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heresathreebee · 3 years

Text

That G-D Ring of Yours

High Fidelity’s Robyn Brooks X Female reader

Summary: You seek comfort from your neighbor Rob

Masterlist

There's probably gonna be a part 2

Word count: 2.5k words

Warning(s): +15 | implied cheating, internalized homophobia, heterosexism, author and Rob swearing, no hate to polyamorists but major hate to bad faith players, shameless self insert, no beta, barely edited, long as fuck I'm so sorry

Author's note: I'm having anxiety for no discernable reason and my brain has decided this is ideal fuel for a fic, so please enjoy. EDIT: ha ha yeah still anxious but we're doing stuff about it

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"-- And she just touched my hand by accident and I just felt this– this spark between us…"

It was so sweet how he was talking about it. Or at least it would be were this not your fiancé explaining how he had been seeing another person behind your back. Had you rushed into things with him? Gotten hitched after three months because of familial pressure to settle down and start your family? Quite possibly.

But it didn't make that stabbing in your gut hurt any less.

You had been a little gung-ho from date number 1, but he had been right there with you the whole time. Date number 2 happened the following weekend and then you just kept seeing each other more and more until before you knew it you had been introduced to each other's extended families and announced your engagement on Valentine's Day.

You started to suspect something was amiss on Sunday, when you were braiding your hair on the bed and he had gone to take a shower. He accidentally set his phone screen aside with a text chat still open. Thinking nothing of it (he had already told you he was talking to Mark about getting drinks tonight), you looked at the name and saw it belonged to a woman you had never heard of before. Your immediate reaction was 'she must be a new coworker or a cousin,' but then you glanced again and saw the text conversation mirrored the same kind of ‘sentiments’ he texts you.

The dirt burned into your brain for eternity:

You had looked away then. You were actually not going to say anything at all to him that night– had planned to bring it up after Tuesday dinner with your auntie's family, but something came up. It turns out that Jessabelle also frequented the same Starbucks as you (and she's your age, not a teen like you worried). You can't even find it in you to be mad at her since it seemed like she had no idea who you were when she showed you the picture of her date at a baseball game. You tried not to puke as you asked for her number and to send her that picture "for her contact profile."

You hadn't heard a word your fiance had said since the beginning of the phone call and you cut him off with some excuse you barely remember. You tossed your phone carelessly onto the couch and laid back on the cushions in defeat. What now?

You weren't really a drinker or a smoker, and you didn't exactly have friends who would be supportive right now. You could hear them now, your family too– asking you what you did wrong, telling you to just forgive him or how to get even, or simply saying 'well what do you expect? Boys will be boys.'

Maybe… no, you definitely need to get this off your chest before you do something stupid like pretend to forget about it. You had a bad habit of that because you tend to fall fast and hard. Perhaps your neighbor could give you some advice.

Thank the Lord for fire escapes. Rob lived on the floor beneath you, always playing something good from her huge collection of vinyl records. You've told her at least a hundred times before if she played nothing but Phil Collins for the rest of eternity, you could die happy. You crossed your fingers and hoped you weren't being weird or invading her privacy.

Thankfully, she seemed to be expecting you. She even motioned that the latch was undone and waved you inside. Ok the second wine glass made your face grow hot.

"I'm not interrupting am I?"

Rob gave you a warm smile. "I could hear you pacing around your kitchen for about an hour. Was about to come and get you actually."

She pressed the glass into your hand and you made an effort not to grimace. Rob liked her drinks cheap and strong and she never held back. You tried a sip just to be polite, and she snorted at the face you pulled.

"That's right, you like that sweet stuff. What's it called again?"

"Stella Rosa," you mumbled, grateful when she takes the glass back and hands you a water to replace it.

"Favorite flavor," she asked looking at her phone.

"Uh… the peach and the rosé. They're all pretty good, not gonna lie."

"OK, take this, grab a blanket from the hall closet, and tell me what's going on."

You curled up on Rob's couch and put your feet up. There were piles of records all over the place, empty beer cans and a pizza box or two on the coffee table. Your neighbor tapped away at her phone screen before silencing it and slipping it in her back pocket. She gave you a minute or two to speak up, sipping her drink like you two had all night. Which actually you did as you did not want to see your fiancé right now.

You felt two fingers gently tap your forehead. "Come on, dreamer, tell me what's going on in that head of yours."

You swallow the lump in your throat. "I feel a little over dramatic saying my life is about to fall apart."

Rob raised her eyebrows at you. "Damn, OK."

You rush to correct yourself– explain your weird sentiment in more detail but you end up just vomiting words until your voice is hoarse.

"I mean– like– like it's not falling apart per say or whatever– I… the rest of my life is fine its just my relationship that's screwed. Which I guess I'm more worried about because it's gonna screw up all my other relationships for a while too– dang it, let me start over–"

"Babe! Slow down. Breathe." Rob switched drinks with you and against your better judgement you took a sip. Oddly enough it did calm you down. "So… it's your fiancé, right? What did he do?"

You stared at her trying to unscramble your thoughts. "He… I found out he was kind of... dating another person. After I found out, he tried to explain that he didn't think I would mind–"

Rob barked, "let me guess: he didn't think you were exclusive? Pull the Main Chick, Side Chick schtick? Tried to claim 'polyamory' after he got caught?"

Two and two clicked together at last. "Yeah… yeah, he did!," you scoffed, "and it's not like it didn't ever come up in conversation: we spent our third date talking out our, like, sexualities and fantasies and fetishes and shit. If he was polyamorous, wh- why wouldn't he have brought it up then?"

"That is so fucked."

You took a deeper draft of her wine, coughing before setting it aside. Up until now, you've been numb. Now there's this wave of anger boiling up to the surface and you hear yourself getting louder. Rob doesn't flinch but she does give you this look of empathy unlike anything you've seen before.

"If he– if he would have just asked me, I would have told him it was fine. My family does shit like that all the time: nobody bats an eye! If he really thought I wouldn't mind, he wouldn't have been so freaking sneaky about it. He literally lied, Robyn!"

You whipped around and for a brief moment you knew you looked crazy. "He said he was going out for drinks with his guy friend, but he was making plans to go to a baseball game with a girl I've never heard of! If he really thought I wouldn't mind, or if he 'thought I would understand,' then why would go out of his way to lie about who he was with?"

Someone buzzed Rob's door and she left you on the couch momentarily, coming back quickly with two bottles of your favorite wine. "Damn girl, these are kinda bougie: Peach or Rosé?"

"I--"you choked, "Robyn you didn't have to–"

"Peach it is!" She unscrewed the caps and handed you the whole freaking bottle of white, downing the last of her merlot and getting a fresh glass for you.

You felt a little guilty she had spent money on you. But then again it had been her choice. If she didn't want you there, Rob wouldn't have let you in in the first place. Maybe you were just a tinsy bit worried you shouldn't be here.

You and Rob took a break from talking to put on music and get a little tipsy. It came much easier with the help of the Stella Rosa, though Rob initially complained it was 5.5%, she did get accustomed to the sweetness pretty fast, and after consuming half the bottle, realized it was a little easier to get carried away with a drink like this. She admitted it was her first time trying rosé and now she was hooked. Eventually you started talking again, just spilling your guts out with no filter anymore.

"I really think I just hate myself," you said cuddling the cool glassware. "When I found out, I wasn't even thinking of it as a betrayal of my trust– it felt like I was trying to come to terms with it so I could continue with the relationship. Not because it would make me happy but because… I don't know… it's what everybody else wants me to do. They don't even know about it and I was fully prepared not to tell them even though they'd want me to marry him whether they knew or not."

Rob barked a laugh of surprise. "Doh-K!"

"What?"

"Nothing, nothing…" she said, "keep going."

You stared off into the middle distance and leaned into her side. She was a tiny bit warm despite her lithe figure. Made you want to throw your blanket over her shoulders and share your greater warmth.

So you did (you're not great at acting out your desires but this is nice!)

"It's just easier," the words left your mouth unbidden, "I don't even know what that means, but it's true. I don't want to marry him anymore but I don't want to break it off. Not marrying Fiancé means disappointing my family. It means having to find an entire new man to marry sooner rather than later because I'm already 'behind' and lowering my already low expectations.

"It's not gonna make me happy, but I just think it's easier to keep this wedding going because at least I won't have to find somebody new who might not be as good for me just because I didn't want him. Another man won't make me happy so there's no reason to drop him... except that I don't want him."

Rob's brow furrowed. "Are you saying it's easier for you to please your family than it is to be happy?"

"Yes? I– no, I– … I don't know," you sigh. "I guess you could say my priorities are a little… mismanaged."

"Sure, you could say that." Rob wrapped her arms around your shoulders and you inhaled the scent of her soap and cigarettes. "What if you tried… like… not doing that anymore...? You just said you do whatever your family wants you to do. So, just like do what makes you happy for a change."

It really does sound so simple the way she puts it, doesn't it? Why are you doing this to yourself? You're not dependent on them for money or security or happiness for that matter. So... why has your whole life been centered around pleasing them?

"I think… I think I've never really sat down and thought about what makes me happy," you admitted. "I think it's just been that way forever and I might have been too scared to try anything else."

Rob hummed. "Are you still scared now?"

Are you? You look into her eyes and ask yourself a question that has never crossed your mind with such depth. You used to be scared– but what is it about your happiness that you are so afraid of? OK, let’s start a little simpler: what are things that make you happy?

“I like…” you swallowed, trying to break down the barriers you’ve built years and years ago. “I like… coffee. I like… short skirts. I like… girls– I like… my job. I like… music. I think I’d enjoy camping, you know, some day…”

Your words… these things seemed so arbitrary and trivial. But in your house, these things cause dissent. “My family has an opinion about everything. There’s no right way to live in all of their eyes, but I think I figured out a way to get past it. Keep my head down and do what’s expected of me. Graduate college, get a respectable job, find a man to marry, drop the job and become a mother. Just… don’t make waves. It seemed better because the cousins who didn’t or couldn’t… well they became the butt of every joke at the family dinner. Lisa had one miscarriage so she was a ‘failure’ and Don never dated girls so he was gay and that was ‘bad,’ but grandma Zelda did everything a good Christian woman could do and they still gossiped about her behind her back…

“And I just… I just let their ignorance control me for my entire life.” God, you could cry right now, but somehow it just felt too good to say it outloud. “That.. that is so fucked.”

Robyn snorted, and you turned to her as if you’d forgotten she was there. There it was again, that sympathy. Not pity, she did not burden you with tears of her own or try to be angry for you. She just listened and understood. You twisted the diamond encrusted ring on your finger and stared at her. You felt it, that feeling in your heart. No one else had given you that look, like she could really see you.

“You’re not going back to Fiancé, are you?” Her question was equal parts worrisome and hopeful and you already knew the answer in your heart.

“No.”

And that was it. Decision made. Actually easier than you'd thought. Maybe not down the road but it felt good for now. There's the telling your fiancé it's over, the moving out, the public announcement, the inevitable feeling of failure, your family, god, his family too. Untangling your lives would be long and hard. You're not sure if you have that level of commitment and motivation in you but fuck it. Problems for tomorrow.

You rest your head on Rob's shoulder and hope your not pushing any boundaries. She doesn't stop you though, in fact she snuggles you deeper into her. You get the feeling she's been here before though your not sure which side or how bad it was for her.

"I like you way more in the few times I've met you than any man I've ever dated," you heard yourself say. "I'm sure that means something but I'm too tired to decide anymore. No tonight at least."

Rob chuckled. "I like you too, sugar."

If you made it this far, hi 💛 appreciate you, leave me a comment! Or just comment "💛"

#Rob Brooks x Female reader #high fidelity rob brooks #three bees writing #rob brooks x reader #black reader insert #I just think about her sometimes #🐝🐝🐝✒#angst?

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atlafan · 4 years

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Take it Slow - Part Fifty-Four

a/n: okay this is my first shot at a harry:y/n fic, and it will be multiple parts. y/n had a bad experience with an ex over a year ago, and finally accepts her coworker and good friend Niall’s invitation to go on a blind date with his friend Harry.

Warnings: Angst and Smut. (part 55 is better I promise, let’s just get through this together, okay?)

Masterpost (all previous parts can be found in the masterpost)

The car ride home was silent, as you expected. You were sure you embarrassed him by getting up and leaving the way you did, but you honestly didn’t know what else to do in the moment. Had you known the topic of Aruba was going to set him off like that you wouldn’t have brought it up.

You change your clothes the second you get home, putting on a t-shirt, pajama pants and your robe. You wash your face immediately of all the makeup you had put on. Harry was upstairs in the loft doing god knows what. You would not be made to feel guilty. You’d never say it right to his face, but your Nannie was the most important person in your life. There was no one you loved more than her, and he needed to get over it.

He wasn’t sure why he was so upset. Maybe it was the fact that he missed you so much while he was away, and you were already talking about being apart from him again. He hated how clingy he was sometimes.

You decided to get settled with your laptop in bed. You didn’t feel like going out to the living room where he could see you from the loft. You plug your headphones into the laptop and pull up Netflix. You had gotten into a series called On My Block while Harry was gone.

Harry eventually came into the bedroom, just to get changed into something more comfortable. You were deep into the show and didn’t even notice he had come in. You notice him when he grabs his pillow and one of the folded blankets at the end of the bed, and walks out of the bedroom. You thought to go after him, to even ask him what he was doing. But you weren’t going to feed into his game. He wanted to sleep on the couch? Fuck it, let him.

He got settled on the sofa and turned the TV on. He knew it was stupid to act like this over something so small. But it was clear you didn’t want to be around him at the moment, and he would be damned if he would be the one to grovel at you. You were both being stubborn, that you knew for sure. When an hour had passed and you hadn’t come out to get him like you normally would have he got aggravated. He came back into the room and put his pillow back. He crossed his arms and looked at you. You didn’t look up at him, still barely noticing what he was doing. Your eyebrows were furrowed and your hands were cupped over your mouth.

“No!” You gasp. “Not Ruby!” Harry stands there stunned, astonished really. “Sick bastards, who writes this show?” You grab your phone to look it up.

“Hello!” He yells at you, and you feel startled.

“Jesus! Hi!” You take your earbuds out and close your laptop. “What’s your problem?”

“You were just going to let me sleep out there?”

“Seemed like that’s what you wanted to do, so yeah.”

“And whatever the fuck you were watching was more important…” It wasn’t a question.

“No. I don’t particularly care where you sleep tonight, Harry.” Both of his eyebrows raise.

“That so?” You nod yes. “Right, maybe I’ll just go somewhere else entirely then.” You scoff.

“Be my guest.” He glares at you. “Are you like trying to threaten me or something? Got a girl on speed dial you can run to? Is that it?” You smirk at him. “I’m not worried.”

“You’re really startin’ to piss me off.”

“Good! You’ve been acting like an asshole. You can blame me for ruining the dinner, but it wasn’t my fault.”

“Nope, everything’s always my fault. Every fight we have is because of me, right?”

“I did not say that. I’ve been wrong plenty of times.”

“Not as much as me though right?”

“Would you listen to yourself?! We’re literally arguing over who’s been wrong more! This is crazy! I don’t want to fucking fight with you! Can you please, calmly, explain to me why you got so upset earlier?”

“I wasn’t upset until you asked me if I was.”

“You had started getting short with me. You told me to cut my attitude and to calm down. I don’t appreciate you speaking to me that way.”

“We were in a public place, and I-“

“You were the one with the attitude for no fucking reason.”

“I just got back from being away for over a week, and you said how you couldn’t wait to get away from me.”

“Harry…I didn’t say that at all. I just meant I was looking forward to getting somewhere warm soon.”

“Yeah, but, without me.” He sits down on the edge of the bed. You shuffle towards him so you can sit next to him. You put a hand over his.

“It’s nothing personal, it’s just a girl’s trip. Her timeshare isn’t huge, otherwise I would have asked if you could come too.”

“I just missed you so much while I was gone, and the thought of being away from you again just set me off I guess.”

“It’s two months away.”

“I know.”

“Harry, we need to be able to go off and do things without each other without you getting worked up over it.” He looks at you.

“I know.”

“Well if you know then why don’t you try to work on it? I can’t have you making me feel guilty because I want to go spend time with my Nannie.”

“I didn’t mean to make you feel guilty, I’m sorry.”

You grab onto his shoulders and pin him to the bed, straddling him in the process. You playfully wrap your hand around his throat and his eyebrows raise.

“I don’t like when you act like that.”

You apply a little more pressure, and let go when you start giggling. He starts laughing too. His hands move to your hips and slide up to where your robe is tied. He gently yanks at the knot and it comes undone.

“Can I make it up to you?” You grin and nod your head yes.

You shrug your robe off and lift your shirts up overhead. He leans up slightly to kiss between your breasts, and eventually takes one of your nipples into his mouth. You roll your hips down on him. One of his hands slips into the back of the waistband on your pants and squeezes your ass.

“I wanna stay on top tonight.” You say harshly through gritted teeth. He let’s go of your nipple with a pop and you watch it turn a darker color. Your mouth hanging open.

“Okay.”

You both discard the rest of your clothes. You were soaking wet. You get back on top of Harry, and slide his now slick cock against your clit.

“Please, don’t tease.”

“But you’ve been so bad, Harry.”

His eyes grow wide. What did he get himself into tonight? You continue to rub his now purple tip against you. You slowly lift up, and line him up with you. You lower yourself just as slowly until he’s fully inside you. You smirk at him.

“What? Ahhhh.” You tightened around him as much as you could. “Don’t, don’t do that.” He says breathlessly as you release. He was starting to sweat.

“Why not? Thought you liked it nice and tight?”

You tighten around him again and his back arches. His hands move to grip your hips to get you to start moving. You grab his hands and pin them to either side of his head.

“You’re funny if you think you’re in charge.” You keep your hands gripped around his wrists and you start to move up and down his throbbing cock.

His mouth parts as you pick up the pace a bit, his breathing becoming heavier. Grunts and curse words leaving his lips.

“Please, kiss me.” He looks up at you with big eyes.

You lean down further and connect your lips with his. Your tongues find each other and you swallow a throaty moan from him as you continue to move on and off his dick. You bite down on his bottom lip and suck on it. His wrists twitch, but you uphold your dominance in the moment to keep them pinned down. He does the only thing he can think of. He bends his legs at the knee, and digs his feet into the mattress to thrust up into you. You release his mouth with a gasp.

“I didn’t say you could do that.”

“Thought you liked it when I hit it deep, lo-“ His eyes roll into the back of his head when you slam down on him.

“I decide how hard and deep we go.” You lift almost completely all the way off of him, and slam back down. Your nails now digging into the skin of his wrists.

You continue with same motions. Harry thought he was going to explode. He had never been so dominated by someone before. He had no idea if you even really realized what you were doing. This could all just be playful to you.

“Remember when you cried when I had you tied up? I’m about to reach that point.” You immediately release his wrists. He sighs happily. “Thank you. Now then.”

His arms wrap around your back and he pulls you down flush to him. You hide your face in the crook of his neck while he takes control of the pace, thrusting in and out of you. You suck on the skin on his neck, and lick your tongue over any spots you bite down too hard on.

“How’s it feel baby?”

“So good.” You say into his ear. “You always make feel so good.” One of his hands slips between the two of you to rub your clit. The other hand has a firm grip on your one of your ass cheeks. “Shit.” You whimper, desperate to come. “Harry.” You moan.

“That’s right, who’s doin’ it to ya.”

“You are.”

“Same my name again.”

“Harry.” You moan a little louder.

“Keep sayin’ it, angel.”

“Harry, Harry, Harry!” Your back arches when your release comes. He wasn’t too far behind you, filling you up with his hot come.

You practically cling to him, fingers sinking into his biceps. He lifts you slightly to pull out of him. He rubs your back, your body was still slightly shaking from the ordeal.

“Alright, baby?”

“Mhm.” You bury your face further into his neck. He can feel a wetness that isn’t sweat. He moves slightly and cups your cheeks so you’ll look at him.

“What’s wrong?”

“I just hate it when we fight like that.” You sniffle. “We were supposed to just love on each other tonight.”

“We did just love on each other.” He says softly, wiping a few of your tears away.

“That wasn’t…that was a lustful fuck.”

“Seems like that’s how you wanted it.” Your cheeks heat up with embarrassment. “Wouldn’t even let me touch you.”

“I don’t know what came over me.”

“You were just havin’ fun, s’okay.” He kisses your nose. “It was, um, sexy.”

“It was?”

“Yeah…and just for the record, I hate it when we fight too. I apologize for being such an ass. I think my, uh, neediness gets the better of me sometimes.”

“But I love how needy you are.” You nuzzle into his chest.

“Up until we start fightin’.” He chuckles.

“It makes me feel wanted.” He wraps his arms around you tightly.

“I always want you, make no mistake about that.”

“Why?” You look up at him. What was with you today? He had never seen you quite so insecure. Something just wasn’t adding up. “I feel like I don’t deserve you sometimes.”

“Where is this all comin’ from? I love you so much, c’mon.”

“But why? Why do I deserve to be loved by someone like you?”

“Oh my sweet angel.” He coos. “I love you for so many reasons. You’ve brought so much light to my life. You’re my everythin’.” He tilts your chin up so you’ll look at him. “You deserve the world, and I’m just trying to give that to you.” He looks you in the eyes. “I can tell somethin’s wrong, why won’t you tell me?”

“I…” Your voice cracks. “I’ve not been totally truthful about something.” He sits up slightly, and you sit up with him.

“About what?” His heart was pounding.

“Every time we’ve done it from behind I’ve had a flash, including the first time.”

“Y/N, why didn’t you-“

“I don’t know why I didn’t say anything. It happened when I landed on you when we fell. It hurt so bad.” You feel tears start to stain your cheeks. “It felt good another time, but it took me a while to get there.”

“If you had…I mean, I asked you and you said…” He runs a hand through his hair. He felt like he was going to be sick. He was fully enjoying fucking you while you were there in front of him, pretending to be okay.

“I don’t know why I kept it to myself.” You sniffle. “I just want to be normal.” Your voice cracks again and you start crying harder. He pulls you to his chest.

“You are normal, Y/N.”

“No, I’m not! I can’t even let my boyfriend fuck me without fear of being triggered! I just want to be able to fuck you, make love to you without being scared.”

“Someday-“

“It feels like it’s never going to get better.”

“Don’t say that, it will.” He gently rubs your back.

“I’m so tired of it.”

“I know.”

“I mean, don’t you ever wish you were with someone easier? I can’t imagine how exhausted you are.”

“Woah, woah, woah. I literally could not imagine being with anyone but you. I only want you, always. Never once has my mind wandered to that place. I could never be exhausted of you.”

“It’s not supposed to be this hard.”

“It’s not supposed to be easy either.” He sighs. “Did you see Dr. Mara this week?”

“No.”

“Why not?” You shrug your shoulders. “But she’s been so helpful.”

“Felt like taking a week off.”

“Y/N…”

“I’m gonna go next week.”

“Do you want me to go with you?”

“No.”

“Are you sure, because she suggested that I go with you sometimes-“

“I know what she said, I was there.” He thought he was going to cry. “Sorry.” You sigh. “I need to get up to pee. I’m so tired, we should get some sleep.”

You get up from the bed and use the bathroom. He got up to use the other one down the hall. When he comes back you’re already curled up in bed. He slides in next to you, holding you like he knew you needed.

You almost always got up before Harry, especially on a Sunday. When he woke up and you were still dead asleep, he pulled you in closer to him. You were legitimately in a deep sleep. Instead of waking you up he decided to get up and start his day. He got some laundry going, and did some light dusting. He took all of the trash out as well. He knew you’d wanna get chores done, so the least he could do was start them. He thought by now maybe you’d be up, but when he walked into the room you were still asleep. Why were you so tired?

He decided to clean the kitchen. He scrubbed down the counters and mopped the floor. Next he moved to the guest bath. He wanted to clean your shared bathroom, but he didn’t want to risk waking you up. He had never seen you sleep for so long. When it got to be passed noon, he started to worry. He sat on your edge of the bed, and gently nudged your arm.

“Baby?” He coos. You don’t move. “Y/N?” Your nose crinkles and you slowly open your eyes. You flinch when you see him. He strokes the side of your face. “It’s fifteen after twelve.” He half expected you to freak out, but you nod. “I, uh, did some laundry, and some of the other chores.”

“Thank you.” Your voice was hoarse. You reach up and grab your phone from the night table, and start scrolling through any notifications you might have.

“Do you want me to make you somethin’ t’eat?”

“No thank you, I’m not hungry.” You say not looking up from your phone. “I’ll get up in a few minutes, okay?”

“Alright.”

Harry goes into the kitchen to take stalk of everything you had. He made up a list on his phone of what you both would need from the market. A half hour later you were still curled up in bed, just scrolling through Tumblr.

“Wanna go to the-“ He stops short. He thought you would’ve been up and showered by now. “Babe?”

“Hm?”

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah.” You sit up and wipe your eyes. “I’m gonna take a shower. Were you going to ask something else?”

“Just wonderin’ if you wanted to go to the market soon. I made up our list.”

“Oh, sure. Thanks for doing all that.”

You give him a weak smile and get out of bed. You shuffle into the bathroom, and turn the water on for the shower. Harry waits for you to close the door before he goes out to the hall and takes his phone out.

“Hey mate! How was your trip?” Niall says.

“Good…um, I have a question.”

“Shoot.”

“When Y/N went through what she went through, what did her depression look like?”

“Jesus, why?”

“I’m a little worried about her. She stayed asleep, not just in bed, but asleep until like noon today.”

“She’s usually an early riser?”

“Yeah.”

“This the first time you’ve seen her do that?”

“Mhm, and then she stayed in bed a while longer than that just on her phone. She’s been actin’ weird lately, and we talked about why last night. M’not gonna get into the details of it, but I’m worried about her now. She skipped her appointment with Dr. Mara on Tuesday.”

“She did?!”

“Yeah.”

“She told me she went…”

“It’s like a fuckin’ switch with her, I swear to god. What should I do?”

“I’m honestly not sure. She’s never lied to me before, as far as I know.” He thinks for a second. “Sarah’s here, maybe she has an idea.”

“I can’t talk much longer on the phone.”

“Come over quick.”

“Alright, give me five minutes.” He goes back into the bedroom. You were still in the shower. He taps the door before going in. “Babe?”

“Yeah?”

“M’gonna pop over to Niall’s quick. He asked me swing by, just for a few minutes.”

“Okay, tell him I say hi.”

“I will. Be back in a tick.”

Harry grabs his coat and hustles across the street, and up to Niall’s apartment. Niall and Sarah greet him.

“Alright, so Ni filled me in a little.” They all sit down in the living room.

“Have yeh ever seen her like this before?”

“Yup.” Sarah nods. “So has Rach, and Kate for that matter. She did this a lot when her parents separated. Rachel and her lived together their freshman year. Kate said she was like this again sophomore year. The guy she first had sex with had her wrapped around his finger. They had gotten into an argument and she thought it was over between them. Kate said she stayed in bed literally all day until it was time to go out. We had a friend’s birthday party to go to.” Harry nods. “The last time I saw her like that…god…it was when her Papa passed away.” She thinks for a second. “We’re not near anniversaries of that. He died right before our senior year of college. She was inconsolable. We had all moved into our apartment for the year already. It was like she never left the couch.” She pauses. “Oh, and she gets terrible seasonal depression, like a lot of us do, but hers can get bad.”

“Does she take anything?” Harry asks. “Seems like there’s a combination of things happening to her right now.”

“I don’t think so. She mostly would just go to the gym, and that would help. One of us would usually have to go with her though to get her out of the funk she was in.”

“No wonder she’s lookin’ forward to goin’ to Aruba so much.” He groans.

“Oh is she going again this year!” Harry nods. “That’s great! She raved about that trip last year.”

“Yeah, she had the best time. She didn’t have wifi except for when she was in the place they were stayin’ so she really got to unplug.” Niall recalls. “She said she couldn’t remember the last time she had so much fun or laughed as much as she did.”

“And I shat all over it.” Harry groans again.

“What do you mean?”

“Nothin’. Thanks for all the info, I should get back to her. Please, for the love of god, keep this to yourselves. I think she’d come close to killin’ me if she knew we all just talked about this.”

“I’m certainly not lookin’ to get my head ripped off.” Niall says.

“Me either.” Sarah says.

Harry hustles back across the street. You were dressed and ready to go to the market. He was happy to see you munching on some cereal.

“Sorry ‘bout that, ready to go?”

“Mhm, let me look at your list.” He hands you his phone. “Perfect.” You smile at him.

He feels a little bit of relief as you were slowly starting to come back to life. You worked with him to get everything you needed at the store. You even offered to meal prep your lunches. Harry was working up in the loft when he smelled something sweet coming from the kitchen. You should’ve finished the lunches by now, what else were you making? He came down to see what you were doing.

You were singing along to the music you were playing. There were cupcake tins and remnants of batter in the sink. You had a frosting gun in your hand as you pumped blue frosting onto a funfetti cupcake.

“Those smell good.”

“Oh!” You look up at him. “Thanks.”

“Whatcha makin’ ‘em for?”

“Don’t know, just felt like it. I love funfetti cupcakes, you saw me grab the stuff at the store.”

“Yeah, I figured you needed to make something for work.”

“Nope, although that’s where I’ll bring these so we don’t eat them all.” You giggle. “Baking just really relaxes me, and I was feeling kind of…funky earlier…obviously.” You frost the last cupcake and feel satisfied with your work. “I even put a chocolate pudding filling in these, they’re gonna taste so good.”

“Damn, you’re good. Did I ever tell you I worked in a bakery as a teenager?”

“I feel like you may have mentioned it once, really early on.” You smile.

“I’d bake with ya anytime.”

“That would be fun! I’ve always wanted to make challah bread from scratch.”

“That sounds amazing. So, can I have a taste or do I need to roll up at your office tomorrow?”

“Please, indulge.” He grabs one. “They’re not vegan though.”

“S’okay, most sweet things aren’t.” He bites into it. You grab one too, and slurp out the pudding. He starts laughing. “Is that what you’re supposed to do?”

“I don’t know, but it helps make less of a mess.” He follows your lead and sucks out the pudding. He gets the rest of the cupcake in his mouth and swallows it.

“Mm, so fuckin’ good.” You giggle at him. “What?”

“Your lips are all blue from the frosting now.”

“So are yours.” He chuckles. “C’mere, give us a kiss.” He grabs your cheeks and smooshes his face to yours, making you laugh more.

You have a little make out session in the kitchen. Tasting the sweet cupcake and frosting on each other’s tongues. Mr. Brightside comes on your playlist next and you break from the kiss. You immediately start singing along.

“Ya like this song, huh?”

You just keep singing, and you start dancing around. You grab his hands and get him to dance with you. He even starts singing along with you. You loved when he would sing with you. It was something he would only do in the car, and only if the music was turned up really loud. You both were just having so much fun right now, nothing else mattered. When it ends you both are out of breath.

“Fuck! I love that song.” You say. You start laughing. “I was in like the fourth grade when that song came out, and it still fucking slaps.”

“It wha’?”

“Slaps, babe, slaps, learn the lingo.”

You start to clean everything up. Harry helps you even though you told him he didn’t need to. You put the cupcakes away in a cupcake container that Harry had no idea existed. You turn your music off and sigh. You both snuggle up with the TV and sofa.

“Got a lot of work to catch up on this week?” He asks you.

“Not really. I asked if I could retract some of my days off and just work remotely. They had no problem with it.”

“How’s your class goin’?”

“Good! All A’s so far. I got a jump on a research assignment I have due in a little while. I really like the class.”

“That’s great.” You snuggle into him further.

You knew today was a weird day, you could feel it. You had a full on depression sleep, but once you started to slip into that space, you couldn’t climb out. You knew he had to have been concerned, and you felt terrible. You were genuinely feeling better, but you knew you owed him an explanation.

“Harry?”

“Yes?”

“About earlier today, I know I slept for a lot longer than I usually do…and I was just sort of acting off.”

“Yeah…”

“I, um, well…I think I slipped into a slight depressive episode, but I’m feeling better.”

“Did I cause it, our conversation from last night?”

“No, I had been slipping into it since before last week, I could feel it, and it just got really bad. I’m sorry I didn’t talk to you about it. It’s not easy to bring up, which is so stupid.”

“It’s not stupid, I know mental stuff isn’t east to just talk about. But I want you to know, no matter what it is, you can talk to me about anything.”

“Thank you, I appreciate that.” You kiss him on the cheek. “Would you read to me later tonight? I missed it so much last week.”

“Of course.” He smiles at you, and kisses the top of your head. He was still worried about you, but for right now things were calm, and he was going to keep it that way.

#take it slow #harry styles #harry styles x reader #harry styles y/n #harry styles x y/n #harry styles imagine #harry styles angst #harry styles smut #harry styles smut fic #harry styles angst fic #smut #angst #harry styles fic #less fluffy than usual #the next part is a lot better #feel free to come hang out in my ask box #love yall!

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anony-mouse-writer · 4 years

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Statement of Saan Hurst regarding a librarian. Statement taken direct from subject, 9th October, 2019.

I always loved the stillness of libraries when I was a kid. There was always a kind of perfect silence that just settled me even when I was anxious or upset. Like a little bubble of perfect calm in the unrelenting storm of life.

Nowadays, libraries aren’t really that quiet though- there always seems to be something happening. A study group or someone on the phone or a kid running around unchecked. I’m not exactly a letter of the law kind of person, but it’s frustrating to go someplace for peace and then be constantly interrupted. If I wanted to hear someone yelling about how to fix their granny’s computer, I’d just get my work done at the cafe next to my building.

So when I got a new job at the downtown agency and had to change my route to work, I was hesitant to choose the library I found tucked off the street as my new place to relax. I mean, I guess I could have kept going to the little bookshop I had been, but it was several stops out of my way now, and even if it was a bit loud, I still had a somewhat nostalgic attachment to libraries and the peace I’d found there so often as a child.

It’s a nice place. Small, just shy of being cramped, actually, but the kind of cramped that comes from shoving bookshelves into every available meter of space. There’s three chairs, one in the front by the window and two in the back between shelves. There’s a lot of strange books there, nothing too odd, but certainly not the endless line of repeating covers of whatever the latest hot novel is like other places. Books I hadn’t read before. It was still loud sometimes, but I loved it.

I’d go there after work for an hour or two and just tuck myself away in one of the chairs in the back. I’d have my headphones on to block out sound, but I prefer listening to whales songs or white noise than any real music. It doesn’t distract from the reading that way. Pretty soon, I was a regular and the two librarians who were on staff alternating days- Misha and Clark- were setting aside books they thought I might like for me to check out when I finished with what I was reading.

Of course, I wouldn’t come here just to tell you about a nice library I found.

It started sometime around August. Clark came down with Mono and the library hired on a temp to cover for his days. I guess, in retrospect, it seems kind of odd since the place hadn’t even bothered to fix the flick-y light in the bathroom for the last two months, but Misha was just grateful for the help and it just didn’t seem that important a detail. Maybe they’d gotten lucky or maybe Clark had made a recommendation while he was out or something.

Nobody looked too hard at it when the new temp started, is what I’m saying.

Misha said their name was Rei. They were pretty nice, a bit distant, but organized. They didn’t set aside any books like the others did and seemed a bit more interested in reading whatever it was that was in the leather-bound books they brought than helping people who came in.

Sometimes people would come in and peer around the building for a minute before asking me if I’d seen the librarian and when I’d point them out, the person would always start a bit as if they hadn’t notice there was someone behind the desk that was in plain view of the front door. I think I’d have judged them a bit more, except I could kind of see where folk were having troubles.

It’s hard to describe, but it was like trying to look at one of those optical illusions but in reverse. If you glance out of the corner of your eyes, they move, but the minute you try to look at it head on, its back to being a still image. If you weren’t exactly sure where Rei was and what you were looking for, they just didn’t seem to register, but the minute you knew they were there, you felt like a fool for having missed them. It creeped a lot of the newcomers out, but I thought it was a neat trick. Rei didn’t seem to like talking much though, so I never bothered to ask how they did it.

Around the second week of Rei’s employment there, I noticed that there seemed to be less traffic in the library than usual. I figured it was maybe the AC kicking on, making it just a bit too cold, but nothing that couldn’t be handled with an extra layer. Honestly, I don’t think I would even have noticed except there was a kid who came in every Tuesday and Thursday to mess around in the horror section before her mum came to collect her and horror was right in front of my favorite chair.

Misha seemed a bit worried, but honestly it was a relief. I came to the library to escape and with less people around, it was that much easier to drown out the world with a bit of sound and a book.

I probably would have been content with that, except in the week after I noticed the growing absence that seemed to settle into the space, more things began to happen.

Misha started looking tired for one. I was worried maybe Rei wasn’t pulling their weight, but she told me that it was personal, not professional. She just felt tired all the time and hadn’t had the energy to enjoy a night off in a few days. I was worried it might be a bug and told her to take a day off, but when she came back, I swear she looked worse. She said she couldn’t- wouldn’t- stay home unless she absolutely had to. Said her flat was too empty.

Then there was the temperature. At first, I thought it was the AC being funky, but I realized that it was worse when Rei was on shift. I asked them about maybe turning it down a notch, but they said the library didn’t have a functioning AC.

That was the first time I’d seen their eyes. They were… cloudy. Not like blind or cataracts cloudy, but literally cloudy. Like when there’s a storm front coming in and the whole sky seems to be moving as it blows in. No irises, no pupil, just endless, gray vapor and nothing.

I yelped and backed away. I’ve seen my share of weird contacts, but this wasn’t artificial. I felt it in my bones that if I looked at their eyes for much longer, I wouldn’t be able to look away.

I swear they smiled at me when I excused myself and left early.

Things got… worse after that.

The chill that seemed to have settled in the library began to follow me around. I’ve never been particularly susceptible to the cold, but suddenly, I couldn’t go out without a full coat, gloves, and scarf.

Not that I had much reason to go out anymore. Work was getting less and less traffic and there was some kind of bug going around so we were at minimal staff. Cindy, Tomas, and Aayan - my coworkers - all got it, so there hasn’t been any reasons to go down to the pub lately either and it feels… worse when I go alone. I’m not looking to be a sad alcoholic in the corner of the bar at closing.

I tried to go to the library on the days when I knew Misha was there, but she seemed more distant every time I saw her and about a week after I’d looked Rei in the eyes, she told me in a dead voice that she’d broken it off with her partner. Said she just didn’t feel the spark anymore. She didn’t even seem that bothered, and she’d loved Sam more than life.

I should have tried talking to her more. Tried to figure out what was wrong, but when she looked at me, there was just…. nothing. Like Misha was gone. It was even worse than whatever Rei’s deal was. Looking at her, I could see that she was standing right in front of me, but I’d never felt farther away from another human being than I did in that moment.

I wish I could say I was surprised when Misha vanished three days later, but I wasn’t. I know it sounds crazy, but if you had seen her eyes. I think that whatever distant place Misha had gone to, the rest of her had finally caught up.

So Rei was now full time until the library could find a replacement which meant that not only were the regulars gone, but there wasn’t anyone new walking in. The library felt like it was closed more often than not with how empty it was.

I was never a really social person. Making friends is difficult for me and I had just rearranged my life, changed jobs, and spent most of my time at the office, the library, or at home. I’ll socialize with the people in my space just fine and once I make friends, we’ll talk, but it’s hard for me to keep up long distance relationships or engage with new strangers because I’m bored. So with all the coworkers I knew out of the office and without Clark or Misha to talk to, it maybe should have been easy to realize I hadn’t talked to anyone outside of work in 2 weeks, but I’m not surprised I didn’t.

The library was always empty when I went and sometimes I’d look at the darkened lights and empty doorway and I’d think they’d closed for good. Even Rei with their disappearing act was barely there. Not that I wanted to see them.

It should have been concerning, and I think on some level it was, but on another, it was… nice. The perfect escape from the rest of the world.

It was just about three months since Rei had come to work when it changed again. I was making my way to the library, trying to avoid the press of people along the sidewalk as usual when suddenly the crowd vanished. I almost tripped as I popped out into the suddenly open air.

When I looked up, there was the library entrance, small and unassuming. But today, instead of the familiar chill, the whole building seemed outright cold. There was only one tiny window, but when I looked, it looked like the window had fogged over, completely white with condensation.

I thought of moving clouds and knowing smiles and I turned right back around and marched through the empty chill until I found myself back in the crowd and went straight home.

I debated coming here for the whole last week. It’s not like anything that happened was even that spooky or weird. Just some creepy eyes, a missing persons case, and some drifting relationships. But… I called the number Clark gave me for emergencies yesterday and it went to disconnect and I haven’t seen any of the regulars who stopped coming in since Rei came. It’s just- I dunno.

I texted some of my uni friends but the messages never even came up as read. My parents are dead, but I tried to call my godfather. We don’t talk much, but I’ll catch up with him anytime I head near his side of the city. He’s always got his phone on him in case of a medical emergency. Nothing. And when I went into work yesterday, two more of my coworkers were out sick. The two who sit closest to me.

It’s like everyone I ever knew is gone and I know it’s connected to the library. To Rei. I don’t care who they are or how they did it. I don’t even care why they did it. I just want them to stop. I want my life back. And I want to stop seeing that empty street and foggy clouds in my dreams.

#avatarsona #fearsona #tma #the magnus archives #the lonely #rei #i rewrote this 3 times because i couldnt figure out how i wanted the library to work #op #mouse's art #mouse's writing

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popculturebuffet · 4 years

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Top 10 Regular Show Episodes

Close Enough is Close! 2 more days and a show i’ve waited without hyperbole years for will finally land offically. While i’ve seen three episodes preelease, one because of a french film festival the other two because HBO made an oopsie, and it’s more than likely i’ll be seeing those episodes again thursday, it dosen’t make it any less special, as with an offical release comes the fandom finally becoming a thing and the ablility to watch the episodes over and over again.. on computer till HBO gets it’s shit together but still. IT’s a great time. And my hype for the show made me revisit it’s big brother: Regular Show. Created by what would happen if you condesned california into a person, JG Quintel, Regular Show, as you all damn well know but I like doing anyway so as rigby would say, STOP TALKING, was about two slackers and best bros: Laidback hipster and hurricane when it came to talking to women, Mordecai and Rigby a high strung, idiotic, impulsive, and frequently angry racoon who worked, when they absolutley had to, at a park. Joining them at the park were their coworkers and later closest friends: Benson, their constnatly angry boss who constnatly belts out empty threats to fire them and has a rather sad personal life, Skips, a centuries old yeti whose literally seen it all and despenses advice for the duo and is voiced by everyone’s faviorite grandpa/jedi/murder clown Mark Hamill, Muscle Man, a grotesque blob of a man who likes “My mom” jokes and breaking things, Hi Five Ghost, Muscle Man’s sidekick who got like.. one episode focusing on him alone over 8 seasons moving on, and Pops, an odd but unfailingly sweet and kind vicotrian era gentleman whose also basically immortal and is Bensons’ boss in name only. The Park Crew spend their days working, or in our main duo’s case trying to get out of work to do anything else, while dealing with every day issues that would quickly ballon into insanity. Getting pops a birthday present of Fuzzy Dice from a local pizza place ended up with the crew having to fight a bunch of anamatonic animals that were stashing diamonds in there. Trying to get concert tickets involved getting caffine from the nipples of a giant sentient coffee bean in order to stay awake long enough to do the extra work. And Mordecai trying to delete an embrarassing message off his crush Margret’s voice mail lead to him and rigby getting hauled in front of a bunch of a message guardians, one of which is a sentient smoke signal that wanted to burn them while the other replied with “we’ree not going to burn them when have we ever burned anybody”... I love and miss those guys. Oh and it’s resolved by having to playt he embarassing song he sang while said message beings groove to it then ask him to colaberate with them on their album. THis show was on all the drugs and I am all the hear for it. I could go all day obviously but this section is long enough as is, let’s move on.

Regular Show came at JUST the right time for Cartoon Netowork: Similar to how the 80s doom patrol comic started off really bland and cookie cutter and not at all doom patrol and then grant morrison came in, had hte previous writer kill almost everything, then rebuilt it from scratch with crazy, CN had few shows left and was coming off a really terrible attempt at competeing with NIck and Disney Channel’s live action dommance with a bunch of dude broy reality shows and other ill conceved ideas. The network had a few shows, Total Drama, The Clone Wars which got better and I need to watch those better seasons at some point, but they weren’t enough to make the network thrive again. SO enter adventure time and regular show: BOth were creative, funny , a bit rough around the ages, and kind of nuts, but both were massive hits: The shows hit almost every demographics sweet spots: Kids like the bright colors, fun designs, and insanity, teens loved the edgy bits of the humor and also the insanity and 20 somethings and older both found refrences they got and loved, and well.. insanity. I mean being fucking nuts but also wonderful is kind of the watchword for most animation nowadays. While in the past in my own head i’ve played down Regular Show’s part in things, after all it came second and had a rough patch I told myself.. but I was wrong. Both shows had a lot of the same elements; insane stuff, great voice acting and good humor especially as they evolved.. but both also evolved in largely the same way and that way helped change animation for the next decade: Both, despite being comeidies, regular show keeping to it a bit more than adventure time did as they evolved, had the characters grow, something a lot of animated comedies didn’t do as much ast the time, even the good ones. THey had season long arcs, things that are now standard features in most cartoons for good reason were MADE standard by these shows. It’s just regular show’s legacy got diluted by shows that TRIED to copy it but both failed to see that it grew past season one or that it’s being okay for kids but really based in adult life and problems meant copycats like fanboy and chum chum, sanjay and craig and breadwinners, all thankfully long dead, eventually sputtered out and died. That and Nick is REALLY shitty at maintaing shows or treating creators with anything resembling respect. Somehow Teen Titans Go is still alive despite having similar failings but you can’t win everything. It didn’t help gravity falls came along right after and proceded to be even more influentail than both of these shows. Hmmm I just realized I haven’t done any gravity falls reviews here.. I gotta get on that. But while the show got eclipsed in quality and popularity I do still think it holds up for the most part as funny, charming and with , for the most part, good character arcs, it’s just that a bit of incosntientcy, some abrubtly done actions and a REALLY fucking terrible arc in season 6 dull the show a bit in comparison to what came after, but I do realize now it’s still worht watching, remembering and laughing at. It may of not been the greatest, but damn it was good. So with my nostaliga for the show popping up, my faith in it restored, and it’s sucessor showing up in a few days, I decided to do a little something for the ocassion. I WAS going to do a full on review, but had troulbe finding an episode as some of my faviorites are part of a larger arc that was hurt by a later arc, and the show ping ponged between slice of life and utter insanity enought hat it was hard to peg down to jus tone or two episodes. So while I WILL review the show eventually, it has both good and bad episodes needing it, I decided instead to dig out something I hadn’t done in far too long: a top whatver lists! Now while I do get these things are clickbaity, because they are, I.. honestly just love making them. Even if i’ts not for any specific purpose I just love ranking, the stress, even if I normally hate stress given my anxiety, of trying to narrow them down, and the satisfaction of taking a ton of episodes and melting htem down into the best of them. And with a show as long and varied as regular show, If igured this was the best way to show it off before I dived into it eventually. I’ll obviously be doing more top, and bottom lists in the future, but for now this seemd like a godo place to get back to it. As Now a few more things before we finally get started. Yes I know i’ve gone on for a few years now but i’m almost done. This list is obviously, my opinon. If you disagree fine, and feel free to comment or shoot me an ask about it but I stand by my list and what I choose. I had to boil down over 60 episodes I picked to possibly be on the list and even after it was down to 40 cuts were really difficult, .. Also just as a quick note there are no episodes from seasons 1, 6, 7 and 8, and that’s not on purpose, as the last two seasons are really good, it just fell out that way and i’m sorry about it. So with that out of the way grabs some sodas and wings, get out your maxi gloves, and bring out your best sentient earworms wearing sunglassses, after the cut I count down the top 10 Regular Show episodes. OOOOOOOOO!

10. I Like You, Hi (Season 5, Episode 26) As you’ll be able to tell by the rest of this list Season 5 is my faviorite, and it’s where I feel the series hit it’s peak before next season lead to it’s valley. It’s got a ton of great episodes, as this list will attest, some great character development, and was still really damn funny. But what put it over the top for me was the Mordecai and CJ arc. At the end of the last season as you probably know the show wrote out Margret, having her finally get into college like she’d wanted since she got an actual character back in “Camping Be Cool” instead of just being “that hot girl mordecai really likes but is too scared to persue”, and another fantastic episode we’ll be getting to, Mordecai was in position to move on. Re-Enter CJ. CJ was introduced earlier in the season 3 ep “Yes Dude Yes” which itself is really good, where Mordecai thought margret was engaged and with Rigby’s encouragment, ended up meeting CJ, stands for Cloudy Jay if your curious, a sentient cloud voiced by the wonderful LInda Cardenelli, aka wendy from gravity falls and currently co star of the equally wonderful show Dead to Me. Seriously go check it out on netflix, it’s really good. It naturally went pearshaped since Margret wasn’t engaged, he tried going out with both, she turned into a thunderstorm out of rage... as you do.. it’s like the season 6 plot but less infurating and more understandable. But the two remeet, and had a kiss on new years while not knowing it’s the other person under am ask.. and then CJ ran and both thought the other was upset: MOrdecai for him being MOrdecai, and CJ for running out on him and agreed to be friends. That didn’t last, though it did give us another classic on this list, as while exes can be friends and all, the two still had something between them. Thus came this one. And it was a hard one as it barely inched out the finale of their relationship arc, Real Date, which had the ceo of a dating company try to break them up and be really damny funny but it’s ulitmatley this one being just as hilarious while being a great character piece that gets it the rub. As the episode opens Mordecai and CJ have been spending a LOT of time together and i’ts clear there’s a spark there.. but Mordecai insists it’s platonic. And yes there is a bad habit of animation being unable to accept females and males who are into the oppistie sex can’t be friends without being attracted to each other. It’s being cleared up more lately, but as Star Vs showed it still happens sometimes. But it works here: The two STARTED with dating, made out on new years, and are attracted to each other it’s just clear both were in denial about it. It’s not saying “well they have chemstiry so fuck their partners’ like star vs or “if you loved someone once those feelings will return and destroy yoru current relationship” like next season.... season 6′s arc is a tirefire burn it. But the issue is forced when, while texting about an extreme baking show together while CJ’s at her job at a sports bar, it autocrrects from Yuji, the show’s host, to you hi, sending the title message “I like you, hi”. Mordecai, being even less adept with his feelings and anxiety towards women than me and trust me that’s saying something, spirals and we do get the episodes best scene, narrowly beating out it’s climax, where Mordecai summons a war council.. aka the rest of the main cast minus benson but plus Thomas, the intern who I wish stuck around longer even after he turned out to be a russian spy because they ran out of ideas for him, voiced by Roger Craig Smith and distractingly using his future sonic voice.

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I just.. love everything about the scnee. From the term pulling a mordecai, to Rigby joining in, deservedly as he’s had front row seats for a lot of this bollocks, to everyone’s suggestions especially Muscle Man’s half assed one that somehow, but unsuprisngly, works for him and Starla. Naturally Mordecai comes up with what Rigby HIMSELF admits is a Rigby level half assed scheme to get an actual photo with Yuji rather than just admit the truth. Yuji himself is an utter delight, having had his star not rise as fast as he’d like thanks to autocorrect and being entirely on board, and when it backfires as MOrdecai ends up autocorrected and sends the message thrice and gets sucked into the phone again, admits i’ts “pretty extreme’. I love the guy and i’m prety sure he showed up again, to my delight.

In the phone Mordecai meets some old friends, the message guardians who I mentioned in the “insane shit this show has done” bit earlier: old forms of messaging who police texting, all voiced by Rich Fulcher of the Mighty Boosh and Snuffbox Fame.

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I love Rich and wish these guys could show up in close enough. Maybe they can, I don’t know how rights issues with turner properties work when it comes to two diffrent audiences entirely. Anyways what really makes the episode, besides the great callbacks in this scene, is when confronted with everything going on, Mordecai.. tries to run into the void, with Rigby, The Message Recorder and the Smoke Signal all encouraging him to come back. “There’s nothing out there for you, literally it’s just a blank void”. With the leading tape recorder pointing out from their text history not only how great CJ is but how much he seems to like her with Mordecai finally coming back and admitting the obvious: He does like her.. he’s just scared of beefing it again. Which he does but that’s not the point. Rigby, who as part of his character development helps Mordecai quite a bit with this stuff by being a neutral party, though he also likes CJ better than Margret which is a mood even though I don’t care which one you ship mordecai with frankly, you do you, I have my prefrences. And with that Mordecai finally texts her and asks her out, with her accepting via winky face.. with an added text to clarify it for his neuotic ass.. which is also a mood as my neuortic ass could use that a lot. Overall just a wonderful , hilarious and good bit of character growth.. that season 6 throws in the oven, but that’s a long rant for another day. On it’s own, “I LIke you, hi” is a good character piece for mordecai whlie still being really damn funny.

9. Thanksgiving Special (Season 5, Episode 15)

Regular Show was really damn great at holliday specials. Their terror tales from the park every halloween were always a nice treat and a good replacement for Simpsons “Treehouse of Horror” which still exists, it’s just no one cares at this point, and their christmas and new years episodes are both really damn good, the first Christmas Episode being in contention for this list even. But to me the best of the best was easily Season 5′s thanksgiving episode.

The premise is simple: Mordecai and Rigby accidnetly destroy thanksgiving dinner, which the park crew is having for everyone and their famllies and, refusing to take Benson trying to dismiss their attempts to help fix their mistake, end up joining a songwriting contest to try and win a Turducken.. a natural one that’s born every 1000 Years because this is regular show. To do this they have to beat a parody of everyone’s least faviorite president Donald Trump, Rich Buckner. The fact that trump was basically the main villian of a holliday special a year before he became president is not lost on me and is one of the most accurate depections of the man i’ve ever seen. The fact Rich steals the prize despite our boys winning from his blimp with a grappling hook is peak trump. The fact Trump has’nt stolen more things with a grappling hook in real life is only because his hands are too small to use one.

Getting past our president for my own sanity, the episode also has really great subplots: Muscle Man and Fives go to a sports bar to get sides and end up pissing off a former football player and getting into a touchdown dance comppetition, sadly not set to the super bowl shuffle, while Benson, Pops and Skips go to get a turkey and end up fighting over it with men dressed up like a piligrim, a first thanksgiving era native american and a turkey, to which they don’t even really give an explination for.. granted most explinatoins on this show are insane but even by regular show standards, this gets none. And I love it for it. While as you can tell the episode is really damn funny, what really sells it is the emotional core: For once while they do fear for their jobs a bit Mordecai and Rigby’s main motivation in this messup is genuine guilt and wanting to fix their mistake, and they work hard at it, even giving a genuine and awesome heartfelt song that notches itself up with other thanksgiving classics “That thankstiginv themed soul sketch on snl” and adam sandler’s turkey song also from snl. Not a high bar but it’s really good regardless

The episodes’ real strength though is it’s emotional core: For once instead of saving their own asses or understadnably wanting to get one over on the cranky and in the worse written episodes obnoxiously overbearing benson, they simply feel terrible about possibly runing the meal for their arriving parents and everyone elses parents and families and their friends and work to right the wrong. It’s not the first time they worked to do something genuinely good with no benefit to themselves, but it’s probably the best and Benson’s I forgive you, while hilarious is also really sweet. And speaking of sweet

It ends on a really sweet and touching note, as Mordecai and Rigby, after escaping a blimp via a wish on a golden wishbone because of course, make it home to find the various weirdos the park crew met have brought them thanksgiving, and their parents will be there and we get a nice touching ending as the main duo get a well earned toast from Benson. Just an out and out amazing thanksgiving special and a good reminder of what the holiday means.

8. Trucker Hall of Fame (Season 3, Episode 37)

Moving on from Season 5 for a second, Season 3 was where the show really started to hit it’s stride to me. While Season 2 was a nice increase in quality from the sometimes choppy and heavy on “everyone is an asshole” comedy season 1, Season 3 was where the increased focus on the rest of the cast outside of our main duo balloned and what seeds of character were planted in season 2 beautifully bloomed. And this episode is one of the best examples of that. This one focuses on Muscle Man, who earlier on was basically the main duo’s rival alongside his buddy high five ghost, and kind of a dick. While “Kind of a dick” never left any discription of Mitch Sorenstein, this and previous episode muscle woman showed there was more to the goblin man than we thought. It’s also one of regular show’s few early mostly serious episodes and unlike the benson ones, again this list was tough don’t come at me with a machete, and realy showed why muscle man is the human tire fire he is. The episode introduces, and quickly kills off, muscle dad, mitch’s dad who gave him a love of pranks and was a truck driver who died as he live: mistaking a fake bear for a real one during a prank. Muscle Man being not the most stable person on a GOOD day, spirals, as seen above, and Benson tasks mordecai and rigby, since Fives isn’t good with death ironically and isn’t holding up much better, and as a much later episode shows the two became besties in high school so he probably knew muscle dad for a good ten years so he’s probably not in a great place either, nice stuff, to go with him to put his dad’s ashes in the trucker hall of fame. What follows is a sweet and damn sad episode. While Mitch’s frequent breakkdowns can be hilarous their also really sad and having lost my grandpa since this episode aired, I can relate to being fine one minute and a total shrieking wreck the next over the smallest thing. But it also shows that Mitch genuinely thinks of our main duo as his friends, and that beneath his testorrone positned exterior he’s a decent guy, being genuinely greatful. Of course being regular show the 3 end up squaring off with some truckers, while Mitch also grappels with the revelation his dad wasn’t one but a forklift opperator who faked being a trucker for his son’s benifit and dleft a tender note in his picture, figuring correctly his son would break it open when he found out... oh and because this show is still nuts his ghost ends up saving them at the end which is really sweet , as mitch decides trucker or no his ashes deserve to be there. Also his ghost shows up again at thanksgiving so apparently he can just come back once in a while, which is nice but dosen’t demnish the bittersweet feeling of this ep. And as I said the show has a good grasp on continuity as this ep marked a turning point for our main duo and muscle man: while the’yve bonded before after this, aside from mitch’s habit of christmas pranks and his faking his death, they really don’t nearly get as annoyed by him ever again. i’ts a sweet touching ride tha’ts uncharacristic of the show’s usual chaos but really works.

7. A Bunch of Full Grown Geese (Season 4, Episode 19) After a few episodes that were more sentimental on this list, it’s good to get back to some good old regular show madness for this one, which was also the series 100th in production order and is a worthy milestone episode. Season 4 was really good building on the good will from Season 3 and FINALLY having payoff to the margret and mordecai thing, more on that in a bit. Not as much to say as seasons 3 or 5, but it was still spectacular. The sequel to another ep, fittingly given it’s #100, full grown geese has our duo tasked with removing a bunch of obnoxious geese, with Benson in dick mode refusing to give the two more help, though it does lead to one of the show’s best scenes when he gives his usual your fried threat.. and fitting a milestone episode, Rigby calls him on never going through with it and the threat being as empty as my dreams. Benson responds by going nuts and angrishing them out of his office.. really funny. But yeah with the geese attacking them and , in their first attacking, poor pops, and no way to combat them, the two turn to the baby ducks, a bunch of baby ducks from the episode titled that who show up to help.. and this being the 100th episode of an already grant morrison level nuts show, it turns out the geese seek to conquer earth, voiced by david warner of course and have laser eyes.. and can combine. And the ducks do so again, mecha style, and add in our heroes and a bunch of call backs in one of the series best and most batshit sequences> The ending is also throughly satisfying as while our heroes win, Benson chews them out for tearing up the park in the process.. only for the ducks mom to call him out for not only yelling at the ducks, who are just kids, but at mordecai and rigby after they just saved the park from being a smoldering crater and not just trashed and he backs off. Just a fun episode where the crew just went nuts and the results speak for themselves.

6. This is My Jam (Season 2, Episode 13)

Now this one I couldn’t NOT include. This is one of the series best even after it’s immense growth, and a beloved classic for a reason. And like the above it’s a good classic case of regular show hyjinks while also being relatable this time: Rigby gets a brainless but catchy pop song from the 90′s stuck in his head and despite growing to hate it, and Mordecai hating it because this episode establishes him as a hipster, and seemingly exercises it.. only for it to manifest as a GIANT CASETTE WEARING SUNGLASSES THAT PLAYS THE SONG JUST BY EXISTING AND DANCES CONSTANTLY. it’s utterly glorious and used to great effect, also annoying benson because he’s constnatly annoyed. To beat it the main duo get the rest of the park’s help at Skips suggestion to form a band and craft an even BIGGER earworm to cast it out. Oh and there’s a great scene where Pops is forced to awkwardly dance with the incarnation of the 90′s “But I won’t use my best moves”. The climax also has one of Benson’s best moments as, after he’s irritated all episode, he comes in hot, with both the cast and audience expecting him to chew out mordecai and rigby.. only he’s mad because they forgot drums are key to an earworm and saves the day with his drumwork. It’s a great subversion and one of the first times Benson was more than just the angry but understandable, at times, dickhead boss. Just an utter standout and one of the show’s most memorable episodes for a reason. Also the line “you can’t touch music but music can touch you’ is great.

5. Meteor Moves ( Season 4, Episode 28)

This one was a long time coming and to me is a great example of writers taking their own shortcomings and making something awesome out of them. I prefer that: instead of just retconning away bad writing use it as a tool.. I try to do that myself when possible. See early in the show as you all probably know, Mordecai’s crush on Margret was just a plot device: he had a crush on the cute waitress at the coffee shop so they used it to get him to do things. A gratioutis shot of her in bike shorts got him to bet all computer rights for life that sort of thing. The show.. wasn’t great with female characters till season 3 and even as it grew, as season 6 and just.. forgetting to give CJ a proper ending as a character shows, still grappled with it. It took writer Kat Morris saying “no no stop go to jail” to them wanting ot make CJ a difficult woman type, whatever horrifying thing that is. I don’t want to know, let’s move on. The point is it wasn’t till season 3 that Margret and her best friends, and Rigby’s future wife, Eileen got fleshed out a bit: Eileen got smarter and turned out to be good at wilderness stuff while Margret was chill, nice, if annoyed by the chaos around mordecai, and funloving, while also having a clear goal in stark contrast to her future boyfriend: going to college. Even after coming back it was botha fter finsihing college and to start a career. It wasn’t incredibly deep, but it made me not be ehhh to her mere existance like before. The show also started developing her and Mordecai’s relationship seriously with the two bonding and the previously shown Butt Dial showing for the first time, after previously having a terrible taste in men and then just not noticing his crush, that she was receptive to how mordecai felt. And the two had several moments and two dates even, it just.. never went anywhere for some reason.

And this was INFURATING to me: See back then shows had a tendency to just pop in love intrests SOLEY for plot fuel like margret with no intention of following through with things either through rejection or a relationsihp upgrade and by then I was sick of it. The whole spike and rarity thing in MLP (which to be clear I wanted her to just reject him but nope, even after I stopped watching she never did. ), Isabella and Phineas. I was fed up so I went from being “eh” about it to annoyed supremely.. but the thing is the writers realized this.. and course corrected. The first step was picking up Margret, where Mordecai agrees to pick her up to get her to the airport for a college interview and we get a nice deconstruction of things as Margret is anticpatiing things going wrong, and wrongly blames Mordecai for it.. I mean it is his fault sometimes but half the time weird shit just follows him. However she’s won over by him working past it, getting her there in time and kisses him. That blew me away and made me think well it’s finally here.. and it was.. ALMOST. However the creators wisely, if frustratingly to past me, took one more episode to iron it out: Metor Moves has the two growing closer, and semi-going out, but Rigby pops mordecai’s bubble pointing out he never actually made a boyfriend girlfriend move and her move could’ve gone either way. So Mordecai , after seasons of being wishy washy and awkward, finally decides to go for it as he, rigby, eileen and margret go to a metor shower. Being Regular Show it dosen’t go as planned as his attempted kiss is blocked by the guardians of the friend zone.. which is a real, phantom zone esque place here and that’s just fantastic. And it’s also clearly mocking the hell out of the concept, which is dumb. if you want to ask someone out just do it, I learned that the hard way. And if you really are friends, if she says no then you’ll accept it and keep a friend anyway as I have. But it’s clearly parodying it and Mordecai get sreplayed all the times he ALMOST made a move but didn’t but refuses to accept this clusterfuck, realizes he was a screwup when it came to this.. and kisses her.. and this time the two enter a relationship> Granted it barely lasted but still, it was nice while it did and this ep is just great for it. While not the funniest, it’s up this high because it took somethign the show did wrong.. and turned it on it’s head and into a character flaw and had mordecai grow past it, with a genuinely romantic moment on top as well as an utterly funny and batshit concept. It also had some Rigleen, as by this point rigby stopped being a hateful wastebasket to her and warmed up to her, and I regret there’s no reigleen episodes on this list. Their the shows best couple and utterly adorable. Just wanted to mention that at least once this list.

4. Laundry Woes (Season 5, Episode 1) From the begining to the end. While sadly Morderet didn’t last too long in canon, which blows, it did give us some great episodes while it lasted, as with the above entry and their breakup in Steak Me Amedeus. As mentioned before Margret left for college, which while abrupt feeling did pave the way for great stories: The Mordejay arc mentioned above and that will pop up again very soon, This was one of them: the ep while lacking on laughs is a good emotional rollercoaster and starts with an amazing montage that catches us up from the end of season 4: Mordecai is miserable, as you’d expect and wallowing in it with Benson, of all people, letting him. And given Benson seems to have a heart attack any time Mordecai and Rigby aren’t working, that’s huge. But eventually his friends refuse to let it go on and in a really touching montage help him through it, taking him out places, giving him good times and eventually.. the fog starts to lift and he starts to enjoy himself and by the end.. he’s himself again. It’s one of the series best sequences, told with no dialouge and showing just how far the rest of the cast had come: Benson actually wants to comfort mordecai but is encouraged not to at first, underfstandably as it probably woudlnt’ help, and a crew that were once, aside from Pops who much like Krillin is everyone’s friend, just coworkers who barely tolerated each other, and are now close as family and help their own in need. But Grief isn’t a straight line and just as Mordecai’s recovering he’s sent spiraling when he finds Margret’s sweater and uses ita s a flimsy excuse to go return it. It’s here I also get to talk about Rigby, who grew from an impatient idiot who hated Mordecai’s romantic endevors and actively sabtoaged them at times, to an understandting wing man who, while understandably frustrated with his best friend’s own idiocy with women, turned out to know more and be the wise council he needed, triggering both is relationships and only bailing out during the season 6 clusterfuck and even then was there to comfort him after it was all over and go to his aid to pull him out of another misery hole. And here he gives Mordecai the hard truth: He shoudln’t do this, it’s just going to tear both him and margret up again and he just put himself back together. He’s not going to let his best friend do this to himself. And while there is a supernatural elment, the sweater comes to life and tries to get Mordecai to force margret back with him and give up college, likely voicing his darkest wants that he hates himself for wanting, but it feels more like a manfiestation of Mordecai’s own issues than the usual madness. Like “Trucker hall of Fame”, a rare senntence, it’s a less funny packed more grounded episode. And in the end it’s mordecai himself, after rejecting the ghost sweater and seeing his ex truly happy , that gets him to NOT talk to her and just.. let it go. IT’s a good emotional episode and SHOULD HAVE BEEN the end of their relationship... but i’ve ranted about the cheating storyarc enough here, moving right along.

3. Portable Toilet (Season 5, Episode 16) Back to the Mordejay arc. And yes this arc is my faviorite and while I didn’t make it clear at the time I really shipped the two, even before it became canon. I had nothing against morderet, these two simply had more chemistry and these episodes built CJ up as more of a character than Margret was at the time. It’s why that later arc sucks so much to me: it destroys a perfectly good relationship and story arc for dumb reasons and never really did enough with it to justify doing so. I’ll get to it some day, or if someone comissions it soone rthan some day, but as you can tell i’m still sore over it and great eps like this are part of the reason why. It’s the same reason i’m sore on how Tom was handled on star vs. But as you can also tell as bitter and lemon scented as I am.. these eps are still objectivley great and thus took up a third of the list basically. Case in point Portable Toilet, which zooms back a bit to when neither would admit they were into each other but were now friends at least. Also Eileen was CJ”s friend now because plot convience. I mean they worked, and it bothers me a lot that the creators claim cj washed her hands of her even though she’s not the one who made out with margret... which come to think of it adding her to rigleen.. not a bad idea. I mean Rigby didn’t really like margret true, but they did almost go out before mordecai killed him and then reset time because Mordecai’s always kinda sucked. I’ll file that away for later. But my new OTP aside, I did like the two bonding and what not. Anyways with their outside park friend/RIgby’s future girlfriend now friends with Mordeai’s future girlfriend the four have apparently been hanging out which, while i’ve bemoaned off screen stuff at times, works here and regular show uses it better than most shows. While Rigby can clearly see Mordecai and CJ are into each other Mordecai is as we covered in denial and while that dosen’t really progress here, it does lead to one of teh shows finest hours. When talking would you rathers, CJ semi-flirtly dares Mordecai to eat his lunch sandwitch in a portable toilet, which he agrees to and drags a reluctant rigby along for. This being regular show, it goes south fast as the two get stuck, with Rigby’s clautrophiba kicking in leading to an amazing exchange Mordecai; Dude that makes no sense! Rigby: You’s makes no sense! While our dynamic duo try to get mordecai and rigby out the two are carted away and repalced with a new portable toilet, a deluxe one. Also we get another great bit when our dynamic duo find Muscle man, in a robe with choclate’s claming “Eileen, other girl, this isn’t weird” before screaming “This isn’t weird”. Turns out old portable toilets are taken to be blown up by the miltary and we get one of the shows best one off characters in the general, who not only explains it as “toilets being about the same size as the enmy” but when told he should call the president says “the preseident is not my father i’ll blow up as many toilets as I want.”. Spectacular. So now it’s a scramble for one twosome to rescue the other, Rigby lets out a cathartic “THANK YOUUU MORDECAI” over the flirty toilet dare, and the day is saved> This one is another pure comedy one, even if it ties into a plot I really like, and i’ts gold for obvious reasons and manages to take blowing up porta poties, a premise that dosen’t seem that funny, and make it utter comedic gold. Speaking of pure comic episodes that are utterly insane...

2. Cool Bikes (Season 3, Episode 7)

This one feels like regular show boiled down to it’s core: semi-relabtale hyjinks dovetalling into pure madness. And the premise sounds like a shit post i’d make: Mordecai and Rigby want benson to admit their cool and get into progressively weird outfits and tricks to their bycycles to do so, eventually becoming so cool their put on trial by the council of cool , ending up having to make a runner when Benson finally breaks down and admits it. The premise is utterly stupid in the best way possible, with the conflict being the kind of petty bullshit we all get into from time to time with our aquantinces: not wanting to admit something and loose the argument withthings escalating. And in regular show terms it escalate sperfectly into the entire unvierse being threatned adn our heros being on trial for their lives. There’s not much to say here, it’s just pure comedic gold with a premise that just works. It also has good moments for Benson with his finally admitting they are cool and saving the duo’s lives whne he realized he just gave them a death sentence. Utter fun. And now we come to the finale, my faviorite episode...

1. Dodge This (Season 5, Episode 15)

Yup this arc again. But this one has more than my ship going for it, and it’s why it soared to the top: It takes the excellent character work of other episodes and weaves it with excellent comedy to create an utter delight and the episode I remember most fondly and most often. It’s just great. The second part of the Mordeijay arc, not counting yes dude yes, the episode is half that and half sports movie: The Park Guys have been taking part in dodgeball as a team bulding thing and it shows how far Benson’s come as he not only praises mordecai, and launches the mordecai and benson ship in the process, but gives his team full wings and his full support, a far cry from his usual self. It’s also the first big instance of him getting hammered on wings and it’s glorious to see drunk flirty benson. Benson is also genuinely congratulatory to the team’s ace mordecai, and most of them realy for b eing valuable and hopes to win this year. IN their way are two things: The magical elements, aka the floating baby heads that gave skips his immortality, his friend with sparkly eyes who works for them and death himself whose a recurring character and fucking great and who were their bowling rivals too. The other is CJ is back, and Benson in another good moment actually talks mordecai through it and his nerves over it assuring him. So we get a great sports piece as our heroes work through various callbacks and even beat the magical elements iwth Rigby’s hilarious and rediculous rignado manuver, which is as dumb as it sounds and winged a guy hilaroiusly before with Benson scolding him like a toddler. Of course it ends up with Mordecai and CJ against each other, both incredibly awkard over things as mentioned before, and both ending up in a stalmate that magical dodgeball guardians have to resolve because, let’s do this one last time. IT’S REGULAR SHOW. We do get a good moment though as the two work through their awkwardness: both thinking the other is rightfully mad: Mordecai for his two timer date with her and Margret and CJ for running out without talking to mordecai after they had a moment on new years. The both work past it, the park strikers loose,benson likely gets hammered again off screen.. it’s a good one and I have no shame in putting it at number one. It’s got heart, really great jokes, and some good charcter stuff, not to the level of other episodes on this list, but it wasn’t a full episode of that like those were and still works to move the plot forward and is still a classic. Just a fun, breezy, well done epsidoe fully rooted in the cast’s characters and getting laughs out of that.. mostly benson. And with that this giangantic list comes to a close> I hope you enjoyed it, if you liked it follow me for more. I’ll be doing close enough coverage every week, as well as amphibia and owl house among other reviews. Until we meet again, later days.

#regular show #mordecai #rigby #cj #eileen #margret #muscle man #benson dunwoody #high five ghost #pops mallerd #skips #death #yuji #rich fulcher #close enough #top 10 lists #cartoon network

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lefaystrent · 5 years

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Could you write a short story where Virgil is out at a store, Deceit and Remus spot him. Virgil is like F social interaction. Then is only rude because he really didn't feel like being noticed by people who recognize him. (Patton could be another costumer, Roman a cashier who is working there when not acting, Logan getting supplies for a science class at school)

A Storm Rolled into Town

Fandom: Thomas Sanders,Sanders Sides

Pairings: none

Summary: It’s not likeVirgil meant to become famous anyway. It just sorta happened. And now he’sshopping in some small-town mom-and-pop store on a weekday morning. Despitewearing the hood of his jacket up and perhaps looking the more conspicuous forit, he can sense that someone somewhere in this store is watching him.

Word Count: 2150

________________________________________________________________

Virgil Storm was born with eyes inthe back of his head.

Not literally. It was mostly justanxiety and paranoia working in tandem to create a 360° zone of caffeinated caution.A necessary skill when you became part of the famous crowd. All it took was onecrazy person with a knife screaming about how you’re meant to be together, andthen you’re fucking dead.

Not that Virgil had been assaultedby anyone.

Yet.

He has had experiences witha couple of stalkers before that were quickly handled. It’s amazing how whenmore than a handful of people know your name and can buy your merch, theirsense of entitlement turns you into a thing to be owned.

It’s not like Virgil meant tobecome famous anyway. It just sorta happened.

And now he’s shopping in some small-townmom-and-pop store on a weekday morning. He had to make a pit-stop on his longdrive back home to Florida. Sure, he could have gotten home faster if he’dridden in a plane. He could also set this store on fire or go jump in a lakewhile strapped to an anvil. Doesn’t mean he’s going to.

The point is, Virgil is very awareof how famous he is, and despite wearing the hood of his jacket up and perhapslooking the more conspicuous for it, he can sense that someone somewhere inthis store is watching him.

Virgil glances down the aislebehind him, but there’s nothing. Again.

He lets out a huff of air andcontinues to peruse the candy section. He’s got a craving for something sour,but he’s not looking to get accosted here.

He swipes up a packet of gummy wormsand goes around to the chip rack next. Virgil subtly peeks around the store,noting the two guys manning the register counter. They look young, maybe aroundtwenty. They’re more talking and laughing rather than working. Other than them,there’s this one nerdy looking guy in a tie and glasses over by the stationary.The store seems empty otherwise.

Virgil picks up a large bag of sourcream ‘n onion and nearly screams when there’s a mustached face poking out inthe space left behind.

“Boo!” the man says.

“Fuck off!” Virgil growls andthrows the chip bag right at the face.

A series of snickers come back fromthe candy aisle that Virgil had just vacated. Pissed off and heart racing, hewhips his head around to see some guy in a bowler hat.

“I do believe the phrase ‘got you’fits this scene well,” Bowler Hat says.

“You didn’t ‘get’ anything,” Virgilhisses.

“Oh? So you didn’t just jump likeyou’d seen a ghost?”

“He definitely jumped, Dee! He evenpeed his pants!” Mustached Man cackled, coming out from behind the chip rack.

“I didn’t—” Virgil went to defendhimself but found it pointless. These guys just seemed like assholes. “Justleave me alone.”

“Oh poo, have some fun would you?”

“Now Remus, let’s not annoy him toomuch. Wouldn’t want him to storm out.”

Storm.

He made it very clear that he knewVirgil’s last name. If the pointed pun didn’t say as much, the smarmy grin onBowler Hat’s face surely did.

Virgil tried not to show how muchthat got to him.

“So what? You know who I am. Bigdeal. Buzz off and let me shop in peace.” If these two kept harassing him orworse, Virgil could always threaten to call the cops. Then again, cops took afew minutes to respond, and it only took less than a second to die.

New plan. Virgil could throw downthe chip rack and then run for his life. And if that didn’t work, he carriedpepper spray on his person for a reason.

“What brings someone such asyourself to our neck of the woods?” Bowler Hat questioned, not leaving Virgilalone in the slightest.

Mustached Man jumped up beside hisfriend, leaning an arm against his shoulder to loudly whisper, “I bet he needsto hide a dead body!”

Virgil’s eye twitched. “Yeah,because that’s the only reasonable explanation, right?”

Mustached Man nodded in agreement. “Nothingelse to do around here.”

“It does get rather dull here,”Bowler Hat mused. He brushed his gloved fingers over his chin.

Seriously, who the hell were theseguys? And were they intentionally being low-key threatening? Perhaps not, butthat’s how they were coming across anyway.

“That’s nice.” Virgil smiled in away that showed his utter contempt. Better than showing his fear. “Now if you’redone bothering me, I’ve got things to buy.”

He would have liked something morethan just the gummy worms, but he no longer felt hungry enough to risk hislife.

Virgil walked away, his stepspicking up speed as he heard Mustached Man barking at him.

He was never stopping anywhere everagain.

________________________________________________________________

Roman sat at the register counter,bored out of his mind.

“Patton, my loyal companion. Remindme why we’re here again?”

“Because we get paid to be here.”

“Ah.” Roman nodded, eyes narrowedin deep understanding.

Then he slumped over with a whimperingwhine. His head banged against the countertop.

“Awww, cheer up Ro-Ro! We’ve only gota few more hours left of our shift!”

“My shackled soul is unmoved byyour comfort. They are but mere words in the face of unforgiving oppression.”

“…so what you’re saying is that youneed a pun, right? Or maybe a hug. A combination of the two? A pug. Oh!Doggy!”

Roman snorted as Patton’s train ofthought derailed. He sat up to stare at his coworker and long-time friend.

He snapped his fingers. “Focus,Puffball.”

“Oh, right,” Patton said,refocusing. His expression became determined. “Go on and get all the angst out,kiddo. I’m all ears.”

“Retail suuuuuucks,” Roman concluded.“My creative spirit yearns for a place I can spread my wings and thrive! I ammeant for bigger and better stages. You see this face? You hear this voice? Alltoo good to be squandered away in Backwoodsville, Tennessee.”

“We don’t live in Tennessee.”

“My point is that I am a work ofart, and yet I am left collecting dust in grandma’s attic. It is a crime! Theuniverse should give me a break already.”

From the stationary aisle, afamiliar voice contributed to the conversation, “Perhaps if you put nearly asmuch effort into publicizing yourself to the entertainment community instead ofwhining, you wouldn’t be stuck where you are now.”

Roman slammed a hand on thecounter. “No one asked you, Microsoft Nerd!”

Logan smirked and resumed hisshopping. They knew each other of course. It was hard not to recognize everyonewhen you worked in one of the only stores in town. Plus all three of them hadgone to high school together.

Patton patted Roman’s shoulder insympathy. “I think what Logan’s trying to say is that you’ve got loads of potentialand I’m sure someone’s going to notice one day.”

“That is not what I said at all,but go off I guess,” Logan stated.

Roman flipped him off. Somehow, despitehis back turned to him, Logan must have sensed it and returned the gesture rightback to him.

Patton swatted at Roman’s hands. “Don’tbe ugly!”

“That’s impossible for someone likeme.” Roman grinned.

Patton sighed. “What am I going todo with you?”

“Love me, of course.”

Patton giggled.

“Hi,” a clipped voice cut in. Romantore his attention away from the agony of his life to regard the customer athis counter.

Roman hopped up from his seat andshifted flawlessly into his customer service spiel. “Hello! Ready to check out?”

“Yeah,” the man nodded, his hoodfalling back a bit at the movement.

Roman smiled. He recognized thejacket brand and was about to compliment the customer’s taste.

Their eyes met briefly and Roman’sheart exploded.

Virgil Storm.

Virgil freaking Storm was standingat his register counter.

No. No it couldn’t—

HOLY SHIT!

“That’s it,” Virgil Storm said,tossing a pack of sour gummy worms onto the counter. He briefly glanced overhis shoulder as if to look for something. He wasn’t really paying attention toRoman, so he didn’t catch being ogled.

Oh god, Virgil Storm was standingat his register. No matter how many times Roman looked, Virgil Stormstood there, and all Roman could do was ogle him.

Roman suddenly found the candypacket very interesting.

If he kept his head down, nothingbad would happen, right?

“Uh . . . that’s it,” Virgil saidagain, and Roman realized that he’d been standing there frozen.

Willing his limbs to unthaw, Romanmechanically reached for the candy and ran it over the scanner. A beep sounded,and with a stiff arm, he punched for the total.

“Your total is . . . a number.”

“What?”

Roman couldn’t even look up farenough to check the screen. How could he? When one of his idols stood beforehim. He owned all of this man’s albums, for God’s sake!

“Yes,” Roman said, as if thatexplained everything.

“Okay . . .” Virgil said. Heshuffled, presumably getting his wallet out or something. Internally, Roman wasscreaming to Patton for help, but sadly his friend had never mastered telepathy.In fact, he had no idea what Patton was doing right now. He wasn’t sayinganything, that was for sure. Did he even recognize the celebrity in their storeright now?

“Here,” Virgil offered a five-dollarbill.

Roman blinked at it. Wasn’t VirgilStorm rich? Why was he using cash when he could use a card?

Carefully, lest he mess up andforever embarrass himself, Roman reached up and took the bill from him. Theirfingers weren’t even close to touching, but Roman still felt like he’d steppedon a live-wire, a shock racing through his system.

Roman had dreamed many a time ofcasually running into his idols. He imagined nearly daily of becoming likethem, of leaving his mark, of impressing those that he looked up to. He wouldbe suave and graceful and witty, a dazzling star in the making who would sweepthem off their feet.

Instead Roman hunched in on himselfand began to cry.

“Oh shit, are you okay?” VirgilStorm asked him, and that somehow made everything worse.

Roman covered his face with hishands and sniffled. “I’m just feeling a little emotional right now.”

How mortifying.

A hand rubbed at his back. “Sorry,he’s having a quarter-life crisis,” he heard Patton explain.

Roman threw up his arms,tear-streaked face be damned. “PATTON! That’s not why I’m crying.”

“It’s okay Ro, it happens to a lotof people. It’s nothing to be ashamed about.”

“I knew retail work was hell, butgeez,” Virgil commented.

Patton nodded in sympathy. “Hereally wants to be on Broadway someday.”

“Patton,” Roman gasped in admonishment.“You can’t just be telling V— telling people about my silly dreams.”

“Why’s it silly?” Patton asked. “You’reso talented! You’ll make it, I know you will. You’ve just gotta keep trying.”

This could not be happening rightnow. Roman wanted to curl up in the employee’s bathroom and die.

“Broadway, huh?” Virgil asked.

Screw going to the bathroom. Roman coulddie on the spot.

“Ridiculous, huh?” Roman tried tolaugh at himself. If he laughed at himself first, it’d hurt less when everyoneelse did.

Virgil shrugged. “Not really.Someone’s got to do it, right?”

Oh.

No rejection.

Just a practical sense of hope.

Someone’s got to do it, and thatcould be him.

Roman blushed and gazed down at hisfeet. “Thank you . . .”

“No problem. Just uh, feel better Iguess.”

It was clear Virgil found this situationawkward but was trying to be considerate. For that, Roman was extremely grateful.

“Dee! Remus! What are you doing inhere? You know you’re banned!” Patton hollered, moving around the counter. Hehad his stern face on and a broom in hand. The two troublemakers would do wellto run while they still could.

They watched Patton chase Dee andRemus off.

“Does that happen a lot?” Virgilasked Roman.

“Only about every other day.”

Virgil didn’t say anything, soRoman went ahead and finished the transaction.

“Here’s your change,” Roman saidmeekly, handing the correct amount back to him.

“Thanks,” Virgil said, pocketingthe money. He picked up his gummy worms yet hesitated.

“Something else?” Roman wondered.

Virgil scratched the back of hishead. “To be honest, I wanted to get more stuff. But those guys were beingcreepy . . . But they’re gone now, so . . . would it be weird if I went to getmore stuff?”

Roman’s lips twitched up into asmile. “You didn’t judge me, so I’m not going to judge you.”

Virgil smirked. “Thanks.”

___________________________________________

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lonestarbabe · 4 years

Text

Holding Out For a Hero

Chapter 4: I’m Fine (AO3)

Marjan is worried about T.K. and enlists the help of Carlos to make sure T.K. is okay. Things heat up between T.K. and Carlos... but in an angry way... for now. Carlos learns more about T.K. while T.K. starts to think that Carlos may actually care.

T.K.

It was a Wednesday, but T.K. didn’t know which one. He only knew that the pool cleaner had been outside earlier. The pool cleaner came on Wednesdays, so it had to be Wednesday. He was almost positive it was March but coming up with the month took a few seconds too long as alcohol and Oxy muted his mind. “Maybe you should slow down a little,” Marjan suggested, looking at T.K. with her usual disapproving look. If T.K. knew she’d planned on coming over, he would have saved the drugs and alcohol for later in the evening. Marjan didn’t consume either, and while she didn’t mind being around people who were drinking or maybe even smoking some weed, she wasn’t shy about telling him why he should avoid those things. She thinks I’m an addict, but I’m just having fun. As much fun as a miserable person can have, at least.

“Don’t be a kill joy Marjan.” She always wants to spoil my fun. Some best friend she is. I don’t need her to look after me, no matter what she thinks. Between her, Judd, and the new bodyguard, I’ll never get a moment to myself.

“Slow down,” Marjan told him again, pulling the bottle of vodka from his hand and putting it out of his reach. “I know you already had pills, and you shouldn’t be mixing that crap together.”

“Okay, Doctor Marwani.”

“I’m a first responder. I know a thing or two about these things, but of course, teen heartthrob T.K. Strand doesn’t like to listen to rules. It’s not cute to be a bad boy anymore.” She sounded annoyed, but her eyes were terrified. Look what I do to everyone around me. I put them through shit, and I act like an asshole, even though I’d give them literally anything they asked.

“You’re such a rule follower. Are all firefighters as boring as you?” T.K. lamented. “You can’t get anywhere if you go slow. Did Michael Phelps ever slow down?” T.K. added, grabbing a new bottle and watching amber liquid fill his glass. He took the shot of tequila just to prove a point. Stings more than vodka, and I kind of like it.

“No, he didn’t, and now you see him sitting in an empty pool in those Better Help commercials. Do you want that to be you?” Yeah, sitting in an empty pool might be pretty fun, but you can’t drown in it. Unless you find something other than water to drown yourself in. Wouldn’t it be funny to drown at the bottom of an empty pool?

“That’s because he stopped swimming. He let his feelings catch up with him. If you don’t ever stop, nothing can ever catch up to you. That’s why I gotta keep going.”

“Everyone has to stop eventually, T.K. People get old and slow. They can’t win races forever. You just better hope that you’re the one who makes that decision and that it isn’t the universe that steps in and slows you down.”

“Give me too much time to stop and think, and I’ll go crazy. There’s nothing that you, Judd, or any hot bodyguard can do about it.”

“Hot bodyguard? Don’t tell me it’s another Mr. Clean.” Oh, yes, the Mr. Cleans. So many bodyguards he’d had were bald and had an uncanny resemblance to Mr. Clean. He figured Judd just thought those guys looked responsible. Mr. Cleans were attractive, sometimes, but in a one-night stand kind of way. Let ‘em use you and then clean you away with their magic erasers.

T.K. shook his head. “This one isn’t just hot in an ironic way. He’s an ex-cop.” T.K. had done a quick— two-hour— internet search into Carlos. Carlos kept a pretty low profile, but T.K. had learned enough about him to guess how he ticked. He also knew that he had an ex-boyfriend, so he at least liked men.

“And you say that you don’t have a type.”

“He’s an ex-cop.”

“Still. Once a cop, always a cop.”

“I don’t care what he was or what he is. I’m just saying he’s hot. He hates fun just like you, but he’s hot.”

“Don’t harass him, Tyler Kennedy.”

“Don’t call me Tyler Kennedy, Marjan Marwani.”

“Marwani isn’t even my middle name.”

He stuck his tongue out at her. “Whatever. It’s not like I’m going to seduce him, anyway. I don’t do the chasing. People chase me.”

She looked at him like he was full of shit. “I’ve watched you chase plenty of guys. You practically mauled that big one last week.”

“Fucks, not dates. It’s different.”

“Yeah, because all you care about is having fun, I get it. T.K. Strand can never take anything further than a fuck,” she replied sarcastically. She doesn’t believe a single word of my bullshit, and that’s something I love and hate about her.

“I choose not to. Dates don’t like hanging out with party boys.”

“The issue is that party boys refuse to stay sober.”

“I’m sober a lot. Far too much for my liking, actually,” T.K. quipped.

“Yeah, I know. That’s exactly my point. You know, I rescue idiots like you every day. People who think they’re just having fun when they’re not having fun at all. They hate what they’re doing. They’re just being dangerous and stupid for no other reason than having a gap they need to fill.”

“I’m not dangerous. I’m really safe when I take anything. I don’t run heavy machinery when I’m high— not even my can opener. I’m careful, Marjan.”

She laughed. “Yeah that damn automatic can opener Judd got you could decapitate a person if they got their head too close.” Her face returned to concerned. “But don’t distract me with the Strand charm. I’m serious, T.K. I’m not worried about you getting other people hurt. I know you wouldn’t get in a car or endanger other people intentionally, but shit still happens. You’re going to do something to yourself that you can’t take back.”

“Maybe I’ll get a Better Help commercial out of it,” he said with a grin. When I’m washed up and the crowds stop coming to my shows, I’ll be one of those celebrities who has to resort to paid testimonials. I’ll suffer the horrifying ordeal of being known, forgotten, and known again as a relic from a time that had almost been erased from people’s memories. The voice from a song they used to love (or hate).

She punched him in the arm. “If you don’t shut up…” but she couldn’t help the smile that was on her face. “You look at the world so differently than I do.”

“Yeah, that’s for sure. Why are we even friends? I was trying to date a firefighter, not become best friends with his coworker.”

“Bob was forty-five with a wife and kids. You had to know it was never happening” Bob had a great dad bod.

“Why should that have stopped me?”

Marjan crossed her arms. “Your daddy issues are showing.”

“I don’t have daddy issues,” T.K. protested. My dad died a long time ago, and I’m totally over it. It’s not like he left me. He just left and never came back. He hugged me goodbye, went to work, and then just like that, he was gone. It wasn’t fair, but it was nothing he did. He died a hero, and now, there’s no hero left to save me. Not that I need one. I’m fine. Great even. I hate my life, but I’m surrounded by wonderful things. I would be happy if I wasn’t such a dreadful person.

“Your father was a firefighter and you wanted to date a firefighter old enough to be your father. Sounds like daddy issues to me.”

“You don’t get it because you don’t have daddy issues. I wasn’t interested because he was old or a firefighter. It was because he was hot… and looked nothing like my father for your information.”

“I’m just saying you never really dealt with your dad’s death.”

“It’s been two decades! Of course, I dealt with it. Mom made me go to therapy.”

“I’m guessing you didn’t take therapy seriously.”

“It only lasted a couple weeks before I threw a fit and convinced mom it did more harm than good.”

“See, you need to actually address your issues, T.K.”

“When did you get your psychology degree, anyway?”

“First, you tell me I’m not a doctor, and now you tell me I’m not a psychologist. You’re getting very predictable, Teek. And very defensive on top of that.”

“That’s not fair. I can’t say I’m not defensive without being defensive!”

“Sucks to be a loser.” Marjan made it her goal in life to win at everything.

“We all can’t be good at everything like you, Miss Has Gone Viral Eight Times.”

“It was only six, and I don’t think you stop going viral… ever. I always see your annoying face wherever I go— in magazines at grocery stores or billboards. I went on a date once with this girl, and when I went home with her, she had a big poster of you over her bed. Really killed the mood.”

“Any of the guys you dated have a poster of me?”

“One had a bobblehead.”

T.K. cringed. “That’s worse than a poster.”

“How? The poster is a lot bigger. I could shove the bobblehead in a drawer.”

“It’s unofficial merch,” T.K. explained.

“Oh, yes, the dreaded unofficial merch. How will you ever live without your cut of the money? You could have two Porsches by now if only you sold bobbleheads.” He didn’t mention that he could buy more than two Porsches if he wanted because he was sure she already knew that.

“The Barbie doll was nightmare enough. It looked like they glued feathers on my head.”

“I still have that doll. Just for when I need a good laugh.”

Marjan uncrossed her legs and got up to go to the kitchen. “While I wish I could stay to talk, I have a shift in an hour, so I have to go. The captain doesn’t like my attitude as it is, which means being late would take me from his bad list to his firing list.” She shrugged. “It’s not my fault that I’m allergic to poor leadership.”

“That’s one hell of an allergy, Marj,” he shook his head at her. “If you’re trying to leave, the door isn’t in the kitchen. My mind is a little warped right now, but even I know that.”

Marjan put a water glass next to T.K. “I don’t want you to die. The hangover is probably unavoidable. But hydrate.”

“Why do you have to go? I thought your next shift wasn’t until Friday.”

“It is Friday. Hence why I have to go.” She told him impatiently. “Do you pay attention at all?”

“No, the pool cleaner came today. It’s Wednesday.”

“The pool cleaner comes on Thursdays, T.K. He came yesterday.” He checked his phone and saw that yes, it was Friday. Oof wonder where the time went.

“Fuck. Why does the week need seven days?”

“That’s it. I’m calling Judd.”

“He’s in Texas with Grace. I’m fine, Marwani. Go to work. Billy the Bully isn’t going to wait.” She sighed, looking torn about leaving him, but T.K. wasn’t going to be the reason Marjan got in trouble. Just because I can’t keep my shit together doesn’t mean I should drag everyone down into my miserable life.”

“I’m calling your new bodyguard.”

“No, you’re not.” He didn’t want the only times that Carlos saw him to be when he was indisposed. Carlos probably already hated him, and T.K., as much as he hated bodyguards, did not want to start again with a new bodyguard. If this didn’t work, Judd would probably call in a drill sergeant. Anyone but Carlos.

“I am. Maybe he can come sit with you for a while.”

“No way. You can’t call him on his day off.”

“There aren’t a lot of options right now. If he says no, he says no.” She’s so persistent. She won’t take no for an answer. Not with me, not with Carlos. “He might not be busy. He’s new to town, so he probably hasn’t made a lot of friends yet.”

“I’m not letting a hot guy see me in sweatpants and a hoodie.”

“That’s like your uniform.”

“Yeah, but it’s not for people who haven’t seen the shit show. I don’t want him to think I’m a slob.”

“Oh, so you care about his opinion? Give me his number. You know I won’t leave until you do.” She waited not so patiently for a response. “I guess I could ask Judd. Interrupt his nice trip with his wife, but you won’t make me do that, will you?” Friends are the worst.

“No, do not bother anyone. I’ll give you the number.” He sighed, fumbling for his phone. You’re a real psycho, you know that?” Marjan swiped the phone from his hands before he could even unlock it. She punched in the code. I really need to change that. “He’s listed under—”

“Hot Body Bodyguard, yeah, I got it.” She chuckled. “You’re so obvious.”

“Delete his number from your phone when you’re done.” He didn’t want Marjan talking to Carlos on the regular. That would be a disaster.

“Do you even know me?” Marjan laughed. “I still have Aaron’s number. This one isn’t going anywhere. I may delete Aaron’s though. I think it’s time.”

“Aaron?” He didn’t know who the hell that was. Was he somebody I slept with? One of Marjan’s exes?

“Mr. Clean #3.” Oh, him. He wasn’t so bad, but not at all personable. Hated the very idea of fun. Treated me like a toddler. Slightly attractive.

“Don’t remind me. He was awful.” T.K. groaned. He flipped his hand in the air to wave her away. “Go to work already.”

“Yeah, okay.” She finished up a couple of texts and stuck her phone in her purse. “I’ll see you later. Probably tomorrow, so don’t get drunk before five. No drugs either. I want you clear headed. I have boy issues to talk about.”

“I don’t get wasted every night, but okay. Cannot wait for your boy issues.”

Marjan smiled. “Good.” Before heading out the door, she turned to give him one last look. “Seriously, dude, be careful. I’d be really pissed if something happened to you.” Marjan always started throwing in “dude” when her emotions were getting the best of her.

“You’re the one who dives into fires for a living.”

“Yeah, but I do it with equipment. You dive into fires just to see if they’ll burn you.” She doesn’t understand that sometimes the burn feels better the numbness.

Carlos

Carlos’ plans were interrupted by a series of three pings on his phone. He picked his phone up, immediately having a bad feeling when he saw an unknown number. He was used to calls from unfamiliar numbers, but texts were rarer.

You need to get to T.K.’s house.

This is Marjan by the way. Marjan Marwani.

I’m T.K.’s best friend (reluctantly).

As he read the messages, Carlos stood from his couch, beginning to pace across his floor as his brows scrunched in consternation. This was not how he saw his day off going. T.K. better not be dead. I’m not going to lose that idiot if I can help it. I told Judd I’d protect him, and I don’t plan on backing down on my promise no matter how irritating T.K. can be.

What? Why? Is something wrong?

Carlos had just settled in from going to the store and was about to call his mom before cracking open a beer and watching TV. He was a worrier, so he couldn’t help thinking that something truly awful had happened. It can’t be that bad if T.K.’s friend is making jokes, Carlos reassured himself, but the chance that things might not be okay twisted Carlos’ stomach. I’m not going to let some bratty popstar ruin my evening. He’s probably just drunk and looking to do something stupid. I don’t need to deal with this.

Is it an emergency?

I’m not on duty, so I can’t just go over there if he doesn’t want me to.

Carlos had a bad feeling that his curiosity and worry would get the best of him, and he’d end up at T.K.’s mansion that was far too large for just one person. T.K. was difficult, but there was also something infectious about him. You couldn’t help but root for him or worry that he might not be okay.

He’s drunk and high. He shouldn’t be alone.

Please, just stay with him. He hates being alone.

I would but my boss is an asshole.

Please. Judd is away, and there’s no one else to call. He doesn’t have a lot of real friends.

He doesn’t even like me.

There was a thirty-minute delay before another text came in, and Carlos sat in suspense, worrying about all the things that can happen in thirty minutes.

Sorry. I was going to work. He likes you fine, and even if he didn’t, he’ll let you in because I told him to.

You’ve got blackmail on him or something? I barely know him, but I know T.K. doesn’t like being told what to do.

What you need to know about T.K. is that he doesn’t give a damn about himself, but he’d throw himself in a fire after taking a bath in gasoline to make sure the people he loves aren’t hurt.

Well, damn, he couldn’t argue that. Couldn’t say no to someone who clearly loved her friend so much. Couldn’t say no to T.K.

It would send the wrong message to spend his time off with T.K., but he hated the thought of T.K. overdosing or going out to find assholes to hang out with. He hated the thought of T.K. hooking up with some man who would take advantage of him. T.K. was a pain in the ass, but he was also a national treasure. Fangirls would never forgive Carlos if he let something happen to T.K. (He would never forgive himself.) This job is getting too messy. For whatever reason, I’m already too far in. Captivated by those green eyes and that lopsided smiled. I need distance because T.K. Strand is doing his best not to stay alive, and getting too close will set me up for a world or hurt.

He sighed, grabbing his keys from the hook by his door and heading out to his car. He sent Marjan a quick text.

Fine, I’m going over.

Good. I have to go. My bad boss is calling.

Keep him safe.

Carlos wasn’t sure if that last part was a best friend’s threat or a desperate plea, but either way, he didn’t want to screw this assignment up. I’ll keep him safe. But he couldn’t make promises because he couldn’t save T.K. from himself no matter how much he wanted to.

I’ll do my best.

Putting his car into gear, Carlos back out and zoomed down the highway until he got to a mansion set apart from the other houses. He wouldn’t admit to anyone how much over the speed limit he had gone. If he’d had sirens, he would have used them. Fuck T.K. for being such an endearing jackass.

He entered the code at the gate and haphazardly parked his car in the first place he could find. It wasn’t like him to be so impulsive. He liked order and control, and any lack of those things made him antsy, but he didn’t even notice that his car was 1 inch into the grass. He rushed up to the door, thoughts of T.K. being hurt or dead rising into a heart-pounding climax. What if I’m too late? What if I was too slow? What if I’m powerless to save him? What if I fail at this job?

The tension dropped from Carlos’ shoulders as he heard the deadbolt click open and saw T.K.’s head when the door swung open and Carlos was instantly relieved to see that T.K. wasn’t unconscious on the floor. In fact, T.K. mostly seemed fine.

T.K. gave a long, exaggerated sigh, and Carlos felt his breath momentarily constrict again. He looked good. Anyone with eyes could see that, but Carlos had self-control. He didn’t act like an animal just because he spotted a pretty person. He’s a ten, but he’s also off limits. He’s narcissistic and obnoxious. Maybe a little sweet, but he’s not good for me. He’s danger, and I had enough of that when I was a cop. I flew too close too the sun, but this guy, he’s flying in the center of the sun.

For someone who was supposedly in danger, T.K. looked like he had complete command over his situation. He wore a hot pink and baby blue striped button down with black skinny jeans that hugged his lean legs in ways Carlos didn’t allow himself to think about too much. He averted his eyes, being sure to look at T.K.’s face, which was just as overwhelming. Carlos noticed T.K.’s eyes were bloodshot with deep bags underneath. A person can hide under clothes, but the eyes, those emerald eyes, always tell the truth.

T.K. looked markedly too nice for a night in, looking and smelling like he was about to go on a date. Freshly misted cologne hitting Carlos’ nose— vanilla, cinnamon, and sandalwood. There was an underlying bitterness to his scent—cloves— but it was just enough to offset what would be otherwise cloying. “Are you okay?” Carlos finally asked.

“Yeah, but I have a little alcohol and Marjan thinks I’ve gone off the deep end.” That’s a can of worms that I am not even going to begin to unpack. “I’m obviously fine.”

“Fine or not, I’m here now. Might be nice to have a little company.” The more Carlos looked at T.K., the less fine he seemed to be. He didn’t seem as outwardly wasted as when they first met, but T.K.’s uncontrollable smile and aimless eyes told Carlos all he needed to know. The blissed-out look was chillingly familiar to him, so much so that he had the instinct to get in his car and speed away, but his sense of duty was too strong, and even as his past chased him, Carlos couldn’t look away from T.K. Maybe things can be different than they were with Taylor. Maybe not, but how can I in good conscience give up before I try? “I’m here,” Carlos reiterated. And I’m not going anywhere.

“I see that.” T.K. gave him a once over, licking his lips. “And you look very good doing it.” He’s just a flirt. I can’t let it get to my head. I have to protect him. Not fuck him. T.K.’s words were dripping with forced pleasantness, and Carlos couldn’t quite figure out what T.K. was really feeling beyond the happy highness. Silence fell between them.

T.K. bit his lip, looking down a little. The mood shifted. “I know you don’t want to be here. Don’t worry, Judd will pay you for your babysitting.” Carlos wanted to argue that he wasn’t here for the money or insist that he did care, but the air between him and T.K. had turned so suddenly sour that words swirled in his head with nothing to ground them into cohesive sentences. The smell of cloves was trapped in his nose and he tried to search for the vanilla and cinnamon, warm and pleasantly biting. “I’m sure Marjan will report back to him when he gets back from his trip. He’ll fret over me because it would be such a shame if I died and couldn’t make him any more money.” T.K. cracked a mechanical grin that clashed with the bitter tone in his voice. “He’d probably be relieved not to have me bothering him.” He’s got it all wrong, but I can’t tell him that. I barely even know him.

Carlos wanted to shake T.K. and tell him that Judd would be devastated if something happened to him, but he knew if he was too sincere, T.K. would retreat into the safety of humor and lightheartedness. He would become the happy and carefree T.K. that substances created to hide the sorrow. I have to learn to roll with his jokes and self-deprecation, even hearing it horrifies me. “I’ve heard that posthumous sales aren’t half bad. The initial spike… might be something to consider,” Carlos replied wryly. When there was more silence, Carlos wondered if he’d made a fatal misstep. Maybe I don’t have as good of a grasp on the situation as I thought. What if I’m losing him?

A flash of shock came over T.K.’s face before his lips upturned slightly and his head tilted to the side with curiosity. “You really busting my balls right now?”

Carlos kept the impassive look on his face, forcing his lips not to turn up. “I suppose I am.”

T.K. shook his head, the dark cloud lifting from his features just a little. Back to carefree T.K., and Carlos wasn’t sure if it was for the best or the worse. I can’t tell if he’s genuinely happy. “I can’t believe that of all the bodyguards in the bodyguard factory, you’re the one they sent me.” Back to joking, the cold tone dissipated in the early evening air.

“And I can’t believe that of all the popstars in the popstar factory, you’re the one I got sent to,” Carlos countered. He could keep up with banter if he needed to. He could even throw in some harmless flirting if it helped get through to T.K., but he couldn’t cross any lines beyond that. I know all about how crossing one line can lead to crossing more. I need boundaries if this is going to work. I must be careful for T.K.’s sake and mine.

“Rockstar,” T.K. corrected.

“You don’t sing rock music, popstar,” Carlos reminded him.

“It’s a—”

“State of mind. I know. Now, are you going to let me in? Or do I have to stand out here all evening fighting with you about the definition of a rockstar?”

T.K.’s head tilted again, this time in thought. “I don’t think I have much of a choice. Marjan will kill me if I make you stand on the porch,” T.K. answered, opening the door wider and leading Carlos into the living room. The stench of alcohol immediately hit Carlos’ nose and bottles were sprawled on a chair.

“That’s a lot of bottles,” Carlos commented.

“Some of them are old.” Some, not all. Not even most. Some. “It’s funny because sometimes when it’s dark, there’s so many of them there that it almost looks like a person sitting in the chair. I’ve gotten startled a couple times by it. Sometimes, though, it’s nice not to feel alone.” The honesty of the words struck Carlos. He’s got so many demons I haven’t even seen yet. He opened his mouth but quickly closed it again in the absence of having a meaningful response. T.K. caught on to what he had said and backtracked. “I didn’t mean that seriously, you know. It was just a joke. I mean, there’s always people around me. Celebrities can’t escape people. I’m not really lonely.” The only people who feel the need to insist they are not lonely are the ones who are, in fact, lonely.

Carlos forced a laugh. “Right, a joke. You tell a lot of those.”

“Maybe. It’s more fun that way. I’m really funny when I’m not sober, so funny that people think I’m serious. It makes me a man of mystery I guess.” Oh yes, a mystery I’m afraid to investigate but desperate to know.

“Speaking of not sober, how much alcohol did you have?” He wanted a grasp on how bad the situation was.

“I’m fine.” Carlos had been a cop. He was used to dodgy answers, but they still frustrated the hell out of him. He’s testing me. Trying to see if he can make me mad. I won’t let him. I have to be patient and keep my temper in check.

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

“Fewer than all the bottles on that chair.” T.K. added, “A lot fewer. I’m not trying to die tonight.” Tonight, that’s what I’m worried about. What about the other nights?

“How much?” Carlos asked with his no nonsense cop voice. It’s been a while since I’ve used that.

T.K. looked unimpressed at the question. “Several shots. I didn’t even have a full bottle of tequila. But shots are just bad if you only do one, so you have to keep going until you feel something. By the time the first one kicks in, you realize that the rest will be by shortly to hit you with a fucking hammer.” Carlos fought the headache that T.K.’s drunken logic was creating. He rubbed a hand across his temple, wiping the sweat and stress from his brow. He forced his facial features to relax. I need to keep those emotions in their place or else I won’t be able to understand what he’s saying. I have to listen.

“Pills?”

T.K. shrugged, looking at his hands cagily, which gave Carlos a pretty good idea of what he was dealing with. An addict who will try getting high on pretty much anything.

“T.K., I need to know.” He wasn’t quite sure what he’d do with the information, but it seemed like something he should know in case anything happened.

T.K.’s voice was quiet, and Carlos barely heard it over the murmuring of the central air working hard to cool the huge house. “Some Oxy. My favorite.” Carlos would put that piece of information into the T.K. file that he was compiling in his head, all the things that might come in handy someday when the inevitably awful stuff happened.

Yawning, T.K. plopped down onto the couch, and Carlos went to the kitchen and grabbed a recycling bin. He began loading the empty bottles into it. “You don’t have to do that,” T.K. protested. “It’s not your job.”

“I know, but it doesn’t help you to keep these here,” and to be honest, they were driving Carlos a little crazy.

“Why are you so nice?” It sounded like an accusation, skeptical and angry.

“I’m not.” I’m just bad at sitting around helplessly. I need something to keep me busy, and I hate looking at all those bottles and seeing him like this. “I like to keep my hands busy.”

T.K. winked, a sloppy wink. “I can think of a better use for those hands.” Oh, no. He did not just go there.

Carlos panicked. His jaw clenching. “Do not do that.”

“Do what?” T.K. asked as if he was completely innocent.

“Hit on me.”

“You weren’t supposed to be so hot.” Shut him up. Shut him up!

“I’m not hot. I’m just a guy, okay? Just a normal guy.”

“Normal, yeah, okay. Did you know that I’m really good with my mouth? I mean more than singing and stuff. I put enough junk in it to know how to use it.” T.K.’s eyes filled with hunger. He’s not thinking clearly. He doesn’t actually want me. He’s just horny. Carlos felt like putting his fingers in his ears and screaming “la, la, la, la, la.”

“Stop it. You’re not thinking clearly.”

“But if it was sober? Would you be interested?” He’s so desperate to be wanted. He doesn’t even care who wants him.

“It would still be a no.”

“Why? Aren’t I attractive?” Oh yes, far too attractive for your own good.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m your bodyguard. I can’t be blurring those lines.”

T.K. raised his eyebrows. “The more you know my body, the better you can guard it.”

“I said no. You can respect that, can’t you?” Carlos’ voice was agitated. His anger radiated through the room and spread to T.K.

“I don’t force anything on anyone,” T.K.’s voice was sharp. “I wouldn’t want to fuck someone with a stick up his ass anyways.”

“You don’t get to be an asshole just because things don’t go your way. Maybe try facing your feelings instead of getting mad and acting like a diva when any semblance of a bad feeling enters your mind.” So much for containing my temper.

“Wow, Mr. Nice Guy does have a backbone, after all.”

“I know what you’re doing.”

“Being an asshole?”

“You’re trying to see how many buttons you can push before I get up, leave, and never come back.”

T.K.’s face fell. “Why does everyone think they have fucking psychology degrees?”

“What?” What in the world is he talking about?

T.K. didn’t explain. “You don’t have to stay. I don’t care either way. I’m happy enough alone. Just leave me alone.”

“I don’t have to leave.” He took a breath. It’d been a long time since he had tried to handle someone so self-defeating and so scared to let anyone get too close. “I don’t want to leave.” Part of him wanted to run for the hills and stop the attachment he was feeling for T.K. Like T.K., Carlos was scared of letting anyone get too close. He was scared of knowing people too well, which was why he’d planned on spending his Friday alone. But I don’t want to be alone.

“You should want to leave.”

“But I don’t want to.” If only I could get it through his thick skull that some people just want him around. They don’t care if he is a singer or famous or a party boy. They just want to have him. Judd, Marjan, even me. We want him to be the person he’s happiest being and not this person who can’t stand to look himself in the mirror or the person who never shows the real him because he’s afraid no one will like it.

“What made you so stubborn?” T.K. paused to think. “Or should I say who?” Don’t think about Taylor. Now’s not the time. No need to make unnecessary comparisons.

Carlos crossed his arms as if it would help him keep all the feelings rushing through his body contained. “I was born a week late and put my mom through eight hours of labor. I was born stubborn.”

“Yeah, well, I was born a good person. Now, I’m a piece of shit, so how we come into this world doesn’t have much to do with how we go out.” Hopefully, we won’t be going out any time soon. Hopefully, he doesn’t want to.

“What do you like most about yourself?” Carlos asked, and it felt abrupt, but he had wanted to catch T.K. off guard.

“Why does it matter?” T.K. was already defensive, and the question made him more resistant.

“No questions, just tell me.”

“Oh, bossy. I like it,” T.K. said more biting than flirty.

“Favorite part of yourself?” Carlos pushed.

T.K. was quiet for a few moments. His tone softened. “Hard choice there’s so much to like,” he tried to act confident, but Carlos could hear his voice cracking. “but I guess the thing people like most about me is that I’m fun, the life of the party.” Is that all he’s got?

“Why is it that you love to talk about yourself until I actually ask you to tell me something about yourself and then all you can talk about is what other people think.”

“Here’s the thing, Carlos. Contrary to popular opinion, I’m not that interesting. I’m not that deep either. I’m just a vapid popstar who people like to think they know.” It sounded like defeat, and Carlos didn’t think the word popstar could ever sound so sad.

“You know what,” Carlos concluded. “Maybe you’re a rockstar after all.” T.K. looked up from his hands, eyes looking hopeful. Then, to make it sound less serious Carlos added, “Rockstar is a state of mind, after all.”

T.K. grinned at the inside joke, perking up a bit and letting a tentative grin appear on his face. “But I do play pop music,” he said. “So, maybe I’d rather be a popstar.” His eyes lingered on Carlos, “That stays between us, though.”

“Okay, popstar,” Carlos said clapping T.K. on the shoulder, and T.K.’s eyes flickered with something Carlos couldn’t quite make out. There’s so much to learn about T.K. Strand, so much that even his most devoted fans have even discovered. There’s a good person in there beneath all the layers of bravado. You don’t even have to dig that far to find them, but I want to bring that person out. I want to show him that there’s a place for the T.K. who can be happy.

#My Stuff #911 Lone Star #911 Lone Star Fics #my writing #Elise writes #fics #holding out for a hero #Season 1

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draconida · 5 years

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BKDK Fic Recs

I've a lot of bookmarks in my AO3 profile and I needed to make a list with all those wonderful stories!

[This list will have other parts]

1- Mechanical Bull by warschach [Explicit]

Katsuki has a track record of bad choices, it's a condition, but Izuku might be the one choice that's right.

2- Dull by choimarie

“What? Never have seen a hot dude before?”

3- Caught Looking by EAter [Explicit]

He hadn’t meant to look, but once he did, he couldn’t stop. Izuku always knew Katsuki was attractive, in a sort of removed, passive way. He’s obnoxiously fit- with good posture and clear skin and those sharp, dangerous eyes.

Really, it’s a wonder Izuku hadn’t stopped to stare sooner.

4- Sour Silk by BrightEyesEren [Explicit]

Midoriya Izuku starts to receive random gifts at his door. Chaos ensues when he realises he has a sugar daddy.

5- Drinking Watermelon by warschach [Explicit]

For whatever reason, maybe divine fate, Izuku turned and looked over his shoulder and waved to them.

Katsuki’s heart full on stopped right then, and his fingers forgot their duty on the rails, and his body neglected its job to keep Katsuki balanced.

Izuku’s summer sweet smile fell into concern as Katsuki went airborne and cracked his skull on the porch.

Or Katsuki works as a camp counselor, and Izuku is a boy made of summer heat and sunlight.

6- Sucker Punch by warschach [Explicit]

But, whatever, Disney Boy over there was—

Prettying up real damn good that Katsuki got kind of distracted—totally understandable, like god those CGI pine eyes—and didn’t see the straight path he made for the metal trash bin in the center of the area until he was tipping forward and waist deep in discarded bottles, plates, balled up tissues sticky with he prayed was chocolate ice cream and nacho cheese.

Mina howled behind the gate. “Look, Katsuki returned to his home.”

(Or Katsuki works security at Six Flags and moonlights as a derby dude and continuously looks uncool around Izuku)

7- K-9 by warschach [Explicit]

Izuku takes in a stray on one rainy night, except it's not a dog, it's a dog shifter who goes by the name, Katsuki. After the initial wave of panic and embarrassment, Izuku thinks his new pet/roommate is pretty cute.

8- Misfire by deplore

Life's difficult when you're a teenager and your hormones make you lose control of your quirk. Alternately: A PG-13 version of "Sex Sent Me To The ER."

The pleasant sensation that comes from kissing Bakugou – the knowledge that it’s because he’s touching Bakugou so intimately that’s got Bakugou making such vulnerable noises – it tingles satisfyingly underneath his skin in a way that almost feels like when he activates One for All.

– and then there’s the sickening sound of something snapping just as Midoriya realizes, half a second too late, that the feeling is actually exactly like when he activates One for All.

9- Sugar Stardust by milkcandie

Between baking pretty macarons and sculpting wedding cakes, Katsuki slowly falls in love with a certain green-haired coworker who has effervescent stars in his eyes. Maybe working as a pastry chef in Nowhere, Japan isn't so bad after all, especially when he’s in such close proximity to a boy who manages to beautify every little thing in his presence.

A pâtisserie AU where Katsuki and Izuku are really the perfect ingredient for each other.

10- Gravity by warschach [Explicit & Omegaverse]

Izuku is back in his hometown and plenty hasn't changed much from the 8 years he was gone. Except, Katsuki Bakugou, the alpha king of their small town. He's hotter- because that's fair, right, God? -, stronger, a now-famous pro fighter, and noticeably nicer this round.

Not that he cares, pfft.

Ha, Izuku Midoriya caring about Katsuki Bakugou, thinking he's pretty cute and not half bad once you get past the asshole persona; though that gargantuan ego of his could take a dive off a very tall cliff.

(Fine, he cares.)

11- In Which Bakugou Finds His One Tru Luv by Erina

Welcome to the Explodo-kill agency! We can destroy your buildings, crash your cars, and help you solve one of the seven mysteries in life: who is Bakugou Katsuki's mysterious boyfriend?!

The Misadventures of Explodo-kill Agency It is a really fun series! Super recommended ❤

12- Cherish Me by Justaperson1718

“What?”

Izuku looked back down at his menu and flipped the page, a small smile on his face. “Nothing.”

Katsuki glared at Izuku from across the table. “If it was nothing then you wouldn’t be staring at me.”

“It’s just a little funny watching you try to look your best for our date when you always look great anyway,” Izuku explained. He wouldn’t look up from his menu while he spoke, but his words remained ingrained with confidence nevertheless. He considered what he was saying to be fact, and nothing else. “Even when you’re not trying in front of the cameras, it’s still hard to take my eyes off of you.”

13- Chewed Up by warschach [Explicit]

Zombie apocalypse, more than a third of the population currently dead or in the state of undead, and Katsuki still somehow managed to get his shit stolen by two chicks and Freckle boy.

Fuck this new generation.

14- Manage Me by Justaperson1718

Izuku caught himself moving forward, his head tilted somewhat to the side, and his eyes shot wide open. His gaze met Katsuki’s half-lidded eyes now that he was no longer in a dreamlike state, and seeing the way Katsuki was looking at him—waiting for him—made him realize Katsuki would’ve let him do it. He might have even wanted him to do it.

“You’re both doing fabulous!” the photographer called out to them, packing his camera into his bag and getting ready to leave. “I just got word that what we have now should be good, so we’ll stop there. Thank you for your time! Lock the door on your way out after you change.”

The pair stayed frozen in place, with Izuku’s arms around Katsuki’s neck and Katsuki’s hands resting on Izuku’s waist, while the photographer and his supervisor left.

“Kacchan,” Izuku cooed once they were gone. “Did you want to…?”

15- I'll Hold You In My Heart by InkspillsNotebook

"Someday, everything you own, everything you love... will be mine."

When a threat from the past comes to light, the budding romance between Prince Katsuki Bakugou and Prince Izuku Midoriya is put on hold as Katsuki struggles to save the love of his life, and Izuku puts up with being turned into a swan.

The Swan Princess (1994) AU

16- King Tide by warschach

Izuku meets a sea prince.

17- Play It Cool by warschach

Izuku accidentally becomes Katsuki's secret cuddle buddy.

(or that time Izuku and Katsuki snuggle on real pretenses then false ones, each finding a way to poorly miscommunicate their emotions cause what do these boys do aside of making carters in infrastructures and in each other, make the whole class of 1-A weep for them, and manage a romance to bring Ryan Gosling to the brink of tears.)

18- Boom, Badoom, Boom by warschach

Izuku's working the kissing booth at the school fair, it just so happens Katsuki has been crushing on him since the first grade.

“Did you—“ Izuku parted his mouth with no sound leaving it, “Did you pay?”

“Yea.”

“For a kiss?”

19- Bad Dog by Morpheel [Explicit, Omegaverse & Hybrids]

Katsuki Bakugou is a Wolf-Dog hybrid who has been returned more times than he can count.

His natural aggression and anger is excessive, even for an Alpha. Every time he's been purchased he's wound up blowing it one way or another. Yet when another chance comes around to prove his worth, he'll do whatever it takes to stay-

That is, until he runs into a minor roadbump. He isn't the only pet in the Asai household. When said pet is also an Omega, currently in the throes of his season, how the hell is he supposed to not blow it? (Literally).

20- Cafe Mocha by HG_Wells

Everyone has a timer on their wrist that appears when they turn thirteen, they can never remove it until the moment the timer reaches zero and you find your Soulmate. Izuku Midoriya works at a cafe in downtown Tokyo and he finds his Soulmate in the worst way possible.

21- Heartbreak Aftermath by HG_Wells [Explicit & Omegaverse]

After a harsh breakup with his ex-boyfriend, Todoroki Shouto, his friends decide to take him out to get his mind off things. A few drinks with a stranger turns into something more and he gets more than what he bargained for.

22- It's Better Than Drinking Alone by osakakitty [Explicit]

On the fourteenth of July, Izuku Midoriya's girlfriend called him to her place, and dumped him. And now, on the morning of the fifteenth of July, he woke up with a gruesome hangover and no one to celebrate the day with.

Or not.

Modern-day AU where Midoriya and Bakugo are strangers who meet in a bar, and then have wild and crazy sex later that night. The morning after, it's Midoriya's birthday, but he can't quite remember everything that happened. Bakugo is still willing to give him a present.

23- The Morning After 'The Morning After' by VRios

Izuku gets his keys back. Short epilogue to "It's Better Than Drinking Alone".

24- Fishy by warschach for DriftingGlass [Explicit]

Izuku’s convinced his hot co-worker/neighbor, Katsuki, is a mermaid-or merman- you gotta consider genders even with mythical creatures- and plans to prove it.

(or this is kinda like the show ‘Monster Quest’, except Izuku actually finds said monster, falls in love, and have sexy times.)

25- Piggyback by deanvspanties

I found this prompt and I wanted to do it for Bakugou's birthday but I'm a bit late:

Person 1 complaining about how long the walk to wherever is, and Person 2 constantly telling them to shut up and that they’re almost there. After Person 1 doesn’t stop complaining, Person 2 picks Person 1 up like a child and tells them that’s what they get for complaining like a child, and carries them all the way there.

“If you’re going to act like a fussy goddamned brat, I’m going to treat you like one.”

Really I just wanted to write adult Izuku getting a piggyback ride from Kacchan.

26- The last dragon-blood king by claimedbydaryl [Explicit & Omegaverse]

Katsuki Bakugou was the alpha heir to a forgotten throne, reigning lord and warden of the Fyre Isles, a famed warrior of vicious repute in the Western Seas, and he would be wed to Izuku Midoriya by the day’s end.

27- Storge by Mellosweet [Omegaverse]

“Hold on,” Aizawa said, his voice harsh as if he couldn’t believe what he was just told “let me see if I heard it right. You went to Midoriya’s house with Eri and Kouta, because they wanted to see him, but Midoriya is in heat. Then he called the kids his ‘pups’, took them to his bedroom, and now Bakugou won’t let you near the house?” “Yes” Togata looked up to the building behind him “What should I do?” Aizawa sighs “I am not paid enough for this.”

28- Where's the Fire? by InfiniteTeal

Uraraka is on a mission, a mission to find out whether or not Bakugou and Midoriya are actually together. The evidence stacks up to prove that they are, even everyone else she brings with her sees it, but there's nothing she can do when the couple denies the evidence.

29- Curse the Way to Heaven by InfiniteTeal

Midoriya actually knows how to swear, and Bakugou gets turned on at the simplest moments.

30- Head Game Strong by InfiniteTeal [Explicit]

Some of the students from class 1-A decide to go out to dinner together for the evening. Midoriya hadn't planned to joined them, but it's no surprise that he's under the table fooling around with Bakugou. It sounded like a good idea at first, but Bakugou has a hard time keeping it together when Midoriya gives him a secret blowjob while everyone else is sitting around him.

31- Kacchan's Piercing by InfiniteTeal [Explicit]

Bakugou is bombarded by his classmates about his not-so-secret piercing. He finds out about what the other classmates did to Midoriya, and decides that he wants to feel Midoriya's tongue piercing for himself.

32- Memorized by SchrodingersCat_DoA [Explicit & Fem!Izuku]

Stupid. It was stupid.

Bakugou leaned down and grabbed her scarred wrist to pull her to her feet. He made his way to the dance floor, dragging Deku behind him. He could hear her sputtering behind him, trying to find words to say, but failing.

As he reached the edge of the dancing mass, he turned to face Deku and pulled her into him. Her hands met his chest and fisted in his shirt, pinching some skin, but he didn’t wince. “There, now you have someone to dance with.”

33- Blonde Haired Bunnies by Morpheel [Explicit, Omegaverse & Hybrids]

In an attempt to create a new genetic pattern in the Rabbit-Hybrid Gene, Izuku Midorya is paired with a very strange (and almost unorthodox) stud. The end goal is blonde haired, red eyed rabbits- though only one Alpha truly fits that bill.

Surely a wolf and a rabbit can't breed?

34- Never Skip Leg Day by SecretKiwi [Explicit]

Deku loves leg day, and so does Katsuki- just in a different way.

35- F.U. by warschach [Explicit]

Izuku smiled; Katsuki understood why people warned that the devil wore a Sunday hat and fine clothes because deception worked better if no one expected it.

Not anymore. He knew Izuku’s evil ways, and his ass might be a 20 on the hotness meter but Katsuki held grudges.

“Izuku,” he sneered; he too could be evil right back.

(Or Katsuki's a football player; Izuku's a cheerleader; they have a rivalry until it isn't one)

36- A Rare Exchange by aideyn [Explicit]

"Oi Deku! Heard you're looking for some "Rare Might"~?"

37- How To Fall In Love With Your Enemy by Insomnia_Productions

When you find the soul that is perfectly matched to your own, any mark that appears on their skin will appear on yours, as well. Everyone knows that.

Midoriya knows it... but, somehow, he's never imagined it happening to him.

Bakugou knows it, too... but he doesn't have time for stupid things like that.

And, although both of them know that Fate is never wrong... there have got to be exceptions. After all, this match cannot possibly be anything but a mistake. Right?

38- One Exception by GreyLiliy

If you’d have told Katsuki when he was in middle school that every day after his shift he’d come home to Deku waiting with a soft smile and dinner, he’d have laughed and set off an explosion in your face. But Deku is stubborn, Katsuki was weak, and now they share a home.

Routine is broken, however, when a Villain makes himself known by taking the lives of Pro Heroes with no trace of motive. With the entire Hero community on edge, Katsuki can only be grateful that Deku has given up on his childish Hero dreams and is safe at home instead of in the line of fire.

39- Swipe Right by Cellaira [Explicit]

Kirishima had another stupid idea, and Katsuki had nothing to lose. Then, he discovered a witty, freckled, attractive stranger, and he had everything to gain.

(Like some damn good sex.)

In other words, the Grindr AU no one asked for but everyone secretly needed.

40- Matchmakers by Trashreciptical

When Katsuki agreed to be Jirou's wingman at a school dance for his students he expected to be bored out of his mind, he expected to laugh at his students suffering trying to communicate with the opposite sex, and he expected being subjected to shitty pop music all night.

What he wasn't expecting was the gorgeous teacher from the other school with forests in his eyes and stars on his cheeks....fuck he has it bad.

In which Katsuki is a chemistry teacher that is one explosion away from being fired and Izuku is the adorable english teacher from a different school, who sweeps Katsuki off of his feet and he doesn't know what to do.

41- Between ink and thorns by soulstring

There are a lot of things people are amazed at when it comes to Bakugou Katsuki. The thing that stands out the most – especially since it comes from a man with so little patience and an explosive temperament – is his unsuspecting love for botany. In an ideal world he would look after his flower shop and get paid for it without having to deal with an annoying element attached to his work; namely bother, namely aggravation, namely humans.

And that day, the worst of them is about to enter his flower shop and his life.

42- Daisies bunches and heather branches by halcyonwhispers

Izuku falls in love with the foul-mouthed tattoo artist next door.

43- Unknown Number: I Love You by Lillabelle

Opposites attract right? Well that's what Midoriya's friend, Uraraka, thinks. Her friend from another school talked about another guy, Bakugou Katsuki, and the two girls decided the two were perfect for each other. Now Midoriya is left with the number of a guy he didn't even know.

How bad could it be?

44- How IKEA Sells All Their Beds by thankyouforexisting

The next day, Kacchan turns on the cold water while Izuku is showering, resulting in a screaming match that the whole floor gets involved in, and soap bars starts flying everywhere, while Mineta throws his purple balls so that people can grab onto them and not slip on the wet floor, earning a “You’re not that bad, dude,” from Kirishima (It's a lie. Literally everybody hates him). Aizawa punishes them all by making them run laps for an hour the next morning.

Two days later, Izuku retaliates by lowering the thermostat until Kacchan can’t summon fire to burn his clothes, and Iida appears in the doorway holding a flag and shouting, “JUSTICE FOR CLOTHES! NO MORE DESTRUCTION OF FABRIC! WE MUST FIGHT THIS STRIKE AGAINST THE TEXTILE INDUSTRY, COMRADES!”

Kacchan rips the thermostat from the wall with his fire cannons and burns the flag, half of Izuku’s wardrobe, and his bed.//Deku and Kacchan are roommates, and everyone fears for their safety.

45- Yes, They're All Safe by teaandtumblr

Villains have entered UA grounds and are disposed of just as quickly, but that doesn't mean a headcount of the students doesn't need to be done. Toshinori would admit, he wasn't quite prepared for what he found in Bakugou Katsuki's room.

46- I’ll share this with you, so leave it behind by yabakuboi [Single Dad!Izuku]

For the sake of the story, All Might is never in need of a successor, and, when Izuku saves Katsuki from the sludge monster, encourages young Midoriya down a different path. Thus, Katsuki and Izuku part ways after junior high, as Katsuki enters U.A. and the Midoriyas move overseas. It’s later that Katsuki realizes that there’s something missing, that he drove that something away.

Years after, Katsuki finds him in the last place he looks, in the cereal aisle at the local grocery store of their childhood neighborhood.

47- Catharsis by dollcewrites [Explicit]

It's been six years since Izuku graduated.

It's been six years since he confessed to his childhood friend; his classmate and his inspiration.

It's been six years since he deleted Bakugou's number, asked his friends not to mention the name, spent every last effort of his heart turning off the TV and averting his eyes from the newspapers.

It's been six, long, long years since he gave up on Katsuki Bakugou ever loving him back.

48- Stopping All Stations by glamour_weeb [Explicit & Rape Fantasy]

Izuku begs Katsuki to roleplay as a pervert that feels him up on the train. Katsuki only agrees if Izuku wears a slutty school girl uniform. They both get a little bit too into it.

49- Go the Fuck to Sleep by glamour_weeb [Omegaverse]

Izuku can't sleep and Katsuki takes care of him aka Izuku is needy and Katsuki is whipped.

Takes place during the training camp.

50- Serpents by glamour_weeb [Explicit & Omegaverse]

Izuku goes into heat and leaves a trail of scent across Katsuki’s territory. When the Alpha catches his scent, he tracks Izuku down and mates with him.

51- Let's Get Closer Still by bionic_heehaw (nmhotel21) [Explicit, Fem!Izuku & Incest]

Izuku has a week to find out if her brother wants her the way she's desired him since middle school. After their parents come back from holiday, she probably won't have a chance like this again.

52- What’s up danger by The_Crafty_Cracker [Omegaverse]

Because apparently,The fic where Deku punches a bigoted entailed asshole Alpha in the face wasn’t an appropriate title.

Poor Katsuki has his handful with his mate nearly getting arrested, again!

53- Devil in Me by glamour_weeb [Explicit & Omegaverse]

Katsuki's usually the one getting into fights over Deku when they go to the club, but this time, his Omega's the one that starts a fight over him, but he doesn't stop there. Deku's determined to mark his territory.

54- You've Got Mail! by glamour_weeb [Explicit, Omegaverse & In process]

Izuku is a Quirkless Omega and Katsuki is an Alpha pro hero. Their paths might have never crossed if they hadn’t started using the anonymous mail service where Alphas and Omegas can buy and sell their clothes as heat/rut aids.

Izuku wonders if it's possible to fall in love with an Alpha's scent and Katsuki wonders if he'll ever meet the Omega that smells like his True Mate.

A very horny love story in three parts.

55- Pets take after their Owners by San121 [Explicit, Omegaverse & Hybrids]

Shouto and Eijirou are a loving couple, Shouto recently got a rabbit Pet and Eijirou wants his Katsuki to like his boyfriend's Pet. Katsuki does more than like.

56- Way more than a handful by Morpheel [Explicit, Hybrids & Trans!Izuku]

Izuku wasn’t quite sure what to expect in bringing a rescue to his home.

While most owners would pride themselves in adopting a mixed breed of dog, or perhaps a stray cat; Midoriya had completely bypassed the beginners circle and brought home a fiery wolfdog hybrid with a bad temper.

It... has up and downs.

57- Dii Consentes by Souzoshiyou [Explicit, Fem!Izuku, Torture, Gore and Blood & Slight TodoBakuDeku]

The two ran along the secret passage with Izuku running ahead, dragging Katsuki by the hand with giggles. The blonde looked at their joined hands before looking the heiress' back. God, he loves her so much. He'd do practically anything for her, even become her plaything if she wants. He had never met anyone that reflected and complemented him so much. He'll chase after her everywhere even to the pits of hell.

58- Wild Thing (You Make My Heart Sing) by Gezelligheid [Fem!Izuku]

A series of mostly unrelated one shots revolving around genderbent Izuku, mostly involving her relationship with our favorite hothead.

59- Earned It by Morpheel [Explicit & Omegaverse]

Because within the illumination of lantern light stood a brothel’s worth of Omegas, all in various states of disarray, giggling and washing themselves without a care in the world to the army in their path.

Bakugou’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. Bakugou Katsuki wasn't expecting any interruptions in his conquest of the Capital. Let alone for that interruption to backfire.

60- When the sunset shifts by ser_problematique [Explicit & Werewolves]

Katsuki has a problem; Izuku is there to help him through it. Smutty fantasy au with werewolf porn.

61- ¡NO CULPES AL ALCOHOL! by GABY_NEKO [Fem!Izuku]

"Oh my god, did I steal Kacchan's virginity?!"

62- Maid You Mine by glamour_weeb [Explicit, Omegaverse & Hybrids]

“Welcome to Yuuei, Master!” A squeaky voice greets Katsuki when he pushes through the door of the Omega maid cafe, the little bell on the inside jingling, announcing his arrival. “Oh, hi, Kacchan!”

“Deku,” Katsuki growls back, his own fluffy golden tail flicking behind him irritably.

A hybrid AU where wolf Katsuki begrudgingly puts up with his obnoxiously cheerful coworker, bunny Izuku, until the day Katsuki comes into work and goes into heat.

63- The Piano Knows Something I Don't Know by oyasumi_yue [Fem!Izuku]

‘Intrigued’ is an understatement for the Bakusquad as they notice Bakugo Katsuki, a guy who has a tongue that could rival Satan himself, is refusing to eat spicy food.

64- Do You Know What I'm Seeing? by oyasumi_yue [Fem!Izuku]

Katsuki Bakugo prides himself with a headstrong attitude, his only goal is to be the best Hero, 'distraction' is not part of his majorly curse-composed vocabulary. But then, it all wavered when that purple perverted bastard made a comment about Deku's prominent body features.

Alternative Title: When Did Deku Become So Hot?

65- Little Bad Girl by SchrodingersCat_DoA [Explicit & Fem!Izuku]

Bakugou tossed the All Might sleep pants back on the shelf but held onto the oversized t-shirt. He let it fall open and brought it to eye level to study it. It was two sizes too big for Deku – at least in the terms of length. It was a simple grey t-shirt and soft – it was also a men’s shirt. As he was studying the shirt, the tag caught his eye. Bakugou adjusted his grip and brought the shirt closer to his face. He grabbed the tag and sneered.

On it was written T.S. Of course that Half’n’Half bastard would write his initials in his clothing.

Bakugou’s smirk fell from his face as it finally clicked in his head that Deku had a shirt that belonged to Half’n’Half. His blonde eyebrows pulled into the center of his face until they met and could go no further. The smirk continued to fall until it was twisted into an ugly grimace. The t-shirt in his hands started to singe as his Quirk fired off.

This wouldn’t do. No, this would not do at all.

66- Reflections by Kreativekilljoy

Where hero Bakugou Katsuki keeps having impromptu encounters with officer Midoriya Izuku.

67- Changeling by Souzoshiyou [Fem!Izuku & Attempted Rape]

'He's not an angel, nor a demon. I guess I can call him a ghost... But I prefer to call him a soul in need.'

In one whole month, how did they affect each other? Did Izuku help Katsuki? Did Katsuki help Izuku? We'll never know, but one thing's for sure; they changed each other.

68- Izuku and the Stag by Sarcastic_Metaphor

Katsuki is a god, a patron of war and a conqueror of nations. Trying to court a puny, green-haired mortal shouldn’t be giving him as much trouble as it is.

Meanwhile, Izuku lives in the forest and studies magic. All he wants to do is continue his work, but he finds himself continuously running into a strange, angry boy in the woods.

69- Please Scent Me by fleurown [Omegaverse]

In which Deku needs a quick favor at a party and Katsuki can't deny such a cute face.

70- Mamma Is Here by KurageMonsta [Explicit, Omegaverse, Non-Con & Incest]

Midoriya Izuku really really loves his son.

71- Thrill of the Hunt by DrProblematic [Explicit & Omegaverse]

It began the way it always did — Izuku running, and Katsuki chasing after him. Despite both knowing where it would inevitably lead, they persisted for the sake of the journey: for the thrill of the hunt, of being hunted.

72- Drabbles and drabbles by kacchansass [Incomplete]

A collection of writing prompts sent to me on my tumblr! Typically gonna be BakuDeku prompts, but other pairings may pop up as well. Not all will be canon compliant either!

73- I'm So Glad I Found My Mate Today by kittiegirl1616 [Explicit & Omegaverse]

Pro-Hero Ground Zero has captured a villain when he senses his mate is nearby.

74- Nesting - The Omega Superstore! by Swifty_Heart [Omegaverse]

Imagine a store that wall to wall full of the softest blankets, pillows, and gourmet food! A superstore where Omegas go for all their nesting needs!

75- His Reflection by CarCarWong545 [Omegaverse]

Forced into a life that doesn't feel like his own, what shall Izuku do when he meets a not too pleasant alpha?

76- Eternity by PeppermintLeo [Explicit & Omegaverse]

Izuku was Kacchan’s partner, in every sense of the word. He ruled right next to Kacchan’s side, an alpha and an omega, leading Kacchan’s tribe against all sorts of odds. As well as his romantic partner, steady and solid by his side but giving when emotions called for it.

Izuku has adapted to the ways of the barbarian tribe with the help of Katsuki Bakugou, the barbarian king. From the beginning, he knew their connection would be special, but he never expected the man to ask him to spend forever, and after, with him.

77- If you can't find the morning light, i'm here tonight by yabakuboi [Omegaverse]

“You’re still you.” Katsuki can’t look at him as he says it. “You’re still Deku, but you’re not useless. You got dealt a shit hand, but you didn’t give up. You’re strong as hell, and you always have been. I didn’t see it as a kid, but I do now.”

Katsuki swallows. There’s a sharp smell to the air, blossoming up from where Izuku sits across from him at the little breakfast table, and it smells like grief, but like relief. And when he meets Izuku’s teary eyes, he feels his heart thud heavily in his chest. Slowly, cautiously, he slides his hands across the table and takes Izuku’s into his own.

Katsuki was never sure what happened to his childhood friend, quirkless Izuku who had presented as an omega and was whisked away to a traditional matchmaking house. Katsuki never saw him again after that, and tried to convince himself it was for the best. Many lonely years pass before he finds Izuku in the last place he ever wanted to, in the middle of a battlefield with a child clutching to his shirt.

78- Katsuki and the Hare by GreyLiliy [Hybrids & In process]

While hiking in the forest, Katsuki finds a wild hybrid caught and injured in a hunting trap. He performs his due diligence to call for help, not expecting to see the hybrid again.

However, on future hiking trips in those same woods, he spots hints of green in his peripheral and before he knows it, Katsuki finds himself with a curious tagalong that becomes a part of his life in a way he could have never predicted.

79- Dogged Love by GreyLiliy [Hybrids]

While helping out his friend Uraraka with her work, Izuku notices the client’s pet locked in a kennel wearing a muzzle. Izuku’s chest ached with the desire to help and before he knew it, he’d gathered the money and bought the dog from the other man, becoming a pet owner for the first time in his life.

Katsuki, however, wonders how he went from having a bad owner to one that needed a master of his own to keep himself out of trouble.

As time goes by, though, Katsuki and Izuku find out they’re both exactly what the other has always needed.

80- A Burrow for You and I by GreyLiliy [Explicit & Hybrids]

Katsuki and Izuku grew up together as neighbors, a human and a hybrid that most would call the best of friends. But after an unexpected step forward in their relationship, Izuku backed away and put distance between them—too much distance.

When Izuku arrives back home after a year of absence, he makes sure Katsuki is the first to see the fruits of his labor.

81- Izuku's Home for Wayward Pets by glamour_weeb [Explicit, Omegaverse, Hybrids & In process]

Izuku works at the Bureau of Companion Protection as a rehabilitator for abused and abandoned Companions, animal-human hybrids. He’s seen his fair share of cruelty cases and even fostered a few Companions, but he’s never had a Companion of his own, until now. After rescuing Katsuki from a life in an illegal, underground Companion fighting ring, Izuku must take in the wolfdog that no one else can handle.

Eventually, Katsuki comes to love his new home, as well as his new Master.

82- Does your mother know? by setitoff

It's hard for anyone to impress katsuki bakugou, much less catch his eyes, really. so when izuku midoriya, their new english professor shows up, katsuki is more than a little interested.

83- My ex-man brought his new boyfriend by setitoff [In process]

izuku's desperate to get a date after being persuaded (forced, more like) to go for a family reunion back in his hometown, in which he will most definitely see his ex, todoroki shouto, with a date of his own.

in a last attempt to find someone, izuku asks for help and ends up getting bakugou katsuki.

84- Payphone by flowercafe [In process]

Izuku’s in trouble — like, SOS trouble. Lucky for him, he’s one phone call away from salvation. Hopefully his trembling fingers dial the right number, because it would really suck if he accidentally called a stranger right now.

The “I was walking home alone in the middle of the night and someone started following me so I ran into this phone booth with a lock on the door to call for help, but my hands were shaking so badly I accidentally dialed the wrong number and I don’t even know who you are but please help me" au — ft. a Quirkless Izuku whose misdial connects him to the personal cell line of pro hero Ground Zero.

85- For whatever we lose by kindaopps [Dubious Consent]

He locks the pelt up in a chest, and keeps the key hanging from his neck.

The boy's face was devastated, but Katsuki found even that quite beautiful.

86- Plucking the Heartstrings by K1NGKYO

Izuku never expected to become attracted to a customer in the cafe, but sure enough, Katsuki 'Boom Boy' Bakugou catches his attention. As he pursues a friendship with Bakugou, Izuku discovers he is secretly a popular horror writer, but what's most surprising is Bakugou's musical prowess.

Music without words can say many things and Izuku discovers how.

87- In A Sky Of A Million Stars (Who Cares If One More Light Goes Out?) by Stringlish [Suicide Attempt, Depression, PTSD & In process]

He could never forgive himself.

It was his fault.

He’d planted the idea like a seed he’d never known would grow.

(Or: What if Izuku jumped?) (OR: The one where Izuku jumps and lives and Katsuki visits him every day and Class 1-A not-so-secretly finds it adorable that their designated angry pomeranian brings flowers to his comatose childhood friend.)

88- Printer Daddy by deanvspanties [Explicit]

Izuku knows the only way to fix a broken printer is to buy a new one, but printer repairman Bakugou is here to exceed all of his expectations.

And there's nothing hotter than a guy who knows his way around a printer.

89- How to Train Your Shitty Omega by deanvspanties [Explicit]

Izuku will have Bakugou's knot. He's Izuku's alpha after all.

90- The Tale of an Extra by Anzul

In which Katsuki channels true holiday spirit by inviting himself to his former middle school classmate's party and then sitting in a corner glued to his phone. Psh, like his secret-not-so-secret boyfriend is having a better Christmas anyway.

(Someone please save his former classmate.)

91- You Ready For This? by sabasama

“You’re saying you wanna fuck?” “Oh my god, don’t say it like that!” “What? It’s the same thing.” “No, it’s not!” Izuku wailed; he couldn’t be alone on this subscription of thought.

92- warm hands by flowercafe

"Your hands are so soft," he blurts.

Katsuki gives his fingers a threatening squeeze. "What the hell, Deku? Are you sayin' there's a problem with having soft hands, hah?"

Izuku never thought that Bakugou Katsuki, of all people, would willingly give him a hand massage. But here they are, sitting knee to knee, with his fingers lying innocently in those explosive palms.

a 5+1 featuring copious amounts of massaging, a dollop of mutual pining, many ridiculous competitions, Izuku’s achy joints, and one very tactile Katsuki.

93- After Hours by Morpheel [Explicit & Trans!Midoriya]

Who would have thought school locker rooms were a bad place to get it on at?

Midoriya and Bakugou decide to wind down together after training past hours within U.A. Little do they know they weren't the only ones with the idea of staying after class. This could get pretty messy, pretty fast, if Bakugo can't brush off the fact he had Midoriya pinned to the shower stall.

94- Eat Your Damn Dinner by glamour_weeb [Omegaverse]

"Katsuki's been with Deku long enough to know the signs of when his Omega is about to go into heat. Hell, he’s more in tune with Deku’s cycle than the fucking nerd is with his own body. No surprise there, Deku’s always been absolute shit at taking care of himself. That’s why Katsuki's going to take care of him, like always."

Katsuki Bakugou is not whipped. He just likes taking care of his Omega.

95- As Fate Would Have It by ScientificallySinful (VampireGaaraCheesepuffs) [Explicit & Omegaverse]

Katsuki Bakugo had plenty of reasons why he wasn't mated yet, not that he was going to explain why to just anyone. But now, Ground Zero was running out of time. If he didn't find someone soon, he'd lose his position as a Pro-Hero and he'd never get to be #1. So, when he finds out there's a male Omega recently arrested for prostitution that's headed to prison if he too doesn't get a mate…well it must be fate.

Izuku Midoriya doesn't know if he should laugh or cry when his childhood bully shows up in front of his jail cell asking him to be his mate. He also didn't know if it was good or bad that Kacchan didn't seem to recognize him, but fate hasn't been kind to him before so why should it start now?

96- since some liar brought the thunder, the land is now deserted by baby345 [Omegaverse]

"17 years ago 5 omegas was each taught the act of espionage, when they graduated they were given careful instructions to follow their mission and regroup when the time came." the old man revealed casually. "omegas were often sought after by outside agencies especially as little kids because they were so much easier to mold and teach. they were perfect for undercover missions simply because they had the talent of being able to flawlessly work a room, nobody ever suspected the little omega in the corner of being a assassin until they were standing over them with a blade in hand."

"two of the omegas who excelled brilliantly in their training were code named flicker and cottontail or as you know them: Izuku Bakugou and Denki Shinso." He revealed.

Katsuki and Hitoshi whole world is flipped upside down when their mates are accused of being sleeper agents and are missing, trusting nobody but each other and the clues left behind they have no choice but to wonder what's the truth and whats a lie.

97- You Wonderful Motherfuckers by BeyondPhantomhive [Explicit]

In which the Bakusquad unwittingly get Bakugou and Midoriya together through a series of pranks.

98- torn fur, blunt teeth by SageMasterofSass [Past Non-Con]

After eight months of being collared, Izuku is finally free. But a dark, stormy city is no place for a lonely shapeshifter on the run.

99- Get on my Level by Mikacrispy

Bakugou Katsuki is a Pro Hero whose boss demands him to take an intern. Midoriya Izuku is a UA student who needs an internship. When the two of them are put together, they learn about what it truly means to be a Hero and what it means to be in love.

100- Just Like The Comics by brichibi

If this were anything like the comics, Izuku Midoriya being quirkless would be the norm while heroes would be treated as a rarity. As it stands, everyone’s got a super power, except for Izuku, of course. No worries, though, because he’s over it (nope) and has moved on to bigger and better things (again, nope) like working at a tiny comic book shop and indulging in stories where being able to lift a bus with your bare hands was deemed impossible until proven otherwise.

Oh, and running into your heroic ex-boyfriend? Also unlikely. But Izuku’s life isn’t like a comic book (maybe?) and Katsuki Bakugou is standing right in front of him: still perfect, still handsome, and still putting his combat booted foot in his mouth.

[Or: AU where Izuku works at a comic book shop because that’s as close to a hero as he’s gonna get, and Katsuki plays the part of heroic ex-boyfriend who is good at everything except winning Izuku back... maybe]

#bnha #midoriya izuku #katsuki bakugou #katsudeku #bkdk #bkdk fic #fic rec #ktdk #dekubaku #dekukatsu #my hero acadamy #boku no hero academia

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chloebeale · 5 years

Text

GOING CRAZY WHEN I’M WITH YOU

For @bechloe-week day 2: Co-Workers.

Beca isn’t trusted to recommend new people to her hiring manager after Amy’s time with the company turned disastrous, so when the girl she’s dating wants to apply, they decide they’ll be “strangers” during working hours.

I’d like to thank the academy and also @isthemusictoblame for kicking my ass into writing this. (There is no academy, just Theresa)

(Read below or on ao3)

WORDS: 4,401 | RATING: M

Why, Beca thinks to herself as she sheds her trusty leather jacket in the office of her regular, day-to-day job -- if working for a highly esteemed record label can be considered regular or day-to-day, anyway -- is she so nervous? It’s not like it’s her first day on the job. Beca has been working here for what seems like a lifetime now. In reality, it has been two years, but she took to the position like a moth to a flame, and she hasn’t looked back since.

Work is... Work. It’s work. Beca is passionate about it, she enjoys it, and she does her job well. There are big names and famous faces walking through that door every single day, and save for the occasional inner fangirl moment, she always manages to remain entirely professional, she never loses her cool.

(And if you were to ask Beca Mitchell, she’s totally cool.)

But today, her blue-gray eyes remain fixed on the doorway to the office she knows like the back of her hand, to the point where coworkers have begun to give her questioning looks, with one even going out of their way to ask her if everything’s okay. Beca has simply shaken them off, told them she didn’t sleep very well last night and she’s a little out of it, but that’s not true.

Well, the lack of sleep is. But Beca has a whole other reason to be acting the way she is. It all started about a year ago now, when one Patricia “Fat Amy” Hobart made her grand entrance into the company...

[ REWIND! ]

---

“Beca,” Mr. Pritchard begins, his hands clasped one on top of the other atop his (admittedly very disorganized) office desk. “I know you mean well, and you really are a valued member of this team, but I’m afraid I just can’t give your friend anymore chances.”

When she’d pushed for her management to give the open office assistant position to her roommate, Beca knew she’d been taking something of a risk. But she and Amy live in the city, they have rent to pay, and it was clear Amy was never going to look for work on her own. Two paychecks would’ve improved their circumstances significantly. They’d had only two months of living in what Beca considered true luxury (rent paid on time, bills taken care of and a little money still left over? Luxury.) before Amy had been dismissed from the company, a whole trail of reasons why. And it seems that no amount of pleading on Beca’s part is going to change anybody’s mind about the decision to let the blonde go.

“Now, I’m not saying it’s your fault, and of course I can’t discuss another staff member’s dismissal with you, but I really think the best thing for you to do now is to focus on your job, and to leave the hiring to me.”

Beca wants to fight, to try just one more time to beg Mr. Pritchard to give her roommate just one more chance, but she knows this is a losing battle, and considering the long list of reasons Amy is no longer employed -- the state of the desk before her just one of many -- she knows her insistence will only continue in vain.

“Okay, Mr. Pritchard,” the brunette eventually gives in through a small, stifled sigh, “I understand. Um, about my friend Stacie wanting to apply...”

The manager shoots her a look, and Beca simply hangs her head.

Focus on her job and leave the hiring to them. Beca has got the message.

---

And that memory, Beca realizes, is why she’s so damn nervous.

But she doesn’t have to be. She really doesn’t have to be, because she and Chloe have gone over this a million times now. Sure, they may be low-key dating, and sure, sparks may be flying already between the two, but here, at work, they don’t know one another. They’re total and complete strangers, because Beca is not allowed to meddle with the hiring process anymore, not since her first and last recommendation turned out so disastrously.

(Truth be told, Amy really didn’t do anything too terrible, at least in Beca’s opinion. Showing up late, making personal calls from the manager’s desk, rearranging his entire office because the feng shui just wasn’t right... All forgivable. Entirely unprofessional, of course, but still forgivable.)

But when the perfect job opportunity had opened up, and Chloe had looked at her with those big, pleading eyes, the ones that Beca could get lost in for hours and completely forget who or where she really was, it had been impossible to say no to her. It’s not like Beca recommended her, nor did she have anything to do with the hiring process -- Chloe landed the position all on her own merit -- but the two of them being acquainted, especially as closely as they are, just won’t sit right with Mr. Pritchard. It’ll be the Fat Amy fiasco all over again, as far as he’s concerned, so she and her maybe-girlfriend-but-really-person-she-hasn’t-actually-had-that-conversation-with-yet have decided they’ll play pretend while on office hours, at least for now. They’ll be perfect strangers, they’ll do their jobs and nobody will know anything different.

Much like a watched pot that never boils, Beca has averted her gaze from the doorway for a fraction of a second when it suddenly swings open, Mr. Pritchard’s hand pressed to the glass as he holds it still for his newest hire to make her way inside.

“And this is where you’ll be working,” Mr. Pritchard says, proud smile on his weathered face as he follows Chloe into the room, door closing quietly behind them.

It’s not uncommon for Chloe Beale to enter a room and Beca’s heart to all but stop beating. She can’t tell this time, however, whether it’s because her maybe-girlfriend has taken her breath away the way she usually does, or because this is officially the beginning of their act. And Beca Mitchell is no actress, so this really will be a test of her own non-abilities.

It’s with sheer force that Beca manages to pull her gaze away from the redhead, not wanting to draw attention to the fact that her mouth is on the verge of hanging open. As Mr. Pritchard begins to walk Chloe around the office, though, introducing her to each on-shift staff member, Beca allows herself one more look the other girl’s way.

Chloe always looks beautiful. But today, with her auburn hair hung in precise ringlet curls, that gray pencil skirt that hugs her figure perfectly, those heels... Man, those heels. Chloe looks incredible, and it’s so hard for Beca not to stare.

Of course, there’s so much more to Chloe Beale than just the way she looks. Beca appreciates every aspect of the other woman. Her mind is astonishing, it’s so deep and so different, unlike anything Beca has ever experienced before. She looks at the world in the most interesting light, and she has broadened Beca’s views so immensely already that--

“Ah, Beca. This is our new office assistant, Chloe.”

Mr. Pritchard’s introduction cuts into Beca’s thoughts, the ones where she’s practically drooling over the idea of the woman standing before her who she’s supposed to act like she doesn’t know and has never actually met before, and Beca jumps slightly on the spot.

“It’s so nice to meet you, Becky,” Chloe chirps, extending her hand politely. Already, the redhead is proving a much better actress than Beca is, though the undeniable sparkle to her crystal blue eyes, the way her lips are turned upward the smallest fraction at one corner, would likely give her away if anybody else knew the truth.

“Yeah, you too,” Beca responds as coolly as possible, though her pitch does rise just a small amount on the second word, but Beca dismisses it with a swift cough and a clear of her throat, and Mr. Pritchard doesn’t seem to notice. Beca notices the way Chloe bites down gently onto her lower lip, though, and she can just picture that familiar smirk the other girl is desperately holding back. “It’s Beca. But I mean, Beca, Becky... Whatever.”

“My apologies, Beca.”

She’ll get her back for that later, she decides.

---

They really haven’t been very lucky with office assistants. There have been two since Amy, neither a very good fit for the company, but it seems that Chloe is slotting in perfectly already. By lunchtime, she has already sprung some idea on Mr. Pritchard that Beca doesn’t quite understand just yet -- but she’ll ask Chloe about later -- and he has loudly professed how much he loves her enthusiasm.

The room is only half as full as it had been earlier, with a few people still out on their lunch breaks, so Beca allows herself a moment to steal a glance toward Chloe. She’s sitting at her newly assigned work station, typing away on her computer, and looking every bit a member of the team. To say that Beca feels proud is an understatement, and she really wishes she could brag about the other girl to anyone who feels like listening, but she knows she can’t, and she’s okay with it. Beca has never been one for PDA, anyway. She’s just... Proud. Understandably so.

A part of her wants to catch Chloe’s eye, but she knows that’s dangerous, because Beca doesn’t do very well at hiding her own blush, and she’s sure her cheeks would darken at least three shades if the two of them were to make eye contact.

There’s a soft ‘Ping!’ from her computer’s iMessage application, and Beca realizes she’s saved, quite literally, by the bell.

Chloe, 1:34 PM: I know you’re watching me, Becky 😉

Chloe, 1:34 PM: Don’t you have work to do?

And there they go, Beca’s cheeks heating up beneath the soft layer of foundation lightly covering her face. Her lips purse to keep herself from grinning.

Beca, 1:36 PM: What can I say, Cleo. You’re distracting.

Chloe’s soft, unmistakable giggle sounds, though Beca keeps her eyes on her screen, watching the three dots as Chloe types her response.

Chloe, 1:37 PM: Cleo? That’s just pushing it. I think just one of us getting the other’s name wrong will do for now.

Beca, 1:38 PM: Maybe.

Chloe, 1:40 PM: How do you think I’m doing? I feel like it’s going well, but you know these people better than I do. Do you think they hate me yet?

Beca, 1:42 PM: Are you kidding? I don’t think it’s possible for anybody to hate you. And you heard Pritchard earlier, he’s already singing your praises. You’re doing great, Chlo.

Chloe, 1:43 PM: Thank you. Here’s hoping!

Chloe, 1:43 PM: How is your day going? It’s weird being in the same room as you and not talking.

Beca, 1:44 PM: It’s weird being in the same room as you and not touching.

Finally, Beca dares herself to steal another quick glance the other girl’s way, and she sees the way Chloe’s perfectly painted lips are turned upward all over again.

Chloe, 1:46 PM: I know. Mr. Pritchard did show me a perfectly good closet during the tour earlier. The one where all of the filing is kept.

There’s a grin on Beca’s lips as she types her own response, her eyes rolling playfully.

Beca, 1:47 PM: You’re ridiculous.

Chloe, 1:48 PM: I know, I’m kidding.

Chloe, 1:49 PM: I do have some filing to do, though...

Beca freezes up momentarily. Is that a hint? She’s about to ask when she sees the other girl from the corner of her eye rising from her seat. Chloe flashes a charming smile toward one of their coworkers as she passes him by, and at first, she doesn’t make eye contact with Beca. Not until she reaches the door, anyway.

“Um, I’m sorry, I know you’re really busy, but do you think you could show me where to find the bathroom, Becky?”

Gray eyes shoot upward, locking instantly with blue. She shifts her stare briefly around the room, though nobody is batting an eyelid, before fixating it quickly back on Chloe. There’s that charming smile on her face still, it hasn’t faltered even slightly, and against her better judgment, Beca finds herself standing from her seat.

“Uh, yeah, sure,” Beca nods, brushing a chunk of mousy hair behind her ear as she makes her way toward the door, the one Chloe has already opened and is standing expectantly beside. “It’s Beca.”

“Oh, sorry. First day, still learning everybody’s names!”

There’s a silence surrounding the two as they exit the room, and while Beca has her doubts, she finds herself trailing along behind the other girl.

“We’re not going to the bathroom, are we?” She questions, brow arching as she keeps up with the redhead’s pace.

Chloe’s answer is simple and bright, it’s chirpy and enthusiastic, every bit the friendly new coworker, “Nope!”

It’s almost ridiculous, the things Beca will do when it comes to Chloe. She takes her job seriously, and she would never do anything to jeopardize it.

...Except have her maybe-girlfriend start working there without her boss’ knowledge. Oh, and potentially make out with her in the filing closet.

It’s a busy building, there are plenty of staff members, all with a constant flow of work to keep on top of, so it’s slightly foreign for the hallway to be as empty as it is, though Beca is grateful for the fact as she continues to follow Chloe, almost stopping and turning back around as she comes to her senses.

But then the redhead is opening up a new door, and turning to flash Beca the smirk she’d held back earlier over her shoulder, and God, Beca swears she feels her insides begin to melt.

“There aren’t cameras in here, right?” Chloe questions as Beca follows her into the room, her tone casual as she scans the upper corners.

“I don’t think so. But people come in and out of here a lot, Chlo. We should probably--”

Before she can even finish her sentence, familiar lips are pressing against her own, the taste of brand new lipstick and everything Chloe Beale hitting her immediately, and Beca’s body relaxes into the feeling, her hands instantly finding their way to Chloe’s waist.

“We should probably..?” Chloe prompts, lips still brushing against Beca’s. Beca knows that she’s teasing, and that if she really didn’t want to do this, Chloe wouldn’t push, but her maybe-girlfriend is like a drug, and Beca is suddenly desperate for her fix.

“We should probably make out a little,” the brunette murmurs into the kiss, pressing her lips more firmly to Chloe’s. She feels the other girl’s curve into a small smile against her own, and Beca knows she’s done for.

For such a small person, Beca is surprisingly strong. It helps that Chloe is pretty light herself, and soon Beca’s grip on her waist is tightening until she can snake her arms around her, pale legs wrapping around her own as she carries the other girl to the nearest surface.

“You could’ve given me a heads up that you were wearing this,” Beca says with a certain amount of urgency as she pulls her lips away from the other’s. Her heart beats wildly in her chest, and her gaze drops downward toward Chloe’s skirt. It has ridden up with the position of her legs wrapped around her, and Beca feels an aching at her center, the need for more pulsing adamantly through her small frame.

“Why?” Chloe’s soft laugh is like music as it falls against Beca’s lips, her arms wrapping with ease around her neck. “You don’t like it?”

“I love it,” Beca huffs, head tilting to the side just a little bit to allow her lips the perfect angle to begin peppering light kisses along Chloe’s jaw. “You look amazing, Chlo.”

How far they’re going to go in here, Beca doesn’t know. She does know that she doesn’t care right now, though. Maybe later she’ll worry about the consequences, which is very much unlike her when it comes to her job, but Chloe is just... She’s Chloe. She’s irresistible, and Beca can’t think of anything else she’d rather be doing right now than trailing open mouthed kisses down toward the redhead’s neck, the sound of her soft, familiar whine vibrating through her throat and against Beca’s lips.

There’s an urgency to Beca’s hushed tone as she allows her teeth to graze lightly over the other girl’s soft skin. “Do you want me to stop?”

Although Chloe’s head is tilted back, Beca feels the way she shakes it. “No,” she husks breathily, “That’s the exact opposite of what I want.”

In hindsight, perhaps Beca really should’ve considered this before. The fact that she and Chloe are very much in that early, honeymoon phase of their relationship, that time where neither can keep their hands to themselves. Not even someplace like this, where it’s vital that they do. But Beca isn’t thinking about that right now, she isn’t thinking about what she should be doing, she’s focusing on what she wants to do, and that just so happens to be sitting on the cabinet in front of her, legs parted perfectly around her own, voice soft and pleading as long fingers work their way into the back of brunette hair.

“You have to try to be quiet, okay?” Beca whispers as her lips continue their downward path, tongue flicking delicately over soft skin as she reaches the other girl’s collarbone.

“I will,” Chloe mumbles, and although Beca isn’t looking at her, she can picture her expression so clearly. The way Chloe’s head is angled backward, red hair draped down her back, eyes hooded and silently begging for more. The mental image makes it almost impossible for Beca to keep her hands to herself, and soon she finds them trailing from around Chloe’s waist and across her inner thighs, the way the other girl’s legs part giving off the impression of silent pleading.

Her own arousal begins to pool between her legs, but Beca’s focus isn’t on herself right now, it’s on the woman sitting before her, on the way her fingers are sliding feather lightly over her skin. It’s hot to the touch, even more so the further she moves up the inside of Chloe’s thigh. The redhead releases a soft, barely audible whimper as Beca’s fingers reach the fabric of her panties, the material invitingly wet.

“Fuck, Chlo,” Beca mutters against her skin, teeth nibbling gently down over familiar goosebumps. “How long have you been wanting this?”

“Since the second I saw you this morning,” Chloe breathes unsteadily, hips pushing ever so slightly forward in an effort to seek more friction.

Beca can take the not-so-subtle hint, two fingers sliding the damp fabric aside and finally meeting with the other girl’s wet center. The action immediately pulls a whimper from the back of Chloe’s throat, and Beca finds herself biting down a little more roughly onto her skin. It’s not her intention to leave a mark, Chloe is just so damn hot, she can’t help herself. The tip of her pointer brushes over her clit, coating it in her arousal, and the aching between her own legs increases tenfold in response to Chloe’s audible reaction.

Accepting Chloe’s promise to stay quiet had definitely been wishful thinking on Beca’s part, or perhaps she was just playing dumb, because they both know just how loud Chloe can be, how forward she is with her verbal responses. It’s really no hardship for Beca to trail her lips back up toward the other girl’s to stifle the sounds beginning to fall almost lazily from them as her finger slides easily inside of her, the instant warmth a welcomed feeling, and truth be told, a total turn on.

As Beca slides her middle finger down Chloe’s swollen clit and toward her center, letting it slip inside of her alongside her pointer, she’s the one to release a soft moan into the other girl’s mouth.

“You’re so hot,” she breathes, and while she knows it’s a less than creative, less than intelligent compliment, it’s exactly what’s on Beca’s mind as her fingers pump in and out of the other girl, her gentle moaning vibrating against her lips.

Beca has been learning Chloe’s body throughout their time together. She knows how to tease her, she knows where to touch her to pull the exact reaction she wants from her, and as much as Beca wants to prolong this, to drag this out for as long as possible and to have Chloe begging her to let her finish, she also has to remember where they are. It’s difficult, given the distraction, but regardless.

It’s really not long before their lips are moving away from one another’s, Chloe’s head falling forward to rest against Beca’s shoulder as she pants as quietly as possible -- it’s not very quiet, but for Chloe, it’s impressive -- and Beca feels the way the other girl’s walls clench tightly around her digits. She removes her wet fingers from her center, allowing the coated tips to stroke delicately over her clit until she knows Chloe has reached her release.

The internal struggle of having to finally pull her fingers away from the other girl is a difficult one, because Beca wants to go again, to deliberately pull louder sounds and more desperate movements from the redhead, but she knows that she can’t, not right now. She can still feel her against her skin as she lifts a hand to settle gently under Chloe’s chin, the last few minutes ingrained in her memory as something she never wants to forget. For a second or two, her gaze washes over Chloe’s face, taking in her expression as she comes down from her euphoric high, and Beca can’t help but feel a little smug. Chloe looks beautiful and vulnerable, and Beca watches her with adoration, before her lips are pressing delicately against the other’s.

“We should probably get back to work,” the brunette finally says, her voice a mumble against the redhead’s lips. It’s even more difficult for her to pull back from the kiss than it was to move her fingers away, but Beca somehow does it, and the expression she’s met with on the other girl’s face is reward enough.

“You’re right,” Chloe breathes, her arms rising to wrap loosely around Beca’s neck once more. “Ugh, I really don’t want to, but you’re right.”

“Mm, I have a tendency to be,” Beca jokes, brows rising and falling in a way that compliments the smug smile still drawn across her lips.

They share another soft, delicate kiss, before Beca finally forces herself to take a step back, arms wrapping around Chloe’s waist to carefully lift her down from the cabinet. Her skirt is still risen, and Beca can’t help her small chuckle as she motions toward it. “You might want to fix that.”

“I was getting to it,” Chloe responds in a light tone, her hands lowering to position her skirt back in place. Beca assumes they’re going to exit the room, though Chloe reaches forward to grasp a fistful of Beca’s shirt, gently tugging her closer. Her lips ghost feather lightly against the brunette’s, and her whispered words cause that familiar aching to return. “You know, I’ve always wanted to do that. Sex with my girlfriend in an office closet.”

“Girlfriend?” Beca questions, her gaze taking in Chloe’s expression as she pulls just slightly back.

The redhead simply nods, her small smile natural, almost bashful in response. It’s a look Beca has never seen before, but that causes her heart to flutter, her stomach to twist with the feeling of a thousand butterflies. “Mm, that’s what I said.”

Beca wants to play it cool, to act like it’s no big deal, but she’s only fooling herself in doing so, and it’s clear that Chloe has already seen the way her cheeks have heated up, her teeth sinking gently into her lower lip. “Good to know.”

For a moment there, Beca had forgotten where exactly they were, but now they were faced with the task of returning to the office as if nothing had transpired, and Beca isn’t so sure her inner actress knows how to do that. But she has to try, and fortunately she has Chloe’s expert lead to follow.

“You go back first, I’ll head back in a couple minutes,” Chloe instructs, leaning forward to press a small kiss to the apple of Beca’s cheek. There it is again, that struggle to pull herself away, but Beca eventually does it, her stomach swirling with excitement and undeniable nerves as she makes her way out of the closet and back toward the office.

A part of her expects everybody to stare when she walks back in, as if they’re going to know exactly where she’s been, exactly what she was doing, but she’s met with busy coworkers doing their jobs, just like any other weekday, and Beca feels herself begin to relax as she heads for her desk, pulling out her seat and relaxing back into the rest.

People have returned from lunch by now, Mr. Pritchard included, and Beca’s heart almost stops when Chloe enters the room only moments behind her, with Mr. Pritchard calling her name.

“Chloe,” he greets, walking quickly toward her as she passes Beca’s desk on the way to her own. He knows. Beca is positive that he knows, and she braces herself for the impending chastisement. “How is everything going? Do you feel you’re settling in okay?”

Apparently, Chloe is much more composed than Beca, though that’s really not surprising. She meets Mr. Pritchard with a friendly smile, her head nodding and curls bobbing against her shoulders. “Everything’s going great, Mr. Pritchard.” She glances briefly toward Beca, then back to their boss. “Becky has been extremely helpful.”

The brunette has to bite on the inside of her cheek to keep herself from grinning, though her shoulders relax and she feels the weight of fear removing itself from her body.

“It’s Beca,” she says, clearing her throat. Both sets of eyes move toward her, and Beca shrugs her shoulder almost nonchalantly. “But I mean... Becky is fine too. Whatever.”

#beca mitchell #chloe beale #bechloe #bechloe fic #bechloe week #mine #mine:writing #going crazy when i'm with you

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doberbutts · 5 years

Note

Hi! I am just wanting to ask you a few things about Creed's development over the years if that's okay? I was wondering when you saw a shift in maturity in Creed as he was growing up? Halo is a year and she is still very puppyish & over emotional. What time of Creed's life was he the most challenging to teach? Halo is making progress but I still worry. Creed is a cutie & I wish we lived closer so Halo could run & bounce with him!

Absolutely okay and I’m pretty sure he’d love that lmao, he loves him some dobe girlies.

I did see a big shift in maturity. From about 5 months old until he was somewhere between a year and a year and a half, he was actually pretty dog aggressive. I couldn’t take him anywhere near where there were other dogs because he’d do nothing except lunge and growl and snarl and bark at other dogs, even if they were very far away from him. Even the sound of dogs barking on TV or keys jingling were enough to get him going. It was a really frustrating time and for a while I actually thought about giving him back to his breeder! At one point I was calling her crying because he’d been doing really good with that and then I took him to a pet store with me to buy some treats and he lunged and barked at a beagle puppy walking past us. I think he was about 8 or 9 months at that point in time and I felt really defeated and like I’d screwed him up somehow.

Thankfully not only his breeder but also my breed mentors and my dog training mentors and friends all reassured me several times that it was a phase and very likely not permanent, and that while he’d never be a dog park dog (which I was prepared for) he’d go back to being safe with other dogs with time and effort, and it kept me from throwing in the towel and just giving him back. We recruited another trainer to help spot me when I was too stuck in my own head to see past my frustration, and by the time he was 1.5 years old... the problem effectively vanished without a trace. I took him to a park (NOT a dog park) to just walk him on the path and we were rushed halfway through by 4 offleash dogs of varying sizes and he just sort of... stood there quietly, then walked nicely with me when I made some interesting maneuvers to get away from them. The day before he’d still needed reminders to not bother other dogs as they walked by. I remember thinking that day “who is this dog and where did Creed go???”

I was tempted to chalk it up to just one good day/good event but I was also in the middle of a mentorship where I was encouraged to bring him along and he was doing phenomenally there too- no problems with the other dogs around us, no problems in a downstay while I was working with a different dog, no problems being a neutral dog for dogs like him. It was as if a switch had flipped and I had my actual dog back and not the monster he’d been for close to a year.

We had the occasional bad day if I took it for grated and pushed him too hard- at roughly 22 months he had a spectacularly bad day where we were asked to leave the show grounds at a week-long event in Ohio because I couldn’t get control over him. I’d been snuck up on and startled by a long-time internet friend who I’d yet to meet in person and he would NOT leave her alone after, and then after being so keyed up his behavior rapidly deteriorated until he was just barking at everything that got near either of us.

I felt really embarrassed and ashamed at the time but looking back... he was still young, and it was HOT (88F lows, 99+F highs), and this was an outdoor event where we’d already been attending for 5 days, 12-15 hour days each time, and something I hadn’t noticed until that night is that his entire belly and underside was covered in red rashes and bumps from some chemical the park maintenance people had sprayed in the grass (other competitors and attendees messaged me about it the next day- every dog that had laid in that grass had eventually deteriorated into being uncontrollable and presented rashes a few hours later). There were also two bitches in standing heat making all the boys crazy, and this is the event where I witnessed first humans start fighting and then their dogs joined the fray, so there was a lot of tension in the air too. All in all, I should have taken him out for a break sooner, but there were a lot of factors contributing to the end result.

But then like... he hit two and everything changed again. We’d gone home from that event thinking that I’d need to do more training and we did do more training and then I went to another event very much like the first six months later and... literally nothing. He was his usual self and absolutely nothing like the behavior he’d shown at the first event. We were there for a week then too, living with a bitch in heat and specifically one he knows very well, it was still hot, there was still some weird chemical making him react on the grass, the days were still long, there was still human drama fighting and dogs trying to get at him to fight, I found out later that a dog did actually bite a human at that event... and yet his behavior was fantastic. Once again, like a switch had flipped, we suddenly just... stopped having bad days with that.

Now he’s 5 and earlier this week I had a client with a dog desperate to get at him to fight that I was giving the information on trainers who could help her dog (due to insurance reasons, at my current job I cannot take dogs with a history of aggression, and this dog has bitten more than one other dog) and he just laid behind me and chilled out while the other dog was making all sorts of demon noises at him. We have dogs rush us from time to time and he’s fine. He’s had dogs suddenly, literally be on top of him while we’re standing at register and he doesn’t move or react. We get dogs that lock in on him and will not leave him alone, and he just moves out of the way with me. I’ve gotten really good at dodging charging dogs since he’s usually literally attached to my belt with a hands-free leash.

A very large part of all of my problems with that was definitely maturity. Now that he’s a mature male in his prime, I just... don’t worry about him with other dogs at all. He plays with the puppies at my job and flirts with the girls and steadfastly ignores adult males and I just don’t have to worry about any of what I used to. He met my coworkers’ senior dobe Suvie like once in passing on leash before we turned them out together and they took to each other instantly. I use him as a neutral dog all the time in my classes that contain dogs with explosive reactions to other dogs. Most of my videos of him in my training ring on this blog are of him acting as a demo for classes. We were just at a big training event a few weeks ago where most of the dogs attending were large, intact, adult males and he didn’t spare any of them a second glance and frolicked in the sprinkler with his (intact, year old) nephew. No one worries about Creed at my current store where we’ve been for two years now because no one has to. And a lot of that is just that he’s old enough to not have to be a territorial asshole teenage punk about dogs in his space, so he just doesn’t do it anymore.

Some of it is training too! If I had ignored the problem and not worked on better behaviors, he would probably still be a big asshole punk, but behavior suppression and behavior modification is only part of the puzzle in this instance.

#halodobe #asks

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trblhalfmoon · 5 years

Text

Trick or Treat

count: 8,504

Summary: You run into an old friend in the least likely way you’d expect.

A/N: This was supposed to be a fic I was trying to put out before Halloween but I procrastinated so hard and now it’s coming out a few weeks before christmas lmao regardless, it’s a Dean fic and we all know the world needs more of those lol im not entirely satisfied with the way it came out but i really just wanted to get it out there, so hope you all enjoy!

_______________________________________________________

You return home from a grueling trip to the local mart with a bag full of mini sized chocolate bars. Your roommate, Kim Taehyung, glances up from where he’s sprawled on the couch and immediately gets up to steal the bag, ripping one open and popping a snickers into his mouth.

“What took you so long?” he asks, mouth full of chocolate.

“I told you to stop talking with your mouth full,” you remove your jacket as you catch him rolling his eyes. “And save those for the trick or treaters!”

You snatch the bag back from him and pour it into an empty bowl by the door. “You’re the one who insisted we needed candy for tonight,” you swat away his hand as he attempts to reach for another piece. “I never would have thought Halloween to be a big deal around here if you hadn’t said anything.”

“Yep,” he heads back to the couch. “Whoever said it was a dying holiday has never lived around these parts.”

It’s true, for the most part your parent’s neighborhood was full of grown-up kids too occupied with parties and functions to be wrapped up in the act of going door to door for free candy. It’s only been a few months since you’ve moved into your new apartment, but you’ve yet to meet any of your neighbors and you can’t deny your curiosity.

“Anyway, check out the list of movies I’ve chosen,” your roommate waves his phone in the air calling you over.

“Tae,” you give him a look after reading the first couple titles, “these are all horror movies.”

He scoffs as if it should be obvious. “Duh, it’s Halloween.”

You raise a brow, “Are you sure you’re down? You’re not exactly…”

“Not exactly what?” He asks, full attention now on you.

“You’re a big softie,” you return his phone, retreating into the kitchen to make some popcorn before he can launch a pillow at you. You can’t help but laugh as he loudly protests from the couch.

_______________________________________________________

“Ahhhh!”

You drop a handful of popcorn in reflex to your roommate’s shrill scream, ready to berate him before he bursts out laughing.

“Taehyung, do you have to yell every time the doorbell rings?” you roll your eyes.

He shoots you a pointed look but you only throw a piece of popcorn at him. “What do you expect, it’s a horror movie!”

You shake your head in response, “Go get that, it’s your turn.”

He reluctantly gets up from the couch as you pause the movie and scroll on your phone. You can hear yelling coming from outside and a lot of laughter, but you think nothing of it until it takes him seconds too long to return.

You peek down the hallway to see him standing at the door, hands on his hips and irritation in his voice. “Yah, aren’t you too old to be trick or treating?”

“Come on bro, hook us up!” an unfamiliar male’s voice sings from the other side of the entrance.

You decide to round the corner and poke your head out from behind your roommate, curious to catch a glimpse of the cause of trouble.

“No way! Sup, dude!”

Taehyung looks between you and the trick or treater, his friend’s arm slung around his neck as he supports the majority of his weight.

“Dean? I didn’t know you live around here,” you exclaim.

You give him a once over; he looks just as good as ever.

“Not me, I’m here with this loser,” he motions to his friend whose arm is slung around his shoulder.

“HI! I’m Zico!” the other male greets a little too loudly and clearly drunk.

“You deal with them,” Taehyung turns away already disinterested. “I’m going back to the movie.”

“Sorry about him,” you offer once he’s out of earshot, not quite sure what you’re apologizing for.

“You better be, he won’t give us candy!” Zico slurs angrily.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” you apologize again while reaching for the bowl behind the door.

“Don’t be,” Dean laughs as you hand them fist fulls of candy. “We actually already got some, Zico just wanted more.”

Zico leans forward to stroke your chin before parading off in a loud commotion. “Thanks for the hook up, baby girl!”

Dean shakes his head and laughs and you take this quick moment to study him. His cheeks are a rosy pink, eyes squinting with excitement as he calls after his friend. You can tell he’s buzzed too, but the thing that catches your attention is what you remember the most.

He smells exactly as you remembered. An intoxicatingly sweet and forbidden smell that used to make your head spin. It’s mixed with traces of alcohol and cigarettes, but you don’t miss it as he lingers at your front door.

“Well, it was nice seeing you,” you smile at him while reaching for the door.

“Wait,” he calls out, giving you his crinkly-eyed smile you remember so well. “Zico’s place is a couple complexes down. There’s a party going on right now if you’re interested.”

“Oh, I don’t know... I’m marathoning horror movies with my roommate,” you hesitate, very much wanting to say yes.

Dean only smiles back. “Apartment 130 if you change your mind.”

Just like that he’s gone, chasing after his friend who you can hear laughing the next complex over. You sigh, closing the door to return to Taehyung who you find peeking around the corner having watched the whole exchange.

“So?” he asks curiously, eyes following you back to your seat on the couch.

“So?” you thoughtlessly return his question as you reach for the remote.

“Are you serious?” he laughs, jumping over the backrest to snatch the remote from your hand. “The sexual tension was so palpable I could feel it down the hallway.”

You take a moment to check if he’s being serious. “You are crazy.”

“What’s so crazy about it? You two obviously have history.”

“We used to work together a couple years ago.”

“That’s it?”

You pause before you answer. Taehyung takes your hesitation as a sign and scoots closer to you on the couch. The tv screen is still frozen, movie long forgotten from Dean’s unexpected reappearance after all these years.

“We were coworkers at an old lab I used to work for. We weren’t really close, maybe you could consider us friends...but that’s really only because I saw him everyday at work.”

“So you guys were never a thing?” Taehyung seems determined to fish for more info.

“No,” you respond with an eye roll having to answer the same question for the third time. “We were both in relationships. Besides, all the girls at work would fight for his attention. I didn’t want any part in that.”

“But there was obviously something there,” he offers. “Take it as you want, but I’m an outsider looking in. So if someone like me can see that, then obviously you can’t because you’re biased.”

You take a second to process his words but it’s no use. “I don’t know, Taehyung.”

“Do you like him?”

His question throws you off guard. “I mean, he’s cool and everything.”

Now it’s Taehyung’s turn to roll his eyes. “That’s not what I mean.”

“I don’t know. I remember feeling...guilty all the time after working with him. Don’t take it the wrong way, nothing ever happened! I’m just not sure what it was about him back then,” you quickly add after Taehyung gives you an accusing look.

“It sounds like a mini crush or something,” he offers. “But you were obviously conflicted because you were both in relationships.”

“I don’t even want to call it that,” you close your eyes remembering the guilt.

“What was it about him?” your roommate gets comfortable on the couch crossing his feet into your lap as he leans against the armrest.

“I don’t know...he smelled good.”

Taehyung bursts out laughing, “Seriously?”

“Shut up,” you defend yourself while throwing a pillow aimed for his face to which he clumsily dodges. “It was so...intoxicating.”

“Well i’m sure there’s more,” Taehyung prods you through fits of laughter.

“He’s funny, nice, and he was really...flirty,” you add remembering all the times you attempted to flirt back; memories you have trained yourself to suppress.

“Even though he had a girlfriend at the time?” Taehyung asks to which you nod. “Did he ever talk about her?”

You think for a moment, “Now that you mention it...no, I don’t think I’ve ever heard from his mouth that he had one. But all the girls would always talk about her.”

Taehyung cocks a brow and smiles something sinister. “Sounds like a fuck boy.”

You uneasily return his smile. That was the talk of all the girls back then; Dean seemed to always love the attention he got from everyone. Almost as if he knew exactly what he was doing. Were you just one of the many victims stupid enough to fall for it?

You’ve always wanted to say you weren’t, that his charisma and charm had no effect on you, but you know that’s a lie. Even though nothing had ever happened between you two, you know being around him had messed with your mind, whether you knew the reason or not. Feeling excited whenever you saw your names together on the schedule, disappointment when he called out sick or didn’t show up to work…

“So are you gonna go?” Taehyung asks, pulling you from your thoughts.

“No way,” you wave him off. “I already told him I had plans.”

Your roommate snorts, “We can do this anytime. Don’t worry about me, I won’t be offended if you ditch me for Dean.”

The thought of going to the party alone only knowing one person there is enough to refuse the offer. Your roommate watches you closely from across the couch.

“Will you come with me?”

“I thought you’d never ask,” the male literally bounces from his seat. “Let’s ditch these movies and go have fun!”

_______________________________________________________

You knew this was a bad idea from the start. Already an hour into the party and Taehyung seems to have wandered off in a claim to grab you both drinks. Knowing the social butterfly that he is, he’s probably already befriended half of the people here.

You’ve never been to a halloween party before, so you weren’t entirely sure what to expect. Taehyung assured you that everyone dresses up for these things, but you feel slightly out of place in your red suspenders and blue shorts. You’ve long ditched your pokeball and squirtle plushie, hiding it in your bag in an attempt to look more dressed down. Taehyung had come as a ninja, but even then, his all black attire could easily pass as a normal outfit.

“Misty! Where’s your Ash?” someone slurs at you from behind.

You’re making your way outside to the back when you’re stopped in the kitchen by someone you don’t know. Unsure of what to say, you offer a nervous laugh and drop your gaze to your new acquaintance.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you before,” a cute, petite brunette peers at you through round spectacles.

She’s wearing a black robe with Gryffindor’s emblem patched onto the right side with a matching red and gold tie. She’s mastered the messy-bun, loose strands of hair falling along her forehead and dancing along her neatly kept eyebrows right above her fake glasses. You notice her cheeks a burning red and a huge smile on her face; she’s clearly drunk.

“Nice costume,” you try to deflect, feeling a slimmer of hope when her eyes grow wide in appreciation.

“Thanks! I’m Brooke, who are you?”

“______,” you extend your hand to which she takes too long to return the gesture, eventually giving you a weak, sloppy shake.

“I’m looking for…” she furrows her brow, the struggle on her face evident as she tries to remember the person of interest.

“Hey, you made it!”

Another person in similar garment as Brooke comes beside you with a big grin on his face. He studies your costume, eyebrows raised, and it takes everything in you not to squirm under his gaze.

“Hi Dean,” you reply meekly, surprised by his again sudden reappearance.

He takes a quick glance at Brooke before addressing you and turning on his heel towards the backdoor, “This calls for a beer!”

You briefly catch a glimpse of the patch on the front of his robe, Slytherin, different than it’s Gryffindor counterpart but still similar enough to imply that the two are -

“Dean, wait!” Brooke calls after him, scuttling around you without a second thought and leaving you standing in the middle of the kitchen alone.

“This was stupid,” you mutter to yourself as you make your way back into the living room to find Taehyung.

You spot the blonde headed boy, much too comfortable on the couch with an unknown redhead sitting on his lap. Leave it up to Taehyung to seduce a random stranger. He’s whispering something in her ear, but you have no shame to intrude as you stand directly before them, eyes trained on him.

The female is quick to display her annoyance with your intrusion, eyeing you up and down before Taehyung finally gives you his attention. He grabs her waist when she makes the motions to leave and you catch him whispering, “It’s okay, that’s just my friend.”

“Tae, we need to go,” you roll your eyes at his demoting comment. “This was a terrible idea.”

“I don’t think so,” he turns his attention back to the girl, giving her ass a playful squeeze as she giggles in response.

“Taehyung,” you try for his attention one more time, adding urgency to your voice.

“Have you seen Dean yet?” Taehyung asks, distracted as he nips at the female’s jawline.

“You know Dean?” the red-headed female pipes up. “If you’re looking for him, he’s most likely with Brooke. They’ve been fighting all night.”

This snaps Taehyung out of his spell as he finally gives you his full attention. You try to hide the hurt look on your face but it’s too late and he’s seen it seconds before you replace it with a smile.

“Thanks, but i’m not looking for him. I’m going to head out now,” you respond to no one in particular.

You make it halfway to the door before someone grabs your wrist and spins you around. Your blond headed roommate stares back at you, sympathy in his eyes as he grips you.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have insisted we come,” he entwines his fingers around yours in apology.

You look down at your joined hands and back at the redhead on the couch whose mouth is agape with shock. To anyone else Taehyung’s actions would be suggestive, but this is normal of your friendship. You’ve both always been comfortable in your skinship knowing it’s entirely platonic.

“It’s okay,” you try to supress your disappointment, unable to get the image of Brooke and Dean’s matching robes out of your head. “It’s not like we could have known.”

“Let’s get out of here, yeah?” Taehyung soothes the back of your hand with strokes of his thumb.

“You don’t have to leave because of me, Tae. I shouldn’t have interrupted you,” you glance back at the couch with a pang of guilt.

“I came along because of you, dummy,” he bumps his forehead against yours. “Besides, she wasn’t that great of a kisser anyway.”

You stifle a laugh as you watch the red-head stomp out of the room. Hands still entwined, the two of you make your way towards the exit with you leading the way, almost making it out the door only to run right into Dean’s chest.

“Ow,” you rub your forehead before you can process what happened.

“Leaving already?” Dean smiles apologetically, two beers in hand and Brooke nowhere in sight.

Taehyung reflexively moves in front of you as if to push past him. “Yep, thanks for the invite,” he greets hum curtly.

Dean stares down at your hands and raises his eyebrows. His smile diminishes slightly but he continues to block the exit. “Not without a drink first,” he insists.

You hesitate, unsure whether to take the offer but Taehyung decides for you. He pushes past Dean and drags you alongside him with a quick, “No thanks, we have to get going.”

Your shoulder brushes against Dean and you freeze. You’re overcome with his presence again, inhaling that sweet, mysterious scent you’ve grown so fond of and quickly inebriating yourself. Taehyung senses your hesitation and tries to pull on your arm again, but it’s too late.

“Actually Tae, go ahead...I think i’m gonna stay a bit longer,” you stare at Dean before you have a chance to really think about what you’re doing.

Dean’s smile returns full scale while Taehyung gapes at you in disbelief. “A-are you sure?” he tugs you closer to whisper, knowing just as well as you that this is a bad idea.

“Yeah, maybe just an hour or something,” you’ve already let go of his hand at this point.

Your roommate knows it’s pointless to talk you out of it; you’ve already made up your mind but he lingers, clearly conflicted about your decision.

“Be careful,” he whispers one more time before turning to leave.

Dean doesn’t waste another minute as he hands you the beer, clinking his bottle against it in a silent cheer. You take a gulp as you watch him take several swigs from his bottle; watching his adam’s apple bob up and down at the motion, following the trail of the tattoo on his neck to his jawline and moving further to his lips that are wrapped tightly around the bottle…

You suddenly feel dizzy and try to distract yourself with more gulps of your beer. You have to avert your gaze somewhere else when you’re unable to get the inappropriate thoughts out of your head.

“So whatcha been up to?” Dean asks as he chucks his empty bottle into a nearby trash can.

“Not much really, just taking some time off work,” you tuck a loose strand behind your ear. “How bout you?”

“Same. I’ve been keeping myself busy though,” he’s all smiles. Just like you remember.

A few moments of silence pass and you shift on your feet uncomfortably. It’s been so long, you’re not sure what to talk about, so you try your luck with small talk.

“So, Slytherin?” you motion at the green patch stitched onto his robe. Unlike Brooke, he is sans a tie, wearing only a black t-shirt with black fitted jeans.

“Yup,” is his only response. You deflate a little; you were hoping to get more out of him about his matching outfit. “So, Misty?”

To be honest, this was the only thing you could throw together in the short amount of time you had to prepare. But you don’t want to tell him that.

“Just cause,” you shrug, trying to sound cooler than you actually feel. You take a swig of your beer.

“I don’t remember Misty looking so cute,” he adds nonchalantly.

You almost choke. As he keeps his smiling gaze on you, you have to remind yourself that he’s always been this way. Nothing has changed; he’s still the same, overconfident flirt that you remember.

“You’re the same as ever,” you laugh in an attempt to lighten the mood, but he doesn’t respond. He only continues to look at you with the same smile plastered on his face. You avert your gaze and can’t help but to curse yourself...especially over the fact that he still has such a dramatic effect on you.

Dean’s phone buzzes and he quickly checks his screen. You note the way his smile fades for half a second before he flashes another one at you that doesn’t quite touch his eyes.

“How bout we ditch this party?”

“Wait, what?” you nervously play with your suspenders.

“Yeah?” he cocks his eyebrow again as if asking for the second time.

“Um, sure,” you can feel yourself losing your confidence as Taehyung’s words ring in your ears...be careful…

_______________________________________________________

“And then she just asked me out for lunch out of nowhere,” Dean laughs as he recounts a story from your time at the lab together.

He takes a puff from his cigarette, his third one since you both left the party and ended up in an empty lot by the pier. It was a quick twenty minute drive back to your hometown, by the river trail near your old lab. It’s almost fitting that this is the place you would both end up for the night.

“So what happened after?” you turn away as he blows another puff; you were never fond of the cigarettes.

“Well I went and it was chill, but we both ended up coming in late that day,” he flicks the cigarette stub to the ground and you watch the dying embers glow against the darkness.

You smile faintly at the memory. There was a lot of disappointment that day when you saw the two of them walking in together an hour past their shift time.

“It was fun and everything, but Emily isn’t my type,” he adds as if reading your mind.

“Oh? You have a type?” you scoot your knees closer to your chest as you re-adjust yourself away from the cold.

Dean has the trunk of his car popped open and the two of you share the space in the back as you catch up in the dark.

“Don’t you?” he responds with a laugh. “Everyone has a type.”

You think back to your exes, most of them from high school or having met through mutual friends, but you can’t seem to find any underlying trait that would indicate a preferred type.

“I have a thing for bad boys,” you joke, almost making it through the statement before laughing.

“Oh yeah?” Dean’s brows perk.

But you wave him off, not wanting it to escalate in a direction you’re not prepared for, “So what’s your type?”

He answers immediately, “Fun, doesn’t take everything so seriously, down for anything.”

“Down for anything?” you ask curiously, unable to stop yourself from thinking about Brooke.

“Yup,” Dean responds after a short pause from digging through his pocket, “Wanna blow?”

“Excuse me?” you turn to look at him, clearly caught off guard.

He waves a small, glass pipe in front of you and a modest bag of shredded weed.

Your mouth forms an “O” in understanding and Dean raises his brows, “What did you think I meant?”

“Don’t worry about it,” you laugh while taking the pipe and examining it in your hands.

“You down?” he tries again.

“I’ve...never done it before actually.”

“Swear?” your answer seems to shock him.

“Why does that surprise you?” you shift again, crossing your legs to get a better view as he takes the pipe back to begin his work.

He only chuckles and shakes his head as he packs the substance into the small bowl, pushing it down lightly with his thumb before reaching once more into his pocket to pull out a lighter. He offers it to you and you take it without another thought as he instructs on what to do next.

“Cover that small hole on the side with your finger and inhale as I light it.”

You nod, doing what he says as you wrap your lips around the top, covering the hole by the side of the bowl with your thumb. He takes a moment to stare at you like this, before quickly snapping out of it and flicking his thumb against the lighter.

A couple sparks shoot out, but you can see small, glowing embers as you remember to inhale. You take a long drag, not sure what is effective before having to turn away to cough out a fit of smoke.

“Slow down,” Dean laughs as he takes the pipe from your hands. “You don’t have to take such big hits. Take it easy since it’s your first time.”

He takes his own hit, effortlessly blowing out smoke in neatly packed circles.

“Woah, how are you doing that?” you ask between coughs. The smoke burns your throat, but coughing only seems to irritate it more.

“It’s gonna be a long way till you’re able to do that,” he responds after taking another hit.

You watch closely as he shapes his lips into a tight ring, but shy away when he blows another circle into your face.

“Show off,” you mutter as you take the bowl back. “Let me try again.”

He lights the bowl for you as you focus this time on not inhaling as hard, and you blow out quickly, forming the same ring with your lips. To no surprise, no circles come out.

Dean laughs hysterically at your attempt to imitate him and you swat his arm as you join him. Despite the lingering irritation in your throat, you feel slightly lax, not worrying as much about saying something stupid or looking dumb in front of him.

The both of you sit there in comfortable silence, enjoying each other’s presence. He leans back, resting against the back seats, and in the process his shoulder brushes against yours and he keeps it there. The contact doesn’t seem to bother him though as he closes his eyes in the pure bliss of his high.

You, on the other hand, are a mess. Unsure if it’s the the effect of the drug, your heart and thoughts are racing. You’ve never made physical contact before. During your time working together in the lab, he’s always kept a big enough distance between you two, but this is really the first time you’ve had direct contact.

In a panic, you take the pipe from him and take a few small puffs to wisp away any unpleasant (or pleasant) thoughts from your mind.

Dean watches you in silence for a few moments before speaking, and you almost jump out of your skin. His voice sounds much more deeper and raspier than what you’re used to.

“Wanna try something?”

“Sure,” you’re surprised at how different your own voice sounds.

“Ever heard of shotgunning?”

“I...well...yeah,” you can feel the panic returning and rising in your chest.

But before you have a chance to backpedal, Dean brings the pipe to his lips and inhales, leaning in closer until he’s inches from your face. He looks at you expectantly but you can only stare back, wide eyed and unsure if you can handle this.

The male quickly turns away and blows out a trail of smoke, clearing his throat with a cough from having held it in for too long.

“S-sorry,” you mutter, grateful that it’s too dark for him to see your pink cheeks.

He only shakes his head and chuckles, “We can try again.”

This time, he waits for your response. You want this. You can feel it through your body; every part of you is screaming for it, already drowning in his smell, his voice, his presence. Without another moment of hesitation, you slowly nod.

With another inhale, Dean leans in and you close the gap, closing your eyes as you anticipate physical contact. His lips are warm and you only have a few seconds to properly feel him before he’s blowing smoke into your mouth.

It feels like he backs away faster than you can process and it takes everything in you not to chase after him. You turn away slightly, slowly exhaling as Dean watches you through hooded lids. You’re dying to know what’s going on in his mind right now.

Electric sparks shoot through your body as you stare back. There’s definitely no going back.

“Why-”

Dean’s ringtone cuts you off. It takes him a second too long to realize it’s his, but he fishes for his phone and stares at the screen for a good minute, allowing the call to ring out. You watch as he turns it off and flings it into the back seat, only to return back to his original position, leaning against the backseats and closing his eyes.

It takes a lot out of you to keep from staring at him; you should probably have noticed the signs - he’s been dodging any contact on his phone for the whole night but you’re much too high to process any of it. You try to shift from your seat to make yourself more comfortable but panic when your body feels too heavy to move.

“I feel really weird,” you blink rapidly as if trying to snap out of it.

Dean partly opens his eyes to study you before offering a nonchalant, “ You’re high, relax and enjoy it.”

“Are you supposed to feel so disoriented?” you plop your head back against the back seats beside him, not realizing when you fall slightly against his chest. But he doesn’t seem to mind.

Laying back like this, you feel lighter and lighter as each minute passes. All your worries and thoughts begin to dissipate and for once in a long time, your mind is completely empty. You close your eyes, enjoying the motion of the rise and fall of Dean’s chest and don’t even notice that he’s gotten completely quiet. You slip off into light slumber, comforted by the warmth of your newfound companion.

_______________________________________________________

You have no idea what time it is when you wake. Despite the chilled night air, you are surprisingly warm and it takes you a minute to realize where you are once you open your eyes.

“Sup,” Dean smiles in amusement as you come to your senses.

The drugs are now only slightly present but have left behind a hazy fog in your head. You’re lying in the passenger’s seat, the chair fully reclined while Dean sits in the back, looking up from his phone as you try to rise.

“Oh fuck, I’m so sorry,” you try to move but he only shakes his head and laughs as you collapse again from the sudden weight of your body.

“Why do I feel so heavy?” you groan.

“Probably the weed,” he watches you in amusement as you open and close your hands in an attempt to take control back.

“How’re you feeling?” your voice sounds strained.

“I feel great,” Dean sighs with a smile. “Crazy night, huh?”

You’re not quite sure what to make of the situation. Dean is staring at you but you’re too embarrassed to make eye contact, all the while your body too stiff and heavy to comfortably move.

“How long until this wears off, anyway?” you roll over onto your stomach, feeling self conscious when he doesn’t break eye contact.

“Depends on the person. You alright?” he asks as you hear him shifting in the backseat.

“I think so, just a little heav-”

You freeze. Dean’s reaches over and gently threads a hand through your hair, combing through your strands in one, slow stroke.

“D-Dean?”

“Just relax.”

You do anything but that. This is the second time you’ve made physical contact with him and you almost want to kick yourself for how tripped up you are over that fact. You can only hope he can’t tell how much this affects you.

His strokes become slower and you have to keep yourself from moving when you realize he’s gently grabbing fistfuls of your hair and slightly tugging the strands. You can’t decide if it’s all in your head whether or not his movements are growing more sensual, so you instead focus on how good it feels.

After a few moments, his palm comes in contact with your neck and he smooths down your skin with slight pressure. A few moments of this motion and you can feel yourself relaxing, the tension in your limbs coming undone as you feel yourself turning to putty.

“Feel good?” You can’t see him, but you can tell he has a smirk on his face.

“Mm,” is all you manage to get out.

You hear him chuckling to himself as he shifts again in the back seat to move closer to you. His hand travels slowly down from your neck to your upper back, moving further down your spine before returning back up to repeat the motion.

“I’ve had to coax many people back to sober after their first high,” Dean laughs more to himself.

“Did they all get a killer massage too?”

“Only the ones I’ve liked,” he quips back.

You take this moment to look up and find him staring at you, a blank expression on his face.

“Dean…?” your stomach churns when he doesn’t respond for a few moments.

He reaches forward with the same expression and wraps his hand behind your neck.

“Dean, wait-”

“I’ve been wanting to do this for a very long time.”

He pulls you closer, stopping until your faces are inches apart, and looks into your eyes with silent permission.

“Will you let me?” he whispers when you don’t respond right away.

You dare to meet his gaze and give him a small nod. Then, as if afraid you’ll change your mind, he quickly closes the gap.

If you’re being completely honest with yourself, you’ve imagined this scene many times in the past. Never in your wildest thoughts would you expect it to ever happen, and in his car nonetheless.

He kisses you gently, his hand holding on to your neck lightly as if to keep you from leaving. All the while, you try to bring yourself back down to earth.

You are kissing Dean.

Despite all the times you’ve imagine this, it feels wrong. Brooke’s face surfaces in your mind and you freeze, pulling back before you realize it.

He doesn’t say anything, only offering you that same blank expression. You’re a little disappointed he doesn’t seem to be under the same spell you are from having just kissed; you are sure your cheeks are bright red.

“Dean I...” you hesitate, not wanting this to be the end of your time alone together. But you need to be sure there’s nothing standing in the way. “Something feels...wrong.”

“Wrong…?” he quirks a brow.

Maybe it’s the way he shifts closer to you or the way he’s staring at your lips that makes you second guess yourself, so you try again.

“I met Brooke.”

His eyes snap up to meet yours and you’re met with a curious stare that seemingly pierces through you. He doesn’t offer a response and it takes everything in your power to keep pushing. Was this a mistake?

“I don’t want to cause any problems for anyone.”

He inches forward again, hand reaching out to cup your cheek. “You have nothing to worry about.”

“Are you su-”

He puts a finger to your lips and laughs, “Stop worrying.”

He motions for you to join him in the back and you try to climb over the passenger seat onto the seat next to him. Instead, he grabs your arm and pulls you on top of him. You gasp as your heart jolts in your chest, but it only makes him laugh and the motion does interesting things to your bodies.

“We’ve made out already, why are you still so nervous?” he wraps an arm around your waist, the other finding its way back to your neck.

“I can’t help it,” you mutter, watching him as he studies your face.

“Do we need to smoke another bowl to chill you out?” he half jokes, but you’re quick to shake your head, not wanting to risk passing out again.

“Then kiss me,” he leans his head against the backrest waiting for you to initiate and raises his brows with a smug look on his face. God, he looks so good.

So you do. You wipe any thought or doubt from your mind, knowing that you can either trust him in this moment or walk away. And the way he’s holding you makes it near impossible for the latter.

Dean lets you kiss him slowly and softly before he runs his tongue across your bottom lip. You part your lips wider to let him in, but he instead takes your lip and sucks hard. You groan, the motion unexpected as he softly bites on the flesh and causes goosebumps up your arms.

He leaves your lips to trail towards your neck, sucking lightly just below your jawline. You place your hands on his shoulders, resting your head in the crook of his neck and intoxicate yourself with his smell. Before you can help it, you slide forward to try to get closer and just so happen to brush against his hardened length. He exhales from the contact, but continues to suck along your neck.

“Do that again,” he breaths between kisses.

Your face heats instantly but you’re quick to give him what he wants. You slide back and forth on his lap, giving you both some form of release and much needed friction. Dean’s hands slide down to your waste and guide you back and forth, and you take note with how he picks up the pace.

By this point, you’re both panting and wanting more. You continue to swivel your hips against him as he cups your face in both hands, bringing your foreheads together as he looks into your eyes. In the dim light, you can faintly see his blown out pupils as they threaten to cover the milky whites of his eyes and your heart jolts; he’s as fucked out as you are.

You run a hand down his chest, stopping at the hem of his jeans and he obliges right away. He gives you room to shift off his lap as you undo his belt and pants, bringing it to his knees as he lies back and watches you.

You bend down, keeping eye contact to gauge his reaction as you take him in your hand. With just a few pumps, he struggles to maintain eye contact as you focus on the tip, cupping your hands and running them down his full length.

He closes his eyes and you can’t help but feel self conscious. Despite it being just the two of you, you can’t help but wonder if he’s imagining someone else. Trying not to let these thoughts ruin the mood, you pause to pull the straps of your suspenders down and pull your shirt off.

It grabs his attention immediately. His eyes hungrily scavenge your bare skin as he sits up to pull you back onto his lap and pepper kisses along your chest. He wastes no time grabbing and massaging the exposed flesh, pulling your bra down to allow him access. You sigh in contentment once his attention is back on you and continue your work with him in your hands.

Your sensitive breasts hardened under his touch as he lightly sucks, swirling his tongue around the tip in an endless circle of pure bliss. You begin panting, and this only excites him more as he switches sides and sucks a little harder.

You can feel the aching need growing between your thighs, so you rub your legs together to give yourself some time. If you’re not careful, it would be too obvious to show him how badly you’ve been wanting this.

“Feel good?” he chuckles between kisses. He peeks up at you through hooded lids as you return a shy smile.

“Bet I can make you feel better,” you offer, tongue licking your lips. He’s quick to catch the motion.

“Oh yeah?” his brows quirk, eyes shimmering with mischief.

“Yeah,” you breathe seductively as you push him back down onto the seat.

He bites his lip as you slide down his body, kneeling in the small space and grabbing him in your hand. You give him a few pumps, maintaining eye contact as he dares to stare back, and you very slowly stick your tongue out to swipe the tip of his head. He shudders from the contact and it is only then you take him entirely into your mouth.

Dean lets out a breathy laugh, clearly flustered by your movements as you take your time with him. You wrap your lips tightly and hollow your cheeks out as you come up, making sure to swivel your tongue around his sensitive head.

“Fuck,” he mutters under his breath as he tries to maintain eye contact. “You look so fucking hot right now.”

His words evoke a rush of adrenaline in you as your cheeks flush, only making you want to please him more. You come up at the tip, slowly wrapping your lips around the top as you’ve found it’s what gets the biggest reaction out of him, and slide as far down as you can until he hits the back of your throat.

You swallow on instinct, and for a moment you try not to gag as you watch Dean unfold beneath you. His breathing stutters as his eyes squeeze shut, hand flying to tug on your hair as the other rests on his forehead. He pulls your hair back and you get a better view of him, unhindered by your tangled strands, and the sight is enough to make your mouth water.

Beads of sweat trickle from his forehead, creating trails down his neck and wetting his hair. He’s never looked so good...and you are the cause of it all.

You swallow again and watch in fascination as his face twists in pleasure, breath stuttering and legs trembling as he reaches his high. You’d be lying if you said you weren’t high off the sights and sounds coming from him.

You don’t want it to end but you know it’s only a matter of minutes now. You retract towards the tip, focusing your efforts on the sensitive skin of the head as he curses and shakes beneath you.

He bites his bottom lip hard, provoking a throaty moan from you in response, the sight too overwhelming to bear, and it’s just the thing to send him toppling over the edge. Warmth fills your mouth and you quickly swallow, mostly on instinct, but you allow him to ride out his wave as you try not to gag from the saltiness.

You lean back against the door and lick your lips, wiping away the rest of the mess you both made. Dean takes a few moments to compose himself before pulling his pants back up and grabbing your arms to hoist you back onto his lap.

“Fuck, that was the hottest thing ever,” he rests his head in your chest, your bra still pushing your breasts up much to his delight.

He peppers more kisses along your collar bones and back to your neck as his hot breath fans your sensitive skin, sending shivers down your spine. His lips find your earlobe as he playfully nibbles, whispering into your ear, “Do I get a taste?”

It feels like all the breath leaves your body as he continues to suck hickeys onto your neck, marking the skin as if claiming what’s his. You would have been beyond satisfied with just having gotten him off that it didn’t occur to you that he would offer to return the favor.

You give him a small nod as he smiles, motioning you forward as he fumbles with the back seats to fold them down. He pats the back of the cushion and you climb on top, lying on your back as he runs his hands up your thighs.

“You won’t believe,” he kisses up your thigh, “how badly,” more kisses, “I’ve been wanting to do this.”

Maybe it’s the alcohol or the traces of weed, but your stomach is in knots from his confession. You can’t help but wonder at the truth of his words or if he’s just simply living in the moment. To save yourself from embarrassment, you decide not to ask. You’ve always been good at faking confidence in front of him anyway.

“Oh yeah?”

You’ve removed your bra by now and you prop yourself up on your elbows as you watch him carefully.

“Yeah,” he whispers as if imitating you from earlier. He kisses closer and closer to your center, all the while keeping eye contact.

In one smooth motion, he unbuttons your shorts and pulls them down your legs along with your underwear and tosses them to the front seat. You are now completely naked in front of Dean.

He takes this moment to sit back, admiring the way you look spread out for him, exposed and vulnerable. He smiles, the famed cocky smile you’ve seen him do many times when talking with the girls at work, and you can’t help but wonder what’s going through his mind. Is this his way of celebrating his victory?

Before your conscience has a chance to eat away at you, Dean swoops in and wipes all other thoughts from your mind. He grabs at your thighs, spreading them apart as he eats away like a man starved.

“F...fuck….!” you gasp as he catches you off guard.

Unlike the men before him who have had their try at you, Dean skips the kitten licks and laps up every inch of you, forcefully swirling his tongue around your tiny bud of pleasure. You can almost make out the patterns he traces with his tongue, never using the same stroke, yet still somehow able to keep pushing you towards your high.

You’ve never felt this good, and you never could have imagined how good he would feel between yours legs. You can’t help it anymore, and forgo your heavy panting for loud moans.

Dean groans in appreciation and the vibration from his lips stimulates you further. You try not to squirm, but when he keeps up the ministrations of his tongue, you can’t help but to writhe against his touch. This only causes him to grip your thighs harder, pinning them down against the chair to keep you in place.

As good as it feels, you know you need more. You try to sit up to get his attention, but the sight of him face deep in between your legs only causes you to collapse again. You’re definitely going to be thinking about this moment for a long time.

Almost as if on cue, Dean releases a hand from one of your thighs and coats his fingers with your arousal. You gasp as the cold metal of his silver rings grazes your skin, but before you have enough time to adjust yourself, he slides two fingers into your entrance.

Your back arches immediately, it’s exactly what you needed to get you where you want to be. Dean pushes as far in as he can go and curves his fingers upward, rubbing at a sensitive spot you didn’t know existed, all the while his tongue working on your clit as his lips occasionally suck the swollen bud.

“D...Dean…” You can feel it, you’ve been chasing your high for a while now and you’re nearly there…

“Go ahead, babe.”

Dean leans back to watch you unravel, his fingers never ceasing movement to help you ride out your orgasm. You feel your legs tremble as waves of pleasure course through your body from the tips of your fingers down to your toes.

The burning need in the pit of your stomach fizzles out as Dean soothingly rubs at your thighs, and you allow yourself to enjoy the feeling for a few moments before sitting up to reach for your clothes.

Despite the time you both shared tonight, all the negative thoughts you’ve been repressing come crashing back into your conscious. You both sit in silence for a while and you can’t help but wonder where things will go from here.

Dean eventually rolls down a window and reaches into his back pocket to pull out a cigarette. He sits at the edge of the chair, resting his head outside as he takes long drags.

“That was hot,” he appraises you as you take a seat next to him.

“All thanks to you,” you quip back as you watch the embers burning from the end of his cigarette.

His free hand moves to rest on your thigh, the warmth bringing a flush to your cheeks as you’re reminded of just how skillful his fingers are.

“It’s been a long night,” you glance at your phone to see it’s a little past one in the morning. “Why don’t we head back?”

“Or we can just never head back,” Dean suggests smugly.

Now it’s your turn to offer a blank stare. You’ve never been able to figure out just what he was thinking, and in these moments where he jokes with you, it’s near impossible. You want to ask what all this meant tonight, but the better part of your mind knows it was probably just a one time in-the-moment kind of deal.

He laughs and gives your thigh a little squeeze before opening the door, offering his hand to help you out and back into the passenger seat. On the car ride back you’re both quiet, and you shuffle awkwardly in your seat as you wonder if this will be the last time you’ll see him.

Once back in the apartment complexes, he parks in front of the house you both left from but doesn’t get out.

“Are you going back in?” you ask as you reach for the door handle.

He nods his head and unlocks the door. “Yeah, there’s something I have to take care of.”

“Oh...okay,” you hesitate not sure how to take your leave.

“I’ll call you sometime,” Dean smiles at you, the first smile he’s ever offered you that didn’t seem sinister. A soft smile, one that reaches his eyes as he looks at you with a new found fondness.

Your cheeks flush, hand reaching to grab your phone to offer your number. But he only shakes his head and laughs as he cups your cheek with his hand.

“You knocked out earlier.”

It takes you a moment to realize what he means, but the implication only causes your cheeks to flush harder. The thought of Dean toying with your phone while you were out is bey9nd embarrassing.

“You were always so cute when you got embarrassed. Your face turns bright red, you know,” he laughs as his thumb strokes the warmth of your cheeks.

He drops his hand and you seize the opportunity to escape. “See you around, Dean.”

“Peace out, girl scout,” you can hear him laughing as you shut the door behind you, not daring to look back as you fast-walk back to your apartment complex.

A very disgruntled Taehyung answers the door when you realize you don’t have your keys.

“Jeez, you’re a mess,” he eyes you up and down, rubbing sleep from his eyes as you side step into your apartment. “What happened?”

“Tae, I have so much to tell you…”

#deanfluenza #deantrbl #dean kpop #kyon hyuk fic #dean fic #deanfluenza fic #deantrbl fic

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wenevergotusedtoegypt · 5 years

Text

I had an argument with a coworker earlier that’s really getting to me.

Like listen, I’ve had disagreements with coworkers. I have coworkers who regularly drive me crazy. I had the whole MPC saga last year. But what gets me about this situation is that it was someone I’d previously considered a friend, and came totally out of nowhere.

Basically, we have a huge crisis of office space this year. We have more actual employees than we’ve ever had who need desks, and 10 interns who are sometimes in all at once. We don’t have any more space than in the past. To make matters worse, there were some auditors here for a few months who were using one of the conference rooms all day every day. I have tried to problem-solve. The interns’ supervisor has tried to problem-solve. My boss has tried to problem-solve. We’ve tried to work with other departments. This is an ongoing thing, we are doing everything we can do, but some days there’s just not anything I can do. To make things worse, several staff members - including senior staff - have been uncooperative when asked to keep me informed of days they’re out so that their desks can be utilized. Then I look like an idiot because I say there’s no space for something, and it turns out that X senior staff member’s office is open all day.

It’s frustrating. It’s frustrating for me, it’s frustrating for the interns, and it’s frustrating for everyone else. But again, some days there’s just not anything I can do. I can’t magically conjure up more space. I can’t force other departments out of conference rooms.

So finally the auditors I mentioned are gone, and I can breathe a sigh of relief. The interns can work in the room they were using every day, no scrambling for space on days there’s literally nothing available, no booking a different conference room for them for the whole day and then not having anywhere to schedule meetings. It’s not the greatest solution, because it tends to be cold and it’s a bit far from the rest of our staff, but sometimes you’ve gotta work with what you have. Especially on a Monday, when there’s literally never any conference rooms that aren’t booked at least part of the day for something else.

And then this coworker comes up to me this morning, and instead of expressing concern and asking what we can do, is just outright hostile to me from the get-go, treating me like I’m the enemy, treating me like I’m holding back some solution for funsies, treating me like I haven’t been trying to figure this out every single freaking day since the interns first started in the fall.

She’s mad because the room they’re in is too cold (not in my control and what do you want from me when there’s literally no other space in the entire freaking building??) and the cell reception in the room is poor (it’s not as good as elsewhere in the building but I’ve personally made plenty of calls there, so...) and it’s too far for her to get to when people call for the interns and she has to track them down (I agree! I literally have the same issue! It’s significantly further for me than for you! There is not a better solution!). And because X senior staff member isn’t in until 11:30 today and I should have told them to use his office til then (1. he didn’t tell me he was coming in late 2. in the past the interns have complained to their supervisor about being moved in the middle of the day so WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME, darned if I do darned if I don’t), and because Y senior staff member isn’t in today and they should be using her office (it couldn’t fit more than 4 - and that extremely cramped - and I’d already let multiple of them use that office for calls and meetings today), and because if I told them they can use it, why are 4 different interns complaining to her that they can’t (I don’t know, because these freaking obnoxious interns are consistently ungrateful and this is not the first time they’ve made it out to other staff that I’m being unhelpful when really they’re ignoring help that I’ve offered and/or not asking for it?).

I immediately get defensive because...wth. The conversation isn’t hugely productive (shocker) and though I end up conceding to a point of hers, she walks away in the middle of the conversation seemingly without hearing/acknowledging that, mumbling something about talking to her supervisor. I take a moment to breathe, walk over to her desk, and ask if we can talk. She says ok. I explain that I felt like she came in already attacking me, that I got defensive as a result, and apologize and say that I would have had a very different response had her approach been different. Clearly trying to reset and start over the conversation. She acknowledges that she came in on the attack but then...acts like it was reasonable? and continues to speak to me in an extremely hostile way. Says that “she’s doing her job” and “I’m doing mine.” Wth NO?? It’s not your job to be hostile to your coworkers. It may be your job to advocate for yourself/the interns working with your department, but there is a freaking way to do that. I repeatedly ask her to remember that we’re on the same side and tell her that I am frustrated too, that we have been working on this all year, that she doesn’t even know all the background information about what my boss and I have been doing behind the scenes to try to figure this out. But she just keeps being hostile and acting like I’m not doing everything I can.

I think what bothers me most about this is that she’s also an admin person. She should know better. She should know what it feels like for people to be ungrateful and demanding when you’re doing your best and to always expect instant solutions no matter how unrealistic. We’ve worked together for coming up on 3 years and she should know I’m not just sitting back doing nothing, or purposely making people’s lives difficult. And yet she never even tried to have a calm conversation with me. She went from nothing to completely hostile instantly. I used to think of her as a friendly face and someone who got it, and she came to my wedding even, but now I honestly just don’t want to interact with her ever again whether professionally or socially.

#work

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bts-reacts · 6 years

Text

Info Game

Well it’s my turn here we go

Last

1. Drink - Arozina green tea with honey and ginseng this runs through my veins

2. Phone call - My boo

3. Text message - Also my boo

4. Song you listened to - Well if you don’t count what I’m currently listening to, EOEO by UNIQ

5. Time you cried - This morning. I AM A VERY PASSIONATE SINGER AND I SAW A VIDEO WHERE THIS GIRL ON THE UNIT HIT A BEAUTIFUL, PERFECT HIGH NOTE. THEN THE GROUP DID AMAZING HARMONIES It was The Yellow group singing Jackpot. I got shook

Ever

6. Dated someone twice - when I was in 4th-8th grade and didn’t knw what dating was I went back and forth with the same guy every single damn year

7. Kissed someone and regretted it - Every boy I hooked up with during my senior year I was discovering myself through a hoe phase

8. Been cheated on - my ex cheated on me for 6 months of our 1 year relationship. Then called me a crazy bitch for calling him out on it and telling the girl he had another gf. I am still blocked on all of his social media

9. Lost someone special - I was raised by a single mother until I was about 7 years old. My step dad was the first man I had in my life to be considered a father, and in 2012 he passed away in a motorcycle accident. He got hit headon by a semi truck while he was planning a ride for our church

10. Been depressed - I am the shining definition of depression

11. Gotten drunk and threw up - I don’t touch alcohol because the yeast smell is disgusting

Fave colors:

12. Pastels

13. Not pink I have red hair so I grew up dressed in pink because “it made my hair look nice”

14. Honestly it depends on the day. Some days I have a favorite color, other days I have a different one.

In the last year have you…

15. Made new friends - do my coworkers count? I mean I’m around them 40 hours a week. That’s more than my family

16. Fallen out of love - I’ve been with my bf for over a year so I’ve actually done the complete opposite

17. Laughed until you cried - Totes

18. Found out someone was talking about you - Honestly I don’t remember

19. Met someone who changed you - I had an old coworker who made me realize just how gross some guys can be. He got excited when my bf left for China and asked me everyday if he could be my “temporary bf”??????????????

20. Found out who your friends are - Well I’ve only ever had two true friends so I guess I found out who my friends are years ago

21. Kissed someone on your Facebook friends list - My grandma and my boo?

General

22. How many of your Facebook friends do you know irl - Honestly a lot of them knew me through school, but I didn’t actually know them personally. I’ve gone through and deleted people eveyr now and again because I don’t know them and I don’t want them clogging up my feed

23. Do you have any pets - I HAVE SO MANY. Three cats: two grumpy old men and one excited young kitty. AND 3 BEAUTIFUL PUPPIES WHO ALL THREE COME RUNNING WHEN YOU SHOUT FOR THE BABIES TO COME HERE

24. Do you want to change your name - I used to. No one spells it right, or says it right the first time. When the teacher would do roll call on the first day of school I would know they were talking about me when they paused and stared at the list. It’s spelled Shaina. I’ve had Shayna, Shania, Shanna, and one girl at a starbucks spelled it Shanea. I guess it just makes me unique so I’ll stick with it.

25. What did you do for your last birthday - My bf and I took a small vacation up to Chicago and visited museums, aquariums, AND ATE HOTDOGS AND DEEP DISH PIZZA

26. What time did you wake up today - 12:30ish

27. What were you doing @ midnight last night - playing Detroit because Connor is a gorgeous puppy who needs protection

28. What is something you can’t wait for - I can’t wait to move out of my mom’s house in a month or so

30. What are you listening to right now - Generally, I’m addicted to (G)IDLE’s new comback. Literally and currently, my spotify is playing Cypher Pt 4

31. Have you ever talked to a person named Tom - Honestly I have a terrible memory so I don’t know

32. Something that gets on my nerves - Everything. But really, people who act like they’re better than you just beause they have more experience in something or have been somewhere for a long time. I have a coworker who thinks he’s right about everything because “He’s been working there a long time”

33. Most visited website - Gmail and CreditKarma. School just started so I’m obssesive over my email and I’ve always been obssesive over my credit score

34. Hair color - Dark red. Not most ginger’s red. As I’ve gotten older, it’s darkened towards a brownish red

35. Hair long or short - very long. It’s halfway down my back when I put it in a high ponytail and need at least 2 holders to keep it up in a bun

36. Do you have a crush on someone - nope

37. What do you like about yourself - I love my hair and my brain. My hair and eye color is a unique combination (brown eyes w/ red hair). I’ve always been extremely creative since I was little and that’s such a big part of who I am

38. Want any piercings - Ever since I was emo, I’ve wanted my lip pierced

39. Blood type - I have no clue

40. Nicknames - Depends on who you ask. My grandpa calls me little red, my friend calls me Shay, an old friend from high school caled me Shane Dog

41. Relationship status - Surprisingly taken

42. Zodiac - Pisces

43. Pronounce - She/her

44. Fave TV shows - Anything I watch is a fave tv show

45. Tattoos -None but I desperately want some

46. Right or left handed - Right. But when I was younger my cat bit my right hand so I couldn’t move it. So I can eat comfortably with any hand, but I only write with my right hand

47. Ever had surgery - Nope

48. piercings - The traditional one piercing in both ears

49. Sports - Dancing and I still love softball even though I stopped playing in th grade

50. Vacations - I high key want to visit Madrid and Mexico City.

51. Trainers - ???

More general

52. Eating - Last thing I ate was the best ramen ever for dinner

53. Drinking - Lipton green tea I love green tea

54. I’m about to watch - Well I’m currently in the middle of Bromance and Strong Girl Bong Soon

55. Waiting - to go to bed

56. Want - to transfer to my dream college that on the other side of the country...

57. Get married - I feel too young to be married atm. Plus my bf and I have only been together for a year. But if I do my uncle can legally marry me so that’s sweet

58. Career - Currently working as a cook at Applebee’s. But my dream career is to be a business owner of my own bakery. or a singer, I want to sing so badly but that’s unrealistic :/

59. Hugs or kisses - Hugs all day

60. Lips or eyes - I am just mesmorized by single lid eyes idk why

61. Shorter or taller - a bit taller. like a few inches

62. Older or younger - Older

63. Nice stomach or stomach - I’ve had both and I didn’t love myself either way. I’m more worried about feeling comfortable in my body so I don’t care about which one I guess?

64. Hookup or relationship - relationship. Hookups will still text you every month asking if you’re single yet so you can hook up again. They’re too stressful tbh

65. Troublemaker or hesitant - Little of both

Have you ever

66. Kissed a stranger - Unfortunately yes

67. Drank hard liquor - I’ve had sips of my mother’s wine that is it

68. Lost glasses - I’VE LOST LIKE 3 PAIRS OF GLASSES SOMEHOW???

69. Turned someone down - Yes

70. Sex on first date - Another unfornately yes

71. Broken someone’s heart - Not that I know of

72. Had your heart broken - The first boy I loved broke my heart when I was 15

73. Been arrested - I cry when I get pulled over for not wearing a steatbelt. I’ve never been arrested

74. Cried when someone died - my step dad dying came as a shock. I did the whole stare into space, sit down and continue staring, then sob. It was like a tv show

75. Fallen for a friend - nah

Do you believe in

76. Yourself - Kinda

77. Miracles - Hell ye

78. Love at first sight - I used to, but then I learned that that is not love.

79. Santa Claus - I did until I was almost in high school

80. Kiss on first date - My first date iwht my bf, he hugged me goodbye and gave me a little kiss on the should r that was really cute. So if it’s those kinds of kisses yes

81. Angels - Totes

Other

82. Best friend’s name - Katlyn and Alex

83. Eye color - Dark DARK brown

84. Fave movie - The Harry Potter series. ALl day every day

85. Favorite actor - I really like Benedict Cumberbatch for some reason?

Wow that took me forever. There’s more about me tho!!! I better go to bed because it’s almost 1 and I have a class tomorrow at 9 kill me

~Admin Red

#admin red #pray for me #i can't drink caffiene because it gives me panic attacks so tomorrow is gonna be fun #large amounts of caffiene anyway #gonna be walking into class trying to stay awake by drinking a nice iced tea #then I have to stay there for 3 hours #and stay at the school even longer because i need to do stuff for my online classes

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aparecium-hq · 4 years

Photo

Welcome to Aparecium, Christie! You have been accepted for Lily Potter with Aisha Dee as the faceclaim. Thanking for being willing to make the switch! We love the clear personality of your app. It’s evident you have a strong idea of who Lily is, even if she’s still struggling with that herself. We’re excited to have you! Check out the new member checklist, and jump right in.

Character Basics

Birthday (Age): 12th May 2008 (19) Gender (Pronouns): Cis female, she/her Sexuality: Lily herself has no idea. Sure, back at Hogwarts, she’d had crushes on boys, had gone through a stage her mother had, with no small dose of amusement, dubbed her ‘boy crazy’ phase, but she’d never really had a boyfriend. It wasn’t that no one had asked her out, but rather that somehow, as soon as any boy seemed to reciprocate her feelings, Lily found herself losing interest; she doesn’t know if that means she isn’t interested in boys or if she just hadn’t been interested in those boys in particular. Meanwhile, she’s not too sure how she feels about girls either. She has girl friends, she loves her girl friends, and if they tend to be very touchy and affectionate, well, girls just do that. It’s the warmth that spreads inside her every time they hug or hold hands that makes Lily question herself, though; is it just the happiness that comes from friendship or is it potentially something romantic? She has no idea. Blood Status: Halfblood Hogwarts House/School: Hufflepuff Occupation: Artist Faceclaim: Anya Chalotra Any requested changes? Nope!

Biography:

At home, Lily is spoiled rotten. Toys, attention, affection, you name it, she has it. She’s Mommy’s favourite, Daddy’s princess, the baby of the family, and Lily revels in it all, adores the feeling of being adored; it’s not just a good childhood, it’s the best childhood. Stupidly, naively, she thinks school will be like that too. She wants to grow up, she wants to join James and Albus in Hogwarts, she wants and she wants, and up to this point, everything Lily Luna Potter wants she’s gotten. But growing up, it turns out it’s not all that.

In school, no one asks her what she wants, they just try to tell her instead, how she should act (“Hufflepuffs are supposed to represent patience and kindness”), who she is (“The Boy Who Lived’s youngest, Ginny Potter’s daughter, Luna Lovegood’s namesake, James and Albus’ sister”) and when Lily pushes back, they call her hot-headed and rude. It pushes her off-kilter; she’s not used to people assuming the worst of her. But Hogwarts isn’t home, and her classmates aren’t her parents, and Lily Potter isn’t universally adored.

She has to work hard for everything, from people’s love to her grades, and it’s new, but she doesn’t exactly mind. It’s refreshing, almost, to have the chance to be perceived as someone other than the Potters’ little princess and to be able to create a new image for herself. But while she doesn’t mind hard work, she does mind the press sticking their noses where they don’t belong; it’s hard enough to navigate puberty as it is and it’s even harder with eyes on her at all times, just waiting for her to mess up. Honestly, screw the press. Lily vows not to mess up, if only just to spite them.

Except. That’s easier said than done. Teenagehood is marked by lapses of judgement, by mistakes to learn from, and Lily is no exception. It’s not as though she’s committed any Azkaban-worthy crimes or anything, but there are things she’d rather keep to herself, you know? So what if she may have crossed a line or two while playing a prank on a girl she saw talking to the guy she liked? She knows it was wrong, she apologised, but how is that news-worthy? Wix play pranks on each other all the time, she knows; uncle George’s told her stories. But none of her peers end up making headlines like HARRY POTTER’S DAUGHTER FACING EXPULSION OVER A RUTHLESS “PRANK”. Which isn’t even true, by the way, she was never about to be expelled, but do those dementors care about the truth? No, of course not. They only care about their stories.

She misses one of James’ games, they speculate he doesn’t want her there. She mentions that Muggles would probably not be too accepting of magic, they paint her as some prejudiced asshole. She has a bit too much to drink, they question the way her parents raised her – and about this one, in particular, she personally tracked down the author of the article to tell them to their face precisely what she thought of their “reporting”. No matter what she does, though, it seems that there are people who don’t agree and Lily just can’t figure it out.

But she wants to. By Merlin, she wants to. She wants to stop being “controversial”, she wants to make her parents proud, she wants people to stop acting like she’s embarrassing her family. Again, she wants and still, no one seems to care that she does. But by now, Lily’s grown used to hard work and her determination has never been under question, either; she knows she can change the narrative if she just keeps pushing, but the question now is, is there even a point? Maybe it’s okay to let people have their misconceptions and spread their rumours; as long as Lily and her loved ones know the truth, does it matter? She’s not sure.

Character Questionnaire

Answer at least three of the following questions about your character. This could be in character or a third period explanation.

How does your character feel about their family? She loves her family, there’s never been a question of that in her mind, which only makes it all the harder whenever she catches herself wishing she’d been born in a different one. It makes her feel terrible, even just considering it, because her parents are wonderful, and so are her brothers and cousins, and she does really love them all! But the expectations that come with being a Potter are a bit much and she could definitely go without them. She hates the feeling of all that attention on her (which is ironic, really, because she’d loved attention as a child) and while she would never actually want to trade her family, it’s hard not to consider what-ifs.

What does your character value in a friendship? Hard work. Perhaps it’s the Hufflepuff in her, but Lily knows without a shadow of a doubt that friendships take work. She’s seen people drift apart, turn from practically siblings to strangers, all because they give up and let it happen, and she tells herself that would never be her. But she and Hugo aren’t as close as they used to be, and for some reason, no matter how hard she tries, it’s like there’s a gap between them she can’t close. That’s okay, though; she’s not planning on giving up on Hugo anytime soon. If someone can figure it out, it’s the two of them.

How would a stranger who has just met your character describe them? Does this stranger have access to newspapers and online sites? Because if so, Lily doesn’t even want to begin to imagine what they might think of her. The thing is, the media seems so determined to push this narrative of her being a wild child and Lily is so angry at them for doing it that it kind of ends up working. She’s snappy with reporters, she pretends she doesn’t care what they think, she speaks her mind and she does it loudly, just to spite all those journalists who try to put her in a box and silence her.

That’s not her, though. That’s not Lily. Or rather, it is, but it’s who’s she’s become rather than who she is at her core. So if a stranger carrying all those preconceptions of her was to meet her, they would probably be surprised first and foremost. “She seemed a bit… shy? Only at first, though, then eventually she just became really chill and easygoing. Yeah, no, she’s actually really cool.”

What magical skill or talent is your character most proud of? Her Charms work. She’s always had a knack for Charms (though not for much else, as the tabloids love to remind everyone ever since her NEWTs results came out) and incorporating it in her job was a child’s game. She doesn’t only do enchanted portraits, of course – she has enough eyes following her as it is. But whenever wix come to her requesting magical portraits, it feels good to have full confidence that she can perform all the right charms with her eyes closed. Not literally, obviously, although… it would make for a fun experiment. She’d have to see about getting Lydia on-board and giving it a go.

Para Sample

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She slams the newspaper down on Raphael’s desk and the feeling she gets as she does isn’t as much of a déjà-vu as it is reminiscent of a habit with how often she’s found herself in the exact same situation. It does nothing to lessen her irritation; they’re not taking her seriously, any of them. Oh, here she comes again, they probably say when they see her march in. Just send her off to complain to Selwyn again.

She’s sick and tired of being written off as a daily annoyance and, unfortunately for Raphael, it seems his coworkers have decided he’s her scapegoat. Lily stifles a bristle, just barely; if he wants to blame anyone he better blame them.

“Harry Potter’s youngest celebrates nineteenth birthday with a wild night in town,” she quotes, not even needing to look at the damn headline, having already memorised the whole thing. Her tone manages to remain even, somehow, but as she goes on to continue, she can feel her annoyance increasing by the second and it becomes audible in her voice too. “Since when did the Prophet turn into a gossip rag? Who even- who even cares what I do for my birthday, it’s my birthday! And I have a name, by the way, and it’s not Harry Potter’s anything. It’s Lily. Lily Luna, hi, nice to meet you. Except it’s not really.”

She’s launched into a whole rant now, hands on her hips and all, and she would usually feel bad for not letting him get a word in, but hey, they weren’t concerned with hearing her when they printed out this thing, why should she be the bigger person? She lets it all out, going through all the points on her mental list of things wrong with the blasted article, and finally, when she feels satisfied, she looks at him expectantly.

Then the prick has the nerve to say, “Is that all?” and Lily has to wonder what sort of headline the Prophet will come up with if she hexes one of their journalists right here, right now.

#rp #hp rp #hp rpg #lily potter #apareciumacceptance

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