#why stay on an app that is seemingly deliberately with holding the thing you want from you | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

sillyrabbit81 · 3 years

Text

Her Heavy Cross

Summary: Three years after tragedy hits, Lana she decides to start dating again. She meets Will through a dating app and they begin an online romance. After months of constant requests, Lana relents and agrees to meet and go on an irl date with Will. But is Will who he says he is? Lana is quickly pulled into an intense relationship forcing her to confront her tragic past. Will Lana face it or will she close her heart forever?

Pairing: OMC x OFC

Word Count: approx 2.6k

Warnings: swearing, mention of death, angst

Authors Note: The story started as a Henry Cavill fanfiction but I changed it to be an original character, but shades of Henry are still there. Hope you enjoy the story and thanks for reading.

Part 12 Part 14

Part 13

Liam said we should drive to the restaurant. I wanted to get an Uber because I didn't think we would get a car park close to the restaurant. The shoes I was wearing were not made for walking.

"We don't have to worry about the car. They have a valet service," Liam said when I suggested an Uber would be better.

Of course, they do. I don't think I've ever used a valet service in my life, and Liam tells me like it's an everyday thing. I suppose it is for him. Earlier in the week, I was amazed to find out that he gets driven to work most days even though he only lives about 10 minutes away. No wonder movies and tv shows are so expensive to make if they have to pay for things like drivers on top of everything else.

I was excited about going in his car, though. I was itching to drive it. I wanted to ask him if I could, but I didn't. As stupid as it was, I was scared he'd say no. Every guy who had said no to letting me drive his car ended up being a prick. So I was floored when he said I could drive if I wanted.

"Really?" I asked. I was practically bouncing with excitement.

"Yeah, you seemed to like it. I was going to ask if you wanted to take it out before we got..." Liam paused, seemingly to look for the right word. "Distracted."

I clapped my hands and squealed like a child. I'm such a dag, but I was excited. I'd never driven a car that fast or expensive before.

The drive was exhilarating but too short. Its 5.0 litre, supercharged V8 engine was insanely powerful, and since it was AWD, its handling took me a bit to get used to. When we got to the restaurant, I couldn't stop smiling. "Thank you! That was heaps good!"

"You're hilarious."

"Why? What did I do?" I asked, getting out of the car and handing the keys to the valet and thanking him.

"Don't think I didn't notice that you deliberately went the long way and on the highway so you could drive faster."

"I don't know what you're talking about." I widened my eyes and tried to look innocent.

Liam just shook his head and placed his hand on my back, guiding me into the restaurant.

The food was modern Australian, Liam had a scotch fillet and salad, and I had barramundi. Liam wasn't drinking and said he would drive home. I had a couple of glasses of white wine and felt a bit sauced.

I had trouble staying awake on the way back to Liam's, and eventually, the rumble of the engine lulled me into sleep. The wine combined with the stressful week had caught up with me. I woke up when Liam pulled into the garage.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to doze off," I said as we got out of the car.

"Never mind," Liam said. "Come on, let's go to bed."

We walked across Liam's backyard holding hands. I looked around as the first time I was lead through here, I only had eyes for Liam. It was big for a house so close to the city. "You have a pool? I wish you would have told me. I would have brought my swimmers."

Liam opened his back door. "You don't need bathers," he said winking. I blushed then yawned. "Poor princess. Do you want a shower? Or straight to bed?"

I nodded, "yeah, a shower would be good. I've gotta wash this makeup off too." I kicked my heels off. The relief was euphoric, my calves were sore, and I rubbed them as I bent to pick up my shoes.

"Want a bath instead?" Liam asked, noticing my massage. It was sweet that he noticed little things like that. "The bathroom on the third floor has an enormous bath. I haven't had a chance to use it yet."

"Fuck, yes! That would be awesome. What other crazy shit do you have in this place? I think you'd better give me a tour tomorrow."

Liam laughed as we went up the lift. "Yeah, ok, there's a couple of things you might like that I've not shown you yet."

The bathroom was stunning, like a hotel or spa. The bath was the hero piece of the room, and it was huge. It sat in the middle of the bathroom on a raised platform and had tiled steps around it. The whole room was decorated to be a romantic space, a couples bathroom. Candles and body wash sat by the bath, and the room's lighting was warm. Robes hung on the wall near the tub. Although there were a shower and sinks, there was no toilet. The room was definitely built for romance, not practicality.

"I thought you said you hadn't used this bathroom."

"I haven't." I pointed out the candles, soaps, towels and robes. "A stylist got all that, fitted out each room with basics so I can move in, and it's all done." My jaw dropped.

"Your life..."

"Isn't normal." He interrupted with a half-smile. "I know." Liam started the bath. "Do you need anything? Your toiletry bag? Toothbrush?"

I nodded. Liam kissed me as he left to get my stuff. The bath would probably take 20 minutes to fill, so I thought I'd wash my make-up off and brush my teeth while it did. I got undressed and put one of the robes on. They were both huge, no his and hers, but it was warm and soft.

Liam returned, and I started to wash up. I put my hair in a bun with a scrunchy and washed my face. I brushed my teeth and saw that Liam was sitting on the edge of the bath, still fully clothed, watching the water fill up.

"You're not getting in?" I asked with a mouthful of toothbrush and toothpaste. Liam looked at me confused, so I finished brushing, rinsed and repeated my question.

Liam turned the water off, bath finally full and got up. "I thought maybe you'd like to soak by yourself for a while."

"No," I said. I wrapped my arms around Liam's waist, feeling short again as my head rested against his chest. "I want you to get in with me."

He lifted my chin and kissed me softly, almost lazily. "Alright, Sweetheart."

I lifted his jumper and raised it over his head. Liam had to help by ducking. He sat and took his shoes and socks off and then stood to remove his pants. I hung my robe back up, and we both got in the water. I sat between his legs and laid my back against his chest, my head resting on his shoulder. The water was bliss, almost too hot but soothing. Liam had put some fragrance in the water, and it smelled of lavender. Breathing it in relaxed me, and I closed my eyes.

Liam nuzzled into my neck and caressed my arm. I smiled as he kissed my neck and shoulders until I felt him stir against my back. He stopped kissing me, and he just held me close to his chest like he was trying not to get turned on. It didn't seem to be working as I could still feel him, but I admired his efforts.

"Lana, I want to ask you something," Liam said. His timbre was soft but echoed slightly through the room, making his words seem more ominous than he probably meant them to be.

My body tensed slightly, and hesitantly I said, "Okay."

He cleared his throat, and I realised he was nervous. I don't think I had heard him unsure like that before. I felt cold. "I uh, I have a premiere to attend on Thursday evening, one of Myra's. Tom, my agent, set it up." Oh fuck. He's not going to ask me to go with him, is he? "I would very much like it if you came with me." I sat up quickly, and water splashed everywhere. "Sarah said that since the cats out of the bag and I'm serious about you, you should come too." He added quickly.

I looked back at him, furious. "Why would you ask me that?"

"Because you're my fucking girlfriend." He was also mad now.

"I'm not your fucking girlfriend." I stood up and got out of the bath. I almost slipped on the tiles as I did. His hand shot out to steady me, but I pulled my arm out of his grasp. I stomped over to the robes and pulled one on. Then I grabbed my clothes from the floor.

"What are you doing?" Liam asked, getting out himself. He didn't put his robe on, and he just stood there. I don't know why, but that seemed to make me angrier.

"Getting my shit and going home."

"What the fuck, Lana? Why?"

I grabbed my bag and went to leave and found him blocking my way. "Because I want to, that's why. Get out of my way."

"What's wrong with you?"

"Just piss off."

"No, tell me what's wrong. Why don't you want to be seen with me? Why don't you want to be my girlfriend? I don't understand." He was shouting now, his voice full of anger and frustration. "You treat me like a fuck toy one minute, and the next, you're treating me like we've been married for ten years. What do you want from me? You say you aren't my girlfriend, but you sure act like you are. If you just want to fuck me, fine. Come over and fuck me, then leave. But don't lay with me and cuddle all day, cook me food, confide in me, talk to me at night until you fall asleep and make me fall in love with you. I can't take that."

For a moment, I softened. In so many ways, Liam was right. We had fallen into this relationship so easily. I felt like I knew him because we talked for months before meeting. I did enjoy hanging out with him talking. He's often felt like home to me, a safe place, a person I could trust. He was my boyfriend in everything but name. He saw the change in me and moved towards me.

I stiffened, "No, fuck you. Don't put this on me. I told you to go slow. I told you I don't want a relationship in the spotlight, and you won't listen to me." My frustration poured out. "You lured me in under false pretences with no thought about how I would feel. Like having the great Liam Cross interested in you would be enough. You're so fucking self-centred. I'm not impressed by all this," I waved my hand around the room, "Or that," I waved my hand at his naked body. "For fuck's sake, put some fucking clothes on. You're not that attractive."

Liam looked over at the robes and saw how far away they were. He shook his head. "I think we need to talk, Lana. You can't run away from this."

"You can't keep me here." He just raised an eyebrow. I gasped horrified. "You wouldn't?"

His body tensed, and he looked like he was going to try to stop me for a minute. But then his shoulders slumped, and he stepped aside.

"Thank you," I said through gritted teeth as I walked out.

I took the stairs down to his room and got dressed. He followed me, still naked and dripping water. I thought he would try to keep talking to me, but he went straight to his dressing room.

When he came out, he wore tracksuit pants, his chest was bare, and he still had beads of water clinging to his chest. My traitorous eyes looked him up and down, and I noticed it looked like he wasn't wearing underwear. Fuck me. He was magnificent. I tore my eyes away and back to packing my bag. I wasn't going to let his body distract me.

"Please, Lana, just talk to me."

"What's the point?"

"The point is so you'll let me in. You talk to me, you tell me things about you, and just as it cuts close to the bone, you clam up."

"I'm my own person, Liam. I'm allowed to have secrets." My bag was packed, and I stood up with it.

"Why didn't you tell me about Andy and your father's car accident? I had to read about it on the fucking internet."

I felt like I had been punched in the guts. I felt both hot and cold waves flow over me, and for a moment, I thought I was going to throw up.

"You're a fucking prick." I was raging.

"Alright, Lana, have it your way. Go back to being miserable and alone. Go put your wedding ring back on because obviously, you'd rather stay in love with a dead man than be seen with me." He was still shouting. Liam's body was taught, so much tension in his muscles. His lips almost looked cruel, twisted up into a sneer. His eyebrows were drawn low, making his eyes seem small.

"Yeah, you're right. I would. I shouldn't be here with you." I was near screaming now. I was irrational, tired, slightly drunk and drained. "I should be miserable and alone, and I should be thankful for that. It's my fucking fault he's dead. I fucking killed him. It should have been me. It's my fault..." I sobbed. The tears started, and I knew they couldn't be stopped. "Oh God, it's my fault." I couldn't breathe. I dropped my bag and clawed at my shirt, trying to get a breath. I was on my knees, now fighting the panic that threatened to overwhelm me.

Liam's arms came around me. I tried to push him away, fight him. He was too strong. "Shhhh shhh." He tried to soothe me. He rubbed my back. I wanted to scream at him to go away, to leave me alone. He wouldn't let go. He held me tighter until I couldn't fight anymore and just let myself go. He pulled me onto his lap, and I curled up into him as he whispered, "You're ok. It's ok." I kept sobbing until I clutched at his neck and cried into him.

I don't know how long we sat there. It felt like hours. "I'm sorry," I said when I had calmed. My throat was sore. I don't think I could have spoken any louder.

"Don't be. I shouldn't have pushed you. You were right. I was being selfish."

"I should have told you before you found out. It still hurts. I can deal with them being gone, but I can't get past the guilt. I should have been in the car with Dad. Andy was doing me a favour because I was too tired from Christmas. I wanted a day off, you know? A day where I didn't have to deal with people." My throat was feeling raw, and my mouth was dry.

"You don't have to tell me."

"No, I do. Just let me get through it, ok?" He nodded and pulled me into a more comfortable position on his lap. "I was supposed to take my Dad to Dave's house for a second Christmas. My parents had split up a couple of years ago. I fought with my mum the day before and didn't want to go through it all again the next day. My Dad couldn't drive anymore; his eyes were too bad. So Andy said he'd drop him off and I could stay in bed. He said he would tell them I had a migraine. So I laid in bed sleeping while my father and husband laid on the road, dying, trapped under a truck."

"I'm so sorry," Liam said. "I don't know how I would deal with that either. But it's not your fault. You know that, right?"

I didn't say anything. Liam was quiet after that. But he didn't let me go.

Part 14

#original character #original fiction #romantic story #happy ever after

10 notes · View notes

smeraldos · 5 years

Text

blindside [pt. 3]

truth or lie: you can’t keep a secret.

go back [2] <

from the beginning [1] <<

pairing: jeongguk x reader

genres: angst, romance, simmering suspense

summary: You’re studying at Korea University and working part-time at Mint, Min Yoongi’s assorted art shop. That much Jeongguk knows. What he doesn’t won’t kill him.

hint: two bts members are indirectly mentioned in this chapter…comment if you think you can guess who 👀

a/n: shoutout to worldwide lovely/spicy fic writer @crystaljins for reading my draft! (more a/n at the end)

⌘

Halfway to the barbecue place for her sendoff party, Jiwon had taken a detour, promising you it would be quick. “What are you looking for?” you asked, following her into a clothing boutique.

“This,” she answered, showing you her phone. On her screen was a red puff-sleeved blouse adorned with small flowers.

“That’s cute.“

“I’d hope so,” she replied, flipping through a row of shirts. “It’s for my sister. She’s been whining about how Seoul has a lot more style than Jeonju. I mean, what’s the difference? They look pretty much the same to me.”

“Actually, they’re not,” you pointed out, putting back a red blouse with polka dots. “This is HQ material, of the highest quality.”

“Ah. I’m hopeless when it comes to this stuff.” She moved on to the next rack. “I just told her to study hard.”

“But if you’re getting this, wouldn’t she just bug you to buy something again?”

“That’s why I didn’t tell her. It’s just that…” Her voice trailed off. You turned to see her on tiptoe, straining to reach the blouse that matched what she’d shown you. It was on a higher rack, and because she was short, she could only grasp the hem.

When you tried, you didn’t fare much better.

“Excuse me,” Jiwon called out, catching the attention of a tall employee. “Can you help–”

“How much is this?” A woman farther off cut in, holding out a viridian dress. She soon gathered she’d interrupted Jiwon and apologized. “I’m sorry. Go ahead.”

To Jiwon’s surprise, the employee went to the woman first.

“Wait,” she protested as he walked past. “I–”

“I’m sorry, miss,” he said, barely half as sincere as he should have been. “She called me first, but I’ll get to you right after.”

You both watched him help the woman, who you now noticed was dressed in Hermès, a Chanel bag dangling carelessly off her arm. She was pretty in a haunting way: deliberately thin, more bone than she was skin. It was obvious why the employee had gone over to help her instead of Jiwon, who - despite looking cute in your opinion - didn’t appear wealthy or waiflike.

“Can you believe it?” Your co-worker fumed. “I saw him look at me first, and he–”

She marched over to said employee, but before she could reach him, you caught sight of the shoes on display.

“Hold on,” you said, rushing to grab the tallest, sturdiest pair of heels you could find. When you returned, you placed them in front of her. “Try these.”

“What?”

You met her puzzled look with an arched brow. “Don’t you have a blouse to get?”

⌘

When you and Jiwon arrived at the restaurant, Taehyung held the door open. Min was already inside, waiting in line to claim a number for a table.

91, you read from the slip of paper he flashed upon returning. The last number called had been 80, so you excused yourself to go to the restroom. Jiwon followed suit, but she didn’t go into a stall as you did. Instead, she stood in front of the sinks, gathering her messy curls into a high ponytail.

“So are you seeing someone?” She asked, seemingly out of the blue.

“Where’s this coming from?”

“Well…we’ve known each other for a while, haven’t we? I just never really got to know you.“

Though it was true, she’d never expressed an interest in your life outside of work. Not that you minded – you were trying to keep a low profile, so you hadn’t opened up to her, either.

“I’m not,” you said, stepping out to wash your hands. “I don’t have the time.”

"Then who–”

“Who what?”

“Nevermind.”

Through the mirror, you sent her a long, pointed look until she gave in. "I bumped into a guy on my weekend shift. He said he was looking for you.”

“And you thought he was my boyfriend?”

“It was just a guess. He was wearing that same necklace you have, and I’ve never seen it on anyone else.”

You weren’t wearing yours at the moment, but you knew what she was talking about - the amethyst pendant you wore strung on a thin, silver chain. Its twin was an emerald cut into the silhouette of a dog, the zodiac animal claiming the year of your birth, so you could see why Jiwon had mistaken it for a couple necklace. In truth, it was your brother’s.

You hadn’t seen him in a while, and to be honest, you preferred to keep it that way. Yet as Jiwon described his wiry profile and ready smile, you knew that would no longer be the case.

“Did he say anything else?”

“Just if I could tell you to check your phone. Then he left.” Jiwon turned to you. “So is he a friend? It seems like you know him, and he knows you enough to visit.”

Shrugging, you said, “I knew him since we were kids.”

“And here I thought childhood friendships didn’t last. You guys must be close.”

You hummed. It was as much a yes as it was a no.

⌘

It was late when you returned to your apartment – your small, spartan place on the sixth floor of the complex. Climbing up so many stairs at once was a feat, but you didn’t feel accomplished. All you felt now was burnt out.

You unlocked the door to reveal your sofa, plush and orange, and immediately went to lie down. It was your favorite spot to rest after a long day, and you’d have stayed that way if you hadn’t seen the post-it on your fridge. check lease exp. date, you’d jotted in a hurry. It was sometime this month, but the exact day escaped you.

You got up and went to your room, crouching beside your bed so you could slide a box out from underneath. Inside it were your important files – the last place people would look for valuables was where they normally stashed things that weren’t.

You flipped through papers until you found what you were looking for: a letter, creased, bearing the logo of your residence on its corner.

Hastily, you scanned it for a date. 4/15/17. Not good. That meant you only had a few days to renew your contract or find another place, and with the way your apartment hunt was going, you doubted you’d find a new one soon.

Neither could you afford to pay your bills for the next year.

Not for the first time, you considered applying for other jobs. You’d have to find a way to work around your current ones at Mint and a high-end restaurant, but that wasn’t an issue. You’d done it before.

How long they could keep you afloat was a different matter.

At that moment, your phone buzzed. You pulled it out to see a light blinking purple, a color that belonged to only two of your apps: a fantasy game and a burner app.

You couldn’t remember the last time you played.

As it was, you opened the burner to a new message from Pink Panther. Just two images, to be exact. One was of gleaming red shoes; the other, their price tag.

You looked at the tag first, thinking he’d wanted to draw your attention to it, but the price was nothing special. Standard, considering the luxury brand. It wasn’t until you zoomed in that you noticed an unusually long string of numbers below the barcode.

0b1010111100101011110000000

You knew binary code when you saw it. Pink Panther had made sure of it, although he used it sparingly, and only in subtle hints.

This one translated to 22,960,000. In won, that would be exactly what you needed to cover your security deposit and rent for a year. How he knew was beyond you.

But you could care less. You were desperate, and you needed to respond before the timed message disappeared. And with it, the promise of keeping your home.

where can i get them? You texted back, a veiled reference to the money. As soon as you did, the images vanished.

Nothing. That was all you got in response.

You waited a while, then gave up, resigning yourself to your hapless future when an ellipsis appeared.

💬

Then finally: mirae, my face isn’t a secret. you’ll know where to find me.

...

a/n: hugs and thank you’s to everyone who showed this fic a ‘lil love and/or boosted it! hope you’ve had fun and i’m very sorry to any who were waiting - i had a lot to figure out and i’ll do my best to get the next one out as soon as i can 💜

if you’re wondering where jk is, i really wanted to put him in this part but he’ll appear in the next chapter! thanks for reading and until then 🔍

#jungkook x reader #jungkook x you #jungkook x scenarios #jungkook fluff #jungkook angst #jungkook au #bts au #bts fluff #bts angst #bts fic #jungkook fic #kim taehyung #min yoongi #bts #my fic

36 notes · View notes

osmw1 · 5 years

Text

Crowbar Nurse Chapter 10 — The Villainess Princess Awakens

“Christ… we were so busy looking around us that we didn’t notice her right there. Does she seem okay?” “She’s unconscious… but she’s breathing, and her heartrate isn’t abnormal.”

I had one hand at the tip of her nose and the other on one of her wrists. Her chest was rising and falling with every breath and I could feel her pulse by her radius. She wasn’t even that pale either.

“This girl is quite the villainess princess.” “A vil—what?”

Kiryū’s face twisted in bewilderment. I suppose he’s never heard of the term.

“Umm, you know how in dating sims for girls, there’s always an evil rich girl character?” “Can’t say I’m familiar with female-oriented dating simulations.” “That was rhetorical. But you seemed to know a thing or two about them given the way you were speaking.” “…” “… fine, whatever. The evil rich girl character hates the heroine and treats her like dirt, and in the end, gets her just deserts.” “Oh, yeah, I get what you’re talking about… the punching bag for the player, in a sense.” “… that’s a little blunt, but, I mean, you’re not wrong…” “So, that’s the kind of character this girl is?”

Kiryū eyed the villainess princess who had lain on the ground.

“That’s right. Her name is Elizabeth. She was the rival of the protagonist of a popular fantasy visual novel from about ten years back, called DokiDoki☆Alice in Bourgeoisie Country.” “… what.” “As I said, she’s from DokiDoki☆Alice in Bourgeoisie Country.” “Huh?” “How many times do I have to tell you that it's DokiDoki☆Alice in Bourgeoisie Country. Elizabeth is an evil landlord who bought up lots of real estate and torments the protagonist because she moved in to one of Elizabeth’s properties without paying her respects. That cane over there? She uses it to beat the protagonist. Elizabeth may look cute, but she’s awfully ferocious, you know?” “DokiDoki☆Alice in Bourgeoisie Country… I have never heard of a title this absurd and ridiculous before.”

I could tell Kiryū was getting more exasperated as he muttered.

“Though the developer folded up quite a few years back, they still perform the DokiABC musical from time to time. It’s stubbornly popular. Anyway, in the game, you’re supposed to build relationship with your tenants and buy up property with your goal of being the most powerful landlord in the world.” “Tenants… property…” “You even fight against unscrupulous gangsters trying to buy up land, ultimately leading to you protecting your tenants in a gunfight showdown.” “… it, uhh, doesn’t exactly sound like it’d appeal to women, but what do I know…”

Kiryū slumped down and blinked blankly, seemingly shell-shocked from the newly acquired info.

“That’s why it’s funny though. Her curled silver pigtails, her purple dress, and her mithril walking stick… that’s Elizabeth, no doubt about it. Evil princesses like her are a common trope in novels, but they don’t come up too often in games, hey?” “… the more I think about it, the less I am sure of anything. Anyway, should we wake up said Elizabeth here?”

He wisely switched topics, to which I nodded yes while bending over to pat Elizabeth on the cheek.

“Hmm, I’m not sure if she’s a heavy sleeper or what, but she’s not waking up… she’s human, right?”

I looked up at Kiryū for an answer.

“… well, she’s clearly a character from another game. She’s got to be human.”

His answer sounded more like a sigh.

“Let me try swinging a little harder… hmm, no, nothing.” “Slap her any harder and I’d start feeling bad. Let’s leave it at this. There’s something more important, actually. Let me see your phone.”

His tone made it sound like he had a bright idea, so I reached into my pocket and pulled it out for him.

“Since we’re not in a proper part of the game, there shouldn’t be any enemies sneaking up on us. Staying here for the rest of our journey would be preferable.” “That makes sense… oh, the passcode is my birthday, ‘0511’.” “Change it right now.” “Noooo, don’t wanna.” “I’m not asking.” “Ouch, ouch, ouch! Fine! How about, umm… ‘1337’?” “No, because now I know it. Don’t go telling people your passcode. And add a few more digits too, so it’ll be harder for people to memorize. You never know when people are going to trick you with social engineering.” “Jeez, you nag more than my mother. I’ll change it as soon as I get back to the real world, okay?” “… I’m going to hold you to it. That’s a promise now, you hear?”

Unimpressed at my half-hearted reply, Kiryū scowled as he tapped the four digits to unlock my phone.

“… to no one’s surprise, we’ve got zero reception. Was there anything else different on your phone aside from that ‘Untitled’ app?” “No. Gah, I’ve only got 30% battery left. It would be nice to find a place to charge up.” “I don’t think we’ll have any luck here. We don’t have a Micro-USB cable anyway.”

It’d probably be better not to get my hopes up in finding some way to charge my phone here in Confi City.

“… alrighty. Why don’t we try launching this ‘Untitled’ app…?”

Uncertainty plagued Kiryū’s words as he kept his sight fixed on my phone.

“Let’s take a look and see what happens, I guess…”

My response wasn’t any more confident. This ‘Untitled’ intrigues me… but should we really be tapping on it? It’s not some sort of cursed app, is it? It’s not going to start a countdown to our demise or anything?

I was scaring myself more than anything…

“… oh, shit!”

His voice took me by surprise, both because it was sudden and very unlike him. The next thing I knew, my phone was back in my hands.

“Huh?”

What came immediately was the piercing ring of metal clashing against metal.

“Whoa?!”

I instinctively ducked and curled up into a ball before I dared to look at what was above me…

—The evil princess, Elizabeth, sent her mithril stick down upon my head, only to be intercepted by Kiryū’s crowbar at the last possible moment.

☆

“… I’m ready for your apology anytime now.”

Like swatting a fly, Kiryū effortlessly parried Elizabeth’s attack while flatly sending his words at her. She disappointedly looks down at her cane, frustrated at her loss in the test of strength. To be fair, Kiryū is uncannily powerful…

“We have no hostile intentions towards you. However, what you have just done cannot be seen as anything other than an act of hostility. Do you understand?” “…”

Elizabeth’s kept silent—her loss of words and doubt of what was the correct action were evident. She chose to raise her weapon again. Kiryū responded with no leniency and knocked her weapon away from her hand. Her fighting spirit was similarly disarmed.

“From what I can tell, you had awakened, stood up, scanned your surroundings, and immediately elected to attack as soon as you had noticed us.”

His words were calm as so was she. Rather, it would be more apt to describe Kiryū as composed as he picked his words very carefully.

“What reasons do you have to attack us? Explain yourself.” “…” “I will not do act with violence if you were to explain yourself. However, keep your silence up and… I, if not we, will consider you as an enemy.”

The gravity and severity of Kiryū’s tone weighed down on Elizabeth, who now seemed to be holding back tears as she bit her lower lip. I felt not so much uncomfortable, as much of a sense of déjà vu, perhaps? His speech was obviously unusual, but the cold and logical manner of his words were… like from some game… and how he stared blankly into the distance front of him… hmm…

“… umm, just wanted to double-check, but Elizabeth, you’re a human being from Japan, right?”

I raised my hand as I spoke up, almost as if I were asking for permission.

“Kiryū—err, this man here—him and I are were working overtime in a Japanese firm and hospital, respectively, before we were transported here. Were you a person in a similar situation? Or perhaps, are you from this game—or rather, this parallel universe?”

My question was met with Elizabeth shaking her head and a scoff, directed at herself if anything.

“… no, I’m no NPC. I’m just a regular human being who was just working overtime as well. So, who am I this time? Elizabeth?” “What do you mean ‘this time’?”

Kiryū immediately picked up what she put down.

“You’re saying you’ve had this happen to you before?” “… yeah, I suppose. If I look like a character from a game and this world is some sort of incomprehensible game world, then… yes, something like this has happened to me before.”

She spoke slowly. But unlike before where she was calm, now she was deliberating on her choice of words.

“Your character is… Kiryū Sōichirō from Rainbow Dreams High School☆Fantasia, right? And you over there?” “Umm, I’m Sera, the heroine from DC2. I mean, I look like her is all.” “Of course. So… whose phone is that?”

She pointed towards the phone that had been tossed onto me. Just as I was about to respond to her though, Kiryū stopped me in my tracks, perhaps to prevent me carelessly divulging any information.

Elizabeth knew what was up just from that. The smirk on her face was sickening. She looked like… she was about to cry—like as if she was forced to do something unpleasant. It was an expression of someone who fights back against the odds, knowing full well how grim they are.

“… I see. So, it’s yours, Sera.” “What does that have anything to do with anything?”

Perhaps he was being protective of me, Kiryū stepped in between Elizabeth and me as he answered her. Oh, no… did I mess up and say something wrong?

“As I have mentioned before, you attacked us all of a sudden. Anyone else would have been too stunned to do anything, but you knew what to do from the moment you looked at our surroundings,” he pointed around as he spoke, “The way you attacked us, you seemed like you knew exactly what you had to do.” “…” “That means you know what’s going on here and you know how to get out, don’t you?”

His sternness now was a stark contrast to the Kiryū just moments ago, stuffing herbs in his pockets and flailing his crowbar around. Any bystander could tell that he was being on guard.

“Heheh… you’ve hit the nail on the head. You could say I know a little something about this world.”

Elizabeth mockingly scoffed again. And as before, the tears in her eyes didn’t seem to be happy tears.

“… the girl is the ‘core’ of this game. For as long as she lives, this game will never end.”

■Villainess Princess

A trope most commonly associated with female-oriented web novels and seldomly seen in video games. Usually, before the evil rich princess character gains her riches, status, and men, she would have a tragic backstory or event. This usually elicits the player’s empathy, making them question why she is in the role of the antagonist. It is also perhaps the way she overcame her adversity was how the rich girl was led onto the path of the villainess.

Author’s notes

In the field of disaster medicine, it is taught that when triaging without a proper blood pressure meter, systolic blood pressure can be approximated by feeling which areas of the body still has a palpable pulse. A radial pulse should measure 80 mmH, 70 mmHg by femoral pulse, 60 mmHg by carotid pulse, etc. For example, if only the patient's carotid pulse is palpable, their pulse pressure should be about 60 mmHg. If a patient’s normal blood pressure is unknown, a rough rule of thumb would be to consider them to be in shock if if their systolic blood pressure reads under 90 mmHg. (The author's notes were translated without any prior knowledge or understanding of medicine. Please do not use it as any sort of reference or help. Apply critical thinking to anything you read anywhere.)

contents: /ch001/ /ch002/ /ch003/ /ch004/ /ch005/ /ch006/ /ch007/ /ch008/ /ch009/ /ch010/ /next/

(leave me a tip on Patreon?)

1 note · View note