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sixofpomegranates · 1 year

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☠︎ Scared, Princess? ☠︎

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Popular!Fem!Reader

Word count: 20K (Yeah, idk either.)

Summary: The Princess of Hawkins High and I hate each other, always have, but I think there is more to her... Is the Princess actually just another bullied kid who found a disguise out of her misery?

A/N: Listen, I had this joke with a Furby I really wanted to use. I tried it with a care bear and other toys to have it for the ’80s, but it wasn't nearly as funny. So: pretend turbines already exist, or make it modern!au or just ignore logistics and enjoy the joke.

CW: Fluff, Comfort, Angst, Smut 18+ | Enemies to Lovers | No use of y/n | Mentions of Past Bullying/Suicidal Thoughts/Pressure to have Sex/Loss of Virginity/Fake Friends (Reader), Neglectful Parents (Reader/Eddie), Alcohol Consumption/House Party, Fast Food Consumption, Popular Kids Being Jerks, False Accusation of SA/Incest (Eddie), !Reader being lifted up! – Smut ~ Penetrative Sex (Creampie, Unprotected, Rough, Semi-Public, Mirror Sex), mild Fear Play, Fingering, Oral (M&F), Thigh Riding, Hair Pulling, Cockwarming, Praise/Degradation, Breathplay, Spanking, mild Dom/Sub undertones, Aftercare

☠︎ The Freak's POV ☠︎

The Princess of Hawkins High. The flawless little cheerleader ranking in the social hierarchy of high school right under all sides loved Chrissy Cunningham, the Queen.

I love to tease her, push her buttons, and make her face turn into the cute little frown wherever I can. Her nose twitches when she gets angry; I wonder if she knows...

I wouldn't say I hate her, but I certainly feel irritated by her.

Always surrounded by the most popular jerks, the princess seems to constantly seek their approval. She has done so ever since her first day of school in this hell hole a year ago.

She – in fact – might be nothing other than a little puppy expecting treats for being a good girl—a preppy little puppy whose happy little smiles sometimes even tempt me to pat her.

But the little puppy is also a giant bitch at times. She snaps at me and hisses; she attacks before getting attacked. Coming too close to her would probably have me lose a finger... Maybe even my whole hand.

At the very least, she doesn't bully anyone, even though she has been a quiet bystander multiple times when her friends are busy ruining the lives of others.

She seems uncomfortable whenever she is caught in one of those situations, but she chose those friends and tolerates their shitty behavior. So, she is definitely not earning brownie points for it.

Not in my book. No... She deserves the shit I give her; the headaches brewing together storms behind does pretty eyes. I refuse to respect those who lack any respect for others.

As every day this week, there is a commotion outside the Hellfire Club's room... The prop room of the Theater Club.

A play is getting prepared, and therefore the Hellfire Club has to constantly deal with the door opening and closing. Students rush in and grab parts of my carefully arranged dungeon. They talk, they shove, they interrupt.

How is somebody supposed to defeat a clan of crazed cultists when there is that much reality intruding our fantasy?

As the door opens once more, I snap my head in its direction, roaring, "For fucks sake, can't you see that we are busy?"

The princess looks at me, dressed in this unforgiving little cheerleading uniform and a white cardigan. She holds a clipboard angled at her hip, her eyes wide at my angry outburst.

Taking a deep breath, she smiles, "I'm sorry, but as you know: This is the prop room of the Theatre Club. Having the theatre kids come in here and get their props is within their rights."

"This has been going on for a week now," I say, annoyed. "You could just get your shit when we're not in the middle of a campaign."

"Well, I am responsible for the set design and had cheerleading practice until now. So excuse me that I don't care for how convenient it is for you, Munson."

Now that she is mentioning it, she does look like she jumped around to annoying music for the last hours, her hair not perfect, the baby hairs sticking a little to her temples and forehead...

She is silent for a moment, biting the inside of her cheek; then, a devilish grin paints her glossy lips. "You could always just get a real room for your club."

I refuse to look at her any longer. Meanwhile, she's busy telling some smitten boys to carry out one of our tables.

"You know Higgins won't give me one," I mutter under my breath.

I hate it, but plenty of people know that I had to grovel at the principal's feet to ever even have Hellfire considered a real club. We don't get to request. The smartest thing to do is be as quiet as possible before Higgins shuts it down, scared I am sacrificing cats, or goats, or some shit...

The princess hums, uncaring, stepping next to me, "Well, sucks. I need the throne."

Her pink pen points with its end at my chair – my throne. I make myself extra heavy and chuckle, "Absolutely not."

An irritated look spreads on her face. "Get lost, freak; I need it for the play."

"Already gave you my answer," I smile as ill-humored as possible, then focus back on my sheepies, hoping to rekindle the excitement there was before we were interrupted. "Henderson, your turn. The cruel right hand of— Hey! Hey, stop that!"

The annoying princess is shoving her entire weight against my throne, thinking she can tip it enough for me to get out of it. She seems not to realize that I rather faceplant and take the chair with me than give her what she wants.

"Get out of the throne."

I give her a temperate shove that is already enough to make her stumble backwards. I swiftly check if she is okay, then grin at her face. "You can have it and all the other shit your selfish little heart desires when we are done with our campaign."

"But I need it now! I can't wait for your fantasy shit to be done; I have a curfew!"

I shrug, the desperate whine in her voice barely hitting me. "Though luck, princess."

"I'm going to tell on you," she warns me, the little angry vein on her forehead finally showing up.

"Good luck with that."

"I waited for my chance to design this set all year; I won't have you ruin this for me just because of your constant need to be a dick."

"And I won't have you ruin a perfectly good campaign that took me months to prepare just because you think you're entitled to special treatment."

"Eddie," she says again after some more props have been carried out of the room. "I need the throne for King Lear. You can have it back after the play is over."

"Yeah, nah. I'm sitting too comfortably. Like I said, come back when we're done here."

A frustrated groan leaves her throat, and I chuckle, "No need to lose your mind, Ophelia."

"Ophelia is from Hamlet, you uncultured idiot. You, of all people, should know the difference."

"Why? Because I am, too, a king that is losing his mind?"

"No, but because you are repeating Ms. O'Donall's English class for the third time now."

Okay. Ouch. Bitch?

"Eddie, maybe we should just—" I ignore Handerson's call for peace. I am not going to be the first one to back down.

"What's got your panties in a twist today, princess? Did Jason switch back to railing Chrissy again? Is that why you need to bitch at us? Can't handle that you'll always be just his side piece?"

"You're an asshole."

"And you're not intimidating without your shitty friends."

She sighs. "I need to be home by nine. Please get out of the—"

"Why? Is your daddy finally coming to visit you? Would really be a first since your family abandoned you here."

We all know that she lives with her aunt, a woman that is never home. It's the basis of her coolness. She has money, a place all to herself, and nobody can restrict the number of parties she visits.

"Well, at least mine's not doing 15, leaving me to live in a shitty trailer with my hermit uncle."

Jumping up from my chair, I growl, "Be careful what you say, bitch!"

I can take every blow towards me, but Wayne – the only father figure I've ever known – is off limits.

Although she trembles, she lifts her chin at me and snarls, "What are you gonna do, trailer trash? Beat me like your dad beat your mom?"

Without thinking, I close the distance between us, making her yelp and back against the wall. I would never hurt her... Hurt anybody... But I can live with the fact that she's scared that I might.

Being marked as an insane freak is an opportunity to set boundaries. Bullied kids develop all sorts of defense mechanisms and grasp possibilities like these. My defense is playing crazy, an unpredictable freak.

The Princess of Hawkins High looks at me with big eyes. She's barely breathing, shaking like a leaf as I tower over her. But as we both just stare and don't move, our expressions soften, and the wind is gone from our sails.

The air has calmed way too quickly, and the way she looks at me reminds me too much of myself when I'm pretending to be big and scary, although I actually just want to make it out of high school alive, with the least amount of trauma possible.

Jeff's hand on my shoulder suddenly pulls me back, far away from her. For a moment, I could swear she took an instinctive step following me.

Dustin hands her the clipboard that – sometime during our staring – must be slipped through her fingers. He apologizes countless times on my behalf, promising her the throne as soon as possible.

She nods, seeming as lost of a fighting spirit as I am, and then leaves.

"Shit, seriously. It's always the two of you. That'll end in a murder one day," Jeff sighs, patting my shoulder before sitting down.

"Not cool, man," Gareth lectures me. "If she tells Higgins about this, we're in trouble."

I wave him off, sitting back down on my chair. I actually don't feel like playing D&D anymore.

The Princess of Hawkins High... Is she another bullied kid who found a disguise out of her misery?

*****

Not thirty minutes later, I carry the throne into the cafeteria that doubles as the performance hall with the large stage across the entrance.

Nobody's here; the lights are suspiciously dimmed. For a moment, I believe that everybody has already left. Then I notice her sitting on the stage floor, tracing something onto cardboard.

The Princess of Hawkins High kneels there on all fours, butt in the air, completely unaware of my presence. Her headphones on her head and the cardboard beneath her seem to have her resign in another dimension.

My mouth becomes dry, and I lick my lips. This stupid cheerleading uniform has no right to hug her body like that. The heat in my face wanders downstairs when I think just about how good she looks in this position.

I fucking hate Jason Carver.

He plays hot and cold with her, using her and throwing her away to be with cute, innocent Chrissy over and over again.

For a year now, both girls act like it doesn't hurt them. And while I believe that this could be very true for blissfully oblivious Chrissy, the princess accepted her treatment, keeping her title and social status rather than her dignity.

It would be a lot easier for me to hate the Princess of Hawkins High if she weren't so pretty. I truly gather a great amount of self-hatred for this shit. Out of all the people, I want the cheerleader with bully friends, the one that lets Jason Carver – of all guys – use her like a cheap toy because his friends are hers and dictate her social status.

Sitting up and stretching a little, her eyes meet mine, and she yelps, making me scream in reply.

A small heart attack is truly one way to get rid of an uncalled-for boner.

Turning off her walkman, she takes off her headphones. "What do you want?" she asks with enough hostility to freeze hell.

"Brought you the chair," I answer, pointing at the obviously in front of me placed furniture piece.

She mumbles a slight "oh," and walks down the stairs next to the stage.

"Where do you want it?" I ask, lifting the heavy piece of wood.

She points at the corner next to her, and I oblige. My arrival seems to have reminded her of the "curfew" she said she has.

Closing the stage's curtains and the door to its stairs, she grabs her bag and walks outside. I follow her silently. The club has agreed to postpone our campaign.

Outside, she checks her watch, cusses as she knows that past nine, there are no buses, and starts walking.

I call her name, making her turn around.

"Hey, I can drive you," I offer.

I don't like her, but Uncle Wayne has taught me well enough not to let a young girl walk home alone at night.

"So I end up dead in a ditch?" she snarls.

I roll my eyes. "You're going to walk home on the side of the street. I don't need to drive you to have that being the end result."

She shakes her head, walking away. "No thanks."

"My uncle says it's not safe for women, especially not pretty women. The world is full of sickos and perverts."

She turns around again. "That coming from the town's freak is not as impactful as you think it is."

I sigh, throwing my head back for a moment, then say, "Stop being stubborn and get in my van. Nobody has to know I drove you."

"Why would you even care?"

"Because I am the last person to have been with you. I really don't wanna be a murder suspect accused of killing 'the pretty cheerleader with a bright future.'"

"I'd rather walk. Thanks, though." She offers me a smile and then walks away.

Fine.

Fine. Who cares?

Not me!

I hop in my van and drive out of the school's parking lot. I don't need to be nice to her. Let her end up in a ditch—none of my business.

On the other hand, though... I really don't want that to happen. Not only because I'd be suspect number one but also because...

It just doesn't feel right. I'm a freak and asshole for show, but I am a nice guy—not like Jason's bizarre version of nice guy that only ever ends with girls in the back of his car. Wayne would kill me if he knew I let a girl put herself in unnecessary danger, and I wouldn't be able to sleep well tonight, not knowing if she ever got home safe.

I groan, smacking my wheel, annoyed, and turning the van. I drive back to down the street and halt next to the princess.

Rolling down the window, I say, "Get in. C'mon, don't make me beg."

She shakes her head again. "Leave me alone, Munson." Then she puts on her headphones and keeps walking.

Jesus Christ, why is this woman so stubborn?

I turn the car again and, at the slowest tempo possible, drive behind her.

She turns around and looks at me, weirded out.

I shrug at her. "What? You didn't want to get in?!" I exclaim although she doesn't hear me.

Shaking her head again, she continues her way home.

I hit my wheel again, hating that Wayne raised me well. Life would be so much easier if I'd actually be an asshole.

"Oh, Eddie, thank you so much for making sure I get home safe," I mock the princess's voice.

"You're very welcome. But I am just doing the bare minimum," I answer as myself.

"Yes, but it's so sweet of you. Tiny dick Carver would never do this for me."

I chuckle, "I know he wouldn't. And I know it's small; I haven't skipped PE in a while and—" I pinch the bridge of my nose. "I'm fucking losing my mind here..."

An imaginary conversation with the princess, that's how far gone I am. Unbelievable. She wouldn't even stop to check if I were okay should I drive into a tree right next to her. And yet here I am, actually driving at snail's speed behind her to watch out for her.

Ten minutes into this shit, she turns around again. Shaking her head like I am the unreasonable here.

"You could just get into the fucking van!"

Of course, she keeps walking and leaves me to mutter annoyed bullshit to myself.

As we reach her house, she promptly stops, looking for something in the driveway. From behind, I see her shoulders sag.

Wiping around in her face, she turns around for a second, teary eyes glistening in my headlights.

Did... Did she actually expect somebody to be home?

Just as I try to gather the courage to get out of the van, she walks inside her big, lonely house, turning the lights on.

The Princess of Hawkins High. For so many, she is an inspiration, a clear view of what you could be if you'd only were perfect enough, had enough friends, would be loved enough...

But I think I know better. The Princess of Hawkins High is all alone.

*****

♛ The Princess's POV ♛

The Freak of Hawkins High still stands outside my home with his van as I walk into the kitchen and rewind the answering machine.

Aunt Tess had promised to be home today. I'd waited for nothing other all day than to finally hug her again. Especially since she hasn't been home for over three weeks now.

I press play and listen to the calls I missed during my day at school.

"Hey, girly," the voice of my aunt rings in my ears. "So sorry, but I won't make it to Hawkins any time soon. The deal in Japan is a bigger project than I anticipated, and — Just gonna be honest, I forgot to tell you a couple of days ago. I promise I'll be home next month, and I'm gonna make it up to you with a ton of gifts from here, okay? If you need anything, just call, okay? Great, love you."

"Hey, me again, honey. I forgot to tell you, I just put some more money in your account, and there is so much on it; I am starting to feel like you forgot how to shop? How bout you splurge a little? Make me feel less bad for not being home. Okay. Gotta go, bye."

My heart sinks, and I would start crying if I hadn't already in the driveway... When I saw that, once again, nobody's there.

I get a glass of water and gulp it down to ignore the way my throat closes up. For a second, I think I hear shuffling in the bushes outside the kitchen window but am distracted by my mom's voice coming from the recorder.

I haven't heard her say my name in a while, so my entire focus goes back to the little electronic on the kitchen counter.

"Hi, sweety. How are you doing? Your dad and I miss you terribly. We're currently in Paris, and I just know you would love it here. Work has been crazy and... Look, baby, that's why I called. I know we promised we'd pick you up and travel through Italy in July, but the firm is expanding so rapidly at the moment, and July will have us in Greece and Turkey, and maybe even China... Thing is, we'll have to cancel that trip, love. I know you were excited about it, but I can't see a way we would manage to push you between our other arrangements. How about I'll send you some extra money, and you'll have a girl's trip with Tess? My treat... Yes? Yes, I just need— Okay. Okay, sweety? I've got to go back to work. We'll talk soon, okay? Love you."

I press my lips together for a moment, then throw my glass against the wall across from me. I watch it shatter and fall to the floor.

Who cares? Not like anybody except me is going to notice that it's missing. I hate how loud I am sobbing by now, but can't seem to stop myself. I'd been really excited to spend time with my parents. I haven't seen them for months, even the last call was weeks ago.

I walk into the living room and drop onto the couch, curling into a ball. It's not like my family doesn't love me. I get everything I wish for, but I'd like to have a hug, maybe even a family dinner, instead of a bunch of cold money.

I tried to spend it all, but no matter what I buy, it doesn't help me when I feel alone, falling asleep on the couch, watching movies so that I hear people talk in this house. Being lonely sucks, and I am pathetic.

I don't know how much time passes, but after some squeaking wheels burn rubber outside my house, somebody rings the bell.

My heart thumps in my chest. I'm way too scared since watching Maniac last night. Why am I constantly doing this? I know I get paranoid when watching horror movies.

It doesn't help that I don't know if the freak's still outside. I am so not going to open the door for him. I do not intend to die tonight... Although I am not sure if he would actually do something like that.

Like, he scares me, but I don't feel like I am in danger when he's around. I actually appreciated that he drove me home—kind of.

It rings again, and this time, I get up. I walk to the door and look outside to see Amy, Jessica, and Chrissy standing there.

I didn't intend to have people over, but okay. I open the door, putting on my brave girl face.

"Hi," I greet them.

They look me up and down, each one of them dressed like they belong on the runway or in a music video, anywhere but my home, actually.

"Are you okay?" Chrissy asks quickly, hand rushing to my arm.

I nod. "Yeah. Yes, just my mom and aunt canceling on me again."

Chrissy quickly hugs me as the other two walk in.

Jessica looks around. "You sure there wasn't anything else?"

I shake my head. "No. Like I said—"

"The freak was outside your house," Amy interrupts me. "Creeping through the window."

My face heats up with the terror of what he might've witnessed, what he will use as ammunition against me at our next quarrel.

He has seen me cry; I didn't hide it well enough when disappointment hit me in the driveway. Maybe he wanted to check on me?

No. That isn't Eddie. He probably just been nosey or wanted to prank me by scaring the shit out of me because I stole his throne.

"I— Well, we... He kind of followed me home after I left school," I say, noticing how bad that sounds.

Amy's eyes widen. "Then it's good we threw some rocks at him and told him to fuck off."

"I didn't," Chrissy interferes. "I think that's mean."

"Yeah, but that's just because you wanna fuck him and see if he's living up to his title," Jessica snorts, walking into the kitchen and muttering something about the broken glass.

We follow her as we always do, Amy still going on about how a couple of girls had taken Eddie for "a test ride" before.

"You guys know how I feel about premarital sex," Chrissy squeaks, red as a tomato.

Jessica cackles, "Yeah, that's why Jason has to rail your friends instead."

We're all silent for a second. Shame floods over me like a bucket of cold water. The rumors and badmouthing will haunt me for a long time, but not as much as the guilt I feel toward Chrissy.

Jason can be very convincing, and I am apparently pretty dumb. I know he's not going to leave my friend any time soon, that I am just "his side piece," like Eddie said, but I always let myself be talked into sleeping with him...

I don't think I would even wanna date him. I just don't want to get on Jason's bad side, don't wanna lose my friends, as they were his first before mine and will stay his when the question arises.

Chrissy always forgives him, saying that he can't help himself and just is insecure and uncertain about their love, but actually, he's an asshole. And I am probably no bit better.

"Jason loves me," Chrissy insists, looking at me for support, although she knows he fucks me when he's bored of sharing a milkshake with two straws and "going steady" by holding hands.

I nod, not wanting to pop her bubble of ignorance. Guys like him never change.

"Anyway," Amy claps her hands, sitting down on the barstool. "Get ready. We'll wait."

"What?" I ask, confused. "Ready for what?"

"Tammy Thompson's party?" Jessica frowns. "God, how can you forget a party like that? We talked all of last week about it."

"Sorry. I forgot."

"You gotta be really stupid to forget this. Like, I knew you're not bright, but this..."

"Doesn't matter, right?" Chrissy de-escalates the moment, grabbing a broom and cleaning away the shards on the floor. "Just go get ready, kay?"

I hurry upstairs before Jessica can go on about me being stupid. She enjoys that I should've graduated a year before them... In another school, another life. It makes her feel superior.

I take a quick shower, do what's necessary to my hair, and apply makeup. When I walk into my bedroom, I hear gossiping downstairs and try to ignore it, too scared that it might be about me.

I put on a summer dress and matching shoes and head downstairs.

Amy and Jessica are currently listening to the voicemail left by my mom. Chrissy stands next to them, looking uncomfortable.

They are laughing, and I hate that it doesn't surprise me. I hate that I know this invasion of my privacy and the mocking are a price I am willing to pay to continue being their friend.

Looking at me, they stop their laughs and turn off the tape. They compliment my clothes and call me pretty like they didn't just revel in how pitiful I am.

And I thank them and compliment them back because that's what I do; that's how I continue to belong.

*****

I hate parties. They are nothing like in the movies. My friends don't drink or dance with me, giggle with me about nonsense...

No, we sit here on the couches with a couple of basketball players (unless they get up to help each other chug an entire can of beer or do a keg stand) and talk shit about people we don't really know.

Oh my God, have you seen this girl's perm? Kill me now.

Is she colorblind, or why did she think that color combo was a good idea?

Look at that nerd. Who invites losers like that? Why did he even show up? As if anyone wants his ass here.

"Fuck, there's the freak again," Amy's voice makes my head shoot up from my red plastic cup filled with... I guess beer and some sweet soda, but what do I know?

And true, there he stands. A can of beer in his hand, talking to Steve Harrington, a lazy smile on his face as he nudges the girl next to Harrington... Robin. That's her name. She's a girl from the marching band. She's nice.

I didn't know they were friends.

"How the mighty have fallen," Patrick says. "Back in the day, Steve 'The Hair' Harrington, King of Hawkins High, would've never been seen with the dealing freak."

I keep staring until Eddie looks in our direction, his brown eyes meeting mine. He's so pretty when he smiles and isn't frowning at me. I promptly focus back on the cup in my hands.

Jessica, who seems to have seen it, grins. "Now don't be scared," she tells me, looking at our jock friends and telling them, "The freak followed her home today and was staring through her window when we came to pick her up."

Disgusted outcries leave the guys in our group, and in an instant, Jason reaches over Chrissy, resting his hand way too high on my thigh.

"Are you okay?" he asks, squeezing the meat of my thigh. "You should start letting me drive you home for safety. You never know what's going on in that creep's sick mind."

I move my thigh a little, but Jason's hand doesn't leave me. Instead, his fingers start playing with the hem of my dress.

"I'm okay," I mumble, clearing my throat before repeating myself and sitting up more straight. While doing so, I act as though I have to correct the placement of my dress's skirt, shoving Jason's hand away.

As uncomfortable as I am around Eddie, at least he wouldn't expect me to "make him happy" in the back of his van with him for driving me home.

I know it's a big assumption, especially since I am terrified of the freak, but if that were his only motive today, he would've driven home and not followed behind me to make sure I was okay.

"You know what you should do?" Jessica says, delighted. "You should confront Munson about the stalking. Throw your beer into his face. A little embarrassment would probably humble that loser."

Amy nods. "Yeah, put him back in his place."

I shake my head—no chance I would do something like that. It's unnecessary drama, and I don't even like confrontation. It makes me shake and shiver.

"Come on," Chance laughs. "Don't be a sourpuss. We like you better when you're a sweet one."

He and Andy high-five each other, then turn to me. "Ideally, you could also throw in something about him being his uncle's bitch."

I scrunch up my face in disgust. "I am not doing that," I hiss. "That's disgusting."

Andy shrugs. "I'm just stating the obvious. None of those freaks can pull any, and Eddie looks like a pussy anyway."

"You're sick," I tell him, biting back the urge to vomit and hate myself for hanging around with people like this. People who get a thrill out of pushing others with obscene rumors and made-up bullshit.

Amy shrugs at me. "C'mon, now you're overreacting. We're just saying that because it'll hurt him. It's like when we were ten and told everyone his mommy's a hooker."

I shake my head, putting my drink on the coffee table. "That's so wrong."

"Why would it be wrong?" Jessica asks me. "It's his own fault for choosing to be such a loser."

It's your own fault for being such a loser.

I struggle to breathe as I suppress all the memories of coming home and bawling my eyes out. Of bloody, scraped-up knees from being pushed. Of my mother telling my dad I should just start fighting back so I'd be left alone.

Starting somewhere new doesn't erase the scars of the past.

Fighting back has never worked. It only made things worse. To conform oneself is the only way to survive.

I stand up promptly, ignoring the ongoing conversation.

"Where are you going?" Chrissy asks sweetly, holding hands with her boyfriend.

"Gonna get a new drink. That one's stale," I tell her with a fake smile and hurry outside.

The yard is thankfully empty for most parts. Some couples are making out while a couple of guys play beer pong, but nobody bothers to even look at me as I grab a cold beer from the cooling box filled with ice.

I press a hand, cold from the ice, against my neck to ease the tension.

Why am I doing this to myself?

It constantly keeps getting more challenging to look in the mirror, given the company I keep. But I don't know if I will survive starting right back where I started a year ago.

I wanna take a sip of my beer, but surprise, surprise, it's still closed, the cap laughing at me. I look around for a bottle opener, but it wouldn't be my luck if I would find one.

Suddenly the bottle is taken from my hands, and I look up to Eddie, who, without trouble, removes the cap with the plastic bottom of his lighter.

I stare at him in amazement. That was so cool. I have no idea how he did that without breaking something, but it's so impressive. And useful.

He hands me the bottle back. "Thank you," I say quickly, taking a sip.

Eddie stands there for a while, and I lean down, fishing a second beer out of the cooler and handing it to him. That's probably the only reason he's still here.

He takes it which a surprised expression, muttering, "Thanks."

Then he opens the beer again with his lighter and chuckles at my staring. "I can open these with my teeth—now that would really blow your mind. But last time, I chipped a tooth and had to promise my uncle I'd stop doing it."

"It's really cool," I mumble, mentally preparing for another blow from him.

But he just grabs another beer and hands it to me. I take it confused, and once he holds his lighter in my direction, I know what's going on.

I quickly shake my head. "I– No. I– I can't do that."

He cocks his head. "Why not? I'll show you."

"What- What if I break something?"

"Yeah, because nobody in the history of house parties has ever broken something—especially not beer bottles or a lighter."

He tries handing me the lighter again. "C'mon, princess. If something breaks, I'll take the blame."

I put my beer aside. I grab the lighter and look at Eddie, in each hand one of the needed items.

"Hold the bottle by its neck," he tells me, demonstrating the tight grip on his bottle.

I mimic him, and he nods. "Now, keep your thumb there and fit the edge of the lighter underneath the cap."

I do as he tells me. "And now?"

"Use your fingers as leverage and push the lighter up."

I have to try twice; Eddie encourages me. "A little harder, princess."

And then: Pop. The cap opens.

I opened the beer. With a lighter. This is by far the coolest thing I've ever done. I didn't even break something.

I look at Eddie, pure excitement painting my face.

"That's so cool," I tell him, showing him the opened beer.

He chuckles, grabbing a fresh plastic cup and filling the beer inside. "Good to know you're easy to impress."

"That was not easy," I tell him, and he hands me the red cup.

Giving me two more closed beers, he refuses to take his lighter back. "Go show your new trick to your friends."

"But that's your lighter."

He shrugs. "Got plenty more where that one came from."

I nod, putting it in my bra for safekeeping.

As he quirks his brow, eyes for a second gliding over my cleavage, I explain, "I don't have pockets."

Taking a sip from his beer, he looks away for a moment, nodding. "Well, uhm, maybe we'll see each other later? Like, when you get another beer, maybe?"

My heartbeat rises to a threatening level again. I nod, embarrassed, terrified, giddy, excited. "Y–Yeah, sure, maybe."

I head inside, walking back to my friends, who are all invested in something Jessica tells them.

As I come close enough to hear, it feels like my heart is getting pierced by a harpoon.

Nothing changes. No matter how hard you try, things will always stay the same.

"And after her aunt calls her mommy, telling her they don't even want to see her during summer break. Well, and we come to pick her up, and she cries like she just found out Santa and the Easter Bunny don't exist. It would be sad if it wouldn't be so fucking funny."

The group laughs, except for Chrissy. "Guys, that's mean. She was really upset about it."

"Yeah, because she's a baby. Come on, Chris," Jessica nudges her. "It's not like she's one of us anyway; we just chill with her because she buys expensive shit for us, and nobody's ever home."

"And because she's a good fuck," Andy adds, punching Jason's arm, "A fuck you still have to share, dickhead."

I don't know why I was stupid enough to think they would like me at least a little.

I don't know why I am surprised to find out they were just nice to me for the money.

I intentionally had made myself the selfless, sweet person. I bought them drinks and snacks; I hosted sleepovers and borrowed them money; I bought them the best birthday presents they could've wished for...

I wanted to make it seem to them like loving me was effortless.

"I like her. She's lovely," Chrissy defends me because she genuinely has a heart of gold.

Amy nods. "Yeah, and that's why she fucks your boyfriend."

The group cracks up. Jessica directing the direction of the conversation again. "She has no personality. Seriously, a piece of cardboard has more character. Have you seen her room? It's like a hotel room. So creepy. Total Carrie White behavior."

Taking a deep breath, I don't cry. I can't give them a luck to see me cry. I walk in on their conversation, put the closed beer bottles on the table, and look at them.

Their conversation halted the moment they saw me. Now they look almost a little afraid.

Jessica hums my name, her voice oozing with fake friendliness. "What have you got there?"

"A– Uhm... I," I stammer, then clear my throat.

Just pretend you didn't hear them. Gaslight yourself into blissful obliviousness like Chrissy.

"A trick," I say, wanting to reach for the lighter hidden in my bra.

But I stop.

For a moment, the grip on my filled-to-the-brim cup tightens, and I let my impulsive thoughts win. I walk up to Jessica; she and Amy are sharing the armchair.

"Are we gonna see some girl-on-girl action, ladies?" Patrick whistles; the rest of the jocks are just as enthusiastic about the idea.

She looks up at me, grinning like I am genuinely her friend, and blowing me a flirty kiss.

In a matter of seconds, I dump the cup's contents over Jessica, drowning her fake facade in beer.

She yelps, looking up at me, absolutely furious. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

I hand her the empty red cup, saying, "Sorry, my inner Carrie White came through."

The boys who formally were cheering about a wet t-shirt contest are now quiet as well. They know I heard them and have taken offense to it.

We all stare at each other for a few seconds; Amy uses paper tissues to help Jessica soak up the beer. Jessica bitches because of her makeup and dress... Not like I bought it for her anyways.

"We were just joking," Chance says.

"Yeah, let's forget about it. We all drank and thought it was fun," Jason says, hand reaching for my waist as he tries to pull me on his lap. "Come here, baby."

I take a step back, shaking my head. Then I rush upstairs and lock myself in the first bathroom I can find.

Well, not lock...

A couple of seconds after I isolated myself from the party, Eddie enters.

I am washing my hands and trying to calm down, taking deep breaths, so I don't burst into tears or have a panic attack when I fully notice him.

"You okay?" he asks, warm brown eyes scanning me.

I nod, grabbing a neon green, fluffy hand towel to dry my hands. "Peachy."

He continues staring, and I lose my nerves. "What are you doing here?"

"Wanted to check on you."

"Well, you did. I'm okay. Now get out."

It intimidates me to be in such a small room all alone with Eddie. He is terrifying. Terrifyingly loud, terrifyingly handsome, terrifyingly honest.

"What your friends did wasn't okay. They shouldn't have said those things," he tells me calmly, not getting intimidated by my tries to get rid of him.

Good to know that he heard everything. It makes me wonder how many other guests overheard how pathetic I am.

"Well, thank you for stating the obvious. Now get lost," I bark.

"Maybe you should stay away from them. You're only getting used by them, just like Jason's only using you."

I feel tears well up in my eyes as I hiss, "That's none of your fucking business, freak."

Eddie coos my name in the softest way I have ever heard, taking a step closer. "You could do so much better than running after a jock who's only using you for the sex his girlfriend doesn't give him."

Laughing spitefully, I snarl, "Better? Like who? You? Sorry, but the last time I checked, the only pussy you're getting is a quick pity fuck or girls trying to figure out if you're also a freak in bed or if we all just call you that because you're a weird, pathetic loser."

His eyebrows knit together. "Hey, don't be a bitch to me just because you chose to have shitty friends."

"As if your friends are any better."

"They are," he growls at me. "They might not make me seem cool and desirable, but at least they don't talk about me like a little piggy bank or a fucktoy they get to share."

Impulsive thoughts take over again, and I slap Eddie across the face.

I have precisely a second to fear the consequences; then he grabs me by the shoulder and pins me against the cold tile wall.

He manhandled me so roughly that it takes me a second before I can breathe normally again. His arms are now pressed against the wall of each side of me, and I feel fear creeping up on me again.

"What have they done to you that makes you think you constantly have to attack before being attacked, huh?"

I look away from Eddie, hoping he doesn't see my lips shiver or my body tremble. But he grabs my face with his right hand and forces me to look at him.

He seems angry and annoyed, but not necessarily at me. His eyes still lay comforting on my features.

"You can't possibly enjoy being used as Jason's cumdump and having to watch him go back to his perfect girlfriend — the one he actually wants — when he's done with you."

"As if you would treat me any different, freak," I bite out, hoping to hit him right in his hypocritical ego.

For a second, he just looks at me; then his hand no longer grabs my face; instead, his knuckles delicately brush over my cheek.

"You're talking to a guy who fell in love with the first girl using him for her little test ride and needed almost a year to figure out what was going on. Why these pretty girls gave me hopes, seemed like they liked me, let me wine and dine them, but once we had sex, they didn't talk to me again... Pretending I didn't exist.

"I wouldn't treat you like Jason for many, many reasons. I am not an asshole like him; I can't turn off the fact I need to have feelings for the person I fuck; Or that I hate how much I would like you to look at me like you look at that idiot...

"But most importantly, I know exactly how it feels to get used—be a little pawn in the cool kids' game. I'd never project that pain on somebody else just to make myself feel better."

I feel seen, understood, and called out for my past behavior.

Looking away while others were treated by my "friends" like I'd been by my bullies all my life wasn't okay. I knew that. But I had just wanted to be the target no longer.

He thinks I look at Jason with love... God, the freak's a little stupid.

"You don't want me to look at you like I look at Jason," I tell him, avoiding his eyes.

He tilts his head so he can follow my gaze. "Is that so?"

I nod. "I look at Jason like he's somebody who told me he's in love with me and would break up with Chrissy so that I'd lose my virginity to him. And since then, I sleep with him because he calls the shots, and my friends are actually his friends..."

Eddie clenches his jaw. "You're right. Don't want you looking at me like that."

He's so close to me I can smell the cologne on his skin and the cigarettes on his breath. He's terrifyingly handsome.

"I'd rather have you continue to hate me then."

"I don't hate you," I whisper. He's too close to be any louder.

"But you don't like me either," he says, frowning.

"I'm scared of you," I admit, face piping hot with shame. "Y-You see right through me and call people out on their bullshit. I'm scared you'll do that with me, and I won't be able to look in the mirror again."

He doesn't say anything, so I continue to babble like a pretty-dressed fool.

"You're hauntingly pretty. I– I am really scared of what you make me feel because I want to run away from you without a chance to escape."

Eddie smirks during all of that, looking like a wild animal lying in wait for the kill.

His body shifts, now so close I could never escape, even if I'd try. His left leg moves between my thighs while the hand from my cheek now dances around my throat, ending any need for a necklace.

I look up at him. As he applies the tiniest bit of pressure to my throat, I whimper. I feel like I should run, my body tells me to flee. I tremble badly, eyes already teary as I feel myself become excited. I quickly look away.

I am excited. I am aroused, wet. Eddie does this to me with his presence. My fear of him arouses me.

My fear and the thought that he wouldn't actually hurt me... But very well could.

It feels so wrong that I whimper again, hips bucking and my sensitive clit rubbing against his thigh. I whimper again, that level of arousal unknown to me.

I look up at him again. He'd never looked away; he had studied my behavior, the rollercoaster of emotions I am currently going through.

My hands run up and down his chest, fumbling with his jeans vest, leather jacket, and the soft shirt beneath. There is no question I'd claw myself into his skin if he'd try to move away.

I buck my hips again, now shamelessly using the friction.

His head dips lower again, his warm breath spreading on my skin. "Scared, princess?" he asks.

I nod, lust drunken. "Terrified."

Then he kisses me, smiles just seconds before our lips collide.

I moan into the kiss, Eddie not needing any more confirmation that I am enjoying this.

His hands grab my hips, starting to control the way I am rocking on his thigh. His hips start rocking into me, and I can feel his clothed erection pressing against me.

My hands wander into his messy curls, his lips leaving my mouth and moving down to my neck. I moan loudly as he begins to suck at the delicate skin of my throat.

The suction hurts, causing electric shocks to strike straight between my legs. Eddie's mouth releases me with a pop, his warm, wet tongue licking over the angry spot apologetically.

He pecks my lips, a boyish grin on his lips. "Your beautiful," he tells me, pupils so blown I believe his eyes to me nothing but black marbles.

I whimper in reply, my entire focus lying on the tightening inside me and how good the harsh material of his ripped jeans feels against my clothed pussy.

Suddenly he removes his legs from me, holding my hips in place so I can't follow him.

Annoyed noises leave my mouth, but he just smiles at me. "I know, sweetheart, but you're making a mess on my leg. We can't have that, now, can we?"

I quickly shake my head; the bathroom just lit enough to have me see the wet patch I left on his thigh. Reason tells me I should be embarrassed, but Eddie looks at me so proudly I can only think of chasing the high it gives me.

A hand leaves my hips, and Eddie uses it to palm his bulge, seeming to hope it'll relieve him of some pressure.

Our eyes meet, and he grins, "Wanna show me how much of a slut you can be? How good you can behave?"

I quickly nod, following the push of his hand, and sink to my knees. I quickly run my hands over his thighs while he unbuckles his belt and opens his jeans.

I try to reach for his boxers, already licking my lips, but Eddie swats my hand away, the slap burning on my skin.

"Don't be a greedy whore," he warns me.

I quickly nod, eyes unable to stay directed at Eddie's face as he finally untucks himself. His thick cock is painted with rough veins, the pink, leaking tip making me want to forget any formerly given commands.

"Now, what did I say?" he warns me, hand reaching into my hair and making a makeshift ponytail out of it.

"You've done that before?" he asks, and I shake my head. "We don't have to."

I look up at him, pleading, "Please. Want to."

A low chuckle leaves him. "Now that's just pathetic, baby." Still, he uses his grip on my hair to pull me nearer his pulsing cock.

As my lips barely touch him, he coos, "Don't be shy; give it a kiss."

I do as he says, kissing his tip and coating my lips with his salty precum. He looks so pleased as I lick my lips; I instantly kiss his cock again.

"Good girl," he whispers, guiding me to take him into my mouth. "Don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you, princess."

At the same moment, he tucks harsher on my hair, the feeling making me moan onto his cock. "Not any more than you want me to, at least," he chuckles, seemingly having hurt me unintentionally.

As I am comfortable with this new position, have gotten the hang of it, I try taking him deeper. He's long; I don't expect to be able and take all of him; he doesn't seem to expect it either.

But I give it my best. Eddie's hand is guiding my bopping head, grunts and praises leaving him. I almost choke, only the breathing through my nose hindering me from gagging, but I take all of him, the curly, dark pubic hair at his base, tickling my nose.

Our eyes meet as I hold him in the back of my throat, and a guttural moan escapes him. His fist hits the tile wall behind me, the loud sound making me jump and pull away from his cock.

We stare at each other for a second, a string of saliva still connecting us. Then we grin like misbehaving children.

Eddie takes a step back and pulls me to my feet. Gripping my hair again, he yanks my head back, exposing my throat. His tongue darts out, licking a broad strip up to my lips, following where the string of spit had landed.

He doesn't kiss me; instead, he smiles at me, leaving me waiting for something that never comes.

Spinning me around, Eddie holds my back pressed against his chest while he shoves the soap and small towels from the counter space into the sink. Then he pushes my upper body onto the now empty counter, my hot cheek resting against the cold marble.

I can feel him push up the skirt of my dress, Eddie's coarse hands groping my ass, and then slapping me harshly. I yelp a little, feeling him lean over to check my expression, and then do it again.

I clench my thighs together, not knowing when I will finally feel relief. Another smack comes down, this time on my other cheek. I whimper, hoping for the spanking to be over soon. Not because I don't enjoy it but because I am too riled up to wait any longer.

Thankfully, Eddie seems to have heard my silent prayer. He pulls down my panties, letting them drop to my ankles. I hear the chain on his jeans jingle and then the familiar sound of a condom wrapper.

I reach behind me, grabbing Eddie's hand. He leans forward, smiling at me. "It'll just take a moment, sweetheart. Safety first."

He tries, but I don't release his wrist. "I'm on birth control. Just– Just please let me feel you."

Eddie takes a deep breath, then nods. "Are you sure?" I nod so fast I fear dislocating something.

Standing behind me, I feel him glide his cock through my fold a couple of times, coating himself with my arousal. Then he bottoms out in me with one solid thrust.

I moan loudly, pressing my forehead against the marble counter as he stretches me out in ways I thought impossible.

Eddie shortly rests his body on mine, face pressed against my shoulder. His right hand rests next to my head; the left one runs up my thigh and waist. He solely lifts himself from me enough to reach under me and grope my tits.

He growls quietly and kisses my shoulder before he pushes himself up again. His hands glide down my back and come to a hold on my hips.

Eddie pulls me into him several times, experimental thrust having me breathless. Then he sets into a harsh and unforgiving pace.

I am so wet, the room is filled with the most obscene squelches I have ever heard. The high-pitched, already fucked-out moans leaving me surely don't make anything better.

Then, Eddie's hand tangles itself in my hair again. He pulls me up on my hands and forces me to look into the mirror.

"Keep your eyes on the mirror, baby. Watch yourself getting fucked by the freak," he tells me with a hint of resentment.

Watch the man you demonized for so long show you the gates of heaven.

I look at myself, hair a mess, lips puffy, pupils blown. I moan, every thrust coaxing another sound out of me while I feel Eddie so deep in me it makes my eyes try to roll back.

But I focus, I do as he demands, and I watch us. Watch Eddie. How his head falls back as he moans, how his hair sticks to his sweaty forehead, how his hand reaches underneath me, between my legs and starts rubbing my clit.

My insides tighten again; the coil inside me seconds from snapping. My head drops, and I accept the stinging pain that comes with it.

I already pulse around his cock when he stops playing with my clit.

He let's go of my hair as well, the hand now wrapping around my throat and pulling me up. Eddie leans down a little, ensuring I am pressed against his chest.

He's looking over my shoulder. I follow his gaze. Our eyes meet in the mirror.

"Look at that, princess. Fucking terrorized me for a year, running around and being a little bitch, and now you're so desperate for me, you didn't even let me put on a condom."

I whimper, not able to find words.

Eddie chuckles. "No, no. Don't be ashamed. It's good to know that all that was needed to have this raging bitch become a little puppy was to fuck her pussy raw until she sees stars."

"Eddie..."

He leans closer to my ear, never breaking eye contact. "Yeah, that's right, baby. Let the whole house know how badly you want the freak to come in your little pussy."

I'm on the brink of my orgasm when he says, "Fucking look at me when you come. I deserve to be the only thought in your dumb little head when you come on my cock."

And instead of keeping my eyes on his reflection, I turn my face to my right, looking straight at him.

The mirror had been a type of protection; it had kept us from looking directly at each other. We were supposed to hate each other, and maybe we would change our minds when our eyes meet. But I look at him, and all I can think of is how I don't want this moment to end.

He didn't think I'd look directly at him; the look on his face as our eyes collide tells me that... And it tells so much more.

Eddie dips his head lower, the hand from my throat now holding us up while the other cups my cheek.

"You're so beautiful," he whispers, kissing me roughly as we melt into each other.

We are moaning into the kiss, my right hand flying up and holding onto his neck, the other trying to dig itself into the marble beneath its palm.

As I come, my knees buckle, and I go limp. Sex has never felt this good, and my body seems wholly to agree, the orgasm almost knocking me out.

Eddie's hand leaves my cheek so his arm can wrap around my waist and hold me up while he keeps thrusting into me. He finally fills me with his hot cum. Forehead pressed against my side, a husky moan leaving his lips.

Carefully, he lowers me onto the counter, my cheek resting on the marble top. We're both panting, and I don't feel like I am fully back on earth again.

Eddie brushes my hair out of my sweaty face, half his weight resting on top of me. He lazily kisses my cheek a couple of times, only stopping when a smile tucks on my lips.

As he stands up, ready to pull out, I grab his hand. He instantly stills in his movements. "It's okay, sweetheart. I'm not going anywhere."

I shake my head. "Please. Not yet."

He signed, looking around a little. Then he pulls me up against his chest. With his arm around my waist, he lifts me up, walks over to the closed (and ugly decorated) toilet, and sits down.

Still inside me, his arm spreads my legs apart, hooking them over his own, so I can comfortably sit in his lap.

I am on full display, and I don't know if Eddie locked the door, but I don't care. Because his arm is still around my waist while the other lazily strokes over my naked thigh.

He leaves kisses up and down my neck and shoulder and presses his forehead against my temple. I am wholly satisfied. And the big scary metalhead seems to be too.

"You know," he suddenly speaks into the silence. "Whoever thought that fluffy toilet seat covers are a good idea is a psycho. Feels like I'm sitting on a fucking Furby."

There is a second of silence, then we both burst into laughter, making Eddie add, "The worst part it that that pervert seems to like it, given the way he tickles my balls."

"Jesus, Eddie," I laugh, holding my stomach.

As our laughter finally ceases, he presses another kiss on my shoulder. "Hey, how- how about we ditch this party and go eat a burger instead? My treat."

My heart races again, and I seriously start to question if I know the difference between excitement and fear, but at the same time, I am astounded.

He wants to spend time with me. We just had sex, he'd gotten what he wanted, and he still stayed around.

Jason had never stayed. He took what he wanted and then left.

The pain in my chest and the tears I refuse to cry let me feel just how fucked up the last year has been.

"I– My friends are..." I stammer. I don't know how to collectively call that bunch of bullies and explain how afraid I am to go downstairs again.

Eddie, however, seems to misunderstand my stammering. "Yeah, don't worry. Was a stupid idea anyways." He stands up, making sure I stand on my feet and then pulls out. "I'll go down first; just wait a couple of minutes, then you can join your friends again."

I lean against the marble counter. "Eddie, I didn't–"

He grabs one of the neon-colored hand towels and soaks it in water. While cleaning himself, he sneers, "No worries, princess. Won't tell anyone you took a test ride on the freak."

He's hurt, having built up a wall so promptly that I feel like he believes he never had a chance with me anyway. And now, he hates himself the for having gotten his hopes up.

Eddie tucks himself away, rinsing the towel with some more water before stepping next to me and kneeling down. I whimper and look at the ceiling as he pushes my dress up and begins to clean the mess between my legs.

Given the way I just let him fuck me and then sat there spread out for the world to see with him still inside me, I actually have no right to be this embarrassed right now.

"That's a nice ceiling," I blurt out to distract myself. "The only thing not neon colored or fluffy in this bathroom."

Eddie huff's a small laugh against my thigh but stays quiet as he cleans me of our mixed cum running down the inside of my thigh.

I press the back of my hand against my face, eyes squeezed shut, and just continue my mortified blabbering.

"I'd like to go eat something with you. It's just that I don't think I'll survive the humiliation of going downstairs and facing my friends after I just bathed Jessica in my beer. I am not good at confrontations, and if you don't know a way to get me out of this house by climbing out of a window or something, I believe I have to stay here until the party's over."

I interrupt myself with a whimper as Eddie brushes over my sensitive clit, then grab his hand to avoid him doing that again and look down at him.

I am met with a boyish grin on his pressed-together lips as he tries not to laugh at my short-circuiting brain. He throws the towel into the sink, and while standing up, he pulls my panties back into position.

"Want me to create a distraction? I could lay a fire... Or start a fight with Jason, restoring your honor?"

I giggle, and he leans closer, pressing a soft kiss on my lips.

"Or – if you like it extreme – we could kill two birds with one stone and set Jason on fire."

"You are crazy."

He nods. "The craziest."

"Maybe don't commit murder and get prison time just when I'm about to go out with you."

He chuckles, pecking my lips again. "Yeah, sounds counterproductive."

Eddie spins me around, back pressed against his chest and arms slung around me. I look at our reflection in the mirror. My hair is a mess, my makeup smudged, but Eddie (whose chin is comfortably resting on my shoulder) looks at me like I hung the stars in the night sky for him.

"I look like a mess," I mumbled.

He quickly snaps, "Shut up. You're beautiful."

I lean my head against his when somebody tries to open the door. We quickly jump apart, my anxiety rising as I say, "Occupied."

"Hey, we were looking for you," Amy says through the door.

"I'm fine. Just go away, please."

Eddie's hand brushes over my hair, and we smile at each other for a moment.

I don't need to be afraid.

I don't need to... I still am, though.

"Don't be a bitch and come out so we can talk," Jessica hisses, and I wonder if she's still soaked with beer or only reeks like a distillery.

I'd be oddly satisfied with both.

"There's nothing to talk about. You guys used me and are shitty friends." I look at Eddie, a proud smile on my lips.

I am standing up for myself. I don't need to be their punching bag.

"Everyone uses everyone. That's how life works," Jessica says.

Amy agrees, "You actually should be thankful that we let you to hang out with us; it's not like anybody else would ever want that."

"Yeah," Jessica goes in for the final blow, "If not for your lack of personality and annoying sob stories, then for being the basketball team's mattress. Everybody else would throw you to the curb for being a whore."

That's when Eddie unlocks the door and swings it open, towering over the two girls, growling, "You better fucking take that back."

The two girls look at him, absolutely terrified for a moment, so I step in front of Eddie. My hands are resting against the doorframe as though I could keep Eddie in and protect him from the hate we are about to receive.

"Are you kidding me?" Jessica asks, and I feel my stomach tie itself into knots.

"I– I am..."

"You seriously let the freak fuck you?" Jessica asks, this time so loud I am certain at least some of the other party guests are hearing her.

I nod a little, everything feeling numb as I am back in the position I was in a year ago. I am prey about to be devoured by monsters.

Jessica storms off, her heels loud on the hardwood floor. I look back at Eddie, who looks at me, brows knitted together. I just know he can sense the aura of panic and anxiety surrounding me.

Amy still stands there, looking at me, my disheveled appearance, and then at Eddie. As her gaze meets mine against, she says, "You didn't want it, right?"

I frown. "What?"

She repeats herself calmly. "You didn't want to have sex with Eddie. He forced you."

I feel the metalhead behind me tense up.

Shaking my head, I stammer, "No, we– I–"

But Amy interrupts me. "It's not your fault. That monster just preyed on you all day and attacked the second you were alone. We're on your side; I promise we still love you. Babe, we all know you would never let the freak touch you."

I spiral down the option I have just been given.

Lie. Lie. Lie.

Lie and tell me you were raped.

Lie so we can all pretend that nothing else happened today.

None of your actions will have consequences.

Eddie is an easy scapegoat. Nobody will bet an eye if I wrongly accuse him of assault.

Lie to save your life while ruining Eddie's.

Lie, and we will lie for you.

This goes beyond bullying. It is downright evil and disgusting... And for a moment, I think about it. Think about the get-out-of-prison card I have just been handed.

This is how far some people will go to keep their social status.

Being one of the cool kids is not worth this.

Jessica returns, all our friends with her. She has a big grin on her face, ready to shred me into pieces. This time with audience.

Jason is the first to speak, pushing past Chrissy and taking in the scene before him. The picture of Eddie and I. The mental image of us having sex.

"What happened?" he asks.

Amy is quick to cut off Jessica, nodding first at her and then at me. "Eddie raped her. Right?"

Jason's eyes are on Eddie, fury there that is solely his own righteousness. The rest of the group starts to explode into rage, throwing every possible insult at Eddie.

Jason takes a step towards us, and I make sure not to let him get to Eddie. "He didn't do anything," I say loud enough to make them shut up.

Chrissy pushes past our friends and takes my hand. "But Amy just said–"

I nod, barking, "Yes, because Amy is very sick in her head."

I make sure to look at every single one of my former friends (excluding close-to-tears Chrissy) while saying, "You are awful people. So easy to jump on the bandwagon and ruin somebody's life only because it fits your bully agenda. I am pretty sure that not a single one of you likes the others. You guys are just hanging out because you very well know that you're horrible, and none of you could ever make a single real friend."

They are silent and confused, look at each other and then at me. This felt good. No wonder Eddie is constantly calling people out.

"And you know what?" I ask them, feeling a second wind of courage as I look at Jason. "I just had amazing sex with Eddie. Better than I ever had with your pathetic ass. Also lasted about three times longer. Being fast isn't always a good thing, Jason.

"I hope that one of these days Chrissy finally realizes that she can do so much better than a guy whoring around for his ego, just being with her because she'll make a nice and quiet housewife that'll do his laundry while he bangs Amy and Jessica and has Andy's mom go down on him every Tuesday since her divorce."

All eyes are on me... Well, not really.

Patrick's are on Jason as he had known Patrick was chasing after Jessica for years now.

Andy will probably pass out, vomit, or both at any moment.

Jessica and Amy look at each other and wonder how I knew they, too, fuck Jason while making me out to be the devil for having done it.

Good old Jason is very talkative during sex but sadly very inconsistent with names and the amount of details he gives about other sexual encounters.

And poor Chrissy's are on her boyfriend. It hurts now, but frankly, I think it's better she finds out what kind of man he is now than in ten years when they're married with kids.

Jason, red-faced, takes an angry step toward me, his hand twitching as he raises it. I instantly yelp, "Touch me, and I'll sue your ass so badly you can kiss your scholarship and bright future goodbye."

The jock lowers his hand and looks at his "friends," but I cut into the meat of their lies way too deep.

It's then Eddie wraps an arm around my waist and shuffles us out of the bathroom. I'm not mad at him, as he almost uses me as a human shield to deflect anything that could come from the jocks—it's for the better; they won't hurt me.

As there are a couple of steps between us, Eddie grabs my hand, and we rush down the stairs. It's early quiet. I hadn't noticed that the music was out before. At the middle of the stairs, we see multiple party guests scattered around the living room, staring at us.

Had Jessica planned on letting everyone hear how she and the rest of the bullies chewed me to pieces?

Eddie and I exchange a look and then walk down the stairs like we weren't just about to run off.

"It's not a party when there's no fight, am I right?" Eddie chuckles loudly into the room, looking at Steve Harrington, "Dude? My stuff?"

Steve hands him his lunchbox. "You two okay?"

Eddie beams at Steve, wrapping an arm around me and lifting me a little. "Have you heard her?" he asks proudly. "My girl devoured those jocks."

"Think everyone heard her. You guys should probably take off."

He sets me down on my feet again, and Steve turns to the rest of the party. "Okay, people, now that the entertainment is over, who is ready to party? I think we should make use of that sweet pool outside!"

The former King of Hawkins High has the people wrapped around his finger as he turns the music up and encourages them to follow him outside, quickly waving us goodbye.

Taking my hand in his, Eddie walks to his van with me. Grabbing his keys, he grins, "You wanna get in, or am I walking you to Benny's?" I punch his chest and let him open and close the door for me.

Putting my seatbelt on, I finally feel my adrenaline drop. That situation was terrifying. It's a miracle I didn't start to cry in front of them; the tears are sure as hell coming now.

"Oh my God," I whisper as Eddie gets in. "I can't believe I did that."

His hand moves up to my thigh. "Hey, sweetheart. Everything's okay."

I shake my head. "I just obliterated all the friendships I had."

Eddie is silent for a moment, then sighs. "Okay, you know what you're gonna do? I'll drive you straight home, and you call your friends tomorrow and tell them you were drunk and did some uppers with me."

He pats my thigh before removing his hand. "Trust me, the way their friendships work, they'll never talk about tonight anyway. You'll have a perfect excuse for going off on them, and everything will be as it was."

I look at Eddie, surprised. He doesn't protest. He even helps me come up with an airtight excuse. But I honestly don't think I want them back as friends.

I watch his jaw clench as he stares straight forward. "I– I don't want..."

"It's cool, princess. Not like I expected anything to change between us," he tells me quickly, pained laughter leaving his lips.

I nod. Of course, he didn't. "Oh, okay." I wipe away the tear running down my cheek.

Stupid, stupid. I won't cry because Eddie Munson and I just had a meaningless hookup. I'm not gonna cry because he hasn't just magically fallen in love with me.

Eddie turns the key, and the van comes to life. Loud metal music nearly bursts my eardrums, and we both yelp in shock. He quickly turns it down and looks at me, apologizing, but I am already laughing.

He joins my giggles, hand flying back to rest on my thigh. I quickly wrap my hands around it, making sure he can't move away again.

It takes a moment to collect ourselves and even longer as we just look at the other. He's so pretty.

God, I really don't want to be his enemy again.

"I'm sorry," I tell him, making him tilt his head. "I was a giant bitch to you the entire year. The things I said weren't okay, and the names I called you weren't either."

He looks at me, then checks his watch. "It's a little early for a Christmas miracle, sweetheart."

I nod. Fair, I deserve that. I have made myself as unappealing and lovable to him as possible.

"I was a bitch to you, and you didn't deserve it, Eddie."

He shakes his head. "You weren't a bitch... At least not a big one. A little bitch. But I guess that came with the company you keep. Adapting to avoid being an outcast again has its downsides."

My eyes widen. "H– How...?"

How does he know?

Eddie shrugs. "Instinct. You seem a lot like you're attacking before I can say something. You never really bully but are willing to look away when your friends do it because you wanna stay on their good side. Everything about you, when you're with them, is fake. And when we're alone, you are a completely different person."

He chuckles. "When we're alone, you're a cute little thing that doesn't bitch around or wants to fight me for a chair. You're even scared of me... Like, I know I can seem scary, but come on. I would never hurt you. I'm all bark, no bite. But somebody who's been bullied a ton – know that one first hand – never really counts on it to be over. So we keep our guard up."

"I'm not afraid of you because I think you would hurt me. You call people out on their bullshit, and apparently, you see right through mine... I always feared that one day you be too spot on in front of Jessica and the others, and they learn that I am actually just a loser who befriended them so that I wouldn't be their target."

I wipe the back of my hand over my now-wet cheeks; the other hand still holding Eddie in place. "I am actually a really, really awful person. Just like fucking Jessica. I'm a total hypocrite."

"Hey, don't say that," Eddie coos, but I shake my head

"It's true. I befriended the worst bullies in Hawkins High and sucked up to them so they'd like me, although that's exactly the type of people that made my life so miserable that my parent sent me to live here, thinking bullies don't exist in go-fuck-yourself Hawkins.

"I am pathetic. A fucking joke. I- I literally just got my schedules on my first day here, took a look at what the cool kids were wearing, and then skipped classes to buy clothes that would make me fit in. What kind of loser does that?"

Eddie squeezes my thigh. "A loser that thinks fitting in is the only way for them to survive."

"That's stupid," I bite. "I would've survived even if I hadn't done that."

"Can you promise that? Can you really say that you would've survived if everything would've been like in your old school? If you would've gotten bullied again even after leaving your entire life behind—including your parents? Or would you have hurt yourself?"

I look away from Eddie, tears still running down my cheeks. I wouldn't have survived. I wouldn't have been able to handle all this pain again. Every single day up to moving here had been hell. I'd come home from school and cry for hours.

My parents weren't home enough, so they hadn't even noticed when I started skipping classes just not to be in school; I stayed at home and stopped taking care of myself. I'd been a dead girl walking when they finally decided things needed to change.

"See?" the metalhead next to me says, knuckles coming up to brush my cheek. "Even if it wasn't right, you did it because you thought you had no other option. You just tried to survive with the least amount of damage possible."

"Stop being so understanding," I sob. "Makes me feel even worse."

He nods. "Sure... Okay, then, how dare you, woman? How dare you attack my sweet innocent quirk of rubbing truths into people's faces without them asking for it?"

I giggle, almost choking on my tears. "You're such a dork."

He forcefully has to remove his hand from my thigh so he can cup my face in his large hands, thumbs wiping away my tears.

As he gives me a kiss on the nose, I say, "I don't wanna be their friend again. Wanna..." I stop myself before I can say something stupid like, "I want to stay with you."

"I– I think I have a proposition I'd like to make, princess," Eddie says. "I don't know if you knew, but eight toxic friends are actually the exact trade-in price to get a top-of-the-notch metalhead freak like me. It's even enough to treat yourself to the he-might-even-ask-you-out-if-you-promise-not-to-run-away-screaming bonus."

He removes his hands and gives me room to think. "Now, why would you want that?" I ask, not understanding how he could literally hate himself that much.

Eddie shrugs. "Believe it or not, there are people that actually like you. Also, you chose me today. You were given a one-way out ticket that would've put me in prison right next to my dad, but you chose to protect me instead."

"Everyone would've done that."

"Absolutely not," he shakes his head. "You saw how badly they wanted you to say I assaulted you. Every single one of them would've loved to throw me under the bus like that. So much so that I stopped hooking up with girls because my uncle always feared that could happen.

"One pretty, innocent girl regretting having fucked the freak, looking for a cop-out, is all it would take. There are maybe ten people that would come to my defense in all of Hawkins. The rest would say they knew I would do something like that, that I always was creepy, dangerous, and that it has to do with the satanic music I listen to.

"Maybe you made some bad decisions, but you're a good person, sweetheart. And because you chose me, knowing that it would slaughter your social status, I am more than ready to choose you and keep doing it."

I nod, but before I can answer, he pulls out of the driveway, drives down the road, and adds with a grin, "I also think you're a straight ten, so... I'd be stupid not to at least try to talk you into dating me. Like, she takes my side, she's pretty, laughs at my jokes... My Uncle would say you're a once-in-a-lifetime chance for a loser like me."

"Okay, I–"

Eddie interrupts me, pretending he's deep in thought. "I will, however, have to find a way to explain to the boys how I managed to pull someone like you... Ideally, without the fact that I fuck like a god—there are some little shrimp in Hellfire, so we'll have to keep it PG, baby."

"Eddie?" I giggle, but he continues.

"I will also have to make you the Princess of Hellfire Club. Because I don't think we can keep your former title... But don't worry about that. I have good connections to the King of Hellfire. I'm just gonna roll him a joint and explain to him how cute my girl can be when she isn't trying to design the set of 'Hamlet'—"

"King Lear," I interrupt him.

He nods, a mischievous grin on his lips. "Right. The one with Ophelia."

"I am going to beat you," I warn him, making him giggle because, apparently, he does know the difference and just loves to annoy me.

"Better be nice," he warns jokingly. "I'll have a lot of persuading to do since you stole the King's throne. Won't be easy. He was very pissed about it."

I let him ramble on, not a single doubt in my mind that he is too giddy to actually let me answer. But when my ears pick up on a familiar tune on the cassette that is playing, I quickly turn the volume up.

"Uh, 'Sweet Leave'!"

Eddie looks at me for a second, then back on the road. I have rendered him speechless.

"Sorry," I tell him promptly. "I– That was rude. I shouldn't have touched the radio without asking."

He shakes his head. "No. No, it's fine... I– That's Black Sabbath."

I nod. "Yeah, I know. I like them. My aunt took me to a concert of there's when we were in London in '81. Her ex-husband was really into rock and metal. They had a nasty divorce in which she got all of his vinyls and cassettes because he cheated on her, and she wanted to hit him where it hurt. Most of the stuff is also signed. It's all up in the attic somewhere. I can show you should you want to come over someday–"

Now, hello over-sharing. What the hell was that? I can't remember the last time I rambled that much.

"Sorry," I quickly say, but Eddie's hand moves to my thigh, a pearly white smile on his face.

"No, please, keep going." I look at him, unsure if he's only saying it to be nice, but he insists. "Seriously. Wanna hear more."

"Okay... Uhm, they divorced the spring before I moved here, and my aunt still had the tickets she had bought for his birthday, so she took me to the Monsters of Rock Festival, with ZZ Top, Marillion, Bon Jovi, Ratt, Metallica... It was so cool."

I laugh at the memory. "They only had very big shirts left at the merch booth, so I got a giant one. I actually still sleep in it when nobody comes over."

"Why?"

I bite the inside of my cheek. "I... I hide all my stuff in the basement. My old stuff. Like I said, I really wanted to fit in when I moved here and thought that maybe I was the problem."

"That's why Jessica said you have no personality?"

I nod. "I never decorated my bedroom. There are some polaroids, a scented candle, and my stuffed bear but all in all, it's still the guest bedroom I moved into. Didn't want to give anyone ammunition to bully me."

I hate how pitiful I sound, so vulnerable it scares the shit out of me, but Eddie squeezes my thigh. "But that right now is who you are? Like, listening to that kind of music and being into festivals and concerts?"

"I– I don't know if that's who I am. I definitely like it, but it's not all there is to me," I say. "I like aspects of every music genre, I like traveling, I like horror movies, but also am a sucker for romance novels... Especially the tacky ones with the bare-chested guys on the covers. I also never — not once — was able to keep a plant alive. I just forget they exist and stop taking care of them.

And apparently, I like talking way too much, way too fast. But I never really wanted to talk to somebody that much so it's a good possibility that I just need to get used to liking somebody that much."

Eddie chuckles, teasingly chirping, "Oh, so you like me, huh?" I nod, and he says, "Normally I am the one talking too much, but honestly? I think I like hearing your voice more than my own, so even if you don't stop with those cute little info dumps... I think I'm good."

I giggle, ears heating up and jaw hurting from my smiling. "Now what's that smile for, baby?" he asks, grinning too.

"I don't know. You just... You make me feel..." Giddy? Comfortable? Calm? Excited?

"Horny?" Eddie asks, pulling into the parking lot of Benny's.

"No. I mean, yes, but not right now," I stammer. "I think the feeling right now is happy. You make me happy."

Eddie kills off the engine and looks at me as though I told him he just won the lottery. "Happy, huh?" he breathes, and I nod.

Removing his hand from my thigh, he harshly grabs the stirring wheel with both hands. "I– Uhm. Wow. Okay," he stutters, street lights showing his pink cheeks. "I didn't think– I... That feels really weird. Like somebody opened a shook-up can of soda in my chest. All fizzy and bubbly and that kind of shit."

I frown a little while trying to decode what he just said. "I think normal people call that feeling butterflies," I say. "Like, when your heart starts beating so fast it feels like it's jumping out of your chest."

Eddie nods. "Yeah. That's the feeling." He starts laughing, "Shit. Never had that one before."

"I think I had it for Jason... In the beginning, I mean."

Eddie looks at me like a kicked dog, and I instantly regret having mentioned Jason. Why did I even do that?

Just as I want to apologize for ruining the moment, he says, "He really did you dirty, huh?"

"It's kind of my own fault," I mumble. "I should've known that real life isn't like a shitty teen romance, where the new girl captures the heart of the most beloved jock in school.

I'm so stupid. I had known him for maybe two weeks and actually believed him when he said I was special and that he was in love with me. Let him sweet talk me into having my first time in the backseat of his car, although I wasn't even ready... And the next day, he was still with Chrissy, and he never said 'I love you' again."

Eddie's doe eyes stare at me, glassy with a hint of pain. "I won't do that to you," he promises. "I know that's a very basic promise, but I won't hurt you."

I just nod, staring at my hands in my lap. Don't they all say that? He reaches for my chin and makes me look at him.

"Hey, I'm serious," Eddie insists. "I almost started crying, and my heart did that butterfly soda thing because you said I make you happy. If something good makes me have that strong of a reaction, hurting you will probably kill me."

I shake my head, being too vulnerable for my own liking. "Butterfly Soda is a cute pop band name."

Eddie chuckles at my sentence, then asks, "Can I kiss you?"

I nod, and he brings our lips together so gently, so chaste, I melt into him without hesitation. He could hurt me but trusting that he won't shoots a thrill up and down my spine.

He pulls away, grinning.

"What?"

His smile grows wider. "I bagged the hot cheerleader. And it's not even like I didn't have the hots for you before, but now knowing that you like the same music as me and are also a little bit of a freak..." He snorts a laughter. "Jason's a fucking idiot, and I'm such a lucky bastard."

I, too, laugh a little, making Eddie kiss me again. Then he says, "Okay, princess. What kind of burger do you want? I'm gonna get the food and then drive us home."

"To my place?"

"If you're okay with it?"

I quickly nod. "Yeah, totally. I- Uhm, I want a cheeseburger with bacon. No tomato, I won't eat it if there's a tomato in it. Like, seriously."

"Tomato in burger equals death. Got it. Fries and a milkshake?"

"Yes, and yes."

"Let me guess, strawberry?"

I gasp, appalled. "How dare you?"

"Chocolate?" he guesses again.

"Vanilla. Vanilla and nothing else in the world. Strawberry. Do I look like a strawberry girl to you?"

Eddie giggles, "Well, to be fair, you also didn't look like an insane person to me a few minutes ago."

"Let me guess, Munson, you like chocolate?"

He nods, "And strawberry and vanilla. Can't do wrong with me. It's a milkshake; I drink it. But I only dip my fries into chocolate shakes."

I blink at him. "You dip your fries into your milkshake."

"Yeah, the sweet and the salty balance each other out."

"You have a real nerve calling me an insane person," I laugh, reaching into my bra and handing him my credit card. "Here, your disgusting eating habits on me."

Eddie's smile vanishes, and he shakes his head. "Nah, keep it, sweetheart. Told you it's on me."

"It's okay. I have too much money anyway. My aunt is actually getting worried if I don't start spending it," I assure him, but he shakes his curly head again.

"Sweet thing, even if I'd accept you paying for it, they won't let me pay with a card that has somebody else name on it."

"But I'm giving you my okay. Chrissy used it too one time, and nobody cared."

Eddie frowns, and he stares out the windscreen for a moment. "It's not your card that is the problem. It's me. You won't find any place in Hawkins that will let a Munson pay with somebody else's credit card. My old man made sure of that."

"Oh," I mumble, watching how his face is drowning in shame. I'd known his dad was in prison and had used it for ammunition in fights before but, honestly, hadn't thought that the town was treading Eddie as if he was solely his father's son. Doomed to repeat his mistakes.

"Yeah. They'd probably call the cops without thinking twice, and that would end our cute little date in a heartbeat."

"Kay," I say, unbuckling my seatbelt. "I'm going in with you." Eddie looks at me, confused. "If I'm in there with you, they know you didn't steal my card."

"You know that means you're going to be seen with me, right?"

"You gave a whole speech about how I'm now your girl and what we're going to tell your friends."

He shrugs. "Well, yeah. Mostly because I like hearing myself talk and think I have banger jokes, but... I don't know. Am not as confident as I thought I was."

"Want me to tell you that I don't mind being seen with you?" I offer, making Eddie grin.

"I mean, you could hold my hand when we go inside. That's something couples do. Maybe I'll lay my arm over your shoulders and kiss your cheek too."

"Yeah, we can totally do that," I agree. Before pulling down the visit and looking at the mirror. "I need to fix my makeup, though."

"Say no more," Eddie smiles, pulling the still-damp neon green hand towel from his pocket.

"You stole Tammy Thompson's towel?" I ask.

He nods proudly. "It's our towel now, baby. Not like she wouldn't have thrown it away, given that we used it to clean ourselves after fucking in her bathroom."

Grabbing a clean corner of the towel, he spits on it before bringing it to my face and cleaning away the dark streaks of makeup on my cheeks.

"I should be more grossed out by this than I am," I tell Eddie, making him laugh.

"Nah, you enjoy having my spit on your face."

"And what makes you think that?"

"Because you're a freak. My freak, to be exact."

Eddie leans back, checking if he removed all of the mascara, then nods, happy with his work. He presses a kiss to my lip and then gets out of the van, running over to my side and opening the door for me.

*****

"Please tell me that's a joke!" I squeal, sitting next to Eddie on the floor of my living room.

He shakes his head, dipping another fry in his chocolate milkshake. "Nah, honest earned money."

"You ate a worm for ten dollars," I exclaim, making him chuckle.

"Yeah, because I was twelve and stupid. Today I would charge at least twenty bucks to eat one," he tells me proudly.

"How about I give you fifty, and you promise to never eat a worm again?"

"Deal, sweetheart." Grabbing my hand, Eddie shakes it eagerly, a boyish smirk on his lips. "See? Eating worms is already bringing in profits."

The Freak of Hawkins High has me laughing at all his stupid jokes, makes my heart flutter at every pet name he gives me, and the thought of him ever leaving makes me sad.

Maybe somewhere down the line of tonight's disastrous events, I have lost my mind. Maybe there was a rift in reality, and I ended up in a parallel universe... But somehow, I feel like myself again. Although she is a girl I bearly know at the moment, she feels familiar.

Somehow Eddie has found his way in the middle of all my chaos. He stands in the eye of a hurricane I created by trying to be the social butterfly I never was supposed to be.

The more time he spends with me, the more I feel grounded. I start feeling real again. I am not a butterfly. Maybe I am a raven, a rabbit, or a fox... Or maybe I am a girl that likes to use silly metaphors because they sound poetic. Who knows?

Cleaning up after our royal feast of burgers, fries, and milkshakes, I wash our plates. Eddie standing behind me and nipping at my neck. His teeth graze my skin, softly biting it.

Laying the clean plates aside, I lean back against his chest and sigh. He replies with a cocky chuckle.

"Can I ask you something, possibly very dirty?"

"Anything," I sough as my face heats up, and I try looking at him, but he holds me too securely, kissing my cheek and then my temple.

"I know we now established that you're positively afraid of me and know I am not going to hurt you... But when we were at the neon bathroom of horrors, I recall you saying you want to run away from me without a chance to escape."

I nod. "I– I know I said that, but that's not a question."

Eddie squeezes my waist, making sure to tickle me. "Oh, I'm sorry for trying to ease you into the conversation."

I giggle, and he stops as I try to move away. Sitting me on the kitchen island behind him, he steps between my legs, bringing his face close to mine. "Did you mean it?"

I quickly shrug, making him lecture me, "No, baby. Use your words. Work with me here."

"I know it's weird," I finally say, embarrassment burning my face. "I– I don't feel it with anybody but you, but it's really confusing."

Eddie's brows knit together. "Does it turn you on when you're scared of me, sweetheart?"

I nod, breath stacking as his hands glide up my naked thighs. "Want me to hunt you down like prey?"

I whimper, making his ego swell. "Maybe we could drive out to lovers lake sometime, and I chase you through the woods... Would you like that, princess?"

I nod eagerly. God, I should not feel myself becoming this wet when thinking of him like that.

As he raises his eyebrows, I remember to use my words. "Yes. Would like that very much."

Taking my jaw in his hand, he brings out lips together, grinning and whispering, "Kinky little thing," before kissing me so gently I could melt on the spot.

As he pulls away, he kisses the tip of my nose, then asks, "Want to show me your bedroom?"

"Are you going to stay?" I ask naively.

Although I am fully aware of my bedroom showing ending with him inside me, my heart yearns for a closeness I didn't think I was able to allow.

Eddie's warm eyes look at me, surprised and enamored. Almost as though I turned down hands full of diamonds just to hold a small rock, he'd handed me.

"Good luck trying to get rid of me," he laughs, pulling me off the kitchen island and setting me on my feet.

I grab his hand and pull him upstairs, turning off the lights downstairs as I do so. If I have my way, we're not coming down again until morning.

As we enter my room, Eddie looks around. He is underwhelmed. Massively underwhelmed. I can see it hidden under his pitiful attempt of keeping up a neutral face.

"Is it that bad?" I ask. "Did I ruin the mood?"

Eddie quickly shakes his head. He pulls me to his chest, kissing the top of my head. "Of course not, baby... I just understand now what Jessica meant by cardboard personality. It's really like a hotel room."

I look at the white, empty walls, the basic sheets, and the almost empty bedside tables with solely lamps and alarm on it. "Didn't want to risk having something I like and then get made fun of for it," I admit.

"Gonna make sure you'll never have to do that again, okay? You're too perfect to make you hide," Eddie tells me without any judgment in his voice, so sincere it feels like an oath.

He pulls himself away to look at the teddy bear sitting on my desk. "Now, who's that guy?"

I quickly grab his hand before he can touch my bear. "That's Frank. Please don't touch him. He's starting to fall apart. Have him since I was a child."

Eddie grins at the one-eyed bear, who's missing an ear. He points out the safety pin keeping the filling in his head, "Frank's short for Frankenstein?"

I shake my head. "They promise me for three years now that they'll help me patch him up."

"They?" Eddie asks before nodding. "Oh. They. Family's really leaving you hanging, huh?"

"They're– They just work a lot."

"You should still be their number one priority. You're their child." He runs a hand through his hair, trying not to talk himself into a frenzy. "Shit. When I started living with Wayne, he quit his job as a trucker and started working at the plant, doing night shifts so he could be home with me during the day."

"They make sure I'm cared for, though. I have tons of money. Can buy whatever I want," I defend my parents and aunt.

Eddie sighs, annoyance in his words. "Not everything can be fixed with money. Somebody should've been there to tell you that after you changed schools."

"Are you mad at me?" I ask, worried about the change in his demeanor.

His expression quickly turns soft. "No, no, no, princess." Cupping my cheeks, he says, "I just hate how you had to fend for yourself. After trauma, a kid needs somebody to trust and feel safe with, somebody who shows them they're there for them. You can't just give them money and a fresh start in a new town and think shit doesn't catch up with them. Your parents should've known better."

"Was your uncle that person for you?"

Eddie nods, sitting down on my bed with me. "Mom and Dad were really bad for each other. Saw a lot of nasty, toxic shit happen between them," he sighs, taking a deep breath before continuing. "Dad always had a foot in prison, and every time my mom would say we were not going back to him, yet we always did.

"After she got sick and eventually died, Dad didn't sell his stuff anymore but took it. The crimes got worse, his patience as thin as a knife's edge. My mom wasn't there anymore to cash in the beatings, so I got my ass handed to me a couple of times because I was too hyperactive and tested my luck.

"CPS got involved after Dad once again stole a car and that time robbed a diner, shooting the waitress, and I ended up with my dad's older brother. Wayne's cool, though. Took me a while to understand that you can get in trouble, and it ends with a stern talk and not with losing a tooth.

"Man's as linear as they come. Has never even gotten a speeding ticket. Would've probably ended like my dad, wouldn't it have been for him."

I swallow harshly. "Now I feel like a real piece shit for picking at your family when we'd fight."

Eddie shrugs. "Not like I didn't rub it in your face that you're being neglected."

"I'm sorry."

He presses his lips together. "I'm sorry, too."

I turn on the lamp on the bedside table, get up, and turn off the big light. My bedroom is now sparsely lit by warm yellow light. It seems cozier like this.

Walking back to Eddie, I climb in his lap, him not wasting a second to let his hands roam my body. We kiss, Eddie, pulling me into him by the waist, hips grinding up against me.

It feels like hours pass; the chance is high that that is actually the case. We sit in the middle of my queen-sized bed. Layer by layer, we have shed our clothes until we sat fully naked in from of each other.

Our legs are partially tangled, and there is nothing we hide from each other. I am the most vulnerable I've ever been. But I feel safe.

We still kiss, hands gliding over the smooth skin, exploring. Eddie's fingers glide in and out of me, while I moan into the kisses, returning the favor. We take breaks to collect our breath, using that time to admire the naked person before us.

The next set of kisses has Eddie back me against the pillows. My hands have captured his face to ensure he has to come with me.

He takes place between my legs as if we'd never meant to be together in any other way than this. As though we never had been at war with each other and ourselves while ensuring the other would succumb to madness.

Pulling his fingers out, he moves them to my lips, watching nearly enchanted as I take them into my mouth and clean them from my own wetness.

As he enters me, it feels like everything else, every growing pain of character, every touch by somebody other, and every spite-filled encounter washes away.

Eddie's movement is nothing more than pure lust and a sign of how long we've waited for the other. Our bodies pressed closely together, fingers, nails, and teeth digging into delicate skin like holding on to our sole lifeline.

The past and, with it, Jason, Jessica, and everyone else is nothing more than part of the tedious prologue before Eddie and I.

The night is filled with promises, whispers of sweet nothingness, and the call of each other's names. Only once we're wholly exhausted, have taken and given everything we can, can we bring ourselves to stop.

Our sweat-covered bodies are still tightly wrapped around each other. A kiss or two still stolen with the greatest efforts to ignore every sore muscle and the burning of our raw, scarlet lips.

Brushing wet hair out of my face, Eddie lies next to me, his fingers dancing over my face. The storms feel like they have surrendered to the fact that this is meant to be.

We're no longer fighting it and letting the other in. The Freak and the Princess of Hawkins High... We never stood a chance anyway.

*****

Opening my eyes the next morning, there is a total of forty-five blissful seconds. Birds are singing, a soft breeze is blowing over my skin from the window Eddie must be opened, and the sun is shining.

Then I roll over, and my hand touches the cold pillow next to mine. I sit up, look around, and notice the lack of clothes on the floor.

Not only that, Frank the teddy bear is gone too.

My heart is beating fast.

A voice in my head laughs at me, while another tells me I've been played. Last night and this morning, make sure to leave me with an unsettling whiplash I try to ignore.

I get up, quickly throwing over my dress from last night, and walk down the stairs.

Maybe I am freaking out over nothing.

"Eddie?" I call through the house but am met with no answer. "Eddie?"

He's not in the kitchen, the living room, or the garden. There is no message on a notepad or a missed call. I call and call until my voice cannot hide the reality of things.

I am alone.

I walk back upstairs, tears running down my face as I change the sheets, close the window, and take a steaming hot shower. I need to get every memory of him off my body.

He left.

He fucked me and left.

Eddie fucking played me. He let me let my guard down and stabbed me in the back.

I shouldn't even be surprised. I've been nothing but a bitch to him all year. He saw a chance to get back at me and took it.

After my shower, I put on my baggy festival shirt and panties and put on a horror movie while I cry my eyes out on the couch.

I cry over the loss of my teddy bear. I cry over how real last night felt. I cry over the fact that I have effectively burned every bridge and am on my own... Just like I always was.

I gave Eddie so much of myself, thinking he would be different, not like Jason. But men are all the same, apparently.

*****

☠︎ The Freak's POV ☠︎

Sneaking in through the ridiculously loud squeaking door, I kick off my shoes. The hardwood floors seem like they are worth more than both my kidneys on the black market, so I don't want to risk anything, even though the princess told me not to worry last night.

I put the plastic bags I carry with me in the kitchen and catch a glimpse of my girl lying on the couch. The loud credits of a slasher on tv seem to have canceled out my arrival.

I walk in, smiling at her. The second she looks up, my smile falls.

"Hey, sweetheart, baby, are you okay?" I ask worriedly, closing the distance between us and falling onto my knees before her.

Did her former friends call? Another heartbreak by her family?

She takes a shakey breath, whimpering, "What are you doing here?"

I look over my shoulder toward the kitchen and back at her. Her eyes are red, her cheeks wet. How long did she sit here and cry? "I– I was out. Was up before you and got us some breakfast."

"You left," she whispers.

"Only for a little."

"I– I thought..."

As her voice dies, my eyes become wide. The princess had thought I wouldn't return.

"Shit. Baby, no, no, no. I was just out getting some stuff. I left you a note." She shakes her head, but I insist. "I did."

I pull her up from the couch, dragging her upstairs. I did not tiptoe around this morning and search for sticky notes and a pen like an idiot for this to be the outcome. For her to be upset.

Entering her bedroom, I walk straight to the nightstand on her side of the bed.

Okay.

Fair.

No note.

The princess still stands there at the door, looking like she has been absolutely miserable since she woke up—which is no surprise if she thought I ran off after promising her the world last night.

She showered and wears this shirt that would make a better dress. Lilac-colored ones replace the sheets from last night, and the severity of what she went through hits me like a brick.

The princess thought I used her and left.

Just like Jason fucking Carver.

The bane of my existence.

God, I hate that guy.

I turn to the nightstand again. I know I placed the note there. I'd stuck it on her alarm so she'd see it. I drop to the floor, looking under the bed.

Nothing.

But there, almost completely behind the nightstand, shines the neon pink traitor. Wind must've yanked that piece of shit up and thrown it behind it.

I quickly get up and hand it to her. The princess takes a second to read:

"Out to get breakfast and take Frankenstein on a ride. Gonna be back in a heartbeat. — E. ♡"

As she looks up at me, her beautiful eyes fill with tears again. "I thought you wouldn't come back."

I rub the back of my neck. "Didn't mean to upset you, princess. Next time I'll put it somewhere better, kay? Promise."

A tear runs down her face, and I am quick to cup her cheek and wipe it away. Her fingers wrap around my wrist while she nuzzled her cheek into my palm.

My heart flutters and my chest feels fuzzy (that whole butterfly-soda condition really feels more like a medical emergency than anything else). She's the most gorgeous when she lets me see her vulnerable side.

"You kidnapped my bear," she finally whispers, and I chuckle, pressing a kiss to her hairline.

"No bearnapping took place, baby. We just went on a little shopping trip."

"Told you he could fall apart at any moment..." she huffs.

I wrap an arm around her, and we make our way down to the kitchen. Opening one of the plastic bags, I hand her her stuffed friends.

She sits down on a barstool by the kitchen island and carefully pats his head. "Thought you took him as a souvenir."

We're seriously doing something wrong if women think that low of us.

I should beat the shit out of Jason.

I look at her, obviously fake annoyance on my face. "Now, what was so hard to understand when I told you you're now stuck with me?"

She shrugs, and I dislike that I understand her uncertainty. It will potentially take a while of me being the most annoying, clingy piece of shit until she gets it. But okay. I'm good at being annoying and clingy. I'm totally up for the challenge.

"Why did you take him with you?"

I grin, flipping over the plastic bag—an array of needles, threats, filling, and fabric tumbles onto the counter.

"We're fixing Frankenstein," I announce, opening the little paper bag with the replacement eye and showing it to the princess.

"Really?" she asks in disbelief. "But– I can't sew."

I spin slowly, pointing out my battle vest's patches. "Lucky for you, I am a God at it."

"And you know what to do?"

I nod. "The lady at the store helped, and we picked out a matching fabric, threat, and eye. She's also the reason I didn't get the demon-looking cat eye. She said she thinks my girlfriend could get scared should I put it on her teddy bear."

"Girlfriend," the princess whispers, the softest smile on her lips.

"Of course. You traded your shitty friends in for me, remember?" She nods, making me sigh in relief. "Good. Amazing, actually. Because your boyfriend also got you these!"

I pull a couple of posters out of the second bag, unrolling them to present them to her royal highness. "Black Sabbath, Metallica, and – of course – Corroded Coffin."

She giggles, grabbing the Corroded Coffin one and looking at mine and the guys' hand-drawn masterpiece. "So I'm hanging my boyfriend's band on my bedroom wall?"

"Hey," I tell at her jokingly. "If my girl isn't supporting me, then who is?"

She nods. "You're right. Gonna be a good rockstar girlfriend."

"An extremely hot one, too," I say, wrapping an arm around her waist again. "We're gonna be the bi-awakening for a lot of people, sweetheart."

"Sounds good." The princess leans forwards, capturing my lips with hers, and I feel my knees buckle.

No matter how cool I pretend to be, she makes me fucking melt. And now that she doesn't bite anymore, I can finally indulge myself in her.

Wrapping her legs around my waist, I set Frankenstein on the counter and carry my girl upstairs.

Throwing her onto the freshly made bed with which she tried to erase the memory of us, I crawl on top of her while taking off my jacket and shirt and throwing them aside.

I kiss her softly, feeling her hands glide over the massive searches she marked me with last night. They burn like hell, but each ounce of pain feels good. The princess marked her territory.

"You wanna paint your walls before we put the posters up?" I ask her. "Or would you rather get some wallpaper?"

She looks around for a moment then her stunning eyes meet mine. "You know how to put up wallpaper?"

I shrug. "I mean... It'll probably look like shit, but sure. If you want it, I'll figure out how to do it."

I have an unbelievable, lovesick audacity that makes me believe I could do anything her precious heart longs for. Fuck, having her like me is an ego boost that will probably go to my head.

No. Nope. It's already there.

The way she grins up at me, fingers cradling my face... I am fucking invincible and apparently really good in the sack.

"Didn't you say you got breakfast?"

Way to bring me down to earth.

I frown for a second, thinking of where I put the waffles, eggs, bacon, and pancakes I got at a nearby diner.

"I- Uhh..." Yeah, I have no idea. "Either it's still in the van, or I left it at the diner."

The princess starts laughing, throwing her head back into the sheets. I use that moment to gently bite her neck, licking over the bite mark with my tongue.

"In my defense, I was busy thinking about the bear and if I can pull off making a little Hellfire shirt for him," I speak against her skin.

My girl lets out a sigh. "But what will the King of Hellfire say when he finds out you're making them for non-members?"

"Frankenstein is an honorary member," I inform her, sitting back on my legs and pulling her onto my lap. "His human is the King's woman. The Princess of Hellfire."

"Shouldn't I be the Queen then?" she asks, quirking an eyebrow.

I lick my lips, pulling her face closer. "Don't get greedy, princess. Being the Queen is something that you earn."

Her lips split into a smile. "And how do I earn it?"

I place a kiss on her right cheek. "By being kind." Another on her left cheek. "By being yourself." And I place the final one on her lips. "And by staying with me for at least a month. Gonna crown you Queen as my one-month anniversary present."

"Sounds like a cop-out, so you don't have to buy me something," the princess teases.

I gasp, appalled, and push her off my lap. "You're gonna regret that one, princess." She looks at me with big eyes. "Gonna give you a 10-second headstart. Better make sure I don't get you."

While slowly standing up and moving towards the door, she grins. "What happens when you caught me?"

I slowly stand up as well. "Then I'll eat you alive, princess. Make sure you really regret being an ungrateful little slut."

Her breath hitches, and she squeals as I make a sudden move in her direction. We grin at each other, both our eyes darkening with lust, then she bolts out of her room and down the stairs.

I chase after her multiple times feeling her shirt or skin on my fingertips. She is laughing, screaming, and squirming as I finally grab her.

Placing her on the dinner table, I force her back against the cold wood while I step between her legs. "Now I got you, sweetheart," I chuckle deeply. "No point in running anymore."

I take a step back and spread her legs further for me. Kneeling between them, I bite the inside of her thigh, while I make my way to her center.

The fighting spirit has already left her. My girl whimpers as I pull her innocent little panties aside and am met with her arousal glistening in the daylight. I lick my lips before I dive in, her hands quick to grasp for my hair as she moans loudly.

*****

The Queen of Hellfire.

The Freak's girlfriend.

For many, she used to be Hawkins High's Princess, somebody they aspired to be. They don't understand what happened, why she gave up her title, and now plays with the terrifying King of Hellfire.

They don't get how he managed to get the Queen's family to approve of him, like him, so far so that they even wanted to pay for his college education. How he gratefully declined (of course) and instead got them to pay for the first of many Corroded Coffin albums.

He didn't even need to ask. He brought the Queen's smile back on her face and that is worth the world for her family.

Not that anyone in Hawkins ever understands anything. Like, how the ex-cheerleader became best friends with a bunch of nerds, Robin from band, Steve Harrington, and future star journalist Nancy Wheeler.

But as the Queen of Hellfire learned, it doesn't fucking matter what others think as long as she is happy and has the King on his knees for her, worshipping her divine form.

She's fucking mine. Forever.

Suck it, Carver.

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kitkatopinions · 2 years

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You treating RWBY fans as incapable of accepting criticism would be hilarious even without your pinned post flat-out saying that people are not allowed to interact with you if they disagree with your batshit RWDE vitriol. "2. Please no one interact with my posts if you are anti-rwde or think criticism of RW//BY is bad and/or wrong and/or immoral."

This is the most bad faith interpretation of that, which is clearly on purpose, but let's go ahead and debate it anyway. If someone thinks the act of criticizing RW/BY at all is bad or immoral or wrong, I want nothing to do with them. If someone thinks RW/BY is above criticism, I want nothing to do with them. If someone thinks that anyone who criticizes RW/BY at all becomes part of a hivemind of horrible people who must be purged from the fandom, I want nothing to do with them. If someone thinks that it's okay to say people in the RW/BY fandom are no longer accepting criticism of the show, I want nothing to do with them. If someone thinks that another person criticizing RW/BY means that it's appropriate to start sending them hate anons on the daily or specifically evading blocks in order to harass them, I want nothing to do with them. And before you ask, I've seen every single one of those. That's a clear example of people who are unable to accept criticism. Me saying that I want nothing to do with people who can't accept criticism of a show is NOT a clear example of someone who can't accept criticism, funnily enough. I didn't say 'anyone who disagrees with me, do not interact.' I said 'if you think criticizing RW/BY is inherently bad and that RW/BY is above criticism, do not interact.' Like, I have people disagree with me all the time. I disagree with my sister on RW/BY. I disagree with one of my friends here who hates Ozpin. I specifically don't follow several RW/DE blogs because they post some things I don't like. I'm open to disagreements and talking about them. What I'm NOT open to is people who think that you should only be allowed to say positive things about RW/BY. Weird how there's a difference there lol. Also, I was careful specifically to NOT throw casual RW/BY fans in with anti-RW/DEs, which is something you'll know if you read all of my pinned post. I have no problem at all with regular RW/BY fans, but if you're someone who has bought into the anti-RW/DE bullshit and therefore thinks that the only thing someone has to do to become a bad person is talk more than once about flaws that are deeper than surface level in your deeply flawed show, than you are anti-RWDE and I want nothing to do with you. If any regular RW/BY fans take issue with my posts, we can have a respectful discussion where we might not agree at the end, but I don't mind. However, if you're someone who is convinced that 'running a criticism blog' means that I'm automatically a lying piece of garbage, we'll never be able to have a discussion and I'm more likely to get hate mail from anonymous cowards. Btw, I pinned that post because I had one of my posts screenshot and cropped and then reposted by someone I had blocked like a year prior who was infamous for taking things people said out of context and who purposefully lied about my sister and who had spent months running a blog dedicated to mocking the ten or fifteen of us who properly tag our posts and have made it clear we just want to be left alone. I made that pinned post because I've gotten death and rape and gun violence threats and those make me uncomfortable. I thought about taking that post down yesterday, but decided to keep it up because one of my friends on this site has been getting harassed by an anti-rw/de coward for the past several days and that's recently transferred to another friend, and I thought 'yeah this is really still relevant.' So, the call of over-sensitivity is coming from inside the house to be honest, my friend. Me saying that I don't want anything to do with people who think any and all criticism of a deeply flawed show is NOT as sensitive as someone spending several days anonymously sending hate to a blog specifically because they can't stand that some people like a fictional character they don't. Maybe direct your campaign against over sensitivity there first and then come back when the bigger threats are eliminated.

Also, I'm sorry, but even if I had no reason for setting that boundary and even if that boundary was actually not wanting any RW/BY fan to talk to me out of fear that they'd criticize me... It still would be better than the people who think that it's morally wrong to criticize a deeply problematic piece of media made by a deeply problematic CORPORATION! Like... Buddy o'pal, start there. XD

#rwde #anti rwby #the hate anons are starting again lol

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tamtam-go92 · 6 months

Text

I need to get something off my chest.

As you might know, when you're reading some of my personal posts around here, I am in a loooong relationship and overall I'm happy and content with our relationship. We are not married and don't really plan to, but we practically are like a married couple, we brought a house together and plan to have a family in the next years. I wouldn't trade my partner for anybody in the world. Of course, we sometimes go through rough times and of course being together for +10 years things aren't as exciting as they used to. That's normal, that's love. Real love.

The thing is - last weekend I was out with a group of friend, my partner was with us too and a good friend of ours had one of his friends with him too. I know that friend, and we get along well. He's too pretty for his own good and a couple of years younger than me. So we were at this bar, and they had like a disco night and as the place got more crowded people started dancing, and I love dancing, so I stated wiggling around on my chair. My partner doesn't dance. We went to nightclubs when we were younger, and he was with me on the dance floor, but never did more than the little bottle dance most men do. So that friend of my friend - lets call him Jay for convenience - asked me if I wanted to dance. So I asked my partner if I could go dance with Jay. He is easy going and of course he had nothing against it, so Jay and I went dancing. After a while, Jay leaned down and whispered into my ear that he liked how I danced, and I said I liked it when guys weren't afraid to dance either. We danced a little more, and he leaned down to whisper that he actually likes me. I froze for a second, as I wasn't sure what he just said, it was loud, and I could be mishearing (I'm getting old, ya know?), but when I asked what he just said, he refused to repeat and avoided my glance. I started feeling a little uncomfortable, but not because of what he said - the thing is, I like him too. As I said, he's too pretty for his own good and I liked looking at him when we met in the past, but I avoided having too much to do with him. But at that moment I suddenly got aware of that clear attraction that was between us, and now I don't know how to behave towards him in the future. He's a really good friend of my friend, so we meet from time to time. I'm afraid he'll tell our mutual friend what he told me and that my partner will hear about it, as he can be... I don't know, he can be really territorial around me. I don't want them to start fighting

I know, nothing happened, but in my mind, it's happening, it's happening over and over again and part of me would like to give in to that itch and go clubbing with Jay all night, if you know what I mean. I don't really believe in monogamy anyway, but my partner is raised pretty traditional, and he's been cheated on before, and he isn't the person to allow his partner to go find entertainment with anybody else. I respect that - I have respected that for the last +10 years, even if I don't think sleeping outside a relationship is that bad. But I won't do it, of course I won't. As I said, I wouldn't trade my partner for anybody else. I know I have to make this clear to Jay, and I'm afraid I have to avoid him in the future. Even if he's fun to be around. Even if it's flattering seeing how he's puppy-eyeing me.

I don't want advice. I'm not even sure I want anybody to read this. I just needed to get this off my chest. Now I did, that's fine. And the what-ifs remain in my head, feeding future stories or Sims-storylines. Who knows. And if Jay and I can have these little moments on the dance floor from time to time, it's enough adventure for this old ass.

Thanks for coming to my speech!

#tam talks #personal stuff #like really personal #might delete later #long text post

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caringalbuswrites · 2 years

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Timeline: FOGG times.

One of my takes of Albus explaining his POV of the events to Aberforth.

"Maybe you don't noticed, but." Albus tried to stay as calm as he could, with all the reasons to be upset and scream at his brother. "I've been having to fill dad's spot after they took him to Azkaban." He sighed. "Mom had to deal with us three, Ariana complicated everything with being an Obscurial, still she did her best to protect her and raise us. I was around 10 when everything happened. You 8." Albus stayed on his spot, Aberforth walked from side to side, like he was the only one with the right to be angry and discomforted. "Then i had to be at school, study, attempting to have a social life knowing i was the only wizard in our family until you got approved to Hogwarts two years later." That explained most of his lack of friends but people who listened and did as he said. "You got in here too. The anxiety of mom and Ariana on their own killed me the first weeks, luckily mom made it possible for us to not worry that much." Aberforth was about to say something, but Albus' expressions was a ' Quiet, I'm not done. ' He crossed his arms on his chest, looking tired. "I don't think you got as much responsibilities as i had. I'm the eldest. I had to Man Up in order to help mom. At 10. It's not easy not having a proper childhood, nor teenage years in order to be the man of the house." He was not in the mood to make Aberforth regret his words, but enough to make him think about it. "Maybe i didn't do enough when mom was alive. I should've helped her more." He looked at the floor, totally ashamed of himself. "Now i can tell and notice she did more than we can thank her and nothing i can do now could get to the bare minimum." He nodded. "I unconsciously renounced to be a normal person in order to let you and Ariana be the normal ones, even with Ariana's condition."

' You don't really care about us!' Aberforth words from seconds ago still echoing on his head. He looked down, then at him. Aberforth was giving his back to Albus. "I'm trusting enough you're not skipping classes, luckily the Great Hall makes you eat properly. Last time i gave you a steak with some Herbivitalizing to heal your cough." It didn't matter what Albus does, he still worry about his family, even if that meant to renounce his own self-care. "I know how uncomfortable are the beds at the infirmary, you've been few turns because of that, not because I'm finally fixing things with someone and Ariana's are my alibi. I spend all the time with her." Even Ariana suggested him to go, she would be okay with the nurses, but the good thing was Gellert knew more than the necessary about her conditions and he respected Albus' tendencies to prioritize his sister. He knew his brother didn't believe him, but anyways, he had to make it clear. "You're seeing someone. Every weekend you two agree to meet at Hogsmeade. I've seen you two getting close in some halls, some of our housemates of your year told me you two share some classes and sit together." Albus waited until Aberforth stopped walking away. "When you sleep at the nursery sometimes you walk to the main entrance to see them, maybe make out." He sighed, scratching his cheek like a father does. "I don't have that problem unless men could get pregnant, but take care. You're too young to have a child." Aberforth's answer was shutting the door.

#albus dumbledore #caring albus writes #for our greater good #writings #writing #ggad #headcanon #fantastic beasts #grindeldore #albus dumbledore x gellert grindelwald #pov albus dumbledore #albus pov #young albus dumbledore #young Aberforth Dumbledore #aberforth dumbledore

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spacieboi · 2 years

Text

𝐘𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐞

𝙏𝙮𝙥𝙚. 𝖲𝗆𝗎𝗍

𝙋𝙖𝙞𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝖪𝗎𝗋𝗈𝗈 𝖳𝖾𝗍𝗌𝗎𝗋𝗈 𝗑 𝖿𝖾𝗆 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋

𝘾𝙬. 𝖣𝖾𝗀𝗋𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇, 𝗁𝗎𝗆𝗂𝗅𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇, 𝗉𝗈𝗌𝗌𝖾𝗌𝗌𝗂𝗏𝖾, 𝖽𝗎𝖻𝖼𝗈𝗇, 𝗈𝗋𝖺𝗅, 𝖿𝗂𝗇𝗀𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀, 𝖿𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗇𝖽𝗌 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝖻𝖾𝗇𝖾𝖿𝗂𝗍𝗌, 𝗎𝗇𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗍𝖾𝖼𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗌𝖾𝗑, 𝖼𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗆𝗉𝗂𝖾, 𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗆𝗎𝗅𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇

𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩. 1.8𝗄

*knock knock*

"Hey Dove, you-" Your bedroom door swung open and in waltzed Kuroo. You and the guy from your chem class you were studying with look up at him. As soon as Kuroo notices him, he hides something behind his back.

"Oh Kuroo, you're here. Let me finish up with him and I'll get to you."

Kuroo's face turns to a small scowl but respects your wish as he makes his way to a bean bag chair in the corner of your room.

"Is that your boyfriend?" Your friend whispers to you.

"What?! No Tetsu is just a friend." You assure him.

"Oh so he doesn't mind if I take you out to dinner this weekend?"

A smile appears on your face as your somewhat crush had asked you out finally.

"Really? I woul-"

"Just a friend huh? I don't think that's what you were screaming the other day."

You dart your eyes at Kuroo threatening him to shut up.

"Not now, Kuroo"

The boy looks at you confused.

"What's he talking about"

"It's nothing just some nonsense that happened a while ago. I would love to go out with you"

"Oh, so two days ago was a while ago?" Kuroo got up and you heard him stand behind you.

His fingers knead your shoulders causing you to tense up with frustration and his touch.

"You left this at my house" your laced bra that you had been tearing apart your house looking for dangled in front of you.

You snatch it off his fingers and quickly hid it in your lap.

You glance over to the boy who was now visibly uncomfortable.

"It was a pool party...and I...must of left it there" that was the best lie you could come up with on the spot.

He slowly nods and glances back down at the textbook.

"Aww Dove am I embarrassing you? Don't want our little friend to know how much of a slut you are for my cock. How you beg for it everyday." His hand grips your hair pulling your head to look up at him.

His brown sly eyes shift over to your trembling friend who's trying his best to avoid eye contact.

"You know that's why I'm here, the slut can't be deprived for one day or she gets bitchy."

"Isn't that right Dove?" He leans down to plant a kiss on your lips. Though you knew you needed to, you just couldn't pull away.

The way his lips moved with yours was so addicting and when you felt him smirk as his tongue snuck past your lips, ugh, the way you melted.

You heard the chair next to you slide across the wooden floor as your guest saw himself out.

"Umm I got to go, catch you later Y/n"

You tried to pull away but Kuroo held you down by your shoulders.

His dark eyes dared you to move as he stared into yours.

You finally break through and race after the boy.

"Wait it's not what it looks like!" You call out.

"Clearly you two have something going on and until you get that straightened out I'm sorry but our date will have to wait." He closed the front door and left.

You sigh as you stomp your way back to your room.

"What the Hell Tetsuro?!" You yell.

"No you what the hell? Trying to replace me?" He huffs.

Your eyes advert his.

"I don't know he's a really nice and sweet guy and-"

"And I'm not?"

"No, I mean yes but- you know what I mean."

"Well Dove hate to break it to you but you're mine." His hand cups your hips.

"That's not what we agreed to" you grumble as he starts to drag your bottoms down your legs.

"Ehh pretty much, you just call and I'll be there to fuck your brains out, right?" His hand placed between your thighs

"Yeah but-"

"Don't get it twisted, you're my slut. Not the girlfriend of some geek that couldn't make you feel a third of what I can."

He turns you around, back facing him as he plunges two fingers in causing you to hiss in pain. You lean into him as you feel the bulge grow against your ass.

"You're nothing but a whore for me, and you think you can be the lover of someone else? So funny, Babe"

"Mmm" his teeth sink into your shoulder fingers hook onto your tube top and brings it down your waist.

His fingers inside you curl into your sweet spot and you arch into him, pussy clenching around him tight as he's knuckles deep.

A groan escapes him as you grind into his cock.

"You're holding onto me so tight and you're trying to leave me? The math isn't adding up, Baby"

"I'm n-ot leaving you Tetsu I ju-" another two fingers penetrate your walls.

"Shit" you moan out as your head falls into him.

He rocks your ass against him in love with the feeling of the fat flesh around his erection.

Your breath picks up as he's quite literally tearing you in two.

"Tetsu~" slit covers his fingers as the sounds of him fucking you gets wetter.

"Such a fucking slut." He pulls out his wrinkled fingers and drags them up your torso to your lips.

"Taste it. Taste how much you need me" stuffing his fingers in your mouth as you suck on them.

"Taste good doesn't it? Are you really gonna take that away from me?" You choke as he pushes them further down your throat.

His other hand pulls your hair causing your ass to thrust against him

"And this gorgeous ass, god I'd die being suffocated by it."

Your sounds of pleasure being muffled as his fingers pacify you.

"I'm not letting him take you away from me." his voice was low and cold as he whispered the words in your ear.

"Why do you even care?" You spit out once you're free of his digits.

"I'm just a fuck toy until we both settle into a real relationship, right? That's what I'm doing."

"Yeah when we both get in a relationship. Are you just gonna leave me in the dust?”

"You're a likable guy Tetsu, lots of girl would like to be in my place right now."

"I'm not that desirable."

"Well babe your dick game says other wise."

"Well if you love it that much, why change?" He lifts you up then throws you onto your bed then saddles your hips.

You watch as he removes his shirt showing off his abs that he had been working on specifically to please you.

"Ass up, Dove" he turns you over on your stomach and pulls down his pants and boxers.

His hands grasps your cheeks and you feel his wet tongue against your dripping cunt.

"Tetsu-" you let out a whiny gasp as you grip onto the bed sheets.

Your eyes roll as he sucks on your clit nibbling the bundles of nerves leading up to your opening.

You legs began cramping as you were reaching your climax.

Kuroo could read you when he notices how loud you're becoming.

He pulls away kissing your ass and chuckling to himself.

"So beautiful, Dove"

"Tetsu~" you whine

"Wanna know my favorite things about you?" He thrust his dick in between you ass cheeks.

"First off, your fucking fat ass, the way it just eats my cock it so-" his words trail off as he takes a sharp breath.

"Mmm" you whine under him waiting to be fucked after he's played with you this long.

"Tet-"

"Also that whiny moaning you always do when I fuck you into overstimulation, so hot baby"

"Tetsuro!"

"Yeah, Dove?"

"...Fuck me"

Before you could even finish the second word, you felt his hips slam into you.

"Why didn't you just fucking ask?" Growling at the end of the sentence as he slammed back into you.

"Ghg" you close your eyes as he starts to fuck you at a faster pace than you're familiar with and that's saying something.

"You like that Dove?" His head drops right above your ear

"Mhm" you hum out to him

"Yeah, I know you do. I know you so much better than you think. I know what turns you on, what has you dropping to your knees, what has you screaming my name because I'm fucking you so good. All things he can't and will never know."

"Only I can make you feel this good, Y/N. Don't you understand? You don't fucking need him. Stay with me"

Moans started to form into screaming. Tears form in your eyes at the rough pace he was taking you at.

"Oh my god Tetsuro!" Your body went limp into the bed as you came around his dick. He didn't stop though, if anything we went two times faster.

"Can't get away from me if you can't walk, huh?"

His voice laced with tiredness as he was soon becoming out of breath but he wasn't stopping until he came. That wouldn't be for a while due to his high stamina which was both fortunate and unfortunate for you.

After your second orgasm, you were completely cock drunk. Eyes half open and mouth hung as your drooled onto the sheets almost as if you were brain dead.

You didn't even acknowledge Kuroo's words of desperation for you to stay with him. At this point you'd sell an arm and leg to be fucked like this again.

"Ugh" his nails drew blood from your ass from how tight his grip on you was. He had gradually started to slow down as he got more sensitive reaching his own high.

"Fuck Baby, I'm gonna fill you up with my cum. Just the way you like, coating your insides so good it’s dripping out your sweet cunt."

"Tetsu.." you made out as your world went blank. Your body was so exhausted you could fall asleep right there hard as he was fucking you.

"Shit" his voice high pitched and you trembled as you felt the warm liquid rush through you.

Light kisses on your shoulder and back as his hips slowly rocked into you.

He eventually pulls out going around the room to pick up his scattered clothes.

You catch your breath has he gets dressed in the background.

"Take that as a warning, Dove. You will never find anyone better than me." He whispers in your ear.

Then you hear the shutter of a camera.

"So don't even try to find anyone else"

You felt something land beside you on the bed. You glance over to see your phone open on messages. Sent from your end was a picture of your cream filled pussy sent to your crush.

"Because you're not leaving me"

#fanfic #fanfiction #x reader #haikyuu!!#lemon #smut fanfiction #x fem!reader #x female reader #haikyuu smut #haikyuu x reader #kuroo smut #kuroo tetsuro x reader #haikyuu kuroo tetsuro #kuroo tetsuro oneshot #tw dumbification #tw dubcon #fwb #friends with benefits

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helloalycia · 3 years

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a bitch [one] // leigh shaw

summary: you're used to leigh's constant mood swings and unpredictability, but didn't expect she'd ever do something to hurt you like she did.

warning/s: cheating

author's note: an angsty leigh shaw imagine was requested, so here we are! there's one more part to this so enjoy 😊

part two | masterlist | wattpad

Leigh Shaw could be a very unpredictable woman.

Ever since the unfortunate death of her husband, Matt, she'd become very erratic. It was hard to remember what she was like before he died, but then she'd flash me a smile and say something adorable and I remembered. Other times though, she could be as explosive as they came. If you ever got swept up in her mood swings, you'd be screwed.

Despite this, I remained by her side. That's what best friends did. Even when she yelled at me or gave me the cold shoulder or treated me like dirt, I stayed because I knew that was what she needed.

One time, a few months after Matt's death, I was stopping by to see how she was. A prime example of the cold effect she could have on people.

I raised my hand to knock, but the door suddenly swung open, revealing a peeved Jules and a pissed Leigh further behind her in the hallway.

"Hey," I greeted her sister with a smile, but she moved past me moodily. I glanced at Leigh before catching Jules' arm, stopping her. "What happened?"

Jules smiled bitterly. "You know, you should reconsider where you put your care, Y/N. Some people just aren't worth it."

At that last part, she glared over my shoulder, no doubt at Leigh. I turned to look at Leigh, who merely stuck a middle finger up at her sister before storming towards to the kitchen.

"What a bitch," Jules mumbled, making me wince because it was such a horrible word.

Jules shook me off before marching to her car to leave. I sighed and turned around to let myself in to their house. Closing the door behind me, I followed after Leigh and found her making toast in the kitchen angrily.

"Hey," I began softly, not wanting to give her another reason to get pissed off. Sitting on a stool at the island, I asked, "What happened?"

She forced a smile as she grabbed her toast from the toaster and dropped it on a plate. "My sister can't respect my space is all."

I pursed my lips awkwardly, watching as she grabbed butter from the fridge. Noticing my silence, she glanced up at me through her eyelashes.

"What?" she deadpanned, pausing from her actions.

"I don't think Jules is trying to upset you," I began, knowing I'd probably regret it. "I'm sure she understands you want space, but she loves you. And when you see someone you love hurting, you feel like you have to do something."

A sour smile broke out on her face as she scoffed. "Wow. Could you have your head stuck any further up Jules' arse?"

"Leigh, that's not what I'm–"

"What the hell are you even doing here?" she snapped. "I didn't invite you, Y/N."

Tensing my jaw, I refrained from getting annoyed. "Believe it or not, I actually wanted to check on you."

She curled her lips into a frown. "Well, I'm fine."

As if to prove that she was, she continued to butter her toast, but when she set her knife down, it slipped off the edge of the table and clattered to the floor. Frustrated, she slammed a fist on the countertop.

"It's okay, I'll–"

"Just get out," she cut me off when I was making a move to help her. I paused, wondering if she meant it, then her deadly green glare settled on my face. "Leave."

Sighing with defeat, I nodded and wordlessly left.

—

Sometimes Leigh wouldn't apologise. She'd act like nothing had happened and we'd move on. Other times, she actually would, surprisingly recognising that she'd done something wrong.

There was this one time when I'd invited her over for the evening to eat dinner and watch some films. The dinner went perfectly fine – we talked, we laughed, we spent time together – but then when we settled in the living room to watch a film, things started to unravel.

I can't remember exactly what she'd said. One second we were choosing a film on Netflix, then she was trying to make plans with me on the weekend. Unfortunately, I already had plans with my girlfriend, Alex, and Leigh didn't seem to like this. She'd made a comment under her breath and though I don't remember it specifically, I knew it wasn't polite.

Before I knew it, we were screaming at each other, arguing over the dumbest things. It started off being about my girlfriend and then the most unrelated stuff was being brought up on both of our ends. Sometimes she could be so aggravating, managing to rile me up and bring the worst out in me. The argument lasted a few minutes before she left, leaving me seething and full of hurt.

It was the following day at work when she came to see me next. I owned a café a few doors down from her mother's dance studio and was working a shift when her sister came through the front door.

I smiled at her when she approached the counter dressed in gym gear, her usual getup when at work with her family.

"Hey, how're you doing, Jules?" I asked.

"I'm good," she greeted with a smile, before it faded. "Just a warning, Y/N, Leigh is incoming in one minute. She wants to apologise."

Eyes rolling with mild annoyance, I let out a sigh. As dreadful as our spat was last night, I knew I had to also apologise to her. I'd said some hurtful things that made me feel all icky inside. Going to sleep after a fight was never a nice feeling.

"I don't know how you've put up with her for this long," Jules commented, picking up a cupcake from the display. "She can be so horrible to you."

I frowned, not feeling comfortable talking badly of Leigh behind her back. "That's not fair, Jules. You know what she's going through."

Jules gave me a knowing look. "I do, but that doesn't give her a free pass to treat you like she does."

Shrugging, I busied myself with cleaning up the crumbs from Jules' cupcake and giving her a plate.

"I take it you're going to forgive her then," she stated, though she definitely knew the answer judging from her expression.

"We both said some things we shouldn't have," I tried to explain so it didn't seem like I was giving in so easily, which deep down, I definitely knew I was, but Leigh was worth it.

Jules chuckled. "Yep, you're forgiving her. Looks like it's Leigh's lucky day."

I didn't say anything as she picked up the plate, ready to take a seat at one of the tables. Just as she was about to leave, she paused thoughtfully.

"You know, if you didn't have a girlfriend already, I'd say you were whipped," she said casually.

Ignoring her words, I watched her take her a seat on one of the spare tables. She made jokes like that a lot, but the truth was that I would probably do anything for Leigh. We'd been best friends since university – that was way too long to simply throw away our friendship because she was going through a tough time. And yes, the girlfriend talk threw me off at times... by the time I'd realised I liked Leigh as more than a friend, she was engaged. And I got over it, but Jules continued with the jokes and I continued to dismiss it.

As Jules warned, Leigh entered the café and caught my eyes with a nervous smile. I returned it, just as nervous as she looked, before watching her approach the counter. She was dressed in gym gear, like her sister, but a fine layer of sweat coated her skin which made me think she may have just finished teaching a class.

"Hey," she said with a rare gentleness to her voice. Her hands rested on the counter, fumbling slightly, before she put them by her sides instead. "How are you?"

Uncomfortably, I played with a loose thread on my apron. "I've been better, not gonna lie."

She exhaled regretfully. "I want to apologise, Y/N. Last night... it wasn't fair what I did. Just snapping at you like that."

I didn't know what to say, so I stayed quiet and avoided her eyes.

"I just get so angry sometimes," she admitted, noticing I wouldn't speak. She sounded exhausted and I looked up to see her running a hand through her hair. "I can't explain it. My anger at you wasn't about Alex or the plans, it was just me."

"It's because you're still hurting," I told her what I'd observed, shoulders relaxing. "And you're not very good at expressing that."

She shook her head, eyes drifting to the till distractedly. "I should be because I keep hurting the people I love."

My heart ached at the devastation in her voice and I put my hand out, motioning for her to take it. Thankfully, she did and I squeezed hers gently.

"Look, let's just forget it happened," I said with a small smile. "I... I didn't exactly say the nicest of things either."

She grimaced, letting go of my hand. "No, I get why you said it. It wasn't fair of me to just start on you like that. You were just defending your girlfriend... God, I can be such a bitch sometimes."

I winced at the word, it grating my ears. "That's not true, Leigh."

"It is." She nodded slowly, rolling her eyes. "Everybody thinks it. Including you."

"I don't think that," I said with creased brows, meeting her saddened eyes. "You're not a bitch. I've never once thought that."

"Really?" She raised a brow, smiling with defeat. "Not even that time when I stole your doughnuts after that fight we had two weeks ago?"

I shook my head. "Nope."

"Not even when I snapped at you for no reason the other day when you tried to help me write my article?"

"Not even then."

Her expression softened with guilt. "Not even when I called you a selfish jerk last night for not wanting to spend time with me even though you have a life of your own?"

I rounded the counter and stopped before her, looking between her guilt-ridden eyes. "Especially not then, Leigh."

She breathed out quietly and I pulled her in for a hug, glad when I felt her relax beneath me. Her arms clasped around my waist and I was glad we were good again.

—

It was a year later when Leigh and I eventually got together as a couple. It was a long time after I broke up with my girlfriend and it was completely unexpected.

I'd invited Leigh to be my 'date' to my mum's birthday party, since the two had gotten on so well in the past. She was happy to oblige, but as soon as we arrived, her mood changed.

I was helping collect the pizzas from the delivery guy when he started to flirt with me. At the time, I didn't even realise, but I knew that Leigh had acted different since it happened. When I finally confronted her about her sudden mood swing, she proceeded to make out with me completely unexpectedly and then admitted she was in love with me.

I'm not gonna lie, it was a good time. Since breaking up with my girlfriend, I'd been single and falling for my best friend all over again. Leigh making the first move was all I'd needed to finally share how I felt, too.

That was six months ago, and since then, we'd been going strong. Of course, there were still times when she had her mood swings and took it out on me (and literally everyone else) without realising, but it wasn't anything I couldn't handle. I was used to it, used to her. So much that I should have trusted her even when presented with conflicting evidence.

We were at her workplace, Basically News, where she wrote columns part-time. It was a work party she'd been invited to and she'd asked me to be her date, which of course I said yes to. At the moment, we may or may not have been a little tipsy as we stood in the corner, drinking from flutes of champagne.

"Thank you again for coming here tonight as my date," Leigh said with a grin, arms laced around my neck as she held me close.

Pressing a kiss to my lips briefly, she pulled away and left my head spinning, and not just because of the alcohol.

"Any excuse to not be on the closing shift at work is good enough for me," I said playfully, resting my hands behind her waist.

She gasped. "Oh? So it wasn't me who persuaded you to come tonight?"

I pulled a face, feigning forgetfulness. "Hmm, I'm not too sure. Maybe you'll have to remind me why I agreed to come."

She bit her lip to contain her grin, eyes flickering to my lips. Leaning in, her lips met mine and I closed my eyes, enjoying the way she combed her hand through my hair and tilted my head towards her so she could get better access. She was a really good kisser and she knew the effect she had on me as I felt her smirk into it, catching her breath, before chasing down my lips and nibbling on them temptingly.

Remembering where we were, I gently pushed her back and tried to contain my smile. "Make it PG, Leigh. You're at work."

She licked her lips and began to laugh, green eyes darting between mine. "You're just so cute."

I rolled my eyes playfully. "I don't want everyone here knowing how irresistible you are or they might try to steal you away."

Her laughter filled the air, making my stomach flip at the sound.

"Though I think they may already know that because of how sexy you look tonight," I added, eyes fluttering down her body to appreciate just how well she pulled off her fitted black dress.

She raised her brows with surprise, making me mirror her expression comically.

Leaning close to my ear, she said above a whisper, "D'you wanna know something not-so-sexy?"

Her breath tickled my ear and sent shivers down my spine, making me tense up slightly. Judging from the expression on her face, she was very much aware of what she was doing to me.

"What?" I asked with amusement.

"I really need to pee," she said, and I began to laugh because she did, too, and I knew she wasn't kidding. Pressing a kiss to my cheek, she added, "I'll be right back."

Letting go of me, she waved goodbye before going to the toilets. I busied myself with getting to know her colleagues whilst I waited, until five minutes had passed and I realised she still hadn't returned. Deciding to check on her, I headed in the direction of the toilets, only to freeze when I saw something I definitely wasn't expecting.

Leigh was kissing another girl outside of them.

It was her colleague, Abby, that was the first thing I noticed. But I didn't stay to make out anything more as I immediately turned around and walked away, trying to make my brain catch up to what I'd just seen.

Leigh was kissing somebody else. Somebody that wasn't me. Somebody who I had always suspected had a thing for her, but I never considered that maybe Leigh had a thing for her, too.

Definitely not tipsy anymore, I found the nearest table and took a seat, trying not to assume the worst. But how else could I perceive what I'd just seen? It could have been a mistake, though I was so shocked and hurt and angry that I couldn't imagine how. Maybe she'd explain herself to me. Or maybe she'd tell me what actually happened. Maybe.

Leigh returned not long after, finding me at the table. Smiling like nothing had happened, she pulled me up and led me to dance. Not once, for the remainder of the evening, did she suggest that anything was out of the ordinary, nor did she explain herself. And I couldn't help but wonder how I had the worst luck with women.

This one hurt way more than the last time because it wasn't just anyone – it was Leigh.

—

A year and a half ago:

"Danny mentioned the breakdown you had last week because they didn't have doughnuts, so I, er, brought you these just in case."

Leigh cracked a small smile in the passenger's seat before accepting the box I held out to her. I'd just parked up outside the place where she went to her grief counselling group, having offered to drop her off. It had only been a few months since Matt died, but sometimes, the old Leigh shone back through and it made me feel hopeful that she'd make it through this.

"Thank you," she said genuinely, fingers wavering on top of the box, before she lifted her gaze to meet mine. "And thanks for the ride. You didn't have to."

I shrugged, thumb tapping the steering wheel mindlessly. "I don't mind. I just wanna make sure you get here okay."

She sighed, shaking her head, though a ghost of a smile was on her lips.

"Text me when you're done and I'll be happy to pick you up, too," I added casually.

"Thanks," she repeated, though didn't make a move to leave my car just yet. I didn't rush her.

Sadly, the silence was broken when my phone began to ring and my girlfriend's name flashed on the screen in my car where my phone was connected to. Glancing at Leigh, I just about made out the eye-roll she did.

"Sorry," I apologised, before declining the call instantly.

"Why d'you do that? Could've been urgent," she said with a clipped tone.

Oh, no, I thought. Whenever she used that tone, it meant she was picking a fight.

"I'm here with you," I said like it was obvious, hoping that one thing didn't ruin the moment.

She tensed her jaw, looking down as her hair fell around her face. "Whatever."

Before I could think of a way to make her feel better, the screen lit up again and my ringtone echoed through the car. I winced at the glare Leigh sent to the screen. If looks could kill, my car would be toast.

Declining the call, I looked to her worriedly. "What's wrong, Leigh?"

Her glare fell to me. "Why the hell do you keep declining it? She's calling you for a reason."

I raised my eyebrows. "Because I'm here with you? Alex can wait. I'm taking you to grief group."

"Well, I'm here at grief group," she mocked, turning to face me with an unexplainable frustration.

I didn't understand why she was so touchy all of a sudden. The car ride here, she'd been fine. Just a moment ago, she'd been fine. But now... now she was acting unreasonable.

My phone buzzed in my pocket suddenly, followed by a tone that signalled I had a text. Leigh smiled bitterly, rolling her eyes.

"Let me guess," she muttered. "It's her."

Still very much unable to keep up with her mood swings, I didn't answer. Her gaze snapped to mine as she stared at me with disbelief.

"Why the fuck aren't you checking it?!"

I grimaced, my own exasperation slipping out when I blurted, "I'm a little confused to what you want from me right now, Leigh!" Breathing out slowly, I said, "I'm sorry if this is bothering you. I'll turn off my phone next time."

As if I'd deeply offended her, she raised a brow incredulously. "Are you kidding me? Why would this bother me?"

Okay, I was extremely confused now.

"I don't know," I admitted, bewildered.

"Is that what you think of me? Some clingy bitch who won't let you live your life?"

I widened my eyes. "What?! Leigh! I never said–"

"Sorry if taking me is such a task," she said abruptly, moving to put the box of doughnuts on the dashboard.

"I never said that," I told her sternly.

"You didn't have to. I know already. I'm just a burden on everyone."

She got out of the car and slammed the door shut behind her. Meanwhile, my confusion was still trying to make out what the hell just happened.

"Don't bother picking me up," she said through the open window of the passenger's door. A scowl was on her face as she added, "You should go spend time with Alex. She's probably missing you."

Breathing out, I leaned back into my seat and watched her walk away and to the entrance of the building. When she acted like this – so push and pull with her emotions – I was so conflicted. What could possibly be going on in her mind that she managed to flip everything that just happened? A complete 180?

Knowing she'd just need some time to cool off, I shook my head and focused on leaving. But then I remembered my phone went off and pulled it out to see what was so important. Aside from two missed calls from Alex, I saw I had a voicemail, too, not a text.

Grumbling fo myself, still disgruntled by Leigh's attitude, I raised the phone to my ear to have a listen, whilst hoping it wasn't actually anything life-threatening.

At first, all I could hear was some very faint laughing and vague noises, kind of like material rubbing together and breathing. I assumed Alex had left me a voicemail without even realising since I'd done that countless of times to other people, having dropped my phone in my bag without realising it was still on. But then the noises became more distinct and I made out words.

"Jake, stop messing about," a voice said, whom I instantly recognised as my girlfriend.

I furrowed my brows. Jake? Jake as in the guy she worked with Jake?

"If you stop teasing me then maybe I will," a gravelly yet devious voice responded.

My throat went dry when I heard more laughter before it went quiet. It didn't take a genius to understand what was happening, especially when the moans that followed echoed in my ear, begging me not to forget.

Unable to listen anymore, I hung up and threw my phone onto the passenger's seat. Tears welled in my eyes as I glanced over at it hesitantly, almost wishing it hadn't even existed. And as much as I didn't want to accept the glaring fact, it hit me like a ton of bricks.

She was cheating on me.

#leigh shaw #leigh shaw x you #leigh shaw x reader #leigh shaw imagine #sorry for your loss #sorry for your loss imagine #elizabeth olsen x reader #elizabeth olsen imagine

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rogue-durin-16 · 3 years

Text

STICK TOGETHER

Summary: When Fred finds out Y/n is planning on leaving the Wizarding World, he canalizes his feelings in the worst way possible, which leads to a terrible outcome that seems unfixable.

Pairing: Fred Weasley x Slytherin!Reader

Genre: angst

Tags:

Fred Weasley: @whiskeyn-rain @lumos-solemn

Permanent taglist: @elia-the-bibliophile @randomparanoid @karlthecat15722 @thebutchersdaughtersblog @amourtentiaa @just-here-to-escape-from-reality

Warnings: swearing

A/N: @meph1stophelian is here putting pressure on me to post this already so I'm apologizing for the poorly written ending lmaoo enjoy <3

Rogue-durin-16 masterlist

"Fred, calm down." George begged me; he walked by my side, trying to talk some sense into me, but it was not the moment. "You gotta understand her— throwing a fit isn't going to help anyone—" I didn't even look in my twin's direction while he spoke. "Bloody hell, Fred—"

"Y/n!" I quickened my pace, leaving George behind after spotting her in one of the corridors, having a chat with a couple of Ravenclaws. "Can I have a word?"

"Sure— Oi!" I hadn't waited for her to reply before grabbing her hand and snatching her away to pull her into the nearest broom closet. "What was that about?"

"Tell me I heard Katie wrong and you're not actually leaving."

"I can't tell you that." She plainly responded, her voice steady.

A single, gobsmacked snide left my throat. "You're joking, right?" My heart ached as if it was being constricted when she shook her head no. "So you're fleeing?"

"What?"

"Things are getting ugly so you're running away."

Her eyes dug into mines as she stayed in a very uncomfortable silence before replying with. "So what if I am?" When I averted my eyes from hers, she called my name. Her eyes were somewhat softer now, with a gleam of plea in them. "For the last two years we had nothing but tragedy. Diggory died, You-Know-Who is back and recruiting, the ministry is full on going against a teenager, this pink colored nasty toad is physically abusing us, and on top of that, I have to put up with my housemates' bullshit for having muggle blood— I'm tired!" Her voice had raised a bit, enough for me to know she was struggling to keep it at bay, but still managed to. "If I can have a life out of this then—"

"You're a coward."

"Fred." there was a warning on her tone, but I couldn't listen.

"You're leaving... people behind," she attempted to reason; I didn't let her. "Dunno why I'm surprised, really. At the end of the day you're a Slytherin for a reason."

Her eyes started to well up, and I couldn't tell if it was with anguish or fury. I knew I was getting under her skin, but that was exactly what I intended to do; if I was going to leave that room scarred, so would she.

"Self-preservation, you call it." I scoffed, feeling my own rage building up faster each passing second. "Pure cowardy."

"Is that what you think?" Her tone wasn't steady anymore; she was holding back the poison of her words, for my sake.

"Yeah." I wasn't capable of doing the same thing for hers. "And I don't want your cheap excuses and emotional manipulation to convince me otherwise." My face was probably red due to the anger, my jaw and fists hurt from clenching them; I was off the rails, and the person who would usually stop me was standing in front of me. "Better leave now so you don't have the chance to sell us out when shit goes down."

Silence fell upon us, our gazes locked, equally watery and with the same amount of fury and sadness within them.

And finally she snapped. "Maybe I'm a coward, but you're a self-absorbed prat who's not able to see beyond your own ego!" The way she said it hurt me more than the sentence itself. "This is not gonna be a DADA class, Fred! I don't want to fucking die because I was too slow casting Protego."

"Good luck, Y/l/n." I curtly wished her before stalking out of the broom closet I have initially dragged her into.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

We avoided each other for a week. The following Monday, when I entered the Great Hall, I found George and Katie quite depressed.

"What's gotten into you?"

They shared a look before my brother turned to me, deciding to break the news himself.

"Y/n left last night." He gave me an apologetic look. "Thought she'd wait until the graduation—"

"But she's had enough." Katie finished, toying with her breakfast. "Honestly, I wish I had a life in the muggle world too."

My lungs were refusing to take the air inside; I felt as if I would choke if I stayed there, so I stormed out, jogging to reach the countryard.

I needed to breathe.

Even after the wind hit my face, that vital task felt like the most difficult thing in the world to accomplish.

I hate her I hate her I hate her I hate her.

A sob escaped my chest, realising the harsh words I had spat at her were probably the last ones she would ever hear from me.

I love her.

A Year And A Half Later

READER'S P. O. V.

I managed to apparate somewhere in the cornfield —the only place around the Burrow I remembered clearly.

I should have landed with a broom, but apparently, Mad-Eye didn't inform Lupin that I would serve as an extra escort for Harry if they were ambushed, so my broom was now smashed somewhere down the muggle road we had flown over.

Mentally cursing the damn moment in which I spoke to Shacklebolt in hopes of being useful in this war, I looked for the entrance of the Weasley home, which took me quite a while.

Funnily enough, it was Lupin who stepped out, wielding his wand and casting yet another hex at me that I somehow managed to block.

With a swift wave of my hand, he was propelled back into the house. "YOU!" A long-haired redhead I recognized as the eldest Weasley helped my old Professor up as I stalked to them with my wand up. "YOU HEXED MY BLOODY BROOM! I'M LUCKY TO BE ALIVE!"

"Y/n, calm down—" Shacklebolt was now besides me with his hands up. "He didn't know you were coming— he was trying to protect George from further harm."

My brain was slow to process his words, but as soon as it did, I started to down my arm. "What happened?"

"Snape hit him with the sectumsempra." My eyes widened at Lupin's heavy words.

"Did everyone else make it?" The three of them remained silent, the ginger shaking his head no.

My breath caught up in my throat, but before I could ask if Fred was alright, another tall ginger flashed the corner of my eye, and my head snapped to the living room's door.

FRED'S P. O. V.

Everyone was scattered around the house. Ginny took Hermione and Fleur to her room; Ron and Harry made its way up too; Tonks went out —she needed a moment alone to mourn Mad-Eye—, and, while my parents and I stayed with George, Lupin, Shacklebolt and Bill went to guard the entrance.

I was still kneeling by George's side, holding his hand while our mother healed his wound the best she could, when we heard a yell followed by a strong blow in the kitchen.

I looked at my mum and dad, my eyes flickering to my twin while I reached for my wand.

As I got up, more yells were heard, this time clearer; the voice was familiar— I knew that voice all too well.

There she stood, at the entrance of my home.

Her eyes met mines as soon as she caught a glimpse of me, and my head started to spin. I knew I had no right to do what I was about to do, but after that night's events, in which the war became very much real, I couldn't help but rush to her and engulf her in a tight hug.

Surprisingly enough, I couldn't take more than two steps forward, since she did what I intended to do first.

"You're alright." She mumbled against my shoulder. My eyes shut, trying to block the tears that threatened to fall. "How's he?" She inquired whilst pulling away with a concerned frown.

Not trusting my voice, I nodded in the living room's direction. A quiet sough escaped my lips as she passed by, her hands lingering on my arms for a brief instant before she entered the room and took careful steps towards the settee.

I barely caught a couple of words from George and Y/n's exchange, my mind still buzzing due to the shock.

"What do you say, Freddie?" I frowned at my twin, regretting not listening to the conversation. "She can take my bed, right? I'm not gonna get far anyway."

"Right." I agreed, struggling for my voice to come out steady. It was Y/n we were talking about; I had known her since our fourth year, I had been friends and more with her, seeing her shouldn't be that nerve-wracking.

A couple of minutes later, we were all heading to our respective rooms, and as I closed my room's door behind me and Y/n, it dawned on me that I had underestimated the anxiety that could cause me being left alone with her.

Get it together, Fred.

"If you want, you can grab a shirt from the drawer." I finally managed to speak, motioning at the chest besides the window. She nodded and turned to it to look for one she could sleep in.

Now that I had the opportunity, I carefully observed her, and soon realized how much she had changed in the time we were apart. Not only when it came to her physical appearance; she stood a bit straighter, talked a little calmer; the joy with which she used to sparkle was dim now, eclipsed by a severe, worried attitude— a sign of us no longer being the kids who messed around at Hogwarts.

"I missed you" I knew right away that wasn't the best start for the conversation.

"It sure didn't seem like it." The bitterness in her tone stung my heart harsher than I expected.

"You're still mad?" The way I was conducting the conversation was making me want to bang my head against the wall.

She sighed, turning around now that she had the shirt on to meet my gaze. "A year and a half, Fred. You didn't contact me for a year and a half. I thought we were friends."

"You left me behind!" I talked back, partly because I panicked, but also because I, to my surprise, was still mad too. "What did you even expect?"

"A letter?" She questioned, throwing herself down on the bed. "I mean— I didn't really expect anything, but a letter would have been a good way to let me know you didn't fucking hate me." My eyes, now fixed on my lap, went wide when Y/n's voice broke at her last three words.

"I'm sorry." I mumbled, quite ashamed of having to apologise while also being scared of saying anything that could harm her further. "I'm sorry about not writing and- uh... I'm sorry about what I said to you. I know it's not an excuse but I was really mad and..." I cleared my throat and felt the blush creeping up my neck even before I finished the sentence. "... and hurt 'cause you- I thought that maybe I wasn't important enough to you and- yeah, I'm sorry about what I said." I tried meeting her eyes but they were fixed on the wall before her.

"It's fine." She shrugged, "I guess you were right anyway."

"I wasn't right-"

"You were." She hugged her knees to her chest and hid her face there. "Wanna know why I'm back?" She didn't need my response. "They're hunting down my family." My heart stopped beating for a second due to the shockingly deadpanning tone. "A friend gave me a tip-off— they were tracking them down. I got to them just in time." I refrained myself from asking about them —the less I knew, the better. "So yeah, you're right, I was a coward and left people behind."

My body shot up and my legs carried me to George's bed; without me being fully aware of what I was doing or which consequences it could have, I sat down and pulled Y/n into my arms.

Though she was shocked at first, her body soon relaxed into the familiarity of my arms, and she let out a relieved sigh. "You're not alone on this." I whispered, pecking her crown. "I'm here, okay?"

"So you don't hate me?" She murmured against my chest.

Maybe it was the fragility of her voice, or the warmth of her embrace I missed so much; maybe it was this past year and a half of regret, or the night's events, but I couldn't hold back my words.

"I love you."

And even though she went stiff, even if I had just blurted them out almost in accident, I didn't regret saying them, because I, in fact, loved her.

She pulled away to look into my eyes. "You mean it?"

"Yeah." I replied, calmer than I had been in a while. "And I'm really sorry about everything, if I could turn back time—" words and air were cut off by her lips crashing against mines.

We had kissed before, but it was on a bet's behalf or to prank someone; this was different, this was her pouring her 'I love you' into actions, and I embrace it gladly.

"No more running away." I commanded when she pulled back. "From now on, we stick together." She nodded, her forehead resting against mine and her palms on my chest.

#fred weasley x reader #harry potter fanfiction #fred weasley #fred weasley x y/n #fred weasley fic #fred weasley fanfics #fred weasley angst #fred weasley fanfiction #fred weasley x gryffindor!reader #fred weasley x slytherin!reader #fred weasley x you #fred weasley x gender neutral reader

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julyarchives · 3 years

Text

Don’t You Hear Me Howling? || (M) || 08

Finding out you are a female Alpha sparkled some rivalry inside your pack, and resulted in you losing your best friend and your life turning upsidedown, so leaving for college was the fresh start you needed. Years later, you are about to finish your degree and suddenly this past comes back to mess with your head.

→ Pairing: Yeo One x Female Reader | Kino x Female Reader

→ Genre: A/B/O AU; Omegaverse; College AU.

→ Words: 3.8K

→ Contains: mentions of alcohol; wolf shifting; some Alpha-Alpha tension; Y/N making out with a special guest 👀; smut; Jealousy

→ A/n: Thus was supposed to be posted yesterday, but we sort of got lost in the calendar, so here it is now (oops?) we hope it isn't too lame and you guys like it! Also, as mentioned in the warning, there is a special appearance heheh.

→ Index: 01 • 02 • 03 • 04 • 05 • 06 • 07 • 08

As much fun and easygoing as things were for you, you felt glad for the holidays break. You got out of the cab and breathed in deeply, inhaling the scent of the reservation forest that boarded the neighborhood.

Every year your pack has their own ritual to celebrate your ancestors during the holiday, and you were actually looking forward to participating this year, after missing it since you started college, for many personal reasons - and one of them included a very difficult talk with your parents. Also, so much has happened this semester that being in the small city allowed you to breathe some fresh air and organize your thoughts.

Your parent’s received you immediately as you went through the front door, with big hugs and wide smiles.

“It’s so good to have you home” your mom patted your head, her small frame making her reach high to do so.

“Let me take your stuff to your room” Your dad grabbed your luggage and turned around to take them upstairs

“Oh, it’s fine, I can take them” You tried to stop him, but he pretended he didn’t listen. But you knew he loved feeling like the man of the house. You redirected yourself to your mom “I think I could use a shower and a nap, the trip was too long.”

“Of course, honey, I’ll call you for lunch.”

You crossed paths with your dad in the doorway, who offered a small smile. He wasn’t very fond of small talk, so that was usual of him. You closed the door behind you and sat on the edge of the twin bed centered on the room. You looked around and took in the scent of your old home, which immediately brought back so many memories.

Before you left for college, you and Changgu were on bad terms, so there weren't pictures of you together anymore, but you could still see the tape marks on where they used to be glued on your old vanity mirror. You also remembered perfectly which drawer you have tucked them away, the one that you were currently staring at, contemplating taking a look at them. In the end, you just shook the idea off of you and followed what you’ve told your mom.

The day was rather quiet and peaceful, the big event being held in the night, and the talk you were dreading could wait after the celebrations. Your parents had visited you in college a couple of times, and you have visited them too, but it was rare, never for the holidays, so they prepared a special family lunch and you couldn’t deny that you had a good time being around them.

All the pack had gathered in a big clearing at night to celebrate, and the bonfire already burned high. You could feel all the attention shifting to you as you arrived, your dominant scent overpowering everyone else's, and you held yourself high.

The day you left the city you promised yourself to never get close to this pack again. They’ve ignored you and diminished you as an Alpha, and you knew this place wasn’t for you. They were all surprised to see you back, they could barely hide it, but every time you made eye contact with someone, they quickly turned away avoiding you.

You didn’t hide, not ashamed of you or your choices, but it was rather uncomfortable, the tension almost palpable in the air. You quickly grabbed your phone and texted Wooseok.

“ Please tell me you headed back town for the holidays”

To which he quickly replied

“I actually came to a friend’s house, I’m not there, sorry :(“

You sighed. The cold weather wasn’t so bad, the cool breeze was blowing softly and the fire kept the place warm if you got close enough. Your parents stopped along the way to say hi to their friends, but you followed closer to the bonfire, where your eyes quickly met the current Alpha.

For a moment you had forgotten he was Changgu’s father, but seeing him immediately brought the information back to you. They looked alike so much, the same eyes full of expression and sharp jawline. He was staring at you, not so happily, and nodded when you looked at him. Your expression could be sour, you weren’t sure how much you were holding back, but you respectfully nodded back.

He sustained the stare a couple more seconds, so did you, but soon he was calling everyone’s attention. Everyone gathered close and his wife stood by his side. That’s when you saw Changgu, getting close to his father with a stoic expression on his face.

You shoved your hands in the pocket of your jacket and offered a half-smile when he noticed you. At first, he seemed confused but returned the gesture

“Brothers and sisters” The senior Alpha called “tonight we celebrate the ones who have left us. Our ancestors passed us their wisdom,” He spoke firmly and slowly, looking around at everyone. “Their strength lives in us, and so we honor them with our nature.”

There was a long speech about union and tradition that to you it sounded too much like hypocrisy since the traditions would include you, supposedly the next Alpha of the pack, to be standing there as a successor. You did not bother, because you expected nothing else.

The leader of the pack was the first to turn. His skin shredded, giving space for the long dark brown and silver fur to grow as a howl echoed loudly, bringing out everyone’s instinct, but especially your Alpha ones, and soon you had shifted.

This was one of the reasons you wanted to come. Being in university has you taking suppressants daily, so letting yourself run free was like getting rid of tight clothes that restricted your movements. You howled loudly to follow the collective chant, an ode to the departed ones, a hymn for the pack, the freedom of instinct.

The pack’s Alpha ran in the front, leading everyone with his big frame. Changgu followed him, and it’s been so many years since you’ve seen his wolf form that you felt surprised. He was bulky and big, his posture very imponent, and you stopped to admire it for a second.

The run was freeing. The wind hiding your wolf nozzle, pushing your fur back, your paws hitting the dirt. You needed that, and just letting yourself act on your instincts was the best thing you could grant yourself at that moment.

Reaching the highest point of the forest, the collective howling restarted. You stopped right next to Changgu, whose wolf eyes watched you intently, and in wordless communication, you howled together, allowing the instinct to speak for yourselves.

…

After the traditional pack run, a feast was hosted by the Alpha, usually in his house, which was big enough to fit everyone comfortably in the large backyard.

Everyone happily celebrated what was the closest to a wolf Christmas, with an abundance of food for everyone. You sat with your parents at the assigned table, attending the event quietly, holding yourself back just enough to not drag any more attention than you were already getting. Mr. Yeo, the Alpha, customarily greeted every individual, and when he approached you and your family, you stood up and bowed respectfully.

"Thank you for having us" your father shook his hands

"It's my pleasure," Mr. Yeo politely answered, "I didn't expect your daughter to come."

He talked about you like you weren't there, and you were pretty sure that was purposefully meant to challenge your position.

"I came to pay respects to the tradition, sir" you opened a forced smile. A damn good one. "Can't let that behind me."

His eyes snapped in your direction with intensity, letting the impassive expression on his face falter for a second.

"Of course" he smoldered, masking it with a smile probably just as fake as yours.

To him, you represented a threat to his family's legacy, so it wasn't a big secret that he isn't very fond of you.

"I hope you enjoy the party," he said to you and your parents altogether, but redirected the last sentence at you "if there's anything you need, just tell me and I can provide."

"Of course, thank you so much" your mom answered gladly. She followed her leader with passion and always tried to be in good graces with him, so she's always been strict in the sense of community tradition and formalities.

"No need to thank me, ma'am" he smirked "that's just an Alpha job"

The provocation was like a punch in the gut. Ever since you were revealed an Alpha, Mr. Yeo tried to do everything in his power to deprive you of your given rights inside the pack. He raised Changgu to take his place and hated your guts for ruining his plans. He was a man of power and didn't appreciate when someone threatened that position.

"Y/N…" your mom called you with a warning tone to her voice.

You didn't notice how you were instinctively growling, low enough for only people close to the table to hear, but your Alpha emotion was strong enough to cause some heads to turn in your direction.

Mr. Yeo, of course, smiled in victory from a distance, happy to make you look bad in front of the community.

"You really don't care that he does everything to undermine me, do you?" You said to both of your parents.

"Honey, he's the Alpha." Your mom said calmly "everything he does is to protect you. Is the best for everyone."

"You do know I'm an Alpha too, right?" You scoffed, rolling your eyes.

They both stayed quiet. You looked at your dad, hoping he would say something in your favor, but he just complies with your mom's orderly silence.

"Yeah, thanks," you said, standing up and leaving.

Growing up you used to love being with your pack these kinds of celebrations were your favorite time of the year. But now everything changed and suddenly you felt so misplaced that you felt like you didn't know anyone anymore. You knew all your neighbors, and their kids who went to school with you, but now they were almost complete strangers to you.

You grabbed a bottle of beer and looked around for the only familiar face you could find there. Changgu was not running Alpha errands with his dad, so when you found him he was surrounded by a group of girls, apparently younger than you, swooning at every charming smile of his, and you could just see how much he adored all the attention. You chuckled at his fuckboy attitude and the poor deluded girls who had a crush on him, hoping to get the son of the Alpha in love with them.

"Y/n?" You heard your name being called, taking you always from your thoughts.

The boy who called you was tall and slim, a long-ish hair half up in a ponytail and he looked happy to see you.

"Hey…?" You said with uncertainty, trying to figure out why he looked so familiar, but you just couldn't remember his name

"Hyunjin" he chuckled "I don't know if you remember me, but we went to school together."

"Right, Hyunjin, of course, I remember!" It finally clicked to you. Hyunjin was an omega, a few years younger than you but you two used to share some clubs in high school, but he didn't look so… hot. "You look so different, sorry it took me a while to recognize you."

"Yeah," he laughed shyly, scratching the back of his head. "I haven't seen you since you left for college. You look great"

His flirtatious half-smirk was very obvious and you actually thought he looked quite cute.

"You look great yourself" you bit your bottom lip, looking him up and down "But yeah, I kind of focused on graduating rather than coming here."

"I'm glad you're here now." He fully smirked this time "wanna go somewhere quieter? I'd love to catch up with you"

You felt hesitant at first, and you looked back to find Changgu again, and this time one of the girls was grabbing his arm, running his hand all over it. You wanted company for the party, and since Changgu was busy flirting, why shouldn't you do the same?

"Of course, let's do it." You took one last sip of your beer and linked arms with him.

He guided you around the house to the front porch, where you rested your elbows and watched the quiet street. Hyunjin had his back against it, looking at you.

You two actually did some catching up, and even exchanged numbers. You found out Hyunjin also went away for college, but he always came back for the holidays and breaks, and stuff like that, but nothing you were really paying attention to.

"You know, I have to confess something." He said, straightening his posture "I sort of had a crush on you, back in the days"

"Really?" You laughed softly, amused at the sudden confession. "Why didn't you say something, then?"

"Ah," he clicked his tongue. "Everyone knew you only had eyes for Changgu."

You rolled your eyes involuntarily.

"C'mon, everyone knew that, and Changgu didn't let anyone get close to you"

You were actually surprised to hear that since this wasn't something he ever told you but explained why you weren't popular with boys in high school.

"Well," you stood up and stopped directly in front of him "I don't see Changgu anywhere now, do you?"

Hyunjin grabbed your waist, pulling you closer to him, and your hands held the collar of his jacket.

"I guess I should shoot my shot, then" he licked his lips, alternating looks between your eyes and lips.

"What are you waiting for, big boy?" You challenged him.

He reached forward, kissing you rather urgently. His plumpy lips felt soft against yours, and he was a really good kisser. He pulled you against him, and you intertwined your fingers on the loose hair behind his neck. He gasped when you tugged on it, and you grinned into the kiss for getting a good reaction out of him. His hands sneaked down your waist, boldly squeezing your ass as the kiss got more intense, and he earned a shy hum of satisfaction out of you.

The noise of someone clearing their throat interrupted you two, making both of your heads snap in its direction, but neither of you really letting go of each other.

"Y/N" Changgu called you rather sternly, with a matching frown on his face. "I need you to help me deal with some stuff"

You sighed.

"Looks like some things didn't change, did they?" Hyunjin whispered just for you to hear,

"I'm not done with you yet." You whispered back, nibbling his earlobe.

"Now." Changgu interrupted again.

You pecked Hyunjin's lips before detangling from him, only then noticing that his hands were still in your ass.

"Text me, ok?" You said to him loudly as you followed Changgu inside the house.

He walked large steps and didn't bother looking behind to see if you were following.

"You couldn't have picked a worse moment to need me to deal with some bullshit, could you?" You whined, but he still paid no attention to you "all night, I was there doing absolutely nothing, and when I finally started to have some fun you decided I was important enough to attend whatever this is."

You babbled but still, he didn't respond, and you just kept following him around corridors in the big house, finally entering a dark room

"What is so important anyway that you had to call me so urgently-"

Changgu interrupted you when he pushed you against the door, making it slam loudly, his lips crashing against yours with a certain vigor.

At first, your eyes widened in surprise, and you pushed him back to look at him, but his hold on you didn't loosen up.

"What the fuck, Changgu?"

"Just," he stopped to think, breath already heavy in anticipation "shut up"

He resumed kissing you, and this time you rolled with it because, you couldn't deny, kissing him was something you ever saw yourself getting tired of. He pressed his whole body against yours, grinding on you making you gasp every time his thigh in between your legs rubbed against your clothed core.

"Fuck, Changgu" you said when he attacked your neck.

You pull the hair on his nape, making him look at you

"Is that what this is about?" You asked, forcing yourself to think straight "you can't bear the thought of me fucking someone else?"

Rather than answering, Changgu just growled, making you laugh ironically

"So you can flirt with all those pretty girls out there," you raised your eyebrows, "but I can not hook up with people? As if, Changgu"

You weren't as mad as much as you were enjoying taunting him for being so desperate to have you his.

"Just shut up, for fucks sake" he rolled his eyes and picked you, only to throw you on the bed behind him.

You finally recognized Changgu's old bedroom, with the light that came from the window above it. It was different, with no more posters taped to the wall or the action figures he liked to collect. It was a simple room with minimal decoration now.

"Gonna break another bed, wolfie?" You teased "I don't think daddy would be very happy to know you're fooling around with the Alpha"

He growled loudly, hooking his hands around your legs and pulling you closer to him, your bottom hitting his knees, which were pressed against the mattress. He leaned down and viciously kissed you, nibbling and ducking your bottom lip.

"You know, you're way hotter when your mouth is shut" he panted in between kisses.

Having turned into wolves mere hours ago had all your instincts right under the skin. The dominance, the connection between you and your Beta, the lust. Everything was on edge and you guessed that's why Changgu was so desperate.

He unbuttoned your jeans and pulled them down with your underwear in one swift motion while you took off your shirt, revealing your bare breasts underneath it. Changgu licked his lips and chuckled cockly when he ran a finger down your slit, showing you how wet you already were.

He took his shirt off, but didn't bother with his pants, and leaned back down to lick a long stripe of your juices, brushing softly on your clit on the way.

You moaned weakly.

"I'll show you why you're better here than with the what's-his-name out there." He said in a low husky voice.

He kept his hand around your legs and captured your sensitive nub in between his lips, making you buck your hips and grab his hair in response.

His back muscles were on display for you and it was hot to watch it contract and relax as he moved in between your legs.

"You're so eager for me, aren't you?" You teased him again and he hummed, sending vibrations down your core. "Do your worst, let me see if you're worth my time"

He leaned back up and you hated the loss of contact, but he quickly spun you around and pulled your hips up exposing your ass to him, and a harsh slap sting on your skin, accompanied by his deep growling that he didn't seem to have control over, and you yelped at the burning pain.

You heard him fumbling with his belt and soon he was entering you with no warning, making you bury your head in the pillow to muffle a loud moan. He didn't give you any time to adjust as he pounded into you fast, showing his desperation. He angled his hips just right to hit the perfect spot inside you to make you scream.

For a second you were afraid someone would hear you, but the backyard was not that close to the bedroom, and you tried to suppress your noises the best you could. Changgu seemed to be out of control with the way he hissed and moaned, your name falling out of his lips here and there.

A sloppy rushed fuck was not on your plans tonight but, fuck, it felt good. Changgu was getting sloppier by the minute and you just knew he wouldn't last long. You reached in between your legs and circled around your glistening clit, realizing you were in no better state than he was.

The closer you felt to your high, the more you squeezed your walls around Changgu's member, and the louder he moaned.

"Are you trying to get us caught?" You managed to say "such a loud wolf."

He didn't respond, too focused on fucking you, but he didn't get quieter.

You fastened your movements and had again your head buried in the pillow, moaning freely as you reached your orgasm, your whole body vibrating in pleasure. Changgu started thrusting faster, gripping your hips harder and pulling you against him to meet his thrust, and soon enough you felt his seed dripping down your thighs, strangled noises caught in his throat as he rode his high.

You relaxed your body when he pulled out of you, laying down with your stomach against the mattress, crossing your arms under your head for support. Changgu threw himself by your side, facing the ceiling and panting, looking fucked out already.

"Jealous wolf, aren't we?" You tapped his chest, provoking him

"Shut up" he chuckled

"How many girls did you fuck in this bedroom anyway? You were quite popular with the ladies back in high school. I bet they all died to be in Yeo Changgu's bedroom" you mocked a dreamy-girly voice.

"Do you really want to talk about who I fucked in high school?" He chuckled.

"Well, someone had to get laid, right? Since I couldn't because someone told boys to stay away from me." You smirked at his embarrassed expression

"Hyunjin is such a snitch, he was never good enough for you" he rolled his eyes and looked away.

"And who is? You?" You scoffed

"I didn't hear you complaining when you were screaming against the pillow just now"

You slapped his chest and he laughed loudly

"Jerk" you mumbled.

"Guess you can go back to your pretty boy out there", he said in a teasing voice, "if you're still interested, that is".

"So cocky, aren't you?", he laughed at your mocking expression.

"Maybe. But we still have festivities to attend".

"Unfortunately".

You got dressed in comfortable silence and after a few minutes, you were good to go. Changgu stood by the door and smiled at you before opening it and waving for you to walk by him. As you walked out, a satisfied smile took over your face and you only hoped people wouldn't notice the smell of sex on you too much. You and Changgu parted ways and for a second you let the whole tension of your body relax during the holiday. Just for a while.

#ksmutclub #smut #changgu x reader #omegaverse #changgu smut #pentagon changgu #pentagon imagines #pentagon imagine #kpop pentagon #pentagon #pentagon smut #kpop scenario #kpop scenarios #kpop writing #kpop smut #kpop story #kpop fanfic #kpop

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yikesharringrove · 3 years

Note

I know it's dark and maybe you don't want to touch the subject and you've not been doing well lately but can I request one of the boys with an eating disorder? I can totally see Steve being restrictive or purging (anorexia or bulimia) or Billy with an obsession on being healthy (orthorexia)

So, I actually have another drabble request coming soon with orthorexic billy, so I’m gonna do one for our sweet boy stevie. Wanna wreck this babey

Trigger Warnings for: disordered eating (anorexia), hospitalization, and an ng feeding tube.

Steve’s mother had a drawer full of diet pills.

She would take a few with her wine, and be much too full, no really she couldn’t dream of having another bite whenever dinner rolled around.

She would smile sadly at Steve and pinch at the softness of his belly, tell him darling, our looks are all we have.

And the diet pills were an easy solution.

Steve stole a few bottles. Not that she would even notice, began taking them to replace dinner. Then to replace breakfast and dinner.

Then he just, kinda stopped eating.

He would have something every few days, a few crackers or a spoonful of peanut butter, when the groans of his stomach were unbearable.

But then he learned to ignore it, to file it away and go days without food.

He kept the weight off.

Of course he did, he wasn’t putting anything in his body to balance it out.

And the thinner he got, the thinner he wanted to be.

He stopped working out.

Didn’t have much in the way of energy for it anyway.

And then his muscles were gone, and you could see his ribs through his skin.

Our looks are all we have.

He liked tracing his bones as he lay in bed at night, liked how delicate his collar bones felt, how sharp his hip bones were.

It didn’t matter that he’d wake up the next morning with a migraine and clumps of hair on the pillow.

His softness was gone, his cheeks weren’t pinch able anymore.

His parents came home to an empty fridge, and an empty drawer where diet pills used to be.

His father sneered at him, told him he looked like death warmed over.

His mother fussed with his clothes, tried to get them to fit right.

Nothing fit right.

But it didn’t matter.

Because he had his looks.

It doesn’t matter if his skin was waxy, or his hair was thinning.

Because his elegant bones stood out so beautifully.

“Jesus, Harrington.”

Billy was staring at him, staring at him like he wasn’t elegant. “You’re. Real skinny.” Steve tried to sit back up, tug on his shirt and kick Billy out of his house.

But he didn’t have enough energy to push Billy off him.

He couldn’t help getting angry, snapping at Billy.

“What about it, Hargrove?” Billy furrowed his brows, rolling off of Steve to sit next to him on the bed.

“Are you, like, are you anorexic?”

He watched Steve’s muscles shift under his skin as he sat up.

“You look-”

“I look how I want.”

“There’s no way you want this. Steve, you look like a fucking skeleton.” Steve pulled the blankets up of himself. Billy wouldn’t understand. “Why are you doing this?”

Because of a mother that always said our looks are all we have and Steven, must you eat like such a piglet? and a father that would say if you were a girl I’d tell you to marry well and people respect you if you’ve got money and looks. Don’t be an idiot and lose them.

“It’s what I want.”

“It’s killing you.” Billy’s eyes were wide. “Steve, you’ve gotta, like, go to the hospital or something. I don’t even know what to do.” He looked panicked, his hands clenching and unclenching by his sides.

“You don’t have to do anything.”

But then Steve stood up.

His vision always fuzzed at the edges these days, but sometimes it just went black.

He woke up some time later, a dull pain in his head.

He opened bleary eyes, found himself in a hospital bed.

He glared at Billy sitting next to him. Billy glared right back.

“Why am I here?” His voice was raspy, his throat hurt.

Billy rolled his eyes, scoffing at him.

“Isn’t it fucking obvious?” Steve went to wipe at his nose, found a tube taped to his face, shoved up his nostril. His eyes went wide. “Yeah. Feeding tube.”

“What the fuck?”

“Look, you fucking passed out and I wanted to make sure you weren’t concussed. Basically, you’re fine but severely malnourished, so, feeding tube.”

“Fuck you.” Steve slumped against the bed. He had half a mind to yank the thing right out of him.

“Yeah, whatever.” Billy mirrored him, slumping back in the chair, his arms crossed over his chest. “Just, a lot of shit made sense, I guess. Every time I suggest a dinner date, you get this weird look in your eye. And you never eat the popcorn when we go to the movies.”

Steve looked down at his hands.

“How long?” Billy’s voice was soft again.

“I don’t even know. I’ve always, I don’t think I’ve ever felt good about myself.” He was fidgeting with his fingers.

Since when were they like that? So pale and frigid. They looked like skeleton hands.

“Steve, you do realize you’re hurting yourself, right? Like I mean, you’re just slowly starving to death.”

“Maybe that was the idea. To die in the slowest, most painful way I could on the off chance that someone would actually notice. Would bother to care.”

“I did. I noticed. I care.” Steve gave him a look.

“Not for nothing, but we’ve gone on like, six dates, and were just about to fuck when you got weirded out by my body. Not exactly the best reaction I’ve had.”

“Yeah, but at least I reacted.” Billy’s jaw was tense. He checked his watch. “They called your mom. She consented to have you admitted. You’re keepin’ the feeding tube and doin’ all kindsa therapy and shit. Your mom gave a big ol’ performance. I could hear her screaming through the phone about my precious, beautiful baby!” Billy put on a high voice to imitate her.

“So, they’re institutionalizing me?”

“Nah. You just can’t be trusted right now, so they’re getting you help.”

“So, it’s more like prison.”

“If prison was nicer and you got food shot through your special nose tube and a therapist told you how worthwhile you are every day.” Steve cracked a little smile at that. Just a tiny one.

“Will you visit me?”

“Probably not. I think if I did, they’d lock me up too.” Billy grinned as Steve laughed lightly. “‘Course I’ll visit.”

“Did they say how long?”

“Tops, a month. But your mom was babblin’ about some rehab center in Ottowa that her friend’s sister’s cabana boy’s cousin’s wife’s daughter’s husband went to, or some shit like that.”

“Isn’t rehab like, drugs?”

“Not necessarily.” Billy huffed, his face going serious. “I want you to, like, try. Talk your shit out in therapy and try to work up to eating on your own. I want you to be healthy.”

“But what if, what if my healthy is, like, a little bigger?” Steve had always had a little tummy, some extra meat on his hips and thighs, a round ass.

“Then I’ll fucking welcome it. I don’t care what your healthy looks like. I just want it.”

“You won’t when you realize I’m fat.”

“Yeah? Why not?” Billy had a challenge in his voice, had a sharpness in his eye.

Steve just shook his head.

“Okay, I seriously, don’t care if your body is big. If you’re happy, and you’re healthy, I don’t fucking care. There’s nothing bad about being fat.”

“Yeah? Tell that to my mother.” Steve scrunched his nose. The tube was uncomfortable, threaded through his nose and down his throat. The tape securing it to his face was itchy, and really, he just wanted to rip the damn thing out. “I don’t wanna hear what she’s gonna say.”

“I’ll stay here the whole time. Tell her to stuff it when she gets goin’.”

Steve smiled at him weakly.

“I just meant, like. If I start getting fat again.”

Billy narrowed his eyes.

“I think you meant, when you start getting healthy. Because you will. And that will come with weight gain, but that’s not bad. Having fat, being fat isn’t bad, Steve. I know you really don’t believe me right now, but I hope you will. Because it sucks seeing you hurt yourself when I think you’re still absolutely amazing no matter how your body looks.”

Jesus, it was so goddamn sweet. Kinda made Steve melt a little bit inside.

“I, uh, thanks. Thank you, Billy.”

Billy reached forward to take one of Steve’s hands in his. One of his cold, thin, hands. It was shocking, the difference between his hand and Billy’s. It was so much paler, so much thinned despite his hand being overall bigger.

“I’m kinda. I’m kinda scared. Is that stupid?”

“No. Getting better is probably gonna be hard. But, it’s important. You’re, important.” A deep flush was creeping up Billy’s neck, but he was holding eye contact with Steve. “And I’ll be around for you. If you want.”

“Yeah. Yeah. I want you around.”

Billy brought their hands up to press a kiss to the back of Steve’s hand.

“Then I’ll be there.”

#my therapist called me out so hard last week and it gave me the juice to finish this bad boy #the beginning is probably close to a year old at this point i have so many half-finished drafts rip #tw eating disorder #tw anorexia #tw feeding tube #tw ng tube #yikes writes #steve harrington #billy hargrove #harringrove

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purplellamanator · 3 years

Text

Second part is up for my @shinranweek fic. Above is my AO3 and again here is the fanfic link. There will be one more part that I will post soon. Thanks for anybody that checks it out :) I'll also post it below the cut again.

As it turns out, the ever righteous Kudou-san could be quite the dictator. He determined when she'd have her meals and even when she needed to rest for the night. It made her feel inept and she wanted to argue out. Every time though, she'd bite her lip. It was as if her body didn't want her to and she got the idea she wasn't used to being waited on.

It was actually . . nice. At times she did feel in the same category as a child, but . . . someone was watching over her. Someone cared about her. Well- that's what it tricked her mind into thinking. The girl knew that Kudou-san had no emotional ties to her. He was doing this because he found her wondering around in a park and felt obligated after thinking he caused her to have a brain aneurism.

She wondered how much longer he would deal with her. Though it still had only been two days, there were no leads and she still couldn't remember anything.

"I didn't want you to overexert yourself today." His sudden voice broke her inner musings and her eyes snapped to where he stood before the kitchen stove, stirring something consistently. Blue eyes glancing her way and realizing he had her attention, he nodded. "We can go out and get you some clothes tomorrow if you're up for it though."

The girl sat there, silently for a moment. Honestly, she felt up to it today. Staying inside the house was making her skin crawl almost and she figured her body wasn't used to it. But . . . "I can't ask you to do that for me," she spoke softly as she watched him cook.

"You didn't. I offered," he replied easily before his brows furrowed again. It seemed he was having trouble with whatever he was trying to make. . . Oddly she wanted to get up and help him but she was sure that was overstepping her boundaries. She already felt guilty that he was cooking for her. Kudou-san appeared like he didn't do it often but was making an effort for her. It would probably be best to suck it up and just swallow down whatever he placed before her.

This time, the scrunched features were from the way he caught the girl staring at him. "R-Ran?" He stumbled over the name embarrassingly, not at all used to or comfortable calling her that nickname quite yet.

Eyes widening and realizing that she was still staring blankly at the poor guy while he attempted to make their dinner, her cheeks heated a bit and she glanced at the wood of the table. "Have those detectives figured anything out?" Ran said suddenly to cover up the awkwardness.

Kudou-san frowned and shook his head as he began grabbing plates down from the far cabinet. "Not yet. There're still looking though," he spoke quickly hoping his first words hadn't discouraged her. "These things can take time."

Well she hadn't remembered anything and how much of his 'time' was he willing to waste on this? Surely he didn't plan on allowing her to live here with him forever. He'd probably realize how much of a bother this really was and take her back to the park where he originally found her, leaving her there alone like he was releasing a stray dog.

Suddenly Ran didn't feel so hungry and after the plate of whatever this was supposed to be was placed in front of her, she really didn't want to eat anything. Schooling her features however, she sucked it up and cleared the plate. He had helped her so much- the least she could do was eat the dinner he tried really hard to make. And somehow she knew and understood just how hard he really had tried.

She was found out however when Kudou-san took one bite and wrinkled his nose in disgust. "This tastes like crap," he admitted and she actually laughed at how bluntly he had said those few words. The man just seemed amazed that she had even ate the whole dish in front of her. He went so far as to scrape his in the trash.

"I can get better at that," Kudou-san promised so seriously but all she could do was chuckle at how earnestly he said it. Didn't he understand she was lucky to even have a meal tonight?

"So, since I don't think I'm the best choice for a shopping partner, I invited a couple friends along."

Ran glanced at him surprised but then again he did have a point. She highly doubted he wanted to spend his entire evening in a mall packed full of girls clothes shopping. "Where will you go though?" she questioned curiously. She couldn't help but wonder, after all, Kudou-san was the only thing she recognized anymore.

He shrugged. "Probably the book store- that's them right over there," he pointed ahead.

Standing some feet away still was a girl and a guy. Both seemed to be about her age though she still wasn't sure what that was quite yet. Doctor Araide had estimated her age to be around her early twenties from the development of her bone structure.

The two had yet to realize they had company and Ran's eyes widened from the language sprouting from the twos mouths'. If it wasn't the heavy dialect that caught her attention, it was the crude and abrasive names they called each other. The girl whom she had assumed would be so kind with her dark hair tied up with a ribbon was shouting equally as loud as the annoyed looking dark skinned boy.

It took Kudou-san clearing his throat before either party even began to quiet down. When they did, they both appeared equally embarrassed as the other at being caught in such a heated discussion. That didn't stop them from continuing to glare at each other from the corner of their eyes.

Eyes narrowed as well, Kudou-san directed their attention to the one unfamiliar face. "This is Ran. Ran- this is Hattori Heiji and Toyama Kazuha-chan." All the while the scowl was firmly in place on his features at the fact the two couldn't get it together just for a few minutes. They still had yet to stop frowning at the other as if they were straining themselves terribly from not yelling again.

Feeling the aggravated tension, Ran swallowed the trepidation down her throat. "It's nice to meet you both," she began and was thankful she bowed her head slightly so they couldn't see the wince she gave from how uncomfortable she sounded. When she straightened she very nearly fell over.

"She is cute." Ran had lifted her head only to come face to face with the girl whom seemed to be scrutinizing her closely. Realizing just what the girl said, her cheeks enflamed brightly.

"Stupid. You're embarrassing her," the man- Hattori? snapped. That got Kazuha-chan's attention off her fast and Ran took the time to scoot closer to Kudou-san.

It took Kudou-san clearing his throat again before either person quieted down again; both looking equally annoyed. "Ran needs clothes so I figured you could help her with that," he directed to Kazuha without any explaining. He probably wanted to get it all out before they started arguing again.

A card was suddenly placed in her line of sight and Ran stared at Shinichi, confusedly. "Just use this. Buy whatever you'd like." He placed the card in her hand considering she hadn't made a move to do so herself.

She stared at the card for a second before glancing up at him. "Where are you going?" she asked again but didn't pay any mind to how the other two stared curiously. Nothing against this Kazuha girl but she wanted to stick with the only familiar face she had and that was Shinichi.

"Hattori and I will probably wonder around. Whenever you're done or if you need something, Kazuha can call me," he shrugged to show her it was no big deal. He was but a phone call away.

This time she did blush a little from how attached she was appearing. She barely even knew Shinichi yet she already felt like he was the only thing she did have. Her only constant in the past few days.

Still not really liking that she'd be walking around without him, Ran nodded slowly with a small grin and they were off. It was quite embarrassing how she kept turning back while they were walking away. She did it every few feet until she couldn't do it no more and each time Kudou-san was standing there looking back at her as if he knew she needed that reassurance that he was right there.

If Kazuha noticed- and Ran was positive she did, she was respectful enough not to comment. And Kazuha simply led the way though she remarked multiple times she was from Osaka and didn't have a clue where all the good shops were. They decided they would stop at any place that seemed promising.

Shinichi stared at the girl's retreating back as it got further and further away. He watched her go until she got lost in the crowds of the other mall shoppers and he could see the girl no more. For some reason he felt a nervousness go through him now that she was out of sight.

"Not bad, Kudou."

And Shinichi startled at the reminder he was not alone either. A brow raised at the sudden comment.

Hattori, whom had also been glancing that way at first looked back at him with a knowing smirk. "She is cute."

Cheeks tinting a light pink, the half lidded glare he sent the Osakan man was impossible to hide. Why was he even surprised? He should've known better than to admit that to Hattori of all people. Still, as a last defense, the man said, "I never said she was cute."

"You said she was 'very pretty'. Same thing," he waved off.

The fact his face got redder had him mildly annoyed. "And you told Toyama-san," he accused.

They were already milling about the walkway and avoiding other passerby as they went. "Man, I live in the same house as that woman. Not that I told her myself- she overheard us talking but you think I'm going to lie about that? Trust me; it's not worth the argument."

Shinichi shook his head but honestly, he wasn't that bothered. Ran was pretty but it didn't change the fact that this was a case. The woman wouldn't want to live with him forever and anyone could see the emotional toll this was having on her.

"Have you found anything out? How about those two detectives?"

He shook his head. "Nothing. They're looking into any accidents that may have recently happened as well if anyone's filed a missing persons report but so far nothing."

Hattori pocketed his hands. "Have you tried tracing her memory back? Can she recall anything?"

"I think anytime she gets close to remembering anything, her mind goes into a panic. It's like she doesn't want to remember," he whispered the last part to himself but was sure the other man heard it anyway. It was a little disheartening though. What was something so terrible that had happened to her that she didn't want her memories back? He couldn't decide if it was the accident itself or her actual past life that had her mind subconsciously shielding her. That's what troubled him the most. Maybe she didn't want to know.

"Jeez, I'm starved!" Kazuha said as they waited together in some line of the food court. Just a minute ago she had texted Hattori letting him know to meet them there. Admittedly Ran was anxious to see Shinichi again. She had fun going through the stores and just being with another girl but she missed that one familiar face. She briefly wondered if he'd be mad by how much she spent and she glanced at the multiple bags she carried in her arms.

A little uncomfortable at first, Ran hadn't wanted to use that credit card given to her. It didn't help that nothing bought in a mall came cheap- even something so small as a pretzel she discovered. But after that, Ran wasn't sure how long they had been. She honestly had lost track of time and was enjoying herself. She was quite fond of this Kazuha girl and she liked her humor even more. Even though Shinichi had given her free reign with his bank account, she was sure to only swipe it on things she really liked. But had there been some unspoken price limit on how much she could use? Would he be mad? Now she was a little nervous to see him.

So trapped in her thoughts, she failed to notice her surroundings. She didn't catch any of the mindless chatter Kazuha was spewing beside her. She barely caught on to when the cashier was asking her what she'd like. So when the people surrounding her started gasping and a commotion began, she hadn't know until Kazuha gripped her arm tightly getting her attention. Blinking, she looked first at the girl in confusion before realizing she was staring somewhere else entirely.

Right before them was a man standing clad in sweats and a t-shirt. He appeared disgruntled and crazed and if that weren't enough to show he wasn't thinking, it was the fact he held a gun tightly in his grasp as he pointed it at them.

Ran could only raise a brow. Unlike in the doctor's office or when she met those detectives, fear was not her initial reaction. If anything, the surprising amount of irritation and annoyance that hit her almost made her giggle. Some man was pointing a gun at her and she wanted to laugh?

Then, "Step aside!" the man practically spit out and she realized he was talking to her. And now she was understanding the gun wasn't for her- it was for Kazuha.

The girl beside her stiffened at that but finally released the grip on her arm, as if silently giving Ran the okay to move out of the line of fire. Clearly the target wasn't her so why should she get shot?

Ran didn't move. If anything her stature straightened and her stance became even more firm where it stood. Ran didn't understand the way her body was having her react. Truthfully, she had wanted to move. She didn't want to die and the guy had a gun. But something was telling her she didn't have to be scared. That she would be okay.

"Move!" He barked again and there were gasps in the crowd when he cocked the gun.

Kazuha was tugging at her arm again now only gently. She was asking her to move like everybody else that had fled away from her the moment they realized she was the target. To get out of the way. She didn't want her to get hurt. "Ran-"

Taking the hand that was shoving her away lightly, Ran gripped it and practically threw her down behind her as she stepped forward. She didn't know what was coming over but she understood what her body wanted perfectly. She didn't have to be afraid and she didn't have to move.

Of course that didn't go over so well with the man standing in front of them and his face contorted in an angry snarl as he prepared to shoot.

Time seemed slower in that moment. So slow, Ran actually found the time to feel her lips tilt up at the sides the barest bit. Her eyes scanned his shaky stance and her grin almost broadened. People probably thought she was crazy but she didn't care in that moment for some reason. Not for the first time she felt trapped in someone else's body.

Then he pulled the trigger.

Screams rang out around them- the more prominent one being her name. But she barely paid them any mind. Her body was already steps ahead of her thoughts and instead of the pain of a bullet entering her, she felt nothing except maybe the breeze of it whizzing through her hair where her head had once been. The man didn't have time to blink before she was already before him and dispelling the gun from his grasp. She didn't really know what she had planned to do after that. Fight the criminal in hand to hand? She'd surely lose but now she wasn't so sure of that fact. If anything, her muscles seemed prepared- welcomed the challenge as if she had been holding back too long. Her body felt something familiar and it was latching onto that.

But by far, she was not expecting herself to turn the tables and actually bare the gun in her grasp. That's how she found her stance. One hand tightly clenching the grip; a finger on the trigger and ready to pull in a heartbeat on the criminal now turned victim. What scared her most was that the weapon was actually comfortable in her grasp.

In the still slowed pace of analyzing her own stance, she barely registered the man had dropped to his knees with his hands above his head in surrender. She couldn't tell if she even cared by the way the barrel of the gun followed his every move. Her eyes narrowed the slightest bit, curious as to if he would try to overpower her but the small grin never left her features. It seemed the idea . . . excited her. Yet she was almost at war with herself. Like she didn't want to pull the trigger but she would if she had to.

And then claps resounded around her and she jumped as she glanced around startled. As if snapping back and connecting her body to her brain again, she realized where and what she was doing- and couldn't of been more appalled. They cheered because they thought she was a hero. But she knew the truth. There was nothing victorious or gratifying about wanting to hurt another human being.

Shinichi and Hattori had arrived before the police did but it wasn't long in between. While the man was getting cuffed and Hattori was prattling and worrying over a frightened Kazuha, Shinichi watched her with stunned but puzzled eyes. She couldn't help but feel they were accusing and so she wouldn't meet his gaze anymore after that. Even as they were walking out of the shopping center and saying their goodbyes to the other couple, he stuck tightly to her side.

The car ride had been a silent one so it wasn't until they reached his house that he finally said anything to her. And it wasn't anything she was expecting.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Ran swallowed. Did she? Or would that only serve to make her feel worse when he agreed and called her the monster she was?

"I won't make you. I just want to be sure you're okay," he admitted a little reluctantly.

"Kazuha-chan was the target," she dodged. So if anyone wasn't okay it should be Kazuha.

Shinichi sighed. "It was an old client of Hattori's. The man had come to him because he feared someone was stalking his wife and hired Hattori to find him." Here the man shook his head a little sadly. "Hattori found the culprit eventually but it wasn't in time to save the man's wife."

Briefly, she wondered why Shinichi had to tell her something like that and she had to hide her watery eyes. And client. . . ? Client for what, she had to wonder.

Unaware of her confusion he continued with, "Hattori felt so much guilt over it but the client didn't see it that way. He's being questioned now but I think it's obvious he figured Toyama-san was an equal loss to Hattori as his wife was to him."

"When you say a client to Hattori-kun. . . you mean-"

Shinichi blinked a bit confused before they widened in realization. "Hattori's a detective- like me." He said it so matter of factly as if it were the most obvious thing; as if she should've already known this.

She hadn't.

A detective. Like him. Shinichi-kun is a a detective.

A strange type of panic gripped her heart and for some reason it was mingled with betrayal. Her whole reaction was completely unwarranted though she was sure. She wasn't nearly as freaked as in the doctor's office and she had no excuse to feel betrayed. Shinichi owed her absolutely nothing. If anything, she owed him.

But now blanks were being filled in as Ran processed exactly what this meant. For the entirety of the three days she had known Shinichi, she was constantly asking herself why she was here. What made this stranger walk up to her when all she had been doing was sitting on a park bench? It was clear to her now though that it was due to his own instincts. He was a detective and she saw now that when he discovered her she hadn't only smelt of gasoline but of another case.

Heart beating faster and faster as she broke this down, she had the urge to run. Here she thought this was a friend that saw someone whom needed help. That would keep their promise and keep the involvement of police out of this. Feeling stupid now, the understanding that he agreed to that because he was in fact the police disturbed her greatly. She felt duped.

And she didn't appreciate it one bit.

"Ran?"

The woman startled from her thoughts, completely forgetting that he was standing there and they were holding a conversation. The man looked to be waiting for a response of some kind but she didn't know what she should say; didn't know what she could say. In all honesty, she didn't want to speak to him. The urge to just make a jump for the exit was all she could detect. Were the police already on their way over? Would she be detained? Had he understood what she had felt only moments before when she had almost shot a man?

At this point she was worrying him. She could see it in his face, especially when he stepped closer and asked, "Is your head hurting again? Do you need to lay down?"

Laying down was the last thing she wanted to do.

"You lied to me." It didn't come out angry. It didn't even sound like an accusation; just a fact she was simply saying.

He didn't seem to think so obviously by the way his brows scrunched, puzzled and the almost offended expression he bore.

"You told me there would be no public involvement with this and the entire time you were a detective yourself." The saddest thing was that she couldn't find it in her to be mad. She wasn't surprised he had lied because in all honesty, who wouldn't of called the police? At the time it was blatantly apparent she had been in an accident of some sort. She gave off multiple signs that she needed medical attention and she didn't even have any recollection of her own identity. The best place for her would've been in the hospital's care until they could identify her.

"I don't work for the police!" he hurriedly said before she could give this wrong idea anymore thought. "Well. . I mean- I do sometimes but not directly. I'm my own name," he tried to explain when she could only give him confused glances. "I'm pretty well-known so I work independently."

Well, that explained his arrogant manner when he introduced himself. But then that means. . .

"So you're not hired by the police?" she asked almost meekly.

Shinichi shook his head with a small grin that tilted up only one side of his mouth. "Not right now, no."

Her cheeks turned a light pink. "Oh."

Her heart shot right into her throat when he suddenly took her hands in his. "I made you a promise, Ran." He was speaking so firmly and she could see in his eyes that he thought breaking that promise was not an option.

The need to apologize was all she could think of now. Though she hadn't come at him angrily and annoyed, she had accused him. Words wouldn't come out of her mouth however and as she stood there fumbling in her thoughts wondering why she couldn't voice what she wanted to, her gaze kept flitting from their hands to his cerulean eyes that seemed so close to hers. Her chest was still racing but she got the feeling it wasn't for the same reason as before.

What was wrong with her? Maybe she did need to lie down.

The doorbell rang and Ran wasn't too sure why but a certain amount of relief hit her as if she were saved. Saved from what though she wasn't yet aware.

Dropping her hands at the noise, he glanced towards the front foyer. "It's probably Hiabara."

"I still need to introduce you," he continued and the casual air he had about him made her even more antsy if possible. Clearly nothing was wrong if he was acting perfectly normal. Why was it that she was reacting weirdly?

She needed a moment to gather herself. As it was, her cheeks were still slightly flustered and she had no idea why.

"I'll go grab the clothes," she declared and before he could even say a word she was already strolling from the room. It wasn't all just an excuse. They really did need to grab the clothes because after all, it was more than likely the only reason the other woman was there.

Haibara Ai, as Shinichi told her, was his next door neighbor. She was also the person who was kind enough to lend her some clothes until she could go out and buy some for herself.

Making sure not to take more time than normal, Ran returned to the living room with the clothes freshly cleaned and folded inside a laundry basket. The two were already deep in conversation but it seemed their voices were lowered purposefully for the moment Shinichi saw her enter the room was when he straightened and greeted her- almost pointedly.

The other woman, whom she guessed was the neighbor, was facing away from her when she first entered. It wasn't until she turned around that Ran fully took in the light brown hair that was almost red and also cut short. They both seemed to be about the same age but there was also a certain maturity this woman gave off. Her eyes were a hardened teal almost that seemed like they could cut through anything.

And then the woman's gaze fell on her and all of that fell away.

The steely glint in her gaze fell away in an instant as her eyes widened almost impossibly. Eyes doing an automatic scan, Ran watched as her body stiffened to the point that she looked like a string strung so tightly and was prepared to snap. Almost subconsciously, the woman took a step back in what looked like a retreat. It almost seemed like she was trying to hide behind Shinichi.

The smile Ran had originally had on from about to meet this woman for the first time slowly fell away. The brown whicker basket in her hands seemed to feel heavier and heavier by the second. "Um. . . Thank you for the clothes. I-I washed them." She placed the clothes on the coffee table as she stood there uncomfortably. The tension was so thick in the room she was wishing she had made some other excuse or even agreed earlier with Shinichi that she needed to lay down.

Haibara didn't say a single word in response. Ran was sure the woman hadn't even heard her. The only form of acknowledgement was the way those teal eyes watched her every movement as they were stretched wide in what appeared to be terror.

Shinichi cleared his throat. "Haibara, this is Ran- the one I told you about," he admitted. "Ran, this is Haibara Ai. My neighbor."

They both heard the words but it really just passed from one ear right out the other. The two both seemed to be locked in some sort of stare off. Only thing, Ran couldn't understand why. This woman was staring at her as if she were the scariest thing she had ever had the displeasure of seeing.

When Haibara still appeared to be anything less than willing to actually speak to her, Ran forced a smile. "I- I think I'll take a quick shower. Thanks for the clothes- nice meeting you," she said softly but kindly before turning and slowly strolling from the room.

She really had originally planned on going to her room to shower. But something inside of her, that she choked up to the same person as in that mall earlier- a more dishonest and curious side, didn't go far. Only taking a few steps down the hall to give the appearance of her exit, Ran quietly made her way back to the doorway hidden and out of sight.

It was quiet in the other room, to the point Ran almost suspected she had been found out and she should just leave like she had said. But then. . .

"What's with that attitude?"

It was Shinichi and she figured he took so long to speak because he wanted to make sure she actually had left. He spoke differently though. Where as with her his tone was usually patient and calming, this voice was marred with irritation and disapproval.

Even more silence stretched on like that and Ran was beginning to think this Haibara Ai was mute. She had still yet to hear the other woman's voice.

Shinichi seemed to get annoyed after that. "Why wouldn't you talk to her? Do you have to be so rude all the time?" The last part was said a little frustratedly as if the way this woman spoke to Ran was a big deal.

"You need to call the police."

If it weren't the actual words that were spoken, Ran would've stiffened either way. That voice had not been one she was expecting no matter how mature and stern the girl appeared. It was very feminine but the underlining hardened edge to it wasn't hard to detect. But her words however. . . Call the police? Over what? Shinichi voiced as much.

"She's dangerous," Haibara said curtly.

"That's ridiculous! You don't even know her-!"

The interruption came swiftly.

"She's one of them."

Silence again. Ran leaned closer to try and pick up on anything but she couldn't even detect their breaths. One of who?

"Do you have any proof?" His voice was tight and controlled but it was clear he forced out the words between clenched teeth.

Haibara sighed. "You know my proof, Kudou-kun."

"That's not proof. Even if I wanted to believe-"

"You said she dodged a bullet." She paused for added effect. "She disarmed a fully grown man. Is that normal?"

"Being trained in the martial arts is not odd. And you seem to know a lot about her. A lot more than even she does at the moment so if that's the case, please do tell," he snapped almost sarcastically.

"Rum."

Ran could practically feel the tension. Could just feel the way he stiffened and his breath hitched from just that one word. But what did it mean? If she was supposedly dangerous and this the reason, she didn't get it.

"S-she's-" His tone was shaken from just more than being stunned. Truthfully she thought she heard fear.

"No, but she's almost a close second."

"Who is she?"

"A personal favorite to the second in command and a pampered lap dog," Haibara grunted in distaste not at all hiding how demeaning she meant the comment to be. "When she was first introduced in to the Organization and members saw how closely she was sheltered, rumors started going that she was kept around for. . personal entertainment. She rarely showed her face any more than Rum himself- I've seen her just once. But when she did, she was never alone."

Personal entertainment. . The words echoed around her thoughts and Ran swallowed down the nasty thought.

"But it was quickly proven that she was more than just a pretty face. One by one, members were just suddenly dropping- all of which were proven later to be undercover agents. CIA, FBI- there were numerous."

"Sorting out the traitors," Shinichi voiced his thoughts.

There was agreeance in Haibara's tone. "Her innocence and beauty that she radiated made it easy for her to be underestimated then- made it easy for you to underestimate her now," she said pointedly. "She's a master of deception; manipulative. When work isn't getting done and the boss wants results, they send her in."

"But she doesn't know that."

"Or that's just what she wants you to think. You're not thinking of her as the dangerous criminal that she is."

"If she does have her memory and she does in fact know who she is, then what would be her reason to fake that?" It sounded rhetorical like he wanted her to answer to prove a point but the woman answered anyway.

"To kill me. I turned my back on them and that's not something the Organization will take lightly," Haibara responded. "And you've been hiding me as well as trying to expose them."

"If what all you say about her is true, wouldn't you be dead already. And not just you but me as well for helping you? You always say the Organization works quickly, don't you?"

There was quiet after that and Ran got the feeling the woman didn't know how to respond to that. Deep down she probably felt that Shinichi was right. He really was after all. She had no idea what either of them were talking about. Organization? Rum? Trained operative? None of this was making any sense to her but if they knew who she was, shouldn't they tell her?

"I'm telling you, you don't know what you're dealing with," Haibara bit out. "We can't trust her."

"I trusted you. What is the difference between you and her?" he argued.

"The difference is that I didn't kill anyone."

"I'm sure others would debate that."

There was a sharp intake of breath and Ran assumed it was Haibara taking offense. Releasing a shaky breath she finally said, "Even if that were the case and she really can't remember- what will you do when she does gain her memory? After all of what I told you, you know what she's capable of now."

"Then we have until then to show her a better way."

"This could jeopardize everything we worked for," she whispered harshly and it was clear she did not agree at all. "She's practically the princess of the Organization. They'll have every agent searching for her and allowing her to stay here will only paint a giant target on our backs."

Disregarding what the other woman just said, Ran heard the rustle of the whicker basket being moved and she prepared to make a hurried escape. "I'll let you know if anything changes with Ran-" It was obvious he was giving her a dismissal but not for the first time that night, Haibara interrupted him.

"Champagne."

Again, she had to wonder what was with all the alcohol. Was it some code? She had already been saying Rum every few seconds and now she was talking about Champagne.

"What?" Shinichi sounded as confused as her thoughts. And then Ran slowly caught on.

"Her name is Champagne."

Just narrowly making an escape before she was discovered by the neighbor or Shinichi, Ran actually ran to take a shower. That's what she said she would do and how fake she'd look if she returned with dry hair.

She entered the kitchen in a fresh pair of clothes and loose, wet hair to find Shinichi- again, standing over a stove almost hectically. There was a book open on the counter beside him and she watched with amusement as he kept glancing hurriedly from the pages back to the stovetop again.

He had no clue what he was doing.

She shook her head before stepping further into the room. "What are you making?"

The real question was, 'what was he trying to make'. It was obvious he was struggling and she actually felt guilty for wanting to laugh.

Shinichi turned to face her a little jerkily and she really could see now just how much trouble he was having. "Uh. . curry. . I think. . " And something bubbled making a loud popping noise from the pan making him jump his attention back to the stove.

He thinks? How can he not know what he's making?

Before she could even understand what she was doing, her body was already taking more steps till she stood beside him. Now she had a perfect view of the less than perfect . . curry? She wasn't even sure now.

He scoot over a bit while giving her a slightly annoyed glance. "What are you doing-?"

"Do you need help?" It was a question but she was already sliding the wooden spoon from his hand before he could even respond. Their fingers brushed a bit but she didn't pay it any mind and began stirring the pan slowly.

Shinichi appeared to want to protest but again she was already moving before he could get a word in. "This is a bit too high," she commented almost to herself as she turned the burner down and then she was swiping a finger in the sauce and tapping it on her tongue. Her features scrunched the slightest bit and she hoped the man hadn't caught that.

Looking at the recipe displayed in the book, Ran took some of the spices Shinichi already had set out and mixed some more into the mix. Tasting it again she nodded before angling the spoon towards him so he could taste. "It was a little too spicy," she spoke as he blankly swiped a finger into his mouth with the sauce. "See? Is that better?"

He bore an amazed look and she hoped that could only mean he approved.

"If you'd like, I can finish this if you want to set the table," she offered and almost laughed at how fast he made an escape. Honestly, she didn't think she could watch him struggle over cooking her another meal again. And for some reason, she didn't mind cooking either. If anything, she'd say she rather enjoyed it.

And Ran wasn't sure how long she took to fix- finish the curry he had started. But when she finished and was wiping her hands on a dishrag to tell him it was ready to start serving, she found he was already standing in the doorway watching her.

From the way his cheeks flushed and his eyes flit away, it was clear he hadn't been expecting her to turn around just yet. How long had he been standing there and watching her? Was she doing something wrong?

She glanced away nervously herself. "It's done," she spoke softly.

He cleared his throat. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to stare," and she was stunned to hear him actually apologizing. It wasn't like he had really done anything wrong anyway. "I just feel I need to keep an eye on you," he explained and unknowingly to him it struck a nerve.

"Because I'm dangerous." And his head shot up surprised.

Shoot. Her face turned a bright red and her gaze became even more intensified on the kitchen tiles. If she had wanted to keep her eavesdropping a secret it was too late now! Why had she said that?!

She peeked up curious to see if he was angry.

He wasn't. He looked only calm and relaxed. "I thought you would've heard."

Ran only watched him, a bit perturbed. He's not mad? That conversation had obviously been meant to be a secret one.

Shinichi sighed. "No. You're not dangerous."

"But you both said I was a dangerous criminal," Ran argued.

"Haibara thinks that but that's only because she just met you."

She raised a brow. "You just met me," she pointed out.

"Yet your the closest thing to a friend I have- besides Hattori," he shrugged at that. "So no, I don't think you're dangerous."

The girl blushed. He considered her a friend? "I was afraid to tell you earlier- about the mall," she clarified and swallowed her nerves. "When I was fighting that man. . " She shook here head. "I- I felt at ease. I felt relaxed; at home. Like killing a man was second nature to me." And as if her mind was just realizing this for the first time, her indigo eyes began to water.

When the man must've seen she was in the brink of crying, his own eyes widened worriedly. But that didn't stop her tears like he hoped.

Lower lip trembling, she looked at the floor again. "I felt like a monster. I was standing there pointing a gun at that man and all that was running through my head was how I could actually pull the trigger and not care. Who could kill another human being- take a life, and not care?"

Shinichi remained quiet, still not quite sure what to say. He hadn't expected her to start talking about the mall. But the quivering voice and guilt ridden face she wore almost broke him. And it made it apparent to him that she really had needed to talk about it.

"I am a monster," she finished. "Your friend is right. I am dangerous and you should have me locked away."

Almost angrily, the man stormed closer to her. "You are not a monster. You're not anything like those black crows."

"But you can't know that. I can't fully remember what I was like," she said dejectedly. "I can't even remember my own name."

Ran startled when he gripped her shoulders firmly.

"You decide."

Her eyes went wide.

"You decide what your name is. It's your choice."

"The fact that you're so repulsed by the possibility of killing anyone is all the evidence I'll ever need. I don't believe you're capable of ending another person's life," he spoke truthfully with his face as serious as she'd ever seen.

She choked. "But in the mall-"

"Did you shoot him?"

"No, but-"

"Did you want to?"

"No!" The thought almost pained her and made her voice come out horror filled.

"Then I don't think you're dangerous," he concluded easily.

He made it sound so simple. Made everything so clear when it really was not. Neither of them had any way to know if she was innocent or not. His own friend he obviously consulted with warned him against her. How could he still feel the way he does?

He tilted her chin up slightly so she would look at him and the action made her heart jump again. "You're thinking too hard. Let's eat and I think you should rest."

She disagreed wholeheartedly. She felt perfectly fine and she had already gone a complete week without an incident. But she couldn't find it in herself to argue with the man. And especially, for some odd reason, when he touched or looked at her like that.

Ran nodded slowly and he dropped his hand with an arrogant smirk as if he knew all along she'd agree. "Well, let's start dishing it out."

And she was stuck staring at his retreating back wondering, not for the first time, what was he doing to her?

#dcmk #shinranweek21 #dcmk fanfic #fanfic #fanfiction #day 7 #shinran #shinran fanfic

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stingray-sins · 3 years

Text

[ Part I here ]

Somewhere only we know... tw: teens been teens

Part II

The Girls were huddled together leaning on top of each other so they could admire the school gymnasium. It wasn't just any day in March, it was the first week of March and the cherry trees were blooming this late spring. The reason was key: The graduation ceremony for the high school teens.

─"Come on ‘Cesca, walk faster we are going to lose the front row!" ─She shook the purple-haired girl to join the crowd of girls who waited with a respective bouquet of flowers to those of higher levels.

─"I don't understand what is special about a graduation, they come and go, how much emotion to see them leave? I would be grateful to leave once and for all" ─Francesca maintained, taking clumsy steps as she tried to walk faster─ "Besides, why are you making me carry these flowers?"

The taller girl stopped short right infront of Francesca to get closer to her face as she covered her mouth in a whisper symbol.

─"The bouquet of flowers has a symbol of gratitude to our superior classmates who have given us support and security during our stay at school..." ─she glanced sideways as adults passed by, probably in as part of a faculty student tutor and then returned to her flirty habitual attitude more mischievous. ─"The bouquet of flowers is an excuse to approach the boy you like and ask him for his Daini button 'Cesca… How long have you been here now?"

─"A year and a half? Wait, his Da- what?"

─"More than enough," ─the girl laughed as she pushed a curious purple-haired girl into the central courtyard. Inside the Gymnasium there was a precise number of parents talking with their children and guests, some were taking photos and others were arranging the last moments of the uniform on that student who was about to leave, but among all the crowds some familiar faces stood out. Holly held a camera in her hands while she begged her husband for one more photo with their "little boy" who did nothing but ignore her, The youngest of the group was stunned by the great tumult of people gathered that special day, but he returned to lose his attention when he felt his mother's camera flash on him.

The red-haired boy lay seated, he did not have a school uniform as usual but a more loose clothing that would help him not feel so uncomfortable in that wheelchair.

─"You know Jotaro, all these events always seemed like a waste of time to me from an early age..."

─"I could say the same" ─he said in a tired voice and somewhat mentally ashamed by the loud pleas of his mother in the background.

─"But I can't help but feel excited about this day" ─He looked up to meet the taller boy's blue-ish eyes. ─"You know, it would have been an honor to have graduated this year with you." ─The black-haired man placed his hand on Noriaki's left shoulder, patting it gently in agreemen─ "…And rest assured that next year the feeling will be the other way around."

Kakyoin was a bit surprised to hear Jotaro's words for a moment but seeing him smile subtly elicited a response with the same smile, they knew everything they had been through and it was not minor. What he appreciated the most was being able to be enjoying that moment, that second chance. Behind them were heard quite loud screams of girls holding flowers for the tallest, this time the discussion was who had the largest and most colorful bouquet of flowers that was worthy for that man. Holly was delighted with so many girls in the place, she without a doubt knew that her son was one of those who always shone wherever he was but witnessing it was quite fun for both parents and especially for the little one who went through the same steps.

─"I see we have company" ─Kakyoin laughed without turning his chair at all without waiting for a response from Jotaro other than a big heavy sigh expressing all his discontent with the voices of the girls─ "Speaking of Girls… Do you know anything about ‘Cesca? I thought she would be with us this day."

─"I haven't seen her since the morning, first thing in the morning I heard the bell and I immediately ruled out the possibility of another guest upon hearing those high-pitched voices asking about 'Cesca and dragging her to school leaving her breakfast half eaten in furniture at the entrance of the house."

─"After all, she adapted quite well to a culture totally unknown to her" ─Kakyoin smiled, seeing Francesca in the distance being dragged to the gym.

─"I suppose so" ─the black-haired man stopped his answer as he observed the same thing as his red-haired companion, it made him a bit of noise to see her holding a bouquet of flowers while arguing with her level friend, it was not that it bothered him that she was participating in the graduation if not that he knew exactly that the girls of her age by holding a bouquet of flowers fully meant a reason to get close to who he liked but his question was, was that really the reason? A strange start in his chest brought him back to earth.

─"Highly strung?" ─Noriaki returned a satisfactory smile as he focused on the dislocated face of his partner, he knew from first source that he was a boy focused on his thoughts and it was not easy to get any expression or direct emotion out of him but there were acts that fully indicated what his mind was going through and this time it was the dilation of her pupils when she saw that bouquet of flowers on the girl's arm.

─"Not at all" ─Jotaro growled, returning his hands to his pockets as he adopted a more rude posture. ─"Let's go for her if you want."

He instinctively placed both hands on his friend's chair, gently pushing the chair, like never before. Fast memories flashed through his head of how recovery had been for the red-haired boy, she still felt guilty about not being there at the right time and once again felt the weight of the world on his shoulders.

─"Noriaki!" ─Francesca shouted excitedly as she quickly approached the boys while still holding the bouquet of flowers. ─"I thought you weren't coming today..."

─"And here I am"─he gave a sincere smile as he looked up. ─"I was impressed that you participated in the flower delivery this year, from what I see you have someone in your sights, huh?"

─"In sight?" ─Francesca raised her eyes in curiosity and then directed her to the flowers and let out a laugh─ "I really don't understand very well about delivering flowers, I'm just accompanying..."

At that precise moment the companion of the purple-haired girl came out from behind her, she had bright eyes and clung the flowers to her chest more. Without a doubt, she did not expect to be face to face with the black-haired boy and despite having a disinterested attitude she still brought I get his second uniform button. she bowed slightly to Jotaro handing over the flowers as a symbol of offering while she closed her eyes asking for his second button.

─"My second button?" ─Jotaro asked as he looked down to see the girl leaning towards him. ─"I have not the slightest interest in that silly tradition, save the flowers, they can serve you for another boy yet."

While in the distance an army of girls was heard surrounding both of them between shouts and threats of who had the most perfect bouquet of flowers. Francesca was leaning on Kakyoin's chair still with the flowers in her hand.

─"What's that "second button" Kakyoin?"

─"I thought they had explained to you since you carried the flowers for the tradition, 'Cesca" ─Noriaki laughed as he turned the wheelchair a little to be able to look at her in a better way when talking ─"Daini button is a very old tradition in Japan, it turns out that it happens in every high school graduation ceremony in which a boy presents his second uniform button to the girl in the form of a confession of love and admiration. It is said that its origin dates back to the ancient military who gave that button to their partner and / or lover as a symbol of pure and lasting love, and it should be the second position that in this way their uniform would not open and it would not look messy when serve... Although I like the story more that the second button is awarded because it is the one that is closest to the boy's heart, both stories have the same meaning at the end of the day."

─"I must confess that I adore the traditions of this culture, it suits me quite well despite not being fully aware of it" ─Francesca laughed in the same way as she looked again at the bouquet of flowers in her arms. She didn't even know what she was holding that bouquet of flowers for, in a year and a half she didn't know anyone enough to offer it in exchange for a button.

From the group of people a group of boys appeared, the one who was leading without a doubt attracted attention. His combed hair and his perfectly fitted uniform with a cloth faithfully tied to his right arm only hinted at being from the school board. He locked eyes with the lower one, smirked as he placed his left hand on her chest to remove the second button from him and place it in the girl's hands.

─"I was looking for you, my dear Kohai" ─he stared into her eyes while she did not know how to react to such a random event, the boy was quite popular with many people and that he chose Francesca among many others was only to raise his status with a foreigner─ "When the day is over I would like to exchange a few words with you."

That said, he removed a couple of flowers from the purple-haired bouquet and cut them to make a nice ornament in her hair, leaving the place with the utmost delicacy of a school president. Francesca didn't understand a single thing that just passed but it was evident that her face was taking on stronger shades of red. Kakyoin had been left blank with that event but he didn't care about that at all, beyond the boy and the reaction of 'Cesca about it, he was looking at the reaction of his friend. He was still surrounded by girls but his attention went directly to them, again the same look with his dilated pupils this time clenching his fists marking his knuckles tightly.

─"Do you know that boy ‘Cesca?" ─Asked Noriaki without taking his eyes off his friend subtly.

─"Know him? The truth…" ─she didn't know how to explain it, it was something so surprising that she couldn't even think the words right─ "He was in charge of teaching me school my first days here, don't misinterpret me, Daisuke is a very kind and attentive boy and from the On the first day he mentioned that he could call him Senpai" ─ she took a brief silence when he saw that the black-haired man was walking briskly towards them─ "you know, Jotaro never waited for me in the mornings to walk to class and many times I ended up getting lost in dead ends... Daisuke... He offered to help me but I never expected it to end this way."

─"I understand" ─Kakyoin sighed as he tried to lighten the heavy atmosphere that had remained, and that was going to remain for the rest of the day. ─"Jotaro, I suppose the students should enter... the sooner the better, right?"─But Jotaro did not take Noriaki's words into account, he knew perfectly what he was trying to do but he couldn't get the other out of his gaze, pointing to 'Cesca, specifically the flowers in her hair, in a very rude way he released some weighty words.

─"Take that off, you look... ridiculous." ─His gaze defied the crystalline gaze of the girl who was not going to give her arm to twist so easily.

─Come and take them from me, coward" ─she said that as she turned around entering the establishment, the red-haired boy sighed while the taller one returned to put his hands in both pockets.

─"It can always be always worse"

The ceremony had been quite emotional for many, boring for others but it had concluded in the best way, each student had in mind what awaited them in their future, The families would meet again and go home as it should be to have a small celebration with their recent graduate and after that they were finally free for the day, or the night as the sun was setting. The trio was sitting on the same bench as always looking at the stream that did not offer much. Noriaki for his part did not leave his chair and gave him the facility to get closer to the limit of the paved street and the stream, Francesca lay sitting with a half-drunk beer while admiring the button that had been given to her in the afternoon and Jotaro did not even He'd had his beer, he was just sitting staring at the creek meditating the whole fucking day.

─"What are you planning to do now Jojo?" ─The purple-haired girl took him out of her thoughts again, who left the button next to her to sit comfortably leaning on her legs. ─ "Are you planning to stay studying here or leave?"

─"Leaving sounds more ideal with what I intend to study" ─he blurted out softly without looking at her, he felt strange, all that day he had felt strange and he didn't know what was the reason for his stomach ache. He had defied more intimidating people, received deep wounds and now he could not be reassured only by an unfamiliar anxiety.

─"It's nice to hear you decided with your ideal… I still don't know what I intend to do in the near future" ─she looked at him for a good moment while she smiled warmly─ "but at the same time I must be frank with you; It will be sad not to see you at home anymore..."

Jotaro looked down with an air of surprise, Francesca inspired a serenity in her words as well as sincerity. He was so confused mentally that he couldn't find words to answer, perhaps it was true after all that that day he had been uncomfortable seeing her differently, and perhaps he had been holding back the feeling for too long.

─"I suppose" ─he blurted into the air to direct his gaze but he felt that he was slipping more and more to have her close to him, he felt awkward for the first time in his life, dazed and excited but there was no objection from them both.

Offering his left hand to the smaller one took it gently and that was what powered him to get closer to her and end the action with a kiss, subtle and without much experience. After a few seconds they separated without having anything to say, it was something totally out of the ordinary. Jotaro looked away indecisively as Francesca placed her free hand covering her lips.

─" was thinking..." ─Noriaki mentioned aloud as he turned his chair to look at them but meeting that surprising kiss made him turn to the stream once more, he covered his mouth with his right hand while letting out a subtle laugh─ "it was about time... I just have to do you the last favor" ─he said to himself as Hierophant Green made his appearance like tentacles crawling on the ground to take that button that Francesca had left aside on the seat and bring it to him─ "I'm sorry my dear bud, but it's not you, it's them."

That said, he threw the button that shone with the contrast of the light to the stream to observe how it went with the stream, he was not going to leave at all but he was going to grant that quality time to his friends. Something obvious a long time ago but he was going to have all the patience to wait just as they had with him in the hospital.

The kisses were concealed but continuous, each parting to regain air was a silly smile from the pair to make awkward movements such as combing the other's hair, fixing the uniform, brushing the index finger over his heated opposite cheek. Jotaro took her small hands to open them and deposit the second button of his uniform in those.

─"I thought you found the tradition silly" ─Francesca celebrated as she squeezed her hand, holding it gently to her breast.

─"And I keep thinking about it, but I know you like it that way." ─He smiled serenely, still sitting on that bench, that anxiety and stomach pain had disappeared, he could feel full and reciprocated. Francesca for the part of her couldn't stop smiling. It was something totally new for both of them, a feeling of happiness after a haunting nightmare.

─"Can I speak to you again? Or should I still pretend that I haven't seen anything?" ─ Kakyoin raised his voice and made them both start and separate taking their respective drinks while looking at different parts of the landscape. As he approached the most exalted was the purple-haired one who, taking both beers, announced that he would go to deposit them in the nearest garbage can, clearly hiding her embarrassed face.

Standing close to his partner and friend he let out a couple of laughs as he only hid his face under his hat, he watched the girl from a distance and it was he who this time placed a hand on the left shoulder of his embarrassed but happy friend.

─"I see it wasn't a bad day after all, you lost that tired look in your eyes and you even lost your second button. It is impressive how a mere impulse can change a person's mood but my question is Jojo: "

What do you expect from this now?

The question bounced in every corner of his thoughts that night, was he happy? Was he blissful? worried? Was he... scared? He got up from his bed taking a deep breath to rub his right hand over his face. He did not expect his impulse to be reciprocated, he was expecting a possible rejection and now it was accelerated, there was no co-relationship between his mind and his heart in those moments and it was what overwhelmed him. Placing both feet off his bed she looked around him, his room lying completely dark and only a beam of light reflected a couple of magazines on his study table. More than magazines, college brochures.

He got up slowly to go to the kitchen, late at night the only thing he could hear was his footsteps on that cold old wood that he had for a floor that squeaked step by step. Opening the refrigerator door he looked for something to drink while he leaned on the kitchen counter looking at the liquid that was inside the container.

─" Did your insomnia return?" ─He raised his head while Francesca walked to the kitchen anyway, her attitude was more relaxed than usual and she sounded even more calm and pleasant than other times─ "do you mind if I accompany you?"

He nodded as she positioned herself close to him leaning on a large counter, neither of them said a word and a little discomfort was noted in the position that the black-haired man had, his breathing was more agitated and she could predict it with the liquid inside the container.

─"Did you regret what happened this afternoon?" ─She sighed without looking at him, she had both arms crossed and her gaze was still focused on the kitchen window. ─"You don't need to worry about that Jojo, it's understandable that it was a mere impulse of the moment and..."

─"I'm not" ─he mentioned abruptly as he left the semi-empty container on the counter and took the girl's hand again abruptly to have her face to face, without saying more, they both found their faces again while a more intense kiss took hold of them. the situation, something more heated when brushing their bodies and emitting subtle moans when pressing each other. A carnal desire awoke them both together with the pleasure of rubbing themselves, feeling a distinctly new experience... When he separated for a moment from the girl, she lay sitting on the counter with both legs open and breathing agitatedly, for her part she could not say much since she was the same and even uncomfortable with those pajama pants that imprisoned him. As he approached again, the question returned to his mind

"What do you expect from this now?" and opening his eyes surprisingly, a ghostly hand took Francesca away, who did not fall to the ground just by clinging to said hand. Doubts returned to his head, but he in turn wanted to enjoy the moment that his heart desired, why not allow himself to be happy one night without worrying about tomorrow?

─"What was that?" ─Francesca got up while trying to regulate her breathing and fixed her pajamas─ "What's going on in your head?" ─Leaning on the counter, he looked at the kitchen floor in shock, still trying to catch the air─ "You don't need to hide your thoughts with me, I just want you to be honest with me."

─"Shut up!" ─he screamed and Francesca opened her eyes wide and then closed her mouth slowly but not completely, no words came from her but she couldn't stop looking into her eyes while she was against the light─ "Sincerity ? Sincerity is that this would not work, not for months or for the rest of the duration of this feeling, you understand?" ─His words were increasingly harsh and his voice was breaking more and more─ "In a couple of days I will go away, you will still be here... our destinies do not cross at any time and even if it were the case, there is no full possibility that this it works so... let's forget this, you have a great future ahead of you rather than waiting for one that will never come."

She had taken the words out of the girl's mouth, without a doubt words sometimes hurt more than a simple kick and this moment indicated it as such. She followed him with her gaze, watching his large back disappear into the darkness, the fact that he had faced the issue did not hurt so much, but it hurt her to understand it and know that it was not really going to work as he thought at one point when he was on that bench.

─"I would have preferred the excuse of your virginity a thousand times, Jojo" ─she tried to take it with humor while hiding the pain in her eyes, she walked towards the dark corridor pressing her hand on her chest, releasing her last words with a hopeless and surrendered voice-─ "but I totally understand your decision... I just want to know one last question, was the feeling reciprocated?"

Jotaro was sitting on the floor of his room, he was looking at the ceiling as if it were giving him the answers he needed at that moment but he did not say anything and he could feel the silence of the girl once more that she finished him off. break.

"Good night, Jojo and have a good trip."

he hid her head once more in his arms without abandoning the position that held his stomach, the moonlight this time shining on him and she knew that at least that night he would not touch his bed. He didn't want to sleep, didn't want to close his eyes; everything was a torment in his head but he only let out a sentence in all that remained of the night.

─"If it was reciprocated and I waited for it... more than a year ago"

[To be continue...->)

#Writing.🐠#Jojo's bizarre adventure oc #jjba oc #jojo oc #Francesca Castiglier #Jotaro Kujo #PlasticBeach.🐠

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