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#that bit of text even mentions that this is done for entertainment. which is exactly what the terminals are after...
decamarks · 1 year
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So how do you feel about the Ultrakill arg revealing that Hell is a living, sentient being?
HEHEHEE i actually kinda suspected it already!! the only piece that i was off about was that i specifically thought it was more that hell was being controlled by the terminals as a hivemind—but i WAS still right about those guys being sentient. either way it makes sense and it's a very cute diegetic explanation for some otherwise distinctly video game-y stuff, which i ALWAYS appreciate in any game.
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silliott · 4 months
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One of Us is Lying/Next
Slight Spoiler Warning
ALRIGHT LETS DO THIS!!
Fair warning I read the first book months ago, and the second last night. I have yet to read the third as I just found out it exists but I’ll review that when I finish it!
I can tell the author had a lot of fun with this series, there’s very well built lore, it’s cohesive, every character has a backstory and a reason for their actions (even if that reason is “I was a stupid teenager who got everything I wanted”) and when you get to the end of the book it all clicks together in a shocking way and you’re like “WHAAAAT” or “OMG!!! I KNEW IT” and you text all your friends especially the one who recommended you read it (or maybe that’s just me).
I am proud to say that I GUESSED THE ENDING BOTH TIMES. Well- not exactly the ending but more the major plot twists. Which I think is fantastic, the author gives you enough information to figure it out on your own, but not make it too easy.
These were really “page turners”. I read the first one super quick and the second one in a day (though it was hard to get into it after not reading for a bit). They’re not that wordy or difficult with a pretty low reading level (I don’t know what a reading level is; I just thought it was easy to read). I would not recommend these for young children as they have mentions and showings of suicide, abuse, sex, sexual abuse, murder(obviously), death in other ways, and more. You know yourself, if you’re a ten year old reading this and you think you can handle it, go for it!!
The characters are very thought out and everyone is connected which is fantastic. I’d love to see a character map that shows every connection. Chances are if you see a name, it’s important.
McManus did an excellent job with this book. Every piece of information has some meaning to it, even if you have to look beneath the surface. At first when I heard there was a second book, it thought it was going to be a cheap sequel cash grab, but she did a fabulous job continuing a story that didn’t need it. You can finish the book and be done, or you can read the next one and find out more background about characters, or encounter new, just as well thought out characters and story.
My one major criticism is the ending of the second book. It ended so abruptly I started reading the acknowledgments thinking it was just the next page. She could have done more with that ending I feel, but it wasn’t horrible. It just seemed tired and like she wanted to get it over with.
I give this a 9.75/10 it’s super entertaining and fun, the second books ending was disappointing tho
As much as I want to scream and rant about the plot twists, I won’t. I’m going to save the surprise for you :)
Any of this could change after I read the third book, it’s on my Reading List but it might be awhile (there’s so many 😓)
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namgis-baby · 2 years
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Moonlight [MYG] • Min Yoongi x Reader
You were promised little to no interaction with the annoying asshole known as Min Yoongi when you took up the temporary assistant job with BTS. Even though you did your best to be cordial with him, he always sent snide remarks and eye rolls your way. When a co-worker calls out sick and you’re stuck being his assistant for the night, he decides that he wants to play a little game.
- - - 
Min Yoongi x Reader Oneshot. 18+
Pure filth and smut. Do not read if you are under 18. There are slight tones of dubious consent (no safeword discussed, but both participants willing). 
Warnings: smut, mature, harddom!yoongi, sub!reader, voice kink, dirty talk, no touching orgasm, oral (male receiving), boss/employee relationship, power dynamic, degradation/humiliation, spanking, gagging, no aftercare
Word Count: 4.2k
my first post on tumblr, so I hope you all enjoy! I’d love some feedback as well :) This is also crossposted on A03.
- - - 
“Director-nim!” A bright voice squeaks behind you while you’re preparing a seventh cup of coffee. A smile can’t help but appear on your face before you turn around, looking at the brightly dressed man who was running towards you.
“Oh Hobi-ssi, you’re in a good mood today,” you chuckle, turning back around to put lids on all the coffees, “also, it's not director-nim anymore.”
“Okay then, assistant-nim,” he retorts, jabbing you in the side. He reaches over to grab a couple coffee lids and helps you finish preparing the coffees, all with a big smile on his face. “Come on, I’ll help you bring these to the practice room.”
While making your way down the Hybe hallways, you notice he won’t stop smiling at you, which starts making you feel unnerved. It was rather odd. Surely he has better things to do than to help you prepare their coffee order, and even when he or the other boys had done it in the past, he’s never smiled at you so brightly, yet sheepishly before.
“Hobi-ssi, what’s going on,” you pause in the hallway to look at him.
Your suspicions are confirmed as his face gets a bit more sheepish while the big smile continues to stay on his face. “Anyeo-ssi called out sick today. Her daughter has a fever… so we’ll need you to take over her shift tonight.”
“You could have just texted me that,” your eyes narrow, “what aren’t you telling me?”
He turns away from you slightly, his arm reaching up to rub the back of his neck, “Yoongi hyung just needs an assistant here tonight while he finishes up his mixtape. Before you say anything, we asked Jejin too but he couldn’t make it tonight.”
You sigh and nod while you both keep making your way down the halls. You figured that you would be assigned to help Yoongi sooner or later. When you were a camera director for Run BTS, you never had to worry about working with him. You’d often be paired up with Hobi or Jimin, which worked great since you all got along so well. Well, you got along with most of the boys, really. All of them, except Yoongi.
You still remember your first week on the job. They had split the filming of the episode into two days, and you were paired with Hobi for the first day and Yoongi for the second. The first day went by great, as you learned Hobi was super easy to work with and was a great entertainer, knowing exactly what he should do for the camera. It’s not that Yoongi wasn’t, he was very funny, even if you hated to admit it, but you noticed that after filming stopped, he would glare daggers into you and make snide remarks your way. You mentioned this to Hobi and Jimin, who told you that he could come around and that he was probably just wary of having new people in his orbit, but even after a couple of months of being randomly paired with him, the stares and jabs continued. Eventually, you had gotten a promotion to be the main camera director for Hobi, so for the most part you could just avoid Yoongi.
That is until now. Since Run BTS was on a break, Hybe had opened up some temporary positions in the company for anyone who worked on the show. While you would have also loved to take a long vacation, living in Seoul was expensive, and you didn’t mind your new position, just being a helping hand for whatever the boys needed. More often than not, they felt bad calling for help with simple tasks they could do themselves, so you were left browsing the web and watching videos in the break room for your entire shift. The company just wanted someone there who they could call on for help if they needed it, but save for a few coffee requests, your shifts usually passed by without anybody asking you to do anything.
“I can see you fretting,” Hobi sighs as you get to the door of their practice room, “It’ll be fine. He hardly ever calls for Anyeo. You can just spend your time watching Goblin again and getting paid double.”
You chuckle slightly and nod at Hobi, “I know. I just wish I knew why he hated me so much.”
“He doesn’t hate you,” He rubs your back softly before opening the door, “Who knows what even goes on in that pabo’s mind.”
“Director-nim!!” A big screech catches you off guard as you enter the room and place the coffee down on the table. Jimin runs up to you and pulls you into a tight hug as a giggle escapes your lips. You hear a scoff from across the room and look up just in time to see Yoongi roll his eyes and pull out his phone.
“It’s nice to see you too, Jimin-ssi,” you give him a tight squeeze before letting go, choosing to not hear his whine at your formal language, “I’ll be taking over Anyeo’s shift tonight, so if any of you need me just let me know.”
— — — — — —
You glanced at the clock as you finished another episode on Netflix. 3:30AM. Your shift was technically almost over since you were scheduled until 4am, but in the end it all depended on what time Yoongi decided to leave the building. Knowing him, he would likely overstay that, especially if he was working on his new mixtape, which was fine with you. It had been six hours of only the both of you in the building, save for some overnight janitors, and you hadn’t heard a peep from him.
Since your shift was technically almost over, you didn’t want to start a new episode of your show. Instead you just pulled out your phone and started watching funny pet compilations on Youtube and laughing out loud. Suddenly, your phone buzzed.
Yoongi: I can hear you laughing from my studio.
Me: Sorry Yoongi-ssi.
You sighed and turned off the video. While this was the easiest job you’ve ever had, it also came with a lot of downtime. If you were smarter you would have brought a book to read or took up a hobby like knitting. Instead, you just tapped around your phone and found a new game to play to kill the time. You were deeply immersed in a game of Tetris when your phone buzzed again, causing you to fail the level.
Yoongi: Iced Americano, now. Code 9090.
Your eyes widened looking at the text. He never gave out the code to his studio to anybody - not even Hobi knew it, but perhaps he knew that you’d be the last person to want to enter there willingly. You got up and went to make a fresh cup for him with the industrial espresso machine that the boys had specifically requested for their break room.
Me: On my way.
You carry the cup of coffee down the hall towards his “Genius Lab.” You kick off your shoes next to the door and punch in the code before opening the door and walking into the dark room. You immediately notice Yoongi sitting in his chair, hunched over the console, eyes fixated on the screen.
“Where would you like the coffee, Yoongi-ssi?” You spit out starkly, wanting to give him the coffee and get out of there as quickly as possible.
He responded by tapping a coaster on his desk. You roll your eyes and place it down loudly, “Please let me know if you need anything else.”
You turn to leave but before you can reach for the handle, you hear something that nearly makes you jump. “Sit.” He all but nearly growls. Still facing his computer, he uses an arm to point at his couch. Knowing that he was technically your boss and you had to comply, you shuffle over and take a seat on his lush black couch. You think he might turn to say something to you, or ask you to do something for him, but he just ignores you and keeps working on his music while you are just sitting there doing nothing.
You sat there for more than ten minutes before you decided on pulling out your phone from your pocket and started scrolling through Instagram. While it could definitely be seen as unprofessional, you were bored of sitting there watching him mess around on his computer.
“Am I boring you?” You look up to see his chair turned now, facing you.
You scoff, “Yes. Why am I here? I got your coffee.”
“And you can’t even do that right. There’s too much ice.” He smirks in your direction, which just causes you to roll your eyes. Professionalism be damned, he was starting to piss you off.
“Would you like me to make you another one, Yoongi-ssi?” You fakely responded, hoping he would say yes so you could leave.
He shakes his head and takes another sip of the Americano, “Though, you could help me with something else.”
You look at him quizzically as he grabs his keyboard and walks over to the couch, taking a seat next to you. He salt silently, his dark eyes staring right at you. You tried not to look flustered at his eyes scanning over your face, but at the same time it was pissing you off. “What do you want?”
He responds with a chuckle, pissing you off even more. He then presses the spacebar on his keyboard, and music starts blasting through the speakers, causing you to jump at just how loud it was. The beat was light and playful, his voice silky smooth and bright, slight laughs sprinkled in, yet the lyrics spoke to the struggles he felt as a musician. It was catchy yet touching, and you found yourself having to stop from nodding along to the beat. As much as you hated him, Yoongi was a genius when it came to rapping, but you’d be damned to admit that out loud. The song stopped suddenly, and you turned to look at him with a blank expression on your face.
“Yes?” You ask him.
“That’s all you have to say?” He sneers your way, “What did you think of it? Be truthful.”
You snorted. There was absolutely no way that you’d let him know your true thoughts. “I’m not a professional, but I thought it had a catchy beat, and the lyrics were… interesting. It would be much better without your god awful voice though, Yoongi-ssi. Maybe you could give it to Jungkook-ssi to-”
Your snide comment was suddenly cut off by a low growl as he roughly keyboard down on the coffee table. He moves uncomfortably closer to you on the couch and leans into your ear, “Please, assistant-nim, can you stop being such a brat for once.”
Your jaw drops open at his comment and he takes the opportunity to grab your face and twist it so that you’re facing him, lips centimetres apart from each other. He lets out his signature breathy laugh and uses his other hand to run his hands through your hair softly. You are so stunned you don’t know how to respond. Was this just another part of his teasing, trying to get you all worked up so that he could throw you out? Surely that’s all that it could be.
“If my voice is really that annoying to you,” he whispers darkly in your ear, “Then why are your thighs getting tighter against one another? Why is it that I can see you hardening, even through your bra?”
You sat there blankly, not knowing what to say. You questioned yourself. Why were you feeling a rush while he whispered in your ear? You hated him, right? The man who had been tormenting you for a year, who was always making snide remarks to you. Not to mention that he was technically your boss, as you were his assistant.
“I think,” He interrupted your thoughts, “you lied to me.”
He grabs your arm and pulls you over so that you are sat right between his legs, your back pressed to his chest. You’re still so stunned you don’t know what to say or do, not that it stops him from continuing to position you to his liking. He hooks each of his legs around yours and pulls your legs apart, while one of his arms hook both of your arms tightly behind you, pulling you into his chest. You let your head fall back onto his shoulder, and you can feel his deep laugh vibrate your body.
“I think that you enjoy my voice just fine, maybe even too much,” He growls into your ear, sending shivers throughout your body, “Don’t you?”
You do your best to try and form an answer, but your brain is completely blank. A mixture of emotions have completely clouded your brain, from complete lust, to being embarrassed that he’s put you in this position, to being utterly confused as to why he was doing this to you. All you can concentrate on is the arousal that is radiating throughout your body.
“What? No quip back? Is that all it took for you to become a brain empty slut?” As those words leave his lips it’s like a zap courses through your body, a moan leaving your lips as you arch your back. You could feel his words go straight to your clit, making it throb hard as you clenched around nothing, still fully dressed.
He chuckled again, “Does that do it for you? Being called a slut?”
You feel another bolt of energy hit your clit again as you throw your head back on his shoulder, another loud moan leaving your lips. You can feel a knot start to build up in the bottom of your stomach, even though all he’s doing is whispering in your ear and holding you. Your clit was throbbing, your pussy clenching quickly around nothing, begging to be touched.
“What a little whore,” he sneers, “I bet I could ask you to do anything right now and you’d willingly do it wouldn’t you? All it takes is a little whisper, and you’re ready to do anything I want you to, and you’d enjoy it so much wouldn’t you, little slut?”
You let out a whimper as his voice kept sending zaps directly at your clit, making you euphoric, “Please.”
“Please what, slut?” He spat out.
You whine loudly, “Touch me.”
Another whimper leaves your lips as he laughs deeply, vibrating your entire body, “Oh, little whore. Maybe you should have thought of that before you called me annoying. No, I think I’ll just use my ‘god awful’ voice to tell you that I’d love nothing more than to bend you over that table and whip you so hard with my belt until you’re bleeding. One for every single time that you’ve pissed me off, which would take hours, slut.”
You moan out loud, arching your back and thrashing against his hold as he grips you tighter. You can feel your clit absolutely throbbing, begging to be touched, and you know that your underwear is completely soaked through. The knot in your stomach kept building and building as his words sent you clenching around nothing.
“And when I’m done, I’d simply fuck your mouth, brusing your throat until you’re unable to say anything to me for days. I’d take your voice away with my cock, wouldn’t you like that, you little cum slut?”
You whimper and nod as you feel your clenches get faster and harder.
“I’d completely ruin you, and I know your little whore ass would love it, wouldn’t you? You’d love nothing more than to be my cock sleeve, your only purpose to fulfil my needs. I could even keep you here, in my studio. Have you tied up in the corner, ready to take my cock in any of your holes whenever I need it. Only existing to be my little cum dumpster, doesn’t that sound nice?”
Under any other circumstances, you would have scoffed and slapped him in the face, but you couldn’t help but nod feverishly and moan out loud, feeling that knot in your stomach start to reach its peak as you clench rapidly around nothing, your clit throbbing. You whimper, “c-c-clo-se,”
“Aw, I thought my little slut hated my voice,” he sneers and wraps his free hand around your throat, causing you to clench even harder than you thought possible, “Yet here you are, little whore, about to cum just from me telling you what I’d do to you. Are you that touch deprived? Is that why you’re such a little bitch? Is that what I need to do to change your attitude? Have my little slut tied up in my studio, gag on of course, you’re such a loud little whore, vibrator in your ass and pussy, forcing you to cum over and over while I whip you until you’re sore and bleeding? Would you be nicer to your sunbaenim then?”
A scream rips through you as you reach your peak, your back arching and pelvis shaking as waves of pleasure rip through your body. Moans keep escaping your lips as you continue to clench and buck in the air while Yoongi keeps an iron grip on you.
As you start to calm down from your high, you can feel your cheeks redden. As if he can sense your embarrassment, he laughs loudly, releasing you from his grip and shifting you so that you’re sitting on one of his legs facing him.
“What a good girl,” He smirks, “Though I thought you hated my voice.”
You roll your eyes at him and lean on his shoulder, resting against the couch. You can’t believe that he just made you cum, only with his voice. Normally men couldn’t make you cum with their dicks, yet Yoongi had done the impossible by just talking to you. He runs his hand through your hair, pulling you close. You can feel his hard dick straining against his pants on the back of your thigh and notice him suck in a breath as you get more comfortable in his lap.
“Oh you’re dangerous babygirl,” He throws his head back in a moan as his hips buck slightly into your legs, “Can I fuck your dumb little slut mouth?”
You nod quickly and climb off his lap, kneeling on the floor in front of him between his legs. He gets up quickly and starts to unbutton his jeans, pulling them down. You grab onto his boxers and pull them down slowly, grabbing his thick cock and pulling it out. You’d be lying if you said you hadn’t imagined it to be big, but it was somehow bigger than you expected and you weren’t sure how you would be able to fit it in your mouth.
“Open,” He drawls lazily, tapping on your jaw. You quickly lean your head back and drop your jaw as far as you can, as he grips your head and guides his dick into your mouth. You do your best to relax as he pushes past your mouth down your throat, causing you to gag slightly. He holds it there for a couple seconds, moaning loudly, before pulling out. You cough, trying to catch your breath as he taps your face again, expecting you to open.
You do your best to keep your composure as he starts to grab your head and fuck your throat harshly, but soon you’re a drooling and crying mess. You can feel your makeup start to run as your eyes water every time he hits the back of your throat, and you know it's going to cause a nasty bruise. You can’t help but start to feel that familiar zap hit your clit every single time he pushes all the way in causing you to gag.
“You feel so good, little slut,” He growls out between thrusts as he grips your head and continues to fuck you harder, “And look at you, my ruined little cum dump.”
He pulls out of you completely and then pushes his entire length in you, holding it there until you start to feel lightheaded like you’re about to pass out before pulling out again. He grabs your arm and pulls you up towards his desk. As if you were a ragdoll, he positions you so that you’re bent over the desk, your legs spread, with your arms gripping the other side of the desk.
“Yoongi, please,” You whimper as you feel him start to walk away after placing you on the desk.
“Please what, little slut?” He chuckles.
“Touch me.”
You can sense him moving back towards you. He places a hand on your back, rubbing it slightly as you try to shimmy your ass back to find him, only to be met by a harsh slap to your ass.
“Patience, whore.” He growls out. He reaches underneath you and unbuttons your jeans, pulling them down and helping you step out of them. He runs a finger against your completely soaked underwear, causing you to moan loudly.
He pulls them off of you and moves to the other side of the desk. “You’re such a little slut, you know that? Look at how soaked these are,” he sneers at you and starts to roll the underwear into a ball. He grips your jaw until you’re forced to open your mouth and shoves them in your mouth, pushing until they go as far back as possible.
He moves back behind you and starts to caress your ass. You wiggle, trying to signal to him how much you wanted to be touched, only to be met with a harsh spank. You cry out against your underwear at the pain, gripping the table to try and keep yourself upright.
“What’s wrong slut? I thought you wanted me to touch you.” He jabs at you, “This is touching you, isn't it?”
He continues to spank you harshly and relentlessly. While the pain is nearly unbearable, sending shivers throughout your whole body, you can help but notice that it’s also making you incredibly turned on. Every single spank sends a zap straight to your clit, making you moan out in pleasure and cry out in pain at the same time. He goes on for what feels like forever before stopping and rubbing your ass, making you cry out at the tenderness. He reaches forward and pulls the underwear out of your mouth.
“Please Yoongi, please touch me… there, please fuck me, please.” You whimper out desperately, not wanting a repeat of the last time.
He doesn’t respond so you start to get up to look at him, only to be harshly pushed against the desk again, his hand on your back. You can feel him positioning himself at your entrance. A loud moan leaves both of your lips as he pushes in slowly until he’s fully inside of you. It feels like he’s tearing you apart, but in the best way.
He hooks one of his arms around both of yours and pulls you up slightly so that you’re hovering off the desk as he starts to pound roughly into you. Your eyes completely roll back into your head as he continues to fuck you relentlessly.
“Yoon-Yo-Yoongi, you feel so good.” You whimper out as he hits that special spot inside of you, making you clench around him so tightly.
You can feel the now-familiar chuckle run through his body, “You’re such a good little slut for me babygirl.”
You feel the all too familiar knot start to build up quickly in you at the mention of his pet name for you. It starts to build even faster when he reaches around to rub your clit. “You’re so wet, little slut. You’re enjoying this too much aren’t you? I don’t even need to touch you to make you cum. You’re willing to do anything for me aren’t you little whore?”
You nod feverishly as you feel yourself nearing your peak, “I’m going to cum.”
“Then cum, whore. I want to feel you cum around me, coat me and I’ll fill you up like the filthy cum dumpster you are.” You start to absolutely lose it at his words, screaming and reaching your orgasm, clenching around his cock so hard. You can barely hear the expletives leave his mouth as his hot cum fills you up while he pushes as deep as he can inside of you.
You let out a loud breath as he pulls out of you. You push yourself up on the table and try to stand, but you’re not convinced you won’t immediately fall over. You settle for leaning against the table as you watch Yoongi walk over to the couch, grabbing his boxers and pants, putting them on again. He reaches towards your jeans and picks them up, throwing them at you as you barely catch them. He walks past you and grabs his laptop before putting it in his bag, then grabs his motorcycle helmet.
“Please make sure this room is clean before you leave, assistant-nim.” He gives you a gummy smile before turning around and exiting, leaving you in shock, still half naked on his desk.
What the fuck was that?
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adriensaltprompts · 3 years
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Submitted prompt: Extra Turns Penalty
edited a bit
AU in which we take the fact that Adrien actually used the Second Chance to loop back in time for 25,913 times at face value, and without hiding or ignoring how this can affect him as well.
So, Adrien looped back in time to “"save”“ Ladybug (Read: Find out who she is and harassing her), 25,913 times, and assuming that he more or less used it nearly every five minutes to prolong his "entertainment” for every loop, the math gives us that Adrien had kept looping for almost 90 days, nearly three months.
This amount of looping back and using the Miraculous with no stopping, and not to mention that Adrien was still wearing Plagg’s Miraculous, must have definitely caused a strain on not only Adrien’s body, but his mind as well.
We can assume that Plagg and Sass managed to deal with the strain when Adrien was transformed, but what would happen if he detransformed?
So, imagine that when Adrien detransformed in the sewers, he immediately drops unconscious much to the surprise and horror of Marinette.
But that pales in comparison to when Sass, tired and sleepy, tells Marinette exactly what Adrien decided to do with his power.
Something that would completely erase any feelings Marinette had to him.
For three entire months, Adrien focused on only either finding her identity, or flirting with with her, no matter the consequences.
So what does that show about who he is as a person?
That he is a manipulative and awful person, that’s what.
Her thoughts gets interrupted by Luka’s arrival, who is shocked at the sight of Adrien’s body. She tells him the condensed version of what happened, and this time, with much greater hesitance and wariness, she gives Luka the Snake Miraculous, making it clear that there would be consequences for abusing her trust and the Kwamies.
The battle with Desperada is over and done with quickly, despite Luka’s inexperience, and after detransforming, Luka asks if he can give Sass some food if the kwami desired, which the Kwami gladly accepts; still exhausted from the overuse of his powers.
And Marinette’s crush on Adrien was burned to ashes from this experience, especially now that she compare his behavior to Luka’s.
————————————
Ironically, the consequences for Adrien did not end there.
Due to the fact that he lived for nearly three months in daytime, his biological clock was out of wack, causing problems such as irregular sleep intervals, problems with remembering his normal daily activities, and it made his mood more difficult to maintain.
And he also had to deal with his new habit of moving his hands as if he wanted to use the Second Chance whenever annoyed or when something didn’t go as he wished, which was often.
No doubt that this happened due to his overuse of Sass’ power for a long period and near constantly without anyone being able to stop him.
It became a reflex for him to do so, something he didn’t even notice. He starts getting a red mark on his arm from his attempts to spin the Miraculous.
This made life difficult for him, because everyone notices this gesture he is suddenly repeating every few seconds or minutes, especially since he can’t simply state why or how this happened.
Gabriel, after getting bombarded with mails, texts and requests (from not only Adrien’s classmates, but also his fans, other models, and even Nathalie) to help Adrien, decided that Adrien will not be modeling or doing anything for a few months so he can go to a doctor and a therapist to have his new and inexplicable condition treated.
But this might not be all bad for Adrien, as the doctor and therapist in question can possibly help him realise how abused by his father he is, and not only help him fight back, but also help him find out the power and desire to stop being a cruel person, and even manage to make him enjoy being a good person and redeem himself.
But that, is yet to be seen.
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studiojeon · 3 years
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troubled outsiders | intro - jjk
| summary | -  how you two end up pining for each other.
warnings: none :) 
content: idol!jungkook x student!oc, friends to lovers (because it’s THE superior trope okurrrt), jungkook is quiet and shy but a social butterfly when needed (and when it comes to oc but you’re not supposed to know that yet), oc is both a badass and a socially akward queen, she has TWO friends and only because one is dating the other (like... same), the Lee Charyeong is her bestie, oc works at bighit and feels like everyone either fears her or hates her, author nim is a crackhead and has no plot planned for this series whatsoever (doesn’t know if she’ll keep this up, we’ll see).
words: 1.93 k
His presence was overwhelming, to say the least. Even if he were surrounded by six hundred other equally handsome men, somehow, to you (and the majority of the female population, at that point) he was as captivating and magnetic as they come. Jeon Jungkook didn't pay no mind to no one, but sure as hell everyone became hyper aware of his existence and essence in time. And that didn’t exclude you.
Yet, as nonchalant and indifferent as the man could be perceived, in reality he was more considerate and friendly than the aura he exuded. You knew this because working in the same company had to teach a thing or two about the people who literally carried said company and the whole industry at some point, still you barely knew four or three people, including your assistant and Jungkook, whom you had met once.
The opportunity of working at the company had come to you out of the blue, quite literally, you were attempting to send one of your assignments in when an email appeared in your notifications during your sailor moon study break. 
HYBE Entertainment
We’re glad to inform you that you’re being recruited for the position of Logistics Manager in one of our sub companies, BIGHIT Entertainment. We’ve thoroughly looked through the CV you’ve submitted and are very interested in your capabilities and what you can contribute to our organization. One of our other managers will gladly meet you on a day you can both agree on. Make sure to answer this email to get more details about your interview.
“Nani!? THE FUCK?” sure as hell that your eyes and cognitive functions were deceiving you (ADHD) you went over the text a little over three times in a row before the message settled in your mind. This was sus. 
Before even considering a reply you made a quick call. “Fucking Lee Chaeryeong” you spat on your end of the line. “You did this, didn’t you?”.
Her silence was more than enough to have you cursing her under your breath. “I don’t know what exactly you’re talking about but it most likely was me. Does it have to do with a sex toy in particular?”
“No” you denied almost monotonously, guessing the pile of boxes in the corner of your room with her names on them was what she referred to. “Does anything come to mind if i mention BIGHIT FUCKING ENTERTAINMENT?”
It was her. All those conversations during the summer about how badly you wanted to work in the entertainment business as marketing staff of some sort had their effect on your friend, who, despite all your excuses and denials, knew you better than you and your mom combined did, and because of this, was sure as hell you were not making a move towards that goal whatsoever. So, being the boss bitch she was, she took matters into her own hands, was what she explained.
You concluded that was the reason you had reached a point in your life where you had more experience than most recently graduated kids in your field, because Chaeryeong had you moving every summer break. You had been the manager of a coffee franchise and convenience store during you junior and senior years, and also figured a way to improve the marketing management strategy of a fucking restaurant while at it. Not to toot your own horn, but you were kind of cool.
Or not. “I hope this job satisfies your workaholic ass for once, I’m running out of ideas”. Chaeryeong spat before hanging up.
Sure as hell it would. 
On friday afternoon, you made your way to the HYBE INSIGHT building and introduced yourself to your recruiters who promised to give you a call at some point. “It went fine” you told Chaeryeong once you were in your car. And it was the truth, however you weren’t so sure if they would actually hire you at some point since well, you were a girl in a male dominated industry and, in your opinion, there were always better people than you. “Wanna go grab coffee?”
“I want to. But, I have practice today. I’m actually on my way there. Please avoid driving through Hongdae today, this shit’s packed.” You sighed and thanked her for the heads up. You missed your friend, badly. You hadn’t seen each other in three weeks, and you didn’t even live so far away from each other (you did, but it had been worse before). You two had very agitated lives to say the least. Chaeryeong was a kpop group member, and well, you were jumping from job to job and getting your phD in Business Management at the same time. It was hard to find moments to spare together during some periods of the year, but you guess the anticipation made your encounters better.
“Talk about anticipation” you slammed your forehead against your desk, taking a breather after such an anxiety packed situation. Short story: you got the job (for some fucking reason). And you had gone through a whole week of expectancy and anguish. Not getting that job would have broken your heart, and ego at the same time. 
You guessed the law of attraction tactics Chaeryeong had taught you had sorted their effect and were what led you to your current position in life.
“Miss _____, your presentation’s ready” your work assistant gave you a comforting pat in the back as she took a seat somewhere next to you. You were nervous, shitless. It was your fifth week at the job, and being the proactive woman you were, you had collected lots of data in order to come up with a resources management plan.
It was a Thursday afternoon, and more than a hundred people sat in front of you, waiting for your speech. Including him, who you’d once bumped into accidentally during one of your data recollections runs inside the building. 
You hated having the need to impress others yet, hence your anxious behaviour. But this was a decisive moment in regards to your validation in your new job and how you’d continue to be perceived during your work stance (no reason to panic at all)… you needed to get it together.
“I think I just pissed off a bunch of old men right now,” you told your assistant right after you got off stage. “I need a bathroom break”. Linh gave you a reassuring smile, one she always had plastered on her face.
“Take as long as you need to. I’ll give you a call once the rest are done”.
The commute to the bathroom was unnecessarily complicated in your opinion. You had spent a little over a month rushing through the hallways of the building and you swore every single day your spatial orientation got a bit more fucked up. There was no way there wasn’t a single bathroom on the floor you were in, that would just be atrocious. “It’s not completed yet” someone said beside you as you stared at the half empty map the company had projected on a wall next to the elevators. “Where do you need to go?” 
Kim Taehyung of all people in the world was talking to your ugly and unworthy ass. Your breath caught in your throat and after staring for at least five seconds your body finally reacted to your orders. “Oh, um… the bathroom. I’ve been looking for it for a good ten minutes” you explained with a nervous laugh.
“Trust me, I get it. I still get lost over here” he smiled gently. “It’s in the hallway in the middle of the next hallway” 
You laughed at his very ambiguous explanation. “Thank you” you bowed your head and made your way to said destination.
It was in the hallway to your left, not your right, and it took you a while to figure out that new piece of information. Once you were staring at yourself in the mirror, you realized that you looked considerably tired and exhausted from all the social interaction you had undergone throughout the day. You were used to the side stares and whispering you’d get whenever you entered a room at that point, but some days you just wished you could get a break from them. After all, it wasn’t your fault you didn’t look Korean at all, and that you also didn’t fit the stereotype of a foreigner.
You got that from your mom, both the non Korean features and social fatigue. But that wasn’t even the problem most of the time, it was your friendly and smart nature which she had also passed onto you. Some would consider it a blessing, but to you it was a burden, like a clear glass that shielded you from introducing yourself into other people’s realities. You had few friends and people to trust, but in your everyday life you had to deal with the pressure of standing out too much and that came with a lot of negative energy from others. You sigh as you spray your favorite fragrance on yourself. You could be feeling like shit, but no one will ever catch you slipping.
But that excluded him apparently. You hadn’t noticed that on the other side of the hallway was the men’s bathroom and the realization hit you as you were calmly getting some tea from the vending machine. “Good afternoon” the man greeted you as he made his way out the hallway, but stopped in his tracks right after he noticed you. “_____! Hi” he smiled at you and you wanted to die, suddenly forgetting what you were ordering in the first place.
“H-hi Jungkook” You smiled back, poorly attempting to put your wallet back into your backpack. 
“Need help there?” he noticed your agitated state and held your bag for you. He smelled just as heavenly as you had expected, somewhat between big dick energy and flowers. Oh, and he also remained as kind and polite as you remembered him.
Seeming as if he wasn’t planning on continuing his path to wherever he was heading to in the first place, he stood quietly by your side, waiting for you to be done with your deal. “How have you been?” you break the ice for him.
Quickly, you grab your tea and start walking back to the auditorium together, unaware of your surroundings or the suspicions that could arise. “Busy, but very good. How have you been? I saw your presentation earlier… I wish I understood half of what you said but you still sounded amazing”.
And you would never admit it out loud, but you were positive you were blushing (and falling in love too - platonically, of course). “Oh god, you think so? I basically told them they’ve been doing things wrong all along so maybe you’re the only one who’s appreciative of my work” you handed him the second can of iced tea you bought without him noticing. You swear his eyes lit up like stars in the night sky. “Payback for the other day” you smile at him.
The first time you two had crossed paths you didn’t look nearly as glamorous as you did now. In fact, you looked incredibly disturbed and in pain, carrying a huge pile of paperwork in your hands. But as soon as sweet Jungkook noticed your state, he offered you a hand and somehow ended up helping through your multiple data collecting trips that afternoon. It was a nice day.
“Anytime” he took the can in his hands with a shy look on his face. “Unless I’m practicing, you know…” you look down at his feet, with huge black boots engulfing them, and you smile due to their contrast with his personality. “Here, i’ll give you my number so you can call me whenever you need to put all those papers back. Hopefully I’ll be around” he added as he pulled his phone from his back pocket.
Way to get a girl’s number, my god.
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taeyongdoyoung · 3 years
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summary: as someone who’s been tormented for being a nerd, you’ve never viewed your friendly teasing towards your best friend seonghwa as bullying. but that is until he completely changes his style and image in school, confronting you about your past behaviour, so you have no choice but to admit the real reason why you’ve been making fun of him...
pairing: popular boy!seonghwa x nerd!reader
genre: high school!AU (the characters are 18 for the spicy parts huehehe), best friends to fake dating to lovers, angst, romance, smut, fluff
warnings: friendly teasing, clichéd/unrealistic portrayal of high school dynamics, hwa does kabedon on yn like once, seonghwa’s a bit of a tsundere, fake dating, hints of possessiveness, slightly problematic remarks, yn is briefly hwa’s slave?! (no, i will not elaborate), bullying, mean girls, insults, hair-pulling, kicking, death threats, some swearing, self-blame, power play, overuse of pet names (princess, baby, little girl, etc.), sir kink (i won’t apologize lol), begging, yunho being nosy (yes, that’s a warning), mention of hypothetical collars, insecurities, making out, loss of virginities, lots of kissing, soft dom!hwa, eating out, fingering, blowjob, consensual protected sex, dirty talk, praising, aftercare, crying, hurt&comfort, a lot of dorky references (cuz that’s me, after all), jumping off a balcony (don’t try this at home!), happy ending
author’s note: will i ever stop bullying poor hwa’s kermit hoodie? no. jk, i lov him so much, he’s so talented & gorgeous no matter what he wears ;-;
disclaimer: all jokes aside, i do not in any way condone bullying and this work is entirely fictional for entertainment purposes! i’ve been physically and emotionally tormented in school and though i have not talked much about it, i do not wish such an experience to anyone! treating people with kindness is cool and i hope everyone spreads more love! ❤️
word count: 9.4k
Having been best friends with Seonghwa for four years now (ever since your first year in high school), you couldn’t help but making fun of every little adorable thing he did. And honestly, you admired his patience when it came to putting up with your incessant teasing. Diligently cleaning up everything after him? You’d call him a neat freak. Not being able to drink coffee? You’d call him a teacup loser. 
So, when he started wearing that green hoodie of his to school, you couldn’t resist the temptation to call him Kermit the frog. And at first, it all started as a joke. But then the nickname kinda stuck and you just kept addressing him as Kermit, even if he wasn’t wearing the delectable green hoodie. And at one point, you could tell that poor Seonghwa was not a huge fan of the whole thing. But he never called you out on it or told you to stop. He never teased you back for being a hopeless nerd who studied 24/7 and read books for fun. So, you kept going.
Until the summer before your last year in high school arrived. Sadly, Seonghwa was going to be out of the country for the whole vacation. You were going to miss him terribly, you realized. You had become so used to seeing him everyday that you couldn’t imagine how you’d last three months without being able to see his pretty face all the time. You’d occasionally text him memes and ask him what he was up to. But as the summer was coming to an end, his replies became less and less frequent, more and more concise. You kept wondering if you’d done something wrong. It couldn’t be the Kermit thing, you began telling yourself. After all, it was normal to tease your best friend every once in a while. Right?
When the first day of your last year in high school came, you were nervously anticipating the moment when you’d see Seonghwa again. Summer without him had been so boring and you couldn’t wait to hug him again and find a new thing to joke about.
The second you saw him, you instinctively knew there would be no more joking around. Seonghwa practically walked into the school hallway like he owned the place. He’d completely changed his style and overall image. Gone were the dorky hoodies you secretly loved so much. Instead, they were replaced by a black leather jacket. Gone were the casual sweatpants he looked so good in. In their place were dark jeans that made him look kinda dangerous. And the whole confidence with which he carried himself was just totally different. 
If you had known that a summer abroad could change a person so much, you would have tried harder at convincing him to stay in the country. On top of it all, he was now hanging out with a bunch of popular a-holes that you had never talked to before. Honestly, you couldn’t even gather the courage to approach your best friend. He looked so distant and unfamiliar that you couldn’t help but feel a little hurt. Especially when you heard him laughing at the cool kids’ jokes. That should have been you...
You remembered when you were the one making him giggle, as if it was a century ago, when in reality it was just a couple of months. You kept sighing during the whole day, not daring to even talk to him. If he wanted to still hang out with you after his sudden “change in status”, he would, you kept convincing yourself. But he didn’t. In fact, he ignored you the whole day, making you feel like shit.
Just as you were leaving the school building in a hurry, mentally prepared for an evening of crying your eyes out and eating ice cream, you felt a hand grabbing you tightly. Turning around, you were surprised to find Seonghwa’s eyes staring back at you.
“Hi, princess,” he greeted you calmly.
“H-hi, S-seonghwa,” you responded dumbly.
“What? No witty comeback?” Seonghwa scoffed, smirking.
“What are you talking about?”
“Aren’t you gonna bully me and call me names again? Kermit? Teacup loser? Neat freak? What’s it gonna be this time?” he spat out, pushing you against the school wall and extending his arms to touch the cold bricks so that you would feel trapped.
“Bully you?” you whispered in disbelief. “H-hwa, I wasn’t...I didn’t m-mean...”
“Oh, yeah?” he mocked your stuttering self. “Then, why did you say all these things, huh?”
“You know why,” you replied.
“No, I don’t. So, tell me right now or I swear, I can make your existence a living hell,” Seonghwa threatened.
“Because I like you, you idiot!” you cried out. “I like you so that’s why I’ve been teasing you. Because if I didn’t, I would have to admit how attractive I find all your habits. How adorable it is when you used to tidy your desk and how sexy you looked in that damned green hoodie. There, I said it. Are you happy now?”
You were so frustrated with the way he ignored you all day only to accuse you of bullying him that you ducked your head swiftly beneath his arm, simultaneously bending your knees, and, thus, successfully escaping from Seonghwa’s ambush.
“Y/N, wait!” he called after you, but you were running too fast and luck was on your side, as the bus arrived at that exact same moment, allowing you to get on it, before he could.
You couldn’t sleep much that night, tormented by the fact Seonghwa had confused your friendly jokes with bullying and how foolishly you’d confessed your feelings for him. You were certain that your affections were unrequited and now that he had this whole new position in the school hierarchy, he would undoubtedly make fun of you for them. You were even considering transferring to another school to avoid the potential embarrassment.
In the morning, no sooner had you finished breakfast in the comfort of your room than you heard loud honks. They were unlike the ones in your dad’s car so you couldn’t help but wonder what jerk had decided to park in front of your house and make your day even worse.
“Sweetie,” your mom informed you a bit after. “Your friend Seonghwa is here. He said he’ll drive you to school today. As promised.”
“He did?” you mumbled in confusion. But maybe because you weren’t ready to talk to your mom yet about what happened yesterday, you lied. “Ah, that’s right, I almost forgot.”
Hurriedly, you grabbed your bag and practically sprinted downstairs. You were curious to see what he wanted. And that’s exactly what you asked the minute you entered his car.
“What the fuck are you doing here?”
“Aw, no good morning for me, princess?” Seonghwa pouted and God, you hated how cute you found him after the way he’d treated you the previous day. “What does it look like I’m doing?” he rolled his eyes, starting the engine. “I’m driving you to school.”
“I can see that. But why?” you hissed.
“Well, someone got up on the wrong side of the bed,” he groaned. “If you’re so insistent on finding out, I’ll tell you. Ever since you told me how you felt yesterday, I’ve been thinking...And I’ve come to the conclusion that you have two options. Option number one is to enjoy your hellish last year of high school. You’ve had your fair share of teasing me so I’m definitely going to enjoy telling everyone about your little crush on me. It’s going to be so much fun to embarrass you in front of the whole school.”
What the fuck was wrong with him? Seonghwa was supposed to be your best friend! Why was he suddenly acting like you were worth less than a dirty rug? Was it possible that he had changed so much in the span of three months? Or was he always like that? Had you been blinded by his good looks? No, that definitely wasn’t the case. Seonghwa was the sweetest guy you’d ever known. How did he get so...cold? Cold enough to chill your bones.
“And what’s option number two?” you grunted, already anticipating the worst.
“So, there’s this annoying girl in our class I want to avoid at all costs. Just because her parents are doing business with mine does not mean I’m into her. Option number two is for us to pretend we’re dating in school. Considering how much you like me, I’m assuming it won’t be very difficult for you to pretend. If you agree, that is.”
What a jerk...You shared your sincere feelings with your best friend and that’s the first thing that crossed his mind? To use you in order to avoid some random girl? If it was any other guy, you would have said no. If you weren’t desperate for even a fraction of Seonghwa’s time and attention, you would have said no. If you weren’t so pathetically whipped for him, you would have said no.
“I’ll do it,” you said. “For how long do you need me to be your fake girlfriend?”
“Just until graduation. Then, we’ll fake break up and each go our separate ways. How does that sound?”
It sounded terrible! You wanted Seonghwa to be a part of your life forever. But with the way he was treating you, you weren’t confident he felt the same way anymore.
“Sounds great,” you lied, because you couldn’t give him the satisfaction of hearing your thoughts. You’d never be perceived as weak again.
The second you walked into school, Seonghwa’s arm wrapped possessively around your shoulder, everyone’s eyes were on you. It was like high-schoolers had no better thing to occupy their time with but to gossip around the latest dating news. If you weren’t enjoying his company so much, you would have found their reactions pathetic. And somewhat unnerving.
“When did you two lovebirds start seeing each other?” one of Seonghwa’s popular friends Yunho asked.
“Oh, you know what they say. A girl and a guy can’t stay just friends for long,” Seonghwa responded.
You internally rolled your eyes. Your best friend before the summer would have never said such a thing. Whatever the reason for his current behaviour was, you would get to the bottom of it. And right now, you felt like going along with this whole fake dating thing was your best chance at unraveling the mystery.
For the first day of your little arrangement, everything seemed to be going fine. Everyone was staring at you two but you didn’t mind. All you cared about was him. However, soon enough Seonghwa started asking you for weird things.
“Carry my bag for me.” / “Get me a drink from the vending machine, will you?” / “Bring me a snack from the supermarket across the street.” / “Oh, and for my friends, too, doll.”
Seriously, it was getting infuriating. You no longer felt like you were his bestie. You didn’t even feel like you were his fake girlfriend. At this point, you had practically become his slave! Running any errand and carrying his stuff for him. But what was the alternative? If you refused to play your part in this pretend dating scheme, he could easily turn against you and make fun of you in front of the whole school. So, you kept your mouth shut and swallowed your pride.
One evening, around a month after the fake dating agreement had started, you had stayed in the library a bit longer to prepare for an upcoming assignment. By the time you were out of the school building, you supposed that Seonghwa had already gone home. Frankly, the only nice thing he was intent on doing for you was driving you to school and back to your place most of the days.
As you were making your way towards the bus stop, you had the strangest suspicion you were being followed. Not daring to turn around, you started walking faster. But unfortunately, your attackers also sped up and soon enough, you were surrounded by a group of angry faces. Their leader was obviously Eunhee, the most popular girl in the whole school. And coincidentally, this was also the girl whose parents were doing business with Seonghwa’s parents. The very reason you were fake dating your best friend in the first place.
“Well, if it isn’t the little bookshrimp,” she mocked you, sticking a sharp nail into your chest. You didn’t bother correcting her that the right term was bookworm. You were already in enough trouble as it was. For some reason, teasing Seonghwa had been easy because you meant well and you were sure he wouldn’t hurt you. Not really. Because he knew how badly you’d been bullied in middle school. But now that you were met with so many threatening figures, you froze rightaway, unable to defend yourself.
“Just l-leave me alone,” you stammered.
“Aw, aren’t you a little pathetic shrimpie?” Eunhee cooed and started pulling your hair harshly and kicking you onto the ground. The other girls were holding you down so that you wouldn’t fight back. “Did you seriously believe you can steal Seonghwa from me? We’re meant to be together and if you stand in our way, I will fucking kill you!”
“S-stop, you’re hurting me!” you exclaimed sorrowfully. You tried your best to shield yourself and push her away but her loyal minions were preventing you from doing so. Just as Eunhee was about to slap you across the face, you witnessed as her threatening hand was stopped mid-air by the interloper whose features you couldn’t quite discern in the dark. But whose voice you would recognize anywhere.
“You think you’re so brave?” Seonghwa yelled at Eunhee and her friends. “Ganging up on her like that? Six against one? You’re the pathetic ones.”
“Hwa, we were just trying to teach her a lesson. She should learn her place, after all,” Eunhee tried to explain.
“A lesson?” he scoffed. “You dumbasses can’t even pass Calculus and you want to teach the smartest girl in our school a lesson?” your heart melted with warmth at how highly he thought of you. “Oh, that’s rich.”
“You won’t tell my dad, right?” Eunhee was suddenly on the defensive. She’d probably be in big trouble if he found out how his precious daughter was behaving in school.
“Get out of my sight right now or I’ll tell the whole country,” Seonghwa threatened through gritted teeth. (Later on, he actually did tell her dad about the incident and Eunhee, along with her followers, were suspended from school for two weeks. Oh, and their rich parents cut off their money, which was pretty impressive an accomplishment). And so, the vicious girls scattered like roaches in daylight. Pulling you onto your feet, Seonghwa grabbed your hand and started walking towards his car which you somehow hadn’t noticed parked nearby. Getting inside, he started the engine immediately but his hands were clutching the steering wheel so hard you were feeling a bit scared. You had never seen your best friend so angry. Well, maybe the only other time that came close was when you were telling him about your past experiences with bullying...
“Are you mad at me?” you asked sheepishly.
“At you?” he chuckled harshly. “Why would I be mad at you? You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“I don’t know...”
“Why didn’t you fight them back?” Seonghwa inquired.
“I tried, but I was reminded of middle school and just...froze. I’m sorry.”
“It’s alright, I’m not blaming you,” he replied calmly. “I was just wondering. Cause I know you’ve been going to self-defense classes. And I thought you were making progress. I mean, the last time I came to watch, you were pretty good.”
That was before the summer. Of course it was. Still, you were touched by the fact that he remembered. Despite acting like he didn’t care, you instinctively knew he did.
“I mean, I was,” you said. “But I panicked.”
Seonghwa let go of the wheel with one hand and placed it on your bare knee, rubbing calming circles around it. You two were alone so you were certain this was no longer the fake dating thing. This was just your best friend being there for you when you needed him the most.
“If anyone tries that shit again, just tell them you’re my girlfriend, alright? They have to be idiots to mess with you,” he spoke angrily.
“Fake girlfriend,” you reminded him sadly.
“That’s none of their business,” he replied, but didn’t correct you. Oh, how badly you wished to be his real girlfriend. To show him how much you cared for him.
“Why did you change so much over the summer?” you suddenly asked, while Seonghwa was driving you home.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Seonghwa responded harshly. “You don’t like my green hoodie and you also don’t like my leather jacket? There’s really no satisfying you, is there?”
“I didn’t mean your clothes,” you mumbled. “Just...your overall attitude towards me. Before the summer you used to let me squeeze your cheeks and sit in your lap and now you seem so...unapproachable. I’m just saying, we were closer when I was your best friend than we are now that I’m your fake girlfriend.”
Seonghwa stopped the car abruptly, making you blink in shock.
“I changed because I was sick of you treating me like a little boy and I wanted you to start seeing me as a man,” he admitted but without looking into your eyes.
“W-what are you saying?” you swallowed nervously.
“Nevermind.”
“No, you have to talk to me, Hwa!” you insisted desperately. “If you still consider me your best friend, be honest with me. Please.”
“This,” he gestured vaguely at you as he finally met your gaze. “This is exactly why I changed so much, Y/N. I don’t want to be your best friend anymore.”
His cruel words hurt you more than anything you’d ever experienced in your life. More than all the bullying, the slapping and getting pushed against a wall. Losing your best friend was your worst fear. But you had promised yourself to never be weak again. So the second he said that, you pulled the handle of the side door, attempting to get out of his car. Before you could do that, Seonghwa grabbed your hand, effectively keeping you in place.
“I want to be your boyfriend. For real this time,” he elaborated.
You stared at him in utter confusion.
“But...when I confessed, you acted like you didn’t care. Like I meant nothing to you.”
“Forget how I acted. I only offered the fake dating shit because I wanted to get closer to you again. Make up for the lost time during the summer. Do you honestly think I give a fuck about what Eunhee thinks or says about me? I just used that as an excuse. I’ve told her I’m not into her hundreds of times. And yes, maybe I have changed. Not because I don’t care about you. But because I do. You used to gush about Count Dracula and Darth Vader so much that I thought if I became the bad guy, you’d finally notice me. I wanted so terribly to impress you and make you stop seeing me as your adorable best friend that I got too lost in the feeling of holding power over you...Too lost to notice you liked me all along, didn’t you?”
“I did,” you whispered teary-eyed. “I do,” correcting yourself. “H-hwa, I’m so sorry to break it to you but-”
“If you reject me, I won’t be responsible for attempted murder,” Seonghwa interrupted you jokingly.
“I’m so sorry to break it to you,” you repeated with a sly smirk. “But no matter how hard you try to change, I will always see you as my adorable best friend. And though I have to admit I did stop teasing you temporarily, that was only because you suddenly started behaving like the dangerously sexy king of the high school. Can you blame me for feeling a little intimidated? I know I’ve said this before but I didn’t think me teasingly calling you Kermit would go this far. I never meant to hurt you, Hwa.”
“I know you didn’t, princess,” Seonghwa whispered, gently stroking your cheeks.
“And yes,” you smiled shyly, leaning into his touch.
“Yes, what?”
“Yes, I want to be your real girlfriend. It would be a dream come true.”
“Yeah?” he chuckled, as if the very idea seemed amusing to him. “How badly do you want it?”
“So badly, I would do anything for you, sir,” you uttered the last word without thinking much, your brain somehow recalling a time when you two had discussed how you’d enjoy being called by a potential significant other. In retrospect, that wasn’t really a thing best friends generally talked about.
“Sir?” Seonghwa grinned, leaning his head against your forehead. “Keep that up and your real girlfriend status will be confirmed.”
“I want to kiss you so much,” you were on the verge of begging. Oh, screw it. “Please, please, let me kiss you.”
He didn’t respond, just connected your lips with his own softly, taking his time with you. It was pure magic. You had thought about kissing your best friend thousands of times. But nothing compared to the reality. Parting your lips further to let his tongue in, you physically couldn’t prevent yourself from moaning into his mouth, overwhelmed by how good it felt. How insanely intoxicating he tasted. How you were burning alive and it would be the sweetest death imaginable.
“Not if I kiss you first,” Seonghwa said once he broke the kiss apart. “Oh, wait, I just did.”
What the hell...had just happened? Sneaking a peak at the time, you were suddenly panicking by how late it was.
“Holy shit, my parents are going to kill me!” you exclaimed. “Can you please drive me home?”
“Sure thing, princess,” he laughed, increasingly amused by your flustered self. “That’s exactly what I was intending to do anyways. I’m not in the habit of keeping little girls past their bed time.”
“Shut up, I’m not a little girl!” you complained. “I’m just a few months younger than you. Asshole.”
“Hey! Is that any way to speak to your devoted boyfriend?” Seonghwa scolded you teasingly.
Oh, God. You loved the sound of that. Your best friend was now your boyfriend. It still felt unreal.
“I’m sorry, sir,” you mewled apologetically, already knowing how to make him weak for you with just one tiny word. “And thank you for taking me home.”
“Anytime,” Seonghwa smiled. “See you tomorrow, baby.”
You could get used to it. Reaching forward to open the door for you, he whispered in your ear:
“I’m taking you out on our first date. Doll yourself up for me, will you?”
You nodded, your heart beating too fast to actually manage a verbal response. After you got inside and suffered a brief interrogation from your parents (using the library+extra assignments excuse), you hurried up the stairs, took a quick shower and then went to bed. No sooner had you closed your eyes than your phone buzzed with notifications.
Kermit the Frog: You still up?
Kermit the Frog: For fear of sounding lame, I moss you already
Kermit the Frog: *Miss...damn autocorrect
You chuckled upon seeing his messages. Whatever demon possessed you to still keep that nickname in your chat, you knew you had to change it immediately. If he saw it on your first date tomorrow, you would never hear the end of it.
You: I’m awake, yes
You: And I moss you too 😉
You purposefully misspelled the word to tease him. After all, it was only in order.
Boyfie 🐸: That obnoxious Kermit nickname better be gone by tomorrow
He texted as if he’d read your mind and you gasped in surprise.
Boyfie 🐸: Or we’re having our first couple fight!!
You: How did you know?!?
Boyfie 🐸: Not my fault you keep your phone unlocked sometimes
Boyfie 🐸: I’m not kidding, change it right now 😡
You: Changed it already
You texted him back quickly, sending him a screenshot.
You: Can I at least keep the frog emoji? 🥺
Boyfie 🐸: NO!!! REMOVE IT OR WE BREAK UP 😡😡😡
You: Damnit, Hwa, your angery Aries is showing...okay, fineee
You sent another screenshot of the now changed emoji.
You: Happy now?
Boyfie ❤️🖤💙: Much better, princess 🤗🤗🤗
Boyfie ❤️🖤💙: Now go to sleep, we have early classes tomorrow
You: Wow, so bossy. Okay, sir, I’m going
Boyfie ❤️🖤💙: Good night, my baby 😘
You: Staaahp, ohmygosh. And good night, Hwa 🥺
The next morning you ran outside faster than The Flash as soon as you heard the oh-so-familiar honks. When you saw Seonghwa waiting there to pick you up, your heart did a backflip as you excitedly took the passenger seat.
“Good morning, boyfriend,” you greeted him and kissed his cheek. “This still feels so strange.”
“Well, you better get used to it, doll. Wow, you really cleaned up nicely today,” he complimented your pastel pink dress. “Not that you usually don’t! You’re always gorgeous, I just meant that you’re especially gorgeous and...nope, that also sounds wrong. Okay, I shut up now.”
“Relax,” you giggled. “It’s fine. I appreciate the effort. You don’t look so bad yourself. Oh, who am I kidding? You’re practically sex on legs 24/7. I think it’s time for me to shut up now.”
“You’re so cute when you get flustered. Anyone ever tell you that?”
“Just you,” you admitted.
Once you walked into the school, it was like everyone noticed the subtle change in your dynamic. Because Seonghwa did something he never did before. He carried your bag and gave you his leather jacket! And Hwa’s friends were immediately onto you like bees to honey.
“I mean, I knew you guys were dating,” Seonghwa’s friend Yunho observed. “But I never saw the chemistry before, to be honest. Until now. I mean, come on, Y/N was like a loyal puppy, always following Hwa around.”
“Hey, don’t give him any ideas!” you joked.
“Too late. Already ordered the collar,” Seonghwa winked.
“Kinky. Can’t tell if I’m into it or want to cut off my ears,” Yunho grinned. “Probably both.”
“Nice chat, but we gotta head to class, Yu,” Seonghwa said because his friend was in a different class.
“See you for lunch?” Yunho suggested.
“Can’t. Already made plans with this little girl,” Hwa tilted his head towards you.
“Whoo, enjoy, then!”
“It’s not what it sounds like!” you groaned, feeling uncharacteristically embarassed.
“Isn’t it?” Seonghwa smirked mysteriously and pulled you towards the room you had class in.
“Nothing involving collars and puppies, I assure you!” you yelled (perhaps a little too loudly), twisting your head, not wanting to give Yunho and the rest of Seonghwa’s friends the wrong idea.
When your classes for the day were over, Seonghwa led you towards his car once again. You were a bit nervous to make a good impression on your first date. Even though it was silly. Your best friend of four years had surely made a first impression a long time ago.
“Where are we going?” you asked to break the awkward silence.
“It’s a surprise, princess. Can you be patient for me?”
“I can,” you promised dutifully and placed your tiny hand on top of his. “Anything for you, sir.”
Seonghwa lost focus on the road for the briefest of moments in order to give you a warning look. One look and that was all you needed to keep you quiet and obedient. Eventually, you realized where he was taking you. Though you hadn’t been to his place for a couple of months now, you couldn’t forget how the drive to Seonghwa’s home looked.
“I dressed myself up and we’re just going to your place?” you hmphed in playful annoyance. “So much for our glamorous first date.”
“Don’t underestimate the power of my cooking skills. Shit, I sorta ruined the surprise, didn’t I?”
“Aww, you were planning to cook for me on our first date? Hwaaa, I’ve only had you as a boyfriend for less than 24 hours and you’re already pulling out the big guns! I don’t mean to push my luck but if you’re cooking now, I’m trembling to witness our one month anniversary.”
Seonghwa rolled his eyes.
“You’re very ambitious to think you can put up with me for an entire month.”
”Hwa, sweetie, I’ve put up with you for four years.”
“Not as your boyfriend, you haven’t.”
“We’ll talk again in 30 days,” you vowed enigmatically.
“Here we are,” Seonghwa announced once he parked in front of his home. “My parents are currently at work so you don’t need to worry about...well, anything, really.”
“What’s the supposed to mean?” for some reason his words made you even more worried.
“Nothing, I just meant you can...like, be yourself. There’s no one to impress.”
“There’s you,” you pointed out. “Don’t forget your parents already know me. And besides, you’re the only person I care about impressing.” 
“Not to stroke your ego, but you’ve already impressed me. After all, you’re the only one who’s had the audacity to compare me to a freaking muppet and survived.”
“Point taken,” you chuckled.
“Come on, let’s get inside,” Seonghwa suggested and the two of you entered his house. No matter how much you begged him to let you help with the cooking, he was insistent that he would do all the work. Said something about making up to you for the times you had to carry his bag or buy snacks to him and his friends. When you argued that you also had some making up to do for all the times you teased him a little too insensitively, he said that you agreeing to be his real girlfriend was enough to satisfy his wounded heart. Seeing that there was no point in arguing, you gave up and occupied yourself by mindlessly scrolling through social media. About an hour later, Seonghwa finally deemed his culinary masterpieces ready to be eaten. He allowed you to at least help set the table which you considered a small victory. The second you tried the first meal, you were so overwhelmed by the exquisite tastes that you spoke without thinking much.
“God, I wanna marry you.”
Seonghwa simply chuckled, amused by your unexpected reaction.
“Did I say that out loud?” you whispered, completely mortified, covering your mouth in embarassment.
“I’m afraid so.”
“Shit, I’m such a mess,” you mumbled.
“No, it’s fine. I take it as a compliment. Now, eat up before it gets cold. If my wicked plan works, you’ll have bought me a wedding ring by the time dessert arrives.”
“Truly wicked. I’m in danger,” you laughed and kept enjoying the various meals Seonghwa had prepared. 
Once the plates were empty, you felt so full and warm you couldn’t possibly move. And no, that wasn’t an exaggeration. Seonghwa had to physically carry you to the couch so that you two would re-watch Star Wars: Return of the Jedi together, warmly cuddled up under a blanket.
Suddenly, you were possessed by the urge to speak your mind and be as honest with him as possible. After hiding your true feelings for four years, now that you were finally given the chance to be yourself, you were feeling uncharacteristically brave.
“You know, even though I was messing around earlier, I had indeed daydreamed about marrying you back in our first year of high school. You were the first boy who ever treated me like I wasn’t the walking joke of the universe. The first who ever hung out with me not as a prank but because you actually saw me as a friend. When I started teasing you about your cute habits, I hope you know I never wished to hurt you. I just wanted to show you that I notice and appreciate every single detail about you. So, yeah, I really like you, Hwa. Have liked you for a long time.”
Seonghwa had paused the movie the second you started talking. And now that you were done sharing your thoughts, he seemed unable to say anything. The silence was a bit awkward so you interrupted it once again.
“I’m sorry, that was silly. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable so early in our re-”
This time, he interrupted you with a kiss, pulling you into his lap, just like the good old days. You smiled into his mouth, wrapping your arms around him.
“It wasn’t silly. I appreciate you saying all that,” Seonghwa reassured you. “And for the record, I know you meant well with all the teasing. In a sense, a part of me even suspected that you liked me back. But I was also feeling a bit insecure. I kept thinking that you could do so much better than go out with dorky Kermit guy who has an obsession with tidying up, you know? That you deserved someone else. But I couldn’t allow anyone else to be that someone. So, I changed myself.”
“Maybe you did change a little. But in my heart, you’re always going to be my Frog Prince Hwa.”
“I hate you so much,” he rolled his eyes.
“Naw, you don’t.”
“Fine. I hate that you’re right.”
Things between you and Seonghwa were going great. It had been three months since you two started dating for real. He was super attentive and caring towards you. However, you were a bit bummed out since not much changed compared to his behaviour as your best friend and as your boyfriend. Sure, you did start kissing each other and occasionally making out (which wasn’t exactly a best friend activity). But there was one thing that still had not happened. And the more time passed, the more anxious you felt to bring it up.
One evening, you had miraculously convinced your parents to let you have a sleepover at Seonghwa’s place. After insisting that nothing out of the ordinary was going on between you two and even if something unusual did happen (which you highly doubted but secretly hoped for), you were going to use protection (and no, you were certainly not referring to Seonghwa’s collection of action figures who carried weapons).
As you and your boyfriend were enjoying your snacks while watching TV from the comfort of his bed, you couldn’t help but finally raise the question that had been tormenting your mind for a while now.
“S-seonghwa...do you not find me attractive?”
“What the hell are you asking me that for? Would you be my girlfriend if I didn’t find you attractive?”
“Well, I don’t know. I’ve never dated anyone before so...I was just wondering if there’s a particular reason why we still haven’t...taken things to the next level?”
“The next level?” he chuckled. “Relationships aren’t video games. And to answer your question, the reason’s actually the exact opposite of your concerns. We haven’t done anything more than making out because I find you ridiculously attractive. And it’s taking every last inch of my self-restraint to not pressure you into something you’re not comfortable with. I just wanted to wait until you’re ready.”
“Ready? So you knew that I haven’t...with anyone...yet?” you purposefully left out some words because you were feeling incredibly shy discussing this with Seonghwa.
“Of course I knew, princess. You’re my best friend. And my girlfriend.”
“Well, that’s a relief, at least. That you’re not repulsed by my...inexperience.”
“Why would I be when we’re in the same boat?”
“We are?” you whispered in shock.
“Why do you look so surprised?” Seonghwa laughed. “I’ve had the biggest crush on you since forever. Did you honestly think I would just screw anyone else?”
“Well, it’s not like you didn’t have options,” you pointed out, referring to all the potential love interests swarming around him like bees. “Unlike me.”
“Are you regretful, little girl?” he inquired, running a lazy finger across your cheek. “Jealous?”
“No, I just...want to be the best for you, sir,” you confessed nervously.
“You’re already the best I could hope for,” Seonghwa responded and kissed you hungrily, burying his hands into your hair.
“Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” you curiously needed to know. “That you haven’t either...”
“It’s not something that comes up in everyday conversation?” he pointed out. “What was I supposed to say? Hi, bestie, let’s have lunch together. Oh and by the way, I’m a hopeless virgin pining over you?”
“You’re right,” you laughed. “It would have made things awkward.”
“Now, unless you have any other pressing issues, I suggest we go back to kissing.”
And without giving you the time to argue, Seonghwa devoured your lips rightaway, gently pushing you down so that your back hit the sheets. Then, he started slowly taking off your jeans. Anxiously trembling under his vigorous touch, you placed a hand against his chest. He immediately noticed and put a temporary halt to his ministrations.
“We don’t have to do this right now,” he comforted you with all the seriousness in his voice.
“No, I want to, I swear,” you nodded eagerly.
“Princess, you’re literally shaking,” Seonghwa remarked.
“What’s wrong with me?” you sighed.
“There’s nothing wrong with you. You’re perfect. Tell me to stop if you feel even the slightest hint of hesitation or discomfort and I will, I promise.”
“I know you would, Hwa. I trust you. But even if I’m a bit nervous, I want to do this with you. Please?”
“Well, I can’t deny you since you’re asking so nicely,” he grinned and continued where he left off. “Can I get rid of these?” Seonghwa inquired, carefully pushing your panties to the side.
“Yes, you can do anything to me.”
“Oh, sweetheart, you really shouldn’t have said that,” he chuckled darkly and tore your underwear savagely. You couldn’t even gather the energy to complain about the ruination of your new pair, you were far too turned on by Seonghwa’s aggressive nature to care. He didn’t waste any more time, grabbing your thighs to hold them in place, he began licking your pussy with his tongue and stimulating it with his long fingers. It didn’t take long for you to start squirming beneath his touch, helplessly moaning his name. He didn’t cease his merciless movements until you reached your orgasm. When your breathing finally eased, you gathered the energy to speak again:
“I thought you said you’ve never done this before? How were you so...so...”
“So good?” Seonghwa smirked confidently and bit his lower lip. “I mean...I’ve seen videos. Read some things here and there.”
“Honestly? I think you’re a god.”
“You’ll have to stop complimenting me so much or I’ll develop a god complex,” he joked. “What do you want to do next, baby?”
“I want to suck you off,” you mumbled.
“Who taught you such dirty language?”
“Hey! I read, too,” you pouted and assuredly made your way towards the carpet next to his bed.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Seonghwa asked.
“Aren’t I supposed to kneel in order to pleasure you, sir?”
“Princesses never kneel,” he instructed and got up from the bed, urging you to lie down with your head hanging from the very edge of the bed and make yourself comfortable. “Open up that pretty little mouth for me, will you?”
You did as he asked obediently and even went the extra mile to stick your tongue out. Unbuckling his belt and throwing it to the side, Seonghwa was quick to follow your wishes and let his cock spring free from his jeans. Your mouth went dry at the sight of his monstrous size. Seeing your worries if it will fit reflected in your eyes, he expressed his concern for you:
“Are you sure about this?”
“Please, please, I need you,” you whimpered without thinking, eager to have a taste. Without making you wait any longer, Seonghwa pushed the tip of his cock inside, gently letting your cheeks get used to the unfamiliar feeling. Slowly, he went deeper, allowing you to acquaint yourself with the stretch. When you kept blinking at him in anticipation, he realized you were ready for more and began moving faster, fucking into your mouth at a steady pace. As he neared his high, his motions became less controlled you were sucking more intently, impatient to swallow every last drop of him.
“Shit, I’m going to-” he attempted to break away, but you managed to wrap your hands at the back of his legs in order to keep his cock inside your mouth. 
Seconds later, he released his cum and you began drinking it thirstily. When you had made certain that no drop was wasted, you finally let go of his legs, allowing your boyfriend’s dick to dangle freely outside of your mouth.
“You’re fucking incredible,” Seonghwa praised you and placed a soft kiss on the top of your head. “My incredible girl.”
“I’m only yours, sir,” you mumbled, way too affected by him.
“You like this, don’t you?” he mocked you teasingly.
“Yes, sir, I want to belong to you,” you whimpered and turned around to pull him back into bed.
“Your wish is my command, princess,” Seonghwa smiled fondly and took a mysterious package out of the back pocket of his jeans. Soon enough, you realized what it was, as he started lining up the condom on his cock.
“Oooh, I brought one of those, as well!” you exclaimed in surprise.
“You came here on a mission, didn’t you? Wicked little thing,” he tsked in fake disapproval.
“It’s not my fault you’re walking around like an Adonis,” you defended yourself boldly.
“You’re one to speak. Freaking goddess,” Seonghwa complimented you and slowly began unbuttoning your shirt you had somehow forgotten you were still wearing. “Is this okay?” he asked softly, always making sure you were feeling safe.
“More than okay,” you consented. Left in nothing but your baby pink bra, you unintentionally shivered at the sudden cold air surrounding you. Soon after that, Seonghwa undid the clasps and you were now only wearing your birthday suit. Feeling a bit timid, you self-consciously covered your breasts and broke eye contact with your boyfriend.
“Hey, hey, look at me,” he pressed the palm of his hand against your cheek. “Do you want to stop?”
You weakly shook your head and somehow managed to gather the strength to look into his beautifully dark eyes once again.
“Then, let me see you, yeah?” Seonghwa nudged your hands away gently. “You’re so beautiful, baby.”
You blushed at his sudden praise and allowed him to have a look. But seconds later, you were getting a bit impatient.
“Please, Hwa, I want you so much.”
“Anything for my princess,” he chuckled and coaxed his tip at your entrance slowly. When you gave him a sign he could go deeper, his movements became bolder. “Fuck, you’re taking me so well.”
“M-more, sir, I swear I can do this,” you begged as you were beginning to unravel beneath him. As he fucked you faster into oblivion, you were no longer thinking straight and his name was the only word you were capable of uttering. Over and over again. Until you both came, blissfully lost in each other’s arms.
“Here, let me clean you up,” Seonghwa offered sweetly, picking you up with little effort and carrying you to the bathtub. 
When he started shampooing your hair, rubbing body lotion into your sensitive skin and covering your neck with soft kisses, you couldn’t stop your tears from falling, touched by his infinite tenderness and by the sheer intimacy of the gesture.
“Darling, are you crying?” he questioned you upon hearing your hiccups.
“N-no,” you lied but it was useless, because it was quite obvious you were, in fact, bawling your eyes out.
“Did I hurt you, my sweet princess?” Seonghwa asked in concern.
“How...how could you think that?” you whimpered. “You’ve been nothing but kind and caring towards me. It’s just that...this is the first time I’ve felt so...special, so worthy, so...”
“Loved?” he offered the word you had been seeking for but had been too scared to utter out loud.
“Y-yeah,” you confirmed shyly. “Is it too early to say this? I’m sorry if it is but...I love you, Seonghwa.”
He simply stared at you in disbelief for a couple of seconds. This time, you were once again the one to break the deafening silence.
“You don’t have to say it back. I just...I wanted you to know. It’s okay if you don’t feel the same way but-”
“I love you too, baby. Of course I do,” Seonghwa reassured you. “And I’m not just saying it, I don’t feel obliged to say it. As my best friend, you know me better than anyone else. And you know I don’t do things unless I want to. So, believe me when I say this.”
“Fuck,” you uttered and only started crying harder in his arms.
“Shhh, you’re safe with me, sweetheart. I would never harm you,” he comforted you and stroked your hair lovingly, putting all your worries and self-doubts at the very back of your head.
After you were all dried up from the bath and had put on your boyfriend’s shirt while he was still in the shower, you were feeling uncharacteristically confident. Confident enough to look for something you hadn’t seen for a while. You had been wondering if he had it hanging around somewhere in his wardrobe. And after a short period of rummaging you found your treasure. The green hoodie. The Kermit hoodie. You smiled mischievously as you changed into it. It still smelled like him, you beamed. Back when he was simply your best friend, the amount of times you had fantasized about him lending it to you should have been illegal. So now that you had been promoted to his girlfriend, you simply couldn’t let such an opportunity pass you by.
Once Seonghwa got out of the shower, water droplets running down the divine skin on his bare chest, you were too busy staring at him in all his beauty and glory to notice the angry look on his face.
“How did you even find this? It was hidden so well in my wardrobe,” he scowled.
“Don’t be mad,” you pouted adorably. “I look so cute in it, right?”
“Cuter than me, that’s for sure,” Seonghwa rolled his eyes and tickled your belly.
“That’s impossible, you make the cutest Kermit,” you giggled, enjoying how easy it was to get on his nerves.
“You’ll never let me live this down, will you?” he groaned.
“Never ever, my stunning Frog Prince,” you vowed and kissed him quickly, taking him by surprise. His eyes widened in shock and he seemed too flustered to continue scolding you.
“You’re in luck today. Nothing can ruin my good mood,” Seonghwa was determined.
“Great,” you grinned gleefully. “Cause from now on, I intend on making all your days filled with joy.”
“From now on?” he chuckled sarcastically. “Oh, princess, my days have been filled with nothing but joy ever since I met you.”
And indeed, both Seonghwa’s days and yours were nothing but pure happiness ever since you decided to make your relationship real. And despite his foolish statement that he no longer wanted to be your best friend, you had somehow managed to convince him that he was both your boyfriend and bestie and that was perfectly okay. As if in the blink of an eye, spring came which meant that the whole school was in nervous excitement about the upcoming prom. Generally, you weren’t the type to get overwhelmed about such a trivial topic. But now that you were dating Seonghwa, the most popular guy in the school, you couldn’t help but worry a little. What if he wanted to go with someone else? Someone equal in “status”? Your worries and insecurities further intensified when he started asking questions in a weird way.
“I need your help,” Seonghwa blurted out over lunch.
“Shoot.”
“Okay, so, I have this friend. And he really likes this girl and wants to ask her to prom. What do you think would make her happy?”
You blinked in surprise. You knew that when people pulled the “I’m just asking for a friend” card, they were most likely talking about themselves. Was he seriously thinking of inviting another girl to prom? You tensed a little but tried really hard to remain neutral in your answer and actually make an attempt to help your bestie.
“I mean, all girls are different,” you reasoned. “If you describe her to me, maybe I’ll be able to give a more appropriate suggestion.”
“She’s a bit like you. You know, kinda bookish and-”
“It’s alright, Seonghwa, you can say it. I’m a nerd.”
“Well, yes, but...”
“It’s not exactly a slur,” you chuckled coldly.
“I know, but that’s what your bullies in middle school called you. I didn’t mean to sound insensitive,” Hwa put his hand on top of yours in a gentle, comforting manner.
“It’s fine when if you say it,” you smiled. “I won’t get offended.”
“I was going to say my friend’s crush is intelligent like you but, oh well.”
“That does sound better, I admit,” you giggled.
“She’s also a bit shy and introverted so maybe she wouldn’t enjoy a public promposal. Crowds tend to make her nervous,” Seonghwa observed.
“Seems like you didn’t need my help after all,” you scoffed playfully.
“No, I do! I still haven’t come up with an actual way to propose. I mean, for my friend.”
“Right. Your friend. Well, he can’t go wrong with some poetry under her balcony. If she has one, that is.”
“I’m pretty sure she does.” Seonghwa smirked. “Alright, thanks.”
He jumped from his seat, not even having finished his lunch.
“Wait, where are you going?”
“I gotta prepare my friend’s promposal,” he shrugged and disappeared from your sight, leaving you a bit crest-fallen. If he was intending on asking you, he wouldn’t have turned to you for help, right? That would sorta ruin the element of surprise, wouldn’t it? And yet, you knew that Seonghwa wasn’t the type to care about people’s opinions and randomly ask a more popular girl out because of public demand. And he definitely wasn’t the kind of person to just date you for kicks and then ditch you at prom. Despite those very logical reasons, you couldn’t help but feel a little anxious.
A week later, you realized all your worries had been for nothing. It was a Sunday morning and you had just finished having breakfast with your family. You were leisurely reading on your bed when you heard some suspicious noises coming from your window. You looked up from your book and you could swear you saw tiny rocks hitting the glass! You jumped up angrily, half-expecting to find a bunch of neighbour kids pulling a prank. But you were surprised when you spotted your boyfriend standing under your balcony. Wearing his iconic green hoodie.
“What are you doing here?” you whispered, though a hopeful part of you already knew the answer.
“But, soft! what light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Juliet is the sun. Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon,” he recited diligently in a song-like manner.
You couldn’t help but chuckle at his overdramatic acting but it was the effort that touched you immensely.
“And none but fools do wear it; cast it off. It is my lady, O, it is my love! O, that she knew she were!” he continued sweetly.
You were so in love with this man it was insane.
“Two of the fairest stars in all the heaven, Having some business, do entreat her eyes To twinkle in their spheres till they return,” Seonghwa kept going.
You couldn’t resist the urge to leap off the balcony. It was just the second floor so what could possibly go wrong? Other than a scraped knee and a bit of a limp. God, you were such an idiot.
“Shit, are you okay?” Seonghwa asked in terror and wrapped his arms around you.
“The excruciating pain is worth it if I get to hug you like this,” you grinned, leaning against him for support.
“Why couldn’t you just walk down the stairs like a normal person?”
“And what’s romantic about that?” you joked. “Jumping off a balcony makes for a much better story.”
“You’re impossible.”
“Only for you, my sweet Frogmeo!” you teased and kissed his cheek.
“Wait, I wasn’t finished!” Seonghwa exclaimed excitedly, not bothering to act offended about your obsession with him and that Kermit hoodie. “There was something about cheeks, I swear.”
“See, how she leans her cheek upon her hand!” you helped him out dutifully.
“O, that I were a glove upon that hand, That I might touch that cheek!” he finished proudly and placed his palm against your cheek.
“Only you could possibly mix Romeo and Juliet with The Frog Prince and somehow make it work,” you praised him.
“Does that mean you’ll go to prom with me?” Seonghwa tilted his head to the side adorably.
“Of course I will, baby,” you responded happily.
“Thank God, ‘cause learning that monologue drained my soul and brain,” he whistled playfully.
“You know, you had me worried there for a second,” you confessed reluctantly, because you didn’t want to keep any secrets from your doting boyfriend.
“When?” Seonghwa asked in confusion.
“Lunchtime. A week ago. When you asked me for advice. I thought that...”
“That I would ask someone else?” he correctly guessed your suspicions. And you nodded. “Have I ever given you a reason to doubt me?”
“No, you’re perfect. In fact, too perfect. It makes me feel like I don’t deserve you.”
Seonghwa smiled sadly and kissed the top of your head. But he wasn’t angry with you. Just wanted to erase those silly thoughts from your mind.
“You deserve so much more, princess. But I’ll try my best to give you all I can.”
“As will I,” you promised and mischievously pulled the drawstrings on his hoodie, making his face squished adorably.
“If this is the best you’re capable of, I dread to see your worst,” he shook his head in amusement.
“Prince Frogmeo and the Nerdy Princess,” you sighed wistfully. “That would make a hell of a fairy tale, wouldn’t it?”
“How about Kermit the Frog whoops the Princess’s ass for being a brat?” Seonghwa threatened jokingly.
“You know what? I wouldn’t say no to that,” you giggled and started running away from him. “If you catch me first!”
Prom night arrived and despite all the preparations and excitements around it, it was nothing special in itself. What made it special, however, were the moments you spent with Seonghwa. Just dancing and talking seemed to be enough to make your heart leap with joy. And the smile never left your face the entire night.
“School’s really ending, huh?” you spoke aloud without thinking, while you were swaying slightly to the music in your boyfriend’s arms.
“This isn’t the end of us. We’ll go to college, we’ll grow up. The best is yet to come, darling.”
“You know what I meant,” you replied, a hint of sadness tinging your tone. “In college, I’ll study Literature, you’ll study Music. We’ll no longer be able to sit next to each other in class or exchange notes or hold hands under the desk.”
“We’ll do all sorts of other things,” Seonghwa responded cheerfully, trying to think positive. “We’ll have study dates in college, we’ll visit new restaurants and make more memories together. Just because high school is over, doesn’t mean we are. I’m not giving up on my best friend ever.”
“Your girlfriend,” you corrected him playfully.
“My best friend,” he repeated. “You were right. Being in love with each other doesn’t nullify our friendship. Both are equally important to me. You are the most important to me.”
“God, Hwa, how can you say such things so easily?”
“Is your heart fluttering?” your boyfriend and best friend teased you, swirling you around while dancing. You were met with his beautiful dark gaze again as he murmured: “Hi, princess.”
“H-hi, S-seonghwa,” you chuckled in response.
And you were finally home.
The End
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samwisethewitch · 4 years
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So You Want to Learn Tarot
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Tarot is one of the most popular forms of divination, and my personal favorite tool to use when I’m seeking answers. I talked about tarot a bit in my last post, but I feel like it deserves further discussion here since a lot of new witches are intimidated by it.
Before we get into what tarot is and how to learn it, let’s discuss some popular misconceptions.
Tarot is not…
… evil, demonic, or Satanic. This one probably goes without saying, but tarot has a very mystical reputation in pop culture, and some people genuinely believe that it is evil. In the Christian group I grew up in, tarot cards were viewed with the same fear as seances and Ouija boards. So, for the record, tarot has nothing to do with demons, and in fact classic tarot decks contain a lot of Christian imagery. (There are also modern decks on the market that really play up the Christian themes, if that’s your thing.)
… negative or scary. Some of the most well-known tarot cards are those with frightening names and/or imagery: Death, the Devil, the Tower, etc. For this reason, some people think that tarot only contains negative messages or that using tarot cards invites negative energy into your life. Actually, I find tarot to be very balanced between light and dark, with several cards that are purely positive (like the Sun or the World). Even cards like Death or the Tower aren’t 100% negative — their meaning depends on the context in which they appear. While it’s true that tarot does sometimes hit us with difficult messages, this is true of every divination method if you’re using it right. Part of the appeal of divination is that it allows us to see the truth of a situation, even if that truth isn’t pretty.
… ancient. One popular myth claims that the cards are based on the Book of Thoth, an ancient Egyptian wisdom text. In reality, tarot comes from a card game that was popular in medieval Italy — originally, the cards were just entertainment. The use of these cards for divination was popularized by the French in the 18th century. It wasn’t until 1909 that Edward Waite and Pamela Coleman-Smith created the Waite-Smith deck (or Rider-Waite-Smith deck, as it is sometimes called), which established the “classic” tarot symbolism that we all know and love.
… something you can only use if you’re psychic. As I’ve mentioned before, we all have psychic senses, although most of us are not aware of them. However, you don’t have to be a professional medium or be deeply in touch with your psychic abilities to read tarot. Tarot is a tool, and like any tool it has a variety of uses. Your experience with the cards will be exactly as magical or as mundane as you choose to make it. You don’t need to worry about tapping into magical energy you can’t control, or anything like that.
… hard to learn. Learning tarot is not difficult, although it is time-consuming. No one becomes an advanced reader overnight. However, it isn’t actually very hard to learn how to read the cards. Most readers interpret the cards intuitively, which means that how the images make you feel is more important than the traditional interpretation. Being familiar with the traditional meanings helps, but there’s no rule that says you can’t keep a couple of good books on hand to help jog your memory. If you’re trying to memorize all the card meanings so you can just repeat them later, you’re doing it wrong.
Now that we know what tarot isn’t, let’s take a second to discuss what it is. 
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Tarot is a modern system of divination using illustrated cards. Most tarot decks contain 78 cards, which are divided into two groups: the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana. The Major Arcana is what probably comes to mind when you think of the tarot: these are the named cards like The Fool, The High Priestess, Death, etc. The 22 Major Arcana cards represent major themes, patterns, and events, so they tend to be the dominant energy in any readings they show up in. The remaining 56 cards make up the Minor Arcana, which deals more with day-to-day life. The Minor Arcana is further divided into four suits, which are each associated with one of the classical elements. The suits are wands (fire), cups (water), pentacles (earth), and swords (air).
If you want to learn to read tarot, the first step is to find a deck that you resonate with. Because tarot cards act as a conduit for your own psychic abilities, you want to make sure that the energy of your deck vibes well with your own energy. You can absolutely order your deck online (and you’ll have a wider selection to choose from if you do), but if picking one out in person is important to you, most bookstores and metaphysical shops will have several to choose from.
Some questions to ask yourself as you’re choosing your first tarot deck:
Are there any themes or motifs you feel called to work with? There are tons of themed tarot decks on the market, from goddess decks to crystal decks to pirate decks. What symbolism speaks to you?
What art styles do you enjoy? You’ll spend a lot of time looking at your cards, so it’s important that you like the artwork!
How does this deck make you feel? It’s best not to choose a deck that makes you uncomfortable, at least while you’re still trying to learn the basics. For me, the decks that I end up working with the most feel like an old friend — comforting and familiar. (Note that some of my favorite decks have dark themes and imagery, but I still find them comforting on an energetic level.)
If you don’t feel called to any one deck, starting with the Waite-Smith deck is always a good idea. Most tarot books base their interpretations on this deck, so it’s helpful for beginners who are still learning card associations. There are several versions of this deck on the market — my personal favorite is the Universal Waite Tarot, because I find it easiest to read. (It’s also cheap and widely available, so it should be easy to find a copy.)
Once you’ve chosen a deck, take some time to get to know the cards. Before you begin reading with your deck, go through the cards one by one and write down how they make you feel, as well as any associations they draw up for you. It’s best to do this exercise before you begin learning the traditional meanings for the cards, so you can capture your authentic first reactions to them.
There are other ways to get to know your deck. There’s an old superstition that says you should sleep with the deck next to your pillow for several nights, so that it can become attuned to your energy. Another option is to meditate with the deck, allowing yourself to feel it out.
Once you’ve gotten to know your deck, it’s time to learn the traditional meanings of the cards. Don’t get too hung up on this part — remember that readings are done intuitively; the traditional meanings are only a guideline, and you may find that the information you receive in a reading differs from tradition. In those cases, always trust your intuition. What the Ace of Wands means FOR YOU is more important than what it means for so-and-so author of such-and-such book. (This is why it’s a good idea to write down your own thoughts and feelings about the cards before you begin studying tarot books.)
The book I recommend starting with is Tarot For Beginners by Lisa Chamberlain. At just over 100 pages long, this is a very brief, accessible, “just the basics” introduction to tarot. The book is just long enough to give you a taste of what reading tarot is like, to determine if it’s really right for you.
Books can be very helpful, especially for learning the traditional meanings of cards, but the best way to learn to read tarot is by doing it. Once you’ve found a deck you resonate with, connected with your cards, and learned a little about card meanings, it’s time to start doing readings.
Start by pulling one card each day. Write down your immediate reaction and any messages that come to you when you look at the card. Experiment with it! Try holding the card in your hands and trying to “feel” it energetically — what vibes does it give off? Does a certain word or phrase pop into your head when you look at it? Do certain images on the card leap out at you? Write all of this down. Once you’ve written your own interpretation, look up the traditional meaning of the card in Tarot For Beginners or another book, or online (the website biddytarot.com has a really great guide to card meanings and is 100% free). If anything you read about the card resonates, write that down as well. The goal here is to see how your initial intuitive reading compares to the card’s traditional meaning — eventually, as you get more familiar with the cards, you won’t need to look them up at all.
As you go about your day, keep your daily tarot card in the back of your mind. How do the card’s messages relate to what happened to you throughout the day? Before you go to bed, write about how you saw the card’s message in your life.
Eventually, you’ll begin to get the hang of reading tarot intuitively. You’ll also begin to develop your own readings styles and your own rituals for doing a reading.
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princessjungeun · 3 years
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Hey Beautiful: Jennie x Reader
Request: Hii :) i have a request for jennie x femreader, where the reader is a famous idol and Jennie has a crush on her. They attend the same award show and at the end when they are backstage the reader asks Jennie for her number. Then they go on a date or something just cute stuff (fluff i guess😅)
A/N: I’ll write a continuation of this if you’d like for the date part :D
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Awards show season was in full swing and you were to attend the MAMAs tonight. It was your first time attending without a date, usually your best friend tagged along but she was working the night shift at her job so she couldn’t make it. 
You were already in your dress and your glam team was getting your hair and makeup done before you were to leave. This had been going on for hours and you were simply exhausted and hungry, the only thing keeping you going was knowing that you’d be seeing some friends of yours later in the evening. 
It took two hours but eventually your hair and makeup were finished and you were cleared to leave. Your manager sat across from you in the car, a smile on his face as she teasingly asked, “so anyone you’re excited to meet in particular?” 
You knew exactly what he meant, there was one person that had showed an interest in meeting you for months, Kim Jennie. To be honest when she said she was your fan in an interview, you were a little surprised. Despite being one of the most popular female soloists at the time, you were still shocked when you heard artists you looked up to liked you. 
Jennie in particular had mentioned on many occasions that you were her ideal type and she’d date you if she had the chance. Blinks and your fans shipped the two of you heavily as well. Most of the time you hated when you were shipped with people you never met because it made for uncomfortable times when you actually did happen to meet them. It’d happened in the past when people shipped you with a popular member of a boy group, he was to produce a song with you. However with all of the shipping flying around, you didn’t want to risk you or him getting involved in a scandal that would just add fuel to the fire. But with Jennie you entertained it, saying you’d date her too and she was your ideal type as well. Fans had been praying for an interaction for the longest and you knew you two were probably going to cross paths tonight. 
Once you’d walked the red carpet and avoided falling on your face, you were escorted inside to find your seat. The idols on the plus couch across from you were TWICE, the girls greeted you warmly, especially Nayeon who happened to be a close friend of yours. 
She scooted closer to you, and started catching you up on everything that had happened in the past month because you two hadn’t talked in a bit. You were both performing tonight, she wasn’t nervous whereas you were for the first time. 
Before Nayeon got up she nudged you gently, using her head to point you towards a familiar idol. You squinted, having forgotten your contacts at home, you realized it was Jennie, sitting with her members and talking to them. Nayeon stated, “I’m gonna call her over.” 
You panicked, “No no, not yet. Don’t call her over- Nayeon I sweat to god-” YOur friend only laughed, waving the girl down and mouthing to her from afar. You froze, trying to look everywhere but at Jennie, this was not how you wanted to meet her for the first time. Giving up, you hid your face in Nayeon’s shoulder, your face beet red as you laughed, the rest of Twice laughing and teasing you playfully. 
Nayeon patted your head, “she’s gone.” 
You peeked from her shoulder to make sure she was serious and not playing a prank, and she was. Jennie was now talking to Irene, facing the other direction and not paying you any mind. 
Nayeon told you, “you’re gonna need to work on that. She also said you’re cute...you missed it while you were hiding.” 
You smacked her shoulder and said, “I wouldn’t have had to hide if you just left her alone in the first place Nay. That was so embarrassing please never put me through that traumatizing experience again.” She sighed and said “okay fine, but you should talk to her before the night ends. She really does like you.” 
Nayeon scooted back towards her members and you focused straight ahead for the stage. As performances went on and awards were given out, you felt your heart race knowing that your big performance was coming up. 
A staff came and got you from your seat to escort you backstage during a break. Your manager was already in your dressing room with your stylist, both of them getting everything you need for your performance. Your dancers were warming up as well in a corner. 
You changed and start to warm up your vocals as well as your body, it was a new song and a new choreography which you’d never performed in front of such a large audience. The dance break was what you were most worried about because you hadn’t had a lot to time to practice in your shoes so you were afraid of messing up and hurting yourself. 
Your manager noticed the look on your face, “Hey don’t be nervous. Everyone in that crowd is your fan. You could go out there and just breathe into the mic and everyone would still lose their shit. So go out there and do your thing, I’ll be watching from in here. You’ll do great, stop worrying babe.” He always knew the right thing to say, he was like your best friend and soulmate all at the same time. 
You hugged him, “Thank you, I’ll meet you back in here when I’m done.” 
The dancers pulled you into a huddle, putting your hands together you all yelled, “1-2-lets get it.” You all broke and made your way towards the stage where a staff last minute checked your IEMs and mic to make sure they were working. 
You took a deep breath before making your way to the stage, the lights dimmed before the song started. Looking at your dancer they gave you a subtle nod, and smile giving you the last bit of confidence that you needed. 
During your performance all of your nerves melted away. You hit every note and move perfectly, gaining a huge reaction for the audience. The deafening sound of fans and other idols cheering you on only made your confidence rise, and it showed throughout your performance. When you were done almost everyone was standing up, even the idols as they cheered for you. 
After you were off of the stage you pulled your IEMs and mic pack off, handing them to your manager so you could go and change once more. Your second outfit was different, more elegant yet subtle. You changed your shoes to a pair of sneakers, relived that you could finally get out of heels. 
As your stylist touched up your makeup and hair you remembered that Blackpink was preforming in a bit. You wondered if you’d see Jennie back here, Nayeon did mention that she would probably be here when you got off the stage. 
Your questions were answered on the way back out to the audience because you ran into Jennie. The woman was passing you, looking down at her phone as she was walking. 
She looked up from the device to bow as she walked by, “Oh! Y/N hey!” she beamed as she tucked her phone in her back pocket. Although she knew she had to be somewhere she didn’t care, she wasn’t going to miss her opportunity
You looked her over and tried to not let your eyes linger on her very toned abs for a second too long. She told you sweetly, “you did amazing earlier, you looked stunning.” 
Heat rushed to your cheeks the longer she looked into your eyes, you stuttered out, “t-thanks...you’re going to kill it out there, more than me definitely.” 
Just as she was about to respond Jisoo called down the hall for her, waving her over with a clearly impatient manager. 
Jennie quickly turned to you and asked, “hey, I know this is the first time we met but can I have your number? Maybe we could go out sometime?” Her hand rested comfortably on your arm, a subtle touch that still made your heart burst inside. 
You nodded, “yeah, sure. I’d really like that.” Quickly she whipped out her phone and you put in your number, saving your name with a red heart emoji. 
Jennie smiled, “I’ll text you later.” 
You told her with a shy smile, “okay, good luck out there.” 
Jennie kissed your cheek, “thanks beautiful, i’ll see you out there.” She walked past you and to her members and managers who were waiting for her. 
You touched your cheek and smiled before following a staff member that was to take you back to your seat. When you got back Nayeon took one look at you before bursting out laughing. You frowned, “what?” 
Your friend replied, “run into Jennie did you?” 
You asked, shocked at how she already knew, “wha- how did you know?” 
Nayeon swiped her thumb over your cheek a few times before pulling away, showing you the faint lipstick stained on her skin, “She isn’t exactly the most subtle.” 
You poked Nayeon’s neck with a smirk, “Well turns out you and Jeongyeon aren’t either, Nay.” Her face flushed red as she pulled the collar of her top up and brushed her hair around her neck, you let out a laugh earning a slap on the arm from her. The two of you went back and forth playfully until the lights dimmed indicating Blackpink coming on to perform. 
You watched intently as the girls performed Lovesick Girls, Jennie staring at you as she sang that last part, winking in your direction as she made the heart gesture with her hands. You couldn’t help but smile back at her, trying to hold back how flustered the simple gesture. 
At the end of the night you were finally home and able to check your phone and as promised, Jennie did reach out to you. The message read: 
Unknown Number: Hey beautiful, I’m sorry I couldn’t see you more tonight. But I can make it up to you by taking you to that new art exhibition downtown. Are you free next Saturday?
You typed back quickly, not caring if it made you look desperate or like you were watching your phone: Don’t apologize, nights like these are hectic and unpredictable. I am free and I’m more than happy to go, thank you <3
You quickly updated her contact to Jennie and broke into a happy dance when she told you what time she’d come pick you up. You’d been dying to check out the art exhibition since you found out it was coming to town but tickets sold out before you could get the chance. So not only were you going on a date with your crush, but also to check out what you’d been dying to see for weeks. 
You flopped onto your bed and sighed, relieved that the day was finally over and that you were able to end it on a positive note. 
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angelz-dust · 3 years
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Heyy! Which one of the batboys would fake dating? And how would it be? How would they realize that they're actually in love?
oooh fake dating!! i haven't done this yet
hm... i could see maybe dick, tim, or duke doing this. i can't really see jason or damian doing this for some reason djdjdj
dick
with him, i can only see him doing this one or twice. definitely not long term
richard grayson is definitely the kind of guy you wanna bring home to the family
he's kind, respectful, handsome. he's The Whole Package
he's the one you'd wanna take to a cousin's wedding or a high school reunion
i mean, come on. pulling up with THE richard grayson? gotham's most eligible bachelor? (don't say that around bruce) you win by default.
he wouldn't mind playing into the lie of being with you. he'd find it a little entertaining
fake dating him would be a lot like just being his friend, honestly. he just makes more of an effort to touch you
holding hands, touching the bottom of your back. he'd throw in some lingering glances and sweet smiles for good measure. gotta make it believable
dick's willingness to go along with your charade is not an indication that he likes you, but it's how he goes about it that you should be paying attention to. it almost too believable
he would probably realize he was in love with you when you mentioned going to a party with another person. you know, a person who actually made real romantic advances and not because you asked them to
he would be a little jealous over not being your go to guy anymore
he wouldn't want to be selfish, so he'd sit on this realization for awhile and he'd let your new relationship run its course before confessing his feelings for you
unless you beat him to it
which is fine with him
tim
tim would be the one asking you to do him this solid
poor boy just needs someone he can tolerate to come with him to events and things
they've become increasingly boring and he needed someone to provide him with some mental stimulation or else he was going to off himself
now, he went into this good intentioned. no ulterior motives, he swore
but uh... the gotham gazette had other plans
the two of you were making news as gotham's newest couple
there was no point in denying it, since it didn't really matter. no one with any working brain cells would believe a gazette headline
but the two of you consistently were seen out together at events, which made the headline much more believable and neither of you did anything to disprove it. it wasn't a big concern
things started escalating when tim went on record saying that you were together
"tim, what the hell?"
"what was i supposed to say? that we made an ugly couple?"
"you're supposed to say that we ARENT a couple!"
"oh."
tim wouldn't really have an "aha" moment. he always knew that he loved you. it was just in a deep way now. just... different
the lines of your relationship started blurring over time. it was gradual but pretty obvious to the both of you. you just didn't say anything about it
your romantic relationship may have been going on for a long time in the eyes of the public, but it was solidified during a holiday party, where you found yourselves sharing a kiss on the dance floor
and the gotham gazette found themselves with a nice photo for their front page
duke
he doesn't exactly know how he got caught up in your web of lies, but he's here
it was a spur of the moment decision when you thrusted this ill thought out plan onto him
"please, i'm begging you. just this one time."
"at least buy a guy a drink first."
so you did. you went on a double date with your "friend" and her girlfriend. why you felt so compelled to prove to her that you could pull someone as handsome and kind as duke thomas, you weren't sure. but it felt damn good
duke was as charming as ever, really helping you carry on conversations. you decided that it only went well because of him
the days after the date were a bit off. duke had been giving you the cold shoulder and you weren't exactly sure why
he was ignoring your calls, being curt in his responses to your texts, cancelling on you left and right. you were fed up with his behavior, so you confronted him one day
"what the hell is your problem?"
"i don't have a problem. if i had one, i'd tell you."
"are you sure? because you haven't been doing a whole lot of talking lately. at least, not with me."
seeing duke angry and annoyed made you sad, despite feeling that same way yourself. you didn't like the idea of having done something to him. he was such a good friend to you and you didn't want to lose him
it was when duke confessed his feelings to you that you understood why he was being so cold to you. he liked you and it was like you had just used him
he made it clear that he didn't care if you reciprocated his feelings. he just didn't want to keep pretending anymore
he had been harboring feelings for you for quite some time. actually going on a date with you, even if it was fake, just solidified those feelings for him
he apologized for being mean to you, feeling like an asshole for being mad at you for his own feelings. feelings you didn't even know he had
the two of you didn't talk for awhile, wanting to sort out your own feelings
when you realized that you had felt the same way about him, you came over to his place with a bouquet of flowers, hoping that he was still interested in being with you
"i'm only saying yes because i like the flowers."
"that's the only reason?"
"that, and you look like a kicked puppy."
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theflyingfeeling · 2 years
Note
Oooooh we need (more spesifically I need lol 😂) FRIENDS au!! Pretty please? I give you a sunflower 🌻
FRIENDS AU MY BELOVED 😭😭😭😭
(I would have done this even without the sunflower, but thanks 🥺)
TOMMI AS CHANDLER 👏
JOONAS AS JOEY 👏
OLLI AS RACHEL 👏
Actually I can also kinda imagine Olli as Phoebe, but then there'd be no one suitable for the role of Rachel, so...
Aleksi as Phoebe? That's the best I can offer you and I swear I can make it work 😇
Niko as Ross, not as self-centered but just as geeky, lecturing everyone about his favourite movies 🤓
And Joel as Monica, perhaps less of a control-freak but definitely as easily thrown off his course if something doesn't go according to his careful plan 💀
So we have Tommi and Joonas living under the same roof, and Olli and Joel accross the hall, yeah? Aleksi and Niko live close by and are always raiding Tommi and Joonas' fridge, because they know there's only leftover takeout in the other apartment lol
Let's start with Olli, because I loooove Rachel 😂 Rachel!Olli is such a pretty little princess and absolutely clueless about most things, so he couldn't be farther away from doctorate student Niko's type; yet, he can't stop daydreaming about seeing Olli's smile whenever he's on his way to their favourite hangout where Olli works at, a bar called Central Bob
(I tried 🙈)
Ross!Niko will talk anyone's ears off when someone as much as mentions movies, and his friends are trying their best to appear interested, but they've heard him go on and on and fucking on about that one film in particular 🙄 Olli can't say he understands half the things Niko tells him, but his enthusiasm is incredibly endearing 😍
Monica!Joel is a nervous wreck, not least because his dream of ever owning his own record label has never seemed so far. He's stuck working as a mere errand boy in a no-name company that, according to Joel, keeps making all the wrong decisions. He's constantly being brought down by his superiors when he dares to make a suggestion, so he spends most of his days believing he amounts to nothing
Chandler!Tommi wishes Joel could see how brilliant he actually is. Tommi would tell him, but alas, he's a man of few words, unless it's witty remarks to make everyone laugh 😔 The best he can do to support Joel is to provide him with delicious dinners, hoping they'll eventually add up to enough of a love confession
Joey!Joonas sleeps around and makes the most out of his C-list celebrity status (he starred in a tacky reality show once). He keeps saying he's not looking for a serious relationship and that he's fully content with just "having fun". He'd never admit it to anyone that he's always had a bit of a crush on Aleksi
Phoebe!Aleksi entertains his friends by inviting them to his DJ gigs, although they rarely seem to pay much attention to his music selections as much as to dancing and drinking. He is thankful for Joonas though, as he always finds something nice to say about Aleksi's set, even though Aleksi knows the music he plays is not exactly Joonas' cup of tea
Episode titles include such classics as The One With The Pigeons (in which Joel's already bad day is made worse by a pigeon attack and Tommi helps him overcome the trauma), The One With The Almost Proposal (in which Niko takes Olli to the movies for their billionth date and Niko had arranged so that after the end credits, the text Will You Marry Me? would end up on the screen, but Olli falls asleep halfway through the movie and Niko doesn't have the courage to try again for many weeks), The One Where Joonas Gets Sick (he's not actually, just awfully hangover, but he doesn't have the heart to tell Aleksi who keeps taking such good care of him), The One Where Everything Is Cancelled (in which everyone's plans get cancelled due to a snow inferno outside. Hilarity, feelings, and bad (=great) decisions ensue), and The One Where Santeri Quits (in which their mutual friend Santeri is fed up with everyone's shit, quits his job as the janitor of their building, and moves to The Bahamas)
(he sends them a postcard from there though)
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salcreus · 3 years
Text
Hermits Helping Hermits, and why it’s so brilliant
Excuse any grammar mistakes, it is very late and I am very tired as of writing this haha
First off, if you don’t know, there’s this new thing that the Hermits came up with called Hermits Helping Hermits- HHH for short as I like to call it.  Here’s twitch’s VOD of Ren’s POV if you want to get to know that better, instead of reading a badly written paragraph about it by yours truly. (This one is by far the one with the most interactions with it, but there are far more hermits involved in this event :) <3 Check their twitch streams and/or Youtube VODS channels for more of that chit-chatting spicy goodness)
But, if you don't want to sit through two and half hours of video footage (which honestly I don't blame you), the best resume that I can give of it is- actually very explicit in the name. It's just a bunch of hermits helping out another hermit with a certain task, something that is repetitive and would take that hermit absolutely aeons to get done with. It's a very small resume, but at the end of the day, that  /is/ the core of this "Event" of sorts.
Now that you got that out of the way, excuse me as I indulge in all of the details that make this simple concept fry up my brain with joy.
Collaboration. That's a word that we thrive for and love whenever a new stream or episode comes out, it brings out the best of all hermits involved while combining their skills and humour (which I'll touch upon in a bit). It's just overall a bomb fest of creativity and oh boy do we eat that shit up whenever we can (If you need any more proof of the fandom's love for collaborative works, check out the poles our beloved miners and crafters have done to us, audience, asking about which content we prefer. Really. It's absurd how much collabs destroy the other options of the polls).
And honestly... HHH is exactly all we have ever wanted in terms of interactions between hermits. You have a bunch of buzzing bees that are together, in this calm environment, doing tasks that don't quite require that much brainpower, and you got yourself this podcast-Esque vibe going on that just works wonderfully with the stream format that they have going on- And that's not even mentioning the use of the voice chat mod! The way that they don't have to just jumble about in VCs, and can just fly away to talk, promotes this easier way of being part of the action (In this first stream we could see hermits just showing up midway through, or leaving, which, unlike having to click away from Minecraft and onto Discord and switch VCs and all of this tedious process- It doesn't feel forced. It's organic, and they are the ones that have the power to do whatever they want.)
(Also quick note not to ever pressure the content creators into talking or joining in yada yada don't be a prick about it <3 They are human beings too, not your personal TV show)
Humour. (Told you that we were going to talk about this) ...Actually, I'm lying, this is more to analyze their interactions and tie with the thing that I talked about above, but I don't actually want to make two separate tabs for this text so like ehhhh- Okay okay so. We all know that putting different types of personalities into a room is bound to give some good shenanigans, we all know that show and tale, so I am not going to re-tell it (Unless someone someday wants me to write about that which I doubt because I'd be a massive nerd about it). No, I want to focus more on the environment itself and how /that/ is one of the tricks on how their conversations turn into this amalgamation of chiller, more daring topics.
Now, by more daring topics, I don't mean that they are going to start cursing out their viewers, but it overall feels like we get to retire a bit from the Minecraft Funny Persona, and focus more on the humans being behind it. Of course, their personal lives are none of our business, but it's nice to see them acting like the nerdy adults that they are- Which I feel is a bit forgotten in this fandom, yknow?  The fact that they, too, are absolutely silly and would laugh at 69 jokes as much as we do (season 5 chatting my beloved). This chill, lowkey profile induced by the conditions I talked about above impacts their humour, and thus, their way of interacting in this free for all space where they can just vibe!
Also, I cannot mention this ^ without congratulating Rendog for his way of giving everyone their own moment on the spotlight. If it hasn't been clear before by the Hermitcraft panel at Minecon a few years ago (which he was the host of :) <3), Ren is bloody AMAZING at sparking conversation, and overall debate managing; I blame his cockiness and his lack of shame, but who am I to judge. The way that he managed the tasks given, and was able to put everyone on track when the train was moving away from the action, really shows his skills when it comes to entertaining an audience. I am NOT going to forgive him for the pee talk though, hate the furry </3 /j
Creativity! This is just a small thing that I catched on when I was watching, but I really liked how Bdubs was giving tips on how to make the spikes on the biome pop up more (by the use of walls, stairs, slabs). It wasn't something that was really the centre of attention in this "episode" of HHH, but I appreciate the possibilities that this gives in terms of hermits learning as they work together on something, the sentiment of giving tips and tricks as to how to make something pop up, or how to improve on a certain detail- Another moment involving this was when Xisuma was talking about that lava cast shemanty machinery that I am far too dumb to talk about but you know what, he sure was saying words and I am sure they are very useful. The collaborative process of coming up with ideas and solutions is one that always fascinates me (Maybe that's why the mayoral building is my favourite one of the season so far) and I cannot wait to see what else they can bring to the table, even if it's small.
If this hasn’t convinced you yet I don’t know what it will, but, to be fair, I'm just someone that is Far Too Excited about HHH :pensive_emote: But to wrap things up very badly because I am awful at closing statements, the hermits look like they are having fun with it, which is what matters at the end of the day! They are all kind, wonderful individuals that treat us far too good, and this is not exception. Can't wait to see what they are going to do next, and how this event series is going to develop :) <3
(I was also going to go more on topic about the interactions that happened and jokes, but honestly I think that's a side document for another day dsjffsdmf;;)
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Ikevamp headcanons after watching Hamilton
Quick disclaimer: Yes I know this is a show about people who had owned slaves and slavery is bad. Having said that there's a reason why we suspend disbelief for a couple of hours and just allow ourselves to be swept into the story. I also love Phantom of the Opera but I also am aware that this is a story that involves an abusive and toxic relationship. The point is that I am aware that there are problems that needs to be discussed, but I still love the music, the story and the shows okay. This is just fan content not meant to be taken seriously and is just for fun. Okay? Now let's proceed.
I'll be doing Will and Arthur first since I'm currently doing Shakespeare's route and was inspired to do this after MC watches Romeo and Juliet with Vincent and I was wondering how Will would react to watching Hamilton. And Arthur is here because he is my husband/main lover. I might do Mozart and Napoleon next.
SPOILER ALERT: For anyone who hasn't seen the Disney Plus version of Hamilton, there might be some spoilers here (unless you already saw the show or know the story that is).
General Scenario:
You don't know how but Le Comte was able to get the filmed version of Hamilton, a musical which you've told Sebastian that you've been dying to see but was never able to because tickets were always sold out and entering the lottery was going to be a little too expensive for someone who lives in Japan and who doesn't exactly have the money or the time to simply fly to New York if in case she won. You were also excited because apparently Le Comte was able to modify the 21st century tech room that you use for your online classes and was able to get a wide screen and high quality surround sound which made you appreciate his efforts. A part of you was also curious as to how the other residents would react. You were scared that some of them might take offense, especially Napoleon who knew one of the characters in the show in real life. Would they react weirdly for seeing people different from them portray people that they knew? You were also wondering if they might even appreciate some of the 21st century slang that you and Sebastian would sometimes slip back into whenever it was just the two of you alone. After talking it out with everyone and explaining a few more things (like how its probably going to be different since it is a series of captured pictures-or at least that's your closest analogy- being played super fast with the synchronized sound of the actors- or what you were almost tempted to call "Techno Magic") during a dinner in which Shakespeare had decided to be present in, they were actually interested in what this show is about. Napoleon convinced you that he's fine and actually someone else playing Lafayette might even help with the suspension of disbelief since its been awhile since he has last met him anyway. Will even mentioned that while he has read and heard about stories from America, this is probably going to be the first story or production he's going to see from it. The only one who showed any hesitation - to no one's surprise - was Mozart, since he is attached to the kind of music he is familiar with (aren't we all?). But after prodding from both Jean, Le Comte and you giving him the puppy eyes, he finally relents. The day comes when everyone was once again free and for practicality everyone decided to have a meal first so that they won't be hungry during the show and also for you, Le Comte, and Sebastian to explain a few things everyone else may need to know to truly appreciate the show (like how the Presidential system and elections worked during the setting, what the word "Rewind" means, what is beatboxing, etc). So finally everyone gathered into the tech room after the meal, the lights were dimmed and once everyone was settled, you hit play. And as self-predicted of you, you find yourself crying in the end.
William Shakespeare (I'm still doing his route so please don't hate me if I get him wrong. Also no spoilers please).
- He was a bit shocked at first by how exactly up close you could see the facial expressions of the actors as well as the various ways it would cut to another person. He could now understand why you struggled with trying to explain how its played in a theatre but not exactly like the theatrical experience. But as you saw in your periphery, by the time Philippa Soo sings her first line, Will had already adjusted and allowed himself to be an audience and shut off his director and actor mindset (for the most part at least).
- While he didn't specialize in musicals, he found himself paying attention to the story of "the ten dollar founding father without a father." He knows how music could help both the actors and the audience in succumbing to their emotions in a scene and to suspend disbelief from reality. In his productions the words are not overwhelmed by any score but rather complemented to bring out the emotion he wants to evoke and for actors to show. Since many parts of the show has been influenced by the spoken word style without completely removing it from being sung, he has become enlightened with how powerful a show can be when it is done right.
- He not only enjoyed the story (especially the flow of it) and the production (especially some of the more technical details that the other residents hadn't noticed as far as a stage production is concerned), he loved that even the ensemble members had good acting and some of the onstage humor. One of the meta things he enjoyed was the obvious reference to his most superstitious work.
- Once you've seen how he loves analyzing the technical details of the production, you excitedly tell him about a special member of the ensemble who is known as "The bullet" among fans of the show. You could see him being enlightened as he watches the show with you again (this time with just the two of you) and he now sees "the bullet" and the way she interacts with the characters in a whole different light. He was so impressed with this idea that he may have adapted it into one of his new original plays (its not a copy paste of Hamilton's "bullet" but he definitely adapted assigning a member of the ensemble to have a special role that may not be significant at first, but he heavily notes that this member would have to be unique in interacting with any of the other characters).
- He didn't know what to expect from a 21st Century production but he found himself impressed with the prose and writing of various raps and songs. His favorite from Act 1 in terms of rhyme schemes was "Right Hand Man" and from Act 2 it was Jefferson's rap in "Washington by your side". And after settling down a bit his favorite emotional parts were "History has its eyes on you", "Hurricane", and "It's quiet uptown".
- He was impressed with how the double roles was given and how it actually is true for both of their roles in both acts. Ambiguity is one of his favorite things to have in a work, and he gives props to Lin for all the ambiguity he later realizes was in several parts of the show. If he and Arthur had been a little bit more closer, they probably would have bonded over the ambiguity Hamilton's comma in his letter to Angelica (see kids, grammar matters).
- A part of his brain wonders how the real life Hamilton would react to this and if him and Burr would still be enemies. But after some thinking he decides its not worth his efforts of asking anyone to bring them back since a wonderful production of their life has already been made even if it may not necessarily reflect who they truly are. He of all people knew what it's like to be inspired by great figures, it was fortunate that Lin Manuel Miranda decided to make a show about them before he had the chance to.
- You explain that in America Hamilton is one of the lesser known founding fathers of their nation and how it may be because his political opponents later on became Presidents and therefore was able to form the narrative. He becomes inspired by it and begins to search out people or stories who are hidden gems who may not be historically famous but had much more interesting stories than some of the ones he has heard of.
- Afterwards once you are sure that he has gotten comfortable enough with the genre you show him various videos of people rapping to his works and his reactions range from impressed to amused to "that's not what I mean when I wrote that" and you had to calm him down and explain that they can't hear him anyway after he started giving serious critiques on what the text means.
Arthur Conan Doyle
- While he was knowledgeable about many things, America's founding fathers was not one of them. He along with the other residents have gotten used to any rumors or exaggerated accounts of their lives and you and Sebastian have already warned that this is just a fictionalized production of the real person. As a writer of some historical fiction books he argued that he of all people was aware that any work based on history will speak more about the creators rather than the actual people they are writing about most of the time. He was nevertheless interested as to why you have become fascinated with the treasury secretary (and maybe it was with a twinge of jealousy that you began to expressly show admiration to another man even if he wasn't among the residents in the mansion). After all unlike many other residents of the mansion, on the surface it seemed that Hamilton was similar to Theo who mainly played a supporting but crucial role to his brother. He was thankful that you didn't hold it against him and was comforted that you were in a similar place. You even told him that the only thing you really knew about Hamilton before listening to the soundtrack and watching "Animatics" was that he was in the ten dollar American bill.
- And as someone who has delved into writing historical fictions, this was probably one of the most entertaining productions about a historical figure he has seen. He's going to be honest with you in that at first he was wondering if revealing Burr shot Hamilton in the opening was going to hinder him from enjoying the show; but he was pleasantly surprised that this was not the case at all. As a matter of fact it now made him want to find out who the real Hamilton was (although a part of him doubts if the real Hamilton had any regrets at all). According to him, this is why as a fictionalized historical work, the show is a success because it makes you want to find out more about the events and figures of the story (even if it means looking at darker realities that they did). And while the real Hamilton may be a lot different from what was shown, with all the things he went through and all the things he has done (for better or worse), he now wonders why exactly Le Comte hadn't approached him since he seems to be no better or worse than the average resident ("He and Newt could probably discuss mathematics all day."). You then explained that his political rivals (Jefferson and Madison from the show, and Monroe who wasn't shown in the musical) had later on become Presidents and was able to shape the narrative away from Hamilton. "Ron Chernow made Hamilton's biography because he was the lesser known founding father who was fading into obscurity among Americans and Lin read the book and recognized the story of someone who has risen through his writings. And to Lin that was also the story of hiphop." While he wasn't involved in politics as much as Hamilton was, Arthur had enough experience to know what it feels like to have those kinds of people in power. He also knows just how powerful it is to be in "the room where it happened" and how sometimes the real decisions weren't being made in an office but rather in either a private party or the right bar when people in power had their guard down and were more susceptible to being influenced.
- He could relate a lot with Hamilton on many things that he's only comfortable allowing either you or Theo to see. From being just so much more aware of death's inevitability coming for every living thing to survivor's guilt even though a part of him knows its irrational (but sometimes the emotional nonsense just overtakes our perspectives and actions). It's why he could understand Hamilton's need to write as much as he can before he dies. It's why for a time in his human life he had deviated from writing about Holmes and ventured into other genres. He could also relate to the need to prove what type of person he was, and how to go beyond his tragedies to serve people in their own ways. Hamilton did it as a soldier and the creator of America's financial system. And he is doing it as an informally practicing doctor and as a writer. It's a need that he's trying to mitigate since you've repeatedly told him that he doesn't need to prove anything to you or to anyone and to write whatever he pleases. But he also can't deny that it's still somewhere lodged in the back of his head.
- Just like William Shakespeare, in terms of the wordplay found in rap and the ambiguity present in the show and how those things were executed made him amazed and momentarily speechless. He was especially fanboying about "The comma after dearest" and how this essentially shows how important grammar was. It went to the extent that afterwards whenever he would write to you he would address you either as "My dearest, Y/N" or "My darling, Y/N" with special emphasis on the comma (sometimes you could see how there's more ink in the comma than some of the actual words. That's how much he wants to emphasize that you hold the title of dearest or darling). And you excitedly share with him some of the trivia knowledge of the show (like how in real life it was Angelica who originally made the comma mistake by writing to Hamilton as "My dear, sir" in one of her letters and it was Hamilton who was asking her what the comma means and even replied with "Ma chere, soeur") and how Angelica really did reference the Icarus metaphor in one of her letters to Eliza. And even though he wasn't a major musical nerd (he sang for fun), he would now join you in watching Howard Ho's Hamilton videos musically analyzing Hamilton (and would probably try to find a way to use this knowledge to annoy Mozart in some way).
- Speaking of music: Maybe it's because he's biased in his love for you but aside from Sebastian he's probably the one who has no qualms about the hiphop genre and was immediately into the various wordplays that rapping allowed. And because of this his favorite characters in terms of rapping are the ones played by Daveed Diggs (probably more than Hamilton himself even though you've explained that Lin is the one who wrote the whole thing). He even adapts to how Daveed as Jefferson would say Isaac's third law and incorporated it into his "let's tease Newton" kit. That's when you know he really loves Daveed Diggs ("Every action has an equal opposite -" "WILL YOU PLEASE STOP SAYING IT THAT WAY?! I didn't mind the first few times but this is ridiculous Arthur" "It must be nice, it must be nice to have a Newton on your side"). And his favorite character emotionally was Angelica (her raps in Schuyler Sisters and Satisfied may have helped).
- Speaking of the Schuyler Sisters, after watching it with you another time (this time with just the two of you) one of his favorite things to say is that you've got the best of all three sisters within you (Angelica's wittiness and intelligence, Eliza's cares for the more important things in life, and Peggy's humor) with the sexiness of Maria Reynolds. But because he sees all 4 of them in you he has the benefit of not needing to choose among them. Having said that there will be a period wherein he teases you if he makes you "Helpless" or "Satisfied" (and you respond either by kissing him or singing "That would be enough").
- Whenever you would sing as one of the Schuyler sisters he will join you as any of the male characters the moment he masters the soundtrack and could even sing it without the music. His favorite rap songs are "Guns and Ships", "Washington on your side", and of course "Satisfied". He also really loves "Non-stop", "the 10 duel commandments", and "The room where it happened". But his favorite sequence is from "the Winter's Ball" all the way to "Wait for it". Since it has romance, a shocking revelation, and gives insight to the perspective of the antagonist. He's also one of the first people to attempt to learn the choreography whenever he's in one of his mental blocks in writing. Of course he makes sure not to injure himself.
- He posts song lyrics to keep himself motivated in his times of mental block "There's a million things I haven't done. But just you wait" and "I'm not throwing away my shot" frequently appear around his desk.
-And whenever he's feeling low or insecure, just like Eliza you remind him to "Look around, Look around, how lucky we are to be alive right now."
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We Met Within This Screen (chapt. 4)
[Donnie x fem reader]
sfw, chapt. 3, pt. 4 here
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Sighing, you set your phone face-down after sending your last text to Bo. What an abrupt end to something that had been so good. You were confused, a little taken aback and honestly sad. You'd thought the two of you were getting along well. Bo was smart, well-spoken, funny, and all around, a really nice person. He listened to your venting and seemed like he had a response to everything. Always, he had some random fact to hit you with whether it was about biology, chemistry, astronomy, language—you weren't sure where he got all his knowledge from. He'd never mentioned school, if he went. He didn't mention a lot about himself, actually. 
People come and go, someone had once told you. You guessed that he was one of those passersby, as much as you wanted it to be more. 
More?
When had you started thinking that? More what? 
You were tempted to pick your phone back up, to check and see if there were any new messages. Not that you could expect much; Bo had been so curt about his exit from your friendship that it was left at his last text, "Again, I'm sorry." You wanted to say something, but what was there to say? It was his decision. A sudden, uncharacteristic, and frankly odd decision, but still, his. Thinking back on it, you tried to remember any instance you might have crossed a line, or maybe said something you shouldn't have. That's what made you open up the messages again, scrolling up and up and looking for anything weird, but finding nothing of the sort. It had all been normal up until when you texted him about the clamor you'd heard outside your apartment building. And then it went flat—he didn't even respond to it, just said his apology and his goodbye before going offline.
You wanted to take your mind off it with a game, but as you looked through your list and saw the one you and him had played together, you knew it was near ruined for you. It just wasn't the same to play alone or with your acquaintances. An otherwise boring game made fun by one particular person, but now it was barely what it used to be.
Unfortunate. 
The next morning might have felt more normal if it weren't for the fact that everyone was pretending like it was. For the sake of secrecy from their father. As far as Donnie knew, Splinter still didn't know anything was or had been going on, and he intended to keep it that way, too. He wanted to tell his father, he did, but all he saw coming of that was reprimanding, or at the very least an awkward discussion, and possibly, time in the Hashi. He was already feeling the aftermath of his actions; he didn't need any more. Especially as he checked the messaging app one last time, only to find it empty, aside from her goodbye. 
Donnie stood at the kitchen counter, mask off and groggy as usual, scrounging for something to eat. Maybe a cup of coffee (if they had any), which he was looking for when Mikey bounced in. Normally, his brothers would avoid him when he was in one of his "moods". He hadn't a passionate temper like Raph but a slow-brewing one, the kind that festers until it's alleviated or boils over. Cold quiet was his thing. 
But Donnie knew why he was here. So did Mikey. He had that familiar glint of mischief in his eye. 
There was no coffee, so he settled for some kind of pastry they'd found while looking through the dumpsters. Really, the item was fine—only the packaging and appearance was defective. It was a wonder just how much food grocers wasted over arbitrary reasons, but regardless, he was happy to oblige his secret sweet tooth. 
From the corner of his eye he could see Mikey waiting eagerly for him to turn around and regard him. To listen to whatever he was about to talk his ear off with. Their youngest brother was more often than not bright-eyed in the morning, something Donnie's morning fog could not always entertain. He picked at his food at the counter for a moment, mind wandering back to his night and subsequently,  the unresolved feelings. Dreadfully unresolved, he groaned inside. And they probably would continue to be, as after sleeping on what had happened the previous night, thinking about her, he realized something that made his face flush. Oh, no. 
He froze in his place, suddenly very awake. He looked over his shoulder and found Mikey was distracted rummaging through the food for his own breakfast, and with a faint cringe, tried to sneak out of the kitchen undetected. No way would he admit to Mikey's words on the rooftop that night, the ones that made him flinch with embarrassment. The same ones that bounced around his head despite all attempts to stuff it down. "You like her, bro." 
Things involving him could never be simple, could they?
Abandoning his plate, Donnie began tip-toeing out of the room right behind Mikey. His foot hit the leg of a chair and caused a creak—he winced. As he thought, Mikey looked back, "Why are you sneaking around? You didn't finish your breakfast. Can't go on patrol on an empty stomach, dude." 
Before Donnie could even answer, he continued in a whisper, "Plus—"
"Whatever it is, Mikey, not now," he cut his brother off, "last night was the end of it, alright? You need to let it go." It sounded harsher than he would have preferred, but he felt the need to drill it into Mikey's skull that it was over, that it was just something he'd have to deal with. There were a lot of things they dealt with despite not liking it. With time, he'd forget—more accurately, be able to ignore— and maybe he could find the same enjoyment in his brothers once again. That sort of friendship.  But at the moment, it was ruined for him—he got a taste of something more and it was taken away what felt like second later. 
Mikey's face fell. Donnie couldn't stand that, seeing him upset over something he'd said. He had a bit of a soft spot for their youngest, no doubt. Just wasn't always obvious. 
"Aren't you afraid you'll regret it?" he asked, voice soft. 
Fear was a strong word, but of course Donnie was anxious. It was the thing holding him back from being able to simply compartmentalize everything, to put it in a box and on the metaphorical "deal with this later because it's uncomfortable right now" shelf. Or to deal with it at all, as ignoring his problems with studying and unrelated research and experimentation wasn't exactly prime management. He knew that. 
After a while of thought, Donnie was able to give him an answer. "Well…I mean, how could I not be?" he inquired in return before leaning out of the doorway to scan the lair. Everyone was either in their room, the dojo, or there, in the kitchen. Mikey has always made him feel most comfortable, and he was sure that was the case for the other three, just that they had other ways of showing it. He was certainly easy to talk to; if Donnie weren't so careful of his mouth and what came out of it, he could probably spew way more to him than he liked. Mikey could come through sometimes, though, which prompted him to keep going, "It was a big thing for me. We've been disconnected from everything else for so long that it was just...exciting, to get a look into what it's like. Being 'regular', you know?" 
Mikey sat down on one of the bar stools, feet idly shuffling against the floor as he folded his arms and rested on them. "You didn't hear it from me, but I'm a little jealous," he said playfully, but Donnie was aware that it was the case. "Maybe I'm pushing you to go after her because I'm trying to live vic–vicrous–v–…" 
Donnie smiled, he couldn't help it. "'Vicariously'?" he suggested. 
"Yeah! That," Mikey beamed, nodding. "You get what I mean." 
"I understand." 
The conversation died off soon after as Donnie decided to get breakfast over with and do whatever needed to be done before they left for patrol that night, darkness falling earlier due to the upcoming winter. It wasn't too cold for them to be out yet, though, so that still meant a chilly patrol in the Autumn breeze. He hated the cold. 
As Donnie was making himself busy at a circuit board in his lab, he heard the beads in the doorway shift, and to his surprise, Splinter came shuffling in. 
"Sensei?" 
He put down his soldering iron, spinning around in his chair. "Something the matter?" 
Splinter ran his fingers along a shelf on the wall as he wandered by, careful to not disturb any of the items lining it. Beakers, recently-repaired electronic parts, projects put on pause, things that would loathe to be broken. 
"There is always something," Splinter replied enigmatically, "I would not be here if that weren't true. Would you agree?"
 I'm compromised!
Donnie had a strong but hidden dislike for vague speaking, even if he did it himself sometimes. When spoken to you it's much more bothersome. 
Splinter waited for his answer, looking at him expectantly. "Donatello?" 
"Yeah, um…yes, I would—I would agree. I suppose. So...what is it again?" Damn his stutter, he couldn't get away with anything, hardly. He was only able to stifle it just enough. 
Picking a random pipette on the desk next to Donnie, Splinter studied the green liquid close for a second before his nose twitched, and he put it back down. "You have been very busy lately, it seems. What is it that you work on all day in here? Or are you playing games?" 
Donnie's heart thumped. His hand found that particular spot on his neck and began to scratch, and Splinter looked at him dead in the eye. He should have known; there was no hiding anything from their father, he was too good. Stupidly, infuriatingly perceptive. Donnie caught himself scratching that spot and slid his hand away, he hadn't even noticed he was picking at it again. He knows, Mikey told him, I probably look like a guilty idiot right now, I'm—
"I haven't been playing games," Donnie blurted out. 
Quizzically, Splinter gestured at the computer screen on the other wall, which had the menu of the game he'd opened up just earlier. Reminiscing over it even though it had been only a couple of days since he and his friend had last played together, but he stared at the screen as if it had been years. It made him realize how easily he'd gotten attached to that. Well, to her. He was on the fence about whether he wanted to try playing again or not and left it on.
Oh, you have to be kidding. I'm a fool in a man's shoes. 
Donnie laughed uncomfortably, "You caught me, Sensei," he said, "I guess I have been playing games more often lately." 
It was honest enough, right? 
Splinter hummed and cupped his hands behind his back. "I see."
Straightening out, Donnie dipped his head a little. "I'll...lay off on them. Sorry for lying. I've just been really distracted recently." 
"Liars never prosper, my son. Take care of yourself." 
He then left. 
So he didn't know. Donnie still couldn't say it with any degree of confidence, because Splinter would trip them up here and there, but it was assurance enough to know that if Splinter was aware of what had gone on between the four brothers and his new—rather, former—human friend, he would have confronted Donnie about it. Or all of them, considering it was now a secret they were all in on actively hiding. And on top of that, Raph and Leo didn't know Mikey was conspiring. Layers and layers, he sighed. 
With Splinter gone, he let out a breath of relief. Too close. Much. But, swiftly evaded. A chuckle left him, not of humor, but more because he was actually feeling a little confident. Just a little. They were really hiding something from Splinter; it was reason enough to pat himself on the back, nothing got past Splinter. Except for him.
Briefly, he thought of Mikey's outlandish idea as he spun back around in his chair. "Mikey, you are crazy," he mumbled to himself as he took his soldering iron, resuming his work from before. "But..."
Chapter 5
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tobiosmilktea · 4 years
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the love club — miya atsumu
ten: eye for an eye
masterlist | prev. | next
a/n: i haven’t written anything in ages so my writing is trash rn, but hopefully atsumu and y/n being cute will make up for not updating two days ago 👉🏻👈🏻
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you could’ve sworn you had told atsumu to come exactly at 6:30 pm, sharp. any later, you would’ve left the cafe the moment your shift ended without a single text to inform him that your patience was waning. you figured that was most likely going to happen considering a little birdy told you that inarizaki’s volleyball team was going through their hell week as nationals was just around the corner.
at least, that’s what you thought was going to happen.
if anything, miya atsumu himself arrived thirty minutes before the time given to him. it was enough to cease your stirring suspicions of him being late and a good enough excuse not to see his smug face, but the unfortunate tides have come across and drenched you in ill-fate—all gross and a bit powdery too at this point.
“there’s a handsome boy waiting outside for you, (y/n).” matsui-sensei, the owner and head baker of pink elephant cafe, not to mention your boss announced as he barged into the kitchen, all loud and boisterous.
despite being nearing his thirties, your boss still acted childish from time to time as there was an notion of implicate suspicions in his tone with that smirk he wore on his lips, his imagination running wild as a boy never really asked for one of his best bakers (not to mention the prettiest) attention before.
you swiftly hid your phone in the back pocket of your jeans as you let out a sigh, “tell him i’m not here.”
“it’s a bit too late for that,” says matsui, adjusting the red bandanna tied around his forehead to pull back his growing black curls and to catch his sweat. “he told me that your meeting with him was important so i said him that i’m letting you off your shift early.”
“why the hell would you do that?” your voice raised a few octaves, but hopefully not enough to travel through the kitchen doors and into the bakery.
matsui held his hands up in defensive and he throw you a playful smile, “listen, i think i’m doing  you a favor, kid, considering that i’m pretty sure you haven’t even had a boyfriend yet.”
your eyebrows furrow in annoyance as you threw the rag you were using to clean the tables at your boss, yet he caught it before it could slap him straight on the face. “what makes you think this guy’s gonna ask me out, we’re literally just working on a project together.”
“trust me, (y/n), my intuition’s ringing.”
“unbelievable,” you scoff and you roll your eyes again.
“seriously though,” he continues as you make your way towards one of the blast ovens. the sweet aroma of blueberry muffins swiftly greeted your senses as you pulled it out with your mitted-hand, “you literally run a love advice hotline and never been in a relationship. don’t you think that’s a bit weird?”
you let the question simmer a bit as you didn’t bother to let the tray of muffins cool the full five minutes and you immediately attempted to pull them out of their metal molds. “not as weird as a grown ass man asking a couple of teenagers love advice.” you shot back, recalling how just over a year ago matsui had found out your other job.
the story was quite the funny one, actually, but long story short—you had forgotten to turn off the love club notifications during work and being the nosy boss he was, he ended up seeing his instagram handle right on your phone screen. there was certainly no way of excusing yourself from it as you ended up telling him everything. in the end, he didn’t mind as he was now engaged.
“hey!” his exclaimed, distracting you from carefully pulling out the muffins as you hissed out in pain. the tips of your fingers burned from the scorching heat of the freshly baked tray, appearing crimson and sore to the touch. matsui was too caught up in making a snarky comeback to even notice your quiet yelp of pain. “we don’t allow slander in this establishment, kid, now go before i fire you.”
you snort playfully at his words and you untied your flour-coated apron, hanging it up on one of the hooks near the doors before leaving the kitchen and into the bakery.
a deep sigh left your lips as you gently apologized for almost bumping into one of your coworkers who was making their way to get a customers order. the cafe wasn’t too busy, but was lively enough to certainly keep the employees on their toes. you almost felt bad for leaving your shift so early.
your eyes scanned the array of tables and chairs with slight fatigue before they landed on a familiar boy’s obnoxious blonde.
his broad back was towards you as he was slightly hunched over, probably from texting. you made your way over to him as you spoke over his shoulder, “you’re here early.” your tone was flat and uninterested as you watched his eyes widened the moment he met your gaze.
“hi,” was all he could say as you sat across from him.
you let out a huff as there was a stupid look on his face to which filled you with the urge to just deck him right on the nose to wipe that expression off his face, and yet, the feeling was suddenly replaced with a feeling too foreign for you to identify as he smiled a toothy grin at you.
oh god, help me now.
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in the end, you and atsumu had actually gotten a lot of work done in two hours. considering that you were just a conclusion away from finishing, you were genuinely surprised you only had three urges to fight this man the entire time.
you supposed it was the way atsumu almost seemed like he was in a rush, a mere kick in his step as he started typing away at his document in speed. it almost left your mouth gaping and your eyebrows furrowing in confusion how well this man multi-tasked from doing his work while maintaining a conversation with you. granted, they were quite the strange topics from who would die in a zombie apocalypse first (to which you said that you’d feed atsumu to the zombies in a heart beat) then jumping straight into both of your plans in the future after graduation.
as you two took in each other’s entertaining quips of stories and random tidbits that for once, you found yourself enjoying atsumu’s company rather than hating each waking moment of it.
but, you were obviously known for not being the most talkative in terms of your lack of wanting to overshare information about yourself that would most likely turn into some kind of self-imposed altercation. you simply sat there, adding small grunts of agreements, surprised gestures, and the occasional witty retort to match atsumu’s playful behavior.
some time along those two hours, matsui came by and dropped off a bowl of berries by your table that atsumu liked to steal. he would think that his quick hands would go unnoticed as he swiftly snatched at your snacks, but unfortunately for him, it’s as if he hadn’t known that you did in fact notice.
there was only two berries left in the bowl and knowing atsumu’s greedy ass, you gently placed your hand to rest on the brim of the bowl, waiting a few beats to past for atsumu to reach his hand out again only for you reach out at the same time.
“dude!” the setter exclaimed as you grabbed the last ones, “not fair, (y/n).”
you could only hold yourself back from a melting smirk as you only popped one of them in your mouth, “stealing the majority of the food is rude, miya.”
“as if getting them before i could is any better,” he retaliated. 
a breathy chuckle had escaped your lips as you held out to last berry for him to take. it was the one time you were actually going to be nice to this guy and yet he hesitated to even take it the moment his gaze fell upon your extended hand.
“are you gonna take it or not?” you say with a bit more authority.
however, you were immediately taken aback and atsumu grabbed your wrist and pulled it closer. the berry in the palm of your hand had fallen back into the bowl below as the boy before you looked at your red fingers. “did you burn yourself?” he asked gently, slight worry washing over his eyes as his gaze flickered back towards you.
you snatched your hand back from him as you shook your head, “it’s nothing.” you answer, taking your attention back towards the project in attempt to ignore the fact that your heart was suddenly racing much faster than before. you literally refused to meet atsumu’s eyes as you could feel the heat rushing towards your cheeks. having him see your slightly burned fingers was already embarrassing enough, seeing your tinted red cheeks wouldn’t have helped either.
your gaze that was locked onto your assignment swiftly flickered back towards him as you heard atsumu shuffle through his backpack to pull out a couple bandages. “i know it’s not much to help burns, but these bandages should at least protect them for the time being.”
three strips were slipped towards you as his a saccharine-sweet smile melted upon his visage. taking his offer, you took and placed one bandage at a time, slightly struggling with each finger until atsumu took the pleasure of helping you on the last one.
you felt your breath hitch in your throat as you noticed how his hands were great in size compared to yours. and despite being a volleyball player and assuming his hands would be rough and a bit calloused, they were much softer than you could’ve imagined.
perhaps you hated the way your urge to punch the living daylights out of atsumu suddenly morphed into a heart beat punching the living daylights out of your ribcage.
“thanks for the last berry, (y/n).” he muttered as his hands left yours and popped the last piece of fruit in his mouth.
oh god, please help me now.
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fun facts! —
matsui is a family friend so he had known y/n since she was a kid. he ended up hiring her the moment she turned 15 (they even have a handshake cause they’re homies)
akaashi, kenma, and tanaka have never actually been to pink elephant cafe and they’ve been trying to visit for the longest time
taglist: (closed)
@kitsunetea @bftsukki @gyubit17 @ushijimasbb @alyssasteaparty @angsty-microwave @pleasemelafook-outta-ere @katsuhoee @dinonerdsimp @kenchiko @sakusakymi @deimmortales99 @nerumiz @evphology @of-heroes-and-dreams @noeminemi @chaelysian @lunebiscuit @hanbinplanet @it-me-720 @differentballooncollection @iwaizluv @90s-belladonna @terushimasbitch @apollochjld @shephard17895 @tremendousglitterthing @kara-grayson04 @clowninfortodoroki @gra-hamcrackers @bloomkings @highlyanxiousintroverted @verymuchbabey @miyaosamoo @achly @randomidksomeone @newborn-weeb @mx-minxx @callums-keith @lumiriai @unstableye @lovedanii @kritiiiii @ushisama @kitakure @gaychemicalwater @akakuzumo @noiramor @tsumu-core @stardustanni @ikemenweebo (continued in the commented)
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imaginedhaven · 3 years
Text
Reluctantly Rooming: Part Eleven
Link to Masterpost
Kind of filler-y, I guess, but we’re almost to some juicier chapters! Enjoy!
Today’s prompts:
Aelin stealing clothes from Rowan’s laundry
Rowan being scandalized by Aelin’s laundry- this one was actually a DM from @queen-of-glass, rather than an ask! I BET YOU THOUGHT I FORGOT ABOUT THIS, DIDN’T YOU. WELL, I DIDN’T BECAUSE IT’S GOLD.
and
“It’s not mine, I swear!” / “How is it not yours?”
~*~*~
Aelin slipped down the stairs in sock-clad feet, basket of dirty laundry perched on her hip as the clothes dryer beeped. In the two weeks that had passed since Rowan’s nightmare, she had taken it upon herself to take over laundry for the both of them. It was the least she could do, as she had been summarily banned from the kitchen altogether after that incident.
Rowan had fussed at her a little when she’d first done it, insisting that he could take care of himself, but he’d eventually caved. She wasn’t sure how much of it was due to the lingering awkwardness of that one night she’d inadvertently spent in his bed, but if that’s what it took then she supposed at least one good thing had come out of it.
She genuinely hadn’t intended to fall asleep, only to stay long enough to make sure he had fallen asleep. But instead, she had awakened at the sound of his door quietly closing, wrapped around his pillow as though it were a lover. She had lingered there until she was positive he had left for the day before flying out of his bed and rushing to the safety of her own room.
Aelin sighed and shook her head before opening the door of the dryer, pulling all of the newly-dried clothing into a separate basket for clean clothes. Moving quickly so that she could fold the clothes while they were still warm and relatively free of wrinkles, she dumped the newly-washed clothes into the dryer and started it, then loaded her next load of laundry into the washing machine before moving away to the couch with the clean clothes.
She had soft music playing in the background, but even without that she would’ve found the repetitive motions soothing as she folded the shirts, smoothing the wrinkles out of each one before moving to the next. Before she knew it, she was left with two neat piles of clothing—one for herself, and one for Rowan. Perfect. She had time to sneak into the kitchen and see what she could swipe for a snack before the next round.
At least, it was perfect until she spilled the milk intended for her cookies down the front of her shirt instead.
“Shit,” she hissed, both at the embarrassment and at the cold wet sensation. At least Rowan hadn’t been here to see it; he would’ve mocked her endlessly for it. Not to mention, it would’ve been far more awkward to simply strip her shirt off had her roommate been around to see her parading about topless through the house.
Since she was already doing laundry, it was a simple task to toss the soiled shirt into the next pile. However, she would also need to find something else to wear, before Rowan got back in an hour.
A simple grey undershirt sat at the top of Rowan’s neatly-folded pile of laundry. She knew it would still be warm, and the material was impossibly soft. It was plain, with no designs, so it wouldn’t be immediately obvious that she had taken it from him. She could venture up to her room and grab one of her own shirts of course, but with such a tempting option right there…
What Rowan didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him.
The shirt was exactly as soft as she’d known it would be, gently caressing her bare skin as she slid it over her head. It was perfect, really; she hadn’t intended to go put on a bra, and to know she wouldn’t need to in order to be comfortable was a relief. The hem fell to her mid-thigh, the garment almost comically large on her smaller frame, but that was okay. Shirts worn with leggings were supposed to be large enough and long enough to cover all the important places, anyway.
Carefully, she picked up the remainder of his pile of clothes and slipped into his room to set them at the foot of his bed alongside her previous rounds. Mission completed, she glanced at the pillows and bit her lip as her cheeks grew warm. What should have been an innocuous display of an immaculately-made bed was still bringing back memories of soft sheets and pine-scented pillows and fingers carefully entwined with her own.
She shook her head and left, and it took a surprising amount of effort not to slam the door behind her as she fled the scene.
Gods, whatever this was, she had it bad. She could practically hear Sam and Lysandra both laughing at her and telling her she needed to get laid. Maybe they were right; she hadn’t been with anyone since escaping Rifthold, and maybe this was just a symptom of how long it had been.
The front door opened before she could think about it any further, and she darted back down the stairs to gather her own laundry and greet her roommate.
His eyes immediately focused on her as she rounded the corner, before narrowing. “That’s my shirt, isn’t it?”
Damn. How on earth had he figured it out so quickly? “Why would you think that? Oversized shirts are normal to wear with leggings.”
Rowan smirked. “That might’ve worked if I hadn’t seen what you normally wear for ‘leggings as pants’ days.”
Shit. Well, it had been worth trying. “So familiar with my wardrobe,” she purred instead. “Someone might wonder how you know what clothing I have so… intimately.”
Damn, he didn’t even blush at the suggestion. “Aelin, I’m sure I don’t have to remind you that we live together and therefore I’m pretty sure I’ve seen most of what you consider to be casual loungewear.”
Fine. “Just for that, I’m keeping it!”
He called after her as she headed up the stairs with her own laundry. “Don’t think I don’t know you still haven’t given me back those pajama pants, either! What could you possibly be hoarding my clothes for? They don’t even fit you.”
Shit. Better to pretend she hadn’t heard that, since she hadn’t even begun to prepare an answer for why she hadn’t given those back yet. Instead, she quietly retreated into her room, putting her clothes away before grabbing a book and sprawling onto her bed.
She wasn’t sure exactly how much time passed, but before long there was a soft knocking at her door. “I’d ask if you’re decent, but I’m pretty sure I already know the answer.”
Aelin laughed and opened the door. “Never am. What’s up?”
A scrap of lace Aelin barely recognized as a crop top was dangling from the tips of Rowan’s fingers as though the material would burn him if any more of him came into contact with it. How had…? “That’s not mine, I swear,” she finally said.
“This ought to be good. Fine. How is it not yours?”
“It’s Lysandra’s,” Aelin admitted. “She encouraged me to borrow it, the last time we went out.”
Rowan snorted out a laugh. “So it’s not just me you’re hoarding clothes from.”
Aelin snatched the top out of his loose grip. “We’re not talking about this. Anything else?”
“Yes, actually.” The tips of his ears went pink as he pulled out underwear that was definitely Aelin’s. “I’m presuming you didn’t steal these away from an unwitting friend.”
“Um. No.”
“They don’t have a back. Why do they not have a back?”
Aelin took the underwear back, carefully detangling the series of straps that made up the backside. “Rowan. You were married. To a woman.”
“I don’t see what that has to do with this.”
“It means I’m assuming you’ve seen women’s underwear before.”
“Nothing like that.”
“Hm, that’s a shame. They’re fun.” She smirked as she set them aside on her desk to put away later. “Maybe someday you’ll find someone willing to show you.”
“Are you assuming I’ve been celibate this whole time?”
Aelin turned to rearrange one of her drawers, hoping the motion hid the flush of her cheeks and the sudden trembling of her fingers. “I’m not assuming anything,” she lied. “Well, except that no one’s worn anything like that for you, since you seem so confused.”
“Hm.”
Gods, could they talk about literally anything else? This wasn’t a conversation she was ready to have. “Now. Is there anything else from your laundry that may or may not actually be mine?”
He shook his head, and she breathed a small sigh of relief. “Not this time.”
“Okay, good. You’re welcome, then.”
He frowned. “Welcome? For what?”
Aelin grinned. “For the free entertainment.”
As she had known would happen, he grumbled something she couldn’t quite hear and left. Once the door closed behind him, she flopped back onto her bed and groaned into a pillow.
Gods, the sight of him delicately handling her underthings was one she had not at all been prepared for, and even the memory of it was still doing things to her. Not to mention his voice; it was as though his deep and lilting accent had been made to talk about sex, and it had wrapped around her like his shirt had earlier.
Are you assuming I’ve been celibate this whole time?
Gods help her, she had been assuming exactly that, if only to preserve her own sanity. She had been carefully not thinking about Rowan and sex in the same sentence for so long, and now that he had absolutely shattered that with a single question she wasn’t sure what to do.
There likely wasn’t much of anything she could do. He’d made it so clear that he saw her as simply a roommate—one to which he had warmed up, if only begrudgingly, but barely a friend and certainly not a…
What did she even hope this would be, anyway?
Aelin sighed and shook her head. It was pointless to think about, and nearly impossible to believe. She needed to get this out of her head before she did something stupid like crawl into his bed again and never leave.
Decision made, she reached for her phone and sent a text to Lysandra. You were right.
Her friend’s reply was almost immediate. I’m always right. What am I right about now, exactly?
Maybe it’s time for me to try to put myself out there again.
That’s my girl. Got any ideas, or are Sam and I supposed to set you up?
Aelin snorted. You’re impossible. I don’t know yet.
Well, figure it out. I’ve gotta know how I’m supporting you here.
I don’t want to be all the way set up, but I guess I’m open to suggestions?
I GOT U BB. <3
Aelin smiled and tucked her phone away before swearing and snatching at it as her pretimed alarm went off. Laundry day waited for no roommate crisis, it seemed.
She supposed she should probably feel a bit lighter as she darted back down the stairs for the next round of laundry. Instead, though, she only felt nerves. Maybe she had been out of the game too long after all, and this change would only do her good.
~*~*~
Tagging:
@ireallyshouldsleeprn @queen-of-glass @fangirlprincess09 @sassys-world @morganofthewildfire @superspiritfestival @perseusannabeth @sis-it-dont-add-up @jlinez @julemmaes @emilyoftheshadows @thegoddessofyou @mymultiversee @swankii-art-teacher @rowansfirebringer @livsdriverslicense @courtofjurdan @danibutterr @woollycat22 @rowaelinismyotp @sleeping-and-books @acciowests @stardelia
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Text
just full on bodies you with a semi NEW FIC JUST DROPPED BABES
we are leaving cute high school world and entering pain town. this story will have mentions of self harm and suicidal ideation. Please take care of yourselves and don't engage if that sort of content is triggering to you. (be nice to yourselves, i love you)
The worst year of his life starts out the same as so many good days, it almost makes him dizzy to think back on. He feels, later, that a start to this much torment, this painful, should have begun completely fucking miserable, but it had been just any other day. It starts the same way so many days before it starts. His eyes open. He’s in his bedroom, in his bed, like normal. He’s staring up at his black ceiling, wrapped up in his bedspread. His phone buzzes, and he groans, reaches for it, scans messages. A good morning from Barbara, an unread goodnight from Adam, a text from that talent agency that there was something they could use his voice for. He throws back his blankets, rubs sleep from his eyes, and dresses.
In high school his uniform had been an oversized striped hoodie, but for his birthday a few years ago, Charles had bought him several nice dress pants, suit jackets, and collared shirts, and he’d sort of settled into that as his new everyday. He likes how he looks, because this shit is expensive, custom, made to fit his more generous frame, and both his partners always say he looks handsome in a jacket and tie. (Sometimes Barbara yanks him around by the tie. Sometimes Adam snaps his suspenders.) And besides, his dad had taken his preferences into consideration, because all the pieces he’d been gifted had that pattern he was drawn to, thick black and white stripes that absolutely stand out in a crowd. He dresses quickly, throws on his suit jacket over his pinstriped shirt. He adjusts his tie, and gives a grin. Too many teeth, too sharp, and he waves a hand in front of his mouth, and tries again. Human teeth. There we go, B-Man. He lifts his legs, not especially in the mood to walk, and begins to make his way downstairs, for breakfast. He passes by Lydia’s room, and considers harassing his sister, but he remembers how bad he needed his Saturday sleep-ins at fifteen, and takes pity on her, floating past her door silently.
His father, always an early riser, is already in the kitchen, making a pot of coffee, and Betelgeuse lets his feet hit the floor, so that his heeled boots clack against the kitchen tile.
Charles knows the sound, doesn’t even turn around. “Morning, BJ. Any plans for today?”
His relaxed, not exactly actively working lifestyle is not his dad’s favorite, but he’s got a long time, a lot longer than any other person, to work a job. He's just enjoying the time he gets with all his favorite breathers, before he doesn’t have it anymore. At least, that’s always been his excuse. It's not that he can't find work, or that he’s unhirable to a normal job, it’s that he’s trying to enjoy life. Obviously.
But there's good news this morning.
“Got a text from th’ agency. Some voice work,” he grunts. His insanely gravely voice is not always in high demand, but it's been getting some attention lately, mostly because the last commercial he did voice over for, he had to sing, and the request for more of that has been promising. The big goal is some acting gig, on stage, preferably, but he’d take TV, too. He loves the attention, he loves the rush, he loves entertaining. Unfortunately he’s got a demonic aura that makes breathers nervous on principle. He knows if he could just get a break, he’d have a lot to give… but he’s maybe not working on getting that break as hard as he could be.
“Very nice,” Charles finally turns, and smiles, clearly approving. He sets a cup of coffee in front of his son, and BJ glances at it. “Be a pal and wake your mother up?” “This early? On a Saturday?” He squints. “You tryna take me out via Emily attack?” “We’ve got that check up to go to,” Charles says. “I don’t want to be late.”
He shrugs, takes the cup, and vanishes from sight, appearing upstairs, next to his mother. Emily is still wrapped in the bedsheets, snoring lightly, but he knows the trick to rousing her. The coffee cup is waved around her nose, allowing the aroma to hit her senses, and, eyes still closed, she reaches for it. He pulls the cup back.
“Come on, ma,” he scratches gently at her scalp. “Time to get up.” “Coffeeeee,” she groans, reaching at it blindly again, and he grins, and walks backwards, setting the coffee on the dresser, across the room. “Coffee’s over here, Deetzy,” he tells her, and she finally cracks an eye open, and groans. “Evil. Evil son.” “Yup,” he agrees, easily. “Come on. Chuck says you got some appointments to keep.” His mother groans, and kicks back the sheets, before standing.
He’d been twelve, and herself only about thirty when she’d found him, and now, ten years later, at 40, her age is showing, a little. She’s been growing in gray hair for the past few years, and it hasn’t taken over her natural sunshine yellow, but it’s becoming a bit more noticeable, and the slight lines forming around her mouth and eyes are a new addition to her features. Chuck’s aging in much the same way, but with fewer laugh lines. The hair at his father’s temples is going gray, and if he really looks, he can see the beginnings of salt and pepper in his father’s beard. He doesn’t like looking for it, though, and doesn't like the feeling gnawing in his guts at seeing his parents age. If he had his way, they’d stay frozen in time, the way he probably will. Demons don’t age, past a certain point, and he’s pretty sure he’ll be hitting it, soon enough.
He watches his mother shuffle across the floor, and claim her prize of coffee. She takes a long sip, and then groans. “I don’t want to go to the doctor,” she complains to him, and he pats her shoulder. “I know, ma,” he gives her a very sympathetic smile. “But you gotta. Or Chuckles will throw a fit. It’s just a check up, right? No biggie.” She rubs at her temple, and winces. “Getting old sucks,” she tells him. “I’ve been having the worst headaches, recently.”
When they make it back downstairs, Chuck's got breakfast going, and Lydia is sipping her own coffee. Black, like her heart, she always says. He passes her by and ruffles that mop of long blonde hair. “Beetle breath,” she greets him, as he takes a plate from Charles, and sits to eat.
The voice over work isn't as big a deal as he was hoping. He adjusts his tie, fiddles with the collar of his pinstripe dress shirt, and steps out of the booth. “Fuckin’ peanuts,” he complains, and his agent just shrugs. “Gotta start small, BJ. We need someone to do some crooning for this other comercial, some car sale, or something. You feel like playing Sinatra for a bit?”
Not especially, but he does it anyway, and then meets Adam and Barbara for lunch. Adam’s taking classes for business management, and he’s just about done. He wants to take over his grandpa’s hardware store, outside of the city. Way outside, actually, in some little town in Connecticut. They’ve got shared plans, shared dreams, and all of it hinges on this little store in this little town. BJ isn’t too worried. His boyfriend’s hobbies come and go, but Adam really, really enjoys woodworking, and getting to own a place like that sounds like getting to own his own playground.
Barbara, meanwhile, is stuck in clerical work, which she finds mind numbingly dull, but it's a steady paycheck, and it’s afforded her a ticket out of her dad’s place, so that’s something. She and Adam share a tiny studio apartment in Queens, and for all the time Betelgeuse spends there, he might as well live there, too. But three people in a studio isn’t any of their idea of a good time. Speaking of…
“I was on zillow, today,” Adam starts, and he and Barbara lean over with varying degrees of interest, as Adam shows them his phone. It’s a house, predictably, but a nice one. Old fashioned, and a little creeping looking. He likes it.
“She’s a bit of a fixer upper,” he says, admiring the house. “But the price is right, and look at all this character. Classic Queen Anne, with the original crown molding! Tons of space, lots of room for the three of us.” “Maybe a forth,” Barbara smiles brightly, and he matches her enthusiasm. She’s wanted to be a mom since he’s known her, six pretty amazing years, and while a lot has changed in that time, her maternal desire is as strong as ever.
“Maybe a fifth,” BJ grins, wiggling his eyebrows at her, and she flushes. “One from each of my boys.” She agrees, and she reaches across the table, for his hand, which he gives her. Adam takes her other hand, and they’re lost in that fantasy for a moment. He’s not actually sure he can give her what she wants, since he’s not exactly human, but Adam can, at least. And he gets to be part of it. Goddamn, he’s lucky.
“So? Tell us about this commercial you just did!” Adam smiles at him.
“S’not a big deal, just some radio ad,” He tells them, but he’s flattered that they’re always overly enthusiastic about his bit parts. “I heard you on the radio in the office, a few days ago!” Barbara remembers. “My coworkers couldn’t believe that was your real voice! You make such a good villain.” Of course he does. He keeps the smile on, because he knows Babs, knows that she means it in the sweetest, most lovey dovey way possible, but he’s never going to play the hero, because no hero sounds like a demon. He can’t get in his head about this, not right now. Not when the weather’s so nice, and he’s sitting across from the people he loves the most.
“I am the villain, babes,” he grins at her, and stands, leaning over to kiss and rub his stubble into her neck, until laughing, she pushes him away.
“Maybe you should come to the office with me, tomorrow,” Chuck says, over dinner. BJ resists the urge to stab himself through the eye with his fork. “M’not that into real estate, pop,” he tells him, and Emily smiles. “You know BJ’s an artist.” “I just think if he gave it a try,” Charles says, looking to his wife. “That he’d excel at it. I mean, good lord, all real estate is, is making deals and fast talking. He’s built for that sort of thing.” Betelgeuse grimaces. “But then I’d have to spend any amount of time around your coworkers, an’ those other big money creeps.” “Those big money creeps write the checks that paid for this house, BJ,” Chuck reminds him.
“I’ll be sure to send Maxie Dean a fruit basket.”
“Skip the fruit, just send that freak ass a basket of snakes,” Lydia says, and he grins. “Do not do that.” “Psh. Whatever, dad,” he pitches his voice into a teenage whine, and his father gives a dry smile in return. “So, that doctor appointment?” Lydia looks to Emily, and their mother smiles. “Got some scans done, no biggie. Checkups just suck. I’ve been having those migraines, recently, but the doctor didn’t seem to think it was a big deal.”
He’s staring down at his mother, in hospice, and those words echo around his mind. No big deal. The doctor didn’t seem to think it was a big deal. Just a couple migraines. Just some dizziness. Just some nausea. Just a tumor. Just another breather’s life, coming to an end.
Her bedroom is dark. The curtains are drawn. He’s sitting to her left, Lydia dozing to her right, and Emily is sleeping, dozing lightly. Chuck’s talking to the nurse in the hall. The last twelve months are a blur. He can’t remember individual days, can only remember when those test results came back. He remembers, vaguely, holding her hand during treatments. But there’s nothing any breather alive can do about the tumor, about the placement of it. At least she’s at home, at least she’s laying in her own bed. At least she’s not stuck in the hospital. Her sun colored hair is gone. Her smile is gone. That mischievous glint in her eyes is gone. All Emily does is sleep. All they can do is wait. read the rest of this chapter, plus the second one i couldn't help but post, over here, on Ao3! https://archiveofourown.org/works/32243065/chapters/79911316
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