you in contempt.
"You made a deal with that family, didn't you? You'll stop protesting in exchange for a straight path they'd dig up for you and your greediness."
Jungkook usually said the most idiotic things, but you couldn't accuse him now—not when he got everything right.
In exchange for a sure success in life, you betrayed Mingyu and Jungkook.
"I've made up my mind." You said with finality. The situation had already come to this. There was no point in sugarcoating things.
Jungkook didn't say anything, the silence burrowing into your heart and growing into two different emotions:
Yours was grief, and all Jungkook felt was bitterness. That day, you parted ways and never spoke to each other again. Sure, there were times you two were forced to be in the same room—like the day of Sora's wedding and when she gave birth to Hanni.
But even then, you barely looked at each other's directions. Somehow, you always felt like Jungkook was lying when he told you recently that he never hated you—that all there was to feel was annoyance at your devilish face.
It was untrue. After all, not even yourself was on your side. Jungkook might say he didn't hate you, but you sure did.
Wasn't it funny? You had achieved your dreams, but there were still some nights you thought you could go back in time. Maybe then, Mingyu and his family wouldn't have to be sent to the most rural part of Japan.
Mingyu wasn't sent to prison, but his life had been caged while his wings were cut off. Meanwhile, Mingyu's seatmate, who had ruined his life, was free—he went by the name Rico Braun.
***
The lunch with the social workers went well. You didn't want to be complacent, but you saw Frieda encircling 5 on her rating sheet. This number represented the highest point to rate you and Jungkook.
"Shall we open a bottle of wine for this success? It's still early to pick up Hanni. What do you think?" You asked Jungkook as you picked up the dirty plates and brought them to the sink.
Cleaning up after playing host was one of the things you hated doing. It didn't help that Jungkook was giving you the cold shoulder—or at least this was what you thought.
Jungkook hadn't spoken to you since Frieda and Kiyomi left half an hour ago. Jungkook had his lips puckered, and his brows creased together. You were familiar with this reaction well.
Either he was pensive or pissed. Knowing him, it was most likely the latter. After all, you could only take a few days of not fighting. Anything more than a week would be a goddamn miracle.
"Or we can just finish our chores in silence." You raised your shoulders slightly, taking a peek at Jungkook, who was still eerily quiet.
You heaved a sigh. Fine. You wouldn't push it.
'Or maybe you should.' The little voice inside your head made a comeback, so it was only natural to listen to the voice.
You didn't attack Jungkook at once, though. Firstly, you stood beside him and 'helped' him wash the dishes. You were the one lathering soap on the plates while he washed them with clean water.
It started subtly—you whisked soap suds in his direction until they hit his forearms.
Jungkook did not mind it and just continued washing the dishes.
You rolled your eyes before doing it again. This time, you whisked soap suds into his forearm with more force.
Jungkook did not react, prompting you to whisk more until his arm was covered with soap suds.
You were about to do it again, but Jungkook had seized your treacherous wrist.
"What?" You titled your head up and stared at him innocently. Jungkook peered down at you and opened his mouth. For a moment, he seemed like he was going to berate you, but he stopped when he saw your lips curving into a teasing smile.
Jungkook felt like he lost his mind a little whenever he looked at your annoying face. How could this be? How could he be stressing over something related to you while you looked like you had no clue you were fucking him up?
It was not fair.
Jungkook pulled you closer to him, letting you have a whiff of his expensive cologne: sandalwood. Jungkook did not know it, but you were not doing better than him. Your weakness was men who smelled good, alright? You were just a girl, after all. You were attracted to things that screamed masculinity, and sandalwood was one of them. The musky and earthy aroma made you feel warm and fuzzy inside.
As if that wasn't enough, your heart also skipped a beat when he licked his lips and pushed you slightly on the kitchen countertop, effectively caging you in his arms.
Jungkook suddenly leaned closer and whispered to your ears.
"Why'd you keep them?" His voice dropped an octave.
"Keep what?"
It was a miracle that you could still look at him in the eyes and act all oblivious. It made Jungkook want to pull his hair out.
"You know what I'm talking about." He insisted. However, you were more stubborn than he was.
"I don't. Last time I checked, I'm a defense lawyer, not a mind reader."
No one said Jungkook had a good temper. He closed his eyes tightly, seemingly fighting the urge to snap at you—he did not. He just breathed out slowly and asked you the question as patiently as he could.
"Fine. Play dumb, but I won't accept a half-ass answer." He narrowed his eyes at you, "Why did you keep all our photos together?"
The photos were at least twenty years' worth of your life together. You were thirty-two now. Sometimes, it still fascinated you to remember that you had known Jungkook all your life.
"Don't speak nonsense about you being sentimental. We both know that's not the case because you can let go of everyone without thinking too much about it."
You scoffed at that. Hah. You knew it. Jungkook did hate you for leaving—he hated how you could throw away your bond with the people here in Busan just to make a name for yourself. Until now, Jungkook had some reservations about you. He racked his brain of why you would be keeping those photos.
It might mean nothing to you—that this was just one of your schemes to trick those social workers. But could you have found all those pictures in a few days? Not to mention that some were really old.
So why? Why did you keep them—even the ugly and blurred ones.
Jungkook was desperate for an answer, and he didn't know why. Sadly, you did not relent and even went as far as throwing back a question at him.
"What about you? Why did you fill this place with flowers? Daisies, on top of that."
It shouldn't mean anything. Heck. The question you asked was a shot in the dark. The better part of you knew it was simply a coincidence, but sometimes, your self-preservation didn't seem to work. You put meanings to things that didn't hold value for others.
"I asked you a question first." Jungkook dodged the bullet. He could be stubborn, too.
"Well, I'm not answering your question until you answer me."
"Ditto."
You glared at each other. Silence permeated the room. A few seconds later, you and Jungkook both turned away from each other as if accepting defeat without bruising your egos.
'Fine. I won't say anything.' He muttered to himself.
'Over my dead body.' You thought silently.
And with that, no questions were answered, but fear and hope entangled your and Jungkook's hearts.
***
Sora and Niccolo's case finally progressed to the highest court a month later. Justice could be achieved promptly when you know prominent people in the field.
Captain Yoongi and Chief Kim did everything they could to help you and Ji-eun win the case. Thanks to the prosecutor's ability, the jury's hearts were won.
Ji-eun managed to rebuke the faulty break allegations, arguing that even though the break was tampered with, the defendants were still guilty of negligence. Ji-eun's exact words before the judge went like this:
"Defendant Falco Grice, do you know how many seconds there are in a minute?"
"Yes. There are sixty seconds." Falco supplied.
"Then, how many hours do you spend studying every day?"
The question made Falco's eyes light up. Right! He liked answering questions regarding his studies because, according to Attorney Leonhart, his dedication to academic activities would prove how stressed he was in school, which resulted in him and Gabi trying throttle therapy.
The defendants couldn't retract their statements anymore as they had already been recorded by the traffic police and Captain Yoongi. Annie had no choice but to just turn things around.
If she couldn't minimize her clients' charges, she'd just shift the attention to hating the school and making them liable for giving unrealistic workloads to their students. This would surely earn the sympathy of students and parents.
Unfortunately, you and Ji-eun had read through this tactic, so you readied yourselves for a comeback.
"I studied a maximum of 18 hours a day, Mam Prosecutor, including eight schooling hours."
"So that means you spend 10 hours studying alone and taking special classes?"
"Yes, Mam." Falco did not know where Ji-eun was going with her questions, yet he answered them as truthfully as possible. He thought being sincere could help him win the people's hearts in court.
"You know what I find ironic?" Ji-eun quirked her brow. Disbelief was written all over her face as if this ordeal was absurd. "You study 18 hours a day because you are afraid to fail your classes, but are you telling me you can't spend a minute or two checking the condition of your car? If you're so scared of hJiming someone, then why did you use your car without checking it first? You claim to love studying, but how about studying your lessons during your driving schooling days? Did you forget everything just because you have your license now?"
"T-That's not it..." Falco trembled. Tears immediately welled up in his eyes. He looked at Annie, so the lawyer tried to object to Ji-eun's statement.
"Objection, Your Honor! Argumentative." Annie gritted her teeth. "Why are you badgering my client, Prosecutor Lee? Are you telling everyone in this honorable court that studying is not important? Why are you shaming my client for studying hard? Students are the future of our country! If there's something rotten here, isn't it the education system that gives unrealistic syllabus to students?"
"Objection, Your Honor!" Ji-eun fought back. The judge gave her the signal to speak. "Why are you holding other people accountable for your client's negligence? Shouldn't we also blame those driving schools if we follow your logic? The police officers? The honorable court and judges? This is not the first time someone has been charged with negligence. It happened before and is happening now. Are you telling me we should hold the people in public service accountable since the cycle keeps repeating?"
The people inside the court were scandalized by what Ji-eun said. You smirked as you watched things unfold. Things were going according to how you and Ji-eun pictured it.
The judge overruled Annie's objection. Attorney Leonhart couldn't lower the charges to manslaughter either. The court hearing was coming to an end, but before the closing remarks of both lawyers, the judge first allowed some people to take the stand.
You were one of those people with the privilege to say a few things, mainly addressed to the judge and the jury. You and Ji-eun talked about this. At first, it was to gain more sympathy, but as you take the stand, with Hanni sleeping soundly in your arms, you suddenly become vulnerable. You felt like you were back to being your teenage self—no sense of accomplishment and powerless to defend your loved ones.
You could only offer your heart.
"I stand here today not as a lawyer nor someone who will put justice in her own hands. Rather, I stand here as a friend and as a-a..." You trailed off when you heard your voice cracking.
Perhaps Ji-eun was right. You should have prepared a written speech for this moment. However, scheming was already part of your soul. You feared you'd end up writing a speech with malicious intent. You did not want that—not for Sora. Everything you would say today would come from the bottom of your heart.
"A guardian of a three-year-old child." You swallowed the lump in your throat while looking at Hanni with gentle eyes. You focused on the baby and nuzzled her nose with your pointer finger. Hanni cooed and smiled in her sleep. The jury watched silently, feeling their heartstrings being pulled.
"An average person in Japan lives until the ripe age of eighty, but my best friend Sora Kang and her husband were unfortunately robbed forty-eight years of their lives." Your lungs hurt. They felt like they were burning. You hated this. "Defendant Falco Grice and Gabi Braun stole those forty-eight years where Sora and Niccolo could have spent caring for their daughter—the same girl I have in my arms right now."
Hanni looked more obedient when asleep. No one could resist purring seeing her chubby cheeks and pouty lips. What more if they saw her ocean-blue eyes? You told Ji-eun you would not bring Hanni to the stand while awake. You refused to let her hear about the unfortunate things her parents went through.
"Sora and Niccolo won't see their daughter attend her first prom. They won't see her grow into a loving woman who's so innocent that she wants to save all the rabbits in this world." You looked at Gabi and Falco. "And why is that? The answer is in front of you. Falco Grice and Gabi Braun, claiming to be stressed because of school, aimed to relax through that thing they called throttle therapy, but because of that, two lives were lost. Their throttle therapy made them feel the cool air hit their faces, but what about Sora and Niccolo? Air was robbed of their lungs!" Your anger was palpable.
The jury's heart throbbed in pain.
"Falco and Gabi felt their hearts beat fast because of the excitement and adrenaline of overspeeding their car, but what about Sora and Niccolo? Their hearts were not beating fast—it's not beating at all."
Sometimes, you lay in tears in bed at night, wondering if your best friend and her husband died immediately—at least then, they wouldn't feel the agonizing thought of leaving their small child while feeling every bone in their body ache.
Your speech continued for a few more minutes before you ended with, "Attorney Leonhart said it herself: the youth is the hope of this country, so honorable jury, and judge, I implore you to think about your decisions carefully. A three-year-old in my arms could grow up with hope or a bad image of the world where injustice is fostered. In the end, the choice is yours."
Silence enveloped the courtroom. You went back beside Jungkook, who wrapped his arms around your shoulder and pulled you closer to him. Hanni was passed to Taehyung for a while. The poor boy needed someone to hold, too.
A while later, the decision was made. You, Jungkook, and the others listened in anticipation as the jury's foreperson announced the verdict.
Both Falco and Gabbi were found guilty of reckless imprudence, resulting in multiple homicides. As the driver, Falco got seven years in prison and was ordered to pay ten million won. Meanwhile, Gabi needed to serve two years in prison for influencing Falco and was ordered to pay five million won. Both their cases were nonbailable.
"So ordered!" Your squared shoulders slumped when you heard this, followed by the absolute sound of the gavel. Jungkook visibly relaxed beside you, too. He squeezed your shoulder once before rubbing it and kissing your temple.
It was a surreal moment. The warmth of his lips made your body soft. You leaned to him and buried your face to his chest. Jungkook caressed your hair, not minding at all that his suit was stained by your tears.
They were happy tears. Finally, justice was served.
***
The end of the month not only concluded Sora's case but also marked the end of Jungkook's suspension at work.
It was a relief, really. Jungkook staying at home might be helpful since you didn't have to hire a babysitter anymore, but goddamn, did it not make your life easier. In fact, it made you feel like you were living in hell.
Hell was said to be hot, which you felt precisely every morning. One thing you learned about Jungkook was that he couldn't go on his day without working out. Jungkook recently found the convenience of exercising at home, which turned out to be the start of your life in hell.
Every morning, he'd go to the house's garden to do some pull-ups, planks, squats, and other workout moves. There didn't seem to be any problem with this, right?
Wrong.
Jungkook's workout routine distracted you from working. Unfortunately, your temporary office was at the Kang' residence, too. You made the mistake of putting your table near the floor-length window where you'd have a clear view of the garden. Your intention in doing so was to calm your tense mind by looking at the greeneries. But instead, what you saw was Jungkook grunting; his lips puckered as sweat rolled down his body.
You willed yourself to ignore him, but your clients did not make doing so easy. Admittedly, most of your clients would space out during the consultation as they were busy salivating over Jungkook working out. Sometimes, you'd be forced to draw on the curtains, but this was proven inefficient since your office would be so dark that you couldn't read the files on your table.
Thankfully, the worst had come to an end. Jungkook's going back to work. Conversely, you did not open your office today, saving you the mouth-drying experience of seeing Jungkook exercise.
However, fate refused to be on your side while the heavens liked seeing your knees turn into jellies. You didn't see Jungkook during his workout session, but you saw him post-workout.
You had just woken up and were feeling a bit thirsty, so you went to the kitchen without regard to your appearance. Your hair was a mess, and gunk stuck in your eyes, causing you to rub it off.
You yawned while waiting for your water to boil. Unexpectedly, Jungkook emerged in front of you.
"Mornin." He flashed a lazy smile at you. His slightly out-of-breath tone from working out all morning snapped you out of your sleep-like trance.
"Damn it." You were almost burnt by the water. Jungkook's eyes widened, immediately pulling your hand away from the kettle.
"What's up, sleepyhead?" Jungkook teased before blowing hot air on your slightly red hands. "Water's overflowing. Did you forget how to use a kettle, hm?"
You had filled the kettle with water beyond the maximum point. Not to mention that you had also switched on the fire to the highest temperature.
You couldn't argue with Jungkook. This was indeed your fault. You were careless.
"Sorry," you tried to make your voice as flat as possible while subtly wriggling out of his grasp. Jungkook noticed your avoidance, so he let you go at once.
Right. He was all sweaty. Of course, you'd be disgusted by his touch. However, this was far from the truth. You were simply caught off guard by his presence and how he looked.
Jungkook was wearing a black compression shirt and baggy grey training pants. His usual silver wristwatch was replaced by a smartwatch.
He looked...hot. You couldn't deny this, and for some reason, your temples throbbed, giving you an illusion that someone's soft lips were caressing it.
Fuck.
You should definitely check your period tracker. You were probably ovulating a little earlier this month.
You weren't the only one having dilemmas with your body. Jungkook watched as you clumsily poured yourself water and drank it. You looked disoriented, and that shouldn't be a good sign. But oddly enough, Jungkook liked seeing you like this—your guard was not up, and you were uncaring about how you looked.
You're just being you.
Jungkook was unaware that his smartwatch had detected his heartbeat. It flashed red warning lights, indicating that his heartbeat was abnormally fast.
Jungkook cleared his throat. You looked at him.
"I'm going back to work today. Thanks for making breakfast for me these few weeks, but you don't have to anymore. Captain Yoongi always brings us food."
Jungkook was seriously grateful for your efforts. Besides, your food was very savory. Jungkook just didn't want to burden you further. You barely had time for yourself since you were busy attending to Hanni and your work.
Frankly, Jungkook did not expect you to be this caring. He guessed he had this notion of you pouring your efforts just for money and power. He was not proud of this, alright?
"Oh," you blinked, "But I've already prepared your breakfast last night." You made some veggie-packed breakfast sandwiches and overnight oats. Actually, you asked Jungkook's mother for some breakfast recipes. She gladly talked to you over the phone but said she'd love to see you in person, too. The Jeon residence had a huge garden where you could pick up fruits and vegetables. That would be fun.
"I'm not going to cook tonight, though. Taehyung invited us to dinner." Your friend made a reservation in a fancy restaurant to mark the win of Sora and Niccolo's case. Taehyung wanted to thank everyone, especially you and Ji-eun, for pushing through.
"Oh, right. It's tonight." Jungkook asked how the three of you would go to the restaurant. You told him you had business near the police station later, so you could drop by there. Afterward, you and Jungkook could pick up Hanni from the daycare before driving to the restaurant.
Jungkook agreed with your plan. After that, your day had been pretty much the same. Thankfully, your client for today was easy to talk to and just agreed to whatever you suggested. He said you were the expert, not him. As a result, your meeting with the client ended thirty minutes earlier. You thought it was a waste to drive back home, so you just went to the police station to hang out.
Everyone was having a feast. Apparently, a good citizen brought food for the police officers as a 'thank you' for saving her life. It was a woman in her early thirties. You heard people calling her Pieck. She had a soft smile on her lips as she urged the officers to eat.
Jungkook saw you the moment you stepped foot inside the station. Unfortunately, he couldn't attend to you as he was the star of this joyous event. You simply waved at him and mouthed, "I can wait."
Jungkook smiled and nodded before turning his attention to Pieck and his comrades.
You watched them for a while, feeling your chest wJiming at the thought of people praising Jungkook. He deserved it. You hadn't met anyone aside from Jongsuk Lee, who was as passionate about freeing people from the hands of criminals.
Your soft heart even turned softer when an older woman stood beside you and told you to eat some food. She introduced herself as the mother of Pieck Finger.
"Lieutenant Jeon is indeed a hero," You couldn't say no when Mrs. Finger shoved desserts in your hands. You ate them. "You know him, don't you? He saved my Pieck from a group of drunkards trying to assault her."
The incident happened just a few days before Sora's accident. Pieck didn't have the opportunity to express her gratitude to Jungkook because the first time they went to visit the police station, Pieck's parents overwhelmed Jungkook with the intention of marrying off their daughter to him.
Pieck's parents wanted Jungkook to be their son-in-law, someone who wasn't armed but wouldn't hesitate to fight a group of evil men. Mrs. Finger told you that Jungkook was in a bar that night. He was off-duty, so he didn't bother bringing his gun. Jungkook just used beer bottles to smash the heads of the pricks who dared lay a hand on Pieck.
Sadly, Pieck didn't get away unscathed. The men had broken her leg even before Jungkook came to save her. Actually, Pieck was wearing a leg cast until now. She still had a week to go before completely removing it.
Pieck had a hard time standing and walking. Jungkook wasn't heartless to watch her struggle, so he held her shoulders and guided her while handing food to the officers.
You and Mrs. Finger watched them. The latter snuck a glance at you, her lips curving into a smirk.
"Don't you think Lieutenant Jeon and my daughter look good together?"
Oh?
You didn't switch your gaze at the old woman and instead remained watching Jungkook and Pieck. You tried to picture them together, but you just couldn't do so.
"I don't think so," you replied to Mrs. Finger truthfully. She scoffed and furrowed her brows. She looked like she aged 10 more years after hearing your blatant disrespect.
You shrugged off your shoulders and casually showed her your right hand adorned with an engagement ring. "I think Lieutenant Jeon and I look better together."
If you thought Mrs. Finger would backtrack her statement just because you and Jungkook were 'engaged,' then you were wrong.
She eyed you from head to toe before looking at her precious daughter. You were nothingcompared to Pieck.
"My daughter is a teacher." Mrs. Finger crossed her arms, "She knows how to take care of a small child, so it won't be hard for her to be the perfect wife for Lieutenant Jeon. Unlike you..." She looked at the way you dressed. Too classy. You seemed high-maintenance. It would be a waste if Jungkook used his salary coming from the people's taxes to support you.
"You're still a woman, so I think you won't have a hard time looking for a husband, but you and Lieutenant Jeon don't match. Just Look at him..." Mrs. Finger urged you to look at Jungkook and Pieck. "Look at the way he treats my daughter. He thinks she's a delicate flower."
Her description made you cackle. You couldn't help it. This old woman was both funny and pathetic.
"Genuine question: do you think Jungkook 'perfectly' matches your daughter just because he treats her like a human being?"
Your concerned face didn't look fake. But instead of finding it endearing, Mrs. Finger thought you were mocking her.
"And what do you mean by that?" Mrs. Finger got all defensive.
You heaved a sigh, "I just think it's sad that you are forcing an already committed man to your gorgeous daughter." You were telling the truth. Pieck was a catch. "And you're doing all this just because he treats her kindly. It makes me wonder what kind of men you and your daughter surround yourselves with—seeing that you become all desperate for the bare minimum."
"You—!!" Mrs. Finger was speechless. Her face was red because of humiliation.
You were not trying to embarrass her, though. You pitied her. Admittedly, if what you and Jungkook had was real, you didn't think you'd be jealous of how he treated Pieck. You were actually going to question his behavior if he wasn't treating her like this.
You didn't want to date a man who was only good to you.
"You said your daughter is a teacher, right? I hope she doesn't teach kids that something normal must be rewarded with God-like treatment. Because if that's the case, your standards in people, especially men, are on the floor."
Mrs. Finger was about to say something, but she saw Jungkook jogging in your direction.
"Hey," Jungkook greeted you, a sweet smile was plastered on his lips. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Are you ready to go?"
"Mn. Mrs. Finger and I were just idly chatting,"
Jungkook was so focused on you that he didn't notice the old woman beside you. He bowed at her, thanking her for helping Pieck cook the food for today.
"But you barely ate, Lieutenant." Mrs. Finger subtly complained. Her brows were knitted together. She hadn't calmed down from her rage yet. She wished she could pull your hair for being too arrogant.
"Ah, sorry," Jungkook smiled sheepishly. "I've eaten a lot earlier at lunch. My fiancée packed me a bento box. You've met her, right?"
Jungkook introduced you and Mrs. Finger more formally this time. The old man was forced to shake your hands before bidding you goodbye.
"We have to go. We'll see you later, Mrs. Finger." Jungkook's hand snaked above your waist but below your breast. This hold was way more intimate than handholding or grabbing someone's shoulder to help them walk.
Mrs. Finger gritted her teeth and glared, resenting you for naturally getting this treatment from Jungkook.
You just smirked at her and walked away.
"By the way, shithead," you called Jungkook when you two were out of the station.
"What?" Jungkook was carried away from pretending. He'd been bragging about you to his comrades and Pieck all afternoon.
"I didn't make your bento for lunch. I just bought it." You did not have time to cook it yourself.
Jungkook stopped walking. You thought he'd mock you, but he shrugged nonchalantly and said, "Doesn't matter. You still thought of me when you bought it."
Now, it was your turn to be stunned. You furrowed your brow at Jungkook, wanting to ask what he meant, but were afraid of hearing the answer.
Like usual, you let it go, refusing to hear it from him.
There was another chance for the truth—just not today.
***
Dinner with Taehyung and the others went well. You continued pretending to have a romantic relationship with Jungkook in front of them. Admittedly, telling them and acting weren't that difficult. You still remember how they reacted when you told them about you and Jungkook a month ago.
The conversation with Yoongi and Namjoon went like this:
"Chief, Captain, I am getting married with her." Jungkook intertwined your fingers together. You'd like to think you were a good actress, so you did not understand why the news did not shock the two men.
Namjoon merely raised his brow and said, "Is this your way of asking us to sponsor your wedding?" The chief thought it would be possible. Jungkook was one of his own. He and Yoongi started saving money for their boys when Jongsuk got married.
"No, no. I mean..." Jungkook scratched the back of his head. His plan didn't go as far as asking his bosses to sponsor his fake wedding. "I just wanna tell you that I'm engaged. You know, just in case someone asks you. We've been together for a while now."
"We know." Namjoon was confused. He looked at Yoongi, who was busy drinking tea. The captain didn't look bothered. "Yoongi, didn’t you tell me before that these two are dating?"
"Huh?" You and Jungkook were perplexed. Did Yoongi come from an alternate universe? Or did he hit his head? Because there was no way either you or Jungkook told Yoongi you were dating.
"Aren't you brats dating since you were 10 years old? The other kids complained about you two flirting during missions." Yoongi said in a flat tone.
You and Jungkook looked at each other. With tacit understanding, you decided not to refute the captain's belief. After all, the sole purpose of this conversation was to make them believe you and Jungkook had a thing. Oh well.
The second person you and Jungkook talked to was Ji-eun. Unlike Yoongi and Namjoon, prosecutor Lee was not easy to fool.
"You're pretending to be dating to get Hanni under your custody, right?" Not just that. She even exposed your lies. As expected of a great lawyer.
You looked at Ji-eun proudly, "So...? Can we trust you to keep this to yourself?"
"Of course." Ji-eun did not hesitate. "You have the attorney-client privilege."
With that, your conversation with Ji-eun ended. You also asked her to relay the news to Jongsuk and Jimin to save time. You and Jungkook were conserving your energy because you thought explaining your situation to Taehyung would be difficult.
Taehyung, your dumbass of a friend.
To your surprise, you didn't have to waste your brain cells trying to make sense of the setup you had with Jungkook. All Taehyung needed to hear was the word marry and he was already pulling you and Jungkook to Sora's grave.
You asked Taehyung why.
"Are you kidding? I owe Sora 3,000 won now. We've made a bet before. She told me you and Jungkook would be engaged in your early thirties. I guess it's my fault for thinking you're gonna drag it until you're in your forties. But you can't blame a guy, can you? You're both stubborn."
With the lies perfectly set, pretending came easy. No one batted an eye with how 'lovey-dovey' you and Jungkook were. The dinner was fun, though the children made it a little chaotic. You did not mind since you were learning to live in the presence of screaming children. Honestly, you admired Ji-eun for keeping a straight face while her kids go crazy. She was pretty chill. Jongsuk was the one tasked to calm the kids.
Speaking of kids, you were worried after talking to Hanni's teacher. She said the daycare had arranged a family trip for their students. You and Jungkook had to accompany Hanni to this event. From what you heard, the parents and their kids needed matching costumes. There would be games that would teach the little ones the importance of family values.
Fortunately, the event fell on the weekend, so you and Jungkook did not have to worry about work. These past weeks, you were learning to take things slow and enjoy life's little moments. You had to remind yourself that you were not running out of time. You did not have to constantly take on many cases to prove to everyone that you were a good lawyer.
"Don't stress yourself too much with our costume, okay? I already have it figured out." Jungkook assured you one evening. The trip was tomorrow. How could you not overthink? You still hadn't seen the costume in person.
"Would you just tell me what you bought for us? I don't trust you."
"Why not?" Jungkook was sulking. "I've thought about it carefully."
"You don't know my size, dumbass." You were going to kill him if he bought something inappropriate or too small for you.
Jungkook's lips curved up. He looked at you from head to toe and said, "Nah. I got it right."
Your knee-jerk reaction was to cover your chest. Jungkook scoffed and told you he was not a pervert.
You didn't care about what he said, especially when the day of the trip finally came. Hanni's teacher came bearing bad news. You thought you had lost your mind when she told you that you, Jungkook, and Hanni were staying in the same room and bed.
This setup was supposed to make the children feel closer to their parents. After all, not everyone had the luxury of spending time with their kids—daycare was even established because the parents were too busy to look after their children.
Hanni was delighted to be spending the night with you and Jungkook. Unfortunately, she recognized the deep frown on your face. She knew you were not happy about this.
"Terni, don't you want to sleep with me and Jungkook-boy?" Hanni's mood plummeted, making your heart drop. You didn't want to hurt her feelings.
"Of course not, sweetheart. It’s just that..." You tongued the inside of your cheek, not knowing what to say. "Jungkook-boy and I can't sleep in the same bed."
"Why not?" Hanni folded her little arms across her chest. You did not speak, so she turned to Jungkook. Sadly, Jungkook wasn't sure what to say either. He was as surprised as you were. He just scratched the back of his neck—this was one of his bad habits every time he was lost.
You sighed, knowing you had to explain things yourself.
"Because Jungkook-boy and I aren't like your mummy and daddy."
"You're not!?" Hanni was shocked. She wrinkled her forehead. "But you said you'll take care of me for a hundred years! Isn't that the job of a mummy and daddy?"
You were running out of excuses. Besides, you couldn't tell Hanni the whole thing. Frieda and Kiyomi were not yet done with their deliberations. You couldn't expose yourselves early on.
"I'll just sleep on the floor," Jungkook said sheepishly. Frankly speaking, he was embarrassed. He was the one who attended the meeting regarding this trip. Jungkook knew you two would stay in the same room, but in his defense, he thought there were two separate beds. Jungkook would disagree if he had known there was only one bed. He would not take advantage of you like that. He wouldn't do anything that would make you feel uncomfortable, either.
"Or I'll just book another room. Don't worry about it." Jungkook stood up and gathered his things. He was halfway through the door when you stopped him.
"You can stay," you swallowed thickly. Jungkook's eyes lit up, but he still did not know what to say. "No need to book another room. The teacher and the other parents might get the wrong idea. We can't show them we're not happy we're staying together."
"Then I'll just sleep on the floor." Jungkook offered genuinely. He wasn't trying to sound like a sad boy, yet that was the vibe Hanni got from him.
Hanni's little shoulders sagged, "But Jungkook-boy, the floor will hurt your back!" For a three-year-old, Hanni sure knew a lot. You guessed this happened when your mom was Sora Kang—the girl who loved potatoes so much but was willing to break them in half and give them to a random stranger with a growling stomach.
"We can sleep in the same bed, alright?" You rolled your eyes to hide your nervousness, "This sounds awful, but Hanni will 'sort of' be our divider. She sleeps in the middle. I will kick your ass if you snore."
Jungkook nodded his head obediently. He was happy he wouldn't have to deal with a stiff neck and a sore back.
"And shower first! I don't like stinky men in my bed!"
Jungkook and Hanni followed your instructions before getting into bed. Both of them realized how much of a clean freak you were. However, you still find sleeping hard despite adhering to all pre-sleeping routines.
You glanced at the wall clock. It was past one in the morning already. Jungkook and Hanni were sound asleep beside you.
You don't usually find it difficult to sleep in a new place. In fact, you were used to it since your job required you to meet your clients all over Japan. The hotel room the daycare had booked for tonight was pretty decent, too.
The air conditioner worked well, and the duvet was clean and soft.
Damn it. You slightly tossed and turned, desperately looking for the perfect sleeping position. In the end, nothing worked.
It was quarter to three in the morning. You released a defeated sigh, resigning to insomnia, and were just about to play with your phone when Jungkook suddenly spoke.
"Can't sleep?"
Goosebumps pricked at your skin because of how raspy his voice was. You turned to face him, about to apologize because you thought you'd accidentally woken him up by tossing and turning. However, you were shocked when he handed you the only pillow he was using.
"What's this?" You asked dumbly.
Jungkook rolled his eyes lazily. "Oh, come on. You know it's a pillow. Just accept it, alright? We both know you can't fall asleep with just one pillow."
Oh.
He remembered that?
Jungkook seemed to have read your mind. He breathed out and pillowed his arm. His gaze was on the white ceiling as if reminiscing.
"I can't forget even if I want to. All my memories of our camping days with Captain Yoongi are just you complaining that you can't sleep."
So that was it. Captain Yoongi used to arrange many camping trips before. He did not separate the sleeping quarters of girls and boys. He always said, "Accidents and disasters can happen anytime. You can't choose who you're with when that happens, so learn to suck it up and deal with the situation with both your friends and enemies."
What Captain Yoongi said made sense. Jungkook learned how to be more patient as he spent the camping days calming himself despite your whiny ass.
"Hey, he made us sleep with a single pillow, okay? My neck hurts." You accepted Jungkook's pillow and tried to lower your voice so as not to wake Hanni. The kid knew how to throw a fit when disturbed. "Thanks."
Jungkook hummed and closed his eyes. You looked at his sleeping figure, feeling your heart flutter. Jungkook had long lashes. From your angle, you could also see his Adam's apple bobbing and his broad chest heaving. You suddenly wondered what laying your head against his chest would be like. Was it warm? Did his heart beat slowly? Or fast? Would it calm you down? Would its sound finally make you doze off?
There were so many questions swimming in your head. Unfortunately, you still couldn't sleep despite exhausting your mind. You tried clamping your eyes tighter, but it was useless.
You didn't remember drinking coffee earlier. What about milk? Should you try downing a glass of milk to help you sleep? Perhaps counting sheep would help. Or maybe you were just craving physical touch.
Right.
Your eyelashes fluttered when you suddenly felt Jungkook wrapping his hand around your thumb. He started stroking your fingers.
Your breath caught in your throat—
"Sleep." He whispered gently, "You are safe here."
—And then your breathing evened as he continued caressing your finger. His actions and words seemed to be the potion your mind was looking for because you really did fall asleep a few minutes later.
The following day, you were awakened by the alarm and a little monkey climbing your leg.
"Terni, wake up!" The monkey was shaking your leg and hips. "Please! Please wake up! It's family day today!"
"No. I wanna sleep!" You cried begrudgingly. Why must a little monkey and an annoying alarm disturb your sleep?
Have they no conscience? This was your first time sleeping peacefully, so you tried kicking the monkey at your feet and hugged your pillow tighter.
This pillow was pretty good. It was warm and sturdy. It even smelled like fresh air and a bit loamy.
Good. You thought you could stay in this position forever as you rubbed your cheek in the pillow.
"I'm starting to think you're not actually sleeping and are just taking advantage of me." The pillow talked, forcing you to stop pinching the pillow and open your eyes.
The world seemed to stop when you were met with Jungkook's lukewarm gaze.
"Is your pillow soft and warm, Empress?" Jungkook quirked a brow, his lips curving into a teasing smile.
You gasped. All this time, you were pinching and caressing Jungkook's biceps, not a pillow! Your head was comfortably leaning on his chest, too.
Scandalous! This was all too scandalous! How dare you wrap your legs around his hipbone. And Hanni! Hanni was still latching on your leg while playing with the hem of your nightdress.
To make things worse, Jungkook chuckled lowly in your red ear and said, "Who's the pervert now?"
No!!!!!! This was your last straw. You pulled Hanni away from your leg and immediately got up from the bed to sprint and lock yourself in the bathroom.
Damn it. This day was not how your morning should've started!
***
You did not have a crush on Jungkook— this was what you kept telling yourself while stuck in the bathroom.
It did not matter that all you could think about was him as you bathed. Or how you couldn't stop seeing the image of him standing behind you to gather your hair in one place so you could brush your teeth better.
You ignored the fluttering of your heart as you thought about how good he had been to you the past weeks, of how attentive he was to your needs. You thought it wasn't a big deal how he gave you the only pillow he had for the night, or how he held you in the police station, or how he decorated the house with daisies every day—yes. Jungkook's madness with flowers never stopped ever since Kiyomi and Frieda's visit. He also habitually checked the mailbox first thing in the morning. You pretended not to understand why, but you knew he was checking if baby breaths were on the doorstep.
There were also times when you went home late because of work. Jungkook would then stand outside the Kang' residence, pretending to enjoy the night stars, but he was just waiting for you to come home.
You brushed off how much you appreciated his jokes, how he distracted you from the pain of losing your best friend, and how he took care of Hanni when he saw you were overwhelmed with everything. Nothing mattered to you because you were not in love—you didn't have a crush on Jungkook.
'Keep telling yourself that,' The voice inside your head betrayed you, yet you stood your ground and ignored the seed of feelings that had long since bloomed into colorful flora.
You were annoyed during the family trip. Not only were you being pestered by your damn feelings, but you were also tormented by how ridiculous you looked.
"Terni, come on. We're late!" Hanni banged her little fists on the hotel room's door. She and Jungkook had been waiting for you to come out for quite some time now.
"Go on without me! I'm not going out there!" You hissed, itching to remove your pink gloves.
"Oh, come on." You heard Jungkook's voice. He also banged the door. "The ceremony is about to start. Let's just go, please?"
You did not open the door as an acquiesce to Jungkook's soft plea. You only showed yourself to them so you could hit Jungkook in the face.
"This is your fault!"
Jungkook let you hit him. He simply chuckled at how cute you looked.
"What are you sulking for? It's not so bad!" Jungkook playfully pulled at your fake whiskers.
You hit him again. "What do you mean it's not so bad! I look stupid!"
Jungkook really exceeded your worst expectations. Who would have thought he'd buy matching rabbit costumes for the three of you? You swore to kill him if he bought something inappropriate, but honestly, you felt a slutty rabbit costume would be better than the rabbit onesie he chose. To make it worse, Jungkook purchased the pink one for you. He had the blue one, while Hanni wore a pastel purple—it was obviously the result of combining the colors pink and blue.
Now, the three of you looked like a happy family. It would have been fine if Jungkook chose a royal or superhero costume. But a rabbit? Seriously?
“Those are overrated,” Jungkook told you this when you complained about not having a Wonder Woman costume. Truthfully, you had seen two families near your hotel room wearing DC superhero costumes.
“Let’s take a picture together. I’ll send it to Kiyomi and Frieda.” Jungkook carried Hanni into his arms and pulled you closer to him. He brought out a camera and took a photo of the three of you.
You couldn’t complain after that since the two dragged you out to participate in today’s activities. Soon enough, your embarrassment did not matter as your competitive side resurfaced to shit on everyone.
It started off fun. Some parents and kids praised you and Jungkook for taking the games seriously. But things started going downhill during the segment called Family Trivia. Your family was leading by ten points, which didn’t hinder you from scoring more.
Old habits indeed died hard. You felt like you were in school again, feeling the thrill of answering rounds of questions. You lost your mind whenever another team answered the question first.
“The word family is derived from the word famulus!”
Hanni’s teacher was about to give the other family a point for scoring, but you pressed the buzzer to complain. The teacher looked at you in defeat, wanting to ignore you but couldn’t.
“Her answer is incomplete!” You argued. You were quite embarrassing, really. You reviewed the questions and games the teacher gave each family more than thrice. This was where you focused your energy; that was why you couldn’t check the trip itinerary and didn’t see you and Jungkook were sharing one bed.
“The word famulus is Latin. It means servant. Say, teacher, give us the point, not to them!”
The teacher looked apologetically at the family that was robbed of point. She couldn’t argue with you since the rules said the answers must be complete.
The other families stared at you contemptuously, but you didn’t mind since Hanni and Jungkook were cheering you on. Jungkook had also never grown out of his competitive phase. His heart swelled with pride as he raised his hand to give you a high-five.
The participants for the next game were the father and his child. Hanni would help Jungkook build a tent. It took the other families twenty minutes to set up their tents, but Jungkook and Hanni did it in less than 10 minutes—this was kudos to Jungkook’s training at the police academy and years of practice doing it during your camping days with Captain Yoongi.
None of the families wanted to talk to you by the end of the games. They thought you ruined the fun for their children. Some kids even scoffed at Hanni, leaving your poor goddaughter crying.
Your heart ached to see Hanni sad. You couldn’t help but blame yourself for taking things this far. It was your competitiveness that ruined Hanni’s reputation at the daycare. Needless to say, Jungkook rubbed yours and Hanni’s back, telling the two of you that you’d win back their hearts before the night's end.
However, you didn’t seem to have a chance to do that when rain suddenly started pouring. You were currently at the top of the mountain. The hike down wasn’t too far, but the ground would be slippery. It was already getting dark. The plan was to sleep in the tent the fathers and children set up earlier, but that didn’t seem viable now.
“We’d like to apologize for this unforeseen event.” Hanni’s teacher was apologetic. It was their mistake for not checking the weather forecast more clearly. “Let’s just wait for the rain to stop; then, we can all hike and sleep in the hotel instead. Don’t worry. The daycare will shoulder all expenses.”
The teacher’s statement did not pacify the parents, as their children started whining and throwing a fit because of the lightning and thunder. Hanni was the only well-behaved child—kudos to Jungkook for sitting with Hanni back at home and educating her about navigating rainy days.
“It’s okay, Jungkook-boy. I’m not scared.” Hanni assured Jungkook. Your heart recoiled with joy seeing them like this. The feelings you had been hiding since morning threatened to resurface again. This time, you were utterly defenseless and were left with no choice but to step back and let the arrow pierce your delicate heart.
Jungkook was a good guardian—a better father than most men you knew. Any woman would be lucky to have him father her children.
You looked around. Most fathers did not know what to do when faced with their crying child. Some tried to subtly scold the little kids for acting up. The others did not bother to hide that they were pinching the kid’s arms to get them to calm down. The mothers were feeling distressed, too.
You abruptly stood up. Hanni was sitting on Jungkook’s lap. Both of them met your gaze and asked where you were going.
“I’ll talk to the teacher. Just give me a minute.” You did not wait for their response and just headed in front. The teacher was having a hard time calming down the kids. You signaled that you wanted to talk, so she nodded and found a quiet place for you to converse.
Several seconds later, you stood before the parents and the students while holding a guitar. Hanni’s teacher borrowed this instrument from one of the families cosplaying as a family of performers.
“Hello, everyone ~” you greeted them. Only a few spared you a glance as they were still busy pacifying their crying kids. You proceeded with your mini-speech and told them you’d be singing a song.
“Kids, you need to listen to the song, alright? Don’t think about the thunder. Just focus on the melody." Then you strummed the guitar strings. Along with it was the light tugging of your heartstrings. Music, particularly singing, was your passion. It was your escape whenever things started getting overwhelming.
Soon enough, the thunder was overpowered by your singing voice. Call it a miracle or just pure talent, but your melodious voice caused peace to seep through everyone’s heart.
You were singing You’ll Be In My Heart by Phil Collins. You were both excellent singers, but something in your voice made you stand out more. Perhaps it was because of how painfully raw your voice was—when you sang, you didn’t just sing with your mouth. You sang with your heart.
You created your own version of the original song that no one could recreate, not even the most prominent voice impersonator. Your voice was like kisses and candles and warm hugs. You were like the last bit of sunlight before the raging storm. And when the storm was over, you were the rainbow—the colorful hues that told people there was hope.
The children stopped crying. Jungkook was the first to stand up and clap his hands like his life depended on it. The other followed suit; whistles and laughter echoed the place.
A little while later, the rain finally stopped, and Jungkook’s claim turned out to be correct:
You’d won the people’s hearts before the night ended.
***
The path going down the mountain would take ten minutes or so. It was also a straight and smooth trail, so the kids wouldn't find walking difficult. However, the adults didn't have the heart to let these three-year-old children walk. Luckily, there were mountain wagons they could ride.
Hanni was hanging out with her friends again. Your singing voice really warmed them up. They thought Hanni was pretty cool for having a guardian whose voice was as good as Elsa from Frozen and other Disney princesses.
"Does this mean you're demoted to being just a princess, Empress?" Jungkook teased you on the way back to the hotel. You two were walking beside each other.
The teacher, parents, and other officials guided all the kids in the wagon. Jungkook decided to walk at the back of the group, his police lieutenant personality kicking in. He wanted to make sure no one was left behind.
You figured you'd just accompany him as you didn't want to converse with other parents. Besides, they were busy looking after the wagons.
"Shut up, you lowly subject. This empress felt happy, so I thought, why not appease my people?" You shot back at Jungkook. He laughed at your poor attempt to talk like a royalty. It was funny, considering you were still in your rabbit costume.
Jungkook encircled his hands on your waist and pulled you near him, ensuring you didn't hit any trees. He hummed, "I haven't heard you sing in years."
Of course, he had not. Law school and your life in general fucked you up so badly. You had experienced failure after failure to the point that you questioned yourself—starting from the things that defined you to the things you loved and hated.
You wondered if you would ever amount to more. Failures took such a great toll on you that even the thing you loved the most didn't feel fulfilling anymore. There was a point in your life where you thought you didn't have the right to make music—that it should be reserved for people who were good at it and not someone like you who just loved it.
"That's cause I haven't sung in years." You admitted.
Jungkook cast his gaze on the ground. His heart was uneasy, wanting to ask you a question, but he wasn't sure if he had the right to.
"Last time I sang was when I was with you."
Your voice was barely above a whisper, yet Jungkook still heard it. He paused. Then he looked at you intently.
You weren't lying. Years ago, you were passionate about music. You even composed your own songs. Sora and Taehyung used to listen to your work all the time, but those two were easily distracted and would just tell you, "It's good." Of course, you still appreciated it.
However, you seemed to be looking for something more. You thought of Jungkook at that time. He was down and feeling edgy the past weeks. It was because his mother got into an accident and ended up needing leg surgery.
Jungkook barely ate, worrying about his mother to the point of insanity. You couldn't take it anymore, so you once went to him with a guitar.
"I'm not in the mood to fight with you," Jungkook warned. There were no biting remarks in his tone, just pure exhaustion. The fire in his eyes was extinguished, too.
You rolled your eyes and sighed.
"I'm not here to fight. I just need you to listen to me sing."
"Huh?" Jungkook flinched. He was clearly perplexed about what you said. Did you seriously want to sing in front of him? Were you sick? You never liked to sing whenever Jungkook was around. You said he ruined your mood, so what changed now?
"It's just that..." You trailed off and copied his habit of scratching the back of his neck. It was a good thing you could immediately think of an excuse, "You're my rival. Rivals talk shit a lot about each other, right? I'm joining a singing competition soon. I want you to hear it first, and then you can criticize me all you want. I need to hear them."
Jungkook was not convinced, but he let you be. After all, it was easier to listen to your angelic voice rather than fight you.
You sang your own composition. It was not a love or a heartbreak song. Jungkook sat there dazed, wondering why his heart unexpectedly felt light as you sang words of encouragement—it was as if you were telling him that the huge storm would pass, and all that would be left was a mother's loving embrace.
Jungkook felt tears filling his eyes. He blinked and wiped them before you could see.
"How was it?" You put down your guitar. A gracious smile was plastered on your lips.
It's stupid. I hate it. Don't sing again. These were the words Jungkook wanted to say because these were what you were expecting. But Jungkook was not a liar and was always vocal about his feelings. The first time he met Ji-eun, he did not hesitate to tell her she had pretty hair.
"Thank you," Jungkook ended up telling you. His voice was unbelievably soft that your heart couldn't help but melt. "It was beautiful." You were beautiful.
It sure was. Jungkook did not know what else to say, but it was okay. Later that day and the following days, Jungkook was back to his old self.
He could eat and smile again.
He then asked about the singing competition, but you shrugged and said, "Nah. I don't want to join anymore."
Only a few years later did Jungkook realize that there was no singing competition in the first place.
Jungkook's eyes drooped. You were already in Seoul when he found out about it. Sometimes, he entertained the idea of confronting you about it. Now seemed like the perfect opportunity to do it, but Jungkook just caught your wrist instead of asking you about it.
"Hm?" You stared at him innocently. He stopped walking, and so did you.
"Would you..." Jungkook swallowed hard and licked his lower lip. He felt his heart stuttering.
Your eyes were glistening despite the lack of a moon in the sky.
"Would you...sing a song for me again?"
There was a pregnant pause in the air. You blinked at Jungkook, and for a moment, Jungkook thought you would say no. But then you gently cleared your throat and nodded.
"Let's walk." You pulled him and started descending the mountain. You two were keeping a good distance from the group of people. From here, you could see Hanni laughing heartily with her classmates.
The wind blew, hugging you and Jungkook with its coldness.
"All I knew this morning when I woke, is I know something now, know something now I didn't before~"
When Jungkook asked you to sing, your mind instantly went into autopilot and sang whatever your heart told you.
Everything Has Changed—the song title was exactly what you felt for Jungkook. Wasn't it funny? You went to Busan for your dead best friend.
Sometimes, you felt guilty you were not mourning her enough—that Sora was dead, but your treacherous heart was beating like it never did before.
There was death, but there was also rebirth—the blooming of something you thought you buried for good and left with not even a trace of sunlight.
Daylight had come.
It went in the shade of all right and tall guy with gentle eyes.
Jungkook smiled softly at you. He did not react until you finished singing.
You were almost down the mountain. The kids and the others were already at the foot. It was just you and Jungkook here.
"How's my singing, Your Majesty the Emperor?" You intended to go for a light teasing, but something in Jungkook snapped when you called him emperor.
You were the empress, weren't you?
No words were exchanged. Jungkook put his hand on the small of your back, drawing you in.
Jungkook had kissed other people before. Whenever he did, he always held their cheeks before diving in. But with you, it was different.
He first stroked your head before his right hand gently held the back of your head; his other hand was still in the small of your back.
Jungkook stared deep into your eyes. It was as if he wanted to touch your soul with how intense yet languid he looked at you.
He seemed to want to memorize every part of your face—afraid you'd vanish if he so much as blinked.
But looking was not enough. He wanted a taste, too.
Jungkook wetted his lips, leaning in. Then, very slowly, he inched closer to you as if giving you time to push him away.
You did not.
But Jungkook was still so afraid. His eyelashes quivered before he dipped his head and gave you a soft peck on the lips.
There were no fireworks or grand and flowery words people read in novels.
The kiss was just it—a kiss.
There were no intense feelings, but there was Jungkook and his soft eyes and open heart.
There were no fireworks, but there was the sound of inserting the key in the door lock, then came the twisting of the knob before the door opened.
There was no rollercoaster kind of feeling in that one kiss. Because the only thing here was home.
Kissing Jungkook felt like coming home.
PART 2
likes and comments are highly appreciated 🙏 it motivates me to write more 😉💙
Y/N of this fic patterned to my IRL best friend. i love her so much pls listen to her cover of You'll Be in My Heart as this is how I imagined Y/N singing the song.
#jungkook fic#bts jeon jeongguk#jungkook fluff#jungkook angst#jungkook x reader#jungkook e2l#jungkook enemies to lovers#jungkook bts#jungkook fanfic#boyfriend jungkook#daddy jungkook#jungkook x female reader#jungkook x oc#jungkook x y/n#jungkook x yn#jungkook x original character#jungkook roommate au
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𝚂𝚎𝚛𝚘 𝙷𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚊 - 𝙽𝚊ï𝚟𝚎𝚝é|𝚄𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙸𝚗𝚏𝚕𝚞𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎
𝕎𝕀𝕊ℙ𝕊𝕀𝕄ℙ𝕊
— — —
ft Weed, vaginal fingering, Sero speaking Spanish, hints of Bi Mina and her thirsting over you, allusions to possible future gangbang
𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐫: I do not own BNHA or its characters, all credit goes to its creators and actors
WC: 2,306
𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆: includes usage of weed/marijuana, Google Translate Spanish, use of Y/n, 3rd Person POV
𝔐𝔦𝔫𝔦 𝔑𝔬𝔱𝔢: I’ll use this when the explicit mention is over(tho there will be small references after that point) ✯ ✯ ✯; The reader is described to have a cat(-like) quirk
【Ｍａｓｔｅｒｌｉｓｔ】
— — —
Hanta breathes out the smoke and drags his fingertips down her arm as she cuddles into his side. She flicks her tail in contentment.
“Here, baby,” He smiles lazily as he holds the pipe to her lips. Humming lowly, she happily breathes in and holds it in her lungs for a moment before breathing out, feeling all the tension leave her body.
“This is fun, Hanta.” She grins up at her boyfriend.
“Damn right, you’re one of the best smoking partners I’ve had in a while, gatita,” he chuckles, leaning down to press a kiss to her forehead.
“Hey!” Denki cries indignantly, “I thought I was your favorite smoking partner!” He leans back against the couch and over-exaggeratedly pouts, even huffing loudly as he makes a big motion of crossing his arms.
“Denki!” Hanta laughs out, trying to calm his giggle fit before he speaks again, “You are an excellent smoking partner, I promise, hermano,” he says through the tail end of his giggles, “but I can’t exactly shotgun you, now can I? Nor can I have you up against me like this,” He emphasizes by curling his arm around Y/n’s waist and kissing her lips.
“I mean-” Denki throws his arms up like he’s stating the most obvious fact in the world “-you could!” His exclamation makes all parties present burst out laughing, even Denki himself.
“Denki, bro, if you wanna cuddle up to someone, I’m always free!” Eiji calls out to his “kind-of-boyfriend” and holds his arm open to beckon the blonde into his side.
“See?! Ei loves me!” The electric blonde calls out dramatically as he climbs into Eiji’s hold. Everyone chuckles again at his dramatics and mostly return to the conversation.
“Sure do, babe,” the redhead chuckles and takes a hit before shotgunning Denki. He earns a pleased giggle once the smaller boy exhales. Hitoshi leans his head away from Eiji’s shoulder to chuckle at the boy before plopping his head back down on his boyfriend’s shoulder.
“Ay Dios mío,” Hanta fondly rolls his eyes with a laugh at his mejor amigo. “A very dramatic gilipollas.” He jokes, fake whispering as if a secret to his pretty kitty, earning another indignant noise from the electric blonde and a giggle from his favorite girl. Denki didn’t understand what his friend just said but he can guess that it was something that garners his noise of offense.
Mina has Katsuki’s head in her lap as she combs her manicured nails through his hair, eliciting soft groans every now and then as he lets his Weed Haze take over his consciousness.
“You still awake, booboo?” She asks, lightly poking his cheek and not getting much more than a grunt and a nose wrinkle in terms of dissuasion.
“Yea, I’m still here, Pinky.” He grumbles, opening his red eyes, now no longer just his irises making her laugh.
“Alright, just wanted to make sure,” she leans down and presses a kiss to his forehead, getting another nose wrinkle when he feels her lipgloss stick to his skin. It was always a sight when Katsuki smoked, he would get 50x more affectionate and would even cuddle up to people and accept their affection in turn, like he is now. The self-proclaimed Bakusquad was always happy when they got him to smoke so that they could all their their ‘Katsu-Cuddles’ as Denki deemed them. He still blames the effects on still practically being a ‘Baby Stoner’, also a name by Denki, even though he’s been partaking for a good few months now.
Y/n purrs at the feeling of her boyfriend’s hand on her waist and it doesn’t go unnoticed. Hanta strokes her side and curls his hand further around her, now reaching further to the front of her hip. Her leg then stretches out a bit, unconsciously, to accommodate his hand, so it can slide over her more easily. Seeing how relaxed and buzzed Y/n is, Hanta finishes up the last little bit of his blunt and then shifts to hold her more comfortably.
✯ ✯ ✯
Now, he has his leg propped up against the back of the couch and the other extended onto the floor with her between his thighs, her own legs mostly aligned with his, her leg thrown over his as it hangs off the couch, her back comfortably resting against his chest with her head laying against his shoulder. His arm wraps around her middle and his fingertips lightly trace over her lower belly, not moving anywhere else.
Her hips squirm a bit at how close his fingers are to where she wanted him and he, thankfully, decided not to tease her. He reaches his other arm around her to the tops of her thighs and drags his fingers to inch her comfy skirt up to expose her pretty little black, white, and yellow panties that she had asked Momo to make. Mina gave a playful hum when she saw the Cellophane-themed panties and whistles at Y/n, making the girl blush.
“Damn, girlie, lovin’ the Cellophane merch you’re workin’! And does that say ‘Ay Papi’ on the waistband?!” She teases which makes her blush deeper but the embarrassment goes away nearly the instant that she feels fingers slide up and down her panty-clad slit. A pleasured breath leaves her as her boyfriend’s fingers dance along her dampening cunt.
“F-fuck..!” Y/n’s voice escapes in a high-pitched moan as Hanta’s fingers focus on her clit. She moans out in surprise when he pinches it lightly and grinds her panties into the pleasurable nub. Her panties feel rough against the sensitive skin of her throbbing cunny and it makes her whine. Her tail flicks at the feeling and wraps around her and Hanta’s side-by-side thighs making him chuckle.
Enjoying her little moans and whines, Hanta speeds up his ministrations against her clitty and makes sure to grind her panties into it. Y/n throws her head back against his shoulder as more whines escape her and her hands weakly grip onto whatever fabric she could reach with her still hazy mind. Her left clutches at the couch while her right flies back to grip the fabric of her boyfriend’s cutoff tank top. He smirks at the reactions she gives him and decides to take pity on his poor little Kitty.
“Don’t worry, baby. I’mma make you feel good, okay?” He speaks against her sensitive kitty ear on top of her head that twitches at his breath fanning over it and shifts the h/c fur and makes her shudder.
“Please…” She whines out, shifting her hips and clenching around nothing. He chuckles again, the husky sound in her ear sends a noticeable shiver down her spine.
“Ohh, poor baby, she looks cold~!” Mina cries faux sympathy lining her words, “You’d better warm her up, Papi.” He playfully rolls his eyes at her teasing but proceeds nonetheless. He runs his fingers to the bottom of her poor soaked little cunny and drags upwards until he reaches the hem of her pretty panties with a cutie little black bow adorning the band. From there, he dips his hand under the fabric and moves down to play with her puffy pussy lips directly.
Her hips arch up at the contact and her leg thrown over her lover’s flexes straighter. She’s not usually this sensitive but the plant, that she’s now donned her favorite, made her far more sensitive and acutely aware of all Hanta’s skillful touches. Cute little moans fill the air as the tape-quirked boy slides his middle finger through her slick folds up to her sensitive little bud, flicking it every time he meets it.
“P-please… Hanta…” Y/n mewls while he still only teases her when he just barely dips his fingertip into her entrance before moving on.
“Please what, pretty kitty? I can’t do anything if I don’t know what you want..” He punctuates his teasing sentence with a soft kiss to the base of her twitching ear.
“Want… Want you to touch me…” Her tail’s grip on their thighs tightens and twitches with her near-desperate whining.
“But I am touching you, princesa.” His noncooperation draws more whines from her throat while his touches feel so, so good but are just not enough.
“In.. Inside..! Please!” She practically sobs out the request before her desperation is cut off by a pleased keen when his third and fourth fingers finally, finally, breach her opening. Her moans are accentuated by her loud purrs. Her lover decided to not start out slow, though he doesn’t set a particularly fast pace at first.
He rocks his hand into her sex hard and fast enough to have her bucking her hips into his palm and letting out high-pitched moans. He smirks and speeds up his pace to get her whining and drunk on the sensations of him getting her off on just his fingers. Y/n’s chest rises and falls with her heavy breaths at the intense pleasure she’s getting just from being fingerfucked. Granted, her boyfriend has magical fingers, it’s never been this intense before. The herb has really affected her, so it seems.
“You feeling good, bebita?” Hanta asks in a teasing tone as he flexes his wrist and curls his fingers at the same moment and presses deliciously into the spongy spot inside her that has her seeing stars after the pleasure he’s already given her.
“Yes.. Yes!!” She moans out in a cry, her tail straightens out like an arrow and twitches about like crazy. He then moves his other hand from where he’s been palming himself at all her gorgeous little sounds and slides it around her body to her front. His hand slithers down her form, setting her nerves on fire from her sensitivity from both his fingerfucking and the weed in her system.
Her hips buck up and a shocked cry leaves her when his long fingers find her clitty and start setting loose, slow circles around her swollen little button. Hanta’s deep chuckle vibrates against Y/n’s back and into her whole being as she arches back against him. With a devious smirk, he dips down to nip and kiss and suck on her neck.
“H-Han.. Hanta..!” Y/n’s voice trembles with arousal and need and her ears fold flat against her head. Her cheeks are flushed and a desperate need shines in her glassy eyes with her unshed tears of too much pleasure.
“Cum for me, Mi Princesa. Go on and cum. Déjate sentir bien, gatita. Cum so fuckin hard, gatita. You wanna show our friends how pretty you look when you cum? Muéstrales tu cara bonita, Mi Linda Gatita.” Hanta groans against her skin as he trails his lips up to the juncture of her jaw, the place that makes her weak.
“Yes, Hanta..! Yesyesyes!!” Y/n practically screams as her hips buck up off the couch and soaks her pretty panties with her cum as she gushes around her boyfriend’s fingers. Her cross and roll to the back of her head as her mouth gapes in a perfect O and her claws come out and scratch line rips into the couch cushion and back and her whole body trembles from the intensity of her orgasm. Her ears twitch nonstop against her head and her tail shakes wildly as it coils around Hanta’s arm tightly and her hips shake as her pretty cunny drenches her favorite panties.
“Holy shit..” Mina chuckles in amazement at the sight before her. She doesn’t know who she’s more jealous of in this moment. On the one hand, Y/n clearly just had one of the most intense orgasms of her life, but on the other hand, Hanta gets to give that to her, not just now, but he gets to play with her pretty pussy whenever he wants.
Her look of wonderment is mirrored on Denki, Eijirou, and Hitoshi, as well. That show was stunning. Seeing Y/n make such a pretty face when she came was like a glimpse of heaven to them. No doubt, Katsuki would have had the same reaction had he not fallen asleep in Mina’s lap after a few minutes of Hanta teasing Y/n’s perfect slit over her panties, no matter how hard he tried to fight against it(he didn’t really, he didn’t even realize he was falling asleep until it was too late).
“You were absolutely right, I think that’s the prettiest cum face I’ve ever seen.” Mina breathed with her eyes still wide.
“Right? Mi Bebita Bonita has the prettiest faces when she feels good, isn’t that right, Mi Linda Gatita?” He purrs with a smug smirk at his friend as he presses a kiss to his baby’s cheek. His pretty kitty is too worn out to answer, only able to heave for breath limply against Hanta’s chest with a fucked out expression on her pretty pretty face. The only noises that leave her are pathetic little moans and whines of overstimulation as Hanta gently rubs his fingers over her little cunny as if it’s a soothing motion.
“Damn… And you’re really keeping such a pretty kitty all to yourself, huh? Can’t blame you, man…” Hitoshi lightly teases, even while he can’t tear his eyes away from where they can all see Hanta’s fingers still gliding over her poor little overstimmed pussy.
“Well, whether I keep her all to myself is ultimately up to this Bonita Gatita. Who knows? Maybe she’d be up for a little… group bonding. We can ask once she’s not so blissed out from my fingers in this pretty cunny, sí?” He smirks over at his friends and finally slides his hand out of her soaked panties that make a wet ‘plap’ against her sensitive pussy and makes her flinch and whine from the sudden sensation.
“In the meantime…” He deviously smirks again, holding up his glistening hand in a display, “Who wants a taste?”
— — —
𝕋𝕒𝕘𝕝𝕚𝕤𝕥:
@frosch-thefrog
#tw exhibitionism#cw exhibitionism#tw public sex#cw public sex#sero hanta x reader#hanta sero x reader#sero x reader#bnha x reader#mha x reader#bnha smut#mha smut#spiderlily spells
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⋆⭒˚｡⋆ dance with me ( connie springer ) !
.𖥔 ݁ ˖✎ᝰ synopsis — " and i really want you to get close to me so won't you dance with me ? " blk reader.
࿐ ࿔*:･ﾟwarnings — mentions of alcohol consumption ( all characters are of age ), sensual dancing, & swearing.
✧˚ ༘ ⋆｡˚ tia speaks — haiii ! i've been itching to write this concept and i've finally figured out who i wanted to write it for. this is loosely based on 'save the last dance' or like 'honey', that's the vibe i'm going for! i also think connie is so '90s love coded so i keep using him when i write this concept! this is a really quick and short write but i need to write this. probably gonna write him in this 90s vibe setting a lot. super excited to write this!
your hips switched to the beat of the song as made your to the dance floor with your friends, each of you slightly tipsy from the shots you took ten minutes ago. it was eren's night to dj and he got you all in for free like he usually did when he was spinning. he knew all the best song to get the club hype and the dance floor crowded.
you were in mixed company right now, having invited onyankopon who invited a few of his friends, including constance 'connie' springer. onyankopon has been trying to set the two of you up since he met you, immediately deciding that you were perfect for his best friend. he had been trying to spark conversation between the two of you, but nothing occurred other than the curious eye contact the two of you shared when he introduce you.
you turned around so that your back was facing mina, twirling your hips and shaking your ass to the beat. you dragged your arms up your body and through your hair, the body wave curls flowing between your fingers. in your ministrations, you looked up and locked eyes with connie, his eye low as the moved from your face to your hips and back again. you maintained the eye contact as you started to do a few different moves, showing off for the attention you acquired. due to that, a small crowd began to form around you, cheering you on as you moved around the dance floor. you finished after a few minutes of entertain the crowd, opting to return to your friends.
"that was fucking awesome," mina exclaimed, shaking your shoulders in excitement.
"been a minute since i seen you move like that," onyankopon added.
"and, i'm about to move my ass to the bar to get another drink. i'll be right back," you said, not waiting for a response as you move through the crowd, practically pushing your way to the bar.
once you reached the bar, you waited for the bartender to come over before ordering a rum and coke. you leaned over on the bar, head down as you attempted to cool off from the humid dance floor. you see connie approach the bar, subtly inching closer to you as you waited for your drink to be finished.
"enjoy the show?" you asked, bundles falling over your shoulder as you turned your head to look at the man.
to call connie attractive would be an understatement. connie is absolutely gorgeous under the club lights. his skin glistens from the sweat lingering on his toned body, his size-too-small t-shirt clinging to his figure in all the right place. he had a fresh buzzcut and stud earrings, the lights shining off of them. he was beyond simply attractive, he was fine.
"yeah, didn't know you could dance like that," connie replied, meeting your eye contact. you shrug it off, playing it cool as the bartender came back with your drink.
"why haven't i seen you dance, springer? not your thing?" you asked, glimpsing at him as you take a sip of your drink, looking at him through your lashes.
"i'm not much of a dancer. besides a little two-step, i can't really do much," he demonstrated his moves with a bit of hesitance, stopping once he noticed you smiling. "don't laugh."
"i'm not, i promise. it wasn't bad. a little stiff, but not bad. at least, you have rhythm," you assured, finishing your drink before pushing off the bar. "wanna dance? i can show you a few things."
your question seemed to shock him as much it shocked you, having spoke before you thought. he took a few seconds to recover before nodding his head and following you to the dance floor. you notice him slowing his pace as the two of you got closer to the dance floor, so you grab him hand and pull him behind you.
you make your way through the crowd of close bodies on the dance floor before letting go of connie's hand and turning to face him.
"show me your two-step again," you tell him, hand placed on your hips as you instruct him. he does as you ask with a bit of reluctance, only fully doing it when you join him. "just loosen up a bit."
he breathed out and relaxed his body as he continued to dance with you, easing into it while looking at you for approval. you began to incorporate your arms as you moved, offering him an encouraging look. he began to follow your example, using his arms to add substance to his dancing. you found yourself moving closer to him as the two of you danced, switching from move to move as you gave him a few pointers.
the floor grew more crowded as a popular song came on, causing you to become chest to chest with connie. your breath mingled with his you gazed into his low eyes, taking a brief glance at his lips before turning around to press your back against his chest. your heart sped up at the contact, hearing connie hum behind you. you looked up for a split second, making eye contact with mina who gave you a smirk and a thumbs up.
you swayed your hips to the tempo of the song as connie moved behind you at the same pace, hands finding your hips to pull you closer. your arms snaked around his neck as you matched his movements, turning your head to get a brief glance of the man behind you. you dragged you arms down your side, cupping the back of his neck to draw him closer as you did so. his breath fanned against your ear, making you smile at the effect you had on him.
the song ended sooner than you hoped, dissipating the intense aura between the two of you. you turned to face connie again before grabbing one of his wrist and dragging him over to where the rest of your friends were. as you approached mina and annie who fanned themselves dramatically, earning playful slaps and pleas to stop from you.
"i see you, springer. got a lil' swag to you," ony joked with his best friend, earning a boyish smirk and a shove from connie. you nudged him with shoulder as you held your phone out.
"you should call me sometime. i could show you something a little better than two-stepping and a body roll," you handed him the device which he quickly took, adding his number in before draping his arm around you and opening the camera to take a picture for his contact. you gave the camera a bright smile, resting your hands on the arm around your shoulders. connie's chin rested on your head before he took the photo, sending himself a text before returning your phone.
"she'll show you something better fo'sho," ony interrupted. "like the four walls of her bedroom."
you reach over and land a light punch to ony's chest. "more like the four walls of the dance studio i volunteer at. getcha' head out the gutta'."
© tiathecreator 2023. all rights reserved.
#☆ — tia the creator!#connie x black reader#connie springer x reader#connie springer x black reader smut#connie x reader#aot connie#aot x reader#aot fluff#aot x black reader#aot x female reader#anime x black!reader#anime x black reader#anime fluff#anime x reader#connie fluff#connie springer fluff
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love, in silence (but silence speaks volumes) || b. katsuki
falling in love with bakugo katsuki was an easy decision. deciding how to love him is an even easier one.
to katsuki, being a hero comes first and foremost. becoming the best, reaching number one, it was his ultimate goal. love, a relationship, would only distract, delay him from reaching that. so you love him enough for him to feel it, enough for you to be happy, but never enough for him to realize.
it’s easy to love like this: a cold bottle of water waiting on the counter before his morning runs, his favorite, very expensive, spices constantly refilled, and his favorite seat in the common room always reserved for him.
who cares if he’ll never look at you that way? it’s worth all the pining and dreaming you do when he looks a little more content, a little more at home with every little gesture you can give. his happiness at the cost of yours is nothing but a small price to pay.
you resolve to love him in silence, to support him as he hurdles towards a future that only has you in the background. you’re the supporting character to his story, and you’re content with that.
it’s another one of those nights where you love him a little louder, a little brighter than usual. staying back after dinner to help him clean up, locking up the spice cabinet (denki and mina had a horrible habit of stealing spices to do stupid challenges), and following him up to the roof with a little bag of cookies you had baked for him earlier.
the sky is surprisingly clear tonight, the stars twinkling excitedly at you as you settle down next to katsuki, dropping the cookies on his stomach. he lets out a soft grunt, and you hear the rustling of plastic.
“what’s this?” he asks, dangling the bag over your face. “trynna poison me again?”
“that was one time!” you protest indignantly, sitting upright to glare at him. “and for the last time, i didn’t know that tenya put the liniment oil in the vanilla bottle. who does that?”
“four-eyes, evidently.” he sits up with you, moonlight casting his face in an ethereal glow. his hair is almost white, red eyes somehow sharper in the night. “when did you find the time to make this?”
you only shrug and turn away from him, willing the flush that threatens to creep past your neck to fade away. “sometime this afternoon.”
“during your nap time?” katsuki says incredulously.
“wasn’t sleepy,” you shrug again. heat creeps further up your neck, and the night doesn’t feel as cool anymore.
it’s unbearably quiet, the soft sigh of leaves swaying the only break in the silence. then the crinkling of plastic, the loud crunch of chewing. you glue your gaze to the sky all the while, fingers crossed that he likes the cookies.
“i appreciate you.” katsuki says. you look over at him, taken aback at the sudden gratitude. his eyes are bright under the moonlight, and he’s more relaxed than you’ve ever seen him be. the night brings about a certain calmness that seems to ease away the harsh lines on his face, gentling his features that leaves you a different kind of breathless.
“i-” you laugh fondly. “i appreciate you too?”
at the question in your voice, he scowls a little, and you can’t help reaching a hand out to smooth out the frown lines. he leans into your touch, and you flush once more, pulling away. but katsuki latches onto your hand with his calloused one, pressing his cheek into your palm.
“i mean it,” his voice is low, eyes trained on you. “i appreciate you. don’t think i don’t notice what you do for me.”
your heart skips a beat.
“what do you mean?” you ask lightly. his grip tightens and he shifts closer to you.
“don’t play dumb right now,” katsuki scoffs. swallowing hard, you watch as he edges closer and closer to you. “you’re always taking care of me, even though i don’t need-” he shakes his head as you open your mouth to interrupt- “no, listen to what i have to say first.”
“you wake up early on weekends to jog and eat breakfast with me, even though you hate cardio, and you’re not a morning person. whenever its your turn to cook dinner, you always make a separate portion for me, because you know i like the additional spices. and i know you’re the one who refills them, you’re not as slick as you think you are.” he shoots you a fond look. you’re pretty sure your palms are sweaty by now, not that katsuki seems to notice, or if he did, he didn’t care. “you do a lot for me, and i see it.”
“katsuki…” you stare at him, eyes wide. “it’s nothing, i just-”
“don’t say it’s nothing.” he cuts you off. “don’t say it’s nothing, because if it’s truly nothing, then i wouldn’t have fallen for you.”
“you- what?” your heart races, and especially in the coolness of the night, you can feel the heat katsuki radiates. “do you- i- don’t joke about that.”
“i’m not.” he looks at you, really looks at you, and you can see the earnestness in his carmine eyes, feel it in the way he holds you so tenderly. “i’m in love with you, and i’m know you’re in love with me too.”
“don’t-” you begin breathlessly, but katsuki shakes his head.
“i don't want you think i'm saying this because i know you love me or that you do things for me. yes, part of it is because of the things you do for me, but i love you because you're you.” katsuki leans into your space, breaths mingling. you can smell the cookies he just ate, cinnamon and burnt caramel filling your senses. he’s deliciously warm pressed against you like this. “i see you, how you give and give without expecting anything in return. how you stand your ground for your friends. how you care for others without making them feel weak.”
the unspoken ‘me’ presses against your hand, still clutched to his cheek.
“i love you,” he says so quietly, so tenderly it makes your eyes burn. “and i want you. i want to be yours. if you’ll let me.”
a heartbeat. two.
“yes,” you gasp around the lump in your throat. “of course, yes, yes, yes.”
katsuki smiles and it’s like the sun rising – unbearably beautiful, refreshing in the way only beginnings can be, utterly devastating.
“i’m going to kiss you.” he promises, pausing only a hair’s breadth away. giving you a chance to pull away, you realize. silly boy, why would you? it’s a moment you’ve been dreaming about for ages, yearning for with an aching heart, resigned to it ‘what ifs’ and ‘maybes’. now all those moments spent wishing and dreaming have come true, culminated into a chance you’re most definitely not going to give up.
you close the distance and it’s nothing like you could have ever imagined. he’s sweet, tilting his head slightly to deepen the kiss and- oh.
he kisses you like you’re the first sip of water in the desert, cautiously and greedily all at once. your heart burns, sings, and you drink him in greedily, the lump in your throat giving way to two years of quiet love now demanding to be seen, poured out in sweet, warm kisses.
hearts are like homes, you muse, staring at katsuki fondly. they aren’t meant to be lived in alone, watching others through windows. homes are meant to be shared, where love and laughter coexist with hurt and sadness. and katsuki is here, knocking on your heart. you open the door and welcome him in – it’s a house made for him after all.
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A/N; So there was an anonymous person who had requested a my hero academia x a rude reader who opens up overtime, but unfortunately my dumbass accidentally posted it while it wasn’t ready so anon whoever you are I hope you find this and I hope you like it! Since they didn’t specify I decided to do a little bit for every character I write! (Except for Eri since I only write platonic fics for her)
My Hero Academia x reader who’s rude at first, but opens up later on
Izuku
He kinda interacts with you how he would with Bakugo at first
Is also probably scared half to death by you
Avoids you at all costs at first
Honestly he thinks you hate him until you clear up that you don’t
After that, when you begin to open up, he genuinely likes talking with you
If he can get the courage, he’ll probably ask if you wanna hang out somewhere to get to know each other, and hell, maybe the two of you can get closer than you thought you would <3
Bakugo
He likes your spunk
Honestly, he actually really likes that you’ve got the balls to talk back to him
Would probably wanna spar with you a lot if your also a hero in training
It’s easier for him to make friends with you because of the fact that you guys are so similar
When you open up, so does he
And when that happens it’s just sorta a rare vulnerable moment for the both of you
He trusts you a lot. Don’t break that trust.
Todoroki
At first he didn’t like you
You remind him too much of Bakugo
Too negative, too cynical
He generally doesn’t speak to you
Until you accidentally hurt Uraraka’s feelings on accident
He asks you what the hell’s your problem, which is followed by a lecture about how you’ve gotta fix your attitude
When you apologize to Uraraka and explain you really didn’t actually mean to hurt anyone, he calms down
He does his best to understand why you might not open up so easy, for whatever reason
From then on, you, Todoroki, and Uraraka are a pretty close friend group
Yes, Uraraka ships the two of you
Aizawa
He gets it
He’s had tough students before, and even if you aren’t his student, you’re no different
When the two of you go on a mission together, he explains that you two need to work together, which means trusting each other
He asks if you would at the very least trust him to save you to which you say yes
When the villains in cuffs, he compliments you on your skills, and then walks off
From then on there was just some sort of close unspoken bond
What that bond is? Who knows?
Dabi
Again, nothing new.
He has to deal with Shigaraki, you think you’re a hassle?
Beside that though, he actually likes you
You’re humor matches his, and he gets not wanting to appear weak in front of others
Once you two grow close enough, he’ll subtly check up on you when your sad, keep note of what your favorite food or drink is, and especially your eye color
The little things, you know? <3
Shigaraki
Exact opposite of Dabi
Has a temper tantrum the first time you talk back
Yes, he did infact try to obliterate you
He failed, and then he cried
After that little outburst he calms down
He still doesn’t like you
And yet there’s still that odd lingering tension in the air?…
Uraraka
Similar to Izuku, she thinks you hate her
Rather than cowering like Izuku does, though, she confronts you about it
Once everything is cleared up, she’ll talk to you in passing the halls
At some point she’ll start inviting you to the mall
And no she doesn’t care what gender you are, you’re being glamorized, and yes, Mina is going to be joining in on it
Overall a very fun person to hang out with, and a now close friend (maybe more???)
Denki
Poor boy can’t take an insult at all
He’ll act like it’s whatever and then pout about it in his room
Why we’re you so damn mean? Did you just not wanna be friends?
Well now he’s determined to be friends with you
Gifts, outings, compliments, you name it
Once you actually tell him you consider him a friend, he’s so excited
Will not stop smiling the rest of the day, and can’t get rid of that weird flutter in his stomach
Kirishima
He’s used to Bakugo being like this, so he’s used to you being like this
If you choose to insult him, he’s learned how to filter real vs fake insults, so he’ll laugh it off, and continue talking with you
He doesn’t mind carrying the conversation, as long as you’re not bored, he’ll rant his little heart out
He’ll happily spar with you to relieve some stress if you ask
He’ll also give sparring tips while sparring with you/ if you ask
Would absolutely love a gym buddy to hang with <3
Jirou
Meh.
She just doesn’t really care for you at first
She’ll talk to you if necessary and laugh at your sarcastic jokes, but other than that she doesn’t really socialize with you much
Until she realizes you and her like the same band that it feels like no one knows
Will talk about music for hours
Eventually she’ll grow close to you, and you guys become good friends
Maybe if you ask she’ll even teach you guitar
Unfortunately, I’ll have to do a part 2, but that will be out in only a matter of time! Stay tuned!
With love and kisses,
- y0urloca1lyr3
#mha#my hero academia#headcanons#my hcs#hcs#trust#requests#request#izuku midoriya#bakugou katsuki#shouto todoroki#aizawa shouta#touya todoroki#dabi todoroki#shigaraki tomura#ochako uraraka#denki kaminari#kirishima eijirou#jirou kyouka#izuku midoria x reader#bakugou x reader#todoroki x reader#aizawa x reader#dabi x reader#shigaraki x reader#uraraka x reader#denki x reader#kirishima x reader#jirou x reader#idk how to tag this
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☰ 𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐩 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦
⧫ Characters: multiple MHA
⧫ Reader: genderneutral
⧫ Summary: Just small Drabbles based on songs about how you guys broke up and why
⧫ WARNINGS: sadness and heartbreak
⧫ A/N: Songs: Sorry-Nothing but thieves; Bury your flame-La Dispute; Follow you-Bring me the horizon; Clairvoyant-The story so far; Too good at goodbye-Sam Smith
They were never supposed to find out about that one mistake you made in the haze of a drunken night. How could you be this stupid and sleep with their best friend after everything they’ve done for you? They took you in when you had nothing and you broke their heart and took their trust away. It was them leaving you because how can they love someone who would break their heart in such a cruel way?
„I broke your heart so carelessly but made the pieces part of me. And now it hurts what we've become 'cause you taught me how to love -It's me who taught you how to stop.“
➸ Toshinori Yagi (All Might), Izuku Midoriya, Eijiro Kirishima, Hizashi Yamada (Present Mic), Mina Ashido, Natsuo Todoroki, Tenya Iida
You hated the uncertainty with them, never quite sure what exactly you are to them and they never cared to define it. You would like to think you were a couple - and you were at some point but the constant break ups only to hook up again weeks later shouldn’t become the new normal. When you decided that you’re moving on for good, they were standing at your doorstep again, begging you to let them in, that things would be different this time but they promised that the last 6 times already.
„But as I buried your flames in the dirt I watched the smoke pull your ghost from the grave. And I fear they'll only lay in wait till we are face to face again. Just when I said, "I'm moving—I'm moving on." I felt them come to life again.“
➸ Katsuki Bakugo, Dabi, Hanta Sero, Hitoshi Shinso, Keigo Takami (Hawks), Momo Yaoyorozu, Nemuri Kayama (Midnight), Rumi Usagiyama (Mirko)
It was cute at first, how they greeted you every morning at your favorite café or how they had your order ready so you won’t even have to go in yourself. They showed you that they cared and that you were important but it became toxic once you were together as if they were your shadow. When you told them you need a break they threatened to end your life and then theirs because they NEED you to live.
„Come sink into me and let me breathe you in - I'll be your gravity, you be my oxygen. So dig two graves 'cause when you die, I swear I'll be leaving by your side.“
➸ Denki Kaminari, Himiko Toga, Minoru Mineta, Nejire Hado
You two were Highschool sweethearts but life got in the way. Despite all the shared memories, inside jokes, the love and future plans with the other webbed in you two grew up to be completely different people and just thinking about spending another month with the other made each of you anxious so you decided it’s for the best to call it quits - but on good terms. The bond was strong but not even love can withstand the struggles of life.
„I think you'll notice when things become different, the good vibes in our lives won't feel so consistent. And less becomes more 'cause the weight is too heavy, I swim in the water that’s breaking your levee.“
➸ Shota Aizawa, Fumikage Tokoyami, Fuyumi Todoroki, Kyōka Jirō, Mirio Togata, Ochaco Uraraka, Taishiro Toyomitsu (Fat Gum)
Them hurting you was nothing new. Never physical but the emotional manipulation and abuse was getting too much. It felt like they hurt you on purpose so you would leave them and be the bad guy in the story. You knew from the beginning that this would never work out and each time they hurt you they just proved that point. When the pain got unbearable you decided to be the monster in their story and leave, confirming their delusions- They were unlovable and you were just giving up on them like everyone else.
„But every time you hurt me, the less that I cry. And every time you leave me, the quicker these tears dry. And every time you walk out, the less I love you. Baby, we don't stand a chance, it's sad, but it's true.“
➸ Tomura Shigaraki, Enji Todoroki, Kai Chisaki, Shoto Todoroki, Tamaki Amajiki
Networks: @tokyometronetwork
#mha x reader#mha angst#bnha x reader#bnha angst#dabi x reader#hawks x reader#bakugo x reader#izuku x reader#kirishima x reader#shoto x reader#natsuo x reader#hanta sero x reader#mirko x reader#denki x reader#shigaraki x reader#toga x reader#aizawa x reader#mirio x reader#takami x reader
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La Douleur Exquise | KTH
summary: when your best friend’s brother suddenly shows up at your door, you are shocked at the words that fall from his pretty mouth. he leaves you flustered and grasping for the thin line between right and wrong.
pairing: taehyung x reader
wc: 2,534
genre/warnings/rating: 18+, friends to lovers (kind of); best friend’s brother to (maybe) lovers; angst; fluff; smut (suggestive themes; intense emotional kissing; they don’t ask before kissing the other person; mentions of getting turned on; reader gets flustered; tae gets intimately close without asking first); reader is a few years older than Tae but both are well past legal age; unresolved feelings; mentions of societal expectations; explicit language. the characters in this story are my own and do not reflect on the members of bts or anyone else. this is all made up and just for fun, please don’t take it too seriously!
a/n: this one is a repost. definitely the most explicit thing i’ve written even if there’s no actual smut lmao
Mina said he had changed, but she hadn’t told you just how much.
It was strange to be alone in a room with him without Mina, or his other sisters, or his parents. Yet here he was, hunched over on your couch, staring determinedly at a spot a few feet from you.
“I shocked you, I guess,” he states finally, because the expression on your face could mean nothing else. You wonder how he could tell. He hasn’t looked at you once since he said it. The words that took you by complete and utter surprise. Surely no one expects a sudden love confession, no?
“A little.”
You continue to observe him as you lean against the sideboard, drumming your fingers against the cool wood. He looks nothing like the scrawny teenager you used to tease so many years ago.
“Tae, this is ridiculous. You’re my best friend’s baby brother.”
He flinches at those last words. Your best friend’s baby brother. The cage he couldn’t escape. That kept you on the outside. Kept you unattainable.
You notice his reaction. His fists tightening, connected to exposed veiny forearms beneath his rolled up sleeves that made you bite down on your lip.
Stop.
You catch yourself and shift your thoughts quickly, internally chastising yourself for your momentary lapse. He is your best friend’s younger brother. It would be wrong to see him as anything else, right?
“We’re both in our 20’s, Y/N. Age shouldn’t matter anymore.”
“But you’ll always be Mina’s baby—”
“Please— please don’t say it again.”
You bite your lip again as this time he looks directly into your eyes with a look that was unmistakeable. His sudden boldness was betraying your inhibitions. And you look away as you feel your cheeks start to heat up. But it’s too late.
When you look back, he’s grinning at you. Hopeful. Anticipating. His boxy grin reminding you of another time he smiled at you like that. The first time he made his confession nearly two decades ago.
“Y/N, I made you something.”
Taehyung runs to you and pulls away his sister, looking up at you with stars in his eyes. Whatever it was, he was very excited about it.
“Ok Tae, let me see it.”
You pull the card from his hand and smile as you read the words scrawled messily on the inside: ‘I love you Y/N. Will you marry me?’
You laugh wholeheartedly and pull him in for a big bear hug.
“Of course I’ll marry you, Tae. Ask me again when you’re older, ok?”
“You promised to marry me when I was older. I’m older now.”
“But Tae, you know I wasn’t serious. We were just kids.”
You suddenly remember something he said the year before he left to study abroad. A strange statement he had made that you hadn’t given much thought until now.
“When you said you wouldn’t marry anyone except your first love, is this…were you talking about me?”
He nods slowly, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards. You remembered.
“Tell me you’re not attracted to me, Y/N.”
His request was sudden. Bold. A command. Something the Taehyung you knew would have never ventured.
“And if I say it, then what?”
“I will walk away. But you have to make me believe it.”
Your grip on the sideboard tightens as you stare him down, determined to end this once and for all.
“I’m not attracted to you, Tae.”
There, you said it. It might have come out a little more high pitched than you intended. But you said it.
But your words only elicited a smug grin from him.
“Are you sure?” he teases, licking his lips.
He slowly rises from the couch, eyes dark and hooded, never once leaving yours. He starts to close the gap between you and you start to feel hot all over. The way he’s walking towards you. A predator that has found its prey. His eyes full of lust and desire. You’ve never seen him like this. And you hate that it’s turning you on.
“Tae—”
Within seconds he is only a foot away, hesitating, hovering close but not close enough. He is much taller than you remember, and much bigger too. You can’t bring your eyes to meet his, instead taking in the way his thin turtleneck sweater tapers down his tiny waist, trailing down to his light wash jeans so tight around his thighs. Fuck. He was going to be the death of you.
He growls, his voice low and gravelly.
“How about now? Still nothing?”
You finally tilt your head upwards, trailing across his broad chest, past his tiny mole and pillowy lips, up to his glittering eyes. He was blatantly enjoying this.
You clear your throat, hoping against hope that the heat in your cheeks was not translating to your skin.
“Nothing,” you whisper.
He steps closer, now merely inches from you, the heat from his body transferring to yours. You could feel yourself start to crumble, his aura so intoxicating, his cologne rendering you delirious.
“Still nothing,” you manage with great effort. You wonder if he could hear your thundering heartbeat, whether your heart would betray your words.
He leans in, caging you between himself and the cabinet, resting his hands on the sideboard behind you. Your breath hitches as his hands graze yours, his long thumbs gently caressing your fingers, which were now gripping onto the sideboard for dear life. You were trying very hard not to think about his thigh in between your legs. An inch or so forward and he would make contact.
You feel goosebumps start to prickle your skin as he whispers in your ear, the sound low and guttural, like thunder before lightening strikes.
“Tell me I’m not affecting you, Y/N. Tell me you feel nothing.”
Fuck. He was affecting you. But why? He had barely touched you. Were you actually attracted to Tae? The goofy little ball of sunshine that used to follow you around like a little puppy?
His eyes linger on your lips as you part them, waiting for the words he is certain are seeking freedom, itching to escape into his awaiting heart. He is certain he isn’t misreading your signals. He is certain that after all these years you must finally feel something for him too.
So when words did leave your lips, something broke in him. His hopes came crashing down.
“No, Tae. I don’t feel anything for you,” you answer breathily. The fact that any sound made it out of your mouth at all makes your chest swell. It took every bit of effort not to crumble before him. Not to give in to the temptation leaning right into you.
He sharply exhales before leaning back, away from you, leaving your body suddenly cold and aching.
The look in his eyes shoot daggers through you. The way his shoulders hunch in, the utter defeat that was oozing from every fiber of his being. With one last glance into your eyes he turns away, mumbling something before grabbing his coat from the adjacent chair.
“I’m sorry, Tae.”
He sighs.
“Please don’t be. It’s my problem; not yours. Deep down I always knew you would never reciprocate my feelings. And I tried… I really tried to get over you, Y/N, to pass this off as some stupid crush. I stayed as far away from you for as long as humanly possible… but it didn’t matter. Not when my heart rests in your hands.”
If a heart could shatter you would have heard the sound of glass breaking. His was broken. And your heart broke with him.
“Everything reminded me of you, Y/N. A million tiny things tangled up in my mind. Your face. Your smile. Your eyes. I saw them in every cloud. In every painting. Inside every museum and concert hall. I couldn’t take it. The distance I put between us, both in time and kilometres, has only made my feelings grow. That’s why I came back. I had to tell you how I feel. I thought if you saw me now… after all these years… then maybe you would finally give me a chance. That maybe, you could possibly, see me as something more than just your friend’s brother. But I… I realize now I was wrong.” His back was still turned to you so you couldn’t see the tears now trickling down his cheeks.
“I’m sorry Y/N. I hope I didn’t offend you.”
Something inside you snaps. You don’t know what demon possesses you as within seconds you reach him and whirl him around to face you, wide eyed and stunned. Without a second thought you descend upon him with throbbing lips that match the heat from his, your hands pulling him into you, curling your fingers around his paper thin sweater, feeling the muscles underneath tighten, straining from the exertion.
Thrown completely off-guard it takes him a second to realize what was happening. As soon as the shock wears off he grabs your face and pulls you roughly into him, moaning hotly into your mouth, his lips pressing into yours feverishly. His other hand sends electric sparks down your spine as he drops his coat to trace his way up to the small of your back, pulling you flush against his body. The world around you falls away as you feel a rush of pleasure overtake your body. You can feel something hardening against your core and you gasp into his mouth, tightening your grip around his sweater as you start to see stars. You can barely breathe but you continue as if he was oxygen and his body your lifeboat. You were drowning but you didn’t care.
And then suddenly you did.
You pull your head back and push him away as his eyes shoot open. You avoid his gaze while smoothing down your skirt that had ridden up past your thigh. It didn’t take you long but you couldn’t bear to look into his eyes. Worried your resolve might break again.
“I’m sorry, Tae, I shouldn’t have done that.”
“Y/N—”
Your fingers shoot up to his lips but you move them away quickly. If you were going to reject him you needed to avoid all further physical contact. Immediately.
He simply stared at your hand falling away, noticing the way your fingers wrapped around the hem of your skirt, mindlessly pulling on it the way you did back then whenever you were nervous.
“It was wrong for me to kiss you. I’m sorry, Tae. But I hope it makes you realize… that your, um, love really is just a stupid crush… like you said. At least you can see now that... you don’t really want me, Tae. There’s no spark between us.”
Lies. You were forcing lies to pass through your lips. Grasping at straws to explain this away. Because you knew you were fighting a losing battle.
He bit his lip, looking down at the spot in front of your feet. His bangs fell over his eyes as he let you think he was considering the possibility. That maybe this kiss made him realize he wasn’t actually in love with you.
A few moments pass in silence as he watches you shuffle your weight from one foot to the other. He then tilts his head to the side as he looks up at you slightly, dark locks of hair swaying to the side with the motion.
Your chest constricts. Why was he making this so hard? His puppy dog eyes were making your heart melt.
But you can’t. Well, you could. No, you won’t. Your best friend —his sister— would never speak to you again. Not to mention your other friends, your parents, none of them would ever approve either.
You can just imagine what they’d say. He’s Mina’s younger brother. He’s younger than you. It’s too weird. You need someone older. More mature. You need to settle down.
And you never could stand the word disappointed.
“Do you want me to leave, Y/N?”
You look in his direction as he fades back into view. You can’t ignore the words floating in the back of your mind.
No.
Please stay, Tae.
Kiss me again.
But alas.
“I think that would be best, Tae.”
He looks at you once more. But the look of defeat is gone. This time there is a light. A sparkle that wasn’t there before.
“Ok, Y/N. I will go.”
He grabs his jacket from the floor and you barely make out a smirk beneath his dark locks as you notice him glancing at your legs. When you look down you suddenly realize you had been squeezing your thighs together. Shit.
He can’t help the smug grin on his face, throwing you a quick wink before he heads towards your front door.
Brat. He knew he affected you. And he was rubbing it in your face.
You watch as he slides on his overcoat. As he bends over to slide on his oxfords. As he straightens up his turtleneck. It astonishes you how much he has changed. He is mesmerizing.
He glances back, with the full knowledge that you were staring at him.
“We don’t have to tell Mina. If that’s what is holding you back. Well, not until the wedding, I suppose.”
“What—”
His statement had you grasping for words, flustered.
He spins around and walks directly to you, brushing a strand of your locks from your eyes, watching it settle with the rest, before looking into your eyes again.
“You know how I feel, Y/N. And that kiss… made me fall in love all over again. And it will haunt me every night until I finally have you in my arms. But don’t worry. Nothing has to change. I won’t pressure you. I won’t even come near you unless you want me to.”
You continue to gaze into his eyes, the tension slowly melting as you start to find his proximity and the intimacy of his eye contact strangely comforting.
Then he steps back.
“You want me to leave so I will.”
He gives your hands a tight squeeze before opening your front door, bracing himself as the cool winter air fills his lungs.
You lean your head against the door frame as you watch him walk away, snowflakes falling gently all around him. In this setting he looked like a beautiful prince. The way his hot breath shot out of his pretty lips, suspended in mid air, reminded you of fairy dust.
His hand lingers over his car door handle, waiting. Anticipating. Finally he exhales sharply, brows furrowing before he forces the car door open.
“Tae—”
As if an intersection signal suddenly flashed green, he shuts the door close and turns towards you, his infamous boxy grin making a reappearance. His eyes widen in anticipation as he waits for those words to leave your lips. He hopes against hope that you won’t make him wait. That you will give into the feelings you most certainly have. So he can run into your outstretched arms and return home for the first time in his life.
But this is not as easy for you. You now realize your thoughts about Tae are no longer entirely chaste. You have a fondness for him that took a turn much too quickly. Surely you should keep these feelings prisoner inside your chest. To free them would free some part of you you’re not ready to let go yet. The loyal friend. The dutiful daughter. The good girl.
But another part of you is sick of these constructs. These parts of you that tied you down, repressing your desires, smothering your feelings. You could not figure out which side you should let win.
There was only one thing you knew for sure.
“I want you to stay, Tae.”
That’s all it took. With a gleeful expression he runs towards you as you reach out your arms to meet him.
You may not know what you will do next but at least you won’t have to decide alone.
#taehyung x reader#taehyung angst#taehyung fluff#taehyung smut#taehyung fanfic#taehyung imagine#lilo fics#la douleur exquise#i’m with queue
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So the other day I realized that every time I laugh a little hard/loud my mom either physically cringes or tells me to chill out, that day she looked at me and said "It's not THAT funny, geez." And it made me a little more self conscious of my laugh than it should've been maybe?
Anyways, can I request Bakugou noticing everytime the reader almost laughs they quickly cover their mouth and stop themselves from actually letting their laugh out, and confronting them about it? I just need my comfort character to tell me my laugh isn't actually as terrible as I think it is :((
I hope you have a great day, thank you!!
First of all. FirsT OF ALL-
Your laugh is sexy and wonderful and tell whoever says otherwise to kick rocks. Laughter is one of the best ways to release endorphins and raise moods. You laugh at whatever the sam-hell you want because baby, laughter is free and you deserve to do it in comfort.
Now… on to the piece!!
-
It wasn’t just funny. It was downright hilarious.
The tiktok playing on repeat was so goofy, so ridiculous it made absolute cackles pour from your lips. For a moment, you let them fly, and you don’t think twice about it.
That was, until Katsuki came in, drying his hands on the paper towel. “What’re you laughing at?”
Arguably, the worst way he could’ve phrased that.
“Just… Just a video,” you manage, clearing your throat of giggles. “Didn’t mean to take you from your dishes.”
“You didn’t, I wanted to know what was so funny.”
You swallow thickly. He cocks a brow.
“It was nothing,” you brush. He rolls his eyes but he doesn’t press; he knows better than to press your boundaries in such a way.
Drying his hands, he does come over to sit with you on the couch, scrolling on his own phone. It’s quiet, no need to make conversations after being together for so long, but your heart sinks to your stomach when, once again, a video crosses your feed. This time, however, you let no laughter out, and instead smother it with your hands.
Katsuki says nothing, but judging by the way he peered at you from the corner of his currant gaze, you know saw.
More silence.
Another hilarious video, this time from Mina, and it has you whining to try and hide your laughter from pouring out uncontrollably.
This time, however, it makes him speak up.
“You keep doing that,” he says, not even bothering to look up from his phone. Chills shoot up your spine, and your jolt does cause katsuki to peek at you from his scrolling again. “What’s your problem?”
“Nothing,” you defend. “I’m fine.”
“And I don’t believe you.”
“Would you just drop it!”
A smirk quirks on his cheek, “so somethin’ is bothering you.”
A pout etched on your face, almost disappointed he realized something was wrong, and he lets out a soft sigh and turns towards you, his phone being pocketed. “You don’t have to tell me. But I don’t like you lying that it’s nothing. We don’t hide from each other, you know that.”
“Katsuki,” you whimper, adverting your eyes. Silence surrounds you both, and bless katsuki for his patience, but you just want it to end and be left alone. He moves one of his hands to rest on yours, the familiar weight making you feel more at ease.
“Do… do you hate my laugh? Is that why you asked what I was watching? It made me laugh too loud?”
“Huh?” He asks incredulously. Bleach blonde brows furrow in frustration, “of course I don’t hate it, the fuck? I was asking because I wanted to know what was funny. Don’t assume shit, you know better.”
“But you… you didn’t-“
“Literally only wanted to know what was funny. Don’t you know I appreciate a good laugh now and then?”
That, has you about to laugh, but your quick to hide it under a cough and muffled giggles.
He groans, “you’re doing it again. Just laugh, I don’t know what your problem is-“
“My problem is my laugh!” You whine, tears stinging at your eyes. “Don’t you think I want to laugh and have fun and not worry about what people think about the damn noises? How long I laugh? How when I think of a joke, I laugh more? Huh?”
This time, his brows raise, and his eyes widen as he realizes the can of complexity he’s just unleashed. But he doesn’t snap back, he never does; he quickly zones himself back with the new lenses you’ve given him into your mindset.
“Your laugh is fine,” he mumbles, tossing an arm around your shoulder. “I never said you shouldn’t be able to do those things, nor would I. Where’s this coming from anyways?”
You don’t answer him, and he doesn’t press further- he already knows the answer, but you curl into his side to hide away from your insecurities regardless.
“But… but it’s so loud-“
“Yeah, and it’s fine that it is.” His thumb gently strokes over the skin of your arm, “that’s how we know it’s real. Your laugh isn’t a problem or something. It doesn’t bother any of us, and you know dunce-face eats it up when you encourage him with your cackles. It’s cute. I like your laugh. Fuck anyone who says otherwise. Don’t hide that shit, or feel like you even have to.”
“You like it?”
“I do. Makes me all soft to know you find me and my obnoxious ass friends funny.”
Your cheeks flush and you nuzzle into his side, letting his gentle touch bring you back down.
“So…” you begin, and he hums for you to continue. “You really think it’s cute?”
He gives you a small glare and you flash him a smile, “don’t make me regret it.”
“You think I’m cute?”
“You are, in fact, making me regret it.”
“I mean… I am pretty cute-“
“Regretting it,” he snaps before tickling up your sides to make you squeal and laugh once again; but rather your hands cover your mouth, they circle his wrists to move his hands away. “Shut the hell up before I make you regret it.”
“So mean!” You whine, writhing against him. It doesn’t last long, and he moves his hands to instead wrap around you and pull you into his chest, his nose nuzzling the back of your neck. You purr and use your strange position to curl into him, letting his big arms protect you both from whatever insecurities dare try to tread.
“I’m glad you think it’s cute,” you confess, and he chuckles.
“Of course I think it’s cute. Wouldn’t go out of my way to hear it if I didn’t.”
“I think you’re cute, Katsuki.”
He plants a gentle kiss to the tender muscles at the nape of your neck, “I think we’re cute together.”
You crane your neck to look at him, his contented face burrowed into the warmth of your muscles, eyes closed as he all but soaks you in.
“Yeah?” You mewl.
“Fuck yeah.”
#anon bestie my love#I’m sorry I couldn’t do this more justice#but for damns sake laugh#laugh like you’re alone and laugh like you’re getting paid to#because nothing in this life is free except laughter#bakugou katsuki#bakugou katsuki fluff#bakugou katsuki x reader#bakugou katsuki x reader fluff#bakugou katsuki x reader comfort#bakugou katsuki x gn!reader#bakugou katsuki imagine#bakugou katsuki bnha#bakugou#bakugou fluff#bakugou x reader#bakugou x reader comfort#bakugou x reader fluff#bakugou imagine#bakugou bnha#bnha#bnha fluff#bnha imagine#bnha x gn!reader#bnha x gender neutral reader#bnha x reader#bnha x yn#bnha x y/n#bnha x you
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AND I WONDER + KAIJU NO. 8
what is the thing you say/do that affects them the most feat. kafka hibino, leno ichikawa, mina ashiro, soshiro hoshina, gen narumi
info: tried to make it as sweet as possible bcuz i love all of them <3!!; not proofread
hibino is a grown man and he's often seen as the backbone of whatever place he becomes a part of, there isn't much things that you can say that would affect him. but, try to hug this man once to see how he would simply melt. he didn't get that kind of affection very often throughout his life – his dating life was nowhere near as active as he wished it to be –, so you showing any kind of physical affection towards him, would make hibino's heart flutter in his chest. he always adores when you randomly hug him and he is constantly thinking about when you're gonna give a 'hug attack' again.
leno is very sensitive to any praise you send his way. he is often being praised and complimented on his skills, but there's something about you praising him that just... makes him impossibly shy. whenever you give him any words of affirmation, his cheeks flare up and he tries to hide his face from you, he says something along the lines of "don't be silly" and tries to leave. even if he behaves like that, whenever he accomplishes something, his mind always drifts to what you will think of it – and what are the praises that will come with your acknowledgement of them.
mina doesn't fall hard for words, no matter how smooth or soft you try to be with it. the thing that always catches her off guard is you keeping any promise you make her. no matter how small or big the promise is, if you keep it, it will shake her to her core and bring out the small child that once made a promise – that was broken – with her best friend. even if she doesn't think often about your shared promises, you will never truly know the extent that they matter to her. you will never know how much you matter to her.
hoshina adores, and i mean adores, when you laugh at his jokes or laugh at the same things he laughs at. more often than not, people reprimand him for laughing during serious situations, but when you came into his life and started to laugh with him... that instantly made you win his heart. some would say that saying he is a good fighter against monsters would be something he prefers, but the way that you accepted and enjoy a side of him that no one else really seems to enjoy, that matters so much to him; without much time, you entered his heart and mind, and you're definitely not going to leave soon.
narumi seems hard to please, but he's quite the opposite of that. he will eat up any praise you give him; above everything though, he would adore to have you show that you two are equals. whether it be through your words or actions – you don't have to show that you're stronger, any sign of confidence works –, he would love to see you showing dominance and going against him sometimes. he knows you want only the best things for him, but if you're not afraid to call him out for his truly bad actions, that would always make him feel that he has someone that he can share a little of his burden with.
2023 © content belongs to lehguru, but the characters used in them belong to their respective creators!!
#kafka hibino#leno ichikawa#mina ashiro#soshiro hoshina#gen narumi#hibino x reader#hibino x you#leno x reader#leno ichikawa x reader#ichikawa x reader#mina ashiro x reader#mina x reader#ashiro x reader#soshiro hoshina x reader#soshiro x reader#hoshina x reader#gen narumi x reader#gen x reader#narumi x reader#kaiju no. 8 x reader#kaiju no 8 x reader#kaiju no. 8 x you
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IDOLiSH7 Part 6 Chapter 12.1 - 12.2 (ZOOL's scene)
Please note that I am not a professional translator. If you come across any mistakes, feel free to let me know and I will make the necessary corrections.
Chapter 12.1:
Minami Natsume: This is our new song’s demo. Please listen to it.
Touma Inumaru: So it’s finally done!
Haruka Isumi: It’s the song we’ll be singing at the New Black or White, right?
Torao Mido: What kind of song is it?
Minami Natsume: Before we proceed, I'd like to make it clear that I won't be accepting any criticism from you all.
Minam Natsume: I’m only willing to listen to praises.
Torao Mido: There’s no need to be so menacing…..
Touma Inumaru: Basically, that means you’re super confident about this song, right?
Minami Natsume: ...........
Minami Natsume: Well… yes, that’s right….
Touma Inumaru: Then I’m really looking forward to it!
Haruka Isumi: What’s the title?
Minami Natsume: Did I forget to mention it?
Minami Natsume: It’s “Utopia”.
Haruka Isumi: That’s a cool title! Ah, it started. … Woah!
Touma Inumaru: Ah….!
Torao Mido: Oh….!
Minami Natsume: What are these reactions supposed to mean…?
Touma Inumaru: This is good!
Haruka Isumi: It’s cool!
Torao Mido: I like it!
Minami Natsume: You three and your limited vocabulary…..
Minami Natsume: More. I need you all to praise me properly.
Touma Inumaru: It’s the best of the best! Mina, you’re a genius!
Haruka Isumi: If this is our song, we’re definitely going to win!
Torao Mido: It’s perfect! The entire world will bow down to you, Minami!
Minami Natsume: … Yay!!
Touma Inumaru: Now that’s a rare sight, he’s frolicking…
Minami Natsume: Let’s listen to it again from the top. Please praise me for each lyric, one at a time.
Haruka Isumi: You’re super, super, SUPER cool! You’re the only one who’s capable of composing a song like this, Minami. You’re the greatest in the world!
Torao Mido: That’s right! Now there’s no way we can lose. Let’s win with this song!
Minami Natsume: Yes, absolutely. And since you’ve said that, please put your body on the line too.
Torao Mido: Huh?
Touma Inumaru: Show us some cool, daring moves! How about around this part of the song?
Haruka Isumi: Sounds good! Let’s blow their minds! Torao, can you do it?
Torao Mido: Fu… Who do you think you’re talking to?
Touma Inumaru: Okay, I’m slowly starting to get a handle on how to deal with Tora!
- Door opens -
Shiro Utsugi: Please excuse me.
Haruka Isumi: Utsugi-san, did you listen to the song Minami made?
Shiro Utsugi: Yes, I was able to listen to it earlier. It felt like the advent of a godlike song.
Shiro Utsugi: Natsume-san, I don’t think I can convey what I feel through spoken words alone, so I will prepare a 10,000 word report later.
Minami Natsume: Fufu, thank you very much.
Shiro Utsugi: Now that the new song is finished, there is somebody I would like to introduce to you all.
Haruka Isumi: Somebody you want to introduce to us….?
Chapter 12.2:
Touma Inumaru: Is that person here right now?
Shiro Utsugi: No, they said they wished to greet you all through a video call. Let me just set up the laptop first.
Minami Natsume: What kind of person are they…?
Shiro Utsugi: Ah, please wait a moment… it’s connected to these headphones right now, so before I switch to the speakers, let me just check with them once again.
Shiro Utsugi: [On the call] Hello? Did you decide on your character?
Haruka Isumi: … “Decide on your character”….?
Shiro Utsugi: [On the call] Anything’s fine. Huh? Ah… ughhh, what a pain. Okay, fine, I got it.
Touma Inumaru: He’s totally snubbing this person….
Shiro Utsugi: Thank you for your patience! Allow me to introduce you to a highly-respected world-class event artist.
Torao Mido: Uh, that didn’t really sound like how one would speak to a highly-respected world-class artist…
Minami Natsume: What is their name?
Shiro Utsugi: Ah, that’s right… please wait a moment.
Shiro Utsugi: [On the call] What’re you gonna do? Which one are you going with? Did you decide already?
Touma Inumaru: We can hear you asking them that, though…
Haruka Isumi: This manager’s introducing us to a really shady person……
Shiro Utsugi: Thank you for your patience! His name is Mr. Moonlight Ichiro.
Minami Natsume: Mr. Moonlight Ichiro….
Torao Mido: Have you heard of him before?
Minami Natsume: Unfortunately, I have no idea who he is either…
Shiro Utsugi: Then, I will be switching to the speakers now. I apologize, but there will be a mosaic filter on his face.
Touma Inumaru: Why!? SERIOUSLY, why!?
Shiro Utsugi: We’re starting now~
- Beep -
Haruka Isumi: Oh! It started…
Torao Mido: Can he hear us already?
Minami Natsume: It would appear so…... Nice to meet you, Mr. Moonlight Ichiro. I’m ZOOL’s Minami Natsume.
Moonlight Ichiro: Yes… Nice to meet you.
Moonlight Ichiro: I am Moonlight Ichiro.
Touma Inumaru: [Internally] … Ryo-san….?
Haruka Isumi: [Internally] … Isn’t that Ryo-san…?
Torao Mido: [Internally] … Is that Ryo-san…?
Minami Natsume: [Internally] … Is that not Ryo-san….?
Moonlight Ichiro: Right then, without further ado, before you compete at the New Black or White, I would like to offer you all some advice.
Touma Inumaru: Now hold on a second… you’re Ryo-san, aren’t you?
Moonlight Ichiro: I am not.
Haruka Isumi: You’re Ryo Tsukumo, right?
Moonlight Ichiro: I am Moonlight Jiro.
Torao Mido: The more I listen to your voice, the more it sounds just like Ryo-san’s though… Also, did you just say “Jiro”?
Moonlight Ichiro: Tch… See? What did I tell you, Shiro? Come on, do it quickly.
Shiro Utsugi: Hold on, I’ll try to do it now…..
Minami Natsume: What are you setting up on the laptop, Utsugi-san….?
Shiro Utsugi: I apologize; it might become a bit harder to hear his voice, but... ah, it's finally done!
Moonlight Ichiro: [With a voice changer] Yes. I’m Moonlight Ichiro.
Touma Inumaru: Oh, never mind, it’s different from Ryo-san’s voice…… AS IF WE’D THINK THAT!
Haruka Isumi: Now you’re just blatantly using a voice changer! Come on, you’re Ryo-san, aren’t you!?
Moonlight Ichiro: I am not.
Torao Mido: It IS you! Utsugi-san, get rid of that mosaic filter on his face.
Shiro Utsugi: Is it okay if I do, Ryo-kun?
Moonlight Ichiro: Of course it’s not okay, idiot!
Minami Natsume: He’s even calling him “Ryo-kun” now…
Moonlight Ichiro: Moving on, I’ll give you some valuable advice that you’ll be grateful for, so listen to what I say carefully.
Touma Inumaru: This takes me back, Ryo-san! Have you been well?
Moonlight Ichiro: I haven’t. I mean, this is our first meeting.
Haruka Isumi: Did you watch “BLAST”?
Moonlight Ichiro: I did! That final episode was no good.
Torao Mido: It was good though?! I did that jump myself, you know!
Moonlight Ichiro: Oh, I know. I read it in the magazine.
Minami Natsume: Would you like to listen to the new song?
Moonlight Ichiro: It’s done already?! The one for the New Black or White?
Minami Natsume: Yes.
Moonlight Ichiro: Okay, just send me the file.
Shiro Utsugi: Ryo-kun. Are we done with the whole “Mr. Moonlight” act now, then?
Moonlight Ichiro: Don’t call it an “act”! Everything’s ruined now because of you.
Shiro Utsugi: Nothing’s ruined yet. If you forcibly continue the act, you might still be able to succeed.
Moonlight Ichiro: Really?
Shiro Utsugi: Maybe?
Haruka Isumi: I’m telling you, it’s not possible. Utsugi-san, do you think we’re stupid?
Shiro Utsugi: Oh, no, I wouldn’t dare to think that.
Haruka Isumi: The person on the other side of the screen is Ryo-san, right?
Shiro Utsugi: Huh……..?
Haruka Isumi: A grown man like you shouldn’t be tilting your head to the side and playing dumb like that!
Minami Natsume: Oh well, I think it’s alright. So, then, Mr. Moonlight, what kind of advice do you have for us exactly?
Minami Natsume: We are no longer going to be dictated by the will of others.
Moonlight Ichiro: Fu… so you’re able to say things like that now, huh.
Moonlight Ichiro: With the goal of triumphing at the New Black or White, I’ll give you some advice on organizing ZOOL’s mini-live.
Haruka Isumi: We don't need it! Don't attempt to involve yourself with us while you're still unwilling to drop the act!
Haruka Isumi: Say it properly. You’re Ryo-san, right? You want to be involved with us, right?
Moonlight Ichiro: …………..
Moonlight Ichiro: You’re wrong.
Haruka Isumi: Utsugi-san, cut the call!
Shiro Utsugi: Understood.
Moonlight Ichiro: Don’t understand him!
Haruka Isumi: See you then, Mosaic Man!
Torao Mido: Wait, wait, calm down! Isn’t this Moonlight thing good enough for now?
Haruka Isumi: You’re too lenient, Torao!
Torao Mido: I mean, I also just went through something similar with the whole, you know, not being able to properly express what I really wanted to do thing, or whatever, so…
Moonlight Ichiro: What the heck are you on about, idiot? I bet in reality, you nearly wet yourself during the action scenes and swapped with the stuntman at the last moment, didn’t you? Because, you know, you lack guts.
Torao Mido: ………………. Haha….….
Torao Mido: Utsugi-san, cut the call.
Shiro Utsugi: Right, I agree.
Moonlight Ichiro: Why are you agreeing with him?!
Shiro Utsugi: Ryo-kun. If you’re just going to mindlessly insult ZOOL, I’m going to cut the call. This is a really important time for them.
Shiro Utsugi: I only set this whole call up for you because you said you had something to say to them. If you don’t, I’m going to end it here.
Moonlight Ichiro: …… Fine. Remove the mosaic.
Shiro Utsugi: As you wish.
Moonlight Ichiro: It’s just as you all say. My true identity is, indeed, the one who scouted you four……..
Ryo Tsukumo: ….. Ryo Tsukumo.
Touma Inumaru: Hm…? Did the blur on the screen just get stronger?
Minami Natsume: Utsugi-san, what did you press?
Shiro Utsugi: Oh? That’s strange……
Ryo Tsukumo: I have my own proper reasons for not revealing my true identity to you four right away. You see, I’m purely in the position of watching over--
Haruka Isumi: Wai- Ryo-san, can we hold off on the serious talk until this gets fixed? It's starting to feel like a police investigation with that mosaic over your face.
Ryo Tsukumo: What…. Hey, what are you doing? This is an important moment, damn it!
Shiro Utsugi: Uh. Hey, Ryo-kun. What did you mess with when we played that game a while back using our faces?
Ryo Tsukumo: The app we downloaded. Isn’t that obvious?
Minami Natsume: These old men with plenty of time on their hands… they spend quite the pleasant time playing with each other, apparently.
Haruka Isumi: So you can still play those kinds of games even after you become an adult… I feel kinda relieved now.
Touma Inumaru: I'm surprised they actually seem to get along pretty well...
Shiro Utsugi: Oh we don’t get along. But I suppose you could say we're sort of like childhood friends, so I’ve been looking after him for a long time now.
Ryo Tsukumo: I’m the one who’s been looking after you. You’re from a commoner family, after all.
Shiro Utsugi: No, I’m the one. You were hated by your family, weren’t you? Ah, it’s finally fixed.
Ryo Tsukumo: [Now normal] Hello there. It’s been a while.
Touma Inumaru: Long time no see. You could’ve just contacted us instead of going about it in such a roundabout way!
Ryo Tsukumo: I was busy.
Minami Natsume: So you haven’t met with Momo-san either? I thought he was a good friend of yours.
Ryo Tsukumo: He isn’t, so I didn’t meet him. But, well, I suppose I can drop by to console him after the New Black or White ends.
Haruka Isumi: Console him? Why?
Ryo Tsukumo: Because ZOOL will be the ones to win, obviously.
Haruka Isumi: ….. Ryo-san….
Minami Natsume: You said that you have some advice for us, but what kind of advice is it?
Ryo Tsukumo: That, I will decide after this. First, tell me the setlist! Or are you going to refuse because I’m an outsider?
Touma Inumaru: That’s only natural. You disappear like that and don’t even contact us a single time afterward…
Ryo Tsukumo: What? Are you mad or something?
Touma Inumaru: I am.
Ryo Tsukumo: ……….
Touma Inumaru: It might not be that I’m actually angry. There are things I’m grateful to you for as well, and despite everything, I can’t really hate you.
Touma Inumaru: But as ZOOL’s leader, I absolutely cannot allow people that I think might hurt these guys to get close to them.
Touma Inumaru: That’s also why I think Utsugi-san called you an outsider too. So, which one are you?
Touma Inumaru: Will you support us and help in realizing this dream alongside us, or are you just here on a whim to pick on us?
Touma Inumaru: Answer us properly…… We already know that you covered for us and disappeared alone to protect ZOOL.
Touma Inumaru: Will you hold our hand once again, properly this time? Please tell us.
Ryo Tsukumo: …………..
Ryo Tsukumo: You four really are idiots.… After I used you so much, you really thought I was protecting you?
Ryo Tsukumo: And on top of that, you want me to hold your hands? You all are idols selling your images, aren’t you? You really are feeble-minded and foolish.
Ryo Tsukumo: I was feeling bored so I thought I’d prick and play with you for a bit, but I’m over it now. My real identity got exposed anyway.
Ryo Tsukumo: That’s the end of that. Shiro, you can cut the call now.
Haruka Isumi: The real idiot is you. Stuuupid.
Ryo Tsukumo: What?
Torao Mido: That really was nonsensical. Utsugi-san, pass me the laptop.
Shiro Utsugi: Here you go.
Ryo Tsukumo: What are you doing? Hey, I can only see Torao’s face in this spot.
Torao Mido: Aren’t you lucky then? You guys, this is fine, right?
Touma Inumaru: Yeah.
Minami Natsume: I don’t mind.
Ryo Tsukumo: What are you secretly whispering about?
Torao Mido: There, I just sent it to you. The setlist. Although it’s not final yet.
Ryo Tsukumo: … Hmm……
Touma Inumaru: We’re thinking about this earnestly and working hard on it in our own way.
Touma Inumaru: If you have any advice, we’d like to hear it. But… I ask that you don’t thoughtlessly try to hurt us.
Touma Inumaru: If we’re affected by your words and can’t give our absolute best during our performance because of that, that would be the worst.
Touma Inumaru: You not liking us even a bit... we don't believe that anymore, Ryo-san.
Minami Natsume: But it’s also true that you left our side without saying a word to us.
Minami Natsume: The present us need someone who may not necessarily love us but is willing to take responsibility for us…..
Minami Natsume: Rather than someone who loves us but is not willing to take responsibility.
Shiro Utsugi: Why are you looking at me? I truly do love you all.
Minami Natsume: If you’re going to be considerate towards our feelings, then let’s play together again sometime.
Minami Natsume: Being an idol is the game Ryo-san taught us— it’s the greatest game in this world.
Ryo Tsukumo: ……………
Haruka Isumi: It's okay, right? You’ll come to cheer us on, won’t you?
Haruka Isumi: I know that you came to watch us last year. I saw you from the stage at last year’s Black or White.
Ryo Tsukumo: …………… Fu……..
Ryo Tsukumo: As if I would cheer for you. I don’t even like idols in the first place.
Ryo Tsukumo: … But, maybe every once in a while, Moonlight Ichiro might make some favorable comments towards you all.
Torao Mido: You’re still going to continue with that character despite failing as hard as you did?
Touma Inumaru: Alright, we got it. In that case, this marks our farewell with you.
Touma Inumaru: But I'm glad we got to see you doing well.
Ryo Tsukumo: Mmm… likewise.
Minami Natsume: Please contact us whenever you feel like it.
Torao Mido: Come to see us, alright? On the day of the event too.
Ryo Tsukumo: If I have the time, maybe.
Haruka Isumi: Cheer us on.
Ryo Tsukumo: Do your best.
Haruka Isumi: ……………
Ryo Tsukumo: … Break a leg.
Haruka Isumi: …. Yeah. Thanks.
Ryo Tsukumo: Haha…….. Shiro, that’s enough. End the call now.
Shiro Utsugi: Understood.
- Beep -
Shiro Utsugi: I disconnected the call. I apologize for taking up your time during such a busy period.
ZOOL: ……………
Touma Inumaru: We’re idols, so… it would be nice if someday we could make Ryo-san happy, too.
Torao Mido: Yeah…..
Shiro Utsugi: You all really are very kind...… hm?
- Phone ringing -
Minami Natsume: There’s an incoming call again…. Is it alright if I pick up?
Shiro Utsugi: Go ahead.
- Beep -
Minami Natsume: Hello, who is this?
Moonlight Ichiro: Hello, this is Moonlight Ichiro speaking!
Minami Natsume: ……….
Haruka Isumi: You're surprisingly quick at changing gears, Ryo-san….
The End.
#idolish7#zool#idolish7 part 6#idolish7 translation#isumi haruka#inumaru touma#natsume minami#mido torao#utsugi shiro#tsukumo ryo#i7#ainana
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Lucy, Jonathan, Mina, and the Bastardization of Their Horror Story
I’ve been chewing on this one for a while. I thought it kind of went without saying among all us bitter bookworms when it came to the TV and movie treatments of Dracula and the characters/arcs therein. A lot is a given by now; a running joke. But goddamn if rereading today’s entry didn’t just tick me right off all over again. So here we go.
Lucy Westenra is best known by public osmosis as ‘Mina’s Hot Best Friend’ and/or the ‘Maneater/Heartbreaker,’ what with her small-scale Helen of Troy setup with the suitor trio and Dracula gunning for her first once he hits England. Most people know the Francis Ford Coppola version which not only distills a lot of her and similar damsels’ treatments in Dracula flicks, but also specifically includes…a lot.
Like this:
It happens for a whole blink, and is never mentioned again or returned to as any kind of meaningful romantic relationship beyond, ‘Lucy hot, Lucy gets around, Lucy makes out with everyone, lol.’ It also includes, and very much highlights, this:
TW: Sexual assault/implied rape/impaired consent
Yeah. That’s Dracula, halfway out of his wolf form. Doing that.
This is followed by her swooning away in bed, becoming more vampy (in both senses) and so forth. Is she still a victim? Yes. But the framework of it has been entirely distorted. She’s the Whore to Mina’s (Marriable! She’s the brainy brunette destined to be with Dracula!) Madonna.
“She was susceptible to Dracula’s seduction because she was already the hot/promiscuous one! It was practically a monsterfucker meet-cute, guys!” –Francis, probably
Then we turn to today’s entry. Hell, the past couple entries in which Dracula’s been zeroing in on Lucy. He abused her sleepwalking, yes, but ultimately resorts to visits, stalking, and—as with today—idly playing with his food by sitting in plain view, watching her watch him, knowing how her mind is struggling between the sleeping trance and the innate dread.
(I know those eyes. I know them. I know him. I fear him. Why?)
This girl, barely nineteen, has been made a target. She has a pliable medical condition being used against her, like pulling a puppet by its strings. She can’t not sleep. She can’t avoid his tugging at her. No more than she can hide from him now that he’s tracked her back to the home she’s sharing with Mina and her mother. And yet, for now, what does Dracula do?
He toys with her. Just a bat at the window. Just a little taste, dear. Back to bed now, I’ll see you tomorrow. And the day after that. And the day after that. Because I can.
There’s no bodice ripping, no overt sexual assault, but the violation remains intact. Along with a far more palpable helplessness. Mina won’t be there to guard her forever or keep the room all shut up against Dracula’s visits. (No spoilers for future chapters, but suffice to say, the Count does not suffer being rebuffed very well or very long. Shit gets intense. Wait and see.)
We saw with the Demeter how Dracula behaves when it’s just a matter of gluttony with victims he has no interest in beyond casual cruelty. Kill, toss, kill, toss. It’s nothing to him.
Willing Lucy to open the window so he can drop the bat form, become himself, and get far more visceral in his playtime would also be nothing. But in Lucy’s case, as with Jonathan’s, when Dracula decides to take a true interest in a victim, he not only likes to savor the game, he prefers psychological torture. Especially with characters established as 24K sweethearts. (Sorry, Lucy. Sorry, Jonathan. Sorry, Mina.)
Right now? Lucy’s just barely at the start of her nightmare. And the most tactile the Count has been with her, period, is a couple nibbles. Everything else is down to the slowly shrinking noose of the situation she’s in. She doesn’t know that yet. Neither does Mina. Mild spoilers, there’s a period coming up where everyone will sigh with relief. They aren’t living in Whitby, after all. They’re on holiday. They’ll leave. Lucy will get better. All is well.
…Until Dracula gets moving too. Back to bloody business. And the volume gets cranked up past 11.
Now let’s swivel to the bizarre (if not unexpected) character flip of Jonathan and Mina’s situations. It’s been gone over a dozen times now just how screwed Jonathan Harker is in every adaptation. He’s either practically nonexistent or transformed beyond recognition into a walking snore. Explicitly ignoring the two months he spent as a captive with Dracula in one-on-one castle time. Canonically, this man spends the most time with Dracula in the entire book. His story could be its own book! Its own movie! And yes, Dracula gives some bullshit excuses about ‘learning how to speak like an Englishman,’ but the core of it was just…he wanted to.
He wanted to keep Mr. Harker in that big stone box with him, just to play mind games, savor that solicitor flavor, then pass him off to the Brides as a present before, presumably, forcing him to turn and join the undead girl gang. And while past directors have loved the idea of a trio of sexy voluptuous vampire babes pawing at a man and each other, that appears to be literally the only purpose Jonathan ever gets within a show/movie. Everything else gets scraped off.
They harvested his devotion to Mina and gave it to Dracula.
They harvested his fucked up Beauty and the Beast-style plush and predatory imprisonment—here, enjoy a cigar, some fine dining, a pretty room, lots of books, nonconsensual touching, being forced to lie to your loved ones, the cannibalization of two children, a woman eaten alive by wolves, knowing your own death date (Which won’t get you out of this castle! You’re here forever! We saved a coffin for you, buddy!), and all the Evil Monster Man Seeks Virtuous Damsel bells and whistles—and gave it to Mina.
Because if they kept to the book that’d look too Ell Gee Bee Tee. And not even in the hot unfulfilled lesbian way! Can’t have that. Nope, we’ll just hand all the creepy-amorous hospitality stuff to Mina.
And oh God. Mina. Poor, poor Mina.
The travesty of what gets done to her character in so many adaptations. She ranges from Classic Bland-Pretty Damsel to Miraculously Sensual-Spiritually Awakened Dracula-Wife (Not a sultry harem Bride, though! That’s for Lucy and the trio of sexy whats-her-faces in Transylvania. Who Dracula always seems to have no matter how romantic and suave he’s being. Can’t drop those standby chicks even for a reincarnation love story, eh, Francis?). We’ll see later how vital she is to the plot and tackling the problem of Dracula.
A problem she will be extremely vehement about destroying, considering the fact that this undead bastard is responsible for tormenting the two most important people in her life, in ways that are intended to terrify, convert, and low-key enslave the victims to a damned eternity. Once she’s clued in to all Dracula has done, our girl’s going to be livid and instrumental to helping the Vampire Hunter Gang in taking him down. But who needs that!?
Just have her go ‘Eek!’ or swoon into Count Fuckula’s manly liberated embrace!
Which really does sum up all of these characters’ crappy deals in media.
Lucy Westenra? Having a nuanced and increasingly horrifying ordeal situated on having a supernatural stalker walking you around like a windup toy in your sleep and preying on you in a fashion meant to ultimately destroy your happiness and humanity so you can join his undead sexdoll collection?
Who needs that!? Make her a redheaded Lilith caricature who barely needs a nudge to give it up to her sexy wolfman-monster-master! She’s the side chick anyway, who cares? :)
Jonathan Harker? Being the character who spends the most time of anyone in close proximity with the Count, the only one to share multiple conversations with him, gets forced into the damsel-in-distress role while Dracula and his Brides make sexually-coded predatory moves on him, gets traumatized by the death and horror he witnessed in the castle he barely escaped, all saturated with the driving force behind his determination being his love for Mina from start to finish?
Who needs that!? Just turn him into a stuffy English scarecrow who gets felt up by the Brides and then we can forget about him. Get that homoerotic shit out of here, we don’t need to see that. Oh, but keep that ‘Loving Mina to the Point of Corruption’ stuff—we can save that for Dracula. :) :)
Mina Murray? One of the earliest examples of intelligent and capable women in all of literature, let alone gothic literature, taking an active role in pursuing Dracula and being exactly as passionately in love with Jonathan Harker as he is with her, said love for him and Lucy being what drives her to participate in a hunt for a monster who wields the threat of not just death, but an infinite horror of existence, a fiend she loathes as much as fears?
Who needs that!? Slap a corset on her, heave up those breasts, and let’s make us a fine Victorian final girl for the Count to woo with his sexy badass vampire charisma. :) :) :)
Fuck :) you, :) Francis. :) And every book-bastardizing director like you :) :) :)
If someone wanted to do a real, fresh and, (yes!) romantic take on Dracula, I think the key would sit with two things.
One: Leaning into the healthy unconventional romantic relationships as much as highlighting the unhealthy/predatory undertones Dracula and the Brides bring to the table. It is possible, even while staying period-accurate.
Lucy can still accept Art’s proposal. But maybe point out that he, out of all the suitors, has the best financial arrangement—and that she and all the suitors basically stealth-conferred with each other. She, Art, and Quincey (Sorry, Seward, you came on too strong, too fast, too weird. Please reapply next year with a new polycule resume, sir.) are a throuple in as close a way as they can manage with Arthur ‘Son of a Lord’ Holmwood basically planning to set up a lifestyle in which they can all still remain together.
Hell, the Suitor Squad should have their own hints and confirmations among each other. Lucy might just be the latest addition to their group, who knows? Play with healthy large-scale LGBT and poly romances! Pool’s open!
Lucy and Mina? Lucy and Mina. In their case, I picture a somewhat past-tense romance, riding in tandem with Mina and Jonathan’s relationship, but open to renewing once all is settled with Mina and Jonathan’s wedding. We’ll say Mina has an open invite, Jonathan too.
Let Jonathan and Mina have the Most Intense Bi4Bi Gothic Romance of All Time the book explicitly lays out for them in coming chapters. They are sweethearts. They have been in love since childhood. They would die and kill for each other. (Yes, that is foreshadowing. Brace yourself, first-time readers.)
Let Jonathan flex his asexual/biromantic horizons. We all read into the ‘thing’ with him and Dracula, and even the hypnosis of the Brides—zero interest in reciprocating/invitation on his part. But if upcoming chapters are any indication, he’ll be firing sparks off with Quincey. Mild spoiler, they have a mutual love of knives! Fun! (Bigger spoiler, Seward, that repressed little bug of a man, is going to start having Thoughts once Jonathan enters the scene. You’ll know when you read it.)
Yes, vampiric and general monster media is often used as a vehicle to explore (or, sadly, demonize/fetishize) the Other. Carmilla did it with lesbians, Dracula does it with—gasp!—a male monster preying on/damselifying another man, the sultry and powerful women being monsters, and with the ‘evils’ of polyamory (No, not just the Bride harem thing. There’s a bit about blood transfusions that takes a unique turn. Again, you’ll know when you read it. Ugh.).
A new adaptation would win a lot of points in depicting all the positive reflections of non-heteronormative relationships and the heart of the last lap of the book, which is a group of good and valiant people taking on a dangerous task for others, and, I cannot overstate this enough, Jonathan and Mina’s love story.*
*Which I’ve mentioned before, could have taken a very spicy and sinister turn in and of itself. If any darkfic-loving directors out there want to take a chance…well. You know what to do with that kukri blade.
Two: Break the story up into three acts!
1. Jonathan—The two months in Castle Dracula.
2. Lucy—The perils of being Dracula’s first ‘special interest’ victim in England.
3. Mina—Everything coming to a big, grisly, race-to-the-finish crescendo.
If you want to add extra salt to the wound, have a prelude and/or interspersed highlights of the fact that, according to the text and its implications, Mina, Jonathan, and Lucy have been friends since they were little kids. Yes, really.
Three friends who have known and loved each other all their lives, all on the verge of their respective happily ever afters, attacked and tormented one after the other by the same immortal sadist. That’s a horror story.
Like it’s supposed to be, FRANCIS.
tl;dr: I respect a good monsterfucker narrative, but Dracula is absolutely NOT THAT STORY. It is horror, and it deserves to be portrayed as such. There’s a whole other essay in how absolutely unrecognizable Dracula himself is in so many media depictions, turning him from a formidable and horrifying entity into ‘Heehee Hoohoo Sultry Vampire Man, give me your love bite~~~.’ They pulled his fangs out and made him into a Ken doll. But that’s a ramble for another time.
#Francis meet me in the pit#lucy westenra#mina murray#mina harker#jonathan harker#dracula#dracula daily#adaptation#bastardization#francis ford coppola#(he is not the only director to do his shit but his is the most well-known/damning/influencing example)#rant rant ramble ramble#dracula spoilers
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Coping With Hope
Tea Type: Half and Half (Fluff and Hurt/Comfort)
Potential Triggers: No twording in this fic! This whole fic centers around creating coping strategies for issues with eating, and that negative voice in one’s head! Hope this helps someone else going through this too! ❤
Pairing: Bakugou/Reader towards the end, but other characters include Todoroki, Izuku, Ochaco, Mina, Kaminari, Kirishima, and Shinsou!
Length: 1.3k+
Summary: You're so thankful for your friends, and they help you brainstorm strategies to help you with your issues.
A/N: Oh would you look at that? A follow up because I have no self control 🙃 This is more of a part 2 than anything to finish off the night so no twording yet! Next fic is where twording'll be more prominent. It physically killed me not to include Monoma in part 1 because if felt he didn’t fit the dynamic so there will definitely be a Shinsou/Reader/Monoma fic at some point.
“So. Now that we’ve established the issue; how do you want us to help?”
Todoroki sat across from you with you up by the pillow and the others all circled around you; crammed on top of Bakugou’s bed.
You were still catching your breath a little, having suddenly been attacked by wiggling fingers and teasing for a solid 10 minutes. It had been overwhelming, but in the best way possible. No doubt Bakugou knew you needed a moment to not think which is the real reason he outed you.
Cheeks still a little pink, the negative voice seemed too tickled out to have anything to say for once, apparently tuckered out.
“Well…”
You nibbled your bottom lip, trying to think.
“Maybe you guys can remind me to eat, gently?”
You fidgeted uncomfortably, shyly playing with your fingers.
“If you ask me directly I may get defensive or anxious; the only one of you I’d say who could effectively get through to me like that is Bakugou, and Todoroki.”
“Me and Bakugou?”
Todoroki seemed surprised and almost offended and you hid a smile behind your hand as you nodded.
“Yeah. See, Bakugou is gonna be the type to shove a cereal bar in my hand and if I try to protest he’s just gonna make me shut up before I spiral. He’ll have me eating before I have time to think about it. Whereas I could see you also giving me small snacks and such, but you have a much subtler way about you of…hm…how do I explain? Like making me go quiet and shy and just doing as asked? I guess intimidated is the right word but good intimidated if that makes sense?”
He snickered under his breath at that, making you look up as you blushed. He reached over and patted your head, affectionately.
“Uh-huh. I get what you mean cutie. That’s fine.”
You tried to move on to cope with your face burning and nodded.
“Th-thanks! Okay um…also not treating me like different? I don’t mind subtle gestures and well-"
You started shyly fidgeting again, eyes flicking to the mattress as you swallowed shyly.
"Affection and physical contact could be a good way to help condition and reward me I think. I kinda forgot how touch starved I was till confronted with it and then I realized how nice it is so-but if that’s weird don’t-”
“Oh we are on it!!”
You giggled as Kaminari near tackled you before cuddling up to your side and nuzzling into your neck. tickling you slightly as you squirmed before giving up and leaning against him. Okay, admittedly that felt really nice.
“Hey save some for us Nari no fair!!”
Uraraka pouted and made grabby hands at you as Shinsou began carding his fingers through your hair again quietly, making you melt all the more into the boy behind you.
Bakugou snorted.
“You really do remind me of a cat sometimes you know that? Gonna start calling you kitten.”
Your eyes popped open at that as you blushed.
“Don’t you dare hotshot. I can think of much worse nicknames given time.”
He leered at you playfully.
“I’m not too worried kitten~ guess you’ll have to get used to it.”
You rolled your eyes but hummed as you tried to think. Was there really anything else?
“What about when you spiral?”
Deku’s voice was kind but concerned and you stiffened a little against Kaminari before shaking your head at him.
“Trust me; you don’t want to hear what the voice in my head shouts at me. I deal better with spirals alone. Better I break down alone, cope with it and then move on.”
He frowned at that.
“But… you have us now. Don’t you want us to help ground you and remind you it’s not true? Kachaan used to help me with my anxiety attacks by doing that.”
You bit your lip, hesitantly but nodded.
“I mean…I can try it. But no promises I won’t run away or something when I get overwhelmed. I get scared of having my emotions negatively affect you guys.”
“Well we’re still here and fine aren’t we?”
Kirishima piped up with a smile that made you relax again with a nod, as Izuku continued.
“Well it should definitely be an intimate group then so you don’t feel too overwhelmed. Me, and either Kirishima or Bakugou depending on who’s available…is there anyone else you think who would help?”
“If she’s not around you guys, Monoma and I can handle it.”
Shinsou spoke suddenly making you turn to angle your head towards him.
“Are you sure?”
You knew Shinsou also struggled with spirals so you didn’t want to make him uncomfortable.
He nodded, determination clear in his eyes.
“Mm. Yeah. And I’m sure Monoma will want to help too. He’s surprisingly good at calming people down. Who would’ve guessed him never shutting up could be useful, right?”
An amused smirk tugged at his lips that you mirrored and you nodded.
“Okay then.”
“Ooh, ooh what about me?”
Ashido raised her hand and bounced in place a little, a grin evident as she looked eager.
“I’m honestly kind of at a loss for more ideas-”
“Oh I got one!”
Kaminari leaned his head on your shoulder, his arms wrapped comfortably around your middle as he grinned at Ashido.
“You like to cook right? Why don’t you make her lunches?”
You waved your hands quickly in denial at that.
“Wha-? No no that’s okay!! I don’t want to waste ingredients or what if I can’t eat it all that day or-”
Shinsou’s utterance of your name made you freeze again and once you’d met his gaze he gave you an amused smile.
“Breathe.”
You did so as Ashido smiled gently and put your worries at ease.
“Well I always buy too much anyway honestly. I make Kaminari’s, Jirou’s and occasionally Todoroki’s too on top of my own so if anything you’ll be helping me out! As for if you’re having trouble eating it all… I’m sure one of the boys will be ecstatic over extra food; so that way you don’t have to feel bad if it gets too hard! Sound good? Oh!”
She laughed in surprise as you hopped across the bed out of Kami’s grip who whined at the loss to hug her in answer, rubbing your back.
At your mumbled thanks she hummed in acknowledgement.
When you finally sat back, looking misty eyed and nervous as you glanced towards Bakugou the others knew it was time to go and began making their way out over the next several minutes as you got up to wish them well and thank them for being such great friends.
Eventually, only Bakugou and you remained, peaceful silence between you two as you tiredly leaned against his shoulder, both of your backs against the pillows as you rested.
Eventually, after a while, you spoke up quietly.
“…Is it bad that I’m scared? Now that everyone knows I just…I’m worried I’ll let them down.”
You felt rather than heard him sigh and he moved to wrap the arm you’d been leaning against around your shoulders, his other hand supporting his head as he looked at the ceiling in contemplation and then answered.
“I think…it’s perfectly normal to be afraid. Even All Might has fear, ya know? But as long as we make an effort every day to fight against that fear. Then I think we’ll also be a little better every day. That’s how I choose to think of it anyway.”
A genuine smile had bloomed across your face at that and you sighed into his neck, the elevated warmth his body provided immensely comforting and disarming.
“You’re gonna make such an amazing hero one day Bakugou. You’re already one person’s. I’m so lucky you found me.”
Your eyed had slipped shut so you missed the way his cheeks flamed though his eyes filled with pride, his grip tightening just enough to make you feel completely protective. The peck to the top of your head was quick but lingered enough to ensure you felt it.
If you hadn’t already been starting to drift into dreamland, you surely would’ve noticed the thickness in your best friend’s voice as he murmured.
“Go to bed, kitten. You’ve had a long day today.”
If only you knew you weren’t the only one who felt saved.
#tlc: fic#female reader#bakugou x reader#kirishima x reader#mina x reader#izuku midoriya x reader#shinsou x reader#boku no hero academia fic#my hero academia fic#todoroki x reader#denki x reader#ochaco x reader#mha x reader#bnha fluff#bnha x reader#boku no hero academia#my hero academia#tlc: milk tea
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I know that I talk about how much I dislike the 90s Dracula movie often. So....here's a list of things I really like about it (which contribute to me finding this version so frustrating):
The Casting (for the most part)
The movie nails the casting of the suitors.
Cary Elwes was an inspired choice for Arthur.
Quincey also spends the whole movie looking like this:
I'd also say that I think Keanu Reeves could have been a fantastic Jonathan Harker. The script just gives him so little to work with.
He may not look much like Van Helsing in the book, but Anthony Hopkins was also playing the best Van Helsing he could, and it's really engaging to watch.
I've never felt like Lucy is well cast, but that is more a product of how much her character changes for this movie's plot.
2. This brief moment where the movie pretends it's going to let Lucy and Mina be more than friends:
They kiss once and it is never mentioned again in the entire movie. It's very male gaze-y. You spend the rest of the movie wondering if you imagined it or if it was a dream sequence.
But, for a brief moment, if you watch it in isolation, this scene looks like it is going to veer into a queer reading of Dracula. (It doesn't, but there is a moment)
3. The Costuming
Pretty much all of the costumes in this movie are a treat to look at.
Like this dress:
or this one:
The men's costuming is also fantastic. It's no wonder that this movie won an academy award for costumes.
I mean, look at Drac being uncharacteristically fashionable:
It comes down to this: My great frustration with the movie is that it looks how I want a Dracula adaptation to look. It has great actors, and for the most part it cast them in good roles. It has the budget, the soundtrack, the costuming. It could have been an amazing Dracula adaptation.
But then it veers off into some truly strange narrative choices and utterly changes pretty much all of the characters in the process. So you end up watching something that looks good, but does not resemble the book by the final act.
#dracula daily#dracula#my thoughts on the matter#since I'd say its the adaptation that frustrates me the most#i have more or less the same issues with the musical#i mourn the movie it could have been with a book accurate script
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Audio Drama Sunday - 30th July ✨
Another great week of audio drama has kept my brain busy while my data collection is less busy. Happy Audio Drama Sunday, please allow me to share my favourites!
SPOILERS!!
🌲 @hellofromthehallowoods (127) Oh NO Mrs Wicker get your children away from that Church!!!! I love to hear the J-sibs starting to push back against her, long may it continue! I'm also still obsessed with the Raven-Writing Desk dynamic and it's only going to get juicier when Mr Writing Desk actually wants to follow Penny’s demands… And Danielle!! I love that she still gets to be an active help in the mission to the North in a way that doesn’t feel like deus ex machina because it’s just her.
🎞 Tiny Terrors (022) this episode had me yelling ‘what’s the catch?!?!?’ internally and I’ve just seen that the wait is over to listen to the other side of the tape!! Angela, what are you??
🌍 @lastechoespod (7) As some of you may know. . . I am a huge fan of Drs in Space. This episode had me gripped, those poor people 😭 What a cruel scare tactic from the Collected for that to be played to the people trying to decide whether to join. I’m so tense to hear what the final archival selection is going to be!
🧛♂️ @re-dracula Things are TENSE aboard the Demeter. Even in <60s of audio, the creeping dread is so palpable. And Mina, sweet Mina! So thrilled to have her back! Listening rather than reading has makes it so much easier to parse the long, chunky sections describing Whitby!! I have high hopes that I'm going to stick with it to the very end this time.
💫 Wolf 359 (24-32) Oh fuck. I am so glad I have all the episodes to listen to at once. I could NOT have dealt with the wait between seasons. Ep 30, Mayday, is possibly one of the coolest things I’ve ever heard. I love that feeling of rooting for a character so hard that you forget that they don’t really exist and that you know they make it because there are another 30 eps of the show left. And the new characters - Kepler, Jacobi, Maxwell - wow, I LOVE to hate them. They’re fantastic in the worst way.
🎩 @ethicstownpod (5) Things got a little creepy on the emergency broadcast this week. Memory is created as it is recalled?? What?? My mind is boggled. I’m very excited to hear how this, and what seems to be a growing discomfort between January and Artemis, plays out in the next episodes!
🥾@doyoucopypod (3) Now. Hear me out. I know that being stuck up in a radio tower all day has got to be boring but I do think there might be a better time to flirt with your colleague than when 3 people are missing in a place called the ‘Dead Zone’ where strange ecological events are occurring . . . Just me?? Have I got the braincell here??? I’m so excited for these shenanigans to get even spookier.
🏴☠️ Yeah. I listened to @levianpod again. What are you going to do? Support their crowdfunder? Good. Do it.
🎧 Such an interesting episode of The First Episode Of with @wirelandranch! The wireland vibes have always been immaculate and it’s so interesting to learn about where it came from and why it’s an amalgamation rather than a straight-up audio drama.
🐬 Described as a weird mystery, @patterspod is exactly that. It���s batshit in the best possible way. Perhaps I hang out with strange people, but the main character is so normal in his weirdness, I feel like most people know a guy like Ryan even though Ryan is a liar ghostwriter trying to hunt down his thieving EX-boss with ?paranormal connections. It’s great stuff.
I hope everyone has a lovely weekend! My goal is to have season two of the show written by the start of August . . . So I should stop writing this and get to writing that . . . Right? Okay.
#audio drama#podcast#podcast recs#audio fiction#science fiction#the vesta clinic#vestaclinicpod#hello from the hallowoods#hfth#hfth spoilers#the last echoes#tiny terrors#wolf 359#w359#re dracula#do you copy#ethics town#levi ackerman#wireland ranch#finding pattersby#audiodramasunday#audio drama sunday#audiodrama
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Hi Teach!
I feel greedy to ask again so soon, but could I perhaps request a NSFW tale involving Shinsou x reader? I have no specifics other than the character, thought it might be fun to see what your lovely mind cooks up for the mini Aizawa in the making? 😁
Much love! ❤️
Hi sweetie! First of all I want to apologize for taking too long 😭 Also, you have no idea how grateful I am that you decided to send me another request! I had so much fun with it so I hope you like it. *Kisses*
Title : Misunderstanding
Characters : Shinsou/ Fem reader
Genre : NSFW/ +18/ Fluff/ Angst
Summary : Shinsou's cool and laid-back personality becomes the reason for a huge argument between you two. You try your hardest to get him riled up and you succeed, but what happens when the tables turn and you regret your doings?
Please do not read if you're a minor
Masterlist
_ "Is this okay?" You beamed, twirling around to show off your cute little dress.
_ "I like it, looks so good on you love." Hitoshi commented kissing your temple and flashing a tired smile.
Was that it? Was he not questioning your ridiculously revealing outfit?
Truthfully, you've only bought that dress as a way to make him jealous. Yes! Jealous. It's probably stupid of you to go as far as to spend a fortune on something you're not even planning on wearing. But there you were, 100 thousand yen short and a failed mission.
_ "I thought I should wear it tonight for Mina's party, so what do you think?" You pushed a bit more, hoping he would object.
_ "Yeah sure." He shrugged plopping down on the couch and flipping through the TV channels.
You wanted to punch him at that point, why was he unbothered? This was the complete opposite of what you hoped.
You and Hitoshi have been together for years, ever since you two were students in UA.
He's your coworker, your best friend, and the love of your life, and you are the happiest when you're with him. If only..
If only he would get a little possessive every once in a while.. if only he would get jealous when someone hits on you.. if only he would get mad when one of your coworkers is a little too friendly with you.
And it's not that he doesn't love or care enough about you -he does- but it's just not in his nature to be controlling or clingy.
.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。..・。.・゜✭・.
_ "Wow! Y/n look at you! You're gorgeous."
_ "Really sexy! You should wear things like this more often."
_ "Amazing dress! It must've cost a lot."
_ "You look amazing! Come on let's take a picture together."
_ "Hi beautiful, come join us."
The compliments kept coming your way from girls and guys alike, and you had to power through them offering forced smiles each time someone approached you.
You enjoyed none of it, the only person whose opinion mattered was the one who didn't really care.
To be honest, you hated the dress. It was too uncomfortable, too revealing, and too fucking expensive. You just wanted to be home so you could take it off and never put it on again.
You wanted to cry, and you were about to, when a strong arm pulled you away from everyone else and you found yourself in an empty secluded room.
_ "What.. Hitoshi, what are you doing?" You couldn't understand his behavior, his eyes were flaming with anger and his grip on your shoulders hurt you.
You reached out a hesitant hand seeking to smooth his clenched jaws.
_ "What's the problem Hitoshi?"
_ "You're the problem! Is this what you wanted? To have everyone ogling you?" His voice raised and it honestly scared you.
You've never seen him that way before and you were afraid someone might find out what was happening.
_ "Please keep it down Hitoshi don't make a scene." He remained silent, and you weren't sure if it was that he had come back to his senses or if he simply had nothing more to say.
You dragged him out gently before bidding everyone goodbye and heading home.
You exchanged no words the whole way back. You were nervous -extremely so- but why would you be? Honestly? Wasn't this what you wanted? To get him all riled up? There! Mission accomplished.
However, you weren't as satisfied as you thought you'd be. He was upset, and that's on you.
You kept thinking of ways to explain yourself to him, but everything you thought of made you seem like a bitch..
.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。..・。.・゜✭・.
_ "Hitoshi, listen to me, I'm.." You opened your mouth to apologize but were cut off mid sentence by his lips on yours. You barely managed to close the door and kick off your shoes when he jumped on your startled form and pinned you against the wall.
_ "I don't wanna hear it." His lips traveled down to latch on your neck while his hands roamed your body eagerly.
He wasn't rough or swift, but he was persistent, as if trying to prove a point.
_ "Please listen to me, Hitoshi, just wait a minute." You struggled to push him away: "I was miserable the whole evening!" You cried out and he finally halted his movements, taking a few steps back and looking intensely into your eyes as he awaited your explanation.
_ "To be honest I don't even like how I look right now! I hate this dress, I feel so exposed, and all the attention I got tonight was discomforting." You gritted your teeth in an attempt to force your tears back.
_ "Then why.." He sounded genuinely confused.
_ "Because of you! Because you're an idiot! Because you don't care enough! Because I wanted to make you jealous but ended up hurting us both instead, and for that I'm really sorry.." Your voice trailed off and your eyes burnt as the lump in your throat suffocated you.
Hitoshi was stiff and tense hearing your words, but fortunately not for long. He cautiously approached you again, cupping your cheeks and lifting your head up.
_ "We're both idiots I guess." He heaved a sigh before carrying on: "You thought I didn't care? Really? How can I be indifferent to the person I love the most?" He lowered his gaze as his voice softened: "But I guess this one is on me. I screwed up didn't I? I made you feel insecure and doubtful.." He looked up again, eyes apologetic as he spoke: "I love you and I trust you, that's why I've never questioned anything. But I ended up burdening you rather than giving you comfort."
You could see his jaws clenching while he searched his brain for what to say next, so you took his hands in yours and smiled: "It's okay Hitoshi, I know how you feel about me so don't force yourself and act in a way you're not comfortable with. This whole thing was just me being a brat, sorry."
_ "No honey, your feelings are valid.. so if you allow me I'll dispel your fears."
What was that supposed to mean? You had absolutely no idea.
You wanted to know, but was again cut off with a kiss, a gentle one.
You melted into it, and all thoughts had left your mind except for one: him.
His arms sneaked around your waist pulling you closer to his chest.
_ "I'll show you." He whispered to a still confused you.
You didn't care anymore, you gave in to him and allowed him to do as he pleased.
You wrapped your arms around his neck and kissed him again, biting his lip and feeling his smirk as you did.
_ ".. to.shi.." His name came out in a moan when he picked you up and walked straight to your bedroom, lips moving to your jaw and down to your neck.
He placed you gently on top of the sheets and circled around the bed, taking his sweet time removing his clothes.
You sat up watching him eagerly as you proceeded to rid yourself of your own garments.
_ "Oh no no no babe, don't take it off, I'll be tearing it to pieces myself." He licked his lips suggestively and you froze in place.
He climbed on the bed with you, spreading your legs at once and positioning himself between them. All you could do was admire the sight before your eyes.
He slipped his hands along your naked legs and moved them up slowly until he reached your butt. Your eyes were still on his naked body observing the way his muscles flexed with each tiny move he made.
He squeezed your ass cheeks and leaned down to kiss your lips. You laced your fingers through his hair and pulled gently as his mouth traveled down to your neck.
_ "Hitoshi.." You closed your eyes and let out an airy moan, enjoying the tingly feeling on your skin.
His hands moved under your little dress, grazing your sides until they reached your breasts. He squeezed the plumpy boobs, swirling his thumbs around your nipples until they went hard.
You cried out his name over and over again like a mantra, and you didn't even care how desperate you sounded.
_ "You're mine, all mine." He growled against your throat: "Everything about you belongs to me." He stopped for a moment to move back up: "Your eyes." He whispered, placing soft pecks on each of your lids: "Your nose." Another one on the sniffling tip: "Your cheeks." Two more on your flushed skin: "Your lips." He spoke against them before kissing you deeply.
You were lost in his touch, and all you wanted was for the moment to never end.
His hands finally left your breasts and you whimpered due to the loss of touch.
_ "Easy babe, I'm not done yet." He smirked, fingers running against your skin until he reached your panties.
He hooked his fingers through the hem of your lace underwear, bringing it down and leaving you exposed.
A gust of cold air brushed your pussy and you desperately tried to pull your ridiculously short dress down, but you failed.
_ "It is too short." His teasing voice spoke to no one in particular.
You squirmed and screamed when his head dived under your dress. It was strangely arousing, not seeing what he was about to do to you.
You bit the back of your hand and tilted your head back, anticipating his next move.
His lips grazed the sensitive skin of your inner thighs before his tongue licked a perfect stripe along your gushing pussy.
_ "Please.." You didn't even know what you were begging for exactly, but he wasn't going to let it slide.
_ "What is it honey? Tell me clearly." He spoke against your glistening clit and all you could do was bite down harder on your own hand.
He lifted his head up, smirking as he gazed at your trembling form, and without a warning whatsoever, he fisted the hem of your dress and ripped it apart in one move.
_ "Perfect." He stated almost inaudibly but you caught it.
His arms roamed your body greedily: "Can I tell you something? Tonight, when all of them were complimenting you, do you wanna know what I was thinking? I was thinking about activating my quirk on them and make them leave.. You belong to me, you're no one else's." He sounded desperate, as if waiting for you to reassure him.
His words might've seemed obsessive, but you knew what he meant.. because you know him.
You sat up, cradling his face and smiling brightly:
_ "Yes, I'm yours and you're mine. Your eyes are the only ones I want on me, your lips are the only ones I want kissing me, and your touch is the only one I want to feel."
His expressions softened and he gently pushed you back on the bedspread, his body flush against yours.
You wanted him inside you, and you weren't afraid to show it. You clawed his shoulders and arched your back until you felt his raging hard cock touching your pussy.
He took the hint and spread your legs further, running his tip along your fluttering clit a few times before pushing in slowly.
You whimpered biting his neck and begging him to start moving.
His pace was slow and steady. He was gentle with you, same as always.
_ "Hitoshi.. I love you.. I love you so much.." You cried out between deep thrusts.
He groaned, nuzzling your hair as his arms sneaked under your back and pulled you closer.
You felt secure, loved, complete. You wanted nothing more.
His pushes quickened, signaling his approaching orgasm.
_ "Ah fuck y/n!" His aroused voice brought you closer to your own blissful ending.
_ "Kiss.. Toshi.. p.. please." You barely managed to speak, you wanted his lips on yours at once, and so did he.
He kissed your cheek first, a sweet loving reassuring peck before locking your lips together.
His tongue sneaked into your mouth and played with your own while his thrusts became erratic as you tightened around him.
_ "I'm cumming! Hitoshi!" You broke the kiss, throwing your head back and scratching his arms when you finally reached your high.
_ "Me too babe.. ugh." He gave a few more pushes before pulling out and releasing on your tummy.
He collapsed on top of you, arms still around your body, as yours were around his neck.
_ "Hitoshi, I'm sorry, I was immature and unintentionally hurt you."
_ "No honey, you did nothing wrong. It's me, I was clueless and ended up troubling you." He kissed the top of your head before turning on his back and bringing you with him.
You smiled, resting your cheek on his chest and listening to his stabilizing heartbeat.
_ "Let's always tell each other if something is troubling us, please."
_ "That's a promise babe."
And you two meant it. As much as it hurt you, what happened earlier was something you'll always be grateful for.
@delirious-donna
#hitoshi shinso imagine#hitoshi shinso fluff#hitoshi shinso headcanons#hitoshi shinso x reader#hitoshi shinsou x reader#hitoshi shinsou x y/n#hitoshi shinsou smut#shinsou hitoshi x reader#shinsou hitoshi fluff#shinsou hitoshi smut#shinsou hitoshi x you#shinsou smut#shinsou fluff#boku no hero fanfic#my hero academia fanfic#my hero academia fluff#boku no hero smut#my hero academia smut
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